Bentwhistle the Dragon Box

by Paul Cude

  Five and a half hours later, he was done. NOTHING! That's what he'd found. Frustrated couldn't begin to describe how he felt. So close, just a step behind them, he was sure. But they were always one step ahead. Knowing he was in the right place, because he could sense the nagas had been here, with all that dark mystical energy, he asked himself the only question he could. Where on earth were they now?

  Staring out of the window into the beautiful wooded landscape beyond, something in the reflection caught his eye. Turing around, he strolled over to the elegant wooden bookcase that was piled high with books on every subject. Having already searched each and every one for a clue, with nothing presenting itself, his attention now was on a tiny dot of red biro smudged onto the wood of the bookcase itself.

  'Peculiar,' he thought, continuing to study it. Not able to see how ink from a pen could possibly have gotten so high up the bookcase, he closed his eyes and scrolled through the different types of vision that his dragon persona offered, albeit stuck in his ungainly body. It was only when he hit his microscopic vision that everything became clear. It looked as though someone had written on something against the bookcase, with enough pressure to leave a residual mark. Imprints of tiny letters which were, by the look of things, coordinates and a time.

  '37° 31'32.28N 75° 56'42.34W at 1.15am,' he thought. 'How unlike them. I think that just might be the lead that I'm looking for.'

  And with that he sprinted back through the lush vegetation to where he'd parked his hire car, just over three miles away.

  It had been hard to find. At first he'd found himself going round and round in circles, following the directions of the hire car's sat nav. Deciding to leave the car and go the rest of the way on foot had proved a much better idea. Surrounded by trees, looking out over the water, the co-ordinates on his phone had led him directly to this hidden shallow bank. It was a stunning, secluded location, but the view was not what occupied Flash's mind. Meticulously, he tiptoed down the side of the bank, careful not to get caught in all the mud, all the time examining the odd shapes that had been carved into it. Most wouldn't give the muddy bank a second thought but piece by piece, his experienced and logical mind started to put it all together. Two nagas in their natural forms, a boat and a number of humans, how many, he couldn't tell. That's what all the impressions told him. All he had to do now was figure out where on earth they went.

  Scrolling through his mind, he ran through the list of dragons that were in American government agencies, until he found the one he was looking for. Instantly he dialled the number on his phone and hoped to hell that a satellite had been overhead at the right time.

  Twenty five minutes later he had his answer, and it scared the living daylights out of him. Then he had to spend five minutes calming down the young dragon on the other end of the phone, who'd wanted to tell all and sundry, something Flash really didn't want to happen. It was bad enough that this group had got their hands on such hardware, the last thing he needed was for them to be spooked or panicked into making a rash decision. Eventually the young dragon calmed down enough for Flash to take full responsibility, and drop the king's name into the equation.

  'A submarine of all things,' he mused, climbing back into his rental car. It still didn't seem true. He'd assumed it would be some kind of boat and that he'd be able to track it down. But a submarine, that was virtually impossible to track, and God knows where it was headed. All he knew was that he had to get back to London as fast as possible and report this new twist in events to the king himself.

  29 Generous To A Fault

  Sitting with the other department heads around the gorgeous oak table in the office adjacent to Garrett's, Peter admired the perfectly carpeted floor, the glistening counter of the curved, sweeping bar and the perfect lighting from the chandeliers dangling precariously from the ceiling, in this, the most opulent room in the building, which nearly always hosted the weekly management meetings.

  Sitting quietly watching the head of the human resources department outline her weekly progress, he felt more than a little intimidated by all the people around the table, mainly because he was the youngest by a very long way, over a decade in fact. And while his dragon training had prepared him to talk in front of others and give speeches to groups without being nervous, he couldn't help, in these particular situations, feeling more than a little uncomfortable. Today it had been his turn to report first, something he hadn't known before entering the room. One or two minor issues with staff had come up, but nothing he wasn't already dealing with. The main area he knew Garrett and the others wanted to hear about was the laminium, so he spent nearly fifteen minutes detailing exactly how it was being stored and the security measures surrounding it. When he'd finished, the others, Garrett included, all nodded their heads in satisfaction at what they'd been told. It was a good job he didn't have to report everything about the valuable metal's security. Smiling at the thought of having to tell the rest of them about the exotic mantras he'd employed with regard to safekeeping the company's most valuable resource, if nothing else, Gee Tee's stock in trade provided him with peace of mind. Reporting first and without warning had in fact been a blessing in disguise. If he'd known, he'd probably not have slept well last night. At least this way, he'd got it out of the way and could sit back, relax (well, as much as possible in these situations) and listen to what was happening in the rest of the company.

  A few minutes later, the meeting was adjourned, with everyone smiling and happy, all packing away their things.

  "Peter," a soft voice called, "could you possibly stay behind for a few minutes?"

  "Of course," he answered, wondering what Garrett needed him for.

  Filing out one by one, the others all thanked their boss. With the last one having left, Garrett closed the door so that it was just the two of them.

  "I've been looking into the request you made," he said, perching on the table. "It would seem there's a little more to it than I first thought."

  'Oh no,' Peter thought, 'he's not going to help. How on earth are we going to get the sports club all back together?'

  "I've brought in some geologists to look at the site, after a recommendation from the government clean up team. It would appear that the explosion from the bomb has in some way affected the ground deep below the surface, damaging a minor fault line, causing the entire area to become unstable."

  Peter was truly dismayed on hearing this for the first time.

  "It seems the instability can be resolved, but the cost will be considerable."

  Lost for words, he desperately wanted the clubhouse rebuilt and things back to how they were, with all the sports men, women and children enjoying their chosen pastimes.

  "While I do owe you a great debt and can see just how important this is to you, are you sure you wouldn't rather have a considerable sum of money, or a new house, something to set you up for the rest of your life? It will be all or nothing if I go ahead with this."

  Not for a split second was he tempted. All he wanted to do was play hockey... there, and nowhere else for the rest of his life.

  "I know it's a lot of money sir, I mean Al. But the sports club means so much, not just to me, but to many, many people. All I really want is for it to be back how it was, with men, women and children all enjoying their favourite sports."

  Garrett nodded his approval.

  "So it's set then. I'll chase up the relevant people straight away and set things in motion. I must say Peter, you are a most remarkable young man. Not just in the way you take responsibility, as you have done in this relatively new role that you've been thrust into, but in your regard for others. Most men and women would have jumped at the chance of a personal reward. But not you. Why is that?"

  Thinking carefully, with Garrett watching him eagle eyed, panic started to envelop him. What was he going to say? What did Garrett want to hear? In the end, he settled for the truth.

  "I love playing hockey... it's my life. There's nothing else I'd rather be doing, and I wa
nt to do it here. It's my home. I love my job. It's where my friends are. I love it here and that's a fact."

  A big beaming smile encompassed Garrett's face.

  "That, my young friend, is good enough for me. For the entire time I've known you, I've always thought there was something special about you. And now you've just proved it. I'll make sure that clubhouse is rebuilt, and don't you worry, it'll be better than new, you mark my words."

  Gathering up his things, he shook Garrett's proffered right hand on the way out, musing on the 'bald eagle' thinking that he was special.

  'If only he knew the truth,' he thought, depressing the button for the lift, his beaming smile reflecting off the shiny doors, pleased at the thought that his beloved clubhouse would at some point be back to normal.

  30 Eggs-Clusion

  Remnants of the past drifted in and out of her dreams, a curse for the most part, but she'd lived with it for so long that it no longer bothered her. With a new life and a new planet on the horizon, she once again lived through something that happened long ago, almost to someone else.

  After being saved by a dragon in a position of power, they made a decision, a decision to quit it all and go their own way. They hadn't exactly seen the error of their ways, but being torn apart, incarcerated and alone, each not knowing what was happening to the other, had all been too much and had made them realise just how much they wanted to be together. So they made a plan. At first they travelled throughout England and Scotland. It had been so easy, given not only their dragon training, but all the new things that had supplemented it from their previous employers. Sticking together, acting as man and wife, changing their identities and their accents, sometimes on a daily basis, they constantly moved around, never staying in the same place for more than one night. Their thieving wasn't particularly grand, and was easily achieved given their remarkable talents. Opportunistic would have been the best way to describe it. The odd safe here, a little pick pocketing there... the night's takings of a public house was a favourite. It had to be this way, small but often, so that they could avoid the attention of the dragon council and the King's Guard. And for the most part, they had, with one exception. Two of the King's Guard had nearly stumbled across them when they'd fleeced a fairground proprietor of his week's earnings in Newcastle in the north east of England. It had been a close call, after which they'd stayed on the move for the whole of the following week, choosing to sleep out in the open rather than risk a town or city. And it had worked. After eight months of a life like this, they had enough money to make their dreams come true.

  Moving to the stunningly pretty town of Swanage in Dorset, she could remember the day they'd arrived, as if it were only yesterday. They had taken the hulking great monster of a steam train from Wareham, past the scenic ruins of Corfe Castle, captivated by its beauty, and only fifteen minutes or so later had pulled into the terminus, right in the centre of the fabulous seaside town. It had been a warm spring day when they'd arrived, carrying two small suitcases between them, which contained everything they owned. It hadn't taken long to find rented accommodation. Two days later, they both had jobs. Earth had taken the position of waitress at one of the seaside cafés right on the front. While slightly affronted at not having the power, position and respect that she'd come to think of as hers by right, she was at least happy, and all because of him. Things just felt so right when they were together, and although they'd had that chemistry in France when they were both hunting down French and British Resistance operatives for the nagas and the Nazis, it was different now. There was no pressure, no orders, no silly games to play. Of course there was still the fact that they were, so to speak, on the run, both war criminals wanted by humans and dragons alike. Each had done much to disguise their appearance and had quelled the magic inside them significantly. It would be a surprise if anyone at all could identify them as the perpetrators of those heinous crimes in another country.

  Excitedly announcing the news of her job to her husband on returning to their rented flat, instantly he lifted her up, twirling her joyfully about the living room, adding to her news by telling her that he'd gained employment on the coveted railway, as a fireman. Both squealed in excitement.

  And so it continued, for years in fact. After only a few months they moved out of their flat, choosing instead to rent a reasonably sized house. Things were perfect. They had friends, they socialised, mixed in. It was idyllic. In their mind, there was only one thing missing. And so very carefully, in a precision planned operation, they as a couple became less outgoing, attended the pubs and the social scene a lot less than they had done, instead choosing to spend all their time at home. It had been tricky, but some six months after they'd started, all their efforts were rewarded with... AN EGG!

  Their ecstasy at having circumvented the many obstacles in their way was off the scale. It filled her with warmth every time she thought about it. But that was only half the story. What they had to do next was madness of a completely different order.

  So, in the early hours of a weekday morning, having planned out their route both above and below ground with military forethought, they headed back to the domain of their birth with heavy hearts, constantly looking over their shoulders. After much skulking, scrabbling and concealment, they arrived in the shadows of the Purbeck Peninsula nursery ring entrance, carrying their beloved egg between them. She could remember thinking that it took an age for their knocks on the ancient wooden door to be answered. But answer them they did. Well, one lone female dragon did. And that's what they'd been hoping for. Little fuss, little attention, someone with little imagination and even less suspicion. It had seemingly all worked out fine. After half an hour the egg had been accepted, all the relevant documentation filled out (all lies of course) with a letter signed by them both, insisting that a certain dragon should not be allowed to see or interact with the youngling that was now in their charge. Both parents knew that the documentation was of the utmost importance and could never be altered, changed, infringed or ignored. The female dragon, just a girl really, processed everything quickly and efficiently, keen to get back to her brutally disturbed sleep by the look of things.

  And so it was done. Of course there was much sobbing by both, but they took comfort from the fact that they were indeed nearby, vertically, rather than horizontally.

  Time passed as it had before, with both Earth and her husband once again becoming more and more social, frequenting bars and events with the regularity that they once had, and although they thought about the egg often, the pain of the separation started to fade over time.

  What neither knew, and only fate could conceive, was that a chance encounter late at night in one of their favourite pubs had led to them being discovered. It took a while, because few in the dragon domain now knew of their existence, with the cases against them, and whoever helped them escape custody, having long since been forgotten. But one or two in high up places continued the search, despite all this. And they were now well and truly on their radar.

  31 Night At The Museum

  It had been a doddle to disable the alarm system... child's play for a dragon as experienced as he was.

  Slipping through the door, making sure to close it quietly behind him, he scrolled through the various visions available to him, eventually settling on infra red. Suddenly the main hall, which had been shrouded in darkness, became bright, alive, visible. With all the skills of a ninja, he padded silently around the different displays, making sure to stay in the blind spot of the security cameras. Much as he found the exhibits fascinating, now wasn't really the time for his curiosity to come out and play. Having always wanted to visit, he'd never imagined it would be under these circumstances.

  His internet search about this place had gleaned much information, but not whereabouts in the museum the metal he was searching for was kept. So he had to do it the old fashioned way, and work his way through all the presentations.

  Booked into a local guest house in the guise of a visiting wildlif
e photographer, he'd used a name other than his own, and his employer, the master mantra maker, had helped him forge a new driving licence and credit cards. Given his love of everything to do with nature, it hadn't been much of a challenge to pull off the new persona. Making a fuss of his DSLR Canon EOS 700D camera, with its variety of lenses and all the additional equipment that went with it, was more than enough to convince the guest house owners, along with all the staff. Normally he only ever used the camera to capture rugby pictures, be it from one of the other teams playing at the sports club, or some action or other from one of his coaching courses. Over the last few years, he'd developed a keen interest in photography and could often be found chained to his computer, manipulating some of the images he'd captured with various forms of software, late into the night. All this had helped him with his cunning cover.

  Crawling beneath a display case of ancient coins, Tank hoped he was getting close in narrowing down the search. It had been more than fifteen minutes now since he'd first entered but it felt more like fifteen hours. Both his body and mind screamed at him to leave, get out, go. Every atom of him knew that it was wrong being here like this, but he just had to get his hands on that metal, so many lives depended on it. For him, it was the key to everything.

  Sneaking past the end of a flint weapon display, he rolled across the open space in front of him with more agility than most would have given him credit for, especially just by looking at him. Coming up in front of a tall, singular exhibit, a smile stretched across his face as he realised he'd found the treasure he'd been searching for. Quickly he checked out the case the metal was contained in. It looked as though it was hooked up to a separate alarm, something he knew would only take him a few seconds to defeat. Abruptly a loud CRASH of something heavy falling from somewhere further down the hall echoed back up towards him.