(closed) holding out for a hero

[baguablade]

Who: Cain (baguablade) & Kanade (hurtled)
What: A dragon-napping and a rescue
When: late October
Where: Wyver
Warning(s): none

[ There's been plenty to get used to in Wyver. A new country, a new culture, and, strangest of all for Cain, new fauna. The dragons that roam around the city have him on edge the first few days; he's used to seeing giant, scaled creatures as mindless enemies that need to be fought, or as legends, myths that herald the world's destruction. Having them roaming around the streets has his hackles up for a while, but to the natives of Wyver, it's a way of life.

He doesn't give himself much time too acclimate. Being adaptable is a necessity, or at least it was, back on his home world. It's served him well since coming to El Nysa, and the situation in Wyver is just one more thing to adjust to. Pretty soon, the dragons, if not common place and familiar, become something that doesn't instinctively have his fingers twitching towards the hilt of his sword.

Which on this particular day, proves to be something of a hindrance.

He's not entirely sure why the dragon, hulking and black-scaled, picks him as its target. (Later, he'll find out that it's because he bears a striking resemblance to the creature's owner.) But pick him out it does, and before he has a chance to escape, or even protest, Cain finds himself grabbed and dragged away, back to the dragon's hillside... well, it's not really a lair. It seems to be more a place the dragon likes to sun itself, if the way it stretches out, wings extended to their full lengths, with Cain trapped firmly between the large, curved talons of its forelegs is anything to go by.

Any attempt to free himself results in displeased growling and a snapping of sharp teeth. Very, very sharp teeth.

After an hour of hoping the dragon will fall asleep and he can extricate himself from this awkward situation, it becomes quite clear that Cain's trapped. Thoroughly dragon-napped. He heaves a sigh and flops down onto the soft, springy, grass-covered ground and prepares to sulk. Or maybe nap a little. Sulk and then nap? Someone's bound to notice he's missing eventually, or at least wander by — the hill isn't that far from the city, along one of the main roads, it's possible someone even happened to see the kidnapping taking place — and it's clear he's not getting out of this without some help. ]

Comments

sorry for the delay! I'm here now

[hurtled]

[Dragons are a completely new sight for Kanade. Back where she came from, she never had to consider the possibility of encountering a creature which, for all intents and purposes, were found in fiction alone. Only when the evacuation to Wyver became a confirmed matter did she begin hearing more about how its people live with dragons, which definitely are a thing that exist -- and ubiquitous, she comes to learn after getting settled.

At first, she mistakes the dragon flying off with Cain as a means of transport. Some locals ride on dragons like they are mounts, after all, maybe he's doing the equivalent of parasailing?

Although...parasailers don't wear the look of those who have no clue what is happening, do they. Or struggle and flail.

So she follows. On foot, putting her at a comparative disadvantage thanks to the pesky obstacles called walls, for the dragon simply goes right over them, whereas she must make her way around while staying focused on it. Eventually, however, she finds herself outside the town borders, with view and path both clear.

Still, the reptilian figure in the sky has long since gone far ahead. By the point she catches up -- she isn't even certain how much time has passed, and sneaking up from behind was a lengthy ordeal as well -- Cain appears to be dozing off.]

Psst! [Quietly, now...she waves. A clap on the shoulder might startle him, and they hardly need the dragon's attention again when it has faced the other way.] Hey.

[baguablade]

[ It takes a few minutes for Cain to actually respond — he is actually napping, grown so bored with his captivity that being unconscious had seemed like the better way to spend his time than fruitlessly attempting yet another attempt to sneak away right out from under the dragon's nose. At first the whispering seems like the wind through the trees, just a figment of his dream.

But... those are words.

Cain snaps awake, sitting bolt upright. And then he freezes, staring at the girl waving at him, holding his breath. Praying that his sudden movement hasn't woken the snoozing dragon that still has him caged in its very, very large claws.

Minutes pass and the dragon doesn't stir. He lets out his breath with a relieved sigh and crawls over to the side of his makeshift cage to whisper back to the girl. ]

Yo. [ He even gives her a cheery wave in return, quite contrary to his situation. ] Any chance you can call for help? I'm kind of... stuck.

[hurtled]

[That? Is as good an answer as any to her unspoken question of whether he was taking the dragon out for a leisure trip, or whatever. Taken out by the dragon, rather. Anyway.]

I don't think I should leave you here. [She peers out over at the head and neck, rumbling with snores and heavy breaths, laid along the ground.] I managed to find this place because it stopped moving, but it might carry you elsewhere while I'm gone.

[A thought occurs to her, then.] The dragons 'round these parts are supposed to be domesticated, right? Did the owner sic their hitter on you? [Read: dude, who did you offend to invite such a problem.]

[baguablade]

[ Alas, Cain did not mean to get dragon-napped. And he's not looking forward to being stuck here any longer than necessary, this is really all one big mistake and he has no idea why it's happening to him. But he still pulls an aggrieved face at his would-be rescuer. He didn't offend anyone! He hasn't had time to do that yet! ]

I haven't done anything. I was just on my way to pick up something to eat and the next thing I knew, this thing flew out of the sky and grabbed me.

[ And he's very indignant about it! He doesn't like being sneak attacked at all. ]

It's got to get bored of this sometime, right...? [ The dragon, snoozing, does not seem like it's going to get bored anytime soon. That would require being conscious, after all. ] I'm open to ideas if you can think of something to get me out of here, but you'd better make sure it doesn't catch you, too.

[hurtled]

Hnn... [Folding her arms. Fine, she'll take his word for it. He better not let her discover later that her guess was accurate.] You're not exactly in any position to be telling me that.

[But the implication he was is appreciated -- even if it was just a remark because he doesn't want the rescue attempt to fail, Cain still had shown consideration for her safety when he's the trapped one here.

Let's take stock some more. Each of the dragon's talons nearly matches her height, while standing, in length. She could try pushing a couple apart to open a wider gap for him to slide through, but...they don't so much as budge when she leans against them. And she has no intention of using Gungnir like a common crowbar to pry them apart.] I'm sure a dragon will have pressure points too. How about I strike it someplace linked to these claws? ...Or perhaps a tickle...

[Wouldn't do to have him impaled or crushed were his makeshift cage to close in around him instead.]

[baguablade]

[ Cain watches as she shoves at the talons, and watches as the dragon doesn't so much as twitch. It must be nice, being an apex predator who doesn't have to worry about insignificant things like small creatures poking at you because you can eat them in one bite if they annoy you. Stupid dragon. He glares at the dragon's massive sleeping head, but that doesn't have any effect, either. ]

Can it even feel a tickle? [ He pokes — well, more like slaps a hand against — the nearest bit of scaled foreleg. The dragon snoozes on. ] You'd have to hit it with a huge amount of force to get through the scales...

[hurtled]

I can do force. [Pro...bably...? Panicking or losing confidence isn't conducive to anything, so why not believe in herself. If one spear's not enough, she'll throw more spears at the dragon. Simple.]

I just don't want it to step on you. [She stretches out a hand, palm open, to illustrate, tracing one finger along her own arm.] All the parts are joined. If it has a reaction to me attacking it, you could end up caught deeper when the claws move.

[Options feel limited, though. Thinking was never her strong suit. Particularly since the dragon has a high chance of being owned by somebody in Wyver -- somebody who wouldn't take kindly to her hurting their pet (?).] Well, you're having the lucky day here, shall we try that luck again?

[baguablade]

[ He gives her a dubious look — what part of this is a lucky day? If anything it's nothing but bad luck. But... what other choice is there, he doesn't want to be stuck here for days. Cain sighs and gives her a nod. ]

Luckily, I'm pretty good at dodging. [ And taking fatal blows! Which... hopefully won't be necessary... ] Let's give it a try. I'm counting on you, partner!

[ He rolls up, onto his feet, and bounces, stretching out. If they're doing this, he has to be ready to go. Even if it works, they probably won't get a second chance. ]

[hurtled]

[Look, what are the odds that a dragon would pick him off the street at random? And for a passerby to not only spot them, but come to his aid? Were he truly unlucky, they won't even be where they are now.

The corner of her lips curl into a smile at "partner"; it's been a long time since anybody has called her that. Sending him a thumbs-up, she does a running jump, fumbling above and onto the paw (?) holding Cain.

She was, in fact, serious about the pressure points. Although humans are built differently, the general idea remains the same, plus the dragon's sheer size also means a target magnified several times and thus easier to hit.

The scales pose a problem, though. Her first blow hardly leaves a dent. The second fares better, the third makes a noticeable thump. Then the thumps turn louder and louder, into resounding booms. Kanade is no specialist at unarmed combat, her successor is more deserving of the title...but she doesn't need to be on Hibiki's level to do this.

She keeps pummeling the one spot, until she almost changes her mind and opens her mouth to start singing --

The dragon lets out a screech.]

[baguablade]

[ Cain just gapes. Here's a girl punching a dragon hard enough that it's screaming, the sound horrible and high-pitched and aching as it tears through his head. And the dragon's clawed hand is trembling, each blow shaking it, the claws scraping together— the claws pop open as the dragon jerks its head, searching for the source of its annoyance.

It takes a second for Cain to realize what's just happened, but then he laughs, a little wild with disbelief, and makes a mad dash for his freedom, vaulting over one of the wickedly sharp talons and diving for the soft grass beyond his cage. ]

That's amazing! [ He pauses, not willing to abandon his rescuer, and adds: ] We should probably run now!

[hurtled]

[Quickly landing at his side, she nods.]

Let's move back to town. I came from the same direction as you. [It's a downhill path from their current position, which they can make use of to maintain what fleeting head start there is before they're spotted. With the high ground, the dragon might swoop after them, and then they'd face a repeat of the whole thing all over again.] Once we find cover, it won't be able to catch you so easily.

[While standard procedure, and basic common sense, would have her direct people away from trouble than draw the trouble towards a crowd, the people of Wyver are an exception when it comes to dragons. In the admittedly likely event they fail to outrun it, the natives will have a better solution than "hit the creature of major local significance repeatedly to make it let go", after all.]

[baguablade]

[ Cain's perfectly okay with leading the dragon back towards the people who have domesticated it. If they're going to let overgrown lizards run around and kidnap people, then they're their underground lizards to deal with!

Not that he has time to vocalize this as they pelt down the path leading back to the city proper. He's more interested in running than talking right now, sparing a nod to his rescuer. He only stops when they reach the city gates, and then, he slows a few paces inside, jogging a little until he comes to a stop and bends over, hands on his knees and panting.

After a moment, he glances back, checking to make sure they've gotten away. So far, no sign of the dragon, but it could easily be up beyond the cloud cover, tracking them. ]

Whew. Think we made it?

[ His shoulders itch; he can practically feel a clawed foot coming down (again) to snatch him up and carry him away (again). ]

returns to this eons later...if it's been too long I can hit you up for another thing instead!

[hurtled]

I sure hope we did... [Years of physical training are the sole reason why she hasn't collapsed into a puddle of exhaustion, but she wants to. Very much. Once she finds a hot bath, she's going to sit inside and never resurface for the next decade.

That must wait, she reminds herself. Since the figurative coast looks clear, they better utilize the chance to get somewhere safe -- safer.]

What next? Is your house nearby? [Or should they head for a more populated area, camouflaged among bigger groups of townspeople?]