Episode 16: Broken Bonds

Broken Bonds is the sixteenth episode of the series and the first episode of the second season in Dragon Booster. It first aired in the US on September 17, 2005. It was then aired in Canada on May 24, 2005 and in Australia on October 18, 2005.

Plot Summary

Moordryd, called upon by his father, is shown a tiny bottle containing "the work of half a lifetime", as Word calls it, before putting a name to the darkly colored fluid: liquid black draconium. Being of high concentration, the black draconium would flow freely through the veins of whatever dragon drinks it, turning the dragon's bones to black and crushing the dragon's will -- even the Dragon of Legend. In the end, it would turn the dragon into Word's slave. After the explanation, Moordryd mentions the Dragon Booster, but Word dismisses the thought of the hero interfering, claiming that "without his dragon, the Dragon Booster is nothing." If the Dragon of Legend is turned, then Word would be able to exert control over all dragons, thus having the power to spark his dragon-human war. As Moordryd turns to leave, Word tells him not to fail, which elicits a scowl from the younger Paynn.

Spratt, standing with the Dragon Eye Crew, looks into a store window at an impressive set of gear and remarks upon how "drac" the gear is, but Moordryd tells him that it's nothing compared to the reward that Word would give them if they manage to pull off this "job". Pulling out a hydro-pack, Moordryd continues to explain that this gear is identical to the one he's seen on the Dragon of Legend, and proceeds to pour enough liquid black draconium into the hydro-pack to enslave a thousand dragons. Thus, if the Dragon of Legend drinks the liquid, then he will fall under Word's power, and the Dragon Booster would be left helpless.

Unexpectedly, Lance and Parmon happen to turn the corner and see the Dragon Eyes with Spratt. After a quick, tense greeting, Lance notices Spratt and asks what he's doing with the Dragon Eyes, only for Moordryd to put a hand on Spratt's shoulder and explain that the younger kid is his latest recruit for his crew. Lance protests that he thought he and Spratt were friends, and Spratt argues back that they were, but since Lance was never around, he ended up joining the Dragon Eyes -- who "stick together", unlike Lance, who then looks guilty. Then, at Moordryd's word, Cain holds out a gear. After a moment of looking between Lance and the equipment, Spratt takes the gear in hand and approaches the window. Ignoring Lance's question of his actions, Spratt proceeds to use the gear to cut a circle into the windowpane. Parmon begins telling Lance that they need to go, only to be stopped by Cain. In turn, he is stopped by Moordryd, allowing the two to leave. Cain mentions that they'll raise the alarm, which Moordryd says is exactly what they want, since the first at a crime scene is always the Dragon Booster, who'll end up having walked right into their trap.

As the gear is put away in a vehicle, the Dragon of Legend appears with the Dragon Booster. Cain fires a trapping gear at Artha, but it's smacked out of the way with his jakk stick and ends up hitting another Dragon Eye Crew member. Afterwards, however, Moordryd blinds Beau and Artha with a flash stick, and while the pair can't see, Moordryd rips off Beau's hydro-pack with his energy drain whip and has Decepshun use her mag energy to propel Spratt over to Beau with the replacement hydro-pack in hand, thus successfully swapping out the hydro-pack with the rigged duplicate. Beau and Artha recover, and Cain voices the desire to get out of the area, leading to the fleeing of the Dragon Eyes.

When Artha turns Beau to chase after them, however, the dragon expresses discontent, attracting Artha's attention. He thinks it's due to thirst, assuming that the feeder tube of the hydro-pack had come loose, and reactivates it, causing the liquid black draconium to begin flowing. In the meantime, he contacts Parmon to see if they can pinpoint where the Dragon Eyes fled to, and is informed that they're headed towards Moordryd's compound. Beau suddenly keens, and as the last of the black draconium is consumed, his eyes turn purple in the irises, his body colors change to a darker hue, and Parmon picks up on a change in Beau's gold draconium energy output -- before Beau suddenly mags Artha off his seat, and the rider lands on his back on the street. Beau advances menacingly, and Moordryd makes a snide comment on how Beau's "not the faithful friend [Artha] thought he was." He commands the crew to seize both of them, while Spratt seems to suddenly have doubt. Cain fires a green trapping gear at Artha.

Lance, together with Kitt and Parmon and their dragons, stands in front of the store and comments upon Spratt's actions. Kitt mentions that maybe the other kid became jealous of the amount of time Lance was spending with his friends -- Artha, Kitt, and Parmon -- and so decided to get some new friends of his own. Lance laments the loss of his brother and his best friend. Parmon finds the empty vial that once contained the liquid black draconium and the remnants of the original hydro-pack, which Lance points out doesn't make sense because Beau was wearing the hydro-pack when he was captured. Parmon realizes that the whole robbery and fight was a diversion and the Dragon Eyes had done something to Beau, and quickly ushers the group to see Mortis for advice.

Parmon explains that the hydro-packs had been swapped out to use the contents of the now-empty vial he found, which Mortis identifies as having once contained liquid black draconium, which has now infected Beau. Mortis goes on to explain that liquid black draconium would change Beau's blood until it became completely black, and Parmon correctly realizes that with the Dragon of Legend under Word's control, Word could use Beau to call all dragons to battle.

At the Dragon Eyes compound, with Word's suggestion, Moordryd attempts to take off the Dragon Booster's helmet, only to fail. Word looks closer and notes that the Dragon Booster's armor is of gold draconium and was wrought in the old ways, meaning that it can't be removed so long as the wearer is still alive. Word calls for Artha to be taken away, and returns his attention to Beau. When Artha protests, Word uses a controller to command Beau to roar at Artha.

Mortis reassures a saddened Lance that all is not lost, while Lance points out that he's lost his father, his best friend, and his only brother. Still, Mortis tells him not to lose hope, for what was lost could be found again, and then he produces a promising vial of golden liquid.

In the meantime, back at the compound, Spratt grows unhappy with the way Cain and the Dragon Eyes are treating him. While checking up on Artha, the prisoner, Spratt and Artha end up striking a conversation, and after Artha promises to take Spratt with him if Spratt sets him free, Spratt sets him free. Artha then goes to confront Word, along with Moordryd and Cain, using a rusted bar as a weapon. Moordryd and Cain fight against him, and when it seems that Artha would be able to hold his own, Word laughs and uses his controller to send Beau to attack Artha, sending him flying. He holds on to the edge of a platform, and slowly loses his grip as Beau looms over him, growling. When Artha falls, Spratt shouts "No!", which gives him away as a traitor.

While falling, the Dragon Booster suit suddenly extends the protrusions behind Artha's shoulders, revealing that the makeshift 'wings' are capable of gliding flight.

Mortis holds a vial of liquid gold draconium, explaining that he'd been working on it for years and had hoped to use it to help injured dragons. While feeding Beau the gold draconium would not guarantee that he would be completely cured, it provided a possibility, at the very least. Kitt mentions that they'd have trouble getting it to Beau, but Artha walks in, supposing that he could accomplish the task. After a quick celebratory hug with Lance and some cheer from Parmon and Kitt (for being able to escape), Artha reveals that Spratt had helped him escape, which makes Lance light up. Beau's gold markings are still fading away quickly, however, and soon his bones would pulse with black draconium energy, which Word would use to call all dragons to war. Mortis gives Parmon a map that shows a way to get around Moordryd's defenses, and gives Artha the liquid gold draconium, reminding him that he and Beau have a great bond.

Beau roars from upon a rooftop, causing other dragons below to mag off their riders and march towards the Dragon Eyes compound, forming an army for Word. Meanwhile, the crew traverses below the ground, Parmon manning the map. Kitt comes across a gate and peers into it, but a menacing pair of eyes glare back, causing her to scream and stumble back. Parmon realizes there's something wrong, and Kitt asks him for the map. Once he hands it over, she stares at it for a few moments before shaking her head and turning the map around, then giving it back to Parmn; he had been reading it upside down.

They open up a door to a massive hole, with a ladder on the other side that seems to reach all the way up. Artha dons the Dragon Booster armor and jumps across the hole, managing to catch the ladder. A section falls away from the shock, but he manages to hold onto the last step before the broken part. He climbs up into the compound, where he releases Spratt from being pinned to a wall by green trapping gear. Artha whispers a plan to him before going to in front of Word, demanding his dragon back. Word mocks him before pressing a button, which causes Beau to mag Artha into the air. When Moordryd and Cain search him, as Word commands, Moordryd discovers the vial of golden liquid, which Artha knocks out of his hand. The vial is sent sailing towards Beau's open mouth, but Word intercepts and pours the contents over the edge, remarking that it's a shame his "old friend" Mortis' work would be in vain.

When Word lands on Beau's saddle, the dragon suddenly roars again, and his markings undergo yet another change, in addition to physical altercations like purple eyes and longer claws, indicating that his gold draconium has been turned to black. Cain and Moordryd flee, and Beau drops Artha from the mag stream to stalk towards him and push him to the ground with a claw. Beau makes to bite at him, but for some reason appears unable to bring himself to do so. Word demands that Beau finish him, but as Beau roars, Artha shouts for Spratt, who runs in and throws what's apparently the real vial of liquid gold draconium. Moordryd and Cain collide in their leaps to grab it, allowing the vial to sail through and land in Artha's hand. When Beau roars at him, Artha hurls the vial into the dragon's open mouth.

Immediately, the effects are seen; purple glowing markings shift to gold and back again, and Beau thrashes briefly before opening his eyes -- which have returned to being gold. The changes brought upon by the liquid black draconium vanish, and Beau grins at Artha before magging Word off his saddle to land in some wires. Moordryd and Cain fire green trapping gear at Beau and Artha, but Beau uses black draconium power to blast the gear away. Artha climbs into Beau's saddle and calls Spratt over, who's pulled onto the seat as well. They escape as Word promises that they'll pay for that.

The dragon army is still marching towards the compound, but Beau stands above them and roars, causing them all to stop and look up. He jumps down and passes through between them, crooning, and the dragons back away from his path with a bow. As the dragons part, they reveal Kitt, Parmon, and Lance with their dragons, who congratulate Artha for pulling off the task. Artha mentions thanks to Spratt, who jumps off Beau to make his way towards Lance, apologizing for his actions. Lance affirms that they're still friends. Then, they make their way back home.

Important Events

• Beau absorbs liquid black draconium, allowing him to tap into black draconium power.
• First appearance of liquid black draconium and liquid gold draconium.
• The Dragon Booster suit is revealed to have wings with gliding capabilities.

Quotes & Trivia

• Artha calls dragonade "[his] dragon's favorite drink".
• "But you must not lose hope. What is lost can always be found again." (Mortis, to Lance)
• "Real friends know what it takes to forgive." (Dragon Booster, to Spratt)
• "Some bonds are too strong to ever be fully broken." (Mortis, to Artha)

Gallery

Beau using Light Blue Hydro-pack gear.

Beau as a Black Draconium dragon, depicted on Word's citadel monitor.

Video

Dragon Booster Episode 16 Broken Bonds English