Burning Flame

Chapter Nine

Siege stretched leisurely among the pile of soft furs and cloths that he slept in, his jaws stretching open into a loud and gaping yawn. He took his time, knowing that he wouldn't see his home again for a while.
After a few moments of stretching he stood up with an irritated growl.
Why today? Why can't it just wait?!
Siege shook himself and his scales bristled. But then he remembered the gold she-dragon with red eyes that gleamed with pride...
At least I get to see Dettra.
He smiled with a sly glint to his eyes.
Then he walked out the door with a proud step to his walk and a sway to his body that made him look both smug and superior.
The sun was peeking over the horizon and the orange rays glinted off of Siege's scales as he walked through the camp. He heard the occasional snores of soldiers in their huts as he passed, and every one of them remained blissfully unaware of his presence as he crept silently and stealthily to the edge of the camp. He knew Solaris would take good care of them so he wasn't worried in the slightest.
He launched off of the ground, his muscles stretching and tensing beneath his scales. His wings came from his sides in one fluid motion. They stretched taut in the wind as he let the warm wind rush across his body.
His mind raced with memories; both good and bad.
He swerved in the currents and thermals as he went along, still lost in his thoughts.
Then suddenly a gust of wind hit him hard in the front and he was knocked back. His body jarred with the effort to put himself back on course, and his wings began to cramp and lock up.
He roared in frustration and put his wings fully out to the side in an effort to glide down instead of falling.
He should've known he was too heavy for that.
He began plummeting and the wind ripped at his wings viciously. He tried desperately to pull them back in as he felt his muscles being pulled way too tight for comfort. Then he felt a quick and excruciating pop in his wing joints and he knew that there was no chance.
He prepared for a hard fall as he spiraled closer and closer to the ground.
He tried to pull his wings back to his sides but the agonizing pain made him snarl and hiss. He gritted his teeth through the pain and managed to pull his wings in halfway.
That was when his fall came to an end and his world faded into darkness.

***

Siege woke up to Inferno standing over him, his eyes burning with rage.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" he snarled, " Only a few miles away from the camp and you nearly kill yourself! You're wasting time!!!"
Siege growled and rolled to his feet. Inferno stepped aside for a moment, but he quickly got back into the hydra's personal space.
"If the patrol teams hadn't come across you by now you probably would've been dead! You were broken and bloody and the healers had a great time fixing you up. So now that you're fixed, get going!!!" he roared.
Siege growled but he didn't argue. He knew that it was his fault and there was no excuse for his thoughtlessness.
"Yes, My Liege," he grumbled.
Then he turned and flexed his wings, making sure that they weren't dislocated anymore. Satisfied, he ran forward and launched himself off of the ground.
"Don't disappoint me!!!"
Inferno's words faded into the distance as Siege soared through the never ending sky.
He blocked out everything besides the task at hand, his focus solely on reaching the prison within a fortnight's time. It meant pushing his body to the limit since normal flights to Avalon usually took a little more than 15 days, but he knew it was possible.

He stopped to eat and drink once every couple of days, resting only when he thought it was absolutely necessary. Otherwise he spent most of his time in the air as he lazily watched the ground below him. He kept thinking through different scenarios in his head, wondering what would happen as soon as he landed in front of Avalon's giant golden gates.
He knew what would probably happen but he kept ignoring it, trying to mentally prepare himself for anything other than the obvious. He wanted a challenge for his mind that he knew wouldn't happen in real life.

Days passed and he just wanted to get to the prison. He had passed deserts, forests, seas, and many other different areas, but he was absolutely sick and tired of the scenery after his long flight. He just wanted this mission to be over.

He began to notice a growing pattern in the landscape around him; everything was turning into rocky hills.
Eventually those rocky hills began turning into mountains, and he felt like a huge weight had suddenly been lifted from his shoulders. He knew he was close now and all of the tiresome flying and fasting would be over with. Well, for now at least.
The mountain peaks grew higher and higher until he was practically swerving in and out to keep from running into a ledge or an outcrop. Then, suddenly, everything seemed to level out.
The mountains were all around him still but now they formed a rough ring around a gigantic structure in the center.
Avalon.
Great walls surrounded the building with huge spikes waiting to impale their next victims lining the tops of the walls. A colossal golden gate lay at the center of the wall closest to him, the majesty of metal dwarfing him three times over.
Well, here we go.
He landed in front of the gates, ready to face anything. Or anyone...