Part 2
Tareirah grinned to himself as he slowly walked through the makeshift barracks that the creatures under his command were residing in. The grin he shed was savage, and could only be remade by another such as himself, a warlord.
"My Lord!" A red lenny said running up to the draik.
Tareirah turned, "Yes, what is it lieutenant?" "We are ready to attack. The preparations have all been made, and all we are waiting for is your command."
"Tell the men that they have it." Tareirah turned away from his lieutenant quickly, and with a quick nod, the lenny rushed off to leave the draik in peace. He reached up a hand and stroked his fingers gently over Skyblade's silken feathers. The airax opened up a hazel eye, and crooned in appreciation to its master's touch, and the subtle start of a smile started on the draik's lips, but years of being a warlord kept him from making any more of that smile.
"Soon Skyblade." He said to himself as much as the airax. "Soon, the cities defenses will fall, and my men will storm their city, and claim it in my name. Once we have a city of our own, we can finally settle down. There won't be anymore wandering from place to place as a band of renegades. We'll finally be regarded with the respect we deserve." The airax chirped to him, and he clutched his fists together, "Salamar will pay for what he did to me..."
Tareirah's thoughts drifted back through the years to the time when he was still fresh and whole. He had been a promising general even then, fresh out of training and quite willing to work within the walls of Tasarets. He was not alone though, for there was another promising warrior, the cybunny crowned prince Salamar.
Despite Salamar being his lead opponent, Tareirah and the prince soon became tight friends, and became the strongest duo the kingdom had ever heard of. Through the friendship the two shared, they went on many journeys, and had many misadventures together which they could always laugh about later on. It seemed that nothing could break the friendship between the raggedy white draik swordsman, and the crowned prince of the city. But something did come between them eventually.
Salamar's father, the prince, became horribly ill, and none of the healers could cure him. With his father hanging on death's door, Salamar had become distraught, and often couldn't even find it in him to speak to the draik whom he had become such good friends with. Tareirah hated to see his friend in such a state, so he dug up every last book the kingdom owned on sicknesses determined to find a cure for his friend's father, and yet nothing seemed to be of any help at all. The healers had already dug through all those books hoeing to restore the king to health themselves.
The answer finally did come to him in a small shop owned by a fortuneteller kyrii. Tareirah had been wandering around in some of the less traveled sections of the city when he spotted the old tattered book in the window of the kyrii's shop. Curious, he had picked it up, and began to read through it, and all the knowledge contained within amazed him beyond belief. Instantly, he had approached the kyrii and offered to buy the book. He offered all the money that he had stored up in his pockets, and although the kyrii didn't look like he wanted to give up the book, he eventually did due to the generous price offered by Tareirah.
He had stayed up the entire night, reading through the old and dusty pages of the book, searching for anything that could help him in his quest to help his friend's father. At last, he did find it, it was all in the book. All the symptoms of the illness were described, and even better, a cure was stated too. There was a special herb that he had to collect, but it was not going to be easy to get, and would require a partner.
Right away, Tareirah was going to find Salamar to ask the cybunny for his help to save his father, the king, but Tareirah decided against it. He thought that it would cause so much more joy if he instead surprised his friend with the cure to the disease. Tareirah still needed a partner to help him out though, so he choose Elnar, Salamar's younger brother, to be his partner. He had never liked his friend's younger brother, he was always whining and complaining, and always wanted things to go his way. However, Salamar loved his brother dearly, so Tareirah would stand for him.
Elnar instantly agreed to help Tareirah in the search for the herb, but little did he know, that the younger brother of his friend was traitorous. Elnar was gifted in the ability to make poisons, something that wasn't widely known except to those he did his dealings with. Also, he was jealous of his brother being next in line to the thrown, he believed that spot belonged to him. He had set up the plans to poison his own father with a very special poison that wouldn't kill by itself, but would cause the consumer to become dreadfully ill with a disease that he did not believe there was a cure too. After his father would pass into the afterlife, his brother would become king, but only for a short period of time before he too was to come down with this 'sickness.' That would leave only him to become king at last. It was the perfect plan, his brother's friend was not supposed to come up with a cure to the disease.
He had gotten lucky though, Tareirah had invited him of all people to join him in this quest to find the herb that could be used to cure his father's illness. It was just too bad that there would be an accident during the night to the draik as soon as they were far enough away from the city to avoid detection.
Finally, that time had come, and while Tareirah was asleep. Elnar pulled out a long curved dagger, and slowly walked towards the sleeping form of Tareirah, ready to end things there. However, the draik was long trained in combat, and he was a light sleeper. Elnar posed his arm, ready to strike, but before he could bring his blade down, Tareirah opened his eyes, and saw the cybunny about to strike. He rolled to the side just as Elnar slammed his dagger downwards, but it was not a complete miss. Instead of hitting Tareirah's chest, it instead slammed into his right wing, cutting near the bone.
Realizing that his attack had not hit home, Elnar quickly turned tail and ran for it, leaving Tareirah to wither as pain shot through the wound that was inflicted in him. His wing almost instantly become numb, and it was obvious to Tareirah that the blade had been poisoned as well. Ripping off some of his shirt to use as a makeshift bandage, he tightly wound it over the injured part of his wing to slow the wound, and hopefully stop the spread of the poison. Wincing he had crawled over to the pack left behind from Elnar. Inside there was a little journal, which Tareirah opened up and started reading through. He gasped as he read through the parts expressing what the cybunny planned to do, and he instantly knew what he had to do. He had to warn Salamar.
The journey was slow, and painstaking, but eventually, Tareirah reached the city and was met by a flurry of guards. They had bound him, and carried him before the chambers of Salamar. "What is the meaning of this?" He had asked. "Why do you bring my friend here tied up like a prisoner!?"
"My prince." The head guard bowed to Salamar. "Your brother Elnar ordered it to be so."
Tareirah growled at those words, but a quick smack from the guard holding him silenced him. "And why would he order that?"
The guard gave a quick bow to Salamar. "Your brother has discovered that he is in league with a group of bandits. Your friend has been poisoning the king, with plans of getting rid of the royal family so that he could in turn rule."
Tareirah's eyes had gone wide. Lies, it was all lies. Surely his friend would realize that.
Salamar had stared into his eyes with a cold dark hatred that he had never seen before. "And I called you my friend. Take him away from my sight!"
It couldn't be true, he had set out to help, and was being condemned. A cold furry blazed in Tareirah's eyes at that moment, and with a yell, he kicked one strong leg into one of the guards, and rammed his fist into the other to knock them from him. He quickly used his dagger to cut the ropes from his hands before the guards could regain themselves, and drawing his sword, he jumped out the window.
His injured wing burned as if it was doused in flames from the strained flight, but Tareirah didn't even care as his cold gaze set upon the form of Elnar who was walking amongst the crowds below. The cybunny traitor barely even had a chance to turn as Tareirah fell upon him with the steel of his sword, and watched the threat to the kingdom fall beneath his very fingers. Guards rushed in at him, and Tareirah fell to them without much any of a fight at all.
He had been condemned. Salamar did no believe a word he said, and his once friend had had him tossed into the deserts without any food or medicine for his wing, and he was declared an exile. He could never return.
It was because of Salamar that his wing did not heal correctly, causing him to loose the power of full flight. It was Salamar's fault that he had almost died out in the deserts, and was picked up by a band of cruel mercenaries. He had learned their ways, and soon became a warlord. Now he would have his revenge against the one he once dared call friend, and he would claim the thrown for himself just as he was once upon a time falsely accused of. He would paint the palace walls red as payment for the torture he had to go through. It was the bittersweet joys of revenge.
Tareirah grinned to himself as he slowly walked through the makeshift barracks that the creatures under his command were residing in. The grin he shed was savage, and could only be remade by another such as himself, a warlord.
"My Lord!" A red lenny said running up to the draik.
Tareirah turned, "Yes, what is it lieutenant?" "We are ready to attack. The preparations have all been made, and all we are waiting for is your command."
"Tell the men that they have it." Tareirah turned away from his lieutenant quickly, and with a quick nod, the lenny rushed off to leave the draik in peace. He reached up a hand and stroked his fingers gently over Skyblade's silken feathers. The airax opened up a hazel eye, and crooned in appreciation to its master's touch, and the subtle start of a smile started on the draik's lips, but years of being a warlord kept him from making any more of that smile.
"Soon Skyblade." He said to himself as much as the airax. "Soon, the cities defenses will fall, and my men will storm their city, and claim it in my name. Once we have a city of our own, we can finally settle down. There won't be anymore wandering from place to place as a band of renegades. We'll finally be regarded with the respect we deserve." The airax chirped to him, and he clutched his fists together, "Salamar will pay for what he did to me..."
Tareirah's thoughts drifted back through the years to the time when he was still fresh and whole. He had been a promising general even then, fresh out of training and quite willing to work within the walls of Tasarets. He was not alone though, for there was another promising warrior, the cybunny crowned prince Salamar.
Despite Salamar being his lead opponent, Tareirah and the prince soon became tight friends, and became the strongest duo the kingdom had ever heard of. Through the friendship the two shared, they went on many journeys, and had many misadventures together which they could always laugh about later on. It seemed that nothing could break the friendship between the raggedy white draik swordsman, and the crowned prince of the city. But something did come between them eventually.
Salamar's father, the prince, became horribly ill, and none of the healers could cure him. With his father hanging on death's door, Salamar had become distraught, and often couldn't even find it in him to speak to the draik whom he had become such good friends with. Tareirah hated to see his friend in such a state, so he dug up every last book the kingdom owned on sicknesses determined to find a cure for his friend's father, and yet nothing seemed to be of any help at all. The healers had already dug through all those books hoeing to restore the king to health themselves.
The answer finally did come to him in a small shop owned by a fortuneteller kyrii. Tareirah had been wandering around in some of the less traveled sections of the city when he spotted the old tattered book in the window of the kyrii's shop. Curious, he had picked it up, and began to read through it, and all the knowledge contained within amazed him beyond belief. Instantly, he had approached the kyrii and offered to buy the book. He offered all the money that he had stored up in his pockets, and although the kyrii didn't look like he wanted to give up the book, he eventually did due to the generous price offered by Tareirah.
He had stayed up the entire night, reading through the old and dusty pages of the book, searching for anything that could help him in his quest to help his friend's father. At last, he did find it, it was all in the book. All the symptoms of the illness were described, and even better, a cure was stated too. There was a special herb that he had to collect, but it was not going to be easy to get, and would require a partner.
Right away, Tareirah was going to find Salamar to ask the cybunny for his help to save his father, the king, but Tareirah decided against it. He thought that it would cause so much more joy if he instead surprised his friend with the cure to the disease. Tareirah still needed a partner to help him out though, so he choose Elnar, Salamar's younger brother, to be his partner. He had never liked his friend's younger brother, he was always whining and complaining, and always wanted things to go his way. However, Salamar loved his brother dearly, so Tareirah would stand for him.
Elnar instantly agreed to help Tareirah in the search for the herb, but little did he know, that the younger brother of his friend was traitorous. Elnar was gifted in the ability to make poisons, something that wasn't widely known except to those he did his dealings with. Also, he was jealous of his brother being next in line to the thrown, he believed that spot belonged to him. He had set up the plans to poison his own father with a very special poison that wouldn't kill by itself, but would cause the consumer to become dreadfully ill with a disease that he did not believe there was a cure too. After his father would pass into the afterlife, his brother would become king, but only for a short period of time before he too was to come down with this 'sickness.' That would leave only him to become king at last. It was the perfect plan, his brother's friend was not supposed to come up with a cure to the disease.
He had gotten lucky though, Tareirah had invited him of all people to join him in this quest to find the herb that could be used to cure his father's illness. It was just too bad that there would be an accident during the night to the draik as soon as they were far enough away from the city to avoid detection.
Finally, that time had come, and while Tareirah was asleep. Elnar pulled out a long curved dagger, and slowly walked towards the sleeping form of Tareirah, ready to end things there. However, the draik was long trained in combat, and he was a light sleeper. Elnar posed his arm, ready to strike, but before he could bring his blade down, Tareirah opened his eyes, and saw the cybunny about to strike. He rolled to the side just as Elnar slammed his dagger downwards, but it was not a complete miss. Instead of hitting Tareirah's chest, it instead slammed into his right wing, cutting near the bone.
Realizing that his attack had not hit home, Elnar quickly turned tail and ran for it, leaving Tareirah to wither as pain shot through the wound that was inflicted in him. His wing almost instantly become numb, and it was obvious to Tareirah that the blade had been poisoned as well. Ripping off some of his shirt to use as a makeshift bandage, he tightly wound it over the injured part of his wing to slow the wound, and hopefully stop the spread of the poison. Wincing he had crawled over to the pack left behind from Elnar. Inside there was a little journal, which Tareirah opened up and started reading through. He gasped as he read through the parts expressing what the cybunny planned to do, and he instantly knew what he had to do. He had to warn Salamar.
The journey was slow, and painstaking, but eventually, Tareirah reached the city and was met by a flurry of guards. They had bound him, and carried him before the chambers of Salamar. "What is the meaning of this?" He had asked. "Why do you bring my friend here tied up like a prisoner!?"
"My prince." The head guard bowed to Salamar. "Your brother Elnar ordered it to be so."
Tareirah growled at those words, but a quick smack from the guard holding him silenced him. "And why would he order that?"
The guard gave a quick bow to Salamar. "Your brother has discovered that he is in league with a group of bandits. Your friend has been poisoning the king, with plans of getting rid of the royal family so that he could in turn rule."
Tareirah's eyes had gone wide. Lies, it was all lies. Surely his friend would realize that.
Salamar had stared into his eyes with a cold dark hatred that he had never seen before. "And I called you my friend. Take him away from my sight!"
It couldn't be true, he had set out to help, and was being condemned. A cold furry blazed in Tareirah's eyes at that moment, and with a yell, he kicked one strong leg into one of the guards, and rammed his fist into the other to knock them from him. He quickly used his dagger to cut the ropes from his hands before the guards could regain themselves, and drawing his sword, he jumped out the window.
His injured wing burned as if it was doused in flames from the strained flight, but Tareirah didn't even care as his cold gaze set upon the form of Elnar who was walking amongst the crowds below. The cybunny traitor barely even had a chance to turn as Tareirah fell upon him with the steel of his sword, and watched the threat to the kingdom fall beneath his very fingers. Guards rushed in at him, and Tareirah fell to them without much any of a fight at all.
He had been condemned. Salamar did no believe a word he said, and his once friend had had him tossed into the deserts without any food or medicine for his wing, and he was declared an exile. He could never return.
It was because of Salamar that his wing did not heal correctly, causing him to loose the power of full flight. It was Salamar's fault that he had almost died out in the deserts, and was picked up by a band of cruel mercenaries. He had learned their ways, and soon became a warlord. Now he would have his revenge against the one he once dared call friend, and he would claim the thrown for himself just as he was once upon a time falsely accused of. He would paint the palace walls red as payment for the torture he had to go through. It was the bittersweet joys of revenge.