Trial by Fire

There weren't always dragons in the valley.

Sweat was settling in my hair, my skin as I watched the beast sleep, it's snores causing the very ground to rumble, the water around me rippling in unease.

Frustration rose in my chest as I saw the blue dragon curl it's tail tighter around it's prey, it's treasure.

My sister.

Creeping closer, I pulled my feet through the river weeds and muck that were trying to hold me captive, trying to capture my petrified siblings' attention. Even a simple task like collecting water from the river was far too perilous. What a world we were living in.

Too many warriors fallen from the initial decent, it was left to the individual to keep an eye on their loved ones. Being the only ones left from our original clan, that task had fallen onto me. Fortunate, really, as I wouldn't have allowed anyone else to go anyways. I had to get her back.

She wasn't making a sound, but I could see her trembling from my position. Standing carefully, I waved my hand to capture her eyes. I did, but her face paled an extra shade. Shaking her head slowly, she mouthed "Go home."

Home, now, was nestled in caves along the valley borders, vibrant markers allowing wandering villagers to find their way to safety from the wastelands of their previous settlements.

Like I said, there weren't always dragons in the valley.

Sunlight was showering warm light on the cerulean scales, keeping the corporeal creature in a nice, deep slumber. If I wanted her back, we'd have to move now.

I motioned for her to move towards me again, but again, she shook her head. More vigorously this time.

The creature's breathing changed.

I felt the panic come up my throat, tickling the back of my head. Reaching behind me, I pulled my pack forward, shielding it from moisture as I slid onto the river bank silently, my eyes locked onto the stirring stray.

One chance to make this work. And I hoped to everything that would hear, that this would work.

My fingers pulled out what I was looking for, shaking only slightly.

A stun ball.

Developed shortly after the last attack, these stun balls were designed to cause a flash of blinding light, allowing the captured people, or persons, to escape from the dragons grasp long enough to be out of range of the fire. At least, that was it's purpose. It was brand new, never been used.

Again, there weren't always dragons in the valley.

Hurling the projectile at it's head, I motioned for Thora to move, and out of habit, I hollered.

"RUN!"

My heart stopped the moment the word burst from my lips, mine and the beasts' eye meeting for a moment, my body completely freezing in place.

Then the projectile went off.

The promised blinding light was achieved, the object shattering. I could hear pieces fall into the river as they ricocheted off it's steel back. But I could not see. Colored dots danced over my vision, colors and figures melding together. I'd made a mistake. We had to move now.

The forest floor began to shake more violently, and I knew what was coming next.

Fire.

"Thora! Run!"

Moving towards the blur of trees, I squinted, trying desperately to peer through the kaleidoscope sight for a glimpse of my sister running from danger. And I hit a wall.

Falling entirely on my rear, I quickly tried to gather my bearings, find a way around this wall. I reached out, my fingers quickly grasping fabric. Fabric? Couldn't be, it was far softer than anything I'd ever touched. Looking up, I saw the cause of my sudden halt.

A man?

Keeping the fabric in my hand, I found the path around him and started running, trying to pull him along. But he didn't budge.

Tugging again, I pleaded.

"Please! We have to go!"

I almost didn't hear what he said before the beast let loose a deafening, cataclysmic roar. I shoved my hands over my ears quickly, head aching from the reverberation.

He spoke, and I heard his voice.

"He's my brother."

Flames synonymous with it's scales erupted from it's snout, my eyes catching up as the color crept closer.

We were going to die.

Collapsing completely to the ground, I covered my head and neck with my arms, screams escaping my throat before I could stop them. Heat licked at my sides, every bone in my body hoping that Thora had gotten away from the unrelenting inferno. I braced for the searing pain, for the flesh on my skin to start boiling. And none came.

Roar subsided, I dared to move my arms, peeking back out at the chaos.

The figure was now standing in front of me, a cloak draped in front of both of us, glowing with an ice blue flame. Sitting up slowly, I stared at the rogue holding, what should be, the flimsiest shield in existence.

"Who are you?"

As the blue hue of the shield subsides, the hero moves it back behind him and raises a hand, palm up, towards the overgrown lizard.

"Come now, you know better. Return."

I watched as the magnificent creature's face fell, almost mimicking a puppy being scolded. It tucked it's tail around itself and lowered it's head, the once menacing being, reverting to a submissive serpent.

Yet, the transformation was not complete.

Humidity rising, steam began to billow from it's core, creating a thick fog that covered us in a thick, wet blanket. Through the steam, my eyes began to search, once again, for Thora.

I whispered softly "Is it safe?"

Keeping his back to me, he pointed towards the edge of the forest. Quickly following my eyes, I scrambled in that general direction, not daring to call her name again.

Coughing as I breathed in the hot air, my hands waved in front of me through the aerial sludge, relying on the familiarity of the terrain to get to the trees. Only when I spotted one, did I utter another word.

"Thora? Where are you?"

Arms grasped me from behind and squeezed, Thora still trembling with fear.

But I was relieved. She was alive.

Turning, I wrapped my arms around her, squeezing her back tighter. Letting out a slow breath, I allowed my heart a to slow.

"You okay?"

She nodded, then wrinkled her nose at me. "You're all sweaty."

Blinking with surprise, I chuckled for the first time since the descent.

"I know, don't worry about it."

Peeling her from my sweaty body, I turned back towards the river bank, searching the fog for our savior.

"Did you see that man stop the flames?"

Thora, looking confused, followed my gaze. "What guy?"

Fanning my hand a bit, I replied "You'll see once the steam clears up."

Watching the pillars of hot air, I waited for the mysterious champion to reveal himself. But as the air cleared, the only figures left were ours.

"Can we go home?" She looked up at me with wide, scared eyes. I nodded. "yeah, let's go."

She stayed in the trees as I retrieved the water bucket from the river, and we started our journey back.

Travelling quickly, quietly, we weaved through the trees, following the markers back home. Florescent ribbons tied to buildings, old food stands, trees, helped wanderers find the village they want, different colors representing different villages, different clans. Ours was blue.

United we stood against the beasts of the descent. I was the only one I knew who called them anything besides that. Their arrival was violent, left our homes desolate, and killed many of our families. But, what others failed to see, is that we had brought it on ourselves. Years of prosperity had turned our valley into one of the main trading routes, and in one day it was destroyed.

As the legend goes, our hoarding brought about our own destruction. And as it brought our demise, it was the only rule that was unbreakable amongst the coalition.

No hoarding.

Making our way down the final path to our particular alcove, I felt the hair on my neck stand straight up. My sudden stop caused Thora to plunder right into me, sputtering with frustration.

"Hey, watch where you're going!"

Raising my finger to my lips, I summoned her immediate silence. She forgot so easily.

Clicking.

Persistent clicking.

Turning towards the sound, I moved Thora behind me as I reached for my pack, yet again. Enclosing my hand on our last grenade, I watched. A dragon this close to the border was new. Unheard of.

Still, the valley hasn't always had dragons.

Keeping my voice low, I whispered to Thora "Take the knife from the pack, back towards the entrance of the cave. If anything happens, make sure you get there, okay?"

Thora nodded in agreement and did as I told her, a shaking hand holding our fathers old hunting knife as she began to back away from me.

The clicking moved closer.

Arming my other hand with a large rock, I waited for the perpetrator to reveal itself. The hood of the cloak was the first thing I saw.

"It's only me."

That voice.

Keeping my weapons armed, I watched him move closer.

"And the clicking?"

Slowly raising both hands, he opened his right to reveal a little device, evidently that clicked. My brows furrowed with suspicion, he addressed it immediately.

"Training purposes. It's harmless."

Stepping onto the path, the mysterious figure came into the light. Hands up, head down. I could only see the bottom of his face, but it was covered with a long, black beard. His tall structure was wrapped in, what looked like, armor made of dragon scales, his life-saving cloak hanging from his neck, down his back.

Slowly lowering my arms, I whispered softly again "Who are you?"

He mirrored my actions, hands dangling at his sides, fingers brushing against the scabbard of the weapon strapped to his waist.

"I need your help, Delara."

Shivers shot through my spine, blooming into the base of my skull, my heart dropping into the pit of my stomach. I could feel as my heart rate increased, but not in panic. More like, anticipation.

But I was confused.

Thora's furrowed brows reflected my confusion as she stopped moving, curiosity peaked.

"You are mistaken, sir. That's not my name."

The ebony forest of beard moved as his lips curled into a smile. The blood in my veins began to beat mercilessly, pumping every piece of my body full of panic.

"That, is your real name, sister."

His last word reverberated in my head, all other sounds falling away. And all I felt wind. And heat.

Bloody screams ripped from my throat as the fire in my veins was whipped into an inferno, my legs giving way as pain tore through my body. I watched, in horror, as my body began to break, skin starting to turn to ash and fall away.

Turning towards Thora, I reached out. My hand disintegrated.

Thora's eyes were awash in fresh fear, tears already pouring down her face, as if I was already gone. She was going to be all alone.

My screams fell silent , my chest beginning to fall away.

I turned back towards the vagrant shadow and finally saw his face.

Thora screamed and I heard her run back towards the cave. The man didn't flinch, eyes focused on me.

Good.

Burning amber eyes with reptilian pupils stared back at me, a slow wicked grin spreading across his face slowly.

"Welcome to the family."

I felt as my knees caved, yet I wasn't afraid. My ashes began to float around me as the rest of my upper body fell, and I thought...

Were there always...dragons in the valley?