The Long Sleep – #FlashFiction #Myths and #Fantasy

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Locked in time overlooking inclination, the monarch watched and waited, frozen in impetus. Long he had guarded the Keep, now fallen into ruin over the eons that had passed during his vigil; yet even longer he would wait because nothing was more important. Head held high in defiance against wind and rain, snow and ice, scorching sun and mists that enwrapped him in obscurity, he ruled the peak with unparalleled sovereignty, though many had climbed the stairs to stare into his gaze unseeing. Many had stood upon his very crown and gazed out across his kingdom, entirely unaware of his watchful presence.

The Valley at his feet was fertile with anticipation, preparing for the established moment when the Mistress would waken from her long slumber to be reunited with him. He had seen calamity come and go, battles had been forged upon the soil he protected and he had more than once been tested to his limits. He had sworn an oath of silence and of stillness that had long ago sealed his fate and had held him in perpetuity, but such a promise kept his Beloved safe beneath his steadfast gaze and nothing else mattered. Even the paltry fools who came and went without ever seeing.

Yet now the time grew near, the moment he had awaited for spans of millennia. The signs of her coming flourished, as promising as the renewal of luxuriant green at his feet. The mists of heedlessness were clearing and the clouds of egotism were breaking. Soon the brilliant blue of clear skies would herald her return, His Mistress, the Queen of the Keep, the Matriarch of the Mighty and her return would release him from his long, static captivity. They would be reunified and their reign over the smug kingdoms below him would begin again.

The Long Sleep of Dragons was coming to an end, heralding change, whether Man in his obliviousness was prepared or not.

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This story was Inspired by the rock formation in the top right portion of this amazing photo, which to me looks very like a Dragon. Thank You to Kim at Check Your Premises for posting this amazing image in her Pic of the Day.

~Morgan~

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Beautiful Photograph is the Stairs leading to Skellig Michael Monastery in Ireland by photographer Michal Dymet.