"Speed yes, that would explain her small size and larger wings.And sky racing hasn't been a thing for a while, not after less and less people could talk to dragons." Oliver was she she was sky dragon and a seer, it which type of sky dragon would be a little harder to tell till he got a better look. "Chi really likes it up here."
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"Yeah, dragon riding is nice when you're not being chased by enemy forces," Aurelius agreed, "It's still my favorite pastime. I get to be with my closest companion, and we're away from the world."
Auri, where are we going anyway? You all were saying North… I'm going North. And I'm nervous… Is there a safe haven for us there?
Quincy looked to Aurelius, "So, how long will we fly for?"
"Until we're somewhere safe, or until we wear out. Whichever comes first, honestly. Also depends on Pollux. He's looking a bit rough…" Aurelius explained.
Pollux tried to shout something, but his throat was raw and painful. Whatever he was trying to say came out as a kind of squeaking noise instead of words.
Quincy quickly turned their head to Pollux, "Let's land soon. I want to see f I can do something more for him."
He made a hand motion at Quincy, saying no, let's keep going. He didn't think his life was in danger at this point; he was just extremely uncomfortable and tired, but would be fine on dragonback.
"Maybe," Aurelius said, not seeing his hand motions, "Depends how far the next village is."
Pollux swore, but not much noise came out.
(Oof, I have to go. I should be back tonight. 3 of my classes got cancelled tomorrow, so I get to stay up late.)
Quincy saw the hand motion. She shook her head, "He says to keep going. So go we shall."
"Alright, then. Nox, what do you see?"
Nothing unusual. The sun's starting to set, but I think traveling by night is more than okay. It should be pretty safe.
Pollux drew out his flask, which was filled with water from the pond. As his throat was wet, and relieved of the burning sensation from the smoke, he was finally able to talk.
"You guys know the village you're heading for, right? Adjust the course a little more east," he said with a low rasping tone, "Also, I may have failed to mention it, but I'm a healer by trade… I know the body's limits, and I know I'm okay, at least for now."
Quincy let out a sigh, "Great to know we have an 'actual' healer with us now. I get more time to alchemy!"
"Luckily I'm specifically trained for battlefield injuries and the like… I've a feeling we've got a lot of that ahead," Pollux sighed, "Hopefully I can be better than just a burden to you."
"Oh, shut up with that whole speech. You didn't raze that village, and you didn't choose to be one of three known survivors," Aurelius replied, a little more snippy than usual.
He'd heard all of this before. Hollow words wouldn't do anything. He only cared about this man pulling his own weight.
"Life throws the unexpected at you," Quincy rolled her eyes, "So get some time to get well and I'm sure you will be anything but a burden."
"Sure thing," Pollux replied, "I'll give my all." He quietly settled down, trying to prop himself up on the dragon in just the right way that he could sleep and not fall. Aurelius kept an eye on him and alerted Nox, just in case he did start falling.
Aurelius flew Nox beside Quincy and her dragon. "How are you faring after all this?"
"Honestly, I could be doing worse," Quincy sighed, "I still feel really guilty about all of this. Even though these aren't directly my fault."
"I think we all do…" Aurelius admitted, "We did what we could to get people to listen to us. I just… wish we could've spared more innocent lives that didn't have that choice of whether to leave or stay. But hey… you saved my life and Pollux's, and you've eased the pain of others, and that's something. So you? You of all people should not feel guilty. You're doing great."
Quincy smiled slightly, "Thanks. I'm honestly just doing what I can, where I can. Don't feel guilty though Aurelius, you've done great things too."
"I'm… I'm trying… I um…" Aurelius lowered his voice to make sure only Quincy could hear, "Do you know about my trade…? You know, the one I don't like to talk about? I know there have to be rumors…"
(He would be talking about his dabbling in necromancy, specifically speaking to the dead. He does not, however, reanimate corpses, although there are rumors that he does.)
Quincy thought for a moment before nodding subtly. Her voice was a quiet whisper, "I think I do. Is it the one with spirits and such?"
"Yeah… So I guess you haven't heard the nastiest of the rumors… I'd rather it stay that way. Well, I was wondering if there was something I could do? Someone who died that I might be able to talk to, perhaps, that could give us answers?" Aurelius suggested, "I know something's up here. this appears to be a mass occurrence. It wasn't just the one village. I want to find out who exactly is doing this to us."
"I have no idea," Quincy said sadly. Before she perked up a little, "Not dead at least. Though I think any of the victims would work right? Or someone who fought against them."
"That's the idea. But I'll have to pick carefully. I can't just call up any soul from the Spirit Realm. I have to have some physical connection, like a locket or a book. Plus, approval from the four gods of death… It's quite a process, and they make sure it takes a toll," Aurelius explained, "Dammit, why didn't I think of this earlier, while we were still at the scene? I could've found jewelry or other things to help me with this. I'm hoping we can find some common thread."
"Hey," Quincy frowned, "It hurts me to say this, but I'm sure they'll be others. We can find something there, or go back to grab something. Then you can do your spirit necro thing."
"I know there'll be others…" he whispered, "But the sooner we figure this out, the better. Plus, it'll help if we find out how they got opportunities, and if they had traitors within… I don't want a thousand more people to have to die before we can do something."
Quincy nodded, "As soon as we can, we should head back to the old village to find something to use. That way you can get the process started sooner."
"I can ask Pollux if he might have anything that used to belong to someone he knows… And if anyone else from our village already has something, that would be best. The things is, spirits move on. Sometimes they move on quickly…" Aurelius explained.