Fledging

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

                I jumped up, brandishing the weapon in front of me.  I was ready to defend myself from the strange skaal approaching me and I hoped that my attack would catch them by surprise.  I was fortunate to see a flash of surprise flit across the light scaled face of my adversary who was still striding forward, yards away.

                “Araceli, stop!”

I ignored Dakarai’s warning, continuing my charge towards the skaal who was just beginning to snap out of her surprise.

A sudden force slammed into my chest, causing the air to rush out, stopping me in my tracks and throwing me to the earth.  I struggled to get to my claws and almost fell over again, becoming dizzy from the lack of oxygen.  My lungs finally began working six long seconds after impact and I gasped at the air greedily as I watched the skaal come closer.

This is how it ends, I thought.  There was no way I could fight off two skaal, I wasn’t that strong.  I gripped my blade tighter, knowing I wouldn’t make the fight easy for them at least.

                “Halt your attack!”  Confusion flitted across the face of the blue scaled skaal as they turned towards Dakarai.

Now’s my chance! I flipped the knife around and dove at my attacker.  Seeing my movements, she turned around and swatted the knife away, clawing my arm in the process and causing me to fall again.   She was just about to land another blow to me when suddenly, an inferno of fire consumed her figure.  I flinched back as I tried to escape the heat of the flames.

Dakarai slowly approached the skaal who was trying to shake off the flames that were beginning to die out, her scales showing no signs of the flames that had just engulfed them. 

                “You see, I can’t have you do that.  Annoying though she may be, it is my duty to protect this hatchling.”  Dakarai grabbed her victim by the throat and lifted them off the ground.  The stranger’s limbs began to flail as they attempted to pry the purple hands away from their throat.  Dakarai sighed as she glanced over at me, still sitting on the ground.

                “I really wish you hadn’t come here, Araceli, I could have sent Ora here on her way.  Instead, I’m going to have to end her here.”

I watched in terrified confusion as Dakarai returned her attention to the blue scaled skaal and lifted her higher, choking the life out of her.

                “Stop!”

Dakarai turned to look at me, and only then did I realize that I had spoken out.

                “You wish her to return to her superiors and tell them of our location and of your presence?  If she does, I will lose my place as a double agent, something that is not easy to come by in skaal ranks.”

                “No but, do you really have to kill her?”  My voice sounded strange, even to me.  It croaked and sounded distant, as if someone else had taken over my voice and altered it.

                “I thought you had no feelings for us skaal, where is this mercy coming from?  You hate our kind, is that not true?”

                “It is… I mean it was… I mean… Look, I don’t know.  What I do know is that I’ve seen enough pointless death and torment to last me for a long time and if I can stop someone from suffering then I should, no matter who it is.”  I gritted my teeth, fingers digging into the earth below me as I adverted my glance from the duo.