ESCAPE

BY JENNA BRADING

Blair Sandburg stared up at the fire breathing dragon with a mixture of awe and fright. How he had gotten into this mess in the first place was slightly beyond him.

He recalled that he had been doing much needed research on the possibilities about Sentinels, human beings who were guardians living and existing on earth without the rest of the world knowing about it. Sure, everybody at the University thought he was just one hell of a crazy guy, but he didn't care. It was a subject which greatly fascinated him.

Then there had been this one gorgeous girl. He'd followed her to her place and entered through the unlocked front door. After that, well. Blair wasn't too sure what had happened as the lights had suddenly gone dark and he had blacked out.

Now he was tied up and sitting uncomfortably on a hard backed chair and he was beginning to need the bathroom. However, as he had found over the last ten minutes or so it was like talking to a brick wall. The dragon simply wasn't listening. Eventually, the dragon returned to the form that Blair knew well. She turned, all smiles towards him and it sent a shiver down Blair's spine.

"Did you say something?" She asked him coyly. Blair stared at her.

"I need the bathroom." He muttered a little embarrassed.

Dhe nodded and untied him, to his eternal shame she followed him in. He had to scupper any immediate plans he had of trying to escape. He tried not to watch her as he did what he had to do. In silence he finished and then washed his hands. As he dried them on the towel she passed to him he said as calmly as he could, "Your Spirit guide is a dragon?"

"I am not from this world, Sandburg. I am not a Sentinel," she told him grimly.

"Then what are you?" Blair found himself saying as they went back into the lounge, returning to the seat and reluctantly allowing her to tie him up again. His freedom had been all too brief!

"From a world far away. I am Elladora. Queen of the Dragons." She smiled at him. "There are many of us coming. I have many gifts which your earthly Sentinels do not."

"Then you must be a Sentinel!" Blair cried out, carefully rubbing the ropes on his wrists against a loose nail to fray them. "Let me go! I promise I won't tell who or rather, what, you are."

"Oh, you would keep quiet for a while, Sandburg." Elladora smiled at him. "I am going to get some food in – be a good boy while I am gone."

She went out. Blair finally got free and stood looking at the apartment. He had to stop her but how?

Use your Spirit senses, his inner voice told him. Track her down.

Blair realised he could defeat her and hurriedly left the flat after picking the lock to the front door…


Blair found her in the main shopping mall. He was grim faced. He wondered how to tease her away from the crowded mall but she did the job for him. Spotting him, she dropped her bags and metamorphed into a dragon. People were sent screaming.

"Come on then!" Blair hit on an idea. He ran into the nearest shop, grabbed the fire extinguisher and used it on her as she breathed out fire. Stunned, she transformed back into human form, too weak to fight him. A brave shop keeper came out to him and helped to tie her up. Suddenly the ropes were loosed and she vanished.

"Um…" The shopkeeper wasn't sure what he had just witnessed.

"I think this might take some explaining." Blair muttered a little darkly as police sirens wailed in the distance. Shops were on fire. In the meantime, I think we ought to leave before the flames trap us."

"A very good idea!" The shop keeper agreed shakily. He looked about him and the damaged buildings. "Whatever that thing was." He shook his head. "That dragon has put a lot of good people out of business."

"I know, I'm sorry." Blair said as they escaped to safety. A familiar figure strode towards them.

"Sandburg!" Jim Ellison, a Detective with the Cascade Police Department knew that somehow, Blair was involved in what had happened. "Would you care to explain?"

"Um, would you believe it if I said dragons still existed?" Blair said walking with his friend. Ellison rolled his eyes upwards.

"The answer to that, my friend, is a categorical no!" Ellison was adamant. "Dragons do not exist…"

"Then how about an alien from another world?"

"Again, my answer has to be no." Ellison wondered what his friend had been drinking. "Am I going to have to check you for drugs?"

'I'm not high! I really did see a dragon….' Blair protested, knowing that Simon Banks would probably react the same way.

Blair glanced upwards as the sky darkened.

'Rain!' He said shivering. 'I hate the rain!'

'Come on!' Ellison started walking. 'You can tell me your fairy story over a coffee. On me.' He added seeing the look on Blair's face.

Blair grinned at his friend, wondering how on earth he was going to convince Jim that he had been tied up by a dragon…