Flight

Soaring through the milky clouds, Adelind skimmed through the skies claiming them as hers. Indulging herself in momentary pleasure, she forgot about the grand festival. It was thanks to Vasuki that Adelind was able to remember such important gala.

“Your highness,” Vasuki greeted courteously, avoiding eye contact. He humbly flew besides the colossal dragoness, his size dwarfed by hers. “Your father has sent me to remind you of the festival. He says that you are to attend in your human form.” Without any other word, Vasuki swooped down, cowering away from the larger dragon. Lesser dragons were known to fear noble dragons, Adelind being one of those respected species.

An annoyed snort escaped her large snout, smoke trailing behind. She gracefully flapped her extravagant wings, the reflected light making her shine like a priceless ruby. Red was a rare color between the dragons, but she herself was something unique.

She travelled swiftly, her body completely at ease. Her eyes were glazed with harmony, the veil of clouds that securely enveloped her body giving her a sense of serenity. She could hear music; her acute senses guided her through the clouds – blind. Thrilled, she hastily dived down, nearly slicing her stomach open with a mountain pinnacle. Scared beyond her wits, she immediately landed on the sturdy earth.

“Ah, Lady Adelind, a pleasure to meet you,” the voice that addressed her was human. Alarmed, the noble dragoness looked down. She lowered her head, her left eye right in front of the human. She narrowed her reptile eye, inspecting the human. He was no bigger than her eye; even her claws were bigger than the pathetic human.

Adelind cringed away from him; his human stench burned her nostrils. “Human,” the earth rumbled, “these lands belong to us dragons.” She stretched to her full, luxurious size. “What business do you have here, mortal?” anger glistened within her eyes, her voice also hinted disapproval.

The human was unfazed by the dragon’s colossal size; instead, he shook his head. “I mean no harm, Lady Adelind. In fact, your father was the one that called upon us humans. The reasons still remain a mystery,” he looked up at her. “If you wouldn’t mind transforming to your human form, I would highly appreciate that.”

The dragoness hissed with disdain, but reluctantly did as suggested. Her wings extended to their full size, the tips of it starting to disintegrate. Her scales –which were the size of a human head- started to shed, slowly transforming into rose petals. Colors flocked around the vast clearing, entrancing the standing lesser human. Witnessing a dragon transformation was a one in a lifetime opportunity.

Lost within petals, the dragoness was lost from view. She had shrunk size and was now standing in the middle of a whirlwind of red, dressed in a black and maroon robe. When every single petal settled on the ground, Adelind snapped open her eyes, causing a breeze of wind to gust through the clearing. All the remaining petals turned to ashes, leaving behind a stale scent of roses.

The human stared at Adelind, momentarily forgetting her true form. He was amazed by her beauty, the only thing that unsettled him were her ruby red eyes. “This way, my lady,” he mumbled. He turned around to lead the way, when a saccharine voice halted him.

“What’s your name, human?” the voice, unbelievably, belong to the dragoness. The man spun around, feeling slightly baffled. He could not believe his ears, did that sweet, innocent, voice belong to that colossal dragon?

He gawked at her, whilst she made her way up to him. Her vibrant, red, hair trailed behind her slim form, tantalizing the man. He was very much a man, and at moments like these, urges started to infest his system. “Drake,” his voice was strained, almost painful.

She spared him a teasing smile, his body tingling in reply. Secretly, Adelind was highly amused by humans; they were always controlled by their urges. She could easily have her way with only a smile. No dragon was foolish enough to get bossed around by a smile. She really enjoyed toying with humans.

“Lead the way, Drake,” she purred his name, gaining a light blush from the human. Snickering internally, Adelind followed the man, feeling fulfilled. It wasn’t long before they entered a tremendous cave, the walls decorated with silver fireflies that gleamed with joy. Long trails of fire lit their path, warming the chilly air within the cavern.

The silence was welcomed, but Adelind was far from done with the human. Catching up with him, she placed a slender on his shoulder, gaining his startled attention. Giving him a white-toothed grin, she removed her hand from his shoulder, making sure she lightly grazed his arm at doing so.

“Tell me, Drake, what’s a human like you doing in a place like this?” she waved her right hand in a blasé way, emphasizing her point. It took the flustered man around 10 seconds before he was able to answer properly.

“I am son of Ator, ruler of the lands in the North,” pride littered the man’s words. Narrowing her eyes, Adelind looked towards the approaching festival which was now in view.

She glared at the human, her animalistic tendencies starting to rise within her throat. She pushed them down, hiding her real intentions with a sweet smile. “So, it was your father that proposed war with the dragons, correct?” this time, her voice was ridden of sweetness and innocence. Pure malice infested her tone, making the human shift uncomfortably.

He glanced at her, overlooking her masked rage, and nodded tentatively. “You assume correct.”

Her human nails increased in size, becoming sharp, deadly, claws. Drake halted, already at the entrance of the grand hall. Wasting no time, Adelind cautiously stood behind him, gripping his shirt. “Such lack of compasssssion…” she hissed into his ear, pressing her body against his. He was misreading the situation, giving her the advantage. Aiming at his heart, she was about to strike when-

“Son, we thought Lady Adelind had devoured you!” a jolly fat man bounded towards both dragoness and human. She immediately retracted her claws, hiding any evidence of an attempt at murder. Instead, she glared at the fat man. She knew who he was.

Insulted by his comment, she raised her chin. “I do not eat humans, Ator. They stink,” her voice was refined. The man lost his posture, anger flickering through his aged features.

“I expected no less from a dragon, really,” Ator shot back. “You think yourself so high and mighty, but not for long. Your species is dying, in a few years, you’ll all be rotting under my kingdom.” With that final threat, father and son dashed away. They were cowering from the dragoness, who possessed a vicious glare.

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“This is ridiculous!” Adelind roared her primal side started to bubble within her. Visible red scales started to grow on her soft skin; it took her a great amount of self-control to repress her real self. “You can’t propose yet another war, we signed a treaty!” the dragoness shrilled, her frantic screams echoing from the cavern’s walls.

Ator look unfazed, he looked bored, even. “I remember no treaty. You dragons are so ancient; your brains must be deteriorating,” a snicker resonated from the room. “As far as I’m concerned, we’re entitled to propose a war. That’s life, honey.”

With great amount of will power, Adelind sat down. She quivered with rage, her red eyes swirling with acrimony. Taking in deep breaths, she was able to calm down. “We’re no threat to humans, there’s no reason for a war!” Her voice boomed across the meeting table.

She sent her father a pleading look, the wrinkled man barely even acknowledging her existence. “Certainly, there must be a way we can fix-“

“There’s nothing to fix. You dragons are going to die. Get that into your head, Lady Adelind,” Ator stood up with an ungraceful movement. All the humans followed suit, ignoring Adelind’s pleading eyes.

“This will be the downfall for you dragons.”