Brume, the city of the dragons. That's what people said about this small, yet strong place. Every people in this small city, are fighters, and they have a very loyal companions. Dragons. They lived here along with humans for some long time, protecting them from dangers that the outside world gave.

But, this place also have their own unique method to protect itself from unwanted intruders. Everytime the sun sets, poisonous mist came out from the ground and stayed there around the defense wall until morning came. Some people of the city are used to the mist by now, and they are completely immune to that,. But if a poor guy inhaled the poison too much, they will slowly chocked to death, and their body will turned into a scally mess. Like a snake that dried out in the dessert.

People lived peacefully, and dragons are not treated like a weapons, or scary creatures. In fact, they blend perfectly with humans.

"STOP FLYING AROUND THE LAUNDRY AREAS, YOU BRAT!!" An old man yelled on the top of building, yelling furiously at the white colored dragon that went pass the rope which hung the wet clothes for laundry. The old man heard a giggle and sighed as he get back to clean the fabrics. Good thing that none of the clothes fell down or flew away as the dragon pass by.

The white colored dragon flew slowly and then he finally landed on the ground, slowly approaching a cape with fur coat nearby. As he walk, the size of his body slowly reduced, as well as the scales over his body. As some seconds passe, the dragon was no longer, he took appearance of a human child. Fair skin, white short and curly hair framed his face nicely. Eyes bright as a fresh blood, stunningly deep red.

The now human boy, took the cape and drapped it on his bare body, covering every each of his skin. He turned around and stared at the field with curious eyes. He never went there before. Not without a rider.

Verloren couldn't help but sigh as he rolled onto his back, pressing his hands to his face, laying out near the training field. The day was far from over and all he could think about was wanting to punch someones face in or do something drastic, something adventure worthy, something dangerous... just something exciting, truthfully. Unlike many of his peers, Verloren wasn't easily satisfied with a 'tomorrow' promise from the elder dragon riders. Tomorrow this, tomorrow that. At the rate the older riders were going, he was going to end up ripping his hair out and possibly taking off from the city!

Though, maybe it was a good thing they had spoke of doing something tomorrow instead of today. He had been told time and time again to calm down and to relax, that the dragons were not going anywhere and that he had all the time in the world to learn to do everything they knew. Maybe if he could prove to them he could go a day without starting a fight they might take him a bit more seriously. Just maybe.

Letting out another soft hiss, Verloren rolled over onto his side once again, tossing a lean, tanned arm over his face. For someone who was nearing seventeen, others often forgot he was still that young. Aside from his brash and stubborn nature, he looked a bit too old to still be a teenager. He stood roughly at six two and was rather lithe, tanned skin from countless hours of time spent outside, and dark raven feather colored hair that fell far past his shoulders and half way down his back. His hair was often tied back in a bun or a braid, it was a wonder he had yet to cut it all off though with how often it got pulled on or used as leverage during a fight.

"UUuuuurgh. Luuuuuuuuu. Booooored." Verloren groaned out. He had not even noticed the dragon was so near, having been so wrapped up in his own thoughts.

Lu walked on the grass bare footed, liking the ticklish sensation on his skin. With a smile plastered over his face, he approached a teenager who was laying down on the field. The familiar figure groaned loud enough for him to hear, that means he's bored to death. Not a new thing. Well, he can't blame every teenagers in the city since they can't do anything, even though they're strong enough to train or to fight against the intruders. The young dragon felt the same way. Flying around the city is boring, and he want to have a taste about flying to the outside world.

The white haired boy sat on the still, groaning teenager, and Lu's smile turned into a smirk. He poked Verloren's side again and again, forcing the other boy to notice his presence. "I could hear you clearly, you know." with a grin, he laid on his back and on the grass while looking at the sky. "Do you think we could fly outside the city soon? It's starting..to get boring. I can fly around this city with my eyes covered." He sounds quite cocky, but hey, that's the truth. He tried to close his eyes while flying a couple of time and it works. As if he memorized every lay out of the town for a quite long time.

Lu ran a hand through his white colored hair and sighed. He want to do something, or more like, they want to do something. Something challenging. The elders told him that once Verloren have mastered the dragon riding, they could join the scout party. But, it just a mere words. He didn't even know while the others doesn't let them to join.

Verloren jumped a bit as someone began poking him, but as he turned his head, his eyes went wide as a grin appeared on his face. It was none other than Lu, which he was thankful for. Just the dragon he wanted to see! He quickly turned himself around so he could face the dragon, his grin slowly dying down into a bit of a smile as he listened intently to his companion speak. A laugh escaped him as he slowly lifted a hand up to carefully tuck some loose strands of long black hair behind one of his ears.

"You know, I am sometimes very happy we share the same outlooks on some things. I was just wondering the same thing while sitting over here watching the older riders in the field." Verloren just shook his head a bit, letting out a somewhat breathy sigh. "Tomorrow they said, tomorrow we could do something. But tomorrow feels... too far away." Quickly Ver would sit up, offering the largest grin he could manage as he looked at Lu intently, his dark grey eyes practically gleaming in the early day sun.

"What if we just take off on our own today? You and I both know I can ride better than anyone else here! We shouldn't have to be cooped up all the time like this and just being told constantly to 'wait until we show you'. I already know it all. I mean... as long as we are back before nightfall..." A soft sigh suddenly escaped him as he suddenly flopped onto his back with another soft sigh. "I think they are afraid that I'll end up like my parents."

It was a small grim reminder for Verloren, constantly, at the trust he did not have as a rider nor as a person of the city. Both of his parents had turned tail and vanished to the outside world without him when he was still young. No one is sure if they were dead or not, but many believed they were still alive and well. Verloren was not sure what to believe, and for as long as he could remember he had stopped caring. He had Lu and frankly, that was enough for him.

"But yeah... what if we head out on our own? If we are careful enough I am sure no one will even notice."

Lu listened quietly when Verloren told him about everything. But he turned his head to look at the other boy as he mentioned something about taking off today. Going outside the place without elder's permission. He never tried that, because he doesn't know what kind of punishment that they will get if anyone find out about that. He want to, he wants to try flying outside this...cage. Just for once. Maybe.

"I don't know, Ver. They have guards at every gates so, we can't just walk out casually like we're going on a stroll." His red colored eyes stared at the tower just right near by the gates. The guard on top of it walked around, eyes locked to everything infront of the gate. Lu saw some guards shot people who mindlessly walked to the gate as a warning. It's scary. He don't want to end up like that. But come to think of it... he's been dreaming about going out to the unknown world.

But if they want to go, they need to prepare for everything, including every dangers. Even if it's just for a day, they need to prepared for an ambush or random attack by bad people. Lu lifted himself and sat on the grass. "Are you really want to go? I mean...just for a day?" His irises slowly changed into a gold color as he looked at Verloren. A sign that he wants more than just 'a day'

Verloren couldn't help but let out a laugh as he caught the dragons eye color change, a grin reforming onto his face. Man, they really did think a like on some things. Just a 'day' was not sufficient. Two was not good either. A week seemed like a good idea... but.

"Alright, maybe not a 'day'. Maybe not just a 'few days'. How about until we are satisfied?" Verloren suggested, quirking a brow towards Lu, still grinning. "I mean, that could mean a few weeks, or a few months, maybe a few years even. Or longer. All you hear about here from anyone is how dangerous the outside is, how dangerous the world out there is... and I want to see all of it. I want to see past these walls and I just want to see the world my parents left me behind for."

Not everyone in the city was curious about life outside of the walls, many just accepted what others said about it being a dangerous, terrible place. But there had to be more to it than just the bad. There was bad everywhere, even in the city.

Verloren knew well of the dangers they would have to face to even attempt to escape the city. But if Lu was willing to risk it, then Ver was just as willing to risk it as well. People had been shot before, there had even once been a huge fight between a couple of dragons over trying to escape. It was dangerous, alright. But the thought of being trapped here any longer than they already had been ate at him in a way that made his skin itch. Hrmph.

"But, uh... if you are up for a bit of a trip, we should probably get ready."

A huge smile formed on Lu's lips. "Well, I am ready. You probably need foods, human." The smile turned into a mocking one. Oh, Lu's really love to annoy people since he's a dragon, and he could eat almost everything. Fishes, deers, whatever, and he rarely need medicines or something recovering since Dragons never get sick. Well, that's what he know because he never once got any fever or sickness like humans. Verloren, on the other side, need things they called supplies. And Lu will wait until he gather all of it.

Lu stood and yawned for a bit. The weight on his chest has been lifted since they will be leaving this city. Soon. He stared at the field infront of him, then to his rider. "I will wait here until you are done gathering your supplies. We will fly through the guards." Lu smiled once again.

Verloren offered a huge grin, nodding as he quickly pushed himself up from the grass. He quickly stretched out a bit, sucking in a sharp breath before looking down at his dragon. "It wont take me long to get my stuff. Just some cloths, food, medical stuff... then we'll be set." Ver lightly ducks his head before spinning around on heel and dashing off, away from the field and into the depths of the city.

The part of the city that Verloren was located in was not the best, but it wasn't the worst either. It was a small, comfortable house with a few windows and three rooms, bathroom included. Though the outside looked like a mess, it was the inside that was beautiful. BUT, Verloren couldn't bring himself to give much thought to the home he would be leaving behind. Instead, he was quick in his collection of things. He grabbed his old bag from under his bed and quickly stuffed a spare shirt and pair of pants from his dresser before exiting the room to go to the bathroom. He spent even less time in the bathroom, only staying there long enough to grab a small box of various herbs and bandages and other things to stuff it into the bag before he made his way to the small kitchen area! He had to take a bit more time in the kitchen though. He couldn't just drop all his bread and cheese into the bag without cover or anything...

It would be a good hour before Verloren returned to the edge of the field with a rather small leather bag slung over his right shoulder. He had changed from his cloths and was now currently wearing some ill-fitting cloth shirt and a pair of pliant leather riding shorts with his favorite pair of boots on. After a bit of thought, he really didn't need to bring all that much with him. He had lived a good bit of his life on nothing but the smallest amount of things. What he had packed would do him well. And maybe help Lu out, if he ever needed it. But dragons were a LOT sturdier and less prone to illness than humans were, it made him a bit jealous at times.

"Luuuuu~!"

After Verloren left, Lu spent his time to look at the guard and watch his every move. He calculated his timing, hoping that they could fly out without any arrows pierced through his wings or any part of their body. Sure, his body is strong like a metal, but not his wings. It could fly and hold any weight, but not the sharp objects. If any arrows went through it, he's sure that it will hurt like hell. But after a while, he noticed that the guard didn't always have his bow in his hand. He tends to put it down and sat down, letting off his guard. Bad move.

Lu stared on his arm and unbuttoned his cape, not taking them off, but it will safe a lot of time when he transform back to his dragon shape. He heard a familiar voice called out to him and he turned around. Verloren approached him with a small bag slung over his shoulder. "You ready??" The dragon asked, and in a second, he transformed into his real appearance.

The cape placed on his back neatly as a cover, so his rider won't feel any pain sitting on his body. Scales, rough skin, anyone could get a very bad scratch from that. "we can fly past the guard. Just hold on tight to me."

Verloren grinned, nodding at Lu as he gave the dragon a few moments to get adjusted to his draconic form. Though after those few sparse moments were up, Ver quickly adjusted his bag so the strap was now across his chest, much more secure than it was just hanging off of his shoulder. While he was trying to remain calm, he was a bit too excited to entirely wipe the grin off of his face.

"Gottcha'. Hold on tight and keep my head low." Verloren nodded as he quickly moved forward and climbed onto Lu's back as quickly as he ever had, careful as ever too, not even catching himself once on any of the scales despite his gloveless hands and uncovered knees. He was careful to not to move the 'cape' too much, clearly not wanting to cut himself up more. Though he was alright with getting a few more scratches, he wasn't entirely afraid of being hurt or adding a few more scars.

"Alright. All set and everything should be good." Ver sucked in a sharp breath, slowly exhaling. "I am kind of nervous to see the outside, but so excited about it at the same time."

Lu nodded as he felt Verloren on his back. With no further conversation, he lunged forward past the guard, and the watch tower. His wide wings flapping against the air and knocked some woods over from the impact. He flew higher to avoid spikes on the gate, but that was not the only ine thing he worried about. He could hear the guards shouting, and that alarmed the entire area. Not stealthy.. well, at least they could get away from here.

Just as Lu breathed a sigh if relieve, a sharp pain made him yelped, and he looked at his right wing. An arrow stuck there, deep enough that it will be very hurt to pull through. Though that didn't mess up his balance, they could deal with it once they landed on the ground. Lu stayed in the air, lunging forward until he saw a clear, sparkling river. The greeneries around it are beautiful and breath taking. So, this is the outside world.

"You okay, Ver?" He asked, eyes still locked to the sight infront of him. He noticed that there are an empty field of grass beneath them, and he landed down slowly.

"Uhhh, mostly, yeah." Verloren was quiet until Lu landed in the grassy field. He quickly slipped off of the dragons back and onto the ground with a bit of a thud. A bit of blood dripped down from the right side of his face, having just narrowly escaped an arrow going through his head. Instead, it only managed to nick his ear and scratch across his cheek. It wasn't deep or anything, but it would take a day or so to heal, even with a bit of medicine. He lifted a hand up to gingerly poke at his cheek and ear, checking over the damage since he couldn't exactly just look in a mirror to check his face.

"Your wing, if you give me a second to get my ear to stop bleeding, I can help you pull that arrow through. Its a bit easier with my hands than your claws." Already Ver had his small bag spun around so he could dig into one of the pockets. He pulled out a small metal tin that reeked of crushed herbs. He popped the top of it off and stuck one of his fingers in, scooping out a small bit of clear goo with green speckles before raising his hand up to delicately rub the goo over the bit of his ear that had been damaged, and even a small bit across the small line on his right cheek.

"We shouldn't hang around here any longer than we have too. If they are really intent on keeping us from leaving, they'll be after us." Ver muttered out softly, already going about closing the small tin and dropping it back into his bag. Out of anything anyone knew of Verloren, at least he dealt very well with being hurt. Once he applied some medicine or decided the wound was not worthy of his worry, he got over it really quickly.

"Never know that freedom is hard to get." Lu sighed as he sat down and rested his head on the grass. He stared at Verloren who was busy applying some kind of medicine to his wound, and he couldn't help but to get worried about that. "That looks like a lot of pain. You sure you okay?" he asked, not wanting to ignore the cuts on Ver's face and ear. Humans doesn't regenerate like other creature, and that will left a mark, definitely. "And, yeah, help me with this arrow. It hurts quite a bit." the dragon muttered, not wanting to admit that he's hurting, but, what's the point of hiding it.

His eyes scanned the area while waiting for Ver to get done, and he loves the scenery. Bright green grass, a bunch of trees, and a refreshing river. So, this is just a small part of the outside world, very different from the surroundings in Brume. "Hey, do you think that..running away like this is worth it?" He turned his head to look at his rider, asking the question that he had in mind since they flew away from the town. Not regretting it, but questioning it just a bit.

Slowly, he lifted his body and walked to the river. He stared at his reflection before he dived into the water, liking the feeling of coldness around his head, and few seconds after that, he lifted his head. His eyes caught a glimpse of medium sized fish, and he wondered if he should catch it for their dinner, or not.

But, they need to keep moving since the people, especially the elders will look for them. Maybe they could rest if they got a bit further from the city. That, after the arrow went away from his wing.

"Well, yeah." Verloren stated, having followed the dragon to the river. He was still poking at his ear and cheek, by now both of the spots looked red and sore, most likely from him poking at them though. "I really think it is worth it. We haven't really gone all that far from the village yet and take a look at this place!"

Ver said this, spinning around as he threw his hands into the air with quite a bit of glee. It was truly amazing here so far. Everything was so green, the water was so clear... he had never seen fish that size before either. Even the sky seemed to be so many different shades bluer than it had back in the city. Everything out here so far felt so fresh and free, without constrictions or anything else. It just felt natural. Even the birds here flew about and chirped happily around them before flying off elsewhere. There were so few birds in the city that were not in cages, it felt almost a bit weird being able to see them fly in the sky so freely.

"And as for my ear and face, well, it stings a bit, but this medicine will stop the bleeding and hopefully it will scab over in the next few days. If it gets infected, well, I'll deal with that if it happens." He just snorted softly, letting out a small huff. "But here, lower your wing if you could, so we can get that arrow out and get a move on it. Once night falls I am sure we will be much safer, at least from the elders. Hopefully."

Lu lowered his wing so Ver could reach it and pull the arrow out of it. He sat down on the grass quietly, still looking at the fish inside the water, and he sighed. "You want to eat some? After we got to a safer place, I mean." Lu couldn't help but to worry about his partner. Humans tends to get fever when their wound got infected, and sooner or later Verloren will experience it. The young dragon doesn't have any skills in tending the wound or sick people, heck, he doesn't have any idea about it. But, well, he will try to help.

He winced as the arrow got pulled from his wing, along with some skin and blood. It hurts, a lot. He never got shot before, and he have no idea that it will be painful, especially for a dragon. They're a big creature and it's a bit weird to feel pain from a small weapon like this. No idea at all.

The elder dragons back in the city always came home with battle scar after protecting Brume, and Lu only believed them as they told him, that it doesn't hurt at all, because they got that while protecting their home. "I wonder if it will be safer inside the woods at night. Remember how the scout team told us about wild animals at the forest?"

"After we get a bit farther, something to eat would probably be a really good idea." It hadn't taken all that long to get the arrow out of Lu's wing, and to better help cover their tracks, he tossed it into the river to let it be swept away by the current. He'd been as careful as he could pulling it out, but it seemed it was impossible to pull it out without a bit of skin. At least dragons healed faster than humans, even if it did scar, it wouldn't be a bad one.

"Well... you are a dragon and I am a somewhat skilled fighter, as long as we are careful and don't press our luck too much, I think we should be fine for the night in the woods. Especially if we just find a decent spot to camp at for the evening. I don't think I'll need a fire around this time of year." Verloren dropped down to a kneel at the rivers edge, dipping his hands into the water as he lightly scrubbed at his hands to wash away the blood into the water. Maybe he should have tried to wash his face and ear before putting the salve on it, but it was a bit late for that now.

A soft sigh escaped Ver as he finished scrubbing his hands, his head slowly leaning back to look up towards the sky once again. "You know, its weird. Spending all my life looking at the sky, but it has never looked as beautiful as it does now. I wonder why that is."

The dragon listened quietly to Verloren and he nudged the teen with his muzzle. "Well, maybe it's because we're not at a familiar place, the sky look new to us. Along with the surroundings." He answered at Ver's question, but not really sure with his words. Who knows? Maybe the adrenaline made them to see everything differently. Verloren loves challenges, and Lu just getting on with the pace. He doesn't have anything to hate at all. All he know that, he doesn't like to stay at a place for long, long time while doing nothing, and that made him feel completely useless.

"I should probably change back to human, so I won't draw any attention toward us. That, if you don't wanna fly." He said to Ver, asking for his opinion. Since, his huge build is definitely eye-catching, he should probably change back to his human form.

Verloren let out a small chuckle as he was nudged, giving the dragon a small pat on the nose before nodding his head lightly. "You are probably right. It just feels a whole lot different without the walls and all of the buildings around! Its nice, though. The air out here feels more breathable."

There was another silence from Ver as he pushed himself up from the riverbank, slowly lifting a hand up to lightly poke at the right side of his face once again. He knew better than to keep poking at it, but he had to make sure it had stopped bleeding. Which, thankfully to the medicine, had stopped bleeding. Though the wounds sort of throbbed a bit, it wasn't anything he couldn't deal with. He just had to be sure not to sleep on that side of his face tonight and check it again in the morning!

"That is a good idea, it will be easier to hide that way. Once we get farther from here, just imagine how much you can fly, unrestricted without people yelling all the time about knocking cloths off of the lines and the such." A soft snort escaped Verloren as he shook his head. "What do you think about following the river for a bit? Its goes right into the forest."

Just as Verloren agreed about him turning back to human, Lu immediately transformed back, and luckily, the cape which is only clothing fell right on top of his body to cover most of his skin. He noticed that Ver tends to poke on his face, and on the wound so he grabbed the hand and shook his head. "You probably should leave that alone, and we should find a piece of fabric or clean leaf to cover your wound." He said, and after that he released the teen's hand. Lu's not the very experienced person (or in his case, dragon) in medic, but he know that touching your wound over and over won't do it any good.

He nodded at Ver's suggestion about following the river stream, see if they could get inside the woods unnoticed, or won't get lost horribly. The white haired boy glanced on his right part of his shoulder, where the wing are supposed to be there when he turned back to a dragon, and he felt a dull ache from the arrow earlier. Not painful, since his cell regeneration are much better and faster. He wondered if Ven could have the same regeneration or not. Maybe if he ate a lot and rest a lot, his wound would heal faster. But, nah, no way that could happen to this hyperactive rider.

The two of them walked at the river side, following the stream as they look around for a safe place to rest for the night. Lu caught a glimpse of a wild deer among the trees and he smiled. Animals seems to live peacefully here. He feel bad about eating them back at the city, but he couldn't eat vegetables that much or he will lose the protein that his body needs. Ver, in the other hand, should eat a lot of vegetables. That was Lu's opinion.

Verloren let out a small noise as his hand was grabbed to stop him from poking at his face. He frowned a bit, but nodded his head in agreement. "Sorry. I don't have a mirror out here so I can't see it to tell if the bleeding had stopped yet or not. I'll stop poking at it now though. Well, at least until the medicine is absorbed, then I need to apply more. But other than that I'll stop touching it."

Almost on que, Ver lifted his other hand to try to touch at the right side of his face. But he stopped himself and shook his head a bit vigorously. Nope, touching it was bad. Touching healing wounds more than needed was bad, it added to risk of dirt and germs getting into it and causing an infection. To better take his mind off of the throbbing of his ear and cheek, he started to look around at the river and the forest as they began to wander inside of it.

The more he looked around at the outside, it felt like he was entering some place that had gone untouched by human hands. An elder dragon had once told him that humans were the real problem of the world, how they destroyed everything they touched. But the elder dragon had also told him it was humans that were still a young race, learning the ways of the world that they were not entirely built for. Compared to other things, humans were really weak. They did not heal fast, they had slow reflexes and their strength compared to the nearest humanoid-like creature was even weak. But if there was one thing that humans had that advanced over other races, they were far more adaptable to their situations. Hrmph. One small thing to be proud of.

Verloren jerked his head to the side as he looked across the river, dark grey eyes going wide as he caught sight of a rather colorful bird nestled between some of the thick underbrush. It was bright and vibrant in color compared to the various shades of green and brown of the leaves around it. A small hum escaped him as he tossed a glance to Lu with a bit of a smirk.

"I've never seen such pretty animals like this in the city." He said, whispering. He felt it would have been disruptive to speak too loudly... he didn't want to scare the animals here. He just wanted to see them a bit more.