Snowden the White Dragon

by Raymond L. Weil

  It was a lot cooler up here on the mountain than down below in the valley. Already, some of the trees up here were turning and starting to lose their leaves. Ashley suspected the temperatures on the mountain had by now dropped below freezing several times. She definitely didn’t want to be stranded on the mountain after dark; it was a difficult enough hike in the daylight. She hated to think what it would be like at night. Looking toward the west, she could see some dark storm clouds forming. There had been nothing there when she had started up the slope of the mountain.

  Scrambling the last few feet up the slope, she came to a stop at the entrance to the cave. For a moment, she stood there catching her breath. It was a long and hard climb up to the caves. Several times, she had stumbled on loose stones and rocks, nearly losing her footing. Stepping inside, she glanced at the clear crystal amulet set into the wall. She still couldn’t get over its size. She walked over to the amulet and, reaching out, touched it softly with the fingers of her right hand. It seemed to vibrate slightly underneath her touch and lit up with a dim glow.

  Stepping back away from the amulet, Ashley reached into her small backpack and removed a glow bulb. Her father had several of the precious artifacts from the Golden Age in his study, and Ashley hoped she could get this one back before he missed it. Taking a deep breath, she slowly cast the spell she had found in the back of the sorcery book, which was needed to feed the small sphere the energy it needed to produce light. After a few moments, the globe lit up with a flickering of spectral light that gradually brightened until it lit up Ashley’s surroundings.

  Well, I’m here, she thought. I hope this wasn’t a mistake.

  “It is not,” a friendly voice spoke into her mind. “You will understand shortly.”

  This was the first time the dragon had spoken to her since she had started her ascent of the mountain. She was relieved to find the dragon was expecting her and sounded friendly.

  Ashley slowly walked down the center of the long tunnel. Someday, when she had more time, she would like to search more of the cave to see if there was any evidence of their ancestors ever having lived here. She had no idea how far back into the mountain the cave went. It was cooler in this section of the cave, and Ashley was glad she was wearing a heavy jacket.

  After a few more minutes of walking, she found the entrance to Snowden’s lair. Well, here goes nothing, she thought. Ashley stepped into the cavern and came to a stop. A fully awake dragon was standing there with its bright, yellow eyes gazing at her. It also seemed to be warmer in the cavern.

  “Hello,” stammered Ashley, not sure what to say. How do you talk to a dragon?

  Snowden continued to stare at her for a long moment as if judging her innermost self. Then the dragon sat back down. “I am Snowden, and we have much to talk about.”

  Fortifying herself, Ashley walked over until she was standing directly in front of the dragon. If she wanted to, she could have reached out and touched Snowden. Standing that close to the dragon, Ashley realized just how large it was. The dragon towered over her.

  Gazing up into Snowden’s eyes, she asked, “Why am I here?”

  Snowden looked deeply into the young woman’s eyes. For the first time in many long years, he hoped that, finally, he had found a friend.

  “You wish to learn how to use the powers of sorcery?” Snowden asked in Ashley’s mind.

  Snowden had to choose his words very carefully. Dragons spoke to each other by projecting pictures of what they wanted, not actual spoken words. It had taken Snowden centuries until he could actually send his thoughts so humans could understand them. Even now, he still struggled to choose the right words to convey his meaning.

  Ashley was quiet for a moment. How did the dragon know about her sorcery abilities? Gazing at Snowden, she noticed that he wasn’t really pure white. His wings had a slight, almost golden, tinge to them.

  “Yes,” replied Ashley, taking off her small pack and laying the glow bulb down on top of it. She also removed her heavy jacket. “I have a book that teaches me the spells, and then I practice using them.”

  Snowden took a moment to make sure he fully understood. Under the great mountain, Cathy had used books to learn sorcery. He still felt sadness any time he thought of his first true friend, but he knew that he would see Cathy again. He didn’t understand it, but he knew that Cathy was still sleeping beneath the great mountain and would someday awake.

  “You will be very powerful, someday.”

  Ashley opened her eyes wide in surprise. “What do you mean? The members of my family are not very powerful sorcerers. We never have been.”

  Snowden was quiet for a full minute as he formulated his answer. “The full powers of your ancestors have chosen you in which to manifest themselves.”

  Ashley realized that Snowden was speaking both in words and in pictures. Her mind was interpreting what he was trying to say by filling in many of the words. She realized the dragon’s words were very simple, but the pictures and concepts that went with them were much more complex.

  “Can you help me learn to control these powers?” Ashley asked, still unsure about what the dragon was saying or even if she had understood correctly.

  “Yes,” Snowden replied. “I had a very powerful friend once that knew how to control these powers. I can show you what she knew.”

  “How?” asked Ashley, feeling even more confused. How could a dragon teach her sorcery?

  “Like this,” Snowden answered.

  Ashley felt Snowden’s presence in her mind suddenly grow. Her head seemed to fill with intense pain. She felt herself grow dizzy, and then everything went black.

  -

  Ashley woke up and struggled to sit back up. Her head was throbbing with a powerful headache. Her mouth felt parched as if she had gone for a considerable length of time without water. What had the dragon done to her? The last thing she could remember was that the dragon was going to teach her sorcery. She then noticed she was sitting in darkness.

  “Snowden?” asked Ashley, hesitantly.

  “Yes,” the reply came gently and apologetically into her mind.

  Ashley realized that the glow bulb was out. She reached out, searching for her pack, and once she had located it, she found the bulb. As soon as she touched it, the bulb began to glow and soon lit with a radiance much brighter than before.

  “How did that happen?” asked Ashley surprised. She hadn’t done the necessary spell, yet the bulb was glowing.

  “Some of the simpler spells you can now do without creating the patterns,” responded Snowden, sounding pleased with himself. “Just thinking about what you want will make it happen. The spells for light, fire, wind, and a few others will work that way. I remember these spells from Cathy and have placed them in your mind.”

  “Who is this Cathy you keep mentioning?” asked Ashley, looking up at the dragon.

  Her headache was finally beginning to fade. She reached for her canteen of water and, after removing the lid, took a deep drink. After gulping down the water, her throat felt much better. She took another, smaller drink then put her canteen back next to her pack. Unwrapping some bread and cheese she had packed in case she got hungry, she quickly finished it off. For some reason, she felt famished.

  “Cathy was my friend beneath the great mountain,” Snowden replied.

  “That’s where the sorcerers of long ago created the dragons,” stated Ashley, trying to piece all of this together. She picked up her canteen and took another deep drink.

  “Yes,” Snowden replied with a hint of sadness. “After the great burning, or Worldfire as you call it occurred, the dragons left the great mountain.”

  “You were there during the Worldfire?” asked Ashley, realizing just how old the dragon was. The Worldfire had occurred several thousand years ago.

  “Yes,” Snowden replied. “We were sick and had to leave. Cathy had to stay behind. She is still sleeping beneath the mountain.”

  Much of this Ashley didn’t understand. What she did
know was that she needed to get back home, and soon.

  “It’s dark outside,” Snowden spoke. “You were unconscious for a long time as your young mind assimilated the spells and instructions for using sorcery that I gave you. I did not realize you would lose consciousness. I am sorry.”

  It suddenly dawned on Ashley that her mind was full of new knowledge about sorcery. She was amazed as she realized what was there. “Where did you get all of this?” She felt astonished as she realized what all Snowden had put into her mind.

  “From Cathy,” Snowden responded. “I got it from her mind and just put it into yours. Not everything, but enough to begin with.”

  Ashley let out a heavy sigh; she was going to be in a lot of trouble when she got back home. She also knew it wouldn’t be safe to try to get back down the mountain in the dark. There was no other choice but to spend the night in Snowden’s lair. Tomorrow wouldn’t be a good day once she got back home. Her family would be extremely upset with her, particularly her father.

  For several hours, she spoke with Snowden. Ashley would ask a question and Snowden would answer by projecting images and words into her head.

  Ashley finally lay down to try to sleep at Snowden’s insistence. He said she would understand everything better when she awoke in the morning. That sleep would allow the memories he had given her to better acclimate with her own memories and knowledge.

  -

  Ashley woke early in the morning; she had slept surprisingly well. Concentrating, a flicker of light appeared in the glow bulb and rapidly grew into a bright light. Ashley was surprised to see the dragon lying on the floor of the small cavern next to her. Snowden looked remarkably harmless when he was sleeping.

  Snowden’s eyes flicked open, and he looked over at Ashley. “Hello.”

  Ashley stood up, knowing she needed to start for home immediately. There was no doubt in her mind that her father would be out looking for her. She didn’t even want to think about the trouble she was going to be in.

  “What do you remember?” Snowden asked, his yellow eyes looking inquisitively at Ashley.

  “Sorcery,” Ashley murmured, amazed at all the knowledge that was in her mind. There were spells, explanations of different types of sorcery, and a basic knowledge of just what sorcery was and how it worked. “This is all amazing. Do you understand all of this?” Ashley looked at Snowden, wondering how the dragon could have all this fabulous knowledge.

  “No,” Snowden said haltingly in Ashley’s mind. “This is Cathy’s knowledge. I do not understand it. It should be helpful to you. It was to Cathy.”

  “Thank you, Snowden,” spoke Ashley, stepping forward and touching the dragon on his neck. She was amazed at how warm the dragon felt.

  “You should go. Your family will be worried.”

  Ashley nodded. “Yes, my father is probably hunting for me.”

  She quickly gathered her pack together and stepped out of the cavern. Holding the glow bulb in her right hand, she glanced back at Snowden and smiled, knowing she had made a new friend. Taking a deep breath, she turned and hurried down the tunnel.

  Snowden watched Ashley’s retreating figure. He felt happy and content. He had made a friend, the first one in a long time. Closing his eyes, Snowden lay back down to sleep. He knew if his new friend needed him, she would call.

  It took Ashley a while to make her way back down the mountain. She found Spirit still tied up where she had left him. Sighing with relief, she quickly mounted up. She rode over to a small stream so Spirit could get a drink of fresh water. As she waited, she thought about all the amazing things she had learned from Snowden. She knew it would be days before she fully understood all of the knowledge the dragon had given her. Everything around her seemed so much clearer, almost as if she was looking at the world from a totally new and different perspective.

  Ashley was nearly home when she heard someone shout her name. Turning in her saddle, Ashley saw her father and brother riding toward her. Pulling back on her reins, she took a deep breath. Reaching forward, she patted Spirit on his neck as she waited. She wished she could avoid this conversation with her father.

  Her father reined his horse up next to Ashley with a flustered look upon his face. “Where have you been? We’ve been looking for you all morning!” he demanded.

  He could see that Ashley didn’t look injured. He just couldn’t believe she had stayed out the entire night worrying them so. Katrina had been at her wits end with concern about their daughter. Stephen and he had left the farm at first light, searching for Ashley.

  “A fox frightened my horse,” replied Ashley, knowing her father was extremely upset. She could see that from his demeanor. “Spirit threw me and took off. It was almost dark when I finally found him, so I just camped out for the night. I’m sorry if I worried you; I didn’t mean to.”

  Harmon shook his head in disbelief. “You should have come home anyway. There was a full moon out last night.”

  “I know,” Ashley responded uneasily. This was much harder than she had imagined. “But I was so sore from being thrown that I just couldn’t do it. I knew I would feel better this morning.”

  “Mom is really worried, Ashley,” interjected Stephen, feeling angry with his sister for upsetting their parents so much. “She was crying earlier.”

  Ashley really felt bad now. She hated upsetting her parents. “I’m sorry; there just wasn’t anything I could do.”

  “Well, let’s go home,” said her father, shaking his head. He was relieved that Ashley seemed to be unharmed, but he was still aggravated about the stress she had caused Katrina. “Your mother will be relieved to see you’re okay. We can discuss this later.”

  Ashley fell in with her father and brother and started riding back toward the farm. She knew she was in a lot of trouble. But she couldn’t tell them the truth. They must not find out about Snowden and the sorcery the dragon had shown her, at least not yet.

  -

  As soon as they rode into the yard, Ashley’s mother came out of the house. She ran to the horses, grabbing Ashley as soon as she dismounted and hugged her tightly in her arms.

  “What happened?” Katrina demanded with tears in her eyes. “I was so worried.”

  “My horse got spooked, and I fell off,” replied Ashley, hating the need to lie to her mother. “It got too dark to come home, so I just camped out until the sun came up. I’m sorry mother. Please forgive me.”

  “Of course I forgive you,” replied Katrina, wiping the tears from her eyes. The important thing is you’re back home and not hurt. Now let’s get you inside and cleaned up. I’ll fix you something to eat. You must be starving!”

  Harmon started to say something else, but a don’t you dare look from his wife silenced him. Motioning to Stephen, they dismounted and gathering up the reins of the three horses started toward the barn.

  -

  After eating a good meal, Ashley retired to her room. She told her mother she needed to rest and that she was still sore from falling from her horse. Lying down on her bed, she thought about what she had learned from Snowden. Closing her eyes, she went over some of the spells and knowledge the dragon had given her.

  What surprised her the most was some of the basic information about how to enact a sorcery spell. Just the knowledge of why the hand gestures were needed and some of the words that had to be spoken was invaluable. The dragon had all of this in his mind and didn’t understand it.

  Thinking back, she realized that Snowden didn’t actually speak a lot of words. It was mostly symbols and concepts, which her mind translated into understandable words. This girl, Cathy, who the dragon always spoke of, had taught Snowden how to do this.

  There was no doubt in Ashley’s mind that this young woman had been a truly powerful sorceress. This brought up another point. What did Snowden mean when he had told her that she was powerful? She didn’t see how that could be true. No one in her family for many generations had been what could be considered a powerful sorcerer. Not like those her
father spoke of that had existed in the remote past.

  She was also highly excited about trying out some of the new spells the dragon had given her. Wouldn’t it be exciting to be able to show Todd Sorenson someday that she was a sorceress! She was the first sorceress in this valley since the early generations when their ancestors had first arrived in the secluded valley.

  Ashley yawned and realized she was extremely tired. She felt herself slowly drifting off to sleep. Thank you, Snowden; she thought sleepily not expecting an answer.

  “Go to sleep.”

  In moments, Ashley was sound asleep.

  In the kitchen, her mother and father were talking in quiet voices about Ashley’s little adventure the previous night. Both had the feeling their daughter wasn’t being entirely truthful.

  Rising from the kitchen table, Harmon walked over to the door and stepped outside. Looking toward the south, his eyes focused on Beaver Mountain. The snow capped summit seemed to have a larger covering of snow than just a few days ago. Shortly it would be winter.

  Harmon let his gaze wander down the mountain until it rested on where he knew the cave entrance was to Snowden’s lair. He had a suspicion that Ashley’s disappearance had something to do with the dragon. He didn’t believe the fox story. That might also explain why his sorcery hadn’t been able to locate his daughter earlier. If she had been on the mountain or close to it, his sorcery wouldn’t have reached that far. He wondered if it had been a mistake for him to take Ashley to the dragon’s cave. He hoped not; there was still much he hadn’t told Ashley.

  With a heavy sigh, Harmon started walking toward the barn. He had to go over to one of their neighbors and help dig a new water well. He would use his sorcery to locate the best place for the well, and then use a simple spell to make the digging easier. As he began to saddle his horse, Harmon prayed that Ashley knew what she was doing. If it did indeed involve the dragon, she had chosen a very dangerous path to take. A few minutes later, Harmon rode out of the yard. He would worry about Ashley later. For now, he had sorcery work that needed to be done.