Follow the Lightening pt.1
On Saturday morning; Tom was sitting in his room listening to his favorite band. He was totally absorbed in the music, pretending he was on stage himself playing guitar. He didn't even notice that his friends were there staring at him.
"Hey! Tom!" Jun called as loud as she could. Tom didn't answer. Jun yelled louder. Tom finally noticed them. He pulled out his earphones.
"How'd you guys get in here?" He asked, startled.
"Your mom let us in," Alex explained.
"What are you listening to?" Jun asked curiously.
"Okay, I thought I was alone," Tom said. "Why are you in my room?"
"It's Saturday morning," Jun reminded him. "And we always spend Saturday with the dragons." Tom beamed. He put his earbuds on the night stand and got to his feet.
"Good point," he said, grabbing his backpack. "Let's go wake 'em up and have some fun." He turned to go.
"Wait before we got, can you rock out one more time?" Alex asked, grinning. "It really made my morning." Tom pretended to play the guitar again. They all laughed.
Later they entered the sleep cave. The riders called for their respective dragons. Wu, Wei, Plowhorn, and Feathers all ran up to them. Tom waited for Thunder to come bounding up to him grinning and excited, but he didn't show.
"Thunder!" Tom called. No answer. Tom banged his pickax onto the rocks, the sound carried all over the cave. Thunder still didn't show. Tom felt the back of his neck heat up. "Thunder's not here."
"What are you talking about, he has to be here," Jun said. They all searched the cave, calling for Thunder. But the dragon was no where in sight. Tom was getting scared.
"Where could he be?" He said. "He wouldn't just fly off." Alex's tablet beeped. She pulled it out and looked at it.
"It's Thunder's tracker," she said. "He's crossed the sensors."
"We should go look for him," Tom said. The riders all got onto their dragons. Tom got onto Feathers behind Alex.
"You're riding with me?" She asked uncomfortably.
"Yeah, copilot," said Tom. "You fly the dragon, and I'll read the map." Alex didn't look comfortable, but handed Tom the tablet. They all took off and headed for the Dragon World.
When they got there they kept their eyes open for Thunder as they headed for Edelweiss's campsite. She was already up and was giving Black Widow a rub down. Splendor was munching on a bowl of mixed berries. They all looked up as the riders landed.
"Morning riders," she said cheerfully.
"Have you seen Thunder?" Tom asked urgently. Edelweiss looked surprised and stopped what she was doing.
"Thunder? No I haven't," she said. At that moment a Spiderwing flew down and landed on Black Widow's head. The riders and their dragons drew back. Edelweiss was quick to notice.
"Oh don't worry," she said. "That's Black Widow's new friend, Joro. She's pretty friendly. Now what's this about Thunder?"
"We already checked the lair for him, but he wasn't there," Tom explained. "Alex's tracker showed that he's down here somewhere." Edelweiss put down her brush and picked up her saddle. She quickly saddled her dragon and put her medical bag on the back of it. Then she mounted up. She took off after the other riders, Joro and Splendor were right behind her. They picked up the search again, calling for Thunder. Tom was getting more and more worried.
"Can we go faster?" He asked.
"We don't all have lightening dragons Tom," Alex pointed out. Tom tried to calm himself, but he was just too worried.
"Why would he just take off like that?" He wondered aloud.
"Maybe he heard something and went to investigate," Jun suggested.
"Or maybe he finally found his family," said D'Angelo. "Isn't that what you want?"
"No," Tom said too quickly. "I mean yes, but I want to be there just to make sure he's okay." His voice broke slightly.
"Even if he did find his family he'd still be easier to find," Edelweiss said. "But I'm sure his family does have something to do with his sudden disappearance." Alex's tablet beeped again. Tom looked over her shoulder at the screen.
"What does that mean?" He asked.
"It means the trail's gone cold," Alex explained.
"What, the trail can't go cold," Tom cried. They all landed and Tom jumped off. They all called for Thunder again. They split up and looked.
"Hey over here!" D'Angelo called. They all ran to him and Plowhorn. They were standing in front of a cave entrance. "Plowhorn's got his scent. Thunder must have gone into this cave." Plowhorn grunted with confidence.
"Great, lets go," Tom said. The riders got back onto their dragons. Tom was about to get back onto Feathers.
"Um, maybe you should ride Plowhorn this time," Alex said awkwardly. "You know, since she's in the lead now."
"Oh, good point," Tom said. He got onto Plowhorn behind D'Angelo, who didn't look pleased but didn't object. They headed into the cave, following Plowhorn's nose. They kept their eyes open for Thunder.
"I don't get it is he looking for something, or chasing someone?" Tom said.
"When we find him you'll get your answer," said D'Angelo calmly.
"So, Plowhorn can smell Thunder," Tom said doubtfully.
"Plowhorn can smell everything," D'Angelo said proudly. They walked in silence for a few seconds.
"Are we getting close?" Tom asked.
"We don't want to rush Plowhorn," D'Angelo said annoyed. The girls were a small distance behind them.
"I've never seen Tom act like this," said Alex.
"Me neither," said Jun. "But we'd all act the same if it was our dragons that were missing." Alex looked down at Feathers. She could sympathize with Tom a bit. She'd been just as worried when Feathers had been dragged away by molding Featherhides.
"I know Thunder worries about Tom when he goes off on his own unexpectedly," Edelweiss said. "Their bond is so strong." Suddenly there came a loud boom from somewhere in the distance.
"That sounded like thunder," D'Angelo said.
"Thunder doesn't make that sound," Tom said.
"No, I mean actual thunder," D'Angelo clarified. Suddenly they came to a road block. Big chunks of crystals blocked the entrance to another cave. Black Widow blasted it and they entered.
They entered a wide trench with towering walls. The sky above swirled with storm clouds that turned the whole area the color of twilight. It almost felt like they were outside again, even though they were still underground.
"It's beautiful," said Edelweiss. Tom jumped off Plowhorn, the other riders dismounted except Edel.
"Thunder!" Tom called. No reply.
"What is this place?" Alex asked.
"It's like a completely different world," said D'Angelo. Tom wasn't really paying attention.
"She abandoned heaven, abandoned earth and disappeared into the unknown," Jun recited softly. They all stared at her. "It's a Samaritan myth. Lots of cultures have myths about dark realms where no one should go, and never returns." Suddenly they heard loud lightening strikes. They looked up to see bolts of lightening illuminating the sky.
"Lightening, that must be Thunder," Tom said urgently. "Let go."
"Or it could just be a thunderstorm," said D'Angelo.
"A thunderstorm underground?" Alex said.
"No, the lightening is shooting up," Tom pointed out. They looked to see that it was true.
"Oh, you could have started with that information," said D'Angelo. Tom got back on Plowhorn. D'Angelo smiled awkwardly, and went up to his dragon. "You know it might be easier for Plowhorn if there was just one rider. You know less weight, she can move faster." Tom sighed.
"You just want me to ride with someone else," he said, unhappily.
"Okay, yeah I can't lie," D'Angelo confessed. Tom took a deep breath, felling a bit put down. He looked over at Edelweiss and Black Widow. Edelweiss shrugged and gestured to the back of her saddle with her head. Tom jumped onto Black Widow behind her. The other riders mounted their dragons, and they set off again. The lightening kept flashing ahead.
The farther they went, the more nervous the dragons got. Black Widow even seemed a bit nervous.
"You know what's weird, we haven't seen any dragons," Jun said. But a few moments later, a flock of Tiny Terrors came flying at them in a panic. The bigger dragons got out of their way.
"You had to jinx it," said Alex.
"What was all that about?" Tom asked. "Those dragons aren't usually that frenzied."
"Dragons have strong instincts," Edelweiss said. "Like all animals, when they sense danger, they run."
"They must be running from something big," said Alex.
"Well whatever it is, I hope Thunder's okay," said Tom, slightly panicked.
"Take it easy Tom," Edelweiss said calmly. "Thunder's survived on his own before."
They flew in silence for the next few minuets. Lightening bolts continued to flash in the sky. With every flash, Tom got more worried. The trench narrowed a bit as they got closer.
"Do you guys ever get the feeling you're being watched?" Alex asked anxiously. No sooner had she said that then hundreds of tiny, glowing, red eye stared at them from small caves in the trench wall.
"Probably just cave rats," Tom said, not sounding very sure. Suddenly flaming webs shot out at them.
"Rats that shoot flaming webs!" D'Angelo exclaimed. The dragons flew erratically to avoid the webs. Joro blocked as many of them as she could with her own flaming webs, but even she was outmatched. The webs kept coming, and one of them caught D'Angelo's boot. He tried flapping it out fruitlessly. Wu put it out with his frost breath. Soon they reached the end of the Spiderwings.
"You okay?" Jun asked D'Angelo.
"Yeah, but my feet do feel a bit sweaty," said D'Angelo. Just then they spotted a small pool at the base for the wall. The dragons pulled towards it.
"We should water the dragons," Edelweiss said. They headed down and landed next to the pool. The riders dismounted and the dragons drank from the pool. Tom looked on at the flashes of lightening. He was really missing Thunder, and so worried about him.
"Where ever you are pal, just hold on I'm coming," Tom said quietly. The others were munching on snacks D'Angelo had brought. Tom wasn't hungry. They were quiet then small purple bubbles started drifting down in front of the, and exploded.
"Bubblehorns!" Jun and Alex cried in unison. They looked to see a flock of Bubblehorns flying at them, their horns blazing. The riders ran for cover. Jun looked up to see Nibbles glaring down at her.
"Nibbles, back for revenge," Jun said. Nibbles flew at her, roaring. But then Splendor nocked him off course. The two little dragons wrestled, but the other Bubblehorns kept firing at the riders.
"Any ideas Edelweiss?" Tom asked.
"Splendor once told me that Bubblehorns' weakness is water," Edelweiss said. Tom thought a moment, then he turned to his friends.
"Alex, help me round them up," he said. "D, we're going to need your biggest cannon ball, Jun prepare to freeze blast." All the riders nodded.
"Splendor!" Edelweiss called. Splendor broke away from Nibbles and rejoined Edelweiss and her dragons. Tom and Alex herded the Bubblehorns towards the pool. Then D'Angelo splashed Plowhorn into the water, creating a huge wave that crashed over the Bubblehorns. Wu froze the water, trapping the Bubblehorns in ice. The riders and dragons all caught their breath. Splendor fluttered down and blew a raspberry at his trapped fellows, before perching on Edelweiss's shoulder.
"I for one, have had enough excitement to last a few decades," said Alex.
"Me too," said D'Angelo. "This place is getting to dangerous." He spotted the horrified look on Tom's face. "We don't even know if we're still on Thunder's trail."
"He's right Tom," Jun said gently. "First it was the Tiny Terrors, then the Bubblehorns. This place is getting too dangerous."
"Right and Thunder's out in the middle of it," Edelweiss pointed out. More lightening flashed in the distance.
"Look, there's still lightening," Tom said desperately.
"We don't even know if it's Thunder Tom," said Alex.
"And if we stay out here much longer we're going to be dragon food," said D'Angelo. Tom looked so stressed, like he was about to have a meltdown.
"So you just want to leave Thunder to his fate?" Edelweiss growled.
"We didn't say that," D'Angelo said. "I just think we should try looking somewhere else, somewhere a bit safer."
"If Thunder were in a safer place we would have found him by now," Edelweiss argued.
"We can't tun back," Tom said. "I need to find Thunder." He paused for a moment. "And I need to find some answers." He didn't look his friends in the eye.
"Answers?" Alex said, surprised.
"Why do I get the feeling there's something you haven't told us?" D'Angelo said suspiciously. Tom didn't answer, and looked really uncomfortable. They all waited.
"You remember that symbol Thunder burned into the wall of the lair?" Tom said. "I thought it looked familiar." He reached into his backpack and pulled out his Viking helmet. "It's the same symbol etched on this Viking helmet. It's a family heirloom. Somehow I'm connected to this whole thing." Alex and D'Angelo exchanged a shocked glance.
"Okay that's an insane news flash," Alex said angrily. "Why didn't you tell us?"
"Because It's not about you guys," said Tom. "And I don't even know what it all means yet."
"Not about us?" D'Angelo repeated, crossing his arms.
"We haven't been able to find anything," Jun said. They all looked at her.
"You told Jun?" D'Angelo asked.
"I needed her help," said Tom. "She knows a lot about ancient myths and civilizations."
"Not cool Tom," Alex glared.
"You broke the rider code," said D'Angelo. Tom was quiet for a moment, not meeting their eye.
"You guys just don't get it," he said, putting the helmet away. "This is something I need to find out for myself." He started to walk off. Jun ran after him and made him turn to face her.
"You should have told them Tom," she said.
"So, now you're on their side?" Tom said.
"You're not a lone wolf anymore," said Jun. She went back to the others. Tom took a deep breath.
"You guys can go back if you want," he said. "I'll go the rest of the way on foot." He started walking again. Edelweiss and her dragons watched everything from a distance, not wanting to get involved with the argument.
The riders continued onward. They walked rather then flew. Edelweiss and her dragons were the only ones flying, to check for any danger ahead or Thunder. The dark clouds started moving together, more lightening flashed.
"I'm almost to the lightening," Tom said. "I'll be okay."
"Not without us you won't," said Jun, pulling her dragon up beside him. "Wherever you go, we go." Tom smiled gratefully at her. Just then the wind picked up, blowing dust in their faces. The clouds built up. Suddenly a vast tornado touched down right in front of them.
"Tornado!" D'Angelo cried. He and Alex flew their dragons in the opposite direction.
"No," said Tom. He got on Wu and Wei with Jun. "We can fly around it." The riders were reluctant but they followed them, Edelweiss joined them with her dragons. As they got closer to the funnel they saw a shadowy creature flying inside it.
"Wait, that one looks familiar," Edelweiss said. The tornado vanished, revealing a sharp looking silver dragon. It roared at them. "Ah, Razorwhip." Edelweiss said. "I remember these."
"Razorwhip?" Jun asked.
"Yes, they're known for their sharp tails," said Edelweiss. At that moment the Razorwhip charged at them again, slashing at them with its tail. The dragons dodged it.
"What's it doing?" Alex asked. "We didn't do anything."
"It must be like a gate keeper, guarding the passage to something bigger," said Jun.
"Or it could just be protecting its nest," Edelweiss said. "Dragons do that." The Rozorwhip suddenly whipped its long tail in circles, creating strong whirlwinds. Black Widow was able to get out of the way, but the other dragons were knocked to the ground. The Razorwhip then began flying in circles, creating another powerful tornado that trapped the riders and dragons inside. Then it lit the walls for the tornado, and kept circling. Black Widow landed on the top of trench wall. They watched the dragons try to blast their way out of the firenado, but to no effect. Edelweiss exchanged a look with Black Widow.
"You think we can bail them out of this one?" Edelweiss said.
"I think so," said Black Widow. "But we shouldn't fix all their problems."
"Right," Edelweiss agreed. Black Widow took off and flew at the Razorwhip. She flared her wings, blocking it. The Razorwhip roared in surprise, and slammed on the brakes.
"What are you doing?" He said with a smooth male voice. "Who are you?"
"I'm Edelweiss Dragonborn," said Edelweiss. "And this is Black Widow. What's your name?" The Razorwhip looked surprised.
"You speak dragon?" He asked.
"I do," said Edelweiss. "What's your name?"
"Vortex," the Razorwhip answered. Black Widow headed to the ground and landed. The Razorwhip followed suit.
"You think you can let those guys out, please?" Edelweiss asked politely. "They mean no harm." Vortex thought a moment, then he let the tornado blow out. The riders turned around, confused for a moment, then they saw Edelweiss and Black Widow talking to the Razorwhip.
"Why are you all out here?" Vortex asked.
"We're looking for a young Night Light," Edelweiss explained. "Have you seen him. He's mostly black with white down the front, blue eyes, and wearing a saddle." Vortex tilted his head.
"Purple lightening?" He asked.
"Yes," Edelweiss confirmed.
"I've seen that one," said Vortex.
"Are you talking to it?" Alex asked.
"Yes," Edelweiss said. "I figured I'd bail you guys out this time. I'm somewhat familiar with Razorwhips. But that doesn't mean I'm going to solve all your dragon problems."
"What's it saying?" D'Angelo asked. Edelweiss smiled at Tom.
"Vortex here has seen Thunder," she said. Tom went ridged.
"Where?" He asked, hopeful. Edelweiss turned back to Vortex. They talked again. Then the Razorwhip turned and ran off.
"Come on," Edelweiss said. They followed the silver dragon farther. They rounded a bend in the trench. Suddenly their came a familiar roar. Tom looked ahead and saw Thunder laying on his back. He looked like he was coming around after being knocked unconscious. Tom ran to him, the others followed.
"Thank you Vortex," said Edelweiss. The Razorwhip nodded, then flew away. Edelweiss and her dragons joined the others. Tom knelt beside his dragon and lifted his head. Thunder seemed woozy, but in once piece. He smiled dizzily at Tom and crooned as though glad to see him.
"I'm glad to see you too," Tom said, so relieved. He gave the dragon a big hug. The others were examining the area. There were large burn marks all over the place.
"I don't see any crystals from that Razorwhip," said Jun. "And these burn marks look like lightening bolts."
"So Thunder was in a fight with another lightening dragon?" Alex said. Then D'Angelo picked up a large dragon scale.
"Is this one of Thunder's scales?" He asked. Tom took the scale and examined it. Thunder growled and took a fighting stance.
"No, its from the dragon he was fighting," Tom said. Thunder growled louder. They looked towards a large, dark cave.