Modern problems call for not so modern solutions

"There weren't always Dragons in the valley. Now there were at least two that people knew of," Alex thought to himself as he gazed down at his left hand, at the space where his middle finger should have been.

The scar at the stump was clean and had healed relatively well all things considered.

"Where ya at Alex? I need ya here!" A voice whispered intensely, he recognized that voice as Nancy Roland. He considered her a pretty and stoic woman, even with the distinctive Dragon fire burn covering a quarter of her face from nose to ear. She had become this small band's de facto leader after they had fled the Community. Being one of the few survivors that still had enough wits about them at the time to gather what she could and flee. What she could do wasn't listed as much, only the four of them had made it out when the Community had been attacked. Himself, Nancy, a hatchet of a man named Greg, and a woman who was silent with dark hair and an even darker demeanor who’s name he couldn’t remember and wasn’t sure it really mattered anymore were all that was left. Before communication worldwide had been wiped out there had been resistances and so many “last hopes'' he'd lost count. Now it was just a matter of survival and staying hidden. In his experience dragons were impervious to everything, modern weapons and ordnance seemed to just anger them more than deter them. Their claws and teeth could slice through anything, tank armor and stone had been more of a suggestion than any real protection. And their fire breath. That was something to inspire true terror. It defied even the very definition of fire itself. Like a living hungering creature in its own right, almost a liquid wreathed in flame. The only real thing that could stop them was that after days of rampaging a dragon would simply become full. That was it. Like after feasting on Thanksgiving Day and the inevitable food induced coma that would follow, a dragon would nest and slumber for months to even a year before waking and beginning the cycle of destruction again. Providing a tenuous and mounting fear kind of peace. Like a pot just waiting to boil over. And this pot had boiled all over their livelihood. He shook himself from his thoughts to look around. The small party seemed to have wandered into what used to be some sort of park. Large, once manicured trees dotted the area around them providing a semblance of cover. One such towering magnolia that rustled in the wind stood close by. It had become dark and they were looking for somewhere to camp for the night and stay out of sight. He couldn’t help but feel unseen eyes behind every rock or in every shadow. He felt like he was missing something and scanned all around once again. Then he figured it out, too late.

“RUN!” Alex shouted as he noticed what was wrong with the large magnolia tree. There was no wind.

Nancy looked up at him from where she had started to break her gear down for camp beneath the boughs of the tree. Then she looked up into the branches and yelled as long forearms darted out from the branches, claws digging into her shoulders and dragged her kicking in vain up into the limbs. Her screams disappeared and died off into the great magnolia. The form of the green Dragon exploded from the tree. It beat its terrible wings and dove towards Greg and Alex while it audibly inhaled deeply. Alex grabbed the petrified Greg and leapt backwards as molten flame obliterated the ground where they had just been. He scrambled back to his feet as fast as he could muster. He tried to help Greg up as well but the man battered him away and howled ceaselessly. Then he noticed that from the knees down, Greg's pants and shoes had melted away. The man’s skin and muscle had sloughed off and there were flames licking in a multitude of places. In a moment of fright, Alex felt that his lower front was wet. But relief washed over him when he saw that it wasn’t liquid hellfire. However, he wasn’t sure if it was Greg or himself that had lost control over their bladder. The Dragon had landed with a ground trembling boom not twenty paces from him and was striding closer.

It turned its head to the side to take Alex in fully. In its single remaining eye he could see it, the realization, the recognition.

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A simpler time

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Alex woke hazily in his fathers arms, he’d fallen asleep again during one of the performances at Sundown in the City, a weekly mini concert held in the heart of Knoxville, Tennessee, during each summer. He’d always loved the little outside gatherings listening to whatever live music was hosted that week. The blanket and picnic his mother would pack so they could lounge and snack during the whole affair always felt so quaint, so peaceful. While crossing back and forth between the boundary of sleep and wakefulness, Alex wondered if his father had remembered to gather up his micro cars, especially his favorite purple one he had left in the grass. It was the fastest. He also thought to himself groggily, “Why are we leaving early?” He could still vaguely hear the laughing and cheering of the audience around him as he was being carried to their car. Suddenly something jarred him to complete consciousness, that feeling of falling while dreaming and the sudden adrenaline burst that comes with it. In the seconds that followed, everything seemed to change around him as he comprehended his surroundings with a clearer head. The laughing and cheering was actually screams of anguish and terror. He wasn’t just being carried to their car, His father was running and had almost fallen causing him to wake. His mother was helping to stabilize her husband as his father cradled him, almost crushing him protectively. She had some kind of sack in her other hand. The both of them kept glancing over their shoulders as they ran, seeking some hidden assailant. Alex could see people all around him fleeing in terror, stumbling over eachother. He could see quite clearly although it was considerably dark at this time. That's when he noticed the fire, so much fire. It seemed like everything was on fire. A fire that seemed to hunger with an insatiable appetite consuming everything around it. As they ran down the sidewalk he could see unnatural flames clinging to the stone walls of the building around them like it were made of liquid itself.

As they fled around one corner it came into view. It was the size of a large horse. The air sizzled excitedly around it. Alex could see from the light of the flames this creature gleamed a dazzling green. Its scales sparkled as though it had been cut from thousands of green hued diamonds. It had four slender but muscular legs tipped with menacing claws. A long sinuous neck that ended in a spine crowned head with a maw full of curved deadly teeth. Its tail as long as the rest of its body slashed side to side like that of a stalking cat. The Dragon, because that's what it was, sauntered toward his family, measuring them and came back wanting. Like the dragons in his stories and shows, except this was no friendly dragon, this was murder incarnate. His family slowly backed away from it, him still in his father's arms. Alex couldn’t remember when he’d started crying and screaming. Without warning his father stopped retreating. They had backed into a mailbox, one of those blue monstrosities that dotted the walkways of the city. The Dragon took that as a sign and reared up intaking a deep, strong, resounding breath. Alex could feel the warmth begin to emanate and pulse from the creature. Evidently this meant something to his father because he froze for an instant. Shock and fear radiating through his grasp on Alex. However, the hesitation was only momentary. Alex’s father turned and shoved his wife through a shop door that had been left open in the panic none too softly. Then he spun and crouched behind the mailbox, his back to it while cradling Alex. Then the heat came, enveloping the both of them like a furnace. The fire splashed against the mailbox and all around them, Alex was sure he was screaming but couldn’t tell over the roar of the blast surrounding them, and the wet bubbling sound of melting metal. At some point his father had set him down and was growling in pain as he was trying in vain to beat out the flames biting at his upper arm and shoulder. Alex noticed his mother and locked eyes with her from the safety of the shop’s threshold she had unceremoniously sailed through moments before. As she was on her hands and knees, her gaze frantically passed from Alex to the approaching monster, weighing the possibility of getting to her son before it could reach her. Terror painted across her face. His mother’s chances were ultimately slim. Her decision was interrupted though, for as she began to regain her footing and stand, a black and white blur with strobing red and blue lights came screeching past Alex and his father from the way they had come. It turned hard and crashed into the scaly beast driving it into the building directly next to and connected to the one his mother was taking refuge in. The air was instantly filled with the dust of crushed brick and facade. The world shook from the impact, and the sounds of stone and metal crumbling and groaning was deafening. There was an eerie calm for several moments afterward and at some point his mother took the opportunity to rush to their aid, and the three of them embraced. A creaking sound erupted from the portion of the police car sticking out of the building breaking them from their revelry. The officer that spilled out looked quite worse for wear as he shakily unholstered his firearm.

“Did we get it Hank!?” The officer’s partner called from the other side of the vehicle as he took cover from behind the driver side door, aiming his pistol toward the opening they had rent in the wall.

Hank slowly crept up to the opening leading the way with his gun. He peered in and around the corner. But something ripped him from where he was standing and into the relative darkness of the building. He let out a shriek that was cut off and followed by a wet crunching sound. The Dragon easily in one motion jumped atop the police car silencing the sirens as it crushed the roof like a can under foot. Hank’s partner loosed a couple rounds from a few feet away into its belly, each making Alex’s ears ring. But if it bothered the behemoth at all, it didn’t show it. The thing’s neck snapped out and it bit down hard on the officer’s neck and shoulder. He cried out in pain, dropping his weapon. It shook him like a rag doll and he quickly stopped pounding his fists against it going limp. The Dragon dropped him like a sack of potatoes. From where it was standing atop the car, in a single leap the great lizard soared through the air and landed on what was left of the mailbox, crushing it, the molten steaming parts of it having no effect. In doing so it had separated Alex and his mother from their other family member.

In a panic Alex thought, “Had he run away?! Where is he? Why did he leave us?”

His mother put herself in front of him and started to back away toward the open storefront. A thunderous boom rang out followed by a second one. The Dragon shook with each crack. When it turned, Alex saw his father slowly and determinedly approaching. He had found and shouldered the Remington shotgun from the cop car and was pumping blast after blast into the beast’s flank. Like a predator cat it sprang at him and in a flash covered the gap. But it had mercifully left Alex and his mother behind. His father dove to the side avoiding being trampled. But it landed, stood up on its back legs, wrapped its forelimbs around him and lifted him into the air, thrusting its claws into his flesh. Through the pain Alex’s father glanced at his family and mouthed something wordlessly before raising the barrel of the shotgun point blank to the Dragon’s eye and pulling the trigger. The winged serpent wailed and reared its head back. Then it redoubled its efforts driving its claws deeper into his flesh, puncturing lungs and other internal organs. He spat out blood before collapsing as he was discarded aside.

His mother and he fled through the adjacent store knocking over a standing shelf and all of its contents clattered to the linoleum underfoot. They slammed through the shop’s back door running in a panic. For a while his mother dragged him along as he ran as fast as his little feet could take him. It wasn’t long before she hefted him up and was panting as she sprinted. After what seemed a lifetime they came to what looked like a random parking lot, but ended up at their car. His mother was weeping and struggling with the keys before remembering that there was a tiny button she could press to unlock the door with a pitiful beep of the horn. Not bothering with seat belts, within an instant they were screeching out onto the main road putting as much pavement between themselves and all that fire and death. She was sobbing now, deep wrenching sobs while still maintaining control of the vehicle. Without warning there was a massive impact and their car was rolling over sideways. Something had battered into its side as though a giant had hit them with a boulder, flipping them over and over. It came to rest on its side lying on the passenger side door. Alex was crushed against the door with his mother atop of him in a heap. His head swam dizzily. The squeal of metal being shredded filled his ears as the entire driver side of their car was peeled away like foil, the cool night air blew in from the opening. Through this opening he could see it. Black as the night. Almost as though it was consuming the darkness around itself. Larger than his school bus and it shared likeness with its green counterpart in form only. Where the Green was sinuous, the Black was hard edges as cut from stone. And larger, so much larger. With its front claw it reached into the car through the makeshift opening, the sheer size of its hand bulging out the roof and floorboard of the car it pulled his mother up and away. In horror he watched her being lifted as she brought the finger of her free hand up to her mouth in a shushing motion.

As he began to lose consciousness he saw what his mother had been holding onto, it was their park blanket. She had used it to gather up his cars and now they rained down on top of him as the blanket fell from her grasp. Even in his fading state tears rolled down his cheeks when he saw the purple car floating down toward him. He soon gave way to his waning consciousness as the blanket fell over him.

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Back to present

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Something tore the Green’s gaze from Alex, it seemed to have heard something it didn’t expect to. Alex heard it too. He couldn’t explain it but he heard it just as much as he felt it. The Green beast turned just in time to see the other dragon before it hurtled into it like a missle. Both creatures tumbled, digging a furrow into the ground as they clawed and bit at each other. Each trying to gain the upper hand on the other. The Green’s attacker was only slightly larger but a good deal more muscular. Its neck was shorter than the Green’s with a broader head and overall body. Where the Green was sparkling emeralds, the Brown it was fighting was muted mahogany obsidian. The startling thing that took Alex by surprise was that the monsters were hurting each other, badly. Their claws raked gashes in their scaly armor, their teeth punctured as though spears. Each successful strike drew other worldly roars and howls from the victim. The heartbeats that passed felt like hours until it was just over. All the intense violence, the rage, fizzled out like an exhale. The smaller dragon lay crumpled, ragged wet breaths escaping its bloody maw. The Brown slowly turned toward Alex and regarded him. Alex’s heart skipped a beat under that stare.

“I felt you, I came.” The feeling came into Alex’s mind. In that same knot in the back of his skull where his bond resided. He could feel the immense conflict, physical pain, and sorrow that wracked his friend.

“Thank you Digit,” Alex said aloud, as well as sent to the Brown. The victorious dragon slumped to the ground. Its wounds finally taking their toll. The Brown would survive but she would take quite a while to heal. Alex walked up to the dying dragon and while standing above it, peered into its large single eye and watched as it rattled out its last breath. He heard a gasp and a whimper from some of the shrubs nearby. It must be the somber woman he had lost track of during the initial tumult. She had witnessed the whole exchange and was frozen with fear and confusion. Alex laughed softly just happy to be alive.

“Well I guess that’s out in the open now,” he said under his breath.

Just then a roar filled the air. Like an avalanche but from a great distance and from far above them.

Despair filled the three of them as the realization set in. The Black was coming.