The Lost Dragon Princess

Chapter 1

If any of my parents came to know that I was doing this then I was going to be grounded for life. Not that it mattered much any way because I had planned all the escape routes from my house from different directions including the sewer as well. Since Mom had left me and Dad it had become a little bit easier for me to make sure that I got away on these little trips all by myself and post them on my insta stories which had increased my popularity and followers in the virtual world by almost 4.76 million but still no friends in school.

To be honest, it was a blessing in disguise that I did not have any friends and I did not have to deal with all those idiots at school. The girls, if they were intelligent enough they were busy with only their studies and SATs and Advanced classes which I am not saying is a bad thing. It is far better than the category of girls who were more interested in make up and hair and boys.

And the boys, ugggghhh…they were even worse….it was like they either were hyped up on testosterone and were a kind of d**k or they were absolutely scared and silent. Some were Goths, and were interested in sci-fi or fantasy and magical stuff and even though they were termed as weird they knew a lot of interesting and important facts which came in handy quite a several times.

They thought that I was too a magic and fantasy enthusiast like them. I am not going to argue, that is definitely one of my areas of interest but there was something more that I wished. I was an adrenaline junkie which had increased the past year. At first I had thought that running was going to help and so I joined the cross country team and my parents were happy that I was engaging in physical sports but soon that became too easy. And that was when I found all kinds of extreme sports.

The purpose of my life which I had been searching for all along.

As I scooted a few more inches down the cliff, I came to the end of my rope. And swore. Vehemently and virulently, as appropriate for someone hanging from damp, gritty, vertical rock a hundred feet above crashing ocean waves.

Then I made the mistake of looking down and swore a little more. Heights don’t usually faze me. What gets me is the thought of falling from them, landing on sharp pointy rocks, being pulverized like flank steak in a meat grinder, and then being sucked out to sea, never to be seen again.

But the mouth of the cave was less than twenty feet below. I gritted my teeth in determination. I could do this.

“Besides,” I muttered to the rock, “you’re the i***t who chose not to drive an hour back to a town with a hardware store for more rope.”

After finding a suitable handhold, I scooted lower. Climbing back up would be easier, assuming I wasn’t injured then. I had to trust that my magical weapons, my magical charms, and the agility that my half-elven blood granted me would see me through this.

Halfway to the cave entrance, my phone vibrated in my pocket. I ignored it, like any sane person would, and continued carefully downward.

Making sure I had three points of contact, and one foot wedged so far into a crevice that falling would be impossible, I eased my phone out of my pocket. Yes, it was the doctor’s office. I had one bar of reception and the roar of the surf behind me.

“Hello?”

“Am I speaking to Sig…runa…vida..?” asked the woman and I grunted in frustration. Whoever had named me thought that it would be marvellous to give me otherworldly names and think it would be real fun to let her traverse through with that. Yes….being a teenager sucked. And that one with a name that you would be always joked about sucked even worse.

Sigrune Vida Masseti.

“Yes. You can call me Sig,” I said and grunted again.

“I am calling you on the behalf of Dr. Miriam Wagner who has been contacted by your father saying that you would be here in our office for a new appointment. Do you confirm the sitting appointment or would you like to change the time?” asked the woman and I still thought that if my grip was gone then I was going to make sure that my father never heard the end of it.

“I can read between the lines. You seem driven. How’s school? How’s your stress load? Are you able to take time off to relax? I know that it can be a specially frustrating time for kids trying to know themselves and a lot of things can happen as well. So do you destress? Your father mentioned that you are taking AP classes and you also want to be in pre-med and then join the Army? Taking breaks is very necessary for that.”

“Uh.” I glanced down at the cave to make sure my target hadn’t sauntered out on the ledge to contemplate my potential as a meal. “When I can.”

“And how are your relationships with family and friends?”

“I fail to see what that has anything to do with—”

“Do you have a good social support group?”

I thought about the family that I had and what they had done to keep me sane even though I have always felt out of place amongst the school and all of them but my parents had stood my like a rock. Another reason might be that my Dad was one of the richest men in the country and he wished his only daughter to be safe. But I could not tell anyone what was happening to me…I mean no one was going to believe me after all and I was going to be locked inside a psychiatric facility.

“You want me to visit you for what?” I asked. Hoping that I was safe and that the rope and the harness was secure.

“It has been mentioned that your school has asked you for a counselling session because of a few traits that you have exhibited. You can know more when you come for the appointment. So Friday 4 pm sounds good to you?” asked the woman and I huffed. I hated school and I hated the teachers and all that was happening with me. I wanted to burn everything.

“Fine. I will be there. Text me the address please,” I said and mentally thought of what I was going to tell my father.

“Will do,” said the woman and the call hung up.

A seagull squawked as it flew by, either commenting on the stupidity of my position or wondering if I had French fries in my pocket.

“It’s fine,” I said. I looked at myself and then thought again,” I am fine. I am perfectly good and I will reach that cave in no time.”

“Yashelita,” I whispered, touching one of the charms hanging from the leather thong around my neck. My mother had seen it and had considered that I loved collecting scrap metals and other charms and things which might make sense to any of the kids who were into Goth culture and I let her believe that. It was the easy part.

My eyes tingled as magic took hold. After a few seconds, the walls of the uneven passage grew clear, as did the spot where it curved around a bend. A few fish bones scattered the rock floor, and the pungent smells of an animal’s den mingled with the salty fishiness of the ocean. This had been something new which I had discovered that I could call in on something inside me for help and whatever it was I needed I could claim that power on that time. So long all was good but it wasn’t like I had a handbook to know or to guide me through what I was doing or learning.

Before we headed in, I took my phone out once more, this time to play the video I’d saved. Shaky footage that someone had recorded in Thousand Acres Park outside of Portland rolled for me. How was I supposed to tell people that I could see creatures that were not supposed to exist in the first place?

Three blue wyverns, their leathery wings flapping as they came out of the trees, dove down and attacked children playing on the Sandy River beach. Some of the kids got away. Others were pulled up into the treetops where the wyverns feasted. Four children and a mother had been killed that day. The assailant was unknown

“Let’s do this,” I said grimly.

But before I could do so, my dear father called me up.

“Dad, it is not a good time,” I said as I took the call.

“Sigrune, we have spoken about what it entails about taking off without telling me before hand and going to dangerous places. Why the hell are you on a cliff side currently?”

“I told you that I was coming here for a geo caching project Dad. And there are stalagtites here which if I can collect and preserve them then I get more marks in the geography project. I am trying to get more credit for college,” I replied easily. Just because I knew that this would happen and I had thought of what I needed to say it rolled off my tongue easily.

“Why do you need to do all these kinds of dangerous things, Sig? You know that I am worried sick about you,” said dad and I knew that he was telling the truth but I could not do this right now. I had to get proof that there were creatures on video. And you know, if you did not get it on video then it did not happen at all.

“Dad you have made my appointment with a therapist. I mean, you could have asked me once,” I said with a huff and he was silent so I said,” when we have dinner tonight we are going to talk. Right now, I am going inside the cave.”

I disconnected the call.