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I awoke late the next morning. Adelind was laying in the grass outside the den watching the kids play. I smiled as I stood up and stretched out. How would I describe my appearance? I had sand colored scales on my head,back and tail,with greyish white scales on my neck,stomach and underneath me in general. I had two large,four foot horns slanted backwards at the top of my head and several,smaller,bony spikes around my eyes and neck. The color of these,like the rest of me,were several shades of brown. My wings were around a span of 60 feet when fully open and around six when I folded them in. I took great pride in my wings,as most dragons do. As for my build,I'm heavy chested with a thick neck and legs. Some of my friends look at me and say they can smell the power coming off of me. My tail ends in the common arrow,with a few black scales on the tip.All around,I'm a bit strong for my breed,but other than that I'm a common Mountain. After freeing up my limbs,I walked out.

"Mommy,please,can we wake daddy?"

"No honey,Adelind said to our daughter,Helix,her voice was soft,but firm,"Your father needs some sleep."

"But he said he'd take us on our first hunting trip today",Dusk complained.

"I did say that didn't I,I asked as I emerged from the cave.

"Good morning my love,Adelind said rubbing her muzzle aginst mine.

"Good morning to you too",I said still a little tired.

"Did you sleep well",Adelind asked.

"Other than waking a few times to check on Dusk,I slept fine."

"Dad,Ace said,you promised you wolud take us hunting!" "

I did say that didn't I?" "Claws,I asked.

"Check,My cubs said.

"Teeth?"

"Check."

"Empty stomachs?"

"CHECK",my cubs all yelled at once.

"Well were off my love,I said,we'll be back around sunset." Adelind and I rubbed muzzles.

Take care of yourselves,she said.

With that,we were off,none of the kids could fly yet,because I had'nt showed them how,but Adelind and I had discussed it and decided they should learn how,ahead of all the other kids. Normally,you taught your cubs to fly once your oldest was 5,Ace,the oldest,was only three,while Dusk and Helix were basicly twins,at 2. I was goingto surprise them by teaching them to fly,use their fire and hunt,of course. After a half hour or so of walking,we stopped at a pond that was a nexus forhunters,human and dragon alike. I plunged my snout into the cold pond water and slurped it up.

"Dad,Ace asked,where's all the animals?"

"Probably,human hunting season,I said with disgust,they hunt the perserve clean every year,what they don't kill goes into hiding."

I brought my cubs to me with a sweep of my large wings,"Tell you guys what,I said,how about while we wait for the prey to come out and play,I teach you guys how to fly,and use fire?"

The cubs eyes grew wide. I smiled.

"Really?",Ace asked timidly.

"Really,I said,flight school is in session,whose up first?"

"I AM,Ace shouted.

Ace,the oldest,had my tan scales and his mother's blue tinted under belly. He had the mussels and wings like me,but was a little quick to act,it often made him look bad. He has horns that slant backwards at about a foot and a half.

"Okay,I said,taking him in my paws and carrying him up.

At around 500 feet,I asked,"Ready?"

His face had turned to terror,"You didn't say anything about droping me!"

I smirked,"I believe in learning on the job."

"Your not even gonna show me the steps first?!?!?" "Nope,I said laughing,this how I learned,have fun!" I let him go and dived after him.

"Look at me son,I said. He locked gazes with me,his face and blue eyes contained a look of the most pure terror I'd ever seen.

"Watch me son,I said opening my wings. After falling about 20 more feet,Ace's wings opened and he started flying around laughing,"I did it,I did it!" He shouted with joy.

I touched down,Helix and Dusk were watching with terrified smiles. "Next,I asked. "ME" Dusk shouted. Dusk was small and lean,like his mother. But unlike either of us he had black scales and a grey under belly. He had stubby horns and no spikes to speak of,his wings are where he finds his pride,he's two,but there around 6 feet,when he's an adult,they'll probably be bigger than mine. I took him in my paws and carried him up. At 500 feet,I dropped him,Dusk was smart,he had watched me and his brother and had opened his wings almost instantly,but coludn't get the hang of flaping them and was more gliding than he was flying. I went back down for Helix. She was siting on her haunches with wide eyes. Helix had her mothers eyes and slim body,as well as my horns and my wings,she has reddish scales with Adelind's blue tinted under belly,as well as her teeth.

"Ready",I asked with a smile.

"YES"she exclaimed. I took her up and at 500 feet,I dropped her. She was an even faster learner than her brothers. She was flying almost instantly. I hovered as I watched them play.

"So,i shouted with a smile,how do you all like flying?"

"It's awesome Dad,Ace screamed,I can't wait to show my friends!"

"Me either Dusk shouted,I'll never walk again!"

"What about you Helix,I asked,"I LOVE IT",she screamed.

"Okay kids,I shouted,land in that clearing."

I touched down softly,but my kids had no such ease,they all crashed landed with a thud. I had to warp my muzzle with my paws to stop a laugh that so desperately wanted to escape.

"Okay kids,I said as they gathered around,fire usage 101,how strong you are HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. I took a deep breath,and let off a fireball that was two feet wide but packed the same punch as six footer. My cubs were amazed.

"Your fire comes from your breath,not the muscle." "Once you master it,it becomes second nature." "Whose first?"

"I am",Dusk said. I pointed to a large dead tree,it was just the right size for a target,"Light it",I said. Dusk puffed out his chest,and spit a foot wide fireball at the tree,instantly igniting it. "Good job son,I said congratulating him.

"Ace,I said your up."

Ace was staring at something,not hearing me,or just not caring. "SON,I shouted,get up to the range,it's your turn." Ace still didn't move.

I walked over to him. With out turning to me he asked,"Dad,what the heck is that?" I turned my gaze in his direction,stuck in the ground about five feet away,was the back end of a human weapon. I studied it for a minute. Then I blacked out,and something came to me,almost like a memory.

Location: Undisclosed Location Operator:John Alex Mason Targetbjective Shadow Mission:Kill,Capture Time:1420 hours

I stared at the landscape,my head wrapped in my Shemagh,there was nothing here,It was a complete wasteland. Hudson repelled down the side of the cliff.

"Show time,he said as he landed.

"What'd you see Hudson",Issac asked.

"Sand,sand,more sand and some more fuckin sand."

"It's the middle of the Afghan desert,I replied taking my MK-48 from my back,what the hell did you expect,roses?"

"Can it John,Hudson said,let's go get this guy."

'So who exactly is this guy?" Wyatt asked charging his SCAR"

"Some spy,I said,apparently command's been tracking him for years."

"Guy's about to be in a shit load of hurt,Issac said,what's the mission?"

"Kill capture,I said cocking my MG.

"I vote kill,Hudson said,I seen the movies and I read the books,you take the guy alive,it blows up in your face."

I stopped,seeing something out of the corner of my eye,so I checked it out. Stuck between two boulders was a sheathed eyptian sword. "Oh that's mine." I wedged my crowbar in between the rocks and pryed it loose. The blade was in good shape and still had an edge. "What the hell are you gonna do with that",Hudson asked. "Ya never know",I said placing it on my back.

"Hook up here,Hudson said.

Hudson and I placed repel ropes on the bars of the old road guard and then started our descent,Wyatt and Issac in close pursuit. "Two hostiles at the foot,Hudson said.

I drew my knife,on my go,I whispered,we quietly walked down the cliff until we were about six feet above the men. "Now",I whispered. Hudson and I dropped down on the men,driving our blades into their necks. The men put up little fight,the last thing they saw were our desert cammo painted faces,covered with tan masks.

"Night night,"I said sheathing my blade. While Issac and Wyatt repelled,I took my iPod from it's pouch and snapped a picture of the canyon. Issac and Wyatt reached us.

"Let's go,I said,sound suppressed weapons only."

We pushed into the cave,about a hundred feet in,I caught sight of a guard taking a smoke and watching the news. "Left now,I whispered,there's a guard." We flanked left.

"Whiskey Four we lost contact with Whiskey Three,our ear pieces buzzed. I turned mine up and set it to record,"Probably just a com jam,but we'll check it any way." An entire team of men,carrying American weapons and well uniformed passed through the hall way. "Did you see that",Hudson asked with a shaky voice. "Yeah,I did,i replied,can't turn back though,let's keep pushing."

I unsheathed my knife and tossed it at the guard,it landed in the back of his head,killing him instantly. "Move",i said.

We crouched walked through the passage ways,Hudson on point. "Oh shit,he whispered stoping us,there's a room full of guards all armed with SAWs,move by quietly,nobody do anything stupid,they'll tear us apart if they catch us." Slowly we moved by the room of guards. Hudson had not lied,every one of them had a SAW on his back. Once we were out of danger,I placed a charge of C4 on a fuel barrel. I also ordered Hudson and Issac to set C4 on a large support beam. Then we kept moving.

"Guard,Issac said as we were about to turn the corner.

I unsheathed my sword,"He's mine". I placed my back against the wall and waited. As he came around the corner,drove the sword through his chest,killing him in under ten seconds. "See,I said reseathing it,that's what I'm gonna do with it."

As we pushed on we came upon a lighted room,piled to the ceiling with crates. "Open them",I said. 'Issac and Hudson opened the crates,piles of American M4's spilled out. Ammo was in boxes stacked chest high. "This is not good,I said,get pictures,command will want to hear of this."

"These bastards look like there gearing up for war",Hudson said.

"Gearing up for war with what,Issac asked,look at this ammo."

Issac threw me a box of the ammo that looked like it would fit in my Mk-48. It was a standard 30-06,but the actual projectile was similar to the rod fired from the APS underwater rifle,It was tipped with with a needle. "This looks like it was designed to punch through that experimental armor,the same armor we have on right now."

"Your telling me,Hudson asked,these guys have stockpiled all these guns and ammo,to kill four Marines that could get a ticket to the great beyond with a mortar assault?"

"Look over here,Wyatt said,the mystery deepens". Wyatt had found a box full of armor plates that didn't seem capable of stopping bullets,it looked like it was designed to stop fire,knives,possibly dog teeth. It wasn't just plates either,it was full body suits.

"What the fuck,Hudson asked,is going on here?"

I took another look at the ammo,then shot a suit of the body armor Wyatt had found,the round smashed against it. "This makes no sense,I said,ammo that won't penetrate armor,armor not designed for bullets,this makes zero sense." "Maybe our spy will know,I said placing the needle rounds in my drop pouch,let's find the son of a bitch,and grill him for some info." With that,we each gathered a sample of the ammo,some arm plates from the suits(which we intended to,and did,use),and pushed through the cave,finally coming on a locked door.

"Get ready to breach,I said taking a charge from my pouch. There wastalk inside,"Do not let Americans's cap...they were cut short as we blew through the door,and adjusted the bullet to oxygen ratio of said room.

The roomwas tiled,with electric lights and a desk,files covered the desk. I started sifting through them and found two folders with the name MK-2260 Needle Nose Round and MK-270 Kinetic and Heat displacement armor. I stuffed the folders into my pack and we promptly exited the cave. As we were waiting for exfill,a canister rolled against my foot. "FLASH CONCUSSION,I yelled as the devilish device went off. The worst migraine you can imagine over took me,and I was robbed of my sight and hearing. I crashed to the ground and blacked out.

"Dad,DAD,Ace's voice stirred me from the flash.

"Dad,he said,did you say it was my turn?"

"Yeah,I said with a bit of anger,get up there."

Dusk sat beside me. "Son,I whispered,how long was I staring at that thing?"

Dusk shook his head,"I dunno,ten,eleven seconds?"

"It felt like hours",I thought.

Shaking it from my mind,I focused on Ace and his fire breathing. He was doing the same thing Dusk did,but was coming up with nothing but smoke,I knew instantly what was happening.

"No son,I said waking to his side,your fire comes from your breath,I said motioning just below his heart,not your muscle.

"Concentrate,think only about breathing."

Ace closed his eyes,took in a deep breath,then coughed up an explosion about six feet from his face. He went flying into a tree with a loud thud. This time,I just barely managed to keep a laugh from escaping. Ace righted himself.

"Try again,I said trying to encourage him.

This time,Ace took half the stump off with a tightly packed plasma bolt.

"Well you got that down,I said to him. Ace smiled.

"All right Helix I said,your turn. As always,she got it right on the first try,blowing away the rest of the stump. "Good job Helix,I said.

"With exception of Ace's rocky start,you all did perfect." 'Now,I assume you want to hunt now?" "YES,they all screamed.

"Well then let's go,I said spreading my wings,first one above the trees wins." I took off,ascending as fast as I colud flap my wings. Ace and I ended up tying out. "Well you guys got flying down,I said impressed. We began to scour our usual hunting grounds. I wasn't long before I spotted an enormous caribou.

"Kids,I called,get over here,now." The cubs dashed over.

I pointed to the caribou. "Oh wow,Dusk said,that's a big one." "He's gonna be dinner too",Ace said. "Hunting 101,I said as my cubs gathered around,quick,clean,quiet kills,the quicker and quieter you are,the less likely you are to chase away the big stuff like that reindeer." "Watch me,I said. I tucked in my wings as close to me as I could and dived the caribou,it didn't even notice until I was right on top and had pined it. Taking one of my talons,I slit it's throat before it could ball and chase off other animals. My cubs landed next to me. I put my left paw on my kill and with a bit of a smug smile,I said,"That's how you hunt".

"Cool,Ace said.

"Now for the nasty part,I said,skinning."

"Ewe,Ace said with a bit of sarcasm,Nasty."

I took one of my talons and ran it's razor sharp point across the reindeer's gut and removed all it's poisonous insides. Helix was the only one who did not pass out at the sence,she sat there and payed me very close attention. "You know boys,I said laughing,It'll make you look bad when your mates are out hunting because you get nauseous when the time comes to strip your kill."

"Ughhh",Ace and Dusk moaned as they pulled themselves up,the scales on their cheeks had taken on a rosy tint."

You two are pathetic,Helix said.

"Watch yourself Helix,I said warning,your brother's may be sick now,but that may change."

"Dad's done hunting for you,I said,now,I want you guys to go off and cacth something,remember,QCQ.

"Quick,Clean,Quiet,Dusk said,got it."

With that,my son was in the bushes. "What are you two waiting for,I asked,you wan't your brother to make a mockery out of you?" "Go,go,get outta here!" Before my words had tumbled past my muzzle,my other two draglings were gone. I stretched out and lay down,bringing my tail around so it touched my nose,"Adelind and I did one hell of a good job."

I was drifting off when Dusk came back,with a freshly skined deer,sporting a rake slit on his throat. The impressive thing was that the deer was three times his size.

"Impressive son,I said proud of him,I will admit,I did not expect you to bring it back already skinned."

"Unlike the other two,Dusk said matter of factly,when you or mom start talking,I listen."

"Yeah you do",I said laying back down.

Not long after Dusk,Ace came back,hauling a wild boar twice his size in his powerful jaws.

"It's not skinned",I scolded.

"Do I have too",Ace asked whining.

"Yes,I said sternly,you need to know this stuff if you ever want to make it on your own." Pouting,Ace skinned his kill quickly and cleanly.

"Was that really that hard?",I asked trying to keep from laughing.

"Yes,my oldest said,it was nasty."

Helix was the last one back,with a deer twice her size,skinned in all.

"Wow,I said,everyone but Ace skinned their kill. I looked at Ace,he rolled his eyes and pouted.

"I'm proud of all of you,I said,you've shown me I'm doing something right."

We all came in and I brought them too me with a sweep of my wings. All right,I said,lets head home."

We picked up our meat and flew for home.We got back home shortly after 5. Adelind was laying in the grass waiting as we flew up. The kids dropped their kills at their mother's paws. She was impressed.

"Did you kids get these,or did your Dad and he was just to lazy to carry them back?"

"We did Mom,Ace said,Dad taught us to hunt,fly and use our fire!"

"I see that,Adelind said. "Go put that in the den,Adelind said.

When they ran inside,Adelind turned to me,"Be honest Tyro,she said staring at me,did the kids really get that meat?"

"Yes,I said putting down my caribou,every bit of it."

"Good job honey,she said rubbing my snout.

We walked inside. Our kids were allover the place,yammering so loudly,I'm sure every dragon in the forest heard us that night. I always thought that food I hunted,killed or gathered myself always tasted better. Dinner that night was no expception. The kids stuffed themselves so much I was afriad the were going to get sick. After a few hours of talking around the fire. I put the kids to bed.

"Tell us a story Dad,Ace commanded.

"Hmm,I said,what should I tell?"

'Tell us the one about Bigfoot",Ace shouted.

"Nooo,Helix said,It was scary."

"Actually,I'm not telling any stories tonight,because if I do,you might be to tired for tomorrow,do any of you know what tomorrow is?"

My cubs got wide eyed,"CHRISTMAS,they all shouted.

"Yep,I shouted,so get to sleep or Santa might not come."

With that,the kids quickly buried themselves under their furry blankets. "Huh,I huffed laying next to Adelind and warping her with my wing,I thought they'd never get to bed."

Adelind weged her head between my paws and muzzle,"They can be so loud,she said softly.

"All the bad stuff aside,I said licking her,we did a good job."

Yeah,she said licking me back,we sure did."

"Adelind,I said,we need to talk about something."

"What's on your mind",she asked quietly.

"When I was showing them how to use their fire,Ace found a gun that had been dropped by a human,after I took a look at it,it triggered something." "I was seeing something through the eyes of a human,the spooky thing was that when he spoke,he spoke with my voice,and it seemed almost like I was remembering doing this."

Adelind was stunned,I cloud tell she didn't know what to say. After a long time of silence,Adelind spoke up,"I think it was just a freak incident."

I smiled and moved closer,placing my head beside her's,"Yeah your probably right." I slowly drifted off,exited of what tomorrow held for all of us.