by L M Lacee
Just before midnight the moon shone down on the training yards which were occupied by a dragon who gently touched down onto the earth. He stood in all his splendor measuring in length seventy feet from the tip of his tail to the end of his blunt snout. Dark green scales covered his hide. Emerald green eyes stared out over the training arena as he settled with his long tail curled around him.
Phoebe stood with Tayne before the unopened gate to the training yards knowing her radiance waited for her within. She was about to become a chapter in Elven history. For the first time ever a female elf, who was a battle mistress was bonding to a dragon. Her heart raced, and her breath came in small pants. She held onto Tayne’s hand tightly, concerned he whispered. “Little sister you do not have to do this. I will spirit you away from here if you say the word!”
She looked up into his concerned eyes and smiled. “Brother thank you but he is my destiny and I swear I cannot think of a better one.”
He scowled down at her and growled. “I will not allow you to be taken from our family regardless of what this dragon thinks.”
Phoebe hugged him. He annoyed her often never listened to her, but he loved her and would go against tradition for her, how could she not love him. “Of course you will not but do not worry dragons do not do that they embrace all their shadows family. I am your sister and Elven, and I always will be, and I am about to be bonded to a dragon.” She said with wonder and happiness in her voice.
Tayne returned her hug, “Then go and receive your blessing.” She turned towards the opening gate and felt the wash of dragons’ breath engulf her. A sigh escaped before she could halt it. Ark watched her slip through the opening. She came like a moon waif in the night with her pale skin glistening and tattoos that led from her face down her body. He could see them wind around her arm. A low growl sounded as he thought of finding out if she wore them over her whole body… The want of knowing excited him. Phoebe faltered with the sound of the dragon’s growl, but she squared her shoulders and carried on walking. Silvery white hair falling down her back and bright blues eyes surveying the large dragon as she walked around him sliding her hands over his warmed scales.
When she finally arrived back at his head, her hands smoothed over his snout. She felt a shiver tremble over his large body worried she stepped back and watched as the dragon went from animal to human.
Phoebe looked at the male stripped down to his jeans. His body glistening in the moonlight he stood legs apart as his eyes caressed her making her heart thump in anticipation. Ark held himself still all he wished to do was sweep the elfin princess up into his arms and escape with her.
Phoebe took one tiny step back from the large male into the moonlight. Leaving him in shadow, she stared into his deep green eyes saying in a voice enthused with the battle ‘magics’.
“I have come in moonlight to offer myself to the dragon.” Ark stood head and shoulders above her. His eyes elongated as his skin instantly became covered in dark green scales and in a voice filled with his dragon stated. “I stand here in shadow to offer myself to the battle mistress.”
Reighn and Thorn stepped from the darkness. “I as Dragon Lord offer my blessing on this union.”
Thorn stepped forward. “I as King of the Moon Elves offer my blessing on this union.”
With that Ark transformed into his seventy-foot dragon and scooped Phoebe into his claws and rose into the night. Phoebe grinned up at him and called out. “Where are we going?”
A deep voice answered her. To the courting cave.
My dragon
Yes
Courting cave? Is this a dragon custom?
It has been so for centuries. I wish to court you.
Then I accept your need to court me.
Reighn and Thorn walked from the yard as they passed through the gate Reighn said to the silent Elf beside him. “I feel the need for a drink as well as conversation. I would be obliged if you would join me.”
Thorn agreed. “That would be most welcomed Dragon Lord.” They made their way to his office where Lars waited.
“Good evening King Thorn I hope you have had a restful day?” Lars asked of the king as he entered Reighn’s office with Reighn walking behind him.
Thorn inclined his head as he answered. “My warriors and I did. I thank you for your generosity my warriors are all healed and are getting acquainted with some of your warriors as we speak. They are hoping to train tomorrow morning, your Commander Storm is gathering warriors to train with them.”
“Will you participate?” Lars asked, knowing Reighn and he were too.
Thorn grinned. “I will yes and you my Lord?”
Reighn inclined his head as Thorn had done earlier. “I and my Prime will.”
Lars smiled and rubbed his hands together. “I cannot wait. It will be illuminating to train with a race we have not met before.”
Thorn also grinned at his enthusiasm. “Yes that is how my males think about it.”
Reighn grinned at his tempered excitement and said. “Please take a seat. Lars pour us some dragon ale we are toasting Ark and Phoebe’s good fortune.”
Lars turned to do so saying. “So the ceremony they participated in was an Elven one?”
Thorn nodded as he reached for his glass “Yes it is an old moon clan custom, the giving away under the face of our moon.” Lars looked at Reighn as he handed him his glass. “You know what this means we should prepare King Thorn.”
“Please just Thorn I am being kinged almost to death.”
“We tend to be overly formal. It is a failing.” Reighn murmured. “Of at least the dragons. The human and shifters not so much.”
Thorn smiled. “I have noticed that, so as we are related now let us dispense with formalities.”
“Agreed.” Reighn raised his glass. “To a true bonding with the hope love follows quickly.”
They all took a drink then Reighn said. “As well as toasting our families I have asked you here to qualify what I know about why you are here. I am under the impression that you and your warriors were on a quest for the Moon Goddess to locate and secure the moon hatchling?”
Thorn sipped at his glass and thought deeply about his answer. Knowing what he told the Dragon Lord would see his people allowed to make their home here or not. “We were. I am a dream walker. Our Goddess came to me and told me my Radiance was near and she then requested we find the babe and return her to her mother.”
“That would be Ciana. I am guessing.” Lars asked even though like Reighn he knew it was. Thorn smiled with remembered delight at the mention of her name. “Yes, she would be my radiance.”
Reighn asked. “Does she know?”
“Yes, we spent an hour or two at a place in your town talking.”
“How did that go?” Lars asked wondering how Ciana received the news. She had barely arrived at Dragon’s Gap and then learnt she had a father and was mother to twins. “It was calm, and she seemed receptive to the idea but she was a little reserved if that is the correct term.”
Reighn nodded. “I would think so, you will find earth females are a little more reserved and you should know Ciana until recently, in fact days ago thought she was just part human, part shifter she has since found out she is dragon and has a father and is mother to twins. It is a lot for her to cope with.”
“Yes, the Goddess shared that with me I understand that I need time to talk to her and let her get to know me and my people. Of more concern now is our status here at Dragon’s Gap!”
Lars, sitting in the other chair in front of Reighn’s desk asked. “What does a dream walker do?”
“He walks the dreams of others. I am not sure why?” Reighn told him.
Thorn relaxed and smiled. “I myself often wonder that as well.” He answered Reighn’s question then told Lars. “Sometimes as a dream walker I have visions like the ones that told me I must wander the worlds looking for my radiance. When I walk into someone else’s dreams, I can help the dreamer understand the vision they may be expe
riencing. Sometimes I help a person who is wrestling with a problem to come to a conclusion and other times I can untangle dreams that will cause sickness.”
“Quite a vocation.” Lars said not hiding how much he was impressed by the Elf king. Thorn nodded. “I have found it so but on my dream walking I found that my Radiance was occluded to me. Since speaking to the Goddess she told me she placed a barrier around my sight until Ciana was ready to come to Dragon’s Gap.
“So you are here to win Ciana’s heart?” Reighn asked.
“That is the main reason. The other is to find a home world for my people.”
“How many are there?” Sadly Thorn answered softly. “We number only two thousand.”
Lars was shocked. “That is a very small number. What of other clans?”
“There are many clans so I cannot answer that. We are the moon clan, there are the land clans, sea clans, sky clans to name a few. I cannot attest to whether they wander the worlds looking for a home like my clan.”
Reighn nodded and asked. “May I ask has your birth rate dwindled over the years?”
Thorn raised an eyebrow as he thought on his answer and a hope sprang to life in his heart. That maybe he was to find the answer to his question of why his clan had dropped in number. “Yes sadly, substantially I have not discovered the reason although in saying that I always felt it was connected in some way to my lack of a Radiance.”
Reighn grimace. “We also had that problem. We also had a gradual decline in births mainly females.”
“As we do, and did you discover it was due to you not having a Shadow?”
“I did think that originally, but I am coming to revise that assumption. I feel now it was because we lacked the moon and sun Goddesses blessings.”
“Ahh! I wonder if that could be true for my clan. Elves once ruled earth as our archive has told us. I wonder if when we left, we also lost that ability to father young.”
Reighn shook his head. “I think like ours it is tied into the earth’s magic. Maybe as you too were birthed under the Goddesses blessing when they were gone our ability to have female young also diminished.”
Thorn thought on what Reighn had said and thought back to his clan of elves. “Phoebe, our archivist could say exactly but I am sure when we left earth we numbered in the thousands. As you can see our numbers have decreased and I would hazard a guess it will be like that for all Elven clans.”
Reighn and the other two sat in silence each with their own thoughts some sad, some hopeful. Reighn finally said. “Alright to put that aside for the moment. I wish to know your intentions Thorn?”
“I would like to return to earth with my people. As you can imagine I must stay, I am positive my radiance will not be happy to leave earth now she has found some of her family. My people are tired of being nomads we are not suited for that lifestyle even though we have endured it for centuries. I believe like me they wish to return to a home.”
“You know you will not be rulers here.” Lars told him. Thorn smiled and inclined his head. “I have no wish too, the Elven ruled and I believe if they had been successful magic would not have deserted earth. I think that is why the Elementals are here and why dragons remained to insure it never happens again. It is why the Goddesses have bestowed their blessing once more. No, the Elven should not rule again. We, as a race are not as tolerant as Dragons of other species. There are some Elven who consider only elves have the intelligence and nobility to rule. Unfortunately, there will be some who will wish to take up where they believe they should be as rulers of earth. I feel you may have to be quite firm with them or deny them altogether.”
Reighn agreed. “Unfortunately, we find that we are denying petitions frequently. So what will your people do?”
Thorn looked at the Dragon Lord and said, “I will hope we can add to the whole. I am not a king that commands his people to live within his borders. In fact I find if I can persuade my people to spread out, to put down roots within Dragon’s Gap they will be enriched. As will the town and its people. We have artisans in all types of crafts willing to share their wares. We also have magic uses and as you know we have warriors.”
“You feel we will need your warriors?”
Thorn nodded and with serious eyes he told them. “I am not sure if you have been off world much over the last few centuries. But if not, let me tell you there are many races of beings who would see earth as ripe pickings and the populace as worthless slaves. Sadly Elves included, so yes I think you will need my warriors.”
“And you, King Thorn what do you want?”
“That is easy to live in peace for myself and my people, to win my radiance and raise my young and to practice my art.”
“Which is what?”
Thorn smiled. “I am a musician along with my brother and a few others we are what was called minstrels once upon a time.”
Reighn stood and held his hand out. “Welcome to Dragon’s Gap. Artists of all disciplines are always welcomed here, we enjoy music if you feel like playing or having an audience talk to Lady Grace, she will make it happen.”
Thorn shook Reighn’s hand. “My people and I thank you. Truly you would not mind our kind of music. Would people enjoy listening to it?”
Lars almost laughed in that moment with that question, Thorn stopped being the King of Moon Elves and became just a male, amazed someone would listen to his music.
Reighn nodded. “Why would we not, Elven music has not been heard on earth in centuries and for that we must be poorer.”
Thorn beamed a smile at his words as they released each other Reighn asked. “What kind of home base do you require?”
“Ahh do you mean like a Grove or Meadow?”
“Yes.”
Thorn smiled with delight at the prospect of finally having a home. “Your Uncle told me of places called estates that we could possible purchase and use. Our requirements are small. My people will wish to live where they can meet and interact with others.” He looked thoughtful for a moment and said, “Or they will when I suggest this is what will happen but we will have some who will not be ready or able to immediately be away from what you call the home base, so for them a Estate will give them comfort and security until they are schooled in your society.”
Lars grinned. “You have thought this out?”
Thorn nodded. “I have had many years to do just that as we looked for a home.”
Alright Lars take Thorn around to the vacant estates tomorrow and see which one will suit his and his people’s needs. After that is, we have seen what his warriors can do in training.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN:
T he Elven warriors waited outside the training yard for their King to lead them in. They were all stripped down to their waists and all were in battle mode. Tall huge warriors so very different to the Elf’s that had stumbled through the portal sick and beaten less than forty-eight hours ago. They were whole, hale and healthy with no sign of the iron poisoning that had plagued them since arriving on earth. Sharm and the witch sisters Sage had brought back with her had devised a potion to remove and prevent a re-occurrence. Thorn would make sure all his people received the antidote before they arrived to prevent anymore sickness.
Ciana sat in the observation stands with all the other females, she had Harper on one side and Phoebe on the other. Sage, Claire and June sat in the row in front. The other seats were fill of all the females like Ciana who had come to see the elves train with the dragons.
“Oh is that Conor and his pride?” Claire asked Frankie who nodded, “Yeah he asked to be included in training if they, the elves are going to live here they will fall under his jurisdiction. He wants to recruit some of them if they are any good and he needs to know what he is up against.”
“Smart male.” Phoebe quietly told them.
“He is, way smarter than most people think.” Claire answered her.
“You like him!” Sage stated.
“What is not to like? He looks after Dragon’s Gap as though he was
born here people all love and respect him.”
“He rules with fear?” Phoebe asked Claire who smiled as she assured her. “No not Conor, he does not rule he only uses reason.”
Olinda asked. “Why are you not with them Phoebe you are an Elf warrior.”
She smiled sadly and sighed. “In my culture females do not battle, therefore, we do not train.”
“But you are a battle mistress!” Charlie stated.
“I am and yet I do not battle unless I must.”
Sage turned around and said quietly. “You Lady Phoebe fall under my jurisdiction. So I ask you to battle for dragon kind use what you know and train.” Phoebe’s eyes shone as she nodded. Sage smiled “I also will require you to teach battle ‘magics’ to my witches. I have many who would be battle mages if taught correctly. Unfortunately, there are none left on earth to teach them or at least none that have come forward so far. So I formerly ask you, battle mistress will you use your ‘magics’ as well as teach?”
Phoebe smiled gravely. “Dragon Lady I accept. My shadow mentioned last night you may wish I do so. Sadly I did not believe him, I think that means I owe him.”
Sage put her hand out and I Phoebe shook it. “We are agreed and yes it means you owe Ark.” Sage told her with a teasing smile. “I am sure that will not be a hardship to repay.”
“Oh it will not be.” Phoebe answered with a slight blush.
“Sage said now if you have problems with your brothers send them to me.”
Phoebe, still smiling shook her head. “No, I will not have problems with my brothers in our culture. I am my radiance’s problem now. They are my relations, not my protectors anymore. Their wants are now second to my radiances and any young we have. I will always be the clan’s archivist but no more.”
“So if Ark says no you have to obey?” Harper asked her.
“Yes, that is I our way.”
June asked. “What if a female in the clan has no family, what happens then?”
“Then it is on our king’s decision.”