The Dragon

When the old dragon was angry, everyone was best off getting out of his way. The dragon was a stallion of many years, dark as night, mane and tail as untamed as the wind. In better years he had roamed the fields among the mares of the Outlier settlement known by its people as Guldrith. However, in recent months the old dragon had become a hazard, striking at the unwary, going against his strict training, seeking out the geldings in their yards, and biting them over the fence when they wandered too close.

So, he was locked up in one of the sturdiest round-yards with a high fence, too high to jump, usually used for the taming of the younger beasts. It did nothing to allay his ferocity. Anyone who tried to enter the yard to give him cut grass risked injury so it was soon decided to simply throw the roughage through the fence.

Bored and anguished by his confinement the stallion took to kicking at the fence and biting the bark away from the timber. He would call often and through the night to the mares. It was a temporary fix, the people of Guldrith knew that. The Outliers were horse people but they were practical and ruthless when it was called for. A stallion that was old and of no further use with the mares was a burden. Not only was he a nuisance to the peace of Guldrith but he was an image of something the horse people did not stand for. A caged life was no life.

While the dragon needed to be confined to keep some level of order in Guldrith, it was unfair on the beast that he should be sentenced to spend the rest of his days penned up. And so, it was resolved that he would be put to rest after that year's trades with Guldrith's neighbouring settlements.

A girl and her father were among those who had come to trade with Guldrith. The cries of a stallion, calling to the newcomers' horses were just another layer to the sound of the market, cheer and old friends reunited. But the girl, Mira, heard. And she asked her father about it as he dismounted, leading the way on foot to a yard where they could untack and rub down their horses. Mira rode a stocky pony, hairier than a bear in winter and coat of a tawny colour. His name was Selantin and he was all warmth and gentleness and sometimes pig-headedness, as so many ponies were. Her father's horse was the bay Clarinthian, noble and hair also somewhat furry in readiness for the winter ahead.

"I would guess that is Guldrith's dragon, Felbane," her father spoke in his soft tones that made Mira think of the warmth of her family's cottage. She had three brothers, two older, one younger and a baby sister. The boys who were grown had moved from their childhood home, finding wives and building their own houses. But the cottage was always the same; warm, smelling of cooking food and family and love. Her older brothers visited regularly for that reason, Mira guessed.

And now, she was old enough to travel to Guldrith for that year's trading with her father. It was a proud moment, leaving her younger brother and sister behind, twisting around in Selantin's saddle to wave her mother farewell. The week before, her older brothers who had left for Guldrith early, had each whispered in her ear for the land to flow in her favour. The first time any had bade her fair travels.

Mira landed, bent kneed, on the compacted ground outside the horse yards. It was a blessing of youth, her father assured her, that stopped her from feeling the aches and pains of their three days travel. However, Mira acted travel wearied, fixing an expression she thought similar to her father's on her face, eyes slightly unfocused, grunting faintly as she removed Selantin's saddle and wrangled it onto the second lowest rail of the yard. After being rubbed down with a soft bristled brush, the tawny pony watched her intently as she wrestled with the rug she had unrolled for him. Her father dutifully stepping in to place the canvas covering onto the pony's back and fix the leg straps while Mira pursed her lips in deferential concentration and fastened the strap across the beast's shaggy chest. Upon finishing, her father ruffled her red curls and turned to let Clarinthian, already rugged, go to graze in the yard.

Removing Selantin's bridle, Mira splashed the chilled water from the trough over the bit to wash it of saliva and grassy debris while her father did the same beside her. Later, while her father went to meet with his two sons, Mira was allowed to explore. Ducking between people and under stall tables, the marketplace was new and alive. But she soon found her way to a throng of people near a large round yard like one her village used for working with the yearlings. She stepped carefully to the yard's rails, her hide boots making only the slightest of sounds on the hard ground.

"It is rather grim, isn't it, eating a beast that has done nothing but serve Guldrith, strengthening the lines of its horses."

"What would you have us do, Kael? His body cannot go to waste." Mira glanced up as a dark haired young woman responded to a rosy cheeked man of similar age. They were part of the small group that stood by the yard, watching the beast that stood to attention at the far end. Blacker than the night sky, the horse called out, whole body reverberating. Mira recognised the voice as being that of the stallion her father had spoken to her about. Felbane. Guldrith's dragon.

"He deserves a proper burial, one of fire, so that he might take to the air," the man's words were like the mournful soughing of the wind to Mira's ears. Beautiful and haunted.

"You always romanticise things so," the woman snapped back, making one of her companions laugh.

"Ever practical, Evena," she said. The girl had brilliant copper coloured hair. Mira leant against one of the fence posts as the big dark horse pricked his ears in her direction.

"Well it is a simple kindness," Evena replied, voice clipped. "Felbane won't weather the winter all that well, not confined to this yard, and he is not young anymore. He has had a full life. And if his soul is to be freed, his body might as well help Guldrith survive the winter."

"Spoken like a future leader of Guldrith," the red haired one spoke, while the young man looked away. "You are truly the daughter of your father, Evena."

"I should hope so," Evena retorted. "I would hardly have a right to volunteer for future leader if I were an imposter." With that, the fourth member of their party, a boy with hair like Mira's, burst into hearty laughter. The other young man, Kael, smiled but sadly.

So Felbane was to be killed. The idea was not foreign to Mira. Horses, whether it was due to old age or injury, had on occasion, been put to death in Mira's home village. It had hurt initially, to know that beasts Mira had known all her life or seen grow for several years be deprived of their life in such a way. But after a time it made sense. When the verdict was made, the beasts usually had a dullness to the eye or something broken, and death was the kindest thing. Looking at Felbane she was struck by what she saw. He had one eye liquid brown and the other an icy blue. And neither eye lacked the fire of life. In truth, Felbane brimmed with the spirit that flowed within him and she found she did not understand.

Leaning up against the railing, Felbane trotted forth, head lowered, ears pricked. He snorted once, testing the air and Mira's scent. She held out her hand and prickly whiskers tickled her outstretched palm.

"Careful!" Someone yanked Mira back from behind. The girl jerked away, staring wide eyed at Evena, who grabbed her by the arm and pulled her aside just as Felbane shied away from the fence. The horse kicked out, hooves glancing off a part of the railings and making them rattle. "You stay away from there, Child, you could have been killed." Evena's words were an unsettling mix of gentleness and fright.

"Evena, you've probably frightened the life out of her." It was the other girl who spoke. Mira found herself looking to the boy who had spoken the beautiful words of Felbane. He stood silently, watching, but when Mira met eyes with him, he winked.

Mira pulled her arm from Evena's grip again, giving the boy a deft nod before turning and fleeing. Behind her she heard the incredulous laugh of the red haired girl and the sigh of Evena.

***

It had taken a great deal of will to sidle out of her warm bed covers and get dressed to return to the frosted cold of the night air. Her father and brothers had not stirred as she left and she hoped her mission could be performed without her absence being noticed.

The half-moon shone down on the earth, coating everything in a ghostly silver. Mira had no trouble finding her way back to the black stallion's yard. She flinched at shadows and yearned for her bed, but she set her jaw stonily. Going back was no option.

He nickered gently, a low grunting sound, as Mira slipped under the fence rails. Those prickly whiskers brushed her cheeks, making her suppress a giggle. His warm breath made her shiver, a contrast to the cold.

Carefully, she stepped away, walking along the curved fence line to the gate. The latch was just out of her reach, a panel of wood that fitted into a cut out space in the upright fence post. Climbing onto the lowest rail, Mira was conscious of the horse behind her, every breath loud in the stillness. His soft nose pressed to her back momentarily, curious, he snorted. Mira bit her lip, but continued to straighten up, reaching to throw her weight against the panel of wood so that it might slide free. It did so, more easily than she thought. The gate did not swing open however, needing to be dragged.

Sliding to the ground slowly, Mira turned to the dark horse, his one light eye prominent in the dark, giving him a lopsided look. "If I let you go," she said. "You have to leave. You cannot stay. You have to leave Guldrith. Leave the mares and the other horses. Understand?" Her words garnered no response as she looked up at the monstrous beast as he arched his neck. She was merely a strange intruder into his world.

With an internal sigh, Mira gripped the end of the gate, pushing and lifting with all her strength. It shifted a little but it was immensely heavy. Again, she pushed, giving herself just enough room to squeeze out of the yard. She would, perhaps, have better luck with pulling it. Her heart pounded against her chest, fear of being found out suddenly intensified. She tugged at the timber structure as it jerked at the top but dragged on the ground at the bottom. The dragon huffed, leaning against the gate, trying to press his way free.

A faint sound directly to her right made her inhale audibly. Felbane lunged at the gate in a spook, just as steady hands quickly lifted Mira to the side and then swung the gate fully open, lifting it easily on its hinges. Felbane lurched out of his enclosure, big hooves clattering on the earth. He tossed his head, shivering all over and bucked, winter coat shimmering in the moon's light.

Shocked, Mira scrambled away from the newcomer, glaring up at the tall figure. It was Evena. Silently, the black haired girl pointed. Turning, Mira could make out Felbane as he galloped north, out past the settlement, just as a chill wind blew against her face, almost burning it. She wrapped her arms closer around herself as she wished for the land to flow in Felbane's favour.

"You shouldn't be out so late at night," Evena said finally. "Although I don't altogether blame you..."

"You let him go..." Mira assessed the older girl with a hard stare.

"You let him go," Evena retorted, but she looked away, pursing her lips. "Come, I'd best take you home." Mira let Evena take her by the wrist and they began walking back towards the main settlement. All was still except for the sound of their footsteps on frozen ground.

"What is your name, Child?" Evena said lowly. Mira opened her mouth to respond when the young woman stopped dead. By the rigidness of her grip on Mira's arm, it was clear Evena was stricken. It almost hurt.

Mira peered around the other girl. The pale features of the boy from earlier that day stared out at them from the shadows of a doorway, Kael. His eyes were obscured by the darkness, giving him an otherworldly quality. He was still, apparently as surprised to see them as they were him. Finally, he nodded once.

It was as though Evena was released from stone. She began walking again, resolutely dragging Mira in her wake. Only Mira, who craned her neck to look back, saw the smile that crept across the boy's face.

Submission for the Bedtime Stories Challenge - 2021

'The Dragon' is an original story. Ever since I was a child, I loved the escapism and adventure provided by fantasy novels. This story is a glimpse into a fantasy world of my own creation and one I hope can capture the imagination of its readers as the stories of my youth did for me. My aim was to portray some of the beauty and mystery that horses held for me as a child, and still do to this day. The details of bedtime stories might fade from our minds as we age, but something not so easily forgotten is the feeling they brought. I wanted to convey some of the warmth felt in winter, of snuggling up under bedcovers or the comfort in a horse's soft, winter coat as the world around us goes cold.