Agrigon.

[Lord Anglekos]

Morning.

Eric was already awake when the sun rose, and the fire had died down to a pile of smoldering ashes and wood, smoke rising it from it like a beacon to the day. He sat across from where Rose still lay, breathing softly in her black armor as she continued to sleep. He noticed than even in sleep, she was prepared for battle; her right hand lay on the length of her large glaive that rested at her side, ready to be grabbed at the first sign of trouble. Ready to move that body of hers...

He shook his head, clearing his head of those thoughts, and looked down at the hands that had been so intimate with the draconian last night. He'd lied to her. He hadn't used any special substance or anything, but instead a technique he'd learned long ago from watching the Paladins of Saleria heal soldiers. They called it the "laying of hands", and at his insistence, they'd taught him the basics of it, at least. He had never been able to do it before, as it involved circulating one's power through the body and into another, but now that his own power had awakened...It seemed all he could do was make a girl horny. Grinning ironically to himself, he pushed himself to his feet and walked over to Eros, shaking her slightly by the shoulder to wake her up. "Eros...its morning."

Her eyes opened almost immediately and focused on Eric's face. "You're awake already?" She asked, and he was perturbed by her ability to be so alert after just waking up.

"I woke up about an hour ago or so, to my count." He grinned slightly. "I don't sleep all that long."

"Neither do I, usually." She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Whatever you did to me last night made me wearier than I thought, it seems."

He shifted uncomfortably. That was a topic he didn't want to approach at the moment. "Yeah, well... must have been more to that oil than the woman told me, eh?"

There was a moment of silence as he started to walk away, then she spoke again. Her voice seemed a bit subdued. "It wasn't oil."

He stiffened. How did she know? "Yes it w--"

"I checked the bottle. All it was was water mixed with a little mud to give it a thicker feel and coloring." He turned around and saw her emerald eyes, encroached by black where the whites should be, staring at him in accusation and apprehension. "What are you, Eric? No human has ever been able to do that to me. No draconian, either."

He sighed as her met her gaze, then looked away and touched the hair on the hilt of his blade. Amalia... "I'm just a human."

"Liar."

"No." He shook his head and sighed. "I'm only human, Eros."

She continued to watch his face, then extended an armored hand to him. He smiled slightly before he reached out and helped her to her feet. "Rose."

He blinked. "What?"

"You can call me Rose."

The two of them looked at each other for a little while, each with a small, knowing smile on their lips, then Eric broke away and began picking up his stuff. "We ought to get go--"

A small explosion a little ways off interrupted his sentence, and as Rose and he looked in the direction it came from, they heard a panicked neighing. "The horses!" She cried, and without waiting for him, sprung forward, running at a speed he could never imagine could be reached in that armor. He followed shortly behind, grabbing hold of his quiver of arrows and bow before sprinting off in her wake.

[Rebellion]

By the time Rose got there, one of the horses was already gone. There was a large hole in the ground; about eight feet in diameter, and the screams of the missing horse could be heard even outside the hole. She stood outside the hole, seething from fury both at herself and at whatever had done this. Cthara! I was concentrating so much on Eric that I didn't even... Gritting her fangs, she snarled and was about to step down into the hole when she heard Eric's voice behind her.

"...whoa, whoa there girl." She turned and found him calming down Senalia, who was flailing and kicking in panic and fear. After some reassuring gestures and words, he managed to, but she still neighed nervously and glanced to the hole. "It's alright. Stay here, okay?" She whinnied softly and stepped back from the hole in the ground.

Eric walked up to Rose with a small, if pained, smile gracing his lips again. "Well, it seems we've found our monster."

"So it seems." She bit her lip as she glared down at the hole.

"Hey. It's not your fault."

"Like Eadhochas it isn't!"

"It would have taken Morlor'ien anyways, and you with it if you'd tried to stop it." He pulled around so she would look at him. "Think! Look how big that hole is! And notice the fact that none of us, not even the horses, knew it was there until it attacked!" He glared down at the hole, and slowly nocked an arrow to his bow. "Even though I hate that it took him, better Morlor'ien than you. We're just lucky it didn't attack us directly."

The first thought that went through Rose's head then was; Does he really mean that? He would hate if I died? The next was more realistic and on-track; And just how many battles has this boy been in anyways? He must be barely eighteen, but assesses situations as if he were twenty years older! "Good point." She took a deep breath and calmed her anger down. It wouldn't help her, and it wouldn't help Eric. "So what do we do?"

He blinked at her as if she'd asked how to fly to the moon. "How should I know? I've never fought anything like this before, and by my accounts, neither have you."

She repressed a smile. He didn't know his own potential or just how special he was. Even for a human, she was impressed at his self control and level head. "Give it a shot."

He gave her a suspicious look, then went back to peering down the hole. "Well, at first glance, this looks like your average monster attack. Monster comes, monster takes food, monster leaves."

She blinked. At first glance?

His peering turned into a glare, and for the first time Rose saw what looked to be anger flit across his face. It was a frightening look, one that didn't enhance his features but instead made him look more like a monster himself. "But there's a couple things wrong with that. For one thing, nothing, nothing this big would be able to move that silently. Even after it took Morlor'ien, I could feel rumblings beneath the earth as it moved away." He glanced at her. "But nothing before that."

She blinked. By the gods, he was right! "So that would mean..." Her eyes widened in apprehension and horror.

"Yeah." He nodded and looked back at the hole. "This thing was lying in wait. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if it was spying on us, assessing our capabilities. And anything that smart doesn't just run away; it retreats. I think you know what that means."

"But why attack now? Why not before?"

"I don't know. I know I said before it must be uncomfortable in sunlight...but now I think that's not right." He grinned at her. "In any case, it's lying in wait for us, down there. Feel like springing a trap?"

One moment he was subtle and tactical, the next reckless. Just who was this youth, really? Rose took up her glaive and spun it around her fingers a couple times, testing it out, then took it firmly in her hands before giving a small, tight lipped smile back at him. "Why not."

[Lord Anglekos]

Not far beneath from where Eric and Rose were talking, something stirred from its meal. It looked up vaguely as it felt vibrations from their footsteps, and from the rapidity of them the creature guessed that they were in the tunnel. If it could have grinned, it would have. It had fed from countless others such as them. Warriors, mages, clerics. The works. These two were no different.

Well, that wasn't exactly true. The reason it had not attacked before had nothing to do with the sun or the moon; the reason it had not attacked was because it was cautious. No matter how many times the beast had tried to convince itself, these two were not the same as others. It never fed on the draconians, for they were its kin, and thus not to be touched. Or, so its master had said. But these two approaching were neither draconian nor human. Gifted with the ability to be able to sense power, it had first lay in waiting the day before, ready to spring up and snatch the two riding on their horses to drag them down into the depths below...but then, as they came closer, its senses gave it a terrifying vision.

The one on the left, the boy, turned into a being made of thunder and lightning, a god amongst his kind. The one on the right burned everything she touched, spreading chaos and fire wherever her blade chose. For a moment the creature trembled beneath the earth, afraid to face these mighty titans of power...but then its sense returned, and saw the two riders to be naught but a human and a draconian.

However strong it may be, it was only mortal, and as such could make mistakes. No such beings like that existed upon this earth. And even if they did, there was no way these two-legs could be those nightmare creatures. Even so, it had refrained from attacking, and had chosen when it judged the two to be weakest; in the morning, right when they would be groggy and unable to fight back.

It had chosen wrong, though, and instead of attacking them had gotten the smells mixed up and had attacked the horses. One managed to scamper away, yes, but it had managed to lock its jaws upon the male and drag it down to its nest, where it had made a delicious meal. Now the two-legs were in its tunnel, and once in, nothing ever came out.

In the darkness beneath the earth, the creature's eyes gleamed.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Using a makeshift torch made from lighting a bundle of sticks and some cloth, Rose and Eric made their way through the tunnel, following a trail of blood from where the monster had taken Morlor'ien, presumably to its nest. As they ran, Eric's mind drifted to his female companion, and again, despite the circumstances, he found himself thinking of her. She was definitely warming up to him, it seemed, and more than once he'd caught her looking at him too. But every time his mind drifted to her, eventually he'd start thinking of Amalia, and he'd return to the situation at hand.

But still...Eros, or rather Rose, held a disturbing hold over him. She wasn't his type, and yet...unconsciously he licked his lips and his grip on his bow tightened. Later. He'd deal with that later. But now...

"Eric."

Rose pulled to an abrupt stop as she said his name and pointed ahead at something with her glaive, as she held the torch in her other hand. He looked at where she pointed, and saw in the flickering flames of the torchlight the body of Morlor'ien. His head had been ripped off, and it seemed the monster liked the guts of its prey the most. Eric grit his teeth and slowly walked past the fallen horse. He'd seen enough bodies in his life. He heard Rose move behind him. "Think its nest is up ahead?"

He nodded in the dark. "Yeah."

"It's probably waiting for us."

"Probably."

"Are you alright?"

No, he wasn't, but this wasn't the time nor the place for nostalgia. "Yeah, I'm fine."

There was a moment of silence, then; "Alright. Let's go."

They took off running again into the dark, where who knew what awaited them?

[Rebellion]

Rose took notice of the fact that the farther they went, the larger the tunnel became. Not anything dramatic, but it slowly expanded to the point where the ceiling was at least fifteen feet high, double the height of what they had judged the monster to be. Either it was somehow larger than they had thought, or, Rose grinned slightly as the thought crossed her mind, the creature had done some "home improvement". In either case, the width of the tunnel also increased, although not nearly as much as the ceiling had. Rose wondered just what they were dealing with.

Eric had been remarkably silent during their run, and by now she knew that this meant he was deep in thought. What he was dwelling on, she didn't know, but it was troubling him. His past was his problem, but still, Rose couldn't help but feel empathetic to her partner. She knew what it was like to be haunted by the past. As she returned her gaze to her front, however, all thoughts about Eric and the past disappeared as the light reflected off something sharp.

Without a second thought, Rose swung her glaive into Eric, and he let out a whoosh of breath as he was caught unprepared by her weapon and knocked back into the wall, while she herself jumped aside. Something large and clawed shot past the two a split second later, and as it landed on the ground behind them it made a soft WHUMPF that echoed down the tunnel. Rose turned the torch to it, and gasped as she saw the infamous monster for the first time.

It had a head like some malformed shark, pointed with a gaping maw filled with serrated teeth. However, that's where all similarities to that creature ended. From the neck down it was covered in some shell-like armor that gleamed maliciously in the light from the fire, and it had four legs ending in the same number of claws on each foot. As it slowly drew closer, Rose saw it looked more like the nightmare result between some mad crossbreeding of a giant snapping turtle and an armadillo.

Contrary to what she had first thought, she did know what this thing was.

Eric had regained his footing and had knocked an arrow at the thing's exposed head, sighting down the length of the shaft. "What the hell is that?!" He murmured, more to himself than anything, and so he turned a surprised look on Rose when she answered.

"It's a bullete."

He blinked. "What in God's name is a bullete?"

She slowly positioned her glaive between her and the creature, never keeping her eyes off of it as it looked between the two in what she thought was a faint air of disdain. "They're a mad scientist's idea of a joke. Long ago, a man by the name of Heliarth sought to create the 'ultimate hunter', a thing that could rival even dragons in the world." She narrowed her eyes. "He failed, but another scientist took up his work and created these abominations. Or, so the legend goes."

She saw Eric raise an eyebrow from the corner of her eye. "Legend?"

"No one's really seen one before. They're supposed to be extinct."

Eric opened his mouth, but before he could say anymore, the bullete rushed them. It didn't make any sound, like a normal animal, so the only warning the two got was a slight tensing in its body as it sped through the air like a torpedo. Before diving out of the way again, Eric released his arrow at it and had time only to be mildly disappointed as it bounced off the thing's shell before he felt it rushing above his head.

Rose had some better luck, however, and as it passed by them she swung her glaive at its unprotected underside. She felt the tip of her weapon dig into its flesh and cut a thin line into it before it passed her completely, and the creature gave a roar of rage and pain before it did something neither of them was prepared for: It spoke.

"Aaaaagh! Filthy two-legs!" Its voice was harsh and ragged, like nails being scraped over armor, but by the gods above Rose would have sworn to anyone it spoke words. Rose blinked simultaneously with Eric in surprise as they registered the fact in their minds. If the thing spoke, it had some measure of intelligence, and his theories had become more than such. "I was going to kill you quickly, but for that you'll die slowly and painfully!"

Rose stood up straighter as she glared at the beast from down her nose. "The only thing that will be dying here, creature, is you."

It grinned. Rather, it tried to grin, but what came out was some mangled version of a smile, almost as painful as its voice. "Oh, I like fiery ones. Especially females. The way they struggle and scream..."

Rose stepped forward and was about to give the creature a reason why it should fear her, when Eric stopped her with a hand on her arm. "Stop, Rose. It's baiting you." She growled beneath her throat and was about to tell him to get his hand off her when she saw him smiling grimly. "Which means it's afraid of you."

She blinked as reason and logic came back to her. Of course. "Afraid? Ha! You two-legs are all the same." The creature continued to speak in its terrible voice, but Eric ignored it as he stepped forward, dropping his bow and his quiver of arrows at Rose's feet.

"Tell me, monster..." Eric's voice was calm and collected, just as he'd been when he shot down the wyvern. "...do you have a name, or must we call you 'monster' and 'creature' over and over again?"

If anything, the thing's grin grew wider. "You wish to know the name of your killer, two legs? Fair enough. My name is--"

"I don't really care what your name is." Eric glanced back at Rose, his next words directed at both the bullete and her. "Only that you have one. And for you to have a name, someone or something had to give it to you."

Rose gasped as his words hit home. What he was saying was that there was someone, or something, behind the creature. A puppet master. Of course. "Eric, the wyvern was odd as well." She said as she walked forward to stand by him, torch and glaive in hand. "Far beyond the norm."

He nodded and his hand went to the hilt of his sword. "So tell me, bullete." The creature's eyes had widened in comprehension and its smile had turned into a snarl. "Who is behind this whole thing? Who created you?"

"I'll tell you nothing!"

He nodded as if he hadn't been expecting anything less of the monster. "Fine with me. Rose?"

"Fine here as well." She narrowed her emerald eyes at the monster that had taken so many lives. "By the gods above you are going down."

The bullete only roared in response, and charged.

[Lord Anglekos]

As soon as it moved, Eric drew his long sword and dashed forward, swinging it in a vertical swipe at the creature's stomach as the bullete flew over his head again. However, it seemed the creature had remembered that vulnerability, and just as he swung it flipped over in the air, making his attack useless as it struck its hard shell. "Dammit!" He swore, and switched his feet as he slid to a stop, putting his blade before him in a defensive position.

However, it seemed he didn't have to worry about a counter attack as Rose was keeping the bullete busy with strikes of her own. She swung her polearm wildly but effectively, keeping the creature on its toes as it had to retreat or block with its armor to keep her blade from piercing its fleshy head. He ran forward, ready to help...but then a movement to the left of the bullete caught his attention, and his eyes widened as he instinctively threw himself in front of her, blade held vertically in front of him in defense.

It was his blade that saved him from being cut in half. The creature's previously hidden tail whipped around and struck it, and while Amalia blocked the blade attached to the end of the tail like a scorpion's, the sheer impact of the attack knocked Eric sideways into the wall. The impact knocked the breath out of him and, if he could, he would have screamed at the searing pain as a couple of his ribs cracked. Shit, shit, shit! Was all he could think as the beast turned on him with a roar of rage. He'd barely stood up when that deadly tail of its came swinging around again to cut off his head.

Then Rose was there with her glaive, like a flame-haired goddess in Eric's vision. Her weapon spun around and not only blocked its tail but, as he watched, cut it off at the end, severing the sharp blade off before it could continue its deadly mission. If he could have, he would have breathed out a sigh of relief, but as it was the monster wasn't done yet. It shrieked in pain and agony and charged at Rose in an obvious attempt to bulldoze her over. Seeing his chance, Eric leapt forward despite his injuries and swung his sword at the creature's head, intending to sever it and end the battle right then and there.

To his disappointment it saw the blade coming, and while it had not enough time to stop completely, it managed to slow down enough that instead of slicing off its head, the swordsman's blade dug a deep furrow into the side of the things head and down across its eye, cutting it open and causing dark blood to spurt out across the steel of Amalia. It gave a roar of agony before backing away slowly into the darkness, giving howls that echoed down the tunnel before it faded out of sight and sound, leaving the two warriors standing there, leaning on their weapons as they breathed heavily.

"Well..." Eric finally spoke as he sheathed his bloodied sword, panting slightly. "...we hurt it. Think it'll give itself up quietly at our awesome skills?" He grinned slightly at Rose.

She returned the grin with a tight-lipped quick version of her own. "No, the damned beast is too stubborn." It faded just as quick as it came, and she grit her teeth as she stared off where it had disappeared. "By the gods, it's fast. I didn't even see that tail coming. Had you not been there..."

"I barely saw it myself, to tell the truth." He shrugged and stood up, wincing at the pain in his ribs. "Ow."

She looked sharply at him. "You hurt?"

"Yeah, a little." He drew in a sharp breath as he tested out his movements with a couple of stretches in his arms. He could move fine, but it hurt like hell. Well, he'd get used to it. "Nothing that a healer can't fix, though. I'll be fine."

"Good." She stared off into the darkness again. "Because it's coming back."

Even as she spoke, he heard shuffling into the darkness once more. Damn it all. Eric unsheathed his sword and held it two hands before him, cracking his neck. "We've got to take it out, hit it with everything we've got. If it continues playing with us like this..." He winced as a sharp pain went through him again.

Rose got the idea. "Yeah. But it'll just block obvious attacks. So what do you suggest?"

He looked over at her, and noticed how the light from the fire flickered over her scales. Red scales. Red dragon? Hunh. So that meant...He caught her eye and grinned. "Up for a little risk?"

[Rebellion]

Curse those two-legs! The beast that called itself Agrigon whimpered with pain in the safety of the darkness. It had underestimated them, and now not only was its deadliest weapon taken away, but that cursed human had cut open its left eye! It would kill them, yes it would, once it got a hold it would rip into them and never let go! Filled with rage, it stumbled slightly from blood loss before it got a grip upon itself. It would heal...yes, it would go to its master and he would heal it, just like before. All it had to focus on was killing these two.

As it came closer back to where its prey was, it could see by their light that the two were huddled together, obviously planning something. It wouldn't help them. Agrigon grinned and charged forward with a roar that echoed down throughout the entire length of the tunnels, awakening several other subterranean dwellers in the process. It had expected them to be surprised at the ferocity of its attack despite its wounds, but instead the human leapt back from the draconian and yelled, "Now!"

And suddenly the entire tunnel was plunged into darkness as she plunged the torch, fire and all, into her mouth.

Agrigon blinked in surprise. Had she just committed suicide? No...but how...how had she...Before the bullete could think anymore, there was a giant inhaling sound just before the earth was alit with flame and light once more, and the creature backed up a step as the draconian launched a gout of fire straight from her mouth at Agrigon. It wasn't a massive blast, but rather a focused line of flame aimed straight at the bullete's head.

It was dangerous, but Agrigon ducked down and the fire deflected off the armored hide upon its back. There was a small impact as it struck, and for a moment the creature thought it was a bit heavier than the amount of flame that'd been sent at it, but soon put that out of its mind as it snarled at the draconian. "Was that your big plan?" It sneered, but remarkably, she was smiling. Wait...it looked to the two-leg's side. Where was the human? "Where is..."

"Looking for me?"

Agrigon glanced up with its remaining eye and saw the human standing there upon its back, an expression of cold triumph upon his face. His blade was glowing with light, and lightning crackled around the blade with ominous power. He must have used the darkness for cover and approached it from Agrigon's now blind side, only to jump on the back of the creature when the fire struck. With a cold chill, the bullete remembered the vision it'd had about the two nightmare beings, and realized it'd not been mistaken at all.

"You...you...monster!" It gasped, just as the human lifted his glowing blade in two hands above his head and speared the blade right through its head. The two-leg's glowing blue eyes were the last thing it saw before everything went black.

~~~~~~

Rose watched in wonder as Eric's sword began to glow bright blue and lightning formed around it. Without any hesitation, he impaled the bullete's head to the ground with a fierce, but silent, stab. The only sounds made in the tunnel was the crackling of the small fire that she'd caused in the tunnel, and the wheezing of the monster as it tried to get up, stumbled, and finally collapsed to the ground, its tongue lolling out of its mouth to the dirt floor.

It'd been Eric's idea for her to swallow the flame. At first she'd thought him insane, but he told her to trust him. Hard, but in the end, she fought past her instincts and done as he'd said. As soon as she did, her body felt like it was overflowing with heat, and without thinking at all she opened her mouth with a roar. Flame poured out from her mouth like a giant snake shedding its skin, and cut through the ground to the bullete. How'd he know that she would do that? How did he know more about her than she did? It was as if...she shook her head of those thoughts as Eric hopped off the monster, and she noticed his blade was no longer glowing blue.

"Well..." He said with a weary smile, and he winced as he clutched at his ribs. "That's finally done."

"Yeah." Rose frowned. Was he alright? "You should sit down."

He waved her off. "I'm fine. Like I said, I'll just get a healer to fix me when we get to town."

"That reminds me..." Rose sheathed the glaive upon her back and looked at the monster. "...we need to bring back proof that we killed it."

Eric groaned, and she repressed a smile. "I am not dragging that thing's corpse all the way back to town."

"Relax, we just need a piece."

"Good." He also looked in the direction of the beast, and she saw a smile cross his lips. "Y'know, for all our trouble, I think a measly three hundred gold doesn't cover it. We should reward ourselves for a job well done."

She raised an eyebrow at his words. "What do you mean?"

"Well, that Tobias guy is a merchant, right?" He jerked his head towards the darkness ahead of them. "And he said he left his 'wares' behind. So maybe we should bring some of it back...y'know, be good samaritans and all." His grin grew wider.

Rose got the picture, and she had to admit it had merit, though part of her didn't like the idea of taking someone else's stuff. But that part was small and insignificant, so she squashed it. "What if he notices some of his stuff is gone?"

"Monster ate it." Eric chuckled.

Well. In that case..."I think you're right." Bending down she used the remains of her torch and the flames still burning to make a new one, before stomping them out and looking to Eric. "Let's go be 'good samaritans', shall we?"

[Lord Anglekos]

As Rose and Eric finally exited the hole, someone stood far above them on a cliff's edge. He was a bald man, with a thick white beard, and eyes like golden orbs. Wearing a long black coat with gold and silver designs intercrossing it and a vest underneath, he cut an imposing figure, even as he stood slightly hunched over with his hands behind his back in black gloves. He scowled down at the two dainty figures down below, and when he spoke, his voice was like silk caressing skin. "Well, I'll be damned. They actually defeated Agrigon." He sighed and rubbed his forehead in frustration. "The lord's not going to be happy about this."

"What am I not going to be happy about, Astanoth?"

The man named Astanoth turned around to find another figure dressed in a black, hooded cloak, a draconian with black scales covering most of his skin and eyes like hellfire. While parts of this figure were whole and alive, other parts of him were rotting and fell to the ground in bits and pieces of flesh. One eye was reptilian and cold, the other was a gaping hole filled with a void of darkness, a place where sanity had no meaning and death was a commodity easily bought. The smell from the figure was of a thing that had been dead for weeks on end and left in the sun, and the scientist had to physically keep himself from retching. He stared at the man before him with an almost apathetic gaze, and Astanoth could feel the power behind that gaze bring him to his knees. "My lord D." He murmured in subservience to the god before him.

"My servant. Rise." The voice from the being was huge and terrible, like a mighty hammer striking a giant anvil, and had the scientist not been under the god's service for so long he might have been afraid of the two warriors below them hearing it. But, he knew now that only he was able to when the god so chose. Astanoth did as D commanded and went to his feet, turning to the two whom which he'd just been spying on.

"My lord, they defeated Agrigon."

"Ah..." The draconian god hissed in a breath of displeasure. "That is unfortunate. But alas, it could not be avoided. He challenged two stronger opponents, and lost. I have no room for fools like that in my plan."

Astanoth nodded, knowing the god was right. Had Agrigon lived, he might have disrupted the plan with his independent streak and attitude. Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise that he had been slain here, before the battle had truly even begun. But still... "My lord, what about the two who slew him?"

D looked at the scientist from beneath the darkness of his cowl. "What about them?"

"Shouldn't they be eliminated? If they killed Agrigon..." He left the sentence hanging.

Instead of directly answering, the god said, "Astanoth, do you swat every fly that bites you?"

"No, my lord."

"It is the same here. These two are just flies." The god looked down upon them for the first time and sniffed. "They are ignorant fools. Let them keep their pathetic lives."

"Yes, my lord." Astanoth bowed in respect to the god's decision.

"After all..." For the first time, the scientist heard what he thought to be emotion in the god's voice. Satisfaction. "...Agrigon was but a mere pawn in what I have planned. Once the rooks, knights and bishops are assembled, I shall take my Queen." As D spoke, he slowly began to fade away into wisps of smoke, lifting draconian arms up into the air in triumph. "And then I shall be King!"

On that ominous note, the god faded away completely, leaving Astanoth trembling and shaking. The god's presence always had that effect on him, and he never realized it until D was gone. Looking down to where the human and draconian had managed to tie Agrigon's head to their horse, along with a cloth bag filled with who knew what, he realized that the world was in very great trouble indeed.

~~~~~~

All in all, it wasn't a bad load they'd found in the creature's nest. They'd found Tobias's "wares", as he'd had papers identifying them as his, and that he was an armor and weapons merchant. He'd been transporting the goods from Talmhaidh to the capital of Suthainn when the bullete had attacked him, making him drop his goods and run back to Talmhaidh in a panic.

Amongst them, Eric found a pair of nicely crafted twin prevalida daggers with the inscriptions "Acheron" on the side of one dagger and "Styxx" on the other, complete with leather sheaths for both. On the hilt of each was a small fingerhole right underneath the crosspiece, like the trigger hole on a firearm. Using these holes he found he could spin the daggers around his finger quite easily. Not going to waste the chance, he'd taken them.

Rose herself found a strange metal gauntlet that extended up her entire arm, and on the back of its hand there glowed a single ruby. She also found by squeezing her hand just right, a single edged two-foot blade protruded from the wrist part of the armor, making it both a weapon and protection at the same time.

They spent the rest of the time cutting off the monster's head and finding a way to tie the rest of the items they'd found to Senalia, who bore the weight without complaining. However, once they tried tying the thing's head to her as well, that changed.

"Hey, c'mon!" Eric complained as he tried to calm her indignant neighing down. He held his hands out as she kicked in the air. "It's just till we're back in Talmhaidh, then it's not your problem, okay?"

She'd calmed down and allowed them to tie its head to her, but didn't do so happily. As they traveled, Rose and Eric walked beside the horse to keep the head and supplies from falling, and she would "accidently" step on one of their feet or neigh when Eric tripped. Needless to say, it was a long walk back for the three of them, and none of them spoke much on the return trip.

[Rebellion]

By the time they got back to Talmhaidh, night was falling and most of the crowds had gone back to the safety of their homes or the nearest inn. That was a relief for the draconian; she didn't want to attract much attention at the moment. The head of the monster had already begun to smell, and she wanted to be rid of it. At the moment, though, her thoughts were turned to the strange things she'd seen and the words of the bullete. While she tried to stay out of politics and wars and such, there was something going on in the land of Dheathain, and it troubled her greatly that her home was changing so much. And from what she'd heard, there was someone or something behind this change. And as no one else had seemed to notice these changes, they couldn't be good. Once she got her reward for the bounty and said her goodbyes to Eric, she would focus on finding out just what was behind it all.

Her thoughts turning to Eric now, she saw he still looked weak and tired. Whether from the blow to his ribs or from the magic he'd performed earlier that day, she didn't know. And speaking of which, just what had he done? He didn't seem to be a spellcaster, but that was undoubtedly magic he'd performed back there. Either way, there was more to him that met the eye, and if they'd had more time together she would have tried and found out more about him. He was no human, even if he believed so. As it was...

"Eric..." His head jerked up at his name. "...what was that back there? With the lightning."

He raised an eyebrow at her as if she were stupid. "Awesomeness."

Rose couldn't help it. She laughed. He grinned at the sound and turned back, but she wasn't done yet. "Seriously."

"Magic."

"I got that. But you--"

"--don't look like a wizard?"

She blinked. "Well, yeah."

"I'm not." He looked at his hand, and she saw something that looked like sadness flit across his face. "I....come from another land. There, everyone was born with power. How we used it was up to us, but...well, I was different."

She lifted her eyebrow, a gesture for him to continue. He didn't. Instead, he pointed ahead and said, "There's the Drake's Roar."

They came to the small pub and the three of them stopped, before Eric sighed and cracked his neck. "Ow. I'll go in and get him. I don't feel like trying to shove that thing through the door."

"Okay." She agreed and began taking the head off and the bag of armor and weapons. "I'll be here."

As Rose waited, she went over the expenses in her head. Three hundred gold divided by two was one hundred and fifty for each of them...and then there was cost for the horse they'd lost. She groaned as she realized as that would probably cost her a fortune. Ah well, she'd swallow her pride and take up some other bounties to help pay for him, even if she did have to climb a tree to get a cat to do it. But she wouldn't enjoy it.

"By the draconian gods above, you did it!" Tobias's voice exclaimed, and Rose turned to see the merchant standing there with his robes covering his sticklike form, mouth agape in astonishment. Eric stood slightly behind him with a wry smile. "When he told me you'd done it, I expected to see the head of some wyvern or other monster with you claiming it--"

"Yeah, we get it." Rose growled irritably. She was too tired for rants. "We also brought your 'wares' back as well, so I think we should get a little for that as well." As she spoke she handed him the bag from the horse.

He took it eagerly and began rummaging through it almost immediately. "Yes...yes...this is them, thank you, but..." He frowned as he looked at Rose and Eric. "Is this everything? I mean, it seems a couple of items here are missing. Not that I'm complaining, but..."

Eric kept a straight face as he said, "The monster must've eaten them."

Rose almost laughed at how ridiculous it sounded, but Tobias seemed to be convinced. "Of course, of course...Well, I'll add an extra hundred onto your fee, does that seem fair?"

It did. "It's fine."

He nodded and immediately added a few coins to a small pouch he pulled out with a drawstring, and handed the pouch to Eric. "Now, what is this thing?" He went over to the head of the creature, but before he got too close he stepped back and covered his nose. "By the gods, how long has it been dead?"

"Nearly ten hours or so." Eric responded, looking at the pouch of money with an odd expression on his face.

"Hmm, well..." Tobias took a deep breath. "The council will probably want to see this. May I...?"

"It's all yours." Rose said gratefully, and untied it before it dropped to the ground with a sick, wet THUNK. The merchant went to it and immediately began poking it with his finger carefully; as if he were afraid it would jump up and bite his hand off.

"Thank you, again!"

"Yeah, whatever." Rose grumbled. Right now the only human she seemed to be able to stand was Eric, who was still looking at the bag of money with that odd expression up on his face. "Want to bring her back to the stables with me?" She pulled on Senalia's reins as she spoke and began walking.

He finally looked at her. "Sure." He said, and began walking with her.

They were silent for a time as they walked, and for the first time Rose found it awkward. This was just weird. "Are you alright, Eric? Ever since back there..."

"I'm fine..." He sighed and rubbed his ribs with a wince. "Just tired. Need to rest."

She understood that sentiment. "I understand. I'll drop off the horse, then we can go get you to a healer."

He looked at her sharply, and a smile of amusement crossed his face. "We?"

She blinked as she realized the slip of her tongue. "I mean, you can see a healer. You." He continued to stare at her with that same smile, and she could feel her face heating up. "It was just a mistake. Don't misunderstand me."

"Uh huh. Sure." He turned away, still smiling, and she could feel her face grow even redder. Why, you... She growled in thoughts, but didn't finish them. She was too tired, and if he wanted to think that, she'd let him. "So, what do you plan on doing after this?"

Rose turned to him slightly. "I plan on finding out just what's going on here. There's something wrong in Dheathain, and I need to find out just what. Yourself?"

He smiled a bit. "Nothing so grand. Figure I've spent enough time here in Dheathain...will move on to somewhere's else." He paused, then handed her the pouch of money. "Here. Take it."

She blinked as she looked inside. It was the full three hundred gold, plus the extra hundred they'd gotten from returning Tobias's wares. "But...what about you?"

"Eh, bounty hunting isn't my thing, it seems." He sighed and cracked his back. "Besides, you said you needed the money, and I really don't."

Still, the gesture said far more than his words had, and Rose abruptly remembered his hands upon her and blushed. "Thank you." She murmured.

"Don't mention it."

They came upon the stables shortly after, and the draconian she'd met before was sitting outside of it, staring at the darkening sky with apparent apathy. "Here's your horse back." She said as she came forward with Senalia.

He looked at Eric and her, and his expression darkened. "Where's the other one?"

Eric stepped forward. "Eaten by a monster." He said.

"Oh cthara..." The burly stable master swore and stepped up from his seat to come before Rose. "That'll cost ya, even if she's not worth cthara to me without her mate."

She heard Eric muttering underneath his breath, but before he could say or do anything stupid she reached out and put a gauntleted hand on his shoulder. "How much?" She asked the stable master.

"One hundred."

Luck was definitely favoring her at the moment, and without pause reached into the pouch Eric had given her and drew out a platinum piece, putting into the larger draconian's outstretched palm. He grunted in acknowledgement and walked away, grabbing Senalia by the reins and leading her away without a word. She whinnied once in protest before going away with him.

Rose turned to Eric and saw him staring after the horse wistfully. "Damn, she was a good horse. I wonder..." Then he turned back to the draconian with a small smile. "Anyways, I suppose this is where we say goodbye?"

"I suppose." She grinned slightly. "You're not bad, for a human."

"Of course, for a human. And you're not bad for a crazy psychotic dragon lady."

She grinned, then did something she'd never done before. She extended a hand out, and shook Eric by the hand. "May our paths cross again."

"I hope so." And with that, Eric walked away, cloak floating out behind him like a pair of wings. Rose watched him go before he turned the corner, then walked away herself.

It was time to get behind the mystery of Dheathain's change.

[Lord Anglekos]

"Does that feel better, m'lord?"

Eric sat up from his bed and twisted around, testing his movements. His ribs didn't hurt a bit. "Yes it does." He turned to the dainty Fae smiling proudly, her hands glowing with soft white light. "Thank you, Aingeal."

"It was my pleasure." She bowed slightly to him as he stood up and put his shirt back on. "I'm glad that m'lord is feeling better."

"Me too." He cracked his back as stretched and looked at the ceiling. He'd gotten back to the inn late after saying goodbye to Rose, and had fallen asleep despite the pain in his side. Thank God Aingeal here happened to know some healing magic and had offered to fix him up for him. "What time is it, by the way?"

"Six o'clock, m'lord."

He blinked and looked outside. It was still dark. "In the morning?"

"No, in the evening."

He groaned. He'd slept the day away! With a sigh he reached into his bag and drew out the twin prevalida daggers he'd gotten the previous day, complete with their sheaths, and attached them to his belt on the back, where he'd be able to reach easily in case he needed them. Walking over to the mirror, he examined his face in the mirror and saw a bit of stubble there. Wincing at it, he finally decided he'd take care of that later. Right now, he was in the mood for a drink. "C'mon Aingeal. I'm going to head downstairs and grab myself something light."

She grinned slowly, and he remembered the last time he'd drunk something here. He pointed one finger at her and said sternly, "If I start acting loopy, just take me upstairs, no matter what I say, okay?"

Her grin grew wider, and he rolled his eyes before heading out the door and heading downstairs to the bar. He found the normal assortment of Fae and other light creatures, but this evening brought something new to the crowd. In the corner was a large armored Draconian, drinking heavily and speaking loudly. Most of the room's inhabitants were focused on his words and didn't notice Eric walking down the stairs. However, the bartender, a female Fae with dark hair, did, and jerked her head in acknowledgement as she saw him, and he walked towards her and took out a seat.

"Hey Lola." He greeted her.

"Eric." She nodded and went to the taps with a mug. "Same as last night?"

"No thanks. I want to keep my clothes on this time, thank you." She laughed, a full, feminine sound, and he grinned. "Just give me something light to pass the time."

"You look like you need it." Nonetheless, she sat a mug down in front of him filled with a dark brew, and he sat a couple gold coins on the table. She took on and put it down into her apron.

"Yeah, well..." Before he could continue, however, the Draconian's words reached his ears and he listened in.

"...and by the time I got there, there were hundreds of the things! I mean, you couldn't even see the ground from how they were massed. They pressed the elves back into Eluriand until they were forced to retreat, from the..."

Eric lost the rest as the draconian's lowered once more, and he turned back to the bartender who watched him with a single eyebrow raised. "What's he talking about?"

"Oh. There seems to be some kind of war going on in Raiaera, it seems. I'd heard rumors about it, but..."

"A war?"

"Yeah. Some necromancer got some ideas of power and raised an army of the dead, and now he and the elves are at war." She sighed. "From the sounds of things, though, the elves are in a great deal of trouble."

A war, huh? Images of the hell he'd suffered back in Saleria flashed through his head, and he shook his head. "Hold this for me, will you?" He sat his drink on the table before him and got up to walk to where the Fae were gathered in horror and shock at the news.

He went unnoticed until he slapped a couple gold pieces on the table before him, causing all of the room's eyes to focus on him. Ignoring them and addressing the surprised draconian before him, Eric said with a cold smile, "This war. Tell me about it, if you will."

End Post.

REWARDS: As specified here.

Lord Anglekos gets Twin Prevalida Daggers, above average quality (as they are new and unused). The blades are each blue, a foot long and straight, with the inscriptions "Acheron" and "Styxx" upon them.

Rebellion gets 300 gold pieces.

OTHER SPOILS:

Lord Anglekos gets:

- "Laying Of Hands" ability. By directing his power into the other person's body, Eric can heal small cuts and bruises on a person and restore stamina. Can be used up to __ times per thread/battle. (I leave the number of times up to the judge.)

Rebellion gets:

- "Spitfire" ability. Rose can "eat" fire and fire-based magic up to level __ or lower strength and return it at twice the power. If she eats regular flame, she can direct it in a stream 10' long and half a foot wide or launch it all in a fire ball 3' in diameter. Can be used __ times per thread/battle. (Again, I leave the level and number of times up to the judge.)

I didn't add in the gauntlet she got for I felt it would be too many spoils. Assume that she lost it somewhere.

If the judge has any questions about the spoils or the thread itself, please PM me and I will answer them as best as possible. Thank you.

[Taskmienster]

Agrigon

As requested, little to no commentary; if you have questions just IM me, we can chat.

STORY (18/30)

~ Continuity ~ 6
The opening did not give me too much as to who your character Rose was, but you opened and wrote well with Lord A. The ending of it was a good way to wrap up the story and set an opening for the next part to come.

~ Setting ~ 5

~ Pacing ~ 7



CHARACTER (18.5/30)

~ Dialogue ~ 6
Shouldn’t repeat dialogue that was just said in the previous post, only really did that in the very beginning though.

~ Action~ 6

~ Persona ~ 6.5
A bit more persona would have helped, especially in the way of the awkward relationship that the two characters had. Why they suddenly felt the way they did, such as with Rose going from hating humans to feeling Angelkos’ allure. Things like that would help a lot.



WRITING STYLE (20.5/30)

~ Technique ~ 5
Not too many really ‘advanced’ literary techniques used. The writing style itself was alright, but nothing spectacular. You did, however, do a very good job of transitioning from one person to the next, and kept your style constant with both characters.

~ Mechanics ~ 7.5

~ Clarity ~ 8


WILD CARD!!! 6

TOTAL

(63/100)


GAINS/REWARDS!

Lord A: 625 EXP | 170 GP
Lord A receives the two daggers as specified in the rewards section of the mission board. He also receives the “Laying of Hands” ability with the stipulation that it can be used once per battle (on himself if necessary) and twice per quest (also on himself).

Rebellion: 600 EXP | 400 GP
Rebellion receives the bonus gold, added above, as specified by the mission board. She also receives the “Spitfire” ability with the specifications of fire equal to her level or below, and up to one [1] use per battle, two [2] uses per quest. I would also like to request that if you are going to use it before the level up that you have it only go 5 feet for the stream, and have a 2 foot diameter fireball when returning it. Due to the fact that most level 0’s can only cast a fireball that is roughly a foot in diameter at most.