Black Fog and Scales -Joshler-

A Dark Shadow

We want it dead, bring us the head.

That's what they said when they payed Josh.

He'd come through this small town on the edge of the woods because he'd heard it was being terrorized by a dragon and, well, he was by definition a dragon slayer. But when he'd gotten into the centre of the city it all seemed to be in order.

No smouldering piles of burned down houses, no crying mothers willing to pay anything to get their stolen children back; no destruction at all, as far as Josh could see. Although, that wasn't very far, considering the thick, black fog that enveloped the entire town.

It felt heavy and gloomy and it trailed around your skin like water. It wasn't smoke; it didn't choke you or burn your eyes, it was just... gloomy.

As soon as Josh had made his presence known to the mayor, he'd been handed a rather large bag of gold coins and told to dispose of the horrid creature as quickly as possible. Josh had headed out right away after that. Even though the people of the town were being intimidated by this dragon, they seemed to be even more unwelcoming and rude to strangers than he'd ever seen before.

Now, as Josh stood on the cliff below the mouth of a cave, black fog hanging thick around him, he couldn't help but wonder to himself. What kind of dragon was this, and what it must have done to warrant such hatred from the towns people? Surly it wasn't just the fog that had given the beast such a terrible reputation. That was livable at least, and it didn't seem like anyone else had tried to stop it before. Josh now wished he had actually spent another night or two in the town, just to gather information.

He fidgeted with his chain-mail and hefted his bag over his shoulder more securely. He could hardly see at all; it was almost night fall and the fog wasn't helping either. He finally decided to play it safe and set up camp for the night. Dragons were most active at night and Josh liked to go after them in day light when they were tired and slow. Some knights chose to attack at night because they felt it held more honour; Josh just liked to stay alive.

He rolled out his sleeping mat and lay down, pushing his bag under his head to act as a pillow, and holding his sword at his side. He slowly started to think of all the dragon types he knew to calm his nerves. He was never this nervous before an attack. Sure, he was always scared of getting killed, but at this very moment, he was more scared of not knowing what type of dragon this was than anything.

Snap Nose: short snout, acidic breath- cross that off the list, his flesh was still on his bones.

Tilly Wig: long snout, nature properties- not that either...

Perhaps it's a new breed? Something undiscovered before now? Was Josh about to find a new species of dragon... And kill it..? His stomach flipped in discomfort. He rolled onto his back and stared up at the sky, at the stars that shone bright enough to be seen through the fog. He told himself that he should probably get some sleep, but his brain wouldn't be silenced.

Eventually, after hours of staring into the black heavens, Josh's eyes started to droop and he pulled his cloak more securely over himself. Just as sleep was about to take him, something large flew overhead on vast wings. Josh sat bolt upright and stared as the beast's tail disappeared into the mouth of the cave above. It actually looked smaller than most dragons Josh had seen, but no less imposing. He knew he wouldn't be getting anymore sleep that night, so he pushed himself up against the side of the cliff and stared out at the night, reorganized his bag and sharpened his sword.

At day break, a low noise broke Josh out of his half conscious slump and he immediately jumped up off the ground and drew his sword. The noise was like a wolf's howl; loud and long and heartbreaking, and somehow almost... Human?

The noise carried on a couple more times, but with each long note, it became more distant, like the creature was moving away. Josh knew it was the dragon. What else could make that noise? And besides, it was coming from right above him, in the large cave. The howl became more melodic as it moved away, like a human voice, singing a long note. It was really quite beautiful, but Josh didn't drop his sword.

More fog crept over the edge of the cliff face and Josh made a quick decision. Sliding the sword back into its scabbard, Josh quickly climbed the last few feet of cliff and finally stood directly in front of the dragon's cave. The note from before started to shift, and soon it sounded like the voice of a man, singing.

'Someone's been taken.' was Josh's first thought, and he drew his sword again. The dragon must be keeping him as entertainment. Josh's blood boiled, and he crept carefully towards the noise. It was dark in the cave but Josh could just see a light flickering around a bend. The man's voice slowly tapered off and then there was coughing and spluttering. Josh ran around the bend, sword raised, a battle cry stuck in his throat, but he didn't see the dragon.

What he did see was a half-clothed man, hunched over, coughing up what appeared to be black smog. When Josh had run forward, the man reeled back and away, moving towards the wall and looking frantic.

"It's okay! You're alright, I'll get you out of here and then finish the beast off myself," despite Josh's gentle yet demanding words, the man seemed to be trying to escape farther into the cave, head tilted down.

Josh stepped forward to try and see him a bit better, "Please, I'm only trying to help."

In a small croak of a voice, the man responded, "Could you please leave..."

That's when Josh actually stopped and gave this man a good look. He wasn't very tall, maybe a couple inches taller than himself, and he was thinner too; less muscle. He looked like he hadn't eaten properly in weeks. Josh's worry peaked again before he noticed the man's hands... And neck. And feet, for that matter. They were all caked in what appeared to be black ash, and on the end of each finger, a longish black talon curved from where a normal fingernail should be. The man was only wearing a pair of very old and well worn brown pants, and a black robe. Despite the dark fabric, Josh could still make out the mans flesh through it. It was covered in burns in strange patterns, and on one arm there were three black rings of varying thicknesses up and down its length. Josh's eyes moved from the man's shoulders to his hips in quick succession, where he could see black scales just cropping over the edges of his body.

All around the man's body the black fog hovered and swirled, drifting out of the man's mouth which was ajar with two sets of pointed teeth.

Josh drew his sword. He'd found a new species alright... But what was it?