Garen was chosen by the King to fulfill a quest—to confront and defeat the dragons that had invaded the land. He was given a special weapon—a silver orb of living light. To use this weapon, he had to do just two things: be in the presence of evil and call on the name of the Most High trusting in His power.
It had been a long journey. He had been pressing on for weeks. He was tired of the brush and the wilderness. But he continued to press ahead. He followed the orb at first, but after a while, tired of it. So, he bundled it up in some cloth and kept it wrapped in his pack. And, after a while, he forgot about it. He should not have done that.
He was hungry. It had been days since he had seen anyone to get food from. There did not seem to be any game to hunt. The old and flat bread that he carried was molding. Even the cheese that he carried had become rancid, so he discarded it days earlier.
He came to a little clearing atop the mountain that he needed to go over to get to the country in the north where he was instructed to go. It was getting colder. He stopped in a little depression that was out of the wind to make his camp for the night. He was alone.
With his flint and steel, he was able to start a small fire. He warmed himself and was beginning to feel a little bit lonely when he heard something.
He drew his small sword and expected something fierce to come charging out of the bushes but instead was surprised to see a small—
“What is that?” He wondered.
It was small and covered with short, smooth, metallic-blue fur. It had big black eyes, and two large, ridiculous looking, floppy ears and a long sleek tail. It was almost comical in appearance.
He hopped out of the bushes and came right near the fire. “What are you?” Garen said to himself, but the small animal answered him.
“If you don’t like my colors, I can change them.” The small animal shook his fur, and instantly, he was burnt orange in color. He shook again, and he was yellow with pink stripes. He shook once again and was the deepest of forest green.
“What are you?” Garen asked as he sheathed his sword. He had never seen a small animal like this before.
“I am happiness. I am joy. I am anything that your heart desires, because, well—I am. But at this moment, I am cold. May I sit by your fire?”
Garen cautiously welcomed the little animal to sit by the fire. For the time being, he would appreciate the company. He was tired, hungry, and feeling so alone.
The little animal came right next to him, and Garen, startled by the forwardness of the animal, began to get to his feet.
“Oh sit—sit—sit—I’m not going to bite you. Just sit.” It said.
So Garen sat.
The little animal spoke. “I live here, and I have never seen your kind before. What are you?”
“I’m a man,” replied Garen.
“What are you doing here?”
“I’m on a quest.”
“A quest? That sounds important. What kind of quest?”
Feeling more secure, Garen began to brag. “The King has given me the task of destroying the dragons in the land.”
“Dragons?! Exclaimed the little animal. His body language was tense, and he walked in small circles. “What have the dragons done to make you so angry at them?”
“Oh. I’m not angry. I’ve been chosen to carry the orb. I’ve been chosen to slay them. I just need to take the orb and call on the name of the Most High God, and they’ll be slain.”
“But why?” asked the little animal in its most timid tone.
“Because dragons are evil,” Garen explained. “They kill. They maim. They deceive and destroy. They twist what is natural into something hideous. They are deceiving people into revolting against the King.”
“Oh! They sound frightful.” Exclaimed the shivering animal.
“Don’t worry. I’ll protect you. I have my sword, and the orb and nothing will harm you tonight.”
“Are you sure we’re safe—from dragons?”
“Positive,” said Garen.
The little animal moved right against Garen’s leg. He could feel the warmth of its body, and he could feel its soft, smooth fur, and he liked the feel.
Into the night they chatted. The animal asked more and more questions about Garen, and he complimented the knight on his bravery.
Garen really liked the little green fuzzball. After a while, and without realizing it, he reached out and began to gently pet the little animal’s soft red fur and began to think about going home.
Hungry and tired, Garen no longer felt alone. He felt like he had found a new friend.
He told the little animal all about his home, his mission, and the King that he served. The little animal listened with great interest. Occasionally the little animal would ask things like, “How do you know you can trust the King? And what if the stories he heard about the dragons were wrong, and the dragons were really friendly?” More than once he asked, “What if you fail in your quest?”
Garen would reply, “I won’t fail. I’ve been chosen. I have the orb.”
The little animal asked, “If a dragon were here right now—would you slay it?”
“Of course I would,” was Garen’s honest reply.
Late into the night, when darkness was the blackest, the little animal turned to Garen and asked, “Are you my friend?”
“I guess so,” answered Garen.
“I’m so glad,” the little animal responded. Then he curled into a small ball and fell fast asleep.
Leaning against a rock, Garen tucked his backpack behind his head and used it for a pillow. For a time, he stroked the animal’s soft fur. Then he too began to doze and soon fell into a deep sleep.
After several hours, the little animal awakened from its sleep. He got up and moved silently away from Garen without as much as a sound. He walked just beyond the dying fire, and with his head bent low, and he began to stretch. As his head came up, and with his arms stretched above him, his eyes opened, and they were the most radiant, reptilian blue that you can imagine. He bent his neck backward and continued to stretch—and as he stretched, he began to grow. His growth was quick. In just moments, he had gone from a small furry red ball to a height of more than thirteen feet. His soft fur had turned into scales that in another few moments hardened.
With anger and malice in his eyes, he looked down at the sleeping figure. Silently he moved next to Garen’s side, and then with all of his fury—he struck. He grabbed Garen’s arm with his talon. Instantly Garen awoke in agony as the dragon lifted him off of the ground by his arm, shook him, then threw him against the rock where he had slept.
“Going to kill dragons, are we?” he growled at Garen. “You haven’t the power.” He snarled as he, again and again, smashed Garen against the rock. You could hear the bones in Garen’s arm break.
“Going to follow the King’s command, are we? You fool. There are none greater than me! I am King of this world.”
Letting go of Garen’s mangled arm, the dragon reached his arms towards the sky. “I am the King of this world!” He screamed. “It belongs to me, and I claim it!”
But Garen remembered, “—the orb!”
With his arm in agony, and with every ounce of strength that he possessed, he reached for the pack which only moments before had been his pillow. There was no time to lose. He reached in and grabbed the small bundle that encased the orb. But before he could untie it, the dragon smashed his foot down upon Garen’s back pinning him to the ground.
Garen cried out, “Almighty God—” But before he could say another word, the dragon smashed his foot once again into Garen’s back.
As his ribs cracked, Garen screamed out in pain, “Almighty—save me!”
The dragon snarled, “No one will save—”
But before he could even finish the words that were on his tongue, the orb came bursting out of the bundle—a brilliant white light glowing with power and authority and a life of its own.
It instantly smashed into the side of the dragon again and again as if some great sword being wielded by a great skilled warrior.
The dragon screamed in anger as he was buffeted by some invisible host. His talons were flailing trying to stop the orb’s repeated strikes.
And then the dragon toppled to the ground just feet from where Garen lay. Garen, holding his arm against his side and in great pain cried out, “I trusted you! You were my friend. You were just a little—” but Garen’s word died out.
“There are no little dragon’s” snarled the dying beast. “We are all mighty!”
In another moment, there was silence. The orb came to rest next to Garen’s side. Garen bandaged his arm tightly against his chest, and at first morning’s light began to make his way down the mountain toward the kingdom in search of help.