<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><p align=justify> Day: 43rd Month: Mia Year: Second Dhruv and Trilok: the coldest places that settled on Ramath-Lehi. Covered in ice, most wouldn't venture into treaturous lands, in fear of injury. Yet, this afternoon, storms were few on the islands. The sun shone above the world, and even the snow gave reassuring hints of warming. Though very few animals gave a sign of life, it wouldn't be much longer. One of the sparce creatures that did show it's face was a pendragon, by the moniker of Ghost, nothing more. Though only a three-hundred year Nioti, he already had many interesting traits. Besides the normal markings, colours, and the flame that all males possess, he was something that could only be called unique: Ghost, however normal-looking, was biorganic. This of course meant that Ghost was half-living, half-machiner: instead of veins, he had wires, instead of a hard-drive, he had a brain. This list goes on. His long, slim body was built for speed. Light-weight and cheetah-like, Ghost seemed to sail over the ground as he sped towards the ancient Machina ruins: The Adamaint Empire. Though machinery wasn't one of his trades (those being Escape Artist, and Rogue), it fascinated him. He had heard much about it, and of course he was aware of his body type. The rumours about there being a pendragon living there, Talis, especially intriqued him. Where else would his first visit take place, but here?</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>Just a little ways ahead of him, partly hidden in a deep drift of snow, was the small form of Shark Ryans. Her dark coat made her easy to spot against the wintry backdrop, despite the natural fort she had bent behind. The niotie was here for the usual: spying, or, more accuratly for own her age, eavesdropping. She ignored the fact that under the circumstances, she wasn't exactly blending in, or the other fact; that practically no one ventured into the snowy regions of Trilok. Yet now, crouching behind this small dune, peering at the world beyond over snow-dipped paws, Shark was slightly surprised herself to find another sign of life here. She wasn't sure who or what it was, but it was speeding towards her general direction, perhaps headed for the Empire? Interesting... And so, she watched.</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><p align=justify><font size=1>In Character Leaping, leaping through the barren iceland, Ghost's thoughts were set on one thing: adventure. Particularly in the shadows of the massive Empire, where the only the reckless were sure to venture. He never had the patience to learn each and every morcel of the art of Machina Technology, but how it worked, the things it could do... It fascinated him, really. If he could change his trade, it would most certainly be that. Yet, before he got much farther, a scent flowed through the icey wind, reaching his nose and halting his steps. It wasn't a different, odd creature, but another pendragon. The reality made him turn on his heal, trotting deftly with his head up high and ears perked. Truthfully, they weren't hard to spot: black and metallic blue don't exactly camoflage into white. A grin spread across his face as he lopped over to the other, now unmistakably a female. <B>"Hey there, lady."[/b]</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>Stubby ears perked as she saw him stop, and Shark crouched a little lower, though in vain. He was already headed this way. She could see now that it was, in fact, a pendragon, leaving her mildly surprised. The speed at which he had been tearing across the land... it was incredible. Though she was very good at moving slowly and silently, she knew that she probably could only reach half of his velocity. Though, at second glance, it was hardly surprising; he was pretty young, and had a good build for speed.. in fact, a physique such as his, she had never seen before. This was new, and fascinating. Perhaps he came from another continent, one of the ones she had, regretably, not visited. As the stranger drew close, she immediatly pulled herself up, eyeing him curiously. He greeted her briefly, and she blinked, quickly snapping back with, "I'm not a lady!" She seemed truly insulted by such a remark, as if he had referred to her as a two-cent whore. Then, Shark seemed to relax, and followed up cheerfully with, "I'm a Shark. And you..." She paused, looking him up and down, "...are something odd."</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><p align=justify><font size=1>In Character The young 'dragon studied the other carefully, his bright yellow-orange eyes not judging at all, but happily curious. Ghost wasn't the dominant type, nor dark or joyless, but quite content and optimistic in his current state. Friendly and social, he would make a companion out of anyone. Nevertheless, the Nioti would never descend to submitting. He was a silver-lined cloud, but had enough pride and intelligence to know never to fear anyone or anything. This being his attitude, he was quite surprised at the Niotie's shock and apparent disgust at being called a lady. "Geeze, la-- er, miss. I'm sorry. Didn't mean anything by it." He grinned, however, as her speech continued, relaxing to an extent. His tail, tipped with a large yellow flame, swayed excitedly. "Yeah, I guess I am; but uniqueness is good. I'm Ghost." Just Ghost, it seemed, nothing else. Strange for a pendragon not to have a last name, though one would suppose, him being what he is, he had creators, not parents. "Rogue 'n Escape Artist."</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>She gazed at him with seemingly deep scrutiny, though in reality Shark was simply observing the way his facial muscles moved when he talked, apparently fascinated. However, a gleeful smile quickly sliced her ponderous features upon his first remark, and she nodded with hearty enthusiasm. "Very good, very very. At least you're not boring..." She paused, one brow quirked, "...Ghost...?" For a moment, Shark wanted to comment, but then she realized that maybe it was because she had only given a first name as well. There was, of course, no way for her to realize what he was- she still had much to learn in the way of reading people, and a subject such as this would be way out there for anyone. Rather, she bounced to her feet at the mention of his professions. "What a coincidence! I specialize in the arts of escape as well... but I'm also a world-reknown spy!" The niotie was very animated in her speech, accompanying her words with vivid hand motions, and at the latter part, she struck the traditional cape-and0dagger pose. A beat later, however, she had straightened, and added with a sheepish grin, "Well... not exactly world-reknown.. YET."</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><p align=justify><blockquote><font size=1>In Character Though he was probably doing the exact same thing himself, Ghost couldn't help a giggle at Shark's apparent enrapture. The boy wasn't an egotistical braggart, not at all, though he couldn't help wonder why she was so fascinated with him. For some reason, he didn't think it was his looks. Nevertheless, he sensed a strong friendship, or atleast a companionship, with this other 'dragon. He was drifting so far with his thoughts, that he was slightly surprised to hear her speak. He almost blushed before giving a reply. "Well, I try my darned hardest not to be," he stated cheerfully, before giggling at her half-inquirement. "Yeah, m'name's Ghost, just like I said." If possible, the Nioti seemed to brighten up at the word of her specializing in the same trade as himself. Though he was perfectly happy with hanging out with others of the complete opposite of his own, he found he agreed more often with those with interests alike to his own. Different people gave variety, yes, but common ground gave way to more meetings, more agreements and less arguements, and usually, a shade more fun. Besides, Shark didn't seem snarky, dark, angry, suicidial, or basically anything that usually turned Ghost right off. "Ooh, really?" He mused with a cheeky grin. "Well, we'll see who becomes famous first," The boy mused, joking of course. His passion never was to become famous, though he didn't suppose he was opposed to it. His mind wandered back over to the massive Machina in the distance. "Hey, have you heard of that place over there? The 'Adamaint Empire'? Wanna go sneak over?"</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>Still grinning, she glanced in his suggested direction, stroking her chin as if pondering it.. though really not at all. Shark would /never/ turn down the oppurtunity to sneak around, especially in a place with 'empire' in the name. "Hmm... I've heard bits and pieces." Indeed she had. However, being raised in a secluded, countryside home with moral values in mind rather than world-class education, it was hardly surprising that she hadn't heard more. In fact, all Shark knew was that it had something to do with machina, and /that/ was one topic that interested her immensely. WItht hat in mind, she turned and began to trot off towards it, pausing to look back at him. "How 'bout you tell me more on the way over? Just don't leave me behind.."</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><p align=justify><font size=1>In Character Ghost nodded, staring at it with a kind of awe in his gaze. It was massive, really, and one might even get lost inside its twists and turns. That was a chance he was willing to take, however, being nothing more than a careless Nioti - well, maybe a bit more. Still, although he had the common sense to realize the dangers involved, he didn't often use it. After all, what was the fun without a little risk? "Yeah, I don't suppose many have. It's kinda supposed to be shut down for maintainance or something..." Thrill echoed in his voice as he mentioned that, the prospect of any harm even more inviting now. Though it was on Ramath-Lehi, they might not be welcomed inside. Touring of it might actually be closed until it picks up. Yet, there was no warning sign, no yellow ribbon, nothing that might suggest one would be hanged if they started exploring at will. So, Ghost trotted after Shark without a care, flamed tail swaying happily. "Well, it's like this Machina place, where this scary guy named Talis lives. It's big, too..." The Nioti paused, grinning sheepishly. What developed speech he had!</font></font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>"Big?" Lilting tone was intensely eager, and sounded similar to a child's enthusiastic but almost disbelieving repeat of a rare goody promised to them. Tongue flicked out briefly, moistening her lips, and she stared at him with large, fervid eyes. "/How/ big?" Shark's pace immediatly quickened to a medium jog, most probably much to the relief of her companion, or so she thought. The young 'dragon had never seen this 'Empire' up close... But she hoped it was larger and more complicated than she could imagine. However, now his previous statement dawned on her, and an unreadable expression spilled across dark features. "This Talis dude... is he like, a villain? A /scoundrel/?"</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><font size=1>Out of Character I'm heading off to my cottage soon, so this'll be my last post until either tomorrow or Monday. >_o; <B>In Character[/b] Staring excitedly in front of him, at the shape in the distance - getting bigger with every step - Ghost shook his head, orange bands flicking over his eyes. "I dunno, never been there... colossal I guess," he whispered excitedly, as if they were in danger of being heard. Maybe they were, too: you never know where someone might be hiding, or a creature sneeking, ready to pounce. Also, it didn't seem to be getting any warmer. Pushing down an excited bark, the Nioti quickly caught up with his companion, long tail flicking slowly from side to side. He, too, had never actually been inside the place, but had heard so much about it, though only from rumours, and how reliable could they be at times? He hoped they were true: they made the Empire seem so exciting. Ghost pondered Talis for a moment, before giving a wide grin. He skipped a couple of steps then reclined back to Shark's side again. "A scoundrel? Wow, maybe. I think so, too! I mean, why would he stay hidden, huh? He probably does all sorts of mean deeds from the Graders and stuff," he mused happily, increasing his speed ever so slightly. "How cool. Let's hurry up, 'kay?"</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>"You said it!" She replied gleefully, and broke into a full run, not quite so inconsiderable, though being no where near Ghost's league. The thoguht of Talis excited her, living there, all alone, perhaps brooding, biding his time, stealing out under the cover of night on occasion to swipe an unsuspecting girl from teh civilized world, bring her back, and do what he will before feasting on her, sending only her little finger to her unsuspecting relatives by mail... in an engagement ring box. So romantic. So she ran faster, didn't only pick up the pace but heaved it up and chucked it across the world's front yard. She ran until her legs weren't her own, just a couple of pairs of pounding pistons exploding with soreness yet feeling nothing at all. She ran until her heart was a maddened animal thrashing about in its cage, until her veins pumped battery acid. And somewhere, in the part of her mind that wasn't completely focused on reaching their destination as quickly as possible, Shark thought that maybe, later, Ghost could teach her how to run like him.</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><font size=1><center>In Character Ghost giggled gleefully as the pair continued to make their way to the Empire, thoughts and imagination concerning the pendragon who lived there growing wilder by the minute. He was said to be a queer fellow, though heavily trusted by the Graders. Anyone in that league was sure to be a strange one, and even quite brilliant if the ruling pendragons would dare to seek counsel from him. Old, too, though young enough to have modern ideas. Giving another short chuckle, he swivelled his head to flash an excited grin at Shark. Before he could say anything, however, she was off: increasing her speed to the maximum. Whuffing in surprise as the female took the lead, Ghost took several great leaps, his long, light body soaring through the choppy wind like a plane. With air streaming under him with every great stride, the male did fly... almost, anyway. He certainly increased noticeably in speed, easily catching up with the older Niotie. His paws, wide, added to his facility with running. In no time at all, it seemed, they had arrived at the Adamaint Empire. It towered over them, looming and almost inquiring. Ghost gaped up at the magnificent building, wondering what could possibly be hidden inside the great complex. "Well, there's only one way to find out," he mumbled, replying to his unspoken question. He turned to grin at Shark, motioning towards the entrance with his flame-tipped tail. "You ready?"</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>She continued to speed off, skidding to a stop suddenly just as Ghost halted himself, and littering her pelt with dirt in the process. Yet it was to be noted, that every action she performed, every step, every breath, seemed to be muffled slightly. Even as she slid semi-clumsily across the ground, a blind man would've only heard a gentle breeze scraping across the Adamaint territory. But she wasn't completely silent, not yet- there was still work to be done. Shark stood now, neck craned backwards, jaw gaping as she gawked at the magnificent structure before her. The building almost glowed, its mysterious vibes sending exciting shivers down her spine. Here was something! At last. Up 'til now, the niotie had only explored attics, ventilating systems, small fish. But this seemed to be quite the experience in wait. She returned Ghost's grin, and pranced over to his side, peering at the entrance almost hungrily. "Hell yes." She said this with impatient determination, straightening, though it did little to help her size: the niotie was very small, only about the size of one of the larger wildcat cubs. Yet not once in her life had she been angry with this particular detail, having always considered her compact frame to be a blessing. More places to fit into, after all. "Well, after you."</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><blockquote><center><font size=1><B>In Character[/b] Ghost grinned wildly at Shark, artificial muscles tensed and ready. He could have howled with excitement, but knew the importance of silence. Though usually loud, rambunctious, and unable to control his happiness, the Nioti also was aware when to be childishly playful, and when seriousness was necessary. This was one of those moments, and the 'dragon forced himself to be so. He studied the female for a moment, before nodding. His question was stupid, when he thought about it. Of course she was ready. The Niotie seemed just like him, always prepared for anything. "Well, if your scared," he winked playfully, beginning his slow trot forwards. "Heh, joking. We should keep close, though." That was said with utter earnesty, as he was soon swallowed by the darkness of the tunnel leading in. It was a winding path, though not lightless. A part from Ghost's cheerful flame, there were lamps of fire scattered among the hall, allowing a glow where the sun didn't reach. Churning the passage may be, but it was short, and soon, the Machina temple came into view. It was huge, filled to the brink with new technology, some running and others sitting without a job. The inside was a glorious thing, machines of all size crowding in what appeared to be the main room. There were others, of course, stairways and hallways leading into more and different places. There was, really, only one word that could describe the feeling, which was uttered by the male. "Cool."</font>
<font color='#A8A8A8'>She stuck out her tongue at his remark, but abided well- all's better with company, and he was right, after all. Getting lost can be exhilarating, but getting seperated was a completely different matter. That was one thing she didn't enjoy at all, in fact, it thoroughly stressed her, broke her concentration, worried her to the point of subconcious nail biting, and a couple plots had been ruined by this utter lack of control on her part. Indeed, that was the only thing which could possibly make her hesitant when considering a team project. But Shark's mind quickly came off that trivial subject as she followed Ghost inside, loyally tailing him all the way. It took all the willpower the small 'dragon possessed to keep from halting right away and staring at the walls of the passageway. The lamps beckoned her, flickering teasingly, the intricate architecture was fascinating beyond belief. So tempting was the hall that she picked up the pace, forcing herself onwards, and since her attention was obviously elsewhere, she very nearly burned herself on her companion's tail flame. Grinning sheepishly, the niotie leaped smoothly to his side, their noses now level. As the duo emerged into the temple, Shark could be heard sucking in her breath with astonishment. She gazed at the large room with wide eyes, hungrily eyeing the chugging machina, performing ever so reliably smoothly. Those shadowed passageways seemed dull now in comparison. "Awesome..." she breathed, and eagerly dashed forward to inspect the contraptions, as enthusiastic as if running to greet an old friend.</font>
<font color='#FFFFFF'><font color="orange">In Character</font> He had never seen anything like it in his life. Despite the fact that Ghost actually lived</I>, it seemed that the machines inside this massive building were much more complicated, did so many more things than his body could do. They were probably more relevant, also. The nioti couldn't believe he was seeing this, before anyone else (besides Talis, of course). The buttons, levers, arms of metal... it was all too much. The places that he and Shark could explore were unlimited, unthinkable adventures just waiting to be found and explored. Yet, somehow, he felt that he violated the innocence of the Empire. No one had seen the inside of it for years. It was like, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, with the candy being the machinery and the eccentric Emporer - Talis. Even the Graders, he imagined, were unaware of everything that occured inside. Now the two companions, Shark and Ghost, two simple young pendragons, were the lucky contestants with the golden tickets. Despite his slight guilt, he was also incredibly amazed at his surroundings, and couldn't help a gawking expression. <font color="orange">Wow, lookit that!</font> Ghost's gaze had caught sight of a large machine. It's purpose wasn't apparent, but it spun around like a top, making a strange, high-pitched yet oddly comforting whistling sound. It barely swayed. The boy galloped over, glancing over to make sure Shark had seen where he was off to. He giggled at the flashing lights, tentavely sniffing at it. It only carried a dull, metalic smell but its appearance made up for it. He carefully reared onto his back paws, looking momentarily like an excited poodle. He leaned forward, not daring to breathe, setting down his pads on the spinning contraption... when he was flung to the side! Ghost was suddenly lying against a toppled-over machine, a surprised look on his young face. He appeared to be unharmed, though. Apparently, the "top" spun much faster then he expected.</font>
<font color='#A255'>The niotie's attention was drawn to her companion once more. Invisible brows raised as he approached the machine in quite the comical fashion, and a few giggles escaped her. They quickly erupted into cruel but well-meaning laughter as the gadget suddenly flung him away, easy as a baseball. The sprawling orange figure flew back, bumping a machine and knocking it down int he process. The clatter failed to ease Shark's cackles, and she staggered over to the fallen android clutching at the stitch in her side. But her merriment subsided quickly, and, still grinning, she jabbed at him. "You ok?" Cautious giggles. "Heh, you could wake someone up with that racket. Better hope it's not broken, or else someone's gunna catch it." Following her last statement, Shark peered uncertainly at the collapsed contraption beneath him.</font>
