****
Ch. 1
****
A massive creature slowly trudged through the endless rises of sand. Its head was that of a lizard’s, hard and scaled, with large tusks protruding from its mouth, and two long horns gracing it a few feet from its eyes. Its body was stout, the legs short and clawed, the tail long and thick. On its back rode a tall man, his body hidden by flowing white cloth wrapped loosly. The man seemed tiny compared to the creature he was seated on, it was nearly the size of an elephant. Slowly it trudged its way across the yellow desert, leaving large tracks and a long indent from the dragging of its heavy tail. The man pushed his hand out from under the folds of cloth, to gently pat the animals shoulder. "Good Oru, good Oru. We'll stop soon." He murmered. His voice was deep, but wonderfully velvety, and his pronunciation was clear, though his accent was obvious.
He raised his gracefull hand to his face, and sheilded his clear blue eyes as he gazed into the horizon. His hand was smooth, unscarred by work or life, as was his face. He had delicatly masculine features, high cheakbones, smooth pale skin, and a strong jawline. No doubt he was handsome, but as he smoothed his long blonde hair back from his face and back into the cover of the cloth, his vanity was obvious.
Beads of sweat speckled his forehead, and he wiped at them irritably, and then scratched at his ear. It was smooth and curving, coming to a point at the end which was peirced with a gold ring. The ring glinted in the sunlight, unnoticed by the man, but it cought the attention of anouther creature. Far off, over the rise of the next two hills, an animal raised its head. It looked like a large bird, but reptilian, with keen eyes and long, swift moving legs. It was the size of the man, but its sights wernt fixed on him. It stared at the large creature he was riding, the Chuba. It was thick with meat. The animals mouth began to water, it slowly licked at the saliva drooling from the corners of its lips, then it darted quickly across the sand. Its tail fanned out behind it, as its muscular legs pumped and it crossed the distance beetween it and the Chuba quickly. It opened its mouth, and shrieked loudly. The sound startled the Chuba, and its rider. The man looked for the source of the noise, seeing it come over the rise of the next dune, intent on its next mean. He scrambled for his staff as the animal darted towards Oru. Oru brayed loudly, and started to turn from the attack of the creature, as anouther loud shriek sounded in the direction it was turning. Crying out, Oru rolled its eyes back and ran forward, the man on its back clinging tightly to its shoulderblades. He looked behind him, in time to see a woman on horseback charging toward the raptor like creature that was still racing towards his Chuba and himself. The woman called out, a shrill noise made in the back of her throat with her tongue, it sounded like a gypsy cry to him. Her white horse galloped forward, seemingly unafraid of the animal it was going to encounter. In one swift leap the woman was off her horse, her muscular arms holding her rigid to its side. The horse whirled, just as it was about to colide with the reptile, and the womans legs connected with its head with a sickning crack
Oru’s graceful rider turned away, disgusted by the sound. It was a horrible sound in his vain ears, for he was only interested in things of beauty. Even Oru had been choice selected, after much comparing to other Chubas. Only the most perfect for this graceful being.
The woman jumped gracefully off of the dirty creature, and onto her white horse. Oru’s master refused to look at her for a moment, for she had been the cause of the distasteful noise, but he found himself unable to resist the temptation. He felt strangely drawn to her. He turned his head in her direction once more. Once he saw her, he was unhappy that he had looked away and missed a moment of her beauty. She was beautiful, with brown eyes, the colour of the richest dirt. Her hair was the colour of honey. Every feature she had was perfectly crafted and formed, so when looking at her, it wasn’t difficult to believe she was the most perfect creature ever known to man; or elf, for that matter.
For she was indeed of Elven blood. While she was beautiful, he found that she had an odd look about her; one that he had never before seen in any other elf. Her face, though beautifully shaped, showed her determination, something he had never truly known. Her eyes spoke of pain and agony untold. One quick glance at her hands told him that she had worked every single day of her life, and he wondered exactly who she was, this girl that intrigued him so.
She turned to him, her brown eyes catching his, and truly acknowledging his presence for the first time. He felt startled, in a way he had never been before.
“State your name,” she demanded.
He found himself stuttering, something he had never done before in his entire existence. There was a certain aura surrounding this female that made him uncertain of things that he had once been known. “D-Doriahnn,” he replied, trying to regain his composure.
“You’re not from around here, are you.” It was more of a question than a statement, and Doriahnn realized that. He found her analyzing his hands, just as he had done to hers. She then looked closely at his face, and a sniggering sound escaped her lips.
“You’re obviously not from around here. Your hands and face indicate that you haven’t done a stick of work in all of your days … which may be numbered, if you do not watch your tongue.”
“But I didn’t say anything!” Doriahnn retorted indignantly.
“That comment right there is what I’m talking about. You need to learn to keep your mouth shut. Now come along,” she commanded. She began in the direction from which she had come, when she heard his response.
“I have somewhere to be. I refuse to go with you!” His voice made evident his agitation.
The female barbarian met eyes with him, her brown eyes piercing into his blue ones. “You have seen what I’m capable of. That was only a fraction of my true power. Trust me, you do not want to see the extent of my strength. Now come with me, before I bring you along by force.” It was a simple four sentences that she spoke, but there was such power in those words alone that Doriahnn found he could not argue.
Gently he tugged on Oru's reins, and it brayed quietly as it turned in the direction the woman was riding. Oru tossed its head, and Doriahnn patted its neck affectionatly, then retreated once again into the shadows of his robes. The sun beat down on him, as his Chuba followed slowly behind her white horse. Doriahnn watched her tanned back, it rippled with muscles, and shone lightly with sweat. He scowled at her back, thankfull that she couldnt see. She made him feel foolish, and he loathed her for it, but he was curious about her, and cirtainly attracted.
Her horse neighed quietly, a greeting to anouther roan mare standing in the partial shade of the dune that Oru slowly rumbled down. Perched atop the back of the mare, was a man. His hair was raven black, and his eyes a pale blue. He squinted at the woman and as she kicked her feet, her horse broke into a canter. He grinned at her and waved, and only when Doriahnn rode closer to him, did he realize that the man was blind.
"I found the creature that was making the tracks." The woman spoke. Doriahnn again noticed the lilt in her voice, and he wondered if she sang. Possibly an Elven Bard for her people.
The man cocked his head to the side, and small symbols on his tanned forehead glinted in the sunlight. "Oh? A Chuba, right?"
The woman nodded, and replied "yes. Its rider is from Eatarnna, pale of skin and mind."
Laughing, the man shook his head and reached over to pat her shoulder fondly. "So quick to judge Lauhraine"
"Bah! These soft Elves. He wouldnt last anouther day out here in the wastelands." Lauhraine scowled. She shook her pretty head, and Doriahnn noticed a scar running from her jawbone across her neck and down her shoulder. Previously hidden by her hair, it seemed glaringly obvious to him now. He looked away, recoiling at such an unsightly thing on such a beautifull creature.
The man nodded, his black hair glinting in the sun as he nodded. "Ah yes, you've been following him for nearly a week. Well, come on. Lets take him home. Maybe the softies will pay a ransom for his handsome's safe return"
Lauhraine laughed, her eyes twinkling merrily. "We can only hope, hm Rueha?"
The man, Rueha, grinned and nodded his head. He clicked his tongue, and tugged gently on his horses mane. Doriahnn felt contempt towards them, for taking him against his will. And his Chuba could not outrun their fast horses, so he had no choice but to follow. About ten minutes later, he passed out.
Doriahnn awoke what felt to him to be five minutes later, but in all actuality was five hours. He felt someone pushing a damp cloth to his forehead and he opened his eyes. He was inside a dimly lit room. He looked up to see the person who was reviving him, and he noticed an ugly dwarf. He jumped up from his lying position on the comfortable, black padded table, in an attempt to get away from the dwarf.
"Who are you?" he demanded. He wondered exactly where he was. In the last village he had visited, Taltoonyi, he hadn't remembered a room in any of the places he had been that was dimly lit and this small. Taltoonyi was a rich village, with a good, strong history. This place showed no signs of that.
"I'm Kuber," the dwarf replied simply, smiling warmly.
"There are no dwarves in Taltoonyi," Doriahnn informed him rudely. "It's too beautiful a place for any of your kind. And this room is too ugly to possibly be of Taltoonyi design. Tell me now, fool, where am I?"
"I, sir, am no fool. You are in the deep ravines of Laneane. You became unconscious and the fierce Lauhraine brought you here."
Lauhraine. That one name brought everything back to him. He remembered his capture and her savage-like ways. But most of all, above all else, he remembered her beauty, and the scar that tainted it all.
"Yes, and remind me again why I allowed that savage ruffian to capture me? I could have easily beaten her." Doriahnn noticed the dwarf studying his hands and he quickly hid them behind his back.
Kuber laughed. "You couldn't have defeated Lauhraine if she was only using one hand and hopping around with both feet tied. She's been raised in the way of the powerful Elf. She knows all the tricks, and she could have easily destroyed you."
Doriahnn shrugged. "Maybe if we fought a physical battle."
"She has a strong mind, too," Kuber informed him. "I know her well. She and I are best friends."
"Oh, you would be," Doriahnn put in snottily.
Kuber laughed, it was gruff, and bubbly in an odd way. "So" He reached out his strong arm to poke the pale elf in his bare stomache. "Would your highness be wantin clothes?"
Looking down, Doriahnn realized his lack of coverage, and quickly reached down to snatch up the blanket he'd discarded in his innitial suprize at seeing a dwarf. "Fetch my belongings! Dwarf!" He waved his arm in the air, and his pale eyes widened in suprize as the blanket slipped and he ungracefully grabbed for it.
Kuber grinned widely, his brown eyes twinkling, and he tottered off to go grab Doriahnns clothes. The elf sunk down to the bed he'd been lying on, and sat cross legged, to get a better veiw of his surroundings. It was a small room, with a rounded clay ceiling, and wall, but the rest of the oval of the room was penned in by large sheets of brown fabric tied to rungs in the ceiling.
Then his gaze reutrned to his pale, soft hands. He looked at his palm, then the back, then at his palm again, and didnt quite understand why everyone was so intent on staring at them.