by J. Axbridge
“Mr. Allister, I do not mean to be rude,” She looked up, “but I am a Huntra, a Hunter and Tracker, not a killer.” Mayumi corrected him once again, “Unless there is something that needs killing of course!” She smirked widely.
“Of course,” Our dad’s eyebrows raised jovially, “Just your luck there are a lot of things that need killing these days.” But his sudden jovial manner didn’t last long as the conversation switched back to a more serious topic, “Concerning that ‘Book of Symbols’, you mentioned, I’ve never heard of such a book in my life. But there are people here that may be able to help.”
“Really, do you think they can read it? Are there fairies here?” Ethan enthusiastically asked.
“I don’t believe so Ethan, but there are werewolves in this city. That’s the reason I’m actually in charge. Once I realized werewolves were real and I knew some of the history, I was able to convince the surviving humans in this city that we needed werewolves on our side. After all, I have werewolf kids and you’re not all that bad!” He smiled. “Honestly it did take a lot of persuading but after numerous attacks by the infected and vampires; they decided that having werewolves around wasn’t such a terrible idea after all.”
“How many people are in this city?” Arthur asked.
“Currently we have around two thousand, give or take a few. There is another place where humans and others are living too but I cannot tell you yet where that is. Before anyone is allowed to go there they must be interviewed, or put through a security check of sorts. Essentially everyone living here in Lands End is a first line of defense though. We do have weapons as you’ve seen when you entered and keep guards posted around the clock throughout the entire city. We also scout the area outside the walls daily for possible intruders or those seeking refuge. Basically those living here are actually like a small army, which is a good thing it appears, because from what you’re telling me there is going to be a lot of vampires, werewolves and crazy eyed people on our doorstep in less than three days.”
“Mr. Allister, what about those that do not want to fight? I think they should have the choice to leave and go to your safe place right away. We do not want them to die for a cause they know nothing of or care little about.” Mayumi was beyond sincere, she wouldn’t hesitate to kill, I know that, but also she wouldn’t hesitate to save an innocent life.
“Trust me, everyone living here has seen strange things since the showers hit and if I ask them to stay and fight, they’ll stay and fight . . . On the other hand, convincing them my twin daughters are fairies held captive by a giant vampire may be a different story,” My dad grimaced. “Yet if they meet your so-called dragon friends . . . , what do you call them again?” He tapped his fingers on the table in thought.
“They’re called GuDra, Guardian Dragons,” Ethan answered as if it was common knowledge.
“Yes, if they meet these GuDra in person, then surely they’ll come around to the idea of protecting this place at all costs and saving the twins. Besides, if all goes to crap, we have enough boats for everyone to escape off the mainland to a safe place. . . I am curious about one thing though, have any of you ever seen a vampire fly?”
“No never, but believe it or not they can run on water if they’re going fast enough,” Arthur answered. “Like stones skipping across a pond.”
“Now that’s interesting,” our dad smiled, “A bat that can’t fly, my God, what a strange world we now live in!”
“Enough of this, I have a plan and this is how we should do it. . .” I said, rearing to get on with the planned rescue of my sisters. “We’ll ask the GuDra politely to meet dad after the sun sets so no one notices them flying in. We can use the hotel top, it’s surely a large enough space for them to land and high enough they probably won’t be spotted,” I stood up and pushed my chair in, “Until then could you show us around town, let us meet some of the locals and get our story of survival out. That may help for the bigger surprise we’ll give them tomorrow when they actually meet the GuDra,” I stretched my arms straight up over my head, cracking my knuckles accidently. “And Ethan wanted to check out that candy store we saw on the walk over here if that’s possible?”
. . . . .
The rest of the day went as planned, walking through the city, meeting those in charge of security and discussing the upcoming trade for the twins.
Ethan did make it to the candy shop where to his surprise they had a variety of homemade chocolates and hard candies which tasted great. Arthur and I couldn’t help but smile watching him get so excited, it was fun for us to see Ethan acting like an eleven year old should and not worrying about the evil looming outside the city walls.
As the sun began to set we sat down on a park bench surround by rows of fragrant flowers in purples, blues and whites, with our snacks and water bottles in hand, we discussed our final plans.
“We can’t take any chances with those things, this isn’t some kids game; we must give them that Book of Symbols your dragon friends have, to get the twins back,” Our dad said matter of factly as he sat down.
“That’s not even an option Dad, if we give them the book, we may get the twins back, sure, but we’ll be giving up the whole world. They’ll eventually kill or enslave all of us, humans and werewolves alike.” Arthur fidgeted with his backpack. “You don’t understand the vampire we’re dealing with. He’s beyond vicious!”
“Don’t forget Ravot and his GuDra,” Ethan slurred while sucking on hard candy. “They won’t survive if Lawrence Karayan has the Book too and they’re our friends.”
“Listen, right now we must only think of your sisters, they’re fairies for goodness sake and if they’re as powerful as you’ve told me then they are the priority. Not to mention, THEY’RE YOUR SISTERS!” Our dad passionately pounded his fists on the bench.
“We love Victoria and Caelyn as much as you dad,” I shot back, “and we’ve traveled with them for months; we’ve been through a lot together. But what you don’t understand is that the twins would want to keep everyone safe if it was up to them. Besides, Lawrence Karayan won’t let them go even if he gets the damn book. He needs at least one of them to read what’s written in it and he’ll kill anyone who gets in his way. He can’t be trusted with a simple trade,” I said, trying to calm my father down, “We need some sort of trick or sneak attack to get the twins back to us safely and keep the book from the ancient vampire at the same time if possible.”
“What about Ravot’s plan,” Arthur zipped his backpack shut. “He wants to get two vamps alone on a boat at sea then make the trade off shore. That still seems like the best option so far. Think about it, we could station other boats out there and surround him to make sure we get the twins back safely . . . We can beat that devil, I’m getting stronger every day and with the help of the GuDra we’d either kill him or he’d scurry away at high speed, either way we’d get Caelyn and Victoria back.”
“Enough talking,” Mayumi jumped up from the bench. “We need to get Ravot and the GuDra here before we make further plans. Let’s go get them and introduce them to your Dad, we are wasting the little time we have.” Mayumi was clearly frustrated and began pacing, unable to stand still.
We decided that Arthur and Mayumi would be the ones to fetch the GuDra. Walking them to the gate from where we’d entered earlier, my dad explained to the guards that they needed to retrieve our weapons which we’d left hidden down the road. Arthur and Mayumi walked quickly around the maze of cars before jogging out of sight to meet back up with Ravot and the rest of the GuDra just on the outskirts of town. While Ethan, my dad and I headed back to the hotel to prepare for the GuDra’s secret arrival on the rooftop.
Chapter 62 - The GuDra
Arthur
“Listen, we need to take you back with us and introduce you to Mr. Allister, tonight.” Mayumi said, “Tomorrow we will introduce you to the rest of the city at a town meeting and explain the situation with Lawrence Karayan and the pending fight for Caelyn and Victoria.” Mayumi brushed
her long black silky hair that I loved so much away from her beautiful tan face and almond eyes.
“Arthur, your father, can he be trusted?” Ravot hissed.
“My father . . .,” I raised my voice questioningly, “of course he can. He’s on our side.”
“I apologize young warrior, but I had to ask. We need to make sure we are not being set up by the Ancient. It seems he has a far reach across this land and he could even have spies within the city boundaries by now.”
“Do not worry, Arthur’s dad is a good man, we can trust him, his eyes are honest. Mr. Allister makes a trustworthy and formidable ally.” Mayumi assured Ravot patting him on his scaly shoulder.
“Good enough, we fly in the next darkness Huntra. We have many things to discuss as a group before next sun rise.”
With that, as soon as darkness was in full cover, Mayumi and I climbed on the backs of the GuDra and flew swiftly back to Lands End for the hotel top meeting.
*****
Adelaide, Ethan and our dad whose mouth already hung open in awe, watched in silence as the GuDra with Mayumi and me on their backs, quietly floated down to the rooftop making no more noise than a gentle breeze as we landed.
“Dad, this is Ravot, he is the leader of the GuDra,” I said climbing down off Ravot’s hard studded back.
My dad stared in disbelief; only feet away from a “real dragon”. He, like Ethan, was fascinated with fantasy books and movies as a child and never imagined dragons actually existed in the past or present. Pulling himself back to reality with a shake of his head, my dad stepped in, extended his hand politely, and introduced himself without the slightest hint of shock, surprise or fear. “Nice to meet you Ravot, my name is Hadwin . . . , Hadwin Allister. I want to thank you for taking care of my children and Mayumi; she is as much family to me as my own kids.”
Ravot hissed out a rough scratchy laugh. “Sir, your children and the Gushiken took as much care of us as we did of them. They are true warriors and guardians. We are honored to stand with them,” Ravot smiled wide, his razor sharp teeth glistening in the dimmed hotel rooftop lights.
“You’re really dragons?” Our dad asked, his voice rising like a small boy in wonderment unable to contain himself.
“We are part of the Draco species, yes.”
“And you actually breathe fire?”
“Why yes, it’s part of being a dragon.” Ravot said, as the other GuDra hissed laughs as smoke puffed from their noses.
“This is going to be interesting.” Our dad raised his eyebrows glancing over the group being put together to get his daughters back and hopefully save the world.
For privacy our dad had the top hotel floor vacated by his guards so we could enter the largest suite that had the twenty feet high ceilings to discuss our plans in private. Once everyone was seated somewhat comfortably around the room the debate about what our next actions will be, began.
“Ravot, I’ve heard about your plan and it sounds doable. I know you don’t want to give up the book, but it’s important to get my daughters back. So we may have to think about doing just that, giving up the book in return for the twins.” My dad started out boldly causing the dragons to stare down on him rather nastily.
“Yes, the book is important to us all Hadwin Allister, but so are the fairies, they hold magic and powers that most only dream of, even if they can’t use them to their fullest yet. It is those powers that are going to be needed in the future if you want to reclaim this land you once called America. But I must correct you on one issue; we are NOT giving the book to the vampires. That would be a mistake. We will get your daughters back even if it means our extinction but that book must not fall into evil hands ever . . . ,” Ravot paused looking around the room at the rest of us. “Otherwise the world will be enslaved by the Ancient and his kind for eternity.”
“The Ancient?” Dad questioned.
“Dad, that’s what he calls the head vampire,” Ethan said. “He’s been on this earth for hundreds or thousands of years and they’ve known this vampire since waaaay back. They actually know each other from ancient times and those from the ancient times that are still living today call each other ‘Ancients’.”
“The young boy, albeit a bit confusing, is correct. We Ancients live by a code of honor but the vampire named Lawrence Karayan is not one to be trusted. Since we were recently awoken and introduced to this new world we do not know how many Ancients still survive today but so far it’s us and him. It would please us to learn other good Ancients are still living but seeing how the world has been turned upside down, it may not be so. Likewise if there are more evil Ancients out there then we’ll definitely need not only large armies but smart armies to defeat them.”
“Stop – Stop – Stop!” Adelaide raised her hands in front of her, “We’re getting off track again, we need to concentrate on getting the twins back safely, that’s our number one priority,” She sat up before visibly yawning staring at the soft pillows and sheets. She was obviously just as eager as the rest of us to get a decent sleep on a nice comfy bed if only for a few hours.
“Addie’s right; it is time to make a decision on how this is going to happen,” Mayumi rested her hand on my sister’s shoulder. “We also need to get rest before tomorrow,” she added and began fluffing the lone pillow next to her, a sure sign that we had to turn in soon.
“Then let’s finish this,” my dad started. “Although this looks like a large city with roads all over, there is only one main road leading in, the zigzagged one the four of you walked in on.” My dad waved towards us, “We’ll make it even more troublesome for our visitors and we’ll add a watch further down the road to warn us of their arrival. The Book of Symbols will be hiding here in the city but we’ll tell them it’s on a boat a mile off shore.” My dad looked to Ravot who slowly nodded in agreement before he went on. “We’ll have a second boat waiting to take two of us and two of them along with the twins out to it. Once there we’ll have a GuDra fly the book in as Ravot planned and we’ll make the exchange then. The vampires can have the boat they came out in along with the book. After they leave we’ll head back to Lands End and our family will be united safely once again.”
“Mr. Allister . . . , Hadwin . . .” Ravot’s deep voice hissed. “That is mostly correct, except you must not have heard me a moment ago. We are not giving that book in trade.” Said Ravot clearly annoyed. “The plan will be that once they get to the boat a mile out, the GuDra will attack them. In the confusion Meten and Dako will secure your daughters and fly them to safety but the book is NEVER to be near the Ancient, he is too strong and too smart.”
“But the twins, they’ll be in danger if a fight breaks out,” I raised my voice in protest.
“They are already IN DANGER young warrior wolf. . . Arthur, they are fairies, they’ve created protective bubbles to protect you from our fire; they have a natural instinct and ability that will save them, I am confident of that.”
“Yeah, but what if they’re gagged or drugged it won’t work then, will it?” I asked.
Ravot hissed and flames flickered in his eyes as he looked piercingly at me and I couldn’t help but sweat a little, wondering if I had crossed the line?
“WE DO NOT - GIVE UP - THE BOOK!”
“A fake, we make a fake,” Adelaide suddenly alert, jumped up. “There’s got to be some books in this hotel that we can turn into a fake Book of Symbols. If I’m not mistaken, Lawrence Karayan has never seen the real book so he wouldn’t know,” Adelaide said coming to my rescue.
“Sure Addie,” I clinched my fists with angst, “but as soon as he looks inside and sees it’s not the right book it’ll be over for the twins’.”
“Tell me then, what do we do? Ravot is not giving up the book and we can’t let the twins get hurt or killed. It seems there’s no middle ground?” Adelaide’s arms dropped down to her side in defeat.
“Calm down everyone, I think I may have a solution.” Mayumi spoke coolly, and then turned to Ravot. “How fast are
you and your GuDra?”
“In flight we are very fast!” Ravot proudly pounded his chest. “There is no creature faster!”
“I have a crazy idea then. You give the vampire the real book; and as soon as he starts to send the twins over, two of your GuDra snag them while simultaneously I shoot my arrow striking the vamps hand. While he is in a moment of shock and lets go of the book or at least switches it to his other hand, your third GuDra, the fastest GuDra of your group, will snatch it from him in flight and zoom out. How does that scenario sound? Would that be the middle ground we need to get this plan going?” Mayumi eyed everyone for approval.
For the first time since we started discussing plans for the twins rescue, hope flashed in my dad’s eyes. “Are your GuDra really fast enough to retrieve the book and get the twins to safety?”
“We are. Chirin is one of our fastest; she’ll go after the book. Meten and Dako are strong and will get the fairies. Jaggo and Goca will stay on the mainland to help if warranted. You and I, Hadwin, will be the two on the boat making the trade. The Gushiken will need a clean shot. . . Do you have a third boat we can use?” Ravot asked the question to my dad, all the while peering at Mayumi.
“Better! There is a small piece of land that juts out of the water that the vampires will not notice it if the trade is done in the dark hours. Mayumi will set up her shot there and we’ll be anchored so close to her location that we’ll hear her breathing.” My dad turned to Mayumi and in a caring voice asked, “Can you make the shot Mayumi? If you cannot or are afraid, we can decide on a different plan.”
Mayumi smiled, “As easy as a free throw Mr. Allister, especially if you’re going to be as close as you say,” she said smiling confidently. Having won the high school free throw shooting contest three years running my dad understood she would make the shot count.
“It’s final then, Mayumi, make it happen,” My dad slapped her assuredly on the shoulder. “Lives or rather, the world will depend on you making that shot.”
