Beyond the Dragon’s Teeth
Copyright© 2026 by Asa Strong
Chapter 22
Jarraid led us through the aspen trees in a northeasterly direction. For two days, we made our way through the forest. Mid-day on the third day of travel, we found ourselves staring at a perfect circle of aspen trees. Jarraid was correct; there was no way that what lay in front of us was a natural occurrence.
We were entranced by the sight. Eventually, Dan’ar was the first to move. He slowly proceeded to walk through the rim of the circle. After he had entered the glade within, he turned and viewed the entire ring of trees.
“It’s strange,” he hollered, “all of these trees look the same.”
I shook myself out of my stupor and walked towards Dan’ar, the rest of the troop following behind.
When I reached the center of the circle, I glanced around the perimeter. I could see that we were in a small valley, at the foot of one of the three sisters, which rose majestically to the west. I also noticed that there was no sound in the circle. No birds chirping and no insect sounds could be heard at all. It was an eerie quiet that hung over us as we stood there.
“We’d best make camp,” Gait said, breaking us from our reverie.
“Yes, I guess so,” I managed to mumble, never taking my eyes from the sight of the snow-capped mountain. For some reason, it seemed to hold my attention—demanding that I keep my eyes focused upon it. Finally, I managed to shake myself out of the thrall of the sight. When I looked around, the rest of the troop was busy starting to make camp.
We made camp in silence. It seemed that the very ground we stood upon was hallowed. The vision of ancient rites performed here filled my thoughts, as I went about helping Saraid to start a small fire.
Our evening meal was eaten in silence. It seemed like none of us wanted to break the spell that surrounded us by speaking. Finally, after we had finished eating, Torg asked, “What do we do now?”
I thought for a moment. To me, it felt right that we were here. I also felt that it was necessary for us to remain here.
“We sit and wait,” I answered.
We were rapidly losing the light as the sun slid behind the mountain. Before long, the only light was that which came from the campfire. Normally, we would all find our way to our bedrolls when it became dark. This evening, no one moved. I’m sure that the rest were feeling the same sense of anticipation that I was. Something was going to happen! You could feel it; you could almost taste it as you drew the air across your tongue.
We sat there waiting, as the moon started to rise from the east. In silence, we watched as the full moon rose above the treetops. When it cleared the top of the trees, I heard a gasp from Gait.
“Donta,” he said, in a quiet voice, “Look, behind us!”
I turned and found myself staring at a line of silver moonlight that lit up the canopy of the aspens. The aspens glowed in a golden color, seeming to point directly towards the mountain.
Jarraid then spoke, “The prophecy: ‘The moon’s first light will show the way!’”
As one, we stood and made our way in the direction the moonbeam led—directly towards the mountain.
As we passed through the circle of aspens, you could hear the rustle of the foliage—sounding almost like water rushing in a stream. There was no wind, and it felt like the trees around us were alive, watching as we passed beneath them.
As we approached the vertical face of the mountain, the song of a lark broke the silence. Off to the right of where we stood, you could hear its melody. I walked towards where I heard the sound, and quickly spotted the small bird on the edge of a small crease in the mountainside, barely visible in the darkness of the night. As I approached, the bird took flight, back towards the circle of aspens.
I continued on towards where the lark had rested—seemingly pulled by an invisible force. When I reached the small spot the bird had departed from, I felt a tug, as if someone was pulling me towards a small crease in the rock. As I peeked around the crease, I was astounded! Before me, perfectly hidden, was a small path that led upward. Only from the spot where I stood was it visible.
I could see that by daylight, it would be impossible to see the path. Without the perfect angle of the moonlight, one would never know that it existed.
I gathered my thoughts, and then said, “Gait, find me a large rock and bring it to me.”
I could hear him moving about, and at the same time, Torg appeared at my side.
“Look,” I said, turning towards my left, where he was standing.
With a puzzled expression, he answered, “Look at what, Donta? I don’t see anything.”
I stepped back a few paces, and then said, “Come here, in front of me.”
He did as I asked, and when he turned his head towards the crease, I heard him inhale a great breath of air. He turned his head, and with a clear look of amazement on his face, said, “Where does it lead?”
“I don’t know, but as a guess, I’d say it probably will lead us to the Crystal Grotto.”
Torg moved to his left, and I was surprised that even from less than ten feet away, where I now stood, I couldn’t see the entrance to the pathway. I quickly retraced my steps until the path was visible.
“Here, Donta, Gait said, as he walked towards me, holding a large rock in both of his big hands.
“Place it at my feet.” I asked.
Gait moved forward and sat the rock in front of me. As he stood, he noticed the path.
“Donta...”
“Yes,” I answered, “it’s a path; hopefully, it will lead us to our journey’s end.”
One by one, the rest of the group came to stand by the large rock and gaze at the path. No one said a word, and after a few moments, I alone was standing, looking up the short distance I could see along the pathway.
There was no way we could navigate the path in the darkness, which was why I’d asked Gait to find a large rock. As cleverly hidden as the entrance was, we might not be able to find it in daylight.