Harpers Quest Two- Beyond the Mists

Chapter Twenty-Five

The Plane of Tetaran- Flamerule 1373

When the light had cleared, and the ground stopped shaking beneath them, the party found themselves and their gear on a rocky, apparently barren plain that belonged more in a desert than a tower.
Mendis was the first to recover; he got to his feet as he found himself kneeling on the ground, his sword lying next to him and a few feet away from a dead creature it's head a mass of blood and brains.
First impressions, was that they had ended up in one of the lower parts of the Abyss, the dry, rocky ground, a reddish sky the colour of blood, the hot, dry air and the sense of menace and evil and the oddly shaped mountains? In the distance and the weird planetoids in the skies and the fire coming out of the fissure in the ground nearby and the smell of ozone in the air.
Also not to mention the strange haunting sounds on the air, considering what they had been fighting he found himself thinking it wouldn't be surprising if they were in one of the lower parts of the Abyss!
Meriel, Baldur and Callina lay nearby, unconscious, hands still linked, Jack looking the most translucent than Mendis had ever seen him and haggard was getting slowly to his feet.
Narache sat up nearby, retracting his fangs, claws, and resheathing his Moonblade.
Skyla got to her feet using her Powerstaff for support, varying wounds on her scaly skin leaking blood, Jack instantly went to her.
"I'm fine," she said, "I can heal myself well enough tend to those who need it".
Mendis went instantly to Meriel's side to see if she was all right, she moaned and fluttered her eyelids and slowly her emerald eyes opened, she smiled wanly, as concerned jade green ones, seemingly lacking whites met hers.
"Meriel!" Mendis said holding her "you alright?"
Meriel replied, "head hurts but yeah, I'll live, you?"
Mendis nodded "yes just some tentacle scores and a blinding headache".
"What were those things?" Callina asked, then sitting up. Gingerly touching her forehead where a cut was bleeding sluggishly, nearby Baldur, grumbling about a sore head sat up.

"Some demon of some sort I'd say," said Mendis "what's worse I think they dragged us to their own Plane".
"Great! Just what we need!" Baldur grumbled getting to his feet and picking up his Warhammer and trying to recover his dignity which was hard to do seeing he was still in his nightshirt, cap and slippers " where's my pipe!"
Meriel laughed then, dispersing the tension, somewhat, nearby Trias was helping Grace to her feet.
"Great just what I need!" came a voice that sounded like Varharland's only richer and deeper "I didn't want this! Where in the Blazes are we! And where's my damn swords!"
The party turned and the stunned silence that followed was incredible, this was then followed by a collective sigh of awe from everyone.
What had taken everyone by surprise was Varharland! Where Varharland had been, instead of a six-foot-tall, miffed looking, silver-haired Eladrin clad in pyjamas, was a rather large, very beautiful, magnificent looking adult male Silver Dragon with amber eyes and looking rather put out and miffed.
His scales looked like polished silver and one horn was slightly broken at its tip but he was beautiful.
Mendis was the first to break the silence "Varharland! Is that you!"
"Of course it's Bloody me!" the Dragon replied.
"But you're...! you're a Silver Dragon!" he continued awed.
The silver Dragon sighed, "what does it look like! Yes, I'm a Silver Dragon! I can't change back! This is all I need, now has anyone seen my swords?".
"But how can you be a Silver Dragon?" Mendis continued.
"Duh! well, it probably has something to do with the fact that I was born one!" Varharland said with a sigh, clearly annoyed.
Meriel said, "you're beautiful!" she breathed, it was at that point Skyla burst into laughter.
Varharland said "please could you all stop staring at me! This is embarrassing enough as it is!"
Darkstar said then "I knew it! I knew it! I always knew that you were special Var! No wonder your magic works so differently to mine!"
"SHEEZ!" Varharland groaned, "why can't I change back? And where in the blazes are we!" he got to his feet and checking himself for wounds, apart from some tentacle scores across his flanks he was otherwise unharmed, he noticed his swords lying on the ground nearby where he had dropped them when he changed shape and Dinan still staring went to pick them up gingerly.
"They won't bite," Varharland said, "it's my Sunblade".
"it is not the swords I'm worried about," Dinan said.
"I don't bite either, but why can't I change back?" Varharland said.
Skyla stopped laughing and said, "Neither can I!"
Var sighed and semi-rising he folded his front legs across his chest "at least you are used to been a Dragon! Do you realise how long it has been for me? Since I have been in my true form. I forgot how big I was! and quite frankly I seem bigger than I remember myself to be!"
Skyla laughed again and continued "Varharland your over 600 years old! of course, you are bigger than you remember! And my you are a beautiful sight Varharland, you shouldn't hide it!"
"I'm not! It's just that I've been in Eladrin form for so long I have forgotten how to be a Dragon! Well not really forgotten it just feels weird, alien, so does anyone know what happened? And will you all quit staring at me! Like I've grown two heads or something. Say? Does anyone have a clue as to where we are? And what happened?" he sighed "I'm still Varharland! It's just that well...I guess my deep, dark secret has now been revealed, just not quite the way I intended it to be!"
"You mean you really are a Silver Dragon?" Tevon asked awed "Wow! I just feel honoured to even be looking at you!"
Var sighed "yeah, yeah, just get over my Dragonawe, will you all please? So I'm really a Silver Dragon! Big deal! I've always been one, I just don't think it suits my lifestyle though and I'm not the only one in Brithic's Band who has secrets!"
"Magnus is going to be so green!" Darkstar said with a delighted laugh.
"Does Brithic know?" Meriel asked.
"No, he doesn't, and I don't want him to, not yet if ever," Varharland said.
"But he's a Paladin! I'd feel blessed if my best friend turned out to be a Silver Dragon! I feel blessed," Mendis said then "Gosh Var, your outdone us all in Secrets!"
"Exactly my point! Brithic is a Paladin, Paladins don't like secrets, I don't think he would take it too well if he found out that I have kept something like this from him for over 20 years. He'd feel betrayed, I guess I really should have told him long ago, but there never seemed to be a right time to do so and I chose not too" he sighed "I have kept it from you all and I'm sorry but I had my reasons, now it is all revealed and I don't know what to do".
"Are you ashamed?" Dinan asked.
"No, I'm not! It is just that well I had my reasons and it brings back memories that I rather not dwell on, and now I really don't know what to do from here" he sighed "look we really should try and find out where we are, or work out what happened, does anyone remember?" he dropped down on all fours as it was getting uncomfortable standing on his hind legs.