Silver faulted in the air, her wings burning and breath ragged. It was as if her previous energy had completely left her, and she was now struggling to keep herself flying. The minuscule weight of the human on her back was becoming more and more prominent, and she was forced to pull herself often into a glide, slowing the group down.
When land was spotted in the distant horizon she couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. They had been flying for almost five hours, and with every wing beat the dragoness found herself slowly sinking toward the ocean. She hated herself for it. Since when had she been so weak? She had flown far further distances in far less time, without being as exhausted as she was now.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Diana repeated from her back, having asked the question a number of times before.
"I'll be fine," grunted back Silver, her voice barely audible above the wind, "I just need a rest."
The human nodded her head, though didn't seem convinced, "We're coming up to the Maldives, a popular holiday area, so there will be a lot of people there, but it is the nearest island."
The dragoness nodded her head, being able to see it in the horizon, "As long as we can find a place to sleep in peace for a night or two, I'll be happy."
"There are some small islands toward the southwest corner of the Maldives. They aren't as populated as the rest of the islands, so you should be alright to land there."
"We'll aim for them then."
Flapping her wings a couple more times Silver pushed herself for a little more speed. The other dragons followed her example, easily keeping pace with the exhausted dragoness. As they approached the Maldives Silver spotted the islands Diana had been talking about. She circled around, making her way down toward one of the tropical beaches.
Much like Diego Garcia, the Maldives was a circular set of islands with ocean in the middle. It was far more populated however. There was a small city on one of the islands, with multiple floored apartments spread throughout, with roads surrounding them. The dragons stay well away from that side of the islands, and instead glided down toward a smaller set. A number of buildings were scattered throughout the area, but the dragon's managed to find a small beach to land on, startling a couple of humans who were laying on the sand.
Silver instantly collapsed to the ground, not caring about the sand getting into her scales. She would clean it out later, when she wasn't so tired. The sun was setting in the horizon, causing an orange and purple glow to cross over the sky, illuminated on calm ocean waves. The trees glistened, the water from the recent storm still shining along their leaves.
Diana slid of Silver's back, giving a polite nod to the gaping couple. West, Blaze and Reha each allowed the humans on their own back to get off as well, seeming a little relieved for the transfer.
"This seems like a good spot to spend the night," said the fire drake, looking at his sister with concern.
The dragoness pushed herself to her feet, still struggling to catch her breath. She smiled thankfully at her brother and nodded her head, before looking to the sky. She still couldn't quite believe that they were free. It has been so long since she had seen a sunset, so long since she had felt the feeling of real wind across her wings. The illusion she had been in never quite captured the true rush of emotions one experienced while flying.
"It's been quite the hatchday, hasn't it?" Blaze said with a small grin.
Silver nodded her head in agreement, "Definitely one to remember."
The human couple had pushed themselves to their feet and were rushing across the beach to the other side, fleeing from the four dragons and the strange humans holding guns. They were quite the frightening sight. West chuckled softly as they ran, before curling himself down on the beach and yawning loudly, seeming content to have the beach all to themselves.
"Won't we be noticed," stuttered Reha nervously, her tail twitching anxiously behind her, "What if they find us again?"
"There will be a few officials that will come and see if we are a threat or not," stated Diana, "But you four shouldn't worry about that. We'll take care of them."
The wind dragon snorted softly, "And why should we trust you?"
Silver glanced at the drake with a small frown, "Would you rather talk to them?"
West tilted his head at her and hesitated.
"Exactly. Let them deal with it," she yawned, "It'll be for the good I think. Even if we did talk to them I don't think they would listen to a bunch of dragons. They would either run or shoot before we said the second word."
He sighed, "Fine, fine. But I'm not that tired."
"Sure you aren't," the metal dragon grinned slightly, before yawning again, and curling up around herself, finding it a little strange with a longer tail and larger wings.
* * *
By the time night fell all four dragons were fast asleep, even West. They were all rather tired, as it had been a long time since any of them had flown for so long in a single stretch. Occasionally the two males had been sent on missions, but most of their time had been spent in the A.O.D.H base, being used for miscellaneous purposes such as study or breeding.
For Reha it had been her first time in the sky in a little less then a year, as she was used primarily for eggs. It was rare for her to be allowed any physical exercise, and her exhaustion was nearly at the level of Silver's. As she slept she hadn't even bothered to curl herself up.
The five humans had started a small fire on the beach after talking with the authorities. Much to their relief they had been allowed to stay a couple of nights on the island. The people of the Maldives weren't particularly fond of A.O.D.H and what they stood for, as they were often ridiculed and taken advantage of by the dragon hunting company. Once they had seen the free dragons, they had been convinced that the humans were telling the truth about their mission to set them free.
As the night wore on, Diana found herself looking out over the ocean. The wind had picked up again, holding the hint of another douse of rain. Waves danced in the moonlight, their glow almost hypnotising. A number of fish could be seen leaping out of the water for an unknown reason, but it made the human woman smile.
As she turned to walk back toward her companions something caught her eye, and she frowned, turning back to the dark water. She narrowed her eyes, taking out a set of binoculars from a pocket in her wetsuit. It was a boat, or a ship more accurately, that looked as if it was ready for war. Massive guns were situated across the deck, as well as some strange looking contraptions that looked as though they were for firing nets. Along the bow of the ship was a strange signature. It looked like a dragon with a collar wound around its neck. Her eyes widened and she quickly turned, running toward the small group around the fire.
They looked up to greet her with a smile, and when they saw the panicked look on her face they hesitated.
"What's wrong?" a man named Martin asked.
"D.E.D," Diana replied, looking toward the ocean again, "One of their ships is patrolling the islands and I am quite sure its not alone."
There was a small silence as they thought for a moment through what she had said, "What do we do?"
"Wake the dragons," she replied, "We need to get them hidden, then we come up with a plan."
They nodded in agreement. Diana quickly walked over to the sleeping silver dragoness. She lightly placed her hand against her jaw. A rumbling growl vibrated through the dragon, not wanting to wake up, but the touch against her sensitive scales caused her eyes to snap open. When she saw a human standing over her, her first thought was to coat it in metal, but once she recognised Diana she settled down.
"What's wrong?" asked Silver.
"The Dragon Education Department," replied the ex-handler, "They have ships circling around the island we are on."
The dragoness's eyes widened, and she was quick to her feet. Exhaustion was still present in her stance, but she was wide-awake. She wouldn't escape from A.O.D.H, just to be caught by another dragon hunting organisation. She snarled softly, looking out over the bay. The fire had been quickly put out, and the other three dragons were also awake, looking across the ocean.
"How many are there?" asked Reha, looking around.
"Four," said Blaze, using his ability to see in the dark, "They're surrounding this place from all sides and the humans on board are preparing other boats. They know we are here."
Silver gritted her teeth, focusing on her shelled back, turning it as black as night. She was a little surprised at how easily the ability came to her, for it had usually been quite difficult. She guessed that reaching equilibrium had likely made controlling her metal much easier then it had been previously.
"Well lets not stay here and wait for them," said West, opening his wings to take off.
"Wait!" said Diana, "you won't be able to fly out of here."
The wind dragon snorted, "And why not?"
"Because they will shoot you down before you get out of range," replied the human, "They are completely able to do so."
He tilted his head, "Is that so?"
"Yes."
The drake growled, before sighing, "Okay, you haven't been wrong so far, so I'll trust you for now."
"Could we swim out underneath the boats?" asked Reha, seeming a little frightened. She had likely never come across D.E.D before, and was unused to being in such dangerous situations.
"No," another human shook his head, "They have radar. If you try to swim through the ocean they will spot you, and it's a lot easier to capture a dragon when they are swimming then it is while they are flying."
The water dragoness nodded her head softly, seeming a little distraught. The sound of revving engines suddenly passed over the beach as one of the boats was dropped into the ocean, occupied by five humans. It quickly sped toward them, sending a spray of water up into the sky behind it.
"Okay, I've got an idea," Diana suddenly said, "Can you dragons kill the humans in that boat without destroying it... silently?"
They looked at each other, and hesitated.
"We could try," said Silver.
"Why does it have to be not destroyed?" asked West, seeming a little disappointed.
"Because we'll need it," replied Diana, "Now, get ready."
The wind dragon snorted before turning to the speedboat rocketing toward them. Reha quickly ran toward the water and dived in, her blue body quickly disappearing amongst the waves. Silver flapped her tired wings a couple of times, pushing herself into the sky. She let her entire body be covered in black metal, hiding in the night sky. Blaze and West quickly backed away into the trees, not being able to hide themselves quite as well as the two dragonesses.
As the boat came closer Silver prepared numerous spikes, metal flowing easily around her tail. She watched closely, waiting patiently for them to get closer, knowing she wasn't quite the shot she used to be with her spikes. They were ten metres away from the beach when Reha suddenly launched herself from the water, causing them to cry out in surprise. She snapped down on one of the humans and yanked her head back and forth, snapping its spine. Before the others had a chance to react Silver flicked her tail, sending tail spikes down toward them. They were on target, and the other four hunters went down one after another, spikes embedded in their backs or heads. However a few missed and instead went through the bottom of the boat. One narrowly missed the water dragon, causing her to grunt in surprise.
The speedboat maintained its momentum all the way to the beach, beside the dead humans inside, coming to a stop on the sand. With a small smile Silver folded in her wings and landed with a soft thud. The drakes and more friendly humans walked out from the trees, quickly hurrying over to what was left of the hunters.
Reha swam to sure, the man still in her mouth. She spat him out, seeming a little horrified at what she had just done. The dead humans were dressed entirely in black, with numerous gadgets strapped around them. They each had a hand gun and a slightly different model of assault rifle then what Diana and the A.O.D.H handlers had.
"So, what are we going to do with this?" asked West, nosing the boat.
"Okay, here's my plan," Diana said, "My comrades and I will go in this boat, dressed as the hunters, and head toward the D.E.D ship, feigning injury or fear, and telling them that there were at least ten dragons on the island or something like that. Once we are on the ship we will try and get to the bridge and kill everyone on there. Once we have it under control we will signal you four to come to the ship and take out the remaining humans. Once we do that we can use the ship to hide you guys and get the hell out of here."
Silver tilted her head, a little surprised, "You would do that?"
"Of course," replied the human, "It wouldn't be that hard."
West snorted softly, "And can we trust that you won't just use D.E.D. to capture us again? You could just be leading us into a trap."
"West!" growled the dragoness.
"What? It's true. It would be pretty easy. D.E.D would easily be able to take out four dragons, no matter how powerful we are, especially if they are ready for us."
"I've told you already, we're tired of these people. Now that we know who you really are I would never want to see another dragon captured by hunters," Diana narrowed her eyes, "Either way, I've never liked the way D.E.D treated their dragons."
"Sure, that's what you say to us, but humans have a habit of lying to get their way, isn't that right?" West grunted.
The woman narrowed her eyes, "This is the only way off the island. Either trust us or not. If you don't you'll surely be captured. But if you do trust us you'll at least have a chance of escape. We are telling the truth, just trust us, for once. Please. If this works, we can get you all the way to the mainland without having to worry about any more hunters. Silver and Reha will be able to rest and recover, as will you two."
"She has a point," Blaze said, looking at West.
The wind dragon grumbled, clearly not liking the idea, before sighing, "Fine. But if we end up captured again I'll be the one saying 'I told you so'."
Silver snorted at him, before nodding toward Diana and the humans. They quickly put the plan underway, knowing they had to work fast. They dressed themselves in the costumes from the dead hunters, strapping on all the gear rather awkwardly. There was a slight problem in that all the hunters were men, but there were two woman in the group that were heading back. Diana assured them they would figure a way to keep the others in the dark about who they were.
Silver used her metal to fix the holes she had created in the bottom of the speedboat, hoping D.E.D wouldn't realise the difference between the steel and the elronium. Once they were ready, Diana and the others pushed off the shore, firing up the engine once more and heading back toward the boat, leaving the dragons on the sand.
West paced anxiously along the beach, feeling very frightened at the prospect of being captured again. It was something that had been constantly on his mind throughout the flight from the destroyed A.O.D.H base to here. He refused to be under the control of humans again, even if it killed him.
There was a sudden flash of light from the ship's control room and they picked up the sound of gunfire. Reha's head perked up from where she had been sitting silently, surprised. Blaze grinned, opening his wings. That had been the signal after all. He pushed his wings downward, launching into the air, followed by the other three dragons. They quickly made their way across the ocean surface toward the ship, using the distraction caused by their humans to remain undetected.
As they came up to the ship West took the lead, flying upwards and landing on the bow, behind a number of humans who were looking up at the bridge, wondering what was going on. One of them heard the wind dragon and turned around in surprise, shaking slightly in fear.
"Boo," said West with a grin, before opening his mouth and breathing out a gust of wind, sending several of them flying head over heels across the deck.
It was a rather large ship, with numerous cages scattered across it, each large enough to hold a dragon easily. But it was these cages that allowed Silver and her friends to gain the advantage in the fight, using them to hide their attacks as they came around, attacking quickly and efficiently. The metallic dragoness raked her sharp claws through one hunter, slicing him into several pieces. Blaze used his tail to hit a number of them over the side, while West was quite happy to stamp them into the deck. Reha stayed back, using her water breath to shoot a number of them over the side.
A number of humans came from below, guns blazing as they shot at the dragons. Silver quickly took the front, using her wings to block the bullets as they bounced harmlessly off and into the floor. Fire washed across the deck as Blaze breathed it down toward the attackers, burning them to a crisp in less then an instant. West came around as well, smashing one of the humans who survived the fire into a nearby wall. He missed one however, and let out a cry of pain as he was peppered at close range by an assault rifle, the bullets breaking through his scales and causing his blood to spray out. Silver opened her mouth and launched a metallic ball into the human, crushing his chest and lungs before sending him over the side with companions.
"You alright?" Silver said, quickly running over to the injured wind dragon.
He whimpered softly, forcing himself to his feet, "Yeah, though a hug would make it better."
She snorted, "He's alright!" She called to her brother.
The fire dragon nodded and turned around to flame another group of emerging humans. It took them ten minutes to clear the boat of D.E.D hunters, and after they were done they fell into silence. Another group emerged from the bridge of the ship, but just before Blaze flamed them as well they quickly put their hands up, revealing themselves to be Diana and the other four humans.
"You four good?" asked a concerned handler.
"West got shot, but its nothing serious. He should be fine," said Silver with a grin.
"Good," replied Diana, "Now lets get out of here."
She re-entered the bridge and made her way to the controls. She took them in her hands and turned the ship around expertly. Together the five ex dragon handlers and four escaped dragons fled the Maldives, leaving behind the other D.E.D ships, who were still unaware of what had happened to their comrades.
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Hey guys! New chapter! Woohoo! I hope you enjoyed this one, as I didn't feel it was written as well as I could have. But vote if you did enjoy and comment what you thought. The next chapter will be out as soon as I can get it. See Ya!
Pennator^^