Flying was great! The green dragon realized that the first time he flew. From the first moment he took to the air, he loved it and he had been flying around the huge cavern of the fifth floor ever since. The fact that he was now alone did not bother him. The Porkasus had long since left, going off to do whatever it felt like doing.

“Hey, get down here. We’re ready!”

The voice came into his head and the dragon turned towards the source. Even high above the underground forest of the fifth floor, the dragon could easily see the clearing and flew towards it. The Hive had enlarged the clearing around it several times before and the dragon had no problem landing bedside the crystal that was the Hive. Seeing it floating quietly in the middle of the clearing, the dragon quickly asked.

“You guys finally done?”

“Of course! Just look at us!”

Indeed, the Hive was quite a sight. The Hive had been actively gathering energy for an entire day and was now shining like a beacon in the underground forest. Even the four lights that surrounds the Hive seems brighter than usual.

“You guys sure this will work?”

“Nope, but since when has that ever stopped us?”

The dragon had to admit the truth of that statement. Back when he was part of the hive, he never let things like potential failure deter him from trying. He now realized that wasn’t something to be proud of. Guess being a dragon changed his views on some things...

“How dangerous is this?”

“Shouldn’t be too dangerous…but just in case, why don’t you give us some room?”

“Fine but remember to make the hole big enough for me to fly out. We don’t want to face the same problem again.”

“Yes, yes. Now move away.”

With that, the dragon quickly moved away from the Hive. Once he was at the edge of the clearing, the hive got to work. The shining crystal got even brighter and the dragon felt a sense of pressure coming from it. Then a bright light shot upwards. The dragon looked up and saw that the light widen as it went upwards. The light touched the ceiling and it…just disappeared.

There was no explosion. Without a sound, the ceiling of the fifth floor just disappeared as if it was never there. For a moment, the ceiling was there. Then it was not. The dragon did not care about the ceiling. He just stood there looking at the dark sky above.

“What are you waiting for? Get moving. You’re already late!”

The scolding from the Hive brought the dragon back to his senses and he immediately spread his wings and jumped. Once in the air, he flapped his wings and the air pressure propel him magically upwards. A few flaps later, the dragon flew out of Big Keg into the night. High up in the night sky, he stopped.

His breath caught; his eyes teared; he looked at the night sky above him and was awed. Zrucs and Prih, the twin Moons of Ioplon were the most beautiful things he had ever seen. The dragon felt strange. He had seem the moons and sky before when he was part of the Hive but now, things felt different. Very different!

The dragon then felt himself falling. He was too engrossed with the sight of the night sky that he had stopped flying! The dragon couldn’t float in the air and quickly flapped his wings to regain the height he lost. The dragon laughed, a laugh that sounded like a roar to the other creatures of the mountain. It was a stupid mistake he shouldn’t be making.

He turned to the east and flew towards the human city of Yachium. The Hive had seen the human city once before on a scouting trip and the dragon had been part of the Hive there. He knew where the human city was located but he wasn’t thinking about that now. Now, he only care about flying.

The cold night air hit him and the dragon felt something stirred within. He felt joy. The dragon flapped his wings again, going faster and faster. For the first time since he was created, the dragon felt truly alive!

“This is great!”

He laughed. A roar that that shook the mountain. He flew and flew, enjoying every moment of it. The dragon looked down at the land beneath him and saw that he was moving faster than he had expected. At the speed he was flying, he might not be late! Then he saw something magical. There was a light on the horizon!

The dragon spotted a rocky outcrop and immediately headed towards it. He landed and faced the horizon. He sat and stared. Night was slowly turning into day and the sun was slowly rising in the east. The coldness of the night was slowly replaced by the warmth of the day and the dragon couldn’t help but stared at the rising sun. Zrucs and Prih had competition. The dragon opened his wings and sat there motionless for a long time. He wanted to do nothing but to enjoy the moment.

Then the dragon felt something else. A rumble in his stomach. Instinctively, he knew that he was hungry. The dragon looked around and realized his sight was as great as the Hive said it was. Far in the distance, he could see a herd of wild horses and he began to fly towards them.

The dragon flew up high into the air. Once he got close enough, he began to dive down. He noticed that the horses had noticed it. For a brief moment, they did not move away. Why should they? The horses had never seen a dragon before and did not know if he was friend or foe but as the dragon got closer and lower, they realized their error. The horses might not know the dragon but they knew a predatory dive when they see one. They ran.

The dragon adjusted and began trailing the herd. He swooped overhead and let out his breath. A green mist of poison shot out from the dragon’s mouth over the herd. The dragon flew on and then tried to make a sharp turn in the air. He wasn’t totally successful but when he turned back towards the herd, he realized that there was no need for rush. While some of the horses had had ran away, others had dropped dead on the ground.

The dragon looked at the escaping horses and saw that some of the escapees were running wobbly, no doubt feeling the effects of the poison. The dragon looked at the horses for a moment before deciding not to chase after them. He was hungry. He landed among the dead horses and ignored the possibility of poison.

The poison came from him so the dragon thought it should be safe for him to eat the dead horses. The dragon took a bite of the nearest horse and his body shook. Juices filled his mouth and the taste...this is what food tasted like? What a wonderful feeling!

“Those idiots still in the Hive don’t know what they are missing!”

The dragon declared as he continued his feast. He ate every part of the horses and by the time he was done, there was nothing left but bones. The dragon looked over the bones with satisfaction. This was a good meal. He wondered how other animals would taste; he wondered how human would taste? The dragon smiled. Where he was going, there were humans aplenty. He spread his winds and flew.