There. This is the last introductory chapter, now things can start getting interesting. Thanks for your patience everyone.

I do not own The Inheritance Cycle, Yu-Gi-Oh, How to Train Your Dragon, Rangers Apprentice, Howl's Moving Castle, or Rurouni Kenshin.

Arya, daughter of Queen Islanzadi and King Evander, shade and dragon slayer, reserved her hatred for the things in life that were truly vile. General filth was certainly on the list, and probably the most commonly occurring. Shades were definitely ranked first on the scale with the ra'zac following as a close second. Tyrants were on there but the initial burning hatred was much faded now, due to Galbatorix's defeat in the last sixty years or so, but old deep wounds were often slow to heal. Among that group of hated things were slavers.

Arya hated slavers. She found everything that went with the idea of slavery to be absolutely evil, especially the deprivation of one's free will. It got exponentially worse when magic was involved, and it came with great sadness to understand that her own language often made it easier for these evil people. So when she ran across these slavers, they received no mercy.

The elf gazed around at the destruction she'd just wrought with slightly grudging satisfaction. She should not have enjoyed that as much as she had, but putting fear into the hearts of those who made a living off of doing just that had a certain amount of poetic justice to it. Firnen snorted softly to her left as he picked up on her conflicting emotions.

Feel no pity for these ones, he said. Their fates were decided when they chose this path. If you had not been the one to deliver it to them, then another would have, and may not have made it so quick. For all your wrath, and the fear you brought to them, this death many would think was far too merciful.

You're right of course Firnen, Arya agreed. They had children.

Firnen turned towards the slaver's cart, his nose twitching slightly as he tested the air. And they are terrified, he said and turned to give them some distance. Be careful Arya.

I will Firnen.

The elf turned to where she could sense the terrified souls hiding under the slaver's cart. The bodies of five dead slavers surrounded the scene and Arya spoke a few quick words in elvish and the ground opened up and swallowed them. Next, she sat down right where she was and dug into her travel pack, quickly finding the food she had with her. Setting out a small cloth, she then spread out the bread, cheese and fruit she had. There was even a small bottle of juice.

"So much food," she said despairingly. "However shall I hope to eat this all by myself? If only there was some one around to share it with."

She didn't have to wait long. A couple of boys peeked out from underneath the cart, eyes shining with hunger. They did not venture out of their shelter, the fear holding them was too strong. So Arya reached out with her mind and gently began to undermine that fear. She remembered the security she felt as a child in the arms of her mother and father and shared the feeling with them. The effect was immediate which surprised her. Both the boys began to cry, and they wasted not a moment to rush over and throw themselves into her arms. She held them and rocked them gently wiping away their tears and assuring them that they were safe.

Firnen, she called. I think you can approach now, though do so slowly.

Both of these boys had very striking appearances. One, she'd thought was albino until she saw his chocolate brown eyes. Aside from that, everything else about him was white. The other seemed just as fair, but he had a mop of dirty hair that seemed dark for the most part, except for his bangs, which seemed blond. It was hard to tell under all the dirt and grime. They were clothed in fraying rags that seemed to be made of more hope than cloth. Firnen settled in behind them, his bulk and wings sheltering them from the wind. Warmth radiated from his body and the boys seemed to want to curl up against him. It was cold out.

"This is Firnen," Arya told them. "And he loves little children."

"He doesn't wanna eat us?" the white one asked in a whisper.

"Of course not," Arya said. "It would make him sad. You can cheer him up by snuggling with him."

Both boys moved with a mixture of caution and eagerness as they pressed themselves against Firnen's warm green hide. Arya handed them each some bread and cheese, cautioning them to eat slowly. Neither of them could do it. They held the food with shaking hands and they ate like the starved children they were. She held off on giving them juice and gave them some water instead. Soon, they were too full to eat another bite, and Arya should not have been surprised by how much food was left. After starving for so long, they wouldn't be able to eat much.

They sat for a time and the one with dark hair nodded off, still leaning against her shoulder.

"Can you tell me your names?" she asked the white one. "I'm Arya."

"I'm Ryou," the white one said quietly. "And that's Yugi, he doesn't talk much. They already had him when they got me."

"Can you tell me where you're from?" she asked.

Ryou went silent and looked down, the wave of grief she felt from him almost bringing tears to her own eyes. "Kul Elna," he said.

Arya froze as horror gripped her. Kul Elna had been ransacked by a rogue band of Urgals. They'd left no survivors, save one apparently.

"Oh Ryou," she said, her heart breaking for the orphaned child. "I'm so sorry." She pulled him into a hug and he sobbed quietly for a bit, but he calmed and pulled away.

"What's gonna happen to us now?" he asked. "You... got the bad guys, but does that mean I have to go back to the orphanage? They didn't want me, they said no one would want me, and they let the slavers have me. I don't wanna go back there."

"And you wont," Arya reassured him. "I know a great place for you, you'll love it there. But Yugi should go back to his parents if he-."

"His parents didn't want him either," Ryou said quickly. "He told me. They used to hit him just like the slavers do. That's why he doesn't cry anymore when it hurts. You wont make him go back there will you?"

Arya glanced at the other boy in shock. No wonder he doesn't say much. No one in his life ever listened. Cold rage boiled up in her heart on his behalf.

"Thank you for telling me, Ryou," she said. "No, he doesn't have to go back."

"Good," Ryou said. "It's bad to hit... good people."

"It's especially bad to hit little children," she said. "How old are you two anyway?"

"I'm not sure about Yugi," Ryou said. "But I'm ten."

"Well Ryou," she said. "How would you like to travel far away from this place?"

"We can do that?" he asked, eyes beginning to shine with excitement.

"Yes we can," she said, then pointed up at Firnen's wings. "See these wings here? They aren't just for show."

"Are we gonna fly?!" he exclaimed bubbling over with enthusiasm.

"Yes we are," Arya told him, hugging both boys close. "Straight to New Vroengard."