Hooves sounded on the cobblestone road, each step shaking the rider and making the metal of his armor jingle. A knight, whose shimmering armor could be seen glinting in a distance from the light of the sun, was making his way through what looked like a war-torn countryside. His helmet's visor hid the grimace on his face as he rode by burning buildings and charred bodies.
Ser Alec Longstroke (his last name a call to an ancestor who used a spear-like sword to defeat a foe one) had been riding his horse, which was wearing a white and red cloth caparison and whose name was Fira, for almost a week now. He was a knight of a guild and he specialized in hunting what had done this to the countryside, dragons. His destination was the Castle Rooker, a place that a dragon would have rested before it moved on. It was his hope that the dragon was still there and that the stone of the castle would bathe in its blood. Alec sighed, hoping that one dragon didn't happen to be many. Such things happened and the knight at that point would be overwhelmed.
One of his missions, besides slaying the perpetrating dragon of the country's destruction as to look for survivors. The beast had been thorough; even children lay charred on the road side. He was approaching the smoldering remains of a town that surrounded the hill which Castle Rooker stood. As he made his way through the desolate town, Alec felt a surge of rage within him. After slaying the beast, he would surely come back and at least put up a grave marker or something for the dead here.
The road he traveled on eventually made it's way to a moat dug at the base of the hill and walled by bricks that disappeared into the water. He went parallel to the castle until he hit a drawbridge. The thing was thankfully down and unmolested by fire. The horses hooves would echo on the wooden bridge, and so Alec dismounted his horse and led her to a beam of wood that once belonged to a house.
"I have to leave you here. If I don't return, mourn for me," he said, holding out a handful of oats for her consumption. She took the treat with enthusiasm and after the snack, Alec tied his horse to the pole before heading across the bridge. The scene past the gates had an even more apocalyptic setting. Where the once gray walls had been, everything was black and covered in soot. When the knight stepped upon the soot, there was a cry, and he found himself in the midst of attack.
The creatures were small and lizard like. They were kobolds and the swarming variety. The Knight was barely able to get his shield up before an onslaught of small stones, and spears bounced off of its shimmering surface. He drew his sword, a regular knight's swords, and he began his counter attack.
The air quickly filled with screams as his sword bit into flesh. It was called 'Piecer' after its ability to somehow find it's way into weak armor areas. Too bad for the kobolds that they wore little armor and so the steel ripped through the leathery skin. Alec lost himself in battle like most did. He found himself almost always itching for a fight and when this current fight was over, he felt a sense of having been robbed by such a quick battle.
Bodies of the fallen kobolds lay everywhere in the courtyard of the castle. It was only when Alec stopped to see the efforts of his exertion. There were much more dead bodies that Alec would have guessed there was. He wasn't sure, but he could tell that this troupe was left her for an overwhelming ambush. Luck had been on his side. His armor had deflected so many blows that if he hadn't been wearing the polished steel around his body, there was a chance he would have been overwhelmed. It also meant another disastrous moment to, the dragon knew he was here.
Re-sheathing his sword, the knight took out a potion and drank it as quickly as he could. The thing was bitter, but it was infused with nutrients that would restore both his constitution and stamina. Once it was gone, he tossed the glass vial to the ground and headed up to the door of the castle.
The doors of the castle were made of thick wood that stretched tall. On the door was open, but not far enough to allow sight into the castle. Sighing, Alec was sure the whole thing was a trap, and so he drew his sword and squeezed between the doors and into the castle.
Fires flickered lazily as they burned in the corners of the courtroom. Castle Rooker had a design that the main doors led straight into the throne room. It was a castle of meeting, and though no king called the place home, it was kept up for ceremony by a group of dedicated clerics and protected my a garrison of troops. The town was established to help keep Castle Rooker relevant with trade and served as a halfway point between the capital and border cities.
The interior of the castle was bathed in firelight. Where once the place probably sported ornate tapestries and items that would speak of wealth, there was nothing. Everything was bare, and there were spots where it seemed great care had been given by the dragon with its flames. Alec wasn't surprised at all. If it glittered or shimmered, it always caught a dragon's eye. Shield in front and sword at the ready, Ser Alec made his way down the court's hall.
Smoke started to thicken, and the smell of charring fleshed filled his nostrils. Across his path, obscured by the smoke, was one of the pillars that ran along the entire length of the court. It was too massive to climb over, and so he looked for a way around. Luckily when the column had fallen, it had left some space between it and what used to be its base. When Ser Alec crept around the pillar and made it to the other side, he was greeted by a wonderfully impressive sight.
There in the middle of the court between the fallen pillar and the throne was a pile fo tapestries and gold. Ser Alec was often accused of having dragon's eyes himself and the sight of the valuable pile almost made him forget why he was there. After he took care of the dragon, Alec wouldn't even be able to touch the horde of treasure. If he were caught, the guild would lose face and crimes like that would put a bounty on his head.
He approached the horde of gold cautiously. The dragon was here somewhere. Dragon's never abandoned their horde and he looked around the room carefully. When he arrived at the horde, it was, of course, arranged in what looked like a particular order. Jewels were in the middle and then the coins. On the outside was anything that held a pleasant glare and in one the silver plates, Alec spied the glow of yellow eyes behind him. They were watching him, but he didn't give any indication that he had spotted the dragon watching him from its perch on the fallen column. This dragon was smart; it had lured him expertly into a trap and Alec continued walking around the pile slowly trying to formulate a plan.
"It's lovely isn't it knight?" it said. Its voice was slithered and when Alec rounded the pile, he looked at the eyes fo the dragon cautiously from behind his massive shield.
"Indeed. You have been a busy beast."
There was a hiss.
"My minion helped me, but I think you took care of them."
Alec's grip on his sword tightened, he waited for an attack.
"You should relax knight. If I wanted you dead, surely I would have done so before you looked at my pile of treasure."
It was right. Dragons were notoriously covetous so why had this one even allowed him near the gold. He did not relax but instead took a step forward towards the dragon.
"I am Ser Alec Longstroke sent by the Order of Beast Slayers. Beast, I will allow you last words before I slay you."
The hisses sounded, and Alec realized that it was laughter.
"You are amusing my knight. SO for that, I will tell you my name. I am the terror of the sky, she who death rides with. I am the queen of Kobolds and a member of the Trinity Order. I am Sehocha."
Alec almost dropped his sword at the mention of her gender. He was in trouble now. Female dragons were big. Massive. So big that they dwarfed a male dragon by almost four times the size. Male dragons were about three times the size of his horse Fira.
"Sehocha, why did you do this deed. This castle and village was peaceful and offered nothing but a small pile of treasure for you."
The knight saw the eyes of the dragon narrow at him. His insult had the desired effect on her, but Alec was playing a more dangerous game than he probably gave himself credit for.
"I do not wish to have the treasure."
A dragon that didn't want treasure?
"I have done all of this to lure a knight here," she said.
Alec did not believe such a statement.
"Dragons don't part with their gold."
There was more hissing laughter.
"Knight, a female dragon is not like a male one. We can see past the allure of shimmering things if there is something more tantalizing."
"What's more tantalizing that gold?" Alec said. He kicked one of the plates away from the pile. A bit of flame licked out at him, and he jumped back. That little bit of light was enough to see the entire silhouette of the dragon.
"I advise you not to try my patience knight. I am more than happy to converse, but you will garner my ire if you continue to play with my dragon instincts."
"Pray then dragon, for I am ready."
More hissing laughter sounded throughout the area. Alec's eyes were beginning to water from the smoke.
"Ser Alec Longstroke, I have a proposition for you."
"You can tell me, but whatever you offer, I will deny."
