Nona was dumbfounded at how quickly the stallion took off and nearly lost his arm as a result. The griffin's slash tore through the air where is arm was just moments prior.
Snapping out of his stupor and appreciating the danger he now fond himself in, Nona braced himself for combat. As he called forth the image for use of magic he found himself distracted by crying. This time his distraction cost him a shallow gash acrossed his chest.
Shaking his head to clear it he muttered to himself, "Real life takes precedence to mental fantasy." Forcefully calling the image to mind het set to work on willing an element to respond while trying to keep his eyes open. As usual the fiery bud of the flower roared to life begging to be used.
Not having time to think of a better plan he allowed it to come forth and shot out balls of fire deliberately shooting around the griffin to try and entrap it. It was at this time that an oversight was brought to his attention as the young griffin flapped its wings creating a gust of wind so powerful it snuffed the flames like a candle.
Nona himself stumbled backwards and found himself laying on his back. As his bare skin touched the earth he felt the mental image of earth shake. Not wasting anytime to process the reason behind it he instead tried to force the earth to cover him and harden. The results left him hopeless as all he actually accomplished was stirring up the sand and making it hard to see.
He felt the movement of air as a razor sharp talon dug into the ground between his legs. The angry red eyes came into view and the claw left the ground. As Nona's short life flashed before his eyes he heard a sound that brought hope. The griffin let out a sneeze from the dirt in the air making it hesitate while in mid slash.
Not wanting to waste this gift Nona called the flames to his hands and forced it out in a chaotic fashion effectively creating a break in the line of sight. With a screech that threatened to rupture eardrums the griffin reared up on its hind legs. This was the moment Nona was looking for since landing on his back.
Thanking his profound luck he scurried out from under the enraged griffin and once again claimed his feet. As he tried to stay focused while think of a way to use his limited abilities to survive this he heard the crying once again. This time he knew it was there and tried to pinpoint it.
After several seconds of scanning in which the griffin had recovered, Nona was able to identify that the crying seemed to come from the griffin itself. This revelation only confused Nona as there was no physical sign of the griffin actually crying. It was at this time that Nona noticed it was not his actual ears hearing this sound but the ears of him in his mental space.
Unfortunately, he found no time to puzzle his way through this as the griffin launched another attack. This time the griffin seemed to give up on its claws and charge straight toward Nona with its sharp beak. Nona only received a few hours of swordsmanship and was beginning to appreciate why he needed it as the sweat began to drip into his eyes.
Having no other options readily available he attempted one last ditch effort. Using the mental image of himself he called out to the crying voice, "What is wrong my friend?" Having no idea who this voice was Nona thought it could not hurt to try to be polite before he died.
The griffin immediately locked up its front talons and dropped its rear into the ground creating deep furrows as it skidded to a stop. The red in its eyes lightened to a shade of pink as it tilted its head while staring at Nona.
The crying in his head turned into a broken sob as a voice tried to speak. "Y-y-you c-can hea-hear me?"
Nona desperately wanted to take time and figure out what was going on but knew his life hung in the balance. "I can hear you but do not know who you are or why you are crying."
"My name is Aquiline. And I'm not crying. My eyes are just leaking." The voice said matter of factly.
Nona could sense the pride in the voice, and with the way the griffin was behaving he could only assume they were one and the same. Taking a mental breathe he decided to try and approach things differently. "Why are the eyes of such a noble creature leaking?" With the difference in fighting ability Nona felt that praise would keep the creature talking. Afterall the slash to his chest was still bleeding. Though, it was not deep the constant loss of blood was becoming concerning.
"That is none of your business. Just go and leave me alone and I shall spare your life this one time." The griffin tried to put anger in his voice but it was overwhelmed by sadness.
Nona's body turned to move on its own before he caught himself. Storing that strange occurrence away for later he faced the griffin. "I know you are powerful and capable of taking care of yourself but I could not live with myself to leave such a being in a state of misery."
"I said leave if you value your life!" The mental voice of the griffin roared. The red in its eyes seemed to be getting darker as the griffin stood up.
Nona once again had to force his body to remain still as it tried to flee. The beginnings of an idea started to form in his mind. He was no stranger to sorrow so he wanted to do the one thing he wished others would have done for him. He called forth the image for magic and focused on the fire. It rallied in excitement as it tried to force itself to be used, but instead Nona forced it to be still while radiating a soothing heat.
The griffin lost all patience and started approaching putting on a believable facade of aggression, but Nona trusted his instincts. When the griffin got within a few feet of Nona it felt the warmth coming off of him. Images of the last time it had felt such warmth flooded through its mind. It could see its father playing with him and teaching him how to hunt, while his mother taught him how to preen himself and to be the noble griffin he was.
The redness in his eyes started welling up and flowing out as physical tears formed. No longer able to hold it in the griffin butted his head against Nona and let the tears flow.