Okay everyone, down here it's another election. Just a minor one but that still means I've gotta sit for 14 hours and help other people cast their vote. Not that I dislike it, no, far from it. Participating in an election is the closest a lot of people where I live get to visiting other neighbors.
Well anyway, I'm going to be making this up while we're in lulls so, without further delay, here we go.
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING OR ANYONE IN THE SPYRO UNIVERSE. ONLY MY OCS.
Chapter 13: The Iron Demon, Part I
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She frantically ran through the streets of the slums. Fire blazed behind her and she turned to see if he was still following her. In the distance, gunfire erupted in blistering fashion, punctuated by occasional explosions. She knew what she had to do. Frantically, she glanced around for the ones she knew who would be able to help.
Domino stopped a few yards from the Slum gates to the Common District where Terra and her squad were assigned. As she slowed, Rivet skidded to a stop beside her and glanced to her.
"Sis, what are we going to do? He... he's still back there!" Domino glanced to the gate and steeled her resolve and ran for the gate, shouting at the top of her lungs for help.
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(Several hours earlier...)
Neal had awoken later in the day than he did normally. Then again, after finishing all those commissions for Ibikiir and others, it was no surprise that he was exhausted. However, the large safe that was now in his room filled with gems or various colors and sizes was a reward unto itself. According to Flame, Neal now had enough gems be considered a person 'of good standing' with most buisnesses in the city. A contended sigh came from the opposite side of the room and Neal turned to smile at the two dragonets he'd taken under his charge.
True to her fashion and what was becoming routine, Lyca had already made breakfast for the Guard and both Domino and Rivet had helped themselves and were now sleeping soundly. It had only been three days since first taking responsibility of them and already they were much improved. The first thing Neal had done when coming back was drawing a hot bath for the two young ones so that they could get themselves cleaned up.
Indeed, once they had done so, they made quite an appearance.
Domino's scales were the color of polished ebony, her underbelly, horns, claws, and the spines along her back were an off-white. Her brother on the other hand, had scales of polished silver with blued-steel colored belly scales, horns, claws, and a tailblade. Upon seeing them the next day, Growler, Terra, and Toxis had actually done a double-take in unison. It had actually been rather amusing. Plus, Neal couldn't deny the glow that he felt when he saw the looks on the two young one's faces when they saw the trays of food set before them. He wondered how long it had been since they had had a decent meal.
The second day, Terra had surprised him by bringing him two scrolls. They were applications to enroll both Rivet and Domino into the Academy. After filling them out and finishing off the commissions from Ibikiir, Kaviri and a few of Ibikiir's servants came to collect them, Kaviri saw the applications and graciously offered to submit them to the Guardians. Around the same time that day, a water dragon who worked a clinic in the slums gave the two of them a physical, pronounced everything well, and wished Neal the best of luck in taking care of them.
With the two kids asleep with breakfast inside them, Neal quietly exited the room and walked downstairs to see what was left. The moment Lyca saw him, her eyes lit up and she produced a plate of hot food for Neal. He sat down, thanked her for the plate, and started eating. It wasn't long before the door opened and more people started coming in. One of them, Fenrir, the wolf Neal had met when he first came to the Tavern, sat down next to him as Lyca set a plate before him as well. No sooner had Fenrir started eating then Lyca turned to him.
"Fen, any word on those fruits I ordered from you?" Fenrir gave a glance to her and nodded.
"Aye Lyca, the wagon should likely be arriving today. With any luck, they'll be in your hands by this afternoon." Lyca nodded and turned away to see to another customer who had come in. Fenrir sighed.
"It was a damn close call. With Shadra's minions running the roads, the trade routes are becoming hazzardous. Hey Neal, what did you humans do when you had to move cargo from one point to another and possibly fend off attacks?" Neal thought for a moment and then smiled as he recalled something.
"Well, back in the Old West, wagon drivers carrying gold and other materials and cargo had a guard riding with them. In particular stagecoaches which carried people across to different towns. If the stagecoach was ever set upon by bandits or other outlaws, the guard was armed with a weapon called a Coach Gun to fend them off." Fenrir glanced to him.
"What, pray tell, was this Coach Gun?"
"It was a weapon we humans called a shotgun, only the barrels were cut down and the stock shortened to make it lighter and easier to bring up on target. The threat of a shotgun was enough to stop most criminals but for a few it often took the guard firing one or both barrels into the bandits to make them think twice. It was a terrifying weapon at a glance and a deadly weapon up close." Fenrir nodded.
"When the wagon arrives, I'd be greatly appreciative if you could give the fellow a quick instruction on how to use such a weapon. Fact remains, Shadra is escalating her efforts. I'd rather have my wagons and goods protected against any threat than have them sitting ducks." Neal gave a slight nod.
"Is the supply situation that bad in the city?" Fenrir scoffed.
"In the city? No. Here in the slums? Yes. I only have three wagons to my name and buisness. I lose those three, I'm bankrupt, and some of the other shops here will have to look elsewhere for a supplier and a general merchant. That's why I'm in here as often as I am. Most of my customers come in here around this time and I jot down anything they need."
"Once I have the wagons tasked to capacity, I send them on their way with barter goods and money to exchange for what I've been requested. Speaking of which, being a Forger, is there anything in particular that you need? Something you're in short supply of?" Neal thought for a moment but then shook his head.
"Nothing at the moment but if you know of anyone who has a surplus of metals I'd appreciate it." Fenrir nodded.
"I might know of a few people in the metal buisness. They buy ore and rock from miners and then smelt it down into ingots to sell in bulk. If you need anything, give me the word and I'll get you a transport order." Neal nodded his thanks just as Flame came in, looking excited.
"Neal! Where's Rivet and Domino?" Neal glanced to the stairs.
"Upstairs resting, why? Has something happened?" Flame nodded.
"The Guardians have accepted their applications! I've been instructed by Master Terrador to bring them at once!" Neal smiled and rose to his feet before running up the stairs and to his room. Once there, he saw the siblings still sleeping and gently shook Domino awake.
Domino cracked an eye open to see Neal with a smile on his face a rose with a yawn.
"What's the matter? Is something wrong?" Neal shook his head.
"Not at all. Wake your brother, Flame is here to take you to the Guardians. They have accepted your applications. You're going to school!"
With a squeal that woke her brother, Domino leapt for Neal, knocking him over and nuzzling him as a dragonet would do a parent, eyes brimming with tears. Rivet saw his sister and groaned.
"What's the big idea Domi? Why'd you have to wake me up?" Domino turned to her brother.
"Drag your scaly butt out of bed! Flame's going to take us to the Guardians! We're going to school!" Rivet went wide-eyed at that and looked to Neal to see if she was joking. The expression on Neal's face told him that his sister wasn't joking and he too jumped at Neal as he rose and hos forelegs went onto his shoulders in a hug of sorts. Neal returned the gesture and then lowered Rivet back to all fours.
"Flame is downstairs waiting. Now then, remember to be on your best behavior. You'll be attending classes with dragons your same age but have been going to school for longer than you. If you have a question about something or one of the other students bothers you, tell one of the Guardians or an Instructor." Domino and Rivet nodded and Neal walked with them downstairs to Flame who gave a nod to Neal as if saying 'they'll be okay', and departed.
For the umpteenth time in three days, Neal felt a stir in his chest. He'd heard from buddies of his how hard it was to see their own kids growing up in front of them. Neal had honestly never known the feeling. Growing up, he's had horrible luck with women except for Monica, the female police officer he'd dated for several months. He sighed, remembering that night when he'd learned that, while responding to a domestic disturbance call, she'd been shot and killed by a suspect.
After that he had hung up any ideas about dating a woman, settling down, having children, starting a family. He's started to fear that he was cursed, that people who got close to him died. He mentally thanked Ignitus for pulling him into this world when he did. Though Domino and Rivet didn't call him Father or Dad or anything of that nature, he still felt that, because he accepted custody of them, they were his kids. He felt eyes upon him and glanced to see Lyca standing there with a smile on her face.
"You truly do care for them don't you? Even though they aren't your own species or offspring." Neal nodded.
"Back in my world, I had long abandoned any hope of starting a family, marriage, anything of that nature. I'd thought myself cursed after the accident at sea and after losing so many people I cared about." Lyca nodded to him.
"We all have times where we think everything we do we mess up. But, you've had the courage to pick yourself up time and again no matter how many times you fall. It's traits like those..."
She was interuppted however, when a bell started ringing throughout the slums. Several patrons rose from their seats and ran for the door. Neal glanced to them.
"What is that?" A cheetah turned to him.
"That's the fire bell! There's a fire in the slums! Anyone who can lend a hand, come on!" Neal glanced back to Lyca, gave her a nod, and then left the building with the others.
The fire was in a small abandoned building that, according to the sign, was once a distillery. The fire was on the second floor and spread the width of the building. The moles, wolves, and cheetahs were struggling with a bucket brigade to try and get water from a pump to the fire. Glancing around, Neal realized their hurry, the buildings on either side of were full of people.
(They'll never put it out before it spreads...) Neal realized. He immediately began thinking. Immediately, the Book appeared beside him, opened, and started drawing a diagram of what he was thinking of: an old, hand-cranked pump with several fabric, rubber-lined hoses attached. He glanced at the Book.
"Please tell me I have sufficient skill to create this..." The quill tapped.
'Indeed. You are now of sufficient skill that you can summon multiple large objects. This ability is called Multi-Forge.' Neal nodded and then readied his mana.
A cheetah stopped to see what Neal was doing and was amazed when several large red wagons appeared out of thin air. Neal immediately grabbed the cross bar where horses would have been tied and started pulling, getting the wagon into position. He heard a small gong and glanced to his watch and saw the mana hand drop from 12 to 6. He sighed.
(Note to self: Multi-Forging only use if neccessary.)
As the first wagon was in position, Neal grabbed the back hose and ran for where the moles and others were getting water and dropped the end into the large fountain. The water smelled bad but he didn't let it bother him. With the hose in water, Neal ran back for the wagon, and noticed the cheetah who had stopped.
"What's your name?" The cheetah gazed to him.
"Name's Harpe. What is this thing? What does it do?" Neal didn't have time to explain but guided Harpe's hand to the crank.
"This is a water pump. What you do is simple, crank this wheel as fast as you can to push water through the hose. I'll grab the hose and start spraying water on the fire." The cheetah started turning the wheel clockwise. Gears started turning and a two cylinder pump attached to a 'walking' beam started reciprocating. The hose coming from the fountain expanded from flat to round as water flowed through it. Neal felt the same in the hose he held and released the valve holding the water back.
A powerful surge of water came through and splashed against the second floor of the building. Neal guided the stream of water into one of the windows and held on. He spared a glance to see others had stopped what they were doing and emulate what he had done with the pump. Neal motioned a wolf over and handed him the hose he currently held and then went to help them set up the others. The first he saw someone trying to put the smaller hose in the fountain.
"No, that's the hose you point towards the fire. The large hope is the one you use to draw in water." He then heard a clicking noise and saw another turning the crank in the wrong direction.
"You're turning the crank in the wrong direction. It needs to turn to the right to function properly." He then turned to see on the last wagon, a single mole holding the hose while a very broad muscled wolf started turning the crank.
"Hey! Can we get some more hands on that hose there? The pressure rushing through it is such that if you lose your grip or have too little weight to keep it grounded, that hose will go flying!"
As the firefighters organized, with Neal showing them how to work the machines, the fire began to dwindle in size until it was out completely after fighting it for a few hours. As the fighters cheered each other, above on a rooftop nearby, Ripper gazed at the human who smiled and cheered on those who had used his machines to fight the fire Ripper had started. It had been his intent that once the human joined the bucket line to run into the building and fight the fire, he would pour more mana into the fire and incinerate the human in a flashover.
However, with the machines working and no one having to go inside to fight the fire, Ripper realized the plan was a bust and cut the flow of mana that was feeding the flames. He muttered to himself as the firefighters dispersed, taking the carts away as well.
"Touché human... Well, so much for going out in a blaze of glory... I suppose I'll have to get my claws dirty after all... I guess I'll send in Parik." Ripper rose, shook his chainmail out, and lifted off into the smoke-choked clouds.
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As Neal and several of the firefighters returned to the Tavern, a group of wolves and cheetahs emerged from the shadows, weapons drawn. As Neal slowed and stopped, sensing danger, one of the cheetahs stepped forward.
"There's the human! You lot, stand aside! The Boss has dealings with this one." At that moment a growl was heard and the fighters and Neal watched as a large armor-clad dragon appeared from behind a building.
"Parik, if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times! Do not refer to me! You are my subordinate, not the other way around!" Parik gave a shrug and drew a sword.
"Now then, human, you and me, one on one, no interferring!" Neal looked to Parik and then to the dragon.
"Is there something wrong? First off I make it a point not to offend anyone, second, I won't fight someone without a just cause." Parik growled.
"You had a hand in Lockjaw's death! You have a choice human, either face me, or face the Boss!" One of the cheetahs with Neal gulped and made his way to Neal's side.
"Neal, that dragon is Ripper. He's a veteran of the war. Made his name by fighting in Venom Dragon territory. They call him the Iron Demon." Neal frowned.
"First of all, it was the dragon Erz who killed Lockjaw. Secondly, I don't care, as I said, I won't fight without a just cause." Ripper snarled, a sound that made the cheetahs and wolves, even those on his side, shrink back in fear.
"Won't fight without a just cause, huh? Alright then, how about this?!" Ripper opened his maw and unleashed a torrent of blue-white flames that leapt towards several buildings, setting them alight. Ripper then turned back to Neal.
"I had intended to kill you swiftly and painlessly in the fire but you Forged your way out of it. Now you've gone and made me angry. How about this, if you don't fight me, I'll set fire to this whole part of the city! It's your choice, fight, or die. Either way, I have my fun." He sneered at the last statement and watched Neal's reaction shift from calm to shock and then to anger. Neal turned to the firefighters with him.
"Go get the wagons and put these fires out!" Ripper frowned.
"Parik! Stop them!" Parik and his thugs advanced on the firefighters when suddenly a red blur flew in from the side, tackling Parik and sending him flying into a burning barrel. The fire caught Parik's fur and clothes and the cheetah sprang up howling and ran down an alley trying to smother the flames. Ripper's expression became even more fierce as he saw the dragon who had interfered.
Flame.
Neal glanced to the firefighters.
"Flame and I will handle this, get people to safety and warn the Guards!" Flame turned to him.
"No need, I've already got Rivet and Domino running for the gate to warn Terra and the others! Skylar should also be on his way back." Ripper growled angrily and unleashed a wall of fire that struck another delapidated building.
"If you think some whelp and a human can best ME you are sorely mistaken." Neal channeled his mana and created an Lewis Machinegun and glanced to Flame.
"Let's take him."