Far out dudes and dudettes, we made it to the end at last. I just checked the publication date of the first chapter and it was 362 days ago; 3 days shy of a full year. So if you started back then and got this far, I applaud you. I don't know if anyone else picked up my error in the last chapter but the Florida Guest sure did; I had originally credited a line to Calla when it was said by Abigail. Not the first time I've made that kind of mistake but I usually catch it in the re-writes.

I do hope you like the ending but if you don't, just remember the deleted first draft ending from two chapters ago was far worse (trust me on this).

Chapter 68

Captain Georgette Debar stood alone of the bridge of the Striker, pouring over charts of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. She could not simply reverse the course her vessel had taken from Europe to Sumatra because of the various ocean currents she had to take into account. The only really major change Debar had to worry about was how far off the African west coast the Striker needed to sail to obtain the most advantage, but minor course corrections before and after that single leg could still save them almost a day at sea by the end of their journey.

Her ships short stay tied up to the huge tanker in Sumatra had brought even more modifications from the railgun staff, the most notable of which was that the rear deck had been converted into what could only be referred to as a dragon hanger. Although five large dragons had been more than the Striker could handle for long periods, the new three dragon crew could easily be accommodated. With the new course almost plotted, Debar ignored the bridge crew as they entered and started up the ships systems; at least until one of them spoke to her.

"Captain, Spencer and Dias have come to see you off" Peter Moke informed her.

"Show them in please" she replied.

With all the changes made to the huge sea tug by Sarah's people, a few technicians from the railgun complex had volunteered to join the latest crew rotation to provide maintenance expertise and support for the Striker, and Peter had been one of them. While Sarah and April went over the last of the alterations with the vessels captain, Calla, Windstorm and Speedy were just arriving back at the tanker after their morning flight. Doctor Vieira had forbidden Blue from dragon riding until he felt confident the young man's leg had healed enough not to risk tearing his stitches.

"Hi Mom, hi Dad" she smiled upon seeing her parents waiting for her.

With the Striker about to depart, Calla knew her parents would be down to see her off, even though she and the other Dragon Riders would not leave for almost an hour after the ship. With her dragons following along, the three Linwoods took a walk up the beach to talk and just enjoy these last few hours together. At first they strolled along in silence just enjoying each other company, until Ursula spoke a few minutes later.

"We're both very proud of you Calla" she said.

"Thanks Mom."

"I know I... over reacted back when I first saw the dragon... and your um..."

"My burn scar?"

"Yes... I'm sorry I falsely blamed your dragon."

"Windstorm Mom" Calla smiled.

"Yes... Windstorm" Ursula nodded.

"It's okay Mom; I'm not happy about the scar of course but I'm learning to live with it; I'm just glad it isn't on the front of my face. On the side I can partially hide it with my hair, and Blue certainly helped; it doesn't worry him at all."

"Ah yes... Blue... you two have gotten pretty close" Ursula said nervously.

"Yeah... it's been great working with him and uh... I think he's the one for me" Calla blushed.

"Even though you tried to kill him recently?" Maynard half joked.

"Not funny Dad" Calla sneered.

"Maybe not; but even though you've come a long way, I'm hoping you will try harder to control that temper of yours in the future."

"I will Dad... funny thing is Saffron told me they had a name for people like me back on ancient Berk; we were called Berserkers. Calm and normal most of the time but prone to bouts of absolute fury when challenged; but please don't worry Dad, I really am working on it."

"Well they say admitting you have a problem is the first step to defeating it" Ursula noted "now if I can only get your father to admit his problems..."

"Not funny Dear" Maynard said.

"Yes it was Dad" Calla disagreed.

"Now Calla, about you and Blue..." Ursula changed the subject "...are you two..."

"In love? I think we are" Calla admitted with a smile.

"No dear I meant have you... and he... ever... um..."

"Kissed? Of course we have Mom."

"Kissed... yes... but what I mean is... have you... erm..."

"NO MOM!"

Calla tried to laugh off her mother's question, but then she suddenly realised something; if she and Blue had been excessively intimate, would she even have the nerve to tell her parents?

"Oh... good... I mean..."

"It's okay Mom; we haven't made plans or anything, but I suppose sometime in the future..."

"Please dear, don't say any more" Ursula didn't want to think about it.

"You're mothers been very worried" Maynard admitted.

"Now that I've gotten to know Windstorm, I'm beginning to see what wonderful protection she provides for you" Ursula admitted.

"Yeah I'm really lucky Blue gave her to me" Calla looked over at the Nadder.

"Oh... I didn't know he'd given her to you; so he wanted the black one did he?" Ursula asked.

"No; he didn't know about Speedy then, Blue was trying to avoid taking on a single dragon himself until he had helped the rest of us to get used to them."

"I suppose after seeing you blasted off in to space last year, somehow travelling with a dragon doesn't seem quite as bad. At least we're all still on the same planet but I must admit though, I still wish you were staying here with us."

"We've got an important job to do Mom" Calla insisted.

"Indeed you do... just another reason why we are so proud of you" Maynard nodded.

"How long do you think it will be before you or Blue will be able to meet up with Emerson and Harriet?" Ursula asked with concern.

"She prefers to be called Doom" Calla corrected her mother.

"Sorry but I refuse to call my daughter in law, and the mother of my first grandchild, Doom" Ursula insisted.

"Okay, it's your funeral" Calla shrugged "It won't be in the immediate future, we've got too much ground to cover so I'm guessing around six months; but don't worry, they can keep in contact and they're safe for now."

"For now?" Ursula repeated.

"Forget I said that."

When they arrived back at the ramp, Calla excused herself so she could make final preparations before departure. She was particularly worried about poor Spud, since Shifty had never gone on any long dragon trips before.

"I'll see you up on the helipad before I go" Calla said as she hugged her parents.

While Maynard and Ursula climbed the stairs to the main deck, Calla made her way deep into the hold to her bunk with Windstorm and Speedy still at her heels. They had not gone very far however when Speedy started sniffing the air and getting very excited.

"What's up with you" Calla asked, but she soon realised what it must be when the Night Fury ran on ahead.

Sure enough a little further on, they came across Blue doing some final packing of his own.

"Babe you're back" Calla smiled "What did Doctor Vieira say?"

"Well the good news is he's given me, Haley and Boris the all clear to take off again" Blue nodded.

"And the bad news?"

"I'll have to take my own stitches out in about a week" Blue admitted "He said I'm welcome to stay so he can do it, but I think we'd better get going before Haley decides she can't wait any longer and takes off alone."

"I'm still wondering if my team should be the ones with the Striker as a backup vessel; it seems to me that you and Haley need it more" Calla said with concern.

"Oh I feel pretty sure we'll be okay with Speedy and Boris" Blue took her hands in his "Plus I don't think your parents would be so understanding about your team leaving without a support ship, and you'll need to have Captain Debar close by to back you up if Shifty gets into any trouble."

"True... and being French she may be a voice of reason in Lyon as well" Calla agreed.

"Also I've got these" Blue held out a small package.

"Letters?" Calla said after looking inside.

"My Mom got our captive raiders to write them to their families back in California, telling them that although they failed, there is still a trip to Mars waiting for them if they want to come. Hopefully an offer like that will go a long way to healing the rift between us."

"I hope you're right" Calla nodded, giving back the letters.

They both fell silent for a moment before falling into each other's arms.

"I'll miss you" Calla admitted as they embraced.

"I don't know why; your aim has been pretty good in the past" Blue chuckled.

"You had to go there, didn't you?" Calla smirked and thumped her fist lightly on his chest.

"Could let the opportunity go by... but seriously, I'll miss you too."

"Then practice" Calla replied as she lifted her lips to meet his.

The muffled sound of the Strikers horn echoed inside the hull, telling them it was almost time to leave.

"There goes Debar and the crew, so I guess we'd better get the dragons saddled" Blue sighed.

"Five more minutes" Calla insisted.

It was closer to fifteen minutes before an excited Night Fury finally flew out of the tanker with a Deadly Nadder only half a second behind. As they circled back high over the ship, Blue and Calla could see the stern helipad with Abigail and Gage on Lucy and Ricky, while April, Sarah and Calla's parents stood nearby. Meanwhile the rest of the dragons were perched with their riders on top of the ships superstructure, looking like an odd bunch of nautical gargoyles; then as they brought their dragons down onto the pad, Firefly and Daisy swooped down to join their partners.

"About time you two got here; where have you been?" Sarah Spencer asked.

"Where do you think they were?" Abigail responded first "They were probably down in the hold saying goodbye with their lips."

"Abby, not in front of Calla's parents" Blue angrily whispered to his sister.

"I wouldn't worry too much Blue" Calla shrugged "Mom and Dad already suspected we were having s..."

"CALLA!" Ursula snapped as she turned red.

"Okay everybody, lets calm down" April asked "and Abby, don't think I'll forget about your little outburst before you get back."

"Sorry Mom... I was just tired of waiting" Abigail admitted.

"Well now that everything is awkward, I guess this is goodbye" Blue admitted as he went to hug his mother."

"Take good care of yourself" April told him.

"And you give little Rosie a kiss from me" he replied.

"Here's a satellite radio for you" Sarah said as she handed the device over "Haley has a small solar panel in her pack to charge it."

"Thanks; we'll do our best to track down any useful gear when we get the chance" Blue nodded.

"No hurry, you can do all that when you've got all the important tasks done first" Sarah replied.

Having kissed her mother and father goodbye, Calla climbed back into her saddle, prompting Abigail and Gage to do the same.

"See ya Babe" she smiled with sadness in her eyes before urging Windstorm into the sky.

Seeing their teenage daughter fly off on her dragon was something the Linwoods never thought they would experience, and doubted they would ever get used to. Blue then wandered over to the Linwoods with Speedy trotting along behind; the dragon was happy to see them again and even begged for a chin scratch.

"I think you've made a friend for life there" Blue smiled as Maynard obliged the big black dragon.

"They're amazingly easy to please" Maynard noted "Are all dragons like that?"

"Unfortunately no, but we know which ones to avoid."

"I just want you to know, we're grateful for the way you've helped Calla with her dragon" Ursula nodded.

"I probably shouldn't ask but... are you okay with me and Calla..."

"Yes" Maynard replied placing his hand on Blue's shoulder "we were just talking to Doctor Spencer about how well she and Professor Adisa had raised you so well, and your mother agrees."

"The Professor was a good man" Blue nodded.

"The best" Maynard added.

"Indeed he was" Ursula agreed as she took her turn to hug the young man.

They all waited as the boy got onto his dragon and just as they had done with Calla, the small group watched him lift off into the sky. Looking to the west, Blue could barely see the Striker as it sailed towards the horizon with Calla's riders flying towards it.

"Ready to go at last?" Haley asked as she, Boris and Ginger Nut flew up to join him.

"Yeah sorry, it's hard to say goodbye" Blue admitted.

"That's why I said farewell to my Dad after breakfast" Haley smirked.

"Yes you're very smart, now let's go; I'd like to reach the Philippines before nightfall."

'

'

With Blue and Haley now flying northeast overland, Sarah Spencer picked up her two-way radio as she and April Dias smiled at each other.

"Okay, they're gone; send in the machines."

"Machines?" Maynard and Ursula asked, confused.

"Yes" Sarah winked "come and see."

It had been a long walk down the length of the ship to see their daughter off, and now the Linwoods had to do the journey all over again in reverse as April and Sarah took them back to the bow of the vessel. By the time they arrived, about a dozen large pieces of construction and earthmoving equipment were already hard at work, moving tonnes of sand and rock down the beach on both sides of the ship.

"What on Earth is going on here?" Maynard gasped.

"April and I decided we needed more than just the Striker and the One and All if we were going to proceed much further with Earth evacuation, so we talked to Blue about him taking Sage's flagship in the future as both a floating base for his dragon team, and transport for people and equipment we need" Sarah began.

"Makes good sense" Ursula nodded.

"Yes but Blue pointed out that rather than a naval vessel, he would be better off with a freighter like one of the old tramp steamers from your fleet. We could see the advantages to Blue's idea so while he is away, we're going to prepare the best transport and dragon base we can for him" Sarah concluded.

"Wonderful idea; you can count on our help" Maynard agreed "Which ship do you intend to use?"

The smirks on faces of April and Sarah should have been a clue.

"You're standing on it" April winked.

'

'

And so the time has come for us to say goodbye till I'm next ready to start publishing. This book has been quite an emotional roller-coaster for me and I really appreciate the calming messages I have received regularly from some of my readers. I realise I've said it before but you do deserve to be thanked again as I retreat back into the solitary world of writing once again for an indeterminate time.

Cheers to the story reviewers Vin, Draco38 and the Florida Guest; although we tend to indulge in chatting rather than reviewing. That's okay with me though because I have thoroughly enjoyed catching up with you all again.

Here's to the future and farewell for now...

Marty the Martian (and Boo Cat).