The Great Crimson Tree: Chapter Four

My computer broke last Saturday and I only just fixed it, hence the later post. This is the next to last chapter of Una and Luhn's adventure. Today my sister printed out the story for me to present to the recipient this Christmas, and I am so excited!! It's been wonderful writing this, and at the last post I'll share the cover art. It's not my best work but it will make her happy which is all that matters.

Sometime important I've discovered writing and posting this is that writing should be fun sometimes. Sometimes you need to drop your grand ideas of a magnificent plot and impressing people just to write something fun and entertaining and maybe not perfect. It's one way to get back in touch with the joy of being a writer when all the writing seems to be crushing you with rules. So try to write a fun little, not-so-perfect story sometime, and enjoy the process!

“Back to the tent!” hissed the goblin.

“But-”

“Now, or I’ll cut ya to ribbons, boy, ya know I will.”

Pale faced and tense, Una slowly backed up until he was beside Luhn. “I,” he said from the corner of his mouth, “lit the dynamite.”

She spun to face him despite the warning shout of the goblin. “You what?!”

“I lit the dynamite.”

Her face went white, then red, then a peculiar shade of purple before finally forming a raised-eyebrow, wide-eyed expression of OH NO.

Una nodded. “It was nice knowing you.”

The tent burst into a thundering explosion behind them. Luhn threw up her hands and cast a shimmering crimson shield around herself, Una, and Spoony that knocked the explosion and horde of goblins back. Una winced and looked up to see fragments of deadly metal and wood bouncing off her shield and exploding into the scattering crowds. Goblins screamed and ran every which way as the ground tore up beneath their feet and the dynamite blew up other, hidden stashes that Una hadn’t been able to find.

Luhn’s eyes were squeezed shut and her body trembled with each thud of a crate or barrel blowing up inches away from their heads.

An intact barrel flew through the air and bounced off her shield. Una watched it fly through the chaos and land near the majestic Crimson Tree. The lid fell off, and as the explosions continued it suddenly burst into flames as well, flames that shot up dozens of feet into the air and engulfed the lower leaves of the tree. The flames crackled and began spreading up.

“Luhn!” Una grabbed her arm and shook her. “Luhn, the tree! LOOK!”

Luhn’s eyes opened and her shield shivered then dissolved. The two grabbed hands and ran from the explosions as fast as their legs could take them. None of the goblins bothered to stop them.

Una ground to a halt and pulled her back. He pointed to the burning tree. “Luhn, we have to stop it!”

Her hands fluttered to her mouth. “Oh- Oh no! But how? I don’t have water magic!”

Desperate now, he looked around but saw nothing that would save them or the tree. Then he looked up to the utmost limbs where the fire would be sure to reach. The tree groaned in anguish, and the entire forest seemed to groan too.

“Water,” he gasped. A mad, hare-brained idea sprang into his mind. He spun towards Luhn then back to the tree again, wavering on decision. “I have a plan, but- Luhn, I don’t think it’s possible.” Still his heart beat urgently to do something to save the life of this beautiful forest.

She wiped her eyes and sniffed, staring at him with burning intensity. “You have to try. What do you need to do?”

“I need to get to the top of the tree.”

She nodded. “Leave it to me. Wait right here until my signal, then run with all your might, Unatarias.” Then Luhn turned and ran right towards the burning tree, her cloak flapping in the wind and snapping viciously behind her. She rammed through a row of small goblins who were running away. Skidding to a halt, she came as close to the heat as she dared then turned and waved at Una.

Unsure of how this would end but willing to go down fighting, Una dashed towards her. Closer, closer, feeling the fire searing the air and hearing it crackle the ancient bark.

He came a few feet away from Luhn and suddenly saw her plan. With a hoarse cry he lept into the air, coming down towards her head.

Luh thrust her fist up and formed another crimson shield. Una’s feet touched it and it blossomed to an enormous height, shooting upward and expanding over the heads of the goblins who were still scrambling away in terror. He heard a sizzle and knew she had released the shield, but it continued to shoot up, powered by the momentum. The force beneath his feet began to shudder and grow thin. The night sky grew closer, the stars and moon seemingly burning as red as the fire around the tree.

Una waited until the last second, then lept again and stretched for the closest branch. He was almost too late, but his fingers snagged it. He pulled himself up and looked down. Luhn was invisible among the goblins, and the fires were hungrily crawling up.

But I have a head start, he thought grimly, and began scaling the branches like a ladder.

The tree was alive. He felt it beneath his fingers and felt its pained hum at the heat eating its bark and bones. Una didn’t stop, but he let his palm graze comfortingly across the tree’s surface.

“I will do everything I can to save the forest,” he said.

It felt like an eternity before he reached the top branches. Una’s lungs were scraped raw and sweat poured down his face like a river. Though he was a very strong man, he was still a mortal compared to the force of the fire which had shot up at twice the rate he had. Again he felt its heat close behind.

Here came the truly dangerous part. Una swallowed hard, then walked out across the branch. One false step and he would plummet hundreds of feet to his death. Hopefully he wouldn’t squash Luhn in the process. What a horrible way to die: landing on one of your few friends and being blinked at by her cursed goggly spoon as you passed into the afterlife.

Una’s heart rose to his throat as he crossed farther. The tree was illuminated in a wreath of crimson-gold flames. The thinner top of the tree swayed in the force of the night wind. The moon shone bright and fierce upon him, and in its silver light he stopped at last with his arms raised toward the sky.

This has to work. All would die if it did not.

Slowly, he turned and closed his eyes. He reached into the deepest, oldest part of himself where the blood of his ancestors lay.

“Please!” he shouted, his voice strained and hoarse. “O dragons, mighty ones, if you can hear me, help us!”

A harmony of memories swirled within him. The dragons are fickle beasts, but true to their friends… In the light of the stars and moon are where your thoughts can reach them… Never call for frivolous reasons, for while they are powerful friends, they are terrible enemies.

“This certainly isn’t frivolous! Please, I beg you! Help! Us!”

The flames crackled. The goblins screeched. Far below, perhaps Luhn was calling his name. But to Una the sky seemed to shiver. The light of silver beams cracked, and he stepped back towards the trunk, heart hammering.

The light twisted together and formed a pulsing, swirling circle. He shielded his face with his elbow but continued to watch as it grew larger, louder, brighter. Beams of the whitest, purest light shot out, bathing the tree in beauty and strength. The portal was opening! His prayer had been heard.

He was not just Una, wanderer of Nintarius and vagabond. He was Unatarius, warrior and the son of a warrior, hero, and dragon-speaker like his father before him. He could only hope the skill borne in his blood had not gone stale from disuse.

“Help us!” Una shouted again.

The mighty head of a dragon shot through the portal, followed by the body. Una scrambled out of its way as it continued to uncurl until its entire length was in the present realm. A massive, water-colored male, his horns were many and gleaming; his eyes were bright white and without pupil or iris though he could see perfectly; his wings snapped the sky and his tail lashed, the furry end of it whistling through the air.

It worked! Una could have fainted from relief. He still had it. His father would have been proud.

The dragon reared back and roared. Rows of gleaming, needle-like teeth shone white as they snapped together. The head swiveled and the eyes zeroed in on Una.

Una slowly stepped forwards. “Will you help us?” he asked in a whisper.

The dragon did not shake its head or nod, but it seemed to agree by a simple, majestic shake of its shoulders. Then it poised itself and dove for the base of the tree.

Una threw himself against the trunk and breathlessly watched.

Water steamed from the dragon's nostrils. It swooped in enormous circles around the trunk spraying water, putting out the fires with little effort. One by one the horrible burning lights went out and the moonbeams shone gently on the scarred and pitted trunk.

Goblins screamed and ran back to their tunnels. The fight was over; a dragon had been introduced and they could no longer win. Entire hordes poured back to the dark, dank holes they had tunneled.

But a few remained with desperate expressions and weapons bared. They were charging a lone figure standing near the tree. In one hand she held what looked like a small spoon, and she seemed quite small and alone against the hordes coming after her.

“Oh NO you don’t!” Una shouted. He jumped from the tree and plummeted down. “Luhn! I’m coming, Luhn!”

Luhn looked up to see him and her eyes widened as he rapidly hurtled down. She spun away from a grasping goblin and launched another shield, a softer one that froze Una in midair and held him for the second it took to release him gently. He landed beside and rolled to his feet with the agility of a cat.

“Getting down is a lot faster than getting up,” Una observed, drawing his sword.

She snorted. “Easy for you to say. You’re not the one doing half the work.”

“Half the work? I’ll have you know I worked very hard jumping up all those branches.” And with that he parried a dagger thrust and took off three fingers of the foolish and desperate goblin. Luhn simply grinned and joined him, and together they battled the remaining goblins up against the entrance of the largest hole.

“We’re not goin’ down easy,” shouted the leader. It was the same goblin who had held them at sword point only minutes ago. He waved the same sword and limped towards them. Una had to feel a grudging pang of respect; this guy did not give up.

“But the dragon!” wailed one.

“Stop yer wailing, Brunk! The dragon is too busy to waste his time savin’ the likes of these.”

“What if we don’t need to be saved?” Luhn asked with a smirk. She dropped into a fighter’s stance, Una beside her and holding his gleaming sword high and strong.

The goblins’ eyes narrowed and they let out a battle cry, more of a yowl, really, charging as one with weapons bared. Una and Luhn let out cries of their own and rushed to meet the attackers.

Neither side ever had a chance to find out who was the stronger, though, for Spoony suddenly flung itself from Luhn’s hand and at the goblins. Within the blink of an eye the spoon doubled in size, then tripled, stretching at breakneck speed until it was the size of an elephant. Una grabbed Luhn’s arm and the two of them scrambled out from beneath the monstrous thing’s shadow.

“YAAAAAH!” The goblins turned and ran towards their hole. But it was too late. Spoony opened a gaping mouth full of jagged teeth and collapsed on top of them. One moment the goblins were there, gray-green and ugly, and the next they were gone in the cavernous mouth.

Spoony lay there and burped. It shuddered, wriggled, and crept back down to the size of an average spoon. It blinked up at the shocked (and more than a little horrified) pair who couldn’t bring themselves to move. They even forgot about the water dragon as they stood there staring.

“I-” Luhn began.

“It- You-” Una was able to get out only one more word than she.

They looked at each other.

“I think you were right about Spoony not being all he looks,” Luhn whispered. Her face had gone white.

Slowly, Una approached Spoony and picked him up.

“No!” Luhn called. “Una, be careful.”

Una turned and held Spoony out to her. “I think… I think that maybe we both underestimated it- er, him.” He frowned. “If he had wanted to do away with us, then he would have done it long ago. I think he likes you. Or at least doesn’t want to eat you.”

Still as pale as a sheet, Luhn reached out and took Spoony back. They stared at each other for a long moment. Finally she laughed weakly and stuck him back into her belt, patting him on the head. “I have a feeling there’s a lot to learn about this little guy.”

“We have a long road ahead of us and plenty of time to do just that.”

The woosh of the dragon’s wings behind them pushed their hair back and fluttered their cloaks. They turned, and Luhn was so overwhelmed by the majesty that she began to kneel. Una took her arm and pulled her up.

“If we kneel, we kneel as one,” he said. “Stand.”

Shaking, Luhn nodded. She seemed to have forgotten even Spoony as she gazed at the dragon.

The dragon folded its wings and sat tall and proud before them. Behind it the Great Crimson Tree was now void of fire. Icy drops of water dripped from the branches, bathing the moonlit crimson with blue and white streaks. The dragon’s scales bore the same hue, and as it towered above Una and Luhn, water clinging to its horns slid off and plonked on the ground and their heads.

“Thank you,” Una said.

“Yes, thank you.”

The dragon lowered its head and peered into Una’s eyes. “Lad, you did well in summoning me…” its voice boomed in his head.

“It’s what my father would have done,” he murmured.

“As he should. This world holds many marvelous things, and it is our job to protect them. It turned and looked at the tree, which was deeply gashed and pitted with burns. A wash of anger, then sadness filled the dragon’s eyes as it turned back to Una. “This must never happen again.”

“I will do what I can to make sure it doesn’t.” Una suddenly paused. He glanced at Luhn, whose head was bowed. “I mean, we will do what we can.”

Luhn glanced up, a butterfly-quick smile flashing across her face. “We at last, huh?”

“We’re a team, aren’t we?”

“You just want the benefits of my magic, goblin-munching spoon.”

Una snorted.

The dragon eyed them both, then, with a twist of its lips that might have been interpreted as a smile, rose to full height and spread its wings. Una, Luhn, and Spoony backed a good distance away as it flapped its wings once, twice, then four times and rose into the air. The moonlight shimmered, and an ice-encrusted swirl developed beneath the dragon’s feet. It soared high, the ice and light spinning faster and faster. Luhn raised her red shield to protect them from the hissing cold that threatened to suck them off their feet.

“Fare thee well, Unatarius!” The dragon tucked its wings and plummeted into the portal. Head, neck, wings, and tail vanished as the portal snapped shut and the light whirled away to whatever dimension the dragon had come from. The circle of icy water fell to the ground, forming a blue-white ring that glimmered in the moon and starlight.

“Wow,” Luhn breathed. Then before anyone could do anything she spun and hugged Una tightly. Startled, he didn’t know what to do. Then he laughed and hugged her back.

“You did it!” she crowed.

“No.” He let go and stepped back. “We did it.”

She cleared her throat, regaining her composure. “Of course we did. I knew the whole time.”

“Sure ya did.”

“I mean it! I wasn’t worried even for a second.”

“Not even when the world was literally blowing up at our feet.”

“Not even then.”