Tony groaned as he opened his eyes. Sharp pain in the back of his head forced him to sit up slowly. It took a moment for him to get into an upright position and regain his senses.

The surrounding trees seemed to tower over him. The sun was still in the sky but the area seemed darker than normal. An overturned cart sat in the middle of the road, its wheels smashed, and the pony tasked with pulling it laying beside its gutted remains.

It took a moment before everything came back to him. He was transporting some goods for some lazy merchant who they suspected would try to stiff them on their pay. Things never got that far as the “shortcut” they had been advised to use turned out to be an ambush. The last thing he remembered was drawing his gun and shouting to the others before everything went black.

He spun around, looking for signs of the others. It didn’t take long to find their bodies lined up on the ground, blood pooled around them.

He swore and kicked a nearby tree. The bandits likely left him alive because they thought he was dead already.

I can’t stay here, he thought.  I have to get back to town.

The bandits had been thorough and stripped them of everything save for their clothing. He had no supplies and the nearest town was two days away on foot.

Then there was the path. He didn’t know this route and even with a map, they had a hard time finding this path. Supposedly, it would shave a day off their travel, and they weren’t getting paid if they were late.

He aimed another kick at some loose stones. Fucking bastard played us from the start.

First thing was to find the main road. Once he did that, getting back to town would be simple. Then he would track down that shifty merchant and make him pay.

He turned to the others one last time. They weren’t friends, just colleagues brought together for a simple escort job, but had gotten to know them a bit over the last two days. They deserved better than being shot in the woods and left to rot or for the wild animals to eat. But there was no time to bury them.

“Well, maybe I can least get word to your families,” he said to no one. Thankfully, the bandits were more concerned with the supplies and weapons, so their personal effects were still on their person.

Mary, the self-proclaimed “token female” of the group, had a wedding ring. He remembered how she annoyed them all with the story of her proposal as much as her complaints about being the only woman among them.

He searched Niels next. He carried a pocketknife he claimed was lucky. Tony suspected the luck ran out or it passed on to someone else instead. He never did like leaving things to random chance.

Danny was searched last. The “leader” by seniority but also the most immature of them. He had a pocket watch he wanted to pass on to his soon-to-be son or daughter and a pipe he liked to chew on. He always complained that he hated giving up smoking, but his wife told him he had to before the baby was born. Tony took both and a box of matches.

“I’ll make sure to get these to where they need to go.”

Leaving them still left a sickening feeling in his gut, so he piled the bodies on the remains of the cart and set it on fire. It would likely send a signal to the ambushers, but he would be long gone by the time they got there.

The trip was just as miserable as expected. The heat was unbearable, his head still hurt, and the mosquitoes never gave him any peace. He kept his guard up, straining his ears for the sound of anything taking notice of him. The “shortcut” was close to some area the locals referred to as “Death’s Woods”. Supposedly, a portal to the afterlife existed here and it was guarded by the reaper’s pet. A creature of nightmares that hunted down lost spirits and punished the wicked. Thinking on it, that was why the main road took the long way around the woods instead of cutting through.

“And we laughed at it for being superstitious nonsense,” he mumbled. “Look who’s laughing now.”

There wasn’t the sound of anyone laughing. He heard nothing at all save his footsteps which was more unnerving. Something in the area had spooked the wildlife. Their first night here, Danny complained about how noisy it was.

The trees parted to a clearing. He didn’t recognize this place and there was no sign anyone had camped here in the last few days.

He sat on a fallen log to rest and gather his thoughts. A loud thump near the middle of the clearing frightened off several birds and startled him as well. He pulled out the pocketknife and faced the interloper.

A body lay on the ground, unmoving. Even from a distance, it was easy to see the large leathery wings and scaled form.

A dragon? Where did it—oh shit!  He looked up in time to see a large shape descending from the air. He fled into the trees and took cover in some bushes, praying the dragon didn’t see him.

The dragon faced the body of the other and let out a roar of despair and rage. Tony covered his ears as the cry rattled his body.

He peered out of his hiding place. The dragon standing before him was unlike any he had ever seen before. It had black scales like a Nightstalker, but everything else about it was wrong. It was covered in yellow spots and the shape of its tail reminded him eerily of a scythe.

What the fuck is that? Is that a dragon? No wonder the locals say death lives here.

He looked down at his four-inch pocketknife and chuckled. No way he stood a chance if that creature came for him.

More dragons like it descended. They were different sizes and colors; red, green, brown. But they all had the same yellow spots and wicked-looking tails.

The dragons seemed more occupied with the dead one than taking notice of anything else.  It was likely the best chance he was getting to put as much distance between him and the creatures, but his body wouldn’t move. All it took was sone misstep. One broken twig or crunch of a leaf and he was a dead man. The trees weren’t dense enough to cover his escape by ground; they would catch him immediately.

That couldn’t happen. He promised to return his companions to their families, to make that asshole merchant pay for setting them up. He couldn’t die before then.

He sunk lower to the ground and breathed as slowly as possible. Waiting for the dragons to move on was his best chance.

A mournful sound like wind whistling through a crack filled the air.

Is it…crying?

The other dragon dragons moved closer. Tony wished he could see or at least hear what was going on.  As terrifying as the situation was, he couldn’t deny it was fascinating. This had to be some new species. Then there was why a dragon fell out of the sky.

The first dragon to land suddenly lashed out at the others, swinging its deadly tail in a wide arc. The other dragons just managed to get out of range. “How dare you?! He was not weak!”

Tony shuddered as he watched the tail whip through the air. The angry snarls and curses of the mad dragon shaking the trees.

It wasn’t until another dragon flew off that the first one finally calmed down. The other dragons stayed out of range, all of them looking extremely uncomfortable. The first dragon returned to the body on the ground, laying down beside it.

One by one, the other dragons departed until the first dragon remained. Tony remained crouched in the bushes, his legs screaming for mercy at maintaining this stance for so long. After what he just witnessed, he didn’t plan on moving until he was sure the beast was gone or at least asleep.

The sun soon began to set, and the dragon still hadn’t moved. Tony’s legs had gone numb. His throat was dry, and he hadn’t eaten a thing all day. The idea of traveling the woods at night on an empty stomach didn’t sit well with him, but he hadn’t had any time to look for something to eat.

He would have to make his move now. After all this time, the dragon had to be asleep by now. He tried to stand up and collapsed. He had remained crouched for too long and his legs weren’t supporting him.

He looked back at the clearing and saw the dragon had raised its head. Panic washed over him as the beast looked around.

It doesn’t know I’m here, he told himself. So long as I don’t move, it’ll lose interest. He couldn’t move until the blood flow returned to his lower limbs which he figured saved his life or else he would be running.

Tony’s stomach growled.

The dragon stood. Tony started to cry. His legs weren’t working, and he doubted it would make a difference anyway. He was going to die here all because his stomach couldn’t wait.

“I know you’re there,” the dragon called. “I don’t care who you are or what you want, just leave me in peace.”

Tony blessed his luck and tried to stand again. His legs once again betrayed him, and he fell to the ground.

He heard the heavy footsteps of the approaching beast and began crawling instead.

“What are you doing out here, human?”

He flattened himself on the grass and held his hands over his head. “Please, don’t kill me! I just got lost in the woods and was trying to find my way back!”

The dragon snorted. “Just leave human. I want to be alone.”

A nervous grin spread across his face. “Um, I can’t. I stood in the bushes for too long and my legs aren’t cooperating right now.” He quickly added, “B-But I just need a few minutes to rest and then I’ll be gone!”

Another derisive snort came from the dragon. Tony squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the inevitable.

Instead, he heard the dragon walking away. He rolled over and saw the large reptile returning to the clearing.  Tony’s guilt worsened. It felt as if he were trespassing, but his body wasn’t cooperating.

The dragon laid down next to the body and took no notice of him.

He sat there for several minutes, periodically testing his legs for when he would be good to walk again. Eventually, he was able to stand. A tingling feeling remained, so movement felt awkward. But he was mobile and that was enough for him to get out of there.

He played with his hands as he contemplated his next move. He was lost in the woods and the dragon was the best option for directions.

Figuring it was better to ask now than to intrude later because he got lost, he approached the dragon. The dragon quickly lifted his head.

Tony stopped hoping he was out of striking range. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

The dragon growled at him. “What?”

He motioned to the body. “That wyrm. I’m assuming it’s someone you know, right?”

The dragon’s expression softened. “Yes, he was my son.”

“I’m so sorry.”

An awkward silence fell over them. He wanted to say something, but nothing came to mind that didn’t feel insensitive or awkward. The silence pressed from all sides. There wasn’t even the usual sound of crickets he had grown accustomed to. It also dawned on him that even the mosquitoes had vanished. The area around them felt dead.

This thing even killed the mood. Maybe it is the reaper’s pet. He chided himself for thinking up a joke at such a time.

The sun was beginning to set. Someone had to break the silence or he would be out there all night, so he cleared his throat to get the dragon’s attention. “My name’s Tony.”

The dragon grunted before replying, “Rofay.”

“Rofay, if it’s all right to ask, how did he die?”

There was no reply. Tony feared he had crossed a line when the wyrm spoke, “He failed the Earning of the Wing.”

“The Earning of the Wing? I’ve never heard of that.”

“It’s an old tradition. Our young don’t fly at birth. When they reach a certain age, we carry them into the sky to awaken their instincts.”

Tony’s eyes widened as it dawned on him what the dragon was implying. “Are you saying you drop them from the sky? Why would you do that?”

“I don’t expect a human to understand.”

“You’re right. I don’t understand. What kind of parent puts their child through that kind of trauma?”

The dragon snarled and jumped up. Tony scrambled backward, lost his balance, and fell. Rofay stood over him, his jaw set and a deep rumble emanating from his chest. Tony’s breath caught but he saw the pain and anger in the dragon’s yellow eyes and realized he had crossed a line.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize. But if you hate it so much why do you go along with it?”

Rofay held his gaze for a long time before eventually turning away. “Because it’s how things are done. If a dragon is to be accepted, they must complete the ceremony. If they don’t, they’ll be seen as a coward and exiled.”

“That’s pretty harsh.”

“Life is often harsh and unforgiving. It’s better to learn that sooner rather than later. When you hunt it’s do or die. Your prey won’t come back to you for a second attempt. The weak, the slow, and the foolish will fulfill their roles as lessons of what the strong should not repeat.”

Tony held his tongue, knowing voicing his opinions was the last thing the dragon wanted from him. That sounded rehearsed. He wondered how many years the drake had to hear those words spoken whenever he felt something was unfair or how often he said it himself to wash away guilt or loss. It was probably better not to ask.

It still bothered him. The stubbornness of dragons still amazed him that they clung to such ideals.

He wanted to help, but seeing how easily Rofay carved through the dirt, he would just be in the way. Sitting there and watching the drake do all the work felt rude, however.

It was clear he wasn’t going anywhere, so he spent the last of the daylight gathering loose branches and rocks to make a campfire. Several times, he noticed Rofay looking in his direction, but the drake let him work in peace.

He used the last match to start a small fire. The light made the drake look even more sinister. The shadows made his sharp horns and claws stand out even more and his eyes glowed in the distance.

He ignored the chilling thoughts going his head and focused on the drake still digging the hole. “So, you, uh, bury your dead? I didn’t know dragons did that. I figured you burn them.”

“Dragons are hard to burn. And my kind doesn’t breathe fire.”

“You don’t? I never heard of a wyrm who didn’t. So what do you do then?”

Rofay lifted his head long enough to spit at a fallen log nearby. The wood sizzled and melted within seconds, the stench of burnt rotting eggs filling the air. It was impressive and horrifying.

He noticed after the demonstration the drake was still staring at him.

“What’s wrong?”

“You’re not afraid?”

“Afraid of what? I hope you’re not a spitter when you talk, but no, I’m not scared.”

Rofay seemed shocked by the answer. “Most humans run away screaming at the sight of us.” He turned back to digging, his scoops haphazard and aggressive. “Then they call us names like ‘reaper’ and ‘deathbringer’. Even other dragons avoid us. The human hatchlings make a game of it. A test of bravery to see who can stand up to death, they call it.” He poked his head out of the hole, eyes brimming with anger. “Most of them get lost and die in the woods. The humans blame us for that, too.”

Tony understood but chose not to say anything. That wicked-looking tail would give anyone pause. The thought also saddened him. When he first saw these dragons, he feared he was a dead man just because of how they looked. That and he heard his fair share of tales of wild dragon clans who hunted humans for sport.

Death’s Woods is a fitting name for this place, he thought. “So you don’t like having this place to yourself?” he asked.  Most dragons he met hated having to share with humans.

“I would rather not have others piss themselves at the sight of me,” Rofay snapped. “It is not a pleasant feeling.”

“What about your clan?” Tony asked, hoping the change in subject wouldn’t agitate the drake further. “You still have them, right?”

A derisive snort was the dragon’s reply. “They’ve given up on changing the humans. It’s not worth the time if the humans are weak and give in to their fears. I’m not one to talk. I sent my son to his death because I was too afraid to speak up.”

“You were afraid to speak up for your son?” He regretted the question immediately. It sounded more like an accusation.

But the drake never appeared from his hole. “I didn’t want him to appear weak. The Earning of the Wing is when they are accepted into the clan.” He couldn’t see Rofay’s face, but he suspected a sorrowful expression if the spiritless tone was any indication.

“So, it’s like a coming-of-age kind of thing? I didn’t know dragons did that. But is it really that big a deal? What if he got hurt and couldn’t do it?”

“That would be an exception. But he wasn’t hurt so it would look like he was making excuses to cover up his fear.”

“A little fear isn’t so bad, right? It can keep you alive at times.”

Rofay growled. “You don’t get it, human. He was a dragon. Dragons don’t give in to fear.”

“Well, maybe—” he immediately fell silent realizing how insensitive his retort would be. Maybe the dragon was right, he didn’t understand. And he didn’t want to.

There was no response. The uncomfortable silence returned. Before he could speak up again, the drake spoke. “Why are you here, human?”

“I want to keep you company.” It hadn’t escaped his notice the drake was still digging, and the hole had to be more than deep enough. He couldn’t abandon him now. He also had no idea where the nearest town was but Rofay didn’t need to know that.

“I meant why did you come into these woods? A lot of humans have been passing through here lately.”

“Really? What did they look like? When did you last see them? Are they still around?”

Seeing the drake poke his head out again while wearing a confused expression told Tony he said too much.

He swore under his breath and decided to come clean. “Those men are likely the ones who attacked me and my co-workers. They killed them and left me for dead.”

Rofay climbed out of the hole. “And so you thought you’d get the dragon of death to hunt them down for you?”

“What? No!”

“Don’t lie to me!” The whistling of his tail cutting through the air made Tony flinch. “You begged for your life the moment we met! You’re no different from the others!”

“If I was like the others, I would’ve turned tail and ran by now!” Tony shouted back. “I wouldn’t be sitting here having a conversation with you while you try to bury your emotions!”

He stood there, pushing back the chiding thoughts of standing up to a creature who could kill him just by stretching. He had to prove he was different. He had to make up for his earlier behavior.

“Why should I believe you?” Rofay asked.

Tony didn’t reply and instead approached the dead drake. A shiver ran through him realizing that it could anger Rofay further and get him killed. He pushed the thoughts back and knelt beside the body. Upon closer inspection, it was easy to see how much younger this dragon was. The horns and deadly scythe-bone on the tail hadn’t fully grown in. The dragon was bigger than a dog, but he still had the look of a young dragon, rounder features, and blunter claws.

Placing a hand on the body, he closed his eyes and mumbled a prayer. He wasn’t one for religion, but it seemed fitting in the situation. Once he was done, he picked up the body and half-dragged it towards the hole.

It surprised him that Rofay wasn’t ripping his head off for it as he placed the drake in the hole. It was so deep, he couldn’t see the body in the bottom, but it didn’t matter. He then started scooping dirt back into the hole with his hands.

“I never had any children, so I don’t know what you’re going through. What I do know is you’re in pain. Dragon or not, you didn’t deserve this.”

Rofay appeared by his side and helped fill in the hole. The drake could do the task easily, but he was taking slow careful scoops to avoid hurting Tony.

Once the hole was filled, Tony dragged himself back to the fire. His arms were sore and his body was drained. Unpleasant as it seemed, he was spending the night outside. Even if he knew where to go and could see anything, he was too tired to make the trip.

It surprised him when Rofay laid down behind him, curling his body around him. “Sleep, human. Nothing will bother you tonight. And thank you for being here.”

Tony fell asleep within seconds.

He awoke the next morning to find Rofay still there. He also hadn’t expected to see another dragon. The two spoke in hushed tones.

He tried to listen in without being noticed, but the dragon talking to Rofay noticed him staring and glared before taking off into the air.

Tony waited until the other dragon vanished from view before approaching Rofay. “What was that about?” Tony asked.

“I explained to my friend that you weren’t a threat to the clan.”

“Oh. Thanks for that. It doesn’t look like he believed you though.”

“I explained to him what you did. He doesn’t like it, but he won’t attack you. Our laws forbid it.”

“As much I appreciate that, I really don’t like your laws much. You don’t always have to do what’s expected of you.”

The drake shook his head. “You don’t understand. I don’t follow them because I have to.”

Tony wasn’t sure what that meant, but he wasn’t about to argue it since the dragon had done him a huge favor. “Well, thanks for looking out for me. Would you mind pointing me in the direction of the nearest town? I’m kinda lost out here.”

“Actually, I want to travel with you if you don’t mind.”

“Wait, really? You don’t have to do that. I mean—”

“You helped me. My pride demands I do the same.”

“Another part of the dragon law, huh?”

“I don’t always like it, but it’s what I chose. I will follow it to the end.”

Tony nodded. Now he understood the dragon’s grief. “Okay.”