Fireball

Sizing Up The Enemy

As the sun reached its zenith, Fireball could see their home. He couldn't wait to see his mother and his friends, but he was especially looking forward to seeing Kaida. It was exactly noon, according to Amos, when they landed on the rocks along the shoreline. Kaida and Drake flew up over the trees as Fireball was removing the backpack. Fausto was not far behind, but he did not fly in from above. Rather, he came barreling through the trees, breaking branches and uprooting a few saplings, careening through the forest like a runaway boulder down a mountain. Fausto knew how to make an entrance. He meant well, but he was the most awkward creature the little dragon had ever met. Whether in the air or on the ground, Fausto always tripped himself up and ended up on his butt or face down, usually taking out a few other dragons with him. The dragons were both happy and relieved to see Fireball. Ashneel swirled out of the backpack and Amos hopped down off the other dragon's back. He thanked the hulking dragon for the ride before the beast took flight and quickly disappeared above the clouds.

All eyes turned to Amos. The dragons did not know him, but they assumed he was important since Ashneel had suggested they go retrieve him for help.

"What can you do to help us?" asked Drake very pointedly. "We hoped Ashneel would bring back an army of wizards to fight off the evil faction."

"First," said Amos. "We need to find out for sure who the leader is and how many followers he or she has. An army of wizards descending on this small island would surely start a war and as the prince says, 'Always look hard at ways to resolve a conflict before you resort to violence. A day without fighting is a good day.' The plan is to sneak in and gather some facts. Once we know who and what we are dealing with, we can make a plan."

Amos spoke with confidence. Fireball liked that. For the first time in his life he wanted to be friends with a wizard. The little dragon led Amos to the invisible barrier. Amos stared at the emptiness for a time, pacing back and forth.

"An invisible dome over this half of the island. Very powerful magic is required to create one of this size," said Amos. "You went through once already. We will have to go through again."

"Can you destroy it?" asked Drake.

"Yes," said Amos. "But not yet. Remember the element of surprise. We don't want to alert them. We want to sneak in and sneak out."

Before Ashneel could perform his spell, Amos was busy twirling his wand. Seconds later he walked through an opening. The others followed and then Amos stopped the group to relay his plan.