The Dragon Witch

by Drako

  “I daresay Athena and Heracles would be able to take your father down. The rest of them, however, would be more of a hindrance. They’ve grown decadent, never knowing true challenge. But this is where I come in.” Jarel looked off. “Zarel!”

  His identical twin brother appeared before them. The only discernible difference between the two is that Jarel’s hair went down his back while Zarel’s hair stopped just under his shoulder. His demeanor was somewhat friendlier than his brother, though his power was just as great. As the Blue Dragon God, he was equal in status to his brother, and something of a center for the Black Dragon God.

  “You rang, Brother?” he questioned quietly.

  “I’ve decided to help Zeus out with the coming problems with the Titans, and possibly Typhon. To do so, I’ll need you, and perhaps the other Dragon Gods.”

  Zarel shrugged. “I never refuse to help you. But what precisely are you planning?”

  Zeus rested his head on his hand, with his arm propped up on the arm of his throne. “We are fairly sure that my father will release Typhon in his quest to take back my throne. As powerful as I am, I can’t stand up to both Typhon and Cronus. One at a time I could handle them. But one right after the other or both together would be the end of me.”

  Zarel pondered this. “I suspect with Typhon would come Echidna. And where does Gaea stand in all this?”

  Jarel shrugged. “Who knows and frankly, who cares? Gaea won’t speak to any of us, no matter the reason or threat to her precious little world.”

  Zeus gave a wave, a dismissal of his grandmother. “I’m positive that Gaea will not be an issue. I’m more concerned with Typhon and Cronus. I would prefer to take my father out myself. It cements my rule.”

  “I’ll shoot for Typhon then, if you’ll aim for Echidna,” Jarel told his twin.

  “Fine with me,” Zarel agreed. “So how are we doing this?”

  “The seal on Typhon’s prison is still very much intact, so there is nothing to do until it’s broken,” Zeus told him.

  “Where’s Echidna?” Jarel asked.

  “In Tartarus, of course,” Zeus answered.

  “So Hades will need to be alerted that Cronus will venture into Tartarus, or perhaps Typhon will go himself.” Zarel frowned. “There has to be more to this.”

  “Cronus will come with his army of the Titans and whoever else he finds to join his cause, such as the rogue creatures from my service,” Jarel told him.

  “Should we not attempt to halt the resurrection of the Titans?” Zarel asked.

  “Leave it to my children to round them up.” Jarel looked to Zeus. “Does that work for you?”

  Zeus nodded. “The Titans have never faced the Black Dragons before. I’m positive that Andreas, at least, has the power to defeat most of them. And your daughter seems capable, though she is currently after a warlock tied directly to Lucifer.”

  “I’m aware of this. I have a feeling chasing this warlock will lead to Cronus and the Titans.” Jarel folded his arms across his chest. “The fact that this warlock has the power to enslave others tells me that a power greater than Lucifer is supporting them. Your father was somehow influencing Eris from beyond his grave. I have a feeling that Cronus will use these warlocks as part of his army. Anyone that would be offensive to us, he’d use.”

  “Well, our first strike should be formidable, with my son working with your daughter.” Zeus smiled. “I don’t think Cronus will know what hit him.”

  Jarel looked to his twin again. “Prepare your children as well. I want all dragons on hand when the time comes to go into battle.”

  Zarel nodded. “Of course. I’ll alert the other Dragon Gods as well.” He vanished.

  “Thank you, old friend,” Zeus said warmly.

  Jarel actually smiled at him. “Hey, your reign has been well-established and you haven’t truly wronged the world. You’re a far better ruler than your father was, and frankly you make life just interesting enough for me.”

  Zeus chuckled. “Well, I suppose it’ll get more interesting from here on out.”

  Twelve

  “This is such an obvious trap,” Victoria commented.

  They were standing outside of the abandoned gas station, about to go into the connected garage. There were still a few junk cars around the lot.

  “Clearly that little puppet was bait, but you already knew that from the start,” Ares replied.

  “It’s still kind of disappointing.” Victoria folded her arms across her chest. “What little power I sense inside is laughable. I could kill them without setting foot inside.”

  Brandon snorted. “Where’s the fun in that?”

  Ares grinned mischievously. “Kid, I absolutely love you. You should ride with me more often.”

  Victoria rolled her eyes. “Before we go in and butcher them, I need you to check on Adonis.”

  “He’s busy,” Brandon told her in a clipped tone.

  Victoria raised an eyebrow but decided not to press for details. “Looks like we’re ready to go in.”

  “I’m ready,” Ares told her.

  Brandon took the lead, stretching out his power to raise the garage door. Darkness overcame the area and a strange fog covered the ground.

  “What’s with the fog?” Ares asked. “It seems like some form of sorcery.”

  “It’s coming from me,” Brandon told him. “The darkness and the fog are extensions of my power. It weeds out the weaklings.”

  “It is a spell, actually, that you’re casting subconsciously,” Victoria told him. “This spell forms based off the nature of the user. It’s an advanced spell that even most coven leaders can’t use.”

  Brandon shrugged. “I picked up a lot in Shevat. Living as a demon allowed me to pick up a lot of knowledge I’d never have gotten otherwise.”

  “Well, kid, show us what you can do,” Ares told him.

  Brandon stretched out his power even more, increasing the fog. Pained howls broke out as the wolves in the garage writhed in pain. Victoria and Ares watched as the wolves froze in place and were slowly encased in ice.

  “Your nephew is quite amazing,” Ares told Victoria quietly.

  “I can only wish I’d wielded that kind of power at seventeen years old,” she replied. “I was still in training at his age, only hunting every now and then with Andreas.”

  “I’ve noticed as time goes on that all species seem to evolve. And perhaps he’s that much stronger because he’s a combination of races.”

  Meanwhile, Brandon had walked into the building alone, leaving Victoria and Ares alone outside.

  “I’ve come across mixed breeds before, but none with the power and control he has.” Victoria gave a skeptical look to Ares. “You know there’s something different about him, don’t you? Spill what you know.”

  Ares rubbed his jaw speculatively. “There’s something special about both him and his brother. Hera and Zeus have personal interests in them. I’m not in the loop, but I’m as interested to find out as you are. They didn’t have this much personal interest in Heracles, and he saved us all from the giants.”

  Brandon emerged from the garage. “That was painfully easy.”

  “I don’t like being tested by those that are beneath me, it pisses me off.” Victoria frowned. “This was clearly nothing more than that. Balthas knows he’s being hunted and wanted to see who’s hunting him and what they’re capable of.”

  “Smart strategy, really,” Ares commented.

  Victoria scowled at him. “We don’t have time to praise his strategy. We need to find a way around it. Any dent in Lucifer’s forces is a dent in Cronus’ forces.”

  “I’m aware of this. That’s one of the reasons I’m here.”

  “What other reason could you have?” Brandon questioned.

  Ares grinned. “I’m a god, remember? I don’t give straight answers.”

  Victoria decided it was best to move on and ignore that subject too. “We’re missing something. This was too simple.”

&nb
sp; “I agree. We were told Balthas was here and yet he’s not.” Ares folded his arms across his chest. “With his bonds severed, that boy couldn’t have lied to me, which means either he was lied to or Balthas changed plans.”

  “Either way, he’ll make things harder now that he knows my aunt is after him,” Brandon commented. “Tales of the Dragon Witch are known even in Shevat. Warlocks fear her no matter how powerful they are.”

  “Being that hunting them pisses me off, they should be scared,” Victoria muttered.

  “Still, your reputation will delay the process,” Ares told her.

  “What do you want from me? There’s no way for me to conceal myself. Hopefully it’ll cause him to mess up.”

  The fog Brandon generated cleared and the darkness lifted.

  “So what now?” he asked.

  Victoria thought for a few seconds before responding. “There’s nothing more to do tonight. I’m going to go talk to Daniel and then we can head home.”

  “I think I’ll go up to Olympus and see what new information I can find.” Ares vanished.

  “So, you do know the real reason he’s hanging around, right?” Brandon asked his aunt.

  “Of course I do,” Victoria answered. “I’m not stupid. The god of war has a crush on me. It’ll fade eventually.”

  Brandon chose not to respond. Clearly his definition of a crush and his aunt’s definition were quite different.

  Thirteen

  Ares arrived in his temple on Olympus to find Jarel sitting on his throne. Normally, he’d be offended but Jarel wasn’t a god to gripe with over such trivial matters.

  “To what do I owe this pleasure?” he asked.

  “It seems you’ve taken an interest in my daughter and there is some concern over your true motives.” Jarel studied him for several seconds. “Your reputation makes most people wary. Your father fears that you’ll hurt her and earn my wrath.”

  “Is it really so hard to believe that I have a genuine interest in her?” Ares asked.

  Jarel kept his gaze level and unreadable. “You are the god of war. Some would call you incapable of softer emotions.”

  Ares scowled. “All beings are capable of love. Wars have been fought for both love and lust.”

  Jarel chuckled. “Settle down, boy. I have no intention of taking you to task over something like this. My daughter can handle herself.”

  “Then why are you here?” Ares asked.

  “Mostly because I’m bored, and also to give you a nudge in the right direction.”

  Ares couldn’t hide his look of disbelief. “You’re giving me advice?”

  “Of course. No one knows Victoria better than me.”

  “That’s pretty weird, you know.”

  Jarel shrugged. “I’m a different type of father. Do you want the advice or not?”

  “Right now she views me as just another god. I could use a little advantage.”

  “That gets to my first piece of advice: stop acting like an all-powerful god, it irritates her.”

  Ares gave him a dull stare. “I am a god. How am I supposed to act like anything else?”

  “Act like a male courting a female. The fact that you’re a god does nothing for her. She needs to see the man, not the god presented to the world.”

  “You’re losing me here.”

  Jarel rolled his eyes. “Did Hera drop you on your head at birth? Stop showing off and show her the side of yourself you’ve never shown anyone. The aggressive pompous ass side you show everyone else won’t ever appeal to her. Right now she sees you as a god deeming it worth his time to help someone beneath him. Treat her like you would any goddess and she’ll respect you more.”

  “She’s not like the goddesses I know.”

  Jarel nodded. “I’m aware of that. She lacks the raging bitch for no reason hormone most goddesses get. However, treat her how you treated each of the goddesses you’ve courted before you found out they were a raging bitch.”

  Ares frowned, his mind reflecting on what he’d been told.

  “Don’t overthink it, son. Just relax a little and no matter what others think, I’m rooting for you.” Jarel vanished.

  “That was just weird,” Ares muttered to himself.

  Brandon awoke the next morning to a mental tug that instantly irritated him. It was so insistent that he had no choice but to flash to Adonis immediately. Thankfully he hadn’t slept naked this time, so he showed up in Adonis’ room in his sweatpants and a wife beater.

  Adonis sat on his bed when the room went dark for a second before Brandon appeared. He started to smile, until he saw the scowl on Brandon’s face.

  “What’s wrong with you?” he asked.

  Brandon’s scowl deepened, marring his handsome face. “You woke me up and brought me here and I’ve had a very restless night. What do you want?”

  Adonis looked hurt. “I just wanted to talk.”

  Brandon ran a hand over his face in exasperation. “Look, I’m having a real tough time right now. It’s hard enough having this connection to you that means I have to be the one to come running to your rescue. I can’t put the space between us that we need until I know you’re safe. But that isn’t an open invitation to pull me to you for quick chats.”

  “So, we can’t be friends?” Adonis asked.

  You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me, Id growled in Brandon’s mind.

  Brandon ignored Id, though their thoughts were identical. “You really think you can handle being friends with me?”

  “Well, I don’t want to just cut you out of my life completely.”

  Id laughed in his mind. Who in the hell does he think we are? If we didn’t love him, I’d bathe in his entrails for the insult.

  Brandon’s mouth twitched but still he only spoke to Adonis. “You have a boyfriend. Don’t you think you should clear this with him?”

  “He’s fine with it. He says he’d like to meet you.”

  Oh yeah, that’s just what we need, to meet the guy that replaced us, Id said sarcastically.

  “I’m not sure how wise that would be,” Brandon said aloud.

  Adonis frowned. “Why not?”

  “Let’s see, ex-boyfriend meets current boyfriend. Why in the world would that be a bad idea?”

  “No need to be a smartass,” Adonis muttered.

  “Better a smartass than a dumbass,” Brandon replied.

  Adonis laughed and Id growled in Brandon’s mind. He sighed.

  “Where is he?”

  “Phil? He’s in the bathroom,” Adonis answered.

  I’m going to murder him, Id warned.

  No, you’re not, Brandon told him.

  Of course, Phil chose that moment to walk in with no shirt on. He stopped and locked eyes with Brandon. He was a dark skinned young man, about an inch shorter than Brandon but similar in size and figure. His eyes were a dark brown and as Brandon looked, they began to change.

  “You’ve gotta be shitting me,” Brandon muttered.

  “What’s wrong?” Adonis looked back and forth between them.

  Phil growled and launched himself across the room, tackling Brandon through the window. The two fell from the second story window to the ground, with Brandon taking the brunt of the fall since Phil landed on top of him. He tossed the man off and sprang to his feet, already noticing several cuts from the glass all over his back. Phil got up as well and charged again, his form changing as he launched himself into a large gray wolf. Brandon held up a hand and his power held the wolf in midair.

  “Goddamn wolves.” In irritation he hit a roundhouse kick to the wolf’s head, knocking him to the ground.

  “Stop!” Adonis came dashing out of the house and stood between them as Phil rose again. “What the hell is wrong with you?!”

  Brandon reached back and pulled a piece of glass from his back. “You failed to mention you’re dating a werewolf and you know wolves hate me.”

  Phil growled, clearly preparing to launch himself again.

  “Go ahead, furba
ll, try me,” Brandon taunted.

  Phil launched himself again and this time Brandon’s power forced him to the ground and held him there.

  “Now stay there, pup. I don’t want to have to kill you, but if you continue to piss me off, I’ll rip out your esophagus and strangle you with it.” Brandon watched him. “Do you understand?”

  Phil nodded and shifted to human form. This, of course, left him totally nude. Brandon actually growled at him and flung his hand, instantly dressing him in baggy sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Phil stood up with a frown.

  “I can dress myself,” he snapped.

  “Keep talking, wolf, and I’ll neuter you,” Brandon shot back.

  “Why exactly are you two attacking each other?” Adonis asked irritably.

  Brandon pinched the bridge of his nose in obvious frustration. “I don’t hate him. Most wolves, by nature, hate me because of my genetics.”

  “He’s a demon,” Phil growled.

  “I’m part demon, you jackass,” Brandon replied.

  “What difference does it make?” Adonis asked Phil.

  “I don’t deal with demons,” Phil answered.

  “And I castrate wolves,” Brandon retorted. “You’re stuck dealing with me. The will of Jarel trumps yours.”

  Phil scowled. “What are you talking about?”

  “Jarel, who by the way is my grandfather, ordered me to protect your boyfriend. So you’re stuck with me as long as you’re with him.” Brandon grinned mischievously. “Anytime he so much as thinks about thinking about me, I’ll just pop right in. You’d better hope you’re decent.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Phil muttered.

  “Nope, afraid I’m totally serious.” Brandon couldn’t stop grinning.

  Phil only scowled and Brandon continued the conversation mentally.

  You’d better hope he never thinks of me during sex or I’ll switch places with you immediately. And believe me, he’ll enjoy it a hell of a lot more than whatever you do.

  I’m going to kill you, Phil replied.

  In your dreams, wolf. I just thought it was fair to warn you. He may want you now, but if I get him alone and things happen, he’ll forget everything about you.