[IC] Land of the Ancients: Return of Elderic

[Forsythe]

"Hey, you there! What are you doing, there are monsters that way! Don't you know how to get out of here!?"

Taraah halted as she nearly collided with the dwarf. "I know." she simply said, hoping the other was too scared to notice the change in her eyes, even though this was also one of those humans called ancients. "The edge of the village is that way. Hide in the forest." she pointed behind her, displeased that her voice also started changing to her slightly deeper, rumbling tone. She had to find somewhere to hide before the spell completely failed. If she has to be seen in her true form, at least nobody needed to know this was her disguise.

That didn't seem too difficult though. Everywhere she looked, people were running around scared, too busy with their own lives to notice much going on around them. Taraah ran into the nearest building, ducking in the middle of a room. Forcing her breath to calm down, she closed her eyes and cleared her mind.

Reveal.

Engulfed by a fire, she saw as the pitiful human nails turned back to her claws and the pink skin vanished under the protection of scales. Finally she was able to stretch her wings again. And now, her essence hungered for blood. Roaring, she broke through the wooden wall and jumped into the street. Sparing a look to find a victim, she saw a group of the foul beings pursuing villagers fleeing on the back of an animal. With a beat of her wings she closed the distance, crushing one of the ghouls below her clawed feet.

[Arsenal]

"Wait, you know how to ride that thing?" Cyrus asked when Xia started to mount the horse, stepping back to give her and the horse some berth. Cyrus didn't know the first or last thing about riding, and was apprehensive about approaching. Then he saw Xia shift forwards to give the both of them space to try and sit up behind her, a thought which started to make Cyrus nervous, he stuttered, "Uhh, I-I'm not sure if..."

A loud shriek from behind Cyrus made him turn around to face a ghoul that was in mid-leap towards him. In panic, Cyrus pointed the splintered, broken end of the broom handle he'd been carrying at the Ghoul hoping to swat it away. The top of the broom handle made contact with the leaping monster's chest, and the force of impact made the broom handle slip from Cyrus's grasp, sliding through his hands until the end hit the ground. The bottom end of the wooden shaft became firmly wedged into the trodden earth beneath their feet. The Ghoul dropped to the ground, winded, coughing and sputtering from the impact of the pole right against its sternum, clutching its heavily bruised chest. Cyrus took advantage of the opening and swung his makeshift weapon as hard as he could into the monster's head, dazing it and giving Cyrus time to turn and run.

That scare was all the convincing Cyrus needed to get over his fear of riding, "Right then! Let's not wait any longer shall we?"

Cyrus sprinted right towards Xia and the horse. He awkwardly scrambled up just behind her, and without thinking wrapped his left arm tightly around her waist, using his right hand to hold his broom handle off to their side.

[Arrayah]

“You’ve got to be kidding me. You really do.” Kiara mumbled under breath, as if she couldn’t believe this could be happening to her. It wasn’t that she was scared of horses or riding. Of course not. However, she didn’t have much experience, and she certainly didn’t see how all three of them were going to fit anyways. Besides, how fast could the horse carry them all anyways? Not fast, she reckoned. Okay, so maybe she didn’t like horses. At all.

Her hands clenched inside her cape as she looked around for somewhere else to go. Responsibility for the boy? Well… that would just have to go away maybe. There was no reason that she had to follow onto this stupid beast. In fact, he’d just saved her butt, so did that make them even? Kiara brought her hands to her eyes, pressing hard. This whole day must just be a dream. If she pinched herself, surely she’d wake up. Of course, with this thought in mind, she tried it. Nothing happened.

The horse snorted as if impatient, and she sent a glare towards the thing. Kiara groaned as she pulled her hood up, hoping it would stay there. Finally, she made herself walk over to the four-legged monster (she was running out of names to call the horse) and did her best to climb aboard. At first, she was unsure of what to do with her hands, but when they took off, she squealed and squeezed the boy in front of her tightly. This was not stealthy, not at all, and it took her very far out of her comfort zone.

[Eyeris]

Mal lead her into a ruined building. You wouldn’t know it now, but this was the Taylor... Shredded cloth, disemboweled dress-forms, boxes, parts of the wall missing, windows shattered, the support beams cracked and groaning...

Once inside, Haven set Raty down on a bolt of cloth. She grabbed a handful of it, it was dirty, but she had to try and stop the bleeding. She would not remember remember what color the cloth was when she picked it up, but she would forever remember the color it became as she pressed it into Raty's fur.

Raty was quivering, his beady blue eyes darting about the place, he didn't seem to see her. Under her fingers she could feel his little heart racing, fighting... then it stopped.

Haven could hear Mal talking, something about a hunting spot... but he sounded as if he was miles away. She covered the Rat's with the red-cloth, then stood. I’ll have to leave him here. She realized. I’ve no choice…

Mal was being useful, surveying their route, devising a plan of survival, and all she could do was stare, half-listening--

--Mal grabbed her hands, demanding his attention. He came into sudden sharp focus, as if she were rudely awoken from a deep sleep.

And demanded a most terrible thing.

“W-What? Why would you say that?” Tears leaked from her eyes, her wrists twisted in an insincere effort to free themselves from the orc’s grip. Playing hero? Of course I wouldn’t be able to save him, I can’t fight, I’m not strong, all I can do is run... She bit her lip and met his eyes.

But did he have to do this? Now? Did she have to say it? Did she have to say that she would leave him behind? She stared at him, his resolve was iron-clad, she had the feeling they would not leave until she did as he asked. I've no choice...

“I promise...” She answered meekly, her voice fluttered and trailed off... like a dying butterfly. Her small hands limp, surrendered, to his. "...I'll run."

[Vec]

A scream...and complete silence. Anwar opened the bedroom door only to see a big, black beast, leaning over something. The moment he saw that something was his mother’s, Alicia’s, corpse, everything became blank. In a fit of rage, Anwar ran straight towards the black monster, ramming it with his shoulder right into its abdomen, shooting both of them on the wall behind it. The ghoul’s head hit the stone wall so hard that it blacked out on the spot but Anwar failed to notice; he was out of control. He started punching the ghoul with all his strength. He punched and punched and punched without stopping. When he came to, he was sitting on top of a black body, his hands were dipped in blood and the ghoul’s head was gone, leaving a pool of blood and broken bones in its place. Immediately, his fathers’ words came into his mind, “...save you mother...please…” but he had failed to honor his father’s last words.

He sat there for a while, summing up what had happened and thinking about what he would do next. In a day, he had lost his father, the man he looked up to his whole life, his mother, the woman that gave birth to him and raised him with love and care and his house, the place he had spent all his life, was destroyed. “What will I do now?... Where will I go?... I have nothing…” He stood up, took his mother’s body in his arms and walked out of the house. “The least I can do is bury them…” It took him a couple of hours to dig the holes and bury the bodies of his parent’s; he then went back into his now former house to take some things. He took a change of clothes, a pair of hard leather gloves and some jerky his father had stored in case of an emergency and set out for the nearby village of Calsera. He had to know where these otherworldly monsters came from. He would take his revenge sooner or later.

[Lucius Cypher]

Malakaus Ironhide

Malakaus tried to smile. It felt so odd and unnatural to him, but he needed Haven to not linger too much on what he had said. And even though he made her promise to leave him behind if he went down, he wasn't about to make it easy for the monsters. "I'm sorry Haven... But don't think that I'm going to throw away my life either. I'm going to do my damnest to make sure we all get out of here alive. Come on, take the rat and let's head out." Malakaus let go of Haven's hand and readied his weapon. It was starting to get somewhat more quiet, meaning either that the monsters were going away or getting ready for another charge. Either way he wasn't going to be here for long.

Malakaus ran back into the street, always sure that Haven was a safe distance away but also near by. He had to be stealthy, which was quite easy when the entire town was in chaos and disarray. The screams masked their footsteps, and the flaming wreckage made for good hiding places. But as he sneaked around, he did find out one thing: his parents had escaped. He knew because he went back to his home by chance, and found a lot of corpses of the monsters, but none of his parents. He always knew they could
do it, and who knows, he might even find them on the way to the city. While there, he took the time to scavenge from his home, but the only thing he could get that wasn't searing hot was an iron long sword. It's blade was thin but strong, Malakaus was fairly certain that this was one of his father's experimental pieces. Something about folding the iron for a sharper edge, but the details mattered little right now. Jury rigging a sheath, Malakaus strapped the sword to his waist so that he could use it in the event that he loses his pick axe.

There was just one final stretch before Malakaus and Haven, who was hopefully following, would make it into the forest. They were actually already at the edge of town, but that was the issue. There was a large open field between the town and the forest, and no amount of sneaking will conceal him or Haven once they're there. They would need to run the entire way, not stopping to fight and hopefully able to out run the monsters, who should be busy razing the town to chase them down. Malakaus tried to get a breath of air but instead got a lung full of smoke, so after clearing his throat he looked to Haven. "This is it. We just have to clear the field and get into the forest. No more sneaking, just running. You ready?"

Xia Yang

It was a very tight squeeze for all three to fit on the horse, but the beast didn't seem to even make a noise of complaint. The massive beast just kept running and running, trampling anything fortunate enough to get in it's way. Even the monsters couldn't do much against the four hundred pound animal that could stomp a whole through their chest, not that they didn't try anyways. While neither Xia or the other passengers took much if any damage from the monster attacks, the horse was getting cut up from their claws, and the best that Xia could do was give it soothing words and kicking any of the monsters within her reach. And just as they were a little over half-way across the town, a dragon showed up. "This cannot be happening!"

If only the horse could see behind it that maybe it would go faster. As far as Xia knew, the dragon was with these monsters, which may mean much worse things were about to happen. And it happened sooner than Xia would realize. Just as they got out of the town, the horse finally collapsed, bleeding profusely from it's wounds. Xia had just enough time to push herself and the others off the horse before the beast crushed them, and Xia fell hard onto the ground. She was a bit bruised and battered, but the pain was ignored when she got a good look at the dragon. Fear took over her body, with words and thinking taking distant secondary priority. Once she was on her feet she simply ran towards the forest, putting as much distance as she could between herself and whatever was happening in the town of Halrock.

[Arsenal]

Cyrus suddenly felt out of breath the moment Kiara had wrapped her arms around his midsection, grasping onto him in a vice-grip to avoid falling off. To help, he angled the pole he was holding in his free hand so that the back end of the stick pressed against Kiara's back, doing his level best to try and keep his own balance while making sure neither of the other riders would fall themselves. Xia in front didn't seem terribly nervous, but a quick glance over his shoulder suggested to him that Kiara behind him was at least as uncomfortable as he was with the recent turn of affairs. Cyrus looked up, and the color drained from his face when he saw some large, winged creature just behind them. His mouth hung open while he searched for words, but all he had to say was a flat "Oh..."

Before Cyrus knew what was happening, he felt a shove against his torso, Xia had pushed off; pushing himself into Kiara, and in turn, throwing all three clear of the horse when it collapsed in a wounded heap just ahead. Cyrus's lowly pole was tossed aside by the impact with the ground, knocked loose from his hand. He rolled over onto his back in time to see the dragon, looming ahead, as it landed and crushed a ghoul under its massive weight. Cyrus scrambled for his would-be weapon of a broken broom handle, but instead of taking off behind Xia, he took a moment to extend a hand to Kiara and help her to her feet. Yes, he didn't even know the woman's name, but she'd taken the time to help him before, and the least he could do was stick together. He beckoned her, "Come on! We've already been halfway through hell itself, we can't let it end here!"

[TaroAndSelia]

Screams of fear, cries of pain, wails of the dieing, and shrieks of the beasts. All these sounds mixed in the air to form a horrific, sorrowful ballad. It was a song that Ruri wished to never hear again. She wished she did not have to hear it now, but she could not tune out the desperate cries that filled her ears.

A high-pitched scream came from a building on her left. Ruri's heart skipped a beat--that was the cry of a child. Without pausing even a moment more Ruri burst through the door and leaped up the stairs. The child was still emptying his impressively large lungs, guiding Ruri to the room he was in. "Yala NAUR!" Ruri cried as she shouldered through the half-open door.

A ghoul was crouched on a bed dyed red, feasting on the corpse that had fallen over it. The screaming was coming from beneath the bed, a second ghoul clawing at the bedside to get at the boy hidden underneath. Ruri threw the small ball of fire she held in her hand at the lower ghoul. It burst across the abomination's back, a small hole appearing as the heat melted away the black hide. With a shriek of pain, the ghoul turned on Ruri and ran at her, taking two steps and leaping.

Ruri slammed the door closed behind her. The wood proved too hard for the creature's face to break through, a loud thump resounding from the other side. After a moment, one clawed hand burst through the door, reaching blindly for the small redhead. Ruri jumped up, grabbed the ghoul's forearm below the joint, and yanked sideways as hard as she could. With a loud snap the creature's arm became unusable, bent backward and pressed against the wood. It screamed and thrashed about but could not extract its broken arm from the door.

Ruri pushed the door open again, throwing her weight into it to open it all the way. The ghoul behind it was pressed between the door and the wall, stopping its thrashing for a moment. Ruri took the chance to run forward. The first ghoul was still feeding, not seeming to care about the commotion its partner was causing. Ruri ran straight toward it, knowing the other ghoul wouldn't be far behind her. She reached the bed and threw herself onto her side, rolling under the bed before the monster above her could decide to stop her. It took Ruri a few moments to orient herself after a few turns and the light becoming dim so quickly, but when she did manage to look she found the little boy pressed up against the wall.

"It's okay! I'm going to save you!" Ruri reassured him. But even if she said that, her options were limited. The ghoul she'd left behind the door had finally pulled its own arm off to get loose and crashed into the side of the bed, its last hand scratching at the floor near Ruri. She looked around the space under the bed. There were a few stockings and a shirt, but what made Ruri celebrate was when she saw a stone about the size of her fist. She didn't question her luck; she just used it. "Kemen," she said quietly. The stone lifted from the floor and flew to where the ghoul was still trying to get at them, this time by shoving its head down low. The stone met it in its open mouth, cracking a few teeth and wedging into the others.

That one was dealt with. Ruri pulled herself to the screaming child and held out her hand. "Don't worry! You'll be alright!" The boy looked at her with tearful eyes. Ruri could see the fear in his eyes, but what made Ruri's heart swell was the spark of courage she could see right alongside it. The boy put his hand in Ruri's and gave a small nod. Ruri smiled back at him.

Now they just needed to find a way out.

[Arrayah]

Though the whole ride made her incredibly uncomfortable, when that stick pressed against her back she could feel herself breathe again. It didn’t mean much, and it wouldn’t really stop her from falling, but it was just the feeling that something was behind her that calmed her down. It was the fear of falling backwards, even more than how out in the open they were, that caused her to hate riding. It was just as she was beginning to feel just slightly on edge instead of terrified that something worse managed to climb into their path. Something she had thought were only legends told by street rats to scare the littlies.

Kiara barely had time to comprehend this before she felt herself falling. It was mere seconds that she was in the air, but it felt like much longer, her worst fear come to life. An “oof” escaped her lips as she hit the ground, and she took a few moments to catalogue that she was okay. This distracted her until she once again noticed the dragon. Oh yeah. There’s a dragon. Another pinch to her arm proved that it was in fact really there. How was one supposed to even react to such a thing? It looked like it was also fighting the creatures, but she couldn’t be sure. Her eyes narrowed as she watched, trying to determine its allegiance.

She sat like this, just observing, until a hand made its way into her vision. When she looked up, she saw that it was attached to the boy. It was only then that Kiara noticed the girl running away and the chaos surrounding them. It was strange that she’d been so caught up in watching a creature of legend, but in a way that dragon was beautiful as the strange and unknown often was. Now, though, she stared up at the boy curiously. He had already repaid her right before they mounted the horse, so why was he waiting for her now? In the end, she decided it didn’t matter. Kiara reached and took his hand to help pull herself up. Once on her feet, she ran after the girl towards the woods pulling him along behind her.

[Vec]

With his house located near Calsera, Anwar reached the small village in no time and saw that what had attacked his family, had swept through the village as well. Houses and stores were vandalised, dead bodies were laying lifeless on the streets, people unfortunate enough to stand in the ghoul’s way screamed in terror right before their life was stolen from them. People he had known his whole life were dead, people that he greeted with a smile each time he came here to sell their family’s produce. He couldn’t tolerate seeing these people getting hurt or hearing their screams as they died in anguish. Anwar decided to fight for them in any way he could.

But, just as he was about to do just that, a huge dragon appeared from behind one of the ruined houses. It was black with brownish scales and brown wings and it spit fire on the ghouls. “What in the world is happening here” was the first thing that crossed Anwar’s mind. “First ghouls and now a dragon? This is unreal.” Although terrified by the sight of it, Anwar realized that it too was trying to save this village because it only targeted the ghouls and not the humans.

Boosted by the apparent allegiance of the dragon, Anwar started looking for survivors hiding in the collapsing buildings. As he was walking in the streets, he saw a bright red light and heard a high pitched scream coming from one of the buildings on his right. “That was no ordinary light” he told himself and ran to that building in hopes there were survivors.

[Eyeris]

Haven covered Raty in a cloth, and gave the animal a kiss on the cheek. He was gone, he had to be left behind now…

The rest was a blur, a quiet sulking behind Mal through the chaos.

Until the field. The sun bore down on the field, the grass was a beautiful shade of green, there were wildflowers and bees… and absolutely nowhere to hide.

“I’m ready.” She lied. Then took off.

Haven could run fairly fast, she and Raty chased each other through the forest for hours. with the adrenaline in her veins, she barely felt her feet hit the ground, it as almost like flying… The trees got closer, but far too slowly…

She looked back for a terrible moment, she saw a creature striding after them. Fear propelled her feet to move faster, yet, she began to feel her muscles ache with what had been exerted thus far.

She looked forward, daring not to look back twice. She looked up, at the clouds. Lovely puffy pure white clouds smeared across the blue. One was shaped like a rabbit… it truly was a beautiful day.

Why did this happen on a beautiful day? This will ruin beautiful days forever…

[TaroAndSelia]

"Remember, right behind me."

The small boy nodded at Ruri. WIth a deep breath, Ruri prayed one more time that this plan would work. The one-armed ghoul had managed to spit out the rock and was no longer sticking its head under the bed, letting its last arm do the searching. The sickening sounds of the feeding ghoul hadn't stopped yet. Now was the chance.

Ruri slid out at the foot of the bed and ran for the door. The lower ghoul looked up at the sound, quickly giving chase. Ruri beat it to the door and cornered sharply, pressing herself into the far side of the frame as the ghoul's leap sent it crashing into the floor where she had been a heartbeat earlier. She whipped back into the room and slammed the door shut on the stupid monster.

The small boy had come out from under the bed and was running to Ruri. She caught him in one arm and threw a ball of fire at the bed with the other. The dry wood and sheets went up quickly, consuming the body and ghoul atop it. Ruri managed half a smile through her panting--the plan had worked. They weren't in immediate danger.

The flames from the bed moved to the furniture, the walls, and the ceiling. The house was dry wood, all too ready to burn. Ruri's eyes opened wide in panic as she realized she may have put them in an even worse situation than before. She couldn't control flames that large, not even if she had all her energy still. With a ghoul in the hallway behind them, the only way out was the window opposite the bed.

"Come on!" Ruri yelled, pulling the boy toward the window. It was the second story, but maybe there would be something.

Indeed there was something. There was a dragon in the street. If she hadn't been afraid for her life and the life of the little child with her, Ruri would have squealed in delight. As it was, she desperately called out at the top of her lungs in a language that she sincerely hoped would get the dragon's attention.

"(Sir Dragon! Please help us escape!)" The Elven words flowed from her tongue, her fluency apparent. Ruri turned back to the small boy beside her. "Don't worry," she said reassuringly, switching back to the common tongue. "The dragon can help us." At least, Ruri hoped so. The fires were drawing closer, and Ruri didn't have the strength to keep them back.

[Vec]

“Is anybody here? IS ANYBODY HERE?” Anwar called out but no one answered. The house was completely empty although he swore he saw a bright red light coming from inside. All of a sudden, he heard a yell and noise coming from upstairs. Anwar climbed the stairs but soon regretted what he did.

The ghoul, previously on the floor, stood up and started punching the door behind it. It seemed it hadn't picked up Anwar’s presence so he decided to take the chance and kill it. But how? He didn't have any weapons and even if he had, his mastery over them is on par with a toddler’s. But he did have something that he honed since he was little, his hand-to-hand combat skills. On a whim, he ran towards the ghoul and lunged on its back. It immediately screeched and started to wave its skeletal arm, trying to catch Anwar who was on top of it. Anwar struggled to keep balance as the creature rocked its body, trying to make him fall. Despite his efforts, the ghoul overwhelmed him; he fell in an awkward way, hurting his arm and rendering it unusable. The ghoul started attacking Anwar with its clawed hands, inflicting wounds on his body. Anwar was defenseless, "Ah, i guess this is it huh? In the end i didn't do much...I wasn't able to find out who killed my parents...I wasn't able to help anyone..." Anwar closed his eyes as the ghoul raised its hand for the final strike. It plunged its claws in Anwar's chest, snatching the life out of him.

---

[Lucius Cypher]

Malakaus Ironhide

The two took off towards the forest. Despite choosing not to fight, a new energy filled his body. The energy that made his body feel lighter than the air itself, which allowed him to cover the distance between the town and the forest. But despite the speed, it was still not fast enough to avoid the monsters that chased them. From a quick glimpse he counted two, one chasing after Haven directly. Without much thought about the matter, he turned and threw his pickaxe at the monster, caving the monster's skull. This still left the other one, but it was a fair bit away. The orc and the human reached the forest before the monster was even half-way pass the open field.

Malakaus didn't know how far he ran. He made sure to keep Haven near by but as he began to rush through the thicker bushes and briars, he had less time to keep an eye on Haven. By the time he chose to slow down, it was eerily quiet. No screaming, no screeching, not even the sound of the flames burning the world around them. Just the buzzing of the insects. Coming to a small clearing, Malakaus knelt down to catch his breath. In his mad dash, he's been scratched up by straw branches and briars, and the injuries he received from the monsters were beginning to take their toll on his body. He wasn't sure if he'd die from these injuries, or if the monster's claws were poisoned, so he knew he couldn't rest for long.

Back on his feet, before Malakaus would continue he looked for Haven. Last he remembered she was running along side of him, but it was all a blur. He kept his hand on the hilt of his sword in case he needed it as he called out for Haven. "Haven? Haven, where are you?"

Xia Yang

As much as Xia didn't like it, her home had a trail. It was just a dirt pathway, and in a way it was beneficial when she needed to go to the village since she didn't have to hack her way through the forest. But now that she wants to hide from the things inside of that same village, she wished she could hide her home better. Knowing that it'll only be a matter of time before those monsters came into the forest to hunt them down, Xia went strait to her home and began to pack. She was strong enough to carry her father's medicine case on her own, and filled it up with everything she thought she would need. She took books and journals of her study and work, as well as other material related to her work in alchemy either by her or her father. She left behind anything deemed weak or experimental, save one concoction. But as she was putting things away, the fatigue if everything began to fall on her. As she was packing potions into the large case, he rested her head against it and began to cry. It was all just very stressful for her. She didn't know if she should feel bad for what happened or be glad that she's alive.

Her mind than went back to those strangers she helped. Did they manage to follow her? Did the monsters get them? Was she next? Looking around, Xia tried to find something she could use to protect herself. The first thing that came to sight sat on the mantle above the fireplace. It was her father's dagger, Azoth. She faintly remembered some sort of history behind the blade, but she mind was more focused on being armed than for stories. She took the sheath and the dagger and attached it to her belt. Xia guessed she had maybe half and hour before those monsters would be finished in the village and go into the forest. She had no evidence of this, but she wanted to put as much space between herself and those monsters as soon as possible. She would wait at her house to see if any survivors would show up; she'll help them as much as she can, and hopefully she can tag alongside them as they head to the next city.

[Arsenal]

When Kiara seized his hand, Cyrus likewise clutched back, his fingers clasping firmly around Kiara's hand to prevent being separated from her. He dared not turn back, never even offering a glance behind themselves to see what was going on in the background. For a moment, his senses overwhelmed him, every sight, sound, smell, and touch gradually whirling together into a numb, unfeeling sensation. He tuned out the chaos around them, but eventually, the clamor and racket started to subside as the distance between themselves and the village grew greater.

While they no longer had sight of Xia, there really was only one way to go, following a trodden path made bare by countless footsteps before. With adrenaline starting to wear off, Cyrus felt his exhaustion starting to catch up to him, and every little bruise and ache he had ignored started to catch up to him. He panted, catching his breath, but he dared not slow, especially not now that he saw the cover of a little cabin ahead. He motioned to Kiara just a few footfalls ahead of himself, "That lady's gotta be there, maybe we can figure out what we do now."

He released Kiara's arm and slowed his pace, glancing over his shoulder to make sure they had not been followed. This far off, the sounds of whatever may be happening in the village were inaudible to all but the sharpest of ears. Cyrus stepped up onto the porch. Wanting to make sure they didn't surprise Xia, Cyrus knocked first. While waiting for Xia to answer the door, Cyrus buckled over, placing his hand on his knee while he caught his breath. He looked back towards Kiara.

Standing upright, Cyrus tightened his necktie, which had loosened during their mad sprint. He extended his hand towards Kiara, smiling. He spoke, "I never got a chance to thank you, by the way, I'm Cyrus."

[Forsythe]

Despite the disaster happening around her, Taraah was quite enjoying herself. It was humiliating to hide in a human shape. Now the ghouls felt her fury and might! She felt it like a deep burning in her core. It was their fault. Their fault she had to reveal herself. Their fault she will have to run gain. With a feral roar, she slammed on of the ghouls on a nearby wall, it's head popping. She welcomed the sound. Such fragile creatures - they break so easily! The burning got greater with every hit she took or gave. It was what made Her's special. The humans and other ancients lacked the untamed, wild part to their soul.

The wildlings soon realized she posed the biggest threat to them and more started heading her way. While it relieved the fleeing villagers somewhat, Taraah was getting overwhelmed despite her ferocity. So far just cuts and bruises, but the horde slowly gathering around her started to smell like broken bones and dismemberment, and Taraah was having none of it. No human was worth more than a few drops of dragon blood spilled. It was then when she heard it.

A voice that sounded different. The words were like music to her ears, although their meaning carried a cry for help. She couldn't quite place it, but the dragoness knew the speaker was like her. Different. Ancient. She didn't have to look long for the source: The roof that was on fire was giving off heat that attracted her like a magnet. There they were, trapped near a window. It was time to leave, and perhaps she can aid a few more by doing so. Unfolding her wings, she stood on her hind legs and gave them a few beats, blowing dust into the charging ghouls' eyes. A few beats later, she rose to the air.

Just as she turned to glide towards the burning building, one of the ghoul showed a higher intelligence than the average as it used a dead husk of it's kin to boost itself up, It's claws sunk into Taraah's unguarded lower chest. With a yelp of mixed pain and rage, she took it by the neck and ripped it's head off, throwing each part to different side. A few seconds later, her claws sunk into the stone wall of the building with the two trapped humans. "Grab!" She shouted over the cracks of burning wood as she offered her arms for them to hold on to.

[TaroAndSelia]

The small boy was frozen stiff, terrified at the sight of the huge dragon. He couldn't even scream as he had with the ghouls earlier. Ruri thought he would get over it at some point--nobody could really dislike a dragon--but time was a luxury they didn't have. Ruri spun the boy to face her, thrust her arms under the child's and around his body, and pulled him close in a tight embrace. Carrying the smaller child's weight along with her own, Ruri climbed on the windowsill and latched onto the dragon's offered forearm, sandwiching her passenger between the leg and her body.

"(Thank you very much! Can you get us somewhere he will be safe?)" Ruri sang over the sounds of the fire. The child still wasn't able to do anything more than stare in fright and tense up. He tensed up even more with the change in distance to the ground. "I've got you. You'll be okay," Ruri stated, hoping to relieve the boy's fears. It would be really bad if the boy were afraid of heights, but they didn't have any other option.

[Ryonara]

Ada didn't bother to turn back. She didn't stop to loot or to help anyone. It was fairly obvious that the town was as good as dead, and as lone as she stayed there she would be next. She left before the town was somehow set ablaze, and luckily before she was spotted by the dragon as well. All she had left with her as her dagger and her hammer, the tools of her trade. Not that they were too useful here in the forest. What was she going to do, jury rig an army out of stone and wood? No, she needed to head to the next city and try to get on with her life. Ada didn't know what happened, and only hopes that it doesn't happen again. "Now, how do I get out of this blasted forest?"

Ada was lost. She has never been in these forest before and was never a wilderness type either. Best she could tell was to follow anything that looked like a trail and put some faith in her senses. She could hear a river near by, but the more she went to look for it, the more lost she became. At least she was able to move quietly, as she spotted some wild animals where missed her. She hoped she wouldn't run into another one of those monsters. Not because she couldn't handle them, but because if one was here, they all might be. As she wondered around, she found herself in a small clearing. But she wasn't alone. "Who are you?"

[Eyeris]

She dashed. Through the field, into the wood. It was a blur of green and brown after that. She lost sight of her tall green friends among the trunks and brush. She wove around natures obstacles, pushing through where no real path was. Thorns bit her skin, seeds clung to her boots, spiderwebs pressed into her face as she pushed through them all.

She realized she was alone. Her legs and her lungs burned. She braced herself against a tree, trying to catch her breath. There was no sign of the beast that had been chasing her, or her companion.

She thought she heard something in the distance. But wasn't sure where it was coming from. She was to tired to run any longer. She had to hide. The only way to go was up. She ducked under the skirt of a tall white bark pine. She found it's trunk, and climbed.

In some ways climbing pine trees was easier, the branches were much closer together. It was harder because sometimes they were too close to easily progress, but she was small enough to find a way to wiggle through. Her hands and arms were soon sticky with sap. The pine also afforded her much more cover than a coniferous tree might. She settled in a place she thought was safe, and waited.

She wasn't sure how long she had waited. She fell asleep with her forehead resting on the prickly branches.

She dreamed she was home. Her dad coming home with a huge bag of fresh cabbages. He smiled and strode toward her. She was happy, and so glad to see him. But... it was to good to be true. 'But daddy... your legs... you can't walk.' She frowned, knowing that none of this was real. And that a nightmare awaited her when she opened her eyes.

She woke, hearing footsteps. A monster, stalking around the forest?

No, no monster, the footsteps had a voice. A familiar voice: "Haven? Haven, where are you?"

"Mal?" She was afraid to call out to loudly. "Is that you? Be careful they... they might hear you." She began to slowly descend from the sticky pine-tree.

[Forsythe]

Somewere safe. That was was starting to look more like utopia with every second passed. The fire had already jumped the roofs and was now starting to devour the neighboring houses, and pretty soon the whole village would be ashes. With her luck, she'll get blamed for it by the angered villagers that survived, of which she was certain wouldn't be many. At least these two will tell a different story. Hopefully.

"Hold on for your life!" Taraah hissed, thinking bitterly how accurate the statement was. With all the strength left in her battered body, Taraah lifted the three of them to the air and headed for the treeline. With the added weight, the clawmarks on her chest made flight really painful, but she snapped her teeth shut and went on. Normally she would have welcomed the fire as the draft of hot air would help her ascend, but with two pinkskins tucked in her arms, she had to do all the work, or the ghouls would just jump at them like the one before. Running out of breath, she glided the rest of the way, hoping she got high enough.

Taraah was getting a royally annoying wing cramp by the time they reached the forest, but she held and brought them on the ground safely. Right after that though, the oxygen debt finally kicked in as the adrenaline rush died and she collapsed, panting heavily. "Go..." she barely whispered between the gasps for air, "Before the horde gets here." she urged them to leave. If this was her final stand, it would be hers alone.