The Dragon Master

The Dragonmaster.

I.
The old man lived high up in the mountains among the higher crags. He lived in a small stone hut close to the caves where the dragons had their lairs. He was called the Dragonmaster because he was the only man among all the people of the land who could live among the monsters, without being harmed by them.

It was his gift with the dragons that enabled him to live among them, as one of their own. He did not tame the mighty creatures in the sense that they would obey his every command, but he tamed them in the sense that he was accepted as one of the pack. He lived and wondered all his days among them, high up in the hills where the larger caves lay.

He would share in the meat that they brought home after the hunt, and would take his small portion each night to his hut where he cooked it outside the door on a small fire. He in turn helped the creatures with small medical problems, such as removing thorns and splinters from their paws and skin, or putting salve on their eyes when they became infected.

He lived on the high mountain far from the reach of men, and no man ever dared to venture up between the dragons to consult with him. He lived on his own among the dragons, and had no company save for the monsters themselves.

II.
The old man sits on the edge of the cliff at sunset, and stares out over the plains. He watches the beautiful dragons in flight as they are slowly returning home. Their wings flap gold and green in the blood-red setting sun. They glide gracefully through the air currents; masters of flight.

They fly beautifully between the pink and silver clouds scattered thinly above. Their wings flap rhythmically in natural motion as they fly on home. The sky is alive with the flight of the great monsters. The dragons fly home.

And he sits and watches them come back as he does each day at this time. He legs dangle over the precipice, and he smiles happily to himself. The wild man among the dragons.
He chuckles as twilight starts to fall…