Ride or Die
Jun sat reading on her bed one afternoon. She was planning on meeting her friends at the dragons' sleep cave later. But her mythology book had her full attention. Suddenly she heard her mom calling for her.
"In my room Mom!" She called back. Dr. Wong opened her door and walked in. She looked at the books scattered around Jun's bed, her eyes narrowed in disapproval. Jun looked up at her. "Did you know that Medusa had snakes for hair and if you looked her in the eye you'd turn to stone."
"More story books?" Dr. Wong said sternly. "Did you finish your homework?"
"Yes," said Jun, annoyed. "And this isn't a story book." She closed it and held it fondly. "It's a book of myths. Dad gave it to me."
"Did you open the book I gave you?" Dr. Wong asked. "Ten Pillars to a Successful Future."
"No," Jun admitted.
"First pillar would probably be to put down the fantasy books and start focusing on reality," said Dr. Wong.
"These myths came from somewhere real Mom," Jun said. She was just itching to tell her mother about the dragons, to prove that fantasy could be reality. But she kept her mouth shut. Dr. Wong sighed and walked through the room.
"You sound like your father," she said. "He was a dreamer too." Jun smiled to herself. "But you'll never amount to anything if you just sit around reading fairy tales. So on that note, I've signed you up for a junior CEO online course. They meet three times a week starting tonight." She head out. Jun got to her feet.
"But I don't want to be you," she said strongly. "That's not who I am." Dr. Wong glared at her.
"How do you expect to survive in the real world if you don't start living in it!" She said loudly, before closing the door. Jun stood there deep in thought.
Later Jun slowly headed for the dragons' sleep cave. She hoped being around her friends and her dragon would help her feel better. She soon reached the cave and went inside. The others were already gathered, including the red dragon Apollo. Edelweiss and her other dragon Black Widow were the only ones not present. Jun approached the group, who were all riled up about something. She went over to Wu and Wei, and patted their snouts. The dragon seemed to sense that she wasn't happy. They cooed with concern. Jun then turned to the others. D'Angelo and the dragons were looking excitedly at a large boulder.
"What's going on?" Jun asked.
"Oh good she's here!" D'Angelo exclaimed, dancing excitedly on the spot. Alex stepped out into the light, followed by Heatwave the Monstrous Nightmare.
"After a few days of work, I've finally created the first dragon rider fire suite," Alex announced. Tom jumped out wearing his fire suite. Everyone cheered as Tom posed like a runway model. Apollo kept his distance but the others gathered around Tom. Heatwave came up behind him and breathed fire at the suite, Tom didn't even flinch. Everyone was thrilled.
"Fire Realm here we come!" D'Angelo said excitedly.
"Yes, lets suit up I need some adventure today," said Jun, cheering up.
"Um, I've only had time to make two suites," said Alex shyly. She gestured to another suit laid out on a nearby boulder. Jun turned on her.
"What!?" She said loudly. "How long will it take you to make all four?" Alex started muttering calculations to herself. Jun realized she'd scared her friend and backed up. "I'm sorry Alex. The suits looked amazing." She slumped her shoulders and went back over to her dragon. Her friends caught onto her mood, and went over to her.
"Are you okay?" Tom asked.
"Yeah, I just really needed to get out of here," said Jun sadly. Everyone exchanged a glance.
"Well we do have two suits that work," said Alex. "Why don't you and Tom go to the Fire Realm today." Jun looked surprised. D'Angelo tried to protest but Tom silenced him with a look. Jun considered.
"You down for it Tom?" She asked.
"Me?" Tom said, beaming. "I'm already dressed for the occasion." Then he turned to Apollo. "And maybe Edelweiss can come too." Apollo took a deep breath and rolled his eyes.
"I'm sure she'll go, but she might be in the middle of a match right now," he said.
Down in the Crystal Realm; Edelweiss was in a fighting stance, with a long silver staff in hand. She was staring at her opponent, which was a large Gembreaker. Several dragons were gathered to watch the sparring match, including Black Widow. Suddenly the Gembreaker blasted at Edelweiss, but she dodged them and blocked them with her staff which was fire proof. Then the Gembreaker charged at her like a rhino. Edelweiss went to dodge him, but was hit with his spiky tail. She just managed to deflect it with her staff, but it was knocked out of her hand. Now hands free, the Gembreaker shot more flaming crystals at Edelweiss. But she punched and kicked them, making them shatter. Her fire proof skin kept the fire from burning her. The Gembreaker charged at her again, and she met him head on. Edelweiss managed to dodge his horn, but the dragon clamped one of her legs in his jaws, not enough to break bone but enough to keep her from getting away. Edelweiss retaliated by punching a soft spot on the dragon's neck and the Gembreaker went down, taking her with him. Many dragons roared with cheers and flapped their wings. Edelweiss slowly and carefully freed her leg from the Gembreaker's mouth and got to her feet. She had a few shallow punctures on her leg that were bleeding, but she wasn't phased at all. It was then that she noticed the Riders, their dragons, and Apollo.
"Hi guys," Edelweiss said. "Sorry I didn't see you."
"Why were you fighting?" D'Angelo asked.
"It wasn't fighting," said Edelweiss, picking up her staff. "It was just a wrestling match. My dad used to do it all the time. I've taken on every type of dragon in the Crystal Realm." She then noticed that Tom and Jun had their fire suits on. "I'm guessing you guys are heading for the Fire Realm."
"Yeah, we're heading there now," said Jun, she looked down at Edelweiss's bloody leg. "Do, you want to come."
"Sure," said Edelweiss, slinging her staff across the back of her shoulders. "I'm not bothered about being a bit scuffed up." She then retracted the staff so it was a small silver cylinder. Black Widow flew over to them and Edelweiss mounted her. They, Apollo, Jun, Tom, and their dragons took off and headed for the Fire Realm.
When they got to the Fire Realm they found a hot world full of magma. There were towering stone pillars that were connected via stone bridges. On the stone bridges were brightly colored and glowing plants, and different colored giant slugs. So far though, there weren't any large dragons. The Riders and their dragons flew though the intense heat, but the suits kept them from catching on fire. After a while they slowed down and flew along side each other.
"Wow, I can't believe how much wildlife exists in this furnace," said Jun. She breathed a big sigh of relief. Despite the heat, Jun felt safer down here out of reach of her mother's disapproval. She felt so much better being the Dragon World with her friends. "Hey Tom, thanks. I really needed this."
"Ride or die," Tom said, beaming. Jun nodded in agreement. She looked over at Edelweiss and her dragons. They were talking to each other in their language. Tom must have seen the look on her face.
"So, you want to tell me what's going on with your mom?" Tom asked softly. Jun looked at him surprised. Tom smiled at her. "You don't think I don't know you by now." Jun smiled back at him.
"Where do I start?" She said. She took a deep breath. "My mom just wants me to do what she wants, and doesn't care about what I want. She thinks I should be a CEO by now. She's never going to accept me no matter what I achieve."
"She'll come around," Tom assured her. "She's your mom."
"Doubt it," Jun answered. She looked back over at Edelweiss and her dragons. They were still talking to each other and glancing around the Fire Realm. They all sounded so happy to be together. Suddenly something very bright shone right at Jun's face. She looked but it was so bright she couldn't see where it was coming from. Tom spotted it too and they steered their dragons towards it. Edelweiss and her dragons followed. They landed on one of the stone bridges that connected to a stone pillar that had a hole carved through it. Inside they saw a silver shield. Tom looked thrilled.
"Yes, more proof that other people have been down here," he said.
While Tom scanned the area with his binoculars, Jun examined the shield. Edelweiss watched while she gave her dragons water. She'd brought enough to accommodate all the dragons and all the Riders, a long with food rations. Jun was very impressed with the shield.
"What kind of metal is this?" She muttered to herself. "It's light, but strong." Tom lowered his binoculars.
"No sign of any people," he said.
"I've been living down here for a while now," said Edelweiss. "And I haven't seen any other humans besides you guys. I'm guessing whoever dropped that shield and that arrowhead was from a long time ago. They all look like their from the Viking times." Tom sighed.
"Have you seen a shield like this?" Jun asked. Edelweiss held her hand out and Jun handed it to her. She examined it and tapped it with her knuckle.
"Hmmm, feels dragon forged," she said. "I know that before dragons went under ground some humans used their fire to make special metals like this for weapons, shields, and armor. In fact the staff I was using earlier is made from a metal like this." She handed the shield back.
"We should head back," said Tom. "We're running low on water." Edelweiss was about to reply when they heard a commotion from below. They all ran to the edge. Tom pulled out his binoculars and looked through them. He saw a Tiny Terror trapped on a rock, surrounded by several larger brown dragons.
"There's an injured dragon down there," he said. "Looks like its wing is hurt."
"Let me see," said Jun, taking the binoculars and looking through them. "We should help it." Tom hesitated.
"Should we?" He asked. "It's nature isn't it? Who are we to say what dragon is saved and what dragon starves." Jun looked back through the binoculars.
"But that little dragon is from the Crystal Realm," she said. "Which means it doesn't belong here."
"And that means it's not the right prey for those dragons," said Tom. "How are we doing on water?"
"I've got plenty of water," Edelweiss said. "Enough to last a whole other day." Tom sighed.
"Okay, lets help it," he said. Jun smiled. They mounted their dragons, Tom picked up the shield, and they took off.
They flew at the hunting dragons. Thunder fired at them to get their attention. The dragons growled.
"Come and get us Flamethrowers," Tom challenged. The Flamethrowers took off after them. While they were busy, Jun lowered Wu and Wei over the wounded dragon. Jun dangled from Wu's neck and reached out for the little dragon. It cowered away from her, frightened. Suddenly one of the Flamethrowers spotted them and charged at them breathing fire.
"Wei, grab the dragon!" Jun called as Wu dodged the fire blast. Wei picked up the little dragon and flew to safety. Tom and Thunder were being chased by the rest of the Flamethrowers. They were just as fast as Thunder and worked as a team. Edelweiss and her dragons watched, waiting for the perfect opportunity to move in. They watched how the Flamethrowers hunted, learning their methods. Thunder tried blasting them, but that did nothing. Edelweiss spotted one Flamethrower flying at Thunder from straight ahead, with two more on his tail.
"Apollo, you think you can take out that one, while we get the other two?" Black Widow asked. Apollo nodded. They split up and dived bombed their respective targets. Black Widow powered up a huge plasma blast. When she was close enough she fired and the blast hit a Flamethrower so hard it knocked him into his fellow. Apollo had rammed into his target from above, knocking him off course as well. But then one of the Flamethrowers that Black Widow had hit recovered and blasted fire at Thunder. He just managed to dodge it, but Tom was knocked off the saddle. Thunder grabbed him in his talons. Black Widow flew at the Flamethrower again, Edelweiss readied her staff. The Flamethrower saw them and opened his mouth to blast them. But Black Widow was faster and shot a plasma blast into the Flamethrower's mouth, igniting the gas. At the same time Edelweiss spun the staff and smacked the second Flamethrower right in the wing joint, making the wing go numb and limp so the dragon couldn't fly. Both Flamethrowers were now badly stunned. Apollo managed to stun the third one.
Thunder had managed to hang on to Tom, but they were going down towards the top of another stone pillar with a stone shelter where Jun and the others waited. Thunder hit the ground hard, keeping Tom protected with his body and wings. Jun ran over to them. Tom crawled out of Thunder's wings, he felt sore all over. Thunder was severely winded. Apollo landed near them, while Edelweiss and Black Widow landed on the roof of the shelter to keep a lookout.
"You all okay?" Apollo asked.
"We're fine," Tom groaned. "Remind to never pick a fight with those guys again." Suddenly he moaned in pain and clutched his knee. Jun looked concerned.
"Let me see," she said.
"It's fine I just banged it," Tom reassured her. "Lava rocks and knees don't mix." He sat down and pulled out his water bottle. He took a drink and then gave some water to Thunder. "How's the little guy doing?" Tom looked at the Tiny Terror.
"I think he has a broken wing," said Jun.
"Great," said Tom. "He has a broken wing and I lost the shield. I guess we're all feeling crummy."
"You lost the shield?" Jun asked.
"Yeah, back around that ridge," Tom said. "But I'm sure we'll find another clue." Jun curled into a ball.
"All this is my fault," she said sadly.
"Don't say that," said Tom firmly. "It was both our decision to help the little dragon. Ride or die remember?"
"Mom said I couldn't survive in the real world," said Jun. "I guess I can't survive any world."
"We're not dead yet," Tom pointed out.
"And our world is just as real as the world your mother's used to," Apollo added. Jun gave them both a small smile. The two Riders looked out to see the Flamethrowers retreating.
"At least they're gone," said Jun.
"For now," said Tom. "They hunt in packs like hyenas, splitting up to save their energy. They probably went to go get some friends."
"And if that's the case," said Apollo. "I'm sure even the three of us will be in over our heads. We'll have to get you all out of here before they come back."
"How? The heat and the battle took its tole on Wu and Wei, and look at Thunder," said Jun. Said dragons did look severely defeated.
"We'll rest here," said Tom, making himself comfortable. "Catch our breath, then fly out of here." He scooted a bit closer to Jun. "In the meantime, why don't you tell me a story." Jun stared at him a bit bewildered. Apollo laid down and made himself comfortable.
"What?" Jun said.
"It might take our minds off those Flamethrowers," said Tom. "Your mom might hate your stories, but I always loved them." He smiled. "What's the last one you read?" Jun thought a moment, her gaze rested on Apollo, who was listening.
"The Greek story about Medusa," she said.
"The Gorgon?" Apollo said. Jun looked thrilled.
"You've heard of it?" She asked.
"I was interested interested in Greek and Roman mythology myself when I was a dragonet," said Apollo. "But it was only a phase."
"I've seen that movie," Tom said. "But I can't remember how it ends."
"That's the best part," Jun chuckled.
"It might be a bit too gory for you anyway," Apollo smirked. "I know it gave me nightmares." Jun considered something, while Tom checked on Thunder. Jun got to her feet and looked out at the Fire Realm. She suddenly spotted something glinting in the distance. Apollo saw what she was thinking. He got to his feet and went to check on Edelweiss and Black Widow.
Tom checked on Thunder again. He didn't seem totally recovered. Tom patted his head.
"You feeling any better?" He asked. Thunder crooned but dragged himself to his feet. He looked at Tom and beamed. "That's my dragon." Tom then looked for Jun. But she was no where in sight. Wu, Wei, and the injured dragon were both dozing off in the corner. Tom instantly got worried. "Wu, Wei where's Jun." Wu and Wei woke up and saw that their rider was missing. They could hear the Flamethrowers coming back. Tom was out of time. "Hope you guys are recharged." He looked at Wu and Wei. "You guys grab the little dragon." The two headed dragon did as they were told. They all took off as the Flamethrowers came back. Tom and the dragons looked for Jun while dodging the blasts from the Flamethrowers. Just then Edelweiss and her dragons pulled along side them.
"We need to find Jun," Tom called to them.
"We'll look for her," said Edelweiss. "Black Widow is great at finding things." She steered her dragon away from the group, and Black Widow fired up her sonar. Tom and the remaining dragons continued dodging the Flamethrowers. But there were just too many of them. Edelweiss and Black Widow quickly spotted Jun below, holding the dragon forged shield. She was running along the stone bridges towards her friends. When she was close enough she used the shield to reflect a bright light into the Flamethrowers' eyes. This really distracted them, making it harder to hit Tom. Black Widow flew down to her and Jun jumped onto her saddle behind Edelweiss. They charged at the Flamethrowers. Jun kept shining the light into their eyes and that made them clear a path and Black Widow pulled up alongside the others. Jun jumped from Black Widow onto her own dragon. They were all ready to fight their way to the exit, but before they could do so a loud roar came from somewhere in the distance. The Flamethrowers unexpectedly backed off and flew away.
"What was that?" Jun wondered aloud.
"That was probably and alpha's call," said Apollo. "These Flamethrowers are working for someone. We should get out of here while we can." No one argued and headed out of the Fire Realm.
They met back up with the other Riders and dragons at the sleeping cave. Everyone relaxed and exchanged stories. D'Angelo tended to the Tiny Terror while Edelweiss tended to Thunder, Wu, and Wei. Alex admired Jun's dragon forged shield.
"What kind of metal is that?" Alex asked.
"It's dragon forged," Edelweiss explained. "From way back in the day."
"Well it sure has a lot of uses," said Jun.
"So how did you come up with the idea to use the shield to drive away the Flamethrowers?" Tom asked, amazed.
"Perseus," said Apollo. "He used the reflective surface of his shield to defeat the Gorgon Medusa." Jun beamed and nodded.
"So where are you going to keep it?" Tom asked. Jun considered, then placed it against the wall near their marks.
"Right here is good," she said. "For when I need it again." Alex and D'Angelo headed out of the sleep cave, but Tom and Jun stayed behind for a moment.
"I've been thinking about what you said about your mom telling you to you couldn't survive in the real world," said Tom quietly. "You did more then just survive, you saved my life and the dragons too." Jun smiled at him. "So next time your mom scolds you for reading your stories, just pretend you have your shield with you to deflect her words back at her." Jun chuckled.
"Who wants to live in the real world anyway," she said. The two of them headed out laughing. Edelweiss and the dragons watched them go.
"I'm sure glad she just used the shield trick, and not the other thing Perseus did," said Apollo. Edelweiss murmured in agreement.
"Kind of how Hiccup used his shiny shield to defeat the Screaming Death," she said. Apollo and Black Widow both chuckled fondly.
"Looks like you have a common interest with Jun," Black Widow observed.
"Yeah, pretty sure she'll also get along swell with Avalon," said Apollo. "Shame we can't tell her about the mythical antiques my sister has in our castle."
"Maybe one day," said Edelweiss, mounting Black Widow. They bid the other dragons good night and headed back out towards the Crystal Realm.