The sky boiled like a...ugh...ha...uurgh...um...like a very boiling thing. And the red hot arid landscape of Vallrya didn't look too good either. The final battle of the war of the eastern un-kingdom of Vallrya was almost over and two heroic young Vallryan dragons looked defeat straight in the eye - well, actually up the nostrils, as their arch-enemy Lord Mordar was twice their size.

The two heroes, Jnacnu and Dnosa were native to this desolate land, whilst to Mordar it was just another place to annexe - plus there had been talk that there was gold in dem hills. The two Vallryan dragons had fought arduously to save their homeland from the horrid and bigheaded spotted Mutano dragons, led by old stinker himself, Mordar, who was a much larger Dragonian dragon. 

Being much more intelligent, Jnacnu and Dnosa had already fought off two squadrons of Spotted Mutano dragons, but Mordar was still there!

And Mordar was angry - incensed [and insane] with rage. He had thought that he could beat these two in just three hours, 29 minutes and 7.6 seconds. He had been wrong. The battle had already taken four days. His aunt had always told him, "More haste, less speed." Mordar always listened to his aunt, as did everyone else. He was also scared stiff of her, like everyone else. His aunt really was an old dragon and as she was was Fry-ya-skin Eddie, this meant she was the baddest and meanest, biggest and oldest dragon about. 

Mordar knew that his aunt would never have approved of his behaviour, but fortunately for him, he knew that 'Auntie Eddie', aka 'Fry-ya-skin Eddie' aka 'The One who will be obeyed' had taken herself off on a year-long cruise of the Balyros Sea on the other side of Orb. Mordar cringed as he thought of how his aunt had etched fear in the minds of every dragon, human, dwarf, elf and troll on Orb. She had a fiery temper - and boy, we mean FIERY!

Dnosa picked a new perch on a higher ledge. Mordar picked his nose. Further down the sheer mountainside, Jnacnu poised himself to launch another bitter attack on Mordar, who was now strutting around on the top of White Mountain, Vallrya's highest peak.

Mordar smiled a glee smile to himself as he heard a distant sound. The two Vallryan dragons had also heard the flapping of another squadron of Spotted Mutano dragons, approaching from the north. One of the greatest assets a Vallryan dragon has in a fight is the ability to duck and dive, which Jnacnu proved himself most able at, as he ascended to join his comrade, despite constant firing from Mordar.

'You take the left, I'll take the right!' shouted Jnacnu above the increasingly loud flapping sound. Dnosa nodded and both turned their gleaming yellow bodies towards their evil assailants. A hundred flapping wings and, perchance, a hundred scrawny legs appeared smokily on the horizon. Both young heroes looked in amazement, as Mordar, like a spoilt brat, clapped his arms together with joy, screeching 'Whee-Hee' as he did so.

Within seconds - 36.9 to be exact - the storm of dragons was upon them. 'One for All and All for One' Dnosa and Jnacnu called in unison, before breathing deeply - then they turned to face their fate. Together, they let out an almighty burst of fire, the flames torching the wings of their smaller and yet more numerous foes. The Spotted blah blahs returned fire, but to little effect. 

From the rear of the squadron 10 dragons pulled away from the rest and flew off to the east, drawing the two heroic dragons' attention away from the main group. Fire seared the rock face a mere metre from Dnosa's tail. Leaping upward, he launched his fiery reply - the dreadful creature was thrust upward by the blast before crashing onto the hard ground below.

Smoke and the hot smell of burning saturated the air. Growing tired from their continuous exertion, the 2 Vallryan dragons had no break from the constant bombardment, but they knew that they were the last chance of freedom that Vallrya had. 

Under constant threat of being burnt by the firepower of the thingy dragons, our two heroes pitted their wits and stood their ground against their deadly foes. 

They fought flame with flame, fire with fire, but they knew that their time would soon be up - unless there was a miracle! They joined telepathic forces and transmitted a signal which they hoped would be received.

She threw her hands up to her elongated head. Her fellow bingo playing  passengers had thought that she was different, but now they looked on in horror - smoke was billowing from the old girl's nostrils!

Making a hideous hooting sound, which sounded like 'Hoot Hoot', Lord Mordar called upon the Spotted Mutano dragons who had left the main group, to make their final assault. He smiled to himself. He was going to win. Across the desolate valley, on another pinnacle, Dnosa and Jnacnu stood alone and doomed.

The sky above the Blayros Sea had turned bright purple and the bingo players aboard the cruise ship had a strange green complexion. 

All of a sudden, in fact, faster than that, Mordar's smile changed to a look of total horror. The Spotted Mutano dragons stopped mid-flight. Jnacnu and Dnosa looked on in terrified amazement, as the sky changed colour and became a raging torrent of fire, whilst the clouds groaned under the pressure.

A blast of air sent Mordar ten steps back. For the first time in a century, he started biting his nails again. Before him stood his Aunt. Clocks across Vallrya and beyond stood still. Fry-ya-skin Eddie looked across at the Spotted Mutano dragons, then with the sound of a hundred twisters, spat fire at them. They would all survive, but wouldn't be touching terra firma to lick their singed wings for a kingdom or two.

Mordar looked forlorn. Ten seconds later and her still hadn't found it, whilst the two local dragons watched silently. Then the most-feared dragon there'd ever been beckoned them to join her and the Lord Mordar atop the White Mountain. With fear and a good deal of trepidation, they obeyed and within a few flaps of their wings came to land alongside the gigantic she-dragon.

Fry-ya-skin Eddie cast a quick smile in their direction than turned to face her nephew. Opening wide her blood red jaws, she chided, 'Now Cyril, say sorry.'

Lord Mordar sneered at the two smaller dragons and then screeched like a Witnik as he received a sharp blow from his auntie, which almost knocked his block off.

'Cyril!' Echoed around the mountains of Vallrya.

Blushing meekly, Mordar, Lord of the Dark Lands first looked up at his Auntie Edina, then innocently at the two young defenders of Vallrya.

'I'm sorry...very very sorry. You know what it's like...you take a chance...No, I'm very sorry...sorry...It'll never happen again...we must do lunch sometime.'

Fry-ya-skin Eddie smiled, before whacking her nephew once more for luck. As Mordar's eyes bobbled around, Fry-ya-skin Eddie said, 'Doesn't he look sweet?' Jnacnu and Dnosa were spellbound. She was so cool. Mordar was crying. Before he had the opportunity to plead with his aunt, she smacked him with one of her titanic wings; Mordar girated furiously like a  whirling dervish before disappearing. Mordar was gone.

'Didn't even use any firepower,' Fry-ya-skin Eddie stated to the two Vallryan dragons, who were both fearing that if they laughed at the manner of Mordar's demise, they would be next in line for any action.

'Oh come on you two,' the aged dragon laughed, 'I'm not going to roast you, even though you did call me away from my game of bingo. You'll never have any more trouble from Cyril, though, so your kingdom is safe, but if you ever need my help, just call me. Catch ya later!'

Thunder roared, lightning struck and applause was heard in the distance. Jnacnu and Dnosa were standing atop the White Mountain. The sun was shining, the sky was blue. The air was filled with the scent of grass and from the south, a flock of birds were returning to Vallrya. The two dragons were happy. They had won - with the help of Fry-ya-skin Eddie.

All heads were down, including Fry-ya-skin Eddie's. They had a new recruit on board ship and now there was bingo every night. 'Two fat ladies!' Called Mordar.

Dragoneye appears bi-monthly in The Bugle magazine - if you would like to read the story-to-date, please e-mail us.

The animated dragon appears here courtesy of www.clipart.co.uk

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