Feeling slightly singed, Merrin crouched low over her dragon's back as more fire whooshed above her head. They're catching up!

I'm well aware.

As they hurtled through the air Merrin caught a glimpse of a sudden burst of fire. Down!

Wyvern pulled into a sharp dive, and just as he was forced to pull out again Merrin leapt the fifteen feet groundwards to land, slightly jarred, beside Kendath. "He'll come back for us - run!" she shrieked over the din, and caught at his hand. With her free one she motioned towards the pursuing Meiltha and a white shield behind them burst into being.

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Exhibiting no modicum of startlement as Merrin seemingly dropped from nowhere beside him, Kendath instinctively burst into a run.

Without warning, a golden Meiltha dragon launched itself over the bluff and landed with a titanic thump directly in front of them. It lunged, and Kendath broke off from Merrin to dive to the side. He threw himself into a roll as the dragon's spiked tail came around and whistled over his head.

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Merrin likewise dived out of the dragon's path, curling into a ball to present a smaller target for his flame-spewing maw. Plummeting from above, Wyvern sprayed the colossal golden dragon with fire to give Merrin time to escape, which she did with alacrity. Silver and gold mingled as the two clashed, both roaring deafeningly.

Wyvern's snarls ringing in her ears, Merrin glanced about wildly for Kendath and hauled him upright just as another pair of dragons zoomed into sight above the bluff. Wyvern, we need to go - NOW!

"Get ready," she gasped to Kendath, half stumbling, half running away from the oncoming Meiltha wyrms. They were only slightly detained by the smaller Wyvern. "As soon as he has an opening we're not going to have much time to get aboard him."

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Kendath paused only to thrust the Star Crystal out behind him at the pursuing Meiltha. Starlight caught its many facets, and it lashed out in a power unlike any seen before. Jets of darkness lanced out, smoting their adversaries full in the chests.

This would only stall the enemy wyrms for a bit, as illustrated by the two Meiltha mages cresting the bluff. They began chanting in unison.

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(ahhhh curi where are you....or even Demon say something...please...me want to rp*

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Made by Lembas

"Fair enough"

Garthag admitted with a shrug and gazed at Evlyn who still laid in pain on the ground, he made a quick and painful kick in her ribs just to tease her or to check was she even alive.

"And what might you wish to do with your sister? Kill her? Or something else? Yet we can`t have her running around nor trying to stop us in the future..."

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Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!

The great golden behemoth of a dragon bellowed as Wyvern's claws raked his translucent wing membrane, and the smaller silver dragon took this opportunity to dart out from under his adversary's intimidating shadow and make great haste towards Merrin and Kendath.

The Star Crystal's powers and Merrin's strange new abilities combined held off the speedily advancing Meiltha long enough for Wyvern to reach them and Merrin instantly swung herself into position on his back. She thrust out a hand before her in trusting consternation - that whatever happened, it would hold off their enemies, even if she herself had very little grasp of what she was actually doing. Nevertheless, a bright shield burst into being as the golden dragon lunged and Merrin held out her free hand to Kendath. "Come on!"

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Evlyn moned softly, too exhasted by the pain to even try and protect herself. Semri looked down at her with a troubled expression, then sat down next to her. "Dear sister" she softly stroked her forehead. "Sister you see my problem, as Garthag says i cannot allow you to stop me and go free. So you mst choose, to join us...or to die"
Evlyn looked at her with tears in her eyes. "I trusted you, you are my sister, i gave you the Cloud Crystal....."
"Yes, you did give it to me, that is why i am giveing you the choice." Evlyn lay almost crying at the betrayal and the pain. Then, "I will join you then sister....if only to try and persuade you of this maddness."
Semri smiled triumphantly and stood before Garthag. "Lord Garthag...i belive this belongs to you." She placed the Crystal in his hands.

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Made by Lembas

A grin filled with pure joy of success and thrill rose to Garthags face as the crystal was dropped into his hands, he lifted his hands above him and gazed at the crystal with glimmering eyes. Finally the power to wipe out the rest of the world was within his hands, he gazed at Kalma and showed him the crystal. Kalma nodded with acceptance and gazed towards the roof of the cavern. Garthag nodded in response and walked towards a tunnel opening into the opposite direction they had arrived to the cave.

"I must make the preparations in order to see that my spell will not wipe us or the whole world away, you may rest here and use my servants, if you seem it fit."

Garthag said before leaving the room.

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Let him curse my name
On these blood stained pages of misery
Let him call me a tyrant so cruel
Let him curse my name, but remember the truth!

"Thankyou Lord" She answered with a cynical grin. She left her sister on the floor and walked over to Rano, who relased his grip on Jemx's neck. She sat down withing the circle of his warm body. "Ahhhh did i do the right thing?"
Yeessss, now we shall go South to somewhere warmer, we shall build a palace in the destert sands and the people there will do our bidding, we shall have all the power we ever wanted.
"And our siblings?" She asked looking at Jemx who was gently licking Evlyn.
Will come round or will die he said with finality.

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Made by Lembas

Snarling quietly, Demon inched out from the shadows. It seemed the tables had been turned, and the results were astonishing - yet astonishingly pleasant. He really couldn't care less which side - Garthag or Meiltha - won, as long as he stood on the winning side.

A pity Kendath wasn't here to experience the glory.

Demon wound his neck around to look Semri in the eye. "You do realize that Garthag doesn't give an excrement for your life or mine."

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Kendath grasped Merrin's hand and pulled himself up just as the great golden dragon collided with the bright shield with a smash to engender an earthquake. The chaos left behind as they lifted into the predawn sky was unconceivable, with both dragons and riders deluged in consternation from this turn of events.

Wyvern's streamlined body, built for speed, propelled them from their larger adversaries. They soon left Meiltha far behind and were once more headed northwest, for Vryngard.

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Grinning infectiously, Merrin turned to look over her shoulder at Kendath. "A narrow escape, I call that!"

"I call it proof that certain suspicions have been unfounded," rumbled Wyvern, his words borne back to them on the chill breeze. They held - incredibly - an undertone of regret. "I owe you an apology, human. Kendath. Merrin will attest that I was certain you had betrayed us. In the future I will attempt to hold my suspicions in check."

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Kendath dipped his head in deference - a gesticulation Wyvern couldn't see. "My thanks, dragonkin." He dropped a hand to his belt, where the Star Crystal nestled, a warm weight, against his side.

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By midday Wyvern flew over towering mountains, their points reaching up into the azure sky like fingers of some vast god of earth. As the sun hung overhead, glittering blindingly against Wyvern's silver scales, they reached the largest mountain of all - a reigning monarch over the others. Openings of tunnels, gated with iron, could be seen on its sheer cliff faces.

Wyvern flew halfway around the city, which was clearly of intricate dwarven workmanship, and dived steeply into a sheltered valley. It was leveled to form a stone courtyard, larger than any ever needed by even the greatest of armies and clearly made with dragons in mind.

A large percentage of Renegade dragons and their riders were dispatched to various outposts throughout the surrounding country, as Vryngard itself needed very few reptilian defenders, but nevertheless a few select dragons occupied the courtyard. One was emerald-hued, a sleek long wyrm of gracefully slender proportions, and two others were sapphire twins.

Wyvern swooped in to land and almost before he had touched down Merrin had slipped out of the saddle. Vryngard, for the young dragonrider, was a sight for sore eyes like no other.

No riders occupied the courtyard, but the two indigo dragons greeted Wyvern gladly, and soon turned to his rider with inquisitive cobalt eyes. "Well met, Dyvim, Nemuel," she said with a smile.

"We have been worried, Merrin," hummed the one, and briefly scanned Kendath. "When you did not return from pursuing the thieving Meiltha, many presumed you dead. The Commander in particular was reluctant to send word to your family in Herida."

Merrin cast a quick glance at Kendath herself, uncomfortably aware that he was the thieving Meiltha they spoke of, and inquired anxiously if word had been sent to her family. Luckily it had not. "They presumed wrongly," she responded to their earlier comment. "I am very glad to be back. The Commander is still in residence here?"

The dragons replied in the affirmative and Merrin caught a runner boy, who was ironically likely not much younger than her, as he trotted across the courtyard to the mouth of the main entrance tunnel to Vryngard. "Here - go find Wing Commander Thorone, and tell him...tell him Merrin and Wyvern are back."

~~~~~

Wind Commander Thorone was a prematurely grey-haired man in his forties, and for a moment he thought his age was catching up to him in other ways when the boy dutifully repeated his message. "Merrin and Wyvern?" he queried keenly, attention suddenly absorbed. "Are you sure, boy, that you have their names right?"

((EDIT: Wow, guess who got a little carried away with this one...))

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Kendath dismounted and let his devouring gaze roam the towering mountains and the august majesty of dwarven craftsmanship displayed before him. Stabbing into the heavens, the city bore an almost surreal aura - an open display of Renegade power and aesthetics - that suited well the pinnacle of this revolution in the name of divinity. When had the Meiltha ever had time or inclination to construct such an aegis of beauty?

Suddenly apprehensive, Kendath ducked his head before the scorching gazes of the three defender dragons. His ragged black hair fell on either side of his face, concealing his features from probing inspection. Nonetheless, he was forced to murmur at Merrin, "An impressive place."

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"Glad you think so," responded Merrin, and with a hesitant glance at the two sapphire dragons, who were talking with Wyvern, lowered her voice.

"Thorone will know who you are," she began, surveying him anxiously. "And knowing the rest of the Council, they will as well. But I think...I think the acquisition of the Crystal may outweigh any, er, animosity they may feel." A pause, and Merrin tilted her head up to meet his eyes. "I'll do my best to make them see that tossing you in a dungeon would be a regrettable conclusion to come to."

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