Mate To The Dragon

Lyzaria

My lungs burn with each panting breath as I sprint across the rocky slope of the mountain.

My body aches with fatigue and the landscape is starting to blur but I keep pushing myself as the voices behind me grow louder. I stumble a bit on the rocks but immediately get up and continue clambering over the boulders.

My boot is suddenly tangled in a twisted shrub. I yelp as I fall forward. I catch myself before my head is smashed open but the skin on my arms is scraped and bloodied.

I rip the gnarled branch off my foot and scramble to my feet. My eyes catch onto a large group of men with bows and swords making me start running once again. Their shouts follow me as I keep moving as fast as my legs will carry me.

The rocks give way to grass and I growl in frustration. I pause at the edge of the forest. The men are still following me so I take a deep breath before forcing my body into the darkness between the trees.

It's like plunging into the ocean. Everything is suddenly darker, colder, I can hear voices in the rustling of the trees and smell blood in the wind.

Fear blooms inside my chest, making my heart beat erratic and my skin grow clammy with a cold sweat. I shouldn't be here.

This is claimed territory, and it belongs to someone powerful, I can feel it. My mind is cloudy and I feel my thoughts becoming muddled.

"What the hell is happening?" I mutter, slowing down. I feel drowsy and the forest floor seems to sway.

A sharp pain in my head has me crying out and dropping to the ground in seconds. I clutch at the sides of my head and scream as it feels about to split open.

Through my screams and sobs of pain I feel my thumb touch something on my neck and realize that it is some kind of dart. I move to yank it out of my neck but another wave of pain slams through my skull.

I scream even louder and fall onto the forest floor. Tears blur my vision and violent sobs shake my body.

My gaze locks onto a pair of yellow eyes before everything goes black.

**************

"Lyza! What did I tell you about the forest?" My father scolds me sharply. I flinch at the anger in his voice and quickly retract my hand, inches from the trunk of the tree.

"Sorry father, I couldn't help it. The trees are just so beautiful," I sigh turning towards him. His face softens and he scoops me up into his arms.

I wrap my arms around his neck and bury my face into his shoulder. He hugs me tightly and carries me away from the forest.

"Why can't we go into the forest?" I ask, looking over his shoulder to see the red and gold leaves slowly disappear from view as we climb the hill.

"The forest is a dangerous place," he sighs.

"How can something so beautiful be so dangerous?" I mutter in confusion.

"The danger is in its beauty."

**************

My eyes snap open to an orange light that makes me squint. I let my eyes adjust for a moment before observing my surroundings.