Penny and the Dragons #5
Episode five: Sedition.
Hugo stood on the island, still holding Penny, who was traumatised and freezing cold, but otherwise okay.
As a crowd began to gather to see what happened, Penny felt ashamed. She wouldn’t know if all the men would be okay for some time.
“We can’t find Shrimpy,” yelled a man, who was searching for any more survivors onboard.
“Oh no, he must have been thrown overboard,” cried Penny.
Nobody said a word. They knew that rescuing him from the ocean was most likely impossible now, as the boat was already out a fair way before it was hijacked, so he could be anywhere in a large radius.
In that moment, Penny wished that it was her that was thrown off the boat instead, but she was alive, and she hated that she would have to live with the guilt.
Two men carried a bodybag off the boat that contained the man who was attacked by the blue dragon. Clearly, no mercy was offered by the little fearsome creature that now stood beside Hugo. Yet another dragon now didn’t want to leave Penny’s side.
A victorious shout radiated through the air, as Coral let out an unimaginable sound, before flapping her wings twice, and landing on the shore.
“She saved me,” Penny said to Hugo, “both these dragons saved me.”
Coral twinged and jerked several times.
“Is that normal?” asked Penny.
“Um, I don’t think so,” said Hugo.
Coral gagged, and extended her head three or four times. All of a sudden, a sticky mass shot out of her mouth; it was the man that had poisoned all the men, and he was still alive.
One of the staff wasted no time; he rushed over, lifted the man up and yelled, “What poison did you use?”
The criminal was still getting his bearings, when suddenly, Coral gagged again.
“What is it, Coral,” asked Penny, as she stood up and walked towards her dragon friend.
Once again, Coral moved her head in the same way as she had before. Out of her mouth, shot a person that was curled in a tiny ball.
Hugo ran over to find out who it was.
“Shrimpy?” asked Hugo as he helped him stand.
Shrimpy was extremely wobbly on his feet but seemed to be okay.
“One is safe,” cried Penny, who hoped desperately that the other men could be saved as well.
“Well, Coral,” said Hugo, as he placed a hand on the side of her head, “You have surprised us again.”
“She’s a heroine,” said Penny, with tears in her eyes.
A couple of days passed, and Penny sat in an auditorium, feeling rather small. Both her feet were firmly planted on the floor in front of her, and she sat up straight, trying to make a good impression, while holding a shoe box filled with fuzzlepuffs, as her little friend had since been blessed with 12 babies.
Across from her sat a panel of men, who had already been debating her strange situation for almost an hour. Penny had sat quietly, and Hugo had said very little, but was sitting at her side.
Leroy, one of the head honchos, who thankfully was almost due for a visit anyway, but who had been called in a week early, sat with a frustrated expression on his face as he stared at Penny, who felt more awkward as each moment passed. Leroy was a short, stout man, with grey, tufty hair, and a slight limp.
Finally Leroy addressed Penny, “Well, miss, what do you have to say about all of this?”
“I… I’m sorry,” she said.
“Sorry for stowing away to get out here, or sorry for putting a whole boat load of men in danger by not leaving?”
“Um.”
“Hang on a second,” said Hugo as he stood up, “Can we please not forget that Penny was on board with 19 men and two criminals, and she was the only one still standing at the end of it?”
“What are you saying?”
“She has dragon protection running through her blood.”
“She caused…” started Leroy.
“She caused nothing,” said Stellium as he entered the room, carrying several folders, which he plonked down in front of the men, and continued talking, “Leroy, the blue dragon…” then he paused, before forcing himself to continue, “The blue dragon is extremely special.”
Leroy laughed, “It’s a Jummblesnuff, it’s not much more important than a shoebox full of fuzzlepuffs,” he said as he pointed at the box that Penny was holding.
“Actually, that’s not true.”
“Oh yeah,” said one of the men, “I haven’t been brought a chunk of grass in a while.”
Of course, what he was referring to is that Jummblesnuffs, while slightly snappy, were also rather puppy like in their demeanour. One thing they loved doing, was bringing random items to people, such as chunks of grass, pieces of limestone… and sometimes even fuzzlepuffs.
“Look…” said Stellium, “ I understand what you mean, however, this Jummblesnuff is different.”
“How so?”
“Well… aside from the white stripe down it’s back which is odd, I mean, usually they don’t have a stripe.”
“Get to the point, Stellium,” said Leroy.
“It’s just that this has been classified… very classified.”
“Is it special enough to protect it from euthanasia?”
“Euthanasia? Since when do we kill dragons? That Jummblesnuff is a hero.”
“Who ate a man.”
Stellium paused for a moment before talking, “Well if the dragon’s life is in danger anyway, then what’s the point trying to protect the information? Firstly, he didn’t eat a man… he ate a criminal, who was in prison for slaughtering several Jummblesnuffs. It was not a mindless killing, it was revenge. On top of that, this particular Jummblesnuff, will not bring you a Fuzzlepuff.”
“No? What will it bring you? A human head?” laughed Leroy.
“Can I please talk to Leroy alone?” asked Stellium.
The others obliged, and once the room had been cleared, Stellium walked over and placed a rather large chunk of something on the table in front of Leroy.
“G… Gold?” stuttered Leroy.
“Yeah, the dragon is pretty good at finding stuff like that. We are trying to train it out of it so as to protect it. This is why they wanted the dragon.”
Leroy picked up the chunk of gold, stood up, and said, “I have no time for this meeting. Send her back to the mainland.”
“Just a minute,” said Stellium, “without Penny, this dragon would have been lost forever.”
“No, it’s her fault things went that way.”
“Leroy, the men took an opportunity. It was just a matter of time. This trip… the next one. What would it matter. Penny is the only reason that all the men came back… and thanks to being able to interrogate the co-conspirator, we identified the poison, and as of this morning, I can finally confirm that all of the men will probably make a full recovery.
“None of this matters, Stellium. She is a female, she can’t be here.”
“Well then, I guess it’s a good thing for Penny, that the dragons won’t let her leave. Are you brave enough to go up against Coral?” asked Hugo as he walked back into the room.
Leroy’s expression dropped, “What’s next… hmm, do you wan’t to bring her mother out here too?”
“Well, if Penny ever wants to see her mother again, you might have to… or let Coral take a day trip,” laughed Stellium.
“No. I won’t stand for this,” said Leroy.
“I didn’t want to do this, but Leroy, I’m relieving you of duty,” said Stellium.
“On what grounds?” barked Leroy.
“Suspected insanity.”
Hugo said nothing, but he was glad to see Leroy knocked down a few pegs.
“Stellium, how long are you going to keep me here,” barked Leroy, as he sat on a medical bed in a hospital room. He had no choice but to comply.
“As long as it takes to clear you for duty.”
“Look, that little girl showing up here, is no reason to stage a coup. She must be taken back to the mainland.”
“This isn’t about her,” said Stellium, “this is about you and the dragons. First of all, you are not thinking clearly about the needs of the dragons, and your attitude towards Mr Snuffles, is not something I feel comfortable with.”
“Mr Snuffles? Stellium, have you lost your mind? It’s just a dragon.”
“This is why I relieved you of duty, Leroy. You have become a danger to the dragons, and the whole island.”
“That is not your call to make.”
“In fact, it is, in this area, I outrank even you.”
“How dare you Stellium, you have overstepped to a point that you will be removed from your station. Keeping a female on the island, goes against everything that we stand for. It’s you that needs to be relieved of duty, and the girl will be sent home after signing appropriate documentation.”
“Again Leroy, the reason that she can’t be sent home, is because Coral will be placed at risk. Coral does not understand that the mainland is not safe for her, so she will follow Penny home. This is a new situation, but the dragons must be put first. Your rulings would put, not just these two dragons in harm’s way, but could jeopardise the anonymity of this island and also the others.”
“Have you gone mad, Stellium.”
“No… I already was, but you, Leroy, are being placed under suspicion of conspiring with the criminals. Your psych evaluation from today, will be added to my previous notes.”
“You can’t do this,” said Leroy, as his face turned red.
“Actually, I can,” said Stellium, before ringing a bell.
In walked two burley characters, to escort Leroy to a holding facility.
An entire week passed, and from Penny’s standpoint, not much had changed. She’d been able to see Coral a few times, mainly as the island staff became sick of Coral trying to break into the guest lodge, but other than that, she really hadn’t done much at all. Behind the scenes, however, was a completely different story.
That morning, the last of the island representatives had finally arrived; one from each of the twelve islands, including Hugo from this island, who was lucky to be chosen, when by rank, they should have chosen someone else. A meeting was about to be held, that Penny knew nothing about.
“Order, order, can I please have order,” said the man who was acting as a temporary judge. His name was Bronson and he was also the representative of the seventh island.
Hugo had been called to speak first, and he stood awkwardly in front of a panel.
“Well, Hugo,” said Bronson, “Things certainly have been shaken up in recent times.”
“I guess you could say that. But there is also much we can learn from all of this.”
“And, what might those things be?”
“Penny is… well, let’s just start there okay, because we are all thinking heavily about this conflict of interest… but Penny is not just a random kid. Penny has dragon protection, running through her veins. Some of you are aware that her father died while protecting dragons. He was my brother, and as I held him, while he was taking his last breath, he made me swear that his unborn child, who he assumed would be a boy, would get to join this team.”
“But clearly, he was wrong,” replied Bronson.
Hugo continued, “Correct, but his heritage is here. It is as if something other than Penny, brought her here. I chose her closest male friend, as a substitute for Penny, and I had no idea that she had stowed away on board, but… what if this was meant to happen? What if Penny is more a part of this place than even you are?”
“Meant to?”
“And… isn’t it really just a matter of time before the islands must be opened up to women? Look at the state of the world, times are changing.”
“This is not about feminism, Hugo, this is about the fact that women are not safe around dragons.”
“With all due respect, Penny kept herself safe, saved the lives of a boat full of men, rescued a dragon, and co-ordinated two dragons in the process. Penny was the only person still standing as the boat docked, and next to her stood the dragon that the criminals had tried to steal. I think she is a true example of just how strong women can be.”
The men on the panel spoke amongst themselves for a moment.
“Thank you Hugo. The panel now calls, Quinton, the representative from island one.”
“Thanks for having me,” said Quinton, “I don’t have much to say, except that I am against such changes occurring on the island.”
“Please state your reasoning.”
As each man was called before the panel, the opinions differed vastly, from feeling that traditions must be upheld, to believing that the old ways were outdated. Finally, the last representative was called. His name was Neo, and he was the representative for the twelfth island. He was called lastly, as he was older than the others and had achieved the highest rank.
“Thank you for having me,” said Neo, “As Hugo is aware, I have had the pleasure of spending time with Penny’s father. He was a kind man that cared so much about our dragon friends. His death was a blow to all of the islands, as his determination was second to none. What he achieved on his final day on this planet, is worthy of all of our respect, and hearing about how Penny acted the other day, made me feel like he is still alive. Yes, Penny’s father certainly lives in her.”
Silence fell on the room as they sat for a few minutes, contemplating his words.
Finally Bronson spoke, “So Neo, what is your opinion for how we should proceed?”
“We have all known, for many years, that coming and going to the island, presents many risks, as it creates opportunities for things such as what happened here the other day. Men, you all miss your wives… your children, and so, your sacrifice of being away from them, is not a small thing… but it is for that reason that we all must head back to the mainland, which means that we must alternate staff, and hence have, at very least, double the staff we would otherwise need.”
“What are you suggesting?”
“Bring the wives out to the island,” said Neo.
There were several gasps around the room.
“I’m serious. For many men, if their wives were here, they would hardly need to leave the island at all.”
“What’s next? Should we allow hundreds of children to roam the island as well?” barked Quinton.
“Order, can we please have order,” said Bronson.
“I understand that this is a big change. I’m not suggesting opening a school here. Perhaps if a couple has a child, they could move back to the mainland until it has grown. But you have to admit, that such a change does solve some of the problems we have been having over the years,” said Neo.
Bronson thought for a moment, then said, “Fewer boats, fewer staff. Hmm. It certainly has it’s good points.”
“Penny has proven that women can stand up to these dangers. This is all before I even get to the point that we have NEVER seen dragons interact the way they do with Penny. No man has ever been protected by a Sheeking… nor a Heeking for that matter.”
“Thank you, Neo. We will now adjourn with you and the selected members, for deliberation. Though, may I please ask… where the heck is Leroy.”
Stellium laughed, “Um, he’s still being assessed for insanity.”
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