“Hey, Sarah?” Titus asked. “Yeah?” She replied. “I’ve been thinking…” “About what?” Asked Sarah. “Well, I talked to Ben before everybody left. I asked him if he and Jessie would watch Drake for us when we go.” Titus explained. “What?! Why?!” Sarah exclaimed, not understanding Titus’ reasons in the slightest. “Well, I remembered what you said when I got home. About Drake still being a child and probably not being ready for this… that made me think ‘Maybe Sarah’s right. Maybe it would be best for Drake to stay behind.’” Sarah sighed in annoyance. “You really don’t know Drake at all, do you?” “What?” “Titus, Drake loves you! He looks up to you! Why do you think he put himself in danger when you guys fought those dragons?! He could have run away, but he stayed to help you! You’d probably be dead if he wasn’t there that day!” Sarah exclaimed. Titus was at a loss for words. Deep down, he knew Sarah was right. About everything. But he was still skeptical about bringing Drake along. He thought he would just let Drake decide on whether he wants to go or not but Titus already knew what his son’s answer would be. “You said it yourself, Titus. Drake isn’t a baby anymore. Besides, unlike me or Ben or Lucas. Or anyone else, Drake can actually help you fight Saulstrance and his men.” Sarah said. “Drake was given his powers for a reason! You were born a dragon for a reason. And I think I finally understand why. You were both given your powers so that you could stop Saulstrance and save the human and dragon realms!” Sarah continued. With Sarah’s little speech, Titus began to feel more confident about bringing Drake along. He realized it wouldn’t be fair to Drake who, like Titus himself, had been through a lot to get to where they are. Even almost dying in the process. Titus sighed. “Okay. You’re right. Drake can come with us. After all, he has been through a lot too.” Titus and Sarah got back to eating their dinner. That night, everything was peaceful.  For Titus and the others, it felt strange. This may have been the most peaceful moment they could have asked for since it all began. However, it was merely the calm before the storm, as elsewhere, dark plans were brewing… For in an alleyway of a small town, Saulstrance’s followers discussed their next course of action. “That’s too bad…I guess Doulstraz and his kid really are dead then.” Girido said, taking on his human form. With Girido was everyone who was present at the destruction of the mall. Alex, Jake, Theian, Eig’nia…yet oddly enough, there was another with them… The mysterious man laughed mockingly at Girido. “What are you laughing about?” Girido asked angrily. “Sir Theian told me that you lost to Doulstraz. It just makes me laugh.” Girido growled in annoyance. “You just keep flapping your yap, Rikai! At least I’m not an agent for Theian!” Theian, also taking a human form, stood up and grabbed Girido by the shirt. “And is that a bad thing?” Theian said in his usual cold voice. Girido gave no answer. Intimidated by Theian, he simply let out a sigh. Theian loosened his grip on Girido and threw him against the alley’s walls. “Will you two stop bickering?!” A voice called out from the shadows. “We’re not here to fight one another.” The voice continued. “Theian…you were the one who fought Doulstraz at the mall, right?” Theian nodded. “And I guess you’re mad at me for his death?” “Not at all, actually. In fact, it makes me a little happy. Because now we can finally execute our main goal.” “Ah yes. So we’re finally going to begin creating your kingdom.” Eig’nia said. The person stepped out from the shadows, revealing himself to be Saulstrance! He, like his followers, took on his human form. “I’ve had it with just sitting around. With Doulstraz dead, no one can stop us. We’ll begin by first taking over this little town.” “How will we do it though?” Eig’nia asked. “We’ll split into two groups. One group will set up a diversion. They will begin destroying this town. Meanwhile, the other group will begin to round up the humans. With the humans in a frenzy, that will make them easier to capture. Their minds will be in too much of a panic.” Saulstrance explained. “Theian, Girido and Eig’nia, you three will start a diversion.  Begin destroying the buildings within the area. This will cause the town’s population into a mass hysteria. At which point, me, Rikai, Alex and Jakol will secure the exits to the town as we begin capture.” With the plan set, Saulstrance and the others made their way to the outskirts of town as not to draw immediate attention. Eig’nia, Theian and Girido switched into their dragon forms, opened their wings, and flew high above the town. The three dragons took to three different directions, Eig’nia taking the west side of town while Girido secured the north side and Theian on the south side. They shot fireballs from their mouths as they fell towards the unsuspecting town below, colliding into three different buildings. The townspeople began to panic. “Now!” Saulstrance exclaimed. Alex and Jake turned into their half-dragon forms as Saulstrance and Rikai turned back into dragons. They flew for the town. As they hovered above the town, they noticed the citizens trying to escape while Eig’nia and her group continued destroying buildings. Saulstrance let out a jetstream of fire which blocked the south side of town, lighting three people on fire who were unfortunate enough to be standing under Saulstrance’s fire. The other dragons quickly secured the other exits as Saulstrance, Alex and Jake flew down into the panicking town. “Listen up!” Saulstrance commanded. “I am Saulstrance. And for those of you wondering, yes, I am a dragon. I will also soon be the one who rules this world. You privileged humans have had the honor of being my first subjects. Now all I ask is that you all get in a series of single file lines. Try anything, and you will die.” Just then, a man, armed with a hunting rifle, came out of one of the buildings that had not been destroyed. He aimed his gun at Saulstrance. “I don’t give a rat’s ass who you are. You’re not gonna destroy my town any-  -“ But before he could finish, he felt something go through his stomach. He looked down, noticing what looked like a lizard’s paw, sticking out of his gut. “Wow, Alex!” Eig’nia exclaimed in amazement. Without so much of a word, Alex removed his paw from the man’s gut as he fell to the ground in a puddle of his blood. Alex’s dragon’s paw turned back into a normal human hand. “Sorry, Lord Saulstrance.” Said Alex. “Not at all. That’s a perfect example of what will happen to those who defy me!” In no more than a mere night, an entire town’s population of 436 had disappeared. All that remained was a town, its buildings all but destroyed. Some of which had even been burned down to the ground. Time was running out. At this point, the only one who would even have a chance of stopping Saulstrance and his intentions was Titus…

Unfortunately, Drake did not have an answer. He himself wasn’t even sure what was happening to him. “Grandma and Grandpa might know what’s happening to you, Drake. We’ll ask them when we get back home. But right now, let’s get out of here.” Said Titus as he reverted back to his human form. As Titus and Drake headed for the exit, they heard something moving from amongst the debris.  They turned their attention to the area where Titus had sent Girido crashing in to. They watched as slowly, Girido got back on his feet, the debris and wreckage falling off of his body as he rose to his feet.  He shook his head then turned his attention to the father and son duo. “To think that some half-dragon filth like you would so much as THINK of touching my face! No less stabbing me in the eye! I’ll pay you back for that, you brat!” Shouted Girido angrily as he swung his tail, sending it crashing with full force into the ground. Titus stepped in front of Drake and turned back into a dragon. He flew into the sky and shot a fireball at Girido. Likewise, Girido took to flight and shot a fireball of his own straight at Titus. Titus swooped down below Girido, then, as soon as he was directly under him, flew straight up and headbutted  Girido in the chest, causing the dragon  even more pain.  With Girido stunned, Titus flew above him then whacked Girido with his tail, sending him back down to earth.  Titus flew back down and landed right in front of Girido, who was now struggling to his feet, angrier than ever. “All because of that little brat. If it weren’t for him, you’d be dead!!!” Shouted Girido. Girido let out a roar of anger and got back to his feet. He rushed towards Titus again who, just like last time, headbutted Girido  and sent him flying into another store.  Titus walked over to the dragon. Girido lay in the wreckage, too weak to move. “Beaten by a traitor dragon.  That makes me sick…” Girido said weakly. Titus stared at the beaten dragon. Drake walked over to his father, his wings and tail retreating back into his body while his finned ears became normal human ears. “I wanted to ask you something. What do you mean by ‘traitor dragon’?” Asked Titus. Girido chuckled mockingly at Titus’ question. “I’ve told you before…it’s what we who follow Saulstrance call you. Not just for nearly killing him but also for living among humans for your whole life.” “I live with these humans because they’re my friends and family.  Not every dragon is like you or Saulstrance. Some happen to like humans. My friend, Angela never hated humans.  She even lived as a human while she was taking care of me!” Titus said. Girido gave no response. “I have one more question: What is Saulstrance planning this time? Why would he wait for me at Death Valley? I doubt he just wants to fight me.” Asked Titus. Before any answer could be given, Titus and Drake heard the sounds of flapping wings overhead. Their attention turned to the sky as they saw two more dragons flying straight over them and landing right before the exit to the mall. Two kids hopped off the dragon’s  backs.  Drake looked in shock as he realized who one of the kids was. “Jake!” Drake exclaimed. Titus got one look at the kids and the dragons. He noticed that one of the kids bared similarities to Saulstrance in his human form.  His hair was reddish with bangs that nearly covered his eyes. The other boy appeared slightly older than Jake.  His hair was relatively longer than Jake’s as it barely covered his ears.   “That’s Jake?” Asked Titus. “Jake! Where’ve you been?!  What’s going on?!” Drake asked. Jake did not respond. He turned away from Drake and stared at the ground. Even at only eleven years old, Drake knew something was wrong with Jake. “Jake, are you mad because I pushed you?” Drake asked once again. Jake still gave no answer, his attention still to the ground. “I’m sorry, Jake. I am. I didn’t mean to push you! I--” But before Drake could finish his sentence, one of the dragons interrupted. “This is a sight. Girido lost to the traitor dragon.  Good job, Doulstraz, on defeating Girido, even though he is the weakest of us dragons.”  The dragoness said smugly. Her silver scales shimmered in the sunlight. Girido  growled angrily. “Shut up, Eig’nia! If it wasn’t for his kid, I woulda won! Besides, why are all of you here anyway?” “We’re here to make sure you were able to obtain some humans for Lord Saulstrance.  As it appears, not only were you unsuccessful in obtaining even a single human, but you were also defeated at the hands of none other than Doulstraz and his son. “ “We-Well I was able to kill about 20 humans.”  Girido stated. “Those humans were to be a gift for Lord Saulstrance.  You’re very lucky I’m so nice. I won’t inform Lord Saulstrance of your failure. You’re also lucky that he didn’t require us to gather any humans just yet. If he had decided to set his plans into motion, you would be dead.” Eig’nia turned her attention to Drake and noticed his fingers which still had claws growing out of them. “So, you’re a half-dragon. Just like Lord Jakol and Alex.” Just like Drake, Alex closed his eyes as two wings and a tail grew from his back. It was just as Eig’nia said: This boy was a half-dragon as well, just like Jakol and Drake! “I guess we should introduce ourselves.” Said Eig’nia. “You already know Girido. My name is Eig’nia.” “I am Theian.” Said the blue dragon standing behind Eig’nia. “I’m Alex.” The half-dragon boy said. “And this is Jakol. The only child of Lord Saulstrance.” Eig’nia turned her attention from Titus to Girido. “You know, Girido.” She began to say. “We won’t inform Lord Saulstrance of your defeat by Doulstraz.  But it looks like we’ll have to finish your fight  for you.” She said, angrily. Eig’nia’s attention changed back to Titus and Drake. But before she could raise a single claw, she was halted by Theian. “Eig’nia, if it’s alright, I’d prefer to finish this.” Said Theian. “Go ahead.” Theian opened his wings and took to the sky, Titus doing the same. In what seemed like a blur, Theian flew straight at Titus, swiping Titus with his claws across his face. Titus roared in pain as  Theian rose higher into the sky and zoomed back down, smacking Titus with his tail which sent Titus plummeting back down to Earth. Theian, likewise, flew back down and landed. Titus struggled back to his feet, only to be smacked once more by Theian’s tail and sent hurtling into another store. “Dad!” Drake exclaimed as he ran over to his father, giving him a nudge. Titus moved from amongst the remains of the destroyed store.  He stood back up as Drake wrapped his arms around his father’s neck, giving him a big hug. Drake noticed as Theian walked closer to the two of them, his eyes filled with anger.  Something about Theian scared Drake even more than Girido.  He seemed…different than Girido and the others. Whereas Girido almost seemed to enjoy fighting Titus and Drake, Theian was completely ruthless, not allowing Titus to get a single hit in. Theian dashed towards Titus. Titus shot a wave of fire from his throat which spread from where Eig’nia, Jake and Alex were standing, to a nearby clothing store. Smoke and ashes began to rise from the flames and cover both Drake and Titus like a shield. Soon it was too hard to see the father and son duo as the smoke and ash became too heavy and thick to see. From the fire the sound of flapping wings could be heard. Theian turned his attention to where the sound came from as he noticed something shoot up into the sky, expecting it to be Titus. Instead it turned out to be Drake! Before Theian could turn his attention back to the fire, Titus ran through the flames, bashing into Theian and knocking him off his feet. “Awesome! Ya got him, dad!” Drake cheered. “It’s thanks to you, Drake!”  Shouted Titus. Drake flew back down and ran over to his father.  He glanced over at Eig’nia and Alex, noticing that Jake was missing. He looked up and saw Jake, flying overhead as he swooped down, landing right in front of Drake and Titus. Drake jumped back as Jake landed. “Drake…” Jake began to say. “Y-yeah?” Drake asked nervously. “You hate me, don’t you?” Jake asked, his sad, sorrowful eyes meeting with Drake’s. “What! No! I don’t hate you!” Drake exclaimed. “Dad said you pushed me because you hate me! Because I’m his son!” Jake exclaimed as tears started to flow from his eyes. “Jake! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean—“ “Shut up!” Jake shouted as he punched Drake in the face, knocking him to the ground. “All I wanted was to be your friend!” Jake exclaimed, still shouting as he continued to punch Drake. Drake made no effort to fight back. Titus watched in shock as his son just lay there, taking punch after punch. Soon he noticed as tears began to trickle down Drake’s face as well. Soon after, Jake stopped punching Drake as he tried to catch his breath.  He stood back up and wiped the tears from his eyes. Drake still made no movement whatsoever as tears flowed endlessly from his eyes.  His face was badly bruised as some blood even dripped from his nose. Jake stood there, silently as he watched Drake cry. Then he turned around and walked back to join Eig’nia and Alex. “Jakol?” Alex asked. Jake gave no response. Instead he simply walked past them, his head held low as his bangs covered his eyes. Everyone’s attention was turned to Jake, even Titus’.  Jake just stood there, motionless, his head still to the ground. Titus turned his attention from Jake over to Drake, who was still lying on the ground. He lowered his head and nuzzled up against Drake. Drake slowly raised his arms and  put them around his father’s snout, hugging him tightly as he continued to cry. Both Titus and Drake were sent flying as Titus was once more stuck by Theian. When Titus had realized what had just happened, he looked over to Drake, who was now laying by his side, unconscious. Slowly and weakly, Titus struggled to stand up. He took two steps towards Theian and collapsed to the ground, body too weak, unable to fight.  At that moment, Titus began to remember all the fun times he had spent with his family and friends. The time he spent in the human realm, the time he spent with his parents in the dragon realm as he learned how to shift between being a human and a dragon,  the time he spent with Drake as they both bonded, and even the time he spent with Angela… With Theian walking closer towards Titus, he struggled to raise his head. “Theian, wait…” Titus said weakly. “What?” Answered Theian. “If you’re gonna kill me, all I want is that you at least let Drake live...please…he’s just a little kid…” Titus said as a tear ran down his face. “Why should I listen to the one responsible for Angela’s death?!” Theian exclaimed. “What!” Titus thought to himself. Just as Theian prepared himself to deliver the final blow, he was stopped by none other than Jake. “Wait, Theian! Don’t forget, my dad wants to fight Doulstraz himself.” Theian growled but pulled back and walked over to Eig’nia and the others.   “Wait! What did you mean, Theian?! That I was responsible for Angela’s death?!” Titus called out. Theian said nothing and continued to walk towards the other dragons. Titus kept calling out for Theian to wait.  Unable to keep his head up for much longer, Titus’ head dropped to the ground. Eventually the pain got the better of him and he passed out. Everything went black…and silent…