Great Foster Fake Out
Dragons were swarming all over in the Lair. The riders and their dragons tried the best they could to keep the mayhem at a minimum. But they weren't having much luck. Avalon and the other Draconians were lending a wing as much as they could. Edelweiss was still in her coma, so she couldn't help. Suddenly Glommer the Fireworm flew out, followed by a Tiny Terror. Alex and the Wongs went after them while D'Angelo and the Draconians prevented more from escaping. D'Angelo looked over at Edelweiss, who had small dragons crawling all over her.
"It's amazing she can sleep through all this," he said.
"An avalanche could go off and it wouldn't wake her," Apollo said. He then blocked a Snowtail from going through the hole out. D'Angelo went up to find the other riders all stressed out from constantly chasing dragons all day.
"There are way too many dragons in the Lair," he said.
"But they can't go back to their realms," Tom said. "Not with the World Serpent still on the loose."
"But they can't stay in the Lair either," said Jun.
"We can't just let them roam free," said D'Angelo as Avalon and her friends came up. Tom thought a moment.
"Maybe we don't have to let them roam free," he said. He told everyone his plan.
The next day; Tom and his friends called everyone in town and all the dragon refugees for a gathering. The Draconians had already introduced themselves to the citizens of Rekke Town, who were now used to them. Everyone gathered in front of the station. Tom stood on the steps between Thunder and Avalon and faced the crowed.
"Welcome everyone to Foster a Dragon Day!" He said loudly. "A once in a lifetime opportunity to open your hearts and your domes for displaced dragons in need." Jun leaned close to him.
"I really hope this works Tom," she said.
"Hiccup lived in a village that was full of dragons," Tom said happily. "It'll be fine." They all watched as people started making friends with the dragons scattered around. Avalon and her dragons walked around, making sure nothing caught on fire. Avalon wasn't wearing her armor, or her crown, just her orange pearls. Hazel and Carla were happily reuniting with Glommer. The Fireworm was back in the small round tank, but with the lid off this time.
"We'd be happy to fosters," Hazel said.
"Especially if it means we can spend more time with this little guy," Carla cooed. Glommer chirped happily and fluttered his wings.
"Oh, he remembers us," Hazel squealed.
"The thing about Glommer is, he's kind of a packaged deal," Alex said. Two more Fireworms joined Glommer in the tank.
"That's no problem," said Carla. "What's a few more mouths to feed when their so small."
Tom and Thunder were watching Pete the security guard admire a Speed Stinger. Pete walked around the dragon, who didn't seem to mind.
"This one's sleek," Pete said, mostly to himself. "Aerodynamic."
"Yeah that one's a bit, fast," Tom said, just as the Speed Stinger ran off. Pete ran after him.
Chief Baker looked over to see two medics admiring Inferno, the Magma Breather. They seemed to like him at first, but then he spewed magma and they took off running. Inferno slumped sadly.
"Oh, that to bad," Chief Baker said to Hobs. "Looks like no one wants him." He went over to the Magma Breather and patted his side. Inferno gave him a grateful look. D'Angelo spotted them and got a bit nervous.
"Yeah, I'm not sure this ones right for us," he said.
"That's ridiculous," Chief Baker said. "He just needs a friend."
"What about Hobs?" D'Angelo said. "They might not get along." But when he looked over, he saw Hobs and Inferno talking to each other happily. D'Angelo slumped in defeat.
Olivia watched all this as she went over to Tom, Thunder, and Avalon.
"Foster a Dragon Day?" She said. "Isn't there enough room for them down below?" Tom exchanged a look with Thunder.
"Yeah there is," he said. "We're trying to keep them safe from a vary powerful dragon."
"They're wild creatures," said Olivia. "Living with other dragons is part of the deal."
"Well, if a giant monster was attacking your world, I bet you would do this too," said Avalon, gesturing around at the other dragons. Olivia had no argument to that.
"Say where's Edelweiss?" She asked. "We haven't seen her in a long time."
"She's very ill," Avalon said sadly. "We're filling in for her."
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Olivia. "Will she be okay?"
"Yeah, it will be a while though," said Avalon. Just then Thunder roared at them to get their attention. He looked up at the sky, his ears twitching. Now they could all hear helicopter blades. Suddenly Olivia's radio crackled.
"Tower to Dr. Kullersen," said a voice. "Mr. Rekke is on approach." Everyone tensed.
"Mr. Rekke is here!?" Tom exclaimed.
"Who's he?" Avalon asked.
"He's the billionaire that's funding all of this," Olivia quickly explained, gesturing to the town and the station. "Tom, hide the dragons."
"Right," Tom agreed. Apollo trotted up to him and handed him Valka's staff. Director Wong ran up to them.
"Mr. Rekke has been skeptical of our progress here," she said, stressed out. "If he's here that could mean all of ICARIS is on the chopping block." Eugene was so shocked he didn't even notice that the two Tiny Terrors he was holding took off.
"We'll put the dragons in the hanger," said Chief Baker.
Everyone pitched in with rounding up all the dragons and heading for the hanger. Tom used the staff to keep them all together. Avalon circled the area to make sure there were no stragglers. She suddenly heard someone coming around the corner. She landed on an awning over the front doors, where she could watch what happened next without being spotted. Mr. Rekke came around the corner, and over to Director Wong and Olivia. He was a short man with dark skin, his dark hair had streaks of white in it. He wore a dark sport coat, and gray trousers. He beamed when he saw Olivia and Director Wong.
"Hello Dr. Kullersen, Dr. Wong," he said happily. "In case you haven't noticed, I am here in the flesh." The two women smiled nervously.
"Mr. Rekke, how wonderful to see you," said Director Wong.
"What a surprise," said Olivia.
"I find the best way to see how an operation is fully run, is to show up unannounced," said Mr. Rekke, giving them a hard look. But then he chuckled. "Oh don't worry. As long as everything is ship shape, you have nothing to fear. Now I assume you've made a lot of world changing discoveries." Olivia spotted Tom hurrying Thunder out of sight. "Of course you have. I only hire the best. And speaking of hires where's Dr. Sledkin?"
"On vacation," said Tom, running up to them. "Just left actually."
"Ah, work hard play hard I guess," Mr. Rekke said, as the other riders joined them. "Speaking of work, shouldn't you kids be in school?"
"It's Saturday," D'Angelo pointed out.
"Ah, of course," Mr. Rekke said knocking his hand against his forehead. "Not stirring up any trouble I hope." He smiled playfully at Tom, who was now sweating bullets. "I'm just kidding. You some think children are a nuisance, a big distraction. But I see them as the future generation of Rekke Corp. Now enough small talk, lets have a look around shall we?" He started to walk off, but Eugene caught up to him.
"Mr. Rekke, wouldn't you want to save the best for last," he said, steering Mr. Rekke away from the station. When they were well out of earshot, Avalon glided down from her hiding place.
"We've got to find those Terrors," Tom said. "And get them in the hanger."
"I'll help," Avalon said. "I can watch from above."
"Maybe you should go to the hanger," Tom said. "We don't want Mr. Rekke to see you."
"I have mastered the art of hiding in plain sight," said Avalon. "He won't see me." She then took off before anyone could protest.
The Kullersens and the Wongs showed Mr. Rekke the general store. Avalon stayed outside in the hallway, staying to the shadows. While they were talking, Tom spotted a yellow Terror scurrying among the food racks. The little dragon crawled up shelves, making quite a racket. Mr. Rekke would have seen him, had Jun not waved a bag of cheese loops in his face, giving Tom a chance to grab the dragon.
"I saw what you did there Jun," Mr. Rekke said. "You're trying to tempt me. But I don't eat processed food, all natural. Haven't touched a chip in years." Tom hung on to the Terror and clamped his hand over the dragon's mouth, quieting him. Jun and Eugene then steered Mr. Rekke out of the store, and out of the big dome. Once they were gone, Avalon slunk into the store with the two Kullersens.
"Wow, you do know how to hide in plain sight," Olivia said.
"It's a predator thing," Avalon said with a sigh. "I have to be able to sneak up on my prey." Olivia then spotted the calculating look on Tom's face.
"What is it?" She asked him.
"Maybe we should tell Mr. Rekke," Tom said. "He seems cool. And he seems to care about the environment and new discoveries. What's a more amazing discovery then dragons." Olivia and Avalon exchanged a nervous glance. "Hiccup said in his book that he always hoped for a world where dragons and people live in harmony. You saw everyone today. Maybe this the start of a new realm, our realm."
"That is a beautiful thought Tom," said Avalon. "And I want to believe it's possible. But you can never be sure."
"No, you were right to keep the dragons a secret," said Olivia. "Yes, Mr. Rekke has done a lot of good. But don't forget he also hand picked Dr. Sledkin. We don't know his true intentions. What if he found Thunder and took him away?" Avalon shuddered at the idea. Tom handed her the Terror. She grasped it carefully in her talons and headed out of the big dome.
While the Wongs took Mr. Rekke on an ATV ride, everyone else gathered at the hanger. All the dragons filed inside, except for Inferno. The Magma Breather refused to be hurried. Chief Baker tried to lure him in.
"Why don't you come up here and coax him in!" Chief Baker called to D'Angelo. "You're the dragon doctor after all." D'Angelo laughed nervously. Eider took over and managed to get the Magma Breather moving a bit faster. Tom looked around.
"Where are Carla and Hazel with the Fireworms?" He asked. Just then Jun's voice came over the radio.
"Tom good news, Mr. Rekke fell off his ATV," she said. "Well, not that part. But we're taking him to the infirmary so you have some more time."
"Carla and Hazel took Glommer and his friends to the infirmary," Tom said urgently.
"Good to know," Jun said, now sounding urgent as well.
"What else can go wrong today?" Tom panted.
"Don't say that," Apollo said, who was helping herd the Magma Breather into the hanger.
"So, if Mr. Rekke isn't satisfied with what he sees here he'll close the station down?" Avalon asked Olivia.
"Yeah, it would be over a million dollars wasted," said Olivia.
"What would all do if that happened?" Avalon asked. "I'd imagine you'd have to find new jobs."
"We would figure something out," said Olivia. "There's plenty of other places to explore." Avalon thought about something for a moment.
"What exactly were you lot expecting to find out here?" She asked.
"New minerals, or new fossils," Olivia said. "Maybe underground ocean."
"I see," Avalon said. She watched the big hanger doors slide shut. Just then Jun's voice came over the radio again.
"Crisis averted, we're heading for the station," she said happily.
"Great," Tom said. "All dragons secure in the hanger."
"No thanks to you," Chief Baker said to the Magma Breather. This clearly hurt the dragon's feelings, and he spat magma on the floor. The smoke from the magma filled the hanger, and triggered the fire alarms. This caused the hanger doors to open and all the smaller dragons flew out. The riders and their dragons tried to stop them, but to no avail.
"Real nice Phil," said Apollo sarcastically. They all looked at the Magma Breather.
"The heat from the magma triggered the override," Chief Baker said.
"Can't you override the override?" D'Angelo asked.
"I'm not that good," said Chief Baker. "No one's that good." Alex however, was working on her tablet.
"I'm almost there," she said. The two Bakers stared at her in disbelief. With in minuets the alarms quieted. "Got it." She smiled. With that out of the way, the riders got on their dragons and took off with most of the Draconians to round up the strays. Eider stayed in the hanger to help Chief Baker stack boxes around the unmoving Magma Breather, to hide him. Eider talked Inferno into stop spewing magma for a bit. Mr. Rekke came running into the hanger. Eider quickly hid behind the boxes so he wouldn't be seen.
"Chief Baker, why are the alarms going off?" Mr. Rekke asked.
"Just a routine test of our state of the art alarm system," said Chief Baker. "No need to panic." This seemed to satisfy Mr. Rekke. Eider noticed Inferno about to spew more magma and clamped his jaws shut.
"Don't, you'll get us caught," he whispered very quietly. Inferno looked irritated, but held back. Soon the Wongs steered Mr. Rekke out of the hanger.
At the front doors the rest of the riders and dragons heard over the radio that Mr. Rekke was heading their way. Tom pulled the doors open.
"Everyone inside," he said.
"Why don't we just get them back to the Lair," said Avalon asked. "Mr. Rekke won't ever look there."
"We don't have time," said D'Angelo. The dragons all headed inside the station. They vanished inside just as Mr. Rekke and the Wongs came around the corner.
Inside the visitor center; the Kullersens tried to stuff as many dragons as they could into the elevator.
"Don't you guys have stairs in here?" Apollo asked.
"No we don't," said Tom. Half of the dragons just barely fit into the elevator; leaving Plowhorn, Black Widow, Eclipse and Apollo out in the open. They could hear Mr. Rekke and the Wongs getting closer. Tom shoved with all is might and got their half of the dragons into the elevator. The doors closed and the elevator descended.
"I know I've probably said this often, but I do wish Edelweiss was here helping us," Tom said.
"Yeah me too," said Avalon, who was perched on Wu and Wei's back. "But I'm not sure how much of a difference she would make. She most likely be vary anxious the whole time, especially in here." She glanced around the elevator.
"She doesn't like confined spaces," Olivia said, it wasn't a question.
"She doesn't like being trapped in confined spaces," said Avalon. "She won't go come in this building, she thinks it's way too automated, and has too few exits." At that point the elevator stopped and the doors opened.
"Get to the labs," Olivia said. Tom led the dragons out of the elevator and towards the lab.
"In here," he said, pointing to the biggest lab.
"No, not the main lab he'll look in there for sure," Olivia said. But they heard the other elevator beep.
"Too late," Tom said. They hurried into the lab and Tom closed the door. They heard voices and footsteps heading in their direction. "Wu, Wei steam it up." Wu and Wei let out their hot and cold mist. It filled the air just as the doors opened. Mr. Rekke stepped inside and only saw dense clouds.
"What is going on in here?" He asked confused. The mist started to fade away. Thunder, thinking fast, stepped forward. He sent out a small power surge. It sent Mr. Rekke flying back down the corridor. He hit the ground on his back, and knocked out. Everyone rushed to his side. Tom closed the door just enough to block the dragons from view.
"Is he dead?" Avalon asked lightly, sticking her head out of the door. Mr. Rekke stirred and she ducked out of sight. Mr. Rekke slowly sat up, his hair was standing on end.
"Oh, what just happened?" He asked, winded.
"So sorry Mr. Rekke," said Olivia. "We were just running an electric conducting experiment."
"Please don't be mad," Tom said.
"Mad?" Mr. Rekke chuckled, as Jun and Eugene helped him to his feet. "Don't be silly Tom, I feel fine. You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. I just never thought I would be the egg." He turned and staggered back towards the elevators. Once he was gone everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
While the riders and their parents escorted Mr. Rekke back to his chopper; Avalon and Thunder herded all the dragons from the lab back to the visitor center.
"That was too close," said Plowhorn.
"Why were we even hiding from that guy?" Feathers asked. "He seemed friendly."
"Yeah he did," said Avalon. "But I don't want to risk him telling the rest of the world about us." Thunder suddenly heard the sound of a helicopter flying away.
"He's gone," he said. "We're clear." He and Avalon led the way out side. The dragons reunited with their riders. Everyone relaxed. Olivia went over to Tom and Thunder. Tom saw her coming.
"I know, having this many dragons in Rekketown is risky," he said. Then he sighed. "I wish it was different."
"Yeah, me too," said Olivia. "But you don't have to keep me in the dark. You're not alone. We're all here to help you." She gestured around at everyone. Then she looked over at Avalon, who was standing nearby with Eider. "I hope Edelweiss gets better real soon."
"Thanks," Avalon said. "We're going to need all the help we can get with this." She gestured around with her wing. Everyone soon disbursed and headed for their domes.
In the dark, quite Lair; Edelweiss's eyelids twitched. They opened a few inches, then closed again.