Dragon Ridge

There weren't always dragons in the Valley.

At least, that's what I've been told.

Very few people left in our village remember the days when the dragons ruled from their keeps in the mountains around us, paying us no mind as we adhered to their reign.

Gram was only a little girl when they descended - so young that she barely can recall what happened. All she remembers now are the screams. And the flames.

These days we don't worry too much about another attack, but that's because most of us have descended into the caverns below the Valley. New Valley, as we like to call it.

I've always found that a funny name, seeing as how the vast caverns we call home are perhaps the furthest thing from a valley as one can get. But like I said, I've never lived above, so I don't know the difference.

I do travel above sometimes, when Gram needs herbs for her potions - like I am today.

"Are you sure there's nothing else you need?" I ask as I secure my satchel over my shoulder. Normally Gram sends me up with a rather extensive list that takes me most of the day to collect. But today, I've been sent with only ingredient to retrieve.

"My stores are full from you last trip, Rin," Gram assures me again. "All I need is the petals of the White Rose."

I'm a little relieved to hear it. Most of Gram's ingredients can be found near and around the entrances to the caverns. Every now and then I need to pay for passage deeper into Old Valley to find some rare root or another. But the White Rose is different. I've only had to retrieve it once, and I'm not pleased about having to do so again.

"You remember where to find it?" Gram asks for easily the fourth time this morning.

"In the gardens of the old castle," I recite, "beneath the shade of the willows on the eastern wall."

Before our people were forced to retreat beneath the mountains, ours was a prosperous city under the rule of some great king whose name has been long forgotten by history. Like Gram, the last queen of the Valley was said to be proficient in various forms of alchemy and potion making. The royal family never descended into New Valley, and to this day no one knows what happened to them. It's rumored that their sudden disappearance had something to do with the descension of the dragons, but that's never been confirmed. Their long-abandoned castle lies in the very heart of Old Valley and is one of the few remnants of our old lives that wasn't completely destroyed.

It also happens to be where the dragons have built their nests.

Humans are rarely permitted beyond the castle walls, and those that are granted access must pay handsomely or never return. Fortunately, as Gram is one of the few healers left in New Valley, she can charge customers enough to cover the fines for my travels.

Gram and I embrace and I leave our small hovel nestled near the back of one of the upper caverns.

"I'll be back by nightfall!" I call to her as I step out into the caverns.

Despite being miles beneath the surface, the caves we call home are well lit by countless lanterns that line the walls. As far as I know, they are kept lit by some ancient gems found deep within the caverns we call home. Some people try to tell me that it's magic, but I don't believe them.

Magic once existed in our land - so I'm told. Dragons are meant to be proof of that. Dragons are said to be the result of pure magic, and only they possess the ability to wield and control it. It is said that they once tried to share their secrets with the humans, but we proved unworthy.

I follow the familiar path that leads above. The further I get from our village, the less people I see. Few people have reason to travel above, so these parts of the caverns are usually pretty empty. I pass the occasional sentry or workman ensuring the lanterns remain lit, but otherwise I am alone.

At last the air begins to change a little, and I feel the faintest brush of a breeze on my cheek. I am getting close. Soon the air begins to grow heavy with moisture from the foggy terrain that awaits me beyond. Instinctively, I reach into my satchel and prepare to dig for my Pass - the scroll that grants me access into Old Valley unsupervised. Most people who travel above must do so with trained escorts - sentries and trained bowmen to protect them in case of a dragon attack. When I was younger, I was required to travel with escorts as well. But, last year on my sixteenth birthday, I became eligible to apply for a Pass. Thankfully, I qualified.

It's not that I minded the extra protection, though I never needed it. It's more that I find pleasure in the solitude of Old Valley. A whole world once existed here, a way of life and a culture destroyed in a single afternoon and long since forgotten. I feel I owe it to those people who lost their lives here to journey through their home in quiet reverence, not surrounded by pikes and arrows pointed into the mist.

"I've almost got it," I say to the guard I know is waiting for me at the exit of the cavern as I continue to dig. At this point, my Pass is checked as more of a routine than anything else. The guards all know me, and they all know why I am up here and that I am allowed. But protocol is protocol.

"Here it is!" I proudly produce my Pass and look up to see...

No one.

That's odd. The entrance to the tunnels is always manned. Any time day or night. There is always at least one guard standing watch. But today, for the first time at least in my life, the tunnel opens up unguarded into the world beyond.

Something isn't right.

"Hello?" I call out. The morning fog is heavy, and I cannot see far beyond the mouth of the cave. I consider taking another step out, but I am hesitant. Somehow it doesn't feel right to exit the tunnel without verifying my Pass.

"Hello?" I try again. Still nothing. I consider turning around and going back. Someone else should know the entrance isn't guarded. I don't want to get anyone in trouble, but I also know this isn't right.

As I turn to retreat to the safety of the caverns, something catches my eye.

I turn and see a shape in the fog. It is small at first but then begins to grow as it moves quickly towards me. At last I see that it is a man. A sentry. The sentry who is most likely supposed to be guarding the entrance.

I feel relief at his presence until I realize that he is running. Sprinting towards me as if his very life depends on it.

Then he is engulfed in flames.