The Final Battle

We continued our journey through the forest, hoping to reach Valyria soon. But our hopes were dashed when we encountered a large group of bandits blocking our way.

They were armed with swords and axes, wearing leather armor and masks. They had a flag with a skull and crossbones on it, indicating that they belonged to the bandit king.

They shouted and jeered at us, demanding that we surrender our goods and lives. They said that they had been waiting for us, and that they had a surprise for us.

They then revealed their surprise: a horde of demons.

They had somehow managed to capture and tame some of the demons that still roamed the forest, using them as their pets and weapons. They had wolves, bats, spiders, snakes, and other creatures that looked like nightmares.

They unleashed them on us, laughing wickedly.

We were caught off guard by this attack, and quickly found ourselves outnumbered and outmatched. The demons were fast and ferocious, biting and clawing at us. The bandits were also skilled and ruthless, slashing and stabbing at us.

We fought back bravely, but we were losing ground. The caravan was in chaos, as the merchants screamed and ran for their lives. The wagons were overturned and set on fire. The horses were killed or ran away.

We tried to protect the merchants and ourselves, but we were overwhelmed by the enemy. One by one, we fell to the ground, wounded or dead.

I saw Sir Leon fighting valiantly against the bandit king, who was a huge man with a scarred face and a wicked grin. He wielded a giant axe that could cleave a man in two.

Sir Leon parried his blows with his sword, but he was clearly outmatched. He had several cuts and bruises on his body, and blood dripped from his mouth.

He looked at me with a pained expression, as if he wanted to say something. But before he could speak, the bandit king swung his axe at him, hitting him in the chest.

Sir Leon gasped and fell to his knees, dropping his sword. He clutched his wound, trying to stop the bleeding.

The bandit king laughed triumphantly, raising his axe for the final blow.

"NO!" I screamed, running towards him.

I didn't care about anything else. I only wanted to save Sir Leon, who was like a father to me.

I reached him just in time, pushing him out of the way. The axe missed him by inches, but it hit me instead.

It sliced through my cloak and armor, cutting deep into my flesh. I felt a sharp pain in my chest, followed by a warm sensation of blood spilling out of me.

I fell to the ground next to Sir Leon, who looked at me with horror and disbelief.

"Prince Galahad!" he cried out. "Why did you do that?"

I smiled weakly at him, trying to speak. But all I could manage was a whisper.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I wanted to help you."

He shook his head frantically, tears in his eyes.

"No," he said. "Don't say that. Don't apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for. You did great. You did more than anyone could ask for."

He reached out his hand and held mine tightly.

"You're a hero," he said softly. "You're my hero."

I felt a surge of emotion in my heart. I was glad that he was proud of me. I was glad that I could make him happy.

"Thank you," I said sincerely. "Thank you for everything."

He smiled sadly at me, squeezing my hand.

"You're welcome," he said gently. "You're welcome for everything."

We looked into each other's eyes, sharing a moment of love and gratitude.

Then we closed our eyes, waiting for death to take us.

But death did not come.

Instead, we heard a loud roar that shook the earth.

We opened our eyes again, wondering what was happening.

We saw a bright light shining from above us, piercing through the darkness of the forest.

We looked up and saw a sight that we could not believe.

It was a dragon.

A huge dragon with golden scales and wings that spanned the sky. It had horns on its head and claws on its feet. It had eyes that glowed with wisdom and power.

It was the most majestic creature we had ever seen.

It flew over us, breathing fire at our enemies. The fire burned everything in its path: bandits, demons, trees, wagons.

The bandit king tried to fight back, throwing his axe at the dragon. But the dragon caught the axe with its teeth and snapped it in half. It then spat out the pieces, hitting the bandit king in the face.

The bandit king screamed and fell to the ground, his face charred and bloody.

The dragon roared again, sending a wave of fear and awe through the forest.

It then landed near us, folding its wings. It looked at us with curiosity and kindness.

It spoke to us, in a voice that was deep and ancient.

"Hello, children of light," it said. "Do not be afraid. I am here to help you."

We were speechless. We did not know how to react.

We did not know who this dragon was, or why it was here.

We did not know what it wanted from us, or what it would do to us.

We did not know anything.

But we felt something.

We felt a connection with this dragon, a bond that transcended words and logic.

We felt that this dragon was our friend, our ally, our savior.

We felt that this dragon was our destiny.

...