Darkness quickly approached the Boer Mountains, a young half-elf stood at the base of the grand mountains and looked upward. A large griffin was at her side, almost half the size of a small dragon, and deep copper in color.
"We can't go into the mountains during the night, its too dangerous Raja, not that I don't have faith in you" Raja, the griffin, trilled quietly there was a rabid wild cat in the area, it was stalking anything that moved.
As the pair settled down under a rock outcropping the elf's eyes suddenly began to glow, she could see the outline of the cat, crouching to attack. She could also see the human standing in front of them.
Raja was up immediately, roaring his fury, wings spread wide as he balanced on his hind legs. The elf's bow was in her hand immediately, and without a second thought she loosed the arrow, just as the cat pounced.
The human dove forward, covering Cinna with his own body. The cat shuddered and was dead. The human suddenly went flying as Raja picked him up and tossed him away.
Raja went over to him and placed one clawed front foot on his chest holding him in place. Cinna walked over and lit fire in her had so she could see him without straining her eyes.
He was olive skinned and dark eyed, muscular and traveled light. His hair was jet black and fell over his eyes. He wore a smug grin despite the fact Raja had pinned him.
"Who are you and why have you been following us?" Cinna asked quietly. The boy smiled at her and answered, "I am Murtagh, its not every day I see a young woman in these woods, with a griffin no doubt, naturally I was curious."
Satisfied with his answer Raja let him sit up and Cinna helped Murtagh to his feet. After dusting himself off he looked at her, fire still in her hand illuminating the sharp angles of her face.
"Would you allow me to stay? to cook you and your valiant creature a meal to apologize for giving you such a fright?"
For the first time Cinna smiled at him, Raja had relaxed somewhat and it gave her courage and comfort. "We would like it very much if you stayed, its not often that we have company." she told him, settling down beside her banked fire, Raja at her back.
Murtagh removed meat from his pack and placed it on the spit Cinna had constructed, she'd already restarted the fire. "I'm Cinna, from Ellesmere"
Murtagh looked at her through his bangs, "Pardon me, but you don't look like an elf, or at least one with 2 elven parents." Cinna smiled at him, "That's because I'm not, I'm half Shade, half elf."
Murtagh's eyes widened with fear and awe, "I-I've never heard of such a thing" Cinna's smile was bitter, "Neither have many others, that's the reason I'm out here, to find the Varden."
Murtagh relaxed, "I am on that journey as well, perhaps it would be more enjoyable if we traveled together?"
The young woman scrutinized him for a moment, consulting with Raja. Finally she nodded, "Company would be nice, but I'm not the only one you must convince of your trustworthiness."
Raja growled/squawked, a frightening combination. Murtagh nodded and cut meat away from the doe he'd bagged earlier, "If my cooking doesn't convince you, I don't know what will."
He then grinned, startling Cinna into grinning back.
They ate in silence, none of them being very hungry but good food was hard to find so they ate.
Murtagh's eye lids were heavy as he unrolled his sleeping bag
And clambered into it. The night air was cold, he shivered and tossed inside it until Cinna rolled over and looked at him from under Raja's wing, they kept each other warm at night.
"Murtagh, come over here, no need in freezing!"
His eyes were open but unfocused, slowly he made his way over to Raja and crawled beneath the wing he held up. Cinna turned onto one side, back to back with Murtagh.
The three companions slept that way all night, staying comfortably warm.
Dawn was Cinna's favorite time of the day, Raja had not yet awakened and she sat on top of a rocky hill, watching the sun rise. Murtagh had joined her that morning.
They leaned back to back and sat together silently, much of the way they'd slept the night before. As the sun rose it bathed them in its light and warmth, Cinna lay her head against Murtagh's shoulder. She'd fallen fast asleep.
Murtagh smiled and scooped her up, surprised at her lightness. "You need to eat more" he murmured to her as he carefully made his way down the rocky hill side.
Raja was on his feet as he saw them returning, but one look at his sleeping mistress had him folding his legs and relaxing.
Murtagh held her gently in his lap, moving her hair from her face, tracing the Shade-like markings on her face and neck with his eyes.
Raja had one eye open and was watching them quietly. Even as Murtagh watched her sleeping face one eye cracked open. The next moment he was lying flat on his back, Cinna straddling him with a sword pressed to his throat.
Cinna bared her teeth and glared at him before getting up and slinging her bag over her back. Raja looked at him sympathetically. "If we're to make any progress by night fall we'd better get moving." Cinna said with out glancing back.
With that she put her hands out and with an almighty tug that nearly tore her fingers in half pulled herself up the rock face. Raja was at the top of said face with one sweep of his mighty wings.
Murtagh struggled after her, scrambling as his boots slipped. Cinna's bare feet picked nimbly over the rocks without a hitch.
Once at the top of the rocks Cinna looked down at Murtagh and extended a blood slicked hand. Murtagh smiled and grabbed it, heaving himself up with Cinna's help.
Their foreheads smacked against each others as they fell back. Murtagh recoiled slightly, trying to gauge Cinna's response. She laughed at him and turned to climb the next face.
Murtagh followed her close, trying not to loose the hand holds she used. This was easier, Cinna was obviously an experienced climber and he would do well to learn from her.
Once atop the small cropping they found a waterfall, in which Cinna washed the blood from her hands. Murtagh hissed in sympathy, "Doesn't that hurt?"
Cinna shook her head, "No feeling in my hands, they were burnt badly when I was young." she turned her palms to face him, indeed, there were no lines or fingerprints what so ever. "Just another abnormality, I can live with it."