Author's Note: So I'm going to take some liberties throughout and put my own spin on things, or add details/events that weren't actually there in the game. It changes things a little, but the overall story stays mostly the same - I hope nobody minds! It's just my imaginings and take on things. I'm not totally confident writing action scenes so please review and let me know what you think or give me advice. :) Does it flow okay?
Fish. The smell hung in the air and clung to everything. Growing up in a fishing village like Cassardis it was to be expected, but she really couldn't stand it. She'd just come from a day's work clinging to a boat, hauling in nets, sorting through and chopping up sea life. She was headed to the grocer to sell a basket of fish right now. Same thing day in and day out; it grew tedious sometimes. There must be somewhere free of this smell, Ceileigh thought as she walked along the beach. Her feet guided her automatically toward the grocer's as she lost herself in thoughts of faraway lands, the capital, even trails she hadn't explored in the hills around Cassardis - anywhere outside the walls of her hometown. She snapped out of it when a familiar figure caught her attention.
Quina, Ceileigh's closest childhood friend, was waving at her from farther down the beach. Quina was more like a sister to Ceileigh. After Ceileigh's parents died, Quina's father Adaro took her in and raised her as his own. Aside from having lost their mothers, the two girls couldn't have been more different. Quina was dark skinned, with long dark hair and was always in a dress. On the other hand, Ceileigh was very fair with blue eyes and blonde hair. She preferred practicality over vanity, though her natural beauty was noticed often by those around her. Today, as usual, her hair was tied back in two braids that twisted into a bun, and she wore sturdy fisherman's work clothes.
Ceileigh was just about to make her way through the crowd toward her friend when she heard a distant boom. She snapped her head toward the ocean to see a large red shape punch through the sky above the clouds and hurtle toward the sea. She couldn't tell what it was, it almost looked like a gigantic red rock. Surrounded by a cloud of…what, she couldn't tell. Large birds? The space it came from seemed to be utterly dark but glowing at the same time. As she watched, two massive wings unfurled from the rock's sides and it changed course, gliding straight toward them with frightening speed. Ceileigh realized with sudden, sickening clarity what the object was - a dragon.
Everything happened at once. People screamed and scattered, stumbling in their haste to get away. Ceileigh watched, frozen for a moment, before joining the rush. The dragon was halfway to shore already. Everything in her was screaming RUN! She only a made it a few desperate steps before the dragon crashed down on the pier, sending wood and ropes flying high into the air. Ceileigh threw herself back just in time to avoid a jagged plank that plowed through the sand. A split second later she was knocked to the ground as giant claws slammed down right next to her.
Ceileigh scrambled backward, keeping her eyes locked on the beast's face. She saw its chest expand and a cloud of gas ripple in front of its mouth as it prepared to breathe fire. Just then her hand fell on something metal. Glancing back she saw it was the hilt of a sword someone dropped as they ran. She grabbed it and rolled away as a torrent of flame washed over the spot she'd just been in.
The dragon lashed its tail angrily, demolishing most of a building to the east. New screams and commotion drew its attention there. Ceileigh used the distraction to regain her footing. She held the sword out in front of her awkwardly. She'd never used one before, but if these were her last moments she sure wasn't going down without a fight. The job of defeating a dragon belonged to someone greater than her, but maybe she could draw it away from the others and give them a chance to escape.
"Hey! Over here!" she shouted, waving the sword over her head. The dragon swung back to face her and she ran down the beach, keeping one eye on the dragon and her weapon pointed up at it. It took only a few steps to catch up and swipe at her. The blow came too fast for her to outrun it - she could see the curve of yellow claws coming round in front of her and she knew she'd be swept off her feet or crushed. She did the only thing she could do. Spinning to face the palm of the dragon's hand, she braced herself and drove her sword into its flesh as far as possible.
The impact of the blow knocked all the air out of her and sent her flying out into the sea. She landed in water that was almost covering her face and she barely had the strength to hold her head up. Between that and not being able to breathe she was afraid her head would fall and she'd drown. Through blurry eyes she could see the dragon lift its hand and consider the sword stuck in it. It looked like a toothpick against the beast's giant palm. He dislodged it easily with a flick of the wrist and it fell to the sand far below.
The dragon turned slowly toward her as she lay helpless. It crossed the distance to her and spoke deep, rumbling words she couldn't understand. She struggled to move as it dipped one of its great claws toward her. It tapped her chest and it was like a great force of energy shot into and out of her, arching her body up out of the water as every muscle contracted painfully. When she splashed back into the water, able to breathe now but gasping with pain and exertion, she realized her still-beating heart was impaled on the tip of the claw and rising away from her. How is that possible?! she thought in disbelief. I should be dead…maybe I'm dying right now…. The last thing she saw before losing consciousness was her heart somehow floating from the tip of the dragon's claw into its mouth.
Ceileigh opened her eyes slowly, sore everywhere and still groggy. After a moment she realized she was in a bed on the floor of her adopted father's home, alongside a few other people who were injured or unconscious. She struggled up to her elbow and saw that her shirt was ripped wide open, revealing a large scar just to the left of the center of her chest. My heart! she thought frantically as everything rushed back to her. She quickly raised a hand to touch the scar and immediately the dragon's voice boomed, seemingly from inside and around her at once. "IF YOU WOULD FACE ME…TAKE UP ARMS, NEWLY ARISEN!"
With a gasp she flung her hand back down the blanket she was laying on and sat up fully. It was strange, if her heart was still inside her it would have been beating wildly. She still felt something like an adrenaline rush and her hands were shaking.
"What the hell is happening to me?" she breathed.
"Coz, you're awake!" Quina rushed to her from the other side of the room, toting a basket full of herbs. Between her knowledge of medicinal plants and her budding skill as a mage, Quina was becoming quite the healer. Ceileigh noticed distantly that her friend's face was drawn and pale even though she looked relieved at the moment.
"Quina. I didn't see you there," she said weakly. "What of the village? Is everyone okay? Has Adaro spoken to the people?"
"Ceileigh…I don't know how to say this," Quina paused and drew a deep breath. "My father is dead. He was found under a piece of wall that was knocked down during the attack." Her voice broke near the end.
"I'm so sorry!" Ceileigh exclaimed, leaning forward to hug her friend. She felt the loss deeply as well, since she'd loved Adaro almost as much as she'd loved her own father. They both cried for a few minutes and finally broke the hug. There were people who needed tending to; they would have to put off really grieving until later. Sniffling and with tears still in their eyes, Quina helped Ceileigh to her feet.
"I have to make rounds in the village, many are badly injured and we haven't accounted for everyone yet either," Quina said shakily. "We can figure out your condition later. You seem stable for now, but I couldn't hear your heartbeat and you have that scar. I couldn't see what happened to you after the dragon knocked you down, it had its back to the village. If he scratched you the wound wouldn't have healed already."
"He took my heart, Quina. He reached down and plucked it right out of me," Ceileigh told her, almost crying again at the memory of it. "I don't know how, but my heart is gone and I'm still here. It must be some kind of magic?"
Quina looked scared. "Or a curse! What seems like a miracle can't be good if performed by a dragon. When word of this gets around - "
"People will look at me differently," Ceileigh finished. "Something happened between us. He spoke to me and he ate my heart, and when I touch the scar I can hear him again. He's calling me to him. I need to make this stop. I don't think I can stay here."
Quina glanced away uncomfortably. "Look, I need to get out there. Let's talk about this in a bit okay?" She turned and left the house before Ceileigh could reply, leaving her to consider her future in silence.