Chapter 4 – The Transporter Device
Everyone was sound asleep at Moonracer's hotel during the night, but Draco was tossing and turning on his bed. Unable to sleep, he finally awoke. He looked around the room, and then to his right, where he saw Cynder who was still asleep.
"My mouth feels very dry," Draco whispered to himself. "I better go fetch myself some water."
So Draco hopped off the bed and left the room. It didn't take long for Cynder to suddenly wake up as well. She was having trouble trying to sleep too, and as she wearily tried to gather her thoughts, she realised that she was alone in the room.
"Draco?" she called, but there was no response. Without waiting any longer, Cynder climbed out of bed to look for her Charizard.
She then noticed the familiar glowing of light coming from out a window. She knew that it was him. As she carefully made her way down the hall and opened the sliding glass door at the end, Cynder turned around and found Draco at the veranda, looking out at the beach. The waves were crashing and the moonlight shone brightly. Stars sparkled all over the dark sky.
Cynder joined Draco, and it took a while for him to notice the Twilight Storm standing by his side.
"Draco, it is 3 in the morning, what's up?" she asked.
"Oh, nothing," said Draco softly. "I just couldn't sleep, that's all."
"Neither could I," said Cynder gently as she looked at her Shadow Brooch. "All this having to hunt for the Elemental Brooches sounds like a very daunting task."
Draco could only nod in agreement as he resumed watching the sight of the ocean. Cynder joined in too. There was a long silence as the two dragons looked on at the view.
"Norway is such a beautiful place, isn't it?" asked Cynder, finally breaking the silence.
"Yes, it's certainly amazing," replied Draco. "It was nice of Moonracer to bring us to Bergen for us to sleep in for the night."
"I only hope my little sister will be careful on her own," said Cynder in a concerned tone, remembering the times she had with Starfire. "She has a habit of getting herself into trouble."
"She sure has such a high spirit," commented Draco.
Cynder nodded. "I can't believe we're going back to Australia later in the day!" she exclaimed.
"I know," said Draco. "And I can only wonder what is it Tails has for us."
"Whatever it is, I hope it will really help us on our journey," said Cynder.
Presently, Darky arrived at the veranda.
"Big sis and bro!" he called.
"Darky, what are you doing up at this hour?" Cynder asked indignantly.
"I, uh, woke up and noticed you guys weren't in the room, so I came looking for you," explained Darky.
"You shouldn't do that, little brother," Cynder frowned. "Now go back to the room and sleep."
"I hate sleeping alone," whined Darky.
"Looks like I better take him back inside," said Draco with a yawn. "I'm feeling sleepy already."
"Alright then," said Cynder. "Sleep well, you two."
"Aren't you going to join us too?" asked Draco.
"I'll be with you guys in a minute," replied Cynder. "I need some time to think for myself."
"Very well," said Draco. "See you in bed soon."
As Draco and Darky went back into the hotel, Cynder looked on at the seaside. Then she looked at her brooch again and wondered what sort of powers will be unleashed when she gets the opportunity to use it. She thought deeply about the awakened potential that will emerge, though she had done a similar thing years ago with the Dusk Gems she once guarded and protected.
It was morning and the seven dragons were about to make their flight to Australia. They had their breakfast back at Moonracer's hotel earlier on, and after giving the Night Fury their thanks and farewells, they were ready to take off. All the dragons flew in a grouped formation. Cynder was in the lead with Draco and Lily behind her. Darky rode happily on the Draco's back throughout their flight. Further behind were Jakkin, Torden, and Percival, neatly lined up side by side. Several hours later, they have finally arrived at Australia.
"Home, sweet home," murmured Draco as he saw the familiar landscape of Sydney Harbour.
"So this is where you're from, Cynder, Draco, and Darky?" asked Lily. "It looks wonderful!"
"Now we must head to Tails's place," said Cynder. "Follow me, everyone!"
Together, the dragons picked up speed as they followed Cynder's direction, unaware that they have been followed by three suspicious figures.
Soon, the dragons arrived at a large facility near a small town. Cynder knocked at the door, and the door opened to reveal Tails.
"Draco! Cynder!" the two-tailed fox called happily. "It's so good of you to come back!"
"Hello, Tails," smiled Draco. "We sure had quite a journey, I can assure that."
"So they have come back, Tails?" called a voice from within. In an instant, Blaze the Cat came out of the door.
"Indeed, we're back," said Cynder. "And as you can see, Draco and I have assembled a good team."
Blaze took a look at Torden, Lily, Percival, and Jakkin. While she felt that they are not in their prime just yet, she considered them to be efficient enough. Then she turned to Cynder with an impressed look on her face.
"Excellent, Cynder," she said. "You have got quite a unique, yet satisfactory team."
Cynder faintly smiled back. "I'm so glad to hear that," she said.
"Rightfully so, you are worthy for this special device Tails has for you," said Blaze. "Come inside and see for yourself."
The laboratory had two main floors. The entrance floor consisted of a hallway leading to several rooms, one of which is a large living room complete with a library, a television set, a large sofa and a coffee table. Upstairs is the research lab, which holds all kinds of technological machinery which Tails uses for his experiments and inventions. As the gang took their seats in the living room, Blaze beckoned her husband to fetch the special device. Tails nods as he hurried to the hallway.
"Now then," smiled Blaze as she looked at the other four dragons. "Please tell me your names and where you're from."
"I'll go first!" exclaimed Lily as she jumped up with excitement. "My name is Lily, and I'm from Norway," She beamed broadly before taking her seat. "I love to make people smile and laugh, so whenever you're feeling down and out, you can always come to me!"
Torden decided to speak up next. "Mine's Torden," he said. "I'm also from Norway, and I'm a hardcore metalhead and athlete, my strength is in martial arts, especially taekwondo."
"Nice to meet you, Lily and Torden," said Blaze, and she turned to Percival. "What might your name be, gold dragon?"
"Oh, it's Percival, and I'm from the United States where I'm an acolyte of my monastery."
Jakkin stood up with utmost confidence. "If you wanna know my name, it is Jakkin," he said. "And just like the Norwegian dragon boy here, I'm a martial artist, so no one should get on my bad side if they don't want to get a taste of my kung fu."
"Two fighters?!" exclaimed Darky. "Wow, I'm impressed!"
Blaze chuckled. "Well, it is a pleasure to meet you all," she said.
"Alright, everyone, here it is!" called Tails as he returned to the room with a small capsule.
The dragons looked on in wonder. They never thought that something so seemingly insignificant would actually be a reward.
"Um, what is it?" asked Draco.
"It's a transporter device, my latest invention," answered Tails. "With this, you can be able to transport to any part of the world in a matter of seconds!"
"Oh, so that's what it is," said Torden. "But how does it work?"
"Well, first of all, the transporter is better used outside," said Tails. "The reason for that is because despite being encased in this tiny capsule, it is actually quite large."
"Perfect!" exclaimed Cynder. "This would definitely save a lot of time from all that flying we've been doing."
"I had a feeling that you might benefit a lot from the transporter device, knowing how long and tiring it must have been for all of you, so…"
Suddenly, the entire laboratory blacked out.
"Who shut out the lights?" asked Lily.
In an instant the door busted open as three sinister figures with glowing red eyes barged in. Everyone was shocked at these arrivals.
"What is going on?" asked Tails.
"Don't worry, just let us introduce ourselves," said the voices as they cackled evilly. As they entered the door, the figures became clearer and appeared as three western dragons.
Author's Note: Uh-oh, it looks like our heroes have to contend with a new batch of villains! Just wait for the next chapter when things really heat up!