Volos knocked on Attor’s door, and upon hearing a grunt he spoke through the closed door. “Attor, suit up, we got a job to do.” V walked off without waiting. He knew he was heard, dragons have exceptional hearing, and his brother wouldn’t be able to resist being involved in something official, even if it was just to keep an eye on him.

Attor’s footsteps could be heard coming up the walkway from his room to the common area. V was waiting for him as he turned the corner. V nodded as he acknowledged that Attor, had indeed, done as he was requested. He was wearing black leather pants, a white shirt and a black leather vest that was inlaid with extra protection from an array of weaponry. The vest also had a specially designed back section that allowed their wings to release if they required a partial turn into dragon form without destroying their clothes. When the brothers were all suited up, they were a very intimidating vision to behold.

“Where are we going?” Attor asked.

“A festival,” V replied as he walked off.

Attor followed, they reached the transference chamber together, both turning in unison. V reached out and pressed the button. The doors shut and the chamber started to fill with water from outside. It wasn’t until the water reached the roof, did the door on the opposite side allow them to enter the open ocean. When the brothers had enough space between them, they released their inner dragons.

Attor closed his eyes and called to his true self. Feeling his heart speed up as his brain registered the familiar pain of his shoulder blades snapping and reforming into wings. The skin along his neck split and formed gills allowing him to take a large breath, and complete the partial turn. Attor loved feeling his wings as they moved with effortless grace in the water. His wings were of a marbled blue, ranging from dark midnight blue closest to his body and out to lighter blues and even a slight golden fleck on the tips. All the brothers had similar coloring, except Jo, he was a unique and rare mutation of pure white and black.

Attor beat his wings a few times as he felt the water resist him. This was where he felt the most powerful, this was where he felt he was his truest.

‘Attor,’ the voice entered his head, pulling him back from the euphoria he was feeling in his own skin.

Shaking his head slightly. ‘Hmmm,’ he answered. And started gliding through the water following his brother’s lead. When in dragon form all communication became a choice of vocal or telepathic. Of course, underwater, telepathy was the only way to go.

‘The festival we’re going to is an observation only job,’ V said.

‘Who are we observing?’ the reply came.

V paused for a few before he said, ‘Taryn Miles.’

Attor stopped in the water, forcing V to stop and turn to look at him. ‘Payton’s friend?’ V nodded, so Attor continued, ‘What on earth could we need to be concerned about with some weird friend of your mates?’

V expected this question and had thought of a number of excuses to give him. He considered keeping his brother in the dark, hiding important information, thinking that Attor might jeopardize what he thought was important. Volos, however, respected his brother too much to play childish games and had decided that honesty was the only way to go. Explaining to his brother that the woman in question was wanted for murder, not only that but the cryptic circumstances that surround the warrant, and what intrigued him most being the point of contact. V couldn’t get it out of his mind, something about the way it was set up made his scales twitch.

‘Murderer huh?’ Attor snorted. ‘Remind me to eat with a plastic fork,’ he mocked as they took off together. For a brief moment, the two of them shared a smile, a fleeting moment of forgotten camaraderie. Attor had spent so much time fighting his inner doubt of his brother, but perhaps he was wrong.

‘We are just observing. Payton doesn’t know about this woman’s history, I’m assuming neither does Kylee. So, stealth mode, yeah?’ V confirmed that while Attor was needed to watch, there was no act to follow.

Attor nodded to V at the same time as he nodded to his inner self that V’s leadership wasn’t to be trusted. If something needed to be done, he would break ranks and do it. No matter the cost to him personally because as far as he was concerned only the safety of the clan mattered.

Attor couldn’t hide the smile from his face as he read the temporary sign announcing they had arrived at the #ForkYou food truck rally. Stepping through the gates, Attor’s stomach growled loudly, the smells of a variety of foods had sauntered up, wrapped its tendrils of aroma round his balls and begged to drag him into an awaiting food coma. “Tell me we get to eat on this mission of observation,” Attor asked.

V raised his nose to intake the aromas dancing toward him on the afternoon breeze. “Well…” He grinned. “It would be very wrong of us to live here, and not support its festivals.” Looking at Attor. “Let’s find the women first, though. Then we can indulge lightly in the…” he swallowed hard as he fought against his own building hunger, “… offerings.”

Attor’s mouth watered as his eyes spied a truck sporting the name Taco My Way. “V, they have taco’s…” His lip quivered slightly. “I haven’t had a taco since we moved… I looove tacos.”

“Fuck…” V’s tongue crept out and slowly wet his lips as he remembered the taste of his favorite taco. Heavy on the chili, heavy on the sour cream, heavy on the guacamole. He swallowed hard as he struggled with the hunger. “Girls first… girls, then tacos… lots of tacos.” He laughed. “This might, of course, cause them to be swamped with two very hungry, taco-loving dragons, who are more than happy to eat them out of home and tacos.” V laughed lightly. “But I’m sure they won’t mind. Money is money.”

Attor snorted his agreeance as he scanned the perimeter for the females they were there to observe.