SHORT STORY: DRAGON SLAYER part 1

The knight's armor glinted ever so slightly in the gloom of the dragon's lair. Smoke laced the air and an orange glow gave vague detail to the surroundings. The scorched walls had long since been rubbed smooth by the dragon's bulbous form. The knight, it seemed, couldn't help but glance down from time to time to take in the amount of wealth the dragon had hoarded over the centuries. Mostly coins and small trinkets, the mound of gold grew deeper and broader the farther into the cave the knight progressed.

Before long the knight paused, listening. He must have heard the dragon breathing because he unsheathed his sword and slung his shield off his back and held it out in front of him. This was not the most intelligent knight the dragon had ever faced.

Still, the dragon thought, Had he come in with sword and shield in hand I would have killed him by now. Perhaps he's smarter than he lets on.

The dragon watched as the knight began to stumble in the ever increasing darkness. Humans were such curious, if irritating, creatures. Life had been so much more pleasant before they got organized and began hunting down his kind. Still, he got a certain amount of satisfaction from letting them all try. If nothing else, it helped pass the time.

“Dragon!” The knight's voice split the once tranquil air and the dragon scowled. “I come in the name of the king to rid this land of your foul stench!”

The dragon stayed silent. Waited. This knight could only be very smart or very stupid and either one could prove to be dangerous this close to him.

“This land has suffered beneath your shadow for long enough,” the knight continued, “Too long have you butchered our flocks and burned down our fields!”

The dragon couldn't help but snort at this.

“You laugh at me?” The knight demanded, turning in circles as he tried to discern where the sounds were coming from as the echoes reverberated around him.

“No, human,” The dragon spoke in the grating language of men, “I laugh at the thought of any of my kind wasting their time with your flocks and fields.”

“Liar!” The overzealous knight cried out, waving his sword around wildly. The dragon caught no hint of magical warding upon it. “These past seven years you and your kind have been devastating the lands of this kingdom!”

“But only these lands,” the dragon purred. The knight turned and some etchings on his armor flashed. He was warded, though how specifically the dragon couldn't tell, yet.

The knight, for his part, took a few moment to think over the dragons words.

“And apparently only the well known dragons have made attacks,” The dragon went on, “Since I haven't seen any signs of dragon fire near the dragons you and your kind haven't found yet.”

“What are you getting at, Dragon?” The knight demanded.

“Tell me, human,” The dragon asked and he shifted his weight on his bed of gold, “How long has your king sat on his throne?”

The knight was silent for a few moments before answering.

“Seven years.”

“So then tell me, human,” The dragon said as he ignited his fire, illuminating the cave and temporarily blinding the knight, “Why would my kind suddenly decide, after centuries of leaving you all alone, to begin hunting your beasts and burning your fields? I assume the king has proclaimed his right to all the riches found within the dragon's lairs.”

The knight was just regaining his eyesight when the dragon pounced. He'd had enough time to examine the knight to know that the wards on his armor would be of no use, and that his sword and shield were simple mundane tools. The knight was a fool, probably insulted the wrong nobleman and got sent on this fools errand.

“Well, yes, he has...” The knight whimpered at finding himself pinned to the ground by the dragons talon, “But only because you and your kind have stolen it.”

The dragon purred as he flicked the sword and shield away. One could never be too careful.

“And who is it that we have stolen such vast wealth from?” The dragon growled as his anger increased. “You have seen my bed of gold, taken in its weight, and there are over a hundred of my kind within the boundaries of this kingdom with similar beds. Now tell me, what noble houses have we ransacked? What royal families are now destitute from our pillaging?”

The knight stammered, the dragon shrugged, and the knight was crushed beneath the weight of the dragons talon.

“Your king needs to be dealt with,” The dragon said as he licked the knight from between his claws. “But should one of my kind do the deed it would only serve his goals of bringing an end to my kind and stealing our wealth.”

The dragon finished cleaning up the remnants of the knight and then wadded the knights armor, sword, and shield into a neat little clump to be taken out later.