[Mkguild] Slumbering dragon returns

[justin bonvisuto]

It's been quite awhile since I helped Thaeus work on the archive and I
never fully submitted some of my stories as an author. I came across
them in my old computer so i thought I'd resubmit them to the list.
Sorry it's long, I've attempted to break my stories after this into
smaller chunks for easier digestion. without further adieu here's my
first story.

-Tavon-

The Lost Warrior
By Justin Bonvisuto


I kept having dreams of images that seem so familiar to me yet I never
was able to remember exactly how they pertained to me. Sometimes I was
flying as some form of beast; I saw the enemy and dropped from the sky
spraying fiery death upon them. I reveled in the screams and squeals
of agony and death. Other times I saw a tall, strange man in dark
robes, who called himself Nasoj, yet as he spoke the words were
gibberish.. The evil washed off of him in waves. Then the pain began.
The burning sensation like every piece of me was being ripped apart
and reorganized. Those were some of my nightmares. Others were more
pleasant. Sometimes I saw Brian who was my friend, but I couldn't
recall anything about him. All I saw was a conversation we were having
on horseback discussing what seemed to be a fighting technique. He
boasted that he'll beat me in the next tournament and I quickly
reminded him that he hadn't defeated me yet in the last three
tourneys. I wished I remembered who I was and why I was headed toward
a place called "Metamor Keep". The voice of that strange man kept
telling me to go there and no matter what way I turned I had a sense
of which direction it lay-Southwest.

I traveled on with my sword strapped to my back. I just kept it there
because I could barely wield the weapon with any form of accuracy,
although I got the sense from my dreams I once did. It's a fine piece
of work, and I commended whoever made it. The double-blade was razor
sharp. I could swing it to cut the foliage and it sliced smoothly even
through the thicker stuff. It had an ornamental carving halfway up the
face on both sides of the silver-blue blade. It twisted and curled
like someone had tried to force water into a shape. The ornamental
design was followed by smaller, individual symbols that continued up
the flat of the blade. These ten symbols were blocky and lacked the
smooth liquid like the flow of the design. The cross guard was black
but seemed to turn iridescent when hit by the sun in just the right
way. The leather-bound handle ended in an emerald-scaled dragon claw
clutching a heart-shaped ruby. The scabbard of the sword was the same
color as the cross guard. It was unadorned except for a small design
very similar to the one on the blade but lacking some of the swirls.
What I found strange about my journey was that I hadn't eaten in days
yet I didn't feel hungry or thirsty.

The lands I walked through were wild, distorted and full of creatures,
but so far none of them had threatened me. They all seemed nervous
around me somehow. One creature seemed to keep following me though. My
fuzzy memory seemed to recall the name "troll" in connection with this
creature. Every time I tried to look at this creature it ducked into
the bushes and the voice commanded me "Never mind distractions,
continue to Metamor Keep." I found myself pulled away and continued
traveling.

I heard the "troll" circling around towards my front. It was trying to
act stealthy but the constant rustling of branches and the thump of
its heavy footsteps belayed its position. The voice still commanded me
forward. Suddenly the humanoid creature jumped in front of me wielding
a large double-axe. The thing handled the weapon with ease even though
it stretched a full arm's length blade tip to blade tip. The voice
reacted in the same emotionless tone as if there were no being behind
it, "Don't let ANYTHING get in your way, continue to Metamor Keep."

The troll briefly spoke to me "G'rrakk hate Nsssojjj pet. G'rrakk kill
traitor." Before I could contemplate what the troll meant by that it
attacked me.

*****

Despicable Nasoj pet; traitorous Nasoj pet. I hunt it cuz of my blood
oath and I swear I will kill it. It had first shown up many years ago.
Master brought it along with his other pets. He always played with
that magic stuff and made these strange things. My brothers and I
hated these strange things cuz Master would always privilege them and
give them the best kills. But Master commanded that we had to fight
with them so we did for fear of his slaying hands. We attacked that
place that Master despised, Mattamiur Keeppp. We were beaten but some
of my brethren and I survived. I was a little happy cuz I no saw any
of the pets. I even saw the burning carcass of one.

I served Master loyally. I killed many and always survived. I became
known as G'rrakk the Invincible. Finally Master rewarded me and gave
me my favorite axe; it was very big but felt very light. I could crush
things easily with it.

Not long ago my brothers and I, a magic user, and some puny Lutins
were looking for any intruders in Master's territory. The Nasoj pet
was still alive! It was so fast; it grabbed one of my brothers and
consumed him. The cowardly Lutins ran away. Surely the Master would
not send it to kill us; it must be a traitor. No traitor kills my
brother and gets away with it. We attacked it. It paid us no heed and
continued eating my fallen brother. My brothers' blades did not even
scratch the pet. The magic fireball fizzled against the creature's
side. My axe made a clanging sound as it collided with the traitor. It
got mad. It backhanded me and I went flying. It ripped my brothers to
pieces and stripped their bodies to the bones. It merely used one claw
to slice the remaining mage's throat and then it sat there and watched
him bleed to death. It took the magic user's clothes, then it left. I
cut my arm and mixed my blood with the blood of each of my brothers. I
wiped it upon my chest and swore I would kill their executioner.

I now track the pet. I am glad cuz it is now in its puny form. I am
sneaky and it no detects me. I jump out in front of it screaming
"G'rrakk hate Nsssojjj pet. G'rrakk kill traitor." I hit the pet with
my axe and send it flying. I go for the kill but the pet is so fast.
My axe gets stuck and I feel an enormous pain from my neck. The world
spins and I see the pet and a headless body with red smeared on the
chest. Blackness is coming. My brothers will knaw upon my bones for
not avenging them…

*****

Like a blinding flash a piece of the person I was returned to me. I
pull the sword from its sheath and attempted to deflect the giant
blade swinging toward me. I miscalculated the force of the massive
weapon and it sends me flying back a good five feet. G'rakk charged
forward readying for another swing. I had to do something to end this
fight quickly or risk having to put up with the fighter that wielded
that giant axe like an expert. Instead of immediately standing back up
I knelt, waiting for the axe swing. It came and I rolled toward the
troll. The axe-head barely missed me burying itself in the earth. I
got back up on my knees and while G'rakk was immobilized I thrust the
sword blade upwards into the creature's throat. G'rakk fell to the
ground with a thud, leaving his axe buried. I felt strange and I
realized while holding the bloody sword that I had just now used it to
decapitate the troll.

I had used the sword!! But try as I might I still couldn't recall
exactly how to use the thing. I tried a couple of swings but there was
no grace or pattern to the mock blows unlike the ones I had performed
before. I swung again out of frustration. Damn why couldn't I remember
anything!!! The voice in my mind roused me from my despair, "Continue
to Metamor Keep!!!" I once again found myself being controlled to head
toward that place. I wiped the bloody blade on the unsoiled portion of
the troll's body, sheathed my sword and started walking toward the
Southwest again. Once I started walking I found that I could control
my limbs again. I figured if I keep going toward this Metamor Keep at
least I could remain in control of myself instead of the voice. I
wondered, "But why am I heading to this Metamor Keep?"

After a good ten-day more of journey the sense of Metamor seemed
stronger. I still found it bewildering that I hadn't felt hungry at
all. I sometimes got thirsty but that had only happened twice since… I
guess when I first remembered traveling out here in the wilderness.  I
happened upon eight small humanoid creatures with green skin sneaking
through the brush. Each of them jumped back in surprise as if they
were so intent on something that they didn't see me. After overcoming
their surprise all eight sprang at me with small daggers and curving
swords ready. Not having my sword ready I was in dire circumstances.
This time there was no voice or flash of memory that triggered my
actions. I felt a pain begin in my gut and it flared to become a
raging inferno. The feeling maddened me, making me want to rip these
creatures to pieces. Somehow I felt different as if things around me
were smaller. The eight charging creatures stopped dead cold in their
tracks, turned around and fled in shear terror. I suddenly felt
'normal' again and I checked myself over. I was still a good old
human, but what was the tear in my robes from, and why had those
things suddenly fled when they had been so intent on killing me. The
questions faded from my mind like the swordsmanship had. A vile odor
wafted through the air. Damn, it was more of them. I wasn't about to
let these little vermin sneak up on me again. I just prayed that I
remember again how to wield the weapon I carry.

As I smelt more of the …"Lutins"… coming my way, the pain in my gut
returned and I found myself getting hungry for the first time. I got a
pain in my head as the voice commanded me toward Metamor and tried
forcing me to continue. I ignored the pain and the last thought before
I blacked out was "I don't care about Metamor right now, I am
hungry..."

I awoke stark naked with only my sword attached to my back in a field
or what I first thought was a field. In actuality it was the burned
and bloodied remnants of an encampment. The cadavers of a good thirty
of those Lutins were spread all around me.  Some looked like a large
set of jaws had taken parts off of them. Others had the five huge
gashes where some large five-bladed weapon must have carved the meat
off their bones. Most were burned into blackened charcoal with the
smoke still rising off their baked remains. A few were nothing but
piles of ash with twisted partially molten blades and armor on top of
them. I noticed that on my hands were rivulets of blood, the same
blood that poured forth from the corpses.

What happened here? Who did this? The questions ran through my mind.
The dream of burning bodies and my bestial form returned. It was
different this time. This time it was Lutins that were dying. Could it
be possible that I killed all these creatures? How could that be
possible, I'm human aren't I?

The sun was getting low and I was finally starting to get cold. I took
the material from one of the remaining tents and wrapped it around me.
I started following the direction toward Metamor again. The sooner I
got there the quicker I got rid of that damn voice and nagging feeling
in my head.

*****

Just missing the lost warrior by mere minutes a group of three
individuals headed toward the smoldering killing field that was their
goal. The lead figure, clad in chain mail, gave a silent gesture to
follow. The five-foot tall axe in his hands swayed with each movement.
The female scout next to him readied the already knocked arrow in her
bow in case anything from the Lutin encampment was still alive.  Her
broad tail twitched nervously. Another scout passed a short sword from
hand to hand. His long tongue licked his lips in anticipation of any
upcoming combat.

The lead figure gave a sign to halt as his ears twitched trying to
pick up any signs of movement. He heard just the crackling of the
bodies that were still smoldering. Even the animals of the forest were
still silent.  He sniffed the air and found nothing aside from the
familiar stench of the dead and burning along with the scent of one
very large creature. Whatever had killed these Lutins was gone. Though
judging by the little flames that danced in the remains of some tents
it was not far away.

The leader, a fox morph gave the gestures for all clear but to still
use caution. Even despite this the young coyote morph still exclaimed,
"What in the nine-hells did this?! I know we were coming to check out
these buggers and I'm more than glad these Lutins are dead, but what
in bloody hell beat us to them?"

The fox morph, Misha, suddenly remembered that familiar scent and it
fit with the type of destruction before them. "A dragon," he uttered.

"A what!" exclaimed the female otter.

"A dragon. Not Cerulean, Saroth or the others but a new one." The
thought was very disconcerting- a dragon this close to the Keep. He
would definitely have to use the communication spell to contact Andwyn
once he found out more about this dragon.

"At least the damn thing is on our side," Derian, the coyote morph
said as he kicked a Lutin's corpse.

"Not necessarily. Although it it doesn't like Lutins, we have no idea
whose ally it is if any. Spread out so we can check the camp out.
Thomas is going to want to know every detail about how this dragon
operates in case it isn't friendly." Misha headed toward the east of
the camp. Derian went north and Caroline the otter morph went south.

Misha found many piles of ash. What bothered him were the molten piles
of metal and partially molten swords nearby these piles. These Lutins
were obviously incinerated but what dragon could melt a sword with its
breath? The more little facts about this particular dragon he deduced
the more concerned he became.

Caroline found a human footprint in the still-hot ashes of a Lutin's
corpse. A human had been through here. She found more of the same
prints heading southward. She gave a shrill birdcall. Both Derian and
Misha recognized the attention call and looked in the direction of
Caroline. She motioned with her hands for the two to come over.

Misha and Derian arrived to where Caroline had found the first
footprint. She pointed down toward the print, "There's more of these
headed south. It looks like our friend here passed through the camp
after it was destroyed and continued southward."

"The camp was only destroyed not more than half an hour ago. This man
may have seen what happened or heard something at least." Misha
sniffed the air. "We better follow our friend here and find out what
he is up to. His scent is somehow mixed with that same dragon scent.
Based on his pace we should easily catch up with him."

*****

A gentle breeze had picked up. The gentle rustling of the leaves made
a soothing sound that helped me distance myself from the images of the
bloodbath I had woke up in. It shifted and I suddenly had the feeling
I was being followed. This person or persons were far better than
G'rakk was at stealth.  I couldn't even hear or see the people
sneaking up on me. I just had a feeling that they were there. Although
I couldn't remember anything, the incident with G'rakk and the Lutin
encampment proved that I was quite capable of defending myself.
Remembering the camp I wondered what am I. I may have looked human but
for some reason I felt the only humans capable of such power were
mages. The idea of me being a mage seemed ludicrous to me.

Out of the corner of my eye I finally saw a blur of the forest colors.
Rather than something  ambushing me again I decided to face my
pursuer…no pursuers, I sensed three of them.

"I'm tired of being ambushed so whoever is following me just face me.
I just want to get to my destination and I don't intend to hurt
anyone," I called out toward where I had seen my pursuers' movement.
Soft rustling in the underbrush and a reply to my right rewarded my
call.

"It depends where your destination is and what you intend to do when
you get there."  To my astonished eyes a fox in chain mail carrying an
entirely too large axe stood on two legs before me. The fox stood not
more than four feet away from me. Although I knew he was there he
still managed to sneak up on me.

"Kill them, kill the Keepers" the voice cried in my head.

*****

The man was large, six feet high and well built. He was covered in the
remnants of a Lutin tent with the hilt of a sword with a red stone and
dragon-claw sticking out from underneath. His long scraggly red hair
fell down to the top of his shoulder blades. His eyes, although almost
unnaturally blue, did not convey any signs of malice. Even if he did
try anything I was close enough to cleave him in half with "Whisper"
before he could even blink and Caroline was ready to put an arrow in
his chest.

"I saw what was left of the Lutin camp back there.  I was hoping you
could fill me in on what happened there. ... You can stop staring, I
was once human like you. It's thanks to that damn wizard Nasoj who
cursed me and others like me." The man's eyes flared at the mention of
that name. So that damn wizard ruffled this person's feathers as
well..

"I don't know if I can help you there. I seem to be suffering from
some type of memory loss. I can only recall about a month back in my
life and bits and pieces here and there. I have these dreams and
daydreams but I don't know if they are what really happened in my
life. There are just bits and pieces of my memory of the camp; images
of Lutins burning and their screams. I awoke with blood on my hands
but I'm assuming its because I fell in their blood. The camp was
utterly destroyed when I awoke. My only memory previous to that is
scaring a bunch of Lutins away then getting voraciously hungry."

Misha was surprised to hear he woke up in the middle of the
destruction. If so, how was this man unscathed? "You say you know
nothing of what killed those Lutins."

 "No I don't KNOW what killed the Lutins. I only have dreams of some
beast burning them to death. I know you don't trust me. If I were in
your shoes…paws, I wouldn't trust me either. All I can offer is the
truth.  I don't want to harm anyone. I lost my memory and I can't
remember who I am and I have this damn voice in my head nagging me to
go to Metamor Keep. I just want to get there so I can try to get this
damn voice to stop and maybe find a place to stay where things won't
try killing me every time I look around."

 The man's exasperated eyes seemed truthful. "And you can call your
two compatriots out of the bushes. I'm not going to try killing you or
them." Caroline and Derian came out when I whistled to them. Caroline
still readied her bow on the man and Derian seemed almost too anxious
for him to attack. "Since we got off on a bad start let me try to do a
proper introduction. My name's…Tavon I think. Who would you be, good
fox?"

"I am Misha Brightleaf of the Long Scouts and this is Caroline Hardy
also of the Longs." He pointed to himself and the female otter. "And
Derian Stormfoot aiding us on patrol," he gestured toward the young
male coyote. "We herald from the Keep that you seek. There are still a
few things we need to talk about before we can proceed to Metamor Keep
however."

"I like what yuh did with those Lutins back there," Derian was a great
scout but sometimes he just didn't know when to keep his mouth shut.
Misha believed the man before them was the cause of the destruction
but he wanted to find out more about the man without hinting at it.
Tavon as he called himself was still more than what he seemed.

Tavon seemed to simultaneously cringe then slump at that comment.
Misha just glared at Derian and Derian got the hint. . Tavon didn't
say anything for awhile. He suddenly snapped to attention and stared
beyond Derian into the trees sniffing the air like he had caught a
scent. Misha sniffed the air, trying to catch the scent that had
alarmed Tavon. The  gentle breeze shifted and the all too familiar
stench of Lutin filled his nostrils. The lucky little monsters must
have been upwind for Misha not to have sensed their presence. Misha
thought his group must have walked right into the survivors of the
Lutin encampment and Tavon's loud mouth probably tipped them off to
his whereabouts. "Lutin's! Be on guard everyone!" Just as he shouted
the warning an arrow buried itself into Derian's side.  A few seconds
later Tavon was even closer to Misha grasping the head of and arrow in
his bleeding hand that would have hit the fox if it wasn't stopped.
Tavon dropped the arrow and ignored the bleeding gash in his left
hand. He took one quick stare at Misha to see if he was all right then
charged into the brush dropping the tent remnants. Misha noticed that
Tavon's eyes were now red instead of blue.

Misha and Caroline immediately went to protect the fallen Derian from
the three Lutins stepping out of the bushes. Caroline dropped the
first with an arrow and "Whisper" took care of the other two.  Misha
heard a Lutin scream "Die traitor!" before its own screams of death
erupted from its throat. Two Lutins came running out of the bushes
with looks of absolute terror upon their faces.  A grinning Tavon
ignoring the arrow sticking out of his right shoulder soon followed
them. He was carrying the sword with the dragon claw and ruby. As
Tavon came running up to the first Lutin the design on the flat of the
blade glowed orange and one of what Misha recognized as runic symbols
glowed a dull blue. Tavon brought the sword down upon the fleeing
Lutin and cleaved its skull clear in half burying the blade into the
right shoulder. Tavon kicked off the Lutin's corpse and took after the
second one. Caroline had another arrow knocked and fired upon the last
Lutin. Tavon deflected the arrow with the flat of his sword and closed
the gap to the Lutin. The creature turned around and looked like it
was begging for mercy. It cried out "Don't kill m…" as Tavon took the
handle in both of his hands and dropped the blade into the creature's
head. The Lutin was sliced clean in half as if it were a piece of
paper.
Tavon pulled the sword out of the ground and wiped the blood off on a
nearby tree and sheathed his sword. Tavon collapsed to his knee and
held his head. He shook it like he was shaking cobwebs out. When he
looked at Misha again his eyes were blue.

Misha was disturbed by what he saw. Tavon had been enraptured while
killing those last two Lutins. He even went out of his way to stop
Caroline's shot just so he could claim the kill. Tavon originally
seemed like a trustworthy soul that had seen too much killing. He had
even saved Misha from injury. When they encountered Lutins Tavon had
become bloodthirsty. Tavon seemed to have two sides. The shift in eye
color also supported Misha's theory. Tavon seemed friendly, but Misha
and the others would have to be cautious of this man.

Misha took a look over at his love. She finished applying one of
Pascal's potions and started wrapping a piece of cloth tightly around
Derian's chest to stop the bleeding. Her eyes left Derian and met
Misha's. She had the same grim look. The little monsters had
brutalized her so Misha knew she felt no remorse for their deaths, but
Tavon's behavior had concerned her too.

*****

I remember hearing the arrow whistling toward Misha after Derian had
been hit. I remember the sting as it sliced my hand open when I
intercepted it. I remember growing angry and the need to kill these
creatures. They served the man in my dreams, the man who tortured me.
I checked to see if the fox was all right. He would be a great
challenge after I finished off these loathsome vermin.  I dashed after
the creature that had fired the arrows. He knew I was coming and fired
an arrow at me. I didn't bother stopping it. He and the rest of his
kind would be long dead before I bled to death from the injury. I
reached the archer before he could knock another arrow. The little
beast seemed shocked by my speed. I rent the Lutin's windpipe from its
throat and let it sit there and gurgle in its own agony. Four more of
its kinfolk showed up. The nearest to me screamed, "Die traitor!" How
was I a traitor, that vile wizard had betrayed me. I grasped the blade
of the sword as the Lutin swung it at me. It buried itself in my palm,
scraping against the bone. It hurt like hell but the Lutin would be
feeling far more pain soon. I grabbed its left forearm and with all my
strength twisted it. It made a beautiful crunch and one of the bones
protruded from the skin. The Lutin screamed in pain. I shut him up by
jamming the jagged bone into its face killing him instantly. My good
hand became a scaled claw and I removed the second closest Lutin's
ugly face with it. My hand returned to normal and I unsheathed my
sword. The last two Lutins, seeing their slaughtered comrades turned
tail and ran, my sword still humming from being removed. I chased
after them in close pursuit. We broke into the open trees and I saw
that the otter and fox had dispatched three of the little monsters. I
took out  the first Lutin and kicked its useless carcass off of my
sword. I rushed to stop the otter from taking my last kill. I swatted
the fired arrow out of the way and heard it bury itself in the trunk
of a tree.  I channeled some power into my sword and cleaved the final
Lutin into two pieces. I wiped the scarlet stains from my blade on
nearby leaves and sheathed it. Then I was rocked by an incredible
headache.

I remembered it all like it was someone else, like I had seen in
through the eyes of another person.  I had brutally slaughtered these
Lutins and enjoyed watching their innards spill. Maybe I am the beast
in my dreams.

What scared me the most is the thought about killing Misha. He's
someone I'd like to call friend if presented the chance. I would not
listen to the voice. The Keepers will not die. I can't kill innocents,
not again.

I saw the grim line that was Misha's mouth as he and Caroline attended
to Derian's wound. He had seen me in my homicidal state. I thought
there was no way these people would help me now.

Misha surprised me. Caroline averted her eyes and Misha's muzzle
curved into a grin, "A little drafty, Tavon, don't ya think?" I looked
around me. I had forgotten I had no clothing on and that I had dropped
the tent. Misha walked over and handed me his cloak. I thanked him and
we both walked back over to Derian. I noticed the gash on my hand from
the arrow was now little more than a cut across my palm.

"We've taken care of the bleeding but he's not conscious yet. There
must have been something on those arrows. You should get that arrow
out of your shoulder before the same happens to you;  it may have the
same substance used on Derian here."

I ripped the arrow out of my shoulder. It left a jagged hole. The
arrow tip unfortunately had an oily substance still upon it. If it was
poison, I had been poisoned too. I showed the arrow to Misha and he
took it and wrapped it in a piece of cloth to preserve the oily
substance.

"We've got to get Derian back into the valley as soon as possible.
We're still a day's walk away I suggest we get at least an hours rest
each before we go nonstop straight to..Glen Avery so we won't burn
ourselves out. We still have an hour of daylight so let's use it
before we rest." Glen Avery sounded familiar to me. Misha motioned for
me to come pick up the stretcher they had assembled. "Caroline,
provide cover for us." She nodded and knocked an arrow. On "up" I
hoisted the unconscious coyote and we headed toward the keep.

We stopped at sundown and Caroline was the first to rest. Misha sat on
a stone across from where I was sitting on the ground I saw the
outline of his features in the darkness. He had the head of his giant
axe sitting on the ground as he leaned into its handle.

I started the conversation, "So what is Metamor Keep like. I'm
probably going to be spending a while there while I regain my memory."

"Metamor keep is a grand place. Everyone chips in to make it stay that
way. We have some of the finest magicians and wizards in all the land.
I'm sure they could help you find your lost memories. But I have to
warn you of the price of staying there. You see although Metamor is a
place right at the peak of great discoveries and home to many great
artists, it caries a Curse. Anyone who stays there for more than a
couple of weeks gets affected by the curse and gets transformed."

I wasn't bothered about being turned into some half animal. I barely
knew who I was anyway. "I wouldn't mind being a fox or an otter."

"You don't understand the curse, you can also be changed into little
more than a child or into the opposite sex." He warned.

I pondered that thought for a moment and listened to the chirping
crickets. I thought about my current circumstances then replied. "As
long as I have a welcoming home. I don't know if I'll ever remember
who I am. Besides I need to find out why there is a voice in my head
telling me to go to Metamor Keep. I don't want it driving me any more
insane than it already has." Misha's dark eyes looked distant as he
reflected upon my last comment.

"I remember what I did to those Lutins. I know you noticed it too." He
just nodded at this. "Some of my dreams are nightmares, nightmares
where I'm a flying monster reveling in the smell of charred flesh and
screams of the dying. I wasn't a beast when I killed those Lutins back
there but I sure felt like that monster. It was like it was me but
someone else."

Misha paused for a second looked away toward Caroline. I guess it was
to make sure she wasn't hearing our current train of conversation.
"The Lutin camp where you woke up was destroyed by a dragon, nothing
was left standing. Somehow you escaped without a scratch on your body.
You also carry the scent of that dragon so at first I thought somehow
its scent had rubbed off on you. But, even now you still carry that
crossed scent. It's hard to believe but I think your nightmares are
correct."

*****

Tavon looked kind of dejected at this remark. "You don't like killing
in such a manner do you?"

"No I don't; I don't like being a murderer. I just wish I could
control it. It is almost as if something else is controlling me." The
blue eyes showed a sadness and guilt at finding out the truth.

"Like I said earlier, before I take you to Metamor I need to talk to
you more. I know you have been hiding some of the truth from us. I can
hear it in the way you speak and your eyes are like most dragons, they
reflect every thought and emotion. You are still a stranger to us, so
I need to find out as much as possible. If we bring you back, the Keep
needs to be prepared for your other sides as well if they manifest
again. So, Tavon please tell me who are you really and why do you want
to get to Metamor so badly?"

The somber dragon man replied, " The name Tavon is what the dark man,
Nasoj in my dreams called me.  I don't remember my real name or barely
anything about my past. I do recall one individual, Brian Felix who
seemed to be a friend of mine. I see a conversation we are having
about cavalry tactics and I jest that I will beat him in the fourth up
in coming tourney because I have beat him in the last three. This is
all I can remember about my past up until the moment I woke up."

"Woke up, you mean when you woke up in the destroyed camp?"

"No, I can remember about a month before that. I was suddenly awake
and walking and clothed in some dark robes, but the robes I wore were
bloody as if they had been taken off someone's body. A voice in my
head forced me to continue toward Metamor Keep. It sounded a lot like
Nasoj, except it sounded like it had no soul behind it like it was a
message that kept repeating itself. A bunch of creatures seemed afraid
of me for some reason, even the giants."

"I wouldn't be surprised seeing what you did to the Lutin camp." Tavon
didn't seem quite as somber this time Misha had mentioned it.

"Perhaps it's because I destroyed another of their groups before I can
remember. That would also explain why a troll named G'rakk tried to
carve me up with a giant axe and called me a traitor. He also had
called me a Nasoj pet for some reason. I killed the troll and used my
sword but this time it seemed like I was just defending myself not
enjoying the troll's death."

"That would explain why the Lutin also called you a traitor." He
nodded at this. "It seems you don't like Nasoj very much. You get an
angry glare every time I mention that name. You also seem to kill his
troops quite readily. Now tell me why do you personally hate Nasoj and
tell me all that you know about this man."

Tavon tremored a little in anger and the venomous glare in his eyes
returned. They also seemed to tinge red a bit. "I have nightmares
about this Nasoj. He is tall and thin with dark hair. He wears the
blackest of robes and smiles a lot, that kind of smile where you know
he is going to enjoy hearing your screams. I see him in front of me as
I'm pinned down by restraints. He says something in a language I can't
understand and every ounce of my being feels like it is being ripped
apart and rearranged. I black out from the pain. I can now remember
that he had done this numerous times over a long period of time. "
Tavon's eyes were definitely tinged red now. "I destroy his troops
because they serve that vile wizard. I want to head right back to him
and rend every limb from his body for what he did but this damn voice
in my head forces me toward Metamor Keep. After I visit the Keep and
get the voice to stop I'll gladly head back north and hasten our
reunion.".

Misha's eyes narrowed, "What exactly do you propose to do at the Keep
that will get the voice to stop?"

Tavon's eyes started to lose the red tinge and he responded, "I hope
your mage's can either stop the voice or stop me if I try to fulfill
what the voice wants me to do."

Misha's hackles rose up, "What exactly does this voice want you to do?"

"To kill the Keepers." Tavon's eyes had completely shifted back to
blue and he looked broken at mentioning this to me.

Misha's agitation subsided a bit. Tavon could have followed what this
voice had told him to do and tried to kill them. Instead he had
amazingly stopped an arrow with his own hands saving Misha. However,
Tavon still presented a danger to the Keep.

*****

 I noticed that Misha had seemed to relax a little at mentioning this.
He still seemed agitated though. "You know you could be killed for
what you just mentioned to me."

"I can't live out here forever being hunted by Nasoj. I need you to
trust me so that I'll have a place to stay."

"I think the mages at Metamor will be able to help you, but you must
understand that how they and the Duke might treat you. You must
realize that even if all of them trusted you, you still have whatever
Nasoj did to you that makes you a threat to all of the Keep's safety."
 I gave Misha an affirmative nod

Misha's serious tone shifted to one more of interest. "Not only does
your power pose a danger but that sword you carry makes you even more
dangerous. Where did you get such a weapon?"

"I wish I knew Misha. I've had it ever since I awoke. It has never
left me even when I change. All of a sudden it is just there, even if
I lose it. It's like it is attached to me and me only. That axe you
carry doesn't look very normal either"

"It's not." Misha pulls the black axe out in front of him. "Like your
sword my axe belongs to me. I got mine from my grandfather. It's
called 'Whisper' because it makes barely a sound as it slashes through
the air."

"The funny thing is that right now I wouldn't be able to tell you how
to even use this sword."

"Oh really? You used the sword quite well to carve up those Lutins."
Misha conveyed an air of disbelief.

"I seem only to remember how to use it when I'm threatened like when a
troll attacked me."

Misha still didn't believe me. "I don't know what to tell you. My mind
is scrambled because of Nasoj. All I know is that at some point in my
life I learned to use this sword. Now the memory on how to do so comes
and goes. This is what I know whether or not you believe me." Misha
seemed annoyed when I had repeatedly told him that I honestly couldn't
remember.

*****

Caroline stirred from her sleep after not more than half an hour. She
had a very fitful sleep worrying about Derian and frightened by what
she had seen in Tavon's deep red eyes. That image from her dreams
haunted her even into her wakefulness. She woke just in time to hear
Misha mention carving Lutins. Tavon tried using the excuse of amnesia
again. Those red eyes frightened Caroline. All of a sudden Tavon had
those red eyes again and was staring straight at Misha. Tavon smiled
that wicked grin that had shown while chasing the Lutins. "The voice
told me to kill the Keepers so now I'm going to follow its
suggestion." Tavon pulled out his sword and cried "Your death is upon
you Misha Brightleaf, I'll get a hefty reward for bringing Nasoj back
your hide!" as he lunged at Misha. Tavon moved so fast Misha didn't
have time to react. Two of the symbols on the sword glowed and Tavon
dismembered the hands that clutched Whisper. The axe thumped to the
ground. Before Misha could scream Tavon impaled him through the chest
and her lover slumped to the ground all the life fading from his eyes.

Tavon turned toward Caroline grinning. "You know I'm starting to get a
little hungry." His teeth became the sharpened daggers of a dragon.
Caroline screamed as the dragon man ran toward her.

*****

Misha and Tavon turned to look as Caroline suddenly jumped off her
bedroll. She stood with her eyes looking around terrified. She seemed
to calm down when she realized she must have been dreaming.

She calmed down when she saw that Tavon's eyes were now blue. Misha
saw her quickly glance at Tavon.  "Tavon, I think you should take your
turn to rest." Tavon understood that Misha wanted to talk to her in
private. Misha and Caroline were silent until Misha noticed the first
signs of slumber.

"What's wrong Caroline?" Misha suspected that Tavon was at the root of it.
"It's Tavon, Misha. I don't trust him. I had a nightmare where he
worked for Nasoj, killed you and then came for me."

Misha paused for a second contemplated what she said. He walked over
to where she was standing and put his arms around her to comfort her.
"I don't fully trust him either, but it seems there is a calmer side
of him, a part that would make a great addition to the Keep. If the
mages of Metamor can help that poor soul, he would be a great asset to
us all. However, if he is lying to us, he presents one of the greatest
dangers the Keep has faced in a long time. Based on what I've seen and
what he said to me while you were asleep, I think he's an innocent man
subjected to the evil experiments of that horrid wizard."

"What did he say or do that makes you trust him even a little bit?"

"First of all he saved my life, Caroline."

Caroline was quick to retort. "You saw the look he gave you. He looked
at you like he was toying with the idea of killing you now or later."

Caroline was adamantly against Tavon for some reason. Misha tried to
think why his love would behave in such a way. Usually she would trust
Misha's instincts, for they were rarely ever wrong, however his time
she didn't. "I know. That is why I'm being cautious about what I say
to him. Even if he does pose a problem, the best way for us to deal
with him is to bring him back to the Keep. You saw what he did to
those Lutins. The sword he carries is a runic weapon. What he showed
us was only a portion of what that weapon can do. Also remember the
dragon that destroyed the camp?"

"Yes. It was utterly obliterated. Don't we also have to contact the
Keep about this dragon?"

"We do, but I am completely certain that Tavon there is the dragon
that destroyed that camp. He admitted to dreams of being a monster and
killing unmercifully. He also smells exactly like that dragon."

"All the more reason not to bring him back to the Keep. Imagine how
many people he could hurt."

"We have some of the most powerful mages and fighters all assembled
together at the Keep. Even if he is a threat, it is best that we bring
him there once the forces of Metamor are concentrated so that he can
be handled. It's not that I doubt our own capabilities, but we have an
injured member of our team that needs medical treatment soon and
there's a lot more to Tavon than what he's said or shown."

Caroline sat silently. Misha knew that something had to bother her so
greatly or make her so afraid that she would disregard a fellow
injured Keeper. "Caroline, why are you so against bringing Tavon to
the Keep? I need someone to help me carry Derian and someone to act as
a guard. I don't trust Tavon enough to do the latter. I need your
skills at the bow so that we can bring Derian back. Why are you
ignoring this?"

"Misha, I'm not ignoring Derian. I've seen what Tavon can do and I've
pretty much figured out that he was a dragon after all. The reason why
I don't think we should bring him to Metamor is because of this
terrible feeling at the back of my head. It's telling me that no
matter how nice Tavon may appear to be, he is extremely dangerous. I
also get the feeling that he wants to attack Metamor Keep. I know your
feelings have almost never been wrong in the past about people, Misha,
but mine haven't either."

Misha sat quietly and grabbed Caroline's paw gently. "I'll contact the
Keep, Caroline. I'll see what Andwyn has to say about Tavon. Ok? I'll
make sure he understands about your feeling about Tavon as well.  I'm
positive he'll contact Jessica or one of the other mages and they'll
find a way to protect the Keep." Derian started to spasm on his gurney
ten feet away. Both Misha and Caroline darted past the slumbering man
to the wounded scout. Derian was panting heavily and making a moaning
sound as his body shook from the poison.

"Misha, I think you should contact the Keep now. I'll see to Derian
while you do." Caroline grabbed the jar from her pack that contained
the anti-poison potion . She undid the bandages on Derian and applied
some more of the potion to the arrow wound. It wouldn't remove all the
poison from the wound but at least it might keep Derian alive until
they got him to Glen Avery.

"Alright, Love. But as soon as I'm done we are going to have to get
Derian back to Glen Avery as soon as possible. Thank the great one
that I brought some of Pascal's potion to help keep me awake." Misha,
although not as magically talented as his siblings, could still
conjure some spells. He said the incantation and activated the
communication spell.
Misha now stood in a conference room that looked like it was somewhere
in the Keep. A irritated bat appeared in the room shortly after.

"Misha, what is the emergency?" Andwyn's mind image of himself
twitched its ears toward a wall of the room

Misha explained the situation. He told every detail about Tavon that
he knew. He presented what he thought about the situation and also how
Caroline felt. Andwyn thanked Misha for telling him about Caroline's
instincts and said Jessica or one of the other mages would be
consulted to determine what it would take handle a creature such as
Tavon and promised that nothing would be spared.

They started discussing Tavon's reaction to the poison when Misha had
the feeling that he was being watched. He glanced about theconjured
conference room and toward the spot Andwyn's ears had pointed. Some of
the stone started to take on the wavy effect like water. Misha
concentrated harder on this and the image of man covered in green
robes with a wrapped face appeared in front of the wall. The figure
realized that he had been detected and turned around toward the wall.
He touched the wall and a door appeared out of the stone. He stepped
through the door and the door suddenly disappeared as it closed.

"Get Derian medical attention and bring back Tavon as soon as
possible! I will get someone to meet you at the Giant's Dike and
escort you. I need to go wake up some people so we can find out
exactly who that eavesdropper was! Be on your guard, Misha." Andwyn
suddenly faded out and Misha snapped back to reality.

Misha approached Caroline. "How is he doing?" Derian was still panting
heavily and unconscious. "I applied some of the anti-poison Pascal
gave us but it still hasn't taken effect yet."

"We need to get to Metamor as soon as possible anyway." Caroline
looked concerned. "Why…what did Andwyn say?"

"He agrees that Tavon should come back to the Keep. Because of your
instincts their going to ward the hell out of Tavon and Jessica is
probably going to scan him down to the very molecules of his being.
We'll be meeting an escort at the Giant's Dike to help with Tavon and
Derian." Caroline looked relieved at Misha's embellishment, although
Misha believed that the Keepers would do that and then some. "But
someone unknown eavesdropped on our conversation then left. I need to
wake Tavon now and we need to be on the highest alert as we leave."
Misha finished his statement in sign language to emphasize that point.
Misha split Pascal's caffinated potion with Caroline since she did not
sleep well and Misha wasn't going to. Caroline prepped Derian for the
long hike and Misha walked back to the slumbering stranger.

Misha prodded Tavon with the head of Whisper and a clawed hand
collided with the axe. Misha had guessed right that waking Tavon was
dangerous.

*****

I was haunted by more nightmares of torture and that evil grin. The
thin finger of the dark man prodded and taunted me. I swung at him
trying to rip the evil grin from his face. I was startled when my hand
collided with something hard. I awoke suddenly and saw Misha standing
over me with his axe.

"I'm sorry to wake you early but Derian has gotten worse and needs
medical attention soon or he will die. Nasoj's forces will no doubt be
hunting us as well."

The dark feelings stared to return. "I'll rip them to shreds if they
impede us." Misha looked dissatisfied. "No, I need you to help me with
the stretcher. Caroline will take guard and no offense but I trust her
skills. Now hurry up and get to the stretcher." A feeling told me to
kill Misha for that comment, but rational thoughts  won and I
approached the stretcher. "Whenever I do this it means pick the
stretcher up. When I do this it means put the stretcher down. None of
us will talk until we reach the Keep." Misha gave the sign and we
raised the stretcher in unison. We started our daylong hike to Metamor
Valley.

Nothing more attacked us while we were in the Giantsdowns. I found the
end of ceaselessly being hunted gratifying yet still disturbing. Why
had the Lutin's and Giants suddenly stopped following me? We stopped
by an earthen enbankment with sentry posts. I think I remember this
place being called the Giant's Pike or something like that. "Welcome
to the Giant's Dike. We'll stop and rest here." Misha had contradicted
his last statement to me. "Why are we stopping?" Misha seemed very
agitated for some reason. Maybe Derian's worsening condition was
getting to him. Caroline immediately went over to Derian, removed the
bandages, and applied more of the potion. Derian's twitching started
to calm down a bit.
	
*****

Misha glanced at the apparently empty sentry positions. He scanned the
southern horizon looking for any sign of the escort that should have
been here by now. It was nowhere in sight. "We were supposed to meet
up with an escort from the Keep that should have been here by now. And
there were at least a couple of sentries here. Tavon, check over there
and try finding anything. Use your senses to see if you find out what
happened to the sentry or escort." Tavon walked over to the middle
part of the Dike where Misha pointed. Misha walked toward the far left
side. The breeze shifted bringing the scent of the sentry toward him.
He found the slumbering soldier unharmed not too far from the Dike.
Tavon brought the slumbering guard he found toward Misha and placed
him gently upon the ground. "We need to wake them and find out what
happened." Almost as if Misha's words were a command the sentries
started to stir. The one Misha had found, an AR of about 14 with a
slightly stocky frame, spoke as soon as he saw Misha. "He said to tell
you that he is not sent by Nasoj. He only wishes to learn about
someone very dear to him and has no ill intentions toward you or any
Metamorian."

"Who told you this?" Misha was curious to find out who had left a
message for him. He had an idea who, though.

"I don't know who he was, sir. He did tell me to tell the fox this
message and you were the first fox I saw."

"What was he wearing; what did he look like?"

"I couldn't see his face. It was all wrapped up with a green cloth. He
had green billowing robes with some kind of symbol emblazoned on the
chest." Ah ha, just as he thought. The eavesdropper had passed through
here into the lands of Metamor Keep. "Thank you for telling me this
ah…"

"Steven Atkins, sir. I am one of the carpenters at the Keep although I
am quite capable with the spear. I'm just fulfilling my obligations to
help keep Metamor safe"

"Thank you, Steven." Misha addressed Steven and the other sentry, a
tomcat morph who still seemed a little groggy from the sleep spell
that had been put upon them. "Did you see a group of guards from the
Keep at any time during today?" Steven shook his head left to right
and the other sentry wiped the remnants of sleep from his eyes. "No,
it's only been Steve, me and the occasional squirrel aside from that
man in green."
The voice of Caroline cried out from beside Derian, "Misha, Derian has
started seizing! We need to leave as soon as I get him under control!"

"We'll be fine now that we're awake. You guys get your sick friend
some help and be sure to let the Keep know about that magician." Misha
nodded to Steve and started back to the stretcher with a Tavon who had
been silent throughout the ordeal.

"The description of that man seems familiar somehow. Maybe he's
someone from my past." Tavon seemed to daze off a bit like he was
trying to remember something.

 "Maybe you're the person that is dear to him, Tavon."

 "Maybe…" Tavon trailed off somewhere in his memory looking for
something and obviously finding failure. Tavon's countenance sunk into
that frustrated, forlorned look he got whenever he couldn't remember
something.

 "Cheer up, Tavon. The Keeps mages are some of the best. I'm sure some
of them can help you get your memory back. Tavon smiled a little.
Caroline had secured Derian who thankfully had ceased spasming. Tavon
and I took our previous positions on the stretcher and I gave the hand
gesture for silence then the one to lift. I wanted to be fully aware
of what was happening. Although the man in green promised no malice,
he was yet another unknown who had already cast a spell on Metamorian
troops and entered the Keeps land. We set out double-time for Glen
Avery.

*****

Glen Avery, the name seemed so familiar to me. My mind raced trying to
remember where I heard that name. My mind supplied the answer but left
me with even more questions. I got a picture of a very small town in
the middle of summer. The giant sentinel-like redwood trees provided a
great shade from the heat of the early afternoon sun. The piney aroma
of the trees gave a fresh clean feel to the town. The smell of utterly
irresistible blueberry pie almost overpowered the smell of the forest
and made my mouth water. I knew I had to just have some. The memory
faded and picked up as I was leaving this town. It was the next day
and as I was leaving the small, cozy town, I wished I could stay. I
took one look back over my shoulder at the smoke rising from a few
chimneys in the newly risen sunlight and wished I could have been
visiting the fabled Metamor Keep, but instead I was needed back in my
homeland because it was under attack. I marched northward and the
memory faded again. I was a little surprised that I had been through
the area before, but I had bypassed Metamor. Why did I have a feeling
that I had been to Metamor then? And where exactly was this homeland
that I was going to protect?

I was startled when I realized how much time had elapsed while my mind
wandered elsewhere. The forest surrounding us was starting to fill up
with the magnificent trees from my daydream. We must have been getting
closer to this Glen Avery. We came upon two trees that stood on either
side of the road like guardians to another realm. The silent twins
were nearly double the size of the other nearby redwoods.  An image of
armed men standing near these trees checking the traffic flooded my
mind. The "Twins" as these arboreal watchtowers were called stood as
the northernmost boundary of the place we were seeking. I looked all
around to see if I could spot the many archers that manned these two
outposts. Just like in my memory, my eyes couldn't detect them, but
they couldn't escape my nose. However, some of the scents that carried
down this time were mixed with those of animals. Glen Avery must have
been affected by the same spell as Metamor Keep itself. The trunks of
the "Twins" didn't resemble the roughened surfaces of my past. They
were scarred as if battle had passed through this area years in the
past.

A masked figure in armor stepped out of the solid trunk of the left
most tree holding up a furry paw. "What business have you in these
lands?" The raccoon eyed the poisoned form of Derian in the stretcher.

"I am Misha Brightleaf of the Long Scouts. My compatriots need to see
a healer now! A Lutin's poisoned arrows hit both the man in the
stretcher and the redheaded gentleman. Derian here has been near-death
for over a day now." The soldier eyed me funny. "They both were hit by
the same poison, Derian just seems to have gotten ill quicker."

The raccoon cried toward the tree he egressed," Sven, take over my
post." A "yessir" erupted from the small frame of some kind of feline
that quickly descended from above.

"Follow me." The raccoon darted toward the town proper. I was
expecting the cozy village with smoke gently rising from the
smokestacks. The air still smelled of evergreen tinged with the aroma
of a very familiar raspberry pie. What met my eyes was not the Glen
Avery I remembered. A few of the dwellings were still intact, but the
rest were just worn stones in the ground. The Avery I remembered must
have been destroyed.

My thoughts escaped my lips "Where is Glen Avery?"  Caroline shot me a
quizzical look. "It's right in front of you.  Up in the trees,
underground and in the hillside."

"But where are all the buildings? What happened here?"  How long had
it been since I had been to here?

"Eight years ago Nasoj leveled the original town before he attacked
Metamor. Since then, the townsfolk rebuilt it in the trees and
underground where it would be safer if it were ever attacked again."
Caroline glared at me with mistrust. The guilt of the killer that I
was returned for a brief time.

If my memory of the Glen was eight years old, how long ago did my
other memories take place? Were they more recent or were they older?
Exactly how old was I?  A lot of time had passed since the last time I
was here at the Glen. It was not the place I remembered. It was
leaving more questions than answering them…. Nasoj would pay for all
the suffering and destruction!

*****

"But where are all the buildings? What happened here?" Tavon must have
visited Glen Avery before Nasoj destroyed it. He seemed confused by
the sights of the rebuilt town.  Misha would have to see if anyone
remembered the red-haired warrior from around that time. Like
clockwork the red tinge had returned to replace the look of confusion
with hate. Misha hoped he was right that the hatred was directed
toward Nasoj.

The raccoon sergeant led us to the base of an ancient oak tree with a
trunk nearly as thick as the redwoods around it. The tree was an odd
sight amongst the evergreens. I had never visited this healer before
but I was well aware of her. Her unique combinations of healing
potions, alchemy and magic made her one of the more well-known if not
unique healers in Glen Avery. Felicia Aurach should be able to help
Derian. Our escort pounded on the door. "Felicia! It's an emergency.
We have two poison victims; one is in serious condition." A black swan
with dexterous human-like hands and an exquisite blue gown opened the
door. "Bring them in Rascal. Place the coyote over there on that cot."
Tavon and I placed Derian's prone form down gently on the cot. Thank
the Maker that he had stopped spasming since the last application of
the anti-poison. Derian was still shallowly panting, however. "I need
to know exactly what happened and what you did to treat the wound."
Caroline answered first. "A Lutin hit Derian in the stomach with an
arrow tipped with some kind of poison. He immediately fell unconscious
and has been convulsing and spasming regularly from the poison. I
washed the wound as best I could, applied some of this all purpose
anti-poison and wrapped the wound. I've repeated this process at least
eight times after that." Caroline pulled out the jar that held the
little remaining potion. Felicia took the jar, looked inside, sniffed
the mixture, and dipped a finger in and tasted it. "Exactly how long
has he been like this? " "Since yesterday afternoon." Felecia took on
a look of shock. "We were attacked while on patrol deep in the Giant's
Downs. The anti-poison has kept him alive this far, but the
convulsions have gotten worse every time. We moved as quickly as we
could."

Felecia was silent contemplating what she had been told. Misha hoped
she had the answer. He had never seen a poison like this before.
"Hmm…I need to get a clearer look." Felecia grabbed a small metallic
rod. She twisted it them whispered something. She took the pen-like
object and drew an invisible circle pattern on Derian's stomach and
the bandages. She twisted the rod again and Derian's fur and the
bandages turned transparent. All the veins in Derian's stomach were
bulging and had turned a blackish color. It looked very serious.
Felecia's semi-malleable beak turned into a grimace. "This is not
good." She put her hand on the bandages and closed her eyes. After a
brief moment she opened them again. "Just as I thought. This poison is
Giant Arach venom mixed with Hycopathos' Bane to speed up the
process." Misha had never heard of a Giant Arach and had always
thought that Hycopathos' Bane was an ingredient used to make a very
bitter type of ale.

"What can be done to cure him?"  Caroline queried.

"I can try a couple of things but I can't guarantee they will save
him. I would really need more Arach venom to create an anti-venom to
cure him but even then the damage done to his system may be
irreversible. Giant Arach venom is resistant to healing magic so my
healing magic is useless. I'm just surprised a Lutin used it. It is a
very powerful hard to come by poison used to take down large beasts
and was used by the Krenek Dragonslayers many years ago. It has also
been used in a couple of assassinations as well." If this was the
case, Tavon was that Lutin's most likely target.

"I have an arrow that may have the poison on it. The poison is black
and oily correct?" Misha pulled the wrapped arrow out from his pack
and handed it to Felecia. She put the metal rod down, unwrapped the
arrow and inspected it in the cloth.

"Yes it is…Are you absolutely sure this had a black oily substance on it?

Tavon answered, "Yes, that is the arrow which hit me in the shoulder
here. Tavon moved the top of the cloak to reveal the wound. The veins
around the wound were black but not bulging and only extended a few
inches outward. The wound itself was still a deep hole but was only
half the size it originally was. Felecia showed us the arrow and
cloth. "I only ask because there is only dried blood on the arrow and
cloth. The poison has completely vanished."

"How is that possible? I saw Tavon get hit and pull out the arrow
myself. If you look at the wound it has the same black lines around
it." Misha motioned toward Tavon's exposed injury.

Felecia placed her hand upon the poisoned wound. "Yes, but your friend
here is, other than a mild fever, quite conscious. Also Tavon, when
exactly did you get injured?" Ms. Aurach looked into Tavon's almost
inhuman eyes.

"I got hit after Derian did, when I was going to kill the perpetrator.
Why, what is wrong with me?"

"There is nothing wrong with you." Felecia started to smile a little
bit while talking to Tavon. "Your body is somehow fighting off Arach
venom. If you compare it to Derian's injury yours is much smaller. In
fact you have done more healing in one day than many do in a week."
Felecia held up the arrow. "All that's left on here is your blood. It
wiped out the Arach poison." She grasped Tavon's left hand gently. "We
don't have any Arach venom but we may have something even better."
Felecia's voice had continued to soften. Misha recognized the effects
of the spell when he started getting a little drowsy. In a flash the
arrow in Felecia's right hand reopened the healing gash in Tavon's
palm. Tavon's eyes shifted entirely to red. Misha gasped when he saw
this, but Felecia didn't even see this grave sign of danger. She just
sat the arrow down and took Tavon's bleeding hand and let it drip into
an earthenware pot on the nearby table. She started to hum a tune, an
old one that mothers sometimes sing to their children to put them to
sleep. Tavon's eyes seemed to shift back to blue as he calmed down.
After a few drops fell into the pottery she led the hypnotized Tavon
over to a basin and washed and wrapped his injured hand.

Tavon started to come out of his trance. "Why did you not ask me if I
would give you the blood or not?" Tavon asked but with no hint of
anger in his voice "I don't have time to argue if you were to say no.
I needed the anti-toxins within your blood to make a potion to cure
Derian. You are in no danger of dying; he IS." She stated as she took
the pot with the blood droplets and added some other powdered
ingredients and water. She whispered an incantation and the potion
started to steam. She took another metallic rod and began to stir the
potion. She removed the rod and dipped her fingers into the now
paste-like substance and applied some to the wound on Derian's
abdomen. Within a few minutes the raspy panting stopped.

"He's no longer suffering from the effects of the poison.
Unfortunately this toxin attacks the mind and heart simultaneously and
with the prolonged exposure he had to it, I don't know if he will ever
wake out of this sleep-like state. Hopefully some of your healing
capabilities, Tavon, will carry over in this potion." Misha noticed
Felecia tried to instill a little more optimism into her words,
probably to raise spirits which with Caroline's cold mistrust of Tavon
and my urges to keep Tavon away from harming others were not that high
to begin with.  "I recommend that Derian stay here with until he fully
heals."

Misha was getting prepared to leave. His teammate, Derian was being
taken care of by Ms. Aurach. And Tavon was going to be fine. Thinking
about Tavon, Misha realized that Tavon was capable of shifting from
influences other than Nasoj. If Tavon were to shift or transform that
much in Glen Avery, many lives would be lost. "Thank you, Felecia for
helping Derian. His full name is Derian Stormfoot in case anybody asks
or needs to know. We have some very urgent matters that must be
brought to the attention of Duke Thomas back at Metamor so I am very
sorry we must run this soon." "That is alright, I understand the
urgency of you Longs' job. I patch you guys up regularly around here."
Misha did not let the hurt of that statement show.

Misha turned to address his beloved and acknowledge her concerns.
"Caroline, I'm ok if you would like to stay and see how your charge
fairs."

*****

Stay here with Derian!? And let you go alone to the keep with that
monster. There is no way I am letting you go alone with him. I don't
want to lose you. Caroline would not let Misha face Tavon's dark side
alone. "No, Misha I'd rather be with you right now. Felecia is an
extraordinary healer by reputation and by what my eyes have seen here
today." Felecia smiled at the praise. "There is nothing more that my
field medic training can do now that Felecia can't do ten times better
to take care of Derian."

"Nonsense, dear Caroline. If it weren't for your talents Derian would
have died within the hour after being hit. You kept him alive so far."

"It was really Pascal's potion  that did the trick…"

"No, no…it takes a certain talent to use these potions properly. If
you hadn't spaced the dosages out just right you could have ran out of
potion along time ago. Besides, too much of that stuff at once is
almost as dangerous as the Arach venom itself. You have some talent my
friend. Also speaking of that reclusive pincushion, tell her she
better write sometime. I haven't heard from her in ages and I'm dying
to know what is in that anti-poison potion as well as that one that
kept you and your fox awake last evening."

Caroline was confused how this person would know that information. "How…"

"Relax, Caroline. I am no mind reader. I 'm just a very observant
person that knows people. Also I cheat a little with my healing magic.
I listened to your heart rates and I can see the affects of sleep
deprivation all over you two. I also was one of the unlucky guinea
pigs when she firsttried making that potion." Caroline chuckled at
this remark.

Caroline noticed the splattered bloodstains and contents of the potion
on Felecia's dress. "Felecia, your dress is ruined now. Why would you
wear such a gorgeous thing when treating patients?"

"It's not ruined, Caroline" Felecia whispered a phrase again and
snapped her fingers. The stains just seemed to fall right off the
gown. "This cloth is another of that crazy porcupine's inventions. It
saves a lot of time on cleaning. You should ask her to make you some
when you get back. I can just imagine how dirty that ruffian of a fox
you have could get."

Both Caroline and Tavon guffawed at the mock-abashed look that Misha
wore upon his face.

"You should have got some before your trip, Mr. Clean" Tavon commented
while holding the edge of Misha 's mud-caked shirt sticking out from
under the ringmail. Misha shot a mock look of anger at Tavon. "Hey,
that was for the drafty comment."

Caroline laughed and thought, Oh great, another six-year old adult
running around the Keep. Caroline for the time being forgot the
dangerous side of Tavon and got to see his real personality.

*****

Misha was glad that he got to see Caroline smile again. He hadn't seen
that gleam of radiance since they first encountered Tavon. He also was
contemplating his revenge for the redhead once they fixed his problem
with his darker side. Misha bid farewell to Felecia and he, Caroline
and Tavon started to cross town to head toward the Keep. Not more then
ten steps outside of the oak tree, a very familiar rodent came along.
His four-foot stature with light brown fur and a contagious smile hid
the power that he truly possessed.

"Greetings Misha and Caroline! I had received word that you were in
town with one of your injured comrades. I was about to stop by and see
you at Felecia's Oak but I guess you were in a bit of a rush. How is
he doing?"

"He is fairing better now, but due to the nature of his injury he may
not make it. His name is Derian Stormfoot. He was one of the regular
scouts at the Keep. Unfortunately, Charles, we are in a bit of a rush.
There are urgent matters concerning our friend here back at Metamor. "

"Well at least let me learn your friend's name and I'll accompany you
to the edge of town."

"That would be fine. Charles Mathias, I'd like you to meet Tavon. We
encountered him while on patrol in the Giant's Downs. He can't
remember much about his past but when we encountered trouble he sure
knew how to fight. He even saved my life. We are taking him to the
Keep to see if someone can help him with his memory and the after
affects of what Nasoj did to him."

"I'm pleased to meet you Charles Mathias." Tavon and Charles embraced
hands in a handshake. Charles countenance still held a smile, but
Misha could tell when his friend was hiding behind a mask. Tavon on
the other hand did scowl a bit.

"Now that I remember, I needed to pick up groceries that Kimberley
needs to make dinner. I'm sorry Misha I totally forgot about it. I'll
get to see you again sometime soon. It was a pleasure seeing you
again, Caroline. You're still as beautiful as ever. It was a pleasure
meeting you as well Tavon. Good bye" Misha could see the strain that
Charles used to keep face. Charles made a few hand gestures while
biding farewell and then he was off toward the shops of Glen Avery.
Misha tried to see if Tavon had understood the message behind those
gestures. It didn't appear so. Misha knew now what Tavon had been
sometime in the past. He also knew a certain individual at the Keep
that would be very interested to know about this.

*****

I don't know why a sudden feeling of hatred washed over me when I
clasped hands with Charles Mathias. He was not familiar to me at all
yet I hated him. The strained smile upon his face revealed the feeling
was mutual. But why? I had a feeling that I didn't want to ask others
around me to help explain this, as if this feeling was supposed to be
some kind of secret. I went with the feeling for now. It didn't feel
at all like Nasoj so I thought I could trust it.

After my encounter with Charles Mathias we left Glen Avery in silence.
I wanted to stop and grab a pie  to see if it would help me remember,
but Misha prodded me along and the ice had returned to Caroline's
stare. I saw the tavern embedded in a hill-side where I remembered
getting some of the best ale in my life. I would definitely have to
return to Glen Avery sometime in the near future, even if Charles
Mathias was there. The last bits of Glen Avery I saw were similar to
the "Twins" of the north but trees of varying size and not quite their
girth were used  as the outposts instead. The archers here were fewer
but they still didn't escape my keen sense of smell. I felt excited.

We were on the last leg of our journey. The feeling directing me to
the Keep was very intense, so I knew we were close. I managed to get
Misha to start on some general conversation about what I would find
when I got to the Keep.

"Well, Tavon. Be expecting a lot of animal morphs like Caroline and
me. I know you have a very acute sense of smell yourself so be ready
for the overpowering scents of a city filled with a third of animals.
We DO bathe regularly so it isn't too bad." Misha must have been
reading my mind or the big grin I had on my face.

I hope Caroline can someday trust me like Misha does. She's a great
person to know. I'm almost jealous of the fox. Felecia from Glen Avery
reminded me of someone I had known in the past but I couldn't figure
out whom.

"We are almost there, Tavon. You can see the top most spire on the
Keep right about now." Misha pointed toward the horizon. The sun was
casting its golden hue on the first of the giant spires reaching for
the sky.  We were still about an hour's hike from Metamor Keep, but it
grew larger with each footstep I took. The Keep proper came into view.
The white stone gained an almost golden radiance as the sun started to
dip below the horizon. This is the Metamor I had wanted to see many
years ago in my past. This was going to be my new home.

I looked down upon myself examining the body underneath the cloak. I
remember always feeling more comfortable in less clothing. I wondered
what changes I would undergo when I got there. Would I become a she?
Would I reduce in size and go back to being a boy again? Or would I
become like Misha and Caroline, part human, part animal…that is if I
am human at all.