Perilous Skies; Wayward Royalty, Playing with Fire

Chapter 1 A Dragon's Tale

It was a sweltering day in August, and the dry season was taking its toll on the Rainshadow steppe. The bountiful herds that once provided for us have long since scattered across the badlands in search of water. This left us wayward hunters to squabble over whatever we could get our claws on, leading to many chaotic encounters. These were dangerous times for a young dragon to be hunting alone, but I was certain I could pull it off. I foolishly believed because I am a Dartwing and a Dragon Mage, I was fully capable of handling other predators until I was greeted with a grim reminder of my youth.

Patrolling the outer rim of my pack's territory, I decided to hunt alone. I was pressed for time and social endeavors could wait. Tomorrow, I was going to meet my soulmate, the very child I had both blessed and cursed to be my lifelong familiar companion. A daunting prospect, seeing as we both share a soul-link, yet all I knew about her was that she was alive and a girl. You'd think sharing souls would tell you more about a person. Regardless, life-changing events could not be met on an empty stomach. I needed my week's meal.

Fortunately, the weather was in my favor today. Clear skies and a steady breeze made navigating the parched plains an easy task. It was only a few hours into my flight when I spotted a massive cloud of dust rising from a distant hillside, accompanied by the sound of rolling thunder. I fixed my gaze on the approaching chaos and after a few moments, the realization finally hit me.

"A parasaur stampede!" I said excitedly as I dove in pursuit. Although I had yet to directly observe my quarry, the hooting cries and thunderous footfalls of the animals were unmistakable. As soon as I passed over the hill, the ground beneath me came alive with a hundred of the crested duck-bills, all fleeing in a desperate panic. They weren't running from me, however, trailing the herd were at least a dozen allosaurus taking turns rushing into it in pairs. During this, the predators would bite and claw at their flanks in an attempt to isolate slower beasts, leaving many with lacerations. I carefully lowered myself above the marauding carnivores to gauge the threat, until I was warded off by a lunging bull allosaurus who wasn't keen on sharing. I retaliated with an ear-piercing shriek and sliced across his face with my talons. With a pained howl, the creature quickly retreated from the chase trying to shake the oozing blood from his snout.

Each of the allosaurus ranged between eight to ten meters from head to tail or just past a street's width, with three hooked claws on each hand. Their massive jaws were packed with serrated knifelike teeth used to hack flesh off their victims in brutal cleaving motions. The theropods sported a rusty-brown pelt with bright red crests adorning their skulls. Each was comparable in stature to me. Though I was more than a match for any of these scaly brutes, I just couldn't risk facing the entire pack alone. If I am going to have any chance of eating today, the damn beasts have to go.

I flew ahead of the ravenous predators and kicked one of the bigger parasaurs directly in the head, sending it tumbling to the ground with a satisfying crack. As if on cue, the allosaurus abruptly abandoned their pursuit and seized the fallen animal with the ruthless efficiency of wild dogs. The hapless prey disappeared beneath a mass of hacking jaws and a shroud of dust. Then it was over. I had the herd to myself and the allosaurus were gone. I didn't look back, but I felt a little wasteful sacrificing an animal I wasn't planning to eat. At least the competition was over. Regardless, this guilt didn't last, because now it was my turn to hunt and my aching stomach spoke louder than any regret.

However, feeding myself wasn't going to be so simple. Unlike the allosaurus, I was currently alone, and I wasn't big enough to carry a grown parasaur on my own. So, I had to catch something a bit more manageable, a bit... smaller. This herd had many foals, most of which were less than half my size and would be easy to lift. The only problem was: how do I reach these pint-sized delicacies without getting trampled? The young animals had all been moved into the center of the herd, where simply plucking them off the ground was impossible. If I was going to eat today I needed a plan of attack, so I climbed high above the chaos where I could strategize in relative peace.