Chapter One
The beast lunged, trying to break free of its restraints. Once the tarrasque was large enough, it would escape and the result would be complete destruction. The horned monster would easily smash through the sports dome where Nevin Gooseman was hatching his plans. Then the tarrasque would demolish the city of Dallas with nothing that could possibly stop it.
Nevin Gooseman smiled sadistically to himself.
He had never wanted it to come to this. All his life as a magician, he’d worked to help mortals, building his career as a public servant in their governments. But they’d turned their backs on him—all because of the Dragon Elite.
Now both mortals and dragonriders would pay.
The magic-reinforced chains clanged like giant bells as the tarrasque swung its head from side to side, its anger growing as it came to terms with its confinement. The creature was hideous with a thick orange hide and long curved spikes down its back and tail. On its head and chin were rows of more horns. When it opened its wide mouth to roar, the many rows of knife-shaped teeth were prominent.
Although the monster was considered only half-grown, taking up half the football field of the abandoned sports arena, it would mature quite fast. After securing it, Nevin Gooseman had hired a handler who specialized in rapid maturation of magical creatures.
The ex-politician turned his attention to Clyde Jackson. The man had a rough look and too many narrow escapes from dangerous animals based on the many scars marking his face, arms, and hands. He wore an eyepatch over his left eye and a sniveling grin on his crooked mouth.
“When will it be full grown?” Nevin Gooseman indicated the tarrasque that thrashed in the distance.
Clyde pulled back his arm and snapped the whip in his hand forward. It assaulted the beast and made its head stretch into the air as it arched its back. Bright blue sparks radiated from the magical whip and rained down on the creature, instantly paralyzing it. It fell on its stomach, its head lying to the side as it passed out from the spell.
Apparently the handler would mostly keep the monster asleep. It was safer that way. It was fed once every few days and put back into submission. When it was full grown and filled the entire sports dome, then it would be allowed to stay awake. The creature wouldn’t be fed and therefore, would break free of its prison and thunder through the streets of Dallas where it would undoubtedly feast on the people.
Having decided that the tarrasque no longer demanded his full attention, Clyde turned his focus on Nevin Gooseman. “It’s hard to say. Maybe a few weeks. Maybe a few months. There’s no exact science to this since it relies on magic.”
Nevin nodded and slipped his hands into his jean pockets. He missed the feel of his Italian suits. He missed his old life. That was all yanked away when the Dragon Elite stole everything from him—they’d pinned the outbreak and spread of the distortion disease on him.
He was officially on the run and hoping he could elude the House of Fourteen and mortal law enforcement, which were both looking for him. Nevin fled as soon as the world learned the truth, and went into hiding after draining his bank accounts. He left most of his possessions behind, but what he didn’t, he sold. The resulting sum meant he could buy the broken-down old sports arena in Dallas, Texas.
There hadn’t been much money left over after such a costly investment, but there’d been enough to purchase the last tarrasque in existence. Thanks to Bermuda Laurens, the world-renowned expert on magical creatures, Nevin had known where to look for the beast. Of course, the giantess didn’t know she’d helped him find the animal that would destroy the entire city of Dallas, and hopefully go on to do a lot more than that. She thought she was answering questions for a college student researching magical creatures. People were so thick and talked if they thought it didn’t have any consequences.
That interview with Bermuda Laurens had been more than fruitful. She not only told him where to find the creature, but that it would be too big to stop once it was full-sized. The giantess also gave Nevin information on where to find two other magical and dangerous creatures that would be almost as deadly, and ready sooner than the tarrasque.
“The leviathan and the simurgh?” Nevin questioned Clyde while keeping his focus on the comatose dinosaur-like creature.
“I’m working on tracking them both down based on the information you gave me. It shouldn’t take much longer.”
Nevin nodded, enjoying the feeling of triumph once more. “And when you do, you know where to lead them?”
“They’ll make quite the scene if seen together in the Mediterranean Sea,” Clyde stated.
“That’s exactly the point.” Nevin’s nostrils flared. He knew that the Dragon Elite didn’t stand a chance against the tarrasque when it ventured into Dallas. But maybe, just maybe he had a way of taking them down before then—or at least diminishing their numbers.
His time in isolation, hiding away from the world he once loved, gave him time to strategize. That’s when it occurred to him how to take down dragons. Fight teeth and claws with teeth and claws. He’d been going about it all wrong by using politics. There was always a rebuttal to that. But giant sea creatures and birds and reptiles? Well, the Dragon Elite couldn’t talk their way out of that, and they’d have to come to the rescue since they thought that was their mission—to save the world.
Nevin Gooseman had once wanted to help this planet to be a better place, but it didn’t want to do things his way—and now it was going down. Mother Nature be damned.
“Oh, and I got that thing you wanted.” Clyde reached into his pocket and dug like there were a lot of things in the small compartment. He withdrew a small vial of clear liquid. “This should do the trick.”
“That?” Nevin questioned. “That’s for the entire water supply of Scotland?”
The guy laughed. “If you can believe it.”
“And it will only work on sheep?” Nevin asked.
“Yes, sir,” Clyde Jackson answered. “It’s about genetics and a combination of factors. Cost me pretty heavily since it’s so specialized, which means it’s going to cost you.”
Nevin reached out and yanked the vial to himself. “Put it on my tab.”
The man with the eyepatch nodded, but gave him an uncertain expression.
Nevin wasn’t leaving anything to chance this time. He had multiple ways to bring down the Dragon Elite, and one would work. Then the world could go to hell for all he cared. He was tired of trying to help those who weren’t grateful for it.
Chapter Two
“I think I’m going to wither away and die,” Evan complained with his head lying on the dining hall table and his voice muffled as he spoke.
“If only your predictions were accurate and came true,” Wilder replied, a longing in his voice as he looked off dreamily toward the ceiling, like glancing at the heavens and making a wish on a star.
Evan pulled his head up, one of his dreads falling into his face. “Some of us don’t have stores of fat to live off.”
Wilder scoffed. “I can’t believe you’re calling me fat.”
“I can’t believe that you all are bickering like children,” Hiker thundered from in front of the large fireplace behind his seat at the table, irritation heavy in his every movement.