[Azura Rayume]

Things moved in these woods, things most mortal eyes rarely saw. Lost spirits, confusing fae, travelers who wandered a little too far and forgot how to leave... Most of the souls who wandered here did so unwillingly. Phrixus was, in that sense, no different.

He dug his claws into the loam and dipped his head down for a better look. Little threads of gold had turned up once or twice from what he remembered, but he had no idea where they had come from. Likely a trick from some little pixie, trying to lead someone back to some seelie party.

He shook his head and breathed. There were other new things as well. New opportunities, perhaps. He should find them.

[Celtic]

Rez's eyes were bleary as he blinked them open.

He stared straight ahead, which happened to be at the canopy looming above him, made slightly hazy by the mists. How long would he be stuck here? That awful woman really was a piece of work. Sticking him on some new world in this horrible forest he couldn't seem to leave. He'd lost the want to continue walking a while back and scratched his half-inch, scraggly calico beard. It wasn't customary for his position to have a beard, let alone that his tended to make him look utterly ridiculous. Truly, who had a beard that was patched with auburn, brown and white? It was some sick joke.

Rez sat up. Doing nothing was not something he excelled at it turns out, and every day he foiled his own plans to do nothing. Next he stood-- swaying back and forth as his vision blacked out from lack of food and water. Slowly, it cleared and he found his footing. He smoothed out his drab olive green clothing and rustled his cloak free from the needles and leaves it had collected while he slept on the forest floor.

"H-hello," he tested his voice and it rasped. Water. He needed to find water today. With his goal decided, he started to walk.

[Azura Rayume]

Phrixus' ears swiveled toward a noise, and he perked his head up quickly. Footsteps, a soft, harsh voice... it did not sound close, but carried on the mist from the source. Still, he could tell the direction. He shifted his focus toward it, his stalking footsteps soft and steady as he picked his way through the undergrowth.

For a creature his size, he moved quickly through the trees, and he kept an ear to the mists to follow this target. Someone lost, a human by the sound of it, seeking something. He could help, if this person was obliging. Opportunities indeed.

[Celtic]

It'd taken him several days of this routine to get used to his senses dulling. Apparently that was a side effect of hunger and thirst. He wandered aimlessly, trying desperately to listen for some trickle of water, some hint of life. Rez stumbled into a tree, nearly catching a branch to the face as his feet clumsily knocked over one another. He caught himself, but just barely.

He grinned, then full out laughed. How much she'd reduced him. He was glorious, dripping with power back at home. He was respected with a sword! Quick and light on his feet! A shudder moved through his body as he thought about using haste again. Once his best move, it'd probably rip through him in a state like this. A brief flash of his body shredding itself to pieces appeared in his mind and his laughter hardened. He rested his forehead against the tree trunk and lightly struck a fist against it.

He was doomed.

[Azura Rayume]

Phrixus paused at the top of a hill, tipping his head left, then right. Hm... Whoever this was was certainly not doing well. A smaller being would perhaps feel sorry for them, but he had an actual agenda here. Still, they would need help- actual help- before they could be of any use.

Below, not far away, he heard a laugh. A slightly unhinged laugh, but it sounded much closer than the other noises, and it was the same voice. He slunk down the rise, tongue flicking to find the scent trail. The human could not be very far off.

[Celtic]

The hair on the back of Rez's neck stood on edge, maybe sensing that he wasn't so alone in this forest after all, but he was too pre-occupied with visions of doom to pay attention. His voice broke at the end of the laughter and sent him into a coughing fit. Water was really becoming quite the pressing need.

Once he controlled the fit of coughs, he licked his dry, chapped lips and removed himself from his prop, looking around wildly. What direction? He tried desperately to listen for any indication of water, but came up short. Honestly in this state he was surprised he wasn't hallucinating a creek with how badly he wanted and needed water.

[Azura Rayume]

Ah, there it was, pitiful as it was to look at. Phrixus snaked his way between the trees toward the clearly incapacitated human. Laughing, coughing, stumbling... His experience with humans was limited, but this one was not in good shape. A shame, really, as he could not be useful like this.

"Poor little thing," he rumbled. The dragon bent his head low and bumped his snout against the human. What did these require? Food, shelter, water... He knew where to find water, easily. Phrixus pushed the mage right and forward; there was a stream not too far ahead that way, and if he could get this human out of its delirium, it might actually be helpful. Magic hummed around it, however faintly.

[Celtic]

Was-was he imagining things? He closed his eyes, and tried to make his senses clear so he could get a handle on what was happening. Yes- surely he was imagining things. His brain wasn't making sense, he felt the magic, he felt the push. Was this the forest? Was she feeling sorry for him? He wouldn't be surprised if she was keeping tabs on him-- they were always cruel to one another, but they'd never wish death. Well, he didn't think so at least. She had a heart there somewhere.

Rez obliged to the nudging and walked forward and right. It wasn't long until he saw the little stream. It wasn't much-- but it was his salvation at this moment. If he had any moisture, surely tears would have fallen from his face. I'm not going to die.

The man fell to the creek's edge and drank. He tried to go slowly-- sip it into his body so it wouldn't send him into shock. The water cooled his throat as it went down. Such a wondrous feeling. Just being near the water made him feel rejuvenated. After drinking, he laid down next to the stream, eyes closed-- having forgotten about the dragon that helped him here.

[Azura Rayume]

Well, he hadn't expected that.

Having steered the human through the forest enough to find the stream, Phrixus considered his deed done for the moment. He coiled himself around a pile of stones nearby to observe. It had been quite some time since he saw a normal, non-fae-enthralled human in these woods, but they typically served to be some kind of entertainment. This one however...

He muttered a curse in a foreign tongue and raised his head when the human fell over. Or laid down. He could not say. "You had best not be dying," he growled, blue eyes fixed on the figure. "Corpses are good for little more than fertilizer here."

[Celtic]

Surely, surely that was his hallucinations still. He didn't open his eyes yet and desperately hoped that the rumbling voice was not real. His heart rate elevated and he could feel blood begin to pulse faster through his veins. I'm alone, I'm just imagining things. But wait.... Why would he want to be alone still? Company was about the best thing he could hope for. Maybe this person could show him towards civilization! Maybe he could leave and then get back to his home!

But, Rez wasn't one for jumping into things too hastily. So he breathed in through his nose, out through his mouth and attempted to calm his nervous response. His eyes opened and he peered towards the voice.

And immediately hoped he was alone again. A dragon. A freaking mother loving dragon. Maybe they're different here. A small voice of hope called, but it was quickly squashed. Magical creatures seldom changed that drastically between places. Still, he knew better than to be rude or hostile, especially when he wasn't in any shape for a fight.

"Ah," he coughed and sat up, "No, not dying." He bared his teeth in what was a very weak-hearted smile. "I assume you're the one that helped me here? Uh-thanks for that. I'm in pretty rough shape." Rez rasped and prayed for the best. What fucking luck.

[Azura Rayume]

Ah, there it went, moving and talking and everything. Phrixus set his head down, crossing his paws under his chin, and watched the human closely. It seemed to be on edge. Good.

"Rough shape," he repeated, testing the words on his tongue. Curious things, humans, always getting into trouble in the strangest of ways. They had fun little ways of saying it, too. "And how, pray tell, does one end up in such rough shape this deep into the wood? Followed a little spark of faerie fire, perhaps? Or are you looking for something?" His gaze was focused, unblinking, as he awaited his answer. He would help, if he could, if only to obtain a favor in exchange.

[Celtic]

Rez coughed to stifle a laugh. Laughing at dragons was likely not a good idea. How to explain how he ended up here? At least this creature was magical, he'd get the magical portion of it.

"Ah, well... See... There's this, ah, witch who, ah, doesn't like me very much." He paused and sighed as he often did when thinking about her, "She transported me here as a way to try and get rid of me. I was caught unaware at the time or she wouldn't have succeeded in getting me so far away. Anyways, I can't seem to find my way out. Or find food for that matter. You're the only reason I got water." He buried his head in his hands. He had been reduced so far, so quickly. The despair was bubbling up inside him now that death had been staved off at least for a little.

[Azura Rayume]

Phrixus made a noise that sounded like an understanding hum. Troublesome adversaries, banishment, curses... He was familiar with all these things. More than he liked to say.

"These woods are built unfriendly to your kind," he explained, his tail flicking as they watch him curiously. "The paths wind in ways you cannot follow. Beings mean to pull you in and trap you." He flexed his claws, dragging long talons over the stone. This could be his chance, provided this human does not refuse him. "I cannot show you the way out, but I will help you how I can. In return, however, you must help me."

[Celtic]

"You could say that again" He muttered in reply to the dragon's statement that these woods were unfriendly. He was a bit skeptical of his offer of help. How would this creature be able to teach him to leave? And what was this mysterious favor he'd have to do in return?

Rez, however, could recognize that he was not in much of a position to argue, negotiate, compromise... Really anything. This was likely his only and last hope. He sucked in a deep breath of air, took the opportunity to drink again from the stream and said "Okay. I help you, you help me."

[Azura Rayume]

Phrixus' maw split into a facsimile of a smile, all sharp teeth and dark eyes. "Very good!" he rumbled, shifting his entire frame to stand. Within two steps, he towered over Rez, then dipped his head down to meet his eye. "I will show you how to walk these paths and keep the troublesome pixies off your back. In return, you will allow me to leave these woods at last. But first-" He bumped the human with his snout and started to walk, his eyes scanning the brush ahead. "-you said you needed food, yes? What do you humans eat?"

[Wild Pet Found]