Sing a prayer [Anira]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

It took them three days to reach the old Imperial palace. Or whatever was left of it, anyway.

In Arethar's experience, the North-West Dessert was always an unnaturally pleasant place in regards to weather. He had been just in time to watch autumn set in, changing the leaves to a spectacular array of colors that rippled gently in the breezes from the west. At least, it had been spectacular for the first few days. Here, after every day remained pretty much the same, Arethar had lost his wonder. Now, it seemed that nature had finally made an exception for one of the most cold evenings he had ever seen in this particular season. Arethar jumped from Lyanna's back, his breath fogging the air around him. Arethar's eyes gazed the area in front of him. Not that there was much to see, anyway. Looking at the sky, a few clouds had swallowed almost every source of light and stars, leaving the path through which he was now walking, choked by a heavy darkness that almost seemed cold to the touch. Dark, and oddly still. Waiting.

Drawing his cloak tighter around himself, Arethar shivered. It had nothing to do with the temperature.

The ruins of the Imperial palace still managed to make this place seem even more inhospitable. The great city was all but a few buildings covered in sand, one of them being the Imperial palace. Arethar and Lyanna made their way up the steps, and entered what seemed like the darkest room he had ever set his foot inside.

"Lyanna, give me light." he said, his dragon merely spitting a small spark. The spark flew to Arethar's hand, and then it seemed to spread out in five different directions, lighting five torches on the way. There, the great palace stood, in all of its decay and former glory. Statues had fallen on the floor, paintings had been destroyed, everyone had abandoned their past for the future. All but one.

Next to the throne, casting his shadow on it, stood a statue of a tall man, next to a cauldron. In front of the statue, there were two altars. On top of one was a sword, and on top of the other was a ring. He made his way to the statue and shook his head. This was no statue.

The cauldron had melted, apparently the potion inside had taken its toll on it through the years. Arethar shook his head again. Eythil, the brother of the Emperor, the rajegh that had been exiled, his great grandfather, had decided to end his life as his wife's normal lifespan drew to an end.

"Forgive me, grandfather. You said to use them when the time was right. And that time has come." He grabbed the sword, and pulled it out of its scabbard. "Lightbringer..." he whispered, and then put it back in. The twin sword of Oathkeeper. They would need both of them, if they wanted to win.

If Astian was alive.

He took the ring with the silver sun, and held it in the palm of his left hand.

"Arethar, people are coming. I can't tell, the bloody sand is getting in my eyes!"

"Lyanna, get inside!" The silver dragon made her way inside and Arethar drew the Oathkeeper with one hand, his black armor gleaming in the light of the torches.

"Who goes there?!" he yelled, as a distant sound reached his ears. He left the ring on the altar, and looked at Lyanna. "Fire me up."

The spark was released from her mouth again, this time reaching Arethar's hand and staying there.

"Who goes there? This is the last time I ask!"

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/color][/i] She wanted in vein to take back those words that she didn't mean. Anira loved her brother and he is probably dead somewhere, having her live with saying that and never saying that she was sorry.

Harshly wiping the tears from her skin, she closed her eyes tightly before singing a song that she made up about her life after the murder. "Home is behind, the world ahead and there are many paths to tread. Through shadow to the edge of night, until the stars are all alight. Mist and shadow, cloud and shade. All shall fade. All shall.."[/b] She was cut off by hearing a soft thud outside the cavern and saw her Dragon there.

"Anira, there is someone in the old palace." Authion told her, walking towards the opening and poking his head in. "More grave robbers, I suppose. I guess that Senator can wait."[/i] She stated, moving farther into the cave to grab herface veil and put it on. It helped with keeping sand out of her face as well as hiding it and her blonde hair. Pretty much the only thing people would see were her eyes and it could be anyone with blue eyes. Using her magic, Anira made dirt from the ground go over the torches and put them out before she walked out of her home and got on Authion's back. The soldier's dagger was on her hip as he took off into the air, flying over to her Ancestors palace. One where she goes to pray every week for the safety of her brothers. And she's been going there for ten years.

A few minutes later, they got there and she saw a Dragon go inside. "A Dragon Rider?"[/i] Anira wondered when they landed and she got off to hear a strong male voice from inside the palace. "Who goes there? This is the last time I ask!" Quirking a brow, she looked back at her Dragon before walking in with her hands up to show that she was no threat. Yet. "Just a woman who wishes to pray."[/b] She confessed, her eyes glaring at the figure of the man. She could not make out his face but, his silver Dragon caught her attention.[/ul]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

This time, Arethar and Lyanna weren't against a deer or a wolf, or even a lion that lived in the Barafs. This was going to be a real fight. He hadn't duelled with another person for ten years, not since he had joined the elites. He was a bit rusty, books never gave enough information or training material. They couldn't substitute that art of entering someone else's mind and figuring out their moves in order to counter them with your own. However, Arethar had kept training, even though imaginary opponents hardly were a challenge.

This, however, could prove to be one.

"Steps. Female by the body. I can spot a dagger."

Arethar smirked. He had the advantage already, wielding a two handed sword. "Where?"

"Hip. Currently unarmed."

Arethar's smirk grew even wider now. "Let them know that no one comes in my family's palace and poisons it with their existence. Let them know that there is still one descendant of the Imperial family that still draws breath!" he sent to Lyanna, as the dragon was about to roar.

Then, the woman spoke, and his dragon closed her mouth.

The flame in his left hand disappeared. "These lands have long been abandoned. The Emperor left and invaded Dheynor. There hasn't been a Sianhese follower here since the days of old." he said, matter-of-factly.

"Especially one that comes to pray next to the tomb of the first Imperial family."

"Don't say it."

"The tombs of MY family." Suddenly, the Oathkeeper's blade was ablaze, the flames not damaging the sword but instead dancing around it, a trick he had managed to do from when he was but a mere child.

"Show yourself and remove your veil." he said, as he grabbed the Oathkeeper with both hands.

"There's a dragon outside."

"Stand your ground, Lyanna. We have the advantage." He could have sworn that inside his head, this whole place was coming back to life. He could imagine it now, the silver palace with all its grandeur, the light from the Oathkeeper and the flames revealling the place for what it really was.

His palace.

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/color][/i] Anira thought to Authion, looking at the beast behind the man whose flame in his hand had died after she spoke. "Maybe it is. You do not know if your brothers are dead for sure." He told her and she was thinking that he could be right. With all that happened, it wasn't certain who was dead and who was alive. "These lands have long been abandoned. The Emperor left and invaded Dheynor. There hasn't been a Sianhese follower here since the days of old."

That made her laugh and smile underneath her veil. "Then it is obvious that you do not spend much time in the desert."[/b] She stated, slowly lowering her hands as she moved closer to him. "Be careful, Princess. He has a sword and fire magic." Right as soon as her Dragon sent those words to her, the man's sword was covered in fire. Anira was in complete awe when she saw that. She knew of only one person that could do that trick.

"Show yourself and remove your veil." "Not until you tell me who you are. There's only one person I know can do that with a sword."[/b] She hissed, wanting to know if it was who she thought it was or an imposter who just so happens to have the same color Dragon as her older brother.[/ul]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

He could feel the fire burning inside his heart, partly fueled from his anger, and partly fueled by Lyanna's excitement. The dragon longed for battle, and so did he in a way, but Lyanna was unpredictable. He would calculate things, and choose his battles, but Lyanna would never stop to think. Which was why Arethar's mind was partly focused on her, and partly focused on the woman in front of him.

"Let me burn her and let's get over with this."

"Wait. She speaks Sianhese."

"So do all of the Senators!"

"I said WAIT."

He listened to the woman, claiming that she was of the Emperor's family. His blood started to boil. "You speak Sianhese. The Emperor left this place one thousand and fourty three years ago, leaving nothing behind him. Your family couldn't have survived. Not for so long." he said, and raised an eyebrow. "And you are not of the Emperor's family. A descendant of the Emperor would NEVER hide their face."

He could feel Lyanna's pride rising as the Oathkeeper went ablaze. The woman demanded to know who he was.

"Don't do it, Arethar! She could be an assassin."

"Time for my revenge, then."[/i]

He took a deep breath, as the fires continued to dance and illuminate the room. "I am Arethar of Dheynor, direct descendant of the Emperor, son to Aegarn and Alana IV, brother to Anira and Astian of Dheynor, rider of Lyanna, holder of the Oathkeeper, rightful heir to the Throne of Dheynor, son to a murdered father and mother, brother to murdered siblings, elite soldier of Dheynor, and I shall have my revenge, whether this will come with my death or my enemies'." he said, his voice clear and unwavering, unafraid of whatever consequences.

"Now show me your face."

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/i] Authion warned, growling at the silver beast from outside with his golden eyes gazing through the window. "You speak Sianhese. The Emperor left this place one thousand and fourty three years ago, leaving nothing behind him. Your family couldn't have survived. Not for so long." "If she tries anything, you know what to do."[/i] She told him while glaring at the man. Her fists clenched tightly as rocks shook around her. He had accused her of not being the Emperors blood because she was hiding her face.

"In this day and age, you do not know who can be an assassin."[/b] Anira coldly stated, making sure to keep her eyes on him and his dragon. "How dare he say I am not a member of Emperor's family."[/i] And then when the sword flamed up once more, she took a closer look at it. And everything about it brought up that day. Mother had given Arethar a sword when he returned home from training in the Mountains. "Wait, he cannot be him.."[/i] "Who, Anira?"

"I am Arethar of Dheynor, direct descendant of the Emperor, son to Aegarn and Alana IV, brother to Anira and Astian of Dheynor, rider of Lyanna, holder of the Oathkeeper, rightful heir to the Throne of Dheynor, son to a murdered father and mother, brother to murdered siblings, elite soldier of Dheynor, and I shall have my revenge, whether this will come with my death or my enemies'." Hearing those words pretty much made her heart stop for a moment. He was alive? All this time? Then her brother demanded that she take off her veil. "Gladly, your Highness."[/b]

She undid the veil first before taking off the head dress part to reveal her blonde waves. Locking eyes with him, she smiled softly. "I am Anira of Dheynor, also direct descendant of the Emperor and of Alana and her husband Aranion, daughter to Aegarn and Alana IV. Sister to Arethar and Astian of Dheynor, rider of Authion and Princess to the Throne of Dheynor. I to seek my revenge against the Senate and shall take what is mine with fire and blood."[/b] Letting tears stream down her tanned cheeks, Anira laughed a bit. "It is wonderful to see you alive, brother."[/b] Authion was watching from the window and there was a slight upturn to the corner of his mouth. His Mistress was happy and so was he.[/ul]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

The ground seemed to shake for a second, and Arethar felt Lyanna's disdain. He managed to control himself and not laugh. Clearly not the right time. He shared Lyanna's disdain of earth sorcerers, purely out of memory and loss. His sister had been one, and even the thought of her made him feel pain beyond comparison.

"This is wrong, we need to get to the skies."

"No. This is MY place, and I won't fly away and leave it defenceless."

"You mean OUR place."

"You wanted to fly away."

"There is not a single dragon faster than me, I assure you. They would have been dead in minutes."

"Oh, I know." At that time, Arethar's face lit up with a sarcastic smirk, and a determined look. They would not lose this fight. They had lost too much already.

The man raised an eyebrow when the woman called him highness. He had never been called like that, not even during his years in Trihali. She was blonde. She had blue eyes, blue eyes that reminded him of so much that just by looking at them, his heart stopped.

"Focus!"

He didn't listen to his dragon, he didn't need to, especially when the woman started to speak. Anira. The flames around his sword disappeared in a puff of smoke, and unwillingly he lowered his sword.

"FOCUS!"

"SILENCE!"

He opened his mouth several times, but all that came out was his breath, fogging the air around him. He cleared his throat and tried to speak again. "Anira?" It came out as a whisper, but his face remained emotionless, save for the eyes that were tearing up. This was a dream.

A good dream.

He put the sword back inside its scabbard and took the ring from the altar. He tried to move forward, his legs shaking like mad. When he was close enough, he presented the ring to her. "For all the birthdays I've missed?" And suddenly his voice cracked, and the once strong and determined face was now overrun by tears that were falling down.

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/i] And it was obvious that Arethar's Dragon was trying to talk to him as well, judging from the look on her face glaring at the back of his head. "Anira?" Hearing him say her name warmed her blood instantly in the cold desert night. With a weak smile, she nodded not wanting to speak because her throat was clenched with emotion.

She watched as her brother sheathed the family sword and grab the ring from the alter, scrabbling over to her. Telling her that it was for all the birthdays he had missed. That had done it. Anira leapt into his arm, wrapping her arms around his neck sobbing. "Arethar, I am so sorry! I did not mean what I said that day! I was mad because you promised you would be there for my birthday!"[/b] She let out the pain she's carried for ten years, the feeling of guilt knowing that they might have been the last thing she would have said to him.

Her fingers were holding onto his cloak tightly as her shoulders shook. Anira did her best to try to calm herself but, she just couldn't.[/ul]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

As Anira leapt into his arms, Arethar let out a sigh of relief that he had kept inside for ten years, his arms wrapping themselves around her. Oh Light God, he had missed her so much. Ten years apart from one another, and there he was hugging his sister like back when they were children. She had always been there for him and he had always been there for her, but after the assassination, he had been feeling scared about his sister's life for the ten long years of his seclusion.

Her words made him laugh, for a bit, as his tears made their way down to his beard. "I know, I know..." he reassured her, even though secretly, he could finally feel himself relaxing. For all those years he had punished himself for the last words she had said to him and finally he had found salvation. "It's going to be fine, none of that matters now." he said, and held her close.

"The only thing that matters is that I have found you, and that we are together."

"So freaking touching."

The poison in Lyanna's words was so obvious that Arethar could have sworn that his spine had been frozen solid for a second.

"Lyanna, behave."[/i]

"Why should I? It was I who took care of you for all those years, and yet you hug her?"

"Lyanna, SHUT. UP."[/i]

He broke the hug with his sister and smiled, fleetingly. "This is Lyanna. She can be a little hard to get along with at first..." he said, and pointed to his dragon, as Lyanna turned her head around, obviously stating that she had no respect for Anira.

"I suppose you're a dragon rider as well?"

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/i] Shaking her head, Anira looked up at her still taller brother. "Not fully, we still need to find Astian."[/b] She worried about him the most with him being the youngest. Even though while Arethar was training in the mountains, she did her best to train him in swordplay.

The hug was broken and her brother introduced her to his dragon. Lyanna who kindly turned her head at the princess, obviously showing her disrespect. Arethar said that she was hard to get along with at first. "It does not take a Fortune Teller to see that, Brother. Authion, come in. And you know Father would be rolling in his grave, if I were not one."[/b] She mused, smiling only at her sibling. She wasn't going to let his dragon anger her. But her own beast could feel it. "The She Dragon is getting on my nerves." "Mine too. If she was not Arethar's Dragon, I would say roast her."[/i]

Authion entered the place and when he was behind his mistress, he bowed his head in respect towards the true heir of the Empire. "If you value having limbs, I suggest you show my Rider some respect as I show your own." He growled at the Silver Dragon, feeling a dislike for her already. Anira grinned, putting her hand her dragon's neck to caress his purple scales. "This is Authion, he has been like a brother to me for the past ten years. He reminds me of you, Arethar. Only more level headed so, he keeps my anger in check."[/b] She introduced her dragon as she leaned on where her hand was. Her blonde waves standing out fiercely against his scales.[/ul]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

Arethar was overwhelmed. He hadn't seen her for ten years, and even though tears were streaming down his face, Arethar was reluctant on showing any other emotion that he was experiencing right now. He had learned that emotion was a weakness, and even though he wanted to tell his sister that he had missed her so much, he didn't.

"I missed you so much" he wanted to say. "I love you"

But there was no place for weakness in the Elites. Only the hard and the strong made it through, and he had learned that the hard way.

He shook his head, and looked at her as she mentioned Astian. "I take it you haven't seen him either." he said, and looked down for a second. He shook his head again, this time, his voice was full of determination. "Fear not, we shall find him. There's a change in the wind, and we will be united soon. The True God is with us."

He smiled when she mentioned their father, and nodded. He bowed his head to the purple dragon as he entered, and started to speak. "Thank you for looking after my sister for these years and for the many years to come." he said, and looked at the dragon. He smiled when she said that the dragon kept her anger in check, and laughed for a second. "Good, those fits of rage still haunt me at night." he joked, when he heard the thunderous laughter of Lyanna inside his head.

"What?"[/i]

"He just threatened me."

She was still laughing, as she spread her wings and showed her teeth, obviously bigger than the other dragon. Arethar wasn't surprised, she had been trained from a baby to be a dragon and a soldier.

"Listen to me, youngling, I could have you both killed if it wasn't for my rider. Don't push me. He might trust you, but I don't."

Arethar raised his hands and moved between the two dragons. "No need for that, Lyanna." he said out loud, as he looked at Authion. "I am guessing he is a year younger than her, judging by his size." Those books about dragons from the elites seemed to come in handy, for once. "He will probably be bigger than Lyanna in a year."

He made his way to his sister, and gave her the golden ring. "This is one of our heirlooms. It is for you. The other sword is for Astian." He looked outside. "I say we leave now. Fly back to the North and search for Astian. We can't stay here anymore."

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/color][/b] She told him, not wanting him to think that she didn't even try to look for the youngest sibling. Yes, they had their little moments when they were younger but, she always loved Astian. Even when he was being a pest to her. "Fear not, we shall find him. There's a change in the wind, and we will be united soon. The True God is with us." That made her grin brightly like she used to. "The Dragons of wind, earth and fire can change many things."[/b] Anira stated, quoting their Father referring to his children because of their magic. Even though he was stern and seemed a little cold, he was close to his children and made sure that they would be ready for the world. A world that would soon force them into hiding.

Watching as her sibling thanked her Dragon, she was laughed softly to herself. Before all of this, it was rare for her to smile and laugh. The only times she would was when she was either stealing from the Senators that ruined her life or thinking about her family and the memories she had with them. "Good, those fits of rage still haunt me at night." Then Anira stuck her tongue out towards her brother being more playful again. "Right as if I was the only terror of the Castle. You and Astian would prank almost everyone."[/b] Authion looked at his Mistress with slightly widened eyes. It was a surprise to see her act like this.

Before anything else could be said, it looked like Lyanna was smiling and laughing. All that Anira got was the smiling because she saw the silver dragon's teeth. "Authion, what did you do?"[/i] She asked her dragon, wanting to know if he did anything. With his golden eyes looking away from his rider, he cleared his throat which just sounded like a growl. "I sort of.. Threatened to rip off her limbs if she didn't show you the respect you deserve."

Lyanna spread her wings with her teeth out in the open, showing her size over Authion, talking back to him causing him to growl at her. He was going to say something back when the eldest heir got between them to stop any fight that was going to break out. Then he mused by saying that Anira's dragon had to be a year younger then his and she nodded. "When a sandstorm took out the desert tribe that was taking care of me, I was forced into a cave and had one of my fits and stabbed the ground with the Solider's dagger, I kept hitting the ground until I reached something hard. I used my magic to move the dirt aside and found his egg. He's been protecting me ever since."[/b]

Arethar then said that her dragon would be bigger then his in a year so that made Anira smirk slightly liking that she would have the bigger winged beast. After it was all settled, tears were brought back to her blue eyes when he gave her one of the heirlooms that were supposed to be passed down from generation to generation. The gold ring with the Sun on it. The symbol of their family. "I say we leave now. Fly back to the North and search for Astian. We can't stay here anymore." She slipped the ring into her left ring finger, gazing at it proudly for a short moment before lifting her head. "I have some supplies at my cave, if you want we can stop there before taking off. And you may want a hooded cloak to hide your hair if we happen to go through a town. Our hair color is legend, remember?"[/b][/ul]

[Arethar of Dheynor]

When Anira used the words from their father, Arethar felt a shiver running down his spine, which had nothing to do with the cold. Arethar had loved his father, he had idolized him for the better part of his childhood days with his family, and he had tried never to appear weak in front of him. One of his regrets was that he had never heard his father tell his children that he had loved them, the words that their mother had used to put them to bed every night and wake them up every morning. He had no ill feelings towards the man, he had done what in his mind was the best for his children. There was no room for the weak. Only the strong survived.

He smiled when she told him about what Astian and he would do when they were younger. "We were just children. We thought that the whole world was the castle, and that we were valiant knights that would defend Dheynor from everything." he said with a fleeting laughter, and then he continued. "Little did we know that things would change after that." His expression turned to one of sorrow.

He listened to what Anira said about finding her dragon egg. He would never forget when he had found Lyanna. "I was in the Barafs. I was fighting a boy stronger and older than me by two years. I remember falling down a cliff after he kicked me." he said, and touched the back of his head, the scratch from that fall hidden behind all that hair. "I kept falling and falling, and I knew that even if I survived, no one would come back to save me. In the Elites, it doesn't matter whether you are of noble birth or not." he said, and smirked for a second. "I hit my head on rock, and I passed out. Turned out that the rock was her egg." he added and laughed. "When I woke up, I realised that the climb back would be hard and perilous. But we made it, together." he said, and looked at his dragon.

He looked at her for a second, and his brow furrowed. He was obviously in deep thought. "No. You go to the cave, take the supplies. I'll leave with Lyanna right now. We're faster, we should scout the area for enemies and threats before we meet again. Once we land, Lyanna will send word to Authion while he is flying. If you are close, you won't miss it." he said, and made his way to Anira. "I don't want to leave you again, but this time it will be brief. Once you find us, we will search for Astian together. It's safer this way."

[Anira of Dheynor]

[/b] "Hopefully the True God blessed the Elite Soldiers that saved us that day. We need to take back our home so what they did for us wouldn't be for naught. They want us to come out of hiding and take down the Senate with Sun fire and blood."[/b] Anira told Arethar, bringing up her hand with the ring on it when she spoke of the sun fire. Just to prove a point. She hates the Senate for what they did. She was forced to hide who she was. But now, no more.

Then Anira listened as her older brother told her the tale of how he found Lyanna's egg. Biting her lip to stifle a giggle, she shook her head making her blonde waves sway slightly as she folded her arms. "That would explain her hard head for nearly cracking open your skull."[/b] She mused with a smirk, eyeing the Silver dragon. "Easy, Princess. She's stronger then me, I won't be able to overpower her if she tries anything." "Relax, War." She soothed her Dragon, calling him by his name meaning.

The eldest sibling told her to go to the cave and get the supplies. And that he would take his dragon and fly around to keep a look out for enemies in the area. "There are only Desert Tribes and there really isn't many of them left. Only one or two are left, the tribe that helped me was completely wiped out."[/b] Anira explained as her mind went back to that day. She could still see some body parts sticking out of the sand when everything was back to normal. It was six months after she was found by them. "I don't want to leave you again, but this time it will be brief. Once you find us, we will search for Astian together. It's safer this way."

She nodded with a weak smile. "I know."[/b] Anira got on the tips of her toes and kissed Arethar's bearded cheek. "Please make sure Lyanna sends word to Authion and not let you leave without us."[/b] She teased before turning around towards her Dragon and getting on its back. Quickly putting back on her face veil to keep the sand out, her blue eyes were brighter. "See you by the Lone Lake."[/b] Authion turned around and exited the palace. With a sweep of his wings, off into the night sky they went.[/ul]