Page 33 of Dragon Valley
“You’re going to be alright!” I told her. “You’re safe! I promise you. Just hold on.”
Her eyes widened either with further shock or the realization that I, another woman, was talking to her on the back of a flying, scaled beast.
But I didn’t have time to keep reassuring her. Dusa abruptly changed direction again with a fierce roar that even shook me.
The men on horseback were retreating. A band of eight galloped hard out of the town. Some carried sacks of supplies but most were empty handed. Thankfully, none carried civilians.
“Get ‘em, girl.”
The ones carrying goods on their saddles were the slowest. Heat built up in Dusa’s body until she was almost too hot to touch. Then she opened her jaws and fired.
Screams filled the air and just as quickly died. Dragon fire burned too hot to allow for long, suffering deaths. In seconds, the only sounds were the hiss of boiling bodily fluids. Black, charred bodies laid only a few hundred feet away from the town, the riders still attached to the horses. From the sky, they looked like black spots on an otherwise flawless landscape.
We landed just outside the town and I helped the woman down gently. Her knees buckled when she hit the ground but that didn’t stop her from moving. She ran from us as fast as she could on wobbly legs, never looking back.
Dusa huffed her frustration. She saved the woman’s life and not even a thank you!
“I know, girl,” I sighed, rubbing her snout. “You did great out there. But now comes the hard part.”
Leaving her there, I jogged toward the city center, my eyes darting around for only one person. All around me, people tended to each other. Many were bandaging injuries and carrying pails of water to put out the last of the fires. My panic grew as I kept looking for a familiar pair of sky blue eyes, until finally—
“Caden!”
I threw my arms around him and sent him back stumbling a few steps. He was covered in mud and blood but I didn’t care. I knew none of it was his.
Nonetheless, my soldier was exhausted. He leaned on me like he could barely stand, his chest laboring with heavy breaths, and his heart thrumming against mine in a rapid drumbeat.
“Where’s Dusa?” he rasped.
“Just outside the eastern town gate. She torched the bandits who were running away.”
He pulled away and grabbed my shoulders, his eyes cold just like last night at the previous village.
“Go to her and stay with her. These people are still afraid, especially of strangers. They know I’m from the rebel army so let me talk to them. I’ll come get you when it’s safe.”
He spoke with the command of a lieutenant, leaving no room to disobey. I nodded meekly and turned back the way I came. The stares from the villagers became more apparent as I passed them— some curious, others hostile.
They sneered at my traditional Rider apparel, simple leather and cloth accented by dragon bone beads and scales. Women here wore dresses that completely covered their legs and arms. For the first time in my life, I felt naked and uncomfortable in my own skin.
A dragon’s screech sent me running, quickly followed by a wave of confusion, defensiveness, and anger. When I reached the end of town again, I saw Dusa surrounded by men with long spears slowly moving in toward her.
She spun around growling, smoke and sparks igniting from her mouth as a warning. She was so confused. Why were these people treating her as an enemy when she helped save them?
“Leave her alone!” I yelled, sprinting right past the spearmen to my girl.
“Stay back, miss! This beast shoots fire from its mouth!” one of them warned.
“I know that,” I hissed, spinning around to face them with my back against Dusa’s chest. “I’m the one who rides her.”
Expressions of shock and disbelief rippled across the men’s faces as they took me in. To them, I was nothing but a half-dressed girl with wild hair. How could someone like me take command of a great beast such as this?
“My dragon saved all of you!” I yelled, meeting the eyes of all the spear-wielding cowards. “Thanks to her, no village will be raided by those bandits again. She doesn’t want to harm you but if provoked, she will defend herself!”
“Is it a demon?” a man asked.
I blinked at him. I’d never heard that word before. “No, she’s a dragon.”
“Sounds almost the same,” he muttered. A murmur of agreement rose from the others.
