In Search of Adventure

[Eslakon]

Eslakon yawned, raising his arms until they formed a V in mid-air. The rough cobblestone street felt very familiar to his feet, and was very relaxing. The massive trunks of the Melar trees rose high into the air, and many travelers could be found trying to stare at the tops with their jaws hanging. Behind him was the market, which he had just left to try and find a location of interest. He had thought that the cluttered rows of stands would hold some different items, but it was the same thing almost every day.

The morning sun was just starting its trip through the clouded sky, which cast massive shadows along the ground and on the Melar trees, whose large canopy blocked a lot of the sun’s warm light. It lit the path ahead of them, and only the path, for the trees’ massive branches blocked the light anywhere else. The Garden ahead was very bright, for the trees in which the elves took refuge did not shadow it. Eslakon silently named every tree he saw in his head, which was every type he knew.

Chara jolted her head to the side, causing the flesh on her neck to sway momentarily. Her curved talons were revealed every time she stepped on a high rock, taking small chips out of the stone before continuing on her path, which was wherever Eslakon went. She had just eaten her fill of meat, and was licking her sharp blood stained teeth with her rough tongue every few moments, trying to clean them. Her wings were folded neatly at her side, for if she spread them out, she would bump into many of the rider-less dragons that passed.

Her black eyes flicked down to Eslakon in front of her, who had slowed his pace for he was staring into the sky, ever since the Dark Elves had invaded the forest, their flying has been restricted to a bare minimal, and she couldn’t travel as far to hunt. The elves feared that they would be shot out of the sky if they flew, even though they could sail much higher than any arrow could fly. Yet there was always the chance that the arrow would be guided by magic or the elves enchanted their bows. This had made Chara very irritable.

As Eslakon walked up on a fork in the road, he paused and started to scratch his chin. The path on the right led deeper into the Veldon Forest, through the small cabins the elves had built for travelers, for there wasn’t enough vacancy in the Melar trees, and eventually into the forest itself. The other led back to the garden.

“Which way?” Eslakon asked curiously, he was bored, and Chara was not allowed to fly. He figured if she was going to be limited on her movement, she should at least choose where.

”Lets go right, both of us have not been that way for a while, and it’s the closest we are allowed in the forest.” She sniffed the air, making sure there were no odors that were out of place, and then diligently followed Eslakon down the trail; He made no objection to her decision.

[Kat]

Linwe closed her eyes, concentrating on what she was doing. She had been practicing in an open space not far from the path, and it was secluded enough that no one would bother her. Not that many came into the forest any longer. Tilting her head up with her eyes still shut, Linwe began to move slowly, her left hand shooting out faster than the rest of her and the wire with the knife swinging around her.

Linwe began to twirl with the knife, following it's motions with her body to control the blade, making it go where she wanted. She smiled faintly as she spun, her long hair twirling around her as she moved, graceful as a dancer, around the clearing and slicing at invisible opponents. She hadn't had the chance to practice in so long, and she had longed to find somewhere to do so.

Linwe's movements slowly picked up, her arm moving this way and that as her body responded to the direction of the knife, making it look as if she were preforming some exotic dance. Several times the blade flicked up and over her head, causing her to have to do flips to keep the blade from going out of control and slicing her by mistake.

Panting, Linwe jerked back on the wire, catching the blade when it shot back to her. She breathed deeply, trying to gain her breath again. She didn't know how long she had been dancing, but it had to have been for at least half an hour, and her body was begging for a break. She stretched, trying to loosen the tight muscles of her back that had bunched up while she practiced. She smiled, and after a few moments she began to practice again.

[Eslakon]

Eslakon ducked underneath a branch that blocked the path partially, letting them know that they were finally near the forest. It felt as if his feet were being dragged through sand, for they could have been here in a instant if they could fly. It angered him that they couldn’t fly even above the city, there was not archer on Drania that could hit them from the outskirts while they were above the city; It was impossible, magic or not.

A loud crack filled the air, causing Eslakon to jump and then hop out of the way as Chara walked through the limb, breaking it off without slowing her pace. She paused when Eslakon blocked her path, and then pointed to the limb blocking the whole of the trail behind her. With a soft sigh, she raked the limb off of the dirt path with her tail, clearing most of the smaller branches as well with a single sweep.

Not many dragons have gone down this path, the low limbs let both of them know that. She wasn’t sure why Eslakon had made her push the branch out of the way, for if the elves got angry with them, not being able to fly was reason enough. Eslakon stopped on the path and placed his hands on his thighs, after a long sigh, he turned and said. “Sorry to be so strict. When this is over with,” He said softly. “I’ll fly with you as far as you want,” He paused, and then stood up straight. “But we are not going to the Tali . . . shar. . .” He drawled when he heard the faint howl of a blade whistling through the air, and then cut himself off as he leaned and looked through the woods along the path, wondering what was causing the noise.

His mouth still open, he slowly sidestepped off of the path, and then started walking through the woods, a hand on the hilt of his sword. There shouldn’t be any threat in the woods near the city, for the most deadly thing that passed through here were deer, and the dragons quickly picked them off.

”What is it?” Chara asked. She barely managed to follow Eslakon through the woods, occasionally scraping her rough scales against a tree, leaving the wood bare.

The sound grew louder as they arrived at a clearing, “I’m not sure,” Eslakon whispered as he stepped out into the clearing. He winced as a twig snapped, as did Chara, and froze as he waited for a response.

[Kat]

Linwe danced, not noticing anything in her surroundings, yet able to tell when something as small as a mouse scurried into the clearing. She wasn't focusing on anything but training, practicing, dancing... She didn't even hear anyone coming through the forest until they were in the clearing.

Linwe froze, the blade starting to fall from the sky. Yanking on the wire with a forceful tug, she caught the blade as it flew to her and she spun on her heel, trying to find who was in the clearing with her. She frowned, eyes narrowing as she spotted a man standing at the edge of her clearing, drawn by the sound of her blade whistling through the air.

Stiffly, Linwe lowered her weapon to show she wouldn't be a threat and started to loop the wire around her arm again, protecting it in a sheet of metal plating. She turned her head so she could see the man with her good eye, hiding the scarred left eye behind a veil of raven colored hair that slid in front of her face when she turned her head.

"May I help you?" She asked, eyes narrowed as she looked at the man. She hadn't realized anyone on the path could have heard her blade while she practiced. Silently, Linwe made a mental note to find a secluded spot deeper in the forest where no one could hear her practicing. She heard something else over the man's shoulder and stiffened when she saw a rather large dragon behind him. She had never seen one in person before, or at least not up close. She had seen them flying before, but that was only once when she was young. "You are a dragonrider." It wasn't a question, more like a dead-panned statement. Her eyes flicked warily from the man to the dragon, waiting for an answer.

[Eslakon]

Eslakon noticed the stranger put away her weapon when he stepped into the clearing, and let the hilt of his sword fall to the side. He waved his greeting for he did not want to yell, and if he talked it would be illegible. Brushing some tree bark that had rubbed off on his chest, he glanced around the forest to make sure no one else was in this clearing with them.

A thunderous boom filled the air as Chara tried to pry he way through two trees, for there was no large gap for her to pass. Leaves rustled in the canopy above, and the massive trunk started to sway. Suddenly, the top of the tree separated itself from the others, and started to make its decent towards the clearing with great speed: Directly to wards Eslakon.

”Watch out!” She yelled as Eslakon dove quickly to the side, landing roughly on his shoulder with a startled cry. With a loud crack, the tree rolled off of another tree, and changed its path. Chara hopped forward and dug her talons into the tree as it fell. She grunted loudly as she heaved it to the side, putting much more force into it fall.

Eslakon had covered his face with his arms, waiting for something to fall on him, but quickly lowered them when the sound of the tree bouncing filled the air. Hopping to his feet, he glanced in all directions very quickly, and then stifled a curse. He already knew the cause, but ignored it as he sat roughly on the ground, looking at the branches that were now buried in the ground, and the tree laying a short distance away.

He stared at the ground and clenched his jaws, imagining what damage those limbs would have done to him. Yet he was more grateful than angry, for he very well could have died just there. His heart was in his throat from the sudden fear and adrenaline that had filled him. A large branch snapped as Chara slowly stepped on it. She steadily approached Eslakon, her head low, as if she were about to be scolded.

Brushing off the dirt on his shoulder, Eslakon pushed himself onto his feet, but staggered from the sudden shock that had filled him. He looked at Chara’s expression, which showed that she was terribly sorry, and then stepped forward.

With a swift movement, he hugged her neck, glad that nothing had happened to him. “Thank you.” He said, and then released her neck, just remembering the stranger. “Hello.” He said with a slight pant, and then patted Chara on the side of the neck. “What brings you here, other than dodging trees?” He said with slight sarcasm. “I’m Eslakon,” He pointed to Chara. “And this is Chara, may I ask your name?”

[Kat]

Linwe had jumped backwards when the dragon had tried to fit into the small clearing, landing at the edge of the opposite side it was coming into. She blinked in surprise and called out when the tree started to fall, but her cry was unheard over the dragons.

However, the dragon caught the tree just before it landed on her rider and she let out a sigh of relief. She would have tried to help him if he had gotten hurt, but she didn't want him to be hurt at all. Not a dragonrider, they needed to be as strong as they could.

Linwe thingyed her head and took a few steps closer so she could hear Eslakon speak. "I'm Linwe," She said in her melodious voice. "I was practicing." Her eyes flicked to the dragon and nodded. "Hello, Chara," She said. She turned back to Eslakon. "You weren't hurt when the tree fell were you?" She asked. "I'm a bit of a healer. I can help if you need me to."

[Eslakon]

“I’m fine.” He said, looking down on the tree in front of them. He wondered if it would interfere with her practice. Though one could try to balance while using their weapon. Eslakon lifted up his left arm so that his elbow was parallel to the ground, and then brushed some blades off grass off of his shoulder. “I’ve had much worse happen to me.” He said quickly, and then let his arm fall to his side. “I appreciate your concern.”

”It’s a pleasure to meet you, Linwe. Chara said softly as she kneaded a stray piece of wood with her claws, tearing it to pieces. She sniffed the air, turned her head to the forest as she did, and then returned her attention back to the elf. There were no foreign smells in the air, though there could still be something out in the forest. The Dark Elves were very adept at hiding their presence, other than their attacks on the travelers. The sun’s rays reflected off of her black and onto the ground around them, though she tried to keep from reflecting the light into Eslakon’s face.

Leaning on a branch that was still attached to the tree, which sagged under his weight, Eslakon noticed the elf’s unique weapon. “That’s a nice piece of weaponry you have, how does it work?” He asked curiously, he had never seen a weapon like that in the shops, and it seemed to have a wicked look to it.

His sword was a weapon of simple craft that had been fortified by magic, making it stronger than normal. The person, who had enchanted it, was he. Though he was not very skilled at enchantments, he still managed to make the edge stronger while keeping the blade from melting, which was common when working with low quality blades. Though, it was the only blade he could afford at the moment and it seemed to match his arm perfectly.

[Kat]

Linwe nodded, the tension in her shoulders lessening a bit. She looked at the dragon and smiled slightly. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, dragon Chara. I've never seen a dragon so close before. You are quite beautiful."

She turned back to Eslakon, the hair that was hiding the left side of her face sliding off and revealing the long scar. "This?" She asked, holding up the tetsugin that was now wrapped around her left arm. "It's a tetsugin. My grandfather invented it for my mother, since she couldn't use any other weapon." She shrugged and started to unravel it. "Would you like me to show you?" She asked, looking up at him with her dark green eyes.

Linwe wasn't used to people asking about her weapon, they normally didn't come near her. Then again, the other elves that lived around here knew who she was and tried to avoid her, but she had never seen Eslakon before, and she knew she would definitely remember Chara.

Linwe's eyes were questioning as she looked up at Eslakon, waiting for his answer. She couldn't remember if she had even shown anyone how to use the tetsugin before, it had been so long since she had an actual conversation with anyone that she couldn't remember.

[Eslakon]

Chara lied down, her front paws curled around the tree trunk, which was too large for Eslakon to wrap his arms around it. Her mood was rather jolly due to Linwe’s greeting, she rather liked this elf. Her massive tail raked across the ground softly, sweeping aside several twigs that stood high enough to be caught.

They both noticed the scar over her left eye, but took no action. Scars were very common in the old days, and even more so now. It’s a shame what injuries have happened to the elves in the past and even now. All due to how much most humans hate them, all because they were simply not human.

Eslakon examined the blade closely with slight admiration; It was a very unique weapon. He was sure that its fighting style was just as unique. “A tetsugin.” He said softly, making a mental note to remember it’s name. He nodded, and then looked over her shoulder to the clearing behind her. “Shall we spar?” He asked. “I can cloak our weapons with a spell so that they would stop a fraction of an inch above your skin, therefore causing no injury, but,” He said, pushing himself off of the limb. Several of the smaller twigs snapped as he did. “You would feel the pain as if it were real. It would let you know when you were hit and how badly.”

Chara glanced between them, still jolly, and then up to the sky. Her mood slightly lowered when she remembered that she would not be able to fly for some time. Though it did not drain her mood completely, she was not as enthused as she was before.

“Well?” Eslakon asked, and drawing his sword. Its silver blade reflected a long light on the ground. Its weight was not too heavy or light, which made it a very good sword. He was filled with enthusiasm at the possibility of sparring, which he had not done is quite some time.

His boots snapped small twigs as he stepped around the tree trunk, and then stuck his sword in the ground so that it’s hilt pointed to the sky. He smiled, waiting for Linwe’s response.

[Kat]

Linwe smiled and nodded when he said the name of her weapon. But the smile faded when he asked her to spar. She'd never spared with anyone besides her mother, and the only time she went up against someone was when she was defending herself, and the opponent didn't exactly make it out alive.

When he said that he could keep them from getting actually hurt, she bit her lip in thought. She really wasn't used to fighting people without hurting them, and she was afraid that she would hurt Eslakon. But it was tempting to finally have someone to spar against after so long. Finally, Linwe decided..

"Alright," She agreed, smiling faintly again. She held out her left arm. "You might want to do it on the wire as well. It wouldn't be fair since I use the wire to fight just as much as the knife."

She looked at Chara again, amazed that she had gotten to see a dragon so close. Tearing her gaze away from the beautiful creature, she looked back to Eslakon, curious as to what he would do to protect their weapons.

"I'm not worried about the pain," She said, and shrugged as she lifted her left hand to touch the scar on her face. "It won't be that painful, and I'm good at avoiding sword strikes." She shrugged, it never bothered her to get hurt, so long as it wasn't life threatening. She had potions to counteract the pain so she wouldn't feel it. Frowning, she realized he might want to know that too. "I have potions that will stop the pain," She said with a shrug. "The only side effect is that they make you a little drowsy."

[Eslakon]

“No thanks.” Eslakon said, declining the potions. “That’s all part of the deal.” It wouldn’t bother him if she drank a potion to stop the pain, but he wanted to know when he was hit.

After tossing his pack on the ground beside Chara, who sniffed it curiously, Eslakon set his foot on a low branch and pulled his sword free from the ground. He paused to flick the dirt off of the blade, and then placed his right palm on the blade.

Forcing energy to the orb in his right forearm, it started to show a faint aura, which grew until it rose close to two feet above his arm. Passing the energy from the orb to the blade, it was suddenly coated in a almost translucent light, as if it were glowing. “Now. To test it.” He muttered, and then held up his left palm. He gritted his teeth as he placed the blade on his hand. He paused, and then jerked the black downward at an angle.

He hissed as the blade passed through his hand, spilling fake blood onto the ground. The pain caused him to pull his foot off of the branch and then place a knee on the ground, it faded after a while. With a smile, he lifted his left hand into the air to show that it was unharmed. Eslakon grunted as he stood. “That had me scared for a moment.”

Chara, who had not moved while Eslakon forced the blade through his hand, finally resumed licking her sharp talons while Eslakon enchanted Linwe’s weapon. “There you go.” He said, and then held out his arm, “Test it.” He said through gritted teeth, bracing himself for pain.

[Kat]

Linwe looked at him, surprised that he had turned down the potion. However, she thought it was only fair that she too didn't take one, not to mention it would make her too sluggish to fight him properly.

Linwe jerked back, eyes wide when he tested the sword on his own hand. When he finally stood, her rapidly beating heart slowed and she blinked a few times in surprise. "That was... Rather graphic," She muttered, surprised. She frowned, her weapon looking strange with the slight glow around it. Now she really wasn't used to that.

"That looks so strange," She said, picking up her knife to look at it. She frowned as she ignored his offered arm, and drew the blade quickly across her hand. She winced when the fake blood spilled from it, then vanished when the pain did. "Ouch..." She muttered, massaging her hand. "I understand how that helps you avoid the blades more though," She said. "It's like an illusion that tricks your mind into believing you were really hurt." She looked up at Eslakon. "Are you ready then?"

[Eslakon]

Eslakon let his arm fall to his side when she Linwe declined chopping up his arm, and then slit her own hand. “Yeah, it’s a very clever spell. It makes it feel more . . . real. I was afraid the first time I sparred with it, but it was Zidane, one of my friends, who cast the spell, and not me.” He recalled Zidane’s laughter when the elf asked him to test the blade on his arm, just as he offered to Linwe. “You’ll find that the pain fades much quicker than normal, but its mainly the blood that startles me.”

He stepped away from the branch and walked out into the clearing, twirling his sword in his right hand as he did. Eslakon stopped when he was close to the middle, and then set his sword on his boot. “Just so you know, our blades will not cut through clothing, for the spell works on any material.” He shuffled his feet until they were shoulder-width, and then unsheathed his dagger and threw it into a nearby tree.

Its sharp point sank into the tree’s bark about ten yards away from Eslakon, holding the blade at an odd angle for it had not hit directly. He held his sword out in front of him, not knowing what kind of pain he was about to experience, for he was not very good at dodging, the tree proved that. He does, however, know how to block with a sword, but he is no expert.

“Ready.” He said, smiling. He held his blade with both hands, pointing it towards the ground.

Chara stopped licking her talons and lifted her head above the tree trunk, waiting for them to spar. Yet, like any other duel, she could not interfere unless asked by the opponent, and that was when Eslakon was facing impossible odds.

[Kat]

Linwe nodded. "It looks real as well," She said. "Although I agree, the blood startled me. I had thought you'd done it wrong and had really hurt yourself." She frowned as she looked at her hand as if she could still feel the pain, still see the blood. That really had startled her, she thought her heart was going to burst when she saw it. She turned to look back at Eslakon and dropped her hand to her side, smiling when he moved to get ready to spar.

Linwe jumped back, flipping backwards a few feet until she thought they were far enough apart for a starting point. Unraveling the wire, Linwe started to twirl the blade on her left side.

Linwe's eyes tracked the dagger he threw into the tree, frowning slightly but turning back to Eslakon. She smiled when he said he was ready to fight and her tetsugin started to spin faster until it could only be seen as a blur of motion. Linwe stood on the balls of her feet, moving like a dancer as she swung the tetsugin towards him, aiming for his right arm.

[Eslakon]

Eslakon tightened his grip on his sword as Linwe moved until she was opposite him, twirling her Tetsugin through the air. His heart rate increased in speed at the same pace as her weapon. Shuffling his feet once more, he prepared himself for an attack, which came shortly after.

He sidestepped her attack, turning his arms and blocking her weapon with the flat of his sword, causing a metallic ding to fill the air. The strength and speed of the attack startled him, for the blow caused him to stagger backwards. He was facing an elf, though, which would be a very difficult fight indeed.

A small line of fake blood welled up on his right forearm, quickly followed by pain. Her weapons wire had caused the cut, even though he had blocked the blade itself. As the blood disappeared, he stepped forward, and attempted to slash Linwe from shoulder to hip, thus returning the attack.