What Worlds..

There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. For as long as she could remember there weren’t any of the wild beasts that now inhabited her once quiet vale of silence. Farrah thought of her father, his shrewd face looking down upon the maps of their land, as she questioned him about the gorge beyond the western point of their territory. His eyes would squint, the crease between his brows furrowed with a shadow of discontent. It reminded her of the valley when the sun began to set, the shadow slipping between the crevices, spreading slowly until the entire gorge was just a deep shadow on the land. Though his eyes remained sharply focused on the maps upon his desk a wry smile would emerge, and his eyes would shift towards her direction, “Farrah, the valley beyond our pastures, is a place of beauty, a home to the serenity of nature our family holds dear. If a young girl were to finish her chores, she may explore this area without risk of harm, as our family has long hunted the beasts from its shadowy embrace, but a young girl…exploring, shouldn’t stay out past midday once the sun begins to fall beyond the trees, and only…once she has finished her chores.” Just as the words left his lips, he winked, the smile retreated back to a solemn frown and his eyes glared down towards his maps resting on the massive planks that made up his study desk.

A tear struggled from inside her clasped eyelashes and she acquiesced its escape, shivering, as it streamed down her quivering cheek. It was early, the dew of morning had settled into her dress constricting her body as the cold air hardened it into a frosty cage. It was early, and the dragons would begin their hunt soon, ascending from just beyond the edge of the valley and high, so high into the clouds, one after the other as they began to hunt the beautiful land she had once explored with such joy. She wondered where they had come from, what hole from beneath the earth had opened allowing them to ascend from the depths of the underworld to desecrate her family’s lands. As she lay beneath the large oak trees comforting arms, it began, the horrid roaring of the beasts as they laid siege to the sky. She couldn’t bear to open her eyes, the bare heels of her calloused feet pressed firmly into the soft dirt, thrusting her body against the oak trees embrace.

Weeks had passed since that conversation with her father, yet his wink and the words that followed were seared into her soul like a brand on the skin, “…exploring, shouldn’t stay out past midday, once the sun begins to fall beyond the trees.” Farrah focused her energy on his voice, holding onto it tightly as her guilt sunk its teeth into the memory, shredding it to pieces, as she cowered within the oak trees embrace. She had almost completed her chores that day, all but one, the one that required her return to her family’s castle. Farrah’s mother had requested a quarter sack of burn-berries and their leaves, which were easily found on the western most point of their pasture, and also…deep within the valley. Farrah had often found any excuse she could to explore the valley beyond their land and on that day, her mother’s request gave her the perfect alibi. That day, which was perfectly detailed in her mind, Farrah, particularly enthused by her father’s wink, had decided to finally descend towards the great Oak-father. The Oak-father was the furthest oak tree in the valley, it’s base easily could contain any two to three of the oak trees before it and she had often imagined herself laying against its imposing foundation, looking up between its branches and seeing the world from its roots which had most likely shared its existence far longer than any of the other trees within the valley.

Of course, Farrah, stubborn and naïve couldn’t dissuade herself from the task at hand even though the sun had begun to set beyond the tops of the trees in the valley. She had thought of her father’s wink as a challenge, he had often turned a blind eye towards her escapades as she was his first born. Though she wasn’t a boy as her parents had planned, her father had always quietly encouraged her tenacity and willful nature. That willful nature assured her that she could make it to the Oak-father. If she could just rest her hand upon its ancient skin, she could turn and make her way back, walking through the pasture in the dusk wouldn’t be so bad, the shadows of the night sky would surely curtail themselves around a child as brave as her. Just as her father had said, “all the beasts within the valley had been hunted to extinction long before her birth,” and any beasts that remained would reverently abstain their urges in light of her accomplishment.

Farrah made it to the Oak-father, but by the time she had reached its towering presence the sun had fallen deep below the tree-line. The cool air had settled into the valley and though she reminded herself of her father’s words, she couldn’t shake the sounds of branches breaking in the dark. Farrah couldn’t bring herself to turn back towards the path she had walked, and with the night sky filling it’s deep burnt purple canvas with tiny white spots like fireflies, she pressed herself against the massive tree, seeking courage but more importantly, comfort. As her hands felt around it’s base, her cold fingers found the edge of an opening and without any hesitation she nestled herself into the cavern of the Oak-fathers rooted foundation. She had childishly assumed that by reaching its enclave she would be greeted with some accommodation home for her bravery, but instead she found only austere silence. The great tree offered only it’s comfort as the shadows fell upon the valley, consuming all the shards of light as the sun set in the distance.

Farrah bit her lip, the memories seemed so distant now, but she been diligent in counting the suns course, it had been a few weeks. A few weeks of berries, roots and turnips from the soft soil around the great tree. A few grub worms had also been forced down during that time, but she tried not to think of that. She had awoken within the Oak-fathers embrace to the roar of dragons in the valley. Dragons which her family had often scoffed at, the tales only serving as entertainment after hearty meals when all her siblings would gather. Only then, when her father had an audience of his children, had tales of dragons ever left his lips. Here they were, just as he had described, scorching the sky above the valley with their roar as they ascended towards the heavens, surely hunting her people to extinction. Farrah opened her eyes, pulling herself forward from the damp cavern of the Oak-fathers chest, she looked towards the sky observing the cloud trails left behind from the departing winged creatures. Weeks had gone by, and with every sunset she watched the hills above the valley as bright-eyed creatures had wandered around its outskirts. Her father had never mentioned these creatures even in the stories of dragons. They had never ventured down into the valley but every night, their eyes and purring growls would echo against the hillsides. She wondered, with silent desperation, about her family’s kingdom, what had become of their land since the beasts had announced themselves. Would she stay trapped in its bosom as the dragons flew by day, their fledglings haunting the hills by night with their glowing eyes. She imagined her father among his knights fighting them off but by the multitude of their presence knew, the likelihood of their survival was low. Surely someone would have come to her rescue by now.

Today she would climb, between their ascending, she would climb to the high point of the valley to signal her family or at the very least, to gain some fortitude within herself if she would have to see this alone. She had been contemplating the trek for some time, attempting to groom her confidence from embers to burning fire. During the day the dragons never paid any attention to the valley, they flew far overhead, soaring towards the clouds which only reinforced her feeling of doubt of any surviving members of her father’s kingdom. They would fly far up into the clouds heading in the direction of the kingdom. Farrah waited for the roar of the next dragon as it began its ascent to the heavens and once she heard it she stepped forward from the Oak-fathers protection. She had only left its presence a few times, to scavenge for berries, the burn-berries her mother had requested, and once, to her dismay, to ensnare a small squirrel which had fallen from the heights of a neighboring tree. As the dragon broached the cloud above she ran, feverishly, her pre-decided path falling to pieces as she sprinted from each looming tree to another’s shadowy cover. With each point she reached she fought the urge to look back at the Oak-father. Farrah had committed, and if she failed to reach the high point of the valley, surely, she would find herself in the open, unprotected to the scourge of nightly devils that wandered the surrounding hills. She clawed at the hillside, every step, every breath, labored, her feet entrenched in the soft dirt, sweat and fear pervasively dripping into her confidence like poison.

Scurrying from tree to tree she stopped to rest for a moment and again denied herself the urge to turn back towards the Oak-father. Knowing full well that if she so much as glanced in its direction she would surely run back to its embrace. Though her path had become somewhat abstract with fright she was making progress and as she leaned into the brush beneath a young oak tree she hear the growling of another dragon beginning its ascent. She cowered and began to count, her eyes closed as if she could become invisible by concentrating hard enough. The dragon burst forth from the edge of the valley following the same path as its predecessor. She inhaled deeply, continuing to count as the roars faded into the distance. When she could no longer here the winged devil she clenched her fists, her toes curled into the brush, every fiber of her legs building the energy to spring forth from her hiding place. Again she burst from the bushes and began sprinting from tree to tree stopping occasionally for a few minutes at a time to catch her labored breathing and listen for the next dragon. Farrah continued this frenzied game, imitating the movements of the squirrels she had often watched from her resting spot by the Oak-fathers roots. The squirrels would remain so still she often didn’t see them until they shot across the dirt in front of her, pausing for a few seconds, their tiny nostrils flaring as they caught their breath, waiting for any movement before taking off again up and over roots and rocks. Farrah emulated their movements and before long she stopped, looking upwards to surveil the sky. It had begun to turn a deeper hue, the sun was beginning its descent and in a few hours the sky would begin to give way to night. She was close though, close to that outcropping of trees high into the hillside where she planned to hide and start a smoky signal. She wouldn’t stay there of course, it was too risky, she would start the small fire and after it burned she would put it out, the smoke would rise towards the sky and she would scurry to her next spot a short distance away to hide and wait.

Though she couldn’t bear to admit it, the plan was fraught with risk, deep down she knew the smoke could attract the dragons or surely the glowing eyes of the fledglings but she had to try something. She hoped that by lighting the fires at the high points and scurrying back down the incline of the hill she could avoid detection from any of the beasts, but if any of her people saw the smoke surely they would know someone was trapped in the valley, surely they would send knights to help her. The sun was low, but Farrah was close, she hoped to start at least two fires before hiding in a crevice of rocks which she had noticed earlier in her trek. These rocks would have to hide her away for the night, two more fires in the morning and then a trek back to the Oak-father. Once back she would wait, but hopefully not for long, if anybody within the kingdom saw the smoke their horses would carry them quickly to the edge of the valley and she could call out to them from her hiding place. She was to the last ascent now and in a matter of minutes she would be on the edge of the valley, from there she wouldn’t be able to see the endless pasture that led back to her kingdom a pasture which was surely a graveyard for a young girl if she were attempt to make her away across it, especially during the day. She listened intently for any growling beasts, any roars in the distance from the dragons before gripping an outstretched root and hurling her body over the edge of the valleys edge. Her thin leather boots had been worn by the weeks in the woods and a hole in the bottom of her right boot allowed her bare skin to touch the floor, but it wasn’t grass or soft dirt, instead her skin felt scorched earth, bits and crumbling rocks blackened like charcoal. Her body froze as she stared down at the blackened crumbling ground, something she had never seen before. Farrah’s body shook itself as if to awaken her from a trance and remind her she had only moments to start the fire. She dug though her pouch pulling the dried brush from its carefully packed accommodation and knelt to the ground to begin building the small temple of twigs just as her father had shown her long ago. The sun had begun to set quicker then she had hoped and her hands began to shake feverishly trying to keep pace as her nerves became unsettled.

A roar in the distance shot across the valley, much louder now that she wasn’t protected by the high surrounding hills. Instinctively she fell to the floor flattening her body against the blackened earth, her temple of branches, flattened as well under the weight of her chest. Her mind raced as desperation gripped her heart deep within her chest. A dragon, in the distance, was about to take flight and she had only moments to slide back over the edge of the outcropping to stay hidden. Only moments until that beast roared across the sky above, with her in open view of its ferocious appetite. The fire would have to wait. Finding only drops of courage within her she brought herself to her knees and began to crawl in reverse towards the edge of the valley to make her escape. Suddenly light filled the floor below her, she had kept her eyes down staring at the earth as she was crawling and they blinked in surprise as the blackened earth was lit up by bright burning light directly in front of her. A beast! Her body froze and she lifted her head to stare directly into the eyes of a ember eyed beast that somehow had snuck up on her. Just then the roars of the ascending dragon behind her filled the sky and she began to shake violently caught between two nightmares that would surely tear her to shreds right here on the edge of the valley. Suddenly, a voice, in hear head? A man’s voice yelled out to her, it came from the direction of the glowing eyed beast and as she looked up she saw the silhouette of a strangely dressed man, between her and the fledgling creature. He called out again, “Honey?! What in good God’s name are you doing there? Are you lost?” This man was,…unafraid of the beast behind him, was it with him? Did he not hear the dragon about to soar over them? The deafening roar came again drowning out the man’s voice and she gazed up in paralyzed fright seeing the dragon closer than she ever had before. Surely this would be the last thing she would ever see. As Farrah’s eyes stared up at the underbelly of the dragon soaring above her fright turned to confusion and disarray. The dragon had been marked? A branding larger than she had ever seen was seared into the deep blue skin of its shiny scales. A branding, a branding in her language. She felt her world begin to spin, her vision tunneled and the urge to vomit and faint intertwined themselves within her throat as she repeated the words on the dragons body. She sputtered as the world turned, "South...west..Air...lines, South...west..Air...lines." Farrahs world faded to black.