DRAGON: -fire and water-

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

CHAPTER ONE

SHE WAS BANISHED TO THE stool in the corner of the room, left to watch over the

activities in her father's robotics lab. Khaly was told to remain there and

keep out of trouble.

"Hmph, keep out of trouble," she mumbled to herself.

She always came to his lab after school, since she was a small child. She and

her father would walk home together and share their day. He would tell her about

all the wonderful inventions they were working on, and she would tell him about

her day spent learning and playing with her friendsEven now, after moving to Vlarlee, the biggest city on the Feesia continent, so

she could attend the prestigious Pifianka Academy of Polytechnics, they

continued this tradition. But it was different when she was younger. Khaly had

been allowed to wander the lab, question the assistants, and work with the

robotics. The staff enjoyed answering her questions and sharing their own

knowledge in the field.

At seventeen it wasn't cute anymore, with her knowledge and skills far

surpassing their own. They were put out by her constantly correcting their

mistakes. To them she was a child overstepping her bounds by assuming she

knew more, which she did.

She watched in sheer agony while they poked and prodded at the inner

workings of their newest project. When they tried running their tests the tiny

man would lurch to one side then tip over, so they poked and prodded some

more. It walked in circles. On another try it did nothing but open and close its

mouth, or its head spun in circles. They ran their computer simulations, tested

the software, and inspected the hardware, but never made headway.

The discussion between the two lab workers was growing more and more

agitated with each test. They had been working on this little mechanical man for

almost two months, and Khaly was ready to crawl out of her own skin to fix it.

"Well, maybe it's your ineptitude on the inner workings of this kind of

mechanics that's the problem," Arledge said to his coworker.

The young woman bit her lip, preventing her response to his accusations.

Khaly also gritted her teeth. Many of the suggestions Chahara, the assistant, was

making certainly would have gotten them further along. Even though her

assumptions were mostly wrong, they still would have made more progress.

Khaly nibbled on a fingernail and squirmed in her chair; she wanted to walk over

and fix it. It was a minor issue really, one she could correct in her sleep. She

couldn't understand how they weren't seeing it.

"What course of action would you like to take now?" the assistant said, giving

a little more attitude than she should have. The supervisor shot her a glare.

"Well, none of my suggestions seem to be the correct solution. I, of course,

would defer to your guidance." Chahara gave a fleeting smile.

Wow, she must really want this job. I would throttle the guy, Khaly thought.

"Yes, well, this is a team project. I was merely looking for your input," he

said. "But it's obvious that you have nothing to offer." He stood, trying to look

as though he was silently solving the issue of the robot.

"Maybe, sir, we could go over the schematics one more time. Perhaps there is

something we missed in the design," Chahara said.

"We?" He quirked an eyebrow at her.

"I meant to say I; maybe I missed something."

"Right. Yes, that is a more likely scenario." As he turned to go over the

schematics Khaly almost said something, but Chahara caught her eye and gave a

wordless command to stay silent.Khaly pursed her lips. She had had about all she could take. They were

wasting time. It could be solved in a matter of minutes. She knew her father was

under a lot of pressure to get this prototype to work. With each passing day he

worried his career would be put in jeopardy.

The two pored over the blueprints. The assistant pointed and drew with her

finger, offering suggestions. Arledge brushed her hand away as he shook his

head.

She was unable to contain herself any longer. "Maybe if you checked the

sensors," Khaly said. "They may be calibrated too high and the processing core

can't compensate."

He glared at her. Khaly meekly smiled back and shrugged her shoulders.

"Just a suggestion, really. I'm sure I'm not right." She tried to reassure him.

He returned to the schematics as if deep in thought, tracing his finger over the

circuits of the robot. He turned back to his assistant and pointed at a spot on the

blueprint.

"Check to see if the sensors are calibrated too high. Then make sure the

processing core is compensating."

"Yes, sir," she said giving a tiny smile to Khaly as she turned.

Khaly thought to herself, That isn't the processing core he's pointing to, that's

the actuator. She shook her head.

They made her changes and started testing once again. The man clunked and

lurched forward only to tip once more.

Arledge looked back at her smugly. "I'm not surprised you were wrong. Just

because you go to the Pifianka Academy doesn't make you an expert in this

field. I've been doing this for twenty years and have no reason to listen to the

likes of you," he said, his frustration evident by his reddening face. The lab

assistant's mouth dropped open at his reaction. It was one thing to yell at her, but

completely unacceptable to yell at Khaly.

"They're still too high," Khaly mumbled.

"What was that?" he yelled. "You irksome little child!"

"I said," she yelled, louder than she needed to, "They. Are. Still. Too. High."

"You don't know—" He was abruptly cut off by a hand on his shoulder.

"Sir," Chahara whispered. "She's right. They're still a little too high, but the

processing core we have will never be able to handle the sensors no matter how

low we set them. We'll likely have to build one ourselves."

His face reddened again, but he didn't offer an apology.

Edwin, Khaly's father, joined them. "So, how is everything coming along?

Any progress?"

"Yes, sir. I have discovered that the sensors were running too high for the core

to compensate. But when I lowered them, I found that the core won't be able to

compensate at all. We need to get a faster one." Khaly wasn't surprised that Arledge took all the credit for their discoveries, and from Chahara's face it was

evident she wasn't either.

"Ah, I see." Edwin rubbed his chin, looking over the little robot man. "Well,

it's too late to put in any orders tonight."

"Ah, sir—" Chahara started, but was cut short.

"I'm sorry, sir. I meant to mention that I will have to build it on my own."

"Fine then, in the morning," Edwin said. "You two ladies could learn a thing

or two from this man. You're in the presence of a true genius." Edwin patted

Arledge on the shoulder. "Let's go, Khaly. We're already late for dinner. I'm sure

your mother is worried."

Khaly jumped off her stool, grinding her teeth at the smirk on Arledge's face.

"I'm sure she is more pissed than worried, Father."

"Language, Khaly. Language," he scolded.

"Do you disagree with me?"

"No, I think you're right, but such language isn't necessary."

Khaly put her arm through her father's as they left the lab. Once they cleared

the building and stepped out onto the sidewalk Khaly asked, "Father, what

happens if Arledge and Chahara can't get that robot to work?"

He looked down at her. "My dear girl, don't you worry about that. I'm certain

they will be able to sort out all the problems and meet the deadline in time."

"But what if they can't?"

There was a long, grim silence.

"Father?" she asked.

"Let's not worry about that. I'm certain it will get sorted out."

Khaly knew exactly what that meant. If they don't build the proper core in

time, her father would be out of a job. There was no way Arledge would know

where to start and she was unsure of Chahara's skills. She was going to have to

do something about that. She would have to get into the lab and work on it when

no one was around. It was the only way.

CHAPTER TWO

THE LITTLE MECHANICAL ALARM RANG through the room. Khaly woke, grabbed at her

creation, and turned it off. She was late and had missed the bus to school.

"Man," she moaned, scowling at the soon-to-be broken clock. Her sleep had

been restless; she had tossed and turned, worrying about her father's future at the

Robotics Department. It rested solely in Arledge's hands. His inept, useless

hands.

Throwing her legs over the edge of her bed, she wiped the remaining sleep

from her eyes. Yawning and stretching, she pushed herself up and stumbled

about the semi-dark room, looking for clothes to wear. She grabbed her bag off

the back of her desk chair, and tripped out of her room with her shoes in the

other hand.

As she hurriedly made her way down the stairs, she missed two and slid down

the rest of the way on her butt. Her mother came out of the kitchen, wiping her

hands on a towel.

"Khaly?" She rounded the banister to find Khaly on the floor. "I thought you

left already. What happened?"

"My alarm decided to let me sleep in," she said dryly as she picked herself up

and walked toward the kitchen.

Her mother followed. "Your shirt is on backward, dear." She pursed her lips to

conceal the grin forming.

"Man." Khaly dropped her bag and shoes so she could turn her shirt around.

"Can you make me some toast?"

"You really should have a better breakfast than that."

"No time." She pulled her arms into her shirt to spin it around.

"It's also inside out." Now her mother giggled.

With no thought as to where she was, Khaly pulled the shirt off and turned it

right side out then put it back on.

The toaster popped as Khaly started to yank her shoes on. "That was quick,"

she said.

"This was mine." Hettie quickly buttered the toast and held both slices out as

Khaly grabbed them, planting a quick kiss on her cheek as she went by.

Khaly hit the sidewalk at a quick pace as she shoved the toast in her mouth.

Once she was finished, she looped her arm through the other strap of her

backpack and took off in an easy run.

She had been on the track team at her old school, and long distance was her

best event.

A year ago, when she passed the proper aptitude placement tests, it was highly

recommended she go to the Pifianka Academy of Polytechnics.

It was the type of recommendation that wasn't suggested, but demanded.

Individuals showing predilection with certain skills were sent to specific schools

for proper training. Khaly scored extremely high on the tests, from Preconscious

to English, but she showed the most skill and interest for Robotics. She had been

happy and excited to be able to attend the Academy.

Until she arrived.

Khaly quickly discovered she didn't fit in with anyone. She was a late

admission, coming in halfway through the semester, but still able to pass all the

tests and exams. She had no issues catching up with the schoolwork and the

many projects they were expected to do. At the end of the semester she passed

her classes with high honors. Her scores were higher than, and far surpassed,

those of the top student, Jahallah Allmond. For this, Jahallah made her suffer.

It was only a week into the new semester of her second year; there were ten

months to go, but it already felt like she'd been there for an eternity. Her humor

and style differed greatly from the other students, and Khaly missed her old

friends desperately. She came from a smaller town, Armskirk, where there was a

great deal more camaraderie. It was in the tiny mountain continent of Nylm

Hills. The weather was harsher and the climate was cold year-round.

Her mother also felt the difference in their new community, and missed her old

friends and family, too. Khaly's father seemed to be the only one adapting, and

he did well at his new job. At least, up until the last few months, when he made

supervisor and Arledge came to work for him.

Khaly took the quickest way to the school. There was a forest lining the

neighborhood, with a children's playground on the other side. She broke through

the tree line with ease. She had used it so often the year before there was now a

small path beaten down.

Khaly ducked under low branches and jumped easily over downed logs. It

only took her a few minutes to come out on the other side. The grass was wet

with the morning dew, causing her to lose her footing every few steps. The sun

was barely in the sky as she got to the top of the hill.

The summer months on the Feesia continent were only comparable to one

other in Usmiri. Of the four, there was only one desert continent. Aelborne. Its

nights were as hot as its days. The only difference in Feesia was summer nights

were covered in rain.

As Khaly descended the hill, she opted to run around the playground instead

of through it; the dirt had turned to mud during last night's showers.

Khaly reached the front doors of the school having barely broken a sweat,

although she was breathing somewhat heavy. Pulling the doors open, she stepped

through to find the halls empty. Completely deserted.

"Man."

Ignoring the no-running-in-the-halls rule, she jogged to her class, hoping the

door wasn't locked.

Khaly slowed, quieting her steps as she reached the door. Peeking through the

small window she glimpsed the teacher with his back to the class. She quietly

turned the handle until she felt the pressure release from the latch. She pulled the

door open and slid in. The students in the room took notice of her; Mr. Metayer,

however, did not.

"Hello, Khaly." Jahallah announced her arrival. "Sleep in again?"

She loathed Jahallah Allmond, the source of her misery. Jahallah smirked

when Mr. Metayer turned.

"It's good to see you, Ms. Hamons. Please take your seat."

"Yes, sir." As she passed Jahallah's desk, Khaly's toe caught the girl's sudden

outstretched leg. She caught herself before falling, and ended up doing a fast

double-step instead. Jahallah and her friends giggled.

"Ladies, settle down." Mr. Metayer set a calm, steady gaze on them, impelling them to silence.

Khaly took her usual spot at the back of the class, dropped her bag on the

floor, and slumped onto her stool. She glared at the back of Jahallah's head with

such severity it could have exploded.

"All right, my little eggheads," Mr. Metayer said as he clapped and rubbed his

hands together. "We are a week into the new semester and it's time to assign

partners for the new school project." He smiled wide, showing his teeth. "The

remainder of your professors will assign the corresponding projects as the week

goes by. Today, my lucky little prodigies, you'll be placed with your new best

friends for the year. So, when I call your names, please gather your belongings

and sit together."

As he turned to his sheet of paper, a murmur swept the class. Khaly's stomach

clenched uneasily as she took notice of the words for the year. Usually these

partnerships were only for a semester. She looked forward to these projects. It

was the only time she was accepted by the other kids. Only one partner for a

whole year? She gnawed on her lip, starting to worry about being placed with

someone who hated her. Khaly silently prayed she wouldn't be placed with

Jahallah or any of her friends.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she was paired with Bancroft Kingsford. He

was a new kid. She knew nothing about him except he was late taking the

aptitude tests. Much later than her. Khaly really didn't want a partner this

semester. She was always the one to carry the workload for these projects, so

working alone seemed more reasonable.

Bancroft looked back at Khaly, and his eager look told her he expected her to

move to the front of the room where he sat. She refused to budge. He gathered

his things and joined her at the back of the class. His smile was polite, but Khaly

greeted him with a curt nod. She had no intention of working with him and was

going to speak with Mr. Metayer at the end of the class.

As the remainder of the students were paired off and moved to sit with each

other, Mr. Metayer watched patiently. The noise levels rose.

"All right, let's settle down." A hush settled over the students as they brought

their attention back to the front of the room. "Your project proposals will be due

in two weeks. I want a rough sketch of your idea. You'll use this class time to sort through any issues or concerns you may have with your projects throughout

the year."

A hand shot up from the center of the room.

"No, Mr. Stealreaver, you may not skip class if you have no issues to work

through," Mr. Metayer answered the unspoken question.

"I had to ask," he said. The class erupted with laughter. Even Khaly smirked.

"I'm certain these projects will not go as smoothly as you think. This is, after

all, your last year here. The other professors and I will be expecting a much

higher caliber of work from you all. So your final assignment will be carried

through the entire year. I'm looking forward to seeing how much you have all

progressed."

The hour long class felt much longer as Mr. Metayer gave the parameters of

the assignment. When he finally dismissed the class Khaly jumped from her

chair, snatched her bag, and made her way to the front.

"Mr. Metayer." She stopped in front of the podium where he stood.

"Yes, Ms. Hamons?" He looked at her with a smile.

"I would prefer to work on my own this year," she said. "I think—"

"Ms. Hamons, I'm afraid I can't allow that. Besides, who would Mr.

Kingsford work with? All the other students have partners."

"I'm sure that he would be better off—"

He held up his hand to stop her. "The partners have been chosen. You will

work with Mr. Kingsford. I should think that since you are still relatively new

here at the Academy you would want to help Mr. Kingsford in adjusting."

"He seems to be adjusting fine to me," Khaly muttered, knowing full well Mr.

Metayer was right.

He returned to his paper as the new class began to file into the room. Khaly

stepped away from the podium and pushed her way out of the classroom. She

glimpsed Bancroft standing at the door. She hoped he was capable of holding up

his part of the partnership. He approached her as she walked by, but she didn't

slow down. He had to quicken his pace to keep up with her.

"So, uh, I hear you're a real whiz with all this technical electronics and

mechanical stuff?" His comment a poor attempt at breaking the ice.

She quirked an eyebrow at him. "You should be, too. How else did you get into the Academy? Did you walk into the wrong school this morning?" She took

a sudden left turn, which caused him to jog to get beside her again.

"No, no. Of course not. Yeah, I get all this stuff. I'm just saying…"

Khaly stopped at a locker and began to work the lock. There was a long,

awkward silence as he watched her. Khaly pulled open the door and a

mechanical arm flung forward, narrowly missing her face. She sighed and heard

giggles from the far end of the hall. Both she and Bancroft looked up to find

Jahallah and her small entourage watching intently. She made a mental note to

change her locker combination, again. Perhaps she would rig her own trap this

time.

"Friends of yours?" he asked, thumbing toward the girls.

"Yeah, we're best buds." She turned back to her locker and exchanged two of

the textbooks from her bag.

"I met Jahallah over the summer when we first moved here from Morunfell;

she lives down the street from me. She kinda liked me and I told her I had a

girlfriend back home. She didn't take the rejection very well. After that she

wasn't so nice to me, either." He stopped talking when Khaly just stared at him.

"So, we should talk about when we can get together. I would like to get started

on our plan right away."

Khaly gave him a quick up and down. "Tomorrow, after class, we can get

together and figure out what our project is going to be. Then I'll write up the

proposal."

"Okay, tomorrow after class. Where should—"

Turning abruptly, she walked away from him before he could finish his

thought.

"All right then, I'll meet you right here."

Khaly picked up her pace to get around the corner faster.

"It was nice meeting you."

She heard him shout after her, but she made no attempt to respond. Khaly

readjusted her backpack and hustled to her next class.

CHAPTER THREE

AFTER A WEEK OF HALLWAY locker meetings, Khaly and Bancroft decided to meet at

Khaly's house. Bancroft showed up at six p.m., as promised. She wasn't

fond of the idea of having anyone from school in her home, but after she found

out where Bancroft lived this was a more agreeable location.

She was beginning to like her partner more by the minute. He was proving his

competence in mechanics, and he had extremely good instincts with software. It

looked like she wouldn't have to do everything alone this time. They sat on the

back porch, reviewing the proposal she put together the week before.

Bancroft agreed with the majority of her setup, but had some adjustments he

wanted to make, other ideas of where they could improve the project. She was

intrigued by the fact he actually offered to help.

The sliding door opened and her father came out. "So, I hear you're new at

Pifianka Academy," he said as he put down a tray of snacks.

"Yes, sir," Bancroft said. "I don't much like the people though…except for

Khaly, of course." He flashed her a smile, and she refrained from rolling her

eyes.

"Well, I'm sure Khaly can introduce you to her friends." He smiled and patted

his daughter on the shoulder. Khaly cast her eyes down. "She's made so many

since we moved here last year." Khaly hoped the silence would tell her father he

needed to leave. "Well, I'll let the two of you get back to work."

Bancroft smiled back and watched as her father returned to the house. When

the door closed behind him, Bancroft spoke, "I take it he's unaware of the pranks

that take place at school."

"What part of the proposal did you want to change?" She quickly diverted the

subject.

Bancroft watched her closely. "Where did you move from?"

Khaly sighed inwardly. She knew he meant well, but she really didn't want to talk about herself. "I think we should just work on the project." She poked her

pencil at the papers in front of her.

"All right." He turned to his bag, pulling out a folder with drawings of robed

men with outstretched arms and balls of light coming from their hands. Khaly

squinted to get a better look but Bancroft opened the folder, denying her further

exploration. He riffled through a number of rough sketches she couldn't make

out. Then he produced several pages of scribbled notes.

"Here it is. I think we should make something different from what everyone

else is making." He waved his papers as he spoke. "Everyone is designing a

standard robot or self-flying contraption. I'm assuming that's what was covered

last semester?"

Khaly pursed her lips in agreement, nodding fervently.

"Right. So, I've been working on plans over the summer break. Just after I

took my aptitude tests and found out I was coming to the Academy, I did some

research on the school. A friend of my dad's also attended, so I talked to him

about what it was like and he told me we would be making our own creations.

He and his partner had made this spider thing; he showed me pictures and it was

pretty cool. So I thought I would get a jump on working out a project. I love

drawing and all that stuff. I'm pretty good with the software end of things, as

well. I heard you got top marks in mechanics, and I was so stoked when I found

out we would be working together. You know, you can build and I can program."

Bancroft was starting to talk more quickly as he went along.

Khaly was amused by his excitement, but also slightly annoyed at his trailing

off topic.

"When I read your proposal about building a robot with wings, I thought it

was cool but too close to what everyone else would be doing. So, I made some

adjustments to my original drawings and worked out a new part of the proposal.

Just the part explaining what we intended to make."

"That would be seventy percent of my proposal." Khaly was annoyed and did

nothing to hide it.

"You're right, and I'm sorry, but I think this new plan will blow everyone else

out of the water." He was still waving his paperwork around, so Khaly finally

reached up and snatched it. "Sorry about my handwriting—"

She stared at Bancroft, giving a silent command to stop talking. As she made

her way through his papers she thought he was right to apologize; his hand

writing was atrocious. But then her eyebrows shot up in surprise. She gaped up

at him and he smiled widely.

"You want to make a dragon?"

"Yeah. I think it would be amazing. We can program it to fly and breathe

water!"

"Water? What kind of dragon would breathe water?" Her brow crinkled with

confusion.

"None that I know of, but it's so obvious it would breathe fire. So, if it was

water instead, no one would ever expect it." His grin was wider than before.

"And you made this over the summer?" She was impressed despite still being

some-what mad he had changed everything.

"Not exactly, no. I drew a lizard, but when I saw your idea of adding wings I

thought a dragon would be perfect. I just added in the water thing a couple days

ago. I had a dream you were standing on a hill, with a little creature on your

shoulder. It had wings and a long, pointy tail. It was a shade of silver blue, and

glistened in the light. When I woke up I had to write it down. I thought then of

how perfect it would be to add wings—it would only take a little tweaking—and

then make the tail more pointy." Bancroft shuffled through the thin tissue paper,

placing the drawings on top of each other to reveal a hidden image.

Khaly didn't think his smile could get any wider. She looked down at the

drawings, which were remarkable, but she was thinking about something else he

said.

"You had a dream about me?" Her eyebrow quirked in mild interest.

"Uh…no…not you, per se. Uh…well, maybe it was you. It was dark, you

know, like a silhouette."

Noting his extreme discomfort she decided to let the topic go. "I thought you

were a software guy?" She looked back down at the drawings. "These are

unbelievable."

"Thanks. I love to draw, always have. I'm not great at drawing schematics,

though. I mean, I can hold my own, but when it comes to making blueprints for a

project I'm not so great." He shrugged, as if embarrassed.

"That's okay. I'm pretty good at that. I'll take these," she said, shuffling

together the thin sheets of paper and reaching for the remainder of his proposal.

"Then I'll rewrite the proposal."

"You don't like how I wrote it?" The look on his face and tone of voice

showed his annoyance.

Khaly looked up at him, taken aback. "No, it's not that. Your handwriting

makes it really hard to read. So I'll rewrite it before handing it in. And I thought

I would take the drawings to start working out the inner mechanics of the

device."

"Right, sorry. Of course." He waved his hand dismissively.

"I mean, it is twenty percent of our grade."

"No, you're right."

She slowly ran her eyes over the drawings once again, eyebrows coming

together as she drifted deep into thought.

"What is it? Do you want me to change the design?"

"Hmm?"

"Your face is saying you're not too happy with the drawing."

"Well, I'm just not sure how to get it to breathe water." She looked up at him,

completely confused.

"From the air." He shrugged, as if it were obvious.

"The air? How would that work?"

"Make it pull moisture from the air."

"Seriously?" Khaly was still perplexed. "I have no idea how to do that."

"We have a year. Plus, if we can't figure it out, we can change the plans two

months before it's due. That should give us enough time to work things out.

Besides, I think the water breathing will fall mostly to the programming end of

things."

"Hmm." Once again she turned back to the drawings.

"So…"

"Okay, I'll try to figure something out. I need to design the mechanics first.

There's no guarantee our proposal will be accepted, anyway. We may not even

get to do this dragon."

"True, but that's not what I was going to say."

Khaly looked up at him. "What were you going to say?"

"Why did you tell your dad you have a bunch of friends?"

"Why do you care?"

"It's not that I care, I'm just curious is all."

Khaly clenched her teeth.

Bancroft shifted, uncomfortable. "Look, I'm sorry if I touched a nerve. I was

just curious."

She looked down at her pants and picked at a loose thread. Letting out a sigh

she said, "My dad doesn't need to know the kids at school all hate me. He has

enough to worry about."

"I'm sure they don't all hate you."

Khaly's nose crinkled, as if she smelled something sour.

"What? There are a lot of kids at that school."

"There are exactly two hundred and seventy-eight students, and two hundred

and seventy-seven hate me. Thanks to Jahallah Allmond."

"Two hundred and seventy-six." He smiled at her. "Who has two thumbs and

doesn't hate you?" he said, grinning wider and pointing his thumbs toward

himself. "This guy."

Khaly gave him a blank stare. Bancroft wiggled his thumbs and eyebrows, still

wearing a goofy grin.

"You're so weird," she said, shaking her head and stifling a laugh.

  CHAPTER FOUR

ON KHALY'S EIGHTEENTH BIRTHDAY, HER father pulled her out of school early so they

could share some father-daughter time. They spent the day together every

year, regardless of what was happening in their lives, but this year was different.

"Why do we have to go into the lab today, Father?" she whined. Arledge was

making her father's life miserable and she no longer found pleasure in going to

the lab.

"I need to check on just one project then we can go. I promise it won't be

more than a few minutes."

Dragging her feet, Khaly glanced through the laboratory windows as they

passed by. Not everyone in the building worked on robots; some worked on new

medicines and trying to find cures for whatever ailed the common man.

When they finally reached to the Robotics Department he turned to her. "Wait

here. I'll be right back."

Khaly nodded, her attention transfixed by some plans laid out on one of the

tables. She looked around to see if anyone was nearby and, seeing the coast was

clear, she slipped into the empty lab.

Blueprints of one of the lab's new projects. Her father mentioned they were

moving away from mechanical men now they had worked out the sensory issues.

The issues she had fixed, unbeknownst to them, two months prior. Her fingers

traced over the outlines of the design.

She squinted. "It's a bird," she whispered to herself. "No…" She studied it

harder, tracing her fingers along the outer lines. The sketch was rough, but her

eyes widened with the realization of what it was. "It's a dragon." Khaly clenched

her jaw and gritted her teeth. "I can't believe this."

Looking closer, she took in the calculations for the dimensions. Although the

design appeared to be the same as Bancroft's, it was missing important aspects.

The motherboard and sensors were placed incorrectly, the wrong gears were being used, and the tail didn't have proper balance. This design would never

work, would never fly. There wasn't even an exoskeleton. The question was,

who had really come up with this design? She continued to trace the design on

the blueprint, looking for the name of the draftsmen, when her father stormed in.

"Khaly!" His voice echoed through the room.

"I-I'm sorry. I just wanted—"

He stomped toward her. "You know better. I've told you time and time again

to keep your hands off everything in the lab." Keeping his voice low he dragged

her out by her elbow.

"But, that design—it's the same as my school project," she said, trying to

explain.

"Nonsense! Arledge brought in that design several months ago. Long before

you were given your assignment," he said, still keeping his voice low so as to

not attract unwanted attention.

"I'm telling you, it's Bancroft's design!"

When they were finally clear of the building he turned to her. "Khaly, I love

you with every ounce of my being, but I'm already under review for the last

stunt you pulled."

"I was only trying to help. Besides, what did I do that was so bad?"

"Khaly, you broke into the lab, changed the design schematics, and replaced

the old CPU with a completely new one."

"Nobody saw me. You only found out because you caught me coming home

and I confessed." She shrugged, with a playful smile.

"You're not as smart as you sometimes think, daughter." Khaly furrowed her

brow, confused, so he continued. "You left several of your tools behind, and

Arledge found them the next day."

Surprised, Khaly made no sound and only mouthed an, oh.

"He filed a formal complaint, stating you were trying to sabotage his work,

which is why you are no longer allowed in the laboratory."

She opened and closed her mouth in shock. Why had he not told her?

"But, Father, I'm telling you, that's not Arledge's design."

"You two are not the first people to have considered building a dragon. This

idea is not a new one, and that kind of design is certainly not new either. Do you think I wouldn't have checked on such a thing? I've seen your design plans,

Khaly, and fire-breathing isn't the only difference between the two."

Khaly didn't know what to say. Her face was flush with heat, and she was

certain it was as red as a beacon. "I'm sorry. I guess I never thought of that."

"Come on, Khaly. Let's go. I'll take you back to school." Her father started

down the street.

Khaly jogged to catch up. "But it's my birthday. We always spend my birthday

together."

"I, unfortunately, have work to do. I was speaking to my boss. It seems they

have a few things for me to take care of before the end of the week." He paused,

his features softening as he looked at her. "I'll make it up to you."

There was something in his voice that concerned Khaly, and felt it reverberate

from him. He was afraid. Whatever was happening at work, it had him stressed.

She didn't want to add to his anxiety.

"I understand, Father." She took his hand. "We'll do something this weekend."

He smiled down at her and, cupping her face, kissed her on the forehead

before again starting down the road.

As soon as her father dropped her off Khaly found Bancroft in the cafeteria,

talking with a few other students.

"Hey, Khaly. I thought you were going—"

"We need to talk." She glared down at him. "Now."

"Uh, okay." He stood up, throwing his bag over his shoulder and grabbing his

tray. "See ya later," he said, addressing the table.

Khaly was already halfway out of the room when he put his tray back. He

jogged to catch up, and when he rounded the corner she turned on him.

"You told me the dragon was your design!"

"What?" His brow furrowed in confusion.

"The dragon. You said you designed it over the summer."

"I did."

"Then how come I just found the exact same design on blueprints in my father's lab?" She was jabbing him repeatedly in the chest with a finger.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Khaly was jabbing so fast he had no time to respond to her accusations or to

try and knock her finger away. "Who. Did. You. Get. Those. Drawings. From?"

With each word she poked harder.

"Ouch!" Bancroft finally grabbed her wrist, only to catch a slap from her other

hand. "Dang, girl! Look, I don't know what you're talking about. Like I said, I

created a lizard over the summer then, when I saw your winged man, the idea of

the dragon came to me. Now, if I let you go, will you stop poking and slapping

me and talk about this rationally?"

"Fine," she said, yanking her hands away.

"All right, let's go out to the yard and sit. You tell me what the heck is going

on," he said, rubbing the spot she had been trying to bore through. "I think that's

going to leave a bruise," he said, following her outside.

"You'll live," she said over her shoulder.

They both took a seat on a bench. Bancroft dropped his bag on the ground.

"Okay, talk me through whatever you were being hysterical about."

"I was not being hysterical."

"You were, trust me," he said, rubbing his chest to emphasize the point.

"My father took me to his lab today, and on one of the tables there was a

sketch of our dragon. A rough sketch, but what it was couldn't be mistaken."

"Well, I'm telling you, our dragon is my design."

"Then how did it get into my father's lab?"

"I only showed my drawings to one other person. My dad's friend, Arly."

"Arly?" Khaly narrowed her eyes.

"Yeah, Arly Askey. He and my dad have been friends for years."

"Arledge?"

Bancroft shrugged. "Yeah, I guess, but I've only ever known him as Arly." His

brow furrowed. "Are you saying he stole my designs? Why would he do that?"

"Because he is beyond inept."

"Maybe we should talk to Mr. Metayer and let him know. See what he says.

He might have some suggestions."

"No, we can't do that," she said.

"Why not?"

"Because, if you haven't noticed, when it comes to Robotics, Vlarlee is a small town. If we tell Mr. Metayer about the dragon, it might get my father into

trouble."

"Well, don't you think they're going to notice anyway?"

"Like my father said, we aren't the first people to come up with the idea. But

if we bring it to their attention it could get my father in trouble and, well, there

are a few differences between the dragons."

"What kind of differences?"

"I only got a quick look, and it was in rough shape for a final approved draft,

but from what I could see their dragon has a larger, sturdier housing cage, which

will make it heavier. The shape and size of the wings are larger, the head is

wider, and the tail is a different length with no inner gears to make it move.

Also, theirs is a fire-breather."

"That was a quick glance?"

She shrugged.

"Okay, then, business as usual?" Bancroft asked.

"I guess so, yeah." She watched as he sat back on the bench, rubbing his chest.

"Sorry about the poking." She gave a weak smile.

"And slap. You slapped me, too."

"Yes, I'm sorry I slapped you." Khaly nudged him. They'd now been working

together for three months and had become virtually inseparable. He was like a

brother to her, and she his sister; she finally felt like she was home. Khaly didn't

realize how much she had truly missed having friends.

She turned sideways on the bench to face him when she caught movement

from the corner of her eye. Khaly turned her head and sighed. "Man."

"What?" Bancroft sat up, following her gaze. "Great."

"Hi, losers." Jahallah and her friends strolled into the clearing. "Get kicked out

of the building? Your stench finally get you banished?" Her friends giggled.

"Clever," Khaly said. "Come up with that all on your own or did you use your

collective brain among the four of you?"

"Did she just call us stupid?" one of the girls asked.

"Well, if you have to ask." Khaly shrugged.

"Whatever, loser." Jahallah shoved her way past her three friends, but they stood glaring at Khaly and Bancroft. "Come on!" Jahallah yelled. The three girls

scrambled to catch up.

"How did they get into this school?" Bancroft asked. "I mean, they barely

keep up with any of the assignments."

"One, or both, of their parents are alumni. Sad, really, but what can you do?"

Khaly stood, holding out a hand to Bancroft. "Let's go. I'm starving. I never

actually got to have my birthday lunch with my father."

"I was eating lunch and you made me throw it out," he said, taking her hand as

she heaved him off of the bench.

"I'll buy you a cookie, then."

He smiled. "Raisin nut?"

"Yes, raisin nut."

  CHAPTER FIVE

KHALY STARED AT THE INNER workings of the dragon. The gears spun, quietly

ticking. She was trying to work out the issues she was having with the most

important component of the project. Bancroft was lying on her bed, staring at the

ceiling as if deep in thought or sleeping with his eyes open. Something he did

with increasing frequency over the last three months, ever since Khaly told him

about the dragon at her father's lab.

"What if we just made it respond to voice commands?" she offered, not

pulling her eyes away. "I'm really close to getting the wings to work, and the

exoskeleton nanites are about done. I'm sure that alone would get us a high

grade." She spun on her chair to face Bancroft, who still lay on the bed as if

unable to hear. "Hello? Usmiri to Bancroft?" She waved her hands over his face.

As if a bucket of cold water had been thrown on him, Bancroft sat straight up,

eyes wide. "What!" Frantic, he looked around. "What? What happened?"

"Are you okay?" Khaly slowly moved toward him, her hand outstretched.

Recognition crossed his face, and he relaxed as