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Everything's Changed (Blinkers)

Started by Salzem, January 25, 2017, 04:36:53 PM

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Salzem

Aeizith stormed through the forest on his way to the Black-Hearth citadel, it growing harder and harder to maintain his composure with one of Kaida's knight trailing behind. Amira had long since disappeared without explanation, one second there, cracking jokes with her loved-one, the next... completely gone as if plucked from the sands of time. He would've been concerned if not for what she said a little while ago, that she only cared about one person in the world now... Yeah... that was her and her alone... This girl she was mating with? An animal's mate for sex and nothing more he suspected... Every step he took caused a web of ice to spring outwards from the surrounding ground, blasting up into the air in several places off to the side, impaling trees winding along the ground like treacherous vines, but each and every one a safe distance from the girl who escorted him from behind PURELY out of the little, TINY respect for that angel no longer present to maintain the safety of her love... Well... after this... once it was all over, there was nothing left for him to feel for her... she was as dead to him as he would likely be at the end of the day...

Minutes passed into hours, and hours... into more so, the sun now high in the sky, beating down on the young vampire as Emilia once did that horrible day. Every once in a while, he'd look back over his shoulder at the young woman following him and his hatred would dull just the tiniest bit... She was right, after all... she was just fulfilling a job after all. Finally, the guilt of what he had said to her weighed on his mind too much and so he stopped and turned around, his eyes locking onto the woman's seriously, but also tiredly. It hurt to be angry... THIS angry... it made him sick...

"Listen..." Aeizith said with a sigh. "I'm s-sorry about w-what I said... I know I-It p-probably won't matter i-in a few hours a-anyway... but... yeah... Y-you're right a-after all... A l-loyal person y-you are..." And with that, the little frost dragon would turn his back to her once more and begin to walk... but what he saw coming over the horizon next... he just couldn't believe...

Blink

Never would she talk about what happened that day or the events that took place. All that would ever be said was that Emelia was gone for good. No longer on this plane to control the remaining children of the Black-Hearth lineage. Should they even be called that anymore? It almost seemed wrong taking the name without Emelia sitting upon the throne anymore. Kaida was still very conflicted about what had happened, partially heartbroken yet feeling free at the same time. She would no longer feel shame for expressing any other feeling besides hate towards the siblings that went on their own path. Maybe this was her chance to finally figure out who she really was, to finally gain an identity other than Emelia's mini me.

So as she walked, the citadel now many miles behind her she braced the elven girl she had so selfishly captured earlier that day. Silver was still half paralyzed from Kaida's venom, it would be at least another few hours before she could walk on her own again, and even more to fully regain all feeling. Kaida however was able to reverse the corruption at the very least, hopefully that would be enough for Aeizith to forgive her. Right now that was who she wanted more than anything, her big brother to embrace her and tell her it would all be okay again. Life from this day forward was going to be hard, it was going to be a constant battle of facing reality and the travesties she had taken part in over the years. But finally after walking for what seemed like forever the figure of her brother had come into full view and Kaida very nearly fell to her knees right there.

Jaela had been walking quietly behind Aeizith for some time now, not really sure of what to say. Amira had dissapeared and this time she didn't think she was coming back. Call it a hunch but it was a feeling deep within her that the love they shared would now all be nothing but a memory and that she would now once again be alone and misunderstood in this cruel world. However, the moment Lady Kaida came into view Jaela had a sense of purpose at least for the time being. Running past Aeizith she closed the difference between herself and the two stumbling along. "Lady Kaida! What is happening!?" Jaela was confused by what she was seeing, Kaida was supposed to be back at the citadel waiting for them to arrive, and Silver.. she was supposed to be inprisoned until Aeizith arrived. So why on earth was she now bringing her back? Something had to have happened...

Seemingly arriving at the perfect time Kaida lost her grip on Silver who was much taller than the young dragoness, it was a real struggle just to make it this far. Jaela though took Kaida's place even though she was also very short in stature. Gently she eased Silver to the ground before looking to Kaida who was on the brink of tears herself. "Your service is no longer needed today. You may leave now if you wish." and with that Jaela took the hint that they needed to be alone. Maybe one day she would get to meet them all again in the same place but for now she as well needed a moment alone. So with the snap of her fingers the ground erupted beneath her swallowing her up before returning to normal. Of course Jaela would exit in such a dramatic way... it was so like her to do so.

Silver meanwhile now laying on the ground could very slowly move her limbs. Her legs kinda of responded as well as her arms, and so with that the pain of her broken ribs was slowly easing in as well, but that could wait. She knew what had happened and the illusion of a life Emelia had created for Kaida. She knew that right now she would take the back burner, and this was how it should have been. A brother and sister bond was one that could not simply be replaced, they needed to heal theirs now.

So as Silver lay on the ground clearly still very alive Kaida fell to her knees before her brother as tears welled in her eyes. "Aeizith! I am so sorry! Please forgive me!" She held her arms out for her brother just as she would when she was a mere hatchling begging to be consoled.

Salzem

Aeizith couldn't believe it.... Over the horizon and through the trees, Kaida was stumbling through the environment towards him with Silver in tow, seemingly undamaged, but unable to walk for some reason... perhaps her venom... Seeing that the young dragoness was about to drop her supposed prisoner, Jaela acted before the little ice dragon and dashed ahead, taking Silver's limp and struggling form from the much smaller dragoness, setting her face-up gently on the ground, asking what had been happening. Whatever it was... Aeizith didn't care really... He was most certainly relieved that Silver was safe with only a few minor wounds, for her trouble, but... all he could focus on was an expression of barely-restrained tears behind the young dragoness' crumbling look of strength.

With only a mere command, the smaller dragon discarded her servant, Jaela disappearing into the ground, leaving the half-elf and the two black-hearth siblings alone... Aeizith didn't know what to say or do but give his sister a silent, long, cold glare, one he was surely saving for Emilia, but the kidnapper of his first real love would work just as well... He waited for the little girl to lash out at him, to insult him, to try and ruin his day more than she already had... but that's not at all what happened... the smaller dragon threw herself at Aeizith's feet, tears streaming down her face as she begged his forgiveness, begged that he'd hold her like he did all those weeks ago...

His facade of hatred crumbling, the lonely little frost dragon scooped up his sister into his arms as if she were but a child, holding her to his chest as she cried. Aeizith couldn't afford to though... his ducts were dry... they had to be... for Kaida... All the the while he held her, the little lost ice dragon gently rocked her in his arms, whispering "shh" noises to slowly calm her down. He held his little sister, kissed her head as softly as he was able, even sprouting his wings and wrapping them over her as well. It was as if he were her parent or had the confidence of one of his older sibling, becoming strong in the weakness of his sweet, adorable younger sister... He had to be strong... Something had happened back at Black-Hearth citidel that had broken this little girl and now he must be her support...

"Its okay..." He murmured, kissing her forehead softly. "Its okay... I'm here...." With no apparent effort, Aeizith would slowly carry his little sister over to where Kaida had nearly dropped Silver, still somewhat paralyzed from the effects of the poison.

"Hey... I'm gonna set you down..." Aeizith warned, gently lowering his arms just enough for Kaida to slip out of them. With his arms free, the little ice dragon immediately turned his attention to the love of his life, wrapping her up in his arms and sitting down at the base of a large tree, his thumb gently stroking her pale cheeks as the venom worked its way out of her body. He could feel her breathing, hear her heart-beat, see the emotion and motion in her eyes... His beautiful Silver was alive... Slowly, Aeizith would lower his face close to hers, pressing his lips to hers in the softest, most loving kiss he would probably ever be able to produce, tears or relief and joy now running down his face. If he even sensed the slightest bit of apprehension, of course, he'd stop, but he needed to kiss her so bad....

After he pulled away, He looked back up at his little Kaida and opened an arm wide to embrace her once more. Whatever spite he had for her was completely forgotten... She was his little Kaida... and nothing would ever change that...

"Thank you..." He whispered before pulling the younger dragon into a hug.

Blink

All too willingly Kaida accepted the embrace her elder brother bestowed upon her. The young dragoness was so full of regret and betrayal that Aeizith seemed like the only one she could trust anymore. She could have said the same thing for her sister at one point, but those days were now but a memory of the past. Then as if realizing something she had forgotten Kaida pulled away from his second embrace and wiped some of the tears from her eyes. She would let him have a small moment with Silver before interupting it all for some more news.

With the snap of her fingers suddenly to trees surrounding the path they had met up on came to life and dozens of Aeizith's assasins dropped down or peared out from behind the foliage. "I brought them to you. Figured you could figure out what to do with them." Kaida still carried the tone in her voice as if she were better than her brother's trained warriors, or better yet better than most beings... but that was something she needed to work on. It had been so long since Aeizith had lived near Kaida that he would soon come to realize that there were a lot of things she would have to change about herself, she was raised by Emelia after all.

Silver on the other hand, even though not able to really move but mere fractions was happy to see the two siblings making up. "I..... I..." her voice raspy as her vocal cords slowly began to be able to function again. "told you so..." And then she smiled the best she could, the muscles in her face still recovering as well.

Salzem

After Aeizith had embraced his little sister once more for a little bit, Kaida pulled away, a look on her face as if she had just remembered something important. With a snap of her fingers, his crew, his group of assassains in their signature black chain/leather armor began piling out from the surrounding foliage, their faces hidden behind a hood and... crow-like plate masks, or at least, all but one... Aeizith's 2nd in command to his assassins stepped up as Kaida was explaining why she had brought them, a woman a little taller than the dragon himself with long dark hair, irises as black as the night itself, but one could tell she was the kind enough sort. She looked to be about 23 or 24, a long, jagged obsidian straight sword strapped to her right hip, a smooth, silver curved blade on her left. In addition, on her back she carried a bow-and arrows and at least two daggers on her at all times. One could also note, her armor was much heavier than the rest, with plate shoulder-guards and a chain vest over her typical leather, along with steel leg-guards, boots and gauntlets and yet she moves as gracefully and quietly as any of the of her subordinates. There certainly was a reason she was his second... She was quiet, efficient, and had a life outside of her work. She, much like Jaela in that regard, was mainly all business when she was carrying out her orders, and other times, much like the rest of his crew, was as close to him as his own family.

"Aeizith's Assassins reporting as ordered, ma'am." The woman spoke, bowing her head in the assassin's  typical sign of respect. She then turned her gaze over to her master, crouched and still holding onto Silver, her expression a mix of both relief, and.... disapproval perhaps.

"Wh... Kaida..." Was all Aeizith could manage, completely taken off guard by the presence of his soldiers, but perhaps even moreso what they called themselves. Up until now, they were firmly the "Black-Hearth" assassins... What had happened back at the citadel...? Aeizith's attention was drawn back to the little half-elven girl in his arms as she slowly managed to speak, stating that she had told him so, her lips slowly creeping into that of a smile. Aeizith only chuckled and pressed his forehead to hers, hugging his little Silver a bit tighter.

"Y-yeah... you did..." Aeizith smiled, before looking back up at his crew. Without him even needing to say a word or give a command, the lead assassin gestured towards them, two more of Aeizith's men taking Silver from him, each one wrapping an arm around their necks to help her stand easier.

"Thanks, T'salva." The dragon smiled, the dark-haired assassin only nodded.

"It is my purpose to serve you, my lord." It was something they insisted on calling him... "Lord, Lord Aeizith, My lord..." all those things that a being like him SHOULD have but never wanted. The little, not-so-lonely ice dragon looked around at his group of killers, his killers, and smiled his widest... They were all here... each and every one of them... He could see their eyes through their crow-masks, eagerly waiting for any orders he might give.

"F-first thing's f-first... K-kaida... r-remember my t-tree house...? W-we'll need to expand on that I t-think... Make a N-NEW house... MEN!" Aeizith called out, each one stepping out of the brush they stood in, standing to attention out in the open. "I require y-your help o-one last time... B-Black h-hearth Citadel is n-now longer ours. W-we shall b-build a NEW home, for my s-sister, my c-companion and I. O-Once this is d-done, y-you need n-not serve m-me or m-my family again... Y-you may leave s-service if y-you so desire." He looked about into the eyes of each and every one of his assassins, checking for doubt or even approval with these orders. He would actually find none... not one actually wanted to leave... Aeizith was shocked, but pleasantly so... Maybe... maybe today wasn't so bad after-all...

"Lets go! M-Move out!"

Blink

_____TimeSkip______

"That's it! Aeizith I cannot take this anymore!" Silver said as she jolted open the front door. It had been months since the incident that occurred between Silver and the Black-Hearth family. By now they had taken residence in their new larger home that was much more accommodating for the duties Aeizith had taken over with his group of assassins. Even with several people going in and out all day Silver was not bothered... no it was only one person who did. Pointing to the little brat who followed her in Silver's eye twitched at the very sight of the young dragoness.

"Your little sister is so beyond damaged there is no hope for her! You won't believe what she did this time!" As if on cue Kaida raised a brow at the elfen girl, amused by her outburst. Strolling in as if the ground she walked on belonged to her she walked over to a couch and sat down, sitting up straight and poised. Immediately though she turned to her brother and just gave him a look, one that expressed how she felt all to well. Aeizith had to know this would happen, that Kaida was known for her tricks and lack of compassion to those beneath her.

Continuing on with her rampage Silver laid it all out right there, so that they could recap on everything she had done. "I thought maybe I could get past the fact that she had taken all of the coin from my bag and replaced it with a bag of manure. Or the fact that in the middle of the night when I am sleeping she suddenly decides to have one of her little crying.. 'moments'." she paused to abbreviate with her fingers. " Which seems to only happen on the nights when I have had an exhausting day, or have to wake up with the sun to get things done. But this... she has gone to far! Today she snuck into our room and took one of my daggers! I caught her using it to saw at a tree! WHY!? Its a dagger for christs sake! Not a hacksaw!"

Kaida simply shrugged at all of the accusations before leaning back into the comfort of the couch, clearly more concerned with when to take a nap and for how long. "My room was chilly. I needed firewood..." She answered as if it were the obvious choice to use a prized Silver dagger specially crafted for combat just to cut wood. "I would have asked someone to do it for me but you insist on not using servants anymore."

Salzem

"S-Silver! Wait...!" The little ice dragon stumbled out after his enraged love, following her outside with a worried, exhausted expression on his face. It had been a long time since Silver and Kaida had come to live with him, building a massive house from what once was a little tree-house at the top of a forest canopy. With the aid of his assasains who'd refused to leave his service after (what he called) "The Fall of Black-Hearth", they had managed to build a MASSIVE home out here in the woods, One that could easily house the likes of Silver, Aeizith, Kaida, and a contingent of their soldiers placed around the perimeter whenever they were in need of some R&R. For the most part, their living had been somewhat challenging, but over-all pleasant, at least to the dragon... Silver and He never had any issues directly as they lived together, but it was mainly little Kaida that loved to mess with them both. Her most recent pranks were her "crying moments, coincidentally when the half-elf had returned home from an exhausting day, or when she replaced all of her coin with manure... Aeizith was still trying to replace it all! He doubted that Kaida was unaware that her pranks were indirectly effecting him as well... Her crying-fits made it hard for him to get any sleep at all as well and his natural craving for a hoard-of-treasure was hardly being satisfied as he needed to replace all the money Silver had lost AS WELL AS some of the materials necessary to maintain the house and it's people.

In short, the young dragon empathized with Silver's frustrations and was trying his hardest to keep everything stable... Aeizith had never ever been in charge of anything so important or unbalanced in his life... Before, he had men that would die to protect him and vice versa... They knew where the power was, just as they do now... But with him having to be the elder sibling to Kaida, her watcher and moral guide in addition to being Silver's place of comfort and understanding.... It was all starting to take it's toll in the little ice dragon. Kaida flopped out on the couch in the living-room near the front door, giving him this look that showed her disdain for Silver and her own frustrations, how little she cared about her little mortal problems. Aeizith returned a look, one that asked she keep quiet and let him handle this... But of course, she wouldn't.

The little frost dragon listened, shocked and exhausted as Silver explained how she could tolerate a lot of things, but Kaida using on of her daggers, her prized, self-sacred daggers, to cut down a tree, that was something she simply couldn't abide. Immediately, Aeizith's gaze turned sour, his patience thinned by the repeated antics and his role within the household.

"K-kaida...?" Aeizith growled warningly. "Please d-don't say a-another word. I-If you d-do, there'll be r-repercussions... BIG r-repercussions..." Kaida would know the frost dragon would deliver on this promise. Back in the say, he wouldn't have DARED to even touch Kaida without her consent, let alone scold her. That was Emilia's territory. Now, though... he was determined to make her see, to help her through this and punishment WAS help. Aeizith had given her minor punishments in the past, each one seemingly failing to stick in her mind. He was going to need to step-it-up now... it wasn't something he relished, but it was something that was necessary. He loved his little Kaida more than anything and that was why he had to do this... For her own sake... Hopefully, if his younger sibling heeded his advice, the little ice dragon would turn to Silver, his sanguine eyes dim with apology and jaded gaze.

"I-I'm sorry, Silver... I'm really t-trying... I-I really a-am..." Aeizith hadn't drank from anyone in days, so his features had started to hollow, his cheek-bones starting to grow more gaunt, his already-pale skin growing moreso, almost transparent. His sanguine eyes seemed to take on more of an orange-ish undertone and he seemed more thin than he should've been, his clothes hanging on him rather than resting. Sure, he ate human food as much as he could, but between his dragon and vampire physiology, it was doing EVEN LESS for him than it did before... Despite sitting down at dinner with them every night and eating at least 2 helpings, he looked as if he hadn't eaten in days... The sad part was, every other day now, at least one of his assassins would come up to him whenever he was alone and offer themselves up to him as food eagerly, readily... Of course, Aeizith had turned them down each and every time, but there were those days that it was REALLY tempting to say yes...

"I-I promise... th-this won't go u-unpunished..."

Blink

Leaning back even further into the couch Kaida simply shrugged her shoulders before rolling her eyes and turning her head away from the two. Silver on the other hand stood with a hand on each hip glaring at the spoiled girl. She knew that Aeizith was trying his hardest to make this all work, but he was also neglecting himself which in turn made Silver angry at him as well. "And don't even get me started on you A." Now it was his turn to get the blunt of her frustrations as she turned her body to face him completely now. "Go eat something for goodness sake! You look so sick!"

Kaida did agree with Silver on this one, her brother needed to eat. Unlike her who could survive simply on meat alone he needed blood... human blood. "Brother if you are too afraid to go eat then I will be forced to bring you some." The young dragoness could picture it now... how she would find the most suitable human to bring to him. They would have to be strong, worthy, pure.

Silver on the otherhand was completely opposed to Kaida's offer. She didn't even give Aeizith a chance to respond before turning back to face her. "No thank you. Your brother can go on his own." She then once again turned to Aeizith but this time with a more sincere look on her face. "Please go feed... for me." Her mood though quickly shifted back to the one she held before. "And then you can decide a punishment for your sister."

By now Kaida had grown bored of the conversation and was now snoozing on the plushen couch.

Salzem

Aeizith seemed to grow even more miserable as Silver then turned on him, stating that he needed to go eat something and that he looked like someone who was sick. That was definitely true... The little ice dragon couldn't look himself in the mirror without flinching or actually gagging in disgust. Maybe they were doing it for his own benifit or maybe they weren't as effected as he was, but neither Kaida nor Silver seemed as completely repulsed by his starved appearance. The younger, lazy dragon in his little sister even commented that if he was afraid, she could bring someone back for him, something he might've actually accepted if Silver didn't step in first. His sweet little half-elf remarked that he was completely capable of going out on his own, Kaida only rolling her eyes in response before closing her eyes for a nap, Leaving both Aeizith and his love alone once more. For a moment, Silver's tone seemed sweet and pleading, asking that he go feed for her... It broke his heart to see how his neglect of himself had effected his new family, and he could only imagine how badly it was hurting Kaida under her nonchalant facade. The young ice dragon sighed before quickly pulling Silver in for a kiss, placing his lips on hers gently before pulling away and smiling as best he could. His eyes were dreamy, loving, and as he looked back at his sister, flopped out on the couch, his expression wasn't anything less.

"I-I'll be b-back soon..." he promised, placing a gloved hand on her pale cheek before walking past her and out into the open. From his shoulders his wings would sprout and with only a single flap, the vampire-dragon would be propelled into the sky and with another, shoot off in the direction of civilization. He never should have let it get this bad, never let his judgment and patience wear so thin under the unending torture of hunger... What was he, stupid...? He wouldn't have been surprised... He's been accused of such things many times before. His biological family, his marks on occasion... People just seemed to see stupidity in the young ice dragon... Maybe, if so many people thought this about him... maybe they were right...

In anycase, Aeizith didn't have to go far to find a village, maybe a 20-30 minute walk from their house off in the forest, but it was all in ruins... Flaming, smoldering ruins as if it'd been attacked... marauded... There were bodies of all shapes and sizes, whole and pieces in the streets below, a complete massacre and genocide. Immediately, the young vampire landed in the burning streets below, completely unaffected by the wafting black smoke and the surrounding heat. Being a vampire, he didn't really need to breath (it made him feel alive) and it also made his skin somewhat tougher to intense temperatures... The things that disturbed him here were psychological... Maybe... this was Kaida's doing...? Did she sneak out of the house to go raid villages again...? No... it couldn't have been her... He'd have been alerted by his guards if she ever left the premises... so what else could've done this... As the little ice dragon wandered through the searing ruins of this place, buildings collapsed under their own burning weight, sending ash up into the air and fires burning higher into the early morning sky. Every so often, he found someone alive, choking, dying, their lungs crushed (among other things) by the smoke inhalation. They wouldn't live even if someone forced their soul back into their body and so... he did them both a favor. First, he snapped their necks with his hands and secondly, ripped out their throats with his teeth, drinking in their blood hesitantly, but needily, every time wiping his face clean. With the more blood he drank, the more his features started to fill and after 3 or 4 victims, the young vampire looked human once more... he looked alive... Suddenly, a large rumbling erupted from the ruins of a MASSIVE burning house, the rubble shivering and quaking as something underneath struggled to get free. Aeizith flinched as pillars of searing wood rolled away off each-other and through the blaze, the little ice dragon could see 4 glowing, angry red eyes.... Before he could even think of getting away, a MASSIVE explosion blasted him backwards, just outside the perimeter of the village, a pillar of massive flame EASILY VISIBLE from their house shooting up into the sky. With each passing second, the fire seemed to spread over the ceiling-of-the-world, blocking out the natural blue in exchange for the creeping orange.

Blink

Her slumber was very short lived as the smell of burning flesh entered her nostrils. Aeizith had already left and Silver was who knows where in the house but Kaida was still leaned into the couch by the door, a perfect place for smells to trickle in. The smell did not repulse her, but more offended her that someone dare burn down a village she had been saving for a special occasion. Kaida had happened up on it a while ago and decided to leave it be only due to the body count it held... for Aeizith. So much for that plan..

Sitting up Kaida took her time straightening up her clothing and combing through her hair with her fingers before finally setting foot outside the door. From there the site of flames engulfing the sky caught her attention. "Bet dramatic are we?" The site reminded her all too well of the way some beings were. To Kaida there was no need for all the flashy dramatics, yes you are here, yes you are powerful... whoop dee do. Taking one last moment to look around Kaida then started to walk towards the village, acting as if she were about to just take a stroll through the woods.

Silver heard the door open and immediately knew Kaida was up to something. Coming out from one of the rooms Silver stepped outside as well and took note of the flames shooting into the sky. Immediately concern flooded her as she knew Aeizith was probably headed that way. Unlike Kaida though who had already dissapeared into the trees Silver took off in a full on sprint towards the village. "Aeizith!" she screamed grabbing her daggers from each hip ready for anything that may stand in her way.

The screams of the villagers haunted the forest as Silver approached the other end of it, just before the village. By now the sky was nothing more than an eerie hue of oranges and reds, but not beautiful like the sunset Silver admired so much. No, this was more like the very gates of hell itself had opened up and god only knew what had crawled out of it. Once again Silver began scanning the area looking for Aeizith as he was sure to be somewhere in this carnage. With the help of her wind Silver was able to located him quickly and pinpoint where he was. At this moment Aeizith would feel a cool breeze brush past him before whipping around him and snaking its way through his clothing and hair. This was Silver's signature way of locating someone nearby, her wind just as intrusive as she would have been had she found him first.

Salzem

There was a certain majesty to the pillar of unnatural flame, more expressive an any painting, more enrapturing than any fire. The sky above danced wildly with a sort of energy the old world didn't possess, expressing oblivion and beyond more clearly than the flat blues could ever do. Perhaps it was there was magic in the air or some kind of powered force controlling this flame and all who witnessed it's glorious blaze, but Aeizith found it REALLY hard to not simply let himself be consumed to aid in it's burn... It's flame didn't seem to hurt, only to gesture playfully towards those who come near it's grasp, licking them with only the most honest and honorable of intentions.

A familiar wind brought the little ice dragon back to reality once more, one that slipped all under his clothes and through his hair like a 1000 hands, the realization of who it belonged to making him blush in no small amounts. He often wondered that Silver did this kind of thing on purpose, solely to elicit that kind of reaction, even if her main intention was merely to find out where he was. As the wind traveled back to it's owner, from the little dragon's palm small amounts of frosty dust would travel along it's current, softly falling from it's vehicle of transportation and settling all over the little half-elf innocently, though she might know better...

No time for playing pranks on one another, however the pillar of flames dispersed almost immediately, revealing but one monster in the shape of a knight, kneeling low, supporting itself with the point of it's blade:

Spoiler

The knight was nothing special in height, standing only about 8 or 9 feet, but that's where the lack of significance ended. His armor was as red as the fires in the sky, various holes carved into the helmet, steam wafting out from inside with the faintest echoing hiss. His legs were not that of a man, but of some kind of... goat? Fully plated and clasped in his armor. Finally, the being carried a sword, spreading broader at the tip than vice-versa in a typical blade, the smallest of flame dancing on the flat of the sword. The monster rose from it's spot on the ground slowly, taking it's time, showing no amount of pleasure or pain from the devistation it wrought... The knight simply glanced around, it's helmet gazing over each and every bit of desolate land, pausing only for a moment as his face turned in the directions of Kaida, Silver and Aeizith.... It seemed uninterested, bored even, raising it's free hand above it's head. Suddenly, claws of fire sprung up at the feet of Silver and Kaida, flaming manifestations of the knight dragging themselves up from the smoldering earth below.... while the knight pointed his unique blade at Aeizith...

Blink

The seriousness that Silver carried quickly faded away when the bit of frost touched her skin, melting from the warmth of her blood underneath. So he was alright, he was alive... this was good. Even if sometimes she did not show it Silver thought the world of Aeizith, constantly worried if today would be the day she finally lost him. It was sad to think that was how her mind worked, thinking that every moment she saw him could be the last. Who could blame her though based on past incidences. Silver was so used to having everything ripped away from her she thought surely it was only a matter of time until it happened again. Her giggle smile though turned when she noticed the ground erupting just in front of her, where first hands and then an entire manifestation of a creature she thought strange was emerging.

Tightening her grip on each dagger in hand Silver took a defensive stance to the creature. Raising a brow she challenged the creature, beckoning it to even try. "Fire?" biting her lip she did her best to suppress a smirk crawling at the edge of her lips. "I always found it to be... irrelevant." Then without moving Silver's eyes trailed to the space surrounding the manifestation, concentrating on removing as much oxygen as she could from the air. Silver had always preferred to use this ability in a closed space, it was so much easier to control. Out on the open like this though required a great deal of concentration as air would always be leaking into the space she was trying to remove it from. The fire surrounding the manifestation though did react as it began to flicker out.... all fire needs oxygen to grow. The elven girl waited until she saw a moment of hesitation before she lunged forwards at the creature, attempting to cut it down as quickly as possible.

Kaida was shocked that the demon that had emerged had located her so easily. There were at least three of her clones in the forest by this time and it had managed to look past every single one towards her. Sharing almost the same expression as Silver did Kaida seemed almost amused that this demon thought it could take her on. Was this not always the case? A threat seeing her as only a small and frail girl, with skin so pail and a form so tiny who wouldn't? However beneath that skin lay a monster awaiting to be awoken, one she was constantly keeping hidden from those around her. Cocking her head to the side Kaida snickered, not even bothering to reach for any kind of weapon... she never needed one and today would be no exception. Even as the creature manifested a copy of itself before her she simply snickered, almost mocking it. "You're kidding right?"

Then as if a switch had been flipped with no warning Kaida multiplied into five copies of herself, each one synchronized in its movements as they surrounded the manifestation. "I have no time for you. My eyes are set on a bigger prize." From there the real copy of Kaida broke from the formation, leaving another clone in its place. She had meant every word of her statement, she had no time for puppets. She wanted the being that created all of this, the one that thought it had the right to destroy this world only because it thought it could. How arrogant, how naive.. how stupid. If anything was going to push Kaida's buttons right now it was this. Someone who thought they were entitled to destroy the lives of whomever it wanted around it, as if every living soul was a puppet in the game they were playing. As if there were no repercussions to its actions because it was merely hiding behind a web weaved, one that it thought was impenetrable.

That was what most evil being's weakness was though.. thinking they had such a perfect plan in place that no one would ever find out the truth. It all rang to true for Kaida, having experienced it first hand. Always having looked up to someone she thought was a force of nature, turning out to be nothing more than a fake. Someone who built an empire thinking they had the world in her fingertips only to have it all ripped away in an instant leaving those beneath her to sort out the rubble on their own. Kaida had gone from bothered to a full on rage as she stomped towards her brother and the real demon.

Salzem

Little did Kaida know, this wasn't a being that worked on plans or deception or anything she might've come to expect from a being such as he. This was a creature of Valor, of combat... Aeizith's eyes widened as he stared at the knight that stood before him... this wasn't a mere monster or demon... He had seen his picture before back in the old Citadel's massive library... Emilia had always wanted them to stay informed about the world as the best ally was an informed one, she used to say... It all came back to him now... This was a god...

"F-Fides..." Aeizith muttered, taking a step back in sheer shock. A Fire God summoned from a soul that keeps fighting no matter how many times it tastes defeat... With each swing of it's sword, the world's filth is burned away. That was his description... his purpose for being there... To cleanse the world, wasn't it...? Why else would this being be here, on a plane such as this OTHER than to burn everything away? As another copy went to engage Kaida, Silver attempted to strike at the main body from behind with her daggers, but the more distance the closed, the more unbearable the heat around the monster became, the stone under it's feet literally melting away and their air around it shimmering with the most squiggly of effects. Aeizith felt his own magic begin to wear down within the aura of such a beast, His ice completely useless within it's aura... He was going to need to fight it one on one... Before Silver could reach Fides, it raised it's blade and rushed Aeizith, the little dragon yelping in surprise as he raised his own curved daggers to defend himself. The knight clomped across the cobble-stone ground towards the dragon with quick, massive strides, closing the distance between them near instantly, swinging his blade in a downward slash towards the young vampire.

Seeing the monster's strength was FAR too much for the being to absorb with his own, Aeizith leaped to the side, rolling away as the metal met earth, a pillar of flame erupting out into the sky despite the lack of oxygen. The knight wasn't done yet however as it whirled towards it's fleeing opponent, using his momentum to swipe at Aeizith's chest with the broad-flat edge of the sword, again dodged, but only just, a long burn-strike across his chest where the edge barely met his jacket... Fides then seemed to halt where he stood and, spontaneously, he tossed his blade away, spinning off into the sky before disappearing into the flames above.... The young vampire watched in surprise as the monster seemingly willingly disarmed himself... before it thrusted it's hands forward, making a circular motion with it's arms in front of it, a circular vortex of fire forming where the monster had traced... Then, as if it lead to a pocket-dimension, the monster reached into the fire and pulled out... an even bigger and more grand blade, massive even by it's own standards, easily capable of splitting the world in two, or so it seemed... The little frost dragon's eyes boggled in horror as this being approached him with this godly weapon in hand, flames sprouting up and dying out wherever he stepped...

Blink

Kaida seemed to realize it just after Aiezith of the identity of the beast when he uttered its name. She was caught momentarily off guard as another manifestation of it headed her way and it managed to claw at one of her arms. For the first time in decades Kaida had been injured, a scratch across her nearly perfect porcelain skin. Immediately this action snapped her back into reality and she responded in the only way she knew how. Most of the time her tactics of cloning and illusions was simply to intimidate her opponents, but fighting against this it would not work. Splitting into two Kaida's original form fled to her brother, aware that there was no way she could defeat this beast on her own, neither could he. For the first time in what felt like ions she was willing to stand beside him, to lend her power to aid in getting rid of this abomination. Meanwhile her clone was left behind to destruct the clone the god had created itself.

"Aieizith I am here" all she could say as she watched her brother stare on in horror. "We can do this." The way Kaida spoke was unlike anything Aieizith would have heard from her before. It was not the voice of a sobbing or bullying sister, it was one of concern and seriousness. Kaida had taken on an expression completely new to her... comradely. Splitting up once more into three different versions of herself her clones ran ahead towards the god in hopes of fracturing its attention even if it were for only a second. From there Kaida shifted into her dragon form, the scales far more durable than her fragile mortal flesh. Even so in her dragon form a wound was present on one of her shoulders, the blood trickling down across her scales.

Silver stood in shock for a moment as she watched the creature swap weapons with something more powerful. Even she had her limits and this seemed a task too impossible to face. Still, Aeizith was here and so she would fight... for him. Once more she attempted to focus her attention on removing more oxygen from around the god, dimming its fire if even for only a moment.

Salzem

Aeizith's eyes immediately flicked over to Kaida as she dealt with the God's clone, standing beside him and offering her.... support...? She wasn't chastizing him for his weakness or even going off on her own in some kind of attempt to make him feel inferior... for once, Kaida was actively supporting him... Silver then stood with him as well (though not necessarily besides), Enveloping the god in a vacuum as Kaida engaged the monster directly... All for him...The little frost dragon wanted to cry, to envelop his family in a hug that could express and reciprocate the love they had shown him in this moment, but now wasn't the time for that... Now was a time for action and this was action to behold... Using the opportunity his family had given him, Aeizith let out a roar and he unleashed all his cryomantic power at once, the whole ground immediately freezing over under their feet. Ice and snow, frost and rock began to coagulate around the frost dragon, growing into a large mound of stuff and things, pieces of house, corpses, grass and dirt, all of that melding into a frosty being... The mound began to take shape...

The flames around Fides dwindled for but a moment, Silver's removal of the atmosphere only the smallest of obsticles for a being such as him... With magical reserves large enough to power his flames, Fides erupted in fire once more as Kaida advanced in her dragon from, attempting to be some kind of distraction. She was hardly as big as the knight that stood before her rushing him down as if a lion could rush down a boar. With one swing of his free hand, the flaming knight caused the space in front of Kaida to EXPLODE, archs and pillars from hell blasted outwards and tore the ground there apart, encompassing the area where Kaida and her three clones charged.

Focusing on his magic, Aeizith's avatar grew and grew until it reached an incredible size of 40 feet tall, a colossus of titanic preportions... He could've made it even bigger, but that would've endangered his family even more and it would be weaker due to it's size as well as drain him much faster... Besides his Void-Ice, this was his trump Card... A MASSIVE dragon armored with the debris that came with the ice almost like scales, its teeth Icicles the size of men, it's flesh barbed snowey dunes, It's eyes glowing a sinister red as Aeizith rested inside it's skull, piloting the beast...

Spoiler
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Fides glanced up at the monster towering before him, not even flinching as the massive dragon let out a roar that would've batted away anything less than what he was.

Blink

Kaida could see Aeizith begin to grow emotional and even in her dragon form could not help but roll her eyes. It would be just like him to get all sentimental in a moment like this when their very lives were on the line, he still had so far to go...

But then he took it upon himself to take action instead and began forming into a creature both Silver and Kaida did not recognize. Yet another suprise that he lay out on the battlefield, just as before when Kaida had approached him at his tree house many months ago. How strong had he grown? The both watched as much as they could all the while trying to distract the beast. Kaida though remained more distracted at Aeizith's transformation and was surprised when a large explosion seemed to happen right before her eyes. All she saw was a flash of red as well as the ember and ash of her now destroyed human clones. She would have been lying if she didn't say fear struck her at her core in this moment, but she couldn't show it... not ever. Even if she was the youngest she would always show how determined she was for their futures, the future of the remaining Black-Hearth siblings. Closing her eyes Kaida was enveloped in flames, seeming to dis sapear in the area that was now a burning hellfire pit.

Silver continued on despite everything else happening around her, she kept pushing through each barrier that seemed to present itself before her. She would not give up, not ever.. she would do this for Aeizith. Even if it took every ounce of her energy and was only the slightest help she would continue pulling the oxygen from the fire that seemed to never end. As some of the flames cleared Kaida emerged, seemingly unscathed, her scales still smoking from the incredible heat they had just protected her from. Still in her dragon form she looked back at Silver who gave a nod, Kaida now knowing full well that Silver had saved her in that moment and protected her from a near death experience.... dammit.


Salzem

As Silver saved Kaida from the hellscape Fides has constructed in that moment, the massive ice-avatar of Aeizith let out a screeching roar that seemed to shake the very foundations of the planet's crust around them, snow and ice flying up from the ground, the sky, each and every chunk of frozen ice and snow coagulating just outside of his mouth, rearing up on his hind legs, his neck stretched up into the air. Slowly, more and more ice smashing into the rotating, swirling, spinning, expanding ball of cryomantic energy, the raw matter being converted into magic. Light blue bolts of magic energy blasted down and across the land from the ball randomly, every where it touched causing tree-sized icicles to spring up from the ground, stabbing through massive foliage, rock, and anything else nearby with ease. All of Aeizith's magical energy was going into this one attack, one that banish the essence of this god of fire from the planet...

Fides didn't seemed disturbed in the least that the little drake managed to avoid his flaming-hell... In fact, he was glad because now she'd stay away and he could focus on the REAL dragon charging it's energy right in front of him. Taking up a defensive stance, Fides raised his blade behind his head, almost in a way a batter might, intent on deflecting the blast.

Slowly, the HUGE ball of snowy energy, perhaps twice the size of Aeizith's avatar itself, began to shrink, to compress, growing smaller and smaller, until it was about the size of a man's fist, but the magic was titanic.... Anyone that could feel the power from this little ball of energy knew that if one was hit by this.... it wasn't coming back... Stretching upwards a little farther, Aeizith reached up and bit down on the ball, sucking it into his mouth before leveling his head down, level with the god. Suddenly, the Dragon's body expanded unnaturally, contorting in shape as his belly exploded to 3 times it's normal size, a hiss of sub-zero icy mist escaping from between it's teeth. The sheer energy from this technique seemed too much for the dragon too control, too much for it to handle before release... but then Aeizith opened his mouth...

The moment his mouth reached it's maximum open distance, A HUGE beam of dark blue energy shot from his throat, ripping across the land, its mere presence shoving Kaida and Silver out of it's path before it even got within a threatening distance. Icy electricity shot out and blasted Fides before the brunt of the blast even struck, sending waves of mist to erupt between the battle of hot and cold. And then... the beam struck...

As the sword struck the magic blast, it sent a shockwave across the land so powerful, it uprooted trees, shattered the earth where the two beasts of power stood, even separated the flames in the sky above where they clashed. Aeizith pooled more and more of his own energy into empowering the blast... but Fides simply had more... It took one step, then another, the beam seeming to bounce off and around the flat of the blade he used to defend himself, that what it struck exploding into ICE-BURGS of pure frost. Even with all of this... He needed more power...

Blink

Both Kaida and Silver stared on in awe as Aeizith's form seemed to dominate the scene. However, both knocked down by the power blast that came with it. Silver was able to keep her bearings simply by bending the air around her, lessening the blow of it. However, the moment the blast struck Fide's sword both of them were knocked off of their feet, Kaida able to balance herself a bit with her wings. The same could not be said for Silver as she blew backwards, the blast too much. Tumbling and then rolling on the ground she lay where she stopped in complete disbelief that Aeizith contained such power.

Kaida was nothing more than beaming with pride at her brother. What a magnificent creature he had evolved into, one worthy of the Black-Hearth name. Even if he had almost blasted her away. But she could see he was still not enough and so it was time to pull her weight. Hoisting herself into the sky by flapping her wings Kaida took off in Fides's direction opening her maw to let out a screech louder than anything she had produced in a long time. The waves of it alone enough to make it seem the world was vibrating around her. Screeching as loud as she could she continued flying at Fides, turning and weaving away from any attack he may have sent at her.

Silver finally sat up noticing how Kaida was at it again in trying to disrupt the god. They may hate each other, but at least they had the same end goal and that was to help Aeizith. With a new sense of urgency she stood up taking in a deep breath concentrating all of her energy on Fides. Taking off in a full on sprint towards Fides Silver felt like an insect in comparison to the others fighting, but this insect packed a serious punch. Clearly removing the oxygen from his fire was not working, she was going to have to resort to her last option... lightning. The mere thought scared her more than she wanted to admit, the last time she used it turning into a horrible incident. Even though there were risks, Aeizith was worth it.

As she ran she allowed the energy to build within herself almost to the point she felt the next thing she touched would explode from the energy itself. Clearly she could not get as close as she would have liked to Fides, his hellfire too much for her mortal flesh. So she ran until she could not stand the heat anymore and then she stopped, glaring at the god now before her. The fact her ears were practically bleeding, a side effect of Kaida's screeching, was causing her equilibrium to be thrown off a bit. She could see the edges of her world beginning to warp and her head was pounding something feirce. Still she pushed through and let out a scream of her own as several bolts of lightning started to rain down from the sky.

It hurt, the pain of lightning entering and exiting her body over and over again. She wanted to cry and scream and for it to be over, but it wasn't. Her lightning was barely even a scratch to this god, Silver was nothing more than an insect. But still she continued pushing and pulling hoping that she was helping in some way, ready for this to be done.

Salzem

Despite the insane power difference between Fides and the rest of them, between Aeizith's blast and the increadibly powerful distractions both Kaida and Silver were offering from the shockwaves of screams to MASSIVE bolts of lighting, The minor fire-god couldn't help but divide his attention between the two. Taking a hand off his blade he reached out his arm to blast the pair away, but suddenly, his one-arm gave out and his sword fell back, unable to stand up to the blast Aeizith had maintained. In a flash, the icy energies consumed the monster, pouring through the chinks in his armor, temperatures below measurement blasting through mind, body and soul, absorbing and breaking down all it came into contact with... and suddenly... in that moment... it was over... Aeizith's icy dragon-avatar collapsed and the the little dragon along with it, lying completely drained atop a pile of snow. 20 meters where the god once stood a Pillar of Ice shot up from the ground, the god's armor, hollow and inert frozen within... The ice it was encased in radiated with such magic that should anyone touch it, anyone but Aeizith, they would suffer the coldest chill able to exist in their world, one that froze someone from the soul-on-out.

Slowly, the little ice dragon rose from his pillow of sand and rubble, stumbling down it's edge before making his way over to Silver, injured by her lighting... Right now, he had little Magical energy to spare to help cool her wounds, but that wasn't what he had initially in mind either... Softly, gently, he would take the little half-elf in his arms and kiss her with such passion and love, one would think he was trying to start something then and there. He stared into her light purple eyes with his sanguine, sighing softly...

"I'm so lucky..." he murmured, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb. "T-that I kn-know you..." If she needed support to walk, Aeizith would gladly help her, wrapping her arm around his neck, his naturally lower body temperature providing some kind of relief to the burns she might've suffered from her lightning attacks. He would then walk over to Kaida, smiling at his younger sister with a sort of pride only an older brother could possess.

"And you, Kaida... I'm so proud of you... Thank you so much for helping me... Lets all go home..."

Blink

Kaida fell back at Aeizith's last blow, knowing that the event had finally ended. Lowering herself to the ground she slowly shifted back into her human form, her feet lightly touching the ground in the last moments of her transformation. Before she knew it Aeizith was standing in front of her with Silver in tow and he was thanking her. The young dragoness beamed with pride at the compliment, for once feeling like she did the right thing. "You didn't get in the way too much I guess." The best compliment one could hope for from her. But at his mention of going home Kaida paused, not following him back towards where they came. In truth Kaida felt like she had no home, her presence a bother to Silver and honestly it was boring. "I'm not coming back yet, I'm not ready. I see now that you can handle yourself and for that I am proud, but I need to work on myself." The seriousness in her voice was one she did not display often. She meant everything she said, she needed to figure her own life out before living it with Aeizith and Silver.

"I love you brother and this is goodbye for now." Turning on her feet she started off in the opposite direction. After getting a few feet away she looked over her shoulder to give one last endearing goodbye. "I promise I will stop by when its most inconvenient!" and with that she disappeared into the forest.

Silver truly was hurt from her lightening blasts and thankful that Aeizith knew that she would be. After he kissed her so gently he helped her stand allowing her to fling an arm over his shoulder to brace herself. She was very weak, but he probably was to. As Kaida talked she was almost nodding off not really paying attention to anything she said, except the last bit. "Of course.." all she could say before turning to Aeizith to gauge how he was handling it. Silver knew this would be a blow to hurt him, but they could deal with that later. And so the two walked home, both wounded and hurt yet happy with the end result. "I love you..." her voice a whisper in his ear, one that she knew he would be ecstatic to hear. On this day, he truly had shown her how much she could depend on him to keep himself alive, and not only him but his family... soon she would be telling him her biggest secret of all.

-x- TIMESKIP

Two weeks had passed since the interaction with Fides and Kaida's endearing farewell. Things had pretty much gone back to how they should have been, except for there was no more Silver Kaida arguments for Aeizith to referee. Thankfully though Aeizith appeared to be less stressed than before, most likely due to Silver's constant nagging that he eat properly. The road to recovery from her wounds was a rough one and even today she still bore some markings on her hands but nothing like before. Silver was lucky that not a single one of her lightning bolts backlashed on her causing a wound that would have no doubt sent the two on a search for the origin of the blood that had healed her before. Instead Silver kept her hands wrapped to keep the still sensitive skin covered until it fully healed, but other than that they were still fully functional.

As Silver often did she was sitting outside of the house in the grass, looking at the sun that was about to set. It was always the sun that seemed to draw her and remind her how much she truly loved the hues it created. Today though she seemed to be focussing on it more than normal, as if a thought was baking in the back of her mind. Knowing that he was surely somewhere near Silver pulled her gaze from the setting sun for just a moment to find him standing in front of the house. "Aeizith..." she paused to allow him to come closer. "I have been thinking..."

Taking in a deep and shaky breath she looked back at the sun not really sure how to say what she needed to say. "I have been observing you for quite some time as you know. From the moment I realized I wanted to stay around I have been gauging everything you do whether you know it or not. What I have noticed is that you are a good person A." Silver giggled a bit thinking of all the adorable things Aeizith did. "You protect no matter what and take in family even if they are the worst." Turning back to him once more she was still smiling, but behind her smile was a secret. "Tomorrow I want to take you somewhere. Kind of like the time we went to my clan's old hideout. It will take a few hours to get there but I think... I think it will be worth it."

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