[center][h2][b]The Death of a Fire Tyrant[/b][/h2][/center] The three stood on the very mountain top they’d been born on, the highest peak on all of Istais, the entrance to their mothers Celestial Sphere, and they were thoroughly underwhelmed. It wasn’t that they misunderstood the significance of the spot. No, it was just that the view, such as it was, extended about ten feet in front of them and consisted of snow and the occasion rock. The peak was, in simple terms, ugly. “So,” Makab started, “Which way do we go? I’m thinking right.” Eline scratched her head and instinctively hugged her wings against her body to keep herself warm, “Your right or mine?” Makab stared at his sister blankly before Akam butted in, “Perhaps we could just fly above the clouds? We can tell east from west by following the path of Heliopolis.” “Not that we know what’s in either of those directions,” Eline sighed. “Well,” Makab stepped up to his sister and threw an arm around her shoulders, “That [i]is[/i] what exploring means. I seem to recall someone flapping their wings in anticipation when Mother suggested we come down here.” Eline shrugged Makabs arm off and shot him an annoyed look, “Fine. We go right.” “Your right or-” Makab started only to be cut off by Eline clapping a hand over his mouth, “You came over here Makab, we have the same right.” She smirked. Akam only sighed, “So, we go right. Anyone care to be first?” Makab pointedly flapped his wings at Eline, who huffed, “Ok! Fine. I’ll go first” Without further ado Eline took off in the vague direction of ‘right’ which Akam was quick to mention had turned out to be north west. The three flew for hours, hundreds of miles of ocean passing by below, before anyone bothered to speak again. And when they did, it was not warmly received. Makab shouted over the wind, “Should have gone my right!” Eline banked towards him and kicked her brother in the back, sending him tumbling into the sea. [hr] By the time the three spotted land Makab had dried out, the only sign of his misfortune a persistent smirk on his sisters face. They all flew closer together so they could hold a conversation when they’d come close enough to know the landmass they approached stretched across the horizon. “Doesn’t look like one of Mothers siblings has bothered here, does it?” Akam asked. “No,” Eline agreed, “It’s just rocks and moss, although there is that a mountain range up ahead. Maybe there’s something interesting on the other side?” “Mmm, only one way to tell.” Akam dived towards the mountains, leaving Eline and Makab scrambling to catch up with him. When the two caught up their brother they found him standing on a stony peak, looking out at what could, insufficiently, be described as a blasted wasteland. Akam had an ugly grimace glued to his face, Eline gasped, and Makab, for once, seemed to be at a total loss for words. Before them was a vast scorched plain riddled with seemingly bottomless cracks and crevices. The only colour to be seen was a sickly red glow cast by the occasional [i]floating[/i] stone. There was no sign of anyone alive, anywhere. “Mother never showed us this,” Eline spoke softly, her voice strained. “No,” Akam agreed, “She didn’t.” Eline asked, “How big do you think it is? Does it cover the entire continent?” “I don’t think so,” Makab opined, “You see that mountain in the distance? It’s slope looks green.” Akam hummed in agreement, “That it does. I think we should be careful flying over this, stay high.” The three took flight, gaining altitude until they were above the clouds. From that vantage point they could see that the wasteland below was enormous, but not endless. To the north was what looked like a sea of reddish fog and grass, and to the south was an enormous desert. The only sign of recognizable life was the mountain ahead. It took them a lot longer than it should have to arrive there, but none of the three would mention the hours they spent surveying the hellscapes all around them. The flight had gone without incident, and that was enough. When they landed on the mountain Makab has pointed out they all breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t exactly lush, but the familiar green shrubs and grasses were a welcome reminder that they hadn’t flown into the sphere of one of the mad gods. Eline took the opportunity to rest finding a small stream and sitting beside it, her back to the unnatural vistas in the distance. The others joined her without comment. They all drank from the stream, scooping up handfuls of melt water and quenching their thirst. “So,” Akam frowned, “Who do you think made… All that?” “Orvus?” Eline suggested between drinks, “Mother told us what he did to Phystene. We know he’s not a friend of life.” Makab bit his lip and shook his head, “Maybe he made that first wasteland, but the desert? Has to be Sartravius.” “So they’re working together,” Eline sighed “Wonderful.” Akam opened his mouth to voice his own thoughts on the matter but was interrupted by a distant roar. Instantly the three siblings jumped to their feet and held their crystal spears tight to their chests. They didn’t dare move, but before they could relax they heard another roar, this one closer. “It knows we’re here,” Makab growled. “We don’t know what it is Makab,” Akam cautioned, “It might not be hostile. Don’t be rash.” As if in repudiation of Akam’s optimism that was the very moment they spotted the enormous lizard fly out from the mountain top and dive towards them. The three all cursed and took flight before the scaly red black lizard [i]breathed fire[/i] at the spot they’d just been sitting, instantly evaporating the stream. None of the three could saee how large the creature was, but all would have agreed it was enormous. Thankfully, so were they. Eline and Akam dropped their crystal spears as they distanced themselves from the lizard, landing a ways away and allowing themselves to slowly grow into their original bodies. Makab drew the creatures attention by hurling his spear at it mid flight. The projectile impacted the beasts side and shattered with a terrible crack, but the lizard only growled and breathed a stream of fire at Makab. None of the siblings knew it, but they’d stumbled across one of the first, and largest, of Sartravius’s Dragons. The spawn of Slaevatein. The dragon, of course, didn’t care who the ones trespassing on its territory were. It closed its distance with Makab and batted the winged man out of the sky. He slammed into the mountain side and the dragon descended on its presumably dead prey with excitement, pleased to have a meal come to it for once. It was thoroughly disappointed when it landed only to have a boulder slammed into its face. Makab, his wings missing some feathers, stood before the dragon and yelled at it before it could roar, “Come on, that’s all you have? You overgrown… Lizard thing!” The dragon didn’t understand a word of the challenge, but it knew what a challenge was. It also knew that the tiny creature was an idiot. It inhaled, fire gathered in its throat, and a massive fist smashed into its back before it could exhale. Liquid fire dribbled out of its mouth and it whirled around to face the new threat. What it saw was two titans, each as large as it was. The massive beings were covered in thick, almost chitinous, feathers and stared at the beast with great glowing eyes. The dragon immediately abandoned the idiot that it had already mangled and turned to face what it could only see as the first true challengers it had encountered since being born in the fires of mount Eldahverr. It snapped its jaws at the titans and lunged, its wings carrying it into the first, feminine, figure. The dragons talons scraped at the beings armoured flesh and found purchase, tearing claw fulls of rock hard feathers from the female titans body. The titan lacked a mouth to cry out, but the way it clumsily grasped the dragon by its tail and threw it to the side spoke to its distress. Dark red blood began to leak from the fleshy spots the feathers had been torn from, and the dragon cried out in triumph even as it got back on its feet. It wasn’t unscathed, in fact it was certain the impact from being tossed had broken its wing, but its enemies lack of natural weapons was its advantage. These titans couldn’t breathe fire, and they had no claws to speak of, what could they do against a dragon? Just then, a massive chunk of mountain was hurled at the dragon. A third titan, also bloodied, rose from behind the beast. The dragon managed to dodge the projectile, but only barely. It’s tail had been scraped by the enormous rock. It growled in frustration and ran at the third figure, but the first two advanced on it and grabbed at its limbs. The dragon cried out as the female one twisted its leg. It bent its body and neck and [i]bit[/i] the titans wrist. It unhanded the dragon almost immediately, and that gave the beast the time to breathe a gout of flame at the unharmed male titan golding its other leg. That one let go before it was hurt, rolling to the side and crushing shrub and rock beneath it. The dragon turned to the third figure, but too late. It caught a massive fist to the face and yelped. It felt more than half the teeth on one side of its mouth shatter. The pain was blinding. In a rage the dragon opened its mouth wide and breathed deeper than it ever had before, determined to kill the third titan before it could do any more damage. It didn’t get the chance. The feathered giant plunged its arm into the dragon’s maw and the fire in the monsters throat sputtered and died. The beast writhed and bit down, but the male titan only pushed its arm further into the dragons throat until the lizard was incapable of drawing any breath at all. The dragon and its enemy fought even as the titan choked it, each one inflicting wounds on the other, but eventually the beast could fight no longer. Its vision went black and its jaw went slack. Only then did the injured titan withdraw its mangled arm, faintly glowing red blood dripping on its own feathers and the unconscious dragons scales. The other male titan, the only one left unscathed, approached the injured one but was held back by its female companion. It looked at her, concern in its glowing eyes, but she didn’t budge. At least, not until the seriously injured male titan picked up a massive boulder with its less injured arm and beat the felled dragon in the head with it. Repeatedly. [hr] “You… You killed it.” Akam stared at the dragons crushed skull and looked sick. “Yes Akam,” Makab groaned as Eline wrapped his mangled arm in his shredded tunic, “I fucking killed it. Something you should have done, instead of leaving me and Eline to deal with… With that fucking fire spitting asshole.” “He helped me hold it Makab, don’t blame him for not being burned.” Eline looked pale as she did her best to bandage her bleeding brother. “Yeah, sure.” Makab scowled and repressed a shout as his sister tied off the makeshift dressing, “We have to tell mother, if that wasn’t the only one of those things we have a problem.” “Y- Yes. I’ll do that.” Akam nodded as he hid his shaking hands behind him. He turned away from his brother and sister and knelt a few feet away, vibrating hands clasped together in prayer. “At least we know what destroyed all that land,” Eline scowled, “Or, at least the blackened part.” “Yeah, but one couldn’t do that by itself. I have a bad feeling there are a lot more of those things Eline, and,” He gestured to his bloody arm with his good one, “I don’t have unlimited arms.” Eline suppressed a chuckle at the incongruous comment and Makab smiled weakly. Before they could continue their conversation Akam turned around and called out, “Mother says she’s coming as soon as she can, but she told me we should find Shengshi. She says he’s not far from here, and he might be able to help Makab before she arrives.” Eline breathed a sigh of relief, “Ok, that’s good news. You’ll get to keep this arm yet Makab. I’ll carry you if you can’t fly.” “No, I can.” Makab grimaced and outstretched his somewhat ragged wings. Eline looked dubious, but let her brother carry himself. The three took off, Akam in the lead, and left the bloody dragons carcass behind. They were hurt, nervous, and tired. All of them looked forward to what they were certain would be a break after their ordeal. They’d heard of Shengshi’s hospitality. It was unfortunate that on their way to meet the God of Rivers they saw an army. [hider=Summary and Might Costs] The angels arrive on Galbar and go right. Elines right. They find the world scar, it’s ugly. They rest on the southern Qiangshan mountains They kill a dragon. Makab is not doing great. No might spent. +1 Prestige to Eline (3) +2 Prestige to Makab (3) +1 Prestie to Akam (2) -2 Prestige Makab gains the title of [b]Dragonslayer[/b][/hider]