by Maia Starr
“What? What do you mean?” I asked.
“We should go. We should get to my ship,” he said.
“You want me to go with you?” I asked.
“Yes, of course. I came back for you. I came to get you to be my wife and my lifelong mate, if you will have me,” he said.
“What? But what about your father and brother?” I asked.
“My father the king is the one that told me to come get you. This was his idea,” he said.
“Yes!” I said rolling over on top of him and kissing him. I placed small kisses all over his face. He laughed.
“But I can’t just disappear again. I have to do this right this time. I will have to come back in a year for a couple of weeks in order for this to work. I am going to tell my father that I am going away to do some writing and be alone. The only way he won’t start a search party for me is if I tell him that I will be back,” I said to Cylo.
“I understand. We will have to see about the visit in the year from now, but I think it will be fine if we are careful and if it will keep you happy,” Cylo said.
“Yes, it will,” I said. I pulled out a pad of paper and pen and began to write a long letter to my father. I had to be as detailed as possible. Then I was done.
“I have to make this look like I actually packed up,” I said as I went to the window and closed it. I drew the shutters and turned on a light. I packed as though I was going on a writing retreat in the woods. I left the note in the middle of the table. Then I turned off all the lights and opened the window once more.
“We need to stay here for a while. Turning on the light probably drew some attention,” I said.
“I understand,” Cylo whispered to me. “I need to shift anyway,” he said.
“I will never get tired of watching you do that. When could you do that? What age were you?” I asked knowing that I was asking because I was about to have a hybrid child.
“I was able to shift after I turned ten years of age. It was something that I had been expecting and couldn’t wait for it to happen,” he said with a smile.
“I bet it was a lot of fun,” I said.
“Yes, it was. It still is. I think even you were getting used to flying with me,” he said.
“Yes, I think I am. It is fun. Are we going to fly out of here? Where is your ship?” I asked.
“Yes, we are going to fly out of here very carefully and quietly. The ship is only two buildings away on the roof of a house,” he said.
“Okay, I think we have waited long enough,” I said as I peeked out the window. I could see the secret service cars and the men in them seemed to be reading from their Draquas. I pulled on my backpack and draped a messenger shoulder bag on me. “I am ready,” I said.
Cylo stood in front of me and lifted me up. I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his neck and nestled my head into his neck. Then he took flight out the window. In seconds we were on top of a building and next to the invisible ship. I only saw it once he opened the door and the inside of the ship appeared.
“It is still like magic to me,” I said.
“You are magic to me, Melody,” Cylo said to me. Then we climbed in, and before long, we were shooting into the blackness of space. A few hours later, we were in hyper speed and shooting back to Kelon.
“Are we a safe distance from Earth?” I asked.
“Yes, we are far from there,” he said.
“And Kelon?” I asked.
“We are not there yet; a few more hours before we are even close to it. Why do you ask? Do you want to make a pit stop at our favorite planet of Tiok? See our friend the lake monster?” he teased me.
“No! Absolutely not! I never want to go back there,” I said.
“Then what?” he asked.
I debated telling him, but I knew that I could not keep this secret baby to myself anymore.”I am carrying your offspring. I am pregnant.”
He was silent for a second, then he smiled. “Are you really, Melody? You are pregnant? We are going to have a child?” Cylo smiled as he got excited.
“Yes, Cylo, I am going to have your child,” I said.
“Yes! I love you, Melody!” Cylo said.
“You do?” I asked.
“Yes, I do. I love you so much. It is almost painful. Now you are making me the happiest Draqua by having my offspring! This is the best day,” Cylo said to me.
“I am so glad that you are happy about it,” I said.
“Of course I am. This is great news,” he said as he moved from his pilot seat and kissed me. I kissed him back. I was happy.
“Shit. I’m sorry. Did I hurt you in bed?” he asked.
“No, you did not. I am fine,” I said.
“But you must have been frightened this entire time knowing that you were pregnant with my offspring, all alone,” he said sadly.
“Yes, I was. I really did not know what I was going to do when the time came. I was scared, and I have been so sad,” I said.
Cylo pulled me to him and hugged me tightly.” I’m so sorry, my love. I am sorry that you had to go through that. I should have come for you earlier, or I should have never brought you back.”
“No, I am glad that you did bring me back. It was important for me to see my father and to let him know that I was fine. I got to say goodbye this time.”
“If you are satisfied, then I am satisfied,” he said.
“I am satisfied. I am happy with you, Cylo,” I said.
“And now we are going to go back to Kelon and start our family. I will marry you a day after we arrive, and not another minute later. You will live in the grand palace chambers with me and our child. We will be very happy together, Melody,” Cylo said.
“Yes, Kelon. I am excited to back to the paradise,” I said.
But when we arrived, it was not the Kelon that I remembered. There was terror going on.
“What the hell?” Cylo said as we broke through the clouds and saw his village below us. There was war, and it was everywhere.
“Oh my god,” I said.
“Shit. I should not have left. I knew there was trouble from the opposition,” he said.
“The opposition? The group that wants all hybrids dead, and all human females as well?” I said.
“Don’t worry. I know where to take you. We’re going to Kila; you will be safe there,” he said.
“What? I don’t like the sound of that,” I said.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CYLO HYDROS
The most unbelievable thing had happened. Melody had given me the greatest gift. She had told me that she carried my offspring. It was the best thing that I could ever hear. But now as we flew over the chaos of fighting on Kelon, I suddenly wished that I did not know that she was pregnant. Now I had to fight for my love and my unborn child and protect them at all costs. There was a group out to get her, my child, and myself because they did not believe in our ways. Now I would be the only thing standing in the way of her getting hurt. I had to do this. I had to crush the opposition, and accept whatever cost came with it.
“There, that is Kila. See, no one is fighting on or above it. It is a secret island only my friends and I know about,” I said.
“I see it,” she said looking down. I landed the ship and opened the door.
“Cylo!” Baca shouted as he came toward me.
“Baca, what the hell is going on?” I asked.
“Where have you been? We thought you were dead,” he said.
“I went on a stealth mission to Earth,” I said, gesturing to Melody. Baca bowed before her. She was now royalty, and he understood that.
“Jix?” I asked.
“He is in the brush. He is organizing,” Baca said.
“Organizing?” I asked.
“Every single hybrid is here,” Baca said.
“What? Why? What is going on?” I asked.
“It started last night, and it has raged on until this evening. Last night the opposition took to the streets of the village, led by Veiras. They began
to kill any hybrid they came across. They killed three before we realized what was going on. Then there was chaos. We all fled. Jix and I brought them here since we are the only ones that use this place,” Baca said.
“Good thinking,” I said.
“Cylo, what is going on? I’m scared,” Melody said.
“It is okay; we will keep you safe. Baca, she is carrying my child. I must protect her at all cost. I must keep her here in a safe place,” I said.
“The caves?” Baca said.
“Yes, perfect. Come, lead me to Jix,” I said.
We walked into a clearing in the forest in the middle of the island. All the hybrids were there. They saw me and stood. I moved to a rock and flew up to stand on it. “My hybrids! I am your prince. What is happening to our kind is wrong. We must get out there and fight. We have to fight!” I shouted.
They cheered. Then I continued. “Your king is not on the side of the opposition. We stand with the king! We have the king’s warriors at our side. We must join them in this fight! Who is with me?!” I shouted.
They roared. I flew down from the rock and hugged and kissed Melody. “I will return. I promise,” I said.
“But what if you don’t? I’m so scared. This is not good,” she said.
“Come this way,” I said as I led her to the entrance of a cave in the rock that we used often. I blew fire onto the small pile of wood. “Keep that fire going, but do not build it too high. It should be out of sight being inside the cave here.”
“Where are you going? You cannot leave me here,” she said.
“I have to. I have to go fight. I have to go help my father. I have to crush this opposition before they win. Then there will be nowhere for us, and they would have taken my father’s kingdom. It is a kingdom that will one day belong to our child,” I said as I put my hand on her belly.
“Come back to me,” she said.
“I will. I promise,” I said as I kissed her lips and sat her down on the rock inside the cave. I moved back outside to the group of hybrids.
“Follow me!” I shouted. We took flight and flew toward the village, but before we were close, I dove into the water. The hybrids followed. We used the dark waters of the night to hide us as we approached the village. There was a fight going on. It was my father’s army against the elder dragons, the opposition.
I burst from the water, and we took the left side of the opposition as my father’s army took them from the front. Now we were assaulting on two sides, and it confused and divided the dragons. I fought a large yellow dragon. I did not know who this dragon was, but it was a young dragon. I punched it in the face with my fist, and it flew onto its back. I grabbed a spear from another warrior and drove it into the dragon’s belly. It died instantly. I flew up to my father’s palace. I found him on the turrets of the palace giving orders.
“Release the fires now!” my father ordered to a warrior.
“Father, what is going on here?” I asked.
“Cylo! You have returned! My son!” he said with a warm hug.
“Is it as I said? Baca said the opposition began killing hybrids last night at random,” I said.
“Yes, that is what has happened. You were right in your suspicions, my son. You make a better king than I. If I had heeded your warning, then we would have crushed them when they were idle on Cuama Reef. Not now that they are invading,” he said.
“Do not worry, father; we will crush them. We just took out the lot on the left of the village. I have a hundred hybrids fighting there. Where is Greia? Which forces does he command in the fight? We should put more ships in the air and use artillery,” I said.
My father was quiet. A look of sadness came over his face. “I am sorry to tell you this son. Veiras is not the leader of the opposition after all. He is part of it, but he is not the leader. I am sorry to tell you that the leader of the opposition is your brother,” he said.
“What? That is not possible. I know that we have had our differences, but Greia would not want all the hybrids to die. I am a hybrid, and he does not want me dead,” I said in shock.
“I know it hurts. It hurts me too. But he has deceived us all. He confirmed it himself when he showed up with the opposition army and began to fight against my warriors. He leads the opposition’s warriors. He has removed himself from our loyalty. He means to take the throne before I have passed. He means to rule under the opposition party and put things back the way they were before humans,” my father said.
“Those are his words?” I asked.
“Yes, those are his words,” my father said. As soon as he said it, I was in a rage. I burst into flight.
“Son! Don’t!” my father shouted at me. He knew that I was filled with rage and reckless.
“Greia! Greia!” I shouted over and over again as I flew in and out of the battle searching for him.
“I am here, you traitor! Come and get me!” I shouted.
Bam! I was hit hard. It knocked me unconscious for a second, and I found myself sinking into the ocean. I came too and swam for the surface. I burst through the water and into the air. There I found the green dragon flying in circles over where I had landed.
“You coward! Face me!” I shouted to him. The green dragon turned and charged for me. My brother was stronger than I was. He was a fierce dragon and skilled in combat. He was furious, and he wanted me dead. All I could do was use that hate he had for me against him.
I flew fast and hard, straight up into the night sky. I was always faster than he was. I was lighter. He was a heavy, cumbersome beast. I used this to my advantage. I saw a ship coming in fast. I flew right in front of it but moved out of the way quickly. My brother, however, did not. The ship clipped his wing. He tumbled down, spiraling down toward the water. He landed with a hard crash and began to sink. I swam straight toward him, diving at a high speed. I could no longer see him. I did not know if he flew off or swam away. I got closer to the surface.
Whoosh! He shot up from the surface and rammed into me. I fell onto the sand. We rolled across the sand together. Then he shifted into his male form. He stood up and faced me. His face was red with anger.
“Why are you doing this, brother? This is not you,” I said.
“Yes, this is. This is me! This has always been me. I have wanted your death and the death of your kind since you were born” he said.
“Why? I am your brother. We are blood,” I said. I looked around and realized that we had fallen on the island of Kila. Shit. Melody was there, and if she came out of hiding, then Greia would kill her for sure. Knowing this fact made it hard for me to focus. But for the moment I was facing my brother, the male Draqua, and not my brother the dragon.
“No, you are not my brother. You should have never been born. Now I am going to do that for you. I am going to take away your life, and then I am going to take the life of all the hybrids on Kelon, and all the human females.”
“No, you will not!” I shouted as I charged him. He shouted back and soon we were punching each other. Bam! I hit him in the belly. Boom! He hit me across the jaw. We wrestled across the sand. Whoosh! He shifted back to dragon. His tail knocked me off my feet. But I recovered quickly and flew straight into the air. I wanted to get him away from Melody as soon as I could.
“Come and get me, brother!” I shouted at him. He followed fast and without thought. I did not mean for it to happen this time, but it did. I flew hard and fast straight up with one purpose: get him away from Kila and from Melody. But as I did so, Greia did not see the ship that I narrowly dodged. Boom! It hit him straight in the chest. Greia went tumbling down once more. He was unconscious as he fell. He landed on the sand on Kila with a loud crash. He did not get up. He shifted back into male Draqua form, which is what happens when a dragon dies. I knew then that he was gone. I flew down and stood next to him. Baca came to my side.
“This is it. This is what I saw,” he said. “I am sorry Cylo.”
“I am sorry too. I loved him. He was my brother,” I said.
&n
bsp; “Cylo! Baca! We have won! We have crushed the opposition. The remaining forces just surrendered the rest are too wounded to do anything but lie in the sand!” Jix said.
I smiled, but I did not feel like this was a victory. It was just one big mess. It was awful.”
“Cylo!” Melody shouted as she ran toward me.
“Did not I tell you to stay put until I came for you?” I said holding her close to me.
“I couldn’t wait. I had to hold you,” she said. I kissed her. Baca looked at her and went silent. Then he said, “You are going to have a very strong son.”