"Greetings, Alya of the Knife," Fred said. "What happened to your arm?" He
pointed
at the improvised bandage. "I had a disagreement with a bear. The bear had
the worst of it, though."
And she gestured towards the knife at her belt. "The wound is almost
healed now," she
added. Fred blinked. What sort of woman was this, who could win a fight
with a bear
aided by only a knife?
"What brings you to such a wild place as this, one so dangerously close to the dragon's domain as well?" Fred asked. The woman gave him a searching look. "You ask a lot of questions," she said. "However it is no secret why I am here... But tell me first, what happened to your friend?" "When I killed the dragon, the enchantment he had put on my friend, Velus, was ended, but changing back from a dog to a human caused him to fall unconscious. Or perhaps it was the noxious vapours given off when the dragon died. I hope that now we are out in the open air he will recover." The woman's eyes widened in surprise. "You had not mentioned before that the dragon's death was your doing," she said. "Could it be that you are that rarest of creatures, a truly modest man? Is that black stuff on your blade its blood?" "Yes, it is." "As luck would have it, I have a need for some dragon's blood. That is what brought me here. I was about to enter the caves through the pit from which you emerged. If you let me scrape the blood from your sword, I will help you to get your friend to safety." Fred had heard that the blood of dragons was supposed to have magical properties, though he was hazy about the details.
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6/25/2000 12:01:18 PM
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