Flight of the Rocket Ripper: Chapter 5


  I screamed again, I think, but the wind around me ripped the noise from my throat before I could hear it. Everything below me was a blur. Literally, I mean, I don't think I've ever seen or heard of anything so fast. This dragon could have raced one of my knives as I threw it and won.


  I still didn't know what type of dragon it was at that point. Have you ever ridden on something so fast, you couldn't move? Well it was like that with me in the dragon's grip. My head was pinned by the momentum with my chin against my chest. I wouldn't have looked up if I could, though. If the speed hadn't paralyzed me, the utter terror of having a dragon touch me, much less get close to me, much less SEE one all alone in the woods would have. I didn't want to know.


  One or two people have asked me, "What were you thinking when the dragon scooped you up and flew away with you?"


Well let's see if I can remember.

  I'm pretty sure I was thinking "AHHHH! AHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHH, AIEEE, AAAAUUUGH!".


 Yeah, that's about it.


  I'm serious! When you're as scared as I was, it's like your fear yanks your brains out and stuffs panic into it's place.


  When the dragon picked me up, the crazy thing was that I hadn't heard it's wings flap. It was just all of a sudden THERE. I only heard whistling wind, like an arrow, and then it grabbed me. It snatched me by the shoulders, by the way, and my legs and back felt like they were getting ripped apart.


  I shrieked again, and we must have been slowing down, because I heard it this time. I was about to try to pry the beast's talons off of me, but seeing how high up we were, I decided against it. Falling would not be good.



  There was a loud roar above me, like the dragon was answering. I yelped and shut my eyes tight, hyperventilating. Not good, not good! As the speed decreased, my thoughts ran a little better.


  A dragon is carrying me away. I'll never see my Aunt or Uncle again. I'll miss Dragon Training. No one will look for me; they're looking for the Helm. It's too fast, they won't see me. Who cares, because it'll eat me before anyone realizes I'm gone. Where is it taking me? How will it kill me? What kind is it?


  The surroundings quit blurring as we slowed just a little more. The dragon was diving through the skies straight at a big cave in the side of some random mountain. How far have we gone? Who can tell, with how fast this thing is?



  I tried to look over my shoulder and got a glimpse of it's scaly arms. They were steely blue, like a Deadly Nadder's, but I can see another set of legs behind it's front ones,  so it's not a Nightmare either, and they're shaped like a Night Fury's.


  But Toothless is the only Night Fury, and they come in black, not blue. It's tail isn't right for a Night Fury. But if it isn't a Night Fury, how is it going so fast?!


  I could feel my heart pounding and screamed again, unable to help it. As I turned back around in it's claws, I just had time to register that we'd reached the cave before the dragon let go.


  My yelp was cut off as the momentum threw me forward, into the mouth of the cave and I hit the stone floor on my shoulder, rolling over and over and over until I was completely disoriented and hit the back of the cave wall with enough force that I thought I'd broken my spine, and all of the breath hissed out of me.


  The dragon catapulted in after me, not slowing down. For such a fast flier, it's landing was horrible. When it tried to catch itself on it's legs, it's speed completely carried it off of it's feet and it rolled, too, long wings wrapping around it like a cocoon and it's pointed tail tangling with it's back legs.


  As I sat, desperately wanting to run but still catching my breath, the dragon skidded to a halt clumsily on it's chin until it's snout was three inches from my boot.


  I tried to scramble to my feet, but I wobbled. I don't know if it was the shock or the fact that my whole body still felt like it was flying at top speed. It felt like when you first get on a boat and you haven't gotten used to the way it pitches up and down. Even if I'd only been airborne at such a rush for a few minutes, my body hadn't gotten used to being on solid ground again.



  The dragon opened it's eyes staring straight at me, and I froze. We got a good look at each other.


  I'd never seen a dragon like this one. At least as long as a small hut and a bit more than half as tall as one, it had an upside-down-waves-like pattern from the end of it's snout to the tip of it's tail. The top half of the pattern was dark blue, while the underside, his legs, his stomach and the lower half of his face and snout were lighter gray-blue. It had round scales, except for on it's neck and wings--the neck and belly had longer, arrow-shaped ones--all over it's body, and they got smaller around it's eyes, spikes and nostrils. The nostrils were thin and tipped.

  It's head had a grand total of fourteen horns on it. The two longest were a more gray dark blue, like the wings, and they stuck out from the back corners of it's head like a deer's antlers, only straight. Then the other darker, navy blue spikes were more randomly set, like a Deadly Nadder's, on his head.  Two little stringy thin spikes extended from the outside corners of it's eyebrows. There were three more twisted spikes, also navy blue, sprouting from the side edges of it's cheeks. There was one nose spike on the end of it's longish, smooth round snout.

  It's legs, like I said, were shaped like Toothless's, but longer and thinner. It had five toes on the back feet and four on the front. The claws were curved and sharp,  navy blue as well. It had a row of wavy, dark thin spikes like a Monstrous Nightmare's, only shorter, down it's back. It had super long wings, like a Night Fury, but rounder. As it peeled it's lips back to snarl at me, I could see it had dark pink gums and round teeth, except for two very sharp fangs that were longer than the others near the front of it's mouth.


  I didn't know what breed it was, but let me tell you, that is so NOT what I was thinking about right then. My eyes were locked on the dragon's, heart pounding, head reeling, unable to breathe or squeak or blink or even form a coherent thought. Somewhere at the back of my mind an instinct was urging me to move, but honestly, who has time to listen to the voice in your head when you're about to be eaten?!


  Totally transfixing. That's how I would describe it's eyes. They were big, round, and yellow, with veins of gold and pale lemon, a ring of bronze-like brown around the deep black, slit shaped pupil. They almost glowed. It was like the reptilian pupils were sucking me in, a vacuum for my gaze.


  Once again, the fact that it blinked probably saved me. I tore my gaze away and adrenaline helped me to move despite the fear that threatened to make me faint. I gasped for air and stumbled to my feet, wildly looking around the cave for escape as the dragon growled and got up, shaking it's impressive body.


  There! A convenient little crevice in the wall. There was another, much larger one, but it wouldn't do because the dragon would be able to follow. Besides, the smaller one was nearest. The dragon was blocking the way we'd come in, but my only thought was to get out of reach at that point. One thing at a time, here, people.


  I staggered in that direction, almost tripping as I frantically looked over my shoulder, panting, at the beast.

  It had regained it's footing and roared at me deafeningly, as if to yell, 'Where do you think you're going?!'

  I ducked and yelped as it opened it's mouth. Instead of breathing a burst of flame or a ball of plasma or even acid, It spewed a long, crude spear shape from it's throat, like a shard from a tree that was on fire. It stank like burning decay. Had that glowing ember come from it's STOMACH?!


  The long torpedo-ish flame struck the wall and splintered, showering sparks down on me as I reached the crack in the wall.


  Thank goodness, I just barely fit, and just in time. It was blasting more fiery stomach-spears at me, though none managed to shoot into the crevice I was inching sideways into.


  I squeezed through the crack. It was really narrow, but at the back it hollowed out enough for me to turn and face the opening.


  Through the slit of the rest of the cave I could see, the dragon slipped in front of my entrance, peering at me sideways with one golden eye and roaring indignantly that it's prey had escaped.


  But I hadn't really gotten away at all. Once you got through the crevice, there was only a little space if I curled up with my knees to my chin, and it was a dead end. The crack didn't even run very deep into the wall. If it wasn't so thin and if the beast's arm was a little longer, it would have had me. As it was, I was only barely out of the dragon's reach. Trapped.w

  I sank to the stone floor in the cramped space, wincing and gasping for air. I locked eyes with the dragon again as it tried to claw it's way into the space, but its arm would hardly fit through. Its claws seemed to be desperately aiming for...what? My chest? My