Flight of Dragons

[MidnaPhobia]

There was a time between the wanning age of enchantment and the dawning age of logic, when dragons flew the skies; free and unencumbered. On the troubled Earth below them confusion and chaos reigned. All mankind is facing an epic choice; a world of magic, or a world of science. Which will it be?

The air was cool and crisp; a pleasant smell to the air signalled rain might be arriving later on this early spring morning. A very light fog hovered over the pristine lake. Skylar waited by the lake, which was still dim in the early morning light. Slowly peeling back the hood of the cloak she wore the girl began running her fingers through her hair the girl hummed softly as she knelt down, staring at her reflection in the water. It was quiet, even the birds and bugs had not woken yet. Skylar was waiting for a friend of hers to arrive. However, being so quiet she was able to hear someone approaching well before they got there.

Standing quickly the girl turned to look at the forest, searching for the source of the noise. It was certainly not who she was expecting. It sounded... man-ish, steel. Whether it be horse shoe or metal boot she wasn't entirely certain. But surely not... not here... when they were so deep in dragon territory... no one ever ventured out this far except fools and... and dragon slayers. She retreated slightly, looking fearfully into the trees. “He-hello?” She called nervously, her blue eyes flitting back and forth as she pulled on her blonde locks. “Is anyone there?”

[veritasxi]

A man on top of a black horse slowly walked out from the woods. He wore black armor, with black gloves and dark brown clothed pants. There was a blade attached to his waist. There was a large sword on his back. On the horse there was a bag, one with supplies. Behind the saddle was a crossbow tied securely. He moved forward on the horse towards the hooded stranger. He saw her face, and his became confused. What would a girl like this be doing out here alone? Well if she really is alone. He raised his guard. He looked around, checking the area, listening for sounds, looking for his prey. He looked to the sky, and back at the girl. He dismounted the horse, and pet its head. He looked back at the girl. "What are you doing out here all alone?" He scanned the area again, and gripped the blade on his waist.

[MidnaPhobia]

Seeing the man, Skylar retreated a few steps more, stopping only because there was a lake at her heels now. He seemed... well like most men, competent, brave, sure of himself. No doubt he was some kind of knight or the likes. “Waiting.” She replied, though the wariness was very clear. He was certainly an imposing figure. “You should leave.” The girl warned in return, already hearing the wing beats. “I-I’ll be fine, just-” Her eyes widened slightly as she saw the large green lizard swooping down. “No!” Skylar called out in warning as it let out a deafening roar and beat down powerfully with its wings, knocking the pair to the ground with the wind. The dragon hovered for but a mere moment before it dove towards the girl and scooped her up in its powerful talons, holding her gently. She looked back to the knight as he was left by the lakeside.

[veritasxi]

"Arghh." The sound blurted out of Owen as he was knocked down to the ground. His horse jumped on two legs and neighed. He watched as the green beast grabbed the girl and flew away. Owen jumped up and rubbed the back of his head. He ran to the horse and untied the crossbow, then mounted the horse. He grabbed the reigns He kicked the side of the horse and it started galloping in the direction the dragon flew off in. There were still in the forest it was still hard to see the dragon but he continued on. He snapped the reigns and shouted "come buddy let's catch this beast!" The horse started to move a little faster. The trees disappeared as the horse and its rider exited the Forrest. He saw the beast, and the girl in its claws. He raised the crossbow and aimed, it was way too bumpy to take a shot he could miss, or worse he could hit the wrong target. "Damn!" He continued chasing the dragon closing the gap between them. He raised the bow again, and he aimed for its wing, but the horse was moving too fast. He looked around and saw a very high hill and rode towards it. When he reached the highest point of the hill he stopped the horse, which started breathing heavily. He aimed at the dragons wing again, moved it a little more forward, and shot the arrow. It went flying through the air, and penetrated the wing. The dragon let out a loud roar. And started to descend out of the sky. Owen picked up the reigns and started riding towards the dragon again.

[MidnaPhobia]

Skylar looked to the ground as she saw that the knight had given chase and the horse was actually managing to keep up. The dragon didn't seem overly phased by the steed. It was heading for the nearby mountains. They entered a large grassland that was leading up to the rocky barrier near the base of the mountains when suddenly he stopped giving chase and Skylar squinted as she tried to see what he was doing. Her eyes widened as the dragon suddenly let out a cry and began falling from the sky. Just before hitting the ground it rolled, clutching the girl close to its chest as they hit the ground.

Skylar was sent rolling as the dragon righted itself and looked over to the man now charging towards them. It reared up and blasted fire towards him, but he was far out of reach. It righted itself and placed itself in front of the girl, letting out a long, low growl from deep within its chest before roaring again, the noise was deafening almost, all the rage a dragon could posses coming out in one glorious sound as it readied itself for battle. However before the knight could get close Skylar had run out from behind it and into the path of the charging horse and she held up her hands. “Stop!” she shouted as loud as she could, which was nowhere near the level of volume the dragon had emitted but still loud all the same.

[veritasxi]

Owen pulled the reigns to the right of the incoming flames sent from the dragon. He was out of range but he couldn't make it to easy for the dragon. He started zig zagging around so the dragons flames couldn't get to him. He's been burnt before and didn't want to deal with that injury again. He continued forward with speed. He saw the girl run from behind the beast and towards him. A thought of relief was brought seeing she was OK. He fixed his thoughts, but quickly became confused again at what he saw. The girl was waving him to stop. The dragons roar made his ears ring.

Owen pulled the reigns of the house making it come to a full halt. He jumped off the horse and reloaded the crossbow. He looked at the girl, then the dragon, he raised the crossbow and took aim. His hearing came back to him and he could finally hear the girls cries to stop. "Stop?! This beast could have killed you!" He grabbed the girl by her arm and pulled her running to take cover behind a giant nearby rock. He pushed her back against the rock and looked back at the dragon. The dragon let out another deafening roar. He covered one ear, still holding the crossbow. After the roar ended the warrior prepared to step out and slay the beast.

[MidnaPhobia]

Skylar opened her mouth to say something when suddenly the man grabbed her and she looked back to the dragon, her eyes scared, causing another roar. It followed slowly as the man dragged her away, but it was cautious, as if afraid to get too close for some reason. When the man pushed her back against the rock Skylar let out a small gasp and looked to him as she saw the crossbow readied. She doubted it would do much to dragon skin, really. It was the thin membrane of the wing it had been able to damage. But the side was much tougher.

However she quickly reached up and grabbed his arm, shaking her head slowly. “It’s alright.” The girl assured him, her voice soft and strangely reassuring. She stood slowly, backing away from him. “He would never hurt me. He was trying to protect me. He thought you were going to hurt me.” Looking back to the dragon the hesitation was obvious, the protective side was telling it to go and get her away from this new danger that had shot it but at the same time it was scared it would hurt her if it became too aggressive. “He’s scared.” Skylar finally said, following the long, low call of the dragon as its eyes stayed fixed on the rock. “He’s scared you’re going to hurt me.”

[veritasxi]

Owen looked even more confused, he felt like he was being conned. But who could control a dragon? That is some real magic, or sorcery. Owen was a sensible man though, he never counted out something just because he didn't accept it, or understand it. He looked at the dragon, then to the girl, and back to the dragon. The girl is next to him but the dragon is stationary. "What exactly is going on girl? Are you trying to get me killed?!"

Owen lowered the crossbow, but quickly raised it back. He felt confused, but safe. He turned and looked in her eyes. Something about her. He looked back at the beast, and it looked back. The two stared at each other. Except one could blow the other way with a single breath. He broke eye contact to look back at the girl. "Explain yourself. Now!"

[MidnaPhobia]

"I'm trying to prevent a dragon getting any angrier than he already is." Skylar insisted, looking at the man and his armed crossbow. When he looked to her and snapped she flinched slightly. "He's my friend." The girl said eventually, as if it were the most normal thing in the world. She looked to him calmly, her eyes serious and unwavering. The girl was deadly serious. Slowly she separated herself from him looking at him all the time for more violent behavior. "It will be alright." She assured him. Slowly she backed up, emitting a long low growl from the dragon as of expecting some kind of trick.

However once she reached him he went quiet. Reaching up the girl gently ran her hand over his muzzle, much like a knight would do to soothe his steed. Looking back to the man she motioned for him to come forth, which in reality seemed like utter madness. But to her she thought it was perfectly safe.

[veritasxi]

"Friend?" He said as he watched the girl walk away. Given his position, he reluctantly lowered the crossbow. He watched as the girl approached the dragon, and started petting it, as if it was some kind of pet. He had never seen this side of a dragon before. He's seen blood thirsty monsters, wreaking havoc in there path, ruining villages and homes. But what he saw, he could not believe. The crossbow was now pointing to the floor. He had never been this close to a calm dragon, usually he gets close when they're dead, because he's slayed dragons. It was a living for him. He watched as the girl played with the dragon. He chuckled lightly, still amazed at how this girl, can control such a monster. He shook his head.

Then he saw her motion. His facial expression went from amazed to a bit of fright. "Ha, no thanks, your friend was just trying to kill me, or dont you remember that? I'll stay over here." He picked up the crossbow and leaned on it on his shoulder as he walked towards his horse.