A large crymson dragon rolled over in his bed of gold, a slight streak of pain shot down his hind leg. The dragon lifted his head and
looked at the haunch of his right back leg, he saw a tiny arrow protruding
from his scaly flank, a reptillian smile crept across his face. "Those
pathetic hunans think they can stop me "Verdith" with pointy wooden sticks!"
exclamed the large crymson dragon."They are all fools!" Verdith lay restless in his hourde of treasures, he could not sleep his hunger kept him awake, the humans always interupted him in the bounty of the hunt. Verdith shifted in his bed,this time to gaze out of the caveren exit which was located in the ceiling. The starved dragon rolled to his feet and with a roar streched out his wings and scattered gold throughout the den, with one soid flap of his leathery wings the mighty dragon lifted off the ground and asended into the air. When he reached the ceiling Verdith used his shapeshifting powers and turned into a bat, and with that he flew out into the crule world once again.
The great crymson stopped just outside the caveren exit and shifted bake to his regular form, he always had a feeling that a hawk or something was goning to eat him. The large dragon glided through the night sky, the faint smell of decaying leafs drifted through the air, the whirlwind on the ground below picked up leafs and tiny branches and threw them about. "Fall"
sighed Verdith, it would be winter soon and if he didn't get some food soon he wouldn't survive. In all of my 366 years the humans have never been this bad, a dragon can't even get a single full
meal around here.
The night was cold and there was no sight of a desent meal anywhere, up ahead there was a movement in some brush, Verdith swooped down for a closer look. Verdith dived down and leveled out at three metres from the ground and glided over the brush , all of a sudden two wild horses paniced and shot out of the brush and galloped wildly away. The keen eye of the
dragon pick the bigger of the two and started after it. Verdith asented into the air about a hundred metres and then dived toward the horse with tremedous speed. Verdith opened his talons and glided over the horse and with one flunt motion he grasped the horse by the neck, the horse whined in pain. With the horse still in his talon, Verdith closed his talon tightly snapping it's neck.
Verdith landed on a patch of grass and started his feast, he was almost done the horse when he heard a noise, Verdith's head turned quickly when he saw a flicker of lig>
Transfer interrupted!
was some hunams coming, although he could not see them the torch that
they carried lit up the sky. "Should I fly away?" "No, they'll see me for sure and would hunt me down" Verdith thought for a few seconds....." I'll shift into a human" exclamied Verdith "They won't know the difference!". The sly dragon stood up straight and shifted into a human. Verdith shook his head and looked at himself, he wore black cloth armor and a red hooded cloke that reached down to his ankles. There's something missing here, ah yes, Verdith grabbed a knife and slashed his arm open. Blood poured out of his arm but he casted a spell that prevented him from bleeding to death.
Knights in silver armor came around a bend in some trees and one of them shouted "Hey you, identify yourself!" Verdith didn't reply he just sat there holding his arm. The knight shouted again "Who gos there?" Again he just sat there. The Knights started forward, They reached verdith and saw he was bleeding, the one knight said "Sirare you alright?", "Yes" exclaimed Verdith. "Do you mind me asking what happened here, and why there is a half eaten horse over there?" said the Knight. Verdith thought fast "I was looking for my horse and stumbled across a dragon eating one of them, he attacked me, but I guess that he heard you coming and flew away, if you hadn't come I would of proably got more than a slash." "Ah" said
the Knight "Well my name is F'lar, what would your name be?" said the knight. Um.....well....my name is.......Maldrake." "Well Maldrake I'll take you back to your place if you want!" "NO, I mean, I need to get to a healer." "My daughter is a healer in training, if you want I can take you
to her, she'll fix you up for free!" said F'lar. "Sure I guess so!" Verdith knew that Flar wouldn't let him go anywhere with a cut like this, It would be safer ot just go with him.
F'lar and Verdith walked up to a log cabin, F'lar knocked on the solid oak door with a thud. A lady in a light blue dress ansered the door, She had long brown hair and green eyes. "F'lar" exclaimed the lady, she had a confused look on he face. "I thought you were on patrol tonight?" said the lady. "I had to help this man, he was attacked by a dragon" said F'lar "Call Quickening, he needs to be healed." The lady went off into the back room. F'lar turned to face Verdith, "Sorry for not introducing you, that was my wife Sarra." "Who is this Quickening you talk about?" Verdith said curiously. "Ahh, that is my beautiful daughter, she is a healer, she has always had that gift since she was a child." Sarra came out of the back room, she carried some bandages with her. "Where's Quickening?" exclaimed F'lar. "She's coming she is just trying to find something first. Sarra pulled a chair away from the table and brought it to Verdith "Sit" she said with a warm smile on her face. As soon as Verdith sat down, a young women walked out of the back room she wore a long black dress a cloke draped down her sholders and dragged on the ground slightly as she walked, she had beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes. Verdith couldn't help but stare, she was the most beautiful human he had ever seen. If it wasn't for the nudge that F'lar gave him, he would have stared at her for ever. Quickening had stared at Verdith but she didn't break her stare as easy, She started bandaging up his cuts, when she was done Quickening held her hand up to his arm and a warm feeling flowed through him. Quickening stepped back, Verdith lifted his head and smiled "If you kiss as good as you heal, the man that marries you will have it made!" Quickening blushed, let out a small gidish laugh and quickly went back through the doors in whence she came.
The next day F'lar woke up Verdith and told him that if he wanted he could use the Batheing Lodge if he wanted. Verdith said that he would take him up on that offer, He was kind of feeling cold, warm water on him would feel good. F'lar Escorted him to the little lodge just a few metres away from the house. They came up to the little building and F'lar gripped the handle and pulled on the door, It swung open and steam slowly creeped out. Verdith couldn't see anything but he loved that warm feeling that the steam gave him. The two of them walked inside, the lodge smelled musky and damp, "ah, just the way I like it!" Thought Verdith. Verdith gazed around the shed was made of wood, yet with all of the dampness it was not rotting. "How come the shed isn't rotting?, it is wood right?" "Ah yes, I told you that my girl is talented, She has lined these walls with enough magic to keep them up for many more years!" "Yes, magic" Verdith thought to himself "She is more powerful then I thought." "Over here Maldrake" said F'lar Verdith almost forgot that he had told him that his name was "Maldrake", He walked over to the pool in the centre of the room. "This is my hot springs, if you like hot bathes you'll love this."Verdith smiled. "Well best be on my way, Wifes going to wounder were I've gotten to." and with that F'lar left, Verdith undressed and got in to the hot springs, they were hot but not hot enough. Verdith lay in the pool for a while, the heat from the pool made the world around him feel In the past, it cleared out his thoughts and soon Verdith dozed off. Verdith woke up to the floor boards in the room creeking,
Verdith lifted his head and looked around, it was too steamy in the room to see if anyone was in the room with him. "Is anyone there?, Hello?." "It is me "Quickening" I've brought you some cloths" She walked out of the mist and Verdith saw that she was wearing a robe, He looked down and saw her legs, so smooth. She walked up and kneeled by the pool, "I know that you different, how I'm not exactly sure but I know you are because when I healed you, It didn't take much effort, with a cut like that it would of taken a few treatments", She ran her finger over his arm, "But you have healed right up haven't you?" "Can't blame a man for being a fast healer can you?" said Verdith "No, but can you ansewer one question for me?" "maybe" exclaimed Verdith. "Are you a Archmage?" Verdith smiled and said "In a sense, Yes!" "Why, what do you do to Archmages around here?" "Nothing, But I do Know what I'm going to do to you!" Quickening got up again and stood back. She stood there for a few seconds and then she let her robe fall to the ground, Verith just stared at her naked body standing in front of him. Quickening walked forward and leaned over and kissed him, "Is there room for two in there?"....."Y-yes..I think so." studdered Verdith. Quickening stepped in and they spent the rest of the day in each others arms.
Later that night, Verdith and Quickening got up and got dressed as they walked toward the house, Verdith thought to himself "what is her father going to say?" The walked inside, F'lar and Sarra were sitting at the dinner table. The two of them motioned Verdith to the table and said "You must be hungery son, eat" Verdith didn't belife that they didn't say anything. The four of them ate and When they were done Sarra and Quickening took the dishes into the kitchen, Leaveing Verdith alone with F'lar. F'lar pulled his chair up beside Verdith, Verdith was ready for a good razzing but quite the opposite happened. "Don't look so worried son, We've been waiting for someone like you to come along, see I'm getting old and I have no one to follow in my footsteps, I was hoping this would happen soon, that my daughter would settle down and have some Children with someone but she doesn't take interset in anyone but you." "I can see how you feel but I'm not sure if I can have kids." said Verdith. He thought of all the problems that could occur in a human girl giving birth to a half dragon Child, not to mension what the child would look like. F'lar cocked his eyebrow "Why my son what is wrong?" "It is kind of hard to explain and I don't wish to talk about it". "Okay" said F'lar "I'll respect your privacy". After Quickening was done all her house work Verdith and her took a walk in the woods and admired the beauty of it all. Quickening look at verdith and said "Watch this!" and as soon as she lifted her hand a small songbird swooped down from the tree and landed on her hand. The bird began to sing a beautiful song and Verdith couldn't help but lean over and give the hypnotic women a long kiss. She opened her eye when they were done, she smiled and blushed. Quickening changed the subject "You know out of all natures creatures in the world, I like birds the most, however I think that the dragon is the most beautiful in the world". "Have you ever seen a dragon?" asked Verdith. "No" replied Quickening "But I've seen pictures of them." "Yes they are beautiful, but they are also very dangerous." The two of them sat down by a small stream, the shade of a nearby oak brought them coolness in the otherwise scorching sunlight. They sat by the riverbed for a while, dipping and splashed their feet in the cold stream water. "Where do you come from?" exclaimed Quickening. "Well!"..Verdith panicked. "I suppose you could say I came from the mountians,I used to live up there by myself." "I don't really have a home now." "Why?" said Quickening with a puzzled look. "It's a long story, Mabey I'll tell you some time." Time Seemed to slip by quickly, Verdith had never felt this way before, the thought of being near humans used to make him feel sick, but she had changed that feeling, He now knew that through that thick skull and mean streak humans couldn't be all that bad and she was the proof. They Fooled around in the water for a bit and then desided to start back home. Verdith dipped his head in the cool stream water to wet his long dark hair for the hot walk back. When they got home Verdith sat beside F'lar who was sitting down in front of the fire polishing his armor and sword. Sarra aproched Verdith with a fairly large mug in her hand. "Would you like some ale?" "Yes, Please" Sarra lowered the mug down and offered it. "Thank you very much." Verdith took a sip of his ale, "So, you don't have a place to go, Why don't you live with us?" Verdith choked. "Is there something wrong with the ale?" "No..No, ale's just fine it's just, well I didn't expect what you just said." "Well, will you?" Verdith looked around the room and saw Quickening looking at him, her eyes seemed more bright and beautiful then ever. F'lar had stoped polishing his armor and was now on the edge of his seat. "I don't know, I'll need to take a walk and think about it." Verdith got up and headed toward the door and opened it, Quickening ran up to him "Do you want to be alone?" "Yes, just for a while don't worry I'll be back." He walked out and closed the door behind himself.
The large Crymson lay sprawled out on a flat rock, thinking about how many sacrifices he would have to make. I could never go back to the Dragon councel again, What about his hoarde, What would he do with it, could he just leave it there? And of course the fact that he could never use his dragon form in front of them, unless he told them of what he was, but would they take him in if he did. Well the dragon councel part was easy, he never really liked them anyways and he believed the feeling was the sme for them. The hoarde however was the hard part, he had killed many evil wizards and if the magiks there were found by any able magic user they would be powerful indeed, he himself found the temptations very hard to overcome but he alway had. The one pize of them all was the orb of souls it could take the souls of others and manufest them into the weilder, if they did it anough they would eventualy become Imortal. Verdith roase, he had made his desision.
The Crymson flew over the trees and vallys until he came to his hoarde, It had been several nights since he had been here. All of his treasure still remained and no scent of humans could be found, Not suprizingly because he had kept it a hiden even from fellow dragons.
"Well" he thought to himself "I suppose I've lived like this for too long, time for a change." He shifted into a small bird and flew inside for the last time. He looked around and saw a beautiful saphire ring. He swwoped down and grabbed it and flew out of the caveren once again. When he shifted back again he picked up a large bolder and lifted it into the air. He looked into the den once more and dropped the huge rock on top of the Enterance. He blew fire at the rock and melted it in place. For the finishing touch he casted a ward and flew away.