War of Dragons (9 page)

It's not easy, but you would learn it with practice. Aharon here would carry you and Seth. You could dress when you land. His companion would carry two of the girls. She's a lady, so you shouldn't mind too much. I would carry one.

And that one will not be my sister,
Arthur replied flatly.
That's final.

Yeah, because I'm fine with John carrying Crystal or Jenna while they're naked,
Daisy replied sarcastically.
Just go with Aharon and leave me alone. John, catch me!

Daisy pulled her wings in and began her transformation, dropping away from the group quickly. John dived after her, catching her some distance below them.

Daisy!
Arthur called.
How dare you! That was dangerous as well as stupid.

She can't hear you, Arthur,
John replied from below.
If you want to talk to her you'll have to transform. She's curled up in a ball. I promise I can't see anything.

John, descend immediately,
Aharon ordered.
It's far too cold for her up here. She'll freeze.

John immediately dropped into a dive, wrapping his wings around Daisy to shield her from the wind and disappearing from sight.

So, should we descend first?
Seth asked.
If it's that cold?

No, just transform at the same time. I will be able to dive faster than you. We need to hurry. We haven't got long before sunset.

Alright. Arthur, after three? One, two, three!

Aharon followed the two boys as they dropped, and after catching them followed John in a dive.

Our turn,
Crystal told Jenna.
Are you ready?

I don't know about this,
Jenna replied.
Is it really safe?

Don't be scared,
the Golden Dragon told her.
I've done this many times and I promise I'll catch you. You're quite high up, so I'll have plenty of time. I'm Miriam. What are your names?

I'm Crystal and this is Jenna.

Well, Crystal and Jenna, it's nice to meet you. Are you ready to try this? Or shall we see how well you fly in the dark?

Come on, Jenna, after three. Alright?

I'm not going to like this. You count.

One, two, THREE!
The two Red Dragons began their slow transformation. Jenna was fastest, and Miriam caught her quickly, but as ever, Crystal's transformation was slow and she fell a long way before Miriam was able to catch her. Jenna was still screaming when Crystal joined her, hidden inside Miriam's wings as she dived towards the ground.

"Shut up!" Crystal shouted. Jenna abruptly stopped screaming. "You're giving me a headache."

"Sorry, but that was terrifying! And I'm freezing! It's better now inside her wings. Why do you have to take so long to transform?"

Crystal's teeth were chattering uncontrollably, so she couldn't reply. Suddenly, Miriam opened her wings, breaking out of the dive, and both girls screamed as they saw the ground approaching rapidly. Miriam landed carefully and lowered them both to their feet. In order to talk to them, she also transformed, changing into a girl in her mid-twenties, with very long blonde hair. She smiled at them pleasantly.

"I didn't expect you two to be so young," she said, helping them to their feet. "Or for you to be one of us. Why don't you fly as a Golden Dragon?"

"I was adopted by Red Dragons," Crystal replied, feeling a little uncomfortable talking to this stranger while she stood naked, struggling to find her clothes in her bag. "I had no idea I wasn't one of them till a week ago. I don't know how to transform into anything else."

"Wow! Well, we will be able to change that in no time at all. But first you must get dressed, and quickly. You must be freezing."

"We are," Jenna said, still shivering as she pulled on her light flying clothes.

"Hmm, that will keep the wind off a little, but it's not going to keep you warm and your teeth are still chattering. What else do you have in your bags?"

"A light tent, some blankets, some underwear…" Crystal replied.

"Give me the blankets," Miriam told her. "Now put your arms by your sides." She wrapped the blanket around Crystal, tucking it in to prevent unravelling, and then put her bag on her.

"But I can't move," Crystal objected.

Miriam just laughed and turned to Jenna. "You too. Keep your arms still." Jenna frowned as she was wrapped up. "You have gorgeous hair; such a nice colour. There you go. Now, don't move."

Miriam flipped backwards, transforming as she did so, landing on four feet as a Golden Dragon. She carefully gripped the two girls and brought them close to her body before taking off. Even carrying the two girls, she flew very fast, the ground flashing past beneath them.

"How are you, Jenna?" Crystal asked. "Warm enough?"

Jenna nodded, smiling. "She transforms just like John did. I always thought he was just showing off."

"Me too," Crystal replied. "I didn't give him much of a chance at the start. Wow, look how fast we are going! Carrying us doesn't seem to slow her much."

"Good thing too," Jenna replied. "Look at that sun. We haven't got long before it sets."

Miriam let out a loud screech; not like the Blue Dragons' terrifying shriek, but more like that of a large parrot. Two replies told the girls that Daisy and the boys were nearby. Miriam ascended a little, and they could see the other two Golden Dragons to their left. Daisy was also wrapped up in a blanket, looking very snug, but the boys were just wearing their flying clothes, and probably weren't enjoying the trip.

Miriam took the lead, and the girls watched the ground drop away from them as they left the mountains behind them. Crystal tried to look forwards to see where they were going, but as they travelled swiftly through the air, the wind made it too uncomfortable for her eyes. Without any warning, Miriam slowed down, flinging her wings open and flapping frantically to bring them to a careful landing before gently lowering her two passengers to the ground. She helped them to their feet and removed their blankets after transforming. Daisy, John, Arthur, Seth and a blonde-haired man who must have been Aharon were standing with them.

"We've finally made it," John told them. "This is the land of the Golden Dragons. Welcome to my home!"

Chapter 5 - Golden Capital

Crystal and the others found themselves in front of a flight of steps leading up to a grandiose building, standing three stories high and surrounded by a well-maintained tropical garden ringed by a low brick wall. The golden light of the setting sun lit up the building beautifully, giving it a welcoming warmth. They were at a high point and could see the rest of the city behind them, lamps beginning to be lit in many of the buildings that reflected in the many waterways that cut through the city. Although it was getting late, the air was still warm and pleasant.

"This building is Immigration House," Aharon told them. "It's a government-run building and is where all visitors to our city are sent when they first arrive. They'll be expecting you and will have prepared rooms for you to live in during your stay. Hospitality is very important to us, so you will be comfortable here. Follow me."

"John, please come with me," Miriam told him. "We have a few moments of light left, so the doctor will want a quick look at your wounds while he still can." Miriam and John hurried into the building together.

"Where will John stay?" Daisy asked, watching him leave. "Will he stay with us?"

"I've been talking to John while we've been flying," Aharon said. "I wasn't familiar with his situation before, but he's explained everything to Miriam and me. He won't be leaving you—at least not yet. He has almost completed his mission by bringing us Crystal, but he has a lot of paperwork to complete before he can leave."

"Then what?" Daisy asked. "What happens to John then?"

"That will be up to John," Aharon replied. "I can't answer for him."

Daisy looked a little worried by his reply, but didn't say anything, just trailed behind the group as they followed Aharon up the steps. The entrance hall to Immigration House was large and well lit, with the failing sunlight flooding in through large glass windows complimented by a number of lamps that a young man was lighting. Aharon led them to a large desk, behind which sat a lady who was in her early thirties who smiled and stood to greet them as they approached.

"Thank you, Aharon. I can take them from here. I was told they were coming."

Crystal wondered how she could have known they were coming. The lady rang a bell and a young lady entered the hall from a side room. She looked barely older than they were. She smiled at the children, sizing each one up before nodding to the first lady and retreating back into her room.

"Hello, and welcome to Immigration House, to our capital and to our country. I'm Naomi, and I'll be looking after you while you're here. If there's anything you need while you stay with us, you'll just need to find me and I'll be able to help you. Now, I understand you've been travelling a long way, so I expect you'll want to wash and eat first? Good. Follow me. Don't worry about your bags; they'll be brought up to you shortly."

Naomi led them up the stairs to the top floor, then along a corridor to where their rooms were. She produced a key, unlocked a door and led them into a large well-furnished lounge with several side rooms. Jenna looked in one of the side rooms.

"A bath!" she squealed gleefully. "Please guys, can I use this first?"

Naomi laughed. "This room is for just one of you. I was going to put Crystal in here but it really doesn't matter. Here's the key to the room. There are towels in the bathroom already. Enjoy your bath!"

Naomi took them to their rooms and told them that they could eat whenever they liked; just to come and find her when they were ready and she would take them to dinner.

The accommodation was luxurious, a sharp contrast with how they had lived for the past few days, and on a par even with the standards that the twins had enjoyed back at their palace in the west. Crystal was delighted to find that a hot bath had been prepared for her and wasted no time in taking advantage of it, letting the warm water ease away the aches and pains that had accumulated over a week of uncomfortable resting places and continuous strenuous effort. She hadn't felt this relaxed for a long time. She had barely finished her bath when she heard a rap at the door. She answered it wearing just a towel to find no one there, just a pile of nearly folded clothes lying outside the door. She carried them into her room after drying herself, tried them on and found that they fitted her surprisingly well. Now that she was warm, clean and wearing fresh clothes, she decided to see what the others were doing, so she went to knock on the door of her cousin's room.

"Who is it?" Jenna called cautiously.

"Me!" Crystal called back impatiently. "Are you ready yet?"

"It's open," Jenna replied.

Crystal walked into the room, but Jenna was nowhere to be seen. She opened the bathroom door to see her cousin still relaxing under a mountain of bubbles. "How long have you been in here? Do you ever plan to leave this bath?"

Jenna shook her head. "I felt disgusting.  I don't think I've ever gone without washing for so long. I needed a long soak."

"You've had one. Now get out and get dressed. I'm starving, but I'm not going down there on my own."

"But what will I wear?" Jenna asked, not moving from the bath. "All of my clothes are filthy. Can't you just bring me some food?"

"No! They brought you clothes while you lazed here. Where's the plug…."

"Oh, that was mean. Even I wouldn't have done that," Jenna objected as the water rapidly drained away. She stood up and wrapped a towel around her, glaring at Crystal defiantly. "Can I have just five minutes? Or is that too much to ask?"

"Five only," Crystal replied sternly.

She closed the bathroom door and took a seat in one of the comfortable chairs in the lounge. She had barely sat down when there was a knock on the door. To her surprise, it was Daisy.

"Hi, Crystal, I was trying to find where everyone was. The boys aren't answering their doors."

"Come in and sit down, Daisy. Jenna is being slow and making me wait. We can go to dinner together if you like."

Daisy smiled gratefully. "Yes please. I can't find John and I think Arthur must be with Seth. I don't know why he didn't wait for me."

Crystal paused. "What's wrong, Daisy? You seem anxious. Even more anxious than normal."

Daisy laughed nervously. "Do I? I'm not sure why." She paused for a moment, but when Crystal didn't respond she continued talking. "It's about John. I was thinking, this whole time he's just been doing his duty. Towards you. Now that's all over. Suppose now that he's back, he wants to start afresh with his own people. Maybe he won't want to continue with me any more. I mean, thinking about it, I pursued him, not the other way around. It could have just been a convenient arrangement for him. Now, maybe it won't be."

Crystal shook her head and laughed. "Oh, Daisy, I don't mean to laugh at you, but I don't understand how you can so completely misread someone who is as easy to read as John."

"Do you think I'm worrying over nothing?"

"Of course. Come on, let's go to dinner." Crystal raised her voice. "Jenna can go down on her own unless she's out here in ten seconds flat! Ten, nine, eight, seven, six—"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Jenna said, hurrying into the room. "Honestly, I don't know what the rush is. We've arrived. Can't we relax now?"

"We haven't eaten all day and I'm starving," Crystal replied. "We can relax when we've eaten. Let's find that lady Naomi."

They went downstairs and found Naomi at the reception desk and she was just as welcoming as before. She led them through to an informal dining hall where Seth and Arthur were finishing their dinner. They were the only people in the large hall and had chosen to sit next to the buffet table, having helped themselves to plenty of food. They were also wearing clean clothes and their hair was still wet from bathing.