Mordred 2.2

The New Realm

Daley took a bite off his home baked doughnut. He does not buy them from the stores; his complaint was they contained inorganic stuff while his was done with the authentic materials. I would have not complained if he had left out the sugar. That stuff could snuff a nation.

“Mordred, do you think we are getting closer to the Grand Master?” Daley had sugar all over his lips. It was disgusting and he made it worse by licking it with his tongue.

I shook my head before turning my attention to the dragon seated at the corner munching at one of Daley’s doughnuts. It had reduced its frame to the manageable form, and I think the sugar was creating a craving in it. When I first arrived at this dimension then, it was the Year 2000. There were twenty thousands of us then in three crafts. Of those figures, the dragon numbered six thousands.

Not all of us survived the crash.

We lost more than half our numbers.

We landed on three different locations; mine was in a lake among the city’s structure. We were surrounded by water floating ships of all types and rescued. We were similar in looks but like all strangers, we were viewed as possible hostiles. More so when the creatures of the realm were unique to them, and in the chaos of the rescue, there were commotions and emotional conflicts. It only took one incident to trigger the battle. It was a massacre then; most of us were exhausted and with it was our ability to defend. We defended where we could but we lost many. In the end, we admitted defeat and surrender.

The armed men came on board and took us captives. We were heralded like creatures into the barred pens and the orders were to shoot us on the slightest provocations. More died but we strived on. Soon we were moved into the isolated settlement in some far flung area with the fenced wires keeping us safe. It took us eight years to convince the others of our plight and of course our noble intentions. More of us died during the internment.

Despite that we kept on surviving until the day that decision was made to change our lives.

“Those of you who are human in looks may stay with us but the others will be moved to a land we have allocated for them.” The ones who were to be moved were the remaining dragons and some other misfits. I was one of them but my reason was not because I was a misfit; I was needed there in my role as the Guardian. I volunteered myself through then, and soon found myself flying in another enclosed contraption. The new contraption had vast land which was lush greens and flowing rivers like our own world but we have the guards there on the boundaries to ensure we do not stray. It was home then away from our previous ones but we have the freedom to roam with the dragons. We numbered a few thousands then with the flock of dragons, but in the period of another ten years we dwindled to half our numbers.

Then the call came.

It was my true call then.

I was needed as the new Guardian.

“Mordred! Are you listening or are you looking at Sparky?” Daley had a sick sense of humour. He thinks that I was devoid of a life except as a Guardian. I do have a personal life which does not involved dragons.

“I am here, Daley.” I hollered back. “And don’t call it Sparky. It got a name but in your simple tongue, you may not know how to say it. So I would suggest you stick to …”

“Sparky sounds …appropriate.” Daley defended himself.  “So tell me are we any closer to the Grand Master?”

The Grand Master was the name that brought me out of the land to the city. I recalled that day when I saw the landscape of the city once more. There the lake there but the craft had been removed from its surface. The other structures remained the same regardless after two decades. I was brought to a large hangar and it was the surprise for me.

It was a dragon; an adult one but it was dead. It was shaded in bluish green but its body was riddled with wounds caused by those bullets. I did not recognize it but my tears flowed for it. I asked why it was hurt by them and was told the reason.

“The creature caused havoc in the city. It was not the first but the sixth in the list.” The officer then told me. I asked of the others and was told the damning truth.

“Of the other five, three we burned at the stakes and the two well we dropped them into the vast ocean.” It was a sad way for these beautiful creatures to die. It was then I asked why I was brought there.

“We were told you that you are a Guardian too. Our last one died in the last fight. You might know him. His name was Merlin. He fought the new threat of the Serpents for over five years now.” That name rattled me down. I was never a favourite of Merlin but his demise made me very sad. He was my former Master but we had our difference later which created a rift. I took on the role to replaced Merlin and soon was on my way find the truth.

A role which was to hurt me more than ever.

“I give up.” Daley threw the remaining doughnut to the dragon and got up. “I am not getting through to you at all. I might as well talk to Sparky.”

“The Grand Master is elusive. I can’t see any trail here. The dragon may be …” I paused. “Lost in its journey.”

“Be heck with that.” Daley reached for his twin guns in the holster around his waist. He carried with him a twin set of the 8 ½ inch killer with the eight rounds ammo and with a label like the Taurus, you don’t argue with it. It was then Sparky reacted into its reddish shade before I intervened.

“Hold your action, Daley. The dragon is innocent.” I stood between the two of them.

“Well, tell it to those victims who died in previous attacks.” Daley pulled his hand away from the side holster before leaving the room. I was left alone with Sparky. I looked towards Sparky.

“Grand Master..” I voiced out.

Ironically, the name was not given by the one we seek but by the press who was reporting the news. Soon one day, a member of the panel discussing the cases coined up the theory that a Grand Master was behind it. It got etched onto the minds of the listener and then became the cult name of the so called leader. I laughed at it but Daley being the cynic he was, also believed that there was a Grand Master.

“There is no Grand Master but a couple of villains on the loose.” I defended against the naming.

“Sure, you are a Guardian. It will be your responsibility to prove us wrong.” Daley had challenged me then. Those words were a sting to my ego then. I was not sure why I offered to take over the role after Merlin. The former did a good task of controlling the others. He was revered as the Master of all, but he was dead. The cases involving those so called villains continued on despite his best of effort. The ones that were assimilated to this world was never done so but kept in isolation in a landlocked town named New Salem and was patrolled by guards at the borders. They were also sworn not to indulge in their skilled crafts but that was like keeping candies from the children. So the ones who could not take the strain took out to strain out their frustration at the new world. It took me a while to make it manageable after I took over the role as the Guardian then seven years ago. With my uncanny skilled crafts and experience I subdued or at times forced to destroy them.

Thus it was formed the Occult Section with initially myself on the roster but later Daley and Charley joined in to make it more ‘approachable’ by the other departments as described by them. The occurrence called on my Section and soon we have our own page in the news. The readers called it the ‘freakish’ news but none of us took offence.

“Hey Mordred. We got a real Class E this round.” Charley popped his head by the doorway. He was already dressed up with the protection vest while holding his guns. I had Sparky locked up in the detention block.