001 | audio

[dracobin]

[Voice only. Temeraire has noticed the distinct lack of dragons on his trip to his apartment and is a little hesitant about revealing himself, especially when the streets are clearly not built for draconic use and a great many people have reacted badly to dragons in his world. Not that it makes much difference: his voice has a strange resonant quality to it and is, despite his best efforts to conceal it, clearly nonhuman. His words are obviously rehearsed; after the kedan left, he was very careful to practice using the console again and again until he was certain he could get it right without looking like a bumbling foreigner. It is a curious machine, and how can one be sure one is really being heard when one is only speaking to a box, but what choice does he have?]

It is not precisely that I mind being brought here. The kedan have already told me that time has stopped, in England, so I suppose that is all right, if I do not need to worry about Lien or Napoleon suddenly deciding to attack. And it is very kind of them to give me money, and an apartment, although it is not quite so nice as the pavilions in China.

It is only that I wish I had been asked if I should like to come to a new land first, and to be shrunk to the size of a hatchling—

[Pause. Oh dear, humans don't say that, do they. Well, there's nothing for it now. Temeraire forges on bravely:]

—or, if they could not have asked, they might have at least explained after I arrived, instead of telling me that it is the Emperor’s business. I have had quite enough of Emperors; and I do not see that this one has any right to keep anything from me, especially if it is to do with my being here. It does not seem at all fair to me that I should be brought here quite against my will, and without my captain or any of my friends—

[At the mention of his captain the carefully rehearsed tone slowly crumbles away, and there is a short pause before the words tumble out:]

Pray tell me if you have seen a man, reasonably tall, British, with hair rather like the color of gold, tied back; he would be wearing a green coat, and answer to William Laurence, and if you see him please let him know that Temeraire is here, and is looking for him, and can be found at FI-3B.

[Another pause, and then the feed is cut.]

Comments

audio;

[amonfire]

[ Amon is of course none the wiser to all this dragon hullabaloo, and most of Temeraire was speaking of. However one thing caught his interest. ]

I'm afraid there isn't anything I can say of the man you're looking for, but you mentioned China?

audio;

[dracobin]

[He droops a bit--it was a bit much to expect the first person to respond to have seen Laurence, but he can't deny he was hoping for it all the same. Still...]

Yes! Have you heard of it?

[philosophe]

[Oh, well, this is curious. Hatchlings and Napoleon and the Chinese. It can't help but attract Combeferre's curiosity, and it is very difficult to hide that in his voice, but he's doing his best to remain polite.]

I cannot say anything of your friend, I am afraid. Am I to take it that you are --British as well, or at least raised there?

[Napoleon attacking, after all, it must be someone European.]

audio;

[dracobin]

[Temeraire is not terribly aware about what constitutes politeness, as long as it isn't outright aggression, so he only bobs his head up and down, momentarily forgetting that the stranger can't actually see him.]

Yes, that is correct. My egg was laid in China, but I was raised in Britain.

[Whether he considers himself British is a slightly more complicated matter, but it's good enough for now.]

audio;

[imaginate]

[Humans really don't say that. Creature specific words, which he's used to hearing from his own translator back home. It's that mixture of homesickness and concern that leads him to flip on the feed.] Family of yours?

audio;

[dracobin]

Oh! I suppose so, in a manner of speaking. [Doing his best to sound unconcerned, after his initial outburst, and failing miserably.] It is only that he is my captain.

[virginprice]

I'm afraid that I haven't seen your friend. [He had a similar question himself, when he arrived, and met with little luck. He hopes this mystery person fares better.]

And indeed, fairness and justice seem to matter little to whatever- or whoever- has brought us here. I am sorry. It is not an unpleasant city, but I agree- it would have been better to be asked or at least granted an explanation better than what we have received.

audio;

[dracobin]

Pray tell me if you do.

[A low rumble in the back of his throat.] It is quite like China, except the streets are much smaller, and I have not seen a single dragon anywhere; all the same, it is unpleasant so long as I remain here against my will. Are there a great many people who have been brought here?

audio;

[trifurcate]

I'm sorry, I haven't heard of a William Laurence either, though of course I'll keep an eye out for him in the future. Apparently many people come here in pairs or more so there is a chance he may join you later.

Are you settling into your suite alright?

audio;

[dracobin]

Please do. The kedan said something about this being a sort of place in between, but it sounds like a great deal of nonsense to me, and he cannot be so very far away.

[At the mention of the suite, he brightens a little.] Yes, the suite is very nice; I did not expect it to have floors, like I have seen in cities. Only, there are a great deal of things in it that I am uncertain how to use.

audio;

[kelpful]

Whoa. Napoleon? How old are you, exactly?

audio;

[dracobin]

Oh, I am three; and you?

audio;

[inseine]

[Javert cannot even begin to make sense of this nonsense bulletin, though several things come to mind in fractured pieces. Napoleon? British? China? Hatchling? Slightly behind on the times, evidently, but there's something off about it.

Well, if he is inwardly questioning where (when?) the fuck this person has come from, he certainly does not show it in his tone.]

I do not know any Englishmen by that description. Possible you have come ahead without him, [he observes impassively.] How is the war coming, that an attack might worry you?

audio;

[dracobin]

Oh, that is possible, I did not think of that. He was not in the covert when I arrived, so it may take him a little longer. Only it is a little strange that the rest of my crew did not arrive with me, as they were right beside me when I fell asleep.

[He hesitates before responding. Nobody outside the Corps is allowed to know about the plague, after all, and there is no guarantee this man is not from his world.]

There have been reports that Napoleon is massing his forces across the Channel, with all the dragons he can bring to muster. But we have beat them once already, and we will do it again.

[dominare]

Your description would encompass most Englishmen, unfortunately.

[ what's all this about Napoleon and emperors?? There's way too much to ask about, but one question at a time ]

And how big is a hatchling, if I may ask?

audio;

[dracobin]

Perhaps, but not all Englishmen are named Laurence.

Oh, I-- [Pause as he turns to look. There is a great deal of scrabbling and the thump of wings hitting the ceiling.] --about thirty feet or so. I should think I am not so much larger than a Greyling at this point; it was very rude of them, to shrink me without asking.

[audio]

[boselfdestruct]

[LEATHERHEAD

but no really he is so excited and I'm sorry Temeraire but he zeroed right in on that]

Hatched? Do you mean you were hatched?

audio;

[dracobin]

[aaaand Temeraire perks right up because this person sounds really happy about his being hatched. DRAGON??]

Yes, that is right. I was hatched. [from an egg.]

Audio

[idealisme]

[Napoleon attacking? But Napoleon has not keen Emperor of France for at least-]

Are you speaking of Napoleon Buonaparte? Who became Emperor of France in 1804?

audio;

[dracobin]

Yes, that Napoleon. [Preemptively, because the last few guys wondered as much:] --It is the year 1807, for me, though I have been told that is not the case for everyone.

audio;

[fatedchaos]

I think that if most of us had been asked whether we wanted to be here or not, most people would have passed on the offer. [She hums slightly for a second, almost amused.] Or they would have asked and then taken us anyway.

[A pause.] What kind of hatchling are we talking about here?

audio;

[dracobin]

I would not mind visiting, at least for a little while, if time has stopped; there is not much to do in London at the moment except patrol. I imagine it would be rather pleasant here, if only I had been asked first, and my captain and crew brought with me.

[Well, half the people he's spoken to has figured it out already, so there's probably not much use in pretending anymore.] I am a dragon, pray do not be alarmed.

[Video]

[superoverachiever]

They are pretty impolite here. It's true.

They shrunk you?

audio;

[dracobin]

Yes, and it is quite nice, to be able to fit into a house, because I have never been inside one before, but they ought to have asked first.

Audio

[wholenewstory]

[Shrunks? She doesn't like the sound of that, and the concern is clear in her voice.]

How - small are you? Are you safe?

audio;

[dracobin]

I am about a quarter of my usual size. Thirty feet long, or thereabouts, from the looks of it. But I am quite safe; the kedan have given me a suite, and it is very pleasant. Thank you for asking, all the same.

video;

[wintershepherd]

China has very nice pavilions; if you're used to them, you should feel at home here pretty quick.

I'm afraid I haven't met anyone named Laurence yet, but... is worrying about Napoleon attacking, um, is that a possibility?

[ Because he remembers that time, and it was not at all pleasant, and it's not good if someone else still has to go through it. ]

video;

[dracobin]

[Pardon for a moment while Temeraire is distracted by the shiny. At this point he has given up hiding the fact that he is a dragon, so have a big black-scaled nose nudging at the screen.] Oh, your hair is very pretty. Do you do anything to it to make it that color, or does it come naturally?

China is remarkable, is it not? I only wish the streets here were wider, as they are in Chinese cities. --And if the kedan are not lying to me and time truly has stopped in my home, then perhaps I do not need to worry about an attack, but Napoleon was very close to ordering one, when I arrived. So it would not happen here, unless he has also been brought...?

[Oh, that is a worrying possibility he hadn't considered.]