by S. N. Hunt
Sarah was pulled from her thoughts as Micheal stopped. He held up a hand at her and motioned to her to be quiet. She looked around them, her skin prickling in apprehension.
A roar echoed over the sands as an enormous beast appeared from the horizon. It flew high above them, blotting out the sun. It landed loudly right in front of them. Sand clouds flew up and around them. As the sand settled, Sarah saw a large sand colored dragon glaring down at them.
Micheal hadn’t moved or drawn his sword. He sat perfectly still in his saddle. Sarah tried not to fidget as the dragon eyed her, then him. Its triangular wings started at its shoulder, then slowly reducing size down its body to its tail tip. It had plates that extended out on either side of its face. They curved around the back of its head. It had thick scales and horns lined either side of its neck. Two horns jutted out of its chin. Its eyes were a deep emerald color.
“Where are you off to, Guardian?” it spoke in a raspy voice.
“We journey to the city of Zlorta.”
It cocked its head to the side, “The casters will never let you into the city. Why journey there when you will be denied entrance?”
“My charge wishes to learn there. I take her to the University to study.”
It laughed, its breath blowing across them. “Half-truths, Guardian. I am Movar. Can your elementalist speak?”
“Hello,” she said meekly, unsure of what to say to a dragon.
“Hello, little one. You burn with an aura of power. I think you have many great things in store for you.”
The dragon sighed and shrank. She watched as it transformed into a man. His skin was a deep tan color. He was bald and wore a brass colored robe around him. His eyes were still the same deep emerald color.
“Perhaps you will be less intimidated if I am human. I merely wish to converse. There are so few travelers through this desert nowadays. I find myself bored to tears.”
“We still have many days of travel ahead. While I would love to converse, I must get Sarah to the city.”
“I will travel with you.”
Movar walked up to Angel and stared into her eyes. Angel huffed and stomped. Movar had a hurt look on his face. The two looked to be conversing without words. Angel finally turned and allowed Movar to mount up behind Sarah.
“Angel and I have a long history. Though she likes to act like she hates me, secretly I think she has a crush on me.” He whispered into Sarah’s ear.
Angel must have heard his comment though, as she neighed and huffed. Micheal started their trek again. Movar spoke most of the day, asking questions and telling stories. Sarah found his stories hilarious, and the day flew by.
When they made camp that night, Movar laid down by the fire and fell right to sleep. Micheal shook his head at him. Micheal and her curled up in their bedding.
“A real dragon! I never thought I would see one.” Sarah whispered.
“Eventually, you would have met one. Not all dragons are good. I am glad we met a brass one over the others that call this place home. Though he talks enough.” He whispered back.
“I like his stories.”
“You encourage him. Which will only make it worse. Brass dragons will talk to you till you are nothing but dust and bones.”
∞∞∞
Antony walked into the sacred grove. Word had been brought to him that Villosa had returned. The trees of the grove glowed a bright white in the darkness. Every time he came to this place, he remembered how he met her.
She had been just another dryad when he had stumbled into her grove. Her sisters had bullied her, and she hid in a tree hollow, crying softly. He found her curled into a ball. She sniffled and looked up at him with forest green catlike eyes that were full of innocence and childlike wonder. Her dark brown skin resembled tree bark. Her hair hung down to her waist. The strands of it were like the branches of a weeping willow. Tiny flowers sprouted across her hair. Her clothing was a mash up of leaves, petals and roots.
“Who are you? Why do you roam our sacred grove?” She whispered.
Her voice sounded like wind chimes in the breeze.
“I heard you crying. My heart broke at the sound. I came to see what could make such a beautiful creature cry.”
Her eyes twinkled, and the corner of her mouth twitched.
“My sisters dislike me. I make the grove grow but my creations are not like theirs.”
“I am sorry, little dryad. What is wrong with your creations?”
Villosa laid her hand on the ground. From between her fingers, plants grew up. The plants grew together and formed a flower bud. She stopped before it bloomed. He looked at her in confusion. She stepped from the hollow and gripped his arm. She moved him away from the flower. He looked down at her in confusion.
She pointed a finger at the flower bud and it bloomed. It unfurled, and he watched as a red substance flowed from its petals. The coppery tang of blood filled the air. The flower fully bloomed and in its center was a mouth. Rows and rows of sharp teeth lined the mouth. It snapped and bent over. A long tongue dipped from the mouth and licked up the blood from the ground. Antony watched in amazement.
“It’s beautiful. Are all your creations like this?”
She blinked up at him, “You think it is beautiful? My sisters say it is an abomination. They destroy all my creations. All my creations are like this. This is just a small one.”
Voices drifted through the trees and Antony saw the dryad’s three sisters approach them.
“Villosa, we said to stop it. These creatures can not live in the sacred grove. You will destroy it now. We are tired of cleaning up your messes.”
Villosa stepped away from Antony. She walked up to the plant with her head hung low. Tears streamed down her face. Her hand shook as she reached for the plant. The plant cooed and rubbed against her palm. She hesitated and turned to her sisters.
“NO! I refuse to destroy another of my creations. He said they are beautiful and that he likes them.”
Villosa’s sisters finally noticed Antony. They screeched and fell against one another for protection. Their cries like nails on a chalkboard to Antony.
“What have you done, Villosa? You have brought a vampire into the sacred grove. You have desecrated holy ground, vampire. We will give you a swift death.”
The sisters all pointed at him. Vines gripped his wrists and pulled him down to his knees. He grunted and yanked against his restraints.
“Stop it! He has done nothing wrong! He is my friend!” Villosa pulled at one of her sister’s arms.
“Do not interfere! We will punish you next. This is the last straw, sister. You will be lucky if we do not banish you for this.”
Her sister knocked Villosa to the ground and Antony snarled at her. He watched as something in Villosa changed. Her face became hard and her gaze hateful. She raised her hand at her sisters.
“I am tired of being bullied. My creations desire to live. This is my grove!”
Thick, dark green vines shot from the ground under her sisters. Her sisters lost their footing and Antony was instantly released from their vines. Villosa’s vines wrapped around her sisters’ legs. The thorns on the vines were thick and sharp, like razors. They sliced deep into the dryads’ skin, creating rivulets of blue blood.
“I am more powerful than all of you combined. Is this why you pushed me around? Made me think I was wrong for my creations.”
Her sisters started screaming as the vines traveled up their bodies. Blue blood pooled under them. They pleaded with Villosa. Antony walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
“Come to my home, live close by me and all your creations will be welcomed.” He whispered in her ear.
She shivered in his embrace. Her vines stood her sisters up and she squeezed her hand shut. The vines started constricting. Sounds of bones breaking and the sobs of her sisters a symphony to Antony’s ears. The vines constricted till they ripped through the sisters. Blood splashed like a fountain on the ground. Villosa’s plan
t gladly licked at it. Quiet descended upon the grove.
Villosa let out a deep breath. She turned in his arms and gazed up into his eyes. He smiled lazily down at her. He saw her desire in her eyes.
“Promise that I can grow whatever I want. That no one will interfere or destroy my grove.”
“Swear fealty to me and you may grow all that your heart desires.”
She licked her lips, “I swear to serve you for as long as I live.”
He smiled as he leaned down and kissed her lips.
Villosa had moved her grove that night. It stood just to the right of the castle, glowing brightly in the night. He let her spread out, and she had grown a veritable jungle of carnivorous plants. She allowed no one into her grove, except for him. When he summoned her, his soldiers stood outside and yelled for her. He had still lost a few to wandering vines. Her plants were quite ravenous.
He reached the center of her grove. There in a clearing stood a huge bright red flower bud. It was closed and glowed with a red tint. He leaned against a tree and called out her name.
The flower bud unfurled and Villosa lay in the middle of it. He climbed into the flower and laid down beside her. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and pulled her back against his chest. Her sobs filled the surrounding air.
“What happened, little dryad?”
“I lost. They had ghosts and…. they hurt and…. and they tore at my vines…..”
She started babbling and sobbing hard. They laid like that till her tears dried up. He had learned long ago that he had to wear kid gloves with Villosa. She was volatile and her moods swung dangerously.
“Are you hurt?”
She raised her right hand and he could see that they had stripped the flesh. Ghosts could desiccate anything they touched. Turning it to ash in a few moments.
“They took my arm and half my face. It will take time before I am healed.”
He tried to turn her in his arms. She fought against him and refused to roll toward him.
“I do not want you to see my face.”
He scoffed and turned her around, anyway. Half of her face was gone, the bones of her skull an eerie white. Her right eye socket was empty, and she started sobbing again.
“You are still beautiful to me, Villosa. Nothing could make you ugly in my eyes.”
Her left eye met his. Anger now swirled in it.
“I will kill them both for this. I swear.”
“No, little dryad. We need them alive. Heal up and then meet them outside of Zlorta. Attack before they enter the city. Take the girl. Bring her here. Micheal will follow.”
“I want my revenge! They disfigured me and killed my babies.”
Antony sighed, “How about I give you some slaves to play with? Make new babies from their bones.”
She pouted for a few moments.
“Fine, but I want to torture Micheal. I promise not to kill him, just play with him for a little bit. Please?”
He smiled, “I can never say no to you, my flower bud.”
∞∞∞
Micheal struck at her with the flat of his sword, knocking her to the ground. Sarah sighed and wiped the sweat from her brow. Movar laughed as she got to her feet.
“You almost had him, Sarah. Show him what for!”
Sarah turned and glared at Movar. Taking advantage of her inattention, Micheal swept a leg out and knocked her feet out from under her. She landed with a grunt on her back. She laid there with her arms wide and stared at the sky.
“Pay attention. A fight doesn’t stop because someone makes a snarky comment. Always be ready for a strike. Get up.”
Sarah was frustrated and tears started at the corner of her eyes. She clumsily got to her feet. Tightening her grip on the short sword, she lifted her shield in front of her. She glared daggers at Micheal over the top of it.
They trained daily with her weapons. Every night she hurt and fell into bed in exhaustion. Micheal did not take it easy on her.
He charged toward her, both hands gripping his sword. She spun away from his advance and hit his backside with the flat of her sword. Movar cheered from the sidelines. Micheal spun around and struck her shield hard enough to make her arm go numb. She tightened her grip and slashed out at his exposed right side. He dodged away from the blow and circled her.
“You won’t win on strength. You are too small. But you can win in agility. You are quick, move and look for openings.”
He brought his sword down on her left side. She blocked it with her shield and attacked his right side. The flat of her sword hit him hard on the ribs. As soon as the blow hit, she backed away and out of his reach.
“Good, keep moving. Never think victory is yours till your opponent stops breathing. Keep out of his reach. Go in with minor attacks, wear him down.” Movar shouted at her.
Micheal advanced on her again, trying to get close. She danced out of his reach and kept her shield up. He brought his sword down on her shield again, harder than the last. Her arm went numb to the shoulder, and she dropped the shield. She quickly grabbed her dagger from her waistband.
They circled each other. He slashed out with his sword on her left again. She spun around him and kicked him hard in the back of the knee. He fell onto the sands and she brought her dagger to his throat. Her short sword pointed into his right side.
“Excellent work, Sarah!” Movar clapped.
Micheal laughed and hit her across the face with something hard. She fell back to the ground, her weapons scattering. She shook her head and looked down the length of the sword pointed at her neck. In Micheal’s left hand was her shield.
“Always pay attention to your surroundings, an enemy will use whatever he can to get out of a sticky situation. Never assume victory.”
“If this was real, I would have already slit your throat.”
“So you say, but when the time comes, you may hesitate. Don’t hesitate.”
He helped her up and patted her shoulder. Movar came up next to her with a big grin.
“You did well today. You will only get better as you practice.”
Sarah walked to her bedroll and laid down. Her shield arm was starting to tingle and ached. Micheal came up behind her and massaged her shoulder.
“You are doing well. The soreness will go away as you get better.”
She sighed, exhaustion deep in her bones. Movar handed her some dried meat, and she ate quickly. Micheal went off to tend the horses, and she curled up in the bedroll. She let the darkness of sleep take her.
Chapter Twenty
“So here I am, completely naked, a queen in my bed and a knight pointing a sword at my middle. He is going on and on about how the king has sent him to rescue his queen. Mind you, she is screaming at him about how she is never going home. How the king’s worm can’t compare to my leviathan.”
“So what did you do?” Sarah asked between giggles.
Movar smirked, “Well, I convinced the knight to join us. He was actually quite skilled in bed. The queen and him ended up falling in love. They left my lair, and I never saw them again. I can only hope they found happiness. They were such a lovely couple.”
The days had been less oppressing in the desert since Movar had joined them. He regaled her with stories every day. Micheal rode ahead of them and had gotten more sullen as the days wore on. He had announced they would approach a settlement soon. He was going to scout ahead in case of danger. Movar had proudly announced that he would protect Sarah with his life.
“So what is your story? I’ve talked endlessly these past days, but you have given me little.”
She shifted in the saddle, unsure.
“I am not sure Micheal would like me to tell you.”
“You are a good woman. Even without him here, you hesitate. Fine, I will ask Micheal tonight.”
She looked at the horizon and observed that Micheal was riding back to them quickly. She tensed and felt Angel stop. He reined in Lucifer in front of them.
“The village is under attack
by tribesmen. We can go around or help them.”
Movar slid off the horse. He walked away from them and shifted. His dragon form flew up into the sky and headed toward the village.
“I guess we are helping. Stay behind me, Sarah. Angel watch over her if we get separated.”
As they came over the crest, Sarah saw smoke billowing out of the village. Screams and battle cries carried across the dunes. They descended the dune into the town. She stared as Movar landed in the village square and fought against many people. Fire flowed from his mouth as he fought.
Micheal dismounted and brandished his sword.
“Stay on Angel, Sarah, and stay back from the fighting. You aren’t ready yet.”
Micheal disappeared into the village. Lucifer stayed next to them and looked around with wary eyes. Angel walked between two huts and they watched the battle from afar. Sarah jumped at every noise and looked away as someone was cut down.
Just as she turned back, a force hit her shoulder, and she flew through the air. She landed hard on the sands. Her shoulder was on fire and the wind had been knocked from her. She gasped and grimaced in pain. She heard fighting and tried to sit up.
Angel and Lucifer were fighting against someone. The person was wrapped in strips of cloth from head to toe. A turban was wrapped around their head and goggles covered their eyes. Pieces of leather armor were strapped here and there along their body. In their hands, they had two short swords they used to slash at the horses with.
A roar filled the air, Movar landed over her and grabbed the person in his jaws. He snapped and swallowed him in minutes. Her stomach bubbling and churned at the sight. She felt like she was burning up and laid back down on the sands. Her eyes felt heavy, and she sighed as everything went black.
∞∞∞
Micheal regarded the village doctor as he bandaged her shoulder. They had moved her into one of the huts and had removed the arrow. The doctor had cleaned and closed up the wound the best he could.
“The Tsoai tribe use poison on their arrows. It will cause her to have a fever and hallucinations. If she can make it through the night, her chances of survival will increase. If we can break the fever in two days, she will live.”