Hoard of Shadows

There weren’t always Dragons in the Valley, and frankly few knew what to make of their arrival.

Until recently, dragons had been relegated to myth and legend across the world, but as of five years ago, they’ve spread everywhere. Even here in Roarin Valley. In most of the legends, dragons were fearsome beasts with leathery wings that soar, raining hellfire from above. And, maybe that was true once upon a time. But modern dragons share little with their mythological counterparts.

Typically, they choose to look a lot like normal humans, but more and more dragons have been reverting to forms more natural to them. In their humanoid form, most people don’t even notice it unless they’re looking for the scaley shimmer dragon skin emits. But see, they’re shapeshifters… or something akin. The ones who choose not to hide what they are are about as varied as individuals of any earthbound species. Some have horns. Others have colorful, hardened scales covering their bodies. Other’s still have spikes protruding from their elbows and shoulders.

Very few keep their leathery wings on display, but they all have them.

If the news networks are to be believed, their integration into our society has gone smoothly. It helped that their operatives had been slowly working their way into world governments for years.

I always thought that the “Lizard People” conspiracy theorists were nutjobs. Most sane people did, but now look who has egg on their faces. What’s next? The Illuminati?

Honestly, nothing would surprise me anymore.

****

I stand on the back porch of my parents’ rental cabin overlooking the small town of Roarin Valley. The cabin sits a ways up the mountainside set into the angle of the hill. The view from up here is always incredible.

My dad and stepmom can’t afford these kinds of vacations often anymore. Mom and Dad used to bring me up here every other year, but it’s been ages since the last time. Since before the big Dragon Revelation. Since before the divorce. This’ll be my last trip before I go off to college. My dad saved every penny he could to make this happen.

I stare out at the sun dipping below the mountaintops. Purple, red, and amber ribbons arc through the atmosphere. The last swords of sunbeam cut through the range, slowly blinking out of existence. I smile at the sight, relishing the warmth of day fades.

I gingerly lift my mug of cocoa in both hands as a brisk wind whips through the forest.

“Amon, dear.” Chandra, my stepmother, calls from the living room. “Why don’t you come inside now. We just got the fire going.”

“Yeah, Ma. I’ll be in in a minute.”

“Alright, just don’t be too long. We’re going to roast hotdogs in the fireplace, you’re your dad will be back soon.”

“Okay. Okay.” I sip from my mug, letting the warm liquid shiver through me. As I see a pair of headlights heading up the only road in, I sigh. “I’m coming.”

As I close the glass doors behind me, I find Chandra hunched over near the fireplace, struggling to get the gas flame lit. I rush over to her, setting my mug down on the coffee table.

“Oh, hang on. The gas may be off.” I open the panel in the wall near the floor, turning the valve back on. “Try it now.”

Chandra flips the igniter switch on the wall, and the fire roars to life. “Ah, that’s much better.”

“Would you like some help getting dinner set up?”

“That would be—” A set of squealing breaks outside interrupts her thought. “Sounds like your father’s home. Get the door for him, please. He has groceries.”

“Come on, Lily! Get out of the car.” Dad shouts. A familiar braying echoes as I pull open the front door. “Come on, you silly dog.” Pause. “If you don’t come on, I’m gonna leave you out here.”

“Lily!” I call, whistling toward the car. In a flash, the brown and white beagle leaps out the car door and bolts toward me. I kneel down to her level as she nearly jumps up at me. I scratch her ears and neck as her tail whips back and forth. “Hey there, goofball. Miss me? Yeah. Good girl.”

“Why is it that that dog only listens to you?”

“She likes me best.”

“I have raised that dog since she was a pup. I give her constant treats. And I let her sleep on the couch with me. What more could she want?”

“Me. Obviously.”

Dad cracks a smile, shaking his head in defeat. “Help me carry these groceries in.”

I nudge Lily toward the cabin door, and she rushes inside. She rushes straight to her spot—the rug in front of the fireplace— and plops down.

I help my dad tote several bags into kitchen and kick the door shut. After putting away the groceries, I take a knife from the block and cut open the packs of hotdogs. With the fire going strong now, we skewer some of the wieners roast our dinner.

The three of us, and Lily of course, sit up watching movies on the big TV until it’s time for bed. Dad and Chandra retire fairly early leaving me alone with Lily. She jumps up on the couch, curling up behind my legs. I chuckle when she peeks her head up and drops her chin on my thigh. I scratch her ears idly as I flip through films on the streaming services.

I settle on something random—some romcom or another—and absentmindedly watched it while trying to keep my eyes open.

Lily’s high-pitched bark startles me awake. I grab my glasses off the floor where they fell, and squint at the clock, groaning that only a couple hours have passed. I reach down where Lily was, only to find she’d moved. A low whine draws my attention to the doorway.

I sit up, “Lily, come here.”

But she keeps whining, pawing at the door. She looks back at me and barks again. Weird. She’s never this active at night.

“You need to go out?” I whisper. I pick up her leash off the coffee table and trudge over to the door. I bend over, clipping the lead to Lily’s collar and slip on my shoes. I pat Lily’s head before exiting out into the cool night. “Come on.”

A cold breeze sends a shiver through my spine as we step out into the dark. The woods are quiet at this hour. Peaceful. I look up at the galaxy of stars twinkling above and close my eyes. I listen to sounds of night around me. Trees rustling. Crickets chirping.

Lily, restless, barks again, pulling against her leash. “What is with you tonight, Lil? Uh. Fine. Hold on.”

I tie the lead to the banister and grab my coat and flashlight from inside the door. I take her leash back up let her guide me where she’s trying to go.

She pulls me off down a trail into the woods, jumping over boulders and logs sticking up out of the ground. As we wade into the darkness a strange smell catches my attention. The scent of wood smoke and…sulfur maybe… wafts through the trees. Lily yelps when my hesitation pulls her leash taut. She stands alert, pointing off into the forest, tail high and still.

“I think we should go back.” I stammer, tugging on her lead. A low growl rumbles in her throat. She jerks against me. Her leash pulls through my palm, the sudden pain causing me to drop it. Before I could catch it again, Lily takes off running into the darkness.

I immediately run off after her, calling her name as I stumble along.

“Lil! Lily!” I shout, following her barking through trees and underbrush. “Shit. Lily, come back here!”

The farther into the dark I run, the stronger the mysterious smell becomes. My heart races at what I might be getting into. At what Lily may be getting into. Suddenly, Lily’s barking goes silent. I freeze, fear starting to set in. I look around, flashing the light in every direction.

I get turned around as I start to panic.

A faint orange glow peeks through the trees. A shrill barking starts up again in the same direction. My throat goes dry. My feet begin to move on their own. As I sprint toward the light, a burst of heat pushes me back only for a moment, but I keep running.

The heat only gets more intense as I slog through the forest. Another blast flashes as I break into a clearing. The pressure drops me to my knees as I discover the source.

A dense fireball several feet across levitates inches off the ground. The light is so bright, I can’t look directly at it without pain. I cover my face with my arm, trying unsuccessfully to shield myself from the heat.

Across the clearing, I catch a glimpse of Lily cowering behind a boulder, barking and braying at the miniature sun.

Then suddenly…Darkness.

The night turns black as pitch, the afterimage of the fireball seared into my retina. I stumble around blindly, desperately trying to blink away the image. “Lily! Lily, where are you!”

I feel something push against my legs and drop to my knees. I pull Lily in, hugging her tight, her floppy ears battering my face.

“Damnit. Don’t run away from me like that. You could have been hurt, you silly dog.”

As the image starts to fade from my vision, the clearing comes back into focus. I take up Lily’s leash again, threading my hand through the loop. I won’t let her slip away this time. As I stand up, I realize that in the confusion, I lost my bearings. I look around, frantically searching for landmarks to take me back to the cabin.

Spot fires burn a ring around where the second sun blazed only moments ago. The scent of wood smoke lingers in the air.

The chirping of insects and rustling of trees gradually rise around me. The sounds of the forest seem louder than before. An owl’s hoot nearby. The chattering of some animal or other in the brush. My breathing quickens as panic sets in.

I force myself to calm down, sucking in deep breaths and pushing them out slowly.

“Ugh…” I jump at the sound from behind me. “Ugh.” Comes another groan.

I spin about, turning toward the epicenter of the event. The flickering flames cast an eerie light across the charred ground. In the middle of the ring…lies something my mind cannot reconcile.

An iridescent shimmer flickers across her bare skin. Her arms are crossed over her chest, legs curled up into the fetal position, her wings tucked down against her back. Two jet black horns protrude just above her ears. Fishlike scales ripple up her body, creating a strange effect in firelight.

A Dragon…Dragoness.

Shivers wrack her body, her eyes shut tight against the world.

I’d never seen one in their proper form. Not in person anyway. Fascinated…terrified…I kneel down by her side. Lily presses her nose in close, sniffing at the strange being before me.

She looks like she’s in pain, unconscious of the outside world.

On a rogue impulse, I reach out and touch her shoulder.

I jerk my hand back, a surge of unnatural cold lancing through my palm.

I reach out again, more cautiously this time. Her skin is still strangely cold to the touch, but bearable. I shake her, hoping to rouse her to consciousness.

“H-hey. Um. Miss. Are you alright?” No answer. Her shivering as bad as ever. I shake her again, harder this time. “Can I help you? I don’t…I don’t know what to do here.”

Still no answer. Her condition worries me.

“Shit.” I mutter, turning to Lily. “Stay put.”

I set the leash down on the ground and fling my coat off my shoulders. I gently lay it over the naked body of the dragoness. My jacket dwarfs her petite figure, covering her from shoulder to feet.

I wrap her up, tucking the coat around her body, careful not to touch her private bits. I loop Lily’s leash back over my arm before scooping the strange woman up off the ground. I can feel the tension in her body as she shakes against me.

“Lily, come.” I command before making my way back through the woods.

I stumble around for what seems like hours in the darkness. The dragoness is surprisingly lightweight—hollow bones, I assume, for flight. Even so, I start to struggle in the brisk early morning air, my lungs and legs burning with the effort.

Lily barks as the cabin comes into view. With renewed vigor, I lumber up the steps and awkwardly turn the handle. The door swings open with a loud bang as I push into the living room. I gently lay the woman down on the raised hearth in front of the smoldering fireplace.

I touch the skin of her shoulder, again trying to rouse her. Her skin is frigid to the touch. Warmer than it was in the woods, but not by much. Not by enough. I fight the urge to pull away jostle her again.

“Come on. Please, wake up.”

I rush over to the controller for the fireplace, cranking up the gas flow until the fire roars back to life. I stuff a few logs in there, hoping the heat from the fire will revive the reptilian woman.

Minutes pass as the warmth spreads through the large room. I watch from the couch at the far side, my leg tapping from anxiety. Lily’s surprisingly calm about the situation. She stays alert, but not aggressive toward our impromptu guest. She lies down next my legs, sighing deeply. She directs her attention toward the mantle but stays still by my side.

I continue to watch the dragoness, unsure what to make of her. It takes a while, but her shivering subsides as the fire’s warmth seeps into her.

“What the hell?” My stepmom’s voice startles me out of my thoughts. “Who…Amon, who is that?”

“I don’t know.”

“Don’t know? What do you mean, you don’t know?! You’re sitting there staring at a naked girl on the mantle, and you don’t know who she is?”

“What? No. It’s not like that. I’m not…I mean…I found her in the woods.” Rambling as fast as I my mouth will allow. “Well, Lily found her, and there was this fireball and I was blinded. Then she was just there. Naked. Laying on the ground. I didn’t know what—”

“Slow. Down. Amon. Take a breath and walk me through it.”

I explain in detail all the events of my evening. Frankly, if it weren’t for the scaley, horned woman with wings now sleeping peacefully on the mantle, I doubt Chandra would believe my story. Her facial expressions definitely betray disbelief.

“We should…We should wake up your father.”

“You sure? Do you really think he’ll understand?”

“I don’t even understand.” She snips. “But I don’t think he’ll throw her out, if that’s what you mean.”

“You know how he feels about dragons.”

“Maybe, but she’s just a girl. A girl who’s passed out in our house. I think he has the right to know.”

“You’re right. He does, but let him rest. Hopefully, she’ll be awake by the time he gets up, and we can get a better handle on the situation.”

“Why don’t we just call an ambulance? They can take her and care for her better than we can.”

“In Roarin Valley? They’d probably kill her. The South can’t even accept black or gay people, you really think they’ll treat a dragon any better?”

“I jus—”

“Ugh.” The groaning made both of us pause. “Ugh…Where…”

“Amon, go get her some clothes.” Chandra insists, still frozen on the couch.

I jump up, panicking. I rush into my own room, before realizing, “Wait! What can I give her? Pants, I got covered, but what about, you know…” Gesturing to leathery wings protruding from her back.

“How should I know? Just get a blanket or something. Cut slits in an old T-shirt?”

“Where am I?”