Post by meninwhite on Jun 23, 2006 1:49:58 GMT -5
The throne sat on top of what was once the Empire State Building. Sitting on top of the massive throne was a dragon. He had laid waste to the city during the dragon wars ten years ago. Each dragon who had joined the Dark Dragon was put in charge of a different part of the globe. This dragon had been allowed to choose his territory. He had taken New York City to be his personal domain. A troll guard walked onto the platform surrounded by the two pits of flame. "What do you wish, my master?"
"What have we learned about the resistance?"
"Not much my lord. Each faction reports to a different leader. Only they know who organized the resistance."
"Capture one of the leaders, then bring them to me. I shall extract the information, personally."
The guard bowed and left the room. The dragon sat back on his throne. He was known as Blood, because he was said to have bathed in his enemies'. He was the most powerful dragon, second only to the Dark Dragon himself.
The blood-red dragon remembered.
"Later Trix. See ya Spud." The young man sped into his house as his friends skateboarded away. "Mom, Dad, I'm home yo." He walked into the living room and couldn't find anyone. "Mom, Dad, Halley. Where are you guys?" He walked into the kitchen. Splashes of red covered the walls and ceiling. Jake slumped to his knees. His lunch mixed with the puddle of blood on the floor. His mother and father lay bloody and in pieces. His little sister was in the shape of a dragon. Her skin was gone. "No no no no no." Jake got to his feet he stumbled out of his house. He was still on the street when he called out, "Dragon Up." He didn't care if anyone saw him. He had to get to his Grandpa's shop. He flew faster than he had ever flown before. He didn'tÛ½even notice as the people in the streets stopped and pointed at him. He knew only that he had to see his grandpa.
He landed in an alley beside the shop. He barged in through the side door.
"Gramps, Mom and Dad and..." He stopped short at the scene in front of him. The huntsmaster had been in the middle of torturing him when Jake had burst in, Hatred burned in Jake's eyes. He grabbed the Huntsmaster and threw him against the wall. "You did this." It was the last thing the Huntsmaster ever heard. "Gramps, are you gonna be OK?"
In a weak voice the ancient man spoke. "Jake, you have to stop him, The," The old man began to cough up blood. "He's going to attack our family." The old man died in his arms. A primal call came from his throat. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
The young dragon regained his senses, he realized much time had passed. He was being held in a large pair of arms. He looked up into the face of his comforter. The Dark Dragon stood over him.
"Do they deserve your help? You have done your best to protect people. And in return you have lost the only thing that matters to you, your family. Come with me and I will make you powerful. Nothing will ever be able to harm you again."
The American Dragon looked to the ground, his hatred overwhelmed him. "YES, I will join you. They shall all pay." The Dark Dragon looked at his new apprentice. "Come, we must begin your training."
Oh yes, the blood-red dragon remembered well.
The large mirror that was set up next to his throne began to glow. "Blood, have you destroyed the resistance in your area yet?" The Dark Dragon asked.
"Not yet, my master. We have discovered only the leaders of the different factions know his identity. Once we catch one, I will find out where he is and then I will crush these insolent worms."
"Good, do not disappoint me. It would go badly for you."
The dragon known as Blood growled deep in his throat as the glow from the mirror faded out. "Foolish dragon, one day soon you will bow before me."
A goblin came to the platform in front of his throne. "Master, my men have discovered the base of one of the rebellion outposts. I thought you would like to know."
A rustling could be heard as his wings unfurled, "It has been a long time since I have gone out into my kingdom. We attack at dawn. I, shall lead my army into this battle." The goblin bowed and left the platform.
Several miles away.
"Mistress, Blood has chosen to lead his armies into battle. Your chance to capture him has finally come."
The leader of the revolution stepped out of the shadows in full battle armor. The only thing that could be recognized was the hood of the Huntsgirl. Underneath the hood she smiled viciously, "Blood stood in his armory as he pulled on the armor he hadn't worn since the dragon war. The burnished gold shone in the dull light. He placed the helmet over his head, obscuring the face that once belonged to a hero.
"My lord, I shall prepare the army, It is time to leave."
"I will be there in a second, go." The messenger walked out. Blood kneeled before the picture of his family. "I shall destroy them. You will be my shield and sword as I finish this battle once and for all. Then I will make my move. I shall rule this world and then, you can rest in peace." Blood rose from his knees and went to address his army. "This is the beginning of the end! Today, we will take them down. You must not kill anyone, We do not know who the leader is. This is a capture mission. Our objective is to capture the leader of this faction. MOVE OUT!"
The red dragon flew above the army. They closed in on the building that had once been his school. Now it was the base of the branch they were attacking. Blood landed in front of the school. A wooden cage slid out of the ground encircling him and boxing him in. "What the?" The army behind him vanished in different directions as if it had never been.
Good, he shall pay for the crimes he haThe girl walked back and forth in front of the dragon. He growled low in his throat. Just looking at her hooded face he could already tell who it was. "So dragon, you thought you could escape your fate forever, didn't you?"
He lunged against the titanium chains that shackled him to the wall. "You will pay for you did! You murdering scum, I'll kill you for what you did to my family."
The chains began to give against his incredible strength. The chains snapped in half as his claw reached out and struck the Huntsgirl down. She slammed into the wall that had once been the mythology class' blackboard.
"You will die, dragon. You say I'm murdering scum. You helped to destroy an entire world. You killed millions of humans and mystical creatures. I will make you pay for your crimes."
Blood lifted her up by her neck. "I can't believe I once loved you Rose."
Huntsgirl squirmed in his grasp. "How do you know my name?"
"You tried to find out my human identity many a time Rose. Your precious Huntsclan killed my family, and skinned my eight year old sister. Now look upon the face of the man who's family you killed."
Blood lifted his eyes to to stare directly into her blue eyes. His form began to shift, the fire that covered his body burned low. His armor shrank and his helmet changed its shape. A strong and good looking young man stood before her. She could not quite make out his face through the slitted construction of the helmet. He reach up and began to pull the helmet off. The visor slid from his face. She stared without recognition as his face was revealed. Then a memory sparked within her.
"Dear god no! Jake!" That's right Rose, Jake. You and your clan killed my family, I got there just in time to watch he Huntsmaster torture my grandfather. He died in my arms after the Huntsmaster died by my claw."
"We did nothing, the Huntsclan was decimated weeks before your family was found dead. Shortly before that, I began to understand the way I was thinking had become twisted by their teachings. I never did anything."
He moved closer to her face. "Then who did?" As these words crossed his lips, a barrier within his mind broke under the intense pressure. Flashes of memory ran through his head as he moved back to cower in the corner.
(The word, dark, lay written in blood next to his mother.)
("The Dark Dragon." his grandfather wheezed before starting to cough up blood.)
(Red tinged claws grasping him, red claws the belonged to...)
Jake threw his head back and screamed with twelve years worth of repressed anger and guilt. "YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS YOU OVERGROWN WORM! You used my anguish and vulnerability to forge me into a weapon. Now that weapon is turned towards you."
Jake fell to the ground shaking. His body curled up on itself. He scrunched in on himself. He cried tears that had gone unwept for more than a decade. Tears of loss and of pain. Tears that helped to heal the hatred in his soul. He once again regained his senses in the arms of another.
Rose sat with his head in her lap. She was gently sroking his face as he trembled in horror at what he had become. "It's all right Jake, Shh, I'm right here." His ears heard Rose's voice. His heart could feel the presence of his family.
He was no longer Blood, scourge of the Dragon War.
He was Jake Long, the American Dragon.
Hours later,
Jake woke up in the arms of Rose. He began to pull the armor he had worn during the Dragon War off of his body. He stripped himself of all the things that reminded him of Blood. The only things he had left were a Pair of blue jeans. He looked over at the still sleeping Rose. "I will come back, I have many crimes to pay for."
A voice sounded from the door. "You're not going anywhere."
Jake turned around and gasped at who stood within the door. "Trix, Spud, what are you doing here?" Rose's eyes popped open and she pulled herself to attention when she heard these names. "I'm sorry, There's no excuse for my actions. But he was just as much a victim of the situation as anyone."
Trix moved into the room. "Rose, shut up." Rose shut up.
Both Trixie and Spud pulled Jake into an embrace. "It's good to have you back Jake."
Spud started talking a bit of nonsense. Trixie brought a hand up to the back of his head. "Spud, you're embarrasin yourself."
"Sorry honey."
Jake blinked his eyes, "Did he just call you honey?"
Spud answered this question. "That's what you do when your married. Uh, isn't it?" Jake stared at them for a second before falling backwards. "I'm sorry," Rose began to say. "My actions were inexcusable."
"Girl, didn't I tell you to shut up."
"Yes maam."
"Everything happened exactly as it was supposed to. We knew Jake's secret and we knew that it was him the whole time. We also knew that if anything could bring back the old Jake, it was you."
"But then?" Rose managed to stammer.
"Whatever happened between the two of you will stay there. All that matters is that Jake is back. We're gonna need him to end this business once and for all." Jake woke up on a cot. "I just had the weirdest dream. Trixie and Spud were married."
A ring on a dark colored finger was pushed into his face. "Wasn't no dream Jakey baby."
Jake groaned, "Are you sure I'm not dreaming?"
"Sorry buddy. It wasn't a dream." Spud layed a hand on Jake's shoulder. "We need your help. You're the only one who can defeat the Dark Dragon."
Jake looked down at the cot. "We need a plan. If we don't have a plan we're as good as dead."
A voice sounded from the other side of the door. "Is he awake?"
Strangely enough it was Spud who answered the voice. "Yeah, we're just about to figure out a plan."
Rose walked through the door and went straight to Jake. "Are you okay?"
Jake dropped his gaze to the floor. "I'm getting there. I can't believe that I fell for his lies." Jake's face darkened to the point that he looked like he was ready to kill. "That worm will pay for this."
Trixie and Spud had never seen this side of their friend. They were quite disturbed by the intensity of his hate. Rose could sense everybody's mood and did the one thing she could think of. "Forget about revenge. Right now the only thing we have to worry about is a way to defeat the Dark Dragon."
So the planning began.
It was simple enough. Jake would drag the leaders of the rebellion to the Dark Dragon. While the sentries were busy with this spectacle Rose would be keeping close enough so that if anything went wrong they could abort the mission. Once they entered the throne room, Jake would present Spud and Trixie to his one time master. While the Dark Dragon was distracted Rose would take him out from behind.
Yes, the plan was simple enough, making it work would be the hard part. "Halt, who goes there?" The troll was gigantic. But even he quailed when he saw who was at the gate. His master's apprentice stood with chains fastened to a goofy looking man and a black female.
"I have captured the leaders of the rebellion. Let me through at once, or the penalty will be most severe."
The troll stepped to the side. He completely missed the figure that slipped by him while Jake was talking. Jake made his way through the lower floors of the fortress. Innumerable guards avoided his path. They knew his reputation. He was as bloodthirsty and cruel as anyone. He was widely regarded as the most evil dragon in existence. They knew that eventually he would attempt to take the life of the Dark Dragon. He knew that this would either be the last day he lived, or the last day the Dark Dragon ruled.
Through all this time, a figure darted through the shadows unnoticed.
Jake looked at the massive door in front of him. He pushed it from his way with ease.
"Who dares come into my throne room without permission?"
"I, Blood, dare to enter your throne room. I have found the leaders of the rebellion. All of it. They have been in contact with each faction. These two are the cause of each incident. I have brought them before you so that you may decide their fates."
The massive black dragon rose from his throne. He moved toward the couple in chains. Jake caught the movements of Rose over the Dark Dragon's shoulder. She moved closer as she prepared to deal the deathblow. Jake lunged at her. His claw knocked her into one of the pillars that supported the room. "Did you seriously think your pathetic lies would affect me." Jake moved in. For the first time in her life, Rose felt true fear. She had always been equally matched with him. Now his power was far greater. His claw came down on top of her head. She dropped to the floor unconcious. Jake turned toward his one time friends. "You betrayed me just as much as she did. You can all rot." Jake took his place behind the Dark Dragon. The Dark Dragon smiled. His apprentice had betrayed even his one time best friends. He now knew that Blood could never be turned from his side. The Dark Dragon stood their as he contemplated what to do with the prisoners. He decided that he was hungry. He looked at the two prisoners and decided that he would eat the female first.
He opened his massive jaws and lowered them towards her. Pain blossomed from the center of his body. He looked down to see a scaled and bloody arm protruding from his chest. He looked over his shoulder at Jake. "This is for my family." The one time emperor of the world fell to his knees. His body was ruined and his life drained out of him. Jake watched every second of pain. "You should have known. The pawn is the most dangerous piece in the game."
Hours later,
Jake still stood in the same position. He turned his head toward his two friends. His claws flashed through the air. The chains fell apart. Jake looked at his one time friends. He looked at the girl he loved.
"Tell her, I'm sorry. It, can never be."
With these words the American Dragon flew off into the early morning light. Their were still the dragons that had followed the dark one. He had to finish the job. The war was just beginning.
So was his redemption.
"What have we learned about the resistance?"
"Not much my lord. Each faction reports to a different leader. Only they know who organized the resistance."
"Capture one of the leaders, then bring them to me. I shall extract the information, personally."
The guard bowed and left the room. The dragon sat back on his throne. He was known as Blood, because he was said to have bathed in his enemies'. He was the most powerful dragon, second only to the Dark Dragon himself.
The blood-red dragon remembered.
"Later Trix. See ya Spud." The young man sped into his house as his friends skateboarded away. "Mom, Dad, I'm home yo." He walked into the living room and couldn't find anyone. "Mom, Dad, Halley. Where are you guys?" He walked into the kitchen. Splashes of red covered the walls and ceiling. Jake slumped to his knees. His lunch mixed with the puddle of blood on the floor. His mother and father lay bloody and in pieces. His little sister was in the shape of a dragon. Her skin was gone. "No no no no no." Jake got to his feet he stumbled out of his house. He was still on the street when he called out, "Dragon Up." He didn't care if anyone saw him. He had to get to his Grandpa's shop. He flew faster than he had ever flown before. He didn'tÛ½even notice as the people in the streets stopped and pointed at him. He knew only that he had to see his grandpa.
He landed in an alley beside the shop. He barged in through the side door.
"Gramps, Mom and Dad and..." He stopped short at the scene in front of him. The huntsmaster had been in the middle of torturing him when Jake had burst in, Hatred burned in Jake's eyes. He grabbed the Huntsmaster and threw him against the wall. "You did this." It was the last thing the Huntsmaster ever heard. "Gramps, are you gonna be OK?"
In a weak voice the ancient man spoke. "Jake, you have to stop him, The," The old man began to cough up blood. "He's going to attack our family." The old man died in his arms. A primal call came from his throat. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
The young dragon regained his senses, he realized much time had passed. He was being held in a large pair of arms. He looked up into the face of his comforter. The Dark Dragon stood over him.
"Do they deserve your help? You have done your best to protect people. And in return you have lost the only thing that matters to you, your family. Come with me and I will make you powerful. Nothing will ever be able to harm you again."
The American Dragon looked to the ground, his hatred overwhelmed him. "YES, I will join you. They shall all pay." The Dark Dragon looked at his new apprentice. "Come, we must begin your training."
Oh yes, the blood-red dragon remembered well.
The large mirror that was set up next to his throne began to glow. "Blood, have you destroyed the resistance in your area yet?" The Dark Dragon asked.
"Not yet, my master. We have discovered only the leaders of the different factions know his identity. Once we catch one, I will find out where he is and then I will crush these insolent worms."
"Good, do not disappoint me. It would go badly for you."
The dragon known as Blood growled deep in his throat as the glow from the mirror faded out. "Foolish dragon, one day soon you will bow before me."
A goblin came to the platform in front of his throne. "Master, my men have discovered the base of one of the rebellion outposts. I thought you would like to know."
A rustling could be heard as his wings unfurled, "It has been a long time since I have gone out into my kingdom. We attack at dawn. I, shall lead my army into this battle." The goblin bowed and left the platform.
Several miles away.
"Mistress, Blood has chosen to lead his armies into battle. Your chance to capture him has finally come."
The leader of the revolution stepped out of the shadows in full battle armor. The only thing that could be recognized was the hood of the Huntsgirl. Underneath the hood she smiled viciously, "Blood stood in his armory as he pulled on the armor he hadn't worn since the dragon war. The burnished gold shone in the dull light. He placed the helmet over his head, obscuring the face that once belonged to a hero.
"My lord, I shall prepare the army, It is time to leave."
"I will be there in a second, go." The messenger walked out. Blood kneeled before the picture of his family. "I shall destroy them. You will be my shield and sword as I finish this battle once and for all. Then I will make my move. I shall rule this world and then, you can rest in peace." Blood rose from his knees and went to address his army. "This is the beginning of the end! Today, we will take them down. You must not kill anyone, We do not know who the leader is. This is a capture mission. Our objective is to capture the leader of this faction. MOVE OUT!"
The red dragon flew above the army. They closed in on the building that had once been his school. Now it was the base of the branch they were attacking. Blood landed in front of the school. A wooden cage slid out of the ground encircling him and boxing him in. "What the?" The army behind him vanished in different directions as if it had never been.
Good, he shall pay for the crimes he haThe girl walked back and forth in front of the dragon. He growled low in his throat. Just looking at her hooded face he could already tell who it was. "So dragon, you thought you could escape your fate forever, didn't you?"
He lunged against the titanium chains that shackled him to the wall. "You will pay for you did! You murdering scum, I'll kill you for what you did to my family."
The chains began to give against his incredible strength. The chains snapped in half as his claw reached out and struck the Huntsgirl down. She slammed into the wall that had once been the mythology class' blackboard.
"You will die, dragon. You say I'm murdering scum. You helped to destroy an entire world. You killed millions of humans and mystical creatures. I will make you pay for your crimes."
Blood lifted her up by her neck. "I can't believe I once loved you Rose."
Huntsgirl squirmed in his grasp. "How do you know my name?"
"You tried to find out my human identity many a time Rose. Your precious Huntsclan killed my family, and skinned my eight year old sister. Now look upon the face of the man who's family you killed."
Blood lifted his eyes to to stare directly into her blue eyes. His form began to shift, the fire that covered his body burned low. His armor shrank and his helmet changed its shape. A strong and good looking young man stood before her. She could not quite make out his face through the slitted construction of the helmet. He reach up and began to pull the helmet off. The visor slid from his face. She stared without recognition as his face was revealed. Then a memory sparked within her.
"Dear god no! Jake!" That's right Rose, Jake. You and your clan killed my family, I got there just in time to watch he Huntsmaster torture my grandfather. He died in my arms after the Huntsmaster died by my claw."
"We did nothing, the Huntsclan was decimated weeks before your family was found dead. Shortly before that, I began to understand the way I was thinking had become twisted by their teachings. I never did anything."
He moved closer to her face. "Then who did?" As these words crossed his lips, a barrier within his mind broke under the intense pressure. Flashes of memory ran through his head as he moved back to cower in the corner.
(The word, dark, lay written in blood next to his mother.)
("The Dark Dragon." his grandfather wheezed before starting to cough up blood.)
(Red tinged claws grasping him, red claws the belonged to...)
Jake threw his head back and screamed with twelve years worth of repressed anger and guilt. "YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS YOU OVERGROWN WORM! You used my anguish and vulnerability to forge me into a weapon. Now that weapon is turned towards you."
Jake fell to the ground shaking. His body curled up on itself. He scrunched in on himself. He cried tears that had gone unwept for more than a decade. Tears of loss and of pain. Tears that helped to heal the hatred in his soul. He once again regained his senses in the arms of another.
Rose sat with his head in her lap. She was gently sroking his face as he trembled in horror at what he had become. "It's all right Jake, Shh, I'm right here." His ears heard Rose's voice. His heart could feel the presence of his family.
He was no longer Blood, scourge of the Dragon War.
He was Jake Long, the American Dragon.
Hours later,
Jake woke up in the arms of Rose. He began to pull the armor he had worn during the Dragon War off of his body. He stripped himself of all the things that reminded him of Blood. The only things he had left were a Pair of blue jeans. He looked over at the still sleeping Rose. "I will come back, I have many crimes to pay for."
A voice sounded from the door. "You're not going anywhere."
Jake turned around and gasped at who stood within the door. "Trix, Spud, what are you doing here?" Rose's eyes popped open and she pulled herself to attention when she heard these names. "I'm sorry, There's no excuse for my actions. But he was just as much a victim of the situation as anyone."
Trix moved into the room. "Rose, shut up." Rose shut up.
Both Trixie and Spud pulled Jake into an embrace. "It's good to have you back Jake."
Spud started talking a bit of nonsense. Trixie brought a hand up to the back of his head. "Spud, you're embarrasin yourself."
"Sorry honey."
Jake blinked his eyes, "Did he just call you honey?"
Spud answered this question. "That's what you do when your married. Uh, isn't it?" Jake stared at them for a second before falling backwards. "I'm sorry," Rose began to say. "My actions were inexcusable."
"Girl, didn't I tell you to shut up."
"Yes maam."
"Everything happened exactly as it was supposed to. We knew Jake's secret and we knew that it was him the whole time. We also knew that if anything could bring back the old Jake, it was you."
"But then?" Rose managed to stammer.
"Whatever happened between the two of you will stay there. All that matters is that Jake is back. We're gonna need him to end this business once and for all." Jake woke up on a cot. "I just had the weirdest dream. Trixie and Spud were married."
A ring on a dark colored finger was pushed into his face. "Wasn't no dream Jakey baby."
Jake groaned, "Are you sure I'm not dreaming?"
"Sorry buddy. It wasn't a dream." Spud layed a hand on Jake's shoulder. "We need your help. You're the only one who can defeat the Dark Dragon."
Jake looked down at the cot. "We need a plan. If we don't have a plan we're as good as dead."
A voice sounded from the other side of the door. "Is he awake?"
Strangely enough it was Spud who answered the voice. "Yeah, we're just about to figure out a plan."
Rose walked through the door and went straight to Jake. "Are you okay?"
Jake dropped his gaze to the floor. "I'm getting there. I can't believe that I fell for his lies." Jake's face darkened to the point that he looked like he was ready to kill. "That worm will pay for this."
Trixie and Spud had never seen this side of their friend. They were quite disturbed by the intensity of his hate. Rose could sense everybody's mood and did the one thing she could think of. "Forget about revenge. Right now the only thing we have to worry about is a way to defeat the Dark Dragon."
So the planning began.
It was simple enough. Jake would drag the leaders of the rebellion to the Dark Dragon. While the sentries were busy with this spectacle Rose would be keeping close enough so that if anything went wrong they could abort the mission. Once they entered the throne room, Jake would present Spud and Trixie to his one time master. While the Dark Dragon was distracted Rose would take him out from behind.
Yes, the plan was simple enough, making it work would be the hard part. "Halt, who goes there?" The troll was gigantic. But even he quailed when he saw who was at the gate. His master's apprentice stood with chains fastened to a goofy looking man and a black female.
"I have captured the leaders of the rebellion. Let me through at once, or the penalty will be most severe."
The troll stepped to the side. He completely missed the figure that slipped by him while Jake was talking. Jake made his way through the lower floors of the fortress. Innumerable guards avoided his path. They knew his reputation. He was as bloodthirsty and cruel as anyone. He was widely regarded as the most evil dragon in existence. They knew that eventually he would attempt to take the life of the Dark Dragon. He knew that this would either be the last day he lived, or the last day the Dark Dragon ruled.
Through all this time, a figure darted through the shadows unnoticed.
Jake looked at the massive door in front of him. He pushed it from his way with ease.
"Who dares come into my throne room without permission?"
"I, Blood, dare to enter your throne room. I have found the leaders of the rebellion. All of it. They have been in contact with each faction. These two are the cause of each incident. I have brought them before you so that you may decide their fates."
The massive black dragon rose from his throne. He moved toward the couple in chains. Jake caught the movements of Rose over the Dark Dragon's shoulder. She moved closer as she prepared to deal the deathblow. Jake lunged at her. His claw knocked her into one of the pillars that supported the room. "Did you seriously think your pathetic lies would affect me." Jake moved in. For the first time in her life, Rose felt true fear. She had always been equally matched with him. Now his power was far greater. His claw came down on top of her head. She dropped to the floor unconcious. Jake turned toward his one time friends. "You betrayed me just as much as she did. You can all rot." Jake took his place behind the Dark Dragon. The Dark Dragon smiled. His apprentice had betrayed even his one time best friends. He now knew that Blood could never be turned from his side. The Dark Dragon stood their as he contemplated what to do with the prisoners. He decided that he was hungry. He looked at the two prisoners and decided that he would eat the female first.
He opened his massive jaws and lowered them towards her. Pain blossomed from the center of his body. He looked down to see a scaled and bloody arm protruding from his chest. He looked over his shoulder at Jake. "This is for my family." The one time emperor of the world fell to his knees. His body was ruined and his life drained out of him. Jake watched every second of pain. "You should have known. The pawn is the most dangerous piece in the game."
Hours later,
Jake still stood in the same position. He turned his head toward his two friends. His claws flashed through the air. The chains fell apart. Jake looked at his one time friends. He looked at the girl he loved.
"Tell her, I'm sorry. It, can never be."
With these words the American Dragon flew off into the early morning light. Their were still the dragons that had followed the dark one. He had to finish the job. The war was just beginning.
So was his redemption.