Chapter 6 It begins again

Holy and Valiora followed silent after Alister, pausing once to bow to the drake mountains Matriarch before dissapearing into the trees. Turning his gaze back towards the twins, a gentle light could be seen flickering in his gaze, there and gone again before anyone could have noticed.

Do to his connection to nature, he could hear the song of the plants and very earth they walked upon. A celebration spanning the lands, every plant rejoicing at the return of the elves. A few minutes walk into the thick forest, Alister comes to a stop and lowers himself onto his belly. His Gentle gaze turning on the twins as he gestures to his back.

"Unless you've unlocked you animal forms, hope on. I want to cover as much ground today as possable before noon." He says softly, a badded saddle shimmering into place upon his back.

The twins glance at each other, a hint of suprise in Valiora's eyes, a wide smile on Holy's. With a giggle, she runs up and with practiced easy flips onto the saddle. Her weight barely enough for him to take notice of.

Looking back at Holy, he chuckles softly at her innocents, before shifting his gaze to Valoria. Tilting his head slightly as he dose, noting her clear hesitation.

"Val, come on! Mother always said the lost prince never said what he didn't mean!" Holy yells back at her sister, a bright smile still on her face. as she grips the sattle horn in anticipation.

Slow the young women walks up to his side and curtsies deeply. "Pardon me then..." She says with clear exitment in her gaze, her cheeks tinged red as she blushes and with a refined grace settles in behind her sister, one arm circling the Holy's waist even as silver harness rise fromt he saddle to secure them fully to it.

His gentle gaze on the two elves, his mind shifts to the last time he had seen others of their kind, and the battle, the betrayl that ended that part of his history. Shaking his head he lightly nuzzles Holy's abbdomen with his nose pulling a giggle from her.

"If I go to fast, don't hesitate to say so. Just kick my side and I'll slow down." He whispers into their minds, his deep voice gentle as he slowly pushed himself up, stretching slowly before he sets off at a light run. The wind from their passage, reduced to a light breeze do to the enchanted saddle.

"Where did the saddle come from Alister?" Holy whispers into his mind, along the open channel between them. Her curious gaze taking in the gold flame-lightning filigree, her finger lightly tracing the shimering designs.

"My mother in this life had one made for each member of the family. The Darklight Guardians, my pack help all manor of beings. From humans, to the dark elves." Pausing her glances back at them, knowing the stories parents use to tell their children about their astranged brothers and sisters. Aside from Holy's eyes widening at the mention, neither reacted, save for curiosity bright in their gaze. Turning his eyes back to the path before him, he picks up the pace, his rear paws kick up dirt behind him anitially. "We offered safe passage through my, our old home for those that never visited before, or act as guides to those that seek herbs, and to simply explore. As you know, I'm sure, many animals that call the forest home are not welcoming to strangers. Mine and my presence puts them all at ease."

Falling silent to let them take everything he said in Alister continued along the path, the first of many before their adventure would come to an end, or for him a new beginning?

The scenery around them slowly began to change as his steady pace ate up the miles, only a handful of times did they see any sort of magical beast, the majority staying just on the edge of their sight bowing. A spark of annoyance flashed in his eyes before he mentally sighs, never one to have cared for royal protocol, no matter what life or form he took. In his previous life as the elf prince, Alister had repetitively ran away to play at the neighboring cities Orphanage, the nuns that ran it never minded do to his parents funding the children's education.

I this new life, his bloodline might As well been royalty again, guardians of nature, all but worshiped by animals and people the world around.

Feeling a light tap against his side, he slows nearly to a stop and looks back at Holy. Seeing a squirming, he chuckles softly and turns into the thinning forest, his eyes scanning the shadows as he lowers himself to the ground enough for the younger elf to jump off easily. Watching her vanish into the trees, he turns to meet Valiora's questioning gaze.

"Do you know why my animal form hasn't come to me yet?" She whispers softly, a pained edge to her silken voice. Her gaze turning to the sky above, blue patches through the canopy.

"Their are a number of reasons little one, first that comes to mind is the most likely. Your second form is likely to be a higher ranking beast." Pausing he tilts his head slightly. "you do know the ranking system right?"

"Yes, my mother made me memorize it before I was four." Valoria says simply. "Lowest to highest, common, uncommon, rare, legendary, mythic, and ancient. They are ranked as such, judging by their magic heart, a crystalian clump that forms just behind the rib cage near the heart. Black, Red, Orange, Yellow, Blue, and White. Then their are those that don't fall into the ranking system, simply called the Mystics, their Magic Hearts are either clear, pure radiant silver, or the most dangerous Gold streaked red."

Nodding with a gentle light in his eyes, Alister lays down and rests his head on his paws. "I'd give that a perfect score. So yes, I'm willing to bet your inner beast will be one of the mystics, what it will be though. Not even I can guess." He says with a chuckle, his eyes flicking open moments later as the bushes rustle and a white Kitsune steps out of the forest, Nine fluffy tails dragging as she pads towards Alister. The scent of blood reaching him a moment before the Kitsune falls onto her side revealing three jagged claw marks down her side. Growling low, Alister draws forward Valoria sliding of his back with the sudden movement the saddle having vanished as he laid down.

Nosing the magestic creatures chest, he sighs in relief, easily feeling a still steady heart beat. Wordlessly he moves around to her injured side and raises his right paw, lightning and white fire wreathed the pad as the gold and silver ring in his shimmering gaze dances like fire. Slowly he moves his right paw back and forth over the claw marks, lightning and flame twinning together into barely visible threads that near seemlessly knitted the jagged edges back together. After a full hour, the white fur settles smoothly, the scars beneath barely visible.

Sitting back with a tired sigh, Alister hangs his head slightly as he looks as the small puddle of blood beneath the Kitsune, the vast majority having returned to her body save for the poison tainted puddle. An orb of white fire flares up before his nose and drops into the puddle, vaporizing it. As the green red liquid vanishes, the Kitsune shifts. Her nine tails, ears and feline eyes. The only thing that made her look different from a human woman. Snow white hair fell to her ass, skin smooth an unblemished as if she had never stepped outside, though she still had a light tan. Eyes colored like the fullmoon seemed to see into you. Her athletic figure was covered modestly in a losse fitting silver robe, securely tied around her waist.

Slowly she rolled to her knees and bows to Alister, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Thank you Guardian, I hate to ask so soon but please I need yoir help to save my sisters. A young dragon has fallen into a rage, infected with the same poison i suffered from."

Shifting with barely a thought, Alister gently takes her hand and smiles as he pulls out of her bow. "None of that with me Aura, tell me where and my companions will stay here with you. They are not ready for this fight yet either."

A flash of suprise in his eyes at the use of her name, the kitsune shakes her head. "Three miles, you can't miss the villages built into the mountain side."

"Set up camp, and wait for me. I sense a clearing half a mile into the woods here. I will be back."

Without waiting for a reply, he drops a bag on the ground, and bolts into the trees following the trail of blood Aura had left in her wake. His sharp eyes and sense of smell easily able to pick it up. Chaneling the mana in the air around him, into his legs, he picks up the pace until the trees around him blurred.

It took him mear minutes to break out if the tree, and his eyes rose to the cloud of smoke rising in the distance. Less them a mile away acers of land burned, the lively hood of the vilages going up in flames. 'I don't have my full power, but putting out this fire shouldn't be to difficult.' he thought to himself as he turns into the closest field, a white aura enveloping him as he ruhses into the flames. As he does the fire for miles around gather to him, as if pulled in by gale force winds, the growing funnel vanishing as it comes in contact with white fire of his aura. Beads of sweet trail down from his temples as the last ember winks out.

Having not stopped running, Alister passes into the fist village shortly after. His sense of danger and flashes of fire leading him up the mountain to the second village, the dragons pain filled roar only now reaching him.

'What or who every poisoned this youngling must have put up a sound barrier. No wonder I didn't sense anything amise.' Sighing he looks out as a females cry of pain reaches his ear. Eyes narrowing he blurs forwards jumps and kicks off a near by stone wall to catch the falling Kitsune, her black tails stained with blood. Channeling manning into jis feet, he lands without a sound and carries the now unconsious girl into a shadowed ally, willing a veil ow white fire to fall over her and boast the healing process. The very next second he's back on the street running towards the now visible grey dragon. 'Clearly a wounded silver dragon.'

As he came within range of the dragons senses, the raged filled eyes turned to him, the wounded silver fired kitsune before it nit strong enough to hold it's attention. A challenging roar rips from the dragon as it launches sickly green balls of fire towards Alister. Fear flashing in the rage filled eyes as Alister aura exorbs and purifies the fire.

Pulling his crystalin sword from his back, Alister effortlessly leaps up above the dragon even as it frantically flaps its wings to gain height, and with a screech of metal perching dimond hard scales, Alister lands between the dragons wings and grips his swords pommel tight enough blood starts running down his splitting palms. Closing his eyes even as the dragons wings go limp, and they begin to fall. He channels white fire and lighting through his sword into the young dragon beneath him, he sends his mind with it to seek out the poison infecting the greater beast. With a jarring thud that nearly dislodged him, the dragon lands with a crash in the village center crushing the stone fountain.

A low whine of pain eminated from beneath Alister, yet the dragon couldn't move a muscle as the lightning courses through it. After hours of kneeling like a statue on the dragons back, A green liquid began to seep out from between the grey scales. They grey tinge lightend slowly into a shimmering silver-white. With a low pained sigh, Alister pulls his sword from the between the dragons wings, and slides down the dragons side to land on shakey legs beside it.

As his feet hit the ground, the subtle vibrations of the dragons purr reach him. Turning as a bright light envelopes the young dragon. As it fades, the wing shrouded form of a child was revealed. Kneeling down Alister gently lifts her into his arms, shifting his hold slightly. Her head resting on his shoulders, silver scales covering her like a one peice.