The Unborn Hero of Dragon Village

by Ronesa Aveela

  “Let’s do it then.” Pavel tore off more of the overgrown ivy from the archway and poked his head inside. “Hey, I was wrong!”

  “What’d you find?” Theo asked.

  Pavel backed away and whispered, “There are a bunch of skeletons in there. Must be people the Samodivi killed.”

  “What?” Theo and Nia both yelled.

  “Kidding.” Pavel laughed.

  “Your jokes aren’t funny, Pavel,” Nia said.

  Pavel shrugged as if nothing bothered him, but Theo knew better. He wouldn’t tell Nia that Pavel joked to cover up his fears.

  “The tunnel’s empty, but kinda narrow,” Pavel said. “I’ll go first. If I can squeeze through, you should be able to fit with your chicken arms, Theo.” He entered the dark hole and climbed the carved steps.

  Theo pulled the ivy aside. “Nia, you go next.”

  She held back, her face paling. “What if snakes are in there?”

  “Nah, probably only mice.” Theo grinned.

  She swatted his arm. “You know I hate those, too.”

  “It’ll be okay. I’ll be right behind you.”

  Nia took a small step, silent as a shadow.

  Theo followed her into the passage. He wheezed from the steep climb and the thickness of the musty air. Was this how a dungeon smelled?

  His feet ached. How long had he been climbing? He swiped on his phone. At least a half hour. He stopped to let his racing heart slow. A glimmer of light at the top seemed distant. He better hurry. Nia was already far ahead of him.

  Salty gusts replaced the dankness as he approached the top of the stairwell. Theo stepped out of the tunnel onto a mossy plateau and drew in a refreshing breath. Light blinded him, and he blinked. His vision had almost adjusted to the sunlight when Nia screamed.

  Theo rushed to her side. “What’s the matter?”

  “That.” Pavel let out a nervous laugh as he pointed. “We thought it was real.”

  Theo’s eyes bulged.

  A marble statue of a dragon about fifteen feet tall appeared frozen in the midst of battle. It must be Zmey, Selo’s patron, who protected the village according to the old people. The dragon’s huge jaw gaped, ready to spit fire. Massive wings curled at its side as if the beast had slowed to land. The tips nearly touched the dark limestone base the statue rested on.

  Looking at Nia, Pavel laughed. “I bet you wish you’d gone to the protection ceremony now.”

  Red splotches crept up her neck and face. “It’s not funny. Theo, take me home, please. I don’t feel good.”

  Theo tore his gaze from the magnificent creature. “I—”

  “Go home by yourself, Princess,” Pavel said. “You shouldn’t have followed us if you didn’t want to be here.”

  Nia got up close to Pavel’s face and yelled, “I’m not a princess!”

  She and Pavel continued to bicker.

  Theo sighed, not able to get their attention. He hoped Nia’s anger lessened her fear. Leaving Pavel and Nia to argue, he stepped closer to the statue. His mouth gaped in awe. The dragon’s wings, which stretched out like a bat’s, made his hands tremble. So large and powerful.

  Pavel nudged him. “Hey, Theo, come on. Stop staring at the statue. Let’s try your wings.”

  “What about Nia? I have to take her home.”

  “Nah, she’s fine. Got over her fit and is looking for ancient treasure.” Pavel removed his glasses, blew on the lenses, and wiped away the fog. “Put your wings on.”

  “Pavel,” Theo said, his voice a hoarse whisper, “I have to have dragon wings.”

  “Let’s see how the ones I made work first.”

  Theo tore his gaze from the statue and took in the rest of the area. The Stone Forest wasn’t actually made of trees. Seven megaliths surrounded a terrace that had been formed by volcanic activity eons ago. The stones towered over the village, looking like ancient Thracian gods from below. On top of each, a carved horse head stared away from the center of the circle, as if keeping watch. One column had broken, the toppled half lying smashed on the ground. A black-and-white bird with a yellow beak and a long tail feather perched on the upright half. Was it the same bird he’d frightened from the tunnel?

  “Theo, I think that wrecked stone is high enough for you to jump from,” Pavel said.

  “Can you help me put on the wings?”

  “Sure.”

  Theo snapped the braces over his arms and held them out straight. White feathers tickled his face. After Pavel tightened the braces in back, Theo walked toward the shattered remains of the stone. The bird squawked and flew away as Theo clambered to the top of the upright half, almost slipping on a surface worn smooth from years of exposure to sea storms. The wind had grown teeth, and the salty mist bit his cheeks. He drew his wing-clad arms to his chest to stop shivering. The metal from the braces dug into his shoulders.

  “Pavel, are you sure I can fly? The wings feel heavy.” Theo stretched out his arms, the weight pulling them down. “I thought feathers were supposed to be light.”

  “They are. The braces make them heavier.” Pavel pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “I made them as light as I could using melted magnesium and nanoparticles the way an internet article said. Scientists say it makes airplanes lighter.”

  “How’d you get all that stuff?”

  “Well ... I couldn’t find those exact ingredients. I substituted stuff from the science room at school, but I know they’ll work.”

  Would they? Now that Theo was standing here, he wasn’t so sure. He looked toward the ground. It was farther than he wanted to jump.

  “Those wings won’t let you fly, Theo,” Nia said. “None of Pavel’s other designs have worked. All they do is make you look like a stork.”

  Theo flinched.

  Pavel gave a half shrug. “Girls don’t know anything about science.”

  “I may not be a geek like you, but I do know feathers glued to a piece of metal won’t make Theo a bird.” Nia swiped aside a curl from her forehead. “My brother may be small, but there’s no way those wings will let him fly.”

  Theo tuned out Pavel and Nia as they continued to hurl insults at one another. Why couldn’t two of the people he cared most about get along? He let his gaze drift to the scenery.

  The height of the broken stone let him soak up the panoramic view. Mountains sloped toward the Black Sea. Nestled in their shadows, white houses with red roofs patched the land. Beyond them, the water stretched to the horizon. Somewhere out there, his father had been lost on the night Theo and Nia were born.

  He closed his eyes. The sea pulled at invisible threads, tugging him closer. Come to me. I’ll show you the way home, the crashing waves seemed to murmur. Or was it the deceitful siren’s song of the Rusalki, the mermaids of the deep, whom many older villagers alleged had lured his father to a watery grave?

  What he’d give to know what his dad had been like. Was Theo anything like him? Mom refused to speak of the matter, even though he and Nia had asked about him many times. The villagers kept silent, too, as if mentioning the dead was taboo. It would help Theo know who he was himself, why he differed so much from the other children of Selo. He wanted to fit in, be like them, but he stuck out with his fiery-red hair and pale complexion.

  “Theo, Theo!”

  Was that the sea calling his name?

  His eyes fluttered open. Not the sea. Nia.

  “This is dangerous. Look how high up you are.” She thrust her hands on her hips. “Are you going to listen for once and get down from there?”

  “Hurry up.” Pavel tapped his phone. “I’m ready to start the stopwatch.”

  Theo looked from Nia to Pavel. Sighing, he pumped the wings for several seconds, then stopped on the upward thrust and lowered his arms. Fear of success overwhelmed him more than thoughts of failure or getting hurt. He’d be even more of a freak if he could fly, more alienated from everyone. A strange boy made even stranger by his crazy dreams. But, oh, the freedom of soaring through the ai
r—

  “Come on, Theo,” Pavel said. “Take a deep breath and flap your arms slowly. Use the power of the wind.”

  “Don’t do it, Theo,” Nia begged. “It’s too high.”

  Theo hesitated, then resumed flapping.

  “Fine, Icarus!” Nia shouted. “If you’re dumb enough to listen to Pavel, then you’ll get hurt—again.”

  Nia’s taunt stung. The boys in Selo ridiculed him by calling him that name. Even though Icarus, the boy from Greek mythology, had been courageous, he’d been foolish by flying too high. The sun melted the wax on his wings, and he fell into the sea. That nickname reminded Theo that people thought he was foolish, too. With a strained voice, he said, “I hope a dragon takes you away.”

  “That’s not funny, Theo.” Tears formed on Nia’s eyelids. Her voice softened so he could barely hear her words. “I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

  Theo’s gut clenched. Nia didn’t understand why he had to succeed. He turned away.

  “Come on, Theo.” Pavel looked at his phone. “We don’t have all day.”

  At the count of three, Theo took a deep breath and leapt from the stone.

  The wings wrenched down his arms. He pushed to keep them moving, but he crashed onto dirt and pebbles, banging his knees and scraping his palms. The tinny sound of metal grating against rocks echoed in his ears. He groaned and rolled onto his back. Floating above him, a cloud of dust mingled with feathers ripped from the twisted wings.

  “You did it!” Pavel shouted. “I told you they’d work.”

  Nia scoffed. “That wasn’t flying. That was falling with wings.”

  Pavel stuck the phone under Theo’s nose. “You were airborne three seconds longer than the last time.”

  “I jumped from a car roof before.” Theo sat up and rubbed his aching knees. “Besides, I think you started the timer early.”

  “Theo!” Nia scowled at him. “I told you you’d get hurt. Look, your hands are bloody. Mom’s going to be mad.” She pulled a tissue from her purse and handed it to him.

  He blotted the scrapes, shaking his arms afterwards. The misshapen wings flapped like a grotesque creature. “Pavel, help me out of these.”

  Pavel removed a black, octagon-shaped gadget from his backpack. “Let’s see. Which Paveltron tool will work best?”

  “Paveltron? A new invention?” Theo held out his hand. “Let me see.”

  Nia edged closer, snatching the device from Pavel. She pressed the plastic numbers. “What kind of dumb thing is this, geek boy?”

  “Give it back!” Pavel reached for it.

  She shook her head. “Tell me how it works.”

  “It’s a magic nine square. You have to make it add up to fifteen in each direction.”

  Nia slid the one to nine buttons around. “This is impossible.” Scowling, she shoved it back into Pavel’s hand. “That’s so stupid. Why do you need a keypad? Can’t you just have a button open it like a normal person would?”

  “It keeps people like you off my stuff.”

  Theo flapped the broken wings. “Can you two stop arguing and get these off me?”

  Pavel’s fingers flew over the buttons, moving them in and out of an empty square at the side until he arranged them in the correct order. Then he pressed the plus sign on the bottom right, and the device opened, revealing a set of miniature tools.

  “So much work for a screwdriver.” Nia grabbed a pointed stick from the ground, kneeled behind Theo, and pressed against a brace until it cracked open. She did the same for the other side.

  The broken wings fell to the ground.

  Pavel put the screwdriver back and pressed the minus key on the bottom left. The digits rearranged themselves to standard keypad order. He picked up one of the wings. “Pig piddle. Look at ’em. But I think I can fix them if you want to try again later.”

  “Don’t be stupid, Theo.” Nia stalked toward the statue. “He’s not going to get them to work—ever.”

  “She’s right.” Theo pulled himself up from the ground and wiped dirt off his pants. “Let’s look at the dragon statue and come up with a better design.”

  Nia kneeled by the limestone base and rubbed her fingers over an engraving of a white dragon and a golden one, locked in battle like yin and yang. “I wonder if it’s real gold.”

  “Maybe,” Pavel said. “I wish I’d brought my metal-testing kit.”

  Half-listening, Theo gazed at the yellow, lizard-like eyes of the statue. The creature stared back. He shuddered and rubbed his hand on the magnificent wings.

  The cool stone rippled beneath his fingertips.

  He jerked his hand away, staring at the spot. It was still white stone. Or was it? His heart hammering, he let his fingers hover over the statue, then lowered them to the stone.

  The wing softened and stretched beneath his caress. A deep voice rumbled like thunder, “Theodore, I’ve been waiting for you.”

  He snatched his hand from the statue. Blood pounded in his ears. The voice seemed everywhere at once. He looked around, but no one was there, except Nia and Pavel. His sister took pictures of the statue, while Pavel sketched the wings.

  Where was the speaker?

  Gusts of wind blew, moaning like ghosts.

  “Hey, guys. D-did you hear that?” Theo asked.

  “I can barely hear you above the wind,” Nia shouted.

  “S-someone spoke to me.”

  Pavel shrugged and returned to his notebook. “Wasn’t me.”

  Lightning flashed far out at sea, followed moments later by the rumble of thunder. That must have been what he’d heard.

  Theo wiped sweaty hands on his pants and glanced at the spot on the dragon’s wing he swore had become as soft as leather. Not a single crack marred the stone. He had to touch the wing again to be sure.

  Keeping his eyes steeled on the spot, he jabbed the statue with one finger, then yanked it back. Only cool stone.

  Dark clouds passed over the sun, and the wind picked up. A noise rumbled in the distance. Theo peered toward the Black Sea where lightning flashed over the water. Legends told about how Zmey would drift to sleep when thunderstorms approached, so his spirit could battle his sister, Lamia. Chills ran down Theo’s arms. Was the spirit of Zmey, their invisible guardian, really in the statue ready to fight Lamia?

  “Hey, guys, storm’s coming in. We should get out of here,” Theo said.

  “Almost done.” Pavel continued drawing.

  “Hurry up.” Nia clutched her purse and scooted nearer to Theo.

  Thunder rolled closer, rattling the statue. Lightning streaked across the sky. Theo flinched, almost believing Lamia and Zmey were battling amid the crackling air and flashes of light. Almost. He laughed nervously.

  Of course, dragons didn’t exist. It was just an approaching storm. He leaned against the statue to steady his nerves.

  For a brief moment, the thunder took a breath.

  Nia’s phone rang, and she held the display for Theo to see. “Mom.”

  He cringed. “Don’t tell her where we are!”

  Nia shook her head and answered. Mom’s angry voice screeched from the phone.

  A creaking at the base of the statue captured Theo’s attention. The carving of the two dragons rotated clockwise, slowly at first, but then picked up speed, pulsating colors like a kaleidoscope. Symbols along the outer edge swirled into a black blur, while the whirling dragons radiated a golden glow.

  Theo trembled and stepped back from the statue. This was crazy! He couldn’t be imagining all these things. He shouted, “The carving’s glowing!”

  Without looking, Pavel raised his finger. “I’m talking with my father. He says we’ve gotta get back before the storm hits.”

  The symbols on the engraving morphed into words: The playful magpie can help you find the key.

  A chill like tiny feet raced along Theo’s spine. He blinked rapidly, and the message disappeared. What magpie? What key? “Pavel. The dragon ... I think it’s trying to tell us somet
hing.”

  A purple light pulsed within the statue, and its eyes flashed green.

  “P-Pavel!” Theo pulled on his friend’s shirt. “Look at the dragon!”

  Pavel ended his call. “Huh? Must be the lighting.” His eyes became round like saucers when he looked at the glowing dragon. “That’s ... not possible. Maybe gas underneath it.”

  A loud crack of thunder boomed overhead, and the light from the statue disappeared.

  “Let’s get out of here.” Theo looked around. “Where’d Nia go?”

  “Theo, look!” His sister shrieked as she ran to his side and pointed upward.

  He craned his neck to look at the sky. A shower of fireballs plunged toward the village, followed by deafening thunder.

  “What was that?” Pavel asked.

  The air chilled as more clouds gathered, making it as dark as night. A howling wind ripped through the pillars. Chunks of hail, twisted by the wind, pelted them.

  “Run for cover!” Theo shouted as he dragged Nia under the statue.

  A deluge of rain gushed down the dragon’s wing, which protected them from the storm like an umbrella. A whoosh of hot air swept Theo’s broken wings from the ground. Like a crazed dancer, they twirled in a whirlwind before darkness swallowed them.

  Ravaging winds uprooted trees. A fireball split the darkness directly overhead. Burning wood filled the air, stinging Theo’s eyes. A gigantic bellows roared, followed by an explosion of fire over the statue. Theo covered his eyes and screamed until his voice was hoarse.

  The roaring ceased. Theo’s heart thumped loud in the lull. The silence was deafening, almost too loud, like a beast taunting its prey.

  “Pavel?” Theo shouted as he clung to his sister.

  “I’m okay,” Pavel’s breathy reply came from the other side of the statue.

  Tears streamed down Nia’s cheeks. “I’m scared.”

  “I’ll protect you.” He hugged her tighter, her body shivering against his.

  A dark shape filled the sky and streaked closer. The air crackled, and jets of fire raced toward them. Theo threw himself in front of Nia as flames licked the side of the statue. Intense heat engulfed his face and body. He screamed. His grip on his sister loosened.