1078 AP (After Phoenix)
27TH CRIMSON FLOWER
A man is rushing up the stairs as his men are getting ripped to shreds by some sort of animal. He eventually arrives and locks the door with his weapon in hand as he hears his men getting torn apart but the screams eventually stops but hears heavy footsteps headed towards his room as it begins banging against the door.
Man: "get the hell away from me you freak!" He threatens as the door breaks open as he's mauled to the ground by the bear as it begins clawing and biting into his flesh as if it's purposely torturing the man.
Bear: "you dare frame me!? Me of all people!?" As the man is stunned but can't speak as the bear claws his neck open. "I will rip and tear till I kill everyone who was involved that day!" He says biting the man's neck and ripping his head clean off as he hears a gasp behind him. He turns seeing a young girl in the doorway.
Young girl: "please... Don't hurt me." As the bear approaches but the girl opens her eyes seeing a man kneeling before her. "Where... Where it'd go?" She asks filled with confusion.
Man: "don't worry it's gone, you got anyone who can care for you?" As the girl nods and soon asks for his name. "Just... Call me Sigurd." He says leading the girl outside to whoever she needs to see. *day passes.* Lexington is seated on Robyn as Elyria is feeding her carrots while Aiden is helping one of the locals while Roxanne is keeping an eye on them.
Elyria: "how's the arm?" She directs to Lexington.
Lexington: "it's had better days that's for sure." He says as Elyria motions that she's gonna change his bandage which he allows.
Elyria: "well you got a tale worthy scar which would definitely earn the respect of my tribe." As Lexington looks over motioning for her to explain. "My tribe thinks scars are a way of proving if you're an warrior or not... I never really bought it as... Scars aren't something to be proud of, you could've lost your arm. You realize that right?"
Lexington: "I know, you're not worried for me are you?" He asks as Elyria stops what she's doing.
Elyria: "am I not allowed to worried?" She asks as Lexington doesn't know how to respond to that but Alec calls out to them. "This discussion is far from over." She whispers to him and finishes applying the new bandage.
Roxanne: "so you got anything?"
Alec: "that and then some, apparently they say a bear killed every single man in there, weird part is they say a young man exited the place leading a girl out." He says as Roxanne kicks at the ground.
Roxanne: "so what? A Shapeshifter with a heart of gold?" She asks as Alec retorts that it wouldn't be the first time.
Aiden: "so what are Shapeshifters exactly?"
Alec: "Shapeshifters are basically humans or elves but with the magical ability to change into any animal they wish, many think they don't exist as it's a pain in the ass to find out if one is a shifter." He says as Aiden can tell Alec isn't thrilled about this.
Aiden: "I understand you have a responsibility but shouldn't we focus on getting to Griffin Island? We're only a week's travel away from the port, I'm just saying." He says but Roxanne quickly shuts that down.
Roxanne: "you got a location of where the girl could be?" As Alec surprisingly says yes. "Alright kiddos stay here while the adults look into this." She says jokingly while she and Alec leave as the three head inside.
Lexington: "Ugh... I'm twenty-one years old yet I'm still getting called a kid... That actually reminds me, how old are you guys?" As Elyria says she's twenty while Aiden says he's twenty-two.
Elyria: "wait don't the women of your race have a phrase how it's not polite to ask a woman her age?" She asks as both Lexington and Aiden nod. "Why?" She asks as Lexington and Aiden look at each other.
Lexington: "uh well some women think being us men are more likely to be attracted to... Younger women." As Elyria doesn't seem to be grasping the concept of this.
Aiden: "uh well it's seen as the man only caring if the woman is young and attractive which is considered an insult." He says as Elyria sits on the bed crossing her legs. "do female elves not have that mindset?"
Elyria: "no... We elves can live up to nearly a thousand years and don't start aging or lose our fertility till nine hundred." She says as Lexington and Aiden tilt their heads almost amazed.
Lexington: "huh not gonna lie, I'm kinda jealous." As Elyria chuckles quietly.
Elyria: "you're fine as you are Lex." She states with honesty while Alec and Roxanne are headed for the home the little girl is at eventually finding her.
Alec: "hello little one." He says kneeling as the little girl is reluctant to talk. "Don't worry we're not bad people, we just wanna know what you saw last night." He says kindly.
Little girl: "there was... A bear and it attacked all of the bad men and after it was done, I begged it not to hurt me when man appeared."
Roxanne: "what did this man look like?" As the little girl describes him as average height and weight, messy dirty blonde hair, and ice like eyes.
Little girl: "he said I could call him Sigurd." As Roxanne taps on Alec's shoulder that they have to talk.
Roxanne: "Sigurd's a name you'd commonly find in Newcastle and the second prince of Newcastle is also named Sigurd and rumored to be a Shapeshifter." She states as Alec sees her point.
Alec: "right you mentioned the first prince and King of Newcastle was murdered by a Shapeshifter, you think Sigurd had a hand in this?" As Roxanne says it all lines up from her perspective. "Okay fine but finding him could take weeks Roxy and I'd rather get the recruits to Griffin Island then trying to find a Shapeshifter." He says being honest with her.
Roxanne: "give this a couple days alright? I need to figure out if Sigurd actually killed his brother and if so find out why he would do such a thing." As Alec understands where she's coming from.
Alec: "okay Roxy, you win." He says as Roxanne hugs him in appreciation as they're headed on back. "I'm surprised to see you care soo much though... Never figured you the type to care about the royal families."
Roxanne: "well my family was close with the royal family, I knew the princes and their father very well..." As Alec doesn't pry understanding out of respect.
Alec: "so how are we supposed to find this guy? Shifters avoid us the plague and I imagine Sigurd will be no different." As Roxanne says she might have a way of finding him.
Roxanne: "but are we not gonna talk about Lex's kindred vision? The one where Zachariah is apparently his ancestor, I'm not trying to be a bitch when I say this but you have to break the news to Lex that we know his father."
Alec: "believe me I know, I've been thinking of how to say it... To think Simon's first son actually survived that day." As Roxanne raises her brow as she wonders what he's referring to. "I'll tell him eventually but now is not the time... We got a shapeshifter to find." He says as Roxanne nods dropping the conversation for now. Lexington meanwhile is outside petting Robyn's snout enjoying the peace and quiet but that's eventually interrupted when he sees a couple of men approach and recognizes them as mercenaries.
Mercenary: "where's the knife ear? Red hair, little shorter than you and actually not that bad looking?" As Lexington gives them a stare of not knowing what the hell they're talking about. "Don't try fooling us, we saw her enter town."
Lexington: "what's your quarrel with her? As far as I know she hasn't done anything to you." He says on guard in case they try anything.
Mercenary: "her being an elf is the problem, this is a elf free town and we wanna maintain that, plus she'll go at a fine price... We can give you part of the payment if you hand her over quietly." As Lexington unsheathes his longsword as the mercenaries grab their weapons.
Lexington: "listen carefully you pathetic rats, if you had any shred of honor or intelligence then you'll walk away right now." He threatens as the mercenaries snicker hearing this.
Mercenary: "with that wrapped up armed? Please kid, we've dealt with worse." As Lexington whispers Teleki as his longsword begins floating next to his head but Aiden gets involved.
Aiden: "okay now let's not do something we'll all regret, in case you didn't know, we have a huntsman and huntress accompanying us and what do you think will happen if you take Elyria who happens to be a recruit?" He asks rhetorically as the mercenaries look amongst themselves. "I'll tell you what will happen, you'll look unrecognizable if they get their hands on you." He says calmly as the mercenaries leave cursing.
Lexington: "would've been easier to kill them." As Aiden looks over noting his bandaged arm. "What? I could've handled it... One arm or not."
Aiden: "sure you could, much like you handled a fairy?" As Lexington glares at him and asks how he knows. "Elyria told me." He states with honesty when they see a stranded dog looking at them.
Lexington: "hey boy." He says with excitement as he begins petting it as Aiden is surprised that Lex is this excited to see a dog. "Listen fire dancer, dogs are man's best friend and I never could have one as a kid... It wasn't exactly the most normal childhood." He says as the dog seems annoyed as it bites on Lexington's pouch and runs off. "Hey get back here!" He says chasing the dog with Aiden following him. The dog stops running and changes into a human as Lexington is surprised and can't stop himself as Sigurd grabs him and throws him against a wagon.
Sigurd: "hehe, thanks for the Phoenix feather coins Aeltonian, I'll put them to good use." He says shifting a hawk and flies off as Lexington is still in surprise Aiden looks at him.
Aiden: "you just got tricked got a shapeshifter." As Lexington snaps and begins yelling at him.
*Minutes pass.* Lexington is sitting in a chair having explained the situation to Alec and Roxanne.
Roxanne: "wait you petted the shapeshifter when it was a dog?" As Lexington nods and asks what's her point. "That might actually help us, lemme see your hand." She says grabbing it and grabs some of the dog hairs on the hand.
Lexington: "what the hell is she on about?" He directs as Alec chuckles to himself.
Alec: "luckily there's a spell that'll lead us straight to the shapeshifter thanks to the dog hairs you managed to get, problem is you have to be the one to drink it and there are some side effects." He says laughing at the thought of this as Lexington asks what the side effects are. "well... You'll be able to hear and communicate with animals but you may also act like say a dog depending." As Lexington is already hating this as Elyria and Aiden are holding in their laughs. They eventually head to their campsite as Roxanne finishes making the potion.
Lexington: "why does it have to be me?" He asks as Roxanne explains he was the last one to touch it and the spell only works on the person who physically touched the shapeshifter. "Fine..." He says downing the potion. "Kae nae gar." He says waiting for a feeling of sorts but gets nothing.
Roxanne: "you said it correctly Lex, just give it a moment." As Lexington waits a bit while looking at Ryris who's sitting next to him while Elyria is stroking his ear and barks.
Ryris: "ah yeah... Right there mom." As Lexington slowly turns his head to Ryris
who catches him doing this. "What you looking at you hairless ape!?" He asks as Lexington shoots to his feet in surprise.
Lexington: "no..." He says in disbelief as everyone is looking at him. "This can't be happening."
Ryris: "oh believe it sunflower I'm gonna enjoy every second of this." As Lexington shakes his head in disbelief as he sits down.
Lexington: "wait you said I may start acting like a dog, does that mean?" As Ryris finishes his sentence for him.
Ryris: "have the urge to sniff butts?" As Lexington looks over at Ryris responding that he doesn't have the urge to sniff butts as everyone is looking at him like he's crazy but are also amused.
Elyria: "do you actually... You know?" She wonders as Lexington snaps his head in her direction.
Lexington: "no!" He says defiantly as Ryris chuckles a bit as Lexington glares at him.
Alec: "come on we gotta find that shapeshifter." As Lexington sighs but understands and approaches Robyn.
Robyn: "you know my ma kick me across the field when I was calf... Or was it my uncle who's also my father?" As Lexington looks in horror while looking at Ryris.
Lexington: "I can understand them to?" He asks as Ryris laughs a bit as Elyria hops on his back.
Ryris: "yes sir, us animals have a universal language, doesn't make sense at first but we stopped questioning it a long time ago." As Elyria looks at Lex.
Elyria: "Lex get on your horse." She says with a smile as Lexington gets on top of Robyn as they ride as Lexington and Elyria are up in front. "You okay?" She asks as Lexington sighs.
Lexington: "other than the fact I feel like I'm going insane from all the animals talking, I'm alright." As Elyria nods acknowledging this.
Elyria: "but are we not gonna talk about what happened earlier? Am I allowed to be worried?"
Lexington: "that's not what I meant, I'm just surprised of your concern for me." He admits as Elyria asks if he ever had that. "I did with Robyn..." He says as Elyria realizes what this means.
Elyria: "and given she's gone, you're afraid of getting attached again." As Lexington looks away which confirms her suspicions. "Believe me... I'm scared of that to but I'm not gonna let it control me, and neither should you." She says with honesty as Lexington looks over.
Lexington: "since you're worried for me am I allowed to be worried for you?" As Elyria nods. "Well... Some mercenaries came by and they wanted to take you and sell you." He says as Ryris growls hearing this.
Elyria: "I see... You didn't consider it?" As Lexington looks at her in surprise. "I'm just asking."
Lexington: "no... And I'll never consider it." He says as Elyria smiles hearing this.
Elyria: "good." She says as the ride continues for an hour when Lexington signals them to stop.
Lexington: "he's here... I smell him." As he points in the direction as Alec and Roxanne ready themselves and follow a path eventually finding a shack.
Roxanne: "Sigurd Wolfson, it's me... Roxy... I held you when you just a pup, I'm not here to hurt you but you must comply." As there's no response as Alec looks at Roxanne with doubt that this is gonna work. "Sigurd don't make this difficult." She says when the door bursts open and Sigurd walks out duel wielding axes.
Sigurd: "and why should I believe you? I've unwillingly been on the run for months from all sorts of people, huntsman included for a crime I didn't commit!" He exclaims with anger lacing his voice.
Roxanne: "if you didn't kill your father and brother then who did?" As Sigurd states he doesn't know but is looking into the matter. "you call killing those men looking into it?" She asks rhetorically as Sigurd glances around seeing Lexington.
Sigurd: "they had it coming... Don't get in my way." As Roxanne says she's not backing down. "Very well." He says throwing both axes in their direction as Alec deflects one away while Roxanne catches it but Sigurd is gone making them look around when Sigurd lands between them who jabs Alec in the neck staggering him as Roxanne wraps her chain around him.
Roxanne: "stop being a headstrong bastard and lemme help!" As Sigurd turns into a bird getting free and quickly turns back into human form and grabbing his axes. "Sigurd... Don't test me." She says as Sigurd turns and uses his axes to block a strike from Alec who's quickly overpowering him and trips him up.
Alec: "Anilairei." He chants as Sigurd tries shifting into an animal but realizes he can't. "I temporarily disabled your shifting... Now you're gonna listen and you're gonna start by giving back Lex's money." He says as kneeling down holding his palm out.
Sigurd: "tch fine." He says giving the pouch to Alec who tosses it to Lex.
Lexington: "quick question, you with the church? You'd really fit in with those money grabbing zealots." He says rather bitterly as Sigurd spits in his direction.
Roxanne: "enough... Get to explaining." As Sigurd sighs while getting comfortable.
Sigurd: "I did not kill my father or my brother, they may have treated me poorly but I'd never kill them aunt Roxy, you got to believe me." As Roxanne sighs seeing his desperation.
Roxanne: "I want to Sigurd but you running off? And now killing people? That's not a good look." As Sigurd looks away knowing that he's screwed. "How far will you go to prove it wasn't you?" She asks as Sigurd sees that this is a legitimate question.
Sigurd: "as far as I have to Roxy." As Roxanne smiles hearing this.
Roxanne: "then I hereby conscript you into the huntsman order." As Alec asks her what the hell she's doing. "He may be a shapeshifter Alec but that'll be handy and we can't be picky with current events." She says getting the better of him as Lexington is not thrilled by this idea.
Ryris: "wow, better lock your pockets dimwit." As Lexington glances at him tempted to smack him.