I suppose thats what adventurers do. I could at least try to help.

It was a long boat ride. The beauty of the deep blue was offset by the rocking of a rickety
old boat. We sailed east, far east. We sailed so far east that we found the next continent over.
Thills, the land of the crescent tide, is a pristine land full of earthly people. The harbor itself was
an example of this. Fishermen with boats of all sizes had crews ranging from one to many
pulling nets full of large, white fish onto wagons, shipping it off to places that we could only
imagine. The redwood stood as a study foundation underneath us, the brass bells and gulls
polluted the silence with the incessant nothingness that our group of newcomers could all but
understand. It was a foggy day, the clouds rolled in from the sea making it difficult to see, let
alone navigate in a foreign continent.
Excuse me, sir! Regan exclaimed, garnering the attention of a nearby overseer Were all just
getting off the boat and were completely exhaust-
White tails to the right! The town hall has requested 7 barrels of the yellow tails! The man
exclaimed to nobody in particular, but to the fishermen en mass.
We- she began again
Were looking for a big mountain, dragons, you heard of it? Dirk blurted as he stepped forward
You there! Take those yellow tails to the town hall! He said, pointing to a fisherman with a net
on his back. The fisherman looked up, sighed and continued walking.
DRAGON TEMPLE, OLD MAN! DO YOU-! Dirk shouted before he was taken by the collar by
the man who glared at him with a surprising intensity.
And just what do ya pack of foreigners plan to do inside Thills most treasured monastery? He
said, lowering his voice to a level at which he could convey the seriousness of his tone.
Would you believe that were here to help? I said, trying to diffuse the situation.
The bearded man looked over and with a huff, let go of Dirks shirt and walked over to
me. Without thinking, I flipped a gold piece up into the air and pointed away from the harbor into
the thick fog.
North-east. Am I close?
The gruff man was startled as he caught the gold piece against his chest. But he looked out into
the fog, put his hand above his eyes and peered deeply into it. He then took my hand and
pointed it a little bit more east.
Your best bet, ya couldnt miss it if you tried.

Its been a pleasure. I said

You best high tail it out of here before the town hall knows that I just pointed you there.
But its!- Regan and Dirk took my arms and escorted me along the trail out of the harbor before
I could finish the thought.
It only took a few hours to see the tip of the mountain in the distance, but it was a two
day venture to get to the base of the damn thing. The fog did not make it this far inland. By time
we got there, the sun was in the middle of the sky. We had just made it past the nearby town to
stock up on provisions as we began to come across the elaborate decorations at the bottom.
Statues made out of many kinds of stones depicted dragons, men and women. Wooden arches
hung thin strips of paper with symbols drawn upon them. The bushes and trees were a greeting
to those who would walk past them. Lush greens popped out of the landscape as a warm wind
set off chimes. Beyond the path that led to the base of the mountain, on either side, large
expanses of emerald grass led to nowhere.
We saw two large, dark stone statues depicting tubular, scaly dragons that laid before a
path up the mountain. It was most certainly the way up to the monastery. The statues were
massive in scale. They must have been as much as 25 meters high. After much commotion
about having finally found the way, we began trotting down the path with as little trouble as we
could have hoped for. With one last glance up at the statues we noticed a silhouette on the top
of the statute, or rather, Regan did. We took a second to make sure that it wasnt just an illusion,
but we all heard the distinct moans of a person on top of the statue.
Buddy! What are you doing on top of the statue?! Shouted Dirk, as blunt as ever.
Noooo NOOooooooo! The stranger was moaning as he began to clutch his head.
Its a fine day for dragons, isnt it? I said, trying to keep the sun out of my eyes. Perhaps he
would be willing to elaborate, dragons seem to be the talk of the town everywhere nearby. Hell,
even the statues depict them.
Whats your name? He said, as he began breathing again with deep huffs
I saw Regan begin to move forward as I looked back. Noticing, Dirk put a hand in front, making
sure that she didnt intervene.
Acot! How about yours?! I responded.
Pray-tell, Acot, are you going up to the Dragon Tamers Monestary? in a tone so opposite the
wailing that he was doing earlier.
Why yes, do you think we will be welcome?

Oh sure, but when you get up there, could you give them all he paused and cupped his
mouth, my sincerest apologies? he said, falling to his knees as he began to crawl off the
statue and look down from atop. He was visibly shaken.
This came as a shock. He was going to jump! I had to think quickly. There was no time to pause.
NO! I looked back at my friends and put my hand out Step back! Everybody! I glanced back
up at the man who had gotten up to his feet again, closer to the edge than before. Please!
PLEASE! Whatever it is, you dont have to- look, no. No no no no no no!
Oh, well if Acot says it, then I suppose Ill just obey, go back up and live happily ever FUCKING
after. Would you like that, Acot? He began swaying, he began tipping over the edge before he
caught himself and stood still.
Look! Back in Collasuraunt, I was the dragon slayer, I know its not something that a dragon
tamer would be proud of, but back there, back there, I gave people hope! If you could just give
me a chance to tell you about it, youd know that the end doesnt need to be so so cloooose!
I shouted, dropping to my knees as my heart wrenched. My stomach churned hoping that he
would listen.
Oh dragon slayer, I appreciate your words of pity, but please, please, for me, Acot, could you
do one thing? He said with a sniff.
Its not pity!~ I exclaimed. My head was spinning as I anticipated his malice.
Keep your fucking Collasuranti titles in Collasuraunt. You know nothing! he took a second You
know what, Im sorry, I dont want my last conversation to be so rude. What is it that you want to
do at the monastery?
With all do respect, sir, you need a lot more attention than I do right now. I said in a snide tone.
There were times when my clever comments got in the way of conversation, this had to be the
worst of it.
Thats just so precious! He said, I could tell that he was annoyed.
Ive seen a king cry over cursed soldiers! I was grasping at straws at this point.
Its funny you should mention that, Acot. I also have something pathetic that I feel actually
ought to just get out into the open. With one last huff, he said to me, Tell Juji that it was
painless.
My eyes lit up as I heard Regan push Dirk out of the way. All the noise dropped off as I
heard only my own breath. The man had jumped, head first. Regan was too slow, I saw the

body rush down and heard the thump and a crack as he hit the ground. I was stunned. The sun
beat down on my now sweaty face. I heard screams - it wasnt Regans though. I looked back at
the rest of my friends who had their heads down. I heard blood curdling screams as I ran over to
the soon-to-be corpse.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhhh AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhh I heard the
disfigured man scream. The top of his head had caved in and blood ran down from his gums to
stain his teeth. Bones protruded out of his arms. What was left of him was twitching as his
screams began to lose vigor. He began choking on his own blood as his limbs flailed wildly. I
took the back of his head and felt the warm of his blood leak out onto my arms. With a few last
flexations, he succame. I sat there in shock, looking up at the still beautiful sky for a while. The
clouds drifted by as the sky smirked at the beauty it of its own splendor. The emerald fields did
not mourn. Nobody really seemed impressed by my compassion for the post-suicidal man. The
blood became uncomfortable as I finally laid the corpse sitting up next to the statue from which it
had jumped. I shook the blood off as I looked up to see Xavier a couple steps up the path.
So shall we? he said, with a forced smile and closed eyes.
I nodded and we all began to climb the mountain.