The Dragon’s Pearl
Elizabeth Lu, Group 2:
orning class!” Mr. Parker ran into our tent, wearing a huge smile on his face. “Today’s our
second day in China. And we’re going to visit the Great Wall!” An enormous discussion
broke out with some excited screams. I looked at my feet sulking. Why did I have to sleep
with Darren? The boy who bullied me whenever his chance came? Besides, the food was
terrible. Mom said that some Chinese ate dogs. I could still picture her sneer when she
whispered it close to my ear, sending a tingle along my spine. Thinking back, I actually felt lucky that we could
eat disgusting vermicelli. But that wasn’t the worst thing. What haunted me was a terrifying legend of the Great
Wall - A dragon had been sleeping under it since the 12
th
of December, 1212. It was rumoured that it would
awake a thousand years later and bring chaos. There would be a pearl on its forehead and only the good-natured
could stop it from killing people by pulling out the pearl from its eye. Today was the 12
th
of December, 2212,
the day when the dragon would wake up and... I heaved a sigh. All the worst would happen today.
Fiction, Diocesan Girls' Junior School
“
M
Mr. Parker shoved me from behind and told me to catch up. I carefully hiked up the steps and cautiously
looked around. The scenery was surprisingly breathtaking. A mass of mountains in different shades of green
surrounded us and a wash of prairie blue sky stretched endlessly over them. Overwhelmed by the beauty, I
allowed my cautiousness to slip away and made myself believe that we’d be fine because we’d already walked a
tenth of our journey and nothing had happened.
I leaned on the wall with my eyes closed, and was just about to allow myself to slip into my imagination of
being a guard of the Great Wall in the ancient times, when the stone wall that once looked so strong and
undefeatable began to crumble and crack. Everybody began to scream and yell. Among all the panic and
turbulence, some classmates fell down into the deep valleys. The shrieks became louder and people started to
push and make way for themselves. Then cold as ice, a coarse object brushed past me, tearing my sleeve apart.
I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound came out. My throat was dry, my legs were numb and my body
was tense with fear. Bricks splintered in every direction. The ground shook so vigorously that it felt like an
earthquake. I looked up and there the dragon was, standing on one of the mountains, with flames gushing out of
its nostrils. It stared at us with its evil eyes and opened its mouth, projecting its bloody gums. Saliva hung from
its upper-jaw and its teeth were rotten and yellow. Like a mighty warrior the dragon stood up, crouching
forward and squinting down as if we were dust on the floor. It suddenly ducked down and the next minute,
Darren was held between its claws.
“
No! Darren!” Mr. Parker’s loud screams brought us back into reality. Everyone continued to scream and
run and I watched in horror as my classmates were either pushed down into the valleys or shoved onto the floor
in the anarchy and stepped to death.
I wanted to follow the others and run, but I could feel a sense of guilt inside me seeing that Darren was now
only a centimeter away from the dragon’s mouth and was wriggling his body in attempt to free himself.
Gathering my courage, I stepped forward. I couldn’t let Darren die, even if he was a bully and thought that I was
useless. I crouched down and moved forward slightly and inched towards the dragon, ignoring Mr. Parker’s
screams and warnings. Thankfully, the dragon had now turned away from us so I climbed over the railings
swiftly and jumped onto the dragon’s tail. My heart pounded against my chest and my palms were wet with
sweat. I crawled further and held tight onto the hump on the dragon’s tail as the dragon shook its body and
roared feverishly. I lost my balance and almost fell down. I pushed myself forward and tried to edge further, but
couldn’t. I knew I’d have to run along the dragon’s steep spine and it wouldn’t be easy. I stretched out my arms
and standing up slowly, took a step backwards. Then I ran towards its neck at full speed, but was tossed onto the
ground. Not willing to give up, I repeated all my actions and finally made it to the dragon’s shoulders. But the
dragon turned its head and opened its jaws, trying to eat me. I shut my eyes tight, frustrated by my failure and
upset for dying such a horrible death. Just then, I heard a voice shouting a familiar sentence -“You useless
dragon creep, momma’s little ugly baby, you’re such a freak!”
I recognized that straight away.
As the dragon turned away and looked at Darren, I grabbed my chance and climbed to its neck. I took a
deep breath and held tight at the pearl on its forehead. I tugged hard at the pearl and twisted with all my might. It
came loose.
The dragon threw itself upon the floor and collapsed, sinking into the earth. Suddenly, it began to glimmer
and shine and gradually blended with the Great Wall. I felt proud of what I had done, and at the same time,
almighty and undefeatable, like a true cavalier of the Great Wall.
Suddenly, a hand snatched the pearl away from mine.
“
Hey, it’s mine!” I yelled, running down the steps.
“
It belongs to nobody! Keeping it will only bring harm!” Darren yelled back as he threw the pearl into the
depths of the valley, running into the coach where Mr. Parker had parked along the road.