Autumn's Fall

XX. Back in the Cave

The startled cries of birds as they took to wing woke him from his sleep. With a dragon-sized yawn, he lifted his head just enough see the top of the cliff where the noise had come from, but he could see nothing.

Turning his eyes back towards the woman, he watched her wearied sleep. Her head rested on his scaly neck, an arm held onto his back for warmth. His neck was draped across the Minister of Winter's neck, giving something for her tired head to lean on. It was all he could do to help relieve some of her constant discomfort.

He observed his own body and shook his head in wonder—he'd grown yet again. Were he to hazard a guess, he'd bet he was around the size of a Great Dane. And it was unprecedented! For as long as he could remember, it had taken him years to grow even half this size. It seemed that somehow the Minister of Winter's presence was making him grow at an incredible rate. He was now more than capable of escaping by himself—he could practically walk over the distance to the tangle of vines—but for the first time in ages, he was conflicted. Freedom was within his grasp, but the tiny fissure that had broken in his heart the first day he had met her was no longer small. The dam had burst, and he knew he could not leave her there to her fate.

Her chapped, pale lips were parted the slightest bit, as if her body's call for water still came in her sleep. It had been well over a week since she had been tied to this spot, and she grew paler and weaker by the day. As he found himself growing, he had tried attacking her bindings but had only managed to free most of her arms. Both arms were now completely mobile, but still she was bound because the largest roots covered her body, holding her in place. He feared that he might not be able to get her out in time.

Slowly, he lifted a talon. It was slightly larger than yesterday, hopefully stronger too. Placing it into a cut he had already made in the roots, he began gently scratching away at it, hoping not to wake the sleeper. However, when he looked up from his work, he saw her pale blue eyes looking wearily at him. She smiled gently and spoke in a soft, slightly hoarse, voice, "Good morning."

He gave a soft grunt in reply; how he wished he could say something, but his mouth just wasn't built for the delicate motor functions required for talking.

The Minister of Winter lifted her head up, wincing against the stiffness in her neck, and looked around, "Another day in the cavern. I don't know how you can stand being in here all the time. Surely you can get out by now?"

He only gave a low rumbling sound in reply and went back to his scratching. He'd already made up his mind days ago that he wasn't leaving this place alone.

ab§d

The door pushed open relatively easily as the two of them put their full weight into their work. Having been opened recently when the Ministers came through, it only squeaked loudly enough to wake the dead, but it finally gave way before them.

The guard on the left rotated his shoulder, swinging his arm around slowly to help relieve his sore muscles, "Let's hope we don't have to do that again."

His fellow guard nodded in reply, his eyes focused on the forest around them. "Do you really think she's here?"

"No clue. That's what we're here to find out."

They walked through the dense forest warily, "I've been wondering about something."

"What's that?"

"This place was built to keep the fallen Minister of Autumn imprisoned, right?"

"Correct."

"So, how are we supposed to get inside?"

"We aren't."

"Then, what do they expect us to do?"

"Look around the perimeter and call out to see if she's down in the mound. If we find her walking around, great. If she's down there, we just call the Minister of Spring to let her out. Simplicity itself."

Patches of fresh ash still covered the ground in places in the large, half-circle clearing they had entered to search for the woman. Not finding any signs of her there, they split up to search the rest of the enclosure. A good hour later they met back up at the front of the mound. "Did you find anything?"

"No, this place is abandoned."

"Only one place left to look then." Cautiously, they approached the entrance. Great trees and tangles of vines meshed together, blocking the cavernous entrance. The guards exchanged a look, "What now?"

With a shrug, one guard stepped forward and knocked on a tree branch, "Hello? Anybody in there?

ab§d

Both the lady and the dragon's eyes opened wide at the sound of a voice calling from high above them. Without hesitating a second, the Minister of Winter sat up as best she could and tried her hardest to respond, but only a hoarse, cracking, croaking voice came from her throat. Panic filled her and the dragon—if she couldn't call out now, it was doubtful help would ever come again! She tried again, and it was louder, but it was barely more than a normal speaking voice. They wouldn't be able to hear her through all those trees and branches muffling her sound.

The situation was clear to the dragon, and there was only think he could think of that might help. Opening his jaws, he bit down on the Minister of Winter's arm. But instead of crying out, her voice stopped as she inhaled sharply and her face grew paler, if that were possible.

Realizing his mistake, he scrambled away, bounding back up the path he had traveled the first day of his banishment. The gap was nothing to him now, and he flew over it and forward along branches and vines until he landed roughly on the top of the cliff. Picking himself up, he raced to the doorway and roared his loudest, pleading with whoever was outside not to go away.

ab§d

The guards had heard movement and so had waited to see who was coming. "Do you think it could be the dragon making all that racket?"

"Naw. I've seen him banished before. He's barely the size of a cat when he goes down there. It could be the Minister of Winter having difficulties with all the branches. She's probably more than a little desperate to get out."

A rather loud roar from the other side of the trees sent them backpeddling a few steps, "That is not the Minister of Winter."

"That's curious, I didn't think he'd be able to move around in there so quickly."

A loud thump came from the wood in front of them, "Maybe we gave him a reason to move."

Suddenly, a large claw about the size of a man's hand burst from a place where some vines were not twisted tightly together. It clutched and scratched furiously at the vines and wood, struggling to break free and break through. The branches did not give, but the guards were too busy running back the way they had come to bother with seeing that he had been unable to break through. They made it all the way back to the gate, dragging it back shut and locking it behind them, before they stopped for a breather. They doubled over to pant for breath from both their shock and brief burst of exercise.

"I...I thought...you said...he was the size...of a cat!"

"He was...when he was banished! He must grow faster...than I thought he did!"

"And what about Winter?"

The guard shook his head, "If she was down there I didn't hear her, and with a dragon that size and that ferocious...I don't think she would have lasted more than a few days if she was. We'd better return with our report, they're waiting to hear from us."

A loud roar from behind them prompted them on their way, and they were soon back to their vehicle and gone with a squealing of their tires.