Alvaro looked at the table and true enough there was an iPod and headphones on top.
“Were you listening to music?” Asked Alvaro but then he thought better of it and asked “How can you get iPods here?”
Merlin looked at the iPod and then at the boys. “I do keep a close eye on your side of the universe. Sometimes I bring back little things that are useful or make my life more pleasant.”
“How do you charge it?” asked Alberto.
Merlin looked at him and smiled. “I see you are good at spotting things out of place,” said Merlin. “I also got a solar panel system. It's very useful.”
“What type of music were you listening to?” Asked Alvaro wandering what on earth would a wizard out of a Disney movie like to hear.
“Right now I was listening to Linkin Park” The two boys jaws dropped. “What.....” said Alvaro, “Cool!” said Alberto, who liked the band.
“I would have thought you were more of a Beethoven type” said Alvaro.
Merlin smiled and said, “ Vivaldi actually, but I do keep an ear out for all sorts of music. If you like music, apart from the American or European scene, you'll be amazed at what comes out of Africa, India or South America.”
Merlin walked closer to the boys and smiled at them. It was a grand-dad type of smile. Nice, and showing that he was really happy to see them. “I'm so glad that you two found your brothers. It's more important that you could ever imagine”.
“What's an iPod?” just then boomed the voice of Alvaro the Dragon. The boy turned and saw the head of the dragons inside the room. They were using the round windows higher up to get their heads in. Alberto grabbed the player and showed it to the dragon who forced his eyes a bit and said “Ah, one of those little gadgets. I'll never understand Merlin's liking of them. There' perfectly good musicians here.”
“But can they play non stop for hours and hours music of hundreds of different types?” Asked Merlin.
“Well no.” Said the dragon “But they taste better!” and he bursted out laughing. He stopped when he realised no one else was laughing, not even Alberto the dragon who was shaking his head. “Hey, it's just a joke. I've never eaten a musician. Their guitars are too crunchy!” and he bursted out laughing again. This time Alvaro who liked the joke also laughed.
“Do I have to remind every one here that some dragons are actually killing people and these jokes are tasteless.” Said Alberto the dragon.
“Tasteless!!!” Shouted Alvaro the dragon and laughed even louder.
“That's enough.” Said Merlin. “Alberto is quite right. It's no laughing matter.”
The two Alvaros quiet down and looked embarrassed.
“What's this about dragons killing people?” Asked Alberto.
“It's the reason why I sent for both of you.” Answered Merlin. “It started happening about a year ago. At first it was rumours from the mountain that people here did not believe, but then there was attacks on humans tending their flock at the foot of the mountains, and three weeks ago they attacked the village. It was terrible.” Merlin looked down to hide the sadness in his eyes and the boys could feel the pain and shame from their dragons.
Alberto turned and looked up to his dragon brother. “Don't feel ashamed. It wasn't you.” He said.
“But it was dragons! My own people doing something as terrible as that! How can I not...”.
“Because it wasn't you or your people.” Said Alberto quieting the dragon. The two dragons and Merlin looked at Alberto.”You have the voice.” Said Merlin. Alberto was going to ask what he meant by that when Alvaro said “How can you know it wasn't his people? You just got here.”
“I can feel it. Look, come out with me.” He said grabbing his brother by the arm and walking out into the square.
“Look at the mountains and feel your dragon at the same time. You know how you can feel things that are alive? What's inside those mountains is a bit like a dragon but feels very different.”
Alvaro walked to his dragon birth brother and touched his front leg while looking at the mountains. He could feel the life around him. His dragon shone like a bright light as did his brother, Merlin and Alberto the dragon, but the mountains simply looked like mountains. He didn't feel anything from them. He looked at his dragon and with his mind he asked is he could feel something, but Alvaro the dragon could not feel a thing either.
“Sorry. I don't know what you mean.” Said Alvaro to his brother.
The two Albertos looked a bit surprised. “Why can't he feel what I feel?” Asked Alberto to Merlin.
“The combination of powers of the souls of the Dragon Birth Brothers is different each time. You probably are much more aware of life than most others,” said Merlin. “But you are lucky you two are human brothers as that means you can share experiences. Grab your brother's hand and feel the mountains.”
Alberto did what Merlin asked and looked at the mountains. To Alvaro it was like changing from a black and white old TV program to a modern 3D movie. The town was full of colour, the dragons shone brightly in their own colours but with eddies of other colours crossing their bodies very similar to Merlin who's colours seems to have a slow rhythm. His brother Alberto was a mixture of Merlin and the dragons but with spirals of light of different colours coming out of his body at different places. “Wow. Those must be the chakras mum talks about.” just then he noticed he also had them. “Well?” Asked his brother “Do you feel it now?” Alvaro, who had forgotten all about the mountains, looked at them. He could see colours and feel the mountains alive and also something like Alvaro and Alberto the dragons but darker, denser, looking back at him. The darkness came towards him and he felt scared, letting go of his brother's hand.
“Don't worry.” Said his brother “It's like it's coming here but it never reaches. I don't think it can even see us.”
“Now I known what it felt like when Sauron spots Frodo in the first film of The Lord of the Rings.” Said Alvaro.
“Who's Sauron?” asked his dragon “I don't think I like him.”
“It's a fictional character from a book in their dimension." Said Merlin "A good book I have to say. Better than the film.”
Merlin then walked to Alberto and said “I'm glad you decided to come.”
“How come I don't have any special powers?” asked Alvaro.
“You do. All dragon birth brothers have. It's just you haven't found it yet. Don't worry, it will come. Let's go back inside now. I have a story to tell and a favour to ask.”
They walked with Merlin back into the house, the dragon using the dragon windows to look inside.
Merlin sat at the table and asked the boys to sit. “Would you like to drink something?” He asked.
“Can I have a Coke please?” Asked Alberto.
“And me some Nestea please.” Said Alvaro.
Merlin looked at them and told them that even though he knew about those drinks he usually didn't bring food back from their dimension. The boys settled for some fresh water.
“I think there's a very strong power which I don't know that has changed the dragons and it's using them to attack the peoples of this land.” Merlin told them. “One of the weak points of dragons is that they are self centred and their ego can be used by trickery to change them. Only dragons who have found their Birth Brothers have the strength and balance not to fall for this trick.” He looked at the boys and smiled. “It's why we had to get you. Alvaro the dragon is old enough to know how to open interdimensional doors so he went to look for you Alvaro. We have been lucky that both of you came.”
“Yes. Something kept telling me that Alberto had to come.” Said Alvaro.
“That would be me.” Said Alberto.
“No it wasn't. I think it was myself, but from another time.”
Merlin looked at him and said “I think you are getting close to your special power Alvaro.” He then turned to both boys and continued, “We now need you to go and find out what it is that it's changing the dragons. As you have not been to school here and have not been trained I will need to give you skills that will allow you to survive attacks and difficult situations.”
“Great!” Said Alvaro. “What skills are we going to get?”
“I think that's really up to you. Whatever it is it has to be something that will protect you and will come out of your heart. Don't use logic to choose. Use your heart.”
“I know, I know!” Shouted Alberto.
“Are you sure?” Asked Merlin “That was a bit quick.”
“Yes, yes. I know, I know.” Said Alberto with a smile on his face.
“Ok. What is it?”
“I want to be a Ninja!”
Merlin though for a while and asked, “the Japanese assassins from the middle ages? A strange choice for a young boy.”
Alberto stared at him,“assassins? I don't think so.” Said Alberto. “Warriors with a code of honour more like it.”
“Project your idea of a ninja to me please. Do it like when you talk to your dragon brother.”
Alberto closed his eyes and thought of the best ninja he could think of.
“Who's Naruto?” Asked Merlin. Alvaro quickly explained about the TV series and Merlin laughed “Hehehe. I think it's a good choice.”
He then got up and in his hand a beam of light appeared. He touched Alberto with this light which jumped and enveloped him, it shone brightly making Alberto nearly disappear. When Alberto appeared again he was dress in black, like a Ninja. He looked down and with wide opened eyes a shouted, “cool!”
“You should have the skills of my idea of a Ninja and your Naruto. Try them please.”
Alberto who was still looking down at himself looked up and said “Ok. Here it goes.” He ran across the room with his arms stretched behind him, got to the wall, ran up the wall and nearly at the top he did a somersault falling back down and gently landing on his feet. He then, with hardly any effort, jumped on top of his dragon. “Wooo hoooo!!” He shouted.
Alvaro closed his mouth and decided he had to think of something as cool as that, but better.
“That's the wrong way to do it.” Said Alvaro the dragon, reading his mind. “Use your heart, not logic.”
Alvaro then quieted his thoughts and stopped looking at his brother. He felt a presence that seem really familiar and a voice that said “Be yourself and I'll be there.” Alvaro looked at his dragon and asked “Was that you?”
“No it wasn't, but I also heard that.” They both looked at Merlin. He smiled and said “Whatever it was, it wasn't me.”
Just then Alvaro knew what he wanted to be. “Ok. I'm ready.” He said. “I want to be a wizard.”
Merlin seemed to relax and said “Fantastic! I could see it in you.” The beam of light appeared in his hand and he walked towards Alvaro. As before, the light seem to reach out and surround the boy. It shone brightly and then Alvaro reappeared. He looked just like he did before.
“Don't worry about the clothes. We wizard don't have a dress code, we simply choose the most comfy stuff. Look in your jacket pocket.”
Alvaro put his hand in his pocket and found what he expected. “A wand!” He took it out and saw it was a beam of light.
“Try it please.” Said Merlin.
“How? Don't I need any magic spells like Alohomora or Avada Ked....”
“Don't even think that!” Shouted Merlin. “The words themselves don't do anything but the idea behind does and you have the power to make that idea true.”
“Sorry.” Said Alvaro looking quite upset realising what he nearly said.
“Ok. I think I have the idea.” He turned to his brother who was looking at him, and he pointed the wand to him. Alberto clothes changed to girls clothes.
“Eh! That's not funny. Get my clothes back!” When the two Alvaros stopped laughing, he did so.
Merlin smiling said, “you have to be careful with that. One of the reasons spells are used is so that no mistakes are done. In reality you don't need them to make magic but you do have to be extra careful.”
Merlin asked them to follow him out into the square, and then, turning to all four of them, he asked them to go to the mountains and find out what was changing the dragons. They had to find out and come back. Under no circumstances were they to confront whatever it was. And in case of trouble, to come straight back. He said this last bit looking at the dragons who nodded but he still worried that the would meet dangers head on. They were dragon brothers after all.
The boys climbed on the dragons and Alberto said, “Alvaro, can you do something about a saddle? It's a bit uncomfortable sitting here on a bare back.”
“What? Why me?” Responded his brother.
“You can just make one. Imagine a good one and make some magic please.”
Alvaro thought about it for a while and said “Ok. Here goes...” He pointed the wand to Alberto's dragon (who closed his eyes just in case) and a beam of light jumped to the dragon.
Alberto looked down and saw he was sitting in a saddle that held his feet and legs and had a type of console in front. “What's the Playstation for?” He asked his brother.
“It's not a Playstation. It's a flight console." Alvaro replied smiling. "It shows altitude and objects around you. That way you can see stuff at night or in a cloud. Like a radar but better."
“Ok. Here we go." Said Alberto the dragon as he took off and then headed toward the mountains followed by Alvaro and his dragon brother. Alvaro looked behind to see the town getting smaller and smaller. He switched on the console and saw that the mountains even though big where still faraway. Alberto the dragon shone gold with the sun light and his brother had a big smile on his face. Alvaro also smiled. He was having a real life adventure in a real dragon.
