Thanks for everyone for reviewing, and I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I had homework and was also writing my other fic, but at least this is done now. :) Enjoy!

Chapter 5: The Unveiling

Moordryd narrowed his eyes in determination and urged Beau ever onward. Deftly, they raced past Lance, never taking their eyes off the true prize. Passing Parm on his huge lumbering dragon was no challenge, but Moordryd spared him a silent praise. It was clear on Parm's face that he wasn't liking the speed of the race, but his willpower to try his best deserved a bit of acknowledgement. Parm had his face set in a grimace of extreme dislike and tremendous resolve as he kept a tight grip on the handles. Whether it was tightened in fear or determination, Moordryd could not say. Perhaps the egg-head wasn't as weak as he came off to be. Perhaps.

Beau lengthened his strides and Moordryd flattened himself in the saddle, allowing the whipping wind better passage over his body. Buildings lining the alley way passed by in a blur as they raced between them. Kitt remained ahead, confident on her bipedal dragon. Moordryd's mouth tightened. The sooner they got to the track, the sooner Moordryd could resume talking, learn the idiot's identity and leave. There was no reason why he couldn't force a faster pace and beat them all there.

Slightly surprised at Beau's strength and speed, Moordryd slowly closed the gap between Kitt and him. Though it wasn't easy. Kitt was one of the best racers in the All-City Circuit, and Moordryd wasn't used to this new dragon as of yet.

Glancing ahead, he could see the faint light of the endless advertisements on huge screens. The alley was coming to an end and soon they would be thrust into the light and a rather busy street. Beyond that invisible line lay the end of the race. There was absolutely no way he could coax Artha's friends into rushing through the streets. If he was to win, it had to be now.

He pushed the handles ahead, and Beau quickened his steps. He was eager to pass Wyldfyr. He was, after all, the dragon of legend.

Moordryd had his head lowered as close to Beau as he dared. He didn't want to get whacked in the chin by the saddle. Artha's helmet had no lower protection like his did. He moved with Beau as he rose and fell with his strides. They weaved between discarded boxes and junk, following the flame red dragon. He smiled in anticipation.

Suddenly, right in his face, popped up the green VIDD-screen. Surprised he jerked back, accidentally pulling the handles as he did so. Beau, upon instinct, slowed down, and nearly fell in doing so. Forced to stop in order to keep his balance, Beau stood irritably. He snorted at the sudden misunderstanding, and looked back to Parm and Lance. The race was now over, according to him.

"Artha." Connor said with authority. His tone made it clear this was not going to be a talk that allowed any such nonsense of any sort.

"What?" Moordryd said, forcing down the anger that threatened to surface through his voice. Artha sure did have a bossy father.

"Get back here now!" Yep, he sure did.

"Is there a good reason why I should?" Moordryd casually said, a bit miffed that he wasn't able to catch up to Kitt.

Connor sighed. "You must get back here, there is danger!"

"Danger?" Parm inquired as he pulled up beside Beau on Cyrano. Frachsun wasn't far behind.

"Artha, I want you and your friends here now! There isn't much time. He's coming to Mid City, even as we speak." Connor's worried and hurried voice set Moordryd at unease. Lance shifted in his saddle at his father's words.

"Who?" Moordryd asked as Kitt rode up. She opened her mouth to question the delay, but shut it after a look at their faces.

"Deth, I fear."

"Death? Death has come to Dragon City?" Lance quivered. "We're going to die?"

"What? No, no. Deth is the name of an ancient mag warrior who has been lost for thousands of years. I've sensed his huge output of black mag energy."

"You…sensed his mag energy?" Moordryd said, alarmed. How on earth could Artha's old man do that?

"Yes. Much like Armaggeddon's. He's not as dangerous as him, but still a formidable enemy, even for me." Connor's explanation help none and made Moordryd even more confused.

Connor saw his son's confused face. "Just get back here, quickly. Before he comes. Deth has only one purpose in mind, to destroy the Dragon Booster." The VIDD-screen winked out of existence leaving the four riders to stare at the spot it had been. Fracshun whimpered softly.

"That doesn't sound good." Lance said in a small voice. Moordryd glanced around at the others.

"We should get back." Kitt said, breaking the silence.

"Uh, yeah. Right." Parm said, apparently coming out of a stupor. "Before Det..De…oh why do all the powerful mag warriors have such frightening names?"

"I think it's drac." Lance piped up, the seriousness of the situation suddenly lost on him.

"It's not drac, it's…it's…worrisome." Parm took hold of the handles and turned Cyrano around.

"It's a rule, professor," said Kitt, "If you're one of the bad guys you have to have an evil sounding name." She smirked playfully at his grimace. "You wouldn't want to get beat up by someone called…"

"Newt Brain!" Lance called out.

"…uh, okay. Someone with a name like that now would you?"

"Well, no…" Parm said, getting her point.

"Knowing you it's all too likely." Moordryd said. He grinned at Parm's open mouthed astonishment.

"What? Are you insinuating that I'm…."

"We should really head back now." Kitt interrupted, hoping to avoid any unnecessary arguing. "Connor sounded really serious, and," she said to Parm, "with a name like Deth, I'm assuming he's pretty bad news." She looked him in the eyes and he nodded, understanding her meaning. Even though Artha was acting like a jerk this afternoon, he was still his best friend and Parm couldn't hold it against him if he had a bad day. He sighed and Cyrano lurched forward at a quick pace. Lance and Fracshun bounded along beside him.

"Come on, hero boy. We're all in danger." Kitt said somberly. Moordryd contemplated her words as Wyldfyr rushed after the others. His father probably hadn't anticipated this. But it could work out in his favor. He would go back with them and they would surely meet up with the Dragon Booster. Moordryd could learn his identity there. The Dragon Booster did, after all, have to stop Deth. He chuckled softly. His father wouldn't have to deal with the Dragon Blunder, Deth would finish him off for him.

Beau's eyes narrowed in suspicion as Artha seemingly chuckled at nothing. What in the Magna Draconis could be so funny at a time like this? He had to fight Deth, and he found this amusing? Beau snorted and wheeled around to catch up with the others.

Moordryd barely caught the handles in time to steady himself. He hated it when Penn's dragon did that.

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Word glared at the monitors, fists tightly curled in anger. Where was that son of his? How hard was it to find the Dragon Booster's identity, concealed as one of his friends? In rage, he slammed one of his fists against a screen. It wobbled, but soon steadied itself. The image flickered then sprang back to life. Word sighed in exasperation. Suddenly something on the flickering screen caught his eye, and he leaned in closer for a better look.

The camera on the wraith dragon he had sent to find his son had found something else.

"Excellent." He mused as he saw the figure racing through the streets. "At least I've found you."

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Decepshun bounded down all and every single short cut Artha could think of. He had to get to the track. He had to find Moordryd. But for all he knew, Moordryd could be racing back to his father and he would miss him. He just had to find his friends and ask whether they've seen him.

At his urging, Decepshun went faster. She grinned. She liked to go fast, and the garbage that littered this alleyway made for great obstacles. She changed her course to go leaping over the ones that were out of her way.

Artha frowned at Moordryd's dragon. "No, no playing. Stop jumping over the trash." With a firm hand he forced her down the middle and insisted her to go faster. She complied, realizing that Moordryd was indeed in a hurry. Though it would've helped if he told her where and why. She silently fumed.

Artha kept his eyes ahead. Get to the track and hope they were there. They rushed out of the alley and headed down a drag way, which, to Artha's extreme relief, was nearly empty. "WOAH!" He said suddenly. Decepshun skidded to a halt in the middle of the bridge. At his insistence she walked over to the side.

Artha leaned over and smiled at the sight. He found them again! They were speeding down an alleyway below him. Hopefully they wouldn't run away again. At a rather quick pace, they were headed back to…Penn Stables? Cyrano was running as fast as Parm would allow him to go. Lance, Kitt and Beau were right beside him. Artha glared at his body. Paynn was really going to get it.

He checked the distance from the drag way he was on to the alleyway beneath. Decepshun should be able to jump down safely. "Uh, time to catch Penn!" He said with mock enthusiasm. Decepshun turned from looking at her rider to the figures below. She snorted in understanding. Artha made a mental note to himself that Decepshun was smarter than the average dragon. He could use that to his advantage.

All of a sudden, a threatening growl made Decepshun forget about the jump down. She growled dangerously at the familiar sound. She faced the sound as Artha peered around. He couldn't see what had made the sound. There was nothing on the drag way except for him. Decepshun warily backed up. Then Artha understood. Wraith dragon.

Decepshun snorted at the wraith, dismissing it. After all, Word's wraith were everywhere and wouldn't attack Moordryd and her. Artha, on the other hand, swallowed hard. Word must have found him. And was now planning to do away with him. Wait a minute. Word wouldn't attack his son's body, would he? Moordryd had to use this later.

The heavy footsteps of the wraith suddenly increased as it sped towards them. Then again, Artha wasn't eager to find out. He turned Decepshun in the opposite direction and raced away from the incoming dragon. The wraith ran faster and gained ground.

Artha glanced ahead and noticed a gap in the buildings where the bridge ended. Turning Decepshun sharply, he careened in between the buildings. As his tension, impatience and anxiety all fought each other inside him, he realized too late the hastiness of his decision.

As soon as he entered the tiny alleyway, he noticed how dangerous it was, for a racing dragon. Huge piles of junk and who knows what lay scattered about. "Woah!" He cried as Decepshun ran into the impossible obstacle course. She hit the stacks of junk and fell, throwing Artha off in the process.

After the world decided to stop flipping and jumping about, Artha opened his eyes blearily. He was laying on his back on a pile of boxes and crates. Mounds of rubbish loomed over him as he glanced around for Decepshun, his eyes meeting the wraith instead.

It had turned off its cloaking device and was smiling in Artha's face, ready to strike. With no further delay, it's jaws suddenly snapped at his right arm, intending to drag him back to Word.

Artha braced himself for the screaming pain he knew would ensue as the wraith's teeth locked onto his arm. But instead, the wraith reared back as soon as it's teeth met with his arm, shrieking with pain. It had closed it's jaws on Artha's arm too fast and with too much force, the combination of which nearly broke its teeth.

As it roared and Artha stared in amazement, Decepshun bounded at the wraith from within the heaps of garbage. She swung her front paw and hit the defenseless wraith, sending it toppling back onto the street. Decepshun quickly magged her rider and raced past the wraith back to the bridge. She easily jumped down and ran off in the direction the Penns had gone earlier.

Artha looked over his shoulder. The bridge was quickly fading out of sight. No wraith followed. Artha then grabbed the handles, relaxing with the fact he was in control and headed after Paynn. Decepshun grinned up at him. She was having fun now.

Why in the Magna Draconis hadn't his arm been impaled by the wraith's teeth? Artha asked himself. He lifted Moordryd's jacket's sleeve. What he found shocked him, and all he could do was be thankful for a black draconium gauntlet, of which no mark was left by the dragon's teeth.

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As Penn Stables reared into view, the four friends slowed down their hurried pace. Looking ahead, Moordryd could see Connor waiting at the entrance to the stables. Pacing back and forth, he seemed overwhelmed with worry. He looked up as they finally approached, relief washing over his tired face.

"Wow, you seemed pretty worried there." Kitt said as a remark at his expression. They all stopped before him.

Connor sighed, "I don't think any of you realize the seriousness of this situation."

"How serious is it?" Lance asked, leaning forward on Frachsun as they stood beside his father.

"Deth is an ancient mag warrior like Armaggeddon. In the past, he was the second in command of the black draconium empire, second only to Armaggeddon." He glanced around, making sure they were all paying close attention. Moordryd found himself riveted by his tale. Someone as strong as Armaggeddon? He wondered what was in store for the future.

Connor continued, "though he wasn't as strong as Armaggeddon, he was one of the leading mag warriors of that time. After Armaggeddon was locked in the Shadow Track Deth took over the empire. He was much more aggressive and ruthless. Whereas Armaggeddon specialized in planning and tactics, Deth specialized in brutality. And now he has come here."

Moordryd then understood. One ancient mag warrior was bad enough, but two? Warriors who might either band together or fight against each other. Moordryd didn't know which would be worse. He glanced at Parm, and was vaguely surprised he hadn't run under a rock yet.

"Bru…br…brutality? He's here? Magna Draconis, do you realize how astronomical the odds are of having two mag warriors here…and what are we going to do?" Parm quivered.

"He also has a personal grudge against the Dragon Booster, and I'm assuming unlike Armaggeddon, he'll stop at nothing to kill the Dragon Booster. Which is why he's on his way here now." Connor said in a toneless voice.

"He's going to zone in for the kill right away, won't he?" Kitt said in a near whisper.

Connor nodded his head stiffly. "We have to be prepared for the worst." He turned to his eldest son. "We can't let Deth make it to Mid City. With all the dangerous mag moves he'll pull out, there'll be many deaths. He's in Precinct at the moment, just entering Work Town."

"Can't the DCS do anything?" Kitt asked.

"The DCS will have enough on their hands with the panic and destruction Deth will cause. Artha and I will lead Deth into the Old City, as far away as possible from places where he can cause serious injury."

Moordryd, who had idly been inspecting his fingers, looked up sharply. As far as he was concerned, when Deth arrived, the Dragon Booster would get his butt kicked and Moordryd would watch from a decent place. "What? You and me? Shouldn't the Dragon Booster handle this? Speaking of which, where is he?" He quickly asked, and glanced around. The others stared at him.

"Artha," Connor, thinking his son frightened, said slowly, "I'll be with you." Moordryd stared back at him. No way was he going to face this Deth.

"Yeah, but…."

"It's okay to be afraid." Connor reassured his son.

"But…."

"Just stay ahead of him and lead him to the Old City."

"I know….

"I'll take it from there."

"But why me? Shouldn't the…."

"Artha, being the Dragon Booster requires courage in the face of danger."

"…."

Connor sighed. "I know you can do this. You have already showed the necessary skills when facing Drakkus. I need you to do this. I won't let anything happen to you." Moordryd continued staring at this potentially delusional old man.

Kitt smiled over at Artha. "Yeah, stable boy, we'll be right behind you…" Connor glared at Kitt and shook his head slightly, "…at a safe distance?" At Connor's nod she continued, somewhat depressed. "Deth doesn't stand a chance against the Dragon Booster and Mortis."

Lance nodded his small head eagerly. "You'll kick his scales so hard he'll…."

"Lance." Connor said in a stern tone.

"Uh, you'll just beat him good!" Lance smiled. Parm nodded in agreement from Cyrano.

"But…I…I've…" Moordryd stuttered. "I…I'm…." The others looked at him expectantly. He couldn't be the Dragon Booster! He wasn't going to face off against Deth, and have his father perhaps attack him, not knowing Moordryd was in the suit.

"You put the amulet into the gauntlet…." Lance said slowly, demonstrating as he did so. "And then you shout, 'release the dragon!'"

"Umm…." Moordryd said as he broke out into a sweat and put a hand on the amulet hanging around his neck. Him? The Dragon Booster? Not now he wasn't. "But I'm not…."

"Hold it right there!" Came a voice so horribly familiar to Moordryd. This day just kept getting better and better. He turned around to face the newcomer and his dragon. Decepshun snorted at the Penn family as Moordryd frantically thought what to do.