by Crymsyn Hart
“Dathan, the dragon that flew Ralag here was Andrik. He’s my mate and also my dragon. No one else knows in the camp except the other dragons. Please don’t say anything.”
The other spellcaster shook his head. He walked off toward Pena, and Andrik walked in the other direction.
She glanced at Ralag. “He really wants this to end, doesn’t he?”
“Aye. They wouldn’t listen to him in the tent. They didn’t call him a liar, but they didn’t accept any of his advice either. The two from the other athenaeum were open to hearing the opinions that we had to offer.”
Kestrel stared at the tent. Tridan and his niece emerged. The look on his face was one of anger. Shala seemed too scared to say anything. Kestral had an idea. “Follow me.”
Ralag sighed, but he followed her. She went over to Tridan’s tent. Before she was going to enter, Shala turned out of her tent and jumped. A small roar sounded behind her. “Kestrel, you scared me.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. The prince told me about your meeting and how it didn’t go well. When I was in the tent, you were very quiet. Was there something that you wanted to say?”
She gestured for them to come inside. Tridan looked at them from the makeshift seat he had. His eyes told the story of his failed attempt at not getting them to go to war. “Kestrel, coming in here to change the others’ minds won’t work.”
“I’m not here to get you to change their minds. Actually, I wanted to ask you about coming with me to the rogue encampment. Of course, your dragon would have to be willing to fly into the camp. Would you be willing, Shala?”
Shala covered her mouth and stepped backward. Tridan rose from the chair. “How did you know?”
Kestrel glanced at the both of them. “I sensed it. When did you find out?”
Shala glanced at Tridan, and he nodded. She clasped her fingers together and stared at her feet. “I-I was at the athenaeum in the aerie. In dragon form, I had only been there for a couple of months. Waiting to see if I’d be pulled toward a human. There was a male spellcaster who I bonded with. While I slept, I had dreams about him. I wanted to hold him. I had desires for him that I would have only for another dragon. The feelings were so strong that I couldn’t shake them. One morning, I awoke and found that I no longer had wings, but flesh without scales. Tridan found me and realized what had happened after I told him. He took me under his wing, and I’ve been with him ever since.”
“Did you tell the spellcaster you’d bonded to?”
Shala shook her head. “I couldn’t think how to explain it. I didn’t know how he would react. He wonders where I am, but I haven’t answered him. It’s breaking my heart. And his.”
Kestrel took her in her arms. “You can tell him. The connection between you two is stronger than you think. Trust me. How did you come to live at the other athenaeum?”
“I found her as a hatchling in the arms of some raiders. I disposed of them and took her back to the aerie. I was shocked to see that she had changed. I knew then the legends were true. I was hoping one day to take her back to Blaze Mountain to see if maybe she had family there. Maybe you can bring her back with you. If you speak to the prince,” Tridan explained.
She nodded. “I can talk to him, but you have to tell the man you’re bonded with. You might find he shares the same feelings for you.”
“So what kind of plan did you have?” Tridan asked.
“I want to fly into the rogues’ camp. I can’t just sit here and watch the dragons go to war. What do you say? Will you agree to take me?”
The two glanced at one another. “I’ll take you if Tridan will come.”
“Then we need to make ourselves ready. Can you leave soon?”
“The prince isn’t going to like that you’re going alone,” Ralag stated.
“I figured you weren’t going to tell him. When this is all over, I assume that you can find out who Shala’s family is. Or at least tell her about her history,” Kestrel replied.
Shala looked at Ralag expectantly. “I can do that.”
Kestrel nodded and walked out of the tent. Her heart thumped against her chest. She didn’t know what she was going to say. Her mate was not going to condone her doing this, but he was going to have to learn that she wasn’t about to take any shit from anyone. She had lived too long in the shadows of the other spellcasters, and now was her time to shine. If she could put an end to the war, then at least she had accomplished something.
She walked back to Dathan’s tent, where her sack was. She changed into a better skirt for riding, with slits on both sides. She tied it on and relaxed while gathering her power.
“I’m going with you.”
Andrik stood behind her. Tying her hair back, she shook her head. “You’re not coming with me. That’s final.” She brushed past him, out of the tent, toward Ralag and Tridan. Someone grabbed her arm. She spun around with flames erupting around her hand. When she saw her mate, she squelched the power. “I’m going.”
“I know. I’m not going to stop you. But I’m coming with you. The other dragons have to see who I am. I’m tired of hiding. If you’re going to ride anyone, it’ll be me.”
“You can’t come with me,” she protested. “You’re next in line for the throne. Your father needs me.”
He grimaced. “I don’t have a choice. This is a matter of pride. I have to go. There’s so much I haven’t done to prove my birthright. Now I can defend my kingdom.”
She sighed, but she understood about finally having a chance to do something. Kestrel threw her arms around him and hugged him close. “Thank you.”
“You ready?”
She pressed her lips against his and savored his smoky tang. She wasn’t going to give him up. “I think you might want to get everyone’s attention.”
He nuzzled her neck. “I’m glad you said that because I was going to go anyway.”
“I figured you might say that.”
He backed away and began to strip. The other dragons gathered around him and bellowed. The noise drew the spellcasters from their tents. When he was completely naked, she felt the change begin in her body, too. It was a dull ache. Her bones grew heavier. She backed away from the link, knowing that he was still getting used to his dragon form. There was a lot of commotion in the camp.
“What is going on?” Harnish asked.
“The prince is taking matters into his own hands. And we’re going with him. Watch and believe that the legends are real,” she told the spellcaster.
She walked toward Andrik. He was naked, but already on the ground. His form began to elongate and twist. Within a matter of seconds, he had gone from human skin to scales. His limbs had grown into powerful feet with sharp claws. The pop of bones and the twisting scream of his joints filled the air. When he was done shifting, he quaked and then roared. All the other dragons followed suit and growled with him. She ran her fingers along his scales and shivered. He dipped his wing, and she climbed on. The other dragons bowed to him. They walked over to Harnish, who gaped at them.
“Any objections now for us trying to stop the war?”
He shook his head.
“Good.”
Her mate opened his wings, and they lifted off into the sky.
Chapter Fourteen
They flew along the spine of the mountains for several hours. The moon rose higher. She was too pent up to be tired and too worried to think about sleep. All she could ponder was how they were going to avert a war. She prayed the dragons would listen to Andrik. It was the spellcasters who concerned her. Being rogues, she didn’t know what they wanted. Her mate rumbled when she thought about what the spellcasters were going to do. She sensed his agreement. Shala winged closer to them. Tridan gestured to them. Kestrel saw the fires of the camp below. She focused all her power on her mate and shielded them. A ball of fire was thrown at them, which Andrik easily dodged. They descended into the camp, and she assumed there would be more danger and more dragon fireballs, but surprisingly there were none. T
hey landed in a clearing surrounded by other dragons and their spellcasters.
She slid off her mate and walked to the edge of the circle of spellcasters. The other dragons hissed around them. Andrik let out a blast of fire, elongated his neck, and stretched out his wings. He was showing them all who he was and that he was the true prince of the dragons.
“Impressive, but there are others who are stronger than him. Is he your new dragon, or did you just borrow him for the occasion?”
She turned back to the spellcaster before her and recognized his voice. Simeon, the leader of the council and the Athenaeum. His dark blue robes shimmered with dots of jewels glittering in the fires around the camp. There were twice as many dragons and spellcasters here than at the other camp. By sheer numbers alone they would win the war. She gave him a smile, not letting her trepidation show.
“I didn’t come here to discuss my personal life, Simeon. I’m surprised to see you here. Dathan told me the council was destroyed. I assumed you were the first killed. I didn’t think you had the heart to lead a revolt against the Athenaeum. And it was only after I left that you decided to make this leap of freedom. Was it you who started the war, going against your own kind?”
He chuckled and motioned to the others who accompanied her. “And they are your court?”
“You didn’t answer my question. Why did you go against the Athenaeum? We have been at peace for hundreds of years. Did you enjoy destroying everything the spellcasters have worked for? Did you want the dragons to suffer? To see the death of their brethren?”
He stepped forward. “Tell me. Did you find what you were searching for at Blaze Mountain? I thought you would’ve been eaten.”
She stepped back. “I’m not sure what you mean. You were happy to get rid of me. Now I understand why. You wanted me out of the way.”
He stepped forward and cupped her face. She tried to jerk out of his grasp, but he held her fast. Kestrel’s eyes widened. She saw a spark of fire in his eye and couldn’t believe it.
“You’re right. I wanted you out of the way. I had a feeling you’d be the balm my cousin needed to heal his injured heart. And I think it worked. How about we find out!” He jabbed his sharpened fingernails into her skin. She cried out. When that happened, her mate snarled a forewarning. A blast of fire shot by them.
“I would consider that a warning shot. The next time he won’t miss.”
Simeon laughed. “Dragon fire has no effect on me. Didn’t Ralag tell you that? Dragonkin in human form can’t be influenced by the fire. It’s only in dragon form that we have our weakness, just as Castigan had. I guess you didn’t know that was me, too. The one that killed him. I thought you might have recognized me when I first came to court, but maybe when you see my other form. We should have taken the Athenaeum then, but you happened instead.”
Kestrel lunged at him, but he had her in a bone-crunching grip. She screamed again. Simeon hurled her to the ground and strolled toward her companions. Something sharp had embedded itself into her leg. She tried to get up, but found that her wound was bleeding badly. When she tried to put weight on it, pain shot up her leg. Andrik transformed and stood before Simeon. The dragons around them shrieked. She sensed the rising conflict within the ranks of the dragons and spellcasters.
“My, my Andrik. Seems you’ve finally sucked it up and gotten over the guilt of losing that pitiful human you were going to take for a bride.”
“Simeon, I’m surprised to see you among the humans after all the time you’ve spoken against them. Have you decided that you will take the war to us now? I’ve heard some talk about marching on Blaze Mountain. Or did you want to rule the mortals?”
“There won’t be any persuading of the dragons here not to go to war. They all follow my lead, as will the spellcasters. They are loyal to me. They’re tired of the Athenaeum existing. What do we do? Research. We don’t live our lives to keep our noses in books. The gods did not create us to be laid to waste. We are meant to rule.” He raised his hands and garnered cheers from the onlookers.
Kestrel tried to stop the bleeding by ripping a strip of cloth from her dress and wrapping it around her thigh. Shala kneeled by her side and helped to bandage her leg. She stood with Shala’s help and watched the standoff. The power sparked between the two dragonkin.
“Our race wasn’t meant to rule the humans. We are part mortal. As dragons, we long for that connection we have to them. All of this is wrong. We will stop you if you come to the mountain.” Fire snaked up Andrik’s arm.
Ralag stepped closer. “Listen to Andrik. The dragon king won’t allow a war to be fought in his mountain. Once he gets wind of what you’re doing, he will stop this. There are more dragons than you have ever dreamed that would stand against you and the others.”
Simeon laughed. “Old man, I stopped listening to you when you exiled me. Or don’t you remember that, Father?”
Kestrel was stunned to hear that admission. Ralag hadn’t mentioned anything about a son. Then again, it might have been a sore spot. A pregnant pause filled the air. Kestrel hobbled a little closer to the outside of the circle. She drew in a breath and watched the dynamics between the three men. Something was going to happen.
“I remember well enough. If you remember, it was your fault you were banished. You were the one who was supplying hatchlings to the raiders. You were the one who sent the marauders after Andrik’s first mate. Everything you did was against your own race. How could you?”
Simeon’s snicker echoed in the night. “Easy. I wanted the bastard gone. It would have been easy if you hadn’t intervened. Once he was out of the way, I would have been next in line for the throne.”
“You had Lara killed!” Andrik ran at him.
Simone anticipated this and threw a ball of orange fire at him. It struck Andrik square in the stomach. He clutched his abdomen, screamed, and fell to his knees on the ground. Shala held Kestrel back, but she broke the woman’s hold and limped to her mate’s side. He tried to get up and push her away, but she wasn’t going anywhere.
“Is this who you want to rule you? A whimpering hatchling and his pathetic human mate telling you all what to do?” Simeon asked the other dragons.
“No.” The reply came in unison from all the dragons and the spellcasters around them.
They were out for blood and power. They were ready for war. The past didn’t matter. They didn’t know what it meant to lose a dragon and live. Some had seen the killings and the fighting the way she had. Many of them had no idea what they were in for. She tried to help her mate up. He stood without her help. The tempered expression on his face showed he was in pain. The skin on his stomach was raw.
“I thought he said dragon fire wasn’t effective to dragons in their human form.”
“It isn’t, but I’ve been human most of my adult life. My body is still adjusting to being in my second form. You need to go from here, before he decides to blast me again. I can’t lose you.”
She squeezed his hand. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Tridan walked over and offered his help.
“The prince will walk on his own.” Simeon threw a fireball at the other athenaeum leader. Kestrel screamed, but it was too late. Tridan ignited in a pillar of flame. His screams erupted in the night. She cringed when Shala shrieked and rushed toward them. Some of the other spellcasters held her in the circle.
Kestrel stood slowly and found her balance. Her leg was still bleeding. She squared her shoulders and addressed those around her. “This has gone on long enough. This man is a cold-blooded monster. For centuries, you all shunned me because of what I had become. The only living spellcaster to handle dragon fire. Simeon sent me to Blaze Mountain assuming that I’d be killed. He never bargained that I would return. Years ago, my world evaporated when my dragon was killed. By Simeon’s own admission, he killed my dragon. For that alone he should be punished, and now you’re following him. Do you really want another war? Do you want to experience the pain of losing a dragon? How many dra
gons among us have desired more of a relationship with their spellcasters, but are too horrified or ashamed to admit it? With Cas’s dying breath, he told me he wanted me for a mate. And then he gave me a piece of his soul. It wasn’t the power that made me go insane. It was knowing how much he cared for me.”
“Blasphemy!” one of the spellcasters shouted from the circle.
She turned and stared at him. “Really! Let’s see how you like it!” She pushed her memories along the connections she had with the other dragons. Kestrel transmitted to them the last seconds she had spent with Castigan and how it had broken her heart. The dragons pawed the ground. She gave them everything down to his dying breath and the pain she had lived with ever since. Wetness glistened on some of the faces. Some of them shook their heads and backed away.
“Where do you think you’re going? You’re letting some sob story change your minds. Don’t listen to her,” Simeon shouted to the spellcasters climbing onto their dragons.
“We don’t want to go through what she did. I’m sorry, Simeon. I’m not willing to risk it. I don’t care what you say. I speak for those of us leaving. We won’t help you. We need to learn where the dragons have come from. For too long we have treated them as slaves.”
“Fool!” Simeon threw a bolt of fire at him, but the spellcaster deflected it off a shield.
“No one is going to listen to you now. They know what it feels like, the true hell I went through,” Kestrel said.
He turned back to her and laughed. “You think, by some fluke of circumstance, that you can suddenly tell me what to do. Me!”
The heat built inside of her. The fire inside would consume her if she wasn’t careful. Simeon threw an orb of fire at her. She caught the ball and extinguished it in her hand. Her back began to grow hotter. Gasps erupted behind her. She didn’t know what was happening to her, just that she was riding the power and the fire inside of her. She wasn’t afraid of it anymore. Andrik had taught her to embrace who she was. Kestrel glanced down at her body. It was engulfed in fire.