Tanith and the Dragons

There weren't always dragons in the Valley.

Tanith climbed the old oak tree as high as she could go. It gave her good cover while she got a good look at the behemoths guarding the entrances to the valley. “Behemoth” she thought to herself. Gran would be proud of me using my word a day calendar. Although, if things continued as they were, there wouldn’t be much call for it in the future. She couldn’t leave the Valley. Who was able to come and go seemed random. Some merchants, like her father, had been barred exit for months while others made the trek back and forth readily. Soon, everybody’s wares were rolling out of the Valley in the three wagons that seemed to get a free pass.

It started with just one dragon, a small green hydra that popped up in the lake one day and stayed. And stayed. The local fishermen tried to kill it. But the hydra just grew another head each time. When it had gone from three to seven, they finally thought better of trying to harm it further. Especially since it didn’t seem much interested in fighting. Eventually, the fishermen gave up and went back to casting their nets and such just like before.

Life went on like normal until a month or so later when a couple of drakes decided to make Sunridge rise their home. The rise was the eastern exit out of the Valley. After quite a few tradesmen had their wagons (and themselves) set on fire it was decided it was better to go the long way and use the northern pass instead. After all, they told themselves: What was a day or two of extra travel time compared to the potential loss of life or goods?

Just a week later a tri-horned great worm took over the mine, then a grey stickleback nested in the town bell tower, and so on and so on until every key exit or vantage point in the valley had been claimed. The dragons kept to themselves for the most part, but life still ground to a halt with people only doing the bare minimum needed to survive. There seemed to be a fragile peace. That is, unless someone tried to leave the Valley. Then all hell would break loose until whoever it was gave up and made their way back home.

In less than six months the valley had become overrun. With each new dragon, the noose around the Valley seemed that much tighter. Not sure what this change in daily life meant, people in the valley were scared. There was talk of putting together hunting parties or hiring a dragon hunter. (Technically, both of those things were illegal. Dragons were so rare they were considered an endangered species). Then, the northern pass got claimed and the Valley was officially in lockdown. Opportunity for help? Lost. Maybe permanently.

As summer advanced, the air began to feel stifling. The mood in the town swung between lethargic and downright cranky. Not hearing from the outside world was maddening. Local gossip said something strange must be going on out there, but those who had been traveling in and out regularly reported that things had seemed much the same. No one else seemed to have dragons. And, because they were so rare, no one really believed the local merchants when they talked about the dragons in the Valley. Tanith had her own theory. Which was why she was hanging out in oak trees watching dragons. Tanith thought the dragons were guarding something. And darn if she wasn’t going to figure out just what “it” was.