“What could possibly be worth the life of a Goddess before she’s even come into her powers?”
“Love.” I say, turning around at last.
The sight before me is the closest I can come to magically perfect. She’s beautiful, standing at least as tall and long as a double decker bus. I’m not sure about her wingspan, but the rest of her… “You’re beautiful.” I whisper, looking over her vibrant green scales from her head to her tail. She looks just like the stories depict western dragons as. Four legs, scales, large reptilian head and huge wings folded along her sides.
“Oh, so you’ve fallen for a human and you want to find a way to save him from his fate.” She waves her tail towards the door I came in through, “Leave before I change my mind and eat you.”
“I’m not a Goddess and I haven’t fallen for a human. I’m here because Ares told me that you had a key that could free the three Gods I wish to save.”
“You dare to lie to my face?” She roars.
I stand my ground as she rushes at me. “I don’t lie. I am a human. I was born of a human. I was raised by my adopted human parents and I’ll die a human. Even if that means dying today, by your hand.”
The dragon stops as suddenly as she began charging. “You really believe that don’t you?”
I nod. “Tanner doesn’t, but he’s a fool who thinks love is real, so I can’t really blame him for having high hopes.”
“Who is this Tanner that you speak of, is he one of the three you wish to save?”
“No. Tanner looks like a male version of me. Heisa God. He has this stupid theory that I’m a Goddess, simply because I look like his mother.”
“Yes, I can see it. Your Tanner must be the son of Petra. You do look a lot like Petra. Although, Aphrodite also had the same looks that you do. Perhaps we are all wrong. If you are Aphrodite’s daughter, that would explain why you do not know you are a Goddess. She has been kept a prisoner for generations, all because she chose another over the man who was obsessed with her.”
“Damn, I guess we’re all screwed then. If I am what you say, then you might as well kill me now. I don’t have a human to feed off and that also means my three Gods don’t either.”
“Why would you feed off a human? Are you trying to hinder your powers?” Hecatate asks.
“What do you mean?” I ask, sitting down on the ground near her. She cocks her head slightly, eyeing me with one huge sparkling eye. “I meant what I said. If you can’t help me, then I might as well let you eat me. Until then, I’m just going to relax. I’ve had a long day.”
“You’re very strange. I don’t think I’ll eat you. I might change my mind later, but for now, you may join me in the other room. I have a large bed in there, it would be more comfortable than the hard ground.”
“Thank you. I’d appreciate that.” I get up, preparing to follow her, when she lowers her head right down in front of me.
“It’ll take you forever to get to the other room on those short legs.” She chuffs, “I’ll allow you to hop up onto my neck.”
“No. You are not a creature to ride. I would never insult you as such.” I gasp. “I’m quite fast when I run.”
I don’t get the chance to argue any further as she rears back, grabs me around the waist in her tail and literally flings me up onto her back.
“In all my years, I have never once met anyone who saw me as something they didn’t want to tame. Even the Gods who brought me here thought to tame me. They’ve spent the last fifty years trying to convince me to allow one of them to ride me like a horse.” She rumbles as I climb her scales and sit carefully on her neck.
“Admittedly, all I know about dragons is from books, but I always got the impression that they were more powerful, more content when they were free.”
“I would love to see these books you speak of. They sound wonderful.”
“Do you have the internet down here? I could download some to your screens. Or we could just leave and I’ll show you a library or two.”
“What about your Gods, do you not wish to save them anymore.”
“I would love to save them, but you clearly don’t have any keys and if I am a Goddess then saving them or myself would be just delaying the inevitable death that awaits us.”
“Again you say odd things.” She says, lowering her head to go through into another cavern. This one is about a quarter of the size of the previous one. She flicks her tail at the wall, turning a light on and my jaw drops.
“I love what you’ve done to the place.” I laugh, taking in the room. She wasn’t wrong about there being a bed, although to someone my size it looks more like a giant beanbag than a bed.
The walls are painted a pretty pale pink that makes the white glow of the overhead lights appear softer and the giant cinema sized screen flickers between pictures of roses, gardens and animals, giving the whole room a homier feel. I could easily be comfortable enough to sleep in a room like this every night.
“Come on, my old bones are weary. If you’ll be kind enough to keep an old dragon company for the night, I’ll think on how we can help your Gods and you survive the troubles you find yourselves in.”