A new beginning: Chapter one: Allies or enemies?
Well, this is something I started working on awhile ago but never uploaded due to spoilers for the apocalypse. I've got a total of six chapters of this done, and assuming the critque is good, I believe I'll upload another chapter every week or two. A quick note. To avoid the beforementioned spoilers, skip the first paragraph. Yes, I know it's a large wall of text, but there's not much there aside from a bit of character background and shit.
Now, to avoid needless character descriptions, check out the links below if you aren't familiar with Red already.
http://www.sofurry.com/page/184323/user
http://www.sofurry.com/page/198121/user
http://www.sofurry.com/page/199875/user
And now, the beginning of what will hopefully be a way for me to branch out and away from the zombies ^.=.^
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJS8j9YYB9w
Red grinned in satisfaction with that last turn of the wrench "Another job done to perfection" He chuckled softly, standing up slowly and tossing the torque wrench into his toolbox before reaching for the starter on his brand new chopper. The bike was like a dream come true to the drake, he'd had it custom made, but even after getting it back from the shop, he'd decided to make a few minor adjustments to it before actually taking the bike out for a spin. This chopper was literally his dream bike, adorned with enough skulls and chrome to make the devil do a double take, it had taken months to build and almost a hundred grand out of his bank account... not that that type of cash was allot for someone who had spent over two years as an assassin earning half a million plus per job. He smiled happily as his paw brushed over gas tank lovingly, in a way, this bike was something to try and replace all that he'd lost in the apocalypse, and even after a year he still hadn't gotten over seeing several close friends die. Or for that matter, killing himself. Seeing the love of your life killed by a clone of yourself before killing the clone can do things to a dragon, and he hadn't come out of that second zombie apocalypse unscathed. According to the "professionals" his mental integrity had degraded quite a bit, but he just continued to shrug them all off, even beating one to within an inch of his life after being called a "freak of nature". True, his sanity could be questioned at this point, but other than a few assholes, he hadn't hurt anyone, and the virus that still flowed in his bloodstream had never presented any problems aside from the occasional spout of rage. But none of that bothered him, especially when he was doing something he loved, like right now. As his paw rested on the starter, he sighed in content before applying pressure. The engine sputtered for a moment before catching, and almost immediately the 1900cc motor roared to life, literally, that sucker roared. He hadn't bothered with silence on this one, and the sound of the engine was like thunder, and he fucking loved it. Turning, he made his way to his workbench and replaced his tools to their respectful positions before pulling his black leather gloves from his jacket's pocket and slipping them on "Time to rock and roll" With a swish of his tail, he turned back towards the bike and practically jumped on the chopper... sure, it wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world, but the power! It was like heaven in machine form to the drake. He gripped the handlebars in anticipation and revved the engine, or started to anyways, but before he could, he felt the oh so annoying vibration of his cell phone "Fuckin' A, this had better be good" He muttered, turning the key in the ignition to the off position. As the chopper went silent, he pulled the phone, a rather cheap track phone from his left jean pocket. Many had asked him why someone with so much cash would buy such a cheap phone... the answer was actually rather simple. A single glance at the small screen on the phone drew a look of annoyance from the drake "Unknown number... ah, fuck it, this shit can wait until I've had some fun" With that, he didn't hesitate to hurl the phone towards the wall, a grin on his muzzle as it slammed into the garage door opener, shattering the phone into several pieces... and that was why he didn't have an expensive phone. His aim perfect, the garage door began to rise, revealing a cloudless warm summer day outside and nothing but open road in the distance "Perfect" And it was exactly that, not a cloud in sight, no traffic, Sunday morning, and to top it off, he lived in the mountains of West Virginia. It had been one of his first purchases after living through that second zombie apocalypse and getting the fuck out of DC. He'd made sure to get a whooping five hundred acres of land, and with the amount of cash he had saved, it hadn't been a problem to get a piece of land that didn't have another house around for miles. It was a slice of heaven for him, and Red enjoyed every day of it to the fullest, although his old Yamaha XT250 was a bit beat up, it still served the simple purpose of giving him a fun ride in the dirt when he didn't feel like blacktop. But today, he wanted to feel the wind in his hair at 150mph, and he planned on giving his new chopper a real test run. A turn of the key and the chopper was once again roaring once he'd pressed the started once more, and the next second he was burning rubber as he slammed into the throttle. The screech of his rear tire spinning as it sought traction was enough to get his blood going, but as the bike rocketed out of the garage and onto the road, his eyes lit up and his blood really got going as he felt the power of that 1900cc engine underneath him. Pure bliss would have been an understatement to describe what he felt on a motorcycle.
Two hours later.
Add one straightaway, a slightly insane dragon, an extremely powerful and also extremely fast chopper, and you have one happy, slightly insane dragon doing 140mph down a mountain road. Just two hours after he left, that was exactly what Red was doing, having fun. Luckily, there wasn't a car on the road this day, so all he had to do was keep an eye out for deer, fallen rocks, and the occasional hairpin turn which he'd have to slow down a bit to take. He was now taking one of these hairpin turns at an extremely unsafe speed, 70mph wasn't exactly smart, but he could care less right now. As the bike's tires began to skid and he leaned his body into the turn, the drake was glad he'd spent so much cash to get this chopper to perfection. He'd made sure personally that it was balanced perfectly and now that was paying off. While it didn't handle as good as some of the bikes he'd ridden in the past, even at seventy on a mountain road taking a turn way to damn fast, it still felt natural. He continued to lean into the turn further, his knees just inches off the ground now as he maneuvered the bike near perfectly to keep it in his lane. To add to the insanity, this particular stretch of road bordered the edge of the mountain he was on... and it had no guard rail, and as he came close to the end of the turn, the drake accelerated. Yea, he was crazy, but he was also having fun. What Red didn't expect however was to come to the end of that turn only to spot a handful of black SUVs parked in the middle of the road, blocking his path. He cursed as his eyes came to rest on the numerous furs that stood around the vehicles, and he had no choice but to slam on his brakes. Both the front and rear tires locked up simultaneously, his body tensing as the chopper wobbled, nearly causing him to lose control of the bike. But he held it, leaving a trail of rubber nearly a hundred feet long on the pavement, the chopper coming to a halt a mere yard away from a large black wolf who didn't even flinch "What the hell is wrong with you assholes, you trying to get me killed?!" He growled, putting the kickstand up on his chopper and getting off, cutting the ignition before he moved to stand nearly eye to eye with the black wolf. He kept wary however, at the moment, he didn't have a clue who these people were, and he kept both paws in his jacket, ready to draw more than one weapon should the need arise.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8XyvJ-4EXM
The wolf kept his composure, which may have been helped by the fact that he towered over the dragon, standing at 6'3", he was quite a bit taller than the drake. The light reflected off a pair of black sunglasses, so a staring contest would be pointless as Red also had a pair of blue tinted sunglasses, so emotion shown through the eyes was not something that was going to be in this conversation "Excuse me, Mr. Aindréas, I presume, a pleasure to meet you" The wolf's tone was friendly, as if he were talking to an old friend.
The drake blinked in surprise, hearing his last name, his real last name, caught him completely off guard. His mind began working furiously, and under the lenses of his sunglasses, confusion shone in his blue reptilian eyes. He hadn't actually used his real name around anyone in years, and his parents were both dead, so he couldn't understand how this wolf whom he had never met or even seen in his entire life actually knew his last name. Still, he regained his composure quickly "You presume correctly, something I don't see everyday... and you have an advantage over me, friend, for you seem to know me, while I have no idea who you are..." His eyes flicked over the rest of the furs around the vehicle, surprisingly, they were all wolves... but on second glance he spotted a single fox in the group, although the creature's size and coloration would have most assuming he was a wolf at first glance. But the fox wasn't what he was now paying attention to, right now his eyes may have been seemingly focused on the wolf before him, but he was paying attention to what was in his peripheral vision, and what he saw did not please him in the least. Three of the wolves, all larger than the drake by a good four inches and sporting quite a bit of muscle were slowly inching their way into a semi circle around him, but he kept his tone friendly and his body relaxed, as if he didn't notice.
"My name is not important, but you can call me Smith, at least until we get to know each other"
The subtle movement of the wolf's paw did not go unnoticed by the dragon, both paws slipped out of his jacket simultaneously, moving at a speed beyond any normal creature. His right elbow slammed into the ribs of one of the wolves that had been unfortunate enough to be standing behind him, the drake spun around in the same movement and slammed his fist into the wolf's chin in an uppercut, getting a satisfying crack as the brass knuckles he'd slipped on met bone. Metal easily won out, and the wolf's head snapped up as his body tumbled backwards as if he'd been hit by a truck, his jaw broken like a toothpick. Another of the wolves rushed him and quickly wrapped his thick muscled arms around the dragon's neck in a headlock while a third moved forward, a hypodermic needle in his grasp. The sight of the needle practically threw the dragon into a frenzy, there was no way in hell he was going through this shit again, not a third time! As wolf number three moved within striking distance, the drake's leg snapped forward, landing with a slight thump squire in the wolf's groin. He temporally ignored the fact that he was in a headlock, pushing his natural instincts back to try to remove the arms that were attempting to cut off his oxygen supply, instead his booted foot pulled back and lashed forward again just as the wolf started to collapse. Red sure as hell wasn't pulling his punches, and as his boot connected with the wolf's head, landing right between his eyes, an audible crack was heard as the wolf stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, his body unmoving after that. Two down, two to go, although the fourth didn't seem all the eager to engage the dragon, the second one that still held the headlock met with a similar fate as the dragon's right paw slipped into his jacket and came out with a trench knife a split second later. He tilted his head forward and slammed it back into the wolf's face, breaking his muzzle from the force before slamming the five inch blade into his attacker's right kidney, giving the knife a violent twist as the wolf released his grip and screamed, or tried to anyways. All that came from his bloody muzzle was a strangled cry of shock and pain before the knife that had been imbedded in his side was ripped out and slashed across his throat before he could even blink.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQrVrUbFKsc
The large black wolf that was obviously the leader of this group watched this entire spectacle without moving, a detached look on his face as the drake moved into a defensive stance after killing yet another of his employees "Now now, that wasn't necessary in the least, Mr. Aindréas, myself and my men meant you no harm. We merely wished to talk to you in private, away from any prying eyes that may be watching" His tone remained friendly, despite the fact that he'd just witnessed three of his employees slaughtered mercilessly.
Red eyed the wolf before hurling the trench knife at wolf number four, and despite the fact that the weapon was not designed as a throwing knife, it still landed with a soft thud in the unsuspecting wolf's throat. The surprised lupine reached for the blade, shock in his eyes, but he didn't remain standing long and toppled over moments later, dead "That's for making me slam on my brakes, the other three were for trying to stick another needle in my neck and making me get my jacket bloody..." He grimaced, blood did not like to come out of leather, and he now had quite a bit of it on his jacket... and he'd just gotten this damn thing last week too "I think I'll add one more to the list for ruining my Sunday ride" In one swift movement, his right paw had once again moved into his jacket and came out a split second later with his favorite revolver, a Ruger Security Six with a six inch barrel. He stood in place, his revolver aimed at the black wolf's head, a grin forming on his muzzle. But his smile quickly faded as at least ten more furs, all wolves in the same black suits and sunglasses rose from their hiding spots behind the parked SUVs, each had various assault rifles, mostly H&Ks aimed at the dragon's head. He blinked in surprise, although it couldn't be seen through the lenses of his sunglasses "Fuck..."
"You see, Mr. Aindréas, I knew you wouldn't come quietly, and I knew you would resist any peaceful attempts at persuasion, so I took the time to make sure to find a reason you wouldn't be able to say "no" to. Now, let me say this now... I know who you think we are, and you have every right to resist, but we are not who you think we are and my supervisors and I merely wish to speak with you. If you do not wish to hear us out, then nothing shall come of it, you can leave this place, none of my men will try to stop you. But... if you wish to learn, to possibly gain knowledge and power that has been all but lost for thousands of years, then you will come with us"
Red listened, replacing his revolver to the holster in his jacket. The part about gaining knowledge got his attention and perked his interest in whatever this wolf had to offer "Lost knowledge you say? Hm..." He looked back towards his bike, then to the rifles still trained on him, and then to the black furred wolf once more "You have my attention..." He stared at the wolf, looking for any signs of treachery or guile, but he found none, and the dragon had gotten rather good at reading faces and body language in his career as a mercenary/assassin.
"If you'll just follow me, Mr. Aindréas" The wolf turned and motioned to the rest of his guards to lower their weapons. The simple motion of his paw brought complete obedience, and each of them immediately lowered their weapons before climbing into the black SUVs. He opened the door on the passenger side of one of the SUVs before walking around to climb behind the steering wheel, motioning for Red to follow.
He sighed softly, shaking his head "I just know I'm gonna regret this, shit like this always turns out bad in before long" While he had no doubt the wolf was telling the truth, as he moved to the SUV, tail swaying back and forth in agitation, most of it caused by the adrenaline that was still pumping through his veins from his short fight, he knew he was about to get involved in something big. All the vehicles had government license plates, and Red had had more than enough experience to know when he was in something bigger than the average drug bust. What confused him the most as he jumped into the passenger seat and pulled the seatbelt on was the fact that anyone with enough information at their disposal to know his real name, one he hadn't used in years, would also know that he was labeled as retired in the mercenary business. With enough money saved up to last five lifetimes, he hadn't even cared to stay in that business after the second encounter with the zombies, and once the majority of the undead had been wiped from the face of the earth, he'd opted for the quiet life... sort of. Occasionally a few things on his property would still get blown up or shot, but other than that he'd almost completely settled down in this new life he'd made for himself in the mountains "Care to tell me what this is about? Or do I have to wait until this drive is over before I get answers?" He looked to the wolf, pulling out his MP3 in anticipation of the answer he knew was coming, and sure enough he got a look a moment later that said "You're going to have to wait" His response was simply to put on his ear buds and turn on a bit of Disturbed as the small convoy of black SUVs began moving, and aside from his music, nothing but silence reached the dragon's ears.
Hope ya all enjoyed, rate, watch, eh... I don't care about that, but for the love of rednecks everywhere, please comment. Gotta be able to improve, and I can't improve without feedback from the readers.
And yes, I know this is rather short, as are most of my chapters, but eh, ya don't like it? Sue me :P