THE DRAGON HUNTER With their new ally, Donovan Erin and Zonra were all off to Narsh to seek their next ally... Richard Paulus. "We heard you scream when we were looking for you," Donovan said to Aaron. "What were you doing?" asked Erin. "I was trying to teach myself the Arial spell," replied Aaron. "You don’t know how to do that?" exclaimed Donovan. "I concentrated on the hardest spells first, and decided to learn the easiest spells last," explained Aaron. "Then we’ll teach you!" said Erin enthusiastically. "Really? Cool!" exclaimed Aaron. "Yeah, let’s do it!" exclaimed Donovan. Erin clapped her hands together for the instruction to begin. "OK. First, put your hands together like this to summon the neutral magic," said Donovan. "OK," replied Aaron, roughly doing what Erin was doing. "Then pull your hands apart about six inches. Then you’ll see a white ball of light," said Donovan. Aaron looked at the space between his hands and saw that he had created a ball of light, just as Erin was doing. "Then, yell ‘Arial!’ as if you were commanding it. Then you’ll fly," said Donovan. Both Aaron and Erin yelled "Arial!" and they both began to hover above the ground. "Wow! This is cool! Now how do I fly arou7nd," asked Aaron. "Just shift your body any way you want," said Donovan. "Forward makes you go forward, and upward makes you go upward." "How do I get down?" asked Aaron. "Very slowly shift your body downward, and as soon as you touch the ground, the spell will de-cast," directed Donovan. Zonra used his wings to fly up toward Aaron. He asked Erin, "He good flyer, like me?" "He’s OK," said Erin in telepathy. Then they all heard some rustling in some bushes behind them. "Wow! What was that?" Donovan asked Erin telepathically. "I don’t know," replied Erin in telepathy. Then, Donovan, Erin, Aaron and Zonra all saw two dragons flying overhead. "Wow! Those are pretty!" said Erin, in awe. From the bushes, where they had heard the rustling, an arrow shot from it and hit one of the dragons in the throat. Zonra, Erin and Donovan left Aaron to get down for himself. "Oh, my God! No!" yelled Donovan, worried. "Oh, no!" yelled Erin. "Please, no, please, no, please, no," thought Zonra, worried. The dragon fell, hitting the ground with a thud. The dragon looked like Nabuyuki, with red scales, a yellow stomach and about 30 feet long. Donovan and Erin both tried talking to it with their talent, but it didn’t work. Erin put her paw on the dragon’s back to comfort it. Donovan put his ear to the dragon’s chest to see if it was still alive. "Oh, no. It’s dead!" said Donovan. "What?" exclaimed Erin. Donovan had tears doming from his eyes. Then, two tall, broad men with bows and arrows came out of the bushes. "Hah! That’s just more suitcases to us, kids! Hah!" said one of the men proudly. "How can you kill such a beautiful creature?" yelled Erin with tears. Donovan turned, with his eyes flowing red and tears streaming down his face. A primal scream shrieked from Donovan. It was deep and inhuman. "Huh! Nabuyuki is using Donovan to talk through," said Erin, amazed. Donovan began to talk in a deep voice. It was Nabuyuki. "Grrrrr. Why?" said Nabuyuki angrily. "Why?" "Because we poach dragons," replied the other man. "Whaa-a-a-t!" yelled Erin. "Don’t tell me I just heard that!" screamed Nabuyuki. "THAT WAS MY BROTHER!" "What?" exclaimed the first man, astonished. "Long story," said Erin, nodding her head. Donovan, or Nabuyuki, or, uh, whatever, pounced on one of the men, sending him into a tree and knocking the man out. The other man pulled out his bow and arrow and shot Donovan in his shoulder. Donovan/Nabuyuki turned as if no pain had entered the body. Nabuyuki pulled the arrow out and got into position to pounce the other man. The man readied his bow. Donovan/Nabuyuki ran at the man. He scared the man, who shot the arrow in panic, sending it into Donovan’s chest. Nabuyuki was unaffected by it. Still in the air, Nabuyuki/Donovan pounced the man and sent him into a tree, knocking him out. Nabuyuki/Donovan jumped off the man and as soon as they landed, Nabuyuki stopped controlling Donovan. "Donovan!" screamed Erin. Urgh," said Donovan in pain, wrenching the arrow from his chest. Donovan fell back, unconscious and bleeding. Donovan woke up the next day to find himself on the ground in the same spot. Donovan found that the pain and the wound were gone and thought that Aaron had probably used a healing spell on him. He looked around to see on his far left was Erin using Zonra as a pillow and sleeping on her side. Then he saw Aaron to his far right, sleeping sprawled out all over the ground, using his cape as a pillow. Donovan heard Nabuyuki say, "I’m sorry. I just... I just... couldn’t stand it. My brother killed an all they cared about was how much money they were going to make." Donovan sat up and talked to Nabuyuki with his mind. "I know what you mean, and I love all dragons." Donovan quietly walked over to the dead dragon and buried it. When Donovan finished, he put a cross in the center of the mound with four flowers: one pointing north, one pointing south, one pointing east and one pointing west. "Let’s hope he has better luck up there," said Nabuyuki to Donovan. RICHARD: MERCENARY OF THE EAST Donovan, Erin, Aaron and Zonra were all headed East to get Richard Paulus, the strongest fighter in the world. "Well, I see you’re all bright and peachy this morning, especially for a person shot by an arrow the day before," said Aaron. "Yep! Who was the one who healed me?" asked Donovan. "That would be me," said Erin proudly. "But I thought you didn’t know how to do a healing spell," said Donovan suspiciously. "Hey, I’m not one of those sorceresses that just stares in awe. I watch and learn," Erin said proudly. "Thanks!" said Donovan. "Well, where are we headed?" asked Aaron. "Narsh," said Donovan, "to get Richard. He is said to be the strongest mercenary in the world." "Cool," said Aaron. "By the way, you can just call me Cary for less confusion." "Umm, OK, fine ... Cary." Zonra, Cary, Eri9n and Donovan all walked for about 12 miles, until the sun set. "It looks like we’re going to have to camp out tonight," said Erin confidently. "I’ll get the food. "I’ll gather firewood," said Cary. "And I’ll stand around doing absolutely nothing," said Donovan with an embarrassed smile. "Oh no you won’t!" said Erin and Cary simultaneously. "You’re gonna plot a course to Narsh for us while we do our chores," said Erin in a "tsk-tsk" voice. "Aaawwww!" said Donovan sarcastically. Cary went into the wood to gather firewood, while Erin went to a nearby stream to get some fish. Donovan pulled a rolled up map from Erin’s bag, rolled it out and began charting a route for their journey. "I hate doing these map things. I’m used to just going my own way and not worry where I’m headed," complained Donovan. Cary found a clearing in the middle of the woods. "Ah, this should do it," he said. He spit in his hands and rubbed them together. "OK, here we go," he said to himself. He put his hands in a praying position and then, while shooting his hands up in the air, he yelled, "Wooden tornado!" A white ball of light appeared and the wind began to pick up. The wind started swirling, picking up only fallen branches. Cary was in the center of the vortex, and began pulling firewood from it. Once he had enough, he yelled "De-cast!" and the twister of wood dropped into a circle around his feet. "That should do it," Cary said to himself. Erin was by a stream catching big fish like crazy. "I love having claws. It’s so easy to catch fish, and with tiger’s eyes, it’s easier to see them," Erin said gleefully. "Feh. I hat doing stuff that includes maps. I’m just going to go where I want. Oh well," Donovan complained. Later that night, they were all sitting around the camp fire eating fish. "So, I thought we would just take the direct route and go through Centra, spend the night there, and by then we’ll only be about 10 miles from Norsh. Then we can get Richard on our side," explained Donovan. "You make it sound so easy," said Erin calmly. "What do you mean," said Cary, getting another fish. "What if he doesn’t want to join?" said Erin, worried. "Then we’d just have to do our best without him," said Donovan. "We’re going to need our rest," said Cary, falling back. "Erin called to Zonra in telepathy. She laid back and used Zonra as a pillow. Donovan laid back and looked up at the stars. "Do you see Drago?" asked Nabuyuki. "What? You mean the constellation?" asked Donovan. "Yes," said Nabuyuki. "I always look for it." "Maybe that’s why we were brought together," said Donovan. "Why? You mean you do, too," said Nabuyuki, amazed. "You know, when I found out I was dragon-connected, I had already been obsessed with dragons," said Donovan. "Maybe it’s in the stars that we see the persons we really love," said Nabuyuki, crying a tear through Donovan’s eyes. "Good night, Nabuyuki," Donovan said quietly. In the middle of the night, Erin opened her eyes suddenly because of a feeling she had. "Who is it?" she yelled. Donovan, Cary and Zonra strangely stayed asleep. Erin heard a footstep. She turned and yelled, "Show yourself!" "OK," said a voice. The clouds that were blocking out the full moon moved out of its way. Erin saw an animal in the shape of a tiger with long, angelic, white wings. The moon was at its full brightness when Erin saw more details of ' the winged tiger. It had white fur with black stripes. Its eyes glowed bright red in the darkness. Erin gasped. "It’s you!" she choked. "The legendary winged tiger. You’re the godfather of all Worens." "Yes, Erin," it said. "I remember, I was five, and I found myself in the woods," said Erin. "I don’t know how I got there or when I got there. I was just there. I cried. I didn’t know what to do. "Then, like a prayer unprayed, you came. I got on your back as you told me to do. Then we flew over the multi-painted forest. When we landed, I hugged your neck. "And you left me to grow up with the best people in the world. No, look. I’m trying to save the world." Erin felt she had let out the whole world, the world she’d always felt she wanted to tell someone. "It’s funny," said the winged tiger. "No one can remember a name. You can only remember what had been done to you." The winged tiger giggled. "Don’t worry," said Erin. "I remember. It’s Conatia." "You, Erin, your journey -- you cannot give up," said Conatia. "There will be times that you think it will be impossible to continue. But you will pull through." "I know I will," said Erin. "But am I really the legendary warrior tiger?" "Only you can know that," said Conatia wisely. He walked over to Donovan, who was sleeping soundly. He sniffed Donovan’s head and neck. "Is he of brood?" asked Conatia. "No. Why?" asked Erin. "I sense the dragon in him," said Conatia. "Why is that?" "His dragon of destiny was dying. He is dragon-connected, and a curse prevented him from restoring the dragon back to health. So, Donovan took the dragon’s soul into his body. They now both live in one body. But there is a good thing about this," said Erin. "Oh, really? What’s that?" asked Conatia. "He can transform into the dragon, and the dragon part of him takes over," explained Erin. "He will be a great ally," complemented Conatia. Conatia walked over to Cary. "I don’t need to smell this one. He has got to be Aaron Cary," said Conatia, amazed. "Yep," said Erin proudly. "Yet another good ally," said Conatia. He back away. "Are you leaving?" asked Erin. "I must. But I have a gift for you, my child," said the winged tiger sadly. He closed his eyes and tiny balls of light began gathering above his head. The lights formed into a bracelet with a stone in the middle that was orange with black tiger stripes. "This stone will make your magic powers five times stronger than they are now," said Conatia. "You’ll need all the help you can get... trust me." Conatia sent the bracelet to Erin and she put it on her left wrist. Conatia turned around and said, "I shall see you again." Conatia began running and then he spread his wings and started flying. As he disappeared over the trees, Erin said, "Please do." In the morning, the all packed up and left for Centra. Donovan noticed Erin’s new bracelet. "I didn’t know you had a bracelet," said Donovan in wonder. "Oh, this? I, uh, well, uh, um, had it in my bag, Yeah, that’s it!" Erin stammered. "Hmmmm," said Donovan. "Well, why don’t we save time and fly to Centra?" Cary suggested. "Good idea!" said Erin. "Sure, let’s fly. But we won’t use the Arial spell," said Donovan. He said the same thing telepathically to Zonra. "What you say?" asked Zonra. "Nabuyuki might be able to fly us to Centra," Donovan said. Donovan closed his eyes and began talking to Nabuyuki. "So, would you like to fly us to Centra? Pleeaase?" whined Donovan. "Sure, I’d love to stretch my wings," said Nabuyuki, all bright and peachy. Erin counted down. "Five, four, three..." "why are you counting down?" Cary interrupted. "You’ll see," Erin said confidently. "Two, one, and..." At that point, wind and dust began circulating around Donovan like a tornado. Soon, he was completely out of sight. The wind and dust stopped, and when it cleared, a 30-foot red dragon stood in Donovan’s place. "Excuse me, but is there something you didn’t tell me?" Cary said, wide-eyed. "Is he of Brood?" "No. It’s a long story," said Erin, nodding her head. Nabuyuki signaled them to get on his back. Zonra flew up on Nobuyuki’s back, and Erin followed with a jump. (Of course, doing that with human-size tiger legs would be easy.) Cary used the Arial spell. "Now we’re going to fly with style," said Erin. "Just like flying with Conatia," she thought. "Something wrong?" Zonra asked in telepathy. "No," Erin replied. So they flew to Centra over the multi-painted forest. Nabuyuki loved the wind hitting his face. He felt full of dragon again. "Ooh, Donovan, will you let me do this again?" Nabuyuki asked. "Sure, why not?" replied Donovan. Right now, Donovan, Erin, Cary and Zonra had all just entered Narsh. "Finally! I thought we’d never get here," said Cary. "Seems like a lonely town," said Erin, looking through an old, barred window. "Before we do anything else, lets eat. To be more specific, CHOCOLATE!" Donovan said, wide-eyed. "Whatever you say," Erin said sarcastically. So they all went to a restaurant in the center of town. As they were sitting down at a table that had not been scrubbed, they heard an argument in the kitchen. "Listen, Richard, I know you want me to be safe, but I’ve got to make money in order to keep my house running," said a voice. "You fool! You have absolutely no idea what you’re doing. Demonic beast attack percentages are at the highest they’ve ever been, and all you care about is keeping your stupid restaurant open," said another voice. "Sorry, but I’m not closing the restaurant, just because of some stupid survey," said the first voice. The second person came storming out of the kitchen. It was Richard Paulus. Erin said, "Excuse me, you wouldn’t happen to be Richard Paulus, the mercenary, would you?" Richard gave her a funny look. "Yes, that would be me," he said. "Could we talk to you later on?" Donovan asked (still stuffing his face). "Uhh, sure. Where?" said Richard. "How about near the opening of the mountain?" said Donovan. "OK," Richard said. Richard kicked the restaurant door open and walked off. The restaurant manager came to the table and said, "How may I help you?" "Well, I’d like a hot chocolate, please, with a plate of nachos," said Erin. "I’ll have some hot CHOCOLATE, two chicken sandwiches and a CHOCOLATE brownie, please," said Donovan. "Hmmm, I don’t know. How about a hot chocolate and a tortellini," said Cary. "OK. I’ll get started right away," said the manager. "Wait a minute, Aren’t you forgetting someone?" said Erin, slightly angry. "Who do you mean?" asked the manager with a slightly confused expression. "My dragon, of course," said Erin in a "Well, duh" voice. "Sorry, we don’t serve dragons here. I consider them lesser beings," said the manager. "Oh, really," said Erin, taking out her sword. "Allow me to introduce you to my blade." "Yeah, I think I can make an exception," said the manager, panicked. "What do you want, Zonra?" Erin asked Zonra in telepathy. "Whatever you have," said Zonra, standing on his chair. "More nachos!" said Erin, satisfied. They finished eating and headed off to the cave. "I hope he joins us," said Donovan. "I think he will," said Cary. "What makes you think that?" asked Donovan. "I don’t know... intuition," suggested Cary. They finally made it to the cave entrance and waited for Richard. "Where is he? He should be here by now," Donovan complained. "I’m right here!" yelled Richard from the top of the cave entrance. Richard took out a sword from a sheath on his back. The sword was as tall as Richard, and as wide as him. He held the sword in front of him with two hands and yelled, "Shareukan!" A light blue aura surrounded Richard . He jumped in the air with blue lightning bolts charging the sword he was holding above his head. The sword stopped gathering bolts of electricity. Into the air he lunged forward, aiming at Cary. With the time he had, Cary cupped his hands sideways, closed his eyes, and a black and blue ball of light formed between his hands. Blue bolts charged around his hands. Then Cary shot the ball into the air and yelled, "Omega Shield!" A dark blue and black shield surrounded Donovan, Erin, Zonra and himse lf. While in the air, Richard lashed his sword against the shield and the sword seemed to battle with the surges of electricity until both Cary and Richard were blown away by their own attacks. Richard flew into the wild, blue yonder while Cary was hurled straight into a tree. Cary opened his eyes with his fingers flinching. He stepped down from the dent he left in the tree. Barely standing and keeping his eyes straight, Cary said, "Look at all the pretty little shining stars. I’ll miss them when they’re gone." He gave an uneasy smile, and fell to the ground unconscious. "That would hurt," said Donovan. "Only he would know," said Erin. "How about Richard?" Zonra asked. "He should land in about 15 minutes," Donovan told Zonra in telepathy. Fifteen minutes later... "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!" screamed Richard as he landed with a BOOM! "Ouch! I’m in a great deal of pain at this moment," Richard said. Richard’s eyes widened. "Oh, no!" he thought. He rolled to his right, and two seconds later, Richard’s gigantic sword fell to the ground, point first, and buried itself halfway into the ground where Richard had been laying. Richard looked at the sword and said, "I think I’ll take a nap," and fell unconscious. "Say, Erin?" said Donovan. "You remember how to do the healing spell?" "Yep," Erin replied. "Then we’ll heal them!" said Donovan. Donovan healed Richard while Erin healed Cary. "Man, Richard is strong!" said Donovan. "Yeah! Richard’s strength is nearly stronger than Cary’s magic," said Erin, excited