Knights of the Hood

He watched the scene, keeping quiet and staying out of the conversation. He wasn't surprised by anything the dragon was saying because he had tales of dragons gifting humans with immortality and even dragons in human form. Hinin leaned against a tree because he was sure it would be something spectacular. "So you can just do as you please then? without any permission? You beings truly are free. It is kinda poetic really."

Grovasheer nodded, "Essentially, yes. We the Dotá are powerful creatures, and opposed to the stories of Velshkin...we are peaceful. And we have access to great magics." The dragon chuckled, "I'm afraid I must leave now...Gwellfeir vrínas. Va telk vu...you will not be able to hide yourself from the Velshkin much longer Dotá vrín...Nor your friend..." With that, the great dragon expanded his wings and lifted himself into the sky, where he vanished in the clouds.

Tovarel watched him disappear into the air and he smiled, "Well...at least I have family now..." He glanced to Hinin, "Why did he freak when you smelled you?"

He shrugged, trying to pretend he really didn't know when he had a very good idea why. He hoped that Tovarel didn't notice. Hinin then sighed, knowing that the truth would come out eventually. "Maybe it is because of this. " with this, he lowered his hood, revealing his eyes and ears. He had long, pointed ears and sharp red eyes. His gaze lowered to the dirt. "I hoped to keep it secret but I suppose we elves have a sent, even if I have never met another like me. "

"An elf? Your kind are more uncommon than dragons." He chuckled, "Well...you know what they say...I show you mine and you show me yours." He pulled off the leather padding, his cloth tunic, and then unbuckled his think chainmail, dropping them to the ground to reveal something very strange. He had sea green scales purtruding like flaps from his skin, each About the size of his thumbnail. They covered the majority of his left forearm and some had started sprouting from his chest, and right forearm. Even more strange were the white spike poking from each individual vertebra about a centimeter from the skin.

His eyes grew wide as he examined each scale and each inch of his body. "What....What are you?" He didn't mean to sound offensive but he generally had never seen anything like him. Of course no one else had ever seen anything like him either so he figured it was a equal trade off. "Sorry its just I have heard of someone being part dragon but usually it just a few scales or a spike here or there. Your skin is full of them."

"Just a few on my chest, arms, and shins for now...but they are spreading, the condition is getting worse." He sighed, "This happened yeterday on a patrol...I met a dragon and he basically cursed me." He pondered a bit, "Although now...maybe I should be thankful?" He shrugged and replaced his armor and tunic. "Don't share either of our secrets okay? The others may not be so understanding. Shall we head back?"

He threw up his hood, pulling the hood down slightly, recovering his identity. "I think that is best. There doesn't seem to be much else to do here. " With that, he turned and headed back to the camp.

Tovarel nodded, "Well, we can't go back empty handed. There should be a road near here that we can ambush some noble." He pulled out a ragged cloth map and found their current positiOn and destination. He put the map away and led them a few miles from the mountains where they were into a darker forest where Tovarel pulled his bow off the quiver and racked an arrow. "Now we wait my friend..." He sat and leaned against a tree facing away from the road. He pulled about five steel tipped arrows from his set of thirty and drew the one already in place back as far as he could stretch it and them released it, hitting the side of a not hole deformation in a tree, "So, tell me more of your people, elven folk dont have much history in these lands..."

"I don't have a history with the elves. From what I am told, when I was born, I was tossed in a forest a few towns over and left to die. A assassination guild found me and took me in then raised me as their own. The group has been disbanded for years now but needless to say, I don't know of my parents." He leaned against another tree, hiding himself and waiting. "And what of you?"

"Well...as for family...not a clue. I was brought up in an orphanage and when I turned eighteen and left, I had no way to survive. Theft put me in jail a few times but when I murdered someone...I was forced to be an outlaw. Else I'd hang." He handed him the bow and one of the four arrows he withdrew. "Your turn." he gestured to the not hole in the tree.

He strung and shot the bow with no sound at all. He aimed at the not and let the arrow fly. The only sound that could be heard was the thud of the arrow hitting it's target. He handed the bow back to his friend and smiled. "Well it seems that we both have hard ships. Both one of a kind I suppose. "

He took his recurved bow back into his hands and knocked one of the remaining three arrows onto the string and drew it back, "Indeed we are my friend..." He relaxed the grip on the bow and gave it some slack instead of realeasing the arrow. He pointed it down to the ground and smiled, "You know...before I killed the man whos death forced me into this life...I trained under a renowned archer of this country. He was like a dad...when he died..." He shook his head, not able to continue. Instead he pulled the arrow back and released it at the tree, splitting one of the two arrows already in place, he smirked. "He was a good mentor..."

He was suddenly cut off guard as he sound of horses hooves padded down on the road. He turned to see what it was as he grabbed one more arrow and strung it. A group of five guards of the Provence were eroding on horseback and well equipped. "I will kill one with this arrow...another with my one remaining, then we charge with blades." He gave him no time to respond as he shot the first arrow into the chest of one and knocked another arrow and letting fly through the skull of another. Both men fell dead as he pushed his bow onto the quiver and unsheathed his sword, charging into glorious battle to eleminate the three soldiers that still stood.

Hinin smiled, feeling that he could finally do what he had been trained to do. he jumped from his position, into the air. He unsheathed his swords, slicing the first man's wrists off, disarming him. He then stabbed the man in the gut, pushing him aside. He now aimed his attention at the last man that wasn't being targeted by Tovarel.

(Still two left) He noted that Hinin was going after one man and as another tried to ride pas him on his horse, he grabbed his leg and pulled him off. The man quickly drew his sword and slashed at him, Tovarel blocked with a spark of his blade and cut the man's thigh as he swiped under. He let out a cry and then kick Tovarel in the belly, causing him to stager. He glared and slashed his neck, ending the soldier's life as he bled from his neck. "Whew..."

Hinin dashed at his target, diving forward, swords aimed in a spearhead fashion. He quickly knocked away the man's sword and stabbed on of the blades through his chest. From here, he used the man's body as a catapult for himself into the air. he landed behind the man, still holding the swords. with a quick movement of his arms, he ripped the man in half. He then smiled, not having spilled even a drop of blood on himself. He shook the blood off his swords and cleaned them on the grass. "Sorry for the mess. Should we clean up?"

He shook his head, "No, we will be hours away from here by the time anyone finds the bodies, but we leave the horses this time." He searched the bodies after sheathing the blade in his hand. "Some gold, arrows, and some other trinkets of interest..." He pondered for a moment, "Stupid...Ve--...Var--...what was that word...Velshkin! Stupid velshkin..." He smiled and laughed a bit, "Velshkin...Since I am now the kid of a species of dragons...might as well speak a bit of their language. I should learn it if I get a chance." He chuckled a bit.

"Time to return home, Hinin. Grab what you can and let's go." He headed off back to camp, reaching it within several hours and then laying back in his bed of pelts after taking his armor and weapons off
And dropping them in the chest.

Hinin grabbed as much gold as he could find then followed back to the camp. He then made his way to the tree he had spent the night in the night before. He then climbed as high as he could be held at and relaxed, removing his hood. He figured no one could see his secret from that height so he thought it would be ok. He then let himself fall asleep.

Tovarel woke up the next morning to find that he was extremely sore, especially when he arched his back.He groaned from the pain and the second he got out of bed he yelped and fell over in agony. He struggled to look at the cause when he found blots of blood seeping through various parts of his tunic and other garments. He covered himself with chainmail as fast as possible hoping that no one had seen the blood. He crawled to a wall of dirt and leaned against it, hoping the pain would eventually subside.

That night, Hinin had dreams of blood and death. When he woke, he almost fell out of the tree before catching himself on a branch. He threw up his hood and climbed down. He yawned a bit, knowing he could have slept for days, then went looking for some food.

Eventually his pain faded and he staggered to his feet, hold a limped step to his form. "Blast this..this...bah!" He shook his head, "I don't know what to call it..." His belly gurgled, "Time for food I suppose...maybe one of the others hunted a deer before sunrise..." He popped his back and headed out, running into Hinin out of view of the other bandits. He smiled revealing he now had sharp fangs and his other teeth were pointed a bit as well. "Mornin'"

Hinin waved, smiling under his hood. "Hey, lookin for food too?" He looked around, in hopes of a meal left behind.

He winced a bit and struggled to get through it quickly and then nodded in response to his friend, "Yeah, come with me." He lead him back to the center of the camp grounds and up to a fire where some deer was being cooked. They were both welcomed joyfully and given food for their hunger. Tovarel chewed on his deer meat with pleasant joy and savored the taste, "Nothing like venison for breakfast." He chuckled.

Hinin chuckled as well. "Yep." He ate his food as if he were starving. It tasted so delicious in his mouth. He knew he could definitely get used to this. "What is the plan for the day?"

He shrugged, "Good question." He belched and his expression twisted into dismay as a puff of smoke escaped his lips. He glanced around to see no one else but Hinin could have seen it, "What the...this...that was...what?" He struggled to keep breathing right and got up walking quickly from the camp and into a denser part of the forest. He took off his equipment to find more sets of scales had appeared, the spikes along his spine had grown and two new rows had popped out of tue skin two inches beside the center, defending from each shoulderblade which was now deformed and pushing downwards and out. His muscles were larger and his fingernails had become claws. Another feature he missed was that green strands of hair had now formed in small lines in the mixture of his muddy blonde hair.

Hinin watched this scene closely, knowing what was probably happening. When someone asked, 'whats his problem' Hinin would reply "Oh probably needed to go relieve some stress below the belt if you know what I mean?" Hinin and everyone else laughed but secretly, Hinin was worried. He had noticed the way Tovarel had been acting as if he were in pain since he saw him today. Hinin excused himself and went in the direction of where he had seen Tovarel head. When he found him, his mouth dropped. "I guess the old dragon was right. You won't be able to keep it a secret for long. I am sure glad Elves don't change over time. " Hopefully is what he was going to say after that but he didn't want to consider what he would turn into if he were to change.