Dizzy and
disoriented, I stumbled from the chamber and reached out to steady
myself against another wave of nausea. With a sharp cry, I jerked my
hand away as I realized my mistake. I stared in stunned surprise
at the sight of small crisps of skin that remained adhered to the hull,
curled and black, that exactly matched the raw and bleeding patches on my palm. Pain
drilled through my confusion and crawled up my arm into my brain,
shrieking for attention from my overloaded senses. The half-buried
chamber was blistering hot.
Wrong. Something had gone horribly wrong. Technical assurances from
the contract flitted through my mind ...Smooth transitions ...safe
transference ...secure arrival. But not here, not today. Something
terrible had happened—something terrible was still happening.
"Dragon..."
The hot wind fingered my hair, lifting and
releasing individual strands and filled my ears with rustling
whisper-words.
Still uncertain of where (when?) I had landed; I clambered
around the blackened shell of my crumpled transmission chamber, but it was
apparent I would not be returning the way I had arrived. A light travel
sheath, perfectly appropriate for a brief flit through space-time was
little protection from the blowing wind and sand and as I stepped out of
the chamber’s shadow, the rough soil scorched the soles of my naked
feet.
I recalled the screen after screen of waivers against which I had
thoughtlessly pressed my thumb in agreement and briefly wondered if
there was any mention of the strange vista spread before me. But I
would
likely never know... I hadn’t bothered to read any of them.
I wiped my hand over my face in an unsuccessful attempt to clear my
vision, and scratched my bare toes deeper into the sand, instinctively
seeking a cooler level beneath the burning surface. As I turned to
inspect a world at once both familiar and foreign, vague memories of a
long ago journey through desert wilderness flared briefly in my mind,
then miscarried and died, unable to incorporate this reality with the
one remembered.
"...there..." The inconsistent breeze strengthened,
slapping my hair against my cheek, then caressing it gently away again,
shoving, and then tugging at my sleeve. It tossed tiny fistfuls of dust
at my face, only to retreat and reveal distant, unfamiliar mountains
flickering behind the desert dunes and towering rocks. I continued
to turn in a slow pirouette, trying unsuccessfully to fit my mind around the
strange vista before me.
Of their own accord, my feet shuffled forward and down the slight
incline toward the desert floor, drawing temporary furrows through
parched soil and dragging me with them.
The reality around me
seemed volatile and unpredictable. Colors blurred
and merged forming new hues and shapes and sand rippled like water at
the feet of blackened rocks. One particular formation stood apart from
the moving colors, shedding cloaks of black shadows onto the desert
floor.
I murmured in surprise at black rocks rising in sharp contrast
against the barren, brown and yellow of the desert, not conscious that I
had even voiced my thoughts as the sound of my voice merged with the raspy whisper
of the rising wind.
"Dragon..."
A gust carried the sand higher, obscuring my view. Though strong
enough to lift the sand, the air was surprisingly thin and insubstantial for
breathing. I felt my chest move and found I had to make a conscious
attempt to fill my lungs, becoming lightheaded and dizzy in spite
of the increased effort.
The whispering wind-voices, many now, muttered and rustled the
atmosphere with words I could only barely discern. "Dragon,
...over there...come."
Sand swirled, twisting through my ankles and slithering around my
knees in the strengthening wind.
"Dragon" The wind-whispers moaned over the desert
plain. "Dragon ...there for you...over there...come for
you...dragon..."
Without warning,
the moaning wind-whisper voices intensified into wailing, shrieking howls,
suddenly screaming faster and higher; scouring the sand from the desert floor,
leaving patches of sharp, black gravel in its place. Wind and dust
joined forces then, sucking breath from my lungs and clogging my eyes. Bits
of dirt danced in the air, obscuring first the horizon, then even the
rock formations, as their black shadows dissolved into a writhing sea of
snaking sand. The wind-voices continued, shrieking, "...you...dragon!
...there ...you ... bewa..."
The almost-words mixed and melded into a scraping, smudge of noise,
becoming lost in howling wind. My heart labored in my chest, and
made my arm and neck ache from the lack of a clear breath. I
clenched my eyes closed against the pricking flecks of sand, and wrapped
my arms around my head in a vain attempt to stop the gritty blast. Bits
of dirt crunched in my teeth and I pressed my face deeper against my
sleeve. My tunic filtered the worst of the dust and provided some small
relief to my laboring lungs.
Arms mashed tight to my skull, I could hear my pulse throbbing
against my ears, and smell the fading scent of my freshly laundered
tunic. In my confused and weakened state, I had not considered the
fact that I could understand the words of the wind-voices. It
dawned on me that the words the wind-voices were screaming sounded very
much like a warning.
But with the same speed by which they had arisen,
the screaming wind-voices stopped and the only sound I heard was a low
moaning from my own throat. The wind had dropped back to an intermittent
breeze.
I lifted my aching head and felt runnels of sand slip down my face.
Immediately around me the air was clear, though it still churned and
swirled a short distance away. Above me, the filthy sand tainted the sky a
murky ochre hue. It seemed impossible, but in spite of the dirty air, I could
still catch faint glimpses of the
mountain shadows on the horizon.
Straining to see through grime filled eyes,
and trying desperately to orient myself to this surreal reality, I caught
a movement near
one of the monolith shadows. Inexplicably, the shadow grew nearer
and somehow, thicker than the horizon, flowing inky black like
blood at night. The silhouette twisted and turned.
A ripping
noise reached me and I felt an accompanying rumble in the ground below my
feet. I watched in horror as some thing extracted itself
from the shadow of the black rock. Glancing upslope toward
the ruined travel chamber, I realized I had slipped and slid much too
far. I could not even see wisps of smoke from the burning shell
over the rim of the dunes. Escape did not lay in that
direction...as if it mattered.
Squinting to see through the dusty air, I began to make out the (his?)
outline rippling in the heat. My already laboring heart ratcheted
up to a faster rhythm and a dull ache swelled out from deep in my chest
and down my left arm. I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound
emerged. I'd used most of my strength just trying to
breathe. Fear masked the pain I should feel from the spasms
of my laboring lungs, but I continued to retch and choke, managing
only to suck in a mouthful of sand kicked up by the fickle wind.
The approaching shape poured itself toward me and a vague recognition
seeped into my consciousness.
Whether from the lack of oxygen, or something (someone) else,
the yellow sky again dimmed and blackness rolled across my central
vision. Lungs contracted uselessly as I commanded them to breathe
... breathe!
I dropped to my knees, eyes watering and strings of saliva washing
the brown grit and dirt down my chin. My body jerked with violent,
gagging spasms. Desperate for air, I again pulled
the tunic over my face to block the worst of the dust and to wipe the
tears and mucous from my eyes and nose. It no longer smelled
freshly laundered, but was damp with my fear, and the smell of dirt.
The silence grew louder as the wind abated, but my eyes and nose
continued to water from the abrasive sand. Doubled over, I hacked
up the last of the grainy phlegm, clearing my airway and providing
welcome relief.
"Just there..."
the last gust of wind whispered past my
ear.
I tracked the blackness across the desert floor until it coalesced
into a writhing, twisting, disturbingly familiar mass. From a distance,
it (he?) evoked memories of a jade figurine I had once
owned. Even in the heart of summer, the stone was always cool to
the touch. His skin (his hide?) looked hard and glittered
with light reflected from the returning sun.
As if the wind had dragged the heat out of the air, I felt
chilled. I rubbed my arms in a feeble attempt to bring back
the warmth. But the sudden drop in temperature and lack of
oxygen played tricks on mind and I temporarily lost my sense of time and
space. He (it?) was abruptly closer and turning toward
me. As he lifted his face into the weak sun, I could begin to
perceive ...anomalies.
He separated himself from the dark rock shadows and completed his
metamorphosis. Shards of light reflected from his skin and into
the tears streaming from my eyes, perverting shapes and distorting
distance. Every place I looked was black, yet on fire with
sparking light.
He stood awkwardly and shuffled ungracefully toward me, clumsy as if
time had stolen his natural rhythm. I could make out the shape of
his head, slightly averted in the glare. He turned, eyes downcast,
his true nature still temporarily hidden. Then he raised his head
and looked directly into my eyes and I saw something old…and nasty…and
dreadful.
Without warning, the wind picked up again, pulling my now forgotten
tunic from my hands and sweeping my hair over my face, toward him.
I felt my body jerk forward a step, as if gravity had unexpectedly
released my feet, only to grab me by my chest and drag me closer to
those dark, amber eyes. The black rocks on the horizon seemed
again far distant, and I realized he was almost upon me.
"Dragon, ...come."
My head twitched as the voice of the
wind sang through the sands behind me.
He moved in front of the sun, its glare framing his twisting,
distorted silhouette with exotic flames of gold. Captivated, I stood
mute as the writhing black mass shifted closer and morphed again and
again, each change bringing him closer.
The last shift brought him so close I could smell him in the feeble
air. His hair (crest?) waved wildly above his shoulders, the top
tufted into a slightly outdated style, dipping over one brow, as if
trying to convey some sort of boyish charm. He stared unblinking
at me and impossible flames briefly sparked and flickered in his eyes,
then returned to a smoldering, almost-blackness.
Without warning, my legs trembled and gave way, grinding my knees
into the blackened gravel that spotted the desert
floor. Blood slipped out to mix with the swirling sand.
"Dragon there...for you..." I ignored the nagging
voices in the wind, my attention focused only on the pull of those black
and amber eyes. His face remained inscrutable; his other features only a
blur as his gaze seized mine with a force I could not break. I tugged
and twitched, straining against the pull of those terrible eyes.
I thought I could make out sharp canines glittering in a brilliant
white smile and prayed it was only distortion caused by tears.
Once again, without seeming to move, we drew closer. Something,
perhaps a silver toothpick, dipped and bobbed rakishly at the corner of
his mouth.
"...beware." The wind whispered and died.
The back of my throat curled up with gagging revulsion at his odor,
his stench nearly unbearable. I could not rid my mouth of the musk, dark
and thick, that carried memories of forgotten rooms, incense, and old
men.
His hide, there was no mistaking that now, rippled and the
reflected light seared my already tortured eyes. Up close, I
could see the jewels I mistakenly assumed were charms adorning his
clothing, were actually embedded in the myriad of cracks and
crevices tracing patterns over the entire surface of his body.
Jewels the colors of diamonds and rubies fired sparks in mesmerizing,
not quite random, patterns. They caught and reflected the light,
creating impossible rainbows in the bone-dry air.
Each time I looked back at his face, he was nearer. A deep crooning
began to vibrate the air between us.
Unexpected heat pulsed in my gut, and beads of icy sweat trickled
down over my breasts. My body temperature fluctuated between
uncontrollable shivering and rolling waves of heat. One moment I was
shaking from the cold, the next I was frantically brushing the
perspiration from my face and momentarily losing sight of his approach.
(stay)
Like a child, I covered my eyes with my hands, shutting out the
nightmare before me and temporarily breaking his hold on my mind.
Finally able to lower my head, I felt a warm wave of relief in the
muscles of my neck and shoulders. With the hypnotic, pulsing lights no
longer obscuring my thoughts, sharp terror replaced my fear as I
realized I was still on my knees in the sand. Pushing my weight
back on my heels, I prepared to run.
(stay)
I swiveled my head around to the voice by my ear. His face was
nearly next to mine.
So close. So close!
His desire washed over me like a filthy blanket. The muscles in my
neck screamed again in protest as I strained against his will. I felt my
head being forced around, my face turned up toward his. I was weak, and
fell once again into the amber blackness. Fire flashed. With
that look, all was lost.
His need was close now, and stronger, too. Though my knees
still bled onto the black rocks, I could not move and my thighs quivered
with the effort of trying.
Ever nearer, ever larger he loomed above me while I crouched in the
blood from my torn knees, transfixed by the dancing fire in his eyes.
The gems embedded in his skin sparked with flames of red and white,
again disrupting my thoughts and distorting my meager senses.
Almost distractedly, I could see what I mistook for a silver
toothpick was actually a moist stream of saliva running unchecked over
blackened lips and down his chin. The lights hurt my head; I
ached with a desire to just close my eyes, but at last could not bear not
to see.
He was nearly on me now.
Searing heat slapped against my skin and the crooning became an
intense vibration. I could feel it in the ground beneath me, up the
backs of my legs, into my hips… my bowels throbbed in time with the
sound.
(stay)
Some reasoning part of my brain screamed at me to leave, but...oh,
God, those eyes...more smoldering amber now, than black. He
lowered his head toward mine, lips parted, showing an impossible number
of glittering white, pointed teeth. My vision blurred from
the stinging, musky odor wafting in the heat and tears streamed down my
dirty face. I could see the air between us pulse with his
rhythmic crooning
(stay)
I wanted to leave- needed to leave-
but I remained still kneeling as he towered over me. The heat was nearly
unbearable and my lungs felt as if they might burst.
Something dark and wet slid out then back between his lips and his
musky stench was so great it colored the very air.
(stay)
Too late, I wished that I might have fought harder, but regret
coupled with helplessness only seemed to diminish my efforts to
escape. Faltering and skipping under the adrenaline overload my
heart fluttered; squeezing my chest so tight I could take only little,
careful sips of the thickened air.
(with me... stay)
Leave … I needed to leave. So hot. I can't breathe!
He moved close enough to touch, and I could see where blackened
fissures split his glossy skin, centers glowing with internal
fire. The horror of what he was filled me as I struggled one last
time to resist but failed to break away. A soft moan escaped my lips and
only in my mind, I began to scream...
(stay)
Dear God, I please let me leave.
Something wet and horrible touched my neck, scraping past my ear. I
shuddered with pain as his jagged tongue shredded the skin below my
face. I could feel the hot blood streaming down my neck.
(with me...)
I needed to leave...oh God, I needed to leave...why did I ...
(stay)
Give a Dragon, capture a
heart
