The Dragon's Greatest Treasure

Chapter 4

"I'm so scared." The voice laughed heartily for a solid 30 minutes. "I love that you think you're in any position to threaten me! Especially when you are completely at my mercy! You know, my bloodline has its own prophecy, you're in it too." The informed me, which only made me angrier.

"I don't want to hear it! I'm sick of prophecies!" I spat. "Show yourself and I'll show you that you don't know who you're messing with!"

"Well, I would like to meet you face to face, though I have no intention of fighting," He said calmly and I could hear faint scratching sounds from above me. I looked up but all I saw was solid rock.

"Like you have a choice!" I shouted.

"Like you have a choice." He echoed playfully and... and crawled straight through the rock in the ceiling! Was he a ghost? I jumped back and assumed a fighting position, though it wasn't as threatening when I had no weapon. A large red dragon landed gracefully facing me on the other side of the cavern. His shoulders alone were twice as tall as me, and his head two and a half times tall. I cowered back, not prepared for his immense presence. "Oh? What happened to that fighting spirit I admired so much?" He teased.

I grumbled under my breath and tried to make my legs move, but my instincts were screaming at me that fighting a dragon one on one was a terrible idea. I ignored them and raced at the dragon, yelling a battle cry. He grinned, accepting the challenge and crouched down, preparing for my next move. I ducked low, making it look as if I was going to go under or around him, then feinted at the last second and jumped up, aiming for his back.

My plan was foiled when he simply stood up and I collided with his torso. He picked me up in his claws and sat down on his haunches, keeping me levitated so he could see me eye to eye. "Now that you've gotten your chance to kill me, it's my turn to choose what I do, and I say we talk."

"I don't want to talk to a beast who has no desire for me other than food, entertainment, or pleasure." I snapped, tugging at his claws in hopes to loosen his grip.

"Tsk, it sounds like you think I'm some kind of animal, I'll tell you this, dragons are much more intelligent than humans, far from animals. You'd be wise to treat us that way. However, you need not fret, the only dragon you'll meet is me, as the others probably wouldn't approve of my rule over you. As a servant, it would be ok, normal even, but my bloodlines prophesy says otherwise and unlike humans, us dragons honor tradition; I plan to fulfill my prophecy." He vowed proudly, puffing out his chest. I was doing my best to zone out on his words, but his words took up all the space in my head, leaving no room for anything but what he was saying.

Once he noticed I had finished fighting his claws, he released me. I wanted to go at him again, but I knew that would be useless and only end up in him restraining me again. I glared at him and backed up to the opposing wall. "I'll never go along with your plan, and you can't make me, even if you threatened me with death."

"Oh yeah?" He purred, then in a heartbeat, he leaped at me, pinning me to the wall with a single talon before I had time to react. "Well, it looks like your life is in my hands now. I could bite your head off before you even had time to scream." His voice whispered in my mind and he flicked out his tongue and it brushed my cheek. I flinched and my breath caught in my throat, thinking he was actually going to kill me. "The song of a harp sung by the abyss, a damsel lost but soon to be bound, scales and skin together find bliss, together as one heal the torn ground." He resited, his snout so close to my neck, his breath was making my neck hot.

Had this been a person instead of a dragon, I would've been into it, but I was too busy being scared for my life to find this hot. I wanted to speak, but I felt as if I made a noise, he would end me.

"That's the prophecy of my blood, and I didn't think I would be the one to fulfill it, but when I was hunting, heard you pluck your strings to the tune of the prophesy's song, I knew I had to take action." He spoke, returning to his normal tone and he took a few steps back from me, releasing me from his grasp. "Your harp made the song's tune, and my voice completed it. You were wandering in the wilderness, far from home, and I took you into my care and claiming you, binding you to me. The two last lines haven't occurred yet, and I only have a guess of what the second one means, but I know what I need to do. Trust me, it doesn't bring me pride to know what I have to do with you, but I'm willing to take that shame onto my shoulders if it means I can help my clan." He finished, his raucous voice swelling with dignity and loyalty.

"I'm glad you have such devotion to your prophecy, but I doubt I'll ever find bliss in the presence of a dragon unless its head is mounted on my wall." I objected, a sinister glint in my eye. I saw the snug smile on the dragon's muzzle faded to a disapproving scowl, which made my lips form a satisfied smirk.

"Listen here, human." He hissed and slammed it's tail on the ground once, loud and strong. "I enjoy the thought of joining together with you just as much as you do, but despite that, I've tried to be diplomatic, patent, and careful, but there's no way to drive some sense into your thick skull, is there? You don't realize why we were called by our family's prophesies, do you? Not everybody has the honor of a prophecy delivered to their name, and though it seems terrible, no prophesy has a cause other than to serve as a warning, declaration, or revival of some lost good or evil. I know humans don't have the best character, but could you at least try to respect our duties and refrain from making such murderous remarks in front of a being who is definitely more bite than bark?" He commanded in a booming voice that shook my whole body. I crumpled to the ground and screamed, clutching my head.

I took in a few shaky breaths and glared at him. "I can say what I please because I know for a fact you are much more bark than you are bite. You won't hurt me, let alone kill me because I am such a vital part of your prophecy, which you believe in so much, that you couldn't risk making me hate you any more than I do already. You've lost, dragon." I stood up once more and gave him my most savage glare, showing him that though I may be more bark than bite as well, my bark is much more harmful than my powerful bite.