Story Challenge, Day 7

And so my first story arc, and the first half of the writing challenge, comes to a close. I bring things full circle with this short, simple little story. And starting tomorrow I'm gong to start fresh with something very different for week two.

What Goes Around, Comes Around

Ferrig hid in the woods for two full days before he worked up the nerve to return to the hilltop where he’d left his cannon. He was both shocked and relieved to see that it was still right where he’d left it. His joy turned to heartbreak, however, when he reached the cannon. Right in the middle of it, someone had driven an iron spike down through the top, all the way through so that the tip came out the bottom. Ferrig wanted to drop to his knees and weep. His beautiful, beautiful cannon, ruined! Even if he somehow managed to remove the spike, the cannon could never be used again.

Even though it was now useless, Ferrig couldn’t bear to leave it behind, and so he hooked it up to his horse and pulled it along behind him. He considered going back to Femren, but didn’t know for certain if they knew he’d been the one who’d destroyed the golem. And even if they didn’t, he just couldn’t bring himself to go back. He’d never really liked the place anyways, and he couldn’t think of anything he’d miss if he just left. He would find work elsewhere, and start his life over. Maybe he’d even make a new cannon one day.

*****

The dragon soared just below the clouds, floating along on the air currents. He scanned the ground below him, looking for something to break up the monotony of his day. Then he saw a lone human on horseback, pulling something along behind him down a mountain road. This bore some investigation. The dragon angled down out of the clouds, flying low over the road. This caused the horse to panic, throwing his rider. But that wasn’t what interested the dragon. It was the long metal tube behind them that had caught his eye.

He’d always had a fascination with all types of metal – gold, silver, iron. He’d amassed quite a collection of treasures. And while the metal tube didn’t look valuable in any traditional sense, the size and shape of it was very intriguing. He’d never seen anything like it. Yes, this needed to be added to his collection. Circling around, he dropped down over it, wrapping a massive claw around each end and pulling it free of the wooden frame it rested on. He rose slowly into the air. The weight was significant, but manageable.

*****

Ferrig’s horse had noticed the dragon before he had, and it reared up in panic, throwing him from the saddle. By the time he’d gotten back to his feet and realized what had happened, the dragon was already lifting his cannon into the air. Not his precious cannon! He’d worked too hard to make that cannon. He’d destroyed that damned golem with his cannon. There was no way he was going to let a filthy dragon take it away from him!

“You bring that back. That’s my cannon!”

He ran forward and wrapped both arms around the cannon as it rose up into the air. Before he knew it his feet were dangling in the air as the dragon continued to rise higher. He threw his legs up, wrapping them around the cannon as well. He clung tightly to the cannon with his whole body, jerking and tugging on it.

“You can’t have my cannon. Now let go!”

The dragon continued to rise higher, moving away from the road and up into the mountains. But Ferrig’s added weight, combined with his struggles as he continued to try and twist the cannon from the dragon’s claws, was making it more and more difficult to maintain his hold. Finally he just gave up. If the human wanted to keep his silly iron tube so badly, he was welcome to it. There were plenty of other treasures out there for the dragon’s collection. Releasing his hold on the cannon, he gave his wings a hard flap and shot off towards home.

When the cannon was first released, there was the briefest moment of floating. “That’s right, this is mine!” But as Ferrig said this, gravity took hold, and he realized just how foolish his actions had been. By then, however, it was much too late, and he and his cannon were plummeting back to the ground. The cannon impacted with the ground with a resounding thud and a crunch, and that was the end of Ferrig the blacksmith.