Welcome to Gaia! ::

Keitaro's head swam, still hazy after the battle and the subsequent sleep. Still, he was alert; he had seen movement in the trees. A woman with a wolf, he thought. Or, perhaps a woman who was also a wolf; such concepts weren't foreign to Keitaro.

Acting quickly, Keitaro cast about the surrounding environment until he found what he was looking for. Sitting in the tall grass at the base of a tree, there was a lithe, glistening, blue-tailed lizard. Keitaro stepped closer, his eyes locked on the smooth form of the reptilian body. Then, when he was a respectful distance from the creature, Keitaro stopped and dropped into a respectful bow.

"Hello, little friend. My name is Keitaro, most blessed child of the Sasaki family, one who carries with him the authority of the dragon lords, your masters. Speak to me, if you can," Keitaro whispered, his voice sounding inhuman as it silkened from between his lips. It was a unique ability, based in the heirarchy of life held sacred by the people of his homeland.

It was said that dragons, being the highest order of scaled beings, ruled over all other scaled animals of lower orders. Everything from fish, to snakes, to salamanders. Through his bond to the dragon lords, Keitaro sometimes had access to this ability, though not often to the extent he would like.

Indeed, Keitaro cast a wary glance at his companions; while they had always accepted his eccentricities, he knew that it was only because there was much they did not know about him. Many of his abilities were still a mystery to them (not to mention to Keitaro himself), and Keitaro was not sure he was ready to reveal the extent of his power. To that end, he hoped to have his conversation over and done with before any of the others awoke.

Keitaro smiled warmly at his small, reptilian friend. "The girl who was just here, the one who was not quite human, what can you tell me about her? What did she do for us, what did she do to them?" Keitaro asked his questions slowly, then waited patiently for the lithe lizard to reply. Behind him, he could hear his companions stirring, but was positioned so that no one could see the lizard to whom he was speaking, nor could they likely catch his whispered words.

His eyes focused on the lizard, he waited for the reply.

Keitaro smiled once more at the serpentine form, before dropping into another respectful bow. "I am grateful for your assistance; for your services, you shall be rewarded," Keitaro said. The lizard inclined his head ever so slightly, in what Keitaro could only imagine to be a nod, before slipping quietly up the bark of the tree and into the green tangle of its upper branches.

Well, that was one mystery solved. Keitaro knew that the girl he had seen was, in fact, not interested in doing to them what she had done to the bandits. Indeed, he knew that there was something special about her by the way the lizard seemed almost reverent towards her. But, somewhere deep down, Keitaro knew that until the girl was ready to be seen, none of the party would have a chance to interact with her, and so he set the matter aside. Time enough to worry about her identity when she chose to reveal it; for now, she was their silent partner, interested only in their well-being.

Keitaro made his way back to his group and, when he arrived back near the center of their "camp," he regarded them all once more with his characteristic serene expression. He did not bother to check his wounds, knowing they had already mostly healed, and he did not bother to inspect the bodies of the bandits. Instead, he sat down quietly, legs folded, hands in his lap, and began to meditate. Perhaps he might be lucky enough to contact one of his dragon elders and convey his wishes that the tiny lizard be rewarded or, if not, perhaps he might find a way to still his mind after the chaotic recent events.

Kyaka is now awake.

Althea looked over her shoulder at him and gave a nod, then continued looking at the bodies.

"They've been dead for about a day. We've lost valuable time," she told Gwaerandir gravely. "As soon as Kyaka awakens, we must resume our journey."

Gwaerandir looked over his shoulder.

"Unless I'm mistaken, we haven't moved from where we fought." He indicated the bodies of their "enemies".

"I must admit, though." He glanced at Keitaro.

"It is probably a good idea to get everything together and be on our way as quickly as possible. These fallen ones may have friends who are wondering why they have not yet heard from their comrades."

Gwaerandir looked around the town of Milbourne, glad that they had arrived without further incident. He looked over at the rest of his group.

"Hey guys. I'm gonna check out the town. Where should we meet up tonight?"