Something or someone had decided this morning was the best to make an infernal amount of noise and disturb the otherwise good morning. Éamons blue and golden hued eyes searched for whoever was making the noise, as it was drawing his attention. Mostly it was an instinctive action, but after the massive sound of something colliding with the ground, he wanted to know what was big enough to cause such a sound. His mare had started to grow nervous and it was when she stopped abruptly, yanked at the reins and looked into the distance with wide eyes and heart beating so violently in her chest that Èamon could almost taste her fear. He let a hand stroke her neck and in an attempt to calm her, as his hazel eyes followed the mares line of sight. 
What  a sight. He had not expected to see a dragon of all things when he had saddled up. It was a small creature, a female by the look of it. Her scales caught the sunlight, reflected and shimmered in an amazing display of colours. Her long, delicate neck stretched towards the sky. He had seen hatchlings, he had seen young dragons, he had seen old dragons and yet he had not seen a young dragon at this age behave like a helpless, clumsy hatchling. It was rather pathetic. Had she even seen her first century? A cruel smile curled his lips, this opportunity was too good to pass up. A young dragon, clearly in need of guidance, a female one at that too... His attention returned to the chestnut. He didn't want the mare to run home, he would be without a ride and he, unlike the young dragon, was too great a being to just take to the air and fly home. He wasn't ready for the world to know Vaathunaax The World-eater was alive and well.

So he dug into his bag and found a robe he tied to the mare's tack before securing the line in the ground with an iron spike. Hopefully, the illusion of being tied would be enough for the mare not to bolt, because if she wanted she could pull the spike out of the ground in a fit of panic.
He started to make his way towards the young dragon. Something still seemed off about the female, but she was kin and should they at least not try to keep themselves alive and out of sight? Éamon might prefer the chaos, which came with war, but he knew the dragons were too few to fight all of the races of Oedir at the moment. With luck, they might overcome one race and make them succumb to their will, but another race would take up arms to help drive the dragons out. So, for now, the better option was to remain hidden.
Maybe he should make his presence known so she didn't make him into a human torch? That would be a sad ending to his tale. Vaathu, dead by a panicked dragon because he was in this weak form. He might be able to turn before the flames hit him, but it wasn't a chance he was willing to take. So he threw on a gentler exterior. One where his eyes revealed the many millenniums he had seen. "You will not learn to land or take off with bruised wings, young one." His voice was deep, warm and with a slightly playful tone. A small smile tugged at the edge of the tall man's mouth. He had to raise his voice to make sure the dragon heard him. He still had a good distance to walk to reach the dragon, but he stopped when he still could take in the sight of the young dragon. Her scales were beautiful, like diamonds playing with the light. A very different display compared to his own hardened, black scales, which seemed to absorb more light than reflect it.

Was she trying to intimidate him? Sure her head was ready to strike at him, but he had more to offer her than a meal and from the look of it, she could use the guidance. He held up his hands with the palms facing her in a gesture of defeat. A small smile lingered on his lips. "I have studied your kind, I can tell you the theory of flying, taking off and landing, if you wish?" His voice had lost the playful edge, since she didn't respond very well to it, seeing as she must be feeling embarrassed to have been chaught by someone in the middel of her practice. As far as he knew there were very few young dragons around who dared to leave the safety of their parents guidance and even the nest. Sometimes he wondered how many hybrids were out there, results of the exile the dragon kind had been forced into. Mabe he even had one or two out there, but it was unlikely, most of the women he brought into his bed ended up dead in a ditch or dissapeared without a trace. He let his arms fall down at his sides again and he looked up at the dragon. Could he sell the story of him being an old mage, who still believed the dragons were the best mentors when it came to elemental magic? Of course he could. He hated the mages with a passion, but they looked human.
He dared to move closer to the young, colorful dragon. He would still need a few moments to transform if she decided he to eat him, so he stopped when he was still far enough away to manage that. She looked fast and with the ability to become a great flyer, her slender body would be able to but on gorgeous dispalys of air acrobatics, she could be a mermaid in the sky. Shimmering in the sunlight. 
He had never been fond of the smaller dragons, mostly because they were a pain to deal with. They could slip in and out of your talons as you grabbed at them if tehy were small and quick enough, frustrating creatures, but mostly they were reasonable and when it came down to it all they were good for was distracting enemies, acrobatics and as spies in the other kingdoms.  He turned his gaze to the dragons black eyes. "I'm  a mage.. Or was, to be more exact. Now I'm a healer.  I studied you when your numbers were greater. It would be an honor, if you would let me help you."  

The dragon was ready to strike, she became even more agitated as he moved closer to her. Understandable seeing how many dragons had fallen to the magic of mages, but one mage? Hardly a threat. As long as you didn't happen to have a very deep, emotional connection with the lookalike elf centuries ago. But that particular mage had no relatives anymore. Her bloodline was gone, eaten by his own, massive black jaws. His thoughts had strayed from the dragon in front of him and made his eyes empty. He blinked a few times, coming back to the now and the shimmering dragon. She was dangerous, he had to remind himself over and over. He was not clad in his black armour, he was not equipped with his scorching breath. He had no defences. There had been times the old dragon had considered why their Goddess had given them these, defenceless, complicated disguises... 

He chose not to answer her first words, he simply looked into her eyes. She had calmed down a bit, but her soul was still in turmoil, agitated and angry. Her eyes swirled with colour, what a wonder she was. Young, inexperienced and new. A small smile grew on his lips, as she seemed to respond positively to flattery. It was good to know the new generation was still as prideful as ever. Thinking they could take on the world even though she was barely the size of his own talons. To him, she was adorable. "Taking off from flat land is the hardest thing to do when your wings aren't strong enough. If you were in the mountains, you can easily jump from a ledge and the wind and instinct will do the rest. But here... You have to either be old and strong or you need to have the wind in your back and run till you have enough wind under your wings. So I would recommend starting by running and beat those magnificent, silver wings of yours. Remember to stretch them as far out as you can and don't fold them all the way in. " He explained. It might work, it might not. She might try to wat him if it didn't... But he continued. "So when you are in the air, the air currents should be enough to let you glide and travel on them, that way you can stay in the sky for longer. It might not be as fast as the other option. When landing, you should either look for a wide and long stretch of land or something you can grab on to as you descend. Since you are training here, ideally, you would glide and try to angel your wings so you gain more wind resistance and fly slower. Extend your feet out towards the ground and prepare to run, have your wings act as breaks and try to keep your balance. So when you touch the ground you do what you did to get into the air, except in reverse.  "  He gestured as he talked. Hoping it would explain it to her. She was nowhere near strong enough yet to take off from the earth with no momentum and room to do a full beat with her wings. She might still trip and fall head first into the ground, but this was how he had learned it back when he was nothing but a fledgeling. When he was even younger he was thrown out into the air from the cliff side and flew that way, crash-landed in the nest or on the rocks, but the wonderful feeling of air under your wings beat the small discomfort it was to land.  

The shimmering dragons joy made a smile break the elder's lips. His white teeth flashing in the light of the sun in an almost predatory manner. She seemed far too easy to impress and her innocence made the ancient creature before her wonder if he should reveal himself to her. Lure her into his shadow, corrupt her mind and watch her claw her way to the top of the world of dragons. And yet. Something about the dragons surprise, about making the landing made his mind second-guess itself. It was as if a small bell in the back of his mind started to go off in alarm. A dragon almost instinctively knew how to land even on flat land, at least he had. Unless he had been consumed by emotion he had no trouble getting off the ground or landing on it.
He let it slide for now.

He watched her with small embers of amazement in his eyes as she settled. She was indeed a wonder to behold, he had -over the years- understood why some of the lesser creatures had come to worship his kind as gods. He had lived to see himself on tapestries, heard stories of his destruction at the campfire, seen books about him even. It had given him an unnecessary amount of confidence for some years, but now he simply laughed at it. He had been so young and time had passed faster in those days. Now he found that time passed slower than ever. The treaty was not so far away in his mind, neither was the darkness of his prison and at times, in the dark of the night, he found himself back in the hole. In chains. Her question was a welcome distraction from his drifting thoughts. "I was a rather special case, you could say. I happened upon a dragon family during a bandit attack on a town I was in. I saved them and healed their young daughter. In turn, they let me study them. Of course, their identities were never revealed in my notes. He gestured as he talked. A soft smile on his lips. His eyes had wandered to the grass at her talons, for a moment they lingered at her feet, before he looked back up at her. The sun's rays catching in his hair, as he tilted his head back. "Where do you come from? What do you call home in these days?"

As the dragon leaned in closer and sniffed at the man he ost his smile, simply looking up at the beast with a mixture of awe and respect. His kind was really a wonder to behold. In that small second the dragon almost understood wha drove men to fear him, to worship him and sacrifice their kin and gold to him. How he missed those days... The days when he had a wide eyed, innocent girl sacrifice to him every half year along with a sizeable chest of gold. It had been glorious. He had barely paid anything for it, he had flashed his teeth and wings at daring bandits and armies, untill the city fell to the hands of time. It had been when his mind han been at peace, no wanting for the pain of others, no want for revenge, no hunger to see the world burn under him...

He let out a sight. What a waste, he had no chance of knowing if he knew her parents. If she was from a line of dragons who lived with the humans, bred with them and never pread their wings again since their transformation. Or if she was from a line of proud and strong dragons. Honorable dragons who still respected themselves and what they were. As he remembered, he aso remembered how he had always felt a bond with his fellow dragons. Even when they were in human form. The bond which formed when you saw kin in the midst of strangers and creatures who woud never understand the way someone of your own race could. 

He didn't feel it with this one.

It spread as an uncertainty. First in his lower back up his spine and to his belly. Was this beauty not his kin? Was this a filthy hafbreed or something entirely different? He had half a mind to sip into his black form right then and there to pin her down and wipe the lands with her blood to get an answer from her. Was she not his kin? 
His eyes narrowed as he shimmerin beast asked his name. He could give her a hint. See if she knew of the dragons which held the few council positions. If not.. He just might show her what a real dragon looked like... "Eamon... Some call me Vaathunaax"  He looked at her, almost as if he was expecting her to move back maybe tilt her head. Perhaps not knowing what this meant for her, it wasn't like the council members had any power of status such as the feeble kings and queens of the lesser beings.