Final re-post. All new after this chapter. Enjoy and thanks for being patient with me.
Anduin was having a good time on Pandaria, all things considered. True, the work was challenging and he wasn't entirely safe all the time, but he was making progress with the mission to help make things right with the inhabitants of Pandaria, as well as with Pandaria itself. The arrival of the Alliance and the Horde had set events in motion which were hurting the continent. Anduin vowed to stay and help where he could and use his diplomatic skills to make peace between the Pandarens and the Alliance.
His father kept sending soldiers out to find him. At first, they were sent to bring Anduin back home to Stormwind. Anduin refused, which put the soldiers in a tough position between him and his father, but Anduin didn't back down. What he was doing was too important to just pack up and go home.
Once Varian got the point his son would not return home, he sent out soldiers to protect him. Anduin, being as stubborn as his father, refused these soldiers too. Anduin felt he had something to prove to his father and now was as good a time as any to do it. He could do this on this own. Not to mention, Anduin needed stealth in his work and bodyguards were anything but stealthy.
Anduin sat just inside his tent, compiling data about his last trip to observe the Sha. It was fascinating how emotions themselves could manifest in such a way. He was so deep in thought, he almost missed the sound of horses approaching. With a scowl, he put away his work and left his tent. Would his father not give up? He was met at the edge of his camp by Captain Leda. He had been there several times before.
"Captain, I thought I told you I didn't need your protection." The prince said, sounding agitated. "I don't need your soldiers."
"You might not need soldiers, but what about a friend?" Came a familiar voice from further down the line of soldiers. Moments later, Kia walked around the captain, riding Quinn. She was dressed in full ranger garb, complete with her bow and her custom made elvish short sword. It had been over a year since he'd seen her.
"Ki! What are you doing here?" Anduin asked, rushing over to hug his friend, once she jumped down off of Quinn.
Kia hugged him back, noticing she was able to look him in the eyes without looking down slightly. "You've grown! You're exactly my height now."
Anduin shrugged. "I'm a growing boy and you're old."
Kia slapped him on the arm playfully. "It's rude to call a woman old, ya know?"
"My father sent you, didn't he?" Anduin asked, frustrated, his smile at seeing his friend faded.
Kia nodded. "Indeed he did."
Anduin turned, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm not returning to Stormwind. Even for you."
"I didn't think you would. I told your father you won't listen to me." Kia replied casually.
Wrinkles formed between Anduin's eyes as he turned back around and frowned at this friend. "Then why are you here?" He held up his hands. "Not that I'm upset to see you, of course."
Kia walked further into the camp, sitting on a log next to the firepit. "Your father first asked if I would try to convince you to come home. I told him you won't listen, but that I'd try anyway. I then agreed to stay here with you, once you refused my heartfelt attempt to get you back to Stormwind." She looked over at the captain. " If anyone asks, I made a heartfelt attempt to convince the prince to return to Stormwind."
Anduin didn't know what to say. He didn't need protection, but he couldn't just send his best friend away, either. He should've known better than to underestimate this father's persistence and ingenuity. He was silent for several minutes. He wanted to be mad, but he was too happy to see Kia. Damned if his father was going to win this round.
"You can stay, but only as a friend. You're not my bodyguard."
"Nope, not a bodyguard. That's what I have Quinn and Lantash for." Kia nodded in Quinn's direction.
"Lantash?" Anduin asked.
"Lantash is my new dragon friend. He's around here somewhere, exploring. He's only just over 7 months old and has a short attention span. This is his first time away from his dragonflight. He's very excited." Kia explained.
Anduin beamed. He had never actually been close to a dragon before. Well, not one that wasn't looking to kill him, anyway. Few people had.
"Anyway…" Kia stood and walk up to Captain Leda. "It's agreed. I'm staying, so you can depart. Go back to the ship or on whatever mission you've been assigned after dropping me off."
Honestly, Kia didn't see the need to be escorted to Anduin's camp. All they really needed to do was point her in the right direction and she could have found it on her own, but the admiral insisted she be accompanied by the captain and his men.
"But my lady…" The captain began to object.
"Don't 'my lady' me. The agreement was for you and your men to leave, once Anduin agreed to let me stay. Now shoo." She said, waving her hand in a dismissive fashion, as if to shoo them away.
Reluctantly, the captain nodded his head in acknowledgement and ordered his men away. Anduin and Kia waited until they were no longer visible before speaking.
"The captain seemed shocked you wanted him to leave." Anduin commented.
Kia shrugged. "I have no idea why. I thought the arrangement was totally clear when we set sail from Stormwind. Your father and I were on the same page, but he might have given his men additional orders."
"I won't be surprised." Anduin agreed.
"I'm in the water just north of you. You should bring the prince over so I can size him up." Lantash said in Kia's mind.
"You are not allowed to eat him." Kia replied in her mind. "Is there a river just north of here?" Kia asked Anduin. He hadn't seemed to notice her mental pause while she talked with Lantash.
"Yes. I cross it everyday to get to the site I've been monitoring. Why?"
"Apparently, Lantash is splashing around in it and has summoned us."
Anduin looked at her, confused. "Summoned us?"
"We have a bond. He can talk to me in my mind, as well as out loud. He tends to butt in on my mind whenever it suits him. I've gotten used to it."
"Well, in that case, let's not keep him waiting."
Anduin led the way down a fairly well used path. Quinn ran up ahead and walked next to the prince. It made Kia smile.
"This jungle is actually quite nice. It's quiet and very beautiful. Not a bad place to set up a camp." Kia said.
"As long as you don't mind the occasional predator knocking at your door." Quinn replied. "I smell all types of wildlife."
"What'd she say?' Anduin asked.
"She agrees with my assessment, as long as you're okay with predators. She's smelling all kinds of things living in this jungle."
"Most of them shy away from my campfire, but a flash of light works almost as well to scare them off. I haven't had too much trouble with the local wildlife so far."
They walked in silence for a few moments. "Was your mission in Northrend a success?" Anduin finally asked.
"It was. The poor red dragonflight eggs were scared to hatch, what with a good portion of the adult dragons going out to fight the Lich King. Once they finally starting talking to me, we were able to fix the problem and red dragons starting hatching again."
Anduin paused long enough for Kia to catch up, so they were walking side by side.
"So Lantash is a red dragon?"
"Albino, actually. His spikes are a bit red, but he's mostly white. I think his uniqueness was why he asked to follow me on my journeys. He and I have that in common."
Anduin held a branch out of the way, so Kia could walk under it. "You said he was only seven months old. Is he big enough to ride?"
Kia chuckled, thinking of the last time she had attempted to ride Lantash. She had almost fallen off and he had almost crashed into a mountain. The older dragons got a good laugh out of the attempt. "Yes, but he's still learning how to fly by himself. I've only ridden him twice so far. I've found it's hard to keep balance on a dragon who's not overly good at keeping balance. We're both learning the ins and outs of it. It'll be easier, once he reaches full size. He's still has a few years of growth ahead of him."
"So, you didn't leave any work in Northrend to come here." Anduin sounded worried. He obviously didn't like the idea that Kia might have been pulled from something important to play bodyguard.
"Nope. I'm all yours for as long as you're out here." She said happily, though Attros's face came to mind. She hadn't left any work behind, but other things, yes. Anduin didn't need to know that. If Anduin were female, she might feel compelled to share, but this kind of thing wasn't openly shared between friends of opposite gender. No point dwelling on it, though. Kia was happy to be here with Anduin.
They made it to the river and had no trouble finding Lantash. The dragon was taller than the depth of the river, so you could see half of him sticking out of the water. He looked to be rolling around in the deepest part of the river.
"Lantash! What are you doing?' Kia yelled out to the dragon.
"I've immersing myself in this new land!" He growled back, continuing to roll.
"It kinda looks like you're rolling around in the mud to me. You said you wanted to meet the prince, so get over here and meet him. Try not to soak us in the process, please."
Lantash stood, dipping into the deepest part of the water a few times to wash off the mud, then came over to where they were standing. The water was making his scales sparkle in the sunlight. He shook once before coming to within a foot of Anduin. He lowered his long neck, so he was looking at him face to face.
"Hmmm, not as old as the other one, but he's not as scrawny. He's not useless, is he?" Lantash growled.
"Lantash, that's rude." Kia scolded.
"It's okay if he's useless. He's a prince. Their allowed." Lantash clarified.
"What'd he say?" Anduin asked.
"I'm afraid Lantash has been around too many of the magi of the Kirin Tor. He's wondering if you're more powerful than you look, though he used less polite wording. Don't mind the comment, dragons have an interesting way of looking at bipedal beings and are usually very honest."
Anduin chuckled at the comment. "As a matter of fact, I'm a priest. I'm not a mage, but I do have the power of the Light."
Lantash seemed to consider Anduin's word, small puffs of smoke escaping from his jaws. Kia knew he was doing it to try and intimidate the prince. "Well, it that case, I'm happy to meet him. Please tell him I'll refrain from eating him until I've witnessed this power myself." Lantash turned and headed back out into the river.
Ki rolled her eyes. Anduin looked over to her expectantly.
"He says he's happy to meet you and will refrain from eating you." She replied.
"I'm happy to meet you too." Anduin said with a bow. "It's a honor to meet such a handsome and powerful dragon."
Lantash turn is head around to look at the prince, laughed in his own way. "On second thought, I like him. You have my permission to mate with him, if you wish."
Kia choked, having been thrown off by the dragon's comment. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at her reptilian friend. "That was inappropriate, Lantash."
The dragon only continued to chuckle as he strolled down the river. "I'm just saying, since the mage isn't around anymore. I think this human would be a suitable replacement. I'll be back in an hour or two."
Kia merely sighed and turned to Anduin, who was waiting for her to translate for the dragon. She could feel herself blushing slightly, though it wasn't overly noticeable on her blue/green skin.
"Trust me, you're much happier not knowing what he just said. But, he does like you. I'm hoping he'll learn to speak a little less like a juvenile once he grows up, though I doubt I'll be that lucky."
Anduin laughed, looking slightly disappointed, but he let the subject drop. "He is a fine looking dragon. It'll be interesting having him around."
Kia nodded. "That's one way of putting it. Sometimes, he's wise beyond his years. Other times it's like talking to a five year old."
They headed back to the campsite in relative silence. Anduin was happy he agreed to to let Ki stay. It would be nice to have friends around.
To Be Continued...