He Awakes

Neeyeeva had been resting, for a moment. She had closed her eyes for some light rest, yet she could not keep her eyes closed. She opened them once more to look and watch the sleeping druids. Suddenly Neyeeva heard Elizabel's gasps. She looked up to the warrior, noticing her fantic state instantly. Neyeeva's eyes glossed over in concern for her. She asked the warrior only if everything was alright with her, not wanting to pry, yet concerned still.

Warriors of their race were prideful. Neyeeva herself had been raised by two of the more prideful of their kind. Showing weakness of any sort was not a wanted aspect, no matter the circumstances. Neyeeva strongly suspected it was the same with the demon hunter. She had no intentions of getting on the woman's bad side.

Elizaebel sighed after a moment, placing her a hand on the hilt of her sword. Neyeeva looked over Elizabel in concern once more before returning her attention to the sleeping druids. The little machine Peenuts remained to skitter around the bodies, its mechanics making soft beeping noises as it scanned the bodies. Neyeeva eyed the machine warily, and curiously, watching its every move.

"Why did she leave that thing here again?" Eli groaned.

"I do not know, but it is making me uneasy." The young druid confessed truthfully. She gritted her teeth at the little thing, biting the inside of her cheek as she moved her eyes back to the sleeping. It was a machine, pure and simple. A hand made tool, that moved of its own accord, did things of its own accord. It was not a natural thing, only a crafted thing with who knew what type of potiential. In her opinion, it did not belong here, in the Dens with the druids. It simply did not belong.

Peenuts raised its head with the audible sound of clicking and whirling of tiny gears, its voice mechanically echoing, "Purpose, to supply data on the rest and effects of the nightmare upon Elven bodies. All information reported to the master and all anomolies will be erectified." It continues to circle Ailac.

"It speaks.... noisey... and annoying." Eli scoffed in agitation. She shook her head at the thing.

Neyeeva made a face of distaste for the thing, watching it closely. She simply nodded in aggreement with Eli, keeping a wary eye upon the thing.

Elizaebel leaned her head back against the wall, grinning "We could always see how it works-" Eli never finished her thought, for what happened next.

With out warning, as sudden as a summer storm, Ailac bolted upright with a wordless cry. His hand stretching out before him fingertips splayed into the empty air. Blood cascaded from his left eyesocket, matching tears from the right. Ailac hunched forward, the darkness of the bond shattering into a shower of black sparks, erupting black smoke from the small machine gathering data. Peenuts smoked and suddenly shut down, transforming into a box.

Elizaebel jolted from the sudden actions that broke the quiet tranquility of the barrow. She stared at Ailac, "He's awake?"

Neyeeva startled at Ailac's sudden movements as she quickly rose to her feet. "Ailac!" she gasped, beginning to caustiosly step forward.

The older druid sagged forward, his hand falling limply to the dirt, shuddering breaths wracking his body as the darkness swirled towards him, before fleeting and pooling about Xaneria before dissipating. Xaneria's body jolted and flinched as the bond disappated, tears rolled down her pain clenched face before her body grew still, her breaths shallow and slow.

Elizaebel glanced at Xaneria then back at Ailac, her eyes giving him a hard questioning glare.

Neyeeva took notice of the state of Ailac's eye. She gasped once more. "What happened?" she asked, horrified at the condition she veiwed.

Ailac tilted his head back, howling furiously as his eyes opened, the right pure amber while the left gone leaving a pool of blood in the empty socket. "Il'dar! NO!"

Neyeeva knelt down to Ailac, to inspect the eye, as she attempted to calm the druid. Calmly and sternly she said, "Ailac, calm down. Tell us what happened."

Elizaebel lookd on curiously cracking her knuckles "He seems to be in an odd mood..."

Ailac drew his hand up to his face, closing the lids over the left and shuddering visibly. "No... we were free..." He said incohesively.

Neyeeva bit her lower lip in uncertainty as she drew her hand to Ailac's eye, covering it with her palm, preparing an attempt to heal what she could. "Free of what? The Nightmare?" she asked, not comprehending. "What happened?" She asked again, trying to make Ailac understand that he needed to explain his words.

Ailac dropped his hand, not flinching back from the Neyeeva's hand comming to his face. "The Nightmare... I should not have allowed this to happen. She should never have tried such a dangerous thing..."

Neyeeva's open palm began to glow in a soft, warm green light, as she directed the healing energies into the eye. "What did she try? What happened?" she asked softly as she concentrated, pulling forth the life energies that would speed up the healing process of the body of the other druid.

Ailac tilted his head up, looking with his amber eye first to Neyeeva then Elizabel, wincing only lightly as the flesh knitted shut. "Wait.... these are... What is going on?"

"Ailac, look at me, tell us what happened." Neyeeva told him, attempting to avoid having the druid from entering a state of shock.

Elizaebel frowned then glanced over at Xaneria "Won't be so easy in there hm?"

"The Nightmare... " Ailac began, his voice weak from unuse, yet quickly gaining strength with each word. "Xaneria fled from it, but it was overwhelming. She was scared, but I found her and drew her out... I was attempting to wake us both, but then-" Ailac's words trails off, his gaze wandering to the sleeping form beside him, concern etching upon his bloodstained face.

Neyeeva removed her hand from Ailac's eye, as she sensed the healing had done what could be done. She sighed at her own weakness of healing, knowing that she could never give him back the eye that was once there, though where it had gone she could not fathom. "You woke and she did not?" Neyeeva confirmed softly to him.

Ailac tried to rise, stumbling back to the dirt before pulling himself over to crouch near Xaneria. Neyeeva rose to her feet in response, watching Ailac.

Ailac spoke softly, his voice filled with concern. "The Nightmare tore her from me."

Elizaebel raised an eyebrow at Ailac "Nightmare.... tch."

Neyeeva eyes widen at the realization. "Now she is trapped within it? The Nightmare?"

Ailac nods solemnly, brushing a hand through her hair. "She remains trapped within the dream. One of the Unwakening."

"Is there anything that can be done?" Neyeeva asked hesitantly.

Elizaebel shook her head stubbornly. "She wont give up that easily... seems this place is more of a temporary home for the time being." she said casually as she leaned back up against the wall.

Ailac rose to his feet, fists clenched at his sides. Ailac looked to Elizabel, nodding. "It appears that I must call upon you both as guardians once more." he sighed.

Neyeeva looked to Ailac in understanding and sympathy. "Of course." she said decisively. Though inside, she was exasperated and aggitated at the thought of having to spend yet more innumerable days within the dens, away from her duties with the arbiters, from her goals in Icecrown. However, she could not abbandon her fellow druids, even friends as she had come to think of them as, in their time of need.

Ailac turned to Neyeeva, nodding his head in a wordless response. He then raised an eyebrow, a puzzled look came upon his face. "Where is Cenias? I find it hard to believe he would abandon us."

"He went into the dream after you. Through the natural path. He never found you?" Neyeeva explained as she cocked her head in confusion of his question.

Ailac frowned, shaking his head. "I was lost within my own Nightmares. I did not even feel his presence."

Neyeeva looked down as she frowned, attempting to hide her own uncertainty of the thought of Cenias.
Suddenly Xaneria 's body jolted, her back arching for a moment as her fingers dug into the dirt and dried grass around her, biting on her lip, blood trickling from the corner, her body covering in a heavy sweat. Ailac looked to Xaneria's body, concerned. Lowering himself slowly to the ground to lie beside her.

Elizaebel looks over at Xaneria, "another dream?"

Neyeeva looked up at the sudden movements of Xaneria's body, nodding mutely in response to Eli. Instinctively she went to Xaneria's side, to wipe the blood from her mouth, kneeling at her side.

From his position upon the dry grass, Ailac said in a determined desperation, "I will find her. I will not allow the Nightmare to claim her."

Neyeeva took a cloth, beginning to wipe at the blood about Xaneria's mouth. She noded at Ailac, not looking away from Xaneria as she continued with her task.

"Watch over her, Falore Riversong, Elizabel..." Ailac said quietly, as he prepared to go back into the Dream.

Eli shrugged her shoulders, closing her eyes at the thought, "Never had any intention otherwise."

While Neyeeva nodded mutely once more in response, keeping her eyes on Xaneria, she felt pained at having to remain in the Dens, cut off. Immediately she felt ashamed of her own feelings but she could not help herself from feeling such aggrivating emotions. Neyeeva rose to her feet after cleaning the blood, stepping back from the two. As she did so, Ailac slowed his breaths, reaching out to place a hand upon Xaneria's back, green light flooding through him and over her as he drifts back into slumber.

Elizaebel sighed as she took off her pauldrens "More waiting. " she commented without emotion as she leaned against the wall again, making a more comfortable stance.

Neyeeva went back to her place in the Barrow, against the opposite wall. She sighed heavily as she slid down the wall, pulling her knees to her chest. She dropped her head in her hands in a quiet dispair. A disappointment in herself for feeling as she did, and deep worry etching her mind over Xaneria, then wondering what could have happened with Cenias. Lost in her own thoughts, Neyeeva never once gave a second thought to the little annoying machine that had become a box, nor did she care wether it was alright and would still work or that it was broken and in need of repair. Peenuts was the least of her worries.