The Dragon's Lair
Elias Morales
Ulric stands at the mouth of the cave, the final trial of his journey, his 12th labor. Ulric knows what awaits him in the cave, beyond the winding, twisting tunnels. He drops his pack, as all it will do is weigh him down, he takes one final look at the light and descends into the cave, unsure if he will ever see the light of day again.
The cave is dark and gloomy, with stalagmites slowly drip water onto the floor of the cave, leaving a moist feeling to the air. As he stomps through the cave, almost aimlessly, with only the faint light of his torch and a crude map to guide his way. Then he sees a light, somewhere down one of the many branches. Ulric knows that this is the way, though this route is unmarked on the map, he can feel the call. Ulric stands tall, gathers up all the courage and strength he has earned over these past few months. Ulric thinks back to fighting the Dark Vassal of King Archibald, defeating the Enchanted Wizard of the Durge Swamps, the Flying Horsemen of the East, and the sneaky Druids of the Golden Woods. All of these opponents taught Ulric a valuable lesson for his quest: the Dark Vassal taught him to be relentless in his attacks, the Enchanted Wizard taught him to use his defense as much as his offense, the Flying Horsemen taught him to be nimble and quick, and the Druids taught him to be patient, to find the right time to strike.
Ulric knew he was ready, to face the greatest challenge yet. Irimash the Fire Drake, the most cunning and devasting dragon in the land. Irimash had razed countless villages, slaughtered countless men, women, and children. Known not only for his viciousness but his cunning as well, Irimash had the gift of speech. Lord Draven, the hero before Ulric, had fallen victim to Irismash’s cleverness, Lord Draven had come with an army of thousands to face Irimash. Irimash knowing that he could not defeat all of them, sought to trick Draven, he offered him gold and power. This enchanted Draven closer and closer to the dragon, until he was snatched and eaten, the vast army cowered without their leader, many were slaughtered, and few were ever seen again.
Now Ulric stood, ready to face his great opponent, to become the hero his kingdom desired, to be the greatest warrior his people had seen! “Many have come with that map of mine before.” a low voice growled to Ulric. Ulric froze with fear, had the voice come from inside his head? “You are correct young warrior; I am inside of your mind.” the voice growled again. Ulric knew what he must do, he steeled his nerves ready to strike! “Like so many others led astray, you must know your attack is futile.” This caused Ulric to hesitate, could the dragon read his thoughts? “Yes…” This could not be? Nowhere did people know that Irimash could rea…
Another poor soul set out to kill me. Alas each one more clueless than the last. It should be another few years before they gather the courage to send another, that one was rather powerful, having defeated all those others. He may have stood a chance. Nevertheless, back to my slumber.
The cave is dark and gloomy, with stalagmites slowly drip water onto the floor of the cave, leaving a moist feeling to the air. As he stomps through the cave, almost aimlessly, with only the faint light of his torch and a crude map to guide his way. Then he sees a light, somewhere down one of the many branches. Ulric knows that this is the way, though this route is unmarked on the map, he can feel the call. Ulric stands tall, gathers up all the courage and strength he has earned over these past few months. Ulric thinks back to fighting the Dark Vassal of King Archibald, defeating the Enchanted Wizard of the Durge Swamps, the Flying Horsemen of the East, and the sneaky Druids of the Golden Woods. All of these opponents taught Ulric a valuable lesson for his quest: the Dark Vassal taught him to be relentless in his attacks, the Enchanted Wizard taught him to use his defense as much as his offense, the Flying Horsemen taught him to be nimble and quick, and the Druids taught him to be patient, to find the right time to strike.
Ulric knew he was ready, to face the greatest challenge yet. Irimash the Fire Drake, the most cunning and devasting dragon in the land. Irimash had razed countless villages, slaughtered countless men, women, and children. Known not only for his viciousness but his cunning as well, Irimash had the gift of speech. Lord Draven, the hero before Ulric, had fallen victim to Irismash’s cleverness, Lord Draven had come with an army of thousands to face Irimash. Irimash knowing that he could not defeat all of them, sought to trick Draven, he offered him gold and power. This enchanted Draven closer and closer to the dragon, until he was snatched and eaten, the vast army cowered without their leader, many were slaughtered, and few were ever seen again.
Now Ulric stood, ready to face his great opponent, to become the hero his kingdom desired, to be the greatest warrior his people had seen! “Many have come with that map of mine before.” a low voice growled to Ulric. Ulric froze with fear, had the voice come from inside his head? “You are correct young warrior; I am inside of your mind.” the voice growled again. Ulric knew what he must do, he steeled his nerves ready to strike! “Like so many others led astray, you must know your attack is futile.” This caused Ulric to hesitate, could the dragon read his thoughts? “Yes…” This could not be? Nowhere did people know that Irimash could rea…
Another poor soul set out to kill me. Alas each one more clueless than the last. It should be another few years before they gather the courage to send another, that one was rather powerful, having defeated all those others. He may have stood a chance. Nevertheless, back to my slumber.
Elias Morales is from El Paso, Texas. He is currently in the NMMI ECP ROTC program and will commission as an officer into the U.S. Army in May of 2021. After NMMI he will study political science with a concentration in international relations and hopes to work in the FBI or state department after the army.