Snapdragon Book II: In the Land of the Dragon

by Brandon Berntson

  Days passed, and they continued across barren hills of rock. Eventually, the ground descended into forests again, much to everyone’s relief, and their trek through the snow became lighter. Pine, spruce, and aspen trees surrounded them. With the forests, they were able to set up the tents and make fires again. Eddie recuperated, the color returning to his face. The worst of his illness seemed to have passed.

  As the days waned, they grew increasingly anxious. They did not talk as much on their journey homewards. From morning until night, they continued to trek over and through endless mountain ranges, setting up camp, hunting for food, and retiring early to get a good start the next morning.

  The wind and the snow lashed at their faces. At times, they grew disheartened as the mountainous terrain unfolded without a single sign of home, only more trees and rolling hills over the next ridge.

  Albert had managed to trap two jackrabbits, and one night over a fire, they enjoyed a hot meal again, which seemed to lift everyone’s spirits. But that was the last of their food, and during the bleak, winter days that followed, they went without eating anything at all.

  But early one morning, weeks after Ben had taken Kinsey, the land dipped—much to the boys’ surprise—into foothills. The ground spread wide into quiet, open meadows, and the last of the hills were behind them.

  Seth thought it a trick, some last ruse from the Dragon to betray them. But it wasn’t, and he stood for a long time with tears in his eyes.

  The sky was gray, the trees dead, the meadow buried in snow.

  Malcolm stopped and surveyed the countryside. Albert, Eddie, and Seth looked his way. The sight before them was a familiar one.

  “I don’t believe it,” Malcolm said, his voice thick.

  Tiny structures of houses were visible in the distance.

  “I don’t believe it,” he said, again.

  The stretch across the meadow seemed longer now than ever before. Fatigue hit them all at once. Nothing sounded better than home, a hot meal, a warm, cozy bed to sleep in. Ellishome, despite the silence, had never looked so welcome or so inviting.

  Albert shook his head. “I never thought I’d see it again.”

  “Do you think our parents will be glad to see us?” Seth asked. His own emotion surprised him. What he was looking at was more beautiful than any palace could ever be.

  Wind gusted, his black cloak billowing behind him.

  Eddie laughed. “Onward, Children of Israel,” he said.

  The phrase had a funny effect. Seth never thought of himself as religious, but it fit perfectly.

  “Shall we go?” Malcolm asked.

  Seth took a minute to look behind him, something he seemed to be doing a lot lately, scanning the hills, the towering crags he’d always wondered about…the secrets they held. He knew those secrets now.

  Seth turned and smiled, his friends’ faces wind-lashed and raw, hair dirty and matted. They’d never seemed to belong to the land of Ben and the Dragon, and looking at them now, they seemed unfit for their own as well.

  Laughter erupted around him. Seth laughed as well. Tears flowed, and they wiped their eyes. He steeled himself against the last leg of their journey and started forward.

  But something happened. A vital, elemental piece of magic was ripped violently from his chest, similar to what had happened that day he stared at the mountains and felt a similar tear. Only this one was more violent. For a second, he stumbled forward, clutching his heart. He knew he’d never be the same again, that the quest would change him permanently. He was no longer unblemished…what Malcolm had mentioned long ago. Seth was blemished then; he’d never felt more blemished in his life. Did the others feel the same?

  Did you presume to keep your innocence?

  He had. They’d survived, but with it, they’d made sacrifices.

  Seth Auburn nodded to himself, accepting the inevitable.

  The Children of Israel, this woebegone band of travelers, marched homeward, and presumably, toward a victory.

  BOOK III

  BEN

  CHAPTER I

  They walked until they were at the edge of the meadow where town began. Seth’s house was to the south of them now. The familiar streets and signs were strange to see after so long.

  The boys crossed Samuel’s Creek, the backs and tops of houses splayed out before them. Nothing had changed, but all was strangely quiet. Not a soul was visible, no sound of a passing car.

  Was Kinsey home already, Seth wondered? Had she told her parents, everyone else in town how they were still trying to make it home? What kind of welcome would they receive?

  The neighborhood seemed desolate. The sky was cloudy. A brisk breeze flapped their long matted hair and cloaks.

  “Where is everybody?” Malcolm asked.

  “I don’t know,” Eddie said. “Do you think…?”

  They looked at him.

  “You know?” he said. “Are we too late?”

  Seth let out a sigh. He didn’t want to think about it. Ben wouldn’t have allowed it, would he?

  “Well,” Albert said, with finality. “I guess this is it.”

  Seth nodded. They all did, looking at one another.

  “How will we know when it’s time to slay the Dragon?” Albert asked. “Do you think we have to go looking for it?”

  “I don’t know,” Malcolm said. “I’m sure Ben will remind us.” He paused and took a deep breath. “Well,” he said. “I’ve got a ways to go, a few more miles still, so I’m gonna get going.”

  “Do you want a ride?” Albert asked. “My mom’ll be so glad to see us she’ll at least drive you home.”

  “Don’t bother,” Malcolm said. “I’m kind of looking forward to the walk. We’ve come this far…I don’t think a few more miles is going to kill me. Besides, I want to take it all in…absorb it. Somehow, it doesn’t look real to me.”

  Albert nodded. “Well,” he said, still reluctant to say goodbye. “I guess this is it.” The boy paused and looked at each of them in turn.

  No, they did not look the same, Seth thought. None of them did.

  “Thanks,” Albert said. “To say the least, it was incredible.”

  “You can say that again,” Eddie said. “This is the best I’ve felt during the whole journey. I can’t wait to get home, despite what I’ve said. Are you guys starving as much as I am?”

  Seth nodded.

  “Be alert,” Malcolm told them. “The worst is probably yet to come.”

  Finalizing the moment, Malcolm held out his hand.

  “Be careful on the way home,” Albert cautioned, grabbing Malcolm’s hand, then pulled him close, hugging him tight. “We’ve been through too much for handshakes.”

  “Sure,” Malcolm said, chuckling. “Seth.”

  Seth hugged Malcolm as well. “This is not a good-bye,” he said.

  “I know,” Malcolm said, pulling away. “But it still feels like the end of something special.”

  Seth nodded.

  “We’ll see you soon, Eddie,” Malcolm said.

  Eddie, too, hugged the boy goodbye. “I kind of don’t want it to end,” he said. “Is that a horrible thing to say?”

  Malcolm nodded, understanding. “I don’t think so,” he said. He put his hand in the air. “See ya, guys.”

  Malcolm turned to go, his cloak billowing behind him as he walked away, heading north. He looked to the sky, then eyed the surroundings.

  The force of their parting was strong. Seth was still unsure what month it was. It felt like it should be late December, but something told him it was closer to February.

  “Well,” he said. “I guess we’d better get going.”

  Albert and Eddie nodded. They repeated the ritual, embracing each other, then saying goodbye. Albert and Eddie said they’d see him soon. Together, the boys continued east, straight through town, leaving Seth alone at the edge of the meadow.

  He stood for a while, soaking in the sight as Malcolm had done. His eyes welled with tears. Seth looked to th
e cold, steely sky, then to the mountains behind him. For a minute, he just stood staring at them, seeing them in a different light.

  After a while, he turned, and began the long, anticipated walk home.

  ii

  As he stuck to the edge of meadow, slowly making his way into the neighborhood, Seth had to stop several times because the emotion was getting the best of him. The weight of their journey, all they’d been through, had finally caught up with him. The summer and Jeanie seemed ages ago, happening to a boy he no longer recognized. Being a kid was a strange thing, he thought, but growing up was stranger still.

  He wondered how he looked, a small boy, hair tangled, greasy and long, velvet cloak gusting with the wind, a sword, and his backpack, as if he didn’t know to what world he belonged. But that was okay. He was a part of many worlds now.

  Seth closed his eyes, savoring the moment, then opened them again. He smiled, looking at the familiar streets. They looked different to him, and it wasn’t just the stillness or the silence. He was eyeing it from an altered perspective.

  He couldn’t wait to see his mother! He couldn’t wait to see Masie!

  But, suddenly, fear clutched his heart. How did he know the Dragon…

  Seth shook his head, refusing to accept it.

  The desolation surprised him. As he walked along the sidewalk, passing houses, he noticed several lights on behind windows, but no one outside. Not a single car drove along the road. The Dragon had been responsible for more than he realized. Had people been driven out of Ellishome? Had they been killed? He simply didn’t know.

  Seth turned down Conifer Street.

  Would they understand what he’d done? Would they believe him at all? In time, he’d tell his story, he supposed, but for now, he wanted only the comforts of home, to take off his boots, and soak his blistered, battered limbs in a long hot bath…eat a solid meal.

  At Montgomery Avenue, Seth made a right and walked up the block. Soon, his house came into view at the end of the street.

  Seth stopped for a moment, taking in the sight. The wind gusted, and tears came into his eyes again. Seeing Ellishome held elements grander than any palace could ever hope to be, but seeing his tiny house surpassed them all. For months, he’d been waiting for this moment. Now that it was here, he simply couldn’t believe it. Seth wiped his eyes and chuckled lightly to himself.

  He made it up the sidewalk to his own walkway. Tears continued to blur his vision, and soon, he stepped onto the front porch. He was a complete and total stranger, and surprisingly, he couldn’t bring himself to grab the knob and walk inside. Standing here on the front porch, a sword at his back, he realized he hadn’t prepared himself for this moment. Were his friends experiencing something similar?

  The rip to his chest he’d felt earlier seemed nothing at all. He was not a warrior, and home proved it. He was still, and always would be, a little boy.

  Always will be, Ben said.

  Was that, too, part of the Dragon’s demise?

  Because he’d been gone as long as he had, and because he felt like a stranger—if only for the moment—Seth raised his fist and knocked on the front door. He did not hear anything inside for a while. But soon, the patter of feet sounded across the carpet inside. The knob turned, and the door swung open.

  It was Masie, and for a second, she didn’t even recognize him. A puzzled look crossed her face. No doubt, the sword, the backpack, and the cloak misled her. But soon, recognition dawned, and she gasped loudly, her hands going to her face.

  “Hi, Mase,” Seth said, grinning.

  She knelt and pulled him to her with such ferocity, she almost gave him whiplash. Seth laughed through his tears, and hugged his sister close. She smelled so…clean, he thought. The house was warm and smelled good, too. His mother had cooked something recently. It smelled like…

  A banquet?

  Masie pulled away, wiping her eyes, and laughed at the sight of him. She looked him up and down. “You’re a helluva mess,” she said.

  “It was a helluva journey,” he told her.

  Masie squeezed her eyes shut and cried some more.

  It was strange he hadn’t crossed the threshold, but apparently, there was a ritual to perform before he stepped inside.

  “Mom!” Masie called. She turned to look at him, unable to keep from smiling. Her eyes went to his face, the long hair, the hilt of the sword, the long, black cloak. “We thought you were gone,” she said. “Gone forever.”

  “I know,” he said. “And I’m sorry. We had some things to do. It was important that we go…that we left when we did.”

  Samantha came into view, and his sister stepped back out of the way.

  “What do you say, Mom?” Masie said. “Should we keep him?”

  Samantha’s eyes widened, and she gasped as Masie had done.

  “Hi, Mom,” Seth said.

  Did she recognize him?

  “Seth?”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  She stepped forward and knelt in front of him. Her eyes looked him up and down, from his face, to his hair, to the sword at his back. Her expression mirrored the same questions, the same lack of understanding.

  Yes, he had a story to tell, but now wasn’t the time.

  His mom put a hand to his cheek, running a finger along the length of his hair. “You’re taller,” she said, and smiled. Samantha pulled him close and held him tight.

  No other part of the journey compared. Nothing was better than coming home.

  “Sorry I left without telling you, Mom,” he said.

  Samantha pulled away and looked at him. “It’s okay,” she said. “It’s okay, Seth. As long as you came back, it’s okay.”

  “It’s good to be home,” he said. “I’ve missed you guys.”

  “Thank God you’re alive,” his mother said, petting his head.

  “What’s that?” Masie asked, nodding toward the sword.

  “It’s a long story,” he told her.

  “When you get cleaned up,” she said. “I want to hear all about it.”

  Seth nodded, finally stepping over the threshold, and into the house. Nothing had changed from what he could see. He wanted to take a long hot shower. His mother said she’d have to call the sheriff.

  “I know,” he said.

  She’d make some hot soup while he got cleaned up.

  “Make a lot, Mom,” he said. “I’m starving.”

  Feeling the fatigue of the journey, Seth went to his bedroom, and discarded his pack. He took off his clothes. Setting fire to them would be the best thing he could do, he thought.

  He stared at the cloak for a minute, the sword, then went to the bathroom. He started the shower, stepping inside, making the streams as hot as he could stand them. He couldn’t believe how good it felt on his taut muscles and back. Seth took the longest shower of his young life, and he didn’t step out until the water turned cold.

  iii

  Malcolm’s return was not so warm, nor so welcome. As he walked up Shadowbrook Lane in silence—the leaves gone from the trees, a cold wind blowing against his face—his heart began to beat faster once the house loomed into view. The Queen Anne looked as silent and haunting as when he’d left it. Leaves scattered across the porch, no lights on from within. Had the old man slipped into yet another abyss? Malcolm hoped and prayed it wasn’t so, but he feared that was exactly what had happened.

  Malcolm walked up the steps and grabbed the knob. It wasn’t locked. He opened the door and stepped inside. Cold silence welcomed him. Had Christmas come and gone already? Was it January, February?

  He closed the door behind him.

  “Grandpa!” he called.

  No answer. No sound of footsteps. The fireplace to his right was cold and dark.

  “Grandpa!” he called again.

  The house was empty.

  Sighing, Malcolm went downstairs to his room and discarded his pack.

  Would Jamey have stopped by?

  Malcolm decided to get cleaned up. He wen
t to the shower and undressed, getting a strong whiff of his clothes and skin. Finally, stepping inside the shower, he closed his eyes, and let the hot streams beat upon him.

  CHAPTER II

  Darkness again, the familiar swirl of matter above her head. She did not see her little boy/girl, but she could hear his/her voice, calling out, telling her she wasn’t alone. Sadie had something beautiful for her, something she would treasure and keep forever. She didn’t have to see him/her. She could imagine easily.

  Mattie McCall, in the realm of chaotic horror—terrible people doing terrible things to her (leaving her here in the padded cell, the jacket she wore, not giving her room to even scratch herself)—had found her place amid the stars. Nightmares no longer plagued her, screaming into the dark, having people poke and prod, endeavoring to get through. That wasn’t part of the plan. Life was different now.

  Above, the darkness grew…

  She thought she’d gone away already, but it hadn’t been time.

  Down a long, echoing corridor, she heard her child. Her baby called to her. Sadie was such a cute name for a girl. She’d always wanted a girl named Sadie. One boy in the house was enough anyway, wasn’t it? She should have something for her.

  Mattie McCall didn’t worry about the padded cells. She’d be leaving soon anyway. What did she care? It was time to go. She’d leave everything behind: life, love, and happiness, the privilege, she supposed, of going mad. No need to worry, a simple departure, going away forever…

  Someone called her name. Sadie was out there in the swirling dark. She saw it above her head.

  Get as big as you want, Mattie thought. Get bigger than the Atlantic for all I care. Just swallow me whole. Let the bastards deal with that!

  By the bastards, she meant the people around her, those she saw in the interim of silence, the door opening and closing as they came and went. They’d give her a shot, something to calm her, but medication was the least of her worries.