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[jadewine]

[Quite frankly, the whole of this situation has Jae-Ha seething. This tree - this world - is nothing but a glorified cage. As pleasant as some of it may appear, there's no saving the fact that he's locked in, not to mention other people, as well. At the least, he seems to have caught on to that ray of sunshine, which he uses, but it's not as though it continues to erase all of the bitterness that comes with being here.

But nevertheless. —He seems more at ease, than not, when appearing.

. . . A certain White Dragon, though, just to the side of the screen, does not.]

This amber is very impressive, really. To think that conversing across distances can happen instantly was even remotely possible. . .

But ah- More importantly! My name is Jae-Ha, and I'd like to most humbly offer myself to assist anyone who would like a few lessons in flight, as I'm sure that coordination might be—

[He starts, only to be (rudely!) interrupted.] Jae-Ha! [It's clear the frantic, white haired dragon in the background is not at all happy with the situation, glaring at Jae-Ha from behind.] Your 'services' are hardly what is important right now. Get this off of me already!!

[That being Kija's gem is smack dab in the middle of his forehead, courtesy of some wonderful tree sap, therefore forcing the presence of his wings.]

Don't worry, it'll loosen up within a day. [or something]

That's too long! [He practically despairs.] I- I cannot stand to have these horrible things to be around for another second! AH-! [Nooooo] The Dragon Claw is sticky with sap now, too!

[Jae-Ha just lets out an exasperated sigh] They're a beautiful set of wings, Kija-kun. Now you can fly without any of my assistance, even. Take advantage of it. Your complaining will get you nowhere.

I REFUSE!! [Before Jae-Ha can do much of anything, then, a white scaled dragon claw reaches out and all but grabs his arm to get his full attention - and hopefully succeed in removing the stone, leading the feed to cut off short.]


[ooc: replies will come from either or both!]

Comments

[backstory]

[ . . . Is he talking about Ouryuu?]

Zeno is a trusted companion. He has protected the princess with his life in the past, and I do not doubt for a second that either he or Shin-Ah would waver in doing so. They are incapable of betraying her or compromising her safety. [ He has faith that as long as she is with them she will be safe. ]

And Yoon is clever. They will all listen to him.

[jadewine]

[He falls silent for a moment or so. That's right. It's a somewhat similar situation to not so long ago, with the drug smugglers. Kija, Hak, and himself had not been present.]

For as much as I hate to say, all we can do is have faith in them. Thus far, no one has successfully discovered an absolute way out of here.

[thunderbeast]

This is different from just trusting she'll be alright with someone else for a little bit.

[That's the issue here. To be honest, he'd stupidly rather she be here where he can keep an eye on her. He doesn't like this. It's sort of like missing an arm or leg.]

I don't like this whole situation. Why the three of us?

[backstory]

I have been asking this same question for a while now.

[thunderbeast]

Strike that. We know why they brought you.

[jadewine]

[Way to put him between wanting to laugh, and sticking with what's more important, Hak.]

Yeah. No idea.

[It should be clear enough, though, that all of this is infuriating.]

[thunderbeast]

[He directs his next comment to Jae-Ha.]

Do you think he'll stop freaking out long enough to be able to get him out of there?

[backstory]

[ HATERS TO THE LEFT. More like he doesn't get why he thinks he'd be here more than anyone else. ]

It may not be so unlikely for someone to want to capture the dragons. [ He turns to look up at Jae-Ha, before turning back to regard Hak in the Amber ] In the past, the Dragons were targeted for various reasons. That is the reason why the Village of Hakuryuu is so protected and hidden.

[ His eyes darken. ] Although Seiryuu's Village was vile, you saw that some people try to either suppress or protect it. [ Although he doesn't like the idea that they could have been targeted for such reasons. How insolent to begin with. ] It is possible that Zeno and Shin-Ah are also targets. And as for you, Hak-

[ He meets his gaze dead on. ]

You and the princess are fugitives. Particularly after your fight with that man, do you not think it could have painted a target upon your backs?

[jadewine]

[The mentions of the other dragons' villages nearly brings Jae-Ha to bitterly laugh. That they were targeted is fitting enough. It's the reason why each new generation within the village of Ryokuryuu are chained up and completely kept from the public, all due to a solitary instance that brought chaos and misery to all of its other citizens.]

He would do better to steer any sort of reply away from any of his own, personal details.]

So would you say, then, that that is the case for each and everyone else who is here? That they've been targeted? Or is it maybe because it was felt we have something they needed, or could offer?

[Capture, though? He wouldn't be surprised if there were an incredible amount of people who don't know the legend is based in truth, in the first place.]

[thunderbeast]

All the more to be bothered by it, really.

[Wanting to separate Hak from the Princess wasn't a good sign. But if they'd wanted to leave her alone and vulnerable, they waited too long. They should have gotten to her months ago. She was a forced to be reckoned with right now and once she found out they were all missing, she'd likely move hell and high water to get them back.]

I'm not sure if this is the case here though. Maybe there is a similarity in everyone being here? I'm not sure if it has anything to do with the situation back home.

[backstory]

[ Silent, he merely shook his head. It was frustrating, but he didn't know. ]

Whether it has something to do with home or not in the end does not change what our actions should be. We need to find out as much information as possible. I will trust that the princess will be safe in her present company.

[ . . . Even if it kills him that he can't be there. And with a sigh, his eyes lift back up to regard Hak, quietly subdued. ]

In the meantime, you should take it easy. If you were to further injure yourself, it would upset the princess. And so far as we know, Yoon is not here either.

[jadewine]

[All that he knows is they're all on the same page. And that Shin-Ah is perfectly capable, when it comes to any of them needing to fight. Yona, as well, as they'd all agree with, too, of course. She's exceeded any of what expectations he hay have had of her; she's so much stronger, both in will and physically, than the Yona he first met.]

If there's any similarity, or any pattern, we've yet to discover what that is. We'll need to speak more with those who have been here for longer. I believe no one has for longer than a month or so.

[thunderbeast]

A month? How'd you find that out?

[He hasn't been here this whole time, has he? Hak barely arrived himself and hasn't heard that much. How did Jae-Ha learn all that already?]

Further injure myself, White Snake? [Granted, he gets injured a lot but it's been quite a while since anything happened to him last.] I'd be glad to show you how injured I am.

[backstory]

I'm not about to fight a wounded man.

[ Although for someone who is very injured, Hak really is a monster. It took two dragons to restrain and calm him down. Not that either wanted to seriously hurt him, but to remain alert after taking a kick from the green dragon's foot was near impossible.

Kija's own cheek was still sore, the marks, clear if Hak looked further through the amber piece. ]

You should stay where you are. We can find you.

[jadewine]

I've been speaking with others, of course. However, a couple were very new like Kija and myself.

[Let's ignore timing. Jae-Ha just glances to him, wordlessly agreeing and understanding. ]

He's right. Are you still around the entrance?

[thunderbeast]

...I pretty much just asked whoever I saw if they had seen a midget red haired girl with a bow.

[That's as far as he got. Then he left.

But why are they both acting like this?]

Close by. Bring me some food. I'm hungry.

[Just wants to see if they'll do it. Stop acting weird.]

[backstory]

[ He turns a blank look up to Jae-Ha. Do they have anything edible...? What is edible on this tree... ]

Perhaps there is something in the bag...

[jadewine]

I checked. There isn't. There's bound to be something around, though, given where we are.

[A beat, mostly to Kija.] Wait here, I'll take a quick look.

[Before much else can be said, then, he takes off.]

[thunderbeast]

[Yep. They must think he's injured or something. He doesn't confirm or deny it though.

He's more curious about how long he can milk it for.]

[backstory]

[ This just leaves Kija and Hak then... ]

I am glad that you will rely on us a little more. Make sure to eat up, and should you need help there is no shame in asking.

[thunderbeast]

[Rely on them more? Seriously. He wonders how he's going to manage to keep a straight face through all of this.]

I'll definitely keep that in mind. I don't want to be a bother to anyone...

[backstory]

This is nothing. [ And in the end they were comrades. ] We offered the help so it is fine to accept it.

[thunderbeast]

[So Kija's portion of dinner is okay, right?]

Who am I to turn down such kind offerings?

[He'll take whatever people give him. There's no modesty here.]

[backstory]

[ HAK ]

Although I have to wonder what Jae-Ha will find. Without Yoon, will we know if what is gathered is really edible...?

[thunderbeast]

I'm not completely clueless about this sort of thing. Yoon is better, but I managed just fine on my own before we brought him along with us.