the origins of Drakon Atoll

What a nice change for once, Zorath thought as he flew over the forest below. Instead of the usual annoyances that the inhabitants of Drakon Atoll had to put up with today was peaceful. The leader of the council circled the volcano once again before gliding gently down onto the empty balcony that he had set off from a hour beforehand.

Now back inside the office Zorath made his way towards his desk, the much cooler air inside providing a much more comfortable experience for the ice based dragon. While the sun was a nice change from the typical rain of home, he still could never get used to the heat.

Sitting back at his desk Zorath started up the computer only to find no alerts, no incidents and no extremists to take care of. Everything was running as planned which finally provided some time for the council leader to take a trip down memory lane and look at some of the many logs he had made back when this whole life was being set up...

…....................................................................

John Meredith finally touched solid ground again after abseiling for several minutes.  This last cave, found deep in the Amazon rainforest, had certainly proven larger than the rest! He unclipped the rope that held him on the way down and journeyed deeper into the cave, flash light showing the way.

It was only a few minutes later when he made a discovery. It seemed that either this cave led back outside or something else was producing that white glow further down. He pulled out his radio, reporting back what he was seeing until he stopped, speechless.

Standing before him was an 8 foot high piece of solid crystal glowing white. This was the discovery of the century! He frantically began describing the find to base, pacing around the monumental gem as he admired its natural beauty.

Then he touched it.

The reaction was instant as the white glow began to burn an angry red, jolts of energy now being sent right at the poor explorer. The crew on the surface began shouting for their friend as the energy built and built until it exploded  in a large pulse of energy.

When the dust finally settled John was surprised to find himself allright. Nothing hurt, everything still in tact? Arms check. Legs check. Wings check.

Wait wings?

The explorer gawked at what he now saw adorning his body. From head to toe he was covered in light blue scales, a flexible tail extending from his rear and two bat like wings extending out from his back. By anyones definition he was now a dragon. As to how it happened he didnt know.

After that John managed to fly back out of the cave and so the first dragon made his way to civilisation. Well thats how everyone says it happened. The governments of the world tried to cover up the story and captured poor John but word did get out and Zorath learned of it.

At the time Zorath was just another college student, working hard for his A levels and preparing to go to university. When the news of a real live dragon began to circulate saying he was excited was an understatement. Ever since he first read about the lizards of the skies he was fascinated by them and the rumours that the dragon was also once human made it all the more intruiging.

For weeks the teenager scoured the internet for more information, updating his online friends with every little detail he could find. From what Zorath had found the cause for Johns change was some type of element found deep within the earth. Such crystals didn't seem to be recorded anywhere and there definitely wasn't any more cases of this phenomena. However it was 12 days after the initial news that he found what he was looking for.

Bags were packed, transport was arranged and goodbyes were said as Zorath made his way north, into the highlands of scotland where an old scientific report had stated a 'strange rock of some sort was found.' The scientists had left the rock due to its location being impossible to reach with any sort of equipment to remove it with. Zorath, on the other had, wasn't going to remove it. He was going to embrace it.

A long journey and then a walk into the hills finally ended at a cave opening. The teen quickly activated his torch and dwon he went, being careful not to lose his footing. The cave itself wasn't very deep and sure enough there was that glow, the same white glow that John had seen. Only a quick turn here and...

There it was. A gem of truly epic proportions putting all others to shame. Its glow illuminated the entire room it sat within and seemed to hum slightly. Zorath finally shook himself out of his trance and touched the crystal.

Unlike John, Zorath's crystal shone brighter than ever, its colour slowly changing to a light green as it seemed to shrink. While it did this he felt energy being poured into him, energizing him after the long walk and  making the boy heat up quite a bit. Soon the light seemed too bright and he collapsed.

When Zorath finally re-opened his eyes the crystal was gone. The room was now much darker yet he could still see perfectly fine. Slowly he began picking himself up off the floor and then he noticed himself.

The plan had worked flawlessly. The black scales he had always dreamt of covered him, streaks of red accentuating the look. Gone was his previously black hair, now replaced by two large horns and a third smaller horn that sat atop his new muzzle. Spikes now ran down his back, a collar of them around his neck and a tail proudly swished behind him. A mad swirl of emotions rushed through his mind. Excitement, joy, fear and confusion all span madly around in the new dragons head as he got his balance and began heading for the cave entrance.

With the plan having worked the next issue would be everything from now on. How could he get home without being taken as a science experiment? The answer came from looking down to his claws. The thought of hiding from the government had sparked a simple power he now held. The power to go invisible! Well technically he was now a shadow but that could work! The new dragon now took to the air with a lot of wobbling and finally got his first taste of true flight.

….............

Over the next few weeks others across the world seemed to share in Zoraths luck. Only a few days of living in secrecy was needed before the existence of dragons became public knowledge. Soon the UN and some representatives from the new draconic community began talks on legal things and such. It seemed things were improving for the new species until that day. The day many of the first changed still remember very vividly.

March 15th 2014, A year after the initial change of the first dragon. Humans and dragons alike gathered in celebration across the world. One of the biggest gatherings was the one held in Florida. Disney had opened their parks for the event and thousands of dragons poured into the wondrous resort for a day of fun that was never to be. At 12 noon there was an explosion in the magic kingdom park, one that engulphed the entire park in its destructive wave. 2 minutes later the same happened at the next park, and the next until all of disneyland was ablaze and thousands of lives were extinguished.

The world was shocked. Investigations began and discovered the culprits were a part of a collective of dragon haters, ones with access to large amounts of explosives. The US labeled them as terrorists and began to hunt them down but the damage was done. Thousands of lives had been lost and everyone felt it.

That was the point when Zorath decided that what used to be a simple art group had to become something bigger. He began to work on forming a new DragonShadowCouncil, one that wasnt just an art group but a dragon support group, there to protect their kind from threats in the future. Calls were made and soon they had a full team ready to go. All that was left was a base.

The answer to that was found by Rex as he made a long haul flight across the North Atlantic. On the past few trips he had noticed the odd fog that hung over one area of the ocean and this time he decided to investigate. Lo and behold the fog hid an entire island, dominated by a volcano at the centre and more importantly uninhabited. It was perfect in nearly every way and completely hidden. The rest of the council was informed and the newly named Drakon Atoll began its development into a base for the council and later a resort for 'those who a dragon in heart'

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Zorath flicked the file closed and shut down the PC, standing up and heading for the balcony. While their short history was a bit rough they had certainly made a positive impact on the world. Looking down to the resort below he could see that clearly from all the people down below having a great time. Sometimes the head councillor just needed to enjoy what he had and so down he went, landing at the head of one of the new groups of freshly changed
''So who's ready to fly?''