In the Realm of Dragons

by George Ivanoff

  To refuse the quest, go here.

  You want out of this hole as quickly as possible, so you tell the cryptozoologist about the eggs. She is mega excited and quickly lowers a rope and canvas bag.

  You place the eggs in the bag and sling it around your neck, then tie the rope around your waist. Up you go.

  You are greeted by the sight of Myfanwy in a pastel yellow safari suit that has short pants and sleeves, and heavy hiking boots. She looks quite comical with the suit, helmet and dreads, though her expression is anything but funny.

  She yanks at the bag, demanding that you give her the eggs. The strap breaks and the small egg is flung out. It smashes against the cave wall.

  ‘Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!’ Myfanwy wails as she falls to the ground, gathering the broken bits of shell and scooping up the gooey mess that came splattering from within.

  She’s a little unstable, isn’t she? you think to yourself. Are you sure you want her to have the big egg? While she’s preoccupied with the smashed remains of the little egg, muttering to herself, you could just slip away.

  To sneak out and return to the school camp, go here.

  To stick around with Myfanwy the crazy cryptozoologist, go here.

  As the cryptozoologist continues to desperately pick up the shattered egg pieces, you take the large egg out of the bag and quietly exit the cave. You race back to the school camp, run into your cabin and slam the door shut.

  You place the egg in front of the heater and switch it on. Maybe with a bit of warmth, it’ll hatch. You stare at it, hoping there’s a dragon inside.

  There’s a knock on your door and your best friend, Ravi, enters. Eyes wide, he stares at the egg. You lock the door and explain what happened, and how you think this might be a dragon egg.

  The egg trembles. Ravi jumps. You look expectantly at it, but it’s still again.

  ‘Maybe we need to get it hotter,’ suggests Ravi. ‘We could hold it over the campfire.’

  Campfire? You want to hatch the egg, not cook it. Still … maybe extra heat is what it needs.

  To take the egg to the campfire, go here.

  To stick with the heater, go here.

  When she’s finished picking up the egg bits, she glares at you with venom in her eyes.

  ‘This is all your fault,’ she snarls. ‘I wanted to hatch that egg so I could then dissect whatever creature came out of it.’ She snatches the bag with the remaining egg from your hands. ‘At least I still have this one.’ She laughs long and loud.

  You back away until you’re up against the cave wall, as she takes the egg out of the bag and hugs it.

  ‘I will be world renowned,’ she cackles. ‘More famous than … than … that guy who discovered that … that … thing that lived in the jungle … somewhere. No one will remember him. They’ll all remember me – Myfanwy Adeline Thelma Binglington-Smithe, cryptozoologist extraordinaire!’

  With a final burst of insane laughter, she runs from the cave.

  You sigh, relieved that she’s gone.

  You return to the school camp and never hear about that strange woman or the egg ever again. But still, you can’t help wondering if it really was a dragon egg.

  You decide it’s better to play it safe. After all, there’s no telling how Ravi will react to seeing a real-live dragon. So you quickly pop it back into your pocket before opening the door.

  Ravi wants to know where you’ve been all day and why you weren’t at lunch. You try to end the conversation, but he’s in a really chatty mood. A few minutes later, an announcement comes over the PA system.

  ‘All students are to assemble in the quadrangle outside the cafeteria.’

  You and Ravi head out, the dragon still in your pocket.

  ‘What’s in your jacket?’ he asks, as you line up.

  You look down at your jacket. The dragon must be growing, because the pocket is bulging. Right before your eyes, the dragon’s claws begin to pierce through the fabric.

  Do you stay in line and hope it doesn’t grow any more? Go here.

  Or do you ditch the assembly and sneak off?

  Go here.

  You think it’s best to stick with the heater.

  While waiting for something to happen with the egg, Ravi suddenly points to the window and says, ‘Who’s that weirdo?’

  You glance out and then duck. It’s Myfanwy! She’s probably looking for you and the egg. You hope she hasn’t seen you.

  But a couple of minutes later there’s an angry knocking at the door.

  ‘Open up, you little brat. I know you’ve got the egg in there. Hand it over or I’ll find your teacher and tell them how you stole my cryptozoological discovery!’

  If you decide to hand it over, go here.

  Or you could climb out the window and run.

  Go here.

  Time to get out of here. You whisper to Ravi that you need to use the toilet, and then quietly slip away into the trees. As you wander through the forest, you think about what you’re going to do.

  RRRRRRIP!

  You look down. The dragon’s claws have torn through your jacket pocket. The little creature is swinging from the shredded fabric, staring up at you with its round eyes.

  You hold out your hand and it jumps onto it. With a little snuffling sound, it runs up your arm and settles on your shoulder, purring in your ear.

  Home.

  The word forms in your head.

  Is the mini dragon trying to communicate with you?

  Home? Does it mean its home or your home? You wonder if the pit you found the egg in is where it lives.

  To take the dragon back to where you discovered it, go here.

  Or you could take it home with you.

  Go here.

  You decide to stay in the line.

  Words begin to pop into your head – Home. Out. Growing. Is the little dragon trying to tell you something?

  The teachers arrive. Your heart begins to race as you see that the weird cryptozoologist is with them.

  ‘Okay, listen up, everyone,’ announces Mr Strickland, the strictest teacher at your school. ‘It appears that one of our students might have been sneaking off to Wenley Caves and interfering with a scientific endeavour.’

  As the teacher speaks, Myfanwy’s eyes scan the assembled students … and lock on to you.

  RRRRRRIP!

  You look down. The dragon’s claws have torn through your jacket pocket. The little creature is swinging from the shredded fabric, staring up at you with its round eyes.

  There are gasps from the other students as they back away, pointing at you and the dragon.

  ‘Right!’ bellows Myfanwy, stalking towards you. ‘Hand it over, you thief!’

  To follow her instruction, go here.

  Your only other option is to run away.

  Go here.

  You hand the little dragon over to Myfanwy. Her eyes are manic with excitement and victory. Immediately, she puts a tiny chain around its neck and hand-cuffs the chain to herself.

  ‘No escape for you, my pretty,’ she says to the creature. Then, looking you directly in the eye, she pokes out her tongue and says tauntingly, ‘I win. Na-nana-naa-nah!’

  She turns abruptly and marches off.

  You are overcome by an incredible feeling of sadness as your mind echoes with the word HELP.

  You figure it’s worth a shot, so you and Ravi take the egg to the campfire pit. You light a fire and gently place the egg on the ground next to it – close enough to get it hot, but not close enough to cook it.

  After a few minutes, the egg begins to tremble. Then shudder. Then roll around. You and Ravi watch with mouths hanging open.

  ‘What in the name of pseudoscience are you doing?’ screeches a horrified voice.

  It’s Myfanwy the cryptozoologist. She must have followed you back to the camp.

  ‘That egg is extraordinarily dangerous. If it hatches, you could have a ravenous beast on your hands.’ She rushes towards you, holding on to a cat carry-cage. You won
der why she’s got that.

  ‘Give it to me now,’ she demands. ‘I must get it back to my laboratory.’

  Do you let her take the egg?

  If you allow her to take the egg, go here.

  Or do you take a stand and refuse to let her have it? Go here.

  You run out from the cover of the boulders. You can’t go back to the cave because it’s been frozen, so you sprint blindly on.

  The fire dragon hurtles out of the sky, its shadow passing over you, and crashes onto the boulders. The ground shudders as shards of rock rain down around you. Lucky you moved!

  Ahead. Mountains.

  The words form in your mind and you run towards them.

  Behind you, the fire dragon takes to the air to continue its battle with the ice dragon. They are too preoccupied with their own fight to notice you.

  Fuelled by fear, you race all the way to the mountains. You pause at the entrance to a pass to catch your breath, marvelling at the steep craggy walls that split the rock. Then you notice a small path winding its way up into the mountains. Which way should you go?

  Words form in your mind again.

  Home. Dragons.

  You look down at the little dragon still held in your hand. It blinks up at you with watery round eyes. Is it getting bigger? you wonder. And is it putting the words into my head?

  You look along the rocky pass. Dragons.

  You look at the path. Birds.

  You wonder what the little dragon is trying to tell you. But you don’t have time to think about it too much, you need to get going.

  If you decide to walk along the pass between the mountains, go here.

  But if you’ d rather go up the path, go here.

  You and Ravi stand aside and let Myfanwy pick up the egg.

  ‘Argh! It’s hot!’ she yelps, as she tosses it into the cat cage.

  The egg cracks and she quickly latches the cage shut. The three of you stare as the egg hatches. You lean in and peer through the bars.

  From within the shell emerges a red baby dragon. It looks like an overgrown featherless chook. You’re about to say as much, when the little creature coughs a burst of flames through the bars, singeing your eyebrows.

  You yell and fall back.

  The cryptozoologist dons a pair of fireproof gloves and picks up the cage. You follow her out of the camp to her pick-up truck. She secures the cage to the back of the truck along with her caving equipment, flammable chemicals and cans of extra petrol. You try to point out that it may not be the best spot for a creature that breathes fire, but Myfanwy is far too busy congratulating herself.

  ‘I will be world renowned,’ she cackles. ‘More famous than … than … that guy who discovered that … that … thing that lived in the jungle … somewhere. No one will remember him. They’ll all remember me – Myfanwy Adeline Thelma Binglington-Smithe, cryptozoologist extraordinaire!’

  With a final burst of insane laughter, she jumps into the truck and drives off.

  You wonder what will happen to the dragon. But you don’t contemplate for too long, as moments later …

  KABOOM!

  The truck explodes in a burst of flames.

  ‘Bummer!’ says Ravi.

  Myfanwy Ad-something Whatsit Who-Cares really should have put the dragon in a safer spot.

  You grab the little dragon and run off into the trees. You hear Myfanwy’s voice shouting from behind: ‘Stop in the name of science!’

  But you don’t stop. You run as fast as you can, zigzagging between trees and through the undergrowth. You think you’ve escaped when, up ahead, two figures step out from behind a large tree. It’s Brandon and Brenda, the twin school bullies. They’re big and scary and a bit unstable.

  ‘Oi!’ grunts Brandon.

  ‘Oi! Oi!’ grunts Brenda.

  They aren’t big on talking. Brandon starts slamming his right fist into his left hand. Like a mirror image, Brenda does the same with her left fist. They step forward in unison.

  ‘OI!’

  The little dragon launches into the air from your hand, flapping its tiny wings. It hovers in front of the twins and turns around so that its rear end is aimed at their faces. With a look of concentration, it farts a burst of flames at the bullies.

  Brenda and Brandon scream and run. You’ve never seen those two looking scared before. It feels rather satisfying.

  As the mini dragon comes to land on your shoulder, the word home pops into your head. Home? The dragon wants to go home? Maybe you should take it back to the cave where you found it. That must be what the dragon means.

  Go here.

  You decide to take the dragon back to the pit where you found it, in the hope that the cave really is its home.

  Danger.

  The word pops into your head as you approach the cave. You don’t see any hazard, but you stay in the trees and wait, just to be sure.

  A minute later, Myfanwy arrives. She looks around the cave entrance and then goes inside. Now what?

  Do you stay hidden and wait for Myfanwy to come out so you can take the dragon in? Go here.

  Or you could leave now and take the dragon to your home instead. Go here.

  You’re not about to let this mad cryptozoologist take your egg. You stand between her and the fire, crossing your arms and shaking your head.

  ‘Get out of the way, you fool,’ she demands. ‘The egg and the scientific glory are mine, and you cannot stand in my way!’

  You hold your ground.

  ‘Well, if that’s the way you want it, so be it!’ She drops the cat carry-cage and adopts a ridiculous kung-fu stance. ‘Not only am I an accomplished scientist, I am also a magenta-belted martial arts master. My hands are deadly weapons, ready to strike fear into the hearts of all those who oppose me.’

  CRACK!

  You whirl around to see that the egg has hatched. There is a red baby dragon standing amongst the pieces of eggshell. Your mouth hangs open. It worked! You’ve hatched a real-live dragon.

  ‘Mine, mine, mine!’ shouts Myfanwy, diving for the creature.

  The dragon, which looks rather like an overgrown featherless chook, jumps into the air. As the cryptozoologist hits the ground, it lands on her head, pushing her face into the dirt. Hopping off the cryptozoologist, the dragon coughs a little burst of flames that sets fire to a bush, and then runs off into the trees making strange squawking sounds.

  Ravi goes for a bucket of water to put out the fire, while Myfanwy is spitting sand and rubbing her eyes.

  What do you do?

  To chase after the dragon, go here.

  To help Ravi put out the fire, go here.

  You settle into your hiding spot and wait. About twenty minutes later, Myfanwy comes out again. As she heads off in the direction of the camp, you dash into the cave. The cryptozoologist’s equipment is still there, a lantern illuminating the cave.

  The dragon starts to bounce around on your shoulder and make excited noises when you approach the pit.

  Thank you.

  It leaps off your shoulder and flutters its tiny wings. It flies over the pit, then down into it. You watch it disappear into the crevice in the wall of the pit.

  You head back outside, humming happily to yourself. But the moment you step out into the daylight, the crazy cryptozoologist pounces on you. Grabbing you by the shirt, she shakes you violently, gnashing her teeth and glaring at you with wild eyes.

  ‘Where is it?’ she hisses.

  You shrug innocently.

  Myfanwy shoves you. You stumble back and fall to the ground. Standing over you, she declares: ‘I will be back with a team of colleagues. I will search every inch of these caves. I will find proof of the existence of dragons. I will be famous. And there’s nothing you can do about it.’ She stamps her foot, kicking sand into your face, then storms off.

  You get to your feet, spluttering, and look back at the cave entrance, and at the precariously positioned rock above it.

  Nothing you can do?

  You
pick up a stone, take aim and throw it.

  Your stone hits the rock.

  The rock teeters.

  ‘What are you doing?’ screeches Myfanwy, running back.

  The rock topples, dislodging more rocks as it goes. Within seconds, a tonne of earth cascades down and seals off the cave.

  ‘Nooooooooooooooo!’ screams Myfanwy, running to the blocked cave. She beats her fists on the rocks. ‘No, no, no, no, no, no …’

  You turn around and head back to camp, content in knowing you have prevented that crazy cryptozoologist from getting her hands on the cute little dragon.

  Home! That’s it … you decide to go home.

  You walk through the trees until you reach the main road, then towards the bus stop by the camp entrance. As the bus approaches, you get the dragon to climb up under your shirt so that it stays hidden throughout the ride.

  When you get home, your parents are furious. They give you a long lecture about how silly and dangerous it was for you to have left the school camp so suddenly. But then you show them the dragon. After they have recovered from the shock, you tell them about the crazy cryptozoologist.

  ‘Right,’ says Mum. ‘I’ll take care of her.’

  She rings the police and puts in a complaint about Myfanwy harassing you at the school camp.

  You are amazed when your parents agree to let you keep the dragon as a pet – so long as it remains a secret.

  Friends.

  You name the dragon Bruce and you do indeed become the best of friends.