Cryo the dragon Book 2 Adapting Animal

Prologue

Cryo’s mother, Tide, and Ferrin dragon, had just left her war torn homeworld with her precious child, who was still in an egg. She used a special portal to escape the clutches of a group of warmongering dragons. The portal was destroyed in the jump, along with her lab and all the data.

She woke up on a world where humanity had moved to after earth fell to some cataclysmic event. She was found and tended to by a family of humans. Their names were, Suzy, Greg, and their son, Noble. They tended to Tide and helped her get better, while also keeping her egg safe.

After some time with living with them, she learned to speak with them and told them about her home planet and the plight she witnessed. Greg had plans of revealing her existence to the world, but worried about what could happen if its known she built a portal. But it didn’t take long for things to go sideways.

A massive storm hit the suburbs they were in right as they were going to move out to reveal Tide to a group of biological researchers. Tide’s power prevented the town from being destroyed but, she fell into a deep deep slumber as a result. Even worse, the military had taken interest in the storms dissipation and sent units to find the cause of the massive storms sudden disappearance.

But during that time, the little dragon hatched. With his help, they were able to escape the suburbs and out deep into the mountains. Greg decided it would be best to go into hiding to protect the little dragon and his mother and wait for tide to wake up, so they might be able to find someplace safe to live. They named the little dragon Cryo and got to work taking care of him

A year passed and the little dragon was liking his home and his family. But one day, His big brother, Noble, was running late. Curious as to why he was taking so long, he went to find him at the school. But when he got there, he saw that he was being bullied by some kids there. Getting mad, he soaked the kids with his water breath and Noble quickly take him back home, hoping he wasn’t seen.

The next day, it was Cryo’s first birthday, and he would be taken near a lake deep into the forest. Cryo would play with his big brother and have a birthday feast. Cryo would have a strange dream when he took a nap later, dreaming that the dragons from his home world were trying to take him and his entire family. He woke up and finally got a chance to swim. Unfortunately, it turns out someone did see Cryo when he soaked those bullies. They made a call and the military units showed up and ruined his party. Seeing the military trying to get the info on where he was, Cryo surrendered himself and said one last goodbye to his adopted family before being taken away, leaving heartbroken knowing he’ll probably never see them again…

Ch 1

Depressed Dragon

Cryo was taken to a military research center all the way across the mountains in a region of the planet called Crota (the base was located outside the limits of a city called Midnook Bay near the mountains. The area was in a warmer part of the world, and a much lower elevation than his previous home). The soldiers had allowed him to look through the tinted windows of their armored vehicle the whole time since he gave himself up earlier and was behaving. The trip took quite some time, but they at least kept him in relative comfort while riding. They also made a small bed for him and he took a nap in between the trip as well. As they made it into the city, he was a bit surprised at the scene. This was the first time Cryo had ever been close to a big city and took at least some interest in it. They traveled outside the city’s limits and drove off road to a military research complex a bit away from the city itself.

They brought Cryo inside a medical center in the complex for a checkup to see if he was healthy. The medical team inside the base immediately got to work. While they had taken the research notes that Greg had in the house, all but 1 medical professional disregarded most of it due to how ridiculous it sounded for when he was watching both Tide and Cryo. So instead, they decided they would observe on their own. They gave Cryo some booster shots, took blood and saliva, checked blood pressure, took x rays, and took some physical tests, such as height, weight, running on a treadmill, and other things, similar to what you would have at a regular doctor’s appointment. The researchers there noticed how Cryo wasn’t making any attempt to resist them, including when they were taking blood and giving booster shots. He wouldn’t even fight back. He just closed his eyes tightly and looked away, as they put the needle into him, seemingly bracing for when the needle would pierce into his scaly skin. They also began to think that he seemed to understand them, as he seemed to follow their lead and commands on each procedure. Managing Cryo through each of their procedures was surprisingly incredibly easy for them, something they really didn’t expect at all.

After his checkup, they moved him into a secure observation room that had a small pool of freshwater in the back (for Cryo to swim and bathe in), two bowls for feeding, a couple of chew toys, and pink leaved tree, and a glass window and an orange floor below it, made of metal. It looked towards the vast mountain range and forest in the distance… The ground around the rest of the room seemed to be made of a sandy substance, perhaps trying to replicate a small beach. There was a security camera overlooking the room in the back right corner of the room, near the metal sliding security door. The commander released the muzzle and thin chain leash from Cryo and let him be. “I hope this little dragon doesn’t cause too much trouble,” he thought. He looked back at Cryo. “You’ll eat at 5:00, Cryo. Don’t get into trouble…” he said of their new project. The commander left the room and Cryo looked around. He began to feel very lonely and went towards the window to look out toward the outside world. He laid himself down right at it and stared at the outside world.

At 5:00, 2 of the researchers investigated the pen from a very small reinforced glass window on the door. One was carrying some diced meat and water to feed him. When they entered the pen, Cryo was still at the window, staring outside. “How long has that dragon been there, Gerald?” one of them asked. “I think he’s been there the entire time, Ty. I don’t think I’ve seen him move away since he got here,” said the other. They both paused for a moment. “What do you think he’s staring at?” asked Gerald. “I don’t really know. I haven’t seen anything outside that would be mildly interesting. Even if there was, it wouldn’t have been there that long. He’s been there for 3 hours at least.” said Ty. “That’s not good psychological behavior. Do you think he wants to go outside?” “I’m not sure. I don’t think it would be a good idea to have a dragon outside right now, especially since he might try to fly away. We’ll just keep him under watch. Anyway, let’s get this food in. Keep a sedative ready in case he attacks us.” They came in with a hand in their side pocket. Cryo heard the security lock for his door release.

“Cryo, you hungry?” Cryo looked behind and saw the two researchers. The man holding the food to the left had light skin with a bit of red mixed in blue eyes with some type of strange item on his nose that put some strange type of glass in front of his eyes, and brown hair. Cryo was able to make out what seemed to be his name that seemed to be pinned onto his coat. He saw the letters that spelled Tyler Jerrin, but he didn’t know what they said.

The other person, standing beside him on the right, had very dark skin, brown eyes, and black hair. He was wearing similar clothes to his counterpart. He saw more letters, pinned on the coat like his counterpart. He saw the letters, making the name Gerald Jones, but couldn’t read it either.

Cryo looked at their expressions as they walked in as the security door shut behind them. As they looked upon him, Cryo felt a little uncomfortable. The two looked at the majestic creature in the room, first looking at it in amazement. They then softened their eyes with a slight look of concern for their new pet project. They slowly crept over a bit to get a slightly closer look at the dragon.

Cryo gave out a small sigh. He soon slowly turned back to look outside the window. “He’s not even interested in the food. I hope he doesn’t plan on starving himself.” said Ty. “Just put it in for now. We’ll see if he eats if we leave the room,” said Gerald. So, they both filled Cryo’s bowls and left the room. As the door closed, Cryo immediately went to eat from it.

“Look. At least the dragon’s eating,” said Ty “That’s good and all. But why was he so afraid to eat while we were in the room?” asked Gerald. “I don’t know. Something must be wrong with him psychologically. He was pulled from the ones who were taking care of him. I’m sure things will change in time once he gets used to being here.” “I hope so. I can’t stand seeing a magnificent creature act like this.” They both continued to watch Cryo eat until the food was gone. Cryo then went back towards the window to look out towards the mountains again, and soon fell asleep as the moon rose into the sky…

“Looks like Cryo fell asleep,” said Ty. “At the window…” replied Gerald. “Why is he so obsessed with the outside?” “We’ll worry about it tomorrow. Let’s have the staff watch him overnight and make sure he’s ok. We’ll come back when Cryo wakes up. “Alright. Let’s go to bed.” So, the researchers went to bed while security watched the little dragon.

Ch 2

Surrender and Sorrow

At about 9:00, the research team woke up. The two in charge of the research called in to check on their project. “Security team. Is Cryo awake yet?” asked Ty. “No. He hasn’t woken up yet.” a voice replied. “The dragon must be a late sleeper. Keep watching him. Let me know when he’s awake.” said Gerald. 3 more hours passed, and they called in again. “Security team, is Cryo awake?” Ty asked again. “No, he’s still sleeping.” “Why is he still asleep after this long? Something must be wrong with him. He must be sick or something. Let’s get him into the medical bay. Come on,” said Gerald.

They picked up a muzzle and a chain and headed to Cryo’s pen. “Alright, he might fight back once we get the muzzle on him. Have the sedative ready,” said Ty. They both opened the door to the pen. Sure enough, Cryo was still asleep at the window in the back. “Alright, do this carefully. Try not to wake him…” They crept closer to Cryo with their tools ready. However, Ty stepped on a branch broken off from the tree, and a couple of its pink leaves fell as they did. More importantly, Cryo immediately popped his head up, and looked back, seeing the two! “Uh oh,” said Gerald. Cryo gave out a small yawn, saw them with the restraints, and headed towards them.

“Quick… the sedative…,” said Ty. Cryo kept walking towards them. As Cryo approached them, the two were getting ready to sedate him. However, Cryo stopped a few feet in front of them and laid down. He tilted his head forward, with his maw shut. He then clasped his paws around his maw and placed them back on the ground. Ty realized something was amiss and began to take a closer look.

“Wait a minute, Gerald. Look at him,” he said. “Huh. Wha…?” said Gerald “He’s… stopped. He’s not coming closer. His head is tilted forward. I think… he’s letting us muzzle him,” said Ty. “Wha…? Why?” “I don’t know. Give me the muzzle. Get ready with the sedative just in case he bites.” Gerald handed the muzzle to Ty and he approached Cryo slowly. “Alright Cryo… Just going to put this around your snout… No need to get panicky…” Cryo continued to just sit there ready for it. “Alright then. Just relax, little guy…” Ty wrapped the muzzle around Cryo’s snout and then put on the chain leash around his neck. “Alright. Cryo’s good to go. Now come with us.”

Ch 3

Window Watching

They escorted Cryo down the hall and into the infirmary building within the facility. They ran several more tests on him, but each confirmed that Cryo was completely healthy. The medic in charge of the tests gave her report to the head scientists. She had dark skin, blue eyes, and was wearing a light blue medical uniform and cap, black pants, and white shoes with black soles. Cryo sat patiently next to the scientists in charge of him on the ground, staring and seemingly paying attention to his medical doctor.

“As far as I can tell, this dragon’s completely healthy. We may not know too much about dragon anatomy quite yet, but I don’t think he’s ill. It must be something else… I suggest you keep watch over him. Try interacting with the little guy a bit more. Maybe try to get a positive reaction out of him.” she said. Cryo gave a sigh and began to lay himself on the ground. “How do you suppose we do that, Nancy?” said Gerald. “I’m not sure. Didn’t you pick up the notes from his original caretakers?” she asked “The family treated this dragon like a baby. It’s an animal. Not a child…” “Maybe take another look at it,” she replied. “Alright… Come on Cryo. Let’s get you back to your pen.” Cryo slowly nodded and stood still, waiting for his leash. They wrapped the chain around Cryo’s neck and started to head out and lead him back to his room. Nancy took off her cap to let out her short black hair. “This poor creature needs more than what he has now. There’s something very special about it. I can feel it.” She began to head back into the room to take another look at his test results.

The two researchers soon had made it back to Cryo’s pen and they released the muzzle and chain from him, who then proceeded to head back to look out the window. “Come on, Cryo. Stop with that now! What’s wrong with you?” asked Ty. Cryo continued to stare at the outside. “Are you hungry?” Cryo shook his head and continued to stare. “Maybe try playing with him?” said Gerald “How?” “Maybe fetch?” “Alright. Hey Cryo. Want to chase this long chew toy?” Cryo looked back but turned his head back to the window. “Come on little guy, it will be fun!” Cryo gave out a sigh and picked himself up and headed towards Ty. “I think we’re getting somewhere,” said Gerald. Cryo sat himself in front of them both. Ty picked up one of the chew toys in the pen. A long blue wolfy chew toy. “Alright. Fetch!” Ty said as he threw the toy toward the tree. Cryo walked his way to the chew toy and picked it and brought it back to the two. “There we go. Want to go again? Alright fetch!” Ty threw the toy and Cryo gave another sigh and begrudgingly walked over to the chew toy again and picked it up and brought it back over.

Ty this time could see the big frown on Cryo’s face. “This doesn’t appear to be working after all. Cryo seems to feel this is a chore to him,” Ty said. “What now?” said Gerald. “I don’t know. Maybe he needs a little alone time. Come on. Let’s leave him be. They left the room and Cryo slowly tilted his head down and dropped the chew toy. He began to dig in the sand a bit and put the chew toy in. He then swiped his tail over the sand to bury it under. He gave out a low sigh and yawned. He walked back towards the window and sat down. The two scientists looked into the room again from the security door.

“He’s back at the window again! What is so interesting about the outside!? It’s just a view of the mountains!” exclaimed Gerald. He began to think for a moment while Ty scratched a bit under his chin… “It must be a desire to be outside.” Gerald said. “No, I think it’s more than that Gerald,”. “How do you know?!” “I… don’t really know. It’s… just the feeling I got.” he said. “Should we board up the window?” asked Gerald. “No. Whatever reason he’s staring outside seems to be at least keeping him out of trouble. He’s not trying to resist us in any way. Looking outside might be therapeutic for him. For now, let’s keep a close watch over him. Hopefully his behavior changes soon. I don’t know what else to do at this point. Come on, Gerald.” The two left the area as Cryo continued to stare at the outside world.

Several months passed, and things were not getting any better. Every day. Cryo would stare and stare and stare at the outside world. His entire day was as follows: Wake up at 12:00 p.m. or later, stare at the outside, take a nap at 3:00, wake up at about 5:00 or later for food, and then stare out the window again until he falls asleep. The researchers were baffled as to why he was acting this way. Attempts to try to make him happy seemed to never work, and it started to drive the researchers crazy. They knew the dragon was far more interesting than this. But they couldn’t figure out why he spent all day staring outside…

Ch 4

Repair Reptile

The head researchers came into Cryo’s pen again, with some diced meat and water for feeding him. “Cryo… Are you hungry…?” Ty said. Cryo woke up from his sleep and gave a small yawn. He walked over as they filled his food dishes. He began to slowly eat from the dishes when Gerald suddenly turned towards the little dragon in frustration… “What does it take to make you happy, Dragon!? What more could you need!?” shouted Gerald. “Leave the poor dragon alone Gerald! He’s clearly not in a good mood…” “He’s never in a good mood! Months have passed and we still know very little about what makes a dragon, a dragon! He’s done nothing but stare out that window in this pen all day. What else can we do!?” “Calm down. Jeez, Look… We’ll… figure out something.” “What something?! What else are we going to do?! We’ve sent him to the medical wing multiple times, and all we get from Nancy is to check Greg’s notes! We know that this dragon ISN’T A CHILD! It’s bad enough that my phone dropped on the floor and now it won’t turn on!” “You’re making a scene in front of Cryo. This is not helping.” “Nothing is Helping!” 

Cryo was getting very annoyed while he was trying to eat as these researchers were arguing. He stopped eating and scratched his head a few times. He then decided to try something to calm them down. He sneaked up while they were arguing at each other and snatched Gerald’s phone from his pocket and went towards the back towards the window where the floor was hard. He began to observe it closely and then started to use his talon to carefully unscrew the bolts off the back and take it apart. By the time he took off the back, the two researchers noticed. “What do you think you’re doing, Cryo!? Don’t tell me you broke my phone! Is this some sort of prank!?” Cryo shook his head gently and continued to fiddle with the parts. The researchers however realized quickly that something strange was happening…

“Wait a minute! Take a closer look Gerald! He is not trying to break it! He’s being careful not to damage any of the inside parts!” Wha…? What do you…?” Gerald looked at Cryo with confusion as he continued to fiddle with the phone’s parts. As Cryo looked at the inner battery, he saw what the problem was… A chip connected to the battery had become loose. Using a tiny bit of saliva from his mouth, he carefully dabbed around the chip. A set of tiny sparks came out as he dabbed it. He then pushed it down and then began to put the phone back together, using his talons to screw in the bolts again. Soon enough, Cryo had perfectly put the phone back together and handed it back to Gerald, then went back to eating. 

“What… Was that all about.” asked Gerald. “Gerald… Try turning your phone on…,” said Ty. Pressing the power switch, the phone turned on and was working perfectly. “…It’s working…. I spent hours trying to turn it on, and Cryo gets it to work in 4 minutes. In fact, its battery and speed seem to be working much better than it was before.” He turned back to Cryo. “Cryo… How did you…?” Cryo turned to face Gerald and gave a small smile and wagged his tail a bit before going back to eat. “Cryo gave a smile! He seemed to like doing that! We may be on to something!” They both looked at each other, and finally realized that this tiny Dragon was FAR smarter than they previously thought… They decided to leave the pen for now while Cryo continued eating. “Gerald. Can you go around the base to see if anything small needs repaired. I want to… check something…” “Alright. I’ll ask around.” Gerald went to talk to the others while Ty decided to re-read the notes Greg had on Cryo.

He read the entire journal in the course of a week. As he read, an idea began to shape in his mind, based on the notes. Why was Cryo always staring out the window? Simply because he was raised near the forest on the mountains. He spent the first year of life there. Looking out towards the mountains, reminds Cryo of not only his home, but his family that took him in and raised him. Him trying to adapt to a new life like this, is impossible. It’s clear he hates being cooped up in a small pen and treated like a wild animal. He wants to be treated like an actual person. And it’s clear he’s smarter than he looks.

The notes included Cryo’s fascination with technology. After all, Cryo always watched Noble take apart different pieces of old technology, and it’s clear he learned how they work as a result. He was no different than a gifted human (except for being a dragon of course). Cryo seemed to understand human speech, despite not being able to talk himself. But it was possible for him to learn to talk, just like his mother, Tide, who was still comatose, despite their efforts to wake her. Tide herself was from somewhere farther away than they thought possible, and came from a place that fell apart, just like Earth.

Ty finally realized that there was a need for a change. On the night he finished the journal, he made an important phone call. “Hello? Command? I think we just made a breakthrough with Cryo! But… I need a list of favors done. Things need to change quickly. Sending you a list of requests that I need done as soon as possible…”

Ch 5

Relocating while Resting

Another month passed. The researchers had just finished with their little “project,” for Cryo. Now they just needed to move him in. It was late in the day, a few hours late for feeding Cryo, but they decided to add something extra into the dish… The 2 head researchers headed to Cryo’s pen.

Cryo was working to repair a Zen portable system (ZPS) from one of the children living with their family at the window, with a custom tool kit made for his paws and talons. They supplied Cryo with two trays for new parts and scrap (Cryo still didn’t talk yet. When he needed replacement parts, he would point to the parts to show the researchers what parts he needed to replace it). He screwed in the final screw and got finished right as the head scientist came in.

“Cryo. Dinner,” said Ty. “Sorry, dinner is late Cryo,” said Gerald. “We… had to restock on the food… Can you take a little bit of time off from repairing the device to eat?” asked Ty. Cryo looked back at them, smiled, and nodded. He put his tools away and started to eat. He devoured his food quickly and was about to start working to repair a Spark strike laptop for one of the soldiers at the base a bit before bed.

But suddenly, he started to feel lightheaded… His head started to spin a bit. He felt like his whole body was going numb. He felt extremely tired. His eyes began to lose focus. He gave a big yawn, and slowly laid himself down on his side and fell into a deep, deep sleep on the sand. Ty and Gerald stood over him. Gerald lifted his arm and brought the silver object around his wrist close to his head. He pressed a button on the side of it and then began to speak into it.

“Cryo’s sedated. Let’s get him moved into his new room quickly. Hopefully this will work. Bring in the stretcher.” The security team soon entered with a stretcher, and strapped Cryo onto it. “Alright, let’s get him into his new room,” said Gerald. “Will he wake up?” asked one of the soldiers. “He shouldn’t, Kyle. The sedative should last until morning. Although, we never tried this on Cryo before, or any Dragon for that matter… We have an injection ready in case he wakes up,” said Ty.

Ty took one last look at the sleeping baby blue dragon, resting peacefully on the stretcher. He knelt and rubbed his forehead a few times and smiled. “Rest easy, little one. You’ll be home soon…” he said. He looked to the left of Cryo’s workspace and saw the long chew toy they found once buried in the sand in the room. Cryo started to keep it close to him after he repaired Gerald’s phone. Ty stood back up and looked back to the others. “Alright team. Let’s get him in.” They carried Cryo away and picked up all his tools and the few toys within the pen, including the long wolfy chew toy, to somewhere else within the large facility.

That night, Cryo dreamed of his old life. He remembered his family and all the fun times he spent with his “brother.” He really wished he could somehow see them again. But it seemed the boundaries of space and time had all but split them apart from him, and it was unlikely he’d ever hear their voices again. While life had become better for him at the base, now that he was doing something more fun, he still misses his old life. As he dreamed about his old life, no sooner did mourning come and now Cryo had to wake up from this daze.

Ch 6

Toddler Time

Cryo blinked a few times and gave out a yawn. His head was still a little fuzzy and his eyes had some trouble focusing from the sedative. He realized that something had been wrapped carefully and very tightly around him. As he began to recover from his daze, he began to realize that it was not there to restrain him. It was soft, warm, and felt a bit stiff, but strangely comfy around his body. Looking around, he saw he was surrounded by walls that were a shaded darkened cyan with a bunch of tiny holes in it, allowing him to see through. Feeling the numbness wearing off he picked his head up a tiny bit to get a better look of where he was now. He realized that the thing around him now was a comfy blanket. He looked closer to it, and saw it had a cartoonish blue dragon smiling and laying down in a red shirt and a cyan scarf on the front of it, with the words, “Cryo’s Blanket Buddy.” reading under it. He also saw that his head was laying on a pillow. It was light blue, with a sleeping blue baby dragon on a cloud, with the words, “Sweet dreams, in a sea of clouds,” in an arc above the picture in blue letters. He then realized that the ground he was resting on was also very soft, like a large pillow. Or maybe… a bed?

Confused a bit, he looked around toward the walls surrounding him. Moving his left paw from inside the blanket, out the front, he touched the wall, and it felt soft like a cushion as well. They were on all sides except above. They were also pretty high up from his position, and would be very hard for him to climb out. Cryo picked himself up putting his other front paw to the front outside the blanket and his back limbs from the back. He lifted himself up with the blanket still wrapped around his body. He saw the long blue wolfy plush from back in his old room in the dwelling, but it seemed to have been cleaned. Cryo smelled it a few times, and it smelt like fresh citrus. The smell relaxed him a bit. He grabbed it and held it against him as continued to observe around this strange place. He realized quickly it seemed that the room extended beyond them. 

Cryo looked past the 4 surrounding walls, and could see that the room beyond had a different wall motif. The room was pretty large and was square in shape. The dwelling he was in seemed to be nestled against the farthest corner inside the room against the two adjoining walls. He saw what seemed to be the exit on the exact opposite corner of the room. The walls all around the room were painted to have an image of a large mountain range, complete with forests, snow, rock formations, animals, and a village with both dragons and humans together in it, with some even flying in the air.

Cryo also realized that the area he’s been sleeping in seemed to be suspended off the ground a bit. Looking down around the room, he saw the ground seemed to be mostly made of soft, dark blue carpeting, with many different toys around, like balls, small toy spaceships, and many other different items. One even looked like his favorite white dog plush he had back with Greg and the others, but brand new.

Looking to the right directly from his dwelling, he saw a large dresser, connected to the adjoining wall, with several large drawers on it. Next to it was what seemed to be a closet with a glass door, which he thought he could see some jackets and sweaters in it. His size… Next to the closet, was a long rectangular mirror, low to the ground.

Looking further down, he saw that there was a large, metallic brown work table nestled at the far right corner much further back in the room, made to fit around his needs when repairing items. It wasn’t suspended very high from the ground, with a hard black floor around it and a long, very low to the ground, sturdy seat going across from it. He saw that the tools the researchers got him were already there along with strangely, only the scrap parts tray. To the right of the work bench nestled against the adjoining wall, seemed to be a massive metal cabinet, with a large amount of large drawers attached to it. Above the cabinet, it read in large letters, “Spare parts cabinets.” Cryo didn’t know what it actually said though.

Cryo then tilted his head directly to the left of his dwelling and saw what seemed to be a medium sized flat screen tv close by. A little ways away from it, was a large and comfy looking bean bag chair that looked a bit like a blue asteroid. A movie player was also sitting to the left of the tv. Under the tv and movie player was a black cabinet with see through doors that looked like they carried movies in their cases in it. He saw one of the cases out and sitting out on top of the tv stand. While a little hard to see from where he was, he thought he could see a character from his favorite tv program, Capsule Creatures, on the case.

Further down, connected directly to the left corners of the room, he saw what appeared to be a very large window, with the bright light of the sun beaming in. From his angle, he could see a bit of the mountain range. He saw that there was a step leading up to the window and there was also a bright yellow bean bag placed there. The ground was also red carpet, with a large picture of a sun with the bean bag centered on it. He thought for a moment that it would be a comforting place to watch a sunset during late hours or even to take a small nap in.

Looking forward toward the entrance again at the front of the room, he saw what seemed to be a small kitchen. The ground around there seemed to be made of tiles. There was a small standard steel fridge and freezer in the back. There also seemed to be a large array of drawers and cabinets to the left and right of the fridge. Some were connected to the ground and some suspended against the ceiling above the ground ones.

A little ways away from the kitchen area was a medium sized rectangular wooden table. The legs seemed to have been carved to resemble dragon heads. There were 4 wooden chairs surrounding it. Each of the chairs’ backs had been carved to make the picture of the dragon’s head and neck and the back. One however, seemed to be bigger than the other 3. It was wider, raised a bit closer to the table, and the dragon carving on the back showed a full dragon on it. He thought it looked a bit like him. Cryo could see his name, painted in blue above the seat.

In the very center of the room, there seemed to be a medium sized playpen, that was similar in style to the dwelling Cryo was in now. On closer inspection, Cryo could see a few toys inside, which felt a bit strange to him. When he normally took a time out inside of one, he’d not be permitted to play with toys, at least back on the mountains. He could also see that the ground inside seemed pretty cushiony as well and it looked like there was another blanket folded and placed towards the corner inside of it.

Cryo began to step back a bit where he was standing and bumped into the back of the strange dwelling he was in. He stumbled onto his bottom, but slowly got back up with a look of bewilderment. Cryo started to wonder if he was still asleep. He began to shake the blanket from his body. As it fell to the ground, he realized that there were some more things on him. It seems he also was wearing a soft blue shirt with an ice covered mountain with snow falling around and a cartoonish blue dragon looking like him standing at the very top smiling. The words “Climbing to a new life. Cryo the Dragon, Brave explorer,” were below the mountain picture. Around his neck was a new purple scarf, with pictures of blue dragons seemingly running forward on it.

Cryo believed now that his time here must be affecting his dreams now, and tried shaking again to try to wake himself up. But nothing happened. He shook again. Nothing happened still. Cryo thought that either he must be in a very deep sleep now, or maybe this actually is real! But he realized something else. While he was shaking, something else was attached around his neck and was moving around under the scarf. He reached into it, and realized it was a pacifier on a strap. This one however was made to be bigger to be able to fit in his mouth more comfortably. Now Cryo was really confused. 

However, an idea began to take shape in his mind. Why was everything surrounding him right now so soft and secure? Made to keep him from falling off the bed or to keep him from getting out and into trouble? With a comfy blanket and clothes made for sleep. Could this be… a crib? And the outer room itself. It seemed like it was made for someone like him. With different toys around the ground and a comforting wall art. A place to be fed, play, and a place to work on repairing things? There was even a place for clothes that seemed to be his size… Why else would it look like this compared to what it was before?

“Good morning Cryo,” said Ty. Cryo looked toward the front of the room now, and could see Ty, standing in the doorway of the room, smiling and wearing a blue sweater and some nice black jeans. Next to him was Gerald, who had a Cyan sweater and gray pants. They slowly walked to his crib until they were looking over him.

“Do you like what we did little guy?” Cryo walked himself over to the closest end to him and sat down, looking confused. “We made some arrangements to create a better room for you little guy. We hope you like it. We read about a few things and we think this should be more adequate to your needs than what you had before.” said Ty.

“Are you thirsty?” asked Gerald. Gerald went to the kitchen area in the back and took out what seemed to be a bottle from one of the upper cabinets. He then went to the fridge and took out a white container and poured some of its contents into it. He came back and placed it in front of Cryo. “Here you go, little guy.”

A little hesitant at first, but it didn’t take long for Cryo to pick it up and start to drink from it a bit. He realized quickly that it had very fresh milk in it. He gave out a smile and then laid on his back with his bottle in his front paws and continued to drink from it. “Once you’re done with that, would you like to take a “break.” Get a view of the outside?” Cryo lowered the bottle and gave a small nod with a smile. “Alright little buddy. We’ll take you outside for a bit and get you back to play a bit. We also have a few things to repair or take apart if you would like as well.” Cryo gave another smile. He moved the bottle back into his mouth and continued to drink from it. It didn’t take long for Cryo to finish his bottle after that. He got off his back and stood up. He held his paw up and gave the bottle back to Gerald. Gerald smiled and rubbed the back of his head a few times.

“Let’s change you out of those night clothes first. It’s a tiny bit colder today, so I bet you’ll want a nice shirt to wear today, won’t you?” Ty lifted the shirt off of Cryo, and placed it in a laundry hamper next to his crib on the adjoining wall on the left. He went to the drawer next to his crib. He looked through the shirts a bit, and picked one out. “Alright little guy. Hold your arms up.” Cryo obliged and lifted his paws forward. Ty then put on Cryo a nice yellow shirt, with the picture of a cartoony Cryo swimming in the water at a beach, with the words, “Beach Buddy,” on the bottom.

“Alright Cryo. Let’s go out. Gerald will be coming with us.” Cryo gave a nod. Ty picked up Cryo and took him out of his Crib. They put a harness on Cyro and attached a small, thin chain onto it and soon they left his room and down a couple hallways towards the outer walls of the research center (luckily, the area was fenced in and had plenty of grass and shrubs dotting around it). This was the first time Cryo really got a chance to see around the research base. He was quite excited to be able to finally really move around and stretch his legs. After Cryo’s “break,” they took him back into his room. “Do you need anything from us Cryo. Another bottle? Some play time?” Cryo shook his head. He put his pacifier in his mouth to chew on it and headed to play with the white dog plush. “Alright, we’ll be back in a bit, Cryo.” 

Both the scientist’s headed out the room and shut the door. “So… how long are we going to keep him like this? We have to wean him off of these things sooner or later,” said Gerald. “Let’s keep him in a more familiar setting for now. We’ll work on communication and basic etiquette in maybe a couple months or a year. By then we should be able to start weaning him into being more mature. After that, we’ll try to teach him some math and science, and other subjects.” “Are we going to homeschool him?” “It may be best to try to teach him like any other human. We need him to get more used to us and to trust us more first. Until then, it’s best we do this,” replied Ty. “Alright then. When should we come back?” “Give Cryo an hour right now. We’ll check back on him then.” They both began to walk away through the hallway.

“We should probably give him a nice bath tonight. He’s probably been wanting a bath since he came here. Getting him cleaned up might make him feel nice and cozy after so long.” said Ty. “Yea. Let’s give him one at 7:30 tonight. A little bit before bed,” said Gerald.

So a year passed. Cryo’s life became much happier. The researchers there spent much time with Cryo. They made sure that he had play time with them, sat together for meals, watched over carefully, given baths, and given plenty of breaks. It wasn’t long after that they started to teach basic communication and etiquette to Cryo. They got him talking quite a bit, so it was now easier to know what Cryo needed (and of course, they were very careful trying to prevent him from becoming spoiled). With his language skills becoming more streamlined, they started to change his room around. They slowly replaced items in his room and in his daily activities, and of course adapted Cryo to these changes. His crib was changed to a hay bed. His “hatchling,” bottles were changed to proper cups. Cryo’s pacifier was slowly weaned away from him (this was particularly hard for Cryo). And Cryo was now given more freedom to move around the base (of course there was still always someone watching him). Things are progressing smoothly now. As Cryo slowly matured, so did the scientist’s fascination with him. But now, came a real test. With things going so well, a new important question came up.

Can a dragon go and learn from school? There was no telling how Cryo would take up to learning. He was still pretty smart. Seeing he has a fascination with technology, could they possibly take him further? Is it possible that maybe instead of learning by taking technology apart and putting it back together, or repairing old devices, can they actually try to teach him the basics of knowledge and maybe even in the future, he may be able to create new devices himself? This new project would be long and difficult, and there was no telling how Cryo would respond to actual school work. But this was too good of an opportunity to let slide. It had to happen. 

Ch 7

School Serphant

Ty woke up from his bed at about 8:30 A.M. It would be the first day for “school,” for Cryo (take note. they were not going to send Cryo to a school outside the research center. They had made a makeshift school at the research base for the families of researchers and military personnel living here). They had been building up to this point and have been trying to pump Cryo up for it. He had been given a much better understanding from reading from “storytime,” with the researchers. Ty got up, and went to put on a set of casual clothes and went to the door of his room. He found Gerald waiting outside the door to his room.

“Are you ready Ty?” he asked. “I hope so. We’ve never tried something like this on any creature other than a human before.,Ty replied “Is it a good idea to mix Cryo with other humans in a kindergarten setting? The kids around the base sometimes came to the window in Cryo’s room to watch him go around. The kid’s here were always told to leave Cryo alone until they think he’s more ready to socialize. They really never had a chance to know him.” “My son always said Cryo looked cute and silly. He kept telling me he always wanted to play with him. He actually always liked watching Cryo eat and drink from a bottle when I was in the room with him.” “But what about the other kids? You know that bullying usually happens to kids who look different. I really don’t want Cryo exposed to something like that. Remember the reason we were able to find Cryo in the first place?”

“Yes… the report called about a strange creature who attacked those youngsters. In reality, these three kids attacked Cryo’s “brother,” to steal from him… It would be really bad if something like that happened again. There is no telling how he would react. He blasted the 3 of them with water. Span their heads quite a bit…” “Should we just “homeschool,” him in the room instead?” “He needs interaction. Cryo told me himself that he wished he had some friends. He’s been thinking about his “brother,” Noble lately. He said that the only ones he’s played with are adults. He wishes he had a buddy like him.” “Nothing is like him… Except maybe his mother…” “I know. I know… As much as I hate to say it, Cryo’s right. He needs someone else. Someone who could be a good friend to him.” “Isn’t your son starting school today as well?” “Yes, actually. My wife brought him early to the classroom, and told him that Cryo would be joining at about the time class starts.” “Maybe try telling him to keep an eye on Cryo? To watch his back?” “Maybe. Anyway, let’s get Cryo ready. It’s a little colder today, so I have Cryo’s silver jacket ready. Let’s get him ready.” So the two scientist’s headed out to pick up Cryo for school.

They made it to Cryo’s room, and unlocked the door (while Cryo was allowed to move more around the base, his door would be locked when it is time for bed or when no one was available to watch him). They headed in, and found Cryo still asleep in his hay bed, tightly huddled in his blanket. They came toward the bed and gave Cryo a small nudge. “Cryo. Wake up. Time for your first day of school,” said Ty. Cryo slowly opened his eyes and locked eyes with Ty. He then gave out a big yawn. “Oh… Mworning mwister Ty. Mwister Gerald. It’s finawy time to lern?” “Yes it is Cryo. Let’s get you ready.” They changed Cryo out of his nightshirt and into his silver jacket and a nice blue scarf. “I hawvet seen muy jwacket since my birfday. It remimes me of mi big brofer. “I know Cryo. Try to work a bit more on you language, Cryo. Be more clear. Think a bit more on your words. “Yes mwister Gerald.” “Alright let’s get going Cryo. The others are waiting. So the group headed to the classroom near the front of the facility.

They soon enough made it and now it was time to say goodbye to Cryo. They were a little late, but class hadn’t started yet anyway, so it was fine. They opened the door to the classroom and stepped in. They were greeted by a bunch of prying eyes of a couple of kids watching the dragon from the front, including the eyes of Ty’s son.

“Alright Cryo. We really need you to be a good boy here. Absolutely no attacking anyone Cryo. Understand?” “Wy wud I awtack somwon mister Ty?” asked Cryo. “Because your different Cryo.” “Becuse I’m dwiffwent?” “Yes. None of the kids really know you Cryo. They don’t realize your a good kid. Your not like them. Neither in appearance or in personality. That might not rub off the right way with the other kids. “Wy?” “It’s… a weakness in humans Cryo. A major one. It’s something that all of us have. “Weally?” “Yes. This was one of the reasons that we had to leave Earth, our home world. We couldn’t get along from our own differences. We took from our home and from each other more then we gave. As a result, earth was nearly destroyed from the strife. We had to leave because there wasn’t much left for us after. While we as humans have somewhat learned from our past, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still happen every now and then. Please Cryo, no matter what happens here. No matter what the other kids say about you or anyone else. Just know one thing.” “What, mwister Ty?” “Your a very special kid Cryo. No one can take that from you. No matter what they do to you or say, no one can change that. Ever. No matter what happens, don’t attack anyone for any reason. No matter what they say or do to you.” “Ok. I pwomise I won’t.” “Ok. Cryo. Have a good day at school. Goodbye Cryo. See you soon.” “Goodbye mwister Ty. Mwister Gerald.”

They both gave Cryo a hug and sent him away. Cryo stepped forward into the classroom and looked around to get a better look at it. There was a group of desks looking towards the front of the class with a chalkboard furthest down the room attached to the wall. As Cryo stepped forward the teacher soon stepped in behind him to greet him.

“Ahh you must be our new very special student.” Cryo looked behind toward a towering lady looking upon him. She had white skin with red mixed in, red curly hair, glasses like Ty, silver earrings, and wearing a pink shirt with a red vest, blue jeans, and brown shoes. She also looked a bit older.

“You are Cyro, are you not?” she asked. “Yes. Im Cwyyo, miss.” “Excellent. I’ll take you to your seat. Do you have all the supplies you need?” Cryo remember the backpack Gerald gave to him before coming here. “Yes miss. I hawv it in hewe,” Cryo said. “Good. I’ve heard good things about you Cryo. Come with me to your seat,” she said. “I’m Mrs. Crowder. I’ll be your teacher for kindergarten. She took Cryo to a seat in the back, a little bit away from the other kids, and class soon began. “Alright kids. We have a very special new student joining us today. I’m sure some of you have seen this little one walking around the base. Why don’t you introduce yourself.” All the eyes of the classroom immediately began to stare at the little dragon. While getting nervous now, Cryo managed to speak up. “Hewwo evwyone… I’m… Cwyyo… Cwyyo the dwagon…” No one gave an answer. “…Welcome to our class Cryo. We hope you’ll be able to feel welcome here. Now class. please turn to page 10 of your math book. We’ll be starting with learning some addition and some subtraction today.”

Ch 8

Outlier Outcast

So the day continued. Cryo seemed to pick up on the basic subjects quite quickly. It wasn’t very long before Cryo got done with his work in the classroom. Soon enough. It was recess. Time to get a break and play for a bit. The kids left their seats and left to play with toys. Cryo himself decided to take a break to try and play with the other kids. He approached a group of the kids and said “Hi evwyone. Can I pway with you?” They gave no answer and stared. “Can you guys talk to me.” “Be quiet you dumb reptile…” one of the kids said. “Wha?” Cryo said. “Why is there a giant dumb lizard in the classroom? It’s obvious it’s too dumb to learn anything here. Can’t even talk correctly,” said another kid. “Wha! wha do you mean!” “Look at that stupid blue skin. I’ll probably get sick just by touching it.” another kid said. Cryo was starting to feel like an outcast. “Stupid lizard. Go away. You’re no smarter than a rock.” The other kids started to laugh and Cryo knew he wasn’t wanted.

Feeling very sad, he went to the right side of the classroom to be alone. Taking his book bag with him. He took out his tools and a broken device, and started to tinker with a broken device to try and repair it. “Look at that overgrown lizard, trying to mess with that tablet. He’s probably breaking it even more!” the other kids chuckled a bit, making Cryo even sadder. But he realized there was nothing he could do so he continued to tinker with it to try and fix it. He took in a deep breath and continued.

One of the kids over there though, came over to Cryo and began to watch him. Cryo felt his presence and began to get nervous. “What are you doing?” the kid asked. Cryo didn’t answer. “You ok?” he asked. “Whet do u want?” replied Cryo. “I just wanted to see if you were alright…” “Aren’t u just gowing to make fwun of me like the ofers?” “No. I’m Cameron. Nice to meet you.” Cryo started to feel a little better. He looked towards the other. This kid was had white skin mixed with red, brown eyes, straight, brown hair, and wearing blue jeans and a blue shirt. “I’m Cwyyo.” “My father has talked a lot about you, Cryo.” “He haws?” “Yes. You know my father well Cryo. He’s Ty.” “Your fawthr is Mister Ty?” “Yes. I’ve seen you playing with him in your room here.” “Yu have?” “Yes. I always thought you were really cute when you were playing with him.” “Weally?” “Yes. I think you’re a lot smarter than everyone here is thinking you are. They just don’t understand you.” Cryo thought about it for a moment.

“None of the kids here know that you’re more than just what they see. My father has told me a ton about how special you are. I’ve heard several stories from my dad about your mom, your previous life, what he’s been doing with you here, and more. I think you’re really cool.” Cryo looked at Cameron and gave a small smile. “Don’t let the others get you down. I think they are just jealous of you?” “Why are they jelos of mwe?” “Because, they want to be able to fly like you. They want to be able to have powers like you. They hate not being dragons, so they try to take it out on you to put you down. They think you are just a mindless reptile who doesn’t deserve them.” “What about u?” “I only want to be a friend to the one being put down like the others.” “Fwiend…” “Can I be your friend, Cryo?” “Won’t the others mwak fun of u too?” “I don’t mind them. Their words are empty. They don’t realize how special you are. So can I?” “Cryo thought for a moment, and then gave a big nod. “Wow. Cameron must be as mindless as that reptile…” one of the others said. The other kids giggled. The pair looked back at each other and gave a nod and a smile. “So what are you doing Cryo?”

So the day passed. Things were much better for Cryo now. While the others still teased, he felt comfort knowing at least someone accepted him. Soon it was time for Cryo to go back to his room on the research center. Before he left for his room, he wanted to say thank you to his new friend. “Thwank u for being nis to me. “Maybee you could com to my home here som tim. Away from all these other bullees.” “Maybe if my father lets me. He’s nervous about letting me around you. “Why?” “Well, he doesn’t really know how you would really take playing with others. “I pwayed with my brofer where I used to liv.” “Don’t worry Cryo. I’ll ask Dad if he’ll let me see you sometime.” “Twank Yu.” “One more thing Cryo.” “Yea?” “Definitely work on your speech, ok?” “K.”

So time passed again. The others continued to be mean while Cryo ended up easily being one of the smartest in class. Subjects and work came naturally to him (though it took him a while to get proper speech down). He was naturally curious and asked plenty of questions about the subjects presented to him. Ty was nice enough to set up “play dates,” between Cryo and his son. Things worked out very well. The extra companionship helped Cryo get out the anxiety of the other kids just being dumb and mean. Cryo had begun to upgrade and change some of the devices around his room with the help and planning of some of the skilled technicians and engineers in the base. He even built some himself with a little bit of their help as well. Soon enough, years passed. Cryo’s body began to change a bit, his Cyan scales on his belly became blue and was slowly growing bigger and bigger. With time passing, Cryo was soon ready to start 4th grade learning soon.

Ch 9

Ocean Opening

It was summer vacation now though, and Cryo wanted to swim. However, taking Cryo somewhere to swim around the area would be difficult, as there would be way too many prying eyes of people. So there was a small full day trip out to the ocean on a boat (with “personal escorts’,” for Cryo and the researchers) near the forest on the coast. This was too good of an opportunity to finally test Cryo’s more water based ability and traits in an unrestricted environment. Cameron would also be allowed to come along. So the group left towards the ocean a little bit away from the city and mountains.

They arrived and made sure no one else was around for their “family trip.” They then unloaded their supplies. “Alright Cryo. Are you ready for a nice swim today? “Yes Ty. I’ve been waiting so long for another chance to swim. I don’t remember the last time I’ve actually swam in deep water outside of the small water facility at home. I’ve wanted to go somewhere outside the base for awhile.” “Good. Let me put this around your arm real quick, Cryo.” said Ty. “What is it?” Cryo replied back. “This device is to measure your speed and heart rate while you’re swimming. We want to see how fast a dragon like yourself does in open water and how much exertion it has on your body.” “It’s electrical, right? Won’t it short circuit in the water?” “It’s been made specifically to resist water damage. Don’t worry about it Cryo.” “I was actually hoping it would be a little. Maybe I could have taken it apart to fix it after…” “Maybe we’ll let you when we’re done here anyway, little repairman. “Alright then. Put it on.” Gerald strapped the device around Cryo’s front arm, which looked similar to a watch, with two straps and a very flat and smooth across Cryo’s wrist. The screen was a small rectangle with a pointed top, which bent around Cryo’s wrist and adjusted as he moved it. Cryo looked at it, and saw it showed his vitals. “Hmm. I would think a device like this would be much bigger and bulky. I shouldn’t have any trouble swimming with this on,” thought Cryo. 

Soon enough, they unloaded their supplies on the boat, which included food, drink, standard swimming gear (for the human occupants), and a boat tube for tubing (they also hoped Cryo might try it as well, with the hopes to test his ability to balance himself. Cryo’s claws before the trip were trimmed and shortened as well and the tube itself was reinforced with lightweight plastic to prevent it from popping). With the crew ready to head off, Ty started the engine to the boat. “Why do we have a couple of armed crew here Ty? Is it really that dangerous out on the ocean?” asked Cryo. “It’s… just a safety precaution. You never know what you might encounter on the ocean.” Cryo thought for a moment. “Well. Ok then. Are we ready to set sail?” “Yes. Let’s shove off.” So the crew set out on the open sea.

Cryo enjoyed the feel of the wind and water as the boat rushed on ahead. Looking over the side of the boat on the vast field of water gave him a sense of thrill and adventure. He talked with Cameron as they sailed on the open sea, with some of the crew watching them intently and taking notes. After some time of sailing on the sea, they decided that it was time to see Cryo swim. They stopped the boat with the open water surrounding them, and looked toward Cryo, who was still looking at the sea. “Alright Cryo. Are you ready to go on the open water?” “Yes I am Ty.” He looked toward Cameron, who was putting on a life jacket. “Will I have to put on a life jacket too?…” he asked. “No you won’t Cryo. I think you will be able to swim well enough.” “Thank goodness… That “safety device” would just slow me down!” “Alright Cryo, why don’t you and Cameron jump in and show us what you got!”

So the two stepped over the side of the boat, ready to make a splash. “Last one in, is a rotten blowfish!” said Cameron. The two quickly jumped into the water, making a nice big splash as they both hit the water. Their two heads popped up soon after.

Cryo’s body began to change. His talons retracted completely inside his feet and his feet became webbed. His tail shortened quite a bit and his head and body became much more smooth, and his head now had a small fin at the top and another large one across his back. His wings become smaller and much more smooth. The research team had seen Cryo’s transformation before when they ran swimming tests with him at the base. They watched as the two swam around the boat. They soon started to talk to each other.

“This water is much colder than I’m used to,” said Cryo. “Did you swim much back on the mountains?” asked Cameron. Cryo paused for a moment at the question. “Oh, I’m sorry Cryo. I forgot…” “No… It’s… fine. I… really only had one chance to swim with them. It was… on my first birthday.” “Is… that’s why you usually don’t want to celebrate it.” “Yeah… I guess…” “You miss them, don’t you?” “Yea… but… there is nothing I can do to see them…” “Why Cryo?” “I know these people want me to stay here. And I can’t just try to get away from here. They probably have ways to figure out where I’m going. I repaired a tiny tracking device for them once. I wouldn’t be surprised if they inserted one in me. Even if I somehow removed it, they would know I would be trying to find my family. I don’t know where to go to find them. They probably know where they are now. They may go after them to get to me. I… I can’t get them in trouble again for my sake. It’s better they live without me…” “I understand. I don’t know what I would do if they ever sent Dad away.”

They started to slow down a bit, with the crew listening in the conversation more closely. “I heard you had straight A’s in school this semester.” “Actually, I got a B- in social studies.” “Why?” “It’s hard to get into the history of another race when you wonder so much about your own. I realize I’m not a human. I… really don’t know what I am. The only one who could possibly tell me is still asleep, after all this time. I heard that there was a diary somewhere at the research center that could give me a better idea of what I am, but I never had a chance to read it.” “Maybe dad has it.” “Maybe. But I doubt he’d let me read it.” They continued to swim around the boat for a bit. Cameron turned to face Cryo.

“Why are you so smart Cryo?” “I guess… It’s because I listen and do what the others tell me. The researchers. Teachers. The ones who take care of me now.” “Dad always told me you were surprisingly obedient. In fact, he said it was incredibly rare that you’d be disobedient or ever get into trouble, even when you first came to the base. When you did get in trouble, you wouldn’t even try to argue or get mad. You’d just accept your punishment and move on without a single fuss.” “I have to. It’s not a good idea for me to resist them or cause trouble. Otherwise, the combat personnel at the base may go after my family.” “You think they would send people after your loved ones back on the mountains if you got in trouble too much or didn’t do what the researchers say?” “I don’t know. But it’s probably better for their sake that I try to be as good as possible. Besides… Taking a time out when I was young wasn’t that bad… They’d take my toys out of the play pen, but left a blanket for me to huddle up inside of it. My play pen wasn’t only there to punish me. There were times where they’d put me inside because something came up that required their attention somewhere else and no one else was available to watch me. It was surprisingly comfy inside, I’ll admit. I’d usually take the blanket and have a small nap when placed inside.” Cryo gave out a sigh… 

“Nonetheless, I miss my family so much. I wonder how they are doing right now…” “Come on Cryo. This is a nice outing for the both of us. It’s very rare that anyone is allowed outside the research center. Don’t be so glum. Why don’t you try asking them if you could visit your family?” “They would probably say no. I’m too important for their research.” “You won’t know until you try.” “I suppose… But they probably have already moved on and forgotten about me. I’m not the same as I was 5 and a half years ago. I doubt they would even recognize me. Not even my brother…” The people back on the boat shook their heads… The truth hit them hard…

“So… That’s why,” said Gerald. “He’s so obedient and good natured because he’s trying to protect his family. Even now… he’s still trying to protect them,” said Ty. “Is Cryo afraid of us?” “It seems so, albeit a little bit. We removed him from the ones he loved years ago. We introduced him to a new life. A new world then the one he was growing up in. Even when he first arrived, he still followed commands. He never fought back. Never tried to get away. Always did what he was told. Even did anything he could to stay out of trouble, while also accepting consequences whenever he did. It was all because he feared we may hurt his adopted family.” “Why didn’t he ever tell us this?” “Why would he?… When do kids ever talk about problems like this.” “What should we do?” “I don’t know. This could cause significant psychological problems in the future if we can’t find a solution. We should…” And out of nowhere, shots could be heard hitting the armored boat!

Ch 10

Dragon Danger

“Everyone! Get down!” said one of the armed crew members. Immediately Cryo and Cameron, still in the water, turned around, and saw a small craft jetting towards them. “What’s going on!” exclaimed Cameron. Cryo, reacting immediately, grabbed Cameron with his webbed paws and blasted him onto the boat with a small blast of his water breath. “Get out of here everyone. I’ll lead them away!” yelled Cryo. “Cryo! What are you…!” said Cameron. “Just go! You can find me later!” Cryo immediately began to swim away at a high speed and the attacking boat soon set course straight for him! Soon the Cryo and the attacking boat were out of sight of them. “Hurry! Turn the boat on! We have to move. They may come back!” said one of the armed crew members. “But what about Cryo!” said Cameron. “The tracker is still implanted into Cryo. We can track him when we have support.” “But… He’s all alone on the ocean against those bad guys! They are probably going to hurt him!” “We can’t do anything right now.” “We have to go to shore before they come back.” “Sniff… Alright,” “Sigh… take us to shore Gerald…” said Ty. So the crew left for the shore with the hopes of getting support to find Cryo.

An hour passed before support arrived. “How many we have?” asked Ty. “6 light attack boats, with about 10 man armed crew each.” Gerald looked at a military solider, who was wearing a black leather suit and carrying a small device, rounded and with a screen on the front. “Will it be enough to find him, Kyle?” asked Gerald “It will depend on how far out the dragon went into the sea.” “Any idea who they were?” “No. No Intel about the ones who attacked you in the report. Could be pirates…” “But the ocean around these parts has been clear of that for years. It wouldn’t just start up again now… And they immediately targeted Cryo right as he started swimming away. They weren’t after us.” “I don’t know what else it could be.” He began to fiddle with the device a bit. “Bringing up tracking implant,” said Kyle “Alright. Quick. Every moment counts.” said Ty. Hang on while it loads up… Alright. We got a location!” “How far is he out to sea.” “Let me see. Hmm. That’s strange.” “What is it?” “He doesn’t appear to be out to sea at all.” “What! Where is he then?!” “Subject is 5 miles east, toward the Krayen forest. Subject is immobile. “Hurry. Get a ground team to him. We can’t leave him out there alone, especially if someone else is looking for him!” So taking a group of armored vehicles, they headed into the rough terrain of the forest. “Is… Cryo going to be ok, dad?” said Cameron. “I promise you. Cryo will be fine. He’s a smart dragon. He’ll know how to evade them.” said Ty “Oh. Hang in there Cryo. We’re coming!” said Cameron. So they headed to the location, and looked upon a surprising scene.

The forest around the area where Cryo was in was almost completly frozen! Trees, shrubs, rocks. Everything was covered in a thick layer of ice! “What on earth happened here?” asked Kyle. “I… don’t know. Keep your eyes peeled.” replied Ty. They continued to head forward. “Beacon is close. 21 yards ahead.” “Ready weapons everyone. We don’t know what’s ahead.” said Gerald. They continued heading forward into this frozen forest. And soon they arrived at the center, where large, towering pillar of ice stood. Along the outreaches were several vehicles frozen in ice.” “What is this?” “Beacon is very close. It seems to be, inside the ice?” “Wha… In the ice?” asked Ty. Ty loomed close to the ice pillar. “In here?” Ty asked. He looked into the ice to try to get a better look. It was very hazy inside. But it appeared that the inside was hollow. He began to make out a small cyan figure inside in the center. He realized it was Cryo, laying on his side, breathing very slowly! “Cryo! Cryo!” yelled Ty. Cryo wasn’t budging. “Someone quick! Break this ice!” “…Ty…” murmured Cryo.” Suddenly the vast expense of ice around the area immediately began to thaw and dissipate and the once frozen forest expanse now was released. Ty looked upon Cryo on the ground. “Cryo. You ok!?” “Ugh…” “Cryo then slowly closed his eyes and fell unconscious. “We need an immediate medical team here! Come on everyone, get him on the stretcher!” They immediately strapped Cryo in and hurriedly made way toward their armored transports, where the medical team were waiting. “Quick. Let’s get Cryo in one of the vehicles. We need to get out of here fast, before whoever those others were come back!” said one of the medics. So they quickly loaded Cryo into a armored medical transport to be hauled back into the research base.

Ch 11

Worrisome Words

They immediately took Cryo to the medical building to check to see if he was hurt. Ty and the others would have to wait in order to learn of Cryo’s condition. It wasn’t long after that the moon rose into the sky and night came upon the research center. “I can’t believe this happened.. Who would be so mean and do this to poor Cryo?” asked Cameron. “I don’t know, son. Whoever it was, was there for Cryo though.” replied Ty. “Do you think they were from Cryo’s original family?” asked Cameron. “No. We’ve… kept tabs on them. They haven’t had any misconduct against us since the incident. Nor do they know where we are. They don’t seem like the type of people who would go this far to get Cryo back. “This must have been the work of a third party” replied Gerald. “A third party? Who else would know about him? We’ve sealed off the research center and no one within the nearby city should have any idea about Cryo.” “That’s the thing. It was no accident that they came on the day we wanted to test Cryo’s aquatic abilities. They knew we were going out to sea for this. They knew we would have a small crew defending him. None of us expected them. If there was any other time to get to him, it would have been now.” said Gerald.

“Where are you going with this, Gerald?” said Ty. “What I’m saying, is that the only way anyone would have known that we were out there today, is…”  “If someone gave them that information…” replied Ty. “Someone in this base wants Cryo,” said Gerald. “Who would want Cryo? And why?” asked Cameron. “I don’t know the exact reason why anyone would want Cryo. It could be to gain a large amount of cash on a new discovery. It could be they want to harness Cryo’s powers to do something nasty. It could even be to hold him for ransom. Whatever the reason is, we need to be much more careful with him.” “If what your saying is true Gerald, then we have a mole here somewhere. Cryo’s at risk. We’ll need to increase security around Cryo. They may make an attempt to take him from here now that their first plan failed.” “Alright. I’ll get on it Ty. What are you going to do?” “Excuse me,” said a familiar voice. They turned to the right to look and saw Nancy in the doorway. “Is Cryo ok?” asked Cameron. 

“Yes. He’s alright.” The group felt a huge sense of relief hearing these words. “Cryo is sleeping right now. He’ll wake up in the morning.” “Is he hurt?” asked Cameron.” “No. He’s just feeling the effects of this,” she replied. She then took a small, thin object out of her pocket. “What is that Dad?” “That… That’s some sort of dart,” replied Ty. “Correct. This small dart was found in Cryo’s back left leg. Seems someone tried to take him using a tranquilizer gun. As you can see from closer inspection, the dart held a chemical inside which broke and leached into Cryo’s back right leg as it was injected in him.” “Must have tried to sedate him to take him without effort.” “Actually, not exactly. We ran some tests on Cryo and we found traces of the chemical, Nume, inside of him.” “Nume? From the crushed seeds of the Nueraula (Nur-al-a) plant?” “The same.” “Nueraula? Nume? What is she talking about Dad?” asked Cameron. 

“The Nueraula plant is a rare plant found very deep in dry savanna areas. Its seeds, when crushed and boiled, cause them to secrete a fluid that when ingested or injected, causes paralysis on that unlucky soul for a while. It can last only for a few hours or for several days, depending on how strong the creatures immune system is.” “That’s awful! Who would want to do that to Cryo!” Gerald stepped forward and put his hand under his chin and scratched it a bit. He then looked back to Ty. “Yes. Who would? I think it would have been far easier to just sedate him. Instead, they wanted to paralyze him? Why? The only reason I would think they would have wanted him awake…” Gerald paused for a second. “Is because they wanted to be able to talk to him… They wanted some type of information from him. It can’t be anything good…” Ty nodded. “This might also give us an idea of what happened in the forest.” “What do you mean Dad?” “Here’s what I think what happened.”

“After Cryo led the group away from the boat, he must have eventually come back toward the shore to try to escape and make his way back to us. Now that I think about it. Nancy. Did the heart rate monitor record his rate and speed during the incident?” “Yes it did. It read he went over 130 mph and exerted a heart rate of 150-170 beats per minute. As you know, his heart typically beats at 110-130 beats per minute. He had to swim pretty fast to outpace the other boat, especially considering he had to probably also had to swim very erratically to get back to the shore without getting hit with one of these darts beforehand. He seemed to be pretty exhausted by the time he was able to get back to shore, as seen here. His heart capped at this point, at 176 beats per minute.” “Could that have been when he was hit with the dart?” “Possibly. When anything is suffering from the effects of this poison, it starts with the subject finding it harder to control it’s limb movements. Running, walking, grabbing, movements like this will become progressively harder to control. Depending on the size of the creature, the effects may happen faster or more slowly. By Cryo’s size, I estimate at about 4 minutes, he would at least start to feel these effects.” “So Cryo made it to shore, but was followed into the forest by these people. They managed to stick one of these darts into him before or after he made it to shore, and they continued to follow him, knowing he would eventually succumb to full paralysis.”

“Correct. Second stage of the effect is severe numbness. Limbs and other appendages start to stop working. Heart rate slows. Subject finds it much more of a struggle to move.” “Poor Cryo,” said Cameron. “Final stage is, of course, complete paralysis. Subject loses all ability to move. Subject will probably feel light headed. Subject may lose his ability to “control his need to take a break,” if you get my drift. The subject may lose consciousness, but this is rare. Typically the subject will attempt everything they can to move after (especially in Cryo’s case), but cannot. Now the body attempts to respond to extinguish the poisons from the subject’s system. Typically through sweating.From what I can see from the heart monitor, it seems this started at about 5:12 P.M. about an hour and a half before we found him. It looks like he was able to fight it off for about 40 minutes before he completely succumbed judging by his heart rate slowing to its minimum here. Much longer than most other creatures could, especially for his size.” “If that’s the case Dad, why was the forest frozen? And how did they not capture him?”

“Hmm… I think… It’s because they underestimated what he was capable of.” “What do you mean Dad?” “Here’s what I think. Cryo was struggling to get away at this point. They waited until the paralysis took full effect before they approached him. They thought they had him. But Cryo, desperate, decided to tap into his own freezing power to save himself. It’s possible he knew how to. Or he did not. Either way, it worked. He was able to freeze the area around him. Judging how we found no one frozen there, when that happened, the people chasing him grew fearful, and ran off, not wanting to get frozen. Seeing as how Cryo also created a hollow piller of ice around himself to protect himself in, it’s clear that even if they came back, they would not be able to break it in time before we found him. Cryo’s a clever boy.” “Indeed. It seems even in the most difficult moments, Cryo seems to be able to get himself out of bad positions,” said Gerald. “Yes. But the question remains. Who is responsible? And why?”

“These will have to be questions for another time. Right now, we have to make sure he gets better,” said Ty. “Yes. I want Cryo to be moved back to his room immediately. No one gets in except us. Me, Gerald, Cameron, and you Nancy. “Why just us? Shouldn’t we just have a full security detail on him?” asked Ty. Gerald looked out the window in the back of the infirmary. “We can’t trust anyone. Someone at this base wants Cryo. It can’t be for anything good. I’m sure whoever it was will make another attempt. I have no doubt about that. Only those we absolutely trust can go see him. Until this is resolved, we cannot risk him getting attacked again. Understand?” Everyone looked at each other and nodded in agreement. “Alright, let’s move him,” said Ty. 

The group put Cryo on a stretcher and took him back to his room. They carefully wrapped him in his favorite blanket he got on his last birthday, with an aqua blue color and shows a cartoonish version of him transformed and swimming in the vast ocean with a night sky filled with stars at the top of the blanket. The words “Swim through the sea of dreams, Cryo.” were stitched at the bottom. Ty had taken time to clean it beforehand with a special wash that gives it the smell of a pleasant meadow, which helps keep Cryo calm and comfy when he needs to sleep. After he was tightly and comfortably wrapped, they placed him on his hay bed with his head nestled on a Cyan pillow with a water motif on it so he could be comfortable and stay warm. One by one, they left the room, except Cameron, who was sitting in a chair in the room by Cryo’s bed. He thought for a moment about getting up and going to bed, but he remembered what his father said. “Someone at the base wants Cryo, and they will make another attempt. These words rang in his head, like a hoard of bees, and he didn’t want to leave Cryo here alone. Ty came back in the doorway.

“Cameron. Come on bud. It’s getting late. You need to go to bed,” Ty said. “D… Dad. Can I… stay here with Cryo tonight.” “You… want to stay with Cryo.” “Yes. Please Dad. I… want to stay with him and make sure he’s okay,” replied Cameron. “He’ll be fine Cameron. Come on.” “No I… Can’t leave him, dad. Not like this. Please. Please let me stay with him.” “…Alright Cameron, let me get one of Cryo’s blankets for you. Just, don’t stay up all night watching him, okay?” “Yes dad. Thank you.” Ty went into the closet at the end of Cryo’s room and took out a red blanket with a picture of a dragon and a human, flying through the air together. “Alright. Good night Cameron.” “Good night Dad.” Ty left the room, turning off the lights. Cameron spent some time awake that night, watching the door to Cryo’s room. Wrapped up in Cryo’s blanket, he looked back at Cryo, who seemed to be sleeping peacefully now. Cameron wondered what Cryo could be dreaming about right now. He could tell it must be something nice, as he could see a small smile on his face. After some time, he would fall asleep himself.

New known abilities:

Metamorphosis: Cryo’s body changes when in water to better swim in it.

Frozen Fortress: In times of desperation, Cryo can tap into his freezing power to unleash a powerful freezing blast out of his body to freeze the area, while also creating an ice pillar around himself to make it difficult to get directly to him.

New Known Likes:

Fixing Technology

His new friend, Cameron

Swimming

Storytime

New known dislikes:

Being bullied

Loneliness

Being treated like an animal

Arguements

Not being able to go outside

His birthday