Shifting Terrors

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

Two figures walked down the dust-covered dirt road. They came with no carts, no wagons or big bags. One was laced with pouches around his belt and a bag at his side. He carried a staff; it glowed with a soft yellowy light where a crystal was embedded in the top. He walked next to a shorter figure. It was a female, she was slight in frame and lithe and rather lanky. She had a mass of gold-brown hair tied at the back of her head and amber eyes shone in her head. She had pouches laced about her person though she only wore breeches and a loose shirt. She serveyed their surroundings and sniffed the air.

 

"Think we're close yet?" She asked the man next to her. She looked up, scratching her tanned arm and pulling loose strands of hair behind pointed ears. The man next to her pulled out a map and unrolled it.

 

"We are on the way to Crystlin. We have to follow this road and then the next and we should be there."

 

"Go. Say, do you think they'll be a lot of gold involved with this job? I'm thinking of making a new lair around here." She poked him in the ibrs with an elbow."What do you think?" She chuckled and pulled ahead.~

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

I raised my eyebrow at the shifter several paces ahead. While still TECHNICALLY millions of years older than me, she still managed to pull off the personality of annoying eighteen year old whenever she wanted to.

 

I rolled the map back up on its scrolls as evenly as possible, and tucked it back into my robes. Grabbing my staff, which had been tucked neatly under my arm, I picked up my speed to catch up.

 

"Welcome Back," The old dragon torted.

 

"Yes, that's all well and good," I responded, hiding any irritance in my voice. "About the gold..."

 

"What about it?" Ryuu asked, turning back to face me.

 

"We have three days," I started. "If we don't get the job done in three days...we'll lose 10 percent a day until we finish."

 

"What?!" Ryuu asked sharply, her eyes glinting red.

 

"It's not that large a problem," I said. "I just figured you might want to know."

 

The shifter's tail suddenly materialized, and it rose to smack me in the back of the skull. I buckled forward.

 

"Of course I'd want to know!" She said. "I'd have wanted to know BEFORE we left."

 

"I apologize," I said, as sympathetic as I could. "As I said...it's not that big a problem. What job have we EVER done that has taken us three days?"

 

"The elf job in Merakesh..." She started.

 

"That one doesn't count. You were ill." I nodded.

 

"You could have finished it yourself, you know. It wasn't nessecary to stay in the cabin and 'treat' me the entire time..." She said.

 

"Eh, that's what you claim, anyway," I responded.

 

She sent me another glare, and continued walking, starting to pull ahead.

 

"And...if you'll remember, we did eventually get full pay on that one AND a bonus. So don't even start to complain."

 

"Yeah...but that was just a simple search and rescue. This job is very close to being called war," She retorted.

 

"Extermination is a more usable term," I responded. "The syrakks aren't exactly the most formidable of foes. We should have no problem ridding Crystlin of them."

 

"Eh, that's what you claim, anyway," She said sarcastically, and we turned onto the road leading into the city.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

We turned to the gates of the city. A large portecullis is anchored to the ground made of cross-crossed metal. The city gates rise high in all white marble, backed by knights and hired men.

 

Towers of swirling white marble, laced with silver and gold trim grace the lordcity. My eyes wandered to the castle, a beautiful structure of hewn stone from the dwarven mountains. A gift given to the lord of Crystlin many years ago in the formation of a pact. The city would not expand into the northern Thinron Mountains and Crystlin would make a stronghold in the Mountians' pass. The Hold of Bakeras.

 

We called up to the gate guard and requested entry. The portecullis opened and I ran through cautiously, never really trusting human arms for supporting such mechanisms.

 

 

"Well, which way is it now, Dis? I see the castle, but how do we get there. I still don't understand human passageways."

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

"That's quite a city," I said, looking around, keeping one eye almost constantly fixed on the stone statue.

 

"It's just another human attempt at dominancy," Ryuu retorted.

 

"What they lack in giant wings and fire breath they more than make up with structural integrity," I pointed out.

 

We came across two guards standing side by side beside the walk way. Their blades were held up together, forming an X in the air between them. I nearly laughed at the Cleche of it...Ryuu failed to stifle hers.

 

I turned and gave her a sharp look.

 

"What?" She asked.

 

"They're actually aloud to use those, you know! It might be best not to mock them." I advised.

 

"Lighten up," She said. "We're expected."

 

The gate to the castle lowered. It wasn't usual that we were so easily aloud in places of authority, But she was right...we WERE expected. If all went well, we'd be back here by sundown to pick up our payment.

 

"This place is...questionable," Ryuu commented.

 

She wasn't far off. The walls were dark and moldy. The lights were rare, and the people standing among the corridors were grimy, shaggy, and all around filthy.

 

"It's this way," I said, pointing ahead across the main entry to a stone staircase that curved around along a spiral.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

"Well let's get going.." I said wryly, starting to walk forward. He follows and we enter a crossway which will lead us to the Lord Mayor's quarters.

 

I noticed a leak in the stone. Apparently the outside was the only vanity of the castle. Water gurgled out and spurted across the hallway. I curled up a lip in a sneer, observing my surroundings.

 

"This place is just lovely." I pointed out sardonically.

 

"What did you expect? Sure, it may be beautiful outside, but that's only to attract people. They could care less about the inside." The mage answered. I considered this and muttered in my hissing language. "what was that?" He asked me.

 

"Nothing," I played innocent. "Uh, Draco's idish...."

 

"Now that I heard. What is so wrong with this place?"

 

"Look, there are rats running around. It smells horrid and the water isn't even clean!!!" My delicate nostrils quivered at the odor. The mage just sighed.

 

"Then let's stop stalling, c'mon." He started up the stairs, his staff thudding softly on the ground. I began to follow but stopped, blinking. I watched him for a moment and bit my lip in silent thought. I shrugged and followed.

 

 

 

It took more time finding the Lord Mayor than getting to his quarters. We sat in his room waiting to hear form him.

 

"I don't suppose it bothers him that we are waiting..." I snorted impatiently. The room was large and there was certainly lots to do, but one gets bored staying in the same space for too long. I shifted my weight from foot to foot, amrs crossed across my chest. The mage reguarded me funnily.

 

"Why can't you be patient for once in your life? I thought most dragons don't live life day by day..."

 

"Well, I'm not most dragons! I am me. I'm unique." I stated and stuck my tongue out.

 

Just then the door swung open. In storde a short plump man wearing yellow robes of state. His head was shiny with no hair ontop, but the hair around the side of his head was a steely gray. He had a grey-white mustache and beady black eyes. His face was flushed a pinkish-red color and her walked in quickly.

 

"PLease, sit, sit! Sorry to keep you waiting! I am the Lord Mayor of Crystlin, Farren Grimsha. Please, please, sit." He motioned a pudgy hand to a table with 4 chairs around it. We walked over and seated ourselves.

 

"Lord Mayor, our briefing please?" I tried to hurry things along as the pudgy lord mayor screamed out for a servant who skidded into the room, carrying ale and mugs. The lord mayor paced nervously, as was his way of things and started to talk, stutteringly...~

Edited February 28, 2003 by Kokuryuu Flameshifter

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

I propped my staff against the edge of the table, making sure it wouldn't fall a few seconds later.

 

"Well...Well first I'd like to uh..th..thank both of you for coming so soon," The lord mayor started. "We were...were hoping that pay day limit would bring you."

 

"You made your point," I said. The servant who was now at the table filled a mug and set it next to me. I looked up and waved a thank you to him. He nodded and continued his job.

 

"We..We had to to...to bring you faster. We weren't sure when the next incident would be?"

 

"Incident?" I asked, and took a drink. "I thought this was just a simple Syrakk extermination job.

 

The Lord Mayor nodded, presenting his double chin as he brought his head down. He managed, however, to explain himself.

 

"It...still is," He said, putting a hand forward. "It's just that what you're getting rid of..is...well it's quite a bit bigger than you had originally thought."

 

"What do you mean?" I asked, leaning back in my chair and crossing my arms. "How much bigger?"

 

"We're not for sure," He said, his forehead starting to glow a bit in the light...due to the fine layer of sweat appearing on it. "Several of our people have run into them...they scour about in the caves up north. Neither our animal handlers nor our Soldiers have had any luck. Several have come back...well...not alive."

 

"Really?" I asked, becoming more interested. "They stay in the caves?"

 

"Mostly," he said. "But of course, if they stayed there all the time then we wouldn't have a problem. Lately, they seem to have gotten into the sewers...and into homes...shops...anywhere with irrigation."

 

"And they...do what exactly?" I asked.

 

"Like I said, witnesses are rare. The bodies we have found, though...clearly nothing to hold back. They're usually torn up, almost no skin...or muscular tissue for that matter."

 

"Eaten?" I asked.

 

"That's what it looks like," He responded. "But when we actually try to track them...chase them down...they have a tendency to just disappear."

 

"Oh," I said. "Great..." I shrugged and looked down at my drink as I picked it up. I looked over at Ryuu, who I could tell by watching her eyes, was agreeing with the plan I had assembled in my head.

 

The lord mayor attempted to keep eye contact, ultimately failing.

 

"I don't know," I started. "We don't usually deal with things that pose such a problem." I scooted my chair back, as if about to stand.

 

"Of course..." He started. "If you clean this up...you'll be more than paid twice your standard fee."

 

I stopped scooting, and looked back over at Ryuu, who nodded.

 

"Thrice," I said. "No less."

 

"very well..." The lord mayor said. "Just get rid of them...before more people are killed."

 

I smiled and took another drink.

 

"No Problem," I said. "We'll head up to the caves tonight."

 

 

*LATER*

 

Ryuu and I walked down the stairs, side by side. She was slightly ahead of me, pacing steadily. This usually suggested her mind was elsewhere, distracted.

 

"What do you think?" I asked, waiting for her to talk. "You stayed pretty silent in the Chamber..."

 

"What?" She asked, and looked back. "Oh, um...just thinking."

 

"The job?" I asked.

 

"Yeah," she said, reaching the bottom of the stairs. "I don't like that they disappear..." She said.

 

"Any ideas?" I asked, my own feet reaching the base floor.

 

"I don't know," She said. "It's not unheard of that shifting can be done at a level that strong...to shift into air."

 

"Have you ever done it?" I asked.

 

She simply shot me a look, and continued walking. I raised a brow, and continued to follow.

 

"So what does the city have to offer us before the sun goes down?" I asked.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

"So what does the city have to offer us before the sun goes down?" He asked.

 

I simply crossed my arms in the back of my head and yawned. " I don't know. I'm pretty tired. Let's find an in or something." I stretched. "One with irrigation." I added with a grin.

 

 

"How about this one?" Distarius asked, pointing to a quaint, wooden building. A sign swung on one hinge over the door displaying a flowing pitcure of silver and white, under it was the inn's name.

 

"Silver Dragon Inn. I like it. Let's see if we can get two rooms." I stepped up the stairs to the enterance, only to have to move out of the way as a drunkard was tossed from the doorway. I watched the man scramble to his feet and stagger out of the way of Distarius. The man smelled heavily of Ogre Killer-- The strongest kind of alcohol on the markets. I exchanged look with Distarius and entered.

 

Inside was a lot like the outside. The place was shoddily made with wood and a stone structured fireplace. Tables and chairs were scattered throughout the room. One was vacant and set right next to the fire. I went over to the table and sat down, leaving the socializing to the mage.

 

I paced across the room, taking in the surroundings. Drunkards and more drunkards. Oh well. I sat down as close to the fire as I could. I looked over at the mage and the innkeep through my slanted, almound-shaped eyes. Yawning, I leaned back in the chair and stared into the fire.

 

"Only one room vacant." Distarius informed me upon his return.

 

"No problem. A cat doesn't need to pay does she?" I grinned again. He nodded and shrugged. "Well. We might as well...."

 

Something shook the floor. no one else noticed because they were all drunken out of their minds. I stood up and looked around the ground for the source of the vibration.

 

"What's that?" Distarius asked.

 

"I believe we are experiencing the enterance of our job....." The floor split and four tiny shapes moved in. I took a step back and the floor heaved again. I lost my footing and slammed back into a wall.

 

Four bug-like creatures shimmered into view adn immediately began to hew down men. I watched wide-eyed too surprised to act just yet.~

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

I stepped back immediately as shards of the wood from the broken floor crashed on my robes. The creatures...four from what I could see, wasted no time in their hunt.

 

When the floor had burst, one drunk had fallen, his leg caught in the hole. He was the first. Two of the bugs went straight for him, tearing into his flesh...ripping it clear off of the bone.

 

As Ryuu and I were in the back of the room, we were given the extra few seconds to react. With the two other creatures chomping down on the feet of men, dropping them to the ground in their drunken stupor, we froze for several seconds.

 

It wasn't until the third...or maybe fourth...person in the room had been cut down that we fought back. I shot a look over to Ryuu, who climbed up onto the mantle of the fire place. I turned and jumped down onto the ground, pointing my staff, ready to defend with any spell that suited the situation.

 

Behind me I could hear Ryuu shifting...I had no time to look back and see what she was doing, however.

 

Would I have noticed the legless drunk crawling toward me, the problem would have been much more easily solved. He decided, rather than tugging on my robes, to tug on my staff to get my attention. I lost my grip on it, looking down to see it fall next to the long haired, bleeding man.

 

Before I could bend down to pick it back up, another one of those bugs crawled onto the drunk's back, and bit into his neck. It pulled its head up, ripping out the man's spinal column. Blood stained my robes, and got into my eye. I shot back, my hand instantly trying to wipe it away. During the struggle, my staff was either kicked or pushed or...somehow moved away.

 

When I was able to see again, the bug had already gone to work on the upper body of the old drunk. I checked for my spear, failing to spot it. The bug looked up at me.

 

"Oh...uh-oh," Was all I let out before it pounced on me. I put my arms up in front of me to shield myself. The weight of the six legged creature was enough to send us both to the ground. We hit with a thud, the wood almost snapping due to the already over abundant trauma it had faced.

 

Our Limbs locked, the over sized mantis's mandibles slammed open in shut, attempting to cut into my face and end my life as quickly as possible. I moved my head to the left, avoiding what was way too close of a bite.

 

I brought my leg up and kicked the underside of the creature. It let out a squeal and arched its head back. I used the opportunity to free a hand and deal the bug a right hook. Its neck almost snapped, and it weakened...I punched it again, and it fell off of my robes.

 

I got back up to my knees before the bug was back in its full force. It let out a squeaky click and rushed me. I ducked, and pushed my head forward. The result was a sort of tackle, the bug flipping over my back. It landed on its own back side, and I looked around for anything to defend myself with.

 

My hand landed on a wooden shard from the broken floor. I failed to realize what it was at first, but picked it up with my fist, which received instant splinters. I brought it up to my side as the bug turned to pounce again. When it did, I lifted the shard and plunged it just below the insects head. Its left mandible sliced my left hand, and my own blood drained onto my robe sleeve. The bug let out another screech, and failed to effectively stop me. It stopped moving several seconds later. I let out a sigh and pushed the corpse to the side. I stood up, and looked around the chaos for my staff.

 

I wondered how Ryuu was fairing...

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

I streaked across Distarius' view as a black panther, driving my foreclaws and fangs deep into one of the creature's chitinous hides. My fangs got caught, and my eyes flared red as I was flung about, stuck to where the creature would have its throat. i TRIED TO SINK IN MY CLAWS BUT FOUND NO PURCHASE AS THE CREATURE REARED AND FLUNG HIS HEAD. (just ignore that....)

 

Long and deep gauges appears where my futile attempts had been. Finally I was flung loose, but not gracefully. I found myself flying without wings and landing as well as the feline body could, twisted upside down. I may be a cat but I am certainly not as well adapted to langing on my feet. I slammed hard into a wall, the wind being knocked from my lungs.

 

With a growl that was cut off, I sunk to the only ground that was left--a splintered mess of wood. I hopped to my feet, close to Distarius, who was now fighting a new foe. The bug I'd left my mark on was closing back in while the last one ate happily. It was oblivious to its fellows being killed. I sprang at the one pushing Distarius back, crashing inot it with only my shoulder. I fell ontop of the mage accidently and purred contentedly, trying to grin and the cursing mage.

 

I stood up and hissing and spitting I swatted at the advancing foe. My ears lay flat against my head and my back arched, fur bristling and standing on end. I crouched back, cornered and made my move, pouncing on it's head, avoiding the jaws and prancing across its back. It ended up clawing at itself to reach me. Then my paws found that they were not longer padding across a chitinous body but a furry one...

 

Where the creature once stood was now anoth panther. Bigger and more careless of it's health the panther lept qat my lank self. I dodged, finding that I was quicker though it may be larger. I wrapped my jaws around its burly neck and tried clawing at its eyes to disable it.

 

The mage felled another beats and started on the last. He'd found his staff apparenlty, for it shot a bolt of lighting at the bug-thing. I growled deeply and changed my form again into that of a griffon. I had to be small to accomodate the inn's size and the span of my wings. My sharp beak and lightning fast reflexes caused me to cut deeply into the panther's body and easily discontinue it's life. Blood spattered over the soft feather of my eagle head.

 

I padded over to Distarius, again as a panther. My fur was caked with the creature's body and my own. I licked my muzzle and whiskers clean and sheathed my silver-white claws. Licking blood from my fangs I sat next to him. His last opponent had been to cowardly to fight and left through the floor. We were alone at the Inn of the Silver Dragon.

 

"It's going to inform the other's of it's kind of the resistance." The mage said quietly, his brows furrowed. I purred again, a deep rumble in my throat. I turned to survey the aftermath and foudn that the bodies of the creatures disappeared!

 

¤Dis..........Distariius.......¤ I mumbled in thought speech, being that the panther body was not equipped with needed parts to talk. ¤They're gone!!¤ The purr left my body and I sat, dumbfounded. No trace of them was left. Nothing to study, nothing to say that they were even there. Just the blood on our clothes and bodies. The bodies of the victums were there too, and their blood was spattered upon us as well. Somehow we'd all come in contact with eachother during the fray.

 

The creature's blood was the same shade and consistancy as the humans. "You know what this looks like don't you..." Distarius said, his voice quavering slightly. I nodded.

 

¤Let's go, now.¤ I said and rubbed against his leg, trying to push him towards the dorr.~

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

"I suppose we should probably follow it," I said, looking down into the hole.

 

"What?" Ryuu asked, shifting back to human and looking back at me. "Are you serious."

 

"Well, Yeah." I said. "We've gotta follow the bug. Maybe kill it before it tells its brethren that we killed the other ones.

 

"Uh...but that hole leads to a sewer," She said.

 

"Yeah...and," I started.

 

"Aren't you worried about your robes?" She asked.

 

"They're already coated in blood stains. I doubt sewer water is going to make them any less attractive."

 

Ryuu quirked a brow, and I smiled at her. Afterward, I crouched down to the ground and reguarded the hole.

 

"Looks like it's about a ten foot drop. Leads straight into a sewer vien."

 

"Great," She said. "You go first."

 

"No problem," I said, and held up my staff. "Here. Hold this."

 

She took my staff and I looked back down at the hole in the ground, scooting my feet forward over the edge.

 

"You shouldn't have any trouble getting down after me, should you?" I asked, stalling my jump.

 

"No," She said. "...I'll be right behind you. Now go." She waved me forward with the backside of her hand.

 

I turned back to the hole and pushed off, dropping down into the dark sewer below. I landed with a splash, the colored water at the bottom coming up to the calves of my boots, and staning my robes once more.

 

"Ack!" I said, looking up after catching a wiff of the surroundings. "Smells worse than dragon dung...no offense."

 

"None taken," She said. "Here." She dropped my staff, and I almost failed to catch it. Having secured it in my grip, I made sure to hold it above the water level.

 

I sloshed forward through the sewer, the glowing gem at the top of my staff growing brighter to illuminate the tunnel.

 

"Okay, you come down now." I shouted.

 

"Okay, Hold on..." She responded, this time through mind talk. I could hear her shifting above the floor.

 

A bird...a small one...a hummingbird, lowered into the sewer and flew up to me.

 

"The sewer water looks icky," She said through mind talk, and landed on my shoulder. "Mind if I just hitch a ride?"

 

"Not at all," I responded. "Just don't sing..."

 

 

 

MINUTES LATER

 

We watched as the bug crawled through a burrowed hole in the side of the sewer wall.

 

"Well, that's good," She said. "Doubt you can fit through there, huh?" She asked.

 

"Nope. Looks like you're going alone from here. Be careful." I responded.

 

The small bird reguarded me and lept off of my shoulders, flapping its tiny wings at an incredible eighty miles per hour. She rose to the top of the sewer at first, and then dove to the bottom.

 

The bird flew through the burrowed hole, and I waited. I waited for several minutes before anything happened.

 

At which point, the bird flew back through the hole, and shifted back into a human form.

 

"We've gotta go now," She said, and turned to start running.

 

"What?" I asked. "What for?"

 

I turned back as the wall started shaking. The bricks around the burrowed hole started to come loose, chipping here and there. The wall gave, and an uncountable hoard of the creatures stomped through it.

 

I reguarded them for only a second, and turned back to run after Ryuu. She was several yards ahead of me.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

I didn't want to look back but I knew I had to. There he was, Distarius running after me, the Bugs close on his heals.

 

I look back to where I was running aimlessly. This was getting ridiculous. We had to be faster. The Bugs were used to moving around in water and they swam at Distarius and Myself with surprising ease and agility.

 

I saw a little in the top part of the sewage pipe. A manhole most likely, but it was too far away and the Bugs were gaining on us too quickly. There was really only one way to help the situation really, I decided.

 

Leaping forward, I landed on four black paws and slowed down ever so slighlty to broadcast to the mage behind me.

 

¤GET ON! IT'S FASTER!!¤ I sent to him. i slowed down and felt myself falling back near him. I stopped for a split second and once I felt his hand grab my shoulders I launched forward again. He flung himself onto my back and leaned in close as to not hit the roofing. I was a considerable size for a panther, being that I could carry a grown human on my back with ease. I propelled myself forward as fast as my muscles would allow.

 

I slipped and slid on the slimy sewer floor but by releasing and retracting my claws I was able to stay on my feet. I ran as fast as I could but somehow the Bugs ran faster, and I found my tail clamped between one of their jaws. I roared in pain and almost fell back to attack but that might be certain death. My tail curled up around my side, stinging in a numbing pain.

 

They'd pay for that I growled with an oath. Tears shimmered in my view and I tried to blink them away to no avail. I reached where the light poured through. There was a grid above me! I couldn't very well shift to get through without leaving the mage behind! I wasn't abou the do that.

 

Thinking swiftly and pivoting around on my paws, I turned myself around, spraying sewage into the Creature's eyes and shrugging the mage off. I had no time to relay the plan and I started to shift as a giant claw thrust down at me. It met with hard scales as my body became longer, lankier and covered in black, silver-glowing scales. I felt my sinewing neck smash up against the sewer roof and I hoped that no one was above me-- otherwise they were in for quite a surprise.

 

Wings sprouted from my back and I tucked them in close to my body. I now stood on clawed paws and my injured tail became very long and thin. It was covered in rich blood, I noted. My arching neck broke through the stone work of the sewers and I thrust upwards with my hindlegs. Distarius was behind me and hopefully out of the way of raining bricks.

 

I propelled myself upward, diverting the bug's attention from the mage and I hovered in the air, pumping my fifty-foot spanning batlike wings. My scales shimmered blindingly silver in the sunlight. I Was about sixty-two feet from the ground, being that was how long my body was, head to tail tip. I dove back down and suck my thin muzzle into the hole, nostrils quivering from the horrid scent of sewage.

 

The bugs latched to my nose. I roared, smoke billowing out and blinding them temporarily as I located my companion. He had fallen back but seemed uninjured. As I clawed and swatted at the bugs clinging to my nose, I lashed my tail end down to Distarius. I beckoned him to climb on so I could lift him out of the sewer tunnel. I winced in pain as he latched onto my scales of the bleeding and injured tail. I hoped he didn't impale himself on my hide's razor-sharp edges.

 

Once the mage was running to safety, I burst up into the air, the bugs dropping like the flies they resembled and plummeting to the ground. I pumped my wings once and tucked them back into my sides. I glanced a blood-red eye down to see where the creaures would assault next.

 

To my undying surprise, they were flying up to me, as .....SILVER DRAGONS! Tinier than myself but just as deadly in the group they were in-- 6 in all-- they spiraled up to me and it was all I could do to miss their spurts of quicksilver aimed at my being. I released my deadly black fire breath at them, the thick scent of the acidic quality to my breath was heavy in the air.

 

I swiveled in the air, dodging and swooping, doing all i could to swat and scratch at the smaller, but more annoying dragons. I couldn't save myself from being tackled; quicksilver shooting up and down my sides, claws digging into my black scales, trying to gain advantage over my size. i looked down to see what I might hit, if i should fall...

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

The hatch bounced against it’s will on the roof top as I pushed it open. I reached back down to my side and grabbed my staff, noticing the diamond on top already fading from hard work. I pushed it out of my mind, and tossed the staff up to the roof, where it clanked against the wood several times before resting. Having done that, I grabbed onto the ledges of the roof hatch and pulled myself the rest of the way up to the top of the small building.

 

The building? I had found that using the simplest of techniques; running. After I had been pulled out of the sewer by the Dragon’s tail, she had told me to run through what ever means she had deemed appropriate at the time. So I turned and did so, only to find that the street we had come up through was rather baron. There were only one or two buildings on either side, all of which were rather run down. The one that especially caught my eye was a faded cabin…or what might have originally been a cabin.

 

There was a very faded sign along the top that read “Shop”. I estimated it had fallen through after this side of the city had been deserted. As I reached the door, I could hear Kokoryuu’s feet stumbling about, obviously having trouble with the hoards of bugs climbing out of the sewer behind us.

 

I pushed the door open, and started jogging to the back of the room, where it was customary to keep the roof hatch. Conveniently as ever, it was there…and ready for me to climb its ladder.

 

But now? Now I was on the roof itself, looking off of it to the fight on the street. There were at least six of the bugs flying…yes, they were flying…through the air, and several actually attached to the dragon.

 

I paced up to the ledge of the building, crouching to stay hidden, causing my robes to pick up whatever filth lay along it. It worked however…I was not spotted. I proceeded to lay down in a sniper’s position and raised my staff to my side, the diamond facing outward.

 

Taking shelter in this position on the roof was technically unnecessary. The magic of the staff itself would have been enough to guide whatever projectile I decided to use to my designated target. But there was something about being able to do it in such a stealthy manner…almost fun.

 

I closed one eye and matched my site with a bug flying through the air. Before I could take my shot however, the bug was caught in the Jaws of the dragon, who proceeded to chew it and spit it out, where it crashed onto the concrete below as a gooey clump of legs and blood.

 

I couldn’t help but smile. My sights fell onto another bug, this one heading outward from the pack. Once again the dragon got in the way, this time catching it with her tail, which sent it into pieces. The dragon let out a screech at it…or…no, that wasn’t a triumphant screech.

My eyes once again fell on the dragon, this time noticing the two bugs attached to her midsection, clawing and biting away at her scales. I once again took aim, calling on whatever higher power was available to aid me with my accuracy.

 

Concentration put forth a wave of fire. A wave that caught Ryuu’s side and set the two bugs ablaze. They held on with their scrawny legs for several seconds before finally giving up, and crashing onto the road below.

 

Ryuu turned to face her wounded skin, and looked up to spot me as I waved from my position. She pushed her head forward, and her eyes squinted.

 

“You’re welcome,” I whispered, which was more than enough for the Dragon to hear it. She once again pushed her head forward and raised her front left claw up to the air as well.

 

*As much as you’d like to think I have nothing better to do but thank you, you must really look up* She said to me through thought, and it echoed through my head. I rolled onto my backside to see another bug plunging toward me at an incredible velocity. Its mandibles were agape and it’s wing span extraordinary.

 

Almost without thought, I raised my staff up into the air and called upon it to release another wave of fire. It caught the bug, and sent in tumbling down still…only now he was on fire.

 

My eyes widened and I rolled out of the way to the other edge of the roof, where two seconds later I heard the bug crash into the surface. It shook me a bit, but I was un harmed.

 

*Good work, you almost managed to do it without any property damage this time* Ryuu taunted through my mind once again, and I gave her a thumbs up from my laying position.

 

She let out another screech, and I rolled back onto my eyes to check the problem. Two more bugs had landed on her neck, and were proceeding to do what the last batch had did. I cursed and scooted forward to the edge once more, bringing my ever trusty staff back up.

 

With a different approach, due to the lack of magic remaining the staff presently, I called forth a single ray of concentrated light, to pierce the bugs and send them to an instant grave. Ryuu’s neck was swerving from pain however, an off shot would probably wound her quite badly.

 

“Ryuu…” I whispered. “Don’t move.”

 

I didn’t get a response through my mind this time, rather with my eyes. The dragon stopped moving, smart enough to stop when she had put the bugs back in my view. I closed my eyes and released the beam of light, with went forward and pierced both bugs in their midsections. They instantly gave up their struggle and fell to the hard surface below them, dead before they reached it.

 

Ryuu’s neck perked up, draining blood onto the street below. A few more bugs were making their way up through the hole in the sewer.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

Blood streamed from my neck. All I could see were swarms and swarms of the creatures, flying, diving, swooping, attacking, clawing, scratching, hissing, biting. They were endless. Distarius felled a few but hundreds poured out of the sewer hole and immediately took flight. Changing into the winged replicas of my kindred, they flew in flocks around my head. I was definately a threat to there existance and like killer bees, they'd die trying to defend their hive.

 

I tucked in my wings close to my body, one of them was stuck in the delicate batlike structures. I fanned it out as best as I could to knock the thing free. They clung like bats to a cave and I did a plethera of techniques from diving headfirst at the ground to spiralling into something. I rubbed my lank body along a ridge in the mountains but they still persisted. I swooped low over the mage, curving up my graceful neck to bring up my body up and scrape it along the wood.

 

I felt pieces of splintered wood drive into my wounded, scaleless midsection, but pain was no bother. i could rest after this little adventure. Not once in my life from fighting my own kin to fighting hordes of mortals, I'd never once contemplated how I might die. Seeing the vast amounts of blood spilled from my body, I began to think this might be my last little adventure. A very cheerful people I once knew had a saying that Death was only Life's greatest adventure: Never knwoing what will come next and no one there to tell you.

 

That seemed reasonable and I was now at peace if I were to die this day. I swung out a wing, fully extended now to brush it along trees and I watched the creatures rain off. I then doubled back to torch the trees where they now clung. Acidic fire of night black shades danced into the woods and the trees burst out in flame, crackling and hissing. I turned on my other side to scratch off the rest and drop them into the inferno. it acted as a giant fireplace.

 

A considerabling large creature assaulted me next, once I'd gotten back to the city. The population of creatures had a vast amount of their army burned, clawed, shot down or otherwise dead from other means of attack. The assumed leader was brimming with ferocity that send a tingle down my spiked spine. I flinched as it grew wings and launched itself. I attacked prematurely and cost myself the needed advantage of already having wings sprouted. He dodged my out-thrust claws and vaulted at my wounded neck. I moved my head in the way butting him back, blood-red eyes flaring.

 

He struck again, faster, adapting to my fighting techniques. I lost track of the mage bellow me, but I figured he was holding his own againt the lesser shifters. It was all I could do to keep in flight and fight this terror, not to mention having to watch my wings for mountain cliffs or large trees. I spiraled onto my back and had to fly backwards and upside down to safely watch my wounded underside and neck. He rose up, blocking out the sun but postioning himself so that if I were to look at him, I'd blind myself.

 

Squinting, I tried to turn over but was struck sharply in the side. I righted my flight, making a safe landing outside of Crystlin. The lord city had evacuated with amazing speed once my form shimmered from the sewer system. The Lord Mayor must have been ready. I shrugged off the thought that I might endanger mortal lives besides Distarius'. It was an itching in the back of my mind induced by my silver heritage. I tried to forget it, to coax out the black and turn my thoughts toward the glory of the kill.

 

Speaking of which, he made another pass at me, now that I had landed. I dodged to the side and he pulled up his stocky neck before breaking it on the ground. He dogged me and made a vicious snap at my underarm. I dug my claws near his eyes, trying to gain a sight advantage. I raked a silver-white claw down his eye and blue-black puss oozed out. I recoiled as a horrific odor hit hard in my delicate nostrils. He screamed in fury but his mind could not compute failure or retreat.

 

I made a pass at his muzzle now, trying to drag down the thrashing beast. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a white flutter on a roof top and the blast of magic sent into the air.

 

¤Do I have to do everything?¤ I broadcasted. ¤I've got their leader here in my grips but I don't think I can hold him for long. His race doesn't know fear or cowardice. They only attack and keep attacking, even if it means their live. But I'm sure someone of your knowledge caught onto that already.¤ I sent a jesting tone along with the speech.

 

While I was sending my thoughts to Distarius I pinned the flailing arms of the creature and wrestled it still. I blasted it hard in the face with black fire again and tried to hold off the clawing hind legs and lashing, weaponed tail.~

[Jareena Faye]

Hey guys look I joined! I'm gonna write okay? Can I? Just nobody shoot... I'll be back tomorrow morning. It's 11:30 right now and I don't want to give the effort. I can't even make a good sentence right now. Night... love you.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

OOC: J'F!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Heya! I didn't know you weer going to join.. Are you going to apply? I don't mind if you write and Dis said to ask me so go right ahead! Anyhow, I hope to see this RPG more lively now. See ya!

 

 

-Ryuu :dragon4:

[Jareena Faye]

The sun was sinking now, the sky a glinting blood red. Black smoke drew sulfurous lines against it, the compliments of our mercinary friends. The mage and dragon scum were certainly making a mess of things. Thanks to the crystal in a staff, the flying scurges burst into flame and crashed into the homes we couldn't evacuate fast enough. Overhead, a black and red dragon tumbled and spun in the air, locked in combat with a giant, winged insect. Shifter to shifter. Leather flapped wildly, claws scratched madly. The two of them collided with the city wall, rolled over its edge, and tumbled out of sight into the forest.

 

My eyes traveled to the mage, who had climbed onto a flaming roof to fight the syrakks. I doubted it had been flaming before he got there. He seemed to have noticed his partner's disappearance, as well. He fired two more hot blasts from his staff, then jumped onto a bug's back and vaulted himself over the wall, as well. I could only imagine how he had landed.

 

Magicians...

 

I cursed my celtic dress, forcing me to ride side-saddle as I helped the overworked soldiers to guide our people out of their homes and toward the gates. Shunning rules of conduct, I moved in the saddle to have one leg on either side of my horse. My skirts consequently pushed up to my knees, but it mattered little in this hubbub. I urged Brezza around and began galloping through the cobblestone streets, in the opposite direction of the gate. The people grew fewer as I traveled on. I caught sight of my father's face, red and angry, as Brezza and I passed. He began to shout for me to stop, knowing what I was about to do, but I never looked back.

 

I am a warrior, not a noblewoman. I will not stand idly and leave our rescue to bumbling magicians.

 

Brezza slowed to a halt in the now-empty castle stables. He and I were usually of one mind, and the horse knew I would jump from his back the moment we neared the ajoining armory. He waited patiently as I rushed inside to take off my dress, picking up the nearest squire-sized armor. My eyes wandered to my full suit for only a moment. It was heavy, and I would need more freedom and maneuverability in fighting the syrakk. No time for shin guards, either, I decided, and pulled on a pair of high boots. I fastened some wristguards, reached for a sword and dagger, and gripped a sturdy dwarven lance with gold blade. Despite the plight of Crystlin, I found myself sighing in relief; I felt the adrenaline rush of a wonderful battle. This was what I was born to do...

 

I jumped onto Brezza's back a second time, much more freely I noted. He was excited, too. He reared and turned sharply, galloping into the courtyard and through the open castle gates, back to the city.

 

~¤~

Ryuu was slowing from loss of blood now. Perhaps it was not so easily regenerated. Weakly, she leaned against a forest tree for balance, swiping with her tail and claws. A dragon's neck arched and lunged, arched and lunged in a snakelike fashion. The Father Syrakk was in a half bug, half dragon form himself, and the senseless creature was smart enough to know it was winning.

 

Other insects were present, smaller but equally dangerous. Distarius was standing between them and Ryuu, knocking, blocking and blasting with his magic staff. A beetle claw parried and nearly knocked it from his hand. He leaned to the left and groped, managing not to drop it, but leaving himself wide open. A claw tore his robe, and possibly his chest as well. I couldn't tell.

 

My vision was blocked momentarily as I lowered a helmet over my head. I hadn't bothered to undo my royal braid, so I simply pulled it through the custom-made hole in the back.

 

Groping my lance in both hands, I urged Brezza forward. He raised his hooves and burst through the brush into the small clearing. Six of the smaller bugs turned from Distarius in surprise. Brezza's hooves flashed and broke the first chitin body we reached. A second syrakk attached from the right. I swung the butt-end of my lance, turning to the left to jab at another Syrakk with the blade end. The sharp edge severed a head. The next attack rapidly succeeded the last. I leaned, Brezza's signal to whirl aside. He bucked at the syrakk all on his own. I whistled for him to run in a wide circle, freed my legs from the stirrups, and leaped away. My feet struck hard earth. A claw swiped at my head. I ducked it. My lance plunged into the syrakk's heart, or what might have been a heart. I sensed another attack behind me and whirled to face it, but my lance would not come free from the syrakk. I let it go for now and made a defenive somersault over the new attacker's head.

 

I landed behind it, the monster out of sight for a moment. When I turned to face it, I felt my mind freeze. I was facing myself. The syrakk had mimicked my height and width, the very design of my armor, the flow of my unbraiding hair, perfectly. How could it be so powerful? I crossed myself and whispered a prayer, reaching for my dagger a moment too late.

 

Still grasping the handle, I was tackled by my clone and knocked to the grass. The helmet's dark eyes were before me. I was aware of the heavy breathing in my own helmet, the blast of Distarius's staff somewhere behind me, the weakening snarl of his dragon friend. This strange eye in our storm lasted several moments, and I wondered what a carbon copy of me could possibly do to me. Then I felt an excruciating pain in my shoulders were the syrakk gripped me. It was growing claws! I struggled, but the claws continued to curl deep into my flesh. I bent my knee under the syrakk's stomach. Its weight lifted and I was finally able to unsheath my dagger. Its incredibly sharp blade plunged straight through the mimicked armor and into a heart just like my own. There was another drawn out pause. The claws recoiled from my shoulder, and the syrakk fell aside.

 

I jumped to my feet, thanking the Father for the rush of adrenaline temporarily numbing my pain. Five lines of blood ran down each of my shoulders as I drew my sword. The first syrakk I saw took three successive slashes and fell. I was about to turn to its partner when a line of fire knocked it out of reach and into the trees. I sent a hot look to Distarius, who couldn't see my face but probably read my body language. Then we turned away from each other to fight the fresh bugs approaching from the trees. I speculated that they were being called by the humming abdomen of the Father Syrakk, whom Ryuu was still fighting. Or trying to fight.

 

¤Can't keep this up much longer!¤ the strained, echoing voice resounded.

 

"Fall back!" Distarius said to her. "You're no good dead!"

 

I could sense the dragon shrinking back behind me. I peeked in that direction between swordthrusts to see that she was shifting into a small bird. The Father Syrakk advanced, but she flew away into the trees. ¤I'll be back!¤

 

My opponent crumpled in pieces. I spun a wide circle. There was Distarius. There was Brezza. There was the Father Syrakk. No others were in sight.

 

Distarius managed to quip as he caught his breath and took a battle stance. "Father Syrakk down, and we'll be collecting our payment before the sun disappears."

 

Judging by the color of the sky, I'd say that time was close. Well, the Two had not done much to earn their payment yet, if my opinion counted for anything. Unfortunately, it rarely does.

 

We were about to face off the humming mantis-dragon when a loud buzzing reached our ears. Our opponent seemed to be expecting it, as he did not move. Six yards away, we glanced up at the sky, I cursing the obstructed view within my helmet.

 

The sky went from red to a sudden, ominous black. The buzz was deafening. Thousands of winged creatures streammed overhead, going east. The Father Syrakk crouched low and buzzed one more time, then flapped his dragon wings and shot into the air with the rest of them. Distarius and I were left standing in the field as the horde passed overhead.

 

I pulled off my helmet and gulped the fresh air, ignoring the stenches permeating around me. (Especially from Distarius). "The Thinron Mountains," I said. "They're headed for the Thinron Mountains."

 

Distarius glanced at me before returning his gaze to the flying horde. Then he looked at me again, eyes wider. "Jareena Faye?!"

 

I nodded. With my helmet removed, he recognized me as the lord mayor's daughter. "The Hold of Bakurus is in the mountain pass. That's where most of Crystlin's people are going, trying to find refuge from the Syrakk. They'll be overcome by dawn, most likely. Sooner, if those monsters fly the whole way." I whistled, and Brezza trotted over to stand behind me. "Do us all a favor and leave your weak magic behind. I don't think we require your... services." I pulled my lance free and jumped onto Brezza's back.

 

"Weak magic?" Distarius demanded. "Who's got weak magic!"

 

I smirked at him. "Weren't your robes white this afternoon?"

 

He looked down at his robes, torn here, singed there, stained halfway to the waste with sewage, and completely covered in blood. I nudged Brezza, and we galloped into the trees for the road to the mountain pass.

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

I raised my sulfur covered eyebrow at the galloping horse and its rider as they rode away. They disappeared into the darkness several yards later, only occasionally catching the orange light pouring from the fires scattered around the block. The noise of the horse’s shoes clanking against the ground echoed long enough that I forgot to keep listening to it.

 

I looked back down at my robes, which actually had lost their color and their usability. I shed no tears over it however, paying more attention to the sharp pains across my chest and shoulders. The syrakk…they were quite persistent in tearing up their meals before actually biting into them.

 

I considered healing myself, and brought my staff up to my bleeding chest, noticing the diamond’s light dimmer than I had seen it in months (Most of our jobs required less magic, mind you). I frowned and put it back down, finding I might what little magic remained for something more important later.

 

Another horse galloped past me, ignoring the puddle of muddy water it had splashed up onto my hair, face, and clothes. I nearly raised my voice at the party on the saddle, but kept my complaints to myself when I realized the horse carried a soldier of the army ALONG with several civilians from the city. They were heading toward the mountain, stragglers from the main evacuation a few minutes before.

 

I wiped my face of mud with the only remotely clean patch of my robes I could find, not sure if I had done more good than bad. I left my hair be, as it was already quite messy from the splashing in the sewer. I doubted that mud was going to do much to hurt me much more than I already had been.

 

I looked up into the sky, the cloud of bugs finally clearing above my head. The reddish dusk came back into view, not doing much for the light. My environment remained abundantly dark, much to my dismay. Again, I would have used my staff for light had it not been so exhausted of its energy. It would be at least another day before it was shining anywhere close to its usual chipper self. It was only then that I considered my situation and my thoughts drifted back to my shifting counterpart…

 

“Ryuu?” I called out, the sound echoing off the already burning forest only several yards away. I received no response. That either meant she was extremely far away from here…or had died during the struggle. Either way there wasn’t much I could do about it. She was quite capable on her own, I had gathered over the many months.

 

I sighed as a flaming tree branch snapped and landed at my feet and turned back to the city street, which was now littered in the corpses of the dead syrakk. Many of the corpses were on fire, I noticed. Few however flaunted the black flame from the dragon. Most burned with fire’s natural orange and yellow flame, unleashed upon them by yours truly.

 

I assumed the ones that weren’t aflame were impaled through the chest or head with a very large spear, in typical military fashion. I never quite agreed with that; too many creatures liked to get right back up from those types of injuries and get right back to fighting.

 

I finally began to walk along the street in the opposite direction of the trail up the mountain, my water logged shoes sloshing and leaking onto the brown and dusty road. Had I been atop an animal or given the ability to fly, I would have easily followed Jareena up to the impending battle on the mountain. As it was, I would probably show up a little late.

 

I didn’t have to look very hard for a horse that suited my needs. Many soldiers had died during the small fight and left their horses alone. I found a very large and stocky breed pacing along in an empty alleyway several yards from where I had been talking to Faye. It was probably there to avoid the fires on the main road, but the bravery of the horse wasn’t particularly on my mind. More than anything I only required something that was fast. The general rule was that the bigger they came, the faster they were. The saddle was intact, along with the headless body of a soldier that had originally occupied it.

 

I smirked at the fact that the headless body was still holding onto the leather reigns of the horse, and continued to pace toward it, checking for any signs of conflict. There wasn’t much to this simple animal. It seemed to mellow to notice me initially, letting out a snuff and slightly raising its muzzle. I put my hand up to calm it and it let out another snuff, this one evolving into a very low effort neigh. I patted its head, reaching up higher than I thought I could, and walked back along to its side.

 

Sheathing my staff to my belt loop, I once again smiled at the decapitated corpse and pushed him to the side. Gravity took hold and the armored body slid off the horses back, its hands losing hold of the reigns which fell to the animal’s back. The corpse crashed onto the alleyway floor, crashing loudly and falling limp. Blood drained along the ground and the horse’s feet. It raised its front leg to prove its unhappiness, and I rubbed the horse along its side, matting its hair up.

 

Placing my foot in the step hole hanging from the horse’s side, I flung myself onto the animals back. My robes draped over the side, and I grabbed for the reigns along the side. The horse perked back up, turning its head back to confirm that I was the one that had mounted it.

 

I let out a quick clicking sound with my tongue and the roof of my mouth, provoking the horse to start moving. It moved along, slowly at first to get out of the narrow passage the alleyway provided. Once we were onto the main roads, I snapped the reigns and the horse took off towards the mountain trail at what I could assume was probably its half speed, galloping along at an easy pace.

 

It was pretty nice. I hadn’t ridden on the back of a real animal for quite a while. The fact that it didn’t feel it necessary to feel my head with endless babble was…serene.

 

We quickly reached the end of the road, and took to the dirtier, less formed trail through the forest that led to the mountains.

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

I could have killed it. If only it fought with a shread of honor, taking me one on one. Nasty things. I ran through the woods to the Stronghold in the mountain pass. A thick mass of gold-brown hair streamed out behind me like a lion's mane. Blood rained back as well from my legs; now tanned elven skin. The gashes that covered my sides and shoulders, back and appendages soaked through my tattered black clothing. Normally, an elf would where clothign with some semblance to their surroundings, but my clothes chifting was not currently up to par.

 

I ran along as fast as my aching muscules would carry me, crashing through bush and brush and anything in my way. More scratches accumulated on my tan skin. My ears flickered around at every woodland noise, mostly the swarms of syrraks above me. What would normally be brown breeches, were now a ripped mess of black cloth fluttering around my thighs. A tattered black velvet tunic clung around one shoulder, the other had fallen down, almost ripped to shred. The strings at the neck were loose and flapped against me as a ran.

 

Every now and again I'd look up to see where the swarms were flying. They were always pulsing in one direction, to the hold fo Bakurus. They surged forward with mimiced wings. I could take their form and join ranks but it was more likely that they sniff out my unfamiliar scent and attack before a well formed plan came into my head. I urged myself to run faster. I could be a wolf or a horse right now but I felt that a humanoid being would more easily fit in with a human army.

 

My well-shaped pointed ears caught the sound of hoofbeats and the cries of human kits. My scent also picked up blood and death, my head spun with the unfavorable scents. Slanted eyes took in the carnage as a group of foolhardy youngsters stopped and tried to use their bows against the beasts. One equally young syrrak broke ranks and swooped to kill the offenders. All were killed.

 

I came up upon the blood bath and spat upon the syrrak. My nose wrinkled in their disgusting odor. The youths unstrung bow lay near his inert hand. I grabbed it up and collected their arrows and stuffed them into a quiver. I slung it over my back and set to fitting the string on the long bow. My arm muscles screamed with the gashes on them gushing. I ignored the pain only knwoing that I had to find my companion and help stop these forces. I began to run again, bow in hand, an arrow being fitted.

 

I came upon a group of stragling soldiers, reigning back their horses to search for others. I stopped to ask for an extra mount.

 

"We have one, there! He is a wild stallion, I hope you--" I nodded and didn't let the knight finish his sentance.

 

The night-black stallion reared and shied away, his rider must have been very daring to use such a mount. I grabbed at the black leather saddle and tack and vaulted onto his back. He reared and snapped back his head to bite at me. I squeazed in my knees to make him run. A ran a soothing hand down his sweat-soaked neck to calm him and coax him into cooperation. Talking in a soft voice in his ear he sprang forward into action. A war cry split the air as the horses instincts kicked in for the kill. His ear flattened back and his eye's flared a rich brown color. Adrenaline rushed into his body and he arched his neck, nostrils flared, cantering full speed.

 

He was a fine mount, completely black; he suited me well. He mane flew wildly, matching his spirit and streaming around me, entwining with my own mane. His ride was smooth and swift, like a wind crossing a plain. I'd have to ask the name of this horse, I would love to take him on as a temporary mount. Our spirits intertwined and we were one. My wild magic and his own battlelust gave us a kinship and we were one. I let go of the reigns, trusting him already to do the running on his own. I lifted the long bow and strung down a few syrraks with well-placed arrows.

 

The horse and I were an embodiment of shadows and my amber eyes flicked over the sky line only to see the millions of Syrrak forces. How could one race breed so many of their kind without being noticed until now? The shear reasoing was dumbfounding! I raced into a pack of humans, weaving the horse in and out of the wagons and other equuines. I grabbed the flapping reigns and stood in the stirrups to find the Lord Mayor at the head of the surging civilians.

 

I sat back down and with a "HE-YA!" I urged forward again.

 

¤Bring me up to the man in the robes, please.¤ I asked the horse. He whinnied joyously and was a flash of blackness streaking around his fellows. His hooves beat soflty on the ground and I swayed in the saddle, body now drenching me and dripping down to his glossy black coat. His sides pumped and his came galloping to a stop next to the Lord Mayor. The pudgy man looked at me questioningly.

 

"Lord Mayor, where has Distarius gone?" he realized who I was by my voice. He sighed and shrugged. My vision blurred and I swayed again. Shaking my head I then asked," I saw your daughter, where did she go?"

 

"Right here. Who are you?" Jareena Faye trotted up to us. Brezza whinnied and buuted my back. I pat his muzzle, he'd heard my talking to the black horse and knew who I was.

 

"Greetings, Lady Knight. You do not remember a friend?" I asked, a delicate brow quirking. She seemed to remember who I was now. "Where is the mage?" I asked urgently. I felt I shoudl probably know where he was since he and I were in this together.

 

"I saw him back there, on the outskirts of the village. Where did you get this horse?"

 

"Found 'im. Does he belong to anyone you know?"

 

"Yes, an officer. I suppose he is gone now." Her voice and expression were grim.

 

"Does he have a name? He's a fine beast." I patted the horse's shoudler and grinned to him. He snorted and shied, ready for the battle that was obviously not here.

 

"No. Come now, we must defend the people!" She gave Brezza a kick and the two of them shot forward. Defend the people. When did I become so mortal loving? I asked myself. With a shrug I sprang forward with my own horse, bow once again out and an arrow fitted to the string.

 

"You've the will of a dragon my friend!" I exclaimed to the horse, whose bloodlust carried him to Brezza and ahead. He whinnied and boomed another war cry.

 

And you are no elf! He told me. Well at least I could hear his words in my mind. The wild magic linking all creature enabled me to interperate what he wanted to be said. I laughed, the first laugh since this battle started. Jareena shot me a confused look as if to say, How can you laugh at a time like this? The horse snorted in a mean-spirited way. I realized he didn't have a very nice temperment but as long as I could talk to him, we'd be fine.

 

Have you a name, hoof-friend? I asked back. He flung his head in a negative manner. Than let me find you one. I thought.

 

 

Nuimair. With another toss of his head and a buck he agreed and ran faser.~

 

 

-Ryuu :dragon4:

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

The horse continued to prove strong. I had obviously been wrong in my thinking that a big horse meant faster legs, because what I had thought to be half speed actually turned out to be three quarters speed. It had proved more than enough however, as we were easily making our way along the trail. Between the fighting and explosions throughout the woods, there were incredibly peaceful lapses in which the only audible sound was the hooves of the mammal striking the ground of the trail, kicking up dust and shaking the earth.

 

I kept my hold on the reigns, directing the horse to travel forward. While it was probably true that such a horse would easily follow the trail on its own, I rarely found it easy to trust animals to do what I wanted them to. Sometimes though, I do wish I could believe in the animals as much as Jareena did her horse or Ryuu did…well, everything. Had this brown horse been a few shades darker, it probably would have provoked the shifter to go on and on about how her and the horse were soul mates; their fates intertwined; as ‘one’ and all that.

 

To me, however? To me this horse was just an animal. It was a strong, fast, and loyal animal; but still an animal. I hadn’t really spent enough time with Jareena and…her horses name draws a blank to me at the moment, I had only come across it once or twice…but I’m almost certain that she believes she can talk to it as well.

 

My thoughts snapped back to the situation at hand as my face caught a low branch from a tree on the trail. I let out an mmmph and my head was tossed back. The branch snapped and landed in my lap. My hands stayed on the reigns, surprisingly…but my robes once again felt the effects of injury. I brought my head back up to a level position only to spit out quite a large amount of blood from the wound my teeth had dealt my tongue into the air. As you probably know, spitting something while you’re going forward at high speed generally makes it come right back at you. It landed just under my collar, staining one of the remaining white patches. I let go of one of the reigns and checked my forehead and nose for any further injury. Save a headache a bleeding tongue, and a bruised ego, I was okay.

 

I pulled the reigns on the horse to stop it however. I had to let the headache dull down for a minute before I could continue. It was the sharp kind that provoked blurred vision and lack of thought. The horse did as I commanded, stomping when it had come to a halt, and exhaling in the typical choppy horse fashion.

 

I brought my right hand up to my head, using my thumb and middle finger to massage my temples, keeping my eyes shut. While it wasn’t really dulling the pain, it took my mind off the nagging fact that the Syrakks were remaining rather isolated before I had sent the shifter into what I presume to be their lair.

 

This is the part of the story where conscience takes hold. I caught through my bleeding and sharp pained ear the groan of what I assumed a woman or young child. Had it not be accompanied by a second voice which was crying, I probably would have shrugged it off and continued along the trail. As it was, I redirected the horse east and whipped the reigns, getting him to sprint off again.

 

We traveled through many high bushes and low trees before we got to them, through which my robes took on another beating, ripping and tearing, the branches scratching my skin more than I would have liked, or even tolerated in any other circumstance.

 

 

When I reached the clearing which housed the pair of people I had heard, I gave up on my outermost robe and removed it, throwing it on the ground. It didn’t do much for the color of my wardrobe, but certainly improved my comfort level. Under the robe was a loose fitting white shirt, tied off on the elbows with wrappings that continued down to my wrists. The same was done on my knees down to my feet, above them were fairly loose white pants, tied off with a strong belt made of the same fabric as the wrappings. It was much more tolerable in this warm weather. I would buy another robe some other time. I was growing quite partial to red anyway, having seen how it looked on me throughout most of the evening.

 

The cries I had heard came from a middle aged woman and her child, the child was tucked in between their arms, and they were sitting against a stone in the dark. She was under weight, obviously hungry. She had probably given most of the food she acquired to her son given his rather healthy looking nature. The kid was no older than eight by looking at him. They were only visible due to the fire behind them, which I quickly realized was being fueled by a dead horse and it’s rider. I trotted the horse up to them, and they looked up at me quietly.

 

“Did the bugs do this?” I asked the woman, looking down at her with my dried blood and dirt covered face.

 

“Yes…” She said, struggling to find her voice at first. “They attacked us…after one of the knights had taken us from our home and placed us on the horse’s back.”

 

“So how did it end up on fire?” I asked.

 

“The bugs did it,” She said dreadfully. “They...breathe it.” She lifted her arm and turned it to the front side to reveal the very large and very serious burn wound on it.

 

“That looks pretty bad,” I said. “Is your son okay?”

 

“Yes, he is fine…a little shaken up. He had to see a flaming knight impale a giant bug before crashing onto the ground and dying.”

 

“Sounds fun,” I said. “You two had better come along with me, we’re headed for the vill…”

 

“The village?” She asked, looking up at the sky. “You mean the village where all of those bugs are headed? Why should we go there?”

 

I shrugged at her diligence.

 

“I suppose you shouldn’t,” I said. “In fact it’s starting to look like these woods are the safest place. But I can’t leave you hear on your own. I have to take you with me.”

 

“We will be protected?” She asked. “You know some where we can go in the village?”

 

While in all reality I had no clue what the village on the mountain housed, I was in no place to say anything that would prevent this woman from coming with me.

 

“Yes,” I said. “Yes, I can keep you safe.” The woman nodded, and I lowered a hand to help her up out of her seated position. She kept a hand locked with her son’s to help him up as well, and a look of relief fell upon her previously worried face.

 

“You’d better hand me him,” I said, pointing to her child. I scooted forward on the horse to make room for the two of them on the saddle.

 

 

 

When the two were seated and comfortable, we continued back to the trail to find my comrades. Sitting in the front, I managed to take the brunt of the low branches…

[Jareena Faye]

*3rd person... sorry, gotta cheat!*

Where the forest ended and the foothills began, a crescent cloud of insects buzzed in the sky. Below, a stream of evacuees flowed from the forest road and now balked at the sight before them. Those who had reached the opposite side of the valley before the syrakk were now being mercilessly dive-bombed--- unarmed men, women, and children could be seen scattering like tiny colorful dust particles. Remnants of guards, soldiers, and knights galloped across the clearing, appearing to move so slowly across such a great distance. They were scattered and few, but charging straight into battle nevertheless.

 

To both sides of the battlefield rose great cliffs. Separated from the crowds, a man and a teenage boy were climbing and praying that the syrakk would not see them.

 

"We should be fighting!" the young boy shouted breathlessly, still trying to climb.

 

"Better to win the battle from a cliffside then waste your blood and lose!" the wiser man replied. The old soldier reached a ridge and pulled the teenager up beside him. He glanced to the west, where they had left Crystlin behind.

 

"The city burns," said the boy.

 

"Nay, boy, that's our signal. I am glad to see it still burns. It means our main army at the Hold of Bakurus saw it hours ago."

 

"What are we doing up here?" the boy asked impatiently. Not yet familiar with the horrors of battle, he was eager to return.

 

The soldier led him along the ridge until they found a dam. "Help me with these pulleys," he grunted, and the two of them managed to lift the wooden barrier. A dark river streamed onto the ridge, gushing across the cliffside in an ordered fashion. "Climb lower," the soldier told the boy, kneeling with his flint and stone. The boy protested and began to ask about the man's plan, but he was silenced, and with one meaningful look moved to do as the old soldier bade him.

 

The soldier struck his flint. Sparks flew. He faltered and struck again, falling back with the simultaneous flare of newborn fire. A grim smile appeared on his hard face as he watched the river of oil ignite, lighting the man-made waterway. Then he quickly climbed down after the boy. He doubted they would survive. But better one or two in the place of many.

 

~¤~

JAREENA FAYE

 

"Look!" some one shouted from amidst the throng I fought in. I had just killed the closest syrakk, and had just enough time to follow a few pointing fingers to a cliffside. Some one had lit the Black River. Most of the syrakk army surged toward it, perhaps expecting to find more humans where there was more fire. Whatever their assumptions, they were distracted, and I couldn't say for how long.

 

"Flameshifter!" I roared, leaping back onto Brezza's back as he swept by. We neared the dragon scum riding on my dead friend's stallion, both of them too caught up in the thrill of battle to pay me much mind.

 

"The main army is distracted!" I screamed hoarsely. "Lead the people into the secret caves, down that canyon. I'm going back for the stragglers!"

 

I turned Brezza around and urged the tired steed to run to the back of the long crowd. A moment later, Ryuu blew past me in a black wind, reaching the end of the exodus in double-time. I glared at her--- obviously she wanted to be in the battle as long as possible ---and turned back to do her job. "Follow me!"

 

I led the people down a canyon, my horse moving at a weary trot which the weary people barely kept up with. Using my Dwarven lance as a key, I unlocked the secret caves for the stone doors to rearrange themselves. The people needed no more direction. They ran into the fine-carved tunnels which eventually led to a secret entrance at the Hold, a three-day journey away. Confident that they would follow in a steady stream, I left them at the entrance and rode back to the battle.

 

Just as I'd thought, the syrakk were not kept busy with the fire for long. It still burned, but they had now returned their attention to the stream of live meat in the valley below. Our few soldiers had regrouped, and fought the dive-bombing enemy as best as possible. I felt weariness weighing on my bones, but knew I had to keep fighting. No one could afford to stop.

 

Just when I thought I would drop from mere exhaustion, an organized cry drowned out the screams of the syrakk. I looked up. Another black sea of individuals was swarming down the foothills toward us. It was an army. I smiled tiredly. My uncle the general, leading the reserves of the Hold to our rescue! Already their arrows riddled the bug-filled sky...

 

~¤~

The battle lasted long into the night. During that time, we managed to keep the syrakk busy enough to not follow the people to the caves. Amazingly, most of the retreating army made it in safely and locked all the syrakks out. The inner caves, however, held their own madness. There were no tunnels leading to the left or right--- only forward ---but didn't keep people from becoming loss. I remember a woman's frantic face being thrust in my own tired one, demanding to know whether I'd seen some one somewhere... I blinked tiredly, and she moved on. Soldiers and horses bumped me from all sides. I may have accidentally cut some one with my spear. Everywhere, some one was asking a question or fighting for a place to lie down or looking for a loved one. I barely managed to hoist myself onto Brezza one last time and allow him to carry me through the throng.

 

Brezza, although equally tired, obviously had his own ideas. I looked up when he stopped to see we were standing near another sweaty horse, jet black, and standing next to him a wounded elf.

 

I slipped from the saddle and leaned against Brezza for a moment, then began unfastening the saddle. "I see you made it in safely."

 

"As safely as one can," Ryuu replied. She swayed, looking even more disoriented as I was. I wondered how much blood she had lost in the last few hours. "Any sign of Distarius?"

 

"You would know better than I." Were he here, I suspect he would go on and on about the tidiness of his robes, moreso than he would even about people lost in the woods. Too tired to give Brezza the proper rub-down he needed, I simply dumped his tack on the stone floor and sank to use it as a pillow. I examined my arms and legs. Should have brought more armor...

 

My dead friend's horse sank to its knees nearby, and Ryuu leaned against its side. "I did help you fight this battle, you know. You could show a little grattitude."

 

"You just want my father's gold," I grumbled. "I don't trust magicians, and dragons even less. He never should have summoned you."

 

"We're more help than you."

 

I opened my eyes to smile at her sourly. "I killed a dragon once." When she looked at me with a mixture of rage and shock, I added, "He was destroying a village. What choice did I have?"

 

She began to sat up, then winced as if in pain and sank back against the stallion. "You shouldn't judge me by my race. You knights are all alike..."

 

"You shouldn't judge me by my profession," I replied with a smile.

 

"Then don't judge Distarius by his."

 

That was a good comeback. I was too tired to think of something to say to that. Ryuu's voice lacked the energy a good temper needed, as well. We both stared at each other for a long time, until we fell asleep.

Edited March 3, 2003 by Jareena Faye

[Jareena Faye]

Ohhh, one last thing dudes. The syrakk still know to head for the Hold. I suspect an intelligent mind behind all this. http://www.themightypen.net/public/style_emoticons/default/ohmy.gif *gasp!*

 

In other news... yes, I know I'm being a jerk to you guys right now!

[Distarius_WhiteRobes]

RPG POST: “Wow, I Really Have to Cut Back on the Gore”

 

Setting: Night time in the forest, just off to the side of the trail leading to the hold. A few minutes have past since Distarius had picked up the two civilians who were abandoned by their escort after a slightly shifted form of the Syrakk managed to breathe fire on to the horse and the knight. Along the mountain can be seen the effects of a large scale battle taking place between the Syrakks and the Knights with help from the shifting dragon, Kokuryuu.

 

Distarius now rides along with the two civilians until what can easily be presumed as a Syrakk or two modifies its attack strategy.

 

)()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()(

 

The horse jolted upward at the pain being dealt to its underside from the forest floor. The horse raised on to its hind legs, roaring upward and immediately tossing off the mother companion seated in the rear most of the saddle. I had managed to turn only in time to catch the boy by his black collar however; he almost fell off just to follow his mother. He let out childish cries that I ignored, paying more attention to stabilizing the horse who was continuing to buckle at something invisible to me underneath its large body.

 

The horse never came back down onto its two front shoes. Before it could regain its balance it fell to its right side, too filled with pain to move. We landed with a clap that would have sent even the sturdiest knights fleeing.

 

The boy landed safely, slightly rolling onto his backside to prevent any further troubles. I, however, became stuck beneath the horse’s crying body when both my leg and staff were trapped under it parallel along side each other under the saddle. After a quick yell of pain, I stabilized myself and focused on the boy beside me.

 

“Are you injured,” I ask, breathing heavily as I struggled to pull free my ever twisting leg.

 

“No,” The boy started. “No, I’m okay. My mother?” He said, still sniffling from tears he had been giving throughout the course of the night, and to those which he was still giving.

 

His mother answered by getting up off of the dirty and foliage covered ground she had landed on. She seemed relatively alright as well, save the small twigs scattered about in her hair which had come undone from its tightly coiled bun. She looked around for only a few seconds, at which point she let out a short cry and ran towards her son, picking him up as soon as she was near him.

 

The horse let out another large cry, this one provoking me to assess the situation. Two syrakks were clawing away at the belly of the animal, ripping away flesh and spurting blood onto their small mantis like faces, which were continually opening and closing to bite down on the wounded horse. My eyebrows raised at how quickly they were to us, and the woman yelped and crouched down beside me, sheltered by only the midsection of the horse, pending the Syrakks didn’t get bored with it.

 

“Do something,” She said, looking forward at them. “Get rid of them.”

 

I gave her a bitter look at first and shook it off, trying to calm the situation.

 

“I can’t do that,” I said, “My leg is caught under the saddle.”

 

She looked down to confirm what I said, gaining a look of dread across her already aged face.

 

She looked at her son, and kissed him on the forehead before setting him down next to her. She turned her attention back to my caught leg. Before doing anything, she lifted what folds of the saddle she could, checking for…well, I wasn’t quite sure what she was checking for. She seemed to find what she was looking for just beyond the saddle, along the edge of the horse’s back.

 

“Lie still,” She said and reached down to her own pack along her white gown. Whether I had noticed it before or not, I suddenly realized the woman (whose name I still didn’t know) had just a bit of an accent. I couldn’t place my finger on the dialect, however.

 

As for her command, neither I nor the horse were in any position to argue. The horse had already given up on its life, lying perfectly still as the Syrakks continued to feed on its underside.

 

She pulled out a very sharp and smooth edged dagger out of her pack, bringing it up to her eyes to check for any problems. Finding that it was in good order, she brought it down to the horse and the saddle which was secured by lighted leather bands that were digging in to the horses hide given the weight being brought down on them in this position.

 

Rather than waste time trying to cut the leather straps, she plunged the dagger into the hide of the horse, sticking it around so that it was positioned beneath the straps. She cut upward, even more blood draining onto my pant leg. I didn’t really care at this point, but what would my story be without every possible drop of blood being told about? The sawing motion caused the blade to burst through the skin of the dead horse, where it instantly made contact with the tightened straps.

 

The leather snapped with a pop, instantly relaxing the saddle. My leg suddenly caught a bit more freedom to move, and I frantically wriggled it free. The woman pocketed her dagger once more, the blood getting on whatever else she was keeping in there. She turned back and reached for her child, placing him once more in her arms.

 

I shot back up to my feet as quickly as possible, my own adrenaline pulsing stronger than I would have preferred. My staff, which I had brought to my hands as quickly as possible, was slightly brighter than it had been when I left the city, not nearly enough to keep us completely safe.

 

The Syrakks made a clicking noise while looking up from their meal to spot us. They’re heads jerked back as they did, and they turned to face each other. I presume they were doing it to communicate with one another…but I paid that no attention. Instead I used what magic was left to send a fleeting blast of flame to the bugs, who instantly caught it and cried out in pain.

 

“Run!” I shouted to the mother, who had already turned to keep her child’s vision away from the flaming images. She bolted forward, her legs moving faster than I would have guessed they would.

 

“Where to?” She asked back, turning back and raising her voice.

 

“Just keep running, I’ll think of something,” I said, keeping pace quite nicely now that I didn’t have a draping robe to slow me down.

 

Had we stayed there longer, I would have noticed that the Syrakks had managed to burrow their way through the ground right under the horse, taking it completely by surprise (not something that can easily be done to horses, you know). With that knowledge I probably could have come up with a better plan than running along the forest floor.

 

I put it together when the ground my front foot landed on suddenly rose in elevation to the point where I was knocked backward and fell to the ground. My head landed first, dealing quite the ache. The ground finally gave way to the Syrakk beneath it, which shook the dirt off of its shelled exoskeleton.

 

It let out a high pitched screech and turned to face me, angry that it had not killed with its initial blow. I brought my staff back up to me, checking the diamond for any hint of power left in it. Alas, it was dark, stone colored, and void of any energy for the time being. The Syrakk crouched to pounce, and I considered my options.

 

There are only so many things a person in my situation can do, you know. Knowing that I was out of help from ‘magic’ for the moment, I flipped a hidden switch carved into the top of the staff. The switch was actually embedded in the small amount of wood that covered the diamond. The result of lifting said switch was insurance. Locks let go, and pushed against the staff sides.

 

It may be forbidden, but as far I knew there was no one around to tell on me. The entirety of the wooden staff separated just below the diamond casing, revealing about an inch of metal interior. I reached down to the loosened wood, and stripped it off of the blade it hid. A sheering metallic sound went corresponded, and when it was removed I tossed the wooden casing to the side.

 

The Syrakk wasted no more time. It leapt into the air, screeching and extending its claws. I placed my free hand back on the staff, and pointed it forward. It caught the syrakk in the arm, and it let out another piercing screech. It slid off, tearing through the hard exterior of the beast. It backed off to the side, extending its mandibles in an attempt to threaten me.

 

I got back up to my feet, flipping the staff around in my hand, I suppose more than anything just to show off. When the sword was in a relaxed position, I lunged at the screeching beast.

Edited March 4, 2003 by Distarius_WhiteRobes

[Kokuryuu Flameshifter]

My eyes fluttered open. I shook my throbbing head and sweat droplets formed on my brow. My vision blurred and I had to drop my head back and breath deep breaths to regain control of myself. I felt sick to my stomach and head.

 

The sickness ebbed away as I soon remembered where I was. Not safe in a bed in some in or curled as a cat in someones lap, but leaning against my new friend in some mortal-reeking cave. The cave was a reminder of something long ago. Unexpectedly I lapsed into my memory of a time LONG LONG ago....

 

 

 

Above me craned the neck of a glittering being. Silver crystals formed over her sinuous body, ending in a tail that wrapped lovingly around my tiny fragile form. Another head moved in my short-ranged view. It was dark, barely discernable form the rocky overhang above them. I moved off my tiny-spiked back adn chirped a high note. Two muzzles came down to me and nestled close. I felt warm and my yet primitive scenses caught the aroma of sulphur, acid and flame. The smells tickled my nose and I sneezed, black puffs of flame and acid spurting out and licking my father figure in the snout. He seemed to chuckle, his obsidian colored scales unscathed by the fireball I hiccuped out.

 

The silver figure came back into view and licked my forehead, I cooed and snuggled up close, tumbling out of my shell-bed. I fell onto her narrow snout and she lifted me high in the air. I chirped again and spoke in the language of hsses and snorts and chirps ad whistles all dargosn kits are born knowing. I couldn't yet converse with my parents any other way.

 

Days went by and I learned their names. My Sire was Cronoss, a high-ranking black male. My dam was Khinstha, the kit of a silver warrior, one who worked with human knights. I loved them both. Being that they were cross-breeding chromatic and metalic, something that was never done, i was the only one of my litter. They raised me alone, deep in that cave, away from where others might harm me.

 

I grew strong the first year or so; dragons don't grow very fast but my mixed blood somehow altered my lifestyle. I was soon big enough to venture on my own. I was out one day hunting when i returned to find the cave collapsed. My parents were gone, killed.... destroyed...

 

My world of solitude was shattered. I figured humans would do this, i never knew what my kindred were like. I didn't know there were more of us. I was alone with nowhere to go. I lived alone in a forest of animals, learnign their ways and their abilities. I was soon able to adapt myself to their fomrs and shapes--becoming them.

 

Mortals assailed me and lost their lives from my sneeky ways. Many many years passed, the world changed yet I stayed isolated from humanity, never trusting but always doubting. I learned dragon law quickly, finding a small band of travelling yellows. I was an outsider to their clan but still their curious and sentimental ways brouhgt out the silver in me and made me thirst for more knowledge. I was soon walking among humans and elves and dwarves, still not trustung them but findign them... amusing. I climbed up in the dragon ranks to become the Flameshifter of the Conclave. Until one day I met a most peculiar man. He was just about as curious as I was, though he wore all white, whereas I prefered black.

 

We became eventual friends. Distarius and I.....

 

 

 

I snapped back. I'd dozed off again. I didn't want to sleep because of the unsettling dreams it envoked. I realized now that Distarius had yet to return. I looked around.. Only Brezza and Jareena were visible. I stood up, wounds aching but caked with silvery-black blood. I found Nuimair already awake and waiting for me. He butted my shoulder and urged me to ride. I found that tears were streaking down my face. Good thing no one saw.

 

I grabbed up the unstrung long bow and easily strung it with the string coiled in my belt. I mounted the night black gelding and launched out of the gates to riade as the embodiment of shadow, moving unnoticed in the night.

 

Tears still stung my eyes and the winds blew them back. i tried to blink them away but the slanted elven eyes still poured out moisture. I was intent on findin my friend and not losing yet another life close to mine.~

 

 

-Ryuu :dragon4:

 

OOC: Excuse the shortness but I had little time to do this and I was talking to a certain two people during the time I was typing.... ::ahem::

[Jareena Faye]

Thanks Ryuu! You did a good job, and it wasn't too short AT ALL.

 

I love you! (And I don't say that to many people!)

[Jareena Faye]

Yeah it's me again, the obsessive compulsive who would sit here and post all day if she could. I can't believe I've turned into such a 'board junkie. But here I am. Now, for your reading pleasure... hah, as if you're not bored already... a very exciting post of dialogue.

 

~¤~

None of us could say when exactly it became morning. The underground tunnel remained as dark as ever, but eventually new torches were lit and the tired and wounded began to move about again. Some were still looking for their families. To my tired ears, it sounded like some just wanted to cause trouble. But I'm getting off-subject. Either way, it was the so-called morning, and after eating the dried carrot I found in my saddle pouch, I was refitting Brezza and checking his shoes.

 

I was lifting his hind leg, bent over a hoof with a pair of plyers in my hand, when he found me.

 

"Where's your elf friend?"

 

I looked up briefly and recognized Colin ap Warren, a Knight of the Rose like myself. His hair had been bleached white during a battle against an evil wizard, making him appear older than he was. He was actually only two years older than me. I'd known him since he came to work at the Hold of Bakurus as a fourteen-year-old stablehand. He'd worked his way into the regiments since then.

 

"I don't know," I said in answer to his question. "She left before I awoke. Perhaps she left the cave. I don't care, so long as the syrakk aren't alerted to our presence."

 

"You didn't find the elf fascinating?"

 

"She wasn't an elf. She was a shape-shifting dragon."

 

"That explains her fighting. What of Samuel's horse?"

 

"She took it with her, I suppose."

 

"As what? A snack on the way out?"

 

"Who knows what a dragon wants with a horse?"

 

I wedged the last nail free and removed Brezza's shoe. Colin looked incredulous. "What are you doing?"

 

"One of his shoes came loose. Better that he walks with no iron at all."

 

"The cave floor will be rough on his hooves."

 

"I know. But..." I shrugged helplessly as I freed his leg from my grasp. Fussing with my unkempt hair, I asked, "How was the battle for you? You don't look much worse for wear."

 

"Thirty-two syrakk," Colin grinned. "And not even a scratch."

 

I rolled my eyes. Why do men like to keep track of bloodshed?

 

"I thought you might be hungry," he continued, holding out a piece of bread. "Luckily, ap Warren always comes through."

 

"Always carries food you mean," I smiled. "Thank you." I held the bread precariously in my dirty hand before biting into it.

 

"How did you enjoy your months at Crystlin? With your father?"

 

"I didn't," I said sullenly. "I hadn't seen the man since he sent me to the hold at two years of age! I wonder if he even gave me a thought while the general's wife tutored me. The knighting, that's what bothered him. All of a sudden, I'm supposed to be a lady at his side. I shouldn't wonder if the syrakk have done Crystlin some good. The whole place should be demolished, so they can start anew! The architecture is wonderful, but the care is abominable. I spent my days running about the castle getting lost and trying to show the servants how to clean the place much less themselves and my father is, is... I don't know." I suddely became quiet, and realized how much I had been talking. Colin knew everything in my heart now.

 

He was smiling, used to the way I talked when I was angry. "It looks like a little danger convinced your father to let you fight, though."

 

"He didn't," I mumbled. "I went on my own."

 

"Ah..."

 

"He isn't around, is he?" I asked, looking up sharply.

 

"Well, he's somewhere in here," Colin said. "Can't say where, though. But he's your father. You don't have to avoid him, Jareena."

 

"He avoided me," I said, turning to climb into the saddle. "When he sent me away all those years ago. That man isn't my father. He's a stranger."

 

Colin knew what was really bothering me. "Forgive, lest you not be forgiven," he said softly.

 

I looked at him, then closed my eyes to lift a short prayer of repentance. "Things were simpler before he wanted me back."

 

Colin didn't say anything. I saw him step around a small family huddled on the floor to reach for the reins of his own horse, a steely dapple gray with no name. He picked up his lance and climbed into the saddle, turning to ride up beside me. "If I may say... it seems you're angry at him for leaving you, and now that he's asked you to return, you're angry that he wants you."

 

I worked my jaw silently, upset that he was right.

 

"Come on then," Colin said on a lighter note. "The Order is amassing on the east end of the tunnel. The army will line up two by two and lead the people on to Bakurus." He took on a serious, melodramatic tone. "I would be honored if you would keep me compay, Lady Faye."

 

I stifled a laugh and said solemnly, "So be it, Sir Colin."

Edited March 5, 2003 by Jareena Faye