by Ophelia Bell
Aurum’s expression remained grim, as did those of her mates. “I’m not sure where they are at the moment,” Aurum said. “They may be in the Haven by now.” She glanced at Calder, who nodded and faced Nikhil and Belah.
“My mother’s been fragile for a long time—ever since my father and I were captured by the Ultiori. It’s taken all my uncle’s power to keep her stable, but when he helped us escape the Haven … well, things have gone from bad to worse.”
Nikhil frowned. “Your mother … you mean Nyx, one of the nymphaea Dionarchs?” His skin prickled with unease. The two nymphaea leaders were integral to his plan to track down the Lamia, but if there was upheaval in the Haven, that plan might be in trouble.
Calder let out a sigh. “Yeah. She’s highly protective of the Haven and the remaining residents. The nymphs can’t produce male children with human mates, so there are no satyrs left. When I made it home finally, she locked down the entire place, insisting that my uncle and I be the ones to service all the nymphs and repopulate the Haven with satyr babies. It was all my sister and I could do to convince her that a breeding pact with the ursa was a good idea. We need male children—and it’s our hope that breeding with the other higher races, now that the dragons and turul have set the precedent that it’s acceptable, will help with that. But Mother’s a very single-minded woman.”
Ked let out a gruff chuckle and crossed his arms. “That’s an understatement. Your mother was probably not thrilled when you brought home a dragon for a mate. I never understood why she disliked us so much. Before she mated Nereus, she was more open-minded.”
Nikhil filed away Ked’s comment and told Calder, “Go on.”
“She’s taken full control of the Source since Neph helped us leave the Haven. She refuses to restore the Source’s power to the Sanctuary unless they send Aurum’s brothers to my mother as prisoners … or breeding stock. Probably both. She’s completely lost her mind if she’s gone this far. She’s risking the Haven’s alliance with all the higher races.”
“She’s destroyed it, as far as I’m concerned,” Belah said icily.
Nikhil glanced at Ked, who he was surprised hadn’t nodded in agreement.
“Do you have a solution in mind, Calder?” he asked. “She is your mother, after all. You would know her best.”
He took a deep breath and nodded. “I believe if we can locate my father and bring him home to the Haven, his presence will restore balance to her sanity.”
Calder stopped speaking and stared expectantly at Nikhil. Nikhil knew what he was hoping for, but regretted that he didn’t have the answer.
In a quiet voice, he said, “I don’t know where your father and the other satyrs are. I was the Lamia’s puppet, not her confidant. She used me for my ruthless, brutal nature, but I was never privy to her more devious plans. I remember fighting you and your squadron. Capturing you and imprisoning you. You were the only member of the team I had any contact with afterward. The others were separated, each of you sent to a different facility. There’s no way to know precisely where they are now.”
Calder pressed his lips together, visibly disappointed. “There has to be a way to find them.”
“Naaz and Sterlyn are still in close contact with the military arm of the Ultiori. Many of those men have been loyal to me and remain so, despite answering to a new leader. Naaz and Sterlyn can’t show their faces in any of the facilities, but we have men inside. It’s tricky for them to gather intel and maintain their cover, but they’re working on it. I’ll make sure they know what to look for. In the meantime, we should split up …”
He glanced around the room at the close-knit group. Mated trios, some he didn’t recognize, but it was clear they were close and loyal. All of them looked eager to help.
“We hunt them, the way the Ultiori once hunted you all under my command. Marcus knows their tricks as well as any of my Elites. He can share with anyone who wants to help. This hiding that you all have been doing for the last several eons worked well enough to protect you, but if you want to win, this has to stop. We can take down their numbers from the outside easily. Still, there’s no substitute for information to give us an edge.”
“We can help with that,” Ked said. “Our Shadows have resources to infiltrate the Ultiori’s information systems, if you can provide us a reliable contact. That still won’t help us learn how to beat the Lamia.”
“That’s why I was hoping for was a face-to-face with your mother, Calder. This development with her worries me. Aodh was planning to help me get into the Haven from outside. Is there any chance you can get me in instead? I was willing to wait until the Sanctuary’s portals activated again, to let Aodh out, but if he’s gone into the Haven … if he’s Nyx’s prisoner … there’s no telling when he’s making it out again.”
Calder frowned at him, but his response was drowned out by Belah’s, Ked’s, and Aurum’s shocked exclamations about what made Aodh think he could get into the Haven any other way.
Nikhil held up his hands to stall their confusion. “It turns out your brother and I have a lot in common,” he said. “Which is to say, he lost control to the creature I knew as Meri the same as me, but luckily, she was a lot less powerful at the time and he was able regain control. The residue of her spirit is what gave him the ability to drift.”
“We know about that,” Ked said. “But he always just passed it off as a bonus from some old affair. We assumed it was from Neph, but never asked.”
“Whatever his reasons were for keeping the secret, it’s in our interest now for everyone to know. Meri tricked him into a blood meld, and when she was banished for it, she sought revenge, her corruption turning her into that beast. I need to know how the blood meld works, and what we need to do to break it—not to mention what the Lamia’s agenda might be now.”
“If anyone would know, it would be Neph,” Calder said. “My mother might have some information, but considering the state she’s in, good luck getting her to be coherent. Why didn’t you ask me all those times we talked?”
Nikhil gave him a sardonic smile. “You mean all those times I had control of myself enough to indulge in social interaction for pleasure? The Lamia was still in my head then, her agenda still drove most of my actions. There was no way in hell I’d have asked you any questions that might hint at our larger goals. Unfortunately, I never got into her head enough to know what she was really after. All she let me have was the hatred of your kind and my desire for a child. She nurtured both until I wanted nothing else but to breed or to kill.”
“Now your purpose is to kill her?” Evie asked, her jaw set.
“Exactly,” he said.
“But if we’re going to fight them, we need all the help we can get,” Calder said. “There’s a hell of a lot of power in this room alone, but it isn’t enough.”
Nikhil nodded. “We’ll find your father and the other soldiers. Securing the Haven is crucial. We need the help of both Dionarchs to beat her even if they just share her secrets.”
“Mother’s got more up her sleeve than secrets,” Calder said. “That’s what makes her so dangerous now. If uncle Neph didn’t make it back to the Haven, there’s no male energy to temper her insanity. She’ll destroy the Haven in the interest of saving it, in the state she’s in. And if the Haven goes down, the rest of our world will be vulnerable. All the Enclaves, the dragon Glade, the Sanctuary … they all depend on the Source for power, to some degree. There’s a reason the Haven is so well protected. And I’m sorry to say it, but you sent Aodh on a fool’s errand if you were hoping he could get you inside. He’d have to have the kind of command of the Source that only one of Gaia’s immortal children can possess. Dragons simply aren’t capable of controlling it. Only one of the Dionarchs or one of the four ursa clan leaders has that ability, and I can promise you the ursa are every bit as keen on protecting their home as Mother is.”
“Well, I hope those wom
en are keeping their heads on straight,” Nikhil said. “Because we’re going to need their help too.”
Calder glanced at Nicholas and rested a hand on his shoulder. “They’ve got an advantage in the power of their males,” he said. “And if my sister’s succeeded in her goal, the Haven will at least find some balance among the residents now that they’re mating with ursa males. This is why we need to find my father so badly. Mother always insisted he was dead, yet refused to take another mate. I believe he’s alive.”
“Then that’s where we’ll start,” Nikhil said.
Nicholas cleared his throat and Nikhil looked at the big, dark ursa, still marveling at how intimidating he looked now that he had color.
“What is it, son?” he asked.
“I’m all for getting out there and hunting the bitch down, but can we wait until after we eat?”
Nikhil laughed and lifted his brows at Aurum. “I hope you were prepared for this one’s appetite. I remember the tons of food he used to go through when he was a boy.”
Aurum smiled. “Feeding Nicholas is one of my absolute favorite things to do, and the food is ready, so we definitely shouldn’t wait if you’re done with the meeting.”
The entire room shifted as a unit, gravitating toward the long dining table. The table was hewn from a single giant tree and extended almost the entire length of the room in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows displaying a dark, rainy night beyond.
The group seamlessly worked to set out the dishes and cutlery, followed by the food with very little instruction. They anticipated each other’s needs even at the most basic level, whether through mental links or simply ages of familiarity, Nikhil wasn’t sure, but it gave him hope that once it came time to fight, they would prevail.
He sat with the rest and enjoyed the meal, restricting his words to casual conversation until the end of the night. There would be time enough for him to shift into the role of general again and take charge, but for now, he would enjoy the sense of family before he had to turn them into an army.
Chapter Nineteen
Gavra
After an invigorating swim through the Source’s waters, the current tossed Gavra onto the mossy bank of a wide river. He lay there catching his breath and staring up at the small patch of sky he could make out beyond the high, wet stone of the multitude of grottos that surrounded them. Silas panted beside him, but didn’t move. He sensed footsteps and turned his head to see Assana rise, water still dripping off her body. She was turned away from him and he took the opportunity to marvel at her beauty, even though the simple act of looking made him ache.
That was when he realized she was holding up her hands as if to ward off an attack, and he jumped to his feet, immediately on guard. Aodh lurched up at the same time and they stood back-to-back, warily eyeing the circle of nymphs who all had arrows nocked and aimed at their heads.
“You guys can’t damage us,” Gavra said. “Might as well not bother with the weapons. We came willingly … well, mostly. Just take us to Nyx.”
“These arrows will still hurt if we loose them,” one nymph said.
“Give me your hands, dragon,” the lead nymph commanded, moving close to him and setting down her bow.
“Clio, where are you taking them?” Assana said, her voice shaky. Silas slipped his hand into hers and with a stronger pitch, she said, “What are my mother’s plans?”
“She only gave us instructions,” the leader said. “She requested that you join her when you arrived and that we secure the dragons in their cells.”
Gavra lifted his hands, pressing his wrists together. The nymph swiftly wrapped a smooth length of green vine around his wrists and tied it with an elaborate knot. He sensed the power in the binding, but he tested it anyway, using his full strength to try to break it but having no luck.
“You must go to your mother, Assana,” the lead nymph said as she steered Gavra away. “She is waiting.”
The four remaining nymphs eyed Assana and Silas, and one stepped forward to grab at Assana’s arm.
She yanked away from the other woman. “I’m not leaving them until I make sure they’re treated well, Clio.”
“You have your mate, Assana,” Clio said over her shoulder. “Our mistress wishes to breed me and my sister Thiasoi to these dragons. They will be well cared for.”
“Go, Assana,” Gavra said. “Aodh and I can handle these females.”
“They’ve bound you with naga vines, Gavra. You won’t be able to break your bonds.”
Gavra eyed the scantily clad women around him, catching his brother’s similar assessing look as his eyes passed over him.
“Who said I intend to break free? Being tied down and used by a nymph is one of my deepest fantasies.” He turned his gaze back to Assana and gave her a wicked grin. Her aura flared, and her lips parted with that longing look she’d given him before he’d broken down and kissed her earlier.
Silas tugged at her hand, urging her to follow him.
“If any of you hurt them, you will pay,” Assana said.
Clio nodded. “Understood, sister,” she said softly, then picked up her bow and pointed it at him again. Two of the nymphs grabbed his arms while the other two walked behind, keeping their arrows steadily aimed at him. The group around Aodh took up a similar formation, directing them down a wide path along the grassy riverbank into the vine-infested forest.
Clio took the lead and a pair of other nymphs followed. Eleven total, Gavra counted, glancing around. These were all the Haven’s Thiasoi maidens, save Assana. As they made their way through the forest, he noted how they all seemed to walk with a strange, stilted gait, their heads turning like automatons.
“Nyx, I know you can hear me,” Gavra said. “You’ve got your claws sunk into these poor nymphs and you’re making them do this. It won’t last. Do whatever you wish with me and my brother, but know we intend to help your daughter regain control of the Haven. What you’re doing won’t be tolerated by the higher races for long.”
Something sharp suddenly jabbed him between the shoulder blades and pushed hard. “Shut up, dragon,” a familiar voice said at his back. It was Nyx’s, though he knew the speaker wasn’t her in the flesh. “You know nothing about keeping your home safe. You abandoned yours.”
“My home is the entire world, Nyx. And I haven’t abandoned it. If you’re talking about the dragon Glade, it’s more secure than this place. Perhaps you should move there? If your nymphs really want dragon mates, I know there are hundreds of eligible males who would be happy to accommodate them.”
Simultaneously, all eleven nymphs’ auras flashed with identical irritation. In Nyx’s voice, the nymph at his right said, “The Haven is the most sacred home of all the immortals. To abandon the Source would be to destroy the world, and you know it. We must have stronger offspring. Breeding with humans has made us weak. You and your brother will provide the seed for the army we need to destroy our enemy and ensure the Haven is secure.”
They rounded a bend in the path and came to a placid pool with blooming water lilies floating on the surface. On the far side was a huge, circular structure that seemed to grow out of the roots of a monolithic tree. As they approached, he realized the roots of the tree created an intricate crisscrossing web only big enough to allow light in, like the bars of a woven cage.
“What about your pact with the ursa?” Gavra asked. “Are their males not enough?”
“Their males are not immortal. My Thiasoi deserve stronger mates.” Nyx’s voice came from a different nymph this time, and Gavra had the weird sense that he was conversing with a multi-headed beast. The nymphs who were guiding him directed him up a ramp into the lit interior of the cage. They lifted his arms, securing his bound wrists to a stray root that dangled from above, then retreated.
The opening they’d entered through grew over with a tangled web of thick roots until the smallest gap was j
ust barely large enough for him to fit his fist through.
“Why not get it over with now?” Gavra said. “Send them all in. I’ll mate each and every one tonight and we can get the fuck on with our lives.”
He spun, twisting the root above him to meet Aodh’s eyes through the mesh of his cage. They must be taking his brother to a different cage, though he’d seen no other similar structures nearby.
The nearest nymph laughed. “Do you think me a fool, dragon? If I give you free rein, you’ll mark them, and we can’t have that.”
Above him, the root he was tied to receded, taking the knotted bindings from his wrist. He stalked to the cage barrier.
“Nyx, you know that’s the only way these females can be impregnated by a dragon.”
“It isn’t the only way.” The nymph turned away and the group headed back down the path without another word, herding Aodh between them.
“What the fuck does she mean?” he shot to his brother.
“No idea. If she was putting herself out there for mating, I could see it—two immortals can procreate without the magic of a mating bond as long as one of them wants the offspring. It won’t work with these maidens, though.”
Gavra spun around and paced the circular enclosure. It offered no privacy with its latticework walls on all sides, but at least it was comfortable. There was a large bed against one side, a stone fireplace taking up the center, with a partitioned bathroom containing a steaming, sunken pool beyond the fireplace on the opposite side of the cage. Light streamed in through the gaps in the tree’s roots. He went to them, testing again to see if he could break through, but the roots didn’t budge, nor did they respond to his breath or his fire.
He let out a yell and punched, but it only bruised his fist. Nyx had crafted the perfect prison to hold a dragon.
“Ask her how fucking long she’s going to make us wait,” Gavra said.
“Already did. She’s planning to starve us for a while first, so we’re more pliable when she sends the first maiden in. And I don’t mean we’ll be starved of food, either …”