Ascending Legends

[BookWyrm]

Dayn walked over to Arryn and took her hand, his heart breaking to see her in such a state. "No, I'm fine love." It was only a partial lie. He hadn't been hurt, but he wasn't feeling himself either. He reached up and cupped her cheek as he squeezed her hand. "Its good to see you awake. Mum asked me to get Theodas, they should be able to do something for your pain."

 

[Dragongal]

"Oh... Ok. You'll stay with me, though... right?" She lightly ran her thumb over his hand, smiling weakly up to him. She wasn't trying to guilt him, she just wanted his company.


Lenza want into another room, looking for a crystal to use. She was certain she had something that would be suitable. Theodas walked over and whispered to Dayn, "Preparation might take a little bit, since I'm no mage. But it should be fast after that," before walking off to assist Lenza.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn nodded to Theodas before turning back to Arryn. "Of course I will. I can stay with you all day, if you want." I just can't stay with you tonight love.

 

[Dragongal]

"Only... if you want to." Arryn thought for a few moments. "I had a lot of weird dreams, and I got confused at a few points, but... isn't tonight the full moon? Did you... y'know... tell them?"





Theodas returned with a clear crystal chunk approximately the size of a half-dollar. He nodded to Dayn and Arryn, then cleared off a space on the table, took some chalk, and got to work drawing runes and a runic circle, setting the crystal in the middle. "I need a source of light, um... the window's over there, so I guess some candles might do?" Lenza nodded, then walked out to find some candles.





"Love? What is he... doing?"

 

[BookWyrm]

"Yes. They all know."





As Theodas entered the room Dayn looked over at what he was setting up. "Its okay Arryn," he turned back to her and squeezed her hand, "Its to going to help. Here." Dayn gently took his weapons belt off and laid it under the bed before lifting her carefully before sitting down behind her and letting her lay back against him. "There, is that better?"

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn nodded happily, leaning her head back against his chest. "Thanks, love."





Theodas placed the candles and let them, letting the light glow before quietly chanting in some forgotten Elvish. A few moments later, he blew out the candles and picked up the crystal, which now shone with light. He walked over to the pair, gently saying, "Okay, this is going to hurt. We're gonna cut your hand and you're gonna hold this crystal, alright Arryn?"





Arryn held her hand to her chest protectively. "You can't cut my hand, my blood burns me...."

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn reached out and laid a reassuring hand on Arryn's shoulder. "Its okay love, it's going to help you." He took his other hand and grasped her free hand, knowing that this was going to hurt them both. "Will you try it love, please? I'll be right here. I'm not going anywhere."

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn nodded and hesitantly held out her hand. Theodas made a very small, very precise cut on her palm, but the little blood that did escape still burned as it spread over her skin. He put the crystal in her hand, closing her fingers around it, and then the real fun started. Her whole body hurt borribly, like fire was in her veins, then the pain in her heart specifically got worse and worse until it became almost unbearable, then all of the pain faded over the course of a few seconds, and Theodas took the crystal from her, which was now opaque black. She leaned limply back against Dayn, panting, absolutely exhausted.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn leaned back, thanking the gods that Arryn didn't see him during that whole ordeal. He had shared in the pain, even if it had just been a portion of it. He had shut his eyes, clenched his teeth, and held onto her hand until the whole thing was said and done. Now he lay back against the headboard, still holding her hand and gently rubbing her neck and shoulder. "You see, its all over. You did good love." He leaned down and kissed her head before laying his head back. He looked to Theodas, nodding his head slightly as he smiled. "Thank you."

 

[Dragongal]

Theodas smiled and nodded. "I have to go find a proper way to dispose of this. Just letting loose raw black magic can have terrible consequences. There may yet be a small amount inside of her, but seeing as how she's not reacting to her blood on her skin, there's either none left or too little to really matter. We can always do this again. Now, she needs rest, and Dayn, it looks like you do too. Both of you, sleep." He smiled again, then left the room, wondering what he could do with such a crystal. Libro would know.


"No... problem... with that," Arryn panted. When she caught her breath, she sighed, then nuzzled up closer to Dayn, already drifting toward sleep, happy that he was back with her again.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn smiled as he scooted down in the bed some to get comfortable before dosing off himself. He dreamed of the full moon rising above the trees as he stood over a mangled corpse. He could smell the blood and viscera, even taste the metallic twang in his mouth as his eyes focused on the person that had once been alive. He felt his heart stop when he realized it was Addy and Lillian. He threw his head back to scream only to hear a howl escape his lips. That was when the spear haft stuck into his shoulder. Dayn whirled around in a rage, his claw brought around and cleaving into Matthias' throat. In horror Dayn looked at his hand, trying to comprehend what was going on before feeling something drive straight through his heart.


Dayn opened his eyes and instantly looked at his hands. When he saw neither blood nor dead bodies, and Arryn thankfully still asleep against him, Dayn laid his head back and breathed, realizing that he had been holding his breath since he woke up. Slowly he was able to drift back to sleep.

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn woke only a few times, and each for only a few moments. Around three in the evening, Lenza walked in with a tray laden with Northern and Southern foods, as well as a tea for Arryn and Dayn. "Wake up kids, sun's setting in about an hour. Moonlight won't hit the are til a bit later thanks to the mountains, but wake up anyway." Arryn sat up a bit, moving so she sat next to Dayn as she took the tray from her mother. It was mostly fruits and bread-based foods, but there were some meats thrown in too. Arryn ate little, as she wasn't hungry since she was still occasionally experiencing mild spasms of pain from her magic readjusting, but she was considerably better, despite her palor and the rings around her eyes. She smiled to Dayn and took his hand. "We're going out tonight, right?"

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn could feel the onset of night approaching. It felt like a sudden and strange tingling or excitement inside him. But despite the suddenly strange feeling, Dayn didn't have much of an appetite. He nibbled on some of the food, finding it oddly difficult to eat despite the fact that he hadn't eaten all day. "I have half a mind to say no, you are staying inside," he started, "but the other half knows that telling you no would upset you. And deep down, my heart is yelling at me to stay with you tonight." Dayn gave a weak smile and a slight chuckle. "As long as you promise me you won't put yourself in danger on my behalf I'll consent."

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled, nuzzling against him playfully. "Then I'll only put myself in danger for myself. Ok?" She sighed, and said, "You know... I think I've eaten my fill.... I'm going to go take a bath. You should go shave. We have time." She kissed him lightly on the cheek and swung her legs off the edge of the bed, putting her weight on them carefully. Her knees wobbled, but not too badly, she could walk fine. She felt a pang in her hand and glanced at it, but ignored it for the most part, after all, it was just her body resetting.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn watched her walk out of the room, partly to make sure she made it around okay, though it didn't hurt that her posterior was rather alluring as well. He stood up and stretched before walking off to find what he needed to shave. He managed to find a straight razor and shave soap from his pack before finding a mirror and borrowed some warm water from Arryn. He had soaped up and begun shaving when he noticed the color of his eyes. Well, it is a full moon tonight. Once he finished he looked at himself in the mirror before using a towel to dry his face off. When he looked back in the mirror he was met by the stare of a black furred wolf with the same piercing green eyes that he had. It was there only long enough for him to blink before it disappeared.


Shaking his head Dayn walked back into the main room as he waited for Arryn and the others.

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn finished up, dried, and got dressed, waling out to meet Dayn. She was still pale and her eyes still had dark rings, but at least she wasn't a complete mess anymore. She sat in one of the chairs and set to braiding her hair. She paused. "Should I bring my weapons belt? I'm bringing my dagger and medical pack, but anything else?"





Kalie, Matthias, and Theodas walked in at that moment, having been let in by Lenza. Theodas looked a bit tired, but the other two seemed prepared for ewhatever was about to happen. "Where are we going to do this all...?"

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn shrugged his shoulders. "You wouldn't happen to have a lost elven garden nearby would you? Anywhere that won't draw attention." Dayn looked back at Arryn. "No, I think we've got that covered." He stopped for a second, taking time to look down at his hand. Both of his hands were trembling. He tried his best to close them into fists, but it seemed to be more tiresome than usual. "Where ever we go we need to try and get there in a timely manner."

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn stood up and smiled, taking his hand in hers. She nodded to her friends, "Woodland barn." They nodded in reply and got moving. A short while later, after having trekked through some of the deeper wooded areas, the remains of an old wooden barn could be found. It was large, and very delapidated, but structurally stable still. The doors on one side stood wide open, the doors on the other side able to be opened if necessary. A loft was overhead with a staircase leading up to it. "Guys, stay out here for now, he'll shift inside, and I'll be with him. We're going to see how this goes, okay? Don't do anything until I tell you to." She trusted their discipline. Still holding Dayn's hand, she led him inside, out of view of the others. There were numerous holes in the roof providing some light. She kissed him, then walked over to the ladder and perched on a rung. "Alright.... Do your thing."

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn undressed himself and laid the clothing off to the side to come back for later. He looked around, trying to find the spot where the moon was shining down before stepping into the beam of concentrated lunar rays. His whole body shuddered as he stepped into the light, the shift happening shortly after the rays touched his skin. Similar to the first time and during Samhein, this shift was painful. Dayn gasped when it first started, not expecting the pain that came shooting through his body. Whatever it was about the full moon, whether it was the concentrated lunar energy or some other reason, it made the shift different.


Dayn landed on his hands and knees as his body contorted, finally revealing the wolf inside him after the painful shift came to it's end. His body steamed in the cool air as he whined and whimpered, the residual pain slowly subsiding. He opened his piercing green eyes and stood up, still whining as his body protested the movement. <Arryn?>

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn stepped down from her spot by the ladder and moved over to him, very gently petting his head like she had when this had first happened. "Right here, love. I'll let them in in one second. Do you want to lay down until you're more used to it? It's okay, I understand if it hurt." She ran her fingers lightly through his fur, smiling to him. She hid that inside, she still felt slight pangs of pain that had begun when the sun set. They were minor, so she ignored them. She turned toward the open door and called, "It's safe, guys, you can come in if you like." The three entered, glancing over Dayn despite the fact that they'd seen him before, and took a seat on a large old table by the door.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn had laid down as Arryn had suggested. He still hurt, and moving didn't make it feel any better. He watched the others enter, noting that they put some distance between him and themselves, before sitting down. His body spasmed as it was still trying to adjust,which elicited a yelp as his claws dug marks into the ground. He whined as the tension slowly relaxed over his whole body. <Is there anything that could hold water? I'm dry.>

 

[Dragongal]

"Sure.... Um, lemme think...." Arryn had brought her medical pack, including her filled canteen. She sat down in front of him, and poured some water from the canteen into her hand. "Here, drink as much as you like and I'll just refill my hand from the canteen, ok?" When he was done, she slowly, gently petted him, rubbing behind his ears and under his chin periodically.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn lapped up the water gratefully, though he tried not to drool all over Arryn to the best of his ability. He finally stopped after the fourth handful before laying his head down into her lap. He figured the first hour or so would be readjusting to this body. It seemed like every time he experienced a new painful shift it changed his form slightly. He was filled out more, though in a good way. <Are those three okay? They have been staring at me since they sat down.> Dayn's eyes drifted over to Matthias, Kalie, and Theodas. <They can come closer if they want. It's just me.>

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn shook her head, then chuckled quietly, still petting Dayn. "No, love, they're on guard. Resting attention, kind of. I haven't put them at ease yet." She looked over to them and said, "At ease, guys, only one near the door at a time should be enough... we don't want some hunter finding us. If you want, you guys can take shifts napping in the loft." All three of them visibly relaxed. They exchanged glances, muttering to each other, and Theodas decided to stay by the door since he had the best ears of the three. Matthias and Kalie walked over. "Kalie needs a vantage point in the loft for shooting, is it okay if we stay up there?" "Sure, just watch for the missing flooring in places." Matthias nodded, letting Kalie up the ladder, standing to the side in case she'd need assistance, which of course she didn't. He was just very protective over her. He climbed the ladder and sat on the top rung, claiming that as his vantage point. Theodas sat up and crossed his legs at the ankles on the table. Arryn smiled, and went back to gently petting Dayn.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn relaxed his head back into Arryn's lap and closed his eyes. He wasn't used to having so many people actually around him like this, especially people protecting him while he was wolfed. He appreciated the extra support though. After a half hour or he opened his eyes again. He felt like trying to move around a little bit. He tried to stand, pushing through a couple of spasms before he finally made it to his feet. He whimpered slightly, the pain causing a couple of tears to slide down his muzzle. <I'm going to try and stretch out everything.> He leaned his shoulders down, sticking his front out into a painful stretch. He whined as he lowered himself further into it, doing his best not to yelp. Slowly, carefully, he set about stretching the rest of his body out, though in the end he stood in front of Arryn and trembled in pain. <That feels....slightly better. I'm still sore though. And hungry.>