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1. [DL-J] When it Rains, it Pours
From: Alex Guenser <guenser@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
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Message: 1
Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2005 10:13:19 -0800
From: Alex Guenser <guenser@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
Subject: [DL-J] When it Rains, it Pours
Day 1
An Island
Dakhrau and Dylan propped Raven on their shoulder and assisted him off
his dragon unto the shore, taking care to put little strain on the
impaled shoulder.
They set him down, leaning his back against a piece of driftwood.
"Ya rest up for a bit, let me get the camp set up." Dylan instructed
and indicated that Dakhrau also rest for a time.
Dylan set up camp, while Dru lead the other dragons to help them find
food for their riders. Neither man said a word as Dylan quickly
organized a camp, along with a small fire that both recognized would
be used for cooking and perhaps small warmth, but done in a way that
would not attract attention.
Both pondered this different side of their companion and wondered just
what secrets she held. She did not appear from her looks that she
would know such rudimentary skills.
When the time was right, Dylan turned her attention towards to two men
and sat next to the wounded Raven. His arm appeared to be stabilized,
but Dylan knew that the rest of the spear needed to be removed. She
had wrapped it to get him here, and he was ok, rested and now ready to
have the final push and begin the healing process.
Dylan examined the wound, and slowly unbound his bandages she had done
while they were bobbing in the water. She studied the injury and went
to her memory to see if she could remember just what they used to do
aboard her father's ship.
Dakhrau wasn't as far out of commission as before; the pain
diminished, and he could push his aching head away from the foreground
of his thoughts.
Now, he concentrated on how he could help Raven, with or without magic.
Dylan tore more strips from a garment she wouldn't miss and placed
them near her. As she readied her supplies and made sure the picture
she needed was in clear view, Dakhrau made his way up the beach and
found a small clean piece of drift wood, and returned to Raven's side.
Dylan began to slowly, gently move her hand up Raven's arm, looking
for any reaction to pain, and to make sure there were no broken bones
along the way.
If Raven had felt anything, he did not show it. Dakhrau knelt beside
him and handed him the piece of wood.
Dylan gently and strategically placed her hand against his shoulder
and then placed her other hand on the broken off spear protruding out
of the wound.
"Tis gonna hurt." Dylan whispered to Raven. He nodded in understanding
and bit down on the wood. Dakhrau moved to position himself to help
Raven lean into him, and placed one of his hands on his back near the
wound to help steady him.
He didn't know exactly what he was doing, but he had an instinct that
his magic might be able to help. Dylan watched as Dakhrau positioned
himself and she studied him curiously as she thought she had seen
something moving in his eyes. Dakhrau shut them and concentrated as he
envisioned looking at the spear wound from inside the body.
"Ready?" Dylan asked and received two nods for the go ahead.
"One... Two... Three!" Dylan counted, and on the call of three she
shoved with her entire strength. She felt Raven's body lurch forward
and heard the muffled scream through the wood in his mouth. The
remnants of the broken lance came through clean and slid from the
wound to drop softly on the sand below.
Dakhrau imagined the wound Raven had, and as his headache swelled, he
fought to keep the soft tissue together. Dylan hurried with the
bandages to redress the wound and noticed there was not a lot of
bleeding. She dabbed on some healing salve and then laid some leaves
against it to help with the swelling. She then bound the wound tightly
once again, and the arm against his chest to keep the shoulder
immobile.
She also noticed he did not react to the pain as strongly as she had
remembered in her past. Under normal circumstances, a wound like the
one he had would have warranted heavier bleeding, more pain and
suffering.
Dylan quickly deduced that these were not normal circumstances. But
who was keeping secrets? She could not claim to know Raven well, as
this was her first real encounter with the more experienced rider.
She recalled how quickly and stealthily he attacked the Kataani with
his blades, blades she never saw him remove. What experience, she
pondered, has he that he keeps hidden?
But on the other hand, even though she had spent some time with
Dakhrau in their multiple training exercises, she had not really
watched him much, nor paid much attention. He kept to himself, as she
and Keer did. She wondered as well, just what secrets he harbored.
Dylan hid her smile, for who was she to talk of keeping secrets. She
too, had many, and some might even forfeit her life. She had to trust
in Keer and do as he commanded. She was to do whatever was needed to
stay alive. He would return. Dylan needed to cling to this thought,
and somehow get the other two to work with her.
Raven was in pain, but not as much as he thought he should be. He
could thank Ythfaru or whatever other divinity that felt responsible
for him, for a clean entry and a smooth extraction. However in his
experience, things never went this smoothly so what happened here?
<*I perfectly know 'ow ya feel ma friend. 't was ghastly when this
watabreatha struck ma with 'is sword.. Trust ma... nice juicy
jellyfish an' everythin' 's fine.*> Lir interrupted Raven's wandering
thoughts. <*'ot long oil-rubbings 'elp a great deal taa.*> he added as
an afterthought.
Raven frowned in annoyance. *Firstly I don't like nice juicy
jellyfish. Secondly I'm no dragon if you were so kind as to remember,
so oil-rubbings won't help me much. And thirdly it's your fault that I
got a spear in my shoulder.* He knew that he was being unfair but he
couldn't stop himself. He could also feel the injury he caused with
his words through the bond that connected them.
Taking a deep breath Raven phrased his apologies. *Listen. I'm sorry.
It's just...* Raven hesitated for a second, searching for the right
words. He did remember the pain that he had felt through their bond
when Lir had been injured. That incident had shown him that he
couldn't live without his soul mate anymore, and he admitted that he
was glad that Lir had survived. *Why don't you go and find yourself
some of these jellyfish you're so fond of and when all this is over I
promise you a hot oil-rubbing. And while you're catching your dinner,
how about mine? You could also tell your friends about the time you
saved the queen rider and getting injured and all... I bet that'll
impress them.*
<*Ya know...I think that's a great idea. Catch ya latta', mate.*> Lir
laughed. Right away he started telling the story of his great
adventure to his two friends, adding things here and there and leaving
others out.
Picking up his train of thought again, Raven decided that the
situation warranted further inspection. It was an uncomforting thought
that he seemed not to know nearly as much about the two trainees as he
wished he would. There was something off here, whether it was the
battle-familiar man whose staff-breaking trick may have been more than
just an interesting technique, or this quiet demure young woman who
appeared to control the sharks as well as control the amount of pain
that Raven felt.
Dylan also seemed to be tied or somehow connected to the Kataani male
who had left on some sort of secret mission. So... where did this
young woman fit in all of this? Dylan was certainly not what she
seemed. She had skills that hinted of battle and readiness. He
recalled the stories of the Wraith attack, when she had set up a coal
line, to make it faster and easier for the dragons and riders to port
back to refuel.
She also certainly knew how to set up a camp, and she did not seem too
worried about being stranded for a time. Raven knew he would have to
watch and see. He made a mental note to ask Lir more about the other
two dragons and their riders. Dragons just loved to gossip and Lir was
sometimes willing to share some of the gossip with Raven - when the
bribes were right.
Dakhrau was sitting a few paces from the others, trying to ease the
pain in his head. He could not think straight. He focused as much as
he could on the image in his head, trying to piece together Raven's
fragile tissue and keep it from breaking. He was proud of himself for
helping Raven and expanding his powers to heal as well as harm.
But, he was also angry with himself for accepting his magic and not
trying to fight it as much. He had a terrible feeling that unleashing
his magic potential could lead to great harm. His head was tearing
apart in pain, just as his soul seemed to be constantly at war with
itself.
Aside from these thoughts, he began to distrust his "friends" that
surrounded him. He remembered how his father had always taught him...
"Trust NO one. Be strong in yourself, for in the end, the only person
who will be standing at your side is yourself."
Dakhrau echoed with his father. "We fight this fight alone."
As much as he wanted to abandon his father, his teaching, and his
past, those thoughts never left him because he knew they were true.
He had hoped to find a new life in Jasra, one without distrust and
anger and war. Upon arriving, he seemed heartily welcomed into this
utopia, but as time progressed, he found that this place was far from
paradise. Evil rooted itself here as well as everywhere in the world.
And that is why he could trust no one.
Dylan, it now seemed, had the power to control the sharks and sea
life, not unlike what Keer had done. Had the bond between them grown?
Had Keer shared with Dylan a secret power of his people, that now she
could wield?
While he could not doubt that as an asset in the war that was upon
them, there had to be a reason for her hiding this ability. She was
also not what she seemed. Not that he paid that much attention to her,
she had always been at the side of Keer, and seemed to defer to him in
many ways. What secrets did she hold?
Raven too, might be hiding a secret, but there was something about him
that Dakhrau found interesting. He hadn't spoken much, or revealed
nearly anything to the two young riders he was presently assigned to.
He had already shown that he held one concealed weapon, and it
wouldn't shock Dakhrau to find out he held more. But... *why?* Trust
issues? Sure, he admittedly had some of his own, but he still didn't
go around with one hand on a blade handle.
Was there a secret he held that was desperately worth protecting? He
fought above it all to concentrate on the present, at helping his
ally, and put off dealing with his own problems for another time.
"There ya go." Dylan broke the silence of the three, as she moved to
get up and begin the other tasks needed to make this place safe to
give them a chance to heal up and strengthen more before attempting to
figure out what their next step should be.
"Try not ta move your arm; I bound it as tight as I could, so ya can't
move the shoulder as well." She added her counsel, so Raven would know
he needed to just sit back and relax.
"Tis best ta catch a night's rest at least, before we be thinkin about
leavin." She voiced her opinion hoping that the other one who once
again secluded himself from the others would hear her.
"I be no healer, but ya should be right as rain in a few days, with
rest," she reiterated. "We should be safe here for a wee bit, few days
at the most." She looked out over the water and contacted her soul
mate.
*How comes dinner?*
<*Fine and dandy*> the giggly response came. <*Adas says to stay put,
we are safe here*>
Dylan smiled and nodded and turned back to face the two who were
acting like they were not paying any attention to her.
Dakhrau shook his head, which felt as if he was shaking a head full of
loose and broken parts of pottery.
"We are still unaware of the current situation at the Warren," he
interjected. "As I recall we were on our way to assist. We should head
off now, as quickly as possible."
Dylan turned to face Dakhrau. "Food is comin, and we must eat and
refresh ourselves," she stated simply. "The Warren has its own
defenses. I trust they can hold up... without a few wounded soldiers
to aid them," she reiterated, her lilt more pronounced as her ire
began to build.
"We would just slow 'em down, make matters worse," she said. "Tis best
ta rest up and grow strong, than ta make more work for others...
besides, Keer has told us ta hold up here, and wait for help from
Corwin."
Dakhrau felt attacked by being called a "wounded soldier," and hid the
realization that he had left himself and the group vulnerable. He also
didn't like taking directions from anyone without authority over him,
whether that be Dylan or Keer.
"We have been enlisted to protect the Warren and protect the people.
That is a mission which I do not plan to shy away from." He argued his
point combatatively. He felt angry for being at odds with a fellow
rider, who he was supposed to be able to trust.
"Why should we travel and jeopardize the health of our riders?" Dylan
retorted in return. "We should rest the night... eat... then try ta
find someone ta contact at the Warren, weigh the risk, and make a
decision."
"Missions...huh...you should listen to yourself. You sound like a
soldier, the perfect soldier." Raven laughed wryly at Dakhrau. "No one
ever enlisted me for this. I didn't volunteer to become a dragon
rider...but none the less I want to protect the Warren from these
cursed water-breathers, too." he continued more serious. "Sometimes
it's worth checking than blundering into the unknown. Dylan might be
right, you know."
Just at that moment, Dru bounded on the shore with something in her
mouth. Dylan smiled and nodded and hugged her. The other two dragons
arrived behind her and they too dropped their treats on the sand and
waited.
Rrone looked incredibly excited to eat, so Dakhrau agreed it'd be best
to have something to keep them going, but kept up his agitation for
appearances. He wasn't about to concede.
Dylan nuzzled them both and thanked them and, ignoring Dakhrau, began
to prepare the food for the small fire. She scrapped and prepared them
the best she could and lay them on the fire. Small sturdy twigs
protruded from the mouths and she stood back up to begin the
collection of the rest of the meal.
Raven smiled as he watched the young woman prepare the meal and could
tell from her body language; to her the conversation was at an end.
Although she was right, Dakhrau too had his points. He knew himself to
be out for the count, and he would only be a hindrance for them.
"Well..." Raven began, attempting to ease the tension a bit. "Lir and
I have already attempted to contact the others, and something seems to
be blocking the long distance transmission of the dragons. Perhaps we
need to rest up and move closer in the morning, to see if it would
help."
Dakhrau grew furious. "The Kataani are obviously preventing our
transmissions for divide and conquer tactics! How can you not see that
by separating us from them... they are ensuring their own victory?
They could already be in control of the Warren!" he exclaimed.
Dylan angry that he refused to admit he too needed to rest and with
Raven down and injured, they would only cause more trouble and injury
and perhaps even get themselves killed. She would do what Keer asked
of her, not put herself at risk, and keep safe.
"The Kataani are not that powerful," Dylan replied simply.
"I wouldn't bet my life on that." Raven said softly.
"If they are not such a threat, then why did the Warren find it
necessary to keep secrets about this?" He sneered at her as his anger
began to rise up to a boiling point. "What makes YOU so certain they
don't possess that power?"
Dylan surprised at the verbal attack took a step backwards. "Becoz
Keer would have told me," she answered defensively. "And if'n what ya
say be true, and they do control the Warren, how in the bloody hells
of Dorlon can we make a difference?" she spat back.
"I say we stay here, rest up and see what the dawn brings." She
crossed her arms over her chest, as if to say she was not budging on
this issue.
As much as Dakhrau wanted to retaliate, he knew he was only making
matters worse. Part of him was planning his next attack, but he fought
it, and through the mess in his head he tried to come up with some
sort of plan.
"If the Kataani are blocking our transmissions..." he began to think
out loud.
"They don't!" Dylan reiterated. Certainly if they could Keer would
have spoken of it, although he did not speak of his people much. But
then, neither did Dylan, but more out of habit than not wishing to
deal with the way things were.
"IF they are..." he started again, getting angrier that she would not
even think of the possibility. "...their powers are rooted in the
sea."
"And..." Raven began, seeing where he was going with his idea.
"Perhaps their magic does not extend far above the surface?"
"If we ride high enough... we might be able to get a clearer
transmission." Dakhrau finished the idea with a grin, proud that he
could concentrate enough to finish the thought.
Raven nodded. "It's a possibility. If one of you flies up, and makes
contact with the Warren, and then returns and gives us report..." He
knitted his brows in concentration. "Height is the crucial factor
here. You need to fly up high...as high as possible. Then it might
work." He silently prayed they wouldn't think of asking him to do the
tour.
Dylan stood there with her arms still crossed and sighed. Why must men
always be this way? What was it about battle that they just could not
get enough of? She had seen it enough on her father's ship.
"So who goes up?" Dylan asked quietly knowing the only true answer. Of
course they would not see it. Both of them were injured and needed
rest. She on the other hand was fine. Well, as good as could be
expected in the circumstances she found herself in.
"Lir will be able to fly the highest and fastest." Dakhrau mentioned.
"He is the more large and mature dragon here."
Raven tensed and cursed heartily when his shoulder protested about the
movement. Why did people have to think themselves? Why couldn't they
just follow suggestions without thinking? This could be a problem. "I
really don't think I'd be as quick and able with this shoulder as
either of you two would." he tried to reason when the pain had demised
a bit.
"As much as I believe Lir should be the one, Raven is not in any
condition to ride." Dylan agreed with Raven, which helped to relieve
some of his stress. At least someone was thinking right.
"If one of you were to ride Lir in my stead, you'd go higher and
faster than I would be able to in my condition." Raven offered up his
suggestion. "Besides, Dylan weights less than I do, so Lir might even
go higher with her as a rider than I would ever be able to go." he
nodded courtly to the young woman, hoping to have successfully
navigated the shoals.
Dakhrau doubted the solution. "We wouldn't be able to talk with Lir if
one of us rode him, and odds are that the Kataani spell would block
transmissions between our dragons as well. Raven, you're the only one
who can ride."
Dylan couldn't tolerate Dakhrau's negativity anymore. "Maybe instead
of telling us how doomed we all are, you could try to think of
something helpful for once!" Dylan exclaimed in frustration. She
closed the distance between them and then grabbed the arm of his shirt
and began to march him down the beach aways to finish what she wished
to say.
"What are ya doin? Ya be willin ta risk his health or life for a plan
that might not work, or we might not need? The Warren might not even
need our help!"
"And if the Warren does need us? I'm certain that anyone who
understands the urgency of the situation would realize that the pain
of one individual is insignificant, when weighed against the
destruction of our enemy, the Kataani." Dakhrau stated matter or fact.
"And then what good would OUR presence be? So they could wipe us out?"
Dylan raised her voice in anger and frustration that he just could not
get the whole picture.
"And as for bein insignificant, I bet ya be thinkin Kali's death was
insignificant too!"
"Kaliana was a warrior on our side. She knew... we all were aware the
dangers of doing what we do, being riders for Jasra Warren. All we can
ask of our warriors is to do their duty well." He retorted hotly,
unable to fathom her lack of understanding.
"Duty! Ya have NO idea about duty!" she exclaimed back at him. "Kali
was NOT a warrior, I'm not a warrior, YOU are not a warrior. We all be
trainees, this was ta be a trainin mission... not..." Dylan felt the
hot tears on her checks as her eyes burned with the indignation she
felt for this person in front of her.
"I don't know if you're aware, but most people don't end up dead on
training missions." Dakhrau let some sarcasm slip out, trying to make
her aware of the flaws in her thinking. "We're training to become
warriors, and though I see that some of us are still trainees at
heart, others perhaps realize the duty they have when they become
warriors."
"Twas her duty to die for the warren?" she demanded. "She DIED! Ryba
DIED! She DIED for ME curse ya, I could have DIED too! Ya just can't
write it off like... some mere casualty of war!"
"She IS a casualty of war!" Dakhrau continued to yell as a heavy rain
began to fall, drenching them both. He had dealt with loss plenty of
times before the only way he knew how. "We may very well be at war now
with the Kataani! And I will be the one to say that she will not be
the only one to leave us during such troubled times as we now face."
"Listen to ya... ya don't even care! Ya think becoz she died and many
more will live her death be justified!" Dylan screamed at him in total
outrage. Who did he think he was? He had NO clue to what payment would
be exacted from them should this be war.
"Be ya daft?" she shouted to him. She felt the rain pelt her, and she
heard the rumbling in the sky. The storm where ever it had come from,
only echoed her feelings and emotions, and so in a way she found
solace with it and kept pace with the storm.
"There is NO END to any of this!" Dakhrau's revelation shocked him
maybe even more than it affected Dylan. "There will always be evil and
darkness everywhere... inside you... inside me... inside everything in
the world." Dakhrau shed a single tear amidst his yelling. He'd often
wished he had a simpler life; he envied the farmer with little
troubles besides praying for rain to end a drought. But this was the
life he had. "You can pray to Ythfaru all you want, but no matter how
much you pray for him to save you it will not change ANYTHING!"
* * * * *
Raven knew he was the only one to notice how quickly and heavily the
rain clouds rolled in. He could see the two trainees yelling at each
other even though he couldn't understand the words. He moved in such a
way as to find the large palm fronds laying about the beach and
covered the smoking fire, so the meal would not get ruined. He heard
the trainees yelling over something he had caused. True, he would have
felt great pain if he were to fly up high, but pain wasn't the real
problem here.
His true reluctance lay in his fear of heights which he dare not share
nor to confront. He didn't so much feel guilty about failing the
others, more... angry about this inability to master his fears. Well,
as he had said before, he had never asked to become the rider of a
dragon. As the argument raged on he wondered if he'd ever be able to
overcome or even confront his fear. Maybe the current situation was
not so much a threat but an opportunity for him. He made a decision.
Once he knew their small fire and meal were protected from the
downpour, he hoisted himself up to his feet while gritting his teeth
and stood for a moment to steady his gait. Slowly, he made his way
down the beach to where the two were still arguing.
When he had come close enough to hear their words, he was relived to
hear that they were no longer arguing over him, but displeased to
realize they were arguing about something deeper and more significant.
As he made his way closer, the last statement of Dakhrau shocked
Raven. The heated words and emotions matched the ferocity of the
building storm, the trees now bending deeply as the wind beat around
them. The surf swelled and pounded the shores. The two combatants did
not seem to notice their surroundings, so lost in their pitched battle
against one another they were.
Raven could hear his heart thumping in his chest, and he felt how his
boots sunk slowly into the sand beneath his feet. The rain dripped
from his locks and onto his eyelashes, forcing him to squint so the
water would roll off.
He saw Dylan and Dakhrau, seemingly ready to fight, and suddenly
everything around him seemed to move in slow motion. He heard the
crack of lightning and the boom of the thunder as he tried to stay on
his feet. He looked up into the pitch black skies and knew what was
happening right before it did, and he had absolutely no time to react
in the split second before it happened.
The loud crack of the tree stole Dakhrau's attention in time to see
another large bolt of lightning strike the palm tree. With that
explosion, the crack, and what he thought might have been a muffled
yell Dakhrau realized the tree was coming down... towards them...
rather heavy and fast. Before he could think, he shoved Dylan away and
dove towards her to try to cover her.
Raven watched in horror as the tree snapped in half, shooting shards
of bark outwards, and sending the tree toppling onto his two
companions. He called out as the tree thundered upon hitting the
ground. It landed and even bounced twice before resting in the water
soaked sand.
* * * * *
"Stay tuned for the shocking conclusion!!"
Summary: Dylan prepares camp for Raven and Dakhrau as they remain on
an island to recover after Raven sustains an injury. Dylan removes the
spear and dresses the wound more securely, and Dakhrau uses a newfound
healing ability to help Raven recover. Circumstances warrant suspicion
when different pieces of the puzzle don't seem to fit, and the riders
begin to distrust each other. Dakhrau and Dylan begin to argue over
staying or going, but are interrupted when the dragons retrieve food.
Soon, however, the argument continues and Raven tries unsuccessfully
to mediate and calm the two down. The trainees take their argument
elsewhere, and fighting over returning to the warren becomes fighting
over duty, Kali's death, and the possibility of more deaths to come.
Thunderclouds quickly roll in, and as Raven searches for the two
trainees, he stumbles upon an unsettling sight.
Submitted by...
---------------
Alex as Dakhrau
as Rrone
Carys as Dylan
as Dru
Han as Raven
as Lir
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