One week later, Jeremy of the Chosen, notified Mt. Drago of their impending arrival and once again the mountain geared up for a surge of new people. This exodus would be uniquely different and the involvement of our forces, according to Jeremy, would not be required. The number of them is miniscule compared to the Hell Hounds and they require only an entry point to the mountain. Queen Mother has requested that I go to observe and lend a hand in case of a mishap.
The Dragos once again laid down brightly colored strips of tape, shaped like arrows, on the floor leading to the gate area. It had taken them longer to prepare this time due to the extended distances involved. The gate area, as you've already learned is very far away, compounded with a few unknowns that have plagued us during the make ready. We don't know what shape they're going to be in when they get here. Will they be injured and starving? Also, we don't know how many there are. I reiterate, their numbers are miniscule compared to the Hell Hounds, but that leaves a lot to the imagination and dangles an unknown number at us that we might not be able to handle. Will they have children? It seems like a dumb question, but we haven't seen any, and what in the Sam Hill do we really know about Vampires...oops, I mean Chosen.
Visions of a large number of Chosen walking into the mountain and then just randomly attacking the general populace has been a topic of discussion since the day the information was released. According to Queen Mother, the likelihood of anything like that happening is, and these are her words; "Not bloody likely." Do you think she could have picked a worse phrase to emphasize her feelings? Well, then we're in total agreement.
I'm told to wait on our side of the river at the docking pier for the ferry. If Cheron is bringing them over, then this could take a very long time. I'll wait because Queen Mother told me to, but has she really thought this through? I don't want this to turn into a camping trip with the Chosen. I mean, what's next; werewolves living in the Nursery? I know, I know...walk a mile in their shoes before you issue a verdict of guilty, but you have to admit that as a race they're pretty high on the creep factor.
I was ready to go at the end of the day and I stood waiting for Queen Mother's parting comments. We just kind of stared at each other for a few seconds and then she told me to go get them.
Okay, no arguments out of me. We'll just deal with whatever goes down and try to make the best out of a weird situation. Who knows, maybe they'll be really nice people with big teeth. It could happen.
I was standing on our side of the river next to the ferry dock as the sun went down, and what I saw was not what I thought I'd see. On my arrival I glanced down the shoreline; I saw them for as far as the eye could see. It looked as if all of the Chosen were milling around waiting for me. They had probably been working at getting across all day. There were tents and canopies set up to keep themselves out of the sunlight, and the ones not under the shelters were wearing special suits that completely covered them from the harmful rays. There were so many that I couldn't count them all, and bear in mind, I was looking at just the ones milling around the tents. The ones under the canopies outnumbered the others by a huge amount. There were thousands of them.
Just setting up the tents must have been a herculean event, and they did it during the day. Their previous living conditions
must have been deplorable for so many to risk their lives just to get away. That gives some food for thought.
Slowly, one at a time, the Chosen came out of the tents and began to disassemble their makeshift city as the last rays of sunlight dropped below the horizon. Watching them was amazing and almost like a ballet. They did everything the same way, like synchronized swimming, only on a radically larger scale. The tents came down quickly and efficiently with no extra movements, no wasted effort. The entire ordeal went without a hitch in less than thirty minutes start to finish. The only thing that made my skin crawl was the total lack of verbalization during this well practiced feat of magic. No one spoke a word, not even the children. I was relieved by the presence of children because it somehow makes their culture seem more normal, until they stood stock still for thirty minutes completely mute. Have you ever been around kids that acted like that? Well, I haven't.
Now, here's a surprise...they were all ready to go at the same time. They moved out in an orderly fashion, six abreast and walked with an unheard cadence toward the Ley Gate I had opened for them. Walking through first, allowed me to determine their safety and check with Mt. Drago's security team that was waiting for them. Security picked them up as they came through and matched their progress step for step as they made for the main ramp. I stood just inside the main corridor and observed each line as they passed through, painfully aware that they made virtually no noise at all as they moved.
Marching always makes noise and I thought that at least in part, it was the nature of keeping the pace. The Chosen had a silent natural flow about the way they moved. It was fluid and clean with no extra motion, and fast.
When the last of the Chosen had at last walked through, I returned the gates to their normal positions and made my way back into the mountain. I wearily walked down the main corridor and stopped where the ramps diverge. The line of Chosen was still working its way down to Commons, and if you listened closely there was a whisper ever so quietly drifting across the main cavern. It was a beautiful sight, all things considered, like thousands of clones in a silent movie. The front of the line had long since disappeared into the next corridor and wouldn't stop until the first Chosen reached the subsequent gate.
I could hear Demi calling and without a second thought, I leaped over the ledge and activated the rockets on my suit. Moments later, as I swept over the retreating line of Chosen, Demi came into view and I banked around, flew past the ramp and landed in front of the Emerald Grotto. Demi was waiting for me there.
"You need sleep, Tanis. The techs can handle it from here. Tomorrow we can both go and visit the Chosen."
She was probably right, and the thought of just lying down for a while was heavenly. All I had to do was walk back a few yards, take the suit down and curl up in the arms of the dragon. Peaceful sleep with no interruptions and a dragon to protect me while I was out. Suddenly, I could hardly move, and my energy levels simply bottomed out. The next thing I knew Demi was carrying me into our area and the world seemed to be turning very slowly. Demi took my finger and jabbed the main switch located on my breast plate. The suit is programmed to my genetics and consequently no one else can press the switches and get them to do anything. Smart dragon. Somewhere in the distance I could hear the suit de-reticulating, but I'm not sure that I cared...and then it was lights out.
"Are you going to sleep all day? I said, are you going to sleep all day?"
I opened my eyes and there at the end of the sleeping mat was Betty. Her arms were folded, and she was tapping her foot like she was pretty massively perturbed. Standing behind her was Demi with a look of "Oops, I couldn't stop her from coming in" on her face. If that's even possible.
"Good morning, Betty. It's nice to see you too. Did you bring coffee? No, I guess not. Is there a reason why you're standing in my area yelling at me?"
Even in my early morning stupor I could tell that was the wrong thing to say. Have you ever noticed that when people want to emphasize their displeasure with you, they audibly sigh a lot? Yeah, me too. Well, that was her wind up and I could tell the pitch was forthcoming.
"There are deliveries being made, you have a small child running up and down the corridor, you have a dragon in need of a bath and you're late for your meeting with the Chosen. Other than that, your schedule is clear, and you should roll over and go back to sleep. And you're supposed to be a section leader."
Then she made that clicking noise with her tongue, you know the one parents make when they're showing how disappointed they are with you? So, I flipped the furs down that were covering me. Whoa...I have furs? Where'd those come from?
"Okay, okay. I'm up. Are you gonna go now, cause I'm about ready to pull my trousers off?"
I absolutely love middle-aged prudish women cause between the look on her face and the color it turned...man, that was a Kodak moment. She spun a one-eighty and stormed out of our area muttering under her breath about brazen men. That was the most fun I'd had in days.
My mouth tasted like boot leather and probably smelled worse...I still hadn't had coffee; I needed a shower, and I couldn't find my toothbrush. I heard bells in my head, and how weird is this? I could smell coffee and my toothbrush was in my hand.
I made Demi stand under the waterfall at the river while I took a quick bath one section down from her. Now we were both clean. Okay, okay I know what you're thinking, but we didn't have time for the full Monty. I'll give her a complete washing later. I was late for the meeting with the Chosen. To be honest, I hadn't remembered there was a meeting with them. I've been spending too much time hanging out in the suit and snorting ozone. Gets to you after a while. We doubled back and I got that coffee...twice and I felt much better.
I could see dozens of Hell Hounds running across Commons in what appeared to be a foot race and I stopped for a moment to watch until I saw the demons. Two Class Nine demons had a roped off area about fifty yards from the east wall and fairly close to where we stood. They were fighting with swords, and I've got to tell you...that's not something you see every day. Metal banging against metal and very complex footwork drew my attention first, but on closer inspection, the swords looked very much like the EX-swords of old. King Arthur was supposed to have used one. They're rare and extremely valuable. Just a bit longer than a Valkyrie and a tad heavier, these swords were definitely of the Warlord design, and exquisite. I wanted to stay and watch but a section leader's job is never done.
Once we got to the corridor that leads to the gate area, I mounted my dragon and we flew like the wind, getting there in record time. Oh, and the small child, to the best of my knowledge, is still running up and down the corridor in the Emerald Grotto. I'll wager Betty took care of the deliveries, so I'm pretty sure that takes care of my morning. Well, with the exception of that pesky meeting which I'm about to land in the middle of. Man, I love being a dragon rider!
We landed at the gate area, and it was empty, as in no people at all and no meeting, so the proceedings must be at Mt. Femmes. Perfect. One of the techs at the gate spotted us and walked over.
"Good morning, Tanis. The meeting is at Femmes. They're waiting for you there. It'll take a minute to wind up the gate and then you're good to go."
He grinned and tipped his cap to us both as he turned to go back to the roped off gate area. We nodded back and moved over to wait at the line that marks the event horizon. Five minutes later we were walking through to the Common area at Mt. Femmes.
I'm trying not to look paranoid, but I have to admit it feels safer inside the suit and I can always take it down if Queen Mother disagrees. The tent city the Chosen built on the shore of the river Styx has been erected again in the middle of their Commons. I'm not sure how they pounded stakes into the floor but there you have it, a makeshift town spreading out as far as the eye can see. There's a central path right down the middle and I can see Queen Mother off in the distance. There are a lot of Chosen around her, but she is giving off the air of casualness and natural wellbeing. She's probably sweating bullets, but on the outside there's that cool as a cucumber thing going on. She's definitely got that part down. If anything, the Chosen are the ones who are nervous and ill at ease. I personally think that's backwards. They outnumber her entourage a thousand to one, and they're...vampires. What have they got to be nervous about?
She spots us at about a hundred yards away and gives a big smile. The big wigs have seen us, and I know what they're thinking. A green armored warrior and a sizeable emerald dragon are approaching the pow-wow table. Demi and I both are anxious, but we're not about to show it, no way, not around these many vampires. I've really got to stop calling them that.
Queen Mother puts her arms around me and does that, side of the face air kiss thing, but she whispers in my ear.
"They're too quiet and they hiss when they're nervous. I'm not sure what that means, but we're glad you're here. Oh, and take the helmet down."
Take the helmet down. Why, so they can get to my neck easier?
"Yes, Queen Mother."
As we approached the meeting, I noticed a couple of things right off the bat. Somebody's moved a rather large conference table onto the space that will eventually become the Common's Wheel. The table is much larger than six people need and there's three goblets and a pitcher of dark red liquid sitting on it. Any guesses as to what that is? Basiliskos and Invectum are standing with them, so it doesn't take rocket science to know why I'm here. Except for the two dragon Kings, I'm the most heavily armed and destructive guy in the mountain. There's no substitute for planning ahead and this is now looking just a tad iffy. Queen Mother clears her throat and begins making the introductions. She points to the three...Chosen.
"Raphael, Mathias...this is Tanis, section leader of the Emerald Grotto and his dragon Demios. Jeremy, I know you have already had the pleasure of meeting Tanis, but not Demios."
The two Priests and Jeremy murmur pleasantries, but nobody shakes hands.
She gestures at me.
"Tanis, this is Raphael, Head Priest, Mathias, second Priest and of course Jeremy of the Chosen. They will be the mediators for our talks today."
I bow my head slightly and don't even bother with trying to shake hands. All of them have their hands in their pockets and I have a feeling they're all germaphobes. It's probably got something to do with the disease Porphyria and the resulting oddities they developed after the fact. The one thing we do know is that they're not the touchy-feely types and probably never would be. I for one am okay with this. Even if Porphyria is not transmittable, it still takes a lot to want to get too close to these guys. I know, I know...but put yourself in my armor and tell me you wouldn't feel the same.
In a kind of awkward way, we all sat down, and one of the Dragos brings me what looks like a glass of ginger ale. We got eye contact and the look on his face said..."Don't blame me, it was Queen Mother's idea." Picking it up was the next disappointment because it was tepid and flat. Still, all in all, it was infinitely better than what was in their glasses regardless of what it was.
We talked for the better part of two hours and all things considered, they appeared to be amicable to Queen Mother's requests. She promised them cattle, most of which was to be used for blooding, slowly over time, and general food stores for their other needs. Clothing, furniture, bedding and just about everything else you could possibly think of went down without a hitch until we came to leaving the mountain. Then there was a hitch. What it boiled down to was this. They could come over to Drago but not in large numbers, and only at Halloween could any of them even think about leaving the mountain. A couple of things went wrong with that comment, although initially it was just quiet. They had never taken part in that celebration, and they thought she was joking. Then the innuendos about fangs popped out and the conversation went downhill from there. In the end they understood the subtleties of how costuming worked, and why they could be seen on those days as opposed to any other. It wasn't her fault they had extended canines, now was it?
In return for all of the above, she wanted Mt. Femmes to be a safe haven for...yep, you guessed it, dragons. But not just any dragons, oh no... the Aguivas, and there was a primary reason for her concern that not even I knew until the meeting. Everyone knows the Aguivas are different from the Wyverns, but what they didn't know was that a Warbird with no rider, at the adolescent stage, does not do well around children. Take an Aguiva that hasn't impressed with a rider, bring him or her into an area that has children, and they go insane. They thrash, vent on the floor and throw up balls of plasma. Now my question was...if an Aguiva calls for a child as a rider, then what happens? Queen Mother said, and I quote,”Sequester the Aguiva to a safe and remote area, then introduce the child to the Aguiva and all will be well." The key to this was and always will be, you can't just introduce the child to the Aguiva, it has to call for the child in the first place. Any other way would just lead to disaster.
Apparently the Aguiva, if it has called, doesn't see the child as being a child. Once the impression has finished then the Aguiva can be transported into the general populace. That's odd, even for this place.
The Chosen agreed to set up a remote impression area and to have the Aguiva Nursery, assuming we ever get Aguiva babies, be off limits to the Chosen children. This one issue would have to be worked with stringently and there were no exceptions.
Further, Queen Mother retained any and all rights to have any rider she chose be potentially reassigned to Mt. Drago if she saw fit. I'm not sure they understood why she would do that, but they agreed to it, none the less.
The last item to be hammered out was the undisputed sovereignty of Queen Mother where Mt. Femmes was concerned. It wasn't as if she was giving the mountain away to the Chosen and in the event of political distress, she could and would simply take over until the problem was solved. Her solution would then be permanent and binding until such time as she saw fit to relinquish her influence. She basically had the last word on everything and called the shots, just from a distance. It was the best way for the Chosen, if for no other reason, she controlled the food source and every other thing they would need every day. It wasn't like her way or the highway, it was more like, make your own rules and play fair or you won't play at all.
Once everyone had agreed to all the different points and shaken hands, then out came more suspiciously dark red liquid for them and flat ginger ale for us. Now all we have to do is drink merry, get up and get out without being blooded in the process. Piece a cake.
I guess my problem with these guys is the list of oddities they wear like a crown. They're all roughly the same height, which is about six feet for the men and five feet ten inches for the women. They all have the same platinum blond hair at about the same length. They all wear the same clothing and in the same way. They all have the same shocking light blue eyes. You see what I mean? It's like looking at the children of the damned from John Wyndham's book. There are so many similarities that it's just creepy. Then, if all that wasn't enough, they're vampires too. Yeah, I know...the Chosen. I'm sure once I get to know them it'll be different, but right now they just seem macabre.
Okay, enough with the rant and rave. I'll just shut my mouth. It's possible that I'm feeling jealousy, otherwise why would I go verbal the way I just did? I know my faults, but I also know theirs, and which set would you pick? Sometimes perfect just looks perfect until you peer more closely.
Well, for now there are no Aguiva other than the ones in the Down Below and the single Warbird bonded with Princess Rhylana. That buys us more time to integrate with the Chosen and learn why they're so weird, uh I mean...different.
The Chosen, as it turned out, were the reason I learned about Bettonwood. What is Bettonwood, you ask? It's the fictitious name given, because of security reasons, for the town where Queen Mother transports all the goods used in the mountain. I had wondered more than once how all the stuff just seems to show up, when there was no way for her to bring trucks up to the door. Nobody talks about it, and even if you could get one of them into a conversation, they find clever ways to talk around it. Maybe because they don't know any more than you do. Now that I'm a section leader of a grotto, Queen Mother told me it was time to be inaugurated into the inner sanctum. I liked the sound of that. It would finally show me how they do the impossible. Which, of course, leads me back to Bettonwood.
Several hours after our meeting with the Chosen, Queen Mother had me meet her at the gate area. My first thought was that we were going back to Mt. Femmes, and I wasn't too keen on a return visit. I guess she could see the look on my face and assured me that we weren't going to France.
I'm told the answers are easier to understand if you go see for yourself, and I got a wicked little smile from her as we walked through. This time I couldn't see through the gate to the other side. It was pitch black on the other end. The temperature was remarkably cool, like refrigerated air cool, and the prevailing smell was like bathroom cleaner. I heard the portal make a rasping noise and then it disappeared. A series of clicking sounds prefaced the light turning on overhead, and I realized we were standing in a rather expansive closet. Two doors directly in front of us began to slide to the right and were so quiet you could hardly hear the servo noise of the motors moving them. Queen Mother spread her arms wide, indicating the whole of the warehouse.
"We just recently upgraded, and I like the size much better, much more expansive. The temperature is one heck of a lot cooler as well, that's for sure. Bob Harris convinced me to move from the previous location which was very small compared to this one. We had one truck bay in the first building and this one, as you can see, can hold up to six."
We had been casually strolling through the different bays and making our way toward what I believed was the front of the building, when it occurred to me that the place was empty of trucks and people. Where was everybody?
"How come there are no trucks here? Seems like the place ought to be booming."
Queen Mother cocked one eyebrow up and looked at me quizzically.
"It's Sunday, and we try to never work on the weekends. It brings too much attention to the area if traffic is seen because the other local companies shut down. We try to blend in and mimic what they do. Keeps questions to a minimum and makes us look normal."
Well, that explains why she didn't tell me to take the suit down or make special arrangements before we came. I pressed the main switch and the armor receded anyway. It's less bulky and I couldn't see the need for an advanced encounter suit in a warehouse.
"Okay, I get that this is a front, but is it a real working business or a tax write off?"
"Oh Tanis, it's much more than a tax write off. We export all kinds of stuff like clothing, leather goods and gemstones, just to name a few. Between the gold and the regular exports, we've been able to buy most of what we need. Some of the big items we had to save for, but now that we hit a large vein in the Emerald Grotto and received large donations from Bob Harris, we're in a lot better shape financially. The new building for instance, I believe it shows progress. The incoming goods don't have to go anywhere near the mountain and even the truckers who drop stuff off believe we're going to ship it all back out to another destination. Neat, clean and efficient."
I looked again at the facilities, starting with the bays and the staging areas where the truckers and dock workers unload the cargo. The trucks drop it off and it stays in the staging area until they leave, then the doors close and the dock workers...nope, I'm missing something. Dock workers wouldn't know about the mountain. Substitute Dragos for the dock workers and then the cargo items are hand trucked or sledded over to the gate where it passes through to the mountain. Conversely, export items are brought out to the warehouse using the same methods, where they're lined up in the staging areas to wait for the trucks. The trucks pull up and are loaded to be shipped to the customers. Once loaded, the trucks drive off and the doors are closed to start the whole procedure over again.
"The system is brilliant. You're running the import and export business right under people's noses and they suspect nothing. There are a couple of things I don't get though. How do you bring in the cattle without the truckers knowing, because you can't make the cows stand in the staging areas, and who runs the day-to-day operations in the front? I assume you have the Dragos running the office and sales."
Queen Mother put that sly look on her face, the one she uses when she has a secret, and you can't figure it out.
"We own three cattle trucks, and we send them when it's time to pick up replacements. We purchase the cattle from Texas and drive them here on "off days". Tuesdays and Thursdays are considered "off days" and that's when we truck in the moo moos. The front offices are locked and neither the sales crew nor the secretaries ever enter the warehouse, except for the random "on days" when we can control what they see. They never get the idea we're hiding anything and its business as usual. What they don't know is that the offices are sound proofed, and we pipe in music to keep them from realizing they hear nothing from the other side of that wall. We put together the client lists and the companies they call. We were surprised at the success ratings of the sales staff. Seems they're quite dedicated to making sales and raising their numbers, as opposed to just taking orders. I personally wanted to hire locals and it looks good to the Chamber of Commerce. It gives people jobs, all without raising suspicion and accidentally giving it away. Come with me, I want you to see the sales area. It's really quite nice you know, a lot of chrome and glass."
We arrived at the door leading to the front at about the same time she suggested we go there and see it. Her timing was impeccable. She reached with her right hand and tapped out a series of numbers on a pad mounted next to the door. I distinctly heard three sets of slides pulling back from their locked positions, and turning the handle caused it to swing toward us. It was all but silent. The waning day's sunlight streamed into the front of the building like a promise from God. The view from where I was standing was absolutely breathtaking. You could see for miles across a desert mesa to mountains in the distance. Tiny dots that were buildings of some kind way off in the distance gave it a surrealistic quality, like I was looking at Mt. Drago turned inside out. It was that same sort of size ratio that takes your breath away and overwhelms you.
I got the grand tour and a dissertation on how the security system worked. Then, just out of the blue, she suggests we go to Whataburger. It was only then, like some sort of Pavlovian signal, that I became hungry. If that wasn't bad enough, I could see a Whataburger establishment from where I stood. How convenient. I was wearing my harness, so I rearranged my sweatshirt to the outside, effectively covering the piece of tech. Queen Mother turned the system off, let us out, rearmed the building and we strolled down the street like two normal people. I realize how ridiculous that sounds. When you've seen one gas station, yada yada yada, but when you haven't seen anything for a while, even a gas station can look like an oasis. The smells in the air were almost foreign to me after having smelled nothing but dragon, and let me tell you, the dragon smell was on everything. You just don't realize it while you're there. Don't get me wrong, I love the smell of dragons and it's not that I love the smell of gasoline, but it was a treat to smell one for a while instead of the other. Don't tell Demi I said that.
Across the street from the import/export warehouse was a row of small shops that sold everything from raw crystals to crocheted blankets. Looking back at the new warehouse, I couldn't help but laugh at the sign over the front door. It said, Harris Mountain Exports. It had a vector picture of a mountain next to the name.
Lunch at the Whataburger was like dining at a five-star restaurant, and I ate until I thought I would pop. We sat for about forty-five minutes, finally meandering over to the art and gem shop where we saw Theodore from the Drago clan.
"Greetings, Tanis, Ariella. What brings you out this way?"
I glanced over to Queen Mother because I wasn't sure of what to say or more to the point, what not to say.
"Oh, just came out to show Tanis the new facilities and do some shopping."
He let his eyes drift to the company across the street for a fraction of a second and then brought them back. He seemed nervous and the man behind the counter picked up on it as well. Sensing a sale, he moved sideways until he was directly in front of Queen Mother.
"Can I interest the pretty lady in a crystal? I just got them in today and they're beautiful."
Yeah, he just got them in from Mt. Drago, and Queen Mother is going to buy a crystal from stuff her guys mined? Not going to happen dude. She gazed pensively at him as if she was considering his offer.
"I think I'd rather have the dragon necklace that's hanging around your neck, if the truth be known."
His hand shot up to the piece in question and he acted shocked that she had noticed it.
"This...was a gift and I don't think I could sell it..."
His voice kind of drifted away and his eyes kept darting between Theodore and the building across the street. Queen Mother slowly nodded her head but never took her eyes off the merchant.
"A gift...from whom?"
This conversation had taken kind of a weird twist and I wasn't sure where it was going. The demeanor Queen Mother had taken was just a step away from hostile and I had no idea why. The storekeeper blinked a lot and swallowed, pretty much like he was guilty of something. Perspiration had popped out on his brow, and he developed an intense love for the clock on the wall.
"My wife gave it to me, uh...just recently, so you see, it's...sentimental."
Queen Mother reached out with her hand and tapped him on his left ring finger.
"I don't think your married, so I don't think your wife gave you that. It grieves me to think that a fellow merchant would lie to me when he knows where that necklace came from. Anybody else might have fallen for that lame excuse for a lie...except for the person who actually owns that necklace. I have an idea. You sell me the necklace, let's say for a hundred dollars, and if anyone asks me where I got it, I'll tell them that you sold it to me, even though it was a gift because you could tell how much I loved it. Does that sound like a good deal to you?"
Without hesitation the man undid the clasp and handed it over to her. You could tell his heart was thumping like a trip hammer.
"You may have it...no charge. I can see how important it is to you. Just tell people who ask...that I re-gifted. I have to close shop now. I hadn't planned on coming in today, it's, uh...Sunday."
Queen Mother glanced just for a second at the necklace and then turned to leave.
"Have a good day, sir."
She pushed the door one handed and stepped out onto the sidewalk in front of the shop. Glancing in the direction of the Whataburger, she shook her head and walked away. Awkward. Theodore had a look on his face that said, I would rather be any other place in the universe but here. I sympathized with him completely. It took a bit of effort to catch Queen Mother and when I did, she casually looked in my direction.
"I lost this necklace a couple of days ago and I was sure the last time I saw it was right in front of our new place. About an hour later I saw Mr. sticky fingers looking in through our front windows and acting, shall we say...suspicious? I was glad the Whataburger was open so you could have a bite, but if everyone else is going to observe the Sunday shutdown, I wish they would too. As for the gem weasel, he should know better. I think it's time to get back to the mountain...yes?"
Remember me telling you about those times...that's right, those times. Well, this was one of them.
"Yes, Queen Mother."
And this time, I actually meant it.
I had already forgotten what it was like on the streets of Arizona. It felt open, exposed and made me feel vulnerable. I don't like that feeling and I can't imagine any of the riders wanting it in large doses. I don't have all that much seniority at Drago, but even with the short amount of time I had been there, no crime of any kind had been reported since my arrival. There were fights, challenges and hurt feelings, but no one acts out unless they're in your face when it happens. I personally find the atmosphere in the mountain refreshing.
On our return to the new building, Queen Mother wanted to show the rear of the place from the outside. Large, clean and very high tech, not just for the doors either. The metal fencing that surrounds the facility had cams every few feet and the same level of security on the gates as with the doors. The place was a technological marvel. Once inside and locked up tight, we went immediately to the impromptu closet and went through the same kind of system just to open the door. Queen Mother activated the computer sequence that would not only signal the mountain, but also cause the coils to wind up and hold ready for the gate to open. At some point I realized the noise I was hearing was coming from the gate, and the pitch continued to rise until the lightning started to play across the two curved pieces of metal. Queen Mother walked over to the computer terminal and pressed several keys, at which time the thunder replaced the static charge and the portal opened. She pressed a series of numbers on the keypad next to the warehouse door and it quietly returned to its closed position. Signaling me to walk through, brought me back from my reverie.
We hadn't walked a dozen feet when I heard the gate close behind us and the noises made by the machine came to an abrupt halt.
It was good to be home, and I welcomed the rock hewn aroma of Drago. Demi met us at the first corridor, and I elected to fly to the Emerald Grotto. Queen Mother said she had duties in the Castle and would see me before the evening was over.
Well, not only did I see her before the evening was over but she was the most excited I had seen her in quite a while. Basiliskos and Invectum had rounded up several riders who were milling around the Veranda and I guess, waiting for me. The riders and Wyvern dragons asked to be at this meeting were as follows:
Ariel and Arraness from the Gold grotto.
Elfred and Big Red from the Red Grotto.
Thomas and Caseil from the Blue Grotto.
Gypsy and Calypso from the Harlequin Grotto.
Famill and Tanicur from the Grey Grotto.
Nata and Fellonna from the Grey Grotto.
There were three of the Aguiva riders and their dragons off to one side talking quietly among themselves. These three riders, plus their Aguiva dragons were as follows:
Analise and Bullba from the Down Below.
Xan and Brill from the Down Below.
Caleb and Seven from the Down Below.
These three riders had proven to be the most aggressive and had been selected to be the leaders of the Aguiva newcomers. Just as a side note, they also decided to give themselves a group name, one they felt would promote unity and make it easier to reference them without having to use the term newcomers. The name they selected was "The Pieces of Eight." It made me think of pirates and gold doubloons but was also a reference to their class number. On the Provinces they were class eight demons.
Analise and her dragon, Bullba had given Queen Mother information that could lead to the location of dragon eggs. I briefly wondered about why it had taken so long to procure this information, but with one hundred and seventy-five riders it could take some time to debrief them all. The information received from Analise was critical because it corroborated the information given to her by several others. Those others had bivouacked in the same barracks as Analise and there had been talk from one of the handlers there. Queen Mother was insistent on finding out as soon as possible and chose to take three of the Aguiva riders as well as a squadron of Wyverns. She chose a night flight to minimize exposure to her dragons and then laid the bomb, the bit I hadn't seen coming. She wanted to take a dozen of the Chosen. Boy oh boy, that's what I wanted. I can't think of anything more exciting than running around out in the dark with a bunch of vampires. Her reasoning wasn't really all that bad; they were fast and apparently could move around the Provinces unseen. They were strong and could probably carry as many as two of the eggs at the same time. It would also give them a chance to prove themselves under fire, and it wasn't like they were strangers to theft. I was selected to go because of my ability to provide air cover as well as maximum fire power, should the need arise. Demi still wasn't old enough to go and I felt her ire at the mention of age. I have mixed emotions about this, but I promised Demi I'd work on Queen Mother to minimize the age limit. It isn't the same for other dragons, certainly not because of the dragons, but because of their riders. They just don't have the means to protect their dragons like I can. Surely that will make a difference; at least I hope it will.
Queen Mother's version of ASAP turned out to be the following night. We were all told to round up whatever gear we needed and get a good night's sleep, because tomorrow at noon the pre-flight briefings would commence, not ceasing till we left.
Demi and I left for the Emerald Grotto and Queen Mother sent word to Mt. Femmes. Tomorrow would be a very long day.
When we got to the Emerald Grotto, I had a difficult time getting to sleep, not just because of the tasks to perform tomorrow, no there was something else. I had gotten caught up in the day-to-day struggle, and it's easy when there's so much to do. It occurred to me that a pattern was forming. Prior to my arrival, virtually nothing had changed in the mountain for several decades. Since my arrival, things seemed to change with alarming regularity, and if that wasn't bad enough, Queen Mother didn't seem to be put off by the changes. It was almost as if she had known about them before they happened. That was troublesome. She had made mention of building an army but it felt like a metaphor or one of those, "you gotta do it because something might happen." Lately, it was beginning to feel imminent and the number of folks arriving at the mountain didn't feel right either. Unless droves of folks were right.
Here's another thing, and I think you'll agree with me. Until just recently, nobody had ever heard of Aguiva dragons and then out of the blue a large contingency just happens to fly right into the mountain. Doesn't that seem weird to you because it does to me. Compounded with, immediately after they show up, we suddenly know all about them. I understand that most of the information came from the "Pieces of Eight," but it felt like Queen Mother expected them and was relieved when they got here.
Basiliskos and Invectum, I found out tonight quite by accident, have been flying sorties over the Provinces for about the same length of time that I've been here, and that too seems somewhat coincidental. It's like they're looking for something and lately I think they're hitting a whole new level of success. I'm beginning to believe this is leading to something and I don't think it's good. Last, but certainly not least, is the fear that the Aguiva dragons aren't just there by accident. There seems to be a push on the Provinces to breed them, and that generally means there's more to it than just a surface level intent. I had seen an escalation in troop movement and an increase of raids to the outlying regions. That generally means there's a need for more food, and that goes hand in hand with the movement of the new legions all over the Provinces. Their army was formidable before, but apparently not large enough for them.
Perhaps the answers are able to be had now that I know some of the questions. On the other hand, it still felt like there was an ingredient missing. I guess only time will tell.