This was another story Gordon519 and i worked on together.
Hope you like it
And sorry if this seems rushed and/or not too wordy or not wordy enough
Gordon Rite struggled at the ropes around his wrists, he didn't want to be a sacrifice.
But no one seemed to care as he was wheeled in a cart to the cave at the top of the mountain.
Eventually he just gave up and closed his eyes as they left him there.
As soon as the last Viking was gone, smoke began to come out of the cave and a teenage girl, with long white ears, a pair of wings and a tail, came out to see who they're giving to her this month so she will keep protecting their village for them - the cowards...
Gordon kept his eyes shut; he didn't know what she will do to him or how she will treat him.
'For once...' Stella thought to herself 'They did a pretty good job. But to be sure...'
Slowly she reached out and rubbed the boy's cheek with the back of my fingers making him jump and open his eyes and she looked right into them, straight to his pure heart.
Gorgon squirmed as she stared into his eyes feeling uncomfortable.
Smiling Stella pulled away and shifting her hand into a Monstrous Nightmare talon cut him loose.
As soon as Gordon was off the cart he fainted.
Picking him up, Stella took him into the cave, to the place she called home, a place between places and set the boy on the bed and shifting to a Snow Fury, curled up on the floor next to him.
(*)(*)(*)
Gordon woke up with a yawn the next morning still feeling tired from the night before.
"Good morning," Stella said, back to being a halfa, coming in carrying a tray of fish for breakfast.
Gordon didn't say anything as he grabbed some fish.
"Are these cooked?" he asked.
"Of course," Stella said tucking into one herself "Did them myself too..."
"Thanks" Gordon said digging in "So what are you going to do with me?"
"Excuse me?" Stella asked looking up confused cocking her head and flattening her ears back.
"Sorry" Gordon said scared that he offended a god.
"Oh... I get it, you think that since I'm the Goddess of Dragons I'm as cold blooded as them and kill everyone and thing in my path. Well I got news for you..." she said leaning forwards to whisper it to him "I'm not..."
With that she went back to her fish but with a pout on her face.
"It's just that all the offerings that have been sent to you,...they never come back..." he said carefully.
"They do come back..." Stella said looking to him "They're just not Human anymore... And I only send them home after they over see their welcome here."
Gordon looked scared, he didn't want to become a dragon.
"Oh come on... I only change them to dragons when I send them back home..." Stella said rolling her eyes.
Still unsure, Gordon ate the rest of his fish and tried to fall back asleep.
Taking the plate, Stella left the room to leave Gordon in peace.
Once she was gone he pulled out a small copy of the Book of Dragons out of his pocket and opened it.
o
Back in Gordon's old village, the families with sons the age category between 12 -18 had had enough of having to put them through this every month.
And Luke, his little brother was crying, hugging his big sister's leg.
"But we can't stop doing this..." the Chief said "We stop, and She stops protecting us..."
Luke ran home, not caring about what the Chief said as to why they did this.
Klara, Gordon's twin sister followed him and found him on Gordon's bed hugging the pillow, brawling his eyes into it.
o
Back in Stella's cave, Gordon was flipping through the pages of his mini Book of Dragons, trying to decide what one he would rather be.
"Oooh you brought a gift for me," Stella says coming and snatching the book from his hands reading it. "Oh... It's that same stupid book everyone brings with them..." she said giving it back.
Whimpering scared a bit, Gordon scrambled away from her.
"What's wrong?" she asks sitting down at the foot of the bed looking to him in confusion.
"It's... it's just... I don't want to lose my humanity," Gordon says taking the book back.
"What makes you think you will?" Stella asks still not sure what he was talking about.
"When you turn me into a dragon,...I... I don't want to forget who I was," Gordon says.
"Weren't you listening earlier..." Stella asks crossing my arms and pouting like a child "I only do that when I send them home. And I only send them home when they over see their welcome here..."
"Just promise me I'll remember my little brother..." Gordon said looking to her with pleading eyes.
"You had a little brother?" Stella asked looking to him in slight surprise.
Gordon nodded.
"What was he like..." Stella asked in a curious voice.
"He's name is Luke, he's 9 years old," Gordon began "Brown hair, blue eyes, likes stories and adventures, want to be friends with everybody."
"He sounds nice..." Stella says smiling and hugging her legs feeling sorry that the people in the village stole this boy away from him, just to give him to her, just because they're cowards.
Seeing the look and feeling coming off her, Gordon slowly reaches out and hugged her.
Stella froze and looked to him in surprise.
No one... ever... has hugged her before.
Eyes tearing up she lent into Gordon's chest and let all the feelings she had stored for... who knows how long, out.
At this, Gordon smiled and gently began to rub her hair.
o
In Gordon's old house Klara was just finishing comforting Luke and put him to bed for a nap thinking he needed one, giving him his old teddy bear to cuddle.
He eventually cries himself to sleep.
Slowly Klara gets up and goes back to the Great Hall where the families were still trying to work out what to do, just in quieter voices, since the Chief already said no.
o
Gordon finished calming Stella down and she had fallen asleep in his arms.
Gently he laid her down on the bed and started to look at the book again.
"Miss Stella..." a young voice said by the door.
"She's sleeping," Gordon said looking up to see a 12 year old looking like he wanted something.
"Oh..." he said "Ok I'll come back later..." he says turning away.
"Luke?" Gordon asks cocking his head a bit.
"My name's not Luke," the boy says confused "It's Billy..." he says.
"Sorry," Gordon says coming out of the cave a bit "Can you please tell Luke I'll see him as a dragon."
"Who's Luke?" Billy asked not remembering anyone called that when he was still a Viking.
"My little brother," Gordon said in a slightly confused voice.
"Oh... Ok," Billy said then looked Gordon up and down "But who are you?"
"I'm the newest sacrifice, my names Gordon," Gordon says smiling a bit.
"Oh..." Billy said nodding "Um... Who's your Chief?"
"William the Brave," Gordon says stating the name of the Chief.
"He was not my Chief," Billy said confused "Mine... I think... Was his father Robert the Ruthless."
"What?" Gordon said shocked looking at the kid.
"I was brought here 37 years ago," Billy said looking up innocently, looking to Stella, making sure he wasn't being too loud.
Gordon blinked a few times shocked, and was shaking his head.
"What?" he asked cocking his head.
"Well... Shouldn't you be, you know, older than this?" Gordon asks looking Billy up and down too.
"Something about this place," Billy said in a thinking voice "Makes it so we stay the same age."
Gordon looked to Stella as she snored lightly still asleep.
"I wonder how old she is then.." he said curiosity in his voice as he went to sit at the foot of the bed, eyes on her.
"She won't tell anyone," Billy said coming over and getting into Gordon's lap. (he might be old but technically he's still a kid)
o
In the village's Great Hall the families were just coming through with their idea.
"Maybe... if we make it so the Chief's son is chosen," a father says "Then he'll make this stop."
"Are you crazy " another says looking to the first one in surprise.
"What?" he asks "All we have to do is stuff the Sacrifice Box with Hamish's name and then he'll get picked."
"You know what I like this plan," Klara says nodding. "It's high time he has his name put into the box."
And so it was agreed that next month, they would put this plan into action.