Sir Thomas and the Golden Dragon

Thomas Melview was a boy of eight years old when he first heard about the golden dragon. “I’ll tell you a tale my son, of a great golden dragon that is so rare that one scale on its mighty hide can make a man rich for all their life” Thomas’s father told Thomas, "I was 10 years old when my father told me the tale and for many years I sought out the legendary dragon. When King Midorian, of the first kingdom of Tronsel, was but a young boy, he traveled far and wide to find a place he belonged. He could not do hard labor for he was too frail and meek. He could not be a scholar as he was too lazy to learn the words of both magic and gods alike. And he could not be a servant in the quarters of a home as he was sickened by almost everything. How then might you ask did such a man become king of our land? Well, it was because he met the golden dragon and, according to him, it gifted him a golden scale which he used to become the richest in the whole land. With his wealth, he assisted everyone in the kingdom in any way he could. Thus, over time he was claimed as king. When he became king, he visited the place where he found the golden dragon and upon a tree was a message that said ‘Your majesty our meeting was fated to be so, and I will return one day. And on that day I will come and bless a new simple man and they too shall become king and rule in your place’ signed Narvaria the Golden Dragon'. “Father, this is nothing more than a fable” Thomas said,“besides, even if it were true, where’s the dragon now and who is it going to bless next? There are too many holes.” Thomas’s father replied, “calm down, it may be a story, but it does not mean it is any less true”. “Well, if that’s the case, maybe I will be the next king of Tronsel and I will use my riches to make the land better.” “Maybe you will Thomas but for now off to bed with you tomorrow we must be up before dawn its harvest time, and we need the food, or I fear we will go hungry before winter arrives.” “Father just one question before I go to bed.” “Yes son what is it?” “Has anyone actually seen the golden dragon in real life” Thomas asked. “Some men have claimed to see a golden light fly through the night sky while others claim to see a beautiful woman with eyes like diamonds be there one second then gone the next.” “So that’s a no then” Thomas asked. His father replied, “hard to say, but I know if you search hard enough one day the golden dragon may find you. Now get some sleep son, and dream of the golden dragon.” “Yes sir, good night father.” “Good night my son.” The next morning came bright rays of sunlight lighting up the log cabin and a subtle warmth filled the one room cabin that Thomas’s father had built with his bare hands. Melony, Thomas’s mother, was a beautiful and radiant woman who was also kind and caring to others, unfortunately the past year was hard on the small family as Melony was gripped by a vicious fever that sadly took her life. Thomas did what he could to help his grieving father, but he knew no matter how many chores he did and no matter how good he was, he could not heal his father’s ailing heart. “Get up Thomas, it's time to work” Thomas’s father said. “Yes sir, I’m awake.” Thomas got out of bed put on his white shirt his mother made him and his brown worn pants with holes in the knees. He then slid on his leather shoes that were made by his father. They were strong but not very comfortable. A lass Thomas’s family was very poor and all the money they made came from the crops they grew. The family did, however, own 4 large acres of land which also included a nearby stream of clean fresh cold water at any time of the year. After a long hard day in the fields, Thomas loved to swim, drink, and play in the river. It was also a wonderful source of fish and, due to the various crops they grew, game itself was plentiful. “Father, after we work today can we play in the river?” Thomas asked. “Not today son, I have business in town. I’m trusting you to watch the fields and home while I go into town and sell some meat and vegetables to get us some coin to buy better materials for clothes and other things we need”. “Yes sir” Thomas replied. Thomas was a good boy who listened to his father’s every word. After his mother died, he felt he owed his father that but on this day fate would test his luck and his trust. In the afternoon, Thomas’s father took off into town and Thomas put his feet up and rested. “A long day of hard work deserves a little rest” Thomas said, as he was listening to the soft cool breeze blowing exhaustion overtook Thomas and he drifted off to sleep. He dreamed of one day working in the field and a large dragon ten times bigger than his home and covered in golden scales descended into his gardens tearing them to pieces. He looked at the dragon without fear, then Thomas yelled “you destroyed my father’s crops. How will you atone for this?” The dragon says “young lord, I have come to free you and your father from poverty. This land, as well as all others, will be yours. Take one of my scales and with it the wealth of the world.” Thomas reaches out to take the scale only to find it is blazing hot like fire and it burns him. He quickly awakens to discover the oil lamp his father had lit before leaving has fallen and the small log cabin is quickly catching fire. ‘I don’t know what to do’ Thomas thinks quickly and runs to the river with a small bucket. He quickly fills the bucket and runs back to the house spilling it as he runs. After attempting this three more times, his father returns home and is horrified at the thought that Thomas is inside. He runs in to save Thomas, not knowing Thomas is outside. He yells “Thomas, Thomas, where are you son” but his words are drowned in the flames. As Thomas tries one more time for water, he slips and falls and hits his head on a rock that barely saw the light of day and was unconscious. Hours later, Thomas awoke now dizzy from the fall. He remembers his father and yells “father, father!” a lass no reply, he screams “father where are you?” again no reply as he wanders through the wreckage of his home he tripped over what appears to be a fallen log however, after Thomas looks closer he is horrified to see the burnt remains of his father clutching onto his pillow as if it were him. Thomas, out of fear, grief and sadness, runs from the house, tears falling like the flow of the river. He runs into the nearby forest until he can’t run anymore. “Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh” Thomas screams in sadness and anger and proceeds to beat a nearby tree until both his hands bleed, and his arms are bruised the color of black olives. With mucus and tears all over his face, he throws up and falls near the river. The next morning, Thomas is awakened by the sun, and he goes into the river to drink and to clean himself. He wanders back to his old home and eats the vegetables in the garden until he looks like a little ball fuller than he has ever been. As he rests and mourns his father, he thinks about the golden dragon and curses the thought, yelling out “stupid dragon, you don’t even exist. If you did, my father and mother would still be alive.” All this does is make Thomas angrier and so he takes a nearby shovel that he left on the ground the day prior, goes down behind the house and begins to dig. With more tears he digs his father a proper grave, he goes and retrieves his father's body, taking great effort to drag him out of the house and, with the utmost care, he places his father in the hole and buries him properly. “I can’t live like this forever” Thomas exclaims “I am only eight years old. I can’t take care of myself, can I?” Thomas then takes what he can from the home and the knowledge his father instilled in him and heads into the forest to forge his own path.