I slept for a couple of hours,waking at around eight thirty. I was feeling the pain from where I had bashed my shoulder on the rock and could feel it was covered in dried blood. I rolled out of bed and walked into my bathroom,threw off my shirt and looked at myself in the mirror. There was a six inch long gash pulled out of my shoulder and it was very deep.
"That's gonna leave a scar",I said sighing,"better shower off and close it up."
I slid out off my Rider boots and pants before getting in the shower and scrubbing all of the dirt off my face and the dried blood off my chest and shoulder,also washing the grime and sweat out of my hair. The soap in the wound on my shoulder stung like crazy,but it needed to be cleaned. Once I was done I dried myself off and slipped on a pair of underwear and boxer shorts as well as a pair of desert tan cargo pants before pulling on a pair of socks and then going back into the bathroom. I walked over to the sink and from the medicine cabinet,I pulled out a tube of glue.
It was the kind of glue they used to close wounds in hospitals,but it was The Order's version of it. It was sticker and more durable and had stuff in it to speed up the healing process of the wound it was applied to.It was usually met to be used on your dragon,and I'd used it on Blackstar a few times,but a few of my Rider buddies and I had found that it worked wonders on humans too,which is why I kept a tube of it around
. I took a deep breath and quickly blew it out,"here we go",I huffed undoing the cap.
I held the glue in my right hand,using my left to close up the wound before applying the glue. It stung so badly and made me want to howl,but it was that or stitches. After that was done,I walked back into my bed room and pulled a white T-Shirt out of my dresser and slipped it on before getting my foliage green Rider Military jacket with my rank and symbol on the collar and pulling it on over my shirt. I slipped on my Rider tags and my watch before lacing up my boots and walking down stairs. It was dead quiet,the only noise being the sound of the window unit and central air blowing the cold around the living room. Kelly and Mom were sitting in the kitchen eating. They didn't seem to be paying attention,so I took the chance to slip out un noticed.
As was the MO fro summer,the rain clouds were heavy in the sky. The air was cool and the wind was blowing,telling me a storm was only miles off. The street lights were glowing in their usual dim yellow glow,faintly lighting small patches of sidewalk and road around them. I stayed on the sidewalk as I walked down town. The dragons hadn't done to much damage in their attack,only scorching the ground and trashing a few cars. When I arrived downtown,it was busy as always. People leaving work to go home for the night,while others where coming into start the night shift. I walked for a few more blocks before coming on the Pizza Hut that stood near the edge of the island. It was glowing neon red and stood out against the black night sky like a firecracker. I entered the building,and was happy to find it empty of all but my Rider friend Ash.
Ash was a Rider ranked somewhere in Nobility Commander,very high up there,but still a long ways off from Master. His hair was so blond it looked white,thus earning him the nickname Ash. He stood taller than me,six feet or more with bright blue eyes like Vegas neon. He dressed in Rider attire. Cargo pants,T-Shirt and at the moment a Rider Military coat.
His dragon,Lynx(stupid name I know),was a Night Fury with white scales and red markings. As his name entailed,his eyes were red,almost blood red. He was a scary looking dragon for sure,but he was real sweet and had this insane crush on Blackstar,the funny thing was that it was obvious to everyone but him that Blackstar did NOT like him back.
"Hey Ash",I said walking up beside him.
"Oh hey Max",he said standing and hugging me,"ain't seen you in a while,how ya been brother?"
"Flying with my little dragon girl",I replied,"you?"
"Beating,stabbing shooting Nazis",Ash replied grinning,"I just got Wolfenstien The New Order and I've been playing the hell outta it."
"You play to many shooters bro",I replied him",I just got Forza 4 and I already got The Great Eight under my ownership and most of the Toyota's there are."
"Toyota freak",Ash replied.
"Yep and I'm proud of it too",I told him,"good seeing ya again Ash."
"Same here Max",he replied.
"I'm gonna go order",I said,"and then we can head down to the cove and talk more there."
"Okay man",Ash replied boxing up his pizza,"see ya there."
I nodded and walked to the counter.
"Could I get a medium stuffed crust pepperoni?",I asked fishing my wallet from my coat.
"Of course",the cashier replied with a yawn,"that'll be ten twenty."
I fished a ten from my wallet and handed it to the man.
"Your order will be out shortly",the man said. I went back to the booth Ash had been at and found him still there.
"You still ain't left yet?",I asked sitting down.
"Nah",Ash replied,"I'll just wait and go with you."
I shrugged my reply and pulled out my phone. I could see on my screen I had a text from Mom.
It read,"honey where are you?"
I replied,"I'm at pizza hut with a friend,gonna give Dad sometime to cool off before I come home."
She replied,"Okay,just be careful in case the dragons come back,love you."
I wrote back,"I will Mom,love you too."
"Who ya texting?",Ash asked.
"My Mom",I answered.
"Dude",Ash answered shaking his head,"you seriously need a girlfriend."
I smiled,"shut up,Blackstar's the only girl I need in my life."
Ash gave me a toothy grin,"dude,that came out wrong."
"Shut your face",I said smiling.
Ash put up his hands in surrender,"don't shoot me,I surrender."
"Sir",the cashier called,"your order is ready."
I stood up and went to the counter for my pizza.
"Have a goodnight sir",the cashier said.
"You too",I replied.
Ash and I walked out the the front of the pizza hut and down the street until we came across a good way to get into the forest. We ducked inside and a few hundred feet in,Ash let off a high pitched whistle. Soon,the flapping of wings could be heard above the tree lines and then a large,red and white Night Fury was sitting on his haunches in front of us. The saddle on his back and the collar on his neck signaled he was a dragon of The Order. He was starring at Ash through his red eyes.
"What do you want?",Ash asked walking up and scratching his dragon behind his ears.
Lynx purred contently before following me and Ash through the woods and to the cove. As always,Blackstar was nowhere to be seen. Ash and I desended into the clearing while Lynx cleared the fiffteen foot drop with a stroke of his large wings. Ash and I walked to the back of the cove where I had my tent and other things set up and were greeted by Blackstar,who was curled up underneath the tarp that protected my workbench and generator. She looked at me through her bright blue eyes and slapped the ground with her tail.
"Yes",I said laughing and reaching in my coat,producing a good sized container of cookie dough,"after this morning,you earned it."
I uncapped it and set it in front of her and she instantly shoved her snout into it,using her paws to hold it still. Ash sat down in one of my lawn chairs and began eating his sub while I kicked on the generator,which lit several lights I had around the cove. I sat down in my blue and white lawn chair and opened my pizza. I pulled a slice out of it and bit in. I hadn't really eaten anything since I had come home from school,and I was starving,so the pizza was like a reward.
"I heard the Sonic Boom you and Blackstar pulled earlier",Ash said coming up for air from his sandwich.
"You heard that too huh?",I asked.
"Yeah",Ash said,",I can never hold Lynx's attention long enough to go that fast."
I looked over at my little girl,who was rolling around in the grass playing with Lynx.
"Yeah",I said,"Lynx is one of those dragons you gotta bribe to get him to do anything."
Ash laughed. "He sure is".
He stuck his face back in his sub and I went back to my pizza. I was in the middle of my third slice when I heard Blackstar howl. Seconds later,she was hiding behind me. I looked up to see Lynx on the approach,I knew what had happened right away.
"Ash",I said,"would you please keep your dragon under control?"
Ash didn't answer.
"Ash",I said thumping is shoulder.
He looked up,"oh sorry I was lost in my sub,what up?"
"What up is that Lynx is trying work Blackstar,she doesn't like it,control him please."
Ash smiled and set down his sandwich before standing up and scolding Lynx. He shrunk under Ash's voice. I disapproved of yelling at dragons and I hated myself when I had to scold Blackstar,which I next to never did,but when I did I would hate myself for it for days afterwords. Blackstar rubbed her head against my side and I scratched her behind her ears,which she loved.
"Well Ash",I said,"I gotta go home so my Dad can yell at me."
"What ya do?",he asked scratching Lynx to make up for his yelling at him.
"Kelly left her post during the attack",I replied him,"I tried to keep her from screwing up and a Monstrous Nightmare may or not have burned through a pole and caved in a house because of it."
"Wow",Ash said,"good luck,your Dad's a bear."
"No joking",I said,"why don't we go flying tomorrow? You,me,Lynx and Blackstar?"
I turned to my little girl,who was laying beside me.
"What ya think girl?",I asked,"ya wanna fly with Ash and Lynx tomorrow?"
She gave me her dragon smile and purred in approval.
"It's a yes from her",I said. "
Yeah I can get with that",Ash said,"good luck with your Dad,by man."
"Meet ya here tommorrow at six",I said.
He nodded before boarding Lynx and shot off. I killed the generator and grabbed my pizza. Blackstar followed behind me whimpering,begging me not to leave.
"I'll be back first thing tomorrow girl",I said kissing her between her horns,"I promise."
With that I left the cove and started for home.