"We'll get them back. I promise you!" Jasmine told her with a hint of
suppressed fury in her voice.

 "Thanks, Jasmine-chan, Elenora-chan. I'm O.K. now." She smiled shyly at the
two.

 "Are you sure?" Jasmine asked with a little concerned frown.

 "Hai!" Matsuri nodded. She did feel better both physically and emotionally.

 "O.K. Well, I'm going to grab a few hours of sleep." Jasmine informed them
as she rose and stepped out of the tub and started drying off. "Is there a
room I could use, Matsuri?"

 "First door to the right." Matsuri answered, not letting any hint of
amusement show on her face as to where she had just directed Jasmine.

 "Thanks." Jasmine answered as she shrugged into her favorite oversized
T-shirt and picked up her pack and headed out the door.

 "You sent her to Tsuzuku's room, didn't you?" Elenora asked with a giggle.

 "Yup." Matsuri grinned back. "We should think about getting out. You're
starting to look like a raisin."


 Jasmine knew it was Tsuzuku's room as soon as she opened the door and her
nose picked up that warm tickle of cinnamon. She smiled as she shook her
head. That Matsuri had a mischievous streak in her, all right. She snapped on
the overhead as she leaned her pack against the wall, then walked around his
room, hands behind her back, strangely shy about touching any of his things.

 She stopped to scan the books on the case, pleased to see that they had
similar tastes in literature. She reached out to tentatively touch and
straighten the simple black frame that surrounded the only piece of art on
the walls. She wondered if it was just coincidence that she had this same
print of a picture of an open water lily with the Japanese calligraphy for
flower below it hanging on the wall of her own room.

 She ended up back by the door and the light switch, set the alarm on her
watch for 3:15 am, turned off the light and headed for the bed. She looked
down at it with a blush, then shook herself with a mental chide and sat down,
pulled the pillow out from under the spread and slid it under her head as she
stretched out. The smell of him was all over it and she smiled, turned her
head to rub her cheek against it. Her dragon. This was how her dragon
smelled. She took a few more deep breaths then sighed, pulled it out from
under her head and tossed it across the room. She had something else
important she needed to do and that pillow and the scent on it would be too
much of a distraction.

 Since Owaru was unable or unwilling to locate his brothers, she would try
something else. It might not work, but she was going to give it a try. She
relaxed every part of her body, started taking progressively slower and
deeper breaths and formed the image of the dragon on the scarf in her mind
and reached out.

 She was falling. Fast. She forced open her eyes determined to imprint
everything she saw into her memory. First it was just the white of clouds,
then she dropped through the bottom, saw the familiar outline of the east
coast of the United States as she plummeted down, heading for the coastline
of Maine, then a craggy up thrust of gray cliff with a compound of buildings
along it's top. She tensed involuntarily as the ground rushed up to meet her.

*************

 Travis sat  beside the north wall of the ten inch thick clear (at least it
was from this side. The inner surface of the wall had been treated with a
thermodynamic chemical that made it opaque from the inside, unless he chose
to alter it and let them see out) tempered acrylic room that occupied the
center of the cavernous lab and studied the youngest Ryudo on the cot before
him with a worried scowl. He'd had Jonah put him down so the boy faced him
and so he could see the wrist monitor. It 'clear' light had finally gone back
from amber to green and the two white ones under it showing heart and
respiration rates had steadied out into an even, if still somewhat slow,
rhythm.

 They had chosen this one to take the blood from on an educated guess and
Tamanji and the others assurances that a Dragon's skin got harder and harder
to penetrate as they got older. What they hadn't counted on was a side effect
of the drugs and the scrambler. Doc had ended up having to use a laser
scalpel to get to and open the vein at the inside of this little Dragons
elbow. They had gotten the pint they were after but had a difficult time
stopping the bleeding. Somehow, the combination of drugs and scrambler had
short circuited the normally accelerated healing system of the Dragons. Doc
had just managed to get that under control with his own special healing
talent and a pressure bandage when Amaru Ryudo suddenly dropped into
anaphylactic shock in an allergic reaction to one of the drugs.

 It had been close, Travis almost taking the littlest Dragon outside with the
intention of taking off the scrambler and letting him power up, confident in
his own abilities and that of the three other Dragon's who worked for him to
keep him contained until he healed himself. Thankfully it hadn't come to
that, Doc letting him into his mind in a panic, (he still didn't understand
why he was so frightened of these Dragons) dropping all the barriers he
normally maintained even in their private moments so they could merge powers
and together they got Amaru stabilized.

 It had been fascinating. He'd never really understood how Doc 'saw' people
when he worked, always having been on the receiving end of his power. His
 smile turned soft and gentle and private. He knew now how Doc could merge
his own nervous systems with his patient and see what was wrong with their
bodies. He could make them draw breath as he did, keep their hearts beating
with his own, turn off pain receptors, restrict the flow of blood to one area
or increase it to another. And now he knew how to do it too.

 He was thankful that neither of the older Ryudo's had been conscious during
that little crisis. He doubted that even the combined effect of the drugs and
scrambler would hold Hajime or Tsuzuku Ryudo in check if they went into
serious fury. Those fools at the Big Four who wanted these boy's had no idea
what they were getting themselves into. But that wasn't his problem, he
thought with a small smile. Their job was to catch them and now hold them for
a hundred thou a piece a day until those idiots got their containment
facilities finished. Apparently they hadn't believed his delivery date and
were still scrambling to re-enforce what they had after that pathetic attempt
to take Tsuzuku Ryudo. All of his people had all had a good laugh at that
disaster!

 His contact, one Mr. Townsend, had wanted to send in a team of scientists to
start studying the Ryudo's as soon as he had reported them caught. He had
politely said no and told him if he so much as saw one Four Sister's employee
within thirty miles of his compound he'd release the Dragon's himself after
he made sure to give them the names and address of every high executive that
he could think of. Mr. Townsend had cajoled then threatened, thinking that he
was calling a bluff. Travis had rattled off a list of names and numbers just
off the top of his head and grinned into the stunned silence at the other end
of the line. Mr. Townsend had then agreed with him that yes, it would
probably be best to wait, that he was sure that the Dragon Ops base didn't
have the equipment necessary to start the preliminary tests anyway. 

 He wasn't too concerned that he'd loose control of any of the Brother's
anyway. He had studied them carefully as his crew waited in the wings for
their crack at these dragons and he knew them now inside and out. He knew how
they thought, what they feared, what they loved and how to use it against
them. It would take another freak accident like this to set them off and he
wouldn't allow that to happen again. He had what he wanted from them now.
Maybe. He rested his elbows on the arms of his chair, laced his fingers
together and brought his hands up to rest his chin on them and smiled softly
at the boy.

 He had just about decided that he would keep this little one. He was still
young and malleable enough to be gently weaned away from his brother's
influences and brought under his own. Besides, they'd be blood brothers soon.
He was impatient to find out if Doc's theory was right but would wait until
the older pair where out of his hair. He turned his chair and sent it
forwards with it's quiet electric hiss, followed the wall, turned the corner
and stopped it to gaze down at the dark haired beauty that was Tamanji.

 When he had discovered her at fifteen dancing with wild abandon in a New
York Nightclub she had been a small terror indulging her thirst for sensation
and danger. Her total confidence in her own ability to handle herself and
anything that life threw at her had drawn him to her like a magnet. It had
been simple to play on her desires and bring her to heel. *Or had he?* He
wondered as he narrowed his eyes. At eighteen, she was a dark angel, her
earlier wildness smoldering beneath a coldly composed and very deadly
exterior.

 She had all of her mental shields up as she stood and gazed at the drugged
form of Tsuzuku Ryudo with a small enigmatic smile. He could get nothing off
her except a dark tinged anticipation and sense of hunger. He could push
through her shields easily if he chose to, but it served his purposed better
if she thought he could not. He could see a battle of will coming. She had
focused all of her passions on this beautiful young male and was going to
want to keep him. He wouldn't allow that, of course.

 "Tammi, since you're here, you get to stand watch." He told her in his soft
cultured voice. "I want to go and check on Doc. They should be out for
another hour at least, but do keep an eye on them. And all of them, Tamanji,
not just the pretty one."

 "Don't worry about it Travis. If one so much as twitches, I'll call you."
Tamanji assured him without moving her eyes off the Ryudo that had captivated
her.

 He headed for the ramp, stopped at the raised tier that held the control
boards and monitors for the room and checked the more detailed displays on
the three brothers transmitting from their wrist monitors one more time
before he headed for the elevator. As it rose he began to think that Tamanji
and that Ryudo might become a problem. The reports from Doc and his Dragons
all confirmed that they believed that Tsuzuku Ryudo was Jasmine Tanaka's
destined mate.

 He knew without a doubt that was what was fueling Tamanji's desire for that
second born Ryudo. He'd have to keep more of an eye on her than usual and
check to see what Tammi's sisters where up to. He really didn't need Jasmine
Tanaka showing up on his doorstep in a snit. She wouldn't pose too much of a
problem, but a problem none the less.

 
 Tamanji waited until she heard the elevator start moving before she pulled
the bagged scarf out of her pocket and let it out. She kept firm hold of the
end with the tail as she draped it around her shoulders so that it hung with
it's neck against her chest and it's eyes even with Tsuzuku's profile. She
stroked the golden neck against her like it was a living thing as she waited.
That was one of the things she had learned under Travalian's tutelage, how to
wait. She knew when she'd take him, had worked out all the details on the
flight home. For now she'd just enjoy looking at him.

 It had been a little over twenty minutes when the scarf came alive around
her neck. She jerked as a shock jarred through her, numbing her fingers. The
scarf slithered through them and surged forward to press itself against the
clear wall. She cursed, grabbed for it and just missed as it soared upwards
heading for the rough stone ceiling of the lab.

 "Sneaky, Sister! But you won't get it back! And I've got him." She yelled as
the scarf pressed against the ceiling, glowed like the sun itself making her
squint, then began to flutter down.

 The com at the control area came to life with Travis's calm yet furious
voice. "Tamanji, what just happened?"

 Tamanji tracked the scarf, jumped up to grab it out of the air as she ran
for the control platform. "Nothing down here. They're still in la-la land.
Why? What happened?" She asked as she calmly folded the scarf and stuffed it
back into the bags. She didn't need Travis trying to confiscate it, which he
would do if he felt it was a threat to their containment and control of these
Dragons.

 "I'm on my way down. Double check the monitors, now." He commanded.

 "O.K." Tamanji shrugged with a smile, did as she was told.



 Travis tried to will the pounding headache away as he headed for the
elevator, Doc walking beside him with his hand resting possessively on his
shoulder. He glanced up at his steel haired companion and his pallor and
sighed inwardly. He had tried to convince him to stay and rest for a while
more, that he'd call him when the Ryudo's began to stir. But Doc wouldn't,
was worried about him and his reaction to such a large use of his power.

 That had been definitely unnerving. He hadn't even been aware that someone
had slipped past his psychic guards until it was too late. He had reached for
the fleeing presence, trying to catch it, struck out to stun it and trap it
in the astral plane. Most of his attack had been blocked by what he had
perceived as a huge dragon made out of sunlight which had sprung into
existence to protect the retreating presence and breathed light back at him,
sending him reeling into the gasping shell of his body.

 He assumed The Four Sisters had sent one of their psychic's in to take a
look around. He hoped he'd given the S.O.B. a headache to rival his own. That
sunlight protector bothered him, though. That had come from a different
source than the spy. Had one of the Ryudo's reacted on the psychic plane to
block him? Why? And which one of them had it been? He lost his train of
thought as the headache evolved with two pain filled stabs into something
beyond his ability to ignore.

 Doc leaned back against the wall, hovering close too comfort and for comfort
as he rode the elevator down with Travis, still shaky but back on his feet.
He frowned with concern at his so physically fragile lover as the slender
brown haired man rubbed at his temples, his face tense with pain.

 "Are you all right, Trav?" He questioned, trying to keep the worry out of
his voice as he detected the fine tremor in Travis's hands.

 Travis nodded, then shook his head. "No. You'd better do it now, before any
of the others see." He gave Doc a tired smile.

 Doc nodded, hit the hold button on the elevator bringing it to a stop. He
knelt by the wheelchair, pulled a small syringe out of his vest pocket and
popped the cap off with his thumb. He had discovered the effects of Dragon's
Blood on other creatures after he'd manage to collect a small sample from
Tamanji when Lee had dragged her home beaten and battered from that free for
all with her sisters two years ago. He had taken it apart, studied the
strange DNA with it's four extra and unknown nucleotides with the latest
technology and his own special gift, suspected what it could do. The results
of his experiments had far surpassed his expectation, giving him hope that
he'd be able to keep Travis alive to see his thirty-sixth birthday and many
more after that.

 In microscopic doses it gave strength and phenomenally fast healing but wore
off in a matter of weeks. In larger ones, it was deadly. He was down to ten
doses when the Dragon Ops had accepted the assignment to catch the Ryudo
Dragons. He suspected that was a large part behind the reason Travis had
taken it. After had seen the power levels thrown by which ever one of the
brothers had changed at the JSDF practice range (they still weren't sure
which brother it had been) and then what Tsuzuku Ryudo had turned into, he
made an intuitive deduction. These four far surpassed Tamanji and she was the
most powerful of the three Dragons Travalian controlled. He assumed that
their blood would be more potent also, allowing smaller doses which would
last for longer periods of time.     

 He pressed the fingers of his left hand gently against the pulse points of
Travis's offered wrist and synched himself into his heartbeat in the first
phase of a link-up, then was aware of every part of his body. He dulled the
pain receptors around the lesion that was leaking blood again at the base of
Travis's brain, kicked in endomorphines, breathed deep saturating his own
body and that of his lover's with oxygen. That lesion worried at him. Doc
knew that every time Travis used his power it opened, the Blood doing it's
magic so far though and sealing it back up quickly unless it's potency was
fading, like it was now.

 He slid the slender needle into a vein on the underside of Travis's forearm
and kept a careful vigil as Travis stiffened and took in a sharp short breath
of pain. He followed the magic as it sped through out his lover's body,
looking for any of the signs of the hideous mutations that had occurred in
some of his earlier subjects, then it was done.

 Trav opened his arresting eyes, the lavender once again dominant. Doc found
himself missing the warm moss green of their original color as Trav took his
hand and held it firmly in his own and gave him a smile full of relief. "We
should be on our way, Doc."
 
 Doc gave an exasperated sigh, amazed at how the Blood could take Trav from
near physical and mental collapse to this vibrant vitality, reached out and
hit the hold button with his free hand and sent them down.


*************


 Jasmine scrabbled back for her body as the brain numbing buzz of the
following power grew in intensity behind her as it got closer and closer,
terrified of becoming trapped and lost in this place where the psychics of
their Order moved so easily. Images of Tsi Chang Woo goaded her on. She had
been frightened to the depths of her soul when she had accompanied Catherine
into China at fourteen to collect his catatonic body. No one was sure what
had happened, just that he had lost his way and couldn't or wouldn't hear any
of the other members of the Order who tried to call him back.

 After five years he was still nothing but an empty shell. The Order's
physicians called it a functioning catatonic state but still hadn't given up
hope that one day he might find his way back. She still visited him regularly
in the hospital wing of the Main East Coast Chapter House in Boston, reading
to him, taking him on walks, fighting to keep her sense of shuddering horror
well hidden. He would walk if led, sit if gently forced, chew and swallow
when fed. The only stimuli he responded to at all was pain, and that barely.
She had to get back! Now!

 The wave of power hit her just as she threw herself back into her body, the
force of it lifting her a few inches off the bed as her body reacted to her
brains perception of a physical blow. She realized she had fallen off the bed
and was huddled on the floor, her vision edged with black and obscured by
sparks as her head throbbed in agony that kept time with her racing heart.