by K T Quinn
‘You can count on us. You can count on me. Always my dragon sister’ whispered Lessi quietly breaking me out of my reverie.
‘Thank you Lessi, my sister dragon. I am glad you are here.’ It was just going to be me and my badass dragons trying to save the world. I looked over at Wyrmie who was fast asleep on Victoria’s still made bed. She must have stayed somewhere else last night. Wyrmie’s little tail flicked and wiggled in his dreams. The morning light danced along his beautiful scales.
‘He’s probably dreaming about raiding the kitchen again’ Lessi smirked inside my head.
‘Or smiting something’ I added with a grin. ‘Although for such a small thing he talks alot about smiting and pillaging villages. I wonder if he has actually smited anything?’ Both Lessi and I giggled at the thought. I pulled open my top drawer and grabbed out a handful of candy bars and spread them around Wyrmie to keep him happy should he wake up while we were away. I grabbed my backpack ready to leave and paused at the door. Quickly turning around I jogged back to my drawers and snatched out my phone. I pulled up Bri’s number. I wanted to know why she didn’t warn me about the King. Why I had been blindsided by his plans and was now stuck in an arranged marriage I wanted no part of.
Did you know?
I waited a moment for her to reply, frustrated I threw the phone back into the drawer. The light flashed on the phone as it made a soft ding. I snatched it back up and quickly scrolled to messages. Bri had replied with one word.
Yes.
With one word my whole world came crumbling down. The person who I most trusted in this world could not be trusted. Bri knew everything about me. My first crush, all my secret hiding places, my family, my secrets, my fears. Everything. I thought she had my back no matter what, come what may. We were sisters for life. We made a pact that we would stick together, look out for each other. I don’t know what happened. Maybe it was her time on the dark, or maybe it was her powers that have corrupted her -
‘Or her thirst for power’ added Lessi. It didn’t matter anymore. The King now not only had free access to my family to hold and use against me, but he also had knowledge of everything about me to use against me. I felt like we were in a game of chess and I was losing, piece by piece.
‘You’ve changed. Grown stronger. Conquer your old fears. Turn the tables. Use who you used to be against him. That is how we keep the Shadow King at bay for now. We must find a way to unite both sides or all is lost’ Lessi reminded me as she paced. My skin rippled as her irritation was combined with mine. ‘You’re right. We need a plan. I think we need to see the Oracle again Lessi.’ I toyed with the topaz ring on my finger as I thought of Nazar. He felt like an ally and I needed to raise an army of them if we were to ever succeed in ending this war. The final bell for first period sounded. Crap! Late again. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my scrunched up timetable. I sighed in relief as I saw that it was a free period.
‘Time to hit the bags Lessi.’ I planned on getting some practice in on the bags in the gym. I needed to practice my hand to hand combat if I was ever to have a hope in hell of saving this place. I grabbed a change of clothes and raced out the door.
I flew out the door like I was on fire. I snorted to myself because half the time that was usually the case thanks to my Fury side. As I slammed the door behind me and kept running I hit a hard body and bounced backwards, landing flat on my ass. My backside stung as I struggled to get up on my feet. This day just keeps getting better.
"You will have to excuse my poor manners my Queen." Tall, dark and handsome Syn bent down and offered his hand to help me up. I took his hand and felt a ripple of warmth pool in my stomach. This guy really was sexy as Sin, pun fully intended. I stared into his dark brooding eyes and felt a sense of familiarity. I knew him from somewhere but couldn't place where from. He pulled me to my feet and bent down and picked up my backpack and handed it to me. Ever the gentleman. He was stunning. His muscular chest rippled through his dark plain cotton shirt when he moved. I'm pretty sure by this point my jaw was on the ground. He had two small dimples in his cheeks, when he smiled. Like he was smiling at me now. He wasn't my usual type either. Actually I didn't know I had a type until I had met Titan. My thoughts flew to Titan. I missed him. How strange it is to miss someone who keeps you at arms length all the time. I hadn't seen Titan in days, I secretly hoped that I would see him in the next class. I hoped that he wouldn't think I was a freak after the incident with Sabine - like Twyla and Victoria did. As did half the school. I sighed internally. Titan irritated me to no end but something pulled me towards him. Something I couldn't explain. The same thing that pulled me towards Syn.
"Are you alright my Queen?" Syn asked, concern now pooling in his eyes. I shook myself out of my daydream and realised I had been staring. For a long time. I mentally face palmed myself. Way to go Miks, make the hot guy think you're a weirdo. Good job.
"Umm sorry, yes. Yes I'm alright. I didn't see you there" I replied. Syn smiled warmly and extended his arm to me.
"Let me walk you to the gym. That's where you were headed right?"
"Um yes. Gym. Training .. and things." Ugh why was I so nervous around this guy!
"Actually I was on my way to your room. I wanted to speak with you if I may."
"Of course, what did you want to speak with me about?" My curiosity was piqued.
"Well, I wanted to know if you had any plans this evening? I would very much like to take you out to dinner if I may." Syn smiled at me nervously, running his hand through his hair.
"To the cafeteria?" I asked in shock.
"Umm no, off campus if that is okay?"
"We are allowed off campus? I thought that was only for second year students?"
"I know a guy who knows a guy," Syn winked at me with a cheeky grin. "So do you want to?"
"Want to what?"
Syn raised an eyebrow at me. "Dinner my queen."
"Umm yes! Of course! I would love to go out to dinner with you. What should I wear?" I had never felt more frazzled in my life. Dinner with Syn.. yes please! Twyla and Victoria would be so jealous but happy for me. My heart sank as I remembered that they weren't speaking to me. I stared at the ground hoping Syn wouldn't see my eyes burning with tears.
"Wear whatever you wish my Queen. You will be as beautiful as always no matter what form you are in" he said as he wiped away a single tear with his finger and pulled me into a warm embrace. We stood there for a moment as if we were the last two people on Earth. I closed my eyes and sank into his arms, all the sadness and pain washing away. I could have stood there forever like this. Syn moved backwards a little, still holding me in his arms.
"Better now, my Queen?" He smiled at me with complete devotion as if no other woman existed. Smiling, I nodded in response to his question.
"Can I ask you a question Syn?"
"Of course my Queen, you may ask anything of me." We began to walk further down the empty corridor, Syn's arm around my shoulders pulling me in close. My arm around his waist returning the affectionate gesture.
"Why do you keep calling me your Queen? I'm not a queen. I'm just me. Most of you here think I’m demon scum. Nothing special" I replied.
“You are special. You are special to me and to my coven. Never doubt that. I call you my Queen because that is what you will be. As you know, I am a vampire. It is what I ascended into. As did my father, and his father before him. As did his father and so on. It is our heritage, our honor. We call ourselves The Seven. Our coven has been around for centuries. Perhaps not as long as your Dragonkin friend, we came after the last of your Dragons kind was thought to have died out. Our Oracle foretold of a time when the balance between good and evil shall be tipped and our world on the brink of destruction. It was foretold that a Fury Queen will be the one who saves us. A Fury Queen with the spirit of a dragon who chooses no side except the side of the just. Our coven made a pledge to protect the line of Furies in secret, no matter the cost, until the Queen that was foretold is found. Now we
vow to protect the Queen whether it costs us our life, or our soul.” Syn raised a hand to my cheek, stroking it tenderly. “You are our last hope Mikah. You are our only hope if we are to save our world.”
“But what if I fail?” My stomach was in knots at the thought of my imminent failure.I couldn’t do this. The Seven had chosen wrong.
“You will not fail. We believe in you. I believe in you.” He pulled me into a final hug as we arrived at the gym. “I will pick you up from your dorm room at 6. Until then my Queen.” Syn tipped his imaginary top hat in my direction and bowed before spinning on his heel and walking the way we came.
The gym was empty and quiet except for the rhythmic thumps of my fists colliding with the hard bags. I pushed past the sting of each blow and the slow trickle of blood that began to splatter against the bags taking out every frustration and hurt that I had on the bag. I had been practicing long enough for my knuckles to become blistered and bloodied, yet still I fought on. I thought of every betrayal, of Bri. Of how she had known that the King was trying to force me into a marriage I didn't want. Of my Mother feeding him information to help his cause. Of Sabine and every moment she had bullied myself or anyone I cared about just because we were different, because we had come from the wrong side of town. I thought of Victoria and Twyla, and the horrified looks on their faces. Of their inability to accept me for who I am, part dragon, part Fury, part human. I pushed through the pain until it was just a dull ache and thought of Titan. How he had not come to see me or speak to me or treat me like a friend - like he had when I had first come to Skybjörn Academy. He acted like I was a stranger and not a friend. Not even Rowdy had come to see me and how I was doing. I'm certain that they both would have discovered what had happened in Crigler's class. Tears began to stream down my face silently as I continued to strike at the bag. I switched to roundhouse kicks, dodging and weaving around the bag as it swung back and forth from the force of my kicks. I had to be better. Be stronger. I had to be ready. I didn't know what was coming, or when. I just knew I had to be ready. I screamed in frustration at the bag and hit it with a flurry of punches and kicks ducking and weaving as it swung back trying to collide with me. I could feel movement behind me and without thinking I spun around with a shuto strike to the throat as I had been trained.
“Good” Titan said approvingly as he caught my hand mid strike. “Next time follow it up with a mae geri kick and your opponent will be rendered on the ground.” He smiled at me briefly before schooling his features back into his usual stern expression.
“I would know that if I actually had a teacher who didn’t ignore my existence,” I retorted, turning my back on him. How dare he! Disappear on me for weeks, ignore me in class and now he wants to help! I began to strike the bag as hard as I could, pretending to ignore Titan who was still standing behind me silently, watching.
“I don’t ignore your existence… I just didn’t want to add to your burden. You already have so much to deal with, I didn’t want to make you a target by advertising my interest in you.” Titan moved to the side trying to get me to look at him. I stopped what I was doing and glared.
“Do you really expect me to believe that? You have done nothing but glare at me and pretend I don’t exist in public, yet now in private you want to claim to have an interest in me? You’ve got to be joking!” I bent over and grabbed my backpack and stormed past Titan towards the door shoulder banging into him on the way. My shoulder stung where I had bumped into him but I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing that. Titan grabbed my wrist and pulled me back into his arms holding onto me tightly. I struggled against his muscular chest to continue on my sulkfest but he only held onto me tighter. Giving up I melted into his embrace.
“I’m sorry,” he bit out gruffly. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. Hold you I mean. You don’t know how hard it has been for me to watch the vampire try and woo you, and take you for his own.” Titan nuzzled my neck and inhaled deeply, breathing in my scent. Either that or he was being a serious creeper. “You smell like cinnamon buns and apples,” he sighed.
I was stunned into a moment of silence for once. He liked me. Not just liked me but really liked me. I smiled for a moment before I processed the rest of what he had been saying.
“What do you mean about the vampire? Are you talking about Syn?” I asked.
“Yes. He needs to be reminded that you are mine. MINE.” Titan stroked my hair, tucking some stray strands behind my ear.
“First of all, I am no ones but my own. Secondly, you can’t ignore me for weeks and then turn around saying that Syn can’t date me, but you can. Like I don’t have some sort of a say in all of this? I don’t think so bucko!” I snapped shoving at Titan’s muscular chest breaking our embrace. Surprise filled his eyes at my outburst followed by a hurt expression on his face. I pointed my finger in his direction before he had a chance to speak. “Now Listen here,” I said jabbing his hard chest with my pointer finger. “I choose who I want to date, not you. I get to choose if I want to be yours. Not you. I get some say in this matter. As it stands I like Syn, he’s charming, and funny, and he has been there for me - and you haven’t. I am going on a date with him tonight, and if you care for me like you say you do then you’ll allow it, and you’ll still be there for me too. Why do I have to choose between you both? Didn’t your Momma ever teach you how to share?”
Titan stood there with his mouth open like a fish out of water, unsure of how to answer to my tirade. I put my hands on my hips and raised an eyebrow waiting for him to respond. I wasn’t the kind of girl who ever considered having more than one love interest at a time, but the thought of choosing Titan over Syn just felt all kinds of wrong. Somehow these men had clawed their way into my heart and that is where they would stay.
“Share? But… but… what will people think?” He stammered out after recovering his composure a little.
“You know what, I don’t really care anymore, People are downright mean and judgemental over here. I’ve been called demon scum, and worse, so many times that I don’t really expect anything different - or care about their opinions for that matter. I deserve happiness as much as the next person. You and Syn, you make me feel something, and I’m not ready to give that up just because of people and their opinions.”
“I don’t want to share. I can’t stand the thought of you with another man. I don’t want you to forget about me.” Titan stared at me needily, begging me silently to give up my Syn. I considered for a moment, what it would be like to choose only one. I thought of Titan’s absence and the hole it had left on my heart, and the hurt. Of how Syn was there to pick me up whenever I seemed to fall. I tried to imagine choosing only Syn, or Titan and felt a pang of regret and hurt at the thought of it. No, I couldn’t choose only one. I didn’t care if that made me selfish, I had to give up so much. My life was not my own. I had been charged with this crazy world saving mission and was expected to somehow save everyone. I had been forced into an arrangement I did not want with the Shadow King. Why shouldn’t I have one thing in my life that was for me, and me alone, while I was here on the Bright side of town? Why shouldn’t I make the most of my life while this side of it was still within my control?
“I am not giving up Syn. He has been there for me, picking up all the pieces every time you weren’t there, or Sabine and her nasty friends have made my life miserable. He has been there every time I’ve needed help, or struggled to control the change. Where were you all the times I needed you? Why should I drop everything and everyone just because you finally decided to tell me you’re interested in me? You couldn’t even admit real feelings to me.. just your “interest” in me.” I exploded letting it all out. I threw my backpack back on the ground and began to pace back and forth angrily. Titan grabbed at my arms trying to pull me back into his own. I snatched my arms away, too angry to stop moving. My emotions were in overdrive. I was beginning to channel Titan’s emotions as my own, our auras merging together so I couldn’t untangle his feelings
from mine. I was stuck in an overwhelming emotional roller coaster of anger, hurt and love. Our aura changed from red to black to red. It was making me dizzy. My head was beginning to pound and the room began to spin. I could hear the rhythm of my heart pounding in my ears, and I stopped in my tracks. I bent down to the floor covering my ears as the edges of my vision began to fade to black. I just wanted it all to stop. Why couldn’t it be easy for once? Just once?
“Shhh I’ve got you,” Titan knelt down beside me and pulled me into his arms. “Is it your empath ability?” he murmured into my hair. I sniffled and nodded my head, burying my face into his shoulder waiting for it to pass.
I began to count backwards from ten, breathing in slowly trying to calm my empath ability. The sea of emotions began to quell until it was just the slow tide of my own frustrations. I snuggled in a little closer to Titan not wanting to break the embrace just yet. Titan squeezed me gently in silent agreement. He did not want this embrace to end either.
“I’m sorry. I will try to be what you need Mikah. I will be your rock. Stubborn, hard-headed but here to ground you. I will be your constant.” He stroked my hair with his hand and kissed the top of my head gently. “Even if it means your heart also belongs to a dead nincompoop,” he muttered half to himself. I leaned out of the embrace and glared. “I meant gentleman. Even if your heart belongs to another gentleman… see I can play nice” he grinned. I returned his smile feeling relieved. It would be a work in progress but I wouldn’t be stuck in the middle.
Titan stood and reached his hand out to pull me up. “Now, let’s get some serious training happening. Your form needs work,” he grinned wiggling his eyebrows at me as I groaned aloud.