2021 FCHS Undefined

that was full of life. Even in winter, they seemed
alive. The trees were either covered with leaves,
buds, icicles, or snow. It was a gorgeous place, and
when I was a child I loved to run and play here.
When I got older, I would come here and read and
write for hours. This forest spawned my love for
everything magical. Looking around me now, I
wondered who would be cold-hearted enough to
destroy a place that was as full of life and love as
this place once was. I still couldn’t believe that it
was gone.
I was getting closer to the end of the Gray Fields
and back to where there was actual grass and
greenery when I spotted something on the ground
ahead. It seemed to be a large pile of rocks, which
made no sense. The last time I had been through
here it had been completely vacant, except for a
single stream, which was now just a trickle of water,
and a couple of random marks in the dirt from
where people had dragged carts across the land.
This place was so cursed no animals would venture
near it. So why was there something that looked like
a large, gray horse or cow lying down about 100
paces away?
As I slowly inched closer, I started smelling
something odd. It reminded me of the time that my
parents had decided that my sisters and I needed a
“cleansing of our bodies and souls” and took us to
these hot springs near the capital. The springs felt
amazing, but they stank like rotten eggs. That was
the smell I was smelling now. Rotten eggs. As I got
closer, the smell got stronger. When I was about ten
feet away, it practically overpowered me. I wasn’t
sure I could get any closer. Suddenly, the creature
turned and looked at me.
“Wwhhoo aarree yyoouu?” it queried, slowly
opening one bright gold eye.
“Um, I’m Anni,” I whimpered.
The pile of rocks smiled. “I’ve heard of you.”
“Wait, why are you talking differently?” I
queried.
The pile of rocks stretched and moved, seeming
to coalesce into a slightly familiar shape.
“I only talk like that to scare intruders. Would
you like to come into my den and have a cup of
tea?”
That’s when it hit me. “You’re a dragon!” I
gasped.
The shape in front of me laughed a low,
rumbling laugh. “That I am. A Northern Stone
dragon, to be precise. I’m here because I was
kicked out of my clan for not agreeing with the
Head Dragon’s politics.” Noting my confused
expression, she (he? it?) elaborated, “Dragons have
clans and are very into inter-species politics. I had
the gall to suggest that the previous monarch of
Rocklandia was a better queen, which enraged my
father so much he threw me out.”
I nodded as if I understood, then turned to go. “I
see that you aren’t planning to destroy our land, so I
should go,” I said.
The dragon smiled. “Before you leave, let me
introduce myself. I’m Jazi, the former princess of
the Upper Rocklandia clan, now a citizen of Dulla.”
Leaning in towards me, she whispered, “I make a
point of introducing myself to adversaries. It’s
harder to kill someone when you know their name. I
also find that the fact that I’m royalty discourages
most princes and knights.”
I scowled. “There’s a member of royalty whom I
know the name of and wouldn’t mind killing. She
ruined this place.” Gesturing around me, I said,
“This place once was a vibrant, magical forest, but
the current queen, Stelina, sapped all of the white
magic from the entire land, leaving only the black
magic.”
Jazi nodded, “That would explain why I was
drawn to this place. I can sense magic, you see, and
when I was flying over on my way to Starskie, this
area seemed to pull me down. I suppose that this
place has become a magical vacuum. It’s not
unheard of for a place that was very quickly drained
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