quote:

Some of us aren't as tall as the trees, you know!"

quote:

Who is this woman, she thought.

quote:

“All right, enough of this self-absorbed love fest, Mnemeth.

quote:

They walked to the docks and met a young man hauling a large box up the gangplank to a beautiful deep-colored ship.

quote:

His bronze skin and sun-bleached hair further provided evidence that he belonged at sea.

quote:

Eukara!

quote:

And what, walk straight into the path of whatever monster is lurking out there!

quote:

There was a short pause.

quote:

I will be at the helm going over the plans with the helmsman if you need me."

quote:

Eukara felt the smugness in her dragon and smiled.

quote:

You do want that, right?

quote:

She turned on her heal and headed towards the nearest rowboat.

quote:

It wasn't much more than a minute later as they walked that they were attacked.

quote:

Each cell group attacked a portion of their assailants before the Vurrmen had a chance to react.

quote:

She pushed him backwards, and he snarled at her and attacked her again.

quote:

She slashed with her own daggers, and he fell hard on the ground, dying from the mortal wound she inflicted on him.

quote:

The pressure exerted on her chest made it hard for her to breathe, but she refused to give in to the fear that slowly crept into her thoughts.

quote:

She had been in tight spots like this before, but this time was different.

quote:

They slid across her face slowly, and she turned her head to avoid their touch.

quote:

Mnemeth paused and mentally growled.

quote:

Eukara herself went to the stream and refilled each team member’s canteen, amidst severe protest.

quote:

Another blast of air swept past Eukara and she was forced to stop and pay attention to her body's refusal to continue on.

quote:

"First of all, I am cleared not because she feels I am sufficiently capable of enduring the next few hours but because you will not let up."

quote:

Torn between calling him back and being grateful he was gone, Eukara picked up the messages and sorted them out.

quote:

The pirates in questions wore a demonic signature on their clothing.

quote:

Captain Boomies' ship, The Galleon of Spamalot, was commandeered but he got command back after a bit. Seems his crew was a bit lax and another one of those blasted demon pirate ships appeared and attacked.

quote:

She did some testing of the water, but couldn't isolate what was causing the red coloring.

quote:

Caro looked at his captain, resigned. "That sounds fine, Mistress Eukara.

quote:

I haven’t eaten and would like to do so without that visual.

quote:

Hygeia threw up her hands and walked to her work desk.

quote:

It is amazing to get to be in your head when you have to do things like ask for relief from pain or… Eukara heard a distinguishable gasp …help

quote:

We are here and the ship looks awful.

quote:

Corsairs had everything and we are nowhere close to figuring all of this out.

quote:

I am sure this is the same group that Captain K saw not too far from here.

quote:

He came to the conclusion that it seemed to be either angry or in pain.

quote:

Above it is so calm and quiet, she observed.

quote:

But, we are supposed to do all what is necessary to solve this problem before us, you know?

quote:

Let this not be the last thing she says to me today.

quote:

The larger Mermazon eyed Eukara, and Caro gave the signal to fight and flee.

quote:

The rest of the hunting party surrounded the crew, weapons ready in case someone tried anything remotely stupid.

quote:

There was always an out, she thought glumly.

quote:

Though she couldn’t understand a word they said, she could tell the conversation was headed south soon.

quote:

Gerahar could still see the look on Eukara’s face when N’hees gave the command to capture her.

quote:

Her lungs burned with every breath.

quote:

Eukara searched quickly for Gerahar’s face and barely noticed it in the blackness of the water.

quote:

Also, to my disbelief, I have to actually make you look decent in two days time before you appear with us before the negotiations.”

quote:

As disgusting as it tasted, it was by far the meals that were helping Eukara most regarding her health.

quote:

When the food arrived, she resisted the urge to grab for the food and wolf it down.

quote:

Shaking his head, Truniste raised his hand and motioned for silence.

quote:

What will work on one will not necessarily work on another.

quote:

She bade Eukara to wash off in the clear water and watched with a mixture of regret and sadness on her face.

quote:

“If we leave now, without resolving this issue, we will tear this place down.”

quote:

Is there no cost too high for your greed?

quote:

Zh’stos left the room and Eukara heard their exit echo through the halls until nothing was left but silence.

quote:

She turned and headed in the opposite direction of the army and searched the shores for anything that may help her escape.

quote:

All that Eukara could hear was that a Defender was broadcasting a strategic tactical move to the very island she was heading for.

quote:

For now, she would rest and worry about the small, nagging thought in the back of her head that she would not have the strength to man the boat tomorrow.

quote:

This is convenient.

quote:

The sun glinted off his scales as he moved; the green shimmered and the browns created the mirage of shadow.

quote:

They aren’t coming, Eukara…

quote:

Do not fret, little one. I am here and whole. Eukara? Eukara! They would not let me out. I was not allowed to come to you! I know my sweet, but it was for the best. You cannot swim as well as it would have been required of you. So! If you would just let me practice once in a while, I would be much better at it. Then I would have been able to make things better. You had another dream again, I saw it. And the voice was sooo bad… You heard and saw? Of course, who else do you think fought for you while you were all alone down there?

quote:

Remember that when you come back to shore. You owe me heart sister. Now, then, I need sleep. You have no idea how tiring it is watching over you.

quote:

She wasn’t anywhere near as strong as she pretended.

quote:

Caro and Sylenia watched her eyes slightly unfocus and knew that talking to her was useless for the next few moments.

quote:

Not only were there no ships about the island while they were surveying, but Meringue also said that they found no trace of any ship or crew within the last week.

quote:

I am not even sure if Commander Wyvern or Captain Ben know of her past.”

quote:

Eukara could see the continuous fight amongst the branches for sunlight at the top.

quote:

She could see her own blood on his blade from the wound he had inflicted on her arm.

quote:

He reached out and grasped her arms causing Eukara to snap out of the haze that threatened to consume her mind.

quote:

He tried desperately to talk to her, but she couldn’t or wouldn’t respond.

quote:

Cursing under his breath, he pulled her shirt up enough to see the injury and sighed in relief as it was not as serious as he thought.

quote:

Exhausted, upset and anxious, Soren moved Eukara closer to a tree where he could sit and prop himself up as he held her.

quote:

Eukara helped Soren pack up his little camp as much as she could without the use of her left arm, and they started off deeper into the forest.

quote:

After an hour of walking through the dense foliage, they were able to find a strange star shaped fruit hanging from a low growing tree.

quote:

It noticed that, although both humans slept side by side, only their hands touched. Purple breast bobbing up and down, the little bird studied the strange occurrence for a few more moments before it was startled by the man’s waking.

quote:

Soren yawned slightly and smiled as he watched Eukara sleep across from him.

quote:

Soren watched Eukara’s breathing change, signaling her imminent awakening.

quote:

Eukara looked at Soren and then dropped her gaze, feeling bashful. “I think I am going to get ready for the day. Will we be leaving soon?”

quote:

Would his desire be satiated with the opportunity to run his fingers along her body, feel her skin beneath his hands?

quote:

Pushing aside the last of the enormous leaves, Eukara caught sight of the lagoon.

quote:

Brow raised, Eukara looked at Soren, daring him to try again.