by Brian Berg
“I've had worse!” his prey's voice came from somewhere in the vapors. “Don't think just because your breath smells worse than a Troll after it takes a shit, that you can take care of me that easily.”
Seconds after, something large shot out of the mist and flew right for Gramzon's head. The Dragon scoffed and stayed perfectly still, letting hit him and bounce harmlessly off it's thick, scaly hide. It fell to the ground with a clatter and he saw that it was a pick-axe, one of the tools that were left laying around the pit.
“Just what were you expecting to do with this? Did you think that something so small could do me any harm?” he stomped on the old tool and smashed it to pieces beneath his great green foot. “What could a rusted piece of machinery do to someone of my power?”
“I wasn't expecting that to hurt you at all!”
Gramzon whipped his head around just in time to see Axe leap from one of the boulders, launching himself straight towards the wyrm, his lochaber held high over his head.
“You fool!” Gramzon shifted around and once again, lunged forward at the injured human; this time catching him with little effort.
The pit was filled with screams as Axe found himself dangling from the jaws of the Dragon, both of his legs caught between both sets of razor-teeth. He was already in pain thanks to the poisonous fumes, and now his legs felt like they had dozens of knives in each of them. Despite the pain though, he never dropped his weapon. In fact, he still held onto it as tightly as he could, and even tried to swing himself around in attempts to cleave the Dragon's flesh with the sharpened steel. However, it was all in vain.
“I've told you before, human,” Gramzon bit down on Axe's legs, not only causing him to scream more in pain, but causing blood to trickle down his own legs. The pain coursing through his legs made Axe drop his weapon, letting it fall to the ground below. “No one can slay me. I am nothing like anyone here has ever seen before, I am far more powerful than any beast! Although, I will give you credit; for a human, you're awfully brave to keep coming at me like you have, especially with such harsh injuries and exposure to my breath.”
“You just wait!” Axe barked, glaring into the nearest yellow eye. “I'm not finished with you yet, you hear me? I'm going to kill you!”
“Humans are such fools, even at the moments of their death. Farewell, barbarian, maybe in your next life, you won't be so stupid.”
Gramzon widened his jaws and with a jerk of his head, Axe fell into his bloody maw completely. The Dragon could feel him move around on his tongue and without a single moment of hesitation, swallowed him whole. Axe's screams were muffled more and more with each passing second as he slid down the beast's throat. Satisfied, Gramzon let out a belch that echoed around the mining-pit.
He unfolded his great wings and began to flap them so he may take to the sky and lay a final assault on the outpost for their insolence and treachery. As his body was lifted off the ground, his vapors on the pit floor were cleared away, exposing the ground once more before they disappeared into nothing. The scaled monstrosity flew into the night air, leaving his new lair behind, his eyes set for Hystao Outpost.
***
The first attack was a greeting and a warning to the human settlers of the Badlands, but Gramzon's second strike was out of pure wrath. He descended from the sky and, without a moment's hesitation, sent a blast of fire at the nearest building. The structure blew to pieces and became nothing more than a glorious bonfire with the screams of the settlers were music to his ears.
Once again, the guards tried to come to the defense of the civilians, but Gramzon quickly dispatched them by crushing them with his tail. The sound of metal snapping and bones crunching were lovely to hear, accompanied by the screams of the villagers.
“Humans!” he roared, spreading his wings and crushing a nearby hovel with his foot. “You were graciously given an offer to live, to worship us, but you have thrown the offer back into our faces! We would have left you live, as long as you paid the tribute! Had you done that, you would have lived many years, and your children would not have become orphans. Tell me, foolish beings, why did you resort to such tactics?”
Waldon stood frozen behind a broken wall. “This thing can speak?!”
“ANSWER ME!!!” Gramzon roared again, flaring his wings.
“We didn't!”
The Dragon turned to see Waldon step out from behind the wall, shield on his good arm.
“We never directly sent that man to come and slay you or your master!” Waldon shouted, clutching the shield. “I merely told him of our story and he decided to go after you himself! He demanded a reward for slaying you, but if you stand before us, than obviously he failed. That reward he demanded was our tribute to you, and we are more than happy to give it to you if you and your master leave us in peace now and forever!”
“Out of so many of you humans, only one of you is truly daring enough to come face me, while the rest of you hide in your huts and ruins? You humans are all the same: you are not only weak, but you are cowards! Weaklings! Throughout the history of this world, you have not once relied on your own strength, but the strength of others, or the strengths of those you call gods to save you and guide you, time and time again. It is pathetic! You should have vanished from this world long ago and leave it to those who are strong, to those who are capable of fending for themselves!”
Waldon swallowed hard. “Please. Just...take our tribute to you and your master and leave us be. We want no more death here, we only want to live!”
“You only want to live?” the Dragon sneered. “If you truly wanted to live, you would have slain that interloper after he arrived! My power guarantees I will live, but if you are so foolish as to let some barbarian come and attack the ones who hold your lives in their hands, then you don't deserve to live at all! The crime has been done, the interloper has been executed, and now it is time for you all to die for your foolishness!”
Gramzon's pupils seemed to shrink a little before rearing his head back. Waldon cursed and hid behind his shield, knowing that something was about to come. He listened as Gramzon inhaled and shut his eyes tightly, bracing for either fire or poisonous fumes to come rushing towards him.
But it never came.
He did not hear the hiss of gas pouring into the air, nor did he hear the rushing sound of flames soaring through the air. All he heard was something that reminded him of an ill beast of burden, one who was about to return what it ate to the outside world. Looking up from behind the safety of his shield, he (and the others around him) watched as the Dragon show signs of great pain. His eyes were open as far as they could go, and it sounded like he was trying to breathe, but all that escaped his mouth were ragged gasps.
“What's wrong with it?”
“What's going on?!”
Waldon stared, wondering the very same thing as the beast tried to regain it's former aura of complete fear. However, the only thing that it did, after what seemed like an eternity of making odd noises, was without warning, fall onto it's side.
Gramzon, the Dragon that held the Badlands hostage, was stone dead!
The people around him cheered, but Waldon didn't accept the fate of the monster so quickly or so easily. He walked up to the body of the Dragon and waited for a sign, something that would tell him that it wasn't dead just yet. Sure enough, he got his wish, because no sooner did he begin to search for a sign, a part of the corpse began to move.
Screams from the villagers came again and Waldon quickly backed away, as did many of his followers. They all watched as the chest scales of the wyrm buckle, back and forth.
“It's heart!” one of the women screamed. “It's heart still beats!”
“Someone stab it! Quickly! Pierce the heart of the beast, now! Before it's too late!”
Waldon threw away his shield and took a blade from the hands of the nearest guard. “You shall not enslave us with your tyranny, you monster! You will die here and now!”
He raised the sword high over his head, aiming
right for the chest, and was just about to plunge it as hard as he could onto the beast, but he was stopped when it's scales separated from one another and the flesh underneath split open.
To his, and everyone's , amazement, the gash widened and the bloody form of Axe came sliding out, gasping for air. Cursing under his breath, Axe pulled himself free of the Dragon's innards, holding a wicked knife in one hand and something large in the other. The warrior crawled away from the huge corpse, his body looking it had just been through Hell itself.
“Boy!” Waldon immediately dropped to his side. “You're alive! We thought you dead when the beast came again!”
“Not dead,” Axe coughed, looking so exhausted, he was about to pass out at any second. “Hurt like hell...but not dead! Here,” he lifted the dark object in his hands as far as he could. “This is for you. I want my money now.”
Waldon looked at the dark thing in his hands, and although the shape was different in many areas, there was no mistaking it. The source of life itself, great or small, was clutched in the hands of the young warrior, blood dripping from it's valves.
It was a heart! But, it was not just any heart, it was the Dragon's heart itself and from the looks of it, it appeared as though Axe ripped it free of the Dragon's chest with his bare hands while he was inside.
“How...how is this possible?” Waldon gasped..He looked down at the bloody man and saw that he wasn't conscious. Fear rising, he ordered a few of the nearest men to help him roll the body over. Once that was done, he planted his ear against his chest, hoping to hear if any signs of life still remained within their hero.
A smile broke onto his face, “He's alive!!” he screamed, lifting his head. “It's faint, but I can hear his heartbeat! Quickly, we must get him some aid or else he will not make it to dawn!”
***
The entire outpost had been celebrating the death of Gramzon for the whole night and well into late the next day. As Axe recovered with the help of the village healers, he was often visited by the survivors. They cried, they bowed, they even kissed his hands and forehead for the great thing he had done for them. Axe, however, could not return the acts of kindness, as he was bed-ridden from his injuries. However, Waldon acted as crowd control and made sure no mob invaded the infirmary.
“You have done this place a great service, my young friend,” he said, standing over the bed. “I do not know how you manage to survive that ordeal, but we are forever in your debt.”
Axe smiled weakly. “Just give me the money you owe me, we'll call it even.”
“I'm one step ahead of you, boy, it's already in the bag you traveled here with. I'm afraid we could not recover your weapon. We searched the pit, but it was far too damaged to be repaired. However, we do have a gift for you before you leave,” Waldon reached behind his back and pulled out a strangely wrapped object. “A souvenir of your time here.”
He peeled the wrapping away and placed it next to him on the bed. Axe looked down at the object and a small laugh escaped his throat. It was a Dragon's tooth, and from the size of it, it was probably one of the bigger ones inside Gramzon's mouth. Axe wrapped his fingers around the smaller end of the tooth and held it up, gazing at it.
“It's a fine gift, Waldon of Hystao,” he nodded and brought it close to him. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure,” the older man returned the nod. “How do you feel?”
“I hurt, but it's nothing major,” he sighed. “I'll be out of your hair in the morning.”
Waldon laughed. “Don't be absurd, child! Your body has been to Hell and back, the healers say it's a genuine miracle that you have survived with such wounds. They said it would be at least a month before you can leave.”
“Well, then I guess we'll just have to wait and see, now won't we?”
A number of voices were suddenly heard from the outside, interrupting their conversation.
“Get that bastard out of this town!”
“He shouldn't have survived! It's unnatural!”
“He may have slain the monster, but he will bring about a new curse for us all!”
“Cast him out!”
Waldon closed his eyes and sighed. “I'm sorry, Axe, but not everyone in the village appreciates what you've done for us. Don't worry, as long as I am in charge here, my men and I will not let them harm you.”
“What will your people do now?” the injured warrior asked calmly, not sounding the least bit thrown off by the screams from outside.
“First, since we no longer fear that beast, we can rebuild and only worry about the usual creatures that live around these parts. We can take care of them easily, so it shouldn't be too much trouble. Once we get everything settled and properly honor the dead, we shall send word to others and tell them what has happened here. With any luck, we'll be able to grow into an actual city within a few years time.”
Axe held up his hand, reaching out to him. “I wish you the best of luck with that. I hope you and your people will be happy here.”
“Thank you,” Waldon took his hand and held it firmly. “I shall leave you to rest now. I'll see you tomorrow morning.”
“No, you won't.”
“Oh, yes. I will,” Waldon began to head for the door, stopped and looked back. “Before I go, there is something I must ask you.”
“Hm?”
“Well, it was a miracle in and of itself for you to survive with such horrible wounds in the first place, but how on earth did you manage to survive being eaten alive by such a monster?”
“What do you mean?”
“Dear boy, you were eaten alive by that thing. Not only that, but you had strength to rip it's out heart out, then cut your way through the innards of the beast himself! To survive bad wounds is one thing, but to do such a thing like that...pray tell how did you manage to find the strength to endure such agony? Any other man would have died in the mouth, but you crawled out from the belly of the beast. Literally!”
Axe was quiet for awhile, then he turned away, closing his eyes. “Please leave, I'm feeling very tired. I'd like to rest.”
Waldon opened his mouth, wanting to press on for an answer, any answer that he could use to understand what had happened, but he knew that this young hero needed as much rest as possible. So, he mumbled a “good day” and left the infirmary.
The next day came quickly and Waldon kept true to his word, he paid a morning visit to Axe in the infirmary with a plate full of food, hoping he was at least well enough to have a real meal. The guards at the front moved aside to let him in, but quickly reformed so that the less than grateful people standing outside wouldn't find their way in. Unfortunately, Axe was true to his word as well; his bed was empty and there was no sign of him. When questioned, the healers couldn't explain where he had gone, but it seemed that wherever he went, he managed to have enough strength to not only walk out, but he walked out carrying both his pack and his rewards. Not to mention he somehow managed to sneak away without any of the guards outside seeing him!
Waldon ordered his men to explore the entire settlement, fearful that the boy was laying somewhere in pain again, or even on the verge of death. However, he couldn't be found anywhere inside the ruined walls.
“Where the hell did he go?”
***
Wearing a hooded cloak, Axe looked down at the outpost from the top of the slope on the outskirts of the village. It was only a couple days ago that he and Taroh stopped here for a few moments before they entered the outpost. Axe turned away from the village and looked down at the freshly dug hole at his feet. The bag that he buried there was still there, completely undisturbed.
He lifted the bag from the earth and turned it over, letting it's contents spill into his hand.
There was only one object in the bag: a human skull.
“I'm sorry I'm late,” he blew a few specks of dirt off the top of the bone. “It took me longer than I expected.”
He stared at the skull for a moment or two, then laughed quietly.
“Yes, it h
appened again.” he held the skull up to eye level. “Why do you have to ask me like that? It's not like this happens all the time, I-” he stopped, an annoyed look crossing his face. “Okay, you know what? You can list as many incidences as you want to, Steve, but it doesn't matter. You know why? This is why!”
He shoved the skull back into it's container and rose to his feet.
“Stupid dead head,” he shook the bag a number of times. “This is what you get for bugging the crap out of me!”
Axe tied the bag to his waist and turned his attention to the large knife that was strapped at his hip. He pulled it free of the sheath and took a good, long look at it. It was quite long, and could possibly pass off a short sword to some people. He could remember when Taroh came to his aid, wielding this knife to fend off the vulture that would have had a meal if he hadn't come along. Not once, but twice now, Taroh had been able to help him when he needed it.
With a silent nod, he gently wrapped the blade in simple cloth and knelt down, placing the knife into the large hole where the bag and skull was previously buried. He swept the soil over the top of the weapon, then proceeded to place a number of small stones from the area around him into a pile on top of the soil. The cairn was crude, and he couldn't write Taroh's name on stone, but it was the best he could do to honor the merchant who had saved him, even in death.
Axe rose to his feet and began to walk away, leaving Hystao Outpost behind him. This time, he was walking away with a full water-skin, it's leathery sides about to burst from the cold water inside. He just wished he had had enough time to get some food before he left. No matter, there were other towns, he would get some food then.
Captain Bones
The Pirate Lord lay at his mate's feet, a great hole in his jacket and the shirt that lay underneath. The first mate, whose gully dripped a deep crimson, looked down at his captain without any remorse, but rather greedy joy. Outside, the others of the crew were screaming and the air was filled with gunfire from all sides, cannon and pistol alike.