[SP-F1] <<Feeding the Enemy>> Quest (COMPLETE)

[sakuranboy 0]

Sometimes, Castiel truly, deeply regretted being so picky with things.

On his first venture out from Starting City, he had of course come across a number of wild animals. The only issue was that all of them - absolutely every single creature he found - tried to frickin' kill him!! I mean, he wasn't hurting anybody, right? Just minding his own business, really. Looking for an animal buddy to call his own. But that gipsy lady hadn't told him that the animals he tried to befriend would ATTACK. Thus he was currently out of breath, having escaped into the forest from a pack of boars who he unsuccessfully attempted to befriend. Nasty piggies, those boars were, and they in no shape or form resembled Pumba. What a travesty.

"Oh...Oh Lordie..." Castiel puffed, his hands on his needs as he tried to catch his breath. Being level 1 certainly didn't help his stamina at all. After he was breathing normally again, he continued into the forest, determined to become a...what was it she had told him? A beast tamer? Something like that anyway. Maybe there would be a creature in the woods who wouldn't try to eat him alive.

A few minutes later and Cas was much deeper into the woods, not in the area shrouded in darkness but where light was filtering down from the tree canopy. It was a pretty sight, almost peaceful. If this wasn't a game of survival, he might have laid down for a nap. Instead he leaned up against one of the sturdy trees, running a hand through his hair and just gazing upwards tranquilly.

Not long afterwards, a graceful trill filled the area, startling Castiel back to reality. Gasping slightly, he pressed his back up to the tree's trunk, peeking carefully around it to catch a glimpse of what had just cried out so beautifully. What he saw made him break out into a huge grin. Perched on a branch to a different tree was a small blue dragon or wyvern, its body covered in a shimmering down. Blinking, Castiel read the creature's listed species as a <>.

Oh. My. Gosh. What a cutie patoot! At that exact moment, Cas knew he had to befriend the little guy.

Stepping out slowly from behind the tree, Castiel grinned and spoke out in a soothing voice. "Hi there, little one." Sitting down cross-legged on the grass, he made sure not to stare the <> in the eye as to not appear aggressive. Holding out his hand, he whistled and clicked, rubbing his fingers together invitingly.

1: Feathery Dragon flies away

2-4: Feathery Dragon flutters over to a different tree, away from Cas

5-7: Feathery Dragon tilts its head and trills curiously

8-10: Feathery Dragon flutters down to the ground out of curiosity, several feet away from Cas

[sakuranboy 0]

Oh joy, what luck he had! The adorable creature fluttered down to the ground, landing several feet away from Castiel but now giving him a curious gaze. Looks like the little guy was interested in Cas. Making sure to move smoothly and without making any sudden movements, Castiel pulled out a small bag of assorted treats from his scarce inventory and laying it out before him on the ground. Placing one of each treat in his palm, he held his arm out for the <> to make its choice. He wasn't sure what treat he would need to feed the fluffy reptile in order to earn its trust.

1: Feathery Dragon bites Cas' finger and flies away to a further away tree.

2-4: Feathery Dragon eats the beef jerky, spits it out and flies back up to the tree.

5-7: Feathery Dragon eats the raisin, chewing it curiously and then hopping back a few feet.

8-10: Feathery Dragon eats the peanut, trilling in joy and then looks at Cas expectantly.

[sakuranboy 0]

The <> eyed the snacks in Cas' palm for a moment, and the selected the shelled peanut. Gobbling it down, the little reptile titled its head back and trilled its beautiful cry in joy. Castiel couldn't help but giggle at the dragon's antics - obviously it liked the peanuts.

The little guy returned its gaze to Cas, its feathers ruffled excitedly and staring expectantly at the teenage boy with its beady red eyes. Chuckling, Castiel raised an eyebrow at the creature. "Oh, you really like peanuts, don't you?" Reaching down to the pile of snacks before him, he picked out a few more peanuts and held them out to the animal before him. "Here, help yourself!"

1-4: Feathery Dragon eats too fast and chokes on the peanuts

5-8: Feathery Dragon eats its fill and flies up to the tree, curling up for a nap

9-10: Feathery Dragon eats most of the peanuts, then nuzzles Cas' hand

[sakuranboy 0]

With much enthusiasm, the <> went to town on the peanuts offered. Chuckling, Castiel was surprised by the animals zeal. "Whoa, slow down there little guy!" He commented. But it was to no avail, the dragon completely ignoring his comment and continuing its speedy consumption of the nuts.

Suddenly, the little creature coughed, its tiny lungs convulsing and making winded noises out of its mouth. Frowning in concern, Castiel dropped the remaining nuts from his hands and reached out to the dragon. Although it at first shrunk away from his touch, he gently grasped the creature, picking it up in his arms. How on earth was he supposed to give CPR to a dragon? He hardly knew how to do that kind of thing with humans and infants. What he did know is that if he was to save this little guy from dying, he needed to act quickly.

"Don't worry, I've got you..." Cas cooed, patting the dragon firmly on the back and tilting its head and neck towards the ground.

1: Feathery Dragon chokes further and passes out

2-4: Feathery Dragon continues to choke

5-7: Feathery Dragon coughs up the peanut chunk, and then bites Cas

8-10: Feathery Dragon coughs up the peanut chunk, then relaxes in Cas' arms

[sakuranboy 0]

With one final pat, Castiel heard the telltale sound of hacking and watched as a sizeable peanut chunk popped out of the <>'s open mouth, the creature's coughing lessening and normal breathing resuming. Cas sighed in relief, "Oh, thank goodness, I...OWW!!" Suddenly, the small dragon had swiftly bitten down on Castiel's arm, it's eyes teary and fearful. Gritting his teeth, Cas shushed the frightened creature and gently stroked it's soft feathers. "Shhh, it's okay, I don't want to hurt you..."

Castiel: 4/5 HP

Feathery Dragon: 5/7 HP

1-5: Feathery Dragon continues to bite Cas

6-8: Feathery Dragon lets go of Cas' arm, calmed by the petting

9-10: Feathery Dragon lets go of Cas' arm and is remorseful, healing his wound with Bubble Breath

[sakuranboy 0]

*EDIT* (oops, accidental double post!)

[sakuranboy 0]

It seemed that Castiel's petting did no good at the moment, and the <> only continued to bite his arm out of fear, growling and still teary-eyed. Well, he had fed the creature the correct food item, and now the only other step was to tame it successfully without running out of hit points. So it seemed he had to earn the creature's trust.

Wincing, he shifted to sit more comfortably on the ground, continuing to stroke the dragon gently. He could tell it was frightened from nearly choking to death on that peanut. Closing his eyes and inhaling deeply, he began to hum the relaxing tune to one of his favorite songs.

Castiel: 3/5 HP

Feathery Dragon: 5/7 HP

1-2: Feathery Dragon still bites

3-5: Feathery Dragon lets go and flutters away from Cas to watch him warily

6-8: Feathery Dragon lets go and watches Cas sing

9-10: Feathery Dragon lets go and listens, slowly falling asleep

[sakuranboy 0]

Ouch, this was really starting to hurt. The little guy just did not want to let go! Soon Cas would have to change his plan of action in order to ensure he wouldn't run out of health. Castiel changed from humming to actually singing, keeping his voice soft and in a soothing tone. He also kept petting the <> in his arms.

Castiel: 2/5 HP

Feathery Dragon: 5/7 HP

1: Feathery Dragon still bites

2-4: Feathery Dragon lets go and flies back up to the tree

5-8: Feathery Dragon lets go and listens to Cas sing

9-10: Feathery Dragon lets go and nods off in Cas' arms

[sakuranboy 0]

The little dragon in his arms finally let go of his arm, sighing and relaxing visibly. Apparently, singing out loud had done the trick. Castiel watched admiringly as the <> began to nod-off in his arms, probably tired after its little choking escapade. Also, he noticed a "Level Up!" window that popped up in front of him; apparently the events that had led up to this moment got him to reach level 2.

He could feel fatigue taking over his own body, and the teenage boy eventually gave in to that feeling, leaning up against the base of a tree and closing his eyes for a quick nap with the small sleeping dragon in his arms.

Castiel: 4/7 HP

1: Castiel wakes up to a wolf

2-4: Castiel wakes up to the cries of wolves in the distance

5-7: Castiel wakes up naturally

8-10: Castiel wakes up to the Feathery Dragon's kisses

[sakuranboy 0]

"Awooooooooooo..."

Blinking awake, Castiel yawned and rubbed his sleep-ridden eyes. How long had he been asleep for? Opening up his menu with his finger, he noted that it was around 6:00 PM. Too close to evening for comfort; being unarmed and in the middle of the forest, he needed to start heading back to his motel room in Starting City.

"Puruu?" Looking down, Cas found the <> from before still curled up in his lap, and it looked upwards at him curiously as it noticed his awakening. Cas smiled down at the creature, rubbing it's head affectionately.

"I think it's time we head back now, huh?"

"AwoooOOOOOO...!"

"Wha?" Castiel stuttered, standing to his feet quickly and looking around in a panic. That was definitely a wolf's cry, which was not good news. The dragon fluttered out of his lap and flapped in the air beside him, it too concerned by the sound. "What should we do?" Cas asked, looking to the dragon expectantly. In response, the creature fluttered over to a nearby tree, landing on one of the branches.

"Puruu, puruu!" It would appear that it wanted Castiel to climb up there to hide.

1: Cas slips and falls to the ground, hurting his leg

2-4: Cas slips and falls to the ground

5-7: Cas manages to climb up with the Feathery Dragon

8-10: Cas climbs up to the Feathery Dragon and is healed by its Bubble Breath

[sakuranboy 0]

Having successfully climbed to the high branch of the tree, Castiel sighed in relief. One thing he knew for sure was that wolves in this world couldn't climb, thankfully. But that didn't necessarily mean that he wouldn't encounter another monster that can climb. So ideally he could somehow exit the forest remaining undetected by wild animals.

After a few moments of sitting there on the tree branch, Castiel felt himself get hit by something nearby. Briefly panicked, he turned to watch with wide eyes as the <> perched beside him began to shoot a spray of bubbles over his body. He could also see that it was increasing his health bar, filling it up. "I-Incredible!" Cas exclaimed, overjoyed that the dragon was showing sympathy for him. That could only mean that he was getting even closer to taming the little beastie. "Thank you, baby..." He praised the creature, patting it on the head. "...You know, if you decide to become my familiar, I'm gonna name you Bebe!" The cat-sized dragon closed its eyes in bliss, leaning into Castiel's touch.

"Grrrrrr..." Gasping, Castiel looked down at the ground and found himself staring at a small pack of about four wolves. They were all snarling, staring at him with glowing, hungry eyes.

Castiel: 7/7 HP

1: The branch snaps, and Castiel falls to the ground amid the pack of wolves

2-3: The branch snaps, and both the branch and Castiel fall on top of two of the wolves

4-5: The branch snaps, and both the branch and Cas fall on three of the wolves

6: The branch snaps, and both the branch and Cas fall on all four of the wolves

7-10: The branch remains stable

[sakuranboy 0]

With a creak and a snap, the large branch Cas had been sitting on snapped, sending both him and the branch tumbling to the ground. "EeeeaaaAAAAHHHHHH!!" He screeched, covering his face in fear and bracing for impact.

While he did fall a good distance, his fall had been buffered by the warm body of one of the wolves. Otherwise the force of the impact would've broken multiple bones (thus dealing significant damage) if not killed him outright. The low-leveled wolf that cushioned his fall yelped it pain, crushed by Castiel's fall and its health bar drained almost completely. The other three wolves had been unfortunate enough to be hit by the falling branch, and those wolves as well as the branch quickly dissipated into data. The <> fluttered around Castiel, crying out in concern as he stood to his feet. "I-I'm fine. First thing's first: let's get out of here!" The two of them proceeded to run away and back towards the fringes of the forest, distancing themselves from the remaining wolf.

Castiel: 6/7 HP

Feathery Dragon: 7/7 HP

Wolf: 1/5 HP

1-3: The Wolf begins to chase Castiel

4-6: Cas gets lost in the woods

7-10: Cas makes it out of the forest

[sakuranboy 0]

Cas, once again quite out of breath, slowed down to a stop once he and the <> made it to the edge of the forest. He had his hands on his knees, trying to regain his breath. It seemed they had outrun the wolf.

1-3: The hoard of wild Boars from earlier awaited Cas

4-6: The Feathery Dragon stops at the edge, looking back wistfully at the forest

7-10: Nothing happens

[sakuranboy 0]

Regaining his breath, Cas looked backwards into the forest just to make sure there wasn't a rogue creature nearby waiting to pounce out and attack. His visual scan remained void of icons, so it seemed they were safe for now. Well, kind of; they still had to make it back to Starting City alive. The city could be seen on the horizon in the distance. Beckoning to the <>, he started to walk back towards the road. The dragon flapped down and landed on his shoulder, making itself comfortable.

1: The Boars are awake and notice Cas, getting aggressive

2-4: The Boars notice Cas but just watch him warily

5-8: The hoard of Boars are lying among the flowers, sleeping

9-10: The Boars aren't present and the Feathery Dragon nuzzles Cas' cheek

[sakuranboy 0]

Freezing in place, Cas swallowed hard. Oh gosh, who would think the boars would have stayed in that spot? The boars turned, snorting and eyeing Castiel to see if he would approach them, thus initiating combat once more. Instead the brunet boy inched around the hoard, intent on avoiding conflict with them. The <> hissed at the onlooking wild pigs.

1-2: The boars begin chasing Castiel

3-5: Only one of the boars initiates combat

6-10: Nothing happens

[sakuranboy 0]

Castiel wiped his brow; thankfully, the boars remained in their spots for the time being. Turning his attention back to the road, he started humming happilly as he skipped along the path, which was a surefire shot to Starting City.

1-3: Feathery Dragon gets agitated from the skipping

4-7: Cas trips

8-10: Cas gets nearer to Starting City

[sakuranboy 0]

Oh, it seemed Castiel had grown to level 3! Slowing down to a halt, Cas grinned at the display summary of his new stats. Hearing a huff, he watched as the <> fluttered off of his shoulder and down to the ground, giving him the stink eye. Frowning out of confusion, Castiel squatted so he could be on the level of the reptile. "What's the matter, baby? Did my skipping bother you? If so, I'm sorry," The dragon ruffled its feathers at Cas' apology, looking away from the player stubbornly. Cas blew air out of his lips in an exasperated fashion. "Awh, c'mon. Don't be such a sour-puss. I won't do it again, I promise!"

Castiel: 8/9 HP

1-5: Feathery Dragon caws in Cas' face and begins to fly away

6-8: Feathery Dragon hops away down the path

9-10: Feathery Dragon flies back onto Cas' shoulder

[sakuranboy 0]

With a light "Puruu!", the <> hopped down the pathway, putting distance between itself and Castiel. Giggling, Cas followed right after the little guy, hopping in a humorous crouched position as if he were mocking the dragon.

1-3: Feathery Dragon is insulted and takes flight

4-6: Feathery Dragon ignores Castiel's antics

7-10: Feathery Dragon noticed Cas' humor and joins in on the fun

[sakuranboy 0]

Looking back at Castiel, the <> cried out, surprised that a human player was making motions similar to itself. Viewing Cas' actions as an invitation to play, the little reptile crooned, hopping circles around a crouched Castiel who was currently laughing his butt off. Wiping a giddy tear from his eye, Cas picked up the creature and held him up to his face. "Gosh, there's no doubt in my mind, now. You're the animal partner for me!"

1-3: Nothing happens

4-6: Feathery Dragon trills happily

7-10: Feathery Dragon kisses Cas' nose

[sakuranboy 0]

"Puruu!" The <> trilled with joy, throwing its head back enthusiastically. Castiel threw his own head backwards and crowed like Peter Pan, next bringing the dragon close to hug it affectionately. The little guy laid its head on Cas' shoulder, effectively hugging him back.

1-5: Nothing happens

6-10: A "Congrats" pops up asking if Cas wants to tame the Feathery Dragon