Chapter 26
Flange Orphanage, City: Three Prongs Fork, Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat, Year 2022, Planet: Grimoire
Oh, man, I can't stay here any longer. I need to get in touch with the draconic specialist Takesha Murray, and quickly. How should he go about alerting someone to this emergency?
Grimes frowned at him shuffling around inside the carriage. "Do you need me to set off an emergency communication?" He inquired of Doyle.
Oh right, that was an option that could be used. Hmm, no, he'd better get permission to leave first. It wouldn't do to bring more unnecessary personnel to the scene right now.
"No, I'll take care of this through official channels." It hadn't taken Doyle long to realize what happened. "Of course, that means disturbing the Commander." He grimaced because that wasn't going to go over well with that man.
Grimes grimaced. "I can do it." He signaled to the Commander. "Sir, the Director Moline and I need to get these babies to an emergency medical location now." His firm tone broke no argument.
"What's happening now?" Commander Darmono exclaimed in frustration. "Weren't they fine earlier?"
Grimes glowered. "The weather has become worse. They were caught in the icy rain before we discovered them."
"Oh, why didn't either of you say something earlier?" The Commander leaned into the carriage and examined the babies with a frown.
Doyle shifted position so the was upwind from Darmono. Something had changed about him from earlier. Not only that but he stank to high heaven, and it was making Doyle sick to his stomach.
Darmono ignored his actions as he studied the babies. "Hmm, this is a cold sickness unique to dragons." He looked from the babies to Doyle's shifted position and then back to the babies as he continued speaking. "It is a condition that an ordinary clinic won't be able to diagnose much less treat." Now the Commander was giving a hard stare at the one who'd been noisiest from the start.
Doyle watched Commander Darmono with extreme bafflement. What in the world was going on now? He sure acted peculiarly as soon as he came within viewing distance of the four babies.
"Is there something off about one of them?" Doyle inquired. He really didn't want the man remaining in such close confines for any longer than necessary.
The commander hesitated and shook his head. "No, not as far as I'm aware." A sigh escaped him. "I shall administer some dragon-specific healing potions to them." A scowl twitched his eyebrows. "Though I recommend getting them examined by a specialist sooner rather than later."
Hmm, Doyle wasn't sure what to think of that reaction. "I'll do that once we've arrived at the orphanage." He hadn't thought the Commander a caring person when it came to babies. "You're showing a rather extreme reaction." Not a monster, just indifferent in general. So, this situation had Doyle wondering what made a difference.
He caught the Commander's shoulders stiffening. Evidently, he hadn't even noticed what he was doing. So typical for someone like him, Doyle sighed heavily. "Well, if you need to climb in all the way, please do so because otherwise all the warmth accumulated in here will dissipate." That wasn't something he wanted happening.
"Thank you," Darmono was quick to accept the grudgingly offered invitation to come inside.
Even so, Doyle moved aside so that the Commander could climb in. A strange scent carried over from his clothes. One he hadn't needed to worry about for so long.
At first, Doyle didn't recognize what it was. As soon as it hit him, he smelt. He hastily covered his mouth and nose when sneezing.
"I'll make this quick." The Commander noticed his reaction. "So, you can catch different scents of Alpha and Omega, hmm?""
Uhh, why'd this have to happen now? Doyle stalled since he was at a loss for words. "Yes?" Why'd the Commander have to bring up that touchy subject, especially at this moment? "Is this going to cause a problem?" He sincerely hope not.
The Commander grunted. "No, I was just surprised that you're sensitive to certain fragrances and not others. That's all." He shifted his attention to the babies. "These little rascals are certainly resilient."
Uh-huh, Doyle was more than a little skeptical. "Though I'll admit, it has been some time since I've noticed distinctive scents." He folded his arms wondering where the Commander was going with that unexpected topic.
"Oh really?" The Commander looked at him thoughtfully. "In Central, there are quite a few of us that's Omegas and Alphas." He stated quietly. "Most times we're out in the field. On occasion though we do have gatherings for the sake of doing an official census."
Hmm, Doyle could accept that reasoning. "I see, I'll make sure that I'm out of the area when a big gathering occurs." He shifted uncomfortably. "I'm more or less allergic to both types of pheromones. That is why I'm caught off guard this time."
"Hmm, okay." The Commander didn't even blink. He finished administering the potions to the babies. "I had wondered about your indifference in the past. Now I'm beginning to understand." He shrugged. "Well, since I'm informed of your problem, I'll do what I can to avoid causing problems in the future."
Doyle inclined his head politely. "Do you think you could inquire as to when we'll be able to depart here?"
The sooner the better with this latest hiccup occurring at such bad timing. He watched the Commander warily. He was still emanating that annoying scent. Soon Doyle would have to take a potion that would stop his allergy from kicking in.
"I'll see what I can do, but I won't make any promises. "Now the Commander was eying him with a coldness that was completely different from how he spoke. "You really need to work on your reaction towards secondary gender individuals."
Now that was going overboard, Doyle frowned at him. "I appreciate the thoughtfulness you're conveying for the babies."
The Commander's eyes narrowed when he caught the emphasis that made it clear Doyle wanted him to focus on them, not him. He merely inclined his head.
Other than that statement, Doyle chose to remain silent because he could sense aggravation rising in the atmosphere from the Commander. It didn't bode well for either of them being able to remain on speaking terms in the future.