[center][color=gold][h1] The Eternal War [/h1][/color][/center] [i]by Lord Zee & Enzayne.[/i] [hr] His wing was torn, wet blood ran down the side of his face, obscuring his vision. His golden hair was caked in mud and debris. He was battered and scarred all over as he ran through the world of light. Most of the dried blood covering him, was not his own. He held his broken arm, every jolt sending shocks. He gritted his teeth in frustration. He had been cut off from the others, who were now probably dead or fleeing. He wished he could fly, but it was no use. His fresh orange blood would give him away like a perfect trail to follow. He could only hope that Oraeliara was there with him, because the Neiyari were close behind. Even now, he could hear sticks breaking and the rumbling of angry feet. What scared him worse, was what he could hear up above. The oppressive beat of wings thundering through the grove were inescapable. A particularly cruel Neiyari, bright white and with wings tinged with black and red, had hounded him from above whenever he had the audacity to try and catch his breath. She’d already descended on him once in a clearing, smashing him to the ground like it was a game to her. Dense vegetation had been his only reprieve - but her wing-beats were never far, nor were the echoing, hollow words she cried to his pursuers whenever she spotted him. However many braved the vegetation to follow on foot, their angry cries closed any avenue for reason. With crude implements and raw strength they seemed determined to annihilate all traces of him and his kin. He knew many of them were injured as well, but it seemed to inspire nothing more than hatred in their hearts. The bright lights all around them worked both ways - their discordant colouration was easy to pick out amidst the colourful flora, but hiding from them turned out to be something of a nightmare. And yet, anything was preferable to the alternative. So he ran. Deeper and deeper in the land he knew as the Luminant. Since the injuring of Soluri, his people had flocked in many different directions, running from the Neiyari threat. Aveira had been ruthless and spread the word of their hated mother, the betrayer, the terror-made-flesh- Neiyara. He could still hear wing-beats nearing closer, so he veered left into a thicket of thorns, which cut into his flesh greatly. He let out but a whimper. He couldn’t give his position away. Once through the thicket, he doubled his pace- his breath becoming labored but he needed to get distance between him and the oppressors. He ran straight on into a particular dense bush and lost his footing, beginning to tumble down a steep hill. He felt his good wing break under his weight as he tumbled further. That time he couldn’t repress a scream, and so scream he did. The pain was near blackout in intensity and much of the rest of the fall he blanketed out on, hitting something wet. The fuzzy haze lifted from his eyes almost instantly as she looked to find himself in a stream of clear water running beyond a bend. It was somehow refreshing and he felt better despite the pain. That was until he heard the ‘WOOSH’ of furled wings. He clambered up and dove out of the way onto dry land before [i]she[/i] splashed down into the water where he had been standing. He looked back to see her snarl, beginning to pursue him once more as she shouted for the others. He cursed again and ran, following the stream’s edge as she took flight once more into the air. He could see a glow in the distance, a curious thing and he got so close to see that it was a la- She tackled him from behind and once again they tumbled down a sandy embankment into the cool waters below. Nails dug and clawed painfully against his skin as they rolled in the water, a desperate set of hands hatefully clinging at his face, his wings, anything they could find brief purchase against in the water. She clung to him with an iron grip, and he felt himself ripped up and out over the surface of water briefly as her wings desperately tried to pull at least herself out of the cool liquid. It was a brief reprieve before they both crashed down under the water once more, her own flailing and refusal to let him slip away only serving to drag them further away from the bright world beyond the surface. But even her hatred and vice had it’s limits. The urge to hurt him changed to panic before long. He felt her combative grabbing and pulling lessen as the pale Neiyari instead began to battle the water, and the urge to survive overtook her desire to complete her cruel hunt. The water would claim anyone without the strength to return to the surface. It should have been his end. He drifted deeper, eyes open to the surface as his strength waned. How silly, he thought, to die by drowning. But it was at least better than being tortured. There was a sudden SNAP that jostled him to conscious thought. He could move his wing again, albeit slowly in the water. He began to feel better, alert and another SNAP could be felt as his other wing mended on it’s own. He hit the bottom of the lake, his lungs about to burst, and upon his two powerful legs he oriented himself to touch bottom and with a mighty kick, began to frantically kick off towards the surface. The light from the surrounding landscape struck his face like a guiding lantern welcoming him back to life as he broke through the surface and reunited with the air beyond, allowing him to breathe once more. Strength still returning to his battered body, it was a far simpler - if primal - struggle to battle back towards solid ground. His vicious opponent was already clawing at sand and mud by the embankment, thrown entirely by their shared near-death experience. Her mottled wings beat helplessly against the water, half-submerged yet and struggling to even lift properly. For all her cruel bravado, she was no more fierce than a child when her flight was stolen away. Perhaps in that moment, she understood how he had felt during their chase. Yelling from beyond resurfaced when he could finally hear something other than his breath and the splash of water. Trampling sticks, the thud of feet. At the same time, [i]she[/i] crawled up onto the mud with what strength she had, gasping frenetically. Despite all this, he was not free of them. He began to run through the water, tripping over his feet, sputtering and flailing as he ran like some animal quick to escape a predator. Upon the bank however, did he stop when he looked in every direction, gaze faltering on a most peculiar sight. There further up the lake and across it, sat odd structures. Some large, others small, illuminated by viney growths along their sides. Something sat upon the water, drifting closer. A small… Creature… held a large stick and guided it closer. It was accompanied by several others on board. He looked at it with a puzzled face, before looking back to see where the Neiyari were. No less than three new Neiyari - two men and a woman - had broken through the bright and thorny bushes, each speckled with different skin tones and wing colouration. Even the shortest of them, a ruddy blonde that could have passed for an Oraeliari from afar - was given away by the black pattern running over his wings like cracks in marble. Two of them were pulling their comrade up from the embankment, and the blonde man was staring after him, seeming similarly confused by the approaching shape floating across the water. As they hewed their fallen friend out of the water at last, he pointed across the lake, and all four of them stared in silence, momentarily awestruck. His heart began to beat faster, knowing full well what the Neiyari were capable of, what they had already done to his people. He began to wade back into the water. “No! Go back! GO BACK!” he shouted at them but they drew nearer still and it was then he saw them clearer- faces so alike, yet so small. They all wore things on their heads that covered their faces in shade and they gave him an extremely puzzled look as they pointed. He stopped as the water reached his chest. His white toga stained and ripped. He began to point back at their village, then to them. “GO BACK! YOU HAVE TO GO BACK!” he shouted as he pleaded. It was too late. At first they pointed at him, then beyond him. He saw a few of their faces shift with the same horrified realization as his own kin had, that creeping unease that wanted to bury deep in his head. Between the splash of the water, his own voice, and the shout of one of the small creatures on the water, he heard the beat of wings rush through the air. One by one the dark and speckled wings of the Neiyari took to the skies, and a single glance back towards them confirmed they had all left the bank. His earlier tormentor laid draped in the arms of another, unable to fly on her own, and the second woman hovered nearby ready to lend support. They stared down towards him with a hateful glare, and a bothered glower towards the strange fixtures in the distance, before they lifted higher in the skies - until the lights of vegetation began to interfere with their silhouettes. With their comrade downed by water, it seemed they had lost their immediate appetite for the hunt. The last of them however, the blonde Neiyari, beat his patterned wings defiantly as he flew out over the lake in a powerful arc, zooming overhead of both the strange creatures and the lake itself in a single sweep of his wings. He too gained altitude, stopping on the far side of the water to view the strange structures from above. Confused and disgusted, he seemed to hover there with intent, burning the image of each of the structures into his memory with an intent stare. He stared at his kin, with frustration on his face. He beat his wings, but they were still too wet for flight. His attention turned back to the strangers, who were fast approaching him now. He sighed as they came upon him. He was weary and he kept glancing at the betrayer-spawn, until their faces came in view, properly this time. Large eyes, brimming with knowing intelligence. He felt… Somehow akin to them, like a spark had been lighted inside. An older man by the looks of it, pressed through the crowd. He wore clothing that looked very different from what he himself wore, with bright colors entwined into the fabric. His bronze colored arms could be seen, and he took off the object upon his head to reveal grey, curly hair. He opened his mouth to speak and the words that poured out were entirely strange to him. He did not understand the old man and that meant they did not understand him. The others huddled on his little vessel were torn between watching him, and glancing nervously at the Neiyari hovering in the sky. He could tell even now that they knew in their hearts - as he did - what the betrayer Neiyara had done to their flying kin, as their small faces could not bear to look up in the sky for more than a few moments before their features flushed with worry, anxiety and fright. From beyond the water’s edge, chaos stirred on the ground as someone screamed with a shrill voice, barely audible in the distance. It was enough to capture the Neiyari’s attention as he lingered, and he spun briefly in the air before lifting even higher. The hateful desire to chase seemed to have subsided, as he too turned and returned from whence he came, following his betrayer kin into the sky. Peace, and confusion, befell the lake and it’s guardians, as he remained alone with the strange figures. His wings could not only move - even if the water had soaked them beyond use - but also barely hurt from before. He sighed in relief as the Neiyari left but he knew it was a fleeting hope to think they would not return and with greater numbers. He saw how these small folk could feel the fear, and it broke his heart. He could not- He [i]Would[/i] not, leave them to the same fate as his kin. They needed to be protected. He pointed to himself and said, “I am Tevuri.” “Te-Vuri?” the old man spoke, before pointing at himself. “Yeano.” “Ye-An-O.” He said the word, the man’s name? The man grinned back, before putting out his hand, gesturing to Tevuri to take it. Tevuri was hesitant, but slowly he reached out and the Yeano shook his small hand giddily. Tevuri could not help but smile. [hr] [hider=Summary] An Oraeliari man is on the run from a pack of Neiyari pursuing him on foot through the Luminant. He is heavily injured and unable to fly, recounting the events in his head that lead to him being separated from his kin, and the battle that took place between the two species of Aiviri after Aveira’s betrayal of Solus. Another Neiyari - one he considers particularly cruel and hounding - follows him from the skies, taking every opportunity she can to guide her comrades and hunt him. He stumbles and falls, barely able to keep on going as something catches his eye, a glowing lake in the distance. He barely has time to approach as the flying Neiyari descends from the skies and tackles him into the lake. They both struggle, barely able to escape drowning as the other pursuers catch up to them. The Oraeliari realizes that his wounds are healing, and his strength is returning as he is submerged in the water. The fighting is broken up by the revelation that they are not alone; strange structures have been built on the far side of the lake, and a small party of smaller creatures are riding across the lake in some sort of minor vessel. The Neiyari escort their fallen member away as the last of them investigate the structures. The Oraeliari notes that even these new creatures are stricken with dread when viewing the Neiyari, before it leaves. Knowing they Neiyari will more likely than not be back in force, the lone Oraeliari resolves to protect these unknown creatures. He introduces himself to them; Tevuri. In return, he learns the name of one of the small creatures, Yeano. First contact made, they shake hands according to local custom. [/hider] [Hider=Prestige] Lake of Radiance 5 10k Chars = +5 10 -10 To level up Healing Waters I to II (The Lake now Heals wounds a bit faster) 0 Prestige [/hider]