She lay curled on her side, a semi-circle of tiny sand piles dotted the area near her head. She was bored, tired, and hungry despite having just finished one of the ration packets she'd brought with her. Elleth was determined to not go home empty handed again. (That treasure trove of, well, treasure hadn't counted. She hadn't earned it like she wanted to.) She contemplated on if she should take a nap or not, before eventually deciding against it. It was a little after noon now, and if she fell asleep, she was positive that she wouldn't wake up again until late evening, and by then the temperature would start dropping rapidly.
She might have the supplies to survive a few nights in the bitter cold of the desert but that didn't mean she wanted to do it.
Groaning she rolled over, and started to do a series of stretches that supposedly worked each muscle group, forcing the tension out of limbs that were starting to cramp. She was arching her back, head tilting towards the cave mouth when she caught sight of the shape of a shadow that was starting to stretch across the sand. Quickly she rolled into a crouch, hand darting down to grip the hilt of her sword.
Holding her breath Elleth slowly crept towards the mouth of the cave, side pressed against the rock. She exhaled as noiselessly as she could, before sucking in a quick breath and darting out. Metal scraped against scale, sending sparks into the air. The dragon reared back, a startled cry escaping it. Elleth pressed on, giving it little time to gather its' wits and recover from the first blow. She changed her grip on her blade and dug the tip into its hide, dragging the imprinted weapon up and across one of its wing joints. Blood spurted from nicked veins and seeped from the slice she left behind. She ducked under the flared wing and hacked at the membrane, reducing it to ribbons.
The dragon let out a cry of pain and awkwardly hopped away, it's good wing flared wide to get it somewhat into the air. It crashed down a few feet away, injured wing tucked tightly against it's side, hissing in a manner that made the hair at the nape of her neck stand on end. Elleth cringed back, instantly chiding herself for the show of weakness, and adjusted both her grip on her sword, and her stance. The shifting sand made it hard to keep a good footing, and her already shaky legs felt as if they would buckle at any moment. A thin trickle of blood slipped down her chin, from where she'd bitten her lip. Her bones ached and she hadn't even done much, heck she hadn't even gotten hit yet and she was ready to call it quits.
She should have listened to her father and gone after easier prey. But she was tired of looking as Ysali dragons and roaming the forests where they lived. She was tired of them long before she'd gotten reduced back to their level. She was going to prove that she wasn't that weak anymore.
Tightening her grip Elleth charged forward, ducking into a roll to avoid the blast of fire the Firani breathed at her. She could smell the singed hair even as the sand put out the flame that had caught her clothing. She resisted the urge to look behind her and see if the sand had turned into molten glass. If she did her bones would become entombed in it, because the dragon would breath again and that would be the end of her. The firani hissed and reared its head back, flames already building again for another burst. She shoved her blade up into the open maw, and as far up into its skull as she could. Hot blood ran in rivulets down the gleaming blade, over her arms, to stain her clothing. She had to let go and jump backwards to avoid getting caught as the dragon started to smolder. She watched as it's flesh and bone dissolved, leaving behind material that was useless, and the single soul orb.
She barely had time to reach down and collect both it and her blade when an enraged roar caught her attention, much like the tail that swatted her away from the remains. She gagged as she felt her ribs crack, and tumbled arse over head in the sand. She rolled down a dune and was saved from a very messy and painful death as the sand covered her. She could hear the shrieking dragon as it circled around, looking for her. She held her breath for as long as she could, before need made her dig for freedom. The dragon was far enough away that it couldn't readily spot her as she quickly made for cover.
It was a long trip back to her boat as she had to constantly dip into caves and burrow her way into sand dunes to avoid encountering the Firani that wanted her dead.
[Words: 846]
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