Category: Writers Block
The frightened and disgruntled settlers arranged a meeting to finally decide "how to counter the menace of the dragons" the family's of the dead men were calling for Lyla's blood and weeping bitterly but 1 of them sat silent as if he had distanced himself from the grieving "what do you propose to do to end the stalemate" he looked up briefly but everyone saw the brooding darkness in his bright green eyes "can you blame the dragons for eating our livestock hmmm?, when we have driven the deer to extinction,they take our sheep, because we have made sure they have nothing else!" A murmur of discontent rumbled around the hut and the big man stood up and reached to pour himself another ale "so you side with these devils your brother is dead! because of a dragon!" Pharlain locked eyes with his cousin and drank his ale without shifting his gaze "we kill them,so they kill our men, is it any wonder that it happens, you are so blinded by hate that you can't see the answer"
As Carlan stood up to challenge his cousin one had strayed to his dagger "ahh well I see you are so scared,that even here amongst friends, you remain armed" Pharlain refilled his cup and kept his eyes on the man, while lighting a cigarette "my dagger is at home everyone here knows I only use it, when the enemy leaves me no choice" laughter bubbled up and Pharlain took a long draw of the spicy tobacco Carlan was humiliated but far from beaten "your enemy!? Ha Since when have you raised a hand to defend anyone here, not even those of your own blood!" the 2 men faced each other but Pharlain towered above his younger cousin "how short your memory is, or perhaps, you were still learning how to use that" the big man whipped out the dagger from its leather scabbard,and twirled it around and behind his back,then in a blur the blade was piercing his cousin's throat "I am many things but a coward is not one of them"
Carlan slowly moved the pointed blade away from his throat and stepped past Pharlain without another word but his movements were tense and awkward "you know I am not afraid to fight" he sat down heavily and drew hard on the cigarette "..unless we can solve this problem, we will have no option but to leave,as the dragons are as determined as us, and we are guilty of more than we are prepared to admit"
the silence permeated the air smoky and heavy with fear, blame, and uncertainty "leave! where will we go,and you make it sound so easy, but where is there left for us everyone goes to sea while we are stuck trying to make a living out of nothing!" The young man stood up and held out his hands dirt was ingrained into his skin and fingernails, from a hard day in the fields "I have been west of here there is another valley more fertile however it's..." "occupied by dragons I bet as they all are" Pharlain's eyes slowly passed over the settler's they were tired, cold, and in no mood, to listen to his dangerous ideas about living in peace with the dragons they also suspected he was planning to betray them.
A bitter wind scoured the valley and Lyla awoke, to a trace of chilly air creeping into her cave "it's always winter up here" she breathed deeply then spat a mouthful of fire towards some logs she had collected, the tinder dry wood soon disappeared within the bright red flames "ahh that's more like it" as she moved closer to the heat faint sounds from the entrance made her stiffen, she listened and recognised the sound Alin and his mate were quick to take advantage of the luxury, of a dragon's generosity "ohhh that's a beautiful smell I love wood smoke" he hopped nearer until his dark eyes were ignited by the firelight "come in it's winter again have you heard any news from below what did they say" Alin and his mate exchanged glances and pretended they hadn't heard Lyla narrowed her eyes and started at them intently "all right..they are still arguing its the same as ever,but Pharlain spoke up for us..I think we have almost won him over"
"only him it's a thin hope my friends and I suppose they laughed at him...hmmm they are just as scared of Pharlain as he's years ahead of his time" the ravens agreed and Alin studied the huge irregular shadows,flung by the light, against the rugged sandstone walls and over the ceiling he usually enjoyed playing with and distorting them further, tonight however, there was a change to his mood "they talked about leaving Pharlain said if we can't find a solution then we will have no option"
Lyla thought this over and blew smoke from her nostrils the six sharp barbs on the back of her neck, had been flat, now they stood erect and Alin stepped back "if the settlers leave their news will bring an army here, fully armed and ruthless we wont stand a chance!" The dragon stood up and her monstrous shadow blackened the red cave walls "we must find some other source of food and work harder on Pharlain, but first, I'm going to eat your right Alin humans aren't bad at all".
Alwin shivered she knew Lyla was furious and this could lead to violence,when the mood came on her she liked nothing more, than to obey her darker instincts and strike, Lyla was feasting on the frozen carcass of the 2nd settler, so she didn't hear the laboured breathing or crunching steps until the man was 200 yards away she cursed her distraction and growled while unfolding her wings.Then something about the man seemed familiar he was somehow unthreatening and more strangely unarmed, except for a knife glinting in the moonlight Lyla ripped away a hunk of meat and chewed noisily however the man kept coming,he apparently unmoved by the grisly scene "perhaps he's seen too much,hmm 1 won't cause me much trouble" the settler pushed back his sheepskin hood and Lyla smiled when she caught sight of his face "Pharlain well well and all alone aren't you brave".
Lyla thought this over and blew smoke from her nostrils the six sharp barbs on the back of her neck, had been flat, now they stood erect and Alin stepped back "if the settlers leave their news will bring an army here, fully armed and ruthless we wont stand a chance!" The dragon stood up and her monstrous shadow blackened the red cave walls "we must find some other source of food and work harder on Pharlain, but first, I'm going to eat your right Alin humans aren't bad at all".
Lyla thought this over and blew smoke from her nostrils the six sharp barbs on the back of her neck, had been flat, now they stood erect and Alin stepped back "if the settlers leave their news will bring an army here, fully armed and ruthless we wont stand a chance!" The dragon stood up and her monstrous shadow blackened the red cave walls "we must find some other source of food and work harder on Pharlain, but first, I'm going to eat your right Alin humans aren't bad at all".
He edged closer to the last settler his brother, the corpse was stiff and Pharlain struggled to free it from the frigid ground every so often, he glanced up, to check if Lyla had moved but the dragon sat back like a huge and curious dog,fascinated by his need to recover the body. She considered going to help, with a small burst of fire, but the risk to them both was too great "yes you just sit there and digest my neighbours, while... I ruin my... good tools here" Pharlain gasped with the effort and stopped to take a drink of ale, Lyla scanned the valley behind him for any sign of settlers hidden in ambush,they were inside, with the doors firmly locked Pharlain took out some bread and ate quickly he hadn't felt anything before leaving the village but as he left the security of it he'd become aware of a wild sense of trepidation and excitement he would be closer this time close enough to see the expression and intention in her eyes.
Lyla was suspicious of his eagerness and the amount of time he spent traipsing among the more accessible slopes "looking for stray sheep" that feeble excuse had worked for less than a month and Lyla wondered if Pharlain's interest had been responsible for Malduin vanishing into thin air.Her eyes scraped over him with disdain but inspite of this, she couldn't bring herself to frighten him. Pharlain had succeeded in freeing his brother's body and now he could release the grief,large hot tears rolled down his cheeks,and his strong frame was wracked by sobs, Pharlain cradled the corpse in his arms but not once did he blame Lyla for the loss.
He wiped away the tears then picked up his tools and threw them in a canvas sack his grief was strong but brief. "Death is common place here it lives with us and I hate it" he lifted the body onto a makeshift sledge of logs and sheepskin,when the corpse was secure Pharlain knelt down and kissed his brother with affection.
Lyla was unsettled by this she hadn't expected him to be so demonstrative she whispered to herself "the stories are all lies, at least with Pharlain, our task might be easier than we thought" as she turned to leave his voice rang out full of distress and alcohol "dragon you have my word! The killing will end soon if I have to give my life to achieve it!" Lyla couldn't take this in even as she turned the words over in her mind,a desperate need to make her understand seized Pharlain and he scrambled up the slope towards her, his reckless bravado disturbed Lyla and she backed away, but an intuative empathy with his suffering prevented her from launching an attack
Lyla lay down and tried to hide her guilt at her last meal as Pharlain collapsed gasping they were barely 10 feet apart Lyla wrinkled her nose as the sweet heathery smell of his ale reached her he was sweating and shivering, as it dried in the bitter easterly wind. Despite his distress Pharlain kept a wary eye on the dragon as Lyla studied his edgy childlike amazement, and as the ravens emerged from the cave, Alin expressed his surprise with a loud sqwak "awww! what is this! don't trust him Lyla it's a trap" he hopped around flapping his wings and glaring at Pharlain who slowly sat up and laid down his knife in front of the dragon "see you have all the advantage now, I'm just going to rest a bit then" he looked back to his brother with sadness and acute regret "...Arlan shouldn't have been with us but..the young men want to prove themselves..its the same for you yes"
Alin crept closer then flew down the slope to the sledge, Pharlain grabbed his knife and yelled at the raven he staggered to his feet,as a fever that had been bothering him all evening came to a climax,sweat running in to his eyes blurred the terrain and he fell while trying to scare Alin from defiling Arlan's body "you.. leave him! He never meant... to harm..any of you!" chills and aches travelled over Pharlain's tall frame,he was fit, but the fever exhausted him Alin stopped 10 yards from the sledge and stepped away as Pharlain came floundering down the slope the raven saw he was almost spent "no! I wasn't going to I wanted to NO!!" cruel full moonlight illuminated the blade as Pharlain's hunting knife flew through the clear air,Lyla was stunned and shook herself into action,she careered down the slope and drew a protective ring of fire around Arlan's body.
Pharlain collapsed in shock and astonishment his last conscious thought was scarcely believable "Lyla!..you protected my brother.. this is?.. {I will break my spear and never fight you again} the dragon ignored Alin's complaints about a missed meal she carefully turned the settler over with her claws and lifted him gently into her lethal mouth,the ravens were incredulous Lyla was helping a human. Alwin scowled and turned her head as she thought over the night's dramatic events {when the settlers come to find Pharlain they will assume Lyla's storing him as winter food!} she tried to dissuade the dragon from making a terrible mistake, but Lyla had sensed no malice from Pharlain, only an all consuming grief and aching guilt.
She carried him to the cave and he moaned as the searing wind tore at his long dark blonde hair,the journey revived him and Lyla increased her speed she didn't want him to panic in mid air {I must be mad indeed but he needs to be kept warm and Alin will find a way in to feed on his brother} Lyla landed at the entrance to her cave and even at the edge, she was aware of drop in the temperature she laid Pharlain down on a plie of sheepskins, then tossed more logs on the embers her fire soon brought them to life.
"No doubt I'll pay for this or maybe they will see sense at last" Alin arrived and he poured scorn on the dragon's hospitality "you know they'll assume that you ate him or have him stor..." the raven kept an eye on Lyla while pecking at Pharlain's arm "damn! He's too alive awwh! It's cruel you know aren't you tempted" Lyla glared at Alin, her icy stare was a match for the bitter wind howling past the cave "all right.. but he is very hot we might not have long to wait" evil intent shone from the raven's dark eyes he just couldn't be trusted "I suppose you would like to give Alwin 1 of those gorgeous emeralds hmm?" he hopped lightly onto Pharlain's chest but the movement was tangible and he swotted the raven roughly onto the floor "aww! THAT was uncalled for humans are so clumsy"
Lyla laughed at her companion's disgust and knocked some ice into a large pot close to the fire Pharlain woke up, and focused his bleary eyes on the dragon he drew back in fear as Lyla carried over a large jug of water "no!.. ohh..no how did I...where's my knife" he had no recollection of his promise to Lyla everything had been obliterated by the fever.She placed the jug in front of him and sat back while he drank greedily, rivulets of precious water ran down his shirt, and he welcomed the chill of it but as he finshed and wiped a big meaty hand across his mouth, a creeping delirium,began to attack his mind and body.
The cave swam in and out of focus and familiar shapes became frightening twisted distortions as Pharlain closed his eyes then slowly opened 1,his fevered mind and eyes played tricks,and he felt sick. Lyla settled down for a long night, she could do nothing more,the fever would either subside or kill him. Amid the confusion Pharlain saw Lyla lying by the crackling spitting fire and his fear was immediate "no!..I..didn't mean..what ..else could.. we do" he moved closer to the icy wind desperate to relieve this burning raging through his body. Lyla held out another jug of cool water,but blinded by sweat and fever, he spilled it, and the dragon was moved as he tried to find something to slake his insatiable thirst
she guided away from the fire to a darker area to the rear of the cave Pharlain collapsed in a heap as the dragon helped him find what he craved, the water was colder, nevertheless Pharlain drank it all and gasped as his vision cleared somewhat he was able to discern Lyla's concern and something which could have been pity "you.. have... kept me alive..why.. I don't understand" she was unable to tell him as she also doubted her reasons "rest and if you are cold there are sheepskins...I need to sleep and don't worry about Alin, he's been well warned"
Pharlain looked for the raven but he was hiding in a sulk and feeding on the remains of Lyla's last meal "I ..dont trust that 1" the dragon agreed and stretched out by the fire,she tossed another 2 logs on the others, already consumed by Lyla's scorching flame. Pharlain wanted to stay awake to absorb his wish come true but the fever was stronger,after the 3rd pint of cool water and as he struggled to stand the cave floor shifted tangibly below his feet "ohh no..I'd hoped..to avoid this" Pharlain dragged himself to his knees and crawled shakily to relieve himself outside.The easterly wind had dropped and millions of vivid stars glittered in a dark blue sky, as he carefully breathed in the cold air,a violent frission of shivering wracked his fragile body, and he groped for some solidity in this shifting sea of rock snow and ice.
He clung to a cleft in the entrance wall and brought up most of the water, he was horrified to see it cascading down the slope, and wished for the energy to catch it "ohh I'm done for" slowly the nausea eased and he was able to lift his head the ice bound mountains were well defined against the black of the lower cliffs, their gullies, pinnacles and knife edge ridges, seemed so close and deceptively easy. He kept his eyes trained on the highest peak until he felt strong enough to move,as he did so the shivering returned and shook his muscles into spasm. Pharlain fell in agony as the cramp shot up his legs and back, lying helpless in the cold would be fatal and he spoke to himself determinedly {come on do you want that damned raven to peck your eyes out! It will only be a test}
As the pain peaked and he slipped into the dark relief of unconsciousness, he felt a large mouth close gently around his paralysed body and carry him to the fire, he wanted to thank Lyla and show her some apreciation but it would only be rejected Alin hopped out of the shadows and strode up as if his companion had brought in a kill "hmm its more serious than last time I saw this in the far valley poor ublyudki" Lyla scowled at his sarcasm and fussed with a blanket of sheepskins before laying him down and dropping the other blanket on top "the next few hours will tell us Pharlain may die and has he harmed us no, but we will pay if this goes bad
3 hours later Pharlain began to move the pain had gone and been replaced by a weakness in his limbs they felt like washed out knots of useless wasted muscle. Lyla took over some water but his stomach grumbled and lurched Pharlain shook his head and tried to sit up,the rest of his body was unaffected for the moment sitting was all he could do {this is the fever... that killed so many in Sarlen damn!} the settlers must be warned however they had no way of doing this without arousing their anger and hatred of Lyla there was no alternative the unlikely allies were stranded until a rescue party came to find Pharlain.Alwin appeared with news Alin had missed her in allthe excitement he gave her a piece of meat he had saved and asked to hear everything Alwin ate and kept staring behind her "he can't harm you its the Sarlen fever he's had it" Lyla chastised the bold raven which did nothing to dampen his enthusiasm "Alin! we owe it to Pharlain to help him recover for how will we fair when it comes down to the last fight!" the raven hopped out of reach or her cold reptilian eyes and surveyed the weather it was snowing heavily but he thought he saw lights approaching in his direction.
"Awww! look I knew it wouldn't be long we must go deeper into the cave, the cowards wont follow us into the dark" Lyla dumped water on the fire and hoisted Pharlain into her mouth he offered no resistence however he was torn between going to his people and running from safety,Alwin checked their progress several bright torches stood out against the deep blue night she counted 30 1 for each man "there are others and so soon aww this is terrible surely more will be waiting"she flew back to inform Lyla but the dragon was already preparing to leave for the deeper recesses of the cave "I counted 30 the reinforcements have arrived we may be hunted for days and he will hold us back" Lyla lowered her great head and sighed the raven didn't need to ask "he might come yet hope is the last to die my friend" Lyla tightened her grip on Pharlain the 6 barbs stood erect and her eyes glistened with fire "I always have hope and more besides the settlers are not the only 1's with allies"
She eyed the settlers the torches burned fiercely and heavy swords and spears shone in the fire-glow "this is it we will either scrape by or destroy the lot of them" Lyla growled and Pharlain felt it echo deep within his bones "leave me here and you go, its me they want, once Carlan sees how I am he wont blame you..even those huge jaws haven't harmed me" Lyla listened again "the party are closer to the slope it will delay them but only briefly..Pharlain if that is what you want I will agree" the dragon lowered her head and opened her mouth, Pharlain was amazed at her gentleness and patience as he hauled himself out of her grip "thank you I wont forget and the spear is broken..eternally" he lifted a quivering hand to touch Lyla's muzzle and she didn't pull away.