Valiant

Where has Valiant gone?

Did I only imagine him?

No. He was here, sword raised against my dragon.

A figure rising out of the mist, yet solid as stone.

Where did Valiant fly away to?

I stood behind him.

I crouched behind his shield of truth.

He faced the flames of my dragon.

I shied away.

And now he is gone.

He frightened my dragon away.

The dragon could not stand against him.

It fled into the mist.

But where has Valiant gone?

Vanished. Like vapor.

I can still smell his skin on the air.

The essence of Valiant lingers, feeding hope.

I am sure he is only right here, near me.

If only I can find him in the mist.

The ground beneath me trembles.

My dragon returns.

The shield of Valiant lies on the stone.

But I dare not pick it up.

For I know Valiant is near.

I catch glimpses of him reflecting off the mist.

When I turn, though, he is not there.

Valiant has not left me to fight alone.

His presence hangs in the air.

My dragon draws near.

I inhale deeply the scent of Valiant.

He is here. I am safe.

My dragon breathes.

Flames lick across my skin.

Slowly. Ever so slowly.

I redden. Blister. Blacken.

Hope remains.

Signs of Valiant are all around me.

Ours is a love that will prevail.

I make no move.

For Valiant is here, somewhere.

I fall.

I lay dying.

Yet the gentle smile clings to my lips.

For I know Valiant would never leave me.

I disbelieve my own anguish.

That is not part of our story.

It must not be real.

To believe in my own death would be to betray Valiant.

And if I betray him, I will be left to my fate.

With a patient heart, I do something I've never dared.

I look upon my dragon.

Thought my flesh burns, my blood goes cold.

My dragon is Valiant.

My protector, champion, lover, friend.

My tormentor, captor, executioner.

I am undone.

I wait for my end.

My hand brushes something in the embers.

The shield of truth.

I try to lift it.

Valiant had lifted and moved it so easily for us to hide behind.

I cannot bear its weight.

I cannot hide.

Without Valiant, I cannot hide from my dragon.

The flames are reflected off the mirror surface.

Perhaps I am not meant to hide?

My dragon takes a last breath, ready to destroy.

For the first time, I look.

I lie atop the shield, and cling to it.

Not to hide. To SEE.

I do something Valiant could never do.

I face my agony.

I stare deeply at the reflection of my blackened flesh.

I see my pain, and hold its gaze.

My dragon screams.

The wounds he poured out upon my flesh fall back upon him.

He writhes and slithers away.

The mist breaks.

I stand.

My body is healed.

But scars remain.

I will not shy away from them again.

For my dragon is my secrets.

If I keep no secrets, he cannot return.

Facing my reflection, he is powerless.

I am my own Valiant.

I do not hide behind my shield of truth, wielding it to suit my own uses.

I stand in the piercing honesty of its light.

Dragon maker.

Dragon slayer.

Ugliness and beauty.

Fearful and fearless.

Gentle and fierce.

Warrior.