War of Dragons (22 page)

Crystal was surprised and concerned to see Mark when he visited her in her room in Immigration House. She hadn't expected him back so soon or back without John. "Mark, what are you doing back so early? Did something go wrong? Is John alright?"

Mark shook his head. "John's fine—at least he was when I left him. Everything is going according to plan."

Crystal frowned. "So why are you back? You were meant to be part of that plan."

Mark took a deep breath before answering. "The invasion has already begun. We met two Blue Dragons who told us that they were mobilising for the second wave of attacks. I don't know what you'll find when you go back. If there's anything to go back to."

Crystal's jaw dropped and tears filled her eyes. Her immediate thoughts were of her parents. Their home was in the south-east, in the areas that would be attacked first. If they were at home rather than the capital… it didn't bear thinking about.

"What can we do? We have to do something!"

Mark nodded. "We are doing something, remember? That's where John is."

Crystal shook her head. "That'll be too late. The Browns won't act fast enough to help us. Something needs to be done now!"

Mark shrugged helplessly. "That's why I came back. I rushed back to tell the government, so they could alert all of our neighbours and decide what to do next." He looked away from her awkwardly.

"But they're not going to act, are they?" Crystal asked. Mark shook his head. "Why not? Why won't they help? They know what'll happen if no one helps us; we'll be destroyed and then the Blues will be unstoppable!"

Mark gave her a glum nod. "They know alright, but it doesn't change how they will react. Too many of them are opposed to getting involved in any conflict and our laws are written to ensure we stay neutral—that we don't take sides."

"That's ridiculous!" Crystal burst out. "The Blue Dragons will pick sides for them once they're through with us and the Browns, and then the rest of your neighbours. Don't they see what is coming?"

"They believe we can defend ourselves against any external threat. It is far easier to defend rather than attack and we don't have the numbers to risk getting involved."

"You don't believe that, do you? Crystal asked. Mark looked even more miserable than she felt. "The Blues will be twice as strong in twenty years if they're not checked now."

"I'm just telling you what they'll say and think," Mark replied. "They won't authorise an attack on the Blue Dragons. Getting involved in a rescue mission is one thing, but they won't go to war."

Crystal sank to her knees, despondent. "But you came back! You must have had some hope?"

Mark crouched beside her, looking wretched. "I don't know what I was expecting. But the response I've had so far hasn't been good. They have delayed even sending a communication to our neighbours. That message will go out tomorrow morning anyway, but no thanks to them. I have some friends who have helped me with that. If I had left it to the Department of Defence they probably wouldn't be told till tomorrow afternoon or the day after. But my father seems to think there is some hope and told me to meet him here after he has met with an old friend. He should be here soon. I don't really see what he can do though."

Crystal brightened at this. "Your father wouldn't say there is hope when there is none. You shouldn't give up. Anyway, we should tell the others. It's not good news, but they need to know. When will your father come here?"

Mark shrugged. "I'm not sure. It's night time so he will have to walk. I don't know where he was meeting his friend or how far he will have to travel."

Crystal nodded. "You go downstairs and wait for your father. I'll tell the others and we'll come down when they're ready." She decided that seeing Mark looking as gloomy as this could only make it worse for her friends.

Mark nodded and stood up to leave, looking downcast. "I'll see you down in the reception. I'm sorry I had to give you this news."

Crystal called Seth and Jenna to Arthur's room, where the twins were reading books lent to them by Naomi. They took the news better than she had expected.

"It had to happen eventually," Arthur pointed out. "As far as we knew, it could have already happened. If John's rescue mission is successful, the Browns will be brought into the war at just the right time."

"They might not even wait for that mission to succeed," Seth added. "The Blues will have moved their forces away from the Brown border; they might decide to take the opportunity and attack the undefended cities near their border while they can."

Crystal nodded. "I suppose that's possible."

"What about John?" Daisy asked. "Do you know how he is? Did Mark tell you anything?"

"He was fine when Mark left him," Crystal replied. "Apparently everything is going well so far."

"So, what's our plan now?" Jenna asked. "We were going to fly back, weren't we? Can we still do that now that the invasion has started? Do you think we should just stay here?"

Arthur shook his head. "We have to go back. We're not going to just hide here. We always knew that the invasion might start before we travelled or even
while
we travelled."

Daisy nodded in agreement. This was clearly something that the two of them had discussed, although not with the others. Jenna didn't look too happy about this decision, but didn't say anything.

"Crystal, what will the Golden Dragons do?" Seth asked. "Did Mark say whether they would send help?"

Crystal shrugged. "He wasn't too hopeful, but he said that his father has some sort of plan, but didn't specify what it is. He's going to come here this evening and meet Mark to discuss it."

"That settles it," Arthur said firmly. "If they're going to send help, we have to go back. We will need to introduce them to our commanders or they won't be allowed to enter. Come, let's go downstairs and wait for Paul and see what his plan is."

When they got to the reception they found that Paul had already arrived and was in deep discussion with Mark. Crystal was relieved to see that Mark's morose expression had been exchanged for a determined and animated one and he was nodding enthusiastically as his father spoke to him. His face lit up when he saw them enter and he beckoned them to join him.

"Come quickly. My father has explained to me what he's been doing. You need to hear this."

Paul looked up at them earnestly but said nothing until they sat down. "I visited an old friend of mine," he began. "A man by the name of Noah. He, and I for that matter, are completely convinced that the government will never authorise an official force to either accompany you back home or to help you defend your cities."

"So thanks for nothing," Seth replied sourly. "What chance do we have of getting home now?"

Paul nodded calmly. "An official force, I said. A volunteer force is a different matter. It would be small, of course, since we won't enough time to round up and convince all the volunteers we might like to have, but we should be able to put together enough people to escort you home and bolster your defence forces in your capital city."

"Would they allow that?" Crystal asked. "You would still be sending people to fight in a war. Is that allowed by your laws?"

Paul nodded again. "I suspect there are some who will want to make it hard for us, but I'm fairly confident of success. Noah is going to ensure that you are invited to parliament to present your case tomorrow morning, and if we are well-prepared and anticipate their objections we can dodge them. However, that does mean that we will need to do a lot of work between now and then and I'll need Mark to come with me right now."

"Just Mark?" Arthur asked. "Is there anything that we could do to help?"

Paul shook his head, rising to his feet as if to leave. "I'm afraid there isn't a lot you can do now; just be prepared to leave at a moment's notice tomorrow. If Mark gets his approval, you will be leaving straight away."

"Of course," Arthur replied. "We will be ready. And thank you for all of your help. It's been a most enlightening experience visiting your country. I'd like to say that if our situations were reversed we'd have offered the same help, but I know that isn't true, which makes your help all the more admirable."

Paul smiled. "You're very welcome, young Prince. I'm guessing that when you return, you'll be a positive influence on your countrymen and how they view their neighbours, and considering your position, you may have a chance of making a difference. Now, you must excuse us. We will see you tomorrow after we have been to speak to parliament."

"Hopefully with some good news," Mark added, standing up to join his father. "See you all tomorrow."

With that, they left, leaving the five with more hope than they had had for some time.

Chapter 14 - Inside the Prison Camp

John woke with a start, freezing in alarm as he recognised the unwelcome sound of Blue Dragon voices nearby. It took a moment to recall where he was: in a pitch black tunnel dug into the rocky bank of a river that flowed near the Blue Dragon's new prison camp—a hastily excavated hiding place that was no longer very safe. The Blue Dragons were far too near for comfort and they needed to move, and move quickly. He reached out in the darkness and shook Dinah awake.

"Hey!" she mumbled irritably. "Just five minutes more—"

"Shush!" he whispered. "Listen!"

Dinah was wide awake immediately, her breathing falling silent as she strained to hear the Blue Dragons talking.

"They're not that close," she said finally, breathing a sigh of relief. "But I think we want to get out of here quickly in case that changes."

John crawled along the tunnel back to the entrance by the river and peered out. No one was in sight, although he didn't really expect to see anyone actually in the river. He crawled back out onto the river bank and then climbed up the side of the bank to look over the edge at the camp.

"The camp has grown during the night," he said after returning to the tunnel. "They've put up a lot more tents and some aren't that far away. We're lucky no one came past this tunnel when we were coming out. I can't see anyone nearby, but that could change at any moment. It isn't safe here."

Dinah nodded. "True, but we can't go anywhere yet either. It'll be light soon. We'll see it from the tunnel through your escape hole. Let's go back in and wait till it's light enough to transform."

They crawled back and waited in the tunnel, watching the sky above them in anticipation. They could hear people shouting orders above, the work of constructing the camp continuing. Neither of them spoke while they waited, trembling at the thought of being found.

"It's time," Dinah whispered, "I think it's light enough."

John slipped his head out of the tunnel very cautiously, looking left and right for signs of anyone coming. As soon as he emerged he transformed into a Blue Dragon. Dinah appeared after him and did the same.

Let's get out here,
he said.
We don't want to be seen near to this hole.

They both took off and found they were the only ones in the air, but no one noticed them leaving. They flew low, heading around the camp and back to the south, starting the long journey back to the first camp.

This would be a lot easier if we didn't have to bring back prisoners,
Dinah pointed out.
We could just head back now.

This would be even easier if we could fly as Golden Dragons,
John added.
We could reach the camp in half the time. Fancy picking up the pace a bit?

No, John. It’s not worth it. I know that there aren't any Blue Dragons in the air here, but that could change any moment. Concentrate on memorising this route. We will have to explain it to everyone when we get back.

Not really much to memorise,
John pointed out.
It's just continuous forest.

Fair point,
Dinah agreed.
So, John, tell me about the Red Dragons. I know even less about them than I do the Blue Dragons. Tell me about these four that have come with you.

John would have smiled if he could.
Where shall I start? Well, the four that came with me are all from the school that I went to in their capital. Crystal, the Golden Dragon I was sent to bring back, was adopted by a very influential family and was sent to this elite school for the children of the rich and powerful. Two of them are Royalty.

Really?
Dinah replied.
I forgot they still had a Royal Family. Is one of them destined to be King?

No,
John replied.
It's a little complicated, but they have separate Principalities which are semi-autonomous. They're from the Western Principality—the Prince and Princess. One of the others is related to the King, but is a distant relative. The fourth one is Crystal's adopted cousin.

I see,
Dinah replied.
And they are friends of yours? These Princes and Princesses? That must be a little strange.

Just one Prince and Princess,
John corrected.
But yes, I consider them my friends. It was different when I first arrived and no one liked me, but they're my friends now.

That must have been tough,
Dinah said.
I heard that you were in the country alone for the last year, although I couldn't understand why. But anyway, why didn't they like you? Do you think they suspected that you weren't a Red Dragon?

No, they wouldn’t have even thought that possible. I just wasn't very good at making friends. I spent a long time alone with my father and I found it difficult to talk to the other children. I didn't know how to relate to them. It was particularly difficult at the start.

Oh I see. What about Crystal? Did you get on with her?

John snorted derisively.
No, she hated me even more than the others. She didn't like being different and my hair just reminded her that she was. It might have been easier if I could have told her more about our connection and her background, but I was under strict orders to not tell her until I had won her trust and educated her a little. They teach their children to despise other races, so they thought it might end badly if I told her who she was too soon.