All Hellhounds Break Loose
If you're a person who thinks this is fiction, I'm glad you have that kind of luxury. If you're a person, one that is scared, lost, and confused, I guess you've come to the right place. But if you're one of those people who are still alive, even after both wars, I apologize profusely, as I had no intent on fighting either wars, it wasn't my idea either. Let's get started with this though, I don't want to take up any more of your time than I have to.
My name is Blaze. That's my full name. I was never given a last name, and I've never needed one. I'm something you wouldn't believe in, if you were mortal. If I were mortal, I guess I wouldn't believe me either. But I'm not normal, and if you're not either, I'm guessing you already know about the dangers of being in this world. I'm not one of the dangers, though I can be dangerous. I'm a creature called a demidragon. No, you cannot type that into Google and expect to find out the correct definition of the word, nor can you find out what I look like. We like to keep ourselves hidden, as the result of knowing of our existence would be very deadly, very dangerous.
Let me explain why. To get a demidragon, you need to have a Dragonair god and another type of god that is not Dragonese. For example, a Dragonair god and a Greek god. That would work. The result is a demidragon, a creature so powerful and deadly, it makes everything else look as harmless as a butterfly.
We like to consider ourselves the protectors of everything needing protecting. We can adapt quickly to suit the needs of our partner, the person we're currently protecting. Some times, this special bond will be formed, as soon as you're born to your partner, I have this bond. I was born with an indentation on my chest, a trident telling me who I was connected to. Most of the time, we just find someone to protect if they have a great destiny and require us to protect us to complete that destiny. Its complicated stuff, so we are usual ADHD, which also helps us fight. Yeah, we're like totally OP demigods sometimes.
Most of us live in these large groups called "clans". Depending on where you live, it tells you what clan will most likely accept you. My clan is FireClan, and I say this with great pride because its my clan. I'm their leader. No one has any power to order me to do anything, I give the orders. I'm free to make my own choices. Sure, it may sound glamorous, but its not. I hold the weight of the clan on my shoulders. At times it is a light burden. But most of the time, its like holding up the world. I have no way of knowing what would happen if something happened to me. The previous leader; Nightshade, she entrusted me with the job. She'd been a leader for several decades, but it was I who had the more creative side. I was her deputy, so I often watched her lead. I'd been her apprentice, so becoming deputy was like that all over again. But let's get to why demidragons are so powerful, eh? My own personal description might clue you in on to this knowledge. I'm the size of a male Siberian tiger. But instead of fur or stripes, I have these scales that are practically indestructible. Only another demidragon or a monster could ever scratch me. These scales are a fiery red that many say resemble flames. My eyes are a fiery green. I have wings that allow me to fly anywhere I need to go. Instead of paws, I have bird-like talons. They help me grasp things or kill things. My tail is something you don't want me using. It has these spikes that lay flat when I am calm, peaceful, neutral even. But when I am angry, they bristle, like my scales can. I can fire them on will, and this tail spikes, as they're called, are tipped a sky blue color. This color tells you that these are the tail spikes I was born with. At will, we can change what type of tail spikes we have. Sometimes we need one to put someone to sleep. But the ones we were born with, those are most potent. They kill as soon as they hit. Even if one of mine grazed you, you'd be dead. At the end of our tails, we have these curved bone-like blades that are called "tail blades". These things are fast and deadly. A well trained warrior would be capable of killing you in a hundred different ways with this tail blade.
We have these small spikes, just at the base of our necks, that a rider can grasp on to. When you have a partner, they are usually your rider. Its considered very rare to find the person who you were designed for. Its something that I already know the feeling of. On top of these normal defenses, we usually have powers, passed on from our parents. I'm the daughter of Fire and Hades, a very rare combo, and a very deadly one. I can control and summon fire, not to mention control and summon the dead and riches from the earth. A little bit of over-kill, yes. My partner is even more shocking. He's Percy Jackson, and when the two of us combined our forces, there ain't no way you're gonna be able to get up in the morning, and not feel it.
Now obviously, we can't just go walking around in our true forms in broad daylight. Its suicidal, and just plain stupid. Instead, we prefer to disguise ourselves as humans. My own form is very useful. I am tall, skinny and normally wear glasses. My hair is usually up in a pony tail, and is a brownish-blonde hue, with natural highlights. I love it when summer rolls around, because then my hair isn't as dark as it usually is during the school year. I have a bunch of scars, most of them from having fights with any part of a tree, or the time I slipped on some rocks and hit my head, but ended up getting a scar on my hand. There are also a few from mosquito bites.
Let's get to present day events, okay? I was in school. I may have forgot to mention that I'm 16. I was sitting in Latin, which was my last and final class for the day. I always endure math before I go to Latin, so I was a little angry because of math. I'm horrible at math. It was a Friday afternoon, close to summer, so it was really warm in the room. I was on my laptop, in the chat for FireClan, editing things. That's when my boyfriends username popped up.
*WaterclawPoseidon*
I smiled to myself and typed. My own username was up. This is kinda how the conversation went.
}BlazeHades{ Hi
*WaterclawPoseidon* Hi you
}BlazeHades{ Doing anything this afternoon? Or did Old Man Gamerucus give you a load of homework?
*WaterclawPoseidon* Surprisingly not. I figured we could work on the camp.
}BlazeHades{ Well that's not what I had in mind, but I suppose it'll do.
*WaterclawPoseidon* What'd you have planned?
}BlazeHades{ Nothing, we can do it another night. C U after school.
*WaterclawPoseidon* Love you
}BlazeHades{ Love You Too :)
His name disappeared and I logged out to start listening to what my teacher; , was saying. For a mortal, she was pretty intelligent when it came to Greek 'myths'. When it came to my world, myths were reality. She was explaining how we'd be joining another school in about a month, to go to this field trip to a museum in New York. She started handing out the permission slips, when I got a poke on the shoulder. I turned around, knowing who it was going to be.
"What?" I asked.
"Do you think we're all going to be there when this field trip rolls around?" asked Brett, who happened to sit behind me in this class.
"I dunno. Why do you always ask me stuff like this? I'm not an oracle."
"Because you're the one who usually is behind all of the mayhem and you prevent us from going on normal stuff like field trips."
"I don't think I can necessarily control the future. I wish I could, but I can't."
"You sure about that?"
"Definitely. And Matt said we were all going to work on the camp."
"Again?"
"You and I both know that we just started on it last year, because Brunner said we were getting a lot more people, and we'd either need to make a new camp or expand. We've been expanding a lot lately, but we need more space. That's why Setha came up with the idea of a camp, which I agreed with, not because she's my best friend, but because there are other uses to the camp once its finished."
"Yeah, but a little more careful planning would've helped a bit. What are we suppose to be doing today?"
"Can I give you two a permission slip, or are you going to continue to argue about that video game?" 's voice stopped me from replying.
"Sorry, . We'll try to keep our arguing down." Brett replied.
She handed both of us slips and walked over to the next few desk. Brett waited for her to go back over to her desk, before saying "You're as scatterbrained and as stubborn as when I left Ker-Anna. Not to mention, persistent. Alright Blaze. I'll help with the building. But I will complain, if there are no snacks."
"I'm hungry too, so I'll be sure to get some snacks while we're there.
When I got home, I slung my backpack on the chair, pulled out my phone, and texted my "mom" telling her I'd be out for a bit. Then I got myself a few pretzel sticks from the container, some PB, a can of whip cream, a Hershey's bar, and a few marshmallows. Then I put it all in a bowl and sat down on the couch in my living room. Tyson; one of my dogs, got up and greeted me. Literally.
/Hi\ said Tyson. Not out loud, but he spoke in my head. I have this gift that enables me to understand animals. It also works when I'm trying to have a conversation with mortals. Most mortals don't have their minds in check, and they allow their minds to become as open as a meadow. Thus, giving me the capability to read their minds as well. I have to use Dragonese magic though, something I'm not skilled with.
"What's up, Tyson?" I asked.
/Nothing much. Just longing around the house and trying to stay out of Dream's fur. Can I have a pretzel?\
Tyson is a black greyhound. He has these little splashes of white though, like on his paws and the tip of his tail. He's missing an eye, but don't let that fool you. He uses other senses to "see" stuff. Kinda like me.
"Sure, take one. But don't get any of your slobber on the rest of my food."
Tyson carefully used his long muzzle to delicately take one of the pretzel sticks from the bowl. He then laid in front of me, and began to chew very loudly on it.
/Are you going anywhere?\ He asked me when he'd finished.
"Yeah, I'm going over to the camp. We're almost finished, you know."
/Wish I could go.\ He said wistfully.
"Yeah, I know bud. But Mom doesn't like it when I take you on 'walks' without her."
/I know. But a dog can dream.\
After I'd finished my snack, I went out to the back to retrieve my bike. I fastened on my helmet, and made my way to Brett's. His house wasn't really close to where our camp was, but I figured I'd might as well go with him, before he got lost again. When I got there, he was yelling at his own dog. Finally, he came out from the garage and peddled over to me.
"All set to go?" He asked.
"Yep. Lets go!"
I loved to ride my bike sometimes. I could go fast these days, it was almost like flying. We made it to our destination: Rosewood Park. A nice place to go, for the outdoorsy type of person. We had to carry our bikes once we came to the hill. You had to be really careful going down it, it was steep and there were lots of trees. But soon the sound of running water was even stronger than it had been. It was a small river. We hid our bikes with the others and took the small canoe that was left. I pushed it in, and we paddled out towards the lake. We finally reached our destination, a large island full of trees, undergrowth and life. To a passing mortal, it looked normal. But take a little closer look and you'd notice these thorny vines covering the entire barrier of the island. We paddled over to the small beach area and concealed the boat in the bushes. Then we transformed into our demidragon selves. I forgot to tell you what Brett looks like. Sorry.
Brett has black hair that's quite short. He wears glasses, kinda like me, but his glasses have no rims on the bottom. And they're black. Today, he wore a tie-dye t-shirt that he'd made a few years back at camp. His old black sneakers were once more, being used. As his skin began to turn into a deep blue, my own scales became real. His brown eyes stayed brown, unlike my own. Both of us fell forward on to the thick soles of our now taloned hands and feet.
Before you ask, when ever we transform, our clothes mold into our new shapes. I've never managed to understand in properly, but we're still wearing our clothes when we go back to human form. That probably makes no sense, but somehow it works.
When I looked back to Brett, his violet colored tail spikes had completed his transformation. We both walked through the small tunnel, wincing as thorns scraped at the gaps between scales. Once we were trough, the sight of the camp was a sight to behold. There were larger bushes that had holes in them. Those holes lead right down to the dens. When you're in a clan, you are an apprentice when you're in training to become a warrior. Helaers also can have apprentices, but our current Healer; Lizzie, has no apprentice.
Lizzie was currently as a very large tree, moving supplies to the new den. There was an elders den close to it, as well as the nursery. My own den was in a tree. It was a beautiful sight for any clan leader. All of the warriors were working hard to make this a secure and safe place. In the corner of the camp, there was a very large tunnel. Dirt was flying from its entrance. Clearly they were still working on the tunnels. I watched as a pair of apprentices chased one another. Matt strode towards me. He limped on his right side because of a birth deformity. I stepped forward and nuzzled him.
"It looks perfect." I told him.
"I figured we'd all better get started, even if you weren't here." Hunters raspy voice said behind me. His talons were covered in dirt, as was his pelt.
"Well you certainly did a good job. We ready to move in yet, or do we need more time? I can see that the tunnels aren't finished yet."
"The tunnels aren't even close to being finished. We put all of our energy into building the camp for the last few months. I just started working on it again. Looks like Setha put on some music."
And indeed I heard the sweet sound of "Welcome To This Day" begin to play. As the chorus began to play, I couldn't help but sing along.
"Welcome magic. Welcome sweet sunray. Love is no secret. Look all around you. Welcome to this day!" I sang.
"You're in a good mood." Matt said, smiling.
"This song always reminds me of the clan. It puts me in a good mood." I answered.
"Why don't we just think about something else for once? I know that the clan is your life, but can you just act like a regular teenager?" he teased.
"Wish I could, but-"
"Come on, lets go for a flight and forget about our worries for awhile." Matt interrupted. He lunched himself into flight, causing a strong gust of wind to rattle the leaves on the bushes and eventually the trees as he gained altitude.
I was about to join him, when there was a snarling noise and a black shape leaped out of the bushes and hurled itself on one of the apprentices who'd been chasing another one earlier. It tore into the apprentice, causing the scream of terror to stop aruptedly. A golden shape hurled itself at the dark creature that I managed to identify now. It was a hellhound, a dog-like creature that was both fierce and deadly to the apprentices. The hellhound disintegrated into golden dust, like monsters do when you kill them. The golden shape turned out to be Hunter, and he was glaring furiously at the place where the hellhound had last stood. There was a howl as more hellhounds charged in.
"Protect the young, old and defenseless!" Hunter yelled.
I spotted Ishmell by the elders den, no doubt protecting his grandmother. I snarled at one who came close to me. It leaped and I flared my wings up, making myself bigger than I was, though I am really big for a female. It snapped at me, just missing my face. I sunk my teeth in its shoulder, and it exploded into dust. By the time the last hellhound was dead, it was dark. And by that time, I had several scratches and a nasty bite on my left flank. Lizzie had a long line, so I occupied myself by talking with Hunter.
"Who was the apprentice?" I asked.
"Riverfoot. She was second generation, and was planning on returning to her parents in Mississippi. But I guess she'll never get to do that." Hunter replied, a little bitter. "Who went to notify her parents?"
"Mousewing. I figured she needed to do something."
"Good, good."
"Hey, why don't you get those wounds looked at? Liz has almost no one in line now."
"Oh thanks, I didn't
"Hey, those wounds look bad. A leader can get infected too, you know."
"Don't remind me."
I got home at about 9:00 PM. My "mom" and "dad" gave me a whole lecture on how I was suppose to be back before dark, and then I got grounded when I pointed out that the sun was still setting. When I finally got to sleep, my dreams were plagued by the screams of the apprentice getting torn into by the hellhound. It made me shiver, and it also made me think more about defenses at the camp. Clearly, it wasn't safe. I would need to ask Setha to help me with a magical border, something that I'd recently become very skilled with. Next week, turned into otter chaos. Mainly because I was supposed to go to New York. And if I haven't mentioned it already, I seem to have the worst fate in all of Dragonair history.