The Lizard King

Part 18: Loneliness

The uphill slopes of the mountains were clearly visible in the early morning. The tree line was pronounced here, more so than others. The rocky terrain above was just unable to support any trees or even plants. No life existed here.

The quiet tranquility went on until interrupted by the sound of Riptheil stepping out of the trees and onto the barren landscape. Only 4 hours of traveling and he was at least 20 miles away from his cave. From high above everything else, he could see further and wider than before. Nothing was obscured by foliage here save for the beasts and people who choose to dwell in the understory.

Riptheil could even make out the smallest, most unordinary town he's ever seen. That was it. That was Vernharte. Kayla's home. His eyes grew watery at the thought of her but he simply wiped them and carried on. The sooner he could find shelter for the day to hide from patrols, the better.

As he journeyed across the gravelly ground, he often looked up to see if any other living thing had made it's home here. He knew now that there could be life wherever you look. But here there was nothing. No birds in the air, not even insects on the ground. There aren't even any plants. Not one mention of green. It did nothing to help his loneliness. Last of his species, and now he has to be alone just to protect those he cares about.

Finally, after walking an hour through the endless gray rock, his nose directs him upwards. There, not 500 feet away, is a cave in the cliff face. Walking up to it, the cave mouth is at least ten feet off the ground. That doesn't stop him from jumping up and landing perfectly inside.

As he sits, he takes out a portion of salted meat to tide him over. He eats slowly, looking out into the valley, where the sun is just about to rise. He finishes up and knows that he will have to move more tomorrow night. He'll need all the rest he can get, he mumbles to himself as he settles in to sleep.

Of course, while trying to think of calming thoughts, he can only think about Kayla. Is she undergoing the same sorrow? Is she okay? The questions continue in his head until he finally settles into a dreamless sleep.

———————

Kayla's head throbs as she slowly but surely comes to. As she clutches her forehead with her hand, she feels something off. It's crusty. Some comes onto Kayla's hand as she pulls back to examine. Dried blood. She must have been hit in the head, hard.

"About time you came to girlie," a voice calls out. That piercing sound, it could only be Marlana. But this doesn't feel like Marlana's house. It's dark and cold here. As Kayla gets up, she can start to make sense of her surroundings. She's in a cobblestone room, twenty by forty feet. There's one door, solid metal, with an opening big enough for a face to look through, despite it having bars. It suddenly clicks: she's in the town jail.

"Over here girlie!" Marlana calls again. Kayla turns and finds Marlana sitting on the ground with three others. She recognizes them immediately. Two of them are hunters, like her, and another is a hermit. The four of them sit together closely. It's freezing there. She knows they're doing it to stay warm.

"What happened?" Kayla asked, "Why are you guys here?"

"We were approached by the rangers and put under arrest." One of the hunters said.

"They said we were caught traipsing around in the woods." The hermit said. "Which wasn't true, of course. Looks like they got you too on account of that gash on your forehead."

Kayla's hand reached back up to it and could feel the crusty dried blood again. Marlana spoke up, "I managed to stop the bleeding, but I'd take it easy on touching it for the next few days." Kayla's hand dropped down again. Best not to disagree with Marlana when you're already hurting.

Suddenly, the sound of keys rattled at the door and it slowly swung open. Everyone's head turned to face it as the sheriff slowly stepped through. He looked around the room for a moment before locking eyes with Kayla. She could feel his snake like eyes piercing through her skin. One look and she could tell that he knew that she knew.

He looked back at one of the guards and nodded. At this, the guard brought Kayla to her feet and walked her out, locking the door behind them. The sheriff and guard brought her upstairs. No, not upstairs. To the sheriff's office, where two more guards waited outside the door. It opened and the sheriff stepped through. Kayla, meanwhile was half pushed, half thrown through the door. It closed and locked behind her and it was just the two of them.

The sheriff moved over to his desk and picked up some papers. He walked slowly, as if sizing up his opponent. Wondering what move would bring his deciding victory. He shuffled through the papers a bit, looking every so often back at Kayla. Kayla, meanwhile, just stood tall and ready.

Finally, the sheriff spoke. "Do you know how the hundred year war between lizardlings and man first arose?" Kayla shook her head. "Hmm, I thought not. They were hunters, like us for a time. But while we clambered our way out of the dark and to the top, they chose to stay low to the ground. They were hunters, yes. Hunters of men."

The sheriff handed her the papers he carried. Kayla looked back at them and recognized them immediately. They were the same animal attack files she found on the sheriff's desk in the first place.

"Quite savage, these lizardlings can be." The sheriff said. "I've seen hundreds of men get cut down like wheat in a harvest by just one. And their ways of attacking are cruel and ruthless. It would make sense then, to make sure that it cannot happen again."

"What do you want from me?" Kayla asked.

The sheriff locked eyes with her again and stepped to face her head on. "I want the truth. That cave is abandoned. I want to know where he went and you are going to tell me."

"And why would I do that?" Kayla's voice remained calm. Her eyes still locked with his, she said, "There's not much you can do to change my mind."

"Is that so?" The sheriff asks. His face then turn to the window in his office. "With or without your help, we will find him. Without would take longer, yes, but it will happen. Tell us where he's gone and you and your merry men can be on their way. If not, I know some tight nooses that are itching to make your acquaintance."

Kayla looks at him again before looking at the floor. "As good as that deal sounds," she says, "I can't tell you where he is." The sheriff turns around to lock eyes with her again. "I've sent him off, I don't know where he's gone. It's not my call anyways. Wiping out entire species, not really my thing. If you ask someone else—"

The sheriff grabbed Kayla by the throat and slammed her into the wall before she could even react. "This is no game I am playing, Kayla of Vernharte. This creature, this monster, has had enough time on this globe." He lets her go and Kayla falls to the ground, struggling to breathe.

All of a sudden, there's a knock on the door. A guard enters and salutes the sheriff. "Commander," he says, "They are here."

The sheriff looks at the guard, then back to Kayla. "Tell the men to prepare to travel again. But first, we're going to have a morning execution."