Fear
What is your weapon of choice?
It was all right to say you were going to go and do this and that, but perched on the crest of the hill overlooking the silent ruins of the Oldtime city, the boy felt his confidence falter. "Listen... I don't know about this. They say there's ghosts down there."
His companion was not so easily rattled. At sixteen, he was two years the boy's senior and knew everything, and now he gave an impatient sigh. "Ghosts ain't real. Those are just the stories they make up to keep people from investigating. Come on," He ordered, starting down the hill.
"They're not stories!" Insisted the first boy, not moving to follow. "I seen it with my own eyes."
The other snorted. "You have not."
"Well... no, I haven't, but Jad swears..."
Halfway down the hill, his companion stopped and turned to face the boy. "You scared?" He asked, tauntingly.
This was enough to bring the boy rocketing down the hill, and in through the gap between the first two crumbling buildings. Soon, they had emerged on a narrow, blackened street. The first boy gazed around nervously, but his friend seemed only encouraged by the silence. He aimed a kick at some loose stones, scattering them across the road, then looked over at the boy with a mocking grin.
"Where're your ghosts, then?"
With a hideous screech, something swooped out of the shadows, silver claws and red scales flashing viciously, powerful bat-like wings flapping wildly but generating no wind.
For an instant, the two boys were frozen where they stood, paralysed by the sudden irrational terror that had assaulted them. Then the dragon roared, baring its full set of yellow fangs in their faces, and they scattered.
Had the boys thought to look back over their shoulders as they ran, they might have hesitated a moment, even questioned the fearsome Beforetime monster that had confronted them. But, so possessed by terror they were, that neither of the pair even slowed until the ruins had long passed out of sight.
And so, neither of them saw the small, dark figure creep out of her hiding-spot, peering after them with frightened blue eyes.
It was all right to say you were going to go and do this and that, but perched on the crest of the hill overlooking the silent ruins of the Oldtime city, the boy felt his confidence falter. "Listen... I don't know about this. They say there's ghosts down there."
His companion was not so easily rattled. At sixteen, he was two years the boy's senior and knew everything, and now he gave an impatient sigh. "Ghosts ain't real. Those are just the stories they make up to keep people from investigating. Come on," He ordered, starting down the hill.
"They're not stories!" Insisted the first boy, not moving to follow. "I seen it with my own eyes."
The other snorted. "You have not."
"Well... no, I haven't, but Jad swears..."
Halfway down the hill, his companion stopped and turned to face the boy. "You scared?" He asked, tauntingly.
This was enough to bring the boy rocketing down the hill, and in through the gap between the first two crumbling buildings. Soon, they had emerged on a narrow, blackened street. The first boy gazed around nervously, but his friend seemed only encouraged by the silence. He aimed a kick at some loose stones, scattering them across the road, then looked over at the boy with a mocking grin.
"Where're your ghosts, then?"
With a hideous screech, something swooped out of the shadows, silver claws and red scales flashing viciously, powerful bat-like wings flapping wildly but generating no wind.
For an instant, the two boys were frozen where they stood, paralysed by the sudden irrational terror that had assaulted them. Then the dragon roared, baring its full set of yellow fangs in their faces, and they scattered.
Had the boys thought to look back over their shoulders as they ran, they might have hesitated a moment, even questioned the fearsome Beforetime monster that had confronted them. But, so possessed by terror they were, that neither of the pair even slowed until the ruins had long passed out of sight.
And so, neither of them saw the small, dark figure creep out of her hiding-spot, peering after them with frightened blue eyes.