{Shelby} Dragon's Sacrifice {Chaotic Cello}

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Amara's ears picked up the question and huffed in response. Surely she has caught on that he can't exactly talk in this form, right? Perhaps she was just talking to herself to pass the time, but it hardly mattered. The mountain that housed his cave was visible in the distance and he vaguely pointed at it with a claw.

And they were there in no time at all. He landed with stretched wings and set his head on the ground, waiting for Myla to dismount.

The spot he landed at was a large ledge seemingly carved into the side of the mountain with only one, perilous path leading into it. The ledge was basked in late afternoon sunlight that illuminated the large man---not large dragon opening in the mountain wall.

It was the only entrance (for the human) into his lair that he took pride in. The passage was torch lit and narrow. It was housed the armor, weapons, and bones of knights, thieves, and anyone else dumb enough to try to face him. A warning to those that try to steal his treasure. This passage lead to an open area large enough to fit his true form that was lit a system by a system of mirror and small windows that he made himself. The front part this was obviously an area where battles had taken place (and very haphazardly cleaned) and the back half an area of comfort being filled with fur, blankets, pillows, and the like. The entrance to his hoard--his pride and treasures--was hidden somewhere in this room.

And Amara couldn't wait to get into this lair, become comfortable, and show off.
 
With her not opening her eyes, she wasn't able to see where the dragon was pointing to, nor could she really tell that he was pointing to anything. The one time that she did end up opening her eyes, she came to face a large, looming mountain in the distance that she could only assume was his home, if not for the fact that they were heading directly towards it. Before they landed she even brave herself enough to lean over a bit to catch a better glimpse of the place, her curiosity getting the better of her, and though the fact that they were so high in the air gave the woman a sickening feeling, she couldn't help but feel a sense of wonderment to the area.

She had only been told by word of mouth what this place looked like from the frightened knights that were lucky enough to escape this place with their lives, though that was very rare to her village. She took note of the long winding path that lead up to the mouth of the cave, wondering how many men dared travel its path to come face this monster? And now here she was, being forced into this place, a place where no one wanted to be in. A place where so many men lost their lives at because they wanted Amara's riches and just the overall pride of knowing that they were able to kill this dastardly beast.

As they were put back on the ground, it took Myla a few moments to get herself off of the dragon, her legs shaky though she thanked the Gods above that she was still alive, and able to feel the ground beneath her feet again. She found herself almost awestruck as she looked around the landscape once again, though as she turned to look at the mouth of the cave she couldn't help but gasp at the sight of the armor and bones of knights. Myla grit her teeth at the sight, it sickening to her. He had killed these men. Taken their wealth, and then killed them for trying to take back what was theirs.

It angered her, yes, to think that so much of this happened here... To think of all the things he had done in the past. That once feeling of somewhat bravery she held towards the dragon, if only because he hadn't yet killed her, soon turned to anger, but the fear seemed to be more apparent because now she could actually see what he could do and what he has done to people. She didn't like this.

Myla turned around, putting her back to the opening as she stared at the dragon, her hands clenched into fist, evident fear in her eyes, though she tried to put on a tough facade like she used on the people in the village, except she didn't usually fear the people there. She had always heard that putting your back to the enemy was a bad thing, so she refused to do it now.
 
Amara transformed into his human-like form and shook his head to shake out his hair before running a hand through it it. He streched out likely before turning to Myla.

"You don't have to look so annoyed, human." It was then he realized he didn't even know this girl's name, but it hardly mattered at the moment. "I know it is a cave, but it is nice on the inside. And I put a lot of work into it." He was able to identify the anger, but not able to identify the cause. His contacts with humans was minimal (this is the longest he has actually been in the prescence of one before) and was expecting more of a thankfull attitude for what he sees as generosity.

He doesn't know what he will do with her yet. But he had no plans of eating her, or killing her. And he took her away from the villagers that were so eager to get rid of her.

Amara tried to offer a smile before shrugging and walking into the entrance. He wasn't bothered by his display of victories and glanced back at Myla. "The whole inside isn't like this. This is just to frighten intruders." He added, patting a skull as he walked.

And then froze in his steps, finally, figuring it out and turning around slow with eyes wide. "I have no plans on harming you---unless you force me. You aren't walking to your death."

A sharp pivot and he was turned around, walking at his normal pace and dragging his clawed his hand along the stone wall until the passage opened up and he was his large and comforting den.
 
Gritting her teeth, Myla merely continued to sneer at the dragon, er man, his still tall stature very intimidating to the female. No one in the village was as tall as he in his humanoid form, but then again, no one in the village was a dragon either. This was all so odd, especially the way in which he spoke about his home, making it seem as if the pieces of dead men were nothing but mere trophies that would scare off anyone who come near this place. Nevertheless, those object did their job in scaring anyone off, unless a person was deemed stupid enough to want to step foot in a place like this.

"Of course it is," she spat out, obvious disdain for his character seeping out with the words that she spoke, but they still did not hold the malice she so wanted to have with them. She couldn't get herself to do it, no matter what.

But when he mentioned that he wouldn't hurt her unless prompted, it didn't make her feel any better about the situation. Not walking into her death? Yeah, that didn't seem right. Was he going to just hold her captive then? Put her in a cage and hang her on the wall, making her out to be one of his scarecrows? Letting others know that he also took live prisoners?

She opened her mouth to speak something again, though found no sound escaping her mouth. Instead, she just watched as he headed into the opening of the cage, her feet all but having a mind of their own and following him back into his den. She didn't want to stay out there, least she get attacked by something, but what was to say she wouldn't get attacked in there? She didn't trust a word he said.

One of the swords on the wall caught her eyes though, making her stop halfway through the entrance and just stare at the steel blade. Her reflection shot right back at her, the sight of a frightened girl, someone that she didn't like. But... A sword, a weapon... Her eyes glanced over towards Amara, her eyes glancing over his form before she looked back at the blade. Could she kill him? Kill him and just leave, maybe with gold too if she could find it? If she could do that and brought it back to the village, then maybe they wouldn't say she was just a worthless waste of a women. She would be of worth. But how could she kill him? He's so much bigger, so much stronger than herself?

A sigh escaped her lips as she turned away from the sword and headed deeper into the den, a surprised look crossing her features as she looked at the mass amount of space this place held. And it actually looked... Nice. "Hmm..." It was surprising, to say the least.
 
Amara grinned as he heard the hmm Myla made. "Told you," he stated, walking through the area with comfort and ease. He then took off his cloak and threw it to the side, deeming it unneeded. It didn't matter that he was bared-chested and a women was in the room. She was human and afraid of him. Plus he was in his lair and will be comfortable.

Though before he got more comfortable he had one more order of business. He had been gone all day and had to check on his hoard. He didn't smell or see any disturbances, but he still has to check.

Walking along the wall to an area thay was shadowed he slipped through a deftly hidden hole. It was a tight fit for him, but the smaller then entrance the better it is hidden.

This room was bigger then the last and was by far his favorite. It contained a small pond by the entrance and behind it, reflecting in the water was his collection of gold and treasure. The stack of gold was large enough for him to lay ontop of in his true form and watch it sparkle in the water. There were piles of other valuables such an precious stones, silver, crowns, and his favorite the decorative highly polished mirrors. He glanced around the room, doing a mental checklist of his favorites to check if they were still there, and to his relief nothing noticable was missing.
 
Myla shot him another look before traveling further into the room, her arms once again crossed over her chest as she got a better look at things. This place was much different than what the knights had described. All that had merely said was this place was dark, and there was always an evil aurora surrounding the place. Death marked the landscape, bones and bodies littered everywhere, large claw marks on all on the ground and the side of the mountain as a way of Amara showing that this was his territory.

They were wrong though.

Sure, this place still had that impending sense of death surrounding it, but not as those few knights had described it. Apparently their frightened minds caused their imaginations to run wild, making them remember things that weren't exactly there, or making the things they had seen more exaggerated.

Myla couldn't help but feel so small in this place, so insignificant, but when she turned her eyes over to the dragon and saw him take his cloak off, she couldn't help but find her eyes wandering up and down his bare chest, her cheeks beginning to heat up slightly, though she quickly told herself to calm down, her face losing the red tint almost instantly. He was a dragon, not a human. Still, that didn't mean she couldn't appreciate his body... But she quickly tossed the thought aside and narrowed her eyes as he walked along the room to a more shadowed part, again that curiosity beginning to spike within Myla. She followed after him after he had disappeared, bending down on her knees as she looked at the hole that he had traveled through, thinking that the space was much too small, but nothing that she couldn't get herself through.

But something in her mind told her not to go in there. He was hiding something, possibly the gold and his other treasures? She could swear she could see the glint of something sparkle at the end of the entrance, a hint of a gold light, or the light reflecting off a piece of gold. That had to be where it was.
 
Amara smiled and ran his hand across one of his treasures--a small hand mirror played in gold and embedded with shining sapphires, with the glass highly polished and irrestiably smooth the the touch-- before he stepped away and back towards the opening.

He wanted to stay lounge about in the room. Enjoy the beauty and prescence of the valuables. Watch them sparkle in the light and be mesmerized by the pure...shiny-ness...of it all that simply enchanted his kind. But his newest treasure--that is what he finally decided the human would be for now (she was pretty enough)---had not followed him in and he couldn't leave her unintended.

So he squeezed his tall frame through the hole and re-entered his den. And he saw where she was. Too close to this secret entrance to not see it---especially seeing that he had just exited it. His first instinct was that she was plotting to steal from his hoard and his golden eyes narrowed in near hostility and his muscles tensed in preparation to attack.

Then he realized she was just probably following him around and wondering what he was doing. His muscles relaxed, but his eyes remained narrowed. He stood up straight with a haughtiness that only a dragon could possess and shook his head (effectively flipping his hair over his shoulder) and stalked over to one of the pile of furs by the wall of then den.

He flopped down with little grace on top of the and leaned against the wall, crossing his both arms and legs and began to stare at Myra as if daring her to say something.
 
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When she heard Amara start to emerge from the recesses of the little hidden room the dragon had stepped into, Myla took a few steps back, still on her knees, but as the dragon came from the area, tensed as he looked at her, Myla also couldn't help but tense. Obviously he held something of importance in that space behind the little entrance, so maybe it was the gold and other items of worth he had stolen from her and other villages in the area. Why else would he be protective of it, unless this was just his natural instincts to act this way when a human stepped foot in his place of living. Then again, she doubted if he even knew what it felt like to actually have a human in his cave without slaughtering them in his wake.

She watched as he flipped his hair, the mess of abundance all but making her roll her eyes, but she quickly averted her eyes shortly after, her gave reverting back to the place he had just come out of. She was curious, but couldn't do anything about it now. Not with him watching, and she could tell his eyes were on her, boring holes into her back. It was an odd feeling, something that, unfortunately Myla was used to given how most of the villagers would stare at her for various reasons, but that didn't mean she liked it. They were either always condescending... Or challenging, kind of like the one Amara was shooting her now.

She turned to look at him, a sneer caught in her features. "Why am I here? Why are you keeping me here? I am of no use to you, and you know that. I am no gold, nor am I worth it like my father so insisted I am, at least in terms of a precious gem." She stood up and took a few steps towards him, looking up at his pile of fur he sat upon.
 
"Human." Amara began, but his words stopped there. He knew enough about human kind to know that they didn't know much about dragons. And he really didn't feel like explaining any of it to this girl.

He closed his eyes and searched for the words that make it simpliest--teeth chewing on his lip as he thought. When he finally came up with--what he he deemed--reasonable explaination they reopened.

"You were the offering." His arms uncrossed and he leaned forward and rested his chin in a hand. "The offering is treasure. Makes you treasure." A shrug and his eyes ran down her form before settling back on her face. "Pretty enough to be treasure too. Dragons keep treasure. Value you matters little. Just the beauty and shiny." His words stopped there and he held still awaiting a response--hoping for comprehension.
 
So, she really was just some trophy that he would keep because of her pretty face. Was that all she was really worth? What if she had been born without her looks? Would he think the same? Would he want to keep her then?

Myla's eyes narrowed as she listened to the words he spoke, understanding clearly the meaning behind them. Even he thought of her as just a women with looks, and though she had been an offering to him, he would consider her a treasure because she was pretty. "I am not a gem that you can just keep, and I refuse to be treated like one," Her hands balled into the fist, just like they had before she entered this cave. That same wave of anger washing over her, though not for the same reasons that she had before. "I may be an 'offering', but I am still a human. Not an item that can just be stashed away. I am much more than my appearance."
 
Amara was baffled by her anger. Being treasure was a compliment. Who was angered by compliments? And her words were complete and utter nonsense that he simply did not understand. Maybe if he adressed her words point by point she would understand she is being nonsensical.

He scratched his head. "I never said you were a gem. Do you think I am dumb enough to mistake you for a pretty rock. And, of course, I can just keep you---I am right now. You can't stop me. I agree that you are a human and never contested that you weren't. Simply meant you were also treasure. Human treasure and you aren't actually in my stash. The stash is for shiny treasures and you aren't shiny. And I never said you couldn't be more." He smiled. It wasn't a devious or suggestive smile, but one of satisfaction. "Treasures that are more are better than this that are less. You have permission to be more."

Point decidedly made, he stretched and let out a long yawn and he returned to resting his chin in his hand.
 
"I was not being literal when speaking of myself as a gem. I know I am not, and I am more than positive that you knew I am not as well." She crossed her arms, growing irritated as he seemed to have assessed everything she had said, taking each point while trying to prove his one point. This still didn't make her feel better, and his words did nothing to console her, nor did they made her any less angry. He didn't understand, and he never would understand what it felt like to be held as a trophy in the eyes of... Everyone. She wasn't that, and she hated being treated as so.

"I am no treasure, nor am I a trophy. Becoming someone's 'treasure' means becoming that person, or thing's, possession, and I refuse to be owned by anyone, or anything. Especially you. You are nothing but a ruthless monster who terrorizes lesser beings and takes their worldly possessions without so much as an ounce of remorse." Her words held a fiery tone with them, her eyes glinting with anger. "Why do you do it? Why take the gold that my village works so hard to obtain?" She knew she was treading into a different subject, but the words just came pouring out.
 
It would have been better if Amara never even tried to nake an attempt to explain. He didn't even know where to begin. His body shook as she continued to rudely refuse to accept what he meant as a compliment. Belittling it until it was nothing. Twisting it into an insult. And so angry. It reminded him of the bad humans. The ones he loathed. He didn't think she was one, but his opinion was ever so slowly changing.

The personal attacks on him were the last straw. He waited until the tirade was finished before standing up in a fluid motion. His eyes were ablaze with anger and he began stalking towards her in (if the situation was perhaps not so serious) a comical slow motion. Every step and motion delibrate, face expressionless and only his eyes displaying the cool fury he felt.

When he finally spoke, his voice was akin to a low rumbling growl. "You think I am ruthless? A monster?" His head tilted, "What, pointlessly cruel?" He was reaching towards her with just one of his gleaming golden claws. Still moving in a slow and intimidating manner. "Do you have any idea how kind I actually am?" He paused in his speech and took a slow breath. "I could have slaughter your village. Set the forest and fields on fire. Instead I accepted you. You, whom, I grace the fate of being a treasue. It really is not that bad. Would you rather some other fate? I can take you back to your village, maim you for show and demand ten times the amount if gold. How does that sound? Or I know! I can breath fire, make you burn and feast upon your charred bone. Mmm, how about I eat you alive instead? Let me think...sell you to be hunted for sport--I'm sure I can find a buter somwhere." He leaned forward so he was eat eye level with Myla. "Tell me, human, is any of this sounding good? Better than your current situation?" A brow was raised in challege and then he let out an empty laugh as he straightened up, offering no more words and a cruel smile. He her questioning about his motivation, but he won't even go there until she understood he is not as evil as she thinks.
 
The way he slowly made his way toward her reminded Myla of how a predator would stalk it's prey. Silently waiting for the right minute to pounce, readying themselves for an attack that would ultimately take over the weaker being, making them surrender to their whim. Killing them swiftly before they were able to escape, or torturing them slowly to get some type of sick pleasure from the sight of their writhing, screaming pain. To be honest, it scared Myla. Scared her like there was nothing else in the world that she could ever possibly be afraid of. His eyes held a ruthless intent, letting her know that he was not at all happy with the situation. Yet she didn't back down. Not physically anyway.

Maybe it was the fact that she had grown up with three older brothers who thought they were the best of the best, always trying to one up each other while also pushing her around, deeming her a simple little nothing that gave her the resistance that Myla held, but she wasn't exactly sure. But she wouldn't back down to this beast. If she didn't do that to her siblings, she wouldn't do it to him. It might get her killed in the end, or it might end her up in the very situations that the dragon spoke of, but she wanted to be strong. She was strong.

But while she might have looked tough on the outside, her insides were screaming at her to move, telling her to get the hell out of the situation and to just shut up. Let him win this round, let him do what he wants because he is obviously stronger than she, obviously bigger than she. He could do anything that he wanted, yet he wasn't doing anything to hurt her. Why push him?

"Nothing is stopping you from doing all of those things you just said." Damn, why couldn't she keep her mouth shut. Myla glanced down at his claws, biting her lip in the process before she looked him back in the eye, a sense of determination sent in hers, though there was still no denying the fear in them. "But yes, that is what I think you are: A monster, because that is what you are. Nothing else."
 
He could admire her bravery and refusal to back down. He could sense the fear so he believed it wasn't pure stupidity and instead stubborness. Few had the courage to stare into his eyes. Amara could hardly condem her for that....her words on the other hand.

He had the urge to lash out and strike her. Make the human hurt for calling him nothing but a monster. But that would only prove her right. Amara took a deep breath and took a step backwards. "The only thing stopping me is that you are wrong." He finally said, closing his eyes and stepping further back.

"But you will always believe you are right. So what does it matter?" A bitter laugh and a shake of his head. He waved his hand before turning around and returning to the furs. He sat back down but this time instead of leaning into the wall he was haunched forward, head held in his hands.

He was struggling to regain a sense of calm and wanted nothing more than to shift into his true form, but deciding he might not be able to resist the urge to set this infuriating human on fire.
 
She almost huffed at him, a sense of confidence surging through her body as she watched the dragon back down, refusing to do the actions that he said he could do. But could he really? Either way, she knew not to press on the matter to much, because if she was lucky enough to get herself out of that argument alive, then maybe she shouldn't push her luck anymore.

"I am not wrong, and you know it." But Myla was not always known for making the right decisions. "Why else would you do what you do? Terrorize villages, especially mine, demanding that we give you payment, for what reason? Why do you need the gold and riches that we work so hard to get? Dragon's do not need gold. You do not need to buy things, you do not need to survive on the action of trading with others in hopes that you can gain something in return that could help a struggling village like mine."

She stopped her little rant short, her eyes reverting down to the ground. Why was she defending the very village that sent her away to the dragon, giving her up as a sacrifice? Why was she fighting for the people that cared nothing for her? Honestly, Myla couldn't answer the question, but nevertheless she was doing it, but it confused her greatly. "You dragon's are nothing but greed filled creatures." She looked back up at him.
 
The hands clutching his head tightened, and Amara felt his claws break the skin of his scalp. He didn't lift his head as he spoke. Was she really asking why he collected treasure? "I'm a dragon" he paused. "It's what dragons do. It's like..." He trailed off. "Treasure it...it's shiny." He put a strange emphasis on the word. And had no idea how to explain it further. How could he put the compulsion, the need for shimmer into words.The hypnotic enchantment that had him contentedly sprawled out in the midst of his hoard for hours. How that the glimmer was like a beautiful song that sang to his kinds' eyes from the moment they hatch? It was instinct to collect all they can, guard it and revel in the thrall it brings.

"I got to...my kind..." A sigh, "We just have to have it. The struggle it bring to humans...just an unintended side effect." He could finally lift his head and he ran a hand through his hair. He simply didn't have the words he was looking for. "It's not value we want to steal. You use something without shine--like chickens-- for currency and we would have no interest in it." He stared at the ceiling. "We just need the shiny." He shrugged and felt that his explanation wasn't even close to adequate but figured a human couldn't ever truly understand it anyway.
 
Myla's eyes narrowed as she listened to Amara speak, listening to the tone of his words, thinking that... Maybe he was telling the truth. Saying that he was held captive by the sheer sight of gold or any other precious, rare item, and that he and his kind could do nothing about it. She almost had a sense of... Pity, but the creature. The way he spoke, the way he reacted and moved when speaking about it. How could just a little object, little shiny objects, hold such power over him?

"I don't understand," she spoke, her tone a bit softer than it had been before. She anger was beginning to dwindle away as she put her hands on her hips. "Can't you just fight it? It's just a mere temptation, right? Something that could be fought against, something that you can beat?" She took a step closer to the mound, more curious than anything now.
 
Her words made him laugh. Not a bitter or empty laugh, but more of an amused rumble. "Human, you speak as if it is bad. A...disease?" He wasn't certain it was the right word, but it would do. "To resist would be like resisting to breath." He shook his head. "No. Thats not it...well sorta....We don't die without it but we still need it."

He smiled. "And it doesn't make sense to fight it. It brings comfort and...happiness." He stood up and walked over to the entrance to his hoard. "Just come and see." He said before squeezing through. His words weren't adequate but maybe if she saw the beauty of his treasure she would sort of get it.
 
"No, not a disease. Just... Something that is irresistible, something that just draws people in, tempting them. Making them do anything they can to get what it is they want, no matter what." She thought she understood what he was trying to say, but to think that she had ever felt the same thing about anything in her life would be a lie. There had never been a temptation in her life to stop her, blind her from her morals and get her to do anything. If anything, a temptation was like a spell that could not be broken, something that controlled the person. Maybe that was what he was going though.

Still, because she understood not what it felt like to be tempted by something, she didn't understand why it was such a hard thing to fight, or why he found the need to take what was not his. "Comfort and happiness are not always the best things in life." Though many would argue her statement, she didn't believe it.

When he told her to follow she did, curious to see what he held hidden, wondering what it was that made all this gold so precious to him. She crawled through the hole behind him, her eyes on the ground before she looked up, her eyes widening at the sight of all the gold he kept stashed in here. The mirrors that surrounded the place, the shiny items... It really was beautiful, so... Weird. She stood up and walked over to the water, the reflection of the gold bouncing off the liquid, shining lights bouncing off the walls, bouncing off of other objects, making them shine. All these riches... If any person owned all of this, they would be the richest in all the land. They would be the most well respected people around, and they wouldn't have to worry about anything. Her village... They wouldn't struggle like they were if they had all this.

"So you just... Keep all if this here, hidden?"
 
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