Shara Tiinedra {Eris Albrecht 2nd alt}
Mar 13, 2016 10:52:28 GMT -6
Post by Shara Tiinedra on Mar 13, 2016 10:52:28 GMT -6
Name: Samahs-Ra “Shara Tiinedra” Teradiine
Class: Manakete
Age: 425
Born in: Nabata
Appearance:
(On the dragon size scale, Shara ranks in as a 7.)
Personality: Samahs-Ra Teradiine, or Shara Tiinedra, is a cunning, bold, and intelligent drake. She is fuelled by her curiosities and personal desires, never afraid to question the nature of something or someone. Being a manakete among mostly humans only feeds her confidence, knowing that if the chips were down she'd likely be able to incinerate and devour any troubles that come her way. As such she may occasionally seem smug, and yet somehow manages to avoid talking down to those around her.
Shara is intrigued by abstract concepts and new ideas, but even if she's excited by them she's likely to probe at the validity behind one with a sharp tongue and wit. She abhors the idea of merely sticking with tradition, particularly if she views the traditions in question as obsolete, archaic, or more difficult than an alternative. As such she's drawn to the study and workings of human magic, which has small breakthroughs and evolutions constantly, though she herself cannot wield it. She will often call herself a “mage in training” or a “mage advocate”.
Shara is also interested in the politics and “higher workings” of Elibe, as so much change and excitement occurs there. Of course she's not exactly able to enter those higher circles herself, but she stays as up-to-date as possible, and makes note of key areas to visit based on their political situation. She also has come to appreciate the “finer things” in life. Fine wines, grand balls, etc. She'd had the former in Arcadia and read about the latter, but she is still figuring out how best to access both in present Elibe.
While not overly flirty she does enjoy the effect she can have on some men, and isn't above indulging herself so long as it doesn't distract her from whatever larger goal she had already set for herself. She is more than willing to indulge in other experiences and sensations, especially those she deems “important” and interesting. Large scale events in general call out to her, such as huge battlefields, even if she's not all too keen on joining the battle herself.
Shara is very much in tune with her draconic desires, capable of holding back that innate desire to dominate and scorch the earth with relative ease even when transformed. However she can get rather snippy and moody when she's been unable to full-shift for a long period of time, like a month or more. Once her rage has been truly provoked and brought to light, she will happily indulge in her draconic nature and incinerate the source of her ire.
A peculiar by-product of her intense curiosity is her interest in people who...interest her. While she actually finds most of her kin to be boorish and “backwards”, she can still be enthralled by ones she deems spectacular. Same goes for humans. She might stalk these interests, learn all she can about who they are, how they tick, and why. While she will mostly be friendly to these interests her curiosities can lead her to somewhat cold and dangerous decisions. If, for example, someone who interested her was a powerful fighter, she might not aid them if they were struggling in battle just to see them “really push their limits”.
Story: Centuries ago Samahs-Ra Teradiine was born into a small, isolated tribe of fire dragons and manaketes, hidden deep within the southern end of Nabata's desert. It was a rather dull life, but it took a century of growing up and learning for Samahs-Ra to really grasp and understand that. It was around her 100th year that she began to irk the elder members of her tribe with bothersome questions. After all, she'd already learned every bit of history her elders had to share, from before the Scouring to that very day.
Why, then, was she forced to stay in the desert and simply survive? Was her only purpose in life to mate and breed with another tribe member? She was not opposed to the act itself, her fellow tribesmen were appealing enough even without the benefit of being the only males she knew, but Samahs-Ra never truly felt connected to them. Even after a century of living together she felt as though they were destined to wind up like their elders before them: aware of history and completely adverse to the future.
Some of the younger tribesmen enjoyed making bold claims of bringing forth another golden age for their kind. It was mostly to show off to their fellow tribesmen, occasionally leading to contests of strength to woo the females in her tribe. To say there was not some small part, or large part, of Samahs-Ra that would relish in being waited on by human servants would be just as big a lie as Samahs-Ra claiming she never once allowed herself to be seduced by the victor of such petty contests, but the fantasy was always short-lived. Such a world would be utterly boring and would more than likely bring about a second Scouring, and only Samahs-Ra seemed to have the idea that their kind might not survive that one.
Granted the elders did not think such a path was ideal either, but at least the younger generation acknowledged a path. The elders seemed all too content in knowing what they knew and living their long lives out in the desert. Peaceful and quaint, yes, but horrifically dull and, to Samahs-Ra, rather pathetic. At the very least they could move the tribe into Arcadia, where there were more opportunities and people to interact with.
Alas they never did move, so instead Samahs-Ra left. The elders did tell her how to reach Arcadia but urged her not to return if she left, likely in the hopes that they could dissuade her. Little did they know that Samahs-Ra had little intention of returning in the first place. As far as she was concerned the tribe was a lost cause. Let the younger tribesmen dream of glory, but never act. Let the elders accept their history, but not their future.
Thankfully for Samahs-Ra, Arcadia was an infinitely more inviting location to reside in. She was welcomed rather warmly and took a shine to the jewel of the desert almost immediately. The city was wondrous, full of ancient texts for her to read over, dragons of other tribes and backgrounds for her to interact with, and best of all: even some humans. Arcadia was everything Samahs-Ra could ever dream of.
Much of her time was spent either studying or socializing. She learned absolutely everything she could from Arcadia's archives and almost gleefully studied the more interesting specimens she met. For the most part Samahs-Ra spent time with humans, as they were the most different from the dull tribesmen she had spent over a century with before. It was here that she began to appreciate the finer things in life, such as fabulous clothing over the practical robes and dregs that all of her tribesmen had been forced to wear.
Samahs-Ra lived in Arcadia for three more centuries, and to her the time practically flew. Of course many of her human companions did not live to see her through the centuries, but the remarkable thing about humans was that even when interesting ones died, new ones were born in their place.
However Samahs-Ra soon found herself growing bored with Arcadia. It was a paradise, yes, with archives bursting with history and knowledge, but sadly those books did not cover events between the Scouring and present day all that well. There were a few good texts on the more recent past, but Samahs-Ra was more intrigued by the present and future now. She had delved into the past for four centuries already, and that was more than enough for her. The manakete had little idea what had gone on in Elibe since she had been BORN, let alone since the end of the Scouring.
A human friend of hers at the time was rather encouraging of her endeavour to see Elibe, but she was quick to remind Samahs-Ra that most humans outside of Arcadia did not even know dragons still lived or existed on Elibe. She would have to take care to disguise her true nature, and perhaps even her name. Samahs-Ra Teradiine had a certain Nabatan flair to it, but it's roots were intensely draconic.
From that day onward, Samahs-Ra Teradiine dubbed herself Shara Tiinedra, deciding the name had a more “human” sound and feel to it.
In 1294 Shara Tiinedra finally made her venture. With some directional help from some her Arcadian friends she made the harrowing journey from the depths of Nabata's desert and eventually all the way into the desert's edges, reaching and passing through smaller villages on the way. Keeping certain to hide away her lineage, and knowing that her complexion was oddly pale for a Nabatan, she instead called herself the daughter of an Ilian merchant.
Surely the Ilians would be paler, given how north the country was and so on.
She immediately began to travel what bit of Lycia she could, eventually stopping near Laus to rest up. Travel was so much easier if she could pay her way everywhere, and while most carriages didn't charge too much for travel between the Lycian states it cost considerably more to travel into other countries. Shara came to recognize how critical it was for her to maintain a good amount of gold, but was loathe to learn that the easiest method of earning gold was through cheap manual labours. Taking some job cleaning at an inn or tavern. She'd seen how some of the maids that worked there were treated, getting pinched, spanked, and hooted at by their drunken clientele.
It wasn't exactly glamourous, nor did it look at all entertaining.
While Shara was in such a tavern, idly pondering how to earn more gold coin, she was approached by a bold man who looked to be in his thirties. Shara looked him over before dismissing him. He was rugged, his face bearing a few noticeable scars and a short but full beard. Dark chestnut hair, fair skin that had seen much sun, well-built. Handsome enough, yes, and the sword and armour he was carrying seemed to be rather expensive.
He continued to talk to her and Shara took note of how different he was from most of the humans she'd met in Lycia. The man's name was Rolf Skarsgard, an Ilian mercenary, and he led a small company that had come to Lycia for work. He told her fascinating tales, the focus not on his conquests but on the experiences and journey itself, and was quick to introduce Shara to his company. Mostly men, with one lithe woman claiming to ride a pegasi, and a larger woman who swung around an impressive axe.
They were all so interesting, and luckily for Shara it seemed that Rolf was interested in her. Shara managed to convince Rolf to accompany them. At first the company seemed hesitant, though Rolf himself not so much, but when Shara mentioned paying them for the escort they were sold. Sadly Shara was much poorer than her clothing would suggest, but they didn't charge much at first...
Eventually they stopped charging all together. The company grew to enjoy Shara, and Shara proved quite adept at keeping herself out of trouble when things got ugly. She'd hide herself away, and should any rival mercenary, rebel soldier, bandit, or whatever manner of fiend the company was currently fighting, than they would be utterly shocked when a set of claws buried themselves into their body.
Shara was careful not to ever allow the company to see this.
However, as the year went by, she felt more and more that she ought to share her secret. At least with Rolf. It had only taken the man a few days after meeting her to lay with her the first time, and they became consistent lovers throughout the year. He was exciting, entertaining, and he never seemed to lose her interest. Shara wouldn't call it love, but there were only a few males back in Arcadia that she enjoyed so much. They travelled so much she even found some libraries containing new books for her to read and study. Occasionally the company did work for nobles and Shara was able to learn more and more about the political scenes in each country.
They even attended a ball once! The company was to be guarding some Etrurian noble's daughter, but Shara danced with the nobles instead. She had a wonderful time, and the best part was the company didn't resent her in the least. None of them were all too keen on the scene in the first place. “We're mercs. Not politicians, nobles, and definitely not dancers.” Rolf had said.
Later 1295, however, everything changed. Monsters were coming an increasing concern in Lycia. Rolf had avoided getting himself involved in any so called “monster hunts”, as many mercs who took them wound up dead, but the money being offered for these jobs kept increasing. Soon the company was pressuring him, but it was Shara who pushed him into accepting. Rolf was not a man to let his decisions and beliefs be swayed by others so easily, otherwise Shara likely would have grown bored of him, but under so much pressure it was easy for her to simply make the idea seem more enticing too him.
After all, she was curious about these monsters herself. And she didn't fear them: what threat could these monsters pose to a dragon?
So Rolf accepted a very high paying job from a well-off merchant in Laus. His caravan had been assaulted by monsters and he was desperate to try and salvage what little may have been left. The pay was just too damned good, so Rolf was quick to snatch it. He tried to get as much information as possible out of the merchant, to learn what he could about the monsters, but he wasn't able to ascertain much at all.
The company ventured into the wood the merchant's caravan had been assaulted in. It was in the outskirts of Ostia, where the monster situation apparently originated from and where the problem was at it's greatest. However the company was not met with monsters at all. Instead they were completely assaulted, from all angles, by a large number of bandits. Shara did what she normally did, and hid away, but she quickly realized that this situation was not going to end like all the others did.
One by one the company, so heavily blind-sided and so tense from searching for monsters, was cut down. Eventually only Rolf was holding his own. Shara was angry, and refused to let this be where Rolf dies.
So, for the first time in front of someone since Arcadia, Shara transformed. And this time it was the bandits who were blindsided. They screamed in terror and shock as black wings rushed over them, and that was all that could be heard before the fire descended upon them. Rolf, also shocked, had jumped away from the bandits, and stared on as the bandits who slaughtered his company were reduced to ashes before his very eyes.
Shara landed next to the fire and transformed back. The wood was too thick for her to land anywhere else, and the way she saw it there was little chance of convincing Rolf that it hadn't been her, so she accepted that it was time he learned her secret. Unfortunately, she had picked a very, very poor time to reveal it.
When she moved to approach Rolf the man held his sword out at her instead. His arm was trembling as he declared her a monster, and stated that the tragedy that had befallen him that day was her doing. This...hurt Shara. Hurt her more than she ever thought it would. It was the first time her draconic side had been genuinely rejected, and while she may not have truly loved Rolf she was intensely fond of him all the same. She risked her identity to save his life!
Yet what really hurt was that she did have some blame to claim for the tragedy, yet no more than Rolf or any other member of the company.
Yet time seemed to slow as Rolf raised his sword arm, ready to strike Shara down where she stood. Instead of fire spreading through her like she was used to, something cold and painful did instead. It started at her chest and spread through her body like ice through her veins. She half-shifted quickly and stepped forward, wrapping a scaled, clawed hand around Rolf's throat.
She was not going to die. Not that day.
Rolf struggled against her grip. He was dismayed, shocked, exhausted, and wounded. The swordsman may have been an impressive fighter but he was not in good fighting condition both physically and mentally. After all, he certainly had loved Shara, and now he felt betrayed, felt like he had to strike her down.
He was overwhelmed rather easily, dropping his sword as soon as his neck snapped.
Shara had never cried before that day, but her tears did not last long. She needed to get out of the forest...and there was still much to salvage from the company. Shara no longer had her escorts, so she would need the gold and their essentials for herself. Taking a surviving horse from one of the company's riders, she loaded the thing up with as much equipment, food, water, and gold as she could. Happened to be quite a lot.
As she rode back to Laus to sell the equipment she took a breath. The day had been a tragedy, and no doubt she'd face others as well. Though the look of betrayal and despair in Rolf's eyes would not soon leave her memory, she determined that he had been only the first truly interesting man she met in Elibe.
And that was the funny thing about humans. Every time one of their best died, another was born in their place.
Class: Manakete
Age: 425
Born in: Nabata
Appearance:
(On the dragon size scale, Shara ranks in as a 7.)
{Dragon Form}
Personality: Samahs-Ra Teradiine, or Shara Tiinedra, is a cunning, bold, and intelligent drake. She is fuelled by her curiosities and personal desires, never afraid to question the nature of something or someone. Being a manakete among mostly humans only feeds her confidence, knowing that if the chips were down she'd likely be able to incinerate and devour any troubles that come her way. As such she may occasionally seem smug, and yet somehow manages to avoid talking down to those around her.
Shara is intrigued by abstract concepts and new ideas, but even if she's excited by them she's likely to probe at the validity behind one with a sharp tongue and wit. She abhors the idea of merely sticking with tradition, particularly if she views the traditions in question as obsolete, archaic, or more difficult than an alternative. As such she's drawn to the study and workings of human magic, which has small breakthroughs and evolutions constantly, though she herself cannot wield it. She will often call herself a “mage in training” or a “mage advocate”.
Shara is also interested in the politics and “higher workings” of Elibe, as so much change and excitement occurs there. Of course she's not exactly able to enter those higher circles herself, but she stays as up-to-date as possible, and makes note of key areas to visit based on their political situation. She also has come to appreciate the “finer things” in life. Fine wines, grand balls, etc. She'd had the former in Arcadia and read about the latter, but she is still figuring out how best to access both in present Elibe.
While not overly flirty she does enjoy the effect she can have on some men, and isn't above indulging herself so long as it doesn't distract her from whatever larger goal she had already set for herself. She is more than willing to indulge in other experiences and sensations, especially those she deems “important” and interesting. Large scale events in general call out to her, such as huge battlefields, even if she's not all too keen on joining the battle herself.
Shara is very much in tune with her draconic desires, capable of holding back that innate desire to dominate and scorch the earth with relative ease even when transformed. However she can get rather snippy and moody when she's been unable to full-shift for a long period of time, like a month or more. Once her rage has been truly provoked and brought to light, she will happily indulge in her draconic nature and incinerate the source of her ire.
A peculiar by-product of her intense curiosity is her interest in people who...interest her. While she actually finds most of her kin to be boorish and “backwards”, she can still be enthralled by ones she deems spectacular. Same goes for humans. She might stalk these interests, learn all she can about who they are, how they tick, and why. While she will mostly be friendly to these interests her curiosities can lead her to somewhat cold and dangerous decisions. If, for example, someone who interested her was a powerful fighter, she might not aid them if they were struggling in battle just to see them “really push their limits”.
Story: Centuries ago Samahs-Ra Teradiine was born into a small, isolated tribe of fire dragons and manaketes, hidden deep within the southern end of Nabata's desert. It was a rather dull life, but it took a century of growing up and learning for Samahs-Ra to really grasp and understand that. It was around her 100th year that she began to irk the elder members of her tribe with bothersome questions. After all, she'd already learned every bit of history her elders had to share, from before the Scouring to that very day.
Why, then, was she forced to stay in the desert and simply survive? Was her only purpose in life to mate and breed with another tribe member? She was not opposed to the act itself, her fellow tribesmen were appealing enough even without the benefit of being the only males she knew, but Samahs-Ra never truly felt connected to them. Even after a century of living together she felt as though they were destined to wind up like their elders before them: aware of history and completely adverse to the future.
Some of the younger tribesmen enjoyed making bold claims of bringing forth another golden age for their kind. It was mostly to show off to their fellow tribesmen, occasionally leading to contests of strength to woo the females in her tribe. To say there was not some small part, or large part, of Samahs-Ra that would relish in being waited on by human servants would be just as big a lie as Samahs-Ra claiming she never once allowed herself to be seduced by the victor of such petty contests, but the fantasy was always short-lived. Such a world would be utterly boring and would more than likely bring about a second Scouring, and only Samahs-Ra seemed to have the idea that their kind might not survive that one.
Granted the elders did not think such a path was ideal either, but at least the younger generation acknowledged a path. The elders seemed all too content in knowing what they knew and living their long lives out in the desert. Peaceful and quaint, yes, but horrifically dull and, to Samahs-Ra, rather pathetic. At the very least they could move the tribe into Arcadia, where there were more opportunities and people to interact with.
Alas they never did move, so instead Samahs-Ra left. The elders did tell her how to reach Arcadia but urged her not to return if she left, likely in the hopes that they could dissuade her. Little did they know that Samahs-Ra had little intention of returning in the first place. As far as she was concerned the tribe was a lost cause. Let the younger tribesmen dream of glory, but never act. Let the elders accept their history, but not their future.
Thankfully for Samahs-Ra, Arcadia was an infinitely more inviting location to reside in. She was welcomed rather warmly and took a shine to the jewel of the desert almost immediately. The city was wondrous, full of ancient texts for her to read over, dragons of other tribes and backgrounds for her to interact with, and best of all: even some humans. Arcadia was everything Samahs-Ra could ever dream of.
Much of her time was spent either studying or socializing. She learned absolutely everything she could from Arcadia's archives and almost gleefully studied the more interesting specimens she met. For the most part Samahs-Ra spent time with humans, as they were the most different from the dull tribesmen she had spent over a century with before. It was here that she began to appreciate the finer things in life, such as fabulous clothing over the practical robes and dregs that all of her tribesmen had been forced to wear.
Samahs-Ra lived in Arcadia for three more centuries, and to her the time practically flew. Of course many of her human companions did not live to see her through the centuries, but the remarkable thing about humans was that even when interesting ones died, new ones were born in their place.
However Samahs-Ra soon found herself growing bored with Arcadia. It was a paradise, yes, with archives bursting with history and knowledge, but sadly those books did not cover events between the Scouring and present day all that well. There were a few good texts on the more recent past, but Samahs-Ra was more intrigued by the present and future now. She had delved into the past for four centuries already, and that was more than enough for her. The manakete had little idea what had gone on in Elibe since she had been BORN, let alone since the end of the Scouring.
A human friend of hers at the time was rather encouraging of her endeavour to see Elibe, but she was quick to remind Samahs-Ra that most humans outside of Arcadia did not even know dragons still lived or existed on Elibe. She would have to take care to disguise her true nature, and perhaps even her name. Samahs-Ra Teradiine had a certain Nabatan flair to it, but it's roots were intensely draconic.
From that day onward, Samahs-Ra Teradiine dubbed herself Shara Tiinedra, deciding the name had a more “human” sound and feel to it.
In 1294 Shara Tiinedra finally made her venture. With some directional help from some her Arcadian friends she made the harrowing journey from the depths of Nabata's desert and eventually all the way into the desert's edges, reaching and passing through smaller villages on the way. Keeping certain to hide away her lineage, and knowing that her complexion was oddly pale for a Nabatan, she instead called herself the daughter of an Ilian merchant.
Surely the Ilians would be paler, given how north the country was and so on.
She immediately began to travel what bit of Lycia she could, eventually stopping near Laus to rest up. Travel was so much easier if she could pay her way everywhere, and while most carriages didn't charge too much for travel between the Lycian states it cost considerably more to travel into other countries. Shara came to recognize how critical it was for her to maintain a good amount of gold, but was loathe to learn that the easiest method of earning gold was through cheap manual labours. Taking some job cleaning at an inn or tavern. She'd seen how some of the maids that worked there were treated, getting pinched, spanked, and hooted at by their drunken clientele.
It wasn't exactly glamourous, nor did it look at all entertaining.
While Shara was in such a tavern, idly pondering how to earn more gold coin, she was approached by a bold man who looked to be in his thirties. Shara looked him over before dismissing him. He was rugged, his face bearing a few noticeable scars and a short but full beard. Dark chestnut hair, fair skin that had seen much sun, well-built. Handsome enough, yes, and the sword and armour he was carrying seemed to be rather expensive.
He continued to talk to her and Shara took note of how different he was from most of the humans she'd met in Lycia. The man's name was Rolf Skarsgard, an Ilian mercenary, and he led a small company that had come to Lycia for work. He told her fascinating tales, the focus not on his conquests but on the experiences and journey itself, and was quick to introduce Shara to his company. Mostly men, with one lithe woman claiming to ride a pegasi, and a larger woman who swung around an impressive axe.
They were all so interesting, and luckily for Shara it seemed that Rolf was interested in her. Shara managed to convince Rolf to accompany them. At first the company seemed hesitant, though Rolf himself not so much, but when Shara mentioned paying them for the escort they were sold. Sadly Shara was much poorer than her clothing would suggest, but they didn't charge much at first...
Eventually they stopped charging all together. The company grew to enjoy Shara, and Shara proved quite adept at keeping herself out of trouble when things got ugly. She'd hide herself away, and should any rival mercenary, rebel soldier, bandit, or whatever manner of fiend the company was currently fighting, than they would be utterly shocked when a set of claws buried themselves into their body.
Shara was careful not to ever allow the company to see this.
However, as the year went by, she felt more and more that she ought to share her secret. At least with Rolf. It had only taken the man a few days after meeting her to lay with her the first time, and they became consistent lovers throughout the year. He was exciting, entertaining, and he never seemed to lose her interest. Shara wouldn't call it love, but there were only a few males back in Arcadia that she enjoyed so much. They travelled so much she even found some libraries containing new books for her to read and study. Occasionally the company did work for nobles and Shara was able to learn more and more about the political scenes in each country.
They even attended a ball once! The company was to be guarding some Etrurian noble's daughter, but Shara danced with the nobles instead. She had a wonderful time, and the best part was the company didn't resent her in the least. None of them were all too keen on the scene in the first place. “We're mercs. Not politicians, nobles, and definitely not dancers.” Rolf had said.
Later 1295, however, everything changed. Monsters were coming an increasing concern in Lycia. Rolf had avoided getting himself involved in any so called “monster hunts”, as many mercs who took them wound up dead, but the money being offered for these jobs kept increasing. Soon the company was pressuring him, but it was Shara who pushed him into accepting. Rolf was not a man to let his decisions and beliefs be swayed by others so easily, otherwise Shara likely would have grown bored of him, but under so much pressure it was easy for her to simply make the idea seem more enticing too him.
After all, she was curious about these monsters herself. And she didn't fear them: what threat could these monsters pose to a dragon?
So Rolf accepted a very high paying job from a well-off merchant in Laus. His caravan had been assaulted by monsters and he was desperate to try and salvage what little may have been left. The pay was just too damned good, so Rolf was quick to snatch it. He tried to get as much information as possible out of the merchant, to learn what he could about the monsters, but he wasn't able to ascertain much at all.
The company ventured into the wood the merchant's caravan had been assaulted in. It was in the outskirts of Ostia, where the monster situation apparently originated from and where the problem was at it's greatest. However the company was not met with monsters at all. Instead they were completely assaulted, from all angles, by a large number of bandits. Shara did what she normally did, and hid away, but she quickly realized that this situation was not going to end like all the others did.
One by one the company, so heavily blind-sided and so tense from searching for monsters, was cut down. Eventually only Rolf was holding his own. Shara was angry, and refused to let this be where Rolf dies.
So, for the first time in front of someone since Arcadia, Shara transformed. And this time it was the bandits who were blindsided. They screamed in terror and shock as black wings rushed over them, and that was all that could be heard before the fire descended upon them. Rolf, also shocked, had jumped away from the bandits, and stared on as the bandits who slaughtered his company were reduced to ashes before his very eyes.
Shara landed next to the fire and transformed back. The wood was too thick for her to land anywhere else, and the way she saw it there was little chance of convincing Rolf that it hadn't been her, so she accepted that it was time he learned her secret. Unfortunately, she had picked a very, very poor time to reveal it.
When she moved to approach Rolf the man held his sword out at her instead. His arm was trembling as he declared her a monster, and stated that the tragedy that had befallen him that day was her doing. This...hurt Shara. Hurt her more than she ever thought it would. It was the first time her draconic side had been genuinely rejected, and while she may not have truly loved Rolf she was intensely fond of him all the same. She risked her identity to save his life!
Yet what really hurt was that she did have some blame to claim for the tragedy, yet no more than Rolf or any other member of the company.
Yet time seemed to slow as Rolf raised his sword arm, ready to strike Shara down where she stood. Instead of fire spreading through her like she was used to, something cold and painful did instead. It started at her chest and spread through her body like ice through her veins. She half-shifted quickly and stepped forward, wrapping a scaled, clawed hand around Rolf's throat.
She was not going to die. Not that day.
Rolf struggled against her grip. He was dismayed, shocked, exhausted, and wounded. The swordsman may have been an impressive fighter but he was not in good fighting condition both physically and mentally. After all, he certainly had loved Shara, and now he felt betrayed, felt like he had to strike her down.
He was overwhelmed rather easily, dropping his sword as soon as his neck snapped.
Shara had never cried before that day, but her tears did not last long. She needed to get out of the forest...and there was still much to salvage from the company. Shara no longer had her escorts, so she would need the gold and their essentials for herself. Taking a surviving horse from one of the company's riders, she loaded the thing up with as much equipment, food, water, and gold as she could. Happened to be quite a lot.
As she rode back to Laus to sell the equipment she took a breath. The day had been a tragedy, and no doubt she'd face others as well. Though the look of betrayal and despair in Rolf's eyes would not soon leave her memory, she determined that he had been only the first truly interesting man she met in Elibe.
And that was the funny thing about humans. Every time one of their best died, another was born in their place.
