When Dragons Are Outlawed, Only Outlaws Will Have Dragons

Fire exploded right in front of Holly as the Shellpoint Inn went up in a flash. The young veterinarian raised her cloak to protect her face and quickly ducked into the alley at her back. The flames roared past, but the intense heat still scorched her exposed skin; the acrid tang of her frizzing hair filled the winter morning air. The small dragon perched on Holly’s shoulder cooed; it loved fire.Fire exploded right in front of Holly as the Shellpoint Inn went up in a flash. The young veterinarian raised her cloak to protect her face and quickly ducked into the alley at her back. The flames roared past, but the intense heat still scorched her exposed skin; the acrid tang of her frizzing hair filled the winter morning air. The small dragon perched on Holly’s shoulder cooed; it loved fire.It seemed as though the whole town was burning now. Holly smudged tears from her eyes and dashed toward the far end of the alley, a single thought screaming in her mind as she ran: How did we ever let it come to this?Stephen D. Sullivan has written dozens of novels and stories in the fantasy, SF, adventure, horror, and detective genres. Very few of them are intentionally allegorical. www.stephendsullivan.com