The Immortals: Rick Ferno and the Battle of the Dragons

By Jaylen B.T. Kroupa

Rick Ferno is descended from King Arthur, hes the son of the sky Dragon, and prophesized future King of the planet. On top of all that, hes destined to fight a powerful Dragon known as Pavane, for the fate of the universe. Oh, and hes fourteen.
The battle of the Dragons has exploded over the last several months, with Pavanes army growing in numbers, and surrounding every stronghold. Rick and his friends must soon leave school to embark on another long and perilous journey, to the most unreachable places on earth. The four seem focused and determined, but Rick has been bitten by the love bug, and Dawn struggles with the thought of joining her father.
Young Rick soon discovers that there is a riddle-like prophecy concerning him, but what he finds doesnt put his mind to ease. Then, when things start to look up, Pavane appears at the school with a dire warning for his enemies. The Immortals are coming

Brilliantly narrated, fast-paced, and hilariously documented, the story of Rick Ferno lives on in Kroupas second book; The Immortals. With a brand-new plethora of characters and terrifying monsters, the world of these extraordinary teens grows even more unpredictable. Succeeding The Breath Of A Dragon, this story grabs the imagination and pulls it to the electrifying finish.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jul 9, 2013
• ISBN: 9781483648378

Jaylen B.T. Kroupa

Jaylen B.T. Kroupa lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He’s a fifteen-year-old young man, presently making him the youngest male multi-published novelist in the United States. He’s enthralled by the tales of dragons, and how they impact society today. Being born December 29, 1997, he’s been an avid writer since age six. Kroupa counts his blessings, attending Milwaukee Lutheran high school, where his passion to write is encouraged by all.

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Copyright © 2013 by Jaylen B. T. Kroupa.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Rev. date: 06/17/13

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CONTENTS

Chapter #1     I Meet Sasha’s Dad

Chapter #2     I Have a Friendly Chat with an Arctic Fox

Chapter #3     I Become King of the Jungle

Chapter #4     Lions Are Very Intimidating

Chapter #5     I Get Even with Tim

Chapter #6     My Least Favorite Class

Chapter #7     Join the Dark Side

Chapter #8     A Life-Threatening Idea

Chapter #9     Plans

Chapter #10   An Eccentric Prom

Chapter #11   I Beat a Jerk at His Own Game

Chapter #12   I Become a Claw Teacher

Chapter #13   Fighting Wars for Dummies

Chapter #14   An Unwelcome Surprise

Chapter #15   A Sad Ending to My Very First Training Session

Chapter #16   The Tricky Mistakes of Prophecy

Chapter #17   The Last Day of Peace

Chapter #18   The Quiet Before a Storm

Chapter #18   The Battle

Chapter #19   The Clash of the Dragons

Chapter #20   Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire

Chapter #21   My Issue of Life and Death

Chapter #22   The Difference Between Good and Evil

Chapter #23   A Not-So-Friendly Reunion

Chapter #24   The Ending of a Battle Is Always Unpredictable

Chapter #25   Just an Average Day

Chapter #26   Icos Turns Us into Scouts

Chapter #27   We Become Celebrities

Chapter #28   I’ve Seen Worse

Chapter #29   If It’s a Battle We Want, It’s a Battle We’ll Get

Chapter #30   The Land of Evil

Chapter #31   Castle Pavane

Chapter #32   Darkness

Chapter #33   I Make Some Furry Friends

Chapter #34   I Become a Wildlife Conservationist

Chapter #35   I Play with Oversized Cats

Chapter #36   Liquid Fire

Chapter #37   We Get Jumped by Killer Leopards

Chapter #38   A Time for Preparation

Chapter #39   Our One-Sided Battle

Chapter #40   I Have a Beginning and an End

Chapter #41   Our Quest Begins

Chapter #42   Our Little Fun on the Beach

Chapter #43   My New Bounty Hunters

Chapter #44   Our Small Predicament

Chapter #45   Trials and Tribulations

Chapter #46   We Stumble upon a Revelation

Chapter #47   The End of the Line

Chapter #48   Our Minds Get Hijacked

Chapter #49   We Meet Up with Some Venomous Teddy Bears

Chapter #50   We Become Strata’s Most Wanted

Chapter #51   We Meet an Elderly Kid

Chapter #52   I Take Part in My Very First Bank Robbery

Chapter #53   Danger at Every Turn

Chapter #54   Where the Earth Meets the Sky

Chapter #55   We Meet Tragedy at Every Turn

To my great God, who allows me to walk by faith and not by sight. To my supportive parents, you’re not perfect, but you’re pretty close. To the thousands of teens out in the world who can identify with Rick. And finally, to Troy Green, The Immortals wouldn’t have been what it is without you.

CHAPTER #1

I Meet Sasha’s Dad

Fall back! I roared after easily dispatching a Death Hawk. My comrades and I were easily outnumbered. My comrades being every Claw on the campus’s school ground. The year was nearly up, and the school’s defenses were being ravaged by enemy Claws and monsters from all sides.

We can’t retreat now, Rick, we’ll have no one to protect the school! my pet Pegasus, Alex, thought.

Since I was the son of the sky dragon Lithos, and the Pegasus was my father’s sacred animal, I could talk to Alex telepathically. A useful tool when locked in combat.

I have an idea, I thought as I electrocuted the nearest Hydra.

The five-headed creature stumbled to the ground, sparks flying from its scales. Alex read my mind literally. That might just work! he concluded.

As I looked around atop my rare white Pegasus, I could see I was slowly being surrounded. Alex took to the skies, flying after my fleeing warriors. We skirted through the air and landed ahead of the panicked mob.

Stop! I ordered.

Thankfully the Claws stopped, looking behind them at their enemies that would surely overtake them if they didn’t pick up the pace. I climbed off Alex, instructing him to fly to the Lithos house. Over the course of the year, Icos had organized a militarily gifted band of students, which would be overseen by one general—me.

I glanced up at the gray sky. At that moment, it was a perfect reflection of my mood. We need a fortress to protect the school grounds, so I’ll need the head of the Gicus house. My best friend, Hunter, stepped out from between hundreds of anxious half-bloods. There had never been a leader for any house before but that had changed. A revisement Icos had made in order to establish leadership. After returning from his long but successful journey to find the first Fate, in accordance to our glorious welcoming, he was quickly accepted as the Gicus house leader. Yes, General Rick. He smiled, as if calling me general made his insides tickle.

I’ll need the Aquatia house. Beatrice strolled forth from within the mass. She was a new Claw, but her exceptional skills helped her to quickly climb through the ranks of her house to become the Aquatia house leader.

Yes, General Rick, she reported with a little more respect.

And lastly, I’ll need the best archers in school.

Some of the Icos and Cracious kids stepped away from the crowd.

Good. Now the Gicus and Aquatia houses wait at the school perimeter for further instructions. The Gicus and Aquatia kids ran off toward the edge of the field.

Archers, go and get equipment from the weapon room. I’ll need someone to carry arrows back and forth for ammunition. To my surprise, Tim, the leader of the Cracious house, raised his hand.

That’ll be me.

Usually, old Timothy was content with exploiting the weak and embarrassing his classmates. This act of duty caught me off guard, but I quickly recovered.

Good. Now run, our enemies are fast approaching! They ran with the main building in their sights.

And for the rest of you, go rest. We’ll need you on the battlefield another day! The rest of the Claws happily stalked off to their houses. I ran over to those standing at the perimeter as fast as I could. When I reached them, the enemy Claws and monsters were only a football field length away from us. We had just enough time to carry out the plan.

Okay, sons of Gicus! I need you to form a deep trench around the school perimeter! Hunter organized his siblings, and soon enough, a deep trench had formed in a circle around the school.

Well done. Now I need the children of Aquatia to fill the trench with water and deadly creatures from the lake!

With Beatrice organizing a line, the children of Aquatia worked together; and soon enough, water floated into the trench, followed by some alligators that crept into it. I had evaporated the same lake with a lightning orb not too long ago, (Yeah, a lightning orb), but Aquatia fixed it as a gift to her children.

Great job.

The archers were waiting behind me for orders. Our enemies were about one hundred feet away from us now, and in about sixty seconds, we would be locked in battle.

Archers, I need you to stand in front of the trench. The Aquatia house members told the alligators not to attack; the Claws jumped across the moat. They placed themselves evenly around the school perimeter.

Now, Gicus house, raise a circular wall around the school but make sure the archers get lifted into the air.

The Gicus house proceeded with their orders, and a stone wall was now present, protecting the school. The archers were on top of the wall, ready to fire. Tim, go get extra ammunition now; we’ll need it! Tim ran off to the school as fast as he could. Harnessing the wind, I flew up to the top of the wall. At my call, I barked; our enemies were twenty-five feet away now.

Now! Focus on the sky! I sounded, looking at the incoming Death Hawks.

At the sound of my voice, the archers sent a ferocious volley of arrows flying through the air. A Death Hawk fell into the moat inside the perimeter and was torn apart by hungry alligators. The monsters under us started scratching at the wall.

The ground! I declared.

The archers switched their aim to the earth. Tim was back now, and he quickly distributed the arrows among the archers. Now, I had to deal with the Death Hawks. I sent a powerful gust of wind at the evil birds, and a quarter of them dropped to the ground. Some iron arrows pelted the archers but gave them no serious wounds. They had come from the enemy Claws. We would be overwhelmed any second.

Then I thought, What were the Gicus and Aquatia houses doing? Nothing!

You other houses can jump in at any time! I yelled down.

The Claws sprung into action, and after climbing to the top of the wall, they released a fury of rock and water. Some of the Cracious house members were starting to light their arrows with fire before launching them. In a matter of minutes, we were still outnumbered, but they were outmatched.

Retreat! someone from below shouted. With a shudder, I realized it was the voice of Feldspar. Feldspar was a Claw son of Pavane. Pavane being the ultra-powerful dragon which this war was centered on. The last time I had seen Feldspar was months ago when Dawn, Sasha, Hunterand I, had left him and his siblings in the Amazon rainforest for dead. Now it gave me a bad feeling knowing he was back.

The Claws and monsters retreated through the woods as they came with the occasional arrow to push them on. Soon nothing was left on the barren battlefield. I sighed. This was at least the ninth time we’d been attacked this year. I didn’t know what was going to happen this summer. With all the Claws gone and no one to protect the school, Pavane’s forces would just destroy the school until there was nothing left but dust. And when all the Claws were alone without any others to help defend themselves with no remorse, he’d…

Do you want me to have a few Gicus members keep a watch out for attacks, buddy? Hunter asked, interrupting my thoughts. It was amazing how Hunter didn’t seem scared walking these heights. The top of the wall was so narrow; it would have been easy for even an experienced earth-wielder to fall off. That’s a great idea, I replied, still lost in my train of thoughts.

Alright, after that, let’s walk to the Icos house. Sasha says she wants to talk to us.

About what?

She wouldn’t tell me.

Any hints at all?

Nope. That girl’s a wonder. Hunter stalked off to give orders to his fellow siblings. As I carefully landed on the ground, I wondered what one of my closest friends was going to tell me. I hoped it wasn’t any bad news.

A few moments later, Hunter floated down to me on a big piece of rock. As he touched the ground, the rock turned into dust. Hunter started to walk off, and I had to run to catch up with Hunter’s longer strides. Then I felt something catch my foot. I tripped and tumbled to the ground. I looked up, nostrils flaring, to see Tim looking down at me with a snicker on his face. In response, Hunter willed a rock to fly at Tim’s face, but Tim shattered the rock to bits with a fiery fist.

Tim stared at Hunter menacingly. Watch it, big guy… , Tim growled as he walked off.

Hunter helped me up.

Thanks, I told him, secretly embarrassed by his help.

Don’t worry about him, Rick. He’s just a jerk, Hunter assured me, glaring at Tim as he walked farther away from us.

We walked to the Icos house and were surprised to see another one of our friends, Dawn, there. So she wants you too? Hunter asked as we came within earshot of her. Dawn was a daughter of Pavane, but unlike her other siblings, she preferred to stay on the good side. Yeah, she said, running her fingers through her long and straight black hair.

You have any idea what she wants to talk to us about?

None, I replied.

All of a sudden, Sasha appeared in the doorway twirling her thick, curled blond hair nervously.

H-hey, she jittered.

Is everything okay? I asked. All of a sudden, a sleek white Arctic fox appeared at Sasha’s feet. Guys, meet my dad.

CHAPTER #2

I Have a Friendly Chat with an Arctic Fox

What do you mean that’s your dad? I asked, looking down at the fox.

Get in here! Sasha whispered to us. We walked in, and Sasha closed the door behind us.

I had never seen the inside of the Icos house, but it was a sight to marvel at. The floor was covered with light blue carpeting, a Nintendo Wii sat on their TV, the couches were in random places, the staircase spiraled upward to the next floor, and it felt like the air conditioner was on full blast. I instantly started to shiver.

It’s a bit cold in here, don’t you think? Dawn asked rubbing her arms.

What’re you talking about? This is probably the only temperate building on the school grounds!

So what were you saying about your dad? I asked, interrupting the argument. The fox jumped into Sasha’s lap as we all sat down. Then she began her tale.

When I was around two years old, my father tracked down my mother,

Stalker… , Hunter grunted. Sasha punched him in the arm.

Ow!

Anyway, as I was saying, my dad tracked down my mother. I guess he wanted to see her again. So finally he got here; and when Icos saw him, in surprise, she accidently turned him into a fox. I looked down at the white canine now snuggling my leg.

Before Icos could change him back, he ran off into the woods, she finished.

So why did you bring him here? Hunter interjected.

I think I might be able to convince Icos to change him back, she replied.

So why don’t you bring him to her already! Hunter asked. I could see he was unusually grumpy.

Um… Lately, Icos has been a little temperamental, Sasha replied. And what if she refuses to turn him back? The dragons are always so unpredictable!

We can ask her together, Dawn suggested. Reason with her.

You would really do that for me? Sasha exclaimed in surprise.

Of course, we would; we’re your friends! We’ve already risked our lives for one another. The fox leapt up on Dawn’s shoulder and started to lick her face vigorously. Ew, fox breath!

So that’s why you’ve been so upset lately? I asked Icos who was pacing in a circle in her white robe.

The dragon had told us the reason she was so on edge was because her sister Aquatia was coming to visit today. Yes, everything must be perfect, and everyone must be on their best behavior!

Shouldn’t you be happy and less stressed out then? Sasha implied. I mean, she’s your sister.

No, Icos replied anxiously. Aquatia is the strictest dragon I know. If one thing is out of line, she’ll report it at the next council, and I’ll have to resign my teaching position! Icos’s breath started to show as she wheezed. I found it a little touching that Icos was so concerned about giving us up that it had reduced her to a nervous wreck. I said nothing though, as the dragon would probably never admit to such a thing.

Have a seat, mother. Everything’s going to be fine! Icos landed in her office chair with a plump.

I noticed Sasha was temporarily putting aside worries about her father to aide Icos in her time of need. I gritted my teeth. Hopefully one day, Icos would realize the value of family.

No, it’s not! Ever since Aaron was discovered to be a spy, Aquatia has been very strict on respect for the past few months. She’s somehow trying to redeem her line. She might drown you in the sea for not showering her with praise upon seeing her in the hallway!

Wow.

I had never met the dragon of water, but she sounded pretty sour.

All of a sudden, the door blew off its hinges as a spray of water evaporated into the room.

I’m here! A voice cried. A woman in a royal blue robe had just entered the room. Immediately, Sasha, Hunter, and even Dawn, bowed. I was left standing alone, not knowing who this new person was. She had jet black hair, blue eyes, and let off a faint blue glow. I was about to bow because I had just realized who this was. But as soon as the woman saw me standing, a look of hate, anger, and arrogance combined to make a nasty snarl as her eyes briefly changed to what resembled a cat’s.

Why, you prideful little speck! she screamed.

She flicked her fingers at me, and I bent to the ground as my hands changed into large tan paws.

CHAPTER #3

I Become King of the Jungle

What’s going on! I shouted in alarm as my knees buckled and my arms were forced to the ground. My clothes disappeared as my skin turned to a golden brown shade of fur, and my neck became a host to a large golden mane. I immediately turned on the woman who was responsible for this. She was apparently Aquatia. What did you do to me? I snarled. I’ve changed you into a lion to show you a little respect. When a dragon enters the room, you bow. You’re lucky I didn’t turn you into a fish! Change me back! I roared. Not until you prove your loyalty to the dragons. And with that, Aquatia stalked off with Icos walking worriedly after her. I looked back at my friends who were looking at me in awe. I took a step forward, and Hunter flinched. What did she turn me into? I asked. Dawn ran over to me and started to hug me. Rick, you’re not going to believe this, but Aquatia turned you into my favorite animal… a lion!

"Look at what she’s done to me," I growled on top of my bed. Hunter was petting my head as I peered into the mirror. Sasha and Dawn had moved in with Hunter and I earlier that year so that we could get to know each other better since we were the school’s Fate-tracking team. We had found the first Fate, barely escaping with our lives intact, and now were waiting for Icos to give us new orders. Sasha was sprawled out on her bed with her father sleeping on her stomach while Dawn was combing through my mane with a pink comb. A lion is always a magnificent sight, but I prefer to see them at the zoo, rather than in the mirror. Look at the bright side, Rick, Hunter said. And what would that be? At least Aquatia didn’t turn you into a shrew or something. Well, she should be worrying more on the war and less on respect. I had only known Aquatia for a few minutes now, and she had quickly become one of my least favorite dragons. Do you think Icos thinks it’s okay that we miss our classes? Dawn piped up. Let the dragons do what they want. I’m not going into the classroom a lion! There was a long silence. When do you think we can start searching for the second Fate? Sasha yawned. Who says she’ll pick us again? Hunter said. Last time, we were almost killed about fifteen times! But she has to pick us! Dawn exclaimed. We now have the most experience out of all the Claws—Except for Tim, I interrupted—and when no one else could figure out the riddle, we did. Maybe Icos will go instead, Hunter said. She can’t. Icos has to be the authority here at school, I rumbled. I don’t know, Rick. I think the reason why she’s hesitating on this mission is because Strata is a dangerous place, Oh please, I’ve seen flamingoes worse than this place. I don’t know, Rick, Sasha sighed, dangling her feet over the bed. Strata is where you go when you die. There are some pretty terrible things there."

All of a sudden, there was a desperate banging on the door. I’ll go get it, Hunter announced. Hunter jogged down the steps, opening the door with an audible click. Where’s General Rick! He’s er… not himself right now, came Hunter’s reply. Well, tell him to get out here now! Why? The school’s been invaded!

CHAPTER #4

Lions Are Very Intimidating

Sasha and Dawn rushed out of our room to go get their armor, as I scrambled downstairs. Not many people see a lion at random moments, so when the guy who had came to fetch us saw me (which was Tammick, son of Icos). He ran out of the doorway yelling. Dawn and Sasha came up behind me with their breastplates on. Dawn took out her two-pronged spear. A couple months ago when the four of us had to search for the first Fate, we had to kill the black lion. And to make a long story short, Dawn’s spear had struck the killing blow. Instead of letting the spear sink back into the Earth, she kept it.

I had also acquired some weapons from our little expedition, but a lion doesn’t exactly have pockets. We charged onto the