by Sami Dougish
I choked and sputtered, and in the distance, I heard the sound of water flowing over a cliff, and I guessed I was coming to a waterfall. I groaned as I knew that If I survived this drop, I would be in even more pain from the impact of my broken leg with the water below. I felt a tug on my shackles, and I guessed that the guard had gone over the edge as well. A few seconds later, I felt the flow of water disappear, and I found myself now falling down the waterfall I had heard.
Thankfully this drop was only a couple of meters, and the landing wasn’t too painful, that was until my broken leg hit the water, and I nearly blacked out from the pain. Still, at least the water here was calmer, and I now found myself floating slowly down the underground river. I did my best to get on my back and float. I was in a great deal of pain but couldn’t bring myself to move. I couldn’t see anything, and the waters here were peaceful enough for me to simply try and drift off and escape the pain. I didn’t know how long I floated with the current, but I was jerked back to my senses when I felt another jerk on my shackles. To my surprise, the pull came from behind me, and I realized that the guard’s body must have gotten stuck on some sort of rock. I look back and saw that the guard’s body was wedged between two rocks.
Wait a minute how could I see the guard? For most of my time down here in this river, I couldn’t see anything, but now, there was a light red glow illuminating the waters behind me. I looked around for the source, and to my surprise, about 100 feet away, it was hard to tell in the gloom, was a red glowing object. I had no idea what it was, but the sight of it, made me want to see what it was. What the hell was a red floating light doing down here in these caverns? I then realized that I was floating near a stretch of solid land.
With those two discoveries, I found the strength to drag myself onto the hard-rocky earth. I whimpered in pain though as my broken leg was jostled as I struggled to get onto solid ground. That effort alone had taken a lot out of me, and I lay there in a pain-filled stupor. Now that I was out of the numbing water, more of my aches were coming back, and I was beginning to shiver from a mix of pain and cold. Still, I wanted to see that light!
I don’t know what attracted me to it, but I felt a building urge to see the light that was the only source of vision down in this dark cavern. Unfortunately, I was still shackled to the body in the water. What could I do though?
I didn’t have the strength to break the chains, maybe if I had been at full strength, and had the strength of my legs behind me, maybe I could pull the chain hard enough to snap a link, but in my battered shape, I knew that I couldn’t do it.
Then an idea came to me, it was a terrible one, but it was still a better idea than staying here to starve to death, trapped to a guard who had so enjoyed tormenting me. They had failed to kill me when they were alive, and I would be damned if they managed to kill me when they were already dead. So, I brought my chained hands up to my mouth and gritted my teeth, then without another moment of hesitation, I opened my mouth, and bit down on my large thumb. I howled in pain, as my fangs cut into my flesh, but I was so desperate that I didn’t stop, instead, I bit even harder, and tore at the flesh. I screamed into my hand as I continued my grisly work, and then with a sickening clack, my teeth crushed through my thumb bone, and I spit out the finger. My blood spurted out of the ruin where my finger used to be and coated my wrist. Now that the whole of my thumb and lower hand was gone, I was able to use the blood as a lubricant to rip my hand out of the shackle.
Blood continued to flow out of the wound, and I shuddered from the pain of it. Still, my work was only half done, and with the desperation of a man that had nothing to lose, I did the same to my right hand. Somehow this time it hurt even more, and I felt my eyes water from the pain, as I literally bit off my thumbs.
What seemed like an eternity later, both of my hands were free. The fact that the shackles had been removed for some other reason than to fight in the arena, was almost enough to make me forget the pain, Almost enough. I still felt the fiery pain shooting up my arms, and into my brain, and it took all I had not to pass out.
I was losing blood fast though, and instead of laying here, I crawled around to face the light. With the last of my remaining strength, I pulled myself forwards, my hands clawing into the floor, and dragged myself, inch by painful inch towards the entrancing light. I didn’t know how long I crawled for, but I felt myself becoming dizzy from the loss of blood, and from the agonizing pain of my broken leg. I had to reach the light, I didn’t know why, but I had to! Then I was there. I looked up into the shining light before me. I didn’t understand what I was seeing, but it looked like a floating blood-red jewel. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I couldn’t explain it, but the light pulsing from the jewel seemed almost hypnotic, and I felt a greater and greater urge to reach for it. It was the only light down here in these caverns, where I would most likely die, and the unknown desire to touch the stone kept growing. I pushed myself to my knees and reached my bloody hand out to touch the stone. As my hand came closer to the stone, I felt the air around me tingle, with some sort of power. I didn’t pay attention to it though, I needed to touch this jewel!
To my surprise, the stone leapt toward my outstretched hand, and the next second, the jewel was touching my hand. At first, nothing happened, I stared into the luminesce of the floating jewel, and then my world exploded in pain. I had felt a lot of pain in my life, with the beatings, and fights in the arena, but never anything like this. I tried to scream, but I couldn’t, my body was locked in a rictus, and I saw the jewel pulse faster and faster. I felt my feet lift off the ground, and I found myself floating in midair. The pain grew worse and worse, until I felt like I would go mad from it. It felt as if pure fire was coursing through my veins, and that I was melting from the inside. I wish I could die now! I wanted to die! Death would be a welcome release compared to this!
And then just like that, it all stopped. The jewel stopped pulsing and seemed to melt into a red liquid. I was still locked rigid in midair, but the mind-melting pain no longer racked my body. Then the liquid seemed to flow into my flesh, and something that I would never have expected happened. I heard a voice.
“So, at long last, I have found a soul worthy of my dominant might.”
The voice had an ancient sound to it, it was a voice that seemed to exude authority and power. Never before had I heard a voice that carried such an imperious air to it! I tried calling out to the voice, but I was still immobilized in midair. Before I had time to process what the hell was even going on, I felt as if my vision was flying backwards, like I was flying down a deep chasm, and what I saw before me became more distant by the second, until I could see nothing but black.
Suddenly, my mind stabilized, and my vision began to clear. What I saw in front of me took my breath away. Laying before me, with its arms crossed was the largest creature I had ever seen, as I took in the creature before me, I felt my throat tighten. It couldn’t be! The creature that sat before me was…..a dragon!
The dragon towered over me, even laying down its head rose at least Eighty feet above my own. Its eyes were the size of two of my heads and stared down at me with a calculating gleam in its eyes. I saw the intelligence behind the dragon’s eyes, and I found myself staring back at the dragon in wonder. The dragon’s scales were a blood red and seemed to gleam with a magical radiance that drew my attention.
“Are you done gawking like a pathetic animal?”
The dragon's voice shocked me out of my examination, and I looked back to the dragon’s face. The voice was distinctly male and filled with scorn.
“I…I am sorry, I just- Who are you!? What have you done to me!? And where am I!?” the questions spilled from my mouth in a quick torrent of words. I had no idea how the hell I had gone from being barely alive, with a broken leg, missing fingers, and lost underground in the middle of who the fuck knew where to now be standing before a real-life dragon! The dragon shook its large head at me, as though he pitied me, and not in a good way.
“To answer your first question, I am Raskorian, Elder drake of the royal line of dragons. While it is natural for you to feel awe in my presence, refrain from babbling like a hatchling. The answer to your second question is I have saved you from an ignominious death. And finally, you are in your mindscape, though that should have been obvious, seeing how empty it is.”
Where at first, I had been awestruck, and completely bewildered, now I felt myself becoming angry, was this guy calling me stupid? I opened my mouth to make an angry retort but was cut off again by the dragon’s thunderous voice.
“Now before you strain yourself, trying to comprehend my splendor, let me explain a few things. You have been chosen to hold my conscious and power within your,” The dragon paused as if considering his next words, “Passable body.”
That was enough, I didn’t care anymore that a dragon was towering over me, but if this was in my mind, I wasn’t going to sit here, and let this overgrown reptile, talk to me as if I was a dumb child. As Raskorian paused, I finally was able to speak, “Hold on one minute!” I barked at him, “I do not care if you are an elder dragon, or whatever the fuck you are! I have had a long day, I was nearly executed, fell down a chasm, nearly froze in a river, broke my leg, gnawed off my fingers, and had a crazy jewel attempt to fry my brain! Needless to say, I am not in the mood be talked down to by a dragon, who is apparently inhabiting MY OWN MIND!” I was shouting by the time I finished and couldn’t give two shits about the angry look in the dragon’s eyes.
“YOU DARE TO SPEAK TO ME IN SUCH A FASHION!” Raskorian roared at me! I felt the space around me tremble, from the might of the dragon, but once again, I was too angry to really care.
“Well as you so directly implied that I am stupid, does it really surprise you that I dare to yell at an arrogant intruder in my mind?!”
The dragon rose up to his full height and glowered down at me, and I saw smoke flowing out of the corners of his mouth. It was now that I fully took in the awe inspiring presence of the dragon. Previously, I could only really see his scale encrusted neck, and head. While the rest of his body had been curled up. Ow that he was standing on his four massive legs, I realized he was even more massive than I had thought. He now stood well over what I guessed was one hundred feet. His head had to large horns that pointed straight back and ended in deadly points. His ears were just below the horns, and lay almost flat against his head. His maw hung open, and rows upon rows of teeth that even from this distance were large, I guessed they were easily the same length as mu entire body. His blood red scales flexed and gleamed as his belly began to glow with a crimson light. I realized it must have been fire boiling up from his belly. His tail lashed the ground, and made the empty dark of my mind rumble with the vibrations. His wings expanded to what I assumed were their fullest extension. They were an incredible sight. What looked like fleshy membrane made up the majority of the wings, and he flapped them once, and the accompanying wind blast knocked me off of my feet.
“You should be honored to that I am even taking the time to speak to one such as you! You are a perversion of what a pure dragon should be, and I saved your worthless life! I have leveled armies in my bodily life, and have razed entire kingdoms to the ground! Kings paid homage to me, and emperors quailed in terror! Who are you to speak to me with such utter disrespect?! I am owed your obeisance!” Raskorian’s tone was now a mix of anger and indignation. He really seemed to think that I should be groveling before his feet. I had spent a life enslaved, and I had no intention of rolling over like a submissive dog before this arrogant ass. That wasn’t to say I wasn’t intimidated. No sane, or insane man for that matter wouldn’t be. The dragon was terrifying. Still this was my mind, and I didn’t think he would truly harm me after just apparently saving me. That was when his list of boasts caught my attention.
“Wait, your bodily life? So, you only exist in my mind?”
The dragon seemed to calm slightly and lay back down on the ground, and said irritably, “Yes, if you had not so impudently interrupted me, I would have finished explaining your situation. Now will you be obedient and listen, or will you persist in your arrogant remarks and interruptions Drayzraac?”
This guy’s way of speaking was really beginning to wear down my patience, but I needed to know what exactly was going on, so for now, I would have to try and keep the dragon talking.
“I have no intention of being obedient when this is all apparently happening in my own head, but I am willing to listen while you explain what the fuck is going on here.”
The dragon huffed at me and said, “You are as eloquent as a wild hog, but this will have to do for now. Getting back to my explanation of your situation, the jewel that you touched was an ancient relic of my people. I was entrapped within that accursed jewel by the combined might of the other elders. Despite the war we were waging on the lesser races, they had all grown fearful of my power. While they wouldn’t have been able to kill me, they instead schemed to trap my soul within the jewel. They made a mistake however, and my might was sorely missed as they began to lose the war. They also failed to take my wisdom into account and never dreamed that I would find a way to once again ris- “
“Wait hold on, if you were a dragon in the wars fought hundreds of years ago, tell me why you dragons attacked the continents? No one knows the reason why you all began slaughtering the people of this world?”
Raskorian looked at me irritably and simply said, “That is none of your concern Drayzraac. Once again stop interrupting.”
I rolled my eyes at the dragon. He was becoming a real pain in the ass, but I let the topic go for now, and listen to the rest of his words.
“As I was saying, they never dreamed that I would find a way to transfer my soul into a mortal lesser beings vessel. That relic that you touched was a reliquary of my soul.”
“So, when I touched that reliquary, I absorbed your soul?”
“Yes Drayzraac, you had the honor of absorbing my glorious soul, and now you will do my bidding, and help me take my vengeance upon the world! There are lesser races that still deserve my wrath. I am hungry after hundreds of years in stasis!”
“I don’t think so.”
“What?!” His surprised tone filled with indignation was actually comical.
“I have been a slave for the majority of my life, and I have no intention of doing your bidding.”
Raskorian growled menacingly at me, but as surreal as it sounded, I didn’t really bother me. Now that I came to grips with the fact that this was all happening in my mind, it became easier to realize that he couldn’t actually hurt me here if he could, I guessed he would have done more than knock me on my feet me earlier for my apparently disrespectful attitude. Still, I did like the sound of more power. It would be a nice change in my life to be the one with the power. Perhaps this asshole in my head was actually an opportunity.
“What do you mean by I absorbed your soul, and you mentioned power?”
“Hmph, I am done trying to explain to you the honor you have been given by joining with my soul, return to your body, and figure a way out of these caves. Go and kill something of suitable blood essence, and more will be explained.”
“Blood essence?” I had no idea what the frustrating dragon was talking about, and how the hell was I supposed to find a way out of the caves, when I had a broken leg, and no thumbs? And how the hell did I even leave…. my own mind?
Raskorian didn’t answer, and I rolled my eyes at the irritable dragon, and said, “Well if you won’t explain any more until I kill something with….the appropriate blood essence, tell me how the hell I am even supposed to accomplish that when I have a broken leg back in those caverns, and I most likely have lost quite a bit of blood from having to chew my own thumbs off.
Raskorian looked at me and seemed to be considering the best way to crush me, but then he huffed, and said, “Now that I have a host, I no longer needed to hoard my blood essence. I spent the last of it, healing your wounds, now begone from my prese
nce.”
“Wait you healed me?! How?!” The damn dragon was now facing away from me curled into a ball, and thoroughly ignoring me.
“GRRRR,” I growled under my breath. I take it back, this dragon in my head wasn’t an opportunity, it was a pain in the ass! How the hell did I get out of here?! I closed my eyes and did my best to calm down. If I was healed, then I would need my wits about me to get out of the tunnels my body was still in. first though, I needed to figure out how to get out of here.
I remembered that when I first ended up here, it had seemed as if I had sunk down into my own body and watched as my vision quickly retracted. Maybe if I focused on reversing that feeling I would- my train of thought was cut off, due to the fact, that I was now hurtling up, and seconds later, I found myself back in the real world.
That was made obvious due to the fact that there was no longer a giant asshole of a dragon. Also, because I was in the pitch fucking black under who knew how many feet of earth. Great, just fucking great. As I lay there irritated at the state, I found myself in, I realized something. Raskorian had been correct, I was healed. The pain that had been sending jagged feelings of pain into my head, was now gone. Though I could see my hand in front of my face, when I made a fist now, I felt the familiar presence of my thumbs. They were back, and I didn’t even feel a scar from where I had gnawed them off. I marveled at the fact that my digits had been restored, but I was actually more grateful for the fact that my leg was no longer at the unnatural angle it had been at before.
“This is incredible!” I breathed out in amazement, the dragon may have been an asshole, but at least he had been able to heal me.
I lay there, in the pitch black of the cavern, and just relished the release from the pain. I couldn’t believe it. I was alive, uninjured, and for the first time in almost two decades free. The implications of that came crashing down on me like a hammer. Free. I was free! I was in the middle of nowhere, lost underground, with a snarky dragon in my head, but I was free!