Chris wandered through the vast cavern that was his prison. He and Jamilla had been deposited in the central hub of a vast network of cave passages, each large enough for the Dragon to enter easily. The passages led away from the main cave in different directions, like the spokes on a wagon wheel.
Chris first spent his time exploring the central hub. Gold coins and gold encrusted items were piled haphazardly around the central chamber. He could not find a bed - well, a human bed. He supposed the Dragon just slept on the mounds of gold, like in the fairy tales. But he did find some useful items. In one chest he found an assortment of fine linen dresses. Although he was loathe to wear women's clothing, he found that one of the dresses fit his frame batter than his old now baggy male clothes. It was a pink frilly dress, again something a child would picture on a princess. He shuddered just looking at it. But unless he wanted to trip and stumble while wandering around it was his only choice.
After circling the central hub a few times without finding any type of exit, Chris decided to try one of the passages. But which one? They all looked the same, and he could find no identifiable marks on the entrances. He supposed the Dragon could find its way around by smell. Or maybe it didn't even use these passages anymore. Chris was about to try one at random when he heard a voice calling out.
"Hey! Hey you!"
Chris looked around curiously. Could there be another Dragon in here? He couldn't see anyone.
"Yeah, you. I am talking to you. Come here! I can't see you, but I can hear you stumbling around. If you want to get out of here, follow my voice."
Chris shrugged his shoulders. What choice did he have? Whoever it was couldn't be worse than the Dragon. Chris followed the sound of the voice into the passage from which it originated.
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Jamilla was in heaven. The Chronivac had given her exactly what she wanted. After she exited the cave, she flew through the sky examining her new domain. It appeared to be an almost endless forest dotted by a few plains. She spotted a cow below her and swooped down to devour it. It was a little furrier than the cows in her old dimension, but they tasted the same. A small human rancher dared to chastise her for eating his stock. She made quick work of him. Her only regret was burning him with her flame before she ate him. The raw flesh of the cattle tasted better somehow, and she wondered if the human would have tasted better raw, too.
After devouring several more of the furry cows, Jamilla took to the sky again. She spotted a small cottage and saw a woman and her child cowering in fear. She idly wondered if they were related to the rancher she had eaten. She felt no regrets. They were all just meat to her now. A means to an end. But if the cottage was any indication they were in some kind of medieval environment. She could see no electrical poles or plumbing of any kind. She smiled. It would be easy to reign over such simple people. They had no defense against a creature as powerful as her.
She was pleased with her new world. The small part of her that was human did have one misgiving. She could see no other dragons. It might be a little lonely to be the only God in this world. But the larger part of her that was wholly dragon was repulsed by the idea of sharing anything with another Dragon. All the treasure was hers, and only hers. If she needed company, she could just steal another maiden. For now, she could amuse herself with Princess Chris. The fool had tried to trick her, and now would justly serve as a toy for her amusement.
Jamilla began to get a little nervous about leaving her valuables unguarded. What if someone else tried to claim what was rightfully hers? She turned around and flew back towards her cave.
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Chris wandered down the passage until he spotted the strange girl chained inside a cage. She had dark olive colored skin, and short black hair. She was a little shorter than Chris, and had a small but toned body. In Chris' mind, she looked a little like a tomboy. Well, she would have if it wasn't for the odd clothes she was wearing. Her entire body was covered from head to toe in what appeared to be Egyptian clothing. It reminded him of a more conservative version of the outfit from I Dream of Jeanine, with a pink veil and puffy pink sleeves and pant legs. She even had the same circular cap and long pointy pink slippers.
"Bout time you got here. What took you so long? I thought I was gonna die of boredom in here. Well, what are you waiting for? Get me out of here," said the girl, as she rattled the cage. She was in a 6 x10 foot gold cage, with chains attached to her ankles and wrists. It looked like she could barely move in there.
Chris just stared at her. "I'm sorry. I don't know how."
The girl growled. "Frickin' useless princesses. There is a key right there. Use it!" said the girl, pointing to a key on the wall.
Chris quickly used it to release her. He was shocked to see her rip off her clothes as soon as she was free. He was equally shocked to see the long striped tail poking out from her back and the two pointy cat ears hidden beneath her hat. As well as the two small sets of nipples extending down her ribcage below her small but pert breasts.
"Man, I thought I would be stuck in that frilly get-up forever. I hate that stuff. Restricts your movement. But that's what the Dragon likes. You can change too if you like. Unless you are more comfortable like that. I get the impression that you are one of those foo-foo types, " said the cat-girl, as she dug through a nearby chest of clothes.
Chris did his best to avoid looking at her nude body. The cat-girl took notice.
"What? We are all girls here. What's the big deal? " she asked.
"You .... you ... you're a cat!" said Chris.
"A cat! A cat! " said the girl angrily. "I will have you know that my ancestors were the finest tigers in all the land. A cat ... I have never been so insulted."
"What are you?" said Chris softly.
"Oh, I get it. You are one of those high and mighty full humans. Too good for us hybrids. Think you are better than us. Well, I will have you know that my father the King is very wealthy and respected. He could probably buy and sell whatever pathetic kingdom you came from. He is probably raising an army right now to retrieve me. I would wait, but I was never one to just sit and do nothing. I come from a long line of warriors, you know. Ah, what do you care, you stuck up snobby human!"
"No, it's not like that. It's just .... I have never seen a 'hybrid' before. They don't exist where I come from and I was a little shocked, that's all. I think you are perfectly fine and pretty young lady, " said Chris.
The tiger- girl blushed. "Aw, thanks. I don't think anyone has every called me pretty. Or a lady for that matter. But you have really never seen a hybrid? What kingdom are you from anyway?"
Chris sighed. It would be too difficult to explain. "Nevermind. Where I am from doesn't matter."
The fuzzy eyebrows of the tiger-girl furrowed. "Nevermind ..... never heard of it. But you are right. It doesn't matter. We need to get out of here. And I have a plan. But first we need to get Serafina."
"Serafina? Who is that? Your sister?" asked Chris.
The tiger-girl chuckled. "Oh no. Just a friend. But if you have a problem with hybrids, I can't wait until you meet Serafina. Come on, we have to hurry. That stupid Dragon might be back any minute."
The tiger-girl took off quickly down the cave passage. Chris did his best to keep up, but it was difficult in the long formal gown. He wished that he could have changed into slim shorts and a shirt like the tiger-girl, but the clothes were much too small and tight for him.
"Wait! Slow down! At least tell me your name!" said Chris.
The tiger-girl turned and leapt back towards him gracefully, stopping just inches in front of his face. He saw that she had the eyes of a tiger, and her striped tail wagged behind her. "I doubt your simple human tongue could properly pronounce my name. But you can call me Mindi."
"Well, Mindi. I am Chris. Pleased to meet you," said Chris, as he extended his hand to shake. But Mindi didn't wait. She turned and began loping down the cave quickly.
"Don't care. And you better hurry if you want to get out of here," said Mindi, as she bounded down the cave passage.
Chris silently cursed, and struggled to keep up.