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“Just a minute~” Chimed a woman’s voice from the opposite side of the door. The frantic movements of random objects from within the house as she breathed words of frustrations at the objects blocking her path, “I’m coming… Just a bit stranded at the moment.”

Slithering around the scattered furniture that cluttered the main floor of the small home, Ruvaak made his way to the door and using the talons of his wings he hooked the edge of the partially opened door and pulled it back enough that a crack of light entered the home. Peering his dark purple head out into the light, he tipped his head upward to see a monstrously large form blocking the exit to the outside world. Slowly pulling his head back from the crack in the door he gently unhooked his talon and brushed his tail against the door until it closed back to where he had pulled it from. The scratching of his talons could be heard across the house as he made his way away from the door.

Making her way through the chaos from within, a tanned hand firmly grasped the door and pulled it open, bashing it into an obstacle on the other side of the door, “Oh~ that’s where the stool went! I’m so sorry, I’ve been doing some-” she brushed her frizzy hair from her face as she met his eyes and froze, “cleaning…” she uttered as the fight or flight instinct began to set in. Her eyes dilated as she stared into the boys' eyes, “Can I help you?” she squeaked while gripping tight to the edge of the door, trying to not hide behind it.

Realizing they had company Remus stirred from his office,“Aerie, Who’s at the door… Let’em- Dear Chi! What happened to the blessed- Aerie!? When you said you were distracting yourself from checking on Gaddok I didn’t expect you to turn the damn house upside down.” He growled as he shoved the bookcase upright, and placed the chairs at the table, slid a barrel over by the entrance of the pantry, nudged a cabinet over and picked up the stool. Finally making his way across the house he pulled the door from Aerilyn's hand, “I apologize for the mess I-” He tipped his head level to meet the man, then tipped up his chin slightly up to see the creature before him, “… Aerie… Why don’t you go make some tea.”

“I’ll-” she backed out of the doorway and tripped over the worn rug in the entry way, “Oh~ I’ll go… boil some water.”

Crossing his arms and keeping his pale blue eyes on the lumbering form in his doorway, he timidly raked a hand through his sandy blonde hair, “What brings you to our home?” He asked stepping aside he offered an arm to invite him into the home; realistically more for his own image than because he wanted to be polite… There was a crowd gathering outside the door waiting to see how he would react to the strange nomad boy.

Meanwhile, Upstairs Gaddok restlessly tossed about his bed. The very same monster that got him to this state also haunted his medically induced sleep. His brow furrowed, fingers twitched, as he felt the creature's eyes on him, lurking in his dreams. The uneasiness left him in a half woken state, and the scurrying claws of his new found friend was just enough to startle him awake before he was consumed once again by the very Sermal that laid him up.

His eyes shot opened as he scanned the room, Home... Safe... breathing a sigh of relief he caught a flash of dark purple flash across his room and gently rocking his body to the side he peered over to see a purplish-blue fin swish back and forth before completely slithering under the bed. 'What's got him in a tizzy?' Gaddok pondered as he eased back into the warmth of his bed.

Remus ushered the boy inside and shut the door behind him, “I’m Remus, Gaddok’s father, and this is my wife Aerilyn.” He indicated to the woman making tea, who looked up momentarily from what she was doing, and nervously waved before turning her attention to preparing the tea. “Gaddok’s upstairs in his room…I’ll see if he’s awake.” He looked briefly to his wife who was preparing the table, but also prepping a tray to serve in bed. “Feel free to take a seat while you wait.” He stated while indicating to the stool at the table.

Making his way to the ladder-like stairs, he climbed the first few steps and peered up into the attic room, “Gaddok…” He paused waiting for a response, “You have a… Warren here to see you.” Remus wasn’t quite sure what to make of the company his son keeps, but stepping back down to the main floor he brought himself to look into Warren’s creature-like eyes, “He was wrestling around up there, You can go up and visit if you like.”

Gaddok heard his father from below and swore he recognized the voice that entered the house. His father had called to him, said he someone was here to see him… Warren? His eyes shot open and he did his best to right himself. Propping a few pillows behind his back he sat up and let out a groan; more out of muscle fatigue than actual physical pain. Most of his wounds were so numb from healing that it wasn’t actually physically painful, just most of the things he could do before the mountain excursion he can no longer… at least not for a while.

Aerilyn inspects the clattering bag of mysteries that now inhabits her kitchen table. Pulling at the knot holding the contents inside she peeked inside to see… Nuts? Her eyes widened as she retreated to the cupboards for a bowl and poured the contents of the bag; an assortment of nuts from the forests of Tale. Her heart leapt in her throat and a warm smile melted the fear in her eyes. ‘What a sweet boy~’ she thought to herself and almost felt ashamed that she was taken aback by his appearance; this boy was no different than her own.

Aerilyn began shelling the nuts; surely she could make something wonderful out of these nuts. Quickbread, perhaps multiple; some for them to enjoy now, some for later and of course some for Warren to bring to his folks and share. She was definitely appreciative of the bounty they brought her.

Gaddok looked to his hunched over friend and laughed, “Warren~ Ha, I never had you pinned for the sentimental type, but I appreciate the company.” He placed a hand to his ribs and winced a bit as he tried to prop his body up better. Gaddok grumbled pushed out the trembling lump laying the length of his leg.

Ruvaak’s rump hit the floor as his tail whipped out and it slowly backed out of the shelter of the covers. Using his wings as a shield, the sailscale backed itself into the corner and kept its piercing blue eyes fixed on Warren. The sailscale had clearly seen his share of struggles, and his most recent battle still wore heavy on his mind.

Gaddok smirked, “Don’t mind him, he’s still leery of everyone but me. His name’s Ruvaak, Found him up in the mountains… Was about to be a drund snack. He’s half the reason I’m as messed up as I am… But he’s proven worth it; stubborn little thing… nearly took off a few of the healers fingers when she tried to reset his legs.”

Gaddok laughed, “Ha, that a** had it coming. Getting “escorted” by those goons wasn’t exactly a cup of tea, but watching them get torn a new one by Lon was worth it. I’m surprised you remembered why I was in Tale after all that. Thank you, I’m sure mom appreciates it too. She’ll certainly be downstairs making something with them as we speak.”

He snorted, “I barely got a scratch from the war… got a little scuff on my right arm early on,” which he got patched up by a lovely lady in the healing tents. The thought of her caused his face to flush slightly, “It was no big deal though. The healer who patched it was… a bit over cautious. Had bandages and salves of all sorts; even threatened to bust out the stitches!” He shivered at the thought of watching someone stick him with a needle, but considering the number of stitches he had in him… well, he’s glad he was passed out.

“Shortly after I got back from the war, Lon asked me to go into the mountains to find more ore.” Gaddok began as he shifted a bit, “I got an early start, had all the supplies I would have needed to go into the mountains, but still the majestic beast got the best of me…” he chuckled and looked over at the cowering sailscale in the corner, “I found this critter knocked into a crevice and I couldn’t bring myself to keep walking. As I was working on a way to help him I got knocked into the crevice by a sermal; wasn’t full grown from what I could tell, but it was enough. I fell in and got knocked out.”

“When I came to we were surrounded by Drunds. There weren’t too many; I managed to scare them off and polished up a devise out of what I could come up with in my rucksack; then hoisted the two of us back onto the mountains. Naturally we had to fight through one final wave of drunds. I couldn’t say whether I scared ‘em off; or I was being followed by something that scared them off, but I slipped up and got bit.”

Gaddok looked at his right hand and flexed his fingers gently, “Swelling’s gone down quite a bit, but the bite is still oozing. I can’t say I recall too much after that… Tied up a tourniquet on my forearm to try and prevent the spread, but that infection took me by surprise. I broke out in sweats, my vision was swimming… Couldn’t walk straight for the life of me.” Using his left hand he rubbed the growing scruff on his chin and sighed, “Found a path out of the mountains, but as I made my way there, I heard claws… Wasn’t long before that Sermal was at my back.”

Ruvaak peeked his head out long enough to give a hiss and curl tighter into a ball. He clearly didn’t have fond memories of the mountains, and he certainly wasn’t looking to return to it any time soon.

“Somehow I managed to put an end to the creature and drag Ruvaak home. My father went up to the mountains with a few men from the village to attempt to retrieve my belongings…” he pointed to the pile of leather that was formerly a pack, torn clothing, and a sword, “Guess that was about all that was left… Most of the creature had fallen victim to the predators of the mountains. They brought the skull back for me; cleaned it up. Had to hide it in the trunk at the foot of my bed here, because Ruvaak kept knocking it off of wherever I placed it.”

“Heh, It is a hell of a story… I wish I remembered more of it.” Gaddok chuckled while scratching the back of his head. The wounds were fairly fresh yet, and mental trauma still apparent. Things have slowly been trickling back in dreams and such but he questions the authenticity of it at times… It all just seems so unreal that he was able to react how he did, under the conditions he was in. Chalking it up to something instinctive he chose not to dwell on it much.

“I imagine I jabbed my sword through it… Somehow.” Pretty vague and to be expected, but it was all he could figure, “I remembered being thrown across the mountain path, seeing my pack with Ruvaak being torn to shreds, and the next thing I knew I was pushing the creatures dead weight off me… the sword skewering it.” It was a bazaar sight, his clothes drenched in crimson yet all he could think to do was grab Ruvaak, “The trip home was a blur… My mom was out front when I stumbled into town. The healer said she’s not sure how I was still alive.” He rubbed the scruff on his face and sighed, “Personally, I would credit Lon, but don't tell ma I said that! But had he not gave me a crash course in swordsmanship I don’t think I would have made it off the mountains. The bit of discipline I had mixed with the skills he taught me… and a bit of luck I suppose.”

Gaddok initially tried to get up to demonstrate how to unlatch the trunk then winced, groaned, and fell back against his pillow mound, “Ugh… The chest has a leather latch… Just turn the metal switch and pull the leather tab up. It’s wrapped in burlap.” Cupping his hand behind Ruvaak’s head he pushed him toward the bed, “Go hide under the bed… It’ll be alright.”

Ruvaak’s eyes shifted from Warren to the welcoming dark space under the bed. Within seconds his body went from ball to bullet as he darted into the darkness; letting out a mild hiss as he settled in.

The skull was still stained and small tufts of fur could still be found in places on the skull. It was slightly bigger than a grown male’s hand and definitely needed two hands to proper hold the two pieces of the skull together. “They said they would have brought the pelt, but apparently it wasn’t much to look at after the scavengers had their way with the corpse.”

Gaddok was taken aback by Warren’s reaction. He found it a bit disturbing; his crooked smile, the way he closed the jaws around his arm… Would he seek a fight with one someday? Hell, Gaddok would thank his lucky stars if he never had one face him down again. The question asked, however, caught him off guard, “The… Eyes?” He repeated to make sure he wasn’t mistaken, “I-I guess I never really got a good look at ‘em. The creature attacked me from behind both times I encountered it… I don’t remember much about them… They were dark; gold I think…”

Everything was a blur. The first round he went with the creature it knocked him out and he fell into a crevice. There wasn’t much to go off of from that encounter and the last time he encountered the creature almost led to his undoing. Once again he was caught from behind, but when he engaged the creature it took him head on. From that encounter he remembers a predatory gold glow from the creatures’ eyes. It was chilling to recall, even now, and caused an uncontrollable shiver through his body, “Why do you wish to know such things?”

Gaddok let out a light hearted laugh and scruffed the back of his head, “That old legend… I’ve heard of it, but my dad was never good with that story telling… Now Roniel, he could scare the pants off me as a youngling. He’s got that look about him; looks damn spooky in person and worse under the light of an open flame.” He recalled the times he traveled with his father and the crew. There were many stories to tell of the ventures they shared… but none for this time. It was so strange that Warren’s family would take a silly folktale so close to heart, but he had to admit his eyes caught him off guard the first time they met and surely he got a similar reaction many times before.

“I would like that… We will definitely have to spar when I am well again; hopefully sooner rather than later.” Gaddok agreed, “Cripple now~ C’mon… Give me credit where credit is due. It’s been a week and I could get out of this bed and grip a sword. I may be spewing every curse known to man, but I would go down swinging.” Giving another chuckle to the boasting Warren, Gaddok settled nicely back into his pillows.

Despite his theory of rising from his bed he felt rather cozy right where he was and wouldn’t leave it for just any old reason. “Who have you been training with or have you just been training yourself?” He knew there was a decent amount of prep an individual could do for themselves when training for a battle class, but he also knew someone who would be more than willing to have an extra set of hands around the forge while he was out of commission.