Skingrad Outskirts

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth appears with Zirak shaking at his knees as Degaro appears in a nearby shadow, and Zirak takes out his haliberd, still shaking.
"Stand down Zirak...." Zeth says in a calm voice, "He's an ally...."
"An ally?" Zirak looks at Zeth in puzzlement, "You think of shadowclan as an ally?"
"I am his ally....sorta," Degaro speaks in his normal, cocky, tone, "So stand down....."
Zirak mumbles under his breath and lowers his haliberd.
"So, who's the new guy?" Degaro asks calmly
"My name is Zirak, shade," Zirak exclaims with disgust, "and that is all you need to know!"
"Please, I've been called a shade enough times for one day...."
Zirak looks away and Zeth grins, but frowns as he sees the burns on Degaro's arm.
"What in gods happened to you?"
"Huh? Oh, this...." Degaro looks at the burns,"A female dragoon used dragonpyre on me....not powerful enough to kill me, but still enough to injure me...."
"Hmm...." Zeth scratches the back of his head. "Any specific details?"
"Well, she h-"
"Wait a second...." Zirak interrupts.
Zeth and Degaro look a Zirak.
"There are still living dragoons?"
"Ya, and if you need proof, this is it....." Degaro points at the burns. "These aren't normal flames....boy..."
"Who you calling boy, shade!?"
"You, that's who!"
Degaro and Zirak glare at eachother as Zeth smirks at them.
So much for a friendly chat....

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth starts laughing but stops suddenly and turns around to see five figures all facing their direction.
Zeth scowls and speaks in a rough tone, "And just who are you five?"
Degaro and Zirak stop glaring at eachother and look at the figures.
"Heck if I know...." Degaro places a hand on the hilt of his katana. "But if they want to live then they better go before I get nasty...."
Zeth puts his hand infront of Degaro as if to stop him.
"We don't know what they're here for, so it's best if w-"
Before Zeth can finish, the figure in the middle dashes forward, a dagger slips out of it's sleeve, and it throws the dagger straight at Zeth's head, but it's deflected by Zirak's haliberd, who moved up to block.
"Pay a bit of attention will you?" Zirak says in an annoyed voice.
At that moment, moonlight shone through the clouds, and onto the figures, and Zirak's eyes widen, Zeth's eyes narrow slightly, and Degaro scowls.

Four of the figures didn't look really human. At the far right, the thing had the basic form of a male human, but was larger than most, it's skin was a very dark green, and it had horns coming from the back of it's head, and one large, grotesque eye in the center of the head, and tusk-like fangs petruded from it's mouth. Finally, the feet weren't feet at all, but hooves....

The one on the middle right it had the head of a human except for a beak protruding from it's face, it's hair was silver and was tied up like a braid, which came down the back, and it wore a cloak that extended to it's ankles, which were talons like that of an eagle. Feathers covered the legs, waist, and lower torso of the creature, a dark shirt covered the upper torso and wings could be seen instead of arms under the cloak. This one had the body structure of a female human.

On the far left, a creature with a exoskeleton, similiar to that of a crab, and horns stuck from it's face, which looked like a helm that covered the mouth. Spikes stuck out from the shoulders, and a spiked tail also squirmed behind it. The rest of the body looked like plated armor, and with the structure of a male human.

The one in the center left looked the least human. The head looked like that of a jackal, but was covered in black scales. The torso and arms were very musclular and they were all covered in the same black scales. The hands and feet looked like that of a lizard, and the legs were covered with hair like that of an ape. Lastly, a large tail covered in scales protruded from the back of the creature.

The figure in the front, which was the one that had attacked earlier, was heavily cloaked in black, heavily enough for the body structure to be known. Dark amber eyes peered from behind the cloaked face, and the only unclothed part of the figure was the hand, which resembled a claw of a wyvern.

This does not look good..... Zeth thought.

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth drew his Dragon Fang and Tail slowly, but in middraw, a spark of flame appeared on the long hilt and the Fang was seperated from the rest. Zeth then pivoted his feet into a stance and looked at one of the creatures after another.
How should I do this....
After the thought, the jackle-headed creature charged at Zeth, jumped up, and kicked downwards at Zeth's skull. Zeth caught the leg on the flat side of the Fang and pushed the creature back, but then looked at the beaked creature in horror. A sphere of darkness was between it's upheld wings, with the beaked mouth chanting an incantation, and then, with a high pitched screech, a blast fired from the sphere at Zeth. Zeth then directed his hand at the blast and yelled...
[glow=red,2,300]"ZARUNGA!!!!"[/glow]
With a flash, a beam of compressed fire shot straight through the blast, creating an explosion, and through the beaked creature's shoulder. The jackle-headed and beaked creatures looked at him in fury, and Zeth grinned at them.
Maybe this won't be so hard after all....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As the jackle-headed creature had charged toward Zeth, Degaro was being charged by the one-eyed abomination. The thing swung a right hook at Degaro and was surprised to see it caught by his hand. Degaro laughed and spoke arrogantly....
"Is that all you can do?"
Degaro vanished and the thing fell forward, it's one eye looking everywhere to find Degaro, and as it finally looked up.... Degaro's katana had transformed into a claymore, and in his free hand, was a completely dark sphere, and with a word, it lashed out and binded the abomination to the ground. Degaro then floated down to the ground with a mischevious grin, and said....
[glow=black,2,300]"Gendaga...."[/glow]
Degaro vanished as all seemed to become ingulfed in darkness for the abomination. Looking around wildly, trying to find a way out, but then, Degaro appeared, or at least his eyes did. Two amber spheres looked at the thing, holding a severe bloodlust, and then, with a terrified howl, the dome of shadow that was Gendaga started to disappear, and Degaro held the thing up by the throat, and threw it down, covered in gashes and wounds, but still breathing.
"Hmph, you're not worth finishing....."
Degaro turned to watch the rest of the battle that was taking place.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Zirak slashed down at the plated creature with his haliberd, but it reflected it with it's arm and jabbed Zirak in the stomach. Zirak was launched back a few feet and struggled to get up, coughing up blood.
"Dang it..."
At this rate....
The creature started walking towards Zirak.
Guess I have to turn it up a notch.....
Zirak got to his feet and raised his haliberd, and the creature stops a couple meters from Zirak.
"Tell me....why do you keep fighting?"
Zirak looked at the creature in surprise.
"You can.....talk?"
"Yes, I can....."
Zirak grasped his haliberd firmly.
"Why did you ask me that?"
The creature crosses it's arms.
"Because, frankly, I dislike fighting.....and it would be best if I didn't have to kill you to make you stop fighting...."
Zirak stood there motionless for a few moments, and then grinned.
"Sorry, but I don't give up...."
"Hmm....Well, I'm sorry about this then...."
The creature charges at Zirak, and Zirak jumps up as lightning starts forming around the tip of the haliberd.
"What?!"
The creature stops as Zirak lands infront of it, and Zirak thrusts his haliberd at the creature multiple times. The creature dodges the thrusts the best it can but it gets hit in the arm, and with a yell, falls backwards. The creature then raises it's head as Zirak puts the haliberd to it's throat, still crackling with electicity. The creature then starts laughing and puts his hands up as if to give up.
"You got me kid...."
Zirak holds his position and looks over at Zeth, who had the last two to himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A young, blue-haired woman looks at the scene from behind a nearby tree and examines the battle. Her eyes come to a complete stop as they see Zeth.
"Impossible....."
The woman crouches down and waits for the opportune moment.

((Bum bum bum buuuummmmm!!!!!!))

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth ducks as a fireball is flung over his head and charges up to the jackle-headed creature, who swings a fist at him, but Zeth flips over it, grabs the creature's head between his feet, and swings him up and then down into the ground, knocking it out.
"Heh...."
Zeth turns and jumps over another fireball, and lands crouched on the ground.
"'Ello...."
Zeth charges up to the creature and attempts slashing with the Dragon Fang, but the creature flies up into the air, but with difficulty because of it's wounded shoulder.
"Bad move...."
Zeth raises up his hand and directs it at the winged creature.
"Pyros!"
An burst of fire suddenly engulfs the winged creature, causing it to fall to the ground.
Hmmm....I smell chicken....
Zeth chuckles to himself then turns to the figure that was left.
"You're next...."

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth takes out the Dragon Tail and charges at the figure and slashes with both the tail and fang, but the figure dissolves into mist and he cuts through nothing. Zeth looks surprised as the figure appears behind him and slashes at Zeth's back with it's claw and.....Zeth turns to see a blue haired woman with a large broadsword blocking the figure's claw as it jumps back and looks at the woman in hatred and dissappears. Zeth turns around again and sees all five of them as they were when they appeared, and all of them unharmed, as Degaro and Zirak run up to Zeth's sides.
"What the heck happenned?" Zirak says, shocked.
"No idea....."Degaro replies angrily.
As Degaro says this, the creatures disappear into the shadows.
"Great, where did they-"
Zeth then turns again to see the blue-haired woman, but she had dissappeared as well.
"What the heck is going on!?!?"
Zeth sits on the ground and scratches the back of his head.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The blue-haired woman appears about a kilometer away from Zeth and turns to see the creatures.
"A little drastic don't you think? Attacking your own general?"
The figure with the robes removes the part covering it's head and reveals a woman's face.
"A little drastic as well......you risked having your brother see you....."
The blue-haired woman looks down, saddenned, but the armored creature walks up to the woman.
"Aw, come on.... At least you know he's alive now, right! Don't look so down...."
"Oh, shut up, Arc...."
The armored creature looks at the cyclops.
"We were all taken by the Necromancer's servants and made into.....what we are.....heck, I envy her and Amalia because they kept their original forms....." The cyclops looks at the robed woman's claw, "Well, mostly at least......"
Amalia sighs and looks at the blue-haired woman.
"Trauk is right......you're lucky you didn't get turned into something worse.....all you lost was most of your Dragoonian half....Now, come Xen, we must plan...."
Xen watches as Amalia and the group disappear and sighs. She looks at the moon and thinks of the dreadful night where she thought Zeth had died and then disappears, following Amalia.

((Since Link and Kari are supposted to be the only two dragoons.....Xen lost most of her dragoonian half, and is now only 10% dragoon......hopefully they approve of even 10%.....
And also, Amalia's group is going to die soon so don't think they're going to be actual characters.....))

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth throws another piece of wood onto the fire, as Zirak and Degaro sit down near it. Zeth sits down as well and looks at Degaro.
"Do you know who they were at all?"
Degaro shakes his head.
"They did seem familiar, but I didn't really recongnize them....."
Zirak looks at Zeth.
"Do you know who that blue-haired woman was?"
Zeth scratches the back of his head.
"She looked alot like someone I know, but I can't put my finger on who it really was..."
All three of them sigh in unison as Zeth and Zirak's stomachs growl in unison and Degaro starts laughing.
"Pathetic huma-"
Just as his stomach growls as well.
"....dang stomach...."
Zeth snickers and gets up.
"I'll go look for something to eat, Zirak, you go ahead and tell Degaro what you were going to tell me earilier....."
"Roger..."
Zirak turns to Degaro as Zeth walks into the trees.

((Will continue later))

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth wanders into the woods and looks around.
Something's not right.....
Zeth takes a step, and jumps back as a beam of light fires at his feet.
Called it....
Zeth looks at where the beam came from and a cloaked figure with a long staff emerged from the darkness.
"Surrender, or suffer divine punishment...."
Zeth takes out the Dragon Fang and Tail and seperates them.
"Sorry, but that's not my style...."
"Then suffer divine punishment....."
The figure raises it's staff and lightning shoots out towards Zeth, but at an inch away from him, he vanishes and the lightning crashes into a nearby tree. The figure looks around, trying to spot Zeth.
"If that's all you can do....."
The figure looks up and sees Zeth dropping down towards him.
"This won't be much of a challenge...."
Zeth disappears agian and starts reappearing all around the figure again and agian, as slashes start appearing on it's body, at first small, but they start to grow in size quickly.
"Now...."
Zeth appears behind the figure and says....
"Grace of Blades...."
Blood bursts from it's wounds and it falls to the ground as Zeth turns and walks to it.
"Now....who sent you and why?"
Just as he finishes the question, the figure disappears, leaving Zeth alone.
What the heck was that about...?
Zeth hears the crack of a branch and turns to see a deer in a nearby clearing.
"Dinnertime....."
Zeth connects the Dragon Fang and Tail and sheathes it as he goes to catch his dinner.

[Zeth Gurido]

Zeth brings the dead deer out of the woods and sets it down by the fire and looks at Zirak.
"So, did you finish telling him?"
"Yeah...."
Zeth nods.
"Good....now...."
Zeth rubs his hands together and starts skinning and gutting the deer, and after a half hour, the deer meat can be smelt roasting on the open fire.
"Ah, can't wait....."
Zeth licks his lips in anticipation.

[Zeth Gurido]

After eating, Zeth gets up and looks around.
Something isn't right....
Degaro looks at Zeth and sighs.
"Settle down, no ones around...."
Zirak, still eating, swallows.
"You never know Degaro......those guys from earlier could spring out at anytime....."
Just then, the cyclopes from earlier walks out of the trees and up to the camp fire.
"Speak of the devil...."
Zeth takes out the Dragon Fang and points it at the cyclopes, who raises his hands in surprise.
"Hold on now, I'm just bringing a message...."
Degaro stands and looks at the cyclopes, puzzled.
"Why would you want to bring us a message?"
"Because I'll be killed if I don't....."
"Wha?"
The cyclopes throws a scroll at Zeth, who catches it, then disappears into the woods.
"What was that about?"
"Not sure," Zeth replied, sheathing the Dragon Fang, and unraveling the scroll to read.
((will continue later))

[Zeth Gurido]

~Meet me in the center of these woods by sunrise to decide our plight once and for all. Refuse, and I will destroy all the villages within a hundred leagues. Only you and Degaro have to come, and the third is allowed to flee if he wishes. Remember, if you are not there by sunrise, then you will see all those villages destroyed, one by one.~

".....and that's all there is," Zeth says quietly. He tosses the scroll into the fire and watches it burn, with Degaro and Zirak looking back at him.
"What should we do?" Degaro asks intently. His amber eyes shone out in the light of the fire, the crosses clearly seen. Zirak shifted uncomfortably, his halberd hanging across his back.
"We go. What choice do we have?" Zeth looks across at Zirak, his crimson eyes aglow, "But what of you? You don't have to come." After a moment, Zirak shook his head.
"No, I'll go, I have some payback to give to that shell-headed demon." Zirak's eyes flared with determination, none short than Zeth's own. Zeth grined slightly at this.
"Right then, lets move...." With Zeth taking the lead, the headed into the forest, not knowing one of thier lives was going to end within it.

----------------------------------------------

Xen sat quietly in the clearing, meditating with her water magics. A shining sphere of water floated around her, never faulting, even with her attention directed on the conversation nearby.
"Now, our goal is to capture Degaro and make him see reason. He has to come back to our side...If not, we will have no choice but to kill him. Him and everyone with him." Amalia spoke with no emotion, as usual, and she was surrounded by her four 'soldiers.' Arc, the most intelligent of the four, was based with the shell of a crustation, sorta, and had an idea of non-violence, though he was still almost as strong as her. Trauk, a cyclops, was the least intelligent, though about as smart as an average human, and the strongest physically of the four. Sahra, the magic specialist, had the appearance of a bird, and her magic abilities surpased even Xen's, though if only a little, though her physical strength severly lacked. And lastly, the one with the head of a jackal, Lnek, was the most vicous of them, and never used his head, even if he was tecnically smarter than Trauk.
"Xen, get over here." Xen suddenly jerks out of her meditation and fakes the water falling onto the ground. She turns her head to see Amalia looking at her with a glare. "We have to figure out a strategy for Degaro and your brother."
Xen stands up slowly and glares back, "I thought you said you wouldn't try to kill my brother?" Her azure eyes looked as though they were flames, and they became even more enraged when Amalia just shrugged back.
"If it can be avoided, but by how he fought earlier, we may not have a choice." Amalia crossed her arms as she said this. "Besides, you thought he was dead before, so what difference will it make?" Xen looked back at her angrily and Arc stepped up.
"Uh, don't you think we can some how find a way to avoid killing him, I mean, he is her bro-" Arc stopped when Amalia glared at him and he stepped back. Amalia looked back at Xen and grinned, showing her sharp teeth.
"Remember your superiors, Xen, and get over here." Xen sighed as she walked over to where they were and listened to them create a stratagy.
Please Zeth, stay as far away from here as you can...

----------------------------------------------

Zeth stepped into a clearing with Zirak and Degaro close behind him, each of them with weapons in hand, except the Dragon Tail, which wasn't in his sheath or hand. Stoping in the center, Zeth looks around, eyes narrow, and he calls out. "Come on out, I know you're there!" In moments, the six of them start walking ou-wait, six?! Zeth looks at all of them quickly. Cyclops, check; Jackal-head, check; Crustatian, check; Birdie, check; Robes, check; then who's the last one? The last one was robed in dark azure, almost as heavily as the one in black, but the figure was clearly female, and the eyes shone a lighter azure than the robes.
"So you called reinforcements? Well, you're going to need it..." Degaro grins mischeviously, Zirak gets into his form, and Zeth readies his Dragon Fang. The battle, was about to begin.

----------------------------------------------

Xen stared out from her robes and looked at Zeth with worry. Why Zeth? Why did you come?

((And Just for fun.... ))
Zeth-Bladelord
HP-320/320
SP-220/220
MP-170/170

Degaro-Shadowblade
HP-360/360
SP-270/270
MP-120/120

Zirak-Lord
HP-250/250
SP-180/180
MP-40/40

VS.

Amalia-Shadowrogue
HP-320/320
SP-290/290
MP-140/140

Arc-Chimera Shell
HP-420/420
SP-240/240
MP-50/50

Trauk-Chimera Edge
HP-390/390
SP-310/310
MP-0/0

Sahra-Chimera Mage
HP-290/290
SP-150/150
MP-250/250

Lnek-Chimera Ravager
HP-320/320
SP-270/270
MP-0/0

Xen-Bladelord
HP-290/290
SP-210/210
MP-200/200

((How are they going to win!?!? o.O))

[Zeth Gurido]

((Due to absolute boredom, and that I want to start fresh, I'm not going to continue in this thread. NO ONE POST HERE.))