AN: Okay so I completely forgot to post this here. I was I swear I was but yeah. Anyways I probably won't get anything for this since most of you has read this on a03 but ah well here's for the folks who missed it. Also sorry for the uncreative title and this short chapter.
Warning: AU, Non-Human Miranda, mentions of people getting eaten. Nothing too hardcore I assure.
The evening sun had already taken refuge behind the treeline when Andrea of Ahagradia finally decided to set up camp. stopped, strapping off her backpack. At least I'm out of the forest, she thought, as she sat down, leaning against a small rock. Andy yawned, stretching and flexing her muscles, tired from a day's non-stop walking. She had already gone five days on traveler's rations. Five days without a chance to get properly cleaned up. Five days sleeping out, alone and cold, just before the onset of winter. Still she had to keep moving if she wanted to survive.
It'd been twenty years since the Beasts conquered and pillaged the earth and now traded, bought, sold, and butchered for their meat, humans were the animals.
She shivered both from the thoughts and the cold. The girl glanced upward, from the look of the twilight skies, it might begin to snow any day. A chilly wind had started to blow, and the girl got to her feet again. No way she would stay out in the open like this or she'd freeze to death.
Chocolate eyes darted around, searching, she decided to head deeper into the valley, to a place where the base of the mountain looming above her seemed almost inviting. At least there would be shelter against the wind. Jogging to keep warm, she soon arrived to her set destination, quickly finding a spot that seemed well protected, rock on three sides. The place gave her a fine view over the valley, but she failed to appreciate its beauty. Instead, her heart sank to the bottom of her chest.
The valley came to an end. The two opposing mountains grew together, completely cutting off the path she had traveled.
Cursing all the deities above, she sat down on the ground, almost sobbing with frustration. Either, she would have to climb, which would be unwise seeing how cold it was even down here, in the valley, or she would have to trace her way back, and go around the southernmost of the mountains. That might take several weeks. Growling with anger, she kicked a loose pebble of rock, watching it build up speed as it clattered down the valley.
It was then something caught her eye. Across the valley, which here had narrowed until it was only a few hundred metres wide, she thought she saw a building. It was hard to be sure. She squinted even harder and sure enough there was the outline of an enormous castle in the distance.
No matter how she strained her keen eyes, the girl could not see any details. Then again, it was back-lit now, by the setting sun. Nevertheless she decided right then and there she needed to leave and leave right then. It was something about this that made her hackles raise but just as she was about to turn and head back only to have voices stop her.
"Halt! Who goesss there!" Two enormous guards appeared from the shadows. And even in the blue gloom of twilight the girl could tell they weren't human. Her heart dropped into her stomach when she recognized their forms immediately. Hu-snakes. The coldblooded humanoids were notorious for eating and killing her kind just for their own personal pleasure.
"A human! Ccccease her!" That did it. Her legs began to work again and she was off, running into the woods at full speed. Trees, fallen logs, and bushes whipped passed in a blur still behind her Andy could hear them nearing.
Suddenly their were rough calloused hands grabbing her around the middle and jerking her into what felt like a brick wall.
"The queen shall reward usss greatly for thisss." One stated with glee and the other hissed in pleasure.
"Lemme go!" She fought fruitlessly against their iron-like grips.
"Sssilence, ape." One demanded giving her a shake for good measure before throwing her over his broad shoulders like a sack of feed.
They seemed to go on for miles and the swaying motion combine with the Hu-Snakes' natural musk was turning Andy positively green-and not in a jealous way. Her abdomen numb and vision begun to swim as bitter bile scorched the back of her throat. Oh God. Anymore of this and she was going to spew vomit all down his back.
Thankfully though it wasn't long after that thought that the trio reached a castle. Or at least Andy guessed it was from the tall tell worn vertical planks of a draw bridge that appeared followed by grey stone flooring. Corridor after dark corridor they mazed their way through the bowls of the palace until finally they arrived at some unknown destination.
The hu-snake walked in the centre and nearly threw the human down on the floor. Her unsteadiness making her look like a newborn fawn as she tried to regain both feeling and balance in her legs.
"Bow." When she hesitated a sharp kick to the back of her legs sent the girl to her knees. "Ssstay." It hissed down at her before looking into the inky darkness of them room.
"Sssoft meat for your pleasssure, Majesty," She heard the hu-snake announce. Its voice was shortly followed by the sound of its footsteps as it retreated from the room.
Wild eyed, Andy glanced around the room and drank the details in greedily. The room from what she could see was enormous. High ceilings and walls, bare of anything were all made of stone were high enough to contain an mature oak. She squinted against the gloom to see just how far the room went but the inky blackness that strangely shrouded the other side made it impossible.
Seconds of deafening silence passed and with it came the overwhelming sensation of being watched. Andrea's heart pounded as the hair on the back of her neck stood on in. Maybe she was safer in the hu-snakes arms.
A loud swooshing noise followed by a heavy thump echoed from the far side of the room startled the girl. Andrea fell backward off her knees onto her behind were she remained frozen in fear.
Cloaked within the darkness unbeknownst to the girl, reptilian-like eyes were roaming over her trembling form. The female was young, very young, just out of hatchling years if she'd have to guess. Large doe eyes stared at the vicinity of where she stood, glimmering in the candlelit with unshed saltwater as a plump bottom lip quivered. Her alabaster skin in the fire-light emanating from the bottom-floor windows, revealing to a lithe, yet trimmed body. Her feminine curves were exquisite for a human that is. The dragoness flicked her forked tongue, scenting the air-overwhelming fear laced with innocence. Delicious.
"Well, well, what do we have here?" A feminine voice as smooth as finely shaved chocolate and cold as ice questioned. "A lost sheep trying to find its way back home? Or perhaps a primate that has escaped its confinement."
"I'm..I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude on your territory." Andrea sputtered out, trying yet failing to keep her voice steady though a traitorous tear rolled down her cheek, hesitating for a while on her chin, before it fell to the ground.
"Details of your incompetence are of no use to me, human." A scaled foot stepped out of the darkness, the onyx claws on each toe glinting menacingly in the fire's light clicked on the stone flooring."The fact remains that you are were in my territory." The creature growled as seemed to materialize out of nowhere on all fours and it was all Andy could do not to scream.
This was no hu-snake this was a dragon.
Andy'd only read and seen them in books. This one appeared to be of European decent with an enormous dinosaur-like body and horned head covered in glimmering cerulean blue scales. She couldn't see the wings clearly not and nor the long muscular tail dragging behind it but as of right now Andy could care less about all that the only thing she was concerned about was that wicked set of teeth smiling at her.
Closer and closer the dragoness approached and as she did so Andy's eyes grew larger and larger.
Seeing the horror written across the human's face the creature let out a husky low chuckle. "Are you frightened, ape?"
Mouth gaped open and eyes widened to epic proportions, Andrea merely nodded.
Another spine chilling laugh and the dragoness lowered her massive head until her muzzle was merely an inch away from the human's face, her slitted sapphire eyes seemingly peering into Andy's soul. "As you should be." The dragoness suddenly leaned in closer and sniffed the crook of Andy's neck, her hot breath bathing the moonlit skin in heated puffs making Andy shiver. "You smell simply divine." She pressed her muzzle into the girl's skin as she inhaled deeply before pulling back. "I wonder." The dragoness leveled her snout to Andy's ear. "does your flesh taste as it smells or is it of," Her forked tongued flickered out. "A different flavor."
"Please." Andy whimpered, trembling so violently it was almost as if she were vibrating.
And much to her relief the dragoness leaned back. "Oh do calm yourself. I'm not planning to eat you."
The human relaxed just a tad only to tense back up when it was followed by a, "Yet."
TBC...