He continued floundering, barely noticing the other dragon sweeping for him. Mostly the world now consisted of waves, rolling water that seemed like it should be dark and ominous in this situation but still looked insultingly tropical, and brief glimpses of his own limbs and tail flailing from the froth.

A few kicks at the tiny creature missed it, and loud roaring was stifled by a snap-shut jaw as another breaker rolled past, mostly so he didn't inhale the thing.

What the hell had he gotten himself into!? And what was happening here?!

Lichen's jaws clamped onto the Caroller, and even though Dread on his own was unable to dislodge it, the very thrashing of his tail combined with the other dragon's bite managed to at last rip the thing off - mostly. The gem-encrusted beak was still lodged in Dread's tail, the skull still attached while Lichen held the headless bird's corpse, which was limp in her jaws.

There was no further movement from the remains left behind, nor in the sand.

Lichen and Dread, although it was not obvious to them now the depths of its danger, carried shards of the epidote within their wounds. While they had defeated the Lessers, it seemed they, in some ways, had accomplished their task.

The Lessers have been defeated. Characters may now exit or stick around to investigate further if they wish.

Lichen and Dread have been infected by the epidote. Leaving this thread without attempting to remove them will cause both to become Gemscarred (their infection will have taken hold in the present day to allow for more time).

@Aurelle @Lichen @Coilean @Eulogy @Callista @Dread

"Wh-- Is it over? What's going on!?" Lichen paddled, trying and failing to keep the panic out of her voice. All the splashing and the water, the movement and panic- she didn't know where she was any more. Being in the water created a sense of being unmoored; she couldn't feel anything around her but water. Where was land? "I can't-- Where is the shore?!"

Truthfully, that panic was the only thing keeping her going; the reddened stain in the waters was only growing around her. It was a small miracle she still had consciousness, but with the pain of the Kyte's still-latched head pulling at the wound, it likely wouldn't last very long.

The magic fizzled and sparked, her feelers unwinding from their safe crevice within her nostrils to feel the pull of the water and, more importantly, where the water wasn't. "Is it this way?!" Lichen likely asked Dread, but it was hard to tell as she started her paddle back to the shore. "Is it gone?" Her words were being panted by this point.

The cave dragon wasn't looking so good.

@Dread (mention)

Dread gave an irritated roar. "STUPID-" he bellowed, and his head briefly went under. He came up, sputtering, but it was more annoyed than panicked, and he seemed fixated for the moment on his tail and the weird little half-dead thing attached to it.

It was only then he noticed Lichen sort-of-drowning. "HERE," he boomed, loudly. (Dread had no volume control.) For him, splashing around in Leo's sea with too-big-wings was just another day. He didn't like doing it, but this was his home and he'd fished, from time to time, and wasn't always quick enough to get out before getting floundered in the waves.

He awkwardly doggy-paddled, wings-first, closer to Lichen and facing the direction of the shore, head craned out to see. Then he guttered a strange exhale of hot air, which rose and swirled, forming a brief churning updraft to attempt to provide a way out; if not, it'd at least push them forward.

"DID YOU KILL IT? ITS STUPID HEAD IS IN MY TAIL," he informed her.

After a little awkward flapping he managed to catch the wind, and further struggling and kicking at the water lifted him into the air. He sort of flap-flopped onto shore, landing heavily before turning, ripping the head off his tail and examining the wound. It felt... weird. It looked weird. He didn't like it, and he yelled wordlessly at it ("roar" would be too impressive, here) before starting to pick at it with his fangs.

Whatever it was, he wanted it out.

"WAS IT SICK!?" he demanded, worried he'd have to burn his own tail half off. And belatedly, blinking at the other dragon, he remembered to be polite. "THANK YOU."

@Lichen (sorry for the LONG delay)