And
so I stood, blade at the ready, prepared to slay the beast or die.
Today I die a brutal death, or just as brutal a victory. I wonder if my
victory could even be called that, as I watch the magnificent creature
slowly die from my blade. Was it worth it? Was the creature even at
fault? If I were to slay the beast - a sentient, sapient creature of
immense wisdom - only to palicate the fears of fat men in gaudy rolls of
cloth, who know nothing of the world, nor of true terror nor of foreign
mystery and life. That the beast should be treated as a person was
incomprehensible, inconceivable, for the sheltered fat men. No, it was a
dangerous beast and should be put down. The fear that ruled them was
the only evidence of its guilt, the crime of simply being too
intimidating for them to let live. And here I was, the executioner, the
unwilling executioner, with a blessed blade in hand and a breastplate
blazoned with the crest of the peaceful, happy land that had sentenced
this creature. Could I even say that I had the right to slay the beast?
Could I claim some mandate that stripped me of guilt? No, I had no such
claim, and I would be unable to wash the blood away. What if this dragon
was a mother? What if a clutch of dragonlings were huddled in that
cave, quaking in their scales, watching their mother fight this tiny yet
powerful creature? And after they had watched their parent slaughtered
before their eyes? I would have to come for them, a true monster, with
the excuse that fat men were afraid of them, and so I must kill them.
But! But despite all of this, I must do this, for as a knight of the
kingdom of-
I
was sitting in my cave, planning on how I was going to destroy and
terrorize the little kingdom down the way, when they sent up a troupe of
knights. Apparently, they had spotted me flying about, and had decided
to make a preemptive strike. Smart humans. I defeated most of the
knights, but I grew wary. Then, it was only me and one knight. He
appeared to be an elite, battle weary, looking like he had seen much of
the world and had learned too much. He might just be my match. I
prepared to fight, as did he. But then... he stopped and started to
stare off into the distance. I assumed that it was a trick, but I
eventually got bored of waiting, roasted him with a gout of flames and
ate him. If he was the best that this kingdom had, I was about to have a
lot of fun.
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