Rise of humanity: The Saga Of Steel

Emrom paid no attention to the dragon nor Shadow, he was climbing on a hill and a tree to look if he can see anything like smoke, people etc...

Fang wrote:"why would I be afraid of her?" Shadow asked epona as he smoothly yanked his knife out of her eye "She's a sweetheart underneath you can tell" he chuckled


"Perhaps you know that the majority my people used to be more than roaming beasts?" The dragon asked knowing that much should be common knowledge for an elf "And perhaps they told you, you seem like a well educated noble, so you may know that long ago we helped foster your kind into the powerful race it is today. Likely you believe that one day we went feral and lost our minds or whatever poppycock they say these days "  the dragon leaned in and inspected the leg "you walked on this too much don't do that you could  tear something" it interrupted its own story to lightly scold her with concern. The dragon as a very carring presence to say the least.

Vesryn nodded in confirmation. "Yes, I received a formal education on the subject." The nobles did, at least. She doubted the lesser population were as well educated on their history with the dragons. Although it would generally be public knowledge, she doubted they understood it in great detail. "I thank you for any help you offered to my people," She dipped her head once again, though set her jaw as the dragon continued. "Yes, it is truly a tragedy." They were vague on the details of this last part, or made up far fetched possibilities on the cause. Her head snapped up, her eyes narrowing at both the dragon's last statement, and the concern in his tone. "Don't you now start. And I neither need, nor want you sympathy."

What's the quote for?

The Dragon narrowed his eyes at her last statement "well too Damn bad you're getting it, I'm ten thousand years old kiddo, I've never not given lectures to someone who sorely needed one,  and I've never denied knowledge to the ignorant.  I'm Too Damn old to start now." The apparently very old Dragon chucked a bit as the elf who was comparatively young to him insisted she didn't want his sympathy. The Dragon breathed a blue fire upon her leg and the flesh and the muscle began to sting as they knitted themselves back together. "Oh by the way it may sting a bit, there's no way around that,  we'll while that's working would you like to hear the real story young one?" The Dragon asked it was common knowledge that dragons did not lie, and were to always be taken seriously among the elves. 

Shadow held on to the Dragon tightly

Vesryn tilted her head, refraining from informing him how irritating it was for her to be called 'Kiddo'. "If I am young compared to you, you must see Arden as a foetus," She said, sparing a glance at the knight in question, the joking nature she had previously was visible in her eyes. She was more than two hundred years his senior, after all. She wondered idly if it was strange to him, to be in the company of one who has lived two human life spans. The slightly amused look disappeared when she turned back to the dragon. Her eyes widened slightly at the azure flame the beast produced, and felt a slight tugging where her wound was. It did indeed sting, but she didn't openly show how the pain affected her. "I would appreciate that greatly."

At her first statement the dragon laughed a bit "Well i'd say he is rather close to you in dog years" The dragon took a friendly stab at Arden's wolf blood. Arden just smirked and shook his head leaning against the cave wall as the dragon suddenly solemn began his story. arden soon realized the dragon had not yet told him this one either, and listened closely. "As your people reached maturity, and began building great cities of your own along side our other peoples, We had nurtured gnomes and other creatures to mentor and guide before, but we were mostly proud of what your race had come to achieve you shining cities, and your well ordered civilization. After we considered your race to have matured well enough to progress on its own we took on a new race to mentor, as was our way. This race was quite different, smaller and far weaker than your average elf, they were at the time a peaceful and artistic group who forged no weapons aside from tools and hunting implements though they possessed a great intellect; Of course I describe them in the past tense because none could honestly say the same about the goblins of today. As the goblins began to build their own great splendors, your kind grew jealous, thinking that we may lead them to greater heights than your own people. For your kind it was decided there was only room for one power in this world, the betrayers gathered there elders and devised a most sinister plan; Their greatest sorcerers wove a strange and powerful miasma that swept across our lands changing all it toughed into feral beasts with the longing to kill. We swept across the other races of this world, killing all in our path and leaving no survivors, your people were the best militarized and wer easily able to put down a few scattered dragons. The rest of our children however, we consumed, except the goblins who retreated underground. With the sickness of anger and betrayal upon them they forsook our teachings vowing revenge upon your people, over many generations they devolved into the creatures you know today." The dragons expression was quite grave by this point "A few of us avoided the miasma, those who were out in other lands, teaching or visiting our children. And since then your people have destroyed every race that advanced past tribal culture"

The dragon's speech left Vesryn in a stunned silence. Her lips were parted slightly, and a series of emotions flashed across her face throughout the speech, particularly surprise, but most of all shame. It was the first time she had ever felt this emotion for her race as a whole, and frankly was not prepared for it. So much so that she barely recognised the feeling. This information from anyone else would have made her extremely incredulous of the truth of it, but she respects the dragons and knows they will not lie, especially not about something so serious. It surprised her greatly that goblins had once been intelligent. She had always disliked them, but had even more so after the previous day. Now, though, she pitied them. The elf lowered herself to her knees, her head lowered and staring at her hands that were folded on her lap. "There is no excuse for my ignorance, but I represent my people as I beseech you to forgive us for our past actions," It was probably the closest to begging she had ever gotten, and probably ever will again. This dragon's forgiveness alone will not fix her people's actions - hell, even if all the creatures affected forgave them nothing could take back what they did. "Is there a way to reverse it?" She asked, though doubted there was; she imagined the mages had ensured it can't be reversed.

"This curse is irrevocable, but I do not hold grudges from the past." Cordath replied to the clearly ashamed elf gently "Not many of my people do. Instead we look towards the future, and we see the senseless slaughter of more and more young races in the name of elven supremacy, and we see one race that can stop them, a race that we took little interest in, but developed quickly none the less. They're outmatched, but not so outmatched as every other race seemed. Division, and war among their own people, and with the goblins has made them natural fighters, even more so than your people arden here can kill an elven warrior with three hundred years on him. I do not see another race being better able to fight off your people, and so tomorrow I will take my leave to gather the last sane of my people, and throw our final lot in with the humans in this war. We still care about elven kind as with all the races we've guided you are like children to us, but elven kind isn't at risk here only their death grip on the known world."

She dipped her head once in a nod. She figured as much; it would be quite pointless if it was reversible. "I cannot stand back and watch my people being slaughtered, and nothing I could say would lessen their path of destruction," Vesryn replied, her voice pained. "I would be seen as a traitor; I would bring dishonour to my family." She had watched humans being slaughtered by the thousands without thinking much of it, but she couldn't bare witness to the destruction of her own kind. Even if they were heartless, selfish beings. The elf raised her head towards the dragon, then to Arden. Her face was unreadable, but her eyes were bright; it was clear an internal battle raged within.

Arden walked over to the elf who was having her own internal battle "We're not out to slaughter your people, we wont march on your cities after this is over, we just want to kick out their army. Understand that no one is asking you to help us. It's your decision, and you had made it from the start, you're healed now go be with you people, forget the oath I release you from it" Arden said calmly to the elf, "because i'm going to war with your people, and I can't ask you to follow me"

Vesryn shook her head, lowering her head to stare at her clenched fists. "No, I do not go back on my word." With a quick motion, the elf stood and strode towards the entrance of the cave, stopping just as she was seemingly about to leave. The air felt too thick inside the cave; she couldn't breathe. She gazed out at the forest beyond, where somewhere her people were planning on wiping out the entire human race. Her people were cowards, obliterating races before they had time to develop. Her people were cowards, and so was she. Weak... Coward... Afraid. She was all of those things. "No... you don't understand." Her voice was filled with emotion. "I can't fight beside them now that I know the truth."

Arden saw her stop outside the cave and after hearing what she said walked over to stand beside her "What are you going to do then?" he asked the elf as she was being all thoughtful

"I don't know," Her voice was quiet, and barely coherent. "I don't know!" She cried suddenly, rounding on Arden. "This all happened because I met you! You should have left me to die!" She knew it wasn't his fault; it was about time she knew the truth. But ignorance is bliss, after all, and the dragon's speech has made her so damn angry at her own people, at the world. It was childish to blame it on someone who was only trying to help, especially as he doesn't have to. But anger eclipses logic, and she stormed past the knight and dragon, whom was no doubt seriously judging her now, and further into the cave system. That bath the dragon spoke about was the only thing that her reeling mind could focus on right now. It wasn't long before she found the guest room and baths within.

To the contrary the dragon was rather impressed That she had chosen not to rejoin her people, that's a decision most elves would not have had trouble with, the fact that she was undergoing such a debate spoke well of her indeed, arden meanwhile decided to give her a little space and hunt down an animal with which to make some new clothes

For a room carved in stone it was quite nice, it was a large room rectangular, the dragon would be unable to fit through the door to it but the room irself was quite large and well furnished, containing two full sized beds on a wall opposite a nice hotspring. there was a dresser and a wardrobe as well but they were empty

Vesryn took in the large room, quite surprised to find two large beds and various other pieces of furniture inside. It wasn't as luxurious as her manor in her kingdom of course, but it was infinitely better than the cold, hard ground, so she had nothing to complain about. Her eyes quickly rested upon the hotspring and she strode towards it, abandoning her armour on the floor as she made her way towards it. Once disrobed, she slipped into the hot water. She let a sigh of delight escape and submerged herself fully beneath the surface. Once she felt the sweat, blood and various other substances she didn't know the origin off had been scrubbed off her skin until it was red raw, she examined any further damage she had received. Large purple bruises could be seen on most every location of her body, particularly her stomach, back and sides, courtesy of her short time with the goblins and their bludgeons the day previously. The most painful bruise, however, was one the colour of clouds during a sunset over her ribs on the left side. She could do little about it, though, and ignored it. Once she was cleaned satisfactorily, Vesryn went to climb out but hesitated when she realised she had no clean clothes.

at around the time vesryn had gotten herself clean Arden had returned with a clean bear pelt and casually strode into the room with it "It isn't clothes but it's a step if you're into that sort of thing" Arden said setting it by the hotspring and turning away for curtesy even though at this point there was very little about her left to the imagination

Parath rose above the trees somehow before flying off. "Tell me which way and I'll fly there." she told Shadow.

Vesryn looked up when Arden walked in, her face completely void of shame about her current stage of undress. From her time alone in the shower, the elf's anger about the truth of her ancestors had faded, but she still hadn't decided what she was going to do. Going to the leader of her army about the injustice of their actions was an option, but she doubted it would work and may end up getting her killed for sympathizing with the enemy. Once again, her hesitation goes down to her pride; does she do what is right, or risk being seen as a traitor to her kind. I could go rogue, She mused, but that was a cowardice step to take. "Well, I think my being nude would just embarrass you," She replied to Arden, her tone almost teasing, but there was still something holding her back, keeping her distant. She pulled herself out of the depths, before clothing herself in the bear skin.

Arden chuckeld as he removed his shirt "embarrassed or not I've been in that armor for three days, and sorely need a bath. and this is the only place around"

'that way" shadow said pointing unhelpfully as he forgot she was blind

Parath could be heard growling. "Which way, I can't see?!" she roared at him.

"You are... much hairier than elves," Vesryn muttered, her eyes glued to his now bare extremely hairy, muscular chest. The slight pinkness had returned to the apples of her cheeks, but she turned away so he wouldn't be able to see her own embarrassment. "I'll leave you to... um," She said, heading towards the exit, where she paused with her back to him and her head lowered. "I'm sorry," She said quietly, these words even harder for her to get out than 'Thank you' was. "I shouldn't have said those things to you earlier."

"Oh you're free to stay if you want" Arden chuckled getting into the spring after he finished getting his clothes off, as he does this she sees his back she notices the wolf tattoo covering his back "You're welcome, and it's no trouble, it's like you got hit in the face with a club made of exposition, it must have been off putting in the least my lady." he said as he stepped into the spring

"Oh, forward then" shadow said to her

Parath sighed and decided to fly higher. "I bet you have no idea what it's like above the clouds, do you?" she asked him.

Mandrake was wandering close by, wondering where the knight and the elf went off to. He decided to hide himself from view on the path he had seen them take so when they came by again he'd have the drop on them. His first thought was the fact the fellow elf woman was injured, so he thought she was in trouble. I need to get that knight away from her! he thought to himself.

Vesryn stole a glance behind her at the now nude knight, and her cheeks flamed up. "Oh, it was," She replied to him. Very offputting. Her gaze trailed over the wolf tattoo that decorated his back, and she tilted her head curiously. "That is quite a tattoo you have," She said.