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Scales and Honor: Swirling Storm

Chapter 14

"Has she been around the town lately?" Ramakox asked to the stern faced wolven guard captain. His dark black fur lined with signs of grey. It had been two months since the day Ramakox had followed Fremra and had the encounter in her cave. The one where her voice rose like the thunder, and radiated in the halls of her home till the stone quaked in her fury. The blue dragon flinched as he remembered the ferocity in her roar that made his head ache, but within that anger he had seen pain in her purple spheres. Whatever it was within them, Ramakox was certain it had to do with the book she had been sobbing over, and the emptiness of her cave. He wrinkled his snout at the thought she didn't even have a bed of soft things to sleep on, and only had to look forward to the cold stone's embrace upon her weary scales.

"Haven't seen a scale or tail of her." The wolven called Fenix replied, brushing the back fur of his neck that was poking out of his dark grey chainmail. "Is it really a big concern? You told me that she was fairly harmless."

"It's not that I am concerned with her attacking the town." Ramakox lied as he gazed out to the myriads of people that were walking the now cobblestone streets with smiles in his direction. It was amazing to him how much could change in the at least eight years within the town. The one that did not even remember his name that long ago. Now he was hand pressed to leave the town without a group of people flocking to him for his blessing, questions about magic and dragons, and occasionally sexual favors they could do for him. "I just want to know how she is coping. She has not sought me out all week, and I was starting to grow concerned." He grumbled to the guard captain, who gave him a quick nod in acknowledgment. Course that little bit was not true either. He of course had spotted her, and shared a few words together with her over the last two months. It had just not been as long as the previous times. She would look away from him, say a few words, and then make an excuse to distance herself from the conversation. Yet despite that little fact she was always still around nearby. He would always see her on the edge of his vision, maintaining a good distance between him and her.

There were times when he would try and close that distance, words finding their way to his mind. Questions about the cave, the book, and why she had been crying. However each time he tried, she would dart away, avoid him swiftly, or no doubt use nature magic to hide from his eyes and nose.

"Well...The best thing I can offer is that we will keep an ear to the ground for her...And a nose to the air." Fenix waved casually for Ramakox to follow him through the busy streets, saying hello several people that stopped and waved to the captain. "If we do spot a sign of her, we will signal you with the dragon powder launchers. Right now they use them for fireworks, but they can still set off a glow and sound you can hear for miles around."

"Dragon powder?" Ramakox raised a brow. It certainly sounded familiar to him, but he could not for the life of him remember why. He drummed his talons on the hard cobblestone as he padded along side the captain in a moment of silent contemplation. The only sound to grace them being the idle chatter of the townsfolk around them filled with silent or loud praises for the dragon before them.

"Come on Swirling Storm. We've talked about those things several times before. We suggested them to you as a warning system, you even sat in on the meetings about them!" The wolf crossed his arms, his tail swishing behind him as he tossed Ramakox a sly grin on his muzzle. "Don't tell me that you were just nodding along the entire time without paying attention."

Damn.

Ramakox looked away as he flicked his tail carefully behind him, mindful to not catch any passerby or cart by mistake. "Nonsense...Just was testing you is all Fenix." he finished the statement with a snort and a dismissive wave, hoping that_would throw the wolven off the scent. He mentally reminded himself to pay better attention during those meetings. _But they are so boring and there is so much to remember that doesn't concern me...What do I care about the prices of bread? Or how much a room at the tavern costs.

"Right." Fenix chuckled, clearly not believing the dragon as he shook his head lightly from side to side. The wolf brought them passed many buildings rising out from one another, each one a different color then the other. It had been one of the suggestions that Ramakox made to the town, that way he could navigate it easier.

"Hard to believe you were practically unknown years ago." Fenix finally said after they passed the home of Jandar's grandmother. The old wrinkled woman waving to the dragon with a smile.

"I was just thinking the same thing actually." replied the dragon, waving to the old woman in return. He reminded himself to sit down and have tea with her at some point, talk about her grandson and how proud of him he was. The dragon had to shift his eyes away from a crowd of flowery dressed men and woman of various mortals. For each time that he passed this brightly colored green building there always seemed one woman who would-.

"OH SWIRLING STORM! YOOHOO!" called out one of the dwarven woman clad in purple tight fitting clothing. Ramakox had known her over the years. Her name was Grundella, and was one of the most loud spoken woman he had ever met in his life. "When are you going to use your offer for a good time with one of girls? Or boys?" The woman gestured to the collection of mortals that were all casting him sultry looks on their faces. "We got everything to satisfy a dragon's wants and needs. You just need to ask dear!"

"Not today woman!" he called back to her in almost a growl. She had always been trying to get him to take advantage of her suggestions. "How is that place still even open?" he replied with a tight voice as he and Fenix strode right on passed the gawking mortals.

"That's an easy answer there dragon. Travelers and adventurers always are looking to slip into something tight. Relax themselves from time to time. I hear that she even wants to open a franchise across Drenedar."

"Gods." Ramakox rolled his eyes with a snort as Fenix led him to the outskirts of town. They had to push through several groups of chatting mortals that had tried to get Ramakox to bless their babies. To which he did offer them a quick blessing. How could he have said no to all of their pleading faces? When they arrived at the town's edge, the sun had started to make it's way down from the highest point in the sky.

Two guards were standing beside a rather large looking card at the town's gate. One was a human male, the other a half-elven female. They were busy talking to a well dressed, heavy set man clad in bright crimson silks. His cart was made of the same exact color wood, and was lined with golden beams. When they saw Ramakox, the half-elf approached him while the human continued to talk to the man.

The female with white hair offered he and Fenix a crisp salute, quickly going to attention. "Was just tending to Pennybags of their sirs." She looked right to Ramakox with her bright green eyes, and offered him a nervous smile. "Was also told to pass on a message for you Swirling Storm."

"Me? A message?" he held a claw to his chest, curiosity starting to swirl around like a vast storm beneath his scales. "Who would want to leave me a message?" Especially when they could simply leave tribute near my lair. His mind raced at the possibility at what could be so important of a message. Perhaps it was because the tribute is too big to bring up to my lair....Maybe it's another statue of me.

"The message was from that female dragon we have seen flying around here from time to time. You know...the one with the pretty orange wings."

"Oh her?" Ramakox replied casually. "What did she say?" he rumbled, looking up passed the guard to the winding road that snaked it's way towards his home.

"To let you know she would be at the onyx pillar...The one with the carvings...I haven't the foggiest of what she meant by that, but she seemed convinced you would."

"How long ago did she leave the message?" Ramakox snapped his snout back to the woman with a flick of his tail. He pondered just how long Fremra would sit around and wait for him. It would be a shame to get there and miss his chance to strike up a lengthy conversation with the dragoness. And get some answers about what I saw.

"Not_that_ long ago." the woman admitted, turning around to glance at the guard talking to the larger man. "She came round bout an hour ago. She was all nervous like, shifting from claw to claw. Gave me a tad fright she did, to suddenly have a dragon show up the way she did. Swooping down not fifty feet away and glaring at us..." The guard laughed nervously. "For a moment I thought she was going to attack us, scared the living hell out of us."

"She wouldn't attack you." Ramakox grumbled, looking into the sky and pictured her flying overhead. "That was one our FIRST agreements for her to stay here. Trust me...If she was going to hurt you, she would have ME to answer to."

"And we are thankful for that dragon." The woman smiled warmly up him.

"Oh I get it." Fenix nudged the dragon playfully, and giving the dragon a wink. "You're looking to put the moves on ole teal scales. I figure it was bound to happen eventually. Poor Grundella is going to be so disappointed."

"Not everything I do is about mating or spilling my seed into a willing partner." Ramakox growled, flashing the captain a frown before leaping into the air with a flap of his wings. He angled his wings and positioned himself in the direction of the hunting ground, and the pillar waiting for him.

As his wings carried him through the sky he peaked down to the winding river near his home. Like some great serpent it spread across the earth. It was the place that he had been fishing with Jandar many times over the years, but his mind was pulled back to the first time they had done that when he was just a boy. The memory brought warmth for a moment to his limbs, the memory of the child laughing and showing such amazement with each story that the older dragon would tell. _How old you have grown Jandar.._He beat his wings against the air and pulled himself from the pleasant memory, just as the hills seemed to sprout up from the flat earth. The fields that been covered in miles of green started to be dotted with sections of purples, reds, blues, and even golds from the numerous pleasing flowers. He imagined Fremra rolling around within their embrace, laughing without a care.

The image of the happy dragoness soon shifted in his mind. She was replaced with the pain filled sob, the cries of anguish, and the ever crushing feeling of despair. He pictured her hunched over the leather bound book in her cave, tail quivering as she turned the page. He pondered the idea of apologizing again to her for interrupting such a private moment, as he felt a pang of guilt well up inside of his chest. _Just what was that book?_His mind whispered to him as he pictured the dark brown leather binding that held the book together. He had never seen a book that big before, it seemed almost made for dragons in that regard. Most books that he had come to know, were only made for mortal hands. Which of course made things a tad difficult to read them from time to time, but he always managed to do it. His mind shifted to focus on the paw prints on the page she had been looking at with tears in her eyes. Clearly whatever it was meant a great deal to her, enough that she did not want him to know about it. He wondered if the paws belonged to her family, her siblings, or possibly...That she had young ones at one time.

It was not long that he was in the air for, soon finding the pillar from the hunting spots within the sea of green. He admired it's smooth surface once again, however his eyes were pulled from the stone to the sea foam dragoness flopped down in the grass nearby with her great wings spread. He saw her cast her snout upwards to look at him, and she followed him with her gaze.

"What kept you so long?" she asked him, thumping her tail on the grass as he landed beside her. "I have only been waiting here all day." she looked away from him with an annoyed snort.

"I only JUST got the message from the guard. If you wanted to pass on the message, you should have told them to come find me." He replied, padding his way over to the dragoness. She just laid her head back down into the warm grass and let out a heavy sigh.

"I thought leaving the message with them, that they would run and go find you. You are ever so popular there."

"So why did you want me out here? You have been so reserved since..." he trailed off, embarrassment wedging itself under his scales and making his stomach queezy. "The cave."

"I believe we are doing it right now." she replied, not even lifting her head from her resting place.

"Talk? You just brought me out here to talk?" he asked in disbelief. "You could have just stayed by the town if you wanted to do that. You did not have to have me fly all the way out here to simply talk."

"You already know why I would not do that." She flicked her tail, letting out a sigh. "Besides...Someone had to teach you magic properly...Figure it would be me."

"You? Teach me magic?" Ramakox snorted, chuckling as he sat down onto his haunches and curled his tail around him. "Why would you _need_to do that?"

"Food to eat, water to drink, fresh air to breathe. These are things we_need."_ She replied with a grin, slowly sitting up onto her fours. "And I don't know who taught you to cast magic Ramakox...But clearly they knew nothing about it."

Ramakox flicked his tail against the earth, scattering any loose grass or flowers that were there. He offered her an annoyed snort in return. Far as he was concerned he was an excellent spell caster. He had even been able to hold hid own against that lich for quite some time. He had even taught Jandar a thing or too. Things that had obviously paid off and allowed the dragon to regain his fame of old. "I am an_excellent_ spell caster Fremra." He looked away from her with narrowed eyes. "Did you bring me out here to insult me again?"

"Insult you?" she replied, her voice lowering as she slunk her way over to him. "I would never dream of insulting you." She took a seat beside him and gave a sigh. "But when you see a child struggling to do anything. You offer them help and guidance in how to do it better."

"You think I am a child?" he turned to her with a raised brow. "I have never heard of that word to describe me."

"Well in the ways of spell casting you might as well be." She chuckled, tapping his scales with her paw. "I have seen...Wrymling have better abilities to cast magic than you."

"Your pulling my tail." he found himself grinning to her.

"No it's true, even though I cast a different type of magic than you. You are terrible at doing even the basic of things."Here..let me show you some ways to help improve your abilities." She grabbed hold of one his claws gently. Her warm pads soft and warm to the touch. "Now..I want you to focus on how you cast your spells...Feel the energy that you well up inside of you."

Ramakox allowed the dragoness to guide him along the grass, closing his eyes as he did so. He focused on the fire that lurked within his chest, the magic he could guide to his limbs. "I have it pictured." he said softly.

"Okay...and tell me how it feels to you."

"Like...a warm fire, spreading it's heat out into my limbs. The heat which I can guide and shape to my command at a whim." He swelled up his chest as she rose his arms to the side, then swished them back softly.

"Okay..Now take a deep breath and forget about the flames within your heart."

"What?" he asked, pulling his head back out of shock for a moment. The flames were what he had always pictured when he was just a hatchling. "How do you-"

"Shhh" She placed a talon gently to his snout and silenced him. "Listen to me Ramakox...We teal dragons are more magically inclined than you blues." Her words soon wound themselves around him, pleasing to the senses. It made him want to sigh and bask in her presence forever.

"We lack any magical breath of any kind, so our bodies flow with more magic then we know what to do with. Now trust me when I say...Forget the fire..Forget the flames...Forget the heat that radiates to your limbs."

"Okay." he found himself saying, trusting in her words as he pictured the flames within his mind dying. The fire starting to smoke as it vanished.

"Now I want you to picture a calm sea. The waves beating ever so softly against your scales. The salty scent lingering in the air, and the occasional sound of a bird flying overhead."

Ramakox was about to suggest something else but the dragoness silenced him again with a talon, and told him to trust her. So he snapped his mouth shut and pictured what she had described. He pictured himself calmly on a beach with the waves rolling before him. The cooling water licking against his scales and making let out a sigh of happiness from his maw.

"Do you have the feeling pictured in your heart?" she asked, guiding a claw over his chest ever so softly. It felt as though she would caress her mate that way.

"I do." He replied softly, he smiled as he could almost feel a light breeze drift over him and carry scents of the ocean to him. He felt blood rush to his membranes as he realized that the scent of the ocean was Fremra.

"Now focus on that feeling like your fire...Feel it swirl around you...Fill the rest of your body with that soothing feeling." She moved her claw from his chest to brush up along his neck. It made Ramakox sigh at her pleasing touch as he did what she asked.

He let the feeling radiate from his heart to every fiber of his being. He felt every bone, limb, muscle, and claw get enveloped in this soothing feeling.. It radiated around him like a summers breeze, and made him sigh. "I have it."

"Good. Now picture any spell that you can think of. Let's start with something easy...Create a ball of water out of thin air."

"I can't do that." he wrinkled his snout. "I can however summon a small rain cloud."

"Then do that." she giggled, "Make it rain Rammy."

He gave her a quick nod, and focused on the spell that he used to put out Jandar's fires. He smiled as the feelings brought forth a memory when he had used the spell to playfully drench the boy in water. He had laughed so hard as the angry glare his son had cast at him. He chuckled vocally as he felt the spell spring forth from his claws.

"See! Much better!" Fremra laughed, pointing to the small darkened cloud that had appeared over a section of the ground,and was currently dumping droplet after droplet of rain onto the grass.

"It doesn't look any different to me." Ramakox snorted, his eyes trying to pick apart every last detail of the cloud before them.

"Yes..but it feels different." She looked up to him with a smile. Her snout was practically against his now, their eyes gazing into one another. "Can't you feel the difference?"

"I..." He pulled away from her with a flick of his tail as he searched inside himself for the difference. He _had_felt the different feeling when he had cast the spell, but the spell had appeared to be the same as he always cast it. It would have helped if she could describe just _what_should feel different about the spell produced. He turned away from her in silence, drumming his talons against the earth as he tried to picture everything that had happened. _I did the focusing...It was different this time..but I did it...I focused on the spell..Let it loose...Think..Think...What is.._His eyes widened as his talons stopped dead, and his tail thumped on the ground.

"Did you figure it out now?" She said in a singsong voice as she took a seat beside him with a smile. "I knew it would not take you long to figure it out. You _are_actually quite capable at spell casting."

"Wait...So you were pulling my tail the entire time?" he turned to her with a laugh. He just knew in his chest that she had been doing that. "So why say I sucked at something?"

"Cause I know its the way to get you to do anything." she nudged him with a shoulder. "Just have to imply the great and powerful Swirling Storm is afraid..Or cant do it...and he suddenly leaps into action to prove you wrong." She smiled warmly at him from ear to ear. "You may be great Ramakox...But you're just like most males."

"You're distracting me again." he laughed, pushing her away playfully with a paw. "The spell casting...I feel less drained than I usually do."

"You're right." she let out a pleased rumble from her throat as she wiggled her tail, and fluttered her frills. "If you continue to cast the way I just showed you...And practice all the time..You will find that you can typically cast more per day than you usually could otherwise."

"Fremra..." He said softly. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it..You _did_let me stay here after all."

"Why did you want to stay here?" He asked suddenly without thinking about it. He figured with the way she was acting around him that it was okay. He winced as he saw her stop, and her cheerful face frown again.

"I already told you." she snorted, standing up onto all fours and spinning around so quickly that her tail almost smacked him right in the snout. "Why do you keep on asking me?"

Because I know you're lying to me about it. "Why should I not? You're staying on my land, and you have shared very little about it." He trotted over to her delighting in the breeze that swept over them and made his scales shiver.

"Would you show me how to fight better?" She asked softly, her gaze not leaving the trees.

"Why would you need to do that? I thought a dragon you're age would be great at hunting and.."

"Not that kind." she turned to him, her eyes narrowed. "Fighting other dragons...Fighting mortals....How to defend myself."

Ramakox tilted his head to the side out of surprise. He had not expected that, especially from dragon around 300 years of life. "Clearly you know how to do that." He chuckled, "You have threatened to claw my face several times."

"That...is different." she looked away when he snaked his snout towards her and tried to look her in the eye. "I just thought...The great protector would be able to help me...make me less...a." she trailed off, thumping her tail against the ground.

"A less of a what?"

"Will you show me how to fight or not?" she turned to him with a low growl.

"No need to snarl and bare your teeth." the blue dragon strode a few paces away from her and offered her a tooth filled smile. If this was her way of getting to talk to him about things, he was not going to turn the opportunity down. Besides, he always liked to get the blood pumping. "I can show you a thing or two." He stretched out his front fore-paw, letting out a small groan of happiness as he worked the kinks from his scales. "So what do you say?"

"I say thanks!" she playfully smacked his snout with her paw when he closed his eyes to yawn. She than bolted away from him again, a smile on her snout.

"Hey! You said you wanted to train and fight!" he shouted out when she spun around to face him, and entered a low playful stance.

"I did...and I am..You can show me how to defend from...this!" She raced towards him on her mighty limbs, closing the distance between them with a few flaps of her wings. Her front claws were outstretched when she caught him, and they tumbled into the grass into a pile of playful snarls, hisses, and growls.

Ramakox did his best to try and fight off the dragoness as she bit into his neck with her teeth. Not hard enough to draw any blood, but enough for a nip that made him growl and shove her back with his claws. So he slammed her against the ground for good measure, and with his blood pumping powerfully in his chest, nipped right back on hers.

"You like nipping dragonesses?" She asked, breaking free and smacking his snout with her paw.

"Only when they do it first!" he roared out, catching her with his rear paws, and pushing her away with a mighty shove. Without skipping a beat he scrambled to his fours, and started to circle the dragoness as she recovered as well. He watched her lower herself as her eyes traced his own scales, her body readying for his next move. She opened her maw and let fly a long drawn out hiss. One that made him flick his tail in anticipation. The urge to leap upon her and start up the grapple again almost unbearable.

She wagged her tail from side to side teasingly as she resettled her wings against her back. "What's the matter Ramakox..Think I am going to best you? Have you pinned to the ground with my claws holding you down?" she laughed in the back of throat as she waggled her haunches.

"I will show you who will be pinned." he laughed loudly, leaping to her before she could launch her own attack. He found himself catching air as she skillfully moved out of the way, and pushed him to the ground with a mighty shove. He fell backwards onto the grass, landing with a thud. He only had a brief moment of breath before she leaped upon him like he was a wounded animal, letting out a victorious hiss into the air. He however was ready for this, grabbing hold of her limbs and using her own momentum against her. He slammed her into the earth, flipping himself upright on top of her. He swelled out his chest as she wiggled beneath his claw. "There I..."

She suddenly wiggled her hind paws until they were right on his stomach. Then with a mighty shove, she cast him off with a pained grunt.

He flew several feet off of her, and once again landed on his back with a groan. He should have expected that from her after all. He quickly scrambled to get onto all fours, so that she could not take advantage and pin him to the grass. He reminded himself to not forget about her lower limbs again, especially if she was _that_strong. "That was a good move." he smiled, as he and her circled one another with large smiles.

"It looked like you were counting your eggs before they hatched." She flicked her tail. "Ever like a male to forget, when he has a dragoness pinned beneath him."

"I won't forget that little tidbit again. I assure you."

"We will see about that. I think you will look good pinned beneath _me_instead." She lowered herself once more into a playful stance, her tail wagging back and forth over the grass and curling outwards in the shape of a sideways J.

"Is that so?" a playful growl rumbled from his throat and made his chest feel all tingly as he ripped up the earth and bound towards her. It was mid stride that he noticed she was grinning at him from ear to pointed ear.

Fremra patted the ground with one of her fore paws, swelling her chest out proudly as she did so. The ground around the paw let out a small wave of viridian magic, that spread out like a ripple on the water.

Ramakox did not get a chance to react. He did not even get to let out a surprised gasp before a section of the earth beneath him suddenly rose up to slam into his underside, and stop his advance in it's tracks. It made him wince in pain at the sudden strike, but he imagined it would not deal any lasting damage to him. So that's how it's going to be. He narrowed his eyes as a primal urge rose up within his chest. He roared out with a flap of his mighty wings and was upon her in an instant. She tried to get away from him again, but he anticipated her movements and cut her off with a swipe from his claw. He made sure to not use his talons on her, there was no need for this to get bloody after all. His claw collided with the side of the dragoness, sending her tumbling to the earth with small. "Umpf." He followed through with his attack and was swiftly sitting on top of her, pinning her beneath his bulk.

"You lost." he grumbled with a grin, pressing his forepaw down on her chest. He was panting as he lowered his snout towards her own. His blood was pumping fast within his veins, just like a good wrestle should always do. He tried to not smile too large at the pride he felt for pinning, and defeating the wiggly dragoness beneath him.

He looked down to Fremra, who was still squirming and trying to get out of the position he had put her in. Now usually when this sort of thing happened, the loser would offer a surrender to the victor dragon. Jokes or playful jabbing would be had, sometimes mating had been known to occur. Two enemies suddenly overcome with urges and passionately go at one another. She was to have none of that however, as Ramakox saw a fire in her eyes known to him before. Her royal purple spheres had suddenly turned black as coal, while the air around her started to feel tingly. Like moments before lightning would strike the earth. Ramakox felt his breath start to catch in his throat as he nervously wondered where this was going to go.

Suddenly the grass around them started to wither, blacken, and die. From the twisted shells came spirals of water that condensed into the air to form several lines of the clear liquid. Ramakox eyed the whips of water floating in the air, ominously hanging there as the dragoness beneath him continued to hiss. He was about to get off her and ask her what was going on, but he never got that chance.

Before the question about was going on passed his maw, the whips attacked him like things possessed. The liquid that he figured would be nothing compared to his scales, instead cut right through them like a hot knife through butter. The blue dragon roared out in anguish as his hide was opened up, and allowed to leak crimson all over his cerulean scales. "Graaahh!" He leaped off of Fremra, trying to paw at the whips that were tormenting him so. He missed them several times as he narrowed his eyes, the terrible thought occurring to him that one might try to blind him. He maneuvered out of the way of one such quick horizontal strike, only to catch a vertical one fight below the eye. It made him stumble backwards as his face stung like he had been bitten by the poisonous sting of a wyvern.

"Frem...Raa!" The blue dragon cried out as the whips continued to cut into his body like a apothecaries precision. He even had to grit his teeth a few times as he felt the whip slice him right to the bones. He closed his eyes and continued to struggle with the floating water whips, their motions simply too quick for him. Each time he went to dodge after the first they caught him. Every time he went to lash out with a claw at them, they would swerve out of the way and leave him tasting air. He cried out in pain once more, as yet again, another water whip cut across his eye. It was like the things were trying to blind the poor dragon, and make him much easier prey.

The powerful dragon backed further away with a snarl, gritting his teeth harder as they sliced at his hide, and lit up his body with pain. He would have spread his wings wide, flapped them powerfully and bounded into the air. However with how easy they were slicing into his scales, he was afraid of what they would do to his sensitive membranes. He found himself reduced to his belly, blood splashing against the green grass with every painful, successful strike against him. His mind grasped at the idea of a shield spell, something to strengthen his scales against the unrelenting assault by the floating water whips. He took a deep breath despite the pain, and focused on the cooling waves lapping at his scales. He felt the sensation's of the whips cuts start to fade, and the lingering pain they left in their wake vanish. He let out one last whimper as a whip cut right into his forepaw, right to the bone. However with a flick of his tail he kept focus on that cool sensation of the water. He let it flow through the rest of his body, and let it loose in one wave of protective magic. One that he hoped would at least give him a reprieve.

Ramakox was rewarded for his efforts in the next few moments. For instead of having his hide continuing to be ripped open piece by piece, he felt the pain vanish, not dulled or reduced, but actually having the whips stop. He shivered and trembled as he felt the sensation of his blood rolling down his scales and dripping onto the grass beneath his paws. He gasped in pain as it spread through his spine and made his paws quiver. He dared not look at the forepaw that felt as though it was on fire, it took all his mental fortitude to not snarl out into the sky like a wounded animal. "Grrrr." he growled weakly from his throat as he tried to push the feeling of pain from his body. One such pain that felt like a thousand tiny daggers piercing his hide in numerous locations all of his body.

"Oh my gods!..Ramakox!" Fremra cried out into the air with her voice cracking. It was almost enough to hand the blue dragon open his eyes. However with his next pained breath he dared not, just in case he did like the look of what he saw on his limbs.

"Are you okay?" he heard the dragoness bound over to him. The usual soft steps on the ground instead of ones filled with desperation, and no time for finesse. He felt her lower her snout and hover it inches from his own, releasing a small snort of air as she no doubt began to look his scales over.

Ramakox would have recoiled from her. It was certainly his mind and instinct were screaming at him to do. He tried to snarl at her but found he did not have the breath. He even tried to smack her away from him with a paw, but his limbs were too heavy from exhaustion. "I've had...." Ramakox went to chuckle, to soothe her tired mind. However with a pained breath he stopped. Fireworks went off in his chest, causing the dragon to groan out in a quaking pain, causing him to knead at the ground with his eyes held tightly shut. "No...This is worse than any other time." He opened his eyes slowly, worrying for a brief moment that a lone water whip was waiting to slice his eye wide open. He instead was greeted to the form of Fremra, who had a concerned look on her face as her eyes passed all along his wounded scales.

"Don't move...Don't move." the dragoness hissed at him lightly when he went to shift.

Ramakox ignored her as he took a long deep breath. "W-what was that you d-did to me." he gasped, pulling himself to his haunches. He had to hold up the limb the water whip had cut into so deep. It left him quivering in pain with even the slightest bit of weight placed upon it. It lit up once more like it was cast aflame. It made him take in a long breath and exhale in pain. "It...Stings!" he snarled, gritting his teeth and struggling to not roar out.

"I'm sorry...I didn't mean...Ramakox...I'll make this right." Fremra raised a paw and carefully placed a paw to the blue dragons scales just as a dark storm cloud rolled in overhead, almost appearing to spawn out of thin air in the sky above.

Ramakox winced as thunder bellowed out from the skies above and made his head hurt from the pitch. "What are...you.." Ramakox felt dizzy as his world spiraled around him. He blinked his eyes and carefully took a spot with the grass. His body tried to will him to pull away from her, to scurry way from her touch and his teeth. However despite his pounding chest, he was too exhausted to resist her anyway. The blue dragon let out a sigh and let her continue with her work.

When Fremra placed a claw to his scales I made them suddenly cool. Like there were waves gently crashing against his scales as he rested on a soft beach.

"Graahh." he groaned, his tail flicking behind him as his claws clasped weakly at empty air.

"Let it work.." She said in a soothing voice, very much like the tender caress of the ocean waves. He felt her voice wrap around him, filling him, and wiping away the pine with a moments notice. He let out a sigh as his entire body felt like he had been wrapped in the seas cool body, and he was moaning blissfully within it. His hide began to itch in all the places he had been struck as he felt the flesh stitch itself back together with little to no pain. It made him almost raise his talons to scratch along the fine scales, however the voice in his mind reminded him to not destroy his freshly healed wounds, lest he reopen them.

"Fremra." he spoke weakly, his voice coarse and sore. He gasped when she pulled her claw away from him in surprise. Just as quickly as the soothing sensation had been, it vanished just as quick. Ramakox felt the sensation of the sea change to one of the grass beneath his scales. He felt raindrops splashing against his scales as the sky itself was trying to bathe them. The sounds of the torrent filled the air, and almost covered the sobs that Fremra was unleashing from her mouth. He opened his eyes softly, gazing to the dragoness who had her head hing, and frills drooping.

"I'm...So...Sorry." she continued to gasp, her voice almost a whisper. She turned to face him with pain filled eyes. She was siting before him with her head held low, and tears streaming from her eyes. "I...didn't mean to hurt you so badly."

"It doesn't a matter." The blue dragon groaned, not finding it within his spirits to yell at a dragon who looked so pained and remorseful. He could almost see the sadness lingering in the air, mixed with the remorse that Fremra must feel. He rose with a sore grumble, pulling himself to all fours and brought himself to sit beside her with a snort. "So...What...was that all about." He gasped, thumping his tail behind him as he scratched his scales gently. The sensation made him wince, as his hide still felt like needles were poking through him from head to snout.

"That...That was a spirit trying to protect me...From you." Fremra gestured to him with a wave of her claw.

"A spirit?' he asked, curiosity finding it's way to his tired mind.

"Y-yes a spirit." the dragoness clenched her claw tightly, and then quickly opened it. "It's what allows me to use nature magic instead of arcane." she said with a lowered voice, as her scales shivered.

"And..Why do you have a spirit.." Ramakox tilted his head to the side. "Are you a spirit?" The idea seemed impossible to him for a brief moment as he gazed out to the field being soaked by the torrential downpour. He looked up the clouds, surprised they had arrived so quickly from far away. Then he remembered Fremra had mentioned something about controlling weather, and he chocked it up to that.

"I never asked for it." She growled lightly under her breath." She turned to him with misty eyes. "I'm so sorry Ramakox." she brought her snout closer to one of the lashes had been, and licked it gently with her wet tongue. "I tried to heal you the best I could..but there is some scars..." She splayed her ears and looked up to him, with the same remorseful eyes as before.

"That's alright." he grumbled, as she continued to give him affectionate licks across his wounds. He let out a soft sigh as her slippery eel brought momentary relief from the needles that poked at his nerves. He felt his spine tingle as he remembered better days, and his mother used to do this to cast away the pain. His tail twitched as he closed his eyes and let her work with her ministrations. "mmmmm." he moaned, "Besides....They say certain men and woman adore scars in a mate. I imagine that can be said about certain dragons." He chucked when she looked away from him. At first he thought it was because she like the scars he had gotten, but when he saw the look on her snout he knew that was not the case. It looked like the guilt of what she had done was eating at her, if her shifting from side to side was any indication.

"Fremra." he spoke softly, bringing a claw to caress the underside of her jaw tenderly. He smiled when she did not pull away from him and just gazed into his eyes. "Thank you for the healing...You don't have to be sorry for anything. Just explain...Everything, if you would...I want to understand." He watched her stare at him for quite some time with her purple spheres until she hung her head and sighed loudly.

"I was born dying." she said flatly, looking to the scar that was now on his snout.

"Well I know that." Ramakox grumbled. "I have heard that joke before from Jandar."

"No..I really was dying." She held her head up to look the rain flying passed their shelter. "When I hatched I was too weak...I had but days to live." She sighed again, holding out one of her limbs and letting the rain softly hit her scales. "My distraught parents did not want to lose me...So they sought out a shaman of the deep...A sea elf." Her words continued to flow forth easily before the blue dragon, lighting up his curiosity as he hung to her every breath.

"The elf heard the words of my parents as they pleaded for a way to save my life...What parent wouldn't do anything to save the life of their offspring?" Fremra sighed heavily, letting her tail lightly flick against the ground. "So the elf summoned a spirit of the ocean to speak with my parents. It was that spirit's kindness that allowed me to continue to see the next days of my life." She swallowed hard before she looked back to Ramakox. "It was the spirit that enveloped me...Filled me...and soon enough we were bound to each other." She held up one of her claws close to her eyes, as if she were inspecting her scales one by one. "She is apart of me...and we cannot exist without the other."

"Can she talk?" he asked, his mind skipping over the concern she had called the spirit a she. "Is she sentient?" Ramakox gasped as he was filled with more interest than he had known for quite some time. For a dragon casting nature magic was rare enough as it was. However to find out that she was also bound to a ocean spirit? That was fascinatingly rare. It made his scales shiver in delight as he snapped his jaw a few times.

"No...She is more...instinctual...merely striking out in moments of great peril or panic...and she allows me to use natural magic....That is as far as the connection goes."

"Still fascinating." he gave her a pleased sound from his throat that sounded like stones rumbling together in his neck. He drummed his talons against the earth and tapped his tail softly. "So that explains the nature magic, and how I ended up less handsome at your claws."

"I never said that." Fremra looked away.

Ramakox rumbled again and felt blood rush to his cheeks when she did this. "I kind of figured you liked scars on dragons."

"So?" she replied.

"Moving on from that delightful realization." Ramakox said with a joyful tone. He then lowered his snout towards her and asked with a soft and caring voice. "Why did you really come to my territory?"

Silence filled the air as she just stared at him, her frills fluttering. It was like she did not know what to say at first, her eyes only gazing into his. She looked away from him, and gazed out to the trees once more. After another silent minute she let out a long drawn out sigh as he scales trembled. "That...Is a different story." she finally said in another whisper.

He could feel the chill sweeping out from the dragoness to envelop him. He felt the need to rush to her, throw his limbs around her, and cast away the darkness that was plaguing her. "It's...Okay if you do not wish to share." he started to say, but she snapped to him and silence him by placing a soft digit to his snout.

"You deserve to know...You have deserved to know." Her frills drooped with her words, eyes filling with pain and misting once more. She started to fidget in place as she opened and closed her mouth several times. It was like she did not know which words to start with.

"It's okay." he repeated the words in the best soothing tone that he could muster. He sat patiently, watching her struggle and squirm, until she was ready to tell him.

"I did not come here on a whim." she sighed, "I came here out of fear..."

This made sense to him in a way. He made sure to speak with a careful soft voice. "What were you scared of? Can't imagine what spooked you....considering that spirit you have protecting you."

"I had my family taken from me." she silenced him with a growl.

"Taken? Like.." he snapped his snout quickly as he saw the pained look on her face. "Who did you lose?"

"My mate." she sniffed, wiping away the forming tears with a scaly digit, and flinging them to the ground. "And my two wrymlings...My life...My loves...ripped from me." her voice cracked, as the tears came from her eyes like running water.

"What happened?" he moved his snout closer towards her own. He felt his own heard began to ache when he saw her face tremble.

"T-There was this group of mortals....They call themselves the Red Hand...They came...and destroyed my life with the flick of a sword."

"Red Hand?" Ramakox rose a brow as the caressed the underside of the teal dragoness' snout with a claw. He had never heard of a group calling itself in all the books he had read, nor the rumors he had heard. Ramakox softly guided her gaze to look at him. "Who are they?" he asked, as worry began to worm it's way into his heart. He held her softly as she trembled in his grasp.

"I think they are a religious order that hunts down demons, undead...Monsters that threaten mortal kind...They say anyway...Or at least the one I questioned."

"They sound not that ba-..Go on." He snapped his maw shut when she narrowed her eyes at him.

"They also added dragons to that list apparently...and used that as justification to murder my family in cold blood." She bared her teeth and snarled as if she were picturing the mortals in her mind. "So when I found those responsible for such an act...I murdered all of them...In various...painful ways..." She clenched one of her claws tightly. "I made everyone of them suffer like I had suffered...They treated us like mere monsters...So I put them down like animals."

Ramakox nodded as she continued to cry and snarl at mental images. "Understandable in a passionate moment...Especially...after that." The blue dragon wrinkled his snout, as he pictured in his mind what would happen if someone or people of that group had taken Jandar the way they had taken Fremra's family. His eyes widened into silver slits as he realized that he would do the exact same thing she had done. Just with more lightning.

"So all I had left of my love...and my family...was the treasure that we kept...and the book we made together." her voice broke, as tears continued to flow from her eyes. They rolled down her teal scales and dripped to the ground below.

"So...it sounds like you took care of this _Red Hand.._What had you so frightful?"

Fremra shifted her weight side to side as her eyes briefly looked away from him. "They came back...It wasn't immediately...It took them years..but they came back..I found my cave...my things...everything..." Fremra seemed to swallow a lump in her throat. "Our books that I read them..Our art we made together..Our harp that I had spent nights playing for my young ones..." She grit her teeth as she tried to cast the tears from her eyes. "Every single memory that I held onto was lost in those flames....It was like losing them all over again...So like the last time I tried to kill them...but they were stronger than I....So I flew away." She hung her head low, "So the night I was going to kill myself something happened."

"Y-you were going to kill yourself?" he asked, wrinkling his snout. His mind struggled to wrap around the idea that a joyous dragoness like she usually was, would resort to something...So permanent."How?"

"I was going to fly high above the earth and let myself drop....an option available to all dragons." She still did not raise her head, as if the thought of what she was going to do brought her great shame. "However...A miracle happened that night...Jandar...Your human showed up with his friends...He found a book in passing from a Red Hand member that kept the book for himself. The member had seen your son and attacked him, only to be swiftly brought down. Jandar's group was exploring the mountains afterwords and ran into me." She rose her head, fresh tears dripping down her snout. "It was that night I learned about you..I thought about what would happen if the Red Hand returned..I knew I needed somewhere safe...Somewhere protected...by a great dragon like you." She tried to turn away from him, but he held her softly. "

"Thank you for sharing Fremra." he licked the tears away from her pebbly snout, the salty taste lingering in his mouth.

She sniffed again, leaning into him gently. She gazed out to the rain still soaking the earth. "I always loved the rain....We would watch it as a family and read storied together when we were not playing in it."

"What kind of stories?" he wrapped a forelimb around her chest, pulling her close to his embrace. To his surprise she did not pull away from him, instead she leaned even more against him. She listed off story after story as she continued to cry, remembering times that were long since passed. He held her close as she started to tremble, and quiver when she could speak no longer. He gave her a reassuring lick on her snout as he realized that all the books she had read them were in his lair. "Fremra...would you like to come visit my cave? He asked softly. "We don't have to stay out here in the cold."

"I....would like that very much." she turned and wrapped her neck around his as she continued to cry. Ramakox just held her trembling body the entire time, and let the dragoness get out all she had been keeping inside of her. When she had ceased her cries, he held her snout close to his own and offered her a warm smile. "So you liked to play the harp?"

*