Good Knight, Deano Dragon

By Bonnie Sargent

The village of Anthonyville is in the middle of a drought. The villagers are slowly being starved by a terrible dragon who has stolen all the food the villagers have grown. The dragon left the villagers only beans to eat as he doesnt like beans. Tristan, a page, also doesnt like beans. They give him gas and send him running to the outhouse all day and night. Tristan decides it is up to him to slay the greedy dragon. With a lance and horse stolen from his favorite knight, Tristan leaves the village under the cover of darkness. Tristan knows that there are only two possible outcomes to his decision. Either he will slay the dragon and return home a hero or the dragon will slay him, in which case he will not return home at all.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Dec 5, 2014
• ISBN: 9781496956859

Bonnie Sargent

Bonnie Sargent spent the first twenty-five years of her career teaching children to write. Then, following a stroke that ended her teaching career, she began writing stories for children. Her stories are infused with her quirky sense of humor and are full of adventure. This is Bonnie’s first published book, but she has had several children’s short stories published in anthologies. She has also had stories published in Fence Post Magazine and in Expression Magazine. She hopes you enjoy reading Good Knight, Deano Dragon as much as she enjoyed writing it.

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© 2014 Bonnie Sargent. All rights reserved.

Illustrator : Kathy Kerber

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse : 12/05/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4969-5684-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4969-5685-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014921720

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T ristan feared the pounding heart in his chest might be loud enough to wake the sleeping men just a few yards away. That was about the last thing he wanted. He did not relish the thought of having to explain to a whole troop of the King’s knights what he was doing tiptoeing away leading one of their horses and carrying one of their lances. He knew if he was caught before he had a chance to slay the dragon and become a hero, he would be severely punished.

Tristan eased Storm, the beautiful charcoal gray stallion belonging to Sir Brandon, away from the meadow where the knights had tethered their horses while they slept. Storm and Tristan were old friends. The horse stables were one of Tristan’s favorite places in the castle. He spent a great deal of time there, mucking out the stables, spreading fresh straw, and currying the knights’ beautiful steeds. Storm was his favorite horse, just as Sir Brandon was his favorite knight.

Tristan’s mind was whirling with the daring of what he was about to do. He knew this day could have only one of two endings. He could slay the terrible dragon that was slowly starving the villagers to death. In that case he would return home a hero. However, the other possibility was terrible. The dragon could kill him, in which case he would not return home at all.

When Tristan was sure he was far enough from the sleeping knights that he would not wake them, he found a wall of stone. He led Storm up beside it, climbed up on the wall, and scrambled onto Storm’s broad back from there. Storm waited patiently for him to get seated. Tristan reined Storm in the direction he knew the dragon lived. He had several hours of riding before he neared the dragon’s lair. He was not sure exactly where the lair was, but was sure he could find it. He would use the description of its whereabouts that the knights had given as Tristan sat for hours at night, listening to the tales of bravery and battle the men boasted about in front of the blazing fireplace.

The rhythm of the powerful horse beneath him gave Tristan a feeling of calm. He quit worrying about what would happen when he met the dragon. The air underneath the trees in the apple orchard was pleasantly cool. Tristan enjoyed it while he had the chance. He knew that soon, he would be out in the open, with the merciless sun beating down on his mount and himself. Tristan reached for the pig stomach that he used as a water bag, to make sure it was still tied securely and closed. He did not want to spill even a few drops of the precious water within.

Thinking of water made Tristan remember how this whole mess had begun. In normal years, the castle’s villagers planted large fields of vegetables and fruits. They had to plant lots because of the dragon who lived on the far side of the kingdom. Every summer, just when the harvest was about to begin, during the night, the dragon left his lair. He entered the fields of food, and took enough fruits and vegetables to see him through the harsh winter. They were not sure whether the dragon was a complete vegetarian or not, but they had never lost a calf or lamb to him in all the years the dragon had lived in the kingdom.