Damn. Shits hitting me harder than Mike Tyson....
Three days of searching. Three, fucking days. And all he got out of this was looks of shock, doubt from his companions, and a bunch of unnerved dragons convinced that Scarlet was going to kill them all in fear of losing her throne.
Though he couldn't shake off the feeling that something dark was watching him. Like it waited around a corner to observe him, watching only when he looked away. Maybe it was the Tracker Jackel. Or maybe it was that sandwing Burn. Considering he basically asserted himself over her. And judging by her accomplices, no one ever did that. Or they died right after.
Now I might have to deal with a killhappy princess that wants to stuff me. Joy.
Falcon and Opuntia seemed to have the same opinion too. Exclaiming how he basically survived a death sentence with the most violent of the three sisters. But now he had he had to watch out for her, for his and Opuntias sake.
"So you are saying that Crow disappeared a little after the bomb?" He questioned a maid. Her rosey red scales polished to look their best. A nessasary job requirement, he guessed for working at such a pristine place.
"Yes. He left in a scramble too. Claiming that he had family caught in the area of the bomb." She explained.
"Mhm. Does he have much family?" Riplash questioned. Mentally sighing as that turned into the seventh possible fake identity for the damn thing. He needed a way to ween them out. Work his way through to see which one the bitch was hiding as.
"Not a lot no. Just his ill mother and pregnant sister. Sad that her child is going to be in the military. She really loves the egg already and it isn't even laid." The maid sighed sadly.
"Yes. But not everyone is blessed. I'm sure something good will happen to them." He responded dryly. Taking a mental note of the possible monster.
"Do you have any dragonets? You look like you might somewhere." The maid questioned curiously.
"Mmm...No. Not any I'm aware of." He responded. The idea of having a bunch of little shits running back and forth around his talons annoyed him. Their cries for attention constantly blaring in his ears, their tiny faces looking up at him in awe...pipsquek voices...little copies of him...
"Sad. You seem like you'd be a strong father." She commented, turning away from him to resume her work, but not before catching a quick glint from the skywing. Something about it sending red flag signals in his brain.
Mmmhmmm.
"Nothing else so far?" Falcon questioned, padding up to him.
"Possibly one but..." He looked back at the maid he was just talking to, watching her turn the corner and disappear out if sight. "Watch her." He spoke quietly.
"The maid? Are you sure?" He questioned, watching her tailtip slip away.
"Something about her doesn't sit right." He warned. She was way to nice to him. No one would look at him and think father material for anyone's kid. Let alone one made by him. No matter how many he probably already has made.
Sandstorm, Sandwraith, Moonlight, Raspberry, and a few others.
Naming off dragonesses in his past. Thinking back now, he could understand the high sex drive. Considering what it has gotten him so far, he quite enjoyed it, and still will.
"Oooookay. I'll keep an eye on that specific maid. Not that there isn't a hundred more in this entire palace!" Falcon exasperated.
"I'll keep an eye out with the others, if she keeps up a constant routine, notify me immediately." Riplash instructed, looking around quickly before anyone could notice.
"And what routine would that be exactly?" Falcon questioned? "Most of the servants and maids have specific parts of the castle to keep tidy. It would be regular to have a routine."
"Not like that." He growled. "Standing still for long perioids of time, isolating themselves in solitary places. Making themselves seen only just enough to ware off any suspicion. Things like that. I explained this earlier, didn't you and Opuntia listen?"
"Well, yes. But I fully didn't understand what you meant at the time." He shot back.
"Whatever, whatever. Just...watch her. Okay? And try to notice the signs when no one is around. That is when they think they are most safe." He explained, earning a nod from the smaller skywing before trudging off after the "maid".
Holy shit. The Tracker Jackel is going to kill them before I do.
He mentally grumbled, rubbing his helmet in annoyance. The constant head work all day and most of the night was starting to get to him. He could feel the migraines working their way into his skull. Pulsing and throbbing with annoyance.
"Not as easy of a job as you think huh?" A familiar feminine voice rumbled from behind.
"I usually work alone. Not with migraine inducing dragons." Riplash grumbled, turning around to face the scarred female. Burns scowl-like look plastered on her face as she watched him. Her remorseless eyes watching his every movement with deadly detail. A look that he gave everyone else, but never received to this degree.
"I can tell." She announced, eyeing him up and down one more time before looking at one of the many paintings. "Scarlet sent a guard to fetch you. I guess her men found something and wanted your input. But since this interests her, it might interest me, so come on." She growled, walking by him in heavy thumps.
"Hmmpf. Wonder what she could want out of me now." He grumbled, looking back behind him before following the sandwing princess. Diverting his eyes from her well toned hips and battle hardened body. Others may not be able to retaliate as damaging, but with Burn being his size and no doubt having similar strength would make it a hard fight. But a fun one.
"Whatever it involves. It involves you and this...creature you speak of." She growled. "Which reminds me. How come only you know of this thing? Oddly suspicious that a bomb goes off, scares my ally. And a few days later, you come in and give her an enemy. Gaslighting her into believing that it wants to remove her power. Or, as you said, the owner of the creature." She numbered off, almost as if she summarized his plan and nailed it to a board with shiny nails.
"So what are you implying? If this is all a ruse, what would I gain from it? To brag that I scared a queen?" He retorted, following her down around a corner before strutting up next to her.
"I am willing to bet my tail scales that you set off that explosive somehow. And whatever is in that throne room will explain how you did it." She growled, twisting her head sharply at him, a glint of...admiration shot through her eyes before it was impaled on a spike and dragged into the blackness of her eyes. "You're ruthless in your work. Willing to kill whoever gets in your way of finishing the job." She growled.
Shit. She is pinning the board way to accurately for my liking. How I'd she thinking this up so fast? Wasn't she more dense and brutal?
"Interesting observa-" He was interrupted suddenly as he was forced against the nearby wall by Burn. Her marred arms gripping him by one of his chest plate pieces, pinning him to the wall. Him! She pinned him to a wall.
"You're the kind of killer that I don't see in very much anyone." She traced her claw up the exposed part of his chin. The slight touch sending a small tingle of excitement up his spine. "I like that." She whispered into his ear before chuckling deviantly.
"Glad you do Burney." He spoke back smoothly. His voice rolling off his tounge like the smoothest of water. "But if I were you. I'd stop pinning me to a wall like you want to fuck me. Unless that is your intention." He smirked, his eyes traveling over her face as a multitude of expressions seemed to shoot through her at once.
Holding her stout expression, she let out a huff of amusement before pulling back from him. Pointing to her eyes with her tail before pointing back at him, telling that she was watching him.
"We'll put a pin in it for later. Be sure to look your best." He flirted with a wink, pulling himself away from the wall to walk by her again. Ignoring the short and eye-roll he earned from the brute dragoness.
The rest of the walk there was dead silent. Nothing was said between him or her, not a sound was made from either of them. Only listening to the whispers of shock that someone was walking next to princess Burn. The most violent out of the three, and not on a chain, being prepared for stuffing, or downright killed. Their talons walking in rythmitic harmony as they approached the throne room.
"Royals first I presume." Riplash shot slyly, dipping his head in respect with a knowing smirk. In the wild, he was the dominant one. It was thanks to her sex and title that made her automatically above him socially.
"Watch your tone bounty hunter." Burn growled, pushing through the doors first followed by Riplash himself. Stalking through like a void of death as he made his way into the throne room. The desert death and its haunting shadow.
"Oh you found him! Good. Means I don't need that guard after all." She shrugged, hopping off her throne before stalking over to Riplash, passing by Burn as she took her place near the throne. A position reserved for visiting royalty and ambassadors alike.
"What is this about your majesty? You of all people probably know that I have been day and night at this work." Riplash questioned, craning his head back and forth. Reading the puzzled, confused, and stoic expressions of the guards that lined the walls.
"Yes yes I am aware. But..." Scarlet tapped her claws on the marble floors several times. The scrambling of guards rushed by, fear of failing their queen as they carried a large tube-shaped object.
It looks like a normal hallowed out log. Sporting a stone base that looked to be melted to hold whatever kind of device that was going to be launched inside. The end was blown open, charred beyond recognition as it was splintered into hundreds of different ends.
"Interesting." Riplash hummed.
"A couple of my soldiers found this on a nearby cliff. Half-ass hidden under some branches and leaves. A poor choice for a where it was found." Scarlet mused sourly. Looking down at it before up at him. "Perhaps you recognize something on it. Since you know so much about this creature."
"Possibly. Allow me to take a look then." The guards backed away as he stepped forward. Crouching over the misshapen and broken weapon at hand.
Now how to play this off as easy as possible....
"Well?" Scarlet questioned looking down at him expectingly.
"Well as you probably could've guessed. This is how it got the bomb to go off so deep into your palace city without being caught." He directed her attention to the tube. "The explosive looks to have been dropped in. Using this smoothed out stone to hold the explosive and allow it to propel itself out of the end." He explained. "Looks like it was meant for a one time use. So this thing has some damn good aim. Unless it was just trying to cause chaos. Then you don't really need to aim with a connon like this." He chuckled, pulling apart the stone base that held together with what looked like heated treesap.
"Interesting. But what might have the power to launch an explosive so far?" Burn questioned, popping up next to Scarlet. Her eyes scanning over the weapon design as if a new toy popped up in her arsenal.
"My guess. A smaller explosive. Since there is no fuse port at the bottom, it must've been rigged together for one to go off, launching the other with a delayed timer. Who knows how long it was set for. Or how long the explosive was in the city part." Riplash explained. The crude design did its job effectively. Though now that Scarlet had what she presumed to be a prototype. Now her forges could copy it. To bad they didn't have the right recipe for the explosive powder.
"Interesting." She flicked her tail, gesturing to another guard who grabbed the broken tool, setting it in a nearby case before locking it shut. "Maybe we can have some uses out of this incident after all." She mused, looking back at her hired hunter.
"Possibly so. Maybe a turning point in your war. If you can figure out the recipe that is." He shrugged. He didn't really care who won in the war. Hell, if might suit him better if it stayed running for much longer. Considering wars always need bounty hunters and assassins.
"Yes. If not, we have our own means of destruction." She replied simply. Humming to herself as she paced back towards her throne. "Any luck so far on figuring out the terrorist?" She questioned.
"To be continued. There is still to many...variables. At this time to be sure who is might be." Riplash replied simply. Though it seemed Scarlet didn't like the answer.
"Well work faster then. I want to kill something so bad!" She growled, flexing her talons.
"Might I suggest playing the long game on this?" Riplash suggested. "Slowly increase pressure on everyone here. But don't make it to obvious." He started.
"Hmm...yes. More guards to watch the castle. Possible rewards for information. Make them slip up! More chances to expose themselves on accident!" Scarlet exclaimed evily. Oh this was going to suck for her kingdom.
"Exelent idea your majesty. Ween out the culprit." He pushed, sitting back as he watched the malicious ideas roll through the queens mind.
"Yes. Maybe then you can actually do your job and kill this little shit." She growled, earning a small smirk from Burn. She knew exactly what he did. And she was going to tell no one about it.
"Yes...yes. Get back to work, I've got a few new...things I need to work on." She trilled sadisticly.
Tipping his head down in a nod, he slowly backed away before sweeping aside everything around him with a heavy turn, trudging out of the throne room with a dark smirk.
Pushing through these plebians has turned out to be surprisingly easy. Already having a queen wrapped around my claw. And not a suspicion of the truth in sight.
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I see what he did there. He's got her all wrapped up in fear, and now using that as his mental weapon. He isn't afraid to go where no one else will.
"What do you think dear ally? More guards or a bounty system?" Scarlet questioned Burn, looking up at the larger sandwing who was pulled out of her train of thought.
"Either one works." She responded flatly, sitting down as she listened in to what several guards were talking about to one another about the device used to launch the bomb.
"Yes. And then I can torture them! Make them beg for the end of the pain." Scarlet hissed.
"Interesting choice in hunters though I must say. Where did you find him? And why haven't I heard of him?" She questioned. Looking down at the skywing queen. Is this guy was as big of deal as he was letting on, why is she just now finding out about him? A sandwing as big and...noteworthy as him would definitely be on her radar for hired blades.
"A skywing linked him to me, why?" Scarlet asked.
"I'm curious how a sandwing like...him, pops up out of nowhere. My soldiers would have noticed a black armored sandwing. I would have noticed this guy at one point or another. Isn't it kinda wierd how he pops up with all these other strange creatures?" She questioned. Thinking back to when she killed one of the strange bat creatures that were flying around her stronghold. Never in her life had she seen such an odd looking creature. She just had to stuff one.
"I must say, you do bring up a good point. But right now, I'm going to deal with keeping my kingdom. From anyone who tries to take it." She growled, sitting back on her throne before looking up at the ceiling.
"Well if he completes this job. I might consider hiring him myself. Seems like an effective hit." Burn grumbled. Why did Scarlet need her here anyways? She was busy with the war and shit.
"I see you are also eyeing him." Scarlet played, poking Burns shoulder with a black claw.
"Don't put it like that. He is ruthless with an unwavering will. I'm quite interested in how he didn't back down earlier." Burn said, sharpening her claws on a stone she held against her chest plate.
"Please Burn. If you just say you want him, I can give you to him. Just let me get this un-thrilling trash pile dealt with." Scarlet hissed a laugh. Must she be such a tease to her. It was annoying enough that her own soldiers were starting to gossip about the interaction. No matter how many she strangled or gutted, the rumors still got out. But now her own ally was taunting her with it?
"And yet, I see the way your eyes travel over him. Even when he is not looking. A queen such as yourself should not look in such perverse and outlandish views. Considering you are the queen and all." She shot back gruffly. The void black eyes and blue pupils blinking through her mind.
"But if I were you. I'd stop pinning be to a wall like you want to fuck me. Unless that is your intention."
The comment made her blood boil. How dare someone suggest such a perverse thing to her? A killer for hire, to a royal such as herself? She should have gutted him then and there. Cut whatever exposed scales he had and leave him there to bleed all over the floor.
But instead of being angry with him and snapping his neck right then and there....a polar opposite feeling washed through her. More presumably, through her thighs and tail. Has it really been that long? Pathetic.
"Y'know. Maybe I should arrange an arena fight. Get my peoples minds out of the grim." Scarlet chuckled. "Prepare the arena! Let's have some entertainment! How does that sound dear ally?" Piercing through Burns trail of thought, making her growl in annoyance.
"Sure. Whatever." She grumbled, agitated that she could remove the insisting thoughts from her mind.
When night fell over the sky kingdom, the creatures of the night came out to play. Unfortunately for them, as did Riplash. The night was his ally in this war of his own. Sitting perched stop on the many spires of the castle, he took the split second of calmness to take in the cool air. Easing it's way through his lungs, he felt he could let down the walls, even for a split second when he was alone. To feel hos spirit soar over the bloodshed he treads through everyday.
Down below him, he watched as the busy dining hall was filled with dragons dashing back and forth. Cleaning up messes and picking up dirty dishes from the numbers of council members that ate together every night. Their voices didn't air any familiar laughs of jokes, taunts to one another, or even a hope of victory before a battle.
Like they all knew they might die tonight.
"It'll get harder for them now." He mumbled, crouching over the spire before looking up at the moons. High in the sky, one sat at its fullest, followed one that sat in the Waxus gibbus phase, and a slim slice of the last one. All gleaming down onto him, and the sky palace.
I guess that's one advantage to being so close to the sky. Ironic really.
He thought, watching as a small bird-like creature flapped by. Circling around him before flying closer. The dim outline of bright blue and red getting closer and closer.
With a careful talon, he extended his arm invitingly. Watching as it eyed him for a second before carefully landing on his talons, squawking hastily before looking up at him with its bright gold eyes.
"So you really are pushing this first Sun Queen?" He spoke to the small bird. Though it looked more like a feathered wyvern over anything else. It's winged claws gripping onto his arm as it began to preen itself, flicking its feathered tail back and forth to keep its balance. "What other creatures have you pushed into this land?" He wondered aloud. The small creature squawked one more time as Riplash traced a long claw down its back. Feeling the smooth, feathery hide on the palms of his talons before watching it fly away in a hurry.
What is your full plan Sun Queen? How have you managed to elude me so far, but keep me so ingrained in your plan?
Ideas swung back and forth through his mind. From using him as an experiment to using him for her own pleasures. Now almost as if he didn't matter, and then sending two of her top warriors after him. It didn't make sense. No matter how many possible outcomes and possibilities that lay ahead, they all ended in a shroud of mist.
"Arrg. What is the plan? What is your game this time!?!" He snarled to no one in particular, slamming his armored fist through the ceiling. Blowing out small shrapnel of wood and stone, his talons were met with open air from the other side. An attic no doubt. Reefing his talons out before peering inside, he was met with endless...blackness. Dust filled the dark room as it filtered out through the hole he just made, using the moonlight to peer inside.
With nothing better to do, he decided a little more vandalism was nessasary to quench his curiosity as he ripped the hole wider. Wide enough for a dragon half his size to reach into.
Wider. Now big enough for a regular sized skywing.
With one last slam of his talons, he forced open a hole just wide enough to slip through. Allowing for him to slither into the attic like a lurking snake ready for its next meal.
Thu-thump. Thump.
He landed heavily, wiping away any dust that landed on his talons and in between his toes. Which oddly...wasn't much. No, this looks to only be a couple of weeks' worth of dust at most. Not nearly enough for a forgotten attic that might have been left alone for generations.
"Hrm." The smell too. It didn't fit with the ascetic. If anything, it reminded him of the arena. Bloodshed and roars of enjoyment as two dragons fought to the death. Both fighting under the lie that was freedom.
Squek squek squek!
Rats.
Rats of all sizes fled from the darkness. Hundreds of little pitter patters of fleshy feet running away at the sense of the massive apex predator. Though what brought so many up here? He could understand small numbers roamimg the halls at dark hours. But so many collected up in a high spire like this? They wrote practically begging to be a birds meal.
Lighting a small flame in the back of his throat, he used the new light to scour the abandoned room. Crawling over the dust, he tip-toed his way in the direction of where all the rats ran from. The stench of flesh getting more and more rank as-
There!
A gleam through the dust. A metel chain was bolted to the floor. Following the metel loops, more chains seemed to appear. As if they were trying to hold something captive.
He watched in disgust as his firelight flickered over the rosey red scales of a skywing. Their body ripped and torn to shreds, leaving them unreadable as the rats ate the corpse.
"That explains the rats." He grumbled, scowling at the disgusting sight of one crawling out of the eye socket of the poor dragon. Laying there for weeks on end, probably starved before the Tracker Jackel finished them off. Getting what they needed from the victim before leaving them for the rats.
Lighting another flame, he tried to make out any key details about the body. Maybe he saw the dragon somewhere around the palace. Lurking and pretending to be this poor dragon. A fruitless attempt due to her ragged and pale body being drained and empty. Leaving behind the marred corpse. All he could make out was the rosey red scales that dotted their face, neck, and flank.
Sad really. They might've been a kind dragon.
Slowly stalking towards the chains, he debated on how he should go about getting the body out of here. Or maybe leave it for the guards to find in the morning. He decided against the later. Concluding that bringing in evidence immediately would bring a little less worry, and a little more reliability.
But what if Scarlet decides that now she knows the general description, she doesn't want my help? It would completely foil the plan!
It was a risk he was willing to take. But now he had a different problem...how was he going to remove the chains? They seemed to be bolted down pretty tightly. It was a wonder the occupants underneath never noticed metal prongs sticking out of their ceiling.
Hissing to himself, he reach back into one of the several pouches he had on him, pulling out two vials. One held a small green powder while the other carried a thin black liquid that sloshed around inside.
Really didn't want to do this. But I guess I might use some now.
Dropping only talonbits of the white powder onto each set of chains, he set each piece carefully and meticulously before letting only two drops fall onto the powder of the first chain, watching as the compound slowly mixed together. Creating a loud hissing noise as the goo ate through the chain. Allowing him to rip it apart as the chemical compound slowly lost its acidity. He followed the same procedure along each of the chains until the body was free of its confines.
Dragging the body across the dust covered floor. Collecting the dust in piles across their body as he got closer to the moonlit hole.
Thump. Tha-thump thump...thump.
Great.
Just what he needed, now of all times. Fits really, with his luck and all at the moment...maybe this could be used to his advantage.
"You said you saw someone crawling in?" A gruff voice questioned, their talons tapping closer to the hole he made.
"Yeah. It was a large black figure that slithered into the hole." A higher pitched feminine voice answered back, peeking her head inside, letting out a loud squeak of surprise as she came face to face with Riplash.
"You got here finally! Took your sweet time eh?" He growled, poking his head through the hole to look at the pair better.
"What the hell are you talking about?" The male questioned quickly, pointing the end of his spear at Riplashes face.
"I got something here for your queen, come help me with it." He commanded, pulling himself back into the attic.
"Help? Help with what? What ate you on about?" He snarled, baring his teeth.
"About the bombing. The thing I was hired to figure out? Seriously? Did you forget that fast?" He rushed them, forcing them to act quickly.
"O-okay yeah yeah." The female replied quickly.
"Good. No hurry up with this." Riplash instructed, pulling the body of the long dead skywing out of the darkness.
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He had a good feeling about this report. His master was going to reward him swelly when this was all over. Seemingly like he couldn't wait to tell her. First he had to tell her the bad news, slipping through the tunnels of the cave. Passing over mounds of rock and streams of water.
Shlinng...shlinng...skrrrrrt...shlinnng...
His master sharpened her blades. Able to cut almost as sharply as her tounge. Piercing through the silent cave walls, ringing off the tunnels. Each movement flowed with calculated hatred and malice.
"Mmmaster." He bowed. His long claws scraping across the floor as he bowed to his creator.
"Report." She commanded. Her emotionless voice ringing over her sickle-like blades. The beutiful royal blue handles gleamed with the moonlight silver blades.
"They have not been discovered. Still working on the plan as we speak." He hissed. His raspy and empty voice played like a recording.
"Good."
"A bomb when off in the capital, sending the entire kingdom into a frenzy. Scaring the queen and all." He continued.
Shli-
"What do you mean. A bomb?" She snarled, twisting around so fast it would making a lighting bolt jealous.
"Not planted by them! By someone else!" He informed quickly, pulling back the tiniest amount. The mandables on his jaw quivered lightly as blue fire engulfed her talons.
"Who else?" She growled.
"W-we don't know. Your informant is keeping a low profile right now. Only doing the bare minimum like you taught." He spoke quickly, flattening the quills on his head as he spoke.
"Well find out who and get rid of them! I might be able to use this new incident to my advantage..." She growled, setting her blades on a nearby perchstone before standing to her glorious hight. Electric blue light coursing through her wings and arms as she began to walk away from him.
"O-one more thing I have to report...master." He included, bowing his head once again before looking at her expecting face.
"What? Did the Sun Queen send more orders?" She growled, wiping the sludge off her claws from stepping in the muddy cave water.
"No, master. In the time after the explosion. The queen hired a bounty hunter to find the bomber." He started, slowly standing up.
"Okay? Watch this bounty hunter then." She commanded, walking away from her reporter.
"The bounty hunter in question was large. And covered in black armor. "Plastered on", is what they described it as." He explained, widening his eyes in fear at her still expression. Her body moved bot a muscle. Tensed, like a snake ready to strike.
"Rrrrrip...lasshhhhh." She snarled. "Is...HERE!" She roared, moonfire and electricity blasting from her eyes, wings, and talons. Making him cower away in fear from her rage induced temper.
"Umm...y-yes master. If we are talking about the same dragon. Then it is him-eek!" He squawked, her thick talons wrapping around his neck, shooting small volts of electricity through his body. Making him howl in pain. The sheer torture of it felt like fire in his veins! Burning inside him without ever cooking.
Dropping him just before he passed out, he crumbled to the floor in a breathless heap. Gasping for air, he didn't know he lost.
"Tell them to be on the highest of alert. Riplash knows what you are and all about you. Do not let him get close, and make sure they know that!" She commanded, baring her marble white teeth. "I want to bring that heartless bag of broken scales to his knees myself." She snarled, storming through the tunnel and out of sight.
"As...as you wish...m-master." He gurgled. Clutching his chest to hold back his raging heart that threatened to shatter his ribcage.
That...that was not what I had planned to happen. Thank...thank you for the sun and moon she didn't go any further...
Taking in several more deep breaths, he shakily got to his feet. His eyes danced around the cave before turning back to the entrance. Perfectly satisfied that his reward was being able to breathe after that report.
As master commands.
And yet, here I come with another chapter so quick. Do not expect this under any circumstances whatsoever. This is probably just a freak thing that won't happen as often. But do enjoy. If you have ocs that you may want to see make an appearance in the story, do comment them below. And maybe, comment if you like how it is going and what might happen in the future! Till next time, nerds. Buh bye bye.