Chapter 1 - the plan

"The bigger and softer the underbelly, the easier it is to exploit"

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The y were gathered five hundred strong in the shadow of the Stolen mountain, for what reason I could not fathom, as not even five hundred men could hope to match the beast lurking within.

I arrived within two days of being sent for; they contacted my master, but as he considered this particular errand a waste of his time, he sent me. I didn't particularly want to be here either. These knights wanted to do something unspeakable; kill a dragon.

I had come with a mild hope of coaxing them out of the rash act, but that hope grew dimmer upon seeing what lay beyond the hill; five hundred armed, angry enlisted townsfolk gathered around a small group of knights, surrounded by catapults and the like. Oh, the barbarism. If there was even a small chance I could save this creature, I would take it.

I trotted up to the camp, dismounted and introduced myself to the leader in chief and his second in command, a sprightly young man named Ricardo.

"I'm glad you're here, sir," said Ricardo, "this plan may have failed without a dragon expert in hand. I just hope we can do it quickly and cleanly, and end the terrorism once and for all."

"Thanks Ricardo," I replied, "I hope so also. There's no point dragging it out. But what, may I ask, is the plan-"

"The plan," came the commander's voice from behind me, "is the most treacherous and sly ever devised in killing a dragon, almost on par with the devious wyrms themselves."

I turned to see him grinning, a glint in his eye.

"We are growing the creature's belly so that we may strike it all the easier."

I blanched.

"What?"

The commander put his arm around my shoulder as we walked, Ricardo close at hand.

"You see, this dragon is quite old. Over seven hundred, we gather, so it rarely moves or ventures from its hold except to hunt. Therefore, we have provided it with all the fat livestock it can feast on," he said, pride in his voice as he gestured to the thousands of cattle scattered in the fields.

"But," I interjected, "Why put them so close to the mountain?"

"My boy," the commander said in a low voice, "that's the point. We are eliminating the hunting aspect."

I was flabbergasted.

"So your big plan to kill the legendary Dragon of the Stolen Mountain is to FEED it?! That will only make it stronger!"

Ricardo stepped in.

"I know it seems ludicrous, sir, but it makes sense; a dragon's underbelly is the most vulnerable part of the creature. Elsewhere its scales are impenetrable. So we thought, what if the underbelly was a bigger target?"

The commander, knocking Ricardo out of the way, brought me face to face with him.

"The bigger and softer the underbelly, the easier it is to exploit," he said, grinning madly to himself. "We've been feeding it the fattest cattle for months!"

It started to make sense.

"Your knowledge of dragon anatomy cannot be faulted, but how do you know it has worked? The dragon hasn't been seen in years!"

"That's what you're here for, boy," the commander said, still high on triumph.

"What do you mean?" I said, apprehension growing by the minute.

The commander drew closer, the utmost seriousness in his voice.

"You're going to go up there, lad, into the beast's lair, to see if our plan has taken. Then you will lure the greedy bastard out into the open, where we will smite it where it stands."

TO BE CONTINUED

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I haven't written a story in ages but I've recently been inspired and I have a great feeling about this one. Hang on to your seats guys, there are many *huuuge* plot twists to come, the next one being present in the next chapter, coming tomorrow; "Into the Flabattoir"! -MFB