Reincarnated Remake

[pudding]

The elf was silent for a few moments before shaking his head. "Everyone has suffered in their own way. Sometimes, it can affect our judgement. But you were not harmed by Viziel's actions. It's easier to forgive someone who has not directly affected your life. While Ranaghar may not know your friend now, he has been harmed by him in the past. It's less easy for him to forgive." He picked the basket of fruits up again and held one of the large, round fruits out to him. It resembled an orange but was blue and spotted purple. "If you worry about your friend, perhaps you should start with making sure Ranaghar won't kill him. Because just letting his injury fester won't help any and threatening violence certainly won't help. Try using your words instead of your actions."

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Derek took the fruit, not hungry, but he intends to give it to Ranaghar. He nodded and said his thanks before following his friends scent and the stink of blood, finding them both. He stepped forward and set the fruit on the by the basin as a peace offering. "I know you hold a grudge against him. And one against me for defending him. But please, tell James what you know about Viziel.... it might help us from repeating past mistakes. In the words of the fallen elf: 'The Roots survived the fires and attacks. We were able to regrow the trees themselves and try to restore the forest but… It won’t be the same.' The mind is much like that. It can survive attacks... but the body wouldn't be the same. What he did hurt you, and forgetting it won't be easy. I am not asking you to forget, only see how the he is now asking for your help now.

 

It wouldn't be easy, like regrowing the trees... but please, look and see the same body, but a different soul. He isn't Viziel. Would the one you fought be asking for help?"

Edited August 4, 2015 by AroaraAngelwolf

[pudding]

Ranaghar seemed fairly good at giving the cold shoulder himself, choosing to wipe water off his arms and flick it back into the basin. After he finished with this and his arms were reasonably clean, he finally looked over to Derek. "I have no time to answer pointless questions of murderers. If you can tell me what is wrong with this place, I may answer a question of yours. But until that point, I see no reason to waste precious time speaking with one who does not understand anything about this forest." Picking up the water basin, he began to carry it away, intending to dispose of the bloody water elsewhere.

 

"Well, that was unproductive," James admitted with a sigh. "But at least he didn't attack me. That's an improvement. I don't think I understand what he was saying though. Any clue what might be wrong with this forest?"

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"I don't know. Whatever it is, it isn't good though." A flash of anger and he growls out. "Really? We have no time for this! We have spent enough time here. I'm leaving in the morning." He stalked from the room back to the pod. What the Hell was that? These emotions are harder to control. He needs to meditate desperately.

[pudding]

James frowned slightly as Derek stormed off before looking back in the direction Ranaghar had gone. Frowning slightly, he ran after the guardian, slowing down only when he was a few feet behind him. Silently, he followed Ranaghar as the guardian walked around, eventually tossing the bloody water away in an area he deemed appropriate and rinsing out the basin in a nearby creek. Setting the bowl on the ground, the guardian paused then turned to look at James. "Why are you following me?" He asked, his voice slipping into a growl.

"Do you know what this rock does?" James asked, holding out the stone. The guardian hissed slightly but steeled himself and grunted, nodding slightly. "Awesome," James replied. "Then I'll just follow you until you tell me what it does." Ranaghar frowned slightly but shook his head and ignored him again. It was going to be a long night.

[AroaraAngelwolf]

((Skip? Can't think of any other then Derek meditating for two hours. Then drawing. ))

[pudding]

((Yup, go ahead. We can skip to them leaving if you like.))

[AroaraAngelwolf]

((I took the last one. You can do this one [besides, I wouldn't know what to put]))

[pudding]

((Alright.))

 

When morning came, Fia returned. While she had made herself scarce during the time spent with the elves, she was back and already packing up the wagon. There were a few less crates than before but this didn't seem to bother her as she nodded to the elves that were lifting the supplies into the wagon. "Aaaaand that's all!" She chirped, giving the wagon a once-over before beaming down at the elves. "We should be fully prepared to head North now! Thank you." Bobbing her head slightly, she looked around, searching for the rest of the crew who would accompany them. "Heroes!" She called out loudly, causing several flying animals to be startled off their perches. "We're leaving now! We need to be out of the forest by night fall."

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Ash was ready to go and trotted out to her. He nodded a hello to her before taking up his position at the side of the cart.

 

Derek came out looking disheveled. His hair messed up more than normal and he looked tired. He didn't get any sleep that night, nightmares having plagued him. He took a elf sword and his dagger along with his things and got in the cart. He sank in the back without a word. He sent a last brief letter to the queen saying only "heading north tomorrow morning. Wish us safe travels. Arkin." He doubted she'd even write back and that he'd even get any sleep on the trip.

[pudding]

James stretched out his arms as he climbed into the back of the cart. Waving goodbye to a few of the elves, he lounged out on one row of seats, sighing loudly. Being up all night was exhausting, even if it meant he was able to watch some nice stars over the trees. None of them were even remotely the same, unfortunately, but it still made him feel nice. "You look tired," James said with a laugh as he stared at Derek from where he was sitting across from him. Ranaghar peered into the wagon briefly before grunting and opting to climb up the outside instead. There was a slight clamor overhead before Fia dug her heels into the ground and started forward, clearly eager to get back on the road.

"You both look awful!" The bird chirped with a laugh. "Did either of you get any sleep last night?"

"Not really," James replied with a yawn. "I was following around Ranaghar all through the night. I found out some interesting things though."

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Ash lead them out and to the north. "Really? Care to share with us hero?" He asked.

 

Derek waved to a few elves as they left and sighed. "I had nightmares all night. I feel like a dog on the edge of a choke chain. And I have the heebie jeebies. The wolf part feels danger and I don't like it. If I get cranky that's probably why."

[pudding]

"Sure," James replied with a slight shrug. Where to begin? Just trailing Ranaghar had been hard enough but since he didn't remove himself from his perch on top of the wagon, James assumed he was fine with whatever he was going to say. "Well, the reason you might feel like that is because apparently the guy sitting above us can intimidate people. It doesn't work so well on smarter creature but he did it to be a few times and it's still pretty crazy feeling. He's also pretty strong since at one point he picked up this massive dog-creature and threw it a good dozen feet." He tapped his chin with a finger, frowning slightly. "The forest itself was filled with a lot of monsters from the North since they wandered in. Ranaghar is used to fighting them I guess so it'll be helpful now that he's traveling with us. But I think the most important thing that I found out is that apparently, up North is a very old metal structure that has been around for a long time. I'm guessing it belongs to the Evil One and was a space ship or something but all of the monsters avoid it. It might be a good idea to try to look for it so we could get some clues about what the Evil does."

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Derek sighed. "He doesn't intimidate me, the feeling didn't come from him. It's around us. I feel like the shadows watch out moves. Apparently also up north, or north east is the werewolf territory. Maybe they can tell me more about myself and I can find out what happened to that sword I keep seeing in my dreams. The elves told me werewolves can live a long time too once they hit a certain age. They normally don't because they fight over little things. Perhaps though, I might get lucky and see... Tala, Neiva's sister, and she can tell me more then what was put in a book. You think we can go by there? She'd still be living on the edge as before.... This can be a step in returning my memory so we can get rid of this thing. The metal structure is a good lead too. Definitely check that out."

Edited August 5, 2015 by AroaraAngelwolf

[pudding]

"Which one is closest, though?" James asked with a slight frown. Did they venture to the werewolves first or the wreckage?

"Werewolf territory is about three days from here at this pace," A gruff voice replied from the top of the carriage. Ranaghar had his hood pulled over his head once more and was resting on top of the wagon, his legs crossed and his arms folded over his chest. "The wreckage is much farther North according to the monsters." It seemed like he was in a much more talkative mood compared to yesterday.

"Well, I guess that solves that. We should go to the werewolves first and then go to the wreckage. Does that sound like a plan to everyone?"

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Asheron nodded and angled the path slightly along a trail headed for the wolves. His knobby knees shook though. They were known to eat centaurs and it lay in along the base of the mountains to the east past the plains where his people run wild.

 

 

Derek had fallen asleep, curled up in a ball in the back of the wagon. He was tired, after meditating and several fitful attempts to sleep, he practiced the swing until he zoned out and nearly cut a elf in half of the elf didn't have a sword out and blocked it when he did. He pretty much knew the move now.

[pudding]

On top of the wagon, Ranaghar frowned. Honestly, he did not like to leave his forest. It was his home and he needed to defend it from possible attackers. However, only feet below him was the creature that had killed him and destroyed the forest before. And his home would fall under worse times if he did not ensure the Evil One was defeated. So remaining with them for the time being was better, even if it meant leaving his home. Hopefully, there would be no adverse side effects for being so far away.

Thinking ahead, he needed to focus more on where they were going. Werewolves were dangerous creatures and easily fell into the category of monsters he usually fought against. Entering their territory would be dangerous and he would constantly have to be on his guard. Looking at the centaur and the bird creature pulling the cart, he frowned slightly. Had they actually been introduced? He couldn't remember. Ah, well, it was too late for that now. If they wouldn't say anything, neither would he. Smelling the air, he nodded slightly then closed his eyes, opting to listen to the sounds of the forest around them. He'd make sure nothing would come near them to possibly delay their trip. The sooner they defeated the Evil, the sooner he could finish his own quest.

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Asheron looked back seeing the new rider. "I am quite sorry, I don't see you get on otherwise I would have introduced myself. I am Asheron, the guide. The one pulling the cart is Fia. It's a pleasure to be your acquaintance sir." He smiled softly. He's seen this man around the wood, but never spoken to him.

 

 

Derek snorted when they hit a bump and continued to sleep.

[pudding]

"The elves named us Ranaghar," the man replied, the gruff tone surprisingly absent from his voice. Tipping his head forward slightly, he nodded to the two, his attention focusing on Fia. He couldn't really place her species. Odd. "We will be teaching them how to fight and acting as your protector until this quest is over." As they passed through the trees, he leaned forward slightly so he could look over the edge of the wagon to look at the two. "Where do you come from?"

[AroaraAngelwolf]

"Human land. This is the farthest I've been from home. " He said as he trotted beside Fia. "feel free to ask us anything."

 

(Short sorry!)

[pudding]

"What does it look like there?" Ranaghar asked as soon as Ash opened up the floor to questions. He really didn't know much about other places aside from what he heard from monsters or elves. While humans and elves were on good terms, the elves rarely spoke of the human land and he had yet to find any monsters that hailed from that area that were intelligent enough to speak. In fact, he rarely met any creatures from that area in general. "You may also ask Ranaghar questions," He added, not noticing his slip back into a much more primitive speech pattern.

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Ash rummaged through some papers. He had made a comment to Derek about being homesick and joked about not remembering what the castle looked like when he returned so Derek drew the castle for him. He handed the detailed drawing to Ranaghar. "It's mostly stone, and sometimes wood and glass. It's in the middle of an island, the castle and her city. The streets are sometimes narrow, with lots of twists and turns. It seems more lively then the elf forest. Lots of people and children. The kids love to ride on us, don't they Fia." He started practicing with a spring in his step like he did the night of the party, a wide grin on his face. "There's more colors, other then the browns and greens of woods. Sometimes I'm taken out of my paddock to help load up the ships, and I get to see them set sail. When the water is calm and the sky is clear, you can see forever. All that water. It's quite beautiful, especially at sunset."

[pudding]

Ranaghar reached down to take the paper before sitting upright again on the top of the wagon. Studying the image, he squinted slightly then flipped the paper over, looking at it from all different angles. Finally, clearly baffled, he looked back down at Ash again. "There are no trees," He replied with a tight-lipped frown, clearly put off by the drawing in some way. "A place cannot be beautiful if there is no life," He added sternly, holding the paper back down to Ash so he could take it back. "Ranaghar prefers his forest."

[AroaraAngelwolf]

Ash took it back. "Oh there is life, just outside the castle. Sure they are farms that grow food, sometimes there's trees on the farms. And the King's garden. There's flowers and herbs and trees there. My mother works in the garden most of the time. It really is the mages, but the King walks in it sometimes for collecting her thoughts and the quiet it holds. It's no forest, but the monsters prefer the trees right?

[pudding]

Ranaghar didn't seem any more understanding with this explanation, opting to simply shake his head with a frown and look around at the forest they were walking through. It didn't make sense to him how a lot of rocks could be prettier than the forest. Sure the forest was dangerous but it housed so many different types of fantastic creatures. Either way, spending time on it would be pointless if he didn't understand it. Moreover, he was out of questions. "Now you ask Ranaghar something," He replied, looking down at Ash.