Weight Loss for Dragons- The beginning…

Enter the Lair

The adventurer raced through the driving rain, keeping just ahead of her pursuers on the muddy trail.  She could hear the orcs’ shouts as they called to each other to cut off her escape.  There was little time left, she didn’t know if she had the energy to get to safety.  Her lungs burned, her muscles ached.  There it was!  A small crack in the rock.  An orc appeared behind her, swinging an axe.  She could see his teeth gnash as she slipped into the tunnel.  It was almost too small for her, and she scraped her skin as she pushed through, the buttons on her vest coming off.  The orc roared, too big to follow her, trying to stab at her with his axe, then she was on the other side and the passage opened up.  It took her a long time to catch her breath. She ran along in the darkness, stumbling and feeling her way.  It was warm in this tunnel, surprisingly so.  

When she reached the end of the tunnel she almost fell out into the massive cavern.  Gold gleamed in a dim light from high above.  She caught her balance, taking a step back, for she saw, in the darkness, a massive shape curled around the gold.  One golden eye opened a slit, and she tried not to breathe.  It was a dragon, with blue and green scales, reclining on a pile of gold.  

“Well, I know you are there.  Tell me why I should not kill you.”  The dragon opened both eyes, slowly raising her head.

“Oh great one, I beg your mercy.  I have come here to see you, to talk with you.  I hear that you are wise, that you know the secrets of the universe.”

“Flattery.  You are here to steal my gold.  I have no use for smoke blowing.” The dragon suddenly whipped her head around, stopping inches from the adventurer.  

“No, truly!  The treasure I seek is knowledge!  I want-“ the adventurer stopped, embarrassed to go on.

“What?”

“I want to be like the great warriors of old.  I want to know how to become powerful.” The adventurer said softly.  She looked down at her body, sighing.  She knew her muscles were soft, her belly round.  She knew that she could not have lasted five seconds fighting off those orcs if they had caught her.  She had almost gotten killed because she had been too big for the tunnel.

The dragon pulled back her head, eyeing the adventurer thoughtfully. 

“Hmm.  Well, I was feeling a little bored, and this could be interesting.” she said, repositioning her wings.  A small cascade of gold tinkled down as she shifted.  “ I reserve the right to kill you, if you prove to be insincere.”

“Yes, great one, I promise to follow your guidance!”  The adventurer clasped her hands together in delight.  Finally someone would help her!

“We shall see.” The dragon said, chuckling. “I often find people don’t like the wisdom I impart.”