Basiliskos, Invectum and several of their closest friends scorched the entire Terrace area the following day after the Aguivas landed. You would never know there had been a problem; the smell of flamed rock is infinitely better than blood and ichor. With every day that passes there are less of the demons in medical and more and more of them exploring their surroundings. They're polite and courteous almost to a fault. They were especially grateful for the boots that were given to them. It's funny what's important to people when they have so little.
Four days after the landing of the Aguivas it became apparent that something was going wrong. The number of Class Eights going to the medical area had begun to increase. Every one of them had started complaining of stomachaches and nausea. Thanks to Mister Murphy and his accursed law, the plight of the new Class Eight demons and their dragons was about to get substantially worse. After what they went through just to get here, how could it get worse, right? Well, the food that both the demons and the dragons had been used to eating, if you can call it food, was so bland that their digestive systems were unable to handle the beef, vegetables and fruit being given to them since their arrival. Most of the common illnesses we have developed immunities to have never been recorded on the Provinces, ergo the poor newcomers fell prey to that which they couldn't see. What came out of it had all the earmarks of dysentery, and out of all the diseases to choose from, this one is probably the worst. Dysentery is caused from viral, bacterial or protozoan infections or parasitic infestations. These different and varying pathogens generally reach the large intestine from having eaten foods that carry the said little beasties, and it doesn't take long to see the results. Now imagine one hundred and seventy-five Class Eight demons and their dragons all coming down with this exquisite inconvenience at the same time. They all had the usual symptoms except for vomiting. That seemed to be restricted to the demons, and having said that, now imagine all of them having their bodies evacuate from one or both ends over and over again for almost a week. Needless to say, it took men who were not all that well-nourished in the first place and made them infinitely worse in a matter of hours. Had it not been for the constitutions of demons, all of them would have died by day three. The dragons seemed to weather it much easier and at least they weren't vomiting, but the volume they produced from the other end was a problem in itself. Enough said on that. Once the symptoms stopped and the newcomers were at least not adding to the existing bodily manifestations, the Wyverns came into the Down Below and did their version of cleanup detail. They scorched everything right down to the floor. The stench became the clean smell of burnt rock, and that as they say, was that.
Two weeks later it was as if it had never happened. It was on that day in the morning, which for me was an unusual event, that Demi called to me as I came up from the Down Below. A young woman was being led in from the south gate and a rather large brown dragon was bellowing from the Wheel. The dragon, a fully matured non-winged named Tyrana Saturis Core, was going through the preliminary stages of clearing the Wheel area of all unwanted personnel. Being a female dragon, this meant everyone. I came to within about fifty yards and she was already looking at me funny. I stopped. A few minutes later a young woman, middle twenties, was driven up in an electric cart. She stepped out and the cart drove away. Basiliskos in human form walked over to her, spoke briefly and then unceremoniously walked away.Tyrana looked at her and there was this collection of moments; the kind that become awkward quickly, and then the dragon just laid down. No fanfare, no noise - just plopped down. Then in a series of jumps, hops and pulls, the young woman worked her way to the top of the dragon's shoulders, turned and sat down. Tyrana Saturis Core stood up, angled slightly south and walked slowly but methodically toward the Brown Grotto. Once there she walked down the main ramp, disappearing little by little until she was gone. Well, there's another for the history books, and one more notch in the belt that's engraved with "Why was yours so different," Tanis? I could hear bells in my head and that told me Demi was close. I heard her wings before I saw her, and she landed hard. Her back feet came down first, the front ones buckling as they impacted with the floor a second later. She had angled slightly to starboard and spun slowly in a circle, coming to a stop almost directly in front of me. She immediately sat up and tried to look nonchalant. It didn't work and we both started laughing. It was the first landing she had bungled for quite some time. I think it even caught her by surprise.
Demi filled me in concerning the new dragon rider. Her name is Nina James, and she was a schoolteacher in Flagstaff. I have to admit she looks like a schoolteacher, complete with conservative clothing and her brunette hair in a bun. She looks unassuming and laid back, but according to Demi the woman is strict and a real go getter. I'm just glad I'm not in her grotto.
Queen Mother's Corps of Engineers have been down with the newcomers every day for almost a week, and I'm told the plans for a series of smaller grottos is almost finished. The makeshift tent town that houses the Class Eight demons and their dragons has been outfitted with portable generators and electric lights, strung in multiple areas to provide the maximum amount of illumination. It's romantic in a strange sort of way. The tents were provided by the Dragos, and they managed to come up with enough to allow one demon per tent. It affords a modicum of privacy until the grottos are finished, although they tend to do most things together in packs. That is, all but Bullba's rider, and he seems to be more solitary than the others. Today we found out why. Bullba's rider, the one whose name will be changed on the official records, came out of his tent which is located on the first row and all the way to the right. Word spread like a wildfire throughout the other tents and within minutes they were on the move. Soon all the riders were at the corner tent and the atmosphere was anything but festive. It seems that through the use of prosthetics, makeup, and a pair of cleverly designed boots, Bullba's rider had fooled everyone with his origin. Upon emerging from the tent, it became obvious to everyone that he was a she and was definitely not a Class Eight demon. Her origins were from the Provinces, but the species is referred to as Denizen, and they are human in appearance, albeit somewhat larger and stronger. Months ago, she had slipped into the bivouac encampment where the Class Eights were assigned their dragons and bluffed her way to a successful impression with Bullba. On the night of their exodus, she had taken off and flown with their squadrons on the desperate flight to the river. Once across and safely installed into life at Mt. Drago, there was apparently no need to carry on the subterfuge; she came out this morning wearing a Denizen dress and laced, knee high sandals. So, the female newcomer is actually called Analise. At the moment of her debut the others were not really all that happy about the lies that it took to get her here. I personally thought it was funny as hell. She worked with them, played with them, slept and ate with them, culminating with getting sick with them and nobody ever suspected a thing. I flashed back to the night of their arrival and remembered her attempting to flip Bullba over after he had crashed. Makes a lot more sense now; at the time, I had thought the rider was just too tired to accomplish getting the dragon back to his feet. The truth is - she just wasn't strong enough. After some yelling and minor threats, Bullba got into it and the others finally calmed down. I think it hit them right in the macho and their initial reaction was somewhat predictable. If you listen to them now, well let's just say that it sounds more like it was their idea to have her do it in the first place. They just needed to warm to the idea. I think they're all good people. Just as a side note. Bullba's name was derived from Analise's father's name which was Bullbaron. She knew that after she left the Provinces, the likelihood of her ever seeing her father again was...not very likely. Like having a little piece of home no matter where you go, and I doubt there's any real family resemblance. When I said that to Analise she snorted and told me there was. You gotta love a girl with a sense of humor.
Just an extra word about the Aguiva. They are nothing like the Wyvern dragons of Mt. Drago. In comparison they are tiny in size, but I hasten to add, their stature is certainly large enough to carry a full-size human. Some of them have every bit of a thirty-foot wingspan and probably weigh in at five hundred pounds. Since they sport a beak instead of a snout, it restricts the ability for lateral movement. The beak is absolutely loaded with teeth and if that wasn't enough, inside the line of teeth is yet another row. I have no idea...yet, what they are used for. Their wings are inverted and actually fold backwards so that in a rested position, the tips are sticking straight up. The wing bones are situated in such a way that while on the ground they double as the front legs. This makes them somewhat ungainly and awkward until they spring into the air. Once in flight they are agile, strong and show an enormous amount of stamina. The area that I would call the elbow has a foot with four toes and an opposing digit, allowing them to pick up objects if they are so inclined. Both elbows are equipped identically, and the opposing digits are inward facing, giving them the appearance of thumbs. The Aguiva cranium is elongated, and at the top rear they have a spike that is roughly the same length as their craniums. The eyes are positioned on either side, making forward vision impossible without turning their heads. While flying with them the night of their exodus it occurred to me that they flew in a similar fashion to butterflies. I believe the position of their eyes has a lot to do with it. Two of the Class Eight Demons have taken over the roles of leadership, although it seems a bit loose, if you ask me. All of them seem to do whatever they want where it comes to decisions, but the two, Xan and Caleb talk to Queen Mother when she checks on them. Xan's Aguiva is called Brill and Caleb flies the dragon named Seven.
Guess whose grotto got put on the back burner? Well, there you have it; and I don't have the nerve to complain. It's just unfortunate, but not entirely unexpected.
I'm not sure what caused it, but in the last few days there has been an influx of traffic from the outside world. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but over time you get used to the people that are here. I mean it's called an enclosed society for a reason. You don't expect people to just drive right up to the door and walk in. I would have thought the Dragos would be the ones called; they're the original stewards for the dragons here. The dragons, on the other hand, have a completely different agenda and call for whoever they want. God only knows what causes it. At the moment, there were several candidates milling around the Wheel, and the smattering of humanity was all over the board - men, women and children, with no rhyme or reason as to their race, color or creed. In the distance you could hear dragons coming. Each one was calling a different name; each one desperate to get to the Wheel as soon as possible. I told Demi I would meet her close to the west wall where we would have an excellent view of the proceedings. I am like a little kid where this kind of stuff is concerned. It always gets me excited and never gets old. Within minutes, dragons started appearing from several of the grottos. The one that initially caught my attention was a baby Silver being carted in from the Green Grotto. He was old enough to walk, but certainly not all the way from the Nursery. Here was a golden opportunity to see how an impression works when the dragon is an adolescent. Showing up a minute later was yet another cart, complete with one of the bronze babies. A bellow caught my attention, and as I gazed over in the direction of the noise, I spotted a young Blue, maybe three years of age, in route toward a small boy being held up physically by his parents. I'm assuming they were his parents. You could tell something was not right with the child, and that was confirmed by the oxygen tank next to what I took to be his father. The boy did not look well. I also noticed The Ariella close to the entrance of the Green Grotto. There were several security guards around her; they all had weapons out and looked stressed. I could tell that the object of their anxiety was a massive Class Eight, resplendent in battle armor. This warrior had to be seven feet tall and as wide as a mountain. Okay that was an exaggeration, but damn, he was huge. In his arms were two dragon eggs and he looked weary. Demi and I abandoned our post and started heading toward the demon with as much haste as we could muster. I wasn't going to take any chances, so I pressed the switch on my harness and let the suit activate as we ran. We didn't slow to a walk until we were but a scant few feet away.
I didn't say anything when I walked up behind The Ariella. The tone in her voice told me to hold back, but I recognized this particular demon from my sojourns on the Provinces. The demon standing in front of me was one of the highest-ranking Generals that the Provinces of Hell had ever produced. By reputation he was ruthless, well connected and dedicated to the inner workings of everything I felt was blasphemous. The walking talking personification, the embodiment of true evil incarnate, was breathing and taking up space right here in the mountain. My job seemed clear to me. Get The Ariella to move away from him, followed by me firing a rocket up his ass. Problem solved. I admit that might be an overkill, but this was the demon the Denizens called Malachai, the Butcher from Gehenna. I also saw the secondary problem in that he was holding two dragon eggs, and I would never harm a dragon - born or unborn. For the moment there was virtually nothing I could do but adopt a menacing posture. I reset the suit's plates, which makes a considerable amount of noise and tells everyone that I'm ready to rock and roll. The Ariella held up one hand; she didn't even look back at me, but still managed to show disdain for my antics. In the end I simply stood there like a lump.
The Ariella had adopted the strangest look on her face, but her voice was even, slow and methodical as she spoke.
"Why should we believe anything you say? We know who and what you are. The fact that you made it into my mountain has me a little confused, but you'll not take another step until I know why you're here...and why do you have a Projector bolt sticking out of your back?"
I thought the look on The Ariella's face was weird, but the look he gave her - wow, it was a Kodak moment. Ever watched a person attempt to see their own back? Damn funny, but what's even funnier is that he didn't know anything was sticking out of his back. I can only assume he was in shock and wasn't feeling anything. The bolts from the smaller Projectors are approximately eighteen inches long, an inch in diameter and quite capable of killing a man with one shot. He had one peeking out about nine inches and was talking to Queen Mother about dragon eggs. This is one tough demon.
The Ariella signaled two of the Dragos to take the eggs from Malachai; at which point he handed them over, telling them to be careful. Can you imagine? Kind of like a burglar returning merchandise to the owner and then telling him to be careful with it. The irony wasn't lost on the Dragos. He took a deep, shuddering breath and folded his arms across his waist.
"I'm tired Queen Mother. I have fought too many battles and I regret all of them. Either kill me now...or let me impress with Assassin. I have nothing else to lose one way or the other."
Okay, just an update for you. Assassin is the name of one of the two adolescent silver dragons. In the dragon's language the word assassin doesn't mean what it does in English; once again, life plays tricks on the wicked. The Butcher from Gehenna gets a dragon named Assassin. Kind of poetic, wouldn't you say?By the way...Assassin in their language means, "Life from Death."
In the end, The Ariella called for a doctor because she didn't want the butcher to die before he had a chance to redeem himself. She also put Malachai in a golf cart and transported him to the Wheel. You could see ichor all down his back; it managed to get all over the cart too. When he got to the Wheel he walked slowly over to where Assassin sat patiently, plopped down on the rock floor and had the silver dragon climb up onto his lap. The Doctor quietly walked up behind him, wiped the ichor off his back and then packed a bandage around the bolt. The doctor then told him to go to the medical area when he finished impressing. Malachai glanced at the doctor and nodded his head. I was told later that he was in surgery for three hours and the bolt had only been a few centimeters away from his heart. The Dragos allowed Assassin to wait outside of Medical for the whole of the surgery. During that time, I got an up close and personal look at the little silver dragon. Although it's difficult to know what he'll look like when he's grown, there are certain things I don't believe will change much throughout his life. The overall shape of the head is not likely to be that much different from adolescence to maturity. Longer and wider, but the same look within min and max. The comparison point for the Silver's, if they all look like Assassin, is primarily like the gold dragons, albeit the color is closer to the Gray's. The body when grown should then be more muscular, less bulbous and a good candidate for lower altitude air battles. Watching him makes me smile, as do so many of the young ones. At this age he tends to waddle and is easily distracted by his tail. I noticed too, he resorts to biting when he doesn't get what he wants, and albeit the fact that he warns people first, it's still biting. A fact which will have to be addressed before long; size being a factor, and they have a hell of a lot of teeth.
Now, back to real time. As the doctor drove Malachai and Assassin away, my attention went back to the other candidates. The youngling Blue had managed to shoo the youngster's parents away and the boy, Peter Smith, had his arms around the dragon's neck. Peter, now thirteen had convinced his parents to let him have one last vacation before he died. I'm told he has some sort of fatal cancer. When they asked him where he wanted to go, he said the desert. The desert on the other side of the country. His parents are wealthy and not beyond trying to make Peter happy, so they drove in from Pennsylvania. It was supposed to be a sightseeing trip and it ended up being a whole lot more than they originally bargained for. We'll see how this works in the future, assuming Peter has one. I also know the dragons have healing properties and if that proves insufficient, the doctors here at Mt. Drago are far more advanced than I originally thought. Maybe between the two, Peter's got a shot at surviving. His dragon's name is Dakara and is a four-year-old blue female. The Blues are an interesting species, and at full maturity they are some of the larger dragons - with huge lung capacities. The primary function of the blue dragon is distance flying. During air battles they range far and wide looking for where the enemy is approaching, and how long it will take them to get there. Their heads are wider, smoother and lack the accordion style ears prevalent with some of the other subspecies. The ears are held high and generally lay flat against the head. Their bodies are bulkier, causing them to run longer distances before achieving flight. Once in the air, however, the higher lung capacity, in part, helps them to stay airborne for greater lengths of time.
On the far side of the Wheel a woman is approaching a tiny bronze dragon. The woman is about five ten in height and voluptuously built. In her middle twenties and Afro American by descent, she is being watched very closely by Terek, the eight-foot winged Class Nine. I'm not sure what the attraction is, but he seems to be very interested in her impression. Demi tells me her name is Ivory McNeil and she hails from Chicago. Already into her second week of vacation, I'm getting the idea that she probably won't be going back. She got here almost three hours ago and the Dragos had to go and retrieve her car which had broken down over a mile away from the South Entrance. When she had been led in, it took only moments before she had gone catatonic from sheer sensory overload. We tend to forget how much the diversity is taken for granted; the size of everything is daunting to say the least. Well, it certainly had an effect on her, but to watch her now...you'd never know. She's also spotted Terek watching her and is telegraphing back...if you know what I mean. There is truly someone out there for everyone. In this case, he's eight feet tall, black as the ace of spades, winged and demonic in origin. But hey...those are his good points. Her impression amounted to lying down on the floor and rolling around, engaged in an impromptu wrestling match. It was endearing and fun to watch. When they were both tired and out of breath, the bonding had just kind of happened. She called for one of the Dragos to get a drink, and he responded to her as a dragon rider, much to her surprise. Her dragon's name is Solaris but somewhere in the melee, Ivory morphed it to SoHoney, which I believe is in the nature of the woman...laid back and casual. SoHoney, I mean Solaris is actually the color of weathered bronze and has the shape, not that you could see it now at her age, of the gold dragons. The head and ears are the same as the Gold's, as well as the tail barbs that come with age. The only way I knew these things is that Demi loaded me up with all the information after I asked. The Bronze, according to legend, has not been seen in many generations and supposedly brings about good omens and glad tidings. There are to date only two of these dragons, and the second one was standing close to the Wheel, ready and waiting.
Last, but certainly not the least of the candidates today, was a little boy also accompanied by his parents. Two of the Dragos walked over to where they were waiting, and gently but firmly lead the parents away to a safe distance. A third Drago knelt down in front of the youngster announcing himself as he approached.
"My name is David, and I will be the Steward that helps you with your impression today. If you'll give me your cane, I'll help you to the Wheel. What is your name and how long have you been blind, son?"
Without even so much as a quiver, the little guy thrust the cane out front and smiled.
"My name is Rick Harris and I have been blind since birth. Polaris called me. Is he at the Wheel?"
David grinned at him knowing Rick couldn't see him, but also knowing that a person's smile can be heard in their voice.
"Yes, sir. Your dragon is very excited to meet you and has a few surprises in store."
Rick stuck out his hand and waited for David to take it.
"I know, Polaris is going make me see for the first time in my life. Can we go now?"
Well, what kind of response do you give for that? David took hold of Rick's hand and started walking. When they got there, Polaris thrust his head under the boy's right hand. And then...nothing. They stood there for several minutes without even so much as a muscle spasm. Rick didn't speak and the dragon didn't either. Polaris had his eyes closed and Rick stared off into nowhere. A few minutes later Rick covered his eyes like the sun was in the mountain and squinted, as his eyes began to water. Then I could hear a different set of bells in my head and Rick was giggling. It was a very strange kind of impression, but in the end, he was every bit as much a dragon rider as the others...and he was no longer blind. We found out later that as long as he is within eyesight of his dragon, then he sees through Polaris' eyes. How cool is that?
Basiliskos had a very long talk with Rick's Dad and as it turns out, Bob is a very wealthy man...as in billionaire wealthy. Bob Harris is grateful and likes to express his gratitude with cash. Now there's a marriage made in Heaven.
One of the electric golf carts has been outfitted with a sled that has a roach coach on it. I had never seen it before, but it's possible they only bring it out for multiple impressions. I asked The Ariella one night how many of those carts she actually had, and she told me she'd have to go to the motor pool and ask. Needless to say, there are still places here in the mountain that I haven't visited yet. But I can tell you this; If you need to have a motor pool, you've got to have a lot of vehicles. As I casually gazed around Commons it occurred to me that just from where I stood, there were literally dozens of them. There are a lot of people milling around the Wheel today and it's kind of a nice touch having a mobile lunch wagon.
All good things have to come to an end, and these events were no different. Slowly each of the new dragon riders were outfitted with the standard flight suits and boots, even the kids. In the case of Rick, you know he's going to be the cutest dragon rider ever. All three of the Precious Metal dragons and their riders were assigned to the Brown Grotto. From there, each of the pairs can work getting through the stages toward a permanent assignment somewhere in the mountain.
Parents for two of the riders would also need food, clothing and lodging for the length of time they stayed in the mountain. By tradition, the dragon rider gets their own area. Two of today's riders were children, so in the spirit of tradition the moms and dads will be placed in areas that are adjacent to their kids. Sort of like being one bedroom over, while still conforming to dragon dogma. I like the tradition personally, and it gives the kids something to make them feel more adult. Still no official word on the length of stay for the parents, but I know Queen Mother will not let the kids go now, at least not without a fight or a lot of persuasion. Once you impress with one of her dragons...you become family. I also know from experience that the nurseries are never actually quiet, so their first night in the mountain should be interesting, to say the least. We'll find out tomorrow if they slept well or if they slept at all.
Today was a big day for the mountain. Not only did more dragons call for riders, but they all called to the outside world to find them. New potential warriors, new blood for the enclosed society and ultimately a fresh new outlook for a very old culture. Demi told me tonight that other dragons from all over the mountain are beginning to sing, and that means they're looking for the rider that will be their bonded partner. Perhaps tomorrow or the next day, who knows, but what we do know is...they're coming.