[LEA] Cadenza Madrigal's Training

OoC: (Link to character profile in signature.)

BiC:
“Get to the Dome,” the stern voice on the other end of the line instructed. “You need training. I’ll have a map sent with a route indicated.”

From Cadenza’s side, all that came was quickened breathing. She had just outrun two guards and was still rather on edge. Still, there was no time for rest. She was being given her next assignment.

There was a long pause.

Cadenza thought perhaps her sister heard how she was panting and was going to possibly congratulate her on a heist well done, but then the woman on the other end spoke up again, “And remember sister… we’re tainted now. Criminals. Be careful with whom you associate. Other trainees will be there.”

“I’m aware,” Cadenza snapped back.

“…That’s good. We can’t afford to be arrested like father.” The lady heaved a large sigh. “Once the map reaches you, get a move on.”

Inhale. Exhale.. Inhale…

Her breath made a static sound as it hit the receiver of the two-way radio. Over the noise, Cadenza could barely hear a rustle in the forest behind her.

Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

Her heart rate began to pick up again. Her lungs were burning, parched for oxygen.

“Cadenza?”

“What?” she coughed back.

“Is something wrong..?”

“Nothing. It’s nothing. Goodbye sister.” She hung up quickly and took to the hills, racing along despite the cramps in her legs.

A gun sounded behind her, and birds scattered, squawking and showering the ground with feathers.

You should have never left Rubato, Cadenza told herself, stopping behind a tree for a breather. You don’t know this place. There are trees.. and water… and… She looked down at her soiled shoes. One of her feet was wedged into the soft ground. …and mud.

With her back against the trunk of the gangly birch, she peered back at the forest. Two guards carrying large rifles were coming towards the hills.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Cadenza was climbing the tree, hoping to the gods that it would support her. She cocked an arrow and drew her bow near to her face. The gypsy archer had a good clean shot at the burlier of the two guards. Her fingers released the bowstring and the arrow ripped through the air, piercing its target in the chest. He fell with a stifled groan.

“Riley!” his partner screamed when the man fell. “Officer Riley, what happened?” His face blanched at the sight of the arrow lodged in the man’s chest. Cadenza figured the noises that followed were him choking back vomit.

With the two “distracted”--as Cadenza later would say when she told her sisters the story--she knew this was her chance for escape. She lowered herself to the ground quietly and dashed off through the brief stretch of hills.
She was heading southbound, towards a seedy local establishment where she was told no questions were asked, and no questions were answered. There she would await the courier with her map. …Or get into a bar fight.

The gypsy was seated at a corner table, eyes focused so intently on the window one might think she was going to burn a hole through it. The man had waltzed up to her, asked her to dance. “You look like you could make a man sweat, and like it,” he had said.
Cadenza smirked. “You sure know how to sweet talk a girl,” she said sarcastically.
The man laughed a hearty laugh. “Just one little dance?” He took Cadenza’s hands in his own and swept her onto the dance floor.

The pick-up artist wasn’t interested in Cadenza however; he was interested in the riches she had swiped that were dangling—rather conspicuously—in a bag hooked onto the belt around her waist. During the dance, an attempt to remove them from that belt, gone awry, was what started the little brawl in the tavern that night.

“So.. what do you do for a living?” he asked her.

“I dance,” she said, rather dryly.

Slowly, he moved a hand towards her waist, resting it finally on her hip. He had played it off as part of the dance.
His fingers trailed along her belt to the bag. “Such beautiful curves,” he commented. He was poised to grab the bag when Cadenza stopped the man’s hand, not with her own, but with the hilt of her dagger.

“Try it again... and it’ll be the other end.”

Unimpressed, the man took a step back, seemingly to retreat, and then lunged forward with a left hook that nearly knocked Cadenza off her feet. “You tease,” he spat at her.

When she could regain her balance, her hand gingerly grazed the spot on her face where the punch had hit. It hurt, even at the slightest touch. She swung at him with her dagger, but the man simply dodged to the right and struck again. The force of the blow sent Cadenza toppling over a bar stool. The attacker reached again for the bag, and she scored a deep cut across his thumb. Infuriated, he grabbed her and sloppily tossed her at the wall, knocking a picture to the ground and shattering the cheap glass mirror where she hit. Instead of retaliating, the gypsy leapt shakily onto the table, and launched herself towards the ceiling light. Grabbing hold of the plastic shade, she spun herself to face the door and leapt again, evading the man altogether.

“I don’t have time to play with bullies,” she called back as she sprinted out the door. She nearly tumbled over when she took her first step on the stairs.

Cadenza finally sat down to nurse her wounds on the curb three streets down. “Maybe I could use some training at that Dome place.” She wiped the blood from her mouth and got up again, tossing the satchel of money that had been fought over—twice now—into her quiver. She then made her way to the entrance of town, planning to catch the courier on his way in.

In three hours time, the delivery man had arrived at the gates of Florheim, map in hand. Cadenza motioned him over to the tree behind which she stood. He unfolded the map and began reciting what his employer had told him. “The path you should take is outlined in red, my lady. Blue lines are the rivers, brown areas are mountains and-”

“-I know how to read a map,” she snapped, snatching the paper from his hands. “Thank you,” she spat back.

The man held out his hand. “Aren’t you going to pay me?”

Cadenza tried her hardest to hold back a laugh. “Pay you..? Hon, if my sister didn’t pay you, you aren’t getting paid. Just be glad you’re leaving me without an arrow in your gut.”

Growling, the courier stomped away from the gate. After what he had heard about the Madrigals, he had to take the woman’s words as truth. But still, he certainly wouldn’t have minded some compensation for coming out to the slums.

Cadenza unfolded the map and studied the route. She was amazed to see that the large Dome lay only a few kilometers away, on the other side of the decaying jungle to the north. Fortunately, there were no rivers between her and her destination. She shuddered at the very idea of swimming. Within the hour she was riding off to the Dome, carried by a stallion she had lured away from its stable in Florheim. Who knew that a poor horse would resort to munching on a small container of peach blush?

OoC: World Count - 1,259

OoC: Hm...I've had to think about this carefully, but I've finally decided that you shall be going into my intermediate class. You're nearly Advanced material, but I feel you could improve a bit more before moving up to Advanced.

One thing I'd like to point out to you, though, are your breaks paragraphs. Sometimes, they get a little funky, and I don't know if that's just because of the program you might have used to type this in. For example, rather than writing it like this:

“Get to the Dome,” the stern voice on the other end of the line instructed. “You need training. I’ll have a map sent with a route indicated.”

From Cadenza’s side, all that came was quickened breathing. She had just outrun two guards and was still rather on edge. Still, there was no time for rest. She was being given her next assignment.

There was a long pause.
Cadenza thought perhaps her sister heard how she was panting and was going to possibly congratulate her on a heist well done.

But then the woman on the other end spoke up again, “And remember sister… we’re tainted now. Criminals. Be careful as to whom you associate with. Other trainees will be there.”

“I’m aware,” Cadenza snapped back.

“…That’s good. We can’t afford to be arrested like father.” The lady heaved a large sigh.
“Once the map reaches you, get a move on.”

Inhale. Exhale.. Inhale…
Her breath made a static sound as it hit the receiver of the two-way radio. Over the noise, Cadenza could barely hear a rustle in the forest behind her.
Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.
Her heart rate began to pick up again. Her lungs were burning, parched for oxygen.

Try this:

“Get to the Dome,” the stern voice on the other end of the line instructed. “You need training. I’ll have a map sent with a route indicated.”

From Cadenza’s side, all that came was quickened breathing. She had just outrun two guards and was still rather on edge. Still, there was no time for rest. She was being given her next assignment.

There was a long pause.

Cadenza thought perhaps her sister heard how she was panting and was going to possibly congratulate her on a heist well done, but then the woman on the other end spoke up again, “And remember sister… we’re tainted now. Criminals. Be careful as to whom you associate with. Other trainees will be there.”

“I’m aware,” Cadenza snapped back.

“…That’s good. We can’t afford to be arrested like father.” The lady heaved a large sigh. “Once the map reaches you, get a move on.”

Inhale. Exhale.. Inhale…

Her breath made a static sound as it hit the receiver of the two-way radio. Over the noise, Cadenza could barely hear a rustle in the forest behind her.

Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

Her heart rate began to pick up again. Her lungs were burning, parched for oxygen.

Also, this line bothered me somewhat:

Be careful as to whom you associate with. Other trainees will be there.

It would be better worded like this:

Be careful who you associate with. Other trainees will be there.

OR...

Be careful with whom you associate. Other trainees will be there.

Whichever one you like better is fine.

Okay? That's just part of your post, but I'd like you to go back and fix those breaks and clean it up a little. Then, you may move on to Lesson 1. ^^

OoC: Edits made.
Microsoft Word likes to occasionally impose its strange formatting ideas on your work. And sometimes it was just me not thinking.

Awesome. ^^ You may move on to Lesson 1 in the Intermediate Class thread.

The gypsy was straddling down the corridor—her legs still stuck in the position they had been in while riding the stallion she had stolen—searching for a private place to call her sisters when she saw her. She was an elven woman, with all the beauty and grace that race had been known for, and she carried a large, majestic sword with relative ease. Seeing one with an even more elegant appearance than herself made Cadenza admittedly uncomfortable. She was forcing herself to walk in a more ladylike manner, as much as it ached to do so, when the young woman approached her.

“…You’re Cadenza, correct?”

Cadenza mumbled affirmation. She was instantly jealous of the musical quality to the elf’s voice but strived to keep her expression indifferent. Remaining neutral in her tone of voice would have been too hard, she thought.

“I will escort you to your room then. Follow me, please.”

Cadenza began walking behind her, wordlessly. However, the elf seemed determined to get a verbal response from her. She wouldn’t allow the conversation to end quite so quickly.

“You can call me Sileya.”

“Pretty name,” Cadenza replied, rather dryly.

The elf looked back, a little surprised and glad to hear a vocal response, as lacking as it most likely was in sincerity. For a brief moment her mind had considered the idea of the gypsy being a mute. “…Thank you.”

Cadenza offered no more on the walk. Within three minutes time they arrived at her room.

“These will be your living quarters,” Sileya told her, opening the door a crack so that Cadenza could see inside. “Why don’t you rest a bit? I’m sure your trip to the Dome was a long one.” With that bit of advice, she left Cadenza to the excitement of a new room designed especially for her.

The first thing the gypsy noticed as she walked in was that each and every wall of her peculiar hexagonal-shaped room was a mirror. A sturdy oak bar one might use for ballet stretches ran the length of the wall opposite the door. In the room’s center, there was an oval-shaped bed with curved head and footboards, made-up with lavish purple satin sheets and matching pillows adorned with silver-colored tassels at each corner. A small cherry wood bureau was oddly placed beside the bed, rather than against one of the walls.

Then the smell of strange, pungent incense became apparent to her once she had shut the door. The fragrance emanated from each of the six corners of the room, mingling in the center above her bed to create a dizzying, intoxicating aroma.

Content with the idea of investigating the bureau later, Cadenza plopped herself down on the bed and almost immediately drifted off to sleep.
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Cadenza awoke abruptly, drenched in a cold sweat. Every inch of her skin was over-saturated, wrinkly to the touch, and she felt as if she was holding onto the air in her mouth for dear life. Her legs felt heavy. A figure she could only identify as orange and fish-shaped seemed to swim by her. Surrounding the gypsy, the mirrors reflected back a terrifying reality—Cadenza was drowning in her own room. She was underwater.

She frantically kicked her legs, jerked her arms about her, but remained immobile. It was then she realized why her legs had felt so heavy. A chain bound her ankles to her bureau. In her surprise her cheeks burst open like a balloon carelessly popped, and she swallowed a large gulp of nauseating seawater. Cadenza knew then if she didn’t die by drowning, the dehydration caused by that saltwater would be her end.

Her burning eyes could make out smoke above the water, a reddish purple smoke that seemed familiar. She forced herself to move, pump her arms in a way that would propel her body forward. As she made progress the drawer of the bureau was drawn further out, and eventually was freed from its trappings altogether. Cadenza paddled harder towards the surface, oblivious to the fact that she was now swimming, albeit not very well. When the first of her hands emerged from the water, she was plunged back into sweet, safe slumber.
-----------------------------------------
A ray of morning sunshine played across Cadenza’s face, making the cool sweat on her brow glisten. She awoke groggily, a blurry splotch of white coming in view on her footboard. She tore it off, bothered by the idea of someone ruining the finish of her bed with tape. “A note?”

You’ve overcome your first fear. Congratulations. I hope to see you now overcome this in reality. That was after all, only an “incense” induced dream, and we all can dream what we wish were true.

I hope to see more success from you, Cadenza. I believe you will find your stay here to be quite intriguing.

Cadenza raised her eyebrow, her interest piqued. The note was signed “A humble observer.”

OoC: Word Count - 825

Very nice job. You portrayed Sileya's character pretty well, and I love how you inserted a dream in the middle of Cadenza's stay in her room. Very, very nice. And I didn't catch any major grammatical errors, either. You're all set to proceed to Lesson 2. Oh, yeah, and remember to give me a word count at the end of all your posts, unless I say otherwise.

The hallway she traveled down was empty, eerily so. Cadenza felt awkward walking it down it alone. She didn’t mind Sileya calling her to come meet her in the gardens, but what did bother her was that she had no idea where the gardens were. Surely she would have to run into someone in the hallway who knew, she thought.

She noticed a ways down that the lights overhead were nearly burnt out, which was pointed out by their constant flickering on and off and showers of sparks. It was late evening, and most students were off to bed early, as apparently were building services. Cadenza began to wonder what could be so important as to warrant Sileya calling for her now. She had thought of postponing her meeting with her until morning, but the idea of something so urgent nagged her until she left her room—which she wasn’t terribly comfortable in anyhow.

Even in her dazed state, the distinct smell of chlorine wafting down the hallway caught her attention. Partly out of curiosity and partly out of boredom, Cadenza followed the scent to its source.

A few meters down the corridor the walls began to gradually flair out, leading into a large oblong-shaped room. Around the perimeter there were bleached white wooden beach chairs, littered with swimsuits ranging in size that had the Dome’s insignia printed in black on the front. In the center there was a large pool, about 10 feet at its deepest point. A diving board protruding from the western edge of the pool beckoned Cadenza to jump in. “I hope to see you now overcome this in reality.” …Wasn’t that what they said?

Acting now on impulse, the gypsy disrobed and tried on a few of the swimsuits until she found one that decently fit. She then stood, on noodle legs, before the diving board, and took one bold step forward. Then another. Soon she found herself at the head of the wooden board.

She inhaled deeply, raised her arms above her head in a steeple-like manner, and plunged in—all the while praying to the gods that she would survive this foolhardy venture.

The water erupted in a splash when the first of her limbs hit the surface. The drowning blue swirled around her, cradling her body as she went farther under. Cadenza opened her eyes, and the chlorine immediately stung. Her mind panicked at the sight, but instinct took over and her legs and arms began to paddle. Within seconds her head emerged from the depths of the pool.

The gypsy swam her way to the edge of the pool--still with considerable difficulty but showing progress—and pulled herself out. After toweling off and changing, she continued on her way to the gardens, taking a right into the corridor leading east from the pool.

She had turned the corner sharply when she bumped into the Gerudo. She was wandering throughout the Dome, searching for her room. The woman had striking blue eyes and dark hair, contrasting with her tanned almost orangeish complexion. Cadenza, a bit startled by the woman, took a moment to regain her composure before speaking. Sounding confident was important to her.

“Lost your way, eh?”

“You seem lost too,” she retorted. The Gerudo had a rather sour look on her face.

“Me? ..Lost?” Cadenza chuckled loudly. “I know exactly where I’m going, honey.”

“Whatever you say.” The woman waved a dismissive hand at the gypsy and walked on by. “The gardens are to the left, by the way.”

“I knew that!” Cadenza shouted after her. Stupid little tramp. I knew where the gardens were. A few minutes of walking down the western hallway brought Cadenza to a large fountain, and the gardens. There stood Sileya, yawning a bit, leaning against the granite rim of the fountain.

“You made it,” she said once she finally saw Cadenza, more surprised than she was letting on. “Glad to see you. I’ve got a task for you.”

Cadenza raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“You are to gather one white lily, one ripened tomato, and a pair of tulip bulbs, and bring them back to me.”

“Making some sort of strange… flower and fruit basket or something?”

Sileya smiled wryly. “Just focus on getting them, okay?”

“Alright then, I see we’re all business here. I’ll find ‘em.” With that the gypsy took off to search the gardens. She was a little insulted that the elf would give her such a seemingly easy task—she did after all make her living by thievery. Sniffing out a few items in a garden should be a breeze, she thought.

After twenty minutes of rooting through the flowerbeds, Cadenza came upon a single white lily, luckily not withered like a few of the others she had come across. She picked the delicate flower and tucked it into her hair alongside her peacock feathers for safekeeping. Next was the ripened tomato.

A tomato plant, with a yield of three vine-ripened red tomatoes, was to be found in the corner of the gardens. However, it wasn't as simple as picking it and storing it away—a large snake, no mere garter snake either, was guarding the plant. Cadenza looked the snake over, searching for the telltale coloring of a poisonous beast. The snake boasted vivid purple and green coloring. It was safe. Cadenza drew her dagger and jabbed at the guardian, taking its head off with a well-timed slash. She wiped the blood from her blade with a nearby leaf, and then plucked her precious tomato.

All that was left to get were a pair of tulip bulbs. Cadenza wondered why there wouldn’t be any with the gardening supplies she assumed were needed for the upkeep of the gardens. Very little flora grew in Rubato; she simply wasn’t sure which type of soil one would search when looking for bulbs. She spent an hour digging up patches without any sprouts or plants growing in them already. All throughout her search, a thought repeatedly came up--this was getting ridiculous. She was a thief. She was supposed to be able to find things with ease. She wasn’t about to go back to Sileya without the tulip bulbs.

She stood again and had taken only a few steps when she tripped over something, landing on her hands and knees. She growled and looked over her shoulder to see the cause. A step behind her was an open hole. Peering into the dark hole she could see two tulip bulbs deeply implanted in the soil. Overjoyed, she thrust her hand into the dirt, not caring how it would soil her gloves, and dug the bulbs out.

The caretakers of the garden hadn’t seen a faster sprint in their lives then the one Cadenza took to the fountain. Grinning broadly, proud of her keen searching abilities, she presented Sileya with the items.

“Good. Although it did take longer than I expected from you. But good.”

Cadenza nearly snarled. “Just good?”

“Just good,” the elf repeated, smiling. “Now why don’t you go get some rest? Perhaps I’ll see you in the morning.” She turned to leave a very irritated Cadenza behind. “Good night, Miss Madrigal.”

OoC: Word Count - 1,201

Once again, very nice job. You're doing quite well. ^^ Nothing major for me to point out, and you also do a nice job with Sileya's character. Keep up the good work, and go on to Lesson 3.

There was nothing Cadenza hated more than being, as she called it, “one-upped”. Being bested. At the Dome however, she had been bested quite often, and she was getting sick of it. There was the Gerudo she met in the hallway by the pool, who always knew where the places Cadenza had to go were, and was always around to tease her during her worst moments. Sabureela, her name was. She disliked being called that, and so Cadenza enjoyed the name all the more. The female warrior gave no equally amusing surname for Cadenza to call her by. Then there was Sileya, who was just overall more elegant and beautiful than she was. She was rather strong, and carried a marvelous sword with such grace and ease. Cadenza wondered if she wielded the sword just as perfectly. Somehow the elf had even ended up in charge of her. Cadenza couldn’t stand it. She vowed to make her education at the Dome go as quickly as possible.

That was why she planned to make great haste to Sileya for her next assignment. She had cleaned herself up as fast as she could, and rest for only a few hours. Once she had awoken, she learned she actually didn’t have to go see Sileya for her next task. Instead, there was a note taped to her door, directing her to find a specific door and meet the elven woman there. Cadenza grinned, pleased with her next task. This time she would prove her searching prowess. This time she would impress that seemingly blasé elf.

The note included a rather vague description of the door. It was brown in color, and decorated in silver. It was also to be opened by a large ring. Cadenza was unfazed by the lack of detail or direction in the note. She saw it only as a great opportunity to showcase her talents.

The gypsy lingered only a moment longer to grab her purple sash from her bureau, and then was out the door.

Cadenza began with the mindset of an arrogant student, taking a test they knew they would ace. She walked down the corridor with a confident air, going much too fast and not checking the doors beside her or listening to anyone who tried to offer her directions on the way—much like that very same arrogant student who speeds through that test, not reading directions or paying any mind to an entire question. She could have passed a hallway leading to that door three times, and would not have even known it.

She was, at first, unaware of the constant shifting and rearranging of the Dome. The hallway she traversed soon brought her back to her room, a realization which brought her frustration and distress. She was tempted to ask a passerby the time, but feared if she learned how long she had been taking she would begin to doubt her abilities and feel like a failure. If Cadenza valued nothing else, it was success.

She started back down the hallway, with renewed determination and vigor. She would find this blasted door, even if it took her all day. And she would have that darned elf’s respect and praise as well.

The changing of the Dome’s structure, the entire system of passageways and rooms, brought the gypsy twice more to her room, throwing her into a tumult of anger and disbelief for the rest of her search. Her very self-esteem rode waves, experiencing many troughs where she was near self-loathing. Cadenza had never realized how much efficiency and success were important to her. That was what she was raised to care about, by both her parents and her sisters. Her life was completing missions given to her by others higher in command, often only to meet their needs and wants.

She admitted this to herself, and heaved a large sigh of self-pity. It was then the hallway shifted again, and Cadenza remained passive to its changes, standing and watching, dismayed that her progress would be in vain once again. A door slid along the wall as the Dome made its final changes. A mahogany door, with silver etchings of dragons, and a large ring, also made of silver, in the center. Once Cadenza realized what door it was, hot tears of joy ran down her cheeks, draining her of her anger and distress. She had found the door.

Sileya casually walked up to the door, a bit taken aback by Cadenza’s appearance. She was slightly sweaty, and mascara soiled her face.

“I thought I told you to wash up.”

“I did,” Cadenza snapped back.

There was a brief silence, in which Sileya looked the gypsy square in the eye. She couldn’t explain it, but Cadenza couldn’t help but feel the elf somehow understood.

Sileya half-smiled. “I see.”

OoC: Word Count - 804

Wow, really great job. I'm really impressed. Keep this up, and you'll be an advanced student in no time. ^^ Go ahead and move on to Lesson 4.

“Enter, and I think you’ll comprehend your task better,” Sileya explained.

Cadenza furrowed her brow, still feeling rather skeptical. The elf’s next assignment didn’t just seem unrealistic, it seemed downright nonsensical and well, if Cadenza was being honest, insane. A dragon egg? On a mountain? Indoors? I know this Dome place has defied logic before but… a mountain indoors? A whole ecosystem in which a dragon could live in this building?

“I understand it does not make much sense now, but please, just go on and open the door.”

With a shrug of the shoulders, Cadenza complied and took hold of the large silver ring. It was warm to the touch, much unlike the rest of the Dome which was a bone-chilling cold to the native of the scorching hot Rubato. With a swift and fluid motion, strength seemingly restored by the sensation of heat to which she was adapted to, the gypsy pulled the heavy wooden door open. She was greeted with an overwhelming gale of warm wind that blew her back into the elf waiting behind her. “Pardon me,” she spat, more as a formality than a true apology, and then quickly righted herself on her feet.

It was then that Cadenza was nearly brought to her knees by the beauty of the scene that panned out before her, beyond the mahogany frame of the door. The majestic mountain, the nature that lay below, all of it looked so otherworldly. So very peaceful. The gypsy hesitated to enter, fearing for a second that one “tainted” as she was would spoil the purity of the heaven before her.

“It’s… it’s gorgeous,” she managed to utter, after minutes of dumbfounded silence.

“Yes, it is,” Sileya replied, still finding reason to be in awe of the mountains despite the innumerable visits Cadenza figured she made to this location. “But we cannot stand here and marvel forever, so please if you could, go forth.”

“I… I was gonna,” Cadenza retorted, the sourness in her voice gone mild in her current state. She took a few tentative steps towards the threshold and stopped. Just get it over with. I’m here to help something, not harm it. She heaved a sigh of long-suffering and took the last step inside. Her foot scraped the first bit of mountain terrain gently, and she made advances towards the nest she was to protect with extreme caution. Also very carefully, she peered over the rim of the massive structure of tree branches. Inside rest a lonely cream colored egg, the size of a human-head, but undoubtedly twice the weight. This is it, huh? …Heh, I almost feel sorry for the thing. It’s parentless. And I complain about only my father being gone.

Cadenza grabbed the edge of the nest and pulled herself inside. Once in position, she drew her bow and cocked an arrow. “Ready, elf girl,” she called out to Sileya, who waited patiently by the door.

“Good,” she called back. “I’ll be nearby.”

Cadenza looked at her blankly. What sort of assignment was this, if Sileya were to be right beside her? Soon, however, she could see what Sileya meant by “nearby.”

A staggeringly-large dragon, his vivid green coloring and beautiful scales a feast for the eyes, flew over the mountain’s peak. He swept down, hurricane force winds whirling about his impressive body, and picked up his elven master. The two wove through the rock formations and flew a considerable distance, pausing at the point where Cadenza was just barely within sight.

Once the gypsy had taken note of the distance, the trial commenced. Her duty was to protect the egg from the predators that roamed the mountain. For how long she would have to play guardian was undetermined.

The first night of her vigil was uneventful. The mountain’s temperature lowered a mere few degrees, and not even a common storm threatened the well-being of the egg. All was peaceful.

But as if an announcement had been made on the arrival of the sun, figures began to appear at dawn on the horizon. The first of these creatures was overcast by an early morning shadow, which prevented Cadenza from identifying it, and from condemning it as a foe. She waited with bated breath, an arrow cocked and bowstring drawn. Within moments the illuminating rays of the sun showed the creature to be a harmless ram.

Cadenza stored away her bow and arrow, and crawled out of the nest. “And to think I was about to shoot you. You’re just a mountain sheep.”

The ram uttered a noise as he approached the gypsy and the nest. He bent down, appearing to be searching for weeds or some type of vegetation to gnaw on. It was in that moment that Cadenza swore she heard a hissing sound come from the other end of the animal. She spun the creature around quickly, and her jaw dropped at what she saw—the ram’s tail was a viper, poised to devour her precious egg! Cadenza’s dagger immediately flew out of its sheathe, and slashed violently at the snake. The head of the viper was cleaved off with a single swipe, but the ram portion was unscathed. Green began to protrude from the tail-end, collecting together to reform the snake she had killed.

Cadenza gaped, but her hands continued to move instinctively. She jammed the point of her dagger into the center of the beast. Blood spewed from the wound, and the ram uttered one last cry in his death throes. With a spasm it fell to the rocky ground.

Similar cries emanated from a flock of the monstrous creatures meters away, as if they were swearing revenge. They stampeded forward, and Cadenza only had a scant few seconds to ready her bow and release a flurry of arrows. Less than a third found their targets in the sides of the beasts, felling them after much struggling. Others advanced further, and scored bites on the gypsy. Cadenza inhaled deeply, trying to calm herself in the chaos. She couldn’t flee this disaster, as much as she wanted to. She had to act fast to save the egg.

With a backflip she landed in the nest, her Enchantment spell’s incantation already under way, with the required peacock feathers in her hands. The savage beasts were brought to a halt, mesmerized by the musical chant. In a matter of minutes, the majority of the creatures were paralyzed. Cadenza, although drained, summoned the energy to crawl from the nest once more and do away with as many rams as time allowed. The few survivors ran once they regained control of their means to do so. The gypsy stumbled on her way back to the nest, and fainted from the lightheadedness that often followed the use of Enchantment.

Sileya’s delicate elven face came gradually into view as Cadenza awoke. “You did it,” she whispered. “The baby has hatched. You succeeded.”

The groggy gypsy’s voice came out hoarse. “Hatched?”

“Yes,” Sileya replied, smiling. “Good job. You should go get some rest.”

OoC: Word Count - 1,173

Alrighty, Altamira. You've impressed me, and so I'm promoting you to the Advanced class. ^^ Now, just be patient a little longer for me, and I'll try to come up with something for you to do as your first Advanced assignment. Once again, congrats! ^^

OoC: Sorry this took so long, Altamira! ^^;; I've been trying to think of what to have you do, and I think I've come up with something very interesting.

IC:

Sileya watched her pupil pull herself to her feet and head for the door. Once the girl had disappeared from view, the attention of the Dragons' Favored was diverted to the giant nest where the newborn cries of the baby dragon floated up. Sileya ran her eyes lovingly over the little creature. He was a healthy violet dragon, and Sileya's eyebrows raised slightly. Those were rare sights, indeed. To think that she had been able to witness the hatching of one was simply amazing.

The little guy stopped crying long enough to peer at the Elf curiously. Emitting a soft sort of rumbling noise that vaguely resembled the purr of a contended cat, the baby violet approached the edge of the nest where Sileya stood and stretched its neck out hopefully. Smiling, Sileya gently rubbed the delicate scales of its head, but just then, to her utter shock, the dragon nipped mischievously at her hand, flapping its underdeveloped wings awkwardly to scoot backwards out of reach of Sileya's reprimanding hand.

"Oh, I see. You're a little trouble-maker, are you? Hmm.... I think I know just what to do with you..."

* * * * * *

Smiling to herself satisfactorily as she walked away from Cadenza's door, Sileya thought over her decision to leave the baby dragon in Cadenza's care. She had told her that the dragon was entirely her responsiblity. Feeding, grooming, everything. She had even left it up to Cadenza to name the dragon. She smiled again. Things might turn interesting around the Dome. Yes, indeed.

OoC: Yep, so basically, your next post can be pretty much about whatever you like having to do with this dragon. Describe Cadenza's reaction to it, describe the dragon's reaction to Cadenza, whatever. Just keep in mind that this dragon is a very mischievous one. Heehee. ^^ And above all else, have fun with it!

OoC: I've had a small case of Writer's Block lately... but I managed to muster up something. I wasn't quite sure what I was supposed to title this post, so I left it without a title for now.

BiC:
There was yet another note pinned to an article of her furniture. This time, Cadenza’s bureau. She groaned as she snatched the paper from its tape trappings and unfolded it.

There is a surprise waiting outside your door for you, it read. While the note itself was rather blunt, the handwriting of its author was very elaborate and ornate. Cadenza figured it was from Sileya. Messages from her always seem to prove interesting.

The gypsy didn’t bother trying to ponder the possibilities the note could imply. Instead, she changed out of her pajamas quickly, thinking only of how she could prevent people from tarnishing her furniture further with tape. Once she was prepared, for some sort of battle challenger she assumed, Cadenza made her way to her large oaken door.

As she pulled on the doorknob, a thunderous yawn replaced the usual squeak of the door on the hinges. Alarmed, the gypsy’s eyes immediately darted around to find the source of the noise—an infant dragon sleeping, or rather just waking up, in front of her door.

“What in the…?” she stuttered, too shocked for her thoughts to link up into entire coherent sentences. She took notice of the paper pinned to the pillow of the creature. Picking it up, she read. This baby dragon is the one you guarded, and now, he is yours to take care of. Grooming him, feeding him, sheltering him—all of that is your responsibility. It is entirely dependent upon you. Even the matter of naming him has been left up to you. Enjoy your new…”task,” if you will.

“T-that elf girl must be insane!” Cadenza cried, incredulous at the new burden placed upon her. “First I protected this little thing, and now I’m saddled down with mothering it!”

The violet dragon flicked his forked tongue at the outraged woman, as if in mockery.

“Why you rude little-” the gypsy snapped, stopping herself once she realized how loud her voice had come out. She clenched her fists until the knuckles turned white, holding her very frustration in the palms of her hands.

The dragon emitted what qualified for a chuckle at the woman’s flushed face. Bothering her seemed fun, he thought.

Cadenza took a deep calming breath and the blood drained from her warm cheeks. “Fine fine, yes yes, I’m sure it’s very fun to irritate Cadenza. Enough of getting angry though, since there’s probably no way of getting out of this…” She paused at length and heaved a large sigh as she thought of what to do next. “…We’ll go to the cafeteria and get something to eat,” she said finally. “And after that, I have to… ‘withdraw’ some zecca to pay for you.”

The infant looked confused at the way Cadenza had said “withdraw.” Her tone changed somehow, and he wasn’t sure why. And just what in the world was zecca? Before he could find a way to ask, the woman was already walking off down the hallway.

“I suppose I should name you,” she called back. “How’s… Avello? It means one who commands the skies in the ancient Rubato language.” The gypsy smiled proudly and placed a hand over her heart. “Language of my people.”

Avello made a spitting noise with his tongue and front teeth. Instantly, Cadenza whirled around, her finger in the dragon’s face and her eyes aflame.

“Did you…” she growled, unable to finish her thought. The gypsy gritted her teeth and turned back around. “Never mind. You wouldn’t understand, and I’m not going to waste my time.” With that she marched on down the corridor, feet pounding hard against the floor.
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Her quiver was replenished with arrows, and her dagger finely polished. Avello was asleep on a wooly rug she had “borrowed” from the room next door. All was set for the simple heist Cadenza had planned that night. Or so she thought.

As she crept up into the vent in the ceiling of her bedroom, another being followed her. The creature trailed after her long purple skirt almost silently, as she crawled the length of the air-conditioning shaft and out of the Dome.

When she dropped down to the grassy patch below, the creature seemed to hesitate back in the shaft. In a matter of moments, the spreading of wings was heard, and a rather small figure took to the night air. Violet scales rained down as the beast struggled to gain control of his erratic flapping. Cadenza turned her eyes to the sky with the landing of the first radiant scale.

“Avello..!” she whispered, voice stifled by caution, and yet still sharp. “What are you doing? Get back to the room. Now.”

The dragon jerked down into the gypsy’s arms, sending her stumbling backwards. He flicked his agile tongue at her and groaned.

“You can’t come! You’re not fit for a robbery, not even a simple bank robbery. You’re too uncoordinated, and… honestly, too chunky,” she said, waving a scolding finger in the dragon’s face. “You’ll get us both caught, and I refuse to get arrested by some hack policemen just because you had to tag along.”

Avello looked like he was trying to pout.

“That’s not going to work,” Cadenza replied, resolute in her decision. “Go back.”

With another groan, the dragon fluttered out of her arms and into the air shaft.

Good, Cadenza said to herself with a satisfied smile. “I won’t be long.”
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The gypsy lifted her leg over the last crimson laser with relative ease. Made to keep out the less flexible. She laughed inwardly. I’ve had a harder time getting into Luminari’s old jewelry box when I wanted to borrow a necklace.

With one last turn of the lock, the vault opened. The alarm system that should have gone off had been butchered by a dagger, and sparks now flew out in a wasted attempt to warn someone.

‘Tis a shame they don’t really keep all the zecca people deposit. Banks should have higher reserve requirements, she thought with a smirk, storing away the red-tinted paper money in her quiver. She had locked up the safe and turned to leave when a siren went off.

At a teller’s desk, Avello was ripping zecca out of the glass case from which tellers withdrew money promptly for customers. His pudgy purple foot stood upon a button--the button used to alert the authorities.

Cadenza cursed under her breath as she dashed to grab the infant. Why does he think I didn’t go for that money either? Ugh! She whipped up the creature and was off up the vent. A gunshot fired through the glass doors and nipped her leg.

“You’re under arrest!” a sergeant shouted.

Ignoring the warning, Cadenza sped through the shaft and dropped out through the opening at the back of the building, Avello in hand. Bullets could be heard pelting the building’s brick face and shattering the glass windows. Once the police had worked their way to the rear of the bank, the gypsy and her “pet” were long gone.

A single tuft from a peacock feather, later revealed to be coated with the calcium from a dragon claw, was found in the air shaft.

“Madrigal,” the young sergeant deduced, handling the evidence carefully. His men came to see what he was holding.

“What is it, sarge?” one officer asked, curious.

“…Nothing. There’s nothing to see here,” the man announced. “Head back to the station. We… don’t have any leads right now.”
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Cadenza and Avello crawled back into the gypsy’s room. “We got lucky,” the woman told her companion, voice stern. “The sergeant of the local police… well, he’s got a bit of thing for me, I suppose. He surely knew it was me… but he won’t report us.”

Avello whined apologetically before curling up on the rug to sleep.

“Nothing bothers you much, eh?” Cadenza smiled and threw a warm cotton blanket atop the dragon. “Sneaky little devil.”

OoC: Word Count - 1,323