“Nights and days have passed, Long hours I've awaited for your return home my Dearest love."

I inhaled and exhaled.

“The guards that took you from me, they have never returned either. Tomorrow in the morning I will travel to meet with the oracle for guidance.

“Hank, I will find you.”

Laying in my bed, I turned to my side and stared at the wall till I fell back asleep.

I opened my eyes to gaze at the sun dropping in through the window.

There was a water barrel I kept in the main hall. All I could think about was throwing some water on my face and grabbing my packed rations and traveling bed roll. I sat up in my bed and my eyes caught the glimmer off my short sword's sheath.

The Leather armour I had was just some old armour I patched together from other broken armour I had taken from the Dead soldiers.

Throwing on my white tunic, then my brown leather armour.

I strapped my sword to my belt. Then I walked down stairs.

The water barrels were full from the unexpected rain storms.

I proceeded to the one and began to splash water on my face. It was refreshing.

“Hank, I hope you're still alive.”

I walked to my Traveling pack and began to throw it over my shoulders.

Lucky for me I got friends from the local apothecary to come watch the clients while I'm gone.

Taking one last look around my healing house.

I closed the door behind me.

I started to walk down the street, passing by vendor filled streets I heard a familiar voice call out. “ Asmay, off in a hurry?”

I turned to see Hilda, a loom shop owner.

“Hilda, yes I am, got business elsewhere.”

I ignored Hilda's request for my attention, she scowled as I walked away.

“I Hate her and her annoying small talk” I said aloud.

Walking to the ends of Rome,

There was a small red house I was informed to go to.

Reaching up I was about to knock on the door.

“No Need come in.” there was an elderly voice from inside.

I walked in, inside was an older woman with a white hair short and curly.

“The one on the search for love.” she smiled.

“Yes, Please tell me where I will find my love Hank.”

“Ahhh yesss,that is one question you have three more now let me have a look into the dark,” she closed her eyes and began to speak. “You will find the one you seek on the outskirts of Mesopotamia in the olive hills.”

“Ohh hank is alive!”

“Yes but he is on longer a man.”

“What happened to him?”

“He was transformed into a winged beast by a very evil ancient cult, of demon worshipers. Some of them are demons themselves called the archons, dwellers of the deepest caverns of the earth, they harvest a very evil esoteric energy there and thrive off evil worship they sacrifice, to an unnatural dimension in exchange for powers.”

“So Will he ever be human again?”

“You can save him, go to him, there will be a pyramid, you must go to it.”

The old woman sat back in her chair and opened her eyes and stared at me.

I dropped my bag of coins on the table as payment for her advice. She smiled and waved at me.

Closing the wooden door behind me as I walked out, I was comforted by the thought that Hank was alive and I could save him.

I started down the road towards mesopotamia.

Desert pines and shrubs, tumbleweeds soon became a rare sight in some areas as I walked across desert dunes.

Occasionally stopping for my water skin. Lucky for me the night was clear and I was able to navigate with the stars across the way. Morning approached and I found this large cave in the desert's edge into mesopotamia.

I Slept most of the day staying in the cave for the hottest part of the day.

The sounds of someone going through my bag was enough to wake me from my sleep.

“No, Stop stealing from me!”

I stood up and unsheath my sword, the sound scared the small spend man, he dropped my bag, and turned to me with his hands up.

He was old wearing a grey robe.

“Please help me, they beat me and left me to die out here.”

“Who beat you and left you for dead?”

I put my sword back in its case.

“Road thieves, that's who got my horse and all. I saw the cave and decided to wait this hot hour out.”

“Can an old man please request to have a drink of water.”

“Sure, here.” I handed him my leather water skin.

Then walked to the back of the cave to take a piss. The big boulders in the cave were enough to crouch behind. I undid my leathers and urinated on the cave floor.

I pulled back up my leather fatigues and walked back to the old man.

“What was your name?”

“The names Grano, here you will need this back.”

He held out the water skin, I Took it back and took a chug of the water.

That's funny, it tastes like my sleeper toxin. I looked in my bag.

“Looking for this?” Grano had the empty toxin bottle in his hand.

“I didn't catch your name?”

“Mm…y naaamme… isssss. Assssm……”

I woke up tied and gagged with my tunic in shreds.

The old man was drilling me in the ass.

“Ahh your awake good, you were saying you wanted it in your ass.”

The old man had his way with me till the evening.

Taking his time. I couldn't help but think of Hank. Please save me.

But no rescue came, no help, no saviour reached down to protect me.

Grano ate my rations and left me gagged and tied in the cave.

I struggled and cried after I soon realized I would soon meet my fate.

The day rolled on by I was tied and gagged naked helpless the desert heat was exhausting even in the cave I couldn't breathe at one point.

The night was even colder. No water, no food.

The same thing for the next day and the day after.

This was the end. I was starting to see lights coming from the dark then they would disappear.

Then I heard a small cry from a creature. A little red boy creature with long horns and red wings. The creature walked forward and cut her ropes. Releasing my arms. I curled up and reached lower for my legs and untied myself.

I looked around and the little red boy creature was gone.

The asshole didn't realize there was a tiny water hole in the back of the cave.

I walked up and drank the water. I couldn't remember the last time I was ever this thirsty.

I caught some water down my throat the wrong way and coughed a bit up.

I walked out the cave. I still put on my tore tunic and my leathers were fine and the tunic would have to do for now.

I walked out the cave, I wondered if that thing back there was real or if in my delirious state I was able to work myself free.

What was I left to do, It's not like I could have known what a monster he truly was. Grano was that even his name I will kill him myself next time I see him.

I pondered these thoughts, A feeling of hopelessness fell over. I closed my eyes and opened them. The desert heat was almost unbearable but I had to keep walking. Miles and miles then I noticed something in the sand.

“What was that?”

I walked up and saw it was a hand reaching out from the sand. The person was long dead buried in the sand.

I walked up to inspect the person.

I knelt down and started to uncover the body. It was the old man Grano, I fell back then just sat looking at him dead, I could see a half eaten very deadly poisonous scorpion.

His eyes grey dry and packed with sand.

I just sat in the sand for hours looking at him replaying the scene in my head.

I covered him back with sand and stood back up to meet the sunset. I walked as twilight set across the desert.

I got to the olive tree fields and met some travelers. They gave me a proper tunic and gave me water and food.

Ken and waven, two farmers of the area. We sat under the trees. They asked me where I came from and who roughed me up.

In a rather offended voiced tone I replied.

“I came from rome I was crossing the desert,I was raped and robbbed thanks for having empathy for me but I Must leave my lover waits for me in the hills near by here.”

“Wait asmay, that's horrible. We must find who did this our father is lost out there in the desert we must find him.”

“What did he look like?”

“He's older, he had on a grey robe… aagaghhhhh!!!”

I pulled my short sword out from ken then stabbed Waven in the neck and followed him to the ground twisting the blade into his gargling throat feeling the fibers of his neck snap and tear.

I stood up and looked around no one to be seen from here to the hills that extended in land. The now sputtering blood ken was crawling away for his life.

I started to chop his head, hit the back of his skull, turning it into a red mush that was blood, brain and bone.

I took Ken's mighty steed and hopped on.

I rode for the Hills and waited under the full moon. The lunar light lit up the fields of olive trees around me.

Then I seen it from the hills caverns it rose from the tops into the starry night.

The wings stretched out and a large black silhouette in the night sky was seen soaring across the cosmos.

It was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. A tear rolled down my face.

“Hank?”

The Large silhouette started to fly lower and closer.

I got off the horse and watched it fly in fast and pick up the horse right beside me and fly with it into the sky. The horse neighed loudly, trashed and kicked. The flying creature dropped it to the ground. From the height of a castle tower. I watched it fall in the air tumbling down and then a loud bang and the horse made one last sound on impact. Few feet in front of me.

The blood splattered all over me head to toe. I was covered in blood.

A heavy thud hit the ground with an earth rumbling pressure that shook me to the ground. The beast walked up to the horse and began to eat it.

Under the night sky. Soaked in blood.

I stepped closer towards the towering beast.

The large black silhouette turned towards me and growled and roared into the sky.at the sight of me.

The only thing that came to mind was to take off the armour of the legion, so he would recognize me.

I started to strip my blood covered leathers and newly acquired blood stained tunic.

Standing in front of the Dragon the Dragon stopped moving. And just stared.

It moved its head in closer. I could feel his eyes close and open, the shutting effect sent a breeze that sent chills up my arms, spine and neck.

I spoke “ Hank, It's me Asmay.”

The Creature backed up and lowered itself to the ground and opened its mouth.

As a Blue esoteric swirl filled its mouth I could see an image coming through the blue esoteric light.

“Is that?”

And through the blue Light came a silver pyramid and in front of it came a white light square door.

I walked into it.

Flashes of light many different colours I never saw before. I fell through time and when I came through the other side I was holding my lover Inside a dark Cave.

Both of us naked.

I stared into his eyes, and he Stared into mine. We kissed and when our lips touched my heart felt it was complete again.

“You saved me from the curse, A true love had to trust my offer of the door to transform me back to a man.”

“I Missed you so much!”

He kissed me like he would never leave my side again.

Then a familiar sound of esoteric energy filled the room.

At the altar a blue swirl of esoteric energy emanated lighting up the room with a blue essence.

End of chapter 003 Woman and the Dragon Subterranean levels Written by Travis willier