A small group of dark elves had found the girl walking around blind in the dark as they captured her, for the time being they didn't seem to do anything to her. They hardly had to hurt her seeing as between the three of them they easily over powered her.

Forcing her to walk they brought her to a encampment and tossed her into one of the many holding cells. Keeping her there for the next few days they kept her fed enough just to keep her alive between the interrogations to find locations of other encampments of her kind. Even though he probably didn't have any idea where they were.

They kept her chained in the back of the cell with her clothing tattered and torn, though they didn't seem to go further then just beating her on a daily basis to pry information from her lips. Even though she was alive it seemed to be on the razor edge oh how much longer she could endure this.

~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a few days that had passed from when a small raid had managed to destroy the light elf settlement in the forest forcing them to fall back and flee from the forest for the time being. That was the goal of the group anyway, they had no idea they had assisted in Rhyl freeing himself. By the time the excitement had died down He had managed to make his way back to one of the caves where he had been getting his orders from.

Over the past few days he had been tending the stab wound, it was healing rather nicely and wasn't slowing him down in fights any longer. Though after he had heard about the raid on the light elf camp he had a idle worry, that girl he had just left her chained to the post but it was for the best if he had freed her then how would that have looked. They would have surely blamed her for his escape... but what if something else happened to her.

"You seem distracted today" A voice said from behind him as he sat up from where he was. He looked up towards the figure who had spoken to him with a questioning look. "Oh do i? Care to test those words?" He grinned a bit, he wasn't the strongest by far but he held his own and his sharp tongue was easy enough to back up from his experience.

The one who had first spoke shook his head "Another time, I have a message I need to get delivered to the next post... and it's to be done in a timely manner" With that the man was already off leaving Rhyldrin back to his thoughts as he rested his head back against the cave wall. 'damn of all the times to have something on my mind...' Why did he care sure she was someone he had learned to call friend as a child but even now.. she could have been leading him on. It could just be a matter of time before she killed him or got him killed one of the two and he here he was thinking if she made it out or not.

Getting up from his spot he had been resting in he started down the passage way towards the lower floor of the cavern, he had just gotten tot his base the other night and he had heard a lot of commotion coming from the cell area. He grew curious as to what the hell had been going on down there.

He had almost walked right by the commanding officer of this group but was stopped as his name was called out "Oh Rhyldrin, you got that message from Seric did you" He cleared his throat before going on. "I heard you failed on your last mission, that the light elf you were suppose to kill got away.

"Tsk... what of it? It was a damned ambush anyway" He spit out in reply paying no attention as to who was in any of the cells, though most seemed to be captured light elves. The dark elves seemed to enjoy catching light elves alive and tormenting them till they grew tired and then killed them.

The officer seemed to eye him a moment before walking past. "Make sure it doesn't happen again..." He hissed near Rhyldrin's ear. Once the man was past enough Rhyl slammed his fist against the wall causing a few of the captive to flinch or make a slight noise from his sudden outburst. "Damn him!" He cursed aloud as he let out a heavy breath.

One of the watch had just left the girls cell, it was the same one she had bitten over a week ago his hand still had a wrap around it from the wound. Rhyl knew he was just a simple guard why would he be hurt in any manner. He smirked a little ready to pick on this poor fellow to ease his mood. "One of them bite you finally?" He burst out laughing at the idea as he got the scowl out of the guard.

"damn right, damn bitch drew blood over a week ago..." He muttered to himself as he shoved past Rhyldrin in the process as he continued down the hall. Though he was curious the watch said she? when did we start catching females and bringing them here? He questioned the motive behind this unless it was someone important who had information.

He sort of glanced into each of the cells as he walked past though he stopped dead seeing one of them with a girl with fiery red hair laying in the floor. 'please don't be her...' He thought as he grabbed the spar keys off of the wall and unlocked the cell. There wasn't anyone else in the area so he hardly cared if he was seen by the other captive light elves talking to her.

"Hey! Damn it say something" He said as he kneeled down to where she was and moved her gently so she was looking at him. "geese.. your a mess.. " he said it more under his breath but it was the truth she looked about dead with blood all over her and cuts everywhere along with bruises on top of one another. She didn't seem overly responsive to him at first so he placed a hand to her neck trying to check her pulse after finding it he breathed a little. "least your alive.. for what that's worth."

He kept her there as he held her so she was sitting up but leaning against him. What the hell was he doing?! His mind was telling him to just kill her that's a faster death then anything the watch down here has planned for her. there was no way in hell she'd be able to get out of here unless the light elves held a full assault on this encampment .. but being inside a cave there were too many choke points for it to work.Why was he bothering to care, it wasn't in his nature to bother with such a thing he should just kill her and get it over with. But he wanted to help her though, she had done nothing aside from defending herself when it came down to it.

"shh, save your strength" He didn't know what else to say he wanted to tell her she'd be ok, but he didn't know. He wanted to get her somewhere to take care of these wounds she had all over her but how was he going to do that. He wanted to just take her out of here but he needed to pull a few strings to prevent someone from thinking he was going soft all of a sudden. "hey.. stop that" He made her look at him as she seemed to break down on him sobbing suddenly. Moving his hand he wiped her eyes lightly before brushing a few loose strands of hair from her face. "cry later, when you aren't in a cell at the mercy of your enemy."

He had a point, she was showing how weak she was by crying like this, though she seemed to cling to him with what little strength she had left he got her to let go. "Stop that talk, your not staying here.." He had laid her back down as he stood and walked out of the cell, he had a idea of what to do for this.

The watch was walking back this way by the time he had locked the cell. "Hey you!" The guard seemed to flinch as Rhyl called to him. "sir?" he questioned why a high ranked fighter was calling to him. "wheres the commander? I told him I had dibs on certain pray and here it is I get sent off on a mission and I come back to find that the very one I was hunting is already bloodied up and half dead in a cell here."

The watch seemed a bit concerned if it was one that Rhyldrin had marked as his pray. "I- I don't think the commander had anything to do with this one he's just been trying to get information from her, she's as good as dead by now they stopped feeding her a few days ago. Rhyl seemed unimpressed with the answer as he watched the guard as he walked up to the cell the girl was in.

"You can have her if that's what your after, the commander already said she was of no further use." He looked back towards Rhyldrin as he unlocked the cell, unaware that he had just locked the same door moments ago. "Well were the hell is the fun in it now if the pray's already dead?" He hissed out towards the guard who seemed to fear what Rhyl would do if he upset him in anyway.

"well.. she's still useful in other ways" Rhyl knew what the guard was hinting at and that's all he was after or that's all he needed this guy to think he was after. "Well you have a point.. she could be useful still.. " the guard seemed to back off after opening the door and taking a key off handing it to Rhyl "I'll tell the commander that your dealing with the captive now" He backed away further before turning to walk down the passageway.

He stood there a moment almost in awe that had worked out that well. Shoving the key in his pocket he walked back over to Judith and got her to sit up again. She looked worse then before, probably fatigue setting in more. "Stay with me a little longer.." He said under his breath before picking her up and carrying her. No one probably had a second thought about this sight, sure the fact that Rhyl had a live light elf was a bit odd but then again it was a female so it wasn't that abnormal.

He seemed to ignore any odd comments though there were only a handful made, he'd get them back later he thought as he walked. Though he got to where he wanted to be after a little while longer, getting a different key out and opening the door before shutting it behind him. "Geese what the hells wrong with me" he said aloud though it was more to himself then anyone and he figured she wasn't with it enough to pay attention.

Walking across the small room he placed her on a bed that was in the room. Looking over she really was a mess, this wasn't going to be any easy task by a long shot. He thought about her sibling for a moment finding it almost comical he was risking his neck to save her and he wanted nothing better then to kill her brother, and he knew very well her brother wanted nothing better then the same thing... to kill him. But for now she needed to rest, he'd wait for her to get to sleep from her condition she'd be out for a while. He'd try to treat some of the cuts then instead of bothering her before hand.

He laughed a little listening to her, she must have been exhausted by the way she spoke. What a silly thing to say for going to sleep. Though he'd have to watch himself with this, he was walking a razor edge as it was due to rejecting certain offers before this whole incident. He might have to take back his word from the commander in charge of this section just to cover his tracks here. But that was his problem not hers, he was already in the works of trying to figure out how to get her out of here without drawing too much attention let alone how to ensure she got to any of the light elf camps without them knowing he had any dealings with this.

He sighed heavily closing his eyes for a moment "what have I gotten myself into now..." He could have prevented this years ago, what had stopped him. He blamed his parents though he hardly got the chance to know them it seemed fitting enough, his mother probably being one of the few that'd understand this situation at all. 'Too late now I guess.. might as well press forward and see this through' Leaving the bedside he walked to a small side room, it seemed to be a bathroom though his living quarters were simple enough nothing fancy. After a few moments he walked back into the room with a small box and set it on a stand near the bed.

Though he came to the idea that she'd owe him a good slap for this later. "Just stay asleep..." He said aloud, not like she could hear him she seemed rather out of it 'it'll be less awkward that way.' Her clothes were already tattered as it was so he didn't bother trying to salvage them as he cut the remaining cloth away from her body. He only moved her when he had to, he seemed more worried about her waking up and trying to explain to her what was even going on. On top of that her current exhausted state probably couldn't grasp that he wasn't doing anything to her, he was sure the guards had tried but from what he could tell she had deterred them.

Quickly getting to work he went about getting a small cloth and a basin of water to start cleaning the wounds before treating them. "Your lucky you know that... " He was still talking to her even if he knew she wouldn't respond. "I use to think how silly it was with all the steps my father took to dress wounds from skirmishes... it's almost funny that I'm doing the same steps here." He found a slight bit of morbid humor in it, his father had been one of the medics of this clan and his mother was working as a ambassador for the dark elves.

It probably took a good few hours for him to finish dressing all of the cuts and wrapping the larger ones to prevent further bleeding. Though once he was finished she looked to be in a better state then before, though it was easy to tell she was still pretty weak. Really to admit it he was mentally exhausted from all of this, his kind wasn't known for acts of kindness no matter who the hell you were. Yet here he was trying to save a sole light elf. To what end if the dark elves won this war.. she'd never be able to live a life so to speak...

He needed to stop thinking so damn much it just made his headache worse. She wasn't going anywhere and he had done all he could while she was asleep. He pulled a sheet over her before leaving the room returning to the smaller room that was on the side, he'd shut the door if there was one. It had been removed a few years ago when he had a bad habit of drinking a little too much and running into it, though in more recent years he found that killing light elves had taken place of the other habit.

He had stayed in the other room for at least a hour, taking a shower in the process and dealing with anything else he needed to. Though most of it he had been in almost a daze of trying to figure out how the hell he was going to keep his hide through all of this. Though his thoughts were disrupted with knocking on the outer door.

He grumbled a bit to himself pulling pants on as he walked out to see who the hell was bothering him. Normally he'd be asleep by this time, and he had every intention to get at least a few hours of sleep seeing as he never bothered to put the rest of his gear back on, shirt included. This exposed the fact that he had more then just that one scar on his face, it seemed he had been through enough close calls to support the devil's luck that most seemed to say he had judging by the size and placements of most of them. The person knocked again as he sighed heavily getting to the door. "damn it can't you hold on a second, rush rush that's all you worthless pawns do."

The person on the other side of the door seemed tense as Rhyldrin opened it, giving him a quick salute of sorts before going about the message he had. "The commander wants to inform you that he has another task for you general..." Rhyl gave the poor low ranking solider a glare tat could kill if possible. "how many times do I have to say it... I'm not a general I refused the position, I've said it to the commanders face if the light elves ever decide to pay me more I'd work for them"

The solider nodded a little backing away from the door. "Well whats his bark this time?" Rhyl finally asked seeing as he had terrified this poor guy. "Oh er... we know the location of another light elf encampment.. he wanted you to lead the assault this time and..." He cut the messenger off quickly. "No, I work alone, I'm not changing that. Besides I'm still in the process of a task tell him send some of the new recruits to get the experience" He never gave the guy time to complain about him saying no as he shut the door.

"What the hell do I look like?" He sighed again thinking on that a little 'like hell I'm going to start letting him bark orders down my throat just because I happen to be here for once.' He thought to himself before walking back across the room and sitting in a chair off to the side, he never bothered to check if all of this had woken Judith up or not, he had other thoughts on his mind so he was a bit distracted. Though distraction quickly died off after a few moments as he nodded off, he just needed a hour he'd work through whatever he had to then.

Her sudden cry out had woken him, though really her tossing and tuning was doing a a good job at that anyway. He was a light sleeper, but it came with the calling. He had never noticed that he never bothered to light the room, though he thought about it a little as he stood and grabbed a candle lighting it before setting it on the stand next to the bed.

"for being in such ill health you move enough in your sleep.." He said though he didn't really expect her to reply, she probably was a little freaked out from whatever dream she had been having let alone the fact that she wasn't clothed. He seemed to look over her face to see if he could figure out what was going on in her mind, though he quickly gave up placing a hand over her forehead. "Whatever was after you really got you worked up didn't it..." She was covered in a col sweat, he was checking her head just to make sure she didn't have a fever from a infection or something, satisfied he took his hand back and crossed his arms standing there.

He hardly seemed to be looking over her, really the candle being lit was messing with his vision. "seeing as your up.. think you can force down some food?" He had no idea that she had a dream where he had stabbed her let alone that dark elves had taken her home. It never crossed his mind but once that it was possible that the dark elves could win the war, but he saw a truce between the two happening long before that.

He idly waited for her answer but she didn't seem to talk much, not that he expected her to have the energy to do so just yet. Making up his mind he walked to where a few more candles were and lit them as well, at the least for her benefit. "In case you were wondering its early morning and yes your still underground." He kept to his normal manner of speech being vague on details and having a rough tone yet some what caring at the same time.

Once he was done with lighting the candles placed around the room he walked back towards a small what looked to be kitchen area, most quarters didn't have a bath and kitchen but he had managed this due to the fact he was one of the top ranked mercenaries... that and the fact that the commander of this area wanted to stay on his good side to try and win him over.

"right... I never restocked from last time" He sighed a little but before he could say anything further a knock cam at the door as he glared at it. "oh for fuck sake!" Walking towards the door again he expected another messenger though he was to be wrong this time. He kept the glare on his face as he opened the door.

"RHYL!" A sudden voice called out before walking into the room before Rhyldrin could protest. "I heard you were back but I never would have believed it, you know your stalker will get wind of your return sooner or later" The man seemed to laugh though he was a little shorter then Rhyl he seemed wider..

"I didn't want it to be known... " He sighed knowing he couldn't protest it now that he was here. Though he couldn't get more then that out before the man seemed to go on glancing once towards Judith.

"Oh by the way here!" He said before shoving a pack he had been carrying at Rhyldrin "don't you ever leave that thing on my door without a warning and explaining what the hell it is! I opened that damn sack when you left and nearly lost my face"

Giving the guy a rather odd look he undid the front of the pack as a lizard seemed to crawl out, it had small wings though they were hardly big enough to fly with.. yet. It crawled to perch on Rhyldrin's shoulder as it hissed towards the other man. "Losing your face would be a improvement if you ask me" He said moving a hand to scratch the dragon's chin lightly.

"yeah yeah.... says you and your hardly a stud there" Though he was sure to be out of arm's distance from Rhyl when he said his comment. "can't believe you dropped a dragon hatchling on my door step without warning.. do you know how much you could sell that thing for?! Let alone I don't even want to know how you managed to come across it."

"money is worthless, I keep enough for what I need. Besides he's better then any dog you could get" He grinned a little knowing Boyd had a few run ins with the little dragon. He never explained where he came across a dragon egg at, it was really a deal gone wrong if he told the truth on it. "now get to the point.. why are you here.."

He held his hands up a little before setting another bag on the counter near the kitchen area. "well one to drop your damned pet off, my wife wanted to kill me the whole while, also I wanted to see if you were still in one piece or not." He smirked a little before going on. "oh the bags from the wife, she says you should eat more for your height, worry wort I know"

He seemed to pause glancing back towards Judith before towards Rhyldrin. "I also heard a rumor that you had added o your pet collection... " He said making a gesture towards the girl. "though you could have gotten a better looking one, she looks half dead over there."

His eyes seemed to narrow a little with the mentioning of the girl, though he quickly moved and started directing Boyd towards the door. "before you ask the answers no...I need her in one piece. Aside from that I'm still to track down the other red haired light elf that's been wreaking the troops.. I need her for that to work." Over all he was calling her bait for her brother and if he had half a mind and didn't enjoy the hunting part of a mission he probably would do such a thing. But for now it was to throw anyone who brought it up off of his true intentions.

He blinked a little as he was being forced towards the door. "Rhyl do you really think I'd ask such a thing... " noticing the look he was getting he smiled weakly. "ok so I would but... what about when your done using her?" By this time he was already outside of the door.

"it's still no, when I'm done with her i'll kill her simple as that, she can join her brother in the embrace of the dark goddess." He noticed that Boyd was about to protest and so he cut in before he got the chance to "I have things to do if you don't mind, rest being one of them" With that he shut the door and started walking away from it, he seemed slightly stressed from all of this. Though it was a good reminder why he didn't return home very often.

He got the dragon to get off of his shoulder and placed it on the floor, the creature seemed to notice the girl right away as it crawled towards the bed and up one of the legs to sit on the post watching her. It was a white dragon or rather it's fur was white and it's scaled wings were red with dark white webbing. It's head held only three small horns one being in the center and the other two curling around each of it's ears. The eyes were a soft blue as it watched the girl curiously.

"Behave" he called over to the dragon, apparently never giving the thing a name, though most of the time it was the only other thing in his living quarters so it wasn't hard to tell when he was talking to it. After checking the bag he seemed to shake his head a little before taking out the contents and walking to rise them. Putting them in a bowl after and walking back towards the bedside setting it down on the table next to her. "it's fruit, not poisoned I promise". At the least she could make due with that till he got the chance to get supplies.

(omg i did a short post! DX)

The dragon seemed to look towards Rhyl before moving slowly towards the girl, sniffing her hand once before pushing it's head against it. "It's a northern dragon hatchling, the fur keeps it from freezing to death, though from what I'm told white's are suppose to be rare." He seemed to shrug off the idea, the thing would grow up one day he wasn't sure what he was going to do about a full grown dragon that acted like a house cat.. well one that could breath magic anyway. "It has no name, so call it what you like" he said waving a hand in the air before walking to where he had left his shirt pulling the tunic on. He was giving up on sleep for the moment, with how his luck was going no one was going to leave him alone.

He didn't reply to her comment on him not needing to say such a thing, really he did have to say such things. It wasn't unheard of for his kind to poison one another, though from Boyd and his wife he wasn't worried about it.

"I'll be back, your safe enough here, besides like I said tat thing is better then any dog you could get a hold of." Even though it was the size of a small kitten... though he was hardly lying if a kitten could breath fire it'd probably be a good guard as well. "can't have you going about naked hrm?" It had hardly slipped his mind, he was just better at keeping his thoughts to himself on the matter. Though being truthful with himself he wouldn't mind her staying naked, but then again was there any guy would would complain about having a naked girl in his bed?

"Don't choke while I'm gone" was his last words to her before leaving the quarters, he wasn't kidding either he knew she was probably sore all over and all it took was coughing once while trying to swallow.

He wasn't too worried about leaving her, most respected his space in the area.. let alone she seemed to take a liking to the dragon hatchling so least she had company. Though his trip was going to take longer then he expected with everyone and their cousin stopping him and getting in his way.

(aw no it was a good post ^^ silly)

The dragon seemed to purr at the attention acting more and more like a small cat then a dragon that would one day be the terror of kingdoms. Rhyldrin never thought of it as luck, really he had threatened to cook the thing on many occasions because it got noisy. But he never breathed a word of it to her, if she wanted it she could keep him for all he cared.

He shrugged off her comment of something fitting, it was getting something her size that was the main problem. He wished this was easier and he could just patch up her other clothing but they were tattered so badly it wasn't worth the effort. She might have found it odd that he undressed her, but it needed to be done unless she wanted the wounds to get infected. For that type of thought he blamed his father for sure, plus it was hardy the first time he had seen a female naked... it came with calling it seemed, or at least when you had comrades that got wounded on a daily basis during the training course.

It probably took a few hours at least before he made his way back, all the while avoiding the one that Boyd had called his stalker. Though he had good reason to avoid her, she was the type to get jealous and enraged quickly.

The dragon sat up suddenly when he got near the door and opened it, though it seemed reluctant to move from the girls stomach. "Tsk... great now the dragon's spoiled?" He sighed a little, not really meaning anything by his comment as he walked towards the bed and tossed the shirt and pants set he had managed to find in a similar size to her height and body structure. "That should work well enough, if your up to it you can take a bath as well. We'll just redress the larger wounds afterwards."

With what he needed said out in the open he walked back to the chair he was in before and sat heavily resting his head against the wall behind it. 'why am I bothering, I killed the leader of her people.' He kept his thoughts to himself and any sign of he over thinking such things were not to be seen. Though he never did think that she might be uncomfortable taking a bath in this place, let alone with him just in the other room not that he seemed to want to move. The lack of sleep was probably starting to catch up to him again where he had spent most of the previous night attending her. "Oh and there's more candles in there as well" He said making a lazy gesture towards the washroom. "just take one form out here to light them with if you need them" He had closed his eyes by this time, at least he was going to try and work in a short bit of rest, even though deep down he didn't trust this girl and he had left his daggers in the same room he was sending her into.

He found it somewhat relaxing that she was talking so much a gain, and questioning him just like when they were kids. At the least it meant she was feeling a bit better. "We could make clothes fit, that's not a issue." He had half a mind to tell her to keep the dragon, it was probably better off with someone who would care for it then the way he had been managing the creature, though oddly enough the dragon seemed to no dislike him in the least. Though tat thought was forced out of the way remembering her question "hrm.. 6'2 I think was what I was told last it was checked.. I don't think it's a full two feet taller then you though." Though at her comment of making her feel small he never really noticed it sure he knew he was taller then her but he never thought of how it made her feel deep down. "Heh.. I'm sorry, that's nothing I can fix." He gave her a weak smile at the morbid thought he had towards fixing it though he kept that joke to himself.

He returned to resting his head against the wall when she started to work on standing, no point in staring at her. He did hear that she was taking the sheets with her, not that he cared either way it was her choice. He waved her off towards what she had said to him "hardly, feel privileged I normally detest company in any form.. " He was being honest enough, though he had never had the chance to bond with anyone his parents died at a early age and he was thrown right away into combat training. "Besides you might as well make yourself at home, we're not leaving for a few days, not till your healed more." Though he doubted she'd complain too much, not like she was in any danger here.. well at least from him.

"hrm?" He said opening one eye to look at her with her comment of biting, though his smart mouth was going to earn it's keep if she was going to be so bold as to toss comments like tat out. "You never know I might like that" He smirked a little before closing his eye again, he was only joking with her but she might not know it. Really he had never been one to just jump at the chance to get with a woman, he was always too absorbed in whatever training he was under going or what mission he was on. Only in the recent weeks of toying with her did he notice he couldn't avoid all of his thoughts.

He was just about to doze back off when he heard her call out asking for the clothes. He had to laugh a little, finding this almost funny as he got up grabbing them. Walking to the room he opened the door and set the clothes on a stand just inside before he replied to her hit comment. "I wouldn't worry about me peeking, fun fact is torch light makes most of my kind half blind" He said pointing towards the candle just across from him. That was a dangerous thing to share with her for sure, though after he had explained himself he left the room shutting the door.

Once he had sit back into the chair the dragon climbed it's side and perched on his head once Rhydrin had settled. "Well.. you seem in high spirits.. " He said aloud to the dragon who cooed at him looking down into his eyes. Though he closed them shortly after, even with disrupted rest it still added up. This type of sleep is what he was use to anyway, always having to stay part of the way awake. Though his thoughts did drift a little in his half asleep mind, it was funny to him she kept threatening him if he looked or got any ideas.

He had tried to ignore her comment of biting him, oddly the thought seemed to stay with his mind though. Though he needed to focus he was still walking on thin ice here all it'd take was one person finding out from either side and the rest of his life or hers would be a living hell. Though he guessed what life either of them would have left at that point would be short lived.

The dragon's ears perked up as she spoke to it, chirping once before gently crawling to her hand and perching there keeping it's self steady. Keeping his eyes closed he decided to answer her, not like he could get to sleep with how active his mind was being on a few levels. "Not really, no..." He sighed slightly before moving his head from the wall and cracking his neck to the side.

Taking in the outfit she had on he seemed disappointed they didn't fit as well, but it just had to due till he got her to a light elf encampment right. wait... how the hell was that to be explained as to what happened to her other clothes. why did he even have to think of such a thing to ad to his worries.

"Why did you need something?" He finally asked seeing as she didn't seem to have a reason as to why she asked if he was asleep, though generally when someone asked such a thing they needed something. Though after a few moments it did dawn on him a few of her wounds did need to be retreated. "right the cuts.. " He seemed to mutter more to himself then anyone as he stood once more.

Though he didn't move right away thinking on how to word this though he gave up on finding a proper way to ask. "Either you can try and dress them yourself or I can, your choice." A few of them would probably be hard for he to take care of herself, and he didn't want to just order her to take the shirt off so he could get it over with. He was taking a guess that he could take care of them faster then she could, but he had been doing such tasks for years.

"Do as you wish, I'm use to getting sleep in when I can, if I can't so be it" He seemed to shrug a little, it was getting to him cause of the travel time he had before getting here but he could manage easily enough. He noticed her sudden change in body language as she said he never had time to himself. "Stop that, blaming yourself isn't going to solve anything.. besides I've had plenty of time to myself about ten years worth give or take." He had a point and he never once said he minded her company, really even if he didn't want to admit it the change of pace was almost refreshing. Besides it was keeping the dragon out of his way that alone was a god sent.

He was about to speak up again saying he knew she probably didn't deal with them often though he lost that thought when she brought her face close to his. His ears dropped a little thinking he had said something out of the way to offend her even if he didn't say anything at all. He held his hands up at her threat "you can keep it lit I'm not completely blind you know... it's more of the sudden light change that affects our sight, then takes a while to adjust."

He noticed she seemed to not want to remove the shirt, though he had put enough of it together by now to figure out she was shy. "I'll be done before you know it, then you can put the shirt back on" He said as he was looking for the salve he used the last time in the box near the bed. Though he was partiality distracted this time from previous comments and the fact she seemed to be taunting him. But either way he went about tending at least the larger cuts, the smaller ones should be fine now that they were thoroughly cleaned. There was only three larger wounds he had to worry about, one being on her upper left side another being on her right shoulder and then the last one along her lower back. He did seem to stop a few times and tend to the smaller cuts with gentle hands but it was more to keep himself focused on what he was doing.

'what the hell is wrong with me today!' he cursed at himself in his mind as he was finishing his task and wrapping the larger wounds to keep the medicine on them and to prevent dirt from getting in. "Alright done, we'll probably have to do this a few more times before they are closed enough to heal... " He thought a moment before going on as the dragon climbed up the bed post and sat next to the girl. "and don't worry about scars, the salve should prevent them." He just never used the stuff thus why he had scars for most of the major wounds he had gotten over the years. Though after he finished saying what he needed to he found himself with a urge almost, one he had avoided all these years and he was hissing at his own mind for being so damn weak at a time like this. Though with the stress of how all of this was going to end probably wasn't helping at all, probably on top of the lack of sleep was preventing him from blocking such thoughts though the girl hardly helped matters with her taunts.

"You'll have to speak up when your hungry, I can fix something then" He was doing anything and everything to avoid looking at her and to keep his mind sane for the time being. Though thinking on it he'd have to get supplies before he fixed anything, and only just now did he remember he never ate earlier. But that was hardly out of the ordinary for him.

He seemed to listen to her staying silent as he worked though between pauses he had managed to answer her or speak up. "Thats probably a good idea, I'm sure you need it" He did too and he figured he could get some sleep in while she was resting, unless she had another outburst like before. "Hrm?" He noticed her looking at him with her question, though he shrugged it off quickly. "No not really, though I don't just go about treating everyone's wounds either." He normally only dealt with himself unless he had to address someone else, and he was hardly gentle when he treated his own.

The dragon cooed and pawed at her hand wiggling back and forth on it's back as she tickled it's belly. It was really hard to believe this beast would grow up and be a man eater someday, Rhyl wasn't sure if there was a way around that or not but for now it seemed innocent enough. He nodded a little to her "well no point in letting them get infected after going through the hassle of saving you eh?" He laughed a little knowing she was just being her in saying thank you but it was hardly needed.

He thought on what she was recalling for a moment before speaking "I remember... you said you couldn't swim and I said it was easy and shoved you in." He smirked a bit at the thought. "You gave me hell after you got your wind back" Though his mind skipped the next thought feeling her hand brush against his, what in the world was he thinking. He needed to burn it into his mind nothing could go further between the two of them, raping was one thing and he'd never do such a act but to think that he could make a connection with this girl was just asking for him to end up on the end of a light elf's blade.

He sighed a little before moving his hand away from where her's was and sitting on the bed next to her, though he gave her a respectable amount of space still. "heh yeah so it seems, guess the goddess thinks you have a reason to live if she keeps directing me to save you." He smiled a little at the thought though it was a rather weak one, knowing he was just fooling himself now and he blamed his tired state. "There was a time or two you kept my ass out of trouble, my temper got the better of me that one time I was going to give that kid a piece of my mind. Little did I know he was the head of the guard's son" that would have been a death wish if he ever had one back then. "You always managed to talk me out of doing anything, I hated it" He was prideful as a child, still was really and the thought a girl could talk him down out of any idea made him feel weak.

He was sorry, he thought she was ready that was the way he had been taught to swim was pushed in. No one came to save him when he was learning so it was do or die. He thought about her next words a little "I did didn't I... not at first though, I use to get annoyed at how much you talked. I'd think that you didn't know how to shut up from time to time cause you'd go on for hours." It was probably her fault he even talked, even if it was mainly to her. 'I did trust you... ' He thought to himself not replying to that aloud, he still felt like he trusted her but it didn't need to be voiced.

He had to smirk a little at the thought of naming the dragon behave for the hell of it. "I could call it Vrine, it means behave in my tongue." He laughed a little at it knowing he was joking. "I don't know, he'll have to go back to his home lands someday I can't keep a full grown dragon." The dragon had yawned a little looking between the two of them. "aside from that.. if he stays here theres no mate for him, dragons are social or at least his breed is." He felt a little bad thinking on it that he had the poor thing out here all alone, though he had no real way of getting to the northern mountains to release him and being this small he doubted any of the groups would take him anyway. "Why don't you name him, the thing seems to like you anyway"

He had sort of been drifting off on her, the conversation was relaxing enough and falling asleep sitting up was hardly uncommon for him. Though when she shifted onto the bed and rested her head in his lap he seemed to freeze almost. 'this ... is not helping' He thought to himself, though he was distracting his mind while watching the dragon. Judith seemed comfy at the least, he wasn't about to tell her to move... he hardly minded it really it just wasn't something he expected.

As the dragon ended up back on the bed it crawled to sit behind Rhyl, pouting a little at Judith for moving. "huh?" What was she saying sorry for now, though he quickly got his answer taking notice her face seemed to be red. His ears dropped back a little what the hell was he suppose to do, she didn't need to be sorry but he didn't need to out right say he didn't mind. For all he cared she could sleep like that, but instead he handled it like he did most things.. in his own manner. "Nah, you worry too much. Least you didn't drool this time" He teased at her before standing, as kids she had fallen asleep near him before and ended up leaning against his shoulder though in the process she drooled on his shirt. He wasn't even sure she remembered that she warned him back then to not tell anyone, she probably wanted him to forget it as well.

"but get some rest eh? You'll never recover if we're going to stay up here talking about times that are long past. And you.. let her rest" He scolded the dragon who was being a attention whore again. After he went back to sitting in the chair, he needed sleep and he knew it. The lack of it was getting to him as he thought more and more.

"if he keeps acting like that I might.. " he said in reply to the dragon's hiss, he was a bit feisty with having someone else around to get attention from now. The dragon settled back down again cuddling next to Judith and her pets and scratches. 'Least one of us is carefree' he though looking at the dragon, he missed being a kid when he hardly cared about what was going on.

Though her sudden change in addittude made him smirk a bit. "I already warned you I might like it" He was still just messing with her and he did add this time he might into it, hell if he knew. He hardly had first hand experience in that manner and he never wanted any. Not when his training and missions came first, though she was starting to make him second guess that.

"Hrm? eh it's better then sleeping on he floor." Sure it wasn't a preferred position to sleep in but it was better then the hard floor at the least. He was in the middle of pulling his shirt back off seeing as his plan was to sleep here, though he next sentence made him give her a bit of a odd look he wasn't even sure he heard that right. He sort of stared at her before she went on, he was sure his lack of sleep made him misunderstand what she said. Though when she spoke again apparently he wasn't as wrong as he had thought.

What was he suppose to say to that even, everything told him do it but wouldn't that make him just like the others. 'ok your over thinking this.. is just to sleep your too damn tired to pull anything anyway so whats there to worry about' Though thinking on it a moment it'd probably make her feel guilty if he turned her offer down, he already knew she blamed herself for enough things. His ears dropped a little before letting a sigh under his breath out, this is going to get me killed one day. Or least that's what he thought as he stood from where he was and walked back over to the other side of the bed that was placed against a wall. "Fine whatever, but it's only to make sure your not beating yourself up." He said as one of his normal reply's. He wanted to do this sure but like hell he was going to admit to that.

She was under the sheets anyway and he didn't want to be under them, the heat from just being under the sheets would make sleep unbearable let alone the addition of her body temperature. So instead he placed his back against the wall and laid on his side, this was how he normally slept anyway when he was home. He didn't trust this place to not have someone willing to stab him in the back. Closing his eyes after he was settled he told her now get some sleep, making sure to give her plenty of space. He hardly wanted to wake up to her preparing to gouge his eyes out if he had gotten too close.

He had probably managed to get a hours worth of sleep in before he thought he heard a scream or some form of yelling from somewhere. 'The hell..' He didn't say it aloud noticing that Judith was fast asleep still. Though the dragon looked at him from over Judith's shoulder. "Stay with her.." He said under his breath to the dragon before slipping out of the bed and taking a few steps closer to the door.

Though his curiosity was settled as another scream came out of no where and his ears fell back. What in the world was going on out there, he had a uneasy feeling in his gut something was dreadfully wrong here. He moved quickly to the washroom where he remembered leaving his weapons and grabbed them. Strapping the daggers to each leg before grabbing the swords. Judith seemed to stay asleep for the moment or at least looked like she was, he wanted her to stay asleep she needed the rest.

He pressed his back against the wall waiting next to where the door was to the main room. All he could hear was more cries and the sound of metal against metal. This was too much to just be some brawl between a few kids or something. 'Out of all the damn nights to be back here... ' he thought to himself keeping his position waiting for someone to be bold enough to cross the line and open the door. He normally wasn't in the main city for any reason he'd come back to report the mission he was on and to get a new one before leaving. His thought drifted to the idea that Judith said he was lucky, if that were true it was cursed luck.

The door finally did open as the first light elf was met with a blade into his back upon entering the room. "What the hell?" How the hell did light elves get this far in? What about the guards at the entrance what force could destroy the guards up until this point. He didn't have time to see if Judith had woken up by this point but he needed to worry about his own neck at this point. If they found her the girl would be fine, but it was very apparent they weren't taking prisoners.

Two more light elf soldiers walked through the door as he delivered a sword to each one making sure to strike a vital area. He wasn't going to worry about one he left alive getting him later. He couldn't just stay here though it would get to the point where he would corner himself if he wasted too much time. Though he did wait for another solider to walk and try to strike at him before getting into the room, he had severed the man's shoulder int he process before taking his life in almost the same swift movement.

Getting his breath for a moment he ducked out of the room and was met whoever was standing in his way with blades. There were already corpses all over the place, most seemed to be dark elves for the time being though there was a few light elves in the mix. 'Are they that cowardly? To attack while we have no defenses to slay the young ones and elderly along with the ones who are unable to defend themselves!' He was almost enraged at the thought, sure his kind were known to be ruthless, heartless, killers but they still had never once struck out against the main towns of the light elves knowing that most of the warriors were out in the field of battle.

Whoever had done this would pay he thought as he drew his blades back from another light elf letting him fall to the ground. He had a idea who might be behind it, and he had a score to settle with that person anyway. A score that should have been settled years ago when he had the chance. Though for now he needed to try and assist any who were still alive of his kind he thought as he made his way through the passageways obliterating any light elf that was still breathing.

A small child was backed into a corner with two soldiers standing there about to take the final blow, but Rhyl saw to it they didn't succeed as both of them fell lifelessly to the ground. "Run or get a weapon cowering wont spare your life!" He growled to the child, yes it was cruel and he saw the boy's mother laying in a pool of blood upon the ground but it couldn't be helped. He turned his back to the child before he started to move again "Grieve after you have found the safety to do so, don't let her death be in vein."

He couldn't stay around to protect the boy he needed to get rid of as many of the light elves as he could, though there almost seemed to be no end of them. He had lost count of how many he had already felled, why was there such a large army attacking here. This wouldn't end the war this would cause the smaller clans to band together and strike the light elf capital. This was a fools move in this game they called war.. Or that's what he thought at the least, he knew that it would be a matter of time before the ones sent out on missions and errands returned here and found the bloodbath that remained. He couldn't fight the whole army off just to wait for then.

Coming around a corner he found himself up against four more light elves though they seemed to think they had the upper hand by it being four against one. He frowned a little pulling the blades up before charging forth "I will not fall!" He cried out as the blades were drove deep into the chests of the first two and he quickly dropped his hands to the daggers pulling them free and taking them to the throats of the remaining two. It almost looked like a dance with how gracefully it was executed, and to some it was a dance.. the dance of death. Putting the daggers back into the holders he freed both blades from the corpses before moving forward again. His eyes showed nothing but a lust to see the blood of the light elves who had done this, he would kill every last one of them if it came down to it or die in the process... either way he was going to make them know there was one fighter still alive and that this area had no yet fallen.

He went about this for a few hours, though it felt like mere minutes to him until his fatigue started to catch back up to him. The lack of sleep was keeping back in or at least a full rested sleep and the fact he hadn't eaten, he had picked one of the worse times to go on a killing spree in such poor conditions. 'Just a little longer' He kept telling himself, he just needed to get to a exit there were a few surely the light elves didn't have them all blocked off.

Though his fear that he was cornered seemed to be coming very true as he went around checking each of the escape routes only to be met with more corpses and the fact that he couldn't break through any of the exits to get out of here. There were too many standing watch at the passageways, if he was just starting to draw blood he could have gotten out but not this way. His breath was heavy and his chest burned with each intake of air. The past few groups of soldiers he had encountered had managed to wound him in the process of Rhyl slaying them. Though he was covered in blood he hardly knew if most of it was his own or that of his enemy.

He drew back his blade from yet another corpse as it fell to the ground. He forced himself to walk, what choice did he have it was a matter of time before the troops standing guard got bored and went to seek out if there were any survives. Maybe a few made it out before the exits were taken over, though it didn't look that promising. What about the matriarch? Not that he really cared about her but the fact was she was still the leader of the dark elves and without her they would just turn into a angry army that sought blood.

Seeing as he was cornered in the different passageways he made his way back to his living quarters slowly, having to deal with a few stray soldiers in the process. Why was he bothering, he could just leave well enough alone as to saying Judith was safe now, but he couldn't. Then again why did it matter he was cornered anywhere he went to so why not at least be cornered in his own home.

He grew closer to the doorway hearing nothing, then again there was almost no movement at all aside from a few that clung to life... though it was pointless the wounds they had were beyond repair. If he bled out much more he might be in the same boat he thought as he walked. Feeling the blood run down his arms and along his back from the gashes he had received from being careless. Though maybe bleeding out wouldn't be a bad death, it would still be in battle and it could prevent him from being tortured for too long if he was captured. Thinking more and more it was Judith's brother behind this he knew the elf would make a exception to killing them all if they crossed paths and in this condition he hardly could fight him.

The room seemed quiet, was she even there or did they take her. Though he got his answer walking into the doorway keeping both blades in his hands. 'Tsk well damn my luck' He thought seeing that she was still here but there was also at least ten light elf soldiers as well. Pulling the blades up he held his stance between heavy breaths almost daring any of them to try it. Though against all ten he'd surely fall he didn't really have the energy to keep fighting but he wasn't going to roll over just yet either.

They didn't seem to make the first move as the group watched him, what were they waiting for? Though hearing footsteps from the passageways outside of the room he got his answer. He had to close one eye as blood ran into it stinging in the process. The idle thought was to run but where the hell would he go? There wasn't a way out and he knew it. At his luck one of the ones walking towards the room was probably her brother, it at least sounded like there'd be another seven or eight joining this little gathering here. Surely word had gotten to their commander that they had located the girl.

The dragon saw that it's care taker was in trouble and was about to make a move but Rhyl quickly hissed at it under his breath "Vrine!.." It yelped a little before crawling backwards and then turning to crawl into Judith's shirt to take cover. It understood now why he had said to stay with her but it didn't like the order. The light elves probably had no idea what he had said but he hardly cared as he kept his eyes on them.

'Tsk just make a move so I can end this!' He thought, if he made the first move he'd surely die, if they made it then he had a chance of at least taking out half of them. It was probably easy enough to tell what state he was in, he probably didn't look that threatening being out of breath and bleeding all over. He half thought they were mocking him by just standing there, but he figured it was along the lines of waiting for their commander that or they had orders to not kill the king slayer...

(im sad this was short D; lol)

The words welcome home nearly made him sick seeing the fact they had Judith bound though in a poorly manner, the idea that he had no chance in hell against such a group even in good health he'd have a struggle. "Tsk... bastards.." He hissed towards them and the comment he couldn't keep her safe, he knew that already he didn't need to be told such a thing. He was probably lucky that most of the dark elves were killed, if the light elves thought he was helping her then surely someone from his own side would question it sooner or later.

Either way he stood his ground though he noticed that a few of them in this room seemed to be higher ranking then the pawns they sent to force him down, though from how weak he was at the moment they hardly needed the top fighters to do such a task. Though Rhyldrin still fought till the end against it taking at least two of the lower soldiers out before the others finally got him to the point he could be restrained. Even then he was still trying to fight it, he hardly wanted to be taken alive, not with the title of king slayer on his head and Brishen seemed drunk with rage from the whole ordeal. He already knew his fate, they'd probably not make the same mistake twice of chaining him a post and if they were taking Judith anywhere it'd be to the main city. There was a tale that no one had been able to escape from the cells inside the city walls. He wasn't going to roll over if they took him there he'd try till his last breath to get out.

For the time being he stayed silent aside from his head breathing, a combination of the pain from the wounds he already had and the exhausted state he was in. Though the talk of killing the Queen of his kind was almost funny as he laughed slightly. "if you've not found her you've lost your chance..." He laughed again thinking about what she'd do to the light elves. "You've doomed your city though, i'm sure you killed a few of her children, she'll hardly over look that." He wasn't a pawn for the queen but he did know all too well of her unrivaled temper, he found it funny the light elves were stupid enough to provoke such a wrath and fail to kill her.

His words seemed to unnerve a few of the foot soldiers before they left but that was about it. He hardly cared what he said at this point he had few options as it was so it was either die here or die after being tortured. He shrugged a little listening to the orders Brishen was giving his men "You don't listen very well do you?" He had to laugh again if they had not seen the queen by this point then she was long gone, along with the royal guard.

The question Judith's brother asked made it almost all too easy to be open to any smart remark Rhyldrin wanted. He smirked a bit, even though he knew that he was pretty much at the mercy of the two before him he seemed to hardly care. "How about unbind me and we'll see how much damage I can do before I draw my last breath eh?" He was being dead serious with his answer, if Brishen didn't notice most of his men tonight were slain by one person... Though he also knew if he took him up on such a offer it would be his last breath for sure but he'd sure give it his all to take either one of them down with him.

Though he doubted his request would be granted, no there was too many ways to torture someone with the proper equipment, Brishen seemed like the type of guy wanting revenge but wanting the process to be as drawn out as possible. He wasn't even sure what he'd do to Judith, she had nothing to do with this not like it was her choice to be here or to be saved by the likes of him. Really he was still cursing his luck, it seemed to be getting worse and worse the longer he stayed around this girl. Being captured twice within the same damn month? He should see it as a blessing he wasn't killed on the spot but at the same time he could find himself in a place that even he was unable to escape from.

Vrine was still inside of Judith's shirt staying hidden, the dragon could be in danger if he let his presence be known. Though it wanted to help, both of the people who had cared for it now were in trouble. But for the time being it followed the order it was given by Rhyldrin.

What Rhyldrin had said was true though the Queen was long gone, her and her most trusty warriors were in another location planning for the strike against the light elves capital. She would not stand seeing as her youngest son was killed during this night. "Someone find me the commanders name! NOW!" She screamed at her guard some of them flinching at her voice. "Whoever did this will pay dearly, we will not take this loss lying down." Was her final words before walking away from a table with a map of the light elves town on it.

He continued to hold the same smug smirk he had before, the threat was hardly doing it for him. "Oh I have to say I'm scared, you really think I worry about my life?" He burst out laughing at the thought of it "I knew that was forfeit years ago, now it's a matter of where and how" He enjoyed taunting these men it would seem, though that's how he always was and it was true when he took up being a blade for hire he gave up his life meaning anything.

though he lost his sense of humor when Brishen threatened to kill Judith, he needed to get her out of here seeing as even with her own kind it was hardly safe. He hardly trusted Brishen to ensure that the other one standing here with such lust in his eyes was to not do anything to the girl. "Tsk, what you think killing her would matter to me?" He laughed again, though he was putting this on it was convincing enough. "If you kill her your saving me from having to do it later" He shrugged a little hopping that she wasn't taking half of what he said seriously. Though he heard the hiss she did towards the other man as he smirked a bit letting his mouth get the better of him once more "though it sounds like you'd be doing her a favor as well"

He seemed hardly worried about the sword being drawn, he had already prepared for this to probably be his end. Though if he was going to stand there and debate for too much longer he'd gladly assist him. "Tsk as i said release these binds and see how far you get, it's almost amusing I've yet to find you alone somewhere... you must fear that you'd lose" He grinned a bit knowing that his taunts were bound to get a reaction sooner or later out of the hot tempered elf. "But if it'll make you feel better by all means slay me while I'm bound, I ensure you that it won't save your now damned city." He almost laughed when he spoke, he knew the Queen was long gone and probably already in the process of planning a assault on the capital.

Brishen brought the blade to Rhyldrin's neck and held it there as he went on to speak again. This only seemed to edge Rhyldrin on even more. "That's the best you got?" He gave him a rather unimpressed look "I'm already bleeding out I don't think you have to worry about that" He still seemed to shrug this fact off that he had already lost a great deal of blood, it probably wasn't helping his carefree mood either.

He wasn't even worried about his own life really, he just wanted to make sure Judith was safe. Even knowing nothing would probably happen between the two of them, she was still the one person he had cared about during his life. He oddly wanted to protect her and that wasn't even in his kind's nature aside from parents and their offspring. He wanted to just tell him to leave her out of this, she had no say in her being here. But to do such a thing they'd know that he was lying from before.

there was one other still alive in the caverns, hiding and waiting for the chance to strike. They had remained in the shadows and avoided conflict from the guards walking the passageways. Overhearing the conversation at hand they had picked up on a familiar voice. For now they waited to see what the light elves were planning to do, though by guessing the commander was drunk with a blood gorged sword. Bets were on that they wouldn't kill Rhyldrin on the spot, move him to another location maybe, but that could be easily prevented.

(boo on my short post D<)

After the binds were off he stood from where he was, he wanted to slay the one who was taking Judith off not trusting him for a second. But this had to come first and he had to live through it even to do shit about the other guy. Once the other two were out of the room he smirked a bit, though it was easy to tell a few of the wounds were getting the better of him.

"I didn't think you were that stupid... to be honest" He laughed a little before pulling the two blades from his legs, the soldiers hadn't removed them from before but they didn't really need to he didn't have the energy to break out of the bindings they had forced him into. He righted himself after a moment and let a heavy breath out though he wanted to keep taunting the man to blind him in rage further. The sudden scream from the other room made him think that he didn't have time for such things. "This will be something you won't live to regret..." He hissed out staying his ground.

Brishen smiled at the dark elf having his blade drawn and ready to kill this fool, for the wound he had given him. "You say that, but you'll be the one who won't walk away from this, I'll finish what I started all those years ago." He said before launching the first attack, though it was avoided with ease. It would be a matter of time before Rhyldrin had to fight back and avoiding was causing him to lose more blood.

Rhyldrin kept trying to listen to see if Judith was ok or not but he couldn't hear anything his head was pounding and his focus was off quite a bit. This was almost a death sentence and he knew it. Deflecting and avoiding each of the blows from Brishen's sword he kept making sure his back wasn't against a wall, this wasn't the largest of spaces to have this fight in. 'damn it i need to get in at least one hit then its over!' he hissed at himself, he had a time limit all this movement was making the gash on his shoulder open more.

"whats the matter you can't back up that mouth of yours? HAH I told you to shut it didn't I" Brishen taunted him before striking forward again and landing a hit to his side, almost in the same spot as the one previous he had from the last fight. He quickly drew the sword back as Rhyldrin seemed to try to ignore the wound, though it wasn't working out as well as he wanted. "Like I said... your not walking away from this I'll make sure that you die in the slowest manner possible." He hissed out towards the wounded dark elf thinking he had the upper hand, and truth be told he did.

He coughed a bit as a small trail of blood left his mouth though he was still grinning at the whole thing. "If I die ... you are too. Just to prevent you hurting her further..." He managed to get out, though he didn't care who heard it by now he wasn't planning to walk away from this fight. forcing another heavy breath out he lunged forward as both daggers clashed with the sword, he locked them there at the least it prevented the weapon from striking at him further.

"Oh so I was right if I had killed her you would have been pissed.." Brishen found this almost funny and sicken at the same time as he laughed suddenly trying to get the blade free from the daggers. "Even if you save her, time and time again nothing will happen between the two of you. Or are you that stupid?" He laughed again barely managing to free his sword as his arms were forced backwards from the force he was using for it.

"i don't care!" He yelled at him seeing the opening as he took a step forward and forced both daggers into his body one into his stomach while the other was directly where his heart was in his chest. Brishen stumbled a little still laughing as he dropped the sword to the ground and he fell backwards moving a hand to one of the daggers. "Y- ou... your.. " He coughed out trying to say something, whatever it was it probably wasn't anything that important.

Rhyldrin coughed again before falling to his knees causing him to cough further as blood came up. "I don't care... " He said as his ears went back trying to keep his eyes open. "As long as she's safe I don't care..." He said it a bit softer then the previous sentences as he gasped a little to keep air into his lungs, everything hurt. He was use to getting the worse end of a fight but everything felt like it was on fire. The lack of blood was making his head spin as he stayed on his knees. He wanted to force himself to stand but he couldn't He needed to make sure that Judith was ok.

The figure that had been watching the fight finally let herself drop from the ceiling of the cave as she walked into the room with her arms crossed looking at the bloody mess between the two fighters. "Your a mess you know that, Your going to really let yourself die here?" She seemed stern with him for some reason she offered no help, though it was't common for his kind to help one another even in a situation like this. She seemed pissed at something as well, though her mind was thinking over a million thoughts why did he fight so hard to protect one of the very beings that would kill him without a second thought.

(shorter then i wanted im being rushed for dinner lol)

Vrine stopped just short of climbing onto Rhyldrin when the dragon whined and turned to look at the woman with a soft hiss backing himself up to stand between her and his care keeper. "Oh shh you" she scolded the dragon not that it did any good. Rhyldrin had manged to remember where he heard the voice of the woman from as he tried to move and coughed again before pushing a hand on his side. "Tsk... you.. get the hell away from me" He growled at her with a mix of pain in his voice.

"Now... thats not very nice to say to your future wife... Your going to make me the next matriarch of our people" She smiled a bit before she heard a noise from behind her. She turned quickly to notice Judith as she scowled remembering why she wasn't helping him. "What is it... about her. " She looked back to Rhyldrin with the same cold scowl. "Why protect her?! I heard what you said, but why do it to her a light a elf one of the things that took your family from you!" She seemed furious with the fact he had said what he did to Judith's brother before killing him.

Rhyldrin hardly wanted her screaming at him to be the last things he heard as he forced a breath out before trying to talk. "I have my reasons..." He never answered the woman's questions but he did enforce something he had apparently told her years ago. "I told you... I will not court you, not for that reason ..." He coughed again before moving enough to rest his back against a near by wall. "I declined the offer to be one of the royal guards.. I don't give a damn about the future of our people... " He laughed weakly noticing her face as she continued to scowl. "I got what I wanted out of my life... my parents were revenged and the one person I still cared about is alive" He knew that Judith was there but in his current condition what did it matter what he said. Unless there was a medic close to the area he probably wasn't going to make it through the next hour.

The woman seemed more furious by his answer as she clenched both fists. "Tsk so you've set your mind on this have you... " She waited to see his answer he sort of nodded at her. "Fine, do what you want, if you live don't expect to be welcomed anywhere" She was pretty much calling him a traitor to thier kind, and she was right to a extent. Though he got it from his parents it was how they were they were trying to stop further wars to prevent the blood shed of the innocent like what happened today and what was going to happen tot he light elf city soon.

Closing both eyes he smirked a bit still putting pressure on the wound on his side. "Wouldn't have it any other way, I was never welcome to begin with" He had a point he never fit in with any of the clans not with being the child of the two who associated themselves with light elves. "Now if your done yelling at me .. leave" The woman growled a little at him before turning and storming past Judith "you better not be here by the time I return light elf... " was her cold warning before walking down the passageway and away from where she had left the two of them.

Vrine cooed softly and put his front two paws on Rhyldrin's leg pawing lightly. "My order still applies.. " he said to the dragon, he didn't repeat the order but the dragon seemed to know what he meant. He had told it before to stay with the girl, he knew he wasn't going to last much longer and he didn't want the dragon staying with a corpse.

At first he sat there a few more moments though he noticed that Judith seemed to be i shock. 'damn it girl.. you can't stay here' he thought to himself even with his mind not completely being with him due to the amount of blood he had loss and was still losing. Forcing himself to stand again he leaned against the wall and tried to catch his breath. He didn't want to be mean to her but she needed to get out of here, it was more of a matter of time before forces tried to retake their home. "Grieve later, you have to go .. now" He said in a stern voice or at least the best one he could muster. If it came to her not moving he'd force her out.. somehow. Sure he knew what it was to lose family, but she didn't have time to be weak now. Any of the light elves left in the area could kill her or if the other dark elves returned it'd mark her doom as well. Really he wanted to tell her sorry, he didn't want to hurt her and from her reaction of being in shock h e guessed even though her brother was a asshole to her she still cared enough about him being family an all.

He probably shouldn't have bothered standing but he needed to ensure she got out, like hell he was going to die and not know if she escaped or not. He looked down at the dragon who seemed to understand what he wanted to do as it walked over to Judith and grabbed her shirt tail in it's mouth and tugged. It was trying to tell her to come on, they needed to go.

He could tell she was on the edge of breaking down, it wasn't hard to see. Though she was begging for him to let her help, he sighed a little before speaking again to answer her pleas. "I said go, so I'm not going to allow you to stay here and try to help" He didn't tell her he thought it was a lost cause, he was covered in blood probably at least half of it was his own, the wounds were deeper then simple wraps could take care of. But he didn't want to worry her she was already in enough pain. Though he looked away from her for a few moments before speaking again knowing he was being a bit harsh with her. "Please... I know you want to help.. but don't stay" Even that sounded cold though he said it in a nicer tone then before.

With what she was saying he almost found a grim humor in it, go figure the one person he cared about and seemed to give a damn if he died or not and it was found out pretty much on his deathbed. He kept the thought to himself, he didn't need to voice it to her. He shook his head a little at her words of betrayal "It's not betraying me if I'm telling you to go.. All the times I did help you will be for nothing if your killed here" He had a point, though he did still bring a hand to cover hers on his face. If this was his last moments least it wasn't so bad aside from the unbelievable pain running through his body.

Listening to her she was starting to sound like she blamed herself, he wasn't going to have her do that. "Shh, even if you were out there helping worse could have happened. You'd be marked as a traitor for your people or you could have been killed." He forced a smile towards her, he wouldn't have let her protect him it went against who he was to rely on someone else. Though what she did next he hardly expected, not that he complained at all. He needed to ensure her that he wasn't going to die here even if he had doubts of his own about it. Smirking a bit he figured he could at least put a foot forward to ease her worries a little "You should know by now.. I'm too damn stubborn to die heh.." Though he held back a cough knowing that would hardly support his words if he had coughed up blood.

"Vrine.. you better take care of her" The dragon snorted a little flicking it's ears back, though it seemed as worried as the girl was. Sure he'd know where she was, though getting into the capital on the brink of war would be a tricky task. Watching her leave gave him the feeling he wasn't going to see her again. 'Idiot.. making a promise your not going to die, you know damn well you are' He thought to himself before forcing himself to move, medical supplies he still had time to try a few things.

"Please just stay safe.. " Though he was thinking she was foolish to do what she did let alone try and stay here to help. He would have had to walk her through everything and he could probably do it faster himself, if it'd even help. The wounds should have been treated hours ago instead of pushing through them. Pulling a bottle from the stand next to the bed he sort of glared at it. "Here I said I wasn't going to drink anymore" He sighed a little before pulling the top off and taking a quick swig from it. "tsk ... damn my luck" He was steadying himself between the wall and the stand that the medical box was still on as he pulled a cloth from it and pours some of the bottles contents onto it. "Well at the least I won't be able to say I didn't try" He complained to himself as he tried to clean the wound on his side first knowing it was bleeding the worse out of all of them. He wanted to curse it from the burning, but at the least the burn was a good sign as well.

He went about taking care of all he could before pulling a needle and some thread out of the box as well. "I'm too sober for this shit..." He sighed heavily sipping again from the bottle, and he was probably right last time he did stitching to himself he was almost out of it. Granted once he was done and cursed half of the process through it wasn't the neatest but it would at least keep it closed and prevent infect so long as he watched it. He went about this process for the other two larger wounds as well before tending to cleaning the smaller cuts and gashes and dressing them as properly as he could while rushing and being light headed. Even doing all this he could still not make it and he knew that fact. If he crossed paths with any fight at all then he was done for.

After about a hour he had finished finally as he placed his back against the wall letting a heavy breath out. Telling himself he was only doing this to ensure she lived, if she was going to the capital and the dark elves were planning a war.. he wasn't going to let her die there. Once he had re-caught his breath again he went looking for a shirt and the rest of his gear, if he had the chain mail on in the first place he probably would have a few less cuts at the least. Though it was a bit late now to scold himself.

Once he was set and pulled the daggers from Brishen's corpse he said a sort of silent prayer before speaking "you were a hell of a fighter though bind" Once he had both daggers and his swords he checked the outside area of the door way before starting to make his way out, he had a few basic supplies but they were things he always carried anyway. Though while he could get away with it he walked slow and kept close to the wall for support. He still hurt allover and he knew he was rather weak if not the walking dead.

~~~~~~~~~~

At least half a year had passed, the light elves knew very well the dark elves were planning a war on the capital. It was easy enough to guess it would be during the night and the day seemed to crawl by guards holding their breaths waiting and praying that the grand city would not fall. There was more and more signs of dark elf scouts keeping track of the cities defenses and making notes of any weak points they spotted. The Queen of the dark elves would get to the town in the matter of a week, but her main force was already a mere three days from the walls.

Rhyldin had managed to keep out of sight of the advancing army and avoided any light elves as well. Though he had no idea what or how the hell he was going to prevent another blood bath. He had the odd idea of seeking out the current king or placeholder king maybe for the light elves, though by now surely they had a new king. There were a few words he knew that would grant him or suppose to grant him protection from being mowed down on sight, though the idea that this would work... was almost laughable.

He had managed to get to the walls of the cit with ease, though under the cover of night it wasn't a real challenge. His wounds had all healed aside from the larger ones leaving new scars, not that that bothered him. Though he had to be kidding himself if he thought she still thought he was alive, three months with no word was a long wait in the middle of a war zone. Though the more he thought about it what the hell was he doing?! He had to call himself crazy for even doing this let alone planning to infiltrate the light elf capital to threaten the king to listen to him.

Using a small smoke bomb he manged to lure the guards away from one of the side entrances. Though he had to admit he didn't think it would be that easy. His training all of these years came in handy as he stayed to dark alleyways and rooftops. Making no sound at all as he moved and keeping his hands ready to take out any guard before he made a noise, though he wanted to avoid conflict if he could help it.

Sure he wanted to see Judith to ease her worries but he had no idea of her location let alone if she was even in the city. He guessed she did pass the word though that the capital was being targeted. There were twice as many guards as he last remembered ever seeing here. He knew he had a few days before the main force got here and last he heard of the queen's location she was at least a week from here... that'd give him time the army wouldn't strike unless provoked to do so.

He was catching his breath on a roof of what seemed to be a stable for the time being, wearing himself out wouldn't help matters and it'd end up with him getting caught. His only main worry was archers he had seen a few placed about the walls and on some of taller buildings inside the city. Though he thanked it being night, though he wouldn't have bothered trying to get this far if it where daytime.

(omg it's short .__. why! lol)

Resting for a moment he quickly noticed he wasn't alone as he swore he heard something. The sound of a bow string being drawn back catch his attention further. That wasn't a good sound, though hearing it normally meant a arrow was soon to follow. But there was a pause after the sound, maybe the archer was unsure of his location just yet. For now he waited to see if there was further movement, he couldn't afford to be wounded within the walls of the city.

Though after getting himself to move forward he noticed there was a sole person, archer from the looks of the bow on the ground. Why were they grounded, that was a poor location for a archer. Though he quickly noticed something else, the fiery red hair on the girl's head. He smirked a bit at this, though he'd still have to watch himself. It had been a while it was possibly she didn't feel the same as before or had gotten a taste for blood.

Vrine quickly looked towards a rooftop and chirped out suddenly as he struggled in the pocket he was in. The dragon knew who was here but he couldn't communicate with Judith who it was. He was trying to point out where his location was though, but the dragon didn't have the eyesight to see in the dark. 'Tsk damn thing' He thought knowing he was trying to get the jump on Judith before she released a arrow, and by the way she was acting he guaranteed she'd fire first ask questions later.

The dragon lost him once again as he made his way to another building easily enough and with as little sound as possibly to prevent tipping the girl off as well. This was a bit of a dangerous game he was playing and he probably deserved a good slap for what he was planning. He continued to stalk her for a while longer waiting till she had turned down a shadow covered alleyway that had no guards near it.

She still had her bow drawn and a arrow loaded into it as he quickly jumped down mere inches behind her and grabbed her with both arms, one quickly shooting a hand to cover her mouth and the other keeping her arms pinned knowing she wasn't one to let the close range get the better of her.. not remembering the first encounter where she nearly gutted him. He pulled her close making sure she couldn't move or scream as he backed himself against a wall. "don't scream hrm?' He said in a whisper to her, though he didn't let her go just yet not till he got a answer the he released her. He quickly held both hands up showing he didn't have a weapon just in case she didn't trust him after that little stunt he had just pulled, though he had a smirk on his face either way.