Ristvak abr Wyrda (Changeling Plot RP)

[Capricorn]

The captain grimaced as he sat down on a stool, looking up at one of his crew. "Water is beginning to leak into the hull, sir. We don't have the materials to fix it. Land's in sight, but there's no guarantee that the island in sight will have any materials to fix it. We haven't spotted any trees yet. What should we do, Captain?"

The ship's captain scratched his beard, looking over a map of what was so far discovered of the North. It wasn't much at all, and the map was unclear, likely inaccurate, plotted by those who had already come here. "Magic can fix it. Fetch a magician. You'd think that they'd have given us a ship that wasn't so shoddily built, don't you think? You want a commissioned crew to come back alive."

There was suddenly a horrible groaning sound. Wood was splintering, creaking, breaking. The door to the cabin swung open almost fast enough to break it. "We're run aground, Captain. There were sharp rocks. The ship has heavy damage."

The captain heaved himself to his feet with a grunt. "Go scour the island for something to fix it." He ordered. "We're not dying here."

----------

"Brisingr!" The city's magicians called. "Brisingr!"

Aesira hummed a merry tune under her breath. She held her bow in her hands, her quiver of arrows strapped to her back. The Changeling set out for the coastline, to hunt any animals which had washed up on shore. She headed west, stalking the coastline between Dras abr Draumar and Dras abr Vanyali. Her violet eyes scanning the blank white landscape, the Changeling prepared her bow to be readied at a moment's notice.

A fox was scampering around, its head peaking into holes, looking for mice. Aesira nocked her arrow, aiming steadily. With a yip, the fox fell down, bleeding. The Changeling broke into a canter, wishing to end the animal's suffering quickly. She took a stone knife from her clothing, slitting the fox's throat. She removed the arrow from its abdomen, cleaning it of blood in the snow. Aesira placed the arrow into her quiver, picking up the fox's body in her hands.

Suddenly, a horrible cracking sound could be heard. With a yelp, Aesira looked around. In the distance, a large wooden... Thing had landed on the island. They resembled what humans from the Norse homeland occasionally came in when raiding Dras abr Osthato Vinr. However, this was far too large. The Changeling, her bow strapped to her back and the fox's corpse in her arms. She gazed up at the wooden thing in awe.

[Quetzal]

Isrydia stood, arms resting on the wooden railings, gazing out to an island not far away from them. The ship was too close to the rocks for her liking, but she was sure the captain knew what he was doing. The search was proving fruitless so far. They'd seen no sign of any witches. There was barely any sign of life on the mainland, and the islands had all proved empty. Even when they didn't land on them, Arlyn always wanted to explore and needed to hunt. Presently the dragon was drifting some distance away, trying to swim.

His wings were stretched out over the water like fins, but the same magic that helped him stay airborne didn't seem to apply to water. His legs kicked, tail whipped from side to side, but it was no use. He could just about float if he tried really hard and stayed very still, but it was difficult to actually move anywhere. "Arlyn," Isrydia's mind touched his. The serious yet calm tone told him something was wrong but she didn't want to alarm him. He looked up at the boat, which seemed fine, if a little close to that island. "Arlyn, seriously, we might you help to pull us out the way." With that he sprung into action, or tried to. It was hard to take off from the surface of the cold sea. His wings lifted but his body sank, then his wings smacked down on the water again. The loud splash sent columns of water high into the air as he choked up a mouthful of seawater.

After a moment more flailing, Arlyn managed to get himself into the air. The water made him heavier than usual, but he made it to the ship. Isrydia was talking to a crew member, trying to piece together a problem so she could find a solution -

An earsplitting shriek met their ears as wood split on the rocks. The deck began shifting. Concerned his Rider would be knocked off into the sea where she could be crushed by the boat or smashed up by the rocks, Arlyn picked her up with his front legs without a word, lifted her up to his back and flew higher. There was nothing that could be done to save the ship now, but he could at least prevent any further damage. Flying to the front, he rammed himself into it to stop it driving itself any further onto the rocks. Isrydia spoke a few words of the Ancient Language to contribute to the effort.

The ship well and truly broken and stuck on land but the crew alive, the pair heard the captain ask for something to fix the ship. "It's a big place, maybe they'll be game here. We could do with stocking up on food," Arlyn commented to Isrydia. She agreed. The two flew, both completely drenched, across the coast, looking for any signs of life. The ice blue dragon glittered with the water droplets that clung to him. "I think there's a deer there - look!" Arlyn said excitedly, showing Isrydia what he could see.

As they grew closer they could see the creature was no deer. The legs and body sure, but where the neck was... it looked like a human woman. Arlyn wasted no time in landing in front of Aesira, and Isrydia swung herself out the saddle, staring at the strange creature as she took a few hesitant steps towards her through the sand. "Erm... hello?" she said. She'd never seen this before and had no idea how intelligent she would be. From appearances, she could be just as intelligent as any other humanoid race, but there was no knowing on appearances alone.

[Capricorn]

((Sorry it took so long. I was waiting to see if anyone would post- not like there's many people who would. My apologies for that.))

Aesira gazed up at the mountain of wood. It was far larger than the boats that had washed up in Dras abr Osthato Vinr, and the Changeling wasn't even sure that it floated, considering the fact that splinters of wood were scattered across the sand. It looked broken, not like the Changeling really knew about what this looked like when "broken".

Suddenly, a huge creature set down in front of the Changeling. Aesira instantly took a few steps back, her mind just beginning to fathom this thing. Its scales were ice blue. The water on them and the light reminded the Changeling of a huge fish. Her eyes scanned it. It had wings, ice blue like its scales. A reptilian tail was far away from Aesira, but it looked like it could probably hit her fairly easily if the creature wanted it to.

The Changeling scanned her mind for just what this thing could be. The only thing that came to mind was the dragons of Du Fyrn Skulblaka, but that was only a legend. It was a tale of a faraway land, in the distant south. Its only races were the elves, the creatures in myths said to be the ancestors of the Changelings. The dragons had fought against them- surely, if one was here, it couldn't be good. The only logical thing that Aesira could come up with was that this dragon wasn't real. It had to be a dream. Or maybe she was mad. The Changeling wasn't quite sure.

A human jumped off the dragon and said something, but Aesira wasn't listening. Terror had gripped her, and she reared up her hooves. Dragons could fly. She couldn't escape a flying creature, but she wasn't thinking rationally. "Dragon!" The Changeling screamed, before turning around and running away as fast as possible. Her hoofprints were easily visible in the snow- Aesira hadn't been thinking rationally enough to even try and cover them up.

[Quetzal]

Isrydia and Arlyn both saw the the alarmed and frightened look on Aesira's face. They supposed it must be a shock to anyone to see a dragon land out of nowhere, but why the fear? They were only curious and wanted to meet her. They'd never seen anything like her before. In their haste to introduce themselves, they'd forgotten that whether or not a threat was intended, a dragon and Rider rushing towards and landing in front of someone could be pretty scary. Arlyn was a fair bit larger than a horse now, bigger than Aesira, and she had no way of knowing he didn't mean her any harm.

She screamed 'dragon' and ran off. She used the common tongue, too, which would make communication a good deal easier. "Stay here, it's only going to make it worse if she sees you running after her." Isrydia said to Arlyn. The dragon was a little upset that despite being able to catch up easily he would make her run away when he just wanted to make friends, but didn't want to upset her any more so waited.

As a Rider, Isrydia was faster than the average human. Catching up to Aesira was a challenge. Elves she could cope with, but deer were fast and whatever Aesira was she had the speed of one. In the end, she had to use magic to strengthen her legs to get anywhere near the fleeing Changeling. "It's OK! We won't hurt you! Just slow down and talk to us, please!" she called as loudly as possible to Aesira, who was starting to gain on her again as Isrydia struggled to keep the spell up to run so fast.

[Capricorn]

Aesira didn't know where to run. If she continued along the shore for too long- and she knew that she had the stamina run around the island once, or at least get close- then she'd run back into that dragon again. All the same, the Changeling didn't want to bring the dragon to any of the cities. The magicians had already turned snow into water and continued work on new buildings, so most probably wouldn't have the strength to deal with a dragon. Aesira didn't hear any wing beats. She slowed her pace a bit, the fear beginning to leave her body. She took a glance behind her. There was no dragon, only that human.

"It's OK! We won't hurt you! Just slow down and talk to us, please!"

The Changeling still wasn't feeling like she could trust this human, not with the way that she referred to herself and the dragon as "we". All the same, Aesira only ran a bit longer, before coming to a halt in the snow. She took a few deep, shuddering breaths- not out of fatigue, but rather, from the shock that she had just received.

Turning around, Aesira held up her tail, gesturing for the human to stop. She didn't even note that unless this human happened to be an expert on deer, it was unlikely that she would understand. The Changeling looked over the human, and in the distance. She thought that she might just barely be able to see that dragon, and her heart began to pick up its beating again. Aesira dispelled that thought and her purple eyes fixed upon the human once more. "Ex...plain, please..." She said between breaths.

[Quetzal]

Isrydia was relieved to see Aesira stopping. She slowed and came to a stop herself near enough to Aesira to have a conversation but not too near as to make her uncomfortable. She doubled over in exhaustion, hands on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath. Perhaps she should work on her running more, usually she only trained at swordfighting when she exercised. Said sword was at her belt as it had been when she'd left the ship in case she needed to defend herself. She hoped it wouldn't threaten Aesira.

She hadn't really noticed the upwards motion of the tail, not knowing any of the Changeling's communication would be done using it. She was far more used to facial expression and body language as with humans, elves, and other humanoid races (although she could read the body language of a dragon too) so focused on the elven parts of Aesira.

Explain what? What did she already know, and what was she confused about? Their presence? The boat? Maybe just everything? "My name is Isrydia, and I'm a dragon Rider. My dragon back there is called Arlyn. Neither of us will hurt you, and he'll stay back there until I tell him he can come and say hello," she assumed she knew about dragon Riders because everyone on mainland Alagaesia did, "The ship we were on crashed into the rocks so it's crew are stuck here for the time being. Arlyn and I thought he'd help out trying to look for things to repair it when we saw you and got curious. We'd explored a few islands as the ship passed them and found no signs of life, and we've never seen anything like you before. We just wanted to talk to you, learn about you, and we're sorry we scared you. Do you, erm, mind telling me about yourself? Are there more like you?" she truly was sorry and at the same time was deeply curious about what was potentially an entirely new race of people.

[Capricorn]

Aesira clearly looked confused when Isyrdia mentioned that she was a "dragon Rider". The Changeling had enough sense to know that she must be missing something. There must had been dragons somewhere other than the land down south, or something must have happened after the war with the dragons and elves. Assuming that actually happened, of course- dragons existing didn't have to mean that all of the stories related to them in the slightest actually happened.

"I'm sorry, but I've never heard of a 'dragon Rider'. Nor a dragon with a name, an actual name that can be pronounced in any language." Aesira explained. "The first and last story we have of dragons is Du Fyrn Skulblaka. The story is that we were descended from elves that went north, on a ship, to escape this war. And... Do elves exist, too? We just have stories. I didn't believe them until you and your... Dragon landed in front of me."

And, with a respectful bow of her head, Aesira said, "I am Aesira Dawnstalker, a huntress. Not any sort of special rank or anything, I just hunt food. You probably have hunters and huntresses, too, wherever you come from. There's more like me, indeed. There are three cities on this island, full of Changelings. Most are likely too cold for you to enter, unless you cast a spell on yourself to ward off cold. If you can't, I could probably get my sister to do it. She's a brilliant magician, and I don't think it's her job to do anything other than make water today, so she could do that."

[Quetzal]

Never heard of dragon Riders, nor even dragons with names? Isrydia was taken aback. She didn't know whether or not dragons or elves even existed, and if the most recent story of dragons had been Du Fyrn Skulblaka, she and her people must have lived isolated for the rest of the world for some time. How much had changed since Eragon I's day? The Riders had risen and fallen again. Alliances had been made and broken, things invented. The Riders had started to rise again, but although their numbers weren't too bad they were still a shadow of what had once been. Aesira's people must know none of it, else they'd know elves and dragons existed.

She listened to Aesira's description of her home. Changelings, she called her people. With their fur they must be well adapted to the cold. A spell to ward it off would be a constant drain, but it wouldn't be too big an effort and she'd done it before on a few other islands. She had her thick clothing for protection too. "I'd like to see one of these cities. I can manage a spell. If you think it's OK at some point for Arlyn to join us, he won't feel the cold so much," she said, eager to see more of these Changelings and their ways.

"As for everything else... yes, elves exist. Pretty much all dragons have names. A lot has happened since Du Fyrn Skulblaka... I suppose you never got to hear how it ended, else you'd know about dragon Riders. An elf named Eragon found an abandoned dragon's egg. When the egg hatched, he raised the hatchling himself, naming it Bid'Daum. He learned that dragons weren't dumb animals but were instead as intelligent as any elf, and once Bid'Daum was old enough and large enough to support Eragon's weight, the two flew together and taught the elves and dragons that they could live together in peace. A pact was formed, promising a few dragon eggs to form bonds with the elves just the like one between Eragon and Bid'Daum. It was eventually extended so humans could become Riders as well. A dragon and its Rider are connected irreversibly. We fight together, we work together to protect others and keep peace as is our duty. Dragons choose their Riders in the egg so the partnership always works out. Oh, and the mark of a Rider is this, the gedwey ignasia," she showed Aesira the pale mark on her palm.

"That's the basics. So much has happened in the world I wouldn't know where to start... if you have any more questions about anything, I'll do my best to answer," she knew what she'd said so far was true. She'd even met Eragon I and Bid'Daum before, albeit their ghosts and Eldunari.

[Capricorn]

Aesira stood, still, as Isrydia explained Du Fyrn Skulblaka and the Riders. So much has happened. The Changeling noted, glancing out into the distance in the general direction of Dras abr Draumar. "I think it might be dangerous for... Arlyn to join us right away." She began. "Our magicians are likely tired, but that can probably still cast spells, and try and hurt Arlyn. I suppose having a war with another race as your only memory makes my reaction, and what would likely be the reactions of the rest of them, understandable."

The Changeling paused. She'd dropped the fox that she'd slain somewhere further away. Well, there was always another chance for food somewhere, and maybe she could ask this dragon or Rider for help. Giant, flying lizards were probably great at finding food.

"Wow, there's so much that I don't know. We don't know, I suppose, rather than 'I'. It's... Strange to hear that events and races we thought were stories really do exist." Aesira looked around. "I'll take you to our capital city, Dras abr Draumar*. It's a beautiful place. They might look at you strange, because you're quite strange to us, but don't worry about it."

Kneeling down so that Isrydia could get on her back, the Changeling added, "I'm going to take you to our Queen. She really doesn't have much power- she's really more of a figurehead than anything. All of our queens except the first have been... Not that we've had many queens. But she'll be able to tell the populace that Arlyn isn't a threat. And you can meet people. However, our cities are designed for hooves... You may have trouble getting around, so why don't you ride on my back?"

[Quetzal]

"That's OK, I can cope with strange looks," this wouldn't be the first time Isrydia had been out of place, nor would it be the last. She was honoured to be meeting the Queen. That seemed like a good idea, too. With so much different with the outside world, now it had come to meet them it was probably best if their Queen had all the information she needed to best guide and help her people. Even if she was just a figurehead, figureheads could still put a lot of feeling into people. Hope, comfort, rage... it was a power in itself regardless of the political power of the person.

Ride on Aesira's back? That seemed weird to Isrydia. She had the body of a deer so would be able to carry her fine, but Isrydia had thought of her as a person. It irked her to see servants carrying rich masters on litters - all instances of people carrying other people implied some difference in status, and as far as she was aware she and Aesira were equals. Perhaps things were different here. Still feeling uneasy, she said "If it's for the best..." as she got onto the Changeling's back as gently as she could.

Having sensed they were leaving, Arlyn could be seen nearing them in the sky. "Careful, Arlyn! There are more Changelings, and you shouldn't scare them. We're going to talk to the Queen; they don't even know dragons or elves exist! I'll tell you when it's OK to join us. Until then, try and help with the ship," she explained to him. "I'll keep you updated," she added as he reluctantly wheeled around and landed swiftly back on the soft snow with the intent of moving things too heavy for anyone else. She could feel his impatience to join in and his dislike of leaving her to investigate a hitherto unknown civilisation without his aid, but that was tough. It wasn't possible for him to go with them.

Isrydia could see that Aesira was finding it hard to think of Arlyn as a person rather than an intelligent lizard by the way she hesitated to use his name, but that was understandable. If her race hadn't heard anything past Du Fyrn Skulblaka, they must still think of them as mindless creatures as the elves had done back then. "You didn't know about dragons or elves, but you seem fine with a human like me. What races do you know? There are so many. Dwarves and Urgals are the other main ones. Then there's werecats, werewolves - they're from the north, you might have heard of them - spartans, dragon spirits - yeah, you won't know them if you don't know about dragons - rangers, the grey folk, although they're mostly dead now... there's a lot," she knew she would miss some out if she tried listing them all. She was curious about the Changeling's view on the world and what was out there, and she wanted to help them learn more about the world if they wanted to.

[Capricorn]

Aesira moved forwards, moving at a pace somewhere between walking and running- perhaps similar to a horse's trot, but something different all the same. The Changeling didn't want to run with Isyrdia on her, in case the human slipped off. She headed along one of the paths of packed snow, from years of hooves running and walking over it.

"Well... We don't know about most of those that you mentioned." Aesira began. "Humans have raided our coastal city, Dras abr Osthato Vinr, in the past, so we know of your race. Usually they're hostile, but we've had a few wash up on the shores that weren't, and have told us about their culture. We've heard of urgals, yes, but we'd always thought them to be like elves and dragons- stories, mere stories. Fantasies."

The Changeling seemed rather excited by the knowledge that this world was larger than just the island. It wasn't long before the capital came into sight. Houses of perfectly cut ice lined the roads of paved stone with snow pushed off to the side. A few Changelings wandered the roads. Aesira was moving towards a large, grand building, of bluish ice cut into complex geometric shapes, partially within the mountain. By the time that the Changeling arrived, she'd passed perhaps only two males of her kind.

Two Changelings, both females, held swords at their sides. Their eyes glowed, one with pink eyes, the other with silver ones. They both looked at the human upon Aesira's back, but did not address her. "What are you doing here, with this human?" The one on the left with the pink eyes asked.

Aesira bowed her head respectfully for a moment before responding hurriedly, "This human came upon shore with several others. She has knowledge of this world that I know our people will find of interest. In addition, there's a companion of hers that I worry may be attacked if we do not notify the rest of our population."

The guards exchanged a glance before nodding to Aesira. The Changeling passed through a large hall, going straight, although several hallways and staircases were located on both sides. It was not long before she emerged into a grand room, the light reflecting many colors. Several Changelings were around an area. This area would prove to be a throne- albeit one unlike those of the bipedal races, as one large, icy slab rose up behind the being on it, and two slabs were around the being. The one atop it was a woman, her golden eyes glowing brightly as they fixed upon Isyrdia. A lovely gown of golden cloth surrounded both her elven body and hung to her knees. Out of the perhaps fifteen Changelings besides the Queen herself, only one was a male, and antlers rose from his head. In addition to this fifteen, four Changelings with glowing eyes were located besides glowing blue orbs right besides the walls, two on each side of the room.

"My Queen." Aesira said, kneeling. "This human and her... Companion came to me upon our shores. She can explain better than I can." In a near-whisper, she added, "Now may be an excellent time to get off, so that it does not interrupt the conversation."

((Last sentence is for if she didn't already.))

[Quetzal]

The icy path looked treacherous for human feet, but a Changeling's hooves were apparently well-adapted to walking over the compacted snow and ice with ease. Isrydia thought it was a shame that the Changelings knew of humans through raiders. She'd hoped her race would have made a more positive impression. No wonder she'd never tried making conversation with them if they were hostile. Hopefully she and the crew members on the ship would make a better impression to the Changelings would know humans could be good as well.

She could tell Aesira was excited to hear that a lot of what she had thought to be fantasy was in fact reality. She herself had never heard any stories of anything like the Changelings, so all she saw here was a wonder to her. The town of ice glittered in the cold sun, beautiful features making her stare all around her. "I've never even heard of anything like this. It's beautiful," she said in amazement. How had all this ice been cut? Clearly magic was involved. It was cold, but some of it would still show signs of melting in places from direct sunlight or any fires or other sources of warmth the Changelings might have.

She muttered a long string of words in the Ancient Language once she had selected them, and instantly felt warmth surge through her shivering body when she was done. Predictably, it was colder around the ice structures and her coats were not enough to keep off the bitterly unpleasant blistering cold.

Of the other Changeling people, Isrydia noticed they all had the same thick pale fur which blended in well with the snow they lived in. They were well adapted. Their elf part looked like any elf, except their eyes were sometimes brilliant colours, literally glowing - as with the guards at the entrance to the building. She wondered what that was about, why only some had those eyes.

Inside the grand hall, which was a sight to behold, Isrydia looked at the bright-eyed Queen in her splendid golden gown. There were some more Changelings with glowing eyes in here, standing at the walls and sides of the room. It must mean something, that glowing. It had to tell something about the owner of those eyes. She also noticed that there was only one male among them, antlers growing from his forehead. She'd maybe seen a couple out of all the Changelings she'd seen on her way here. They certainly were uncommon. Was that just a natural thing, or did they get sent somewhere?

Isrydia got off Aesira's back and curtseyed respectfully, unsure if there was any etiquette she was supposed to follow that she did not know about. "My name is Isrydia, you grace. I came from the mainland, from Alagaesia, but our ship crashed and I found Aesira. I had never heard of your people before, but I am most impressed with your city of ice," she introduced herself and spoke courteously, not knowing where she stood here or what she should say. "It's come to my attention that a good deal has happened outside your island that your people appear to be unaware of. If you want, I can help explain some of the things you have missed or forgotten. For example, I believe most of you don't think they exist, but my companion... well, I don't mean to alarm you. He won't hurt you. His name is Arlyn, and he's a dragon," she watched to see how they would react before she continued.

[Capricorn]

The Queen glanced down at the human. A dragon? Perhaps the human was mad- she had said that she'd crashed onto Ristvak abr Wyrda's shores. But the Changeling that had brought her seemed reasonable enough. She would give the human a chance before sending her to the healers. And if the human was telling the truth... So be it.

"A dragon?" She asked. "Such a creature has been known to exist only in our stories. I ask for proof of your claims- bring the dragon here. I will explain the situation to the people, and they shall not harm it."

Aesira moved back a bit, smiling. The Changelings beside the orbs preformed some sort of magic with them, each casting long strands of magic from their fingertips. Aesira whispered to Isyrdia, "We have a system. Those magicians by the orbs are sending a message to other magicians at orbs elsewhere in the city. Those magicians will then say what to do, what not to do, or what the news is to large groups of other citizens, using their minds. We don't use it much because, as I've said, the Queen is a queen, but she acts as a figurehead, not an actual leader- we don't need an actual leader. However, she's the only one with the power to do this."

She stopped, then leaned down and added, "They're probably going to think you mad. I suspect that they'll also add why they're saying not to harm a dragon- you."

((Sorry that it's so short.))

[Quetzal]

Isrydia saw the disbelief in the Queen's eyes. She could also see that while the Queen didn't quite believe a creature in a legend from a long time ago could be real (as most people would), she was seeing some evidence that it might be true. After all, Aesira probably wouldn't have brought her before the Queen were the evidence not compelling, and it had been mentioned that Arlyn wasn't far.

The communications mechanism was interesting, as was their system of leadership. Having no real leader felt like a nice idea to her, but then again having no true leader over a small island like this was fine, but with a land as big as Alagaesia it was bound to cause upset and promote squabbles and crime.

Isrydia wasted no time in contacting Arlyn. "The Queen would like to see you. She's told the others not to attack you, so you should be fine," she told him excitedly. She could feel his happiness at being summoned before a Queen. He took off with pride and began heading towards her mind. "He shouldn't be long, I've just told him to come," she announced to the room in general.

It was only a couple of minutes before Arlyn landed outside the great building matching his scales in its icy blue colour. He folded his wings and walked through the doors. The place was grand enough to accommodate him, being large enough for the deer-people who were not much shorter than him. Isrydia's mind was clear to him, so he just followed it to make his way into the hall where the group were gathered. He walked up to his Rider and dipped his head to the Queen. "It is an honour to be here," he said to her respectfully. In truth he was a bit nervous that they would react badly to his presence. It also occurred to him that Aesira must have been the first Changeling to have interacted with a dragon, and likewise he the first dragon to meet a Changeling.

[Brenton]

((Sorry for being gone and not able to post on this when it was put up. I have a lot to type I guess.))

In his cloak the color of forest green with a red A on the left breast stood a man who was anything but small or weak of mind while his face was hidden by the cowl. Since said cowl shadowed his entire face, it was hard to say who this man was but what could be seen was that he was standing on a boat sailing across the cool blue of the sea toward whoever knew where. He looked up as the wind blew in a rough manner, sending the ship sideways slightly toward the land that they were already to close to, and suddenly the cowl fell from his head to reveal his features a little more.

Handsome! That one word was all that could describe the medium length dark blonde hair that the wind blew softly over his eyes that were a shade of brown much like melted chocolate. His lips were full and pouted out a bit as his teeth worried the bottom lip until it bled just slightly, gleaming red. Those eyes though. They were full of worry but not at the same time as he was watching for any signs of weakness in the hull that would send him overboard into the clear liquid underneath. They were sunk slightly into a face that was bronzed from the sun and the salt air that constantly whipped into his face but never once did that make his face look any less attractive.

In fact the fine bone structure that held black facial hair finely trimmed into a warriors beard with some blonde sprinkled through it only made him look fierce and added to the mystery of the man who watched everything but saw nothing. He was just over six feet tall weighing in at around 220 pounds with broad shoulders held back proudly with his arms behind his back. Age was around 21 or 22 years old but that didn't matter for when the man looked at someone it could be seen that he was way more mature than his age should have made him.

The wind blew the cloak aside slightly and gold armor was revealed, just a glint, covering his entire body while he had weapons on him at all times. Quickly the man moved so the thick cloth fell down to hide the metal and looked back at the others on the ship to see if they could tell what had happened. Just then the ship hit land hard and his legs were thankfully not tensed so he only swayed on his feet. Ship hits land right as my attention is turned. Of course that's how it works around here.

As he spoke, it was like everything stopped and listened to the deep baritone of his voice, wanting more of the sweet melodious tones from his vocal chords. Yet that was all that was said as the man grabbed the cowl and pulled it over his eyes once more to keep himself hidden from unwanted attention. No sense in being stupidly careless on a foreign island. The captain was calling for materials and the man needed to go on land to find out what was abroad the snowy slopes.

Konner, be careful out there and don't assume you are alone. Watch Isrydia and Arlyn for they have already gone ahead of us. The dragon voice was in his head but Konner knew that it was Talon letting him know he couldn't afford lax protection at this time. So Konner made sure the hidden blade still worked, a soft snick reaching his ears, and that he could draw his swords in case something happened. With that settled, the rider set out for land, his feet making barely a sound, and no one got in his way.

On land a few things hit him hard. First and foremost was the fact that all he saw was Arlyn standing there while Isrydia ran off into the distance chasing something he couldn't make out. Konner sighed with frustration and took off, setting a pace that he could keep all day if need be. He would be near Isrydia soon enough and that was all that mattered.

Suddenly from the heavens above came a great bellow and a dragon swooped down to land next to Konner, instantly shimmering in color and size until another man stood by him. He was just barely shorter than Konner with black hair that curled but looked fashionably messy. His eyes, oh dear lord, his eyes were silver in the light but were surely grey. As he stepped forward it was seen that he was all muscle and broad in the shoulders as well with heavily muscled arms and legs. The second man had stubble that was black covering his jaw that added a rough appearance to his face that was also bronzed.

On his body was a fur lined jacket, zipped halfway up, while a silver dragon necklace showed around his neck. He had a white shirt on and dark blue almost black pants on made of wool while thick leather and fur boots were over his feet. A large leather belt was around his waist that held a massive blade named Whirlwind. As he stepped forward, Konner nodded and saw that Isrydia was heading toward the center of the island. Good day, Arathale. I am sure you heard about the situation and everything so we really must get to Isrydia to find out what is going on.

Arathale smiled and waved his hand to the side. "By all means, go ahead Konner. I am here just to make sure that you are not in danger even though you are a capable fighter in your own rights." So the two started out toward the center of the island, instantly putting spells up to keep themselves warm. Soon a city came within view and the two walked up to two deer people who looked vaguely elfin. Without being stopped, Konner and Arathale walked into the city and soon found Isrydia with more deer people. Slowly they walked up but remained silent for the time being.

[Capricorn]

The Queen did not address Arlyn directly, but kept her golden eyes fixed upon him as age spoke to Isyrdia. She hadn't expected the girl to be anything but mad, although her face remained calm and unemotional. From the way she kept her eyes glued to the blue dragon, it was clear that she didn't quite trust him. "Isyrdia, would you tell us your story? How you came upon your dragon... How you subjugated him... Where you come from... Those kinds of things. I'm very much interested in your story."

Aesira glanced up at Arlyn. He wasn't much bigger than most Changelings, but he was still a much more powerful creature, with his scales and claws. He could easily kill all of the Changelings in the room, despite the fact that most were magic users. Because the Queen wasn't actually a leader, Aesira was concerned. It was strange, to be worried for two that she had just met- one of which she had been terrified of. But social pressure was how Changeling society was kept in order, and as the Queen was little more than a method of communication, if the others felt threatened, things could turn ugly.

For once, the archer wished that she was a magic user, so that she could contact Arlyn or Isyrdia through their kinds rather than words. Tell him to act harmless and innocent. But she couldn't, so she whispered to Isyrdia, "Make sure that he doesn't lift a claw, that he doesn't show his teeth, anything. If the others think him hostile in any way, her order to not attack can be revoked in a moment."

There were footsteps- they were easily audible on the ice. Aesira turned around to meet the newcomers, making an attempt to muffle the sound of her hooves. It wasn't entirely successful, but it wouldn't interrupt any words being said. They should enchant the floor so that our hooves make no sound on it, she thought to herself.

The two newcomers were... Interesting. One was a human, like Isyrdia. The other looked like a blend of human and Changeling, minus the deer parts- he must be an elf, Aesira decided. "Greetings, newcomers." She said, softly, so as to not interrupt the court. "Welcome to our island. Did you come from the same place that Isyrdia did?" She paused. "Could you tell me about your home? She mentioned a few races to me- dwarves, werecats, dragon spirits, to name a few. Maybe you can tell me about the species of your land until you get to speak?"

[Quetzal]

Isrydia could see the way the Queen was looking at Arlyn. She had every right to be concerned for her people. If she met a dragon she had never heard of she would be cautious too, and were she to meet one of the monstrous villains from a tale of ancient war, she would be like to want as much information as possible, and be deeply distrusting in the meantime. She was lucky that the Changelings knew about the existence of humans, at least, else she imagined she'd never get them to believe her. Aesira seemed to be on her side, and hopefully she could show the Changelings that there was no threat. They seemed curious, open-minded (considering their situation) and keen to learn, good signs. She took note of Aesira's warning, relaying it to Arlyn. "They're worried about you, so don't look at all threatening. Don't show your teeth or look as if you might use those claws. Move slowly, carefully, and gently. We don't want to scare them or make them want to attack us." He wasn't trying to be threatening, of course, but she could sense that he thought it would be hard to appear harmless to them as a giant flying lizard with scales for armour, spikes, teeth and claws.

The Queen wanted to know her story. Isrydia wouldn't lie to these people. They'd been in the dark about the rest of the world for so long everything she said had to be the truth else the Changelings might believe a lie. Just as Arlyn had to be careful not to be intimidating, she had to be careful not to allow this race to believe in false information. They couldn't be allowed to get the wrong idea of things, else they wouldn't be able to properly make their mind up about anything for themselves. "Firstly, I never had to subjugate Arlyn," she felt she had best explain the Riders first for her life to make sense, "we work together willingly. You see, Du Fyrn Skulblaka ended when a young elven man named Eragon raised a dragon named Bid'daum. The two showed the dragons and elves that they could live alongside one another. To keep the peace, a pact was formed between the elves and dragons. Some dragon eggs would be set aside to be raised by elves. The dragon inside the egg would only hatch for an elf they deemed a suitable partner for them, and upon the dragon's hatching the two would form an unbreakable bond. The elf bonded to a dragon in such a way is known as a dragon Rider. The pact was later extended to humans. A mark known as the gedwey ignasia marks the palm of a Rider when they first touch their dragon, see?" she raised her right hand to show the pale mark on her palm. "The purpose of Riders and their dragons is to keep peace across all Alagaesia. A Rider and their dragon fight together, live together, die together." She hoped that covered the basics. Now, onto her own life.

"I myself was born in a fishing town called Kuasta. I left when I was seventeen as a travelling storyteller. In a town named Belatona, I met a knight named Sir William and squired for him for a time. He had to go to battle - the fighting's a long story, I can explain that later if you want - so I was quickly knighted and paid a visit to my home. I found Arlyn's egg in the forests of a mountain range known as the Spine, near my hometown. It had been hidden but I felt an odd calling to it, so found it without much trouble. I never expected it to hatch for me. When it did, I took the hatchling to Ellesmera, the capital city of the elves, because I had no idea how to care for a dragon and needed training. There aren't many Riders or dragons left, you see, only a handful. Arlyn and I formed a bond the moment he hatched, and only grew closer as I cared for him. He grew older and more intelligent, and by the time he was about four months old he was big enough to fly with me on his back. Dragons grow quickly when they're young, but his growth has slowed down now. Once we could fly together, we left Ellesmera and have been exploring and trying to help wherever we can ever since." She'd left a lot of detail out, but that was more or less a brief summary of her life so far. She was willing to be questioned, and expected it.

So Konner and Arathale had found their way to the Changeling city of their own accord. She smiled at them, and Arlyn moved his head to look at them, not wanting to move too much so not to worry the Changelings. Talon was bigger than he was, so it was a good thing he was not around right now. As dragons go, Arlyn wasn't as fierce as most. He was slender and agile, built more for speed and flight. That in itself made him a dangerous opponent, but while he was still strong he was not as obviously so as some of the chunkier, more muscled dragons. He didn't have as many spikes as most dragons either. So long as he didn't show his teeth, he could manage to not look so scary, but it would be harder for Talon.

Arlyn didn't say anything, keeping quiet until he knew better what sort of reaction he could expect from his contributions to conversations with the Changelings. "Allow me to introduce Konner and Arathale. Konner is the human. He's a Rider like me, and his dragon is called Talon. If you were wandering about the dragon spirits, you're in luck; they're pretty rare and Arathale happens to be one. Konner trained me in Ellesmera for a time. They came here on the same ship as Arlyn and I did." She looked at the two men. Konner might invite Talon over, and while she knew Arathale was calm and sensible enough not to demonstrate his ability, she wanted to warn them all the same. Touching their minds, she spoke to both of them. "Be aware these people, the Changelings, didn't know dragons existed until they saw Arlyn. They haven't had news of Alagaesia since Du Fyrn Skulblaka, and know about humans but little else. Don't do anything to make them think you're a threat. Best keep Talon away until invited here, and Arathale, don't go turning into a dragon unless instructed to."

[Brenton]

Konner, being as stubborn as his mentor, simply stared into the room at the queen. She was questioning Isrydia like the girl was on trial. Then they were addressed by the rider and Konner nodded slightly in understanding. Yes I'm Isrydia's teacher but she is stronger than Iwas when Talon was young. Arathale had looked at Aesira and smiled warmly. "It would be enjoyable to sit down and tell you about the races of Alagaesia. Although I don`t know much about Fallen Angels or the ancient Guardians." Arathale of course knew not to turn into a dragon but he thanked Isrydia anyway.

[Capricorn]

The Queen stared at Isyrdia for a long moment, her golden eyes staring, her face stoic. She didn't respond to the story. Her next words rang out through the hall, firmly and in a commanding voice. "Enough with the personal conversations. They can wait. I see there are more within our palace, and I'd like to hear your tales. I'd rather not list what that consists of once again. Tell me everything." She added, after a moment, "I'd like all four- five of you to have your minds examined by our magicians. Yes, even you, Changeling."

Aesira blushed at the Queen's command, ducking her head and backing away from the visitors, into a wall. She had never heard of the Queen being so strict, but she supposed it resulted from the lack of power she was allowed to exercise. Perhaps she had become tired of having power but risking her position to use it- if the citizens were unhappy, they could easily overthrow her, as much more powerful mages resided on the island. With the newcomers, she could easily exercise it without having to worry.

There was an amount of murmuring amongst the court attendees. The mages were the only ones who remained silent, focused on their orbs. Some of the whispers echoed around the room, most regarding the newcomers and the dragon.

[Brenton]

Arathale cast a wary glance over at the changeling queen while he contemplated what she was saying about the mages searching his mind. While it was unlikely to harm him in any way, the mages were likely to find information that could harm them or even get lost in his labyrinth of a mind. He was after all not human and had centuries of experience at breaking others mentally which was what this would call for. Better to be safe and not submit to something so personal. My sincerest apologizes your highness but I cannot condone someone searching the vaults of my mind so flipantly even if it would help to quench your thirst of curiosity. Forgive me but if you try to force the matter upon me then I will be forced to attack and hurt anyone who is involved even though I do not like that course of action.

Konner was getting ready to object when Arathale spoke and he laughed instead. So the dragon spirit didn't want to allow this either. "You will not get anything from me either fair Queen for I am a rider and don't allow it to be invaded."