Underground Dragon reserve/training facility
codename: "The Petting Zoo" Location Classified
March 2016
Colonel Colin Davies:
I never get board of the view of the Petting Zoo from the window of the main elevator. I could see endless forests and jungle filled with many of the Stoker and Mystery class dragons. Many could be seen hunting, playing, or even caring for their young. I could even see a mother Monstrous Nightmare teaching her young to fly, many of the hatchings flying awkwardly behind her. I could also see boulder class dragons on the cliffs nearby doing the same activities. In the middle of it all I could see multiple science teams escorted by dragon riders, studying the dragons.
Yes. Dragon riders.
I am Colonel Colin Davies. I am 19 years old and I am the commanding officer and lead dragon trainer of the 501 Special operations air division, the only division of the USAF staffed exclusively with dragon riders. I know 19 seems a little young for a colonel. In a run-in with a Monstrous Nightmare when I was 8, I endured a full-on fire blast. I should have died on the spot, but my burns healed in the weeks afterwards. All that remains is a scar in the shape of the strike class symbol on my right palm. Soon afterwards I discovered why I survived the blast. I am what dragons call a dragon whisperer. I have a natural ability to understand dragon speech. Dragons also have a natural ability to understand me, even the ones who don't understand English. Since a dragon whisperer can only be uncovered in the way I described, the government isn't keen on trying to find more. So as a result, I was the one they hired.
The elevator halts and the door opens. I calmly walk out and head to my office. I walk down the hall to the door marked "CARE TAKER" and walk in. I don't like this room, but it's mine all the same. The boring white walls and minimal decoration prove that. The only thing I like about this room is the view of the Petting Zoo from the window. I sit at my glass desk and look on my computer. I sign in and start scrolling through alerts. I see multiple mission alerts that need to be done. I see an alert for a rogue dragon in the Baltic. Normally, I would hand this off to a subordinate officer and send out a squadron, but I feel like I should handle this myself. I haven't had anything to do since the purity wars and I'm starting to go a little stir-crazy.
I grab my gear and suit up. Since dragon riders are exposed, we can't wear regular flight suits. Instead, we wear black, armored flight suits with a standard-issue riding helmet. The helmets cover the entire face with a glass panel with built-in HUD. the flight suits sre bulletproof and hold several gadgets, including a wingsuit that deploys from the back. I also equip my Beretta m9 pistol and pack two cases of ammunition. One filled with standard bullets and the other filled with ICER immobilization rounds. I load my pistol with an ICER mag and head to ground level.
I opened the garage doors and stepped out into the Petting Zoo. I put my hands to my mouth and let out a huge whistle. I wait about 10 seconds and he lands right in front of me.
"10 seconds, you're getting slow." I told him.
"I was in the middle of a very nice nap, thank you very much." He said defensively.
Yes this is my Night Fury: Hot Shot. I met him on my second trip to the Petting Zoo and we've had a bond ever since.
"Lets go, we have a mission." I informed him. He nodded to me, and went to his locker to grab his saddle. I fitted the saddle onto him and we took off for the Baltic.
Baltic Sea; 2 hours later.
We made good time over the Atlantic thanks to Hot Shot's ability to fly supersonic. Now we've slowed down to look for this dragon people are complaining about. We search wordlessly for about an hour and a half, but there is nothing there.
"Ok. There's nothing here, lets head back." I sigh. It's not uncommon to get false alarms about this kind of stuff.
"I agree, but it was nice to get out of the house for a while." Hot Shot responds.
We turn around and what we see stuns us. There is a huge golden dragon right in front of us. The dragon looks a bit like a Nightmare, but its head is similar to a Night Fury's. The dragon says nothing, but breaths out golden dust all around us. Suddenly, a tear in the sky opens.
"Lets get out of here!" I yell, but it is too late. We fall right into the tear.
We fall through the tear and see that we appear to be in the same place we were before. There was only one thing different,
"STORM!" I shout. Hot Shot maneuvers to fly upwards, above the clouds. However, the torrents pull us away, making it impossible to fly upwards.
"RADAR shows a land mass nearby!" I scream as I steer Hot Shot in the direction of the island.
"I can't hold it!" Hot Shot yells. We spin out of control but I manage to crash us on the beach. I scream as I jump off Hot Shot and hit the sand, hard. I regain my bearings just enough to turn and see Hot Shot sprawled out on the stormy beach.
"Hot Shot." I manage to groan, just before losing consciousness.