Quark
(#30367242)
Thinking makes it so | they/them
Familiar
Aer Phantom
Click or tap to view this dragon in Predict Morphology.
Energy: 50/50
This dragon’s natural inborn element is Lightning.
Male Wildclaw
This dragon is hibernating.
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Personal Style
Apparel
Skin
Scene
Measurements
Length
4.39 m
Wingspan
5.74 m
Weight
658.74 kg
Genetics
Royal
Petals
Petals
Royal
Butterfly
Butterfly
Mint
Glimmer
Glimmer
Hatchday
Breed
Eye Type
Level 15 Wildclaw
EXP: 41663 / 60881
STR
8
AGI
9
DEF
6
QCK
5
INT
5
VIT
6
MND
6
Biography
 Q U A R K♫
THE RIFT MAKER
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I N F O Gender: Nonbinary Pronouns: They/Them ╰━━━━━━━━╯
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R E L A T I O N S . . . . . . ╰━━━━━━━━╯ |
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"There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so. " - Shakespeare ╰━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━╯ “What’s wrong with this picture?” – For the Wildclaw, the answer had always been “everything”. They were born during a storm, but though the thunder rattled the windows and made the lights flicker, it seemed tinny, lacking the power and resonance they’d expected. Everything was wrong from the very beginning. The physician declared, “It’s a boy!” but even that didn’t seem right, and so “he” became “they”. They were given the name Quark, for though they were lively and beautiful, they were a puzzle few could hope to understand. “He sees things,” dragons whispered to each other. A pale desert where condominiums rose, a shimmering oasis where there was only a landfill....Out of the corner of the eye, wavering like mirages. Quark quickly learned not to point out these visions, but by then it was too late. Their parents arranged for them to see a specialist. Their mother wrung her claws with worry, and their father grumbled about the expense. And so Quark learned to lie about not seeing meadows and lakes where only the city sprawled. They kept silent even when they sometimes glimpsed a fleeting shadow gliding past, wings outstretched and gleaming. “It’s nothing. No one’s there....” Their parents fought frequently because of them. They were too strange, too expensive and difficult to care for. On these difficult nights, Quark went to bed early and cried themselves to sleep. But tonight, things were different. As they lay on the edge of sleep, their door opened. They thought at first it was their mother, but the paw that briefly rested on their head was larger, heavier. And the voice that whispered to them was definitely not one they recognized. “It will be all right....I promise you that.” Quark’s eyes snapped open. They twisted around to see who it was and glimpsed a shado wy form leaving the room. They raced into the hallway....No one was there. Impossible! Maybe if they ran fast enough, they could catch up— Quark pitched down the stairwell and landed on the floor below. Their screams woke the house up, and soon their parents came running. Quark was put into the hospital to mend. Their father found a new job, one that paid better but which took him away from his family. Quark’s mother visited them in the hospital, but she was not inclined to talk. Why should she be? Quark said too many weird words and saw strange things all the time. It took some time for Quark to heal and then return to school. It had been difficult for them before; they struggled now. They were frequently bullied by the other dragons, never mind their crutch and aching leg. They hobbled home one day, wishing they’d never heard that voice or glimpsed that fleeting shape. Then they would never have broken their leg....They would still be able to run! Away from the bullies, away from this mess of steel and concrete... Their foot came down on soft green grass. They paused, their jaw hanging slack. It was real grass, springy and strong. They inhaled and lifted their nose, savoring a fresh, sweet breeze...and their eyes widened in terror. Above them – what was that?! It was immense! Quark cried out fearfully and backpedaled, tripping over the curb. Their crutch clattered beside them. The ground beneath them was hard and cold; there was no air but the usual oppressive smog. It was then that Quark realized, with a pang: the sight that had scared him so, that vast blue emptiness above him, had been an open sky. The one he’d read about in books. The one no dragon had seen for years now. The doors to that other world opened and closed more frequently now. Only Quark could see them, and they thought at first they were going insane. The bullying didn’t stop, but soon Quark had no reason to fear it. They learned that no one else could follow them through the doors. A jump into a lake, a dash across a flowery field, and they left their pursuers behind. It always worked – and they weren’t going crazy! Initially the rifts appeared when Quark was stressed or scared; now Quark could open them any time. They would take a deep breath and step into the landscapes they’d glimpsed since childhood: the meadows, the oases, the desert by moonlight. Quark didn’t know where these places were, but since they never saw any other dragons during these trips, they guessed that these were the last unspoiled places of the world, perhaps nature preserves beyond the sea. So it was quite a surprise one day when, during a stroll in the other world, Quark found themselves facing another dragon. Another Wildclaw, but one whose scales were as pale as frost flowers, with fine satins draped over them. The other Wildclaw was surprised as well. “A stranger!” he gasped, wide-eyed. Quark had been marked a “stranger”, and that was never good! They turned and bounded away, not hearing the pale Wildclaw’s cry of “Wait...!” They rushed through grass and glided over streams. In this strange world, the moon’s pure light turned everything to silver, and Quark blazed through it like an aurora. They didn’t know how long they ran, but suddenly a rift appeared in the air: familiar skyscrapers and flickering neon signs. They jumped through, breathless, unhurt, and home. Or were they? It was not a part of they city they recognized. Dragons moved past in a constant stream. Some of them gave Quark hostile looks. “What’s he wearing that skincent for?” A dragon pushed her way to the front. A Wildclaw, but as uncouth as the other one had been fair. Her face was twisted in a sneer. “You can’t wear that; that skincent’s for girls. You aren’t a girl!” She reached out to Quark with a sharp-taloned hand. Quark dodged her grasp and darted into the crowd. She didn’t follow, but her jeering laugh was audible for some time, even when they could no longer see her. Quark was lost. They could open another door, jump into the other world....But no, that other Wildclaw was there. What if he had “friends” with him this time? Quark picked up a discarded bag and found a public station. They stripped off their accent and tucked it into the bag, and then they went home. It took a few hours. By the time they arrived home, it was past midnight, and their mother was not pleased. She screamed at Quark, railing about how strange they were – why couldn’t they be normal, like other children? She knocked the bag out of Quark’s hands and continued her tirade. Always before when Quark had gotten into trouble like this, they had opened a rift and gone to the other world....But even the other world wasn’t safe now. They retreated to their room instead, and there, hurt and shaking. Trapped by fear and hate; even their secret refuges had been taken away. What could they do? Where else could they go? It was nearly dawn when they crept slowly out of their room. They were hungry; no one had come up to see if they were all right. But perhaps someone had been by earlier: The accent they’d worn had been folded neatly atop the rug outside. Quark looked at it for a long moment. They remembered the shimmering flight over the moors, the moon shining and whirling overhead. A place with an endless, clear sky, meadows open in every direction. They thought wryly, “At least if someone chases me over there, there’s more room to run.” They picked the accent up. And then they turned around, and they stepped back into the other world. Quark was alone this time. They briefly looked back at their room, and then the rift shut and there was only the empty sky. Away they went, gliding on the breeze. The moon was a crescent now. Time seemed fluid between this world and...the other world. Quark shivered; they were beginning to think of home as “the other world” now. But then, it had never really felt like home. They reached other clans and towns. The dragons were curious, but not hostile, and asked about Quark’s origins: “Are you on an errand for the Stormcatcher?” Quark had read that name before. Stormcatcher...a deity worshiped in the distant past. The god of engineers, creator of storms...But that was nonsense. The Shifting Expanse dragons made their own storms now; they seeded the clouds and used generators. “No...I’m here on my own.” Quark said slowly. The dragons turned away in disinterest, and the Wildclaw was free to observe their clothing and speech more carefully. They had assumed that they’d crossed to an unknown land, but the place names were the same....It was the same world, then? “Or maybe...a different time?” They had to see for themselves, but they couldn’t give their origin away. And so Quark began to tell stories. Stories of a strange land: soaring concrete buildings and clouds of dark smog. Flickering rainbow signs. Empires of glass and steel. Where there was no magic...where there were no gods. The dragons shivered at these stories. They enjoyed a good scare as much as the next drake did. Quark hid a smile when they saw the audience’s reactions. They couldn’t know that the “scientific fiction” they heard was, in fact, accounts of a very real world. It seemed fair. Quark had been told that this particular world wasn’t real either. But they were here now.... Their wondrous stories bought them passage aboard an airship bound for the Shifting Expanse. Would they see the city that had encaged them all their life...or the lightning-forged empire they’d only dreamed of? They couldn’t help feeling nervous when the city finally came in sight. The buildings were older, the architecture more fantastic – but it was still an urban sprawl. Even the ceiling of clouds was the same.... Or was it? Lightning arced through the clouds, painting them in cyan and violet. There were shapes in that swirling darkness, flickering here and there.... The ship was drawing near its mooring point, and some of the more adventurous passengers were jumping off. They kited away on the winds, whooping with exhilaration. Quark stared in surprise. They wouldn’t dare jump....Would they? They would. Shy and sheltered Quark, always anxious and fearful, now wished to jump into the embrace of a gathering storm. They ignored the city far below them, and with a great gasp, they jumped. Their wings opened and they flew! They were afraid, of course – always before they had flown in the controlled environment of their school’s gymnasium, not in open air. But the wind picked them up and lifted them like a pair of strong arms....For the first time in their life, they felt safe and free all at once. And then Quark nearly fell out of the sky. There was a Coatl next to them, a sooty fellow with soft, rosy eyes. A pair of glasses perched on his small face. The satins he wore looked familiar; Quark had seen them before.... “Um, who...are you?” “Name’s Yuuri,” said the Coatl. Even as he spoke, he twirled through the air with easy grace. “I am very pleased to meet you. Viktor and I have been looking for you.” “Viktor?” Quark had a feeling they knew who that was. And there he was – that other Wildclaw they’d glimpsed not so long ago. He soared on Quark’s other side and flashed a brilliant smile. Quark swallowed hard. Were they in trouble? Yuuri sensed their distress. “Don’t be afraid! Viktor saw you some weeks ago; he didn’t mean to frighten you. We were concerned because you were on our territory, and...No, you weren’t intruding. What I mean is...” Yuuri pushed his glasses up his face. “Only few dragons can step into the Faerie Court without an invitation. Not only did you manage that – you got out again on your own. Such drakes are said to have great powers or be blessed by the gods...or both. And speaking of gods...” Quark thought it was a joke at first: that immense shape half-hidden in the clouds couldn’t possibly be alive. It was large enough to fill the sky! And then... A break in the tempest. A flash of lightning. The colossal dragon turned its head, glancing at the interlopers. Quark nearly fainted at the sight of the razor-sharp claws, the shark-toothed maw. The same eyes as theirs: bright as lightning, burning with energy and intelligence. For a brief, heart-stopping moment, Quark looked straight into the eyes of a god. And then the Stormcatcher turned away. The clouds closed up again. “GET BACK TO WORK!” he boomed, and his voice was a thunderclap. The great peal went straight through Quark, rattling their heart in their ribcage – and the sound burst from their mouth as a laugh. This was it! This was what they’d been waiting for all along! No wonder the thunder had always sounded so tinny and weak to them – it could not compare with the real storm, the voice of an ancient god. “There are no gods where you come from,” Viktor said gravely. “Where do you hail from? Or perhaps I should ask...when?” The wind began to slacken. Quark had to flap their wings more strenuously to stay airborne. Yuuri turned slow, graceful loops around them, and Viktor simply hovered, poised and still. Quark explained: As a child, they had seen strange places superimposed upon their city. Initially they had only seen the mirages, the illusions, but had been unable to touch them. And then there’d been the accident: “I was chasing someone. I fell down the stairs....” Quark’s eyes widened in understanding. “After that, I could see the places more clearly. They looked so real. I thought to myself, ‘If only I could actually be there.’ And one day...I was. Am I...in trouble?” Yuuri was by their side in an instant, patting their shoulder comfortingly. “We’re just curious, honest! We’ve been looking for you ever since Viktor saw you in the Faerie Court....We would like to invite you there.” Quark looked around, but they were surrounded only by storm clouds. They realized they didn’t know where they were. Even the Stormcatcher seemed to have vanished. “Where do we go from here?” Viktor laughed gently. “Nowhere, really. The Faerie Court is all around us.” A blink of the eyes, a shimmer of crystal, and Quark was hit by brisk coldness. They gasped and looked around. Delicate pillars wrought from ice...They broke into curlicues overhead, forming a scintillating lattice lit by rainbow light. The floor beneath their feet was unbroken crystal, smooth as a mirror. When Quark glanced up again, they saw a double throne at the end of the hall. Yuuri was already seated comfortably on one chair, and Viktor was ascending the other one. As Quark stared in awe, Yuuri placed a delicate paw upon his chest. He intoned, “Greetings, kind stranger, and welcome. I am Yuuri, a King of the New Court of Faerie. This is Viktor, my mate, himself a King of the New Court. We are pleased to make your acquaintance at last and hope the passage hasn’t been troublesome for you....Beg pardon; we didn’t get your name....” “Quark,” the Wildclaw mumbled. These kind dragons...They were kings, and powerful ones, too, by the looks of it! What did they want? Quark found out soon enough. After they had been wrapped in a warm robe and given a hot meal, Viktor explained: “I am a fairy. A King of the New Court...and a Prince of the Old Court. “I was abandoned among dragonkind. My parents cared not what happened to me, but the dragons who raised me were kind, and I grew strong. In time, my own magic awakened, and I returned to the realm of Faerie.” He sighed and shook his head. “Faerie is a beautiful place, but it is not a good one. My parents rule the Old Court, and they have turned to darkness in their quest for power. They abandon their own children in Sornieth to replace true hatchlings, whose lives they then take. You see, my parents draw their power from a demon.” Viktor’s face grew bleak. “Children are innocent. They have powerful dreams. And so the demon demands them as sacrifices.” Yuuri fluttered down from his throne. “We brought you here because we need your help. You see, Viktor broke away from his parents and established the New Court of Faerie. He is dedicated to toppling the old ways; he doesn’t want the sacrifices to continue any more than you do.” Viktor met Quark’s gaze and explained: the New Court was still too small to challenge the Old Court. They needed more dragons to aid them. “I have never seen a dragon with abilities such as yours. The ability to cover a thousand miles in a single step – many dragons can do that. But to step back and forth through time...You would be a great help to us, Quark.” Quark still hesitated. They had fled their home in desperation, but wouldn’t their parents worry about them? Shouldn’t they at least explain what was happening? The Faerie Kings agreed to let Quark stay in the Court for the next three days while Quark considered things. They would not just be moving to a new world – they would be changing into an entirely different being. Viktor and Yuuri were happy to answer their questions, but Quark couldn’t help noticing that the Court was indeed small. The only other courtier seemed to be the great knight Agape, and he wasn’t eager to converse. Quark didn’t know much about the Old Court, and its patron demon seemed formidable indeed. If they joined the New Court, they could well be joining a losing battle – and therefore throwing their life away. Yet returning home didn’t seem better, either. They were not sure they would be welcomed by their parents, and the thought of going back to school, being laughed and jeered at, made them ill. They would have to endure the mocking stares and whispers all day, every day....Supposing they completed their studies and found a job – then what? Endless toil, more mockery, every day for the rest of their lives? By then, nearly all the things Quark had brought from home had run out. They had only their accent now. It was a bit faded, but they put it on. Then they absently meandered down the hall, deep in thought. It was the gasp that made them look up: they had entered the throne room and Yuuri was staring at them in wonder. “Where did you get such apparel?” the Coatl asked. Beside him, Viktor was watching in interest. Quark paused. Usually, they had been mocked for their choice of clothing. But now... “It’s mine. I brought it from home. You don’t...think it’s weird?” “You look stunning in it! I wish I could wear such finery,” Yuuri sighed. Viktor was also nodding approvingly, looking just a tiny bit envious. Quark couldn’t help smiling. The decision had already been made. Before being inducted into the New Court, Quark was given permission to go home. The Faerie Kings watched as Quark opened a door and stepped through, to the inside of their house. They walked down the hall. The soft click-click of their claws was drowned out by the shouting from downstairs. Their parents were fighting again.... Perhaps in the future, Quark would explain things to them. But for now, there was someone else they needed to see. They placed their claw on the latch, and they opened the door. And there they were: young Quark, turned towards the wall. Already spent from crying. Present-day Quark stood by the bed, looking with sad sympathy at their younger self. The following years would be terrible and tough. But then... “It will be all right,” they whispered, stroking their younger self’s head. “I promise you that.” And they walked away before their younger self could catch them. The door opened at the end of the hall – they leaped through to where the Faerie Kings waited. There were hatchlings out there who needed the aid of the New Court of Faerie. Quark’s mind flashed back to their own dismal childhood....Perhaps this was Quark’s “happily ever after”. It was now time to help other hatchlings find theirs. They sit by the New Faerie Kings even now: garbed in fine satin, glittering like the stars. They search for lost hatchlings and guide them to brighter days. Quark cannot change their past; what’s done is done. But they will do their best to brighten other dragons’ futures. All they need to do...is open a door. ~ written by Disillusionist (254672)
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I N V E N T O R Y
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