The dragons are clawing at each other, bringing thunder to the sky. I run like the apocalypse is coming after me. It's silly, because it already arrived.

To diffuse my scent, I jump into a muddy puddle. I know that I have to return to the surface, because that's what the dragon will least expect. He'll be lurking the subway system in search of me.

A dragon underground is unheard of, but there's nothing normal about this monster. He wants me. A slip of a girl. A slip of humanity.

I run through two dark train stations, gripping onto life with my wheezing. My stamina is gone. I can only hope that the dragons are still killing each other. Those two big ass birds deserve to be killed with one stone.

I don't care if the dragon that captured me dies. I owe him nothing.

I find a staircase and hobble to the surface. My chin shoots up, as if I got punched, and I examine the sky. It's dark, but the sky is free of dragons.

"Hurry!" a human yells from across the road. Two humans follow. The group wears multicolored coats and push shopping carts bloody with meat.

I drop to my hands and knees.

There's only one way to hunt that much meat nowadays. You must take down a brother, and eat his flesh from his bones.

These men are fucking cannibals.

Cannibals are the last inhabitants of the surface, neighboring the dragons. They were a rumor at first, but as people became more hungry, mouths stopped producing rumors and began munching on human flesh.

There was so much starvation. Because of the dragons, we couldn't be out in the open hunting animals, so we began to hurt each other as we prayed to not become prey.

The colonies were formed to protect humans from more than dragons. Since cannibals always hunt in small packs, they can't overrun densely populated and patrolled underground colonies.

They're always out-numbered, so they search for fools on the surface. Fools like me.

Fuck this. I barely survived dragons. I won't get digested by humans.

I slip down the stairs and feel the protective embrace of the underground. I continue to run for another twenty minutes, until I find a small group of men.

I keep my distance. I have no backpack on me, so there's no chance they want to mug me. I hope they're too hungry and weak to want for me. Then again, I smell so awful I don't think anyone would want to fuck me even if was the last woman on Earth.

"Damn girl. What chewed you up and shat you out?" a man with a heavy Brooklyn accent asks.

He doesn't look all that pristine to me, either.

"Dragons," I rasp.

He crosses his arms over his chest, his meaty arms making his leather coat creak. "More of those motherfuckers? Manhattan sure has become a hot-zone."

"The one that was killed earlier." I try to swallow my desperation, but it lingers like a dry pill I can't swallow. "What happened to it?"

The tallest one shrugs. "The government-- or what remains of it, got their hands on it. They took it to dissect it or some shit. Put the thing under a microscope."

"What government?"

"They say they were with FEMA."

I shake my head. "FEMA collapsed immediately after the dragons first showed up."

It's true. The Federal Emergency Management Agency tried to distribute food and water when the attacks started, but was quickly overrun by demand. It shut down along with our military within weeks.

"They looked pretty legit to me. We were on our way to check them out. I'm curious to know how the overgrown lizards work."

They're crazy. Humans run away from dragons, not toward them.

Then again... these guys are pretty healthy. They stand on strong legs and I'm still alive, so they can't be cannibals. If they're going to FEMA, then I'm joining the field trip.

Daisy was last seen around that dragon. Maybe her curiosity led her to FEMA. Wherever she is, I hope she's warm and fed well. At least enough until I find and take care of her.

"Can I come with you?"

"You shouldn't hang with strangers. I'm not sure if you can see under all that mud, but we're in the apocalypse where men are hungry for more than food."

Rape? It's a minor inconvenience in my search for Daisy. I would survive it. I would survive anything for her.

"I'm so starved I don't get periods anymore. As my momma used to say, I might as well be one of the boys."

He snorts. "You sure smell like one. Alright, let's go. I saw some fuckin' cannibals in the area and I don't want to end up on anyone's plate."

I share the sentiment. I have no interest in getting plucked out of anyone's teeth.

We stay tight and walk fast. I follow with my lips pierced. I don't mention that a dragon hunted me down, beat his dick in front of me, and is now chasing me to the end of the world.

Last I heard, FEMA is downtown near Ground Zero. We have a lot of land to cover.

It's hour five. I'm exhausted and jittery, but determined.

We're discussing plans to get rest when I hear it-- a roar of a man.

I know it's his. He found me in the underground. A world dragons never come down to.

"What the fuck?" the ringleader, whose name I've come to learn is Martin, yells.

The dragon is coming right for us. Naked, bloody, and angry. There's no space for him to shift down here, but the guys won't stand a chance even against his human form.

These men can't get hurt because of me. This must come to an end.

I know what the dragon wants, so I give it to him.

I run into his arms, and he picks me up by my ass cheeks and lifts me. My pelvis is against his stomach, my heart is beating against his empty chest, and my filth sticks to him.

"Hey, girly! Come back here!" Martin yells, determined to protect me.

"Stay back! He's a dragon!"

"What!" the three men yell simultaneously.

"Run!" I yell, digging my nails into the ansty dragon, as if hoping to hold him back.

I hear old sneakers scurrying, and the gang disappears as quickly as I met them. My FEMA plan goes up in flames, and this dragon hasn't even breathed any heat.

Damn it, Daisy. I got captured again. Don't worry, sis. This is only a bump in the road. I'm coming for you.

ALSO IN THE SERIES↓

Jasmin/The Alien's Liar

Jasmin was a part of a Dragon Match program that hoped to offer opportunities to a post-apocalyptic Earth. She was teleported to planet Le'vris and was paired with a dragon, but he was cold toward her. Feeling unwanted, she gave up on the program and returned to Earth. This story is about how she's dragged back to Le'vris and meets another dragon that clearly wants her.

Book 3 is available on www.patreon.com/ancientt