Succulent is a word I could describe the slab of steak sitting in front of me. I had finished over half of the meat that leaked its bloody flavour onto my plate. It was my second night living in the tavern, and as I regained my land legs, I could explore the island's contents. I knew that Wintercrest had beautiful sightlines, but I didn't think they would be this breathtaking.

The first place I had accidentally explored was the sheer, unsteady cliffs that hung over the whitecap-churning waters. The sea was still recovering from the night's storm that drifted violently away only hours ago. With a suddenness emphasized by the silence that followed, I felt at peace watching everything unfold before me. The sky cleared, and the waves seemed to flee with the clouds. Damp air shimmered into a rainbow, enhanced by the sun's rays gleaming off the magnificent colours.

A dark shape rose over the water's surface—a shadow cast by a giant golden dragon whose scales rippled from the sun. On Wintercrest, it was not uncommon to see a rider and his dragon fly over the island. I was mesmerized. The absolute beauty of this situation left me oozing with awe.

Unintentionally, my emotions turned bitter, and my mood was soon foul. I was plagued with the overwhelming feeling of jealousy. The feeling of tight coils wrapped around my torso, leaving me incapable of feeling anything else except for hatred. My own emotions incarcerated me.

As I watched the beast fly off into the distance, I couldn't help but wonder what my life would have been like if I had been accepted into the academy. What new skills and abilities would I have acquired being trained to my full potential. I certainly wouldn't have minded if I got newfound respect. It would be nice for a change, wouldn't it?

Deciding to head back to my room in hopes of getting a few hours of sleep before I depart from this island was the best idea I had in a long while. My room, as I left it, was a complete mess. My clothes were thrown in a messy pile, and alongside the wall lay my open pack with other items toppling over the sides. My map was lying flat on my bed, along with a few daggers set on each side of the map to hold it open.

During the countless days of my journey, I mapped out my trails of where I had previously gone and where I would now go. Clearing a space within the scattered mess, I lay my body down, thinking how a few good hours of rest would do me some good.

The morning after showed to be quite eventful. As soon as I packed my belongings and left the hotel room behind, I was on my way through the bustling streets of Wintercrest, observing the people passing by. I hadn't seen a single woman on this island. Instead, it was men with tattoos of the same shape but differing colours. White, red, blue, green and very seldom did I come across someone with a golden marking. I knew very little of this world, the questions racing in my head yearning to learn more.

More often I found myself searching the arms of the men I passed, but some were covered up and I wondered if they had a dragon rider marking or not. All had weapons strapped to their hips or back, allowing me to come to the conclusion that I was amongst soldiers.

A part of me wished to go up to one of the men and speak freely, asking them about their experiences and what the tattoos meant, but my journey took me elsewhere, and I was becoming antsy with putting my voyage off for so long. I also didn't want to draw attention to myself. Three days I had stayed at Wintercrest. Three days of deciding if I should travel to Aeberuthey. In the end, I concluded it was too late to turn back, and I could only move forward.

So forward I walked until I can across a docking station with vessels of all shapes. My conversations with the sailors were brief, not exposing too much information of my intentions. All they needed to know was my direction, and only one was willing to take me out that far to sea. Once we settled on an agreement, I was off into the ocean yet again.

By the time the sun had risen just above the water's horizon, the island was in view. My insides churned, terrified yet eager to meet the island's occupants. My mind swarmed with countless possibilities that may occur during my stay.

Abruptly, the sails of the small fishing boat were taken down by the few crew members, stopping any further travels. I turned, confused as to why we were stopping.

"This is as far as we go." The captain sidestepped by me, walking towards the bow of this boat. His deep accent thickly coated his almost unidentifiable words.

"Excuse me?" I quickly followed after.

"We did this as a favour, yah? We're not wasting any other supplies for ya when it's an easy swim to the island."

I eye the stretch of water, "This looks like an easy swim?"

He considers, briefly, before proceeding to be on his path. "Good luck," he calls back.

My eyes were wide with disbelief. "Is he serious?" I wondered out loud.

Instead of screaming my lungs raw, I forcefully let out a sigh of anger, grabbed my things in my arms and walked to the edge of the boat. Gauging the distance from here to the island, I knew I would surely be exhausted by the end of it.

The water was aqua blue. I was unsure if I would die from exhaustion before successfully making it to the island or if something decided I would be their next meal. Glancing back at the bustling boat, I decided that death by the ocean would be far better than spending another moment with these barbarians.

Letting out a shaky breath, I jumped. The water at first touch was cold, causing minor discomfort, but soon my body warmed as I began to swim. The waves were calm and thankfully worked in my favour as they pushed me towards the island. The boat had long gone; I couldn't even see where it was now.

The sun, now high above me, beat furiously against my head. Occasionally I had to dip my head under the water to escape its assault.

By the time my toes hit the sand, my limbs were beyond strained, my mind was fuzzy, my mouth was parched, and my eyes stung. I walked my way out of the water and soon collapsed onto the white sand, its warmth seeping into me. I sighed, causing the grains to fly a short distance before I pulled the curtains over my eyes and fell into a troubled sleep.

I choked in a breath, sand scratching at my already sore throat. The moon rose above the treetops, casting an eerie glow over the white sand. Blinking my eyes in bewilderment, I pondered just how long I had been sleeping.

My bags dried in the heat of the sun, which were waterproof to begin with, to a certain extent. The contents inside had minor water damage and were still a little wet.

I sighed and looked to the sky. I'll just have to wait for the sun.

A great, beastly noise shocked me from my thoughts. The fact that I knew what the creature was didn't disturb me; it was how distressed it sounded. Dragons were usually peaceful creatures, but this one sounded as if it were trapped in a situation of danger.

It wailed again, and before I knew what was happening, I had stood from my seat and started sprinting in the direction I thought it to be. Approaching the edge of the tree line, I peered into the thick jungle, wondering what I would find once I stepped through.

The dragon's loud rumble sounded again, which spurred me on, almost as if the sound was the go-ahead to begin running in a race. Branches whipped at my face and successfully tore at my skin. The sting sent my eyes watering.

Torches staked into the ground illuminated the scene before me. The inhabitants of this island were locked in cages, some far too small to hold such a giant beast. Their scales were glittering against the light, and their eyes, some scared, some angry, but all showed realization they were trapped.

A travelling light came closer toward me, giving away the oncoming presence. I quickly ducked down behind the nearest cage, waiting for them to pass by before trying anything with the captives. Once the light faded into the distance, I turned toward the nearest dragon. Parts of its skin were soaked in a clear liquid I could not distinguish. It didn't bother moving away as I approached. Its eyes were glazed over, and its breathing was rapid and shallow.

Quickly searching for something I could use to break the lock, my eyes landed on a thick branch, hanging broken off the tree it had previously been attached to. I used my weight to rip it further off. It broke with a crack loud enough to make me freeze in my tracks. Seeing that no one was rushing toward me, I breathed out a sigh of relief and continued towards the cage.

I tried everything with the branch to try and break the lock, but all it did was further splinter the wood. My groan of frustration was enough to make the beast shift, but nothing more after that.

"There must be keys somewhere," I muttered, aimlessly directing my eyes around the large clearing.

The light I had previously seen had made its round and was now coming back again. I stumbled back, crouching low to the ground as it approached. The man carrying the torch was large enough to snap me in half, but he seemed awfully distracted. Watching his movements closer, I realized why his walking looked so familiar. He was as drunk as Steve would be if he spent the day drinking in The Belltower Inn.

I chuckled behind my hand, barely believing my luck.

Just as the man passed and his back was towards me, I smacked the branch against the back of his head as hard as I possibly could. His steps faltered, the torch falling from his hands as he fell in an ungraceful manner, legs splayed about behind him. His keys jingled together as I moved them towards the cage.

Holding the torch in front of me, I used the light to find the correct key. I watched my surroundings as I inserted the different keys, hoping no one noticed that the drunk man was no longer walking. Finally coming across the correct key, I swung the creaky cage door open and stepped away from the opening. The dragon did not move. I kicked the cage. The rattling barely made it stir.

Cautiously stepping inside the cage, I watched its every movement. Although it seemed to be in a drugged state, wild dragons were highly unpredictable.

My steps were small and carefully placed as I further approached the beast. Crouching in front of it, I stretched my hand out, placing it upon the dragon's head. My fingers barely skimmed the surface of the red scales before I was lanced with searing pain. Jerking my hands away, barely able to keep in the startled scream, I looked to see that the skin was bubbling, red and angry. Quickly wiping my hands on my overshirt, I ripped it off and wrapped it around my hands, using it to push against the beast's head. It still didn't budge.

Looking back towards the torch I had placed against the metal bars, I formed an idea. Quickly grabbing the wooden shaft, I brought the flame to the dragon's skin. I chanced a glance towards the dragon's head, its glazed eyes still unfocused. Silently apologizing, I brought the flame down onto its foot.

The dragon shot up, its eyes barely focussing on me before it let out a loud roar in my face. A streak of red charged out of the cage, stumbling over its feet. The dragon shook its head and glanced back toward me. Its eyes, less glassy than before, narrowed upon seeing me. Spreading its enormous wings, it shot up into the sky and disappeared from view.

I watched as it left, feeling a minor accomplishment.

The moment was soon short-lived as I heard shouting coming from a distance. The trappers must have heard the dragon. Of course, they did. How could you be so stupid? Panicking, I quickly closed the cage door and bolted from the scene. I blindly raced through the trees, having left the torch behind.

I found my way back to the sandy beach, barely able to catch my breath—the jarring thuds of my heartbeat against my chest, just as rapid as my breathing. My knees shook as I walked back towards where I had left my pack. Its contents were untouched.

The slight tingling sensation in my hands brought me back to my injury. I had completely forgotten about it. I unwrapped the clothing from my hand, seeing just how bad the wound had gotten. I was shocked by the amount of damage that had been done. The skin was still being eaten away, which caused a disgusting smell of rotten flesh to float under my nose.

Gagging, I quickly walked towards the ocean's water, hoping to scrub off any excess substance that may still be on my hands. I walked until the water was just at my knees, bending down to place my hands in the water.

The clear liquid around me quickly turned a darker colour, and scorching pain soon following after. My vision went dark, and all I could do was try and keep my screams at bay. I stumbled back, tripping over my feet and tumbling under the water. I screamed into the ocean, feeling like my hands were being shoved into molten lava. Breaking through the surface of the water, I crawled my way back up to the beach, not being able to put any weight on my hands. Before I could fully make it to the dry beach, my vision went dark once again. All I could feel as the waves washed over my hands before falling into unconsciousness was the horrible pain of the poison burning through my blood.