Under The Full Moon

Broken Control

Gale was silent for a time, the dragon walking a distance from the rest of the group. Her eyes were focused ahead and rather intense, unsettling Wysteria when she looked over at her. It was almost as though Gale was trying to get away from something, rather than going to something. Her posture had shifted slightly, her head lowered and her claws digging into the ground a little harder as she walked. It was almost as though it took all of the dragon's willpower to keep her from running ahead of the group and leaving them behind. 

When they stopped to rest and for the soldiers and villagers to have lunch, Wysteria had to resist the urge to go to Gale. Broin had managed to keep his distance, though it was obvious that he didn't want to. When Gale stopped with them, she didn't stop moving, like she wanted to keep going. The dragon paced a little, her eyes on the ground before she finally took to the sky, flying ahead of them a distance. "I wonder what has her so bothered," Dillan spoke, having moved to stand beside Wysteria. 

The young woman shook her head. "I'm not sure... but I don't think we are helping any by worrying..." The words sounded off, even to Wysteria herself. It was in their nature, especially as her friend, to worry about the dragon. This confused Dillan a little and Wysteria didn't blame him. "I know..." She mumbled in response to the expression on his face. 

"It just seems so backwards to me," Dillan said, looking off toward the direction Gale had gone into. "You would think that worrying about her would make her feel a little comfort knowing that we care about her," Wysteria gave a half nod. 

"Normally, I would agree with you, but I think it might have something to do with whatever it is she is going through. Maybe our worry makes it worse? When I looked at her earlier, she looked like she was trying to get away from someone or something. I don't like it... not knowing what's going on in her head. I don't want to put her or anyone here at risk by pressuring her for what is eating at her... but there might come a time if she doesn't come to me to ask for help that I might have no choice," Wysteria looked at her feet, sighing. Dillan looked at her, watching her for a moment before he turned to face her, gently taking her face in his hands. Turning her head so she looked at him, Dillan searched Wysteria's eyes. 

"You are doing all you can. Like you said, maybe right now the best thing for her is to be alone. Maybe she just has to process a few things," Dillan spoke softly to Wysteria. The young woman closed her eyes, bringing her hands up to rest them over Dillan's. She agreed with him, though in some parts it still didn't feel quite right. She didn't like that Gale was suffering on her own. As Dillan began to speak again, something made him stop. Looking up toward the sky, he watched as Gale returned, her wingbeats heavy as she hovered for a moment as though deciding if she wanted to land or not before she finally did so. Gently, Wysteria sighed, having been watching Gale herself. The dragon seemed to notice that the two were watching her, her ears back against her head as she started toward them. 

"Wysteria... can I talk to you alone?" Gale spoke, her voice sounding stressed. Her muzzle was wrinkled, not just from speaking, but from whatever it was that was causing her the irritation that she could not shake. Wysteria looked from Gale to Dillan, the two returning her gaze. After a moment, Dillan moved away from Wysteria and off far enough to give them some space, putting his thought to working on getting himself and Wysteria something to eat. Wysteria turned back to the dragon, watching her gently. Gale's expression hadn't changed, she still looked quite annoyed and eager to find out what was going on. 

"What's wrong? I haven't been asking out of respect for you, but it's getting hard not to..." Wysteria started, though the look that Gale gave her stopped her. It wasn't the same look that she had had on her face before, it was more... helpless. 

"I've been hearing things... like someone is calling to me..." Gale started, moving a little to back up a little further away from the rest of the company so they didn't hear what she and Wysteria were talking about. This made Wysteria's worry settle in a little deeper. 

"What do you mean, what kind of calling?" Wysteria asked, watching Gale as the dragon pinned her ears back against her head again. The dragon backed up a little, her eyes flicking from Wysteria to the group of people that were standing not too far off. "Gale?" The dragon's eyes returned to the young woman, locking onto her. 

"Chanting... like they did when they made me what I am... but..." Gale stopped, a low growl escaping her lips as she lowered her head. "It's driving me nuts... I can't block it out and no matter how far from the mountains we get it doesn't get any quieter," Gale hissed through her nose, squeezing her eyes closed. 

"Gale..." Wysteria spoke softly, going over to the dragon and gingerly trying to set her hands on her friend's cheeks. However, as soon as her hands came into contact with Gale's cheeks, there was a hot wave of emotion that radiated from the dragon and into herself, making her feel ill. She could hear the chanting herself, the sound pulsing in her head. Pulling her hands back, Wysteria looked up to Gale with wide eyes. What she had seen in the short connection had brought her worry to a boiling point, making her a bit more fearful for Gale. "You need to keep moving... this is not good. This is whatever made the Crone," Wysteria moved and placed her hands against Gale's side near her heart. It was beating rapidly like Gale was trying to fight against something pulling at her. 

"I can't... I can't leave you and the others..." Gale said, her voice barely a whisper, the wrinkle of her muzzle forming again. 

"You don't have a choice at this point. There is nothing we can do against these forces right now. Please, Gale, listen to me," Gale pinned her ears further, standing upright. Looking over toward the others, she took a step back from Wysteria. "Go, I'll explain everything to Broin," She pushed against Gale's chest, looking back toward the others behind her, then back to Gale. She gave her one more shove before the dragon finally opened her wings, beating them once or twice before she jumped up and into the air. She watched Gale as she flew away from them, her focus going back to her friends. She could see that Broin had looked to see what was going on, his gaze moving from where Gale had gone to Wysteria. She would have a lot of explaining to do, but to her, it was worth the trouble.