A Tail Like No Other: Book One
My Mate's a Dragon Slayer?
Have you ever read one of those stories where fire-breathing dragons swept down from the sky, torched villages, and ate unsuspecting villagers? This isn’t one of them. This is the real thing, and I’m a real dragon. My name’s Dineiro, but you can call me Dini. All my friends do.
Confused? I can definitely empathize. Imagine this. One day, while out with my friends, I run into the legendary Rainbow Brick Road, which leads me straight to my mate, Prince Kirril of Arthuria. Sadly, he is human, and a dragon slayer. And no, we don’t just rush to each other and embrace like I might have imagined once or twice. Instead, he shoots me with a crossbow.
We’re so different, but against all odds, a true connection forms between us. Of course, the Path of Fate is fickle. If the two of us want to be together, we have a long road ahead. This is, after all, the first chapter in our tale.
Note: This book is written in first-person point of view.
Genre: Alternative (M/M or F/F), Fantasy, Romantic Comedy, Shape-shifter
Length: 44,415 words
MY MATE’S A DRAGON SLAYER?
A Tail Like No Other: Book One
Scarlet Hyacinth
EVERLASTING CLASSIC
MANLOVE
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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MY MATE’S A DRAGON SLAYER?
Copyright © 2013 by Scarlet Hyacinth
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62242-092-6
First E-book Publication: October 2013
Cover design by Les Byerley
All cover art and logo copyright © 2013 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
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Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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AUTHOR'S NOTE
I like fairy tales. I always have, and I probably always will. As some of you might know, I grew up on Russian fairy tales, which to this day, I enjoy a lot. And I will be the first to admit that I am a bookworm and a great fan of mythology.
With A Tail Like No Other, I wanted to put a little spin on all the stories I love so much. I hope you like it, and most of all, I hope it makes you smile, even if it’s only a little.
A lot of love for my loyal readers,
Scarlet Hyacinth
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Author's Note
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Epilogue
About the Author
MY MATE’S A DRAGON SLAYER?
A Tail Like No Other: Book One
SCARLET HYACINTH
Copyright © 2013
Prologue
I’m sure most of the people out there have read at least one fairy tale in their life. If not…Well, their existence must have been very sad indeed, and they have worse problems than considering what I have to say. But for those who did read such stories, I just need to tell you one thing. Do not believe them!
The truth is nothing like fairy tales and legends would have you believe. I can assure you of that. Fire-breathing dragons and knights in shining armor? Princesses and ogres? Monsters hiding in dark castles? Bah! It’s all nonsense. But perhaps I should start with the beginning. Hear me out, and once you do so, perhaps I’d have convinced you that things are never what they seem.
It all began on a completely normal day, in my homeland of Merlinia…
Chapter One:
In Which Being a Dragon Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up to Be
The fawn was just a few feet away from us, oblivious to our presence. I flexed my claws in anticipation, watching and waiting. The creature had no idea what awaited it. Soon, it would be dinner for a being of far superior intellect and…
The leaves rustled, and the fawn leapt away, disappearing into the greenery. I released a sigh and slipped back into the grove, abandoning the tree I’d been hiding behind. I felt a little guilty, but I was glad that was over. My wings had been cramping up anyway.
Of course, I wasn’t about to tell that to my poor, frustrated friend. I carefully padded to Vesper’s side and gave him what I hoped was an encouraging smile. I probably failed abysmally, given that it wasn’t exactly easy to beam while in my dragon form. “You almost had it that time, Perry,” I told him.
“Yeah, right,” he mumbled, looking disheartened. His bunny ears flopped, and he jumped into my arms. “Am I being too ambitious? Perhaps I should start small. What do you think, Dini?”
Talk about a loaded question. I wanted to be honest, but also needed to be supportive for my friend. Life wasn’t easy for a carnivorous bunny, especially one who had yet to figure out how to adapt to his place on the food chain. And Vesper really was trying. He just couldn’t put his finger on exactly what he wanted and needed just yet. Well…his paw.
I didn’t get to offer him a reply, because a flash of br
ight, noisy light exploded into the grove. “Gee, you think?” our pixie friend, Larue, asked sarcastically. “This is a waste of time. The fawn is long gone, and that tree hollow had Goddess knows what inside it.” He released a disgusted gasp as he tried to brush off a stain that seemed suspiciously sticky. “Is that…Oh, someone’s going to pay for this. I liked this tunic.”
“It’s not just about you,” I replied in a reprimanding tone, carefully shielding my eyes with my paw. He tended to throw pixie dust at us when he was pissed, and now he definitely looked furious. “Perry wants to learn, and we agreed on this.”
“Of course we agreed,” Larue answered, “but Dini, you can’t possibly think a fawn was a good choice of prey. I mean, what would Perry even do with that quantity of meat?”
“I actually wanted to share it with my warren.” If anything, Vesper looked even more upset. “My dad would have finally respected me, and I might have had a chance to find a mate.”
Larue’s anger died at that. We couldn’t blame Vesper for his most natural desire since we hadn’t found mates either. “Oh, Perry,” I said, “it’ll happen. Don’t force it.”
“Whoever is our other half has to accept us as we are,” Larue replied, his white form glowing brighter. “But anyway, let’s stop with the hunt for today and do something for the three of us. What do you say?”
At that, Vesper appeared to snap out of his funk, his ears perking up in interest. “Like what?”
“I found something the other day while I was out foraging,” he said. “I didn’t show it to anyone. It’s a path.”
“A path,” Vesper repeated, sounding skeptical. “Where to?”
Our pixie friend fluttered around us, his wings leaving behind pixie dust. “Come on. Let’s investigate.”
I sneezed and rubbed my nose with a claw. “Fine, but just don’t do that, okay? You know how I get in certain times of the year. My sinuses are sensitive, especially to pixie dust.”
Larue chortled, but nevertheless, stopped swirling like a mad thing. I placed Vesper in my pouch and gestured for the pixie to lead the way.
As he flew ahead, we made our way through the forest in comfortable silence. Around us the giggles of the trees began to grow louder, but I didn’t mind. I’d been living here for two years now, so I’d had plenty of time to acquaint myself to the area and with the Laughing Forest.
When I’d come of age, I’d had to leave my parents’ home, as did all mature dragons who hadn’t found a mate in the tribe yet. We were supposed to travel through the world in search of our destiny. A certain instinct told us where to stop, and I had stopped here.
It could have been that at the time, I’d been tired and frustrated, but honestly, I didn’t regret it because it had given me the chance to meet Larue and Vesper.
My mother had always told me it sometimes took a while for fate to work its magic. It had sounded comforting because as she put it, all dragons eventually found their life mates. We just needed to be patient. But reality turned out to be very different from what she’d presented, and being a dragon simply wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. I just felt thankful that I had my friends to distract me, because I’d have long ago lost my patience.
Of course, now I was kind of losing it, with our impromptu trek taking us farther than I’d expected. I’d never gone so deeply into the Laughing Forest before, and I wondered what in the world Larue had been foraging for. “Are you sure this is the right way, Larry?”
He nodded, his small body fluttering in front of us as agitatedly as ever. “We’re close. Shh…”
I might have suspected he’d gotten us lost, but my friend actually had great spatial orientation, unlike me who couldn’t find the entrance to my own cave. Proving that I’d been correct in trusting him, Larue released a soft aha and pointed ahead. Indeed, I spotted something in the direction he indicated. At first, I could only distinguish a soft glow, changing color with each second that passed. Both Vesper and I peered closer and let out twin gasps of disbelief.
“Is this what I think it is?” I asked.
“The Rain—”
I covered his mouth with my paw to stop him from uttering the name and ended up shoving him in my pouch. When I realized what I’d done, I quickly backed down and he climbed out and jumped onto the grass, glaring at me and baring his bunny fangs. “Seriously, Dini?”
“Sorry,” I replied, heat flooding my face and darkening my scales. “It was a rhetorical question. You shouldn’t say the words.”
“Yes, I know,” Vesper mumbled. “And give us a warning, Larry.”
“Where’s the fun in that?” Larue asked with a grin.
I ignored him, now staring at the brick road in front of us. A million shades of all the colors in the world emanated from it in a hypnotizing display. It hadn’t always been here, I was sure of it. I would have found it by now or spotted it in one of my flights over the Laughing Forest. There would have been some sort of sign. When had it appeared?
The path winded through the forest, leading toward the misty hills in the distance. I’d never dared to go that way, as my parents had warned me savages with horrible customs lived in the area. But then again, I’d never expected to run into this legendary sight.
The Rainbow Brick Road had been considered one of the wonders and mysteries of our world, which, given the quantity of magic existing out there, was quite a feat, indeed. Countless mages, including dragon shamans, had tried to figure it out. I myself had many times wondered if it existed or if it was only a myth. As a fairy dragon, I was naturally drawn to all things magical. My parents’ strength focused in different areas, ones where I was sadly lacking, and they’d never been able to give me any input on this. I took a step forward, aiming to investigate.
“Stop,” Larue said, now sounding serious. “We shouldn’t touch it. I read up on the road, and all sources say it might be dangerous.”
“Why did you bring us here then?” Vesper asked.
Larue just glanced at me. “I thought Dini might have a clue about what to do. The path never appears without a reason. Now, we just have to figure out why it showed up.”
I didn’t answer, already looking into the distance. “Something’s coming,” I told them. “Hide.”
Chapter Two:
In Which a Dragon Slayer Makes His Appearance
“‘Slay a mighty dragon,’ he says. ‘Win the hand of the princess,’ he says. Gods, when am I going to learn not to listen to my father?”
I grumbled, every muscle in my body aching after the torturous ride. The road seemed to go on and on, and I hadn’t found an inn in over a week. I didn’t particularly mind sleeping under the stars, but unfortunately, it wasn’t the stars that appeared when I planned to get some shut-eye, but rainclouds. Rain, hail, then more rain. I always woke up chilled to the bone and frustrated with the cheerful, deceptive sun that beamed at me every morning.
To top it off, the animals in this area seemed to have had some special course in how to avoid a hunter, because I hadn’t managed to restock my supply of venison. If not for the occasional fruit I found, and for Magda’s help, I’d be starving. My mare could actually tell the difference between a poisonous berry and an edible one.
“I still don’t get why you even agreed,” Magda pointed out. Even her mane was showing the effects of the hard road, although as we rode on, she showed no real sign of fatigue. “I mean, it’s not like you have any interest in her, or in any of her gender.”
“You know why,” I replied with an irritated huff.
“Your brother likes her.” Magda snorted in what sounded like an equine sigh. “He should have gone instead of sending you.”
I patted Magda’s flank, more than ever thankful for her company. She knew as well as I did that my brother Medwin was no warrior. He knew everything there was to know about law, lore, and leadership—the three Ls, as he called it—but he’d asked for my help with the fourth one. How could I have denied him?
“You’re a big softie
, you know that? You love your sibs too much.”
“Eh, it’s really not that big of a deal. At least this way, I had an excuse to leave the palace.”
It truly had seemed like a good idea at the time. My father, King Ralph Theodore IV, was working on solidifying the alliance between our kingdom, Arthuria, and the neighboring land of Morganna. The plan was to have one of his sons marry the Morgannian princess, Anelah. He hadn’t even bothered trying to push me into it, well aware that my inclinations would lead the matrimony to fiasco and possibly plunge the two countries into war. My eldest brother Leonard had hated the idea, but our other sibling, Medwin, had been thrilled to agree. However, the Morgannian king had placed one very important condition. We needed to defeat a mighty dragon and bring the king its head.
Personally, I found that a little gruesome, but I’d figured slaying an animal, however powerful it might be, was worth it if it meant bringing my country peace and my brother happiness. Of course, the latter part was debatable. I couldn’t possibly know whether or not Anelah was meant for Medwin. Either way, he seemed to think so, and that was enough for me.
This brought me to my current predicament. “Are we even sure there are still dragons alive?” I asked Magda. “I’ve seen no sign of such creatures so far.”
“According to the Morgannians, yes, there are,” Magda answered. “Supposedly here, in Merlinia.”
That was excellent, superb, and quite amazing, except it didn’t help me find my way now that we were lost. Sighing, I resigned myself to another night of sleeping under the rain clouds.
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