The Writers' Circle

The Annals of the Crest-Book One-The Mark of the Dragonfly
                      Script One-Battle in the Dragoon Mountains

	It was one of those gray days, with the occasional pouring rain and sprinkles in between.  No thunder echoed in the vast sky and no lightening split the heavens.  It was just damp and gray.  She liked days like this and in light of the weather, she went for a walk in the woods behind her house.
	Today was absolutely boring; no one was home besides her dog, and her parents were at work.  She always walked somewhere, to think, to be slightly entertained.  She really didn't know the actual and real reason she went for walks; maybe to just get some exercise, maybe to find that adventure that would never come.  Who knew?  She knew she didn't
	The girl sighed as the raindrops fell and lightly tapped against her head and shoulders.  This somehow comforted her, the small tap-tap-tap against the forest's leaves and plants and weeds.  She was surprised to find the mosquitoes weren't out and biting.  Maybe it was too close to fall?  Whatever the reason, she was happy the annoying, blood-sucking insects weren't there; otherwise she would be too busy slapping herself to think.
	She enjoyed the peace and quiet.  Usually, at home, her mother was on the phone with a friend or client, and her father was always ordering her around, always pointing out her faults, asking why she can't be better.  When she was younger, this troubled her, so she consistently tried to impress her father and she strived to do her best, but he still found things wrong.  She eventually gave up and built up a tolerance to the heavy criticism.  Her mother would never stick up for her, because she was always busy, but on some rare occasions when she was free, she would scold him for being too harsh.  It seemed their dog was the only real thing her dad cared about sometimes.
	She let her mind wander, and her jean-clad legs carry her to wherever, her subconscious giving the orders on where to go, or maybe it was fate fairies or the destiny gods her grandmother told her about that decided, only they knew.  Her mind wandered to school and seeing her friends everyday, and getting annoying homework and projects, and getting sick of seeing all the drama that people dished out during breakfast.  It seemed for lunch they gave nasty remarks on someone else's clothes, and maybe for dinner they sucked up and took money to go buy something 'important'.  She thought that all the drama was just to keep everyone alive, to help reassure some people that they are still breathing, and that the Grim Reaper wasn't stalking or hunting them down quite yet.
	Her mind turned to clothes, for she felt her feet getting heavier with all the mud and wet, dead leaves her tennis shoes were picking up and clinging on to.  She kicked the air hard and unenthusiastically watched the clumps of wet earth fling off and into the underbrush.  Her short sleeve t-shirt didn't provide much protection against the cool air, yet she ignored the goose bumps that had graced her arms.
	Something told her to stop, and she did.  She found herself in what possibly could've the center of the forest that was in the shape of a circle, and in the very heart was a large oak tree.  The branches twisted and turned above her head as she looked up towards the different shades of gray sky.  Dark green leaves had blossomed on almost every branch - that she could see, anyway - and were dripping with the teardrops of Mother Nature.  The limbs grew to the sides, up far above the other treetops, some bent down, and some just in any direction they could manage.  It sort of reminded her of a large and packed city; most people lived where they could afford and just to get by.
	Yet, it certainly didn't describe her town.  Her town was boring, and very uneventful.  Nothing exciting and exhilarating happened there.
	Something caught her eye in the dark wet wood of the magnificently huge tree.  It was a lighter color, and perhaps that was why it caught her attention.  Or maybe it was the shape, for it was shaped like a dragonfly.  It seemed imprinted into the bark, like it was somehow pressed into the younger years of the bark.  It went several layers down from the wood that was covering the whole tree, and made it look very strange.
	Curious, she got closer and let her fingers trace over the light bark.  It was surprisingly warm and smooth.  She pulled her fingers away and found that they had started tingling as soon as the skin had left the trunk.
	Strange... she thought.  She felt drawn to the tree.  Like it was calling to her, telling her to do something, yet what, she didn't know.  She could sense something deep inside her darkest emotions and deepest memories stirring, and it was the most peculiar thing she had ever felt.  Her heart raced as another though came to her.  Was this the adventure she was looking for?
	All at once, her grandmother's favorite story seemed to echo from somewhere, resonating around the clearing.
	"I have been told that dragonflies are the smallest form of dragon, yet unlike its cousins, they're skittish and quite fearful of humans.  They are full of a rare, ancient, and powerful magic, and, best of all, good luck.  It is said that the very day before death claims the poor creatures, they seek a host to transfer their magic and good fortune.  These blessed few number of people are believed to become great leaders and they pass down their magic to each generation."
	Returning to the present, she found her hand had placed itself on the dragonfly shape.  Half of her wanted to pull away, but the other half didn't sense any danger and said to just leave it there and see what would happen.  She refused to move it and kept it pressed against the trunk.
	Replacing the echoes of the words her grandmother spoke in the past, random words seemed to fill the space.  Words like' open', 'turn', 'hand', 'left', and 'key', things having no relation to her current situation.
	What do I open?  I'm perfectly capable of turning my hand to the left, she thought as she did so.  But what does 'key' mean?
	Yet then, something dawned on her that deserved a lit up light bulb floating over her head.  It was something else from her grandma; a key that didn't open any doors.  Her grandmother gave it to her when she was cleaning out an old jewelry box.  She said that she had found it when she was a little girl playing in the pond out back.  When Grandma had died, she bought a shoelace and made a necklace with the key as a pendant and never took it off since.
	She removed her hand from the bark, and pulled a long chain that had replaced the shoelace out from under the collar of her shirt and held the dangling tool at eye level.  It was the same as it had always been: silver, with two loops on the top of the small handle, and one more on top of those with six carved in stars around them.  On the handle were small and delicate lines that she couldn't make out for more than blobs and she couldn't really tell the purpose of.
	Letting the key fall back down onto her chest, she shifted her gaze back to the imprint of the dragonfly, and was surprised to see a small keyhole had appeared.
	"I wonder..." she thought aloud.  With tentative hands, she grasped the key firmly and pushed it into the hole; to her amazement, it fit.
	Time seemed to drag on, for the seconds seemed to last for more than it was worth as she slowly turned the key in the lock, wondering if it would unlock something and find its door.  A loud and echoing 'shuck!' confirmed the lock had unlocked.  All at once, a 'whooshing' sound was coming from somewhere inside the tree.  The front of the trunk was opening like a door and she could see nothing inside for there was a blinding white light.
	The tree door continued to open wider, and the 'whooshing' was sucking air inside the tree.  Shielding her eyes from the light with her hands, she squinted at the tree, amazed.  This was definitely an adventure waiting to happen.  Her key had fallen from the lock without her touching it and fell back onto her chest, surprisingly very warm and spreading that warmth throughout her body.
	"C'mon, don't be shy," a very friendly male voice said from inside.  Unable to compress the excitement flowing through her veins, and the accomplishment making her heart and adrenaline race, she stepped through the door of the tree and into the light.
	In far enough, the door decided to shut behind her.  She had closed her eyes when crossing over, and through her eyelids, it seemed the brightness had subsided.  Hesitantly, she opened one eye slightly, and then opened them both widely at the scene in front of her.
	She was, no doubt, inside the oak tree, for the bark walls indicated that.  Looking above her though, really established the fact.  There were still branches above her, all twisting and turning, but what made it wonderful and beautiful was the fact that there were all sorts of the typical mythical creatures: fairies, gnomes, nymphs, elves, and brownies.  Yet, there were more creatures that she was less and unfamiliar with.  Some had beards, some had fins, and one had the body of a bear, the arms and legs of a monkey, and the head of a goat.
	In the very center of her vision, though, at the edge of where the branches began, was a large white face.  It looked like a mask, as if it was painted, for its expression never wavered: curious, joyful, and cheery.
	Just when she thought it was a decoration, its smile got wider.
	"Welcome, Valerie!  To the Great Dragonwood Tree!  We've got the residential area up top in the branches, as you can tell, and down here, we've got me, the dimensional warlock!"
	A confused and shocked look was plastered on her face.  How did this thing know her name?  What was a 'Dragonwood'?  How could the mask talk?  And what in the world was a dimensional warlock?
	"I'm sure you're very confused right now, and the look on your face practically screams it.  So, how about ya float on up here and I'll get some tea ready and I'll explain over a light snack.  Sound good?"
	Unsure of what to do, she just nodded with her mouth gaping open.
	"Mind ya, we may have several interruptions because of travelers trying to get through, but they won't be long."  His face turned around and Valerie was surprised to find that, despite looking like a mask, his head had a back.
	After a few minutes of staring and wondering the same questions, the dimensional warlock turned back around and apparently was expecting to find her up there with him.  His puzzled look gazed down at her and he raised a 'painted' eyebrow.  In his hands, or at least, hands that were floating close enough to him and had appeared from nowhere that she just assumed to call them his, was a teapot and a platter of cookies that were still steaming.
	"Well don't just stand there looking like an idiot!" he exclaimed, almost impatiently as he set down the teapot and cookies on a table with a purple tablecloth that appeared before him.  "Get up here!"
	"H-h-h-how?" she stuttered, afraid if he was angered, he would direct his magical wrath towards her.
	He rolled his eyes like everyone knew how to fly, and most likely, they probably did.  "Duh! It comes naturally, like you actually have wings, or yer actually floating on a pillow of air.  Even a bont could figure that one out!  No offense, Krys," he added quickly, looking up at the strange bear-monkey-goat creature that was sitting in a dip between one large branch and another.
	"None taken," the 'bont' said gruffly, yawning after he spoke.
	"Anyways, give it a try!  You'll find it's really quite simple."
	How on earth could she possibly believe a talking mask?  Yet, then again, she did open a door in an old tree and ended up here.  If she believed that she actually opened that, which she did, then she could at least try and believe that she can fly.  Looking down at her feet, she concentrated hard on an image in her mind's eye of herself floating up to have tea with the dimensional warlock.
	A few long seconds passed by as she thought about what she should do.  Finally, she felt the support of the marble-looking floor as her feet left the ground.  Valerie smiled up at the mask-looking face and he returned the gesture.  She took a seat, cross-legged, on a floating pillow in front of the warlock.
	"See?  I told ya it would work!" he congratulated her.  "Now, for intros.  I am Oswald, Ozzy for short, the great dimensional warlock!  And you, lovely lady?"
	She slightly blushed at his comment as she replied.  "Valerie Vesper."  She was confused by the fact that, if he already knew her name, then why did he just ask it again?
	"Ah, the Vespers.  A lovely family, they are," Oswald said, looking up and his eyes glazing over.  A few silent seconds passed by as Oswald seemed to remember something.  As the memory faded, he looked around and saw Valerie staring at him strangely.   "Very sorry, Miss Valerie!  I was revisited with a recollection of the past.  Anyways, I'm sure you're very confused by your sudden appearance here, and the knowledge of me, sey?"
	"Uh...'sey'?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
	Before he could answer, his mouth stretched open hugely and there was a swirling mass of colors and lights inside.  Valerie blinked in wonder as two human shaped creatures dressed in black suits and held briefcases with white masks over their faces and black slits for their eyes came popping through.  Ozzy closed his mouth and nodded at the two who were floating there, smiling.  They were staring right at Valerie, and she suddenly got very self conscious.
	"Welcome to the Great Dragonwood Tree!" he greeted and they floated off, up into the residential area.  Ozzy turned back to Valerie.
	"More apologies, Miss Val!  In your language, I believe it is the word 'yes'."
	Valerie's attention went from the two who she watched float up into the tangles of branches, and back to Ozzy.  "Oh, right.  Well, yes, I am very confused right at the moment."
	"I will answer all questions but one, and that, is probably the one you're most dying to hear.   That question is: 'How do you know my name?'  That, sadly, I cannot answer!"
	Valerie giggled quietly behind her hand at his dramatic speech.  It sounded like he had come straight out of a Shakespeare play.
	"Yet, I can answer your other inquiries.  Now...shoot!"
	"Right...well...what is a 'Dragonwood'?"
	Again with the drama, Ozzy gasped loudly, stirring the bont from slumber slightly.
	"Why, it is this very tree you are in right now!   How could you not know of the Dragonwood Tree!?  It is quite famous in your family's history and stories."
	She remembered nothing of Grandma's stories about something called the Dragonwood Tree.  Valerie frowned, trying to recall if there was.  "No...I'm afraid I haven't heard about it..."
	"Surely Violet Vesper told you of the Great Dragonwood Tree?" he asked, leaning closer to her.
	Each time he said Dragonwood, and each time she thought the word, something moved at the darkest corners of her memories.  What in the world was the connection?
	"I remember very little and all that is hazy...but I know I've heard of it somewhere."
	"Well, that's better.  Any other absurd questions?"
	"Sey...what is a dimensional warlock?"
	This question, Ozzy seemed to take rather lightly, as if he has been asked this a lot.  "Dimensional warlocks can send people away to different dimensions and choose where they will be sent to.  You see, I have all the universes spread out in my chest.  It makes a very convenient map, if I do say so myself."
	"Now, please, help yourself to some tea and cookies," his hands poured out some tea from the pot and into a cup sitting in front of her, and then took two cookies and placed them on the small plate in front of her.  She took a sip of the tea and immediately she felt a wave of warmth that flowed to the tips of her fingers and toes and she took another drink and relished the cinnamon and apple flavor.
	Ozzy looked at her expectantly for a comment or something.  She smiled warmly and nodded.  "Is the papple and tinnamon right?  Or is there too much of either one?  Or is there not enough of either?"
	She stopped halfway from chomping down onto the delicious smelling cookie.  "Pardon?"
	"The amounts of papples and tinnamon; are they alright?  Or is there something off?" he repeated, still smiling expectantly.
	"Papples and...tinnamon?  Um...they're just fine, actually..."  Was papples and tinnamon the same as apples and cinnamon?
	He clapped and smiled.  "Oh great!  I was afraid they wouldn't be very good...you see I'm running low on them each..."
	She took a huge bit out of the cookie and smiled as the appetizing taste gave her taste buds a party.  "So...how did you know my grandma?" Valerie asked as she finished the cookie and took another large sip of the tea.
	"Oh, we met back a long time ago, when she was about four or five," he explained, taking a sip of his own tea.  "She went out exploring behind her house and found the key, and then the tree, and well, you know the rest."
	Valerie raised an eyebrow.  "I do?"
	Ozzy imitated the gesture.  "You should."  He took a bit from a cookie, and then his expression turned to one of utmost seriousness.  "Violet never told you the rest of it, did she?"  Valerie shook her head.  "She couldn't, could she?  She was too ill and out of her mind to remember in the first place."
	Valerie's eyes burned with the tears she had vowed not to cry after her grandmother's death.  She nodded and placed her hands in her lap.  Taking a deep breath, she rose her head up and smiled at Ozzy.  "Sey.  She never did tell me the rest of that one."
	Ozzy gave her a sympathetic smile.  Violet definitely gave us a strong one, that's for sure, he thought.	
	He suddenly looked surprised at something.  "Well, Val, I'm afraid our time here together is done, for you are being called to the Great White Void."  Her faced turned puzzled.  What was he talking about?  "I hope you asked what you needed, because I doubt you'll get any other chances to ask it."  He opened his mouth very wide and Valerie was surprised to see the big swirling mass of color inside.  Another 'whoosh' sound and she was sucked inside the large hole in the mask.
	"Wait a minute!!" she cried, twisting around and trying to stop her body from falling.
	"I'll be sending help! Farewell! I'm sure we'll meet again, Miss Valerie!" Ozzy's voice echoed as she tumbled down to the place called the Great White Void.  She was thrown suddenly to the side, and she could see nothing.  She could feel some sort of matter brushing past her as she fell forward; she couldn't be certain it was air, for this place was too dark, and very strange.  A rush of nausea overcame her in a split second, and she closed her eyes tightly and willed the sick feeling in her head to go away.  Valerie held her head in her hands and curled up into a ball, not caring how dumb she looked if anyone saw her.  Was this what people called 'being knocked out'?
	She didn't get her answer, for the next second, she was blinded by a bright whiteness and she landed with a 'thud!' on her face.
	"Nice...very graceful," a teasing male's voice told her.
	Groaning as she got up on her hands and knees, she rubbed her nose, which had pretty much broken her fall.  Her brow furrowed and her mouth formed a diagonal frown.  She looked around and saw why it was called the Great White Void; because it was nothing but white surrounding her.  She found it odd that it had something like a floor, because otherwise her nose wouldn't be throbbing with pain.
	There was a sound of hooves against the ground, and it echoed around them all, disappearing into the folds of the void.  A hand shoved itself into her vision; it was outstretched to help her up, she realized.  She still didn't know who the person was, but she took the hand anyway and she was astonished that she didn't have to help herself up.  He was strong enough to lift her weight entirely on his own.
	Valerie's gaze looked up at the person who was with her.  Her eyes widened.  He had a handsome face with fine, chiseled features, slight stubble on his chin and cheeks, pouting lips that were in a teasing smirk, and a mop of very dark brown hair, and bright teal green eyes. Pointed ears, like elves', stuck out from his curls.  He had a bare, muscular chest that she came to middle of and caused a slight blush on Valerie's cheeks, and his strong arms still held her, at at arms length, but she still felt quite safe.  His bottom half, however, was what made her surprised.
	He was a centaur.  The fur on the rest of his body was the same color as on his head, but the tail that was swishing about on his rump was black.
	"Alright...uhm...welcome to the Great White Void!" the centaur exclaimed, trying to get rid of the awkwardness that had consumed him as she gazed at him in shock.  Apparently she's never seen a centaur before.
	Valerie's eye twitched slightly.  Does everyone greet like this here?  Is this the help Ozzy was talking about?  Why is he a centaur?
	"As you can see...it's great...and...uh...white!  Over here, we have the public bench..." he turned around and pointed to the bench behind him, which Valerie thought was the most random thing she had ever seen.  "And...uhm...over here we have the swirling mass of white that you do not want to get lost in.  Any questions?"
	Valerie nodded.  "Did Ozzy send you?"
	"Not that I know of.  I was knocked out a few days ago and woke up here.  I'm pretty hungry.  I don't really know how you got here..."  He looked around the place, scratching his head.
	"Well...uh...I think I'll go sit down on the public bench..." Valerie said, walking over towards the black metal seat and plopped herself down, crossing her arms.
	An awkward silence followed as the two just looked around, yet there wasn't really much to see, since it was all a boring white.
	"Y'know..." Val called his attention.  He grunted to show he was listening.  "This is pretty dull."
	"Sey, you're right," he agreed, stamping one of his feet in irritation, making the sound echo loudly once again.  He crossed his arms.
	Suddenly, a loud 'BEEP!' resounded around them, making Valerie jump.  Apparently, the centaur was already used to this.  "Attention all inhabitants, visitors, and living creatures," a woman's voice echoed around them.  "A portal to Sarion is about to open in the second sector."
	The centaur's eyes widened, and cried "If you don't want to be left here, I suggest you jump on!"
	Not wanting to make the centaur mad (those hooves looked deadly), she jumped up and on his back, grabbing onto his torso.  In the next instant, he was off, cantering as fast as he could, his hooves thundered against the ground and the noise echoing and then being left in their wake.
	"Where's Sarion?" she asked, hopefully loud enough he could hear her.
	"My home.  It's where all the mythological creatures were sent when humans started to kill us," he explained.  She bit her lip, feeling guilty.  "But the Families of the Crest combined their magic and created Sarion, and freed us there, but sealing it so that," he stopped for a breath of air, for he was running as fast as he could.  "...no humans could get in."
	"But doesn't that mean that I won't be able to go through?!" she asked, spying the portal.  It looked just like the inside of Ozzy's mouth.
	The centaur smiled, taking a brief glance back at her.  "No.  The Vespers are one of the Families of the Crest."
	"The portal to Sarion will be closing in 5 seconds," the woman's voice informed them.  Valerie squeezed harder, hoping they would make it.  "4....3....2...."
	All of a sudden, the centaur tripped, and they flew forwards with the momentum of the run guiding them.  Valerie lost her grip on his chest and flipped over his head, straight into the portal, and he followed behind.  They both tumbled down into the portal together as it closed up behind him.
	The centaur knew the gravities and laws of physics in portals, and even if she didn't want to, she was going to have to go with him to get somewhere and not be in danger as soon as she landed.  He wrapped his arms around her body, and instinctively, she draped her arms over his neck.  That nauseous feeling she got when she first went through a portal came back to her, and to avoid being sick, she buried her face into his chest and squeezed her eyes shut.
	He blushed slightly as she did this, but didn't think about it any further for in the next second, he was jerked to the right, and then they were both thrown into a grassy field and they lay there.  He panted as he lay on his side, Valerie about a foot away, curled up in a ball and her head in between her knees.  He remembered what it was like when he first traveled by portal, but he never got as pale and shaking as she was right now.  He crawled over to her and lay down, so that he was her height.
	"You okay?" he asked.
	She brought her head up and nodded, smiling.  The wave of queasiness had passed and she felt much better.  "I don't know why, but when I travel in portals, I don't feel very good."
	He smiled warmly.  "You get used to it eventually.  I had the same problem."
	"Really?"
	He nodded.
	"Good, 'cuz I thought I was just weird."
	He chuckled.

	Up in the residential area of the Great Dragonwood Tree, the visitors that interrupted Valerie and Oswald's conversation had reached their destination.  It was at one of the higher branches, and wasn't surrounded by that many houses.  Rain filtered through, but not much of it got on them, for there was a safeguard surrounding the small cottage.
	The cottage itself was enchanted to be small, but it housed a person of the above average height of a human male.  The inside was charmed to be big enough for sufficient living conditions for the resident.  So, when the resident of the cottage opened the door for the two masked-men, the two entered immediately without having to duck their heads.
	The two men removed their shoes and placed their briefcases on the coffee table near the door and faced the man who opened the door expectantly.
	He was wearing a skyopal spider's silk robe, and pants, his slippers looked to be made of stripesheep cotton, and he was puffing a ravewood pipe, the smell of death emanating from the smoke.  The whole house smelled of evil and dark magic.  Books littered every corner of the room they were standing in.
	"Welcome gentlemen.  I trust that warlock didn't suspect anything?" the man asked, then took a long drag from his pipe.
	One of them shook their heads.  "He was too busy having tea with the Child of Vesper."
	The man choked on his smoke, and he stared at the one who spoke in shock.
	"Of...of Vesper?" he repeated, clarifying it for himself.  "Then that means..."
	"Exactly.  Violet is dead," the other masked man finished.
	"No..." he muttered, gazing at the dark rug in front of him.  "Than how will we carry out the plan?"
	"Use the child?" the first masked man suggested.  He opened his briefcase and pulled out a paper, then handed it to the robed man, who grabbed it and examined it with scrutinizing eyes.
	"Well, it says right here that the Heir will take over the Head position after they die," the man told them, pointing at the line on the paper.
	"That is true, but will the Crest accept it?"
	"That's where your apprentice comes in," the opposite man answered.  "Have him start to travel with her, gain her trust, and then give her a trial.  She will be traveling with others, so it will not seem too suspicious."
	The man smiled and clapped his hands together.  He grinned satisfactorily and handed back the sheet of paper to the first man, who replaced it back and closed the case.  "You've thought of everything, haven't you gentlemen?  Very well, I'll have Vance meet up with her in the next dimension she goes to.  Thank you, lads, I will keep in touch."  He waved his hand, and the door opened.
	Before they left, one of them turned around, "Remember, Darkzelle: you fail, and you will not be able to change its doomed fate."
	"I understand."

	"Hey...um...what's your name?" Valerie asked, it finally dawning on her that she never asked before now.  "'Cuz I'm pretty sure you won't like me calling you Centaur Dude all of the time."
	"Chetto," he answered.
	"Chetto?  Sounds like a New Yorker saying cheddar..." Valerie muttered underneath her breath.
	"New Yorker?" Chetto asked.  "What's that?"
	"Uh...nothing.  So...are all the mythological creatures this nice?" she questioned, trying to find something to talk about in the peaceful field.
	"Sey...pretty much, even dragons, in general," Chetto answered, looking around Sarion.   "All of your Earth fairytales of dragons kidnapping princesses and being evil and killed by the heroic knight are all dumb.  None of that ever really happened."  Another awkward silence followed after his explanation.
	"So...this is Sarion huh?" Valerie asked while looking around the place they had landed in.  They were in the middle of a field of grass, mountains were behind her, endless grass in front of her and to her right, and she could see the edge of a forest to her left.  The peaks of the mountains were circled by puffy white clouds, and she thought she saw a shadow fly from one to another.  She shrugged it off, and looked at the forest.  It looked very intimidating, and dark.  Thick trees blocked her from seeing actually into the forest, but it lined her left horizon.  A light breeze that came from the mountains blew the grass and carried the scent of...coconut.
	She frowned and figured anything was possible.
	"Sey.  We're in Kaykon Plains right now.  My home isn't too far from here.  It's in that forest over there, if you want to go."
	"I don't really care.  I was thrown into this...well...whatever 'this' is.  I'm not really exactly sure what I'm supposed to be doing.  Ozzy still hasn't sent any help..."
	Right at that moment, a portal tore open the air above Valerie's head, and a gray fur ball came hurling from it crying "VALERIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!", and landed right on top of her head.  Jumping and clawing at her head, Valerie ran around screaming her head off.  
	"GET OFF!" she shrieked.  Chetto laughed at her antics.  She grabbed the furry thing by the scruff of its neck and held it at an arm's length and glared at it.  Her death glare faltered as soon as she saw what it was.
	Valerie smiled and hugged it tightly, declaring "TJ!"  She released the furry creature from her hug and grinned.  Chetto saw that it was a cat and it was...smiling.  He raised an eyebrow as the cat jumped to the ground.
	"Did Ozzy send you?" she asked, crouching down.  She didn't think it was possible, seeing as what he was, but hey, he might of.
	"Yup!" he answered, nodding.
	Her eyes widened, and she stared in shock at TJ.  "How can Ozzy send a figment of my imagination?!"
	The cat smiled and shrugged, or at least, smiled and shrugged as much as it could.  Its grin was merely the opening of the mouth and baring his teeth, and the shrug was merely looking like he was about to pounce for a brief second.
	"Did this Ozzy give you any papples and tinnamon?" Chetto suddenly asked.
	Valerie nodded, not quite sure where this conversation was going.
	"Then that's how!" Chetto announced, grinning.  "Papples and tinnamon pull random things out from the imagination, and it is left over in the cup, or whatever you drank it from."
Valerie raised an eyebrow.  "Really?"  Chetto nodded.
	Suddenly, a loud screech echoed around the field and the open sky above them; a large shadow blocked out the sun and their gazes looked up, seeing a large dark gray dragon flying over them.  Chetto's eyes widened and he leaped to his feet.
	"Quick!" he cried, his eyes not leaving the giant flying reptile.  "Jump on!"  For the second time, Valerie jumped onto his back, TJ leaping into her arms as she did so.  She heard a great rush of wind behind her and turned her head to see what it was.  Her hair blew in her face as she saw the dark gray dragon glide down behind them and pull up next to them as they ran across the plains.  She watched him move up, not tearing her eyes away for she had never seen a dragon before.
	The dragon's eye that could see her was looking at her with interest glinting in his huge orange eye.  The dragon's wing shadowed the area around them and blocked out the glare of the sun.  Valerie only continued to stare at him with her mouth agape; she could feel TJ squirming from being uncomfortable of the rippling muscles underneath him and the awkward position he had to hang onto the centaur and Valerie at the same time.  Up this close, she saw the glittering scales that made up the protective skin over the tender flesh underneath, the points of the huge razor sharp fangs that stuck out from the upper jaw, the longest one about as long as her leg.  The horns atop its head looked like they were made out of pure ivory.  The line of its mouth seemed to be turned upwards in a smirk.
	Oh boy...she thought, squeezing tighter around Chetto's torso, and squeezing her eyes shut.
	Chetto seemed to run even faster at the realization of the huge lizard right next to him, and the fear that practically radiated from Valerie as she held onto him with all her might. He was getting tired, and the line of trees that would be his cover didn't seem to be getting any closer.  He had to lose the dragon somehow.  Could he just stop, fooling the dragon to keep going?
	Just as he was about to put his plan into action, Chetto felt the dragon's tail wrap around Valerie, for her weight and arms had lifted off him, and he immediately gave up running.  If the dragon was going to eat her, then there was nothing he could do against the huge beast.
	Valerie watched as the dragon flew up a ways from them, still managing to look at her with intrigue, but then reached over with its tail.  Valerie shrieked as she felt the dragon's tail wrap around her abdomen, and it just so happened to touch her bottom in the process.  The hair on the back of TJ's neck was almost straight on end, and pretty close, and he jumped from his secure, yet awkward, position in Valerie's arms and sunk his claws in between a scale and another on the tail.  She frowned as TJ still persisted, even though the dragon probably felt nothing from the measly claws.
	The solidity of Chetto's back left from underneath Valerie's bottom, and Valerie was lifted through the air as the dragon rose higher into the sky.  She felt TJ lean against her back and she could feel his breath heaving with pants from the effort.  
	Valerie peered over the edge of the scaly tail, trying to breath properly, with her stomach being squeezed so tightly and all, and saw Chetto standing alone in the Kaykon Plains staring up at her with great sorrow and apology in his stature that was silhouetted in the green grass underneath him.  She bit her lip in fear, and she struggled to free her other arm.
	"CHETTO!! HELP ME!!" she cried, not knowing what else to do.  She had thrown herself into this, and she was about to get herself killed, and all he could do was stand there, watching her as the dragon beat its wings and headed back to their destination.
	Frowning at his cowardice, Chetto made up his mind, cupping his hands around his mouth.  "I'LL HELP YOU, VAL!! DON'T WORRY!" he reassured her, praying she could hear him.  "I'LL BRING HELP!!"  And with that, he cantered off the remaining way to the forest, hoping that the help he had in mind would be able and willing to.