"BEFORE you all get worked up," the king declared, "this has nothing to do with catching the perpetrators of this villainous act, but I regard its importance as being equally valuable."
That had their undivided attention.
"The bomb that exploded in Salisbridge, Southern England, the one that was thwarted, had some rather unexpected consequences."
Rosebloom was all ears.
One of the councillors made to ask a question, but the king held up his hand to cut him off.
"At the time, it was thought that no one had been caught up in the blast. This opinion has since been revised. Two individuals were struck by the explosion. How they survived... we're not sure, and is still being looked into. Anyhow, the result of being caught in the blast, combined with whatever magic saved them, has produced some very serious side effects. First, the young female dragon who tried desperately to save herself and the human she was with (he didn't feel it necessary to go into graphic detail about what they were doing there in the first place) has lost all her dragon abilities and has been rendered entirely human."
A collective intake of breath from all the dragons listening ran around the room.
"As far as we can tell, this is irreversible."
All the councillors sitting in front of him were wriggling around like a class full of reception children all needing a wee, eager to ask a question. Ignoring them, he continued.
"While I'm sure you all have many questions, you will need to hear the entire story before you pass judgement. The human that was with our young dragon nearly died in the incident. How he didn't, who knows? Not us, that's for sure. But that's not the most remarkable thing about it all. On regaining consciousness, the doctors discovered the human in question had inherited the young female dragon's powers and abilities, and in essence had completely transformed into one of us."
Instead of an intake of breath, this time it was the sound of collective whispers that rang around the room.
The king continued.
"Our best scientists do not know how all this has come about, but are working around the clock to try and find out. Our historians assure us that something like this is totally unprecedented in the entire history of our race."
The king paused to let his words sink in.
"Unfortunately, I still haven't reached the most remarkable part. The human hasn't just transformed into any old dragon, or taken on the form of the female dragon with him. It would appear, and I can personally confirm this, that the 'human dragon', call it what you will, is entirely WHITE in colour."
Arms and wings flailed as the room erupted. Every shade of flame possible crackled from mouths and nostrils. No one could hear themselves think. Giving it thirty seconds or so, the king once again smashed the silver plates in front of him together, causing the room to fall silent.
"Now I have told you everything there is to know, and I promise to keep you updated if the situation changes. I'm sure you're all aware of just how important these developments are, and should all be in no doubt about the security implications around these events. Under no circumstances are you to reveal any of this to anyone outside this room. There's too much at stake with everything currently going on. I really can't think of much more to add..." At this point there was much more arm waving and fidgeting. He knew what they wanted to say, "... except to discuss how we deal with the stricken young female who has lost all her abilities."
And so it started, pretty much as the king figured it would. Determined to use what little influence he still wielded to help Peter's young friend, from the outset he feared that it would not be enough.
Four hours later... it was all over. The councillors had all filed out, with Rosebloom smugly leading the way. One or two had stopped to chat briefly with the king, but now he sat alone, not even the burning embers of the fire for company. He'd tried, God knows he'd tried, using up almost every favour owed to him in the process. But in the end, it had all proved fruitless. He'd lost and knew the cost to him would prove dear. Peter would undoubtedly be devastated, and rightly so. But it was well and truly out of his hands now. THE DECISION HAD BEEN MADE!
11
SUB-jugate
Cold metal hatches slammed shut behind him, simultaneously evoking a tiny sliver of dread at being entombed, and a full on surge of adrenaline at the thought of what was to come. Passing a long line of saluting crew, he casually nodded back to each one, knowing that some would never see the cold light of day ever again. Finally, he reached the command centre. As he entered, the officers all stood, backs straight, uniforms crisp, all offering their best salutes. All except the helmsman, who remained at his station, ready to enact the orders he knew to be coming. Quickly he snapped off a salute, adding a firm, "At ease." The officers relaxed, just a little anyway, except perhaps the captain, who seemed more than a little anxious. It was he who spoke first.
"This is an unexpected surprise... Admiral."
A long, uncomfortable silence ensued as the admiral surveyed the group of officers. Perturbed at this unusual course of events, the captain started to open his mouth. As he did so, the admiral gave the officers either side of the captain an inconspicuous signal. From out of nowhere, faster than the eye could see, both officers drew blades and slit their captain's throat, before even a hint of sound had escaped him. A dumbfounded look of astonishment covered his face briefly as his body crumpled to the floor. An eruption of blood splashed his pristine white uniform as his mouth tried in vain to cry out for help. With the dying captain ignored like a child vying for attention, the others got on with their assigned tasks. In only a matter of minutes the engines had fired into life, with the helmsman having already plotted their destination. Three of the officers were dispatched to 'take care' of the four members of the crew that weren't part of the plan, or even part of the same race.
Twenty five minutes later, all five bodies were strewn across the floor of the captain's cabin, the fetid aroma of decaying flesh not quite in full swing. As the sub's crew gave their individual tasks their undivided attention, the black metal beast, in whose belly they sat, disappeared beneath the surface on its way to a most unlikely and most unofficial rendezvous.
12
A Messenger (Like None Other) Of Bad Tidings
His agents had sent a message to say that Peter was here, now. Not able to put it off any longer, here he was, about to break two hearts.
Not looking at the signs crisscrossing the walls of the busy hospital, instead he used the information in his eidetic memory, gleaned earlier from some of his high level guards. Nodding and smiling at the nurses as he casually strolled down the sparkling white corridors, his destination nearly in sight, he thought just how unfamiliar this part of the hospital was to him, well... not in his mind, but he'd never been here before. It had always been the extremely secret and covert part of the building, right in the very basement, that he'd visited, all but once. It felt odd to him to be in the main part of the hospital, amongst all the humans going about their daily lives. Every now and then he'd pick up on somebody talking about the global tragedy that he held himself responsible for. Part of him knew that it wasn't true and that he could have done little to prevent it. But deep down, another part felt responsible for all the lives lost and the heartache caused. Supposedly the most important and powerful being on the planet, he did, however, feel a long way short of that most of the time. Approaching his destination, he couldn't remember the last time he'd felt this nervous or afraid. This was most definitely a task he did not want to perform, but despite that, he willed himself on, knowing it was better all round to get it out in the open.