Oh! Important tidbit! These #########
signify flashback breaks. ^_^
Most people thought quetzacoatls to be creatures of legend. Indeed, no one had even seen one except in drawings. Granted they had never thought to look in a half dormant volcano, now did they? For indeed, a creature of many legends lay trapped there, half his serpentine length still held fast by the hardened lava that he had fallen into when he had been tricked into coming here by a Sultan wannabe by the name of Aladdin.
As it was, he was so intent on trying to break free, that he never thought twice about the speck of light that appeared high above the volcano's crater edge.
That single small speck of light pulsed slightly, like a distant star, seemingly checking out the locale before it widened and practically spat out a screaming female form. Unfortunately, the portal had opened a good fifty feet above a steep side of the crater, leaving said form to crash onto the rocks and dirt and tumble down the incline until she hit, s'cuse the pun, rock bottom.
The quetzacoatl stared in stunned bafflement at the white-haired female that was lying a little ways away from him. His pale green gaze darted upwards in time to see the glowing doorway close upon itself in a brilliant flash of light, blinding him for a moment before he returned his attention to the woman before him.
There was no movement from the woman for a long moment. She merely lay there on her back, spread eagled amongst the rubble and dirt that had accompanied her ungraceful and obviously very painful trip down the crater's side. He stretched his neck out a little and flicked his tongue out, tasting the air like the serpent he was, trying to tell if she was still alive or not....
".....that fuckin' hurt....."
He hissed and jerked his head back, watching her in wary shock as she gingerly sat up and rose a hand to her head, a grimace of pain marring her features. He had thought that humans were fragile creatures, and yet this woman had just survived a fall that would have knocked even him unconscious.
Lashana groaned softly and slowly got to her knees, brushing dirt off her clothes and shaking out her hair before checking to make sure nothing was broken. Okay, ribs hurt, back hurts, shoulders hurt.... what doesn't hurt? Nothing. Yay.... She blinked and took a quick look around, her gaze falling on the huge snake that was regarding her with what seemed to be curiosity. I must've hit my head harder than I thought.... A quick series of blinks and the feeling of serious pain flowing through her informed her that she wasn't asleep or unconscious, which meant that she really was staring at a huge purple snake. But this thing looked downright weird. Who the hell had ever heard of a gigantic snake with hair?!
She stared a moment longer, then slowly forced herself to her feet, slowly realizing that the creature in front of her seemed to be trapped in the hardened lava. "What the hell happened to you? Wait.... I'm talking to a huge snake. Oh Gods I really must've hit my head harder than I thought...."
"Hola."
"Ack!" She took a writhing leap backwards and tripped on a rock, crashing to the ground with a wail of pain. Throughout the entire fall, her wide-eyed gaze never left the creature before her. "Ye Gods! What.... Who the hell are you?!" I am so going to need counselling after this.... "And gods dammit don't scare me like that!"
"Forgive me señorita, I didn't mean to startle you."
The snake talks. With a Spanish accent too. Okaaaay, I am SO going to need a drink when I get home....
"As for my name..." He pulled himself up as best he could in his current predicament, trying to look regal. "I am Malcho the Great. Ruler of the Rainforest and," he paused and grumbled, "Current inhabitant of this accursed volcano."
Owner of the Godzilla sized Ego too I see. Lashana shifted slightly and gingerly got to her feet, wincing at the tightness in her ribs as she did so. "I'm Lashana. Where.... Um.... Where am I?"
Malcho blinked and slowly lowered himself until he was at eye level with her. "This volcano is situated on the outskirts of Agrabah's territory. The Seven Deserts are only a moments flight away," he told her, watching as a shadow of horror entered her eyes before she literally collapsed to the ground.
"Sweet Mother of the Gods...." I'm not only far from home, I'm in a totally different dimension! And since I don't know what spell Telca used.... I'm trapped here!! She closed her eyes for a moment and sighed heavily, raising a hand to massage her aching temple. "This is a turning out to be a really bad day...."
He frowned a little as he studied her, wondering what had upset her. He was fairly certain that she wasn't from around these parts, not only had he never seen a human like her before, but her clothing was... bizarre... and that glowing doorway had definitely been the product of magicks. "Señorita? You are a sorceress, si?"
"In training," Lashana muttered as she got to her feet again and looked around, spotting a more stable part of the crater that would make it a lot easier for her to climb out. "I've only been practicing for a few months." And at least I damn well know better than to do a spell I can't even control! "If you want someone to get you out, try getting Aladdin's help. He's supposed to be the big grand hero and all."
The low threatening hiss that escaped him rivalled the sound of a thousand angry snakes. "That gringo is the one who put me in here in the first place!"
She blinked and looked at him, unable to keep a smirk from spreading over her lips. "Oh? Attacked the city did you?"
"Only to get at that flying rat!"
"Flying.... Oh. You must mean Iago." She quirked an eyebrow at the dark murderous look that crossed his face at the mention of that name. "I'll take that as a 'yes'. Fine, fine. I never liked that stupid chicken anyway." Ignoring the ache in her...well her entire body, she rose a hand and pointed at the hardened rock trapping Malcho. "BEPHIS BRING!!"
It was obvious that the spell worked. The sudden cloud of dust and debris that filled the air was proof of it, and she grinned to herself as she used the cover to scramble up the side of the crater via the easier path she had seen moments ago. There's my good deed for the day. Maybe it'll cancel out the bad karma I'll get when I finally get my hands on Telca.
By the time she reached the top edge of the volcano, she would have killed for a bottle of Tylenol. Never had she experienced the pain she was in now, every breath sent shocks of agony through her ribs, and she wanted nothing more than to find a safe spot and merely collapse for a few hours. A quick glance back down the way she had come showed her that Malcho had indeed gotten free, and had apparently simply left. That's gratitude for ya. Yeesh.
Sighing in annoyance, she turned her gaze to the landscape before her and frowned. Apparently this volcano was merely one amongst an entire mountain range, she could just barely see the lighter hue of the distant desert sands ahead. "Aw crap. Of all the dimensions I had to land in, why this one?! Stupid portal...."
"Portal? Is that what that glowing doorway was, señorita?"
"Ack!" She spun around and damn near fell back down into the crater, yelping in surprise when a huge purple feathered wing effortlessly swept her off her feet and relocated her onto safer ground. Her eyes widened in shock at the sight that greeted her once the wing had removed itself from her. "Y-you're a quetzacoatl!" Holy shit he's huge! Now that she could get a good look at him, a part of her wondered if she should have freed him. Fifty feet of pure muscle in length with a wingspan of at least half of that, he towered over her, his pale green eyes fixed on her as two rather out of place antenna twitched against the mane of dark purple hair on his head. She nearly screamed when a bushy feathered tail lightly nudged her right leg.
"Breathe señorita," he chuckled, his voice surpassing a baritone rumble, clearly amused by her reaction. "I'm surprised that you know what I am. As far as I know, I'm the only one of my kind, granted I am a fine specimen of evolutionary perfection, si?"
Swallowing thickly, she warily took a step back, putting a bit of space between them. I think his ego is bigger than the CN Tower. "Uh, yeah."
Malcho smiled - well, as much as a snake can smile - and lowered himself a little, trying to seem non-threatening. "You needn't be afraid, señorita. You freed me, I am in your debt."
"You owe me nothing. I didn't free you just so I could get something in return," she murmured, slowly forcing herself to calm down. The look of surprise on his face plainly told her that not many people around here did things for others without demanding repayment of some sort, and she sighed softly in exasperation. "Quit looking at me like that, okay? You're not 'in my debt'. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. I would have freed you no matter what."
This chica is definitely not from around here. At this moment I'm not even sure if she can be categorized as Human. "You've branded yourself an outsider with those words, you know."
"I'm supposed to care?"
"Most Humans would," he replied, subtly working in a question of his own.
Lashana chuckled and turned to look down the side of the volcano, a single fang showing as she glanced back at him and smirked. "Who ever said I was Human?"
Aha! I was right. Wait, what is she... CARUMBA!! He lunged forward to try to catch her as she hopped off the edge of the crater, hissing when she literally slipped through his wings. Fearing the worst, he slithered over to the edge and looked down, eyes widening in pure shock when he saw that not only was she alive and well, but she was enjoying herself as she slid down the side of the volcano.
I should take up surfing. This balance thing is easy.Oh look, I think I broke Malcho's brain. Glad that she hadn't had the time to remove her hiking boots back home, she dug her heels in a bit more and slowed enough to let her leap over a boulder, landing in a crouch on flat ground afterwards. Well, it'll still take me a day to get out of this wasteland, but at least I'm off the semi-active volcano and away from the egotistical snake.
"Señorita! Are you completely loco?!"
*sigh* One outta two ain't bad. "If I say yes, will you stop yelling?" she asked as she watched him land next to her. "I have headache and you're really not helping it go away. And close your mouth, you're catchin' flies." Yup. Definitely broke his brain.
He closed his mouth with a slight snap of connecting teeth, falling silent for a moment before growling. "You are either very brave or very stupid to speak to me in that manner, chica," he hissed, pulling himself up to his full height as he looked at her.
"Alright, that's it!" she snarled, rounding on him and baring her fangs, her voice rising until she was almost screaming. "Now listen here, you. I am tired, I have no clue where I am, or how I can get home, I hurt in places I didn't even know I had, and you are really starting to annoy me. No! Shut. Up. That 'high and mighty' crap is not gonna work with me! I am not going to bow down to you just because your ego is the size of the godsbedamned moon! I don't care about your opinion of me, or about Agrabah, or your little personal vendetta against some stupid peabrained bird! I just want to go home! Okay?! Is that getting through that thick skull of yours?!"
As her voice reverberated around the mountains around them, she spun on her heel and stalked away, her hands fisted at her sides as her breath hissed out between clenched teeth. She didn't really know where she was headed, or even where she could go to find information on how to get home, but at the moment she knew that if she stayed still, she'd lose complete control over her temper, and if she did that, all bets were off on what she'd do. I've half a mind to go shove him back into that volcano.
Malcho hissed lowly, his wing feathers shifting until they resembled fisted hands. How dare she-- She just told you exactly what you don't want to admit, a small voice in the back of his mind chuckled, taunting him. She's right and you know it. Now what are you going to do about it? He grumbled and mentally smacked his conscience into silence as he looked after her, his keen predator's gaze easily picking out how she favoured her right side and the slight limp in her gait.
Sighing, he slithered forward a bit and rose his voice so that she'd hear him. "Señorita." When she paused in midstep and glanced back at him, he moved forward a bit more and ducked his head slightly. "Is my ego really that big?"
"If it was a physical thing it would have crushed the volcano and the surrounding mountains flat," she muttered as she looked away and continued walking, blinking in shock when he was suddenly in front of her, his body coiling around her in a wide perimeter, the shock of his appearance alone causing her to stumble backwards and crash to the ground. Slightly annoyed, she rose her gaze to his, softening her glare when he sighed and held out his right wing, the feathers forming together to copy a huge human hand.
"Truce?"
Figuring that things couldn't get any worse than they already were, she nodded and reached up to shake hands.... whatever.... with him, gasping when he effortlessly pulled her to her feet and released her hand before using both wings to brush dirt and dust off of her. "Uh....thanks."
"Do not mention it," he sighed, looking at her. "Despite how much I lothe to admit it, you were right about what you said before. And while I certainly haven't made the lasting impression that I wanted to or given you any reason to listen to me.... I would like to help you, señorita."
"Lashana."
He blinked. "Que?"
"It's my name. Lashana." She smirked. "As opposed to 'señorita'? And why do you want to help me anyway?"
"Why not? Besides, you need a guide, do you not? Who better?"
Dammit. He's right. "You do realise that I'll yell at you again if your ego gets bigger than your head, right?"
He chuckled softly, surprised at the genuine emotions this encounter was pulling out of him. "Si."
"Good," she said, sighing as she reached up to rub at her aching temples again. "Gods my head hurts.... Okay, where the heck are we again?"
"Almost half a day's flight from Agrabah," Malcho answered as he shifted his bulk so she could lean against his lower segment. "Two days South is my Homeland, the Rainforest. Er.... are you certain you're alright?" He lowered his head close to her and carefully fanned her with a wing, eyes widening when he saw her pointed ears. "What..."
"I told you that I wasn't fully Human. And I'm fine." Not. "Before you ask, I'm an Elf. Well, half-elf anyway. The other part of me is human." She gratefully leaned back against the expanse of muscle behind her and met his confused gaze. "Never heard of Elves, hmm? They're beings of nature and magick. Most are shamans, specializing in spells that are connected to the four elements of Air, Water, Fire and Earth."
He nodded slightly, filing that information for potential future use. "That explains your scent at least." At her curious look, he frowned and tried to put it into words she'd understand. "You have the scent of power and nature combined. ...how can I describe it? Ah, you know of storms correct? When the clouds turn black and rumble and the lightning strikes the earth? Si? Bueno. Your scent is akin to the scent of the air when one of those storms is building."
"Really? Huh, neat." Now I know I'm insane. I'm starting to like him.
"Lashana, was it? May I ask you something?" When she nodded, he put on his best diplomatic approach, not wanting to risk angering her again. "You say that you don't know where you are, yet you seem to have some knowledge of Agrabah and it's inhabitants. How is that possible?"
Damn. Damn. Damn! I didn't want to get into this. I don't know what damage I could do here...wait. What's wrong with me? When did I ever care about crap like that?! "It's a little complicated. Er? You mind?" Not waiting for an answer, she carefully hopped up to sit on his back, glad for the chance to sit down. "That portal you saw before, that was apparently a doorway between worlds. My best friend was experimenting with a spell and lost control of it. I got pulled in and thrown here. Here's the tricky part. In my world, there's shows.... stories.... about Agrabah and Aladdin and all his annoying sidekicks. I thought they were all fiction, something thought up for children, but when I heard you mention that we were close to the city, I realised that I had been thrown into your world. Does that make sense?"
"Frighteningly so," he murmured, raising a wing to cup his chin. "These stories.... Do you know how precise they are?"
She shook her head. "Not yet. I'd have to see the city first. And no, I don't know if you were in them. I couldn't stand them, they were too repetitive for my tastes."
Malcho chuckled. "Perhaps if I had been, they would have held your interest? And what do you mean by repetitive?"
Ignoring the suave comment, she answered the second question. "Oh, it was all the same. Villain attacks Agrabah, Aladdin and his lackeys fight the villain, the Genie tries to be funny, the bird shows how he should have been killed at birth, Aladdin defeats the villain, everyone's happy and then it starts all over again in the next story."
He stared at her, amazed at how accurate that was. It was exactly like his encounters with the human and his 'sidekicks' as she had put it. "You've piqued my curiosity, chica. Come. I shall bring you to the city."
"Isn't that a tad risky?"
"It will be well past nightfall when we reach it, so the chances of the Palace guards spotting us are slim. Besides, stealth is a serpents greatest skill," he grinned, daring to wink at her. "Here now, get off of there and come sit just before my wings."
She nodded and did as he instructed, resisting the urge to dig her nails into his back in shock when he slithered forward experimentally, letting her get used to his movements. "If I fall off I do plan to come back and haunt you."
An amused chuckle left him as he twisted his head around on his serpentine neck and looked at her out of his left eye. "I assure you, you will not fall off. And even if you do, we'll be flying high enough that I'll have plenty of time to catch you."
That's strangely reassuring. "Okay."
"Bueno. Hold tight!" He turned away from her and slithered forward, managing to pick up enough speed before spreading his wings and giving a powerful crucial downbeat, chuckling at the yelp of surprise from his passenger as he rapidly ascended into the air.
THIS IS INSANE!!! Lashana leaned closer to Malcho as the wind threatened to rip her from his back, forgoing her previous idea to resist the urge to sink her nails into him. At the moment the Incredible Hulk wouldn't have been able to remove her from the quetzacoatl's back.
"Relax, amiga! You're in no danger," Malcho called to her when he felt her grip on him tighten. "Calmarse, Lashana. You are safe."
"That's easy for you to say! You're not hanging on for dear life and.... Oh my gods I shouldn't have looked down...."
He chuckled. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were afraid of heights."
"It's not the heights, it's the fear of falling followed by the sudden stop!"
~*~
The moon was high in the star filled sky when they finally reached the outskirts of the city, and after a tense moment where they had soared over a patrolling guard, Malcho finally managed to find a spot where he could land and assure himself that he wouldn't be seen. He made sure to do so carefully, for when he had glanced back to check on his passenger a few minutes ago, he had discovered that she had fallen asleep. She must be exhausted. Poor thing. Wait.... when did I start caring?! Carumba, what is this chica doing to me?
He folded his wings and silently slithered into an abandoned building, taking a moment to search for any fresh scents before he deemed it safe. Once he had coiled himself into the little shelter, he twisted his head around - thanking all the Gods that he was a serpent and thus able to do so - and lightly nudged Lashana in the ribs with his nose. "Señorita?" He pulled away at her whimper of pain and frowned before leaning closer again and testing her scent, this forked tongue flicking over her. She reeks of pain. "Lashana? Muchacha, wake up."
"Wha?" She rubbed at her eyes and looked up, blinking when she saw how close he was. "Are we there yet?"
"Si. At the moment we're in an abandoned building. I thought you'd need a few moments," he told her as she slid from his back and stepped away from him. "You didn't tell me you were so seriously hurt."
"You didn't ask. Besides, it's nothing I can't handle...or ignore. When did you start caring?"
He knew it was a rhetorical question, but he answered it all the same. "I have no idea. The moment you proved that you weren't like all the other humans I had dealt with perhaps."
Lashana paused in mid-stretch and looked at him. "Yeah?"
"Si."
"I should lose my temper more often then," she chuckled as she walked over to the doorway and peeked outside, paling when she saw a duo of guards nearing the building. "Shit! Guards!"
Malcho reared at her panicked whisper, his gaze darting around their suddenly tiny hiding space. If the humans were to look inside when they passed by, they'd both be caught. "Amiga, run from here. Quickly, before they see you."
"No way in hell," she growled as she took a step back from the door and rose her hands. "I may only be a sorceress in training, but I know enough magick to get out of a bad situation. DARK MIST!" Black wind seemingly rose from the ground itself, swirling around her for a moment before flowing out the door and spreading outwards, blanketing the streets in a dark gloomy fog. "Score one for the Elf. C'mon!"
"Wha-- Amiga, wait!" He shot after her as she ran into the street, following her more by scent than sight since at the moment he could barely see a foot in front of his face. The sounds of the confused guards behind him nearly made him take to the air, but in a way he had promised to keep Lashana safe, and if he left now there was no telling how much trouble she could get into....
....and a hand landed on his side.
Reacting on pure instinct, he hissed warningly and reared, knocking them away from him as he opened his mouth, fangs bared and ready to inject their venom into whomever had dared to-- "Amiga!"
Lashana grimaced from where he had knocked her onto her back and seriously debated throwing a fireball at him. "Ow."
"Are you alright? No wait, don't answer that. Just hold on," he whispered as he swept her into his wings and ducked into a deserted alleyway, dropping her amongst his coils as he turned and peered through the dense fog, constantly tasting the air.
"We don't get paid enough for this."
"You're telling me. I still haven't gotten a replacement pair of bolos from when we fought the giant worm!"
"Snake you idiot. It was a snake. And shut up about the stupid bolos."
"You'd be the same if it was your bolos."
"Oh bugger the damn bolos already, will you?!"
Malcho grumbled softly to himself while he listened to the guards as they walked right past them. A worm? A WORM?! He hissed a curse under his breath and turned to look at his companion, frowning when he saw that she was in the middle of smothering a chuckle. "What's so funny?"
"How the hell did those idiots manage to beat you?"
He growled. "Aladdin was with them."
Lashana cut off another bout of snickers. "Oh. Sorry." She hopped off of him and took a moment to straighten her tank-top before looking at him and daring to reach out to rub her knuckles over his right eyeridge. "You'll get him back. Now, I'm gonna go look around a bit, I'll be right back, okay?"
"Que??" He stared after her as she darted out of the alley and blinked, still stunned over the sudden friendly gesture. It shocked him even more when he came to the realization that not only had he not minded the contact, he had actually leaned into the brief caress. This is loco. I should just leave now, she doesn't need my help.... His wings spread a little as he reared a little higher, looking from the mouth of the alley to the star-filled sky above. So why am I not leaving?
~*~
My Kingdom for an uzi... Lashana ducked down behind a rain barrel and waited until the human had past before peeking over the rim of it. She had found the famed Thieves Guild, and it didn't startle her in the least to see that it was exactly like what it had been in the cartoon. Not that I'm gonna tell Malcho that. I have no idea how I'd explain the concept of television to him....
Pushing that thought aside, she carefully crept backwards into the shadows, not ready to be seen just yet. She knew that the people here would automatically know her as an Outsider, and in this part of town, it was liable to get her killed. The last thing she wanted to do at the moment was get into a fight, because not only was she not in top shape for it, she had a sneaking suspicion that these people fought dirty. Time to get back to Malcho.
"Well well well. What have we here?"
Aw crap. She rose into a crouch and warily turned to look up at the man behind her, yelping when he reached down and grabbed her by her throat. Ew. Doesn't he ever WASH?!
The filthy thief chuckled lowly, a very disturbing gleam in his eyes. "And here I thought Agrabah was gonna be boring. Heh. C'mon pretty, you're gonna make this trip reaaaaal nice."
Letmegoletmegoletmego! Loosing a frantic yelp of fear, she reached up and grabbed his wrist with one hand and slammed her fist into the inside of his elbow with the other. The moment he went down howling and clutching at his arm, she delivered a solid kick to his forehead, then bolted before anyone else could see her. Okay, I really hope Malcho didn't take off.... "Malcho!"
The quetzacoatl startled at the cry and hissed as he turned in time to see the Elf tear into the alleyway, a wild panicked look in her eyes. "Que? What's wrong? What happene--!" He cut himself off with a gasp as she literally threw herself at him, clinging to him tightly. Okay....how do I get her off? Moments away from merely shoving her away, he looked down at her with the full intention of telling her to let go.... only the look of pure relief on her face made him hesitate. Que? "Muchacha? What happened?"
"H-he was going to--"
He cut her off with a low hiss, not needing to hear any more, the mere stench of terror from her was more than enough to tell him what had happened. Almost unconsciously, he found himself sliding his wings around her, returning the embrace as he shifted so that his body was coiled in a wide perimeter around her. What the hell am I doing?!Okay, Malcho, let her go. You have to let her go. Why aren't you letting her go you stupid snake?! Rumbling softly, he lowered his head and lightly rested his cheek sideways against her back, giving her a few moments to get a hold of herself while still reminding her that she wasn't alone.
It was almost five minutes later when Lashana pulled away, wiping at her eyes as he quickly released her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--"
"You don't have to apologise. Tell me, the one who did this, is he following you?"
She threw a wary glance over her right shoulder. "I don't think so. I kinda reacted on instinct and lashed out at him. I think I broke his arm."
"Bueno. He got off easy then," he growled as he ushered her out of the alleyway, eager to get moving again so that he could ignore what had just happened. "Did you learn anything?"
"Only that there's a sorcerer hiding out near the south end of the city. But apparently he's dabbling in major black magick..."
"How did you learn this?" he asked curiously, wondering if perhaps she had cornered a thief and made him give her the information.
"The ears aren't for decoration," Lashana chuckled, tucking a lock of her unruly white hair behind her pointed right ear. "My hearing's better than a humans, I merely eavesdropped on a few conversations."
He nodded in approval. That's exactly what he would have done if he had gone in her stead. Especially around the Thieves Guild. "Alright, this sorcerer you spoke of, would he have the information you require?" The sooner she leaves, the sooner I can return to normal. These emotions are downright confusing.
"I dunno. I suppose there's only one way to find out," she shrugged, hopping over his outermost coil and heading for the alley's mouth. When she didn't hear any movement behind her, she paused and turned to look at him, frowning at the turmoil in his eyes. "You don't have to come. Hell, you just got free of a volcano. Go back to that Rainforest of yours, enjoy life."
"It's not that. Well, maybe it is. I don't know!" He hissed and ground his teeth together, glaring at the ground in front of him.
Lashana sighed softly and leaned back against a the side of a building. "I'm not forcing you to come with me, Malcho. If you want to leave, then go. Then I'll be out of your hair and you can go home." Avoiding his gaze, she gingerly pushed away from the wall and headed for the street. "Thanks for the help though. I appreciate it more than you know. Ciao!"
That did not go at all the way I thought it would. The quetzacoatl frowned and slithered forward, poking his head out of the alleyway and watching her as she headed down the dark street. How had she known how he was feeling? Truthfully he wouldn't have left her if she had needed him, but she had just quite literally freed him from any obligations he might have made to her, silent or otherwise. So why didn't that make him feel better?
~*~
Lashana crept around the side of a dark building and froze, straining her hearing to hear above her frantic heartbeat as goosebumps rose on her skin. Oooh. Major bad aura. If that's not the sorcerer then I'm not an Elf. Making sure to move with the utmost silence, she slowly manoeuvred around the corner and over to the doorway of the building that the aura was situated in.
"Nicely done. Nicely done indeed. You'll make a fortune on the black markets."
"I know. And no one suspects anything. Hell, in this world no one even cares."
"True. I'm pleased to see that you're taking this well."
"Why wouldn't I? In my world, me an my boys would be in prison for the rest of our lives. Here, we can run as many black market deals as we want and never get caught!"
Lashana's eyes narrowed as she listened, wondering what was going on. And what was that bit about 'in this world'? Spying a discarded cloak nearby gave her an idea, a smirk spreading over her lips as she grabbed the worn material and pulled it on, rising the hood to hide her white hair. There. Let the spying commence. Taking care not to make any noise, she stepped over to a semi-boarded up window and peeked inside, blinking at the sight of two men sitting at a table, their faces barely illuminated by a single candle. She rose onto the balls of her feet and looked around the room, bile rising when she saw numerous bodies and parts of animals strewn around the walls and floor. He's a poacher!
"You'll find that I can be a very powerful....friend," the man that was furthest away from the flame chuckled, tossing a heavy pouch onto the table. "Your payment. If you find me a few exotic animals, and one creature of legend, I'll quadruple the payment."
"Of legend? Like what?"
There was a deep chuckle, the sound making a shiver run down Lashana's spine. "Were you in Agrabah a few weeks ago? When that quetzacoatl attacked the Palace? My spells tell me that his home is the Rainforest that's five days ride from here. Get me his head and a few...'specimen's from that jungle, and I'll reward you handsomely."
"Yeah? Then you got yourself a deal!"
The poacher leaned forward into the candlelight, and the Elf was horrified to see various guns and knives adorning him. He's....He's from my world! Oh my gods, he's gonna-- I gotta warn Malcho! She jerked away from the window, her hip bumping against an empty rain barrel and sending it crashing to the ground, the old dried wood splintering loudly. Aw crap.
Very aware of the sounds of alarm from within the building, she spun on her heel and raced down the street, heading for the desert. Her breath burned in her throat as she ran, her ribs protesting at every gasp she took as she tore through the streets, very aware of the pursuer behind her. If I can make it to the desert, I'll have enough room to loose a few spells without having to worry about setting the entire city ablaze!
There was a slight sound of pressurized air behind her as something slammed into her left shoulder, the stinging sensation making her reach back to yank whatever it was out of her flesh. Her heart nearly stopped when she looked down at the brightly feathered tranquilizer dart in the palm of her hand, her vision blurring as she suddenly faltered, the edge of the cloak snagging onto an uneven side of a building.
"Well, not so spry now, are you?" the poacher sneered as he rounded a corner, looking at her condescendingly as she wriggled free of the material and staggered away.
No choice. I can't let this bastard get me... and I can't keep my eyes open much longer! She took a breath and focused her strength, pushing the drug induced drowsiness aside as she concentrated on the words. "Source of all power. Crimson fire burning bright...."
"Here now, what are you muttering?"
This! She rose her gaze to his in a defiant glare and snarled, baring her fangs. "Let thy power gather in my hands and become my strength! FIREBALL!!"
The resulting explosion sent her sprawling backwards as the attack ignited fires and completely shattered the building that the poacher had been standing in front of. Using every ounce of willpower she could muster, she scrambled to her feet and darted into another alleyway, dimly aware of the yells of outrage from behind her as she fled. This is not good. Not good! Stupid Elf, why'd you tell Malcho to leave?! She skidded around another corner, her boots digging deep into the sand for purchase as she headed out into the desert. I'll take my chances with the sun and dehydration before I take on that poacher and that sorcerer!Ug... I can't push myself much longer, whatever he shot me with, it's knocking me out...
Her vision blurred again, and this time she didn't have
the strength to keep herself upright, so she let herself fall, the cloak
doing little to protect her from the sand as she tumbled down the side
of a dune. Lying there didn't help her any, and she couldn't help but sob
in frustration as she forced herself to her feet again, her entire body
rebelling against her as she took one step, then collapsed into blissful
unconsciousness.