Zion: Light of the New Moon, Shrad's Post Milestone
Zion - Light of the New Moon
Shrad Revelation
It has become readily apparent that Tollie is a skilled magus, but apparent he is also one of the Faithful. Everyone knows that he somehow managed to get the Wyvern to go away... but just how DID that happen? It's time to find out.
Tollie casually dusted off his robe as he stood up; it had been an exciting few minutes and he obviously had the upper paw as the Wyvern, trapped by a fallen tree, fought to free itself. "Are you ready to talk to me?" he inquired curiously, staying just outside of striking range.
The Wyvern heaved with its body, trying to free itself from the tree, but to no avail, "You use magic..." it sneered at him, "...I feel it."
The hyena nodded calmly, "It's called Fayte magic." he acknowledged, offering helpfully. He knelt down beside the Wyvern's head once it stopped thrashing about, presenting himself for viewing near its eye, "I already told you that I was not going to die today." he slowly stood back up, "I've already seen it."
"You no see future." the Wyvern challenged, sneering at him.
"To the contrary..." Tollie offered respectfully, "I see more than you think."
The Wyvern heaved against the tree again, but got nowhere. It flailed its tail back and forth, letting out a roar before cursing at him in draconic, "You a brain sick pest that drinks own seed."
The hyena took a step back and shook his head at the insult, and answered clearly and concisely in the imperial tongue, "What I do with my body is my own business." The Wyvern paused at that; Tollie hadn't bothered arguing against the creature's insult... that wouldn't have had as much an effect as simply acknowledging that the hyena knew the draconid's ancient tongue.
"Okay..." the Wyvern blinked, and then added after a pause, "you not die today."
Tollie moved within striking distance of the Wyvern, but he was not concerned for his welfare; Wyverns were many unpleasant things, but liars were one thing they were not. The hyena rested a paw on the tree trunk and let the Focus magic flow through him. In a matter of seconds, the log had rapidly decomposed and fell to dust. "You do know why you are here today, yes?" Tollie asked.
"Dragon Call Chimeras... then Call me. I answer." it responded, rising up clumsily to its feet before shaking off the wood pulp from its wings. It winced, trying to flex its right wing, and snarled, half-folding it.
"You did not mind the Call, did you?" Tollie asked, moving to take a seat on a nearby boulder, carefully positioned to be away from Tolen's view from the collapsed tunnel; he didn't need the Wyvern getting distracted.
"Dragon Call, say to hunt and eat... I like hunt and eat." the Wyvern snorted, "I no like talk." he added pointedly, looking around impatiently.
Tollie nodded thoughtfully at that and regarded the dragonid as the large creature thumped down unceremoniously in front of the hyena. Tollie knew that the Wyvern was ina bad mood, but, unfortunately for the creature, its mood was going to get worse, "You are going to tell me your Egg Name before you leave."
The Wyvern looked at him with a surprised expression on its muzzle... and it almost laughed before it noted, "I glad I no eat morsel... it brain sick."
Tollie looked right back at the Wyvern, speaking in a slow, measured pace as he used it to cover up the effects of a very rare spell with which very few people were familiar, "I was right. that I was not. going to die today. Are you sure that I am not. right about this as well?" and his spell took effect. The Wyvern stared at him, its eyes dilating even as Tollie's own pupils contracted. No longer concerned with hiding his magic, the hyena began to speak the words in draconic, adding power to them as his eyes turned amber, taking on the slitted pupil appearance of the creature he was connecting with.
"Tell me your Egg Name." he said, speaking as much with his mind as he was with his mouth; the words were spoken and thought in draconic.
"Ielisiev." the Wyvern lied; Tollie would have caught the lie even if he weren't in contact with the creature's mind.
"You are not a Dragon." Tollie answered in Imperial, "Do not pretend to be one." and he switched back over to draconic, "Tell me your Egg Name."
"Eiel." the word was forced out of the Wyvern.
"Thank you, kind Wyvern." Tollie bowed his head to it, releasing the beast from his power, "Your cooperation was well received despite being hard to gain." he offered a friendly smile and released his magical hold on it.
"You stay away." the creature spat, stumbling over itself to move back from the seated hyena.
"I plan to do just that, Eiel... and ask only that you do the same in return." Tollie acknowledged.
"Why you want Egg Name?" it demanded of him, "You make Wyvern do something now?"
Tollie shook his head, "No, Eiel... I do not believe in forcing my will on others." he offered with a faint, almost hollow smile, the words an obvious contrast to his earlier control over the creature, "It is just my way of knowing that you will not be bothering me or my traveling companions ever again."
"No bother... never see Wyvern again." the Wyvern promised, lowering itself to the ground, "I go?" it inquired, before quickly adding, "I go."
"Eiel..." Tollie spoke up, "Wait." The Wyvern came to a complete stop. The hyena hadn't bothered using the power of his Egg Name, but they both knew that he could if he wanted.
"I stop." the Wyvern acknowledged.
Tollie stood, and slowly moved over to the Wyvern. The enormous creature shook when the hyena placed his paws on its wing. It shied away from him as he began to stroke one of the long, thin bones of the wing, and it let out a questioning bleat when Tollie released the limb; there was no pain. "What you do?" it demanded.
"You cannot fly with an injured wing." Tollie explained, "I mended it for you."
"Why?" the Wyvern demanded.
"Because I do not hold any ill will toward you." the hyena answered, "Your suffering does not benefit me."
"You very strange morsel, morsel." it noted.
"My name is Tollie." he answered.
"You no have Egg Name, morsel... no other name matter." it answered, testing its wings.
"Please call me Tollie." the hyena offered.
The Wyvern paused for a moment, ear sails raising then lowering, "Thank Tollie for wing." it noted at length.
"May I ask a favor of you, Wyvern?" Tollie inquired, specifically leaving the creature's Egg Name out of the request.
"Ask or no ask. I not care." it flexed its tail, bringing it around in front of its body and letting several drops of venom leak out, apparently trying to look like it was uninterested in what he had to say. Tollie could tell it was all a ruse; he had its attention.
"I would like you to find Ralisiev, the Dragon that gave you the Call." he answered.
"Why?" the Wyvern asked blankly.
"Everyone said they saw it carry off a hyena... she had one of our Caravan's Divine Shields."
"I not care." the Wyvern explained, "No know what Divine Shield is."
"It is very important to us, and I would very much like to have it back." Tollie explained.
The Wyvern looked over its shoulder toward the hyena, eyes boring into him in deep thought. There was no doubt that the creature knew that Tollie could command it to do whatever was desired and it was obvious that it was trying to reason out why he wasn't doing just that. "No can track flying dragon." the Wyven offered as an excuse.
"When you receive a Call you get an image of where the dragon is." Tollie noted.
"How you know about Call?" the Wyvern demanded; not many people were familiar with a Dragon's Call.
"You saw where the Dragon was... did you not?" the hyena inquired.
"I see." it acknowledged with a snort.
"That is where you will find it." Tollie acknowledged.
"Dragons move fast. Dragon will be gone." it argued.
"It will be there." the hyena pressed, "Can I count on you to do this favor for me, please?" he requested.
"You strange mors--" it paused, "You strange, Tollie." and it flapped its wings several times, "I go."
"And please bring back the Divine Shield." Tollie requested.
"I not know what Divine Shield is." the Wyvern objected.
"Bring back the first thing you find... that will be it." the hyena offered, "I will be south of here tending a fire away from everyone else."
"And I no get to eat anyone." the Wyvern guessed.
"Yes... please do not eat anyone still alive." and he paused, "But, if you like, once we leave, there are going to be plenty of bodies left behind... you can eat those if you wish."
The Wyvern's ear sails raised; it was obvious it didn't expect that option, "You not bad for morsel, Tollie."
"And you are certainly one of the most agreeable Wyverns I have met in a long time, Eiel." the hyena smiled cordially, "Thank you for your help."
"You meet lots Wyverns?" it asked curiously.
"Not in awhile... there aren't many where I have been living." Tollie smiled.
"Ah..." the Wyvern nodded knowingly, "THAT why you no eated yet."
The hyena laughed, "That must be it." and, with that, the Wyvern took flight, disappearing into the sky. Tollie let out a deep breath; the discussion had gone well. He'd never had much difficulty dealing with the simplistic approach of most draconids... as far as he was concerned that was the easy part of his day; any minute the rest of the caravan would return, and THEN things were going to get difficult.
* * * * *
Well folks, here it is: the bridge between the Milestone and the first Chapter afterward.
The plot was chosen by the readers and goes back over Tollie's meeting wtih the Wyvern in a lot more depth.
The Post Milestone chapters this week constitute my contributions to the character bonus for the involved Author-Contributed Characters. In this case, I'll be giving a point to Tollie!
One final note: Watch for an upcoming Journal vote regarding the expenditure of experience points-- that's coming up VERY soon!