[ OOC: Just a heads-up, this is the initial part of a character swap that I've been debating for a while now and working with Ambrose as to how to go about.  Apologies if this seems a bit abrupt, but I figured that it was better to get it out of the way before we go into the next section of the plot.  Also, Valeani (the new character) was designed to be a lot more interactive with the party then Aethon ended up being, which I see as a definite plus. ]<br/><br/>Starting to respond to Misha's slight jibe, Aethon pauses as his shoulder suddenly sends a spike of pain lancing through him.  Looking down he's afraid he already knows what is happening, and seeing the ugly glow coming from his dragonmark intensifying and spreading across his shoulder only confirms that fear.  "And here we have the downside to our gifts.  If you don't mind, Misha, I'm going to avail myself of your room again before someone else notices this."  Staggering to his feet, his gait has a notable stiffness to it as he slowly makes his way back upstairs.<br/><br/>Returning about ten minutes later, Aethon is now sporting what looks like a rudimentary bandage wrapped around his shoulder and part of his chest, although it's likely that it's intended to conceal the dragonmark, rather than actually treat in in any way.  "Well.  It appears that our timetable has been moved up quite a bit.  Whether the significant change that happened to my body accelerated the process I don't know, but the mark that I got has grown significantly and, well, it's only because of several spells originally intended to remove curses that I'm not trying to eat everyone that I can see."<br/><br/>"I've already contacted a friend who may be able to help with this; thankfully she was relatively nearby, so she should be here soon.  I don't know how long the rest of you have until this happens, but if this isn't a reason to make haste in our search, I honestly don't know what is."