Dragons of Draegonia (12 page)

Green realising that he was getting nowhere with the youngest ones, slammed the heavy door of the cell, locking it behind him. He moved on to cell three.

Opening the door he saw Grace standing upright and squarely in front of him, her arms folded and glaring. She was steely eyed and although very tired knew she had to negotiate rather than give in to a scheming dragon. Showing no fear she spoke in a very determined voice “What are we supposed to have done, why are we here and who is responsible for our imprisonment?”

Green once more fired his questions, one after another in rapid succession, requesting her name, age, what she was doing on the island and what was used to destroy the dragons’ flames? Ignoring Green’s threatening posture and tone, Grace sidestepped all the questions and reiterated her own. The tables were being turned. Green was no match for this stubborn young girl who wanted answers and wanted them immediately.

“So, if you were supposed to be our friend why did you trick us?” Grace, not waiting for an answer, then demanded: “Who is in charge, I want to see them, I want food and water and to be released straight away. That’s it. I will not talk to you anymore, whatever you try to do to make me.”

With that last outburst, she turned in a show of defiance, with her back towards Dragon Green. Green thought for a moment, should he try torture? But he was worried that, because all four prisoners really did not know what was happening and why, they would not reveal anything anyway.

“So what species are you, at least tell me that?” Green puffed, he was now feeling tired with all the chasing and having to use his brain to make up so many stories. Stories and untruths that he was beginning to lose track of, not knowing what he had said to whom and what the prisoners in his charge would say.

These four were going to be dangerous if he could not manipulate them to go along with what he needed everyone to believe. Looking at the young spirited girl, who still had her back to him, Green decided to call it a day, give up and question the last of the group held in Cell 4.

George was trying to piece all the events together. He knew that these dragons believed the four were responsible for something serious. He had overheard the dragons speak about invaders and generals and of those who had lost the ability to spit flame.

The door to George’s dingy and damp smelling cell opened and in walked a very tired and fed up Dragon Green. George taking one look at Green went on the offensive. “You look exactly as I feel,
fed up!”
George continued: “You know you’re going to look very stupid once everyone learns that you tricked us in order to lock us up, that we are innocent and are no more than four children washed up on your island after a terrible storm that wrecked our sailing boat.”

Green listened to the verbal onslaught of George and realised that if these ‘Children’ spoke at length with Dragons Blue and Gold, his deceit and lies might well be found out. He had to move fast and these four had to be dealt with before daybreak, or at least before the majority of the Dragon Council could speak with each of them.

“So you are a race of ‘Children’ sent to invade our peaceful island using a weapon to which there is no antidote!” Green was speaking out a loud not necessarily for George’s benefit but more as a rehearsal for what he was going to report to Dragon Black. “On seeing the size and strength of Draegonia Dragons and our fighting expertise…” he was thinking of his reporting about overpowering four attacking Generals … “your main force ran to get reinforcements, leaving you to spy on us.”

George shouted: “Rubbish, that’s a pack of lies and who are these Generals who supposedly attacked you?”

“You four, of course; it was after I went to the aid of Dragon Yellow whom you scared away.” Green rambled on: “In fact you’re the same mob who attacked me the day before, when I wasn’t looking and beat me with clubs.”

George expelled a loud irritated sigh. “You’re saying that four young children jumped you and beat you up?” George laughed showing some disgust at the preposterous allegation, saying: “If anyone believes that fairy story, they must be either very stupid or you must be a very weak dragon. Look at yourself, are you really trying to say we not only attacked you, but actually won the fight?”

George then rubbed salt in the wound: “I suppose you ran off like your friend the yellow dragon. Are all dragons on this island cowards and liars?”

Green roared and as he did so coughed up several circular rings of bluish grey smoke that drifted upwards. “You might think you are clever,” Green snarled at George, “but when Dragon Black receives my interrogation report, you and your friends will not be laughing anymore. In fact, make the most of it, for you have little time to live!”

Green turned and foolishly blew out the candle. As he closed the cell door behind him and entered the very dimly lit corridor, he stubbed his left foot on a bucket that ‘Dragon Cleaners’ had left behind. The metal bucket was kicked high into the air. Green let out a roar of pain, which was doused by the noise made by the metal bucket bouncing from side to side as it clanged along the corridor.

The noise of Dragon Green’s roar and the loud noise made by the bouncing metal bucket startled Dragon Blue. He thought the four prisoners were being given the third degree and felt rather sorry for them. Just as he was about to raise himself up from his crouched position, Dragon Blue saw Green appear. Dragon Green was flustered and looking in some pain. “What’s up Green? Is it all over, have you made them talk?” Blue asked.

“Yes,” winced Green rubbing his foot. “I have determined that these creatures are extremely dangerous and not to be underestimated.” Green, with his back to the wall, crouched down opposite Blue and dragging a wooden storage crate nearby, placed his injured leg on it.

“These creatures are devious and clever. They have stated that
they were assisted
by Dragon Brown and I will let Dragon Black determine his fate.” Blue raised both eyebrows and frowned, but Green continued. “One of them called George, managed to get hold and threw a steel bucket at me, but his aim was poor. Instead of hitting my head, he caught my leg. Just look at the injury,” Dragon Green said, pointing to where the bucket he had stupidly kicked had hit him.

Blue got up, went to the first aid box and handed a ‘Dragon Plaster’ to Green who duly placed it over his wound. “You know Green,” Blue said, raising one eyebrow, “You heal very quickly, don’t you? Looking at your head, the wound you had yesterday has totally healed, so the cut on your leg will I am sure heal just as quickly.”

Green somewhat speedily put his foot on the floor and asked Blue for some ‘Dragon Paper’ so that he might write his report. Blue opened his desk draw pulled out two sheets and handed them to Green. “Here you are, Green. But why don’t you write it in the morning when you are fresh and perhaps not in as much pain?”

“No, it has to be now,” Green replied, “whilst everything is fresh in my mind. I don’t want to make any mistakes.” As his lying words were replaced by silence, Green put ‘Dragon Pen’ to ‘Dragon Paper’ and concocted a pack of lies and fictitious events, into an official report, that would mean certain death for all prisoners, including Dragon Brown.

Interrogation Report.
For the attention of Dragon Black.
Dragon Date 160/2011.

Under the authority of Dragon Black a full interrogation was undertaken throughout the late night and the early morning of the 159/160.

The four prisoners admitted they were a species called Children from a distant land they called England but believed to be Britannia who with an expedition force was to invade Draegonia. Their plan was to incapacitate the ability of all dragons to spit flames and to capture the Leader of Draegonia.

A struggle ensued during the interrogation when one of the ‘Children’ called George threw a steel bucket in an attempt to escape. He was overpowered and I suffered some minor injuries during his apprehension.

Further questioning revealed that there is no antidote to the chemicals they used and they continue to deny any involvement unless placed under duress or torture. They are clever little creatures that make you believe they are no more than the survivors of a shipwreck. This I have established is untrue and that their landing craft is still somewhere on the island.

It has been verified by me, although they constantly deny this unless tortured, that their contact on Draegonia was Dragon Brown, who wants to overthrow Dragon Black.

They have also stated to me that they are to send regular signals (by way of a mirror) and that if no such signal is received after a two ‘Dragon Day’ period, then they will be assumed dead.

My recommendation is that the four invaders designated as ‘Children’ should be tried and sentenced as a matter of urgency, as an example set to others, who may think of attempting to overthrow the leadership of Draegonia.

My final recommendation is that Dragon Brown should be tried for treason and that all trials should be undertaken as a matter of urgency in order that we can concentrate on the need to defend Draegonia from any further attack.

Dragon Green signed the report and was about to fold it when Dragon Blue spoke. “I would like to see the report please.” Dragon Blue without asking again plucked the report out of Green’s hands and quickly read it.

“Umm, you have established these facts and I suppose you are now going to write them into a statement for the perpetrators to sign?” Dragon Green grabbed the report back, saying that he was instructed by Dragon Black to interrogate and report, nothing about statements from the prisoners.

Blue listened and then said in an authoritative voice, as he once more snatched the report out of Greens sweaty claws, “I’ll use a copy of your report Green and will make out the relevant statements; we must uphold due process of law, mustn’t we?“

Blue marched over to the ‘Dragon Copier’ and placed it in for a duplicate to be made. A long pointed beaked bird moved its head from side to side rapidly reading the original and placing its beak intermittently into an ink like liquid to copy a replica onto similar type parchment.

Having made a copy, Dragon Blue gave the original back to Green. “I think we all need to get some shuteye, don’t you Green?” Dragon Blue opened the station door and gestured for Green to leave, closing it behind him with a thud.

Green trotted up towards the Hall of Dragons. He had no intention of sleeping, he was intent on doing away with both Brown and the Children, but of course, he now needed the assistance and willingness of Dragon Black.

Within the Dragon Hall, Black was still on his throne but during the night it converted to a strange looking yet fully functional and practical bed. The high back of the plinth tilted rearwards and a marble slab, drawn out of a compartment usually concealed within the bottom, gave the whole thing sufficient length for Dragon Black to lie on at full stretch.

Green had been admitted through security by a very annoyed dragon who had not expected his unauthorised 200 winks of sleep to be interrupted.

“Wait here!” Dragon Indigo pointed to the official waiting room. “I’ll go and see if Dragon Black will see you, but your visit had better be life or death, otherwise it will be literally your death for disturbing him at this hour of the morning.”

Dragon Indigo quietly slid off, leaving Green rehearsing how he would present his report, made up of lies, to Dragon Black.

Earlier, Dragon Pink had left Dragon Blue at the Police Station; she was very confused and worried for the four now locked up, recalling their story of events.

She had not found them to be in command of an invading force. She had seen no army and she certainly had not seen them carry any weapons. What was she to do? She knew that no one would believe her without proof of the innocence of the four. Suddenly she recalled that the Children had told her of the meeting with Dragon White and that they had been scared into firing a pistol used to send distress flares. Dragon White was an important witness and could be instrumental in helping to free the locked-up four.

Pink decided to act and ran as fast as she could to White’s cave. Her head projected forward, her neck outstretched and her little legs carrying her body so fast that she looked like a jet fighter flying low level.

On reaching White’s cave, Pink crashed into the entrance door with a thud. White on hearing the crash immediately awoke and rushed to open the door to reveal a slightly dazed Pink dragon. “What on earth are you doing Pink?” White quizzed.

Pink, brushing herself down, pushed past White and entered a very bright white room filled with items taken or collected from the beach. There were plastic bottles filled with coloured water decorating old wooden chests washed up from shipwrecks of bygone years. On two of the walls were hung slightly ragged flags of white with a red cross and a second coloured blue, green and red.

“Quick shut the door, there is a big problem!” Pink crouched on one of the wooden chests and started to update White about the fact that the police station cells now not only held the four children but also Dragon Brown. Pink explained that she had seen the children during the night of the previous day and befriended them. They had told her about their sailing boat mysteriously being caught in a storm, the events on being washed up on Draegonia and the fact that they had seen Dragon White.

White listened intently and went to a tap in the wall and poured hot water into two mugs. The water came from a pressurised ground fissure that collected rain water and when the tap was opened the water passed close to the heated rocks of the volcano. “Dragon Tea” White said.

Pink nodded and took one of the mugs and sipped. White was more than relieved to find she could talk openly about the encounter she had with the four little ones. “You know, I was rather foolish in not explaining things but felt stupid at falling over and skidding into the sea, swallowing all that water and seaweed, and then having to explain myself to everyone.”