Young Blood

[Morty]

"Ugh!" Ciro growled, burying his head in his paws. "Yeah, ok, dead spirit uncle, should have guessed. Forget about the equinox, there's always next year, when we absolutely won't be in danger from giant birds or dead guys hiding in suspicious neckwear. I'm out." he snapped, futilely cloaking himself invisible as he stormed out of the clearing. His pulse was slamming into his temples like a jackhammer. What am I even doing, he wondered feebly, making a beeline for the treeline ((lololo)), the shady peace of the old oak at night inviting him. Out of sight of the cave front, he let his cloak drop and curled up among the roots, the cool grass tickling his nose as he tried to control his breathing. You're really acting like a child. he reprimanded himself, too distraught to come up with an adequate rebuttle.

[Nohiki]

"Where did i see that in the recent time? One would have though you whelps will learn." Said Phoenicia. "Shall i fetch him?" Offered Lantea, but Phoenicia stopped her. "You have had enough adventure for few years. Stay home and take a rest, the world doesn't end today." she said and vanished, trailing after him.

[Awesomoman]

"It might be in space. But i decided to hang around here" Visron's voice we a whisper in Gorn's mind, but the fact that he was free again was not sitting well. "You piece of... Look buddy, its bad enough to tricked me, but i swear if you mess with my daughter or anyone else, I'm gonna send you into the sun." Gorn replied clenching a fist. He looked over at Lantea who was laughing at an angry Taranis, then saw Ciro storming off. "Can we go back to being threatened by a plague, things were so much easier."

Taranis' went from smug to dumbfounded. "What? Did you even hear what i said!? I KILLED THE GRYADAS KING!" He just turned and pouted. "Reds a cool color anyway."

[Zetherus]

Pandora saw the younger white dragon bolt off from the argument giving her the idea that she should follow as soon as the mother ran off as well. She Shadow Stepped out of the field and appeared in the Oak tree limbs looking down at the young dragon laying near the grass and roots of the Old Oak. She remained silent as she tried to not make any sudden movements to give away her position in the old tree, for her small dark body, it made it possible to be undiscovered in the awkward location of the ancient plant. As the dragoness waited for the opportunity to speak to the dragon. She saw the mother trailing up toward the location of the the Oak so she made haste and asked her question "Psst hey you? What do you know of this ruin that you were speaking about?" The limbs and leaves of the tree hid her appearance as she laid across the branches, balancing not to fall.

[Morty]

Ciro's head whipped up from the damp grass and he scrambled to all fours. He peered into the darkened branches from where the voice had come, a ball of light flaring into existance to illuminate the stranger. "You were eavesdropping! Unbelievable! Who are you?" he hissed, cheated of his moment of brooding. His head darted around to make sure no one else was there before he added, acridly, "And about as much as you do, if you've been listening in this whole time."

[Zetherus]

"No, all I heard was a old library that you brought up in the argument, that, a few ruins, and the equlnox. Where is this equlnox because it sounds interesting and familiar to me?" She spoke angrily but calmly as the light touched her skin diminishing her powers for the moment. Her face could be seen from a small gap in the tree's leaves. "Oh yeah, you asked for my name. It's Pandora and I'll only trust you with my name so don't tell the others and would you please git rid of that light!" She whispered as she accidentally moved her left foot onto a small branch that broke and almost made her plummet to the ground. She wrapped her tail on a larger tree limb so she wouldn't fall then placed her foot back on the limb she slipped from.

[Morty]

Ciro let the light dim slightly and brought it to hover closer to him. "My name's Ciro. I don't know where you got the idea of ruins from, but the Equinox was supposed to start at sundown at some place close to the equator. Not that I'll be there to see it, it's already gone dark." he huffed, eyeing the dragoness's precarious position while neatly stepping to a spot less likely to be fallen on.

[Zetherus]

Pandora felt the presence of the light no more giving back her powers. She Shadow Stepped out of the Old Oak and arose out of the shadows in front of the dragon like a serpent. "This Equinox, do you think it has begun to happen. I mean I could use the void to port us there, only you and me though and it has to be fast for warnings I can't say. In the void everything during this time slows down as if seconds were minutes and minutes to hours but while were in there it is a possibility that we will be forced out by a horrible presence, so Ciro don't use your light powers while were Shadow Stepping." The dragoness spoke as if she wanted to see it anyways walking only a few meters away of the light dragon's light orb and sat down in the darkness eyeing Ciro for an answer. Her presence in the night created a black mist around her as she sat in the long grass of the tree-scattered area.

[Morty]

Ciro's eyes widened as the dragoness suddenly teleported from her branch to the ground in front of him. He couldn't be too surprised, as his parents had the habit of doing the exact same thing. "Technically, the Equinox lasts the whole day, but the critical moment has probably already passed... Or not." he said thoughtfully, taking out his maps, though by now he had practically memorized them. He formed an image in his head of the planet orbiting around the sun, as he'd seen in the holographic orrery in the study room, a conclusion forming in his mind. "Yes, there's still time... The place where the Equinox will unfold is slightly to the West of our current location. That means we still have some hours of daylight left! The critical event hasn't happened yet because it isn't sundown on the island!" he said excitedly, showing Pandora the map, pointing to the small round symbol that marked their destination: a small archipelago of islands almost overlapping the equator. "You sure you can get us there quickly? I won't use any light powers-- just.. don't try anything funny, okay?" he warned ineffectually, fidgeting with impatience. Let's go already!

[Zetherus]

Pandora saw the location on the map that Ciro had shone and instantly knew of the islands. "Well isn't that a coincidence! I just ventured over this area when I came across Energy Peak so we can get there in no time!" The dragoness stood up from the long grass and walked over to Ciro and pressed her chest up against his then relaxed her neck over his shoulder. "Relax! I know this is awkward but this is the only way I can pull you to the void with me!" She said as her eyes turned blood red and the black mist around her body began to engulf Ciro's. In an instant Pandora and Ciro were pulled into the Plains of Void.

The sky was black but emitting a type of light to enlighten the oddly shiny graveled ground. There was a deep whistle in the atmosphere that gave off a creepy presence in the endless flat plains all around. "Welcome to the Plains of Void!" Spoke Pandora as she was next to Ciro. "So now we have plenty of time to get there now so lets go." She continued and began to walk through the strangely quiet land toward the islands where the Equinox will happen.

[Morty]

"Err--" Ciro griped as the unfamiliar dragoness brought herself uncomfortably close with her neck draped over his shoulder. He flinched as the black mist started to rise around his feet, obscuring the roots and grass, until they were up past his head, dissipating to reveal an endless plain all around. There was no sun, only an eerie black light that seemed to diffuse over the face of the featureless landscape. The disturbing sound that filled the void reminded him of wind blowing past a hollow reed. He scuffed the pebbled ground cautiously. It seemed solid enough. He surreptitiously pocketed a few of the curious stones and caught up with Pandora, keeping close despite his reservations. "So, you've been there? Did you notice anything weird about it?" he asked uneasily. He really hoped they wouldn't have to endure this place for long. He felt painfully exposed on this lifeless expanse, and not being able to use light magic only made it worse. She'd better know where she's going... Or at least not be taking me to a sacrificial ceremony. he shuddered, folding his wings around himself all the tighter.

[Zetherus]

"Actually I did notice something weird about those islands when I passed by them but didn't care at the moment I guess!" Pandora said as she focused her attention on Ciro while she still walked. She closed her eyes then opened them to be a blood red again. There were doorways outlined in a bright light opening near the dragoness as she walked by them looking into each one that looked familiar to her then growled when she stopped and looked through a doorway. "Here it is! The islands I saw as I passed by them, do you see the sky as it looks a little strange almost like Northern Lights!" She stopped and focused the portal around the both of them. The two dragons appeared in a dark cave near the coast of the sun setting beach on the unknown island.

[Morty]

"Wow." said Ciro flatly, craning his neck up at the sky as he took a few paces outside of the rocky cave entrance. Though the sun was still hanging a good distance from the horizon, streaks of pink and green could be seen undulating across the sky. Seaweed clung in clumps tp the rocks surrounding the cave mouth, the pebbled shore lined with shells from where the crashing waves had cast them. "Looks like we still have a good hour or so. We should probably get off the beach, though, it looks like this place gets pretty deep at high tide." he observed over the sound of the sea, noting the wreaths of kelp draped over the outstretched roots that broke through the crumbling rock of the cliff face. "We should go." he announced, spreading his wings.

[Zetherus]

"Right behind you Ciro!" Spoke the dragoness as she was already on top of the cliff face looking down at the white dragon. Pandora looked up at the sky to see the extraordinary colors stretching across the ozone layer. "I have never seen something as beautiful as this on Atlas before!" She said aloud to herself. The limestone beneath her feat and the smell of the ocean calmed her even though she has lost her powers from the setting sun. "We must have traveled several hundred miles if the sun is still out!" She yelled down at Ciro enjoying the ocean view.

[Morty]

Several hundred miles. That was a long way, even for someone relatively used to teleporting. He was as far from the island as he'd ever been, and he had no idea what to expect when the sun finally fell behind the skyline. He pushed over the rise of the rocky bluff that fenced in the shoreline and made it above the trees; skinny palms and tough-looking weeds that clung to the uneven ground, masking the jagged edges of the new terrain. As he rose over the escarpment Ciro could see other islands strewn amongst the cerulean waves, some of them more like teeth knocked out of a giant than formations of the shifting earth. He couldn't see any signs of habitation or any form of life otherwise, though they did appear to be on the largest of the islands. From a great enough height he could see that the island wasn't all that large, probably just a few miles across, though it was certainly rocky enough to have a few caves on it. He arced his wings and dropped a few hundred feet, sailing over the sand and brine. As he fell a strange structure caught his eye through a gap in the trees: a splash of white, in a semicircle, hiding amongst the dense forest growth. He sped closer. Below, a vast coliseum hove into view, blocks of white stone forming concentric circles in the pit of the jungle. Ciro's pulse accelerated as he dove towards the arrangement, lighting on one of the wide pitted steps leading down to the coliseum's basin. "Pandora, come check this out!" he called, gazing in awe at the incredible architectual monstrosity. It had to be more than a mile across. The other side was too distant for him to make out clearly. It was amazing that he hadn't seen it sooner, hidden though it was behind the screen of jungle greenery. He knew this had to be the place, they were definitely on the right track.