When We Were Dragons

by Brandon Berntson

  There were trees here, but they were frozen. I didn’t know how there could be frozen trees, or how they could live, but I didn’t feel like talking about it.

  We came to a rocky canyon and entered a large icy cave. It was very dark inside, and I couldn’t see anything. I didn’t want to go in there because it scared me.

  “I can’t see anything,” I said.

  “I can see well enough for both of us,” Lane said.

  Her voice sounded weird in the cave, hollow. I didn’t want to let go of her hand in case I got lost in the dark. We walked for a long time. It seemed to take forever. I slipped and almost fell several times because the path was uneven, but Lane kept a hold of my hand and didn’t let go.

  After a while, I noticed a light up ahead, a yellow light, like Lane’s eyes. I could see how big the cave was now. It smelled funny, and it was cold, but at least it was out of the wind. The walls of the cave shimmered with bright red and blue crystals. Sparkles shined everywhere. They looked like rubies and sapphires. When we came to the light, I saw it was a giant person lying on his back. He was huge, a giant, the size of a football field, and he was made of gems and diamonds of all kinds. Light was shining in all directions.

  “That’s Cerras,” Lane told me, whispering, as if afraid she’d wake him up.

  Sparkles, shimmers of every color seemed to bounce off the walls of the cave. Silver lights, blue lights, red lights, and yellow. I wondered how something this beautiful could be evil, and suddenly, I didn’t think it was.

  I looked at Lane. She didn’t look at me. I saw the reflection of light bouncing and swirling through her yellow eyes.

  Then I was scared, because the shadowy thing outside my window earlier was here again, although, I couldn’t see it. What had Lane called it: Latress? Yes. He was here now.

  I felt the shadow move through me. It was at the back of my head, creeping up my neck, moving around me like smoke. I couldn’t see very well for a second. It was moving in and around my brain like it was in my thoughts, and it was making me think terrible, dark things.

  The light in the cave from the giant wasn’t as bright suddenly. Black spots moved in and out in front of my eyes. I was blind. I couldn’t see Lane or Cerras, only the smoky, shadowy blackness.

  “You’re magical, Charlie,” Lane said. “Do you realize that? You’re very magical, and I need you to help me.”

  I was losing my balance. Wavering, like Dad gets sometimes at Christmas when he makes those drinks for himself. He calls it, Caca-cola. Not for little boys. I don’t know why he’d want to drink something called, Caca-cola to begin with. Maybe it’s a Christmas thing.

  “I want you to lift the Eye out of Cerras, Charlie,” Lane said. And suddenly, the blackness was gone. Just like that. I could see everything in the cave again, the shimmering giant made of colored diamonds. “Climb up onto his face and lift out his Eye for me, Charlie. You can do that, okay?”

  That seemed like a stupid thing to do. Lift out his Eye? Won’t that blind him, make him wake up? I would wake up if someone were crawling on my face, trying to pluck out my eye.

  “Lift out his Eye, Charlie. Will you do that for me? And if you do, I’ll give you something special, okay? Anything you want. Just name it. All you have to do is lift out his Eye.”

  I didn’t really care about anything like that. I just didn’t want to lift out Cerras’ Eye. What if he woke up and found me sitting on his face? What if he squashed me like a bug?

  And honestly, I thought Cerras was beautiful, and I didn’t want to hurt him.

  “Don’t be scared, Charlie,” Lane said. “Cerras is dead, remember? He won’t miss it. He won’t bite.”

  “I don’t want to,” I said.

  Lane sighed. I was making her mad. I could see that. She turned, kneeled down, and put her hands on my shoulders. I still couldn’t believe how pretty she was.

  “Charlie,” she said. “I have to tell you this. Okay? So, listen. Listen carefully. Worlds are going to collide. This is not supposed to happen. People are going to die. Lots and lots and lots of people. People from two worlds. This is the only way you can prevent that from happening. The Eyes of Cerras are very powerful. Only they’re really stars. They can put things back together again. You’ll be saving lives, Charlie. You’ll be saving two worlds and all of those lives. You’ll be a hero. But I can’t do it by myself because I’m not magical. But you can, Charlie. You can because you are magical. Do you understand that?”

  I looked at the massive Sleeping God and nodded. If it was to save lives, then I would do it. I didn’t care about being a hero, but I didn’t want anybody to get hurt, either.

  “Okay,” I said, and Lane smiled.

  She stood up and looked at Cerras. “Good boy,” she said.

  I walked over to the sleeping giant, the dead giant, whatever he was. His huge arm lay alongside his body. I walked over, grabbing hold of some of the shimmering diamonds and climbed up until I was on his stomach. The diamonds were very sharp, and I had to be careful grabbing them. One cut my palm, but I didn’t want to cry or act like a baby, in case it made Lane angry. So, I made it onto Cerras’ stomach and walked slowly across his chest. I climbed up onto his chin, past Cerras’ nose, and stopped at his huge eyeball. But it was already open. His eyes weren’t closed, and I thought he was already awake. But I remember Mom telling me once that some people can sleep with their eyes open. Jody does it sometimes, which is kinda creepy, and I thought that’s what Cerras must be doing now.

  All of a sudden, I was wearing a magician’s cape and a top hat. So, I knew I must be dreaming, and if this was a dream, then what difference did it make? I would wake up, and everything would go back to normal.

  I looked into Cerras’ Eye. It glowed with a silvery, red light, like a huge red diamond. I bent down and put my hands on each side of it. A loud hum moved through my body. It filled my ears, and suddenly my head started to hurt, like bad music and vibrations at the same time. Something happened when I touched it. I changed, and I felt something change inside of me, making me different, but I didn’t know what it was.

  The Eye lifted out easily. It was heavy, but not heavy enough I couldn’t carry it. It was as if the power of it had helped me lift it out, made it lighter for me to carry. It was so bright, I saw it change my skin into the same reddish, silvery color.

  Suddenly, silvery red lights bounced everywhere off the cave walls. I closed my eyes because it hurt to look at. I held the Eye out in front of me, and turned my face from the light.

  After a while, it darkened, and I opened my eyes. I climbed down off Cerras, holding the Eye. It was hard to do, and I was afraid I might stumble and drop it, shattering it into a million pieces.

  I walked over to Lane and handed it to her. She took it, but she seemed scared for a minute, like it was going to bite her or something.

  For a second, a chuckling sounded in my head, and then it was all around me. It was Latress, and he was laughing. But I didn’t know why.

  Lane finally took the Eye and smiled. Her eyes were glowing.

  Then I saw it, a shadowy specter, the slight outline of a man’s face, whispering into Lane’s ear as she held the Eye of Cerras. A black feeling hung in the air again, as if the shadow were expanding. It turned toward me, and for a second, I thought I could see its face. Two red eyes stared into mine, and I could feel its hate for me. It scared me, and I went cold all over. I wonder what I had done, but suddenly the figure disappeared, and it was just me and Lane in the darkness of the cave again.

  The ground started to rumble at my feet, an earthquake, I realized. The cave walls shook. Cerras began to shine again with a brilliant array of colored lights. Lasers bounced off the walls of the cave.

  Lane smiled at me. “You did well, Charlie,” she said. But there was something in her eyes. It scared me, something I didn’t like. “You did very well.”

  That’s when the collision started, I think. Dad was gone. The snow disappeared.

  And,
from what I remembered, I was different; everything was different, but at least Lane and her shadow would leave me alone now. I could go back to school and do the things I wanted to, playing magic tricks and stuff.

  But then the dragons came. They were everywhere, and the world had changed.

  It was a dream, I told myself. Yet, it wasn’t. Life had changed forever, and things would never be the same. The only thing I knew was that it wasn’t a dream, and I was scared because I knew Lane had lied to me. That Cerras wasn’t evil at all, and that she was going to use the Eye for something bad, something awful.

  But the something that was different about me tingled all over. I could feel it. The magic I used to perform wasn’t just an illusion anymore.

  It was real.

  7.

  Cerras

  The Giant God, Cerras, walked in silence, surveying the land. He was a mighty god, a benevolent god, a god of imagination and wonder. From across the span of space and time, he had come into existence by the ones before him: the light of suns, the light of moons, and the light of stars and fire. He had given birth to Paramis, just as he’d given birth to other worlds. He created massive ice cliffs, towering crags, deep oceans, and endless skies.

  In the land, he created men, women, and Old Ones. From fire, he forged the first dragons. They were protectors, guiding sentient beings, warding off darkness and evil in all its guises. Dragons were made to keep the land pure, for Cerras so loved the land and those he gave life to, that he gave his own life and all he loved for them. He loved the trees and the mountains, the rivers, the deep oceans, and as he walked along, under the stars in the stillness of the night, he looked upon all he’d created with joy.

  But soon, Cerras would be sleeping, and he would dream of bringing many worlds together, mixing the old with the new. There would be losses. There would be catastrophe…because even he was bound by laws. And that law was duality. There could be no light without the darkness. There could be no joy without sorrow. Still, there was a pattern to it all that he was weaving through his creation. There would be tears aplenty, but he would also give birth to a new race of beings, new life, new magic, and he would watch it all come together in perfect symmetry. As he slept, he would see all this taking shape. That would be the source of his dreams. History would be made while Cerras slept on.

  But there was another…a brother born from centuries of age-old hate and evil, where only lightlessness and emptiness existed. Marrick was a god very much Cerras’ equal, born from darkness, gluttony, and with a lust for power. His influence would spread wide in the minds of men as corruption, and he would seek power and dominion over all, spreading his black arms across the land of Paramis and other worlds.

  The time would come, however, when they would war, locked arm in arm, until one of them should fall. In that, the fate of many worlds would be decided.

  But Cerras had an idea. If worlds could come together, and if men and dragons could live in peace, then Light would reign, and Heaven would descend to all worlds. For, in the Eyes of Cerras, there was only unity.

  Until that time, he would wander the lands, breathing life here and there into the rocks, the trees, the ground, the soil, the ice cliffs, and the stars. The first of men, dragons, and Old Ones would appear, and Cerras would leave traces of himself behind for his children to follow…mysteries to solve. He would wait for the time to battle his brother, ending the evil influence once and for all, where men, women, dragons, and the Old Ones could live in peace, and all would be well…not just with Paramis, but with many worlds.

  Cerras stared up into the night sky, gazing at the stars he had made. He would miss his world as he slept, but as it was, he ran his jeweled hand across massive ice cliffs, continuing to breathe life into the land.

  Soon, he would look for a place to sleep, for he was tired, and Cerras—now that he had created many worlds—longed to dream of a time when all his worlds came together, all races of people, dragons, mortals, and Old Ones, making them One.

  8.

  Pandemonium in the Land of Magma

  After another week, we finally received word from Dilla-dale. A knock sounded at the door, and I got up to answer it. Dilla-dale looked as if he hadn’t slept in a while. Dark circles surrounded his eyes. His hair was mussed, as if he’d been constantly running his hand through it. Granger and Preston were with him. Behind them, Cullen, Lila, and Louis, stood like colorful dragon bodyguards. Charlie, Mellicent, and Jody were sitting on the couch with Holly. Karen stood just behind me.

  “Any news?” Karen asked.

  Dilla-dale looked pained. “Plenty of news,” he said. “And none of it good.”

  “What’s the matter?” I asked.

  Dilla-dale looked at each of us in turn. “There’s a war to the north. I’m afraid the moment is at hand.”

  I looked at Karen.

  “What’s happening?” I asked, turning back to Dilla-dale.

  “Lane’s authority. Villages, towns, houses.” He shook his head. “Everything. It’s all going up in flames. She’s convinced everyone that we’re the reason the collision happened, and that we’re trying to drive them off their own planet. She’s turning dragons against men, and men against dragons. Lane and Tor-Latress have used the Eye of Cerras to influence the minds of both. The war is moving this way. I came to warn you. We may have to relocate…or…”

  “Or what?” Karen asked.

  “Or fight, I’m afraid,” Dilla-dale said. “Tor-Latress guides her every move. I think Lane is orchestrating the destruction. Lila says she felt Lane’s influence nearby. We could lose everything. So, I suggest we get moving, get the neighborhood relocated, and find Lane as quickly as possible.”

  Granger shook his head, seemingly ashamed, as though all of this were his fault.

  “I never thought I’d have to deal with this kind of thing before, not in politics, but…” Preston said. “We decided to put Dilla-dale in charge and one called Murrochoe.”

  “Murrochoe is here then?” I asked.

  Dilla-dale nodded. “He’s helping, but he’s old, Justin. I’ve been going to him for counsel. We have to get the Eye and return it to Cerras.”

  “Won’t that cause more destruction?”

  Dilla-dale shrugged. “Cerras is powerful. He is a god. No one can predict what his magic means, what his intentions are. It’s the only chance we have.”

  “So, what do you want us to do?”

  “Relocate Holly and the kids for now,” Dilla-dale said. “Get them someplace safe. The battle is moving this way. After you’re done, I want you and Karen to come with us. I think Lane is closer than we realize. She’s trying to absorb the power of the Eye, ingest it somehow, and I think she will try to destroy Cerras forever.”

  “We’ll get things moving right away,” Karen said, nodding.

  “Good,” Dilla-dale said. “Meet us at the park where we held the meeting.”

  I nodded and looked at Holly. She and the kids looked frightened, and she gathered them to her, putting her arms around them.

  I cursed Lane. Nothing would please me more than wrapping my fiery hands around her supple, green throat.

  Dilla-dale said goodbye, and they left. Karen and I got some clothes, food, supplies, and prepared to relocate Holly and the kids. We’d only been here for just over a week, and already, we had to move the entire neighborhood. I took a deep breath and steeled my heart against the dangers before us.

  ~

  Kids have a way of putting aside their difficulties for new experiences, and they were doing so now as we flew through the skies. Charlie, Mellicent, and Jody were all laughing as we soared above the Colorado towns. In my talons, I carried everything I could: food, clothes, and other belongings I thought they’d need for the next couple of days. Charlie rode on my back with Mellicent, while Jody and Holly rode on Karen. Under other circumstances, it might’ve been a more enjoyable flight, but this was no time for fun and games, despite Charlie’s laughter. I don’t think he realize
d the extent of the danger we were in—or if he did, he was choosing a different approach. I thought about Carl, and wondered what he’d think of his wife and kids flying over town on the backs of dragons.

  We found a small, abandoned cabin for Holly and the kids to the west, near the foot of the mountains. It was still furnished. Two bedrooms, two beds, one in each room, but I figured they could share, and it was only temporary.

  We got Holly and her children situated in their rustic, country home, but I was reluctant to leave. After all the fun we’d had—the surprise with Charlie and his obvious magic—everything felt so final now. I could smell fire on the horizon, and something else I didn’t want to think about.

  “Justin,” Holly said, looking up at me. There were tears in her eyes. “Please be careful. And promise you’ll come back. Okay?” She paused, looking frustrated, and bit her lower lip. “I wish there was something I could do. I feel so stupid, so…helpless.”

  “I think the best thing you can do is stay here where it’s safe,” I said. “This will be over soon enough, and we’ll be back. I promise.”

  “Do you think we’ll really be okay?” Mellicent said. She had tears in her eyes.

  It was the first sign of doubt I’d seen, and the seriousness of the situation throttled me. These were just kids, but who was I to lie to them, give them a false sense of hope?

  Still, her emotion surprised me. I wanted to stay behind, to watch and protect them. The last thing I wanted was to face Lane. It wasn’t cowardice. I simply cared more for the welfare of Holly and her children. I didn’t want them out of my sight.

  They were genuinely concerned, and they had every right to be. I understood. I wondered if we would ever see each other again, and cursed myself for my lack of faith. What were the chances that Paramis and Earth could live side by side as the planet without war? I had my doubts, of course, especially with Lane, and she had the Eye of Cerras.