she moved or not and she would have given anything for a simple cup of water. She let the bracelet she had clutched all night fall from her hand and rattle onto the pile of gold. May looked around in utter dismay. All this precious gold and jewels and treasures yet none of it would quench her thirst or satisfy her hunger or ease her aches or keep her warm and none of it could give her the comfort that her home and loving family provided.
For all the pieces she thought so magical, so valuable, so beautiful - for all the good they may have served their previous owners, there was one undeniable fact – it didn’t stop them from ending up with a dragon!
“Well” he said again. “I have waited long enough!”
What difference did it make now she thought. Whether she meant to speak it out loud or it was just the ramblings of hopelessness, she uttered “For all the good this treasure is, I value my own life above it all.” Still sitting on the pile, she put her head in her hands not brave enough to look her fate in the eye.
There was absolute silence followed by what sounded like a snort that caused her to flinch thinking this truly was the end!
“Hmmm…” he mused perhaps in anger or wonder and for what seemed an eternity to Maydon as she waited her doom, the dragon finally spoke.
“Well done.” he slowly drawled. “I am impressed. Clearly greed is not a fault you possess – yet anyway. Of course that was it all along. For all its beauty, what is all the treasure worth? You cannot eat it, it does not keep you warm, and it is not even a soft place to lay a weary head, is it?” Maydon looked up in awe; had he read her mind? She had guessed right, yet it seemed so simple though she still wasn’t quite sure what it all meant.
In a timid but braver voice she asked “Does this mean I am free to go?”
“Yes and it would be wise for you never to come back again for you guessed the riddle this time, but there is only one chance for that; there will be no game next time.” he said menacingly. But as she quickly climbed down the pile she had been sitting on intending to scurry to the exit he spoke again. “There is one thing you are forgetting. What about the others?” Her heart that had been lifted at the thought of escaping the dragon alive sank again at the thought of what might happen when she got outside. She understood that the wizard, knight, and prince never intended on rescuing her and the means by which they planned to slay the dragon was to poison him using her as purveyor of the event. What now would they say if she came out alone with no treasure and the dragon still alive inside? Would they make her come back again? Would they let her live? Once again it appeared she faced certain doom.
“Listen now. I can help but only if you promise to do as I say. You must follow my directions exactly, for if you don’t the consequences will be dire and you will again find yourself in a very unpleasant situation.”
Though Maydon didn’t know it, she had made an impression on him. He had long ago chosen to go into hiding so as not to deal with humans. He thought them greedy and selfish and was tired of their foolishness in trying to kill him, trick him, or appease him so they could steal his treasure or make him go away. But here was one that despite having done an absolutely foolish thing had done so for all the right reasons. Her heart was kind and true and that was truly rarer than any treasure he possessed. He could only hope she stayed that way and he would do his part at least to help that!
With nothing else to be done, Maydon agreed.
“First, you must take an oath never, ever to return here again, nor to send any others, nor to tell them what you saw, nor what was said!”
“Yes, I swear never to come here again, nor to send others, nor to tell them what I saw, nor what was said!” that was easy for her, for she had no such desire to see him again, even from a distance!
“Now look behind you.” She turned around and there on the floor were four bags, three larger and one smaller. The bags were open and she could see they were filled with golden coins. “Tie them all closed. Put the smallest bag in your pocket and carry the other three.” he ordered. She half expected them to be heavy but was surprised that she could easily lift all three.
“Give one each to the wizard, prince, and knight that wait like cowards outside my door.” His tone did not belie what he truly thought of those three. “The one in your pocket is yours to keep. Do not tell them you have it and do not take anything from their bags, or try to keep them.” Maydon could not help but feel perplexed as to why he seemed to be rewarding people that he clearly despised but she would do as promised as long as she got out alive. At least she still had some of her own and that should make her parent’s final years comfortable ones at least.
“Last” he continued “and most important; you must take one gold coin from the bag given to you and bury it in every field, every garden, and every orchard of your small village. Spend none of it. Do as I say and your reward will be greater than all of theirs but if you don't, I remind you again, the consequences can be more severe than you can imagine. Now go!” the last words were spoken with such finality that they would not be disobeyed and Maydon scurried back to the passage in which she had first come. She did not stop until she could clearly make out the light coming from the entranceway. She began to slow down though for now that the immediate threat of the dragon was behind, she began to worry more about what lay before her. Would they truly accept the gold given or would this only make them greedy and try to force her to go again to get more? This she would not do for she did not doubt when the dragon said there would be no second chance. But then how would she get home? She could surmise they would not take her home. Then she had a chilling thought. Would they even let her live? What they did was very wrong, using her this way. Surely if no one else, then her parents would see justice done. For just a moment she thought of turning back and looking for another way that would lead her out and away from them when suddenly an arm grabbed her and she was pulled outside. Machvell, holding tight to her arm, dragged her half way down the hill to where the other two stood anxiously waiting.
Luckily the morning sky was cloudy for being thrust into light after being so long in near dark caused her eyes to water and blink uncontrollably.
Surrounded by the three men with no hope of escape the wizard demanded “Well, is the dragon alive or dead!?”
”She’s not eaten – maybe she didn’t go all the way and just hid!” suggested Timor.
“No, you fool!” blasted Machvell “We heard her talking to him!” Indeed while May was inside at the mercy of the dragon those three had waited first to make sure the dragon didn’t come charging out, then feeling that perhaps she was eaten and the dragon knocked unconscious, Machvell ordered Abscon in. He went only close enough that he could hear May and the dragon talking but not close enough to make out clearly what was said. And so they spent the night, each one taking a turn entering the cave to see if the maiden was yet eaten by the dragon. It was a long night for them and they were very tired and very frustrated that she emerged from the cave alive.
This was too much for May and anger quickly began to replace fear. She remembered the dragon telling her that she had been tricked but to think they actually went as far as to able to hear her while she risked her life was just too much. Without thinking she flung the three bags of gold at them. Surprised, they still managed to each grab a bag before they fell to the ground. Only too late did she realize that she gave up the last shrivel of hope she might have had by using the gold as possible bargaining chips. And then two very strange things happened.
First, Machvell, Abscon, and Timor all opened their bags and their faces, awash in the golden reflection of the coins, stared in awe at the contents of their bags. It is said that dragon’s gold is a curious thing for it possesses many properties, one being that ill begotten gold will cast a spell on the recipient such that they will forget all else and desire only what is there. This is of course very convenient in preventing further theft of dragon gold.
The second thing that happened was the sound of an approaching
horse and a cry from its rider. Upon hearing this, they all turned around just at the moment the sun peeked from behind a cloud casting a bright light on the rider making him appear for just a moment as a hero in shining armour.
As there was no bravery or integrity in any of the men standing on the hill they quickly decided that a bag of gold in the hand was better than a treasure trove still in a dragons den and fleeing was more preferable than fighting. They decided to make good on their escape and suddenly rushed down the hill past the rider to their own waiting horses. They rode away as quickly as possible not once turning back; the dragon, the maiden, and the hero quickly forgotten.
It is true the trio had no intention of taking Maydon home or even in letting her live at all. If the dragon didn’t kill her they would so as there were no witnesses to their crime. It was most fortuitous that the rider arrived when he did.
Maydon stood in awe staring at the rider and when the sun again returned behind the cloud and she could once again see clearly, her awe was no less when she saw who it was. Dray, the simple farm boy who had been in love with Maydon all his life had come to rescue her.
Dray
So how, you may wonder, did it come about that the