A Child's Savior

The night's gush was violent and merciless, greater than it tends to be. A clear night sky with a moon so bright it almost felt like the sun never sat. The mountains roared from the barrage of winds slamming unto them, the pines creaking, almost begging for mercy. Though some might consider twice before embarking quest upon this land, there are great magical creatures that could go toe to toe with the sun and moon. As if it appeared from thin air a silhouette of a winged creature flew across the moon in the sky. Flying through the harsh breeze with ease, it became clearer, adorning a robust body trickled with the marks of age. Nevertheless, it meant nothing to it, its wings as wide as the mountain ranges it flew over, talons sharper than the obsidian these lands birthed, and a breath of blaze that no heat on earth could match. It began descending unto the highest of peaks, careful to position itself as it came to a stall before gripping unto the clearing, snow quaked off the peak dropping unto its back, a white blanket of snow covering its pitch-black scales. Then there the dragon just stared into the night, pondering, and admiring. Elsewhere not so far off, others embarked on a journey, a journey that'll end before it even began.

Stones and dirt powdered the passage through the mountainous range, and the winds showed no sign of ceasing, ever-increasing their strength through each passing moment. That was no worry for the humans running away from their attackers, sprinting as fast as the wind blew. The male, a tall stocky figure, shoulders as broad as a pine around him. He looked unto the female and made a sign with his fingers placed unto his mouth, symbolizing silence, he knew that was the only way they can get out of this alive. The female, of similar stature yet of fragile physique, luscious golden hair, and eyes fiercely blue almost glow in the night. She held onto the smaller humanoid tightly, a pup no less, afraid of what the outcome will be shaking out of fright and confusion. It held tighter to its mother than its mother did to it, though young it displayed a mane of black hair, a small figure not even at hips height from its mother. Its delicate hands tried furiously to hold onto its mother without trying to let out a screech of disturbance.

From the hills not so far from their position a group of deformed humanoids became seen. The leader, a fat enlarged man, peppered with scars and wounds from his many battles, stood inspecting the pines and rocks. Its piercing gaze seeking its prey, it let out a heavy sigh from its foul mouth, then signaled his men to move forward, to scatter across the forest and find the 3 humans. Then with a wailing scream being let out by the Leader, it signified the beginning of the hunt.

The older male looked at his family, the red flush on his dirt-covered cheeks became pale white. His mate, the female, the mother didn't need to be told anything, his eyes carried enough of a statement that she knew what was about to happen. The male bent down, grabbed his child, looked into his eyes, and said "You will always be the light in the dark, lighting our world regardless of how dark it was, I will always love you"

The child was too young to understand what was happening and left their mother's side to give his father a tight hug and try to make up the words "I love you too". A discreet smirk appeared on the father's face, and looked at his mate, the mother, the female, and spoke with a series yet gentle tone "You will be the greatest mother in this world, and I loved our share time together" afterward reaching down to the pup, the toddler, stroking its hands through his hair "My child, you take care of your mother, and always love her".

No time spent the father began sprinting up the hill, waving his hands out like a crazed-out chicken, and yelled: "Here I am you scum, want a fight, you've found one". Running in the opposite direction of his family the Berserkers looked unto the leader, his hideous malformed face manifested a large smirk and yelled "GET ME HIS HEAD". The berserkers in an enthralled fit began their chase, one of the four berserkers drew a throwing axe, aimed it at the father, and threw it with a strength able to shatter an oaken tree. Even though the berserkers seek war, the father is a descendant of a long line of honorable warriors, without even turning his head he gripped the flying axe stopping it in its path, and with a smooth transition spun returning the axe to its original owner. As if it appeared out of nowhere it struck the berserker's head, and his dead weight fell to the ground, just lying there, no life, no fight.

The three berserkers realized what just happened and began to disperse for the fear of the same faith as their comrade, fear has been laid unto them by the father. The father smirked as he ran faster into the ocean of thick trees. The Leader with disgusted laughter stared at his former comrade’s body and targeted his eyes unto the Father. The Leader reached unto his back, pulling a long thick bow, twisted and petrified wood, corrupted as his body. He took an arrow from his quiver, a long smooth bolt, with a sharp edge, he gazed into the direction of the father, and with great strength, he pulled unto the bow with the arrow aimed and released the bolt. The sound the father heard before being struck was as of a wailing banshee, the bolt struck him unto the back of his right shoulder, exposing itself from the front of his chest. The father lost his momentum and hid behind a thick oak to regain his strength, he inspected his surroundings and found an edge rock, he reached for it and used it to break the tip of the arrow, and he began mustering his strength to pull the arrow from his shoulder. With a swift pull, he removed the bolt from his shoulder, blood gushing and spewing all over the forest ground. He sighed in relief, though his face dictated relief otherwise, he knew the worse was yet to come.

The Leader viewed from afar the bolt striking the Father, he laughed and stated “This pathetic sanguine boy will now feel the wrath of the Berserkers”. He then began placing his bow back into its righteous place on his back. The night became stale, the air was lifeless and shivering cold. The Father rested behind the oak, breathing heavily, he saw his heavy breath perspire under the cold, thinking to himself he realized it was the end. He looked unto the ridge his family should be in, imagining them defenseless, he grinned and thought to himself “How fragile is life, how torn is our world, how much hate it is in it, and how much more I’ll leave in it before I disappear.” The Father knew that it was his ending, but before that he will take all these Berserkers before he is gone.

As if the forest itself gave him strength, the Father grasped his hands unto 4 sharp edge stones, each light enough to launch with great strength. His injuries were now worries of the past, the future laid upon him, and that was to go tooth and nail with the Berserkers. The Father rested his leg and foot unto the oak ready to launch, and with a freak of nature, the force began sprinting unto the 3rd Berserker, throwing 2 stones unto his head as hard as he could. The 2nd berserker’s head jerked back, gasping for air, and it fell back, gasping for air and life. The Father reached its position and dropped the rest of the stones, inspecting the weapons the Berserker left, he found a short sword, its design displayed theft from another of the Berserker massacre. The Father tightly held the short sword as he slowly glimpse unto the hill the rest of the Berserkers were riddled in. He caught sight of the Leader and the last berserker servant.

The Leader, now left with 1 comrade became enraged with anger, for the uselessness of his subordinates and the disgrace they bring to his clan. He began moving slowly down the hill, drawing from its sheath a long corroded twisted broad sword, he sighed heavily, as he held the broad sword, he knew he would bring pain to the Father. Before he continued he stopped, feeling the thick cold air around him, blood was in the breeze, the moon shunned bright, and the forest wailed with terror, he thought to himself “How much he will enjoy the terror he will lay unto the father.”

The Father gripped the short sword with anger and began his sprint towards the 3rd berserker catching off guard, without even flinching he cut his head off with a fierce stroke. The 3rd berserker’s body is laid back, without a care of the world. The leader spat on the ground in disgust and drew a heavier broadsword, capable of cutting even the thickest of oaks. He locked his eyes on the Father, took a deep breath in, and let out a roar, “I WILL DESTROY YOUR WORLD”. The leader began sprinting to the father with his broadsword aimed at him, the father began sprinting towards the ocean of forest, where he would find the best distraction.

Once the father reached a clearing in the forest he looked back pleased with himself believing that he had lost the Leader, yet out of nowhere a blade nearly struck the father if he hadn’t glimpsed the shimmering metal soon enough. He evaded the blade, yet it still struck him, drawing blood. The leader and father eyed lock on one another’s, before the Leader could speak the Father stated “You will not leave this mountain alive”. The Leader replied with a joyous and sadistic tone “Let’s find out, after you, your wife, and son follow.”

The Father drew the short sword and without hesitation laid a blow to the Leader who blocked it without flinching with the great broadsword he carried. The Leader pushed the Father away from the pressure he was applying thinking he could potentially hurt him, then drew his broadsword and slammed it onto the Father, the short sword didn’t stand a chance. Hit after hit, slam after slam, the short sword kept bending and losing strength, the Father knew this was the ending, and without hesitation, he reach into his pouch and held a pointy edge item. The leader kept slamming the broadsword until the father leaped forward with a small item in his hand and it dug itself into the Leaders chest. Just as the broadsword dug itself into the Father’s stomach, both have been struck by different weapons, the leader by its own arrow, the father by its own foolishness. The Leader looks down and stares at the object that just struck him, it is his own arrow that earlier he tried to use against the Father, he shrugged and laughed a bit, in disbelief that his own weapon will bring his demise. Before the leader has time to even mutter a word the Father leans into the Leader’s ear and whispers “If I will go today, so shall you, for you are worth nothing.” With those last words the Father’s last strength fades into the night, and there is no more fight.

Somewhere else, the mother hold’s her child dearly as her husband, the father, foolishly tries to remove the threat, she begins to head closer to the canyon, the mountainous range looking dangerous as ever. She looks down unto her pup and holds him, dear, whispering “I shall never leave you, my dear, my life is worthless without you, as you are the light in the dark.” before embarking on the hike into the plateau of the mountain. The mother holds her child every step of the way, climbing as fast as the wind hits her. Then suddenly, a wail came out of nowhere, and she sees 2 individuals in the clearing in the forest, her Husband and the Leader, she realizes the time has come. It is over now, without fear or hesitation she began sprinting further unto the clearing of the mountain but before she could even take another step she feels a cold yet hot drizzle going down her leg. She looks down and an arrow, twisted, corrupted, and foreign to her has gone through her leg, she can’t bare the pain and inadvertently lets her child go, dropping him meters from the plateau. She begins to lose strength with each movement she does, she thinks to herself “The arrow has poison, that is why I lose more strength the more I try to move”

Before the mother can even reach the last step she is stopped by a foot in her hand, she looks up and in her horror, it is the Leader. She questions herself “how did he survive?", “how can it be?”, “you should be dead!”. The Leader grabs her and throws her into the clearing, he smirks as he sees both the mother and child there for the taking, he reaches unto his sheath, grips his broadsword, and slams it onto the mother. The mother evades the strike though misses the second strike with the same short sword the Father took from the 3rd Berserker, the Leader cannot be more satisfied by the outcome. The soon-to-be-dead mother locks eyes with the unbeknownst child and whispers “I love you” before the Leader twists the sword stealing the life away from the mother. Her body fell like a dead weight unto the ground crashing and making a horrid noise of broken bones. The Leader focuses his attention on the child, the pup, the innocent one, and states “Now you are the last one, anything else to say?”

Without a second thought, the leader lifted his sword and slammed it onto the area where the child lay, yet his sword ricocheted as if something stood against him and the child. The Leader bewildered mustered up his strength to go again and to his surprise, it ricochet once again, however this time he heard a heavy sigh, heavier than any human has ever let out. With fright he shook and moved around the clearing in the mountain trying to figure out what was around him that would have the capability of succeeding in such a feat, he looked unto a dysmorphic mountain, into the ridges, and canyons, yet he founds nothing. As he laid out a sighed of heavy relief he once again wielded his sword, brought it up, and struck it down unto the child, and once again it ricocheted from the child. Yet this time there was a roar, followed by a heavy groan, the sound was as if it came from hell itself, the Leader was horrified by what he heard, as he has heard it before. It was a drake from the north, old and wise as they would be, black as night sprinkled with crimson, the Leader was in disbelief as he knew he would not make it out of this clearing tonight. Before he could even raise his sword to strike either the Dragon or the Child, the Dragon launched itself from the hidden position it placed itself in and gripped the leader tightly, taking on his last ride. There the leader last less than a minute before the dragon threw him in the air and swallowed him whole, the leader was gone, its berserkers were gone, but so was the Child’s family.

The Child stood from the side viewing and laughing at the situation it was in, not knowing how dire it was, it enjoy each minute of it due to its innocence. Then a behemoth of a creature flapped its wings down slowly descending unto the clearing the child laid, staring at it, it was caught off guard, it knows humans as cruel, merciless creatures, yet it has never met anything like the Child. It thought to itself “What if I ate it, would it taste like the others?”, and “It is very defenseless by itself, these humans are pathetic.”. However, it laid its snout closer to the Child which inadvertently made the child sneeze, the dragon jerked back with confusion, and the Child began laughing. The dragon couldn’t believe it, this human stain is making fun of him, or so he thought. The Child gripped onto the dragons nose and the dragon began lifting him, which just led the child to laugh, the dragon through him upwards out of annoyance and gripped him with his teeth, yet the child’s laughter couldn’t be killed.

The dragon thought to himself, “Why doesn’t it attack me, is it not scared of me” Before the dragon can think any further, the child holds himself unto the dragon and begins to fall asleep, whispering the words “Dada.”.

The dragon unknown of this statement it looked at the child, yet it felt warm to it, it laid its dragon eyes on the forest and clearing, looking at all the bodies that were lying there, and thought “What a waste, death and destruction for what?” It looked unto the child and it thought of the great rider it could be if raised by dragons. It is time for the dragon riders to return, a child raised by dragons, without the discrimination or thoughts of the negative outside world would be of benefit to it. Yet it thought of how lonely the child will become, without anyone. The dragon with a swift swop launch the child into the sky, gripped its tiny overalls with its teeth, and launched itself into the sky, thinking “It is time for a change, it is time for the dragon riders to return, it is time for a new life.”

The end