drow
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 17:21:33 GMT -6
His tail cupped her chin to raise her eyes to his, another tear running down his scales. His tail wiped her own tears, and a slight chuckle escaped his belly. "You know, Taria, you and I are more alike then you think. But if you are those things, I am ten times more guilty. I was supposed to be the guardian, the keeper of your town from harm. Rumors of dragon killers, the deaths of ones close to me. I hid, I ran." He paused for some time. "Though, even with all of that, I didn't lose the entire town. And I don't intend to lose it. While I can't sympathize in losing your family, nor can I replace it. But, if you'll let me, perhaps I could be a part of your family. Those that I've lost stay right here," he said, pointing to his heart. "And I hope you never lose them from here," he added, pointing the tip of his tail to her heart. "Now I'm sure you've already noticed the pack. Again, they aren't replacements for your family, but I've been with them quite a while, and they remind me of a community, much like your town, and your family. We can build from this, keeping what's dear to our hearts, and I assure you, I see a fighter in you."
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 24, 2019 17:50:25 GMT -6
Taria's watery eyes looked directly into Rakham's. As she listened to his wisdom, she felt both hope and sorrow. Deep down, she knew he was right. Her parents would live on in memory and in her heart. But she still felt it was hard to get over their deaths.
She nodded her head in agreement and hugged Rakham's snout with all her might, with silent tears running down her cheek. "I miss them so much." she said calmly.
Taria looked towards the village ruins. "Do you...do you think there is something in the village to remember them by?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.
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drow
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 18:04:38 GMT -6
"I know you do. I miss my friends, too." As she asked him if there was something to look for, his eyes lit up. "There might, but I will forewarn you, it might hurt to be there. But, if it helps you to find something, then I don't see why not." He closed his eyes when she hugged his snout tightly, feeling a warmth he hadn't felt in a long while. "Would you like to walk, or would you like to ride down there?"
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 24, 2019 18:25:23 GMT -6
"Nothing can hurt me deeper now." Taria said, with a sad tone. "But if I can say goodbye to them one last time, it would mean so much to me."
"Ride?" Taria said, blinking as she heard Rakham spread his wings. "You mean...fly?" Taria climbed up Rakham's snout, much to his discomfort, and sat on his head. "Have you...you know...flown with a passenger before?" she asked, wondering if it's safe to fly.
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drow
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Posts: 218
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 18:37:20 GMT -6
"Well, I was thinking of taking a walk if you wanted to ride and let your feet rest. If you want to fly, we could give it a shot. Shouldn't be hard to do."
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 24, 2019 18:53:07 GMT -6
"All right then. Let's fly." Taria said, holding on to the dragon's scales.
As they took off, Taria couldn't help but scream, this was a whole new experience for her. But after a few moments, she adjusted to the flight. That is, until she dared to look down and practically glued herself to Rakham's head.
"Ooooh! This was a bad idea! Bad idea, bad idea, bad idea! Never been so high above the ground!" she rambled to herself but couldn't help but chuckle a bit.
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drow
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 19:26:05 GMT -6
He laughed heartily as he slowed to hover high above the ground. "Well, the more you get used to it, the higher we can go. Now, let's get to it."
He landed at the ashen ghost town, crumbled structures laying waste to what life there once was. Rakham was quiet the entire time, roaming the desolation and losing himself for a long while.
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 24, 2019 20:20:22 GMT -6
Taria immediately climbed down the scales and looked around. There were no bodies around. Taria rushed to what remained of her old house, only to find out everything inside was destroyed. All she could find was a plain silver ring that belonged to her mother, a Bowie knife that belonged to her father and a partially scorched book that meant a lot to the whole family. After sitting quietly in the house for a while, she stepped outside where Rakham was waiting.
She used the knife to carve her parents' names on a wooden crate she found near a cellar door, using it as a coffin, and put the book and the ring inside but kept the knife. Then both she and Rakham shut the crate and buried it.
"This is all I could do to honor them. The High Lords' armies destroyed everything else." she said, shedding a single tear before hugging Rakham's snout once again. "Let's go home." she said, feeling this brought her a lot of peace.
But as Taria was about to climb on Rakham's back, she noticed a parchment half-buried in the ashes next to her and picked it up. After reading it, she looked horrified.
"Rakham! This is a list of orders given to the army. It says they should incinerate the bodies...and make it appear to be the work of a dragon." Taria said, looking at Rakham with concern. "They want people to think dragons did this!"
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drow
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 20:45:54 GMT -6
Rakham rumbled an angered growl. "They want more to join their cause, and what better way than to frame a dragon. We'd best leave swiftly. This place is desolate, but I don't feel good about this. And I'm afraid I'm going to have to make a trip. This is all one big mess, and I'm afraid it'll get worse before it gets better. You up for a trip? It's a long way where I'm going."
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 24, 2019 20:59:34 GMT -6
"A trip? Where to-HEY! What are you doing?!" Taria said, as Rakham's tail suddenly wrapped around her and put her on his neck. "What trip? Where are you taking me?"
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drow
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 21:09:18 GMT -6
"Let's just say you might be meeting more than one dragon in a short time." Rakham's tone was very serious, more serious than she'd seen since she met him. "Now hold on tight. This might not be the most pleasant ride." His wings extended and he poised like a tiger before leaping to the skies.
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 24, 2019 21:29:52 GMT -6
"But I don't like flyIIIIINNG!!" Taria shrieked as they took off. The take-off terrified her as she was not ready for this. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack!?" Taria exclaimed, angry at Rakham for scaring her, though she calmed down after a moment.
"Why are we fleeing anyway? No one knows about us." she said. "Can't we just go home?"
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drow
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Post by drow on Mar 24, 2019 22:52:53 GMT -6
"We're not fleeing, Taria. We're going to a place to warn others of my kind what the High Lord's armies are doing. And that's just it. No one knows that we're alive or dead." He landed on a nearby ridge, lowering his head and clenching a fist. "I'm sorry. You've been through enough, and taking you far away from your home might not be the brightest of ideas. I've already failed once to save a people. I don't want to do that again. Alright. The choice is up to you, my dear. Do we go and warn my kind now, or do we stay behind and get you accustomed first before leaving? We'll both start making the decision together, how does that sound?"
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Post by Raventheravenous on Mar 26, 2019 11:32:29 GMT -6
Taria thought for a moment. "I think you should do what you think is right." Taria said. "I don't think I'm ready to meet other dragons and I don't want you to worry about them just to keep me safe. But I also don't think I'm in the position to make decisions like this...I'm just a kid. But I trust you."
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drow
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Post by drow on Mar 26, 2019 20:11:07 GMT -6
Rakham was torn. "Well, it probably wouldn't be best to bring you to them just yet. I just hope that more dragons i know won't do anything rash until then. Now, how about I introduce you to the rest of the pack?" he smiled, stroking her hair with his tail to calm her.
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