Family (Invite only)

[Salzem]

Aeizith's belly finally rested silenced as he tore the throat out of the last of the third group of raiders to ambush him tonight, but 'twas a pitiful ambush to be sure. It was clear by their cocky approach and and their stances that they were expecting a helpless, stupid child who knew not where he was, considering him an easy trophy to add to their collections. Now, they were all dead and his belly was filled with their blood. Aeizith's snow-white skin was washed with the sanguine that gushed out of the wound on the raider's neck, the salty, warm fluid flowing down the dragon's throat until the gush fell into a trickle. With a satisfied burp, the little ice dragon tossed the corpse of the man atop a pile of his dead compatriots', a similar chunk ripped out of each of them as well. Aeizith's body was engulfed in ice suddenly, the blood and gore upon his clothes freezing and shattering, falling off of his jacket and face as if they were broken glass, leaving the ice dragon as squeaky clean as he was before these fools decided to make themselves his dinner (breakfast?).  His once icy blue eyes now glowed a sinister sanguine as the blood in his gut began to be digested and spread throughout his vampiric form, some color starting to fade back into his features, making it easier for him to pass off as a human within his human shape

It had been a long time since Aeizith had seen any of his family and he wanted to keep it that way... for their benefit. They shouldn't have to see him like.... this... Sure, true enough, they would probably accept him anyway, but that was a small comfort if he wasn't happy with himself. When he looked at his reflection, at one of his ice-mirrors, he felt like he had lost something... something important he simply couldn't put his finger on. No, he didn't care TOO much that he couldn't walk around during the day (At least without his hood up and in the shade) as people were loud, noisy and.... scary.... But it was something else... something deeper.... That little piece missing changed the entire picture and he didn't like what it amounted to at. all. And so, re remained gone. With Emilia's blessing to come back and Kaida's desire for him to stick around, Aeizith refused to return home while he like this... afflicted with this body... Besides... he kinda liked the quiet blackness of the night... It reminded him of.... him... Aeizith tossed a snowball over his shoulder as he walked away, the mass of cold landing among the pile of corpses he had just drank from. Suddenly, the pile was immediately enveloped in an obelisk of Ice, the massive pillar jutting up from the ground all around them. Then, it shattered with the sound of crashing glass and the rubble melted away, leaving not a trace of the death-mound Aeizith left behind.

[Jace]

It had been a long time since his youngest sibling, Aezith, had disappeared. He had been told by Em that he could come back, so why hadn't he come home? Electi had recently taken up the habit of flying all over the land trying to find any sign of his missing brother. He never seemed to find anything other than shattered pieces of ice where there shouldn't have been anything of the like. Being an ice dragon, that was usually a good sign. However the eldest Black-Hearth sibling always seemed to get there too late.

Today he had chosen to fly over the most recent area he had found evidence of his lost brother. He decided to use the cover of darkness in case Aeizith was purposefully hiding from him. He hoped that wasn't the case. It wasn't long before the ancient dragon heard the unmistakeable sound of men screaming in terror and pain. His incredible senses honing in on the source of the sound, Electi beat his massive wings even harder and darted in the direction he thought he might finally find his brother.

Angling his body toward the ground, he tucked his wings in toward his body and began his descent faster than any mortal would have thought imaginable. Just above the tree line there was a flash of fire around the crimson dragon's body and his human form landed softly on the earth below just in time to see a pillar of ice spring up to surround a mound of dead bodies before crashing into hundreds of pieces and leaving no trace behind.

"Brother. Where have you been? I've been concerned for your well being." His soft words broke the eerie silence and announced his arrival, if it hadn't been noticed already.

[Salzem]

Aeizith was hoping for the love of all that was draconic that the dragon setting down behind him was not his older brother... He didn't want to talk to Electi when he was like this... an undead hybrid... thing. But luck was just not on his side today... Electi's draconic body shifted back into his human form in a blast of fire that arched across the treeline. Aeizith didn't need to turn around to know that the two black-hearth brothers had finally found eachother. Aeizith wanted to run up and hug his brother with all his might, to say how much he had missed him and tell him how much he loved him... but that wouldn't be suitable for a monster like himself, would it. The little lonely ice dragon kept his back to his brother, his senses tuned in on his position in case he decided to make a sudden move, his spiky white hair swaying in the gentle breeze of the night.

"A better question i-is: Where have you b-been...?" Aeizith retorted, letting out a great sigh as he spoke. His breath seemed to freeze all that had touched it, the swaying grass turning to icy thorns in front of him and the ground chilling to be as hard as rock. "I w-wasn't able to contact you or find you at home, you kn-know... No m-message... n-no updates... You had us all "c-concerned..." Aeizith's words had a surprising chill to them as if he couldn't quite forgive his brother for being gone as long as he had. It was as if he were waiting for a REALLY GOOD explanation as to why he was gone before he told him anything. The old Aeizith wouldn't have been so tough, so.... willfull... it must have had something to do with his vampiric blood. Aeizith simply stood with his back to his brother, his hands tucked tightly into his front jacket pockets as he stared up into the night sky, counting the stars to keep himself from looking back and exposing his little secret. The sanguine eyes alone would have been a dead give-away as to what he has become if Electi hadn't sensed it already.

"S-so... how are you, brother? H-have a nice t-trip...?"

[Jace]

He could see his brother tense up as he spoke. It made him both very sad and very proud to see Aeizith stand up the way he was, even if it was to him. There was a long silence that hung in the air as Electi's eyes took in his brother's form. The crashing wave of guilt washing over him felt heavy on his chest. It almost outweighed his sense of relief at knowing his younger brother was ok. Finally, he spoke.

"I'm so sorry little brother." He said solemnly, his eyes now seemingly entranced by the ground as he retreated into his thoughts and tried to explain himself. In truth he was. I longer seeing anything in front of him, but instead remembering the last time his siblings were all together. Saying it hadn't gone too well would be an understatement.

"After everything happened I needed to get away. I needed to really find myself and reevaluate my beliefs and values." He paused again now, letting his words hang in the air for a brief moment. "We were supposed to be a close family. Nothing could break our bonds. But the way everything played out....the fight that ensued from trying to bring everyone back together..."

He took a deep breathe now, calming himself  so that Aeizith wouldn't hear the tears in his voice. "I traveled among the mortals and slept in the wild. I saw a lot of things when I was traveling. Everything just reminded me how important our family actually is. How important it is to keep everyone together. I'm so sorry Aeizith....so so sorry..."

[Salzem]

Aeizith said nothing for the longest time, just soaking in his brother's pleas for forgiveness and explanations as to why he had left him all alone. Even before Aeizith had become this way, Electi was the shield that kept him safe from Emilia... He was the only other male dragon he could really confide in... He was the one he felt he was closest to and he left him... Aeizith's quite anger was in conflict with his morality, the two powerful forces battling it out for control of his psyche. Even as an undead scourge of the living... Aeizith simply couldn't deny how much he missed his brother, even if he so dearly wanted to remain mad at the brother who left him all alone. Slowly, the little ice dragon turned to face Electi, his eyes glowing a dark, haunting red in the depths of night... Aeizith's pale lips were curled upwards in something of a small snarl, two long fangs quite evident, large even by dragon standards. Aeizith moved no more besides his slow turn, staring down his distraught older bro, a clear mix of emotions in his eyes.

"D-do you mean that...?" He asked, tears starting to bubble up in the corner of his eyes. "W-would you mean that.... If your little b-brother was..... a v-v-vampire.....?" It was as if the dragon's tongue fought him as he tried to speak, hating that the was even calling himself the being that he was... Were it anyone else... even Kaida... he would have just disappeared into the night, never to be seen again, not by them... but for Electi... he and Aeizith had a specific brotherly bond that compelled him to stay, to hope beyond his pessimism that his brother might actually love him for the beast that he had become. It was a stupid hope... it really was... None of his family would love him for becoming what he was... He was weak, seduced... he allowed himself to fall into a trap and now he could never go back to being the brother that Electi had come to love.

"I'm... dead..." Aeizith whispered, slushy, icy tears running down his cheeks. "Aeizith.... is dead.... And I'm all that remains... Could you love me... knowing that I'll never be the same...?"

[Jace]

His brother's form didn't surprise Electi as much as the little ice dragon probably thought it would. He had sensed something was off from Aeizith the moment he had arrived. He couldn't hear the fluttering beat of the boy's heart and his draconic eyes already saw that his complexion was paler than usual. So when Aeizith turned to reveal those sanguine eyes, ghostly complexion and enlarged fangs it all made sense to the crimson dragon.

"What do you mean you will never be the same?" he asked, letting a playful smile show on his face. "You're still you. Still the overly emotional little brother that I've always known. Being a vampire doesn't change who you are Aeizith. It just changes whether or not you have a heartbeat."

It was true. Sure by all rights the dragonling was dead, but what did that really matter? His personality hadn't changed from what Electi could see. Their memories and past together hadn't been altered in any way. Was their bond so brittle that Aeizith could really believe something like this would change the way that Electi felt about him? Surely that wasn't the case.

"I will always love you Aeizith. You're my baby brother after all."

[Salzem]

Electi really couldn't know the weight his words carried in the heart of the younger dragon. There was nothing quite like hearing that he was still loved despite everything that he was... all the fears that had wrecked Aeizith's self-confidence (or lack there of). It was foolish not to think his family might reject him, especially with Emilia's end goals... At least to him, he figured that whatever he once was would have died along with him, leaving him alone to deal with everything that came with his undead form. He assumed that Electi would have been disgusted by him, almost like he were a perversion of his little brother, something he'd rather dead-and-gone rather than begging for his love like he was now and yet... Electi stood there with a smile on his face, a playful grin that seemed to claim everything Aeizith had said was absurd. As if the little dragon's fears were little more than a bad dream, the elder sibling spoke the words that shook Aeizith to his very core, that he still loved him, would always love him, especially because he was still his baby brother.

Within an instant, perhaps even beyond Electi's capability to see, the lonely frost dragon ran right in front of his brother, wrapping his arms around the bigger man and hugging him tight, whatever frost still on his body shattering upon contact, being lost in the night, Icy tears rolled down Aeizith's cheeks in relief, in happiness as he quietly embraced his hero as tight as he could without hurting him, staying there for a good long time before stepping back, a little ways so he could look up into his smiling face.

"I missed you..." Aeizith whispered, smiling through his "overly emotional" tears. "I... I missed you so much..." The little dragon let out a shaky sigh before raising his sleeve to his face, rubbing his eyes dry in some vain attempt to keep the tears from flooding back. Electi really couldn't know the anxiety Aeizith had held in his gut each and every moment he was awake... Scenes played in his head night to night that his family would each either take turns killing him, or rejecting him outright, the latter being a far worse fate... At least when he was dead, he wouldn't have to feel so alone... But all of that seemed so foolish when he looked up at the wonderful person that was Electi...

"T-things haven't been the same without y-you, brother...." Aeizith admitted, a somber look on his face. "W-without you... I-I... I felt so alone... I never t-told you how much you meant to m-me before... I-I didn't have the words for it..." Aeizith smiled softly, the first smile he had given his older brother in what seemed like a thousand years. "I still don't... b-but I understand why..." The younger dragon looked his brother up and down with his sanguine eyes, surprised that he didn't find much of a difference in him... Why were his siblings so amazing and he wasn't...?

"A-are you okay, Electi...?" Aeizith asked, taking hold of the older dragon's hand if he let him. "I w-want to help you if I c-can..."

[Jace]

In an instant Aeizith was no longer standing a distance away, but instead hugging Electi in a tight embrace. The crimson dragon was taken aback for a moment, pure shock on his face as he realized he didn't even see his little brother move. Either he was really getting rusty in his old age or Aeizith had gotten much much faster. His moment of surprise didn't last long, however, as a second later his arms reached down to comfort his younger brother and return the loving embrace.

"It's ok Aeiz. I'm here now. I've missed you too." he said as the younger dragon took a step back and looked up at Electi. He didn't know how much he had hurt his brother by leaving the way he did. He never meant to make the boy feel alone and lost.

"I'm so sorry Aeiz. I never meant to hurt you. But you should never ever feel alone. I'm always with you, even if I'm not physically. And I will never leave you again. I promise." he said confidently. He knew how hard it was to be off on his own and he definitely didn't want to make his brother feel like he didn't have anyone else. No one should feel that way.

"I'm ok. Better than I was anyway. But enough about me. Tell me about you! How did you end up as a vampire? Surely with your abilities you could have taken care of a vampire or two. It has to be an interesting story."

[Salzem]

Aeizith blushed softly when Electi asked how he actually became a vampire... Really, it was this part that the young dragon feared most out of everything. Yes, his family would let him walk in the door, treat him as normal perhaps, but the moment they found out the disgraceful events that led him to becoming an undead, either down comes the ax or here comes the boot. With his brother, though... the little lonely frost dragon felt like he could trust him to hear him out, to give him a chance, to care enough to look past the shame of these events. Slowly, with a great sigh of apprehension and a gesture for the two of them to walk, Aeizith began to speak.

"I-I was in the capital of Serendipity, Arca, and I was starving... I hadn't had any real food in days, brother... T-there was nothing around... I don't like hurting people... I-I don't want to steal to get my way... B-big sister w-wouldn't approve if she f-found out I was so..... sympathetic...." Aeizith knew Electi knew what he meant by real food.... he needed live prey to survive and the only things around he could catch quietly were humans... "W-well.... I-I needed to eat... W-well.... I was starving... my instincts d-dulled... w-when I went to... get the food... I was hit... Right on the nose..." Aeizith pointed at the bridge of is face, right between his eyes where the smallest of scars remained. "I-I laid there... bleeding... a-and...." He shook his head, signifying there was nothing more that really needed to be said. He was effectively caught with every card in the deck stacked against him, starving, bleeding, in terrible pain, so all he could do was watch and let the vampire do it's work on him. This was what he told his brother and it was the truth.

"There was nothing I could do... and the d-day is taken from m-me... I d-don't think I c-can go home yet, brother... I.... I'm not r-ready.... I d-don't want Emilia and Kaida t-to h-hate me.... more...."

[Jace]

He began to walk as his younger brother recounted the events that lead up to him being turned. If it had been Electi or any of the other Black-Hearth siblings, besides Eira of course, they would not have hesitated to rip into the flesh of the nearest human so they could feed themselves. It was in their nature as dragons to take and eat what they wanted when they wanted it. Aeizith was different. He had always been inexpressibly more sympathetic toward other creatures than the rest of his family. So when it came as no surprise to Electi when the youngling had explained how he refused to kill or steal from humans in order to eat.

They had walked a distance by the time Aeizith had finished his story. There was no specific destination in mind now for the brothers, they were simply enjoying each other's company as they haven't been able to in what felt like centuries. The crimson dragon's eyes turned toward his brother as they now continued to walk in the moonlight.

"There is no reason to be ashamed about showing sympathy to other creatures. Perhaps your sisters and I have grown too cold and too obsessed with fulfilling our own desires. Perhaps you and Eira are right and we are wrong. Who's to say which path is the better one to take? I have had a lot of time to think while I was away. One thing I know for certain is: you will always be you, brother, and you will always be loved by your siblings." he said, ending with a smile.

[Salzem]

"I.... D-don't know if I b-believe that...." Aeizith mumbled in response to is older brother's promise, a promise that he'd always be loved by his siblings. Did Emilia ever really love him? Look at how quickly that love turned to hate and that hate turn to murder as she tried to kill each and every one of them for wanting their sister to come home. Look at how little she cared if he lived or died, tossing him out on his own and leaving him there, only ever chasing him down when he did something mildly note-worthy and even then, it was only to criticize and chastise. No... He was certain she didn't love him... any of them... Even Kaida, her protoge and the one he desperately wanted the approval of was most likely only coddled and cared for the way she was as a means of extending her power, a little mini-her acting as her right hand can be quite profitable... He believed his sister was capable of anything at this point, even appearing right now and killing Electi for being in contact with him, then Aeizith for merely being there.

"E-emilia d-doesn't love m-me...." He whispered quietly, an icy whistle escaping his lips. "Y-you know t-that too... right...? Y-you saw what s-she did... what she's c-capable of.... B-brother... I l-love you.... but you g-give her too much c-credit...." The dragon fell silent for the longest time, lifting his foot to take another step, only for him to find his foot had frozen to the ground. Aeizith yelped in surprise and fell flat on his face in the grass, rising to his knees but not his feet. He refused to go any farther without making his position heard.... understood....

"Y-you wouldn't u-understand.... she likes you... respects you... You're her- our older brother... y-you've been nothing b-but her b-best soldier.... What was I...? Nothing... t-that's what..." Before his brother could contradict him, Aeizith raised his hand, stopping Electi right there. "D-don't patronize m-me.... I-I'm not a s-some h-hatchling that hasn't s-seen the world...! I kn-know what u-uselessness is and I am u-useless to Emilia.... M-mark m-my words b-brother... one d-day... wh-when I step o-out of line... w-when I s-somehow t-take a step i-in the wrong d-direction.... she'll come for me... A-and I'll die..." Aeizith grabbed a handful of soil out of the earth before a frosty wind blew it out of his hand, disappearing into the night only a moment later. He looked up at his brother, his eyes watery, his face blushed with blue, but his expression angered... betrayed... HE was the one who had been betrayed, not her!

"...And she'll laugh.... A-and if y-you cry... sh-she'll kill y-you too..."

[Jace]

The elder dragon listened to his younger brother. He had been broken and beaten beyond what Electi had considered possible. Perhaps he was right. Perhaps he did give his siblings too much credit. Deep down he knew it to be true. He always knew that his blind love for his siblings would somehow be the death of him, be it by the hands of another or by Emilia herself.

The solemn look on his face said more than words ever could, though he still tried to offer some to his baby brother. He needed to comfort him, to reassure him that even if Emilia did come after him he would always be there for Aeizith. "Brother," he began softly, "Maybe you're right. Maybe Emilia truly doesn't love any of us. I'm probably a fool for thinking that she does, but if loving my siblings, ALL of my siblings, unconditionally and always giving them the benefit of the doubt means being a fool than I wear that title proudly."

A moment of quiet settled upon them now before he began again. "It doesn't matter if Emilia comes after me or you. It doesnt matter if she sends anyone at all. You must know that I will always be by your side, Aeizith. I will always do everything in my power to protect you and to build you up. I refuse to let anyone tear you down." Electi reached out his hand to the dragon/vampire hybrid that was now his brother. A warm and reassuring smile could be seen on his face. He would help his brother now any way that he could.

[Salzem]

Aeizith couldn't help it... He couldn't keep his melancholy composure after Electi made that kind of promise. He simply couldn't do it. His brother had pushed every last one of Aeizith's buttons, both good and bad, bringing up so many complex emotions, all he could do was break down into tears. The little Ice dragon's face flushed a deep blue as new tears ran down his cheeks and onto the ground, freezing the earth as each one splashed upon it's surface. Electi smiled warmly, reaching out a hand to his brother to help him up, but Aeizith didn't take it... Instead, he got up on his own, walk past his hand and wrapped his arms around his brother again, sobbing into his chest for all it was worth. Despite his previous statement, the vampire/dragon DID look exactly like a new-born hatchling... so vulnerable, so weak in that moment, it seemed that the slightest touch from anything besides his brother's embrace would cause him to shatter into a million pieces.

"B-b-brother....." Aeizith managed to get out audibly, pulling up for a moment to stare into his Electi's eyes, his own still pouring with tears, but these were tears of joy of appreciation... Electi had been so good to him... He'd been his guardian and effective father through all of this... The little ice dragon wondered how he had ever doubted him...

"B-brother.... I l-love you... I love y-you so much..." The little ice-dragon declared, holding himself to the older dragon tightly. "Y-you've always b-been so u-understanding... y-you always c-cared.... I... I-m sorry... I-I'm so sorry....." Aeizith began to break down in another round of tears and unintelligible sobs. "I-I'm sorry I w-was never a-around.... I-I'm sorry I l-left... I-I'm sorry I d-disappeared like that... I-I'm sorry..."

[Jace]

The younger dragon refused to take Electi's hand, instead standing on his own and once again embracing the elder brother. The crimson dragon just held the boy now, doing his best to comfort him. "It's ok Aeiz. You don't have anything to apologize for." he said softly. After a short moment Electi pulled himself away from his brother. "So. How about we go for a nice calming fly up in the skies? You always used to love that."

[Salzem]

Aeizith smiled widely as his brother pulled away, suggesting that they all go for a nice little fly up top like they used to. He was right, of course... Any time he could spend with Electi just flying about was what he loved... And so, how could he possibly pass up an oppertunity such as this? Even at the risk of Emilia catching them and it all being over in a mere instant, the temptation was simply FAR too much.

"Y-yeah... O-okay..." He muttered before his body began to contort and shift. In a mere few seconds, the little ice dragon had grown to his full black-scaled dragon form, his eyes sunken so far into his sockets, even his glowing red eyes were mere red dots within, barely visible from up-close. Within the dark, cold veil of the night and under the calming silver glow of the moon, half of the dragon's pitch-black scales shimmered in the light, the other was completely consumed by shadow, perhaps some earthly symbolism to represent the inner turmoil within the little ice dragon, perhaps not... Either way, Aeizith would wait for his elder brother to take the lead and then shoot off into the sky after him, flying a little higher and a good distance behind, enjoying the feeling of the wind beneath his leathery wings.

There were not many things the little ice dragon allowed himself to enjoy, but this.... this he thought he could make room for... just this once...

(SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG)

[Jace]

His younger brother quickly agreed to the idea of having a nice relaxing flight in the evening sky. It was one thing the both of them had always thoroughly enjoyed together. Electi could honestly say it was what he enjoyed the most about being a dragon. The feeling of immense freedom he got from soaring far above the earth, the wind passing over his body and the way his muscles felt after a long flight.

He watched as the ice dragon stepped away and began shifting into his true form, or at least what his true form used to be. The elder Black-Hearth sibling wasn't actually sure what his brother's true form was anymore. Not that it mattered.

After fully transforming, Aeizith waited for Electi to shift as well. In his dragon form Electi was so large he would probably demolish most of the surrounding area so he decided to use all of his strength to jump high above the tree line before a vortex of flames covered his body and out emerged an enormous crimson scaled beast, the king of the skies. He flapped his powerful wings one time and rose hundreds of feet higher into the night sky before taking off in a random direction, his younger brother close behind. A terrifying roar was let loose from the dragon's maw, blue flames accompanying the sound. Every creature for miles around would hear him and know that the worlds best hunter was above them now.