Even despite the situation, Ruri found her heart fluttering--she was flying. The dragon was carrying them into the air, soaring on the winds and dancing with the breeze. Or maybe that was just her shaking because the weight was lopsided. But Ruri was actually flying on a dragon! Well, okay, under a dragon, but that only made it slightly less amazing. She couldn't help but feel a little sad as the flight came to an end. Still, she could see the dragon struggling, so when the time came she jumped off and rolled to the side, shielding the boy with her arms as they tumbled clear. They came to a stop just inside the forest, as did the dragon.

The next words Ruri heard were among the saddest she had ever listened to. The dragon wanted them to abandon her when those ghouls might be coming? When the fire might spread to the fields and the forest, swallowing her in its relentless advance? Would that actually harm a dragon, Ruri wondered briefly. The point still stood, though, that she could never abandon a dragon like this. She stood, the boy still clinging to her, and sidled over the the dragon's side.

"Just rest for a bit and you'll be fine!" Ruri cried, small droplets of water forming in the corners of her eyes despite the smile she put on. "You saved us, so the least we can do is help you now." Ruri reached out with one hand, resting it on the dragon's head. The boy didn't dare stretch his hand out, instead hiding behind Ruri and watching with wide, blue eyes.

Though they were running down a path, Kiara felt better the instant they were in the trees. Finally, she wasn’t out in the open obvious and easy to pick off. She didn’t even have a weapon anymore. Stealth was the only thing she had left that would keep her safe. However, she realized the cloak didn’t hide her very well out here. In fact, it didn’t hide her well during daytime at all, except for in the allies, which is why when they finally reached the house at the end of the trail, she took the thing off and held it in her arms.

A smile found its way to her lips as she watched him trying to breath. Kiara wouldn’t say that she wasn’t tired at all, but dancing definitely had her better off than this guy. Instead, she could actually stand, though she did appreciate the stop. She was reaching the end of her limit as well. At least she could add able to run far to her list of survival skills. Two was better than one.

Kiara heard him talking, but looked at him with confusion when he thanked her. Her head tilted to the side as she tried to figure out why that was. It was true that she had helped him, but to hear someone actually saying those words? It was unheard of where she grew up. People took and then they left. They didn’t care who gave it to them.

“I’m…” She paused for a moment, as she thought of what to say. Of course she knew her name, but did she really want to give it to him? Biting her lip softly, she decided to give it a try. “Kiara. They call me Kiara Black, but I don’t think that’s my real last name.” Her hand grasped his and shook it firmly, her lips turned up in a smile. “Thank you, Cyrus. You saved me a couple times too.”

Malakaus Ironhide

Turning his body towards the direction of the noise and saw haven rise from the pine. She was absolutely covered in pine needles and sap. She must have been crawling all over the trees to avoid detection. Good on her, because even Malakaus didn't find her. Walking Over to the human, Malakaus tore off a piece of his own shirt to clean up Haven, mostly just to get the dirt out of some of her cuts. "Right. Sorry about that, I... I just wanted to make sure I didn't lose you." It didn't take long before the rag Malakaus used was covered with dirt, so he put it into his pocket and helped haven out of the bushes.

He wasn't sure how much time has passed now. His body, while hurt, was still able to keep moving. Form what little light he could make out from the cover of the trees, it was around noon, maybe an hour or two more. He couldn't really say, everything happened to fast he wouldn't be surprised if it was still morning. But Malakaus knew that now was not the time for that; they still needed to get to the city, and it'll be better to do that before nightfall. He was almost certain those monsters didn't need sleep and could see in the dark, and that wouldn't do them any favors if they were still in the forest when they show up. "Come on Haven. We just need to get to the river, and we can follow it to the city. Stay close and... If you see anything, tell me." Malaksu drew his sword. Despite salvaging it last minute, the blade was sharp enough to cut a man in half from shoulder to hip. It was a dull grey color, and was probably in the midst of getting it polished. It wasn't reflective, so either Malakaus' father intended it to be that way or just didn't get the chance to. Looking at the weapon, Malakaus realized this is the first time he's ever actually held a sword. Or rather, the first time where he'd ever need to use it. He's handled weapons for his father before, but all he was doing was delivering them. Never before has Malakaus actually used a sword before. Machetes, knives, those he's worked with. But this sword was different. It had a different weight to it, more balanced for stabbing and slashing, but it was also unfamiliar. Malakaus hoped that he wouldn't need it, as he wasn't sure if he was capable of using it.

Once he was done analyzing the weapon, Malakaus began to walk deeper into the forest, and made sure that haven was always near by. If he lost sight of her he'd backtrack to find her, or wait for her to catch up. It was slow going, but by the time he found the river there was still day light left.

Xia Yang

"But we're not out of the woods yet." Xia opened the door for the two, making a quick scan to make sure they weren't followed. She beckoned them inside before she closed the door behind them. Xia went back to gathering her things, making a bit of a mess at the same time. She was going to take everything she could carry, and everything she was going to carry either had to do with information she knew she wouldn't be able to find elsewhere, and things essential for surviving on the roads for the next few days. "My name is Xia Yang by the way. I'd offer more pleasantries, but I'm hoping to get out of here as soon as possible. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen, I have some salted meat, fruits, and a barrel of clean water. If you need healing, I have some poultices you can use to alleviate your wounds. You can use whatever you can find, I already have most of what I wanted. I'm afraid I don't have much in terms of weapons however... I have some knives in the kitchen if you want to take those. Oh!" Xia snapped her fingers when she remembered one more thing. She left the room for a short while, leaving the two alone.

By time Xia returned, she had a bow with a quiver of arrows, twenty to be exact. They were iron tipped, but also a bit dull and rusty. "This is my father's old bow. I haven't touched this in months at least, and I'm not very good with it. I don't know if either of you know how to use it, but I'm not going to bother taking it." She left it with Kiara and Cyrus to decide among themselves as she got the last of her things. once she was done, she took a seat in her father's old chair. For a moment, she reminisced about all the work she's done sitting there, researching her alchemy and trying to find out what happened to her father. While she was here, she wondered what would become of her home.

No doubt that she'll never be returning; even if all the monsters were killed, she had no intention of moving back here. There was only so much she could do in the forest, and she's done just about everything there was. So if she did leave, what would happen to it? Would it just crumble apart into stone and dust? maybe some bandits would turn it into their base of operations? Or someone else moves in? Maybe her father would return, wondering what became of his daughter? Eventually Xia snapped out of it and reached for a mug of water that she left that morning. Still had some water in it, so she took a sip.

As Xia gathered her thoughts, she looked at the two strangers in her home. Though they have collectively saved each other, there was still an air of animosity among them. Surely if the monsters never attacked, they would have never even so much have looked at each other. And while they were no warriors, Xia knew that if she plans to get to the city alive, she'd need their help. "So... What are you two going to do now?"

Taraah was surprised when the duo refused to leave. Even more so when the girl actually went and touched her, being concerned for her no the less. What was it so special about this one? Why did she not fear her like the others? Before, she got shot and cursed at whenever she peeked up during the day without her disguise. This one's eyes welled up when she saw her in discomfort. Taraah's breath slowed down as she found the hand on her forehead strangely calming.

After a few seconds, Taraah managed to stand up. It was strange, as she had to actually look up to the children, being young and small herself. They were lucky she could even hold them in the air before. "They'll blame me for it. You should go. Find other people and warn them." she said, despite not wanting to be left alone. Finally she found someone not afraid of her, and she had to send them away if they were to be safe. A sickening growl torn her out of her thoughts, as the horde made it out of the village and was now heading towards the forest. "Go! I'm right behind you." she said and turned around, taking a rugged deep breath. Somewhere within her lungs, she could feel the familiar burning that traveled up her throat as she bathed the approaching monsters in a jet of fire.

"Oh, uh..." Cyrus stuttered when Kiara thanked him in turn, searching for what to say in response. Before he could speak again, Xia answered the door much sooner than Cyrus had anticipated, the door swinging wide as she hurried them both inside and shut the door. After a quick introduction she excused herself, and Cyrus took the opportunity to unbutton and removed his vest, folding it and hanging it on top of his wooden pole, leaving it leaning against the corner beside the door. Underneath the vest he had been wearing a long-sleeved, button-down shirt; had Cyrus known he'd be doing so much running today he might have worn something far less formal and restrictive. He took a moment to try to think what to do next, there was really only one thing he was certain of, he didn't want to go it alone.

Xia returned with an unexpected sight, a bow and a set of arrows in a quiver. Xia explained the bow was of little use to herself. After a moment of hesitation, Cyrus glanced over at Kiara, then back to Xia. "Well, I've never handled a bow either, but even if none of us have ever used a bow before I think it would be best to bring it with just in case. Now, if you will give me a moment..."

Cyrus unbuttoned his sleeves and rolled them up past his elbows, revealing a couple fresh bruises on his arms. He excused himself, slinking past the two into the nearby kitchen. Cyrus searched and quickly retrieved three plates, one for each of them present. He didn't know if Xia had already eaten but Cyrus felt it rude not to prepare something for her too, considering they were her guests. The first thing he did was start washing off a couple apples and pears, taking a paring knife from the drawer and slicing the fruit into smaller servings and distributing them onto the three plates.

While Cyrus was at work preparing the three of them a meal, he overheard Xia in the other room asking what he and Kiara were planning to do. Cyrus stopped chopping meat for a second to think, before peeking his head out into the room, "I want to get to the nearest city, so I can send a letter back home. I know someone who can get the word out real fast; we can get news of this tragedy to the rest of the world in less than a week."

Cyrus returned to the kitchen, but emerged a few moments after, balancing three plates in hand each with a portion of salt-cured pork that had been seared, and slices of apples and pears. He passed one each to Kiara and Xia before himself seating nearby.

It didn’t take very long for the girl to answer the door and introduce herself. Being inside a home like this usually felt constricting to Kiara, but at that moment she was too hyped on adrenaline to care. In fact, her thoughts were bouncing all over the place it was hard to even pay attention to what was being said. When had she brought a bow out? Kiara looked at it curiously before picking it up and drawing the string back, testing.

“I’ve never used a bow either, but I think I’d like to learn.” It certainly did appeal to her. After all, it would allow her to stay behind in the shadows or in trees or anywhere else where she was hidden. She wouldn’t be required to be up close and personal with anything that could kill her. That was a definite bonus. Her aim, she wasn’t sure about, but Kiara was sure she could figure that out sooner or later. If her lucky shot was anything to go off, she could be a decent archer if she put enough time into it. It also would give her something that would focus her mind, much like dancing.

She was so enthralled by the bow that she almost didn’t hear the question posed or see the food being brought out. Quickly, Kiara laid the bow back down and took the plate. Normally, she would be so hungry that she would devour it, but after seeing everything today, she found her appetite was gone. Pushing around the food on her plate disinterested, she decided to answer Xia’s question instead. “I need money. All I had was in that town, and now it’s gone. I’ll go anywhere that they will pay me for my dancing.” And somewhere with enough shadows that I can go around unnoticed at night, she thought to herself.

Ruri turned and hustled the boy further into the forest. She stopped after only a few steps, though, and turned back. "You come, too! No one can blame you, so you'd better be right behind us!" She ended her shout with a firm nod, then sprinted into the forest.

The small girl's legs wanted to carry her right up into the air again, so elated was she feeling after the flight. The boy she was protecting, though, had suffered much the opposite. His legs were weak, making his already short steps come slowly. Ruri hadn't the size to carry him, so she wrapped one arm around him and tried to pull him along. The pace was less than enough to make Ruri comfortable, but it was gradually improving as the boy regained his confidence in the ground.

Ruri sneaked a peek back over their shoulders, hoping to see their rescuer behind them.

Silly girl. Of course they will blame her - If she was in their heels, she'd blame herself. A dragon appears and suddenly a village lies in ashes. It doesn't take a genius or unbiased person to see the connection. A bit out of touch from reality she might be though, Taraah found herself al least curious about the other person, if not more, and decided to follow them, at least for a little while. With the immediate threat gone as the advancing ghouls either crumbled into heaps of ashes or fell with their bürns too severe to continue, the dragoness vanished in the trees.

She was forced to slow down soon though. Blood was running down from her arms where the ghouls got through most of the hits. The worst was the slashed chest though, amplified by trying to fly and carryng such extra weight no less. When she made it to the river, she fell on the shores unable to stand any longer. Dragging her weight closer to the water, she took a few sips to quench her thirst. Hearing muffled voices somewhere behind her, she could only whisper a plea for help.

Xia Yang

Xia closed her eyes to allow herself to rest for a moment. Her chair was so much more comfortable now than it has been before. She also heard a bit of what the other two were going to do; Cyrus wanted to get to the nearest city and send a message of what happened. A good idea, it'll prepare all the other cities of a possible monster attack. Kiara just wanted to make up for the money she lost back at the village. Admittedly Xia thought it was odd for her to be concerned about something like that now, but perhaps Kirara has simply gotten over the attack and just wants to move on with her life. That's how Xia saw it, in any case.

Cyrus returned from Xia's kitchen with a plate full of food. Now that she was going to abandon this place, no sense in leaving any of the good stuff behind. "Thank you, Cyrus." As she ate, she was reminded of a few more things in the house that might be of use. They're not much, but anything would help. After Xia finished eating all the fruits on her plate, she stood up and began to rummage around her house. When she was done with that she briefly left her house, only to come back a minute later with a woodcutting axe. She had gathered a hundred gold pieces and an axe. "I... I know how to get to the nearest city. There is a river not too far away from here. I have a boat that my father used to use when we had business in the city. We could take it there. But I know that it's dangerous right now, and I wouldn't want either of you to come along just for my sake. I know it isn't much, but I'd like to offer you some things as payment, and to help you on our way there." Xia gave Kiara half her gold, and gave Cyrus the rest of the gold and her axe. The axe was about ten pounds, a bit top heavy, but made of solid steel and still sharp. He nwould need something to protect himself until they got to the city. Xia herself felt that she wouldn't need it, and as for the gold, she already took her father's secret stash as well as her own earnings over the year.

Xia finished the rest of her food and began to pack up the rest of her things. "When you're ready, we should leave now. We're losing daylight, and I do not want to meet those creatures in the darkness."

For a while, Cyrus sat and quietly ate, nibbling on the sliced pear. He had intentionally tried to save most of the salted pork for their trip, since it would not spoil nearly as quickly as the fruit. He looked across at Kiria with some concern since she didn't seem to be wanting to eat at the moment; given what they had just survived he did not blame her for not really being in a mood to eat. He bit onto a piece of apple, letting the slice hang just outside his lips while he pulled a fountain pen and a leather-bound book from his pockets. He used one hand every so often to retrieve a piece of food, but spent the majority of his time also writing an entry into the blank pages of the notebook, documenting the day's events.

Between pages of writing Cyrus demonstrated an unusual talent with his penmanship in another way, he started to sketch an illustration of the black ghouls that had attacked them during the day, and after it were sketches of Kiara and Xia. At that moment, though, Xia wanted to show gratitude towards them for helping, though really Cyrus felt it was more often the case that Xia had been helping him. She returned with gold and an axe, passing the axe and a rather large portion of gold Cyrus's way. He was going to protest, but picking up the solid, heavy axe, he realized how much he was going to need a real weapon, as opposed to his wooden broom handle. He slipped the axe through his belt, quietly promising to himself he'd return whatever gold he didn't use to Xia once they were to part ways. Cyrus looked back up to Xia from over the pages of his book, "Thanks, but I should be thanking you."

Xia soon after asked if they were ready to go, but Cyrus had a thought, "Wait, one more thing."

Cyrus closed his book shut and put it away, disappearing into the kitchen one last time. He returned with a bundle containing some extra food for the three of them, in addition to a couple kitchen knives and a sharpening stone wrapped neatly in folds of washcloths, "I don't know how long we'll be out, but I was taught always to be prepared."

They had to stop. The boy couldn't keep running any longer, and Ruri's rush was wearing off quickly. They came to a halt and collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. "What is... your... name?" Ruri asked the small boy between breaths.

"Yuto," he mumbled in reply.

"Yuto. That's a... nice name. Mine is... Ruri!" Her face lit up with a smile. Yuto managed a small smile in return.

Ruri heard a whisper. No, she felt a whisper--a soft sound that caressed her heart. Without hesitation the small girl turned about, facing what seemed to be any other direction in the forest. Pulling herself to her feet, Ruri stumbled through the brush with Yuto following behind her. With each step she took, her stride became more confident as the feeling waxed stronger. Yuto called after her, but Ruri didn't stop until the river came into view--and the dragon collapsed on its bank.

"NO!" Ruri cried upon seeing her. She dashed to the dragon's side and started looking all over its body. "You're hurt," she stated with a pained voice--not because she thought the dragon hadn't noticed, but as a declaration to the world that such a thing was wrong. Claw marks covered the creature's forelegs and blood was spreading out from underneath its chest. Tears filled Ruri's eyes just looking at the injuries the dragon had sustained on their behalf, made worse by carrying them from the village. "Just hang on! I can do something! Um," Ruri looked around desperately until her eyes fell on the river.

She plunged her hands in, gloves and all, and grasped at the bottom. Both eyebrows shot up and she yelled at Yuto over her shoulder. "Get some vines! Quickly!" Kneeling beside the dragon, Ruri spoke softly, comfortingly. "I can help the wound, even if only a little." Her hands emerged with long, thin strands of green bursting from between her clenched fingers. Ruri didn't expect the dragon to know, but the algae she held was Tankaer--Green Balm, as the humans had it. It was commonly used in minor potions and tonics for its restorative effects. Because it was raw it could not completely heal, but it would at least help the wounds mend faster. And act as a bandage, hopefully.

Haven's sweat was cold. "The first one that I saw was here in the woods...” The creatures had focused their attack on the village, yet, her earlier experience proved that the woods had not been excluded. She kept close to the orc, her eyes set upon the greenery about them. The wood was oddly quiet, as if any animal had already flown away or burrowed underground to be away from these abominations.

The trees however, were less fortunate than the critters. They were rooted into the ground they could only wait to be burned, or cut, or not. They quietly witnessed, their roots soaked up the blood that poured out of the villages. They provided shade for the dark bloodthirsty creatures lurking about, as well as for their prey.

Through the trees she saw a clearing, and a familiar figure standing as if waiting for someone or something.

“Oh Mal. She is from the village!” She grabbed Mal’s elbow to get his attention. “Ah… she is a dwarf. She is new a-What is her name?”

Haven made it her duty know everyone in the village and their business. Who was having babies, who harbored secret affection for who, who was sick, who was starting a new venture, who was ending one... Somehow the little stinky girl was good at acquiring such knowledge, and was always at the ready. The villagers would find a gift of cabbages for every newborn and honeymoon and other such occasions, a cabbage root for every cold and broken limb, and a smile for anyone who needed it from the little girl and her pet rat.

Most people would call her nosy she considered herself a caring and concerned citizen. Her affection for her home automatically extended itself to everyone within it.

Including the dwarf woman, the name came to her.

“Ada! Ada-ada-adadada.” She broke away from the Orc excitedly. Careless. She entered the clearing. “It’s me Haven… from the village.” She smelled of skunk cabbage, smoke, blood, and pine sap. Nor was she a pleasant sight with her skirt torn and her hair affray, dark circles under her bloodshot eyes. Yet, they would all be in dire straights after a day such as this. “Do you remember me? Well we are getting out of here, we have a way to get away quickly, come with us.” She’d reach out for shorter woman, and urge her back toward where Mal was. They’d get the dwarf woman then continue toward the canoe… then…

Haven didn't know.

Ada saw a large orc and a smaller human girl. She sort of recognized the human as the girl who sold cabbages and liked to try to hang around Ada unnoticed. For the most part Ada didn't care so long as she wasn't causing trouble, but she was now glad to see her. Mostly because she had a rather big orc for a friend. Ada's own opinion of orcs weren't the greatest, but now was not the time to linger on petty grudges. "Hey kiddo. I guess I ought to be glad to see a friendly face in these neck of the woods." Ada smiled a little, but not out of happiness. It was a fake smile, one she made to tell herself that things were going to be alright. As the girl, Haven, led her back to her friend, Ada wondered what she would need to do once they hit the city. No doubt she'd need to resupply, but she lost all her money at the village. She could always try to make more knives, but for that she needed metal, and to get that she needed money. Or to steal it.

Once Ada and Haven got back to the orc, the dwarven woman gave the green hulk a short glare. She was only going to come along out of necessity. "Name's Ada. I hope you know the way out of here, cause I'm not a native to the area."

Blackness. Taraah could see nothing. Smell nothing. Hear nothing. Feel nothing. She couldn't move. It frightened her to the core. She felt like she was falling, and her chest felt like being impaled by a giant spike. She shrieked in fear and anguish, until something reached out to her and banished the pain, allowing her to breathe. With the nightmare gone, she sunk into a dreamless oblivion. Unaware to her, she was screaming from her sleep.

When she came around, she was relieved her senses returned. There was ground beneath her. The bubbling of a river soothed her ears. But it wasn't all nice. There was a copper taste of blood in her mouth, and the air smelled of smoke that carried the disgusting stench of death. The dragon slowly remembered what happened and jerked awake. As she tried to jump on her feet, she was reminded that not all was part of the nightmare, as her chest was still full of stabbing pain, although it was now manageable. Tilting her head to see, the light hurt her eyes for a while before they adjusted. She saw somebody patched her wound up.

Taking a strong whiff of the air, she found from the scents she was not alone. Lifting herself on her hind legs to turn quickly, she lowered herself slowly to ease her front ones. It was the two she rescued from the village, although she doubted rescue was the word for it. Releasing the breath she didn't know she held, she looked at them. Stupid girl! She told them to run! But her anger dissipated as quickly as it came. They were the first two that didn't fear her in her natural shape. Well, the girl. The boy still seemed a bit scared or shy. "Thank you." she said with s small bow of her head. "You shouldn't have stayed." she reprimanded, looking towards the village worriedly, but no ghouls pursued them. Her last attack must have scared the mad creatures off.

"Don't worry. Mal knows the way. Right?" He had a canoe, he had a plan. Haven was not like Ada, a stranger, she knew this village like the back of her hand. But she knew absolutely nothing of the world beyond it. She had to rely on both her companions, the more worldly Orc and Dwarf.

She followed Mal through the wood, keeping her steps as quiet as she could. "We think it's safe... but... I saw them in the woods before... they might still be around." There was no explanation needed for who 'they' were. The monsters. She hadn't the time to think about what they were, or what they were properly called, what they were made of, where they had come from... no she was to busy surviving to wonder...

Where had they gone?

The trio reached the city after a full day of travel. Haven was exhausted. The green hue of Mal's skin had given them some trouble at the threshold, but his parents and Haven's own father were known as reputable merchants who had visited the city before... So after a short discussion and a warning not to make any trouble, the guards let them inside the high walls and into saftey.

Haven didn't feel so safe. She was awed and intimidated by the sheer size of the place, she felt claustrophobic among the tightly stacked buildings, overwhelmed by the sheer number of people. She was scared of loosing her friends in such a place, she had no bearing here, could not see the sun to determine even the cardinal directions. If she got lost she would not even be able to find her way to the gate, she thought.

She would cling tightly to her friends, hooking an arm with either Mal or Ada as they moved along.

The other thing that bothered Haven was that, they were let into the city, but once inside everyone seemed to ignore them. In her home village, when something bad happened to someone everyone would extend a helping hand. Last year the white family lost their house to a fire, they did not want for a place to stay or food to eat until the village helped them rebuild. The guards at the gate did not seem interested in their story at all, and would roll their eyes at any mention of monsters. All the strange faces just seemed to slide right over them as if they weren't there.

"Have... H-have either of you been here before?" She felt weak, and had begun to lean on her friends not only for comfort and security, but now to help her stand.

Ruri jumped when the dragon finally moved again. She stood up from the grass and skipped over to the majestic creature. "And you shouldn't be moving too much. You're very welcome, but we should be thanking you. I almost burned that house down around us," Ruri admitted with a sheepish smile, "but you saved us. And you even got us away from those ghouls! Really, thank you!" Ruri's face lit up with a bright smile, her cheeks a light pink and her teeth a shining white. She'd just had a dragon thank her with a bow; Ruri's life felt complete.

Yuto wasn't so keen on approaching the carnivorous beast with a jaw powerful enough to snap him in half. He stayed sitting on the grass several meters away; nevertheless, he was absorbed in watching the exchange with wide-eyed wonder.

"A! I'm Ruri, and this is Yuto! We've been waiting for you to wake up. When you passed out from the injuries this morning, I almost died of worry! I think the Tankaer has helped your body stop the bleeding, at least, but you do still need to take it easy for a day or two, okay? Oh, yeah, what's your name? Is it alright if I ask? Most dragons don't share their name, but the elves give each dragon another name as well for their histories. And the humans, too; dragons have so many names!" Ruri's thoughts leaped from one to the next so fast that she didn't leave space for the dragon to slide a word in. Finally realizing it, the small girl forced herself to hold her tongue, an embarrassed blush tinting her cheeks as she shyly fidgeted in place.

Within the span of an hour's walk, they had followed Xia to her father's boat and set off for the next city. Cyrus mostly kept to himself during the trip down the river. He spent the good part of another hour drafting a letter, one he hoped to express mail back home to his father. He knew his father would be able to get ahold of old partners in the printing companies to copy and produce the letter. Word of this tragedy would be known to the entire world in mere days. Cyrus wondered exactly what would change, though, if the world knew about what happened, and for that matter, if anyone knew what just happened anyway. Monsters had organized and made an assault on a major community; something like that just doesn't happen by chance.

He had plenty of time to think about what they had just survived though he never voiced his concerns to his traveling companions, not yet anyway. There was a dour, gloomy look plastered on his face while he tried to make sense of it all, but he made an effort to try and push it to the back of his mind. Hours started to pass, and the scenery ever so gradually started to change; trees along the river's edged became gradually more sparse as they left the thickest heart of the forest and made progress towards the next beacon of civilization. Cyrus would occasionally open his letter again and again to make sure his penmanship was clear and legible, that he'd remembered to write everything he could, that nothing was forgotten.

Once they had finally moored Xia's boat and disembarked, the sun was fast vanishing over the horizon. Cyrus hoped they would not have to try navigating in the dark of night, as he didn't have any source of light, and wasn't sure if Kiara or Xia had anything of the sort either. At least they were far away enough from the cover of trees that maybe the light from the stars and moon would give some illumination. Their journey continued with little other difficulty, and at long last, as the moon hung high over their heads, Cyrus could see the flicker of a distant torchlight just in the distance. The sight of a posted guard at the gate was even more comforting; it meant that this city was safe, secure, and well-protected. Cyrus began to pick up his pace now that their goal was in sight, using the wooden stick to push into the ground and increase his stride.

The guards, however, seemed to be wary of the three of them when they tried to ask for entry into the city. Their suspicion was roused only more when they attempted to relay the story of monsters destroying a city. Still, Cyrus could see a hint of worry and concern when they told their story, even if they tried to remain skeptica; it was as if they weren't the first ones to tell the guards about what had happened. The guards finally seemed to pull themselves aside to discuss privately with one another, Cyrus wondered to himself what they were planning, he kept his eyes on the spears that each guard was clutching, fearing that the guards may force them away.

At long last, the guards reluctantly opened the way and allowed the three inside. Cyrus reached up to place his hands on the shoulders of both Kiara and Xia, "Well, I need to get to the post office as soon as possible, what are you two going to do now?"

Taraah watched as the girl ranted, trying to absorb what she was saying, but exhausted as she was and with the pinkskin speaking at such speed, Taraah felt like Ruri's words were just bouncing off of her ears instead of going in. She couldn't hide the smirk that crawled on her face when the girl apparently realized that as well. Taking a moment to process what she said, Taraah looked to the ground sadly: "You are the only one who cares what happens to me. Everyone else just ran or attacked in fear. Humans gave me the name Ashwing." she introduced herself, spitting a small ball of fire in disgust. She hated the name. Ashwing. As if she didn't have any fire.

"It's getting too late to travel safely. We should make camp somewhere and wait the night. I shall protect you until the morning, but then I will need to hide again." The dragoness said, a hint of sadness apparent in her voice. She didn't want to leave the only person that wasn't trying to hurt her. Perhaps she could stick with them in her human disguise. Tell them the Dragon left and that she escaped from the village late. With the plan in her head, she waited for the others.

Ruri bobbed her head up and down, the red twin-tails shaking with it. "Okay. Yuto found a small cove down the river that should fit all of us. We would have moved there already, but you were sleeping. Do you think you can walk about two hundred steps? Well, maybe only two thirds of that since you can take bigger steps than Yuto. But you also have to take twice as many, so maybe it's really four thirds that?" Ruri cocked her head to one side, seeming to give the question some serious pondering.

Yuto tugging on the back of her dress pulled her out of it. "A! Right, right. Yuto will lead the way. Just take it easy, okay Ashwing? The bleeding stopped, so don't strain the scabs and make it start again." The procession made its way along the riverbank. Having Yuto lead was a somewhat silly gesture--it was impossible not to see the shelter as long as one stayed on the riverbank--but Ruri noticed the boy walking a little taller nonetheless. After spending a day with Ashwing asleep, he'd grown more comfortable with her presence. He still wouldn't touch her, but he was okay with having her nearby. The screams had almost ruined that, which is why Ruri gave him an important task.

Not far down the shoreline, just as Ruri had said, was a riverbank with an overhanging ledge. At one point the river had dug into the embankment, creating a cave there, but had since changed its course. This left the trio a dry space to lay in the soft sand, protected from the elements and out of sight from most of the forest. All three settled into the place there, getting as comfortable as the low ceiling allowed--Ashwing at one side, Ruri laying right beside her, and Yuto keeping himself on the other side of Ruri.

The sun finished its descent, vanishing and taking its warming rays with it. The moon stood high overhead, keeping its watch over the darkness. Ruri woke when she heard a soft sobbing beside her. She turned to see Yuto crying in his sleep. The tears dripped slowly into the sand as he called for his mother. Ruri's face twisted into a sad smile, her heart crying right along with the boy. Reaching out, the small girl set her hand on the boy's head and rubbed gently. Slowly the tears stopped, Yuto's breathing became easier, and his muttering ended.

Ruri squirmed out of the shelter to look up at the moon standing sentry overhead. A thought struck her, a story her mother had told her some time ago. Climbing to her feet, Ruri walked to the river's edge. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, clearing her mind in preparation.

~~~~~

Haemon's companions, elves all, mourned his death. Though he was human, he had been a rider and a friend. Humans' lives were short, but to see one they loved have his own so tragically cut was a cause of great sorrow to them all. The one who took it hardest was Syla. The man had been her friend, her comrade, her love. She had not rested until she found his body.

When she finally did--the corpse barely recognizable after the dark magic that it had suffered--Syla finally had to accept that Haemon was gone. The body was given a proper funeral, attended by all those who had stood beside him in battle. With that, Haemon's soul could rest.

That night, Syla slipped to the grave. With the moon as her witness, the elf began to dance. Her pale arms flew out wide, her feet stepped through the soft grass, and her flowing, green hair billowed behind her. She spun, she leaped, she twirled and bowed--she showed Haemon the most beautiful dance ever seen in the world.

At last it ended. Syla thanked Haemon kindly and returned to her home. With this, Syla knew, Haemon could move on filled with joy.

~~~~~

Ruri's movements were a little clumsy. The spinning made her a little dizzy, and her hair whipped her face. She stumbled on the uneven sand more than once, and even fell flat on her face once. Nevertheless, the small girl with bright, red hair and a brighter, pink dress put on the best show she could. Finally she collapsed in exhaustion, laying back in the sand and gasping for breath. Hopefully that nice woman at the diner and Yuto's mother had enjoyed her dance, and everyone else who had been there. She would like to think they could pass on happy now.

After her heart stopped pounding, Ruri climbed back into the shelter and collapsed against Ashwing's side. She fell asleep immediately, not noticing the open eyes that had witnessed her performance.