The Green Guardian

Chapter 49: The Final Battle (Part 1)

Nothing happened. The tree remained still and silent. Oh no! Was Evie too late? Was she really the Pebble Master she was destined to be? She shook on Crystal's back and puffed out her cheeks. "Crystal, I tried," she sobbed. She started to think that the prophecy was wrong. How could she and Mateo reverse the events of sixty years ago?

Just before she could give up hope, the pebble flickered again. It then unleashed a blast of light that temporarily blinded Evie. Strings of light escaped the tree's heart and provided it with rings. They moved toward its canopy.

Down below, the rangers watched open-mouthed with astonishment. How did a little kid do that?

Crystal backed away from the Guardian's Tree so she and Evie could witness the phenomenon. The bright magic reached the canopy. It ripped leaves and flowers from their branches and launched them into the sky. Euphorbia's pebble leaped out of the hole and returned to Evie. She caught it. Right when she did, the pebble changed back into the staff.

The leaves and branches swirled together into a wide-range tornado. They, too, started to take on a different form. A pattern of leaves and flowers created a pair of enormous, triangular-shaped wings. They attached themselves to a long body that had four large feet and an extensive neck. To finish off the transformation, a leafy tail appeared behind the being.

Evie could not believe what she was looking at–a dragon. She knew there were dragons in Pinta Country, but they were endangered. The nature dragons were nearly extinct.

The dragon tilted its leaved head back and roared. The familiar blue light washed over the treetops of the Paperblank Forest.

***

The Bittersweet and Evie's family and friends were ready for action. King Benjamin was the leader of the Roman-themed legion of soldiers and the camp crew. Since he did not have his horse, Ranger Julie let him borrow one of Bittersweet's gryphons. The ambulance was at the very front of the legion. It had not yet started to drive. Like Ben, it was waiting for the signal.

At the sight of the forest's trees glowing, the young king nodded to himself. He lifted his sword over his head and said, "That's our signal. John and Edger!"

John and Edger, who stood next to him, nodded. "Right!" They were the legion's scouts. John's wing was still a little sore, but he did not let the pain interfere with his mission. He and Edger leaped into the sky and soared in front of the ambulance.

As per the plan, it went next. It turned on its lights–but not its sirens (it did not want to scare the gryphons)–and rushed out of the village into the meadow.

Finally, it was time for the army. Ben pointed his sword forward. "For the Paperblank Forest! For Mateo!" he yelled. Together, he and Bittersweet's gryphons galloped forward.

Maria, who sat behind Ms. Julie on Allister, wrapped her arms around her tummy.

Keegan and Charlotte had been given one of the new recruits. The young gryphon stumbled all over the place in line. Yet, he was having a ball. It was like he did not even know that what was happening wasn't a training course. It was partly Keegan's fault, though.

"Keegan, what are you doing?" Charlotte asked her husband.

"Well, I'm sorry!" Keegan said. "It's been a while since I've flown a gryphon." The last time he did was his rite of passage.

The gryphons that made up three-fourths of the legion's edges (not the front of it) opened their wings and flew past Ben. They surrounded the ambulance on either side and created a protective border. The Bittersweet soldiers riding them unleashed their battle cries. All of them wore white and red paint on their faces.