Iryudyo - Male, age 16
Partner/Offspring: Plavia (Zekiran), son Vyu

As one of the younger members of the Tribe, Iryudyo always seems like he wants to make up for that by overdoing the savage attitude. For that reason he's quite adept at using a harsh whip that is strung with hooks that grasp flesh. He's not adverse to using this weapon on people, Kin or Human alike. He's looking forward to using it a lot more. Also in his collection of weapons is a flail that he likes to spin around, he likes hitting things. Iryudyo is a very over-violent young man, who will most likely blossom into a heartless killer if allowed. What fun.

On the low end of the spectrum of powers, and heartily resentful that he was even "spotted" as a powered Kin, Iryudyo's ability to cause pain physically is tuned to a psionic disturbance in his head. It's almost like he hears church bells ringing, choruses of praise, when he hurts things. But that's only because he wants to hear it that way. He is an empath who enjoys the terror of prey as it flees, loves to feel the energy of pain, and has experienced death after death as he sinks his fangs into his prey. Even Omaciyu doesn't approach this level of specific mood-enhancement, Iryudyo is physically able to dish out a lot, and loves every minute of it.

You are very brave, bespoke the big golden dragoness, as Iryudyo looked over her wings. The ground was very far away - the plains stretched endlessly, into the haze of the Inner Ocean. Iryudyo's gold eyes almost matched the brilliance of the Talor dragon he rode.

The human girl riding in front of him seemed to have no fear of him - he got the idea that even though she was Human, her partner in love was another apparent Kin - a cheetah man named Cynonix. He rode a big brown dragon and carried Ihfosa off to ... wherever they were headed.

I do not think I am any braver than most - but if you say so, do you think I'd bond a better dragon? Iryudyo asked the dragoness, and it seemed that his ability to telepathically speak surprised her.

The dragoness trumpeted and swung out in front of another gold, who was smaller by a bit, and they seemed to confer between one another before she gave her answer.

We will have to wait and see, won't we? I would say that you will bond the right dragon - big or small, clever or quick. You would be happiest on a big, strong one wouldn't you?

I think so! Iryudyo thought, and the girl Tess seemed to be half-listening through her dragon. It didn't bother the Kin nearly as much as he expected it to.

What if you found a dragon who was small enough to slip in and out of tight combat quarters? One with fierce claws and teeth? The young queen hinted that there were such things to be found at a certain locale.

"Then take me to them!" Iryudyo shouted. Laughing, suddenly, he let the chill wind ruffle his tawny golden fur. He leaned up close to Tess, and whispered over the wind, into her ear.

"You like cheetah Kin, don't you," he said. "Why not a human?"

At first, it seemed he'd startled the girl, but she regained her steady breath quickly. "I love Cynonix because he is brave, and beautiful and exotic. We have three children, you know."

Now it was Iryudyo's turn to be surprised. In his short life he'd hardly expected to hear such a thing. Humans and Kin breeding together? How was that possible? In his silence, Tess correctly assumed what he was thinking.

"They're quite furry," Tess added a moment later. Iryudyo didn't see the sly grin on the young lady's lips.

The host of dragons moved into a large formation, with the two golds at the front, a double diamond of darker or more colorful ones behind them. Iryudyo noticed that while the males were of tremendously varied sizes, each dragon was unique in color, wing and limb. One of them even had two pairs of wings which made it look rather like a batwinged dragonfly.

Dragonfly. Iryudyo wondered why there was an insect named for such things, when it was clear that no Human had ever seen a real dragon in his world until now? Not one of these people - Kin or otherwise - had been from "his" world. The worlds where colonization had taken place abruptly and where science reigned.

Dragons were the things of legend. Their little cousins dragonflies? Hardly. The beast under Iryudyo's legs was neither reptile nor insect: it was warm and had skin, hide. Not scales, surely - though he assumed that with the variety of dragons here that there were some out there too.

Their eyes were unnerving - some of them had those big facets like a bug's. Some had horns. Some had fur fringe. They were all amazing. There was never a moment of doubt for Iryudyo that he'd find the right dragon. If perhaps it was a tiny dangerous one or a gigantic mass of muscle like Zkoth? Didn't matter now.

"Hang on tightly," Tess warned. "We are going to travel through the Nexus now. It's not a short trip - but it is between space and time. Outside of it. Do you understand?"

"Not in the slightest," Iryudyo said, "but it doesn't matter. I'll figure it out."

"Good, now don't panic. Hold your breath but don't worry if you think you have to breathe. You'll be fine." Tess said. "And if you see anything queer, don't point and scream. That only attracts more of them."

Confused at that last bit, but sure that he'd do just fine (he was after all a sixteen year old - everyone that age was immortal and perfect) Iryudyo hunkered down behind the diminutive form of Tess, and he could smell Cynonix on her skin -

***

- Then nothing. There was a blackness that Iryudyo had never even imagined in this Nexus. His large lungs held a lot of air - and he was glad. While it was easy for him to do so, he didn't really want to keep holding his breath.

He almost blew it out when something seemed to flutter up to him. It was still all dark - but even though his eyes were closed anyway the darkness would be all-consuming. There was a glimmer of some shape, a person? A ghost. Iryudyo didn't understand the concept of ghosts, the Kin rarely spoke of such things of "after death" so he had no way of understanding this. A spirit attracted to his own.

Tess shooed it away. He got the feeling that she was telling him something, maybe telepathically - maybe just by her body language which he understood implicitly. They were almost to where they were going.

***

Iryudyo exhaled and took in a deep breath of strange cool air. There was no smell, no discernable scent of where they could be. He opened his eyes and saw more blackness.

Not even stars. What was this? But they were above something, a big flat area that reminded him of a distantly suppressed memory. A parking lot - a spaceport. He shuddered, not able to remember why he'd thought they were going to be safe.

He almost panicked after they arrived. There were ships in the area too - they looked like Human ships. This was all a ruse wasn't it!

His arms clenched around Tess' waist, and one hand began to find its way to her neck. But before he could go any farther or wrap his hard strong fingers around her throat, Yliath the dragoness bellowed and sent a sharp admonition into his mind.

You will do no such thing! Were you not warned before? We protect our riders!

"Then why are we at a port? There's only one thing they're good for!" He shouted.

"This is our home!" Tess yelled right back, her mother's temper sometimes showed up - rarely - but this was warranted. "So take your paw off me and behave yourself, or I WILL drop you!"

The formation of dragons, riders and their passengers landed on the large asphalt and cement area. There were a number of people wandering around the starships, watching with curiously tilted heads and some waving at the riders.

When they got to the ground, and Iryudyo had gathered his things back into his long arms, Tess stomped up to him with her blue-grey eyes blazing.

"Don't you dare think that we've led you lot into a trap! We're bringing you into our home - I live here, my children and my partner and my family all live here! We hatch dragons here!"

"Sorry-" Iryudyo started to say, stunned.

"So pick your tail up and march yourself into that hallway and you wait for my mother to show you where you'll be and don't cross my path again! The very idea!"

Tess spun and stomped her way into that hallway, followed by a slightly apologetic looking Cynonix.

"I said I was sorry..." Said Iryudyo, blinking. Never in his whole life had anyone really - really - stood up to him or made him feel like a kitten. Least of all he didn't expect it to be in the form of a dainty little human woman like Tess. He could have snapped her neck - skinny thing - or even tossed her off the dragon's back while they were flying. And...

He suddenly realized what a horrible mistake that would have been. Even more so he realized it when Baeris came smoothy walking out from her brightly lit entrance corridor.

Dijo apparently liked the way she dressed. He almost looked as though he was going to ask her where to get those same clothes - but had the sense not to.

Baeris strode right up to Iryudyo, coming up to his chin - he really was tall wasn't he? But she seemed remarkably used to that sort of tall personage and looked him right in the eye.

"You've really angered my daughter. I ought to just kick you out but there's no where to send you now." She backed up a bit, and nodded to the group of Kin to move closer to one another. "Since you are all here together I want to explain some things to you. Listen closely."

Baeris began her speech - and Iryudyo paid all the attention he could to her voice.

Iryudyo liked it at Azon. Everything there was dark, somewhat dangerous, and more than typical numbers of people liked either being hurt, or hurting things.

He almost thought he fit right in. Every once in a while though, he'd see one of the locals yelling - at Sargon, the leader? That guy kind of scared Iryudyo, and his ... what, daughter? Grand daughter? Something like that, she snarled and hissed and puffed herself up on occasion. Rather like Ivo did, so he guessed that she was some kind of shapeshifter.

But no one had seen him when he was watching them. He kept it to himself, why bother messing with the authority figures when there were far more fun people to hang out with?

Iryudyo watched the eggs too, absently at first but then later on in the evening it was basically time for them to hatch. He'd spent weeks there, trying to listen and understand about the dragons anatomy, why some had more heads than normal, and all that guff.

He'd rather have been out hunting. At least the day before, he'd helped take something down for the hatching feast. He felt itchy, all over. Like he needed to scratch fleas - but he didn't have fleas, did he?

Of course not. And if he did, he'd have gotten them here. All those odd little ligon things outside? Feh! They probably had all kinds of parasites.

It became apparent that not only was this a huge hatching, but it was an unusually violent one. Even considering the hydra mothers and fathers there, whose children normally would have fought each other to the death for their first meal. He'd over heard that too - wow.

He lost count of the beautiful and deadly hatchlings coming from their shells. Iryudyo could hardly believe some of them. Many headed, some with too many tails, and a couple of them that had been born with earrings.

He wanted one - now that he'd seen a bunch of people wearing the things. But he realized that they'd just get caught on things out at the Plateau.

The itching on his skin grew more intense by the minute, toward the middle of the hatching. But he couldn't be that infested, could he? Really?

Then - Iryudyo heard a dark, gruff voice from the black sand. "Iryudyo." Everyone seemed impressed that the hatchling could talk. It ... walked up to him, and the cheetah Kin stood almost mute before the three-headed oddly winged hy-king. "It is you I choose since we are two of a kind. But I have to ask you to do something very important."

The strangely marked hy-king paced around, making several other candidates back up over themselves in the process. They didn't want to get speared by his many claws, nor his horn buds. They looked odd, if sharp.

Before Iryudyo got the chance to wonder out loud what his draconic friend could want from him, the hyking said, "Dude, you've got to take a bath. You smell like ass and cheese."

"... wha?" Iryudyo said, taken aback. Did he mean that? He laughed, still a bit confused, and he wanted to smell himself. He didn't really stink like ass?

The dragon spread toothy smiles across his three heads. "I am Reinnakiegin, but you may call me the Jester!"

The queen of the unbonded Royals announced them as such, to the crowd at large. Iryudyo was stunned. He'd bonded. And what a bond...

They headed away from the sands, toward the smell of fresh meat and foods, and Iryudyo said, "you and I are going to really amaze my tribe, you know that? We're going to slay em."

"I like that thought, more than you think..." Jester hissed, and dug into his meal.