by Lisa Daniels
“What?” Elian gave her an honestly shocked look.
“You never even asked who I was. Why do you care what I do or who I work for if you can’t even bother to find out who I am first?”
Elian opened and shut his mouth. “I didn’t care who you were because that wasn’t what mattered. I wasn’t responsible for you getting hurt, but I was responsible for what happened next.”
Annora lowered her blades as she tried to understand what he was saying.
His eyes showed how guilty he felt. “You were right. I should have done something.”
“I don’t understand.” Annora was standing still. As soon as he moved, her weapons were back at the ready.
Elian looked up at the sky. “I felt responsible for you, so I couldn’t just let you go. I’ve made that mistake before and,” he raised his hands indicating their surroundings, “this is where I am because of it.”
“That was very sweet of you, but it was totally unnecessary. Now you know, you can leave and not feel bad about it.”
“I cannot leave, not if you intended to kill her.”
“Why do you care about a dragon?”
Elian struck with such speed and force that Annora had a hard time keeping up with him. The first blow knocked the sword out of her hand and into the cave. The second blow forced her into the mouth of the cave.
He loomed in front of her before she could retrieve the dirk. Scrabbling to get away from Elian and retrieve her weapon, Annora repeated her question, “Why do you care? Are you a hunter too?”
Elian let out a laugh that felt as if it would shake the entire mountain. “No, I am not a dragon slayer. I do not kill my kind. I am responsible for what happened to her, for the fact that she lost her mind.”
Annora had no idea what he was talking about, but she could not allow him to trap her in the cave. As he moved toward her, she dove past him as he explained. Back out in the dusky light, the dragon slayer tried to find her stride. Whatever the guy had said was insane – it made no sense.
When he strode out of the cave, his sword wasn’t even ready. “Who hired you?”
As she tried to strike, Elian easily knocked her attack wide. “Who hired you?”
Annora tried to press in again only to be easily rebuffed a second time.
“Who hired you?”
“King Salmon.” Her eyes were narrowed as she watched the look of horror on his face. “But I would have done it for free after what this monster did to Marked Tree. Do you have any idea what those people suffered? After so long, they were starting to prosper, and then – BAM!” Her sword lashed out again while he seemed almost immobile. He deflected her strike, but she managed to catch his forearm. A thin line of blood appeared.
Elian didn’t seem to notice as he watched her. “You are The Fiend?”
“I’ve never heard that name before.”
Annora wasn’t sure she heard him as he continued, “You’ve killed over a dozen dragons? On your own?”
It was the usual response: “Couldn’t possibly be true. I’m just a woman. Women could never do something so manly.”
Elian shook his head. Annora was about to say something else when he answered, “You can’t be. I don’t want you to be.”
“Too bad. This is personal. That monster dies tonight.” She stepped forward.
Looking directly into her eyes, his own pleading, he said, “Please don’t do this. Just let me talk to her. Let me talk to her first.”
“What? It’s a dragon, you can’t persuade or talk to a dragon.”
“Please. I promise-” Whatever Elian was about to say was lost as a loud roar let them know that the reason for their fight had returned.
Both heads swiveled as the dragon came crashing down on the ledge nearby.
Chapter 9
Impossible Odds
Without thinking, Annora’s blades immediately went up to block herself as the dragon’s teeth snapped out at her. Suddenly, a hand wrapped around her arm and jerked her out of reach of the dragon. From the place where she fell, Annora looked up to see Elian with his arms outstretched. “Please stop!” he pleaded.
The dragon looked down at him, its eyes unfocused.
“Please stop this. It’s enough!” His voice was commanding. The dragon seemed to waver in what it should do.
“Come back with me.” His voice cracked with emotion.
The dragon roared and before Annora could do anything, it swatted Elian over the lip of the ledge as if he were a fly.
Annora’s heart stopped as she watched the look on his face as he disappeared over the edge. Please be safe. Please be safe. Her thoughts were beyond her control. Oh gods, just be safe and I will help you when this is over with. I will do anything you ask, just be safe. Please be alright.
She nearly choked when that last thought passed. Enraged, she immediately lunged at the dragon. The dragon was momentarily confused as the woman raced toward her. It was only when the sword and dirk connected with her throat that the dragon roared and started to fight back.
Annora was going in for another attack when she felt a hot wind blowing up from the side of the mountain. Both her head and the dragon’s turned as another dragon emerged. In her shock, Annora forgot to watch the first dragon. It seized the opportunity to swat her, causing the dragon hunter to smash into the rock face. The wound on her arm reopened and the blood freely flowed through her new shirt. Her ankle twisted the wrong way as she crumpled to the ground.
Ready to accept the end, Annora looked up. There was no way she would be able to face two dragons, and now she would likely not be able to face one.
To her surprise, the new dragon was more than double the size of the first and it was attacking the smaller dragon. While her mind told her it wasn’t mating season, Annora’s body immediately took her into the cave to get out of the way. There was no way to go down the cliff now, and remaining outside was a sure way to get killed. The odds weren’t too much better in the cave, but at least there they were better. Annora pushed up against the wall as the entire place shook from the fight going on outside.
The smaller dragon repeatedly tried to get into the cave, but the larger dragon kept dragging it back. One time the small dragon looked ready to breathe fire, but something happened and it had ended up swallowing the flame before it could be spewed into the cavern.
Though she had gotten as far back in the cavern as she could, Annora could still see the dragons fighting. The large one was too big to stand, so it continued to hover near the entrance. There was no way it could have entered the cave, nor could it land to stop the other one, but its size was a definite advantage as the other dragon could not seem to find a way to work around it. From what she could see of the second dragon, it was large and black. Once or twice she thought she saw the flash of a red eye, but the dragon slayer thought it must be just her imagination.
Annora tried to rewrap her ankle as the dragons fought. Despite what the smaller one had done, its attention largely stayed focused on the large one. Since the small one was able to stand on the ledge, it was able to bite and rake its claws on the stomach of the larger one when it tried to shift positions. She could see dragon blood oozing out of some of the wounds. As far as the dragon slayer could tell, there were very few marks on the little one, almost as if the large one was trying to keep from hurting her.
Finally, the little one clamped its jaws down on the large one’s wing. It roared in pain and momentarily disappeared from view. With the second dragon gone, the small one made a dash for the cave.
Annora looked up at a now very angry dragon that had smoke billowing out of its nostrils.
Your turn, you bastard. Without any concern for herself, Annora charged at the surprised beast.
Chapter 10
The Dragon Slayer’s Lullaby
The dragon had not expected the welcome that it got as soon as it entered the cave. Annora slid under it and shoved her dirk into the soft underside of the dragon’s jaw. She felt it plunge in
to the tongue, and the dragon slayer twisted the dirk.
The roar was nearly deafening as the creature thrashed trying to kill Annora and get the blade out. Rolling several times, the dragon slayer was able to attack with her sword, driving the blade into the creature’s stomach. It roared again and swung its head to find her. Annora was too fast. As the beast snapped out at her, the young woman dove under it, dragging her blade along the scales. Many of them were knocked from the dragon’s body, and blood began to flow. The dragon hunter barely managed to get out from under the dragon as it slammed its body down where she had been.
Annora’s sword was up again as she charged at the dragon from the other side. She heard the blood pumping in her ears and she ignored the pain screaming at her from her arm and ankle. Ignoring the blood running down her side from her open wound, Annora aimed to drive her sword into the dragon’s eye. The dragon saw what she was doing and brought its head up above her, the steam flowing. It was only a matter of time before the thing breathed fire. The dragon slayer shifted the grip on her sword and drove it into the dragon’s throat. The smoke immediately stopped as the creature roared again. Now bleeding from numerous wounds, the dragon seemed to be slowing down.
“That’s right. You wiped out Marked Tree, and now you’ve knocked Elian over the edge. I think I’ll leave you alive just long enough to make sure he’s alright, and if Elian isn’t-”
The dragon’s claws lashed out, catching the young woman on the right leg as she dodged. Annora rolled and came up in a fighting stance. The pain was minor compared to the rage.
“Really, I cannot leave you alone for a minute without you doing something reckless, can I?”
Annora could not stop the smile that spread across her face, even as the dragon snorted, causing the smoke to curl out of its nostrils.
“I’ll have you know that it has been several minutes, and you can just sit this one out. I’m not going to back down from this.” Her heart was singing as Annora realized that Elian was alright. For all of his faults, his timing really was impeccable.
“I’m afraid you are wrong there.”
The dragon’s eyes watched them, as if it was trying to decide who to attack first.
“I’ve already told you, this is what I do. I’m not going to let this creature live to kill more innocent people.”
There was a heavy sigh and the sound of metal scraping against the ground. “I’m no longer here to stop you. She’s too far gone. The kindest thing to do is to put her down quickly.”
Annora moved around as she tried to get a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye. His voice was sorrowful, but Elian seemed to agree with her. The dragon hunter had wanted to make the creature suffer, but in her current state, there was much more she would be able to do before she would be too weak to fight a dragon. No matter how good she was or how badly hurt the dragon was, a dragon could endure far more than a human body. Annora’s arm was already beginning to falter as she tried to maneuver. Even though she wasn’t wielding anything in her right hand, she needed to be able to move faster, which was impossible in her current state. Her legs were also starting to feel weak. If Elian wanted to finish it quickly, that was the best thing. Catching his eye she nodded at him.
They moved at the same time, striking from two different sides. The way they moved reminded her of the way the orthrus had coordinated its attack. It was like they were a single creature taking the necessary roles to finish the task.
The dragon’s head swung back and forth as if confused. Annora dug her sword into the beast’s throat as Elian jumped on its snout and ran up between its eyes. He said something that the dragon slayer could not quite hear as he drove the broadsword through the creature’s skull. It gurgled and spluttered for a few seconds before falling over.
Annora was about to wipe her sword on it, when she realized that Elian was gently stroking the creature. Its eyes were fluttering before it finally shut them with a gentle sigh. Feeling entirely out of place, the dragon slayer moved away from them as he bowed his head. She needed to retrieve her dirk, but didn’t feel comfortable with the display in front of her. It could wait.
She slumped against the wall and let her body begin to complain about everything she had done to it for more than a week. Annora knew that the next few days were going to be difficult now that she had nothing to drive her. Her judgment was always clouded when it was personal, and she would end up pushing herself too far as she tried to kill the emotional pain. It always brought out the worst in her and Bree had repeatedly warned her about what would happen. It was why she had avoided answering questions when she and Bree talked – the more she said, the easier it would be for her friend to realize that the dragon slayer was emotionally compromised. That would only make Bree worry more. Once she had even poisoned Annora’s drink so that she was forced to sleep off her pain, but it ended up causing the biggest argument they had ever had, even bigger than the argument when Nyle had decided to fight dragons.
Her mind roamed through memories as she tried to give Elian some privacy. Annora was so far within her own thoughts that she only noticed that he had approached when he held the dirk in front of her face.
With a vague smile, she took it and stood up. “Thank you very much. I would have taken care…” Her voice trailed off as she looked at him. She just barely got her arms out in time to stop him from collapsing. He was heavy, so she was not able to help him continue standing, but she was able to help him gently reach the floor.
Her arms were covered in blood as she pulled back. “Gods! How did this happen?” His torso and arms were covered in scratches that were nearly to the bone in some places.
Elian nodded toward the back of the cave. “Move the rock. There are… supplies.”
Annora had a lot of questions, but her experience told her now was not the time. She moved as quickly as she could with her injuries to the rock and moved it. There were strange supplies. Annora untucked her shirt and piled the supplies up on it. Hobbling back to Elian, she sat down.
“I don’t know what some of this stuff is, but tell me what to do.”
Elian instructed her for more than 15 minutes. Once Annora had his shirt off, she wondered if he was going to make it. She vaguely noticed a dragon tattoo that covered his left shoulder and ran down his arm. Blood seemed to trickle form the dragons mouth, running down his left side. Her attention was on the wounds. The gashes on his body looked like claw marks. She kept muttering, “I don’t understand. What happened?” Elian ignored it as his voice got fainter.
At one point he closed his eyes. Annora put his head in her lap because there was nothing else she could do. “No, no, you don’t get to do this. I still owe you. I am not about to live indebted to a dead person because I hear they are abusive since they have nothing else to do.”
There was a faint smile on Elian’s face as he looked up at her. “Surely you don’t believe in ghosts.”
She shook her head at him. “You would have to be a fool not to in my line of business. And I will tell you right now, if you die here, I will not do anything else to help you, not a single thing.”
A strained laugh shook his body, forcing his mouth into a grimace just afterward. “Well, guess I’ll have to pull through then. It’s a good thing that stuff will work miracles on people like me.”
Annora figured he was talking big. Wanting to comfort him, she began to run her hand through his hair. He closed his eyes. “Mmmm.”
Immediately, she reacted. “Are you alright? What else can I do?”
Elian’s eyes opened and they seemed to be laughing despite the pain. A small smile on his face seemed more like he has happy, too, instead of acting brave.
“Could we just stay like this for a little bit? I promise it won’t take long, just until the pain stops.”
Thinking he was predicting his end, Annora nodded and began to run her hand over his hair again. He turned his face, pressing his cheek against her thigh. A slight shudder went through him. Instinctive
ly, the young woman put her hand on his stomach and started humming. It was a song from her childhood, one her father had sung to her, and then her mother after her father was gone. Annora had sung it to her friends when they were much younger and scared of the world. Annora had taken her responsibility toward Bree, Naya, Nyle, and Saskia seriously, so they never saw her scared and always sought her for protection. At night when they hadn’t had enough to eat, she had sung them a lullaby until they were asleep. Afterward, she would sneak out and steal enough to give them a good breakfast. Sitting in that cavern, all of the images from the early days came to mind. Before she realized it, the dragon slayer was singing the lullaby as she gently comforted Elian. After a time, she realized he was asleep. Her body was angry with her for neglecting to rebandage the arm, steady the ankle, or tend to her new wounds, but she simply ignored it, just as she had the growling in her stomach so long ago.
At some point, Annora realized that what they really needed was a fire. There certainly weren’t any supplies for making a fire in a dragon’s cavern. The crescent moon outside was covered by clouds, so there would not be enough light to get down to the forest and her supplies safely, especially with her wounds. The man was shivering in her lap. Pulling a blanket out of the supplies, Annora covered Elian’s body with it. Gently lifting his head, the young woman shifted her body so that she was pressed against his back. Her arm was left to cradle his head because she wasn’t about to have him rest with his face on the ground. Her other arm reached around the man and grabbed a small bag. Before she could pull it back, Elian’s hands took her wrist and brought her around so that she was draped over him. Ordinarily, the dragon hunter would have reacted by hurting the man, but judging by the way he was breathing, the man wasn’t awake. With an amused laugh, she had a difficult time placing the bag under his head. Deciding that still wasn’t enough, Annora left her arm stretched out under his head.
The young woman began to gently hum. Then her eyes closed, and she slept.
Light was beginning to stream through the entrance as Annora opened her eyes. The shock at what she saw almost caused her to scream, but her brain quickly reminded her what had happened. Elian still slept in nearly the same position as he had been in when he had fallen asleep. Without thinking, she began stroking his hair and humming.