Reunited
A mother dragon goes on a rampage after the king steals her daughter.
Fire waves roared through the forest as the mother dragon went on a rampage. Her heart burned with the desire to destroy those who had taken her baby. No creature was safe — already I had seen dozens of burnt animal remains — until they were reunited. If only she knew my true intentions, she wouldn’t try to turn me into a campfire.
Charred limbs fell from beautiful, grand trees. The surviving trees’ leaves fluttered as they cried for their friends’ deaths. They were mere victims of the mother’s blind rage. Everything in the forest was her enemy, except for her baby squirming in my arms.
“Slow down,” said Arianell, in my arms. “What’s the hurry?”
The fires illuminated the young dragon’s silver scales; she lifted her glowing head and nuzzled my chest. I stared into her ruby eyes, more fierce than the fires trying to consume me. I couldn’t let her notice the fear floating in my eyes. I managed a small smile in hopes she would find comfort.
The poor dragon had no idea what I had rescued her from. Over a week ago, when the mother went to hunt, the king’s knight stole the dragon’s egg. I, a simple chambermaid, overheard the drunk knights bragging about the affair. While they went out for more beer, I snuck inside the king’s chambers. On his nightstand, a silver egg wobbled, almost ready to hatch. When I touched the egg, I no longer felt the cold air drifting through the window. Instead, I felt a fire crackling inside me. At once, I knew what must be done. I stole the egg, knowing I must return the child to her mother. What I hadn’t expected was the egg to hatch. Or a talkative, curious hatchling.
Another fire wave tore through the trees to the east of us. My breath wheezed as the smoke tickled my lungs. I covered my mouth with my free hand. At least I didn’t have to worry about the flames harming Arianell — her mother wouldn’t risk harming her child.
Towards the west, I heard trumpets blaring; the knights were in the forest. Of course, the king would risk his men becoming living torches if it meant retrieving the baby dragon.
“Arianell,” I said. “We’re going to play another game. Just give me a second to find the perfect spot to play.”
Arianell yawned, showing her rows of spiked teeth. I didn’t want to shatter the pure shield protecting her from the cruelties of the world. I just needed time, enough time to find her mother before the knights captured us, or the flames consumed me.
An arrow rippled in the air, missing my head by a few inches. I shuddered at the two enemies who wanted my head. Whoever found me first, I knew they wouldn’t spare a single tear for me. Whatever happened, I needed Arianell safe with her mother.
The second arrow’s aim was true. I cried as the silver point went through my tender ankle. I fell into the mud, spraying Arianell and me. She spluttered for a second after she smiled when she noticed my muddy beard.
Over us, a dark shadow loomed, casting flames into the forest, sparing no life. Another wall of fire flared behind us, blocking the army from coming toward us. They would find a way. They always did.
Arianell puffed a couple of snorts of smoke. She gazed at her mother, whose scales rained golden lights across the ground. If she recognized her mother, she betrayed no emotion, but I doubt she knew her mother. My dear Arianell mistook me as her mother when she hatched. As much as it broke my heart, I knew Arianell would forget me. At most, I would be a mere blur in her memories.
“What’s wrong?”
Arianell’s nostrils wiggled as she sniffed the air, smelling the blood dripping into the grass. I grimaced as I tried getting up, but the arrow had gone too deep. The mother’s cries echoed in the forest. The nearest flowers drooped as they wept for her. Her song tugged on my heart. As I choked back tears, I knew what must be done.
Tree branches cracked as the knights found a new pathway free of the fire. The flames would consume me or the knights would take me back to the king. My fate was sealed when I saved Arianell.
“Do you want to hear our game?”
The concern faded from Arianell’s eyes. Despite being a week old, she had learned to love games, most of them invented to keep her unaware of the looming threats.
“What is it?”
Her tail thumped against the ground, leaving a long imprint in the mud.
“We’re going to race. Whoever reaches your mot–” my voice cracked as I tried to say ‘mother’ “ — the flying dragon wins! But you have to promise you’ll fly.”
Arianell cocked her head. “Doesn’t that mean I’ll win?”
I laughed, blinking back tears. “What? You’ve seen how well I climb. I bet I’ll be there before you have a chance to blink. To be fair, I’ll give you a head start.”
I said the magic words to any child (dragon or human). No child would back away from a challenge. Before I could tell her to start, Arianell flew off toward the golden lights, not knowing she was flying to a new, better life.
I blinked back tears as I watched her loop in the air. We had climbed through hills covered in ice and snow, thread along forests with carnivorous plants, and swam through lakes of murderous mermaids. The nights we slept, I cradled Arianell until I eventually fell asleep listening to her soft breaths. These memories I would hang onto until my last breath.
When I heard the mother’s cries, it filled my heart with a song. She no longer wept for a lost child but cried as she was reunited with her daughter. The roses lifted their heads, no longer crying themselves. I wiped a tear from my face. At last, the child was safe with her mother.
As the knights got closer, I kept a steady eye on them. The mother snuggled her daughter, unaware of the arrows coming closer to me. I closed my eyes as I embraced the cool breeze coming from the dragon’s wings. Nothing would taint my last few seconds of peace. I waited to take my sword down until I saw the dragons flying away to make fresh memories together.
Dr. Casey Lawrence’s Fiction Friday Prompt inspired “Reunited.”
