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1. [DL-D] Why It's Still The Steamiest Warren! (JP)
From: trissana@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
1
Date: Tue, 17 Aug 2004 00:32:15 EDT
From: trissana@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
[DL-D] Why It's Still The Steamiest Warren! (JP)
T'rell
Day 67, Early Afternoon
/snip from Tom's post/
T'rell's puzzled look deepened until Alex handed him the letter the
Duchess
had given him. T'rell quickly read the letter.
"Oh...I'm sorry...I thought," T'rell stuttered, "With so many Landborn
around the Warren, I thought you were..." T'rell stopped himself as he
noticed the
smirk on the other rider's face.
He returned the smile and greeted Alex. "Welcome back Alex. It's good
to
have you in the Warren again. I didn't recognize you with your hair
cut so short."
"Short hair is the fa****on in Killhree," he replied.
"Oh. Well I'm glad to have you back, we need all the riders we can
get,
especially with what's happening," he said while motioning Alex to sit
down.
/end snip/
"You look as fit as ever," T'rell observed.
"A knight must maintain the proper physical condition," Alex
acknowledged.
T'rell nodded. "I've watched knights practice on horseback," he said.
"That
trick where they use their lances to spear those little rings with the
ribbons attached is very interesting to watch."
"Hardly a trick," Alex told him. "The s****t you speak of is done as a
form of
game, yes, but its true purpose is to hone the knight's aim for more
serious
business - such as striking the ****eld of an opponent at just the
proper spot
to unhorse him during a joust."
"Too bad we can't do that against the wyverns," T'rell sighed. "It'd
take a
pretty long lance to do any good, of course..."
Alex shrugged. "The techniques would be much the same, in principle.
I
believe that I could wield a lance from Talafal's back and perform the
same feat
you just described -although it could not be hung in the traditional
way, as a
dragon's wing is longer than a knight's lance and would surely
collapse the
framework, rings and all, before the point of the lance could find one
of them."
T'rell leaned back in his chair, thinking. This discussion with Alex
had
crystallized an idea in his mind that had been slowly forming since he
had
presented Thea with his proposal to use magnesium flares for
illuminating night
battles against the wraiths.
"How are you with a crossbow?" T'rell asked.
"I can wield any weapon I've had experience with, and can learn any I
have
not," Alex said simply.
"Well, welcome to Gamma," T'rell told him, extending a hand. He was
already
deep in thought, though. All this talk of lances and jousts had
planted the
germ of an idea in his mind...something that might help with their
current
problem, if he could just work out the details...
* * * * * * * *
Day 100
Morning
T'rell was walking along the edge of the green, with the long metal
tube he'd
just picked up from the blacksmith's slung over his shoulder. It was
nearly
six feet long, but was as thin as the blacksmith could reasonably make
it so
it was fairly light. What he still didn't know was whether it was
strong
enough for the task at hand. That's what he was heading back to the
training
barracks to find out. If it worked, he would add the other components
that he
already had waiting, and then would put it to its first field test. If
it worked,
there'd be some very sorry wyverns around!
He only realized that he should have been paying better attention when
he
looked up and saw Almantha, lying right across his path. She narrowed
her eyes
and snorted at him.
T'rell looked up at her and sighed. *Good morning,* he said, hoping
she'd
ignore him as he began to make his way around her.
The tip of the copper tail began to twitch then suddenly snapped
around
smacking T'rell in the back hard enough to make the man stagger. The
copper head
rolled around yellow eyes gazing innocently down at the Wingleader.
[Oops!]
T'rell scowled and put his free hand on his hip as he balanced the
long tube
across his shoulder. *Getting clumsy in your old age, I see,* he
remarked.
*Shall I send Flerrion over here so he can help you get around the
warren?
He'd be more than glad to spend all day around you!*
Draconic eyes narrowed and Almantha bared her teeth at the Wingleader,
[Fat
Chance] but while T'rell was looking up he didn't see the tail s****
around in
front of his legs tripping him. [Gee having a little problem walking
there
Human???? Maybe I should call Flerrion to help you instead!] The queen
half
chortled and snorted at the same time.
T'rell glared at her. *Come down here and say that, I dare you!* The
queen
snorted again, and all but thrust her coppery nose into his face. She
started
to repeat herself, but T'rell reached forward and gave her a good
pinch on the
nose before dancing back away from her. *I can get around pretty
well, as
you can see,* he told her.
The yellowish-gold eyes squinted from the sharp pain and a growl tore
from
the queens throat, [Why you...you....] The scaly tail whipped around
with deadly
aim but T'rell ducked just in time and backed away to find himself
tripping
over Almantha's extended foot.
T'rell picked himself and dusted himself off with a show of great
dignity.
And, while the queen was busy laughing at him, he stalked around
behind her and
gave her a good swat to the backside with the long metal tube he was
carrying. It hit with a resounding *thwack* and T'rell was pleased to
see that it
neither bent nor crumpled.
Almantha screeched in pain and turned on the man who'd sprinted off
the sound
of his chuckles floating in the air behind him. [YOUR DEAD MEAT
BUDDY!] the
queen roared starting after him.
T'rell took off running, with the queen hard at his heels. He didn't
run in
a straight line, darting and dodging at right angles, knowing that she
couldn't turn as quickly as he could. It also helped him avoid the
gusts of steam
that she was blowing out at him. *Hah, you're too slow!* he teased.
*Should I
call Flerrion to help you?*
T'rell dodged to the side and managed to give her tail a quick pull.
The
queen spun around trying to get at him, but T'rell ran around her in a
circle to
keep her from getting him.
The copper queen hissed at T'rell and jerked her tail hard trying to
dislodge
man but he held on tightly. Suddenly the relaxed the long appendage
then
suddenly jumped backwards her change in direction caught the
Wingleader off guard
and he went sprawling. A sound akin to raspy giggles came from the
queen as
she turned her back on him lifted her tail and snout haughtily in the
air and
marched away. [Dumb Human!]
T'rell might, under other cir***stances, have just watched her go.
However,
he heard voices coming from around the corner of a nearby building,
and he
recognized one of them. With a grin, he ran up behind Almantha and
gave her a
good swat on the rear. *Hah, running away, eh? Had enough, eh?* He
danced back
quickly, bouncing up and down like a boxer ready to take on an
opponent.
Furious Almantha spun around her claws flexing as she raised her
foreleg to
swat the T'rell as if he was little more then a pesky bug.
"*ALMANTHA!"* Pandora cried out as she, Lexi and Rayn hurried forward.
The sharp claws froze in mid swing and Almantha huffed indignantly at
the
Wingleader. [Boy are you in trouble now!} She snarled gleefully.
T'rell turned and looked mournfully at the junior Queenrider as she
came
running up. "She's bein' mean to me!" T'rell lamented, using the same
words he'd
heard Almantha use so many times before.
Pandora bit her lip to hide a worried smile at T'rell's woebegone
words as
she covertly glanced him over to make sure he was unhurt. Placing her
hand on
his chest she gazed up into the sky blue eyes which widened in
innocence and he
gave a little sigh. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"Yes," he answered gently stroking her shoulder, "But she....."
"Is getting a bit too far out of hand!" Stepping around the Wingleader
she
glared at the copper queen [ALMANTHA! That is quite enough! You could
hurt
T'rell!] She scolded firmly. "Galendriel is going to lay her eggs. YOU
are a queen
and need to be there and not tormenting T'rell!]
[But...but...he....] Almantha exclaimed huffing out a puff of steam
towards
the Wingleader despite the fact her rider stood in front of him.
[Stop that!] Pandora answered sharply waving the warm spray away. [Now
behave
yourself and go to the hatching cave!] Turning she slid her arm
through
T'rell's. "I just don't know what gets into her!"
T'rell quickly picked up the long tube and carried it in his free
hand.
"We'd better hurry, we don't want to miss any of the hatching," he
told Panda as
the two of them headed for the hatching cavern arm in arm. He glanced
behind
him and gave the copper queen a smug smile. He then gave her a wink,
and heard
an exasperated growl at the same time he felt a touch of steam wafting
over
him and Pandora.
"We'll probably have to go back to the apartment and change
afterward," he
told her. "Do you think we can get her into the habit of sucking ice
cubes...?"
Lexi eyed the scene before him and just shook his head with a smile.
He'd
seen T'rell and Almantha more then once squaring off so he was pretty
sure there
was more to this then met the eye. As the group headed for the cavern
he
walked close to T'rell. "Smooth save there Boss!" With a chuckle he
picked up his
pace and caught up with Rayn throwing his arm around jovially around
the
slender brunette, "C'mon gorgeous we got eggs awaiting!"
T'rell thought of mentioning why he was carrying this long metal tube,
but
decided to hold off until he'd had a chance to give it at least one
test. He
directed a thought to the dragon Talafal, asking if Alexander could
meet him
later at the training area.
(Tag Tom - want to JP the test of T'rell's new "long lance" weapon?)
Submitted by:
John Pepper
T'rell & Flerrion
and
Tree Deutscher
Pandora & Almantha
Lexi & Samson
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