A Tight Fit

The Never Ending Quest - Episode 107825

And so our heroes set off down the tunnel after Velus. Fred had to walk slowly so that Astra could keep up in the pitch black cavern, and with the quadrupedal nature of his new anatomy their progress literally feels like crawling. Though he appreciates having a companion, both Fred and Astra walk in silence.

As they progress, Fred is vaguely aware of the tunnel getting narrower. At first, the tunnel size isn't a concern. The mountain is home to a dragon. Fred's now a dragon. Why should he worry? But when his injured wing starts brushing against the stone walls of the passage he begins to wonder if the tunnels favoured by dragons and the tunnels favoured by little dogs might, in fact, be two separate things.

Astra breaks the silence first. "Why are you stopping?"

"The tunnel is getting narrower," Fred whispers. "My back, and my wings, are starting to rub on the rock."

Astra considers for a moment. "I've seen a dragon manage smaller. My mentor always told us that if a dragon can fit its head through it could chase you. Come. Let's try and squeeze through."

"Wait. Shouldn't I be in front? What if something attacks?"

"Then you'll be able to see where I am and not hit me. Or do dragons have eyes in the base of their tails that would save me from your lashing out at goblins?"

Though it doesn't feel right to let a Damsel go first into a potentially dangerous situation, Fred isn't able to refute her point and lets her take the lead. It's only a few steps before Fred stops again.

"It's no good," he whispers.

"Come on, there's still plenty of room. Crouch."

"Like this?" Fred asks, bending his limbs a little and feeling a bit awkward.

"Lower," Astra says. Her eyes have adjusted to the low light level enough that she can mostly make out Fred's silhouette. "Get your belly on the rock. Stop thinking like a damn proud Allarian knight and think like a dragon."

Though it doesn't feel right, Fred tries what Astra suggests. Lying on the rock is more comfortable than standing on all fours with his knees and... er, fore-knees half-bent, true, but being stretched out to his full length like this conjures unsavory mental comparisons to lowly snakes. "And I suppose you want me to slither through here?"

"If that's what comes naturally," Astra answers. "Ready to go on?"

"Can't we turn back and find a different tunnel?"

Astra gives the two blue dragon eyes a withering look of Did I really just hear something that stupid?. Without a proper map, it's anyone's guess where these tunnels may or may not meet up again.

Fred, to his credit, knows better than to argue with that look. "Then let us...

  1. ... give this a try."
  2. ... go back and re-think this."
  3. ... split up, and meet back in the grand cavern."

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Sam

12/2/2014 3:08:02 PM

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