Dragon Slave
Written by
Delaney Walnofer
The Dragon Slave Trilogy
Book One . . . Dragon Slave
Book Two . . . Dragon Clutch
Book Three . . . Dragon Fool
Cover illustrated by Delaney Walnofer
Copyright © 2014 by Delaney Walnofer
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13: 978-1311209047
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For You, the Reader
Prologue
“So then,” Chadwick, the king’s son, prattled excitedly, “you be the Dragon Slave, and I’ll be the mighty prince!” The child playfully brandished a wooden sword in his hand.
“Chad, wait,” his younger sister, Theora, said in her high pitched voice. “Who will be the dragon?”
Chad paused to think a moment. “Tyrone!” he exclaimed. “Tyrone makes a great dragon!”
“No!” Theora yelled. “I don’t want to play with Tyrone!”
“Why not?” Chadwick asked her, confused. “He’s never been mean to you.”
“I don’t want to play with Tyrone,” Theora repeated.
“Fine,” Chad gave in heatedly. “But since Tyrone can’t play with us, you have to be the girl and the dragon.”
“That doesn’t make sense!” Theo protested. “You’d have to kill me to save me.”
“Well, it makes no sense either way,” Chad pointed out. “Come on Theo, let’s play.”
Theo growled and crouched as a dragon on top a pile of leaves, her hoard. She switched characters, sitting down to sadly pick up and rub each leaf one by one. Then Chadwick came galloping, and Theo stood up to meet him so they could fight.
They were still playing when a boy with dark brown hair, around the same age as Chadwick, leapt from a thicket. “Hey!”
Theo froze with a sharp inward breath as she saw him.
“Tyrone!” Chadwick laughed, dropping his sword and running over to meet him. Theo fled for the nearest tree, climbing up to hide amongst its leaves. She tried not to sneeze as the dust of its bark tickled her nose. Shyly, she peeked out at her brother and his friend.
Tyrone had something in his hands. He showed it to Chadwick, who goggled at it. From where Theo was, she could just barely see that it was a tiny wyvern. Tyrone held it out to Chadwick and the young prince took it, laughing when it flapped its wings like a baby bird and flew for Theo’s tree. Theo pulled her legs in as it landed on the branch where her foot had just been.
Theo eyed the wyvern uneasily. Its slim body was marble white, with a thin tail and webbed wings.
“Go away!” she whispered, waving her arms to scare it away.
The creature stared at her with frightening, beady, red eyes. It opened its mouth and parroted back at her in perfect imitation, “Go away!” flapping its wings in aggravation.
Theo screamed and lost her grip, falling out of the tree. There was a loud Crack! and she screamed again in agony, her leg snapped underneath her body.
“Theora!” Tyrone’s and Chadwick’s faces loomed over her with horrified expressions.
Theo wailed, the bright sky and green leaves blotched behind a shield of tears that spilled over and raced down the sides of her face.
“Theo!” Chadwick repeated. He hastily looked about, trying to decide what to do. “I can get you to Nimue!” He spoke of their nurse, a kind old lady who made a better mother than their true one- the stern, no-nonsense queen.
He tried picking up Theo and she shrieked.
“Stop, you’re hurting her!” Tyrone said. “I’ll get Nimue myself.”
“No!” Chadwick yelped, the need to do something shining through his eyes. “You stay with her, I’ll be back!”
He raced away. Tyrone turned his worried gaze to Theo, who now trembled with whimpers of pain.
“Theo…” he voiced softly.
The wyvern flew down from the tree, landing on him, and he started in surprise.
“That…that dragon attacked me,” Theo gasped between breaths, auburn hair falling out of her face.
“You must have scared her, Theo,” he told her as she shook with sobs. “She’s never hurt anyone before.”
“No…” she gulped, “it talked to…to me!”
Tyrone didn’t say anything. He just kept looking at her with concern.
Soon there came the sound of people running. Chadwick was back with Nimue.
“Theo!” Nimue clamored, clutching her wrinkled hands to her matronly bosom. “Oh no, sweet child! Boys, run for the groomsmen and a cart. Hurry now!”
Chapter 1