Chapter 28

After the President had walked through the glass doors and into the hospital to be treated, a perplexed Agent Peterson stared after him with his mouth slightly open. Pharnuil watched the expressions flitting across the Agent's face for a few minutes keeping his amusement to himself over the predicament the President had just placed Agent Peterson in. He was quite certain that Agent Peterson was not used to planning anyone's schedule let alone trying to figure out how to get in touch with a dragon once he had the details in front of him. After the adrenaline rush he had experienced during the attack and subsequent trip to the hospital had dissipated, Agent Peterson found it very hard to shift gears to his newly appointed and very unfamiliar task.

While the man was trying to figure out what to do next, Pharnuil was communicating with Vyagar and Dale. A necklace with a blue communications crystal on it appeared on the pavement next to the dragon's left foreleg courtesy of Vyagar.

Pharnuil waited politely for Agent Peterson to come to grips with everything, after all the man had reacted quickly and made the right decisions when he was given very little time to think things through, so Pharnuil felt it was only a matter of time before Peterson's alert mind fully engaged again.

"Pharnuil I want to thank you for helping us so much today. We might have lost the President without your aid and certainly would have lost the Secretary and most likely my fellow Agents. I apologize if it appeared that I was ignoring you over the past few minutes. My silence was due to the fact that I normally have very little to do with planning the President's schedule, and to be quite honest I've no idea how to get in touch with you once I know when he would have time for your visit to the White House," Agent Peterson told the golden hued dragon he now considered his friend.

"Your silence was quite understandable my friend," Pharnuil replied, "and no offense was taken; in fact I used the time to contact my friend the Wizard. He wanted me to give you this." Pharnuil offered the necklace to the newly startled man.

"You talked with him just now? He's here nearby?" the confused agent inquired as his sharp eyes began to dart around as if trying to ascertain the location of the Wizard. "Is he invisible?"

Pharnuil couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the humor he found in the situation. "No Agent Peterson, he isn't nearby and last I checked he was very visible. He is a very powerful Wizard, so it's possible that he might know someway of weaving a spell of invisibility; but he certainly need not share all of secrets with the likes of me. I simply know him to be a good and honorable friend who I've seen work to right several major wrongs as he tries to help those who he comes into contact with that need it."

Agent Peterson slowly reached towards the necklace as if he wasn't quite certain just how to handle it. The normally stoic agent's face was displaying his rapidly changing emotions. Is this gift from the Wizard entirely safe? Is there a right way to handle it and also maybe a wrong way? Pharnuil sensed the man's concern and spoke to alleviate it, "Go ahead and take it. It's very much like that communications device I observed you using earlier, only this one is attuned to the Wizard and myself. He thought it might make your assignment a bit easier if you were able to get a hold of us to talk about schedules and such."

Chiding himself for his paranoia, the Agent reached out and grasped the necklace. "How does it work?" he asked.

"Well," Pharnuil began, "as I said, I don't know all of the Wizard's secrets. He told me that if you were to wear this necklace, you'd be able to converse with him much the same way I do. So I'm guessing you just put it on and think of either me or him and then what you would like to say to us; at least that's all I have to do. Why not put it on and give it a try?"

"I suppose I have to wear it around my neck right?" Peterson asked.

"I'm not certain? Where would you rather wear it?"

"On my right wrist."

"Why not slip it on your wrist and see how it fits?"

Agent Peterson did as the dragon instructed and was amazed when the necklace seemed to shrink to fit his wrist as snugly as a watch band would.

"How does it do that? Will I be able to remove it later?" he asked.

"Why don't you try to remove it now if you'd like?" Pharnuil sent to him.

A startled Agent Peterson looked wildly at the dragon whose voice he had heard inside his head though he knew the creature hadn't spoken to him with his vocal chords.

"I'm guessing from the startled look on your face that the crystal is receiving me. Why don't you try sending?" Pharnuil suggested.

"Alright." "Whoops! I mean hear goes!" Agent Peterson sent.

"Excellent! Now, if you'd be so kind, why not try to reach the Wizard. Just think the name Manix and then send whatever you'd like to say to him." Pharnuil instructed his apt pupil.

"Manix, can you hear me?" Agent Peterson asked after just a bit of hesitation.

"Yes, I am here. You must be Pharnuil's friend Agent Peterson." Dale replied.

"Yes I am. I hope calling upon you this way will not disturb you too much. Would you prefer I arrange things through Pharnuil or with you directly?" Peterson inquired.

"Either way is fine Agent Peterson. I'm sure Pharnuil would enjoy hearing from you as would I. Would you please inform the President that I appreciate his kind invitation?" Dale inquired.

"With pleasure Sir. Goodbye for now." Agent Peterson said.

After his conversation with the Wizard had ended, Agent Peterson kept looking at the crystal and the red metal the necklace turned bracelet was composed of. "I still don't understand how this thing knew to resize itself?" Peterson muttered aloud.

Pharnuil chose that moment to say his goodbyes and do his vanishing trick. As Agent Peterson gazed up into the area of sky just vacated by the dragon he began to laugh causing one of the other nearby agents to ask what he was laughing at.

"In the last two hours I've seen my first dragon as it rescued the President, I rode on his back as he flew us here to the hospital, I've talked with the dragon and his friend the Wizard, and now I'm frustrated over trying to figure out how this thing can resize itself. Why should I care? It works. I don't understand how any of the rest of this can be real; but instead of getting caught up on that, I'm worried about how a necklace can change into a bracelet!" Peterson explained to his fellow agent who joined in his laughter.

Dale spent the next several days working closely with Vyagar to determine how best to protect his real identity, establish a working relationship with the U.S. Government, and figure out just what to make public and what to keep secret.

Vyagar created four identical OAIs for Dale to utilize for any visits he might make with the President and other government leaders as the Wizard Manix. The "Manix" class of OAI's general appearance was quite human though very large in scale. The physique was that of a well muscled but quite limber individual whose mass and musculature was somewhere between that of a body builder and a gymnast. Reaching a height of just over nine feet tall and weighing in at just under four hundred pounds, the OAI was the very personification of power and strength. There was nothing ugly or brutish about the facial or bodily features and instead the overall appearance was quite handsome and attractive with skin bearing a light bronze tan, long flowing brown hair, a full beard, and the most bright, piercing, cobalt blue eyes that seemed to glow from within.

Vyagar clothed these OAI's in a larger version of Dale's wizard robe. The extreme size, the unique apparel, and the startling eyes would provide an impressive persona that should be well accepted as "the Wizard" and in turn should prevent anyone from looking for Dale's true identity.

Seated on his throne, looking for all intents and purposes as if he were asleep, Dale's mind was interlaced through his crystal with one of the Manix OAIs. He was becoming familiar with using this OAI and its body as an extension of himself. Together with Vyagar, Dale had worked out an extensive array of 'magical' maneuvers that were really a mix of advanced technology and misdirection. One such maneuver involved linking with all four of the Manix OAIs simultaneously and coordinating cloaked holo-drones to simulate the appearance of many more. This was designed simply to impress; however, with Vyagar using the transporter technology to switch one of the real Manix OAIs with a holo-Manix as needed, it should be possible to keep any attack at bay until the attacker or attackers were subdued while inflicting a maximum level of confusion and even pain on any assailants.

This maneuver, Dale had dubbed the 'Manix Army', was one of the more elaborate maneuvers Dale and Vyagar prepared as part of a contingency plan should the meeting turn sour. Hopefully everything would go well, and with this in mind the two set out to produce several gifts. Some of these gifts were to be given to the President and members of his family, while others were prepared to serve the Office of the Presidency and were gifts to the country to be passed along to subsequent holders of the lofty position.

Not all of his time was spent preparing for his upcoming visit with the President. Now that the buildings on his estate were complete, Dale found himself looking forward to the time when they and the surrounding grounds and land would be filled with the sounds of children laughing and playing. The women of his house had expressed the desire to bear his children on many occasions and Dale felt that the time was right to add children to his family.

Vyagar had been maintaining a fertility block on each of the women in Dale's household as Dale had requested early on. Dale now asked Vyagar to remove the block from Louisa, Tina, Angelina, Melody, and Maria. The AI informed him that the block had been removed to the extent that Dale's sperm would be successful in impregnating the women while sperm from any other man would be rejected. As time had passed, Dale found that he didn't mind sharing a woman he was close to with other men in his family as long as it brought her pleasure and didn't result in a child. He wanted to be sure which children were truly his own.

Although Brittany and John had been ready and willing to raise a child that Dale sired with Brittany, Dale hadn't really wanted to create that kind of confusion for the child and told the pair that they were and would always be an important part of his family without raising a child for him. The two had never been anything but a delight to be around and Dale wanted to make sure they were quite happy. John and Brittany still hoped to have children, so Dale asked Vyagar to make it so that the fertility block on Brittany would allow only John's sperm to make her pregnant. Rob and Georgette were quite happy with the children they already had and instead were looking forward to the role of Aunt and Uncle and later Grandma and Grandpa. Jason and Lizzy were sure they were meant for each other; but they weren't ready to become parents anytime soon. Pamela loved all of the sex she was enjoying but hadn't found the same kind of connection with anyone that Jason and Lizzy had together; but she didn't feel in any rush to do so either instead trusting that things would happen over time.

Emilio and Enrique were both younger than Dale, Rob, and John. In the past they had both been focused on their careers more than long term relationships. Now that they were a part of the Wizard's family they both understood that they could pursue longer relationships if they came across the right kind of women. Reformed or not, none of the slave women really seemed to be made for motherhood and had no inclinations in that direction so there were no conflicts there.

Now there are few things that make a woman's eyes light up more than shopping; but shopping to outfit a baby's room, buying clothes, toys and other things for a child you will soon be bringing into the world certainly adds to the fun! Having four of your closest female friends sharing the experience with you seemed to make it even more enjoyable for each of the women preparing to be new mothers. Dale was very pleased to see the happiness shining through the expressions on his mates faces as they showed him all of the various preparations they were making for their unborn children.

Dale gave each of the mother's their own night of passion and love as their babies were conceived. For each woman who he had children with, Dale had a special bracelet made. The bracelet was made from three strands of metal braded together in an intricate pattern; Gold, Platinum, and the unearthly red metal that Dale now knew to be of Hyranthi origin which they had referred to as Chreygil or Sun's Blood. The center face of the bracelet had been flattened and carried a single Hyranthi symbol that in the Hyranthi language had several intertwined meanings: soul-mate, bearer of my offspring, and heart's desire. At the culmination of his special night with each woman, Dale fit the bracelet on her wrist as he told her the meaning of the Hyranthi symbol. Though their relationships with Dale had started in varying ways, each of the women felt an incredibly strong attachment to him that far transcended mere physical attraction and though there were many women who held or would hold a position in his heart and life, these five knew they would never need to fear being displaced and would always receive Dale's love and affection.

And so it was that as each of the five offspring of the most powerful man on the planet grew within their mother's womb, the empathic sensibilities their heretofore unseen DNA would give them would enable them to feel the incredible love directed towards them; Love that was not bounded by insecurities or mistrust, love that had been freed and unfettered by the one who each child would learn to love and revere as they saw him through their mother's eyes.

The schedule of the President of the United States of America was very rigorous. Matthew Hatcher's time was often booked months in advance. As Agent Peterson reviewed the schedule with the President's personal secretary, Marion Hershberg, and the bevy of administrative assistants that worked with her, he was amazed by the amount of planning and the level of detail that was involved. His original concern had been to find a time slot that would work for the President, the Wizard, and of course Pharnuil. When Ms. Hershberg began to assist him in planning the event, she quickly corrected his oversimplified understanding of his task.

Agent Peterson's supervisor wanted to have this task reassigned to someone else complaining that this was far outside of the job profile of a Secret Service Agent. When he voiced this view to the President, President Hatcher politely but emphatically reminded him that his position reported to the President and if he was unhappy with the assignment he could always be dismissed. After he made certain that the man understood that the decision was final, President Hatcher walked him through the logic behind the decision. The dragons and the Wizard were heretofore unknown players on the world's stage and both the dragon and the Wizard had initiated some form of a relationship with Agent Peterson. The fact that the Wizard had gifted Agent Peterson with the unique communications bracelet served to hammer the point home somewhat. Though Agent Peterson happened to agree that the task was not at all routine, he was quite happy to undertake it since it meant that he could interact more with his new friend the dragon and the Wizard.

One of the things that had to be planned was the meal that would be served to the President's guests. What food would be favored by a Dragon and how much of it would be necessary? When Agent Peterson began to work out these details with Pharnuil he was quite amused when the dragon wanted to know if they could have a barbeque. "It figures that a fire breathing dragon would like his meat cooked!" he thought to himself.

When the day of the meeting finally arrived, eleven weeks had passed since the President had made the initial invitation. This was fortunate because the Commerce Secretary had wanted to be present to thank the powerful dragon who had in effect saved her life and the extra time gave her a chance to heal and regain her strength enough to attend the unusual event. In addition to the Secretary of Commerce, The President, and the First Lady, General Grayson had accepted an invitation and was anxiously looking forward to meeting one of the incredible creatures his satellites had revealed in person.

As usual, someone leaked news of the event and quite a few senators and members of congress got their feathers ruffled when they learned of the event through the media and not by invitation. The President assured them that he would do his best to make sure they received an invitation to the next event at which he hosted the dragons and or the Wizard.

Since Pharnuil could not possibly enter the inside of the White House, the event would be held outside on the White House grounds. Extra security details were assigned to patrol the perimeter of the grounds both inside the fence and outside. Media crews were gathered near the fence surrounding the famous residence as close as the patrols would allow them to get in anticipation of some footage of the dragons arrival and visit with the President and First Lady.

Agent Peterson had given Pharnuil a fairly good idea of where he and his mate should land for the event and when they arrived it caused quite a stir. First they just seemed to blink into existence a good was off at quite a high altitude, and then they floated down to earth in a spiral pattern until they were just above the historical landmark that had served as a symbol of the nation and home of its leaders for many generations. Next, they came to a soft and gentle touchdown that showed surprising grace and agility for a creature of such size and stature. Their entrance was spectacular and everything the media had hoped it might be; but even so, since images of the dragons in action had been captured on prior occasions, the most sought after images would be those of the Wizard.

The dragons were personally greeted by the President and First Lady. Though somewhat apprehensive at the prospects of meeting a dragon, Helen Hatcher, or HH as her friends had nicknamed her soon found herself warming up to the two polite and charming creatures. She quickly decided that as usual her husband was an excellent judge of character and though it may have presented a somewhat odd picture to an observer, the First Lady was soon walking with the female dragon while carrying on an animated conversation and the President was walking Pharnuil and enjoying a good conversation with the incredibly intelligent dragon as well.

After fifteen minutes had passed the President asked "When will the Wizard be arriving?"

"He is ready to come now; but wanted to give yourself and the First Lady a few moments to chat with my mate and I first. Mr. President, when I told you the Wizard was a friend of mine - that's exactly what I meant. He was concerned that his appearance might upstage ours and since you had first invited me, he felt that to do so would be quite rude; Manix is if anything a kind and caring friend and I know that he would never intentionally be impolite to a friend," Pharnuil told the President.

"Well I certainly hope is able to come soon. I do appreciate the opportunity to visit with you Pharnuil; but every time you speak of the Wizard I can tell that you really do admire him and that more than anything else makes me want to meet him."

"Well in that case it might be prudent for me to have a short discussion with Agent Peterson and yourself first so that we can avoid startling the men and women who provide you with security; a wizard doesn't travel in the normal fashion and I wouldn't want anyone to mistake his entrance for something it isn't," Pharnuil said.

He sent a message to Agent Peterson by way of the communications bracelet the man was wearing. Soon Agent Peterson came over to where the President was standing next to Pharnuil. After listening to the short discussion the dragon had with Agent Peterson, the President appreciated the dragon's forethought. Once Agent Peterson had updated his fellow agents on what to expect, Pharnuil signaled Dale that it was time for the 'Wizard Manix' to appear.

Soon a small golden ball of fire descended from the sky and came to a stop hovering eight feet above the grass about thirty feet away from the President's position. A pleasant and almost musical sound seemed to emanate from the golden ball as it expanded into an upright ring of golden fire perfectly circular in shape and approximately fifteen feet in diameter. Through the opening the ring of fire had formed, the President was able to see into a palatial room with a large throne from which the Wizard arose. The Wizard walked up to the magical doorway and stepped through it and out onto the White House lawn to greet the President. The fire ring diminished in size until it had reformed itself into the small sphere. It then flew up into the afternoon sky in the direction of the sun until it was out of sight.

"Greetings Mr. President," the Wizard said in a rich baritone voice. "I am the Wizard Manix and it is my great pleasure to meet you and the First Lady. Thank you for your kind invitation."

Had the President encountered the gigantic specimen of a man before having met the dragons, he would probably not have dealt with it very well; however, after becoming accustomed to conversing with a creature bigger than many sizeable houses, meeting someone who was nine feet tall was only momentarily surprising.

The President walked towards the Wizard and offered a handshake in greeting. His six foot height was dwarfed by the Wizard and his hand seemed to be swallowed up in the Wizard's larger one; but the Wizard was careful to provide a firm but comfortable handshake and not injure the President's hand. The Wizard's robes were a dark sable covered with strange golden symbols that almost seemed to be written in liquid fire. His eyes shown with a light of their own as he smiled at his host. Now that he was meeting the Wizard in person, the President understood what Pharnuil had told him earlier. As unbelievable as it seemed, the entrance of the Wizard and his powerful presence truly would have upstaged that of the dragon.