Eugene's Dream Team
It had been about a week since the riders broke up. Each of them spent their days doing their own thing. D'Angelo spend all his time in the Dragon Hospital, Alex stayed in her dome either playing games on her tablet or playing card games with her family, Eugene often wandered about bored, Tom and Jun were the only two that still hung out with each other. They spent their time reading Jun's books on Norse mythology. The dragons stayed with their respective riders, but still socialized often. Edelweiss and her dragons took turns watching Buzzsaw's camp. Black Widow's sister Eclipse had come back to help when she heard the riders had split up and were no longer fighting Buzzsaw.
Edelweiss and Black Widow rode back to the silver cabin one morning. They had just finished their night shift watching Buzzsaw's camp. They glided over the town, spotting Jun sitting on the roof of her dome reading her book. Soon they reached the cabin. Plowhorn was sunning herself outside the Dragon Hospital. She sat up when Black Widow landed next to her.
"Morning guys," she said.
"Hi Plow," Edelweiss said. "Anything new up here?"
"Not really," said Plowhorn. "Two Vine Tails came here, one with a wing cramp. Anything new with Buzzsaw?"
"So far no," said Black Widow. "We've sprung more of his traps and freed several dragons, but that's it." Edelweiss rode her dragon right into the hospital and dismounted. D'Angelo was at one end attending to the Vine Tails, who were rather restless. Edelweiss yawned as she unbuckled Black Widow's saddle.
"Long night?" D'Angelo asked.
"Yeah," Edelweiss said. "And very boring." She pulled the saddle off and put in a near by saddle rack.
"I could use a hand with this," D'Angelo said. Edelweiss gave Black Widow a pat on the neck, then went over.
Black Widow headed back out, and down into the Lair for a soak in the spring. She saw Eugene and Webbmaster in the Lair, looking bored as always. She paid them no heed and glided right to the spring.
"Hey Black Widow," Webbs said. The black dragon nodded her response. She waded into the water, and heated it up with her breath. "I'm guessing you didn't see much action last night."
"Correct," said Black Widow, rolling onto her back.
"Ever since the riders split, things have gotten so boring," said Webbmaster.
"I agree," said Black Widow. "Something will come up, I'm sure of it."
"Where's your sister?" Webbmaster asked.
"She likes watching the humans of Rekketown," Black Widow said. "Now that she knows they aren't out to get us." Webbmaster looked over at his rider who looked really bored. The dragon went over and nudged him.
"Yeah I miss flying around, exploring, going on missions," Eugene said grumpily. He looked Webbs in the eye, the dragon croaked. "You think we should round up the gang and go on a mission?" Eugene considered.
In the Dragon Hospital; the Vine Tails were running around the space. One of them snatched D'Angelo's stethoscope. The two little dragons tossed it back and forth, dodging D'Angelo trying to get it back.
"Oh come on, you're messing with sensitive medical equipment," D'Angelo said, sounding frustrated. He looked over at Edelweiss, who was trying not to laugh. "What are you laughing at?"
"Don't give yourself a migraine D'Angelo," Edelweiss said casually. "They're just playing." She went over to a stack of crates and opened one of them. She pulled out two small, red, pumpkin-like fruits from the Nature Realm. She then juggled them, which caught the attention of the Vine Tails. They instantly dropped the stethoscope. Edelweiss then tossed them the fruits. Just then the big door was thrown wide open by Eugene, and the Vine Tails got riled up again.
"Hey you guys want to go flying?" Eugene asked.
"Close the doors they're get out!" D'Angelo exclaimed. But then the Vine Tails jumped over Eugene and out the door. Edelweiss instantly ran after them.
In the town; Jun sat on the roof of her dome reading her Norse book. She looked up at Eclipse who was circling low over the domes. Jun turned to the page in the book which talked about Midgard, the realm of mankind. Suddenly Tom climbed up to join her on the roof.
"Hey," he said happily. "What are you up to?"
"Oh not much," Jun sighed playfully. "Just reading up on Midgard. I'm still sure Edelweiss and her dragons might have come from there." She then spotted the look on Tom's face. He seemed to be looking off in a random direction, as though he were distracted by something. "What are you looking at?" Tom shook himself.
"I was thinking," he said. "We've never been on an official date yet. I mean yeah, we read books together and that's great." Then Thunder landed on the dome carrying basket in his teeth."
"Thunder, why do you have a picnic basket?" Jun asked.
"I was hoping we could go on a picnic," Tom said. "I mean if you want to. If you want to continue reading that fine too." Jun suddenly threw her arms around him, catching him off guard. Then they got on their dragons and took off, heading for the Realms.
Eugene and Webbmaster landed near the edge of the fissure. Eugene paced around pouting.
"What a bunch of lamos," he said. "Who need them anyways? We should go on a mission by ourselves." Webbmaster looked at him, slightly concerned. He would have objected, but he was pretty bored too. So Eugene mounted up and they headed for the Realms.
They flew around the Ice Realm. So far they didn't see any bad guys. Eugene whooped with excitement, happy to be flying again.
"Hey you want to play a game I used play with my sister?" Eugene asked. He then covered Webbmaster's eyes. This caused the dragon to fly erratically, and they ended up crashing. Eugene hit the ground hard, but he felt no injuries. Webbmaster went over to him, croaking with concern. "No, I'm fine. Just give me a minuet for my spleen to top throbbing." Suddenly they heard dragons screeching from above. They looked to see a flock of Flamethrowers. "What are those guys doing out here?" Webbmaster looked at his riders, and croaked. "The others? No way, we don't need them. Besides you saw them, they're too busy." Eugene thought a moment. "What we need is a Eugene team." Webbmaster rolled his eyes.
In another part of the Ice Realm; Tom and Jun rode their dragons high over the hills. Thunder was still holding the basket. A breeze picked up and Jun shivered.
"Nice freezing place for a picnic," she said, hugging herself.
"Oh, we're not going here," Tom clarified. "We're just taking the short cut to the Nature Realm."
"Isn't the short cut right by Buzzsaw's camp?" Jun asked.
"Yeah, but we'll be quick and quiet," Tom said. "And we can slip right though, he won't even see us." But then the dragons got restless as they approached the camp. They all looked down to see Dr. Sledkin and Linda approaching Buzzsaw.
"Is that Sledkin approaching Buzzsaw?" Tom asked.
"Should we get the others?" Jun asked.
"No, we might miss something," said Tom. He then spotted something red moving in the tree line. "Let's land in that tree line, so we can hear what they're up to." He led the way to the tree line, and landed right next to Apollo. The red dragon jumped slightly when Thunder, Wu and Wei landed next to him.
"Oh, it's just you guys," he said, let out a breath he was holding.
"Sorry Apollo," said Tom. "What are they up to?" He pointed at Sledkin and Buzzsaw.
"I'm not sure yet," said Apollo.
Back on the surface; Eugene had wandered the town looking for anyone who wanted to join his new team. After he told them to meet in the woods near the edge of the fissure, he and Webbmaster headed that way themselves.
"Now we just have to find a few dragons for us to work with," Eugene said. As they passed the silver cabin Eugene spotted Black Widow laying in the sun on the back patio. She was back in her saddle and fully armored. "Yes! Perfect." Eugene went over to the sleek black dragon. Webbmaster fidgeted, not sure how Black Widow was going to react. Eugene snuck over to Black Widow and quickly jumped into her saddle. Instantly Black Widow jumped to her feet, wide awake. She growled, then took off running. Eugene hung on, as the black dragon tried to buck him off. They were soon approaching the few people who had agreed to meet up, which consisted of: Hazel, Carla, and Pete the security guard. Alex and Feathers were there as well, though Alex was only there to make sure her moms didn't get hurt. Black Widow barreled towards them, then she slammed on the breaks so abruptly that Eugene was flung over the front of the saddle. He hit the ground on his back. Black Widow stood there looking amused. Webbs landed near by. Hobbs also happened to be there.
"Oh come on," Eugene protested, getting to his feet. "You let Tom ride you once." Black Widow snorted, still looking amused. She then went over to stand next to Alex and Feathers.
"Why did you steal Edelweiss's dragon?" Alex asked.
"I need an easy dragon that looks awesome," said Eugene. "Edelweiss won't mind." He then addressed the three adults. "Who's ready to train some dragons!" They all looked eager, and somewhat nervous. Feathers looked over at Black Widow.
"You can go back to the cabin if you want to," she said.
"No, this could get funny," Black Widow answered. "And I have nothing else to do."
Over the next several hours Eugene tired working with the three adults, and the dragon available to them. Hazel worked with Webbmaster, Pete worked with Hobbs. Eugene kept trying to involve Black Widow to work with Carla, but she kept playfully dodging him. Soon he gave up and went to check on the others. Black Widow trotted back over and sat beside Feathers and Alex.
"You don't want to work with Carla do you?" Feathers said.
"It's not that I don't like Carla," Black Widow said. "I'm just not comfortable with novice riders. Even Edelweiss had flown on Apollo and Avalon several times before she rode me." At that moment Carla came up to them, looking up at Black Widow with awe.
"What's this one called again?" She asked.
"Black Widow," Alex said.
"Ahh Viuda Negra," Carla said. Black Widow tilted her head, making a confused groan.
"That's your name in Spanish," Alex clarified. Black Widow relaxed and lowered her head slightly.
"Hey why don't you take her for flight," Eugene said coming out of no where. "It's so much fun." Carla looked nervously up at the black dragon. Eugene grabbed Black Widow's reins and tried to restrain her. The black dragon snarled in irritation and thrashed her tail angrily. She sat down on her haunches, making herself as immovable as possible. Eugene scowled at her. "Okay fine, be like that. We'll use Webbs then." He stomped over to his dragon.
A moment later Carla found herself clinging to Webbmaster's back. She was shaking as Webbs got to this feet.
"I'm not so sure about this," she said. "I'm not so good with heights."
"You'll be fine," Eugene insisted, waving his hand dismissively. He got on Webbmaster's saddle and they took off. Carla screamed and clutched Webbmaster's spines. Alex jumped onto Feathers and took off after them, Black Widow did the same. Eugene steered Webbs in a very fast, and erratic pattern. Carla suddenly slipped over the side and would have fallen to her doom, if Black Widow hadn't swooped in and snatched Carls in her talons. She then carefully placed Carla onto Feathers's back behind Alex.
"Thank you Viuda Negra," Carla shrieked. Black Widow nodded and led the way back to the ground. Once they were all safely landed, Alex turned on Eugene with smoke coming out her ears.
"Eugene Wong!" She roared.
"What?" Eugene scoffed.
"You're crazy to think you could lead anything," Alex growled. "No one knows what they're doing, especially you." Eugene's shoulders slumped.
"Ouch Gonzo," he said quietly. He then turned to the three adults. "Eugene's dream team is now officially disbanded." He then got back on his dragon and flew off.
Down in the Ice Realm; Jun, Tom and the dragons were still watching Buzzsaw's camp. Sledkin seemed to be talking to Buzzsaw.
"Looks like our picnic will have to wait," said Jun.
"Good thing the spaghetti was already cold," said Tom. He then looked over at Apollo. "Can you hear what they're saying?"
"It seems Buzzsaw has finally caught whim of Sledkin mining dragoncite," said Apollo.
"We need to get closer," Tom said. He turned to the dragons. "You guys wait here."
"Fine," said Apollo. Tom and Jun snuck off and headed for the camp. The three dragons laid low while keeping the villains in their sight.
"Can you hear their thoughts?" Thunder asked Apollo.
"Yes, Buzzsaw will allow Sledkin to continue mining dragoncite in exchange for her translating the Dragon Book," Apollo said.
"Shouldn't you do something?" Wei asked.
"I don't know what to do," Apollo admitted. "We don't have a leader out here, and with the riders disbanded we don't have back up either. All we can do for now is just watch them, and see where this all ends up." Suddenly a bright flare shot into the sky.
"What's that?" Wu asked.
"Another trapped dragon," said Apollo. "Come on." They turned around and headed off to meet up with Tom and Jun.
Back on the surface; Edelweiss and D'Angelo were cleaning up the now vacant hospital, talking the whole time. Black Widow was now sitting next to Plowhorn.
"So you've never had a pizza before?" D'Angelo asked.
"No," said Edelweiss. "I haven't been in the human world enough to have had all the human; just coffee, tea, and chocolate." At that moment Alex and Feathers came into the hospital looking worried.
"Have you guys seen Eugene?" Alex asked.
"No, what's he done now?" D'Anglo asked.
"It's a long story," said Alex.
"Yeah, it usually is with him," said D'Angelo.
"Anyway, I said some things I regret," Alex went on. "I thought he had just gone off to blow off steam but he hasn't come back. You think Plowhorn could track him down."
"Plowhorn could smell his body spray from anywhere," D'Angelo bragged. He and Edelweiss got on their dragons, Alex mounted Feathers and they all took off heading for the realms. Black Widow called Eclipse and she soon joined them.
Tom and Jun flew their dragons after Buzzsaw, Apollo flew along side them. They flew over the landscape.
"Should we get the others?" Jun wondered aloud.
"We don't need them," Tom said confidently. "We got this."
"There's no time anyway," said Apollo. "Or I would have rounded up my friends too." He picked up speed and the other two followed. They soon spotted the bad guys below, cornering Eugene and Webbmaster.
"Classic Eugene," Jun said rolling her eyes. "His big headedness finally caught up to him."
"Now's not the time Jun," Apollo hissed in annoyance.
"We need some cover," Tom said. Wu breathed out a large, dense mist. The bad guys looked confused, but Eugene grinned.
"Ha, you guys are about to meet the business end of a Mist Twister," he boasted. Then Thunder fired lightening and knocked the bad guys off their feet. The two dragons then landed next to Eugene and Webbmaster. At that same time D'Angelo and Alex arrived on their dragons.
Edelweiss, Black Widow, and Eclipse landed on a large rock nearby and Apollo landed next to them.
"Well, what brings you guys out here?" Apollo asked happily.
"Alex and D'Angelo wanted help finding Eugene," Black Widow asked. "I guess Eugene is not adjusting well with the riders' splitting up." They all looked down at the riders. The bad guys were closing in on them, and the riders were busy arguing again. The four Draconians looked at each other, and came to a unanimous conclusion. Edelweiss put on her helmet and they took off.
The riders found themselves cornered by Buzzsaw and Sledkin. Buzzsaw blew his wooden whistle, and his two henchmen and a Flamethrower came out of hiding. Sledkin pulled out a small cattle prod. The riders were now surrounded. Suddenly Apollo swooped low overhead, and the bad guys ducked.
"Ok guys focus," Tom said.
"Wait, you want us to fight?" D'Angelo asked.
"Yeah, we need to cut our losses and run," Alex agreed. "Eugene, you're the tie breaker, you make the call." Eugene looked stunned.
"Like a leader?" He asked. He then collected himself and got onto Webbmaster. "We fight, our way out. Everyone focus on a target." At that moment Black Widow jumped unexpectedly out of the shadows and pinned down Sledkin with her talons, then knocked Linda off her feet with her tail at the same time. Eclipse landed with a loud roar on Old Jack, pinning him down. The other riders had their dragons blast the other bad guys. That left Buzzsaw for last, and Edelweiss knocked him out with a hard punch to the face. When the way was clear, all the riders took off. They headed back towards home.
Back at the Lair; the riders and their dragons took several minuets to gather their thoughts. The Draconians sat near them quietly.
"Sorry our date was ruined," Tom said, breaking the silence.
"Gathering information and a rescue mission, I wouldn't call it ruined," Jun said. "It's just very us." They both smiled shyly at each other.
"Well my day was a completely disaster thank you very much," Eugene said grumpily.
"Your day wasn't the only one that was bad," said D'Angelo. They all silently agreed.
"Well, if we hadn't gone looking for Eugene we wouldn't have seen Buzzsaw and Sledkin shake hands," Jun pointed out.
"Yeah, you're welcome," Eugene said, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Things just got more complicated," Tom said solumnly. "Buzzsaw and Sledkin are still roaming around down there, causing problems. We can't let this go on."
"So, what do we do?" D'Angelo asked.
"Well if no one's going to ask it, I will," said Eugene. "Are we getting back together or not?" None of them spoke, and just looked down at the ground avoiding eye contact. The dragons talked among themselves.
"Apollo, what do you foresee?" Wu asked. The all looked at the dragon in question. Apollo's face went blank and his eyes went wide.
"I can't see any details at this time," he answered. "But I can see something coming, something big and dark."
"A war?" Edelweiss asked, afraid.
"Could be," Apollo said. "It's certainly possible." Then he sighed. "But I have to believe that something wonderful is going to come out of all this. And if we stop the bad things from happening now, we might also be stopping those wonderful things from happening later. It's so complicated."
"So that's why you're laying low at the moment," Thunder said.
"Yes," said Apollo. "I plan on contacting my sister later, see what she says."
The riders and their dragons then headed back to town for the night. Apollo pulled out a star shaped sapphire, his dreamvisitor, one of three. He clenched it in his talons, and flew to his and Black Widow's cave.