A Dragon's Tooth

 

 

Flynn was going to be eaten by a dragon. Sounds gruesome doesn’t it and Flynn certainly would have preferred not to be eaten, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. All he could think of as he made his way up a rocky mountain trail, on his way to be eaten, were all the things he would miss once he had been eaten.

 

He would miss going hunting with his dad in the forest near their small town of Boarton. Going swimming with friends in the river and of course his mother’s cooking. He would miss his grandparents and probably his older sister.

 

It had all started several nights ago during a violent storm with lots of crackling lightning and rumbling thunder. It wasn’t a night to be up and about, but it hadn’t bothered the fearsome Midnight Dragon that had suddenly landed in the town square with a mighty roar.

 

The sound had woken Flynn and he had got a very good look at the dragon from his bedroom window overlooking the square. Midnight Dragon’s were the biggest you could find in all of Kingdoms and this one had been as large as a two-storey house. It had broad black wings with sharp looking barbs on their ends. A huge slanting head with gaping jaws full of fangs and large green eyes that had glowed in the darkness.

 

It had growled a demand to see the village mayor and Flynn had watched the terrified man go out into the raining dark to see what it wanted. He had thought the dragon would eat him, but instead there was a short conversation between them and then the dragon had flown off again with another roar.

 

The next morning the mayor announced that the dragon had demanded that a strong, healthy lad be sent up to its lair. Now there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that the dragon would eat whoever the unfortunate lad turned out to be. But Flynn thought he was pretty safe as there were dozens and dozens of boys in the town to pick from.

 

To choose the unfortunate lad the name of each boy was written on a slip of paper and dropped into a bowl in the village square. The mayor had then picked one out… Flynn’s! His mother had fainted, his younger sister burst into tears and his dad groaned in horror. Flynn himself had just stood there quivering in terror at his awful bad luck.

 

The next day he was taken to the feet of the mountains near the town by his dad and the mayor who was equally miserable about the whole thing. They had come to a rocky trail that the dragon had told the mayor would lead up into the mountains to its lair.

 

And here he was, climbing to his death and quite terrified. He had of course thought about running away, flee to another town or live in the forest till he thought it was safe to go home. But he had no money or any kind of weapon, so it was pointless thinking about it. And he knew if he did run away, some other lad would be chosen and Flynn couldn’t have dealt with that kind of guilt.

 

As he climbed on he wondered how dragons ate people? Did it happen quickly? One huge dragon bite and gulp and it would be all over. Or did it happen slowly, an arm or a leg at a time? Flynn had read in schoolbooks that some dragons were quite smart. Perhaps it would cook him in a big pot full of vegetables for a stew. Or it might use a spit, roasting him over a fire before eating him.

 

He was so busy thinking about these awful thoughts that before he knew it, the trail had taken over a ridge and down into a shadowy ravine. He knew that this was where the dragon was supposed to be. His legs suddenly felt like they were made of jelly and he was feeling very faint. He had to take several deep breaths to settle his nerves before he could go on.

 

Shadows deepened around him as he walked through the ravine, its walls reaching high above him. Its floor was littered with stones and rocks and without thinking, he kicked one miserably and sent it rattling over the ground. It smacked into a wall with a sharp crack and he froze.

 

If the dragon had been unaware of his approach, he certainly knew he was coming now. As if in answer to that, a sudden furious roar came from further ahead and his heart jumped in his chest with fright. He almost did turn and run away then, but managed to force himself to go on.

 

Shortly the ravine began to widen a little and he knew the dragon must be close. He reached a large boulder and ducking behind it, peered around a corner. He spotted the dragon immediately, but frowned in some confusion.

 

Instead of finding a Midnight Dragon, there was a much smaller dragon lying before the mouth of a large cave. It was only the size of a cow and covered in bright gold scales. A pair of large wings were folded neatly along its sides and its long, tapering tail curled about its entire body. Its slanting head had large orange eyes and its jaws had the odd pointy fang visible.

 

But what was even stranger was that it wore glasses… and was reading a book!

 

Suddenly it looked up straight at the boulder Flynn was behind.

 

'Ah, you've arrived at last,' it said in a pleasant growl.

 

Flynn’s knees folded under him as he almost fainted.

 

‘Now, no fainting please,' the dragon said. 'I'm not going to eat you, you know.'

 

Flynn gave a start.

 

'You're... you’re not!' he stammered.

 

‘I never said that I wanted to eat anyone,’ the dragon replied with a sly smile. ‘But you were meant to think it.’

 

‘But… I saw a Midnight Dragon come to our village,’ Flynn said in confusion. ‘Not a gold one like yourself.’

 

‘You mean like this?’ the dragon replied and its features suddenly began to blur and darken in rippling waves. It began to grow into a much bigger shape, rising up into the air like thick smoke. It cleared to reveal the Midnight Dragon Flynn had seen. Its massive jaws opened, revealing dozens of glistening fangs and with a mighty roar, bright flames burst from its mouth.

 

Flynn cowered in terror, thinking that it had all been a cruel trick. That this was the real dragon and it was about to eat him. But nothing happened and then he heard the dragon speak again.

 

'It’s all right, you can look up again now.'

 

Flynn looked up and the Midnight Dragon had disappeared, the smaller gold dragon once again as before.

 

'Are... are you a magic dragon?' Flynn asked in wonder as he got to his feet.

 

'I am indeed and my name is Kestor. I am a Gilt Dragon and I can change into any dragon shape I like for a short time. But unlike other dragons, I don’t eat people. In fact a Gilt Dragon doesn’t eat anything at all. We only need sunlight to survive and the sun shines quite nicely here during the morning.’

 

‘So… what do want with me exactly,’ Flynn asked.

 

‘Just some help,’ Kestor replied, then suddenly gave a painful groan and grabbed his jaw with one a claw.

 

‘What’s wrong?’ Flynn asked.

 

'I have a toothache... or fang-ache really,’ Kestor replied.

 

‘Ouch! They can really hurt.’

 

‘Indeed... which is why I need your help… to find me a dentist.’

 

‘A dentist!’ Flynn said in alarm. ‘But... but they use alchemy to fix teeth. Drilling holes in them and filling them with metal. Why not just go to a witch and buy a healing potion for it.’

 

‘Because I don’t trust witches,’ Kestor replied. ‘They like to use dragon scales in their potions.’

 

‘But a dentist!’ Flynn said in horror at the thought.

 

Kestor held up a claw.

 

‘No witches!’ he said sternly.

 

‘Just a minute… if you don’t eat anything, how did you get a bad tooth... er, fang?’ Flynn asked suspiciously.

 

‘Chocolate!’ Kestor replied. ‘Whilst a Gilt Dragon doesn’t need to eat anything, we still can. I had a wizard friend long ago who liked it and got me eating it. I’m now paying the price.’

 

‘Well, chocolate can be bad for your teeth if you don’t brush them,’ Flynn agreed.

 

‘It’s a little late for that advice,’ Kestor replied testily. ‘Now, what’s your name?’

 

'Flynn.’

 

‘Pleased to meet you, Flynn,’ Kestor replied with a dragon smile… all fangs.

 

Flynn figured he was pretty safe now as Kestor could have easily caught him by now, so he walked over.

 

‘So how I will I get a dentist to come here?’ he asked.

 

‘Come into the cave and I’ll show you,’ Kestor replied, standing up and giving his golden wings a flap. He then stomped off into the cave on his thick hind legs.

 

Flynn followed and got the shock of his life as he entered the cave. Its walls were lined with bookcases full of books, manuscripts and rolled up parchments. The cave was very deep and the bookcases stretched away into the shadows where a few oil lanterns hung on the walls.

 

‘Where did you get all these books from?’ Flynn asked in wonder. ‘I’ve never seen so many!’

 

‘Well, we Gilt Dragons are quite well read, you know,’ Kestor replied as he led him further into the cave.

 

‘You must have been living here quite a while to have so many?’ Flynn commented.

 

‘Oh, about a hundred years or so, I think,’ the dragon replied.

 

‘That’s a long time.’

 

‘Not when you’re a dragon and can live for hundreds!’ Kestor said stiffly.

 

They shortly reached the end of the cave and against the far wall was a tall object covered with a white cloth. Kestor lifted it away and under it was a tall mirror in a heavy gold frame. At least Flynn thought it was a mirror. Its glass was very odd, its surface swirling like stirred silver and he could barely see his reflection in.

 

‘This is a strange looking mirror,’ he said.

 

‘It’s a conjuring mirror,’ Kestor replied. ‘It can take you anywhere in Kingdoms you wish to go by stepping into it.’

 

‘Wow!' Flynn said in wonder. 'Where did you get it?'

 

'Oh, a wizard I knew a couple of centuries ago made it,’ he replied. ‘He’s dead now and this is the only one of its kind.’

 

‘I’ve heard that conjuring can make you sick,’ Flynn said warily.

 

'That’s normal wizard conjuring. Using the mirror won’t make you sick at all. I use it all the time when I need to go somewhere, mainly to book shops I like. I just make myself into a smaller dragon to fit through.’

 

‘How does it work?’ Flynn asked, quite interested in the contraption.

 

‘Well, you merely tell it which town in which kingdom you wish to go to,’ Kestor replied as he reached up and slipped a pendant hanging from its frame. ‘You use this to come back again.’

 

He handed it to Flynn who inspected it. Hanging from its chain was a large silver stone that swirled much like the mirror.

 

‘When you wear this, all you have to say is… home, please… and you will be conjured back through the mirror,’ Kestor said.

 

Flynn frowned.

 

‘Do dentists pay house calls on dragons?’

 

‘You don’t tell the dentist you’re taking it to a dragon!’ Kestor snapped. ‘You only have to get into see him, then grab him and say… home please… and you’ll both be brought back here. I’ll talk to the dentist once he’s here.’

 

‘Well… if you really think that will work,’ Flynn replied, though he thought that anyone being conjured to a dragon wouldn’t be in a good state to pull out a tooth... or fang.

 

‘Now, you’ll need some money to see a dentist as I believe they are quite expensive,’ Kestor said. ‘Take a look in that chest against that wall. You’ll find some coins in it.’

 

Flynn slipped the pendant over his neck as he went over to the chest. On opening it, his eyes nearly popped out of his head at the sight of the treasure inside. There were gold and silver coins, necklaces, bracelets and jewelled rings.

 

‘Wow!’ he exclaimed. ‘There must be a fortune here!’

 

‘Oh, it’s just a little change I keep around for buying books,’ Kestor replied.

 

Flynn helped himself to a fat pouch of gold coins and then came back to the conjuring mirror. He was suddenly a bit nervous, not knowing what walking into the mirror and being conjured somewhere would feel like.

 

But Kestor patted him gently on a shoulder.

 

‘It’s perfectly safe, Flynn,’ he said reassuringly. ‘Now, I’m sending you to the town of Swanton in the Kingdom of the Misty Moon. Just stand before the mirror and ask it take you near it… can’t have you just appearing in the middle of a street and attract any unwanted attention.’

 

Flynn nodded and taking a deep breath, stepped in front of the mirror.

 

‘Take me near to the town of Swanton in the Kingdom of the Misty Moon,’ he said and then stepped right through the mirror.

 

For a brief moment a chilly darkness surrounded Flynn and then he was suddenly standing in daylight again. He found himself on a small wooded hill overlooking a large town. A wide road stood just beyond the trees and he was quickly heading down it.

 

Once in the town, Flynn asked for directions to a dentist, which of course got him some curious looks. Few people used dentists, mainly folk who didn’t believe in witches. So he wasn’t surprised when he was directed to a shabby part of town and a small shop front with a grimy sign over its door with a large tooth painted on it.

 

He went inside and found himself in an empty waiting room. There was a closed door in one wall and from behind it came a terrible moaning. There was a sudden sizzling sound and a sharp shriek that made him jump. The moans kept coming and shortly the door opened shortly and a young man stepped out holding his jaw. Behind him came an elderly man and with him a rather odious smell of chemicals.

 

‘Just don’t eat for several hours whilst that filling sets,’ he said to the patient, who gave a painful grunt as he left the shop.

 

The dentist, who was dressed in a white cloak that was covered in chemical splotches, turned to Flynn.

 

‘You got a bad tooth?’ he asked.

 

Flynn nodded.

 

‘Go any money?’ he asked warily.

 

Flynn pulled out his bag of coins and placed two gold ones in the dentist’s eager hand. He quickly put them in a pocket.

 

‘Follow me,’ he said.

 

Flynn followed him into the room. Inside there was an odd looking chair that was half like a bed and half like chair. Next to it was a small table on it were sharp looking poking instruments, tiny mirrors fixed to thin metal rods and bottles of wicked looking liquids lying on it.

 

‘Well, get on the chair and we’ll have a look,’ the dentist said.

 

Flynn went to lie down on the chair, thinking that this dentist was the wrong choice. He was quite old and Flynn thought he wouldn’t take being conjured to a dragon very well. But he didn’t have much choice as the dentist picked up a sharp looking instrument. He wasn’t going to allow the dentist to touch his teeth, that was for sure.

 

He suddenly reached out and gripped the dentist’s arm.

 

‘Home, please!’ he said.

 

‘What...’ said the dentist as darkness closed about them and then they were standing back in the cave. ‘... did you say?’

 

'At last, you’re back!' Kestor said from a nearby bookcase. 'Is this the dentist?'

 

The dentist gaped in sheer terror at the sight of the dragon. He made a gurgling sound, clutched at his chest and promptly collapsed to the ground.

 

*

 

‘Is... is he dead?’ Kestor asked worriedly.

 

‘No... his heart is still beating, but very weak,’ Flynn replied as he stood up from the unconscious dentist.

 

‘Why did you pick one so old?’ Kestor asked. ‘It’s no wonder he got a fright.’

 

‘He was the only dentist in town,’ Flynn replied. ‘I told you they were rare.’

 

‘Well, we’ll have to try someplace else… look for a younger dentist. But we’d better find one soon… my fang is killing me!’.

 

Flynn frowned in thought.

 

'Look, what you need whilst we look for a dentist is a potion to dull the pain,’ he said. ‘We can get one from a Witchery….’

 

‘A Witchery!' Kestor snapped. ‘I’m not seeing...’

 

‘I won’t tell the witch it’s for a dragon,’ Flynn interrupted. ‘I’ll just say it’s for me. It’s either that or put up with the pain till we find a dentist who won’t pass out when he sees you.’

 

‘Oh, very well!’ Kestor muttered, holding his jaw with a claw. ‘But just get the potion, not a witch!’

 

‘Relax!’ Flynn said. ‘What could be hard about getting a potion?’

 

‘We had better return the dentist to his surgery,’ Kestor said. ‘Hopefully when he wakes up he’ll think it was all a dream.’

 

‘Mmm… and a bad one too,’ Flynn muttered.

 

Kestor told the mirror to take the unfortunate dentist back to his surgery and he and Flynn rolled him through the mirror. Kestor then consulted a book and chose another town where Flynn could find a Witchery.

 

He was shortly walking through the streets of Swallowton and it didn't take him long to find one. Flynn went inside and saw a black robed witch serving some people at the counter. Whilst he waited till she was free he wandered about the shop. Various cabinets and shelving lined the walls and on some of the shelves were small glass with various coloured liquids inside. He was looking at one with a swirling green liquid wondering it was for, when a voice at his shoulder startled him.

 

'Can I help you?'

 

Flynn spun around to find a young girl about his own age dressed in black robes standing there. She was very pretty and had the utterly black eyes that all witches have.

 

‘Are... are you a witch?’ he asked.

 

‘I’m an apprentice still in training,’ she replied. ‘But I can help you with simple potions.’

 

'Well, I'm after a pain potion, er... a strong one,’ Flynn said.

 

'Mmm, and what are you suffering from?’ the girl asked. ‘There are many different pain potions.'

 

'I have a toothache... a bad one.'

 

'Well, this is good for a toothache,' she said, picking a bottle off a shelf with an orange liquid in it. 'But you’re too young to buy a potion by yourself. Your mum or dad will have to come and get it for you.’

 

Flynn was stumped. He didn’t know he would need an adult to buy a potion, though on reflection his mother or father had always bought things the family needed from a Witchery.

 

‘Well... it’s not really for me,’ he said, trying to think of how he could get the potion without an adult. ‘It’s for my, er... older brother.’

 

‘Then he’ll have to come in and get it,’ the girl replied, her dark eyes narrowing suspiciously. ‘But perhaps we should speak to my aunt.’

 

Flynn started to panic at her obvious mistrust.

 

‘No, look... it’s for a dragon!' he said in desperation. ‘He has the toothache!’

 

The girl suddenly laughed.

 

‘Oh, please!’ she said. ‘Surely you can think of a better fib than that.’

 

‘No... really, its true!’ he said.

 

The girl frowned and pursed her lips thoughtfully.

 

‘I think we should speak to my aunt.’

 

Flynn knew he was in trouble now and thought frantically of what to do. Then he noticed that the girl was still holding the bottle of potion and he quickly grabbed her arm.

 

'Home, please!’ he said.

 

'Let...' the girl began to snap as darkness enclosed them and then they were back in the cave. '... me go!'

 

'Are you mad!’ Kestor exclaimed in horror. ‘You've bought a witch back with you!'

 

And Flynn watched in dismay as the girl’s eyes rolled back in her head as she fainted. He managed to catch her and lowered her gently to the ground.

 

‘Can’t you stop scaring everyone and making them pass out?’ he snapped at Kestor.

 

‘What made you bring her back?’ Kestor demanded angrily. ‘All you needed to get was a pain potion.’

 

‘I’m too young to buy one by myself,’ Flynn replied. ‘She started to get suspicious, but had the potion in her hand.’

 

And he held up the small bottle.

 

‘That’s not going to be enough for me,’ Kestor said dismally.

 

‘Then we’ll get the girl to get us some more,’ Flynn said.

 

‘She’ll want my scales for some wicked spell, that’s what she’ll want,’ Kestor said gloomily.

 

‘Look, just go outside will you,’ Flynn said. ‘I’ll wake her up and see if she can help us without wanting your scales.’

 

Kestor stomped out of the cave muttering something about being ordered about in his own cave. Flynn ignored him and kneeling down by the girl, gently patted her cheeks.

 

‘Hello, miss... hello...’

 

Her eyelids fluttered open and her dark eyes fixed Flynn with a cold stare.

 

“I’ll turn you into a frog before I get eaten by any dragon!’ she said.

 

‘It’s a Gilt Dragon, it doesn’t eat people!’ Flynn said quickly. ‘It really does have a sore tooth, er... fang.’

 

The girl sat up and looked over his shoulder for it.

 

‘I sent him outside,’ Flynn said.

 

‘You can tell a dragon what to do?’ she asked. ‘I’m impressed!’

 

‘Well... this one at least,’ he replied. ‘It’s a long story.’

 

‘Why don’t you tell me all about it,’ she said and then smiled. ‘I’m Orchid by the way.’

 

‘I’m Flynn and it happened this way...’

 

Orchid’s dark eyes grew larger and larger as Flynn told the story of how he came to be with Kestor. At the end she could only shake her head in wonder.

 

‘I know a little about Gilt Dragons… they’re usually pretty intelligent and Kestor should know that not all witches use dragon scales in their potions,’ she said. ‘My aunt only uses plants in her potions and lotions.’

 

‘You’ll have to convince Kestor of that,’ Flynn said.

 

‘Then let’s go out outside and see him.’

 

They went out of the cave and found a miserable Kestor lying on the ground, gripping his jaws with his talons.

 

‘This is Orchid, Kestor,’ Flynn said. ‘She says she can help.’

 

*

 

A short time later Orchid’s aunt, Mother Cornflower, waved a pair of large pliers in front of Kestor’s eyes.

 

‘You’re a very silly Gilt Dragon, Kestor,’ she said sternly. ‘You’ve left the fang far too long to be healed and now it has to be pulled out. And apart from not brushing your teeth after eating chocolate, you’ve scared some nice folks into thinking that one of their children is going to be eaten. Shame on you!’

 

‘It was my tooth... er, fang,’ Kestor mumbled, his jaws quite numb after drinking a large bowl of pain potion. ‘I wasn’t thinking clearly with the pain.’

 

‘No, you weren’t!’ Mother Cornflower scolded. ‘I imagine Flynn’s folk have already sent a pigeongramme to their king advising him of a Midnight Dragon terrorising their town. They’ll be knights and dragon hunters swarming all over these mountains very soon after you. They’ll be very glad to find that there’s only a Gilt Dragon to slay.’

 

Kestor’s gold colouring turned very pale.

 

‘What… what will I do?’ he asked in dread.

 

‘Well, I’ve had a think about that,’ Mother Cornflower replied. ‘I have a large warehouse that I don’t use much. It can easily house your books and your interesting mirror. And it has a large window that faces the morning sun. You can live there if you like till you find something better.’

 

‘That’s awfully kind of you, Mother Cornflower,’ Kestor replied. ‘I would be deeply grateful.’

 

‘Good, but before that you will fly to Flynn’s village as a Midnight Dragon and tell them he is coming home. Is that clear?’

 

‘Yes, Mother Orchid,’ Kestor replied sheepishly.

 

‘Good, then open wide and we’ll get rid of your bad tooth... er, fang.’

 

Kestor opened his jaws wide and Mother Cornflower stuck her hand in with the pliers. Orchid took Flynn by the hand and pulled him aside.

 

‘This could take a while,’ she said as they walked away. ‘Dragon fangs have really deep roots!’

 

Flynn pulled a face.

 

‘Ouch!’ he said.

 

They walked up to the mirror that had been dragged outside the cave.

 

‘So this mirror can take you anywhere in Kingdoms?’ Orchid asked.

 

‘So Kestor says,’ Flynn replied.

 

Orchid smiled at him, a mischievous look in her dark eyes.

 

‘I know a great place for picking blackberries,’ she said. ‘Why don’t we go and get some for dinner?’

 

Flynn blushed and then grinned.

 

‘Sure!’