After some time, the body had been moved, and most of the city arrived to the church. They crowded around to listen to the words of the Council, the wise seven Popes that reigned supreme control over the Church and Order. Archbishop Edward stood behind a lectern, gripping the edge, he would wipe his forehead, with the obvious look of fear on his face. He would move his lips, though they were shaking, and only a mumble would come out. Everyone would listen intently. He would finally work the courage to say these words...the one that all people, Human, Dwarf, and every creature alike fear. "The Dragons are returning. He is awakening." It was silent in the Church...until movement rang around. First, they were shuffles, then steps, finally into full on running. It had begun. He was returning. Artorias was back. Archbishop Edward would assemble the Council with him, to the backroom of the Church, where they would plan what to do next. Many people would panic to the streets, while others began to pray silently. One of the Priest would return the gem to the Dwarf, bowing to him, then stumble out of the Church, as if he had lost faith. Paladins began to guard the entrance, almost occupying the area as if it had been turned into a military zone. The news would not take long to reach every corner of the city. Even messengers, travelers, and merchants just now entering the city would report large, flying beasts in the air, crying out with a voice of rage. One, in particular, could be seen flying over the city...a black dragon, as dark as night, with a flash of vermilion coming from it's eyes. This would only increase the panic, to the point where the military, even the Royal Guard, would come out and protect the city on every inch of wall they could cover. -------------------------------------------------------- Aiden listened among the many people, his eyes widened by this news. Were dragons really returning again? It couldn't be true, he would never suspect it to happen in his life. Yet, it was almost predictable, as the cycle was nearing it's end phase. He clenched his hands, a primal fear clawing from his very deepest roots. It took much of his might to suppress these feelings, for he had a duty as a Paladin, and it was to protect whomever the Chosen Maiden was. It was at that moment that a booming roar could be heard, as a dragon flew above the buildings in the city, shaking them to there very core. Aiden, who began to worry, looked through the crowd for his sister, until the Archbishop called attention to everyone again. The next piece of news would not only surprise him, but put him in a state of worry. -------------------------------------------------------- Elizabeth stayed with the kind Dwarf, but also to the Merchant, for he was a known man to her. He did business with The Order, though it was for personal gain, she still respected him for making an effort. The news left her silent, as she held her own hand. She thought of the history of the world, the Great War, and it's terrible consequences. If the Chosen Maiden failed, those very events would take place yet again. Of course, this would run through most peoples heads, it was not something they would linger on for too long. The sound of a dragon overhead would snap them out of this thought. She jumped and began to crouch down, scared of what was about to happen. Her focus would then shift over to the Archbishop, who called his faithful followers attention. -------------------------------------------------------- Archbishop Edward would return with the Council, looking back into the crowd. He looked out towards Elizabeth and pointed towards her. "Priestess Elizabeth of the Haythem family. You have been chosen by The Mother. Come to me and accept her blessing." The crowd around her would step back from her, leaving her in a sort of spotlight with the Dwarf. She looked down at him, then to the Archbishop. She mustered her bravery and would walk up the aisle, with the feeling of a hundred eyes on her. She grew afraid...anxious...and proud. The Chosen Maiden has been selected.

My, things seemed to happen so quickly didn't it? The young drow let out a small sigh as she had watched the people grow into a frenzied panic and pack themselves into the church. One dead soul had arose the attention of the church? Oh heavens no, that couldn't be it? "Excuse me, dearie, I'm going to take a peak..." Adira muttered. She removed her straw hat and gathered her raven hair, pulling it back into a tight ponytail. "You aren't the type to handle stuffy rooms." Before slipping through the entrance of the church and standing among the crowd, she patted her ally's chest. It wasn't hard for the girl to blend in, since most were practically jumping out of their seats and murmuring with one another. She lingered at the entrance, her arms crossing underneath her cloak as the pope had explained their current problems; The dragons had come back, and the new maiden was chosen. The chosen girl had looked very... Frail... But then again, she was just a priestess. "Blah blah blah... How droll..." The Drow shrugged her shoulders and checked the filing of her nails while she listened to the speech. By the looks of it, Adira and Shen would have to make haste with their traveling plans if they had wanted a good pay, and currently that was the only thing that bothered the pale skinned Drow. She seemed more surprised than she was afraid by all of this news, yet Adira kept her cool composure and merely sighed, "How bothersome... A bundle of dragons and a girl who resembles a twig... Wait until Shen hears all of this..." The girl shook her head and finally looked up, glancing to and fro just to see all of the facial expressions people had shown. [ Pulls a post from my ass ]

Blake had just bursted around the corner to see an armored man sprint down towards the Church. Seeing that Aiden was regaining his footing, he could only assume that the rude man had just knocked him over. It took a few seconds for Blake to jog over to Aiden. Before he could even respond to Aiden, the emergency bell had rung. One rung was a warning, but continuous meant something truly despicable was upon us. By observing his surroundings Blake could decipher what was happening: An ambiguous man had just perished in the Church hall carrying a gem, which apparently sparked a widespread panic about the return of the dragons. If such was true, everyone in the whole continent would be in danger. It should have been mere coincidence, but Blake couldn't help but to break into a cold sweat. "Aiden," Blake spoke as he tapped Aiden's shoulder, "what in the Mother's name is happen-" That was when the Archbishop appeared from his chambers onto the balcony. A slow wave of his hand silenced the crowd and caught the attention of the duo Paladins. What would he have to say to the people?

Daregim watched as the now dead man was carted away. His thoughts turning to questions. Why would he want to offer his hard earned money to a man's funeral? Wasn't that the business of the church and the family? He cringed for a moment. The idea that could never be a reality. He would never help with a funeral. He would never become a priest, and that was his place in society. He was an adventurer now, and he was sure he had the love of the Mother on his side even with his wrongdoings. "I'm going through this tired old monologue again. I'm an adventurer now," He thought. With a deep breath, Daregim pondered the significance of the gem. He had just spoken of finding the man's family, but now he was formulating a crude plan. The musings of the old Dwarf would find themselves turned to words at times. An old habit he had picked up from his father when he was much younger. "Find out who." He muttered. "Find the relatives." He continued. So deep in thought, he came to only when the Archbishop said the words, "The Dragons are returning. He is returning." Any thoughts of helping the man vanished, and were replaced with those of fear. He paid close attention to the words that would be spoken next. He wouldn't shake in fear; the horror he felt couldn't be shown. He was a Dwarf. He was to be stout as stone. He was a servant of the Mother in some way, and he had to show the proper resolve needed. Daregim kept a stalwart and blank face, accepting the sapphire with a polite nod and a "Thank you." He put the precious item back beneath his mail and leather. Then, dragons flew over the city. The elderly man instinctively reached for his shield and axe, crouching down. More out of fear and habit than anything else. He remembered he was in a church, and with some quick shallow breaths he put the weapons away. "Stout as stone." He whispered. He had recalled stories told about Artorias. He was the monarch of malice. The lord of lust. A liar through and through. Everything he did was an affront to the Mother and her will. No matter what, he was there only to take power, murder, and create evil in the world. Daregim would have to steel himself even further. The Dwarf watched as Elizabeth was called up by the Archbishop to receive the Mother's blessing, completely oblivious of anything else for a moment. "Mother keep that woman safe," he said with a frown. As far as he was aware, the Maiden's never failed in their duty, but there were Dragons above the city now. He was sure there was a huge possibility that she could die, that the church would be destroyed in the process. That Artorias himself would do the job. Daregim sighed. He had never witnessed a situation like this. So he did what he always did when he was stressed, scared, and had the time and space. He prayed. Daregim walked to the pew he had been in, and took a seat. He was tired of kneeling. He looked to his right, and picked his helmet up. He didn't put it on out of respect for his deity, and offered only a few prayers before focusing on the ceremony. Short and quick prayers were something he rarely did, but not watching the holy ceremony could have been seen as an affront to the mother, and Daregim didn't fancy himself as a blasphemer. He wasn't sure of what would take place exactly, but he hoped that the Dragons wouldn't interrupt the ceremony.

“Hey. Why don’t I show you both around. I’m actually late for a ceremony and heading to the church at the moment. Would either of you care to join me?” The girl with the two animals had said. Quite likely for someone who was so obviously enthralled with Mileena's furry ears just a second ago to say. Sure she was proud of the lack of scars on her body, her ears especially, but that didn't mean she wanted someone to just touch her like that. "Yes, well. I'm already fairly familiar with this city." The Cat-Woman said as she started to slink away. Whether she was or wasn't familiar with the town was besides the point in her head. She was slightly afraid her ears would be grabbed for again. "Besides, that bell ringing isn't exactly a good sign you know. That's a warning ringing if I ever--" She never finished the sentence. Not before something dark flew overhead. A draconic monstrosity to be sure. "What in the blazes. . ." Her voice quavered a slight bit. There were many she had fought in life like monsters, animals even other sentient beings but never has she ever fought a dragon. It was exciting. 'It was a challenge worth her skill', is what she'd like to say. There was no way in hell she could fight a dragon as she was, not without some ancient legendary and powerful weapon. "An actual dragon. . . Huh?" That is mostly likely what the church bell was about. There were some old stories about dragons or another right? Some old and power dragon coming back or another. She never really had time to learn about it back with her tribe and hardly anyone wanted to talk about dragons on the road. "Maybe this will be my great break." She muttered with a renewed smile. "This is the Human's capital. Perhaps they'll be hiring people for something related to the dragons here. . ." She nodded to herself in agreement before heading towards the church keeping an eye looking toward the sky for more dragons.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she frowned slightly at Alexis with a look of disappointment. “I would join you on a tour of the city if I had the time this morning. Unfortunately, I already have the day planed out, which includes visiting the cathedral to take part in the celebration of the newly graduated Paladins. I hear the celebration will include free food and drinks, though I could be wrong.” The frown turned into a smirk when Mileena tried to ditch the group, likely due to the fact that the human named Alexis had attempted to touch her ears. “On a side note, I am like Mileena here, I do not like my ears being touched without my permission.” She said as she wrapped an arm around Mileenas shoulders in a friendly way. The music coming from the cathedrals organ had stopped and now loud bells rang through the city, bells that did not signal celebration or happiness. “A warning bell for what, is the question I think we are all asking ourselves right now. Better head to the cathedral and find out what in the name of the fires of hell is going on now.” As if on que, a loud, and low guttural roar echoed through the city before a dragon appeared above them. Kyndaria was left in shock for a couple of seconds before bringing herself back into the world of the conscious. “I am not hallucinating, am I? There is a dragon flying around above us, correct?” Kyndaria had read about them and had seen drawings of dragons but seeing one in person was a whole new experience. Barely loud enough for anyone to hear, she spoke the words from a book she had read about the recorded history of those draconic monstrosities. “I feel sun through the ashes in the sky, where’s the one who guides us into the night. What’s begun is the one that will force us to fight, what’s to come is fire and the end of time.” Her left ear twitched slightly at recounting the ominous words. “I have always wanted to fight one, as crazy and suicidal that may sound.” Said Kyndaria before motioning for Alexis to follow her to the cathedral.

Her eyes widen in surprise as the echoes of the dragon filled the city. The streets were being flooded with panicked citizens now and Alexis knew they had to act quickly, she was a decent huntress and although she had never encountered a dragon before she knew how dangerous this situation can get. “The Archbishop must have some sort of plan.” her voice was stern as her bow was now ready in her hand, it was instinct just in case anything came within range; she was sure the two of them were fighters and could probably take care of themselves, but it was just in her nature to protect others, and especially now that there were dangers roaming the skies. She followed behind them to the church as her thoughts took over her mind completely… what might happen next? Talon and Frost were growing uneasy and she only hoped the capital would have some sort of plan in their defense. The fear was rising in her slowly, but she wasn’t about to let that be known.

After standing in the crowd for a few moments, the Archbishop finally stepped out of the church to address them. He said two sentences, "The Dragons are returning. He is awakening." Iza looked to his left, then to his right, the people surrounding him full of dread. Iza, however, doubted the existence of Dragons. They were mere fairy tale, bedtime stories meant to scare children, surely. The crowd around him began to shuffle, then run in a panic, Iza stood his ground however, sometimes having to push back against the crowd. The Archbishop had more to say, if these mythical creatures did exist, there would be a plan. Iza saw armored paladins rushing to positions, soldiers running to man the distant walls, even a few of the Royal Guard. Iza almost scoffed, this seemed a bit much, right? Suddenly, a large shadow passed over him, Iza looked up with an eyebrow raised, and saw the silhouette of the massive flying beast. He stood there."Yeah that doesn't look like a bed time story. Or a giant bird." He determined. "Oh shit." Right after, the Archbishop came out again, this time accompanied by the Council, "Priestess Elizabeth of the Haythem family. You have been chosen by The Mother. Come to me and accept her blessing." He pointed towards a young woman. Iza searched his memory... Something about a person, singing to a something, to make the dragons go to sleep? Right? He couldn't quite remember, but from what he could remember, the entire plan sounded a little crazy.