Early in the morning after Katy and Meghan had gotten their breakfast ration, they went outside to find a lot of people congregating in front of Van Zan. They started listening to him and neither liked where the conversation was going.

"There's nothing magical about 'em!" Van Zan barked. "They're made up of a collection of organs. They have a mind, a heart, and a liver. You take out one of these, you bring down the beast!"

Some men, including Creedy, stepped forward to help kill the dragons.

"Is that it?" Van Zan scoffed. "Four of you?"

Creedy turned around and noticed that Eddie had stepped forward. "Eddie," he said in disbelief. "Eddie, what are you doing? You got kids, man."

"That's why I'm going, Creedy," Eddie replied. "That's why."

"The volunteer section of this campaign's now over," Van Zan said. "It's time for the draft. Tito, Mead, get the six strongest men they have and load 'em up. Dig your own holes. Die in 'em." He stepped down from his high perch and began to pack everything he needed.

"Oy! I said no!"

Meghan turned around to find Quinn running towards Van Zan.

"No, Quinn!" Creedy shouted.

Quinn rammed Van Zan in the jaw and the two started tackling each other, each trying to get the upper hand. It didn't take long for Van Zan to throw endless punches at Quinn and get him on the ground. Both men were dripping bright red blood by the time some men came and pried them apart.

"I'll kill ya!" Quinn screamed over and over again. "I'll kill ya! He's gonna bring it back here!"

"Quinn!" Meghan cried running over to him as he tried to struggle out of the grasps of the men holding him. She said nothing, but just gently put her hands on his shoulders. Almost instantly, he began to calm down and the men released him.

Van Zan took off while Quinn sat down on a rock with Meghan next to him. Alex walked over to them.

"He would have killed you," she said. "He doesn't feel things. That's the only way
he can do what he does. Here." She handed him a bottle. "Take this. Iodine. Hurts a ton, but it kills anything." She rubbed a cut on his lip softly, and Meghan couldn't help but feel a surge of jealousy sweep through her. Alex was too close to him for comfort. "Good luck, Quinn."

Meghan and Quinn headed back into the castle to bandage him up. They went to the water basin and Meghan grabbed a couple of bandages. Quinn whipped his shirt off in order to get to the cuts easier. There was a huge gash on his forearm that looked pretty painful. Meghan turned a very bright red when she saw his toned body, but tried to hide it. She took a deep breath and picked up the bottle.

"Ready?" she asked.

"Do it," Quinn replied.

Meghan opened the bottle and poured its contents on the wound. Quinn tensed up and winced hard, but remained quiet. "I'm sorry," she said softly. She quickly put a bandage over top of the gash. The two of them ended up meeting eyes, and Meghan nervously began biting her lip. His eyes were a beautiful green color. She hadn't noticed that before, even when they did Tarzan together. Likewise, Quinn saw that her eyes were a gorgeous blue, the color of the ocean.

They were forced out of their daze when Jared walked down the stairs.

"You too busy to say goodbye?" Quinn asked.

"You're not my father," Jared answered sharply. "You can't stop me, Quinn. I can be an archangel. Gideon says he'll teach me."

"17 seconds. Did he tell you that's how long they live?"

"Not the good ones. Gideon's an 8-year veteran. At least they're still killing them."

"A couple of years, Jared. That's all I'm asking for. Give me that. After that, you'll be old enough, and you can lead 'em. That's what I want. Out of everyone, you're the best."

"It's a waste of time, Quinn. All of it."

"You're right. I'm not your father. I can't…lock you in. I can't make you stay. And if you think you're man enough to speak like that, then I guess you're man enough to go. Goodbye, Jared. You look after yourself."

Jared took off up the steps leaving Quinn and Meghan alone. Meghan was still blushing at his shirtless-ness though she was a bit upset about Jared's departure.

"I should, uh, go check on the kids," she stuttered.

"Yeah," Quinn mumbled. "You…go do that."

Meghan headed up trying to get the butterflies out of her stomach.

She ran into Katy on the way to the shelter where all the kids were. "You were just with Quinn, weren't you?" she asked with a smirk.

"Why?"

"Because I've never seen your face so red."

"I was just…helping him with his cut that he got from Van Zan. And, um, he may have shirtless."

Katy's mouth dropped open. "You got to see Quinn shirtless? As if these girls weren't jealous enough of you already."

Meghan couldn't help but laugh at her comment.

"Jackson's been looking for you," Katy continued.

Meghan headed into the shelter and almost immediately, Jackson ran up to her and jumped into her arms. "Where have you been, Meggy?"

"Quinn wasn't feeling good, so this time, I helped him."

"Are you and Mr. Quinn in love?"

"Jackson, you've already asked me that, and I told you we're not in love."

"Meggy? Why is your face getting red?"

Meghan laughed awkwardly. "Because…because it's hot in here."

"I think you like Mr. Quinn."

"I do not."

"Yes, you do! I'm going to tell him!"

"You are most certainly not! And if you do, you know what's gonna happen?"

"What?"

"You're going to get a visit from the Tickle-Monster!" Meghan began chasing him around the room and when she caught him, she began tickling him as he cried out for mercy. She didn't relent until he promised to not tell Quinn that she liked him.

Katy, Meghan, and other girls stayed with all the kids to comfort them since they were all still a bit shaken up at the cause for their new sleeping arrangements.

Towards nighttime when the sky had turned to a navy blue, Meghan heard a sound that sent a chill up her spine. When she looked over at Katy, she knew she had heard it too. A dragon was approaching the castle.

And not just any dragon. Meghan realized that when Quinn attacked Van Zan earlier, it was because Van Zan was going after one of the big dragons. Meghan knew that every time someone tried to do that, it killed everyone then backtracked to where the group the people came from lived and killed them all as well. Quinn had been right. Van Zan had brought the dragon back to the castle.

They were in serious trouble.

Suddenly, fire filled the castle in several locations and the place quickly began to crumble. The kids began screaming and running around in a panic. All of the older girls tried to round them up to get them down to their safe haven below the ground where they would be safe from the dragon.

"Meggy!" Jackson said clinging to her. "I'm scared!"

"I know," Meghan answered as she picked him up and pressed him close to her chest. "I am too."

Creedy showed up and began barking orders to get to the shelter below. He then ran up some stairs to get some other kids who were too afraid to come by themselves. Nearly everyone was down in the shelter, but Meghan hung back to wait for Creedy and was pleased to find out that Jared had stayed and was helping them all.

"Jared!" Quinn screamed as he ran into the castle. "Creedy!"

"Quinn!" Jared and Meghan exclaimed at the same time. Quinn looked at them, fear etched in all three pairs of eyes.

Creedy came running to join them carrying a little girl in his arms.

"Have you got them all?" Quinn asked him.

"Creedy, help!" a young boy shouted, answering Quinn's question for Creedy.

"I'll get him!" Quinn shouted as he bounded up the stairs. "You take them downstairs! Hurry up! That big boy won't stop until he's killed us all!"

Creedy ran downstairs, but Meghan and Jared hung back to make sure Quinn was alright. He came downstairs with a little boy and girl on each shoulder. Jared took the boy and they all started running to get downstairs.

"I've got all the kids!" Creedy said to Quinn.

Everyone scooted back as much as possible to allow as much room as they could and get away from the flames. Meghan heard the sound of the dragon roar above them. Jackson clung onto her tighter and Meghan did the same.

Quinn turned on the sprinklers to try to douse the fires that were tearing the castle apart. Everyone got drenched very fast from the falling water, but it felt good because all of them were burning up.

Meghan set Jackson down as her arms were tired from holding him up, but she still clung onto him tightly.

"Where is everyone?!" Quinn screamed to Creedy.

"Don't you go up there, Quinn!" Creedy yelled back.

"There's 65 people up there, Creedy! I'm going!"

Quinn tried to go back up, but Creedy grabbed him. "Don't you dare leave! It's too dangerous! I'll clean it up!"

Creedy left and Quinn tossed him a fire extinguisher. Meghan watched him go and she felt Jackson turn around to look at the man departing.

A huge blast of fire suddenly flooded all the passages within the castle walls.

"Mr. Creedy!" Jackson cried. He wrenched himself out of Meghan's arms and ran to the door.

"JACKSON!" Meghan screamed at the top of her lungs. Jackson ran into Creedy's arms. The last thing Meghan saw of either of them was the fire from the dragon coming towards them as Creedy tightly held onto Jackson. The door slammed shut, locking everyone inside…and Jackson and Creedy outside where the fire had undoubtedly consumed them.

Quinn ran up to the door, but fell back when it slammed on him. Meghan got to the door second and began banging on it with all her might.

"NO!" she screamed. "NO! JACKSON! NO!"

Quinn came next to her and banged on the door screaming Creedy's name while Meghan began sobbing for Jackson.

Every single person in the room, especially all of the children, were screaming and crying over the loss of Creedy and Jackson.

Meghan couldn't breathe. She sank down against the door, her body numb.

Quinn walked over to them and said quietly, "What do we do when we wake?"

"Keep both eyes on the sky," the kids replied tearfully with one young voice missing.

"What do we do…what do we…" Quinn couldn't finish as he began crying.

"What do we do when we sleep?" one woman finished for him.

"Keep one eye on the sky."

"What do we do when we see him?"

"Dig hard, dig deep, run for shelter, and never look back."

Not a single eye was dry in the crumbled remains of the castle.