Dragon's Gate

Chapter 7: Dragons are Real?

Devon stirred, he wasn't hurt, and he was in no pain. He felt like he'd just had the most peaceful sleep of his life. Opening his eyes, he jolted upward after finding himself lying on the ground.

Looking around, his heart skipped a beat in panic, as the terrain and landscape were completely different than where he was before. The trees weren't the pines he had just come from or even the oaks and cottonwoods near Jelly. These trees were taller, the branches had more curves, the bark was tan, and resembled shedding skin.

He found himself right next to another rock that had a similar fracture pattern on its surface. It too was sitting partially on the side of a dirt mound, the ground covering it like a hidden treasure. The forest was quiet, eerily quiet. No sounds or even a breeze, like he was in a room with the door shut. Looking around, he saw his bag not ten feet from him. Rising to his feet, he felt a little dizzy, but walked over and picked it up off the ground. To his amazement, just underneath it, was his pen.

Devon chuckled, but knowing his pen ended up here, and in the same spot as his bag made the situation much more unsettling. His thoughts started to race, wondering where he was, what happened, and how he would get home. He needed to find someone, ask questions, and get help.

For a moment, Devon was too scared to wander far from the rock. He was afraid he would be unable to find his way back to it, knowing it had something to do with transportation and his way home. This rock could take things and people, somewhere, which was scary. Looking at the pen in his hand he just found, he tried once more, placing it in a crevice in the bark of the tree just to the right of the rock. This time it was firm and he was sure it would stay in place as long as the rock didn't make it disappear somewhere else.

Taking a deep breath, he started to venture forward into the forest where he was hoping he'd run into someone or something to aid him. Devon's eyes were darting around, taking in his surroundings, calculating, watching for any movement, and waiting for something to happen. He wondered how long he would be out here, and if he would be okay; The thought of his parents missing him and reporting him missing caused his heart to drop in fear.

The last thing he wanted was for his parents to panic, and cause a stir in the town. Word would find its way back to school and he'd become that much more unlikable. He could worry about that later, Devon's thoughts were distracted by how difficult it was to walk through the trees. The ground was soft, with dead fallen branches crunching beneath him, sinking a few inches with every step. The crunches were loud, and not knowing what was out there, Devon was hesitant to bring attention to himself. He treaded lightly but only for a short while. Pausing to sit on a fallen tree log, he held his breath shortly to listen to his surroundings again.

A moment had passed, thinking he was alone again. He exhaled, hearing a trill at the same moment, with a pitch that was high and loud. The trill sounded a few times, and Devon looked around franticly for the source; But just as it sounded suddenly, it was gone, and all was quiet again. It sounded like a bird of some kind, so he brushed it off, not thinking about it for now.

As Devon ventured on, he started to see more and more fallen trees, large and long. As they became more numerous, Devon began to see them as a struggle after a while. It seemed like hours had passed and he was sure that by now, he'd lost any orientation or way back to the rock he started from. What was important was figuring out where he was and how to get back. He felt his stomach grumble, Devon realized food and water would also be good to locate sooner rather than later.

Something just seemed off about this place, there was a different feeling in the air, the essence, the giant claw marks in the tree.

Devon froze. His sight locked on one of the fallen trees, four huge marks dug wide and deep in its side. A hint of fear weaseled its way into his mind, but he went over to examine the log. Finding each gash was as wide and deep as his hand, Devon felt the edges and looked into the splintered divots. Of all the things he wanted to find soon, the claws of whatever gouged the tree was not one of them.

He looked around, seeing an area of trees in the distance that provided more light breaking through than any other part of the forest. He started to go in that direction, and knowing it may be a bad idea, he began calling out.

"Hello!? Is anyone out here!?" he shouted.

No response, but he kept walking, shouting hello a few more times before he decided that no response was an answer in and of itself. As he walked, he could see more and more of the distant landscape coming into view past the tree line. A loud whoosh high above caused Devon to stop and look up. Like the trill from earlier, the sound was sudden and startling. He swore he could hear an ever so faint whistle as well, but with a slight breeze coming through the trees caressing his face, he attributed the whistle to the wind.

When all was calm again, he carefully ventured further, seeing what looked like a mountain valley in front of him. He passed the tree line, the sun shining so brightly it blinded Devon for a few seconds. Blinking a few times and adjusting to the light, he was greeted by a beautiful green pasture that spanned far ahead towards the towering mountain peaks in front of him. It was like the ultimate paradise, flat high plains in the mountains.

A moment of tranquility was followed by his worries and fears from earlier. If this was what he was seeing, where was he?

Devon caught some movement to his right, quickly turning his attention toward it. He didn't think his internal questions would be answered by a large creature a short ways away down the curving tree line. The beast was staring directly at him.

He had to be hallucinating, blinking and rubbing his eyes, he wanted to be sure he was seeing four legs, wings, and scales. It was probably 400 yards away, its gaze locked onto Devon. Frozen in place, he wasn't sure if he should run, scream, or approach. He needed help, but if this was real, he might be in even more danger.

Watching the beast for a moment, it finally moved, starting to walk toward him at a slow but steady pace. Devon noticed the nature of the behavior, and impulsively began to walk towards it as well. Regardless of his hands and every muscle in his body shaking uncontrollably, he continued to close the distance between the two of them.

As they got closer, its orange and yellow amber scales displayed just how magnificent this creature was. Devon felt like he was approaching death, closer and closer, the true size of the creature began to set on Devon, and he finally came to a stop.

They were face to face, looking up at a towering figure, a craned neck was looking down on him, less than 20 feet away. "H-hello? I don't know where I am." Devon said nervously but hopeful.

Devon said this hoping the animal would understand. Seeing as how the Dragon wasn't aggressive, he figured it was worth a shot.

The dragon eyed him for a short moment, "Devon," he heard in his mind. He let out a shout of surprise and shock. Thinking back to his book, he wasn't sure what to expect when coming face to face with a dragon. The dragons in that novel always spoke aloud, they were magical creatures, but mental communication was not something he was ready for.

"I'm sure you have many questions, but I'll be here to answer them and help you."

Once again, no sounds were emanating from its mouth, he had solely heard the voice in his head; Feeling a tickle of sorts in the back of his mind. The voice was feminine, and a few of Devon's fears had subsided now that he knew he wasn't in any physical danger. This allowed him to breathe deeply and relax, even though he was still in shock at his current situation.

Devon started nodding, his hands on his hips, unsure if he was going to pass out or not. The dragon made itself comfortable, lying on the ground, tucking its wings elegantly behind itself, looking like it was waiting patiently for him. Devon watched the dragon as it did this, and he did the same, taking a seat on the ground in the soft grass.

The only question he wanted answered now was if he was indeed, awake.