He strolled into the building like he totally belonged. Aspen grasped Sid’s hand and leaned her head on his shoulder. “I hope he’s successful.”
“Me too. If he’s not, I don’t know what we are going to do next. We’ll be fighting a blind fight.”
Jonathan nudged them. “We’ll look suspicious if we wait out here. No one can see us in the car.”
They climbed back in and waited for Freddie to return. Ten minutes passed.
“Shouldn’t he be back by now?” Sid asked.
“Relax. He probably hasn’t even made it past security yet. He’ll be back. Don’t worry,” Jonathan said.
Easy for him to say. He didn’t have the entire world depending on his actions. Sid needed to think of what his next steps would be. That was hard because so much was dependent on what would happen with the president. Sid hoped she’d decide to work with him. It would give him a much needed ally and someone to help him win this war. Humans and dragons fighting together would be unprecedented, and the world would never be the same again.
It would never be the same anyway. If the president decided not to work with them, they might have to go into hiding even if they won. Sid didn’t think the president would be satisfied with only the canyon and arctic dragons dead. She wouldn’t rest until all of them were dead. He supposed hiding wouldn’t be the worst thing that could happen. The royal dragons could live out their days as humans. The sea dragons would stay underwater, and the others would hide high in the mountains. It wouldn’t be the first time in their history that they had to hide, but try as he might, Sid couldn’t imagine the world without dragons. Yellowstone would cease to be Yellowstone without the silver and gold dragons.
Yosemite would already be different without the woodland dragons. Sid’s heart clenched at the thought of all those beautiful purple and green dragons being killed. What would the future look like without them?
The war had barely started, and already the white witch had changed all of their lives. He needed to defeat her.
Suddenly his next step was clear. He would find the white witch.
And he’d kill her.
About forty-five minutes later Freddie finally emerged. Sid was going bonkers waiting for him. He needed to know what was going on.
Freddie walked around the car and squeezed in next to Aspen. Sid glowered at him and clenched his fists. “Took you long enough.”
“We had trouble finding the room, but I also thought I’d do as much snooping as I could while I was there. Nearly got myself kicked out.”
Sid was quickly losing patience. “What did you find?”
“Not looking good for you, bro. A couple of hours ago a group of fire dragons took out some fighter jets off the coast of California.”
“California? But they are all in Hawaii.”
“Sounds like they’re heading inland. If the white and orange dragons recruited them, that doesn’t look good for you.”
“I doubt it. The humans had to have attacked first. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have fought.”
“You sure?” Freddie creased his eyebrows.
“Positive.”
Sid knew Val wouldn’t take the canyon dragon’s side. Val must’ve convinced them to come fight on the mainland. There was no other explanation.
“Did you find out how many fatalities there were?”
“None of the jets made it back. The fire dragons took them all out. No idea if any dragons died.”
Why would they do that? Aspen asked.
If they were attacked, they’d have no choice.
I hope you’re right. But if they joined the arctic, then Val could be dead.
Don’t say that. He has to be alive.
Freddie pulled a bag of chips out of his backpack and began munching loudly. “Ultimately, it doesn’t matter how many died. There is no way the president is going to accept your help now. You told her that the red ones would fight with her. Now that they’ve taken down the fighter jets, they’ll never work with you.”
Sid scowled. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, Freddie was right. Sid would have to figure out how to fight a three-way war. Who would he spare to fight the humans? He needed someone to fight that side of the battle so he could focus on the white witch. The sea dragons maybe. The fire dragons would be good. They’d already fought the humans. Dammit. He wanted to fight alongside the humans, not against them.
Everyone in the car went quiet except for Freddie’s incessant chewing. When Sid glared at him, he held out the bag. “Want a chip?”
“No thanks.”
Aspen took one though, and soon she and Freddie were whispering about something.
Sid nudged her. “What are you talking about?”
She giggled. “Nothing. Oh, look.”
The two spies had arrived at the car. Jonathan let his window down, and they flew inside.
“What’d you find out?” Sid asked.
Freddie held out a chip for them, and they sniffed at it, but both shook their heads.
If you meet with her, she will lock you up. She doesn’t want to kill you because she thinks you have information for her.
“What kind of information?”
“Is it possible for you to speak to all of us? I don’t like being left out,” Aspen said.
Certainly, Your Majesty. I’m sorry. The president thinks that you will give her locations of various dragons. You cannot meet with her.
“What else did you learn?” Sid asked.
She spoke of a weapon used to kill dragons. Do you know of it?
“Yes. She used it on me last year, but I was healed. What about it?” Sid asked.
They have perfected it. She showed a video of them using one on an orange dragon. We could not see it, but based on the reaction of the people in the room, it worked well. The weapons are dangerous, Your Majesty.
“I’m aware of that. The weapons are the only thing they have that can kill us. Did she say where they were stored?”
The little spy shook his head. She made it seem like they were still producing them. She said it would be forty-eight hours before they could use them. But she mentioned Kentucky, Colorado, and Montana.
Aspen leaned back. “That must be where they are manufacturing them. If we can send dragons there to destroy the manufacturing plants, then they won’t be able to use them.”
Sid rubbed his hand across his face. He wasn’t sure what to make of this new information. They needed to find the factories first.
“You’re right. But that’s a lot of ground to cover. Finding one factory will be tough. Did she say anything else?”
Only that she will not rest until every dragon is dead. She was adamant.
“Thank you. Would you like to go with us when we return to Yellowstone?”
No. We will return to Darneil. He will not have noticed that we were gone.
Okay, thank you for all your help. Would you like us to drive you home?”
We’d rather fly. Good luck. Tell Runa we miss her.
“We will. I will come visit when this is all over and tell you how your information helped us win this war.”
Thank you, Your Majesty.
Jonathan rolled his window back down, and they flew out.
“Where to now?” Jonathan finally asked.
“Back home. We have a witch to defeat. We’ll just have to work around the humans.”
“Will it be faster if I ride you instead of using the jet?” Aspen asked.
“Yes, but it will also be more dangerous. We can’t risk flying out in the open.”
Freddie poked his head around Aspen. “Can I come?”
Sid glowered at him. “No, you’re working for them, remember?” Sid knew he was being unreasonable, but he didn’t like the guy.
“But I don’t want to work for them. I want
to work for you. Aspen told me all about the white witch. I can help. My software can let you know where dragons are.”
“You already gave us the software. You should stay here.”
Aspen put a hand on Sid’s knee. “Come on. He only wants to help. Let him. No one else knows how to use the software. He could be useful.”
Sid had to clear his head. He wasn’t sure what Freddie’s motivations were.
“I don’t know.”
Freddie frowned. “My whole life, I’ve only ever wanted to be close to the dragons. Now I have a chance to help save them. Please. Let me come.”
Sid couldn’t come up with a good reason to say no. He wanted to, but he agreed that Aspen was probably right. Freddie could be useful.
“Okay, fine. You can come home with us.”
Aspen threw her arms around Sid. “Thank you.” Then she turned back to Freddie. “Sid’s house is amazing, and you are going to absolutely fall in love with Runa.”
On the airplane, Sid wanted to sleep, but Aspen wouldn’t let him. “What are we going to do about those factories?”
“There is nothing we can do. The states are too big. By the time we locate the factories, it will be too late.”
“Not necessarily. They will probably produce the weapons near military bases, and even if they don’t, they’ll move them there. All you need to do is keep an eye on the bases. Sweet plane, by the way,” Freddie said. He stuck his hand in the bowl on the table and threw a few peanuts in his mouth.
Sid didn’t know what to say. Damn kid kept showing him up.
“I guess we could spare a few people to watch over the military bases.”
“Sid, you need to. The white witch will be more than enough to keep you occupied. If you don’t take care of this problem, you won’t be able to focus on her. We need to destroy the weapons,” Aspen said
“I do need to focus on the white witch. Who can we send after the weapons?”
“We need to consult with others. Do you think Val’s returned yet?”
“Hopefully.”
“What about Skye?”
Sid frowned. “Your guess is as good as mine. She wasn’t exactly forthcoming about where she was going.”
Aspen pursed her lips. “That is unlike her.”
Sid laughed. “No, it’s not. She runs when she’s scared. Why do you think she and Rowan were gone for so long? She was running away. But Rowan will convince her to come back. Plus, she knows it’s the right thing to do. Hopefully it doesn’t take her too long to figure that out though.”
The plane descended, and Sid grabbed Aspen’s hand. “I love you,” he said. He didn’t know what the future was going to bring, but it looked grim, and he needed her to know how much she meant to him.
She gazed deep into his eyes. “I know,” she said. “I love you too.”
Sid pulled in the driveway, and Freddie’s mouth dropped. “That’s your house?”
“Yep.”
Sid held Aspen’s hand as they walked to the front door, Freddie following. Sid opened the door, and Runa barreled into him.
“Yay, you’re home! Val’s out back, and Skye and Rowan just arrived. They’re both in the shower.”
Aspen creased her eyebrows. “Together?”
Runa sniggered. “No. Rowan is in your shower.”
Aspen let out a breath. “That is one image I don’t need in my mind.”
Runa bounced up and down for a second, but she caught sight of Freddie and paused. “Who’s that?”
“You can talk,” Freddie said.
“Duh. River dragon. Who are you?”
“Runa,” Aspen said, “this is Freddie. He’s come to help us.”
“With the war?”
“Yeah. He’s good with computers and can help us track where the dragons are.”
Runa flew up and stared into his eyes. “Do you like dragons?”
“More than anything,” he said.
“Then I approve. Can you cook? I’m hungry.”
Aspen laughed. “You know Skye will make something for you if you’re patient.”
Freddie had eyes only for Runa. Sid was glad because that meant he wasn’t paying attention to Aspen. “I can’t cook much, but I can make a mean omelet.”
Runa scrunched up her face. “Those are eggs right? I don’t like eggs.”
They all followed Runa into the kitchen. Sid stopped dead in his tracks when he saw what was in his backyard. As far as the eye could see were blue and red dragons.
“Where did they all come from?”
“I told you Val was back. They came with him.”
“But what about the sea dragons?” Sid asked. Sea and fire dragons would never voluntarily come together. The fact that they were mingling blew his mind.
Runa narrowed her eyes at Sid, and she spoke very slowly. “They...came...with…Val.”
“But sea and fire dragons hate each other.”
“Not these ones. They’re in love.” Runa made a gagging sound.
“All of them?” Sid asked, confused.
Runa giggled. “No. Just Fuchsia and Marlow.”
Sid still hadn’t taken his eyes off the backyard. “Aspen, can you get Freddie set up with whatever he needs for his program? I’m going to go talk to Val.”
“Um, no I’d like to go meet Fuchsia and Marlow.”
“Aspen…”
“I know. Yeah, I’ll help Freddie.”
Sid stepped outside. Dragons covered every surface. Most were sleeping, but a few were chatting. Sea and fire. This was unheard of.
He found Val right in the middle, Hazel at his side.
When Val saw Sid, he hung his head. “I’m sorry for what I said. I hope you’ll accept us back.”
Sid gave Val a smile. He’d forgotten about the fight. “No worries. This is incredible. How did you do it?”
“Do what?”
“Join the fire and sea? Bring them all here?”
“My cousin had a lot to do with that. But, Sid, two-thirds of my tribe died fighting the canyon and arctic. They ambushed us.”
“I’m so sorry.” He pulled Val into an embrace. He couldn’t imagine what it must be like to lose most of his tribe. Too many innocent dragons had lost their lives.
Val straightened up, his head held high. “We’re ready to fight, and win.”
That was what Val needed to say, but Sid was certain Val would rather take the time to mourn. Sid would let him keep his pride though.
“You’re just in time then. We’re ready to attack. We’ve done too much defending. Have you seen the royal dragons?”
“Yes. They are in the woods beyond the sea and fire. There were too many of us.”
Sid craned his neck. Sure enough, behind the ocean of blue and red, he spied the gold and silver.
Sid’s heart swelled. They might have a shot at this. “Let’s go make a plan, shall we?”
Val took Hazel’s hand and followed Sid into the house.
In the kitchen he found Rowan and Skye working on sandwiches. Skye flung her arms around Sid. “I’m so sorry I left.”
“It’s okay. I knew you’d come back.”
“Well, it was cowardly of me.”
Freddie and Aspen were on the other side of the room. “I set Freddie up at the desk.” Aspen pointed beyond the table.
“Very good. He can work while we plan.”
They all took their places around the table, and Sid felt much better now that they were all together again.
“Before we start, we need to make sure everyone is updated on what’s been happening. Val, I’d like you to start. Tell us everything that happened with the fire dragons. Skye, if you gathered any more information, we’d like to hear it. Then I’ll tell you what Aspen and I discovered.”
Val told his story
first, followed by Skye, and then Sid explained about the president and her refusal to work with them.
He called Runa, and she jerked her head up from where she’d been messing with Freddie. She’d been sitting as close as she could get to him, and every once in a while she would poke at a key on his keyboard and cackle.
“What?” she asked.
“Your father would like you to return.”
She stuck her tongue out. “Too bad. I’m not going home.”
Sid frowned at her. He knew the others would react, but he had an important question. “Tell me, why would your father call you princess?”
Skye squeaked, and Val gasped. Runa flew over to the table and landed in front of Sid.
“Because my father is king of the underground dragons. Therefore I’m a princess. Except now, I’m not sure how that would work as I’ve pledged loyalty to you. You’re my king.”
Sid sighed. So she really was the princess. He had so many things to worry about, and now he had to worry about keeping her alive. “I think you need to go home for the remainder of the war. As soon as it is over, I’ll come get you.”
She took two steps back. “How dare you. I will do no such thing. I belong here with you and all my friends.”
“But you could die.”
“So could you. I’m not going to run and hide. No way. You can’t make me.” Runa rustled her wings and narrowed her eyes at him.
Rowan spoke up, his voice pleading. “Runa, please. We’ll all feel better if we know you are safe.” Sid didn’t know how Rowan would handle this. The prophecy was very specific about the knight being responsible for the death of the princess. If that was the case, then Rowan would shoulder that burden. Runa didn’t know that though, and they weren’t allowed to tell her.
Runa stalked across the table to him. “How could you? I’ve always stuck up for you, and now you’re trying to get rid of me too.”
“It’s not like that,” Rowan said. “It’s just that the prophecy—”
“What about the prophecy?” Runa relaxed a little and cocked her head.
The Kings: The Dragon Kings Book 5 Page 10
