The Dragon and the Little One

The sun was just starting to go down, and the leaves beneath the feet of the 7 soldiers were getting colder and making crunching noises someone could hear from more than a mile away.

For the first time in 1,000 years it was starting to get to extremely freezing temperatures. Some were saying it was another Ice Age coming along, some just thought it was another cold winter.

Regardless though, it was definitely making it a lot harder for the soldiers to maintain their energy for their days in the war.

-

There were 7 soldiers, and then their dragon which they had for extra protection, and all of them, had been in the forest for the past 13 hours at this point.

They were beyond the point of being ready to settle down in their tents for the evening, eat their dinner and then go to sleep anytime now.

-

It was already 5 months deep in the middle of fighting off a war at this point with these new settlers who came from Ecuanidora.

The settlers from Ecuanidora claimed that they were trying to take their rightful territory; the exact one that the soldiers have already had for centuries to themselves.

It's amazing how beings come into your territory and try to claim ownership without even earning it all...

Regardless, no one was going to take their village from them, they said regularly.

-

Everyday, all 8 of the soldiers would split up and protect about one mile of woods each to prevent the settlers from getting into their territory.

As the days went on though, food was starting to become more scarce, the water was freezing, and it was starting to become unbearable with the minimal clothes that they did have.

The leader of the 8 was in front of the other soldiers about 2.5 miles ahead and chanting some powerful words, while holding up a large spear just in case any settlers wanted to get close to his soldiers at all; he was ready.

Behind the leader, were the 6 other soldier men and the last one, was the beautiful dragon.

The dragon was what the soldiers called the eyeball of the group, because she could see things way before the other soldier could and she'd have time to warn them before anything happened.

The men chanted along with the leader.

-

It's been strangely quiet the past few days and no sign of the enemies, but when the dragon looked around she noticed something moving in the distance. She quickly spit out a small flame of fire to warn the soldiers.

Everyone got eerily quiet.

They all froze and faced their backs towards one another creating a shape of a circle in the woods, their faces looking towards the forest so that every part of the woods was being watched.

Then there was the dragon.

She was on the outside of the circle, just in case she had to take any quick action to save the soldiers from danger.

The forest became so silent, you could hear all of their heartbeats, and some of them were holding their breaths completely.

The piercing wind scratched their skin to remind them of how alone they were in the acres of woods, and that danger was about to come.

The soldiers stood there with their weapons and started to chant their powerful chant out loud together starting to walk towards where the dragon’s attention was, prepared for complete battle.

It was pitch black at this point and the forest was now nothing but the glistening stars in the sky.

Out of nowhere there was a sound coming out of the darkness and coming closer to the soldiers.

It sounded like a young toddler running through the forest.

Little feet sounded like they were running around them and chirps of the toddler’s laugh were coming in and out. Sometimes sounding like the laugh was right next to them, and then 5 miles away from them.

“Don’t move” the leader demanded, all holding their breaths.

A few moments later a couple with matching brownie colored hair came running down towards the soldiers panicking or running out of breath, or both.

The couple looked like they were the settlers they were fighting off but needed help badly.

Almost immediately the couple ran up to the leader and asked in some foreign language if he could take the toddler, because they weren’t going to make it.

Just before the leader could reply, the couple vanished into the forest, into pieces, disintegrating to the sky.

The toddler looked up to the leader with his bright blue eyes and blew a bubble out of his mouth which floated into the air quietly.

The dragon was getting frustrated with their distractions on the toddler and responded huffed air out of her nose, to remind the soldiers to focus.

She grabbed the toddler gently with her mouth because it was the only way she could grab him and put him on a soft blanket that they had for any breaks during their long days.

Each solider looked at one another completely stunned of what to do next with the new little toddler in their group.

The silence was rudely interrupted by a group of about 8 of the settler men stampeding towards them from the West in perfect time, like the toddler was a planned distraction from them.

"CHARGE!" the settler leader roared.

One by one the 8 soldiers each grabbed onto one other settler man to fight off, leaving it to be a perfectly even fight, one man verses one man.

Approaching behind the settlers was a green boy dragon with big red eyes looking hauntingly ready to brawl.

He wanted her, the toddler and the soldier men dead, and she knew it.

She blew out a flame of fire towards the green dragon to push him away despite the devilish stare on his face that paralyzed her with terror. Immediately she picked up the toddler and put him in her safe pocket where he couldn't hurt him.

The green dragon fired back a stronger flame and worked his way getting dangerously closer to her.

She looked over to look at the men who were fighting and wondered why they got quieter.

Blood was dripping from their heads and bodies and their hearts fought to keep them alive as their lungs took their last breaths and the crows began to come for their surprise dinner.

It was her and the boy dragon left, and the little toddler in her pocket.

The boy dragon left his view of the bodies next to them and he grinned meeting with her eyes again.

His muscles flared up making him look 10 times bigger and his horns on his back perked up as he let out a big fire towards her, making it to the top of her left shoulder.

The aim of her shoulder seemed like maybe he was planning on harming her, but just enough to keep her alive and in pain.

Her reaction immediately made her cry out in pain and she grabbed a tree next to her with her mouth to rip it out of the ground and throw it at the green dragon.

Before she could make contact with the green dragon, he evaporated in front of her eyes into thin air, completely vanishing into dust.

She was completely alone.

The forest was silent again and her heart raced.

She had almost forgot about the toddler and checked her pocket. The toddler was looking back at her with a smile on his face, completely oblivious to what has just happened.

He waved at her and she waved back, resisting a smile back and fighting a tear rolling down her eyes.

She flew up into the air and started to go towards her cave to rest as her burnt shoulder felt like it had been carrying the 7 soldiers and more on it

She arrived at the cave and took the toddler out of her pocket and the little boy ran around ecstatic with joy to see the new place he was in and where his new journey would begin.

The dragon then collapsed on her bed made of rock and shut her eyes; resisting the future morning to come.

-

The next morning:

The sun was just starting to come up when the dragon was woken up by a splash of cold water in the face and she looked around seeing nothing but the little boy in front of her.

Her heart sank into her stomach and she picked up the little toddler and put him into his pocket.

She flew off into the distance and back to the tribe where her soldiers were from.

When she arrived the other soldiers had already received the news of the 7 soldiers all being killed, but they all gathered their things and were on their way to protect the woods as a tribe, together.

The dragon went up to the Queen of the village and handed her the little boy. The toddler raised his hands up waiting to be held towards the dragon with a big smile on his face.

The dragon looked back at the little boy and then flew away back into the cave where she felt home.

-

She sat onto the edge of the cliff where her cave was and looked watched the sun rise up to start another day.

She could hear and remember the sounds of her late little girl hatchling and imagined her running around her like she always loved to do. She hated these memories, but she loved them at the same time.

She could hear and feel the hatchling running around and being as happy as ever. It was so real to her, she questioned if it actually was sometimes.

Warmth filled her heart when she remembered the girl blowing her first spit of fire out, but then she felt a dull pain in her stomach remembering that that moment will never happen again.

The dragon fights tears coming down her face and picks up a rock below her with her mouth and throws it at the cave wall where her hatchling slept at night. Her heart sunk more as she remembered her hatchling snoring right there when she was still alive.

“Mom, blow the fire!” her little hatchling would chirp to her in a little voice, and then she would blow out the fire and the little hatchling would spring in joy.

“You’re STRONG!” The hatchling shouted.

The 2 of them would snuggle in each other’s wings and remind each other how much they loved each other, because a bond between and mother dragon and her hatchling was the strongest ever, she would tell the little one.

“What if something happens in the war and you’re gone forever?” The hatchling would ask the mother dragon.

The mother dragon explained to the little one to not think that way and nothing would ever happen, but if it happened to be, she would find her way back to the little one again.

The mother dragon stared down at her stomach and felt the fire of life fading away every minute that went by. She would do anything to see her little hatchling again, she thought to herself.

-

A few moments later into thinking this thought, an old woman from the village interrupted and knocked on a rock near her to get her attention.

This older lady was the only person in the village who could effectively communicate with the mother dragon because she just had a secret skill no one else knew how to do; connect with nature.

Caught off guard, the mother dragon spit out a fire in the direction of the knocker and burnt the top of the woman’s hair slightly.

The older woman laughed it off and patted her head before it got to be anything more serious or damaging.

Mother dragon didn’t move or even look at the older woman. She was sorry, but she knew the older woman knew she didn't mean to do that.

The older woman made her way into the cave and sat next to the dragon. She put her hand on the dragon's cheek to wipe away a dried tear that was released maybe a few hours ago.

The older woman started to chant these warm and comforting words to the dragon to comfort her.

Warmth filled the atmosphere, but the mother dragon still felt a pierce in her heart where her little hatchling left her.

When the mother dragon was dosing off finally, the older woman took out a hand full of rocks with drawings on them from her pocket and put them on the dirt ground below them.

She started humming more words while looking up to the sky and raising her hand over each rock, stopping at the one with a phoenix on it, and then one with a little girl wearing a pink bow on it.

The grandma paused looking at the tired dragon and hummed some more words.

She raised her hands over the rocks and stopped on top of a rock with the number '1' on it.

She looked back at the mother dragon and gave her a hug, feeling the breath slowing down on the dragon.

The older woman was worried, but she knew she didn't have to be too worried.

Holding her wing, the grandma poured cool water on the dragon’s head, and then gathered some sticks to build the dragon a fire.

She woman was chanting “fire fire fire” as she built it. Just a few moments later, the fire was enormous and warmed both of their souls.

The woman stood at the edge of the cliff and stared back at the dragon, as they met eyes and she looked up to the sky shouting a big scream coming from her diaphragm. She moved her hand in a direction towards the sky to indicate to the dragon to do the same.

The dragon, without moving did a slight shout to the sky, but it barely came out.

The older woman chuckled a little and did it again but a little louder on her end this time, to encourage the dragon to try again.

The dragon smiled very little and tried again, this time a little louder.

She was going to try again but then she was stopped when she felt a small hand next to her which was the little toddler boy from the forest.

She jumped, ready to react because she wanted to be alone and not around children when the older woman held her hand and told her, “relax, you already know him”.

The dragon’s eyes widened and she looked at the little boy confused.

The little boy looked back at her with the fire glistening in his eyes, reminding her of the generous warmth it brings everyone when it’s burning.

While the dragon was thinking this, about 6 feet away was the older woman and she laid down a row of lava rocks and spread the fire amongst them, spreading it very fast.

She took her moccasins off and started to take one step at a time on top of the hot lava stones beneath her.

If no one knew they were lava rocks on fire, no one would ever know how hot they were as the older woman walked on them with so much calm, it was astounding to everyone who could see it.

-

The village tribe started to trickle in from behind them, one by one. The dragon noticed that everyone was holding each other’s hands and chanting together.

One village member looked at the dragon and came out with a fake stuffed phoenix bird in her hands, explaining how she’s had it her entire life.

She gently put the stuffed phoenix bird into the fire and the village watched it burn away into the Universe.

The little boy ran around the fire dancing as if life were this amazing light of life. The joy from the toddler was extremely contagious and the other village members started to dance too.

The stuffed phoenix was burning along with them as it burned down to nothing but ashes. Everyone stopped and bowed down onto their knees as it became silent again.

The older woman pulled a rock out of her pocket that had a circle drawn on it and put it into the fire, with each and every one of the villagers taking their turns spitting into the fire one at a time.

The bird was starting to gain life and become a real bird, starting to rise up one feather at a time.

Everyone watched with awe as the little boy who was originally dancing around the fire, took the bird into his palms and they both started to rise up in the air.

They both looked back at the dragon, as they flew to the sky.

“Forever and eternity. We will forever be one. As long as we remember to rise from our ashes and to love. I’m still here. We are one. Look at the clues and I am not far at all". They both sung.

The little boy and the bird left behind a few strands of fire on the ground for the tribe to dance around and chant together.

"Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye" they all sung aloud.