Read the First Chapter: The Last Dragon Tamer
Chapter 1
Mist and Books: Jake
If you think it’s easy to go to Driftwood Middle School and have an easy life; I can tell you personally, you're wrong. This is Jake you're talking to. Jake, the no good, left in the dust kid. Some people at school even call me “the bird nerd.”
Despite my crazy blond hair and ripped jeans, with a hoodie, I’m actually very smart. Yes, it’s true that I have an interest in birds, but with only one friend to back you up, it’s pretty rough. My one and only friend is Ruby.
Ruby is a tough girl with pigtails and black hair. She rarely wears dresses but she still has girly characteristics. Surviving arts class, a long lecture in science class and a boring geography conversation was very hard. Especially, if you're constantly being stalked by Carter; whose favorite thing to do is call me “bird brain,” and chases you all over the different hallways in between periods.
As I was walking out of school, Ruby called me over. “I’m heading to the library to study for that old history test. I didn’t do so good last time, so I figured I’d put in some more effort,” said Ruby. We got on our bikes and cycled to the library.
Although our town is fairly small, the library is huge. My parents say it’s the biggest thing in this town. They're probably right too. Even the Town Hall is barely bigger than it.
There are some fairly big things though, like the Roosevelt Statue, or the SuperMart warehouse, but they're nothing compared to the library. The front doors are marble and there are two pillars holding up the front. There’s a giant skylight with a big chandelier.
Books pile up the shelves. Everywhere you look, there are books. I figured I’d look for some aviary books while I was there. I headed over to the air and flight center. I’ll read anything that includes flying. For my famous person report I even picked The Wright Bros.
I spotted an interesting book with a fancy spine. When I opened it, it looked like it had been written not typed. It looked like it had gone through the shredder, dipped in tomato sauce and thrown in the pool. But it had the serial number and checkout scan, so I asked the librarian about it. Mrs. Hoff, the librarian likes everything neat and orderly. Her motto is ‘a place for everything and everything in its place.’
Sometimes if I take a different route I bike by her house. It’s huge. It almost looks like the library. If I were to guess she is probably English. She always wears a green dress which goes badly with her red hair.
“What is this?” Mrs. Hoff said. “I’ve never seen it! Preposterous!” exclaimed Mrs. Hoff. That was weird, because she probably read every book ever written. “Here young man, fill this out and you can take it,” she said as she handed me a white form. I filled out the form, grabbed my stuff and walked to meet Ruby. “Jake, there you are, let’s go I got some good books from the fiction section,” said Ruby. “My mom will kill me if we don’t get back soon,” she continued.
That was true, my mom was stern too. As I glanced at the weird book, I guessed the book was either a really old book or it was a prank, because it went on and on about creatures and magical items. Plus, it was actually written in ink.
We walked out and started walking home. When I turned to page 28, I stopped. Ruby must’ve noticed I was spooked because she stopped as well. She turned and asked me “Jake are you OK?” She looked at the page and gaped. We were looking at a real giant, razor sharp tooth. Beside it was a map. “What the...” I said as I reached out to touch it and it evaporated into mist. Ruby pinched her cheek to check if it was a dream. Sadly, it wasn’t. Then some misty creature appeared on the other side of the street.
None of the citizens seemed to notice it (not that there were very many). I slowly walked toward it and touched it. It evaporated again and appeared on the other side of the street. I was so fascinated, I didn’t notice we had passed our block. “Uh… Jake?” Ruby called.
I swiped at it and it appeared a few feet ahead. It slowly floated down the block. I shoved the book into my pack and ran after it. I could hear Ruby a few feet away behind me yelling “Jake, wait!” The creature led us to a field at the edge of town. Behind the meadow was the woods, the border of our town. Only then, did I realize the misty thing looked like a girl.
The misty girl evaporated and didn’t reappear. I found myself standing in front of a large black gate. It had absolutely no traces of any type of wall. I’d never noticed it before.
Ruby caught up behind me panting, clutching her cheek. “Jake,… never… do that… again!” I didn’t hear her. I was too interested in the gate. I looked around and as I walked through it, it suddenly pulled me in. I heard Ruby squealing behind me, “Jake!” I went black for a few seconds.
When I emerged, I found myself in the middle of a huge meadow. I was mystified. The meadow was surrounded by a forest. “This forest is huge!” I said to myself. I heard a noise…
behind me, and Ruby appeared breathing hard. “You… gave me a heart attack!” she breathed, her eyes glowering with fury. She looked ready to punch me.
