Burn (Dragon Souls)

by Penelope Fletcher

  There was too much other stuff going on for the people of her new and old life to vie for points in pissing contests.

  Dragging a pillow over, Marina cuddled it to her chest. She stared at the craggy ceiling of volcanic rock.

  Her muddled thoughts were becoming clearer. She had a plan. The hard part would be convincing Daniil she wasn’t trying to self-destruct.

  Realising Cathryn and the Dragon Lord were still bickering, she interrupted. “I won’t do it.”

  “Do it?” Daniil echoed.

  “Lie.” She sat up gripping the pillow. “It would be wrong. Morally. I spend so much time going on about how underhand and vile the gentry here is, and at the first sign of scandal what do I do? Lie.” She shook her head. “I have to draw the line right now and make a stand. If I stoop to their level how can I hold myself to a higher standard?” Her lip curled in a sneer. “I’ll end up no better then Katya.”

  Cathryn flashed a palm. “Who is Katya?”

  “Heinous bitch who made moves on Koen and plotted my murder.”

  “She’s still a threat?”

  “She was disqualified from Aver before the preliminary quest.” Marina paused. She was finally able to recall the kiss between Koen and Katya without choking on violent emotion. She only got really mad now. “Koen dealt with it.” Him holding Katya as she pressed her lips to his was burned on the back of her retinas.

  With hindsight the reasons why he allowed it were clear. He’d been protecting her by getting Katya disqualified.

  Her own actions at the time with Daniil were far less noble.

  She’d actually believed Koen’s affections wavered towards her opponent, and let her developing friendship with Daniil overshadow her true attraction for Koen.

  “Now is not the time to allow a lofty sense of honour ruin what can still be a successful campaign for the throne.” Troubled, Daniil advanced further into the room. “Occasionally circumstances compel us to perform acts that are ugly and morally repugnant. It is a fact those in our position learn to accept. So must you.”

  “Marina and the word ‘throne’ in the same sentence.” Cathryn staggered then slumped into a high-backed chair. “I just got chills.”

  Tossing Cathryn an irritated look, Daniil sank onto the mattress. He touched Marina’s bare ankle. “I have thought hard on this. I see no other way. What happened to your purity is irreversible, but your reputation is salvageable.”

  Marina plucked at the edge of the pillow. A feather came loose in her hand, and she blew it across the room. “There’s no changing my mind. No lies.”

  “It would not be a lie per say.”

  “And no omissions, equivocations or misdirection’s. The truth.”

  “The truth will see you heckled by your peers.” His grip tightened. “It will make you a pariah. It will make you fair game to any lusty Dragon Lord brave enough to fight for ownership. That would provoke Koen into perpetual rage.” Daniil gave up trying to wheedle and went for the throat. “The truth will see you fail.”

  “It will be my weapon, a formidable one.” Marina was shaken, but there was no changing her course. Her principles had to remain solid or she’d end up as crooked as the rest. “I won’t bend. Koen deserved a mate strong enough not to be corrupted.”

  “You would rather break?” At her nod, Daniil averted his gaze. He was grudgingly impressed. “What you desire is brave. It makes me proud to my soul. But you are not dealing with honourable aristocrats who will be awed by the courage of honesty. They will declare you unsuitable. Myron will yield. You will be disqualified from Aver. Koen will be lost to you.”

  “Because a virgin Queen is tradition.”

  “Yes.”

  “And law.”

  “Ye–” Daniil faltered. A calculating gleam swept across his expression. “Law?”

  “On earth law and tradition are two distinct differences,” Cathryn said. She slid a smile Marina’s way. She finally understood why she was confident in her chosen path despite its risks to her future happiness. “Tradition may see you shunned, but there are no legal repercussions. There would be nothing to stop Rina entering, say, a contest. Even if her competitors hated her.”

  “I may have unknowingly trampled over a highly regarded tradition. There’s nothing I can do about that now. Was my intimacy with Koen against the law?”

  Marina watched his face carefully. She puffed with satisfaction when it creased in wonder.

  “From memory I can think of no specific diktat that says it is.” Struggling to hide his excitement, Daniil released her ankle to rub both his knees. “The truth as a weapon. I have spent so many years in the quest for truth amidst lies that using it as a means of offense escaped me.” He rose and headed to the screen, stride brisk with purpose. He paused then faced them. “The magistrate resides in the bowels of the Citadel. I will return before Myron visits you in the morning.”

  Relieved she didn’t need to ask for him to verify her deductions, Marina gave him thumbs up. She would have gone herself, but she was exhausted. “I’ll be waiting.”

  Grinning broadly, he shook his head. His expression was radiant despite his disbelief. “Truth as a weapon. So clever.”

  As the screen slid quietly behind him, Cathryn clucked. “You have these men wrapped around your finger.”

  “Daniil and I understand each other.”

  “You’re very in tune with each other. Thoughts. Needs. Movements.”

  Yawning, Marina met the baldly accusing gaze burning into the side of her head. “Friends,” she enunciated.

  “Koen Raad is the one you want?”

  “Madly.”

  “Explain why? Make me understand, because from where I’m standing all of this is unbelievably stupid. How could you come here and let these people treat you this way? Like you’re a thing.”

  Rather than chafe at the interrogation, Marina let her arms collapse and fell back into the soft sheets.

  This was Cathryn’s way. Always had been, and always would be. She had a mothering streak Marina indulged because who didn’t like to feel protected and loved?

  “Where to begin? Koen’s strong, and brave, and so damnably hot he burns me up. I put up with the crap they dump on me because he is waiting on the other side.”

  Sighing, Cathryn rose from her seat and crawled onto the bed. She cupped Marina’s face. “Lust fades, sweetie. Is this worth your life?”

  “So can love.” Marina rubbed Cathryn’s arm soothingly. “That doesn’t stop people getting married and trying to make it stick.”

  “I’m not convinced.”

  “It’s different here. You haven’t seen the Dragon Council standing on their plinths.”

  “What do they have to do with anything?”

  “The Dragon Council are Phoenixes who once were Emperors. They had Chosen.... What?”

  “You’ve lost me already.” Her hands fell to her lap. “Chosen?”

  “I’m one. Chosen are the female offspring of Dragon Lords.”

  Expression guarded, Cathryn was slow to respond. “Are you trying to tell me in a roundabout way you can turn into a giant lizard?”

  Marina hesitated. That was another conversation entirely. One she hadn’t even had with herself. Because at this point all she had were two occurrences of strange behaviour explainable by stress, and her overactive imagination. “It’s known that only males have the ability to shift form. Chosen are just dragonlike. Aggressive. Territorial. Stubborn.”

  “That explains so much. Okay, so Phoenix’s have Treasures – these Chosen.”

  “All Dragon Lords have Chosen, well, a better way to say it is they mate with Chosen to have children. Some do marry full human women if they fall in love.” Marina tried to make herself as clear as possible so Cathryn didn’t freak out over what she revealed next. “The women who feel compelled to mate with the Dragon King are named as First Chosen. They compete in Aver to win the Crown or Wreath. As Queen they defeat their Dragon Mate in a vicious rite of singl
e combat. Either the Phoenix is defeated and made Emperor, or the Phoenix rejects its weak mate and, um, kills her. They call it the Hunt.”

  “I beg your bloody pardon? Koen might kill you?”

  “It sounds bad said like that.”

  “There’s no way to dress it up, Rina.”

  “You’ve got to understand the Empress is oath sworn to protect her Dragon Mate. Koen must submit to me. I can’t protect him if he feels dominant.”

  Cathryn blinked. Her face slackened. “It’s a matriarchal society.”

  Pleased she began to understand, Marina nodded.

  “You would never think it. The men are so overtly aggressive and the women almost subservient. It pissed me right off when I arrived. You just assume the men are the ultimate authority, but the Hunt means the ultimate authority goes to a female.”

  “That’s why the brutality of the Hunt is so significant. It establishes to Koen’s Dragon that it can be defensive of me, but ultimately that it’s my job to shield him. We’re equals until he is threatened. Then the balance shifts in my favour.”

  “So it’s a fake fight?”

  “No. It’s very real. Koen will come at me with everything he has. I have to best him with my superior warskill. I must prove I’m strong enough to protect him, even from himself. He’s Tzion’s greatest hope, a defence against the horror of war. As his mate my love will be absolute. I will keep him safe.”

  Pale and shaky, Cathryn clasped her hands into fists. “Marina. This is.... If Koen’s Dragon is even close to the size of Mikhail’s-”

  Marina cut her off before she started ranting. Telling her Koen’s Dragon made Mikhail’s look puny in comparison wasn’t worth the stress it would cause.

  “I’ve been trained to kill Dragon Lords. You didn’t see me during the first quest. It was brutal, but I survived. Mother trained me from birth, and I didn’t even realise. Why do you think she was always so strict?”

  “Because Almeria was a stone cold bitch who forced her daughter into dangerous situations creating a needy overachiever?”

  “Um, ouch? My Mother was Empress. If anyone knew when I needed it was her. I’ve told you a million times she was different with me when we were alone. Softer.” Marina sighed. “I can do this. Koen will surrender to me. You’ll see.”

  Cathryn twined a lock of hair around her finger, expression intense. “So you believe he will always love you. Once Aver is finished, you win the Hunt, and everything is normal, you trust Koen Raad never to stray or get bored?”

  “Yes. Chosen are treasured.”

  “What makes them special? The Phoenixes. What makes them different from the other Dragon Lords? Are they born or is it like a title?”

  “They can breathe dragonfire and dragonfrost. They possess stronger magicks than normal Dragon Lords. Supposedly they can be reborn from ashes, see straight into the heart of truth and control wild ones. I’m not sure if those last ones are legends as I’ve never seen Koen do them.” Marina thought back to her first lessons when she’d been voracious in her knowledge about Koen Raad. Her heart fluttered. “They give their heart and soul to their Treasure. Forever. Dragon’s choose to die, Cat. They have no natural lifespan. Most Phoenixes serve on the Council to impart their knowledge for as long as they can bear then let go of life to join their Treasures in the afterlife.”

  “That sounds sweet. And intense.”

  “The people here love in a way I can’t fully explain. Knowing Koen and I share the beginnings of what may be such a great love is terrifying. I wouldn’t give up this chance for the world. Is it dangerous? Yes. I’ll survive.”

  Cathryn relaxed her face then balled up her hands and tucked them between her thighs. It seemed there was nothing more to say. Nothing would get through to Marina now. “Mikhail is a Council Mon, isn’t he? That means Almeria was his Treasure.”

  “Suppose so.”

  “Yet she left him.”

  Marina shrugged. “She wasn’t happy.”

  Cathryn tried to hold her peace but ended up giving a final push. “So it isn’t always happily ever after. Even if you do find true love.”

  Marina nodded stiffly.

  She didn’t want to talk about Mikhail, or his failed relationship with her mother.

  “I wish you knew Koen as I do. He sees people not their station. He respects tradition, but hates the blind faith placed in ceremony. He’s kind, as beautiful inside as out. The rough edges are all anybody bothers themselves with. I feel him, Cat. All the way to my core.”

  Cathryn’s gaze unfocused, her voice tinged with worry. “I’m beginning to see how things are here. It’s not like dating. Or even marriage. We’re talking until death. You will be Queen until death. Empress until death, Koen Raad’s mate until death.”

  “I want this.”

  “You want to be Empress? It took me over a year to get you to sign a rental agreement instead of living out of hotels.”

  “I didn’t want to be tied down.”

  Cathryn gawked. Punched her arm. “And what do you think ruling an entire Kingdom will do?”

  “As Empress I won’t be expected to rule all of Tzion.” Marina rubbed her throbbing bicep. “Just protect Koen as he oversees the peace between the territories.” She cast her memory back for one of the few history lessons she’d had. “The Ice Realm will remain mine, which is good, I want to be the Wyvrae Queen. The city survives for prolonged periods without a monarch so they must have a council of some kind. Probably the upper Houses form a ruling body. Or maybe they have a Regent too. I must ask Daniil–”

  “Good gosh.” Cathryn stiffened. “Have you thought about this beyond jumping into bed with Koen officially as his mate?”

  Indignant, Marina tossed the pillow at her. “Do you think I’m stupid? Course I have.” She paused. “Koen and I have only been intimate twice, you know, and not once since I’ve been here.” She looked down at her lap hopelessly. She rubbed her thighs in a frantic, restless manner that boarded close to an addict craving a fix. “And let me tell you needing him inside me and being unable to touch him is torture.” She met her friend’s stunned gaze. “Any man can fuck. Koen owns me, Cat. He branded me in this dark, primordial place I can’t touch or explain in any tangible way. This is so much more than sex.”

  “Doesn’t sound like it. For a split second I’d thought you’d matured coming here. The deeper I dig the more I reveal the changes are skin deep. You’re still as irresponsible as ever.”

  “That’s unfair and untrue. Just because I haven’t gotten each minute detail worked out like an obsessive compulsive doesn’t mean I’m not taking this seriously. I’m conducting research. This is an entirely foreign society. It’ll take time for me to adjust.”

  “I don’t see any books.” Cathryn bounced across and off the huge bed. Striding across the room she snatched a shiny trinket from the dresser. “I do see a hell of a lot of jewellery. Silks. Extravagant gifts. Since when do you wear sapphires and rubies as day wear? Since when do you wear jewellery at all, for crying out loud?”

  “Stop shouting. Stop judging me when you don’t have half the facts.”

  “Go ahead.” Still clutching the dazzling necklace, Cathryn’s fist swept out to encompass the room’s lavish decorations and furnishings. “Explain all of this to me.”

  “The jewels come from Mikhail. He hasn’t stopped flinging expensive stuff at me since I’ve arrived. I’m guessing it’s either something to do with not embarrassing him in front of the Dragon Council, or plain old paternal guilt. It’s obviously escaped your insightful self that things habitually become hectic around here. In-between assassination attempts, training for Aver, and political stunts like the purity check, I just about have enough time to get a decent nights sleep let alone review a bunch of dusty tombs I’d have to read in the creepy bowels of this Citadel.” Marina pushed onto her forearms. “And my bedroom before this was a nightmare. I didn’t even have four walls. Cut me some slack.”

  “Not until you take y
our head out your arse and take a look around.”

  “What is your problem?”

  “You.” Cathryn’s face turned a scary shade of crimson. “As always you are my problem.”

  Shocked, Marina’s head snapped back. “What have I done to piss you off?”

  “You have no idea, do you?”

  “Hence the question, what did I do?”

  Her face went impossibly redder and she screamed though clenched teeth. “You left me a babbled voicemail that disconnected mid sentence then you disappeared, you bloody crack pot. You were just gone. I was terrified something happened to you. That we’d find your raped, beaten corpse rotting on the bloody moors.” She panted for more air to yell louder. “Didn’t you even take a moment to think of the people you left behind?”

  “But I came back and told you–”

  “That you were going camping with a Dragon. A Dragon. A mythical flying lizard.” Cathryn’s voice was flat and tight as she reeled her anger in. “That was supposed to be some kind of approbation of good mental heath? That was supposed to reassure me that you were safe?”

  Understanding she actually was blameworthy from Cat’s perspective, Marina’s pitch climbed perilously high. “I am not the villain of this piece.”

  “No, you’re just the inconsiderate friend you doesn’t care how many people she tramples to get what she wants.”

  Hunching, Marina dropped her chin to her chest. She pressed her lips together to hold back the cuss words that would make the argument worse.

  Sometimes, silence was the only way.

  And Cathryn wasn’t wrong in her accusations.

  “Sorry.” Edging toward the bed, Cathryn tugged Marina’s toes. “That was unfair and bitchy. Blaming you was wrong, but–” She exhaled shakily. “I mourned you, Rina. I thought you dead.”

  Marina’s heart sank. She’d put this woman through hell. “There wasn’t time for me return to you. Time here moves differently than back in our dimension. And I suppose being ripped from one dimension into another against your will is sort of lame.” Marina patted her side. “It would make me cranky too.”

  “I am not cranky.”

  “Alright.”