Ascending Legends

[BookWyrm]

Dayn practically puffed up at the compliment. But the talk of leaving such a dangerous thing inside her body just to use it to detect dark magic seemed like idiocy to him. When Arryn fell Dayn yelped, feeling the backlash of the pain in his own chest. He leaned up against Arryn, more for her support than anything, and growled quietly in frustration. <Honestly, how much can this dwarf talk about something before he does it?>

 

[Dragongal]

"Patience, I assume...." Arryn was quietly panting now, but the pain was passing. "Do you agree to a purification ritual? It requires full consent." Arryn nodded quickly. "It will take a bit of time to prepare. You all can stay by the hearth while i work." "I will assist how I can." "Alright, then, come along. We'll do it in the back room, while they wait here." Theodas and Libro walked between the bookshelves, out of sight, leaving Arryn and Dayn alone. She stood stiffly and walked closer to the hearth before sitting down and sighing heavily. "I'm glad you're with me, love. I'm sorry so many bad things have been happening."

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn leaned his head over and nuzzled Arryn's cheek. <None of this is your fault love. But even though these things are happening, we are here together. That's all that matters when it comes down to it.> Dayn laid down, letting her rest against him. <Now, get some more rest. I'll be right here with you for the whole thing.>

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled and leaned back against Dayn. "Thank you, love." Falling asleep was not hard at all. She ran her fingers through his fur for a few minutes, before sleep took her. In the back room, Theodas was double-checking everything and anything to make sure nothing would go wrong. After about an hour, he came and gently woke Arryn and Dayn, taking them to a smaller room in the back. Pure white chalk marked runes and a circle, three lines intersecting to find a perfect center. "Heart, mind, spirit," Arryn muttered. Many , many candles were lit, some in the gound and others raised to maximize light, torches were set in the wall along with large glowing crystal chunks, and pure clear crystals were methodically placed on the floor. Libro smiled. "Indeed. Now, this is going to be painful. Do you want a sleeping draught so you won't feel it?" Arryn looked to Dayn questioningly, and maybe a bit nervously, like a child with a doctor. She knew this would help, but she didn't like the idea of the ritual very much.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn nudged her hand with his head, whining quietly. <It is your choice, but I don't want to see you suffer any more love.> If it was going to be anything like the other crystal, which was more than likely mild compared to what this was going to be, Dayn would rather her not be awake for it. But he wasn't going to force her if she didn't want to.

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled to Dayn, trying to hide her nerves. Though of course, there was no point since Dayn was now empathically tied to her. “I’ll take the potion,” she said. Libro nodded and pulled out a vial he’d had prepared, giving it to her. Arryn looked at it hesitantly for a moment before taking off her pack and setting it down, then opening the vial and forcing it down. She handed the empty vial back to Libro as she waited for the draught to take effect. It was surprisingly swift, she could feel her senses dulling and her head swimming, her vision getting dark around the edges. She leaned on Dayn before her knees gave out,and mere moments later she’d given into the draught and lost consciousness. Theodas leaned down and very gently picked her up, carefully carrying her into the middle of the circle to lay her down, being extremely careful to not smudge any of the chalk.


Unlike Theodas, who had no magic abilities, Libro did, so he didn’t need to use an incantation for such a “simple” ritual. The lights in the room dimmed for a moment, even the crystals in the walls, the chalk on the ground flared with light, and it was done. Had she been awake the pain would have been excruciating beyond measure, and probably have taken longer because of her resistance, but she merely stirred slightly before laying still again. Libro reached down and picked up a small, absolutely opaque black crystal. “She’ll need some time to readjust, but it’s over now. I’ll dispose of this safely.”


Theodas looked down to Dayn, and said, “There was clothing for you in her pack. Do you want to carry her back, or shall I? I doubt she’d like you walking on that ankle, but then again, she’s your girl. It’s up to you. I’m fine with carrying her.”

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn held his breath during the whole ritual, anxiously waiting for it to finally be over. Low and behold it took less time than he had expected. He finally exhaled, beyond glad she hadn't been awake for it. Dayn looked up to Theodas as he spoke. Did he want to try and carry her back? It wasn't about trust, in truth Dayn had learned to rely on Theodas, Matthias, Kalie, and Lenza more in the past few days than he would have ever expected. Dayn thought he might give it a shot at least. But as he closed his eyes and focused on shifting he felt a spasm shot pain throughout his whole body. He yelped, cringing for a second before looking to Theodas and shaking his head. It seemed that until he healed better he would stay in wolf form.

 

[Dragongal]

Theodas nodded. “It’s likely for the best. she’d probably be mad at you when she woke if you’d carried her.” Theodas picked up her pack then moved to the center of the circle and gently picked her up. He nodded thanks to Libro and the two departed. As they walked back, Theodas said, “You know, she’s real lucky she found you. And you her, too. You’re a really great pair.” He glanced at him and said, “There was a time, I might have been jealous of you. But not for a while now. I’m honestly very happy for the two of you. Last night, when she was hurting, you said something that made her smile. I couldn’t have done that in such a situation. I’m honestly glad she has you.”

 

[BookWyrm]

As Theodas gathered Arryn and her pack Dayn walked up to Libro and laid his head against the old dwarf's chest before sighing heavily. It was the best way he could express his gratitude in his current state. He turned to join Theodas and together the three of them left the cave. Dayn looked up at Theodas when he mentioned he and Arryn finding each other, not really expecting the elf to make such a statement. When he mentioned that he would have been jealous at one point Dayn raised an eyebrow as he looked up at the elf. That explained a lot about him, and Dayn could figure some of that carried over into when they first met. He didn't hold it against him though. Dayn huffed lightly, more or less thanking him for the compliment.

 

[Dragongal]

“I’m sure everyone has threatened you plenty enough over her I’m sure you’re likely tired of it. Here’s my part, I will make it swift. If you ever hurt her, I will hunt you down and chain you with silver, cut you open with a white-hot blade and pour molten silver into your wounds. I don’t have… the same feelings for her as I did, but I still will not let it stand if you hurt her.” Theodas said this in such a way that would make one believe he would do it. Back then, they’d both been too rash, especially Arryn, for something like romance, and he was certain Arryn had never noticed his affection, which he was sure was for the best. She was still a very good friend of his, though, and he remembered the feelings he had had for her. “I have twice your lifetime to find someone else. You don’t, she doesn’t… please make the most of it, for her.”

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn gave Theodas a slight glare after he had issued his threat. Truthfully that had been more personal than the others. Just thinking about that made Dayn's skin crawl, but he figured that was the point. He didn't know what he felt about this threat though, so in the end he just looked away and left Theodas alone. <I know you can't here this, but I would never in my life do anything to hurt Arryn. And I promise I will do everything in my power to give her the life and love she deserves.> They made the rest of the trip back to the house in silence. Luckily they managed to get back into the house without being seen. As they returned to the backroom Dayn walked over and curled up on the blanket nest. It was all just a waiting game now.

 

[Dragongal]

Theodas gently laid arryn on the bed, then left to speak to Lenza and explained everything to her. He departed after that was done. Lenza walked into the room. "Why the long muzzle? She'll be up soon enough. You know, you can climb into her bed, there's room. I owe you for barking last night. You need anything, just yip." She walked out of the room, giving them privacy.

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn slowly got up, a slight twinge of pain in his ankle and ribs as he got to his feet and limped over to Arryn's bed. He got onto the bed as carefully as he could, making sure to step around and over her, before laying down right beside her and snuggling close. He laid his head gently on her stomach before closing his eyes. He figured she'd wake him whenever she finally woke up, so he let himself relax a bit to take the edge off. Soon he was sleeping contentedly, snoring just ever so slightly.

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn woke in the early evening. Her body ached and she was still groggy. The first thing she noticed was Dayn curled up next to her with his head on her stomach. She smiled and slowly petted him, running her fingers through his fur. "Hi Mo chroi... how're you?"

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn woke up in probably the most pleasant way he had in days. The lightest sensation of touch on his head coaxed him to return to the waking world, only to find his love looking at him with a smile on her face when he opened his eyes. Dayn's tail thumped the bed slightly as he eased up and nuzzled against Arryn's chest. <I'm exhausted if we're being honest, but I can't complain too much. I'm here with you after all.>

 

[Dragongal]

"Mm. I can agree with that sentiment. Do you mind reminding me about what happened just before I drank the potion? And what happened after?" Arryn leaned her head back on her pillow and continued petting Dayn with both hands. She ruffled the fur behind his ears the way she knew he liked, then continued petting him.

 

[BookWyrm]

<We had gone to see Libro because you had another episode with the dark magic. Most of it had been removed, but a sliver remained around your heart. After you took the draught you were out within seconds and Libro was able to perform the purification ritual, removing the remaining dark magic. Theodas and I brought you back here, though Theodas carried you. I....tried, but I can't until I heal.>

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled tiredly. "I rmwmber the pain and the diagnosis, but aftee that iy gets blurry. Its alright that you didn't carry me, love. I'm glad you didn't hurt yourself. I'll heal you up later, at least your ankle." Arryn closed her eyes and sighed. "These last few weeks have been bad for both of us. I'll have to find some way to make it up to you. Hunting, or... there's gotta be something interesting around here... that's for later, though."

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn snuggled up closer and laid his head on her chest. He gently nibbled her neck, just enough to see the chill bumps before he laid his head back down. <Lets burn that bridge when we get to it love. Right now you can make it up to me by just letting me lay here with you. No one around, nothing bothering us, just you and me.>

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled. "I like that." She tried to stay awake, she wanted to stay with him, enjoying their closeness, but that didn't last as she soon fell asleep. Arryn woke up a few hours later, when it had been dark for a time. Lenza came in with food for them, then left so they could eat in privacy. Arryn joked, "We'll end up being nocturnal soon." She felt like she could still sleep until morning, but that wasn't the point

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn chuffed slightly. <You mean we're not?> He loved that Arryn was getting her sense of humor back. He leaned forward and touched his nose to hers for a few seconds, staring intently at her before snaking his ears back and licking the tip of her nose. <I'd think about playing, but my ankle and ribs might protest about it.>

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled and petted him before moving him over gently. She laid her hand on Dayn's head and used her magic to fix his ankle. His ribs, she couldn't do, but she could almost entirely fix his ankle. "Better, love? I'm glad I could actually be of help now."

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn licked her cheek. <So much better. It has been throbbing all day today. But should you be doing magic so soon? Libro said it would take some time to readjust now that the sliver has been removed.>





Back at the barn the masked man looked around the inside of the old building. "They were here alright. Which makes me think that they might be in Rorich." The masked man was talking to no one in particular, just thinking out loud more or less. "Best way to hunt a wolf is with a trap. Time to find the bait."

 

[Dragongal]

Arryn smiled. "It feels funny, yes, but... I like taking care of you, remember? As long as I don't do any really big casts, I'm okay. I just won't cast for a bit. The compresses had done their work, anyway." Arryn scratched under his chin. "Does it still hurt to shift?"

 

[BookWyrm]

Dayn's eyes drooped some as she scratched under his chin. <Right now, I don't really think I care.> He sighed as he lowered his head. <Let me try again.> Dayn focused, bringing his body into the normal calm as he started to shift. He winced, hands clenching into fists as he finally was able to shift back into his human form. Once he had finished he gasped, his body shaking as he tried to slow his heart rate. "That....hurt.....really bad. But at least I was able to shift."