An Ill Wind Blows (Side Pinkerlocke) - COMPLETE

[Syleye]

lovely art <3
I really feel for Mag poor girl

[Lupis]

MAGGIEEEE ;_; Oh man you've really got me good, I'm so invested in this party! I'm really excited to see how they all develop, and I LOVE seeing how you've been handling Iris's disability. So excited for more!!

[Varethyn]

Day 11



Chapter 4

It was far too late for this.

Evening was fleeting, the sun taking its orange, violet and indigo ribbons with it as it sunk further below the world's rim. In its place darkness was setting in. If the moon were visible tonight it was hidden behind the thickening roof of clouds still drifting in from the other continents. Even with her pale scales it wouldn't be easy to find Magnolia before night set in proper.

Almost unfairly, with little time to think after the realisation hit them coupled with her disability, Iris was left to watch the sleeping hatchlings while Zin and Cin split up to check the immediate area; Zinnia by ground and Hyacinth, with some effort, by air. She didn't go too far out nor he too high for fear of getting too distant from what was now going to have to be their campsite.

No sign of the Ridgeback at this minimal level. They'd have to go further. Surely she couldn't have gotten too far in this amount of time, right? Ridgebacks in general had great strides, true, but it had been a matter of minutes between her standing up and her disappearing.

“Magnolia?” the Skydancer shouted as best as he could. Between the added effort needed to pump his wings in the dead air and still feeling stiff from the run and tumble earlier it was hard to fill his lungs enough for his voice to carry. “Magnolia! Where are you?”

He was becoming increasingly aware of the strain on his back and shoulders. He needed to land and soon. As he tilted his blue-plumed wings to descend however the Skydancer had the thought to gain higher ground first. A good vantage point may give him a better view. Mind set he twisted his wings the other way, pumping hard so to reach the top of the windmill.

So tired he was by the time he'd managed to reach the peak that he had to grab the rim and practically heave himself over. Gods I wish I'd been born a Wind dragon. he thought to himself as he got into a more comfortable position to survey the lands below. Nothing. No glimpse of a large, white shape anywhere ahead in the falling gloom.

Great.

It wasn't until his panting subsided that Hyacinth became increasingly aware that he was not alone up here. Without his own breath filling his ears he heard something large moving behind him. Someone was muttering to themselves. Taking one long breath to steady himself the Skydancer took in another in preparation to attack his unexpected companion. After a count of five he whirled around.

And stopped, the ball of light in his jaws dissipating.

“Magnolia?”

Indeed, even though it hadn't been as long as it may have felt, all the time spent searching for her this is where the Ridgeback had gone. It must have been when the three of them were attempting to feed the hatchlings, so preoccupied they'd been none of them had heard her leave.

“Magnolia.” he called again when she didn't respond the first time. “Maggie! What are you doing up here?”

Still nothing, still keeping on with whatever held her interest. Shaking himself out a little to smooth his ruffled pelt and plumes, then readjusting his robes, Hyacinth padded around the blissfully large amount of space between his friend and the edge of the pinwheel, seating himself in her line of sight and waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

Lifting a hand to his mouth he coughed.

“Wh-what?” That worked. “Cin?” The flustered Ice-borne clamoured, hiding something behind her back. “When did you get up here?”

“Roughly five minutes ago.” the Skydancer responded, shifting his specs more in a nerdy fashion than a need to actually adjust them. Then seriously continued, “We got worried when you'd vanished. You really shouldn't run off like that. Or fly. Or climb, however it is you got here.”

Maggie shifted, bringing her hands back around to her front though not yet revealing what she held. “It's just...” She hesitated as if unsure if what she was about to say would be worthwhile.“Um, well... I kind of borrowed some items from Zinnia's workshop back at Mistral Zenith. And...”

“Borrowed or borrowed?”

“...Borrowed.”

“Ah.”

“B-but look!” she held out the object she'd been fiddling with. It appeared to be an assortment of plastic pieces with rubber tubes sticking out of them. Hyacinth raised a sceptical eye ridge. “See, this tube will be filled with water,” Maggie explained pointing to each part in turn, “so it'll be all chewy and squidgy to bite on. And this bit can be squeezed, and this is where you, technically but we know what hatchlings are like, hold it. An-and you can smack it against things and this bit will rattle...”

“You're making a toy for the hatchlings.” It was more a conclusive statement than a question. “That's... Maggie you didn't need to hide to do this.”

The white Ridgeback lowered her head sadly. “Zinnia didn't like me being around them so I wanted to prove I could manage it.” She held out the half-finished toy again. “My mother used to make things like this for me when I was in my bitey phase. Even though...” she took a suddenly ragged breath. Was she crying? “Even though... she moved around a lot. I have a lot of brothers and sisters from... different fathers.” Her hands tightened at that. “But even though none of them stayed to help her mum looked after each and every one of us.”

Blinking back tears Maggie fixed her ironically Icy gaze on Hyacinth, almost pleadingly. “I want to do the same. I want to show I can care for young dragons the same way she did. I want you and Zinnia and Iris to see that I am capable.”

“Magnolia, I...” the Light dragon sighed lightly, pulling back his cowl and shaking out his azure crests. For the first time since he'd commissioned this hood his antennae perked up and he winced at the hurt and misery emanating from the distraught Ridgeback. “It's not that we doubt your abilities. Zinnia merely wants to make sure the hatchlings are safe. Your species as a whole... You saw the Fae. Ridgebacks in general, along with Imperials and some Guardians, just aren't made to handle such tiny creatures.”

Above him Maggie sniffled. “But that doesn't mean you can't help or be around them at all.” He quickly amended, laying a taloned hand on her large knee. “If there's anyone best suited to caring for any hatchling it would be you.” It was hesitant but she managed a smile. “Now come on, we need help naming the blighters. I'm sure they'll be thrilled with the toy once it's finished, too.”

“...Yeah. Yeah they will. I'm sure. I loved mine growing up. I just hope the ones I make are as good as-” A sharp grumble from her stomach interrupted her, making her slink back again in shame.

“I wish I didn't feel hungry all the time.” Maggie managed after a moment. “I'm not greedy, I promise. Y'know, aside from my breed's... tendencies. It's just, no matter how much I eat I never feel full. And even though I eat a lot I never seem to put on weight either.” Subconsciously she lay a hand over her midsection as she spoke. “Doctor said I was underweight for my age. Always have been.”

“Sounds to me like you have a high metabolism.”

“A high what?”

“Metabolism.” Hyacinth repeated, putting his finger to his chin the way he always did when recalling information. Or being plain nerdy. “Basically speaking it means your body processes food more efficiently than most, but also faster meaning you need to consume more to keep up with it. There's nothing wrong with you as long as you keep on top of your nutrient intake. Understandably it looks like greed to those who don't know better.”

Magnolia blinked as she took this in. “I... wow. Kind of amazed the doctor I went to never mentioned anything like that. I... kinda feel better now. Huh.”

Hyacinth chuckled beside her. “Unfortunately not all doctors are as well versed in some areas than they really should be.” He shifted, getting more comfortable and honestly enjoying the rush of contentment he felt from his pale companion. “That's one reason I'm training to be a medic myself. Put all those books to use.”

She shot him a wry grin. “Oh so you don't read just to read?” she teased, giving him a gentle nudge.

“Well... maybe.” He grinned back. “Now come on, the girls will want to know you're okay.” They Skydancer stood, stretching out his wings in preparation to glide down the tower, wincing slightly at the stiffness of today's events.

Seriously. It had only been a single day since they left and already so much had happened. He shook his head as he marvelled at this revelation, turning to check on Maggie as she too flared her wings. Then together they jumped, circling down the windmill towards the grass below.

Next Chapter

I made a reason for Cin's apparel! Yay!

As a side note, some of you know how interested I can be in dragon sizes and of course had to do a quick comparison of the Ill Wind team. I also included the hatchlings for fun, substituting tundra for Lupin since gaolers are currently still being worked on.


Heck. The babies are 3 days old site-wise and Lupe's already almost as big as Cin and Ris. They're gonna be so confused when he keeps growing.

For that I decided to compare him with the longest recorded tundra on the old dragon census and a random gaoler I picked out.



He's going to be a big floof.

[Syleye]

so glad she's okay <3

[Varethyn]

Indeed she is Kind of wanted that to hang a little longer for dramatic purposes but NOPE Pinkie wanted me to write again today. *Grumps*

That said you guys would already know if something horrible happens to them. On which note, remember I have more than 5 dragons now! That means one of them can be Beloved. I believe there's currently a tie between Hyacinth, Maggie and Iris right now? ;P

[Ana]

I vote magnolia!

[Syleye]

I vote for Mag as well

[Lupis]

I also vote Mag! She's a darling and I want her to get a chance to grow.

Speaking of which- LOVED the latest chapter. Her making a toy and getting choked up about her family really got me right in the heart. <3

[Krysteena]

I'll also vote for Maggie, she's such a sweetheart and I'd love to see her grow and develop as the story goes on properly The last two chapters have been so good, too! The lil hatchlings are so cute and Maggie being desperate to help care for them really makes me think she'd be a surprisingly good mum herself.

[Varethyn]

Day 12

Maggie is now Beloved and cannot die However if she is KO'd while Badly Injured she will be unable to participate in Nuzlocke activity for a week. In other words she is not allowed to fight in the coliseum during this time.

Today's pull:

Aaaaaaart.



Have a baby floof. Not so happy with this one but that's what happens when I decide to be creative on a day I was out after a night where I could not sleep. I was initially going to draw all three hatchlings too. But this little guy stood out the most in my mind so here we are!

[Syleye]

so cute!!!!!!

[Lupis]

Omg ;;_;; he's SO CUTE... I love that little floof and his big open baby bird mouth!!

[Varethyn]

Thank you Syleye and Lupis <3 I really am amazed how well I've connected to the characters this time around. I struggled with some in WoC.

Okay so. Found another neat Pinkerlocke with another neat ruleset. They have in place a Saving Throw rule wherein if a dragon is KO'd in the coliseum one of their partners is able to try and save them based on RNG. While this intrigues me I will be sticking to the Badly Injured rule I have in place, however it also extends to familiars who also get their own roll which I am thinking of including for additional fun.

For every familiar that drops - either in the coliseum or from Pinkerton - roll 1d4 (or roll 1-4 using RNG). If it is a 4 the dragons keep the familiar and it joins the story.

If a dragon is KO'd in the coliseum and has a familiar attached, the familiar has a chance to save their dragon. Roll 2d4 (or roll 1-4 twice):
- If the total is 8 both the dragon and their familiar come out unscathed.
- If the total is above 4 the dragon is saved but their familiar dies.
- If the total is below 4 the dragon is Badly Injured or killed. If they die, equip the familiar to another dragon. If no dragon can equip the familiar, save the familiar to replace any that die later.

I think this would be a fun way to properly incorporate familiars while keeping their numbers at a manageable level, given how good a job I did with the ones I got in WoC. Plus it offers an extra buffer against death if I get lucky enough to get a familiar join the team. The existing familiars my dragons have now will be removed in which case - they're only being used as a quick cash grab - and the only familiar drop I've had so far is Iris' goldfin river flight so I haven't missed much in the way of opportunity if I add it now.

As always I appreciate (and honestly encourage ) if you feel I'm twiddling with the rules too much!

[Lupis]

Oooh that seems like fun to me! The only thing that worries me is the possibility of so many adorable pets dying. But it seems like an interesting concept!

[Varethyn]

Lupis. Are you insinuating that I'm so terrible at the coliseum that every familiar I have join me will die?
...cos you're probably right

Day 13


Of course it helps if I get to go back to the coliseum to find out. Pinkie, I'm glad my dragons are safe but it's not going to make for an interesting story if they don't fight.

Since I'm still yet to amend the rules to include the familiars I'm also going to sneak in a modification (hah!). Getting this apparel piece made me realise, since I'm going to focus on buying completely basic dragons this time around, that there's a good chance some of them won't get to have any genes given RNG. In which case I'm inserting the basic Nuzlocke rule of:

Dragons can have a primary gene at level 10, can have a secondary gene at level 15 and can have a tertiary gene at level 20.

This way, while more costly, everyone will at least have a chance of getting a primary gene. Hopefully. I'm not that terrible at the coliseum I swear!

Apparel drops will still be for breeding - with my stipulation that it must make sense for the story and not just throw together any compatible dragons for the fun of it - and the option to scatter a dragon, but I will replace the gene prompt with the ability to buy any basic G1 dragon.

Since no one is eligible story-wise to breed, I have enough dragons for right now and have no desire to scatter anyone (I found a scatterscroll in my vault!) I will be stockpiling this for another time.

Meanwhile the tykes all grew up today!


There's a lovely accent called Proud Flowermeadow I wanted to get for Lupin but it's 500 gems

Inventory: Breed/Scatter/G1 purchase x1

[Ana]

I love the gaoler art! ! The familiar idea sounds cool

[Varethyn]

Rules, cast list and index have been updated. Let me know what you think of the layout!

[Ana]

Nice setup.. Love how you managed to get the emjoes over from Fr

[Varethyn]

Day 14


Well, I did ask!

Rolled Lupin first so the hatchies got their first romp through the coliseum.
And holy heck it was stressful.

Even though they were under level 5 I was constantly worried for them as they kept missing, got crit-combo'd early on and all three of them were frequently at low health. Lupin was the worst for it. This was a very common sight the entire way through:


Poor boy. He was so slow to start off as well - Gardenia and Allium both got two turns before he got one! However, despite depleting my supply of lesser health potions they managed more than the max of 50 rounds to reach level 5.

Inventory: Breed/Scatter/G1 purchase x1

[Ana]

Ugh poor boy! !