FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Everyone needs a reason to fight; sometimes it's a person, sometimes it's an objective, and for some, they fight for themselves. Without this reason, life itself becomes meaningless; we live our days as if they were not numbered, but as soon as we live for someone other than ourselves, life becomes more colorful, we just have to meet that one person that fits us like the yin and yang, light to our dark, one can't exist without the other. But sometimes, we put our trust in the wrong people, which can cause the most damage to one's heart.

---Dragon Proverb---

Memories of my death are hazy. I remember being consumed by flames; I remember hearing a voice, but not what was said. When my consciousness finally returned to the world, I was waking up beneath a stormy sky; however I was also weak. A lifetime of wounds were scarred into me, and I knew I would never be truly healthy again.

The morning after I let my mind drift through my body, limb to limb, tensing and relaxing my muscles to confirm that I was really alive.

It had been four days since that night.I no longer had the same mobility in my wings as before, without which I'd never fly, A flightless dragon, whoever heard of such a thing! As the days passed, the magic used on my memories wore off. I now had the burden of remembering everything they ever did to me, every lie they ever told me, every hidden sadistic smirk they shared With each other, my body trembled with fury, and my heart twisted in pain; After finding a decent place to rest, my body refused to move.; I've been in the same spot for four days, unable to slake my hunger or thirst, which only grew with each passing day.

Each day I gained more mobility,but it wasn't enough. Each time I tried to stand, my legs would crumble beneath me, sending me collapsing into the dirt in a heap of red and yellow scales, like a dried-out husk that contained nothing more than brittle bones. I barely looked alive, fleshless, and even the trees I had sheltered under must have been laughing at me, my scales which were once a vibrant red and yellow were now dull like life itself had been sucked out of them.

Unlike before, where I could catch enough to keep me alive, find enough water to keep my blood moving, this time, I was unable to move, unable to hunt or find a fresh cool river to sate my thirst.

My tail was the only part capable of moving, often times lficking in annoyance at my situation. I should be feeling some sort of relief that not all was lost but without my wings, without being able to fly, nothing would be able to touch the hollowness that had taken root in my chest.

I'd lost track of how many times my stomach had let out a groan, rumbling my ribs and vibrating through my scales.I pictured the ants beneath me scurrying each time the dirt shook from the heavy reverberations of my stomach. My throat felt like I'd swallowed sand, dry and constricting like a boa constrictor wrapping around its prey ready to devour.

I was lost in examining each tortured memory, recalling every time I was ever punished just for existing, when a loud thump sounded directly in front of me.Opening my eyes, a cloud of dust had been blown up; the wind carried it directly to my snout and up my nose. A loud sneeze ripped through the air as I tried to clear the dust from my face.The ground directly in front of me was now soaked in dragon snot.

Looking up, I realized the impact was caused by a dead rabbit, claw marks gouged into its side showed how it died. The blood coating its fur changing it from a smokey grey to a deep crimson.

"Eat up, you silly goof," came a females voice from above me. Looking up, I saw a bird-like creature resting on a sturdy branch. Her face was avian but flat with a beak as the only protrusion sticking out of her face, her eyes were grass green with a hunt of amber mixed in, when she focused on me her eyes turned to slits but otherwise remained circular. Large wings extended from her sides leafy green in color, her legs were much longer than any bird I'd ever seen, and they were colored in muddy brown scales. Her colors allowed for a near perfect camouflage letting her blend into her surroundings when hunting.

"Haven't you ever seen a harpy before?"

"Harpy? What's that?" I asked.

"You goof, that's what I am," she said with alacrity, "any way, you should eat, I could hear your stomach for miles., I couldn't take it anymore, so I caught you something."

Looking at the rabbit, my stomach gave another rumble. The scent of blood filled my nostrils, telling my body food was close. Ravenously I tore in, each bite disappearing down my gullet with haste, the blood slaking my thirst if only for a moment. I didn't care enough to wonder what she wanted in return for feeding me. I was just too hungry. A few short moments later and nothing remained of the rabbit except the fur and skin. Even the bones I had devoured enjoying the taste of the marrow like it was my last meal.

"Silly dragon. You must have been starving!"

"Indeed," I responded hesitantly. While I was thankful for the meal, I wasn't about to trust a creature that randomly showed up and fed me. The last time I did that, I was killed.

"So, what are you doing so far south?"

"What do you mean?" I responded. My tail flicking in obvious annoyance.

"I've never seen a dragon south of the mountains, I didn't think your kind came down here."

I had stopped counting the days after forty on my own, since I'd been moving in whichever direction my legs carried me, chased by the memory of my parents and the constant fear in my heart of them finding me and finishing the job they had started so long ago on that stormy night.

"My parents were killed," I replied. I had no problem lying to someone I had no interest in trusting, and it kept the truth from getting out, which meant it kept me from being asked about it.

"Oh... well, you could always live with us!" she said with a cheery voice.

"No thanks."

My curt response cut her off from saying anything more. Her face fell in a mask of hurt, but I paid it no mind; why should I care anyway? I was more than happy to stay here and mend my broken body, but my broken soul...well, that may never heal. And besides I didn't need anyone else just me, myself, and I.

"Look, dragon, by now everyone knows you're here; they don't take kindly to a dragon no matter how small you may be encroaching on our lands without permission, so the way I see it, you have two choices. One, stay here and have the rest of my kind drive you from the territory forcefully; the others may even kill you; I, on the other hand, don't want to see that happen, you're the first dragon I've ever seen, and I find you fascinating. On the other hand, you come with me, live with me and the rest of us harpies, we can help heal your wounds, its obvious someth-

A roar shook the trees, cutting her off; it was a moment before I realized it was mine.

"Speak one more word about my wounds, and you won't live to see tomorrow!" my lips raised showing my sharp teeth, my tail lashing out and hitting the tree behind me.

Her eyes narrowed, all empathy gone from them in a blink.

"Have it your way, dragon, either way, if those wounds aren't treated, they'll plague you the rest of your long, long life, so will you follow? Or will you let the rest of my kind drive you from here while you're still recovering?"

I knew I had come back once already, but I didn't want to find out if I'd come back again if I died. I had no idea how far the power of the curse went or why it even brought me back.

Having been given no other choice, I reluctantly agreed to follow her, but she frowned when I told her I couldn't walk.

"Stay here; I'll be back in a few hours."

"It's not like I can go anywhere," I muttered to her back as she flew away, her green feathers rustling in the breeze as she flapped her wings to keep herself aloft.

I'd never admit it, but I was envious of her wings: she had perfect mobility, she could fly, she could feel the wind caress her body. I was jealous of that.

Heat flared along my scales, a slight orange glow appearing at the bottom of my chest. Hatred returned and a film of red covered my eyes, tinting my view of the world with my rage. My chest heaved with the effort of trying to get air inside my lungs, I briefly forgot about my injured body, but when I stood up pain swept through me, replacing the rage. A moan escaped my maw, low and quiet; my legs buckled, sending me to my side. I had enough control left to move my wings out of the way before I crushed them under my own weight, avoiding further injury, but just that slight movement of my wings caused pain to shoot through my back like I'd been consumed in fire. I almost laughed at my own description, realizing I had been consumed by fire not long ago.

It felt like an eternity until the pain subsided. it was still there, but now it was more like something thick had covered it. An image of water flowing over scales shot through my mind.Yeah, like it had been covered by water, I thought, But I knew all it would take was a single movement, and it would be like the pain had never subsided.

Laying there like that gave me plenty of time to remember my tortures, which I'd done countless times by now. it's not like I could do anything else:, the pain never lessened no matter how many times I watched my own parents torture me to death. With every scratch or bite across my scales, the wounds that had closed seemed to throb with pain, burning and stinging like a thousand blades slicing through scales, like they could remember every second of it. Even after all this time, the wounds seemed to hurt as fiercely as the day they happened, the oldest was a claw puncturing my chest and piercing my lungs, but the memory of it caused the pain to flare up like a cold sun suddenly igniting into a fiery ball.

Nearby, a rabbit darted from a bush and disappeared around a tree. The smell of wet fur and dirt hit my nose,and my stomach let out another rumble, the pangs of hunger dull and fast,rolling through my body in hot waves causing other parts to hurt.

It was almost dusk when the harpy returned.

"Silly dragon, don't you know not to move in your condition?"

"Says you, you expected me to follow you back to your den," I retorted.

"Silly dragon, harpies don't have dens; we have nests."

"Whatever," I bit out.

Nests? What are those? I thought.

I realized I should have heard the beats of her wings long before she arrived, but it wasn't until just before she landed that I noticed her. My hearing was... damn it! Just another way they tortured me even after I was supposed to be dead! What dragon has such bad hearing that they can't even hear a creature in flight before they are upon them? My thoughts roared with fury, surging with every realization of the permanent damage my parents caused me.

My eyesight was nearly gone, I should have been able to make out every detail of the insects crawling in front of me, but now they were nothing but a moving blur. My sense of smell was almost just as bad, I used to be able to smell everything, as far as the eye could see, now my sense of smell was so bad the rabbit from earlier seemed like it was far away, rather than in front of me. I missed the sharp scent of everything, the green trees smelling of earth, intense and rich like chocolate, and to make it all worse I didn't think I'd ever fly again.

So consumed by my anger, I didn't notice a small group of harpies fly up behind the first and lower a flat square wooden platform, each corner tied with a rope that was gripped in the talons of a harpy. They came to rest in the branches of a tree nearby.

"Can you stand? That would make this so much easier,"

The harpy from earlier spoke. Utterly oblivious to my thoughts even though I was making no efforts to hide my disdain.

Recalling trying to stand on my paws earlier in my haze of fury, I knew it wasn't an option.

"I'm sorry, I can't stand; it's how I ended up on my side."

"You poor thing, alright everyone, you heard him, get prepared for take-off!"

The harpies that each had a rope tied to their talons readied their wings, spreading them out to their full length; the first harpy flew down with her talons outstretched and aimed for me!

The flash of father diving towards me, pinning me down and turning me to ashes flashed through my mind. I flinched in fear, curling my tail up around my belly for protection, but I knew it was pointless; as helpless as I was, it would do little against those sharp talons capable of rending flesh like scissors through paper.

Closing my eyes, I prepared for death knowing i may not get another chance; but the pain never came, instead talons wrapped around my paws, lifting them into the air and then the top half of my body, but that's as far as she got, her wings flapping furiously trying to raise the rest of me off the ground.

She gave up and released my paws, letting me drop unceremoniously to the ground, the impact jarring my broken bones.

"Ouch! Watch it!" I yelled at her.

Right, sorry, you were just so heavy, I didn't expect dragons to be so heavy! Shatton, give your rope to Sepha; she can hold both ropes; I need you to give me a talon lifting our injured friend here."

"Sure thing"

a deep smooth voice responded, letting go of a rope and handing it to the harpy next to him.

Wait are you calling me fat? I asked her.

" no , nothing like that, i just thought you'd be... lighter after all your nearly on death's door."

"That's fair."

I began to notice small differences in the creatures that had come to save me. Where my rescuer's feathers were dark green, the one she called Shatton was lighter, with a more angled face. The one she called Sepha was closer to her in color and I briefly wondered if they were related.

And what's your name? I asked her, trying to sound non-threatening, I wasn't ready to call this help yet, but she did catch me a rabbit to eat so I did have a small amount of respect towards her. But trust? I'd never trust anyone again.

"Arlya," she said with a grin.

The two harpies descended upon me, their talons open and ready to grasp my paws.

"Wait, guys, let's think about this; there's gotta be a better way, right?"

They ignored me, grabbing me and lifting me into the air, my belly now facing the sky.

I looked like a pig tied to a spit, ready to be roasted in the fire.

Being careful of my wings, they let me down much more gently than the first time.

On either side of me were two bars of wood, arched like a rainbow and connected to the base of the platform I was now on; Arlya and Shatton landed on them, closing their talons around the wood like they would a tree branch.

"This is so we can make sure you don't fall off, silly dragon, and we can help lift the platform."

Arlya said when she noticed that I was looking at the railing.

"Alright, Shatton, Sepha, Seoph, Thistle, ready your wings, on the count of three lift!" As one, they spread their wings as far as they could.

"One!...Two!...Three!"

They flapped in time with each other, at first, they made no headway, and I worried I was too heavy. I was over three times their size after all, if you counted my tail, but after a few moments I was lifted into the air. Progress went slowly at first and then as their confidence grew we ascended faster and faster towards the sky, once we were over the tree line the harpies angled their wings and sprung us forward in what I assumed was the direction of their nests.

***

It took what felt like days to get where we were going. I wasn't sure what I was expecting, but large round nests, each with a different family in them, was not it. Each nest was about the size of the tree, which was easily double the size of the rest of the forest; we flew close enough to one I could reach out a claw and touch it. The nests themselves were made of bits of hay, leaves and other things I couldn't quite make out. However, they kind of looked like body parts, which I just chalked up to their past meals; ; I suppose it was wrong of me to assume every living creature kept their spaces clean like the ones who raised me did.

Most of them were sleeping by this point, as the moon had started its ascent into the starlit sky, casting deep shadows across the forest and the nests.

The moonlight was just enough to make out the most obvious features of each nest, but before my death I would have been able to see every detail. Even the largest parts making up the nest were blurry.

"Like it?" Arlya spoke after hours of silent flying.

"It's different from what I was expecting," I responded.

"And what was that?"

"I'm not even entirely sure myself," I told her.

"Alright everyone, head to my nest, you know where it is; when we get there, let the dragon down gently, he is injured and we don't need to hurt him any more than he already is."

That was nice of her. The dragons who raised me didn't give me that same protection or concern. My tail lashed out in anger, cutting through the air like a whip at the mere thought of them, almost hitting one of the harpies.

Further inward, the harpies started descending, heading for a large nest that looked identical to all the others.

Directly over it, the harpies let me down as gently as they could; a brief jolt struck the platform I was on, shaking me before the ropes went slack, dropping to the ground almost in silence. I remembered a time when I would have caught the faint sound of the drop of the rope, but now all I heard was silence.

Shortly after the harpies released me, groans escaped their beaks, their bodies slumping over in exhaustion.

Arlya wasn't any better; she had made the trip more than anyone else, after finding me, heading back for help and then returning for me. A thing which, now that I thought of it, I knew Draconus would never do. That's already a reason to trust her... wait what am i doing? I dont want to trust her. After mentally berating myself for even thinking about trusting the harpies, Alrya's voice shook me from my reverie.

"Alright, everyone, you are free to do what you want tomorrow; rest your weary wings and take care of yourselves."

With what I imagined were squawks of thanks, they jumped off the edge, each heading in a different direction to their own nests where I had no doubt they would promptly fall asleep.

"Alright, dragon, I'm exhausted; we can take a look at you tomorrow. Until then, sleep well."

"Thank you, Arlya," I whispered, just before she closed her eyes for the night.

I spent a while lost in thought, wondering why a strange creature living far south of my home would go through so much trouble to help me. Her kindness touched a part of me I had long forgotten, a part I thought I had tossed away after my death never to be seen again. I appreciated her generosity, it was a nice change compared to the pain that constantly racked my heart and body.

It wasn't too much longer before I closed my eyes myself and fell asleep, my chest forming a soft, slow rhythm.

***

"Wake up, dragon, someone is here to see you!"

Draconus! I jolted awake prepared to see his gaze before he killed me yet another time, but all I saw was a strange harpy standing just behind Arlya, with a bag formed of rope and string set to the side.

"Calm down, silly dragon,"

Arlya said with a smirk on her face, trying to use her wing to try to hide it and failing to do so.

"My name is Ymerc," I told her, getting sick of being called "dragon" all the time.

"So the strange dragon finally says his name, well you already know mine, but this here is Asclepius."

She motioned a wing to point at the harpy behind her, who looked awkward. Leaning over, Asclepius whispered into Arlya's ear, I wished I would have been able to hear what was said, but all that met my ears was the soft breeze blowing by.

There was a terse exchange before they parted, and Asclepius approached me with the bag made of rope and string held in his beak. "I will be back; there are things I need to take care of; Asclepius will take care of you until I return."

Before I could say anything, she took off with a great beat of her wings

Asclepius blocked my view, a weird object held in his left talon, a stick of polished wood attached to a funnel-like object with a light shining out of the smaller end and onto my scarred scales.

"What is that?" I asked him.

Looking up, he looked like I had disturbed him and broken some intense focus he had.

"What was your name again?"

"Ymerc."

"Ymerc."

He drew each syllable out like he was tasting the letters.

"This device is called a Seer; by pouring mana into the seer, I can see inside your body, I can see what needs to be healed first and what has already mended or started to mend."

"What is mana?" I asked.

A curious look crossed his face, his eyes scrunching up.

"Dragons are creatures full of said mana, some would even dare to say they are the most magical creatures in existence, so how is it you don't know what it is?"

My parents died before they got to teach me much, I've been alone ever since, so forgive my ignorance on the subject.

" very well. Mana is what creates magic; it lives inside all beings, it allows magic to take place to come into existence based on the individual's will."

"So in a way mana is magic?"

"In a manner of speaking, no, if you would be so kind as to shut your trap, I need to focus; there's a lot here that has been damaged."

"Tell me something I don't already know," I muttered under my breath.

The ray of light moved over my hind legs, and I thought about what he said about the seer allowing him to see into the body. I feared him seeing into my heart, seeing what THEY caused, what THEY did to me. I tried to move my body, so it was hiding as much as possible, especially my heart where my paws were crossed over each other and my beating heart thumped in my chest just above them.

"I can't examine you if you lock yourself up like that. Relax your body, I'm not here to do you harm."

One of his talons moved my tail out of the way and went back to examining my hind paws. All the while, as his light searched my belly, my tail, my wings, and my neck, I couldn't help but hope the seer didn't allow him to see into my past. I needed to keep that hidden, to make sure no one ever knew so I could be left alone to wallow in my pain.

What felt like an eternity but was probably only a few moments passed before he stepped back and placed the seer into his bag.

"Ymerc, you have been badly injured," My eyes met his with a look of "no duh"

"For now, your body is healing nicely, but it will be quite a while before you can move. Some ointment will help with healing the scars along your body, and I'll tell Arlya know that it needs to be administered twice daily. As for your internal organs, I have never seen organs so badly damaged, so every time you drink water or eat I will give you herbs and berries to help you heal, I'll be back in a week to check up on you until then Arlya will take care of you."

Before I could protest or ask any question, he took off in a hurry as if he couldn't wait to get away from me.

"Fine, be that way!" I yelled at his back, my tail flicking in annoyance.

Another few hours passed in silence; harpies flew by, their glimpses filled with fear, I may be a dragon, but I'm not gonna eat you. I thought at them. Their bodies didn't exactly look appetizing, more muscle and bones than fat. Finally, Arlya came back, and with three dead rabbits, no less. Drool escaped my scaled lips at the sight of meat; my stomach roared, vibrating my belly scales and letting everyone in hearing distance know precisely how hungry I was.

I was glad my scales were red so no one could see the deep blush that would have lit up my face.

"Good, you're hungry, I brought food, and Asclepius gave me the herbs and berries you're supposed to eat. I left the ointment since I couldn't carry anything else."

She tossed the rabbits in front of me, with my jaws wide open and about to dig in; Arlya threw in berries and some weird leafy herbs I'd never seen before into my jaw; she then rushed to shut my maw close before I could spit it out.

A second later I knew why: the taste was atrocious, like rotten meat and poop mixed together. The memory of finding a pile of the stuff in the woods was brought back. At a young age, I didn't understand what it was; thinking it was edible, I took a huge mouthful of it, but that had turned out to be a massive mistake.

"Swallow, then I'll let you eat."

I swallowed, and she let go, my paws scraping at my tongue as I tried to get rid of the taste.

"Oh, you poor dragon, they don't taste that bad."

"Are you kidding me? They tasted like-"

"Nope, don't describe it; it makes it worse, and plus, I don't wanna know, you dragons can eat some weird things."

"Hey, we are not weird."

"From my perspective, you are, and I didn't call you weird; I called the things your species sometimes eat weird."

I couldn't argue with the perspective part. The smell of rabbit hit my nose, making me drool all over again. Without any hesitation, I jumped in and began devouring the rabbits. The taste of the berries and herbs was forgotten when fresh blood washed over my tongue and down my throat.

"I'll be back with the ointment; after that, I'll administer it to your scales."

I barely paid her any attention as I ate, but by the time nothing was left but fur, she came back carrying a large wooden tub in her claws, about the size of one of her wings.

"Good, you're done eating; now we can use the ointment; Asclepius did warn me that it might be cold when it first touches your scales."

Using one of her wings, she pooled a dollop of ointment on her feathers and began spreading it across my back.

The cold was an understatement, the ointment was like a thick layer of ice on my scales, and once she finished with my back, I felt like I was walking in a blizzard which often blew through in the winter back home.

After my back, she went to my wings, my sides were next, then my legs, chest, and neck, lastly was my tail, I didn't like someone touching my tail, but in this case, I didn't have a choice if I wanted to get better but when she kept getting closer to my underside that's when I couldn't take it anymore. Just before the wing she was using to rub the ointment on touched the area above the base of my tail, I spoke up.

"Go any further, and you lose that wing,". I told her.

She got the idea and stopped.

"Right, sorry, got carried away. Say, what do dragons do to pass the time?"

I had no reason to tell her anything about my past. Keeping silent, she continued.

"Well, we harpies are always doing something, some of us take care of the young while others go hunt, others build nests for growing families, but for entertainment, we hold flying races once a week, when you're healed you should join on one, the rest of us would love to see a dragon fly."

"Arlya, I think the others would disagree with that; I believe you are the only one who wants to see a dragon fly."

"Why do you say that?"

"While you were gone, harpies flew past here, and I don't think they like my presence here."

"Oh please, they just haven't gotten to know you; soon, they'll warm up to you."

"Have you warmed up to me then?"

"... Of course I have."

Her hesitation pointed out her lie.

"Ok, whatever, I'm going to sleep, not much else I can do anyway since I can't walk."

"Ok, I'll be back with dinner and some more herbs and ointment."

"Anything but the herbs, please not again," I told her, practically begging.

"Silly dragon, they aren't that bad; you'll be fine, soon you'll be used to the taste."

As she flew off, I knew I'd never be used to that taste, nor did I want to.

Dinner was much the same, like lunch, except Arlya brought four rabbits instead of three. After we had eaten, Arlya fell asleep for the day; I was just after her.

The next day the nests were a buzz of excitement; even Arlya seemed to be more ecstatic than usual, hurrying to finish rubbing that freezing ointment on my scales and once again stopping when I nearly bit her wing off when she tried to go under my tail.

"Why is everyone so excited?" I asked afterward.

"Today is the flying races."

"And what are those?"

"Groups of five harpies race around the forest, each group has the same ages, so one group will have all harpies of say seven years while another will have all ten-year-olds, that makes it, so it's fair, we also make sure everyone in the group has relatively the same wing lengths so that the only thing that determines the winner, is their skill and determination, the winners get some kind of reward determined by the elders. And this week, I'm in the first group."

"So how long do these races last?"

"Oh, they last all day, but that's what makes these races so fun."

"This sounds like fun, so do the races encompass the whole forest? Or just the nested area?" I asked her.

"The trees we make our nests in encompass a large area in the forest, the races go through the whole area, and at certain points, there will be flags that we have to grab to complete the races; if we miss one, we have to fly back and grab it before continuing on, they also act as markers to guide us through the course since each race is different."

That sounds like fun; I'd love to participate eventually,". I told her, forgetting all about the harpies from yesterday.

"Oh, you will, but you have to heal first. Anyway, I have to leave now; my race is up in a few moments, but I'll be back after to feed you and rub more ointment on your scales." Before I could say another word, she took off, headed in the direction of a large group of harpies that had appeared during our conversation.

What is with these harpies and taking off before I can say a word!

A few moments after she disappeared into the crowd, five young harpies flew up and hovered in place in a long line, a larger harpy hovered a short ways in front of them.

I couldn't make out much from here, but all of a sudden they surged forward, so I figured there was some sort of signal I didn't see, they headed this way for a brief moment before turning towards a tree with some orange markers hanging from the branches, that kind of looked like pieces of fabric or something waving in the wind, but with my poor eyesight I wasn't quite sure. Arlya was easy to make out, she quickly took the lead, and I silently cheered for her. With a flap, her talons flew in front of her and grabbed an orange marker, and with an almost effortless twist of her body, she turned and dove in circles around the tree the markers had hung from disappearing from view, but a hole in the nest allowed for a somewhat decent view of the racers. Just before she hit the ground, she straightened out and headed away from the tree I hung out in; with a change in direction that looked effortless, she turned left, heading for more markers I hadn't seen before and once again aiming her talons forward and grabbing a marker, shortly after they disappeared from sight, a while passed before they swung around with Arlya still in the lead moving swiftly, the air itself seeming to bend around her enabling her to go faster.

Finally, they grabbed what must have been the last marker and made a beeline for the starting point. Another harpy with the same-colored feathers flew side by side with Arlya; their speed matched perfectly to each other. I found myself cheering for Arlya, hoping for her to pull out ahead and win. Finally, they passed the starting point and came to a stop a short way away, landing on a large branch in perfect view of everyone else. Finally, the last three came and landed. Screeches erupted from the crowd echoing through the trees as I assumed the winner was announced.

The rest of the day, races were conducted, and roars from the crowd could be heard all around with each announcement. In the afternoon, Arlya came back with more ointment and herbs. I gagged at the mere sight of them, my face scrunched up in disgust.

Arlya took that chance and chucked the herbs and berries straight into my mouth before hurrying to shut it with her wings.

"Swallow, and I'll let go," she told me. Bile filled my mouth as the herbs slid down my throat.

"Good dragon! Also, I won!"

"Way to bury the lead," I told her, "also awesome. I was cheering for you. I'm glad you won; when that harpy flew up next to you near the end, I was scared he would pull ahead, but you still won, congratulations!"

"Thank you Ymerc, now it's time for ointment; those scars are already looking better; soon, you won't even notice them."

"Wait for a second; why are you helping me? I'm just a strange dragon you found in the woods, you didn't have to help me, but you did. Why?"

"...To be honest, I'm not entirely sure, but I felt like I had to help you, you just looked so hurt that I wanted to help, and harpies have a way of finding and helping those in need."

That didn't really help ease my worries, but I put those to the side for now.

We watched the races the rest of the day; Arlya pointed out the names of each contestant and told me the winner of each race.

Finally, night fell, and a quiet covered the whole forest almost as if the trees themselves were tired from the day's events, not even an owl hooting amongst the branches and leaves.

And Arlya fell asleep in the middle of the nest while I sat near the edge; part of me worried about falling off, but the nest seemed pretty sturdy despite the hole I looked through earlier.

Finally, after today's events, I smiled a toothy grin, I was finally happy again, I was content to be here, feeling my heart fill with something other than pain for once. Soon after, I fell asleep.

***

As the weeks passed, I found myself looking forward to each race; Arlya won most of them, but the harpy that was neck and neck with her the first time won the rest. The ointment on my scales proved to be more than effective as the scars that had covered my body were almost completely unnoticeable unless you looked really hard. Asclepius, who I'd taken to calling "Doc", which seemed more fitting but irritated him to no end, which I found even more enjoyable, said my internal organs were coming along nicely. A week ago my muscles became strong enough I could walk, not long distances but enough that I didn't feel so helpless or stuck in the same place, my wings had regained a lot of their previous mobility, I had hopes I'd be able to fly again one day. Though I no longer had to bear the ointment's freezing sensation on my scales, the herbs and berries were still forced down my throat by Arlya and sometimes Asclepius, who was a lot less gentle than Arlya, going far enough that he used rope to tie my mouth shut long after I'd swallowed the putrid tasting herbs and berries.

The other harpies still haven't warmed up to me - Arlya's words, not mine - but somehow I felt there was something more to it, something I didn't know. But seeing as how there was little I could do about it, I left it alone. Yesterday when Asclepius deemed me healthy enough to fly, I begged Arlya to teach me; her face dropped in astonishment when she learned I didn't know how to fly; I simply told her my parents had died before they had the chance to teach me, which was half the truth, they never taught me, but they certainly had not died... YET.

Today I awoke with scales sizzling, lightning racing across them in excitement like one of the harpy races I'd become so fond of watching. I'd hoped to take part in one of them eventually, but for now, I set my sights on learning to fly. "Flying isn't taught as much as it's felt, harpies learn to fly at a very young age, our parents practically toss us out of the nest, and we have to learn on the way down or splat, no more harpy. When you jump, make sure your wings are extended, don't flap too much otherwise, you'll exhaust yourself more than you need to, and the last bit of advice, rely on your instincts, they will kick in, and before you realize it, you'll be flying."

"Wait, let me get this straight, you just want me to leap off the side of the nest into a free fall?" my heart thumped a ferocious rhythm in my chest.

"Yep! Now, if you don't do it soon, I'll push you out if I must." Her threat worried me less than the "splat" she mentioned earlier; an image of me colliding snout first with the ground and spraying blood everywhere flashed through my mind, my heart surged in my chest.

"Hurry up, or I'll push you out!"

"I'm going to just relax." I waited another moment before closing my eyes and taking the leap, flexing my hind legs. I reared up on them and jumped into the air, my wings expanding to catch the wind.

My stomach shot into my throat when my body dropped, the contents of my stomach nearly emptying and falling into the air; a strong breeze rose up from below, catching my wings and slowing my descent, my stomach fell back down to its normal place, the wind keeping me aloft.

"Flap your wings!" Arlya screamed from above.

Before, I wasn't entirely sure I could fly, but now it was like I was always meant to, the weight of the wind on my wings, racing along with my scales, my body kicked into motion, my wings having trouble flapping, their range of motion vastly improved compared to before, with a flap of my wings I surged forward, the wind caressing my body like morning dew sliding along a blade of grass. Mother's description of flying didn't nearly do it justice; I felt more than freedom up here, I felt like nothing could touch me, I felt invincible.

"See, I told you your instincts would kick in, now come on, I'll race you!" she said as she flew down to me.

"Hold it one second, Arlya." Asclepius rose from below, cutting us off from going any further, I nearly fell from the sky at the sudden stop, but my tail kept me balanced as my hind end lowered, and I hovered in the air, my large wings flapping loudly in the soft breeze.

"Asclepius, there's no harm in a race."

"No harm? This is his first flight; if he tires out his wings while recovering from his injuries, he may never be able to fly again! So yes, there is harm in a race, Ymerc, back to Arlya's nest; you need to rest, tomorrow you can fly again."

"Come on, Asclepius, there's no way I can stop now; I feel invincible!"

"Everyone feels that way their first time out, we call it "first flight", but you need to stop, otherwise you can damage your wings beyond anything that can be done for them."

"Yes, Asclepius."

"Come on, Ymerc, tomorrow we can race; I bet I'll win!"

"Hah, not even in your dreams," I told her. Elation pumping through my heart making me feel lighter than I had in months.

Together we rose towards her nest; when my paws touched down on the harsh materials constructing the nest, my wings nearly gave out, and all the invincibility I thought I had, gone like a small flame being put out with nothing left but smoke to remember its light.

"Asclepius was right; my wings are exhausted!"

"Oh, your poor wuss, they'll get better, soon you can join in on our races; if we are out together, I bet you I'll win."

"Hah, not even a miracle could cause you to win against me!"

We both laughed, our voices filling the nest with happiness.

After my first flight the next day, my wings ached like crazy, a hot burning sensation shooting up and down them with every movement.

Asclepius gave me some ointment that would help with the pain, and it did, but they still burned, but once I entered the sky all that pain flowed away like a swift-moving river flowing down the side of a mountain.

Arlya and I raced, suffice it to say she won... by a lot, but next time I swore I'd win.

Day's passed, and each day I spent flying as much as possible. I felt at home in the sky, a home that felt more real to me than anywhere I've ever been; as soon as I touched paws on the nest or ground, my heart instantly longed to be in the skies again, but my wings said otherwise.

My wings grew steadily stronger with each passing day, and so did my limbs, allowing me to walk longer distances without crumpling up in a heap of scales at the end. By the time two weeks had passed, I had regained my past mobility and strength from before I died, and I knew I was ready to participate in the harpy races.

***

A week later, the same flurry of excitement filled the forest, but this time I was taking part, my legs flexed with strength, my wings ready for the long flight ahead of me. Around me, dozens upon dozens of harpies clung to the branches of different trees. Finding the largest one I could, I landed and relaxed my wings, letting them recover and get ready for the race to come.

Group after group came and went, my muscles flexing with each group being called, ready to launch into flight at a moment's notice, but when midday passed, and my group still hadn't been called, I relaxed my muscles for the hundredth time and lay down on my belly.

"we're up next. Are you ready?"

Arlya flew up next to me, landing on the same thick branch I'd been on for the last couple of hours.

"I was born ready, and I'm more than stoked to burn you."

"Calm down there, fire dragon; there's no burning in the races."

"Ever heard of a figure of speech?"

"What's the fun in those?" she asked with a smirk on her beak.

Finally, the last race came to a close, and I flew up to the starting line. The four other harpies had the largest wingspans in the territory, but mine were easily double their length; they had more experience than I, especially Arlya, who won more than she'd lost, but with my greater wingspan and my long tail giving me better mobility than the others along with my special ability I'd discovered earlier in the week I felt I could win this.

With the other harpies hovering on either side of Arlya and me, we signaled we were ready, and with that, the harpy elder swung his wing down, signaling the start of the race. The harpies surged ahead of me, they had great starting speed, which was my weakest point, but I couldn't be stopped once I got going. The memory of how I crashed into a tree rang through my mind. That was my third flight since then; I'd become much more adept at controlling myself in the air; I'd still be cautious but going faster and faster with each wing beat.

The first markers came into view, the harpies ahead of me still, but not for long. I was slowly gaining on them, the slowest of the four, I could nearly touch its talons. The harpies grabbed their markers, swinging their talons in front and swooping past the markers, each grabbing one, being a quadruped, I didn't need to pull any such stunt, keeping my speed I reached out with my right paw and grabbed the first marker, using my tail I turned direction diving down the side of the trunk, my scales nearly brushing the rigid wood. The harpies balanced out just before they slammed into the ground, angling for the next set of markers; without losing speed, I angled my tail and evened out the wind from my wings, generating a cloud of dirt on the ground.

Another flap of my wings and I passed the first harpy, the next one was a short way ahead, but already I was gaining on him, upon noticing me pass him, the harpy i'd passed a second ago let out an indignant squawk, paying it no mind, my wings flapped faster giving me another burst of speed, the trees passed by in blurs of green and brown. Arlya was far ahead, but I'd catch up in no time. There were still seven more markers to go before we headed back to the starting line.

Before long, the next set of markers appeared, Arlya swooping and grabbing the second marker ahead of me; the other harpies did the same, then it was my turn; my left paw reached out and grabbed the second marker, its orange fabric still in my firm grasp. Passing the first marker to my left paw, I gained speed yet again. I wasn't about to let Arlya win, not when I told her I'd win and sweep the ground with her.

The first harpy now far behind me, its chest heaving in gasps, it clearly wasn't ready to face me.

Another moment and I had passed the second harpy, another indignant squawk escaping its beak at my sudden appearance, the wind raced along my scales like lightning shooting through the sky, once again I felt invincible, with my powerful wing beats I kept gaining momentum, and just before the third marker I had passed the third harpy, now all that was left was Arlya. After grabbing the third marker, the group changed direction again; the harpies had no trouble seeing the far away markers, but with my limited sight, it took me much longer to see them, but I had worked that out all I needed to do was catch up to Arlya before the eighth and final marker.

The next two markers passed, and I grabbed them both, the five markers clutched tightly in my paw. Arlya was far ahead; the harpy I had just passed was hot on my tail; we rose above the tree line, the sun shining on my scales reflecting its stunning light.

Finally, I saw the sixth marker and beelined for it, gaining further momentum and catching up slightly to Arlya; there's no way I was gonna lose to her; looking at her, I caught her look of surprise before she turned her head again and gained speed causing me to lose the distance I had just gained on her.

Dang it, Arlya. The sixth marker came and passed like all the rest, and now there were only two markers left. Arlya dived below the tree line, her belly mere inches from the trunk; I did the same, the momentum allowing me to gain a few inches on her; I gave myself more than enough time to level out, the trees still a blur to my eyes, the seventh marker came into view shortly after the dive, I flapped my wings harder, the muscles starting to burn with exhaustion.

Several more turns and a single tight turn and the eighth marker was in view, but now I was close enough to Arlya to touch her talons if I wanted, the eighth marker came, and just like all the rest, I grabbed it and clutched it tightly, Arlya and I were now side by side, our speeds increasing slowly sending one of us always ahead of the other when the finish line came into view I knew now was the time to play my trump card.

I recalled that day weeks ago in the forest when my chest lit up from the fire ready to release in my chest, my scales warmed, the heat nothing compared to the wind racing along my scales, my chest glowed softly, it's light barely noticeable in the midday sun. Instead of releasing the fire in my chest, I directed its fire towards my wings, its strength fueling my speed and giving my wings even further strength that shot me ahead of Arlya, my wings burned with exhaustion, but I ignored it, the victory so close at hand. There were no rules about using one's own internal abilities, but magic was strictly forbidden, so last week, I went to the elder and asked if my ability was allowed; though he looked surprised at learning of my newfound ability, he accepted it and said there were no rules against it. And that's when I knew I'd win.

A hundred feet and closing, Arlya was close to my tail, close enough she could touch it, but physical contact during the races, especially to slow down an opponent, was forbidden; the harpies' screeches of excitement reached my ears, getting louder with each passing second.

Just before I crossed that line, Arlya sped up, surging forward like a comet beating me to the finish line, passing it anger welled up in my chest, relighting the fire I had directed to my wings.

"And the winner is Arlya!" close behind Ymerc!" the elder screeched, continuing to call out the names of the harpies as they passed the finish line.

"You almost beat me; I didn't expect you to pass me at all; I'm impressed; next time, you might win,"

Arlya said in between gasps.

I wasn't faring much better. My chest heaved with breath, my lungs burned like dragon fire, my wings burned like a thousand suns while we hovered close to the finish line.

Congratulations on winning! I told her, trying to hide my scowl.

Thank you, next ti-

Her sentence cut off as if she remembered something; without another word, she flew off, disappearing in the crowd of harpies.

Was it something I said?

Landing on the same branch I had been on earlier, my thoughts wandered to Arlya.

Races continued for the rest of the day and when evening came I flew back to Arlya's nest, hoping to find her there and ask her what happened, but when I arrived, she wasn't there.

I waited till dusk, hoping she'd appear before sleep claimed me, but she didn't, and before I knew it, sleep rose up and claimed my exhausted body.

***

"He's waking up, drug him again." A familiar voice hissed, but before I had the chance to open my eyes and see who it was, something was held against my nasal cavities. A scent like burning smoke permeated my nose not a second later, and a dark wall of shadows rose up to claim to me.

"May our sacrifice bring you everlasting joy; may this young dragon's blood bring us back in your favor and protect us!"

A searing, burning pain pierced my ribs, my blood ignited in dragon fire. My roar echoed through the room; opening my eyes, the walls were made of grey stone bouncing golden light off torches hanging from sconces. Around me, what looked like the entire harpy settlement was here, the elder who held the races flapped before me, his talons holding a dagger that he had thrust into my ribs, his eyes twisted into a look of demonic glee.

Blood slowly seeped down my side, but it was nothing compared to the sudden torrent when he pulled the dagger out.

Another roar shook the cavern, echoing down the tunnels that no doubt led into and out of here.

Another plunge of the dagger sent it right into my belly, another roar shook the cavern, the harpies screeching bounced along with it.

The elder met my eyes, and no doubt he saw every moment of my anguish in them, for this reminded me of the same night my parents tried to kill me, of every time they tortured me.

"Arlya, it's your turn now."

Arlya appeared next to the elder brandishing her own dagger that gleamed gold in the torchlight.

"Arlya? What is this? What's going on?"

"This is the way it has to be; you will serve as our sacrifice of protection, I've enjoyed my time with you, Ymerc, but tonight you will cease to be like all the creatures before you."

With a moment of hesitation, she plunged the dagger into my chest. But the pain never registered, instead every moment of my parent's torture, the stormy night of my escape flashed before my eyes, the day Draconus found me and roasted me alive, the anger of that day hit me like a tsunami, just like then I refused to die, the way the harpies looked at me throughout my time with them, I had mistaken it for fear, what it really was, was pity, my paws were tied to the table much like the one my parents tortured me on by chains, my belly faced the ceiling, my wings splayed out on either side.

Another dagger was plunged into my scales, but unlike the first dagger, Arlya's and the new dagger stayed in, their hilts glowing a black light which seemed to absorb the torchlight bending it into itself.

The familiar burning along my scales rushed me like lightning striking the ground, my chest lit up, and a torrent of fire escaped my maws.

"Are you sure those chains will hold, Arlya?"

"As sure as I've ever been," came her response.

Everything became hyper-focused, the harpies coming up one by one, their daggers piercing my scales.

Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. KILL. KILL. KILL!

Breathing another gout of flames, I aimed them at the chains melting them in seconds. I was free and now to kill every last harpy alive.

"You said he couldn't breathe fire hot enough to melt the chains!"

"He's much too young to; it's a miracle he's not burning alive from the inside out!"

Arlya responded.

The harpies began to panic; in slow motion, I ripped the daggers from my scales, blood seeping out in rivers cascading along my scales; at the sight of my form freed from its chains, the harpies fled, taking flight like a giant wave cascading over the room in green feathered wings.

Everything appeared in blood-red; the green of their wings was now a dark brown; without hesitation, I gave in to my fury.

The first harpies blood washing along my tongue tasted like wild berries, the sweet wild taste like a drug egging me further on.

The next harpy fell with a swipe of my claws, its blood spraying out like a geyser drenching me in warm blood. Taking flight, I smashed my weight into a group of harpies, sending them careening into the cave wall, falling motionless to the ground. A single claw to their throats was all it took to finish them off, but I found that too merciful.

The next few harpies I gutted, swallowing their intestines with big gulps as I forced the others to watch, fear dilating their eyes, tears running down their faces.

A few had already escaped to the outside, but I didn't worry; I'd find them. Eventually, their end would come.

I lost myself in a haze of blood lust, each harpy dying in a more gruesome way; some I ripped their spines out, others their throats, some I took the time to dismember, letting their blood soak the cave floor and run down my scales in warm rivulets.

"WHERE IS YOUR PROTECTOR NOW!"

I roared.

Around over a dozen harpies lay dead or bleeding out; harpies were still swarming the exit, wings colliding against each other in their hurry to escape. I saw Arlya amongst them; I'd save the best for last, I'd savor her kill the most.

Realizing the dragon had set its sights on the exit, the harpies grew frantic, shoving each other out of the way in their hurry to get out, but tonight not one of them would escape my fury.

With another roar, I charged, my impact sending a large group diving to the ground in a flurry of green feathers.

Without hesitating, I dug in; my meal was rather feathery, if I had to describe it, and very gamey, tough like frozen dirt. But the blood helped wash it down. A handful of harpies fell to the ground unconscious, their minds unable to take the image of me gorging myself on their friends or mates.

Outside, harpies were flying back to their nests, their wings flapping in the cool night air, behind me bodies littered the ground, intestines oozing out of the sliced up corpses, blood spraying from the freshest bodies in spouts of red, not an inch of ground was uncovered from blood or scratched up organs, id even ripped a few hearts out letting them fall with a splatter on the bloody stone. Harpies watched as their companions' hearts splattered with a loud squelch on the ground. Other body parts, feathers, or bits of skin lay plastered along the walls and ceiling.

Breathing another gout of fire I took to the skies, a screech of pain was cut off when I tore the nearest harpies head from its shoulders, blood like all the others sprayed my scales, its warmth heating my scales further. Its lifeless body dropped to the ground with a thud.

Every nest fell to dragon fire, hotter than normal fire. Its flames consumed all, the trees lighting up in a blaze, the night which was usually dark only lit by the stars and moon now casts the fire lights reflection.

Every harpy that had fled was found cowering in their nests, hoping to be left alone, but I showed no mercy; every harpy would fall.

When I found the elder, he too cowered in his nest; taking my time with him, I tore his wings from his body, my teeth more than capable of ripping them off. A sound like shredding paper sounded as the skin was rent. His screech of agony tore the night.

"Please stop; we're sorry; we never should have betrayed you."

"If you were truly sorry, then you never would have done it."

"Our deity demands a sacrifice, or we all get punished."

"You won't have to worry about punishment since you all will be dead," I replied. My jaws clamp down on his throat before tearing his spine and head away from his main body.

Now for Arlya.

Taking flight, I headed for her nest. It wasn't long before I found her, hovering in the sky, looking at the destruction I had wrought.

She was sent diving into a nest below as I slammed my full weight into her.

Her coughs met my ears as I landed, a gust of flaming wind blew by enveloping me for a short moment, walking forward our eyes met, her pupils dilated in horror as I stalked forward the flames parted before like waves against a cliff, her body shook uncontrollably.

"Please, I'll do anything; please don't kill me."

"Begging? Tut tut, that doesn't look good on you, Arlya, look even your feathers are all rustled, and you take such good care of them, just like how you took care of me before trying to kill me.

What was the point of all that? Raising me to good health and then killing me? That just makes so much sense, so was it something I did? Something I said? Or was it just my existence? Oh, I stumbled upon a poor helpless dragon; let me heal it of its wounds and then KILL IT!"

"...To be honest, I'm not entirely sure, but I felt like I had to help you, you just looked so hurt that I wanted to help, and harpies have a way of finding and helping those in need." her words from after the race echoed in my memories.

"Please, I'm so sorry, please spare me."

"Tell me, Arlya, why did you do it?"

"Our deity demanded a healthy sacrifice, but we refused to sacrifice one of our own, and an animal wasn't-" she paused to sniff, "enough, so when I happened upon you, I found an opportunity."

"Is that all I was to you? An opportunity? Not a living creature with feelings and emotions?"

"I came to care about you over time, she sniveled again, I fought against the tribe when they saw you were ready, but they wouldn't listen, please, I didn't want to do it!"

I stalked forward, the heat from the flames causing the still wet blood dripping down my chin and chest to steam, my tail lashing through the flames like a serpent.

"Please don't kill me; I'll do anything!"

"Anything you say? Then die!"

"Silly dragon." my claws stopped a mere inch from her face.

The day she found me flashed through my memories; the haze of red disappeared.

She saved me that day, bringing me food, taking me to her nest, and I owed her something in return. Lowering my claws to the ground I decided to spare her.

"You may have your life, but in return, you will be my servant."

With tears still in her eyes, she frantically nodded her head in acceptance.

Come, we must leave this forest to burn.

Taking flight, I left behind all the memories I'd acquired over the last couple of weeks, even my first flight I left behind tossing it away to burn in the flames. Wingbeats sounded behind me; I barely heard them over the flickering of flames and creaking of wood.

Together we took flight, rising above the trees, smoke covering the air.

It wouldn't be until later that I would realize the scars that had nearly disappeared were back in full force, each scar fully visible on my scales even from a long distance, but another scar had appeared on my scaled hide, a diagonal line crossing directly over my chest scales where my heart still beat.