Eternal Beasts

Anointed

Samantha was standing beside a huge black griffon when the two men got there, Jared's mount glancing at the black as curiosity and a strange sense of familiarity came over the suddenly reactivated bond, the black rivaling both her size and breadth. But when she caught sight of Jared running towards her, any questions she had about the black disappeared as she focused on her rider.

- Jared! - she exclaimed with no little relief. - Are you okay, my sweet rider? -

- I am, Sammy. But we need to get the heck out of dodge, like Yesterday! - he said, easily vaulting up into the saddle, pulling on his hood as he settled.

- Copy that, my love, - she replied, twisting and launching herself into the air in one continuous motion, exploding upward to rapidly climb towards the circular hole in the roof. - I can't say I won't be glad to get out of here! -

- Amen, Sams, - Jared sent back. - Me too. That was a once in a lifetime experience too many for me! -

A glance to his right yielded Kurtis and his mount, which, thanks to his deeper connection to the Eternal Beasts than the normal rider, Jared could sense was named Sampson, the big black climbing easily with powerful wing strokes. And, as the name floated through his mind, Jared too was struck with a sense of familiarity as if he had seen the powerful griffon before.

Then it struck him: Sampson was the big black that had been in the scene of Samantha's birth! It was her sire!!

- My sire?? - Samantha said, picking up on his thoughts over the bond. - But he was lost over five thousand years ago, in battle. How is that possible? -

- Power of the summons, Sam, - Jared said as they continued climbing higher and higher, the arch below disappearing against the red stones.

And then they were back outside, the volcano falling far behind as the two griffons stretched their wings at their riders' urging and flew hard to the northwest, the wind at their backs. Now unfettered by the demands of fate and the powerful summons, the two Eternal Beasts streaked across the open space amongst the clouds, racing the winds and challenging the three suns' dominance of the sky with proud cries. Over the bond, however, Samantha remained quiet, wrapped up in thinking about her sire, who she had thought she would never meet.

Far below, the ever changing land was ignored by rider and mount alike as they forsook the drab and dreary earth to claim the vast, roofless vaults of the heavens as their own. Time flew almost as fast as they streaked westward, the dark, dead lands of Tammen Gall and the River Synn forgotten.

Then, without warning, Kurtis was reining in hard, causing Sampson to backwing hard, great muscles straining to halt their incredible forward momentum. Jared let Samantha carry them on a bit further before looping around a medium sized cloud before streaking back towards the hovering black griffon. There Samantha also slowed and halted herself to hover with rapid, cupping beats of her powerful wings, holding position just to Kurtis's right and about ten meters from Sampson's wing range.

At Jared's questioning look, Kurtis pointed downwards. Then his mount pulled in his wings and angled his body to drop away from Jared and Samantha, quickly going into a steep dive. Jared and Samantha quickly followed suit, dropping like a stone through the clouds to approach the ground at breakneck speed. Then, at the last instant, the two powerful creatures pulled up with a flurry of backwinging and dropped lightly onto the ground almost simultaneously.

As soon as his mount's paws and talons were on the ground, Kurtis sprang down onto the snow-covered forest floor. They were now somewhere deep in the northern reaches of the continent spanning Kasidian Forest, far from any habitation, both darkling or lightning. Turning quickly, the big man pulled something out of saddlebag before turning back to watch Jared make their final descent. It was then the younger rider could see the velvet wrapped bundle the older man held in his hands. With a flurry of winter-dried leaves and lingering snow, Sam dropped lightly onto the ground beside the black and Jared easily jumped to the ground.