Blackstone

Dragon Mountain

And now here I was, on forbidden ground - Dragon Mountain.

I looked to be about halfway up the mountain. A steep snowcapped peak was thousands of feet above me and I could see for miles across the jungle toward the grassy savanna. I figured that a rescue party would be on its way. Blackstone Control had to have been monitoring my flight. They would know where I was, but if they were sworn to stay away then I might be waiting for a long time. Waiting wasn't my strong suit. Mary had always chastised me for my lack of patience. Well, I wasn't going to hang around for the cavalry to show up. It was time to take matters into my own hands.

I went to the beamship and looked through the various compartments. There was a survival backpack located in the trunk. It had water, food bars, flares, a blanket and a first aid kit. I drank some of the water and munched on a food bar. I thought back to this morning and wished I'd had something more to eat beside fruit and toast. I could just see Thomas kidding me now.

I slung the backpack over my shoulder. Not for the first time did I wish I had my Razor Phone, but Razors were forbidden in the Beamship Competition. Something about using them to gain an unfair advantage. If I had it, I could call control and find out when they were coming to pick me up. No, I guess I was on my own.

I picked my way over the stony ground, moving carefully down the mountain. I had to be careful. One wrong move and I could fall to my death. I also didn't know if the Dragons were going to be all right with a first year recruit on their sacred ground. I figured I needed to get off the mountain as soon as possible.

Suddenly, a piercing screech resounded from above. I looked up and saw a black and red dragon swooping down towards me. It flew over my head, circled around and landed on a ledge in front of me.

Could it be the same dragon that David and I saved from the Hyenas? Yes, it had to be him. I slowly approached the dragon with my hands up.

"Hey, boy. Remember me?" I said in a friendly voice.

The dragon cocked its head and squinted its eyes at me. It raised its head and let out another piercing shriek and reared up on its feet, spreading its wings wide and beating the air.

I backed off. I didn't know if the dragon was angry or frightened. I just knew that I was at a considerable disadvantage. I didn't want to have to use the Dark Power on this magnificent creature, but I would if I had no choice.

"Hey, take it easy, boy. I'm not here to do you any harm," I said.

The dragon stopped beating its wings and hopped off the ledge. It landed on the ground in front of me. Again, I marveled at the size of it. It was as big as a horse and powerfully built with a mouth full of wicked looking teeth.

I reached into my backpack and pulled out a food bar. I unwrapped it and slowly approached the dragon.

"You hungry, boy. Here try some of this," I said and held out the food bar.

The dragon snatched the food bar out of my hand, chewed it up and quickly spat it out on the ground, giving me a fierce glare while it was doing it.

"Okay, so you don't like food bars. To tell you the truth, I don't like them either," I said.

"Neither do I. But we take what we can get in this life," an ancient voice spoke from behind me.

I spun around, grabbed my etheric knife, ignited it, and dropped into a fighting crouch. Behind me the dragon hissed, spread its wings and took to the sky.

Standing there in front of me was a short, wizened creature that looked like an iguana. It wore a purple robe and carried a short walking stick. It's green skin was marked with black stripes.