She breathes deep and takes off.
Soaring above trees and over boulders, eyes ever upon the circle of darkness whereupon the dangerous foe rests. As she grows closer, she can see the smoke curving out of the opening, billowing up to block out the sun, casting the cave into further darkness.
The beast awaits.
The hero's heart sinks as she tries to pull back, away from the terror resting in the dark, but her pace continues on despite her frantic stopping motion. She can almost hear laughter at her futile efforts and she draws closer to the smoke, feeling it's heat now.
She lands inside the lip of the cave and a glowing eye opens lazily, visible through the thick haze. An eye the size of a serving platter; a predatory gleam in the familiar, scaled gaze. A taloned finger approaches from behind the smoke, attached claw as sharp as a broadsword and far more sturdy.
The dwarfed dreamer pleads as the claw approaches her face, forcing her back to the very edge of the sheer cliff. She scrambles away, ducking and crawling from the pursuing grasp. The claw follows her and catches her back, slicing through her shirt and between her shoulder-blades.
A throaty laugh accompanies her outcry of pain and she feels her arms go limp. She crashes to the ground, nose catching her fall, and the answering crack echoes within her head. Blood floods down her chin as she dizzily tries to rise, finally achieving a sitting position on her ankles as she sways dangerously.
She struggles to focus her sight, shaking the spots from her vision in time to see a gleaming grin of points. They separate and heat bathes her, burning her skin and searing her open eyes. A spark catches deep in that cavernous, open throat and fire surrounds her.
A scream wakes her, and she finds herself bathed in sweat, both arms twisted beneath her body and tingling with sleep.
No comments:
Post a Comment