Misunderstood Destinies

Airen kissed her on the forehead gently. "I must go, Layliana. Please, take care of yourself. If you are ever in need of help, I can be on my way immediately. You often forget that even though we are Guards we still can leave in emergencies."

"All will be well, Airen. I promise."

Airen bid farewell. Layla turned to Jargos, a bit embarrassed to have let him see that. "Airen and I are close. Though, we haven't even began to consider Bonding yet. Finding time to see him is complicated. But, enough of that. We need to get to Elder Ramona's hut. She mustn't be kept waiting for long."

Jargos didn't see the kiss, but it wouldn't have bothered him, public affection was common were he was from, though not to the point of impoliteness. He snapped out of his wonderment and looked at Layla when she spoke. He wondered how long he was examining everything, then felt rather silly. He followed Layla

Layla made it to the center of the village. A large hut stood tall. It was decorated with carvings and special paints. "She is in here. I will enter first to announce our arrival. I will return when she permits you entry. Remember, keep on your best behavior. My Oath says you were not to follow me here, but this is a special occasion. Be thankful you were allowed to come." She pulled the cloth curtain back and entered inside.

"And for that, I thank thee" He replied and bowed before she entered. Jargos realized everyone was staring at him. They didn't know what to think of such a brutish creature in their midst. One bold elf even walked up to him, then inspected Jargos while Layla was inside the hut. Jargos, perplex inspected him back. The two were eyeing each other over

Layla walked inside. A small woman walked up to her. "Business?"

"I requested a meeting with Elder Ramona. Is she available?"

"Yes. Do you have company?"

"Indeed."

"You are Layliana, then. Bring your friend in. The leader will be attending to you two shortly."

Layla walked outside and motioned for Jargos to come in. The hut was filled with what seemed like artifacts. A set of engraved swords hung on the wall, a shield with the village crest, a scroll, and all sorts of items. The room was very organized. A fire was lit in the fireplace.

She knelt down on the rug that was laid out on the rough floor. Layla nodded, silently asking Jargos to do the same in respect. "Remember, Elder Ramona is like Garlan's king. She is the leader here."

Jargos went in after nodding to the elf who was inspecting him. He was amazed at all the wonderful things in the hut.

"Oh, but of course, how rude of me." Jargos knelt down on the rug, his body made strange creaking noises again, but he was so accustomed to them all didn't even notice. He bowed his head in respect

Elder Ramona entered the room after a minute of wait.

"Welcome back to Zeiza, Warrior Layliana. Your mother explained to me that you have some concerning news for me and thus also brought a partner. You are aware that this is against your Oath unless in an emergency, correct?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Young man, I can tell you are not from here. Rather, from the forest. If I remember the texts correctly, people of your kind are more connected with animal instinct than human. I will not judge you based on that. Tell me, what is your name? Arise and speak freely."

Young man? Jargos had not been called you since he was a boy. He arose, his spine popping and his shoulders and knees creaking as he stood to his full height. It was a custom where he came from to preform the warriors call before addressing a superior on a matter of urgency. A low rumble came from Jargos' chest and his runes began to glow red. His muscles tenses and he took a horse stance. He bowed his head, then put his right arm out, palm up. He threw his head back in a sound that sounded like a cross between a wolf howl and a bear roar. The sound reverberated for a moment before he took a deep breath and stood up normally, his rune's glow fading

Elder Ramona was impressed. "You are quite an impressive one. Tell me, what is your name? Where do you come from in this vast world?"

"I am Jargos, Beastblood. I am ruler of the Darkwoods. I am honored to be in thine presence, Elder Romona, Ruler of Zeiza. I am here at the request of thine brave Warrior, who saved my life not once, but twice. My people have only our runes in the ways of magic, and have never developed a defense against those who would use magic to control us. That is why I am here now, such an invasion of the mind has occurred, my body was under the control of another. My will is mighty, but a week of no food or sleep and a spell that could make the proudest dragon bow was too much, and I was forced to make my way to Garlan. I don't know what I was going to do, but Thine noble warrior saw through the illusion and after much struggle, freed me from the spell, only to save me once more from a dozen knights and a hunter of my kind who thought I me a menace" Jargos stated. Perhaps a bit longwinded, but detail were what was important.

"I am not sure where dark mages come from, but I have seen two too many in my life time. We are perfect tools to them. Our physical strength knows no equal, and our endurance makes us fine soldiers, but that is not how we live."

"Then you seem to have been in quite a predicament. Zeiza hasn't had contact with any of the Mages in some time. We were once associated with them generations ago but war broke out between us and separated us. I was told that, during the war, many of them had their powers stripped when captured. I see that at least one carried on the bloodline. This does worry me."

"My people are simple, We hunt, gather, live, love, grow, and die by the laws of the forest. We seek no wars, we know too well the havoc we could wreak, but our guilt and modesty makes us puppets. I know not how many more there are, but if there were enough to enslave my race, this world could fall. We number in the millions" Jargos finished.

"Then that would be a problem. Well, Jargos, seeing your situation I find it no harm for you to stay here when you are nearby on your travels; however, the problem we still run into is about how you will gain entry. You need a magic source. A power that would be strong enough for you to register at the gate."

"Elder Ramona, if I may speak, I have an idea of what could do it."

"Speak, Layliana. Arise."

She stood up and whispered to the elder silently. "Hm... Well, then we run into an issue of it conflicting with his natural body... No, let us not take that risk for now. I have an idea." Ramona turned back to Jargos. "We have a second solution that may come into play later, but for now I will give you something that will gain you access should you and Layliana be apart." She removed an amulet from her wall. "This item has been told to protect certain creatures from dark magic. This may offer you some help in the mean time. I will speak with the other elders of the village that can help you as far as gaining access to the gate is concerned. Layliana may can take you to the Warriors Guild and see if the counselor can offer you any advice as to magical concerns and your physical structure."

Jargos bowed

"I thank thee, Elder Romona" He accepted the amulet.

"It is no problem. Until we can come up with an alternate solution, Layliana will be needed to open the gate. She is now free to roam the world as she pleases as a graduate. If you ever need any help of any sort, you can come find me here. This is a matter worth being concerned over, certainly. If some of the most powerful creatures of the land are falling prey to the Dark Mages, it could mean some trouble is afoot."

"Once more, Romona, I thank thee" Jargos bowed and turned to leave

Layliana was forced to wait until dismissed due to her rank. "Layliana, a word with you, may I?"

"Of course."

Jargos knew better than to eavesdrop, so he exited the hut and walked around a bit. he was much taller than most of the people, and only one was close to his height, but his crushing body weight was where he was biggest. He was used to being a little bigger than everyone else back home, but this just felt so odd.

"Layliana, I wanted to talk to you about Jargos. You do realize he is possibly one of the strongest of his people, correct?"

"Elder, I see no reason why we cannot trust him. He has been a wonderful person up to this point."

"I just feel a bit uneasy. As if something isn't being shared."

"If there is anything then he will tell me."

"Just watch yourself. Remember, if you break your Oath we do have a right to strip your powers. And neither of us know if your bloodline can survive without them."

Jargos explored the village more, looking everywhere to see all the sights he could see

"I understand, Elder Ramona."

"Good. Dismissed."

Jargos began to wander rather far when he noticed a small child staring at him. Soon, he realized that wherever he walked, the child would follow, staring at him with unblinking eyes. Or so he thought, In reality, the child blinked many times, just when he wasn't looking. Jargos almost began to run from the child when he bumped into a man and a woman, knocking over their basket of something he didn't recognize. He apologized quickly, then got down to pick up the fruit looking things, but hit a wall of energy. The man didn't want Jargos to touch the food, he was a creature to the man, and he was clumsy in his opinion as well

Layla left the hut after dismissal. She hurried along to catch up with Jargos.

Jargos stood up, looking rather hurt and offended

"My good sir, My only intention was to help thee after my clumsy stride caused you trouble, why do you seek to prevent me from doing so?" Jargos asked


"I seek to prevent you from doing so because you are a creature, and I will not let your dirty hands sully my fine crops" He stated, then bent down to pick the fruits up himself. His wife glared at Jargos.

Jargos sighed, then turned to leave when he saw the child once more, holding one of the fruits. He sighed, then began to walk around some more

Layla finally caught up with Jargos. "I'm sorry for keeping you waiting. Elder Ramona just wanted to... clarify some rules."