Chapter 10

Chardon, having witnessed the scene and a little frightened by the magical act of divination, bit his thumbs and kept all his confidence in Emilie. She was a responsible person, and if anyone could use magic, it was her.

Emilie's only ambition was to live a happy life and start a family.

Power, politics and conquests were too much for her.

Ochria was on the same path as her sister and more or less knew what she would do later.

Azur didn't know yet. He was hesitating whether to become an electromechanic, a sports coach or a car mechanic, because he loved car racing, mega wheels, dragsters and motor sports. He also loved flying and dreamed of building himself some kind of jet-powered dragon bike to impress the girls.

In short, extreme sport and the mechanics that go with it. Quite a program.

What's more, he already had some crazy plans in mind that he didn't dare admit to Celine, let alone Emilie.

During a secret drinking session with his scouting buddies, they decided that Asur should have advertisements painted on his wings like garage logos on cars and, with his sponsors, go on vacation with them. Ski vacations, seaside vacations. Even Cocacola had convinced him to pull up bright flags behind him and have himself painted red and white.

Obviously, the idea had come from his buddies.

And what's more, it paid well for him and his gang...

Everyone was keeping it a secret.

Asur gave no thought to Emilie's reaction, as she tried in every way to keep a low profile, to avoid drawing attention to the only "free" dragons.

Emile followed to the letter the recommendations of the 2 kings and his mentor, Professor Chardon. What's more, as a university professor herself, she held a very precious position.

That's why she was very strict at home, which also delighted Céline. Emilie was also an authority figure now that Luc was gone. And at home, she had followed all his examples, so Celine felt Luc's discreet presence through Emilie.

But that night and this morning, Emilie was crying and inconsolable.

Chardon discreetly made a few phone calls to colleagues and acquaintances, and to local people with whom he kept in touch.

His face turned grim as he phoned a convenience store along a makeshift wharf in New Guinea.

It was a small shop in one of the villages known to local explorers and guides. It was here that Chardon had met one of his sponsors who wanted to take part in the tragic expedition. The expedition was partly financed by a parmaceutical company in search of traditional and sacred remedies.

"Hello? Mama Boudou!. Ah; Professor!!!. Yes.... I know but there are rumors that a big boat like yours passed and then the tribe disappeared. Yes??? Yes?? No, I saw your Reich go by but it didn't come back. Nobody saw it.

Then, the locals are afraid and some say the demon has returned.... yes... I know... I'll pass on a message if he passes...

Yes? what kind of boat?

It looked like a transport barge but it looked military and there were men in ujniform.. I think they were speaking Russian...

Yes... Kissing the "little one". Emilie was really nice as a dragon...She's a good healer..."

Then, more worried, Chardon telephoned the Organization's secretary in Spain and reported his findings.

And indeed, the satellite showed a village in ashes, with no further details.

He climbed down from the mezzanine to join Emilie.

"Emilie... Calm down..."

"Professor, I heard the phone... I heard everything... Sniff...

The Lizaros...they're all dead...right? Yes?.."

Chardon lowered his head and his automatic smile faded.

"I'm afraid so...There could be Russians behind all this."

Emilie burst into tears... He's dead... I know it! I knew it!

Even dead, this scum still kills...

Now I'm all alone.....je...Eirich..Eirich... my little Eirich.

Why didn't you come home? Why????"

Ochria leaned against Emilie to calm her down, and Asur came in like a fly in the soup and realized that Emilie was really unhappy. He also took on his dragon form and the three of them hugged each other to form a united block in pain.

Chardon went out to leave them alone and joined Celine.

All friends were invited to go home, as Asur did not return to them.

The three dragons were like a block of flesh, almost like a 3-headed hydra...

Meanwhile, in the cave, the light intensified and a spotlight of some kind projected the clearly visible silhouette of the diver.

He was guiding something.

Then, a large bubble rose and, in the end, it was a kind of balloon that floated to the surface of the water.

It lengthened and propellers appeared.

It was like a mini zeppelin, a mini drone.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

I fled back to the nest and shook my mother awake, but nothing happened. It was a deep sleep but no longer a coma.

I had to hurry.

Hide... or!

I took the empty cans and quickly swallowed the rest of my shell.

The empty cans were put next to Mom...

Then I carried Diskor carefully. The egg was almost as big as me and I began to pray for strength.

My generation helped me fight the cramps and I put Diskor in the water, in a dark corner, while the micro zeppelin took off, luckily to the left instead of to the right.

I was running out of time.

Then when Diskor sank, I took Savannah... She couldn't bear to be unhappy... She had a broken, human soul like me.

Then it was Excavator's turn.

But when I went to pick up Blackthorne, the drone was almost on me. I barely escaped the beam of light.

I was also exhausted and hungry.

I turned to see the zeppelin coming over the nest and then pointing its light at Tiamat.

"Maman...."

I had the furious urge to destroy the drone and kiss my dragon mom one last time even though inner voices were telling me to run away from her....

I took one last look at the den, then realized I'd left plenty of muddy paw prints...

"Oh no!"

"Blackthorne...I've got to get his egg... But the diver was at the edge of the lake and the bright thing was...an attack submarine with the flag of the russian federation and a 5-headed dragon on it..."

Allies?

No... I don't want to end up in a military base.

More divers arrived and pointed their torches in all directions in search of immediate danger.

"Он здесь! Мы нашли его. Думаю, она еще жива!

Это шанс!" the 2 divers exchanged.

"Эй, вы слышали это? Похоже, что-то упало в воду.

Я ничего не вижу! Наверное, камень с вибрацией.

Потолок не выглядит устойчивым."

The spetznats sprang into action and a woman emerged from the submarine's tower hatch.

Immediately rescuers arrived in inflatable boats to rush to the dragoness.

"She's alive! "Then they got down on their knees and kissed her foreleg.

In a few moments, a floating pontoon was in place, and the stern of the submarine opened like a hangar, with a crane pushing as if by magic with large hydraulic pistons.

Pneumatic rollers were inflated and placed between Tiamat and the lake.

The doctors injected relaxants, put an oxygen mask on his snout and pricked intravenous lines into his remaining tail to facilitate the blood transfusion.

"Dragon blood! "shouted one of the doctors, and one of the soldiers emerged from the hangar with a yellow plastic case bearing a symbol for viruses and bacteriological hazards.

After injection and transfusion, one of the doctors sighed.

"She can be transported now".

So harnesses were placed and with a thousand precautions they rolled the unconscious dragon like a boulder pulled by Egyptians.

Another doctor took Blackthorne and put him in a padded trunk protected by shockproof ABS.

A red light came on, probably a stalker.

Me? I was at the bottom of the lake, under the submarine, trying my best to get through the siphon with the 3 eggs. Underwater, it was easier for the weight, but not for my size.

If they were deep underwater, they might implode and die.

In the underwater tunnel, there were probably sharks or octopuses or other predators that would make short work of the eggs... but the submarine must have scared them off.

It wouldn't take long to discover the deception and the distance, although short, seemed interminable with my 4-year-old size...

Then it became clearer, but it was night, and I surfaced completely exhausted.

The waves got the better of me and I ended up stranded on the grey night sand and passed out from exhaustion.

The seaweed had helped a lot, and lots of it had been severed by the submarine, forming black and green heaps on the beach.

We were covered in seaweed and even up close we looked like plant debris.

I woke up to a loud rumble...my stomach...I was starving. and, sprawled out on the beach, I grabbed some seaweed and started nibbling.

It was bland and disgusting, but it soothed the pain...

At the bottom of the beach, there was all kinds of military debris, buoys, broken boats, pieces of ship probably lifted by the explosion and embedded in the cliff.

I felt like I was on Iwo jima after the fighting, but worse, a hundred times worse.

There was missile shrapnel and twisted engines of all kinds.

Everything was devastated and the vegetation had all but disappeared, as if blown away.

Even the earth had been blown up and vitrified. The sand showed patches of molten glass in thousands of places.

It must have been hell. Yet it must have been a beautiful island paradise...

Then I discovered a twisted box containing an inflatable rescue boat.

It took me an hour, even with my magic gags, to open the twisted fastener.

Then, miraculously, the black inflatable started to inflate. Fortunately, it was military equipment and not neon red like civilian zodiacs.

As best I could, I loaded my 3 eggs into the inflatable and covered it with seaweed.

Then, God willing....

The woman in uniform bent down in front of the nest made of electric wires.

"There were several eggs! Search everything and every nook and cranny!"

She observed small alligator paw prints on the ground and followed the tracks toward the trapdoor.

"Search here!"

And armed men lifted the trapdoor and searched the technical floor.

She then headed for the lake.

"The tracks end here. One of the dragonets must have hatched and taken an egg with it."

But the current was taking me far out to sea and, already, the island was no more than a speck...

What would become of me? What if they hatch now? Here? What am I going to do?

I was dizzy and afraid... very afraid...