[$] The Dragon (Knux33 <3)

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Balrak walked on a bit before stopping, nostrils flaring. He settled down into a laying position, using a claw to pick at the bit of stringy leviathan muscle from between his fangs as he awaited the elf's appearance. He'd scented the other, so he knew Aerion was somewhere nearby. Luckily, the golden elf did not keep him waiting long; though to such an old dragon 'a short while' had been nearly a full day. So who knew how long a 'long time' would be to the overgrown lizard.

A bit of displeasure rose up in him at the sight of the dusty tomes, despite Aerion's assertion that they were not stolen. They were out of place, and Balrak did not like that, not one bit, even if he hadn't set foot in the library or anyplace else in the city in ages. “Make sure you do,” he warned, “everything in the library is in order. If I find you've misplaced things, I will ...” the dragon paused, pondering a moment. Elves were not as fragile as men, but also not as thick-skinned as dwarves. But that was incorrect labeling like that … comparing an elf to a man or dwarf was like comparing a flower to a dog or rock. They were all quite different things with very different wants and needs. But the fact of the matter was, how could he punish the elf without killing him? Truly, most things were fragile when put up alone against a beast as well-built as himself.

“I will think of something, very displeasurable,” Balrak finish lamely, mind sluggish on a fully sated stomach … and quite irked at the fact. Resting his claws down on the overgrown road in front of him, the dragon gave a sniff in Aerion's direction, just then noting the flowery scent. Not commenting on that earthy smell, thinking such pastimes common for elves, Balrak went on. “Really? What a waste.” As to what kind of 'waste' the dragon considered the young elves to be was not readily seen; a waste because he could've eaten them, perhaps? “I was quite busy my first few days here. All smelled sweetly of smoke and death …” The dragon frowned, inwardly disappointed in his nose at such a failure as to not smell out the scent of young and milk beneath all that, as 'perfect' as his nose was. Failure was never something dragons liked contemplating, because failure was death.

With a huff, Balrak cleared his nose and his thoughts, looking once again at Aerion. “Do try the scrolls in the back on the first contact with the dwarves. Quite a funny read; though I do want to know more about the world as it is. Mankind has truly spread … there's a new scent in the air I haven't spelled in a long time … reminds me of discord ...” The ancient creature closed his eyes, deeply inhaling through his nose to better scent the breeze. “What discord is there in the world, prince of elves?”  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion tilted his head at the thought of the youn elves being a waste because it was, really, he didn't know what line they were from but they could have grown to be quite the gems considering where he found them. They might have even had lighter hair, would have been pleasant to be around, but who knows what they would have been. "Waste or not they have been long since dead. I think they rather would have been eaten…" Aerion shrugged a little and ran his hands over the tomes he was carrying. "I will be sure to even clean them. The books are dusty and mistreated so I will try to save them while I am here." Aerion smiled but it fell when the other mentioned the discord that was in the air.

Aerion sighed heavily at this, then hung his head, he moved over to the wall and sat down not far from Balrak. He set the books down the stretched his arms out "The men are getting bold and rude Blarak. They are coming into the forests we own and taking what isn't theirs then trying to kill our own when we do the same. They are trying to push the other races, beside the hobbits, out and they are starting to craft with steel and stone. They say the forests belong to them because they drew little lines on little maps that they made themselves without first making sure that no one already dwelled there. It is making the elves still here angry and want to retaliate but those leaving are saying that our time is up." Aerion pursed his lips a little then pulled out a bunch of flowers and started fiddling with them while he spoke.

"The dwarves are willing to leave, they have other mountains they can dwell in, but we like our forests and we are the only reason they still stand. The hobbits are simple folk we refuse to get involved and then the peaceful orcs… they grow tired of the humans as well. The humans are trying to fight against us as if they can really stop us but we do not want to set them back any further or kill them off completely. They breed fast though and they are nothing but ignorant destruction, they claim that they own everything, so they spread and they make their little lines." Aerion scoffed a little at this.

"They battle each other constantly to! Humans fight amongst themselves over kingdoms and lands all the time and then when they do not get what they want they take it out on other smaller kingdoms. It is foolish behavior and they act like children which is why we debate fighting them because we do not want to fight children. It's as if they know no better and some say they need to be taught but I don't think they can be." Aerion fiddled with the flowers in his hands, a intricate weaver being made from the long stems, before he pursed his lips.

"Goblin have been giving trouble to dwarves as well, they try to take things all the time, we have had to help the ones still here many time. The elves have become like parents to wayward races and I think that's why our race has stopped reproducing as much. We take care of others and try to stop bickering… plus the half breeds we have to take in all the time. It is heading into a war though I think and it will only grow but… I am almost thankful I would not be there. My father would have sent me to fight but I don't want to kill humans. Not my idea of fun." Aerion set the weaved object down.

"The humans have also been cutting down forests to expand, many of them in fact, so you might want to be wary. They will probably just set this one on fire considering the spiders and things that infest it." Aerion sighed heavily at the thought. The kingdom would surely burn if the forest caught flame.  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Balrak took no little satisfaction in knowing that this new possession of his would serve him well in the upkeep of his other long-neglected things. Perhaps with time the little elf could be persuaded to shine scales as well, and sharpen his claws. Quite liking that thought, Balrak made note to bring it up in the future before listening with rapt attention as Aerion described the young upstart race that was mankind. "How silly of them. Lines on paper claiming what they want to be theirs, and saying it is? Sounds to me like a little fire and destruction there way would be a kindness; to remind the insects they are not the only beings worthy of note on the earth," the dragon drawled, watching the elf as he seemed to 'play' with his flowers and planty things. "Respect cannot be taught," Balrak agreed, smiling his predatory smile. "It must be demanded, and humans have no respect. Not for themselves, or other races. But should they encroach upon what is mine ... they will learn to respect me."

The massive wyrm shifted a bit where he lay, looking at the majesty of the kingdom around him. "Let them take care of my pests for me. I will ensure the flames do not engulf what they should not; and should mankind wish to make war with a force of nature such as myself ... I will return the sentiment in kind. You may not wish to bother with the life and death of man, but if they ask for it I will fully defend what is mine ... and then destroy what is theirs. I saw some of their constructs in my travels; flimsy wooden things, and stone hovels. Easy pickings." Balrak was clearly unimpressed with the muddy race as a whole, and largely unconcerned. Though talk of war was quite interesting to the wyrm; perhaps such a conflict could be used in his own favor. He was the greatest and grandest wyrm of all; if one side was smart enough to ask for his favor in return for fattening his hoard ...

But even if they did not, there would be gold and richest for the taking, whoever won in the end.

Balrak looked up at the moon and stars, thoughtful and greedy for even more wealth for himself. "Aerion, you may traverse my kingdom as you wish." But only my kingdom, was what need not be said between them, the dragon raising to his feet and leaping into the air with surprising agility for something his size, wings flapping up a monstrous tumult of wind before the massive wyrm flew 'round to the waterfall at the edge of the city's clifface, and flew into the dark hole to return to his nest. He did not immerse himself in his gold, but lay upon it as he dozed, absorbing the knowledge he'd gained that day. Balrak's skull was full of memories, knowledge, and instincts that needed to be sorted from time to time. Though after so long asleep, the sorting was done neatly and quickly, mental maps updated with what he'd seen and notes made on the races Aerion had spoken of.

Hobbits ... now those were something the dragon wanted a glimpse of. And half breeds as well ... So many things in the world! Balrak's curiosity tingled, but the wyrm settled with laying on his gold, and after a time began shifting and sorting his wealth into neater piles. Sorting all of his wealth, of course, took quite a bit of time and busied the large wyrm as he slowly digested his seafood feast ... leaving Aerion on his own terms for 'a decent while' in Balrak-time ... namely for three solid days as the large green dragon went through his piles upon piles of gold and riches.

And during that time, of course, rumor spread of the sight of a fire-breathing flying thing on the coast that had eaten a leviathan. Balrak was, of course, a hard thing to miss seeing, and enough ships had been close enough with telescopes to spy a bit of the dragon. But most accounts of such a thing were put down by traders and travelers as nothing more than a tall fisher's tale ... most, did at least. A few took the tales to heart and either trembled in fear at the thought of such a beast truly living, while others wondered what a pretty penny they may get for a fang or scale of such a beast. So word of the great green dragon spread, for good or for ill ... and as Aerion predicted, there were already men planning to set fire to the 'cursed woods' that was full of nothing more than orcs, spiders, and death and would do better off to be burnt down to make room for expansion.  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion nodded as the dragon spoke in his low rumble about teach the humans how to repect him, knowing it would only work for so far, because as he said they were children. They would respect him… then fear him. Then they would send armies to kill him and Balrak was just on dragon, not many, the scourge of the earth yes but the humans were inventive if anything and if the dragon tested his luck he would be taken down. Many dragons had already seen death at the hands of mortal men so it would be of no surprise to Aerion if one day Balrak saw his demise the same. The blond elf looked up from his busy work as the dragon stood, obviously done with their conversation, and then he stood on his own.

He was given free reign of the kingdom which meant plenty of time to think.. he better keep himself busy. He didn't know when exactly Balrak would come looking for him against so he decided that he would start cleaning up an area for him to stay, a place he could go for peace and quiet, he chose a lovely room next to the gardens and over the next few days he read and tended the gardens. He found fruit trees over flowing, and nut trees as well, he fished a bit and managed to get some almond oil to repair the binding on the books he had. He read through one of the books by the time Balrak reemerged but he was ignorant to what the men were planning.

He did not leave the kingdom, couldn’t hear the whispers on the wind through the silence of the safe haven he was in, he did not know of the tension the return of Balrak had brought. His own kingdom was in an uproar, his father thinking him dead and planning to come kill the Dragon who had finally taken the last thing he loved, but all of that was out of the elfs mind as he read his books and tended the gardens he was currently calling home. He wasn't going to let his mind rest long enough to focus on what was going on, on the fact that he was trapped. He did distraction well, very well, his mind was never still long enough to think even when he was eating so there was a plus.

Aerion was wandering the halls with a restored book in his hands when he finally heard the toher come back from his stay away. To be honest it wasn't that long for Aerion, he was an elf after all, it was a short while for him as well. Aerion was singing a song under his breath as he walked down a set of stairs near the main entrance to the kingdom, something old about a forest long ago burned, and despite the bird part of one of his tittles there was nothing chirpy about the way the words slid off his tongue in old elvish. Aerion slowed the song to a humm as he heard some noise, what sound like crackling in the distance, then got the smallest wif of smoke. He closed the book he was reading and tilted his head, a small fire, he guessed it was either starting very soon or some Orcs had been idiots and not put their camp fire out correctly.

Aerion didn't like the smell, it made him sick, not fire but the smell of this burning forest. The wood here gave off an acidic smell when it burned and it felt toxic, like breathing it in could corrupt you, he sighed a little and continued his humming. He did have to wonder when Balrak would show up again, he could have been long gone by now if he didn't know better.  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Balrak had finished his sorting, and was perched lazily on the sturdy rooftops of the larger dwellings in his kingdom as he pondered the scent on the breeze, the familiar smell of burning wood. His woods, now. And whoever was burning it was trespassing. Filthy little mortals, Balrak thought to himself, but did not fly off to deal with them just yet. The old wyrm lingered, hearing the tune of a long-ago song from a fresh new voice. Aerion had not been giving empty titles; the elf really did have a voice pleasing to the dragon's ears. Though as the elf trailed off to humming, the dragon chuckled from above. "I will expect a full performance when I return," the dragon stated, before lifting off and heading towards the growing fire. It did seem to be purposefully made; spiders were fleeing from the smoke and flames in droves, their nest aflame. The dragon himself did not mind the acidic scent all too much, though it was a rather putrid annoyance when trying to seek out fainter and more subtle scents.

Like man sweat. Ah; there the perpetrators were, faces covered with cloth over their noses and mouths as they banked the fire and tried to control it to burn as they wished; they'd had to wait all day for the wind to turn in their favor, to draw the flames deeper into the woods instead of blowing out back towards good, safe, not-demon-infested lumber. They even had buckets of water, just in case they needed to put out stray sparks ... though it wasn't too huge a concern. It wasn't like anyone that mattered lived nearby.

Balrak grinned from above, highly amused when his first pass by the clustered little 'ants' only made them look around in surprise at the sudden turn of the wind. It was when he glided by a second time that the wyrm heard a rather wonderful yell of panic and fright. Run, run, run as fast as you can, little men. You've been playing with fire, so you must know what that means ... The wyrm filled his lungs, mouth half open as he felt the fire building inside of himself, eyes gleaming with a sick delight before swooping low for the third time, and let loose a blast of concentrated incineration. Trees and men did not just burn, they charred and turned largely to ashes. This nearly put out most of the fire already started, leaving nothing for the flames to consume; but the embers and flames that were left Balrak planed to easily blow-out with his mighty wings or smother beneath his impressive scaly skin. For now, the dragon took great delight in following the fleeing men and women, igniting the party one by one until only a handful were left to flee for their lives, like so many mice.

Not even caring a few got away, the dragon turned towards his forest and lazily surveyed his kingdom, debating whether or not to get rid of the orcs, goblins, and spiders that remained himself. One the one hand, they did serve to slow down invaders ... on the other, they could likely grow to be a nusince on his doorstep if ever they decided to have a go at his riches. And how good a deterrent were they, anyway, if a single elf could make his way through? Then again men were quite less battle-trained than elves ...

Decisions decisions. I will leave them until they prove to be detrimental to my hoard. The men will likely return, with arms likely instead of fire next time. I do hope they wear nice armor; that way I can add it to my collection. But until then, the little shadows will stay, to frighten little thieves away. Rumbling in amusement, Balrak turned his wings back towards the kingdom once he was sure the fires were either out or in no danger of burning his beautiful city. Coming in for a--to him--perfectly graceful landing Balrag huffed to try to get the stick of smoke out of his nostrils, settling down to cool off after his firebreathing and merry chasing.

"Aerion," Balrag said, knowing the elf would come post-haste at the beckoning. A very good little creature; the dragon couldn't figure out why he hadn't grabbed one of the creatures for himself centuries ago. It was much more amusing to keep one alive than to simply eat it. The dragon turned his gaze towards the flash of golden hair once he spotted the elf, and grinned widely. "There were hardly any men at all; they were quite clueless of my being here, I'm sure. But now they've got the message; though I'm sure they'll come to fight until they've been shown little things like men and elves don't simply up and fight a creature as magnificent as I without woeful repercussions." Balrak seemed more tickled by the prospect than annoyed; almost like an overexcited child quite happily smashing small stick or sand-made forts and constructs. Only ... the dragon was massive, and several shades more malicious about it. "But enough of that. They won't be back of at least a while after what I did to them. Now, do tell me how you got my book to look like that again," the dragon demanded to know, looking at the refurbished tome. Balrak knew of many things and many tricks, but book mending was certainly not one of them. Dragons, as greedy as they are for treasure, do at times get greedy over knowledge and factoids as well.

*

Unbeknownst to those two, one man was traveling quite fast back to the nearest town on horseback, gasping and covered in oily smoke as he yelled his way into town, raving about the dragon, and all the dead men. At first the townsfolk took it as raving and the man breathing in too much smoke, but eventually the rest trickled in and confirmed the tale. Messages were sent quickly, to the neighboring towns and to the King. Human Kings, of course, are not so uncommon a thing these days.

But between the rumors of a fire-breathing monster by the coast and more ligament claims from trusted men now coming in, the old King sat with his counselors and sons over dinner to discuss the grave matter. His sons were men now, and he was an old man, but his mind was as sharp as anything. If something were to be done about the beast ... they would need experts on the subject.

One son was commanded to ride north, where dragonslayer's kin were said to reside amongst the old bones of the creatures thought to be completely extinct ... or near to it. Another was to ride to the edge of the forest of elves; surely the old, vanishing race was to know how to best deal with wyrms, if the pompous, long-eared, squatters were half as wise as they claimed to be. The last son was to gather their forces ... however a dragon this reported size was to be slain, the old King wasn't about to go half-assing it.

So, yet more gears were set turning.  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion was startled from his humming when he heard the dragons voice and he looked up toward where he heard the dragon before watching the great span of wings take off again. He could almost feel on the wind that the other would not be gone long this time, that he would do what he needed and be back without much waste of time, though the thought did not comfort Aerion any. He grew wrestles, weary, he enjoyed the kingdom but he was starting to feel the itch of his captivation as it started to set in. These long stints of being alone were not making it any easier and he almost craved the attention of the beastly form so that he could forget he was trapped and think only of imminent demise instead.

He did not like shackles, even less those that he could not feel or see, for now though he could keep himself distracted with the book and his humming. Even as he heard the crackling pick up, the roar of fire, and the shouting of fear as men ran from the dragon Aerion read on. He sat in the hall on a chair he had place there to wait and he listened to the destruction, let it be a ball on the end of his invisible chain, because he would not put it past this beast to burn his kingdom to the ground should he try to leave to it. The woods were surprisingly good at carrying sound though, Aerion realized, he could hear almost every noise that echoed so far away as men burned and screamed. Eventually there was silence, nothing but the acrid scent of burnt wood left, and then the flapping of wings could be heard sounding closer and Aerion sighed.

Balrak stank of smoke, in the most unpleasant way he reeked of it, but Aerion did not say a word as the creature landed and started to speak. He halted his humming and lifted his head, uncurling his legs from under his body, before he stood and came from the spot further off that Balrak would not be able to see him at. The blond listened with mild interest at Balraks words, wishing the other would not tell him about these things, but then the dragon was asking about the book he currently held in his hands and he looked down at it. Aerion shrugged a little, not really finding the restoration of this book all that interesting, it was a very simple task since it was an older leather bound book. "Just used Almond oil and a few other things… The book was dry, like leaves in the fall. I re-inked a few worn pages and reheated the wax binding, added more wax, made it a bit stronger. The book should last much longer with regular up keep." Aerion held the book up so Balrak could see.

"I also touched up the colors on the front… the other two will take me longer but thankfully I am good at this. My friend Mal could not mend books to save her life…" Aerion chuckled and pulled the book back to his chest, not sure if the dragon found interest in his tale. "You said you wanted to hear my song yes? I have others I could sing as well but if you wish I can sing the one I was singing earlier."  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Balrak turned his nose downward, peering at the book and inhaling the fresh scents of repair as Aerion explained the methods used to turn the old dusty work into a rather decent-looking tome once more. Simple things to little folk were quite alien to a dragon, who knew nothing of craft and only of the art of destruction and might. "Fascinating. And yes. Do sing the one you were singing earlier; I quite like the tune." Balrak sifted his weight a bit to get more comfortable, head turning to stare at the small trails of smoke whirling into the breeze as Aerion started up his song. Ah, yes. I do know this one, I think. Ah irony; old burns hanging in the air through voice while new burns still weep a few bits of fresh smoke, the wyrm thought to himself, humming along to the last few lines. Though it was more rumble than proper tune, Balrak still mentally congratulated himself on capturing such a singer.

"Yes ... I do quite like that one. You manage it quite well. But tell me, prince of elves ..." The dragon looked curiously down at Aerion, a bit disappointed in just one thing. "You have been here a while now. Surely your father would sent many searching for you, one of royal blood, once they realized you had gone missing? Even here where I dwell; surely your blood is precious enough to send warriors? Or, smarter still, ransom?" Ah, there it was. The real reason the old wyrm was disappointed; elves were such easy creature to get gold from, surely they would be desperate enough to try anything to get a first-born prince back? Or at least send elves with pretty armor? Elves did have quite beautiful armor; much nicer than mankind's, and he was sure to get more than enough of that sooner or later.

Not that Balrak would ever give anything up that he'd decided was his. Aerion fell into the 'MINE' category quite firmly in the dragon's mind, the elf a source of knowledge and entertainment that could stave-off boredom. Because really ... Balrak had lived more than enough years just counting his riches and trinkets to know something of real worth when he saw it ... even if he was still a greedy old wyrm. "Mm. And if they do come, it is not like you're ever leaving. 'Not over my dead body', I heard one of those men yelling to another; is that an apt phrase for this situation?" the dragon asked oh-so-not-helpfully, tilting his horned head. "Quite a silly saying though, since's he's quite dead and the other man did do quite the magnificent leap over the charred body. How odd men are ... Anyway, what else is it you've been doing around here? You can't have been spending your days all with the one book," Balrak asked, glancing around. Aerion was a bit of life in the dead city; surely the elf was changing things along with stirring the air around here, for better or for worse. But Balrak wanted to see with his own eyes what the elf had been up to, just to make sure the other hadn't been pulling any funny business. Or breaking anything.  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion leaned against the wall closest to Balrak so that he was close enough for the other to hear then he started singing. He had a very pleasant voice, he knew he did, but he didn't know why he didn't sing more often. He found it hard to sing for more than one person, the larger crowds scaring Aerion into silence. Aerion heard the rumbling humms along with the last notes of his tune and he couldn't help but chuckle, the dragons throat just not made to sing the notes like his, but of course the pleasant quietness was soon interrupted by the questions that Balrak had to ask him. Aerion looked up at the sky then back to the dragon near his side.

"He most likely has sent out search parties. But they will be looking the wrong way for a while, I told everyone I was going somewhere else, rode one direction for a few days, then I turned here. I knew my father would be looking for me once he realized I was gone but he is also used to my absence for long periods of time. Weeks even, time is relative for us, just the same as you that amount of time means very little." Aerion rubbed the book a little then stood straight from his leaning position. "but yes… different thoughts are better. Most likely when they come they will be gone before I can even see them, you will dispose of them I assume, so why dwell on such things? I can show you what I have been doing." Aerion bit back on the pain in his chest because he knew very well the elves his father would send.

His friends would come, in their armor and wielding their bows, they would come and try to slay the dragon then see him unshackled and be burned alive without any warning. It was starting to bring the thoughts he didn't want into his head, he was starting to feel the pressure, Aerion didn't want to feel the pressure. He wasn't trapped, he was going to die soon, he was almost dead. That's what this was, not a prison, a prolonged death. It would take years, eons even, but it was just an extended death and if he kept his mind like that he would not panic. Aerion took Balrak to the garden through the wide halls, not surprised the other could fit considering the kingdom was huge, and he showed the other the restored area. It was almost completely back to its original glory "It took a while but I managed to fix up the garden… There are a lot of fruit trees. I also cleaned up one of the living areas for myself."  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Balrak raised his ruff inquisitively at Aerion's reaction to his questions. Odd; even with the elf's good behavior the wyrm had thought the other might have something to say about the subject of friend-roasting. The little blond had possessed quite the looser tongue when they first met regarding clipped comments, why had that particular well run so dry? The dragon kept his thoughts to himself, instead following the elf through the grand, spacious halls. Slithinging low on his belly at a few of the lower doorways, Balrak nevertheless fit quite perfectly in the elves lost kingdom; almost as if they had built it for him. Quite thoughtful of the greedy little things. It was the sight of the tended garden that caused Balrak to paused, before shifting closer to get a better look at the different plants and such, looking quite improved compared to the last time he'd paid even an ounce of attention to them. Really, the things almost looked even better than when they'd been tended by elves; it was as if they were just a bit brighter somehow ... Clearly Aerion was one of many talents, and therefore even more precious an item.

"Good to see you have a means of feeding yourself," the dragon commented, glancing towards the prince. "But your earlier words ... I'm presuming you do not particularly want your friends to be burnt to a crisp? Surely, you would rather see them and know they are not to be obliterated?" Perhaps giving the blond a boon would encourage the elf to have more banter, instead of sticking to answering questions and demands. Obedience was all well and good, but the old wyrm had been asleep for centuries; a little more liveliness besides roasting intruders was good for the mind. Particularly battles of wit and tongue.

And it would be more than a little amusing to see Aerion turn away his own would-be rescuers. At least, for the evil old wyrm it would be. "How about you meet and greet them before turning them away? You will be here quite a long while ... I imagine goodbyes and messages to loved ones might also be in order," Balrak went on, all the world looking like he was posing as some great, kind dragon willing to 'give' so much, bad being rather horrible at the farce of it. Anything Balrak did was for ultimately himself, and that was the end of it.  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion was irritated when the dragon brought up his rescuers again, as if they were actually there now and he was having to make a choice, it was like salt in a wound and Aerion was quickly growing bitter. He wanted the dragon to shut up, to not speak of things that he said he would "do" when Aerion knew better, the dragon would not let those elves leave here alive because they had come as thieves. Aerion gripped the book a little tighter as the giant lizard went on, the wyrm wearing thin on the restraint that Aerion had, he was trying to play good little elf until the creature decided to roast him so it would be kind of the dragon to leave the subject alone unless he wanted a broken trinket on his hands.

"No. I would not wish to bid good byes because I am already dead. This is an extended stay in purgatory, that is all, you've already killed me in your head so why should I bid good byes when by every right I should be nothing but ash by now?" Aerion glared forward, biting his tongue but not being able to stop the torrent "Dead bodies do not speak so I will not speak to them. You'll burn them either way will you not? You'll eat them up because that's what you do so why should I waste my time with something like that? It's better if I just forget I am alive because then this won't feel like a prison, I can pretend I am waiting till my ship sails away, it's easier that way." Aerion was bitter, and his words were harsh, he refused to look at Balrak because there was nothing but contempt in his eyes.

"Plus I am sure you would rather have whole objects and not broken ones am I right? Elves are useless if their hearts are broken, something you can't understand, so I am sorry oh great dragon but I will not be amusing you in such a way." Aerion was sure he had angered the giant lizard, the creature being so prideful, but he could not do as the Dragon said if the dragon still wanted him to be whole. He would hear his ship call for him and he would waste away if he let himself dwell on the bad that he had too.  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Ah, now this was interesting. Balrak listened intently to Aerion's thoughts, highly amused by the fragility of elves. No wonder mankind now ruled the earth. The dwarves were too busy plundering the bowels for more riches, and the elves truly were as fragile as flowers.

"Already killed you in my head, have I?" Balrak asked, not roaring or raging. But, perhaps to some, the clear amusement at another's warning of cracking would be sick to behold. "Now Songbird, if I'd done that you would be well and truly dead. Playing with one's food only amuses for so long, you must understand. You are not food, nor an intruder. You are mine, and you belong here, same as all my other treasures. I do not destroy my treasures. And you call this ... this, the greatest of all built cities, a prison?" Lifting his wings, the dragon gestured to the magnificence all around them.

"So long as your friends prove to be guests and not thieves ... I have no reason to char them. I am a dragon, not some hungry troll bent on eating anything and everything that moves, elf. Especially, if your friends know how to be polite," Balrak rolled out, not entirely liking the idea of strangers in his midst, but also not really wanting the elf to break himself. Really, what kind of 'watering' did this 'flower' need to keep from wilting so pitifully? Best ask the elf. Bah, this would be much simpler if he could simply get the blond to look him in the eye. The dragon had used his charm on many an animal when he was a young drake and hunting; keeping prey shock-still (like a bird petrified by the gaze of a snake) so he could go in for the kill. And later, practicing on a few unwary goblins in the mountains ... but goblins were weak-willed creatures. Balrak grudgingly admitted he was not some legendary master of dragon charm magic ... but he could still use it to nudge thoughts of others the way he wanted them to, and sometimes a nudge was worth quite a lot.

Too bad Aerion knew better, damn him and his fragile little self.

"So what, elf? You wishing yourself dead in my eyes does little for either of us. What use have I for meddling with your heart when your mind is far more amusing? Come, speak. Explain what would break you so completely, that living in a world of pretend and inevitable doom is preferable."  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion closed his eyes as the dragon went on. He detested the beast for all his grandeur, his greed, his expectation to play with his mind. He detested the creatures will to capture him, to hold him tight in his grasps, and he found his lies cruel. Aerion turned and set his book down on a stone table, crafted to look like a stump in the garden, then he started tending to the garden while Balrak spoke. His hands pulled at weeds with more aggression then need be, his frustration easily kept off his face, but he refused to speak until the dragon had finished his own little speech. Nothing but lies dripped off the dragons tongue like his fire, burned the air and soiled it, Aerion was sure that this dragon saw it all as pale weakness.

Could his greed not be counted the same? Aerion had something to live for in his home and by denying it, by thinking himself already dead, he was hoping to spare the pain from his family. They would not want to know that he was now in possession of a dragon and they would send more than the search party if they found out. He would watch so many burn because his people would want him back, they might even beg, because he had been the one good thing to come so soon after they lost their question. He had been the sun in the dark and made his people smile, he may have been a fool to come but he had only good intentions for his people, it would crush them to know another thing had been stolen by the dragon.

Aerion was crouched on the ground, arms resting on his knees, and he stared down at the grass. "You do meddle with my mind dragon. What your seeing is the inability to touch my heart because I will not let you, you cannot hurt me, and I will not let you hurt my people. If I wanted to stay here you would know that by now instead I stand here because I must. I know you have a creative mind, I know you can think of many ways to hurt me without having to touch me, and I will not let you. If you want to play with someone's heart find yourself a human that will look into your eyes and bend to your will." Aerion stared at a tree far off, watching a few birds move around it, then he finally glanced at the dragon.

"I will not explain to you what will break me. You have another treasure and I can be rather entertaining without you tormenting my heart. Unless you would like me to wilt away? I can if that's what you wish, fade because you won't let me sail away, grow sick and die like the flower I am sure you think I am." Aerion looked back down at the weeds then stood and brushed his hands clean of the dirt. "Gold is an easy thing to manipulate Balrak… people are not. Even more so those who know your tricks so just let me think in my gilded manner and you shall keep me around much longer. It's my heart I cage off from you not my mind. And why would you want that? It surely isn't made of gold." Aerion bit back the taunting tone he almost took, because that would have made the dragon angry, but of course he couldn’t hold back his last words. He was still himself, even if he guarded himself from this dragon, he still was not the most adept at being courteous with certain people/creatures he didn't like.  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

The soft sound of shifting scales and a few harsher creaks of bending metal were all that was heard as Balrak mantled at Aerion's retorts, yellow eyes narrowing and fangs showing like any displeased beast. As predicted, the dragon did not take the elf's refusal to act as 'expected' very well. 'Owning' mind and not heart was like not possessing half the elf, which was not not a whole elf at all! When Balrak owned something, he wanted complete and total custody. The elves built this city, and dwarves fashioned most of it's precious metals, but that did not give them fair share, no; it all belonged wholly to him. That was how this was supposed to work, damn it!

But ... what use was a treasure if it rotted. Balrak had no use for plants or gardens, though they looked nice. Even the books he would let fall into dust and mildew, even though he enjoyed them ... because dragons were not much for upkeep. They took what pleased them, and slept mouths, years, centuries away. Their race was not built to handle things that changed; no. Dragons felt attracted almost exclusively with things that withstood time almost as well as they did: caves, metals, gems and jewels. And above all the glitter of gold; like sunlight. Like the elf's hair. But when one lived forever ... what good were things that were not forever with it? The greed and riches of this kingdom would last a long, long while ... even if the buildings might eventually fall into disrepair. The taste of old greed and glittering treasure would remain, just as Balrak himself would remain.

The elf had to remain ... and to remain he would not be a possession, but simply someone ... here. Not by choice, but still ... Close enough. For now.

"I will keep you eternally," the dragon reminded Aerion none-too gently, particularly at the 'and you shall keep me around much longer' comment. if the elf wouldn't give his heart ... "Fine. Keep your heart. But should you dare wilt and die without my permission, I will take great pleasure in ripping that puny muscle out of you and eating it. Afterwords, I shall feast upon your people as the main course, and your father's head as dessert. Your life is their lives, so long as my fire burns," Balrak promised darkly. He let the threats hang in the air, slowly feeling less angry and more satisfied with his own response to the situation. It was important Aerion not forget who was king here; who ruled amongst the dark roots beneath the earth.

"Do you properly understand your position now, elf?"  

[Killer_Kiwi_XD]

knux33

Aerion looked to the other and at the condescending tone he almost hissed at the creature just out of spite. The blond gripped his hands into fists then glared right up at the dragon, wondering if the great beast thought him an idiot, because he knew very well what his position had been the moment he saw the dragon rise from that pile of sickly greed. Aerion felt a sick and taunting grin spread on his face, completely unbidden of him, and then he gave a bow. Appeal to the ego, bow like this dragon was some king, not nothing more than a sick pathetic creature fueled by greed and the lust for gold.

"Of course great Balrak. Because I had not known before exactly what you would do." Aerion stood with straight quickly and then turned back to the garden. He was irritated with the beast, with his ignorance and his ego, because he thought himself the greatest thing in the world when he was nothing but an over grown lizard that breathed fire. He took joy in malevolence and material things that would waste away. Aerion pulled at a thorned bush in frustration, wanting nothing more than to have the dragon gone from his sight, he figured that the creature would grow bored if he was silent.

After a moment Aerion threw the offending shrubbery down by his side "So am I to expect your company for a short while or will you be back to your glorious horde here soon? I worry that there will be visitors here soon for you, thieves if you will, not my kin but surely other he doubt you are as fierce as said. They will come to lash at your scales and steal your gold…" Aerion seemed quite happy with the idea, and he was, but he sighed after a moment "It would be a shame if you let them get that close wouldn’t it?" Because he would not stop them if they came into the city.

Aerion would let them kill the dragon in his sleep if they could, at this point his thoughts were nothing but malicious, he was sure he would calm down later but at the moment he was sick of the beasts presence. Not just because of what he said but because Aerion grew tired of speaking to a beast, of talking to this monster, because he wanted to go home. He couldn’t let his mind dwell on that though because then he would wilt and he wasn't allowed to do that. One day the dragon would tire of him and he would be allowed to fade away but for now he was stuck in purgatory with the scourge of the fallen kingdom to watch over him. Aerion was sure that Balrak would not like that new title though.

He pulled at a branch and felt the thorns cut into his hands, because it was something to be frustrated about that wasn't large and completely unable to take care of, Aerion pulled his hand back and watched the blood drip down his wrist to stain his sleeve.  

[knux33]

Killer_Kiwi_XD

Balrak might've been a bit appeased by the bow ... if the grin he'd caught sight of and Aerion's words proved far too courteous for the elf to be at all sincere. "Bite your tongue," Balrak grumbled his displeasure, gaze turning to the garden as Aerion turned away from him, contemplating burning up the blond's hard work just to spite him. The wyrm decided against it; he didn't want to ruin part of his kingdom just because the elf was being a smart-a**--

The dragon stiffened as Aerion went on, of course made quite anxious at the mention of thieves ... and hating the elf for so easily ruffling his feathers. Balrak held his tongue, brooding darkly and inwardly bitter that he knew nothing else he could threaten Aerion with to cow the elf. But he didn't want to just roll over and let the other get away with talking to him in such a manner; what was a dragon to do? Shifting his weight, Balrak replied with a hot-aired huff as no words seemed to fit his mood. And he did not want to get so angry that he would accidentally fry his newest treasure; beastly he truley was, and Balrak knew it. But he was aged, and knew also how to keep the instincts in check ... most of the time. In dragons, their baser natures were what they were born with and lived like nothing more than intelligent animals for the first years, before naming and before true thought.

Balrak had lived a long, long time to be intellectual enough to keep his tongue still, and tell himself this particular fight was not worth pursuing. Not right now, anyway. He was about to leave to do a quick sniff-around his kingdom for intruders--because not that Aerion had mentioned it, the wyrm couldn't get the damn worry out of his head--and would've done so, had he not smelled the blood.

"Burn you elf," Balrak cursed, quickly trying to lower his rather large horned head to eye the wound, "what have you done to yourself? Fix it!" The smell of elf blood was familiar, and impossible for the massive predator to not notice. "Damn, you little fleshy things are so fragile. How did you even manage that? Hmph. This is why scales are so superior. No flimsy plant can hurt my hide." Of course, once again, unable to keep his massive maw shut about himself.