Powder

Chapter Ten: Running Out of Time

"PLEASE STOP! PLEASE! I screamed as she continued to slowly tug my arm with her jaws. Fire snaking up my arm as I could feel each muscle tearing as blood started to shoot out the small holes opening up while the sound of ripping filled my ears. I let out another agonized scream as I could see out of the corner of my eye what looked like a long white noodle being snapped, each snap sending another shockwave of fire directly into my brain. I bit down on my bottom lip hard enough that it started to bleed as I sobbed. "P-PLEASE S-STOP!" I sobbed, spittle and blood coming from my mouth as I pleaded to empty ears. The only thing it seemed to do was provoke her further as she bit down harder on my arm, her teeth the size of my entire body slicing right through the muscles and tendons, sending another wave of internal fire and agony. I screamed again but for no one to hear as she finally bit down hard enough to completely sever the damaged limb, I watched through watery and bloodshot eyes as the bloody arm bounced across her dirty yellow scales, and bounced to the ground to the sand, joining the collection of disfigured dragon hands below. I looked into her pitch black eyes, mine no longer having the same look of defiance or resistance as I faced her from before, instead my eyes only held pleading, begging for mercy, but I wasn't met with pity, only disgust from her eyes.

"You are truly a disgusting creature, but I don't want to finish you off too quickly now, do I?" She growled before moving her head away and letting out a roar I had to cover my ears for, but I could only cover my right as my eardrum was probably ruined in the other. "SMOLDER!"

In a flash of yellow and jewelry, the smaller dragon appeared in front, his eyes widened as he looked down on me before narrowing his eyes professionally as he looked back to his sister. "I'll repair the object, if you desire."

"Good. I have other business to attend to, so be useful, brother, unless you want your head joining the others on the stronghold walls." She snarled before flying out of the tower.

Smolder looked at me sympathetically as I whimpered there while blood continued to spill from my arm, like a small red waterfall. "Y-you w-were r-right..." I whimpered through tears.

"I'm sorry Teardrop, I really am." He said with his head lowered before revealing his talons where Flower currency was. "I still don't know Common but I could tell she wanted to see you." Smolder says as he places the women into my cage.

"D-did... d-did you come for dragon lessons?" I tried laughing through my tears but more pain went through my veins as she lifted my arm and started wrapping some type of fabric to stop the blood from spilling.

"Kid... I'm so sorry..."

"It's fine, there was n-nothing you could have done... besides... i-it wasn't all that bad."

"How could you even say that? You-" I barely managed to push the metal rod into her arms, interrupting her before saying anything further.

"T-the Boomstick... is our key out of h-here..." I managed to get out.

"How-"

"I think I-I might pass out now." I mumbled before I felt myself falling to the ground, but everything faded around me before I even hit the floor.

***

It was dark again, the only light being from the orange hue of the flames and the Moonlight for Imperial, wait, I could see? Everything felt different, smaller, I felt armor on my body dragging me down, I felt a sense of pain in the upper parts of my body as I bled from several spots, some of the blood dripping back onto me, but no, this wasn't me, not even close. Everything felt wrong and out of place, and I could see this time, I was covered in a small room, yet it looked like one of the gigantic rooms in the stronghold, lining the walls were the remains of what seemed to be wooden shards, as if something had been shattered or broken.