Of Truth and Elements

[Vorgin]

Xel was staring up the mountain when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning around, she suddenly squeaked out a hello which caused Xel to flinch and blink in confusion. "Oh... Hello there..." He took a moment to examine the girl in front of him, "I wasn't expertly many others here, are you going up to the temple?" He smiled to make her less nervous.

[polaristar]

The boy jumped a flinched at Carsyn's greeting, though she was unsure why. She decided he had just been startled and smiled half-heartedly in return. She tugged her hood off and stuck her hands in her hoodie's pockets, listening as he spoke about the temple, and how few he expected to actually arrive. "Yeah, I'm going up to the temple." She told him. "I'm Carsyn. What's your name?"

[Vorgin]

Xel nodded and bowed to her, "Xel A. Flame, at your service. It's a pleasure to meet you Carsyn, and a fellow at elemental at that." He looked up at her and held out his hand, "I hear the trip up the mountain takes at least a days walk or longer, and it's been known for some dangers, if you would like we could go up together. Unless you would rather go it alone, I can understand I'm a stranger to you." The sun shone down, one of his horns let off a reflection showing it was not hair.

[polaristar]

"It's nice to meet you, Xel." Carsyn replied, shaking his hand. She was silent for a moment, thinking. "I do think travelling together would be the wisest course of action." She agreed. Her sharp eyes noticed the pitch black horns shining in the sunlight. "You're not human, I take it?" She asked with wry smile. "Don't worry, I'm not either. At least, I wasn't, until... well. That's a story for another time." She said with an evasive shrug. "I'm a kirin. What are you, if you don't mind me asking."

 

((Fyi - Carsyn was origanally a kirin, not a shifter, so it's extremely rare to see a kirin turned human happen naturally. I'll explain more on how she was turned into a shifter later))

[Vorgin]

Xel blinked in surprise at his secret being out so fast, "Straight to the point I see. Yes I'm not human, I'm a... Type of dragon. I'm going up to the temple to train my fire element to master it." He smiled, "So your a Kirin... I'm not sure I heard of a Kirin before... I guess you could tell me about it on the way up. It's going to take a day." He lifted his back from the ground and over his shoulders.

[polaristar]

Carsyn smiled at him. "Cool. I'm going to master the water element." She stared at him in disbelief. "You've never heard of a kirin before? I can understand not seeing one, kirins aren't the most common creatures out there, but I figured you would have at least heard of them." She huffed, looking slightly offended. "We're basically dragon-like creatures - if you'll pardon the comparison, it's not that accurate - that bring good luck. But I'm quite an intimidating figure, so... what I lack in special powers, like breathing fire or whatnot, I make up in physique." She grinned. "So, tell me a about yourself. I mean, we do have some time to kill."

Edited July 10, 2015 by polaristar

[Vorgin]

Xel looked at her as she spoke, smirking slightly, "I guess we both have some things to share with each other then." He readied himself and took one step onto the mountain trail. "It's no turning back now Carsyn. Let's head up, you can tell me about your species and what your story is, then when you are done, I will share more about me. Deal?" He smiled at her and offered his hand to her for the first step of the trail.

[polaristar]

((I apologize for A - the textwall; and B - any typos as I'm on mobile))

 

Carsyn grinned. "Deal." She replied, letting him help her up as they began their trek up the mountain. "Hmm, where to start?" She mused, thinking for a moment. "The beginning would probably be best, starting with a little more about kirins in general. Kirins are dragonlike, as I mentioned before, without wings, and have a horn on their heads much like a unicorn would, except it points back instead of forward. Kirins are universally considered a good omen and bring good luck to those they befriend, therefor when one stumbles upon a kirin they will do almost anything to gain their trust. Sometimes, kirins will even choose to stay with those they have befriended but usually wander. They mate for life, however long that is," she shrugged, as Carsyn obviously had no idea how long kirins lived, "and will usually produce offspring every 3 to 5 years. Anyways, my story begins a little over 18 years ago or so. Usually, kirin don't have elemental abilities, but I had one, as did my older brother whom I have never met." Carsyn paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts, before continuing. "When I was four, we came across a small village that my mother and father decided to stay in for a while. The villagers were thrilled, but told us that there was one thing we were to never do - go into the swamps. According to their legends, an evil witch lived there. I'm not sure anyone actually believed that myth, but I don't think anyone was willing to take the chance, either." She told Xel with a chuckle. "Not going into the swamps was fine and good for me, I was four and held no real interest in a swamp anyways. Since my father and mother decidedto stay Iin that village, I started to learn the language of the humans and befriended a young boy. We grew up together, and as we grew older, we were closer than siblings. We didn't pay much mind to the swamp until we were almost 16, when things like those were no more than silly stories to scare young children."

 

Carsyn shook her head. "Oh, but we learned. One night, a few months after we turned 16, we decided it would be a brilliant idea to explore the swamps. It wasn't, trust me when I said it wasn't. I was almost fully grown, so my parents weren't as concerned about my whereabouts, so it wasn'ttoo ddifficult to sneak out one night and meet him in the woods near the swamps. As a kirin, I had the strength of ten men, so we decided the easiest way to explore would be fore him to ride on my back, as I was much less likely to be targeted by creatures such as alligators. We journeyed for a few hours at least, before finally stumbling upon a small wooden cabin. Eager to investigate, we knocked on the door. Guess who answered?" It was a rhetorical question, one whose answer wasn't too hard to guess. "The witch whom we had heard stories about. We didn't know that, and she ushered us inside with such kindness that we didn't suspect a thing. She fed us and gave us water, which for me was tainted with a potion that would transform me into something else - a human - though I had no idea at the time." She was silent for a moment before continuing. "About halfway back to the village, I started to feel strange, but said nothing. By the time we arrived back, it took all my strength to put one foot in front of the other. When he slid off my back, I collapsed, unconscious. When I woke, I was like him. A human. He had explained everything to his mother, who clothed me and put me to bed. Life didn't go back to normal. With my new form there were different ways to channel my powers, and I lost control. My father suggested coming here. So here I am." She finished. "So. What about you? What's your story?"

Edited July 10, 2015 by polaristar

[Vorgin]

Xel nodded and thought for a bit, paying attention to her curse. When she finished they reached a small spring where Xel stopped and washed his face. "That's quite an experience... So you can turn back into a Kirin no matter what you do?" He frowned and looked at her, ready to share his story after she answered his question.

[polaristar]

"Yeah." Carsyn nodded, waiting while Xel washed his face. "Though I'll shift on instinct if I get too angry or scared. I'm going to the temple because I can't control my powers in human form. Watch." She stared intently at the water, and it stopped flowing for mere moments before it continued along its way. "In my kirin form, I could turn this entire spring to ice, but in this form, I can barely stop the water." She glared at the water. "It's very frustrating."

[Vorgin]

Xel smiled, "Well insure you can learn what you need to at the temple. That's what's it's there for anyway, training." He got ready to walk again, "Well... My dad raised me to learn the elements. My dad can use pretty much every element. I can only use fire. So when I was old enough, I was sent here to train, and so I will. Beyond that, I'm just a basic dragon with a human form. I'm not that interesting." He laughed and began to move on.

[polaristar]

Carsyn hummed in understanding. "Oh. Okay. Do you have any siblings?" She asked him curiously as they walked, observing the thick trees and plants on either side of them. It would be a perfect place for an ambush, really. She absentmindedly wondered if anyone had ever thought thesame. As they walked, Carsyn saw an abundance of deer, squirrels, rabbits, and birds. It was a very stable ecosystem, no doubt there were bears in the woods, mountain lions and coyotes too, no doubt.

[Vorgin]

Xel smiled, "Yes, one sister who is a year older than me. Her name is Solessa. Though unlike me, she isn't a dragon. Same father but different mother, love works in weird ways I guess. I can't complain, I love my family." Looking at Carsyn he froze, looking behind her, "Carsyn... Turn slowly... We are surrounded..." Growls were heard as a pack of large yellow-gold came out of the brush and bushes. Xel put his right hand on the handle of his sword, his left to the side between Carsyn and the three wolves in front of them. Though Xel made sure the two behind them were in his vision as well.

[polaristar]

"That's how it goes, I suppose." Carsyn agreed, nodding in response as she too noticed the wolves that had surrounded them. They growled and she growled back, low and dangerous. "You might want to step back." She advised Xel, lunging forward and shifting with a roar. Startled, the two wolves shied away from Carsyn, in her massive kirin form. Her breath came out in ice cold puffs as she growled at the wolves that were facing her. Brave wolves... not ordinary wolves, by any means. Normal wolves had the sense to run in the presence of an angry kirin. So... what were they? They looked like wolves, but weren't. Their fur was an odd yellow-gold color, and their eyes were bright green. She had never seen anything like it. Carsyn and her family had ran into a werewolf pack once, but these weren't werewolves, the ones she had met were much more civilized. "What are they?" She asked Xel as the wolves circled them warily. "If they were normal wolves they would turn tail and run at the mere sight of me." She snapped at a wolf that got too close. "Have you ever encountered anything like this before?"

[Vorgin]

Xel watched in surprise as she transformed, it was certainly a new view for him. Turning his attention back to the five wolves, he put his sword away. "Metal would be bad to use. These wolves have the element of electricity." As he said that, the Alpha stepped ahead of the others and barked, raising its hackles. It's due began to spark until visible electricity surged in it's fur. Xel lit his hands on fire. "Physical attacks may hurt them, but touching that fur will hurt too. They will aim to paralyze us to make us easy prey, but if you are like a dragon, your scales should provide resistance." He moved to cover Carsyn's blind spot.

[polaristar]

"Well then," Carsyn replied with the kirin equivalent of a smirk, "I guess we're just going to have to use that against them." She growled to keep the wolves at bay, and a slippery sheet of ice covered the ground. Her claws gripped the ice easily but the wolves weren't as coordinated on the ice, slipping and colliding into each other with startled yelps. "You know why you should never, ever use a hair dryer in the bathtub?" She grinned - well, sorta - wickedly. "Because the one using it gets quite the shock." As if on cue, the ice disappeared and water was dumped on the electrically charged wolves instead. They howled in pain as their powerful ability was used against them. "It should slow them down, but we need to get out of here." Carsyn told Xel. "Need a ride?"

Edited July 14, 2015 by polaristar

[Vorgin]

Xel watches as the wolves electricity was used against them. He put out the fire in his hands and turned to Carsyn, "If you turn back into a human, I could fly us out. You don't have wings, and I know these wolves could catch up to you, this is there territory after all. Unless you can't turn back, Flying is our best option Carsyn." He waited for her response, making sure none of the wolves dired off enough to continue their attack.

[polaristar]

"You're right." Carsyn nodded, shifting back. For some reason she hadn't quite figured out, her clothes weren't effected by her shifting. In fact, it was like they just disappeared until she shifted back. "You shift, I'll tak your backpack." She told him, watching the wolves warily in case she had to shift again. But they were still soaked and until they dried fully, they would be weakened. "We need to get out of here before they go on the attack again."

[Vorgin]

Xel smiled, "No need, I can partial shift." In a quick moment, large black dragon wings came out of his back. He adjusted his pack and grabbed Carsyn. Before she could say anything, he forced his wings down, forcing them up into the air above the wolves. When they got high enough, he began to flap in place so they were hovering next to the mountain. "You okay there? Sorry for the sudden grab and go, need to make sure we were out of danger." He looked at her and smiled as he held her tight so she didn't fall.

[polaristar]

"Whoa!" Carsyn exclaimed as he grabbed her and flew into the air. "It's alright, just a little warning next time would be great." She told him, chuckling as she looked below him. "Eehh..." She groaned, shutting her eyes tightly. "Turns out I'm afraid of heights." She mumbled, her muscles tense. "Any time you want to get down would be fantastic." She told Xel, buring her head in his shoulder. "I'm really stressed right now, I don't want to shift on accident."

[Vorgin]

Xel laughed, "Then just keep your eyes closed or just look at me. Even better..." He turned away from the mountain facing out over the continent, "Take a good look at that view. Beautiful countryside, green lush landscape... we live on a beautiful piece of land..." He sighed, flapping his wings as they slowly moved up the mountain. He got a glance at a good landing spot and waited for her order to land when she was done looking at the view, or looking at him, or eyes shut in fear.

[polaristar]

Carsyn groaned, annoyed. "I don't care, just land as soon as possible!" She ordered him, accidentally seeing the dizzying drop below her and feeling slightly sick. "Gaah, this sucks, how do you enjoy this?!" She exclaimed to Xel incredulously. Carsyn pressed her forehead into his shoulder again, her breath icy cold in the way that signified she was angry or upset. "I hate this." She mumbled, knowing full well that Xel wouldn't drop her but feeling terrified despite that fact.

[Vorgin]

Xel sighed, "Fine fine... you need to enjoy this kind of stuff more." He veered toward the mountain and landed lightly on the mountain, further up, over and hour away from the wolves. When he set her down and let her go he smiled, "You okay there? Dont want my passenger in any harm." He went into his bag and offered her his canteen of water.

[polaristar]

Carsyn rolled her eyes. "Enjoy this stuff more? From what I've learned you can't exactly lose a fear of heights, thank you very much. You can conquer your fear but you can't... oh. That's what you meant, isn't it?" She asked sheepishly as he landed. "Dry land! Praise all that is holy!" She exclaimed dramatically before accepting his canteen. "Thanks." She took a swig of water before handing it back to him. "I'll be fine, just remind me to never do that again. I have a deep suspicion it's because kirins are strictly land animals." She said in amusement. "Though it would be quicker to fly." She mused. "Why didn't you fly? You didn't have to walk with me, I could have taken care of myself. I survived this long, haven't I? Don't get me wrong, I don't mind your company, I was just curious."

[Vorgin]

Xel shrugged, "For one, I would have missed the experience of doing the hike up. Two, I don't really like using my dragon features unless I need to, and finally, I too enjoy the company. Going back to the walking part, that's why I flew up only an hour or two walk. So we can enjoy the rest of the walk now." He chuckled and took his canteen. "Shall we continue on then?"