Dragon Defense (Heirs to the Throne Book 3) (33 page)

“Want to go drop this package into a deep hole?  I’ll ride Dazzle and you ride Blaze.”

He said, “I’d go anywhere with you.”

*****

Trenton’s fingers curled over an explosive device inside a helmet.  “I found one!” he shouted.  “Maggie, feel inside the lining next to the seal.  It’s small but deadly.”  He examined the blast node and wiped sweat from his forehead.  He remembered using a few of these to blast a hole in the side of a ship once and he didn’t want to imagine…He glanced at Maggie with a worried expression.

“I’ve got one!”  Maggie confirmed and carefully placed the node into a bag. She looked up and smiled at Trenton’s crinkled forehead.  She turned back to the job without concern.

“And I found one.”  Lance echoed, holding out another nodule in his long fingers.

Trenton grimaced.  “Fremont’s a clever bastard!  I’d bet the men got orders to hide near the reactor if we didn’t discover them.  Either way, we’d be blown to bits.  Those poor men never knew they were marked for death.”

“Could the plasteel explode?” Maggie frowned and glanced toward the freshly poured security walls. 

Trenton considered the idea.  “No, you mixed the raw ingredients but check the barrels for explosives!”

Maggie ran into the hallway barking orders to the priests.  A line of workers followed her plump figure as she headed for the storage chamber where the barrels were stacked in neat rows.

“How can we find them all?” Lance stood and stretched, towering over Trenton. 

Trenton smiled at the healer and wondered if Tessa was really falling for the big guy. She could do worse but he felt especially protective of the girl he raised. “Donovan’s got a plan to glean specific information from Fremont.”

Lance raised an eyebrow.  “How?”

“They decided to let Fremont leave the planet.  He’ll stop at the spaceport to fetch a load of treated crystals but Donovan plans an interesting diversion.”

Marasuta entered.  “Our transportation’s ready.”

“See?  Things are already happening.”  Trenton winked at Lance and moved to follow the Samurai.  “Help Maggie find those blast nodes while Marasuta and I go trap a weasel.  Make sure Maggie’s safe and bury those explosives in the desert.”

*****

A flock of dragons gathered along the ridge above the spaceport and watched the shuttle land.  Their riders stared in fear, but the dragons thrummed with excitement.  They craned their long necks and tilted their heads to gawk at the silver bird sitting on the ground.

“Wait for the signal!”  Felesia warned.  All eyes, human and dragon, stared at her.  “Andrew will wave a flag, so don’t fly before you see it.”

The tension felt thick.  Flash chirped at Felesia and received a soothing stroke on her head.  “Easy, your time will come shortly.” 

Shariel wondered how her young students could confront that mechanical monster.  She sent waves of mental encouragement to her siblings and received smiles in return.  They’d already faced enough monsters in their young lives, but would they deliver an unconscious message to the father they fear?  Was Jarrack still a danger to his sons?  Krystal and Chella claimed that he lost his powers, but Shariel wondered how they could be sure. 

As Jarrack left the shuttle she searched for the blue haze.  She saw no aura around the fat priest as he helped the spacer climb out of the shuttle.  Should she touch his mind?  No!  She might warn him about their plan.

*****

Krystal supervised loading the shuttle, directed the crew to stack crates and secure webbing, while she avoided Jarrack’s gaze.  Her mental barriers were shut tight. 

“I locked the cases and here’s the key.”  Krystal gave a shiny key to Fremont and smiled demurely.  “We’re grateful for the Institute’s cooperation in providing humanitarian assistance.  We hope these crystals provide centuries of successful Transfer.”  

Fremont grinned, tried to appear friendly, but he looked like a viper ready to strike. “The Institute is pleased to help Drako.  We appreciate the crystals.”  A hand weapon suddenly pointed at her chest.  “Now call Dr. Alexander.”

Krystal eyed the weapon with apparent alarm.  “Alex?”

“Call him,” Jarrack growled. 

Krystal flipped an intercom switch and asked Dr. Alexander to come to the shuttle.  Fremont kept the laser trained on Krystal’s back until the doctor arrived. 

“Kind of you to join us, doctor.  Get inside.”  He gestured at the shuttle door and entered. 

Krystal moved away and nodded at Andrew, who vigorously waved a flag at the dragons.  She retreated inside the caverns.

Dr. Alexander slipped into a shuttle seat, undisturbed by the threat. Fremont slammed the door and fumbled with the security latch. 

“Take off, now!”  He screamed at the pilot. 

The engines whined and the shuttle started to lift off the ground.  “No!  Stay away!” the pilot shouted as large creatures surrounded the shuttle. 

Fremont stiffened with alarm.  The shuttle hovered as creatures from a pre-historic nightmare performed tight dives all around them.  Colorful wings filled the windows. 

“What’s this?” Fremont gasped.

Dr. Alexander smiled.  “I’d like you to meet Drako’s air force.”

“They’re yours?”  Fremont peered at the creatures and saw human riders mounted on each dragon.  “They follow your orders?”

Dr. Alexander called to the pilot, “Land the shuttle and turn off the engines.  My dragons might damage the thin metal skin with their talons if you don’t obey.  I doubt we’d make it to the spaceship with holes in the hull.”

*****

Donovan’s shuttle hovered in a cloud layer as the dragons flew around Fremont’s shuttle.  “Ryan, be ready to move.”

“Yes, sire.” 

Fremont’s shuttle hovered over the spaceport. “Now!”  Donovan commanded. Ryan dipped the nose of their craft and it dropped.

Donovan saw dragons dive in close formation around Fremont’s shuttle.  “Good!  They’ve stopped him.”  Donovan flipped the communications channel open.  “Fremont, this is Donovan.”

“I’ll kill the doctor if you don’t call them off,” Fremont shouted.

“You won’t kill Dr. Alexander.  He’s too valuable to the Institute, so try again.”

“Don’t be a fool, Donovan.  I can blow this planet apart with the flip of a switch,” Fremont hissed.

“Look around.  We found your little explosives and laced the boxes holding your crystals with lethal charges.  If you explode anything, you die.”  He waited, feeling his own heart pound.

“What do you want?”  Fremont’s voice crackled over the radio.

“Tell us the location of your explosives and call the spaceship over an open channel.  Order them to stand down.”

“I won’t tell you anything!”  Fremont shouted.

“Direct your craft to land in the opening the dragons provide.  Your flight schedule has been delayed.” Fremont cursed but Donovan saw the shuttle veer through the hole in the dragon formation.  Donovan’s craft hovered overhead, while the dragons flanked Fremont. 

Alex sat watching Fremont, who remained focused on the danger outside.

Donovan’s voice crackled over the radio.  “What did you hope to gain by blowing up our planet?” 

“I won’t tell you anything!”

Dr. Alexander leaned forward. “Fremont, Donovan already disabled your bombs.”

Fremont’s face reddened. “You think my devices are easy to find?”

Dr. Alexander leaned back in his chair and folded his long fingers.  “Easier than you might believe.”  The doctor closed his eyes and projecting a message to Donovan,
I’ve got the information.  Can you see it?
 

I received your mental image, Alex.  Thanks,
Donovan replied. 

While the doctor relayed the bomb locations to the rest of his team, Fremont scowled at Jarrack.  “Why are you smiling?”

Jarrack shrugged and glanced at Dr. Alexander.  “I see you haven’t lost your knack, doctor.”

“What are you talking about?”  Fremont insisted.

“I told you Donovan was a hard man to beat.”  Jarrack leaned back in his seat with a bored sigh. 

*****

Trenton chewed his bottom lip and glanced at Marasuta.

His companion sat calmly rubbing the edge of his blade in tight circles over a sharpening stone.  Marasuta, ever the Samurai, prepared for battle with the cool efficiency bred of years under pressure.  Trenton felt a cold chill creep down his spine as the rhythmic scraping of the stone set him on edge.

“Do you have to do that now?”

Marasuta’s steady gaze held his, and then the Samurai returned to his task.  “My blade must be ready.”

“We don’t plan to kill them, just delay the shuttle.”

“If it came to killing those scoundrels, Trenton, you’d be happy to have my blade at your back.” 

Trenton grinned.  “Right you are.”   Trenton heard engines roar and shrieks from dragons. “Our guests have arrived!”  Marasuta slid his blade into its scabbard in one smooth motion.

Trenton heard Donovan’s mental message
,
Alex gleaned the location of the other explosives from Fremont’s mind.  I’m off to work. Keep the shuttle grounded until you receive my signal.

Trenton replied,
I’d be happier if you sent me out to get rid of the blast nodes they planted in our new satellite equipment.

You’re a stubborn man, Trenton!  I can use speed time to accomplish the job faster and you’ll clean up my mess later.

Be careful, Donovan.

You’re not the first one to give me that advice today.  Buy me a stiff drink when I get back.

It’s a date.

Marasuta patiently watched until Trenton took a deep breath. “We must hold the shuttle here until Donovan signals,” Trenton said and the oriental nodded.

*****

After forcing the shuttle to land, the dragons squawked happily.  Their riders patted necks and enjoyed fireworks of color in their minds.  Felesia and Shariel flew their dragon squadron back to the ridge, where cut meat awaited the hungry flock. 

Wolves joined Trenton and Marasuta as the door of the shuttle opened. 

A sour-faced Fremont emerged with Jarrack and the pilot on his heels.  Dr. Alexander ambled from the machine with a broad smile.  His eyes twinkled as he nodded a greeting to his friends.

Fremont cringed when wolves bared their fangs and growled.  “Keep these mongrels away from me!”  He glared at Trenton and Marasuta and brandished his laser pistol. “I’m armed, so you can’t keep me prisoner…”  Trenton gestured at the ridge. Fremont saw a row of archers aiming shafts directly at his heart. 

Trenton said, “Lasers are fast, but you can’t shoot them all.  We won’t make you delay long, Fremont.  We’re happy to let you and Jarrack leave Drako.  Join us inside?”

Fremont lowered the pistol and followed Trenton into a cavern.

Jordan’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the priest.  He knew his father’s mind occupied the body but seeing the man made his stomach churn.  Jordan fought to remain calm, waiting for the blue haze to reach out and touch him.  Jarrack’s gaze contained intensity but there was something else—pain. 

Jordan felt the priest recoil.  Stunned by the discovery, Jordan realized his father felt emotions that terrified him!  Jarrack pushed past Jordan and nearly ran to catch up with Fremont. 

Jordan felt confident, having faced the monster, but he must remain cautious of a man who schemed to kill his mind and occupy his body.

*****

Maggie pulled out the last blast nodule with a satisfied sigh.  She checked off the last location from her list and said, “No one’s going to blow up my reactor!”  She handed the device to Lance.  “Take the whole mess out into the desert.”

Lance blinked nervously as he slipped the dangerous gadget into a sack.  “Done!”  He slipped out of the storage chamber, passing Tessa without an explanation.

She carried a tray of steaming cups and offered one to Maggie. “You’re finished here?”

“We got them all.  I’ll report to Donovan, so please inform the others.”  Tessa nodded as Maggie bustled down the corridor.  Tessa sipped hot tea and stared at the cup she’d meant for Lance.  She felt a twinge of concern. 

Lance carried the dangerous bombs out to a dumping ground.  Did he have enough time?  She shuddered and her mind reached out to touch his.
Be careful, Lance.
  She felt his mind react to her fear.