Rage

Ashlard was terrified, he didn't expect this, he didn't even see who grabbed him. Summoning all his energy out of pure fear time began to slow again, he reached out grabbing the edge of the stone furnace, he carried his momentum around in an arc, attempting to exit the shop a second time. As he began to move towards the exit, a large hairy paw swiped at his legs causing Ashlard to leap to avoid them, however as he sailed towards the exit, he spotted at the last second, a large shape hurtling towards him from above, and with nowhere to go, Ashlard was hit by a huge force from above, driving him into the ground. In an instant, Ashlard twisted, kicking off the attacker, he extended his scales and swiped at the being, tearing a hole in the air itself with a solid crack, only to have his arm grabbed from behind by a second attacker.

Ashlard turning in order to gauge this new threat, found his other arm grabbed by a third. Now the original attacker leapt onto him, knocking flat on his back, where the three beings wrestled him into submission. Ashlard, terrified beyond belief opened his mouth preparing to hose his attackers in flames hot enough to melt steel, only for soft hands to cover his mouth and soft humming to sound in his ear.

"Settle down Ashlard, you don't want to hurt the baby now."

FLASH

A young woman, humming while her hand rested on another woman's swollen belly.

FLASH

Her smiling face while she held Ashlard's hand.

FLASH

His bandaged hand...

FLASH

Ashlard was back, the humming hadn't stopped but he wasn't restrained any more, someone warm was laying beside him, cradling him and stroking his hair, opening his eyes, Ashlard could see the golden silhouette of a woman in the setting sunlight as it passed through gaps in the wall. As his eyes adjusted, he picked up brown fur. With a start he jumped, rolling quickly away while the woman slowly sat up.

"Calm down Ashlard," a familiar voice said, "we don't want to hurt you."

Two more figures came into view, one of them helping the woman to her feet, but keeping their distance from him.

"Well..." said a speckled grey figure standing off to one side, "now I suppose we all have a little explaining to do."

With dim pangs of recollection, Quip explained in detail they were a form of demi-human. Their ancestors were created by mages by imbuing the souls of felines into human children, but after war the ended, their kind was hunted almost to extinction, survivors mostly kept to themselves in isolation, only a few remained in populated areas, and they did so in great peril. Demi-humans in all forms are put to the sword or worse. Ashlard wondered about his broken memories of the Golden forest.

"So lad, what form do you take?" Hyit asked, "we didn't really have enough time to get a good look at you."

"I... I don't really know, I don't have a lot of control. I know I have scales and claws, and everything slows down, but..." Ashlard paused, he was unsure how much information he should share, "I haven't taken... Form... Without anger," he said slowly.

Abe stood, she calmly took Ashlard by the hand and led him to the back of the shop.

"Sit."

Ashlard sat on the floor and Abe sat across from him.

"If you are unable to take control of your form, you are little more than a beast, if you cannot face what you are, how can you face another?"

Ashlard sat silently as a ripple passed over Abe, she grew a thin layer of brown fur across her visible body, her jaw became slightly elongated. Abe blinked twice and looking up her pupils were slits, Ashlard could see the reflection of the fire from the forge in her eyes.

Abe, reaching out and stroking Ashlard's' face, "I'm demi-human, I'm me, and there is nothing I can do but embrace that fact, people fear what they do not understand. But I understand myself regardless," with a warm fanged smile, "your turn."

Ashlard took a deep breath, he looked around seeing all three staring intently at him. He felt uncomfortable, he didn't like being the centre of attention. Worse still was his nagging doubt about being able to make the transformation without losing control.

"Ashlard..." Abe whispered.

With a shimmer running the length of Ashlard's spine, he extended his scales. So far so good, thought Ashlard, concentrating on his extremities his hands and feet twisted and deformed into tri-bladed claws and talons, opening his eyes, Ashlard watched his jaw grow out into a fanged snout, licking around his maw, noticing his now forked tongue. Ashlard slowly rose on two legs and surveyed the others, Abe's expression was blank, Hyit was frowning but Quip, he was staring into the distance as if remembering something important. As Ashlard looked around the room, he found his eyes drawn to the forge.

FLASH

A town, there was laughter, he hated laughter, a man and a woman dancing on a stage.

FLASH

Humming... beautiful humming, Ashlard realised he had a lapse in control, his new shirt torn to shreds while his wings completely unfurled stretched a full five metres in either direction, his left wing pushed awkwardly up against the wall causing it to fold over itself. Quip was holding a hammer while Hyit was trying to pull Abe away, Abe was holding on with all her might to Ashlard's chest, humming such sweet tones. Ashlard gasped suddenly, making Abe jump, her grip loosened and Hyit took this as his opportunity to pull her away.

It took a moment for Ashlard to realise he was now the tallest in the room, standing a full meter taller than Quip. He slowly folded his wings inwards against his body, finding a comfortable position allowing them to rest pinned against his sides. Ashlard turned and took a step towards a trough of water, immediately collapsing on all fours, he realised his body was better positioned this way. In just a couple strides he was able to stare at his own reflection. Ashlard could see his scaled snout, the pointed horns protruding from his head, his k9's so large they now sat outside of his mouth on either side of his lower jaw, but most strikingly, he could see his eyes, burning with the intensity of hot coals. They painted his facial features in a way that made him look monstrous.

Ashlard felt hands run across his back, turning his head he saw the speckled grey coat of Quip as he placed a hand on Ashlard's shoulder.

"Come now lad, time to go back," he said gently.

Ashlard grimaced as he felt his bones bending and compressing his organs before they too returned to normal proportions, his great wings dissolving into flesh and his eyes returning to a familiar shade of brown.

"I'm sorry..." Ashlard began.

"No no... We pushed you, and you came back, no harm done," Quip replied. "Though I must say... I never in my wildest dreams would have believed your kind had survived."

"My kind?"

"You don't even know what you are... do you?" chimed in Hyit, "our ancestors were created for purposes of war, but yours... Yours started the war."

"What do you mean?" asked Ashlard, as Abe pushed a goblet of water into his hands.

"According to legend, Mages while attempting to communicate with dragons, accidentally created the first of your kind. These creatures were driven mad by the power of the beast, turned to demons and unable to control themselves they began to wreak havoc everywhere they went. Killing and burning everything in their path, both human, and dragon," said Hyit, before taking a long sip from Abe's offered goblet. "That's when our kind, and many others were created, to fight yours, the war destroyed millions of lives before finally, Draken the Wise, the most powerful mage of his time, tore his soul in half in order to forcibly inject humanity back into the demons, ending the war."

"What happened next?" asked Ashlard.

"Well..." said Abe, sitting beside him, with human features again, "Demi-humans everywhere were blamed as beasts of war, those of us who remained to fight for their rightful places in history were put to the sword. Those of us that ran were hunted like dogs, and your kind... Your kind were betrayed, Draken the Wise had wished for your kind to be forgiven like one would forgive an unruly child thrashing about in a world it could not comprehend. Instead, both humans and demi-humans alike betrayed and attacked your kind on sight, carving off your wings to make it easier for human hunters to find you. Many of the reptilian demi-humans were subjected to the similar treatment."

Ashlard was speechless, looking at his hands he felt as if he were tainted somehow. Should he be worried about being turned in to the hunters? Warm hands wrapped around him again, and the sound of humming filled him.

"It was a long time ago, well before our time..." said Quip, "my grandfather heard that story from his grandfather when he was a boy."

Ashlard was lead from the forge to a nearby home, it was relatively small in comparison to the workshop, but contained several rooms. Ashlard was lead upstairs to the attic, where Hyit brought up a straw mattress and Abe lifted a hatch that opened into a window overlooking the roof, she explained it was an easy way to get on the roof for repairs, but worked fine as a window when the weather was warm. And with a quick hug, Ashlard was left alone in this small dark space. He wasn't sure about what he was going to do or if these people could be trusted, but the mattress looked comfortable and he was so tired. As he crawled onto the mattress he quickly found there was a blanket thrown over the top so he wouldn't go cold, and after a quick stretch, Ashlard fell into an uneasy sleep.

.....................................................

"Okay, I think he's asleep," Said Abe, "what are we going to do?"

"I haven't got a clue," said Quip.

"He's dangerous," replied Hyit with a scowl.

"He's a little more than a boy," crooned Abe, "He's young, untrained, he needs to learn control before he hurts someone."

"That's not the only thing," said Quip, holding his head in his hands, "we avoid meat because of the emotional connection to the animal. If the stories are correct, he avoids meat because he experiences the memories of the creature he consumes."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Abe said.

"That's not all," whispered Hyit.

"His kind aren't stable like ours, old magic still binds them," said Quip, "The old mage died proving his spell worked, it came at a terrible cost."

Abe casting a worried glance at the ceiling, "what sort of cost?"

"The spell that regained their humanity came twofold, the first prevented the young from expressing their power. The second was that once their power was realised, they would have to fuel the spell by the consumption of souls," said Quip. "The old mage died when his test subject, charged with the spell, was compelled to drink him dry before it's humanity was restored. Ashlard's powers were probably awakened recently, which explains his lack of control. But he will need to feed eventually, and when he does, he will experience the memories of his prey."

"We need to turn him in," Said Hyit, "He's a monster, we can't..."

"NO!" cried Abe, scowling at her husband.

"SHHHH," said Quip, "don't wake him."

The three stared silently at the ceiling for several moments, satisfied that Ashlard had not stirred, they resumed.

"He's a boy, I'll have no talk of harming him," snarled Abe.

"My love, please..." said Hyit.

"No, I'd no sooner harm him than my own child, I have no idea how he ended up in your shop, but if we turn him in, we're no better than the humans that betrayed our family," said Abe with tears rolling down her rosy cheeks.

With a sigh, Quip rose to his feet, grumbling something about not being able to argue that point and took himself to his room. Hyit just sat staring at the floor until Abe moved towards him, taking his head in her hands, he lifted his gaze, kissing her stomach gently. Abe turned and blew out a nearby candle, plunging the room into darkness.

.....................................................

Ashlard was expecting Quip to ask him to leave in the morning, he was surprised to wake to a fresh set of clothes and a hot meal served by a smiling Abe. Warm toast with jam and a small helping of the vegetable stew he enjoyed the previous day. Quip was apparently a late riser in his advanced years, and Hyit was already at the shop setting up for the days work. After Quip had eaten some breakfast, he lead Ashlard back to the workshop.

After several hours, Ashlard came to the realisation that although this shop was basic, it was highly sought after, for both the skill of the work performed and the fairness of the prices charged. Noblemen with requests for repairs to fine jewellery and weapons were as common in the shop as poor farmers with broken tools. Work was seldom refused, and even then it was only in serious cases where damage could not be repaired, such as a crestfallen young nobleman who had hoped to have his fathers helmet repaired after it had been struck by a ballista, almost crushing it flat.

This gave Ashlard an idea which he began when they broke for lunch. Looking at the randomly sized pieces of hardwood used in the forge, Ashlard selected a large block of aspen. Taking his knife he went to work. The afternoon slowed down for the shop, Hyit was away fitting horseshoes for the local garrison and Quip after a quick tidy of the shop, was more preoccupied by watching Ashlard work the wood.

"So what brought this on then?" he asked.

"That man earlier, with the helmet."

"Yes?" replied Quip.

"What was his fathers name?"

"Blacke of Thrarv," Quip said.

With a pang of recollection Ashlard wondered if fate had a cruel sense of humour, or if it were merely reminding him of an event he was trying to forget.

"Ashlard?" said Quip.

"Sorry, just remembering something," he replied, before adding the name as the final touches to his creation.

"I hope he likes it," Ashlard said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

The young nobleman from earlier in the day upon seeing Ashlard's creation was moved to tears. Ashlard had carved an ornate wooden stand in the shape of a lions head with enough room for the helmet to gently rest within the gaping maw of the lion. Propped up on the tongue made of red felt, stuffed with straw, and held in place by the teeth in the lower jaw. The name of the dead soldier was carved into a collar around the lions neck below the mane. He may not have been able to repair the helmet, but now it had a permanent place to rest.

Quip was more than impressed, and was more impressed when Ashlard refused compensation in lieu of asking for a block of wood to replace the one he had carved. Quip was delighted when the nobleman sent them back to the shop on the back of his servants wagon loaded to to top with hardwood, now he wouldn't have to purchase any for weeks.

The next day at the shop, a customer walked in, a middle aged woman carrying a small bag. She appeared nervous at first in the loud workshop, but Quip taking notice of her quickly set his work aside to ask what she needed.

"What brings you here love?" he said cheerfully.

"I've heard about the skills of someone who works here, a boy, apparently carves with wood?" she replied.

"That would be me ma'am," said Ashlard stepping forward from behind the bellows.

"Ah..." the woman said, eyeing him as if wondering if it were a trick, "My husband needs a new cane, I was hoping you could carve one for him, and incorporate this." Reaching into the bag she drew out a bright green gemstone the size of a walnut, "He was captain of the guard before he hurt his knee."

Ashlard took the gem, admiring it's glistening surface and looking back at the pile of wood, there was indeed a slender length perched at the top of the pile.

"When do you need it by?" he asked the woman.

"As soon as you can."

For the rest of the day, Ashlard switched repeatedly from pumping the great bellows, to carving away at the cane. Ashlard had settled for a design that would make it seem like a serpent wound it's way up a branch, and he would settle the gemstone in it's mouth for display. By the end of the day, his carving was complete and he was holding a true masterpiece, Ashlard had gone as far as carving details into the scales of the snake itself in order to make it more lifelike. He brought it home with him to complete overnight. Taking a burning candle he blackened the parts of the cane that made the serpent, giving it a shiny appearance, but Ashlard couldn't find a way to make the gemstone sit in the serpents mouth without falling out. And as he was fuming away trying to look at it from every angle, Hyit tapped him on the shoulder. Ashlard turned and Hyit held out his hand, dropping something shiny onto Ashlard's lap, before turning and taking himself to bed. Ashlard picking up the object let out a small "ha!" before fitting a perfectly lifelike reptilian tongue into the mouth, where it held the gemstone perfectly.

The next day, Quip sent for the woman to collect the staff, but as she arrived it was with her great annoyance.

"I knew it would have been too much of an ask," She said with a humph, "if you told me you couldn't manage it yesterday, I'd never have left you the gemstone, please tell me you didn't damage it?"

Ashlard was rather taken aback by her attitude, realising as she held out her hand, she did not realise he had completed the work and was assuming he had given up already. He opted to smile anyway, and placed the head of the serpent in her hand. With a gasp of shock, the woman recoiled, dropping the cane on the spot, Ashlard narrowly caught it, he did not want his work damaged.

"Wait, you did it?" the woman said with a sheepish grin, "it's so lifelike I thought it was real."

"I take pride in my work," Ashlard replied, "I hope your husband enjoys it."

Soon another load of hardwood was delivered, and Quip joked about needing to hire someone to pump the bellows if this keeps up, Ashlard was just happy to be useful, and the more people heard about him, the more the shop would receive work as well.

That evening, the four of them making their way home, laughing and chatting, were stopped by a large man in the street.

"So... this is where ye ended up then?" said a cold voice, "Where's our money Hyit?"

"Who are you?" said Quip.

"None er ya business old man, unless your boy here can't pay his dues," the man replied.

"Please don't hurt them..." Hyit said, stepping forward, "they have nothing to do with this."

"Oh... don't say that," the man said, "They's who's paying yer bill after we cut out yer eyes and feed you to starving dogs, but first... Introductions!"

A dozen or so more men stepped into view, forming a rough circle around the group. Ashlard's mind was racing, what should he do? A soft hand took his, looking up Abe was staring at him, and with the slightest movement, she shook her head, as if she knew what he was thinking. The group were led to the outskirts of town, where there was a large abandoned warehouse. They were led inside to a mostly empty building, there was a pile of crates at the far end, a few more empty ones by the entrance and what was the remains of one, smashed and used as firewood in the centre of the room. This is where they were led, before they were all pounced on and had their hands bound with chains. They were each taken and attached to great stone blocks in the floor roughly in the shape of a semi-circle around the fire.

Hyit, chained furthest from the doors screamed, "PLEASE! Don't do this, it's me you want, let them go!"

With soft chuckling, "let you go? Why, ye know what we gotta do now? Gotta send a message."

The large man grabbing Hyit by the front of the shirt and punching him with a sickening crunch in the face. Hyit crumpled back to the ground, bleeding from a large wound above his eye, but still conscious, begging, quietly, to let his family go between sobs... Ashlard was shaking now, the clatter of his chains drawing the attention of Abe, she looked scared, but smiled at Ashlard through her own terror, "Everything's going to be okay."