The Silver Reckoning

Chapter 1: A New Home

The heavy wing beats of a small group of dragons drummed the calm morning sky. They flew in a 'V' formation, the flashing colours of yellow, green, red and silver shining from their scales. The sun was slowly rising in the horizon, casting an illuminating glow over the dragons, and a few winced at the bright light. There was nothing obviously unusual about the group, as far as dragons go. There were about ten of them, most different colours from the others. Two were lightning dragons, evident by their sharp yellow scales and spiked wings. Three were fire; their red scales unmistakable against the blue of the sky. One was an earth dragon, the size and earthly green colour their greatest characteristics. There were also two white, creamy coloured wind dragons and an extremely rare shadow dragon, greatly visible in the light.

The last dragon was the one that grabbed attention however. It was leading the group, its flashing wings sending out light like a beacon in the sky. It's underbelly was normal enough, with pale yellow scales that looked surprisingly soft, but its back was covered in what looked like armour. The shining metal seemed to catch every ray of light and reflect it, almost like a mirror. The metal wound up the dragon's back, coverings its tail, wings and the top half of its neck and head. It was also a fair bit smaller then the other dragons, meaning a younger age, and had the long slim figure that was characteristic of the females of the species.

The dragoness was tired; her wing beats surprisingly laboured, as if she was exhausted. There was no way she could stop however, for below the small group of dragons was the vast blue ocean, spreading forever into the horizon. The water below was flat, and there was barely any wind up in the sky, making it all the harder for the dragons as they battled to stay awake.

Not helping the silver dragon was another figure in the group. A human, riding on her back with a gentle grip on her horns. It was a man. On first look he would seem to be almost enjoying himself, but the smile on his face wasn't as prominent as the malicious smirk in his eyes. It was one of victory. One that said nothing would be able to stop him now. It was entirely different from the dragoness's expression, which told hopelessness and despair, almost as if she had given up.

One other strange detail about the group of dragons was a blinking red light flashing from each of their heads. It originated from what looked like some sort of strange device implanted between each dragon's horns. It was unnatural, but it didn't seem as though the dragons could do anything to get it off.

Slowly the man leaned over the dragoness's neck and whispered in her ear, his voice calm and unsettling, "We are nearly there, Silver. Then you can rest all you want."

The dragoness, Silver, grunted softly in response, not having the energy, or the willpower, to reply. The idea of landing on solid ground was something that made her glad however. Their group had been flying nonstop for almost two days, moving as quickly as possible across the world to an unknown destination. The first portion of their journey had been accompanied by many humans, dragons and their machines. But the further they travelled the smaller the group got until it was only Silver and the other nine dragons, along with the man on her back.

She didn't know his name, and only knew him as 'The Admiral'. A formidable man second in command of the largest and most powerful dragon organisation in the world. The Association Of Dragon Hunters, or A.O.D.H. They had been after Silver for a while now, almost two years, and it was only two days ago that they had succeeded. Now the dragoness was part of their ranks, controlled by the red blinking device in her head.

"There it is," grinned The Admiral, speaking to Silver once again, "You're new home."

She raised her tired head, looking up into the horizon. There was an island, flat against the ocean. It was a strange island that looked like it was nearly flooded in water. The only actual land was the very edges of it, surrounding the body of water in an oblong 'L' shape.