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 Posted: Sun May 31, 2015 12:39 am
She knelled besides the waters edge, her mind filled with memories of her past and her present. The day had been won, their enemies gone, her weapon sleeping by her side.
Pokerus...no, Wren stared into the crystal water, her face a picture of shock. Images of her family stared back of her, their faces happy and proud. Faces of those who had fallen flashed before her sights, the great knights nodding in approval.
When she saw the smiling face of Lancelot, the clear surface rippled as her tears fell into the water. She lowered her head and began to sob, not sure if she was crying out of happiness or sadness.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:18 am
The sky was blue, the grass was green, everyone was happy and peaceful, people were having families and building houses and doing all that stuff.
And she was...bored. Restless. She couldn't settle down like the others. Her hand itched to pick up a weapon and fight.
"You heading out?"
Her brother stood nearby as she saddled up a horse, retrieving the trusty claymore she had originally used. She couldn't reach Fendriel anymore.
"I hear there is still shadows out there causing mischief" She explained, placing one leg into the stirrup and swinging the other over. "And, it'll be fun to see what the world is like. I've got nothing better to do."
That day, two figures rode away from Camelot, ready to see what the world had in store.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:19 am
The pack of shadows paled in comparison to the ones they had faced at Camelot. It didn't take long before they were dealt with, and the two moved on towards the next town.
A few months had passed since they had left, and throughout that time it was filled with exterminating troublesome shadows that harassed villagers and travelers alike. So far they had built up a name for themselves, a pretty good one at that.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:19 am
It was beautiful.
A brilliant expanse of blue greeted her eyes, forever stretching into the horizon. Sunlight sparkled off the water's surface, the soft sounds of ebbing and flowing a gentle caress on her senses. The smell of saltwater permeated the air, seagulls calling in the distance.
Wren had never seen the ocean before, and now she couldn't take her eyes off it.
---
He watched her from the oceans depths, curious about this strange newcomer. She didn't look like the humans he was used to seeing. Her clothing was made for combat; metal plates hiding her vulnerable fleshy insides, heavy boots designed for traveling, a long feathered cloak to lighten her step. Upon her back rested a large sword that most would be unable to wield. He could smell the blood of many monsters emanating from the steel.
This human was a warrior, and he was fascinated by it.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:20 am
"So you say there's a dragon living in these waters"?
"Aye lass, but I wouldn't be messing with that one" The fisherman eyed the two travelers before returning to his fishing net. "He is a fearsome beast to be sure, but he doesn't appear interested in us at all. Heck, many locals worship the thing. Say it keeps them safe and provides them with fish. Personally I think they're a bunch of nutters, but as long as it aint touching my ships I aint bout to piss it off. Nay, it's the other monsters further inland that's the problem. Huge fire breathing brute that one is."
"Fire or water, doesn't bother me." Wren said smugly. "We can take em."
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:21 am
It was a few days later when she first saw him.
He did not look like a dragon at first. In fact it was hard to tell he even was one. He stood along the waters edge, human in appearance, his hair was the color of the ocean, eyes of the deepest blue that watched her with more then just avid curiosity.
"So, are you the one who's been messing with the villages?" Wren took out her sword and pointed it at her opponent. His reaction to such a hostile move was to simply stand there, making no move to attack or defend.
"If you're after the culprit who has burned down the houses, then I can assume you it is not by my doing."
"...I see..." She frowned, then placed her sword back in it's sheath. "Then I have no quarrel with you. Just don't go eating anyone."
"You needn't worry." He took a slow, deliberate step towards her, and when she didn't move, stepped even closer "I have no interest in most humans."
"Most?" She responded, unable to look away from his feral grin.
"There are some that I find...intriguing." He held out a clawed hand, palm upright, and reached for the girl. When she didn't recoil from the scales littered across the top, he placed a thumb and forefinger upon her chin, enthralled by the shocked yet resilient expressions that flicked across her face. "Yes...very intriguing."
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:22 am
"s**t!"
She'd underestimated this b*****d. He was a lot bigger and stronger then she had realized, the searing flame he spewed forth burning everything in sight. The sheer size of the beast made it difficult to land a decisive blow, and if she wasn't dealing with the fire breath then it was the teeth and claws.
Her breath came in short gasps, her armor dented in various places when she hadn't been quick enough to dodge. her cloak was burnt to a crisp, and across her shoulder lay a gruesome burn. She took a step back and cursed again, regretting their current terrain. She had chosen a remote mountain side to do a battle with the beast to keep it away from any villagers, but now she found herself upon a cliff side
The dragon reared again, eyes alight with knowledge that it's victory would soon be at hand.
Wren screamed, charging forward recklessly as the dragon prepared to unleash a torrent of flame. She chose that moment to jump towards the beast.
There was a ear splitting cry, and the dragon breathed it's last as the mountain side crumbled beneath it's thrashing body.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:23 am
"You're dying"
It was a obvious statement to be sure, but behind those words lay much sadness.
She coughed, blood dribbling down the side of her mouth. "A bit sooner...then I would of liked."
"Too soon"
She reached out to him, wanting to wipe away those tears, to reassure him that everything would be alright. She'd still be around, if not in a physical form, then at least in spirit.
She felt hands pulling her up, holding her close. The intense stare of a dragon piercing her soul. The sound of running water, of the ocean waves. Memories flashed before her eyes, regret at the things not yet accomplished.
She didn't want to leave it like this.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 5:24 am
"Did you hear? That dragon was slain!"
"Are you kidding? You mean the one that's been causing so much trouble? Who the hell would take on such a giant beast?"
"Yeah. I heard a young girl was the one who did it too. The one who's been hanging around this part fighting shadows. But I heard she died. Poor thing."
"I doubt that. I heard that the dragon of the water took a liking to the thing. Brought her spirit back and made her his bride."
"You can't be serious-"
"Well I heard her ghost still haunts these lands, taking on anyone foolhardy to challenge her to a duel. "
"Where the heck do you hear these stories..."
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 3:54 pm
Looking into the water was like looking at a self that Nikola did not know. It was a Nikola that was too afraid, too timid; someone who had lost sight of his aspirations and desires, but perhaps this was him once he was stripped of his relationships and history. At his very core, perhaps he was just a spineless coward.
He closed his eyes and threw a rock into the water before leaving the lake’s edge.
The world was left in ruins, and so was he.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 3:55 pm
“Wren.”
The name slipped out of his mouth naturally, but at the same it held an unfamiliar tint to it. Looking at his little sister was almost like looking at a stranger even though little time had passed since their village had burned to pieces. He ran a hand through his hair as a breeze blew, throwing his cloak behind him. The grass bent in waves around them as he looked up at the girl.
He fell into silence, trying to summon the courage to speak to his fellow knight and sibling. “You heading out?”
But as she spoke, it was as if she actually hadn’t changed much at all—speaking of protecting others, just like the knight she had wanted to be and grown into.
“I see.” Then a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as his eyes crinkled. “Would you have room for another?”
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 3:59 pm
After the king’s death, there were only remnants of the darkness scattered across the lands, and Nikola was fine with this. It put him at ease. They were creatures that could be contained, and villages and families would no longer be torn apart by their hands. Now there is only humanity to destroy themselves. He closed his eyes as he let the pessimism pass through his thoughts, but eventually it would pass. No matter how far the darkness dragged him down, there would always be someone to pull him back above surface.
He pulled the string of his old bow. His mount whinnied softly as he took careful aim as Wren fought amongst the shadowlings, but his shot brimmed confidence as he felled them one by one.
There would always be someone to save him.
The traveling saviors came in a pair, not as one.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 4:04 pm
The smell of salt and the sound of waves pushing against rocks were familiar. He closed his eyes, let the wind run past him and pull his cloak behind. When he was younger, before Nikola had fled to Wren’s village, he had lived in another country. When he was younger, he had been friends with the son of a lord, and sometimes they would travel together. Once upon a time, they had visited the ocean.
And then the Riders had come.
He opened his eyes. His sister was still admiring the vast ocean, trying to soak in its entire beauty and hidden fury when he turned around and climbed back onto his horse. “Let’s go.”
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 4:06 pm
He nervously eyed Wren. Nikola leaned forward, careful to speak in a whisper so the fisherman would not catch his words. “Are you sure? Don’t you think we’ll be…” A pause. “At a disadvantage?”
But there was the confident, stubborn gleam in her eyes again. It was the kind of look that told him she would not rest until this fire-breathing creature of the waters was slain, and their parents’ words echoed in his mind once more. A sigh as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, okay.”
Someone had to make sure this girl wouldn’t kill herself.
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Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2015 4:14 pm
Perhaps fighting this beast on a cliff had not been the wisest decision they’d made to date.
Nikola rolled to the side, the flames catching the edges of his cloak and he hastily tossed it to the side. It was a thick piece of fabric that weighed him down anyways. He raised his bow to fire an arrow at its eye, but ended up piercing its neck instead. The dragon shifted its attention from Wren to him, and as smoke billowed out of its nostrils it stepped toward him.
Um.
He furrowed his eyes, taking a step back until he realized he was dancing on the every edge. Either he continued to fight or flee into the swirling waters below and pray that Lady Luck was on his side.
The knight grit his teeth and fired arrow after arrow, struggling to hit a weak point, but they all seemed to bounce carelessly off its scale. A subconscious step back just as he managed to land a hit into one of its eyes. He screamed at Wren, “Finish it! I’ll come ba—“
And then he was flying, falling, falling into the darkness.
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