[OOC: A little fun in his normal two legged form first, then I have something fun in mind for when he changes ^.^ hehe]

The gas from the mines had been sweeping over the lands since the event had started, slowly but surely people started to lose their grip on their sanity and broke out in violence. It had all started in the city, which was running red with blood, but the gas was spreading to the wilds as well, almost as if it was directed out there by some unseen force willing to go further, faster and cover more territory.

The orc tribes who normally avoided each other had come together to slaughter each other, and anyone else that they came across. Bloodshed was rampant around the Steppes, but out in one place on the wilds on figure had been consumed by the spreading violence was so far causing his share, and then some, of the deaths.

A roar let out as the two legged dragon swung his battle axe with hand while crushing the throat of an orc with the other. Hacesh stood over seven feet tall in this form, and he was handling the battle axe that was meant for humans to use two handed like it was a stick in his hands. A numbers of bodies laid on the ground around him, not all of them totally whole either from his wide horizontal swings. Normally a peaceful creature Hacesh wasn't immune to the powers that were causing the chaos around the lands. Deep in the back of his mind he was trying to control himself, to end this violence and leave, he was not a one to slaughter like this, not even orcs!

Yet part of him was revelling in it, that more feral and primitive part of his mind that he always kept control of. From a time long ago when his kin were more simple, truer to the title of 'beast' than he was now, a thinking and sentient dragon.

Orcs were surrounding him but they were also fighting among themselves if they could not join the fight against the dragon right away, their violent needs making them turn on their own kin if need be. Two orcs charged at Hacesh who inhaled and then exhaled a plume of fire setting their furs and rags on fire and making them squeal and thrash in panic, adding more burnt ground and bodies to Hacesh's count. One orc came up from behind the dragon with a large broadsword, Hacesh was no weapon expert but his age and strength made up for it. He slipped aside the strike and caught the blade with his axe and twisted. The broadsword went tumbling to the ground before Hacesh brought his own axe up above his head and then brought down on the orc, rending him two.

The dragon roared again a challenge as the slaughter continued around him.

The slaughter was glorious to Logan, and he walked among the corpses, a grin on his face.  He could hear there was another fight somewhere close by, and the vampire sped up his footsteps to find out just what was going on.  He had no intention of fighting himself, he was simply here to observe.  Then he heard the distinctive roar of fire, and his interest was piqued.  Most orcs weren't smart enough or gifted enough to wield fire magic, so that likely meant there was another involved.  When he heard the squeals of pain and could smell the scorched flesh, Logan knew he was close.

Cresting a ridge, Logan kept low to the ground.  And he was quite glad he did.  The creature slaughtering the orcs was not something he wanted to tangle with alone, and even as arrogant as Logan knew himself to be, a dragon was not something he wished to have angry at him.  But it was quite entertaining to watch the orcs still try to fight.  They were clearly outnumbered and outclassed, but still they attacked.  A plan formed in Logan's mind, he wished to speak with the creature.  But it would be very dangerous.  He sheathed his weapons, making himself appear to be unarmed, and headed towards the massive beast.  A number of spells were at the forefront of his mind, just in case this went badly.

"My friend, I wish to thank you!  These orcs, they slaughtered my caravan and stole my goods.  Filthy beasts, aren't they?  Can I offer you anything?" Logan called out from fifty meters away.  It gave him enough time to react in case he had to run, but still close enough that he could be heard clearly.  He showed no fear of the dragon, wondering how that would affect the chaos from the circles being warped into the world.

Hacesh inhaled deeply and let out a torrent of icy breath sweeping it from left to right until he could no longer sustain it. Orcs were slowed by the sudden temperature drop, or slipping on a sudden slippery surface. Hacesh gathered a greenish power in his right palm before slamming his palm to the ground a snarl. The ground burst open in different places ahead of him as ten plant like tentacles erupted from the ground and each snatched up a hapless orc and started to flail it around, slam it on the ground or just crush it to death.

The sudden call of a voice caught Hacesh's attention and the dragon turned to see the man calling to him from about fifty meters away. Hacesh snarled, he had heard the words, and his true mind had understood them, but in his current state that was another story to act on it. Hacesh stared at Logan for a long moment, his mind conflicted on what to do next, his real self fighting hard against the self that was inflicted with the gas causing him to be so violent.

Finally one mind won out and Hacesh snarled as he raised a hand and summoned a bolt of lightning which he hurled with all the strength he could at Logan. It wasn't what his true self wanted but he wasn't able to fight back to fog over his mind in time to stop it from happening. He created another and threw it, and then another and threw it, and a fourth and threw that at an orc causing it to convulse on the ground until its heart stopped from the shock.

An orc got in close but Hacesh turned and grabbed it by the face and squeezed before tossing the orc aside. Drawing in mana once more now that his tentacles had killed some of the orcs Hacesh released the spell and ten large spectral predator looking felines appeared around him. They dashed away in all directions to attack anything that moved until they were banished, and Hacesh could always summon more.

There was hesitation in the dragon's motions, and for a moment Logan thought that logic had won out.  But he was still cautious, and knew it was better to keep his distance.  At the snarl, he knew what was about to happen.  He drew one of the spells from his mind, casting out a number of illusory orcs and ducked behind a large rock.  The smell of ozone became thick in the air, and Logan plotted his next move.  Perhaps he could exhaust the dragon into collapse?  He was no master mage though, Logan knew enough tricks to keep himself mostly out of trouble.

Then he heard a hissing noise, and peered out from behind the rock.  Large ghostly cats were prowling around.  Those would be trouble.  He had seen them in other places and what they were capable of, and Logan did not want to tangle with them.  Not to mention he had no means of banishing spirits.  It was probably a smarter idea at this point to run.  He could of course simply just leave, but there was no fun in that.  He wanted to prod the dragon into fighting to the point of an exhausted collapse.  An idea came to mind, something that would surely get its attention. 

A few whispered words, and a massive, bizarre creature stepped out and roared a challenge to the dragon.  It was an Arriese Rose Hydra, aggressive and looking for something to snap up.  The several heads were glaring around, and most of them focused on the dragon.  Then the plant-beast charged forward.  Logan knew it would likely take some hurts, but he had learned how to care for the creature over time.  He enjoyed its company too much to allow it to be killed in such a simple skirmish.

Hacesh hadn't seen Logan hide behind the orc illusions, but the illusions had died and that was enough, and his attention was taken by real orcs soon enough anyway.  He watched as his ghostly cats started to rip apart the orcs and gave a grunted laugh, one that had some madness in it.  A small grouping of orcs charged at him again in their blind rage and Hacesh opened his wings wide and then shut them hard in front of himself and a heavy blast of concussive air blasted out and toppled the orcs and sent them tumbling like a bowling ball to pins.

It was then that Hacesh heard the challenging roar behind him and turned to look up at the plant like hydra, most of its heads looking at him.  Where it came from he didn't care, this was the kind of fight he was looking for!  Seven feet tall at the moment or not Hacesh charged the hydra when it charged him, letting out his own roar.  He kicked into the air and opened his wings, dropping his battle axe as he did.  The dragon roared as he fly higher up, and then up and up until he was above the hydra and into the clouds out of sight.

Had he ran away?  No, that roar had been one of challenge, so what was Hacesh doing?

That answer came soon enough when a huge silhouette loomed above until Hacesh, now in his full forty foot tall form, dropped from the sky and crashed to the ground.  He landed facing the plant hydra and gave another deafening roar of challenge, now they were more of equal foot with Hacesh's form change.  Hacesh snarled and charged forward now, breathing out a breath of fire, but it wasn't aimed at the hydra, in fact it came back at Hacesh and almost adhered to his scales and he craned his head down enough so should he impact the plant hydra he'd catch it with his shoulder.  But Hacesh's front was now covered in fire, making him like a out of control train with a engine engulfed in flames as he hurtled towards his intended target.

He was beginning to think that leaving might be the better idea.  Self preservation was far more important than antagonizing the beast.  The ghost cats provided good distraction, and a chance for Logan to further study his opponent.  And he was led to only one conclusion.  It was a phrase he had heard in his days as a knight, but it was still a useful phrase.  Discretion is the better part of valor.  There were times that it was better to leave and fight another day, and Logan simply could not see a way out of this fight that ended with him coming out on top.

Murmuring another spell, Logan let the bindings on the rose hydra go just before the dragon crashed into it.  The beast already had wounds he would need to mend, and Logan didn't want any more work than possible.  Then he dismissed the remaining ghostly cats and illusions, leaving only moaning and dead orcs.  Then Logan summoned a portal and stepped through, leaving the plains behind.  While he hated to leave a fight behind, he also knew when it was safer on his part to abandon something that felt unwinnable.  The madness created by his Lady and her companion was entertaining, but dangerous.  Logan decided that he would seek his entertainment elsewhere.