The True Dragon

by Andy Holland

  This wasn't something that he wanted to find out. He looked at his body and over to the sleeping dragon again. He was about two-thirds of the size of the other dragon. This would put him at a disadvantage if they had to fight, but he was large enough to make the dragon think twice about attacking him in the first place. It seemed relatively indifferent to him anyway. The black one, however, was larger still and was very aggressive. John might still be small enough for it to attack him without worrying about the consequences. Time to go, John thought to himself. Let's see how easy it is to fly as one of these things. He stretched out his wings. They felt stiff and unnatural. John had been taught how to transform into eight different dragons, and each time, he had to learn again how to fly as their bodies were quite different. He tentatively flapped his wings, getting used to how they felt. He splashed the water, not fully in control of his movements, but pleased that his wings felt strong and looked healthy. He had heard of cases where Golden Dragons had found that they were unable to fly in some forms and that it was something that you could do nothing about. This shouldn't be the case this time.

  He could feel someone's eyes on him, and he turned his head sharply to regard the other dragon, that was studying him curiously. Could it remember having done this a long time ago? Whatever it was thinking, it appeared to have no interest in getting involved and had barely lifted its head to watch John, so he continued to flap his wings, getting used to moving them. He had seen the True Dragons erupt from the ground, taking off with the sort of acceleration that only Golden Dragons could better and they were much lighter dragons. Could he do the same now? It might be easier to attempt a running take off, so John exited the lake, and prepared to fly. He began to run, flapping as he did, before launching himself into the air and beating his wings hard to gain height. He was surprised and delighted to find that he could ascend rapidly, flying as effortlessly as he did as a Golden Dragon. Escaping the other True Dragons should be easy, he thought to himself.

  He glanced to his left to discover that he had underestimated their speed. The green True Dragon was flying next to him, looking almost lazy in its movements, keeping up with him with ease. It might not wish to attack John, but was clearly intending on staying with him.

  Despite his massive size, John found that he was able to manoeuvre with ease, and flew steadily, quickly becoming accustomed to this new form. He had always considered his natural form, a Golden Dragon, to be the ultimate design for flight, but he was no longer so sure. As a True Dragon, he was not only faster, but he also felt just as nimble and so much more powerful, as if he could fly forever in this form. The circle was large, and they had started right in the centre, but at the rate that they were flying it wasn’t going to take long to reach the edge. He hadn't had a chance to look around previously, always been preoccupied with keeping an eye out for danger, but as a True Dragon, he could relax and study the landscape. It was surprisingly beautiful, and John found that in this form he could see even better than as any other dragon. It was a very strange position to be in. He was trapped in a single form, with no idea how to transform back, he had lost the ability to communicate, so he couldn't ask anyone for help, and even if he could, he was in the most isolated spot that he knew of, hours of flying from anyone that could help him, with the exception of the monster that he was flying with, a creature that killed indiscriminately and that actually ate other dragons, yet he had actually found that he was enjoying flying in this form.

  The pleasure hadn’t lasted long. There had been a question that had been bothering him for a long time, and that no one had been able to answer, which was why did the True Dragons stay in the Circle? He didn't have to wait long to find out the answer. They were about halfway from the centre to the edge when the buzzing sound began. It was just a faint buzzing at first, like the sound that a mosquito makes when it's about to land on your face; irritating, but nothing more. But as they continued to fly, the sound became louder and louder, and the mild irritation slowly turned to physical pain. Whether it bothered the other dragon as much, he wasn’t able to tell, but for John, the pain was becoming unbearable. Just ahead of them, he recognised features that he recalled seeing on his first visit to the circle with Wami; they were nearing the southern edge of the Circle. The sound had reached a level that drowned out all other noises, and the pain was becoming unbearable. The other dragon roared in anger, spitting out fire, but kept pace with John regardless. John, however, had reached the limits of his pain capacity. He turned to the east, briefly flying parallel with the edge, before being forced to back. The pain subsided almost instantly. The two of them sped up, and as they drifted away from the edge, the sound became quieter and quieter. John landed as soon as the buzzing sound stopped and the other dragon landed beside him. So was this it? Was he actually physically trapped in this Circle? And what was it that caused that horrible noise?

  The pain had disappeared, and John didn't feel at all tired, so he decided to take to the air again straight away. The place was called the Circle of Death: was it actually a circular barrier keeping him in? He flew back to the edge, the pain quickly increasing again. The other dragon roared at John again, presumably telling him to turn away, and eventually he had to do so. He wanted to map out the limits so continuously adjusted his route, flying further out when the pain decreased and back in when it increased, following the edge of the Circle. The other dragon stayed with him but remained a few hundred metres in from the edge, where it wouldn’t be hurt. As they continued to travel, John was amazed to find that he didn't tire at all. The giant form felt more and more natural to him, and he was able to fly faster and faster until the green True Dragon was struggling to keep up and roared in anger as John left it behind. He couldn't explain why he did so, but he slowed down to let it keep up. It quietened down as soon as it caught up with him, and it occurred to him that perhaps, the creature just wanted some company. Could it actually be lonely?

  Loneliness wasn't going to be a problem for either of them for long. In the distance, John spotted a giant foreboding shape that was approaching them. The black True Dragon was returning, its menacing black hulk cruising towards the Circle. It screamed noisily as it caught sight of John but didn't deviate from its course. It would enter the Circle some way ahead of them, but the green True Dragon was starting to get agitated and started making strange, pained sounds, turning in towards the Circle and appearing to be urging John to follow it. The black True Dragon was still quite a way away, but with his now exceptional True Dragon eyesight he could see the creature's facial features very clearly and saw that it looked very angry. Perhaps following the green one wasn't such a terrible idea. John turned to fly after it.

  As they headed towards the centre of the Circle, every now and then John glanced back to see where the black one was. It was unnecessary, as the creature's angry roars let him know exactly where it was: directly behind him and gaining on him. John guessed that he was probably safe from its fire, but its teeth and claws were a different matter. It was even bigger than the green one, and he would be no match for it in a fight.

  John caught up with the green True Dragon and overtook it, eager to have something between him and the other dragon. He had been flying for some time now but if anything he felt stronger than at the start, quite able to step up the pace. He flapped harder and realised that he hadn't come close to hitting his top speed yet. He flew faster and faster with the angry roars from the black True Dragon starting to get quieter as he left it behind. He might not be a match for it in a fight, but it would struggle to catch him.

  Eventually, the roars went silent, but John flew on, continuing till he crossed to the other side of the Circle and the pain began to return. Still not feeling that tired, John went back to his previous plan of mapping the edge of the Circle, seeing if it really was an unbroken circle or whether there was a gap where he could escape. He flew for hours, circumnavigating the Circle at least once, and eventually the light began to fade. John headed away from the edge o
f the Circle, looking for somewhere to transform and sleep for the night before remembering that he couldn't do that. Maybe he could if he tried to sleep. After all, if anyone ever slept as a dragon they would transform back in their sleep, it was impossible not to. Then he remembered that he had seen both the green and brown True Dragons asleep and they hadn't transformed. Still, finding a suitable place while it was light wasn't a bad idea and being this size was going to make it hard to find many good spots.

  John saw a grassy clearing in a forest beneath him and descended to see if it would be suitable. It was just about large enough, and the grass looked like it would be comfortable, so he landed and lay down in the grass. It felt a little strange trying to sleep as a dragon, but after lying still for a while, he managed to doze off, the end of his first day as a True Dragon.

  John woke early in the morning, well before sunrise. High up above him, he could see the two True Dragons flying past, neither having noticed him. He waited until they were some way ahead before taking to the air to follow them. The moon was very bright, and he could see almost as well as he could during the day. The two dragons were heading north, towards the edge of the Circle, and didn't notice John flying behind them. Eventually, John started to hear the buzzing sound that indicated that they were approaching the edge, but neither of them slowed. They drew nearer and nearer to the perimeter and John started to feel a considerable degree of discomfort, but still they flew on. The green True Dragon roared as the pain began to become unbearable but the black True Dragon roared back in defiance, and they still held their course. Suddenly, the green one veered to the left before turning around, but the black one sped up, roaring louder than John had thought was possible. It unleashed a great cloud of fire, lighting up the night sky as if it were trying to attack the invisible barrier that kept them in. John couldn't fly any further, turning around to go back, but all the time watching the black True Dragon. Without meaning to, he let forth a great roar, accidentally expressing the frustration he felt at his imprisonment. The black True Dragon roared in reply but flew on, leaving the Circle behind and flying off into the distance. How had it done that, John wondered.

  As he pondered that question, the green True Dragon flew over to join him. It roared, but John suspected it was a roar of greeting rather than anything else. They really didn't have the capability for any degree of sophistication in their communication. The creature flew away from the edge, and for the moment, John was content to follow. It glided effortlessly, drifting silently across the night sky. It appeared to be searching for something but John had no idea what. Then it spotted what it had been looking for: a vast herd of ponies, scattered across a hill that lay ahead. The green True Dragon continued its glide, gradually descending towards the unsuspecting herd. These ponies were not common further north, but around the Circle John had seen many herds like this. When he had flown over them yesterday, his presence had caused mayhem among the animals, as they all stampeded into the surrounding forests to hide, but none of them had noticed the green True Dragon approaching. It drew nearer until suddenly, one of the ponies spotted it, and the whole herd began to neigh and panic as they frantically tried to find cover. The hill offered none and when the green True Dragon finally reached them most were still in the open. Swooping down it flapped its wings to come to a halt and blew a stream of fire into the herd. The dying screams were heart-wrenching, but the creature was indifferent. It bent down and picked up a still burning pony and flicked into the air, before catching it in its mouth and biting it twice and then swallowing it. As John settled on the hill nearby, it turned to stare at him. At first, he wasn't sure if it was going to attack him, to drive him away from its catch, but without warning it snatched a dead pony and threw it towards John, landing in front of him. Did it mean for John to eat it? It didn't wait to see what he would do, turning its attention to the next pony, which it devoured in a few seconds. John stared down at the burnt pony. It was definitely dead. The idea of eating something as a dragon horrified him, but he realised that he would have to do so eventually, and there would be few things large enough to sustain him. He just wished it didn't have to be ponies. He knew he had to do it, so decided to just get it over with. He gingerly picked it up in his jaws and tossed it up in the air to try and get a better hold on it. Holding it firmly in his jaws he realised that none of his teeth was designed for chewing. He watched the other dragon for a few seconds, before doing as it did. To his surprise, being smaller than the other dragon, he was still able to swallow the creature whole. This was one part of his story that he decided to leave out as Daisy was particularly fond of ponies and had owned several while growing up. As soon as he finished the first pony another one landed in front of him. The creature looked at him, and he could have sworn it nodded at him. John realised he was actually famished and eagerly devoured the second pony. The green True Dragon had killed about twenty of them, and it didn't take long for them to eat every single one. John had consumed less than half as many as the green True Dragon, but felt very full and wondered how on earth he would be able to fly ever again. The green True Dragon clearly had no intention of moving and merely curled up on the ground and went to sleep. John didn't feel at all tired, having only been awake for about an hour, so he decided to see if it was possible to take off. He ran down the hill and launched into a gentle glide before beginning to tentatively flap his wings. To his surprise, flying with the extra weight wasn't at all taxing, and after a few minutes, he had almost forgotten that he had just eaten.

  He found himself heading back towards the edge, at the point where the black True Dragon had broken through the invisible border of the Circle. Was it weaker there? Did it do something that allowed it to cross? John heard the annoying buzzing sound and knew that the pain would return any minute now. The black True Dragon had appeared to have charged its way through, so John decided to do the same. He picked up speed, flapping faster and faster. As he got closer, it started to hurt, but as the pain increased he just flew harder. He knew he must be getting close to the edge as the pain was becoming unbearable, but it would have been impossible to turn around quickly at this speed, and he was determined to try to break free. He screamed in pain, the terrible sound echoing across the hills, but still flew on. Stars appeared in front of his eyes, and he worried that he might black out and fall to his death, but he still flew on. Suddenly the pain stopped altogether. He shuddered, shaking his head and briefly closing his eyes. He opened them and looked around. It was still dark, but he could see for miles, his eyesight perfect. He looked below him and studied the ground. He vaguely recognised where he was, recalling having flown past here with Crystal. There was a small village up ahead, one established very recently by the Reds as they began to settle in their newly claimed lands. He didn't remember the name of the place, but that wasn't important. The only thing that mattered was what seeing the village meant: he had escaped the Circle!

  It was getting light by the time Daisy had caught up with John's history to this point, but she didn't seem tired and urged him to carry on. He felt a little discomfort building up and wondered how long they should remain, but agreed to carry on. It didn't take long to explain to her the events in Furnace, as she had been there and had witnessed what he had done. She was more interested in what happened afterwards.

  He had been very upset, realising how difficult it was going to be to communicate with his friends again and without knowing he was even flying in that direction, he found himself approaching the Circle once again. An irresistible urge had driven him forwards, rushing towards the invisible border that surrounded the place. A wave of anxiety had swept over him. Leaving the Circle had been horribly painful, would it be the same when he reentered? Regardless of the answer, he was able to do nothing to stop his headlong rush back into the Circle, it was as if a magnet was pulling him back in.

  From outside the Circle, he had thought that he could actually see the border, a faint shimmering dome that covered the area. Maybe he had imagined
it. As he drew nearer, it had become harder to see, but he felt certain he had seen something. He remembered bracing himself as he reached the border, but then a second later and he was through. He had had to shake himself to check that it wasn't a dream. He had felt nothing, no pain, no discomfort and he had not been able to hear that buzzing sound. If anything he had felt stronger and healthier. He roared happily, an involuntary action that he immediately regretted. Two distant roars sounded in response, presumably the other two dragons. He didn't mind seeing the green one, but the black one was clearly hostile to him and was large enough to hurt him badly, maybe even kill him. John turned, heading towards the border again but immediately heard the annoying buzzing sound again. Within a few seconds, the discomfort returned, and John turned back. He knew how to break free, but he needed to be ready and he wasn't. Just then, he needed to eat and sleep. The two roars sounded like they came from far to the south, so he should be safe heading to the west of the Circle. At some point, he would see more of those ponies and much as it was distasteful to him, he would have to kill and eat them, as it had been some time since he last ate. Then he would sleep.

  This was the part of his story that troubled him the most, far more than having to eat ponies. John could remember returning, but there was an extended period where he could remember nothing. He remembered waking up in the same spot he had slept in previously, but not how he had got there or what he did before sleeping. He no longer felt hungry, but he couldn't remember eating. He didn't even know if he had been there for just a night or a much longer period of time. It troubled him but there was no one he could speak to at the time and now that he was with Daisy, he found that he didn't want to tell her about it. Not that it would have been easy, communicating as they were.