Chapter Seven: Revenge
The sun was falling fast. Ben kept himself hidden within Ulara. The Black Dragoon would have no advantage this time. It would be a real battle; one-on-one, no holds bar.
I have a good feeling about the upcoming battle. The Red-Eye Dragon said.
"That's good to hear." Ben replied.
As I stated earlier, he has yet to face you like a man, so he probably has doubts about his chances for victory. He has right to. He may have defeated the other Dragoons easily, but their downfall has only increased your already impeccable might.
Ben smiled. "Trying to make me blush or something?"
The Dragon chuckled in Ben's mind. No, just trying to boost the morale. You're an excellent fighter, given the chance.
"Odds are he'll try to cheat his way out, though. You know, hiding in the shadows?"
That is one way of fighting, but I've already thought up a few ideas. Check this out…
Melissa lay in her bed, slightly restless, but still in a fair deal of pain. Charle was keeping her company.
"How's Sean?" Melissa had to ask.
Charle sighed. "Still no improvement on his status, I'm afraid. We're keeping him alive and well, of course, and we have the best of the best guarding him."
Melissa lay her head back down, dissatisfied. "If we knew who the Black Dragoon was, this would be so much easier."
"Perhaps that's what you should work on while you wait." Charle suggested. "What clues has the Dragoon left you?"
Melissa shrugged. "None, really. Oh, he has a crush on me, but that can be a million people-not to brag."
Charle chuckled. "Think harder."
She tried, but got nowhere. "I dunno…well…what's the status on everybody else?"
A strange smile covered Charle's face.
Darkness rested upon the desert. Ulara lay quiet, save for the trickling streams and nocturnal creatures in the forests. Time to move.
The Black Dragoon crept within the shadows of the buildings, silent as a cat stalking its prey. He had his cloak of darkness, but he still had to be cautious. After stealing the spire, the winglies would be on alert. It seemed as through no winglies were about, but the Black Dragoon knew better than anyone that just because you can't see them doesn't mean that they aren't there.
He quickly arched his dark body as a shadow and hopped to another dark spot. He was close, but this was where things got very dangerous. The remaining spires were not a hundred feet away, but the path ahead was clear. He needed another spire, however. He had to take the risk in running.
The Black Dragoon reared himself back, one foot ready to push with all its might to launch himself forward. His wings lifted and poised for action. With a burst of strength, his wings flapped hard as he took off, carrying him forward. The flapped his wings hard while running at the same time for extra momentum.
There were two spires remaining, so he had his pick. He ran to the nearest one. No winglies came out to surprise him, but The Black Dragoon knew that they would think him foolish and arrogant; they would jump him at the spires themselves, just as he reached for them.
Sure enough, ten feet away, a wingly appeared and fired a white beam. The Black Dragoon jumped clear over him and kicked off the spire to reach the next one. However, the winglies had anticipated his foresight. Another wingly appeared and kicked the Black Dragoon in the face, knocking him back.
Then, a few more winglies grabbed hold of him and rushed off at great speed. The Black Dragoon barely had time to think "Are they carrying me?" before they reached their destination. The winglies tossed him into a tall building and he landed on his feet.
The Black Dragoon quickly figured out that he was in a large gym, set up to act as an arena. He also quickly figured out just why he had been put here.
"Well," The Black Dragoon said with an unseen smile. "I can see that I'll be here a bit longer than intended."
Ben nodded. "I set this up."
"Did you now?" The Black Dragoon was obviously unafraid.
"Every battle, you have surprised us with your appearance, but not this time."
"It unnerves you, doesn't it?"
"What does?"
"The fact that all of your Dragoon friends have fallen around you in one form or another. You're all that's left."
A small smirk slid onto Ben's face. "Unnerved? Not really. You have yet to fight me, remember? And I have a few tricks up my sleeve."
"Is that so?"
"It is. Now, do you think you can face me like a man?" Ben's sword was ready and his Dragoon powers already surging.
The Black Dragoon chuckled as his blades appeared in his hand. "Ready and waiting."
"Then c'mon."
"Alright." Suddenly, he jumped back into the shadows of the dark room and vanished from sight.
"Still can't fight like a man?" Ben shouted into the darkness.
"Stealth is another form of fighting, Fire Dragoon." The Black Dragoon pointed out. "It's not my fault if you cannot counter to my strategy." He had been moving to Ben's side and now rushed in for the attack.
Suddenly, a great blast of fire shot out from all ends of Ben's body. The Black Dragoon was scorched in the searing flames and forced to stop his assault and back track. Ben now had a bubble of fire around him about twenty feet thick. The glow of the flames easily illuminated most of the room.
"As you can see," Ben said. "That trick won't work this time." He wasn't breaking a sweat.
The Black Dragoon moved himself again, careful to stay out of the light and tried again, but once more, the fire burned him. He gathered his strength and shot forward at yet another angle, forcing himself to ignore the flames.
However, by the light of the fire, Ben could see his foe and easily blocked his sword attacks and knocked him back. The Black Dragoon jumped out of the fiery bubble and hovered for a bit, unsure of what to do.
"There is nowhere you can hide, Black Dragoon." Ben smirked. His Dragoon spirit glowed brightly as the world around them warped. The Black Dragoon watched fire suddenly surround him, coming from nowhere. Suddenly, he could no longer say he was in the arena. He seemed to be in an endless red void with swirls of Dragoon colors about.
"What is this?" The Black Dragoon demanded.
"The Fire Realm." Ben answered smugly. "An artificial reality created by the Red-Eye Dragon to enhance my ability and force you out of the shadows. As you can see, there is no places dark enough for you to hide in."
The Black Dragoon looked around and saw that he was right. The fiery glow of this realm made it impossible to hide in.
"Now," Ben continued, "Let's see if you can fight me man-to-man. Somehow, I think you're afraid to."
The Black Dragoon scoffed. "I fear nothing."
"You will." Ben launched a fireball at his foe and the Black Dragoon dodged it. He jumped over the next one and rushed to meet Ben in combat.
The Black Dragoon jumped to Ben with his left blade outstretched. Ben smacked the blade away with his own as he stepped back, and then blocked there other one. The Black Dragoon swung many times with his dual blades, but Ben's speed kept him alive as he blocked every single one. However, it was difficult for Ben to make any offensive attempt due to his full concentration on defense.
Ben finally got a break when the Black Dragoon tried a dark slash. He blocked the swipe, but was pushed back a bit. Ben then leapt at his enemy with a blazing blade and it took the defense of both of the Black Dragoon's blades to block the power of the strike. Ben was able to get his knee under his foe's arms and get him in the ribs, then jump back and extend his foot out to kick him in the face. The Black Dragoon stumbled, but caught himself in time to block Ben's next assault and flip over him.
Ben jumped away and fired a series of fireballs, none of which got past the enemy's blades. The Black Dragoon created his own dark ray and fired it. Ben put up his blade and took the hit, receiving minimal damage. Ben tossed his sword in the air and created a massive fireball in front of himself.
"Flameshot!" He punched the fireball into his foe. The Black Dragoon jumped away, but still felt the scorching heat from the explosion. He rolled and fired again, failing once more. Ben's shot forward, his sword extended. The Black Dragoon jumped over the attack and shot his blade down the pierce Ben's side, but Ben foresaw this and smacked the blade away, but had to take the slice on the cheek from the other sword.
The slice made Ben lose focus and he crash-landed, then rolled away from the Black Dragoon's stab and swung his foot over himself, kicking his foe in the head. Ben was able to jump back up and swing his blade down, but the Black Dragoon blocked with both blades then jumped up and kicked Ben's head, then swung his other foot around to do the same.
Ben rolled with the impact and blocked the two-sword strike. With a fiery burst, he knocked his foe away and charged at him. Swords clashed once more and Ben relied on his speed to keep himself alive from the dual sword attacks. He was going to have to remove one of the blades.
Ben kicked off the Black Dragoon to get some distance and poured his magic power into his arms and sword. The Black Dragoon charged, but Ben jumped to the side, and then struck. He turned his blade to the flat side, then reeled back and swung the katana like a bat.
"BOMBBLADE!" Ben's attack created an explosive force within his sword, so when he struck the Black Dragoon, there was a great blast and the he flew across the fire realm. Sure enough, the force was enough to knock one of the blades out of his hand. Ben used another Flameshot attack to destroy it.
As he flew, the Black Dragoon suddenly hit something and fell to the ground. He regained his perspective of the world and saw that one of his blades was gone, then saw it be destroyed. But what interested him more was what he hit.
"A wall?" He felt it with his hands, and then began furiously pounding on it with his remaining blade. He made absolutely no mark on the barrier.
"That won't work." Ben assured him. "The Red-Eye Dragon controls who comes in and out of here." The spirit shimmered.
The Black Dragoon turned back around. "So to get out, I must dispose of you."
"Exactly."
"Fine then. DIE!"
With dark speed, the Black Dragoon rushed at him, knocking him backwards. Ben regained composure and blocked the next few strikes. Now that the weapon count was equal, Ben could get in a few offensive strikes. The Black Dragoon was also pretty fast, so he too was able to block every strike against him.
The Black Dragoon's blade glowed black and he swung a mighty downward blow. Ben turned his blade to the flat side and supported it with his hand and braced himself, taking the weight of the blow into his legs, but doing so suddenly left his legs and hand numb. The Black Dragoon spun around, swinging a backhand strike towards Ben. He put his arm up in defense, but in this weakened state, he couldn't put up a proper defense and the line of spikes on the Black Dragoon's glove sliced his arm. He punched Ben's face, then kicked him down and stabbed downward.
Ben rolled away and blocked another swipe, then fired a hot ray from his eyes, singing the Black Dragoon's face and giving himself time to stand back up. Their blades clashed again and their faces were close.
"Somehow," The Black Dragoon spoke. "I thought this world would give you an advantage, Fire Dragoon!"
Ben smirked. "Actually, it was just for eliminating yours." He backflipped, kicking the Black Dragoon in the face, then rocketed forward, ramming his foe with a head butt, knocking him into the wall. Ben kicked off him and flipped back onto his feet.
The Black Dragoon pulled himself back to his feet and got his next move ready, pouring dark energy into his blade. Ben jumped into the air and swung down. The Black Dragoon put his blade up and supported it with his hand, bracing his legs.
"Reversal Shield!" He declared. When Ben's blade struck that of the Black Dragoon, there was a bright flash and the strength of the attack was somehow repelled and shot back through Ben's body, knocking him out of the sky and causing his katana to slip from his hand. The Black Dragoon ran up and kicked him in the air, then swung at him when he landed. Ben was just able to move away and feel the very edge of the blade. The Black Dragoon fired a dark wave, knocking Ben a good distance away.
The Black Dragoon chuckled. "As you can see, I have more than one trick up my sleeve. But now, this isn't fair, is it?" he stuck his blade into the ground. "There. That should even the odds."
It was a fist fight now. Ben suddenly felt a burst of confidence. The Black Dragoon charged at him. Ben chuckled. This guy had no idea who he was messing with.
A few seconds before taking the hit, Ben suddenly jumped up and charged like a bull towards the Black Dragoon. Their strengths collided and Ben plowed right through the Black Dragoon, with hardly a hindrance. The Black Dragoon fell and rolled, stunned and amazed by the strength of Ben's charge.
Ben stopped himself and turned around. "Captain of the football team." He smiled. The Black Dragoon catapulted up, and then jumped into a kick. Ben moved away and squared off with his opponent. The Black Dragoon kicked and Ben ducked, and then charged again, knocking him to the ground. His opponent tried forcing himself free, but Ben grabbed him, flipped him, and slammed him into the ground, then grabbed him in a headlock.
"Captain of the wrestling team, too."
The Black Dragoon turned his arm and cut Ben's face with the blade on the glove. Stunned, Ben released him and jumped back before receiving the spinning kick. The Black Dragoon ran again and this time performed a backflip kick, knocking Ben's head back, then jumped and planted a two-foot kick on Ben's chest, causing him to stumble.
As his opponent charged again, Ben allowed himself to fall backwards to an extent. He fell back and landed on his hands, lifting his feet into the air and kicked the Black Dragoon square in the sternum, and used the impact to flip backwards and back onto his feet.
Furious, the Black Dragoon fired a black beam, stunning Ben long enough to get in a spinning kick. Ben took the hit and blocked the next with his arm, then swung his own kick, getting the Black Dragoon in the ribs, then swung the kick higher to hit the head.
The Black Dragoon shot forward, delivering a low punch to Ben's gut, and then swung the fist back up to get Ben's face and kicked him backwards. When he tried to attack again, Ben let out a roar, shooting a stream of fire into his opponent's face. The Black Dragoon bellowed in the heat and stumbled back. Ben created a great fireball.
"FLAMESHOT!" He punched the fireball into The Black Dragoon, not five feet from him. Taking the full force of the blast, the Black Dragoon was knocked across the battlefield.
Ben rushed in for a sliding kick, but he Black Dragoon suddenly flailed over him, shooting a black ball as he went. He ran after Ben and sliced his face again with his blades and Ben shot his foot up to kick him in the gut, then catapulted up and slammed his fists down on his foe. Ben bashed the Black Dragoon in the face with his knee and tackled him, pinning him to the ground.
However, the Black Dragoon's Dragoon Spirit glowed, creating a great explosion, knocking Ben off of himself. The Black Dragoon rolled away before getting slammed by Ben's landing.
They both stood, each waiting for the other to make the first move. Then, the Red-Eye Dragon spoke in Ben's mind.
Well, well…this ought to be interesting.
With that, a hole opened in the ceiling of the fire realm and a great, purple thunderbolt lanced down through it, striking the Black Dragoon hard.
Brad flew into the fire realm and stood next to Ben. He had a Healing Fog in his hand, which he shattered at Ben's feet. Ben breathed in the sweet fog and felt his strength return.
"Nice to have you back." Ben panted.
Brad gave a thumbs-up.
The Black Dragoon hopped back to his feet. "So, the Thunder Dragoon has recovered. Be careful! Don't want to overcharge yourself!" He cackled.
Brad's eyes narrowed. "I'll show you overcharge…" He ran at the Black Dragoon and backflipped to kick his face, but his foe jumped backwards to avoid it and kicked him in the chest. Brad fell onto his back, just as he wanted.
The Black Dragoon was going to attack again, but suddenly, Brad's legs clamped onto his waist. Brad pulled himself up and grabbed the Black Dragoon's head and began filling it with electricity of an extreme voltage.
"AAAAAAHHHHH!" The evil warrior wailed. After a moment, Brad kicked off of the Black Dragoon's chest and landed on his feet again. Before the evil one could even think of his next move, Brad's Dragoon spirit glowed again.
"Atomic Mind!" A large thunderbolt struck down and held onto him for a moment. Ben assessed the situation and launched a flamethrower attack from his hands. The Black Dragoon was in a world of pain with both attacks clinging to him. Finally, a grand explosion burst where he floated.
The two good Dragoons fell to the ground, breathing heavily from the use of power. The Black Dragoon found it painful to even move, but he was able to get himself onto a knee.
"Not…possible…" He whispered.
Having trouble?
That voice!
"Help…me…"
The voice in his head chuckled. Just call on me…
The Black Dragoon nodded. "Black…Dragon…come to me!"
Brad cocked his head. "Did he just say what I think he said!"
The Black Dragoon's Spirit glowed brightly. A black force surrounded the area in which he stood. Black mist shrouded him from their sight. The darkness grew and intensified.
Now we may get a good look at our foe. The Red-Eye Dragon pointed out.
Soon enough, the black essence began to take on a form. It was big, it was black, it was armed with razor-sharp claws, a long, powerful tail, rows of blades along is body, and deadly jaws under its evil, red eyes. The Black Dragon had a strange effect. Something about that dragon just screamed "evil" in great, big letters. It had a haunting presence about it and a malicious face. Its eyes alone spoke volume about the blackness burning in that creature's heart, not to mention the dripping fangs and curved claws, or the sinister smile the dragon seemed to have. It let out a noise that the other Dragoons swore was a low chuckle.
The Black Dragoon stood atop the Black Dragon's head, towering over his opponents.
"Ha, ha!" He laughed. "How do you like me now!"
Brad shrugged. "I still hate you."
The Black Dragon breathed in black fumes that seemed to emanate from his body and breathed them back out onto the Dragoons in a great, black mist. The Dragoons were overwhelmed by the power. Ben could no longer keep control of the environment around him and the fire realm rippled and vanished.
The Black Dragon let out another evil chuckle as it vanished, its scales merging with the darkness. Without warning, a great force shot Brad and Ben up through the roof. The Black Dragoon then took control of the situation. He grabbed them both by the throat and flew down to a river below Ulara's main streets. The water would put out the Fire Dragoon's flames and overcharge the Thunder Dragoon. He zoomed down close and threw them with all his might.
The Dragoons hit the ground hard. Ground?
The Black Dragoon stared. "What the?" The Fire and Thunder Dragoons lay on the dry, dirt ground, while the water that had been there a moment ago hovered around them. The river had parted! Before the Black Dragoon could think, the ground erupted below the other Dragoons and Mike flew out and delivered a great punch that sent the Black Dragoon flying.
"You guys wanna move now?" Brittany asked, emerging herself from the water.
"Brittany!" Ben chuckled. "Mike! Thanks a lot!" They jumped back to the air and Brittany closed the water again. They were still tired, so Brittany used her little bit of healing magic.
"Rainbow Breath!" A light drizzle fell and multicolor light illuminated from all around them, healing their pains.
Ben. The Red-Eye Dragon said. This Dragon is unlike anything I have ever seen; I do not recall any such creature being in existence…but here he is. In any case, let's even the odds, shall we?
Ben's Spirit glowed. "Red-Eye Dragon! Come!" Fire erupted from the ground and created a flaming vortex from which the Red-Eye Dragon made his entrance. The first thing he did was create a great flame to light up the night sky and reveal the Black Dragon. Both beasts hissed and roared, then charged at each other.
The Black Dragoon himself knew that he couldn't waste any more time. He had to get a spire and run. He charged to the teleportation station and reached for a spire. A bright, piercing light suddenly shone from all around, piercing his armor and burning his skin.
"AAAHH!" He bellowed. "What is this?"
Christie lowered the light a little so he could see her. She smiled and the hidden winglies suddenly sprang upon him, firing rays of light. Unable to endure the pain, the Black Dragoon jumped back out of the light with which Christie had surrounded the teleportation station. The winglies kept on attacking rapidly, dealing major damage.
The Black Dragon suddenly turned its head around, and then jumped away from the Red-Eye Dragoon. The dragon flew over to the Black Dragoon, grabbed it in its jaws, and flew away into the darkness, chased for a bit by the winglies and the Red-Eye Dragon. They all stopped quickly after, though. The winglies began cheering.
The Red-Eye Dragon turned its large head to Ben. "A splendid performance, if I do say."
"So did we win or what?" Melissa was anxious to know.
"I'd say so." Ben nodded. "He had to be carried off by the Black Dragon."
"Aw, I wish I could've been the one to beat him up." Melissa pouted.
Ben chuckled. "So, you're all back in action, huh?"
"Yep!" Brittany bounced.
"Christie refused to stay put." Charle chuckled.
"That so?" Ben asked Christie, whose hand he had not released.
"Kinda." She admitted.
"Every time I saw her," Charle continued, "She was sneaking in some white magic to cure herself, but it always used up her mental strength! Eventually, however, she got used to it. When she was cured, she insisted on helping the others, starting with Mike, who needed it most. Brad was well on his way, but she helped him even further. Then Brad decided to help Brittany." She gave him a sidelong glance of disapproval. "Although I would recommend other methods next time."
"What?" Brad asked. "It worked, didn't it?"
"What did you do?" Ben asked.
"Electrocuted her!"
Ben blinked. "Why am I not surprised?"
"Cuz Brad's a moron." Mike shrugged.
"Hey," Brad defended himself. "I was just getting the juices flowing in her brain, okay? She woke up."
"And…?" Charle further questioned.
"…and she had a headache."
"Big time!" Brittany scoffed. Then, she wrapped her arms around Brad's neck. "But it was worth it."
"But no luck on Sean?" Ben had to know.
Christie sighed. "Nope. I've been working on him, but I just can't break that barrier."
"Mm…well, at least our numbers have gone back up. Let me tell you guys what's happened since you've been out…"
Robert couldn't find Marian that day, so he went home disappointed. The next day was Monday. She'd be at school. He was surprised to see nearly everyone back in action. Christie had stayed behind to keep working on Sean. She absolutely refused to leave until he was better.
Basketball practice was harder than ever due to the final game on Saturday. He kept looking around to see if he could find her, but she was nowhere to be seen.
After practice, he was ready to just go home. He headed for the door when he heard her voice.
"Gonna have to do better than that on Saturday." She teased.
Robert turned and faced her. Her hood was over her head again. Robert ignored her comment.
"I've been looking for you."
Marian's smile faded. "Same here."
"Why did you run off?"
"I was scared…"
Rob sighed. "Marian, you don't have to be afraid."
"After moving a thousand times?"
"Because of your powers?"
"Yeah…every time I revealed them, we had to move…I don't wanna move again. You didn't tell anyone, did you?"
Rob bit his lower lip. "Actually, I did."
Marian groaned and leaned against the wall. She hid her face.
"Hey, don't worry about it!"
"Don't worry about it?" She exclaimed. "How can I not worry about it? I have to move again just when things were getting good!"
Robert saw the moisture in her eyes, though she tried to hide it. He looked around to make sure no one was listening, and then moved in a little closer.
"Look, I can understand why you have to hide your powers. People of today aren't ready for such a phenomenon. They're better off knowing as little as they currently do. Anything out of the ordinary happens and they freak out. They wouldn't understand…but I do understand, Marian. I know how it feels to hide from the world."
Marian's eyes were focused on his. "You do?" He nodded. "What do you hide?"
"I know what you are." Robert began. "You're a wingly."
Her eyebrows perked. "How do you know?"
"I've met a number of your kind in a place called Ulara."
Her eyes got wider. "You've been to Ulara? But…how? You're not a wingly!"
"Nope." Rob gave a cocky grin. "I'm better."
She raised a brow. "Come again?"
"Sorry. My kinda kicked the butt of your kind 12,000 years ago. Anyhow, you probably won't believe me, but…I'm a Dragoon."
Marian stared at him for the longest time. "Come again?" She said in the same tone as the last time she said it.
"I'm a Dragoon, the Jade Dragoon, to be specific. I control the wind."
Marian was still frozen in place.
"I know it's hard to understand, but…"
"You're…a…Dragoon?"
"Yep. And a pretty good one, if I do say so myself."
"A Dragoon?"
"Uh huh."
"As in a Dragon Knight."
"The same."
"You possess the powers of a dragon."
"Did something not click?" Rob had to ask.
"I'm sorry." Marian shook her head. "It'd just a little…hard to believe. If you're a Dragoon…where's your Dragoon spirit?"
"It was stolen from me. But you know that shiny green thing in the alley? That was it."
Once more, she was frozen. "I…I can't believe it! You're…you're a Dragoon!"
"Yes." Robert said again.
"That's…that's amazing!"
He shrugged. "You get used to it. Oh, and the others I've told about you are also Dragoons."
"So…only they know?"
"Yeah. Only them."
Her smile lit up again. "So maybe I don't have to move after all!"
Robert nodded. "Exactly."
Marian was bouncing where she stood. "I can't believe it! Ha, ha! This is incredible!"
"It is, but listen, I gotta go meet the other Dragoons. Why don't you come with me and we'll swap stories. We kinda have a situation at hand."
"Oh, okay!" Her smile seemed nailed onto her face, but Robert noticed something.
"Here." He pulled the hood off of her head. "Looks better that way."
She blushed.
"Wingly, huh?" Ben repeated. They were at the food court at the mall. They'd all introduced each other and shared their stories. "This may help us."
Marian quickly spoke up. "If you're gonna ask me to fight, I'm going to have to decline."
"Why?"
"I'm no warrior. My powers aren't that strong."
"What about in the alley?" Rob asked. "Magic was radiating off of you!"
Her cheeks turned red. "Actually, that's an optical illusion. It's a trick I use to make an enemy think I have a lot of power."
"So then…how powerful are you?"
"What you saw in the alley is pretty much the extent."
Ben groaned. "Well…it's okay. We're all back in shape except for Sean."
"This Black Dragoon sounds like a lotta trouble."
"He is!" More than one Dragoon replied.
"If we knew who he was, this would be easier." Mike pointed out.
Ben snapped his fingers suddenly. "That's what I wanted to talk to you guys about! Melissa, he called you by name, right?"
"Yeah." She replied.
"But he didn't call me or Brad by name. He called us by our Dragoons. That may be a clue. He knows you by name."
"He also knows me by name." Robert said. "In fact, he called me 'Robbie.'"
"So he knows you both by name. What else do we know about this guy?"
"I've been thinking." Robert said. "My Dragoon Spirit was taken at some point during the basketball game. There are people watching the entrances to the locker rooms so no one went in or out. I think the thief was a basketball player."
"And another clue," Mike added, "Is that he has a thing for Melissa."
Melissa quickly shuddered, remembering the kiss, and how he'd licked her earlobe.
"So." Ben put the pieces together. "He's a basketball player, he knows Melissa by name and Rob by nickname. Plus, he has a crush on Melissa. Who does that add up to?"
They thought for a moment. Rob put his hand down on the table.
"Adam Young."
Melissa looked up him. "No way!"
"He fits every description."
"No he doesn't. He doesn't have a crush on me."
Robert laughed. "Yes he does! He can't get his mind off of you!"
Melissa was stunned. "Really?" She shook her head. "But the Black Dragoon has a completely different attitude!"
"Power changes people." Brad shrugged.
"No." Melissa couldn't believe it. "He wouldn't do that." Robert gave her a look. "Would he?"
All eyes were focused upon her. They all knew how power could change a person's personality.
Melissa stared, absorbing this. She looked down at the table, and then slammed her fist on it.
"I'm gonna KILL HIM!"
AUTHORS' NOTE: Hell hath no wrath like Melissa in a VERY bad mood. The tables have turned in favor of the Dragoons. It's time to face their enemy...in the next chapter. Only two left! What did you all think of this chapter?