All That Glitters

Alexander St. Clare was a normal boy by all accounts. Although orphaned at a young age, he had grown up in the care of many of the local townspeople. He was a model apprentice for the blacksmith and dreamed of one day owning his own tavern on the outskirts of town. Alexander may not have been the most popular amongst the town kids, and preferred the company of a good book to most, but in the town of Marais he was content.

Until news of the dragon came.

No one knew where it had come from, or even what it looked like. The rumors spread through Marais that a soldier from the king’s guard had happened upon it in the Northern Forest and was so frightened he could not offer a description. Without an accurate portrayal of the creature, fear was spreading quickly. Townspeople began to draw up their own posters of the dragon, and within a week dragon drawings abounded all over Marais.

Then came the royal decree from the palace. King Robert sent out a proclamation that a warrior would be chosen at random from Marais to defeat the dragon of the Northern Forest. It had been said that none in the king’s guard or the Marais army were willing or able to slay the creature, and King Robert was growing tired. With the townspeople clamoring over what was to be done, he knew it was only a matter of time before a riot. Or worse, an attempted coup.

Next to every poster of the dragon appeared King Robert’s posters, announcing that there would be a selection in the town square of the chosen warrior at noon. Alexander first saw it outside the blacksmith’s shop as a guard was affixing it to the post.

“Be in the square at noon today, boy. That’s a royal order, not a request.” The guard said, tipping his head at Alexander.

“Sir, I’m no warrior. I’m just an apprentice, and I have no skill with a sword.” Alexander replied, putting down his hammer. “What could I possibly do to slay a dragon?”

“Be there at noon, boy. That’s all.”

Alexander was taken aback by the energy of the crowd in the town square. Men, women, and children were gathered and tense. It was eerily quiet, save for the fluttering of the posters in the wind. A stage was erected in the center of the crowd, and from where Alexander was standing, he could see King Robert and his guardsmen atop it. The air was still until the king began to speak.

“People of Marais, we are gathered here to choose the victor to defeat the terrible dragon plaguing our land. All eligible men and boys have been collected and a name will be drawn now. Whoever is chosen must endeavor to save us from the beast.” The King stood and with him knelt his guardsmen. The townspeople held their breath, although Alexander felt his heart stop as well.

“Marais, your warrior shall be…..Alexander St. Clare!” King Robert roared, and the people of Marais erupted into cheers. Alexander was frozen still, his mouth open in disbelief. It couldn't be him, it must be a mistake. Alexander was not a warrior, he didn’t want to be. He wanted to be an apprentice and own a tavern, a quiet life with nothing dangerous to worry about.

But a dragon was definitely dangerous.

“Alexander, the King is calling for you!” A woman nudged him forward and Alexander found himself trudging through the crowd. King Robert stood at the end of the stage, and Alexander suddenly felt sick to his stomach.

“Alexander St. Clare?” The crowd went silent again, and waited with bated breath to hear the boy’s response. Alexander gulped and felt the knot in his stomach grow larger.

“Yes, your majesty.” He choked out, and the King turned to the guardsman at his right. Alexander could see that the man was holding a long silver sword and he knew where this was heading. The sword was clearly meant for him.

“On behalf of Marais, I thank you for your commitment to serving this town. The sword is yours, as is whatever other accouterments you may need for your mission. But the mission must be completed at all costs.” The King glowered and Alexander knew that all he could do now was accept the so-called gifts.

“Thank you, your majesty. I will do my best to make Marais proud.” Alexander took the sword as the townspeople clamored for their savior. But Alexander knew better than to believe that himself. He was no warrior, no savior at all.

He was just Alexander.

The following morning, Alexander rose with the dawn. After the gathering in the town square, he had run straight through the grateful crowd and thrown up in the alley behind the bakery. Alexander was a bundle of nerves, and the weight of the heavy silver sword strapped to his belt did not improve the matter. All he could imagine was bone melting fire and razor sharp teeth, which proved to be the common theme of all his nightmares that same night. Without so much as a wink of sleep, Alexander donned the armor loaned to him by the blacksmith and the royal sword. In the light of the sun, it glinted like a diamond and for a moment almost convinced Alexander that there was a modicum of hope for his mission. 

And then Alexander remembered who he was, and that he had never swung a sword in his life. 

“Courage, Alexander.” He whispered to nobody, as he stepped out into the empty streets. Alexander was thankful that no one else in Marais was awake at this hour, and that he could slip out of town unseen and without any fanfare. He would need the journey to the Northern Forest to be quiet and reflective, if he was going to be able to convince himself that he could make it out alive. 

As he trekked through the copse of trees along the border, Alexander noticed that the foliage was starting to get thinner and thinner. Although he hadn’t been this deep in the forest since he was a little boy, Alexander knew that this was abnormal. It appeared as if the leaves and branches were wilting. Not by fire, but by…

“Gems?”

The leaves were wilting and breaking under the weight of what looked like tiny gemstones. To Alexander’s eyes, there were hundreds of them. The trees were practically balking with shiny, beautiful stones. When he touched a nearby leaf, they felt like a shimmery dusting to the forest floor. Alexander had never seen so much beauty in the same place. 

But where was it coming from? And where was the dragon?

A few steps more confirmed his theory. The affected trees and limbs were like a trail, leading further into the depths of the forest. Alexander gripped the sword at his side and continued on, his ears trained on every sound. To his relief, the only audible sounds were the crunching of the leaves beneath his feet. But Alexander knew that was not a good omen. Where were all the animals? 

As soon as he had the thought, Alexander heard a noise. Not a bird, or a small animal. And certainly not a bear. The sound was foreign to him, and Alexander felt the hairs raise on the back of his neck. Every bone in his body told him to turn and run. He could steal away in the night and leave Marais for good. If the King’s army came looking for him, it would be a better death than fate at the mercy of a dragon. 

A hush fell over the forest. 

Just as Alexander decided to flee and abandon his mission, the trees around him began to quiver. The earth below him began to quake, and the leaves began to droop from the force. 

Footsteps, massive footsteps. 

There was nowhere to run, Alexander knew it was too late. A furtive glance confirmed the location of a bush to his right, and the reluctant warrior knew what to do. As quickly as he could, Alexander dove into the bush which he soon discovered was a mulberry bush. 

At least if I have to wait it out, I won’t starve to death.

From the corner of his eye, Alexander saw it.

There by the trees in front of him was the dragon. 

For all the posters hung up in Marais, Alexander could see none had done the creature justice. The dragon was enormous, at least 50 feet tall and with a wingspan unequal to anything Alexander could dream of. 

But what was most eye-catching were the dragons scales. 

The creature was almost iridescent, its scales colored like deep purple oil slicks. The dragon glowed in the sunlight, so brilliantly that Alexander was mesmerized. He had never seen a beast so fearsome but also as beautiful. 

Alexander watched from his hiding spot as the dragon sat down and shook like a dog in the rain. As soon as it moved, he noticed something peculiar. The scales were shaking and dropping the same culprit of the leaf blight he had seen earlier.

Thousands of tiny little gemstones.

“What kind of dragon sheds gems?” 

The dragon shuddered and let out a little huff as it settled into a ball on the ground. Its eyes began to close, and Alexander realized the creature was falling asleep. He watched its scales flicker like a kaleidoscope, and suddenly Alexander found himself climbing out of the bush.

What am I doing? 

The dragon didn’t stir, except to adjust itself but Alexander froze in his tracks regardless. This could very likely become his last movement if it was to wake. But something about the creature compelled him to keep going. Perhaps it was the scales, or the smattering of gems on the ground. 

Or perhaps it was because this dragon didn’t appear to be fire-breathing at all.

With as much agility as he could muster, Alexander approached the dragon. He could hear its soft breathing, and Alexander brushed his sword as if to make sure it was still there. The creature stirred slightly and opened its left eye. As soon as they both took notice of each other’s presence, the guards went up.

“Oh God!” Alexander cried, jumping back and unsheathing his sword. The dragon snuffed and growled, and when it opened its jaw Alexander caught sight of a surprising lack of fangs. Its mouth was instead full of diamonds, in an impressive array of carats. If Alexander hadn’t been so frightened, he would have taken a closer look.

“Please, don’t hurt me! I don’t want to hurt you!” Alexander held the sword out in front of him, and the dragon leapt back with a loud thud. With its jump, it dislodged another large dusting of gemstones from its scales. Unhinging its jaw, the dragon blew out a collection of differently sized rubies that fell at Alexander’s feet. 

“So you’re not a fire-breathing dragon! You just blow gems!” He gasped, sheathing his sword once more. The dragon appeared to huff and shut its maw again, and to Alexander’s surprise it seemed to shrink away in terror. It bowed its head and shuffled back a few feet, cowering slightly. Alexander suddenly felt sympathetic, for without fire the dragon was near harmless. Even its diamond teeth were blunted. 

This dragon was just a large helpless creature. 

“Oh, you’re frightened aren’t you? I didn’t mean to scare you.” Alexander said in a hushed voice, dropping his sword to the ground. The dragon watched in confusion, moving its head to track Alexander’s movements. It was observing cautiously, as if trying to assess his next move. The boy knew that if he was to survive and possibly tame this dragon, he would have to prove that he was no threat. 

“Look, I never wanted to disturb you. I’m just the blacksmith’s apprentice! I like tea and rainy afternoons. I’m no warrior, and I’m hardly a dragon slayer. And excuse my saying so, but you hardly appear to be a dragon. At least not the dangerous kind that is.” Alexander slowly sat on the ground and the dragon huffed sharply. It sounded as though he found the last comment offensive, and the failed dragon slayer wondered if the creature could understand him.

“Can you understand what I’m saying?” He whispered, and the dragon puffed and slightly nodded its head. Alexander’s eyes grew wide in amazement, and he suddenly gasped. The dragon narrowed its eyes in annoyance and rested its head on the ground. 

It can’t be! A magical dragon that understands humans? Well, stranger things have happened, I suppose. But what do I do now? I can’t kill it, I didn’t want to in the first place. But if it understands me, maybe I can reason with it.

“If you can understand me, thump your tail!” Alexander said, and the dragon did just that. With a slow flick of its tail, the ground shook beneath them. This action dislodged more of the gemstone dust which fell like snowflakes to the ground. So the dragon was able to understand him after all!

Alexander pondered his next move.

“I was sent by the King to kill you, but I don’t want to do that. Like I said, I’m no warrior. I'm just a boy with a sword. And you aren’t a bad dragon are you? You’re just in the wrong place at the wrong time. If you leave they won’t hurt you! And I promise that I won’t either! Just leave and don’t return, it’s not safe for you here!” The boy stood up slowly and walked towards the dragon. The sudden movement seemed to slightly alarm the creature, but it waited until Alexander stood right in front of its maw. With no sword and nothing to defend himself, Alexander knew he had to trust the beast was good.

“Please, get out of this land. Before they come for you too. I’ll have to run away but you have wings and you can fly! Don’t stay here where they’ll find you.” He whispered, reaching out to touch the dragon’s mouth. Instead of biting off his hand and mauling him to death like Alexander half-expected, the dragon almost cooed and nuzzled into him. It huffed a little and then shook its head in understanding. The boy sighed in relief and moved to pet the dragon further. 

“Good dragon, go somewhere safe. If we split up they won’t find us.” Alexander sighed and turned back to collect the silver sword when he heard a huff and felt himself flying through the air. With a gentle thud, he found himself on the back of the dragon. 

“Whoa! What’s going on?” Alexander cried as the dragon shook like a cat and dislodged a big stone onto the ground. He watched as the creature reached down with its jaws to pick it up, and subsequently dropped it into Alexander’s waiting hands. One look confirmed his theory. 

The dragon had coughed out a massive ruby. 

“My God! This just came out of your mouth!” Alexander held the ruby up to the light and saw it reflect beautifully across the forest floor. This was the most flawless looking gemstone he had ever seen, and there was no telling what its value truly was. All Alexander knew was that this was the most valuable thing he had ever touched. 

Before Alexander could decide what to do, the dragon’s wings began to flap. Without warning, it pushed upward with its legs and launched both of them into the air. Alexander screamed and held on for dear life, clutching the ruby to his chest. The ground below began to shrink as they flew higher and higher, and the town of Marais became a speck in the distance.

“Wait, please! Where are you taking me?” Alexander shouted over the wind, as the dragon began to fly south. The ruby felt nice and weighty against his chest, and the creature used its left wing to point towards something near the skyline. A town glimmered in the distance, and Alexander had a feeling he and the dragon were about to embark on another involuntary adventure. With the ruby in his hand, Alexander looked back on the town of Marais growing smaller behind them.

Well I suppose a ruby will make a nice tavern down payment.