Dragon

By the time I stepped outside, the leaves were on fire. The buildings were quick to follow and the screams that would never truly end for me were indicative that things far more valuable than mere possessions were fuelling those flames as well.

 I suppose I was lucky that my parents had already died peaceful deaths, and that my sister had moved away to live with her fancy man two towns over. I had nothing to lose but the bakery. I was lucky further still that I knew it wasn’t worth saving. As I ran through the streets, I saw many more unfortunate than myself. Burdened by loved ones, and greed. How I had envied their connections that would now cost them their very lives.

Perhaps it was worth it. One could argue that even now as the flames broke them down into their base components that they had lived more than I. Perhaps those cherished bonds were worth dying for because without them you were not living anyway. Is it, in other words, quality or quantity that matters? I imagine a similar thought was going through the minds of the old men so ladened with riches that they could scarcely walk.

I ran on and didn’t stop to turn about when I felt the scoldingly hot air blow against my back. When the screams of pain were eclipsed by screams of terror my curiosity stayed it objections and I stayed my course. Even the sound of some monstrous wings beating above my head was not enough to sway me, though the drops of blood that fell from above did make me faulter. My goal, and my sanctuary lay ahead. Most people were running the other way. To escape the flames, they tried to escape the town. I had a better plan, that’s why I was one of the survivors.

The town square, and in it, the well. It was cool and dark down there and my childhood told me it was possible to climb out should one descend in search of other people’s wishes. It was at that moment the church spire collapsed ahead of me, barring the path and almost putting an end to me. Its fall crumbled the ancient stone work of the holy building. I darted inside. There, huddled among the pews were familiar and unfamiliar faces huddled together. Children were pressed into the safer recesses while determined parents stood guard. Rich ladies and serving girls clung together, fear dissolving the boundaries that had never physically existed each now longing only for the comfort and security of each other. Neither rags nor gold would offer protection from the flame. Those children would never leave the alcoves, and that embrace would never end.

The door was barred but I could see a jagged hole where an ornate stained-glass window had once stood. I climbed a table and vaulted through the sharp portal landing heavily in the church grounds. Lush green vegetation peppered with bright flowers stood as an oasis in the crimson chaos. The land had all been like this not long ago. The plants and animals grew plump in the long mellow summer evenings in a world that now seemed so far away. The smoke in the air served as harbinger to what would come to these flowers. A part of me was desperate to cling to my fellows and seek security in numbers. Another part still, wanted me to stay among the daffodils, to enjoy what was left of the calm lazy days, but as one must work in case of hard times ahead, I too resolved that I must strive for the hardship that would soon consume this place.

I ran from shelter to shelter as debris fell from roof tops. Stopping to assess my next move like the indecisive yet industrious squirrels that once laboured in the trees that now succumb to the orange tide.  I made my way back to the square and the well was in site. No amount of burning from my muscles or from the nightmare above would stop me running. I did not stop to climb in but simply leapt and let my momentum carry me to safety. The adrenalin numbed my hands and feet as they grinded against the stonework to control my decent. Safety at last.

The dry heat of the world faded to a cold and wet existence. The orange and yellows of the flames above seemed to scar the sky with their image. The sounds and smells grew muffled and faint and the cold cut ever deeper into my flesh. I waited what felt like an age until everything grew silent and stars began bravely peeking through the smoky shroud above. Numb fingers laboured at the stone to build my freedom from a sanctuary that was beginning to feel more like a prison. The climb was slow, but I was grateful for it as I didn’t entirely want to reach the summit.

I poked my head above the parapet to see a different world than the one I left. Snowflakes of ash fell softly all around. The streets and what remained of rooves were buried in white dunes a stark contrast to the black timbers and trees that jutted out from this blanket. Nightfall had brought with it a chill to the air and I half expected to see children sledding through the street. The ash crunched pleasantly underfoot and hid most of the evening’s sins. Buildings all around had crumbled and blocked most of the paths, the only easy exit seemed to be the now open door of the church.

Climbing the dozen or so steps to the door felt more difficult than my climb in the well because I suspected I knew what lay inside. As I had predicted there, where I had left them, locked together in fear, were shapes that had once been people. The ash was working hard to bury the ugly site, and had blessedly gathered in the dark recesses at the back where stoic figures still stood guard over the dunes. I knew what lay within them but even now I will not speak of it.

I began walking the silent streets, aiming to leave and never return when I saw her. The only other survivor. She was covered in filth and her face leaking crimson, the only colour in the monotone world. Her face as white as the fake snow about us, due to shock or blood loss I didn’t know.

“I’m sorry”, she said and I looked around at the street I had known a lifetime. The taverns I had never cavorted in. The benches on which I had never stolen a kiss from ill-advised lovers who were now long gone. I thought of the many opportunities that had been missed in order to prepare for the future.

“So am I” I replied.

The End