My Mate: Bred by a Dragon

Incredible," Sarah gasped as she stood upon the peak of Mt. Velroun, looking into the distance beyond. Lush green forest stretched for miles, surrounded by rocky outcrops and cliffs lined with caves. It had taken her the better part of a week to journey here, and she would most likely be the first human to set foot there.

Mt. Velroun had been an anomaly on Earth for many years. Undiscovered until 2013, it had remained untouched by man. This was due to its almost impossible-to-reach location by foot and the large magnetic field surrounding it which prevented any aircraft from getting within five miles of its surface. After a year of planning, Sarah had set off to do research for her agency around the area, in 2014.

It was a solo mission, a simple analysis trip to find out if anything of value or worthy of preservation lay within its bounds. She dropped her hefty pack on the ground and took out a protein bar, trying to regain some of her lost energy. She was quite tired, and decided that it would be a good place to camp for the night.

***

The next day she awoke after a rather decent sleep. Climbing out of her tent she was met with the brilliant sunrise over the mountain, which was amazing even by her standards, and she had seen a lot. Taking a few moments to admire the view, she made breakfast with what limited ingredients she had left.

She hoped that there would be some good sustenance in the forest, and few predators to compete with for it. She had her knife, and a gun, but she hoped she'd never have to use them. She was a nature-lover at heart, and hated hurting animals no matter how vicious they were. Licking her lips she stood up and stretched, walking back to the edge of the cliff she was on and taking another good look.

There was no map, no directions, so she'd have to make her own way through the area without getting lost. The forest stretched for miles, beautiful green expanse that teemed with energy. Looking slightly to the east she picked a cliff and decided that she would walk there and back and see what she could find along the way. This was unexplored territory, and she intended to find out as much as possible.

Packing her gear back into her pack she set off cheerfully, camera hanging from her neck. She'd brought enough memory to record a good years' worth of high-definition footage, something she intended to make use of. Large rocks made her descent a lot easier than her climb up, making it to the forest floor in less than three hours.

It was time to get to work. Pulling out her camera, Sarah took a few shots of the trees and plants, most of which she'd never seen before.
"I think I've hit the jackpot," she said to herself, "this place is full of new botanical wonders, and I haven't even started looking yet." Further into the trees she went, putting her batteries through a real pounding. Luckily, she'd brought heaps.

She stopped when a large red flower caught her eye. It looked almost identical to a common rose, except for the fact it was almost a meter wide at the top.
"Wow," Sarah said, reaching out to touch it.

She'd forgotten one of the vital rules of exploring: Don't touch it if you don't know what it does. The mega-rose exploded in a singeing blast of flame, scorching her hand and setting fire to her sleeve. She gasped in pain as she patted out the fire on her arm, her sleeve blackened.
"Darn it," she scolded herself, "how could you be so stupid?"

Picking herself up from the ground she took a picture of the ashen remains of the flower, wincing at the pain in her arm. She wouldn't make that mistake again. Just because the landscape was beautiful, didn't mean it wasn't deadly. She collected her wits and set off once again, this time making sure not to touch anything unfamiliar.

After a few more hours, thankfully uneventful, she stopped for lunch. Picking a nice clearing she sat down on the warm grass and took a bite out of her salad wrap. The food was refreshing, and eased her hunger quickly. She lay back and admired the view, lush green trees and the trickle of a nearby stream, which would be where she researched next.