An Otherworldly Adventure

The purple foliage grew tall above my head as I trekked through the jungle. I was the first biologist granted permission to travel to Kerikar, a planet seven lightyears away with a breathable atmosphere. I had been recruited to bring back information about the life on Kerikar.

My apprentice, Kaya, hiked beside me. She panted with exhaustion but trooped on uncomplainingly. She was a girl one in a million.

Then I was yanked into the air. I screamed. My shoulders were encircled by gigantic talons. A huge, flying creature had plucked me off the ground. I dangled helplessly from its clutches, fifty feet in the air. I glanced up at my abductor.

My jaw dropped It was a DRAGON. An actual, live dragon. It had periwinkle fur instead of scales, but it was undoubtedly a dragon. And it had kidnapped me. If I struggled, I would fall to my death. I waited, trembling, as we flew on.

We landed in an enormous nest. Three baby dragons, colored dark purple, chirped happily upon the larger dragon’s return. The large dragon, their mother, rumbled with a deep purr.

Was I about to be fed to the babies? They were about as big as me!

The mother flopped down in the nest with a deep sigh. She curled her tail around the babies . . . and me. The dragon pulled all four of us next to her body.

It hit me. My uniform was dark purple. Of course! The dragon had assumed that I was a baby who escaped her nest. She’d brought me back home.

I furiously made notes in my notebook about my new discovery. Then I frowned. I was relieved she didn’t plan to eat me. But how would I get out of here?

A sudden rustling noise startled me. A hole opened in the bottom of the nest. Kaya’s head emerged.

“Kaya!” I whispered with delight. “How did you find me?”

“I followed the dragon! I couldn’t leave you to die. Follow me! I dug a tunnel through the nest.”

I smiled broadly. Kaya was truly one in a million.