Wait, so now Scarlet's saying something different. I need one answer, please!

There is a world, between the real one and somewhere magical. You can get to it only with the key of your imagination. In it, everything is quiet, and moves slowly. It looks like the real world, but time is slower and sound doesn't exist. I think I'm in that world.

I move slowly to the Power. It's tempting. I look around and see a panther. It's eyes... I suddenly have a urge to unleash the Power. I start to glow blue. 

Everyone is getting up and dusting themselves off. But I walk slowly towards the Power. I stand there, staring, when suddenly I tumble out of my world and suddenly lunge towards the power. 

Storm's talons grab me. They're sharp as knives... but they're definitely not as wicked. "I- I can't stop!!!" I say, trying to get out of this trance that I'm in.

Scarlet runs over and grabs me. But I can't stop. I won't stop until I play that power. 

I'm getting scared and trying to stop but I keep on glowing blue and trying to play it. "Help," I whisper.

Invisible fingers coax my mind and push me towards it, and now I know.

I can't stop until I play that Power.  

I talk in a cold voice. "BIG, has beat us. You should all be ashamed! But do it quickly, we must go. BIG has set numerous trapps for us."

i closed my eyes and sighed as I willed myself not to tell the truth. But it came. And when I said it I knew we weren't leaving anytime soon. "This isn't the real power."

I've done it now. I've formed a soft spot for these animals. And I saved them, not just for my reputation, but because I care. "We must find the Power! BIG probably is out there, but they haven't found it yet! Only an animal can find it in these caves." It was Eli, that fox. Willing us all on.

Suddenly I feel the urge to glance over. Eyes lock. Blue engulfs my vision. A human is standing there. Staring at me. I'm staring at her. I feel my bones grow cold. My blood freeze. "Icy," I whispered. 

The name just came to me. I didn't know how. But I knew it. I searched for that anger deep inside against all humans. But all that came was acceptance. Familiar acceptance. Like deep down she knew this girl. Like deep down...they were sisters.

Claaws looked away and laughed internally. Sisters! But she did have a strange fondness for this human. A fondness she shouldn't have for any human. She looked at the badger and kicked it. Claws unsheathed. She hated all guardains. Even the ones BIG set as a trap.

Suddenly there was a groan. She glanced back to see another human rubbing her head. The fake Power must be boobytrapped. But how would they know what the Power looked like? No, they were humans. Their leader was there when they were turned to instruments. The information must have been passed down generation to generation. Like the animals did. 

The strange human, Icy, was still walking slowly towards the instrument. She felt a sudden feeling of protection, and gently brushed her sheathed paw on the human's shoulder. She glowed an even more blue color as she turned around, a troubled look in her eyes. "It's fake," Claaws whispered.

Her troubled gaze slowly faded and she looked up at Claaws with big, round blue eyes. "Thank you," she whispered. Then the human did something she had only seen and laughed at. The human hugged her. At that moment she felt a kind of protection waver through her. Like, like a mother daughter protection. Like it was her responsibility to keep Icy safe. A human? But the feeling was so true, so powerful, she had to believe it.

"We better be going," Claaws pushed away. "Before BIG comes back to clean up the mess." 

Then she flashed into a dragon and bent a wing to give them all a lift back up.

She had blown her cover, without even a thought about it. 

I wrap a bandage around my earlier bite. I still don't understand... a Dragon. But the Power- how? It must have been enchanted with something. I blush as I remember hugging a complete stranger. And then I sink into my own private thoughts.. my own private world.

"Good work,"  Eli says, going around congratulating her team. The Search Mission leaders go around passing around blankets, bandages, and water.

Scarlet brings me a blanket. "Are you okay?" she asks. I leave my world of thoughts, my one comfort and a place where I can be free. "Yes?" I say, shivering as I wrap it around me. "That was..." Scarlet murmurs. "Terrifying," I say softly. "Scarlet, I couldn't stop. I was just watching my body do something I knew was wrong. What's wrong with me?" I say, fighting back tears. 

Scarlet doesn't answer, but she does  something even more comforting.

She wraps her wings around me. 

Thanks for clearing things up on the search mission thread, Eli. I was really confused. Now to RP. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wrap my wings around the shivering Icy. I don't know what happened with her and the power. And I don't know what got into the badger, either.  It was weird. I don't know what to do now. I never do know what to do. I sigh. For some reason, I suddenly feel the urge to cry. All the pressure and the fear and the confusion of late just spills out in a rush of tears. I must look weird, just crying, but I can't help it. I have to. I cling tighter to Icy. She seems to understand. "do you ever feel like you just have to cry sometimes?" I ask. She nods. The tears subside and I wipe my eyes. "I sometimes feel like, I don't know, the pressure of life just weighs down on me, and I have to be strong for my friends, and it's just too much." I say. "I feel the same way every day" Icy says. "The pressure of being a guardian just gets to me, and," she falters, as if she would burst into tears. "It's okay." I say. Then I see Claaws. I walk over to her. "Claaws," I say. "Could I talk to you? Alone?"

~ Scarlet 

Laria~

My head hurts and my eyes are slightly crossed, but I can tell what's going on.

"Guys, Icy's not enchanted!" I cry. "The spell's broken!" Everybody turns to me. I hope I don't look insane with my crossed violet eyes.

"How do you know that?" Xialong drawls.

"Because otherwise she'd still be going for the Power," I explain. "What would be the point of madly enchanting her if not to just get done what's needed?" I trip over a stone and sit on the floor, seeing double.

"Humans," Eliyana scoffs. I stand slowly, dangerously.

"Would. You. Stop. Saying. That?" I snarl. "I'm sick of it. You too, Xialong. We're no more scum than any of you!" My vision blurs and I stagger backwards.

"Laria, are you okay?" Icy checks.

"I... maybe?" I blink and rub my head. My vision clears. "Fine. I'm okay. So, let's get one thing clear." I stand up straighter. "I, for one, am coming to find this Power. I came this far. I'm not turning back."

"You can't!" Xialong cries. "You're a human!" I cross my arms stubbornly.

"Try and stop me," I challenge. 

I accidentally reset my typing thing. I'm angryish.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I saw Scarlet and Claaws go to the corner to speak. Claaws glanced back at Icy before leaving. Icy appears to be dazed. Just yesterday, she whispered about not wanting to be a Terrene traveler, and she now is friends with Claaws, and she is partially guardian. Icy must be confused and tired. Many things happened. I labeled the area with a large dome, and turned the paper around. I used my wind magic. I practice the wind magic every Wednesday, so I remember my practices. I made a little breeze come from outside to come in and circle around me. It came down, and I said in wind (it's translated), "I need you to check to make sure Scarlet and Claaws are ok with each other. I want to make sure no conflict would break out. It would be a disaster. The wind replied with a whistle of agreement and flowed over to where Scarlet and Claaws were. I looked at Xiaolong. She had known water magic. I hooted and I turned myself around. My head can't swivel as much with my mask, but mine was specially made so your head could be a bit more flexible than most. I waited and decided to check on Icy. I glided over, and she seemed more conscious, but she was groaning as if her eyes need to adjust a bit more. 

-Nameless

I see the others arguing about what happened, then I hear the phrase "Humans are scum". My blood runs cold, and my skin flashes an angry orange. I stalk over to the two who were insulting the human. Xiaolong. Eli.

"SHUT UP! You're scum! You pathetic waste of space! You have NO RIGHT TO INSULT THEM! What were you doing while the Badger was attacking? NOTHING. What happened wasn't anyone's fault but BIG's. As a matter of fact, I'm one-quarter human! And am I ashamed? No. Say that again and I'll... No. I'm not going to hurt an innocent person. All I can say is that at least I have honor!" 

Sorry for the harsh post. When it comes to this my character is a bit of a zealot.

"Um, yeah. I was enchanted, but I don't feel it anymore," I lie.

Everyone seems to believe that. I sigh in relief. Good. They believe me.

But I still want to find & activate that power. Somewhere, deep inside of me, a thirst has been planted to activate it. I want to still, deeply.

What's wrong with me? Why can't I stop wanting!?  

Woops. Can I join this RP?

I am big. I am powerful.

The memories came streaming back.

One roar would send a human city into the sky. One bite would kill the strongest beast. One swip of my claws would tear away the earth. Where has that power gone? Where has my true self gone? What has my pitiful existence turned into?

The memories, she could remember like they were only a century ago. She was dazing in the light, just a small dragonet, when Lunee came up and pounced on her tail. "Hey," she squeaked in protest. She flung her wings out and they took flight, chasing each other through the clouds. Once they had been best friends. But that all changed when Catastrophe changed Kyndom. When he turned them all against them. Now, now if she found Lunee, Lunee would kill her again, right then and there. 

The badger lay at my feet. He wasn't dead. Not yet. The fake power lay in a dome of fake roots. And animals were all around. Humans and animals. Her enemies. The betrayers. Yet I was working with them. How could I? But I had to. My sisters, brothers, they all depended on it. Depended on me.

I snapped back to my senses. Humans were arguing. And a certain dragon was yelling at one. Immediately she felt a hatred to that dragon. Clearly she had some of my power, my rightful power. I could sense it. But before I could interrupt their sissy fight, a small chicken came towards me, Scarlet Crimsonwing, if I remembered correctly. She had been talking to the dazed Icy a moment before. What did she want to talk about? Claaws had no choice but to follow.