Searching for Darkness

by Leah Ward

  Edwin knew there was nowhere to run to, except forward. Surprising the dragon he ran straight towards it. Not perceiving this as a threat, but rather an enjoyment the dragon snarled and ran even faster.

  Edwin felt his feet lifting from the ground and with a push he bounded over the top of the dragon’s head.

  The dragon raged with uncontrollable vexation, and so did Edwin. He held his palm out and through it came a glacial wind chill that paralyzed the dragon and formed ice around its beautiful white hide. The mother dragon was now entirely helpless. It tried to spit fire but couldn’t because the ice had frozen its mouth shut.

  “Listen, I don’t want to kill you. Actually I need a favor from you.” Edwin said to the dragon.

  It wiggled in the ice, and could not respond, she was being forced to listen to him.

  “I am on a very important quest, and you are the cherry on top of my misfortunes. I am sorry about your child, but I was using self-defense!” Edwin said.

  The dragon tried to roar which came out more like a muffled moan, and repeatedly tried to jerk its body free. It didn’t want to hear anything that Edwin was saying.

  “Okay, okay. I know you don’t want to hear that but trust me… I know how you feel. My parents are part of the legends, and they were killed ten years ago… That leaves me with my quest. I have to find this cave, destroy the book, or the whole world is going to be controlled by an evil, ruthless ruler! You don’t understand how important this is, I have to finish this. I have come too far not to…” Edwin’s voice trailed off, knowing that he was rambling, to a dragon nonetheless.

  The dragon didn’t squirm, it didn’t try to break free of the ice, it didn’t move at all. Instead, it looked at Edwin, with a look in its eyes that he had seen in the wolf’s eye when it saved his life - a look of understanding.

  Edwin raised his palm, and used his fire throwing ability to melt the ice around the dragon’s snout and mouth. The flame only flickered near the dragon’s face, and Edwin was amazed at how much control he had gained over his gift.

  The ice melted quickly, and even when it did, the dragon didn’t say a word.

  “Okay, now you can talk.” Edwin said, encouraging the dragon to speak.

  Nothing.

  “Did you hear what I said about my quest? Do you know what I’m talking about? Or do you think I’m crazy talking about legends?” Edwin said, while motioning his hand in a circle insinuating that the dragon had the floor.

  After a few moments, the dragon looked Edwin directly in the eye and spoke gently.

  ‘Yes, I know about the legends, I did not know you were the heir to them. It is my duty to help the legends in any way possible, and you are close enough to them that I will dedicate my life to helping you.’

  Edwin was stunned, he had hoped for a turnaround of events, but he certainly didn’t expect this one.

  “So can I ask you to take me back to my friend? She needs to be helped; she may be bleeding to death out there, or unconscious, or…worse.” Edwin pleaded with the dragon.

  ‘Yes I will fly you back, and then I will fly you the rest of the way to your journey.’

  Finally, Edwin felt like something was going right. The entire quest had been filled with hardships and difficulties, it was nice to know that they were going to be escorted quickly right to the cave.

  “Thank you, do you have a name?” Edwin asked.

  ‘My name is Satiya’

  “Sat…Sata…”

  ‘Satiya, Sat – I – Ya’

  “Oh, well thank you Satiya” Edwin said very slowly. He raised his palm, and did the same as he did for Satiya’s snout, melting the ice covering her body.

  “There, you are free.” He said. The dragon walked over to her other child, who was lying on its back. She rubbed her snout to its snout, as if saying goodbye. The baby dragon didn’t move at all. Edwin felt completely horrible.

  “I am so sorry this happened…” He said, sympathy obvious in his voice. Satiya didn’t respond. She just walked slowly and sadly back to Edwin.

  ‘I am ready’ she said as she lowered her body.

  “Do you want me to sit on your back? I mean… I have read books where people do that but… I’m not so sure it’s scientifically possible to hold on.” Edwin said timidly.

  ‘Trust me’

  Edwin reached onto her wing, and pulled himself over the dragon’s back, in between two of her spikes like he was saddling up.

  “This is so unreal.” Edwin said, his eyes wide with disbelief.

  ‘Hold on tightly’

  The dragon’s wings flapped and suddenly they shot into the sky off the side of the mountain. Edwin held onto the spike in front of him, and his feet clung to the sides of her body.

  Soaring through the air like an eagle Edwin was able to see the forest at an all-new perspective. Greenery surrounded everything below him, and he could see the river twisting and turning down the side of the mountain. There were no towns, or any people in sight, nothing but forest.

  “How much farther until we find Lena?” Edwin shouted above the wind.

  ‘She should be below us any minute’

  Yet, minute after minute Edwin saw no sign of her. Even Satiya started to worry when she couldn’t find her.

  ‘She couldn’t have gone far, she has to be here’

  It was like looking for a needle in a haystack, from hundreds of feet in the air.

  “We have to get lower, I can’t see anything,” Edwin shouted.

  Satiya dipped closer to the trees, so close that her feet almost touched the treetops a few times.

  Circling the area Edwin finally spotted her, lying belly down on the ground.

  “There! There she is!” He screamed and pointed towards her lifeless body. The dragon dived and headed directly for her until she was near enough to straighten her body and land on her feet.

  Edwin jumped from the dragon’s back and ran towards Lena.

  “Lena! Lena! Are you okay? Can you hear me?” Edwin said frantically.

  “Edwin? I must… I must be dreaming…” She said softly. Edwin rolled her over onto her back, where she yipped with excruciating pain. Carefully he sat her up, where her head bobbled from its weight.

  “Lena…” Edwin said quietly, fighting back tears of mixed emotions.

  “My back and sides…they are cut deep.” Lena said. She was pale, with dark bags under her eyes.

  Edwin brushed her hair out of her face, now holding her up to support her body.

  “Let me take a look.” He said, as he untied the ripped blanket from around her ribs. The blanket was nearly soaked in blood, and through the gaping holes in her shirt, he could see the deep cuts. He gasped at the sight.

  “Oh no… What can I do?” Edwin said, desperate for an answer.

  Lena pointed to the backpack beside him. He dumped its contents onto the ground and found all of the equipment they had been using, matches, flashlight, the blankets, etc. A few gauze and medicated creams also fell out. Edwin grabbed the tube of medicine and read that it was for ‘deep cuts’ or ‘animal bites’.

  Trying to clean the wounds he took the canteen of water and poured it over them, causing Lena to scream with agony. He ripped part of the non-bloody blanket and wiped away the dried blood and dirt as he poured more water on the wounds, trying to clean them before using the medicine.

  Once he found them acceptable enough to apply the medicine, he did. If Lena thought the water was painful, this was ten times worse – it burned like embers.

  Edwin thought quickly and put his palm just inches over her wound, where he created a cool wind chill cold enough to soothe the burning sensations. She sighed from the small amount of pain that had been reduced. Her body relaxed a little and the tension in her muscles subsided slightly.

  Edwin pushed the gauze on her wounds to cover the medicine, then took the other part of the ripped clean blanket and tied it around her rib cage again. Lena took a deep breath, looked Edwin in the eyes, and said in the
gentlest of voices, “Thank you. For this, for coming back for me, for everything… Thank you.”

  He looked down at her and smiled. Then he did something he never thought he would have the courage to do. He brushed her hair around her ear, locked eyes, closed his, then leaned in and kissed her. It lasted all of three seconds, was a bit sloppy, and Lena was just as shocked as Edwin was about it.

  When he pulled his face away and opened his eyes, they met hers and in that moment, he knew she would be okay. He was going to make sure of it.

  Satiya scuffled her feet, as if to remind them that she was still there. Her scales shimmered in the sunlight and she looked as if she was glowing.

  Lena jumped when she realized it was the dragon that put her in this condition.

  “It’s okay, don’t be scared. Satiya understands now, and is going to help us get to the cave.” Edwin said.

  “Satiya?” Lena said confused.

  “Yes, that’s her name.” Edwin said.

  “You named her that?” She asked.

  “No, she told me her name.” Edwin said.

  “She… told you?” Lena said slowly, emphasizing ‘told’.

  “Yes, I don’t think you can hear her because when she was, uhm, chasing us through the woods I could hear her yelling us at. She can hear and understand me too.” Edwin said.

  Lena was shocked, “So…you can talk…to a dragon? I thought you had some pretty cool gifts but this is just insane.”

  “If you think that is insane, you should see how I got here!” Edwin said excitedly.

  “What do you mean?” Lena said, and coughed, then groaned from coughing.

  ‘Edwin, I think we should get going. She does not look very good, maybe we should take her home before continuing to the cave.’

  “I am not going to leave her alone. Besides, she is the only one who knows where the cave is out of the three of us.” Edwin said sternly.

  “What?” Lena said, confused to whom he was talking to.

  “Nothing, we should get going.” Edwin said directed to Lena.

  He grabbed her arm and helped to stand her up. She barely had strength enough to stand but he knew he needed her to go with him. Together they walked over to Satiya, who bent down once they reached her.

  “Uhm… I’m not climbing onto a dragon that has tried to kill me twice.” Lena said, shocked that the thought had even crossed Edwin’s mind.

  “This is how I came back, it’s incredible!” He said. Yet Lena still jerked her arm from his.

  “Trust me Lena; I would not do anything that I thought may put you in danger.” He said, looking into Lena’s eyes with nothing but pure confidence. Normally it was he who felt safe in her care, but now the roles were reversed.

  Lena nodded her head at Edwin and he helped her climb onto Satiya’s back. After she was on, he pulled himself up and sat in front of her so that she could hold onto him when they took off. He would have never been able to hold onto her sides in this condition anyway.

  Once they were both seated comfortably and holding on tightly with their legs and arms, Satiya’s wings flapped and she flew high into the air. The wind blew Lena’s hair behind her shoulders, and when Edwin looked back at her, she actually looked like she enjoyed flying. He then looked down at the ground they had just lifted from, and there lay Lena’s handcrafted bow and arrow. In the rush to get Lena on Satiya’s back, he had forgotten to grab the bow.

  When he looked at Lena, the paleness from her face had almost faded; life and strength were being breathed back into her. He didn’t want to ruin the moment by saying anything about her bow.

  Satiya flew above the treetops so high that one tree’s leaves seemed to blend into the others making a massive covering of green leaves and brush. The sun reflected on Satiya’s scales, making the creature majestic and beautiful, and in the right light she seemed invisible.

  They covered ground quickly, zooming towards the mountains. At this rate, they would be there in no time. Lena squeezed Edwin tight, and laid her head against the top of his back. Edwin felt her sigh, and then nestle her head comfortably in the center of his shoulder blades.

  Lena looked out at the horizon; the sun was starting the process of swapping places with the moon, making the sky full of shades of oranges. It was one of the most peaceful moments of her life. The only way it could get better was if the quest was finished, and the book was destroyed.

  It would finally give her a little peace of mind…

  CHAPTER 15

  The sun rose and Agmund rolled out of bed stretching. He yawned as he heard the several pops from his back and various other bones cracking when he moved. Walking to the kitchen he called out Edwin’s name, passing by his room.

  ‘Edwin, rise and shine. I’m going to start breakfast.’

  No reply.

  ‘A few more minutes, and then we’ve got to get this day started boy.’ Agmund walked to the kitchen and started to prepare eggs fresh from his chickens, bread, and fruit from the trees outside their house. “That’s strange, I could’ve sworn we had three loaves yesterday…” He said thinking out loud.

  Minutes later still no reply of Edwin. He wasn’t normally an early riser but he was quick to wake when Agmund called, it had become their routine over the years.

  ‘Boy, you have slept in long enough!’ Agmund said with a chuckle.

  ‘Edwin? Are you listening to me?’ He said once more.

  ‘Edwin?’ This time it was with a hint of seriousness in his tone. He walked to Edwin’s room, turned the doorknob and gasped when he saw that he wasn’t there.

  ‘Edwin? Where are you?’ He said as he turned back towards the living room. He walked over to the front door and opened it, searching for him outside. First he tried calling his name at a normal voice, and then again at a yell, but no reply.

  His eyes widened, his jaw hung open, and his mind ran wild putting together pieces of the puzzle.

  CHAPTER 16

  Lena had to point Edwin in the direction that she remembered the cave to be in. Then Edwin would translate and tell Satiya where she would make adjustments to her course as necessary. Lena almost lost track a few times, considering this was not the way she had traveled previously.

  The mountain that the cave was located on was oddly shaped and seemed to have cut outs throughout it. It was also the tallest mountain in sight.

  “There! There it is!” Lena said, pointing towards one of the smallest areas of cut out land on the mountain’s side.

  Edwin felt a rush of emotions travel up his spine as he laid eyes on the ancient, glorious cave. He was finally here. It looked just like his vision.

  Satiya flew as close as she could, but the space wasn’t large enough for her to land on.

  ‘I can’t land here, it’s too small.’

  “Satiya says the land is not big enough for her to land on and for us to get off.” Edwin said.

  “Well how are we going to get off?” Lena asked.

  Edwin suggested, “Maybe we could jump?”

  “We can’t jump from a dragon’s back onto the side of a mountain! Plus I can barely move, let alone jump and land!” Lena said. She did have a good point.

  Satiya hovered over the cave, flapping her wings while Edwin thought.

  “Look, we can land on that slab of mountain just below the area with the cave, and we can climb up. It’s not that far and it will be big enough for Satiya.” Edwin said.

  Lena looked at him, as if he had forgotten once again the condition she was in. She knew they had come this far though, she couldn’t give up here.

  “Okay, it’s worth a try.” She said. Edwin told the dragon their plan and she landed on the mountainside, just twenty feet below the small area where the cave was located. Edwin climbed off first and then helped Lena down. Her blanket holding the gauze in place had spotty blood stains on it, and Edwin knew that meant it was starting to leak through, but was glad it wasn’t soaked.

  “Let’s change your gauze again, and put some m
ore medicine on.” Edwin said to her, taking his backpack off.

  He helped Lena sit down on the ground and pulled out the last bit of gauze that was left along with the ointment. He untied the blanket, removed the blood soaked gauze and put on more of the medicine. She moaned at the constant ache and pain.

  Once he had rewrapped her ribs he turned to Satiya. “Thank you for helping us get here.” Edwin said sincerely. He knew Lena would have never been able to continue walking to the cave.

  ‘You are welcome; it is my duty to assist the legends if I can. I’m glad that I could. And, I am truly sorry for hurting your friend.’

  “Speaking of which… Can I ask you for one more favor?” Edwin asked.

  ‘Yes, of course’

  “Once we are done with the cave, can you take us back to my home? Lena really needs to see the doctor in my town.” Edwin said. His eyes were full of worry for the young girl.

  ‘Of course’ Satiya answered, but was cut off before she could finish her words. The land on the mountainside they were standing on started to shake.

  “I think you are too heavy Sitaya!” Edwin yelled over the dirt and rocks starting to crumble beneath them. Without hesitation the dragon flapped her wings and lifted herself from the mountain.

  Edwin rushed to Lena and helped her stand, moving her closer to the rock wall they were going to have to climb.

  ‘Edwin, I need to rest my wings after such a long flight, I have to stand’ Satiya said, touching her clawed feet back to the rumbling mountainside.

  “No! You are going to make it cave!” He yelled to her over the noise, “Rest on one of the lower sections or at the base!”

  ‘Call out my name when you need me, and I will come’ Satiya said as she lifted again from the mountain.

  “Okay, I will call you once I’m out of the cave.” Edwin shouted over the rumbling and Satiya’s wings. She bowed her head then flew down to the bottom of the mountain. Everything quieted, and eventually the ground stopped its shaking.