A New Journey (Part 4)

The best part. This is where it gets really exciting! Read on!

Clara went up to the second floor, and it was really nice, almost like a palace. She gasped at its beauty. Jack suddenly came behind her. It made Clara scream because he was so sneaky. “Jack!” she snapped. “Stop it. That scared me and I almost passed out.” 

“Whoops, sorry.”

“Let’s go up to the third floor.”

The third story had no roof. When they looked up, there was a lot of blue skies. Clara then heard a roar. A figure was approaching. When it got closer, they could see what it was: a black dragon, breathing purple-ish fire, with red eyes, white horns, and a trail of ash. It roared, letting out lots of fire. It almost burned Jack, but Clara dragged him back into the house. Jack gasped. “Clara! Thank you.”

“No problem, but we should lock the windows. We don’t need the dragon squeezing through them.” 

They ran downstairs after shutting the windows.

“Why do you think the dragon wanted to attack us?” Clara finally asked.

“That’s what they do. Duh.”

“I know, but does it live here? Has it attacked others before? Does it have any intentions?”

“Let’s read the books in that bookshelf.” Jack gestures at the shelf. Clara walks over.

“The Dragon: A New Journey,” she reads. “Alright. Chapter one. The dragon, a fearless creature, roams the woods. It stumbles upon a smell. A delightful scent that has never entered his large nose before. He smiles and falls the smell. A town awaits, where a young man offers flowers to passers-by. ‘Take your beautiful flowers! Amazing scents!’ he cries. Just then, the dragon roars. Sets the town on fire. Only one building remains, the building with three stories. The dragon forever searches for the smell.”

“Ah! All we have to do is get him a flower.”

“Jack, look at the picture,” says Clara. “The man had lots of flowers. Like thousands! One flower will smell like nothing to him.”

“Obviously. Keep on reading.”

“Okay. The dragon–“

Clara is interrupted. “Hold on,” she says. “Do you think something smells like cookies, jelly beans, and other sugary treats?”

“No…”

“And do you just want to eat a cup of frozen chocolate milk?”

“What are you talking about? Ew!”

“Jack, I just love chocolate milk!”

“I see,” said a deep voice from behind. Jack spins around.

“You! What are you?”

“‘Who’, young lad, not ‘what’,” he says. “I am the owner of this place. Some call me the King. Which I am, that is. How rudely you walked in. Have you not noticed me yet?”

“Were you here the whole time?” asks a shocked Clara.

“Indeed, children, I was.”

“We’re not children!” Jack protested.

“You’re only seventeen, both of you.”

Clara and Jack exchanged looks, wondering who this man is. 

“I know everything. Anyway, I suppose I tell you a thing or two.” The man straightened. “Fine then, I guess you can call me Philip. But I would rather prefer ‘sir’ or ‘your highness.’ If you have a doubt, come speak to me. I leave the rest to you. This town needs you. Good luck.” The man vanished away.

“How do we speak to him?” asked Clara. “If he knows everything, I must ask him something.”

“I don’t know. Try calling his name or something.”

“Philip, sir! Your excellency!” she yelled. Nothing. Seconds later, a rumble came and Clara was in a dark room, lit with a single candle, sitting in front of Philip. Dust circled them. Almost everything was damaged in some way, even Clara, who had bumped into a chair.

“You want to see me? This early?” asked Philip.

“Yes, sir, your highness.” She gave him a lousy bow. “If you know everything, then… what is my destiny?”

Philip seemed to wither away, along with everything else in the room. Then, she was in an enormous room, lit by a single green light. A giant orange orb was hovering in front of Philip. 

“Look in the orb carefully,” he said. Clara glanced at it and saw Sam. 

“There’s someone you shouldn’t trust,” Sam said. “You will succeed in your mission. You will not get what you most need. And you will never see them again.”

Clara thought for a moment and then bowed. She teleported back to the palace. “Jack.”

“What?”

“Can I trust you?”

Jack laughed. “Duh.”

“I… don’t know,” stammered Clara.

“Clara, please. What did you ask the guy?”

“Um… what my destiny was.”

“And?”

Clara repeated what Sam had said, except for the part about not seeing someone, and about not trusting a person.

“That’s great.”

Clara sighed. “Yeah, I guess it is.” They walked upstairs. On the second floor, Clara smelled the treats again. She walked to a room. As soon as she opened it, a flood of candy scattered out.

Clara smiled. She picked up a handful of chocolate, jelly beans, licorice, and more sweets. Jack couldn’t help but roll his eyes. 

“Um, Clara. We should be focusing on other things right now.”

“Yeah.”

And just then, Jack disappeared.