Dragonslayer

The countryside ignited and was consumed in fire. Tall stalks of corn bowed into the flames. The nearby village echoed with the din of screams. Villagers scattered into the surrounding buildings to escape the inferno that was engulfing their homeland.

As the creature's snake-like body swooped over the village for another pass, it expelled another breath of fire, scorching a copse of trees.

A volley of arrows streamed from the windows toward the dragon, but they merely deflected off its scaly armor. The attack only angered the dragon even more. Its giant horned turtle head let out a shrill screech and whirled its massive black wings in the air to come at the village again.

In one home, a petite young woman stepped away from her family, still cowering in fear. She was clad in a simple, white robe with leather sandals on her feet.

“Keladra! Where are you going?” her mother called out to her, tears running from her eyes.

“To slay that dragon.” A twinkle of confidence glimmered in her eye as she turned to smile at her mother. Keladra hoped she wouldn’t notice the uncertainty masked by her smile.

“But you know nothing of slaying dragons! We’re villagers, not warriors!”

“Mother, I must do this, or we’ll all be destroyed. If it wants an offering, I’ll give it one!” Keladra stepped toward the door, gazing out at the red and orange-tinted landscape. Smoke wafted through the window, filling her lungs. She coughed and held her breath as she ran outside into the blaze.

Ash soiled Keladra’s robe, turning it a medium shade of gray. The dragon’s attention focused on her, and it stopped breathing fire to swoop down into the village square in front of her.

“I have come for you to take me,” she shouted, looking the dragon straight in its emerald green eyes.

It took a moment to look her over, assessing her. “You are the virgin?” it asked with a tone of disbelief. She seemed to fit the description of the virgin for the sacrifice, but something was different about her.

Keladra nodded. “I am. Take me to your lair, and spare this village.”

The dragon nodded as well and lowered its body to the ground for Keladra to climb onto its back. Under no circumstance was the virgin to be carried in a dragon’s talons and possibly be injured. Keladra knew this, and smiled as she lifted herself up onto the dragon’s scaly back. She gave a quick turn to look back at her home briefly as the dragon ascended into the air.

The true scale of the landscape's devastation was more apparent from above. The patches of green, brown and gold that she expected to see were instead one large patch of charred black, with flecks of red-orange where some flames had yet to die out. Keladra’s heart sank as she saw her home reduced to a desolate wasteland.

An expansive mountain range loomed ahead to the west, serving as one of the borders of the kingdom that ruled over her village. She had never been to the foot of the mountains, much less to the lands beyond. Stories were told in the village of the fantastic creatures, such as dragons, that lived there.

As the dragon soared across the rocky peaks, Keladra peered down below her. A wide, clear lake stood in the center of the mountains. The surface of the lake sparkled with the rippled reflection of the sun.

Keladra’s stomach turned as the dragon began its rapid descent toward the lake. She closed her eyes and dug her heels into the dragon’s back. After a few short moments, she felt herself slow down. As she opened her eyes, she noticed that she was in darkness. The light of the world outside was fading behind her.

It didn’t take too long for her eyes to become adjusted to the dark, and she was able to make out the indication of being in a large room. A deep grunt came from the dragon before it blasted a ball of fire at the far wall, where it struck a series of mounted torches, lighting the room.

It was then that Keladra was able to see the entirety of the space she was in. The ceiling reached high overhead, into the darkness out of the reach of the light. Across the room from them, a sea of gold and gems glittered in the glow of the torches. She heard in the stories about dragons amassing troves of treasure, but the sight before her surpassed her imagination.

Her eyes fell on a large stone slab in the center of the room. It was made of the same rock as the floor and walls, but much smoother, and carved with intricate designs and symbols. The top surface was covered in dark stains. Keladra cringed slightly as she realized what it was used for.

“You may get down, child.” The dragon lowered itself again and rolled to the side so Keladra could slide off its back.

“I’m not a child, dragon. I am nineteen years old.”

The dragon made a sound that resembled a laugh. “Still a child to me. And do not call me ‘dragon.’ I have a name. I am Adamantus.”

Keladra wrinkled her nose at the sound of the name. “I am Keladra.” She took a few steps toward one of the closer piles of gold to take a better look, but stopped after Adamantus flashed a glare at her.

Something among the heaps of treasure caught her eye. A huge sword, adorned with a green gem in its hilt, grabbed her attention. It was as though it was speaking to her mind. She had to get a hold of that sword somehow, though she didn’t know why.

Adamantus crossed the room and sprawled out on the floor, letting out a low grunt. He kept an eye on Keladra as she walked about the room. “You should sleep. It is late, and you should be rested for tomorrow’s ceremonies.”

Keladra didn’t know it was nighttime. The sky had been covered in smoke from Adamantus’s attack, and all sense of time since then had been warped. She did feel tired, the more she thought about it. Yawning, she found a spot on the floor against the wall.

She slept soundly for a short time before a presence crept into her dreams. The sword appeared in her mind, and she envisioned herself holding it. In the dream, she couldn’t see where she was, other than darkness, but she watched her dream self swing the sword around like it was natural to her, the blade slicing cleanly through Adamantus. The sword gleamed in her hands as if it was proud of her. But her mother was right; she knew nothing of slaying dragons.

And with that realization, she awoke, noticing the room was nearly covered in darkness. Only two torches remained lit, the others long extinguished. She barely made out the sleeping form of Adamantus, but she could hear the rumbling snore well enough. But the sword, however, she could see clearly. The gem stared at her like a bright green eye, and the blade caught the torchlight in such a way that it stood out in the near darkness.

Keladra walked over to the mound of treasure where the sword was, side-stepping in a few places to avoid scattered coins that had rolled off the pile. She watched Adamantus closely to see if he was still sleeping. He was quiet now, still breathing slowly, but she had a feeling he was awake and watching her while still motionless. She took a deep breath. Her hand trembled as she extended her arm toward the sword, but she froze.

“Keladra, come here.” Adamantus lifted his head, but looked the other direction. “Bring that cup with you.”

“Cup?” Keladra’s heart raced as she looked around for the cup Adamantus requested.

Adamantus made the laughing sound again. “The cup you were trying to steal from me. Bring it here.”

Keladra noticed a silver chalice in the same pile of treasure, just under her outstretched hand, and sighed. She scooped the chalice up by its slender handle, still trembling but trying to hide it. “I wasn’t trying…”

“Hush! I know.” Adamantus kept his eye on Keladra as she brought the cup to him. She didn’t return the gaze, instead staying focused on the object in her hands. “It surprises me, Keladra, how you knew one of the implements that would be used in the ceremony. You have proven more than suitable for the sacrifice. Place it over on the altar.”

Keladra did as she was instructed with a smile. She looked over at the sword again. It would have to wait. Adamantus would not sleep again any time soon, she assumed. “When is the ceremony?”

“Tonight at sundown, my fellow dragons come to the lake, and we perform some rites of our own.” The dragon rose and rolled his head and tail around in a stretching motion, the muscles making a loud cracking sound that made Keladra jump. “There are preparations to be made as well.”

“Preparations?” Keladra raised an eyebrow. “What do I have to do?” She searched him for an answer.

“Surely you must know.”

Keladra shook her head. “I wasn’t told everything. There are still parts of the ceremony I don’t know yet.” Her legs quivered, and she dug her feet into the ground to remain standing still so Adamantus wouldn’t notice.

A wide grin spread across Adamantus’ long snout. “There is the bath, where you cleanse yourself before the sacrifice can be performed.”

The thought of bathing for a dragon didn’t appeal to Keladra. Adamantus had been fooled by her charade so far, but she couldn’t let it continue to the bath, much less the sacrifice itself. She didn’t have the birthmark that the doomed virgins were supposed to possess. If Adamantus saw her without one during the bathing rites, it would mean not only death for her, but her village would be destroyed for the deception as well.

Keladra’s stomach grumbled. She hadn’t eaten anything since the attack on the village. “May I have something to eat?” she asked, grinning.

“But of course. You may find some fruits in the trees outside the cave. I will show you the way.”

“No!” Keladra’s eyes widened. “No, I can find myself out.” She didn’t need Adamantus watching her as she ate, but she’d make a run for it once she was finished. The sword wasn’t important to her now, even though she kept looking over at it again.

To Keladra’s surprise, Adamantus nodded, but gave her a knowing grin. She walked off into the dark tunnel hoping it was a straight path so she wouldn’t get lost on the way out. It didn’t matter if there were other tunnels going deeper into the mountain. She wouldn’t be coming back.

After a few minutes of walking almost blindly down the tunnel, Keladra saw sunlight ahead, and welcomed it. She ran outside and took a deep breath, enjoying the fresh air and the smell of the trees. The forest wasn’t dense here, and she could see the lake. From above it had appeared small, but down here on the ground, it was much larger.

Looking at the mountainside and then back at the forest, she decided it would be best to make her escape through the forest, under the canopy of trees. If Adamantus came looking for her, and she knew he would, he’d either follow the mountain’s edge or the banks of the lake.

Her mind set, Keladra ran. The trees flashed behind her, but the far side of the mountains didn’t come as fast as she wished. Her heart pounded in her chest and she stopped for a moment to catch her breath. The trees rustled around her, and a loud whooshing sound beat overhead. Keladra didn’t have to look up to see what the sound was.

“I knew you would try to betray me. Do you take me for a fool?” The dragon’s fierce voice echoed off the surrounding mountains. “Back to the cave at once!”

Even though Keladra thought Adamantus couldn’t see her through the trees, she knew it would be unwise to keep running. She turned back in the direction she came and walked slowly toward the cave. She lost her appetite as well, though she didn’t know it.

Adamantus awaited her at the cave entrance, eyes furrowed and lips curled into a frown. She couldn’t bear to look back at him. Instead, she kept her head pointed at the ground as she followed him inside.

“You never would have been able to cross the mountains,” Adamantus said as they made their way into the large room. “They are too wide to cross on foot.”

Keladra said nothing and sat down by the wall where she had slept, resting her arms on her knees and staring off with a frown. She looked at the sword without realizing, but forced herself to pull her sight away from it. After scanning the room for something else to focus her attention on, she gave up and rested her forehead on her arms, and began humming to herself.

“What is that song, child? The one you are humming.”

Keladra glanced up at Adamantus and stopped humming. “It’s a song my mother sang to me as a child. Why? Do you know it?”

“It is…lovely. Sing it for me. I would like some entertainment.” Adamantus’s voice was soft and pleasant, unlike before, and he even appeared to be smiling at her.

“I don’t know the words, but I will try.” Keladra stood and walked over to stand in front of the dragon. She cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and began to sing. Her rich, vibrant voice reverberated throughout the room. The song had no words, but Keladra let the melody pour from her lips.

Adamantus closed his eyes and swayed his head to the music. After some time he put his head on the ground. Keladra kept singing, not wanting an abrupt end to the song to bring him out of his reverie. She inched closer to the sword, which glowed again.

As Keladra’s hand touched the cold hilt, she wondered if Adamantus would wake up again and catch her. She continued to sing, even though her voice began to get raspy. It would not last for long, but she hoped it would endure long enough for her to take some action before the ceremony could take place.

The sword didn’t feel as heavy as she thought, and as she pulled it loose from the heap of treasure she felt like it was a part of her. She swung it around in front of her, the blade making a low whir as it sailed through the air. It was the image from her dream, only she was living it now.

She knew what she had to do. Her voice faltered again. Holding the sword above her head with both hands, she marched closer to the head of Adamantus, who slept almost too peacefully.

But she hesitated. The sword suddenly felt heavy in her hands, and she couldn’t muster the strength to swing it down upon Adamantus’s neck. It was as though something froze her in place.

Before long her voice gave out, and she coughed to clear her aching throat. The disturbance in the song was enough to break the spell Keladra had put over him, and he stirred. His giant black eye opened with a blink. At least she was near his neck, and out of the line of sight.

She did not dare to move or say a word before she knew what Adamantus would do. Her mouth did open in an attempt to sing again to lull him back to sleep, but her voice failed to rise above a barely audible whisper.

Adamantus did not lift his head, but Keladra knew that he hadn’t gone back to sleep with his eye still open. She couldn’t tell what he was about to do, until she saw his body start to expand.

As he began to exhale, Adamantus let his eyes close again. His mouth opened slowly, baring his long, slender teeth. A long silence followed. The only sound Keladra heard was her knees shaking, until her eardrums burst as a high-pitched screech came from the dragon’s mouth. The sound bounced off the walls and down the tunnel.

Keladra’s hands dropped the sword and instantly covered her ears, but it did little to muffle the sound. She sank to her knees, screaming at the pain in her head from the screech. The pain subsided a little as the sword’s presence filled her mind again. She bit her lip and removed her hands so she could pick up the sword. It was surprisingly light again.

Before anything could make her freeze, she swung the sword into the air and brought it swiftly down upon Adamantus’s neck. The thick, scaly hide couldn’t deflect the cut of the blade, which melted into the dragon’s neck like slicing butter.

Adamantus stopped screeching, a quick squeal coming from his mouth instead. He opened his eyes and raised his head to look down at her. There was a look of sadness, as well as anguish, there now, not one of anger. “What have you done, Keladra?” His voice reeked of hatred.

Before Keladra could reply, Adamantus thrashed his head around, banging it against the walls. The mountain shook and rumbled, and pieces from the ceiling collapsed on them. Keladra jumped aside to dodge a large piece that almost fell on her head. She ran for the tunnel to avoid getting hit by another, when a larger rock than the first struck the blade of her sword, knocking it from her hand.

“No!”

She wanted to run back for her prize, but the crumbling ceiling was falling much faster now. As she kept running, she heard the room become blocked off, with Adamantus still inside. She thought of the vast amount of treasure lost in the rubble, but most of all, she missed the sword.

The cool breeze of the world outside caressed her face as she stepped out into the sunlight. She looked across the lake, and her heart sank. Adamantus’s comment earlier about not being able to cross the mountains sank in. She considered making a fire, so someone in the distance might see it and come to rescue her, but she didn’t know how to make fire. Sighing, she sat on the ground and noticed three shapes looming in the sky. They resembled birds, both in shape and the way they moved. It wasn’t until they got closer that Keladra knew what they really were.

“Dragons!” she shrieked, rising to her feet with a start. She turned back toward the cave, but she couldn’t hide there without getting trapped inside. If she could hide somewhere else until the dragons entered the cave, they would leave once they found the tunnel was blocked without knowing that Adamantus was slain. That didn’t help solve her problem about getting home, but it would buy her some time, and save her from being found out.

She ducked into a patch of berry bushes and watched the dragons descend in front of the cave. Though she had already seen Adamantus, the sight of the three awesome creatures impressed her. The largest of the three had scales of blue-green and a crown of mighty horns on its head. The other two, which Keladra guess to be females from the different shape of eyes than Adamantus and their counterpart, were red in color, and had no horns.

“Where is Adamantus? He called for us, but he is not here.” The smallest of the three looked around and then back to the largest.

“Toying with the sacrifice before the ceremony, I would assume,” said the third. All three of the dragons responded with the laughter sound, but stopped as the blue-green dragon cleared his throat.

“I will make sure he didn’t spoil it too much. Wait here until I return.” As it stomped off into the cave, the other two found comfortable places on the grass to sit.

“Why do we do this ritual?” the smaller red dragon asked, scrunching her face. “I don’t see any purpose in it.”

“It is tradition, Dorlen. The elder dragons like Adamantus have observed the practice for ages. You would do well in the order to just follow the tradition.”

Dorlen frowned. “But I don’t want a human virgin. I’d rather have a gold offering, like the hoard that Adamantus has.” Dorlen’s eyes glowed as she turned her head toward the cave.

As Keladra watched the dragons conversing, her hunger pangs returned. The rich purple berries on the bushes around her looked appetizing. She tried plucking one from a branch, but it was stuck. She pulled harder, finally removing the berry, but rustling the bush as well.

The rustle drew the dragon’s attention in Keladra’s direction. Their heads turned faster than she could hide or run. She stood motionless, hoping their sight wasn’t too keen.

“It’s the human, Drexxa! What is she doing out here?” Dorlen rose to her full height and started toward Keladra.

“Dorlen! Drexxa! The way to Adamantus’s lair is blocked!” The blue-green dragon stormed out of the tunnel, a look of displeasure on his face. Then he noticed their attention was elsewhere. “What is it?”

“The human for the sacrifice has escaped,” Drexxa replied. “She is behind those bushes.”

Keladra emerged from her hiding place and stood before the dragons. She couldn’t speak, for a lump formed in her throat. Her legs quivered as they approached her.

“Tell us what happened to Adamantus’s lair? Where is he?”

Keladra nearly fainted as the large head of the blue-green dragon lowered in front of her face. “Look, Talryn, you are scaring her,” Dorlen said, looking at Talryn pleadingly.

“He is inside.” Keladra coughed and spoke again. “I killed him.”

The eyes of all three dragons widened in unison, and they looked at each other in disbelief. “How did you manage to slay the mighty Adamantus, when no one else could?” Dorlen asked.

Keladra recounted her story of how she came upon the sword, and how she sang Adamantus to sleep. She left out no details with how she killed him and escaped the collapse of the cave. She didn’t want to lie and anger the dragons, even though they hadn’t expressed any anger so far. They seemed rather interested in her tale, making the laughing sound at different times. When she finished, she awaited their response anxiously.

Talryn nodded to Dorlen and Drexxa, giving Keladra a serious glance. The dragons put their heads together and began whispering to themselves. Keladra tried to tune her ears in to what they were saying, to no avail. When the discussion was finally over, Talryn looked at Keladra again.

“Slaying a dragon is a terrible offense, but an incredible feat, especially when done alone.” Talryn spoke to her sternly, and stared her directly in the eye. “Adamantus was not well-liked by many of our order. You have done us a great service. What is your name, human?”

Keladra felt her blood become thin as her heart raced, the anxiety washing away. “Keladra.”

Talryn nodded again, and Drexxa approached them. “Keladra, in return for what you have done, we will grant you one request.”

She could have asked for Adamantus’s treasure, but she knew what she wanted without thinking about it.

The return home on Dorlen’s back was more pleasant than the one with Adamantus. Dorlen assured her that no dragon would ever attack her village or demand a sacrifice again. Keladra smiled. She was returning home more than a villager. She was a warrior.