Isis And The Dragon

Isis and The Dragon

Written and illustrated by Mary Schafrath

Thank you to all those who helped assemble the pieces: Maryjane, Suzanna, Shoshana, my parents and my sisters.

I love you all.

Isis And The Dragon Copyright Š 2011 Mary Schafrath and MS Designs Digitally Published on Issuu by MS Designs 228 Park Avenue South #9462 New York, New York 10003 www.MSDesigns.us

Once upon a time, in a land of green forests there lived a bright red phoenix.

She was as red as a fire’s red coals. She lived alone and content with her dreams.

Her dreams took her to many places and her fiery glow would show her the way.

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She possessed her glow always; from the softness of dreams into the day’s vibrant light.

When her time would come, her glow would ignite from within; burning her into a pile of ashes.

In painful acceptance, she would die and be born again, always more beautiful than before.

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Her name was Isis

And perched above the forest, she would watch in wonder and admiration at the elegance of the deer, the squabbles of the squirrels and the mothering nature of the bears.

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In the nights...

She would hear the singing of the dogs, congregating in packs and dispersing into the moon-lit paths.

She was fascinated and curious by their songs.

Songs of sorrow, songs of joy and songs of celebration.

She desperately wanted to be among them.

But, she knew that she could never be...

She was a phoenix. Her role in this life was that of solitude. It could never be anything more.

And so, she was content to watch the animals play, frolic and sing from her perch up above.

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Sequestered within a cave of this enchanted forest lived a snarling and fireless dragon.

Sleeping in the day, he would only come out at night to feed on the souls of dogs.

He was jealous of every creature in the forest, especially the dogs.

He resented any happiness, because he knew that he could never have it for himself.

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And so, he began prey on the dogs as they wandered the moon-lit paths.

Coming out of the shadows, he would snatch them up, reach inside their mouths and gobble up pieces of their souls. Leaving them to wander the forest in longing shame and deformity: howling in sorrow at the moon.

He developed a liking to the taste of their souls.

He enjoyed the way they made him feel as he gobbled them down: light, playful, innocent He enjoyed hearing his victims howl in mourning, the following nights.

But the effect was not lasting. The fireless dragon needed another dog every few days to maintain his happiness... and slowly the nights of song became filled with the sorrowful howls of the half-souled dogs.

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Isis was beside herself in helpless devastation.

She wanted to calm their longing.

She wanted to bring them peace.

She was not afraid of the fireless dragon.

For she believed that the light inside of her would never fall victim to the darkness of the dragon.

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And so, Isis began to share her fire with the half-souled dogs. Breathing slowly into their trembling mouths, she would ignite their pain and burn it to ashes. And the pain would be reborn into something more beautiful than before.

The half-souled dogs became wolves, loyal only to Isis. They would sing her to sleep from the forest floor as she laid perched up above in her tree. And in her dreams, she would sing with them.

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The fireless dragon was in rage. He could not rest amid the vibrant singing of the wolves.

They had become too powerful to capture.

They had become the rulers of the moon-lit paths.

And so one night, the fire-less dragon disguised himself as a wolf and walked the moonlit paths in search of answers.

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He followed the singing of the wolves until he found them huddled under a tree.

And up above, perched in the highest limb lay the beautiful Isis, dreaming silently. The soft glow of her fiery breath radiating amid the cool night sky.

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The dragon stood and watched in quiet contempt.

Burning with fireless jealousy, envy became hatred.

He breathed more and more rapidly... until he forgot his disguise and began to climb the tree to the branch of Isis.

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The wolves began to holler and bark, trying desperately to capture the fireless dragon.

But, the dragon was too quick and it was too late.

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Isis awoke to the viscous barking down below.

And there stood the snarling, fireless dragon.

But, she was not afraid, for she believed that the light inside of her would never fall victim to the darkness of the dragon... and she began to ignite.

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The fireless dragon was consumed with jealousy.

He grabbed her small, little body.

Starting from her belly-button, he carved her open.

He reached inside and grabbed the soft fragile light for his own, and gobbled it down with vigor.

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“Now, I will have her fire for my own!� thought the dragon, licking his bloody lips.

He had never felt so pleased. This was more amazing than a million half-souled dogs.

He felt warm and complete with the fire of Isis glowing in his belly.

It grew warmer and warmer until hot. It grew hotter and hotter and hotter still, until the dragon was ablaze.

He began to scream into the quiet night sky.

Screaming from a place that he never knew existed.

He screamed and screamed until finally the fire consumed him whole.

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The body of Isis: caught amid the blaze, amid the talons of the dragon, amid his screams: There was nothing that could contain the raging blaze against the soft, cool forest.

It blazed from the base of the tree into the heavens above.

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And the darkness became light...

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Until the light was no more...

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It shattered into a million pieces.

Taking with it, the body of Isis: carrying her to the 4 corners of the earth.

Her teeth and bones becoming the foam of the sea.

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Her beautiful red flesh spread as seeds of poinsettias over the forest floor.

And her soft glowing fire shattered as stars into the moon-lit heavens.

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Where she will forever battle the darkness of the night.

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