Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 3, 2012 9:43:53 GMT -5
Once more there was a brief exchange of incomprehensible words between the two, Red apparently trying to reason with the creature. Moments later she returned back to her English tongue, turning to address him once more. "He says that the offer of six months is acceptable. Though I'm not sure how you intend on taking a sample, with the scales and all." she noted, turning to look back at Ancaladar. Surely there was no way that such a small needle could pierce through the armor-like scales of a dragon.
"I figured I would have to explain that..." she added, as he questioned her ability to speak to a dragon. It still felt strange to her that she wasn't human, something that she wasn't fully used to. After all, simply take away the ability to speak to dragons, and that was basically all she was. "I'm something that people call a Draconian... basically a Human that can understand the language of a Dragon." she started, turning to face Craig again. "Though really I had no idea what I was, because there's so little difference between the two races."
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 3, 2012 10:48:59 GMT -5
Craig narrowed his eyes slightly at her reply. So she wasn't Human. That was the most logical answer. Where had she come from, then? Some other planet? No, dragons were a very big part of lore and there was one before him now. They clearly were a real thing and it was logical that their counterpart species would be as well. "I'm something that people call a Draconian... basically a Human that can understand the language of a Dragon." She turned to look at him in time to see a surprised look on his face. He knew of the word "draconian". So this species must be what it originated from. Perhaps it could give him a peek into their nature. He would have to research later.
Red said that there was little difference between the species and that she was basically a Human that could speak to dragons. So, a dragon-whisperer. He nodded, suggesting that he understood. "I thought that may be the case." He said, lips pressed. He reached into his leather laptop bag and extracted another syringe. "Your DNA would potentially be different from that of a Human's. If I'm going to do something for you, I want to decrease the chance of you dying as significantly and surely as possible... that means making sure of your sequences." He explained firmly, but not looking greatly pleased at the prospect.
He turned his head to the dragon, trying to locate a weak spot. He could, of course, puncture somewhere in the mouth, but that was not something Craig wanted to go closer to. The dragon's side was the most ideal spot and Craig approached it slowly, his syringe feeling more like a liability than an asset in this situation. "Scales overlap", he explained to ensure everyone knew what was going on. That was probably the best way to go about this. "Which means if I go under one layer I can come above the one below it and hit skin. I'll be as delicate as I can." He walked past the front of the forearm of the dragon slowly and cautiously, a bit bothered by the notion he himself had suggested.
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 3, 2012 11:22:06 GMT -5
With a small nod, Red walked over to Ancaladar, patting the side of his neck to ensure that he would remain still. Slowly, the dragon lowered his head into her arms, where she proceeded to rub behind one of his finned ears. She couldn't imagine any kind of creature that would enjoy having its blood taken, and with a needle no less. Even she was a little squeamish when he came to being around needles.
"You should be alright to go ahead." Red replied, watching as he approached his side. She wondered what he had meant by the chance for failure. She had figured that genertically there wasn't much of a difference between herself and a normal human, but he did have a point. After all, the last thing she wanted was to die just from their little experiment.
"So how do we prevent any issues?"she questioned, though already having an idea on what he needed. Likely just as he had requested Ancaladar's blood, he would probably need hers as well, causing her to shiver slightly at the thought..
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 3, 2012 11:40:54 GMT -5
Craig looked up from his work at Red. "Why... by taking a sample, of course. I didn't pull this smaller syringe out for fun." He turned back to what he was doing and gently pushed the tip of the needle under one of the scales. He grabbed and cautiously pulled it away, ever so slowly, from the dragon's body to give the needle ample room. He rested the needle against the skin of the dragon, having found his mark, and spoke loudly enough for Ancaladar to hear. "You'll be feeling a pinching sensation as I insert the needle. Shouldn't be too bad." He reassured the creature and pushed the needle against the flesh of the dragon until it penetrated the dermatose. "It may become slightly itchy, don't worry, it's normal." Craig was not going to give the dragon any reason to be mad if he could help it as he exctracted the creature's lifeforce into the tube. He pushed a lever near the base of the needle and opened a side-door on the syringe, extracting a blood-filled, 10 oz vial from within. He placed it between his left pinky and ring finger, holding it carefully as he replaced it with another vial, closed the syringe, and pushed the lever back to it's original placed."Almost finished." He comforted as the second sample was filled.
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 3, 2012 11:49:39 GMT -5
Ancaladar let out a small growl as the needle pierced the skin, able to feel as it slowly drained him of his blood. Not that it was a lot, compared to the same amount taken from a human, but without the protective scales, it was something that could be more easily felt. Red blinked as she watched Craig take the blood, face becoming a little pale as she ooked away, though still held onto the dragon's head.
"I was afraid of that..." she responded to his little joke/ Getting a shot was one thing, as it was normally in and out without being really noticed. But having your blood taken was something entirely different, as you had to hold still fo much longer, and feel the blood literally being drained from your body. Plus the woosyness and fatigue that followed was never all that pleasant, a reason she was always skeptical about giving blood.
As he began to finish up with Ancaladar, she still kept her head pointed away from the scene. "...Just let me know when its over."
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 3, 2012 12:02:48 GMT -5
"Removing the needle now." Craig plucked the needle from the creature's flesh and pulled it out from between the scales. He delicately replaced the scale he'd been holding and turned his attention to the syringe, opening a side-door on the glass and extracting a second 10 oz bottle from it and walking over to his laptop bag. Squatting, he put the syringe back into it's padded holder and grabbed two caps, screwed them in place and placed the samples in a pouch that he'd had custom-lined to protect it's contents from temperature. It was also waterproof. Humming, he prepared the smaller syringe for use. "Perhaps you should sit down," he suggested and walked over to the table, motioning for her to follow.
Once she'd settled into placed, he cleared the chamber of the syringe and laid her arm on her knee. "Relax." he commanded softly. Her vein wasn't quite as pronounced as he'd have liked it to be and he flicked the inside of her arm a few times to raise it. His brow furrowed in concentration, he moved the syringe to a ready position. "And, you may feel a slight pinch."
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 3, 2012 12:17:20 GMT -5
As he finished up extracting the blood, she was able to look back to see him finishing up with his samples, rubbing Ancaladar's snout with a smile. "Told you it wouldn't be that bad." she smiled to the dragon, once again in the draconic tongue. Next came the part she was uneasy about, as she was instructed to follow him and seat herself on the log by the now burnt-out fire.
She watched as he started to prepare the syringe for her, feeling her skin tingle a little at the anticipating of having her skin pierced by the small, sharp object he held. "I'll do my best." she responded, biting her lip slightly as she looked away. She found it much easier to relax when she didn't actually look at what the person with the needle was doing. So rather than watch, she decided to concentrate on the burning embers that resided in the fire pit, having run out of combustible materials to keep itself alive for.
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 3, 2012 13:08:39 GMT -5
Craig pushed the syringe as gently as he could into her vein and red liquid poured into the syringe, filling it quickly. He extracted the needle and placed a cap on it before placing it on the table. Afterwards, he centered a small white strip of cloth on her elbow and deftly wrapped it about her arm, covering the slightly-leaking hole in her arm. He tied a firm knot and put his syringe back into the laptop bag. "All done."
He picked his soup back up, surely cold by now, and took a seat next to Red on the log. "So, what's next? I mean, are you going to stick around here after tonight or leave since you found what you came for? He slurped up his cold soup hungrily after all of the crazy things that had just happened. It was starting to get dark, it'd been a wonder that he'd done the blood-letting so accurately with the dimming light, but he wasn't going to say anything about it. That blood was the greatest thing he'd ever gained in life. He thought about the coming nightfall and looked over at her. "Also, sleeping arrangements?"
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 3, 2012 13:26:09 GMT -5
"I'll be heading out tomorrow likely, since I'm almost out of supplies." Red replied, rubbing her blood-drained arm after he had bandaged up the small entry hole, having only felt a small sting from the entry of the needle. Fortunately it wasn't as bad as she had thought, but things never really seemed to be as they seemed. As for the sleeping arrangements, she would have to check and see what she had available. The tent was certainly large enough to accommodate two people, but she didn't want to suggest anything 'weird'.
"As for the sleeping arrangements, I should have an extra sleeping roll with the rest of my stuff." she offered. Even though this wasn't her actual home, it was only right for her to play a courteous host, and offer him a place to stay for the night. "If you'd like, we could probably share the tent, since it is definitely large enough."
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 3, 2012 19:53:46 GMT -5
Craig listened to her proposition intently. He looked up in thought and replied, "No, I must refuse. I would accept a bedroll if you'd be willing to let me sleep in it outside." He looked at the fire which had died some time ago and looked at Ancaladar. "Is there any way you can breathe fire like dragons in legends I read? It would be rather useful if you could start a campfire for me to sleep near. It would help your Draconian comrade to maintain a greater sense of dignity," he explained.
Craig looked about, deciding to not sleep too close to the dragon in case it rolled around in it's sleep. He also didn't want to be out by himself, being the most vulnerable person here. He decided he would rather sleep near the tent in case he needed to get to cover for some reason. Besides, the dragon was less likely to attack Craig there, he figured.
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 3, 2012 19:59:02 GMT -5
Red cocked her head to the side, a little confused by his attempt at nobility. "If you're comfortable with it. It might help staying inside in case your original attack is still out there. As for the fire, Ancaladar cannot breath fire, but rather a scalding water."Red explained, pulling a sleeping roll out from her bed and handing it to him. "Let me rebuild a fire for you." she smiled, beginning to fetch some more dried matter.
"Or else if you wish, you could take the tent, and I can sleep out here with him. I'll leave the decision up to you, but I'll be okay either way." she added with a smile, arranging a few logs in the fire pit, before adding some smaller flammable materials to help aid in the combustion of the flame. Happy with the way everything was set up, she struck a few matches, a roaring fire soon growing within the pit.
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 4, 2012 2:42:09 GMT -5
Craig would have taken the tent. He'd pretty much lost interest in life's events besides how long it would take him to get back to the lab again. Hours of time spent waiting for others. He would rather be concerned about maintaining himself for the lab and just made her sleep outside. He would have...
But not now. Now, life was getting different. He was starting to take interest in it again what with all these paranormal events happening around them. The last fellow, Cordoba, had claimed to be something else. Craig never got confirmation and maybe it wasn't true; though he did have wings to support his case. Maybe these separate events had no relevance to each other. Maybe they did. Regardless, his world had gotten a lot bigger in a small amount of time - a strange growth in mystery and novelty in the world to break the typical pattern of lost intrigue. For now, he was far too alive.
He shook his head refusing. "I'll stay out here." He also reasoned that it would make the dragon more comfortable, anyways. Perhaps he could garner it's trust. Not that he was 100% sure as to what benefits there were to having a dragon as a friend, he wasn't. But it couldn't hurt, right?
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 4, 2012 9:28:23 GMT -5
"If you're sure." Red replied, unaware of his reasoning as she gathered an extra change of clothing, making her way toward the tent. "But just know that if there's anything at all that you need, please don't hesitate to ask." she reminded him, wanting him to be comfortable for the night. She hadn't really understood why he refused the offer of the tent, knowing just how wary he was of the dragon, which was now curled up by the fire, still keeping an eye on the pair.
Still she didn't ask, instead vanishing into the tent for a brief moment, returning with a pillow to help him feel more comfortable, then vanished into the tent once more for the night. She would sleep in her clothing, just in case she needed to get up for something. Not that she really thought much would happen overnight, but the possibility of some hostile person or thing out in the wilderness was always a possibility...
Post by Craig Jamerson on Oct 5, 2012 0:31:33 GMT -5
Craig laid down on the left side of the tent, eyeing the dragon with mild discomfort. The finned azure dragon was something to lay eyes on, that was for sure. It was probably very advantageous, being able to have an invisible dragon by your side. Perhaps he could learn the language of dragons so he could gain one of his own. Doubtful, but maybe. Besides, how many cool things could you do with a dragon?
His mind faded to the dark solace of slumber as it mulled over such things and a soft snoring was heard there, in China, sleeping beside a red-haired girl that claimed to be a dragon-whisperer and her pet dragon. He'd come here on business and uncovered a world of unexplainable creatures from medieval lore and it was hard not to wonder what other legends used to be true just before he had faded to unconsciousness.
Post by Blair Von Drake / Red on Oct 5, 2012 0:39:23 GMT -5
Red had a rather peaceful sleep, knowing that with her companion outside the tent, that nobody would dare try to come after them. Not without seeing the dragon at least. It was one thing to venture through the wilderness, expecting to see some form of local wildlife such as the panda or the tiger. But a dragon was just something unexpected, keeping someone from making a stupid choice.
The stir of birds in the morning sky slowly bright Red back to the conscious world, their high pitch chirps warning of the morning sun, rising in the day's sky, and causing a small patch of light to stream through the tent, and conveniently into her face. With a small groan, she struggle up into a sitting position, rubbing her eyes to try and rid them of their weariness. She couldn't remember much of the previous night at first, and so completely oblivious to her guest just outside the tent, she crawled around in the tent, grabbing a fresh pair of clothes to get changed.
