It was late that night when Akaysha stirred, opening one yellow oval eye. She felt around with her mind, and felt nothing. Frightened, she moved in closer to the warm body at her side, softly mewling her fear. Beside her, the man that was her rider stirred, but didn't wake, his hand lightly placed on her back.

Still afraid, the small dragon tasted the air with her tongue. The tangy salty taste of dried blood filled the room, both from the dagger and the shirt Ragin had left on the floor. A thin trail of smoke wafted from each of the torchers in the room, which over the course of the night had begun to slightly constrict the room, making it a little harder to breath. The strange cold taste of metal touched her tongue as well, sending shivers through her spine.

Once again she peeped, a little frightened, trying to find the comfort of her rider's mind. Nothing. She looked at the human to her side, then at the hand he had rested on her scales. There was a glint of metal in the firelight and her eyes instantly focused on the ring on Ragin's hand. She instantly knew that it was the cause of her problems.

Moving slowly, so as not to alert her rider, she gently gripped the ring in her jaws and pulled. It was difficult at first, but with a little help from her talons and tail she slowly began to slide the ring from the finger. She let out a snort of victory as she freed the ring, and gleefully leapt into her rider's now visible thoughts.

It was the first time she had caught him without his mental barriers, and she relished as she embraced his mind and everything in it. At first she only saw his thoughts, what he was dreaming. A rather interesting dream about a man with a bold head and a large inhuman smile, but she quickly dove deeper and deeper, into the memories of the past. The information quickly overwhelmed the young dragoness as she quickly got lost in the depths of his mind.

Sorting herself out she slowly began to sift through the memories, finding it difficult as each one was so different from the last, she could not make any sense out of them. Eventually she figured out a far easier way to do so. Feeling rather proud of herself, she quickly dove into one memory, a significant one, that seemed like the beginning of everything her rider had experienced so far.

Her first view into Ragin's world was a boy, crying. She could not see him, nor smell him, but she could hear him, his anguished wails echoing through the cobblestone streets of Illirea. There was also fear, unrelenting and driving fear. Fear of loss. Fear of death. She felt strange as well, as certain colours that she was unaccustomed to danced across her vision. Vibrant yellows and reds. And there was heat, an infallible heat that scorched her bare skin and eyes.

It took the young dragon but a moment to realise that she wasn't herself, but rather looking through the eyes of the boy she heard wailing. Feeling what he was feeling. Experiencing what he was experiencing. For a moment she considered pulling away from the memory, but the curiosity was too much, and she decided it was well worth the effort to see what had made this boy cry.

In front of her, or him, was a three story building, burning with what she felt was the embers of a thousand suns. It pained the boy immensely, but he refused to move. The fire licked the air, reaching out to grab onto something else that it could burn. It lit the night sky like a beacon. It cracked and growled and roared. The building shuddered, before part of it fell to the cobblestone streets below. The boy flinched, but still refused to move backwards, any thought of self-preservation devoid from his mind.

Still crying, the boy fell to his knees, bruising them on the cobblestone pathway, but he didn't seem to care. He reached out his hand, still weeping uncontrollably as the fire devoured everything in its path, slowly spreading to other structures. People were running around madly, cursing and yelling, trying to help put out the inferno, but while Akaysha heard them, the boy only had eyes for the inferno.

Suddenly a hand placed itself on the boy's shoulder, causing him to jump in surprise. He turned, looking up at a dark cloaked figure that caused his heart to leap in his chest, a new and different type of fear clouding his mind.

"Why are you crying boy?" the figure asked, his voice rich and almost musical, with a deep sense of malice in the words.

"M... my mum and dad... they didn't come out," the boy pointed to the blaze with a shaky finger.

The figure looked at the blaze, his eyes not giving anything away.

"C... can you... can you save them?" the boy stuttered, and Akaysha could feel his desperate hope burning in his chest.

"I'm afraid that is beyond my abilities, young one," sighed the man, though he didn't sound at all sorry.

"Please!" begged the boy, more tears springing to his eyes and running down his cheeks.

"Even if I wanted to, child, it would be far too late. The blaze has taken them. They are gone."

"No!" the anguished child fell to the ground, his screaming cry piecing the air.

He stood up and took a step towards the flames, his hands reaching out. Akaysha nearly leapt out of the memory, thinking the boy was about to throw himself into the fire, when the man from behind grabbed the boy and dragged him backwards.

"No! No! No!" the boy cried again and again, his anguish tearing at Akaysha's conscious, but the little dragon continued with the memory, eager to learn.

"Do you want to kill yourself boy?!" snarled the black figure.

The boy sobbed, "I want my mum! I want my dad!"

"Well they are gone!" growled the man, "Gone!"

"No, no, no, no," the boy shook his head but Akaysha could feel the heart throbbing pain of loss crushing him.

For hours the boy sat on the street sobbing as the fire was finally able to be put out. The man stay by his side, a hard grip on his shoulder to make sure he didn't try and throw himself into the flames a second time. What was left over of the house was black and charred, and looked to be about to fall at any moment.

The man released his grip, but the boy stay still, sobbing, the tears still trickling down his face and falling to the stone below. The anguish continued to roll around his head, blotting out everything else but the path under him, and even that drifted in and out of focus. Akaysha let out a mental mewl, feeling every piece of pain the boy felt.

"Follow me," the man said, before turning and walking away.

Not knowing what else to do the boy followed, stumbling after the man as they walked away from the wrecked home. The cool night air kissed the boys burnt arms and face, bringing small relief and causing him to shiver involuntarily. But he didn't seem to care, for his mental pain was far greater than anything else he was suffering.

The man lead him through a number of streets and down a small flight of stairs. There, he placed his hand against a cobblestone walls and muttered a number of words in some unknown language. There was a grating sound an invisible door slid open, allowing them entry. The boy didn't even seem surprised, to lost in his own sorrow.

They walked inside and the door closed behind him. There was a room inside that branched into three separate areas. The roof, floor and walls were all made from smooth granite. A weapon rack was in one corner, and there was a table with chairs in the centre. The boy, without saying anything, walked over to the chair and sat down with a thump.

"What is your name boy?" asked the man, throwing back his hood.

His appearance was of great interest to Akaysha, for she had never seen anything like it before. He had long pointed ears, an angular cat like face, rich black hair, and eyes that were full of knowledge and power. The boy seemed surprised by his appearance and hesitated a moment. Akaysha felt the first thought other than sorrow enter the boy's mind. Elf.

"M... my name's Ragin... sir elf," the boy stuttered, feeling frightened once more.

A kind smile crossed the elf's face as he gazed down at him, but something about the smile made both Akaysha and the boy squirm uncomfortably.

"Here let me tend to your wounds," said the elf, walking over to the boy, Ragin.

He placed his hand upon Ragin's arm, and with authority spoke, "Waise Heill."

An uncomfortable tickling wound its way up through the burns that had scorched Ragin, causing the boy to twitch uncomfortably once more. There was instant relief once the burns were healed, and he let out an audible sigh of relief, moving his arm and looking at the elf with gratitude. The elf continued across Ragin's body, healing all and any wounds until he was as good as new.

"Th... thank you... master elf," said Ragin gratefully, though he was still scared.

"Please, call me Vanir," the elf smiled again.

"Thankyou... V... Vanir," the boy smiled hesitantly back.

"That's the spirit boy," chuckled Vanir, "Now, why don't you go and rest. There is a spare bed on through that corridor there. Sleep, and tomorrow we can talk more."

The boy nodded and got up, suddenly feeling exhausted beyond relief. He walked through the corridor, not really paying attention to anything at all, making it difficult for Akaysha to see his surroundings. Ragin fell onto a bed of straw and fell to sleep almost instantly.

Reluctantly Akaysha withdrew from her riders mind, feel slightly daze. She studied him for a moment, before settling at his side with another yawn. She snuggled closer to his side and fell asleep once again, dreaming of fire and an elf with a smile that never reached his eyes.

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Hey guys! New chapter. I hope you enjoyed it, getting a little into Ragin's past. Vote if you did enjoy and comment what you thought. The next chapter will be out soon. See ya!

Pennator^^