Princess Gianna and the Three Legged Dragon

They called me Three-Leg Runt, or if they were being kind, Stumpy. Dragons are not maternal creatures, so if I had another name given by my mother, I wouldn’t know it. I only know the names that were yelled at me as I scrounged for food in the streets of Ilarius, the capital city.

I’m supposed to be man’s best friend. For centuries, dragons have been a tool and a companion. Transportation and home defense are the main jobs, but many work in construction. We built the empire upon the partnership of dragon and man. With noble beast and brave men working together, anything is possible… at least that is what the Dragon Liaison posters say. Dragons are the most valuable “pet” a man can buy.

If you don’t have a human, however, you’re a pest, or in my case, a three-legged nuisance. An outcast, only fit for throwing stones at. I am not big enough to help a man with anything. While full grown, I am only seven feet long from tail to snout. Most dragons grow to be as big as a house, whereas I am small enough to fit through a front door.

And I am defective. In the nest, a wild dragon dragged me away. He meant to make a meal of me, but I escaped at the cost of my leg. I never found my way back to that nest. Even if I had, it wouldn’t matter. No dragon wanted anything to do with me anymore. I was too small and too broken.

I tried not to let it affect me. I was content to avoid people as much as they wanted to avoid me. I saw enough of the human world to know that I didn’t care for it. Half the time, they shoved dragons into a fighting ring and bet upon them. I narrowly missed some of those snatchers myself. No, my life was better without the human scourge. Or so I thought.

One day, I was rooting through the trash cans behind the Golden Dragon. Frankly, I found the name of the restaurant offensive. It was just another way that man was trying to capitalize on my species… but they had the best crab rangoon in the area. I was snout deep in the delicious, juicy trash bin when I heard a noise. 

I licked what I thought was orange chicken from my nose and crouched low in the alley, alert for whatever was coming.

“Get out of her’ ya vermin!” Olen, the owner of the restaurant, picked up a brick and chucked it at me.

It glanced off my good back leg. I barely felt it as it rolled off my armored scales, but I didn’t hesitate. Last time, I tried to stand my ground. When I didn’t leave, Olen called the actual Golden Dragon, Lucy, who patrolled the city. I still bear the mark from her teeth, as she removed two massive scales from my backside.

The restaurant was on the edge of the city, bordering the Faldor Forrest. I crashed through the underbrush until I made it deeper, where the trees grew taller and thicker, so the shrubs were sparse. The light slid through the canopy in long narrow slices, illuminating the ground like a thousand tiny spot-lights.

My stomach still growled. I had not eaten enough before Oleg discovered me. I could turn off the hunger when I wished and go into a deep sleep. I could regulate my temperature, allowing the fire within to turn into a smoldering coal. I didn’t want to nap—I was too vulnerable in that state—but the tight churning of my stomach finally convinced me. It felt like my body was trying to eat itself from the inside out. 

I slithered up a tree and curled into the fork of two large branches. Most dragons didn’t need to climb. They were well-fed and big enough that no one would dare harm them. Me, I had to hide to sleep safely. After a few starts as branches creaked nearby, I finally relaxed and settled into a deep slumber.

###

I don’t know how long I slept. It could have been days or weeks. Or maybe only an hour. I had a vague memory of hearing and smelling humans pass by. A lot of them, searching for… something. I couldn’t really recall.

Those packs of men didn’t bother me, so I slept. What woke me was a squeaky cry. Something was out there. Something small. Maybe a snack.

I unfurled from my spot, stretching as silently as possible, though my stomach groaned loudly. I worked my way down the trunk, trying not to drag the stump where my hind leg had been. When I reached the ground, I tentatively smelled the air. There was definitely something close. It smelled vaguely of feces, and something I couldn’t quite place.

I stalked closer. Moving from shadow to shadow, careful not to touch any branches with my tail. It was the hardest trick to learn, stalking quietly without a leg and with a large tail, but it was the first thing I learned as essential to survival. I’d gotten quite good at it. I stuck my tongue out, sniffing the air with the extra senses on the tip of my tongue. 

I could taste it. I was close.

Slowly, agonizingly, I reached the bush where the creature hid. I approached downwind. It was still making a squeaky, crying noise. It was probably stuck or injured. Easy food. 

My tongue flicked out again. I couldn’t help it. I was so hungry.

I stuck my long neck carefully through the branches, ready to snap up the meal, but when I saw the creature, I froze. 

It was human. Small with tanned skin and dark curls. It toddled around as if on broken legs, though I couldn’t see any visible deformities. It looked so fragile.

I pulled back in disgust. I knew better than to mess with humans, even small defenseless snacks like this one, but my stomach growled and gave me away. 

The human blight turned with a squeal of delight. It staggered forward and crashed into my front leg. 

“Petty dagon,” it cried. It latched on, digging its tiny but strong fingers into a gap between scales.

I still couldn’t move. I had never seen a human so close before. At least, not one that wasn’t yelling or throwing something. Part of me still wanted to eat it, though I knew that was a death sentence. I warred with emotions, and couldn’t decide whether hunger, curiosity or disgust was stronger. Finally, I decided on curiosity. 

I reached my long neck closer and sniffed.

Yuck. 

I drew back quickly, hitting my head against a branch above me. I recognized the smell of poop, but there was something stronger, more rancid about this poop, like it had been marinating for an extra while. And there was something else… the strong smell of unwashed, drunken man. Someone had carried this thing into the forest and left it, and that someone was the worst sort of human. He smelled of death and coin and something deeper. Darker.

The small human seemed unconcerned that it smelled worse than a trash can. It made squeaking noises that almost sounded like it was gasping for breath. I was confused, but it seemed a happy sound. Even when it screeched, it seemed in delight.

I just stared down at it. What sort or creature willingly walked up to a predator? An outcast. And not only wasn’t afraid, but seemed to be genuinely happy about it. Its eyes shown up at me, a beautiful amber brown, more beautiful than most dragon scales—my scales were only a dull green—and there was the light of honesty and innocence in these eyes. I hated humans; I knew that much. But this was something different…

A slowly raised my front leg, detaching the small creature. It fell down with an oomph, scattering more of that poop smell in all directions. I turned my head away. Best to leave the small creature. When there was one this small, a full-grown human blight was not far away.

I turned, trying to shuffle my way out of the underbrush the way I came. I had only gone a few steps when I noticed that there was a weight on my tail. The small strange thing had grabbed one of my spikes and had climbed on. I puffed warm air back towards it, trying to dislodge it, but for something so small, it had a grip stronger that most dragon-bites. It squeaked again in that horrible cheerful manner that it had. 

I tried a stronger puff. I had never summoned a full flame. Most dragons had to practice for decades before we had that smolder within us. But I tried to put all my strength into that gust of air.

The small thing squeaked even louder in delight as its curls tousled with the breeze. 

I groaned. I wouldn’t be able to get rid of it. Well, if I was stuck with it, then I was going to at least drag it down to the creek. I had to get rid of that horrid smell that radiated off its backside.

### 

I dunked my tail in the cool, crisp water. The small human went under for a few seconds. When I lifted it out, it started gurgling and cooing, speaking rapidly with gibberish that surely not even humans could understand. But one thing was clear: it was enjoying itself. I dunked it again. And again.

What was wrong with it? Each time it came up, it gurgled, spit out water, and screamed “Ayain!”

I dunked it a few more times for good measure. I was now convinced that the creature was broken. Nothing could be that happy. 

I sniffed the air again. Much better. Fortunately, the water seemed to disintegrate the small white crinkly thing where the bulk of the smell originated.

Afterwards, it seemed content to curl up against my side for a nap. 

I tried to stay awake. There was too much danger in the woods… but I was still hungry and couldn’t keep my eyes open.

###

A few hours later, I woke to a slight pressure on my nose. I started awake, opening my eyes to see that the creature was an inch away. I snorted, and it rolled backwards off my snout. It chewed on the end of its finger just as my stomach gave a resounding grumble.

It was the wrong time of day to raid the trash cans. The sanitation workers picked them up every morning and took them to a giant, heavily guarded incinerator, fueled by dragon fire.

We were still close to the creek, so I sat on the bank to catch a fish. I waited patiently as the creature gurgled behind me. One large fish swam into position. With a quick swipe, the fish flopped on the shore.

I pushed the fish towards the creature. It looked down and shook its head back and forth. “Ew.”

Was it too fresh? I remember hearing that humans didn’t like raw foods. I steamed it with my breath.

It shook its head again. This wasn’t working.

I snapped the fish up in my jaws and swallowed it whole. I didn’t like it either. It lacked flavor when it was from the wild, but it would do in a pinch. Apparently, I needed to find something else for the little one.

I went a little deeper into the forest and found a patch of grass. The creature grabbed a fistful and stuffed it in its mouth. A second later, it spat it out. “Ew.”

What did it want? I was running out of ideas, but then I remembered a spot where the rabbits went for berries. 

The creature reached out and plucked the red fruit from the bushes, squishing it in a tight fist so that it looked like blood oozing down. It stuffed it in its mouth.

At first, it seemed like I found something that worked. The creature took a few more handfuls before it found a thorn.

I never heard a sound like that before. It started as a whimper, but turned into a screech. I wasn’t sure what to do. I nudged it with my snout, and it screamed louder.

I felt helpless. Nothing i did made it stop. Finally, I took it back to the creek, as it was covered in sticky red stuff. It screamed the whole way, causing birds and other creatures to scramble out of our path, but after I dunked it in the water, the screams turned into hiccups. 

We took another nap, though I knew we were both still hungry. When the afternoon sun started stretching the shadows, I tried the last thing I knew. I went to the trash cans.

I slowly tilted one can down and ripped the bag with my teeth. It was a good night. Lots of chicken, and even crab rangoon. The child grabbed food and stuffed it in its mouth. We both did. Then, when we had cleaned out the bins, we went back to the creek. The human needed cleaning again, but at least this time there were no screams involved. It fell asleep on the way, hanging off my neck with its tight grip on my spines.

###

We fell into an easy rhythm. During the day, I walked it back to the area I found it in case anyone was looking. Then, we hunted through the trash to eat and dunked it in the river to clean it when it smelled. At night, it curled up against my warm underbelly. Sometimes in a tree and sometimes a protected glen.

It was kind of cute, in its own way.

I had just decided to keep it, checking one last time at the spot I found it. But then the horrible man came back.

He still smelled wrong… He crashed through the bushes, muttering to himself, “Where is she? Must be dead by now…” He looked around nervously. “Wolves and dragons roam these woods. There’s no way…”

A shout came from behind him. “Any luck?”

“No trace, my Lord.”

This was what I was waiting for, someone to come to look for the small one. But this man felt wrong. I couldn’t trust him.

The child made a small squeak, as if it recognized the voices. Both of the men’s heads snapped in our direction.

I did the only thing I could think of. I ran.

We crashed through the branches as the child wailed from my back. I heard shouts and crashes from behind me. I dared to look back once, losing precious moments in the chase, and I saw two men riding Lucy. They were going to catch us.

I tried to run faster.

Past the creek, deeper and deeper in the forest, we ran. I knew I couldn’t keep this up. I only knew I needed to keep her from that man. He left her. He would hurt her and I knew it, deep within me.

But my missing leg made my run uneven. The child slipped.

I looked back in horror when I realized its soft hands were covered in blood. It could not hold on to my sharp, hard body at a run. I was hurting it.

I tried to pull it back up with my front leg, but I couldn’t hold that position and maintain a run. We slid to a halt, and Lucy caught up.

The two men slid off Lucy’s back. One was tall and looked a gentleman. Even after running through the forest on a dragon’s back, his black clothes were impeccably neat and unrumpled. The other man had long hair pulled back into a greasy ponytail. His mismatched clothes looked too big, and he was the one who smelled foul.

I hissed at them. How could they not smell the darkness that came off the dirty main in waves?

The child slid down my back, and before I could stop it, it ran towards the clean man. I tried to reach out, but Lucy snapped at me, her fire rumbling inside.

The man scooped the child up and cooed a happy sound at it. For the first time, I noticed a circlet around his head. 

The king. I gasped at the realization. That meant the creature, my creature, was the daughter and heir, Princess Gianna. 

My legs felt weak as the warmth leached out of my body. He was the king, and I had taken his daughter.

I hissed weakly at the dirty man, but I felt so helpless. He may try to hurt her again, but the look in Lucy’s eyes told me that my life was over. I couldn’t help anyone. 

She led me back towards Ilarius, following the two men and the child. Every time I slowed down, Lucy snapped at my back leg. She was twice my size, and I could do nothing. When we reached the edge of the forest, the men and child went towards the palace, while I went to the holding cell for dragons.

###

My life was forfeited. Lucy made that much clear. I did nothing wrong, but because I was with the missing princess, because I ran, they would kill me. Dragon vengeance was swift and merciless. They put you down if they deemed you to be a danger to men.

They locked me in a small cave with a chain around my good back leg and iron bars before me. It was dark and damp inside, with a cold that seemed to chill even my inner flame. I knew it wasn’t fair. Nothing about my life was fair. But all I could do was lay down and wait for the end.

The creak of the door roused me. The smelly man came in a side entrance I hadn’t noticed before.

“Aw, there you are,” he smiled, unbothered by my hisses. I thumped my tail in warning, but he continued. “You almost made this too easy for me. When I was hired to remove the heir, I thought it’d be enough to just leave her in the woods. You should’ve finished the job.”

He circled around the room, looking me up and down. “I have a plan though… Since you are clearly dangerous, you’re gonna help me sell my story. It shouldn’t be too hard to catch her again. I will take her back to the woods, making sure she is burned and broken this time. Afterwards, I will unlock your leg and bring you out into the forest for them to find. It’s perfect, really. They’ll blame you, and you’ll be killed. Then, I’ll collect.”

I growled and lunged at him, jerking back slightly when I reached the end of the chain.

“Yes,” he cackled inhumanly. “You can sell it.” 

He darted quickly past my teeth, and before I realized it, locked a shock collar on me. Sharp agony seared through me as he activated the collar. They had specifically designed it to control dragons, and it was effective. I could barely see past the pain that radiated through my body.

He held up a small black device as he backed away to the door. “I will be back soon. I have a date with a princess.” He gave me another parting jolt of the collar that caused me to scream with pain and frustration.

When he left, I scratched at the collar, but each time I touched it, I felt a small jolt. 

Then, I tried to pull frantically on the chain that bound me. It wouldn’t budge. It was strong enough to hold dragons much larger than me. Maybe I could melt it?

I tried to summon fire. I pulled into my innermost depth. I willed it to grow. I breathed in several times, trying to stoke the fire like a bellow. Then I breathed out with all the heat I could muster.

Nothing. Only a little smoke.

I tried again. And again, each time growing more frantic than the time before. He could already have her by now. I was running out of time.

I tried again. Still no fire.

I slumped to the ground. There was nothing I could do. The chain was warmer than it had been, but the fire needed to sear it off, just wasn’t in me. I was as broken as everyone thought I was. 

When I fully let my body drop, I felt the manacle slip a little.

They made it for bigger dragons. Maybe… maybe I could work on slipping it off.

It was an effort not to tense up again. My whole body was on high alert, but I could only move the chain when I relaxed. 

Slowly, agonizingly, I dragged the chain down. It ripped off scales as it went. Blood dripped. I heated the chain again and again and forced it off my leg. When it finally tore free, I gasped, as much from pain as from relief. 

I didn’t hesitate long enough to treat my leg. I threw myself at the iron bars. Again and again until I thought it would break every bone in my body. They didn’t budge.

I was losing hope, but the shaking of the bars caused the side door to crack open. That tiny shaft of light was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. I squeezed through, grateful for once that I was so small. Then, I bolted towards the forest, following the faint scent trail of the unwashed man, hoping beyond hope I was not too late.

###

I found him carrying a sack to roughly the same area he had left her before. The sack moved with a weak cry, and it took all my strength not to charge in.

I slid quietly behind him. I still had the collar on and I could see the switch in his hand. I stalked him in tense silence. Wondering what I could do… How could I stop him? I’m not even a whole dragon.

I stepped on a branch and froze. Stupid. I couldn’t even get this right.

He paused, listening to the sounds of the forest. I barely breathed. As long as he held the control of my collar, I couldn’t risk showing myself.

After what seemed like an eternity, he moved on.

I exhaled. Then continued walking. I had no choice. There was no one else. No better dragon who could rescue her. I was all she had. If I couldn’t figure it out, she would be killed.

Finally, he stopped and lowered the bag to the ground. As he juggled his load and reached for a lighter, the control of the collar dropped to the ground.

There was no good time. I just had to try. I roared into the clearing, knocking him backwards. I went straight for the bag, but he darted for the control.

Pain ripped through me, and my vision blurred. Everything shifted back into focus, but then a new wave of pain hit me. I bellowed. The sound of my screams echoed through the forest.

I had failed. He was going to kill the only thing I had ever cared for, and all I could do was thrash around on the ground and let it happen.

I felt the light brush of fear against my mind. Fear and heat. He was already killing her.

I panicked. I tore at the collar with my claws. I threw my weight against a tree, hitting the collar and hoping to break it.

The pain didn’t go away, but it did lessen. I couldn’t fully dislodge it, but I loosened something. Through the dulled haze, I saw him lower fire towards the bag.

I lunged forward. Faster than I had ever moved in my life. So fast that even the flame seemed to be in slow motion. I knocked the man and the flame back into a tree.

The control fell to the floor and shattered with a resounding crack.

I didn’t have time to check the bag. The man grabbed a knife from under his cloak. Sharp, curved steel, meant to pierce a dragon’s hide. He held it up and turned to face me.

I stoked the fire within. It sped up my metabolism, making everything around me become clear and precise. But I was burning too hot. I was running low on energy. This would be my last stand. If I couldn’t beat him here, all would be lost.

He lunged with the knife. I jumped away. Faster than I had ever done before. Stronger than I thought I was.

I reared up, knocking him to the ground. His knife went flying, and he lost consciousness.

###

The rest was hazy. I remember opening the bag, and the joyful squeal that sounded wrong coming from my throat as the princess rolled out unharmed.

When we walked back into the city, people parted ways for us. For me! The outcast dragon with the toddler princess riding on my back and the dirty man carried in my teeth. Lucy came up beside me, but instead of growling at me, she walked in front of me. By the time we got to the palace, we were a whole procession as a city-full of people trailed behind. 

I dropped the unconscious man at the feet of the castle guard and continued walking towards the king. We were close enough that Gianna started bouncing on my back in anticipation…

But then I smelled it. Fear and the lingering scent of the unwashed man. I turned to the smell with a snarl. The man, some lesser courtier, backed away, and then turned to bolt. 

This time, Lucy listened to my instinct. She reared up and knocked the man down with her long neck. He crumpled into a heap. It was later determined that he was the one who had hired the smelly guard. I never knew the reason, but I was glad we caught him.

When the dust settled, the king allowed us to approach, but he only had eyes for my rider. The princess leapt into her father’s arms, giggling and cooing. Something warmed my heart then. If not happiness, it was the closest I could get to it. I was content that my human was safe. In just a week, I had gone from hate and disgust to pride and love. She would always be my human.

After a few minutes, Lucy motioned that it was time for us to go.

For a moment, I was sad to say goodbye. I’d become attached to the small person, but at least I knew she was safe now. I walked slowly out the gate, watching the happy family over my shoulder for as long as I could see them.

A dragon healer tended my leg and removed the broken collar, but I hardly noticed. I would always bear those scars and those missing scales, but it didn’t bother me anymore. I thought nothing could.

Lucy gave me a nod before she left me. It was about the most I could expect, coming from her. Once I had her acceptance, the city and the other dragons left me alone. Even Oleg allowed me unfettered access to his trash bins. 

I was no longer the outcast, Three-Leg Runt. Instead, I was Three-Leg the Brave and Gianna’s Protector. A few still called me Stumpy, but there was no longer the tone of disdain in their voice.

I came back to check on Gianna from time to time, never living so far away that I couldn’t smell her. She grew tall and beautiful, into the princess she was always meant to be. Her gate was always open to me, and there were always plates of crab rangoon sitting on her windowsill.