A scene beautifully painted by  nomax which is a part of several images that inspired a rather major "character building" story with background to the character!

I will post the other ones (minus the one that is still in progress naturally) in short order, linking them here, as well as posting the story in them.

Here is the story, enjoy! ->

Easier to read format here, as google Docs doesn't ruin the paragraph formatting!

===== BEGIN NARRATIVE =====

Ashes
Liz happily scampered through the hallway of her home, her bright summer dress flowing gently in her movements. She scampered through the house approaching the room of a guest the family had taken in, a tiger named Kiron, whom been a long time family friend.
As she reached his room, she noted the room was ajar, and she quietly intruded into the tiger’s space. The room was filled with a vast array of bookshelves, lined with books that Kiron had gathered over his long lifespan. As the Vixen walked down his room, she gently ran a finger along the books on the shelves, reading some of the titles as she moved.
“The Illustrated History of Sorcery,” “The Sword and Wand, A Treatise on Proper Enchanting Techniques,”Eye of Newt and Other Overrated Spell Ingredients,” she read from the backs of the books she walked past. What odd things the old man gets into. She mused to herself.
Her gaze swept across the room, past the rows of books Kiron collected, searching for any signs of life within the room, and paused abruptly when she noticed Kiron’s seated form on his bed. The vixen froze in place on noticing his hunched form. He sat shirtless on on the bed, clothed only in an ornate loin cloth, a garment for which the vixen always joked and teased him for, always prodding him to “modernize his wardrobe.”
His shirtless back revealed streaks of sapphire blue interspersed among his stripes, streaks of which emitted a faint glow, as though some for of energy or power coursed through them.
When she saw the tiger, an impish grin spread across the vixen's lip, and she crowd low to the ground and slowly began to creep towards him. Kiron had not noticed her, and now, she thought would be the perfect time to play a prank on the elder tiger.
She pondered several tricks to play on Kiron as she slowly approached his hunched form. Maybe she'd crawl up and tug on his whiskers, or perhaps she'd pluck a single hair from his long tail. No, she had it, since he seemed to be completely unaware of her presence, she'd jump out and give the big cat a scare that would cause him to leap through the roof in fright.
Liz's fingers tingle with excitement as she crept across the floor, savoring the of how her last trick went, and of hearing his patient, yet bemused as he gently scolded her on what she'd done. Just as she was about to pounce onto him to give him the score, however, she froze in her tracks, her ears dropping at dismay at what she saw.
Kiron sat at the edge of his bed, with his head buried in his hands, as though gripped by a deep, inconsolable grief. On seeing the tiger, an overwhelming sense of empathy washed over the vixen, pushing away any sense of mischief she'd held. Rather than pouncing on the dejected tiger, she knelt beside him and wrapped her arms around one of his biceps, and turned her ears back empathetically.
"What is the matter Kiron?" She asked sweetly.
Kiron remained quiet for a moment longer, then lowered his hands to reveal his mournful expression, punctuated by misty, bloodshot eyes.
"Liz-" he choked, slight surprised in his voice. However, he wiped the mist from his eyes and quickly gathered himself.
"It is nothing, child." He said, the calm in his tone sounding forced.
Liz, however, despised when he called her that. Kiron knew well she was fully grown, but in spite that he'd often use the word when he either did not have time for the games she'd devise, or when he simply tried to dismiss a concern she expressed. This time, however, she would not accept such a dismissal.
"No!" She insisted. "You are hurting, and it is the kind of hurt that only gets worse if you keep trying to bury it!"
The tiger smiled weakly at her response. He knew she was right. He'd kept his guilt bottle up for so long- for centuries even, and each day he tried to conceal it, it would just further gnaw away at his soul.
Then, he began to ponder. What harm could it do to tell the tale to the young vixen he'd taken under his wing? At the question, he decided, that perhaps, it was long past time to open
up on this matter. He then inhaled deeply through his nose released a resigned sigh, both at the decision, and her persistence.
"Very well young one, take a seat, and I will take you on a journey into the past." He replied, his tone returning to the calm and diplomatic bass that Liz so enjoyed hearing.
At his instruction, she quickly slipped her arms off of his, and sat on the ground in front of Kiron, leaning forward in eager anticipation of what he had to say.
As she settled in place, Kiron extended one of his arms, palm upwards, curling his fingers as though he were gripping an invisible object. As he grasped the air, his eyes started to glow azure, and the faint glow that emanated from the streaks of blue interspersed among of his stripes greatly intensified.
Suddenly, light surged from his fingertips, and swirled around the tigers' claws, merging above his outstretched hand to create a perfect illusion of the old he served kingdom, centuries in the past. Great stone structures with intricately carved exteriors, inlaid with gold and marble stood in stark contrast to the sea of sand dunes surrounding the city.
At seeing the ancient city, Liz sat in awe, as the image was so vivid, she felt she could just reach out and touch the tops of the illusory buildings.
Kiron grinned at the young vixen's wonderment for a moment, but then began his tale.
"Centuries ago, I lived in a great kingdom." He said his tone strong and even as he began to narrate. "It was a place renowned for far and wide for its wealth, its culture, and its accomplishments."
He flexed the muscles in his powerful forearm, which caused a surge of light to course through the image, shifting the scene from to an elegant throne room, adorned with intricately carved pillars and fine tapestries hung between them. As Liz scanned through the room and all details of the room, she noticed the image of Kiron, standing next to the throne.
"And I-" he stuttered, his tone now dripping with guilt. "I was its protector."
Kiron flexed a single claw, and the illusion closed onto Kiron’s projected image. Liz could not help but notice that he was- different- then. It was not that he looked physically younger then, as he’d hardly aged a day since then, rather, she noticed that he held a slight smile on his expression, as though he was truly happy with the duty he was charged with in that era. He was not the severe, stoic man that he constantly portrayed himself to be in his interactions with Liz. Kiron stared at the image a moment longer, then switched the image again, this time to an image of a grand feast, celebrating, dancing, and excess.
“But all too soon, the kingdom viewed me as an impenetrable bastion, and an undefeatable avatar, and leaned on my considerable power alone to see to their protection.”
As he spoke, red glowing eyes and shadowy tendrils began to appear in the background of the illusion, and started to surround and obscure the projected frivolities.
“In their dependence on me, they did not see the envious, hungry eyes that watched them from beyond our lands. Nor did they notice as the hostile reptilian kingdoms which surrounded us gathered their strength. Lizard beasts who were cunning opponents, and who knew, I was not an omnipotent.”
The image flickered, and switch back to the throne room, this time however, Kiron stood at the center of the room, with the eyes of all the nobles and royalty fixed upon him. The gazes, however, were not friendly or receptive, but skeptical, and even amused. Amused at Kiron a he desperately attempted to plea to the nobility to notice the threats that lay before them. Liz’s ears twitched as the sound of laughter echoed from the illusion.
“You are the most powerful being our world has ever known!” One of the skeptical nobles in the crowd asserted. “None would dare attack us while you stand as our guardian!”
“But I am not without limits!” The voice of Kiron echoed from the illusion in protest to the noble’s comments. “And if the threat you face is determined enough, they can gather enough power and resources as to overwhelm me!” Kiron insisted. “What’s more, I am not eternal. One day, generations from now, I too will pass, and you will be faced with the problem of learning to see to your own defense when I am gone. You should not be wholly dependent on my power to ensure your survival!” He argued.
Skeptical laughter echoed through the chamber once more, until the king held up a hand to silence the gathered nobles.
“And that is problem, my powerful friend, is one we need not worry about until centuries from now.” The king’s voice echoed dismissively. “So long as you live, we need not fear harm. Let us table the discussion of your end for another time, old friend, for as your said, it is not something we need to worry about for a long, long time.”
“The did not heed my wisdom,” Kiron lamented, “and one day, it happened.” The illusion then warped into a vast desert, with the great city in the distance. Standing in the foreground stood the illusion of Kiron, with an expression of defiance on his face.
Off in the distance, on other end of the desert, Kiron’s gaze was fixed on a vast reptilian army. Legions of infantry, archers, and dozens, perhaps even hundreds, or pieces of siege equipment bore down on Kiron, who stood alone against this scaled tide.
“Eventually, they came for us, as I predicted. Their envy and greed for all that we’d accomplished would go unsated no longer.”
As Kiron spoke, the lines of infantry began to charge, and the archers let loose a barrage of their lethal bodkins, aimed at his position. And as the arrows, so numerous they darkened the sky, soared towards Kiron, the might siege engines began to sling massive boulders in his direction, as a contingency should none of the arrows meet their mark.
Once the offensive began, Kiron planted his feet, digging them into the sand, and spread out his fingers, spreading them to reveal his obsidian colored claws. As he set into position, blue jets of flame erupted from his eyes, and the lights in his streaks of blue surged to life, shining visibly even in the bright desert sand. The tiger readied himself for battle.
Within moments of Kiron readying himself, the barrage which screeched through the air neared his position, at which Kiron simply swept a clawed hand in the air, which created a translucent blue barrier above him. The sound of breaking wood and scraping metal could be heard echoing through the desert at the arrows shattered against his barricade, the remnants of which slid harmlessly onto the desert floor.
As the splintered of the ruined arrows fell down around him, he turned his gaze to the massive boulders which soared in his direction. He took one glance at the lines of infantry charging his position, and raised two fingers in the direction of the nearest boulder, and swept them in the direction of a large formation of the advancing infantry.
The motion re-directed the boulder towards a large concentration of the charging enemy Soldiers. The re-directed boulder impacted with a thunderous crash, and scattered sand and infantry into every direction. Kiron allowed himself a satisfied grin and turned back towards the other boulders which still soared through the air.
He hardened his expression, and raised his fingers once more, and repeated the swiping motion towards another line of troops, crushing their advance as well. He the repeated the motion again, and again, and again, slamming boulder after boulder on each of the advancing lines, shattering their ranks, until, finally, the advance broke, and the reptilian soldiers began to retreat. At the sound of their retreat, Kiron raised a hand into the air, and clasped it into a fist. The action caused a wave of energy to soar towards the remaining boulders that were flung by the lizard siege engines. As the wave touched each of the boulders, their momentum ceased, and the dropped harmlessly onto the sand.
Before the dust could settle, however, Kiron opened his fist, and slammed his palm into the ground, driving his claws into the dust. As his claws sunk into the earth, lines of bedrock burst up from the ground, and began to roar towards the reptilian siege devices, spider webbing their way towards them in the loose sand. As the rumble of stone neared the equipment, the crews and remaining guards entered into a state of panic, many abandoning their posts at the sight of the advancing stone.
Fate was not kind to those who remained, for as the stone reached the engines of war, jagged pillars shot out from the stone, shattering the machines and crushing their crews, obliterating the last remnants of the enemy force reflected in the illusion.
“It did turn out, young one,” Kiron commented as the dust from the great battle finally began to settle, they were right- there were none that lived who could defeat me directly. However-”
At the start of this sentence, a great horn blared ominously in the distance, and the image centered on the illusory Kiron, who turned in surprise and shock in the direction of the horn, the sound which came from the direction of his city. At his turn, the illusion shifted to the image of yet another army, this one led by numerous dark hooded figures. Yet in spite their cloaks, wicked grins could be seen on their reptilian lips.
“I was right as well. I am limited, for as powerful as I may be, I can only be in one place at a time. And their original assault-” Kiron said, his voice heavy, “was naught but a distraction.”
The second army in Kiron’s illusion halted just short of the city, and as they stopped, the hooded figures dropped their cloaks and fully revealed themselves to be lizard sorcerers, who immediately on dropping their garments began to conjure balls of flames into their scaled hands.
The illusion shifted briefly back to the illusory Kiron’s expression twisting to a look of horror, and the tiger began to spring back towards the city. An effort, however, that was too late. The image shifted once more towards the lizard sorcerers, who’d fully conjured crimson flames, with threads of green which swirled about within the conflagration. Then, with a great heaving motion, the first sorcerer threw his ball of flame towards the city, lighting the roof of the building it hit immediately ablaze. At this cue, the remaining sorcerers began to throw their conjured flames towards the city as well.
Liz could see the pain spread across Kiron’s face as he narrated to her the next part of the story.
“Their distraction left me utterly blind to the most dangerous threat of all: the lizard sorcerers.” He paused to glance at Liz a moment before continuing.
“Though they are not exceptionally powerful in general, Lizard sorcerers, are particularly gifted at one thing,” he noted, switching the illusion he held to an image of the city in flames. As Liz watched the licks of flame spreading throughout the buildings, she noticed that it consumed everything it touched. Not even buildings of stone could withstand the reptilian licks of flame.
“Fire.” He said solemnly, the flames of the illusion reflecting in Liz’s eyes. “Lizard sorcerers discovered a technique of imbuing an acidic property into the flames they conjured, and nothing I’ve known, save for other magic, could withstand its touch.”
Kiron changed the illusion to show an image of himself holding a magical barrier over a location he was attempting to evacuate, guiding what survivors he’d found into an underground escape route. He was a miserable sight to behold at this point in the tale. Ash and soot changing his bright orange fur to a dull gray, and his expression turned sullen as he started to realized just how many perished that day.
“And once they’d reached the city, there was little more that I could do save to try and rescue any of those that survived the lizards attack on the city, but alas-”
Liz stared at the image in dismay as she saw the tunnel begin to rumble, and collapse from the effects of the lizard flame, heat and smoke billowing from the ruins of the structure.
The image of Kiron turned with a panicked expression on his face, and he quickly dropped his barrier and rushed towards the tunnel’s ruins. At the collapsed entry, he swung his arms upwards, flinging rock and flame in every direction as he tried to clear the passageway.
His gesture did successfully clear all the danger from the tunnel, and it allowed the illusory Kiron to rush down and search for survivors. But as the image closed in on the ruined tunnel, it revealed that Kiron’s efforts were to no avail. The lizard fire that collapsed the tunnel burned so hot, that nothing remained of the survivors except for charred and bleached bones.
The illusory tiger was crushed by what he found, and he stumbled towards the remains of those he’d tried to save. He halted next to the bones of one whom seemed familiar to him, and fell to his knees next to them, gritting his teeth in agony. With no others he could protect, he leaned down, and picked up the skull, embracing it tightly. He then sat, holding the bone of a friend, cherished memories flowing through his mind. The illusion then closed onto the tiger’s face, whose grief stricken eyes stared mournfully into the distance.
The illusion slowly faded away, to reveal the bright orange face of Kiron himself, holding the same expression he’d held that terrible day.
“Not one of them made it.” He said sorrowfully. “None from that era are left to past their stories, their history, their culture, nothing.”
He turned to look towards Liz, forcing a sad smile across his lips.
“It is my failure from that day that I carry this weight. And it was on that day that I swore I would never again serve as such a guardian, to ever make someone so dependant upon my power, that they would be unable to stand up for themselves, lest such a tragedy repeat itself. Instead,” He began waving a large hand towards his vast book collection.”
“I live to teach, to preserve knowledge, and to pass on the wisdom I’ve gathered these centuries, so that others may from my experiences, and mistakes, so they can live by their own means, rather than by depending on great powers.”
Liz stared down at the ground for several moments, then stood up to embrace the tiger’s hunched form, empathetically clasping his chest to comfort him.
“Maybe it is time for you to let someone protect you.” She suggested innocently.
“Child, I do not need-” Kiron started to retort, his tone almost indignant, but stopped himself when he saw Liz turn a wounded expression towards him.
He glanced thoughtly at the vixen for a moment, and sighed. “And just what do you think needs protecting young one?” He asked out of genuine curiosity.
She held the tiger with one arm, dropping the other, to press one of her fingers against his chest.
The tiger’s expression softened at the simple act, as her gesture communicated a great depth of understanding.
“You are-” He paused, his eyes drifting as he thought of just how long he’d held this guilt, alone. He struggled to remember how long it'd been, if ever, he’d trusted someone with this burden that weighed upon his soul.
“You are perceptive young one, and so I offer you this exchange - you may serve as a guardian of my conscience and see to my well being, in exchange for one thing-" He straightened his posture and glanced solemnly into her eyes. "I ask that you pass this story I've told, the story of a people long lost so the world may know of them once more, and learn from their fall." He paused once more and smiled warmly towards her. "Does this sound- agreeable?” The old tiger gently asked.
The vixen released her embrace on the tiger, and stared at him with a smile and a twinkle in her eye, nodding her head excitedly.
“Teach me.”

===== END NARRATION ======

Hope you enjoy the latest tale of Kiron, and hopefully more to follow soon!

V/R,
Cap Mag.