The little blue dragon purred.
Amelia had to admit that the sound, not unlike a chainsaw cutting though jello, was a little disconcerting. Still, this was the first island inhabitant that she had met that appeared to want nothing more from her than a good stroking.
"What's your name, little one?" she asked. Blue eyes blinked back at her and the little dragon nuzzled her hand again.
She smiled and massaged a scaly ear. "You wouldn't happen to know where a girl could get a new set of clothes, would you boy?"
The little dragon blinked, scuttled back a few feet, and hissed at her. The dragon was small, but it flashed razor sharp fangs.
"Hey, I'm not asking for Calvin Klein or anything! Like a couple of sewn together leaves would do..." she quipped.
A twig snapped just behind her, and she felt hot breath on her naked back. Suddenly, she knew why the little blue dragon had hissed.
"There's something scary behind me, isn't there," she asked. The little blue dragon didn't bother to respond. Instead it turned about, bending sinuously in on itself, and took off running through the undergrowth.
Amelia would have liked to have taken the time to weight her options and make an informed, rational decision about whether to follow her newfound friend, but just then a deep gurgling roar echoed through the trees. In a heartbeat, she too was beating her way through the forest.
In the deserts of Kalimbad, while searching for the Jewel of Despair, she had gotten caught in a herd of charging rhinoceruses. She thought she had ran for her life then, but that was nothing compared to fleeing a blood thirsty dragon.
Terror gripped her, and she flew though bushes and leapt over fallen logs. Branches tore at her unprotected skin and soon she was covered in a network of small scratches. Up ahead, the forest began to thin, and suddenly she burst out from under the cover of the trees onto the edge of a salt flat.
A field of white sand, covered in fine salt dust stretched out before her. Behind, it sounded as if the pursuing dragon was simply charging through trees instead of going around. The sound of exploding timber was horrendous.
Seeing no other choice, she prepared herself for a dash across the salt flats when she heard a frantic chirping coming from her right. The little blue dragon was signaling her from the safety of a cave. The entrance was full of jagged rocks, but, if she squirmed, she might be able to fit.