Board Thread:Fun and Games/@comment-35775904-20190222213128/@comment-34572969-20190223202558

Katina

Aidan's plan was easy enough... I think. Go in, save some souls, get as much information as possible, then blast the place into oblivion with the all-powerful Bewilderbeast on our side. Aidan called him Proteus.

Me and Isla flew over to the Bewilderbeast's pool, ready to try and get him on our side. Sure, Freygair would have had our heads once he found out that we had taken him somewhere that risked his death... but at least it was for a good cause.

I hopped off Inferno and approached Proteus, my arm stuck out. Looking back, I probably didn't really need to earn this guy's trust since he was technically already on our side, but a little preparation never hurt anyone. He stayed still for the entirety of the time it took to walk over, even when I placed my hand on one of his tusks. It seemed like he was already on board and was ready to fight with us.

Hours later, and we were at last ready to set off. I was still tending to the Bewilderbeast, making sure he was 100% ready, when Isla flew up to me on Inferno.

"Good to go?" she asked me.

"Ready to punch some throats," I answered back. Then lightly hit my throat to experiment. "OW! Okay, definitely, punching throats, owee," I wheezed back. Isla simply laughed and we took off, with me on Inferno since we decided it would be faster that way.

Our first duty: get all the dragons (and people, as we were soon to discover) out of the Harns' base. Easy enough. I hopped off Inferno with Flame in tow and we raced inside the base, hacking open any cage door we found. Me and Isla split up to reduce time- which, mind you, was a horrible idea. It was at least lucky that no one got hurt or captured or whatever.

We unlocked cage after cage, even with some containing innocent families and victims, until me and Flame got to the last one. Inside was a handsome black and purple Monstrous Nightmare, still fiesty as ever as he set itself on fire when I approached.

I huffed at its aggresiveness. "Jeez, chill, I'm here to free you," I stated. His head perked up at the word. Free. He probably hadn't known that in a while.

Something about the dragon seemed familiar. I couldn't quite place it, but his markings seemed to switch on a figurative lightbulb in my head. Something buried deep in my memories.

I shook away the thought. No, that couldn't have been possible. How could I have known this dragon?

I figured it was just my mind remembering my dad's Monstrous Nightmare, Tiger. He had the same purple scales and jagged black stripes as the Nightmare I was rescuing.

I took out my dagger and used it as a key to open up the cage. Don't even ask me how it worked. The dragon flew out, quickly licking my cheek in thanks, then took off to the roof of the base. I ran outside, waiting to meet back up with Isla, then looked back to Proteus waiting on my command. As soon as I was sure that all the dragons were out, I gave Proteus the signal and he fired at the base.

Ice shards flew everywhere, cold spikes of frost penetrating the building's walls. Inside people were screaming and a few Harns were running out of the base. I could have sworn I heard someone yelling, "WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!"

Now for my favourute part of the mission: the grilling. Or, the interrogation. However you want to put it.

I looked around, scanning my options, when I noticed one in particular. I huffed in frustration, ran to the side of the base and grabbed his arm, pulling him over so that no one could see.

"Jack?! What the heck are you still doing here?!" I questioned the boy. He stood up, having fallen over from me pulling him aside, and brushed himself off.

"Whaddaya think I am? Frolicking 'bout with unicorns?" he deadpanned. I pinched the bridge of my nose, groaning.

"Not like that, I mean why are you still working with these idiots? Are they holding Shockwave hostage or something?" I asked him.

"Course not! And, speaking of-"

He whistled for his dragon, who within moments was landing beside Jack and growling aggresively at me and Flame. The Terror simply growled back, though it didn't do much to faze the obviously much bigger and more intimidating opponent.

Jack stamped a foot forward, attempting to look threatening (and failing). "Now let us go, and no one gets 'urt."

I raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?" I pointed back to the Bewilderbeast, who was still in the process of making the Harns' base a giant spiked popsicle.

His eyes widened, laughing nervously. "Oh... right."

I nodded in approval, smirking. "Now, you tell me everything you know about the Harns, their plans, what it has to do with us, whatever. Just- information. Now. I don't care what it is."

"Ha! As if I'd ever let up that information to you," Jack snorted. Flame growled threateningly at the boy, but he remained unfazed. "Especially not with that midget of a lizard on your size."

"Very well." I signalled Flame to bite.

Jack's eyes widened, knowing what would happen, but that didn't stop him from squealing like a little girl once Flame clamped his jaws over the bully's nose. And he didn't seem like he was going to let go any time soon.

"OWOWOWOWOWOW!! Okay, okay! I'll tell ya!" Jack cried out. Only then did Flame relent as I petted his head.

He sighed. "Multiple attacks. Don't know 'ow many, but on vital places in the Hidden World. All to corrupt it, or summot. Not that they'd tell me any of that," he huffed out. I urged him on for more, but he stayed silent.

I sighed. "Fine. You can take your leave now, and don't you dare tell anyone about this."

Jack frowned, mounted Shockwave, then flew off.

Now for my next suspect. A random guy I'd found, still trapped in the base. I used to my advantage and, telling Proteus to quit firing, I began to question him. However, I had something a little different on my mind now.

"Dustin Erikson. Know anything about the guy?" My father. I still neede to know about him.

"I'm refuse to tell you anythi-" The guy hesitated. "Wait, Erikson? What do want with him?"

"Does it matter? Just tell me. Location, position, whatever. Do you even know the guy?"

"Of course I do. And I'm not relenting any kind of information to anyone who protects the Hidden World. Ugh, us Harns are perfect to rule it. Though, it's not as if you care about us."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I questioned, my tone getting harsher.

"It means you claim that you protect the innocent, yet you slaughter those who you know nothing about. Who knows, maybe they were brainwashed? Slaves, maybe? Put here against their will? But of course, you refuse to even mind the fact, you just kill us Harns on a daily basis and call yourself a hero, do you not?" he snarled.

I paused, processing the information. Was I really doing the right thing? Were we doing the right thing by attacking these Harns?

I shook my head, pulling out my dagger and pressing the guy up into a wall. "We do it, because it's the right thing. And for your information, we've only killed about one Harn. One! And even that wasn't me- heck, I didn't even know you guys existed until a few weeks ago, when you, I don't know, kidnapped my friend!" I shouted. Then sighed. Violence wasn't the answer.

Without taking my dagger down from the guy's neck, I continued. "Dustin Erikson. Info. Now," I snapped.

He still refused to answer, and I realized I had to tell him who he was to me. "He's... someone I know. There. Ya happy?" I deadpanned.

"No."

"Tough. I've known the man my entire life, yet I need a little more than just a picture."

"Then I guess it's a beautiful picture in a beautiful pendant, but-"

A glare was all I needed for the guy to finally concede.

"Fine. Location, somewhere in the base. Not entirely sure where. Position, dragon capturer. All the info I have. Sorry, sweetheart."

Just then, I heard someone entering. I recognized the pattern of the footsteps and identified the person as Isla. Her voice confirmed my thoughts.

"Katina? Time to get going. I got all the information from this one wimpy Harn, we should help the others now."

I finally let the guy go, but my eyes were still wide as I acknowledged what he had just said. Isla came up to me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Something wrong?" she asked me. I turned back to the exit if the base, where the guy I had been interrogating just left.

"You didn't hear it, but... I never told him it was a pendant."