Lore: Behind Stone Walls

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 5:51 pm

Neko helped haul Kratos up onto the dark horse's back. Her heart beating furiously as she climbed up behind her brother and held onto both the horse and her brother.

"Go!Go!Go!"

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 6:09 pm

Gathering his weight under him with the two precarious humans on his back, Adonis focused on the direction of the footsteps and broke into a smooth trot in the other direction. He didn't dare gallop with his weakened passengers. The unicorn listened in satisfaction as the stranger's footfall grew further and further, but then a twang from just ahead brought his attention suddenly to what was in front of him. He skidded to a halt as an arrow whizzed by his ear and struck a tree behind him.

Suddenly two mounted guards burst out of the bushes, notching their bows as they charged toward the escaped prisoners and their strange horse. It was all Adonis could do to spin the other way and take up a run in the opposite direction. He realized he was going straight for the other unknown threat, but it seemed like the lesser evil at the moment. Arrows flew past him as he ran, trying to change course frequently to avoid them without dislodging Neko and Kratos.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 9:31 pm

Neko held on for dear life as they fled the soldiers from the camp. She willed silently that this dark horse could take them to safety and she would never have to feel those hands...

Kratos slid slightly to the left. Neko grabbed him quickly and righted her brother before he fell. She prayed that they would find sanctuary somewhere... or in someone...

Eosan Skerra · Post by **Eosan Skerra** » Thu Jan 10, 2008 7:45 am

A sudden scramble just ahead of him caught Eosan's attention. Through the trees and brush, he could see a great black steed...and, yes - what looked like two people - a young girl and an older male scrambling onto it's back. The male didn't look well - the girl was frantically trying to help him mount the horse.

"WAIT!!" Eosan yelled as the trio trotted away. "I mean no har-" His words were cut off as an arrow thunked into the tree next to him. At first he wondered why the small group would go so far as to attack him, then realized that it could not have been them at all. Someone else was coming, and, whomever it was, they were not coming peacefully. As if in response to his thoughts, two armored men bounded out of the trees on horseback, bows notched and ready to fire on the helpless group.

The black horse suddenly turned around and headed back the way it had come - and towards him.

He didn't know what was going on, but he knew he had to do something. The men looked like soldiers of some kind - were these people bandits? Escaped prisoners? Perhaps, but...who arrests a child? And the male had the look of a seasoned warrior, not a cutthroat. He made up his mind.

Gathering his power, he focused his energy on the ground a few yards in front of the charging soldiers. his eyes glowed briefly as he discharged his spell.

The horses pitched forward, screaming, as their hooves found not solid earth, but loose mud. Bows twanged as the soldiers released their arrows in surprise, one burying into the ground, the other firing high up into the trees. A split second later, the soldiers crashed down to the ground hard, rolling and bouncing to a stop several feet in front of their floundering mounts.

Eosan sunk to the ground with a groan.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Thu Jan 10, 2008 10:08 am

The sound of the horses behind them screaming and the men yelling as they fell made Neko turn around. When they had passed the elf, Neko hadn't given him much thought, her mind too afraid and thinking only of fleeing. She turned to look back, not knowing what to do as the elf slumped forward. Should they help him? But what if he was something more dangerous? No, he had helped them... Neko's mind reeled and she looked down to her brother, feverish and groaning atop the dark horse's back. 'If you were well you'd know what to do...' Neko thought sadly.

"I don't know what to do..." she said aloud softly. Glancing up at the horse, she wondered if he knew if the elf was any threat. Animals had that kind of sense... "Should we turn back?" She asked, meaning for the elf.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Thu Jan 10, 2008 6:15 pm

All the noise and commotion was happening behind Adonis, but what suddenly seized his attention was the wall of pain that slammed into his mind. He slid to a stop, his ankles shaking slightly with the effort of carrying two riders, and looked back at the stranger that had stood in their path. There was no doubt; this suffering was his. Something very strange had just happened. The soldiers were scrambling back to their feet. One moved to try and regain control of his muddy and spooked horse, while the other placed his focus on the unfamiliar face that was between them and their targets. He seemed to prioritize his original prey, grabbing his bow out of the mud and drawing back an arrow to fire at the horse. Unfortunately, the elf was in the way, but the angered soldier couldn't seem to care less.

"Hey! Don't sit there, endure it and run!" Adonis's firm voice called to the stranger. He ought to be getting a head start right about now, but something held him there.

Eosan Skerra · Post by **Eosan Skerra** » Fri Jan 11, 2008 8:10 am

"Hey! Don't sit there, endure it and run!"

Eosan was quickly recovering from his spell, and at the sound of the voice behind him he perked his head up to see one of the soldiers had already recovered and was notching another arrow - and it was pointing straight at him.

He pulled himself to his feet with a grunt and began stumbling away, trying to get a tree or other obstruction between him and the soldier. He thought briefly of throwing up a shield spell to deflect the attack, but he was still a little weak - the effort would probably knock him off his feet again, moving as he was. He just had to hope the man was still rattled enough from his fall to lose his accuracy.

He heard a twang, and felt sharp pain in his shoulder. He looked down at it - a near-miss, but enough to draw blood. That was when Eosan made his decision.

Enough was enough.

He was lost in the woods for three days, nearly starved on tack rations, barely had enough water to survive, and now, at the first sign of intelligent life in this thrice-damned forest, he gets attacked by someone he's never met in his life. He'd had it.

Eosan turned on his heel and opened his arms as wide as they'd go. His eyes blazed furiously as he suddenly clenched his fists. In response, both soldiers jerked to a halt, as if they'd been frozen. Both looked as if they were being squeezed in a great vice.

Then Eosan slammed his arms together.

The soldiers flew at each other with breathtaking speed, crashing into each other with bone-shattering strength. They dropped to the forest floor, senseless.

And so did Eosan.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Fri Jan 11, 2008 9:58 am

Neko yelped, having watched the whole thing after the horse had stopped. She began scrambling down from the horse, mindful of her brother, and rushed to the elf's side. Dangerous or no, he attacked their pursuers and to Neko that meant he wouldn't be dangerous to them now.

Kneeling beside him she shook his shoulder and gently patted his face. "Wake up. Come on, wake up!" Looking up desperately to her horse, she pleaded to it, "We can't leave him here. He help us!"

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Fri Jan 11, 2008 5:26 pm

Adonis tossed his head in a wide, frustrated circle and slowly walked toward her. His eyes watched Eosan warily as he approached. There had been a burst of pain, and then nothing. The man was unconscious, but for how long? "Fine, get him up here," Adonis said flatly, presenting his back to the human. They had to keep moving, and he didn't have time to argue with the stubborn girl.

Eosan Skerra · Post by **Eosan Skerra** » Sat Jan 12, 2008 7:29 am

Eosan awoke when he felt small, cold hands on his arm, tugging desperately. Still weak, he rose to his knees and saw that the soldiers were lying prone and silent on the forest floor. "You know," he commented shakily, "the truly sad thing about my gift is that, after completing a spectacular spell, I never get to stand proudly surveying my triumph." He uttered a small chuckle. "Perhaps the gods don't want me getting too big of a head."

He pulled himself to his feet with the help of the girl. He drew in a deep breath of air and exhaled it slowly. "I'm alright, young one," he said to her. "Call it an occupational hazard."

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:27 pm

Neko smiled at him, glad to see him on his feet. "Thank you, I'm glad you're alright." she began to sniff, trying not to cry. "They...probably would've...killed us..." Up on the horse's back, Kratos groaned again and his weight shifted precariously off balance. Neko caught him just before he fell to the ground after hearing his groan. She struggled to get him comfortable on the forest floor.

"Gods...he looks worse." she sobbed, kneeling next to her brother.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:35 pm

Adonis watched Neko help Kratos down, disapproval drawing up his nerves. "If we remain here, more will arrive to attack us. A scout could have remained hidden, and escaped. We must keep moving," he said to her, ignoring the stranger. Kratos clearly needed rest, but Adonis had his own priorities.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:41 pm

Neko looked helplessly at her brother. All the running was not helping him get better. it made her sick to her stomach to see him like this. But the horse was right... she almost wished he wasn't. When Neko tried to lift Kratos up, a sharp twinge of pain shot up her arm and she almost dropped him. She didn't cry, just just held her arm and her nearly fallen brother. Constantly carrying Kratos' dead weight with arms already injured made Neko sprain her wrist.

"Crap... I think...I think, I just hurt my arm. Do you even sense anymore coming?" she asked helplessly.

Post by **Soran Nightblade** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:53 pm

Adonis sighed, not liking this at all. The humans were becoming more and more trouble, and his goal in the first place had been their demise. Certainly not to endanger himself playing doctor in the middle of enemy territory. "We're only a few miles outside the village. They will find us here," he said sternly.

Don't make me leave you behind, he thought to himself, hating the wish as he made it. He hated this side of himself, weak to humans and their emotions to the point of enslavement. Why must he stay and protect them? Why save a race that had done him so much harm? It drove him absolutely mad to think of it. Hate, hate, hate. All he could think of was hate, swirling in him so fast that it hurt. His ears pressed flat against his head as he waited for Neko's answer.

Mizuki · Post by **Mizuki** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:55 pm

Grimacing, Neko hauled up her brother again and carefully placed him ontop of the horse's back. "Alright," she sighed, holding her sprained wrist and making her way atop his back. "Thank you for staying..." she whispered with her head lowered.