13 Meeting is Such Sweet Sorrow

The Syndicate convoy headed out to find a good place to ambush the twins. Kal suggested a spot that would make it very easy for them to pin down the twins and the elder dragon when they came through.

The best thing about it was that there were only an entrance and an exit. They would have both covered. Since they had so much time to prepare for the twins they were fully prepared to handle those dragons at any moment.

Kal's suggested ambush site put them nearly a hundred miles south of the transportation gate where the twins should be. However, Kal wasn't going to tell them that.

Seeing nothing wrong with the suggestions that Kal made, Master Rel was feeling very satisfied with this new recruit. After their conversation earlier, Master Rel invited Maq Do (Kal) to join the Syndicate under his faction. Kal accepted the invitation with great emotion!

The Syndicate soldiers waited for the twins and their dragon elder for the rest of the day. They were ready to pounce at any time. Kal enjoyed a delicious lunch with Master Rel who insisted that Kal call him Ba.

Through the course of the discussion, Kal was surprised to find how similar the two were to each other. It was like they had met their soulmate!

Of course, this didn't make Kal doubt his commitment to his mission. He figured Ba would understand. Kal would if Ba ever stabbed him in the back. They were like brothers with no expectation of loyalty and yet they were completely loyal to each other.

By the end of lunch, they were calling each other brother. Kal had become the adoptive uncle of Ba's children. Ba even had hope that Kal could help him deal with his eldest son's rebelliousness. Kal was closer to his son's generation.

After waiting the rest of the day and well into the next, Ba and Kal began to wonder why the twins and the elder dragon hadn't shown up. It never occurred to Master Rel that his good brother Maq was wasting his time while the twins made an escape.

Kal suggested sending a scout to check the old base to see if there are any clues. After almost a day of waiting the scout came back with images from the base. "Everything was just as Maq had told him," Master Rel thought. The place was scrubbed clean. The only thing that Master Rel could see from the recordings was that the place would make a good hideout if he ever needed one.

"Brother Ba, perhaps we should try to find whatever it is they were looking for," Kal said.

"What do you think they were looking for brother Maq?" Master Rel asked.

"I can't be sure completely, but it must be a way off the planet. Our ship was destroyed a few hundred years ago. I know the fairies claimed to have found something and I thought it must be a means off of this world. Maybe a ship or a transport gate." Kal said.

"It must be a transport gate. I really don't believe a ship could make it down here undetected. This is great news Maq! If it's a transport gate then we know those dragons are still here!" Master Rel said.

"Brother Ba, why do you say that?" Kal wondered.

"If a transport gate had been used we would have detected it, however, there have been no reports about the use of a transport gate. Maq, let's find this transport gate, we still have a chance!" Master Rel said excitedly.

The convoy began a search of the area. Kal was getting more and more nervous. Maybe it wasn't a transport gate, after all, maybe those little dragons are lost or hiding. I might be leading these Syndicate people right to them!

After a few more days of searching, they narrowed the search area down to the coordinates of the transport gate. However, they still couldn't find any dragons. During these days of searching, Kal had come up with a plan to delay the use of the transport gate, if they found it, to give the twins as much time as possible. Who knew where the gate leads to. They were only hoping it led back to their universe.

Finally, after another day of searching, Kal 'noticed' something odd. He leads Master Rel over to the oddity.

"Brother Ba, do you think this is what we're looking for?"

Master Rel looked closely at the strangely hidden recess in the mountain. Looking in the recess they found their transport gate. It wasn't too big. As they were examining it, the pair suddenly heard the sounds of explosions!

The pair ran out of the recess to find that the Syndicate convoy was under attack!

"What's going on?!" Master Rel yelled to a soldier.

"Sir, we don't know, we were suddenly under long range fire. It broke through our barrier and blew up our ships! Now the forcefield is down and we're having to fight without the shield.

"Ba, look up there!" Kal pointed up in the sky at a black dot.

Master Rel focused on the object it was some kind of attack drone. Just as Master Rel was about to take action a voice was heard by everyone.

"You think you can kill us dragons?! The twins are already gone. Hahahaha!!!" The voice laughed.

"It's that old dragon!" Kal yelled to Master Rel.

"Where is he, I don't see him," Said Master Rel.

"I don't see him either but he's tricky, you must be careful Brother Ba!" Kal said. Master Rel took to the skies and was able to track down the attack drones. Kal followed right behind him. Master Rel pulled out his sword and was going in to slice one of the drones in half. Just as he was about to slice, Kal knocked him away as devastating beams shot past the place the Master Rel was.

Kal was just trying to cause some chaos. He truly did like this Master Rel and didn't want to see him come to harm. He was almost killed by a hiding drone.

Master Rel realized that Kal had saved his life just then.

"Maq, you saved me! I won't ever forget this great kindness!" Master Rel promised.

"Don't worry brother, let's not lose focus!" Kal said.

Master Rel and Kal engaged in a life and death battle against the hidden forces of the elder dragon. Laser beams were fired and men were flying through the air. Limbs flew as they were severed through the armed conflict.

Men swore blood oaths and took on sworn brothers. Kal and Master Rel saved each other's lives several times. It was a touching ode to the Institute of brotherhood. Desperation and blood could turn a man maniacal, but it could also bring out the best in people. It looked to be the final act on this band of brothers.

Tears streamed down many faces. Kal and Master Rel looked at each other deeply. If one listened closely it was as if someone was playing touching music interspersed with the sound of explosions and screaming.

"Brother Ba, if I have to die, its fine to die next to a good brother like you!" Kal said with sincere emotion.

"Brother Maq, I feel the same!" Master Rel said.

"ARE YOU QUITE FINISHED!!!"

A thunderous voice boomed. Everyone was shocked as they watched the air around them waved and distorted. Everyone looked around and found that the vehicles were fine, no one had died, no one was missing any limbs. However, everyone was confused.

"What happened?" Everyone wondered.

Master Rel saw the deep confusion in Kal's eyes.

"Someone's been toying with us brother!" Master Rel said.

"I know it was me," Kal though. Kal had used his spheres to set up an illusion array. The array was so good though that even Kal fell into it. He was a little embarrassed. He fell victim to his own trap! There was one thing that was real, it was that voice, who said that? Kal wondered.

Master Rel tapped Kal on the chest and pointed at an old man standing next to the transport gate recess. He looked annoyed.

"I don't mind you kids playing around a bit, but how much longer were you planning to carry on?" The old man asked. He was looking right at Kal and Ba. The pair looked at each other with confusion. What was this old man talking about?

"You two, follow me." The old man pointed at Kal and Ba.

Although the two weren't sure who this old man was, they knew with certainty that he was much more powerful than they were! If he said follow they would follow. The two brothers followed each other into the recess after the old man. He motioned for them to walk through the transportation gate. After they walked through, the old man walked through and the gate went silent.

Kal and Ba exited the gate and found a new world. Standing in a courtyard were two young dragons waiting. When they saw Kal they smiled and waved with excitement.

The old man walked past Kal and Ba who were standing there utterly confused. Kal was confused because he thought for sure those kids would be gone by now. Ba was confused by why those two dragon kids were so happy to see Maq. Didn't they try to kill him?

"Well, aren't you going to explain to your good brother what's going on?" The old man asked.

"Haha," Kal laughed.

"Brother Ba, please don't be too offended but I've been playing a little game with you the last few days," Kal said sheepishly.

"What do you mean Maq?"

"I never ran away from the dragon kids, there is no elder dragon, and the attack just now was an array I set up to keep everyone busy," Kal said.

"Why?" Master Rel asked as if his world was shattered.

"I was trying to distract you and your forces so that these dragon kids could escape," Kal said.

Master Rel looked really perturbed at this point.

"Brother Ba, please don't be too upset. I did my best to avoid bringing harm to you and your men. I just can't abandon these kids. I really think of you as a brother. Please don't be upset with me. Just treat it as a prank, I, your little brother played on you.

"You've been playing with me?" Master Rel said with a strange smile on his face.

"YOU MEAN, for the last couple of weeks you've been leading me around by my nose. Making me drive my forces all over this planet, looking for dragon kids that had already escaped?!" Master Rel asked with incredulity.

"Yes brother," Kal said, feeling really bad for fooling his friend.

"Haha...Hahaha................hahahahahahaha" Master Rel started laughing really hard.

"You little jerk, you've been playing with me this whole time! HAHAHAHAHA..." Master Rel laughed uncontrollably.

"YOU Son of a BEEge! this is the most entertaining and amazing plotting against another that I've ever seen! I can't believe how easily you played me!" Master Rel said.

"I thought I was good, but how could you pull this off? It's totally blowing my mind!" Master Rel said.

"You're not angry with me brother Ba?"

"Mad at you? Hahaha, how could I be mad at you? Bravo, bravo. You've totally blown my mind. With this little game of yours, after I've thought all of this over, I'm sure to make a breakthrough in my Dao of the hunt! Thank you brother, I've been stuck at a bottleneck for so long!" Master Rel said with excitement.

"I never saw it coming, never saw it." Master Rel said to himself.

"I'm so glad you boys have worked matters out. I believe I have waited here very patiently. If you don't mind I think we should get down to business. Shall we now talk about what I'm going to do with all of you?" The mysterious old man said.