Lohikäärme: The Dragon's Descent (Revised)

Chapter XVII - A Key to A Dragon's Heart

Chapter XVII - A Key to A Dragon's Heart

"Rooooaaaaaarrrr!"

My head turned to the dragon as it roared and swerved, about to scoop me up again. It mustn't. It shouldn't. It couldn't take me away from here after I survived all the things I had been through. It could try, but I wouldn't let it. Never.

"Get this thing off me!" I tugged at the chains that bound me here. It shouldn't take me away from Aethelgard. I wouldn't let that happen. I grunted as I tried to yank my arm out of these chains. "Argh! Why won't you—?"

"Die!" Elfreda's voice made my ears hurt and the dragon roar.

She shot bright fireballs at the dragon when it was about to scoop me up. It was too focused on me that all the fireballs hit his side. It bellowed in pain, its sound ringing in my ear.

"Ack!" I screamed, falling to my knees. I couldn't understand why I had screamed. This burning sensation clawed at my side. It was impossible to ignore. It screamed for attention.

Our cries of pain didn't last long. The dragon managed to recover from the pain caused by the fire. As it flapped its wings in the air, I tried to yank my arm out of the chains again. My arms slid through the chains, the metal clanging as it fell on the ground. The flames cooked the chains until it crumbled into powder.

The ground shook again, much harder than the previous ones. I didn't see the dragon nudge the castle or smash it with its tail, but I knew the castle shivered in fear of it.

"Rooooaaaaaaarrrrr!"

I raised my head and saw the dragon approaching. I could've heard the magisters yelling at me if my full attention wasn't fixed on the dragon. Its eyes met mine, and, as soon as our eyes met, I couldn't take my eyes of it. I felt my legs move, but I couldn't keep it from moving, nor did I try to. I didn't know why I felt something different, something strange. Something strange was happening inside of me.

"Ack!" My own voice shook me out of my reverie. The wind pushed upwards and lifted my hair straight up.

I was falling. No, why was I falling? I shouldn't be! I had been through so much. How could I die from falling from the top of the castle?

Something itchy hit my back and made me bounce away, leaves rustling. Another branch of leaves hit my face as leaves and twigs and branches scratched my skin. And another. And another. And another.

Then I fell freely.

This is it. I'm going to die of the fall.

A hard surface slammed against my back.

"Ack!" I couldn't open my eyes in so much pain.

"Safia!" I heard her call. "Safia, wake up!"

"Carina?" I thought I'd had enough of this.

I opened my eyes and bolted upright. "Ow," I groaned, cupping the back of my head with my hand. My body throbbed in pain.

"Aaaaaaah!" I screamed as I felt arrows piercing my skin. But there were no arrows hitting me.

"Rooooaaaarrrr!"

The dragon dodged the fireball coming from the top of the castle, flapping its large wings in the air. Arrows flew from the castle and charged at it. Then it looked at me and swerved towards me. No! My legs began to move on their own. I ran as fast as I could to get farther and farther away from it, until I bumped into a hedge.