Kulth-Ing leapt from the cave and bounded down the hill. Zebulun followed.
One hundred yards down, a dragon struggled to rise up on his coils. The pine that broke his fall had shredded his left wing. Dozens of his ribs felt broken, plus a few vertebrae. His heartbeat felt weak.
The dragon heard footsteps. Zebulun walked into his field of vision.
That armor, whispered the dragon into his mind. You are one of ours?
"No," said Zebulun. "Not anymore." He readied his spear and shield and advanced on the serpent.
The dragon opened its mouth and pupils slightly in a draconic display of mirth. You think you can kill me, sheep-dog? it whispered into Zebulun’s mind. Even in my state, I am better than you.
The air shimmered between them. Zebulun got his shield up just in time to watch it burst into flame. He winced and slung it away, gripping his spear with both hands, and advanced.
Something like a tentacle made from space itself lashed out and wrapped itself around Zebulun before he could react. He found himself pinned, his arms crushed to his sides and the shaft of his spear pressed against his body. The force lifted him a few feet into the air, and closer to the serpent.
You are nothing, whispered the dragon. You are a dog we train to keep the sheep in line. No more.
Zebulun felt the grip tighten. His breastplate creaked under the strain.
A shadow launched itself from behind the serpent and latched onto its back. Kulth-Ing savaged the snake with claws and teeth. Blood flew.
The dragon let out a hiss of pain and rolled, crushing the cat under it with its weight. Kulth-Ing let out a roar and continued slashing at the dragon from below.
The force gripping Zebulun vanished.
Zebulun had killed (and eaten) snakes before. The heart was usually just behind the head, where the body began to widen. Some had just one long lung running down their body; others had a second, smaller lung near the front.
The dragon rose up and lunged at Kulth-Ing, as if to devour him. Zebulun charged forward and aimed for the most hopeful place to hit an organ.
The serpent’s eyes grew wide as Zebulun drove in the tip of his spear. It turned its head, stared at him for a heartbeat, then fell and died.