The Terror

            "Did you hear something?" Charlie asked, his eyes alert.

            "No," Alison replied. "Did you?"

            Just then an ear-piercing shriek ripped through the cool evening air, making their blood run cold. They knew of only one creature that could make that awful noise.

            "Run!" Alison screamed, but it was too late.

            The creature's powerful talons ripped into Charlie's body and lifted him forcefully off of the ground. Charlie's screams rang in her ears, being echoed by her own screams of horror. “No!!!” she screamed at the monster hovering above her. The monster most commonly known as the Terror.

            The Terror just laughed in that terrifyingly evil laugh of his, and flew off, his enormous wings flapping dangerously close to her head as he flew over her. This is all my fault. She thought glumly as she wandered back over to the cave where they had made their camp.

            She kicked the cave walls until her foot started throbbing, then she flung herself down on the cave floor and looked out at the never-ending wilderness. My brother is gone because of me. He was taken by the Terror. What am I going to tell Mom and Dad? Will I ever be able to face them again?

            Charlie and Alison had heard rumors and stories about the Terror, passed down from generation to generation, but no one really believed them. But she did. She let her imagination get the best of her, and she left the village to find him. She wanted to slay him, to prove he was real. She wasn’t going to bring Charlie, it was too dangerous. But he begged and begged, so she let him come along. Such a fool I am.

            So I’m just going to sit here and mope? She asked herself. She flung her sack of food over one shoulder and got a firm grip on her sword with her free hand, and headed out into the forest, determination flooding through her veins. No, I’m going to find Charlie. Dead or alive, I’m going to find him and slay the Terror.

            Night was falling quickly, which made it harder to see, but she kept moving forward, in the direction she last saw the Terror disappear to. I will find him. She told herself over and over. I will find him.

            Wandering through Dragon Forest was not an easy thing to do, especially in the middle of the night. The towering trees were so thick that they prevented most of the dim moonlight from entering the forest, and she jumped at the slightest noises, like night critters that crept and slithered on the ground and through the trees. Common dragons flew overhead and hid in thick patches of shrubbery. She had a few of them back home. She was a Speaker of the Dragons, so she was the only one who could talk to them or go near them. She thought about trying to tame a few and bring them along, but she knew they wouldn’t help much. They were too skittish. So she continued on her journey to find the Terror alone.

            The Terror is said to be the last of the Great Dragons, but most people don’t believe it. Most people don’t believe that Great Dragons ever even existed, but she does. And she was right about the Terror. He is real, and he is even mightier than she expected. But he isn’t evil. He had a reason for attacking Charlie. They were getting dangerously close to his egg, and he was protecting it. She wanted to kill him. She wanted to slay him, but he had a child. An egg so warm and pure. She couldn’t slay him, but she did have to get her brother back.

            Alison had been so lost in thought that she hadn’t even noticed the silence. She turned her head towards the sky and squinted. There were no common dragons flying overhead. She listened carefully, but there was no sound. Every creature in the area had retreated.

            Just then, she heard another shriek in the distance, and a great, blazing fire illuminated Dragon Forest. The Terror was close, very close. She clutched her sword tighter and darted in the direction of the fire, branches whacking her face as she ran. She ran full speed, despite the burning in her legs and the painful pounding in her chest. She ran, despite the achy feeling of her lungs trying desperately to take in air. She had to find her brother, before it was too late.

            Tears welled in her eyes as Charlie’s screams grew louder and closer. What is he doing to him? She thought, letting the tears stream down her dirty, sweaty face. The screams grew louder and louder, then suddenly came to a stop. There was silence once again. Oh, no. She sprinted faster. Oh, no, no, no!

            She came across this large clearing and was nauseated at what she saw. Charlie lay crumpled on the ground, an ever-growing puddle of crimson blood surrounding him, and beside him sat the Terror, in all of his terrifying glory. He’s so beautiful! She thought to herself. But he hurt Charlie.

            Alison gathered up all of her courage and marched right up to the Terror, trying to hide the fear in her eyes. “What have you done to my brother?!” she shouted, her voice wavering despite her efforts to be tough.

            The Terror looked down at Alison, his expression twisting into anger. “You dare enter my territory?” he questioned, his loud, forceful voice rumbling through the trees.

            “Why did you hurt him?” she asked, but she already knew the answer.

            “He crossed onto my territory, as did you.”

            The heat radiating from his immense body burned Alison as he leaned in, bringing his head down close to hers. She tried to back away, but her legs were paralyzed from fear. “You are a Speaker of the Dragons,” he said, sniffing the air around her. “I can smell it.”

            Alison stared at the Terror, wide eyed, and he took that moment of distraction to knock the sword from her hand with his tail. There was a sizzling noise, and then an ear-splitting scream as Alison drew her arm back, dropping the sword. Blisters and burns lined the back of her swelling hand. The Terror huffed smoke in her shocked face, making her cough hysterically and fall to the ground with a hard thud. “Listen!” Alison screamed in desperation as the Terror drew in a deep breath, preparing for the final blow.

            The Terror stopped and glanced in her direction.

            “We didn’t know you had an egg!” she had to shout for the Terror to hear her. “I’m sorry! Please let us go!”

            The Terror laughed. “Let you go? So you can go tell all of the villagers and knights about me? So they can kill my baby?!”

            “No! I’ll make you a deal! If you let us go, I won’t tell anyone you exist. I promise.”

            “Humans aren’t worthy of my trust.”

            “Please!” she screamed, desperation gleaming in her eyes.

            The Terror thought for a second, then answered, “I will let you and your brother go, but if I find out you are lying, I will destroy your village and kill everyone, including you and your brother.”

            Alison sighed in huge relief, then rushed over to her brother. “Charlie?” she called softly.

            “Uuuuuughh...” he moaned, his voice strained and barely audible.

            “I’m going to take you home. We’re going home now,” she whispered, gently rubbing her fingers through his curly blonde hair.

            She lifted him carefully off of the ground, cringing at the pain in her hand. The Terror stood behind her, eyeing her coldly as she staggered off into the distance, praying her brother was going to live.

            Dawn had just broken when she finally arrived back at the village, carrying her brother in her arms. The villagers heading to work spotted her and rushed to her aid. One villager carefully lifted Charlie out of her arms and rushed him to the villager’s nurse. As soon as Charlie left her arms, she fell to the ground, breathing heavily and unevenly, trying hard not to black out. “What happened?” she heard one villager ask, but the words sounded slurred and distant.

            “Is she okay?”

            “Someone take her to the nurse!”

            “You’re going to be okay.”

            The villagers’ voices slowly faded as she felt herself slipping into the world of darkness.

            When Alison awoke again, her hand was bandaged and she was lying in a small bed in the small hospital. She groggily lifted her head and looked around, snapping to full alert mode when she saw Charlie on the other side of the room in a bed identical to hers, bandaged from his head to his toes. Their parents were sitting on the floor next to his bed, crying. Alison felt her throat getting tight and sniffed, trying to hold back her tears. At the sound of the sniff, her parents rushed over to her bed, their teary eyes showing nothing but concern and relief. “Oh, my baby!” her mom cried, squeezing her good hand.

            “We were so worried when we saw that you were gone,” her dad said, the low timbre of his voice comforting her.

            “Where did you go?” mom asked. “What happened?”

            She sighed and tried to come up with a lie, but what could have injured Charlie like that besides a dragon? “Um, we heard something in Dragon Forest, and we went to check it out. It sounded like people. When we got out there, we found out that it was people. We asked them if they needed help, and they shook their heads, then they whispered to some common dragons behind them and they attacked us. I tried to stop the dragons, but they wouldn’t listen. I’m so sorry! We should have never left.”

            Alison’s mom gasped, and her dad said, “Well, at least you’re okay. Charlie’s injured pretty bad, but he’s going to be okay too.”

            “Are they still out there, the people?” her mom asked, her voice sounding angry.

            “No,” she explained, “they left after they attacked us. We don’t know why they did it, but they did. Maybe they were trying to protect something.”

            “Should we find them?” her dad asked.

            “No, just let them go.” Alison answered.

            This time both parents sighed. “If you say so,” they said in unison.

            Alison smiled contentedly. She was safe. Charlie was safe. Her family was safe. The village was safe. She had done it. She had won.