The Dragon Warrior

Chapter 3

Orange, red and yellow flames were swirling all around Noah. Bruises of varying colours dotted his back. Black spots flickered around his line of vision as he looked frantically around for his sister. He didn't know if she was in his vicinity.

He spotted her making her way towards him, seemingly unharmed. Noah looked at himself. A long burn stretched across his left forearm, but otherwise he seemed to be fine.

Emma helped him up and guided him out of the flaming grass and littering debris. He stared at her.

"How did you do that?"

Emma looked down at her ash-covered hands. "I don't know."

And before Noah could puzzle his sister's sudden capability at magic, he and his sister were hoisted up by their jackets and thrown back into the flames.

The beast was making it's way towards them, snarling and spitting. Unlike them, the beast's skin seemed to be made out of burns. They seemed to make him more angry than hurt.

He was moving quickly, with a sword longer than Noah's arm, heading towards Emma with a look that could've quelled a lion. Noah shoved Emma out of the way and grabbed a plank of wood from the broken caboose. The beast was now upon them.

He cleaved the sword down straight at Noah's head, but Noah's head wasn't there anymore. He had swerved to the right and hit the beast across the back with the wood.

While it didn't have much force behind it, it seemed to pull the beast's focus away from Emma. He swung his sword again, at Noah's left side. Noah ducked and kept backing away, away from his sister.

The beast growled in aggravation. He stabbed at Noah's chest and Noah blocked with the plank, getting the sword caught in the process. He yanked the board away and pulled out the sword.

At his touch, the sword glittered and shrank, it's blade becoming sharper. Emma sat up now, revived by the sword itself. She began muttering ancient words of which Noah knew no meaning.

The flames surrounding them came together and encircled the beast. The circle got smaller and smaller by the second - the beast was cornered.

As the flames licked up his body, his form became less distinct, as though he was turning to vapour. Noah took the opportunity to stab him with the sword.

It was though he was made of glass. As the beast shattered into a million pieces, Noah and Emma were left alone in the middle of a flaming battlefield.

When the fight was over, they immediately felt exhaustion drape over them like a blanket. The train was long gone.

They were all alone.

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They were a long way along the railroad before they stopped to rest; Noah and Emma were persistent children. But when they did lay themselves down on the hard gravel that surrounded the railroad, they fell asleep before their heads hit the ground.

The stars shone bright that night, but what woke them was the bright dawn of the sun, dazzling in their eyes. Their light eyes. As they moved along, Noah thought of what the beast-man had said. "Did you not see their eyes?" And then after that, Livingston: "They are the light-eyed ones?"

Noah thought about it. He realized he had never seen anyone other than themselves that did not have black or brown eyes. He had always assumed it was because there was next to no one in each camp.

He didn't know what to do. Now that they were out in the open, they were in danger. Emma seemed to read his thoughts.

"We can disguise ourselves."