expiationnet | {Video}

{He is fastidious about his appearance, brushing off imagined pieces of dust and grime with delicate hands. Runyu is not a tall man nor does he look particularly strong, yet jumping to conclusions about his abilities would be a mistake. Before you stands the Emperor of Heaven, though he earned the title through underhanded means.}

I am not practiced at welcome speeches. However I will do my best. {He clears his throat and stands with all the pride he can scrape together in this moment.} I am Runyu, son of Emperor Tai Wei and Princess Su Li. You need not fear me if you have done nothing wrong.

{His gaze sharpens as if he can detect wrongdoers through the device.}

Yet if you have committed this crime against me, I will not be merciful. You have removed the Emperor of Heaven from his duties and now hold him prisoner. Kidnap on this scale can only result in your death.

{Those are big words for someone who doesn't have an army to back him up, but Runyu is, perhaps understandably, mad. Furious, actually.}

Furthermore, if you have harmed my wife... {A chill climbs his spine. Soon, she could be his wife. He must return to her!} I will kill you myself.

{His hands curl into white fists as if he imagines snapping necks with his bare fingers. He could.}

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Is that all they desire? {To belittle him? He has had enough of that.} I won't be their puppet or plaything.

{He will bite with all the force of his true form, which happens to be a dragon.}

There is no need for condolences. I will unify Heaven and all will be well.

Your guess is as good as mine. They haven’t shown us much of a hand in regards to their plans and the locals here seem content to live their lives. We’d probably need to stay here longer to find out what they have in store but I imagine that doesn’t work out very well for your plans.

[ That’s a curious thing though. His belief in heaven is about as intense as his belief in ghosts (which is to say, not very strong at all); but he’s already gathered as much that this gathering of different people from different worlds will have different experiences. ]

What exactly was causing your heaven to be in such a state?

Does it work well for yours?

{The question is soft, but oddly sharp. Runyu doesn't like leaving his throne empty. If he returns to someone else claiming it, he will have to revise his plans and start from scratch. That would be more than annoying.}

Bad leadership. {From his father and his step-mother who always hated him (because his father cheated on her to be with his mother).} Justice was delayed and, in some cases, ignored. I have rectified that.

Did I imply I have plans? [ There's some genuine surprise packed into that question as he arches an eyebrow. He doesn't usually have plans. They usually just spin out of thin air under extreme pressure and danger, neither of which are obvious to him in this moment. ] I wish I had plans. It's been hard to fill the time here especially now that I've read most of the books in the libraries.

[ While there's still no sign of sympathy on the Doctor's face, mentally he at least notes that the man seems to be passionate about his duties. That at the very least he can appreciate. And in true Doctor fashion, he tries to comfort him, and that is to say, completely miss the mark. ]

Ah, well if you've rectified it I'm sure things will stay that way for a little while longer. Depends how time runs where you're from.

What have you learned from all of those books? {Anything of use? Plans can change. Plans can be remade and demolished at one's will. In the end, he has one goal.}

A year is a day. {Which is how and why human lives are often overlooked or missed entirely.}

A lot of about this world and the other settlements that have been established. Time runs linearly, there's your standard folklore and there's apparently dragons in the mountains to the north of us.

[ His eyes do light up a little bit at the last one as if the thought to traverse through the mountains in future has crossed his mind.

His gaze continues to look intrigued at that little factoid. ]

So this must be...quite fast for you. Living day to day instead of it stretching out that is.

Dragons...you say? {As a dragon himself, that interests him.} What did you learn about them in particular?

{Could he communicate with them?}

Yes. I have resided on Earth from time to time, but never for long.

[ The interest doesn't go unnoticed and he quietly files it away for later before obliging his question. The Doctor has always enjoyed being a storyteller; that hasn't changed regardless of whatever face it is he wore. There's a certain joy that exudes from him. ]

They mostly keep to themselves in the Crinot Mountains and the locals seem more than happy to leave them be too. They're dragons, it's a treacherous path — can't blame them. But there's some sort of record of a family living in the heart of the volcano. I can't tell you how recent of an account.

[ There's something of a hum there. ]

Too boring?

{Runyu is, at heart, an introvert who likes to read and learn. The Doctor will find an avid listener to all of his stories.}

I may have to visit. {If he can help fellow dragons, it would be worth the journey. He has little connection to his own kind. Runyu and his father had a...strained...relationship. And said strain ended with his father's death. So Runyu is truly alone in Heaven.}

No. I had matters to see to nightly. The stars never cease their dance.

Are you interested in dragons or are you lacking what Clara also calls danger sense?

[ The Doctor thinks it's worth asking. The intensity to which he tries to stop people's lack of self-preservation has dimmed in this form, he still tries to ensure that people don't just go walking off ill-prepared into a mountain range where dragons are rumoured to be. ]

Ah right, Emperor of Heaven and all.

[ Interestingly enough, instead of sounding mocking, there's a hint of a sliver of respect. ] What exactly entailed looking after stars? The ones in my world are generally self-reliant.

[ If they weren't, the Doctor has to imagine that he'd be a much busier man. ]

I am a dragon. {Which should explain why he is interested in them.} My true form is that of a water dragon.

{There is that too. The Emperor of Heaven can visit all realms safely.}

Are they? {His lips curl.} I set the constellations nightly.

Really? [ The question has less to do with it being a matter of validating the statement and more akin to him looking far more interested than he had before. ] Do all dragons abide by some sort of elemental alignment?

[ He gives a brief nod. ]

For the most part they're just gas and stardust. There might be some of them that are actually creatures but those seem few and between. [ There's a brief pause before a little humour slips into his tone. ] Do you ever just make fun shapes for the hell of it?

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