Just 3 days to go until The Runaway 2 hits your computer screens! Is everyone else as excited as I am? Just to get you ready, here's a sneaky peak of the first chapter! (This doesn't mean you can skip the bit at the beginning on Saturday. I've cut it down so that it'll fit onto one page.)
"Well, Meatlug, now you can see why I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. Just look at this!" Fishlegs threw his arms out wide, trying to somehow capture and frame the perfect image of the night to keep in his mind forever. If he could take any snapshot of the view, it would be this one. Sighing contentedly, he leant back against his dragon's warm belly, breathing the scorched scent of dragon scales deeply into his lungs. Nothing could be more perfect than this.
"A beautiful night on watch with my beautiful dragon. Nothing could be better!" He beamed, patting his Gronkle on the nose. Meatlug was heavy and strong, her thick, rocky skin encasing a gentle and kind interior. Her stone-crushing jaws were nothing to her but a way to eat and to nibble and to lick in the most affectionate ways. There really was nothing scary about Meatlug at all. As soft as a sponge, she and her rider fitted together like the pieces of a jigsaw.
Fishlegs was a tall, stocky boy, broad-shouldered and strong, and yet, he too was as gracious and courteous as his dragon. His knowledge of the creatures was rivalled by no man, for he kept the Book of Dragons, the Vikings' compendium of the entirety of their information on everything scaled and reptilian. This book was the most precious weapon in all the Berkian's arsenal, for with it, they could tell the strengths and weaknesses of every single dragon in the world. The precious volume was safely stored away at Fishleg's house, leaving him free to relax on his night patrol.
Suddenly, an unusual wave disturbed the softly rippling waters. Fishleg's scowled, becoming tense. His dragon sat up warily, giving an uneasy growl as she searched the skies. The young man barely dared to breath, scouring the landscape for any sight, sound or feel of an intruder. Suddenly, Meatlug relaxed, and Fishlegs was almost on the verge of convincing himself that he was imagining things when suddenly, he heard something.
His heart skipped a beat. A sort of rustling, snuffling coming from behind him. Could it just be a Terrible Terror, the Jack Russell Terrier of the dragon world, come to bother him in the night? Or could it possibly be something more sinister? The plump Viking stood and turned just a second before the first explosion rang out.
He uttered a scream quite unbecoming of a man his size, staring at the rising silver cloud in horror. It bloomed like a mushroom, up into the cold night air. He could see fire, smell burning, hear screams as the occupants were awoken abruptly from their sleep. Then, came another, off to the north. This time, he watched as the shaped charge, purplish in hue, whizzed through the air with an airy screech and tore into the ground, tossing mud and shrapnel high into the air. His blood froze colder than the harshest winter.
"Toothless?"
The Runaway 2: Under Siege. First chapter out Saturday.