Free Benjamin Dragon - Awakening (The Chronicles of Benjamin Dragon) by C. G. Cooper Page B

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    “Waaa…”
    Benjamin was almost positive that the noise came from the woods. He cocked his head.
    “Waaa…”
    He was right. It wasn’t coming from the permanently lit area around the chow hall and staff building.
    “Waaa…”
    The crying seemed to become more and more urgent.
    Benjamin walked over to where Tony was sleeping. He bent down and nudged the counselor. Tony kept snoring. Benjamin shook Tony’s shoulder. Still nothing. Finally he whispered, “Tony.” Tony didn’t move.
    Benjamin snuck back to his bunk, stepped up on the ledge and tried to wake Nathan. The same thing happened. He wouldn’t wake up.
    “Waaa…” came the incessant call.
    Why wasn’t any of the camp staff doing anything and why wasn’t anyone else waking up?
    Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Benjamin slipped on his shoes and grabbed a flashlight. He normally wasn’t so brave. Something about being at camp away from the real world emboldened him, or was it the fact that he had a ‘gift’?
    Benjamin tried to rouse Tony one last time. Nothing. Weird.
    Glancing back one last time, Benjamin clicked on his flashlight, opened the screen door, and stepped out into the darkness.
     
    +++
     
    “Waaaaaaa! Waaaaa!”
    It was easy for Benjamin to follow the crying. Not only did it come at regular intervals, it also seemed to be getting louder. He crept forward slowly, shining his tiny flashlight all around. At some point he picked up a sturdy stick that could be used as a weapon if needed. Benjamin didn’t know how effective it might be with his hands trembling.
    “Waaaaa!”
    His little flashlight didn’t cut that far into the night. Unfortunately, the clouds covered the full moon as he walked farther and farther into the woods. Dodging branches and logs Benjamin did his best to maintain a straight course. He lost all track of time and realized he didn’t have his watch on.
    “Waaaaa!”
    Just as he stepped around a large oak tree, using his hand to guide himself around, the clouds parted, revealing the moon. The moon’s light shown down and what Benjamin saw made him inhale sharply.
    Now illuminated by the celestial night were two forms, some kind of animal (it was what was making the horrible crying sound) and a huge man. Benjamin could only see the man’s back. He seemed to be doing something to the animal. With the added light, Benjamin could see that it was a baby deer. 
    “Are ya just gonna sit there, or are ya gonna come help me hold this poor thing down?” the large man called.
    Benjamin looked all around. Who was the man talking to? He couldn’t be talking to Benjamin.
    “Well?” the man asked, turning. He looked straight at Benjamin. Lit by the moon, the man’s features looked spooky. He wore an unruly thick beard that complimented his shaggy hair.
    “Come give me a hand, will ya?”
    For some reason Benjamin didn’t run. Maybe it was because the man, although he looked wild, didn’t actually appear threatening. Maybe it was because Benjamin was curious. Most surprisingly, the boy found that he was no longer scared.
    He marched over to the man and said, “How can I help?”
    Benjamin could now see that the man was fiddling with the deer’s leg. There was something attached to it and the leg was covered in blood that looked black in the night.
    “Help me hold it down. It keeps kicking and I can’t get this darned trap off.”
    Benjamin liked animals, but he’d never touched a wild animal, unless you counted the fish and crawdads he’d caught the summer before with his dad. Avoiding the fawn’s head, he placed his hands gently against its torso.
    The scraggly giant mumbled to himself as he worked. “Darned cuts…stupid youngsters…have to talk to the director…” The murmuring and the fiddling continued for a couple minutes until finally the man exclaimed, “Got it!”  With a yank, he pulled the remaining cord away. His hand was bloody. He didn’t seem to care.
    “Okay. On the count of