Erik And The Dragon by Sam Ferguson

Author:Sam Ferguson [Ferguson, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fantasy, Fiction
Published: 2014-08-21T23:00:00+00:00

*****

Aparen began to stir as the morning sun broke through the branches above. He hadn’t slept well during the night, and his muscles were stiff and rigid from leaning up against the tree. Slowly he pushed himself up and stretched his arms and back. His stomach growled something fierce, reminding him that he hadn’t eaten since lunch the day before. He looked around and realized he had nothing with him except his dagger and the small container that held the map.

“Perfect,” he grumbled aloud. “In a strange land with no food or water and absolutely no idea where to go.” He looked up to observe the moss hanging from the trees. He had heard before that moss would grow predominantly on the north side of trees, but these trees were absolutely covered with the stuff, as if they had been thick webs left by careless spiders ages ago.

So he looked up, through the branches as best he could, to see the sun. It had only just come up over the horizon, so as long as he kept the sun on his right and moved quickly, he could at least be certain that he was headed north.

He set off, picking his way through the brush and clumps of thick trees, ducking under the low hanging moss that smelled both pleasant and musky at the same time. He didn’t see any animals, but he could hear birds chirping in the branches above him. The ferns bent gently away from him as he walked through. Soon he spied a blackberry bush and moved toward it, plucking the sweet fruit from the thorny vines and plopping the berries into his mouth. The first couple he crushed with his tongue, pressing them against the roof of his mouth and savoring the sweet nectar, but then he began shoveling them in as quickly as he could, hardly chewing before swallowing as he struggled to bury the rumbling sounds in his stomach with the fresh fruit. The bush was as tall as he was in most parts, some areas were even taller, sprouting thorns as big and wide as his fingernails on the thick vines. His hands became stained purple as he devoured the berries and made his way around the bush, plucking off anything within reach.

As he rounded the back side of the blackberry bush something snorted and the vines shook. Aparen paused and tried to peer around the bush to see what it was. A massive head covered with black fur rose up above the bush. A long, brown and black snout pointed up into the air, sniffing loudly before the bear looked down and locked eyes with Aparen. The round, fluffy ears almost gave the beast a cute appearance, but the boy knew better. Bears in the north were temperamental at best, and not to be trifled with.

His mind raced. What had his father always told him to do when confronted by a bear? Was he supposed to play dead, or was it try

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