Writing Prompt for Wednesday, August 17, 2016
WEDNESDAY
STORIES is part of Inner Sunshine hosted by Debb Stanton
Go
to her blog for submission guidelines.
This
week we have two photos as our prompt for a story in the realms of fantasy – maximum
of 500 words.
This
is not my usual genre so I struggled a little bit with this.
Photos courtesy of Tom Lucas
THE RETURN
Argon looked into the distance and beheld his
city, ravaged by war. He had been absent
for ten long years. Now he was
returning, knowing in his mind that things would never be the same again,
hoping against hope that his love would be waiting for him, after a decade’s
absence he wasn’t optimistic.
He wouldn’t blame Lyla if she hadn’t waited for
him. He’d thought of asking her to marry
him but realised how selfish it would be to bind her to someone who may never
return from war.
He felt the tender, cooling touch of B’lor, her
tendrils stroked his thoughts as he conjoined with his dragon.
It’s not what I’d described to you, my dear.
It is your home, dear Argon.
B’lor looked fierce but beneath that fearsome
exterior was a heart of gold, a true leader.
She led her retinue of young dragons with a firm but guiding wing. Argon watched her brood whirl above him in
the skies of his beloved homeland.
He sent thanks to the Goddess of Gold who had
predicted this moment several years ago.
He had learnt so much during his travels. There was so much more to learn. First though
he had to persuade his people about dragons and their ways and then introduce
them to the ways of the Goddess of Gold. This was his mission so that his race
could enter into a spiritual realm. His people could advance and, hopefully,
begin to live in peace.
The annual ceremony celebrating the Goddess of
Gold had frightened him at first. He was
not a coward and would fight anybody to the death if necessary but this was
beyond his comprehension. The day had
started with ritual cleansing. As an
observer – they refused to say he was a captive – he watched spell after spell
incanted through the daylight hours. A
procession then made its way to a secret glade deep in the forest. High priests and priestesses sat in silent
meditation for a few hours.
He was certain there were hallucinogenic drugs in
the drinks and food, not overpowering but enough to make everything seem rather
surreal. His mind and body relaxed into
an easy posture as the chanting began.
An amazing sight beheld him as the Goddess of
Gold appeared to all before her. She
singled him out, speaking directly into his mind. He saw images flash before him, he felt emotions
slam into him, he felt heartache, betrayal and treason from those he thought
were with him.
Then he was uplifted and his emotions became
joyful, loving and trusting. B’lor came
before him, as their eyes met, his green and steady, hers whirling with a myriad
of colours, they bonded in a way he had never known before.
It took the unlikely pair, leading a group of
dragons with a raggle-taggle band of loyal soldiers, several months to make
their way back to their home, and hopefully a new home for the dragons and
himself.
Word count: 497
I think you did wonderful with it. A charming story to read.
ReplyDeletebetty
Sally, I really enjoyed your story of B'lor and the Goddess of Gold. You've done well for writing in another genre. :-)
ReplyDelete