The Maw

Mathew ran desperately along the steep cliff, squinting in the failing light, eager to find a place to hide. In distance shouts sounded, with screams of pain and laughter containing such malice that he could not face it.

Smoke rose sharply against the waning light - the village was burning, and with it all Mathew loved in the world. There was nothing a child like him could do save it - most swords were taller than him, and he was only good at running.

So he ran. From the Bandits that attacked every year. From the Knights that should have driven off the Bandits, but were so corrupt they joined their pillaging.

Finally, he saw waterfall ahead - Dragon's Fall, to be exact. The place where the last good thing in the world was murdered by men.

Other people tell the story differently - they say the Knight was Cursed, or under an illusion. They say killing the Dragon was an accident. They say the Gods were cruel for abandoning the world because of one mistake.

Mathew didn't know what the truth was - but he knew there was a cave here, hidden by shadow and mist, where he could hide.

So he climbed up the slippery slope, and into the dark depths behind the waterfall, and in the darkness he never looked back. Mathew didn't see the entrance close behind him.

The Bandits and Knights tracked the missing boy to Dragon's Fall, but they never found him. Just another small mystery no man cares enough to follow.