2022 Annual Literary Contest
1st Place (Tie)
Short Story
Young Writers – Senior (12+)
S.S. Beresford
Timothy was bored. It was 35 degrees in the shade and the swimming pool was closed, so he went up to his room. He opened his laptop and went to Wikipedia. He clicked “Random article.” The article that appeared was “Dragon (Draco Nobilis).” Timothy said “That’s ridiculous! Dragons don’t exist!”
And the dragon stirred.
Timothy read on. “The dragon is an extremely large reptile, 9 – 12.5 metres (30 – 45 feet) long, 4 – 6 metres (13 – 19.5 feet) tall, and 6.5 – 9 tonnes (7.15 – 9.9 tons). “This is stupid,” growled Timothy.
And the dragon woke.
The article went on: “Their range extends across the entire world; however, their habitat is nearly completely underground.” Timothy thought: “Who writes this junk?” He slammed the laptop shut and walked outside onto the porch.
And the dragon clambered up its tunnel. “Foolish humans! So, I don’t exist, do I? I’ll show him,” it thought.
Timothy felt the ground shaking. “Is it an earthquake?” he yelled at his brother. Then a giant reptilian head poked up from underground. It turned towards him. “It’s you I want!” it roared. “Do you still think dragons are make-believe?!”. “N-no,” said Timothy. He ran like the wind.
And the dragon laughed.
