Meeting the Death: The Brownie Bet

“Do it.”

“No!”

“Come on!”

“I said no!”

“You lost the bet!”

He grew at a loss for words. There was the matter of the bet and had lost. It made him kick the ground in irritation. His toenails scrapped the ground leaving tiny marks; they needed to be trimmed. Clawed hands to his face, the young brownie ran up through his chocolate colored hair before dropping them to his sides.

“Look, just go in and out and you're done.” His fellow brownie reassured.

“Easy for you to say! You're not the one getting close to a dragon!” He argued.

Behind them lay a wide cave opening. The sun may have been shining down upon them, but no sunlight breached the cave entrance.

“Relax, this dragon is a geezer. Here listen.”

The two brownies twitched their long ears and perked them up. A sound echoed from the cave. It was feint, but there was something there.

“See? It's sleeping.” Unconvinced, the brownie glared at his friend. “What? That's a snore if I ever heard one.”

Hesitance still held the young brownie. No matter what his friend told him, there was still the rational voice in his head telling him “there's a big, scary dragon in the cave. Don't go in!!!!!”.

“Relax I'll be right behind you. You can trust me.”

The smile his friend showed him did nothing to mend things. Frankly he wouldn't trust his friend as far as he could throw him, which wasn't very far. But if he didn't go, he would be forever labeled as a “coward sissy baby”. Tail hanging limply behind him the brownie followed his triumphant friend. The darkness of the cave hurt his orange eyes as they adjusted.

“GGRRRRRRUUUUURRRRRROOOWOO!”

The sharp sound made him jump. It bounced off the walls and into his ears. Fearfully he looked ahead and instinctively to his back.

“Hey if you want to go home I under-”

He didn't give his friend time to finish. Trudging on ahead wiped that smirk off his face. As they walked, the sound grew louder and deeper. The cave itself was vast, winding into a tunnel. Rock surrounded them on all sides save for the dirt flooring beneath them. With haste they moved as both wanted this done as swiftly as possible; the sound being the only background noise. At last the cave ended into a great chamber. His friend's earlier assumptions of the sound being a snore were accurate, for they had found its source.

Amidst the blueish gray stone was a green bulk. It lay upon it's back showing a bumpy yellow wave spreading up to its neck. A longer description could be given to advance the level of suspense, anymore would just be dragging it on. The bulk was a dragon.

The brownie stared long and hard at the creature before him. Never had he seen a live dragon before. Oh he had heard tales of their existence throughout the land. Some were winged lizards who breathed fire and terrorized humans. Some lived in the sea looking like giant snakes. Others lived far to the east appeared as furred serpents flying with ease. There were also tales of dragons who lurked underneath the earth's surface; creatures that were banished centuries ago who were as black as night with glowing eyes. The dragon before him was of the fire breathing variety. Though his friend's assumption about the dragon's condition would appear to be accurate. From the initial glimpse, the dragon was indeed a “geezer”. The green scales and yellow belly appeared faded and dull. It must have been the dragon equivalent to gray hairs. Another thing about the creature was size. The dragon was fat; gigantic even, least from the position it was laying. The dragon currently laid against its back revealing an oversized stomach. Something peculiar he noted about the dragon was the peculiar color of its claws. They were a bright green, and although he was no expert on dragons, something about it seemed off. It reminded him of an old story he had heard in his youth, about a dragon who once spread terror across the land, but everyone knew that dragon died long ago; least that's what they said.

“Well what are you waiting for?” Prodded his friend.

What was he waiting for? The longer he stayed her the more risk they took for the dragon to awake. It was simple, just climb up the dragon and then climb back down. Wasting no time, he started towards the great beast eyes on the task before him. The dragon's breathing grew heavier the closer he got and by the time he stood right next to it, it's sound began to fill his being.

“GGRRRRRRUUUUURRRRRROOOWOO!”

Like a clap of thunder and he hated thunder, but that didn't stop him, not when his friend was watching and smirking. Claws bared he grabbed hold of the scaly hide. Surprisingly, he found it easily graspable. The dragon's skin felt loose and as he propped one foot to ascend, he found the skin folded much like an iguana.

“An iguana that can breath fire.”

No time for fear, he had a task to undertake. Upward he traveled grabbing at the skin. Brownies were good at climbing so it wasn't so hard. Soon he felt the sensation of the creature's soft underside. The softness was like a pillow attributing it to the dragon's overweight stature.

“GGRRRRRRUUUUURRRRRROOOWOO!”

The sound made him trip nearly tumbling down but he regained his footing. Managing to regain his balance he staggered again making look as if he were drunk. The breathing inflated the belly raising him up. It was here he gathered the full view, drank in all he could see.

“I made it?” He asked bewildered. The realization struck him and all doubts of his courage ended right there. “I made it!” He proclaimed still hushing his voice. With a proud grin he swirled around to stare down defiantly at his friend. For the first time in his life he felt superior, no longer the weak little runt too scared of his own shadow. The look on his friend's face was just how he imagined it: unbelieving, shocked, and humbled at his friend's bravery. Peculiarly, his friend raised a claw and pointed. At first confused, he merely deduced his friend was pointing at him, but that didn't make much sense.

What else would he be pointing at? The only other thing present was.......then he noticed the breathing had stopped, and the belly no longer rose.

“What are you doing in my cave little one?” The voice behind him brought in a gust of hot air. It was aged and a female's yet it had a gravely roughness.

A gulp slid down his throat alongside a bead of sweat. The rational part of his mind screamed again, “Run! Don't look back! Get out of there!” But he didn't listen. Slowly he turned around and immediately was met with a pair of yellow eyes staring down at him. They settled underneath dark bags with a green wrinkled face. A portion of skin hung down the neck attributing to the iguana like features of the hide. A pair of horns crowned the top of the skull, though half of one of them was missing. With panic he turned around only to see the tail of his friend disappearing down the cave corridor.

Here he was alone with a giant irate dragon. A grumble reverberated underneath traveling up the throat. The brownie could feel the belly rising again, shaking as it reached a great height. The gut shuddered and shook and the grumble grew in pitch. The brownie's ears could feel the tiny bones in his ears stimulating from the deep noise. It followed a a straightforward pattern, no change in how it came, until just now. The grumble shrieked into a gasp. Beneath his feet the ground began to jiggle, jostling him to his rear. Immediately his eyes turned up to the dragon only to notice a pained, almost panicked expression upon the old creature's face. The brownie nearly asked “what was the matter?” on instinct, but got his answer shortly. The dragon heaved back slightly and coughed out a thick cloud of black smoke. Before his could run, the cloud engulfed him. A stinging sensation watered his eyes, filled his nostrils with a powerful overwhelming odor, and his lungs filled with the thick smoke. Right away, he broke into a coughing fit, his own coughs matching that of the dragon's which had now morphed into full on hacks. The rush of the black cloud appeared never ending, the stench practically invading his body.

And then it stopped.

He felt the cloud pass and the sweet smell of natural air comforted him. A few coughs lingered but they passed. Likewise, the dragon waved its claw in the air fanning the smoke away. The brownie locked his eyes upon the claws, noting their color; bright green.

“Well,” the dragon's voice grabbed his attention, “I asked you a question,” the dragon craned its neck downward, its yellow eyes shrinking as it focused on the tiny creature, “what are you doing in my cave?”

The brownie felt his body freeze. About now he would have wet his pants, but he didn't want to risk angering the massive creature. In a swift moment he turned back only to find the entrance leading to the outside completely bare. It seemed his friend had taken advantage of the moment to flee. Although wanting to curse his fellow brownie for being a two faced coward, he was more concerned about saving his own skin.

“WELL!?” the dragon bellowed. Close as the dragon was, the brownie could easily pick up the feminine pitch within the aged voice, completely confirming its gender.

“Um.....w-w-well m-m-aam.” He stammered with hesitation, considering his words very carefully. “My friend dared me and-” A strangled sound rumbled underneath the brownie's feet.

“Hold your breath.” The dragoness cautioned.

The brownie was about the inquire why, until he noticed the familiar pained expression upon the reptile's face. Knowing full well what was coming, he inhaled a large amount of air and covered his nose with both hands. His eyes shut just as the smoke cloud coated him. The air could only last for so long, his tiny lungs felt ready to burst by the time the smoke cloud passed. Just like before, the dragoness fanned the leftover smoke away.

“Does that hurt?” The brownie innocently asked. As he asked the question, he noticed he was filthy with soot.

The dragoness rolled her eyes, “What do you think?” That was a nice way of telling him his question was stupid. “So your just a stupid youngster trying to prove your bravery eh?”

The dragon's question pierced him, it was true he was regarded as a wimp back home, and getting up close and personal with a dragon would prove himself brave, or a fool. From the way the dragon glared at him, the latter seemed the closer indication.

“A word of advice.” the dragon almost asked, “Don't let your pride cloud your judgement. The end result might not be what you expected.”

The brownie picked up a gesture within that advice. If he couldn't tell any better, it would seem that the dragon was referring to herself. The half horn implied conflict within the past. In fact the general shape of the dragon gave off a sense of wear. Dragon's were mighty, muscular, powerful creatures. This dragon? Not so much.

“Are you going to eat me?” The next question came seemingly at random. He hadn't expected the dragoness to give him advice, but it had gave him a relief.

“I was considering it.” The brownie let out a tiny gasp by the blunt answer, that meant she was going to eat him! Then he realized the use of past tense. “But I'm feeling.........,” the dragon mulled over the right word, “merciful today. Besides, your race tends to give me gas. Tasty nonetheless.” The dragon ran her serpentine tongue across her scaly lips making the brownie gulp, “But I was in the middle of a nap and I hope to get back to it.” There was a small hint of pride in the dragon's statement.

The brownie nearly jumped for joy flashing a broad smile at avoiding death. Still, he didn't dare as he still remained frightened at the awesome beast.

“I warn you though,” The brownie's joy subsided, “if I find you stumbling in my cave again, you'll find yourself in my lower intestine.” To further emphasize her point, the dragon licked her lips with a hungry glare in her eyes.

With a gulp, the brownie gave a salute, “Y-y-yes maam!”

The dragoness smiled a short arrogant grin, “Good lad, NOW GET!!!”

The snap was enough to send the brownie running, across the vast belly and down the slope of the tail, while the dragon gave a lurid chuckle behind him. He never looked back, kept going towards the entrance; the way to freedom. The light of the sun soon greeted him with its warm rays. A great triumph washed over him. He laughed. If only his so called “friend” could see him now. This would be something to brag about. Not many would meet the “death” and live to tell. Least that's what the legends stated.

Right before he scurried off for home, he could swear he heard a distant cough behind him.