Crossing Over - A Continuation

The clear skies had made the short journey more enjoyable, and as the snow let up the further south they went, Eruraina almost felt her spirit rise. And then when they crested the final hill and looked upon Sivanas, she felt her heart jump into her throat as she scanned the city. The elf had been this far south once or twice before, but she still felt at awe at the bigger port city. But it wasn't just the city that caught her breath, it was the ocean. The vast expanse of water that reached beyond the horizon that made her feel so small yet so free at the same time. She could smell the salty ear in the breeze. It never ceased to amaze her.

Stella, the grey mare she rode, flung her head pulling Eruraina out of her wistfull thoughts. Isaac had already started ahead into town on his horse Mandarb, and Stella wanted to keep up with the war horse, so Eruraina nudge her into a brisk walk after Isaac, walking beside him as they went into the city. The guards everywhere seemed to put the she-elf on edge, but after awhile she relaxed and grew used to the drilling swordsmen, telling herself they were for protection.

They stopped, and Isaac told her to go find an Inn while he was to find a ship.
"Alright. Right here in an hour," she confirmed with a nod, and waited till her moved off before heading away herself. She prefered not to wandering around looking for an Inn for an hour, so she proceeded to ask around. At first no one would pay her any attention, not that she was very outspoken when it came to being in crowds. In fact she found herself very uncomfortable and out of her element.

Finally a captain of one of a small group of guards helped her out, pointing her in the right direction. She thanked him and went the way he said. It wasn't long before she found the Ivory Wind. It looked like a decient enough place from the outside, so she tied her horse and went in. The central tavern with right inside the door, and it was sparce of customers but slowly starting to fill due to the time of day. There were groups of men all laughing merrily over their meals. The Innkeep was a tall thin man with a peppered beard who game Eruraina a smile when she came in.

"What can I do you for?" he asked, eying her up and down.
"I need two rooms, as well as a place for two horses. Do you have such available?" she asked him. He nodded and told her the price of such accomodations. Eruraina nodded. Seemed fair enough for her, but maybe Isaac would know better of fairness of price since he seemed a little more well traveled.
"Then I would like to reserve the rooms and stabling. I must go but I will return shortly with my companion," the innkeeper nodded at her words. The elf was about to exit the building when someone called out behind her, stopping her in her tracks.

"Eruraina Ruindoleth, is that your flaming hair I see?" a man at one of the table stood and strode over to Raina and embraced her in a huge hug. The elf was a little bewildered and uncomfortable by the contact, if not annoyed.
"Grism... long time no see," she said through clenched teeth as the stalky man put her down and stepped back.
"Aye, a long time it has been. What brings you so far south? And who could you possibly have as your companion you lone wolf."
"I'm leaving Wrynos, but who I travel with is my own business. I'm only passing through."
"Wait, leaving Wrynos? I thought you were rooted in Daina. Just like that father of yours. Good man, shame how he died," Grism stated the last, mournfully. He had been a friend of Eruraina's father, and saw Eruraina as a neice. Where as the elf only saw him as an aquaintance that had a mutual friend.
"Things change, and I'd rather not bring back painful memories right now. And I must go meet my companion, if you would exuse me, maybe some other time we can visit, but not now," and without another word, Eruraina left the Ivory Wind, retreived Stella, and made her way back at the meeting place. It had not yet been an hour since they had split, but already Isaac was waiting for her.

He looked grim faced and trouble. She asked him what was wrong, and his answer only brought a frown to Eruraina's face. She was sympithetic to the frustration. The elf would have prefered to leave Sivanas sooner than later as well, if only just to not run into any more aquaintances and have to explain herself again. Not to mention there might be a problem with the funds. Her pocket was not very deep, and she wasn't sure how much Isaac had, but it may not be enough to stay at an Inn for a month.
"Then what do you suppose we do?" she asked. "I've found an inn with room and board not far from here. It's a cleanly and nice enough place."
She was about to suggest camping outside of town, but thought better of it, even though Eruraina would have been more comfortable away from the crowds, her companion might appretiate a roof and a bed more than she would...

As they made their way back to the Inn, Eruraina turned at one point to find that Isaac had moved off and was looking at something. She wondered what had caught his intrest, but didn't have to wonder for long. When he showed her the missing persons poster, at first she thought he showed her a picture of himself. But upon a closer look it wasn't him, but looked awefully close to it. But he made a big deal about the name, but then words Isaac had said upon their first meeting came to mind. I'm the reason my whole clan is dead.

"A member of your clan?" she inquired. "We can try, but don't let it make you start thinking to drastically..."

Then they reached the Inn. She dismounted, grabbed her bag, and handed Stella to the stable boy as well. Inside she found how bad her people skills and knowledge of prices really was. As they headed up the stairs, Eruraina glanced around the room and spotted Grism who was smirking at her from the back of the tavern with his buddies. She chose to ignore him, and took her key from Isaac.

"I prefer my privacy and solitude," she said upon his comment of two rooms. "And I can pay for my room myself. I'm acompanying you, not mooching off your funds, if you get my meaning..."

"No, it isn't. It would do this Adrian no good if you eneded up dead at the bottom of the ocean. I may not know much when it comes to dealing with people, but keeping your head when your body want to loose it is necessary in most, if not all, situations," the words were more of a grumble. She didn't want to argue anymore about the point, but she didn't like his reaction to it.

Upon going back in the Inn, she felt on edge about his comments. "I..." she wasn't sure to say. He was right. "I don't like dealing with people. Not in the least." Even if I am even traveling with them, her thoughts remained her thoughts, as she went to her room, closing and locking the door behind her. Finally she was alone and she sunk down onto the bed, a bed much nicer than her cot at home. Eruraina thought she might enjoy being around more people, but she had been wrong.

For awhile she just sat there breathing. Finally she removed her cloak and bag and quiver, setting them beside the bed. She surprised herself by not feeling tired, but then again she was used to traveling, and traveling on foot. Raina's legs were a little sore from riding in a saddle for so long, though. But not being tired, she pulled out the two books from her bag. one she wrote in, since it was her journal. Then, she sat back on the bed and read through the other book, her father's journal.

She lay reading till long after midnight when she finally blew out the lamp, the fire down to coals, and fell into a deep dreamless sleep caused by the comfort of the bed...

Eruraina awoke jus before the sun peaked over the mountains to announce dawn. She found herself well rested and energized as well as in a good mood despite all the events that had happened of late. She quickly got out of bed and put on her boots and stuff and headed downstairs. The common room was mostly empty with the exception of of the Innkeeper, a serving maid and one or two early birds. She sat down at the closest table and waited for the server to come near.

"Is there any breakfast cooked yet?" Eruraina inquired.
"Theres a bit of coffee and rolls ready, the rest is still being cooked," came the reply. Eruraina ordered some rolls, and the maid quickly brought it to her. The elf took no time eating it, brushing the crumbs off of her shirt.

She remained sitting there for some time, watching people come in and out as the Inn started waking up and breakfast finished cooking. That was when Isaac came in, and she waited for him to come to her. From the look on his face he looked like he had some news...

Eruraina had expected such news from him. From his determination that had settled into him from seeing the poster of a missing clan member, to the look on his face. From what she had known of Isaac, he wasn't one to wait or stop to think. He wanted to go where he had to go and get things done without a second thought even if it meant putting his, and others' necks on the line. But maybe that was what made Eruraina go with him because she was always the type to put safety over speed if one had to be replaced by the other.

When Isaac had gone up stairs, Eruraina ordered a cut of coffee and drank that down before going up to her room as well. All of her things were already ready, but she checked once to make sure she had everything, the room having grown slightly cold though there were still embers in the hearth. The elf grabbed her pack and quiver and slung them over her shoulders and made her way downstairs where she turned in the key to her room.

She was about to exit the building when that rough, and annoyingly familiar voice stopped her along with a strong hand on her shoulder.
"Now where're you off to, Raina? Leaving Wrynos already? And without saying goodbye to old friend?" Grism gave her a big toothy grin. She shrugged his hand off her shoulder and turned to face him, her hand going to the hilt of her hunting knife very casually, but also as a gesture for him to back off.
"Yes, I'm leaving, and last time I checked we weren't friends at all. You were just an acquaintance with my father. Now if you'll excuse me I should be going," she turned to go but Grism grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him, stooping down so their eyes were on the same level.
"Listen here, elfling, I ain't in no mood for smart alecs. I wasn't just an 'acquaintance' with your father, I was the one who kept him from loosing that old shack of his. He's owes me more than you're worth. It's a shame he's dead. In which case maybe I should get my money back through you," he hissed in her ear. Eruraina tried to pull away but his grip was too strong for her.
"You can have the shack, I'm not going back to it any time soon. Theres still the furniture and trophies there. Keep them, I don't care. There's no key so it's not locked. You're welcome to it, now let me go I must leave before I'm left behind," Eruraina retorted, yanking her arm out of his grip only because he let her, that toothy grin still on his face.
"How do I know it's not burned down and that's why you're leavin?" he asked abruptly, his smile turning into a business glare.
"You'll just have to take my word for it and go look yourself," she answered, and darted out the door before he could stop her again. She was halfway to the stables by the time Grism had a foot out the door, in which he just shrugged and went back inside, deciding it wasn't worth the chase.

And because of that Eruraina was late to rendezvous with Isaac. It was mere minutes till sunrise when she made it into the barn, her face flushed from her encounter with Grism. Without a word, she saddled Stella and attached her pack to the saddle before mounting. As expected Isaac was already waiting and ready, so all they had to do was put their heels to the horses' sides and they were on their way toward the docks...

(I had a nice big awesome post all done up and I pressed send and my computer glitched... so here is a not-so-awesome post instead... >.>)

When they were both mounted and ready they left the inn behind, and made their way through the already busy town, the horse's hooves clopping along on the cobblestone. Eruraina followed Isaac through the streets filled with all kinds of people and out to the docks. It wasn't long before they rode up the loading ramp and were aboard the ship that would take them south across the ocean. She followed Isaac's example and dismounted Stella, letting the mare be led away by a shipmate.

This was the first time she had been on a ship before, and she looked around curiously while the captain and Isaac exchanged words. When he turned to her, she nodded in acknowledgment and watched as me made his way elsewhere on the ship, conversing with others as he went.

As the crew got the ship on it's way out to open sea, Eruraina did her best to stay out of the way while being in a place where she had the best view of what was going on on the ship. She watched as a crew member climbed the rope ladder up to the masts to check the riggings with expert speed, and how one tug on certain ropes caused the sails to move in accurate movements to steer the ship.

But it wasn't long before her curiosity wasn't enough to distract her from the constant rocking of the ship. When her legs started shaking and her stomach started doing back flips she was leaning over the nearest rail, her gag reflex working over time as she tried to keep her breakfast down. But it was a loosing battle and soon the contents of her stomach were floating away in the sea as she remained shaking and leaning over the rail. With an empty stomach she didn't feel so sick, but if someone looked at her face she swore it would be a bright green.

When her stomach was calm for a moment she managed to look up at what was going on around deck. Several of the crew members sent her amused glances, eyes laughing at the week landlubber. Eruraina chose to ignore them and spotted Isaac further towards the bow of the ship. He was gazing across the open sea ahead with a very wary look, especially towards the clouds growing. Every now and then he would turn to make sure everything was in order.

Raina's stomach did another flip when the boat did an especially large rock as it hit a bigger wave, making her lean back over the edge, though there was nothing left in her stomach for her to loose...

Eruraina glared at Isaac. The only thing she could think about was the waves, and that wasn't helping. Now if everything stopped moving, then she might feel better, but concentrating on the waves wasn't. But she appreciated the help, and accepted the water, taking a few sips before another wave made her loose her balance slightly and grabbed for the rail again, bottle still in hand with water.

The elf heard the call of the crew member and also turned to see what he had spotted. It was the first whale Eruraina had ever seen. From that distance she could tell how huge the animal was. But as cool as seeing the whale was, her stomach gave another heave and she was glaring at the water right next to the ship. But now something was wrong with the water. She felt Isaac pat her back but she was too distracted by the water that seemed a strange color. A color the elf was very familiar with in her line of work.

"Blood?" she said, then suddenly heard her companion yell beside her. "To arms!" The hair on the back of Eruraina's neck stood on end when she heard this. With one last heave, she forced herself to look up back towards the water at the front of the ship. She was just in time to see the Wyrm come up and kill the whale, and a shudder ran through Eruraina's body. She had been slightly awed by the size of the whales. But this thing...

Orders were being called about, and chaos erupted around the deck. The sea sickness was forgotten as Eruraina pushed herself away from the edge and did as Isaac said. Quickly she had her bow out and strung, with an arrow knocked and ready. She had only a dozen shots on her, so she had to make each arrow count. Before she could shoot the creature disappeared back into the water, and Isaac disappeared below deck.

It became eerily quiet and calm. Whoever wasn't working on making the ship go stood completely still. Eruraina was no exception. She moved to a place where she would have a clear shot on either side while staying out of the way of the rest of the crew at the same time, gray eyes scanning the water around them.

There, she saw the shadow in the blood colored ocean on the starboard side. She had her bow drawn before the creature, the wyrm, breaked the water, mouth gaping. Eruraina's eyes turned from gray to blue as she activated her technique, her eyes becoming sharper. In the instant when it just breached there was a small spot where it's gums were most exposed. Eruraina saw it, and shot, her black-tipped arrow hitting it's mark. But it was nothing more than a pinprick to the beast, as the elf went for another arrow from her quiver and pulling back. The crew around her was getting to work shooting bolts from the crossbows on the deck. Most of the bolts bounced off the scales, but a few angled just right sunk into the flesh under the scales.

The wyrm stretched it's gills in annoyance, and Eruraina spotted an opening behind one. She wasn't sure what it would do but she shot two arrows into the tender flesh just bellow the gill, the arrows, feathers included, disappearing into the great sea serpent. Then it went under again and the boat rocked wildly in it's wake.

Eruraina, with her uncertain land legs, stumbled, and reached out for the nearest thing to steady herself and the ship lurched. And she just so happened to grab the arm of a person, but she didn't look to see who. Her eyes, now back to gray, were too busy scanning the waters, waiting for the creature to come up again. The whole time her heart was pounding in her ears, her adrenaline kicking in, giving her eyes an almost wild look. This was no ravenous wolf pack, or lone Dragkhor. This was a creature Eruraina thought only exsisted in myth...

After loosing three more arrows, and watching a dozen or so more bolts hit the wyrm, it finally gave a shudder and sank down into the water for the last time. Eruraina gave a sigh of relief and looked around at the damage. Luckily there's wasn't much, if any at all. Just many weary, and thoroughly scared crew members and soldiers. But the elf didn't let herself relax, feeling that it had been to easy to take down the beast.

Her elven ears heard the skittering of the critters coming up the ship just as the yelling began again. It had been too easy. And now the hard part was trying to make it's way onto the ship. But Eruraina wasn't safe where she was, so she quickly went over to where the other archers stood and tried to make every shot count.

The creatures kept coming, the deck becoming covered with the black blood. And Eruraina's arrows quickly ran out, but the soldiers had plenty to spare with extra quivers for just this reason and let her have some to shoot. And the waves of wyrmlings seemed never ending, so she ran out of the borrowed arrows as well. With none left to shoot, she discarded her bow and pulled out her hunting knife, knowing she was be of little use in close combat since her strange laid in range. But at least she could try to keep the creatures away from the other archers.

Eruraina was slow to taking them down, allowing herself to dodge back and around one creature at a time to sink her blade in the weakest spot she could find; the place right behind the gills. Luckily at this time the creatures were coming in less numbers, and success seemed to be in the grasp of the crew and soldiers that made their way across the water. So it was just her luck when she dodged one too slow and found her leg in the mouth of one of the wyrmlings, causing her to fall and cry out in pain. She kicked desperately at the thing's face, and as a last resort threw her knife at it. She must have gotten it in some vital organ because it's jaw -if thats what you can call it- loosened and it fell over dead.

The she-elf reached over and grabbed her knife from the creature, knowing it was her only defense, the adrenaline dulling the pain for the moment. From her position on the ground she looked around to see if she was in any immediate danger of another wyrmling. But the numbers were dwindling thanks to the soldiers and sailors, and the shadow figure that could only be Isaac. Wyrmling and sailor and soldier bodies littered the deck, which was covered with blood. Eruraina had been lucky compared to others.

At least it seemed to be that way until the adrenaline died and the pain shot up her leg like a bolt of lightning to a pole. She bit her lip so hard it bled in order to keep herself from crying out again, holding her leg just above the wound which was bleeding fiercly...

(The reason I have used a color for when Eruraina talks is because I was still deciding on a color. I finally decided on one! #3090C7)

The wyrmlings were dead. And few had died or been injured compared to the number of men on board. And of the few that were wounded, Eruraina just happened to be one of them. Isaac came quickly and bound her would before caring for the others, telling her to stay put.

"Trust me, I'm not going anywhere," she retorted, knowing she wouldn't be able to go anywhere on her own, and cursed herself for her slowness. Eruraina glanced around the deck as she waited. The crew that wasn't working on keeping the ship moving or helping the wounded were cleaning up the dead carcasses and fixing the damage to the ship. But everyone seemed to be quiet as the adrenaline of the fight wore off. Around them the seas became calm again. Even the dark clouds that had been ahead seemed to have lightened and become wisps high in the atmosphere.

When Isaac came back, Eruraina found herself reluctant to be lifted up even though the sailor's sea legs were much more trustworthy than her now handicapped land legs on the ship. Even so, she still didn't like the idea of being carried, but she didn't have room to debate since most of her concentration was spent on not whimpering in pain.

"How do I feel? How do you think I feel with having a piece of my leg missing," she said through gritted teeth. There was a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "No doctor... of course. There's never a doctor around when you need one."

Eruraina was relieved when she was finally let down on a cot, no longer having to depend on the sailor who quickly exited. Quickly she situated herself on the cot to where she had her leg inclined with a pillow, and her back was leaning against the wall since she didn't want to lay down completely. When she was as comfortable as she could get, she looked over at Isaac who was slumped in a chair next to her.

"You look like you need more rest than me, friend. I can imagine that magick you use, that makes you look... well... I can imagine it must take quite a bit out of someone," she said, feeling the fatigue in her own body. But she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep, even with the gentle rocking of the ship. She was too tired to feel sick, but still she couldn't sleep. Eruraina waited and noticed that Isaac seemed to have fallen asleep in his slumped over position in the chair. She couldn't help but smile slightly, realizing that he had hid his fatigue until he was out of site of the crew of the ship and the soldiers. That strength had been a facade.

Luckily her bag was within reaching distance, and so soon she sat reading out of her father's journal for the hundredth time, having nothing else to do...

(I'm gonna end the topic here, And we'll continue in another one I'll make in Meika)

(Sounds good to me!)