It wasn't exactly hard to track a chimera. Dourgan crept through the foliage, finding massive claw marks, burns, and bits of horn in the ground. It was wounded. Something had attacked it. These thoughts went through Dourgans head as he knelt down. He picked up something from the ground and sniffed it. He gave it a lick.
Chimera dung. He picked up two handfuls of the stuff and went to work rubbing it on his torso and head. He finished his work, and looked up. Nothing had crept up on him. Good. He remembered what Patso had taught him back then.
A chimera runs on its three heads. You shut one head down, and those subsequent parts stop moving. Yes, that was it. He heard the cracking of trees far to his left. It was on the move again. Moving as silently and quickly as possible, the dragonborn sifted through the mountainous terrain. He stopped suddenly. He hadn't expected this.
Even from this distance the dragonborn could see how monstrous it was. He has higher up than it, on a ledge, but in the clearing below was a being with three heads, a goat, a blue dragons, and a lions. It seemed to had been experienced enough to bring down a young wyvern, but it didnt go without a fight. The goat head was vomiting, breathing heavily and was hanging low. Poisoned.
It had a lions body and a goats rear end, but the biggest problem was the wings. He needed to tie it down or-. A thought came to Dourgan. He smiled. Slowly bending his knees, he unsheathed his sword and looked at his target. Silently, Dourgan leapt from his ledge. Bringing down his greatsword in a vertical strike, whistling through the air he tore through the joint, severing the wing. The greatsword clanged on the ground, sparking against the stone.
With a great howl the chimera recoiled, backing away from Dourgan. Not missing a beat he sprinted at the beast, throwing knives at the lions head. They both impacted, causing the lion to roar in pain, it swatted with its claw at Dourgan, who rolled out of the way.
Right into the dragons head.
The head, bestial fury in its eyes, opened its mouth, and shot out blue shots of electrical energy. The dragonborn shouted from the assault, shaking and smoking. He ran at the chimera, thrusting his sword up the roof of its mouth. The eyes, a mixture of shock and rage, glazed over and stopped moving. He pulled out, only to have the goats head butt him in his abdomen. He flew back 20 feet into a tree, cracking it. "Shit." He thought "Never broke that rib before."
The chimera dragged along its dead wing and tail, and was having trouble getting to Dourgan. He stood up. "The goat isnt going to be too much of a problem. I bet that was the limit of what it could do." Dourgan thought, a smile on his face.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
He brought up his sword in a standard fighting stance, and then promptly turned tail and ran through the forest. The chimera gave chase, knocking over trees and foliage in its wake, but it was useless, it couldn't smell the dragonborn. The chimera looked around the area, sniffing the air.
Hiding behind a nearby tree, Dourgan stayed there. Carefully observing the chimera, he waited for his chance. The lion ripped its dead wing off, and stood defiantly. It roared, and Dourgan reacted. With a speed not any humans could match, he made towards the chimera. As it was finishing its defiant act, Dourgan burst through the undergrowth to strike its exposed neck. The steel tore through the neck, spilling blood everywhere. The roar turned to a gurgle, as the lion fell, dying.
The goat, lying collapsed on the ground, began bleating. For mercy, to curse him. Who knows. Its rear end flailed usually against the dirt, trying to move all of its dead weight. With a thrust into the eye, the beast had been lain low.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dourgan had filled his satchel with choice pieces of goat. It may have been a monstrosity, but the meat was still good. It was a short way to the camp, that chimera had come far too close for comfort. He made his way back in the direction of camp.
Something was wrong.
The camp was completely silent. Night had just fallen, but someone should be keeping watch.
The driver should know this, especially in the mountains.
The fire pit was out yet again, ashes blowing in the now strong wind. A figure stood beside the dead fire. Dourgan moved in closer to get a better look. The form seemed to be the woman that was with them earlier. She was without her cloak, and wore simple commoners clothes.
"You are far too perceptive for your own good dragonborn." She said, her voice unnaturally soft as silk. "Yorick!"
A rustling came from behind Dourgan, and then a hard kick sent him sprawling into the clearing. Out behind him strode Yorick in his full plate and tabard, halberd in hand. His eyes were glazed over, his stance aggressive.
"What am I, dragonborn?" She said, sitting on a log.
"Short or long version?" He growled, turning his head to her. He got up, rolling away from Yorick and stumbling to his feet.
She laughed. It was unnaturally soothing, and it sent pins and needle down Dourgans spine. "Why don't you give us the long version, it'll extend your lifespan."
"You avoid running water like the plague, you refused contact with direct sunlight, and a travelling companion is ready to kill me on your order. Lesser Vampire." He spat the last part, turning back to Yorick.
"Good, good. The seasoned warrior knows his quarry. I was thinking of making it an honorable duel, but with that kind of knowledge I wouldn't expect anything but the best from you. Defend yourself!" She turns to Dourgan, her form slimming down, face extending into a small fanged snout.