by Ophelia Bell
When he was sure he could go no farther, his upper leaves reached the top and he knew this was the foundation of his home—the Sanctuary lay beyond that magical wall, and he had to carry the power of the Source beyond it. He pushed and felt the barrier give like a soft membrane. It bounced back and he pushed again, the energy flowing through him still nourishing his upward growth and his climb. Eventually the membrane gave way and he was through, the parted shield of magic snapping back into place around him, sealing shut as though he hadn’t just ruptured it. His huge trunk still penetrated between, connecting the Source with the realm beyond.
His realm. His home.
Silas’s awareness blossomed as his body loomed above the familiar waters of Gaia’s Lake in the crater atop the highest mountain in the Sanctuary. It had been emptied again, yet now gradually filled with clear water. Within moments, the rush of Gaia’s Falls cascaded over the edge in a roaring flood.
From his vantage high in the atmosphere, he saw the ursa arriving, first one at a time, venturing up the mountain, and then more and more until the entire mountaintop that surrounded the lake was covered with ursa.
They cheered. Every last man, woman, and child on that mountaintop cheered him on. When his highest leaves brushed the Sanctuary’s magic barrier, the raging flood of power from the Source subsided slightly, remaining a steady, constant flow. He could feel it pushing outward now instead of up, feeding all the living creatures in the Sanctuary with its power as his massive, leafy canopy fanned out to shelter the entire mountaintop.
Amid the din of cheering ursa, he still sensed his mates, and was finally able to shift his focus away from his task to seek them out.
But what he found was not the rejoicing cheers of the two people he loved most. They stood at his base inside the Haven, hands pressed against his trunk, and called to him emphatically as though they’d been trying to catch his attention for hours and were hoarse from the efforts. Gavra banged his fists on Silas’s thick bark.
“Brother, don’t make me set you on fire to get you to come out of there. Come back to us!”
“Silas, please!” Assana cried. “You didn’t have to do this. We could have found another way! Come back!”
He tried to speak, but his words only came as a creak of branches and a rustle of leaves in the wind. He tried to lean down to embrace them, but his trunk could only sway so far before the tension bounced him back. Their worry and fear for him was as clear to Silas as his own elation at his accomplishment. This was something amazing, yet he began to panic within his new shape because he couldn’t figure out how to undo it, or if he even should.
At a loss for any true action, he pulled his focus inward, sinking deep into that secret place he shared with them. Their images were more distinct than he remembered, Assana more vibrant and beautiful, Gavra more powerful and potently seductive. The dragon’s eyes blazed blood-red—his anger clear.
“What the fuck did you do?” Gavra asked.
“Only what needed to be done to protect the Sanctuary.”
“Oh, Silas. Hasn’t this shit with my mother taught you anything?” Assana asked.
He held steadfast to his convictions. “It had nothing to do with your mother. I haven’t harmed anyone. This will remove any possibility of our alliance failing again. The Haven and the Sanctuary are forever tied together now—one is no longer dependent on the other for its wellbeing. If anything, this will make our bond stronger, the way my bond with the two of you was strengthened when we shared our blood. It had to be this way.”
Assana’s eyes were wet with tears and Gavra’s jaw clenched tight.
“But we’ve as good as lost you, don’t you see that? You’re a tree, Silas! As glorious and beautiful as you are, I can’t make love to a tree. What happens if I need you to help calm my primal power? I’ll go crazy without you!”
“You don’t need me for that anymore. Look at you, Assana—you’re in your primal form and have been for hours. Gavra’s right here, and what are the two of you doing? Talking to me. Not banging each other’s brains out like that first time.”
Assana let out a frustrated wail and covered her face with her hands. Gavra smacked his fist against Silas’s trunk hard enough for the force to shake him all the way up to his highest branches.
“We still need you, you bastard,” Gavra growled.
“I need you too,” Silas said softly. “But I don’t know how to undo it, and even if I did, I don’t think I would, because these two realms need me to do this. If I undo it, then we’ll all be weaker for it.”
“I won’t give up,” Assana said. “We have so much power between the three of us now. I’ll find a way for you to come back and still hold this connection open permanently. We have to, Silas. I want you to be here to hold our baby in your arms when it’s born.”
Oh, Gaia, no. Had she really just said that?
His entire monolithic form shook with emotion at the revelation, but he could only hold her in spirit, not in the flesh. He did just that, drawing Assana’s mental image into his arms and burying his face in her ethereal hair. She felt so real within the circle of his embrace, but this wasn’t her true body, nor was it his.
“Will you come back to us if we find a way?” Assana asked.
“I will always come back to you if there is a way.”
Chapter Forty
Assana
“When did you know?” Gavra asked, clutching Assana’s hand as they walked into the Haven’s palace and made their way to the great hall.
“This morning,” she said, remembering the moment vividly, though it had all felt like a dream at the time. “When you came to us last night and you and Silas made love to me, it felt so amazing to have you both in me as one. Do you remember how our souls connected in that moment?”
He nodded, tugging at her hand and turning her to face him. “It was like our bond had produced its own source of power. There was this light in the center of the three of us that hadn’t existed before, right where all of our auras merged.”
She frowned. “I couldn’t see our auras then, but yes, it was like that … a tiny little universe came into being where we were joined.” She pressed her hands to her abdomen and smiled. “Right here. And it clarified everything. When Mother showed up, that’s why I knew you’d been right to want the blood meld. That used to be the way we completed the mating bond, at least when we did it properly with mates we truly love. It made no sense not to do it then.”
He smiled at her, and her entire body flooded with warmth at his look. Thankfully it was Gavra she was actually looking at now, with his blood-red eyes and clean, strong features, instead of the mirage of her father. Despite how put-together he appeared, she could sense his deep weariness. The day had taken a lot out of them, and a part of her ached over Silas’s absence.
Gavra slid a hand to the back of her neck and pulled her into a kiss, then drifted his lips over her cheek and nuzzled at her hair. “Sweet Mother, it feels so good just to touch you without fear of driving you mad, but I admit I’m going to miss that wild nymph who tied me to the bed.”
Assana pulled him tighter and manifested her antlers, then completed the full shift into her primal form.
“This wild nymph?” she asked, giving him a sly grin. She flicked her wrist in a circle and vines shot out from the throne that rested on the dais behind her lover. As they yanked him backward and he tumbled onto the huge, pearlescent seat, she summoned the new power she’d discovered and blew a gust of red smoke at him that immediately dissolved every stitch of his conjured clothing.
Gavra’s eyes flashed with lust, and though he pulled at the vines that held his wrists and ankles tight to the arms and legs of the throne, he didn’t struggle much. His cock roused, proud and thick and stiff, the sight of its weeping tip making her core drench with need to feel him buried in her.
She shed her gown and advanced on
him, climbing up the steps to the throne. He stared up at her, licking his lips like a hungry beast, but she had to remind him that she was the hungry one here to eat him alive. She tangled her fingers in his hair, yanking it free from its tidy binding.
“I like it when you look wild too, you know,” she said, then pulled his head back and covered his mouth with hers, kissing him with every ounce of strength left in her, every desperate shred of hope, sadness, love, and despair. When she climbed onto the throne and straddled him, she sank down, taking him deep, and the delicious stretch of him filling her made her feel invincible.
Despite his absence, Silas remained fully present in their minds, and when they climaxed, Assana sensed the flow of power including him as though he’d been right there with them, touching them, the entire time.
“I love you both so much,” Assana whispered.
“I have the biggest woody right now, you guys. Like so big, I bet you can see it from space.”
“Silas, that joke isn’t funny anymore,” Assana said.
“It’s fucking hilarious,” Gavra said, chuckling at first, then laughing loudly when Assana punched him in the shoulder. “Let him enjoy it. When we get him back, he knows he won’t be able to measure up against me.”
* * *
Making love with Gavra on her mother’s throne was one thing—a wild, rebellious act that many an unruly child might have done when lashing out at her parents—but actually claiming the throne as her own proved far more challenging for Assana to process.
When she and Gavra cleaned up after their spontaneous interlude, she stood back and stared at the looming seat.
“It’s yours now, at least temporarily,” Gavra said. “You know you can handle it.”
“It still feels wrong … like I broke the rules somehow. Maybe it’s just that uncle Neph’s seat isn’t there.” She glanced around and found one of the many maids that kept the palace running. Within moments, they’d located her uncle’s throne and had it repositioned in its rightful spot, yet she still couldn’t sit.
She was staring at the thing uncertainly when several new figures entered the great hall and gathered around her.
“We will follow you, sister,” Clio said. “And not just because of the blood bond we have. Will the dragon be sharing the dais with you?”
Assana shot a look to Gavra, realizing that the thought had never occurred to her. They shared a silent exchange and then both shook their heads.
“It wouldn’t be my place,” Gavra said. “The thrones belong to Nyx and Neph. They are the Dionarchs and always will be. Assana is your de facto leader, by all rights. She should sit until the Dionarchs return.”
He placed a warm hand at the small of her back. The touch urged her forward without quite pushing. She took a deep breath and glanced around at the Thiasoi, who were all staring at her expectantly. They depended on her to make the decisions now, and while the idea of commanding them was not that alien to her, she still hesitated to take on that level of authority.
Clio stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder. “Trust us, sister. Know that we trust you as much. Let us take advantage of our blood bond while we can. Let us serve you and the Haven.”
Despite her concerted efforts not to make use of the blood meld between her and the Thiasoi, she couldn’t help but sense the unanimous agreement among all eleven of them. Surprised by their thoughts all clamoring in her mind, she turned and faced the group.
“You don’t have to do anything for me. The Haven owes you for the sacrifices you were willing to make. I have a lot to make up to you all.”
One by one, her fellow Thiasoi maidens dropped to one knee and bowed their heads.
Dumbfounded, she barely registered Gavra’s whisper and his gentle nudge. “It’s time for you to sit, baby,” he said softly into her ear.
Swallowing the huge lump in her throat, she nodded and stepped to the throne. As though seeking to encourage her, Gavra sent a deliciously naughty image into her head of the pair of them tangled in ecstasy atop that very seat only moments earlier.
“Anytime you wish me to take your place for a moment, I will, but only if you are astride me when I do. The burden of leadership sometimes needs a cushion.”
Before her, the eleven maidens began to smile, and a few of them let out soft titters. Realizing they’d also had a peek into her mind, she scowled.
“I know we can’t help the link we have to each other now, but I would appreciate it if you all didn’t eavesdrop.”
“As you wish, mistress,” Clio said, lifting her head and grinning widely at Assana, then at Gavra. “But if you would do us a favor, some of us would love to know if there are more dragons like him who are seeking mates. If you want us out of your head, we should get on with making a proper blood bond to a chosen mate.”
“Meetings can certainly be arranged,” Gavra said. “That is, if your mistress is willing to allow my kind to visit.”
“Gaia, yes! Of course, there is the matter of no one being able to pass through the Sanctuary’s barrier besides ursa, but in time I’m sure we will be able to open the Haven to the other higher races. Turul as well, if they like. I will do everything in my power to ensure our alliances remain strong, but Mother was right about one thing—the safety of the Source is paramount, and now that it’s permanently linked to the Sanctuary, too, we have to tread with caution when granting access from the outside. Our enemy is still out there.”
The mention of that permanent link with the Sanctuary caused emotion to surge and she found herself at a momentary loss for words, filled with longing for Silas. Within her mind, she sensed his comforting caress, but it did little to ease her ache to see him in the flesh.
The Thiasoi all shared concerned glances and Assana forced herself to take a deep breath and focus on them again.
“You all have liberty to visit the Sanctuary and seek out mates there, of course. With Silas bridging our realms, I’d like five of you to serve as advance guard and work with the Sanctuary guardians in whatever manner the Queen requires. You may leave as soon as you are ready. Four of you will need to visit all the grottos in the Haven and make sure our current ursa guests are well and that order persists, now that my Mother is no longer in charge. Clio and Ephyra … will you two remain as my personal guard? If you’d rather not …”
“We would be honored, mistress,” both nymphs replied in unison.
“Thank you,” Assana said, finally feeling some of the weight of worry lift from her shoulders. “You may proceed with your tasks now.”
The maidens all stood and broke into their required parties before departing. When they were gone, Clio and Ephyra remained, both with apprehensive looks. They hadn’t moved to their assigned places where her mother’s personal guard usually stood.
“What is it, sisters? Does something else trouble you?”
“Not a trouble so much as a request,” Clio said. Ephyra nodded and shifted closer to her fellow Thiasoi. Their hands gravitated to each other as though they were magnetized.
“We’d like your blessing, mistress,” Ephyra said. “Clio and I have been deeply melded for ages, but we realize now that bond alone is not enough for us.”
Assana raised her eyebrows. “It’s never been a secret. Why would you need my blessing?”
Clio glanced at her lover and set her jaw. “We’d like to blood meld, but didn’t want to overstep … We didn’t want it to seem like we were too eager to shed our bond to you.”
Quickly, Ephyra jumped in. “We still wish to do our duty to the Haven and breed with a male … to give the Haven sons to defend it. We just don’t want to wait any longer to make our own bond permanent.”
A surge of love propelled Assana from her throne. She descended the dais and stood in front of the two women who’d been her closest friends for thousands of years.
“You don’t need to give the H
aven sons if that isn’t what you wish. Be together, if your love is true you have my blessing for a blood meld. And if you ever meet a male who suits you both, you have my blessing for that too—sons or no sons, I just want you to be happy.”
She pulled them both into a fierce hug. Clio murmured into her ear, “We want you to be happy too, Assana. Of all of us, you deserve it most.”
“I am happy, I promise,” she said, but knew deep down that it was partly a lie.
“You succeeded, Assana. We all did,” Silas said, his deep, rich voice filling her mind with pride and love. She clenched her fists wishing like hell that she could touch him, but it wasn’t possible to embrace a thought or a voice. Returning to her throne, she reached for Gavra’s hand where he stood at her left and gripped it tight. She would never let him go as long as she lived.
“If I ever get you back, you are never allowed to leave me again, you got that?” Assana shot to Silas’s mental image in her mind.
“You promise you’ll tie me to the bed and I’ll stay,” he said.
Assana let out a frustrated growl. Her need for them both was so strong she almost wished she could blame it on insanity, but no. There were no such excuses for this new burden of love she bore. Her mind was as clear as the bright blue sky, her wild impulses tamed and controlled until she chose to unleash them. Her eyes were wide open and her heart so full it nearly burst.
“You will come back to me, Silas. And I promise when you do, I am tying you both to my bed and never letting you go again.”
Chapter Forty-One
Vrishti
Vrishti stared up at the glorious, huge canopy of the tree, awed but also terrified what it might mean. Her mother was tight-lipped ever since the Queen had arrived and ordered an emergency council to take place at Gaia’s Falls. The scene of the crime, so to speak.
Most of the ursa in the Sanctuary were here, all of them rejoicing at the immense power that had flooded the place when the tree erupted from the lake bed more than a week ago. They hadn’t left since, but the arrival of a handful of leather-clad nymphs with dark tattoos and bows had made it obvious that something big was happening.