Justin's Prophecy
by
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Justin slowly entered the cave. Running his hand along the wall, he made his way into the darkness. The stone was smooth and cool under his fingertips. The walls reminded him of something; he just couldn't remember what. The wall curved away from the entrance and Justin found himself in complete darkness. He couldn't even see his hand in front of his face. Justin moved into the darkness, holding his left hand rigidly in front of him so he would not run into anything. His right hand continued to follow the wall. He shuffled his feet carefully because he couldn't see the ground. Justin had no idea how long he had been walking, nor how far he had gone. Maybe he should just turn back, he thought. Then he saw it. A glow was coming from ahead of him.
He walked quickly toward the glow, glad for any light. At the end of the passage was an immense room. The glow he had seen was from a bonfire removing the chill of the stone. Thousands of quartz crystals sparkled in the walls. And the floor...The floor was littered with glowing purple and green dragon scales. Now Justin remembered. His uncle Witton's voice rose unbidden in his mind.
"A dragon can carve its den out of solid rock in less than one night. You can always tell if a cave is a dragon's den because the walls will be as smooth as polished glass."
Justin picked up three of the dragon scales and tucked them into his shirt. Sleeping with a dragon scale under your pillow brings the sleeper luck, and he wanted one for his cousin Velvet, one for his Mother, and one for himself. As Justin turned to leave, he noticed a pile of furs on the far side of the chamber. It was the dragon's nest! He knew he should leave, but there might be an egg in the nest. He didn't know anybody who had ever seen a dragon's egg. He heard that they were solid gold, soft and warm to the touch.
"If you should find a dragons nest, never touch the egg," Uncle Witton had said. "The egg can drain the willpower from the strongest man, making him want to curl up around it and sleep. That is why nobody ever lives to tell of touching a dragon's egg. Remember, man is a special treat for a dragon, and the mother dragon is never far away."
"Never far away," Justin murmured, "never far away."
He felt drawn towards the pile of fur, as though he had no choice but to approach it. Closer and closer he went. He could see the individual furs now. Fur from rabbits, deer, bears, and other animals that had been the dragon's meals. He was close enough to touch the nest. He leaned against the nest, peered inside, and saw it. The dragon's egg. It was a full foot across and eight or nine inches around. Its golden shell gleamed dully in the firelight. Justin reached out his hand to touch it. It was the most beautiful egg he had ever seen. He could almost feel the vibrations of life coming from within.
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About the Book
Justin live in a world of dragons, kings, castles, and prophecy. Justin's prophecy foretold of dark tunnels and changing worlds. Three children in the modern world were part of that prophecy as well. It is Justin's destiny to take them back in time to ask the Oracle for help dealing with a world that includes drive by shootings and sudden unexplained death.
Before the four children can ask their questions they must face three challenges that will test their courage, their ability to reason, and their ability to work as a team. Will they solve the challenges and discover the answers to their questions? Or will their dangerous journey end in disaster and disappointment.
"Justin's Prophecy" was
read and edited by Mrs. Riley's fourth and fifth grade classes at
About the Author
When Justin finds the answer to his mysterious birth prophecy he finds him self in a strange world of tall buildings and strange machines. He also meets three children who have been recently affected by the violence in their world. They want the violence to end, but don’t know where to go. Justin takes them back through the tunnel into his world and they go to the seek the Great Oracle together.
The children (ages 9-11) that
have read my copy of this book have responded very favorably to it. They are immediately interested because of
the fantasy nature of the book and because of Justin's adventure with a dragon
in the first chapter. It is also a
timely book because violence in our society is a problem many children are
struggling with. Our town has a growing
population from
I have been an avid reader all my
life, and I passed that love of reading on to my six children, now ages 22 to
30. I read to them each night when they
were little, and when I write children’s books, I write them for my children
and grandchildren. My weekly movie
review column, titled “Mom’s Views On Movies,” appears
in two weekly newspapers and a monthly magazine. I believe the most important thing we can
give our children is an imagination, because it is the imagination that allows
us to dream, and dreams that allow us to try, and trying that allows us to
succeed. When I write my columns and
give parents the information they need to choose which movies to allow their
children to see, and when I am writing books for children to read, my goal is
to expand a child’s world and to help them cope with the difficult and
sometimes dangerous situations that surround us all.