She laid her babe on the soft chair of the escape pod and shifted into her tide dragon form. The aqua blue, undulating creature’s scales glimmered like the waves of the sea. She went into stealth mode and gently cupped her baby in her mouth. Resting the child against the back of her teeth, she wrapped her under her tongue. Dragon mothers had been carrying their young this way for millions and millions of years. It would be safe enough for the babe until she found someone to protect them from their captor.
She launched into the air, spreading her wings for the first time in so very long. The rain driving down on her scales felt like crystalline pricks of indefinable pleasure. She beat her wings, flying higher and higher, careful to keep her babe safe and protected in her mouth.
The elation of freedom filled her body and she wanted nothing more but to dive and twirl in the wind and rain. But she flew steadily on toward her target. The House of Storms was her only hope. If they refused to help her, she did not know what she would do. The prospect of seeing her sweet baby Tor filled her with so much joy, her dragon shed a tear.
"Just a little way farther," she said to herself.
She would protect her child, herself, and her race from the evil Prince. If ever she had a chance to find love, she would treasure it like all the gold, silver, and jewels in the universe. Love was the most precious thing that anyone could ever have.
Finally, the House of Storms came into view. She felt a sense of relief wash over her as her trepidation rose. She approached their shields and slipped through like any dragon would. She stood on their land, coming out of stealth. She set her baby on the wet grass and shifted, picking up the child and cradling her in her arms when back in human form. Her babe had been nestled and warm in her mouth. But now the cold rain pelted down on her. She cried. The rain soaked Maia’s hair, plastering it around her in long black tendrils. She stepped slowly toward the back door of the mansion. It opened and a woman stepped out. She looked quizzically at Maia and then slowly approached her.
"Are you lost?"
Perhaps the woman thought her human and would give her shelter out of pity.
"I am very cold, and my baby is soaking wet. Could we come inside?" Maia asked as she came within hearing range of the woman.
She could smell some dragon undertones in the woman’s scent. Maia looked into the woman's eyes and observed her straight posture. She held an umbrella and motioned for Maia to come underneath it.
"What happened. Was there an accident? Did you get lost? Is there someone I can call to come get you?”
"I'm very tired," Maia said, trying to avoid the explanation.
"Come inside. I'll get you both some dry clothes.”
The woman led Maia into a kitchen and instructed her to sit at the table while she found something for her to wear. A moment later, she let her in through a kitchen and into the hall, then up some stairs into a bedroom. She busily went about finding dry clothes for her and for the baby. She set them on the bed and told Maia to go ahead and change that while she fixed her some tea and a warm bottle for the baby.
"Thank you," Maia said, the chill slowly retreating.
"My name is JoJo. And I'm pleased to meet you."
“I am Maia. Thank you for your help.”
JoJo turned and left the room. Maia quickly dried and changed her daughter before slipping out of her soaking wet clothes. She put on the clean dry ones that JoJo provided. It was a fuzzy pair of pink pants and a matching jacket. It felt heavenly against her skin. Maia let out a long sigh of contentment. JoJo had also given her a fuzzy pair of slippers for her feet. Maia picked up her daughter and carried her back down the stairs and through the house into the kitchen. JoJo was pouring steaming water into a floral pot. The scent of herbs and spices rose in the air.
"I made some chai. That should warm you up nicely. And a bottle is heating for the baby.”
"You've been so kind.”
"You can put the baby in the high chair if you would like to rest,” JoJo offered.
Maia agreed and slipped her daughter into the padded high-back chair. It was in a perfect reclining position, allowing her child to rest.
JoJo carried a tray with the pot of tea, cups, and a bottle for the baby over to the table. She poured Maia a cup and offered the bottle to the Waverley.
"I'm afraid all I have is cow’s milk. But at her age, it should be fine."
"Don't you have dragonkin formula?" Maia asked, her mind exhausted and numb. She had forgotten her pretense. JoJo looked up at her, eyes narrowing.
"Yes,” JoJo said. “Your daughter is a dragonkin?"
"It is a terribly long story, JoJo. And I fear I will not have the strength to tell it more than once. Would you be so kind as to call Prince Hanish?”
JoJo flicked her finger over her wrist device, sending a message to Hanish, and then quickly went to prepare a bottle of dragonkin formula.
"I'll get this started and then take you to the library, where we can speak in private,” JoJo said.
Maia picked up Waverley and followed JoJo to another room full of shelves lined with books. There was a comfortable leather chair and a baby swing beside it. She sat, holding her daughter close. She didn’t want to let her go.
"I'll just go get that bottle."
As JoJo walked out the door, Hanish walked in. Tall and strong, with fierce blue eyes and a dashing smile. Hanish and JoJo whispered to each other. His eyes fell on Maia and his mouth fell open from shock. Nodding, he walked across the room and sat in a chair facing her.
"Dragoness Prime,” he said, taking a deep breath. His eyes squeezed shut. "How is it you are here? We all believed you dead.”
"It was a lie, Prince Hanish. A terrible, despicable lie.”
JoJo came back into the room with the bottle and closed the door.
Maia looked from Hanish to JoJo and then down at the floor, unsure of how to start her tale of woe and betrayal.
"How did you come to learn of my death?” she finally said.
"The Prince of Tides told us he went to retrieve you from the birthing palace but that you had already died of exhaustion when he arrived.”
“The truth is, he did retrieve me from the birthing palace. But instead of allowing me to enjoy our success in leaving our home and join in the celebration of finding a new one, he told everyone I’d died. He removed my mental link when I was too exhausted to fight him. He told me it was for my protection and, in my state, I believed him. He brought me aboard the ship in secret and stowed me away in the nursery. No one knew I had arrived. They all thought he'd retrieved Waverley and found me dead. He spread that terrible rumor, and everyone believed it.”
"But why would he do such a thing?" Hanish asked. Maia relayed the story of what had happened to her. Hanish stroked his chin, taking in the shocking news. "This is very troubling.” He slid his finger over his wrist device and began to type out a message. "I am instructing Zephyr to modify our shields so no dragon outside our house can penetrate them. I do not want him coming here uninvited and trying to snatch you away.”
"He doesn't know I’m here.”
"Even if he is unable to track your wrist device, he will have tracked your escape pod. And there are only a few logical places for you to go on an alien world.”
"We should get her away from here," JoJo said.
"But where?" Hanish asked.
Chapter 7
"I need you to come to the library right away," Hanish said through the mental link.
Zephyr pushed away from the dashboard of the computer and rose. He hurried up the stairs, through the living room, and headed down the hall to the library.
"What is it?" Zephyr asked, walking into the room.
He was overtaken by the most alluring scent he had ever smelled in all his life. When he scanned the room, he saw her sitting with the child in her arms, wearing an all pink tracksuit. She looked like an angel out of a painting. Zephyr blinked repeatedly, his heart seized up in his chest, and he felt as if he couldn't breathe.
His dragon reared inside his mind flipping and clawing wildly at the backs of his eyes. Zephyr fell to his knees, gasping for breath. His eyes locked on those of the mysterious woman. Their gazes did not shift from each other for even a second.
She stood, her face resolute, and walked across the room toward him. She reached out to him and he took her hand. The contact sent a spark of recognition through his entire being, through every cell of his body, down to his core, and up into his brain.
"It's you,” he croaked.
"Zephyr, what are you doing on the floor? We have important business to attend to. You're embarrassing us yourself in front of the Dragoness Prime.”
"This reaction is normal,” she said in the softest voice. “And if I had not been through so much lately, I would be on the floor myself."
Finally, he caught his breath and stood. Their hands were still grasped together. They gazed into each other's eyes as she held the babe against her chest.
"I am Maia. The Dragoness Prime.”
Zephyr shook his head, unable to comprehend what was happening. His inner dragon fiercely and violently insisted she was his mate.
"I am Lieutenant Zephyr, Science Officer of the House of Storms. It is good to meet you."
"It is good to meet you too, Zephyr."
“What is going on here?" Hanish asked incredulously.
"You see, Prince Hanish — it seems Zephyr and I are mates,” Maia said.
Zephyr still couldn't bring himself to speak the words at the tip of his tongue. He was relieved when she said it for him.
"Mates? I had no idea the Dragoness Prime had a mate.”
"Neither did I, until this very moment. But I kept hope alive, and it kept me strong.”
"You have sacrificed so much for the greater good," Hanish said softly.
“It was a sacrifice I was willing to make. I was declared a Dragoness Prime at three years old. My DNA was never entered into the mating database. As the last female of a generation, my parents always knew my destiny would be to bear the young of each house. And I prepared for that all my life.
“I volunteered to bear the Princes’ dragonkin as soon as I came of age. I never questioned that decision. When the dragonkin were born, all any of us could do was escape. I thought that, after we left Dragonia, I would have a chance to finally seek my fated one. But the Prince of Tides had other plans.”
"What do you mean?" Zephyr asked.
"Maia seeks asylum from the House of Storms. She's been imprisoned by the Prince of Tides since the cataclysm. Just hours ago, she escaped with the help of her brother, who believed she was dead like the rest of this until she used a telepathic mental link.”
Deep anger throbbed at the base of Zephyr's brain. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was unthinkable that a Prince of Dragonia would sink to such a level.
"Then he has dishonored his house and himself more than words can express,” Zephyr said in a low voice.
"We need to get her away from here,” Hanish said.
"What do you propose?" Zephyr asked.
"I suggest we ask one of the other captains to take you both aboard his ship while you travel to distribute the particle bombs. But first we must decide who we can trust.”
"I would suggest the Prince of Stone. We had an interesting conversation at the meeting of princes. I believe he would be understanding and discrete.”
"Very well. I will contact him through a private mental link and inform him of our request. You and Maia should prepare yourselves to leave.”
"I am ready to go,” Maia said.
"Let me help you pack some clothing, food, and supplies for your journey,” JoJo said. “You’re a fair bit taller than me, but I’m sure I can find you some things that fit.”
JoJo led Maia away and Hanish went to his room to contact the Prince of Stone. Zephyr was left alone in the library. He and Maia had confirmed to each other and the others that they were mates, but they hadn’t bothered with the mating analysis. Though he wanted to believe it was true more than he’d ever wanted anything in his life, as a scientist, he needed concrete evidence.
Finally thinking clearly, he walked up the stairs to JoJo's room. He knocked gently at the door and was immediately invited inside. Maia and JoJo were pulling clothes out of JoJo's closet and inspecting each garment as they packed a bag.
“What is it?" JoJo asked.
Zephyr was at a loss for words. He didn't want Maia to think he didn't believe in their connection. But in a delicate situation like this one, definitive proof was more necessary than ever.
"I know we both feel a connection, and I would never question that instinct… But as a man of science…”
"You want to perform the mating analysis," Maia said, finishing his thoughts for him.
To Zephyr’s surprise, she seemed to completely understand his train of thought. She plucked a hair out of her head and crossed the room with such grace and presence that he was nearly struck dumb by her beauty. She handed him the hair and winked.
"I can't wait to hear the results."
"You don't mind?"
"You and I are both from the old world, Zephyr. We both understand our ways and our customs. I don't question your desire to perform the analysis for even an instant. In fact, I was just about to ask you to perform it myself.”
"Do you doubt our mating?" Zephyr asked, not believing the words coming out of his mouth as soon as he heard them in his own ears.
She laughed with a bright and cheerful sound, her eyes twinkling with mysterious light.
"Of course not. Look at us wanting the same thing and doubting each other for it.”
"You're right. You're right.” He smiled slyly, his eyes darting away for a moment before settling back on her. “I will begin the analysis, and we will get our confirmation very soon.”
"I can't wait,” she said with a smile.
Zephyr turned to the door and gripped the handle. He hesitated, looking back at her. She had resumed packing, holding her daughter on one hip and caressing the garments with her other hand. She was stunning. As the sunlight broke through the clouds and streamed through the windows behind her, a golden glow shown around her head. In that moment, Zephyr felt as if he was observing the brightest goddess in the universe. Indeed, the Dragoness Prime had saved the race from extinction. She was a goddess among his people. His love for her was so great, he almost believed he didn't deserve her. Zephyr sighed and hurried into the hall and down the stairs to the laboratory.
"Azure, I would like you to perform a mating analysis between Lieutenant Zephyr of the House of Storms and Dragoness Prime, Maia of the House of Tides.”
"The Dragoness Prime is dead,” the AI said.
"No. She's not. I just met her, and my inner dragon insists she is my mate."
Chapter 8
Zephyr and Maia boarded the pod sent from the House of Stone. They sat side by side as Maia held her child. Zephyr ran his fingers over the control dashboard and soon the pod was in flight. They flew through the air at speeds humans could not comprehend, to the ship of the House of Stone. The pod flew through the entrance hatch into the ship, and the door to their vessel slid open. Before them stood Prince Mortar, his eyes wide with wonder when he saw her. No one else had joined him in the receiving Zephyr and Maia. The look of surprise on Mortar’s face was difficult for her to absorb. She didn't know if she could deal with an entire crew of stunned and amazed stone dragons.
"I've prepared your rooms. We will keep your presence a secret for now if that is agreeable to you, Dragoness Prime," the Prince of Stone said as he led them down the hallway. "Hanish explained to me that you have been imprisoned by your Prince. I do not want you to feel that way aboard my ship, but Hanish did request we keep your presence a secret.”
"Let us proceed as planned for now,” Maia said. “There is wisdom in it. And I do not feel as if I am a prisoner on board your ship, Prince Mortar. But I do fear for the safety of my brother. He was supposed to join me in my escape and
we were separated.”
"I can make some inquiries for you, my lady," the Prince said, sliding open a door in the hallway.
"This will be your chamber. I have outfitted it with everything you will need to take care of your child.”
"Is your son aboard the vessel?" Maia asked. She had only briefly been able to reconnect with her son Tor at the House of Storms. It had been a heavenly meeting. Mother and child seemed to know each other immediately and there was an instant intuitive bond. Even though JoJo was his mother by all rights, and she in no way would want to change that, Maia wanted so much to see all her children again.
The nursery is right through that door," the Prince of Stone informed her. “You can see him anytime.”
"Oh, thank you," Maia said, a tear sliding down her cheek.
"It is my understanding that you and Lieutenant Zephyr are mates," the Prince of Stone said, closing the door behind.
"We are running the mating analysis now," Zephyr said.
"But you both feel it?"
"We do," Maia stated.
“What a beautiful thing. I can't tell you how pleased I was when Hanish informed me that you were still alive. It is horrible what Current did to you. The Prince of your own house. It's unthinkable. But knowing that you are alive and well and here on Earth is happy news. It is a great day in the history of our race. And I am so happy for both of you that you have found each other."
After having spent so long in the company of the Prince of Tides and his sadistic need to possess her, hearing the Prince of the House of Stone tell her that he was happy for her to find love had her feeling she might burst into tears at that very moment. But she remembered that most dragons were good and loyal and fair. Not at all like Prince Current. His behavior was an anomaly. Not even the rigid elders of old Dragonia could compare to what he had done. It was so unthinkable and so out of character for her kind. Being among these honorable men was a great relief and a balm to her soul. She felt immediately at ease and at home with them.
"You have no idea how good it is to hear you say these words, Prince Mortar. I have been exposed to an evil mind for too long. It makes kind words all the more sweet to hear.”
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