Luna and Ana continued their journey together, slowly heading towards Salos. They walked at a slow pace and stopped in most villages. Nether of them were that good at fighting so they would avoided others who happened to be walking along the same road. Even if they didn't have any visible weapons the sisters would avoid them. So it was weird that when they found a bloodied and beaten paladin, they went over to him.
The paladin slowly turned his head. His eyes were dull and he was on the brink of death. His breathing was shallow. As the sisters went over to him, he mutter something to them on his last breath. He said they needed to help Tari, they couldn't hold on much longer. Ana picked the bow up from beside the now dead body and looked it over. It was warm to the touch and eleven made. The bow seemed to be made out of yew and some kind of metal which gave off a soft glow and the heat. Ana removed the quiver from his back and attached it around her waist and checked the arrows. About 40. 10 of which where made of a similar metal to which the bow was made from. The rest where wood with iron or steel tips.
Once she was done the two looked at each other. They had to go help didn't they? They couldn't just take his things and not. The two sighed almost together. They followed what seemed to be blood and black goo. They heard roars and growls accompanied with shrikes. The sisters started to run and found themselves in another clearing and they where not alone.
There where bodies of two or perhaps three other Paladins. It was hard to tell since they where spread out and in small bits. In the middle stood a small half elf in full plate armour. She had her long sword drawn which was giving off a soft glow of light and was covered in the black goo. Surrounding her was rotting corpses of three bears and some wolves yet they were still standing and attacking. Yet the scariest thing of them all stood behind her. A dragon. No where near as big as the one they had seen earlier. This one was about the size of a very large horse with silver scales around its body. It let out another roar but the paladin didn't turn around.
Instead, she raised her long sword and took another swing at the closest bear. Her sword smashed into its hide causing great chunks to fall down but the animal still stood. The paladin seemed to growl in frustration before yelling something.
"Adam, forget out being spotted, these creatures can not leave here!"
The silver dragon behind her seemed to listen to what was said before jumping over her. It's back paws just missed her shoulders and landed on the back on one of the bears. The bear howled in pain as the claws closed around its spine before the dragons wings started to flap. At first nothing really happened then all of a sudden, the dragon launched its self into the sky, bear being lifted at the same time.
The sisters watched this happening before Luna jumped forward drawing her sword, and headed over to help the paladin. Ana sighed and lifted her new bow. It had been a while since she had used one and her aim had never been amazing. She notched an iron arrow and drew the string back and took aim.
The tainted creatures didn't notice or if they did, didn't care about the sisters. All of them in turn, apart from the bear currently receiving flying lessons, launched themselves at the paladin. She managed to get out of the way of most of the attacks however one wolf managed to get its teeth between her armour. Blood started trickle out around the wolf's teeth and started to slowly change the colour of her armour to a crimson red. With a growl of pain, the paladin brought the hilt of her glowing long sword on to the wolf's head. There was a crack as bone split and the wolf stumbled back, more tainted fur and skin fell from its head and one of its eyes was missing. There was a green glow coming from deep within the socket.
With a step forward she brought her sword down and cut the head clean off. No blood flowed, on black gunk oozed out. The green light faded from the empty socket in the now detached head which happened to land in front of Luna. She stopped and gasped at the bodiless head which landed right where she was about to step. Tari finally noticed the sisters, one sword in hand, the other arrow notched. She opened her mouth to say something however what ever was said was not heard for at that exact moment a tattered and what should have been bloody bear feel from the sky. With an almighty crack the few remaining bones which were whole became powder. Black ooze seeped out around the very dead bear, and the twitching leg of a wolf could be seen from just out the side.
A roar accompanied the silver dragon swooping down. Its claws on its back paws were outstretched and tightened around the spine on another tainted creature, wolf this time. There was hardly time for surprise to appear on the wolf's rotting face as it was taken up into the clouds. Tari yelled out a thanks as she turned to face the decaying bears.
Luna gained her composure and stepped carefully around the wolf's head before running up and slashing at the bear's hide. It howled as more rotten flesh and fur falls to the floor and turned to face its new dinner. It lurched forwards, jaws snapping at the air where Luna had just been. Seeing her opportunity, Ana let go of the string which propelled the arrow forwards as the bow sprang back to its usual shape. There was a thawk as the arrow embedded itself in what was meant to be its nose. Maybe her aim was still good, only just missed where its eyes were meant to be.
The bear lashed out at Luna with its paw and claws and racked her side causing light cuts. She moaned in pain and one of her hand clasped her side. She managed to swing her sword at the bear and cut some more of the bear off. The other remaining bear lunged at the paladin and some how managed to bite the same spot as the wolf before it. Tari almost roared in pain as she again smashed her sword's hilt into the attacker's face. There was another crack however the bear only tightened its bite on her arm.
The bear shook its head, as if it was trying to rip her arm off. Tari struggled to pull herself away but in her effort she dropped her sword and only served to greaten the injury in her arm. Again she almost cried out in pain. A roar followed as the silver dragon came back down, wolf snapped in two, one half in ether paw. The dragon then shouted in a language which nether Luna or Ana understood however Tari seemed to understand as she nodded but was distracted by the bear currently trying to remover her arm. The silver dragon landed as it dropped the two halves of the wolf behind it.
As the dragon did this Ana released another two arrows. One hit the same bear in its back and the other sailed underneath it and snapped as it hit the ground. The bear reared up on its kind legs as more flesh fell from its bones. Half of the creatures skellington was now visible and the wolf which remained was in no better state. Luna slashed at the bear's belly as it reared and rotten guts were soon flowing out however it didn't seem to notice as it brought itself back down, smashing its paws where luna would have been if she had not dived out the way.
Tari raised her arm to strike the bear again, however this time it glowed with a golden light. As she smashed her hand down the light darted around the creature before seemingly to attack its very soul. The bear roared in rage and pain. As the glowing subsided so did the bears roars but also its flesh and bone. It turned a pale grey and fell to the floor in piles of ash.
As Ana notched another arrow and started to take aim she noticed that a thick fog was quickly surrounding Tari. Ana quickly noticed that the dragons eyes where glowing silver and the fog seemed to be emanating from him. The fog quickly surrounded him, Tari, Luna and the few tainted creatures which remained. Ana released the tension in the bow but kept hold of the arrow. There was no way she could hit anything on purpose through that.
Luna again dived out the way of the lunging bear. As she turned to slash back at it, she noticed the fog that now surrounded her. She swore and lashed out were the bear had been only to find that her sword swung through the fog with no resistance. She slowly turned around, sword ready. There was a two glowing green dots looking right back. Before Luna could jump out the way the bear launched itself at her again. Luna cried out as claws dug themselves into her sides.
Tari's form appeared next to Luna and a few seconds later, her glowing long sword came swinging down cutting more flesh, fur and gunk off the bear. It reared up in agony. Paws swinging wildly. The bear shook its head and spotted the sword which had removed more of its hide. It started to bring its paws down towards Tari. Claws gleaming with Luna's blood. Suddenly the bears movement jerked to a stop. Almost as if it had been frozen solid. It made no move. It was as if some one had just sculpted that very position it held, into stone. All of a sudden two silver sails smashed into the the bear. It fell backwards, still holding the same position however. As it did so, the wind which was created by the attack started to disperse the fog.
At hearing her sister's cry, Ana ran forwards towards the fog. There was a splash of golden light a few seconds before Ana fell over backwards as a wall of wind knocked her off her feet. World spinning, Ana dragged herself up. She could see Luna and the form of Tari standing beside her, eyes glowing white. Pulling herself to her feet Ana noticed the fog was quickly disappearing but the form of a silver dragon could not be seen.
Tari's eyes returned to normal and crouched down next Luna, her plate armour rattling as she did so. She reached her hand out, which again glowed with a divine light. She touched her hand to claw marks in Luna's side, which instantly started to glow with the same light. As it faded it away the wounds were mostly healed and only a few scratches and bloodied clothes remained.
Ana walked over to the two, still glancing around for where the silver dragon had gone. She sat down next to luna and started to de-string her newly acquired bow. Tari straightened up and put her long sword back on to her back. She glanced around at the tainted creatures and her fallen comrades which lay strewn around them. Most of the creatures bodies had either almost or completely turned into ash. There were splashes of black gunk and ooze across the clearing which was slowly seeping into the other paladin bodies where no better off. She sighed with frustration before turning back to the sisters.
"Well I'm not sure if I should thank you for your help or call you stupid for joining in. Either way im sorry that you got attacked by those things. Spawn of evil. Never known them to group up. They are normaly more vicious to each other than when they aren't afflicted."
The sisters were paying attention to Tari but they were both still looking around for the second dragon they had ever seen. Tari looked at the two, and her eyes flared back to glowing with white energy. Her gaze lingered on the sisters before she glanced around the clearing and beyond it. As her eyes returned to their normal colour. She sighed again.
"Well its not like we can hid it from you after that."
Tari sat down opposite the two sisters. As she did so, Tari yelled out in the strange language they had heard her and the dragon use before. She leaned back slightly and smiled. There was rustling in the bushes near by before a man walked out. He was wearing a simple traveling outfit which looked a bit tatty. He was quite short for a human and had no weapons on him. His hair was platinum blond and was cut short. As he approached the two also noticed that his eyes shone with silvery light and if looked at closely, clouds seem to drift across his eyes.
"I am Adam"