Sunday Scribbles Writing Prompts: 52 Week Writing Challenge, Week 3.

Welcome to Sunday Scribbles!

Today is week 3 of the 52 week writing challenge.

This weeks prompt is: ‘Write about a loss that changed your life forever.’

This could be the loss of a friendship, the loss of a treasured item, or the loss of a close relative.I decided that I would have more fun with my characters perspective, than I would dredging up my past!

Write about a loss that changed your life forever:

Info: Arckia is a character from my current WIP, Dragonspire.
Mick is one of his tutors.
Steven is another tutor.
Merrick is the village elder.
All of these characters are introduced in earlier scenes in my WIP.

Arckia raced through the streets, where houses that had stood the test of time smouldered around him. He came to a sudden halt when the cliff’s edge appeared on the horizon. Pero, his father’s dragon, stood with his father at the edge of the cliff. Lightning crackled in the air around Pero, but Arckia’s father did not flinch.

Arckia shuddered as a cool breeze blew past him. He could hear his fathers voice, raised and harsh in the quiet of the night, but he could not hear what he had said. Arckia crouched, and he used the undergrowth to the side of the cliff to cover his approach. He came to a stop behind a tree, and straightened up. The bark was rough against his skin, and it scraped his bare arm.

‘Oww,’ Arckia whispered, voice lost to the wind. He froze for a moment, but neither dragon, or man, turned towards him.

Arckia exhaled, and he bit his bottom lip as he considered the scene in front of him. Less than six months ago, Pero had been like part of the family. A small smile graced Arckia’s lips as he remembered a time, a year ago now, when Pero had stuck his head in through the kitchen window. Pero had reached his mouth over to the counter, and gobbled down the apple pie that his mother had baked fresh that morning. The look on his mothers face had been indignant, but fond. Even his father had laughed.

Arckia’s father had changed. These past few months, he had been colder to Pero with each day that passed. Tonight was the festival of the full moon, and it was tradition that every dragon in the village attended. Arckia’s father had left Pero in the stables.

Closer to them now, Arckia’s keen ears could make out his father’s voice. Perhaps, if he listened for a moment, he would understand why his father had become so cold towards his dragon.

‘You are mine, beast. I expect subservience,’ Arckia heard his father growl.

Arckia leaned out a little from behind the tree. His eyes widened as Pero huffed and spread his wings wide, a clear refusal.

‘I could make you obedient…’ Arckia’s father threatened. He had something clutched tight in his hand. Arckia moved to duck behind a smaller tree, closer to his father. He squinted, but he could still not make out what the object was.

Pero bared his teeth, and he reared back as Arckia’s father began to stalk towards him. Arckia stepped forward out of the shadows, and he began to run towards the dragon. He made it two steps, before Pero opened his mouth and sent a blast of energy straight towards Arckia’s father.

‘No!’ Arckia shouted in horror, as the blast connected with the ground near his fathers feet.

Pero turned to Arckia, wide eyed, but Arckia did not notice. He had eyes only for his father, who stumbled, and tumbled over the edge of the cliff.

Arckia rushed forward with a desperate cry. He fell to his knees and reached for his father’s hand. His father reached back to him, eyes wide and fearful, but their hands did not find a connection. Arckia’s fingers closed over nothingness, and his father plummeted into the darkness below.

‘Father? Father… No!’ Arckia exclaimed, as hot tears began to trail down his cheeks. ‘You can’t… You can’t be…’

Arckia’s fingers splayed in the dirt beside him, and he clenched them into fists. Pero appeared in his field of vision, and Arckia’s eyes flashed with hot fury.

‘YOU! You did this!’ Arckia yelled. He shot a tearful glare towards Pero.

Pero shook his head. Arckia pulled himself to his feet, and he wiped away his tears with his free hand. Mud streaked across his face, but Arckia paid it no mind. He reached for the dagger at his belt.

‘You killed him,’ Arckia ranted as he stalked towards Pero. ‘You were supposed to be partners! How could you betray him like that?’

Pero backed away as Arckia flew at him, but he did not raise a claw, or open his jaws to defend himself. He only appeared resigned, sorrowful. Arckia darted between Pero’s legs, drew back his dagger, and sliced it across the dragons chest.

Pero howled in agony. His wings thrashed, and they caught Arckia’s side. Arckia stumbled and fell to the floor. The dagger fell from his hand to land in the grass beside him.

They had attracted a crowd, but Arckia did not notice. He pushed his feet to the floor, and scooped up his dagger, ready to launch a second attack.

‘Enough, boy,’ Mick growled. He grabbed Arckia from behind, and kept a firm hold on him as he struggled.

‘He killed my father! How can you let him get away with this?’ Arckia sobbed, betrayed. He watched as Steven approached Pero and looked the dragon in the eyes.

‘Get this dragon some medical aid, and find Merrick,’ Steven yelled to the assembled riders. A young woman nodded and moved back towards the village.

Mick held Arckia tighter as the boy renewed his struggles.

‘Stop it,’ Mick warned with a low growl. ‘I’m sorry for your loss, but Steven thinks there is more to this. Hear him out, please.’

Arckia looked away. His lower lip trembled, and his eyes closed tight, as if he were trying to block out the world. He could hear voices, but they were distant, muddled. Arckia shuddered. When he opened his eyes, his expression was raw, and full of grief.

‘No, I won’t. He took my father from me,’Arckia’s voice trembled, and his gaze settled on Pero. ‘I will never trust a dragon again.’

End Prompt

Thanks for reading. Did you try the prompt yourself? If you did, let me know how you got on! Next week, I will try and post the prompt on Twitter by Thursday!