Monster Girl Islands 2

by Logan Jacobs

  Chapter Eleven

  I woke up confused and a bit lightheaded, but otherwise in relatively good shape. It took me a few moments to get my bearings and figure out I was lying on a rather comfortable cot in the back of a dimly lit cave. I sat up slowly and saw I was alone for the moment, so I took the time to remember everything that happened prior to me ending up here.

  My shoulder was bandaged, but I could feel the skin underneath was itchy and tight. Against my better judgment, I removed the linens to see shiny new scars shaped in the pattern of one of the gargoyle-cat’s claws. At the sight of the new scars, all of the events leading up to finding myself on a cot in a strange cave came rushing back to me. I didn’t know how long I had been out for, but it was long enough to fully heal from my wound, and that made me intensely anxious.

  Where in the hell was everyone?

  Be calm, dear one, my dragon intoned in my head. We are just outside and are on our way back to you.

  “Thank you, George,” I groaned. “I’m more than interested in finding out what the ever-loving fuck happened here.”

  “Daddy, you’re awake!” Marella gasped when she came through the entrance of the cave and ran straight to me.

  I wrapped my arms around her as tightly as I could and was just thankful she was here, even if part of me wanted to throttle her for scaring the ever-loving shit out of me and everyone else.

  “I’m awake,” I said and then narrowed my eyes at her, “but I am much more interested in hearing what that brain of yours was thinking, taking off like that.”

  “I am to blame for that,” said the deep voice I remembered from before, “though not intentionally.”

  I took this moment to turn and get a good look at the man in front of me. I knew these dragon-kin people aged extremely differently from what I was used to, but this man could have easily passed for no more than sixty human years. He had the same raven hair as Talise and Marella, and it was just barely salted with strands of gray. His scales were a deep bronze color that reflected the firelight, but they were nothing compared to the piercing sage green color of his eyes. They looked like eyes that saw everything, but his face was kind with just a shadow of crows’ feet and laugh lines.

  “Yeah,” I growled as I looked up at the old man, “I am not big into mystic or cryptic bullshit. I prefer to be given the details I need straight without sugar coating it.”

  “Very well.” The old man inclined his head. “I am Jonas, and I am Marella’s great-grandfather.”

  “Jonas,” I echoed and blinked in surprise, “I remember Talise and Sela both speaking about you. They all assume you’re dead.”

  “That was my intent when I left the village,” he scoffed, “to pass into the shadows and never become a burden on my family. Unfortunately, this world had other plans for me.”

  Just then, Mira walked into the cave carrying four large jackrabbits, or at least that’s what they looked like, that had been cleaned, skinned, and were ready to be put on the spit over the fire.

  “Ben! You’re awake.” She set the rabbits down by the fire and came over to hug me before punching me soundly in the stomach.

  “Oof!” I moaned.

  “That’s for scaring me again, fuck ass!” Mira scowled.

  “Fuck ass?” I laughed through wheezing pain. “What is a fuck ass?”

  “You are!” she hissed, but I could tell she was fighting back a smile.

  “That’s definitely a new one,” I chuckled, “and I am sorry for scaring you. It definitely wasn’t my intention.”

  “It’s fine.” Mira grinned, and I watched her face relax as the worry lines disappeared from between her eyes. “I am going to get dinner going, and then we can all sit down and go over what you’ve missed.”

  “How long was I out?” I asked.

  “A long time,” Marella said from her perch on my lap. “I knew inside me you were okay, but I was still a little afraid.”

  “I’m sorry, baby girl,” I said and hugged her again. “I don’t ever want you to be afraid on my account.”

  “You were out for two nights,” Mira informed me.

  “Damn,” I groaned as I ran my fingers over my new scars. “I can’t believe that.”

  “You lost a lot of blood,” the warrior went on with wide eyes, “and probably should have died, but your new body started heating up and healing so quickly, it zapped every bit of energy you had. George carried you on his back through the night so we could reach the safety of Jonas’ cave without having to stay out in the cold and unfamiliar land. I also knew you were okay, but it’s hard to believe something you feel inside when your own eyes are telling you something different. It would have been a different story without the dragon bond. George seemed to be the only one who didn’t question what was going on.”

  “What have you all been doing while I was unconscious?” I asked.

  “Learning about why Marella took off like she did,” Mira said with a stern look, and I felt the little girl squirm in my lap. “She’s been exploring her abilities and testing them with Jonas’ help. A lot of wandering and hunting and preparing for our return home has happened.”

  “I think I will be able to travel in the morning--” I started to say, but Mira cut me off.

  “About that,” the warrior sighed. “We can’t go back now.”

  “Why not?” I demanded with a confused frown.

  “Because Nixie has two eggs she must hatch first,” Mira said with a smile, and she continued cooking the rabbit and the rest of our evening meal. “They can’t be moved, and we can’t leave the dragons behind. There is no other choice.”

  Ugh, I hadn’t realized enough time had passed for the eggs to be ready, or I wouldn’t have asked the dragons to accompany us, not that I would have been able to make either of them stay at the village. Stubborn ass dragons.

  “That is an excellent reason,” I conceded, “but I can’t help but worry about Talise and Nerissa and how much they have gotta be freaking the fuck out right about now.”

  “We were all thinking the same thing,” Jonas said in his deep voice, “and we think we have a plan.”

  “I feel like I should introduce myself,” I replied as I looked at the older man, “but I am sure you have heard more about me than you care to know.”

  His laugh was a deeper version of Sela’s tinkling giggle, and it did so much to ease the last bit of tension from my body.

  “I have known about you for a very long time,” Jonas chuckled, “but I will get to all of this soon. First, we need your help. I do believe we can send a dream message to Talise and Sela, possibly the queen as well. We tried before, but the bond wasn’t quite strong enough to travel the distance. You are the new king, and you have bonded with a full-grown dragon, so I know there will be enough power if you join us.”

  “Will we have to wait until they are asleep?” I asked. “That could be hours from now.”

  “Not at all.” He shook his head. “I used ‘dream’ for lack of a better word. We will in essence deliver our own senses across the dragon-kin bond so they may see what we see and feel what we feel, in addition to letting them know we are safe and heading that way as soon as the dragons are born.”

  “Let’s do this,” I said and rubbed my hands together with excitement. “I don’t want them worrying any longer than necessary.”

  “Ben,” the old soothsayer sighed, “I must insist you eat first. This can be quite a draining process, and you need the fuel so you don’t lose all the strength you have regained.”

  “Ugh,” I groaned and dropped my head back, “I hate to wait, but I know you are right.”

  “You’re not as stubborn as I heard you were,” he chuckled. “I was sure you were going to put up a bigger fight.”

  “Hey!” I scoffed and glared at Mira. “I know how to compromise!”

  “It wasn’t me who said it,” she laughed and held up her hands.

  You are as stubborn as a rock and about as easy to budge as this mountain, Geo
rge threw his two cents in from outside of the cave. Do not deny this.

  “You’re such a traitor,” I huffed as everyone around me laughed.

  “Am I stubborn as a rock?” Marella asked as she glanced up at me.

  “Wait,” I said and looked at Marella, “can you hear George?”

  “Yes, and Nixie.” She smiled. “Grandfather says it’s because I am a toot-sayer.”

  “Soothsayer,” I corrected and fought not to bust out laughing, “but that makes a lot of sense. How long have you been able to hear the dragons?”

  “Forever, I think,” she giggled. “My earliest memory of hearing Georgey was when we were outside and everyone was wearing soft clothes and Arrick was a new baby. I was climbing on him, and he started singing in dragon words I didn’t understand, but I heard them, and then I fell asleep. I didn’t know until I got here that not everyone can hear him.”

  She’d rattled all this out in one excited breath, and I could only imagine how excited she was to know she was special to be able to hear the dragons.

  “You are an amazing little girl,” I said and hugged her close to me again, “and I would really like to hear why you thought it was a good idea to take off into the jungle all by yourself.”

  “I didn’t really think it was a good idea,” she mumbled, “but I knew with my light that you and Mommy wouldn’t listen to me, and I had to get here before Grandfather tried to make the trip down the mountain. He wouldn’t have made it, even with the grippins helping him.”

  I couldn’t bring myself to correct her pronunciation of gryphons since she was staring up at me with those huge pansy colored eyes full of unshed tears.

  Plus, “grippins” just sounded too damn adorable.

  “I didn’t want to scare you or make you mad,” Marella went on when she mistook my silence for anger. “I just couldn’t let Grandfather fall down and never be found.”

  Her bottom lip stuck out and started quivering, and she finally gave in to the tears brimming in her eyes. Then she erupted into gut wrenching sobs against my chest.

  I held her close to me and fought back my own tears as my heart broke for my little girl who had to grow up way too fast because of this gift of hers.

  Fuck me, this was too much for her to carry, but all I could do was help her bear it.

  “I tell you what,” I murmured when she started to calm down, “I will make you a promise right here and now. Whenever the light speaks to you and you don’t understand or you are scared and need help, I promise you with my whole heart that you can tell me about it, and I will help you through whatever it is. We will work it out together and try to keep the running off alone into the jungle to a minimum. Deal?”

  “Deal.” She hiccupped and blinked up at me shyly. “So, are you done being mad at me, Daddy?”

  “I was never mad at you, Marella,” I assured her, “I was just terrified. I couldn’t stand the thought of losing you.”

  “Is Mommy mad?” she mumbled and dropped her eyes again. “I have been afraid to ask the light.”

  “Look at me,” I said and took her face in my hands, “nobody, not one single person, is mad at you. I promise. They just love you so much and want to be sure you are safe.”

  Marella flung herself against my chest and wrapped her arms around me until I could barely breathe, but I just dealt with it and let her hug it out.

  Gods, I was wrapped around her perfect little finger.

  Suddenly, Marella pulled away and looked up at me with serious eyes.

  “Daddy, can I tell you something?” she asked sweetly.

  “Of course, baby girl,” I replied. “What is it?”

  “Sela is having two babies, twin girls, and Careen is having a baby girl who will have pink scales almost the same color as Nixie’s scales. Nixie and George are having two dragon babies that will be a boy and a girl, and I don’t know yet what color they will be, but one will be mine, and the other will be Arrick’s. I will help to name mine, and Arrick will help to name his because he is talking now, and we will have to help carry them down the mountain because they will still be very small. Hali, Zarya, and Darya will want to have babies soon, too, and you are going to build a boat that sinks, but then you will build one that floats and then sail to a place where I see tall, tall, tall trees and a very pretty woman with big lightning-blue eyes and long, long, long legs and ears, and horns on her head! But that’s when things get cloudy. But we should bring the queen some of the purple berries because she will really like them, and Mommy will have another baby soon, too, I think.”

  Marella word vomited all of this in one breath before she inhaled sharply and stared at me expectantly.

  What the fuck just happened?

  I glanced at the two other adults in the room and was met with looks of humor mixed with the same overwhelming deer in the headlights look I was sure I wore.

  “She obviously doesn’t have a filter yet,” Jonas chuckled, “but we will get started on that as soon as possible. That was even too much for me to keep up with.”

  “Dinner is ready,” Mira announced as I was still trying to count exactly how many babies Marella mentioned. “We will take it outside where a table is set up. Marella, will you help me?”

  “Yes, Auntie Mira.” The little girl nodded her head vigorously and hopped up from my lap, and I watched the two of them go as I sat there in dumbfounded shock.

  Life on this island was never boring, I’d give it that.

  “We should join them before the food gets cold,” Jonas said as he came to stand beside me.

  “Yeah,” I muttered blankly while I struggled to my feet. “Did you catch how many babies she mentioned? There were a lot, right?”

  Jonas chuckled and led me out of the cave and into a clearing about fifty yards long. The clearing was covered in the greenest grass I’d ever seen, and it was edged by giant pine trees too thick to see through and tall enough that the tops would disappear on a cloudy day. The air was cool and humidity free and would likely turn downright chilly when the sun went all the way down.

  A table made from a slab of flat stone and two benches similarly made stood in the middle of the clearing. There was a fire burning in an alcove dug deep into the hearth and surrounded by rocks to prevent it from spreading, and the smell of the trees, fire, and the mountain air reminded me of the time I’d spent in the Pacific Northwest many years ago.

  Just beyond the fire was a glorious beast looking at me with his toothy dragon smile and his tongue lolling from his mouth.

  I quickly walked over to where George was standing guard over his mate and their fragile eggs, and I let him use his scaly chin to pull me into his version of a dragon hug. I stayed there for several minutes and just soaked up his essence and peace before I pulled away to look at Nixie. She was smiling at me from her nesting spot with her tail wrapped around her most precious cargo.

  The eggs were much smaller than I’d imagined they would be. They were about the size of the kickballs we played with during recess when I was in elementary school, but egg shaped. Both eggs had a mother of pearl, iridescent sheen to them, but they were also marbled with their own unique color. One was swirled with a plum color that had flecks of silver in it, while the other was covered in curlicues of copper and cobalt blue. They were both breathtakingly beautiful, though.

  I hugged Nixie too and paused to admire my dragon’s new family with all the pride and protectiveness I had for my own family.

  “I have no words for how happy and amazed I am for both of you,” I said, “I never would have imagined that skinny little runt of a dragon I found would become who you are today.”

  Watch who you’re calling runt, George chuffed and nudged me with his huge snout, I’m not the one who keeps getting bloodied.

  “Sure about that?” I asked as I noticed scales missing from the side of his neck.

  Just a scratch, he informed me, and it definitely didn’t render me unconscious for nearly three days.

  “Yeah, yea
h,” I mumbled as I fondly patted and rubbed the spot between his eyes, “I will try to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

  I would greatly appreciate that, he deadpanned. Now, I would appreciate it if you would watch over my mate while I hunt for our evening meal. You will be plenty close at the table, no need to let your meal get cold.

  “It would be an honor, dear friend,” I assured him and watched as he slithered off into the trees.

  He is a bit extreme, Nixie sighed, but I thank you for lending a watchful eye while he is gone, dear one.

  “You are most welcome,” I chuckled as I rubbed her between her eyes and listened to her hum in contentment.

  “Ready to eat?” Mira asked as she approached her dragon and offered her a large haunch of meat that Nixie swallowed in one gulp.

  “Which one of us are you talking to?” I asked as my stomach growled loud enough to make Marella giggle from the table behind us.

  “Both,” Mira laughed, “but mostly you. That was left over from last night’s hunt, and I didn’t want it to go to waste. I know George will provide her with much more. She needs a lot of sustenance while she incubates the eggs, especially in this much cooler environment.”

  “Oh, shit,” I groaned, “that thought hadn’t even occurred to me. Nixie, what else do you need?”

  Don’t fret, dear Ben, she said. All I need is plenty of food and for you to keep that fire burning, and all will be well, but I promise to let you know if things change. Now, go enjoy your meal.

  “As you wish,” I said and walked back to the table with Mira where Jonas and Marella were waiting for us.

  On the table were all four of the rabbits Mira had cooked to a juicy, golden brown over the fire inside the cave. There was also a brothy soup at each setting that had mushrooms, small chunks of meat, carrots, and leafy greens in it, along with small loaves of bread made from a coarse grain, and what looked like jam made from small purple berries.

  I unceremoniously and greedily dug into my plate without another thought. It was all so delicious and like nothing I could remember having, at least not lately. My mind wandered to all the possibilities the top of this mountain held, and my imagination got carried away. I thought about the huge pine trees that we could build solid, real houses out of, and the mountain rams we could milk to make butter and cheese. I thought about the possibility of being out of the constant heat and new crops and realized I was being silly and selfish. There was no way I would ask or force the village to relocate here just because I wanted butter for my bread. It was preposterous, and I quickly pushed it from my thoughts.