Prologue

A long, long time ago

"Mannette, you're crazy, totally and completely batty." the smith just shook his head and kept working.

" Yes, I know, but that doesn't mean I'm wrong" The young woman leaned back against the warm wall of the smithy "Darien?" the smith looks up "Thank you for taking this commission. No one else would even talk to me about it."

Blushing slightly and rubbing the back of his neck nervously, "Any time, my lady." The well-muscled blond man looked out of place working on the delicate pieces before him. "Why dragon forged jewelry? Dragon forging is for armor and weapons."

The woman was slight of build, almost delicate in nature. Her hair was so black as to look blue. Her eyes startlingly blue with steel in her gaze. "Exactly, when we are done, these will be weapons for the ages." The smith chuckled at her enthusiasm. "You doubt me?"

"No, Ma'am, I just find your fire invigorating. If I could harness it in my forge, I could do magical things." His laugh eased the tension in the small room once again.

Mannette feigned a pout, "You dare mock me."

The smith grinned, "Oh, great princess, I would never." They both got a well-needed laugh from that. Sobering up, the smith returned to the previous subject, "But seriously why dragon forged."

She was silent for a bit before answering. "The scales melted down in a dragon lit fire retain enough of the dragon's essence to bind the creatures and are sturdy enough to last through time."

"Ok, ok, I think I get it. Go home. I am done with the forging. However, it will be several hours before they will be cooled enough to move. I will deliver them first thing in the morning."

Several hours later, Darien was packing the items into the ornate puzzle boxes that he had also forged to Mannette's detailed specs. Fingering a hair comb with a stylized bee on it, he wondered why she had left them unfinished. They were all just a dull grey, no color, and no shine. He shrugged and placed the trinket in its place in the box.

When the sun rose over the bustling city of Atlantis, the smith started across town with the more than a dozen boxes to be delivered to Mannette's studio. In the few months he had been working with the bluenette, he had come to really like the girl, and he looked forward to seeing her again.

Several times while en route to his destination, he had to fight off those that would stop him. With the help of Satrell, his petty drake (Shoulder dragon), he was able to succeed. On arriving, he pounded on the door. It was several minutes before the door opened and showed the still mostly sleeping girl in her dressing gown.

"Please come in (yawn) let me make some coffee," she stumbled back into the house. Darien unloaded the cart, placing the boxes on a corner table. "Would you like a cup?"

"Yes, please." The man was careful not to say anything about the attacks so as not to worry her.

After some small talk and four cups of coffee, the young woman stretched, and blushed, realizing she was entertaining in her nightdress. "Oh, um, give me a few minutes, to, uh, get ready. You can um, stay and watch if you want. Um, I mean, watch the enchantment." She blushed brighter with each stutter.

After dressing and moving all the boxes to the study at the back of the house, Mannette began tracing an intricate pattern on the open floor. The overlapping symbols came to almost look like a flower. Placing one box on each of the cardinal points of the outer circle, the mage started her enchantment. She then set one box on each sub cardinal point in the middle circle. One on each of the cardinal points on the inner circle. All of these boxes were identical rectangles in shape. The last box was different, it was octagonal and lined up in the very center of the design aligned with one side facing the other boxes.

Mannette looked up from her work and glanced out the window. The sun was setting. She was alone in her workshop. The mage was disappointed until she smelled the delicious aroma from the kitchen. Stumbling, she exited to the other room to find the large blond man cooking. He could cook? He was cooking in her kitchen. He was cooking for her, and it smelled delightful.

Turning, he caught sight of her, smiled, and reached out to touch her chin, helping her close her mouth. She exploded into bright red. "Dinner will be ready soon. Go wash up." She turned and stumbled over the chair behind her. The mumble coming from her was very unladylike.

Over the next seven days, the spell's power lattice continued to grow in strength and scope. Darien was not idle. The closer to completion the enchantment came, the more desperate whoever it was that was trying to stop them became. Daily skirmishes became the norm. He would let no harm come to his lady. On the seventh day, there was a rush of power that sent the attackers running. Quickly the smith rushed into the workroom. The pattern on the floor looked like it was on fire. There was a rainbow of colors swirling in the room. With a woosh of power, everything went dark. When normal light returned, there were dozens of small cute creatures floating around the area. The little pink one floated over to him and smiled, "Hi, I'm Tikki." She then hugged him the best her size would allow. All of his wounds were healed.

xXxXx

A long time ago

"Good morning Tikki how was your visit with Plagg" the little kwami floated near Mannette's head

"I think he is finally over his tantrum from being bound to the Miraculous."

"It's only been what? A thousand years," the young woman stretched, still trying to wake up.

Tikki stops and counts silently. "One thousand thirteen years, seven months, and seventeen days. Give or take twelve hours. But who's counting?" Tikki slumps into her little pillow. Mannette's little dragon wraps her tail around the toy-like creature affectionately. Mannette just let her sleep, the report could wait.

Several hours passed before the kwami finally awoke. Mannette fed the little creature. "Ok, Tikki, I need the report."

Tikki finished her snack. Delicately wiped her mouth with the tiny napkin and began. "Fourteen days ago, the city of Pacifica sent an emergency signal sighting an infestation of some sort. The council sent a recon group to assess the problem." She looked up at her holder and shook her head. "No one returned." This much the mage already knew. " The council then ordered a containment wing numbering five hundred dragons, and their riders of those, only thirty-one made it back. Nineteen of the surviving riders were infected with a techno-organic virus. Of those affected, all of them were completely taken over and had to be put down. Derian and Plagg located the city's central computer. It, too, was infected. To prevent the spread, it was determined that the city needed to be destroyed. Plagg did an unassisted cataclysm destroying the city and sending it to the depths in which it floated."

Tears fell freely from the woman as she hugged her kwami. "She will be missed. Pacifica was a long time friend."

Six months later

"The southern and eastern blocks are entirely overrun."

Darien looked at the wound under the solders arm. "It seems like you're infected as well."

The young man paled. "How did this happen."

"Two of the riders from the Pacifica sweep were infected but show no symptoms." The pain in his eyes was fresh. The creatures the infected become had ripped his beautiful Mannette to shreds two days prior. "looking at that rash, I would say you have about two days to make your peace."

A man in an officer's uniform approached. "Darien, you are the last remaining member of the dragon guard. What are your orders."

"Damn it, I'm a blacksmith I was never meant to lead." Dropping to his knees, the man prayed, "May the gods forgive me." He then stood tall. "Seal the city. No one in or out, we have to contain this. Send someone to vent the ballast tanks, we're going to submerge until this is over." He watched as the men scrambled to follow his orders.

Two hours later, you could see the water climbing up the outer shield. "Claws in" the uniform the large man was wearing vanished and out tumbled a little black cattish creature. "Plagg, I have two last orders for you."

"You're not planning on surviving this, are you?" The little creature hugged the big man.

"No, Plagg, I'm not. I've lost my love and my dragon. I am probably infected, and we can not let this into the rest of the world." They looked up as the water closed over the top of the shield. "Your orders are as follows. One, wait for ninety minutes, then cataclysm the shield, mine is not strong enough to take it down." Then removing the cat ring and handing to the kwami, "Two, take this to the miracle box and rest well until you are called again."

xXxXx

Historical note the last dragon was slain in the late third century by Saint George.