by KD Jones
Reichardt
Dragon Warriors Series
Book 2
KD Jones
Copyright © 2018 KD Jones Publishing
License Notes
This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1:
Chapter 2:
Chapter 3:
Chapter 4:
Chapter 5:
Chapter 6:
Chapter 7:
Chapter 8:
Chapter 9:
Chapter 10:
Chapter 11:
Chapter 12:
Chapter 13:
Chapter 14:
Chapter 15:
Chapter 16:
Chapter 17:
Chapter 18:
Chapter 19:
Chapter 20:
Chapter 21:
Chapter 22:
Chapter 23:
Epilogue:
About the Author
BLURB
King Reichardt, a dragon warrior from another planet, has always taken the safety and care of his people seriously. Over the decades, he found the position rewarding but also very lonely. Now that his people on Earth have reunited with some of his people from Drakonia, new possibilities have opened up to him. One of those is the unexpected discovery that Drakonians and humans could be real mates. The dangers of being so closely connected to humans could be detrimental to the continued existence of his species. In his mind the risk is not worth it, until he meets a human female who completely changes his mind.
Chapter 1
The End of the Drakonian Home World
King Reichardt, Rei to his close friends and family, looked up at a dark sky burning with fire from the ships shooting at the people below. Drakonia was once a beautiful and peaceful planet. Young dragon shifters took their first flights, shared their first kisses, and grew up to mate their soul mates.
Rei wasn’t sure that he believed in soul mates, or more accurately he wasn’t sure soul mates were beneficial. He watched how his father had faded away after his mother’s death. Most mated pairs didn’t last if one of them died. His father was a shell of a male and took no real pleasure in raising his only son. When his father’s health became too bad, Rei stepped up and took over the reign of the South Region of Drakonia.
The home he knew was being systematically destroyed by an enemy with no honor. All attempts to resolve disputes peacefully were met with vicious rejections. The aliens attacked his people with one goal: annihilation.
There were five kings left out of the ten that once ruled Drakonia. The castle for the King of the North was barely standing and thousands of their people were dead. They were gathered in the King’s Courtroom with their commanders and advisors to make evacuation plans for those remaining. Unfortunately, as usual, the egos of the kings got in the way of what needed to be done. Malachi and his cousin Niko were the loudest of the kings.
“The aliens have burned most of the regions, killed hundreds of thousands of our people. Do you really think you can negotiate with them?” Niko asked.
“We have to try,” Malachi replied stubbornly.
“King Rand tried when they first appeared. He went up to their ship to see if they would accept a truce. They sent his head back without his body as their answer.”
“What do you want our people to do?” King Malachi asked in frustration.
“We send as many of them up in our remaining battle cruisers.”
“That will only help save maybe a quarter of our kind. What about the rest? Do we leave them to die?” King Zocor of the East Region asked.
Rei looked at his general. “We may have another way. Our mage, Hendricks, has been trying to locate other planets that we can use the portals to send our people through to. Our only problem is that many of our portals have been damaged.”
Everyone grew silent with the thought. Mages were rare breeds of his people who couldn’t shift. Their dragon magic was trapped inside them. They could use that power in other ways, though, like opening up portals that the Drakonian people used to quickly travel from region to region. Never had they used a portal to travel to another planet, especially one that would be unknown to them.
The building shook again as it took another direct hit. Rei continued making his point. “The portals may be our only hope of saving as many as we can.”
Zocor looked doubtful. “We use the portals to transport short distances such as region to region. The enemy is attacking all our regions. A portal will be of no use.”
“The portal’s destination could be expanded to somewhere off Drakonia,” Rei told him.
“How?” King Dyson demanded.
“My King, allow me to explain.” The lead mage, Craggen, stepped forward. “Portals are powered by mage magic. It is true that we have never used the portals for off-world destinations but it can be done. The only way to expand the portal destination trajectory is to bind the spell to the blood of our most powerful dragons.”
“What are you saying, Craggen?” Zocor questioned.
“We open the portals here with the blood of the kings and the portals will send those in each region to the same destination as their king. Once the kings enter the portals, they will close automatically.”
“This is our best chance to save our people,” Rei reminded them. Once the kings nodded their agreement, Rei quickly gave orders.
“Notify all regions to have their lead mages contact Craggen so that they can coordinate the evacuation.”
King Malachi backed his plan. “Also, assign security to guard the portals while the evacuation is happening.”
General Ranier stepped forward. “That means that the kings need to go with the evacuation detail immediately. I will assign guards to ensure that the portals stay open long enough so that as many of our people get through and to make sure that the portals close and the enemy cannot follow.”
Sounds of returning fire reminded Rei of those fighting the enemy, giving them a chance to escape. Many fine warriors were putting their lives at stake.
“General, I need you to direct the last of our battle cruisers to evacuate as soon as the portals have been closed.”
“My King, we will fight the enemy with our last breath.” The general stood at full attention.
“The survival of our race depends on as many of our kind outliving this battle. I appreciate all those warriors who volunteered to fight on the cruisers, but once we are gone they need to also seek safety. Their numbers will be drastically reduced and there will be no one to back them up. It would be suicide.”
The general sighed, clearly not wanting to flee to safety. “I will ensure as many of our kind survive the battle.”
Rei felt he had done all he could. He followed the others out. The other mages were already waiting for them within the temple. Craggen stood next to King Malachi.
“My Kings, if you will take the portals. Each of you, cut your palm and drop your blood in the portal rings. Mages! As soon as the blood has spilt, you can spell the coordinates into the portals. Once opened, we will send a few males in first for protection of the rest. The women and children will be sent through next. Then the males not needed to fight will be sent through. Finally, the kings will enter the portal, closing it automatically behind them.”
“Are we all being sent to the same planet?”
“To ensure our survival and lessen the chances of our enemy finding us all again, we have chosen two different planets to use as new locations. The five ruling regions will be split between the two planets. Both plane
ts are conducive to our people’s survival. When the portal opens here, the matching portal will open at each region.”
Dyson growled. “The portals have never serviced so many at one time. I doubt this will work.”
Craggen glared at Dyson. “We have had no need to transport so many in the past, but it will work. The portals will be tied to the blood and will remain open until the kings have passed through.”
“What about King Rand’s portal?” King Malachi asked.
“I will be giving my blood to open and close the portal,” Rone, the thirteen-year-old son of King Rand, spoke up. His mother put her hand on his shoulder to show her support.
Craggen motioned for the kings to proceed. The portals opened with their blood and a few of the men each went through first. Craggen nodded that it was a successful transportation and ordered that the women and children proceed.
The temple shook as it took several hits. Debris fell down and crashed into one of the portals, destroying it. People began to panic, pushing and shoving each other to get through the remaining portals.
“Move out of the way!” King Dyson shoved his way through his people, dragging his young queen behind him. She fell down and he left her there to get to the front of the line.
“Sire, you cannot go through yet. It will close the portal.” The mage controlling that portal tried to stop him, but Dyson shoved him away.
“I can’t die, I’m a king!” Dyson went through the portal despite his people’s screams, and the portal automatically shut down.
King Malachi made his way over. “Can you open the portal again using another king’s blood?”
“No, sir. We tied it to each specific king when we first created the portals. Only King Dyson would be able to open or close the portal.”
The temple took another hit just as one of the kings went through the portal following his people. The hit caused part of the ceiling to fall, destroying the portal.
Two portals down, and the rest of King Dyson’s people looked around in fear. Rei moved forward. “Any of King Dyson’s people are welcome to come through my portal.”
Malachi didn’t want to be outdone. “I, too, offer refuge for those of Dyson’s people.”
Niko offered the same. The evacuation continued with more hits to the building and then one major blast took part of the roof off, exposing them to the outside. Another two portals were destroyed but luckily the kings went through them before they were destroyed.
General Ranier said his goodbyes to Rei. “Live well.”
Rei clasped his forearm. “Until we meet again.”
Chapter 2
Earth
Rei flew high in the night’s sky. Far below, the humans were sleeping in their houses, clueless that a great predator was so close. He had not always had bad feelings toward humans. Once, he had been their greatest protector.
When his people escaped the massive alien attack and traveled through the portal, they had landed in a very primitive world far from any technology. It had been many decades before they even encountered humans. During the prehuman age they stayed in their own region with their own clan.
Once the humans starting populating and spreading out, it became harder and harder for them to not interact with them. Fewer children were being born and even fewer matings occurred. Some of his kind thought that mating with humans would be the best way to keep the Drakonian line alive. Even Rei once thought that way.
A long time ago, while he had been trading goods in a small village, he met and fell in love with a human female named Margaret St. Ives. She was a beautiful female and quite sought after by all the village men. Her father was a village leader and didn’t take to strangers. When Rei approached him to seek Margaret’s hand in what the humans called marriage, he not only refused but he had the other villagers run him out of the village. He could have fought them, and they would have been no match for his dragon, but he didn’t want to kill the father of the woman he loved. Margaret agreed to meet him at midnight and run away with him.
At midnight he waited for his sweet Margaret at the edge of the village where the woods began. Torchlight flickered and his heart had skipped a beat. He would claim Margaret and they would live among his people high in the mountains. It would be an adjustment for a human but he would take care of everything. She would want for nothing.
“Did you think someone like Margaret St. Ives would run away with you?” a male voice asked from the dark. He hadn’t even noticed the male’s approach. He sniffed the air. There were five males—three from earlier who had kicked him out of the village and two new ones—and Margaret.
“I told you he was stupid and would be here,” Margaret said, stepping up to the male who spoke to him.
Rei was confused. “Margaret, I don’t understand.”
“It’s because you’re stupid. I’m the daughter of the village leader. I can’t run off to live on a mountaintop and have to do manual labor.”
He took a step closer to her. “I love you and plan to take good care of you.”
The male next to her wrapped his arm around Margaret and laughed. “Love? People don’t marry for love but for prestige and money. I can offer Margaret everything she is used to and more. That’s why her father granted me permission to marry her.”
“No…Margaret, you can’t!”
Margaret laughed at his despair. “I didn’t think you would actually approach my father. It was all just a game to see how far you would go.” She turned to the male next to her. “Can we go now? I’m bored.”
“We have to do something with this idiot first.”
“Just kill him,” Margaret said dismissively.
Something inside Rei broke at her careless words. As the men started coming toward him, his emotions could not be held back. He shifted into his dragon form, something he always told his people to never do.
“Oh my God, what is that?” Margaret’s horrified voice called out as she started to run away.
One of the males tried to poke him with the torch. Didn’t he know that dragons were masters of fire? He opened his jaws and fire swept out, encompassing the area around him. Cries of pain rang out. He didn’t stop, couldn’t stop. Using his big body he stomped forward, crushing the men under his clawed feet.
“You’re a monster!” Margaret yelled, taking more backward steps.
The male next to her stumbled. “Kill him!” He tried to yell at his friends who were struggling to get up.
The fury and devastation of betrayal left Rei with no sense as he let loose his fire of death. He didn't know how long his dragon rained down the fire, but when he finally stopped he didn’t recognize where he was. Half a mile of burning destruction, the woods, and part of the village were gone. People screaming in the background reminded him that he wasn’t safe. He took off to the night’s sky. This had been a disaster.
Rei circled in the air and looked for the body of Margaret. He could barely identify her. Why had she betrayed him? He wanted to make her his mate. The fact that his fire had killed her was gruesome evidence that she was not meant to be his mate.
For a Drakonian male, both the man and the dragon must accept the potential mate. Then the female would have to accept both the man and the dragon. The male would share his dragon fire to unite their souls together. The dragon fire would not harm the female as long as she was a true soul mate. Those of his kind had mated non-soul mates but they never shared the dragon fire for fear it would kill the other. He had hoped that Margaret would eventually accept all of him so that he could mate her fully. He had never imagined things would end so horribly.
As the king of his region, he was responsible for his people and their longevity and happiness. He did not want anyone else to suffer as he had so he banned any attempts of mating between humans and Drakonians from that day forward—until now.
Against all Rei’s doubts, he would meet with the remaining kings of Drakonia to discuss mating with humans and lifting the bans. A successful mating had occur
red between a Drakonian warrior and a human female. Since the male had just arrived on Earth on board one of the last Drakonian battle cruisers, he couldn’t be held to the laws that the kings had established on Earth.
Now the kings were rethinking the laws. If this pairing was a true mating, could it happen for others? Should there be an attempt? Rei was not sure he would want to have his people try even if the others were willing. It was too risky, and with humans now having better weapons to attack them with, it would be a great security risk. He was voting no on lifting the ban and nothing could make him change his mind.
Chapter 3
El Golfo de Santa Clara, Mexico
“Gema Esmerelda Hermosa Pope, where do you think you’re going?”
Gema cringed at her grandmother’s use of her full name. She always knew she was in trouble when her grandmother included the middle name. It was horrible and she had been teased often growing up. What had her parents been thinking when they came up with that one?
“I wanted to take a walk by the beach before dinner, Abuela.”
“Mi niña, I don’t like you going off alone.”
“Abuela, I’m twenty-five years old. I think I can manage a walk on the beach without an escort.”
“I still no like it.” Her grandmother put her arms over her chest.
She knew her grandmother loved her and was a little overprotective. Gema’s mother, Glori, was the only child of a Mexican fisherman. She married Gema’s father, Duke Pope, a captain in the US Air Force. They had been living in Arizona until a terrible accident tore Gema from her happy life.
When Gema’s parents were killed in a car crash when she was eight, her grandparents took her in and raised her at their small home near Mexico’s coast. Her grandfather, Miguel Lopez, took a second job to help pay for her to go to college at UCLA.
When she got hired to work as an advertising assistant, her grandparents helped her move to the United States where she was able to find an affordable apartment in San Diego, California. They visited whenever they could afford it and she visited them as well. They were there for her every time she needed them. She would forever be grateful to them for doing all they had for her.