Shadow and Flame

by Katya Moore

"Guys, I'm supposed to be a ninja right now, remember?" I whined. "This is awful."

  "Ninjas blend in with their surroundings," Aric said with a satisfied smirk. "Chowdahead." He leaned against the back of the driver’s seat of the van and looked wickedly contented.

  "You're loving this," I muttered at him. "Next time, I pick the disguises and you wear the awful pink shirt."

  The smirk broadened. "I am confident in my gender expression, and I look hot as hell in pink, thank you."

  "Dick."

  "You love every inch of it." He winked. I rolled my eyes. Aric turned his attention to Quinn and Cass, who looked about as comfortable as I felt in their own tourist t-shirts and khaki shorts. Cass wore a camera on a strap around his neck. Quinn wore a Red Sox ballcap. Aric narrowed his eyes at Quinn, then reached up and turned the cap around backwards. "Perfect. You look obnoxious."

  "You'd know best," Cass sniped. "We need to go."

  "One last prop," Aric said, reaching into the front passenger seat of the van. "I grabbed these while you were napping in the back." He produced a cardboard beverage carrier with four large cups of Starfield coffee. With a proud smile, he plucked one out for himself and handed the rest to Cass.

  Cass looked at him suspiciously. "Thank you. That was… thoughtful. Who are you, and what have you done with Aric?"

  All things considered, it was a legitimate question. Would a Chosen duplicate buy us overpriced lattes?

  Aric sniffed. "Drink your coffee, nerd. You're getting bitchy."

  Cass chuckled. "Okay, that's better."

  I threw my arms around Aric's neck and planted my lips on his. He slid his hands over my ass and squeezed gently, pulling me close to his body. As his tongue danced over mine, any doubt about his identity fled. "Thanks for the coffee," I beamed as he let me fall back to my feet.

  "What do I get if I bring donuts?" he grinned.

  "Get me some Dunkies and I'm yours forever," I said with a wink.

  "On it. Now get the hell out of here." Aric leaned over and threw open the back door of the surveillance van. The early morning sun blinded my tired eyes. We'd gotten a couple of hours' nap while Aric gathered the needed resources, but it was just barely enough to keep me on my feet.

  We were a block from the Old North Church, and the early morning tourists were already out, snapping pictures and soaking up the history. Tourist traps were putting out A-frame signs, touting buy-two-get-one-free deals on t-shirts much like the ones we were wearing. I could smell sausage and marinara simmering from a nearby Italian cafe. My stomach grumbled.

  "My research puts us on one of the side streets back here," Cass said, leading the way. "Not only was this area teeming with Chosen back in Revolutionary times, we are right over the catacombs. There are known branches out to Copp's Hill and the Old North Church. Tons of lesser-known branches are bricked up in the cellars of some of these townhouses." Cass gestured at the towering brick-faced dwellings lining the streets. Some had long ago been converted to shopfronts and cafes, but many of them still served as apartments.

  "And at least one of them still belongs to the Chosen," Quinn noted somberly.

  "Wait, wait, wait." I raised my hand. "How far back do the Chosen go? You said Revolutionary times?"

  "Where the dragons have gone, so have the Chosen." Cass said. "We weren't on the Mayflower, but we weren't far behind it. Dragons were among the early settlers, though you won't read about any of their settlements in a human history book. We wanted to escape the crowded streets of the cities in Europe, to be able to spread our wings and soar in new lands." He raised his hands in an expansive gesture. "But some of us are drawn to cities, and when Boston began to become a hub, young dragons came to establish themselves, to make names, to help shape the way the colony was going to grow and form. And when the movement to separate from Britain began, dragons integrated themselves into the fight to continue to help shape the fledgling country." He smiled. "It was an opportunity that the water dragons could not resist. A brand-new country, ripe for the picking. They got their talons in at the edges and have held on ever since."

  "Like Meriwether?" I asked.

  Cass nodded. "She and her family have been involved in American politics since the beginning. They change their names every generation or so. A branch slips out of the limelight, goes underground for a few decades, then resurfaces with a flawless pedigree provided by the water dragons. I think one of her ancestors has his name on the Declaration of Independence, but that may just be a rumor."

  "Holy shit," I breathed. "And the Chosen?"

  "When the dragons came to the New World, they brought a lot of their artifacts and relics with them. The Chosen sought any connection to the Great Serpent, and thought that those relics would lead them to him. So, they followed. They harried the dragon ships with pirate ships of their own. They infiltrated the human ships as they brought new settlers. They settled themselves in the darkest parts of the forests, far away from the other settlements, and sent strike teams in to sabotage the dragons' efforts to integrate with the humans." Cass's eyes narrowed. "Prominent dragons were, quite ironically, accused of witchcraft by Chosen sorcerers. The Chosen liked to draw in ministers, to corrupt their flocks and lure people into the cult."

  "And what about the Great Serpent?" I chewed my lip and looked around. The tourists were still sparse, focused intently on their phones or their cameras, taking selfies by the plaques on the walls. I looked at the nearest plaque. It looked like every other Bostonian historical plaque, black cast iron with brass-burnished text. Nothing shadowy or sigil-y about it.

  Quinn chuckled softly. "There are theories. Some say that the Great Serpent moved beneath the sea to join its Chosen in America. Some say it always was here, and it called the Chosen here from across the sea. Some believe the Great Serpent is everywhere and nowhere."

  I frowned. I'd felt the power of the Great Serpent once. It felt close. Too close. "What do you believe?"

  Quinn paused, looking thoughtful. Cass frowned, focusing on the buildings ahead. "I believe that the key to finding the Serpent lies within you, Sia. The connection between the shadow dragons and the Great Serpent, mysterious as it is, will guide us to it someday and help us defeat it."

  My stomach did a little flip at that. "No pressure," I joked half-heartedly.

  Quinn smiled. "There are many reasons the Elders want to shelter you. You are important to all of dragonkind in so many ways, ways you don't even know yet. Ways we may not have even discovered yet. If we're going to save the world from the Great Serpent, we need you."

  I looked at Cass. He wasn't looking at me. "Why didn't you ever mention this to me?"

  Cass met my curious look with a guilty expression. "You've been so overwhelmed with everything else we've heaped on you. The Chosen, the Elders, being the Shadow Queen. We've already landed 'you are the key to restoring everyone's dragon form' on you. Adding 'you are the key to finding the greatest evil on the planet' to that seemed... cruel."

  I glared at him. "I'm not as delicate as you seem to think, Cass. This is shit I need to know."

  "I know." My heart softened at the apology in his voice. "I just wanted to wait. Until things settled down a little."

  I gave him a stern look. "But they're not going to settle down, ever, are they?"

  Cass rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. "No, I guess not," Cass admitted.

  "Any other huge things I should know?" I asked, looking between Cass and Quinn.

  Quinn pondered a moment. "Let's see, restoring glory to the dragons, finding and destroying the Great Serpent and his followers, restoring dragon rule to the Earth..."

  "Doing what now?" I actually stopped in my tracks at that.

  Cass glared at Quinn. "Dude, really? That old line?"

  "The Elders hardly think of it as an 'old line.' It's our birthright." Quinn said. "We ruled at the dawn of humanity, and we will rule..."

  "...At the dusk," Cass finished. "That was when there were a lot less humans and a
lot more dragons. I don't think we're getting the glory days back."

  "Not with an attitude like that," Quinn said brusquely. "If you're going to be a mate to the Shadow Queen, you have to think bigger. Grander."

  "Crazier," Cass countered. "That's just insane. You may think we're going to take over the world, but reality says otherwise. We need to work with the humans, not try to lord over them as in days of old."

  "Once we restore the dragon form, we will be closer to finding that power again," Quinn said, in a tone that reminded me uncomfortably of the High Priest of Apep.

  "Guys," I said.

  "There are billions of them, and a few hundred thousand of us. I don't care if the Eldest Dragon herself showed up again, we are not going to dominate that kind of population!" Cass rolled his eyes and gestured emphatically. "We're just plain outnumbered!"

  "Guys."

  "We have magic on our side, Cassidy. Magic that will only increase once our forms are restored. If..."

  I reached out with my mind and snatched up two fistfuls of shadow. They wrapped themselves around the boys’ mouths. Their eyes widened and they froze in place, staring at me in shock.

  Silently, I pointed at a sign on the wall next to us.

  "Oh. Fuck." Quinn's eyes widened at his own use of invective, then narrowed to study the sign.

  Wardwell House

  This residence housed Reverend Anthony Wardwell and his family from 1725 until the minister's death in the Siege of Boston in 1776. Wardwell worked as an intelligence officer for the American resistance, and was executed for treason by the British occupiers. Wardwell's son Richard retained the property, and it has served as a waystation for people seeking spiritual comfort ever since.

  Inik myrrak ib bayyam asaak…

  "Stop reading it!" Quinn grabbed my arm and pulled me away from the plaque.

  I shook my head. It felt a little hollow, like something of myself had been pulled from me as I'd read the inscription. Cass wrapped his arm around my waist as I swooned.

  "What was that last line?" I asked, doing my best to shake off the dizziness that overwhelmed me. Cass half-carried me down the sidewalk for a few houses, then pulled a bottle of water out of his pocket and handed it to me.

  "It was a ward." Quinn looked a little pale himself. I handed him the water after I'd taken a long sip. He accepted it gratefully and downed half the bottle. "Most wards are sigils, arcane symbols. This one was transliterated into text, to ward off anyone who'd spend time reading that sign." He frowned. "Crafty. I almost read it myself."

  "It did its job," I groaned. "I kinda want to barf right now."

  "If a human read that, they'd get a sudden, acute fear response and head for the nearest safe-looking place. They'd just decide they were in a bad neighborhood and move on." Quinn smiled. "We're dragons. It's less fear, more acute nausea. They want to incapacitate us as best they can and take us out if we stumble across their lair."

  "Which we did. And now we know. And now we need to get back to the others so we can figure out a plan of attack." Cass took another sip of water and studied the street intently.

  I looked around, at the people, at the nearby playground, at the Italian restaurant across the way. So many civilians. This was not a place we could bring four dragons to tear things apart.

  "Attack. Right." My heart sank. How the hell were we going to pull this off?

  Chapter Twenty

  "It's not good," I said, sinking back into my chair.

  Schulte steepled her fingers in front of her face. "I agree. This is going to take careful planning. We need to clear the area, but don't want to alert the Chosen to our actions while we do so."

  "Maybe a public works project," Meriwether suggested. "I could close the streets down for repairs. We'll call in a strike team of fire dragon soldiers, disguise them as public works, and close in on them that way."

  "How long would that take?" I asked.

  "I could get it through in a couple of weeks."

  I sat up fast. "A couple of weeks?" I asked incredulously.

  Meriwether pondered a moment. "Maybe a week, with a little strategic sabotage of the roadways. If we can generate enough potholes, the city will be forced to..."

  "We don't have a week!" I flattened my hands against the table. "Those girls are in there, right now. We need to get them out, right now."

  Schulte folded her hands on the table in front of her. Her expression softened the barest bit, her eyes tired but sympathetic. "Miss Bellmont. Arysia. You have come to your power young. You have come to us untrained, untested. You never attended the Proving Grounds. You have no military background. We cannot expect you to understand the concept of 'acceptable losses.'"

  "There is nothing acceptable..." I began.

  Schulte cut me off. "We have a unique opportunity presented to us. We have the chance to stop the killings. We have the chance to keep any more of our people from being taken by this Witch Queen and having their souls ripped out and used against us." For once, she looked human. Her harsh voice was almost gentle. "We need to think of the bigger picture here, Arysia. We could save these three girls and possibly lose our chance at the Witch Queen, or we can plan this out carefully, take our time, and form an attack that will surely destroy her."

  An uneasy feeling churned in my stomach, boiling into my chest. She was right, but it wasn't right. It couldn't be right. But it sounded right. My head spun. I felt confused, angry, frustrated beyond measure. Is this what it is to rule? To constantly have to tear apart the ones I love for the greater good?

  "No," I said flatly. "We can't sacrifice them. They've sacrificed four dragons this week for sure. We don't know if they've captured more in addition to the girls." I met Schulte's hardening gaze. "How many losses are acceptable? How many more can we lose, when the Proving Grounds are half-empty already?"

  Schulte's brow arched. Meriwether looked unsettled. "Our numbers aren't what they were, yes, but..." Meriwether began.

  Chang spoke up. "Our numbers are dying, Aubrey. Sia has a point. We can't just abandon our people while we sit around and think really hard about things."

  I smiled at her gratefully. She nodded at me without the hint of a smile. I bit my cheek and returned to a more somber expression. I needed a better poker face for these negotiations.

  "Chalondra, what do you think?" Chang turned to Long, who adjusted her glasses and looked uncomfortable.

  "Normally, I'd stand by the general on matters of strategy." She straightened her shoulders. "But there are factors here that need to be considered."

  "Factors?" Schulte demanded.

  "The longer we wait, the more power the Witch Queen amasses." Long nodded in my direction. "They are harvesting us. And if they have sacrificed the girls already, they have the location of the Proving Grounds’ wards. The passcodes. Possible access to our children. Our only hope there is that they will wish to take their time in sacrificing them, to soften them up and get the most of their spirit that they can." She didn't meet my horrified eyes. "The longer they torture them, the easier it is to tease out their soul. The more of their soul they get, the more information they will retain." She looked at me with infinite kindness and pity. "I hate to wish that upon your mate's sister, but I hope they have chosen this route instead of an instant payoff."

  My heart felt like it was being crushed in a vice. I couldn't form words. I just nodded.

  "I agree with Sia," Long said with an air of finality. "We can't let them sacrifice those girls. We have too much to lose."

  "Well then," Schulte snarled. "What do you propose we do? We can't just evacuate the area without arousing suspicion."

  I chewed my lip, then sat up straighter. "We can. Senator, you suggested a public works project. How about a gas main break? Something that would require a fast evacuation?"

  Meriwether pulled out her phone and sent a text. "That... just might work. It would work better at night. We'll need cover of darkness for the dragons at any rate. I could clear the area be
st once the tourist areas are thinning out."

  I frowned. Everything inside me shouted Go! Go! but she had a point. "Tonight. It'll give us time to gather our forces."

  Schulte waved me off. "We'll handle the logistics. You gather the troops that you have here. We're not going to be able to rally a full complement of soldiers, but I will pull in who I can. Send Kane in as you go. I'll need him to coordinate the attack."

  I nodded and rose from my seat. My heart pounded.

  Time to save Lina.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  I stepped into the main room of the pub. Chase stood at the front window, staring out and ignoring everyone. The rest of my boys sat at the bar, talking to Missi. Alpha Squad sat at one of the tables, looking preoccupied. To my surprise, the McKinnett’s security staff was also there, talking to Kitty by the door.

  Kitty looked my way and smiled. "I thought you might need some more backup for this rescue."

  I gave her a grateful smile in return. "You're the best."

  "I know." Her face grew serious. "You look like you have an announcement."

  I took a deep breath as all eyes turned toward me. "We're going in. Tonight. Meriwether's setting up our cover, Schulte needs Kane in there to talk strategy, and the rest of us..." I paused, uncertain. "The rest of us need to be ready to move. We're going to need our dragons, and we're going to need to be careful. We need to get the Witch Queen just as badly as we need to get Lina, or more dragons are going to die."

  Murmurs of agreement filled the air. Chase turned to face me slowly. I glanced his way, afraid to look at him directly. Afraid that we weren't moving fast enough for his liking.

  He studied my face for a long moment, then walked toward me. Galen started to rise from his barstool. I waved him off and moved forward to meet Chase in the middle of the pub.

  "Can... can we talk?" he asked, studying his feet before meeting my eyes with an uncertain look.

  I nodded and led him toward my old room.

  Galen did get to his feet then, walking toward us. "Do you..." he began to ask.