Mutants Misplaced

Chapter 26

On Different Paths

Rain. The cool touch of the falling drops of water. That was the feeling that awoke Tyroth from his dreamless slumber. Feeling rigid, he slowly got on his feet, and while he was still a bit sore, all his wounds seemed to have healed. He had been out for quite some time for that to happen.

Looking around, he noticed that it wasn't night anymore, but daytime, although he wasn't sure what time of day with all the rainclouds in the sky. Turning his eyes to the bones of Lokdrogyol, he tried to remember exactly what had happened after the battle, but it was all fuzzy at best. At least the forest fire was being doused by the rain, but he couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the others.

Not far away, the three turtles searched the areas where the fire had already gone out. It was still very hot, but as long as they kept moving, they would be fine. They had found Tyroth's sword among the burned trees quite far away from where they were now, and they were worried about what had happened to their friend.

Continuing to move through the ash and charcoal, they soon caught sight of their red friend and were relieved to see that he was still in one piece.

"Hey, Tyroth!" Mikey shouted and waved to catch the dragon's attention, something that he was very good at. The brothers hurried over to him.

"Man, are we glad to see you, we thought that- Whoa!" Mikey exclaimed when he saw what was left of Lokdrogyol. Leo and Donnie were equally stunned.

"Holy shell, dude! You sure did a number on this guy, but, don't you think this was a bit overkill?"

"How did you manage this? Complete incineration of all flesh would take an awful lot of energy." said Donnie.

"I'm actually not sure what happened myself. Once I killed him, he just started to burn, then there was something else, not sure what, but it knocked me out cold. How long have I been gone?"

"Almost three quarters of a day. We feared the worst, but it seems like once again, the worst wasn't enough to take you down for good." said Leo.

"It certainly tried, that's for sure. Where are the others? Have you found Raph and Mona?"

"There's been no sign of them, but we haven't been able to even enter the area to search because of the fire and lingering heat." said Donnie. "That's why Sephie and Devina stayed behind, they couldn't handle it. We only started searching less than an hour ago, couldn't do a thing while the two of you fought, there were so many fire explosions that the fire spread incredibly fast."

"I really hope that they are okay." said Mikey worried. "But what if they're dead? Oh no! They can't be! Who's gonna whack me on the head? And who's gonna comfort me after said whacking?"

"Calm down, Mikey. Since we haven't found a trace after them, they have most likely avoided the fire. And we will find them, don't worry, okay?" said Leo, placing a hand on Mikey's shoulder.

"We should head back to the girls, the heat is still a bit more than ideal for us." said Donnie.

"I can search from the air, but I need some rest and water first, not to mention time to think a little." said Tyroth.

As they headed back out of the ruined forest, Leo prayed that Raph and Mona were safe.

'Ancient One, please keep my brother and sister safe, and guide us to them.'

Outside the previously forested area, Sephie and Devina waited for the others to return. They had made a temporary camp among some large rocks, shielded from the sun and any fire that might spread that far. The wait was agonizing, but even worse was that the couldn't help in the search because of the fire and heat.

Sephie was feeling completely useless, it was her fault that Raph took off with Mona, and now they didn't now if they were still alive. She didn't even know if her lover was alive. And then there was that thundering voice last night, that caused Devina to get deeply concerned and confused.

"Cheer up." Devina said, noticing Sephie's distress. "I'm sure they'll be fine. They're probably on their way back right now."

"I sure hope so, but that dragon... what if we were to late?"

"Something tells me that that dragon got more than it bargained for."

Before Sephie could ask what Devina meant, they heard someone approaching.

"And they're back." said Devina. And so they were. Sephie was overjoyed to see her beloved mate alive and well, a few tears of relief falling as she hugged him. But the joy was cut short when they heard that there had been no sign of Raph or Mona. At least there was still the possibility of them being alive, and that was the only thing that kept the group from losing hope.

But the news that Devina reacted the most to, was what happened after Tyroth killed Lokdrogyol.

"It started burning, without fire? And then some kind of energy struck you?" she asked to confirm what Tyroth had already told them, and he nodded in response.

"Then it was you! You're the one they called upon!" she said excited.

"Slow down. What are you talking about?" said Leo.

"Tyroth is Dragonborn!"

"He gets that a lot." said Mikey.

"Mikey's right, I do get that a lot, but what does it mean? I doubt that it has anything to do with how I look." said Tyroth.

"Right, you're from another world, you've never heard the legend. Well, in short, the Dragonborn is the ultimate dragon slayer."

"So, no one else can kill a dragon?" said Sephie.

"No, but yes, or... Anyone can kill a dragon, if they have the skill and luck, but the dragons can be brought back to life by another dragon's magic. That's why they are returning, they were all killed a long time ago, but not too long ago another dragon appeared and started resurrecting the rest. However, if a dragon kill another dragon, the killer absorbs the victim's soul and power, thus preventing it from being brought back to life again. A Dragonborn is a mortal born with a soul like the dragons', and can take their souls just like a dragon. That's what that energy was, the dragon's soul that you took."

Tyroth didn't know what to say, he felt sickened by the fact that he had taken someones soul. Killing people didn't bother him very much anymore, it was something that had to be done, but he would never even consider stealing a soul, it was just not right. His friends looked just as shocked as him, and he didn't blame them.

"Did you really take the dragons soul?" Sephie asked her lover, she was scared and worried. Tyroth was quiet for a short moment, going over what had happened. The more he thought about it, the more it started to make sense and the pieces fitted together.

"...yes..." he said weakly. "I... all the images that I saw in my mind... were his memories... I took them all, took everything he ever was... but I don't know how, I only tried to shield me from what I though was a final attack."

"We're not blaming you, we only want to know what happened to you." said Leo. "But I still don't understand why it happened in the first place. Since we're from another world, and the Dragonborn doesn't exist there, why would you even be able to take a dragons soul?"

"It might just be because we are from another world." said Donnie, rubbing his chin while deep in thought. "Our two worlds are different, have different rules of reality, and being here, we must be subjected to this worlds rules. And even if Tyroth isn't this Dragonborn of legend, he is apparently enough dragon to have their rules applied to him as well."

"This is giving me a major headache." said Mikey. "Is there something we can do about it?"

"I don't know. Avoiding any more dragons seems like the only option."

"A good idea, regardless of what happens." said Leo. "But, Devina, you said that 'they called upon' Tyroth. Could you explain who 'they' are?"

"The Greybeards, they are an ancient order that lives up on the Throat of the World, the tallest mountain in the world, in High Hrothgar, a temple of sorts. They have mastered the dragons' magic, the Thu'um, or the Voice, and guides any Dragonborn that appears down the path of wisdom, or so they say. For the most part, they don't seem to take notice of what happens in the rest of the land. But a few months ago, they called out to the first Dragonborn in ages. And now they called out again, this time to you, Tyroth."

"Called? You mean they actually shouted?" said Mikey.

"Yes. That was the 'strange thunder', as you called it. They literally shouted from their mountain, hoping that he would hear them. But this time it was only one voice, not four or five whatever it might be, and it sounded a lot more darker and powerful, but not evil. I really think that you should meet with them either way."

"Maybe... but right now, I don't know." said Tyroth. "I... I need to be alone for a while, gather my thoughts." Tyroth said as he got up from his seat and started walking to the edge of their camp.

"But, honey?"

"Please, Sephie, just... just let me be for a little while, okay?"

Sephie really wanted to be by his side, she had been worried sick about him and now he needed comfort, just like she did. But if he thought that he needed to be alone she would respect that. He would let her help when he felt that he understood more of what was happening to him, she knew it.

"If you're sure, then I'll wait for you here. I'll always be here for you, no matter what happens."

Tyroth smiled weakly at his love and nodded, before continuing to walk away a bit. There was so much going through his head at the moment, and he really needed to sort it all out.

'I hope that Raph and Mona are alright.' he thought.

Mona slowly woke up from her sleep, her entire body ached but there didn't seem to be any serious injuries as far as she could tell. She didn't know where she were, or how she got there, but she was laying with a blanket on top of her. Shifting around a little, she felt a presence next to her.

"Hey, babe. How are you feeling?"

"Raph? Where are we? What happened?" Mona asked, looking at her lover as he sat on a log next to her.

"Quite a lot happened, are you sure that you don't remember any of it?"

"Well... I remember us being in a forest. Then there was... the dragon! We were attacked!"

Memories started to return and Mona remembered everything that happened when they tried to find the others.

Flashback

Running as fast as they could, they had received several cuts and scratches from branches and bark, and it didn't get any better when Raph tripped on a root. Falling to the hard ground, he cried out in pain.

"Raph!" Mona cried out and hurried to get him back on his feet, but despite her help, he couldn't stand on his leg, he grunted in pain and almost fell over again.

"Damn! I think it's broken!" he said. Looking at Mona, he said the next thing with a heavy heart. "Mona, leave me here and save yourself."

"What?! No! I won't abandon you! We'll make it through this!"

"I'll only slow you down, I want you to live and be happy."

"Shut up! You're coming with me and that's final!" she half yelled. Putting his arm over her shoulders, she made sure that he didn't put any weight on his injured leg.

With a battle raging above, the couple hurried as fast as they could, but the forest fire was spreading quickly.

After what seemed like an eternity, they finally made it to the edge of the forest and found themselves on the edge of a cliff overlooking a dirt road. Normally they wouldn't have had any trouble with a three meters jump, but with Raph's injury they had to find another way.

While they looked in every direction for a path down, a stray fireball from the dragons' battle struck the ground behind the couple. While they weren't injured by the explosion, they were still knocked over the edge by the shockwave.

Hitting the ground below, Mona tried to move, but she just didn't have the strength. Reaching out for her lover, she passed out.

End flashback

"We... we fell... but, what happened after that? Did the Leo and the others find us?"

"No, they didn't, but they did." said Raph, nodding to the other side.

Turning around, Mona saw several cat people, or Khajiit as they called themselves. She had never seen a Khajiit before, but they had heard or been told about them. Traveling the roads of Skyrim in small caravans, they were never permitted to enter the cities, as many sees them as thieves and smugglers.

Taking a closer look at the four cats, Mona saw that their clothes were well worn and simple, their fur was short but thick and of varying coloration. Just like the Argonians were more lizard like than Mona and Sephie, the Khajiit were more cat like than the cheetah mutant Sarah.

One of the Khajiit, a female, approached Mona and knelt by her side. She wore a black and blue dress, her fur reminded of that of a lynx.

"Are you alright?" she asked with a half dark voice.

"Yes... yes I think so."

"That is good. We found you on the road and brought you with us, tended to your wounds as best we could."

"They even secured my broken leg so it could heal properly." said Raph, pointing at his leg. Bandages of rough fabric held a few pieces of wood against the sides of it. "I have to use a crutch for support, but it could have been worse."

"Indeed." said the Khajiit. "You were very lucky to escape the dragons with as few injuries as you did, and that we came across you."

"Thank you, uhm... I never caught your name."

"It is Taashi, and there is no need to thank us. The roads of Skyrim have gotten even more dangerous since the dragons appeared, we couldn't just leave you there, even if we too tried to escape the fighting. I shall bring you something to eat, and when you are feeling better, we will continue our journey."

"Journey? Where are you going?"

"To Windhelm. We hope to be able to sale our wares and refill our supplies there. You should come with us, as you are now you are easy targets for both bandits and beasts alike. There is safety in numbers."

"But what about our friends? We still have to find them."

"If they were caught in the dragons' battle, I do not have high hopes about them surviving. But if they did, we could send a courier from Windhelm to deliver a message to them. The couriers are very good a finding people, even out in the wild."

As Taashi walked back to the other Khajiit, Mona felt sad and worried for her friends. Even if one of the dragons had been Tyroth, there was no telling how the battle ended. Last time he fought against a dragon, he was pretty badly hurt. And what if the others also were attacked?

"Don't worry, Mona. I'm sure that they're fine." said Raph, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"You think so?"

"Like Donnie said, if anyone can take on a dragon, it's Tyroth, he's as tough as they come and will keep the others safe. And they know how to take care of themselves as well. We'll just have to hope that they find our trail and catch up to us."

So Raph and Mona are okay, I'm sure many of you are relieved to hear that, but they are still separated from the others. To make matters worse, it seems like the two groups are heading in different directions.

And Tyroth has been called by the Greybeards, or has he? Is he Dragonborn or Dragon? Who knows.

Lastly, thanks for the support from all of you. Every review warms extra much, and often give me useful insight and ideas. Keep them coming. :)