[Jaykobell]

Hearing the Voidbringer cry out in pain, even if only shortly, was enough for Quasar to understand that he'd managed to hit Jael. Where, exactly, he couldn't tell, but regardless of the area, he'd still managed to get some sort of upper hand.

Well, sort of.

He was just done and about to get back on his feet when he felt Jael's tail hitting him square under the chin. The Rockbeak didn't let out a roar or any painful sound; his face and body jerked back from the hit and forced him away, but it was similar to hitting something hard. While he had been hit and even pushed back, the Rockbeak shook his head and regained his momentum almost immediately.

He wobbled back onto his four feet, clearly enjoying the battle and just getting started with this stranger. "You're pretty okay for a human-raised Paragon," Quasar complimented with a grin, muscles quivering from excitement. "I was half-expecting you to run away with your tail between your legs," he admitted with a cocky look as he chuckled. "Let's get serious now."

Without much of a warning, the Rockbeak dashed straight for Jael and with lightning-quick reflexes, he spun around and got his tail swinging straight for Jael's cheek. If he managed to hit the Voidbringer with that kind of frontal attack, that would send the red Paragon flying off a few feet away, and not to mention the dizziness that would stir up from being with something so hard. Even that said, Quasar didn't always hit; but when he did, that often gave him enough of an upper hand to win his way through the battle.

[Kallile]

Brushing off some of the charred scale material from his shoulder, Jael watched the Rockbeck carefully. He wasn’t sure what to think about the warrior’s compliments—he had still spent a great deal of time in the wild. He wasn’t quite at his prime granted, but that only left plenty of room for growth and learning. “I asked for this, I wouldn’t run from it.” He said, trying to understand what the other must be thinking of him. The last sentence however made the Voidbringer’s pride shrink considerably.

He had been doing so well in his own mind, yet it seemed Quasar had not even truly been trying. He no sooner had this thought pop into his head than the Rockbeak was upon him and his tail caught the younger male on the cheek. The voidbringer toppled backwards—head over heel fashion—and landed on his stomach. Blinking and panting the male turned his four eyes up to his attacker and sent forth a blast of black flames from his mouth to try and earn a few minutes to regain his footing as well as to super-heat and clot the blood trickling from the cuts along his face.

[Jaykobell]

Right away, Quasar could tell that he'd hit his opponent square in the face. He grinned proudly as he noticed Jael toppling over and head over heel, and the Rockbeak was expecting that hit to be enough to knock that Voidbringer defeated.

The Rockbeak wouldn't deny that he was surprised to see the Voidbringer retaliate quickly, just as quickly as any of the other Paragon that would've had a stab at him. Blinking, Quasar tensed his muscles and crouched down quickly before bouncing up, avoiding the flames by a hair — he felt his club-tail brush the flames, and while he didn't feel any damage from it, he wouldn't have licked being caught in those flames.

Now in the air, the Rockbeak took the opportunity to counter with his own fire, sucking in air in mid-jump to finally blow those same blue flames as earlier towards the Voidbringer. This time, however, the fire didn't come out in the generic fire-breathing fashion. Building it up quickly by his mouth, Quasar let out a fireball in the literally sense, as a fast-moving ball of blue fire made its way towards Jael as the Rockbeak fell back on the ground from the gravity.

Landing straight by the end of the fire breathed away by Jael, Quasar hissed as he got submerged in the fire for just a few heartbeats. He was hissing under his breath at the burning, stinging feeling he got from it; if anything, Jael's fire was just as powerful as any other Paragon. It was easy to toughen up your body against physical attacks, but even a Paragon as toughened and as trained as Quasar couldn't ignore the stings from a direct fire attack.

[Kallile]

The Voidbringer had used the sparse seconds to gather his feet under him, though he wobbled considerably. His vision was sliding in and out of focus from the sharp knock to the face and he could feel himself losing the position of his opponent. It was all too late that the red male realized the danger coming towards him.  The fireball hit him directly; the Rockbeak’s scalded scales and the small victory in actually hitting his adversary lost to Jael as his now singed form toppled back onto the ground on his belly where, this time, he stayed.

Slowly he managed to open the lower and larger set of eyes and gaze up at Quasar. He struggled to draw up a foot, to swing around his tail to swipe the black paragon with more flames, but he couldn’t find the strength to make such a bold move. Even his flames seemed quenched as he let out a small huff of dark smoke and a few black wisps of flame that dissolved harmlessly into the air.

Slowly he closed the lower eyes and heaved out a few words between pained pants. “Can’t…go on. Admit…defeat…” He was sure some finishing blow was coming; the clan would not want something so pathetic that he couldn’t even last more than three turns with a warrior. But he knew his limitations—if they cast him back to where he had come from he would need what little energy remained to hole himself up in a shelter and hope the birds and insects he might snap up would be enough to sustain his healing.

[Jaykobell]

Once he was done hissing from the uncomfortable stinging of Jael's fire, Quasar turned his attention back to the Voidbringer when he heard the fireball hitting him square in the face. When he saw the red male lying on the ground and seemingly very knocked out, the Rockbeak felt just a little bit bad about it. The Voidbringer clearly didn't have any fighting experience; maybe Quasar had gone a little bit too hard on the newcomer.

Making his way to Jael, Quasar looked over the Voidbringer, trying to make sure that he wasn't too injured. He hadn't expected his tail to not do any physical damage, although it had been a while since his tail-spikes had managed to hurt someone to dripping blood. But again, poor Jael hadn't been properly trained to fight, as far as Quasar knew. "Sorry about that, kid. You okay?" he called out, not too insecure about the Voidbringer retaliating in a surprise attack. He hadn't gotten back up, so the Rockbeak's guess was that he was out for a bit.

Meanwhile, the Paragon that had been watching from the beginning were all looking fairly surprised at the turn of event. Many were staring with wide eyes, even with the battle over. Comments rippled through the crowd, where many were impressed that, despite his inexperience, Jael had been able to catch Quasar unaware. Even if the Voidbringer hadn't lasted long, no one had honestly expected him to, considering his opponent. In general, the whispers were compliments or positive towards Jael's performance.

When Jael officially admitted defeat, Quasar looked up to face Izotz, whom had obviously been watching the whole thing, a sheepish smile on his face. "I think he's a little... burned out," the Rockbeak pointed out, looking back down at Jael really quick before back at Izotz.

With the battle over and a decision about to be made, Harlow made his way forward again. "I think this is proof enough that this housepet isn't strong enough to make it in the wild," he argued, giving a quick glance at the defeated Voidbringer.

Blinking, Quasar turned to Harlow. "Your argument was that he might be part of Jezebel's bunch of rebels. If he had been, he would've pulled some nasty tricks. He doesn't know how to fight, but I think he's got a lot of potential. He could totally learn if we taught him properly," the Rockbeak argued, lifting an eyebrow at the Ambia, as if asking why he was being such a pain right now. "Let Izotz decide; he saw the whole thing, right?" With that, the Rockbeak also turned to face the crowd, but without pointing anyone in particular. "Hey, can someone get Nyala over here, too?" Being one of the top Paragon, it didn't take long for someone to volunteer and run off to get the requested member.

"I did watch the whole thing carefully," Izotz answered once the two males underneath were done arguing. "If what Quasar says is true, then I think this battle is proof enough that Jael should be given the chance he came here for."

At those words, Harlow gasped and his expression changed to complete disbelief. "What?! You seriously want to let that runt join the Hive?"

"Hey, I'm up for that! He'd be a good addition. Plus, that's new blood right there," Quasar argued, nodding as he made his way back to Jael and grabbed one of his arms to lift it up, similar to how you would lift the arm of a winner up to the crowd to get their cheers. "Come on, I wanna hear it from you guys too!" He knew everyone was usually more for a quieter display, but for him personally, the Rockbeak preferred things to be loud and clear. "To Jael!"

At first, the crowd seemed a little uncertain, but soon enough, some Paragon joined in with the Rockbeak. "To Jael!" With time, the majority of the crowd was calling out the name of the Voidbringer, with some spreading their wings to add some more effect to the welcoming party.

With everyone joining in after the Rockbeak, Harlow gritted his teeth and snarled quietly in Quasar's direction, his ears curled back angrily against his skull. The two exchanged looks but said nothing; instead, Harlow resigned himself to the decision and stormed off through the crowd.

[Kallile]

At the question Jael first responded with a slow, painful hiss before giving his head a small motion that could be guessed was as close to a nod as he could muster. “Hurts like hell, but I’ll make it.” He admitted. He wasn’t as tough as he had hoped—the matter was more of wounded pride and ego than from wounded scales. But these wounds wouldn’t kill him, certainly, so the Voidbringer had to muster up the will to offer some sort of answer to his defeater. He had already proven he was weaker than the Rockbeak, there was no need to try and cover it up by denying his state of being. Dragonfire, it seemed, stung more than he had imagined it would. He had scalded himself with his tail in youth but he had never received a face full of someone else’s flame.

His eyes moved around to follow the conversation from speaker to speaker as they talked of his fate. The Ambia, Harlow, was still against him. This rose a few of the quills along the back of his neck but the red male did not more in retaliation. He was deserving of being looked down upon—it had been a short show that he could get in a hit or two. His inexperience was sure to be his downfall. He listened in silent confusion as Quasar defended him against being a rebel dragon; something he was thankful for. If the champion was willing to defend him, then perhaps there was hope after all.

All eyes moved to the white Frost as the leader moved to speak. His words could bring death or acceptance and Jael found himself forcing his way off the ground a little to better bow his head before the leader to hear his decision. The words of the Frost couldn’t have been more welcome to hear, and Jael raised his head proudly to face the leader. Harlow’s words fell on deaf ears, but his attention did turn to Quasar as the male came over and raised his arm up in victory. The Voidbringer tried to hide the grimace on his face at the swift action but soon found himself looking out over the watching crowd to hear his name called. The fanfare, hearing his name called out as if he was already among family…it felt wonderful. Soon his grimace morphed into a timid smile and he slowly pulled his arm away from Quasar.

“The opportunity given to me will not be wasted. I will do and learn all I can to make the most of this gift given to me.” He said as he turned back to Izotz on legs that ached and creaked before giving the leader a deep bow. He winced at the action as his burnt scales were made to shift, but he held the pose for a second before turning his head towards Quasar. “And you…pack quite a punch. I would be honored if you would teach me some of your moves one day.”

[Jaykobell]

Seeing Jael get up despite being in pain did impress Quasar some, considering how unused to fighting the red Voidbringer was. That did give the Rockbeak more reason to believe the kid was genuine, and that he would end up being a good member once he'd learned everything. At first glance, he could already tell Jael would make a good hunter.

At the Voidbringer's words, Quasar grinned. "Well, I'm glad to hear that. Harlow would have my head if you'd ended up changing your mind!" Although the Rockbeak knew the Ambia would probably want to be off with his head regardless of the end result. Still, considering the Voidbringer was now part of the Hive, Harlow would definitely blame Quasar for it. The Rockbeak made a mental note to keep an eye out for the Ambia, just in case the Ambia felt like making a point eventually.

The Rockbeak blinked at Jael's compliment before burst into laughter. "Well, I hope that I do pack a punch. I am basically the strongest Paragon there is in this Hive," he answered, somewhat tooting his own horn, especially considering Jael wasn't familiar with the tribe yet. "I think everyone would've been more wary of you if you'd actually won," he added, laughing again as he gave the Voidbringer a pat. If a little housepet had come over here and ended up beating their strongest fighter? Not a very believable story, unless the kid had some sort of supernatural skills. "If you join my faction, though, I'll definitely teach you how to make a real fighter out of you! I think you have a lot of potential."

"Keep his potential in mind for later, Quasar."



A female Sandshark made her way through the crowd and into the small clearing where Quasar and Jael stood, holding a few leaves with one arm. She walked towards Jael as if the female could actually see, despite her lacking eyes of any shape. "Were you trying to roast him? I could almost smell the burnt scales from my den." Without waiting for Quasar to answer, the Sandshark dropped the leaves and sat next to Jael. "It might sting, but it'll get rid of the burns," she warned as she picked a leaf and started rubbing it against Jael's burnt skin, as if she would rub a towel about on his shoulders.

Looking away, Quasar rolled his eyes in jest. "Well, in my defense, I didn't think it would burn him this much," the Rockbeak replied, although his voice made it hard to judge whether he was kidding or being serious. "But Jael, this sharp lady here is Nyala. She's our official healer," he introduced, considering the Sandshark hadn't bothered to do it herself. "And Nyala, this charming young male here is our newest member, Jael."

Still rubbing the stinging leaves — they were soft and gentle, but the burns made them sting and tingle as Nyala rubbed them against Jael's scales — the Sandshark didn't reply right away. "Nice to meet you," she eventually said, though it had felt a little forced. She was mentally readying herself for a blindness comment, but she tried to keep herself calm as she took care of the injured male that was next to her.

[Kallile]

Granted the legs he stood on wobbled and threatened to give way under him, but Jael gritted his teeth and forced himself to remain as upright as possible. It was a little fire to the face…and a body slam backwards….nothing he shouldn’t be able to struggle through. The thoughts of Harlow were far from his mind, however. He had expected some opposition and the Ambia had brought just that. But he had proven himself to the leader and for the time being that was good enough for Jael. The fact that the Rockbeak had gotten a small cheer going for him had also helped in forgetting that anyone had been against him in the first place.

“I believe I need more practice before being allowed in your ranks.” He added with a small grin; obviously very proud of himself after what Quasar was telling him; the strongest paragon in the Hive…and he had lasted a few rounds? He had suspected Quasar to be someone of standing, but he was truly humbled to hear that he had stood his ground for a few seconds against the best there was.

Nyala’s voice drew his attention towards the healer as she approached. He had seen her eyeless species before and spent a good few days hiding from one in particular after snatching away some of its kill when he was still young and a fairly terrible hunter. Her words were instantly met with confirmation as the leaf touched his hide and began feeling as though a swarm of hornets had been set upon him. He tried his best not to wince—he wanted to keep a brave face for all those eyes that were still on him. Of course that’s not to say that a few grimaces didn’t cross his features as the burns were both rubbed and stung by the leaves.

“Likewise, Lady Healer.” He finally managed through gritted teeth, making no mention of her eyeless state. Even if he would have wished to bring light to that fact she was at his shoulders and therefore directly beside his exposed throat. He dared not upset her while he was new and had no loyalty to back him from the others. He was fool-hearty and a great many other things in life…but stupid was not typically one of those unfortunate attributes. “Your swift arrival is most appreciated.” He added politely before casting his eyes back towards Quasar and Izotz.

“Where am I to go from here? I…lack the proper knowledge of how to proceed now that I have been accepted.” There were many matters on his mind—housing, food (though he assumed himself the omega and therefore last to eat already given his brand new status), and chores he was sure that would be asked of him. And while he would be true to his word and do his utmost to make them proud of their choice…he wasn’t afraid to admit that he needed a push in the right direction.

[Jaykobell]

While completely ready to bite Jael's head off, expecting a comment about how their healer could be a blind Paragon, Nyala was pleasantly surprised when the first words that came out of that Voidbringer's mouth weren't an insult. If she had eyes, she would've blinked in surprise — an action that was translated with her briefly stopping the rubbing motion on his shoulders. "You're welcome," she replied quietly as she started rubbing again, with a touch that had softened just slightly. His first impression had been a good one; some of the dragons who'd been staying here for years hadn't been this grateful to her.

"If you ever get hurt again, Nyala's the one to run to," Quasar interjected as he let the medical Paragon do her job — of which he knew nothing about, which was all the more reason to not say anything. All those herbs and those gels and those other things went far past Quasar's head, so he left that stuff to the connoisseurs. "She'll fix you up in a second or two."

With the crowd starting to move and break apart, the clearing was soon a lot quieter than it had been just a few minutes ago. Some Paragon stayed a little ways away, curiously eyeing Jael, while others just went on about their tasks and jobs without thinking too much about what had just happened. Some were giving Jael some wary, insecure looks, but none of them made a move or hinted at any aggressive intentions. With the crowd moving away, even the plateau above had been left by the two leaders, seemingly leaving Quasar and Jael alone, together with Nyala.

"Well, most of the technical stuff will be handled by Izotz," Quasar answered to Jael's question about how to proceed. Even just from his words, he could tell the Voidbringer would probably focus on trying to "feel" like a wild Paragon to the others. "For now, I guess we'll let you... heal off those burns," the Rockbeak added with a short laugh. "But don't worry, someone will teach you everything you need to know. Izotz will probably assign a Paragon to you to be your helper, so they can show you around and teach you how things are done around here. What I can tell you is that you could still join my ranks if you wanted. We'll teach you how to fight things, and then you'll be the one burning others!" There was another laugh, although this one was soon interrupted by the supporting leader.

Walking towards them, the dark Sailfin made her way to the little group, looking unpleasantly strict, although not necessarily threatening. She stopped just a little ways away from the group, her eyes set on Jael. "Your display... was interesting," Slavica praised, although her words probably felt more awkward than complimenting. "Izotz was very impressed by your abilities, considering your upbringing." While that was a compliment, the voice of the one giving it to Jael was far from matching the words, where Slavica sounded fairly unimpressed. If anything, while the leader had genuinely been impressed, the supporting one hadn't. "That said, you will be guided by another Paragon in order to understand how the Hive operates. Izotz is on his way to bring them here. You will be left with them for the remainder of the day, and will potentially house with them as well until we can make sure that we can trust you to live alone in your own den." There was a short pause.

"Any questions?" Quasar interjected, turning to Jael as he glanced in Slavica's direction.

[Kallile]

Jael made a small mental note of the softened touch, but made no more comment and simply let the healer do her work. He had never encountered a healer before and therefore didn’t want to distract her from her job in case it happened to require a degree of concentration. But he allowed himself to relax a little; he had managed to keep from offending her and he would take that small victory gratefully. To Quasar he gave a nod and a small smirk. “If I am injured again, I’m not sure running is what I will be doing…but I will certainly remember her talents for the future.” He joked.

“I see, I would be grateful for any help to learn my place.” Jael said, keeping his eyes trained on Quasar. He hoped to one day be even half as revered as the warrior was; the offer to join in his ranks was certainly a tempting one to the newcomer. “I would love to join your ranks, once these burns have healed up and I am fully ready to take on lessons.”

His head swiveled to meet Slavica, bowing slightly and as to not disturb Nyala’s work as the females from the plateau came down amongst them. Her words were sweet, but her tone betrayed her. Jael narrowed his upper eyes a little but gave her another nod. “Many thanks, M’lady. I will gladly accept boarding alongside my guide until I can prove my worth and trustworthiness.” He would have expected no less than a sort of trial period. To prove he could survive and not just slow everyone down.

He looked to Quasar and gave a soft smirk and shake of his head. “No, I think everything has been presented fully.” Of course, there was the cold tone of the Sailfin that bothered him. If a leader sided with Harlow’s feelings, he would be sure to watch his back and do his utmost to prove her worries unnecessary.

[Jaykobell]

"Well, I do have a question," Quasar said, turning to Slavica. "Did Izotz say who it was going to be?"

The Sailfin narrowed her eyes slightly, but did nothing more. "He didn't say. He should be back shortly with whoever he decided to pick," Slavica answered, her voice once again distant and even cold. She didn't feel threatening, nor did she look like she wanted to get Jael into trouble. She only sounded and looked uncaring, where it felt like she didn't care one way or another. It sounded more like it was her way of speaking, and the way she was as a whole. "He will be back shortly," she assured again, hoping that would keep the curious Rockbeak satisfied.

"Well, I guess there's not much we can do but wait, then," Quasar commented as he sat down next to Jael and Nyala, the medical Paragon still taking care of the burns quietly. "You'll see, kid. If you become a Hunter, I can make you a fighting machine in no time, I'm sure!" the Rockbeak said with a laugh, even if he could feel the Sailfin giving him a stare.

That said, the small group stayed together for a matter of a handful of minutes. Slavica stayed as well, although she was quiet and didn't mingle with the three. Neither did Nyala, whom simply kept on taking care of Jael's burns. The leaves had helped a lot and the pain had already subsided where the Sandshark had scrubbed the Voidbringer's scales. Quasar was a lot more social and talkative, and the one who pretty much did all the small talk as they all waited.

Shortly after Slavica's initial speech, the large white Frost could be seen walking towards them, another Paragon following him — this one a stark contrast to the light Frost, sporting very dark colors. As they got closer, the other Paragon became more recognizable.



The Sailfin following Izotz was much smaller than the leader, and seemingly a little smaller than the other males of the species. He was also another Paragon that sported wings in similar fashion to Harlow's, where only the frame was left, but pieces of some webbing and blades were left hanging. Whatever had happened to Harlow had probably happened to this Sailfin as well.

When the pair joined the little group, Izotz looked confident enough, but the Sailfin behind him didn't share his enthusiasm. Once with the others, the male Sailfin noticed Slavica with the others, and he gave the supporting a timid, but hopeful smile, as if he were waiting for her to say something to him.

Sadly for him, Slavica simply looked at Izotz with disbelief in her eyes. She gave the other Sailfin a quick look, but without saying another word, she left the group to go and continue her duties. Given the cold shoulder, the expression that appeared on the male Sailfin wasn't anything short of devastated as he just watched Slavica walk away without even looking at him.

As for Izotz, he simply watch his supporting leader making he exit without saying anything. Everything had happened in silence, without a single word being uttered, but it felt like all three Paragon had understood each other perfectly fine. That aside, Izotz made his way closer to Jael, looking down at the Voidbringer with curious eyes. "Let me welcome you officially to the Hive, Jael," the Frost welcomed with a smile and a slight tilt of his head. "Your battle was very impressive, considering you come from a human upbringing. I'm curious to see how you'll grow," he added, his tone and words actually matching, unlike the dark female Sailfin.

"Slavica probably explained to you that I will pair you with another Paragon in order to help you get around the Hive. You'll also room with him until you can prove that you can be left alone," Izotz explained, just in case something hadn't been mentioned by the other leader. "Your assigned mentor will be Makari," the Frost introduced as he motioned for the dark Sailfin to step forward.

Clearly insecure, the dark Sailfin, whom still looked overly devastated, slowly made his way towards the small group, looking timid and anxious.

"Jael, this is Makari. He will teach you how the Hive works, and you will be rooming with him. Makari, this is Jael. He is the new Paragon that will be joining us," Izotz introduced, giving more attention to the Sailfin than the Voidbringer.

Still looking overly insecure, Makari got the courage to look at Jael in the eyes — at least, for a second. "It's... I... I'll do my best... to help you," the small Sailfin blurted out awkwardly, looking nothing short of insecure and anxious.

[Kallile]

To say he was a little disappointed when Slavica didn't instantly say the Rockbeak's name would have been a lie. Jael would have taken no greater pride in being the apprentice to the one who had so many fighting skills to teach him. But he remained quiet and listened to the supporting female; it was a foolish dream to think the top warrior might be so weighed down by a newcomer. About as foolish as making the leader babysit a gaggle of hatchlings. But he did not lose hope--no matter his mentor, he was sure it would be a sound choice.

As Iztoz and the small Sailfin approach Jael tried to contain his curiosity towards this new stranger. While outwardly the smaller male was not as outgoing or seemingly as strong-natured, Jael remained confident that Izotz was putting his teaching in good claws. To Jael the young male's dismay at having the lead female turn away from him was perplexing but easily explained. She must be a sought after female, perhaps he had failed at winning her attentions. The similar coloration did not even dawn on him--after all he had never known his mother or father to know if he looked like one or the other.

All that aside, the Voidbringer was somewhat swelled with pride at meeting his timid new trainer. "I thank you greatly for that compliment, I want nothing more than to prove that I was not an ill-made choice. I will do everything in my capabilities to make myself a model Hive member." He said proudly to Izotz; a pledge to both leader and himself. He knew words rarely held the weight they used to, but Jael felt obligated to pledge to be his best regardless. Then he turned his head towards the dark Sailfin with a beaming glint of pride in his eyes. His teacher--on so many levels that very idea pushed aside the way the  other young male acted. Jael had learned so much on his own--perhaps a lot of it incorrectly--the very idea that he finally had someone to guide him into how to properly act....it was a rather exhilarating feeling.  As with all the others he had greeted today, Jael dipped his snout lowly and beamed back at the Sailfin, hoping perhaps his enthusiasm would rub off and they might become faster companions. "Makari, it is an honor to meet you. I have no doubt there's much I can learn from you."

He looked back up to the Sailfin after his short bow, that glimmer never once wavering. "I hope I will not be too difficult to mold...I want no mercy taken on me. I take all challenges that come with fulfilling this dream of mine gratefully; and I will be equally grateful to any guidance you wish to offer me."

[Jaykobell]

Izotz tilted his head ans smiled at Jael's honest words. "I'm glad to hear that. I'm sure you'll do just fine, given some time to blend in more," the leader assured, giving a short, but positive, nod. If anything, Izotz thought he showed the right attitude to learn and fit in in this new environment. "With the introductions made, I'm afraid I have to leave you for now. I'm sorry for the short introduction, but I hope we'll get to talk again sometime," the Frost said as he bowed his head just slightly before turning and taking his leave, effectively leaving Makari and Jael with Quasar and Nyala, and the leader leaving was enough to make the dark Sailfin even more insecure.

The words of the Voidbringer did nothing to put Makari at ease, and if anything, they stressed him even more. His body was giving that off very clearly, but his face and eyes were more than enough for Jael to read. The more praise given to him, the more pressure the Sailfin got.

Not particularly caring about the conversation that was happening between everyone else, Nyala finished cleaning off Jael's scales of the burns. "There. I'll do it again tomorrow for the bigger burns you have, but this should let you function without much difficulty," the Sandshark explained as she picked up the leaves she'd used so she could throw them away where appropriate. "Try to avoid putting pressure on that area. It will still sting if you do. Just be careful," she instructed before turning and taking her leave without adding anything else.

Meanwhile, Quasar was giving the dark Sailfin a pat on the back, which was enough to make Makari squeal. "Congrats, kid! Your first pupil. Give your mom time, I'm sure she'll be proud of you that you're moving up the ladder!" A hearty laugh, and then a turn to face Jael now that Nyala was done speaking to him and gone. "Well, it was nice fighting with you! I bet we'll get to see each other again around the Hive as you find your way around the place. You guys have fun together, then," the Rockbeak wished with a grin as he, too, turned and took his leave, ultimately leaving Jael alone with his new mentor.

With the two left alone, it looked like Makari had gotten even more insecure, his body language starting to speak up a lot more. "I... I-I'll tell you now that I... I'm not very good," the Sailfin suddenly blurted out, even if he knew it probably didn't sound or look good. "I-I've never guided anyone around and I don't... I don't even really know where to start," he admitted, looking away a little shamefully. "I can... I can convince Izotz to pick someone better for you." He'd been approached out of the blue for this position, and even though he'd accepted only because he thought it would end up being a good thing, Makari was starting to really regret it.

[Kallile]

Another bow of his head given to Izotz as the leader took his leave, the Voidbringer turned to face the Sandshark healer as she finished her work. "Thank you again, Lady healer." He moved to ask when or where he should find her the next day but she was already on the move. He closed his massive jaws, for a moment concerned that perhaps her leaving meant she had no intentions of finding him again before his logic told him that even without eyes, his new scent in the Hive would likely be like a blaring red trail to her. He had no doubts she would manage to find him when the time came.

It was what Quasar said that gave him pause. Mother? The lead female was this one's mother? Jael instantly dipped his head a little lower to the Sailfin, hoping the young male did not take offense. The squeal he let ou at Quasar's touch was enough to tell the Voidbringer that...the lack of a deeper bow was highly unlikely to cause this one any more grief and drew himself back up as Quasar turned to address him. "A pleasure doing battle with you as well. I hope to find myself in your ranks one day."

And then there were two. A very awkward sort of two where one was eager to learn but the other was not seemingly so eager to teach. The short and insecure outpouring of words was not what Jael had hoped to hear, but he shook his head gently. "I am sure you will be fine. I have never lived within a community of other Paragon before...anything at all you wish to share or anywhere you think to start would be of great benefit to me." Then he frowned. "Though if you are truly that uncomfortable, I harbor no ill-thoughts of you for wishing Izotz to seek out another."

Then an idea struck him and the Voidbringer tried not to grin. "Though in the meantime...perhaps you could walk me by where the dens are located? It seems the most beneficial area to know, besides maybe the hunting and feeding grounds." He hoped the younger male might go for it--perhaps if he could get him to start teaching without realizing it some of his confidence would be bolstered.

[Jaykobell]

Had another Paragon stayed with him, Makari probably would've been more comfortable. The fact that he would have to teach and show Jael the whole place and how they did things, and the fact they would have to stay in the same den together? Being put on the spotlight with a complete stranger was enough to make the Sailfin's head throb with stress and anxiety, leaving just on the borderline of a panic attack. Not only that, but going back to Izotz now and telling him he couldn't do this task would just make him look like a failure. But in the back of his mind, the Sailfin reminded himself that pretty much everyone already saw him as such.

Jael's words, however, did help him relax — although not noticeably. Makari wasn't familiar with Jael's upbringing, considering he'd just been told a Paragon needed a mentor and Izotz had just dragged him away in a flash without a lot of details. Makari had never seen Jael before, but that could've been because he came from one of those other rumored Paragon tribes, or because he was just a wild one that had wanted to join. Maybe the latter applied; the Sailfin really didn't know. That said, it also meant that, for once in his entire life, Makari knew more than someone else. That was the only thing that somewhat helped the dark Paragon gain some confidence, even if minuscule.

Now, what had the Voidbringer said? Showing him the dens? "The... th-the dens? Now?" Makari echoed nervously, looking over his shoulder at the bee hive-looking holes darting all across the huge mountain behind them. Showing him the dens meant coming across a lot of Paragon on the way, and it meant other seeing him trying to do his newfound job. And potentially seeing him fail like a pro. The Sailfin squeaked quietly from just thinking about it, and he looked back at Jael with fear plastered all over his face. "I-I don't think that's a good... i-idea," he managed to blurt out, although now he felt bad for basically saying Jael had had a bad idea. The Voidbringer had also proposed the hunting and feeding areas as well, but Makari found himself in the same dilemma: there would be many Paragon there at this time of day.

"W-well..." Oh, what was he supposed to do? If at least he had an idea where to start, maybe then he could just wing it and continue from the starting point. He needed a quiet place, a place where Paragon didn't really hang around at this time of day or too often in general. Nyala's den came to mind — it was good to know where the healer's den was, right? — but the Sailfin quickly took that idea back as he imagined just how upset the healer would be to have Paragon hanging around her place. Bewildered, Makari tried to look around quickly to find a good place to start with. From Jael's point of view, Makari probably looked like a tangible ball of stress and anxiety, looking all around nervously like a lost puppy.

Eventually, something finally clicked in the dark Sailfin's head. Turning back to Jael quickly and abruptly, Makari stared right at the Voidbringer. "I can... I-I can show you... the nursery," he proposed with a voice that showed absolutely no sign of certainty. "Would... would that work?" Hatchlings didn't judge, so even though there would be a lot of Paragon around, Makari wouldn't feel too pressured. And hatchlings were social, right? So Jael would feel welcomed. Yes: that was a great idea. Makari just had to keep telling himself that.