The dawn was ruthless.  What was once a fine shade was no more, assaulting her thin lids with an unwanted brightness.  She parted them cautiously, enough to make out the vast nothingness before her.  An immediate sense of recognition grasped her- this was not home.  This was unlike the mountainous terrain of Mallik, nor was it the volcanic region of Prishtina.  There was nothing here but dirt and rocks, spread far and wide.  Fear was a rare feeling for her, and Kwatoko was uncertain how to respond.  She knew not but to be brave.  First, however, it was a matter of finding her centre of balance.  As she lifted herself, she was instantly reminded of her situation.  A pain behind her shoulder flared up in response to the movement.  She would have to got on her feet.  This body was unusual to her- her arms felt weak, her line of vision was altered, her legs long and shaky.  Despite this, she knew what she had become.<br/><br/>She'd become like the Oolarg, the pale-fleshed creatures sharing the land with her kin.  The reason for this change was still unknown, but as it happened, she was concerned of something entirely different than her shape.  Just the thought of it brought mixed emotions.  Overall, her reaction to the whole ordeal could be described as anger.  She was not home.  She was lost.  Bodzil was nowhere to be found.  She was not, well-<span style="font-style: italic">herself</span>.  After all, only an evening had passed since.  When she had retired to camp in the ruins, she expected to sleep.  Peacefully.<br/><br/>Of course, this couldn't be so- that would be normal.<br/><br/>Feeling the dreams through her bond was a common experience.  Often, she could guess what Bodzil was dreaming of, although only the feelings attached to them.  This night was unlike such common occurrences.  She felt pain.  A twist in her gut, and what felt like a blade driving itself deep into her chest was what stirred her from an otherwise peaceful slumber.  When her eyes opened, however, she was<span style="font-style: italic">not</span>in the same place.<br/><br/>There were figures surrounding her, and with a half-awakened conscious, Kwatoko saw only strangers.  There were many of them surrounding her of different shapes and sizes.  All eyes were upon her, but her mind was elsewhere.  The link was gone, she could not feel her partner's presence.<span style="font-style: italic"><span style="color: #FFFF80">Bodzil?</span></span>She called, but there was no answer.  Only a collective assortment of whispers below her responded.  Kwatoko finally leered down at them.<span style="font-style: italic"><span style="color: #FFFF80">What have you done?</span></span>She did not know what manner of creature these things were... they were all different.  Big ones, small ones, feathery things, and slimy things.  The heat was building in her lungs, the rage growing in her heart.<span style="font-style: italic"><span style="color: #FFFF80">Gone!  Where is he?!  What have you cretins done to him?!</span></span>A roar emerged from her throat, and the small beings on the ground mobilised in alarm.  There were odd shapes in the stone structure around her, things drawn into the arrangement.  She spotted a small group advancing toward it.  These things were not her allies.  It was their fault she was here... their fault he'd disappeared.<br/><br/>She lunged toward this group, sweeping them into the stone with her claws as her tail lashed at the ones behind her.  Some of the creatures were terrified and fled, while others decided to fight.  A weapon of some sort was thrown at her, lodging itself somewhere behind her right wing.  They intended to murder her, like they did Bodzil.  The fury boiling inside finally spilled over.<br/><br/>She heard the screams first.  They surrounded her, quickly transforming into cries of agony.  Her inferno twisted like a portal into Hell, engulfing Kwatoko in her own deadly grip.  She felt her hide burning away, her own flesh reduced to ash.  Momentarily she wondered if this was madness taking hold of her- dragons were known to enter a state of wrenching insanity should they lose their bonded partner.  She was slowly dwindled by the fire, and as the storm passed, her destruction was finally extinguished.  Thunder rolled above her, almost as if tapping her on the shoulder to remind her of where she was.  Death and destruction was all around.  Kwatoko stood in its midst, looking upon it all.  She noted the burnt corpses encircling her, and a new feeling emerged.  Could it be guilt?  As confident and prided she was in her power, she found herself in disbelief that this destruction was caused by her rage alone.  She didn't recognise that inferno, she'd never done such a thing before. The fire seemed to be so powerful, in fact, it had burned away most of her body, leaving a small and frail girl in its place.<br/><br/>The storm was hard at work disentangelling the carnage.  By the time she learned how to stand, the fires were completely gone.  In its place was now a horrid smell, not unlike a long abandoned battlefield.  She began to walk, uncertain of where she would go other than away from this place.  She stepped over the corpses, forever frozen in their anguished state of dying.  She could only carry on.  The walking turned to running, and soon Kwatoko could no longer see the wretched place.  Surrounded by barren terrain, her concerns turned now to finding shelter from the storm.  There were not many options she could find readily available.  She managed only to find large pileup of rock, with enough space perhaps to tuck into.  The stones offered nothing by way of warmth nor comfort.<br/><br/>The dawn brought new problems.  Kwatoko was torn between finding her way home or staying here to wither and die.  Neither option seemed well to her, but she eventually decided to mobilise back the way she came.  She still couldn't find an explanation as to why she was now like the Oolarg, but that seemed a trivial matter now.  All day she travelled back to this place, until dusk began to settle.  She felt a familiar sixth sense come upon her as she approached the site.  There was no mistaking this- her link seemed to have returned, although it was faint.  Newfound purpose gripped her, and with one rooted goal she now advanced upon the structure she had annihilated the previous night.  She saw figures moving in the distance, holding weapons she had never seen before.  She decided being detected was not in her best interest, especially considering she wouldn't know how to defend herself like this.  She tried to think about what Bodzil or the other riders would do.  She picked up a large rock.  That would have to suffice.<br/><br/>She tucked behind one of the stones, hearing voices nearby.<br/><br/>"What the hell did this Corporal?"  said one, and suddenly Kwatoko knew they wouldn't take to her kindly.  She attempted to rationalise- they may not suspect her.  After all, she was an Oolarg now, and as far as she was aware, Oolarg weren't fire meisters as were dragons.  The voices spread out and moved away.  She peered out from around the rock and saw them.  They looked much like the humans of Evolin, but the terrain here suggested she was still far, far from home.  She then noticed some figures near the top of the structure, where she had first arrived.  Where had they all come from?  She didn't trust a single one of them.  She had to find Bodzil.  She knew he was here, somehow.  It wouldn't be easy explaining to him what had happened, since she knew not herself.  She gripped the rock tightly in her hand.  She feared she may need it.