The Revenge of Tenebris
Joshua Ethan Luk, Group 2: Fiction, St. Paul's Co-educational College Primary School
hinese history is my favorite thing in the whole universe. What makes it so captivating is its
perplexing mystery and inexplicable secrets, waiting to be unveiled. Out of nowhere, you may find the
most unexpected historical facts or the most shocking stories. Ask me any question from the Xia to
Qing dynasty, I guarantee I’d be able to provide the correct answer. Nevertheless, my broad history
knowledge had brought me nothing but loneliness. Everyday at school, my classmates would shove
and push me along the corridors, teasing and calling me names such as ‘Geek’ or ‘Moron’. I was a loser.
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I lived in the small village of Xizhazi, adjacent to the Great Wall of China. When I looked out of my
window, I could see the towering mountains where the Great Wall laid. In the morning, it gleamed like a
necklace around China. In the night, menacing shadows lurked around every corner. Even though its sheer
majesty made people gasp in the bright morning, it was a place of dark secrets in the night. I had been trying to
uncover these dark secrets for a myriad of years, but so far I had no luck.
However, on one dreary day, my hard work finally paid off. A rusty scroll named the “Heinous Act of
Tenebris, The Malign Dragon” suddenly fell out of my shelf! I found the most intriguing passages in this scroll,
which read:
Back in the Yuan Dynasty, there was a dragon named Tenebris, and together with its corrupt colony of sea
monsters, they brought severe damage to humanity, bringing upheavals everywhere. On one fateful night, that
terrible group of beasts destroyed the whole village of Xizhazi. Millions died from that horrendous event.
The massive construction of the Great Wall in the Ming Dynasty finally put an end to Tenebris’ sinful
deeds. Tenebris and its monsters were trapped beneath the Great Wall. The Great Wall resembles a gigantic
dragon as it was built on the savage Tenebris.
Prophets believe that on the very last day of 2012, the year of the dragon, Tenebris will rise once again and
anguish the villagers of Xizhazi to the very death. There is only one way to bring these beasts to demise and that
is: to stab the ruby eyes of Tenebris. Without his flaming eyes, he will die immediately.
I was completely baffled by this historical piece of information. Finally, the great puzzle was solved. It was
the horrifying dragon that created the eerie atmosphere of the Great Wall at nighttime. The recent enigmatic
howling of the wind might probably be Tenebris’ screaming for vengeance! I looked at the calendar and felt
traumatized; tonight was the “night”!
I laid in my bed, looking at the majestic Great Wall, pondering ‘would I be able to save Xizhazi and be able
to do something successful once in my life?’
Night had fallen, a blistering breeze swept through the peaceful village of
Xizhazi. There was a murky haze
covering the village.
It was the witches’ hour, as I sensed the night dripping with malevolent potential. Villagers
had heard rumors about a dragon, but little did they know about the ‘cataclysm’ of that night. My heart was
beating rapidly. I was petrified.
All of a sudden, a scintillating light shone across the towering mountains. BOOM! Part of the Great Wall
disintegrated into ashes. It was Tenebris, snaking its way through the village as the sea monsters dashed down
the pavements, tormenting anyone they saw.
The villagers froze in horror and kept rushing out to the streets. Never had I seen the city so chaotic. Out of
the waves of the crowd, I managed to catch a glimpse of the Mayor of Xizhazi, who was comforting the
villagers. He begged “We need a volunteer to kill the dragon of the Great Wall before it’s too late, anyone?
Please!”
Out of the many villagers, everyone was reluctant. But I thought this was my only chance to do something
remarkable. I raised my hand as hundreds of disbelieving faces turned towards me. My mom was in tears,
crying out miserably “My dear boy, don’t do this! Without you, my world will collapse. Don’t leave me please!’
My mom was desperately pleading me to come back into her loving arms as my tears kept running down my
cheeks. The Mayor grasped my hand, gave me a sword and whispered in my ear “This is not the time to be
sentimental my boy, fight with fortitude, you’re our last hope.” He was right, it was not the time to be
melancholy; it was the time for slaughtering those scoundrels.
After hiking up 500 steps of the Great Wall, I saw the sea monsters emerging from the thick fog, waiting
for my arrival. Tenebris then made its triumphant entry, roaring and howling ferociously. At that moment, I felt
completely helpless.
CRASH! Tenebris’ tail collided with the concrete walls as debris scattered all over the ground. He dived
down from the sky trying to capture my sword. “Come on you weak beast!” I yelled. Tenebris swooped down,
slithering, pouncing, and trying to destroy me. “Ha! You can never murder me you hooligan!” thundered the