Dragon Storm: Chapter 2: Mission briefing!
#2 of Dragon Storm
Arthur's Note:
Hello again! I didn't think Chapter 1 of Dragon Storm would turn out as well as it did, but to my surprise it did! First off, I would like to thank all the viewers for taking the time to read my story as I am sure it is not the greatest one out there. Special thanks goes to those who approved my work to be posted and those who favorited my work. I think it took me 5 hours to complete it last time. Anyhow, the last thing I would like to say is that I will do my very best to TRY to have a new chapter out once a week AND I will be sure to inform my fans when they have been submitted just to make things easier on everyone! Please be sure to leave a comment and tell me what you think afterwards. I'm always up for some advice, thanks and enjoy! ^.^
Dragon Storm
Chapter 2: Mission briefing!
Rio and Lazz were walking carefully down the long metallic hallway in the huge Gryphon stronghold. Rio looked around nervously while covering the rear. Meanwhile Lazz maintained the lead and had it covered completely. Lazz looked back a few times, not because he didn't believe Rio couldn't do his share correctly, but because he wanted to be more safe then sorry. Lazz knew that if any danger would arise that he could simply do what he did before by camouflaging himself with the environment and hide from the enemy's eyes. Rio, however could not. So just to be safe Lazz occasionally looked backed which in turn made Rio feel more nervous as he thought that Lazz kept seeing or hearing something.
Lazz noticed that this hallway might have not been the best route to take because of the lack of cover. There was no where to hide at all. He stared further into the hallway as all he could see was darkness. Almost as if it were to shroud them both in an endless dark, yet dimly-lit metallic hallway abyss that would slowly engulf them whole. The more they proceeded the more dark Lazz noticed it got. Meanwhile, Rio was twirling his favorite handgun. The Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun. Rio was spinning it so fast that it almost made him dizzy. He sudden got fascinated by Lazz's tail as it swiftly swayed from left to right. Rio had always liked the way Lazz's tail looked. It was a dark-greenish color and the scales seem to be healthy. Then Rio got to thinking and decided to ask Lazz something.
"Hey Lazz can I ask you something?" Rio asked.
"Was it that? Because you just did." Lazz said sarcastically.
Rio got annoyed and decided to ignore it. Rio didn't want to start a verbal conflict here. So instead Rio just laughed and played along with Lazz then finally asked Lazz his current concerning question.
"I forgot about you being able to camouflage with your surroundings using your scales, but when you used your ability back there you reminded me that you could do that." Rio explained.
"Okay, that time it wasn't even a question." Lazz said.
"I'm getting to it. Earlier one of the gryphons said that he checked your body and he didn't see any signs of you being alive. Implying I had killed you. However, I did not kill you. You did something to make it where he couldn't tell if you were dead or alive. How did you do that? That is what I wanted to ask." Rio said calmly.
Lazz suddenly stopped walking and looked back only to reveal one of his evil-brownish looking eyes. He was surprised that Rio had put so much thought into the question. Normally Rio was one of those dragons that didn't care about much and always was the one to act like a fool. Rio would do this to either get attention or to make his friends laugh. Lazz was thinking how to explain it to Rio without losing him in his vocabulary. Lazz closed his eyes and opened them again, then turned completely around to face Rio.
"I see." Lazz said then paused before he continued. "You would like to know how I fooled that gryphon into thinking you killed me, as to lower his guard from behind which is where I laid in wait?"
"Wait. Now I know how you did it! Hibernation." Rio guessed.
Rio was happy that he was able to figure it out before Lazz could tell him. That made Rio feel a little more important. Feeling this way, Rio walked past Lazz and took the lead. He didn't care anymore because he was able to figure it out all on his own. Usually Lazz has to explain everything to him down to the smallest detail. However, that didn't seem to be the case this time, or so it seemed.
"Rio wait." Lazz said calmly.
Rio stopped and turned to face Lazz quickly. A little annoyed that he had to stop and just when he was feeling proud of himself to.
"Yes Lazz?" Rio said cheerfully.
"Hibernation is only part of it." Lazz said.
"You lie! There's more to it then that!?" Rio said while being a little frustrated.
Lazz nodded then proceeded to say. " Hibernation is a state of inactivity and metabolic depression in animals, characterized by lower body temperature, slower breathing, and lower metabolic rate. Hibernating animals conserve energy, especially during winter when food is short, tapping energy reserves, body fat, at a slow rate. It is the animal's slowed metabolic rate which leads to a reduction in body temperature and not the other way around. However, I am a dragon, thus I can enter a state of hibernation for as long or short as I need to. In other words, I can control how long my hibernation lasts."
Rio was dumbfounded. There was no doubt in his mind that he couldn't be more serious. It just seemed like Lazz outsmarted himself right there. Rio didn't know what to say, he felt belittled again. The more he explained things the more inferior Rio felt. Rio couldn't tell if he purposely was doing this or was he trying to help Rio to understand better.
" The military teaches you something close to hibernation. It's one of their more basic procedures, but it still helps. It helps you to slow down your heart beats and pulses. So I simply used both of these tricks to the best of my ability and I overcame the situation." Lazz concluded.
Rio was stunned by what Lazz just said. He quickly closed his eyes and balled up his hands to form fists. He felt sick to his stomach in a way he had never experience before. The dragon clan that Lazz was from was amazing. They have great control over camouflage and hibernation. It all made sense now. That's why Lazz laid on the ground naked by the claw mark Rio made earlier, to set up the look that Rio actually killed him. Then when they were focused on Rio, Lazz camouflaged himself and strangled the gryphon with one hand and cut his throat with his Km2000 combat knife by using his tail and most likely had his free hand ready to deal with the second gryphon. However, Rio beat Lazz to the kill with his handgun. Rio thought to himself before saying something else to Lazz.
"Thanks for explaining that to me Lazz." Rio said.
"Look behind you Rio." Lazz said calmly.
Rio opened his eyes and turned to face the dimly-lit hallway. He looked and saw nothing. Then he looked left, and then right, then down, and finally he looked up quickly and found a surveillance camera. Not just one, but a whole line of them that seemed to go on for the remainder of the hallway. They each had a 45 degree turn to carefully record anything in sight. They were lined up on respective sides of the wall to capture anything on video.
"I do believe that there is a blind spot located just under the surveillance camera. It would be easy to bypass them if they were not set up this way. With each wall lined up with them, they made it impossible to get past undetected." Lazz said.
"So how do we get past them then? And why is this area so heavily secured?" Rio asked.
Lazz thought to himself for a little and then looked around to analyze. Just then Lazz grinned and reached into his pocket and pulled out a Chaff grenade. He smiled as he held on to it tightly.
"This should do the trick!" Lazz shouted.
"What is that thing?" Rio asked.
"I'll explain on the way come on let's go!" Lazz said loudly.
Lazz threw the Chaff grenade and it disabled all the surveillance cameras in the hall. Immediately afterward Lazz and Rio dashed through the long hallway and made it past all the surveillance cameras. Lazz was worn out after that dash, while Rio was still in good condition. They both stopped to catch their breath. Then Rio looked at Lazz and waited, and then finally said something to him.
"Well, what was that thing?" Rio asked again.
"It's a Chaff grenade. It's a electronic jamming device." Lazz explained while catching his breath.
"I see." Rio said.
" Why don't you know this stuff? Didn't they teach you anything? Don't you remember our orders?" Lazz questioned.
"Of course I remember!" Rio shouted.
Rio stared blankly at Lazz as he spaced out to remember their earlier mission briefing. Just then Rio found himself very relaxed and started to have flashbacks about the mission briefing. It was long and boring just like how it normally is. He remembers how much Lazz enjoyed those things, and how much the mission briefings always lost him and left him in a state of confusion. Rio often had to ask Lazz everything they talked about because he tuned them all out once he was lost. Rio knew he could relie on Lazz to fill him in on the stuff he didn't understand. Rio continue to have flashbacks remembering every little thing that happened.
(Flashback: Earlier mission briefing)
"Argh......agh. Where am I?" Rio asked.
Rio just waking up and getting his legs out of the bed to sit up straight. Rio then looked around the room. It was a small room and it had normal things in it. A book shelf, a lamp, a plant. Rio wondered why he was here. Just then, three dragons entered the small room where Rio was sitting in.
"What's the meaning of this?" Rio asked demandingly.
The dragon toward the only door they entered from as if to guard it, laughed and smiled. His dark-green scales reflecting the ceiling lights making him stand out. Then he said something to Rio.
"Greetings Rio! My name is Lazz and I will be your partner for this mission." Lazz said.
"My partner? Mission?" Rio questioned.
Suddenly the dragon standing closest to me covered in shinny silver scales and was wearing almost every military badge, smiled and said.
"It's nice to see you after all these long years son." The silver dragon said.
"No way, Dad! Is that really you? No! It's impossible, my dad died in a big war serving under the military three years ago" Rio screamed.
Out of no where, the dragon that had walked in first and was now beside Rio grabbed his arm and administered a shot to it.
"Hello! My name is Kilala!" She said.
"Ouch! Hey!! So it was you that sent those dragons after me huh? So why did you have them bring me here dad!?" Rio asked rudely.
"It's Quicksilver to you son. Please call me by my name when we are in any of our current B.O.O.'s (base of operations) Rio my son don't be mad. I had to fake my death to proceed with the governments plans." Quicksilver stated.
"I'm just glad your alright. However, I guess I have no choice but to agree to take on this mission under your orders dad, but when I get back I going to punch you so hard for falsely using a K.I.A. (killed in action) as an excuse to forget about your family and stay at work within the military undisturbed." Rio yelled.
"Now if you don't mind son, I'll start explaining everything. First off, I will be your commanding officer for this mission. Make sure to do as I say A.S.A.P. (As soon as possible). I would also like for you to know who Kilala and Lazz are. Kilala is a geneticist by practice, she specializes in nanotechnology-based gene therapy. Kilala never knew her true name, parents or ethnic origin; she became interested in genetics and nanotechnology in an effort to uncover this information. With my help, she would gain access to a Dragon University to achieve her doctorate in genetics, specializing in nanotechnology-based gene therapy. She obtained the identity of the real Dr. /Professor Kilala, who had gone missing in the Dragon Wars some years prior. In 2992, Kilala was recruited by the D.T.C.G. (Dragons tech company grounds), a private pharmaceutical corporation that was jointly working with the ‘Dragon Enforcers' on a project to provide medical treatment. She later became the head of the ‘Dragon Enforcers' medical staff and chief geneticist." Quicksilver stated wisely then proceeded to say.
"This here is Lazz! This legendary infiltration expert can accomplish his missions in any location, under any circumstances. He does not work for us though. He works for another P.M.C. (Private military contractor) We are just temporarily borrowing his services with the consent of the ‘Dragon Enforcers'. Lazz is from one of 13 Court Guard Squads in Dragon Enforcers. Dragon Enforcers is the central organization which most Dragons join. It is split into thirteen divisions, some of which have certain specializations. The 4th Division, for example, is the medical/supply division, the 12th Division is the research/scientific division, and the 11th division is well known for brute military force. Kilala has worked with the 4th division before, and Lazz is the lieutenant for the 11th division. The Captains are the leaders of the thirteen divisions. Each controls a specific division with the exception of the Commander-General who acts as both captain of the 1st Division and the leader of the Dragon Enforcers organization. With their help I feel we can successfully complete this mission."
Rio was trying to absorb everything his father just said. Rio felt confused then slowly started to grasp everything. Why he was here. Who they were. Where he was. Everything was starting to make sense. One thing bother Rio though, through out the whole explanation Lazz was holding pictures that he drew armature-like and switched between each picture so Rio could get a better visual grasp. Rio considered this to be an insult.
"I don't need your ugly pictures, I can grasp this on my own Lazz" Rio yelled.
Lazz felt more upset then he's ever felt before in his life. He threw the pictures at Rio.
"Ouch! You bastard! Your going to pay for that!! Rio shouted.
Suddenly Rio jumped up out of the bed and swung a punch at Lazz while dashing at him with insane speeds. Lazz could hardly believe how fast Rio was moving. He had no choice, Lazz could not block such a fast attack. Lazz began to inhale and mint-green embers started to rise from his mouth. Rio extended his sharp black claws and unballed his fist to scratch Lazz instead. They both readied them self for a death match. The air was thin and hard to breathe. Extreme gusts of wind were blowing in every direction. Lazz unleashed his minty-green flames and Rio vanished from sight. The green flames brightening up the room so that everything had a greenish glow. Just then Rio appeared behind Lazz and was about to scratch him when Lazz quickly turned the tables by smacking Rio with his Dark-green tail. Sending Rio flying across the room with great velocity. Rio crashed into the wall leaving behind a indention of Rio's body. Rio crawled out quickly and got on all-fours then swiftly dashed back and forth, then encircling Lazz. The winds from Rio's action's were picking up to 75 mph. If Rio didn't stop soon he would create a tornado. Lazz was impressed. Rio made it to where Lazz could no longer use his green flames. At this point there was so much wind that it would either go off like a bomb or be blown out as soon as he exhaled it. Lazz used all his might into his next attack. He raise his foot as high as it would go and slammed it down on the floor causing the whole place to shake intensely. Pieces of the ceiling started to fall and the picture frames and plants and book shelves were beginning to fall. The little tremor that Lazz created caused Rio to loose his balance and make him fall to the ground. Lazz pounced on top of Rio causing him to gasp for air. Then Rio used his feet to push Lazz off of him. As Lazz was sent flying backward from Rio's kick, he grabbed Rio's dark-red tail and spun him around to build up momentum. Meanwhile Rio used his own weight to force himself to sit up and reach Lazz just long enough to bite him on the side. Crimson red blood that shone in the light of the room ran down his side slowly. Lazz then let go of Rio and tossed him in the air. Lazz then inhaled once again and shot a mint-green blast at Rio.
"You......can't......dodge.....in......the......air! " Lazz said while out of breath.
Rio inhale and exhaled a small blood-red flame and it collided with the mint-green flame. Christmas colored embers were flying all over the place and the heat was picking up, reaching 88 degrees Fahrenheit. It was no use the red flame was no match for the green flame. The green flame was engulfing the red flame slowly. Suddenly, out of no where, a giant silver flame collided with the other two flames which canceled the three of them out. Leaving behind muti-colored embers that rained down on the destroyed room. Rio lands safely on the ground to see Quicksilver.
"Now, now. I need you both for this mission!" Quicksilver said calmly.
Lazz held his side in pain and looked at Rio. Rio stood up and double over and looked at Lazz.
Then they both faced Quicksilver.
"I assure you this mission contains horrors the likes which you've never seen! So I would recommend you pay attention." Quicksilver shouted.
To be continued..................