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Hunger was a new and terrible hell. It was not a creature that would strike down and tear at flesh with claws and teeth. It was not a spear or arrow to pierce scales and hide. Hunger was insatiable and unending. Lashane had never realized that hunger could be painful. She never realized that it could tighten the stomach until her muscles ached and her entire form felt nauseous as if even if she had food within her she would have lost it. The first day had been easy, if disgusting. Her own saliva had forced the frozen goat from the ice and she had swallowed the hard meat whole so that it left a heavy cold lump in her stomach. The wyvern how ever had been inedible. The first taste of her tongue against the meat had been so cold it nearly burned and even her attempts of breathing controlled puffs of breath against the flesh didn't soften it. The creature was what he was in life, as cold as the area around him.

By the second day she had been hungry and when the sun set she had known the first pangs that cramped her stomach. The dragoness was a large creature and even immobile her body demanded a certain amount of meat to be healthy and active. That night she had found the cold sharper and even when she had scraped and pulled rocks out from under an outcropping it still seeped into her bones and muscles. The lethargy didn't take away from the morning hunger and the ravenous appetite she woke up with. Lashane had tried to fall back into sleep where she would be able to escape her reality and fall into dreams only to have her stomach awaken her again. The hell of it was fully realized when she had desperately gone back to the entrance of the enclosure and snuffled around the area the goat had been tossed. Her tongue had rolled out to drag along the scarred ice to scrape any meat she could find from it. It gave her little relief and even the teasing taste of goat musk had left her hunger unsatisfied.

Was this what her old master had meant? Was he striving to ensure that she would be beaten down and weak? She had never truly experienced privations in her other life. Yet even her knowledge of that past didn't indicate that she would have felt this light headed and weak after a day or two of no food. Her body was consuming energy faster then she could replenish it. It was as if even walking and breathing took effort. Was it simply her size that made her body demand frequent food? What of the great snakes and lizards who would only eat every few days and be satisfied? She had questioned her own reactions around and around worrying them as if they were a bone and if she could only crack them open she could reach the rich marrow of her answers. Instead she was left with more questions and finally had been forced to conserve her energy and suffer the cold.

She sprawled out on an ice coated rock and rested her head against her forepaws while she tried to dismiss her pangs and giddiness. Sleep wouldn't come to her, any time she tried to close her eyes her own hunger forced her awake again. The night seemed to close around her as the sky darkened above and the light headedness grew worse as she stared at a spot in the rocks that was splashed with blue white where ice had started to penetrate the crevice. She felt the sudden and strange urge to laugh at herself for the insanity that had led her to this. She shouldn't find it funny, she knew she shouldn't, but suddenly all the events that had transpired felt laughable and strange. She tried to turn to her mind to order the time line, but it was blurred and strange. It felt as if decades had passed since she had first captured the dragoness and at times only days since she had felt her horse beneath her. The grey blurs of memory formed of growing from a keening hatchling to an adult seemed muddled and distant.

:What's this? A spark of light and this is what I find?: The words spilled into her mind like a flow of water that washed through her. For a moment she froze in fear and tensed up. Another dragon? Had they captured another beast to let loose on her? :Hardly.: The mind voice turned dry with amusement.

:Who?: She flung the words out trying to latch onto the thoughts that brushed her own, but found nothing but the silence of the enclosure around her.

:An interested party, Lashane. Or Charmer?: The thoughts rolled over hers again with no sense of emotion or leaking memories to them. It was nothing like Sithen's voice or the Wyvern's. It was strange and empty of something.

:I'm not Charmer.: She growled and opened her eyes without realizing she had closed them. The outrage of the name Timat had pinned on her stung her pride. She was not an animal to be named with an affectionate term.

:You are not Lashane either are you?: Something pushed through her thoughts and she hissed in a breath as it felt like talons ripped through her memories and sifted through them. :No, you are not Lashane either. My, my, so you are the keystone of all this madness?:

:I am Lashane!: The name felt foreign, it felt wrong. She lifted her head and felt as if it were weighed down and threatening to drop back towards the stones. :Where are you? Who are you? What madness?:

:Where I am is a matter of opinion and belief. Who I am depends on what answer you desire. I could be the madness of hunger finally overwhelming you. Or the madness of not having another know your deepest secrets. Would it be so strange to find out that you've been muted as a person so long you've made up someone who knows the truth of you?: The voice taunted her until she felt a growl rumbling in her throat. :I've waited a long time for you.:

:I'm not going mad!: She snapped the air on her last thought and bristled, stifling a thin thread of dread that started in her stomach. :Who are you that you've waited for me? Give me your name!:

:Which name?: The voice teased back. :I've waited for someone to tip the scales of fate of course. Strange that you're what I've found. I had thought the catalyst would be the dragon Sithen, or even the Wyvern. No, you are not what I expected. I'm not sure why fate chose you, but if you are what is chosen then my fate is tied in with yours. And the fate of my future.:

:Any name! You're a dragon then? Watching me?: Lashane fumbled to find a name for him, though even the voice didn't taste male or female to her. The fear of insanity crept closer to her as she couldn't feel the force of another's personality or life behind the thoughts. Instead they seemed to blossom from deep in her mind.

:Oh yes, I've been watching for you. I needed someone to tip the balance of fate and power in the world so that certain events would transpire. Your mind isn't quite a dragon's and not even a human's or I would have keyed in on you long ago. Instead I have had to bounce from the thoughts of others to try and locate you.: The reply was almost cheerful and baffling to her as she gave her head a rough shake back and forth.

:I don't understand.: She finally growled and curled her claws down against the ice and rock.

:You don't need to understand to grasp that things are happening around you because of you! Do you think the sound of the battle horns are being blown for practice? Do you believe you were captured because of bad timing for a bath? The power is turning again. Even now I can feel fate shifting the wheel to force itself onto another path. I just needed someone to make the parties act to ensure the best possible outcome. And that is you. Did you think it was bad luck that you've ended up here?: A mental hand gripped at her memories and forced up the sharpest and worst of them since she had been captured.

:What are you talking about? Get out of my mind!: She tried to force the mental finger's back when the mind rubbed against her own like some great cat brushing a furred side upon her.

:I suppose you don't understand, do you? A pity. The world is ripe for an upheaval and you were needed to start it. You tipped the scales enough to start it and I have nudged the rest along subtly.: She felt her brows furrow, it was as if he were speaking another language and in riddles. :I'm not speaking in riddles, dragon. I will speak more plainly. You have caused the start of a new era and I plan on seeing that era come to pass. In the old days I offered my advice to many, now only a few are open to my thought and even then they are weak pitiful thoughts as they are starved or crazed. I can only influence now through suggestion and the changes I want to see happen. When I was more alive it was so much easier.: She almost sensed a sigh of regret as her body tensed up.

:You're dead? Then you're a ghost of some sort?: She ruffled her mane up in alarm at what those words might have meant. Was it a ghost? Some strange creature that had stepped out of it's haunted past to lead her towards madness.

:Oh no, Lashane, I'm not dead. Not really. Baen would know me well if he could only hear me, Hylar had my name burned away long ago, but that does not still tongues and old tales. Your sire knew me well in the spring of his years.: The voice sounded mocking and merry to taunt her with his name and she wrinkled her lips back slightly.

:What do you want from me?: She snarled out roughly and tried to put the venom she felt into her words. :What do you expect me to do?:

:I want your life, Lashane. I need your life to ensure my future comes to pass and the future Hylar has created crumbles to dust.: A tremor passed through her and she lifted her wings up with an effort as she craned her head about looking for an attack. Her life? He wanted to kill her? She didn't even know who or what he was! :Sleep well, little dragoness, don't forget your Master is coming for you soon.: The voice whipped through her mind and tattered as it was blown through her mind leaving her grasping after it. She screamed out mentally and demanded that he return, but silence was her only answer. She shifted back against the rocks and a tremor. Something wanted her dead or she was going mad from hunger. At the moment, she wished heartily that it was the latter.

++++

Baen gripped his sword and ignored the ache that had started to blossom along the side of his healing ribs. The fire was flooding the edges of his boat while he struggled to force it backwards with barking commands for more water and to bring up the shields so they would take the bulk of the arrows. He hadn't allowed himself to feel the overwhelming sense of terror at seeing Sithen downed from the skies with a screech of pain. The beast would live, it was too strong and canny to be killed so easily. He had to concentrate on keeping his own people alive before he could worry about the dragon. He couldn't leave battle to find out if it had managed to land safely or badly, only if the won would they be able to seek the creature out. For now he used his better arm to raise the beaten metal of the shield up to avoid the arrows that cast down from above.

"YIELD!" A voice roared out from the shore, "Your beast is dead, you are finished here. Yield to us and put down your arms."

"Sir..." He glanced to his left to see a pale faced man gripping his short sword. "Are we-?"

"The hell we are!" He rumbled and twisted his lips to show his blunt teeth in a feral grin towards the soldier. "He ain't dead and neither are we. " He raised his voice higher. "Stand down and you'll be spared! We'll not yield and you can't dare try to board us!"

"FIRE!" The voice roared out and the old warrior didn't see, but felt the resulting spill of arrows that rose up from the shore to pepper the boats. The thud of them against wooden shields and the clang of them against metal sounded unnaturally loud while crouched beneath his shield. He felt the impact of a few clattering against it while the sharp screams came from lower down along the boat as some failed to use their covering properly.

"Get the archers and pull them belly down beneath us. Straddle them to protect them so they can fire back." He barked out to his left, "Pass the order down!"

The murmur of voices was punctuated by screams and thuds as the arrows rained down on them. The stink of burning tar and flesh filled his nose while he shifted his hand against his sword again. His ribs ached, he knew they weren't set right and they hadn't been set right since they had set out under Sithen's urgings. It was a dull pain and one he could force to the back of his mind as he concentrated on the most important matter at hand. They had to survive or his pain would be for nothing. He shoved it to the back of his mind and lifted the edge of his shield up just enough to look at the muddied water that lapped against the edge of the boat. The rippling of the small waves distorted it too much to give him even a wavering reflection of those that were on shore. There couldn't be many or they would have advanced despite the hazards of trying to board their vessel.

It seemed an eternity before a hand tapped his leg and he shifted in his stance to let a young lad wriggle on his stomach towards the last bit of sound wood. He could barely be fourteen yet his face was determined and streaked with soot from where he had been fighting the fires that were appearing on either end of the boat. He might have been young, but his hands were sure as he pulled out his bow and notched an arrow on the sinew. The next volley of arrows rained down harder this time and Baen watched the few dents appearing in the metal of his shield before he yelled the command to fire back towards the shore. The boy being covered beneath him didn't hesitate to loose his arrow and draw another from the quiver to set the hide. The startled yelps and shouts from the shore made him tip his shield up to see movement in the tree line and bushes. No there weren't nearly enough of them to make him believe that they could force them to surrender! Their luck was still holding out, if only Sithen was still alive!

= = = =

Lashane managed at some point in the night to sleep fitfully. Both her hunger and her thoughts over the strange 'voice' made her dreams maddeningly strange. The world and reality bent around her own mind until she was snapping her jaws and twisting in her sleep. She would awake half way to find herself surrounded by ice only to sink back into her dreams and try to struggle her way towards something she had no name for. The voice mocked her with mumbling words she couldn't understand and each time she thought she had grasped their meaning they were yanked away again leaving her struggling in the darkness. She was only roused by the scent of something coppery and sweet. It wasn't cold, but hot as she sucked in a deep breath and started to shift as her dream self froze in her struggles as well to savor the scent. Fresh meat.

"Get it up!" The words snapped so close to her head that she yanked it upwards nearly cracking it on the stone above. Her eyes swirled with flashes of orange and yellow panic as she twisted her head around to see nearly a dozen people gathered near her side.

"Blessed gods..." One soldier swore and took a step back as she lunged to her feet hearing her own bones crack and pop along the joints. She curved her lips backwards in silent warning as she lowered her head down towards the ground trying to find the scent.

"It's an animal." Urso's voice cracked out in annoyance and she focused on his elderly form leaning forward on a carved cane of driftwood. "Nico, grab that bucket and let her get a good sniff."

One of the armsmen stepped forward and pulled a leather lid off a bucket and the sweet scent of blood flooded towards her again. Meat and fresh meat at that! She lurched forward towards the bucket with a low rumble ignoring the rest of the group as Nico back peddled rapidly away from her advancing steps. Her eyes swirled faster with hunger as she tried to snap her jaws forward to grab at the bucket. The man didn't hesitate, but stepped backwards again forcing her to walk along behind him with her stomach clenching painfully down. The voice and her dreams forgotten under the base need to eat and nourish herself. Whatever human part of her still existed in the beast was driven away as she lost herself in the dreams of what it would taste like to snap up that rich red meat. The first spill of blood would finally quench her thirst instead of sucking at ice feeling the stab of coldness spreading through her as she wet her tongue.

"Get out of my way!" The sharp voice came out again as Urso moved forward towards her side, but she didn't care. Nothing mattered but getting at the food, nothing mattered but the bucket that was swinging from the man's hands.

She barely noticed that she was being lead towards the opening of the pen, her attention was absolute. She lowered her head and snapped her jaws forward again to see the man stumbling back and almost landing on the rocks. For a heart beat the thought flickered through her mind that the man was meat also. It would be so easy to snap her head out and toss it back to send him tumbling down her throat to ease her hunger. The sheer wrongness for Lashane made her drive the thought away and instead passed through the shimmer of the gate into the world beyond the frozen walls. Only then did she find something that drove the thought of food from her mind. The moment she stepped on the other side of the magical wards the heat of the sun slammed into her like a fist.

The air turned thick and humid so that she parted her lips to suck in a breath while searing heat flooded into her lungs. After days locked in the freezing cold the heat was almost painful as it ran along her scales and she froze in place from the shock of it. Each breath felt heavy as she forced it down her lungs, but she was given no chance to adjust to her return to the world of light, warmth and normalcy. Urso called out a command and the guardsman tipped the pail upside down onto the grass so that a splash of crimson creeped over the bright green. The color almost looked purple under the sun and she hissed at the lack of meat. She had thought she had no shame left, but she found a new low as she lunged forward and mantled over the spot so that her tongue drug out to scrape over the earth. The rough texture scooped up thick dollops of the rich blood and she shuddered in exquisite pleasure at having it pass her lips.

"The beast has been fasted for several days, much like the Wyvern she seems to keenly feel the effects of hunger at a faster pace than other animals." The lecturing voice almost startled her as her former Master paced up past her head to several people in robes that were nervously waiting at the side lines. "The cold helped to make sure she would desire food even more to keep her temperature and the sudden climate change and distraction of blood will make her tractable. Keep in mind that the animal is little more than a glorified falcon, you must respect it's ability to damage while asserting your mastery over it in every way. Including food so that it will depend on you."

The familiar cadence of the lecturing Mage made her swallow the blood she had lapped up roughly and turn her head towards him in shock. The sharp cold words he had used to the guards melted away as he addressed his peers, instead he seemed the familiar knowledgeable Master she had always known. He talked about her as if she didn't exist, instead he gestured back at her before pointing towards one of the guards. Her brief lucidity was forgotten as the man pulled out a head sized chunk of meat and threw it onto the ground towards her. The fat red gobbet made her let out a strangled groan before snapping it up into her jaws. She didn't even use her teeth to sheer it down into more manageable pieces. Instead she swallowed it whole and entire savoring the way it ran down her throat and to her stomach. Almost immediately she found herself looking for the next bite.

"The Emperor has charged us with finding what use this beast will be in the war that is even now being waged. He would like it alive, but our time is not that infinite, instead we will be looking for weaknesses and if it has any magic of its own. We want to know everything about it so that we can take down the beast that is fighting on the opposite side. If it's tamed all the better." She stopped staring at that guard to look at the Mage's that were listening with every evidence of interest. How dare they?! She wasn't an experiment that they could poke and prod to see what reactions they got!

"Wouldn't it be easier to kill her? She'll probably take our head off the first time we try to get near her." One of the younger set chimed up and her eyes moved to focus more on him before taking a step backwards. The only thing that kept her here was the chunk of meat cast out towards her feet making her drop her head again.

"No, it won't. Nico, draw the beast." The words were eerie and suddenly she could almost recall the abrupt way he treated his servants. The sharp words that had seemed perfectly reasonable when applied to lower classed people suddenly sent dread through her.

The creak of a massive door opening made her blink as a pair of double doors were pulled outwards showing a sliver of darkness inside of them. Her head snapped backwards and she spread her wings open to either side of her body. Her wings! They were whole and her body unencumbered by the damned balls of lead that had been forced into her body. She flared her nostrils and let out a short snort as elation started to fill her. She didn't have to stay here, the skies were hers and they the fools that let her have it. She crouched down and spread her wings open wide preparing to leap up and away from the hauntingly familiar scene of the young Mage's attending Urso when blinding pain rocked through her. She screamed out as it felt as if fire had suddenly been poured into her veins and her muscles contracted down so her wings snapped in tight against her body.

"NICO!!" Urso's yell was suddenly so loud that it made her ears hurt, whatever the guard was supposed to be doing happened as she heard the rolling sound of wheels.

The dragoness felt a wave of fury at being held down to the ground and tried to leap up again only to have the same fiery repercussions greet her. Her wings dropped against her sides and she crouched down as her blood seemed to boil under the surface and felt as if her scales should be scorched and reddened under the assault. Her teeth clamped down and she drew in a breath only to taste the sudden thick scent of red blood on the air. She opened an eye to see a barrow had been pushed just inside the room and was heaped with fist sized chunks of meat that glistened in the light. What might have been horrifying to her as a human suddenly looked like a feast to the dragon. She lunged forward towards the food almost mindlessly.

It moved in front of her and only then did she see the chain dragging it forward. She didn't care, she wanted to fill her stomach until it strained open. She wanted to swallow chunk after chunk until she was unable to move. The pangs of her hunger struck her over and over, she was left weak kneed as she ducked her head under the door way and made a final lunge. Her entire body extended until she crashed into the small cart knocking it to the side and throwing the bloody meat across the sandy floor. What did Lashane care? She had food, sweet glorious food that filled her muzzle and rolled down her tongue. It was rich and fatty, just warm enough still from the heat of the day to satisfy her after her frozen meal in the Wyvern's compound. The glorious taste of it filled her senses as the heavy doors were swung shut behind her.

:That's right, foolish dragon, eat yourself into a stupor and they'll probably just pet your nose.: The Voice rang in her ears so that she paused in grabbing another morsel. The bitter mockery shocked her out of her dazed feral state.

"BRING DOWN THE CHAINS!" Urso's voice rang out and her head reared back to see the ceiling was strung over with iron chains in an arch.

The middle chains were attached to hooks set in the ceiling while the ends disappeared into the walls in small holes. For a moment she could fathom why nearly fifty chains were hanging above her and then they were pulled. The links drew taut and strained against the hooks as they started to lower their way towards her. Each rattling pull lowered them as she tried to turn herself around, but the walls were close enough on either side that she ended up wedged against them. Her paws trampled over the meat as she tried to right herself and turn around to slam into the door and force her way back out. The glorified stall was built of heavy stone and from what she could imagine it was probably used for grain normally, but had been converted to a more sinister purpose.

The chains pushed against her back and made her cry out and buck upwards to try and throw them off only to hear the creak of metal gears before they pushed down against her again. She locked her legs in place before her jaws spread open wide to bellow out a sound of outrage and fear both before her knees buckled beneath her and she was forced onto her stomach. Her wings tried to snap out, but the storm dragon's wing fingers scraped against the outer wall rubbing them almost raw as they bruised and bounced against them. The next roll of the chains shoved her stomach harder against the floor and her head started to force it's way lower. Even her attempts to shove her muzzle between the chains only bruised her jaws.

In a last ditch effort she gripped one of the chains between her teeth and yanked her head back and forth to try and loosen the chains further. The pulling movements didn't do anything save make the metal scrape and click against her teeth until a sudden spike of pain as one of them nearly cracked against the hard metal made her pull back. The steady pressure soon had her on her stomach stretched out against the sandy floor as she drew in shuddering breaths and gave abortive lunges upwards before they would tighten again crushing her to the floor. Each of the chains bit down against her flesh as her swirling eyes tried to stare into the slender slits that had been cut into the stone walls. The rigging had to be held in there, but she had no way to even get an entire talon through them let alone her jaws to ruin it.

"As you can see her own hunger allows us to control where she goes. In the next few days be careful only to feed her enough to keep her alive. I don't want her getting the strength to get free when she's not chained." Urso's voice was distant and she could hear the rumble of agreement from the others. Her body tensed at the idea of days being held on the very edge of starvation.

"We'll begin our first testing today. We know the Wyvern mated her, so we'll begin by retrieving whatever is left from that mating and accurately sexing her. Same sex pairings in animal's are common enough that I'm not going to take a single mating as an indication of positive sex." A small door opened near the corner of the wall and she twisted her teeth back in a snarl. "Rollin's, I think you are adept at this for your earlier doubts. We'll see what, if any properties are left in the beast's semen as well as her own reactions. We'll need to probe deep enough to see if she's with egg as well as those are often recorded as having restorative properties."

:Foolish dragon, Charmer, you are less human then you think. Let us hope you live through this, for both our sakes.: The voice sounded scornful before his presence slipped from her mind entirely leaving her staring at the equipment being drug through the door. Why did he care if she lived when he wanted her to die? Though that was rapidly becoming the least of her concerns when faced with what was being brought into the stall.

= = = =

Sithen drew his second lid over his eyes to make sure the silt wasn't abrading his sensitive lenses and used his broad wings to propel him through the water and his tail to direct him. The ache in his shoulder was starting to burn as any movement made the embedded arrow tear through the muscle more so that fresh blood welled out of it to be whipped away in the current that drew him closer to the sounds of battle. How dare they fire at him! How dare they injure him! The water was almost too shallow to cover him completely, but the mud that was being kicked up by the fighting did an admirable job of hiding even something of his bulk as he came closer to the darkened spots of the ships that floated above the surface. They were outlined with fire along the edges that fluttered and made the sky seem blackened as smoke rose above them.

He dismissed the ships entirely, his focus was the vague movements he was able to pick out from the shore where the other humans were firing on his own. He used his wings as if he were in the air to hover in the water and his tail dropped to loop around as much of a rock as he could get it so he wasn't pushed down river. Water or air, they both were enough alike that he felt at home except for the burning in his lungs from holding his breath. He shifted his gaze and let his haunches drop down until his toes pushed into the slick suctioning mud and his talons scored through it deep enough that they almost completely disappeared as he sought for firmer ground beneath it. He narrowed his clouded vision onto one of the figures just above him before tensing himself up like a cat on the hunt.

He didn't hesitate or think past the moment of his attack. The drake used the firmer ground under the silt to shove himself upwards and his wings snapped down to force the water beneath his body. A depression formed just above him before he crashed into the air like a striking snake and his jaws found one of the two legged creatures trying to run away and ended it's life in a snap of crunching metal before flinging his head backwards. His eyes swirled faster while the roar of those behind him seemed to carry him out of the water and onto the shore as his front legs pushed their way onto far more solid ground and his wings lifted up over his back. Only one was slightly crumpled from his torn muscles, but that wasn't enough to hamper him as he snapped his tail out to slam into the bushes trying to drive those that had injured him out for his justice.

Battle lust rolled over him. For a moment he gloried in showing himself off to his full abilities as he attacked. In the smallest of ways it reminded him of the days when he had fought other males for the right to mate, driven them out of his territory or simply battled to prove his strength to a female. Then he had been truly male and truly a dragon. It wasn't enough to simply have wings and a tail, nor to call lightening. What were those when he had nothing to test himself against? Who would he dance through the lightening for if he had no mate? Who would he display his body for and crash together with a furious pounding of blood and fire as he fought for his right to sire the next generation. He had lost more than just his people, he had lost himself. For one moment he gloried in flaunting himself even injured as he drove the creatures before him.

His heart pounded faster and he threw his head back to roar out a sound half challenge and half pleasure as he lunged after the retreating creatures. So lost in his own memories of challengers in the sky, that he didn't know when Baen and the rest came to shore to join in the battle. It was only when his muzzle was bloodied and the men around him were those that sounded familiar in his mind that he calmed and his lungs ribcage swelled and thinned down over and over again. He looked over the torn landscape and the mangled bodies that had been flung from his muzzle or shot down by the humans and felt a moment of disappointment. This was not what he was meant for, as glorious as the rush had been it was not near what it could be once he had his daughter back. Only then could he truly remember who he was and teach her who she was meant to be. He stretched and hissed as the arrow burrowed deeper in his shoulder, a sharp reminder of the present.

= = = =

"Burn them, we can't be stopped to hold our rites here. We can't allow the army to catch up to us." Baen said the words wearily to a pair of soot stained warriors who looked as tired as he felt.

"Aye, best they don't get their hands on them." One shook his head and rubbed a hand through his beard before turning towards the gruesome task of stripping the dead of their belongings before placing them on pyres.

The belongings would be split up. The personal charms and necklaces would be handed over to the next of kin, the armor and swords would be stored away in case of need. They were far enough from their homes and strong holds that they wouldn't be able to make real repairs to armor or start a smithy to begin the process. The only real way would be to replenish supplies from the dead and pray that the fallen warriors would guard and guide those that were forced to wear it. The boats even now were being repaired and tar slapped over the burnt areas while more lumber was hacked down from the forest. It would take a long time to dry, but for now it would be held in the ready as they used up their own stores to make vital repairs. They had won, but it had been a close call even with the dragon's resurrection from the water to aid them.

He paused to marvel and relive the sight of the great grey beast erupting from the river like a vengeful serpent. His roar and fury had rolled over the old warrior until he found his heart pounding with emotions that he had thought he had long outgrown. He had found himself leading the charge onto the banks and grinning furiously in the heat of battle. For a moment the beast's thoughts had whipped away his own and replaced them with a fierce lust and desire to prove himself. It was a mingling of want to be the male that conquered all others and to test his mettle against those who might be better then himself. He wasn't the only one caught up with the sudden flood of emotions, others had roared much like dragon's themselves and their eyes flashed with a maddened light of battle. Was the dragon simply forcing them to fight for him? Or were the gods guiding his people into gaining the more worthy attributes of the creature.

:Human: The word forced it's way into his mind, but the word wasn't just there it was covered and soaked in emotions that made him wince. Distaste for having to touch an inferior mind, disgust at the smell of burning flesh, pain at the burning wound in the shoulder and anger at being forced to summon the wingless one. The rough emotions were disdainful of anything human, but Baen had felt that long ago.

The old man grunted as he leaned on his sword and stood up unsteadily. The fight had drained many of the reserves he had left and the additional throb on his ribs made him limp badly as he made his way towards the sprawling grey form of the dragon. Sithen had knocked over nearly half a dozen trees and when several of his people had thanked him he had given them a look of disgust before stretching out as if he had done it only for his own comfort. Strangely the beast was starting to more vehemently deny when he did something for the good of the army, yet the occurrences came more often the further they travelled. Did he hate the idea of growing close to them that he felt the need to spit his thoughts out like poison at being thanked or acknowledged. It seemed a sound reason given the jaded view the animal had of the people here.

"You summoned me, great warrior?" He found his way to the dragon's side and the massive head turned so that he was facing the larger then head sized eye the swirled with yellow and purple.

:Attend me.: The words were brusque, but the deep muscle pain and bone pain leaked through.

Baen moved down to the grey scaled shoulder that was turned towards him and saw a slimy sheen over them from the creature's saliva and scores in the scales where he had tried to use his teeth to dig out the arrow that was lodged in the muscle. He winced a little at the enflamed area as well as the pulsing feel of pain that pressed against his mind. Strangely the emotions he felt from Sithen were annoyance rather than agony. Did a dragon perceive pain so much differently then himself? It was a question for another time as he moved his hand up and carefully used the pommel of his dagger to force one of the scales up to look at the oozing wound. The blood rolled out sluggishly as the muscles twitched when the dragon swung his head back to stare at him cautiously.

"It's deep, I will have to cut into the flesh more to be able to get the head of the arrow out." He kept his voice critical and careful as he moved his hand to part the skin. He could barely see the broken shaft inside of the muscle. The swim and fight must have worked it all the way to the bone!

The thoughts hit him like a trampling horse. Why wasn't he already doing it instead of talking about it? Did the human need to be guided through something so simple or did he feel the dragon was so simple that he needed it explained that it was too deep to grab? The insults rolled off him as easily as water off a duck. He had long ago accepted that the dragon didn't see things in the way any human he knew did. He looked upon the band of warriors much the way he would look upon a war dog. They weren't equals, but even that didn't take away from his admiration. Something about the creature made him enjoy even the rough moods, especially in those times he could almost feel a rough affection flowing from the beast to him.

++++

Sithen stared down at Baen in annoyance as the creature told him what he already knew. Why would he have called the man over unless the arrow had already sank so deep that he couldn't get it out himself? Humans. They seemed to banter over things so much and repeat phrases uselessly. Why would they waste the few years they had given to them on such things? They should savor each day so they could take as much as they could out of it. He would have thought Baen would have known better. The old warrior was well into the sunset of his years and even now the dull ache of his body reached the dragon. It wasn't just the new wounds, but also the old ones that had never healed right in his youth. It would have been a constant reminder of what little time he had left on this earth. Did the man take nothing away from his association with a storm dragon?

"Brace yourself, Shining One." The old mane wedged something under his scale to hold it up and the drake snorted to himself. At least he knew how to address him properly.

The flesh was swollen with the start of infection from the river and grime of the battle. It felt large and throbbed in time with his heart beat, but he knew it would only grow worse. Once the arrow was removed he'd be able to heal himself, but for now it festered and ached as it scraped against his torn muscles. He barely flinched when the knife sliced into the tender skin, instead he stared out at the river and the men that were loading up the boats. The stench of burning flesh reached his nostrils before he changed his view to see the pyres that were starting to catch fire and thick billowing smoke rose up into the air. He watched the men pulling the bodies over with idle curiosity as their thoughts seemed mostly in turmoil that something was missing with how they disposed of their dead. He tilted his head slightly and stopped himself from flinching as the knife sliced into sound flesh.

The entire group looked as if they were exhausted and the boats were still being hammered on from the injuries they had taken. Their tempers were flaring just beneath the surface and roiling with bitter sorrow, victory, anger and weariness. At least it didn't seem as if they were going to strike out tonight, he didn't want to fly until he was healed and that would take time. The human kept digging against his shoulder making him finally snarl out and swing his head right over the old warriors in warning. To his satisfaction Baen spiked a hint of fear at his sudden upset and stepped back, closing in on that fear was a stab of pain. The man was breaking down, even without the new injuries he could see the tell tale signs of a body wearing itself away bit by bit. He rumbled and settled letting the man return to his work while he contemplated the grey beard.

Baen wasn't a dragon, but he at least had some traits that could be admirable. He certainly knew how to read dragons and he was a sound leader. It was a shame his few years wouldn't allow him to develop those traits into something more valuable. He clenched his laws down as the human's hand gripped the arrow and a sudden yank made him slam his tail into the trees behind him. The metal head tore free and scraped over his bone before the barbarian leader stumbled back with one arm covered in blood and the broken arrow clutched in his fist. His face showed his white teeth in victory before tossing the arrow onto a fire with obvious disdain for it. Sithen turned his head and used his tongue to bathe over the wound slowly and carefully. The touch allowed him to probe and see how much damage had been done to the afflicted area.

"You'll be fine now, Warrior." Baen commented and a splash heralded water being used to wash his arm free of blood. Even that movement seemed to pain the man and the dragon's sensitive hearing picked up a rasp of labored breath.

His ribs were still broken and probably wouldn't set on the harsh war path they had set out on together. The storm drake shifted and turned his massive head to the side to run a critical eye over the broad framed body. Weight had been dropped perhaps, he obviously was sore and wasn't as vibrant as he once was. A moment of worry wiggled into the draconic mind and he gave a snort pushing it away. He was worried about his mission and retrieving his daughter, this creature of few years was only a means to it. Baen couldn't very well lead the armies into the Empire if he were slowing down and in pain. Sithen didn't wanted to work with another human, they were all pitifully close minded and at worst stammered without a lick of sense. His own mind threw forth the reasons he needed to justify what needed to be done.

:You will stay with me and attend me.: He let his voice come out magnanimously. :Keep those hairless apes from pestering me as I sleep.: He turned his massive head to gesture right where his elbow was tucked against his body. :You will stay there and tend me if I need my wound cleaned.:

He kept his voice sharp and severe, a growl lingered under his breath as the old warrior's brow raised upwards a bit in shock. Though the dragon didn't have to wait for long before the man came near his side and took a tentative seat, not quite touching the hard broad scales of his stomach. He made a show of yawning and extending his long tongue past his curved white teeth before curving his head and his tail slightly to settle in for a nap. He needed to concentrate to heal himself and the sleep would do him good. He nearly touched his nose to his tail leaving Baen in a circle made of his body as he loosely spun his consciousness outwards and inwards to start his own bodies healing. It really wasn't that much effort to lightly wrap it around Baen as well. He needed the man to lead the army, he needed him to get his daughter back. The drake closed his eyes and started to drift to sleep content with his own rationalizations, far better those then to admit his growing affection for the short lived creature.

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