6. A GENTLE DRAGON

CHAPTER 6 A GENTLE DRAGON Tell us what happened to Aruna and Chaya," Jean said. Darpan nodded. "The change in them both came suddenly," he began. "My sister is eight years old—only two years younger than I. She was always a smart, kind girl." Drake thought of the red eyes of the girl in Griffith's gazing ball and shivered. Her eyes did not look kind at all.

"I was so happy when she became a Dragon Master," Darpan continued. "I knew she would be great at it. And she was. Aruna moved into the Temple of the Shadow Dragon to train with Chaya. They had a strong connection from the start." "Did Chaya do something to change your sister?" Jean asked. Darpan shook his head. "No, Chaya was sweet and gentle. He would cast shadows to cool down the villagers harvesting their crops in the hot sun. And he never left Aruna's side. She would always say, 'Chaya follows me around just like a shadow'"

"That is very sweet," Drake remarked. "Yes, but now they are both so different," Darpan said. "They have become very strange, and... evil." "We noticed their eyes are red," Drake said. "Could they have been cursed?" Darpan nodded. "All I know for sure is that one day, the sky-shadow began to flow from Chaya's nose." "It has reached our lands," Jean told him. Darpan gazed at the sky. "The world cannot survive this sky-shadow. Plants will die. People will starve." Drake looked at Jean and knew they were thinking the same thing.

"Jean and I will go to the temple," Drake said. "My dragon, Worm, can try to communicate with Chaya. If we find out what happened, maybe we can fix it." "That is a good plan," Darpan replied. "I will keep looking for answers here." Drake, Jean, and their dragons walked through the village to the temple steps. Drake pointed to the top of the temple. "Worm, try to communicate with Chaya," he said. Then he heard Worm's voice inside his head. No time!

The Shadow Dragon flew down from the roof, flapping his feathered wings. He had stopped making the sky-shadow, but it still hung overhead. Aruna rode on Chaya's back. The eyes of the girl and of the dragon blazed red. "Stand back, attackers!" Aruna yelled.