Through Smoke and Ashes

Nine||The Haunting & Beautiful

I️ poked my head through the branches of the tree I️ had climbed to get a better look at the hunter's camp. It lay in ruins, shouldering embers still burned & the smell of smoke was tangy in the air. Orange light rays warmed my face; morning had just arrived, and a new day began, revealing death and blood spilled in the night.

I️ knew it was dangerous to return, I️ don't know why I️ did, but my gaze kept wandering over the bodies. Almost like I was searching for something in particular. I felt disgusted once looking at the bodies. They were mangled and haphazardly thrown into a pile where a man stood with a torch.

With the realization that stirred up feelings of relief, I saw the faintest flicker of gold on the man's arm. My thoughts that were so disturbed before were now calmed as I watched his movements. He threw the flame onto the pile of bodies, and they were immediately enveloped in a raging fire. The wind shifted and brought the heavy black smoke in my direction.

Nearly falling out of my perch from gaging at the smell, I quickly descended and sighed with relief once breathing in fresher air. I walked to the tree line, peered out, and watched the clearing.

The man stood there, watching the bodies burn. I made a face as I watched him.

He shifted his position, looking to the sky. I slid back into the shadows, not wanting to be seen but wanting to let him know I was at least alive. Without warning, an enormous dragon landed beside the man, bending its long neck to rest its snout on the man's hand. They looked at each other in silence as a few gestures were exchanged. My eyes widened. They were communicating through their thoughts.

The dragon was beautifully crafted, its scales forming a puzzle of lighter golds and darker bronze, forged in fire to make an impenetrable armour. It opened its eyes. Amber glowed back into the man's multicoloured eyes.

"Kayne!" Breaking the trance I was put in; a few men quickly walked toward the man and his dragon.

"What is it?" Kayne turned to gaze at the approaching men. They were broad-shouldered and extremely muscular, all of them were. "Baylen, what's going on?"

"Claiborne managed to escape the hunting parties..." Kayne's expression grew dark. The dragon behind cast the men in a long shadow.

"What about his followers?" Kayne began to walk away from the burning corpses. "The one with the scar across her face, Amalie?"

The other man spoke up, "we've got her in one of the cages. There are a couple of others as well." Their voices began to fade as they made the distance between themselves and the fire. The roar of it was surprisingly loud, and the stench was still thick in the air.

The golden dragon stayed where it was, watching as her rider walked with the others. I watched as well, noting the definition of his back muscles that I seemed to have missed last night. He's got a nice ass. My gaze wandered back to the dragon, I nearly collapsed to the ground as amber eyes were staring directly at where I was hiding. It had crept its way closer, standing on all fours, its tail swaying slightly behind it. It gave a low growl. This is how I die.

Seeing as there would be no use in hiding from it any longer, I exposed myself, creeping out from the shadows and letting the sunlight hit my skin. The sun's warmth soaked into my scalp.

I watched the giant closely, as it did with me. However, I wasn't the one who could breathe fire or have the teeth and claws to rip flesh open with ease. I was a defenceless, soft-skinned, puny human. There was no way I would survive this if it came down to a fight. I would have to run and hope it couldn't fit itself through the trees.

A cool burn pulsed within my pocket as the two of us shared a long and intense stare down. My blood bubbled as the dragon growled lowly, which only seemed to grow the intensity of the fight happening within my body. It was less intense than the first time my body reacted to my newfound powers emerging, but still enough to give me grave discomfort.