Chapter Text
“Yeah that’s right! Run away like the losers you are!”
Mark could feel his heart pounding in his chest. His breath was coming out rushed and uneven. His legs felt as though they’d give out at any given moment and the rough ground that scraped his feet weren’t helping. His ribs were on fire from how long he’d been running but he didn’t stop. Who knows if the bullies were following him. He was running with the only other 2 people in this place who tolerated him.
Jonah Marshall and Evelin Miller.
The three of them were considered outcasts and weak. The entire town thought of them as useless. Just because they couldn’t kill a dragon.
The three of them finally decided that they lost the group of bullies and they all sat down on the crunchy dirt floor.
“Fuck man. Couldn’t they have thought of a better insult besides loser? They should know this isn’t the 70s anymore.” Jonah heaved out. He was out of breath but he tried his best to lighten the heavy mood that fell between the group. It got a snort out of Evelin but that was about it. This had been the group's routine for a while now. Hang out, get chased by bullies, run to the forest, try and attack a dragon at night, sleep, repeat. It was a tiring process.
The world has been plagued with dragons for a while but humanity is a stubborn species and refuses to give up. The town of Mandela was no different. Despite dragons taking things away from them almost every night, they never gave up.
All of Mandela county had some sort of dislikement for the three of them. It all had something related to dragons too. They hate Jonah for being somewhat of a scaredy-cat, They hate Evelin for not caring about the attacks, and they especially hate Mark for not being strong enough.
The three of them found comfort in each other because they were all outcasted.
The only reason they haven’t been kicked out or jumped by someone yet was because Mark’s uncle, Dave, was the governor. Mark gave the man credit because he truly was trying but it never really… worked.
“Are the dragons insanely powerful, is that why you can’t get rid of them?” One might ask. They, however, would be extremely wrong. The town of Mandela was a stubborn one, but I never said it was a smart one either. In order to take down the dragons, the people use older weapons such as bows and axes. Although they have access to weapons such as guns, they don’t use them. Why? No one knows.
“Tonight. Same spot right? You guys have the weapons I gave you?” Mark asked suddenly. Being trapped in his own thoughts allowed him to remember what was to occur tonight. Tonight, the three of them were to meet at a cliff in the forest they were currently in. Mark had borrowed some guns from his uncle and they were gonna try to kill a dragon. The town would hate them even more if they found out that they were using “modern” weapons. Evelin was planning on going after a Hideous zippleback. She found them worth more than any other dragon. Jonah wanted an easier target and decided to go for a Nadder. Killing a dragon wasn’t easy but this was the best he was gonna get.
Mark. Mark wanted to go farther than both of them. He wanted to prove to the town, his friends and most importantly, himself, that he could kill a dragon. He wanted to have physical evidence that he was worth something. He was going for the big prize.
A night fury.
A night fury is one of the most deadly dragons to go after. No one has ever taken it down successfully. Considering that there might be only one left in the entire world, killing one would put you on the map for eternity. A night fury hides in the shadows and uses mimicry and trickery to get you confused. A night fury is considered “God's unholy reject.” If you need some insider as to what it’s like.
Mark wanted nothing more than to be noticed and maybe even loved. Sure Evelin and Jonah were his friends but he wanted something more. He knew it was risky and he might not be strong enough to take this deadly beast but it was a chance he was willing to take.
Jonah and Evelin stared at him confused when he suddenly mentioned their plans tonight but didn’t question why he brought it up.
“Yeah I got mine. I’ll be there. You should ask Jonah if he lost his weapon though. Bet you $20 that he forgot about it.” Evelin teased. She had a rare smile on her face and it grew even wider as Mark heard a “HEY!” sprout from Jonah. Mark decided to give into the joke as he replied with, “Raise it to $50 and you’ve got yourself a bet.”
Jonah yelled again as the group dove into giggles and laughter. Mark wanted this moment to last forever. He wanted to be able to hang out with his friends without the weight of life dragging him down.
The three of them hung around a little more before noticing the sun setting.
“It’s almost night. We should probably go home and get ready for tonight.” Mark announced. He was a little excited about finally being able to use something that wasn’t a stick to attack these things tonight.
The group said their goodbyes and as they turned to leave, Jonah uttered, “Stay safe guys. Don’t die.”
Mark couldn’t help but cringe at that. This was a chance for the three of them to finally prove to everyone that they were worth more than what they painted them to be. He NEEDED to kill a dragon.
He’s not going to be the one dying tonight.