Monday 31 August 2020

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I was in love with every member of our unit.  Like the Thebans and Spartans centuries before we were encouraged to form links of all kinds to keep us together come what may.  Warm kisses as we groomed our steeds were one of the many perks.

Now this fakery of a fantasia is how I live.  Recreating the events to remember my boys.


They came out of the mountains one bright afternoon, the sun behind them, masking their great forms.  They breathed fire on towns and villages, making charcoal of everything in their path. 

We rode forth, one of many units trained just for this.  Our lances in hand, we galloped across the sands to meet the beasts head on.

The first we met was easy but then it was little more than a baby that had wandered away from its pack.  Together we fought, moving gracefully through our practiced moves, firing the balls from our lances that would subdue and ground the creature for the wizards to finish off.  

We smiled and cheered together at our victory.  The last time we would do so.


Hours later all my boys were gone.  It's mother came and slaughtered us.  We were supposed to meet up with other units to take down one so large but it came at us so fast, so fiery and furious, that we didn't stand a chance.  

My boys fell one by one until only Nigel and I remained.  He had been my first, way back in basic, a simpler time, a simple love as we waited for the other three couplets to join.  They made us complete, allowed us more enjoyment, more love.  Yet each pair always had that extra little something special.  And so Nigel looked me deep in the eyes as he saved me and sacrificed himself.

Not long after, horrifically soon after, the Wizards found a way to put the dragons to sleep without a fight and it was all over.  Of course, it is the fighting that the crowds want to see re-enacted and where I sought to form a new unit.  But none of these boys were there, this love is ersatz in comparison.  


It is of Nigel, mostly, that I think of when we bed down together each night.


Written for Flash! Friday from the following picture prompt (we were also asked to add a Fire Element (love found) or Ice Element (love lost)) and had a word count limit of 250-260 Words.  I failed entirely to complete this on time and didn't want to edit down, so failed completely with the word count, too.  

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Fantasia in Morocco. CC photo by Maxim Massalitin.

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