American Dragon (Season One)

Chapter/Episode 18: Return of the Slayer

Eighteen year old Haley Long held her breath as she held a white envelope in her hands. Her parents, Jonathan and Susan, and her only friend, Leah Belden, were in front of her, eager looks on their faces. "Go ahead and open it, Haley..." Susan urged.

"But what if they refused me?" Haley asked.

"What if they accepted you?" Leah countered. "The only way you're going to find out if you got in is if you open it..."

"Fine..." Haley grumbled, ripping open the envelope and sliding the piece of paper into her hand. Dropping the torn envelope onto the ground, Haley unfolded the envelope, looking at it for a few minutes, doing nothing else.

In fact, Haley was taking such a long time looking at the letter, that Jonathan prompted: "Well?"

Hearing her father speak, Haley let loose a small grin, and she lowered the letter. "I got in!"

"Haley, that's great!" Leah exclaimed. "You know what that means? That means that we're going to the same college!"

LINE BREAK

The door to the Long house opened, and both Haley and Leah walked out of the house, Haley closing the door behind them. The two girls then walked down the steps and turned, walking down the sidewalk.

However, if they had stayed, and looked up, they might have seen someone on the roof of the Long house; someone dressed in a dark-red ninja uniform. A Huntsclan member...

BLACKOUT; PLAY THEME SONG

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

"There it is, Haley..." Leah exclaimed, wonder in her tone as she and Haley stood in front of a large building, which was about four stories tall, had big wooden doors and had older students walking to and from them. "...The school we'll be attending next year. Our college. It's beautiful, isn't it Haley?"

Haley, who was also staring at the college, couldn't help but have a disappointed look on her face. She really did not want to go to this college, but it was the only one that had accepted her, and she had to be thankful for that.

"Haley?" Leah repeated.

"Oh!" Haley returned back to the actual world, rather than the world in her head. "Yeah...I guess it is..."

Leah's bright face seemed to darken, and the girl looked down at the ground. When Haley noticed this, she felt like she needed to say something, but before she could, Haley could feel a vibrating feeling coming from her jeans pocket, followed by a ringing sound. Sighing, Haley reached into her pocket, pulling out her communication device, just as a holographic image of Sun Park appeared.

"Yes, Sun?"

"Haley, I need you to come to the shop..." Sun ordered. "There is a dragon emergency..."

LINE BREAK

When Haley entered Canal Street Electronics, she was surprised to see Sun sitting next to a large female goblin, who was crying hysterically. Fu Dog was on the counter, trying to cover his ears in an attempt to block out the annoying blubbering of the goblin's wails. Sun herself looked a little annoyed, and she turned her head towards Haley when she heard the bell above the door ringing.

"Aw, you made it here in perfect timing..." Sun smiled slightly.

"What's going on?" Haley walked over to Sun and the goblin.

"Oh, American Dragon!" the goblin managed to say in-between sobs. "You must help me! My kitten has run off!"

"Your kitten?" Haley asked, not believing her ears. Sun had said that this was a magical emergency, when the only thing she was going to be doing was searching for some stupid cat!

"Yes!" the goblin made out. "She got away last night! I have no idea where she could have gotten to! American Dragon, you have to help me!"

"Uh-huh..." Haley just stared at the sobbing goblin, before turning to meet Sun's gaze. "Sun, can I talk to you...alone?"

LINE BREAK

Sun had followed Haley into the bathroom, and the dragon master walked by Haley as the American Dragon closed the door behind them. "What is it, Haley?" Sun asked.

"You said this was a magical emergency!" Haley suddenly blurted out, failing to keep herself calm. "I rushed down here, abandoning Leah thinking that we had a problem! And what do I have to deal with? Finding a cat! I mean, why should this be my problem? Maybe if that goblin had just closed her door, the cat wouldn't have escaped! If she didn't have the common sense to close her door, why should I have to...?"

"Haley!" Sun cut her pupil off, her voice stern. "We've been through this before. As a dragon, you are a guardian and protector..."

"Alright!" Haley cut her master off, crossing her arms in disappointment. "I understand. I'll find her cat..."

LINE BREAK

Haley sighed, kicking a crumpled soda can away from the sidewalk with her shoe as she walked down the sidewalk in human form, looking for any sign of the goblin's cat. The goblin had given a very detailed description: it was a dark calico, it walked with a limp, and it had a red ribbon tied around its neck instead of a collar. It seemed like a good enough description for Haley, and she thought she could find the animal rather easily.

Haley let out another sigh, reaching into the pockets of her jeans and looking down at the ground as she continued along the sidewalk. However, as she passed by an alley, she stopped in her tracks as her ear picked up the sound of something being knocked over in the alley. Haley took a step backwards and peered into the dark alley.

Shrugging, Haley decided that it was worth a shot. Taking a step into the alley, Haley looked at both walls, looking down at the ground, looking for any sign of the cat. As she took another step in, she heard a screeching sound, and Haley froze. "Gotcha!" Haley whispered in triumph, starting to walk further into the alley, completely unaware of the dark figure standing on the roof of the building to the right of Haley.

"Here, kitty-kitty..." Haley purred out loud, walking deeper into the alley, looking down at the ground just in time to see a dark, small, four-legged creature scurrying passed her. "No, kitty!" Haley almost wanted to mentally kick herself as she found herself trying to reason with the creature, but nonetheless, she continued. "Kitty, I just want to help you..." As she got closer to where the creature had scurried off to, Haley found that the animal cowering against the wall was in fact the goblin's cat.

"Come here..." Haley said softly, crouching down and holding out her arms for the cat. The cat just stared at Haley for a moment, before it walked over to Haley, allowing her to pick up the calico in her hands. Standing up straight, Haley turned around just as the figure dropped from the roof.

However, Haley didn't notice, as she was too preoccupied with the cat in her arms. It was not until Haley could hear the figure's footprints that she looked up, seeing the dark figure advancing toward her. "Who are you?" Haley demanded, setting the cat down.

Haley's question did not get an answer, and as the dark figure took one step closer to Haley, Haley could feel flames engulf her body as she transformed into her pink dragon form. With a battle cry, Haley lifted off of her feet and slammed into the dark figure. The person Haley had just tackled yelled in surprise as they were thrown back, and they grunted in pain as they hit the ground right in front of the wall. "WHO ARE YOU?" Haley demanded again, hoping to intimidate the person.

"Haley, stop!" the person immediately shouted in a female's voice. "Haley, what are you doing? It's only me!"

"Huh?" As she heard these words, Haley loosened her grip on the person, and she slowly found herself getting off of the person and backing up in shock as they slowly got up and brush herself off.

"Rose?"

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL BREAK

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

"Rose?" Haley asked again, too surprised to completely trust her eyes. "Is that really you?" The young dragon could not take her eyes off of the young woman in front of her; Rose had grown up to become a tall and strong-looking, yet skinny girl of 24 years of age. She still wore her Huntsclan uniform that she wore on that fateful day nine years prior, only now it looked about three sizes too small for her. Her luscious golden hair was still in the same braid, only it was now looser, longer and had been slung over her left shoulder, and it had strands sticking out. Basically, Rose looked like she had been sleeping in the dirt, surviving off of half-eaten food from dumpsters and whatever animals she could catch, and had been bathing in a river for nine years. Staring the young huntress down, Haley realized that it was not just her imagination; Rose really was standing in front of her. "Rose?" Haley repeated, as Rose just stared at her, waiting for her to respond. "What are you doing here?"

"Haley..."

"No, I mean really!" Haley cut her off. "You're wanted by the Dragon Council for murder, Rose! If you get caught...or if I get spotted talking to you, do you know how much trouble I could get in? You could go to prison!"

"Haley!" It was Rose's turn to cut the young dragon off. "I know it's risky, but I'm willing to take a chance. I need your help. Jake is missing."

LINE BREAK

"What do you mean he's missing?" Susan Long demanded, sitting down on the couch, hugging her husband's arm, while Sun Park and Fu Dog sat next to the married couple, worried looks on their faces. Rose was sitting in a chair in front of them, while Haley was standing by her side. "What happened?' Susan asked, trying to calm down.

"I'm not sure..." Rose answered honestly. "We usually never left each other's side. But then when we landed yesterday afternoon, he asked me to go find some food; me alone. I figured that he was just tired and needed to rest, so I agreed. Then, when I came back, he was gone..."

"Hmm..." Fu Dog finally opened his mouth. "Are you sure that the kid just didn't wander off and get lost? I mean, surely the kid is capable of something like that..."

While his wife clung onto him, Jonathan felt some relief from the shar-pei's words. Trying to convince himself, he spoke: "Yes, Rose. Fu could have a point. Maybe Jake-a-roo just got a little lost..."

"No!" Rose answered, her tome confident. "I know he just didn't wander off! I wouldn't have come here if I didn't know he was in trouble!"

"How do you know he's in trouble, Rose?" Sun asked.

"This is why..." Rose answered, kneeling down and reaching into her boot. Haley watched curiously as Rose fished around inside the boot before she could tell that Rose had grabbed something. Rose straightened, and Haley could see that was something was in Rose's fist. Slowly, Rose uncurled her fingers, making it so that Haley could see exactly what she was holding: a strip of grey cloth. "Is this proof enough for you?" Rose asked. "Because it is for me. Jake was taken, and he needs help. That's why I came..."

Haley wasn't listening to Rose's last words; she was too busy looking at the cloth in Rose's hand. She knew who it belonged to, and therefore, she knew who possibly had Jake. Haley looked up to look at her parents, who both had looks of confusion of their faces, however, when Haley glanced at Sun and Fu, they both appeared to be thinking the same thing that Haley was.

"Oh boy..." Fu muttered.

"What?" Rose asked. "What is it?"

"Rose, we know who has Jake..." Haley said, making Rose jerk her head toward the American Dragon with wide eyes. "We know who has Jake..." Haley repeated. "And we're going to help you. Sun, you and Fu Dog search for any signs of him. Rose, you come with me."

"Where are we going?" Rose asked.

"To the only person in a higher authority in the Magical World that will be willing to help us..."

LINE BREAK

If anyone was on top of the Empire State Building, they would have heard the sound of rapid flapping, and then they most likely would have run away screaming at the sight of a pink dragon landing on the roof with a young woman on its back.

Rose hopped off of Haley's back as Haley reverted to her human form. "You never told me who you called, Haley..." Rose told the young dragon as Haley walked over the edge, staring out toward the sky. "Perhaps coming to you was a bad idea after all..."

"No, it wasn't..." Haley replied without turning around. "We know who possibly has Jake. Without us, you never would have figured it out, and Jake would have been lost forever..."

Rose was about to open her mouth and say something else, but before she could, she head another pair of flapping wings, and the next thing she knew, a purple dragon was heading for the Empire State Building. "Good." Rose could hear Haley mutter. "She's finally here..."

It wasn't until the purple dragon had landed on the roof and reverted to her human form that Rose recognized the young woman beside Haley. Holly was saying something to Haley that she could not hear. Whatever it was, the message was quick, for right after, Holly turned and smiled as she made her way over to Rose, wrapping her arms around her in a big, tight dragon hug. "Rose, it's so good to see you again!" Holly exclaimed. "It's been so long!" As she said this, Holly let go of Rose and stared her down. "Wow...you've grown..."

"Uh, thanks..." Rose replied, feeling a little awkward. "You as well. And look at you...Dragon Council member!"

"Eh, it isn't as great as I thought it would be..." Holly shrugged as Haley walked over to the two of them. "You did the right thing by contacting me, Haley..."

"You're going to help me?" Rose asked. "But won't you get in trouble with the rest of the Council?"

"Of course I'm going to help you!" Holly exclaimed. "Jake's my friend, and I know you're not a cold-blooded killer, Rose. Besides, most of the other Councilors are already breathing down my back. So, do you have any leads, Haley?"

LINE BREAK

In a dark room, a red dragon groaned as his eyes slowly opened and he lifted his head, taking in his surroundings. The red dragon, the former American Dragon, Jake Long, had grown quite a bit in his nine year absence from his family; he still was a rather thin, snake-like looking dragon, but he had grown strong.

Shaking his head in an attempt to clear it, Jake suddenly realized that he was against a wall, and he realized that his arms were pulled up above his head, shackled to the wall. Growling, Jake tugged at the wall, but even with all of his strength, his shackles refused to give. Growling with frustration instead of anger, Jake was about to try again, but before he could start to struggle, he heard an evil chuckle right in front of him, just as a bright light flashed on. As soon as Jake's eyes got used to the light, he could see a figure in a dark, grey cloak and a woman with a dark blue cloak and a scowl on her face. The dragon and the woman that had captured him...

"I can see it now..." the cloaked dragon chuckled. "The resemblance is uncanny. A very good catch, my slave..." As the cloaked dragon said this, the thief growled, clenching her fists. "It is very fortunate that he stumbled upon us-the American Dragon's older brother. Just perfect!"

"What do you want?" Jake growled, trying to pose himself off as a threat even when chained up.

The cloaked dragon ignored his prisoner to an extent, and he turned to the thief. "The American Dragon will be willing to pay with the Hourglass to get her brother back...I'm certain of it. Now, what I need you to do is go find her and bring her here. Then, we can make the deal. I'll show her that I mean business..."

At first, the thief looked like she was about to comment on the plan, but she refrained herself and simply nodded. "Very well..." she said, turning and walking out of the room.

LINE BREAK

Sun Park landed in the middle of a deserted road, letting Fu Dog off of her back. "So, what exactly are we looking for?" Fu looked up at Sun.

"I'm not entirely sure, Fu Dog..." Sun answered truthfully. "Just look for any sign of Jake or that dragon. See if you can smell anything..."

"I'm afraid that won't be necessary..." a female voice suddenly, and both Sun and Fu Dog looked up to the roof of a nearby building, where the voice had come from. Neither were surprised to see that the person standing on the roof was none other than the cloaked dragon's thief. The thief grinned wickedly as she jumped from the roof, landing on her feet, reaching to her belt and pulling out her futuristic gun, which she pointed at the two.

"Where's the American Dragon?" she demanded.

"She's not here!" Sun growled.

"What a pity..." the thief pointed the gun at the ground and fired, Sun jumping back as the blast hit, blasting chunks of cement out of place. Scowling, Sun removed her gaze from the ground and up to the thief, who was now aiming for her head. "You have thirty seconds to contact her..." the thief warned.

LINE BREAK

Haley and Rose stood on the opposite side of Holly as the young Dragon Councilor held the cloth in her hand. "You're certain that this is the fabric from the dragon's cloak?" Holly asked. "If it is, then the only thing that remains a problem is how you are going to find and rescue Jake."

"I sent Sun and Fu Dog to go out and see if they can find any sign of Jake or the dragon..." Haley responded, just as she could feel a vibrating feeling in her jeans pocket, followed by the ringing. "That should be Sun now..." Haley added as she reached for her communication device, pressing a button. Haley expected to see Sun on the other end, and she let out a gasp as she saw the holographic image of the thief on the other end.

"Hello, American Dragon..." the thief grinned cruelly. "If you haven't guessed by now, you seeing me can only mean one thing: I have your dog and your master. I've also got a very special surprise: we also have your brother. Come meet me on 85th Street to save them, and then I'll take you to your brother..." Then, the image of the thief was gone.

Growling with anger, Haley threw her communication device to the ground, breaking it in two, before she turned to face Rose and Holly. "Come on, Rose..." Haley growled. "We're going. Holly, go back to the Island of Draco and get some back-up. We're going to get those two today..."

LINE BREAK

Rose could sense that Haley was extremely angry as the ex-Huntsclan member rode on the American Dragon's back. They had been flying for about five minutes, and Rose knew they were getting pretty close to 85th Street. "Haley..." Rose gave talking to the young dragon a shot.

"What?" Haley shot back.

"Everything is going to be okay..." Rose tried to tell her. "We'll save them. Just...try to relax, okay?" Just as Rose said those words, she noticed that they were right above 85th Street; Rose tightened her grip on Haley as the young dragon dived to the ground, allowing Rose off as her feet touched the ground. Haley looked out down the street, and she immediately growled when she saw the person she was looking for just below the streetlight, the unmoving Sun Park and Fu Dog, slung over a light-post near the sidewalk.

"Sun! Fu Dog!" Haley exclaimed, Rose's eyes widening with fear for the shar-pei and the Korean Dragon. "What did you do to them?" Haley roared, walking toward the thief with her claws ready to tear into her flesh. Haley wanted to do it, too. They had her brother, and now she had hurt her dragon master and Animal Guardian. Both villains had crossed the line.

"Don't worry, dragon..." the thief grinned, holding her futuristic gun tight in her grip. "...They haven't been slain yet..."

Haley could feel her blood boiling with anger, and she started to think about ways to defeat her foe. However, she was pulled out of her thoughts when she realized that Rose had made her way over to the light-post. The thief noticed this as well, as she gasped in surprise when she saw Rose sprinting over. Haley took this opportunity to attack, and she dived for the thief, but as she landed on her belly, the thief jumped away and ran over to Rose, grabbing onto her foot as the young woman started to climb up the post. Pulling, Rose lost her grip, and she fell onto her back with the thief towering over her. Still, Rose did not give up, and she brought her leg up, trying to kick the thief. However, the thief was ready, and she grabbed onto Rose's ankle and with a great force, swung Rose; Rose lifted off of the ground and she let out a grunt as the thief slammed her against the pole.

The thief released Rose's ankle, and the young huntress dropped to the ground. "Rose!" Haley shouted, spreading out her wings and flapping them, taking her over to the thief. However, the thief only grinned, reaching down and pressing a button on her belt, making to small engines pop out. Fire immediately shot out, and the thief lifted off of the ground as Haley landed right where the thief had just been standing.

"If you want your brother..." the thief grinned. "...Follow me!" Then, the thief sped away.

Haley growled as she looked from Rose, Sun and Fu to the fleeing thief. "Haley..." Haley could hear Rose's weak voice, and the huntress slowly sat up. "Go after her. I'll take care of Sun and Fu."

"I have a better idea..." Haley replied, grabbing Rose by her wrist and swinging her over onto her back as she flew up to where Sun was hanging over the post. "I'm so sorry, Sun..." Haley quickly apologized as she quickly reached into Sun's pocket and pulled out her communication device. Then, Haley flew off after the thief.

BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL BREAK

BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW

The big doors to the Main Hall on the Island of Draco were pushed open as Holly stepped inside, surprised to see that only Councilor Fachtna was sitting at the table, looking at some papers. As the big doors closed and Holly walked closer to the table, Fachtna looked up, his face stern. "Yes, Councilor Jennings..."

Holly sighed as she stopped right in front of the table. "The American Dragon's fugitive brother has been captured by the mysterious dragon that Dragon Long has been trying to stop..." She reported, then felt like a horrible person as she added: "She is going after him with the Huntsgirl. This would be the perfect opportunity to finally capture them..."

"Really?" Fachtna asked, his lips curling into a frown. "And tell me how you know this while I do not..."

"She asked me to tell you..." Holly lied. "She is leading the Huntsgirl into a trap. She needs us to be there..."

Fachtna's frown only got tighter. "I hardly believe that she would set up her own brother. That just sounds too good to be true. If you have no real proof for me, leave me..."

Holly just stood there, not really knowing what to do now. Her mouth was open slightly, but no more words came out. Haley needed reinforcements. She couldn't fail her friends, but it looked like she was going to. Suddenly, before Holly could move, there came a loud ringing noise from her robes. Reaching in, Holly pulled out her communication device, pressing a button that released a holographic image of Haley.

"Holly, we're following the thief!" Haley explained quickly. "She's going to take us to Jake! Unfortunately, there's one more thing I need you to do. Once you get the reinforcements, I need you to go down to 85th Street. Sun and Fu were hurt, but I couldn't help them. I need you to go down there and get them whatever help they need..."

Then, the hologram faded, and Holly lowered her device to see that Fachtna was now looking at her. Holly could feel a smug smile spreading across her face. "Proof enough?"

LINE BREAK

It hadn't taken too long for Haley to find the thief. After she had caught up with the thief, it had basically been a chasing game until the thief dived down and landed in front of a run-down building and ran inside. Haley immediately dived down and swooped into the building, landing on her feet and immediately catching sight of Jake, shackled to the wall. "Rose! Haley!" he exclaimed.

"Jake!" Both Haley and Rose returned, Rose sliding off of Haley's back and making her way over to the shackled dragon.

Suddenly, there came two different shouts, and the next thing Haley knew, she yelled in surprise as something smacked into her chest, and she went flying across the room until she landed on her back, the cloaked dragon lifting to the ground right in front of her, just as the thief came flying into the room with her jet back, slamming into Rose, sending both of them flying across the room.

"Hello, Haley..." the cloaked dragon chuckled. "It's good to see you again. I'm sure you know what I want in exchange for your brother..."

"Yes, I do..." Haley growled as she slowly stood up. "But you're not going to get it. It's on the Island of Draco, in a special location that I can't even get to. You'll never get the Ucrono..."

The cloaked dragon just stood there for a moment; if Haley could see his eyes, she was sure that they would be wide with shock. Suddenly, the cloaked dragon roared with rage, and he lifted off of the ground, blowing fire at Haley. Haley quickly dodged the blast, somersaulting across the floor before she flew up to the dragon. The cloaked dragon growled, and delivered a punch...

Even as Rose was swerving through the room, feeling like she was about to be sick, she refused to not fight. The two delivered punches and kicks, and while Rose was able to avoid all of the thief's, the thief was not as luck. The thief groaned as Rose's fist made contact with her face; as the thief's head lulled to the side, Rose jumped off, landing on her feet as the thief came crashing down to the ground.

Grinning, Rose walked over to the thief and bent over, pulling the futuristic gun from the belt. Rose stood back up and walked over to Jake, pointing the gun at the chains attached to the manacles. After two blasts, Jake lowered his arms and Rose tossed the gun to the side. "Jake!" She exclaimed, starting to extend her arms, for a hug, but Jake stopped her, holding up his claws.

"Not yet..." Jake told her. "Just...wait here..."

Not even waiting for Rose to respond, Jake lifted off of the ground and flew over to where Haley and the cloaked dragon were fighting in mid-air. Just as the cloaked dragon blocked one of Haley's blows, he grunted as Jake slammed into him. The cloaked dragon went flying across the room, but he managed to stop himself, just in time for Jake to blow a torrent of fire right at him.

Thinking quickly, the cloaked dragon brought his arms up to his cloaked face just as the fire hit him. Haley watched as the fire burned through his cloak, the burning pieces of fabric drifting to the floor. Haley returned her gaze from the floating and flaming pieces of cloak back to the dragon, only to gasp. Now that the cloak was gone, Haley could see what the dragon looked like: strong, dark red, a cruel grin on his face...a dark purple Chinese dragon mark on his side. On his back was a strap that had a huntstaff hooked to it. Then, in a flash of dark red light, the dragon faded away, and a person dropped to the ground. This time, Haley was not surprised, although it was Jake's turn to gasp. The person wore a dark red Huntsclan uniform and mask; there was only one person it could be...

"The Hunter..." Haley growled.

"Yes..." The Hunter said, his eyes glowing with glee. "Surprised?" He asked as he turned his head when he heard his thief groaning. "Where do you think you're going?" he demanded as she slowly started to stand and sway toward the door. The Hunter held out his hand toward her, and Haley's eyes widened as the thief's hand started to glow a bright green color, dragging her over to him. As the thief reached him, the glowing stopped, and the thief scowled as The Hunter used his other hand to pull out his staff.

"I will get the Hourglass, dragons..." The Hunter declared. "And once I do, the Huntsclan will return!" Before Haley or Jake could do anything, The Hunter tapped the staff on the ground, and both villains disappeared in a bright green orb of light.

Both siblings could only stand there in shock for the few seconds before the front wall was blasted away, Fachtna and Holly both walking into the room in dragon forms, closely followed by an army of armed and armored dragon soldiers.

Fachtna grinned at the sight of Jake, Rose by his side. "Former American Dragon Jake Long and Huntsgirl..." Fachtna spoke. "You are under arrest for treason and murder. You are both surrounded and have nowhere to run. Why don't you two just surrender?"

LINE BREAK

Haley could hear her mother sniffling as she stood along with her mother and father in the hall of the prison, right in front of and outside the cell that now held Jake and Rose. Sun Park and Fu were also in the hall; Sun had several bruises and she still held an ice-pack to her head, while Fu also had several bruises and also walked with a limp.

"The Council is going to have us executed, aren't they?" Rose asked, crossing her arms as Jake put his arm around her.

"Probably..." Jake answered honestly. "I don't regret saving you, though..."

"I don't regret saving you either..." Rose replied, a small smile appearing on her face despite the circumstances.

"Yeah, but there's still something I just don't get..." Fu finally spoke up. "How did that Huntsclan Dragon catch you, kid?"

"I kind of wandered off after I sent Rose out to get food..." Jake answered slowly after a moment. "I was looking for something, and as I was looking, I came across that old run-down warehouse. Let's just say that that lady caught me by surprise. Then, the next thing I knew, I was locked up."

"What were you looking for?" Haley asked.

Jake didn't answer at first, and Haley thought that Jake wasn't going to. Finally, Jake reverted to his human form and reached into the pocket of his unzipped red jacket that was now too small for him, and he pulled out a chain. At first, Haley was confused, but then she realized that Jake had reached into his pocket again, pulling out something that he handed immediately to Rose.

Rose's eyes widened as she took the item in her hands. It was a piece of metal, the size and shape of a soldier's dog-tag. On the surface was a large "R", a "+", which must have been symbolizing an "and", and then a large "J".

"Rose and Jake..." Jake told her, a loving smile on his face. "I was looking for this chain. I had just found and pocketed it when that crazy lady caught me."

"Oh Jake..." was all Rose could say.

Still, Jake continued. "I love you, and I made this for you. If this is the end, I want you to have it now."

Rose just stared at the dog-tag in her hand with a small on her face. Rose then looked up at Jake, her hand reaching out and taking the chain from Jake's hand. Haley and the others watched as Rose slowly attached the chain to the dog-tag before slipping it around her neck.

"I love you too, Jake..." Rose replied.

No sooner had Rose uttered these words, than a loud clang was heard as the door to the prison chamber closed. Seconds later, Councilor Fachtna arrived, with Holly and Greggy on opposite sides of him. While Fachtna and Greggy looked pleased, Holly looked ashamed.

"Greggy..." Jake growled. "What are you doing here?"

"Didn't anyone tell you?" Greggy grinned cruelly. "I'm on the Council. I'm here to tell my inferior cuz that he and his lady friend are going to fry tomorrow morning..."

"Yes..." Fachtna's smile widened as he got closer to the bars. "You both shall be put to death tomorrow morning..." Then, he added maliciously. "Any last requests?"

"Yeah!" Jake growled. "Why don't you come in here so that the old Am Drag can kick your scaly behind?"

Fachtna's grin only widened. "I don't think so..." He said. "Come Councilors..." He and Greggy then turned and started to walk away, but Holly stayed where she was.

"Councilor, if you do not mind..." Holly spoke. "I'm going to stay here and look after the prisoners. I'll make sure that they will not escape..."

"Very well..." Fachtna didn't even look at her as he and Greggy were walking out. However, as Fachtna and Greggy turned around the corner where they could not be seen, Fachtna turned to Greggy. "Spy on her..." he ordered. "I know she has had a friendly relationship with the two prisoners."

"That's no secret, sir..." Greggy replied.

"Yes, and that is enough for me to kick her off of the Council..." Fachtna scowled. "However, what keeps me from banishing her is the fact that I feel like I need to keep an eye on her. If she is banished, she will without a doubt align with people like Jake Long and the Huntsgirl. Here...I can keep her in check..."

"Yes, sir..." Greggy replied, turning and peeking from the corner as Fachtna turned and continued to walk down the hall.

LINE BREAK

Once she knew she was alone, Holly turned to the Long family, plus Sun and Fu Dog. "Get out..." Holly ordered softly. "I'll handle this. Just go. Everything will be okay..."

Every single member of the family looked like they were about to argue, but nonetheless, they turned and walked down the hall. As soon as the last one had disappeared, Holly turned and looked into the cell, reaching into her robes and pulling out a key. Holly placed it into the lock of the cell door and pushed it open, stepping into the cell.

"This is all my fault..." Holly looked at the ground. "I'm sorry, but Haley said she needed help, and I had to tell Fachtna..."

"It's alright, Holly..." Jake told her softly.

Holly just shook her head. "No...it's not..." Holly finally said. "That's why I'm going to make it right..." As she spoke, she reached into her robes again, pulling out to sets of armor. "These are two guard uniforms. Put these on and get out of here as quick as humanly possible. I can't let you two face execution..."

Holly then turned and walked out of the cell, turning and walking down the corner. "Well, well, well..." Holly suddenly froze in her tracks, and she could feel her heart skipping several beats as she turned around to see Greggy with a big smile and crossed arms. "What a show!" Greggy continued. "You just let two criminals escape..."

LINE BREAK

Haley now stood on the grass in the moonlight along with her family. She couldn't help but listen to her mother's wailing as she and the others could only watch as two armored dragon guards swung two noosed ropes over the branch of the only tree on the island. Haley could feel her heart dropping into her stomach. She couldn't believe it...Her brother was going to be executed...

"I can't believe it!" Susan wailed behind her, making Haley's exact thoughts known to the others. "Our baby boy!"

"It's okay, Susan..." Jonathan was saying, although it was obvious that he was on the verge of tears.

Haley couldn't take it anymore! She had to look away from the sight of what would be the place of her brother's death! Anything would do! Haley found herself turning toward the prison, then gazing up at the moon, only to suddenly gasp as she caught sight of something. A dragon flying into the moonlight. There was another person on his back. Could it be?

"Jake?" Haley asked, bewildered, her question soon answered as she heard a wailing siren ring all throughout the island, even thought it was only coming from the jail.

"Dragon Long!" Haley suddenly turned around as she heard a new voice; an armored guard was walking up to her family. "Dragon Long, your brother and the Huntsgirl have just escaped from their cell."

Despite the fact that there was a guard in front of her, Haley couldn't help but smile. She had been foolish to think that Jake would ever be put down.

It wasn't until the guard had turned and trudged back to the prison did Haley run over to the others and each give them big dragon hugs. After giving Fu the last hug, the entire family, plus Sun and Fu just stood there, smiling.

BLACKOUT; END SEASON

A/N: So that was the season finale. What did you think? Please drop some reviews. As a heads up, Season/Story 2 will be here in June.