Elizabeth looks up from her book and creases her eyebrows while tapping her index finger on her lower lip. "Dragons' tongue? Do dragons even exist?" she mumbles to herself, confused. She rummages through a few other books but comes up with nothing. Her brown hair falls in front of her eyes. Taking her right hand she scratches the top of her scalp, coaxing her untamed hair out of her face and back behind her shoulders. Some ingredients can be quite deceptive. She remembers the time she gouged an eye from a tiger just to find out "Tiger's eye" was a type of flower. She looks at the book again, but finds no sign of what it could possibly be. The books around her ascend from the ground where she left them. Each book returns itself to its specific spot on the bookshelf. A puff of smoke engulfs Elizabeth as her outfit changes from brown trousers and a white blouse to a deep red robe,
"I guess I'll find out soon enough," she chuckled coldly as she raised her arm. A spectrum of blue in the form of an uneven circle appears inches from her extended fingertips. She lowers her arm and walks through, disappearing as the colors engulf her completely.
As she emerges from the circle, she finds herself in a cheery village. The colors in this place are a bit brighter than she's used to, making her eyes hurt. She quickly adapts to her new surroundings. Her hair is covered with a deep purple scarf, wrapping around her head and falling casually over her slender shoulders. The color makes her eyes pop more than usual, exaggerating the dark red and purple that surround her pupils and irises. They used to be a golden brown that changed from honey to rays of sunshine, but over the years they have darkened to a duller color with darkness creeping around the corners. Her personality matches her eyes; dark, cold and dangerous.
With her book in her left hand, she looks around to find multiple faces gapping at her. She was used to the looks every time she travelled anywhere. She looked like she could slice your throat open without even looking you in the eyes as you took your last break. She was ruthless. That's what happens after 3,000 years of pain. As her eyes meet each and every one of the villagers, they look away suddenly. She could sense their fear and feel their trembling from here. Elizabeth looks past the shaking villagers to the marketplace just ahead. She slowly begins to make her way in that direction. As she walks, everyone steps aside silently to let her pass. As she enters the square she sees a lady selling books and what looks like a few ingredients. Maybe she could help. Elizabeth walks up to the old lady, trying to look warm, but to no avail.
"Excuse me ma'am, I'm working on a potion that requires some dragon tongue, but I have no idea what it is or where to find it, could you help me?" Elizabeth smiles at the old lady behind the counter stacked with books way past both the ladies heads. Her voice was warm but her eyes pierced the old woman's soul. Handing her the book and opening to the page with the dragon tongue ingredient, Elizabeth continues, "I bought this book around the area a while ago." The old lay's eyes drop to Elizabeth's golden belt around her waist as she hands the book back.
"I-I'm sorry ma'am, I'm not sure. There's no ingredient by that name around here. There are stories of dragons that destroy villages, but those are only rumors. I'm so sorry" The lady explains, her voice breaking every now and then. A cool breeze passes through the marketplace, causing a few ingredients splayed out on the counter between Elizabeth and the lady to be pushed by the wind. Within an instant, Elizabeth has all of the fallen ingredients in her hand and the woman flinches in fear. Slowly, Elizabeth opens her hand over the counter and lets the ingredients fall to their usual resting place before the breeze so rudely awakened them.
"Thank you for your time," Elizabeth grabs her book and gracefully turns around on the balls of her feet. That intimidating am I? Elizabeth raises and eyebrow slightly and the corners of her lips turn up to form a small smile. Is this how people responded to him too? When he was the demon ki…
"Are you looking for a dragon's tongue?" Elizabeth hears a voice boom through the crowd. It sounds fierce yet mysterious, much like her own. She turns around, expecting to find the owner to such a similar voice to hers a few dozen feet away. Instead she realized it's not even five feet. The woman was beautiful, mystery emanating from her being. Elizabeth hasn't seen a woman quite like this in a long time, her eyes widen slightly as she takes in the woman. Her black hair fell to her shoulders, fluttering and whipping gently around as she walked. Her purple outfit was a few shades lighter than Elizabeth's scarf, and wrapped around her body perfectly, extenuating every curve. The robe seemed to have a mind of its own, loving every inch of this woman with every ounce of its being. There was something scarlet on her neck, perhaps blood or a scar? Whatever it was, it was placed there with purpose. The woman slowly walked towards Elizabeth, every step graceful and full of purpose.
"Yes, I am, are you familiar with what it is?" Elizabeth felt the magical energy emanating from the woman. This woman had to be a mage. As Elizabeth spoke, the mysterious woman stiffened, losing a bit of her confidence. Even this woman wasn't immune to the dark energy Elizabeth gave off. Regaining herself, the woman replies,
"It's not what, precisely, but where. You see, I am also looking for one, but dragons are so rare these days" She's runs her fingers through her hair as it dances through each fingertip and rustles in front of her face before falling back to its original place. "I could use an extra set of hands to take it down."
"What makes you think I could take on a dragon?" Elizabeth's eyes narrowed menacingly. She could take on anything with no problem whatsoever, but she didn't like the energy this woman gave off. She wasn't as afraid of her as usual people were, and Elizabeth didn't like that. She took a step forward, now only a few inches away from the woman. The scent of hibiscus and amber was more dominant, and Elizabeth could faintly pick up another scent she wasn't quite sure of. Pomegranate maybe? The woman didn't stiffen this time, but Elizabeth could feel the intimidation, no one could hide their feelings around her. She let her eyes relax a little.
"I could sense it the moment you teleported here. You must have traveled very far to get to this place. Someone with your magical energy doesn't go unnoticed, and I've never seen you around these parts before." The mysterious woman looked up to the sky as she explained, probably to regain herself some confidence. It appears to have worked. Elizabeth snuck a glance around her and noticed many people were watching them with fearful eyes. A few were cowering behind whatever they could find. Did they expect a fight to break out or something? Elizabeth leaned back and entwined her fingers behind her head, looking a bit more relaxed.
"'Very far' is an understatement." She flashed a devilish smile. The lady gasped and look started, not able to hide herself from Elizabeth. The woman let out a little cough and was back to normal. Elizabeth continued, "but I don't play well with others, so I'll acquire it myself, thanks," she flashed a playful chuckle at the woman, but as her arms came down to her sides, Elizabeth's eyes became completely black. A look of horror and familiarity overcame the woman. Familiarity? Has she seen something like this before? Elizabeth wondered as she turned around. As she did, she saw something in the far distance flying across the landscape. Elizabeth knew no one else would be able to see it, their poor human eyes. She focused on the object and immediately could make out the large wings and reptilian appearance.
"Perfect timing," Elizabeth jumped into the air, leaving a small indentation in the dirt where she pushed off. Wings emerged from her back as she flew towards the beast. As her wings grew to their full size, about twice as long as Elizabeth was tall, they gleamed deep purple and red that matched the outline of her eyes. They looked like fire, fading in and out and constantly changing shape. The woman recognized this energy that Elizabeth possessed, and began to run the other direction.