Drue

image made with Portrait Workshop

STATS
Name: Drue
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Druid/Seer

Description: Drue is a dark-skinned woman with short black hair, a wide nose, and full lips. Her eyes are dark brown and she often squints or furrows her brow. She is not exceptionally tall but she won't be called short either. She usually dresses in heavy furs and cloaks, giving her a wider appearance though she's not exactly broad shouldered.
Personality: Like a true seer, Drue surrounds herself in mystery. She claims she hardly speaks because her words carry power but in truth she just doesn't like to spend much time with strangers. She is a loner, just a hair's breath away from being a hermit, but actively considering going to live in a hut by herself in some dense forest area. In her spare time, Drue enjoys gardening and brewing some medicinal teas that may or might not carry a kick. 
Skills: Foresight, Affinity with animals and plants
Enjoys: Solitude, Quiet and a good cup of herbal tea
Dislikes: Having to explain things (it's visions, wysiwyg)

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MEETING
Drue stepped out of her little tent and once again wondered whether or not living on her own in a forest somewhere might not be less of a hassle. She would need to put more effort into growing vegetables and hunting for meat but at least she wouldn't have to deal with people anymore. 
As a seer she was welcomed into any town, but when people looked upon her for guidance, she had nothing to offer. She could only describe what she saw. It made as little sense to her as it did to others. Only hindsight proved useful to discern her warnings. But a cautioned man was worth two. So she had kept trying up until now. 
Drue had relocated often in her lifetime. When things happened, it was hard not to blame the messenger. She'd lost her parents and had had to fend for herself. With no other skills to her name and no people willing to teach her, she'd have had to make do. 
A hazy fog obscured her sight and Drue knew her internal whining had probably earned her another vision. She strained to clear her sight, to make sense of what was coming. Only, nothing came. Blackness. Tightness and the need to get away. And then the sound of metal on stone. Something breaking. The light was dazzling, confusing and Drue fainted.
When she awoke, she was somewhere else. Cold and wet, she could hardly drag herself out of the water and onto a nearby tree. A walkway seemed to have been fashioned out of timber and rope. If there was a structure, then there must be people around. Disoriented and chilled to the bone, Drue followed the road until she spotted a change.

Before her, row upon row of bleachers stepped down across the most elaborate and expansive structure hung in the trees of Techotl. The platform extended across multiple branches and touched several trees, each one adding to the support structure. At the center of the platform, opening up like a gargantuan iris, lay a tightly woven net covered in soft, well trampled grasses and leaves. The threads of the net were easily as thick as a man’s torso, but fitted so tightly together that they cast a black shadow beneath them. The grasses and leaves served as padding only. The lightest that could be found, for atop the net sat the most precious of cargos.
A half dozen curious fledglings huddled together in a tight ball, their heads twisting this way and that in response to the endless sea of chatter wafting off the bleachers. The fledglings were antirraperna to a one, each sporting an impressive head fringe and the awkward, gangling limbs of youth. They chittered amongst each other, high pitched trills answering guttural rumbles.
Fom the branches of the surrounding trees, the sleek, beakish heads of the Antirr looked down. They would not be as easily swayed as the half-Pernese Antirraperna, but maybe they could find something that caught their interest today. They certainly had a wealth to choose from. 

- snippet -

Drue had never seen anything draconic before. Her breath caught in her throat. The chill and exhaustion caught up with her and she sagged down on the net. Would this be where she would meet her end? Sounds like she'd never heard before surrounded her. The seer closed her eyes. Oddly though, she almost felt like the sounds were worried instead of bloodthirsty. 

Three antirraperna fledglings remained in a tight huddle. Two cast worried looks about the net, watching the interactions between their kin and these strange humanoids from other planets. One sulked. Tonatiuh always sulked. This was not a surprise to Cuallith. What did come as a surprise to the anxious fledgling was the emergence of a new person from between the rows of bleachers. This person did not come as part of a group, or seem to have arrived at anyone’s behest. The dark-skinned woman who came stumbling onto the platform did not smell like anyone else at the event, but she certainly smelled interesting.
Cuallith lifted her head, momentarily distracted from her anxious thoughts about fights and songs and chaos all around. She sniffed in Drue’s direction, and sniffed again, and then began to edge a little closer to get a better sniff.
This new person smelled like nothing Cuallith had ever encountered before. She smelled… wet? But not like the sharp wetness of the lakes far below. She smelled of fur and wind, of green things and fresh flowers. She smelled alien and absolutely wonderful, and so Cuallith found herself reaching out with a tentative thought to this new person, asking with images and impressions about where she came from.

- snippet -

Drue furrowed her brow as strange images appeared in her mind. Somehow she knew they came from the green-grey reptilian in the center of the net. Blue eyes gazed back and seemed to quest for a reply. Opening her mouth, she suddenly realised that her reply was not to meant to be given with words. So the seer conjured up memories. Her little tent at the edge of a town. Her little potted plants and the tools of her trade: a crystal ball, tarot cards and hands. For good measure she packed in a few sights of her travels. Places she'd enjoyed seeing: A sunset over the river, a spectacular vista from atop a cliff, a meadow with flowers and butterflies and finally a beach with an expanse of ocean. Holding her breath, she waited, gazing back at the creature she now realised was a dragon, though not like the ones pictured on her tarot cards. 

The green dragon cooed at the flood of images and stepped closer. It hadn't occurred to her before that these off-worlders might come from such amazing places. She'd been too wrapped up in being terrified of change that she forgot how much she loved to explore. All of those places sounded fascinating. She needed to see them. Could they see them together?

- snippet -

Drue somehow understood that the green dragon wanted to join her. The seer extended a hand and the Antirraperna touched it gently with a talon, soft feathers brushing against Drue's hand. And then there was a voice:
"I'm Cuallith."
Drue looked back and said her own name out loud, wondering if she could talk in the mind of Cuallith too.
"You just did."
The two of them headed off to the side to get acquainted. Drue now understood Cuallith that much better and she really did want to show the Antirraperna her homeworld, but how would they get there? It's not like Drue knew how she'd gotten here. 
"I won't be able to take you back, but maybe we can ask someone else for help."
Though change was a bit scary, Cuallith was now very excited to grow up and prepare for a journey. 

Cuallith bonded at Nidus Adanuk (Techotl)

STATS
Name: Audio - Sonogram
Spoken Name: Cuallith
Gender: Female
Place of Origin: Nidus Adanuk (Techotl)
Species: Antirraperna
Description: A bright green dragoness with a scaled hide that has a faint darker green stripe pattern. The feathers on her wings are the same righ forest green while her earsails, wingsails and belly are a more subdued grey. 
Vestigial Limbs: No
Adult Size: 28 feet
Abilities:
   *Venom Spit, can shoot a peptide toxin with pinpoint precision at vulnerable areas of their foes. 
   *Firebreath, can breathe fire when given a reactive agent to digest (eg firestone), if not trained this ability can atrophy.
   *Telepathy, can fully communicate thoughts, feelings and images across a mental network (over great distance with bond) 
   *Verbal Communication, capable of singing, perfect pitch. 
   *Teleportation, capable of short-range teleportation (in sight) for two-three times in an hour before needing a long rest. 
Personality: Cuallith is a bit scared of change and new things but usually ends up really liking what she finds. She is quite adaptable and curious and has an open mind. 

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Lantessama Isle
Background image from deitydiva