Letting out a grunt of relief as he neared his destination after days of travel, Tavor N'eveth stumbled forth, and he felt weary, so he decided to camp where he was. He glanced up at the sky above, and light was fading, and the sky slowly darkening, light leaving the lands in which he was to return many hours later. There was a rustle as a slight breeze passed through the few trees and bushes, then there was a sound of an animal, no larger than a foal, and the crocodile turned, his eyes landing on the beast in the dimness. A wild boar.

Tavor quickly pulled his khopesh as the beast let out a squeal and charged, only to be met by the blade. The crocodile skinned the animal and feasted, and used the boarskin to cover himself as he slept through the night, under the sky, embedded with stars.

He woke at first light and, taking the boarskin with him, left for the Ruins once again. As he got to the top of a hill after many hours, the crocodile heard a familiar noise. A group of wild boards, similar to the one which he wore the skin of over his back, appeared, growling and letting out a shrill squeal or two, ready to attack, a particularly large one in the center. He's outnumbered. The crocodile replaced his staff over his back, under the boarskin cape, and pulled out his khopesh.

When between work leads and finding himself out of doors in the more pleasant regions of the world, Sebastian enjoyed just…being. Flames danced and floated before his Autumn gaze, embers that he mentally controlled as he stood in only his trousers, among the ruins. The cold, mossy stones felt good beneath his bare feet. Though he scarcely moved, Sebastian was sweating profusely. His hands were clasped in front of his chest as if in prayer, and he stood with a wide stance, as though mounted upon an imaginary steed.

There was no desecrated village. Grunt. There were no other times, places, or lives. Grunt grunt. Huff. There was only here. There was only now.
SQUEAL.

Sebastian tried to ignore the stirrings of a sounder of boar nearby so that he could maintain his intense concentration, but the sudden violence in the last utterance caused it to break. The flickering flames in front of him dissipated as he carefully crept behind a crumbling wall. Panting, he peered curiously across the expanse of the hill from his vantage point, wondering what had gotten the boar so riled. He assumed it was one of the Bohari, who normally left him well enough alone whenever he passed through here. As did the wildlife.

It did not take much observation to realize the source of the distress.

Though Sebastian was familiar with a variety of reptilian races, both from his travels and reading of them, he had to admit, he had never seen nor read of one so exotic. That was not the first word that came to mind, though. Bold was the apt descriptive. Obviously, the creature would possess physical abilities that far overshadowed those of the average human…but taking on a throng of swine that large…
Perhaps it was a young and impulsive one? He knew not. Sebastian was open and accepting of all races of the world, but he was not knowledgeable enough to determine the age of some. It had already killed at least one of them, it seemed. It wore one of their hides as a cape with, from this distance, looked to be a blade of Arrian or Abedian design.

Unsure if the daft creature had spotted him, or if it was capable of handling such a challenge that it now faced, Sebastian surreptitiously donned his effects. He did not put on his gauntlets though; of his subject in question, he was not certain. He would not worry unless it proved to be hostile. The boar, however, were very easy to manipulate. Having no need of what the animals provided, Sebastian would be loath to kill them, but he would prevent this hunter from being overwhelmed and gored. He descended from the ruins to make his presence known, but carefully, so as not to rouse the swine's ire any further.

Tavor N'eveth stood still, not moving anything but his eyes, slowly breathing, his khopesh in his hand. There was movement, he sensed. Not of boars, but of something larger. Not a bear, certainly, but a man. His eyes scanned the surrounding area, and landed on a young male, descending behind the boars. He had not seen the ruins until now; these must have belonged to Fragus, which meant he was closer than he had expected to his destination; almost there, as a matter of fact. But now he faced the peril which the boars presented. He can take on them, all of them, if he can transform.

The lead boar, larger than the rest, let out a loud squeal. It was a challenge. The creature charged forth, but the crocodile ducked and threw his hand below its belly, grabbing a leg, and immediately jerked it sideways, throwing the swine to its side. He raised his blade and rapidly lowered it, ending the boar's life. The other beasts squealed in anger. He stepped back, leaving the blade in the boar, and lunged forth, transforming into a huge crocodile, twelve feet long, his skull alone the size of a man; a sarcosuchus.

The heavy reptile landed on the land with a thump. One swine charged with a squeal, only to be met by the thick and long tail, sending it sprawling down the hill. In his jaws he caught another attacker, shaking it wildly then throwing the body at another. More came. He can't keep going on. The crocodile swiped his tail sideways, thrashing and biting, to catch any attacker that got close. But the pigs kept their distance. One, however, foolishly leapt and sunk his tusks into the crocodile's side. The large reptile let out a grunt of pain mingled with anger and surprise, before two more joined the assault. One was caught between the crocodile's jaws, the other in the tail. The biting boar opened his long snout to bite once more, but the crocodile spun and, when he was once again facing the other boars, dropped the struggling, bleeding body into the bloody ground below, and he stood still, his mouth open, ready for prey to get close so he can bite.

His eyes moved upwards once more, now that the boars were standing still, growling and grunting, squealing, in anger. The human was near, moving quietly, but the pigs seemed to have sensed him; two of them had turned to him. This didn't seem to bother him, however, it was intentional, it seemed to Tavor. A third boar turned to the newcomer then let out a loud squeal, before charging at the human. These boars were insane ! They were confused now, it seemed; for one moment their eyes and ears were with the reptile, for another with the human. Now was the time to strike. The crocodile lunged forth, swiping his tail sideways madly, and grabbed a boar. The creature let out a squeal of surprise as it was shaken wildly then thrown away. His tail hit a few boars, sending them sprawling here and there. The crocodile grabbed another boar in his jaws and threw him at a charging one. The animals were taken by surprise, and a few of them fled to their den in fear…. Nests, he had heard some farmer call them once in the past. The large crocodile once again transformed into a man-like being, and pulled his khopesh, his cape over his back once again. He stabbed one pig, and kicked another with his powerful leg away.

Transversal would have been the simplest method of avoiding the animals; but Sebastian was not one to show his hand before all of the cards were on the table, so to speak. He knew nothing of the reptilian, that now transformed before his very eyes, shedding its man-like bipedal form to truly play the predator that it was. Bash silently reached out to the simple-minded swine that charged towards him, and the two of his brethren that followed suit, in turn. The trio came to a very abrupt halt, sliding, kicking up dust, and toppling over each other, tail over tusk, all the way up to Sebastian's boots.

As the boars rose to their hooves, they seemed almost…suddenly…docile. They regarded Sebastian with the mind-rotted, dopey-eyed stupor of farm-raised pigs, grunting happily.

Bash might have been mistaken in the crocodile's ability to handle the entire herd. He saw that one had gotten a lucky bite in, but overall, they were outmatched. Relinquishing control of the three boars, these too fled upon hearing the frightened squeals of the others, and ran last (and clumsily) into the den.

"That was quite the hunt," Sebastian called out, surveying the carnage around them both. He was not even sure if his present company spoke the common tongue, but he was determined to interact with him as though he were any other traveler he would meet on the road. "You look to be far from your home, but you managed the creatures as though you were raised here," he noted with praise. "Might I ask your name?"

Though wary of the wicked blade the reptilian wielded, and his observed propensity in combat for wild and sudden movements, Sebastian's stance and demeanor remained relaxed as he approached. He could not see thoughts, but he could feel intent, and was also adept at reading body language. He could not feel any more aggression from the warrior, but he had been wrong before. Some non-human races were good at hiding their emotions. What Sebastian saw in the nature of the violence and how he currently stood, the boars may not have on the agenda, and were merely in the way of some other, unknown goal. He would let this assumption lay for now until he learned more.

"I am Sebastian," he offered warmly with his outstretched hand.

"Tavor N'eveth" The crocodile replied. "I am not from here, indeed. I come from the swamp in the South."

The crocodile watched as the last of the boars fled, bloody and injured. He skinned one boar and started a fire, cooking the meat, while weaving a rope out of the boar's hide. He then wrapped the others in the hide rope, for later use. He studied the man before him; Sebastian. He was a strong one, that was a given. He had powerful magic, given as well.

This was a good hunt. Tavor could've just killed them all using his mist of darkness, but they wouldn't be of use. The meat was edible and the hide was useful. He looked down at himself, and realized he was too bloody for his own liking. He looked around, his eyes searching, his mind seeking. He heard the rush of water, and his eyes followed the sound, falling on a stream below the hill, where several of the pigs fell. He stepped into the water and the current got much stronger, yet his stood still like there was none at all. When, at last, his blade and body were washed, he stepped out, and the current returned to how it was before.

He wasn't dry, but he wasn't wet either. It was almost like his body had absorbed the water. He glanced up at the sky. Not a cloud to be seen. He returned to the fire and pulled the boar away, splitting it in two, and tossing one half to Sebastian. He had removed the entrails and thrown them into the river, where the current had taken them away, where fish or other wild animals would feed on them. The crocodile tore chunks of boar meat with his sharp teeth.

"What brings you here ?" He asked Sebastian before tearing another chunk of boar.

Relief washed over Sebastian. He could not speak for any previous incarnations his soul had taken in other realms, but he was mostly gentle of spirit. He had a temper, to be sure, but he detested violence. His companion spoke, and was not hostile. What more could he ask for? Tavor was actually rather courteous. Sebastian was secretly amused at the figurative prospect of a friendly meeting inhibited by a communication barrier, but he was grateful nonetheless.

Sebastian observed curiously as Tavor field dressed his prey. Personally, he had never developed the taste for flesh. Nor had he needed it. When he was young, the thought behind it repulsed him. He had grown personally attached to many animals on the family farm. Later in life, he had come to see the spiritual reasoning in his choice, but he did not look down on his fellow man for indulging. The world was full of as many different types of people as there were races in general. Perhaps even more. All on many different walks, with different needs, sensitivities, and beliefs. Faulting any man, mer, or otherwise for what they naturally gravitated towards or away from seemed petty and childish.

The eviscerated carcasses did not turn Sebastian's stomach in the least, nor did the offering of meat make him ill. He did politely decline it though, having retrieved his backpack from the ruins while Tavor had washed the blood from his blade and his body. His bag contained a large canteen of fresh water, almonds, apples, huckleberries, cheese, dark bread, two potatoes along with an iron stein to cook them, a canister with herbs and spices, coffee, and a press. More than enough for a few days on the road. It was also a long-held habit for him to forage anything edible as he traveled, lest any journey unexpectedly become more taxing than anticipated. Replanting things as they were taken, when possible, was also very important to him.

"I always come to these outcroppings of ruins whenever I find myself in the area," Sebastian explained before crunching up a handful of almonds, and readying his stein and press to prepare food and drink over the fire Tavor had built. "Some would say otherwise, but I find it tranquil. The Bohari are aware of me, and leave me be. So do any wandering creatures. I have a way of making myself scarce, when need be."

Sebastian took a bite of an apple and filled the press with water. "I should ask you the same thing. You'll meet some trouble from the locals - or worse, if it's treasure you're after."

"No, indeed." Answered the crocodile, finishing the last of his tasteless boar and throwing the remaining bones away into the river, where they got burrief beneath the gravel and dirt at the bottom of the river. He laid his eyes on the ruins behind Sebastian, then closed his eyes for a moment. He opened his eyes after a while, the nictitating membrane sliding sideways, just like a crocodile.

"There was once a great kingdom known as Sot'eron that was built on these lands," Tavor explained, "it fell many centuries ago, and was forgotten. Its remains stand here. It became a myth, then the myth was forgotten. Somewhere in these ruins, however, is a treasure unspoken of. Not the one the Bohari guard, but one of which they have not learned. A gem. A gem of great significance. But that is not all, for I have been informed that, after the rise and swift fall of the Orcs from the dungeons, Azul did not return ti the dungeons. He had fled his hiding place and was hiding in the plains of Bohar. In these ruins. I have come looking for him, and for the lost relic."

He looked once more to the sky overhead, and the sun was still high. Day was not yet lost. The crocodile rose after several minutes and examined the cold stone walls. They were strong as they once were, of course. The smell of food reached his nostrils, but he wasn't hungry. He had already eaten, and had no place for more food, and he also didn't eat the food that was being made, and it was not his to feast on.

The crocodile returned to the fire and sat opposite Sebastian, cross-legged as he was before, and as he sat he spoke.

"But you have not yet told me what brings you to tgese lands; to these ruins."

"Nothing is truly lost if at least one soul remembers," Sebastian mused cryptically, the fire casting strange patterns of light in his pyretic, October-faceted gaze while he looked into it, yet beyond it. "A trinket only has as much value as an individual or a society places upon it. There is no practical value beyond the monetary in what the Bohari so zealously hoard."
Sebastian's lips formed a wide, knowing grin. "Knowledge or glory are the only forces with enough pull to draw the more astute adventurers into peril, or to spend their years chasing a myth."

He chuckled. "That is only my opinion, of course."


"My presence here has far less specific of a cause than yours, Tavor, I assure you. I am called upon for many things. The written word is what most of my trade entails; though, I am, more often than not involved in…stranger…activities."
Sebastian took the last few bites of his apple, and neatly buried the core in the ground. He shifted the decanter out of the press frame once he had brewed the coffee to its desired strength, and took a sip.


"I have a knack for finding things that have been lost. I have no vested interest in this relic, but if it will be worth my while, I can be of some assistance to you."
Frowning as he popped a huckleberry into his mouth, Sebastian had a look of soured distress as though the fruit were not yet ripe. His food was not the cause for his grimace, however, but a mere passing thought.
"Orcs are not exactly known for anything I would be after…tomes, novels, and the like.  I've read Orcish poetry before. I'd sooner dance naked in the streets of Kurayo with cuts all over my body than read that bollocks again."

Sebastian chugged the rest of his coffee, then bit at his lip in thought. He muttered in afterthought to himself about the clumsiness of the prose and subject matter in the aforementioned poetry being akin to the sound of kicking a hog chewing on chain mail down a stairs. "What is happening to you from behind, and how can we make it stop?" Bash mouthed, and so on.
He caught himself in his habit for personal tangents and cleared his throat, regaining his composure.

"I do suppose it would help me sleep better at night knowing you don't run into any worse trouble than a sounder of wild boar," he offered with an exaggerated eye roll.

Aspect sat a short distance away from the camp of the two travelers. The large shaggy dog flicked her tail back and forth as she waited patiently for her chance to slip within the light of the fire. She blended in well with her surroundings, the only give away of her presence was the small white diamond mark on her forehead between her eyes. She flicked her ear to the side as she heard one of the men through something in the river, she caught the scent and realized they were meat scraps. 

She walked over towards the water and pulled out a few pieces the man had thrown away. She grinned to herself as she emerged from the cold water with a large bone in her mouth. She curled up on the bank and proceeded to gnaw at it, her strong jaws breaking the bone so she could suck the marrow out from inside. After a short moment, she crawled closer so she was within hearing range of the pair. She listened as the larger man talked about the history of this land and the treasures the guard hid there. 

She recognized him as the half crocodile she had traveled with before. Tavor, we meet again. She thought to herself. She held no ill will against the croc and knew of his capabilities in a fight. There would likely be more than the few boar they had eaten lying about. Using her nose, she quickly found one of the dead pigs the men hadn't yet touched. With her mighty jaws, she dragged, and flipped, and ripped her share of meat off the carcass. 

Once she had eaten her fill, she left the scraps for the true scavengers of the plains and went back to the camp. She lied down in the tall grasses near the encampment and watched. She didn't have any intention really of actually approaching them, not yet anyway. She wanted to figure out their motives first and what they intended to do before she revealed herself. She positioned herself so that Tavor wouldn't necessarily catch her scent in the air, and that the human wouldn't be able to catch sight of her. If they moved a lot, there was a chance of her discovery, but she was content to stay there until then.