Dragon shifter Finn Pars shifted restlessly from foot to foot, only half-listening to what Peter, the old wizard standing at the podium was saying. The wizards loved pomp and pageantry, and would use any old excuse to give a speech. Finn had expected that he would have to listen to a long discourse before he and the rest of the search party were allowed to leave, but knowing that ahead of time didn’t make it any more bearable.
Finn watched with a bored expression as Peter droned on. Peter served as the head wizard of the Falcon Cross High Council, and was renowned as one of the most powerful wizards alive. But Finn still had difficulty tolerating his speeches. Finn was a dragon, after all. Dragons thrived on action, not on words. Finn respected Peter and everything the old wizard was capable of, but at the moment, all Finn wanted to do was get moving.
Finn looked over to his left, where the rest of the search party stood. There were four of them total, a small number considering the size of the task that lay before them. But the High Council of Falcon Cross had agreed that stealth mattered more than anything on this quest, and therefore had limited the members of the search party to the bare minimum.
Owen, Finn’s clanmate and fellow dragon shifter, stood directly to Finn’s left. He was twiddling his thumbs and squirming restlessly, just like Finn. Owen was perhaps the most hotblooded of Finn’s clan, the Redwood Dragons. Owen had been raring to go on this search since the day the amethyst records had been found. The amethyst records gave clues to the potential location of the dragon amethyst, a powerful ancient stone that held within it the possibility for the good shifters and good wizards to gain the advantage in the war against evil which they were fighting. Owen had been forced to wait, though, as the records were carefully studied and the best potential search path was discovered. Now, months later, the search party was being sent off. They just had to wait for Peter to finish his speech.
Finn’s eyes shifted to the two wizards in the search party. Raven Morey was a Falcon Cross native, and had been a part of the Falcon Cross military for a decade, at least. She was an excellent soldier, skilled at stealth, magic fighting, and broomstick flying. Her impressive array of talents made her an important member of the search party.
Next to Raven stood Isabelle Torres, better known as “Izzy.” Izzy had recently arrived in Falcon Cross, after escaping from the enemy’s army herself. Izzy was trained as a doctor, and, since the search party might encounter some dangerous situations, Peter had thought it would be good to send her along. Izzy’s firsthand knowledge of how the enemy worked might come in handy, too. And, like Raven, Izzy was skilled at broomstick flying. She would easily be able to keep up with the rest of the search party.
Everyone in the group was wearing dark black uniforms. On the left chest of each uniform, gold thread had been used to embroider in the Falcon Cross military insignia. Normally, the dragons didn’t wear wizard uniforms, but Peter had offered them to Finn and Owen, and the two dragons had thought it rude to refuse. Finn had to admit that the group looked quite fearsome in their matching uniforms. Finn and Owen stood tall and muscular, and Raven’s and Izzy’s magic rings glinted in the sunlight. Anyone who tried to mess with them was sure to face painful consequences.
What a group, thought Finn as he looked them over with pride. Two of the best dragons and wizards there were. This was going to be fun. If Peter ever finished his speech, that was.
Almost as if the old wizard could hear Finn’s thoughts, he chose that moment to give the closing remark of his speech. Cheers went up from the crowd, and Finn felt the blood pumping faster through his veins as excitement filled him. This was it. After months of preparation, they would finally have the chance to head out into the world and take their chances on finding the dragon amethyst.
Noah, the dragon who was second in command of Finn’s clan, came to shake hands with each of the search party members as they began mounting the broomsticks. Even though Finn and Owen could have flown if they shifted into dragon form, it would be easier to maintain invisibility if they rode on the broomsticks behind the wizards. Dragons could somewhat hide themselves by using chameleon-like tricks, but it was difficult to do while flying. Raven and Izzy were both talented at invisibility spells, and were sure they could keep the whole group invisible as they flew through the sky. Since they were riding as passengers, Finn and Owen would both be wearing giant backpacks. Those backpacks were stuffed with as many supplies as could possibly be crammed into them. There was food, water, clothing, flashlights, and, of course, maps and notes on where the dragon amethyst might be. Finn tightened the straps on the backpack a bit before climbing up onto Izzy’s broomstick.
Finn didn’t mind the chance to ride on a broomstick. It sounded like fun, and, besides, he wasn’t going to complain about being forced to sit behind a beautiful woman like Izzy. And, from the stupid grin on Owen’s face right now, Finn guessed he was pretty happy about sitting behind Raven, who was definitely easy on the eyes as well.
“Take care of yourselves,” Noah was saying. Peter had joined Noah next to the broomsticks, and was shaking hands as well now. Finn was always surprised at how strong of a grip the old wizard had. For an old man, he was quite powerful.
Finn nodded respectfully toward both Noah and Peter, as did the rest of the search party. And then, Izzy and Raven both shouted, “Ready?” at the same time.
Finn and Owen gave them a thumbs up, and the two wizards shot up into the air. An honor guard of wizard soldiers rose all around them to see them out of the city. The military dress robes of the honor guard glittered purple and gold in the sunlight, and Falcon Cross banners fluttered behind them. Finn had to admit that, despite his impatience with the speeches, he was enjoying the impressive show of might the wizard military was putting on.
Trumpets sounded from somewhere below as Izzy and Raven rose higher and higher, eventually leaving even the honor guard far below them. Finn breathed in deeply, relishing how cool and fresh the air up here was.
He looked down to see that the village of Falcon Cross had already disappeared from view. The small city was protected by an invisibility shield. Once you rose above the shield, you could no longer see the buildings and streets that made up the wizarding town. Instead, your eyes were fooled into thinking that all that was below you was more treetops, just like the other hundreds of treetops that stretched out for miles.
With a happy sigh, Finn tore his eyes away from the trees below him and looked instead toward the horizon in front of him. Finn was no stranger to searching for powerful hidden objects. He had spent his life searching for ancient dragon artifacts. The Redwood Dragons clan consisted of a group of ten dragon shifter orphans, all of whom had been rescued during the last great shifter war by one great dragon, William. William had raised them as brothers, eventually retiring and turning the reigns of clan leadership over to Knox, who now served as the clan’s first in command. The clan had been spread out into different groups lately, though, thanks to the rising war between good and evil. Knox had gone to Texas, to help a group of shifters there guard the two dragon stones that had been recovered—the dragon emerald and the dragon sapphire. Four dragons remained in the Redwoods, guarding the dragon clan’s home base along with several wizards. And the other five dragons had gone to Falcon Cross to help protect their wizard allies. Now, though, Owen and Finn were once again on the move, leaving Falcon Cross behind as they searched for yet another powerful dragon stone.
There were four dragon stones in all, and the two that were still missing must be found by the good wizards and shifters. Those stones were so powerful that, if they fell into the wrong hands, they could be used to destroy everything good in the world. Finn gritted his teeth together as he thought of the awful possibilities if their search failed. Izzy drove her broomstick higher into the air, and Finn vowed to himself that he would find the dragon amethyst or die trying. If the good wizards and shifters could find this amethyst, only the dragon ruby would still remain unaccounted for. And once the amethyst was safe, all efforts could be concentrated on the ruby. Victory was so close that Finn could almost taste it. Failure was not an option.
The most important mission of his life had just begun.