City of Fate

City of Valore

The Elf rode on the back of her dragon, long white hair streamed behind like the black standard attached to the silver spear she carried in her gloved right hand. The Dragon's body slithered like a snake as long powerful wings beat the air, driving them forward at dizzying speed. Below them the landscape sped by, green and lush, crisscrossed by dark blue rivers and dotted with even darker green lake. The beasts twin shadows followed directly below, cast there by the large yellow sun and the smaller red one.

Slightly behind but keeping pace with the dragon and his rider, was the rogue. He rides a black steed at full gallop, hooded cloak flapping behind wildly. His sharp features, framed by a narrow face, were set hard in a scowl. He was slim but solidly built, covered from ankle to neck in a close fitting, highly articulated armor of elven construction. The man is strong as a dwarven steel and moves as silently as a puma. The duel daggers, strapped to his armor clad thighs, were the only part of him not shrouded in some dark color. He sits low, hunched close to his steeds back as it weaves around trees, leapes easily over fallen logs and splashed across rivers.

Following a little way back is the squat, thick form of the Dwarf, most of his Dwarven steel armor packed in a bundle on his back. He runs, the legendary stamina of the Dwarves enhanced by the jade and emerald amulet around his neck. He prefers to run, Dwarves notoriously despise horses, being "dwarfed" by the animal is an obvious sticking point for his kind. Dragons are out of the question too, there is a long standing animosity between the two races that goes back to the beginning of written history. So he runs. His dark green leather jerkin, barely stained from his sweat, is made of the finest Elven pig hide. The Dwarven steel bracers and greaves, still adorning his thick, muscular arms and legs respectively, shine brightly in the midday suns. He long ago tucked his long, ruddy beard into his shirt to stop it from blowing back into his face. All though he is running on the short legs bestowed on this race, but has little trouble keeping up with the others.

Suddenly the Elf, still astride the glorious white dragon, let go of the reigns, hands dropped to her side. Both Elf and Dragon slowly began to descend toward the ground until both hit without so much as a eddy of dust to commemorate the union of body to ground. Strangely though, the Dragon continued to flap his wings as if he were still in flight.

The Rouge reigned in his dark steed as the Dwarf skidded to a stop next to him.  The Dwarf was glad for the respite as he had been running for a long while now. They both stood, chests rising and falling in unison from the effort of their travels, watching as the Dragon continued to heave his enormous wings up and down to no avail.

The Dwarf was the first to speak up on the subject. He sounded like a 15 year old girl with a stuffed nose and an intellect well beyond her perceived age.

Carol: "Ah hem, Emelia. What are you doing? Mase, what is she doing?"

Next the rogue spoke. More surprising then the Dwarf's voice, he sounded like a 15 year old boy, mid puberty, who speaks fast and often to compensate for the fact that he rarely had anything with any actual intellectual contribution.

Mason: "I don't know. I'm in my room, I'm not with her."

Carol: "Em, hello! You look like an idiot, Jaeger is just flapping around like a fish out of water and your avatar looks like she is sleeping with her eyes open."

Mason: "Yeah, Em we have a quest to finish here." 

Just then the Dragon abruptly stopped flapping and the Elf dismounted and walked over to the other, standing, for all to see, with the regal demeanor known among her kind. Of all the three companions, the Elf's voice sounded the most like the character it came from, intelligent and elegant.

Emelia: "Sorry guys. My mom just got home and I had to see what took her so long to get here. My cat sat on my controller." 

Mason: "So we gonna get this game going or not, I gotta eat dinner soon."

Emelia: "I don't know. Could we just do a side mission or something, my minds not in it today. Just had a weird day. You guys know a bit about what has been happening but I just have the heebie jeebies, like some one is literally watching me."

Carol: "Still think you need to get yourself some kind of weapon. The world is a tough place for us."

Mason: "I think we could search for the Witches Talisman. I heard that is a quick mission. Saw a youtube video, seems like our best bet if you don't want to continue the main quest."

Emelia: "You guys, I'm serious. It's been distracting me all day. I even drew a picture of her in history, without even realizing I was doing it."

A photo popped up in everyone's h.u.d., a grainy image of the cover of Emelia's notebook with a dark and creepy pencil drawing of a dark women standing in an alley, hair and face were the only details visible. The words "Osto-o Amarto" scrawled across the top of the image in white that contrasted the dark background.

Mason:" "Osto-o Amarto", huh. City of fate. Didn't know you knew Elvish, Em."

Emelia: " I don't! I didn't even know what that meant until just now. How do you know?"

Mason: " I learned from the internet, it was just for shits and giggles. That is totes weird though, since you don't know the High elves language."

Carol: "I just got goosebumps. That is very strange indeed."

Emelia: "Not to mention elves don't exist. Hey, listen. I'm sorry but I have to go. This is all just a little too crazy for me. I gotta go to bed. Maybe tomorrow will be better."

Emelia pulled off the VR goggles and plugged them in to recharge. She went downstairs to grab some water and brush her teeth. A storm had began outside, flashes of lightning and a distant rumble interrupted the silence of the night, her mom must have been in bed watching T.V because all was silent downstairs. Emelia stood in front of the kitchen sink drinking down some water as the storm got closer and louder. She looked out the window thinking she saw some movement. A bright flash of lightning, followed immediately by a cacophonous, loud peel of thunder shook the building. As the lightning flashed she saw her, right there across the street on the rooftop, rain pelting down on her but not seeming to wet her at all. It was that same lady again, staring at her. Emelia let out a scream like none she had ever released before and all went quite and dark.