navy = flashback
Lina looked across the fire at Xellos. The Trickster smiled at her,and she smiled back. Draneth looked at Lina and looked over at Xellos.
"Interesting." he murmured ro himself as he smiled slightly. "I wonder the the harpy queen knoes about this?" Draneth murmured. "What a bitch." Draneth thought silently as he thought about the blond Mazuko. Although he surpressed it, Draneth did have a mailcious side, and he suddenly smiled, and phased out. He appeared on Wolf Pack Island. "Can't say much for the decorator." Draneth griined as he looked at the barren island. Suddenly, Draneth caught the slightest hint of a spell. He cast a counter-spell and the barren and forbarring island dissapeared and was replaced by a lushious green paradice. "That's makes sense." Draneth mussed silently as he walked towards the castle that rose magestically fromt he top of a hill. Draneth was impressed, Zellas was obviously very storng if she could cast such a strong illusion. Storng enough to actually fool him for a while. Draneth walked past pastures, and saw a pack of wolves racing towards him. They snarled and Draneth touched their minds.
"I am not an enemy." Draneth murmrued to the wolves as he patted the leader. "Could you take me to your mistress?" Draneth placed the picture of Zella into the pack leader's mind and he trotted off towards the castle. The wolf lead Draneth through the castle to a large wooden door. Draneth opened the door and saw the Beastmaster lying asleep in a large bed. The wolf whinned adn he walked over and nudged Zellas' sweating hand.
She is sick. Mistress never sleeps the pack leader old Draneth, and the Mazuko walked over to the blond woman. Zellas tossed and turning in her bed. Draneth laid a hand against her brow, she was burning up. Can Mazuko get human sicknesses? Draneth wondered silently.
"Natshelli!" Zellas cried and Draneth grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Beastmaster!" Draneth shouted as he shook her gently. Zellas' lavender-gray eyes opened and she stared at Draneth.
"Natshellti!" she cried and hugged him. "You've come back!" Zellas saw him. His long black hair, and brillient blue eyes.
"Zellas. Zellas!" Draneth cried and pried Zellas form him. Zellas blinked and suddenly Natshellti was replaced by Draneth. Zellas blushed and backed away.
"Sorry, I thought you were someone else." Zellas murmured.
"Natshellti?" Draneth asked, and Zellas looked sharply at him.
"How did you know?"
"You were crying for him in your sleep." Draneth explained. Zellas pulled her knees up to her chest, and hugged herself.
"You look a lot like hm. I am sorry for my behaviour." Zellas said dully. "How did you get past my wolves?"
"They were worried about you, and I presented no threat. They say you never sleep."
"I try not to. When I do, I have terrible, terrible dreams." Draneth sat down on the edge on Zellas' hand, and grasped her hand.
"Tell me,, I promise, you'll fell better aftewards." he said.
"It's a lnog story, you don't want to hear it." Zellas murmured. "But if you want to hear it...." Draneth nodded. "Well it all begain when I was still a human...
Zellas watched as prisoners were marched past her.
"Father must you kill them?" Zellas asked.
"Yes! There are traitors and they deserve to die!"
Zartal Coshlet gorlwed as he watched gleefully as the
prisoners were shoved into a ring. "Let loose the
dragon!" A blakc dragon with cripled wings walked out
of it's underground pen and roared his rage. The
dragon snatched up the hapless prisoners and their
screams of terror seemed to almost excite Zartal. The
king looked over at his daughter with hungry eyes, but
then he looked at his latest concubine. She smiled at
him and he grabbed her roughly and hauled her into his
lap. Zellas swollowed and stood up. Her father grabbed
her wrist and jerked her down. "Where are you going?"
Zartal asked, his foul breath carresing Zellas' cheek.
"To hunt down other the rest of your enemies father."
Zellas said coldly as he stood up, and noded curtly
Zartal ignored her and turned his attentions back ot
his slave. The hapless woman screamed in pain as
Zartal began to exhibit what he found pleasurable.
Draneth felt sick to him stomach.
"You father would have made a terific MAzuko." he said with a trace of bitterness in his tone. Zellas smiled coldy.
"Yes, he would have... if he had lived."
Zellas looked around at the body strewn battlefield.
She had to find him before it was too late! Zellas
begain to ride through the burnt out remains of the
camp.
"Natsehllti!" she screamed. Natshellti and Zellas had
been friends before they knew they were suypposed to
be enemies. Zartal would have killed Zellas if he had
known that she associated with the son of his arch
enemy. He would have died if he had know they were
lovers. "Natshellti!" Zellas cried as she rode her
war-stallion down the river following the footprints
left in the mud.
"Zellas?" A youth with long black hair appeared from
behind a bush. Zellas leapt form her horse and hugged
the youth.
"You have to go! If my father catches you, he will
torture you!" Zellas cried. Natshellti looke dat her
with ancient eyes.
"There is no escape for me love." Natshellti hugged
Zellas to his chest. "We are surrounded its only a
matter of time before they find me."
"No... we'll find a way. We'll..." Natshellti kissed
Zellas desperately.
"Zellas, if you love me, please take my life."
Natshellti murmured. "I don't want to become a trophy
for your father, and I can't do it myself."
"NO!!" Zellas' hands pounded against Natshellti's
chest. Natshellti grabbed the hysterical Zellas.
"Please." Natshelli pleaded. Zellas looked up at him
as tears ran down her cheeks.
"How can you ask me to do this?" she asked.
"Becuase, I love you. I would rather die by the hand
of the woman I love, then by a man I hate. And
Zella-chan you know that he'll kill me." Zellas stared
up into her lover's eyes and she hugged him.
"I don't want to lose you." she whispered against his
armored chest.
"I will always bee with you. Looking down on you from
the stars." Natshellti cupped Zellas' face in his own
and kissed her one last time. "I love you." Zellas
drew her sword and ran him through. Natshellti fell to
the ground smiling. Zellas sobbed and held his head in
her lap as he died. His blood stained her hands like
the berries they had picked as a children. "Thank
you." Natshellti murmured and he died.
"I will never love again! Never!!!"
Zellas finished her story and a single tear trickled down her cheek.
"What happened then?" Draneth asked.
"I hunted down my father nad killed him. I was about to join Natshellti, when Shabrinigdo-sama appeared before me. The rest is history." Draneth caressed Zellas' cheek and smiled at her.
"I came here to tell you that Xellos is..... exploring his relationship with Lina." Zellas smiled.
"That's nice, so he finally got around to it ne?" Zellas leaned back against the headboard of ehr bed and patted the space next to him. "You were right, I do feel better." Draneth laughed as he sat back and looked out the window. The wolf pack leader whined form the door, and Zellas held out her arms and the giant wolf leapt onto the bed.
Mistress! his voice was full of releif. "This is Shadowstar." Zellas murmured as she buried her hands in the wolf's black coat. Zellas yawn, and yelped as Draneth picked her up.
"Shhh, relax Zella-chan." Draneth murmured as he cradled Zellas against his chest. Shadowstar lay down next to Draneth's side and laid his head on the Mazuko's knee. "Go to sleep Zellas, I'll guard your sleep against nightmares." Zellas relaxed and nuzzled her head against the crook of his neck. Draneth tucked Zellas' head onder his chin and held her.
"Draneth, thank you." Zellas murmured as she drifted off to sleep. Suddenly Dalpine's presence filled Draneth's head.
"Child what are you doing?" Dalphine's voice was filled with an ancient sadness. "Why are you torturing yourself like this. You can never be together. Shabrinigdo-sama will never allow it. Why hurt yourself more?" Draneth cloed his eyes.
"Because I love her."
Inside her thrown room beneath the ocean's surface. Deep Sea Dalphine hung her head and cried. First Brannon, and now Draneth. Why did they have to fall inlove with people they could never be with.
"Kaen." Dalphine whispered as she thought of her long dead mate. She knew form personal experience the heartbreak that came form flalin gin love with a human. and now her Brannon, ehr bright cheerful Brannon had fallen in love with a mortal. But Draneth was in love with a higer-ranking Mazuko, that was forbidden.
"Now I have two of them to worry about." Dalphine muttered as she tried to figure out how to make everyone happy.