OPENING NOTES: To Dartboy: By "eleventh and final", I mean it is both the eleventh and final chapter; this chapter is the last, sadly.
To Shi Rurouni etc: I like the glomp thing, but...your favorite part was the coughing up blood and you're sad that Sean is good now?
To Bunnybunny: Fanfiction can be virtually anything, as long as it has some sort of roots tracing back to the original movie/game/etc. The basis of this story (eight modern-dragon teens) was created from a number of realistic events and ideals. Spike and I put our heads together and we came up with this series. Sorry if it's hard to keep track of everything, but we did our best to make things clear.
Alright, this is the last chapter, y'all. Enjoy.
Chapter Eleven: The Fate of the World
"NO YOU DON'T!" Sean jumped up and flew after him, followed by the others. Melbu flew into the main tower, into which souls were once pulled. Once inside, Melbu planted some sort of barrier around the doorway and continued along. Sean couldn't stop, so he braced himself.
To his surprise, he flew right through it. Sean landed awkwardly and looked back at the dragoons, who had been able to stop.
"It's alright!" He said. "You can go through!"
Ben went first, but upon touching the barrier, he flew back several feet. Robert had followed close behind.
"What the?" Brad exclaimed.
Sean went back to the barrier and slid his hand through and back. Nothing. "What is this?"
They all heard Melbu's disembodied voice.
(Heh, heh…it is an elemental barrier. Your friends cannot help you this time, Sean. Come now and face me alone!")
Sean's jaw was clenched. He knew there was nothing he could do. He looked back in the direction Melbu had run, then back at his friends.
"Try to find a way in!" He said. Then, he took off after Melbu.
Melbu was found in the main chamber, where the souls would be sucked in. He stood, grinning.
"Afraid?"
"I fear nothing." Sean assured. He landed near Melbu and changed back to human, but stayed on low power. Melbu wasn't nearly as powerful as he was before, but he was certainly more agile. Sean needed all the mobility he could get and the large Dragoon form was not made for agility.
"For an all-powerful being," Sean said, "You're quite the coward. Or do you not really have the power to face us all at once?"
"It is not cowardice." Melbu returned. "It is strategy. Once I have finished off you, the others will drop like flies."
"Not them." Sean shook his head. "They're too powerful for you."
"Oh, we shall see." Melbu extended his hand and a wingly blade appeared in it. "But for now, it's just you and me, man to man."
"Just how I like it." Sean readied his blade.
The other Dragoons were thinking fast of how to get inside. Mike had tried making his own doorway, but the barrier was right there when he broke through the wall, so they needed a new plan.
"Elements can't get through." Melissa said. "Sean doesn't have an element, so he passed easily…well, it's not like any of us can just drop our element."
"We don't need to." Ben said. "I have an idea. Sean's dragoon is like all of ours combined, right? What if we combined out strengths and applied them to one person at a time so we could all pass through?"
"Well," Robert said. "No one else has any ideas, so let's do it."
"I'll go first." Ben volunteered. "Hit me." Each Dragoon aimed an elemental beam at him. The different powers combined with Ben's and his body glowed a grayish-white. Ben took a few steps. "It'll have to be quick. This is either gonna work or it's gonna hurt."
Ben began running, and then took to the air, straight into the barrier. With a flash, he passed through and hit the ground on the other side.
"Hey! It works!" Ben said with a smile.
"I'm next!" Melissa said. They all filled her with their powers. Then, Ben shot a ray of fire at her. However, the flames bounced off the barrier and flew back at him.
"What the?" Ben exclaimed. He tried again, but the fire would not pass through the barrier. "Aw, shoot." Ben groaned. "Didn't count on this."
"Won't go through, will it?" Mike observed.
They all sighed. Ben looked in the direction Sean had gone, then back at the others. "I'm going ahead!" was all he said.
Sean and Melbu stared each other down for a while, each daring the other to make the first move.
"How good a fighter would you rate yourself?" Melbu asked Sean.
Sean gave a small smile. "I'd say I hold up rather well."
"That all? Before a wingly emperor, I was a grand warrior."
"That so?"
"Oh, indeed. I have close to twelve thousand years of experience. What have you? Ten years?"
Sean was silent.
"It's a proven fact that if you put a wingly warrior and a human warrior together to fight, each having the same experience, that the wingly will win. How can a human expect to train another human if he cannot fight on his own?" He chuckled. "Humans are WEAK!"
Melbu jumped with that last word and struck. Sean put one hand behind his back and blocked with his sword. Melbu instantly swung his sword down and under at wingly speed, yet Sean blocked it, too, plus a third attack, then spun, bashing the side of Melbu's head with the butt end of his blade.
"I was trained by a wingly and a dragon." Sean said. "I think I can keep up."
Melbu Frahma realized that he had a real warrior on his hands, so he took it up a notch. He teleported over to Sean and struck. Sean blocked it and three more quick slashes, then swung a few of his own, all avoided, then planted a successful kick. Melbu stumbled back, and then jump high in the air. Sean put up his blade to block, but Melbu teleported to behind him. Sean foresaw it and spun to block, then spun back around to block another sneak attack.
Melbu reeled back and shot forward. Sean jumped and flailed over him, then turn to parry an attack and kept spinning to get a few more slices in and spun to kick Melbu when he teleported and struck a few more times. Melbu teleported and blocked, then kicked Sean in the gut and planted a spinning kick on his head. Sean hit the ground and catapulted up into a downward strike, taking Melbu by surprise. Melbu fired a wave to knock him back several feet, but Sean didn't fall.
Melbu dashed and struck. Sean swung up, parrying and spun into several more slashes. Melbu quickly teleported away. With inhuman speed, Sean tossed his sword high up and forward, then used his dragon powers to dash forward and punch Melbu up as soon as he appeared. Sean caught his sword and swung, slicing Melbu's side. Melbu stumbled back and Sean jumped at him, spinning horizontally. Melbu jumped back and Sean's sword stabbed into the ground, making a fine support to Sean to swing his feet over and kick Melbu square in the chest, then he rolled and spun his blade, firing a white beam.
Sean charged at Melbu Frahma, hoping to get him before he got up. Melbu catapulted up and shot forward, sword ready to stab. Sean spun to the side, but Melbu knew that would happen. He swung his leg and tripped Sean, then bashed him to the ground with the butt of his blade and kicked him away. Melbu teleported to him and tried stabbing, but Sean rolled away and kicked at him when he tried again, then hopped up. Melbu fired a white wave, knocking him away.
Suddenly, Melbu felt a warmth on his side. He turned just in time to see Ben shooting a flaming wave at him. Melbu put up a shield, but was knocked back by the attack. Ben landed near Sean.
"How did you get in?" Sean asked him.
"Tell ya later."
Melbu jumped to his feet. "I don't know how you got in, but you're not getting out!" He fired a watery beam which Sean deflected for him. Ben jumped over him and shot a few fireballs at him, all blocked.
Sean and Ben rushed at him from different sides. Melbu jumped back to avoid them. Ben shot out first with three swipes. Melbu blocked them and then turned to face Sean, who had jumped over him and blocked his attacks. Melbu teleported away from their vice and ended up on Ben's side, striking him hard. Ben blocked the attacks and backflipped in the air. Melbu took his hit and did a backflip of his own, right into Sean's attack. Melbu teleported and kicked him in the side.
Ben jumped towards Melbu, spinning rapidly. Melbu stepped back to avoid the flames and countered the attack with three strikes of his own. During this, Sean jumped up high and threw down an energy ball. Ben saw it and moved away. Melbu took the full hit. He returned the favor with his own magic blasts.
All three of them were beaten and worn from the earlier battle and now they were spending every last ounce of energy remaining in them. They were tired, but they couldn't quit. The battle remained neutral for a little while.
Finally, Melbu got frustrated after receiving a few slashes.
"ENOUGH OF YOU!" He roared. His hands glowed brightly and he forced Sean away with a wave attack, but then turned to Ben and unleashed a great watery blast, shooting him into the wall and knocking him to the ground. Melbu turned to Sean. "I said I would face you and you alone!"
Sean looked over at Ben. He would be alright, as long as Melbu didn't attack him again. He focused on his opponent.
Melbu fired two rays from his blade and Sean deflected them both while running. Melbu jumped and spun. Sean held up his blade and blocked all the hits and parried Melbu's surprise attack coming from the opposite direction and gave a spinning kick, then a punch. Melbu gave his own spinning kick. Sean ducked down and flipped over so his chest faced the ground and planted a two-footed mule kick to Melbu's stomach. He flew back and hit a wall.
Furious, Melbu thought of a new plan. He rocketed at Sean, sword pointed. Sean stepped aside and Melbu teleported to behind him. Fortunately, Sean spun to block, but again, Melbu teleported. Sean swung his blade across himself to block, then back again to block on the other side. Not once had Melbu actually struck yet. Sean swung around to block another fake, then shot his foot backwards and nailed Melbu in the stomach. He stumbled back and looked up. Sean was faster than Melbu had ever imagined he would be.
Ben pushed himself onto a knee. Wow. That last attack really hurt! He looked up and saw Sean fighting solo. Man, the dude could fight! It reminded him of the duel they had before the virages had attacked. Come to think of it, they never had finished off that duel! Either way, Ben saw the same intensity in Sean's eyes as he had during the duel. Ben must have been a pretty good fighter as well if he was measuring up there with Melbu Frahma. Ben began trying to stand again, but was quickly frozen in place.
Melbu poured all his magic into a mixture of strength and speed just to match Sean's abilities. He jumped to him and swung down hard. Sean felt the sword vibrate in his hands. Melbu did a small teleport, just to bring his arms back up without delaying time, so he could swing once more the instant his sword hit Sean's. He did this several times to throw Sean off balance, so he could make his next move. Without warning, he made a teleportation shift, swinging the other way. Somehow, Sean's instinct kicked in enough to move his sword down to barely block. However, he couldn't think fast enough to counter the teleportation shift that took place immediately after. Melbu swung back and swung. Sean tried jumping back, but Melbu's blade sliced horizontally through his stomach and Melbu forced him back with a wave beam.
Sean stumbled back and dropped his sword. Ben's heart stopped. Not once had he ever seen Sean drop his sword. Sean caught his balance and hunched over a bit. Melbu stood still.
Sean put his hand over his wound and looked at the blood steadily oozing from it.
Melbu grinned.
Ben's blood ran cold.
Sean looked at the blood on his hands, then up, glaring at Melbu. Then, he looked over and his eyes locked with Ben's.
A small smile slid on his face briefly.
Sean's body fell to the ground.
The Dragoon spirit on Sean's chest shone brightly in a cry of sorrow and anger, but quickly dimmed out.
Melbu turned to his other opponent with an evil smile.
"Next victim."
Ben thought the hilt of his sword would break due to how tight his fist gripped it. He pushed himself to his feet.
"You'll pay for this…"
"Come make me!" Melbu taunted.
Ben ran at him and struck down with great intensity. Melbu teleported to behind him and kicked him away. Ben charged again and this time was able to counted Melbu's teleport attack, but not twice. Melbu struck his back with his blade. Thank goodness he had the armor he did. Melbu forced him away with a wave beam.
"Come, now." Melbu chuckled. "Sean was much more of a challenge than this. Of course, he was raised by a wingly and a dragon. You, on the other hand, were raised by a human, whom I killed. What chance to you stand?"
Ben's eyes burned. How he hated Melbu Frahma. Ben shot a fiery wave at him, but Melbu jumped clear over it and swung down. Ben blocked and countered, but no attack hit its mark. Melbu struck three times, rapidly. Ben was barely able to block the attacks. Then, Melbu performed two spinning kicks. The first hit Ben's face and the second kicked the sword out of his hand. Melbu shot another beam, flipping Ben in the air. He landed on his stomach and the wind was knocked out of him.
Melbu walked up to him and planted the tip of his blade at Ben's face, then made a quick slice on his cheek.
"Strike one." He said, stepping back. He tossed Ben's sword to him and it landed at his side.
Ben couldn't believe it. Melbu was toying with him!
Angrily, Ben pulled himself up and ran again. He faked an attack, and then spun around to go the other way. Melbu blocked and countered, which Ben also blocked. Ben kicked and Melbu cut his leg across the shin.
"AHH!" He stumbled and Melbu kicked the sword from his hand again and jumped in the air, planting a two-footed kick on Ben's chest. Ben hit a wall and fell to his face. Melbu made another mark on Ben's cheek, alongside the first one.
"Strike two." Ben forced himself onto his feet, hobbling.
Ben. The Red-Eyed Dragon said. Your anger is hindering you! Calm down and think!
Ben took a breath. The dragon was right. Just one strike left. He'd make it Melbu's mistake for letting him live.
Ben shot forward like a rocket, but stopped short and launched a few fireballs at Melbu, who took the hit in surprise, then jumped up and swung his sword down. Melbu blocked and Ben backflipped, kicking Melbu's face and fired another fireball. Melbu teleported around him and forced him back with a wave, then shot forward and kicked him back, then planted three quick strikes and kicked his blade from his hand once more. Melbu swung just far enough to make one more mark on Ben's face, next to the other two, then kicked him in the gut and sent him flying with a blast. Ben hit the ground and rolled, ending up on his stomach, next to Sean.
"Dragoon," Ben said, "You've just struck out."
To make matters worst, Ben's powers began leaving him. He de-transformed into a normal human.
I'm sorry, Ben. The Red-Eyed Dragon said. I am out of strength…
And I'm out of time. Ben thought. He was hurt pretty bad, but was able to push himself onto a knee. Melbu was slowly walking over to him, savoring the moment. Ben looked over at his fallen friend. Sean was lying on his side with his front facing Ben. Ben looked Sean's stomach. It was so covered in blood that he couldn't even see the wound.
Upon seeing another dragoon spirit, the Divine Dragoon Spirit shimmered a little. The light was dim, for it had no user, but through his own dragoon spirit, Ben felt the dragon's pain. He actually felt sad, due to the wave of emotion, but he also felt the dragon's anger and it infuriated him.
Ben was momentarily confused. How could he feel the dragon's emotions? Even more perplexing, how were the dragon's emotions affecting his own? Then, Ben remembered how the dragoon spirits were sort of psychically linked and worked off one another, but he didn't know that the bond was so strong…
Ben's thoughts were interrupted as the tip of Melbu's blade rested under Ben's chin and lifted his head up. Melbu pulled the sword back and smiled.
"Sean was the only one I figured might be a real adversary. I never expected much out of you…and I was not disappointed. Yes, Sean taught you everything you know, but it wasn't enough." Melbu laughed. "Even the power of a dragon cannot help you now." He reeled back his sword.
Ben looked Melbu dead in the eye. "How about two?"
Lighting-quick, Ben shot his hand down and grabbed Sean's dragoon spirit. He yanked it off the chain with a quick snap and held it up to block Melbu's attack.
Reacting instantly, the Red-Eye Dragon activated the foreign spirit and a bright light emitted from it, creating a suitable shield, which stopped Melbu's attack cold and shot him across the room.
The spirit continued to glow in Ben's hand and soon floated out of it and impaled itself in Ben's chest. A new form of power rushed through Ben as the Divine Powers made their way through is body. Ben's entire body glowed brightly.
When it was over, Ben still looked the same, but he had a sort of radiance to him. Ben had never felt such a rush, but that was only on low power! Of course, the Divine Dragon shared its power with the Red-Eye Dragon, giving it more energy so they could combine their powers.
Melbu could barely believe his eyes.
"Impossible…" He whispered.
Ben smiled, and then fired a mixed energy beam at Melbu, who thought it best to jump away from it. Ben zoomed over to him and punched him three times, then kicked him away. Ben lifted both of his hands and both his sword and Sean's sword came to him. He jumped at Melbu, spinning wildly. Melbu teleported away. Ben fired a blast where he knew he would end up.
Melbu charged at him with a yell and Ben blocked the attack with both blades, and then turned to block the teleporting attack. Melbu began using the same light-speed attacks he had used to defeat Sean. Instead of just blocking, Ben spun with both blades, deflecting every attack, then spun back to block another and turned yet again to parry an attack and hit Melbu in the face with the butt of his blade. Melbu charged again. Ben put up one blade to block, then stuck the other in the ground and put all his weight on it. With inhuman strength, Ben lifted his legs up and clutched Melbu within them and flipped him over his head, slamming him into the ground.
Melbu Frahma got up and jumped back, blade ready, but not so confident. All at once, Ben saw his plan to defeat Melbu. It marveled him.
Ben went on the offensive, swinging wildly, forcing Melbu back as he blocked the attacks, then he was able to get one good kick on Melbu's face, nearly toppling him.
Melbu was about to turn and block Ben's next move, but saw something in the corner of his eye. He turned around and Ben stopped his assault. Melbu had fully turned now, but he could make no further movement in his awe.
"Hi there." Sean said with a cocky grin. He lifted up a blade and Melbu instinctively put up his own to block it. Only too late did Melbu see the blade. Ben had Sean's blade as well as his own, so what could Sean have possibly used? Even if given time to ponder, Melbu could not have foreseen this, for it was a secret only Sean knew.
The blade was very odd indeed. The hilt was like a dragon's head. The wielder of the blade would stick their hand inside the back of the head and grip the blade on the inside. This activated the sword, which could not have been crafted by a human. A fiery blade would emerge from the mouth of the dragon, but the element mattered not. Melbu knew this weapon. He had designed it.
The Dragon Buster. It was a sword of incredible power, created to kill dragons. It could cut right through their scales. It was possible to parry the blade, but Melbu had neglected to put any power into it, making it nearly useless.
The awesome power of the dragon buster cut right through Melbu's wingly blade and sliced his chest, and then Sean kicked him around. Ben sliced him with his blades, spinning him back for anther attack from Sean. Both Dragoons attacked furiously from both sides, then at last each stabbed Melbu from a different side.
Melbu's eyes widened and he glared at them. "How…dare…you!"
Ben tossed the Divine Dragoon Spirit back to Sean and they each fired a blast of energy at Melbu, sealing his fate. The magic embodied within him created a great explosion. Ben and Sean protected themselves with their magic and Melbu was no more.
Ben walked up to Sean, stunned. "I thought you were dead!"
Sean chuckled. "In other circumstances, I could've been."
"What do you mean?"
Sean held up an empty vial. "Healing Fog. If I acted quickly enough, it could heal the wound before I lost too much blood. Unfortunately, there was no way I could use it without Melbu stopping me. Then, I remembered you were still around, so I allowed myself to fall."
Ben couldn't believe it. "For crying out loud, man! You had me worried!"
"Sorry, but I knew you could handle him."
"Barely."
"You used your mind and acted quickly." Sean smiled. "Very becoming of a true Dragoon."
Ben smiled. "Good to see you're still with us."
Sean nodded. Suddenly, large pieces of rubble fell all around them.
"Now what?" Ben exclaimed.
"The tower is collapsing!" Sean said. "We must leave!" Their spirits glowed again and they took to the sky. They launched themselves out through one of the walls at an upward angle to get as far away as they could. They looked back and saw the tower collapse fully. The power of Mayfil died once more.
Both boys breathed heavily as the world fell back into place.
"So," Sean said. "You just saved the world…how do you feel?"
"I think the word," Ben replied, "Is 'relieved'."
Sean smiled. "It's always like that for me."
"Must have been tough." Ben said.
"It was, at times. However, this, by far, was the toughest." He looked at Ben. I gotta admit. "Without you guys, I couldn't have done it."
Ben smiled to him. "And how does that make you feel?"
Sean chuckled. "Rested."
"I think that's what we're all here for, really."
"Yeah…thanks a lot." He extended his hand. Ben took it and shook, then pulled him in for an embrace. Sean thought it somewhat awkward, but then he thought it as a good feeling. They parted and he looked down. "Here come the others."
Six other dragoons flew to them and they all landed, immediately sharing their stories.
They stayed there, talking long into the night. At one point, conversation slowed to a halt and there was a minute of silence.
Restless, Robert stood up and looked around. Seeming unsatisfied, he walked around here and there for a bit, seeming to look for something. He threw his hands up and let them drop to his sides.
"What are you doing?" Brittany finally asked.
"It's so weird! I mean, look at us! We just saved the world from a power-mad wingly dictator freak and…that's it! I mean look!" He waved his hand around. "No big celebration, no cheering, grateful humans, no small, insignificant species to thank us for saving their race! Just…a big field of nothingness!"
"The silence is very awkward," Mike had to agree.
Sean nodded. "It is, usually. You save the human species and nothing happens. You go home and try to act like nothing happened."
"It doesn't seem right." Brittany grumbled.
Ben shook his head. "I'm just happy to be alive." No one could argue with that one.
"So…now what?" Brad finally asked.
Sean shrugged. "Who knows? All we can do is keep training and look out for the next battle."
"When does it end?" Christie asked to no one in particular.
Sean let out a heavy sigh. "Sometimes, I ask myself that. I honestly don't know, but we can't slack off. We'll continue our training so that we're ready for whatever comes next."
They all nodded.
"Well," Brad said. "That's all fine and well, but I meant what do we do right now? Does anyone know how to get home?"
Silence.
"Uh-oh." Mike said.
Sean scratched his head. "Geez. I hadn't counted on this."
"Not to fear." A voice said to them. They all turned to see Charle and a group of winglies landing near them. "I felt my brother fall, as well as Mayfil."
"Well, that's good." Brad said. "Cuz we have no idea where we are."
"We shall guide you home. Are you all alright?"
"Emotions are mixing," Melissa described. "But we're alright."
"Good to hear. Now, just follow us."
After a while, they knew where they were and bid the winglies farewell…for now.
The Dragoons landed at the clearing in the woods and de-transformed.
"Okay." Brittany said. "I need a shower and I need to sleep."
"I second that notion." Robert said, raising his hand.
"We all need it." Sean agreed. "Let's go home."
"So casual." Robert muttered as they walked off.
Sean arose the next day at 1 o'clock in the afternoon. He felt strangely refreshed. Sean peeled himself from the bed and dressed. He walked around the house and into the living room. His dad was sitting on the couch, watching a movie with a bowl of popcorn. Sean walked over and sat next to him and began watching the movie with him.
Hank didn't even look at Sean. He just kept his gaze on the TV screen and handed the bowl of popcorn to Sean, who munched a little.
"So," Hank finally said, "did the evil genius have a name?"
Sean nodded. "Melbu Frahma."
"Sounds familiar."
"He was the wingly dictator during the dragon campaign…and he fought the last dragoons eight hundred years ago."
"What's he doing alive?" Hank grabbed anther fistful of popcorn.
"He has contacts." Sean said.
"Sounds like an idiot. I mean, he's 0 and 2, right?"
"0 and 3 now. I doubt we'll be hearing any more from him, though."
"Mm." Hank grew silent. Sean finally decided to tell him.
"He's the one who told Zachwell about Anna." Hank didn't move. "That's how he knew about us."
Hank was still for a while. "You killed him, right?"
"Yeah."
"Did you hurt him bad?"
"I would assume." Sean guessed. "And I'm sure he was humiliated by his third defeat."
Hank nodded. "Then it's alright."
Not another word was spoken on the subject.
Mike pulled his car into the driveway and parked it. He made no further movement. Melissa, sitting next to him, looked over at her brother. His gaze was glued on the house.
"You okay?" She asked him.
Mike shook his head.
She tried moving him. "You rushed right into Melbu Frahma, but you can't face your own mother?"
"It's not that I'm scared of her," Mike defended. "It's just that I'm afraid of what I'll say."
She rubbed his arm. "It'll be fine. C'mon. Let's go." She got out. Mike took a deep breath and got out of the car. His steps were small and thus, his walk was slow. Melissa took his arm in hers and guided him along the sidewalk. They hadn't gone far when the door opened and a woman stepped out. Both parties stopped moving, still several feet from each other.
"Michael." She said.
"Mom." He returned, unsure what else to say.
She gave a small chuckle. "You've really grown."
He nodded. "It's been a while." Melissa knew that was his nice way of putting it.
"Yeah." She had to agree. "It has." There was a short silence. "You still sore at me?"
Honestly, Mike nodded. "A little."
She game a small grin. "I guess that's all I can expect, huh?"
Mike's jaw clenched. "You tore us apart."
Her face softened. "Mike, I'm so sorry."
He shook his head. "No, you're not…I can't believe it! You're still lying."
Just then, a head poked out from inside the house. It was a man about his mother's age, Mike noted. A boyfriend, no doubt.
"Uh, hi." He said, nervously. He nodded towards Mike. "That him?"
"Yeah. Mike, this is David."
Mike bit his lower lip and shook his head. "I got some stuff to do, alright? I'll see you later." He turned to leave.
"Hey, Mike!" David beckoned. Mike turned to him. "I'm real sorry about your dad."
Mike looked at his mother. "At least someone is." Then, he left.
"I don't believe this." His mother shook her head. "All these years and he's still mad at me."
"He's had a very rough life, Mom." Melissa defended him. "Ever since the divorce, he's been fighting for his life! He had to get a million small jobs to help dad make ends meet. He actually taught himself how to fight to prevent being mugged or killed! He kept himself and dad alive for the past six years!"
Her mother gave her a look. "And just how do you know all this?"
Melissa crossed her arms in defiance. "Because I've seen it with my own eyes. I've visited Dad and Mike."
"You WHAT?" Her mother exclaimed. "Against the court order!"
"That's right, Mom, and against your order."
"And exactly when was this?"
"Which visit? I've been there so many times that I've lost count?"
"WHAT?"
"I wanted to help Dad and I wanted to help Mike. You may have forgotten them, but I still loved them! And you can't change that." Melissa turned away and began walking down the street with no particular place to go.
Brad performed a spinning kick and Robert rolled away. They were practicing in the clearing.
"So anyway," Robert picked up where he'd left off, "I wake up this morning and guess what happens."
"What?" Brad swung a punch and Robert blocked it.
"Nothing!" Another block. "Birds chirping, lawn mowers humming, that's it!"
"What are you getting at?" Three quick punches, all blocked.
"We saved the human race and the world doesn't even flinch; things just keep going how they went without hesitation."
Brad jumped back from Rob's spear. "Well, what did you expect, a big thank you sign in the sky?"
"Kind of, yeah!" He swung a low kick, tripping Brad, and then put his spear to his head. "I win."
"Fine, whatever. Get off me!" Robert helped him up.
"Lose again?" Brittany said, poking her head in.
"Keep talking." Brad grumbled.
"Care to take me on?" She taunted.
Brad gave her a look. "You think you can win?"
"Against you? I am quite confident."
Robert laughed. "Alright, well, Brad, as much as I'd love to see you get your butt kicked, I've already arranged to kick Mike's butt at the arcade. See ya 'round."
Brad shook his head as he left and prepared to fight Brittany.
"If you should win," Brad said, "Keep in mind that I've already fought against Robert."
"A real man wouldn't make excuses." Brittany teased. She swung the first attack and Brad jumped back to avoid it, but didn't make his own move, so she swung two spinning attacks and Brad avoided them.
Brittany swung a low attack, then a high one. Brad jumped over the first swipe, then ducked under the second and dove at her. Brittany took the hit and flipped him over her head. They both jumped back up and Brad swung a few low strikes. Brittany positioned her mallet to block them, and then swung a low swipe. Brad jumped, as she expected. Acting quickly, she placed the large end of her mallet on the ground and swung over it to kick him down.
However, two things happened. First, Brad tried ducking back, so Brittany got more momentum than she had planned. Second, she evidently had placed her mallet on uneven ground and it slipped out from under her. Those forces combined crashed her into Brad, knocking them onto the ground with her lying on top of him.
"Well," Brittany said. "That didn't quite go as planed." But when she noticed her position, she didn't mind it. Brad chuckled and she bounced on his chest with every movement. Brittany felt very content in this position. She put her elbows on his chest, folder her hands, and rested her chin on them, gazing into Brad's eyes.
Brad thought it was rather awkward.
"Uh…you can get up now."
"No I can't." She protested.
"You can't?"
"Mm-mm."
"Why not?"
"My leg broke."
Brad gave her a weird look. "Your leg broke?"
"Yeah."
"Is that so? Well, can't you just hobble on the other leg?"
"They both broke."
"Both of them?" Brad clarified.
"Yep."
"Brittany, what are you doing?"
She laid her arms on Brad's chest and rested her weight on them to be slightly closer to his face.
"I like you, Brad."
His brows perked. "What?"
"I really like you. I think you're really cool, I think you're really sexy, and I see no reason to remove myself from you."
"Uh…" Brad was speechless. "Really?"
"Yeah. In fact, I've liked you ever since I met you."
"You did?"
"Yep."
Brad had to chuckle. "You're the most outgoing person I know! Why didn't you say anything?"
She grabbed the sides of his head and pulled herself closer. "That's what you do to me, Brad."
"Oh…" A smile slipped onto his face. He moved one hand up and put it around her. With the other, he brushed the hair from her face. "To tell the truth, I've always like you too."
"Yeah?" her smile grew.
"Yep."
"That's good." She moved down and kissed him full on the mouth. Brad returned it without question.
"And then you just left?" Robert asked Mike as they walked into the arcade.
"I had nothing more to say to her." Mike answered. He let out a heavy sigh. "It's gonna be rough."
"Sounds that way." Rob said. "But you know, you might have to be a bit more lenient."
"I know." Mike muttered. "I just had to get some things off my chest, you know?"
"Yeah, yeah." They began playing a fighting game. A moment or so into it, Mike spoke.
"So, Melissa tells me you made a little confession in Ulara."
Robert rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I had a crush on her for a while, but not any more."
"And that's why you made all those crude comments?"
"Yeah, yeah, back off."
"Alright. I'm just saying." Robert quickly won the battle on the screen. "The important thing is you've changed."
"Changed?" Rob raised a brow. "Ha! Improved? Yes. Changed? Not quite."
"How do you mean?"
"I respect the ladies a bit more, but I'm still a player."
Mike stifled a laugh. "Oh, is that so?"
"Darn straight it is!" he looked over and saw two very pretty girls at another game. "I'll prove it."
"How?"
"Come with me. I'll hook us up with those two girls over there."
"Them?" Mike's brows rose. "They're pretty hot."
"Exactly. C'mon."
"So you just go up to any girl and try to attract her to you? I mean, you don't know anything about them."
"Mike, they're hot and they play video games. How many girls can fit that description?"
"Let's talk to them."
"Alright, which to you prefer, blondes or brunettes?"
"Hey, either works."
"Atta boy."
"Hand me your Dragoon Spirit." Ben said.
"Why?" Christie asked. They were a little ways out of town, standing on a cliff overlooking a large ravine at sunset. It was a grand view that they both loved.
"Just do it. I want to demonstrate what I did against Melbu Frahma."
Christie took off the spirit and gave it to him. Ben removed his own and held them together. His shimmered, then the White-Silver Dragoon Spirit followed.
"You see?" He asked. "The dragons' bond is so strong that we can use someone else's through the power of our own. It combined my powers with Sean's and Melbu was helpless to stop me.
"Cool."
"Yeah. I think we can combine our powers at times and do some really cool stuff. I mean, look." Using both spirits, Ben was able to create an energy ball of both fire and light. The ball burned and glowed, creating such luminosity that he had to look away and throw the ball. They watched it make a bright explosion in the distance. "It's like a supernova." He chuckled.
"Combining elements." Christie nodded. "Very good, Ben."
"Thank you." He handed her dragoon spirit back to her and asked her a question. "Do you ever regret becoming a Dragoon?"
Christie sighed. "Sometimes. I mean it is a very crazy living, you know? Being a Dragoon means taking on a lot of responsibility and that can be overwhelming at times. But then again, I feel good about what I'm doing. I'm helping save my race. We all have our parts to play and no one else can fill mine, so I'm going to do it right."
Ben nodded. "Exactly."
"Besides." She stepped in closer to Ben. "If it weren't for us becoming Dragoons, I might never have gotten you to come out of your shell…heck, I might not have known the depth of your emotion."
"Yeah, well, I, uh…okay."
Christie had to laugh and she wrapped her arms around his waist. "Do you ever regret becoming a Dragoon?"
Ben stroked her cheek and moved her lips towards his. "Not one bit." And he kissed her.
It was nighttime. Tonight, there would be a full moon and Melissa was not, under any circumstances, going to miss this chance. She got Sean to come with her and together, they flew high up in the sky. Sean was on low power and Melissa used her powers to disguise them in the darkness. They flew higher and higher, above the clouds. All of a sudden, the sky was opened up to them. The clouds were below and all that was above them was a black nothingness dotted with stars and a glowing, white moon.
"This is it." Melissa said.
"Wow." Sean looked around. "You were right. It's beautiful."
"I've wanted to show this to you for a long time. Until two nights ago, that was impossible."
"Yeah." Sean nodded. "I'm sorry about that."
"Don't worry about it. All that matters is that things are different now."
Sean nodded with a smile. "Indeed they are." He floated over to her. "And I couldn't be happier."
Melissa grinned as she pressed herself against him. "It must've been tough for you."
"It was." Sean said. "So many times, I wanted to turn back, but I always felt that I couldn't. I was too afraid." He chuckled. "Melbu had actually planned on using that to destroy me…and he would've!"
"One strand of rope is easily broken, but eight strands are pretty tough to sever."
"That's right. Of course, our ropes are encased in multiple levels of dragon scales."
Their spirits glowed.
"More than just that." Melissa said, putting her hand over his heart. "We've also got friendship…and love."
Sean stroked her face with one hand. Melissa took that hand and rubbed her cheek in it, savoring the feel. Sean moved her head so that he could fully kiss her. They stayed there for a quite a while.
They had been seven normal kids with a small list of worries about them and few of them really knew each other. Then, a kid named Sean moved into town and changed everything for them. They were changed from ordinary humans into the Dragon Knights, the most powerful creatures in the history of the world, even if everyone had forgotten. It was now up to them to protect the human species, as well as anyone else who may need their help. No one else could do it for them, but they were all more than willing to do their part in this never-ending war with evil. Who knew where and when the next dark force would strike? None of them could fathom it, but they would be ready.
Not only were they now fashioned into the ultimate fighting force, but now, they had come together to form an unbreakable bond. There had not been so strong a union since the last Dragoon Calling, and it would stay this way. They would grow together, fending off evil right beneath the noses of their fellow humans.
The next day, the eight of them sat together in the food court at the mall. They talked and laughed like anyone would. No one would suspect them of their true identities. They looked around them at the dozens of people who would never know anything about what they did. They were all so blind, so ignorant to the truth. They couldn't help it; that's just how they were.
Robert knew that with all the people around them, they couldn't really discuss what they had done, so he just held up his drink a little and motioned to the others to do the same. They all understood. They lifted their drinks and brought them together in a toast. It was a toast to them, a toast to the dragons, and a toast to the world, which they would protect.
That's the way things were now, and none of them preferred to change it.
"So, what do you think?" The Violet Dragon asked his companions in the linked world they had created. "These kids have potential, do they not?"
"Potential?" The Golden Dragon scoffed. "More than just that, my friend!"
"True." Said the Jade Dragon. "They have proven themselves more than enough times, at least for my sake."
The Blue-Sea Dragon nodded. "They have far exceeded what I expected from a group so young."
"Younger ones are easy to mold." The White-Silver Dragon put in. "They have a foundation now and they will not sway from their calling."
"They're a great bunch." The Dark Dragon agreed. "We were all very wise in our choosing, I must say."
The Red-Eye Dragon looked around. "So…we did a good job, eh?"
The Divine Dragon nodded with a dragon-like grin. "Yeah. We did good job."
THE END
AUTHORS' NOTE: And that's the way it was. I hope you enjoyed this new version of our first story-I know I enjoyed writing it. Please review one last time and tell us what you thought.
You older viewers may remember Spike's sequel to this story: TLOD: The Next Generation: The Return. Well, two things on that subject. One, it has a new name: TLOD: The Next Generation: Cataclysmic Reunion. Two, Spike is still working on upgrading that story. To fill the time, I, Archangel has conjured up a new story: TLOD: The NExt Generation: Shadow Dragoon. I will begin posting it soon enough. It will still be under the name SpikeandArchangel.
But that's all for this story. Again, Spike and I really hope you all enjoyed this book and we hope you will enjoy the rest of the series. Thank you all for your kindness and support with your reviews-we've enjoyed every one. Farewell for now! Ciao!