Having been sent on a mission to kill the beast that lives up in the mountains was not something Aldric could refuse, not that he wanted to. Killing a dragon was something you would be awarded for and there was honor to it. The air grew colder as he climbed higher, the mountain path rough beneath his boots and the scent of pine filling his nostrils.

But he had never thought that the fire-breathing lizard would be something so human. What he saw as he followed the flying lizard and sneaked into its lair was not what he had expected at all. The cave was warm, the air thick with the smell of smoke and something sweet, and the glint of gold and jewels caught his eye everywhere he looked.

He had expected to see a big monster curled up in a den of gold, jewels and human bones...not a human. A dragon hybrid to be more precise. The woman stood with her back to him, unaware of his presence in the cavernous space.

He lowers his sword slightly and observes the woman, as she has taken a human form. Transfixed by the woman he accidentally steps on a golden goblet that starts rolling over the cave floor and startles her. The sound echoes through the cave like a clap of thunder.

Before he can react she has transformed back into a dragon and her whole hand presses his body down onto the ground. The weight of her massive paw crushes him, making it hard to breathe, and the heat of her body is almost unbearable.

Gods, I need to think fast, before she burns me to ashes He thinks and lets go of his sword.

"I'm not...here to hurt you." He says in the most convincing tone he can manage as she presses the air out of his lungs.