A Dragons' War

[Stormelle]

Pip wasn't much used to carrying two passangers, but she was air born, and ready for whatever journey may take place before them. First things first, they would have to find shelter and it would have to be after the pressence of the evil faded.

As she began to send her thoughts to Cerast she stopped, a new loud and extremly tranquill vocie ecohed into the heads of anyone who could preceive it.

Dragons, I can help you...The thing which follows you has recently attacked my people. Please, I beg of you, land. I can help you... the thoughts fadded but then a second wave came. Red dragon...Your rider...Pip and Cerast! Sudden shock seemed to come from the thoughts, now the thoughts where directed only at them, and only heard by them. My lady, please...I can help you!

Cerast eyes flashed, this person knew her and Pip. How could that be? They had kept their identities secret from most everyone, meerly telling them their first names...Now sir name, it would have given away Cerasts' title.

She glanced toward Elijah and Aedreath, they may not understand, but a burning curiosity had been mounted inside both rider and dragon. How this person knew them they must know. As Pips' body angled downward Rish gave a startled surprise as the wolves howl ecoched through the night. His newly found energy would help some but not much if a battle waited for them.

Mithras came to a sudden stopp as a flash of red glinted in the sky under a peek of the moon. The fur upon her back was beginning to change, it had become corser and her legs became shorter and her eyes seemed to fix upon Adrian.

A gleaming red-brown wolf stood there the graceful doe had been, she glanced at Adrian, Please...I must conceal my identity somewhat...Will you play along with my story if the riders come? she questioned, although they where coming no matter what, or so she thought.  

[the friendly fiend]

Aedreath narrowed his eyes at the thought of it. His emerald eyes gazed around the landscape, could this be what he had been sensing?
Elijah...he thought in question, waiting for her decision, he trusted her to make them, but also confided her also.
He flapped his wings and stopped for a moment as he let himself glide a little lower.

Elijah looked around again as she too, thought something of what she heard. She also gazed at the haze in the distance as a peculiar scent filled the air, her nose puckered slightly as she looked back to Aedreath and thought, we shall follow Cerast. She fingered her sword again as she also fingered her necklace inside her armor again. She sighed as she remembered well her old life, although hated, not forgotten. Becoming a guardian was her only escape, she was lucky to have come this far.

White light flashed before her eyes, as she saw a young girl running around the courtyard the of the old ruined palace in a kingdom she vaguely remembered. The girl was laughing, she saw dragons riding into the sunset in the distance, she was waving to them, waving goodbye.
"Elijah!" a boys voice called, the girl turned around, confused, until she saw a boy, around her age, if not older.
Elijah saw herself, as a little girl, run up to the boy she remembered well, he smiled and took her hand, now she remembered, he was two years older than her, no three? Three. She thought in her mind. Little Elijah skipped away with his hand in hers as they disappeared down a small path leading back to the main city.
More white light flashed in front of her.
Elijah! She heard Aedreath calling to her, she looked up and remembered their situation. She looked to Cerast and the man her dragon, Pip, was also trying to support, the man, Rish. She stared at them for a moment as the scent of past drifted through the air slightly. Aedreath...I will try...she thought quietly.

The boys face flashed in front of her eyes again as Elijah flinched, she couldn't take these memories all at once, especially of him.
Kai...Elijah thought...
Elijah! Aedreath scolded her again, she looked at him as his eyes angrily stared hard at her, she was surprised to see his fierceness.
"Aedreath, forgive me." She spoke aloud for a moment as she focused her thoughts around the current situation as she looked to Cerast and said to her, "Let's go, we have to leave very soon if we wish to survive, wherever you lead." She didn't mean to be commanding, but they needed to leave and she was signaling for them to lead the way.

Adrian narrowed his eyes, she had transformed into one of them, but she truly wasn't exactly like one of them. He took a step forward towards her, nearly all the way to her face, he was still a little bigger, in wolf form, than she was, he stared into her eyes for a moment, gazing into them, trying to decide whether to trust her or not. She had entered his thoughts, she had transformed into wolf, one of his other brethren growled as they all took a step forward. He clenched his jaw but kept his mouth shut as he nodded towards her and thought back to her, she should be able to hear it, since she had turned into a wolf.
We will follow, your cover....he looked away at his brothers and then back to her, but promise me before you leave from us forever that you will explain your intentions.
He hardly waited for a reply as he took a step forward and sighed from his snout as he looked back at his brothers and said to them as well, Be calm brothers, there is no reason to fear.  

[Stormelle]

Cerast looked toward Elijah briefly, " There is someone among those wolves who knows us...Which is rare..."
Rish raised an eyebrow, listening silently, his muscles had tightened slightly protectively around Cerast as she continued.
"I must know who she is...And if she truely can help us..." Cerast glanced at Elijah. Directing her thoughts only at her. Would it not be what we needed? Both you and Rish are already tired...And I am not the warrior I should be... she trailed off, looking up toward Elijah.

Mithras glanced at him slightly, nodding and stopping, looking toward the skies again. Two dragons where flying in place, almost as if the riders where talking. Mithras snarled slightly, she did not trut this other rider and her dragon, but that was meerly her fear of strangers taking over. She shook her head and then attempted to calm herself as he waited.  

[the friendly fiend]

Elijah looked at Cerast and narrowed her eyes. She nodded silently once. We are all not who we are supposed to be, as am I...we may have more in common than we thought. No more talk, it is dangerous, but I trust you. She looked at Cerast's friend, Rish, and nodded again and then looked back to her, you are right, we must hurry.

Adrian looked at Mithras as he sat down and waited for the dragon's approach, a curious feeling growing in him. He watched her, who was this creature of wonder? His emerald eyes searched her but couldn't come up with anything, he didn't know who those men were or that there even was a village nearby, which was unusual for a pack of wolves to not know about. He sighed again and lay in wait.  

[Stormelle]

Cerast nodded slightly and sent thoughts to Pip, who nodded and angled herself downward once more. Thankyou came Cerast's fleeting thougt, directed toward Elijah as they landed.

Mithras' ears perked forward as the dragons came lower and then landed. She waited impatiently as a woman with silver hair that fell elegantly around her. She didn't say anything but meerly looked toward her dragon, who had swung it's head around and was helping the other pssanger down.

Cerast glanced at the wolves infront of her, the redish one was looking straight at her with bright and clear eyes, Cerast looked nervously toward Elijah but didn't do anything, waiting for her other friend to dismount.  

[Stormelle]

Cerast stepped forward, feeling Rish's encouraging sqeeze of her hand before he stepped to her side deffensively. He glanced at the red wolf, her eyes where oddly familar and then suddenly he felt her presence as she sent fourth her thoughts to the three humans before her.

I promised you help, but first, please may I ask...You, rider of the dark red dragon, who are you and how do you know M'Lady?

Cerast winced slightly, she'd not told Elijah who she was in truth, and she didn't want it coming froma stranger, but she couldn't interfere now.  

[the friendly fiend]

Aedreath disobeyed her orders as he stepped forward slightly. Elijah was in just a shock, but she knew better than to show it. She dug her staff harder in the earthen floor as her grey-blue eyes narrowed slightly again as she looked at the reddish wolf, apart from the others. Her black hair lifted on end as the wind blew past them softly.
Elijah, she did seem familiar, it could be expected.
Now is not the time for formalities, Aedreath.
Elijah!

She took a step forward, her armored boots made a rustling noise against the dirt, her breastplate made a slight clank, her sword made a noise in her sheath. Everything was quiet, everyone noticed the small noises.

Elijah gazed at the red wolf, their eyes meeting.

I am a Dragon Guardian of the western sky, I have come far in my journey, I met Cerast, or how you prefer as M'lady, not too long ago, but it appears that I may trust her, and whether her faction in this country I know not, and whether I find out or not I swear my allegiance. She knows I may be trusted, as all Guardians are. My name is Elijah Rose, from a line of ancient dragon riders, my dragon is Aedreath, of the Sin line of ancient dragons, I have come here for a reason, and at this time a reason I know not. I am only guided by the wind...  

[Stormelle]

Mithras smiled, and bowed slightly and in a flurry of wind and a slight glow the wolf vnaished, replaced by a human girl with large clear blue eyes. She smirked, "Elijah, your name scrapes at my memory, but that is not the problem. Lady Cerast." she stood, turning her attention to Cerast who gasped seeing her eyes, Rish stepped forward his eyes narrowed slightly fixed on this shapeshifter.

"Calm down Rish, I mean no harm, had I meant harm you would no longer be standing." she pointed out and stepped forward, putting her hands up in a sort of 'I mean no harm' questure. Rish growled slightly but as Cerast's hand touched his shoulder he relaxed andwatched as Cerast went forward to meet Mithras.

"You, it has been to long. How did you manage to get away?"

"I didn't, I only escaped now, they helped me." Mithras said, fgueaturing at the wolves behind her.

Cerast looked at them and bowed slightly, "You have my gratitude. Mith, what's ha-"

Mithras cut her off, "I promised you help, standing here isn't help. Go mount Pip. Rish, come here." Mithras guestured toward Rish who stepped forward a curious expression on his face. Mithras smiled, pulling her hands together and then saying something in the ancient tongue, a word of healing, and then put her hands upon Rish's shoulders. A faint blue glow crept down and around his down, small visable scratches healed and vanished.

Rish gasped and smiled, "It has been too long indeed." he knew only one person who had such healing ability and she had many names, Mithras or Mith being one of them. He stepped back and then moved swiftly back to Cerast, who was mounting Pip.

"Elijah? Have you any injuries?" Mithras questioned, turning her head toward the other dragon rider. "If so I can heal them." she said matter of factly.

OOC: A long one! O.O :O  

[the friendly fiend]

Elijah nodded at Mithras' reply as she watched everything happen before her. She stood silently in the background and was glad that they needed to get going, she had needed to speak to Aedreath about this. She looked back at the other wolves who had accompanied this shape shifter, they probably don't have much knowledge of the situation either, she thought.

She looked back up when she realized that Mithras was speaking to her. She had seen her healing powers and was slightly impressed. She shook her head and spoke aloud, "No, I'm fine, thank you." As she was told, she mounted Aedreath again, her attention now grabbing at him.
Aedreath, who is she? She asked him hopefully.
Which one? The Lady or the shape shifter? He asked as he glanced back at her. She looked up to him.
Both.

Adrian watched everything happen so fast, a Lady and a Dragon Guardian, riding together? Didn't sound right, yet somehow....He narrowed his eyes again and nodded politely when this Lady Cerast acknowledged them.
He looked back to Mithras, she had turned human again, she was obviously a shape shifter, he had known that before, but there was something else to...something he couldn't really point...He brushed the thought away as sort of without thinking, he changed back into a human. His black hair lifted as well as the wind blew through the trees. It was times like this he was glad that he could change with his clothes back on. Beforehand, he had ordered his brothers that they should stay in wolf form, Mithras was right, wherever they needed to go, they needed to get there fast.  

[Stormelle]

Cerast smiled at Mithras as the other woman turned her back, and then she smiled largely at Rish, "It's been far to long since we've seen her." He nodded, but said nothing, helping her get aboard the saddle.

"Pip, can you carry us both?"

Pip shrugged, I can if need be.

He smiled, "I shall run with the wolves." he said, directing his words toward both Pip and Cerast as he turned his back and walks calmly back toward the other group.

Mithras turned her head slightly toward him as he came near, "Did my healing give you that much energy?"

"No, but Pip needs to be able to dodge anything if something attacks them up there..." he whispered, not wanting Cerast to hear though he knew Pip could hear him and probably Aedreath as well.

Mithras nodded and then turned her attention to Adrian, "You have my word I will explain this, but for now, we must head as far away from that as possible." she said, point toward the sky where something black and ominous was gathering.  

[Stormelle]

Mithras looked to Rish, "I will try and help you if your tire before we rest, but I cannot garentee anything. I am sorry my friend." she said before once more become a wolf. She let out a howl and charged forward as a light snow began to fall from the grey clouds above.

Rish nodded and lowered his body toward the ground, running swiftly alongside the wolves. He was not human, at least not fully, this much was clear as he kept up easily with the group.

Cerast's eyes narrowed, she rested her hand on the hilt of her sword and looked to the skies her eyes darkening slightly, something new stured inside her as she hugged herself to Pip's body as the dragon became airborn.

Where are we headed?

I'm not sure, follow Mithras...

Pip angled herself upward, but glanced slightly toward the ground her eye fixing upon the redish wolf, who seemed to give off a slight glow as the sky darkened. Thunder clashed at their backs and a hising noise ecohed through the air.

Cerast swung her head around and gasped, fear gripped her as she saw to large golden, glowing eyes staring out at her from the dark clouds.

As the snow began to fall Mithras felt something shiver up her spine and she skidded to a halt, her eyes searching the sky, she swiftly spotted Pip and Aedreath and whatever was behind him. A snarl ripped from her throat. Her powerful thoughts ecohed into all the minds near by, Rish, take them to Le'Ai! And do not look back. Before Rish could reply Mithras had sprung into the air, a red and gold glow eminating from her body as she vanished so did the golden eyes.  

[the friendly fiend]

Adrian followed Mithras, howling. He could hear his brothers howl back to him, as soon as she lifted into the air, after her powerful thoughts, he directed his gaze toward the demon...or whatever he was. He growled under his teeth again.

Elijah stared into the golden eyes for a moment, a burst of bright light hit her mind like nothing she'd ever felt before. She knew this evil. She had sworn her life to defeat it, and yet she knew that it wasn't alone. She spit in disgust towards the ground, Aedreath tried to calm her, but angry as she was, he too was furious. He roared like he never had before.

"Aedreath." Elijah whispered, she knew he could hear her.
"Aedreath do you remember?" She whispered, she knew this would stir up feelings she hadn't felt in a long time.
"Do you remember why we fight?" She whispered, her eyebrows furrowing downward, her anger growing.
"To survive...and to protect the ones we love..." She heard him say aloud.
"The ones we love...." Elijah whispered...