Snowden the White Dragon

by Raymond L. Weil

  “I know,” responded Richard, glancing down at the ground. “But there is something inside this cave; I can sense its presence. Be ready to protect yourself with your sorcery if needed.”

  Justin nodded, and the two slowly walked into the cave entrance. His father paused and took a small globe out of his backpack. He concentrated briefly, and the globe began to glow with a soft radiance. With caution in every step, the two went farther into the cave.

  -

  Snowden sensed the two humans. The dragon was afraid that they had sensed his presence. He was trapped; there was no way out around the two sorcerers. Very soon, they would learn of Snowden’s presence. Humans had discovered his existence back in the green valley and had accepted his help. He didn’t know how these two would respond. Cautiously, Snowden rose up and stepped out into the main cave tunnel to await the approaching humans.

  -

  Richard and Justin walked slowly down the center of the cave tunnel. The light from the glow bulb just casting enough radiance to light the tunnel walls around them and a short distance ahead. As they rounded a bend in the tunnel, they both came to an abrupt halt. A creature out of ancient legends stood in the tunnel before them.

  “A dragon,” Justin hissed in stunned amazement, his eyes growing wide. His left hand went quickly to his amulet, and his right was poised ready to cast a spell if necessary.

  “Get behind me,” Richard ordered in a firm voice, grasping his glowing amulet in his right hand and staring at the white apparition before him.

  He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. There was no doubt in his mind that they had found what had been taking the livestock. He wondered what type of spells he could use against the dragon. He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that if the dragon wanted to harm them, there was nothing he could do. He just wasn’t powerful enough.

  “Wait, Dad,” spoke Justin with a stunned look upon his face as if he was listening to something. He reached over and put his hand over his father’s hand that grasped the amulet. “The dragon isn’t dangerous; it means us no harm.”

  “How do you know that?” demanded Richard, glancing over at his son and then back at the waiting white dragon. The dragon was enormous; it took up nearly the entire cave tunnel. It was staring directly at them. “This dragon has been killing our animals.”

  “The dragon says its name is Snowden, and he is sorry if he frightened us.”

  “The dragon is speaking to you?” Richard spoke with doubt in his voice. He hadn’t heard anything. He stared at his son and then back at the dragon. “How is that possible?”

  “In my mind,” Justin replied as he tried to understand the dragon. “It’s not actually words; it’s more like pictures appearing in my head and an occasional word to help describe what I’m seeing.”

  Richard paused for a moment, gazing at the white dragon. He had several ancient books at home that mentioned the dragons. Richard knew they had been created in Firestorm Mountain far to the west. Richard’s own remote ancestor had supposedly been involved in that fiasco. One of the book’s Richard possessed had brief descriptions of all the dragons. There was a white dragon in the book, and its name was Snowden. Of all the dragons mentioned, Snowden was supposedly the least dangerous and had at one time been friendly toward humans.

  “Ask Snowden why he is here,” Richard spoke, still finding it hard to believe that they were face to face with one of the legendary creatures created by their ancestors so many centuries ago. This seemed too unreal. He couldn’t believe this was actually happening.

  “Snowden says he can understand you if you speak slowly,” replied Justin, looking over at his father. “He says he followed another dragon here from across the ocean. The dragon he was following is named Gilmreth.”

  “Gilmreth,” Richard said with increased alarm showing on his face. Everything he had read about Gilmreth said the dragon was extremely dangerous and should be avoided at all costs. “Where is Gilmreth now?”

  Justin was quiet for several moments with an intense look of concentration on his young face as if he was listening to a remote voice. “Snowden says he chased Gilmreth away from a human village across the ocean. Gilmreth flew farther inland and Snowden hasn’t seen him for days. He believes Gilmreth may have returned to the great mountain.”

  “Firestorm Mountain,” Richard said with a heavy sigh. He didn’t want to test his powers of sorcery against Gilmreth. He suspected the outcome would be very bad. “I hope so; we don’t want any part of Gilmreth.”

  “Snowden also says he has been clearing our herds of animals that still showed signs of the old Worldfire sickness.”

  Richard nodded his head in understanding. That would explain why it was only the older and sicker livestock that had been vanishing.

  “He is sorry if it caused us a problem,” Justin continued.

  “What is Snowden planning to do now?” asked Richard, releasing the grip on his amulet. He didn’t know how the rest of the people in the villages, as well as the Sorensons, would react to a dragon taking up residence in their valley. It was also interesting to hear that there were other survivors across the ocean. For years now, they had thought that they were the only ones.

  “Snowden says he will stay and make sure that Gilmreth doesn’t ever threaten us. He will only hunt at night and will not allow himself to be seen. Now that he has replenished his strength he doesn’t need to feed nearly as often.”

  Richard paused for a moment. He could see that having the dragon around could be useful. If this dragon could protect them from Gilmreth, then it would be worth the risk. He looked over at his son, indicating for him to continue.

  “The dragon means us no harm,” Justin reiterated to his father. “I think most of the time he will be asleep.”

  Richard walked over until he stood just below the dragon. He looked up and gazed into Snowden’s bright yellow eyes. All Richard could see was curiosity and a desire to please. There was no sense of danger imitating from the dragon. Closing his eyes, Richard nodded his head slowly. Then he opened them and gazed intently at Snowden. “If you stay in this valley, no one else can learn of your presence. It must remain our secret.”

  “He says he understands,” Justin spoke as he carefully listened to the dragon. “He will stay in the small cavern and only come out to feed at night and to make sure Gilmreth has not returned to the coast or ventured near our valley. He says we will not see him unless I summon him.”

  “Why you?” asked Richard, looking over at his son.

  “For some reason, I can hear the dragon’s thoughts. He can hear mine if I concentrate hard enough. Snowden says most of the time he will sleep. He is waiting for Cathy to awake.”

  “Cathy?” Richard said, surprised, his eyes growing wide. “Who is Cathy?”

  Justin listed intently as the dragon tried to explain. “I don’t know if I understand all of this. Snowden doesn’t think like a human. He just says that his friend Cathy is sleeping and when she awakens he will return to her.”

  Something sounded remarkably familiar about what the dragon was saying. It almost sounded to Richard as if he had heard this before. There was an old book of prophecies at home written by his great-grandfather. It had been rumored that the man could see the future. He needed to check the book. This sounded vaguely like one of the prophecies he had read.

  “I think we’d better go,” Richard said to Snowden and his son. Then looking at the dragon he continued, “We will return to check on you from time to time. For now, we welcome you as a friend.”

  -

  As they made their way back down the mountain and toward their home, Justin was full of a thousand questions. He couldn’t believe they had found a dragon. Not only that, but he could talk to the huge creature! Justin wondered if he and the dragon were destined to become friends.

  “What do you know about the dragons?” Justin asked his father as they crossed a small stream. Both stepped carefully on the small, flat rocks keeping their ba
lance so they wouldn’t fall into the cold water. The watercourse was fed by the melting snow high up on the mountain. Where it entered the valley beavers had built several dams, flooding some of the nearby lowlands.

  Richard was quiet for a moment. He had never thought in his wildest dreams that he would ever find a dragon. Now Snowden had appeared and Richard was afraid of what the dragon’s sudden appearance signified. If Snowden had found their valley, then so could Gilmreth.

  After crossing the stream, the two sat down under the shade of a large, towering tree to rest for a few minutes. Justin looked expectantly at his father; he was supposed to get married in a few months to his childhood sweetheart. Karen lived in the village of Plainview, and they had been planning their marriage for several months. Justin hoped their discovery of Snowden wouldn’t interfere with that. He also wondered if it would be necessary to keep this secret from her. This was something he would discuss with his father later.

  “There are two old books at home,” began Richard, wondering how much he should tell his son. He had a sister and a brother living on the farm next to his. He knew that, sometime, they would have to be told about Snowden. “They speak of the dragons and how they were created back just before the Worldfire.”

  “So long ago,” responded Justin, realizing just how old Snowden must be. “How long do dragons live?”

  “No one knows. A page in one of the books claims the dragons are immortal. But I don’t see how any creature can be immortal.”

  “Is there anything in the books about Snowden?”

  “Yes,” replied Richard, trying to recall the prophecy his great grandfather had written. “One of the books says that Snowden is the oldest of all the dragons. He was the first one created by the great sorcerers of the Golden Age.”

  “They must have been very powerful to have created the dragons,” Justin said, trying to imagine what those distant times must have been like.

  Justin had explored some of the old ruins that were scattered about. Anything useful in them had long since been removed, but it was intriguing to imagine what some of the ruins had once contained. He had read in school about some of their marvelous machines and the science they had commanded. Much was very hard to comprehend as their own world was now an extremely simple one.

  “Yes, they were,” replied Richard in response to Justin’s question. “So powerful that their struggle for power brought about the Worldfire and the end of the Golden Age.”

  The two sat in silence for a few more minutes and then Richard stood up, motioning for Justin to do the same. “We need to hurry; your mother will be expecting us home for supper.”

  “Can we tell her about the dragon?” asked Justin, wanting to tell someone about what they had found.

  “Let’s keep the dragon a secret between us, for now,” his father replied. “We will tell your mother later once we know for sure that Snowden is going to stay.”

  Justin almost asked about telling Karen, but decided it might be best to wait.

  -

  Later that night, Richard sat in his study in the back of their large farmhouse. Several lamps burned brightly, lighting up the small room. Richard leaned forward in his chair and gazed at the page of the old book lying open upon the wood desk. The page had been written by his great-grandfather over sixty years ago. It was a prophecy.

  -

  Behold the white dragon, for the dragon is the redeemer of humankind.

  Many years will the white dragon sleep before the one he awaits awakens.

  Another will also awaken, the great dragon Gilmreth.

  A great battle will rage over the skies of the great mountain.

  Dragon versus dragon and sorcerer versus sorcerer.

  If humanity is to endure and reunite, then the white dragon must survive.

  Only through the white dragon can humanity find salvation.

  -

  Richard leaned back and mulled over the words. The prophecy said that Snowden would have to sleep for a very long time before he found the one that he had been searching for. There was no doubt that the prophecy also predicted a great battle between Snowden and Gilmreth. If Snowden won, then humanity would continue and grow. If Gilmreth won, then humanity would die. It also seemed as if sorcery would be involved, with some supporting each of the dragons. It made him feel uncomfortable thinking about sorcerers fighting sorcerers. No good could come of that.

  Richard stood up and, reaching up to the top of a bookshelf, took down an ancient book. Returning to the desk, he sat down and opened it. The pages were yellow with age and extremely brittle. Only a sorcery spell kept the book intact. It was a sorcery book and listed many powerful spells. Most of the spells he couldn’t perform since he wasn’t a powerful sorcerer. He turned the pages until he found the one he was seeking. It was a sleeping spell, one designed to put a dragon to sleep. He didn’t have the power to cast the complete spell; no one had that kind of power anymore. However, he could cast a weaker version with Justin’s help.

  Once they were certain that Gilmreth wouldn’t find their valley, they would put the white dragon to sleep to await his destiny. Richard had a feeling that the white dragon’s destiny lay far in the future. This would be his family’s secret and duty for generations to come. They would protect the white dragon until the day he was needed to be the defender of humanity.

  Richard picked up a pen and opened up an ink well. Turning to the back of the book of prophecies, he began writing on a blank page. What he was writing would be the instructions his descendants would follow for generations to come. Richard felt pride well up inside of him as he realized what providence had chosen for his family. With a smile, Richard realized that his great grandfather had foreseen this years ago. He had known that his family would become the protectors of the white dragon.

  Chapter Two

  Ashley Andrews was feeling extremely agitated. She was standing on the front steps of the general store watching what was going on out in the street. Her brother was in trouble again! Only this time she wasn’t sure how she was going to extricate him from his current predicament. They were in the village of Glendon, which was the center of the three villages that made up their sheltered valley.

  With her hands on her hips, she frowned at the crowd that had gathered in the street. The object of their attention was her brother and two of the Sorenson boys. She recognized Edward, the older boy, and his younger brother Todd. She knew that Edward was nearly eighteen, and Todd was around her own age of sixteen. She bit her lower lip, trying to decide what to do.

  “Come on, Andrews, let’s see what you’ve got,” Edward prodded with a smirk, trying to goad Stephen into using his sorcery powers. He walked slowly around Stephen, kicking dirt in his direction. “I bet you can’t even light a candle!” Edward made a quick gesture with his right hand and a small fireball suddenly flew toward Stephen’s feet, exploding in the dust.

  Stephen jumped back, his eyes darting from side to side. He knew that he had bitten off more than he could chew this time. He shouldn’t have called Edward an ass when the two had bumped into each other. There was no doubt in Stephen’s mind that Edward had done it on purpose, wanting a confrontation. He heard several people in the growing crowd laugh at his obvious predicament.

  Edward launched several more of his small fireballs, making Stephen jump from side to side so as not to get burned. The crowd laughed and hollered each time, enjoying the spectacle. Stephen felt his ears burning from embarrassment and frustration at his humiliation.

  “A dance!” Edward cried in jubilation, a wide grin splitting his face. “That’s what an Andrews can do. You can dance!”

  “That’s enough, Edward,” spoke Ashley, stepping out into the street and striding over to stand next to her brother. “We don’t want any trouble. Why don’t you just go on about your business and we will go about ours.”

  “Ah! Another Andrews!” spoke Edward, relishing the thought of embarrassing both of them. “Ashley, if I remember correctly
. So, Stephen, are you going to let a harmless girl defend you? Let’s see your powers. After all, you’re a sorcerer!”

  Edward would teach them to come to Glendon. His family would soon control the village, and no one would come and go without their permission. It was time for someone to make an example out of the Andrews. It would be good for the people of Glendon to see that the Sorensons were the most powerful sorcery family in the valley.

  Two more fireballs landed at Stephen’s feet, making him step back and nearly lose his balance. With amusement in his eyes, Edward sent two more toward Ashley. The girl just stood there as the two fireballs struck the ground in front of her feet. She glared at Edward. How dare this snippet of a girl defy him! Edward was just about to make one of his fireballs land on her toes when he felt his brother’s hand reach out and grasp his shoulder.

  “That’s enough,” spoke Todd, frowning at his older brother. “This isn’t necessary. You know as well as I do that since they belong to a family of sorcerers that they can come into Glendon whenever they want.”

  “You’re defending them!” Edwards barked, aggravated that Todd had stepped in and was trying to spoil his fun. He meant to teach these two Andrews kids a lesson. One they wouldn’t soon forget.

  “Yes,” replied Todd, taking several steps so he now stood in front of Edward. “What you’re doing isn’t right and you know it!”

  Edward noticed several people in the crowd nodding their heads in agreement. Letting out a deep breath, Edward knew that Todd had ruined his plans for the young Andrews boy and his interfering sister.

  “I’m finished, anyway,” Edward grated out, looking over Todd’s shoulder at the two Andrews kids. “They’re not worth any more of my time.” With that, Edward turned around and strode off angrily through the crowd. He would take this matter up with Todd when they got back home; he would pay for ruining his fun!

  “Thank you,” Ashley said, walking up to Todd and putting on her best smile. “You didn’t have to do that.”