1 Ater Draco

I

A dim burning light lit the dark room, upon the red waxed candle, a scratching sound of a pin on parchment, as the brimming light slowly burned… red candle wax dripped from the candle stick onto an enclosed envelope. Slowly a creek from the chair with a large arched back, a falcon's head carved onto the end of the arm rest, the chair was made of mahogany Tuscan. The chair suddenly moved scratching the stone chiseled floor, a middle-aged man gets up from the chair stocking the fireplace with wood into the hearth and lights it, flames burst through the fireplace slowly heating the dim room. As he dips his hands in a small wooden bowl filled with water on a night stand next to the fireplace, rubbing his hands together as he grabs a leather cloth hanging just above the nightstand on the rack. As he slowly walks back to his desk, opening the left upper drawer and putting the envelope inside, softly as he closes it. Walking slowly to the door, reeled open the door to the corridor, peeking out through the crack and then closed the door. Turns around on his heels back to his desk and blows out the candle… slowly he puts on his silk velvet robe, until he hears a muffled cry. Bells started to ring as the alarm goes off, "dragon!" As another muffled cry, more bells rang fast and louder as they can be heard from miles around, "dragon!" As they cried again, the man burst through the awning of the balcony doors. Dragon's hellfire blazed the courtyard to ash trees and bushes light like torches. The stone archway smashed to rubble, as it ran right through it. Men horde the keep with weapons, from swords, axes, spears, and crossbows. A loud roar echoed like a hurricane, wings flapped with the wind cracking like the sound of thunder. A beast larger than a mountain, scales black as night with a reddish hue. The man stood there over the balcony edge, baffled, paralyzed in fear by what he saw, he stood there like a stump. The dragon stares at him dead in the eyes, dark and ice-cold blood-red eyes, as the dragon draws in a small growl, taking' two steps forward' and raising its tail swinging in downwards to the base level of the keep. Towers and walls started to crumble and collapse as they fell, it echoed like a beating drum, the arched bridge crumbled down along with the tower. The middle-aged man's heart pounding like a rabbit's foot, cries of sorrow and suffering echoed throughout the keep… then silents, the man could not hear anything but a quiet sighing, and calm breathing of the dragon. " Athexru'um Vërt Raxhi'iim." The dragon spoke softly to the man. Burning the rest of the keep then flew away, leaving nothing left of the keep but rubble, ruin, and ash. Smoke and ash could be seen throughout the valley, corpses burned and carried into piles as they filled the keep with their smell. The image of the dragon hunted the lord's memory in his head every waking hour and in his slumber. Dawn slowly rose, and looking across the keep through the balcony of his room, the ground was a demolished a black sea, of ash as ruined rubble, there was nothing left.