FSE

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Ty awoke, well rested, to an orange tinted sky, and the sounds of heavy breathing. He quickly realized that Feria was to his right and Carly to his left, cuddled up against him, while Kaya was sleeping on his chest. It was clear that she had fallen asleep listening to his breathing and heartbeat. Annoyed, he took a deep breath and roared, as loud as he could.

As everyone jumped up, stepping away from him, he looked at every one of them in turn. "If you ever let this happen again, without my permission, there will be consequences," the large tiger growled at them.

The three of them shook, Carly worse than the other two. "But-" Carly began.

"No buts!" Ty stormed, seeing Carly flinch. "To a tiger, sleeping beside another implies trust. I have little trust for anyone. If any of you want to sleep beside me, prove I can trust you."

After looking at the three of them for a few moments, Ty turned toward the village. "Carly, I can take you into the village," he said evenly. "Kaya, Feria, if you could stay here, I will come back when all my business is taken care of." Everyone nodded, wordlessly.

Carly followed Ty for a few moments, away from everyone else; until she knew they were out of earshot. "Ty," she said, grabbing his arm and stopping. "I hate contradicting anyone, but could you please just... well, I know someone you should meet."

"Kaya, Feria and I need to leave, today," Ty said, bluntly. "Who could I possibly need to-"

Ty had been so focused on talking to Carly that he had completely missed his own entry into the village, and the dragon standing by the burned remnants of the tavern. He walked directly into the woman who stood a solid five inches taller than him. She looked as though she could rip the heart right out of his chest! Scales the color of the midnight sky covered her entire body, while her eyes seemed to glow a pure, bright violet.

"Her," Carly said tartly.

The large dragoness, as she turned to look down at Ty, seemed to move like the shadows she so closely resembled. Even her massive frame was soundless as it turned. The muscle covering her body, just under the scales, did little for Ty's confidence under that cold stare.

"Lady Hellene," Carly said, kneeling. "This tiger goes by name Ty. I actually wanted to introduce you two, today. You would know my reasons the moment you sat with him."

"Forget it," the dragoness growled, waving a hand dismissively, revealing something Ty had missed. The woman before him wore a dress the same exact tone of her scales. The sleeves were stretched taut by her muscles, pushing the scales against them, while they came to her wrists. "I can see in his eyes what I presume you did."

"And what is you see exactly?" Ty asked, crossing his arms.

"You have no family left, that you wish to acknowledge, at least," she said, sounding young, maybe mid-twenties. Ty stood frozen, his pose mirroring this dark scaled dragoness. "Dragons can see deep into a person's soul, you are no exception. Carly was a decent reminder, recently, that other species have this trait."

For a second, Ty caught himself admiring the dragoness's wings. He wondered, first, if she ever went flying, and second, if anyone could tell the difference between her and the night-time sky. "A word of advice," Lady Hellene sighed. "Never try to divert your attention with a dragon. As for your sister, any person willing to guide you after death is to be cherished."

Then the dragoness turned, her tail hovering just above the ground. Still, no sound reached Ty's ears from her footfalls. "Then I guess I should visit the blacksmith," Ty said, putting a hand on his sack of gold.

Walking across the street, Ty noticed the bull, walking out of his shop. "Old man Bowman," Ty said to the mild mannered bull.

The larger man turned to Ty. "Been talking to Katelyn, I see," he replied scratching the back of head. "Ah well, nothing for it. I have that spear ready for you."

"How much?" Ty asked, eyes going wide at the intricacies formed into the steel. The pole and the tip were all made of steel, with swirling veins carved into them. There was a single ruby held to the bottom by four, thin pieces of steel, each attached to a side.

"Twenty coins," the bull yawned. "Took me four tries to get it right. Not used to spears. Too many people wanting swords they forgot the value of it."

Ty was pulling out the coins, listening intently to the old bull's words. "Axes were always my personal preference," Ty admitted, handing the coins over. "Why put so much effort into a trainee's weapon?"

"Always believed in a lasting time piece," The bull shrugged. "This may look like normal steel, but every inch of it is three times sturdier. The blade will stay this sharp for far more than a decade. Given proper care, it may last the entire life of its owner."

"Thank you," Ty said, bowing, as was traditional among tigers, and taking the spear. "If you need anything, send a messenger to the west. You know who to look for."

The bull looked down at the tiger passively. "Oh, I sincerely doubt I will need it, but I suppose writing it down and tacking it to the wall would be alright."

Ty nodded, turning back to where the coyote had been standing. He found the dragoness standing there with her. "Lady Hellene," he said in a sigh. "What are you still doing here?"

"If you would not mind my asking," the dragoness said, standing at her tallest. "Can I take her with me?"

Carly's attention snapped to the dragon, her jaw opening slightly. "If she wants to then I have no way of stopping her."

"Thank you," Lady Hellene said, nodding. "What do you say, Carly?"

"Yes!" the Carly yelled hugging the large dragoness.

"Off," Lady Hellene ordered.

Ty laughed slightly as the coyote fumbled with herself, straightening out what little clothing she had. "Apologies," she said, sounding serious. "I will not forget my place again."

Ty looked at the spear in his hand. It was easily twice as tall as Kaya, but from what he had seen of grown wolves, it would be about the perfect size for her. Ty smiled at that thought. That old bull knew exactly what he was doing in the forge. "I must be going," Ty said, bowing to the dragoness.

"Farewell, warrior," she replied, waving lightly.

Ty walked toward the woods, stopping to look back at Lady Hellene and Carly from the tree line. Carly was nodding occasionally while Hellene talked. It seemed like she was getting a list of rules to follow. Ty shrugged, walking into the woods again.

The moment Ty stepped into the clearing he and the others had slept in the night before, his temper soared. He knew Jade was never going to give up. "Remember what you told me?" she asked, standing over a very bloody Feria. "To find something to fight for? Well, I decided I would fight for you.

Ty snapped and everything went dark. "Why?" he heard someone whisper. He opened his eyes and staggered back at the pain in his head. Jade pinned to a tree trunk in front of him. His axe was pressed around her right wrist, which still held her dagger. He pressed a hand to what hurt, feeling the warmth of fresh blood. "Why do you fight me?" Jade demanded quietly.

Blood dripped down her now useless left arm. A deep cut, probably severing her tendons, crossed her shoulder. Knowing she was trapped, Ty turned to where he had seen Feria before. She was sitting up, bleeding from several cuts on her body, while Kaya cried silently on the woman's lap, and gripping her new spear tightly. "Jade," Ty said calmly. "When you die, try your best to not be surprised that no one is beside you."

Then he turned, pulled his axe out of the tree, not caring how much the bruise, where there must surely be several broken ribs, hurt. Jade coughed up a bit of blood, leaning back against the tree. "Why do you despise me?" Jade asked, still clutching her dagger.

"You caused it, Jade," Ty replied coldly. "You want me, so you chase me. I want what will make me happy, but you keep trying to kill that."

"I could make you happier than anyone else," Jade said, her voice barely a whisper as she bled into the grass.

Ty dreaded the idea of listening to one more word from her and walked over to Kaya and Feria. "Are you two alright?" Ty asked evenly. For whatever reason, he felt completely burned out.

Feria smiled up at him. "You think this is the worst my body has seen?" she asked. "I saw the threshold of death the first time I refuse a "client" during my time under Garr. This is nothing."

Kaya looked up at Ty, silent tears running down her face. "I know," Ty said, crouching in front of her. "I know. Fighting is an ugly affair, but it is all too often necessary in this world."