Whelon: Dragons of Preor

by Kyle, Celia

  I don’t know myself, he thought in panic. I would never normally attack my fellow warriors and yet…

  He almost passed out again as he followed I-4 East. He tipped to the side to slip between two buildings and clipped one with the edge of his wing. Bricks and mortar shattered while below, people screamed and dove for cover. With incredible effort, he flapped his wings and gained a bit of height to get himself above the buildings.

  He caught a thermal wind and drifted for a moment before the air shifted around him. It was born of very powerful wing beats that descended around him with the calculated sweep of a master of the skies.

  War Master.

  “Whelon,” Esteemed Warrior Jarek’s voice growled out of his dragon’s throat, more dragon than man. His large reptilian eyes moved, sliding a glance across the skies between them. Jarek cruised, barely flapping his wings as he rode the same thermal winds.

  Whelon shook his head and angled to dive again. Jarek tipped and caught Whelon’s wing with his own, nudging him off balance. Whelon groaned as his body went into a spin and he twisted in the air. Then he noticed that the city lights were falling away beneath him and ahead was the beach.

  The bay!

  Jarek nudged him again. Whelon struggled desperately to turn and fly back toward the city, but Jarek slapped him again, much harder this time.

  “I know your feelings, Whelon, but if you do not land, I will put you in the bay.”

  The bay. Certain death for a Preor. The water was a sure method of killing a male.

  Whelon groaned again, smoke and flames escaping his snout. He knew the ex-war master did not make empty threats. If Whelon did not listen… He would die without ever feeling the touch of his mate’s skin.

  Whelon didn’t so much land as collapse onto the sand, just short of the dangerous waters. His wings folded into his body as he crashed into the pliable surface, tossing up waves of sand as he collided with the beach.

  Several tons of dragon plowed through the soft, loose dunes, sending up huge sprays of crystal white sand. It was a spectacular crash, the weight and speed of Whelon’s landing carving a long trench along the beach as he hit the ground.

  When Jarek arrived in the large crater where the dragon had finally stopped, he found Whelon’s two-legged form curled up and shivering amid the glittering grains of sand. Other Preor ran from the nearby tower and descended from the sky. One thoughtfully brough a blanket from the tower and Jarek grabbed it from the male, using it to wrap up Whelon.

  He clapped Whelon on the shoulder, trying to comfort him with touch. But Whelon did not crave Jarek’s touch.

  “We will find her,” Jarek whispered.

  Whelon could only moan in reply, his dragon so heartsick he wondered if the beast would ever surface again.

  Anger bloomed in his chest as he attempted to rise, yet his limbs would not obey. He fell face first into the sand and flipped to his back as he struggled to rise once more.

  “Stay down, Whelon.” Jarek stood over him, fury etched into his features.

  “I can’t… I can’t. Where is she? Where? Why can’t I track her? What did they do with her?” Frantic energy ran through his body like an electrical charge, sweat pouring from his skin.

  “I don’t know,” Jarek murmured, “but we will find the answers. First, you must calm, or I will not let you out of this pit.”

  Pit? Whelon supposed he had dug a sort of pit when he finally stopped his slide across the beach.

  He struggled for a calm that seemed out of reach, but it must have been enough for Jarek. With a few others to assist, Jarek helped Whelon to his feet. Yet he could barely walk and needed others to support him under his arms. His eyes were hot and tired, his head heavy, and all he could think about was Sasha. Now that his last scrap of adrenaline had fled, nothing was left but exhaustion for company.

  I’m not strong enough to find her! he thought in panic. The longer we are apart, the worse it will get!

  “Calm, Whelon,” Jarek ordered him. “I told you, we will find your mate.”

  Whelon shook his head, dizzy and weak. He had never felt like this before. His entire life was one of order and patience. He had always wanted to be a healer, to protect and care for others. Listening to his patients and treating them with gentle care had been natural to him as he aged.

  This stress was something new and foreign. It was not like a physical fight, where he could rely on weapons and skill. Nor was it like fighting a typical fever that could be cured with medicines from his arsenal. It was as if every particle in his body was on the precipice of dissolving because it missed a vital component.

  Sasha. Sasha is the missing piece. I can’t be whole without her!

  His heart ached so fiercely he had to stop and press his hands to his chest, leaning forward and clutching himself in case it decided to jump from between his ribs. The others supported him, dragging him quickly into Preor Tower before depositing him on one of the couches in the lobby.

  Jarek jumped onto the phone straight away, calling the Choosing station and asking about the women who had attended and how to locate them. Soon a heavily pregnant Melissa appeared before Whelon, wiping his face gently with a warm, damp towel.

  “I thought… You are supposed to be resting with a nurse monitoring you,” he murmured with difficulty.

  She nodded with a small smile. “I was, but then a big scary dragon began terrorizing the skies and my mate thought being on the top floor of a tall tower was not the place for me.”

  He turned his eyes away from her, embarrassed by his actions. He was touched by her kindness, the simple gesture of wiping cold sweat from his brow. She was suffering from her pregnancy and tired with the dragonlet heavy in her womb, but still she had the strength to comfort him.

  “You will make a wonderful dam,” he spoke softly and she smiled in return.

  “And you’ll be an excellent father. Just as soon as we track down your mate.”

  From her lips to Syh’s winds.

  Whelon sat back in the chair, wings squished by the human couch, but he did not care if he was uncomfortable. He already felt as if his body falling apart. He fixed his gaze on the TV screen in the corner of the room, and he could not look anywhere else once his attention was caught.

  The display was full of Sasha. Smiling. Laughing. Dancing. Making funny faces while she played with disabled children or solemnly visiting homeless shelters. For a few moments he thought he might be hallucinating until Jarek entered the area and turned up the volume.

  “Beloved local celebrity Sasha Dane will not be with us tonight as scheduled,” the news reporter intoned. “She attended a Choosing at Preor Choosing Station Tau and, after being afflicted with the Knowing, was taken swiftly from the venue by her security team. Her mother has released a statement that Sasha must remain hidden to keep her from the Preor aliens. Allegedly, she was unwilling to become a mate and there is some evidence that the Preor attempted to force her cooperation.”

  The news reader looked gravely into the screen, pausing for effect. “If these claims are true and some form of duress is being used by the Preor, the entire treaty will need to be re-examined. We will have more updates as they occur.”

  Silence filled the room, a palpable depth where all sound was muted. The few in the room looked around at each other, but no one had anything to say. The Preor’s position on the planet was in danger.

  Chapter Nine

  An orange glow illuminated Sasha’s eyelids, and for a moment, she thought it was fire… Cleansing, beautiful fire. A torrent that would billow from the throat of her beloved mate and warm her to her bones until she glowed as brightly as him.

  She struggled to open her eyes, to search out the flames, but it was obvious she wasn’t standing in an inferno. No, in truth, it was dark out and the glow behind her eyes was simply the sun making its morning rise. It was a mere few seconds above the horizon and the strong color held little of the warmth she needed.

  Her mother was nearby, s
creaming at someone yet again. Sasha tried to move, but pain streaked through her joints, arresting her movements and making her shudder with the agony. The effort made her chest ache, as if breath and blood and life itself were not welcome within her body.

  She blinked at the brightening window, noticing for the first time how dark the rest of the room remained. They were in a cheap motel—no, a motor inn—dilapidated and dirty.

  Why would Mother bring me to this place? she thought, panic rising in her once more. She wouldn’t even look at a motel like this, let alone stay here!

  Sasha struggled to rise and waved her arm, hoping her mother would see that she’d woken. Yet the steady stream of her mother’s stern voice as she spoke into the phone didn’t slow for a second. If she had seen her daughter wave for help, she wasn’t going to interrupt her conversation to give aid.

  A gentle touch to Sasha’s hair surprised her, and she blinked hard to clear her vision, wetting her lips before speaking. The room remained a mess of shadow and blurred light. “Who’s there?”

  “It’s Dave again, sweetheart.” Sasha turned her head and caught a hint of his face before it swam out of focus once more. “You’ve been here for a while. Here, have some water.”

  He helped her sit up and sip cool liquid from the small cup. She almost choked on the small amount and refused any more, even if her lips were dry and blistered—desperate for liquid.

  Dave tossed a narrow-eyed glance over his shoulder at Jenna and then turned back to Sasha, his features softening once more. “I don’t know what she’s doing to you, but all the money in the world couldn’t keep me in her employ. The only reason I’m here is because I fear what she would do if no one was around to watch out for you.”

  Tears stung Sasha’s eyes as she realized this utter stranger had more compassion and caring for her than her own mother.

  Dave continued. “She’s had doctors here to examine you, but they can’t help you. Do you know what’s wrong?”

  “The Preor,” Sasha whispered, fearful her mother would overhear her answer. “I need my mate.”

  His eyes hardened, just a hint. “I’m afraid I can’t get him.” He sounded truly regretful. “Your mother recruited us at a meeting for people against the Preor. If you’ve been infected with their poison, you’ll have to work through it.” He stroked her hair, his touch gentle but not the one she needed. “I’ll be here for you.”

  Across the room, her mother slammed the phone down with a hard slap. “Get away from my daughter! You are far too touchy feely, asshole.”

  Dave raised his hands and backed away slowly, doing as her mother demanded. Meanwhile Sasha stared at the ceiling, idly wondering if this was what dying felt like. She was disconnected from most of the sensations racking her body, but when she dared move, all she experienced was pain.

  She blinked slowly and behind her eyes, she found a flawless sky. Clouds tinted all colors of the spectrum swept by in a flurry of gossamer puffs. In the shifting vapor she spied massive, dark wings cutting through the various shades. Against their depth, every color split and reflected back in prisms, and she gasped at the beauty.

  “My love,” she whispered, her heart thudding hard.

  From those endless skies she turned her gaze down and found mighty towers reaching toward them. Other Preor were in the sky, so many occupying the space and dancing in the air. She knew this was an ancestral memory—part of the Knowing.

  She could feel it, smell it, taste it… As she breathed in, she sensed the history of the years flowing through her. She could recall great battles and tragedies. Could experience the joy at every midsummer festival. And among it all came a very clear memory of Whelon standing on the edge of his aerie as his father gave him the confidence to jump and… fly.

  She released a moan that was half pain, half longing. Her throat hurt and her lips were split and cracked, the expression of torment only creating more pain within her.

  “I’ve had enough!” Her mother’s voice cracked above her and Sasha’s eyes snapped open, focusing on her only parent. “Get up, Sasha! Get up right now!”

  Sasha didn’t bother to respond. She couldn’t get up—couldn’t move—and that should be obvious to anyone.

  When her mother grabbed her arm, Sasha didn’t react, the pain from the touch like a dull bruise. She was too weak and helpless to resist.

  Then her mother tugged, attempting to drag her out of bed, and Sasha released a loud scream. The sound rang around the room, so filled with agony she barely associated it with herself. Pain flooded her body, and for a few precious seconds, welcomed unconsciousness overtook her.

  When she managed to open her eyes once more, she heard her mother arguing with Dave.

  “She needs to rest, Jenna! We don’t know how powerful this venom is. If you want her to have any chance of recovery—”

  “I’ve had three doctors here already,” Jenna hissed. “None of them can help her! They can’t even tell me if she’s infected with anything. The tests are all clear.”

  Sasha moaned. She could hear them, but their words made no sense to her. She could see nothing but the glorious skies of Preor. Could hear nothing save the crooning of her missing mate.

  “Whelon,” she murmured, her voice thick with tears. “My love. Shaa kouvi…”

  Her mother had fallen utterly silent, standing over the bed and staring down at Sasha, but Sasha was barely aware of her. When there was a knock at the door, the dull thuds rocketing through the room, and Sasha tried to turn away. She was sick of this horrible, painful world. She wanted to return to her dreams where she was with Whelon and all was well.

  Vaguely, she heard the door open and thump closed. Her mother’s voice cracked against the quiet air, and Dave murmured in concerned tones.

  Soft footsteps approached Sasha and then gentle fingers were on her wrist. “It’s the Knowing sickness,” a voice murmured. “How extraordinary. I’ve never had a chance to witness it before.”

  “I don’t care what it is,” Jenna snapped. “I have a TV spot this evening and you better get her up and looking good by then or I swear to any God you prefer, I will see to it that you never work in this town again!”

  Sasha had opened her eyes during her mother’s tirade enough to see the doctor’s smile as he rolled his eyes at Jenna. Empty threats were her mother’s stock and trade.

  He touched Sasha’s forehead with a gentle hand. “When did the Knowing commence, dear girl?”

  “Yesterday? Last Night?” She forced the words through her ragged throat. “I don’t know. It happened so fast.”

  The doctor turned to speak with Jenna again. “She needs her mate. She’s bonded now and it can’t be broken. They could both die.”

  Her mother’s sharp intake of breath meant the woman was about to let fly a tirade of fury on the doctor. “You are even more useless than the others!” Jenna spat. “I need real help, not this ‘Knowing’ bullshit. This is exactly why we need to fight the Preor. Look what they’ve done to my daughter!”

  “No one did anything,” the doctor explained patiently. “It’s genetic. The Preor have no control over its occurrence.”

  “I don’t care!” Jenna ground out. “Get the fuck out.”

  The doctor hovered over Sasha a moment more and that stretched Jenna’s patience further. “I said get the fuck out!”

  With a regretful look at Sasha, he collected his things and left the decrepit room.

  Jenna paced, obviously lost in thought. She occasionally looked over at Sasha and cocked her head before returning to her pacing once more.

  “Mother…” She wanted to cry out, “help me, please,” but she was too afraid of what her mother’s response would be.

  “Shut up, Sasha,” her mother muttered. “I’m thinking.”

  Sasha wished she could rest, that she could simply curl up and wander those delirious dreams until the inevitable took her. But she couldn’t let go. Not with that look on her mother’s face. The one that always meant troub
le for someone.

  Today, that someone is me.

  Chapter Ten

  Whelon was awake to greet the sun bursting into the sky the next morning. Instead of the night sapping his strength, he felt that it had turned him into stone. He had not slept for even a moment, attempting to hold off the Knowing sickness and aid in the search for his mate.

  Jarek and Melissa had gone to the clinic not long after he was settled in the lobby—unwilling to accept a room for his comfort. Chashan and Jarek had obviously convinced her to retire there for the evening. Whelon knew this meant she must be feeling badly enough that she couldn’t find the strength and stamina to argue with the two males.

  This concerned him greatly. Even more so, he was upset he would not have the opportunity to look at the other women for Chashan, but he could not find his focus. He had never been so lost in his lengthy lifetime.

  Radoo soon came over to him, one hand squeezing his shoulder in solidarity while he offered him a cup of coffee with the other hand. Whelon had come to enjoy the bitter brew though most Preor hated the concoction. He wrapped his hands around the cup gratefully and remained silent, waiting to see if Radoo had anything to impart.

  “Lily has something,” Radoo finally announced.

  “Lily?” Whelon frowned. He believed he had been scheduled to examine Lily joi Argan King during his visit. “Is she not bearing? Soon to give birth?”

  “Pregnant, yes, but I’m not ready to pop yet.” Lily’s voice drew his gaze and she smiled gently as she approached with a computer tablet in her hands. “All of Sasha’s addresses have been checked out and she’s not at any of her known residences. I managed to track an address tied to the fake name she used on her Choosing application. It’s a pretty slim hope, but it won’t hurt to check it out.”

  He nodded, staring up at Lily though he didn’t really see her, not truly. His mind was still tied to Sasha. She stroked his face, but he didn’t desire her touch, and then she returned to the small station of technology she had built on one of the large tables in the lobby. Her behavior—taking over space without asking permission—would have amused him if he wasn’t so heartsick.