...Yeah, I know I said that RR was my last story.
Fuck that. I lied.
This has been a work-in-progress that's been going on ever since the release of 'War Journal,' but a series of hardware failures has erase it...again...and again...and AGAIN...
You get the point.
This, is a SERIOUS story, and is NOT in script-format, as I reserve script format for humor fictions that need bare writing to better deliver the jokes.
By the way, you might have noticed that I'm recycling the title and space from anothyer story. This is because, for some reason, the school filter blocks the screen that lets me start a new story, so I have to make due with what I've got.
Sorry.
Anyhoos, here's chapter one! EEEeeeee...
In the forest, all was calm and quiet, the birds having settled down in their nests for the night, the half-moon tucked away behind a thin cover of cloud. The leaves swayed gently in the cool autumn breeze, bringing the tangy scent of far-away rain. It was almost midnight, and a comfortable, earthy silence had long since made itself known over the inhabitants of the forest and town of Happy Tree, who slumbered in their homes, alone or with their companions, unworried by the troubles of day.
In a clearing, a small shadow whipped through the grass, feet moving swiftly and silently over dead leaves and twigs. Its long tail held high, it dove and ducked through trees, under branches, showing no signs of tiring, its shadow-like movements not perceptible enough to awaken the bugs and mice that lived in the grass it shot over, leaving no stem bent to mark its passing.
Suddenly, as if it had been stabbed, it dropped to its knees, gnarled claws clutching its head as it thrashed about, as if in agony. It threw back its head and howled, a five-foot-long plume of blue flame shooting from its wide open gullet, and a flock of birds burst from the nearby trees in startled flight, frightened from their nests and branches. The creature took no notice, writhing and shaking convulsively on the dirt, foam busting from its lips to drip down its neck, its claws digging into the ground, leaving long, angry marks.
It gurgled, whimpered, grew still. At last, it rose shakily to its feet and wiped its muzzle, then shook its head and resumed running. The long journey had weakened it, to be sure, but its mind was bent on some far-away goal, its eyes set foreword while its mind sifted back through ages as dark and twisted and the rage that wormed away in its heart.
...
"Thule? You wanted to see me, my friend?" The short, stocky Dragon stood next to her closest...indeed, her only...friend; Thule Shurotu, the Tiger General.
"We've been asked to leave, Lu. We can't come back to this place." Thule looked away, not wanting to see the crushed expression on his savior's face. "We leave in two days."
"Oh." A small sound, not at all what he was expecting; Lu-Yin Yari was a Dragon of immoderate temper, and she had scoured him more than once with her infamously sharp tongue.
"If we don't leave in a few days, the Elders will kill us...my men, and myself." He gave a chuckle, rubbing the patch of dark blue fur on his chin, his one good eye shining cobalt in the rapidly-fading light. Lu didn't seem amused.
"As if they could lay a finger on you, Thule, you fool," Lu muttered. "I would love to see those weak-minded imbeciles who call themselves warriors-!"
"Calm down, battleaxe."
"You hush, you pussycat!" Thule threw back his head and roared with laughter, turning to face the jungle as the sun set. A few glittering stars made their presence known, and all was silent.
Lu-Yin gave a sigh.
"You could stay, you know," she said softly, making him chuckle again.
"Perhaps, if you weren't afraid to use that magic flowing through your veins..."
"Or if YOU weren't afraid to use that pistol at your side!" Her voice had risen. "Damn you, would you at least LOOK at me?" Her voice cracked, and he turned to face her, noticing that the fading sun had tinted her white-golden scales a deep blood-red. She was shaking, angry, hot tears pricking the corners of her eyes.
"Lu..."
"Why would you let my hypocritical breed push you and your men out, Thule? You are no coward. Why act like one?" He sighed and came closer, cupping the clamp that served as his left hand under her chin, tilting her face up. His stomach flipped at the way her lips were rosy with anger, her brown eyes heated, and he managed to suppress a shiver.
"I don't want to leave them with violence. Please, Lu-Yin...you have to understand..."
"All I understand is that the man I healed is leaving to throw himself into danger again." Worry, Thule realized, was what he saw reflected in those eyes. Suddenly, she seemed like the very embodiment of a terrified mother, weariness and fear covered by a thin mask of cool-headed apathy.
"The longer I stay here, the harder it will be to accomplish my goal. Already, the forest-devils from across the sea are coming to try and re-claim the lands I've won." His expression was closed, but Lu saw something warm and kind in his cobalt eye. "When I can...I will come back for you. You will always be my...my friend." She smiled at him.
"And how do you plan to do that?" she asked, so softly that it didn't seem rude. "A woman is only allowed to leave with her husband. That foul magic that streams from the temple prevents otherwise."
"Is that so?" Thule asked, his tail twitching slightly before relaxing again. He let go of her and thoughtfully rubbed the patch of fur on his chin again, trying to conceal the thoughts that were crashing about his head, in tune to the steadily rising pulse of his heart.
Lu-Yin sighed, looking down.
"I will miss you..." she said softly. "...You big pussy."
"I'll miss you, you scaly-skinned old hag." Thule grinned as she chuckled. He then looked down, as if a thought had struck him. "...You said a woman can leave with her husband, right?"
"If the husband is from somewhere else. The Elders came up with that rule a long time ago, not that it's ever been used."
"Then perhaps..."
"Perhaps what?" Lu gave him a shrewd look. "What's going on in that mind, Thule?"
"Your freedom. Marry me." As soon as he said it, his face blushed a brilliant red, and he fought to maintain his composure.
She was silent, her eyes wide, a slow flush tinting her cheeks pink. She turned away and hid her face in her hands, and Thule immediately thought he had offended her.
"You don't have to," he said quickly, stepping forward and reaching his hand and claw out, as if to reassure her. "I just assumed that you wanted to leave-"
With swiftness that startled him, she turned and crushed her lips to his. Fire erupted in the pit of his belly, and a delicious shudder ripped through him, his eye closing, his arms folding around her.
However long they kissed, Thule couldn't tell, but, when Lu pulled away, he found himself wondering why she had broken their embrace so soon; he still wanted to hold her, to smell the clean scent of her scales.
She smiled at him, eyes sparkling.
"You're a fool, Thule," she said softly. "You realize that, correct?"
"Of course, you beauty." She laughed and rested her head against his chest.
"I'm a fool as well." He let his arms snake around her again, a deep purr thrumming in his chest.
"Then we won't fight about it anymore." He chuckled. "Come now. Let's go tell my men the good news." His arm around her waist, they made their way back to the village.
Yep, starts slow. I'll be posting more online within the next few weeks, and the next chapter should be done in a couple of days.
Review! Review, I tells you! MUAHAHAHAHAHA-
...I should probably lie down.
Cheers!