The Child and the Dragon.
It was a warm and soothing day of spring. Since a couple of days, winter had been swept away and faces were caressed by a soft breeze. In the peach trees, the first flowers started to unfold their delicate petals. The hard days were finally over. To celebrate the return of the peaceful days, far from the merciless cold, the villagers decided to organize a big feast where all were invited.
At that time, Liu Bei was just a ten-year child. His mother asked him to gather stalks of reed at the pond, so they could weave baskets and mats that they would use to bring the food to the great place of Two-Story Mulberry. Happy to help his mother, Liu Bei immediately set out for the pond, a light basket on his back and little sickle hooked at his belt.
After walking for nearly one hour, Liu Bei reached the pond. He took off his sandals and entered the water to gather stalks of reed. He was smiling, because he was thinking of his mother and of her joy when he'll come back, his basket full of the precious stalks.
Liu Bei worked for hours, selecting the most beautiful and the most flexible reeds. Eventually, tiredness gaining him, Liu Bei decided to take a brief halt to catch his breath. He left the water and settled on the grass, under a big willow. He took from his pocket the rice cake he brought with him for his lunch.
He was about to bite into the cake when an ear-piercing scream ripped the sky apart. Scared, Liu Bei dropped the rice cake which rolled on the riverbank and sank in the water. He stood promptly, looking around him to see where the cry came from. He heard nothing for a while and he started to wonder if he had dreamt it, but another scream, more heart breaking than before, pierced the sky. It came from the pond, across the canopy of reeds. It sounded like the cry of a child.
Intrigued, Liu Bei, gathering all his courage, went back in water and cleared himself a path through the reeds. The scream became stronger, clearer, scarier too. It remembered him when his uncle had opened the throat of a hog, for the New Year. Liu Bei had hid in his mother's room when he had heard the almost human shrieks of the beast. It was exactly the same sound. Liu Bei shivered. He brushed aside a clump of reeds and what Liu Bei saw paralyzed him with fear.
In the murky water lied an animal the size of a big horse, with a long serpentine body covered with immaculate scales and jet-black mane. Two golden horns sat on the top of the large head.
A dragon.
Liu Bei didn't believe his eyes. A dragon was there. The heavenly animal was trashing violently, his clawed hands sending jets of water each time they fell back in the pond. Time to time, he opened wide his mouth to emit a long agonizing cry which could have make the stones weep. Liu Bei soon found what was causing the dragon such a distress. The dragon was caught in a huge fishing net and he was trying to free himself with all his might. But the more the animal trashed, the more the meshes tightened up around him, threatening to strangle him. In some places, scales were being ripped off the long body, leaving raw a pearly white skin. Around the dragon, the water was slowly taking a reddish hue.
The harrowing screams and the wounds of the sacred animal pierced Liu Bei's heart and chased away the fear to replace it by sincere compassion. The boy ran to the riverbank where he had left his sickle and, as fast as he could, went back where the dragon was trapped. When Liu Bei came back, the dragon had stopped his trashing and was lying still on the pond, out of breath, hiccupping when water found its way into his nostrils. Since how long this poor animal had stay here, strangling himself with the cruel net and struggling in a stagnate water to not drown ? On the evidence, long enough to make the exhaustion overwhelm him. Liu Bei had to act quickly.
Prudently and as discreetly as he could, the child made his way to the animal. His movements created soft waves on the water. As soon as he felt them, the dragon opened his eyes and looked frenetically around him to see who was here. His gaze crossed Liu Bei's.
Child and dragon stayed like that for a moment, looking at each other without daring to move, both astounded. Liu Bei held his breath. He never thought that he would cross the path a mythical creature, even in his most foolish dreams. But fascination left him as the said mythical creature started suddenly to trash again against his bonds, ripping from his skin a handful of iridescent scales which disappeared in the murky water. Liu Bei rushed to him.
"Stop! Stop ! You're hurting yourself ! I am no enemy of yours ! Stop!"
The child put a firm yet gentle hand on the dragon's neck and let it slide along the scales. They were smooth and soft, almost silky. The dragon stilled himself, shaking, wide and fearful eyes looking at the boy. Liu Bei smiled reassuringly at him.
"Have no fear, Lord Dragon. I don't want to hurt you. I will help you out of this trap. Have no fear."
At first, the dragon seemed suspicious, but as Liu Bei kept talking softly to him, he relaxed a little and let carefully his head fall back on the water.
Liu Bei studied the net. As he did, he recognized with a pang of dread the subtle and delicate work of his mother. He remembered then that his mother did work during long nights to make a huge fishing net for Jia Huo, an ambitious fisherman who intended to sell the product of his fishing at Zhuo's capital. Liu Bei remembered too that dragons were known as wise, yet spiteful creatures. What if that dragon happened to know who had set up this net ? And the one who had weaved it ? Would he lash out his anger on his beloved mother or on his village ?
Liu Bei shook his head to chase away all those dark thoughts. For now, he had to focus on freeing the poor animal. While keeping speaking to him, the boy unhooked the sickle from his belt and grabbed one mesh. But when he felt the coolness of metal on his skin, the dragon jerked and opened wide emerald eyes. When he saw the shining blade, he screamed with terror and resumed his trashing, tiredness suddenly replaced with panicked fear and his strengths renewing despise the pain.
"Stop this ! You only make the bonds tighten ! Stop !"
But the child's supplications were unheard by the dragon. Liu Bei tried to still him, pressing down on his neck with all his weight, but it only exacerbated the dragon's fear. Soon, Liu Bei felt a warm liquid soaking his tunic. When he looked to see what it was, he saw just red. Blood. At the same time, the dragon let out a long death rattle. One of the meshes was encrusted on the dragon's neck.
That sight alarmed Liu Bei. He felt tears rolling on his face and, as he used all his child's strengths to hold his clutch, he yelled:
"STOP MOVING !"
His voice echoed in the sky and made fly away the few cranes who risked themselves nearby. But, much to Liu Bei's surprise, the dragon stopped trashing and stilled himself suddenly, as stroked by thunder. For a moment, he thought that the dragon had died of fear, literally. But the celestial animal let fall a pitiful whine and his long body shivered. Emerald eyes slid to the child. Liu Bei swallowed.
"I won't hurt you, I swear ! You will be free soon, but for that, I need that sickle and, above all, I need you to stay still ! The more you move, the more the net tighten, and the more it will be hard for me to cut it without hurting you ! So please, stop moving ! Do you understand ?"
Liu Bei was shaking. He was soaked wet to the skin and covered with sludge. His muscles were sore and his hands ached. Tears were rolling along his cheeks. But his voice, even if it was a little husky, had a sovereign authority that surprised him.
The dragon regarded him a moment before… nodding? He sighed, let his head fall back in the water and closed his eyes. Liu Bei waited for his own breathing to go back at a normal pace and assured himself that the dragon was quite calm before grabbing the net again.
With slow and careful moves, he sliced off the cruel meshes, one by one. He began with those around the neck in order to prevent the dragon strangle himself if he was to panic again. Then he cut those around the legs and finally those around the rest of his body. Liu Bei never stopped talking, for it seemed to appease the dragon.
"How did you end up like this ? You wanted to catch some fish and you didn't saw the net ? Is that how you ended up trapped ?"
A long and weary sigh went to confirm that theory.
"I… am sorry… for that."
Finally, finally, the last mesh gave away. Liu Bei threw it in the water like it had been a venomous snake. He stepped back quickly, exclaiming:
"There! Now you're free again !"
Liu Bei had though that the dragon would have disappeared as fast as he could, all but happy to leave that accursed place where he almost found his death and that strange child who gave him so much fear. But the animal stayed immobile for a moment before slowly rolling each muscle of his body, just like he was checking that net was gone indeed. Finally, he carefully stood up. The dragon lost his balance several times, his legs shaking too much to fully support him. When he finally managed to stabilize himself, he suddenly shook himself dry, countless crystalline droplets spraying all over Liu Bei.
"Hey! That was mean! I already had a bath this morning !" Liu Bei laughed while trying to protect his face with his hands.
The dragon looked at the child and his head tilted on the side. Liu Bei hushed himself. He realized that now that they were cleared from the fear, the emerald eyes were simply magnificent, and mesmerizing. Their profoundness and their wisdom remembered him that dragons were the Kings of Heavens. And that it was one of his mother's works that had one of those Kings trapped and wounded. Tales often talked about dragons and their implacable vengeance, and the boy already saw his village reduced to a bloody havoc.
Liu Bei fell on his knees, in the water. He bowed down before the dragon with humility.
"Please, O Lord Dragon, don't let your vengeance fall on my village. The man who set this net didn't mean any harm and the woman who weaved those cruel mesh only wanted to provide food to her family !"
He felt more than he saw the dragon's glaze slide on him. It was like being trapped under a big rock. He knew. Liu Bei was sure of it. The dragon knew who had weaved the net. Liu Bei struggled to swallow.
"My… My mother weaved that net. I will suffer the consequences of it if it can appease your anger, but I beg you, don't lash out your rage on my mother or on my village !"
Liu Bei stayed like that, bowed down in the stagnating water, not daring to move, shaking, waiting for the dragon's decision. He felt the animal come closer and, through closed eyelids, darkness became more intense. Liu Bei shyly opened his eyes. The dragon was dominating him with all his height, his shadow swallowing the child totally. Slowly, the dragon lowered his long neck and his warm breath brushed again the boy's face. Liu Bei jolted when the muzzle caressed delicately his brow. He had the time to look one last time at the emerald eyes. Then Liu Bei saw no more.
Before losing totally consciousness, he heard a smooth and soothing voice echoing in his heart.
"As you command, so shall I obey, my Lord."
Later, Liu Bei was found, sound asleep on a thick bed made of reeds, at the door of his house. No injury or illness was found on the boy. When he woke up, the Elders of the village asked him what happened to him. But the only thing Liu Bei remembered was that he went to gather stalks of reed, and that he had the most magnificent dream.