literature

Allistair the Oathbreaker (Dragon TF)

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Eight years have gone by ever since the young boy named Allistair has gone under servility for Lord Harriston. For a long and harsh eight years had he been Page in the house of Rownham, devouring all the precious words of advice his Lord had given to him. Once the scrawny, thin boy- frail and weak with dirty blonde hair- now the young, muscled man with huge ambitions.

He had been swift and probably deadly with the blade, had he not been sparring with a wooden sword. Many times had he received praise from Harriston, who was astonished by his quick and nimble footing, as well as his keen and open mind. Yes, one might say that Allistair was part of the family and definitely Harriston’s favourite.

Well, Allistair had always been a little fighter. He fought in an argument with his parents to convince him to let him pursue his dream; becoming a noble knight. At first they were not all too pleased, considering that the training wasn’t the cheapest.

Next he had been battling disease; in an unforgiving winter his lungs had begun to sting and burn. Whenever Allistair did his exercise, or simply walked from the cuisine to the bed chamber, he almost passed out from exhaustion. News even reached him that two of his younger brothers had even died and he could not even attend their burial. Not that he found it too tragic- they weren’t much older than four, so he they weren’t named yet and Allistair hardly knew them in the first place. He left his family to pursue his dream when he was seven.

His next feud was against thousands of quintains- the stubborn, wooden mannequins that he had hacked and slashed down multiple times. And that all added up with the basic exhaustion of being a page of one of the richest and most influential lords in the kingdom.

But all those years of training didn’t help him now that he was knee-deep in some smelly, moist swamp. Allistair sighed and tried his best to keep his arms above surface- it would do him no good at all if he’d die now in this bloody moor! Not after what Lord Harriston had promised him.

Once he’d get back to the castle, he’d be presented with his very first steel sword. Lord Harriston had even said, no, promised, that it would be forged for him and him only. It would be his own, personal weapon. Allistair would even give it a name once he’d get a look at it! He was so excited, but… he had to finish his current undertaking first.

Yes, his current task. Lord Harriston had given him a scroll- an unadorned, plain letter, rolled up and sealed with the Rownham’s coat of arms. Their blazon showed two crossed swords with an anvil pictured behind them. This scroll was to be delivered to Duke Raellyx and it was to be read by him only- his Highness had insisted that Allistair should protect the scroll at any cost. Even if it should cost his life, though Aliistair hoped that it would not come to that. Of course, he had been keen to find out what the scroll said, but Allistair had not learned how to read. Maybe one of the reasons why his Lordship had entrusted him with the scroll.

Now to get to Duke Raellyx’s castle, Allistair had to travel roughly hundred miles and one particular route led him through the Dark Forest. The woods had not just acquired its name because the trees were so broad and tall that they swallowed most of the light, but also because many wanderers, commonly referred to lost souls after their disappearance, would vanish and maybe, maybe not, wind up dead weeks later. Not all too charming.

And when a sudden mist surprised Allistair, he happened to lose track of the trail and he had stumbled blindly into a bog. By now, he had sunk waist-deep into the muddy water. For some reason Allistair had not tried to call for help- probably because he wanted to be a knight and he thought that knights were too proud and noble to require assistance in such a… well, hassling matter. And he didn’t expect to be heard by anyone either- he was in the middle of a gigantic, maybe endless forest. Who would just happen to be located nearby?

Alright. Just relax, take a deep breath and think of something. Come on, Allistair, use your wits! He thought and wiggled himself around a bit, but only gave a surprised yelp when it only seemed to quicken his demise. Ok, moving around was a bad idea. But what to do?

Then, when his entire stomach had disappeared in the swampy sewage, panic befell him. The stench of the murky swamp water was scorching his nostrils and he fantasized maggots and worms digging their way through his flesh.
“Help!” he shouted and waved his arms through the air. He risked a tear streaming down his cheek,” Please, someone! Help me, please!”

The scroll was still concealed beneath his shirt on his chest- Allistair doubted that he’d make it out of this bog alive, but, just in case, maybe he should not get the letter drenched. Fishing it quickly out of his tunic, he held it high above his head and kept screaming and shouting.

By then he was neck-deep in the muck, his throat hoarse from screaming. He didn’t want to die now! Not after what his Lordship had promised him! He’d get his own blade!
“Urghh, gah! Help!” he howled one last time and squeezed his wet eyes shut, whimpering and preparing for the end.

Suddenly he felt a cold, wrinkly hand wrap around his wrist. It held onto him tightly, as if he’d be the most valuable possession in the world that was about to slip into the nirvana. Well, there was a seed of truth to that statement.

Allistair blinked and saw an old hag glaring down at him. Her grey hair was sticky and entangled, hanging down her face, which wore a curious frown. Raising a brow, she mustered the young squire before her eyes wandered to the scroll that Allistair held onto for dear life.

“What’s this?” she croaked with a voice as raspy as a saw hewing a log, pointing a gnarled figure at the letter. Allistair squealed, desperately trying to keep his head above water.
“Please help me!” he whispered and stared up at the woman with scared, pleading eyes, but also with a flare of confusion. Who was this woman? Where did she come from?!

Her grip tightened around his wrist and Allistair shrieked in pain- it felt as if he had been shackled with a hot iron.
“Boy, what is this?” she commanded and shook his hand, which held the scroll.
“A letter, a letter!” he squealed, tears streaming down his face,” to Duke Raellyx-“
“Give it to me.”

Allistair’s eyes widened. That was the one duty he had to fulfill- protect the scroll at all costs. Under no circumstances should he give it into a stranger’s hands.
“Give it to me and I’ll save you.”
Suddenly, all his oaths of loyalty seemed forgotten and the glimmer of hope seemed rejuvenating and much more appealing than a gruesome death.

Slowly, the scroll slipped out of Allistair’s fingers and the woman caught it with a wicked smile. Then, she grabbed hold of the squire’s shirt and lifted him out of the bog with one hand, revealing incredible, if not inhuman strength.

She dropped the boy onto the grass and rubbed her hands clean on her own clothes.
“Thank you!” Allistair squeaked excitedly, shivering from the cold and exhaustion,” Thank you! I owe you my life!”

The old woman clutched the scroll tightly in her right hand, slightly crushing the paper and its seal. She huffed and a grin spread across her dry lips.
“I know,” she said and her gaze wandered slowly to the young boy. Her glare made Allistair shiver.
“You.. saved my life. It’s a debt I cannot repay,” he said and bowed humbly in front of her.

Chuckling, the woman ran a hand through his short, sweaty hair and muttered something beneath her breath, barely audible. Allistair’s skin prickled, probably from the cold, and he looked up at the woman.
“The debt,” she said and seemed to stand a bit taller,” is already paid.”

“What?” Allistair gasped audibly as his body began to tremble,”*hic* but… hrr.. how?” Allistair shook his head as he seemed to stumble over his own words. With a confused moan, he looked at the woman, who simply returned a smile.

It was only the audibly cracking of his shoulder blades that made him realize that something was horribly wrong. Allistair yelped, gasped and fell forward, barely catching himself with his arms. They were shaking and spikes of pain shot through his body, contorting his face into an agonized grimace.

His skin stretched and split open, streams of blood running down his hurt body. With pained and fearstruck eyes, he glanced at the woman, whose face seemed to have turned a few shades darker. The torn skin soon hardened and got replaced by leathery scales that slowly covered the rest of his body.

Allistair screamed and roared as his shoulder blades extended outward, two new, boned muscles stretching out into huge wings. A headache began to pulsate through the boy’s crushed skull and the last thing he felt was the fierce tugging of his tailbone before he blacked out, his muzzled face splashing into the dirt.

//

When the spirits seemed to return to his body, Allistair gave a weak jerk. He groaned and huffed, his senses dulled and dazed. Most of his body was in pain- not as bad as it was hours ago, but it was still a dull throbbing coursing through his veins.

Had he been poisoned? Not that he had been poisoned before, but Allistair was sure that his vision had betrayed him. What else would explain the blasphemous things he had seen happening to his body? Something between his legs above his rear swished and flicked and curled around one of his feet.

Wait, what?

Allistair shrieked and jumped up, his tail unraveling and whipping through the air, throwing him off-balance. The boy-turned dragon roared in panic and surprise. His emerald green scales burned in his eyes- they seemed too bright and… unnatural. What happened to him?! What HAPPENED to him?!

“Calm down! Get a hold of yourself!” an all too familiar voice commented and Allistair spun around. Slowly his eyes adjusted to his surroundings. It seemed that there was a lot of light, but when he took a closer look, he realized that he was deep inside mother earth. He was in a cave! The only light source came from a torch blazing in the woman’s hand.

No, it was no torch. It was her palm, a yellow hand flickering and dancing across it. A witch! Allistair’s mind screamed. A vile witch! She bestowed this curse upon me! He hissed angrily and backed away- out of instinct, he had exposed his daggerlike teeth and a deep growl gurgled out of his throat. His entire body was kept low to the ground and his tail lifted off the ground in an aggressive manner. She was his enemy.

In her other hand, the hag presented the scroll; it had been opened and a cold spike pierced Allistair’s heart. She knows! She broke the seal!! He gave a fearful squeal and immediately his slitted eyes switched from fury to panic. The words on that letter were power and now this power was in the wrong hands! What had he done?! He had one task!

I should have just drowned in that bog! Allistair figured and grimaced in hatred. What could he do now?! The hag grinned wickedly and pointed a finger at an object behind the big, green dragon.
“You see that?” she asked,” That are my most precious belongings. I want you to guard it.”

Allistair huffed and growled. Why should I do that? He wondered, a heat rising from his throat as smoke rose from his nostrils. Oh god, was he even able to spit fire?! He was an abomination! Allistair the Othbreaker! This was his punishment!

Tauntingly shaking the scroll in her hand, the witch snapped,” If you don’t want this information, this letter to be given to the most undesirable person you could imagine, I advise you to follow my commands, dragon! On this letter rests the fate of the entire kingdom and if you don’t want to be the one to hurl it into chaos, you should bend your stubborn knee and proud head! Bow to me!”

Reluctantly and with a stab of guilt and remorse, Allistair bent his head low. Hot saliva was dripping down his teeth and he had to try his best to suppress a growl. His forked tongue slithered out of his mouth and, then, he growled softly. His tail flicked and he pranced from one spot to the next, slowly spreading his wings to appear more ferocious.

The witch lifted her arms up defensively,” Now don’t you-“ she managed to say before Allistair spat a stream of fire aimed at her, focusing all his hatred from his crushed hopes, dreams and wishes onto her. She ruined his life!!!

But then, he ran out of fire and oxygen and his flames subsided as he gave a tired groan. The woman cackled, surrounded by a light blue orb.
“Hahahaha, pathetic,” the witch mocked and tormented with a laugh, slowly backing back out of the cave through a small opening where Allistair would never be able to fit through in his current state,” no meal for you this week.”

And with that she vanished from sight, leaving the young, green dragon screaming at the lone cave walls in anger, fear and frustration. His flames were going to be fuelled by hatred, burning her enemies if they should stumble into the cave.

Allistair howled and dropped onto his side in defeat. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. First of all, he had been trapped, no, enslaved by a sadistic witch inside her cavern, forcing him to protect her belongings just like the big bad dragon in fables and stories. And second of all, he had failed his Lord. Looked like he’d never be able to return to him with pride in his eyes, if he would ever return at all.

He got up to his feet and stared ahead into the dark. But what did it bother him? He had always been a strong fighter. This was the time where it required him to be… well, a hero of honour. This was his darkest hour.

//

Walking back to her house located not too far from the bog, the witch began to forge plans with her newly acquired knowledge. The letter came in more than handy and ideas were spraying through her head like sparks flying from a hot piece of metal on an anvil. Oh and they were fiery.

Lord Harriston had decided to stand up against the king and had called to Duke Raellyx for help.  They planned to end his reign in a very radical manner, just like ignorant men usually do. It seemed that they wanted to invite their King for a very special dinner…
Hey, here is one of the scribble stories that I was talking about (stories that I just write on the side to either get my 2 pages a day and out of practice reasons). I gotta say, this story is actually quite neat...
And btw, one of the lords is a form of cameo from :iconraellyx: who just ended up being included in the story for being awesome. Not that he does much, but he's in there...
Well, I hope you guys had a great time reading it^^ Leave a comment and let me know?
Have a great day!
PS:
I have something similar to a bet running, weather this story will get a part 2 or not. If you want to contribute to the outcome of the bet and want to see this story continued, leave a comment and state that you want a part 2 ^^
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