Roommates

by Valerie Reyes

  Rasenth hardly knew what to say. He had babies with Syrenth? That wasn’t exactly the most uplifting news in the world given the circumstances. In fact, depending on Tazour’s reaction to this, it might be the preface to a battle between the two of them.

  “I see,” Rasenth said softly. “And what do you wish to do?” he asked, wondering what Syrenth wanted. As things were, Rasenth didn’t see how he could go back home with Syrenth, or Syrenth come here. So, it would be a very difficult thing to work out.

  “I don’t know,” Syrenth replied, visibly upset but he was trying to hold back the tears. He wanted to hold Rasenth, to have him close to him again and feel his comforting warmth engulf him. Just one last time at least.

  “I hide them in my room. I came straight here. I don’t know what to do. I’m scared,” Syrenth spoke, squeezing Rasenth’s hand and refusing to let go. If he could, he would have just run away with Rasenth, apologising for leaving him the way he did and maybe try and be happy somewhere far away. However, that was probably never going to happen. Rasenth had a whole clan to think of. He had chosen Syrenth over them before, however, the young dragon doubted it would happen again.

  “Where is your father right now?” Rasenth asked, pulling Syrenth towards him, just holding him closely. He was glad to leave everything behind for Syrenth, as long as he was sure that Syrenth really did want to stay with him. He wouldn’t let Syrenth leave him this time, though. As long as his lover wanted to stay with him, then he would stay by his side no matter what came.

  Syrenth felt a small wave of relief washing over him as Rasenth held him. The young dragon nuzzled into the elder, resting his head against the male’s shoulder and just enjoyed the moment of being in his arms.

  “He’s working around town. He’s probably doing his inspection of the elk herd,” Syrenth replied, happy to give Rasenth whatever information or help he needed. He didn’t want to leave this time. If he could, he would have just stayed here, but they couldn’t leave the eggs down there, alone and defenceless.

  “Is there going to be another time where Tazour will leave the tribe for a few days, like he did in the winter?” Rasenth asked. He wanted to find the best time for Syrenth to sneak out with the eggs. Rasenth could scout out a suitable nest, and then he could take Syrenth there and they could raise the little hatchlings.

  “I think so. Yeah. In a few weeks,” Syrenth replied, looking up at Rasenth to see what his plan was. He would just do whatever the elder dragon said. Rasenth clearly knew what he was doing here and it seemed he was already beginning to formulate a plan. If it meant they could be somewhere safe with the little ones then Syrenth was willing to do whatever it took to make that happen.

  “Well, it typically takes a little over a month for dragon eggs to hatch. So, we will have to just be careful and wait for your father to leave, and you will have to make sure that he doesn’t find out about the eggs. While we’re waiting, I’ll find a suitable nest for us, and we can move the eggs there once your father has left,” Rasenth said, gently running his fingers through Syrenth’s hair. He was a bit overwhelmed that he was a father for the first time, and over 1000 years old. He wanted to do a good job and raise the little wyrms, though, and keep them safe.

  “Can we not leave sooner?” Syrenth asked, as he was scared of keeping this a secret. It would only be a matter of time before Tazour found the eggs. There weren’t many places Syrenth could hide them, and he had to keep them warm so they wouldn’t die. It wasn’t going to be an easy task, that was for sure.

  “Do you think you could leave your father’s home with the eggs without getting caught?” Rasenth asked, not to argue with Syrenth, but if that was too risky, it was better that he try and dig a hole in the backyard while Tazour slept and hide them there. As long as the hole was about ten feet down, the ground would be around seventy degrees, which would be warm enough for the eggs to be safe. Rasenth just thought that moving them at the risk of being caught might spook Syrenth should someone see him, and maybe one of the eggs would drop. That was just a scenario that Rasenth didn’t want to see realized.

  “I don’t know. Maybe. I just don’t feel safe there now. If my father found out… I don’t know what he would do,” Syrenth replied, burying his head into Rasenth chest as he tried not to think of being caught with the eggs. Tazour would lose the plot. He’d go mental and probably kill Rasenth for this. Not that Syrenth would tell Tazour who fathered the eggs, but they certainly weren’t the same colour or texture as normal inferno eggs, so he would probably figure it out sooner or later.

  “I leave it up to your discretion. If you think that you could leave without being followed, then I encourage you to try. If not, then the only thing that we can do is wait. Just realize that if you get caught leaving and whomever catches you sees the eggs, they will definitely have some questions, and you may not be allowed to leave after that point,” Rasenth said. He wanted this done in the safest and most cautious manner possible.

  “I don’t know if I can do it on my own. I want to get them out, but i don’t think I’ll be able to without someone seeing me,” Syrenth replied, after hearing the risks of leaving so suddenly it made the young dragon hesitate. It was possible for him to be caught and questioned about this, and once Tazour found out he’d probably never be allowed to leave the house again. His father would probably have the eggs squished, left to die and be forgotten so the family name wasn’t ruined by this act. It was terrible, but Syrenth felt like he had to do something. He wanted to guarantee the hatchlings safety whatever way he could.

  “Listen, you just have to hurry back home, before your father returned, and dig a hole that’s fairly deep. About ten feet or so. Hide the eggs there and camouflage the hole so that it’s not noticeable. I will go and look for a nice place to nest, and you just keep appearances up until it’s time to go. I wish I could keep you here in my arms, but right now, it’s just not safe to linger. Okay?” Rasenth said, giving Syrenth a kiss on the forehead to comfort him a little.

  A kiss on the forehead wasn’t enough for Syrenth. He sat up and locked his lips with Rasenth’s, holding him close as he tried to make the kiss as passionate as he could. He wanted to make sure that Rasenth was going to stay true to his word that he would come back for him and find a nest for them to live. Syrenth just needed to know that everything would work out and that everything would be okay.

  “You promise you’ll come for me?”

  The kiss was a bolder move than he had expected from Syrenth, but he enjoyed it thoroughly, and kissed back with an equal amount of passion.

  “Love, I wouldn’t leave you if offered the world. You can count on me coming back for you as soon as Tazour is gone. Now, when precisely is that?” Rasenth asked, so he knew what kind of schedule was working with to find a new nest.

  “The next full moon, that’s when he should be going,” Syrenth replied, happy to give all the information he could. At least they had a plan, and as long as Syrenth could bury his eggs and keep them away from Tazour they should be fine. He just hoped nothing would go wrong before that.

  “Good. I will be coming the day after that, just to make sure he’s cleared out. I’ll meet you in the sycamore forests up a bit north of your village, and we can travel together from there. Does that sound good?” Rasenth suggested, exercising as much caution as possible.

  “Where we met the first time?” Syrenth asked, just to confirm that was where they would meet. It sounded so romantic, running away together where they first laid eyes on each other. Syrenth’s stomach just filled with butterflies at the thought. He was calming down a lot now that they had an action plan, he just hoped it would work.

  “Precisely there,” Rasenth replied, and gave Syrenth a kiss. “Now, though I’m loathe to let you go, you have to get back home quickly and hide the eggs before it’s too late. Okay?” Rasenth said. He took no pleasure in rushing Syrenth out of his chambers, but time was of the essence.

  Syrenth returned the kiss and gave Rasenth o
ne last squeeze before getting up to leave. This wasn’t the most ideal circumstances to be reunited with the dragon he loved, but at least he would be able to be with Rasenth again.

  “Thank you. I’ll see you in a few weeks,” Syrenth spoke softly, then took his leave to fly back to his village. He didn’t want to fly back in that wind so soon after flying through it before, but he had to do it to get back home. So, he turned into his dragon form and headed off, being as quick as he could so he could hide his eggs before Tazour found them.

  Chapter 8

  Weeks passed until the night of the full moon, upon which Rasenth was returning to wait for Syrenth to come the next day. He found a cave that was well protected, what with it being behind a waterfall in a nice, warm place. He wouldn’t be at full strength in a warm location, granted, but all the tribes around the area were significantly weaker than he was, so protection wouldn’t be too big of a concern. Not to mention, there was food aplenty, and it was a beautiful location no less. So, Rasenth was excited to take his young lover there, where they could just be at peace and enjoy themselves while they raised the hatchlings--such was his dream, anyways.

  As the sun set, Tazour got ready to leave. He wished his son goodbye as he walked out the door then headed out of the house. Normally, he would have just taken off from outside the house, but something had caught the older dragons eye. He could see numerous twigs and branches gathered in a pile from behind his house. That was a little strange. It seemed as if a tree had fallen down or something, but there was no other evidence for it.

  So, Tazour went to investigate. He walked around the back of the house to see a patch of uneven grass, dirt and half buried branches. This hadn’t always been here. Tazour brought his nose down to sniff at the ground, see if something was amiss, because nothing about this seemed right. Something must have been buried here.

  Without any further hesitation, Tazour began digging up the ground, removing the dead leaves, branches, twigs and soil until he finally reached something. Something hard. The older dragon brushed away the soil to find the top of a large purple egg. He brushed away more sand, and there was another.

  “This can’t be,” Tazour muttered, as all egg laying was to be reported so that the new hatchlings could be properly taken care of and accounted for. The Inferno leader brought his muzzle down to the eggs, inhaling their scent to find out who they belonged to, and he couldn’t believe his nose when he caught the scent of his own son. These were Syrenth’s. There was no mistake. Tazour was furious.

  “Syrenth!” Tazour called at the top of his lungs. The entire village could probably hear it, but none would dare disturb a family quarrel. Hearing Tazour scream like that was the last thing Syrenth was wanting or expecting. He had been hoping his father had left by now, but it seemed that wasn’t the case and his nightmares were coming back to haunt him. Syrenth had a pretty good guess of what was wrong, but there was no way he could back out now.

  Slowly, the young dragon left the house, keeping his head down as he approached his father cautiously. His heart was beating a mile a minute and he could feel his legs shaking with fear.

  “Yes, father?” He asked cautiously, the terror embedded into his voice.

  “What are these?” Tazour snapped, taking a step towards his son and gesturing the eggs with his tail. Syrenth didn’t answer. Not immediately. He just lowered his head further and looked to the floor.

  “Answer me!” Tazour growled, advancing again towards his son, almost ready to hit his son for his act of disobedience.

  “They’re eggs,” Syrenth spoke eventually, backing off to the side a little and trying to get over the eggs, but Tazour wouldn’t let them. Not until he was finished with his interrogation.

  “Whose eggs?” Tazour asked, but once again, Syrenth didn’t answer. He could barely even look at his father. He wished Rasenth was here to tell him what to do, or what to say. He didn’t know.

  “Tell me who these damned eggs belong to or i’ll crush them,” Tazour snapped, but there was still no answer from the younger dragon. Now, his patience had ran thin. The older dragon went back over to the hole in the ground and was ready to obliterate the eggs, raising his claws to smack down hard on them.

  “They’re mine!” Syrenth screamed, just before his father went through with his plan. For now they were alright, but Syrenth didn’t know how much longer he would be able to keep them safe with his father acting this way.

  “Who is the other parent?” Tazour asked, keeping close to the eggs as a threat to his son for him to keep talking, and it seemed to work.

  “Someone outside the herd. That’s why I hid them,”

  “Who was it?”

  “Just an outsider. No one important. It was a mistake!”

  “Tell me there name, where they are from. Now, Syrenth,” Tazour demanded, and Syrenth had to give in. He didn’t want his eggs being crushed. He had no choice now.

  “They’re Rasenth’s,” Syrenth spoke, his voice almost a whisper but Tazour heard it clear as day. He couldn’t believe it. His son had betrayed the Infernos by sleeping with an ice dragon? Their family honour had now been tainted by such a stupid act, and Tazour was just filled with rage.

  “Tell me this wasn’t consented. Tell me this was against your will,” Tazour growled, as he wanted the chance to at least try and redeem his son’s actions before things spiralled out of control. However, Syrenth didn’t answer and he just stared at the ground. His silence was enough to confirm everything though.

  “You will get inside the house and you will not move from there. Do understand me?” Tazour ordered and waited until Syrenth retreated back into the house before going anywhere. The older dragon was absolutely furious. He was seeing red right now, and he wasn’t going to stop until he had confronted Rasenth and ended this horrific nightmare that his son had caused.

  In the sycamore grove, Rasenth was getting anxious, and he was clawing nervously on trees while he waited for his lover to arrive with the eggs. He knew that he advised Rasenth not to take the eggs until the evening after his father left for reasons of security, but until he saw Syrenth coming with their unhatched babies, he wouldn’t be able to relax. He was far too anxious to do anything but pace and claw at whatever unlucky tree might be around him.

  It was Tazour’s intentions to head straight to the mountains to find Rasenth, as he expected the ice elder to be there. However, as Tazour flew overhead, he managed to spot the ice dragon in the forest. Rasenth stuck out like a sore thumb in Inferno territory, and now Tazour was going to make the most of that.

  The Inferno dragon landed in the forest, letting out an ear piercing roar as he approached Rasenth. There was smoke pouring out of his nostrils as his eyes were glowing red with rage.

  “How dare you infect my son with your wretched dna. You will pay for dishonouring him,” Tazour snapped, ready to pounce and kill Rasenth as soon as possible.

  Tazour certainly wasn’t the fire dragon that Rasenth had been expecting, and he wasn’t happy to have to defend himself now from his lover’s father. Even though Rasenth was an older and more experienced dragon than Tazour, Tazour held the distinct advantage of being a fire wyrm, and therefore being able to use his element to weaken Rasenth. Given that, the battle certainly wouldn’t be easy for either of them.

  “Blow smoke all you want Tazour,” Rasenth replied, flicking his tail in annoyance. “What’s done is done. Just try to calm down and think about the situation. If you kill me here, then those eggs will hatch, and your grandchildren will never know their father. Is that what you want?” he asked, trying to talk Tazour out of fighting first, if it would be a possibility.

  “If they are ice dragons, they’ll be dead the moment they come out of their shell,” Tazour hissed. He wasn’t feeling any affection for the hatchlings. As far as Tazour was concerned, his son had betrayed him and those eggs were just the result of his sin. He’d exterminate them if they weren’t his own kind, then no one had to know they even existed.

/>   “I won’t let you touch them, you swine,” Rasenth hissed, his wings spreading menacingly. He would protect his young, if he had to die in the process of defending them. A part of him was saddened that it had to come to a battle between the two of them, considering they were both very powerful dragons, and so one of them would die and the other likely be severely maimed. However, he would fight to the death to protect the hatchlings.

  Considering that there wasn’t much room left for negotiation, Rasenth began flapping his icy wings, creating a flurry of snow to help create a more suitable terrain for fighting.

  Tazour was definitely up for a fight. As the snow crept in, Tazour raised his head and blew out a blaze of blue fire to warm up the atmosphere. After that, he patted the ground, scratching at the earth before charging forward towards Rasenth, teeth snapping as he raced towards him.

  When Tazour charged, Rasenth attempted to use the crescent scythes on each side of his mouth to cut his foe near the mouth, so that he would be crippled from using his powerful jaws for a while, or at least to intercept the attack. Tazour was cut, blood dripping from his mouth, but it didn’t stop him as he sliced his claws through Rasenth’s abdomen.

  The ice dragon roared in pain, but he didn’t hesitate for long. With a swish flick of his tail, he whacked Tazour’s legs, forcing him off balance before shooting his head foreward to floor the Inferno dragon. Tazour was startled for a moment, and sent out another blast of blue flames towards the ice dragon, but it missed. The Inferno dragon may have been stronger, but Rasenth’s experience was giving him favour in this battle.

  As Tazour tried to get back to his feet, Rasenth got onto his hind legs, using his wings to shoot more ice and snow towards his enemy, blinding Tazour momentarily before Rasenth moved in and sunk his sharp, white teeth into the younger male’s neck. A screech of pain blurted from Tazour’s mouth as he hit Rasenth with his claws, using his wings to push the other dragon away and gain a bit of distance. He was now losing quite a bit of blood. The inferno dragon felt dizzy and unsteady, and Rasenth was quick to use this to his advantage. He charged towards the other dragon, his wings close to his body as he made his fatal pounce, forcing Tazour onto his back as he raised his claws to deliver the final blow.