Lair

Martha could smell the rancid smoke masked by running water as she turned the corner. The caves had been dark up until that point, and she had used her hands on the walls and the sound of the river flowing to guide her way. Finally, at the end of the stretch in front of her, she could see a light coming from the next corner. She had been sent to find the inner workings of the caves, and see if she could bring anything back out of it. She found it doubtful, but she was certainly going to try, regardless.

As she finally reached the light, her hands lightly bleeding from the scuffs of the hard rocks, she saw an intricate design of suspended pathways, outfitted with plants that glowed gently in the dark and sharp fangs left behind by beasts larger than any Martha had ever seen. She stepped gingerly out onto the first pathway to find that it was more structurally sound than she had anticipated.

As she made her way across, she could see a few paths down an altar, with a brightly glowing gemstone placed upon it. The stone around it was sharp and jagged, as though it was being held in the mouth of a beast, ready to chomp down upon anyone stupid enough to fall for its trap. Martha got that bad feeling that that was exactly what she was about to do. But if she was going to find something that would be able to help her village, that stone was probably the place to start.

It took her well over an hour to reach the stone. By the time she approached it, she was starving and thirsty, and she was only hopeful that she would be able to make it back out of the cave, much less make it out with anything of value. But she had come too far simply to give up. Examining the gem, she could see that it was a bright yellow color and seemed to glow from within, as if there was a flame burning eternally inside of it. She could see no traps attached to it, and she gently placed her hands on either side of it.

"What do you think you are doing, child?" a voice boomed inside of her head. Her entire body shook, but she felt glued to the rock. "I know that you could see the potential for a trap here. Yet you chose to approach anyway. Are you so ready to forfeit your life?"

Martha was shaking violently, her bones rattling, but she did not fall. "My village is dying," she called out, hoping that whoever was speaking to her could hear her. "I was sent here in hopes that I would be able to find something that could help us."

"What is your village dying of?"

"The only supplies that we had are running low, as bandits and crooks steal them from us, leaving us with less than enough to survive. We need something to either pay them off, or keep them out."

"And what are you able to give in return, if you have no supplies to live off of?"

Martha could feel tears welling in her eyes. "There must be something I can do."

Suddenly, the walls themselves began to quiver. Behind the glowing gemstone, the rocks themselves parted in the wall, revealing a giant, golden eyeball. Some of the claws she had seen on the path began to stretch and move. She realized she had walked directly into the lair of a dragon, and her heart nearly froze in fear.

"Yes, there may just be a use I an find for you," the dragon's voice called out to her. Suddenly the gemstone came loose and fell into her arms. "Let us go. I feel there is much work to be done."