Scales and Swords: The Dragon and the Squire {RiseoftheDragons&Alice}

[Apocalypse Alice]

William stood proudly just outside of town, staring up at the mountain that rose up into the sky, higher than the tallest tower of the Royal Palace itself. Today, he'd be journeying up this mountain to save the Princess. Even though he was honestly supposed to be tending to his Lord's horse at the moment- and even though he was only a Squire who could get in quite a great deal of trouble if anyone found out he was doing a Knight's job for them.


William was a gallant young man of twenty years, with bright green eyes full of inspiration, and a mop of curly dark brown hair that reached just past his ears. His face showed no signs of age, and showed no signs of understanding what battle truly was, no signs of understanding the troubles of the world. He probably also didn't understand just how terrifying dragons truly were- he'd heard stories, but he was either under the impression that those stories must have been souped up quite a bit to keep young lads up at night... or he was stupid.


It was probably a tragic mix of both. The thing was, William was madly in love (he thought) with the Princess of Edelwood. A few days ago, news that a dragon had kidnapped the princess had struck panic, terror, and sadness through the whole town. No one was quite so distraught by the news as the squire was- he'd longed for her company since the day he first layed eyes on her, when he'd been brought to the castle as a stable-hand. And so, he began his trek up the mountain, fury and love fueling him. He would certainly be saving the princess today- no matter how much his fellow squires had laughed at him when he'd shared his plan.

 

[RiseOfTheDragons]

The princess sat upon the rocks in the cave, humming softly as she combed her hair with her fingers. Princess Lianne had beautiful smooth brown hair that frizzed a little from the humidity in the air. Her fair skin was littered in smudges at the inability to bathe any time she wanted. She looked around, the start of a red scaly tail, that had an ombre to black effect as it shifted. She turned to see the body of the dragon, her body large while her wings were folded to her side. The dragons face was narrow and sharp, and her ears twitched gently.


Lianne was not scared of the creature, not even a little, she even persuaded to have it take her away. Lianne was to be married to a man she did not love, nor did she want to love, he was cruel and dark, and the dragon gave her freedom. When the dragon attacked, she was looking for food and nothing more, maybe a bit of gold if she could find it but Edelwood had the closest farm. You could say Lianne was in the right place at the right time, brushing the hair of her newest pony. And then in a flash she heard panic, and saw the dragon sinking her teeth into an older cow. Lianne could have ran, she could have screamed, but when the dragon locked her golden eyes with hers, she froze. She believed death would be better than going with that prick of a man.


But the dragon did not kill her, she was not cruel and she didn't wish to die. They made a deal, she would take her away from her kingdom, give her a home, as long as she didn't put the dragon in danger. So there they were, sitting in a cave filled with gold and jewels as the dragon slept, and the princess smiled. Lianne felt safe, happy and didn't mine the new, crude, living life style.

 

[Apocalypse Alice]

The journey was a long one- two whole days. It probably would have been much shorter for the lad if he was maybe just a little bit more athletic, and a couple of times, he thought to himself that perhaps the other squires were right about him. It was often joked that he'd never make it to knighthood. Forever a squire, they mocked. It really was his worst fear. Or rather, it had been his worst fear. Now his worst fear was not getting to the princess in time. And it was that gallant effort to save her that ultimately powered him to keep climbing, even when the rain had come, and even when the night was cold as all hell.


After the journey was complete, however, he felt no weariness. Instead, he only powered through, wandering about the upper parts of the craggy mountain, searching for the Dragon's lair. Eventually, he came across a cave which echoed with the sound of a great creature's steady breathing. "Here it is," he mumbled to himself as he edged along the side of the rocky surface. "If she's been eaten, I'll slay the beast. I think." He grimaced a little, imagining the scene of himself saving the girl, and realizing he smelled of sweat and of the workshop- he'd been sharpening swords when the dragon had attacked. It was too late now, he realized. There was no way he could travel down the mountain and all the way back up in time.


Finally, with a huff of breath to prepare himself for his brave mission, he brandished his dagger before himself and exclaimed, "Release her, foul beast, or you shall have to answer to..." He hesitated, forgetting his own name for a fraction of a second before stutteringly correcting himself, and shaking the dagger as menacingly as he could. "...To William! William the Fierce!!" He suddenly felt very small, realizing that his plan was flawed. Very, very flawed.

 

[RiseOfTheDragons]

Tanis huffed, eye's opening as the sweaty boy shouted at her. Her golden eyes adjusted to the light, her sharp pupil's slitting as she growled. She moved slowly, the whole cave practically moving as she did, the rocks shaking and shifting from under the squires feet. Tanis stood at three stories tall and made William look like a flea. Her head lowered as she blew a breath of hot air in William's face, unwilling to harm the weak peasant, but that didn't mean she couldn't scare him. A growl rumbled in her chest and up through her throat, a faint glow beginning to show as heat began to rise around her. Fire licked against her lips as she began to step forward, opening her mouth, just to--


"Wait! Wait wait wait!" Tanis blinked and grumbled as Lianne shouted, closing her mouth and lifting her head as smoke rose from her nostrils. The princess ran between the two, holding her hands out in front of the boy, "don't hurt her! Please don't hurt her!" Lianne studied William and blinked, lowering her hands and cocking her head, "you're... the farm boy that works close to the knights..." her brow furrowed as she studied his dirty face, "Walter? no... Wesley!" She waved him off and sighed, "how'd you even get here? How'd you find me?" She looked him up and down, "they didn't send anyone... you know.... better?"


Tanis huffed and then nudged Lianne after her rude comment. Tanis was a small dragon compared to her kin, at least she was when she was a child. She knew what it was like to be called "worse" than others, and she could call it simple minded, but she wouldn't let Lianne be rude to a boy trying his best.