"A Quest Of Friends"

[Thundertail]

IC: Bentfeather and company, on the road from Sauropolis.

When the group halted for the night, it was decided that Bentfeather examine the new journal more closely in the privacy of the sleeping cabin atop the cart being pulled by Randy, and after Eveningmeal he got right to work. The writing was all done in the hand of Frank Scratt, and it told of his former Partner’s adventure on the Outer Island exactly like the first; but there was something strange in the script, not in words or style, but something else. All through the translation he encountered where the words were different somehow, places where corrections had been made; but the corrections were done slightly different, different words were corrected and scratched out words were not in the original. Pretty soon a pattern emerged, culminated by the final message on the inside back cover; and it read:

Breathe deep, seek peace.

Breathe deep, seek peace… Breathe
Breathe deep, seek peace… deep,
Breathe deep, seek peace… seek
Breathe deep, seek peace… peace.

This, Bentfeather thought, was the code to read the cryptic message that was secreted inside the words of the text; and he spent the bulk of the many rest stops they had over the next several days deciphering that message. The message was long indeed, and the story it told gave Bentfeather sleepless nights with the tale it told. In the mean time, the group traveled by day continually south; in a direction that paralleled the Polongo river, but stayed well out of sight of the river in case they were followed by that route. Though Bentfeather did not know the route their protectors were taking them, he trusted they would keep them all safe from harm.

The miles passed under the wheels of both carts as they were pulled by the saurians hitched to them, and the routine that this travel was becoming created a looming sense of boredom; which was felt by all more and more profoundly as the days increased. It seemed fortunate that they were in disguise, and were unrecognizable for the persons they really were to the scant few caravans they passed as they traveled down a southern road. But this notion did not do wonders for the morale of the passengers of these carts, for the stresses of the past few days was wearing their nerves a little thin of late.

“Get your foot out of my eye!…”, Postal Bird 76 yelled at Bentfeather at another jarring lurch from the cart.

“I would if you get off me!…”, Bentfeather shot back, shoving him out of the way as another lurch sent him into the Postal Bird this time.

“AWK!… You poked me!…”, 76 complained as he slid to the lower end of the Postal Bird basket.

“This is not a way for the chief librarian of Waterfall City to travel!… OOF!!!…”, Bentfeather finished as they clunked heads!

“Will you watch those potholes!…”, Tebo yelled from the driver seat as Frik was with Frak in the sleeping cabin. “You’re rocking us around like a ship in a storm!”

“Well, I would stay out of ’em if you learned how to steer!”, Randy yelled back. “It’s a good thing you chose the library instead of ferries… You’d sink them!…”

“Just keep to the center of the road…”, Tebo replied exasperatedly.

Even though head-knocking was normal behavior between mated Pachys, Frik and Frak seemed to be doing that more often than normal today. “I told you everything will be all right!”, Frak said as they capered. “There is no need to get upset!”

“These people are my responsibility.”, Frik said, slamming her cranium against his. “I have a sworn duty by order of the mayor of Waterfall City to keep them safe. There is more danger here than even he first suspected!”

“They are my responsibility too!”, Frak returned the blow. “We are a team, and what fealty you feel, I do also.”

“But we are conducting ourselves contrary to the ways of Dinotopia!”, Frik rammed his skull. “Condoning the use of weapons to solve this trouble goes against everything we stand for!”

“Desperate times call for desperate measures.”, Frak grabbed her to quell any more violence. “We must be well protected, and we are in good company… Now contain yourself and think about the strategy ahead.”, this was punctuated by another violent lurch from the cart, clunking their heads together once more against their wills.

“I better help Tebo drive the cart…”, Frik got up and left the sleeping cabin.

Polongo and Seamus did not seem to be speaking to each other except for those concerning the business at hand, and Redcrest was becoming a little cranky toward both Hazen and Artemis. The only normal behavior was that between April Manchester and Hazen Baker, whose brief relationship had always been turbulent! They bickered constantly whenever they got near, each trying to communicate; but the opposing brashness of both individuals kept on getting in the way.

The only stable pair in the group was officer Ajax and his Partner Olu, who was currently a hundred yards ahead of the small convoy; scanning the way ahead as the noise in the group permitted audio acessment. These two enjoyed many years together, and several occasions featured duty such as this; so they were well aware of their ups and downs, and had worked everything out between them many years ago. The only thing that bothered the both of them at present was the fact that the rest were practically at each other’s throats; and such behavior had to stop if the group was to work as a team and get this situation over with, so it came as quite a surprise to the rest when they turned in the road and Ajax put his hand up, calling for a halt.

“All right everyone.”, he yelled. “I think we’ve gone far enough today. I call for a rest.”

“Aw! I was just getting into my paces!”, Randy complained.

“The reason why I stopped the caravan is there is a problem.”, Ajax told them as he dismounted Olu and came near the carts. “It concerns all of you, and all of you are to blame.”

“What do you mean?”, lady Natasha asked.

“I have noticed that you all have been on edge lately; and I don’t blame any of you for being so.”, said he. “But you need not be this way toward each other! We are friends, and friends are not supposed to be angry with one another. You are all letting this situation get the better of you, and it must stop now!”, he looked around. “Perhaps what is needed is a short rest. We should make camp over there, in that clearing…”

“That might be a good idea at that…”, lady Natasha admitted.

Olu grunted, and he pointed west, where a meadow of sorts rolled down to a small river in the far distance. They were close to a tributary of the Polongo river, and they could take on extra water there if they wanted; but the first thing they did was veer off the road and stop in the tall rushes, more exasperated with their own demeanor than the actions of the others.

As a campfire was set and everyone got down off their carts or steeds; they all milled around a bit to stretch their legs and think things over. Tebo volunteered to get firewood, and got the hatchet out of the small log bin on Polongo’s cart; Bentfeather came with him as he spied a rotted log near where the boy had intended to work. As all settled down, many small conversations wafted around; many giving small apology for acting as they did, and for thinking the things they had been thinking.

Fifteen minutes later Tebo returned with an armload of wood, and paused in his labor to rub Randy’s snout; whispering apologies for being so short with him, which were returned for snapping at the human. Then he left once more, bring back two more loads of firewood. Bentfeather had lingered by the carts with the first load; and was earnestly apologizing to 76 for being so pushy in the basket. Polongo’s family seemed to have reached an agreement as well, he joking with Seamus like he always did while showing affection t\o the rest of the family. Hazen was not left out in this activity either, for Redcrest grabbed him and drew him into the group hugs. The only one that seemed to be left out was April Manchester, but she got a reinforcing thumbs up by officer Ajax as she glanced his way.

“There now!… Is everything better?”, Ajax said as he addressed the crowd a little while later. “Now I think we should get down to business, and plan our next course of action…”, he looked at Bentfeather. “I assume you have had a chance to examine the new journal. Have you perchance deciphered it yet?…”

“Why yes, I d\id!”, Bentfeather said, getting into the group. “I have found, hidden within the original text, an account created by Frank Scratt; and hidden well in a word maze I found most intriguing, a story that would amaze even the best storyteller!…”

“What is it?”, Tebo asked, interest increasing. “What did he have to say?”

Well, my boy…”, he flapped to where he was keeping notes and came back with many sheets of parchment. “Let me tell you”…
_____

IC: Petronas with Peter and company, at the outskirts of Sauropolis.

Never trust humans for their sense of direction, Petronas thought to himself as the pair came back up the road from different directions at the intersection they were stopped at. Each had the look like, if the cart was not in sight, they could not find their way back - and the Stenoychosaur smiled at the thought of losing them. Instead of voicing this wish, he scowled at them and spoke.

“Well?… Any sign of them?…”, said he.

“Nothing sir, not even wagon tracks.”, said one in the eastern road.

“There’s wagon tracks here.”, said the second standing in the western road. “But there’s so many, and I can’t tell which direction they were traveling.”

“Useless…!”, Petronas yelled. “Peter, you’re sense of smell’s good. Which direction?…”

“Um,… I can’t tell.”, Peter said after nasally examining the air. “I smell Bentfeather, but it’s so weak… I smell all the others too, but their smells are also weak.”

“Which way, idiot?”, Petronas fumed. “We don’t have all day!”

“I can’t tell by sniffing, but use your logic.”, Peter told him. “You know Scratt’s trail would lead them right to Sauropolis.”Just follow the sign over there…”, he pointed with a horn.

After looking at the overgrown monolith with chiseled lettering, Petronas gasped. “Oh, shut up and pull the cart already!”, he whipped the reigns. “Can’t stand a wise-alec cart puller.”

“I’m a dino whose talents go unappreciated…”, Peter mumbled as he got the cart moving again.

By the end of the day, through the forested terrain; the first spires of Sauropolis could be seen by Petronas. The human thugs walking along side of the cart were overjoyed that their trek would be soon over for the time being, because their feet were nearly blistered with all that walking! However, their jobs were not over for the night; for they had to first go into the city and find them all a place to spend the night. Once done Petronas had them unhitch Peter and have him paddocked in a cheesy stable at the edge of town, a place where Peter complained about all night long. His wimperings did nothing to help Petronas think of a way they could search the city for Bentfeather and that cursed artifact…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, the roads of Dinotopia
_

Several days' worth of travel was taking its collective toll on the group. Redcrest was as restless as ever, which slowly but steadily wore on Hazen's nerves. It seemed that every other minute, she would say something like, "My bottom and tail hurts!" "I wanna go home!" or "Are we there yet?" Hazen put his head in his hands, feeling his own tensions rise. He never had to endure a multi-day road trip before and was glad that he didn't up until this point. If he had known how much trouble she was going to be during the trip, he probably wouldn't have insisted that she come along as well.

Artemis and April was running close escort of the carts. Hazen turned around, standing up and flagged them over. When they got close enough, Hazen said quietly, "Isn't there anything you can do about keeping Redcrest calm and happy? She's been going on like this for hours."

Artemis gave him an annoyed look. "You've known her longer than I have. What makes you think that I can do much better?"

"You are her mother. Put your foot down a little," Hazen said back.

"Is this any way to regard your Life Partner?" asked April, who was seated atop Artemis.

"Hey!" Hazen shouted at her, feeling a few of his nerves getting more and more frayed. "No one asked you to give your opinion on this."

"You're fortunate that I was ordered to protect you," said April, "otherwise I would have left you at Sauropolis. You are easily one of the most impossible men I've ever met!"

"The feeling is mutual, sister," Hazen shot back.

"Stop fighting!" yelled Redcrest. Hazen turned to see the little one nearly reduced to tears at the tought of being the cause of this animosity.

Hazen sighed and declared, "We'll talk later." He sat back down to stew over how difficult these people had become. Apparently, everyone was feeling it. Seamus had muttered about how this matter really wasn't his and he didn't know why he was dragged along with it. Polongo had tried to remind him that everyone was in danger, no matter how remote the connections were, but that did little to improve Seamus' disposition.

They were then pulled aside and promptly chastised by Ajax. Seamus and Polongo were having a conversation with themselves as they pitched a few tents. Redcrest sat by herself near the carts, still moping at the fighting lately. Hazen frowned to himself. He realized that he did more harm than good when it came to morale. He walked over to where Redcrest was, knowing now what to do. "Hey," he said. She didn't react. "Listen, I want to talk to you and your parents in a few minutes." Redcrest turned away from him, still upset. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Come on." Redcrest reluctantly took his hand.

He led her to Polongo and Artemis, who had finished their tasks. "Everyone, I have something to say." The others looked at him. "I'm sorry about all this. I know most of you didn't want to be dragged along for this journey and it's my fault for knowing what I knew. Also, I'm sorry about how much of a jerk I've been lately. I guess I wasn't expecting this much travel. I'll try and be more stoic and conscious of your feelings."

The Hadrosaurs milled to themselves in their own language before Artemis finally said, "Apology accepted." Redcrest led him to the others so they could share in one large group hug.

Once the hug was broken, he looked over at April, who was standing by her self. Hazen got up the courage to approach her. "April," he began, "I want to say . . ." He was interrupted by Ajax. His apology to her would have to wait.
_

TAG: Ajax, Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Bentfeather reciting the translation of Nicolai Sander’s journal.

“My dearest Bentfeather,” , Bentfeather read as everyone gathered to hear.

“If you are reading this, and have deciphered my words through my amateurish attempt of literary stealth; I can only assume that I have met an untimely end or an unknown fate. I have written like this to you because I fear the worst for Dinotopia, as what was discovered on the Outer Island could prove fatal for both humans and saurians. I think you should now know that your Partner, Nicolai Sanders IS NOT dead; but he is in as much peril as the rest who live here, more so because he is the instigator of this trouble.”

“Though it is true that the expedition did indeed make contact with the primitive tribes of Dromeosaurs, and documentation of their ways of life were made; something terrible happened when a temple city was found in the southernmost peak of the island. The way this happened occurred the days after Nicolai was lost to the expedition, where he followed a group of native hunters into the jungles. A judgemental mistake was made by the leader of the hunters, and they inadvertently trespassed in the territory of a rogue Gigonatosaurus. The group scattered, and Nicolai was lost in the confusion; and as soon as we found out, sent search parties out for days at a stretch.”

“We found him at the bottom of a steep gully, disoriented and near death; and when we examined him found no cause for this, save for many hooked barbs from a plant. He soon became feverish and ranting that he had made the discovery of the century, so we tended to him for many days; but the fever did not ebb, more so it got worse! Within days the fever reached fatal levels, and we feared he would die shortly; but just at near death, the fever broke and he became conscious days later. He soon became well enough to get out of bed, but his eyes had retained the red glow of the fever; and never went away all during the rest of the time I was with him.”

“In his convalescence he would wander the forests, seeking things ever southward for reasons only in his head. He would go out with the hunting parties, and beg them to follow him toward territories not their own. Something in his mind had altered during his fever, for he grew increasingly obsessed in going south, to a place he had barely mentioned that was near where we found him. Eventually a small temple was found near the peak of the southernmost mountain. Glyphs were hard for him to fathom at first, but they soon were deciphered; and they said that a great power could be found down beneath, and this sparked power-hungry greed in Nicolai Sanders. Soon a buried passage was found there after weeks of excavation for ancient items there, and this led to a labyrinth of other passages snaking ever downward. Soon chambers containing all sorts of strange artifacts were found, some of their glyphs leading him to believe they were pieces to a gigantic device of unknown purpose.”

“At first he coerced the natives and the expedition members to concentrate on this project instead of the one at hand; and many that refused he had lethal accidents arranged. Though a few on the expedition were tempted by the promise of power, and so did the Dromeosaur natives; it was the discovery of certain colored Sunstones that fit into the other artifacts that caused most of the rest to follow his will, and most of those were saurians. Soon he had a workforce that scoured the whole temple complex that was eventually unearthed, and began to build the device in a chamber close to the entrance that was discovered, and the control he had on them all increased the more complete the device became.”

“I was wise to all of this from the beginning, for I saw the madness that was spreading throughout the island; but I chose to go along with things and bide my time. I soon saw my opportunity when I discovered the Tyrannosaur artifact by pure accident. I told no one about my discovery, and made plans to arrange to have it exported from the island, but before my plans came to fruition it was discovered; for the glyphs told of a controlling piece and a key within that would allow total control throughout Dinotopia by the person wielding it, and great effort was made to find it. I soon found my every move being watched by all saurians and humans around me, and had to plan a way to get myself out of there as well.”

“I smuggled both the artifact and myself out of the jungles via a supply cart returning to Culebra, and hid amid a fruit consignment on a barge that set sail to Kushonak. The rest of the trip across Dinotopia was grueling to say the least, for I took continuingly unsavory modes of travel until I made it to Raptor Flats; as I dared not go to my place of business until I was sure I was not followed. Once home I copied Nicolai’s notebook and set the code to be deciphered, then set everything in motion to have you receive them.”

“I can not warn you any less severely that Nicolai Sanders will stop at nothing to gain control of the island, for he is quite mad. I can only assume that he has the device nearly completed by now, and is awaiting word from whom ever he sent to find the missing pieces. Do not, under any circumstances, allow them to fall into their hands; for if your Partner’s master plan comes to fruition, all hope for everyone on Dinotopia is lost!…”

When done, the Microraptor looked up at the newly somber faces all around him. “My goodness!… This had implications that spans the whole island!”

“The authorities have to know about this!”, Ajax said.

“Is there anything we can do?”, Tebo asked.

“What we are doing for now is sufficient, but there has to be more.”, lady Natasha told them. “Does any of you have suggestions?”

Some had the look like they had an idea or two, but remained silent. The silence lingered until some gave their suggestions; and finally Artemis spoke up, followed by Polongo, April and Seamus, and even Hazen Baker gave his interpretation on this grave situation as well…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, camp
_

The party listened very intently to the hidden message. There was more than one occasion when Hazen looked at the others, trying to gauge their reactions and to see the gravity of the situation. At one point, Artemis pulled her daughter close to her, fearful of what would happen to her if this plan ever came into fruition. Hazen bit his lip, seeing this scene. It drove home the very real toll that this would have: Children, as well as their parents, enslaved by some megalomaniacal fiend.

Once Bentfeather finished, there was a long silence as people digested the information. Several people volunteered their opinions, mostly saying how they must be stopped although some didn't know exactly how it should happen. After all, they had families of their own to worry about. Hazen then stood up to air his thoughts.

"Look," he began, "I don't want this to happen any more than you do. To be honest, I'm not sure the best course of action. I mean, if we were to mass an army of sorts, it would betray the Codes to which we all base our lives. But if this guy is as persuasive as the journal says he is, we can't exactly waltz in and sabotage his device. All I know is that there are a lot of people in danger and I'm willing to help stop it. Dinotopia is my new home." He looked over at Redcrest. "I've only recently come into a new family and I can't bear to lose any of it. I've never really been the type who would be a soldier or anything, but now I have every reason to be. I'll do whatever it takes to help bring this guy down. I just want there to be a happy ending."

Having said his peace, Hazen sat back down. The others nodded at his statements. Even April had to commend his honesty and willingness to commit to their as-of-yet undefined cause. Redcrest ran over to Hazen and gave him a hug. "I liked your talking," she said.

Hazen smiled and returned it. "Thank you, little one." He closed his eyes, trying to blot out the horrific possibilities that could befall her. "We'll keep you safe. I promise."
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Bentfeather and the rest, contemplating things just north of the Blackfish Tavern.

This was grave news indeed, and the gravity made all who heard take pause and think; some pacing aimlessly as they pondered what it was that they could do. They all heard the decisions and suggestions bandied around their group, all former animosity all showed for each other on a temporary standstill. Being leaders for the group, Ajax and the two Pachys were the ones that made the viable plans first.

“We have to think of what to do…”, Ajax said. “If not, the whole island is in peril!”

“We must keep the artifact and sir Bentfeather away from the ones that may be chasing us.”, said Frak.

“Oh, I’m sorry about all this!…”, lady Natasha moaned. “I never knew this would bring you all into such danger!”

“You didn’t know any of this…”, Tebo tried to soothe, gently grasping her hand. “Nobody did!”

“But still, what is to be done?”, Bentfeather asked. “I think we should go there and bring my Nicolai back… He is my Partner, and he will listen to me…”

“Wait, all of you!…”, Ajax cautioned. “The first thing we must do is to deal with the present problem. We must continue our elusive course, and we must find out who is after us.”

“I can tell you one of them…”, Tebo said. “One of them is Peter Triceratops, the son of Mondor, from the Archaeological Guild. He owes the library three books!…”

“But who else?”, Bentfeather asked. “I saw a few humans lurking around, but they all look alike to me… There may be dozens of them!”

“During my preliminary investigation, I also detected the presence of a Stenoychosaur, a Triceratops yearling and no more than four humans.”, Frik told them. “If members of the Archaeological Guild are involved, the only Stenoychosaur of power in that guild would be sir Petronas. He had gone on the very same expedition to the Outer Island, and was reported lost as well.”

“I know him.”, Bentfeather said. “He is extremely smart, and rumor says he always wished to be head of that guild.”

“That doesn’t matter…”, Randy said from behind. “The big thing is to stay away from ‘em!”

“And that is why we must come up with a plan to do so.”, Ajax said. “Lady Natasha, do you think you have any contacts in this area? By my reckoning, we are about five miles north of the Blackfish Tavern.”, he looked at the extremely naive group around him and winced. “I do not think we should go there… it‘s way too rough-and-tumble for the hatchling over there…”, Redcrest stuck her tongue out at him!

“Why yes, I do!”, she cheered up slightly, the first time today. “I know the proprietor of the tavern. I help her out from time to time.”, she looked around. “I give reports on her establishment, saying it is a legitimate business and everything is above boards.”

“You mean it isn’t?”, Ajax was shocked.

“Everyone has to earn a living somehow…”, Frik shrugged. “Anyway, I think I may be able to ask her to do us a favor.”, she got up and paced. “I can have her say to anyone looking for us that we headed south, down Turtletail Point; that we were going to take a ferry from Bluebottle, then east up the coast. In reality we should go in a totally different direction.”, she smiled. “I know she’ll do it!”

“That may be all well and good…”, Bentfeather said. “But in what direction do you think we should REALLY go?”

“I would say east.”, Frak said. “We are far enough south now so we will not be traversing the Rainy Basin, and there are many towns along the way.”

“But still the mayor should hear of this!”, 76 squawked. “I will volunteer my services, and will return here when my deed is done.”

“It would take three or four days for you to get there and back, right?”, Ajax said, and 76 nodded. “We should keep moving to avoid those looking for us. We can’t afford to stay here that long.”, he looked around. “Besides, this area harbors many unsavory folk: ruffians and pirates and highway robbers and the like. We should only stay one night and leave here at first light.”

“If I remember right, the town of Rhumsburg is several miles east, and the town of Honey Hall is a few miles further along than that.”, Frik said, remembering. “When 76 leaves, he should meet us in either of those two towns.”

“And if you are not in the first, I’ll go to the second.”, said 76.

“If we’re not there yet, wait a while.”, Frak told him. “If we don’t show up, leave that town. If we don’t show in either town, it means that our adversaries have captured us.”, he saw this frightened everyone. “If this is the case, assemble all the saurian guards and Skybax patrols you can and have them search for both us and them.”

“Won’t that give everything away?”, asked Tebo.

“Look, if Nicolai Sanders gets that artifact,”, Ajax told him. “Nothing else would matter very much to anybody any more!… Now I think we should go to sleep.”…
_


IC: Petronas and Peter with their two thugs, downtown Sauropolis.

Although it was no difficult task to figure out where Bentfeather and the ones now with him had gone once they reached the city of Sauropolis, it took most of the day to track them down to find where they had stayed. The first thing they did was go to ‘Scratt’s Acquisitions and Provisions’ to find a few clues, for it was obvious that they were no longer in the city; and once they got there, they noticed that the place was little changed since the last time they were there.

The thugs he hired had done a pretty thorough job at demolishing the office, but the various footprints in the dust proved that many some ones had been there not too long ago. Only a few things seemed out of place, which told Petronas that they found nothing here; but the tracks in the dust led to the warehouse area in back. Even before Petronas entered the shop, his sense of smell that was three or four times better than the human thugs were could sense the persons that were here recently; for it was easy to detect Pachycephalosaurs and their almond like stench, and unlike the two thugs he was with, the three human males he was smelling at least took frequent baths. There was one human female there too, along with a younger Hadrosaur of some species; and of course, there was the unmistakable smell of the Microraptor named Bentfeather!

As the humans fanned out throughout the warehouse, Petronas concentrated on the footprints that went along nearly every aisle and row, but they suddenly halted and began a longer pace; indicating they were running, and they seemed to be converging on a space out back. The human thugs must have figured that out too, and he saw them stalking the rows coming in his direction. As soon as all the dusty footprints went along one common trail, Petronas saw just what they were coming to in such a hurry. There were several rows of old desks, and Petronas now guessed what Frank Scratt had done; for how else to hide something when there is more than one of the same thing to hide something in! Many of the desks opened easily, and there was nothing of value in any of those, but some were locked, and Petronas looked around for something to pry them open.

One of the thugs had found a pry bar elsewhere in the warehouse, and evidentially had a mind to do a little looting while he was here; but he instead handed the bar to the Stenoychosaur, who smiled impishly before snatching it out of his hands. He was thinking of braining the greedy human with it for that, but instead concentrated on the task at hand. There were still dozens of desks to search, but Petronas used his nose and found a newer roll top desk that had all their smells near; which was locked, but the pry bar made short work of the lock. Once again the desk was empty, but as he pried the hidden compartment open; he saw that it had once contained something, perhaps an important clue to mister S’s master plan!

They all rushed out of the warehouse and met up with Peter, who was still hitched to the cart. Petronas knew the smells of the persons he was after now, and followed the smell to a paddock area that had rooms for humans above. The thugs grabbed a saurian stable boy and dragged him around back; and Petronas inquired in no gentile way where Bentfeather’s party went. The stable boy gulped and sputtered, but didn’t see which direction they had gone; but guessed that they left town by a southern road, and pleaded that it was all he knew as the humans worked him over a bit before leaving!…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, camp
_

That evening was a somber one. In light of the grave information, everyone stayed quiet. Polongo and Artemis hung around Redcrest more often than usual, probably out of parental instinct in the face of a horrific fate and to let each other know that they were loved. Seamus tried to remain stoic, but hummed an old, Scottish tune to himself, one that was in a distinctly minor key.

Hazen, on the other hand, stayed by himself. He sat on Polongo's cart, looking out to the tributary in the distance. The last thing he, or anybody else, wanted was to save the island from some mad scientist but this was now their apparent destiny. Even though he said he'd do whatever he could to help, he wasn't sure how. April was training him in combat, but he was nowhere near as good as April or, he assumed, Ajax was. All this traveling was getting to him. He wondered if he'd ever get back to Waterfall City and have a normal life. Or if he'd ever get the chance to tell April that he loved her.

Hazen scratched his beard, thinking. Then, an idea popped into his head. Clothes would only take him so far. He'd need to change how he groomed himself. He wasn't sure how effective this would be in the long run, but at this point every little bit should help. He hunted down Seamus and asked to borrow his grooming kit. The older merchant agreed and Hazen said that he'd be down by the river to try and freshen up.

The trip to the river was a slow one as his eyes needed to adjust to the low light, however once he got to the bank, he removed his shirt and dunked his head into the shallow water. Cold as it was, his hair was now wet enough to manage. First things first. He took out the straight razor and, using the moonlight and the river as a mirror, began to shave. He thought that he might try to develop a chin-curtain look, but couldn't quite manicure the sideburns and opted to do a goatee instead.

Then he started on his hair. Slowly, but surely, he cut off the excess length, leaving a fairly conservative crop. After he dunked his head one more time to simultaneously get rid of any loose strands of hair and to cool his skin from the razor burn, he looked at his reflection as the water smoothed over again. While he did like his new look, it felt odd to be without his mop and beard. Especially his upper lip. Still, he could only imagine the reactions from the others when they'd see him for the first time.

As he packed up the kit, making sure it was clean and dry, he heard a splash in the distance. Had someone been watching him? He quietly stood up and walked slowly toward the source, carrying the kit with him. He walked along the shore, hearing gentler splashes as he got closer. Finally, he saw a figure in the river, silhouetted by the glare of the moonlight on the water. Apparently someone was just taking a bath. He breathed a sigh of relief, glad that it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

The figure turned and spied a shadow in the brush. "AHH!!!" screamed the figure. Hazen recognized the voice immediately: April. He knew that no good would come of whatever action he took.

"Sorry," Hazen said. "I'm going." When April recognized the voice, she screamed even louder. Hazen darted back to the camp as quickly as his legs would take him. The further from an angry, bathing April he was, the better. He was certain of one thing: she was going to make his life a living hell for the next couple of days just to get him back.

He returned to camp, where Ajax was on duty. "What was that?" he asked, seeing a newly-groomed Hazen stride purposefully back to the tents.

"Nothing," Hazen said succinctly, not stopping to explain.

Ajax turned and called, "Wasn't that April?"

"Yes, it was," Hazen said as he ducked into a tent. Ajax shook his head as he, too, realized the world of hurt Hazen had just stepped into.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Frik in disguise, the Blackfish Tavern.

The stifling veil of darkness filled the forest that surrounded the Sunstone streetlamps that illuminated the road leading beside the Blackfish Tavern, the light of which glimmered off the surface of the waterway that meandered along the road that led up to it. In the shadows there were all sorts of dangers and strange entities that called this area home. Any sort of malcontent was welcome here, and often gathered here mostly because they were not welcome any place else. Among the shadows and amid these unseen persons, another was making her way down the road toward the inn, and as her image came into view thanks to the streetlamps; one could see the forlorn and disheveled form of a down-on-her-luck Pachycephalosaur, who snuffled and wheezed as she foraged for her next meal.

She looked this way and that, wary of all the hidden eyes that might be looking at her; and hoping against all hope that none of those eyes had malicious intent. She slunk further into the limelight of the tavern, hearing the distant laughter and out-of-tune music coming from within; and decided to skirt the main areas in favor of the dimmer seclusion of the shadows around back. She crept up and around the barn area, listening to the grumbling of the saurian patrons within as she winced. Before long her stomach begged her to continue her original task, and she followed her nose way back around to the back door of the kitchen of the inn.

Luck was on her side, for the kitchen sported many metal cans containing garbage and all sorts of offal; a perfect meal for one such as her, so she opened one and began to inspect the contents. It is nearly impossible to manipulate metal can lids in near complete darkness without making noise, and she was doing this oblivious of the noise she was making due to her hunger; and needless to say that this noise did not go unnoticed by the persons within the building, for several moments later a behemoth of a human female came storming out to look. She was burly and large, and sported a huge cast iron frying pan!

“Ok out there!”, she yelled. “Who’s there?… Come on out!… I see you!…”

This shouting momentarily startled the Pachy, and she slammed her head on the side of the can she was examining with a metallic crash before standing straight. “Please!… No hurt me!…”, the waif said, begging with hands. “I hungry, that all…”

“Well, if you’re so hungry, why don’t you come around front and have dinner?”, said the lady.

“No money…”, the Pachy hung her head.

“Oh,… never fear, friend…”, the lady lowered the skillet. “Anna Damon doesn’t turn away hungry people just because they’re broke!”, she opened the back door and motioned that she follow her inside. “Come on in!… Come in!…”

“Blesss you…”, the waif said as she entered.

“Hope you like lentil stew…”, Anna Damon said absently as she began scooping the concoction from a large iron cauldron on the woodstove. “Specialty of the house…”, she handed the waif the bowl and a fork.

Just then a rack of glasses crashed through the swinging doors, followed by the buss-boy carrying it. He slammed it down noisily by the sink and turned to see the ragged one eating. “Nice way to squander the profits…”, the young Stenoychosaur said. “Just keep on feeding any stray around!…”

“Quiet, Herve’, and buss some tables, why don‘t you?…”, Anna said as she threw a wooden spatula at his quickly retreating form.

“Never mind him…”, she said. “He forgets he’d be like you if I didn’t give him a job!”

“Ordering!…”, sprung in a female Troodont waitress, placing a slip on the order turn-style. “While it’s hot!”, she left just as quickly.

“Got it!”, said Anna. “Um,… maybe you’d like some place less noisy… Here, let’s go to my office.”

Anna Damon led the way around a corner and into a small space the size of a walk-in closet. It sported a desk and a chair amid a sea of paperwork and not much more space; but it fit her gargantuan girth with the luck of the fates! As soon as she sat, her demeanor changed a full one hundred eighty degrees.

“Hello, Frik. To what do we owe this little visit?”, said Anna Damon, steepling her hands on the desk. “I’m sure I’m not violating any codes too badly…”

“I have a problem.”, Frik began. “I am in league with a group of people that I am escorting. I fear that we are being followed by a Stenoychosaur, a Triceratops yearling and a group of human males. They mean to do my party harm, and I wish them off our trail.”

“I see…”, Anna nodded. “And what do you wish me to do?”

“I beg to ask that you help throw them off our trail.”, Frik told her. “We will be going another way, but I request you tell them that we are going to Bluebottle, on the Turtletail peninsula; and that we are catching a ferry east along the coast.”

“And if they ask, who are you escorting?”, Anna asked.

“I am with a group possessing two carts.”, Frik told her. “One is pulled by a Lambeosaur, and the other is pulled by an Ankylosaur. The rest of my group consists of another Lambeosaur and her hatchling, my mate, a Corythosaur, one human female and three human males; and we are also accompanied by a Postal Bird and a Microraptor.”

“Sounds like a fun job!”, Anna chuckled as Frik smiled slightly. “Um,… What’s in it for me?…”

“It might not interest you much if I say that it concerns the sanctity of Dinotopia, so I won’t.”, Frik said, pulling out a small sack. “All I have on me at present is five hundred Drachs; but I can guarantee you more when I return.”

“Is that all?…”, Anna laughed. “That barely pays for the stew you ate!”

“I can also give you satisfactory reports for the Business Guild…”, Frik added.

“Oh,… very well.”, Anna said, smiling after a few moments. “Shouldn’t stack the deck, should I?… Especially when I’m doing it to the higher-ups!… You got yourself a deal!”, she offered her meaty hand, which was shook.

“Please remember, we never had this conversation…”, Frik said before getting up.

“What conversation?”, Anna said sarcastically.

“Oh, and by the way. I’d secure the lids on your trash barrels if I were you. That is a health code violation!…”, Frik disappeared out the kitchen door and was swallowed up by the night…
_

IC: Bentfeather and company, On the road the next day.

Just like clockwork, everyone woke the next morning in camp; and nobody needed to be told to break up camp quickly and be clear of the area as fast as they were able. Frik, who had been out all night on her own mission to throw their pursuers off track; was seen by Olu on his watch just coming back to camp, and was still in the sleeping cabin sound asleep. Everyone thought it would be unfair to wake her as they all mounted their carts and prepared to leave. 76 crawled out of the Postal Bird basket in his full regalia, checking things over on his person and limbering up for the long flight to come.

“Well my friend. Have a good trip.”, Bentfeather hopped over and have him a handshake suitable for his plumed wing. “It was a pleasure to have you as my traveling companion!”

“You were the most interesting basket-mate I have ever had!”, 76 turned it into a hug.

“Do you remember what you have to tell the mayor?”, Ajax came over and asked him.

“I have an almost photographic memory.”, 76 told him. “That is why I’m such a high ranking bird.”

“I got a photographic memory too…”, Randy bellowed. “Trouble is I’m always out of film!…”

“You I think I’ll miss the most!…”, 76 chuckled as he waved at the rest of the group. “Farewell for now, everyone!… I will return as fast as I can, and meet you in the places discussed…”, with this he flapped up and spiraled up and out of the trees, getting lost to sight in the sky.

The group watched him go for only a few moments before the gravity of their situation made itself known to them once more; and this spurred them into motion as they headed south once again. A few miles later they came across a crossroads, and though the sign was beaten and broken on it’s post; and graphitti and unsavory sayings were painted or drawn on it’s surface, the original markings were still on it. The eastern direction proclaimed Rhumsburg was in that direction, the northern direction said Sauropolis was that way, the southern direction said the Blackfish Tavern was in that direction and the western side of it said that it was the way to Spiker. Before turning down the correct road, Olu reared and balked; causing Ajax to nearly lose his seat before asking what was wrong, and once he understood told everyone to halt.

“Olu has found a way for our smells to become lost.”, Ajax said. “He says he has found a patch of Stinkroot in the forest.”, Stinkroot is a plant that grows on rotting logs. It has a smell akin to skunks of North America. “We should rub the root all over us, and those who are following us by smell will not recognize us.”

“Skunkroot?!…”, Bentfeather had heard of that plant! “Ugh…!”

“I’m going to need a bath after this…”, Randy said. “What am I saying?…”

As the stench of the root grew stronger the closer they came to the patch, the more everyone complained; for some had just washed or swum in the pool they had camped near, and groused that it was a wasted activity. However, like troopers and with a minimal amount of squeamishness, they all smeared the smell all over themselves. It was mutually agreed that Redcrest’s rendition of the whole situation was the best, for she only had one word for it:

“Stinky…”, she said over and over as Artemis applied it to her.

Once done with this unsavory task, they doubled back on the road and took the turn at the intersection leading to Rhumsburg…
_

OCC: To see 76’s adventures going back to Waterfall City, and to see the mayor’s reaction to the news he brought, please turn to the next posting of the Waterfall City thread.
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, on the road
_

Hazen made a conscious effort to avoid April this morning as they had their Morningmeal and broke camp. The less time spent dealing with an angry April would be best for everyone. Whenever she was near, though, he could feel the daggers shooting out of her eyes. The only thing he could do was hope that she would quickly realize that he was respectful in his quick exit from the scene and he wasn't trying to get a glimpse of anything, if he did at all. Fat chance, he thought to himself.

While sitting in the cart, as usual, Hazen sighed to himself, stroking his freshly-shaven face and lamenting over the loss of some of his hair. Redcrest smiled at her partner, saying, "I like your haircut."

Hazen smiled back at the hatchling. "Thanks, Redcrest."

"But how come did you do it?"

"Well," Hazen said, "We're trying to disguise ourselves, right?" Redcrest nodded. "Well, since I have established a look already, I figured that if I change my hairstyle and if I shaved, it might help us better escape."

"A very good idea, indeed," said Polongo from the harness. "It is a pity, though, that us Saurians cannot change our scale colors on a whim!"

Hazen chuckled slightly, if a bit uneasily. He knew that somehow chameleons would have gotten their adaptive camouflage ability from somewhere; if not the dinosaurs directly, then somewhere. Who knows if that ability is latent in some species or if one of their pursuers would have that ability as well.

Commotion near the front of the group, got everyone's attention. As Ajax explained that Olu found some stinkroot and described its smell, Hazen immediately didn't like where this was going. The caravan reluctantly went toward the patch. As they drew nearer and nearer, Hazen remarked, "Oh, God, I can taste it!"

They found the patch and began to smear it on each other. April sighed, "So much for that bath."

"Yeah," Hazen said, more concerned about the stink, "tell me about it." April immediately shot him a glare, accompanied by an indignant groan. "Come on!" Hazen said, "I had to groom myself, too." He pointed at his face. "This ain't easy to do dry."

"Stop it," Artemis said to the two of them as she grabbed some root and rubbed it on her daughter.

Hazen grabbed some and began to apply it. "I hope we don't have to wear this too long, otherwise it could make all our gear unusable. The last thing we need is to burn our tents and clothes."

"I'm sure you'd like that," replied April.

"HEY!" Hazen yelled back. Once thoroughly disguised, they loaded back up and resumed their journey. Hazen sat in the back of the cart and groused to himself. The smell began to attract gnats and biting flies, further adding to the misery of the situation. "I want off this ride," he muttered sarcastically to himself.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Bentfeather and company, on the road to Rhumsburg.

The group traveled along the eastern road, making their way as quickly as possible; and it would have been a fairly easy trek if several discomforts hadn’t manifested themselves, one being of their own making while the other had manifested itself as a result. It was bad enough that they had to cover themselves with the odor of the foul smelling Stinkroot, done to throw any following them by smell off their trail; but this smell attracted all sorts of flying insects that were attracted to the carrion smell they were all now sporting! Flies and gnats swarmed the group, causing all of them - especially the larger saurians - great grief as they scratched, bit and swatted at the miniature monsters. Though he was being pestered by them as well, Bentfeather was an insect eater; and snapped at them, eating any he caught; and provided this service to any who wished it, and this was turning out to be a fulltime job as he hopped from one dinosaur to another trying to rid his friends of these pesky beasts.

“Hold on, Randy. I got them…”, Bentfeather hopped near his armored eye and scooped off the dozen that were congregating there. “At this rate, I will not be able to fly!…”, he munched.

“At this rate, I won’t be able to breathe!…”, said Randy after he sneezed out several of them.

“Who’s idea was this?…”, groused Bentfeather as he flew aft of the group and collected as many as he could off Polongo’s neck. “We all smell foul!…”

“It’s necessary, and you know it…”, officer Ajax sauntered by, Stetson hat dipped toward the road ahead. “How keen a sense of smell do you think sir Petronas and Peter Triceratops has?”

“Very acute, I guess.”, Bentfeather said as he hopped aboard Polongo’s cart and grabbed the yucky bugs off Redcrest, snagging a few from Hazen beside him for good measure. “I would say at least three or four times better than humans can detect odor…”

“A fair assumption.”, Ajax told him. “Now assume that they have already gotten our scent. They can track us down from anywhere on the island; so it is wise to mask our scent.”, Hazen agreed, comparing it to a bloodhound.

“I suppose you’re right…”, Bentfeather said as he hopped on Olu’s head to examine for flies up there.

In the mean time Ajax had his steed advance to the forward cart, and Frik looked out from the driver’s seat, Tebo sitting next to her. The Microraptor flapped down onto the Postal Bird basket, secretly missing the basket’s official occupant. They continued on down the road in relative silence, and looked around at the fenced-in clearings they saw as they came out into the outskirts of Rhumsburg. The major occupations this town seemed to have was vegetable farming, mainly squashes and other types of gourds including pumpkins; fertility for these crops due to the peat and the boggy areas this place was known for, and they were a major source of these vegetables for both Sauropolis and Waterfall City. This they found out later as they entered the town proper, only to be stopped abruptly by several humans and saurians blocking the way!

“Go no further, noble wanderers!…”, shouted the bearded speaker for the group. “We need not your kind here!”

“What do you mean?!…”, Ajax yelled from atop Olu. “Aren’t all travelers welcome here?…”

“They are,”, shouted the man. “But we do not welcome ones that smell as you do!”

“Pardon us, sir…”, lady Natasha spoke. “But we had made a wrong turn, and found ourselves traveling in the raw wilderness. We had accidentally discovered a patch of Stinkroot in a gladed area.”, she bowed. “We humbly apologize for smelling the way we do…”

“That might be entirely our fault…”, said the bearded man as some blocking the way slowly dispersed. “We should have eradicated that patch years ago…”

“That would not be necessary, kind sir.”, Ajax told them. “Every living thing has the right to live, no matter how unpleasant!”

“That is a very Dinotopian statement, fine sir! For our neglect, you may enter our town.”, said the bearded man. “But before you conduct any business with us, you are required to clean yourselves up first.”

As the rest of the townspeople got out of the way, making a respectable distance between them and the stench; the bearded leader led the way for the procession into town, the smell warning anyone walking by to head for cover! To their surprise, this town often hosted many rich traders; mostly because the hot springs and mud pots in the area, and there were several spas available for any traveler to use. The bearded man led the group to the most remote spa complex the town sported, rousing the proprietor and his attendants; and once they all literally caught wind that they had some new customers, they went right to work on them.

The attendants came over and expertly unhitched Polongo and Randy, unsaddled both Olu and Artemis and led them back toward the mud baths. The humans were escorted to another part of the spa, where separate bath and shower facilities were provided to each of their wishes; and Frik, Frak and Bentfeather were led to other parts for cleaning as to their preference. Their carts, all their gear, clothing, cargo and supplies were subject to thorough laundering, cleaning and fumigation as they bathed; and within the span of several hours the deed was done; and as they emerged, everyone could tell that they were all in much better spirits! As their carts were stored near the spa complex, they all congregated in town when ready; escorted there by the bearded man himself.

“And now, my friends… Now that you are more, shall we say, presentable…”, he said as they walked into the town proper. “Welcome to the humble town of Rhumsburg!…”

“We are honored, sir, to have you as our esteemed host.”, lady Natasha said regally. “It has truly been a harrowing journey so far, and this town would certainly provide a welcome rest!”

“Well we pride ourselves in our hospitality here.”, said he. “As long as you are here, we are at your service.”

“I am sure that I speak for all in my group when I give our undying gratitude…”, said she as they were escorted into one of Rhumsburg’s most elegant pubs…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker, spa, Rhumsburg
_

Although he never had a mud bath before, Hazen could see why people enjoyed it so. Sure, it felt funky, but being suspended in a tub of mud allowed the body and mind to relax in a way that could not be equaled. Furthermore, the mud was very warm, allowing him to perspire and for his muscles to relax even further. And to think, all he asked for was to get this stench gone, completely gone.

A mineral bath and a massage later, Hazen was led out onto a patio, enveloped in a plush robe. This appeared to be a communal area as he spied most of the others already there, allowing their bodies to cool down after the warm baths. Hazen sat down on a chaise near a large partition -- presumably to separate the male and female baths -- and leaned back, tempted to fall asleep then and there. Then, he heard footsteps on the other side. Given how empty the spas were before they arrived, he figured it must have been April. As she came within earshot, Hazen said, "Why don't you pull up a chair and stay a while?"

April heard Hazen's voice and was quickly reminded of their last encounter together. "With you there, never."

Hazen sighed loudly. "Look, I'm not going to bite. You and I both know that what happened was purely an accident. And if I really was the cad you're convinced I am, I wouldn't have announced who I was. So are you gonna take a seat or not?" April rolled her eyes and then shrugged a why-not shrug. After pulling up another chaise, she sat down, double-checking her robe in spite of the partition. "There," Hazen said, "that wasn't so hard, was it?"

"No," April conceded. She reclined and took in the view of the gardens before them. "I must say that I'm glad that it's over."

"Which part, the Stinkroot or the baths?" Hazen joked. "Because I can't get enough of this."

"The Stinkroot, obviously," April replied. "Although I must admit that being pampered isn't the worst thing in the world. I'm just not entirely used to it."

"Not really an upper-class upbringing, eh?" Hazen asked.

"My father did well, but we lived a modest life. My family hardly saw the need for such luxuries. After all, 'Others first; self last.'"

"True," Hazen nodded, sighing to himself.

April glanced at the partition. "And I suppose you enjoy the finer things in life. According to our last reports, the Americans were the dominant power in the Outside World and artists tend to be in positions of high regard there. I'm sure everything was brought to you on a silver platter."

Hazen shook his head. "Don't be so sure. While one can make a healthy living in the arts there, a great deal of success is determined by luck and who you know. Besides, I wasn't always a musician. I actually studied cinema."

"Cinema," April repeated, "You mean motion pictures?"

"You know of them?" Hazen said, astonished.

"I took an Outside World Studies course as an elective in my schooling. Granted, I'd never seen one, but older Dolphinbacks told us of their existence."

Hazen chuckled. "I don't know what's more unbelievable: that you know what a movie is or that there's an Outside World Studies class!" Hazen laughed. April laughed as well, if a bit reluctantly.

For the rest of their cool-down time, Hazen made small talk with April, explaining the reasons why he studied cinema in the first place and how he came to the island. As an attendant came to usher Hazen to the final shower to remove any left over mineral salts, Hazen stood up and said, "You know, you seem to treat me better when I can't see you. Maybe next time we can keep this rapport up without the barrier."

April pondered his statement as her respective usher led her to the final shower as well. Perhaps he was on to something. Still, who knows what was going on the other side. It was best not to think about that right now.

Once they were all dressed and ready for a nice evening out, Hazen greeted the others, who looked and apparently felt as rejuvenated as he was. Redcrest was happy to be clean of the Stinkroot oils and she commented that everything smells nice now. When April arrived, Hazen smiled. April's smile from her own spa experience faded when she saw him and she resumed her usual stoic gaze. Hazen's own smile gave way to a frown. It was a pity that she couldn't have at least pretended to hear his advice. They entered the pub and Hazen recomposed himself for the sake of the patrons and the rest of the group.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, Frik, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Petronas, Peter and their thugs, just north of the Blackfish Tavern.

“Can’t we slow down?…”, Peter Triceratops whined as they trundled down the road, he had been pulling their cart mercilessly all the way from Sauropolis without a break or slowing down.

“You had a rest yesterday.”, Petronas said. “You’re strong. You can take it!”

“Tell that to my feet!…”, Peter panted.

“Say boss, what’s that?”, one of the thugs, both of which had been trotting along side, announced.

“A crossroads…”, Petronas observed. “Where’s the signpost?”

“There…”, said the other, clearing weeds from around it. “Looks kinda wrecked.”

“It wasn’t me…”, said the other.

“Now, which way did they go…”, Petronas sniffed. “I can’t tell… What’s that smell…?”

“Smells like Copro mixed with something dead…”, Peter sniffed too.

“Wasn’t me!”, repeated the other human, and got the other laughing.

“Shut up!…”, Petronas yelled. “Oh great!… With that stench around, I can’t tell which way they went!…”

“What will we do?”, asked Peter.

“Say boss, why don’t we ask if anybody saw them…?”, suggested the first.

“What do you mean?”, Petronas scowled.

“Well, here…”, said he, indicating the sign. “The Blackfish Tavern is only a little ways down this road, see…”, he pointed down the southern road. “If they saw anything, they’d tell.”

“Aw!… You just want to go there to gamble!”, Petronas accused. “Those hoodlums there are no better - or smarter - than you!”

“But he may have a point, sir.”, Peter said. “If you can’t track them down now, it’s always best to ask…”, he smiled. “Besides, maybe we can rest a while there!…”

“Oh,… FINE…”, Petronas said after a while. “I suppose there’s no other choice…”, he looked down to his yearling Triceratops puller. “That is if tubby here can make it!…”

Peter Triceratops was already getting their cart moving, motivation coming from the potential rest stop ahead than any threat Petronas could administer to him…
_

IC: Bentfeather and company, guests at Rhumsburg.

There are swarthy taverns and there are those that border on the edge of elegance, but the tavern they were in at the moment was just about in the middle, or so they all thought as they entered the ‘Zucchini Petal Tavern‘. No ruffians or malcontents were there, just patrons looking for a good time among friends than the trouble they could cause. Many merchant types were here, coming from, or just about to leave, on their errands; and they laughed and carried on with gusto as their conversations among themselves escaladed in their mirth. Bentfeather and his group followed the bearded leader into this pub, but it only caused a few second’s pause in the atmosphere of the room before it resumed once again. They were led to several empty tables, a few made for the saurians in their group; and three waiters and waitresses of various species came out to tend to these new customers.

“Of course, since squashes and such are our main crop here…”, the leader of the town, named Hans Tureny, explained as menus were passed around and examined. “Nearly every dish features it in one form or another… They’re highly nutritious, I assure you!…”

“I am sure they are…”, Bentfeather said as he sipped his mineral water. “No doubt better fare than of my species…”

“I had meant to ask…”, said Hans as he watched the waiters hop away with the orders. “A Microraptor in Postal Bird garb…?”

“Let us just say it is a personal matter.”, lady Natasha intervened. “Nothing that concerns the good people of Rhumsburg…”

“I do not mean to pry, my lady.”, he smiled. “I merely assumed that he had gone daft!”

“As a lad, I had dreamed of becoming one…”, Bentfeather lied as well. “As one gets older, one is entitled to a little indulgence…”

“Ah, I see…”, Hans did not, but changed the subject anyway. “My lady, may I inquire the nature of your trade journey?”, he smiled at the others seated at the other tables. “You have certainly brought a rather large crew…”

“We are on a mission to gain new contacts in other lands.”, lady Natasha lied. “We bring small samples of our wares, and provide handling services to prove we are hard working and true.”, she nodded toward Ajax, April and their steeds. “The two over there and their Overlanders are traveling with us, and will do so until our paths must part.”

“It is always wise to travel in groups.”, Hans commented. “I am truly sorry for this line of inquiry, but we get so little news from elsewhere. Perhaps if you decide to stay longer, we may hear of your other expeditions…”

“We do not intend to stay very long.”, lady Natasha said as their meals began coming. “Perhaps a day or so and we must be off… We must keep on schedule, you know!”

Just then their meals began emerging from the kitchens, served by the help; who pranced around the tables and served each dish with flourishes. True to rumor, every one of them was served meals featuring various squashes: cut versions with a variety of sauces, pureed types spiced to perfection, other medleys featuring other vegetable types in the mix, pastas with sauces with squashes as the main ingredient and other kinds of every type of flavor. Of course the meals sported food of the non-gourd type too: pastas and potato and many other sources of starch. To all this cornucopia of flavors were a far cry to the campsite fare they had been getting the past few days, and Hazen silently compared it to Thanksgiving dinner minus the turkey!

In the space of under an hour they could eat no more, and presently stirred after brief conversations wafting around the tables. When lady Natasha prepared to pay their combined bill, Hans Tureny stayed her hand and nodded to the owner of the place; and this scrawny lady nodded and came around the main table, making the bill disappear as she scooped it off the table. Smiling, Hans got up and motioned for them to do likewise; and he led them out of the tavern and out into the now dimly lit street, leading them around to some stables to accommodate the larger saurians. Once randy, Polongo, Artemis, Olu and Redcrest were bedded down properly; mister Tureny led them to other buildings where rooms could be had for the night…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker, Zucchini Petal Tavern, Rhumsburg
_

Hazen had never seen a spread like the one that was available before him. The combinations and uses of squashes, gourds, and other similar veggies were mind-boggling. Furthermore, the flavors were astounding. And to think that he hated these as a kid! The mushy texture brought back several unpleasant memories, but they were soon mitigated by what he was enjoying at the moment.

Hazen was seated next to Redcrest and he glanced over at the little Hadrosaur to see how she was doing. Unfortunately, she barely touched her food. "Something wrong with it?" he asked her after taking a bite of pumpkin pasta.

"This is all yucky," Redcrest said. "I don't want it."

"But they'll help you grow big and strong," said Artemis, who sat on the other side of Redcrest. "Don't you want to be big and strong like Mommy and Daddy?"

"Yeah, but I don't want to eat this yucky food!" said the hatchling.

Hazen glanced at the mother, giving her a look that said he would take care of this. He turned to Redcrest and said, "You don't like the texture, do you? How it's all mushy and stuff?" Redcrest nodded. "You know," Hazen said, "when I was little, used to eat my least favorite foods with my favorite foods. That way, I wouldn't have yucky flavors or textures in my mouth for too long. Think you can try that for me?"

Redcrest nodded, but looked at her mostly-eaten salad. "I don't know if I have enough salad," she said.

"Well," Hazen said, "That's something you'll have to keep in mind for next time. Right now, try taking two bites of squash for every bite of salad."

Redcrest reluctantly did as he said. As soon as she stuffed the salad in her mouth, Hazen said, "Now, isn't that helping?" Redcrest nodded, but still made a disgusted face. "You're doing fine," he told her as he went back to his own meal.

After having another bite of his pasta, he glanced up at April, who saw the entire episode. He gave her a little smile. April saw him and gave him a little stare. Hazen put up his hands defensively and went back to the meal. It was a pity that she felt the need to feel superior to him around others. He knew that they could be civil if she wanted to; why not be so in public?

After the meal, Hazen followed Hans and the others to the stables. He bade goodnight to the larger Saurians before heading to the human-sized hotels. Before April turned in, he asked her aside. When they were in an out of the way part of the building, she said, "Please make this quick. I'm very tired from the day's proceedings."

"I just wanted to talk about earlier today. At the spa. You know, I thought that maybe we could behave around each other, but I can't get over how you glare at me every time our eyes meet. Maybe I was wrong about you. I try my best to be respectful, all I ask is that you do the same."

"Yes, I'm sure calling me 'impossible' was respectful," she said, referring to the row they had a few days back.

Hazen sighed. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean it, like I'm sure you didn't mean it when you called me that." April looked away at that point, silently conceding that point. Hazen continued, "But you know, I just hope we can put that behind us. Water under the bridge, as they say. So what do you say, truce?"

April put a finger on his chest. "Now listen here, mister. I admit that we had good conversation, but that was it. I've told you before that it'll take a lot more than that to get me interested in you. There is nothing between us." Hazen froze and started to shake his head, as if denying that he was in love with her. "Oh, come now," April said, "You're not exactly hiding your attraction to me. Don't act like you don't feel something."

Hazen knew that the cat was more than out of the bag. It had been skinned as well. He put his hands out. "You're right, I haven't. I admit it, you're beautiful. I want to know you better and I want you to want to know me better, too." April was about to say something to reinforce her disgust in Hazen, but he held a hand up. "Let me finish. I now know that I should just give up. I'm sure I gave you more respect than any of your previous suitors did, based on your stories, but now I know that the best I can be won't be good enough. In fact, I want to thank you for not allowing me to fall so deeply in love that my heart would be demolished when I finally did see the truth." Hazen turned to leave the area but before exiting, he turned and said, "Good night." April looked down, feeling something that she didn't feel often: guilt.

Hazen got to his room and spent a good few hours trying to go to sleep. In his mind, he was trying to get over her, but failing. He sighed as he stared at the ceiling before closing his eyes and shedding a few tears. He managed to keep from bawling, but ended up crying himself to sleep. Perhaps he was deeper in love with April more than he thought.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Petronas and his thugs, the Blackfish Tavern.

When the group of pursuers entered the area of the Blackfish Tavern, all wasn’t quiet anywhere there; a phenomenon not uncommon for such a place. Though many traders visited the area, these persons were more of the less than reputable of the island; and seeing them only gave Petronas pause. He used to be of the upper-echelon of Dinotopians, and the thought of associating with his own thugs was disturbing enough; now he had to rely on more in order to get his job done. They made a stop at the stables before going to the tavern proper, for it was late and that oaf Peter would need a place to spend the night; so he had the two humans unhitch him from the cart and lead him inside, where a beefy human and his swarm of saurian handlers took him into one of the stalls.

Being early evening, Petronas had a mind to see what fare they had for Eveningmeal; probably no better than the fare he and his group were having out on the road, he thought. Inside the worst group of contraband traders and their cronies had gathered to discuss the exploits of their day while drinking the various rotgut concoctions this place served while many an argument wafted about the room. As Petronas sat at a filthy table - the cleanest empty one in the room - he had the two humans with him mingle and try to gather information; and he just took to sitting there in thought, waiting for someone to serve him. He ordered a drink when the Harpymimus waitress came by, and looked around the room as his pair tried to do their job. It was quite entertaining to see them trying to make conversation with persons that would rather tear their heads off than talk!

“You’re looking for someone, you say?…”, came a gravelly voice from across the room many moments later, addressed to one of his thugs. The voice came from a meaty sailor-type with a huge ear ring and a bandanna on his bald skull. “I hope you’re not looking for me!…”, the man got up.

“Rip ‘em, Vinny!…”, jeered one of his cohorts.

“He might be the law!…”, shouted another as Vinny produced a bailing hook!

“All I wanted to know is if you seen someone…”, Petronas’s human backed away.

“All right, you two.”, shouted an equally brawny man with handlebar mustache and built like a weightlifter. “We’ll have none of that…!”, he stepped into the fray, motioning to take the bailing hook.

“ ‘e’s from the law.”, shouted Vinny. “I wanna see if laws bleed!…”

“Not here, you don’t!”, the large man grabbed Vinny’s arm, and with sheer strength, the hook dropped to the floor. “Scram, kid…”, the man shouted as he waltzed Vinny to the door and gave a great shove which propelled him outside in a hurry.

“What’s going on here!?…”, came a female human from the kitchens, and out burst another huge human, sporting a cast iron skillet and murder in her eyes. “We try to run a quiet establishment here… Well, what’s going on, Richard?”, he was the bouncer.

“This man asked Vinny Cobb a question, and he didn’t like it.”, Richard Connery said, pointing. “

“Well, here our motto is ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’, so watch it!”, the lady said. “Um,… Please excuse the ruckus, folks… Please continue what you were doing…”, she turned to go back into the kitchen.

“Oh, miss…”, Petronas called from his table.

“Your dinner will be out shortly, kind saurian…”, she misunderstood.

“No. I wish to ask you something, if you don’t mind breaking your motto, that is…”, he smiled.

“Depends on what it is.”, she still held the skillet, ready to brain him, he thought. “Spit it out.”, she came over.

“I am looking for a group of people…”, began Petronas, but was cut off.

“People come and go around here all the time…”, she told him as he sat with an aftershock, clunking the skillet down on the table in front of her.

“These people have something they stole from me.”, said Petronas.

“That happens all the time too!”, she chuckled.

“Perhaps I’m being too informal.”, he retorted. “My name is Phineas, a trader and owner of a curio shop.”

“I’m Anna Damon, and I run the place.”, she began to run her fingernail along the rim of the skillet, causing an irritating sound! “Now, about those people you’re looking for…?”

“I can not tell who he is working for, but he is a Microraptor…”, Petronas told her, and was cut off again!

“I love Microraptors! One time a trader brought one in, and he taught him how to swear…!” she chuckled. “She was most entertaining!…”,

‘So, this joker is after lady Natasha, is he?’ , Anna Damon thought as she looked him over, watching as he pondered over the lines she was feeding him. Ones like these were easy marks, and she would work him over for every Drach he had! The scrawny Stenoychosaur was fumbling for things to say, but she had her routine all worked out - she had seen suckers like these all figured out! ‘I’ll have fun working him over first, then I’ll give him the story lady Natasha paid me to say!…’

“Please!… Did you see any recently?”, the Stenoychosaur pleaded.

“I see guys with Microraptors all the time…”, Anna increased the volume her fingernail was making on the pan, and slowly Petronas got the hint, for he started looking for his money purse with an unseen hand. “Anything recently, I don’t rightly remember…”, she winked slightly.

“Maybe this might remedy the problem…”, he tossed several Drachs into the frying pan, the tinkling sound made her pause her rasping sound, but just slightly.

“Wait!… It’s beginning to come back…”, she pretended to think. “Yes, one came by the day after yesterday.”

“Do you know who he was with?”, Petronas asked. “Did they say what they were carrying?… Did they say where they were going?…”

“Woah!… There goes that memory again!…” Anna rubbed her temple with her free hand.

Petronas threw a few more Drachs into the pan with a tisk. “What did they say?!…”

“Nothing, and nobody saw their cargo…”, she looked around bewilderedly. “Now how many carts did they have again…?”

“This is just ridiculous…”, he tossed more in. “You’re out to fleece me, I know it!…”

“Talk ain’t cheap, buddy; and this is a business!…”, Anna told him. “They had two carts, there were several humans, an Anky, two Lambeos and hatchling, a Cory and two Pachys.”, she scowled at him. “The rest will cost you all you got!…”

“That’s highway robbery!…”, Petronas balked. “I should call the constable!”

“I’m the constable here…”, Richard Connery stated, who had stealthily leaned against a near by post - three steps away in case of any trouble! “You got a complaint, Anna…?”

“No sir!”, Anna said sweetly. “Just the usual information fees…”

“Oh, very well!…”, Petronas simply tossed the whole purse into the frying pan.

“My memory is back!… It’s a MIRACLE!…”, Anna nearly shouted.

“Are you some kind of healer?…”, Richard chuckled.

“Humans are idiots…”, Petronas hissed silently.

“Anyway, those two carts left and convoyed out of the area, taking the southern road. They were talking, and said they wanted to take a ferry along the coast.”, she took a breath. “They had reservations at Bluebottle, on the Turtletail peninsula… They said they wanted to go east, toward Chandra…Know the place?”

“I soon will…”, Petronas rose. “Thank you for your…”, he fumbled for the word on purpose! “help…”

“Wait, sweetie…”, Anna Damon called. “Don’t you want yer food?…”, as the batwing doors swung shut on his saurian form, she shrugged and lifted the skillet now heavy with his money!

“A fine performance…”, Richard said, walking beside her. “You should be in the minstrels!”, they entered the kitchen.

“Oh yummy!”, said the buss boy as they walked past his sink. “A money omlette!”, all Anna Damon could do was laugh.

“Yeah! What a profitable favor it turned out to be!”, Anna Damon went into her office to count. The bird only had a couple of hundred Drachs in the bag; but with miss Natasha’s promise of more, it might even get her out of debt!

Petronas stormed out of the tavern, his two thugs trailing along; on his way to the stables and their cart parked outside it. If they were going to stay anyplace other than outside in the cold, they would need more money to rent a room or something; and the remainder of his money was hidden well in the bowels of the cart. The only two things that went right so far was the fact that he had found out which way Bentfeather and his new friends went, and the other was that robber baron tavern keeper didn’t fleece them out of ALL their money! Another plus was the fact he had hidden the money so well within the cart that nobody rifling through the contents would find it, and there it was still in the false bottom of the underside of the seat; so he took out as much as he figured would be enough for him and the two humans to rent a room for the night; then went inside the barn to find Peter and see how he was doing - not that he gave the scrawny little toad all that much regard!

They went in and Petronas located the Triceratops by smell, but instead of seeing him standing up or otherwise alone asleep; they saw him off his feet with three of his four feet in various degrees of bandages, the third being done up as they approached by handlers. An older human was mixing something in a bowl, and taking handfuls of the sappy concoction into the stable to slather on Peter’s feet. The trio slowly came over to watch, hoping not to be noticed just then; but Peter noticed them as they came, and bellowed greetings before the others attending him could react.

“What’s going on?…”, Petronas said just then.

“You the driver of this person?…”, asked the man with the medicine. “Speak up!”

“Why,… yes.”, said Petronas perplexedly. “What’s wrong with him?…”

“He has blisters all over his feet.”, said the man poignantly. “He says he had been going almost non-stop from Waterfall City.”, the man left the paddock and walked up to him. “How would YOU like to be driven all that way without much of a break?!…”

“Well, not all that much, I would say…”, said Petronas. “But the lad never told us he was feeling so poorly. He comes from proud stock, I guess…”

“Never the less, because of this neglect, he has bad blisters all over the bottoms of his feet.”, the man said sternly. “If they burst, they will surely become infected. I’ve treated them so they won’t be infected right away, but he needs to stay off his feet until they begin to heal; and that won’t happen until the blisters pop, a painful experience in itself.”

“What do you suggest?”, asked Petronas.

“He needs to stay off his feet for a few days, and preferably not to be moved for that time.”, said the handler. “He’s welcome to stay at these paddocks until then, though…”

“Yes, and for the usual fees, too…”, Petronas groused to himself, but the man overheard.

“No, my friend.”, the man said. “That would also include my healer services!”, then he left the area, attendants soon leaving when they were done.

“Why didn’t you say something if you were going lame?…”, Petronas then stormed up to the Triceratops and accused. “Now that means we’re stuck here!… And with me knowing where Bentfeather and the rest went!…”, he punched Peter on the horn just above his eye. “The trail will be stone cold before we get out of here now!…”
_

IC: Bentfeather and company, just leaving Rhumsburg.

The group woke the next morning not fully remembering their surroundings, but relieved that they were pleasant surroundings; and the town they were in at the moment had people both hospitable and understanding, for they let them sleep well that morning and was as quiet at possible. That was the reason why they had slept so late that morning, for they reckoned that morning meal would be all but over by the time they woke; but of course, that meal was waiting for them as they came down from their rooms in the inn.

“They should be down in a minute…”, Bentfeather told Tebo as they waited.

Officer Ajax in his civilian traveler outfit met up with them before the rest showed up, Frik and frak in their trader outfits, Hazen in his latest attire combination and Seamus in his usual robes. Before they went over to their morning meal, they decided to go to the near by paddocks to see Randy, Olu Artemis and Redcrest being attended by the handlers there before going over to join them.

“I think we should be off presently.”, lady Natasha said to everyone. “I will go settle things with the hostler…”, she left the area while the rest of the group began to hitch their friends up and set out as soon as all this was done.

“May I have a word with you, Frak?…”, Ajax said discreetly on one side of the cart they were working on. “I’m sure you have seen the behavior of Hazen Baker and April Manchester.”, he looked around. “I fear this could be harmful to this expedition.”

“Their actions do seem problematical.”, Frak said. “What do you propose?”

“Hazen often travels in Polongo’s cart.”, said Ajax. “Perhaps he would be in more favorable company in Randy’s cart…”

“I will inform my mate…”, he walked away.

Ajax found Bentfeather moments later, preparing the Postal Bird basket. “I wish Hazen to travel with you. Is this all right?”, he asked.

“Is this about April?… Of course.”, Bentfeather whisperingly inquired. “I certainly they can work things out… She’s scary!”, Ajax laughed as he walked away to tend to Olu.

In a matter of moments all was prepared, and they filed back to the tavern for their Morningmeal while the handlers gave their steeds theirs. By this time all had been informed about the change in seating, and everyone knew what was going on before their breakfasts were served; all save for Hazen Baker and April Manchester, along with Tebo Lewis, Redcrest and Seamus.

“We have a slight change in accommodations for this part of the trip.”, lady Natasha said to all around the tables. “Since I will need to conferr with my mate and others of the group on which way to go, I will be traveling in the cart pulled by Polongo. Thusly, Hazen Baker will travel in the cart being pulled by Randy.”, she looked around for any sign of protest, but found little save for slight confusion.

“I hope this doesn’t upset anyone…”, she continued, then saw Redcrest’s concern. “Aw…! Don’t worry. Hazen will be right in the next cart…”, she smiled. “And I’m pretty good company, even if I do say so…!”

They ate with not many conversations, and went back to the paddocks when done. They got aboard their carts and proceeded out of the town of Rhumsburg. The going was slow because it had rained over night, and soaked the boggy area that the town and surrounding lands were known for; which made the road muddy and slippery, especially through the tougher areas. The soggy travel was not the only thing hanging over the group as they went along the road to Honey Hall, for there were troubles brewing in the minds of the occupants of both carts.

As Frik and Frak talked about strategies for the road ahead with Polongo Seamus, Ajax, April and their steeds; relative silence wafted around the people occupying the cart in front. Tebo led Randy down the road in silence while Hazen hung his head in thought while Bentfeather stood on the Postal Bird basket, watching the both of them in mild concern. Amid all the goings on during the past few days, one realization came to the Microraptor’s mind; for the implications of his former Partner’s continued existence would severely jeopardize the relationship he had with this young boy, and the fear of breaking his friend’s heart like that brought a tear to his mind’s eye.

“Tebo lad…”, Bentfeather croaked, not knowing how to say it. “You know that you have been a good friend these past few months.”, he hopped to his side as the boy looked at him sadly. “Please remember that, no matter what happens, you shall always be my good friend.”

“Sir Bentfeather, when I heard that Nicolai Sanders was still alive; I could not have been more happy for you.”, said Tebo. “I would not get in the way of your previous Partnership, and appreciate the friendship we have had.”, he tried to smile. “What ever you find when you meet your Partner again, it will be all right by me.”

“I just thought that it would break your heart if we part as Partners…”, Bentfeather grasped his hands holding the reigns. “It would certainly break mine!…”

“It would.”, Tebo gripped harder. “But it would give me joy in your happiness…”

“A fine boy!…”, Bentfeather nuzzled, then slowly turned his attention to Hazen. “And I bet I can tell why you are so glum…”, he said sternly. “I’m glad you’re here, Hazen. It has been a while since we had a little talk.”

“It has been a long time since I was in an egg, so I can tell what has been going on between you and miss April.”, Bentfeather went on when no response from the young man came. “If I know the human species, she would be considered pretty, am I not right?…”

“I think she’s pretty…”, Tebo offered.

“Perhaps so, Tebo. But the problem is she thinks the human male is too shallow to seem attractive.”, said Bentfeather, more for Hazen’s benefit than Tebo’s. “Everything men thinks of as virtuous she considers fake. I know you have made every possible effort to be nice to her; but at every effort she pushes you away.”, Hazen nodded and commented.

“Females…”, Randy spoke. “You can’t live with them, and you can’t live without them!”, Tebo hushed him!

“Perhaps she does not respond to these things because she has had some strange experiences with men.”, Bentfeather conjectured. “Men have hurt her that way, and she resents them for it. Maybe she is afraid of men for it. Perhaps she is so afraid that she has to hurt men to feel vindicated for being hurt.”, he smiled. “I read that in some human psychology books!”

“Maybe he should not be nice to her…”, Tebo said.

“I think that if Hazen knows what he knows about her, he should tell her the truth.”, Bentfeather said. “No matter how much it might hurt her.”, he thought. “You know a few things about her, don’t you?…”, Hazen nodded.

“Maybe it would be best to tell her.”, Bentfeather continued. “Perhaps at the next time you have sparring practice.”, he considered more. “Have you been learning anything from her, or were you just being beat up?”, Tebo giggled. “Learn her moves, and try to find ways to block her.”, Hazen Baker nodded, for something was formulating in his mind already…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, on the road again
_

As they rode through the slough from last night's rain, Hazen occasionally glanced back to Polongo's cart to see that Redcrest was doing alright. When he heard of the seating change, he was surprised for the change, but perhaps the change in scenery and company would be what he needed in lieu of his recently broken heart.

The trip was peaceful with some small talk being made by Bentfeather. When his instructor addressed him, Hazen smiled, realizing how long it had been since they had a conversation like this. Bentfeather correctly identified that he was pining over April. "Well, yeah, she's beautiful. Not that it matters. She's got standards that not even the best person in the world can live up to." He sighed to himself, again trying to block out her image from his mind.

Bentfeather then restated the obvious: her past dealings with men have been less than favorable. Then, both Tebo and Bentfeather lead him on to suggest that he should knock her down a peg or two. Hazen didn't like that idea, but, then again, she wasn't going to fancy him at all. How could things be any worse for him?

Several hours later, the group decided to take a break. April grabbed a couple quarterstaves and approached Hazen, who was still sitting on the cart. "Ready to spar some more?" she asked. Hazen reluctantly took a staff, remembering Bentfeather's advice. As they went to a clearing, April said, "I realize it was hard for you to do what you did last night. I'm sorry that you felt that way in the first place. Still, it would be for the best." They reached the spot and Hazen assumed a stance. April did likewise. A few blows were exchanged, which Hazen deflected easily. "Very good," April said, commenting on his form and his reflexes.

"I'd been thinking today," Hazen said as they ran through several routines. "Naturally about you." This caught April's interest. "Well, you don't move on in a day," he continued, "there's too much emotional baggage to check and clear. It took months for me to get over my girlfriend back home. I imagine some people must take years."

April's eyes narrowed. "You're trying to get a rise out of me. It won't work."

"Oh, I dunno," Hazen said as he ran through an offensive kata. "I know that whatever he did to get you upset must have been a doozy for you to act like you do."

April scoffed after completing her final block. "But you already knew that."

Hazen smirked as he relaxed his stance. "Why don't we make this a bit more interesting? How about a proper sparring session?"

April shook her head, smiling back. "I hope you like looking at clouds, because that's all you're going to see." They took their stances and April took the initial offensive.

Reflexes kept Hazen in the game and he tried to anticipate her next moves, knowing she would probably surprise him. He kept his concentration up and in the instances where she did surprise, him, he barely dodge them. Even April had to silently commend him for his quick thinking.

After a series of attacks, Hazen pinned her staff down and said, "You're always fighting. Now why is that?" With a quick disengage, he deflected a few parries. "You are loving, especially to Artemis. So perhaps you are afraid?" Hazen saw something in April's posture changing. Hesitation. With a flick of the wrist, he tapped her calf. He didn't want to follow through and hurt her, but it was enough for her to know that he could have. April hopped back and rubbed her leg. She glanced back at Hazen, surprised that he got through her defenses.

Bout two. Hazen knew that he was on to something. Once he got comfortable again, he spoke. "Now the real question is, what are you afraid of? Being hurt?" He tried to jab, but April beat it away. Hazen committed too much and she tapped him on the side. "Ow!" April smirked back at him. "Perhaps not," he continued.

They continued with the third bout and Hazen again began speaking. "So if it's not being hurt, what is it?" April took a swing at his head, which he dodged just in time. He knew that not only was he was on to something, it was a warning. He continued, "Perhaps you equate the unwelcome advances made in passion with your relationships with boorish behavior in general. Better to be stoic than a slave to emotions, right?" April again froze and Hazen, running on adrenaline, knocked her to the ground with a jab on the shoulder. She glared at him, even though she took his extended staff to help her up.

Again they sparred. Hazen noticed a fire in her fighting and he knew that he was in dangerous territory. Part of him wanted to stop right now, but it was silenced by the desire to have her see herself in a new light. "But you don't act like this to all men, though. So why hurt me?" April's attacks had more force behind him, as if warning him not to follow that line. Suddenly, it dawned on him. Before he could get it out, he was knocked to the ground. He hesitated, like April had done.

He stood up on his own as April glared at him. "We're done," she said, more as a warning than an indication that they should go back. She started to stride off, leading the way. Hazen stayed put.

"No, we're not," Hazen said, deciding to press his advantage. "You feel so strongly about false modesty that you willingly scare off and drive off anyone that you like." April turned. Hazen walked closer. "I think you do like me, but you're afraid that I'll be like that one lone jerk who rubbed you the wrong way. So you do everything you can to be a cold witch and drive me off." April didn't respond. "Don't worry, you don't have to say anything. I figure it's the least I can do to help you, especially after you helped me personally back in Sauropolis. How you said that I needed to address everyone's distrust of me after the marketplace incident. Oddly enough, I think you need to do something similar. I think you need to make peace with your past experiences."

"I already have!" April shouted as she held her staff out, pointed at Hazen's throat.

"No," Hazen said, keeping his distance. "You haven't. You're projecting all your anger on every single human male that wants to be your friend. You're only hurting yourself with this behavior. Unless you take the time to truly resolve this, you're going to die bitter, miserable, and alone."

April had had enough. With a scream, she swung her staff at him. Hazen concentrated the best he could, trying to block her quick attacks and having some success. More often than not, he moved out of her range, knowing that she was in a frenzy that could end very badly. The loud clacks of wood upon wood and the anguished screams coming from April quickly drew the attention of the others, who stopped what they were doing to try and rushed to the scene.

As they ran, Hazen again, tried to do his best to prevent her from doing him major harm. As she did a few hard blows, Hazen found himself getting stunned by the force she was putting behind it while blocking them. She was getting to be too quick. He tried to escape, but she hit him forcefully across the face. His now bent glasses flew off his face as he recoiled and fell to the ground, knocked unconscious.

Fortunately for Hazen, April was restrained by her superiors. As she slowly began to calm down, she looked at Hazen's limp form. Slowly the realization dawned on her that he was right.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all.

[Thundertail]

IC: Bentfeather and company, on the way to Honey Hall.

As they rested from the soggy ride from Rhumsburg, everyone noticed the continuing contest between Hazen and April; whose less than amicable relationship was worrisome to say the least. Hazen at least lasted a bit longer this time, Tebo thought as he was being instructed himself by officer Ajax; also getting better as he was more able to stave off Ajax’s short dagger with his own. As soon as his knife was knocked to the ground, Ajax relented; then turned sharply as he heard Hazen hitting the ground once again, and April not relenting when he was down like usual! The lad could surely take her punishment, it was for sure; he thought as he rushed over to stay her next blow, scowling at her until she finally backed down.

As their meal was being cooked and Randy was being fed, Bentfeather lingered by the Postal Bird basket on the cart; hoping it’s official occupant would show up at last, for it had been several days already and it didn’t take that long to fly the round trip to Waterfall City. While he was contemplating this, Artemis was seen returning from up the road; announcing that the outskirts of Honey Hall was visible from two miles up the road. Minutes later Olu came trotting from down the way they came, saying that they were not being followed; and thanking the fates their pursuers were nowhere to be found, as well as lady Natasha’s well-crafted ruse to make this fact so!

As they began to sit by the fire to be served their meager Eveningmeal, very little talk was heard from many of the group; for the import of their mission still loomed heavily on the minds of those choreographing it. As they all were finishing up their meals, light fluttering could be heard in the trees above; coming closer, then moving away only to return once more. Olu moaned mournfully, for he hated the nocturnal flyers common on Dinotopia; and this brought the noises closer, causing Ajax and April to bear their weapons! All of a sudden a form came falling out of the darkened foliage above to land with a thud in the dirt near the fire, and no one could mistake the form for other than a Postal Bird.

“I have returned!…”, he said shakily as he righted himself and stood. “Postal Bird 76 reporting for duty… Did I miss Eveningmeal?…”

It took a moment for the shock of the moment to wear off, but nearly instantly the ruckus of sound wafting through the forest set the real nocturnal flyers in the area to take wing! Each and every one of them greeted and welcomed the little Postal Bird in their own way, nearly setting the bird sprawling on the ground again to look at all of them as they greeted. Bentfeather flapped from his perch to land beside him, smiling impishly before giving the bird a miniature bear hug!

“AWK!… Sir!…”, 76 squawked as he was let go. “Um,… I bring news from the mayor of Waterfall City…”

“Please continue…”, lady Natasha replied where she sat.

“The mayor congratulates your expedition so far, and wishes you the best as you evade your adversaries.”, 76 said. “He acknowledges the fact that you are in grave danger, and is setting things in motion to aid you. He is amassing all available Skybax troops and saurian guards at Canyon City for deployment to the Outer Island pending invasion.”

“He has surmised that the circumstances surrounding Nicolai Sanders’ notebook, the murder of Frank Scratt and the involvement of peter Triceratops and sir Petronas in mister sanders scheme a true threat, and will do everything in his power to stop him.”, Postal Bird 76 continued. “He is formulating all strategy available to him, and deems it might be necessary for you to actually be captured by your pursuers in order to facilitate easy access to his inner domain.”, he gasped. “End of message…”

“Then this means that we shouldn’t have thrown them off our trail so well.”, Ajax concluded.

“That would pose a problem if the mayor deems it so.”, Frik said, then briefly told Postal Bird 76 what she had the propriator of the Blackfish Tavern tell their pursuers to try to throw them off their trail.

“Oh my!… Devious!…”, 76 commented.

“Looks like we’ll have to go looking for THEM!…”, Randy said.

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that!”, Bentfeather said.

“Sir Petronas is a very intelligent dinosaur.”, Frik said. “He would no doubt not be fooled for long.”

“But at least for now, we get a break from them…”, Tebo said.

“Yeah, I hated those jokers breathing down my neck…”, Randy said.

“We will all sleep easier for a long time to come.”, Bentfeather agreed. “But the main concern is our present course… Which way should we go?”

“We are on the road to Honey Hall.”, lady Natasha said. “We should first head there, and decide where to go from there…”

Presently after that and a few evening conversations, the group of friends began to set out their bedding for the night; knowing full well the importance of their mission deep in the forests of Dinotopia…
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, camp, en route to Honey Hall
_

Hazen came to lying on a bedroll in a tent with a splitting headache. His left eye was too sore to open. He had to have had a black eye there. As details slowly came back to him, he figured that after April knocked him out, he was dragged back here to rest. He groaned slightly and tried to get up. Suddenly, a head popped into his view. "You're awake!" shouted Redcrest.

Hazen leaned back down, both surprised and in pain over her exclamation. "Please, Redcrest," Hazen whispered, "you need to be quiet for me, okay?"

"Sorry," she said to Hazen. "How come your eye has a spot?" she asked without pausing.

"I had an accident," Hazen explained, "and April accidently hit me there."

"Does it hurt?" she asked as she touched the puffy tissue.

"Ahh!" Hazen said as he quickly grabbed her arm. "Yes, it does." He let go and Redcrest pulled her arm back.

Artemis poked her head into the tent, hearing the commotion. "Redcrest, you need to let Hazen rest. His head hurts from the boo-boo." Redcrest reluctantly left the tent. Artemis looked at the injured human. "Polongo is making a tea blend for you, one that should help relieve your pain and encourage healing. Seamus is also going to make a cool mud pack to help reduce the swelling."

"Tell them I said, 'Thank you,'" Hazen replied. As Artemis left, Hazen leaned back, knowing his head hurt too much for him to be out with the others. He would have liked to know what happened with April or if she felt any remorse for taking him out like he did. Seamus came in with both the tea and the mud pack. In reality, it was just mud in a thick burlap sack that he would hold to his face like an ice pack. With no refrigeration, this was the best they could do.

Thanks to the tea, Hazen felt good enough to come out to eat Eveningmeal with the others. Ajax joked about the shiner he was now sporting and Hazen smiled slightly, both out of pain and out of recognition of this new badge of honor. It then dawned on him that he was still missing his glasses and, thus, couldn't see everyone very well. Another setback in his desire to see how April was handling this.

He ate quietly and gingerly as the mere act of chewing made his headache worse. Suddenly, a bird landed in the middle of the campsite. When it said it was 76, Hazen smiled. "Welcome back!" was all he could manage to say. The news he brought was grim, indeed. It seemed that battle was going to be inevitable and that the war council would convene in Canyon City. Furthermore, they may have to surrender themselves to their pursuers if Mayor Masteson saw it appropriate to do so. Hazen wanted to contemplate these moves, but his headache made it too laborious to do so.

After the meal was over, quiet conversations were had. Hazen relocated himself back to the tents to get some rest. A short while later, someone opened the flap. "Yeah," Hazen asked.

"It's me," said April. "I have something of yours." She held out his glasses.

Once he discerned their shape, he took them and examined them. They were clearly bent in a way so that they wouldn't be usable. He did his best to try and correct it, but when he put them on, they were still skewed. "Oh, dear," Hazen said to himself. "This will have to do, I guess." With his one good eye, he looked back at April. "Thank you for bringing them."

"You're welcome," April said. She looked down and continued. "Actually, I also want to say something."

"What is it?" Hazen asked, not sure of where this could go.

"I want to apologize for knocking you out earlier today. I let myself surrender to my passions and I shouldn't have. For that, I am deeply sorry."

"You don't need to apologize," Hazen said with a raised hand. "I pushed a few too many buttons and I shouldn't have. I should be the one who says they're sorry."

April shook her head. "Listen, we were both wrong, alright?" Hazen nodded, figuring that it would be best to have it end that way. April was about to leave when she looked back. "You were right, though. I-I guess I still have a lot to deal with." She sighed and looked down, obviously disappointed with herself.

"It's okay," Hazen said. "The first step in correcting a problem is admitting you have one. This is a good thing."

"I still don't know if I can really trust you yet," April replied. "But . . . perhaps we can just be friends for now." She smiled at him.

Hazen smiled back. "I'd like that," he said. "It's best not to rush things like this."

"Good to see I knocked some sense into you," she joked.

"For all I know this could be just a dream and you'll be back to your old self again," Hazen quipped back.

April grinned and shook her head. "Get well soon," she wished Hazen as she to prepare for the night. Hazen relaxed, allowing the heartbeat he could feel on his eye lull him to sleep. This was a breakthrough moment for April and it made him happy to see it happen, even at the expense of his good health.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Peter Triceratops and Petronas with their humans, the Blackfish Tavern.

Petronas stalked into the stables of the Blackfish Tavern early the next morning to check up on that dim-wit Peter to see if he was any better. He had slept the worst he ever done on the rock hard mattress the boarding house down the lane had provided, perhaps it was filled with rocks and dirt for all he knew. When he looked in on the sleeping Triceratops in his nice comfy hay, he kicked his water trough and spilled it all under him; making Peter wake with a start! The confused dinosaur thought he did something he hadn’t done since he was a hatchling, but the world rushed back to him as he saw the scowling face of his boss from the other side of the paddock rails.

“Oh, hi…”, the beast yawned. “I miss anything?…”

“Yeah, the best way to get back that… item, and you’re sleeping through it!…”, Petronas snapped. “How you feeling?”

“Good…”, Peter then remembered his sore feet. “They’re bad, huh?”

“Let’s just say they better heal in a hurry or Bentfeather will get away.”, said Petronas.

“Did you ever find out where they are?”, asked Peter.

“They went south.”, Petronas said. “Going to catch a ferry and head east along the coast to Chandara from Bluebottle.”

“That means we got to travel through Backwood Flats! That‘s some rough country out there.”, he looked thoughtful. “My pops had an expedition out there, and nearly lost all the equipment in the mud getting to the ruins out there…”, he stopped to look around. “Where’s the humans?”, he asked.

“I sent them on a mission to get more money.”, said the Stenoychosaur. “Between getting the information we needed and putting everyone up around here, I’m going to go broke!”, he looked around to see if anyone was listening. “I hope they don’t get locked up. They said they were expert pickpockets…”

“Oh, really…”, Peter knew they weren’t very smart! “I hope they steal enough for their bail money!…”, he chuckled.

“Shut up! You’re in enough trouble with me as it is!”, Petronas told him. “Just hurry up and heal, so we can get out of this dump!”, he stormed off.

He paced back to the tavern proper when he saw them neither in the paddocks nor at their cart, grumbling to himself as he went; and growled at a porter that got in his way, whom scurried into the tavern. He followed the Harpymimus inside to see the usual band of patrons this place sported and winced at all the noise going on at a few of the tables, and that’s when he saw one of the ones he was looking for; hard at work behind a hand of cards, poker face unsmiling and eyes darting between the other four swarthy characters he was up against. The human was doing rather well, for his cache of Drachs was a little bigger than all the rest; and the pot in the center held a respectable pile.

Just as the final ante was being placed, the spectators all around cheered and rooted for their favorite player. Once all the bets were placed, his human calling on a burly Ovaraptor to call; and as he did his human showed his cards, which were far better than any of the rest! The crowd grumbled loudly as the Ovaraptor’s sponsor clouted him on the head. The others leaned back in preparation for the next hand as some stood and went to the bar, where other players sat in and played in their stead. Before the dealer could deal his cards, Petronas grabbed his human to a standing position and led him off after he grabbed the pot and his winnings.

“Where’s your friend?…”, Petronas whispered. “And give me that!…”, he took his winnings.

“He’s over there…”, the human pointed to the other, slightly more muscular one testing strength with an equally muscular human in an arm- wrestling match.

“I told you to get some money, and you’re out playing games!…”, said Petronas as he escorted his human through a clear section of floor.

“Well, this way was safer than stealing.”, the human said as a dart whizzed inches past Petronas’s face!

“HEY!… DOWN IN FRONT!…”, said a skinny man ready to aim another dart at the dartboard on the wall beside them, and they were right in his line of fire!

“Sorry, sir…”, Petronas said, ready to throttle the runt. “We should watch where you’re throwing!”

“Just get outa the way!…”, said the human as he threw.

As Petronas reached the table his other human was using, he slammed the opponent’s hand down so he would win; then he pulled his human up by the scruff and waltzed both out into the lane in front of the tavern. “Where’s the Drachs I let you two borrow?”, he whispered.

“Here’s mine.”, said the arm-wrestler, giving him the bag.

“You already took my winnings.”, said the other.

“I want it all… Every Drach!”, Petronas held out his hands. “You hold out, I’ll slit your throats!”, they nervously complied, emptying their pockets.

After attempting to swat them both, Petronas led them back to their small cart; which was in a near by field parked by dozens of other contrivances, all of them in various states of repair or disrepair. As the Stenoychosaur went to hide the money under the seat in their cart, he motioned for the two humans to take a look into the other carts, perhaps in hopes of finding money or other valuables to steal; but a few of them were attended, and the humans dared not go anywhere near these carts for fear of being caught. Done with his chore, Petronas whistled for his humans to gather near the cart; their eyes telling him of their lack of success, and his telling them what big buffoons they were!

He then led them back to the paddocks, where they saw the stable workers spreading fresh hay and providing fodder for the large saurians that remained; traversing the rows to the stall that contained Peter, who was receiving like procedures as the rest of the paddocks occupants. The yearling Triceratops did not notice them until they were right next to the rails, and he sloughed off the attendant that was changing the bandage on his right forefoot before addressing them.

“Oh, hello guys!”, Peter smiled. “I see you found them…”

“Button it!”, Petronas barked. “I see you’re getting first class treatment… Does the king need anything else, my lord?…”

“A fern salad will be fine…”, Peter chuckled, but the attendants were too close for Petronas to swat him!

“Will you quit it?!”, Petronas said instead. “Look, we got to get out of here, and you are holding us up!”, he turned to the nearest attendant to ask: “How long does he have to stay here?”

“The master says three days, minimum.”, said the Harpymimus. “The blisters are just starting to pop!”

“They are, boss.”, Peter told him. “They really sting now…!”

“Oh, Peter…”, Petronas said, whether the compassionate tone was genuine or an act, the Stenoychosaur could not tell. “Just get better!… We need you…”
_____

IC: Bentfeather and company, just entering Honey Hall.

In the morning the group packed up, hitched Polongo and Randy to their carts and prepared to get under way. Hazen wasn’t feeling very well from his latest ‘sparring practice’, and was bidden to lay down in the back of Polongo’s cart while they trundled down the road. The morning only brought silence from the group, for their situation hung heavily on everyone there. As the morning wore on, several swarms of insects made their presence known, and some of the larger saurians began swatting aimlessly at them; but these were no ordinary insects, for these tiny creatures attacked back with somewhat painful stings!

The more they resisted these insects, the more they pressed their attacks; and the only way they knew the species these insects were was when Bentfeather grabbed one and ate it. His mouth worked the stinging insect out, and he gasped in surprise! “Ugh!… These are bees!…”, he squawked, which made the whole group even more agitated!

The bees attacked and pulled back several times before they began to see signs of civilization, and the civilization they saw was of manicured glade, topiary shrubbery and a kaleidoscope of colorful flowers. Rows and rows of beautifully manicured plots and flowerbeds flowed by their wheels as they all stared at the scenery in utter wonder. Even the occasional homestead was decorated in wonderment as European style chalets and bungalows passed by, populated with many persons and saurians garbed in clothing nearly resembling that worn by persons of Holland. Many of these homesteads sported rows of conical beehives, populated by thousands of bees compulsively going about their bee business.

The town proper seemed like the center of a European village, tall spires of buildings done in almost Gothic style; and even though they were made predominantly of wood, one could not help thinking you stepped into some fairy tale book. The pace of the workers and citizens on the street were of the sedate kind, a pace for people with nothing but time on their hands. The same feeling was evident as they slowed their carts and a rotund man with a powdered wig and wearing a triple tasseled stalking-like hat, who smiled up at them and waved like a traffic officer.

“You are most heartily greeted from the citizens of Honey Hall!”, said he. “I be Clem Purguity, leader of this town.”

“Salutations, noble leader of honey Hall. I am lady Natasha, leader of this convoy.”, lady Natasha said, formally bowing. “We are on a business excursion from Waterfall City, and beg refuge in your realm for a time.”

“You and your constituents are most welcome to stay as long as you wish.”, said Clem. “Please. Come rest from your travels.”

Once the formalities were over, lady Natasha nodded and began to climb down from the cart, and this prompted the others to do the same as well; and handlers erupted from one of the buildings in the square to attend their carts and pullers, nodding and smiling at their charges in a most sedate way. Clem then began to lead them all into the building he had emerged from, but noticed that Hazen had to be helped off the cart and turned to the lad.

“It appears that one of your helpers has had an accident.”, he commented as Hazen began to explain what happen weakly, but was cut off. “He must see our healer. No guests of ours should be feeling so low…”

Clem had another citizen entertain the rest at the pub near by while he and lady Natasha helped Hazen to a small shop across the lane. The place had no sign or any indication of what the shop advertised, but when an extremely old woman with skin the color and texture of driftwood came through the beads from the back room when the bells on the door rang; her professional demeanor told both newcomers that she was a healer. She silently knew which of her guests was injured, and led Hazen to a slab to have him lay on it. Her cold hands were like sticks as he probed every contusion and bruise, painfully discerning the extent of each injury; then looked up to pronounce her prognosis.

“All wounds are minor, but their pain is no doubt substantial.”, said she. “He should receive pain reducers, anti-inflammatory medicine and rest.”

“And he should receive the usual cure for these maladies, Halla?”, asked Clem.

“Listus Margold in a tea should suffice.”, Halla confirmed, then noticed their confusion and explained. “I suffuse Arctus Listus with the distilled essences of bee venom, which makes a solution that will reduce swelling, bruising and pain.”

“Bee venom?!…”, lady Natasha was amazed.

At their combined looks of mild alarm, Clem explained. “Oh, it is perfectly safe, I assure you!… We all take her bee venom essences here, and are in perfect health.”, she indicated Halla. “Does our healer appear to be one hundred and fifty seven years old?… I, like nearly all in my town are, far older than we look!”, he chuckled.

“After the initial treatment, I will prepare a small supply for you to purchase for the boy.”, said Halla. “He is to have one cup twice a day for a week.”, she turned to the boy. “And please try to be more careful…!”

Halla then left to prepare the concoction, steeping the dried mixture in hot water and returning with a small bowl for Hazen to drink; who winced in mild disgust at the bittersweet brew. As both Halla and Clem waited, Hazen’s face took on a less painful look, and in a few more moments his bruising was becoming almost visibly less noticeable. Within nearly a half hour Hazen felt stronger, and could almost stand on his own without feeling dizzy; and soon after that Clem led them all out into the street and led the way to where the rest of their group was waiting for them…
_____

OCC: Even though it is inconclusive the benefits of bee venom to human health, researchers are studying the properties of other kinds of poisonous animals for possible human cures. Snake venom is used to make anti-venom, and some species’ poison is reported to be beneficial for heart patients. Other types of venom can be used for other types of cures, and some primitive tribes use other types of animal and plant excretions for their cures. It is well known that bee honey is abundant in vitamin C and other vitamins and minerals, and contains anti-oxidants, and bee pollen is quite healthy to consume as well as for the manufacture of natural make-ups. Here I have used my literary freedom to extrapolate the cures that can be made if bee venom is mixed with other cures present on Dinotopia, and maybe this concoction might work this way!
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and company, en route to Honey Hall
_

With a still-splitting headache and a hideous black eye, Hazen was relegated to sitting in the back of Polongo's cart when they broke camp. He had some tea before departing, so he was feeling somewhat better. Redcrest was also happy that he was back with her, she missed riding with him.

When Hazen heard some buzzing, he opened his good eye. He wondered if they were near some dung pile or another patch of stinkroot, but when he saw a yellow-and-black striped insect, he swallowed. "Uh oh," he said to himself. Hazen hated bees. It wasn't a phobia per se, but he detested any stinging, biting, or pinching arthropod. Bees, and their cousins hornets and wasps, were on the top of his list. More and more bees began to appear and several people swatted at them.

Redcrest commented, "Icky bugs! We're not stinky!" She hit a bee, which turned around and stung her on the arm. She screamed in pain and began to cry.

Hazen waved her over. "Come here," he said. Still whimpering, she complied. Hazen looked at the sting. She wasn't breaking out, so she wasn't allergic to them. The stinger and venom gland was still stuck in her arm. Hazen carefully raked the skin around it. Redcrest squealed in pain. "I know it hurts," Hazen said as he paused, "but it'll hurt more if I don't get it out." After a few moments, he had the stinger removed. "There. It'll still be tender, but now we know to leave them alone."

The hatchling scooched closer to her Partner. "I don't like them. They hurt and they scary."

Hazen said, "I hate them, too." He felt his nerves rising with each coming swarm. Finally, they arrived at the village. He smiled to himself as he noted the quaint architecture and the relaxed atmosphere of its citizens. They didn't mind the bees in the area, even though Hazen still remained on-edge. Then again, they have lived here all their lives. They were symbionts with the insects as much as they were symbionts with each other.

He was helped off the cart and quickly ushered to the village healer with the assistance of Clem and Lady Natasha. After a quick examination, the healer said that his injuries were superficial, nothing he didn't know already. Once he heard his prescription, he did a double take. Bee venom?! He heard of many unorthodox materials used in holistic medicine, but this was a new one. Furthermore, when he heard that Halla was over 150 years old, he was floored. He heard that Arctus longevis prolonged life, but here was proof, or at least anecdotal proof.

He took his medicine, almost gagging a few times from the flavor. He always hated taking liquid medicines for just that reason. Still, beggars could not be choosers in this instance. Once he finished the tea, he started to feel the pain go away. Perhaps that was the Arctus listus taking its effect. He had heard of its use as a sedative. Slowly, but surely, his eye began to open. "Wow," was all Hazen could say to encapsulate the effects of the tea he drank.

A half-hour later, he was deemed fit to leave the small clinic, if one could call it that. He thanked Halla for her help and followed Clem and Lady Natasha out. He walked slowly, figuring that rigorous activity when combined with the side-effects of the medicine could have disasterous consequences. They arrived at the pub and the rest of the party was amazed at how much better he looked, considering the condition he was in when they arrived. Hazen smiled at everyone. "They've got great medicine here," he said simply.

Redcrest was particularly happy to see him standing again. She gave him a hug and Hazen returned it. He looked at April and said, "I guess we'll resume sooner than expected."

"Yes, we will," April said. "I'd hate to have my star pupil forget everything so soon."

"But I'm your only pupil," Hazen countered.

"Regardless, you do learn fast under stress. I am honestly impressed." Hazen smiled at that compliment, offering his silent thanks. April returned it with a smile of her own. The smell of honey was in the air.

"Well," Hazen said as he stepped closer to the others, "who's hungry?"
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!

[Thundertail]

IC: Bentfeather and company, at Honey Hall.

As the remainder of their group found cheer at one of the pubs in the town center of Honey Hall, nearly every one of them showed worry over the fate of Hazen Baker; whose injured state had prompted the leader of this town to escort him to their healer. The damage inflicted on him at the hands of April Manchester gave officer Ajax worry as he sampled the town’s sweetened brew. She was way too reckless in her training of the boy, and conducted the task with too much intensity for the lad to handle. It was amazing to him that Hazen didn’t become discouraged, and quit the training because it was too hard; but from what he gathered by his personal interest in the girl, that in itself could prove sufficient motivation!

As the indigenous patrons of the pub milled around toward them, they asked to be regaled with any stories their group might provide; and Seamus started the tales with his and Polongo’s many trade excursions through the Rainy Basin, tales no doubt made taller with each retelling. After a while Bentfeather and Postal Bird 76 had their turn, the former telling of all his harrowing flights while the latter had only tales remembered from the myriad of tomes he had read. Before long came lady Natasha and mayor Clem Purguity with Hazen in tow, and all were gladdened that he was now ambulatory; and at Hazen’s indication he was hungry, all chuckled and sat down once again. Presently orders were taken and all were served, and Clem jovially sat down among them and joined in on their feast.

“Yes, it will be a fine repast, you’ll contest to it…”, Clem was saying. “And the desserts!… We are experts in every kind of confection, spiced with the honey our bees produce!”

At Redcrest’s smile at the thought of goodies, he smiled over to her and said: “Yes my dear, plenty of treats…!”

“We noticed all the flowers and gardens when we arrived.”, Tebo said. “I bet they thrive with their work…”

“They taste rather unpleasant.”, Bentfeather told him.

“They work hard, and would defend their domain like any would.”, Clem said. “But yes, they make our land most beautiful…”, he turned to the rest. “We supply their pollination services to our neighboring towns. The crops of Rhumsburg and the others owe their very livelihood to our bees…”

“Sounds like a symbiotic relationship.”, lady Natasha commented. “And their other byproducts produce medicines, and many other products, I’d wager.”

“Yes, we have improved many of the traditional medicines with their stinger venom, making totally different kinds of cures. Your helper has received a treatment that he perhaps notices is making him feel better as we speak.”, said Clem. “We gain wax for candles and such from their hives, we produce many types of food and other products from bee pollen; and we sweeten nearly everything with their honey!…”, he smiled.

With that their food arrived, hot and steamy, and the smell of sweetness seemed to come from nearly every dish. All marveled at the new textures and tastes as the traditional meals were sampled, and nothing else was said except how wonderful everything tasted. The desserts that came next were not to be rivaled anywhere on Dinotopia, and even Redcrest had seconds of those! As the food dwindled, conversations of other types began to become apparent; and soon it turned to their expedition at hand, a subject that spurred officer Ajax into action.

“And now I think it is time we tend to our steeds.”, said he. “Would miss Manchester and mister Baker join me?…”

“Oh, we have fine hostlers in our town.”, said Clem Purguity. “There is no need to worry about them!…”

“We must also inspect our wares.”, said Ajax. “Must make sure it’s secure…”

“Very well. What ever makes you happy…”, Clem said.

“We will stay and continue this wonderful conversation.”, offered lady Natasha for Frak, Seamus, Polongo and Artemis. “You go and make sure everything is all right.”

As Ajax got up, so did April and Hazen, neither knowing why they were needed for such a routine task. As he led them out of the tavern and back down the lane to where they saw their caravan go, a small figure came flapping by; which turned as he saw them walking down the street, and it turned out to be Postal Bird 76. He landed on Ajax’s shoulder, scowling at the town as he settled down.

“Primitive town…”, 76 mumbled. “They don’t even have a Postal Bird aerie!…”

“Perhaps they receive their messages via other towns…”, Ajax suggested, then addressed the two young people at his side. “I know you‘re wondering why I pulled you away.”, he saw their confused looks. “As you know, we as guards must protect our charges, no matter what we are feeling…”

He paused to open the paddock doors to allow them in. “You two seem to be having difficulties with each other. Hazen’s injuries from his last lesson proves it.”, he paused to allow 76 off, watching as he landed on the Postal Bird basket. “I gave you an assignment to train Hazen according to his abilities so he may assist us in case we need to defend the convoy…”

“I think I will sleep in here…”, 76 interrupted as he manipulated the lid to the basket and disappeared inside.

“Hazen can not help us if he is injured.”, Ajax went on. “Officer Manchester, I suggest you train Hazen with efforts more on honing his skills rather than whether or not you can beat him every time; and while training you shall restrain your emotions, and concentrate on the task at hand.”

He then looked at Hazen. “And I suggest you put restraint on your emotions while you train, as well as in other times. April is just here to protect the convoy, and that is her only reason for being here as far as the convoy is concerned.”

“As an added help, I will also begin to train Tebo Lewis.”, Ajax went on. “He may be useful, though he is only a boy… I will begin by introducing him to knives and short swords; and I will only train him as he is able.”, he turned to inspect a crate inside the cart pulled by Randy. “He showed an interest in the dagger of mine when I showed it to him a few days ago, and will train him how to properly handle and use it as time goes on…”

“Can you keep it down over there…”, said an unseen and groggy Randy from his unseen stall. “I’m trying to catch some shut-eye…”

“You are dismissed…”, said Ajax as he smoothed a stirrup on the saddle worn by Olu, on a sawhorse next to his stall. “And please, try to behave yourselves!…”
_

TAG: Hazen, any and all!

[o8jedi]

IC: Hazen Baker and April Manchester, Honey Hall
_

Hazen had a bad feeling about the motives behind Officer Ajax's pulling both him and April aside. Clearly, a come-to-Jesus meeting was in order as far as Ajax was concerned. The stern earful they both received drove home the point: remember why we're here and bury the hatchet. Once Ajax dismissed them, April gave a quick, "Yes, sir," and left. Hazen quickly followed suit, but in a less formal fashion.

They rounded the corner and Hazen spoke. "Pity he didn't know about our conversation," he said.

April turned around. "Perhaps, however he should have had proper intelligence regarding the two of us. The failure was mine."

Hazen chuckled slightly. "I know you're big on duty and everything, but I would call this minor detail. If someone was a spy, then yes, it would be important but we only made up yesterday. It's not readily evident."

April sighed. "Perhaps. Still, there is the matter of your training. What do you think?"

Hazen peered into a barrel of water near a drain pipe to see how badly he was banged up. He winced at the prominent black eye staring back at him. "I know I'm not 100% right now, but I think I learned a great deal through that method." April gave a surprised look. "No, hear me out," Hazen continued, "You always kept me on my toes as we sparred, introducing new techniques and methods, challenging how I should defend myself. I guess, in a way, it helps me prepare for real battle since it's highly unpredictable."

April smiled and shook her head, amazed at the Dolphinback's reasoning. "You're very clever, you know that? That was part of my initial reasoning for that method to begin with, well, in addition to getting some revenge." She chuckled as she confided that part.

Hazen chuckled back. "Great minds think alike, don't they?" he observed. April nodded in agreement. "Well, I think we should continue with that method," he suggested.

April nodded. "All right, then. If you insist. Just make sure that you don't follow through with any blows. Neither of us need to be down for the count."

"Only if you promise to do the same," Hazen said. The both of them chuckled. He looked around, noting the evening and said, "I think it's time for another dose of that tea." He looked at April. "How about we have a cup?"

April shook her head no. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I should."

"Come on," Hazen said, "I won't bite. Besides, it's just some tea among friends."

April bit her lip, remembering how she needed to work through her anxieties. As much as her psyche screamed for her to not accept, she reluctantly said, "All right. Just one cup."

Hazen smiled sincerely. "Thank you."

They walked to the hotel they were staying at, not too far from the stables where Randy was trying to rest up in. April pointed out the rooms that they had been allotted and Hazen entered his room to find a bag of the tea concoction waiting for him on the nightstand. April reluctantly took a seat in a chair as Hazen started to heat up some water on a provided hibachi and teapot. He looked around for any other teas, but couldn't find any. "I don't think there's much selection," Hazen said, "but I hope you don't mind."

"I don't want to rid you of any medicine unnecessarily, but I appreciate the offer." April stood up to leave, anxiously wanting to avoid anything that would seem like a date.

Hazen held up a hand. "Even if you won't take any, you can still enjoy the aromas." April groaned uneasily as she sat back down. Hazen got out the prescribed amount of the mixture into a tea basket and poured hot water into a cup. He dunked the basket, allowing the tea to diffuse into the water. "There we go," he said as he took his cup and saucer to the bed. "So," he said, "Why did you join the force?"

April stood up. "Okay," she said, "I've had enough of this. I appreciate your trying to help me with my . . . apprehensions, but I'm not quite there yet." April moved towards the door.

Hazen set his cup down. "April, please." He stood up quickly and the rapid change made his head hurt so bad that he was nearly seeing stars. He reached out for support and April grabbed hold of him. When his head cleared, he looked at her and said, "Thanks."

April stoically replied, "You're welcome," as she helped him back to the bed.

He sat back down and looked at April. "Are you sure you don't want to stick around?"

April nodded her head. "Yes, I'm sure." Hazen sighed and looked at his tea, which had been thoroughly brewed. "I'm sorry, Hazen," she continued, "it's just too uncomfortable. Alone in your room and all."

"It's alright," Hazen said, "I understand. I guess your rehabilitation demands even smaller baby steps." He sighed and glanced back at April. "I didn't mean to make you feel uneasy," he said sincerely.

The corner of April's mouth curled. "I want to say that I know you didn't, but I don't." With that, she left. Hazen sipped his tea, again wincing at the flavor. Either it was brewed a bit stronger than before or the fact that there was still a wall in their new friendship was augmenting the bitterness in his mouth.
_

TAG: Bentfeather, any and all!