Wednesday, March 12, 2014

A Dragon's Prize, part two


Once, I lived a normal, boring life. Sure, there was the occasional excitement of adventurers passing through town, but that didn't effect me. Unlike my brother, I wasn't going to be crazy and become an adventurer. But one dragon attack destroyed that life.
The wind burned as it whipped against my face. Clutching at the claws that were digging into me, I tried not to think about what the dragon was going to do to me. At least Dale was safe. I couldn't blame my brother for almost getting himself killed trying to slay a dragon. We had tried to slay the dragon together, after all.
The dragon dived. The wind ripped away my breath. Suddenly the wind vanished, replaced by darkness. The dragon's wingbeats echoed loudly as it flew through the darkness, twisting and turning so rapidly that it was impossible to tell what direction we flew.
When the dragon finally slowed, I was able to take a breath.
Which I then lost as the claws holding me let go.
“Ouch!” I coughed for a moment against the cold stone, my back aching as I stared up into the dark. A heavy thump signaled that the dragon had landed. Rolling onto my side, I bit back a cry as I sat up. Dragon's were not gentle to those they abducted.
There was a tendril of flame, then suddenly light. Covering my eyes, I blinked for a moment before focusing on the source of light. It was an egg-shaped orb, flickering like a campfire before the dragon. Releasing a puff of smoke, the dragon turned its narrow head in my direction.
“Whoa scaly, stay back!” I fumbled to pull out my small knife from its sheath as the dragon slinked toward me. Hands shaking, I grabbed a handful of my hair and cut it off. Thrusting out my hand that held the hair, I held my breath as the dragon reached me.
Its charcoal scales glinted in the light as the dragon sniffed the cut hair. Eyes the red of burning embers studied me, showing far more interest then they had when I was whacking the platter. Opening its mouth, I was given a very good view of the dragon's sharp teeth. The dragon gripped the cut hair and pulled it from my grasp, then turned away.
Watching the dragon disappear down a tunnel, I sheathed my knife and looked around the cavern.
Except for the glowing egg-shaped orb, there was nothing but stone. Dark tunnels stretched out in every direction, each exactly the same.
I had no idea where I was, or how long that handful of hair would satisfy the dragon.
“Well, time to figure out your escape plan, Milla.” I muttered as I stood. I had survived one dragon attack, so escaping from a young dragon shouldn't be so hard.
As long as I didn't run out of hair before I could get out.

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