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The dawn that rolled over the Nyseen Empire was covered in a thick fog cover that made the world seem as if it had been drowned in clouds. The sun was coated in thick clouds that prevented its warmth from dispersing the covering, but that suited Baen just fine. For a moment he stood at the edge of the council ring and breathed in the moist air to taste on his tongue. It lacked the tang of salt water, but it was still refreshing. He had awoken to walk the camp grounds and found that his warriors were starting to pack up to leave the small town along with those who claimed kinship with them. He found himself energized and hovering on the edge of a manic state that made him want to laugh with the pure joy of living. They would soon find themselves ready to step into true battle. Flynt had arrived last night and brought added numbers to swell their army, and not just his own.

He knew that it had been a long time since the Empire had reached out to claim the smaller kingdoms that surrounded its original borders. He had had little hope that any of them would think of anything other than supporting where they received their money and business. He had found his hope renewed with those that had come to him with an offer to join him and renewed again when nearly triple the number appeared behind his general. Yes, they remembered the heinous acts that had been committed upon their people. They remembered the destruction of not only their lives, but of their religion, their families, everything that had made them a people had been thrown aside and lost to them. Only now did they find that it was not so broken, not when they heard the sound of the war horns blowing from the capital and not when the armies came to their doors.

He paused to watch the small trickle of women and children as they made their way into the forest and frowned to himself. The Empire had almost succeeded in their gambit to rouse these people against him. If they had simply allowed the armies to come and try to destroy them as invaders they would have stood up to join them in the fight. They had no reason to stand against them then, they had no reason to fight back if they were only fighting for their land of their own free will. But the Emperor was a foolish man that believed that these people would not realize their own danger. Instead his soldiers had roused up the villages to join them in battle, they had demanded men help them and decreed that they would help to form militia and organize them. It seemed such a little thing to set off an avalanche, but it was enough. The soldiers had not taken their orders to heart, not at all.

A common soldier was little more than a wild beast or war dog at times. Feed them, clothe them, give them ale and women and they were content. Allow them to scent battle on the air or uncertainty in the outcome and they would grow restless and vicious. They had heard of the dragon and by the time they had been sent to many parts of this country they had heard how the beast had slaughtered the men come to slay it. Who among them would wish that death? They had grown angry and frightened so they had done more than simply call men to arms, they forced them from their homes. He had heard the stories of rape and murder as men had tried to stand back. Men who were not fit for battle and had been punished through their wives and daughters instead. It had rekindled a hatred for the Empire that had almost been extinguished. Their rage had grown into a potent force until they had risen up.

Now they were his. His to command, his to lead into battle. They would fight and fight well because to fail and fall would mean their death. If they failed in overturning the Empire he knew they would die. Hylar would not allow any of them to continue living and breathe any hope of another rebellion into his Empire. He would make an example of every man, woman or child who rose up against him. For a moment the foggy morning seemed dimmer and darker as he looked over those that were exiting to safer grounds and those that were checking armor and horses that they had received from several villages. They would die if he failed, many would die if he triumphed. The cost was worth it if they won, at least he told himself that. He tried his best to believe it, but when he looked into their bright faces he felt a pang of guilt.

:Guilt.: The voice made him start, the dragon's words had become clearer and more often as of late. He understood them, but more then that the dragon seemed to actively enjoy frightening him and letting him know that the beast could hear his thoughts. :That is a singularly useless emotion, little spark.:

:Is it now? What do you feel if you regret a thing?: Baen answered in annoyance as he turned from those getting ready to where his own mount had been tethered.

:I feel that I will not do a thing again or that I will do a thing differently.: The fog swirled around him and swept over the houses that were within an arm's reach. Deep in the strange gloom he saw the spinning eyes of the beast watching him. :I do not feel guilt and chew it as if it were a bone.:

:I cannot do this thing differently and I can't stop from doing it, wind born!: He answered back with a flare of anger. The beast's words lately had given him a unique insight into the creature or perhaps he just realized that even the god touched dragon was an earthier creature then he imagined.

:Then savor it. For a creature of so few years you certainly know how to gnaw and take away the goodness from each moment you live.: The eyes lifted and he heard the dry hiss of scales sliding over scales.

:As a creature of few years we must measure each choice carefully, sky warrior, the days we have are few and mine fewer still. If I fail it is not that I must live with my guilt, but that my people will end. Surely you agree with this.: He ventured quietly. :We need to move out today, by midafternoon we'll be hitting the edges of the capital and then we can move onto the next part of our plan.:

Sithen had barely left the encampment the last few days, he had lingered and taken great pleasure into calling out orders and forcing would be warriors to proving themselves to him. Baen became of two minds on the dragon's presence. With the massive beast looming over the village the soldiers worked harder and faster, but at the same time the dragon had a different set of priorities then the war leader's. The drake wanted to be gone as soon as the people were ready, he wanted to charge into battle and complete his own goals. Baen knew that it would take time and planning to strike using his forces to the best of his ability. The drake didn't understand the need for the carts or the slow moving oxen that pulled them. As of late he had taken to laying near the corral and broadcasted his thoughts about how a good piece of meat would be welcome as he eyed them.

:The army is gathering. I overflew them earlier.: The dragon stretched his wings and batted them in the fog so that it roiled around him. The old warrior looked up at the swirling eyes and resisted the urge to touch his changed eye.

"I know, skyking, we will see battle before tomorrow I'm sure of it." Baen rubbed his beard and winced at the soreness of his joints where so long ago his finger had been removed to stop him from being able to fight well or draw a bow.

If the drake had a reply for him he kept it to himself. Instead he had barely enough warning to duck down before the broad wings came down with a snapping noise. He watched the fog distort and twist around the draconic form as the beast kicked into the skies. Muscles surged and rippled under the coating of scales creating an ever changing series of colors. The way the fog churned around him made it look as if it wasn't a dragon at all, but the fog itself had summoned forth a strange creature. The only thing that ruined the effect was the breastplate and glitter of metal where armor had been secured over the beasts frame as he surged into the sky. He tilted his head up and watched as the fog returned to its former pattern overhead. A pang stabbed through his chest as his eyes tried to find a hint of the beast above.

It had happened more as of late. At the strangest of moments he felt a strange pain at being left behind on the ground. Almost he could imagine how it must feel to have a muscular pair of wings working along his back and the great muscles along his legs that would send him aloft. What had started as a suspicion had soon become something more solid. The beast and he were joined by something more than thoughts. He had been forced to face the realization that the creature may serve the gods, but it was also an earthy beast of mundane worries. He had found his dreams plagued with visions of a smaller more graceful dragon and along with them had been a sense of urgency. He didn't let the rest of his army know his worries or his dreams. What could a man do when he realized that his greatest ally wasn't the embodiment of his gods? He could not allow others to sense his doubts, he could only strive ahead and pray that his gods still moved for their cause.

"War leader, we are ready to move out." He turned to find a young man, barely out of boyhood staring at him earnestly. He had refused no one a position in the army no matter their age. As long as they could wield a weapon they had been accepted, even a few women who had felt they wished to join up.

"Then let us move out, young warrior, we should not keep our enemies waiting." As Baen spoke he felt a thrum of agreement shiver through his mind and almost felt his wings tear through the sky as he broke through the clouds overhead. For a second he just drew in a breath and held it as he allowed his mind the wings his body would never know.

++++

Emperor Hylar, ruler of all of the Nyseen Empire, sat upon the war horse with an ease he in no way felt. Too many decades had passed since he had been a young man and able to easily bestride his steed, but he didn't allow it to show as he looked over the valley that he had picked out to allow his army to settle in. It wasn't so deep that they would be unable to see invaders, but it was deep enough that anyone who attempted to come over the hills would be exposed to the arrows and guards that he had posted. The valley itself teamed with his soldiers, horses, weaponmasters, and camp followers until it looked like a living carpet of movement. He had sent his call out on the swiftest horses and through messenger birds to every square inch of his kingdom calling for his soldiers. He set up militias to guard where the absence of the army had left gaps. War had not come to his people in decades, but they answered his call eagerly.

"Highness." He turned his head to face Urso who sat upon a placid beast that looked as if it would have been far more suitable on a cart rather than under a saddle.

"Mage." He replied and shifted in the broad war horse's saddle. "I thought you were staying behind to take care of the dragon."

"I have left others to attend it, Majesty." The mage turned his eyes back to his Emperor and then lowered them again. "I have had grave news reach our ears and came to bring it to you personally."

"What news is so grave that it takes you away from our one chance at evening the odds between us and these rebels?" He snapped out as the anger leaked over to the war horse so that the stallion fidgeted and pawed the ground.

"It would better to be discussed with your council." Urso's eyes shadowed over slightly, "Please, Majesty, this cannot wait."

Hylar gave his Mage a long measuring look before pulling the stallion back and turning away from him. After this was over he would see to younger blood being placed in charge of his Mage's. He had watched them tend to the dragon and even now he felt his doubts on how they had dealt with it. For that matter, he had his doubts on how he had personally handled it. In better times he would have courted the dragon-trapped mage until she had bowed to his will. He was enraged that not a single one of them had realized that she had been more than a wild dragon. Timat should have realized at least, then again that Mage was slowly going mad if the last few interactions with him had been anything to go by. It pained him that he had allowed his land to grow so dependent on the magic users and when he needed them most they seemed to be falling apart as he commanded them.

Those dark thoughts led him to his own tent. It wasn't gaudy or overly large. It didn't hold flags with his seal upon them. He had learned in his first campaign that a commander that flaunted his position would be a dead one. In the heat of battle this tent looked like a dozen others that held everything from storage to his officers. He would have a chance to escape detection, death or capture and give him and his officers a chance to repel the invaders. He let one of the aides hold his war horse's head as he slid out of the saddle and winced at the ache in his hips. For a moment he mourned the loss of his young man's body that could sit astride a fighting stallion and fight in the thick of battle. Now he was barely comfortable riding one at a walk let alone at full gallop. He carried those thoughts into his tent where a few of his officers were starting to trickle in. Doubtless Urso had seen fit to summon them. Yes, after this the Mage would need to be replaced. He would not see his Empire ruled by men of magic.

"I see you wasted no time in summoning my Council and Commanders." The Emperor said dryly as Urso came in next to him. Some amount of his annoyance must have leaked over as the old Mage widened his eyes and gave a sweeping bow.

"I meant no offense, Emperor, I only desired to make all haste with the news we have received." The voice held a note of nervousness to it. Urso hadn't made his way so high in court by being a fool and it would take a fool not to hear the anger in Hylar's voice.

The Emperor let it rest at that as he moved to the padded chair that rested at the head of the hastily assembled table. The table itself wasn't there for comfort or for dining, it was designed to hold to large map painstakingly created from colored sand. There were markers set into the sand to outline their position, the enemy's position and three markers for where he would prefer to do battle. Even the canal's had been rendered in blue sand with markings that signaled where his army had closed them off to stop the invaders from attempting to use them to gain entrance into the city. His Council came in by ones and twos. These were not the old lords that counseled him within the capital, these were war leaders and the few lords who's land they were on. These were people who knew the area and how to win a battle no matter what the odds.

"I'm glad you were able to come so swiftly." He leaned forward as the last councilor settled down in her chair. "Urso has brought news that he felt could not wait, I will allow him to speak to explain himself."

"My Emperor." The old Mage bowed to him and Hylar allowed his lips to curve up in a very small smile. Urso was not so dim as to miss the hint that if he failed to come up with a suitable excuse he would be punished for it. "I would not have abandoned my position if I hadn't received word that the rebel army has roused some of our faithful people to join them in their attempt to overthrow our good Empire's rightful rule of them."

"Villages or individuals?" One of the younger commanders straightened up.

"Villages. Their numbers are starting to swell to nearly double or triple where they were originally. They had split off into two groups, but they have come together again with each group attracting our own people to rise up against us." Urso stood up and took out a small set of flags to place onto the sand map. "They are no longer travelling by water, instead they are travelling by land with the help and support of these villages. Not just weaponry and soldiers either. They have food and livestock to bolster them-"

"DRAGON!" The scream cut through the speech and was picked up by nearly a dozen voices before spreading out. "DRAGON!"

"Hells and demons!" Hylar stood up with that curse, "To your men, get the archers ready and the spear thrower! Send the far troops to the edge of the valley. That beast won't come on his own to challenge us! Urso, to the south end of the valley, use your magic to build up our defenses!"

He saw the Mage's eyes flash open to show a ring of white as he was commanded to where the fighting would likely be the thickest. The lips opened almost as if the man would dare question the order, but he was already being shoved out the door by one of the young lords who had command of those forces. They were all too happy to have magical aid and well they should be. Those mages the army employed were some of the least powerful. The more powerful a mage was the more he sought for a quiet life working in noble houses. The Emperor barked out his commands as he heard the cries and shouts from outside come louder while the sound of hoof beats thundered over the dry earth. His commands only stopped when he heard a thunderous roar erupt from the skies and he pushed out from his tent to turn his eyes to the sky. A creature that flashed white, silver, grey and black swept past just out of range of the arrows as it circled. So, this was how they wished to begin.

++++

Lashane tucked her head down right over the eggs and swayed it from side to side as she watched Mihall advance in front of her. The rage that had started grew inside of her that this creature would dare threaten her eggs, her young. Her wings rose up on either side of her body while she flickered her tongue out from the spread of her jaws and lashed at the air. Her nostrils flared open wide as she took another step forward and put the bulk of her body over her eggs and dropped her wings down to keep them out of sight. No matter what humanity was left inside of her, the desire to protect her clutch overrode everything. She had had her clutch taken from her before when they had still been inside of her, now she saw the eggs and felt the coolness that tickled against her stomach as they radiated from the shells. Somehow she knew she would need cold to hatch them, she would have to bury them in deep snow to form the lives within rather than heat.

"We can do this easy or hard." Mihall's lips parted in a smile as he spoke. His entire form glittered for a moment as the shield snapped down around him. "Stand back. Or stand there like a beast."

Lashane parted her jaws and let out a hiss as she felt the lightening start to crackle along her jaws and over her teeth. It didn't sting or electrocute her, instead it sent prickles along her tongue and over her hide. It made her wings rise upwards until her wing fingers nearly touched each other and energy course through her. How dare he call her a beast, how dare he come near her eggs! The foolish creature was less than a breath of life compared to her, he had no call to take what was hers and in challenging her with magic he all but forfeited his life to her. She drew back a paw and moved to lunge out with both her jaws and her talons both. The hunger that had she had been held at bay through the bare minimum surged into life. He was nothing but a small mouthful and despite the small part of her that cringed at the idea of eating him, she already could imagine the flesh melting upon her tongue and the layer of fat that would be as sweet as butter.

"I don't believe I was ever as idiotic as you were when I was young." The voice was lazy, familiar and drawled out as a net of magic wove over her to freeze her in place. She surged against it like an animal for a moment, snapping and straining against it as she held the off balance pose.

"Pardon me?" Mihall stood up straight and turned away from her as the dragoness tried to step away from her more primal instincts to consider the magical bonds with something more than just rage.

"You heard me. Baiting a dragon isn't a good suggestion if you wish a long life." The voice drawled out again until a well dressed form stepped out from the open door.

Lashane's eyes swirled with red and gold as her rage flashed through her in a red hot wash that blinded her to everything except the insolent form that leaned against the wood wall. Timat stood there with his eyes lidded down and almost entirely hiding his eyes while he looked from her to Mihall and back again. Her nostrils flared as she tasted the scents on the air and there was the faint familiar hated scent that stung her nostrils. He had captured her, humiliated and violated her, drug her into this place to be tortured, raped and treated as an animal. She hissed and lashed her tongue out as she reached deep inside of her for the power that seemed to lay dormant, but her rage prevented her from trying to grope after it. Instead she surged against the magical bonds and to her shock she pushed past them to go forward a few feet.

"She's not only a dragon. She's a traitor to her race, she deserves to know that she's now nothing but a simple animal." Mihall's voice dripped with scorn. "I was supposed to have a group ready to restrain her so I could gather the eggs, where are they?"

"Urso has gone to the Emperor with news, they are going to support the battle efforts. I'm afraid it's only myself." Timat gave a lazy bow. "And I repeat, even if she does not have a dragon's mind, she is still a dragon."

:Foolish creature, stop your struggling and fighting, do you not recognize an ally when you see him?: The Voice rang in her ears as Timat's eyes flashed to her and one of his eye lids dropped in an unmistakable wink.

:Y-you are the voice?: She faltered as she relaxed from her struggles against the bonds that held her securely in place from striking down Mihall.

"Fantastic. Then why don't you make sure she's restrained so I can get the eggs. We've got to get them up to the workroom. The success with the duck and chicken eggs is hopeful, but the sooner we know the better." Mihall's voice was annoyed as he looked over Timat. Lashane was reeling from the sound of the voice in her head. It had been Timat? Timat had been talking to her? If he knew what she was why had he allowed this to happen to her? Why had he caused it?

"By all means, I'll hold her, grab the eggs." Timat gestured towards her under body and the confusion and questions in her mind were lost in red rage. She threw herself against the magical bonds with a snarl of rage.

:Stop that! Relax. Be ready and keep your mind clear.: The voice snapped in her mind and sent a chill through her.

:Traitor! Filth! Betrayer!: She snarled back into Timat's mind. Her tongue lashed out of her mouth as she trembled from her attempt to break through the magic. She recklessly tried to latch onto her own inner magic, but her anger made it slip through her grasp.

Timat gave no reaction that he could hear her or couldn't, he simply kept his hand level with his chest and held her frozen while Mihall started to walk forward. She cracked out a snarl as he came in towards her forelegs and he didn't even look up at her. He seemed confident in his fellow mage's ability to keep her in place as he ducked under her body and from view. She locked her eyes on the hated mage that held her and met his eyes. She would memorize his face, his scent, she would know him from all other people so that she could kill and destroy him for this! She heard an exclamation from the mage beneath her as he touched the cold eggs when the magical bonds holding her snapped free. She didn't break them, they simply released her and her muscles responded to her as she reared up onto her haunches with a shriek of rage.

Her wings spread out to balance herself as she pushed her head down and saw Mihall's face upturned and pale as her jaws spread open wide. His hands gripped her egg and had he only thought he could have held it to stop her, instead he dropped it to bring his hands up to weave his magic. She felt his spell hit against her, but he sought to form a shield against magic not her physical attack. Panic was his enemy as she crashed her jaws against him and felt her teeth glide over either side of his body and snapped them down tight. His scream of pain echoed in her ears as she reared her head back and shook it back and forth. The bones snapped as she cut through bones and clothing with her fangs before the sound of laughter distracted her and she flung the body to the side unsatisfied before rounding towards Timat. Her jaws tasted the coppery sweetness of blood as she hissed out and pulled her head back to prepare to strike him as well.

:STOP!: The sound in her ears was a voice that was loud enough to make her partially shriek and claw at her own head to clear the mental pain it caused her away. :Do not kill the one that seeks to free you.:

:Free me?! FREE ME?: Outrage flavored her words. :You locked me in this place and violated me!:

:Timat did. I am not Timat. He is gone.: Timat's lips twitched in a small smile, :Your sire and I came to an agreement. This body is mine now.:

:Who..what are you?: She dropped her paw back down and crouched over her eggs, loath to move from them.

:Rogeth, I am Rogeth. Are you ready to make your choices, dragon? The paths converge and now is the time for you to figure out where you stand.: The voice was implacable as she tucked her head down to cover the eggs completely beneath her.

:Choices?: She blinked her eyes slowly. :Let me free! Open up that door and let me go!:

:Not yet, dragon.: Timat-Rogeth lifted up a finger. :There are Mages out there still and soldiers that would stop you. We need to talk first and then I will take away the eggs-: She snarled out and stood back up to show her teeth.

:They are mine!: Her wings batted the air so that dust skidded across the ground in her threat display.

:I shall take them where they will be safe, where they can't be used against you. First I need to tell you what you need to choose and what it will mean.: Rogeth gestured slightly, :Sit down, Dragon, and I will explain why exactly I'm here.:

+++++

Sithen looked down at the encampment beneath him with swirling eyes that flashed with hints of yellow, gold and orange. They sprawled beneath him like an ant's nest that had been disturbed with a stick. They ran along the edges of the valley and darted back and forth beneath him. He could catch the scent of smoke, horses, and sweat from beneath him as he caught a thermal and started to circle overhead. The day had been filled with energy and anticipation as Baen and his army had advanced slowly across the land. He had spent the day flying back and forth over them and scouting where he could. It was only when he saw the smoke ahead of him and the tasted the tang of a large group of men and beasts that were not from his own army so he had taken off to see what he could. It was unsurprising that the Empire's army had gathered together, but he had been shocked at the size of it.

Humans. They crawled the face of the earth and populated so swiftly that in the span it took for one hatchling to reach maturity a human female could have five to ten children or even more. It was one of the reasons that they were a match for dragons no matter how small they were. As much as he hated to admit it, numbers counted. He could fly and fight and he was a match for even a dozen humans, but when it came to hundreds and thousands he found himself out numbered. It only took a single lucky spear to endanger his life. He soared over the valley and tried to gather a rough number when it came to the army. It wasn't just numbers of men, but also of the horses and the wagons that carried war engines. He found himself in a strangely unique position where he felt not only his own knowledge but the brush of Baen's knowledge as well on what he was looking at. It gave him a steady stream of information on what machines were counted as important.

Baen was a problem he could do without. Their thoughts had started to mesh far closer then he felt comfortable with. In some ways it was helpful when he found himself baffled by how the humans thought and reacted, in others it became a burden. The human worried endlessly and about things that he could do nothing about or change. It wasn't as if he were listening to another dragon speaking or thinking at him. A dragon had defined and sharp thoughts that would be near impossible to push away entirely. The human's thoughts were fuzzy and were like a buzz in the back of his mind that he couldn't quite tune out. He only got real information from them when he sought them out which he tried not to do. Each time he turned his focus upon those thoughts he felt the bond strengthen even without his intention of making it so. It was dangerous, but he couldn't deny it could be helpful when he wanted to use it.

For today he felt Baen's worries sharper against his mind as he drew on the knowledge he needed about the things that the Empire was hauling for war. The worries were steeped in guilt and fear for the battle, but beneath that was something that Sithen wanted to cultivate. It was the feel of the old warrior's eagerness for battle, the desire for action. There were too many differences between them. At first it had been easy to keep himself away from the other's thoughts as they just weren't compatible. Baen worried about the strangest things and his emotions seemed bright, but fleeting. Anger and disappointment flared hot and would fade away again. It wasn't until he had felt the same battle heat he felt reflected in the other did their bond start to strengthen and deepen. For now he would use it, later he could worry about extracting his thoughts away from the small creatures.

The screams and yells below him attracted his eyes so that he thrust his head down to watch as people went scrambling across the field. They were pulling at horses and dragging them into small carefully built corrals as the sight of a dragon on the wing panicked them. He toyed with the idea of sweeping down and sending them into enough of a panic to tear through the wooden fence, but the sight of archers removed that idea. He didn't particularly feel like having to heal another wound, not when battle was threatening. He allowed his lips to twist back in a smile, an affectation he had picked up by his months with the humans. His body wasn't just protected by his own scales, now he was covered in armor over the more vulnerable. It was one of the few things he found that humans could do far superior to dragons and that was bend the world to their desire even when it came to metal.

He had dismissed several of the parts of armor that were used on his hind legs and his tail. He disdained the feel of it clattering as the metal joints twisted and tried to move with him. He'd also pushed away the parts that were supposed to protect his wing arms for the same reason. The chest shield though and the parts that ran along his stomach he kept. They preserved the vulnerable organs and even part of his neck from the spill of arrows. They had made it light enough that he could fly with it as if it were no more than a deer clutched in his jaws and claws. The extra effort it took to fly was well worth the gain when it came to keeping arrows from piercing or killing him. He spilled some air from his wings and dove down a few hundred feet as he continued his counting. They made it almost too easy, they were arranged in groups that marched together forming long rectangles. The evenly placed men were counted swiftly enough.

:They outmatch your humans by more than you thought.: He snatched Baen's mind in his own carelessly, ignoring the start of shock and annoyance as the man was nearly thrown from the horse. The human was growing less in awe of him as of late, but that was almost fitting given the more draconic thoughts that passed through his mind.

:By how much, storm king? Do we dare march ahead or shall we go for stealth?: The words were faint and were sent with effort. Only their tenuous connection allowed him to maintain connection this far from the man.

:You should take them in the night. Tonight. The rains will come and cover you and take away their ability to use the machines that throw fire.: He swept his eyes over this machines thoughtfully.

:The skies are clear, great one, we should not risk it.: He heard the doubt in the humans voice and felt a mixture of amusement and outrage that he would be questioned. :Evening comes swiftly.:

:Does your faith in your gods fall so thin, human?: He scoffed as he drove his wings upwards and watched the pale human faces staring up at him. They had dared his anger and tonight they would find out exactly what they had roused from the mountains. For now he needed food, as much as his stomach could hold without making him give into the need for sleep. He would need that energy. :Stake out one of your oxen, I shall need the energy.:

The drake landed in the midst of the army and had been pleased to see one of the plumper oxen had been tied out away from the others. He could feel the clamor of human emotions. Dismay at feeding him such a healthy beast, eagerness and fear for the coming battle, and the constant stream of prayers that were sent towards gods. He gorged himself on the meat while he felt a rush of disgust that they put so much of their faith in gods who cared little for them. They were simply pawns in a larger game and they would rise and fall by their own merit. The only thing the gods had ever done was create them and endow them with the tools they needed to shape the world to their desires. In most of his lifetime he had only seen the gods bestir themselves a handful of times and never in a way that would win a war or decree the success of one tribe over another. By the time the food was a dim memory and the bones cracked free of their marrow darkness had fallen over the earth.

:Gather your men, you shall strike when the storm breaks.: He rumbled as Baen sat upon his horse far enough away that the beast didn't startle or buck.

"Are you sure, lord of the skies? The evening is clear." Doubt was in the emotions as well as the words.

:Watch the skies then, human, and see why my kind claim the storms as our own.: He bared his teeth in a human imitation of a smile before taking to the wing.

The skies were clear and bright as the drake passed over the gathered army again, his stomach was full with two wild hogs he had brought down. The evening sun had set and left the world in twilight as his wings churned through the air higher and higher above the earth. His heart beat faster as he tasted the air and the dry state of it. It would not stay dry for long, not when a storm dragon took to wing and drew forth the magic from the earth, skies and seas. His kind had been created from the storms, they were at home in them, they had a kinship with them no other creature in the world could claim. His heart beat surged in his chest as he reached high enough in the sky that the air became thin and he had to spread his jaws to suck in enough air to fill his great lungs before leveling out his flight. It was a dance older than the humans below him, older then he was, yet he started it as if he himself had first developed it.

He used his wings to create intricate patterns beneath the stars as he sent out tendrils of his magic. He called forth the bare brush of moisture found in the sparse clouds while his throat rumbled with a wordless song. He crooned it out as he dove through the wisp of the cloud and spread his jaws to let out a crackle of electricity to charge the moisture with. It trailed over his wings as he flew up and out and then dropped into it again. He twisted and turned around on his own tail as he felt the beat of the sky work in time with his own heart beat. In the old days it would have been himself and others of his kinds would have supported him to call forth the storm. This was why the humans used to offer sacrifices and praise in the hopes that they would bring rains in times of drought. Now all he had to rely on was his own magic as he wove it through the clouds and felt them growing heavier at his call.

The dragon's blood rushed in his veins as he felt the pressure growing as the cloud grew larger and larger. It spread to across the earth with the magic that swelled it. It was a wordless call as he danced along the air currents. Each vibration of his voice loosed the magic further from him and strained his resources as they thickened and grew darker. There was a rightness in the feeling of the weather shifting around him. It reminded him of better times when the world had been claimed by his kind and they had danced together in wild jubilation that had created storms heavy enough to nearly destroy the land below. As the electricity started to build around him and allowed the rush of energy to send him diving and spiraling through the clouds. He let their moisture gather on him as they spread over the night sky until they chased away the very stars. This was how the world was supposed to be, this was how it would be again once he had rescued his daughter.

++++

Emperor Hylar reined in his mount as he watched the men running through the whipping winds to get the horses into the corrals that had been made to have cover. Others worked on reinforcing tents with heavy stakes and lines as the air seemed charged with the storm that was creeping up out of no where. He glanced up to see the heavy clouds even in the darkness and the flicker of lightening as it played through it. The weather witches had not predicted this, but it wasn't unheard of for a fall storm to whip up suddenly. He guided the stallion through the lines of tents with his aides and body guards as he personally was able to make sure all was as it should be. One hard storm and an ill prepared encampment could find themselves wiped out by torrential rains or wind. So far all was as it seemed to be. It was the way the Empire had always run, well oiled and smooth as the commanders called out directions.

Thunder rocked the world above him and he looked up to see lightning tearing across the clouds. For a single moment he thought he saw broad wings running through them before the lightning faded away again. Only as the thunder died did the heavens open up and a sheet of rain spilled down to the earth. He stifled a curse and pulled his horse off to one side and coaxed the fractious beast towards the tents. They were as prepared as they could be, what was left would be tended to as needed. They were passing by the tents when he heard the thunder crack again, but this time it was followed by a distinct roar. He controlled his bucking stallion by a force of will as he saw a flash of scales before lightening erupted over the tents. It crackled and ripped through the material before the dragon pumped its way back into the skies screeching out a noise that sent every horse in the vicinity squealing and running. His war horse only held still by his own force of will.

"TO THE SOUTH!! ATTACK! ATTACK!! TO ARMS!" The scream was echoed throughout the camp and the Emperor turned his gaze to the south where he heard the clang of armor and saw torches. So it had begun, but here was where he would be sure it ended.

"Get the oil and set up the catapults, we shall give our soldiers light to see by." Hylar's lips curved in a smile. He would teach these barbarians how to fight properly and more importantly how they would win.

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