[centre][color=skyblue][h2]Aeila Snowblood[/h2]
[sub]Who even knows what's going on with Aeila? Collab with [@Ellion] & [@WeepingLiberty][/sub][/color]
[/centre]


Aeila had been dreaming. Dreaming of a time gone past, of hours spent combing through long tomes of mostly meaningless knowledge. She could probably rhyme off all the leaders of Drakka backwards at that point. Then came the time when the snow crept back to the mountains, when the rivers rushed and the green returned once more. And with the arrival of spring, so too would the Warlords come. Hungry for another conquest, they would score the Imperial Library for old maps or details of some forgotten nation and so, Aeila would be banished to the upper rooms of the Citadel. It was her prison.


She did escape it once. When she was barely a child, she found a servant’s staircase and ended up wandering through the kitchens. She still remembered how the guards found her and took her back and she swore she would never forget the slow creak of the door as her father came to deal with her. Quite a memorable noise.


Commotion outside pulled her from her dreams. They had stopped and there were voices but she was too groggy to register them. A loud crash came as a warning but much too late as their carriage door was tore open. For a moment she swore it was her father. The cold eyes, white mane and hands of fire. She did all she could - she screamed.


Rya came to her defence almost as soon as she woke. Where she summoned the bravery to stand up to a Drakken of that size, Aeila didn't know, but it was slowly occurring to her that the man outside wasn't her father. That was the least of her worries considering the glint of recognition as he rounded on her.


Rya’s interruption was fiery but it earned her nothing more than a fist that could probably break trees in two. That same fist grew around her fragile neck, it's veiny tendrils locking her in place and limiting her breathing. Aeila was terrified. She had already backed into the corner of the carriage and despite her mind yelling at her to step in, to save the angry little Gem, her body wouldn't commit itself to action. Thankfully, it didn't need to as Azilon’s blade reached the stranger’s neck. As they were quickly escorted away by Scoot, the stranger’s laughter caught her off guard. He was Azilon’s father?


She didn't look back. Guilt welled up inside her and she clutched onto Rya. She swore to herself that if anyone else dared to touch the smaller girl, she'd deal with them but she didn't quite believe herself.


The inside was an interesting place but the sounds of combat outside held their attention. It didn't last long and she wasn't too surprised to find Azilon stumbling in, his body covered in blood and bruises. She should have felt some sort of relief from that but dread pulled at her. She recognised the man's face and it didn't take Scoot’s introduction for her to realise that they were in a great deal of danger with Azilon’s power so diminished. 


Rya licked her lips, her eyes flashing from Scoot’s over Salazar Khan and finally settling on Azilon. A few intense seconds of staring at the man, she took a deep breath. Her voice came out slightly raspier from the damage done to her throat early. [color=98fb98]“I understand why I should bow...but why should she?”[/color] She said, motioning to Aeila. [color=98fb98]“I don’t know how it works in your culture, but doesn’t Princess trump war lord?”[/color] Her voice surprisingly even for the amount of daggers being visually dug into her. [color=98fb98]“Right?” [/color] she said, before anyone could answer, looking at Aelia.


Aeila stayed characteristically quiet the entire time, letting the silence fill the room. She didn't quite know how she was going to approach the situation - the man knew who she was and considering he was more powerful than Azilon, he could take her with ease. Her planning was, of course, ruined by Rya. The girl had heart but sometimes a little bit too much mouth. Sighing internally, Aeila looked past the two looming Drakken to a coat of arms that adorned the far wall. [color=skyblue]“I'm not a Princess.”[/color] She finally answered, eyes flashing back to Rya. [color=skyblue]“I'm a bastard - Snowblood. A royal bastard but still a bastard.”[/color]


Very suddenly, an idea formed in her head. Yes she was below this War Lord but there was someone above him. Someone who he actually feared and that could be enough to save her. Injecting as much fabricated confidence as she could muster into her voice, she stepped out between the group. [color=skyblue]“But I think you're sorely mistaken. I'm not Azilon’s wife. My brother left him to die and I wasn't quite one to see him bleed to death so that's why I'm here.”[/color] Drakken didn't respond well to pompousness but they understood threats well enough. [color=skyblue]“My father will be looking for me and given that a number of power hungry guards saw me leave with your son, I'm sure it won't take him too long to figure out where I am. The same goes for the Gem girl as well - she isn't his property. He'd be very dead right now if it wasn't for her. So what I'm trying to say is if you want to avoid some bloodshed, I recommend sending my friend and I back to the capital.”[/color]


Azilon’s eyes remained glued to the floor, jaw clenched tightly at yet another defeat. As much as he’d like to blame his latest loss on the fight with Rynek, fighting his own father had never before resulted in a win. There had been a time or two where he managed to land a draw, but he still could not fathom how they came about. He kept quiet as Scoot made the introductions, each syllable tying a knot tighter and tighter in his gut. Azilon had expected… or rather hoped that the girls would just keep their mouths shut and bow as Scoot had advised, however Rya was once again striking out in a way that she could not hope to win.


Before he could interject anything himself, Aeila took to “defending” herself with half-truths. The longer she spoke the higher his eyes rose until they were locked onto the redhead, wide with concern. [Color=8493ca][i]How? How do such tiny little creatures manage to cause so much trouble just by opening their mouths?[/i][/color] Slowly his eyes shifted to meet those of his father’s, held captive in their fiery glare.


Sighing heavily, Salazar turned back to the royal girl curiously. Back in the carriage she had been terrified… Weak. She had hidden behind a Gemminite for protection instead of fighting him herself as he was sure capable of even a bastard child of the royal bloodline. Now, though, she stood tall, challenging him with words. He smiled inwardly, noting her preferred battleground. It seemed what she lacked in physical prowess she made up in political rhetoric. An interesting girl. He doubted that she was telling him the whole truth, but he did have to admit that her words made sense. Azilon had not been at his full strength despite having supposedly spent the last few days “relaxing”. The scars on his back certainly seemed fresh, but even he could see that there were differences in their stories. Azilon had fought tooth and nail to defend what he referred to as his property yet this girl here claimed neither one of them belonged to him but the capital? As he thought, his eyes narrowed. He did not enjoy being made to look like a fool, facing threats that could or could not be credible… that being said, even a war lord had to respect the royal’s wishes. Should her words be true after all, then he would face great punishment for defying them regardless of what sort of defense he threw at them. It seemed that he had reached a standstill with these irritating wenches. 


“[Color=f7976a]Rya was it? Miss Snowblood here is quite correct. The bastard child of the royal house does not hold any higher standing than any other Drakken, however it seems as if my initial assessment of the situation was false. Allow me to extend my deepest apologies and invitation to personally see to your safe return home.[/color]” Salazar Khan smirked as he felt his son’s eyes piercing into the side of his head.


“[color=f7976a]I will send word to my eldest son to escort you, seeing as this disgrace is incapable of protecting even himself.[/color]”


Rya took in a deep breath, trying to figure through the shit show that was this whole mess.[color=98fb98] “Ah, no. That seems unwise, for obvious reasons,”[/color] Rya  took another deep breath.[color=98fb98] “It’s been a long journey. Perhaps we should ….go...to sleep?” [/color] she said quickly. If the older ‘better son’ was the one that this man suggested  take them back...they would be in for a very unpleasant ride.  If they made it back at all.  Which...seemed unlikely. 


“[color=8493ca]Father, don’t you think that’s a little unnecessary? Tar-[/color]” Salazar raised a hand, silencing him immediately.


“[Color=f7976a]Nonsense, I insist upon it. If memory serves me correctly, he’ll be travelling through the area quite soon. I’ll send for him to make a detour. After all, these lovely ladies should be returned as soon as possible to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. Isn’t that right, Snowblood?[/color]” Everything about him stood to mock the group, as if to show them that he still held the real power here. Azilon grimaced, approaching the girls in order to put some distance between him and his father.


“[color=8493ca]You heard them, it’s been a long journey. I’m sure you have better things to be doing than preventing us from getting a little bit of rest.[/color]” He growled, the sound lacking in it’s usual ferocity. 


Aeila’s gaze lingered on the Warlord for a moment, her eyes betraying the fear that cut through her as she watched the cage fall down around them. It was like the bathing room all over again - of all the lessons her father tried to teach her, she should have listened to him about hesitancy. But this was too far into the deep end for Aeila. This man didn't fear her veiled lies but she couldn't give up. Not yet.


[color=skyblue]”If you deem it so.”[/color] Surprisingly, she dropped the iciness and her face took on a gentler complexion which seemed to suit her much better than her haughtiness. [color=skyblue]”Good night, Lord Khan.”[/color]


If one thing was clear, it was that she had to listen to what her father had spent years trying to drill into her. Khan was smart but if she remained unpredictable, if her emotions changed with the wind, she could beat him. Or at least, that's what she told herself. Turning, she moved for the stairs despite not having a single clue where she was going.


As soon as Aelia started to walk away, Azlion shared  a few more words with his father, before half-dragging Rya up the stairs after Aelia.  The castle, even this small part of it, was by far the largest building that she had ever been in, apart from the castle they had brought her too for her...selection.  After a few twists and turns, Rya was positive that she would never be able to find her way back to the entrance hall.  After passing a few doors, the pair caught up with Aelia and Azlion swept them off to what was probably his private halls.  He pushed them through a large oak door to an equally large, dark bedroom. “[color=8493ca]You’ll stay here.[/color]” he muttered, using the two girls through a small door towards the back of the room. 


The room behind the door was small, perhaps the smallest Rya had seen since leaving her home, yet she could have fit half of her childhood house within its walls.  There was one large window that let a stream of silvery moonlight cast on the stone floor. On the far side there was a crackling fire, the only other source of light in the room. Apart from that, the room held two small, freshly made beds, there were shelves filled with ancient books, a few chairs and a desk.  Long night shirts were left for the girls as well as pitchers of water, rags and  washbasins.  


[color=8493ca]“....Well,” [/color] said Rya a few seconds after the door closed.[color=8493ca] “...Did you mean...all that you said?” [/color]


Thankfully, Azilon finally caught up to Aeila, because she's fairly certain she would have kept wandering instead of stopping and asking for directions. She was terrified, of course and in retrospect, she should have sought company with Azilon but he clearly couldn't provide the safety she needed. At least when she was with Rynek, no one could touch her.


When they were finally left alone, the gentle crackling of the fire settled in which somewhat calmed her. It reminded her of the long winter months spent prowling the upper levels of the palace. That calm was broken, understandably, by a nervous Rya. After slowly sitting down on one of the beds, Aeila regarded her. [color=skyblue]”No; there's no one waiting for me to come home.”[/color] It began to occur to her that she was stuck in this situation and with that, she became terrified. Staring off into the flames, the guilt and terror churned up inside her, forming a putrid mixture which tore her to pieces. [color=skyblue]”I'm sorry… It’s my fault we're in this mess! If I had just... “[/color] She fell quiet again, small tears grasping at the edge of her eyes. [color=skyblue]”How do we beat them? We have nothing…”[/color]


[color=8493ca]“I’m glad that you’ve accepted responsibility, and I forgive you,”[/color] said Rya, walking around the room, sifting through drawers, crawling under her bed, and pacing the floor before finally coming to the conclusion that the room held nothing interesting in the least. [color=8493ca] “And other than crippling an empire, I don’t see much we can do. And you’ll lose if we do that. So...I don’t know. I don’t suppose you could become one of the tough scary drakken ladies overnight?” [/color] Rya then crossed over the basin, stripping off her clothing as she went until she was totally nude. She poured a bit of the luke warm water in the bowl before wiping off the  stench of travel, careful to avoid the spot where Khan had struck her. [color=8493ca] “I suppose...there would be no harm in just refusing to go...right?” [/color]


She used the sleeve of her tunic he had gifted her the day previous to wipe away the moisture from her eyes. Rya was oddly hopeful about it - she knew her fate but she didn't seem to worry about it. Aeila wished she could share her resilience but she wasn't so lucky. Crippling an empire? [color=skyblue]”No… Sorry!”[/color] She turned away for a moment, inspecting the clothing left on the bed. A quiet rustle brought her attention back to find Rya stark naked. Blushing almost as brightly as her hair, her eyes went wide. “Why are you naked!?”


Startled, Rya looked over at the blushing Drakken girl, eyebrows raised.[color=8493ca] “Uh...because...my dress...was dirty? And I don’t know how you get clean, but since I don’t think we’ll get a bath tonight, this is how I am doing it,” [/color] The girl turned and faced the girl fully. [color=8493ca]“Are...you alright?” [/color]


Despite her explanation, Aeila’s eyes still remained wide and avoiding. She wasn't quite used to people just pulling their clothes off randomly. Then again, she wasn't quite used to people. [color=skyblue]“Yea- Yes. I've just always bathed. Alone.”[/color] She quickly realised her mistake and rushed to correct it. [color=skyblue]”Not saying you have anything to hide, of course! You have a very bea-”[/color] She stopped talking. Desperate to turn the conversation, she caught onto of the mark left by Khan. It didn't look too pleasant. [color=skyblue]“Does it hurt?”[/color]


A growing look of concern crossed Rya’s face as Aelia kept talking. To be honest, she found the girl to be very amusing.  Even if she still didn’t have her tail. It wasn’t as though Rya particularly enjoyed  bathing with an audience, but it had become something she was used to. Sometimes, if you wanted to be clean, your choice was the river with the family, or...nothing.  Rya blinked a few more times, letting the girl talk herself out. [color=8493ca]“Yeah, it does. Had I known it would have hurt this bad,  I might not have saved you if we are being honest,” [/color] Rya turned back to the bed and yanked on the shirt before crawling into Aelia’s bed, sitting next to the girl, reaching out to brush a bit of Aelia’s hair back.[color=8493ca] “But really, you should try to think powerful drakken thoughts tonight. Just incase,”[/color]


Her eyes went even wider than before, if that was possible. She felt guilty enough as it was, letting the smaller Rya take a hit for her and the confirmation of the pain sealed the deal. Letting her chin fall, she tried to quietly recall something she read before. Within a moment, the displacement of the mattress under her caused her to look up, finding the other girl beside her, fingers confidently peeling back a tuft of red hair and locking it behind her ear. [color=skyblue]”Powerful Drakken thoughts?”[/color] She questioned as she took a moment to inspect the forming bruise on Rya’s cheek. 


Standing, she fetched a pitcher of warmed water. She felt guilty and if she could ease the pain even only slightly, it would be worthwhile. Blushing, she tilted the other girl’s chin back as a swirling ball of water lifted from the pitcher of its own accord. Smashing itself into a smooth block, its temperature plummeted until it was frozen solid, still levitating. Taking a cloth, Aeila tentatively reached up and wrapped it around the ice before gently pressing it against the forming bruise.


Rya jumped as the ice touched her face, but the relief was instant and she relaxed into the ice. [color=8493ca]“Water huh?”[/color] She said.[color=8493ca] “Crazy useful,”[/color] a few drops of water formed from the heat of her skin and ran down her face.  After a few more minutes, she pulled away.[color=8493ca] “I suppose we shouldn’t put off morning much longer, especially if we are going to try to take down the establishment”[/color]  Pulling herself up off the bed.[color=8493ca] “It’ll be okay, something will happen. Course I can’t know that, but it feels right to say,”[/color] she then walked over to her own bed, pulled the blankets back and curled up to go to sleep.


Aeila quietly watched her get up off the bed and move to her own before slipping under the sheets and falling asleep instantly. Sighing gently, the small Drakken pulled up the blankets of her own bed and crawled under but she didn't sleep. It wasn't the time for sleep.


[hider=TLDR NERDS]
Azilon gets his booty handed to him. Papa Khan lays down the law while Aeila tries to trick him into thinking she has to go home. He counters it by saying Azi’s psycho brother can take her. The girls share a room and awkward moments and go to sleep.
[/hider]