Dragons in Gausus Valley

There weren’t always dragons in the valley. Hundreds of years ago there had been peace and quiet interrupted by wildlife that existed only in balance. But—you can’t tell a good story about a boring and peaceful valley where every creature is happy and only good things happen. Where is the fun in that? You need adventure and action and screaming!

Anyways—let’s proceed… There weren’t always dragons in Gausus Valley. Many years ago immigrants from a far off land came here for a life of peace and tranquillity. However, these people were so very strange and kept dragons as pets. It is told that the dragons used to be smaller and tamer. Not the ferocious monsters they are now. They were used for travel much like horses are used now. Sounds fabulous right? Well, nobody knows what happened between then and now. Now, the dragons were horrible beasts classified as an invasive species, wiping out all the local wild-life and farm-life. Somebody had to do something to bring back peace. The only question was—who?

-—-

The village in Gausus Valley was winding down for the evening, dusk alerting everyone to say their goodbyes and head home to their families and supper. The tavern in the middle of the village expelled its last patron who slowly stumbled away. A dog started barking frantically, spinning in circles with its’ hackles standing on end. Huge flying shapes came from the sky, circling above. The man from the tavern and the dog collided as they both saw the shapes at the same time.

A deafening screech filled the air as the dragons descended upon the village. Huge billows of fire and smoke singed through the streets. Screams and shouts blended together from people and animals calling from the outskirts. Villagers throughout hid where they were, trying to avoid any fires. The man and dog crawled underneath a nearby wagon.

“Marty,” hiccuped the man. “Stop squirming, I wonna let them beasts eat ya.” Tomm clung to Marty with arms and legs wrapped tight around the dog.

The attack lasted only a short time. The sky was just losing its last glimmer of light as the dragons left, seemingly dissolving into the shadows along the streets. One at a time, heads started poking out of hiding places, peering around to make sure they were safe. A few ran to their wells and started hauling up buckets of water to put out fires.

Tomm heard the rest of the villagers and started to relax. All of a sudden Marty growled real low and his body went stiff. Tomm flung the dog away from him, cursing. “Shut yer mouth, stupid dog. I saved yer life!” He got to his feet a little more sober than when he fell. Looking around he rushed over to help put out the closest fire.

Clean up lasted late into the night, neighbors helping neighbors, until all the fires were put out. Farmers went to their fields and took stock of how many animals were left. The only sign that a sheep was gone here or a few cows there were large swaths of blood painting the landscape. The dragons ate or took every single piece.

Word was passed to everyone to meet at the Mayor’s house in the morning.

Morning brought a dawn that slowly revealed the smoking, brittle bones of buildings destroyed. The air gritted across the teeth and left a bitter taste on the tongue. Clouds slowly started rolling in, wrapping the village into a somber embrace.

People started packing into the Mayor’s front room as the rain commenced. It started as a slow patter on the roof, and by the time everybody settled in, it was beating down. The sound drowned out all conversation for several minutes. Finally, it relented enough and the Mayor walked to the front of the room. Phillip Able was a tall, thin man with dark unruly hair. He took a deep breath and started slowly telling the village his plan.

He began, “Tomm, we need to bring your daughter, Mira, back home.”

Tomm looked up sharply and said, “Mayor, she isn’t done wit her trainin’ yet!”

“She is the closest we have to a Dragon Specialist,” soothed Phillip. “She is our only chance.”

-—-

Mira crouched down and inspected an indentation in the dirt. Only one slight scratch and a drag mark a few feet away. She chewed on a lip and screwed her brows together. Hmm, it must be a smaller dragon, probably flying low to catch a snack. I wonder what it was eating? Most of the wildlife in this area are gone.

“Bahk, bahk, baaaaak…” screeched behind her, making her jump a foot into the air. A chicken ran past, flapping her wings for extra speed. Following her was a huge mastiff dog, spittle flying and lips flapping.

“Moose!” yelled Mira. “Stop chasing the chicken!”

He skidded to a halt and hung his head. “Let’s get back to camp. I need to add this track to my notes.”

She was so close and yet so far away from finding where the dragons lived. She followed a stream back to camp, listening to the water as she thought about all the signs and tried to connect the dots.

It all started a few months ago when the last dragon attack had ripped through her village. She was summoned back from school where she was studying to be a Dragon Field Specialist. They needed her to cut her training short and come back to help with the dragons. The village had decided to call it quits. They had packed up all their necessary possessions and herded any remaining animals out of the valley and into the more fortified city of Troth. It was a 50 mile journey to the south, far enough away to be a safer distance from the dragons.

All the signs she had found over the past few months had taken her up out of the valley and into the mountains to the west. The trees showed much more signs of rubbing and scale-shed scattered throughout the brush. She knew she was getting closer to their lair. It was only a matter of days until she found them.

Mira turned around and yelled, “Moose! You better not be chasing that chicken againnnn…” Her words trailed off as she noticed one of the trees moving and a bright flash of light. Trees didn’t move like that and they definitely didn’t flash light. Her stomach lurched and her mouth dropped open when the tree suddenly opened its green eyes and glared at her.