Aerilyn couldn't help but hear their words from below. She wanted to drown out their hope, attempting to smother it with her own disdain, but there was little she could do. She felt tears form in her eyes when she remembered how innocent and compliant her family had been to a Vygorn family. Her family had served them for generations without thinking twice about it--eating off of their plates and being their watchdogs for years. She hated that. She hated when people gave into others' influence so quickly. [i]If I give in here... if I simply abandon these guys, then I'm not better than the Vygorn that are going to kill them. They're going to need someone who knows Atlanta, especially the "high ground" of the city, if they're going to want to deal a hard blow.[/i] She shook her head and blinked away the tears. Just then, she felt something within her stir--hope. [i]Damn...[/i]

Just then, she looked up and saw a small black speck in the sky which was turning into a foreboding dusk. [i]What the...?[/i] She slowly started to crawl closer to the hole so that she could make a quick escape if it was another of the Void creatures, but it seemed too small to actually do any harm. In fact, as it flew closer still, she realized that it was simply a bird that she had seen in one of the Alens' books on ancient wildlife. Inadvertently, she felt herself reach out to the raptor and felt it land on her forearm, digging its talons into her skin. The red-tail hawk tilted his head to the side and he made a sound between a purr and a gurgle. She felt a smile form on her lips, though it was slight. [b]
"Hello, little one."[/b] She spoke in her quiet, but almost musical voice. Suddenly there was a burning sensation within her heart and her soul, but it didn't hurt. It was as if this bird was embedding its presence within her heart, soul, and mind---making it seem as if they were one and the same. A name popped into her head and she nodded her head to the hawk. [b]"A pleasure to meet you, Skyff. I'm Aerilyn, or the Bandit, according to Atlanta's police."[/b] The bird met her eyes with its own and she knew that it was to see the master of the haven, to prove to the man that she was also going to stand up and fight, though she was still very unconscious of this decision.

She walked back to the fire, the hawk resting on her shoulder, doing his best not to tear into her flesh, but failing. Blood trickled down her shoulder and soaked into her jacket. Trying not to make eye contact, she spoke to the elderly man, [b]"You said that we were not to go into Atlanta as a group, and I respect that."[/b] Then she spoke up a little more and her aura came into full force--like a sudden gust of wind. Her vibrant green eyes gazed at him almost defiantly, but her face was still an emotionless mask. [b]"But I think that we are going to need a meeting point where we can determine where we can do the most damage to the Vygorns. I was once a servant to a family of them, and they are linked to the mayor, who may as well be the root of the problem. I do not wish to put us in peril, but please, I beg of you to let me be a guide."[/b]

(( Can the pets talk or is it like a telepathic connection between the two parties? ))