Sam and the Dragon: A Medieval Mars Story

By Donna McFarland

At the age when other boys are beginning apprenticeships like blacksmithing or masonry, Sam dreams of bygone days when his ancestors could fly. It has been one thousand years since Mars was colonized and terraformed by people from Earth. When the civilization collapsed centuries later, most technology was lost. Now flying machines are considered fairy tales born in the Time of Magic. Still, Sam yearns for a life where anything is possible.

Things aren’t going too well at the home Sam shares with his aunt and uncle and his cousin Ahni. His aunt is growing mysteriously sicker by the day and his frail uncle is unable to deter a dragon who is stealing their goats. Without the herd, they won’t have money to pay the rent and will end up living in the wild.

The story of Sam and the Dragon is also included in Travis Perry's Medieval Mars: The Anthology.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Donna McFarland
• Release date: Sep 11, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463586693

Donna McFarland

Donna Gielow McFarland developed an early love for literature. She wrote her first book at age ten, and later contributed to her high school and college newspapers while working in bookstores and libraries. After earning a degree in piano performance from Wheaton College and a master's degree in piano pedagogy from the University of Oregon, she taught at New Hope Christian College (formerly Eugene Bible College) and Northwest Christian University. She also served as class piano program coordinator at the University of Oregon. Her books include Sam and the Dragon: A Medieval Mars Story, Worship at the Keys: A Method Book, the Follow the Star: Christmas Songs for Piano series, The Purple Elephant chapter books, Duck and Friends early readers and several college music textbooks. Donna and her husband live in Oregon and are the proud parents of a talented son who inspires them daily.

Book preview

SAM AND THE DRAGON

A MEDIEVAL MARS STORY

DONNA MCFARLAND

ILLUSTRATED BY PHIL WADE

Published by Spencer Meadow Press

Smashwords Edition

Text copyright 2014 by Donna McFarland

Illustrations copyright 2014 by Phil Wade

Map copyright 2014 by William Sullivan

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. Address inquiries to: [e-mail] or visit https://spencermeadowpress.com

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For Andrew and his cousins

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Map

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Would You Like to Read More About Medieval Mars

Author's Note

Acknowledgements

About the Author

About the Illustrator

Also by Donna McFarland

Previews

Map

Map by William Sullivan

CHAPTER 1

SAM BURST THROUGH THE DOORWAY OF THE red brick hut. Uncle Al! Uncle Al!

An old man with a weathered face looked up. Alfonso of the Western Plain was 29 in Mars cycles, but his face already showed deep wrinkles from spending a lifetime working in the fields under harsh conditions.

Sam pushed his hair out of his eyes as he worked to catch his breath. The dragon took another goat!

His cousin, Ahnalin, cried out in alarm, Not Galla! Ahnalin had lived for six cycles and her favorite goat was practically a member of the family.

Sam smiled. No, Ahni, it wasn’t Galla. Not this time, anyway.

Uncle Al swore under his breath. That dragon’s goin’ to ruin us, yet! An’ I can’t go after him! Mara’s got The Sickness!

I’ll go! Sam said.

His uncle shook his head. Out of the question.

But you just said you can’t! Sam protested. I’m almost eight cycles! Let me do something! Let me slay the dragon and save the farm!

Uncle Al sighed. I prom’sed your parents I would look after you until you came of age. I can’t let you go into the wild’rness of Mars by yourself to hunt down a dragon!

But...

Ahni interrupted. I’ll go with him! Then Sam won’t be by himself!

Uncle Al slapped his hand on the table. No! Abs’lutely not! He turned to Sam. You’d better bring in the rest of the goats.

Yes, sir. Sam walked out the door and looked up into the sky. The red dirt of Mars gave the horizon a slightly orange tinge which faded into the bright blue higher up. He could see the two moons, Phobos and Deimos, along with the distant sun.

The pasture had no real grass, just scrubby plants and weeds growing in the red dirt. Sam herded the goats back to the barn; a dilapidated building that looked like the slightest breeze might blow it over.

Things had been rough lately. The family depended on being able to sell milk and cheese to buy food and pay the rent and they were just barely getting by. Then the dragon showed up and the more goats he ate, the fewer goats there were to milk. Besides that, Aunt Mara was not well. No one knew what was wrong with her, not even the Healers. She was so tired that she stayed in bed most days and she was rapidly losing weight.

Aunt Mara had never been as strong or healthy as the rest of the family, not even before she got what they now called, The Sickness. So one day, when Sam stumbled upon a cave with a pile of strange looking sticks, he brought some home hoping they would be a help.

The sticks were like nothing anybody had ever seen before. Uncle Al said they must have come from the old days, the Time of Magic, when settlers first colonized Mars. They were very heavy with brown and yellow streaks running through them and they were always warm. Aunt Mara put them under the covers of her bed during the cold Martian nights.

Sam filled the water trough in the barn and surveyed the dwindling herd. There were still a few good milkers left, including Ahni’s favorite. He shook his head. Ahni would be devastated if anything happened to Galla.

Late that night, after Sam