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Monday, June 30, 2014

Today's #flashfiction #AlexandersChoice

“Do you know The Muffin Man?”
The Pillsbury Dough Boy* #quote




       Tonight the parent's will be coming home tonight from the trip to brother's wedding. (And yes, ergo, my brother is wed, a ceremony will be held in this state for his branch of the family he and his bride can muster it up, but granted one wedding is enough of a thing to deal with). Anyway onto the flash fiction!



Alexander's Choice


        “And so it finally it happens.” the gigantic black dragon said with a puff of smoke, “Alexander The Grand the greatest knight in all the lands meets me, Goor the Neverending Flame the most powerful and feared dragon in all the lands.”
        “And the taming will begin.” Alexander drew his blade, the legendary Loridor. It was a blade enchanted with incredible powers.
         “Ah yes, the taming,” Goor replied, “where the knight and dragon fight. Where there are four possible out comes. The knight is killed. The knight flees, as the dragons always allow him to do. The dragon is killed. Or the dragon surrenders, and is 'tamed' to be your steed.”
        “Well, dragon, there are only two possible outcomes in this battle, Loridor is so powerful it has allowed me to kill any dragon with a single blow! I have never lost a single battle! I am invincible with it!” Alexander proclaimed. It was true he had never lost a battle. When his reputation spread some dragons surrendered as soon as they saw him draw his blade.
         “Ah, but you are not as invincible as you may think. I am Goor. Though your blade is powerful I am even in power with it. Our chances of our victory would be equal. Our battle would be like flipping a coin.” It took a minute for the reality of the statement to wriggle into Alexander's brain.
         “I must concede to your statement as dragons cannot lie.” Alexander looked at Loridor. He was full of disappointment and rage, he had relied on it as much as his own two legs when fighting.
         “Alexander The Grand. I must ask you one thing.” Goor said while looking straight into Alexander's eyes.
         “What is it?” Alexander asked. Alexander started getting confused. The tone of the dragon, though stern had also gotten causal and friendly in an odd way.
          “If you were me, what would you do right now? Would you surrender or would you fight?”
          “What?” Alexander just froze like he had been hit by a paralysis spell.
           “If you were me, what would you do right now? Would you surrender or would you fight?” the dragon repeated this time speaker slower, like a teacher to a child who didn't understand a simple math question.
           Alexander started to run the question through the deepest parts of his mind. He thought if he fought he would have a fifty percent chance of living, the pros and cons of that are simple to understand. Surrendering is simple too, he'd just be fleeing home back to his family. Then he remembered that is what would happen if he were the knight. The dragon becomes the steed. He then thought of a horse. A horse's life isn't too bad. It eats and gets rode as long as its in good condition. He realized he was steering himself away from the dragon's perspective again. Was he subconsciously trying to avoid putting himself in the dragon's position? Horses didn't have the self awareness that dragon's did. Dragon's also understood every word a knight said as it rode it. They knew their exact position in society and what they didn't have and what the knights had. Alexander also thought of the fact that dragons also understood the concept of honor. And when they surrendered they would know that they would have lost it. He also remembered the fact that dragons were often stabled alone in barns because of their large size, mostly isolated from their own kind, a luxury even horses had.
         “I would surrender.” Alexander told the truth. Fifty-fifty odds weren't good enough. Even with all of that as a consequences. Alexander's victories had been guaranteed by his blade in all his previous fights. In reality he was not a man who would fight, in fact, the sword is actually what granted him his swordsmanship ability and his physical ability, without it he couldn't even slay an angry sheep. He feared death just as much as anyone else, in actuality even more than most, at heart he truly was no great warrior.
         “Then I shall do exactly as you would.” Goor said as he approached Alexander then laid on his side exposing his gut. This is how dragons surrendered as it left them completely open. “I surrender Master. And let my service as your steed be a constant reminder of your choice and its consequences. It will also make you understand the experience of all other dragons you have 'tamed' and the experience of all the dragons other knights have 'tamed'. And the reason why some dragons have chosen not to be tamed.” Goor then coughed a puff of thick smoke, “Now Master where would you like your steed to take you first? Perhaps to a nearby tavern so you may recount your tale of taming me, Goor the Neverending Flame, the most powerful and feared of all the dragons, to your fellow knights?”

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