Blood and Fire

Natalie woke up in the middle of the night and she did not know why. She had been tired enough – working all day in the palace did that to her –, she had been fed enough and she hadn't been drinking much before she went to bed. Then why was she up so early?

As if by themselves her legs moved and she stood up. Natalie started walking out of the servant dorms and towards the city gates. But it wasn't her that was doing so, her limbs were moving in their own accord and she had no say in the matter. Annoyed, she tried to turn around and walk back, but her body did otherwise.

The only thing she could do, was helplessly watch as she walked out of the city gates and towards a nearby forest. She saw a creature standing in the clearing of the dark green abyss, but it did not belong to any race she knew.

The creature was wearing a dark hood and she couldn't discern much, apart from its raised white arms which had intricate black designs on them.

"Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you… Oh!" the creature bellowed and stopped abruptly what it was doing. Natalie was still not close enough to see what that was.

But just then, she saw a doe in its one arm and a shining knife on the other.

"Look at it! Its afraid" the creature spoke as if to itself and as the doe made a wailing noise the knife sliced its throat and the dead carcass fell on the wet, green ground.

"See? Not that painful after all, was it? Now, where were we? When the blazing sun is gone, when he nothing shines upon, then you show your little light, twinkle, twinkle, all the night" the creature ended and let out a terrifying, sadistic laugh and licked the fresh blood from the knife's sharp edge.

Then its eyes fell on Natalie, who had just approached. It smiled, showing a white array of teeth.

"You were late… Age?" it asked in a calculating manner.

Natalie didn't want to answer, she wanted to turn around and start running but her lips started moving as if by themselves. Her heart beat faster inside her chest.

"I am sixteen years of age" she replied.

The creature clapped its hands.

"Splendid! How young, how beautiful… Forever young!" it said and grabbed Natalie's arms and pushed her on the ground.

The light from the stars, fell on the knife and she watched, helplessly as the creature pushed it against her heart and Natalie screamed.

…..

Blood. Crunch. Bones.

Ice was everywhere and it was cold, so cold…

She wanted to scream, shout, cry, but her lips were sealed, her body not responding to her mind's commands.

You went too far, little girl… Come out, come out wherever you are. She heard a sadistic laugh and she trembled but was it her limbs or her mind?

Crunch. Blood. Bones.

Icy white daggers pierced her heart. No! They were teeth!

A piercing set of eyes - the colour of blood - looked into her soul, making her feel unworthy, dirty, terrified and she wanted to peel her skin of, but couldn't.

Dark liquid splattered on the white, icy ground, painting everything red as a body fell to its death. Black, sharp talons were trying to catch her, torture and hurt her. She tried to slip away from their grasp but then large wings extended and the dragon caught her before she was able to run. Another merciless laugh echoed in her mind.

Help!

No one listened. No one cared.

Guard yourself against all dangers…

Black markings twisted around the arms of her intruder, like a snake and turned into the shape of eyes.

How curious to see one such as you here.

Who am I? Why me?

Kayla, a voice whispered into her unconsciousness with a worried tone and the name felt familiar and alien at the same time.

Trying to resist the intruders was taking all of her power, all of her will to live and she was tired, so tired.

The sun is lost, your loved ones are gone.

Blue flowers lay on the white floor but as she went to pick them up, she realised that they were not blue but red. Her hands shook, blood dripped from them and they were cold, so cold.

She begged for warmth to return and when she saw flames rising she willingly walked to them. Blistering heat scorched her skin, burned her insides, smoke choked her but she was happy.

Let them burn!, she cried, a sadistic smile playing at the edges of her lips.

…

"Hold her down!" a voice shouted but she could not see.

She was hot and cold at the same time and she could feel a constant blast of energy on her heart but she wanted to get away from it. Her arms withered and she felt like a fish outside of water.

This simple movement resulted in her strength abandoning her and she fell into unconsciousness.

…..

When she next woke up, her breathing was slow and measured. She felt weak, true, but at least the burning sensation and energy blast had subsided. Her limbs were cold - almost frozen - but she dared not move, afraid she might lose herself in the land of spirits and terrible visions.

Kayla sensed someone near her. It was hard to determine exactly who it was at first, but she knew his manner was controlled, his every movement a precise act.

The elven rider, her mind whispered. It surprised her that she still had the ability to think and gently, so gently she searched around. Somewhere in there, was the source of magic but she dared not go close to it and instead looked for something else, something like…

The consciousness of the dragon nudged her own lightly and she could feel some of its emotions but not clearly.

She neither recoiled nor did she acknowledge the presence, resolving to think upon it later.

Time was passing quick and soon Kayla decided to open her eyes. Very slowly she opened one eyelid and then the next. Bright light came rushing through and it took some time until she adjusted. She blinked a few times and saw that the rooftop was made of wood, as well as everything else inside her room and the room was moving in a rocking motion.

Gently, she tried to move her fingertips and when she felt them touch the bed clothing and then rise she decided to raise her whole arm. First her right and then her left, ever so slowly and then proceeded to move her back as well and using as less strength as possible, her upper body.

"How do you feel?" asked the elf next to her and she turned to look at him. He was studying carefully her movements and she took in a deep breath.

"Exhausted. Cold. Hungry" was her reply but moving her lips felt hard.

She was presented with a platter of food and she hungrily gazed at the grapes, apples, bread, carrots and cold cuts of meat. With her right hand she grabbed the grapes and when the tiny bubbles got in her mouth, their sweetness exploded, almost sending her into a trance. Realising that eating grapes was her easiest option she proceeded to devour all of them and then went for the carrots and apples. They were nice and juicy whereas the meat and the bread felt hard and difficult to break with her teeth.

Once she finished her meal, she shivered, realising she was still cold. The rider brought her a blanket and she thankfully wrapped it around her shoulders.

"May I ask where we are?" she asked, looking at her surroundings, once again, bewildered.

"We are sailing to the island. Your brother and the rest of the riders are here with their dragons" he replied.

Kayla nodded and wrapped the blankets tighter around herself, as another tremor shook her.

"What happened?" she asked, briefly closing her eyes.

The elf pressed his lips tightly together.

"A Shade attacked when you were unawares. You killed him with the help of your dragon but you summoned too much power to do so and it almost drained you. The only way of keeping you alive was to transfer some energy back and try to heal you. You have been unconscious for almost a month now" he replied and she shivered one more time.

There seemed to be an awkward silence between them after that and suddenly Kayla couldn't stand the feeling of being stuck inside these walls.

"Can I go outside?" she almost begged. The elf looked at her sternly.

"Do you feel you are strong enough?"

"Yes" she replied because until she tried she wouldn't know. It took longer than she had expected but in the end she managed to stand up. For a few moments she felt dizzy but then everything started settling in and she exhaled the breath she had been holding.

Her steps were slow and measured, the elf behind her, offering assistance and while it took her a long time, in the end she managed to get on the deck.

What she saw almost took her breath away. There were no lights around them and the dark, black ocean seemed to extend for miles. It was the middle of the night and Kayla could see clearly the sky above her and all the bright stars that shone. She didn't care to gaze at her surroundings, only looked up and walked quicker to the edge of the deck.

She heard a growling noise next to her and she turned around to see a black dragon, almost twice the size of a horse. Kayla stepped back and noticed that there were two elder dragons resting on the deck alongside another three younger ones, all sleeping. In the night she could see a figure flying up and it started descending slowly towards her.

The purple dragon landed next to her, its violet eyes fixed only on her and she let out a gasp, clutching the blankets closer around her. Last time she had gazed upon the creature it had only been a hatchling and now it was bigger than a horse. She swallowed and looked around her, realising that apart from the elf who was keeping watch - standing on top of the sails - no one else was around.

The dragon's eyes had not moved from her direction, a mixture of feelings emitting from it.

Kayla.

She blinked hearing her name in her mind and quickly realised that it had come from the creature opposite her.

I have been waiting a long time for you.

Kayla wasn't sure how to reply but the way in which the dragon spoke was majestic as if it was wise and old beyond its years.

I should have not used magic so carelessly, she replied.

The dragon seemed thoughtful.

Yes, you shouldn't, but if you had not done so we would both be dead or worse, it said and then paused. Why do you hate me?

She swallowed, taken aback from the creature's direct question, as curiosity emitted from it and something else.

What to say? There were so many reasons but maybe the most important one was the snowy landscape memory that started coming to the surface of her mind, which the purple dragon went to examine further…

No!, she shouted, forcing Purple out of her mind and it hissed at her, perplexed, taking a few steps back.

Then, regretting her harsh tone she continued a bit more gently.

I am sorry. I do not hate you. This was wrong but there are parts of my life that I cannot share with you.

The dragon snapped its jaws closed.

I understand. We shall keep our distance as we did before, it said and went to fly in the night sky, its emotions closed from her.

As she watched its form disappear she clutched the blankets closer to her chest.

I still do not know your gender, she said.

The dragon seemed to mull over its answer.

I am female, but as my rider you should have known this by now, the she-dragon answered and Kayla felt her heart twist just a little.