Free The Princess's Dragon by JManess Page A

her back and the skin there bulged and strained to contain what slithered beneath until finally it gave way, tearing apart as a set of massive leathery wings shot into the night sky, unfurling to their full length, entangling the branches of the trees.
    The last remnants of her bloody clothing fell away, shedding bits of her own skin with it, though Sondra remained too consumed by her pain to notice. Trapped within the horror of her changing body, she noticed nothing.
    She crouched on all fours; eyes clenched closed, unwilling to witness the abomination she’d become. She didn’t notice when her bones stopped twisting or when the burning ceased or when the horrible ache deep within her head and face faded away. She didn’t hear the soft song that whispered through the Woods or feel the breeze that caressed her scales. The sound that shook her from her mental shelter was a voice calling her name, a voice familiar to her, one she loved—the voice of the man she intended to marry. She snapped her eyes open just in time to see him enter the clearing, his sword drawn, his eyes searching. She saw his gaze stop on the ground beneath her, the remnants of the blood-stained gown, the gruesome bits of skin, the curving golden claws that impaled the silken fabric, each nearly as long as the blade of his sword. She

    ✥ Th e Princess’s Dragon ✥
    45
    watched his eyes as they slid slowly up her monstrous body. She jerked at the look in them when they reached her face. A countenance of pure hatred and rage that she had never seen before transformed him from the man she loved to a deadly killer.
    “You monster!” he screamed, his voice ringing with the anguish and grief of terrible loss as he raised his sword and charged blindly at the dragon that killed his princess.
    Sondra stretched a clawed forelimb out to him as though to explain or to halt him. She acted with a purely human gesture, but he only recognized a threat and the bloody rags that dangled from one golden tip. He struck the dragon, the strength of his charge pushing Sondra off balance and sending pain racing through her new body, but the edge of the blade bounced harmlessly off her scales, ringing in the still night air. He charged again, consumed by his fury, and Sondra backed away, still trying desperately to communicate with him.
    The only sounds that emitted from her throat sounded like low growls and piercing shrieks that frightened even her.
    The sounds of more raised voices calling out and the ring of approaching armed men forced her to flee. She didn’t think, just turned and crashed through the Woods, heading unerringly toward Thunder Mountain, where the pursuing humans wouldn’t follow. The forbidden zone beckoned as the one place where she could find solitude and safety to regroup. Then she would return and find the wizard and beg him to reverse the spell. She didn’t notice that the trees parted before her and closed in behind her. She didn’t notice that the sounds of pursuit faded away as the men grew disoriented and were lost, chasing flashes of light and shadowy movements through the undergrowth. Nor did she notice the white-haired man standing straight and tall, his unlined face obscured by his long, flowing beard, his black eyes regretful as he watched her go, and his strong calloused hand gripping a carved staff of such beauty and complexity that no ordinary craftsman could dream of creating its equal. He spoke quietly to the empty night. “Did I do the right thing, Ethelda?” A soft breeze that ruffled his hair provided his only answer.

    78
    7
    Y
    CHAPTER 6
    ✥
    It took eight cycles to reach the foot of Th under Mountain.
    Because of the heated pursuit and her unfamiliarity with her new body, Sondra avoided the roadways; not because she feared the people chasing her, but because she feared her own strength and what would happen if she must defend herself against a mob of people. She traveled well within the tree line until she reached Aquiis