What will happen to our heroine today? Read on! Here’s part five…
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She removed a light, metal mesh sheath from within the saddle bag and covered the head of the torch, extinguishing it. She could smell smoke and burnt pitch emitting from the sheath as she bent over and placed it on the ground behind a large rock. Next to it she placed the leather satchel. She slowly removed her sword from its scabbard, trying not to make a sound, and gripped the finely wired handle with both hands. Holding it ready before her, she slowly crept forward into the glowing chamber. The smell of soot hung heavily in the air; a byproduct of the smoky haze that floated lazily along the high ceiling. The room was enormous. It stretched for what seemed to be miles on every side, dwarfing the royal chambers in her castle. In the middle of the expanse was an unfathomable pile of riches. Gold pieces and goblets littered the smooth, marbled floor of the room; steel and silver mail from fallen warriors of kings and queens long past lay about like trophies. Prizes from all reaches formed pillars as high as the ceiling in places, giving the chamber the appearance of an enormous golden city. In the middle of it all lay the beast.
She was no small creature. This dragon was a behemoth. Her legs were the size of the most ancient trees in the forest. Her gargantuan horned head was easily twice the size of an armored warhorse. The great lizard lay atop of a mound of gold and jewels far greater than any man could amass in a lifetime. Her scales were a pale pearl color, which reflected the colors of the treasure beneath her monstrous torso, making it difficult to tell where the treasure stopped and the dragon began. Swirls of blues and purples shimmered along her back and sides, almost mesmerizing the young heroine and giving the great monster an almost distorted appearance as it breathed. Between the two curled horns on either side of her massive head were the eyes of a killer. They glowed in a fierce, deep red. There were no pupils to disrupt the color, making them look like a passage of sorts to the depths of a fiery hell. Those who had encountered this dreaded monster and lived told stories of those eyes; every one of them describing the terrifying feeling of her staring at their very soul. She was magnificent and beautiful creature, indeed, but ill tempered and highly deadly.
The girl bravely stepped forward into the room, knowing that there was no avoiding the inevitable. The dragon lifted her head and cocked it slightly to the side. Her enormous clawed feet slowly crossed each other and she looked at the girl in an almost quizzical manner. Following her movement without turning her head any further, she watched her come forward into the opening and stop short. The dragon’s voice sounded like rocks grating against each other.
“You are awfully brave, young lady fair… or very foolish. I have yet to decide which the case is.”
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So? Brave or foolish? Find out tomorrow!
Treasure picture retrieved from https://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QfmJ2RGFgcE/TS9VavNIodI/AAAAAAAABCw/9qJSio9Jcqs/s1600/TreasurePile_Shot_HUGEST_Wide.jpg
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