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The unicorn froze as the sounds and smells of crunching bones and tearing flesh reached his delicate senses. His ears perked forward at full attention and his nostrils quivered at the scent of the blood. At first the humanoid beings flesh seemed to boil, then quite suddenly erupt outward. From within the former body of the glowing eyed man came a blue skinned dragonish bipedal creature whose eyes burned with an emotion not easily mistaken for friendliness.

Interesting transformation. It certainly is quick, but it seems like it would be much more painful that a slower transition.

The black wings unfurled, dripping with the creature's own blood. Or perhaps the former-man's blood. It was difficult to tell if this was the same creature, or a different one that had simply been lying dormant within the other, waiting for its opportunity to forsake its host and make its own gruesome way into the world. The unicorn couldn't help but wonder if the wings were functional.

The last of all to change was the creature's face. It bulged outward like a newly formed island exploding out of the ocean with all the fire and brimstone that shifting oceanic tectonic plates could muster. It's newly widened mouth seemed to be filled with wickedly sharp fangs. Certainly those were functional.

Quite suddenly the draconian creature picked up the ruined Volvo that had previously been resting in peace next to the azure scaled being and hurled it in the direction of the unicorn. The unicorn, being possession of fairly quick reflexes, swift and dainty hooves, and at least a small sense of self preservation, had already darted out of the way by the time the vehicle was launched. That maneuver answered two of the unicorn's questions. It seemed that the creature was indeed the same one that hurled dogs and smashed cars, it had merely graduated to a new form that was strong enough to hurl the cars themselves at other creatures that had done it no harm. The other question, whether or not the creature was rational, seemed to be pointing toward the negative.

The unicorn darted back and forth around the tall mounds of trash, nimbly choosing his path. By the time the dust from the car settled, the large alate lizard would hopefully be wondering where the unicorn had gone.

The unicorn, meanwhile, would be figuring out what to do next. His curiosity had been sated; he no longer wished to find out what sort of creature was lurking about in the formerly peaceful dump. The wisest thing to do, if he wanted his own skin to remain intact, would be to make a swift retreat. The responsible thing to do, however, was not perhaps the best for his own well being. There was no telling what that creature could or would do if he simply left. Perhaps it would calm down on its own. Unlikely. Chances were better that it would leave this place and bring its terror to some other place where the innocents were even less well equipped to deal with it than a normally peaceful unicorn.

In all likelihood, the unicorn needn't worry his little horned head about making the choice. The dragonling would probably be making the decision for him.

“Nice to meet you Ms. Belamount,” Sebastian knew that most people called each other by their first names even after they had just met. He thought about just calling her Iris, but couldn't help himself. The old fashioned ways had rubbed off on him and stuck with him through the years and he didn't quite care to discard them yet.

He waited patiently while she seemed to be analyzing his facial features. Was she still trying to figure out where she had seen him before? She apologized for staring, then let the rain return to its normal path, pelting Sebastian yet again with water. He smiled good-naturedly as she apologized yet again.

“If I had wanted to stay dry, or be a living page from an alphabet book, I would have brought an umbrella.”

>>>"Thank you for the help. I was just thinking. Wasn't expect company on a night like this... Guess I should know better, huh?"

“Nor would I expect to find company on an evening like this. I suppose the weather brings out the solitary thinkers and the solitary thinkers attract the attention of thieves and cutthroats who prey on the innocent.”

“I suppose standing in the rain has lost its appeal. Perhaps we should move to somewhere safer. What do you think we should do about him?” Sebastian indicated with his chin toward the unconscious man, still lying on the sidewalk. Certainly he could heal him, but Sebastian suspected the man had suffered not much more than an impressive bruise. Perhaps the marks would be a visual reminder of one reason not to mug people.

The angry thing spoke. That meant it stood a chance of being rational. Maybe. At least now he knew where it was. The unicorn relaxed just a little bit and turned to face the creature sitting above him on one of the refuse heaps. It had a male voice, so Sebastian assumed it was actually a he. He looked like a he. A normal enough looking being that occasionally threw dogs and screamed like a banshee and smashed cars. The individual's eyes seemed to flash as he spoke, asking if the unicorn could speak back.

The unicorn lowered his head without taking his eyes off of the being above him and deliberately shook it twice, back and forth. I can't talk in this body.

Hopefully that would be a sufficient answer, for it was the only one that he was able to give at the moment. The unicorn suspected that it would not be sufficient. The individual above him seemed to be rather the irrational sort. Nevertheless, the unicorn was still curious about who he was. Was there such a thing as cautiously curious? Perhaps. Carefully, deliberately, the unicorn stepped closer to hulking man with the glowing eyes.

The unicorn lifted his head from where he had been sniffing at a dandelion, desperately trying to make a life for itself in the otherwise lifeless landscape. The unicorn had been trying to decide whether he should eat it when he heard a dog barking. He wondered why the dog was barking and why it had suddenly stopped. He turned to investigate just in time to see something large and dark colored flying through the air to crash against the hood of a car not far from where the unicorn stood. It was the dog.

Disturbed, the unicorn carefully made his way toward the crumpled form of the dog. He was not as alone as he had originally thought in this wasteland of wreckage. Someone was sending dogs flying through the air, not cool. Sebastian nosed at the dog. The dog was still, and there was a dark puddle forming on the already rust colored hood. He felt an icy burning tingle on his nose, which meant that, despite appearances, the dog was still alive, for he couldn't heal something that was already dead. Bending further, he touched his horn to the dog's back, letting the tingling fire of healing energy flow between them. The dog's breath shuddered and he lifted his head.

Both the dog and the unicorn jerked when they heard the anguished scream from across the yard, followed by sounds of crashing metal. Someone was taking out their frustrations on anything in the junkyard they could get their hands on, including the guard dogs. Very disturbing. The unicorn met the dog's eyes. You'd better go. The dog was only half healed, but thought better of sticking around any longer. He lurched to his feet and slid down the side of the car and limped away around the back of the trash heap.

The unicorn started toward the crashing sounds. He was curious by nature and had a less than healthy sense of self preservation. It probably came from being immortal. Nothing had killed him yet, so he figured that nothing would. He was curious, though, to know what it was like to die. He didn't particularly want to die, but nor was he afraid of death.

The crashing stopped as abruptly as it had started and an eerie silence descended upon the yard. The unicorn froze where he stood. The sounds of highways and cars were ever present on the winds, but none of the sounds originated from within the yard. The silence was no longer as welcome as it had been a few minutes before. Before it had meant solitude. Now it meant that some unknown thing was hidden nearby, waiting to do... who knew what?

Decrepit destruction. A wonderland of waste. Towers of twisted metal and rivers of rust.

The unicorn walked slowly through the metropolis of machinery, picking his way carefully around the forlorn forms of abandoned appliances and the crusty carcasses of forsaken Fords. The broken bodies of neglected Nissans and desolate Dodges formed winding and unpredictable pathways through the lonely landscape.

The junkyard was deserted. Marvelously and wonderously deserted.

Here, in the middle of a city that was teeming with uncountable throngs of people, was a place that no one wanted to occupy. It was a place they sent things they no longer wanted, so they could buy new things to make them happy. Beloved belongings, long forgotten found their final resting place here.

It was a glorious graveyard.

If anyone could have seen the white form stepping carefully around the mountains of garbage, they would have thought he seemed out of place. Indeed, the unicorn had never been to a place quite like this before. The sheer amount of waste was a staggering testament to the type of lives that people led. It was interesting to see, at the very least. And it was nice to find a quiet place for thoughts and unicorns to run free for a short time before they had to be reined in again.

New York City at night in the rain was beautiful. The reds and golds of the electric lights and the passing cars reflected off of dark windows and wet blacktop, creating vertical striped blurry flames. Even the soggy sky took on an orange glow as the light from the city bounced back, reflected of the clouds. The sky showed off its own impressive electric display, reminding the city that electricity had been around long before concrete and steel.

Sebastian wandered down streets at random, taking in the sights of the nighttime cityscape. He was soaked within minutes of stepping out of the huge golden doors of the sanctuary where he was living. He wasn't sure how the place managed to keep its overly ornate doors open when it didn't charge its tenants rent, but he paid in his own way by working in the infirmary. So far there hadn't been any major injuries, but Sebastian was a little paranoid that if he left for too long some terrible accident would occur whilst he was away. It wasn't that he didn't trust the nurses to handle things; he just didn't trust machinery to heal a person. Blinking lights and fancy knobs meant nothing when a person lay dying on the hospital bed, at least, that was what he had tried to tell the nurses. They had politely, but forcefully told him that he needed to take the night off. They had handed him some sort of device that they said would ring if they really needed him, and then sent him out the doors for some fresh air.

Sebastian still felt like a tourist in the large city. He hadn't had much of a chance to explore since his arrival. He stared up at the lights and blinked as raindrops fell into his eyes. Quite suddenly, he reached an area of shadowy darkness, lit only in winding pathways. The park, he realized. It was the same park he had visited on his very first day in the city. This time, he didn't need to hide the horn on his forehead beneath a baseball cap. His tail was tucked up under his jacket because he didn't want to drag it through puddles, not because it could have been cause to lock him up in a concentration camp. He had half a mind to shift right in the park and enjoy the refreshing rain without the soggy clothing that were limply clinging to his form, to splash through puddles with hooves rather than soaking tennis shoes, but he didn't shift. Even in at night, even in the rain, there were always other people around. The situation could easily turn awkward if anyone stumbled across him mid-transformation. Instead he followed one of the dimply lit trails through the shadowy trees.

Sebastian listened to Virote's alternate travel plans, with rising hope, but then finally then sighed. He knew he didn't really have that option. No, delays were silly. In this fast paced world they needed to be there now, if not yesterday. If he had his preference, he'd go by foot. That, however, would take years, especially with the way Sebastian liked to travel. He tended to find an interesting place on the way to another destination and stop there for a lifetime or two before continuing along to his original destination.

Shaking his head, Sebastian looked down at his own feet, then back at Virote, “Thank you for the offer, but you shouldn't listen to my complaints. I have been dragging my hooves, but your original offer was the correct idea. We do need to get there as fast as possible. Time is not on our side. Every moment that we delay, there is another rape or another burned bride. I can live through flying, I don't think I could live with the thought that I could have saved some poor woman and chose not to for my own comfort.”

Sebastian had decided, and there would be no changing his mind now. He was ready to go, whether he wanted to be or not. His emails were sent, his goodbyes were said, and the school would run smoothly even if he was only in contact by email. Though, if there were an emergency, the flight back could be quick and cheap with Virote's help. Sebastian hoped there wouldn't be any emergencies for more than one reason.

“My bag is packed, so... I supposed whenever you are ready... ” Sebastian was usually in the habit of finishing his sentences, but this time his nerves were causing him to forget the endings, just a little bit.