The three of them moved their way up through the castle, destroying everything in sight. They burst through the roof, spraying black stone down like rain. They flew around the castle then, taking turns blasting the base walls with frost and flame.
Corban could hear the screams from inside as the foundation began to crumble, weakened in only a matter of minutes from the intermittent stress of cold and heat. Finally there was a great, deep rumbling.
The dragons all flew up high to watch as the enormous black castle begin to crash inward upon itself. The towers smashed into one another, the walls folding as they fell. Plumes of dark dust mushroomed into the sky.
The destruction would not bring his father back, but it felt good all the same. He had no idea how long this scourge had been preying upon Xandakar. Nicola had talked of other worlds as well. Who knew how many civilizations they had preyed upon. But now their reign was over.
He nodded to a flat stretch of black earth overlooking the ruined fortress, and the three of them flew there and landed. They each shifted back into human form.
Corban looked down at the castle, pieces still falling and crumbling, jagged remains jutting from the earth. He turned to Miranda.
“You did it,” he said.
“We did it,” she said. She moved to him then, and he wrapped her in his arms, hugging her tightly. He pulled back slightly and looked her in those beautiful dark eyes, flecks of gold and red in the iris.
He kissed her, tasting her breath, still smoky from breathing torrents of fire upon their enemies. He kissed her long and deep, holding her tight against him.
Then he looked up. He’d almost forgotten Siccora was there. She stood with her arms folded, a half-smile on her lips. Their hair was different, but now that they both wore the same armor and stood near one another, they could easily be mistaken for sisters, even twins.
He let go of Miranda and stepped toward Siccora, extending his hand.
“I owe you a debt of gratitude as well,” he said.
A wicked grin crossed her lips. She stepped in past his hand. Before he could pull back, she moved in, pushing her lips against his. She tasted of smoke as well, her tongue pushing deep into his mouth.
He heard Miranda behind him, clearing her throat.
Siccora pulled away, looking at him seductively while she licked her lips. “Sorry,” she said, though from her tone it was clear she wasn’t sorry at all. “I just wanted a taste of what I was missing out on.”
Corban turned to look at Miranda. She looked annoyed, but not angry. They had all just cheated death. One kiss didn’t seem too much to ask.
But now they stood before the ruins of the black fortress, nothing and no one in sight. If there had been some sort of machine or talisman Nicola had used to open the portal between worlds, it was now lying in a pile of rubble, likely destroyed.
He looked up the sky for the first time, seeing the unending storm that played out between the dark clouds. How were they to get back to Xandakar? This did not seem like a world where they would be able to make a new home. They would be able to split up, to fly in different directions to see what they could find. But he would not be hopeful with such a plan. The horizon in every direction looked the same, black rock and purple sky.
He looked to Miranda. “How did you come to this place?”
“We followed them through their own portal,” she said.
His heart sank. “Any idea of how we might return?”
“Maybe I could just click my heels three times,” Miranda said. Corban stared at her. He didn’t understand how that might help.
“Oh, right,” she said, laughing a little. “I’ll tell you the story sometime. I was only half-joking, though.” She lifted her fingers to the gem around her neck. “The Emberstone brought me to Xandakar. It also made me a dragon the first time. I can control that now. Maybe I can control the ability to move between worlds. I mean, I’ve never really tried.”
“Even if you could,” Siccora said. “What about us?”
“We can hold onto each other,” Miranda said. “It’s worth a shot.”
Corban looked between the two women. He loved Miranda, but he was not averse to holding both in his arms at the same time.
Miranda held her arms outstretched. He and Siccora moved to her, letting her put her arms around them. They hugged each other in a tight circle.
Miranda closed her eyes. “There’s no place like home,” she whispered.
At first he didn’t feel anything. As the seconds ticked by, the idea seemed increasingly ridiculous. But he had vowed to put his trust in her, and if she thought she might have the power to move them between worlds, he would give her the chance.
Then he did begin to feel something, a lightness, as if his body were fading away and becoming insubstantial. He opened his mouth to say something, to ask something, but then the black earth and the lightning sky began to fade.
As a dragon, he could fly at great speeds, faster than nearly any other dragon in the clan. But what he felt next was a sensation of being propelled forward at a speed he never imagined possible. The world became a blur. His stomach lurched. He was still holding on to Miranda and Siccora, and he squeezed them even tighter, afraid of what might happen if he somehow lost his grip. Would he be flung into a void? Perhaps tumble into some other world?
He didn’t want to find out. But the sensation made him feel sick. So he squeezed his eyes shut. That helped a little, but he still felt like a tiny pebble being hurled from a slingshot.
And then, suddenly, everything was still.
He opened his eyes.
The whiteness of the snow blinded him for a moment. He had to squint at the brightness. He still hugged Miranda and Siccora, but now they stood in a fresh patch of snow, on a hill overlooking a wonderful, familiar site. Everfrost Keep rose up before them, its icy blue walls shimmering in the midday sun. He saw a flock of sparrows alight over a cluster of nearby pines. He smelled the snow and the woods.
Then he looked at Miranda, who blinked, slowly opening her eyes. Would this woman never cease to surprise him?
“We’re here,” Miranda whispered, the shock evident in her voice. She hadn’t really thought it would work.
“Yes,” Siccora said. “We made it.”
They all gave each other one last hug, then stepped apart.
“It’s a beautiful day,” Corban said. He had never thought he would look upon the clear skies of the Icelands again.
“A nice enough day for an execution,” Siccora said.
“That will not happen,” Corban said. “Not while I am alive.”
“But our ways—” Siccora said.
“—will change,” Corban finished. “To blindly follow the same path of tradition is foolish. Sometimes we just adapt. Sometimes we must change.” He looked at Miranda. He thought of his old life, selfish and indulgent, now filled with her warmth. “My new wife has already taught me that lesson.”
23: Miranda
She looked at the small group gathered in the courtyard. Corban stood on her right, Magda on her left. Siccora and her huge bodyguard Korrigan stood next to her. They were wearing their clothes from Earth. Siccora wore a scarlet business suit with a wide-collared white shirt underneath. Korrigan wore a dark suit with no tie, his dark hair curling out of the top of his white shirt.
The Wildfire entourage was there as well. Karth Wildfire had been waiting to witness his daughter’s execution, but that was no longer going to happen. Instead, he and Siccora were saying their goodbyes.
The Council of Owls, along with Corban and Miranda’s input, had decreed that Siccora and Korrigan be banished, sent back to Earth, never to return to Xandakar again.
Miranda thought her suit made her look like some kind of high-powered businesswoman. But as she hugged her father goodbye, she seemed more like a little girl. Tears stood out in Karth Wildfire’s eyes. As he hugged her, he leaned down and whispered something in her ear. Siccora nodded, wiping away her own tears.
They had recounted what had happened to Magda. She had told them the men they had faced on the other side of the portal had been called Netherstriders, able to travel between worlds and feed on magic. Their defeat had been a great victory, not only for Xandakar, but for all the beings in all the worlds that they preyed upon.
Miranda was exonerated completely. Siccora probably could have been, but in this place, there was shame associated with defeat, especially in a battle where the loser was supposed to die. No one here would respect her anymore. She couldn’t just return to her clan, even though she was a hero. Miranda thought that was stupid, but she also knew she wasn’t just going to swoop in and change thousands of years of tradition overnight.
But then she had come up with the idea of banishment. It seemed like the perfect solution. Of course, if she had to watch any more of this tearful goodbye between Siccora and her father, she was going to start crying herself.
But they pulled apart, and Siccora returned to stand by Korrigan, sliding her slender hand into his massive grip.
Magda stepped forward. “It is the judgment of all that Siccora Wildfire and Korrigan Darkclaw be banished to the realm of Earth for the rest of their days.” She turned and nodded to Miranda.
Not only had she come up with the idea, she had agreed to take care of the transportation. Her mind was still blown at how far she had come in just a few days. She had learned how to become a dragon and a queen, and she had also learned how to use the stone to travel between worlds.
She took a step forward and felt Corban’s arm on hers. She looked back at him, into those pale blue eyes.
“You will return to me, won’t you?” he asked. “I mean, is there a possibility you would be tempted to stay.”
She stepped up to him, cupping his smooth, strong jaw with her hand. She drew him in for a kiss. When her lips left his, she looked at him again. “Don’t be dumb,” she said. “I’m a little curious to see what my old world looks like through new eyes. But this is my home now.”
He smiled and kissed her again.
Then Miranda turned back to Siccora and Korrigan. They were a strange-looking couple. He was so much bigger than her. They both had dark hair, but that’s where the similarity ended. She was smooth and sleek, while he looked rough and wild.
You can never tell where love’s going to take you, she thought, glancing back at Corban one more time.
“You ready?” she asked them. Siccora nodded, and Miranda could see her squeeze Korrigan’s hand. He just looked down at her from under his thick eyebrows, and Miranda could see the affection there.
She stepped up to them, hugging them both. Then she closed her eyes and spoke to the stone.
She almost thought it wasn’t going to work. But then there was that now-familiar feeling of the world falling away, of being hurled through space.
When the world was still again, Miranda opened her eyes. The three of them had made it, and now they stood by the dirt road she had driven up so many times. Thirty feet away stood her old trailer home. Parked beside it was her car, the little beat-up red Honda.
The sun was high in the cloudless sky, but a nice breeze was blowing. Korrigan took a few steps away and doubled over, putting his hands on his knees.
“He just needs a minute,” Siccora said.
Miranda looked at him. He was as pale as a sheet, but he didn’t throw up. “Wait here,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”
She walked to the trailer and opened the screen door. There, just inside the frame on a little hook were her keys. She glanced around. It was just as she’d left it, her Benny’s uniform in a pile on the floor. The cheap wine bottle on the tiny kitchen table.
She sighed, hardly believing she had lived in this place.
If anyone had called the police, there were no signs they’d been here. I guess I won’t be missed, she thought, a little sad at the idea. But it some ways she knew this had never really been her home at all.
The screen door clattered close as she walked back to Siccora, tossing her the keys.
“It should still run fine,” she said. “Sorry it’s not as nice as what you’re used to.”
Siccora surprised Miranda by throwing her arms around her and hugging her tightly.
“Thank you,” she whispered in Miranda’s ear. “For everything.”
Miranda hugged her tightly, tears welling up in her eyes. “No problem,” she said.
She looked at Korrigan, who had straightened up now. He took a deep breath.
“You okay?” she asked him.
He grunted and nodded.
“He doesn’t say much, does he?” Miranda asked.
Siccora smiled. “Oh, you might be surprised.” She tossed the keys to Korrigan, who snatched them out of the air.
With that, they walked to her car and got in, the left side sagging as Korrigan squeezed into the driver’s seat. Siccora looked back at her one last time before getting in. The car started up with a rumble, a gasp of blue-black exhaust puffing out of the tailpipe.
Then they pulled off onto the dirt road and were gone, leaving a trail of dust behind.
Miranda took one more look around. Before coming through, she thought she might have been a little homesick. She was surprised to find that she really didn’t miss this place at all. That shouldn’t have been surprising, she guessed. She was a dragon now, a queen, and with everything that had happened in so short a time, who knew what else?
No place like home, she thought, closing her eyes and grasping the stone around her neck.
24: Corban
She lay naked before him on a bed of fresh snow, her light bronze skin a beautiful contrast to the stark whiteness.
“You’re not cold?” he asked, crouching over her. He had shed his armor skin and was completely naked as well.
“I don’t think I can get cold anymore,” Miranda said.
They had flown as far to the north as the north would go, away from everything and everyone. They had found a snow-capped mountain and landed near the top, to finish what they had started on their wedding night.
Corban traced a finger up her bare belly, between her breasts. Her nipples were darker than he’d remembered. He was already good and stiff. No, he was harder than that, almost painfully solid. He hungered to plunge himself into her. He had pleasured her, twice now, but his finger and his tongue were not the same. It was time to take her, fully and truly, to make her his. It was time for the two of them to truly become one.
“Are you going to sit there staring at me all afternoon?” she asked. “Or are you going to do something about it?”
He smiled. She had quite the tart mouth, but he had found that he liked it. “Not wise to taunt a dragon,” he said.
“Less wise to keep one waiting,” she said. She reached out and grabbed his cock, pulling him down to her. She guided his tip into her wet warmth. He pushed himself the rest of the way as she let go.
She was so warm inside, hot almost to the point of being painful. But it was a good pain. He put his lips on her neck, kissing and sucking as he pulled back and plunged again. She tasted like smoke and cinnamon.
From the very first time he had seen her, he had felt an incredible itch that he hadn’t been able to scratch. Until right now. He reached up with his right hand to cup her breast, soft and warm. His other hand reached around to cup the back of her neck. He rocked back and forth as she moaned.
She was right. She didn’t seem cold at all, even though they were making love on a fresh bed of snow.
Corban dipped himself into her, feeling as if he were penetrating the molten core of a volcano, ready to erupt. Her breathing quickened with his, and their hips moved in a thumping, synchronous rhythm, the beat growing faster and faster.
She reached around with her other hand to grab his ass cheeks and squeezed them both as he pu
mped her.
Then a world of light exploded behind his eyes. His body stiffened as he came. Miranda let out a cry of joy at the same time, their bodies locked in perfect ecstasy.
He felt the pleasure radiate from deep in his groin down his legs and up into his stomach. His neck and ears tingled. He felt himself unload completely, emptying himself into her.
He let out a gasp, breathing hard, then rolled beside her. Then they both lay back on the snow and let out a heavy sigh in unison.
“I wish we had been able to do that sooner,” he said. “But it was truly worth the wait.”
She sat up on one elbow, tracing her finger around his nipple. “Truly,” she said, giggling.
“To think I dreaded your arrival,” he said.
“Well, you had your little deer girl. Speaking of which, I’m sending her back to whatever forest she came from.”
“Hartglade,” he said. “And I’ve already sent her away.”
“Where is that?” she asked. “I don’t know anything about your world.”
“It’s your world now,” he said, sitting up. “Here, I’ll teach you.”
He used his finger to draw a crude map in the snow, remembering the shape of the border from memory. Wygard had tutored him as a child, and the geography of Xandakar had been one of the earliest lessons he could remember.
Corban drew the outline of a huge land mass, then drew a smaller one off to the left. He drew a simple tree in the middle of the large mass, then lines separating it into four pieces.
He pointed to the top. “These are the Icelands,” he said. “Where we are. To the south and west are The Burning Sands, where the Wildfires rule. Here, to the south and east are The Still Plains, where the Moonglow clan holds dominion.”
“Moonglow?”
“The white dragons,” he said. “And far to the south is The Silent Swamp, where Sorian Nightshadow and his black dragons live.”
“What’s this tree?” Miranda asked, pointing to the middle.
Dragon Blue: A Lie That's True (The Dragonlords of Xandakar, Book1) Page 14