The Dragon's Curse

There weren't always dragons in the Valley. The great mages drove them into the mountains centuries ago, giving the villages of Silla an everlasting peace free of destruction and fear of the skies. War bells gathered dust at the top of unmanned watch towers surrounding the outer city of Belvia. Soldiers were relaxed and lazy, barely needing their weapons or armor for anything but a show of status among the people. Many citizens didn't even know the meaning of danger. Everyday was the same utopia.

Then the war bells rang.

The sound echoed over the crowded streets, silencing the buzz of conversations that covered the marketplace. All eyes turned to the moss covered tower where three soldiers stood ringing the mighty iron bells. A horse galloped through the crowded streets, its master white faced as he rode and dug his heels into the beast's ribs to make it run faster.

"Dragon!" He shouted above the bells, "Hide! Dragon!"

Another moment of silence, then chaos erupted as a mighty roar thundered through the air. A mess of bodies collided into each other as everyone ran to seek shelter. Erina's mother all but threw her into the house and slammed the door shut. Sweat ran down her terrified face as she held the only barrier they had against the mob outside.

"Mama?" Erina asked.

"It's ok sweetie." She replied.

The screams outside the door died down, replaced by the march of soldiers and the tang of their swords as they drew them for battle. Erina's mother slowly opened the door, peeked her head out, and looked to the sky. After a moment, she fully opened the door and turned back to her daughter.

"I need to find your sister," she shook, "stay here, and don't open the door until I come back. Ok?"

"Ok, mama." Erina nodded.

Her mother nodded back, took a deep breath, and ventured outside, slamming the door shut behind her. Erina looked to where her mother had been and held her doll close to her chest. Everything had happened so fast. One second she was following her mother through the marketplace, helping her pick out ingredients for dinner tonight. The next, everybody was shouting, running, and pushing others to the ground. Her wicker basket was long forgotten in the streets, most likely trampled beyond repair in the mud.

A roar shook the small windows of the house. Erina, going against her mother's wishes, ran for the door and hauled it open. She barely caught a glimpse of the dragon as it flew over her house, its arrow pointed tail disappearing over the rooftop and falling into the trees. She stood alone in the street, the screams of her neighbors echoed miles away on the other side of the village. Curiosity took hold of her as she left her doll in the doorway, and ventured into the forest after the dragon.

Broken branches served as a trail to where the creature had fallen, and at the very edge of the Valley, the dragon lay. Erina gulped down a lump of air and wandered towards the beast. It laid in a heap surrounded by fresh turned soil, as if it had crash landed to the ground. Spears and arrows protruded from its underside, blood oozing out of the wounds. The scales were pale orange, cracked, and broken like they had seen many years of battle. Her heart thundered as she got closer.

With a quick inhale, the dragon lifted its large head from the pile of dirt beneath it and its eyes focused on Erina. She could see her shaken self reflected in the green irises as clear as her reflection in a mirror, even from the distance between them. It growled, baring its large sharp white teeth. She backed up a step and put her hands up in a show of surrender.

"It's ok," she said in an amazingly calm voice, "I'm not here to hurt you. I'm a friend."

The dragon narrowed its eyes and huffed.

"Do not mock me like I am some wounded dog, girl. If I wanted you dead, I would have swallowed you the moment you stepped out of those trees."

The dragon spoke with finesse and arrogance. Almost like a wealthy lady speaking to her servants. Erina stared wide eyed at the mighty creature, her jaw falling open.

"You…you can talk!" She exclaimed.

The dragon snorted and laid its horned head back on the dirt pillow below it.

"I can do many things, girl." She spat, "Speaking your menial language is mere child's play."

Erina chanced a step closer.

"My name isn't girl. It's Erina." She pouted.

"I have no interest in your name girl. Now leave me be."

"Do you have a name?" Erina asked, now standing a step away from the dragon's sunset colored wing.

"We all have names." The dragon said in an exhausted tone, "Given to us at birth and remaining with us until death."

"Well? What is yours?" Erina persisted, excitement building in her core. She was talking to a dragon! A real dragon!

The dragon let out a long sigh. Gray smoke escaped from her nostrils. There was a moment of pause, then she looked at Erina.

"I am Zara." She finally said, "Keeper of Secrets."

"Secrets?" Erina's eyes lit up at the title. "What kind of secrets?"

"You ask too many questions." Zara growled, the smoke rolling out of her nostrils turning a darker gray.

Erina bowed to her in a show of respect. "Please forgive me for being so bold. My uncle studies your kind for a living and would love to get the chance to speak with you. I was hoping I could bring some information to him for his books."

"Your uncle?" Zara asked slowly.

"Yes. My uncle Elias."

Zara was quiet for a long while, just looking at the small girl bowed low before her.

"Erina was it?"

"Yes." Erina replied and stood up straight to properly face Zara again, a smile spread across her face.

"How old are you?" The dragon asked carefully.

"Um… I'm ten."

"Hm." Zara looked away, contemplating whatever was on her mind. When she looked back at Erina, her eyes were hard, "I will not answer your questions."

Erina's heart dropped. Had she done something wrong? Perhaps she had asked too much of the injured dragon. She only thought of her uncle and how much even a crumb of information from an actual dragon would mean to him. Now she would have nothing for him, and it was all her fault for being too greedy.

"I understand." She said sadly and turned away.

"However…" Zara said with a groan. Erina turned back to see her standing up on shaking legs. Dark blood ran faster down her legs and pooled on the grass and dirt below her. The smoke coming out of her, now bloody nostrils had turned thick and black. She gritted her teeth in pain and said with great effort, "For your bravery and respect, I offer you a gift."

Erina approached closer, her eyes bright with curiosity and excitement once more. A gift from a dragon! Her uncle Elias would be ecstatic! Zara's expression remained still and serious, most likely due to the strain of standing with her wounds and loss of blood.

"You must consent to receiving it." She said tightly.

"I consent! I consent!"

"Very well…" Zara closed her eyes and lifted her head high. From the base of her neck, red fire began to glow through her skin. It crept up, up, up to her jaw, and in the blink of an eye, the flames shot from her mouth with a deafening scream, heading right for Erina.

The girl held up her arms as if she stood a chance at stopping the flames. The blaze engulfed her entirely, licking at her arms and legs. Her clothes disappeared into ashes around her, but her body didn't feel an ounce of pain. Risking opening her eyes, she saw a whirlwind of fire surrounding her in beautiful shades of red, orange, and yellow. Stray flames reached out to touch her, but she never burned. Amazed, Erina reached out to touch the blaze. Fire wrapped around her fingers like a stream of water. This was surely the most amazing thing she would ever see. A part of her wished it would go on forever.

"I am sorry." Zara's voice echoed around her.

Sorry?

The whirlwind of flames swirled in front of her, condensing into two fist sized balls of light. She stared at them curiously, then before she could react, they shot right into her eyes.

Pain. Searing pain like none she had ever felt before. The white hot fire burned through her skull, spreading everywhere in her body. Erina clawed and scratched at her burning eyes, screaming so loud her voice broke. Her legs gave out, and as she fell to the ground she dug her face into the loose dirt to try and stop the burning. There was no relief.

“It hurts!” Erina screamed, “Make it stop, Zara! Please make it stop!”

No sympathy came from the dragon. No words of kindness to calm her or an offer of relief. Just silence that was filled with Erina’s agonizing screams and sobs. She couldn’t see anything, the world was nothing but black and noise. Her ears were ringing, recovering from listening to her screams for so long, but she could hear the labored breathing of Zara as the dragon collapsed to the ground.

“I don’t understand.” Erina sobbed from her spot in the dirt.

“This… is your… gift.” Zara gasped with one long, final breath.