Ardose’s eyes widened. His breathing caught short. Slowly, deliberately, he set the leather bound book on a side table and stood up. “A dragon, you say?”
“Yes, my lord.” Richard’s arms held tight against his body, his eyes fixed on the floor.
The knight stepped over to the fireplace. He grabbed a poker and nudged the burning coals. Sparks flew up with the smoke. “and when, pray tell, did you see this creature, squire?”
Although his lord’s tone was calm and his pose refined, Richard knew of the turmoil which must be boiling underneath. Sir Ardose never refereed to him as ‘squire’ unless something troubled him. “Just now, sir.” He said. “As I was on my way here. I looked up at the sky and saw the creature as it flew down from the mountain. It then disappeared into the clouds.”
“Hm.” Ardose placed the poker back against the rock face of the fireplace. “So, it was flying away when you saw it, is that true?”
“Yes, sir.” Richard nodded.
Ardose starred into the fire. His hands were clasped together behind him and his back was to Richard. “Squire, tell me. What exactly did you see?”
“A dragon, sir.”
“Did you? Is that, in fact, what you saw? Or did you see just some dark shape?” Ardose turned back to face his apprentice. “For all you know, it my not have been anything.”
“But I saw it with my own eyes.” Richard pleaded.
“I do not doubt your conviction.” Ardose said. “But the point I am trying to make is simply that what you thing you saw and what was actually there may not be the same thing.”
Richard kept his arms stiff by his sides. His neck felt hot and his eyes shifted around the room. He was unwilling to meet his master’s gaze. “My lord,” he finally said, “what should we to do?”
“Nothing.” Ardose said in a flat tone.
“Nothing? Sir, with all due respect, there is a fire-breathing dragon now living right on our doorstep, we need to take action to destroy it.”
“I admire your bravery, my boy,” Sir Ardose spoke, “but I’d like you to think logically for a moment. At this time of year, trying to scout out the mountain would be a dangerous endeavor and only lead to death. And what if we did successfully climb that mountain and found nothing?” Ardose paced in front of the fireplace.
“Is it not better to search in case of a dragon and not find one, than to have a dragon and do nothing?” Richard regretted those words almost as soon as he said them. He’d spoken out of turn and not addressed his master properly. A pit grew in his stomach as he awaited Sir Ardose’s response.
“You have made a point.” The knight said. “and it is a good point, but think of the villagers. From what you’ve said, no one else has seen this thing. Rumors of a dragon in these mountains would cause panic and strife among the common people. It is better than we keep this quiet so that the people do not fear. And if there is a dragon, then it will most likely leave soon enough.” He stepped over to Richard and looked him straight in the face. “Do you understand?”
Richard gave a quick nod. “Yes, sir.”
“Good. Then you are dismissed.” Ardose moved back to his chair by the fire.
Richard gabbed the door handle and was about to step out when Ardose called him back.
“Squire,” the knight said, “in the next few weeks I will be going to visit my family and will be away for up to a month. You’ll be in charge while I’m gone, and I don’t want to hear anymore about this dragon business. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, sir.” Richard grabbed his cloak off of the rack, slung it over his shoulders, and stepped back into the cold. The wind chilled him down to the bone. He pulled the wolf-skin cloak tighter around him. On impulse, he looked back up at the mountain. He watched and waited. Maybe there would be something else; another flash of fire, another flying dark mass, or even a dragon’s roar. But there was nothing.
Perhaps Sir Ardose was right. After all, it was far away and blurry, maybe there wasn’t anything after all. Maybe he’d just imagined it.
But still, he was conflicted. With a sigh, he tugged his cloak tightly around him and headed for home, his feet sank into the snow with each step.
But Richard did not think about the snow, he still thought about that thing he saw. What was it? and why did Sir Ardose dismiss him so quickly? Richard frowned. Ardose was the lord and he was his squire, which meant he would follow whatever commands his master told him. Plus, Ardose might be right after all. He would have to wait and see how things turned out.
Chapter 2
T he dragon flew down over the tops of the trees, the freshly fallen powder swept into the air as she soared past. She scanned the forest below, her eyes moved back and forth in their sockets. With her wings held out straight to conserve energy, she glided over the forest in search of prey.
A flash of movement caught her attention. An animal took off running below the tree line, its long springy legs propelled it forward in great leaps. The dragon tilted her wings and took off in pursuit. With each down stroke he picked up speed and closed in on her target.
It was a young doe, not yet old enough to bear fawns. It ran, pushed ahead by its long legs. A fallen tree lay in the deer’s path, but it gave an extra push with its hind legs and leapt over it. The doe was fast, but no match for the speed of a dragon’s wings.
Each downward thrust of her wings pushed her forward. Faster and faster she flew, the gap between her and her target grew smaller. The branches beneath her blurred together in a mass of green, brown and white as she closed in. A growl formed in her throat. She could almost taste it now.
The trees pulled back as the deer ran into a small clearing. The dragon folded her wings back and fell into a dive. Her front claws reached out, talons like steel hooks prepared to tear flesh. She was eager to catch it, to feel its warm flesh around her claws and blood on her tongue.
As she closed in, her eyesight started to waver. Everything blurred, images turned fuzzy around the edges, an effect of her hunger.
At the last possible second, the deer sprung to the left. It veered off into the trees and left only tiny hoof prints in the snow. Unable to stop her descent, the dragon plowed face first into the snow with an explosion of white powder.
As the snow resettled, the dragon yanked her head back out and shook the remaining snow away. Slightly dazed, and immensely frustrated, she let a vicious growl escape her throat. That growl soon turned into a roar. Even as she roared, her stomach roared just as loud.
This was the third deer to escape her today, and the fourth day since she’d had a successful hunt. Her ribs were noticeably visible on her chest now, and her senses had started to waver. A dragon’s eyes were normally sharp enough to spot a deer from more than a mile away at a thousand feet in the air. But it was her vision that had failed her now and let her prey escape.
The animals in this forest were more scarce than they should be, but she did not smell the markings of any other dragons in her territory, or of other large predators like wolves or bears. Never-the-less, something had been hunting in these woods.
The dragon flared her wings and flexed her chest muscles to work out the aches and pains from the crash. She pushed off from the ground, and with a mighty down stroke, was airborne again to begin the hunt anew.
A white haired rabbit jumped through the forest. It raced as fast as its legs could go. The dragon dipped below the tree line and took chase. The small furry animal bounded across the forest floor, its fur blended in perfectly with the snow.
The dragon’s eyes began to fade again. The snow, the rabbit, the tree, all of it blurred together. She blinked and shook her head, but when she opened her eyes again, the rabbit was gone.
She banked, the draft of wind caused by her wings kicked up a small burst of snow as she landed. Her eyes shifted from one direction to the other, but there was nothing. Only the standing pines, the blankets of snow all around, and a single fallen log.
Her eyes fixed on the log, a thick black chunk of
dead wood against the white of the forest floor. The dragon growled. She charged the tree trunk and slashed it with her claws, the rotten bark splintered and cracked. The startled rabbit raced away from the rotten log towards an open burrow. She took off after it, desperate for food.
This time she would make no mistake. She was too large to fly under the trees, and if the rabbit made another sharp turn it would be impossible for her to keep up, especially in her condition. She had to use her ultimate weapon.
The dragon pushed a gas bubble up from her stomach. Just as it reached the back of her throat, she flexed the pair of venom sacks in the roof of her mouth. Her mouth snapped open, the venom sprayed from her teeth and mixed in the air, it combined with the gas from her stomach and ignited in a stream of fire.
The rabbit’s fur instantly set ablaze. It flailed, flopped, and screamed in terrible pain. The dragon closed in and snapped its jaws around the small animal. Bones snapped under the pressure, the rabbit was dead in seconds.
She dropped the flaming carcass back to the snow. The flames extinguished with a hiss of steam. The dragon pawed at her prey. The use of fire on a rabbit was almost a waste of resources, as it was little more than a mouthful to her, and the chemicals needed to produce fire were biologically expensive. What she needed was food, more than just a rodent. She could swallow this whole.
Which is exactly what she did. The dragon took the rabbit in her jaws, tilted her head back, and swallowed it. It may not be much, but she would take anything to quell her hunger.
Chapter 3
“C
ome along, Rennec.” Vince kicked his heels into his horse and the animal trotted forward. His apprentice, Rennec, rode along side on a young gelding. They rode south together to a small township in Northern Italy. A cart was hitched to Rennec’s gelding which carried their supplies and weapons. “We are almost there.”
“Yes, sir.” Rennec whipped the reins.
They came to a small inn on the outskirts of town. After dismounting, Vince handed the reins of his horse to Rennec. “Stay here, I’ll secure us a room.”
“Yes, sir.” Rennec said.
Vince stepped inside the tavern. He found it dimly lit with the innkeeper busy behind the counter and only a few of the tables occupied. “Hmm.” He scratched at his beard with a gloved hand. He walked up to the counter and placed his hands firmly on the tabletop. “Excuse me,” he said.
The bartender jerked up. He spun around to face Vince and was startled by his appearance; this man dressed like a soldier.
Vince wore his navy blue cape across his shoulders which hung down to his ankles, an armor breastplate over his torso, a pair of thick gloves, and a sword at his hip. His crossbow was slung over his back. “Hello.” He spoke with his limited knowledge of Italian. “Need a room. Two people. Stable needed for horses. How much?”
“Ah. A room for two. How long are you expecting to stay?” The inn keeper asked.
“Few days. That is all.” Vince said. He pulled open the leather purse on his waist and placed a few gold coins on the counter top. “Is enough?”
The eyes of the inn keeper lit up. He stared at the coins, his face almost illuminated by the reflected light from them. “Yes, yes. Is enough.”
“Good.” Vince tightened the lacing on his purse and tugged at the strap holding his crossbow in place. “Show me.”
Just as the inn keeper was about to direct Vince to the rooms, a loud scream erupted from outside. It was soon joined by other shrieks and shrills as people panicked and started to run. The tavern door flew open and Rennec raced inside. “Sir! It’s a pair of dragons! They’re attacking the village!”
“Oh, no! This can’t be happening, not again!” The inn keeper clasped his hands over his head. He ducked down and crawled under the staircase, curled up in the fetal position.
Vince slid the crossbow off his back and gripped it tightly in his hands. “Rennec, ammunition.”
“Yes, sir.” Rennec ran back outside to the cart and steadied the horses. He climbed inside the cart, quickly found a loading box of quills, and tossed it over to Vince just as the elder man exited the inn.
Vince caught the quills with one hand just before loading them in his crossbow. Overhead, he saw the dragons. It was a pair, one male and one female.
The dragon slayer recognized the differences at a glance. The female was larger, her scales were more dull and pale green, and the horns which grew from the back of her head were shorter and less pronounced. The male was slimmer than his mate, his wings had more reds and yellow in the scales and membranes than the females, his scales were a brighter orange, and his horns were longer and more pronounced.
The male flew over the village. It swooped in low and roared, the villagers ran in terror below. As the dragon neared one building, it unleashed a burst of flames and caught the straw roofing on fire. It then quickly turned away.
Vince recognized exactly what this dragon was doing. This was not hunting behavior, the male was just the distraction. The real threat here was the female. “Rennec, bring my horse.”
Rennec led Vince's horse to him by the reins. Vince quickly hopped on the animals back and kicked it in the sides. “Scout ahead, boy. Find the female, look for the signs like I taught you.” He galloped away before he had a chance to hear the boy’s response. He didn’t need to, he trusted his apprentice.
On horseback, Vince raced through the village, his crossbow at the ready. It didn’t take him long before he spotted the female at a farm, it had just smashed its way into a closed barn and he could hear the animals inside bleating in terror. There was a roar of flames and a snapping of bones. The dragon emerged from the barn with the body of a fully grown ram clamped in her jaws.
Vince tugged on the reins and turned his horse towards the dragon. He latched the lever back on the crossbow, the bowstring pulled back taunt, and a bolt slipped into place. Then, taking his hands off the reins and directing the horse with just his legs, he held the crossbow up at eye level and aimed.
The female dragon flared its wings, the span of which was nearly twice as wide as its body was long, and took off into the air with a powerful down stroke. The wind kicked up a cloud of dirt around her. Still, Vince’s aim was true. He pulled the trigger and the bowstring snapped forward.
The quill flew from the crossbow and struck the beast in the chest. The dragon winced and staggered in the air, but it remained airborne. Vince latched the lever and fired again. This time the bolt struck in the wing joint at the base of the shoulder.
The dragon roared in pain, its prey slipped from its mouth. Unable to flap its wing, the dragon fell back to earth. It crashed with a loud thud to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust and dirt.
Vince dismounted his horse, he gave it a slap on the flank and it galloped away back to Rennec as it had been trained to. The dust began to settle as Vince approached the fallen creature, his crossbow still gripped firmly in his hands.
The dragon burst from the dust cloud. It charged him with its teeth bared and claws outstretched. A ball of fire escaped from the dragon's open mouth.
Vince ducked to the ground, he pulled his cloak around his body just as the flames engulfed him. He felt the heat, but the fire did not reach him. Once the heat dissipated, he jumped back up and fired the crossbow.
The sharp metal tip of the bolt flew into the dragon’s open mouth. It embedded deep in the flesh of its neck and throat. The dragon gagged and coughed, blood gushed from the wound and poured over its tongue to splash on the ground. It snapped its jaws open and shut but couldn’t dislodge the intrusion, in fact it only drove the bolt deeper.
As Vince readied another shot, he heard the loud angry roar of the male dragon. It swooped in low over him, a stream of flames erupted from its mouth. Vince covered himself with his cloak as it flew overhead and the fire surrounded him. Sweat poured down his face, he kept his breathing quick and shallow to avoid the smoke.
The female dragon staggered. It gagged on the arrow lod
ged in its throat, choking on its own blood. The dragon collapsed to the ground, it convulsed and twitched. Its eyes rolled over white as its last breath escaped.
The male landed next to its mate. It nudged the dead female gently with its muzzle, and when that failed it grasped its teeth around the other's neck and tried to lift it up. Try as it might, the male could not revive the dead female.
The dragon slayer threw back his cloak and fired another bolt. This one was a blind shot, and the bolt missed its target completely. The male dragon flinched when the arrow flew past its head. It quickly grabbed the dead goat and took off into the air, leaving its mate and the dragon slayer behind.
Vince watched as the male dragon flew back towards the mountains, chest heaving with excitement and exhaustion. He had not expected to get involved in a dragon hunt today, not that he was complaining. He set the crossbow over his right shoulder and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his left hand.
Vince walked over to the fallen female. It was most likely dead, but he always liked to be sure. Setting the crossbow down gently, he pulled his sword from the sheath, and with a single stroke he beheaded the dragon.
Rennec came riding up on his gelding, the boy held the reins of Vince’s horse with his free hand. Vince strode over, he carried the dragon’s severed head by one of its horns, and took the reins from his apprentice. “Take this,” he said, tossing the head to Rennec.
“Was it the same one?” Rennec asked, now holding the dragon’s severed head awkwardly in his lap. “The same female from France?”
“No.” Vince mounted his horse. “It had none of the same scars or markings. This was an entirely different female. But this one had a mate, and that means there’s likely a nest nearby.”
“Chances are good the male is heading that way.” Rennec observed.
“Yes. That’s true.” He snapped the reins and pulled the horse around back to the village. “Come. We should prepare.”
No sooner had he turned around then he saw the entire gathering of villagers together in a crowd behind him. They stared at him, awestruck and amazed. A few whispered amongst themselves, and then a person shouted, “He killed the beast!”
The Last Stand of the Dragon Page 2