With The Next Generation(Private/mature/continued)

Candra simply nodded and he told her to stay by the children during the attack. She remained silent as he said his final words, tears filled her eyes. "It's not fair....you don't see you causing me to break" She whimpered, too quietly for him to hear as he walked away. When Ryu came back Hati walked past him and looked for Candra. She returned to wolf form and was laying down. "It appears the dragons lost their faith in the gods..." Hati said and looked over his shoulder. Candra looked off to the side. "Unless he realized what he's doing....you will die" Hati spoke quietly. "You let him.... is it so hard to break away from him?" Hati asked. "I love him... we are opposites in every way...but I cant stop loving him" She whimpered. Hati licked away her tears. "Unless he puts you before everything else in his life... before his friends, his family, his honor, even your children and himself.... this disease will succeed in taking your life Candra" Hati said. Candra simply nodded and stood up. "If thats how it must be... he's lost me once and made a new life for himself... I'm sure he'd be able to build another new life with our children" She said. Hati walked beside Candra back to the troops. Candra laid down with her family. Hati stood his attention seemed focused elseware, far away from the group

"Sounds like nothing but trouble..." Ryu groaned. On the other hand, if Hati could bring an end to the war before the Emperor died, it really help out the Empire. Somehow Ryu had doubts that such a thing was possible. Reliance on the gods had always led to disappointment. "Alright, since you called him here, you can keep an eye on him. As soon as night falls we'll attack. I want you to be beside our children when we do." Ryu stated as he rose to his feet, his back now turned to Candra. "You're not fair. You think I've learned nothing from the past. You think that I would have written you off if you had come to me. It's not fair...its not fair at all." Ryu breathed, his body trying its hardest to relax. "Pull another stunt like the one you just did and you'll be on your own. I still love you...but you need to think a little more before you act. There's allot at stake here. The lives of my people are on the line. I want to get you cured, but I cant do that and fight for my people if you're going to be difficult. Just keep that in mind." Ryu stated before he walked off. When he rejoined his men, he gave out more orders. The plan was to allow the dogs to continue digging. Once night fall hit, the tigers would be the first to sneak into the camp. They would take out the guards while Ryu and the other dragons took out the dogs who were digging. If the plan went smoothly, after reaching the tunnel Ryu would force it earth to collapse so the route would be sealed once more.

"Because you would have cast off my feelings as if I was paranoid like you always do, you always have..." She said her voice remained quiet. "The gods have always had their own duties since the beginning of time... but if they hear the call of their people they will come... but its not easy to be heard... was taking a shot in the dark, I didnt really expect him to come" She said. "Hati is the wolf assigned to heard the moon, his brother heards the sun so the story is told... he.... he gets whatever I'm able to offer, but gods dont have many desires... so I wont know until he decides" She said

"Whoa, dont try to turn this around on me!" Ryu snapped. "First of all, Sasah was just trying to help. If you had something against that you should of spoke up and said so. It looked to me that you didn't even care. The night before you left my tent without saying a single word." Ryu stated, his eyes still narrowed even though he was doing his best to keep his voice as low as possible. "You should have talked to me instead of simply going off on your own. Thats something I'd expect from one of the twins, a child." Ryu sighed as he ran both his hands through his hair. "Whats the deal with the white wolf? Is he really a god?" Ryu asked, changing the topic now. "What he get out of helping us? The gods have always turned a bind eye to us mortals. Its the very reason my ancestors cast aside their faith."

"The lives of the men and our children were safe" She muttered quietly. "I... I didnt want to stay around and watch as the feline was all over you accusing me of not worrying for your safety and well being... and know fighting her would have only pissed you off too" She said, her eyes holding no anger but depression. "Every time I think I'm getting you back, someone else is trying to take you from me, and when I fight for whats mine you get angry at me..." She said and looked down while running a hand through her hair

"No...at least not yet. Hold off on that idea for the moment." Ryu stated just before he walked off. Once he and Candra were alone, Ryu let out a very deep sigh and placed his hand against his head. "I really dont understand you..." he mumbled and took a seat on a small stump. "You enjoy finding ways to piss me off dont you? What the hell were you thinking going off on your own? Do you think you're immortal, that you can fight any threat that comes your way? This isn't our old school Candra. This isn't your territory. You could have endangered the lives of not only my men, but our children. What the hell were you thinking?!" Ryu hissed, though kept his voice nice and low.

Hati listened and took everything in. I see, it appears I should tell my father a family meeting is needed sometime in the future." He said calmly. The goda have been ignoring the earth far too long if things were like this. "If its sleep you wish to wait for shall I cast an illusion on them? It is a simple task to make them see what is not to be" He said simply. He sat down as Ryu gave his orders, his eyes falling on Candra as her ears flattened when Ryu requested to speak with her. Candra fazed into her human form and followed Ryu away from the group, her ears remained flatt as she looked off to the side

"I dont know how things were back in your time...but here the situation has changed. Dragons are without a doubt one of the more powerful demon races. Our magic surpasses all. However, our numbers have been steadily decreasing for the past 2,000 years. Its due to an apparent issue with our reproduction. The dogs, which are far out number us, have signed alliances with the bird demons and the Naga from the East, West, South, and Northern Seas. In short, we're kinda screwed right now." Ryu sighed deeply as he peeked from behind the tree. "We'll wait until night fall to make our move when the camp is asleep. We'll make our move then." Ryu stated. His men nodded. There were hundreds of wolves camped out right in front of them plus the added threat of a few bird demon camps to the east. Ryu turned around, his arms crossed. "For now, everyone relax. Sasha, have your warrior stand guard for us. Candra..." Ryu paused, his eye now focusing on the female wolf. "You and I need to have a discussion..." he frowned, his eye narrowing slightly. "In private."

Candra walked beside her family, Hati walked beside them, he had always looked upon earth, but never had a reason to visit it unless summoned. He looked at Ryu as he stopped and walked up beside him, "Why do we stop?" He questioned. And looked to the dogs. "Your afraid of the descendants of the wolven race?" He asked with a tilted head, greatly confused. It was true dogs were strong but they did not posess the strength of any wolf. "Is this who your race is threatened by?" He asked. "Yes my lord, they have allies, a few of them that greaty outnumber them" Candra said as she walked up beside the them, her tail slightly lower than Hati's. "So...how shall we go about this?" Hati asked looking at Ryu since he seemed to be the one in charge

"Dont ask me..." Ryu sighed deeply. He didn't have a clue what was going on. It looked like Hati was going to accompany them though. It also looked like Ryu didn't have much say in whether he could or not. IT didn't matter though. At the moment, the most important thing was to get inside the capital and speak with the Emperor. Ryu knew there time was short. As they neared the eastern end of the enemy camp, Ryu noticed that the dogs had begun to dig. It looked like they had discovered one of the old underground trade routes and were working to unearth it. "Shit..." Ryu whispered from the behind the trunk of a tall tree. They needed to stop the dogs as quietly as possible so the rest of the camp wouldn't be alerted.

"So we are heading beyond that camp correct?" Hati questioned but had already started walking, nudging Candra to her feet. Ryukai's long ears perked. "I don't believe it..." He said in awe. "Brother... who's that?" Kei asked. "That is Lord Hati... the god that chases the moon" Ryukai said lightly. "A god?" Kasumi asked. "Yes... his brother Skoll, drives the sun... his father.... the first wolf ever created is Fenrir. Ryukai told them. Hati's ears picked up on their conversation. "So the stories are still told to pups even now?" He asked, somewhat impressed. He walked up to the three and Ryukai bowed his head. "Why do you children take human forms?... have the demon race learned this ability?" Hati asked looking to Candra. "Yes my lord, the first wolf able to turn human is my father, Wolfsbane" She said. "A good talet learned, I commend the earthen wolves" He said. Candra looked to Ryu only to look away as Sasha walked up to him. "Is this true? We now have gods as allies?" She asked

"I dont understand..." Ryu frowned as a light growl left his lips. IT felt like the wolf was speaking in riddles of some sort. "If there's a cure then name it." he demanded. Suddenly, Ryu's men along with the twins and tigers arrived. Ryu ordered his troops to stand down. As far as he could tell, the wolf wasn't a threat. He did however have a long list of questions for Candra to answer later. Sighing softly, Ryu ran a hand through his dark hair. They were only about half a day's walk from the capital. From there, they could already see what looked like tents belonging to the enemy camp lining just outside the capital's walls.

Hati merely chuckled when questioned of the dragons kind. "But of course, in technical speaking we are all cousins... but the beginning of our kinds was very long ago" He said, his nose pausing at Candra's heart. "It can be...but the question of how soon...depends on her heart... this disease will tear apart her body and soul, before finally devouring the broken heart" Hati said. He pushed Candra down, onto her back, his paw pressing against her chest. Candra yelped, her ears folding back and her tail tucking between her legs. Hati stared up at the fading moon and gave a low but powerful howl, a faint suttle glow came from under his paw. Candra yelped once more before her body relaxed. Hati moved his paw from her allowing her to sit back up. "This should make the attacks less violent and painful, but it will not stop them from coming" Hati said. Candra lowered her head, "Thank you My Lord Hati" She said

"You know of my kind?" Ryu asked, his brow still raised. He wasn't sure what the wolf meant by uncle and father though. As Candra went into another fit, Ryu turned around. He could only guess that it had been triggered by his presence. "Its a disease?" He blinked, his eye shifting between Candra and the wolf. "Is there a cure?" he asked softly. The main purpose for taking Candra with him had been to figure out if there in fact a way to cure her or not. The dragons had vast library's filled with books written on every known disease or illnesses. If there was a cure, Ryu was sure he'd be able to find it there.

Candra fell to her side at Ryu's impact. Hati hadnt budged at all. "So this is one of the decendants of Jormungand.... it's somewhat refreshing to see the wolfs and desended serpants getting along at long last, but only because of a war... how sad Father and Uncle would be to see their children fighting this way" Hati sighed and shook his head. "You are the leader of this small group then?" Hati questioned as his sharp eyes already made out the groups form in the far distance. "Candra has requested help, and I shall make it my duity to protect the race of my uncle, and ensure the wolven race comes to little harm" He said and stood. Candra slowly got up, her hackled raised as her body began to tremble. Hati's ears perked as he watched her begin to cough, blood making its way to her fangs. "A disease eats away inside you" He said and and pressed his nose to her forehead, making the fit less violent. "It eats away at your body" He said, his voice was gently as he circled her once again as the fit passed, Candra's ears were folded back and she lay on the ground panting lightly.

"I see..." Ryu blinked. He had no idea that the Tiger race was doing so horribly. It all made sense now. The queen wanted power. The dragon had power and almost an endless supply of ancient magic. If anyone could save the Tigers and help to create new lands, it was them. "Well, with any luck this war will end soon. I'm sure once its over your mother will receive everything she deserves for the help she's given." Ryu smiled, though his smile soon faded as Sasha pointed out the giant cloud of sand. Ryu stood to his feet, his good eye narrowed sharply. "I'm going ahead. Bring the twins once they're ready to go." he ordered and extended a pair of black wings from his back. He took off high into the sky above and like a jet, zipped right through the clouds. Ryu suddenly made a hard landing. His feet had touched down right between the two wolves. His brow raised as he took in the sight of the white one. With just a glance, Ryu could tell that the wolf wasn't a demon.

"It's because we seek alliance with the dragons..." she said and looked off into the distance. "Our race grows weak with the hunting of men, they hunt my kind for our pelts... the habitat in the demon world does not suit us, so many of us cross over to the human realm where they're enviroment suits us" She said. "But with so few of us left we dare not let any more go to that realm. So we seek the magic of the dragons... to possibly help us create a habitat that would suit my races needs" she said. "As eldest daughter, it's my duity to offer to help in the war in order to strive for our goal, and to increase the numbers of my people" She said before noticing the giant cloud of sand in the distance. "Isnt that... where Candra is?" She questioned.

Hati stopped standing beside Candra, he was two wolf heads taller than her. He lowered his muzzle to her neck, taking in her scent before nipping her lightly, she lowered herself to her belly at the action. "What do you offer the gods if one was to help you in this request of yours" Hati said, his tail held high as he lightly and somewhat effectionatly nipped at her neck and ears. "What ever I'm able to offer what the gods may want" She said. Hati looked back smelling the group of dragons and three mixed bloods as well as a feline. "I suppose I can help... we'll discuss my desires later if I decide on something I want... if needed I shall summon my brother and father, but only if truely needed" He said and sat down. Candra sat up when he sat her eyes looking back to her family drawing closer

Ryu's men picked up the pace. They only stopped when one of the twins needed a potty break. As Ryu waited for Kasumi to finish her business, his eyes shifted over towards Sasha. "You know...I dont think I ever asked but, why did you come here to fight? You're the Queen's eldest daughter right? I'm sure you could have easily lived a life of riches yet you decided to come her and bath in blood." he replied softly, his eye resting on her. "The Tigers and Dragons had never been enemies, yet we have never been allies either. The other to help from your mother came as a big surprise to all Noblemen within the Empire. I'd say even the Emperor himself was shocked. I have to ask, what are you Tigers getting out of this? I dont know the details of the deal that was struck, but I find it hard to believe that all this aide is being given out of good will/"

Candra's howl echoed through the land until the moon slowly released the sun and began to move. Something flashed in the sky and came hurtling toward the earth. Candra's ears perked watched the object coming at her. A strong impact cossed the sand to erupte from the ground and slowly began to fall, a giant white wolf stood towering over Candra, looking down at her with ice blue eyes. The wolf compared their sizes and fazed down to match her size, only he was still much larger than her. A strong wolf indeed, if he lived upon the earth every she wolf would be after him. "Are you the one who called for me?" He questioned while circling her. "Yes my lord Hati" She said and bowed her head. "I wish to ask for the gods help in saving the mortal earth.... a danger threatens to wipe out a species that is meant to exist here" She said, keeping her head down, something Candra has never down so willingly. Hate stepped up to her, his massive paw near hers as he took in her scent. "You are of the demon decent... is it the wolven race that's in danger?" He asked. "No my lord, but that of your uncles, the serpent... the dragon clans are in danger" She said. Hati's eyes scanned her as he circled her once more

[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Ryu had ordered one his men to shoot the bird down before it gave away their position. As the sun engulfed the moon, Ryu's eye shifted up towards the sky. Day turned to black night in almost an instant. "Orders sir?" his men asked wondering if they should keep moving. Ryu took a few steps forwards. He took in a large whiff of air. "Candra is close. We'll continue moving." he ordered. Upon hearing how howl, he figured they were only a few miles away from her at the most.

Candra had caught dragons scent and sniffed the ground, looking for the strongest... the most recent scent. When she heard a bird's shriek in the distance she lowered herself to the ground, her bright blue hues scanning the area and the sky. He's very mad mother Ryu commented as he followed her tracks, with his father and the troups following him. I figured as much Candra replied to her son. Candra's ears perked as they sky slowly began to turn dark. She looked up as the moon slowly began to block out the sun. "A...solar eclipse?" Candra questioned. She recalled an old ledgend of the solar and lunar eclipse. She through her head back and let out a strong howl right up toward the moon that was devouring the sun.

"I dont recall asking you." Ryu spat, his good eye shifting towards his son. His gut told him that Ryukai had known that his mother would leave, but had done nothing to stop her. As the they walked, it was written all over Ryu's face just how mad he was. He'd let Candra have it once they caught up to her. Suddenly, from above the banshee like shriek echoed through the skies. Ryu looked up. Just above them circled a bird demon. It made no action to attack, but wasn't going to fly away either. "We're close." he mumbled and shifted his eye over towards Sasha. The Dragon capital was surrounded on nearly all sides. The only way to enter was to take a old trading route into the underground chambers of the city. Whether Candra knew of the route Ryu wasn't sure. Not even he had known of its existence until his own superior had shown him. The dragons were using similar routes throughout the city to get supplies and had kept it a secret to avoid the enemy shutting down the routes.

Ryukai was already awake and heard the order to have them awakened. He nudged Kasumi and Kei before climbing out, and streched his body, his claws digging into the sand. He shook out his fur before sitting down and started to scratch his ear. "She's fine you know" He said passively as Kasumi and Kei climbed out from the den and copied the same procedure of waking up that Ryukai had down. "Come on you two, climb on" Ryukai said. The kids took their human form and got onto their brothers back. Ryukai started to walk in the direction his mother had gone, knowing their father would point them in that direction anyway

"Fighting? Well...perhaps in the past yes...and certainly so when you last saw me. However...well...we're trying to work things out little by little." Ryu replied softly and let out a small sigh. When morning came, Ryu was feeling ten times better. He was able to walk on his own and his headaches had vanished. When he found that Candra had left during the night, his crimson eye nearly popped right out of its socket! The word pissed wasn't good enough to describe how he felt. What had been the point of going through the hell of death valley if she was going to abandon everyone and go off on her own? Ryu thought he had made himself crystal clear that Candra would be traveling with him so he could look after her. "Selfish, no good, pain in the ass..." Ryu hissed as his body turned towards the direction she had taken. His men stood behind him wondering what their leader would do. "Tell my kids to get up. We're moving out right fucking now..."

"Yes sir... but... I only speak the truth... it seems you two are constantly fighting... and its not like you've.... well spoke well of her" She said softly as she looked down. She would keep her word and not provoke his family, but she would defend herself if needed. As hours passed and midnight crept by Candra emerged from her den. She was silent, making no sounds. Take care of Kasumi and Kei... I'm going ahead alone... stay with the group, the twins will be safer this way she communicated with Ryukai telepathically. You know he'll be very upset with you for doing this He replied as Kasumi nuzzled against him. And I'm upset he allows a women who's clearly in love with him hang all over him in front of his me She replied and began trotting. She knew which way she had to go, but she could not stand the though of continuing their journey with Sasha all over Ryu when she had been the one who had carried him for hours after the blast and made it seem like she had no intention of caring for his health. By five in the morning Candra had left the group far behind her, still keeping a steady trotting pace as the sun broke over the mountains