Darkest Night

by James Cherry

  As he finally burst from the underbrush, he was confronted by a high rocky ridge. Undaunted by the challenge, he scrambled up the side and soon crested the top. From his high vantage point, he could make out the vague silhouette of an ancient and worn rock bridge jutting high into the night sky. He stopped to scan the area and spotted a dark shape moving up the rocky hillside, only a hundred yards ahead.

  He began a flat out run as the scrub brush and rocks had seemed to dissipate a bit, allowing for easier navigation. As he raced up the other hill, a rock suddenly gave way under his right foot and he fell flat on his face, and tumbled down the embankment for a good twenty feet before he managed to stop himself. He knew that the noise he was making, in his desperate attempt to find his friends, was loud enough to wake the dead.

  He fortified his will and climbed again. Finally reaching the crest of the steep hill he paused as the sight before him brought about a sudden sense of trepidation.

  Standing in front of a dark cavern was a dragon of immense proportions. Easily forty feet long with a wingspan upwards of eighty feet from tip to outstretched tip, the dragon dwarfed the tiny doctor as he stood boldly in front of it.

  Bo yelled to the doctor, his voice cracking in panic, "Doctor, get out of there, NOW!"

  ***

  Doctor Burch gazed upon the most magnificent creature he had ever seen. Bo's words were lost upon deaf ears as he stood frozen in fear and awe at the sight.

  The dragon seemed to be very old for its kind. Its scales were a dull reddish color, much like rust, and the ragged spines, which ran the length of its back, looked to be caked with green fungi. Its head was disproportionately large for its body, easily the size of a grown man, and its ten inch long teeth were yellowed with age. The eyes were huge, the product of millions of years of evolution, which allowed the dragon to see clearly in the night. Its wicked and deadly talons could easily crush a man to death and the long snake-like body was reminiscent of the dragons of Oriental myth. The creature was an awesome and frightful sight to behold.

  The doctor whispered, "My God you are beautiful.”

  Not taking his eyes from the dragon, the doctor called out, “Marty, Bo, I know you are out there somewhere. Listen to me. Stay put and do not move, no matter what. I know that these creatures feeding habits are regulated by the moon phases and they only feed on the new moon, on the darkest of nights. I do not think that this dragon will kill me as long as it believes that it's in no danger. Witness this and remember what happens here tonight. I want the world to know that these dragons are not mindless beasts to be feared and hunted down to extinction, but are intelligent creatures that have survived millions of years of evolution. They deserve to live as much as humans."

  The doctor stared at the dragon for a long moment. Not knowing what else to do, he spoke to the dragon softly, "Hello. I am a friend." He patted his chest as if the dragon would understand.

  Much to his surprise the dragon lowered its head until the massive jaws were within inches of his face. The dragon sniffed the length of his body and then backed off slowly. Then the dragon did the impossible. It said in a deep croaking voice, "Frreeennnd."

  The doctor nearly jumped out of his boots as the word echoed eerily across the mountains and he struggled not to pass out from the shock.

  ***

  Marty's mouth dropped open at the sound of the word. He crawled forward slightly from his hiding position between two large rocks, and said to himself in a whisper, "Mimicry, that's all it is. Many birds can mimic the human voice such as parrots, crows . . ."

  He slapped himself in the forehead, and then suddenly froze in fear as he realized that he had made a sudden movement that could attract attention to his position. He took a few slow deep breaths as he pondered the impossible quandary he had just witnessed.

  The cracking noise of a falling rock gave Marty sudden pause and he froze in fear. Slowly turning his head, he spotted the approaching danger.

  ***

  Bo heard the crack of the falling rock too, and he crouched down defensively. He watched apprehensively as several black-clad figures emerged from the surrounding rocks and formed a semi-circle around the doctor and the dragon. As the general’s operatives pointed their weapons at the dragon, he could hear the faint clicks of safety's being flipped to semi-auto.

  ***

  Doctor Burch turned at the sound, raised both hands into the air and yelled, "No! Don't shoot! This is an intelligent creature and deserves to live." The doctor backed towards the dragon as he attempted to shield its massive body with his own tiny frame.

  Marty watched in horror at the scene unfolding before him. His mind raced as he attempted to come up with some way to rescue his friend and mentor, but he couldn’t think of anything.

  The dragon seemed to sense the impending danger and Marty noted that its spines raised high in agitation. Then the dragon raised its head to the sky and hissed. It was an eerie hiss that carried across the wind, a sound that chilled Marty to the bone.

  Suddenly the sound of whistling wings, high in the air, caught Marty’s attention. The operatives raised their weapons defensively, just as half a dozen dragons dropped suddenly out of the inky sky. Gunfire erupted from the men as they stubbornly held their ground, but the dragons swarmed the operatives, spitting acid and clawing the men mercilessly. The shrill screams of dying men pierced the mountainside and shot darts of fear through Marty's very being.

  While the operative’s attention was focused upon the smaller dragons, the large dragon gently reached down and plucked the doctor from the ground with its left front talon. The doctor offered no resistance as the huge claw covered him within a protective cage. Using its powerful hind legs to launch itself into the air, its massive wings beat furiously to gain altitude.

  A tear rolled down Marty's face as he watched his friend disappear into the dark void of night, carried away in the clutches of the monstrous dragon.

  Epilogue

  Marty knocked quietly on the hospital door and waited for permission to enter. A muffled voice on the other side replied, "Come in."

  Marty entered the room and smiled as he saw that his friend was in much better health. He walked to the side of the bed and placed a hand on Terry Carter's shoulder.

  Marty asked softly, "How are you feeling today?"

  Carter replied with a faint smile, "Fine, Marty, fine. How is Doctor Chin doing?"

  Marty sat on the edge of the bed and said, "He checked out a week ago and flew back to China. His wound was minor and only required a few stitches.” He patted Carter on the shoulder and said, “You, on the other hand, have been in pretty bad shape for three weeks now. That wound should have killed you, but Ayako saved your life."

  Carter nodded in agreement and said, "Even though she is a vet, she worked on me as if she was an experienced combat surgeon. She did a damn fine job if you ask me. I have been a combat medic for years, and I don't think I could have saved me."

  Marty laughed and said, "Hell, you look like a damn bear so she treated you like one."

  Carter smiled at the jest and asked, "Where is Ayako anyway?"

  "She and Bo went back to Wisconsin to get Doctor Burch's affairs in order. You know, paying his bills and calling relatives to tell them of the situation."

  "What happened to Colonel Haymond?"

  "He testified last week before an emergency session of the Senate Judiciary Committee about the dragon case. He presented all of the evidence, including a data CD that Doctor Chin had made. He also cleared all of our names, including you and Bo's military records. And the FBI is not looking for any of us anymore.”

  Carter asked, “And what about Crowell and Project Raptor?”

  “General Crowell was indicted on enough charges to get him the death penalty, but he is still missing in action and presumed dead. Project Raptor has been disbanded, supposedly, and the dragons have been officially recognized as a new species. The whole world knows about them now. Oh, and get this, Ron Haymond also rec
ommended that the dragons be placed upon the endangered species list as well," answered Marty.

  Carter growled, "The damn things destroyed my team and killed my fellow soldiers. They directly and indirectly caused the deaths of hundreds of people, including Doctor Burch, and now they are protected?”

  Marty nodded and said, "Well, what if the doctor is right and they intelligent, maybe more so than us? What if we could find a way to communicate with them?"

  Carter looked away in anger, saying nothing in response.

  "Besides, who are we as mere humans to judge them? Who are we to determine if they should live or die? They do have as much right on this Earth as we do," added Marty.

  Carter didn’t respond, he just stared out of the hospital window as if lost deep in thought.

  Marty broke the uncomfortable silence and said, "I have picked up where Doctor Burch left off on his research.”

  Carter turned to look at Marty. Patting him on the arm he said, "There was a reason the doctor chose you. He saw the potential in you and he chose you as his successor."

  Marty looked at Carter sharply and said, "I am not his successor, I am still his student and he is still alive out there, I can feel it." He turned his gaze to the window as well and added, "I saw the way the dragon picked him up. He was picked him up gently, as if not to hurt him. The general’s operatives fared far worse though as not a single one of the black-clad bastards were left alive after the assault. Those dragons performed a coordinated attack to a degree that I didn’t think possible from an animal. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined any living creature on Earth, other than humans, performing in such a way."

  Carter sighed and said, "When I get out of here, do you want my help in finding the doctor?"

  Marty replied with a smile, "Hell, yeah."

  ***

  General Crowell sat upon a rock deep inside a cave. He burned with rage and the fire deep within threatened to consume his very soul. He stood and paced the dust-covered floor, kicking up a cloud as he stomped the ground in anger. He suddenly stopped, raised his head, and screamed. He screamed in anguish. He screamed in hate.

  The large dragon, that lay a few yards from the angry general, looked up in curiosity at his master. It huffed in agitation at the annoying noises the human was making and lowered its massive head back down to sleep again.

  As the general walked to the front of the cave, he kicked a small rock, sending it bouncing and skittering across the hard packed floor. He reached the entrance and stared out across the wild and forsaken land of Peru. The last golden rays of the setting sun faded across the horizon and the rolling hills and rocky mountainous terrain were bathed in a brilliant yellow hue.

  The beauty of the moment was lost upon the general, however, as the rolling wave of emotions churning deep inside, blinded him to everything but his hate.

  He whispered evilly, "I will destroy you all with my dragons and you will pay for what you have done to me."