Dragatopian war: Part one

Chapter 11

The school raids2

Good side3

Once again the sirens wailed. The classroom was filled with screeches; this was the third air raid today. The large powerful raider dragons flew swiftly overhead and their huge fiery wings whooshed through the air. The teacher opened the thick metal door leading down into the school basement. We all hurried down the cold stone steps, heels clacking on the cold stone in the murky light. We came on to a large, orange-lit room, where many of the other classes were settling down in to continue. Not that we’d learn anything good down here. It was cold, dark and sometimes damp. I sat down with some of my friends. We sat in a circle, shivering slightly, I reached across, to grab Lily’s hand, but to my horror, it was Will’s hand. I pulled it away sharply.4

“What’s up Opal?” Lily asked. I looked over to where her voice was coming from and scooted over a little, figuring I was too close to Cameron for my likings. 5

“Nothing.” I said, my teeth chattering from the cold stone floor.6

“Oh, you’re all twitchy.” She said.7

“Am I? No I’m not.” I snapped. I lay back a little, and tried to ignore the dragonology teachers twittering. I liked dragonology, it was my favourite subject, but this term we were learning about warrior breeds. I didn’t like to be reminded of the war. It had been going on for many hundreds of years. My father is in it at the moment, and my grandfather was, so was his father. I can’t remember the cause either. I don’t listen in History. Dragatopia has been at war since the first time man first wielded a sword and a shield, maybe before.8

“Opal? Opal!” Lily’s voice pierced through my thoughts.9

“What?” I mumbled.10

“You’re doing that creepy stare again.” She said, looking straight at me.11

“And you’re doing that, ‘quick, Patrick’s looking at me’ thing.” I laughed.12

“Don’t!” She snapped. “He’ll hear you.” She said, looking over at him. I sighed and shook my head. The sound of the raid was blocked out from us; I just hoped that they wouldn’t attack the school. Not like the TV studio where lunchtime with Marcos Polos is filmed, but they got out; somehow, we might not be as lucky. I sighed again. Lily was intent on not looking at Patrick whom she fancied. I like to do it differently, I look at them. I saw Will had wondered off, to find his friends. He hadn’t gone far, and I sat there and watched him. Suddenly, a poem came into my head…13

I watch you, 14

I feel for you in the coldest darkness,15

When you are hidden, when I look, I’ll dream of you.16

Some girls try to get you with make up and clothes,17

Some just pure alluring,18

But I can tell you now,19

I’m different,20

I’ll get you because I’m me.21

I sat there in the cold, dimly lit room, thinking it over and over, oblivious to everything around me, until Lily shook my shoulder viperously. 22

“OPAL!” She said sharply in my ear,23

“What!” I snapped back.24

“You are staring right into his eyes, what’s up with you?” She asked, slightly concerned. She knew that I’m not into boys and stuff. 25

“Nothing…” I broke off. The teachers were herding us out of the basement. Another long day of raids and boring lesions. 26

Chapter 127

The streets28

Dark side29

Dark ally way, walls covered in graffiti and soot. Of smoke, a gang of dragons, all drawing on cigarettes. The song of the city rings around their ears. The sound of metal on metal, clacking claws upon the rocky ground, the sound of bubbling lava and the shouts of humans and the growls of dragons. This is the song of the city. The leader of the gang stood on a bin.30

“Gang! The sun sets, tonight, we club!” He growled. This was Sweet fire, the lord of the Darz streets. Darz is the only dark planet in dragatopia, and it is the largest, meanest, and most volcanically active. The rest of the gang let out roars of agreement, and they headed towards the pub.31

The pub was busy. A smallish white dragon was sat on a sofa. Her name is Raven. Her scales looked like she had just healed herself from a recent fight. Her eyes depicted boredom, and deep thought. The gang had arrived, and were causing a large commotion at the bar. The bar tender, a large burly warrior was cleaning a glass, and one of the gang members threw one of his beers at him. He growled deeply, and the glass he was holding shattered into a million sparkling shards, spinning though the air, and scattering around the floor and on the bar.32

“Get out of here you lot!” He growled at the gang in general. Sweet fire, the lightest, quickest of the gang, and the leader, stepped up to him. Raven’s eyes raised in interest, at the confrontation that was unfurling before her. As the trained assassin that she was, a little blood never hurt. As she watched, Sweet fire brought his paw above his head, claws out and smacked the bar tender round the face, scoring three long, deep slices down his face.33

“Do you know who I am?” He hissed threateningly.34

“No, who?” The bartender growled, equally as threatening. 35

“Dis is Sweet fire yer talking to, I have….friends.” He hissed, his street accent strong, and dark. The bartender narrowed his eyes, but turned and cleared up the glass shards that were lying around on the floor and the bar. Suddenly, the doors swung open, and a tall, dark figure stood in the doorway. The human chattering and dragon growling died; as the figure walked slowly across the room, paw on a rapier hilt. He was silent, and deadly. They all knew who he was, although, rather they didn’t know he existed. The nastiest, toughest, must murderous dragon on the street had arrived at the small pub, and everyone, even Sweet fire, was petrified of his business here. The black figure walked up to the bar, his black leather boots, reaching to just below his knee clacked on the wooden floor. He pulled down his black hood, and a black dragon was reviled. His face scared with many a fight. The bar tender, although he was big, burly and strong, was quivering slightly.36

“You’re the one.” The black dragon hissed, raised his rapier, and shot the bar tender in the head. The big dragon folded, and crumpled up, lying on the floor in a pool of crimson dragon blood, mixed with the silver of the bullet’s contents. The black dragon’s silver eyes were emotionless, and he lent down. Curling his claws round the dragon’s horn and pulling up, releasing it from it’s socket, and a new flow of blood joined the deepening pool around the bar tender’s head. The stench of blood was thick in the air, and many of the others in the pub got up to leave. Raven, still sitting quietly in the corner, smirked satisfactorily. The agent had delivered, and she was the receiver. She stood up silently, and crossed over to the black dragon. 37

“Nicely done.” She growled silkily. 38

“Raven…I didn’t expect you to be here.” He replied, still in his husky, menacing hiss. 39

“I’m always where the blood flows freely.” She said, silkier than before.40

“And blood shall be shed, blood shall have blood.” He growled back, his eyes glinting silver.41

“Very good, you remember well.” She growled more business like. “Just don’t forget who gave him that job. Lucas won’t be bothering us any more. At least we won’t be joining him in the ranks of heaven.” She hissed. 42

“Of course not.” He spat. “The crow calls for me, when shall we meet again?” He said hastily.43

“Beneath the moon light, where the blood next runs.” She hissed. The black dragon dipped his head, and turned, the rim of his cape gliding over the wooden floor. He reached the door, pulled his hood back over his head, and left in a flurry of shadow. Raven looked round, and followed, slowly, and calmly, until she was no longer visible. Sweet fire and his gang were long gone. 44

Chapter 245

Realisation46

Good side47

After a long day at school, I was glad to be home, but when I realised that this would be no ordinary afternoon at home. I won’t be doing homework tonight, that’s certain.48

“Mum!” I called, as I walked in the front door. The day outside was hot. The heat sliced into the back of my neck, but the cool air of the house blasted out the door as I went in.49

“Mum!” I called again. I heard sobbing from the bedroom, so I carefully stepped up stairs, and opened the door into the room slowly.50

“Mum?” I said softly. She was sitting on the bed, crying. There was a box of tissues on the floor, and another empty one.51

“What’s the matter?” I said worriedly, sitting down on the bed next to her. A picture of Dad lay torn on the floor.52

“Why did you tare this?” I asked confusion and fright welling up in my thought like bile. 53

“H-h-h-he’s dead!” She stammered.54

“What…no…he can’t be!” I refused to accept the truth. She sat up, and grabbed my shoulders, shaking me. 55

“He is Opal! He is! Don’t you get it! He was at Light Bridge!” She wailed. I fell silent. She stopped shaking me. The bridge that kept out the dark troops from one of the villages, it used to be a city, but most of it was destroyed in a bomb. He was there when a dark terrorist had let of a grenade, I was watching the interview on the TV, with that huge dragon chief, Buluga…I hadn’t realised then that Dad was there. My life had turned the wrong way up. My Dad was dead, he was never coming back. My head reeled, the floor wavered and everything went black…Black as midnight…on that fateful day… 56

Chapter 257

Flash backs, how sweet58

Good side59

I stood, watching at the edge of a field, shaped by rolling hills. There was a man, surrounded by others, fighting, killing, dieing. He was panting hard. I wondered who he was, his hair was crimson with fresh blood, and his face was plastered with dry blood. Many dragons flew overhead, magnificent mounts, carrying bombs and spears. I stared intently at the man. ‘Dad!’ I thought, realising who he was. I realised too late to save him, to pull him away, push him down, do something. Another man leapt upon him, a large blue dragon screeched a warning, and pulled up, high into the air. Everything was in slow motion. Men and women turned and fled, dad was held down under the other man as the evil warrior pulled the cord, the bomb…there was a blinding flash, and everything was gone, I returned to reality… 60

Chapter 261

We will meet again when the blood next runs62

Dark side63

The dark mist swirls, hung on thick, stale smelling air. The beat that rings inside your head is nothing more than air. We will meet again when the blood next runs; nothing is the same, once you’ve heard the song of the city. Raven crouched in the alleyway. Her breathing was soft as silence, and a black figure stood tall and proud behind her. 64

“Raven…you will learn. I can make the shadows move at my command.” Growled the black one.65

“I am aware.” She hissed back. “Where’s the blood?” She growled, more impatiently.66

“Over there.” He smirked. A young dragoness lay twisted and broken in a pool of blood, her horns were nowhere to be seen, and her jaws were opened wide in a never ending silent scream. The black one pulled two horns out of his cape pocket; the ends glistened with fresh blood. He smirked.67

"Sweet fire will soon learn who really rules the street...One thing's for sure, it isn't him" He growled, clenching his fist round the horns, making them shatter into many pieces onto the floor. He kicked the dead dragon girl in the head angrily, and a fresh flow of blood poured out. He looked up to the sky, the moon blood red with the kill, his eyes blood red with the kill.68

"We'll meet again when the blood next flows." He hissed, and disappeared, in a flurry of shadows. Raven was left alone, her eyes red with the reflection of the blood pool. She licked her lips, and lent forwards, dipping her wrist in the blood. She shuddered, and her arm, covered in silky white scales, turned red. She breathed out softly, and the scales turned white again, and the pool of blood was gone. She stood up, and heard the clack of claws on the concrete. She whipped round, and a pair of blue dragons were there.69

"You." Hissed Raven.70

"Yes, it is us." They growled in eiry unison.71

"I thought I killed you!" Raven snapped impatiently.72

"Ah, but you did." Growled one.73

"But we recovered." Hissed the other, and they both lifted up their cape, revealing identical, long, glistening scars across their bellies. Raven’s eyes narrowed.74

“Get out of my site…Scum.” She hissed in masked fury. 75

.....to be continued76