by Aaron Crash
They stood in front of the Infinity Ranch’s tower. Both were full of magic as the sun inched lower to the horizon. The plan was to leave right away.
Bud touched his Bluetooth collar and ended a call. “Okay, I talked with Wyoming’s governor. He’ll handle the paperwork. For us humans, it’ll be a gas leak and a brush fire. The fire department won’t come out, but there will be a news story. He has it all worked out. For the Dragonsouls, Steven Drokharis will be deceased. As executor of the will, I’ll start the process of dividing up your lands. That is going to be a shitstorm without a doubt, but it will look good to outsiders.”
“I would suggest an umbrella, a tarp, and knee-high shitproof waders.” Tessa wore jeans, big motorcycle boots, and a green Mexican serape that covered her Within Temptation’s Black Symphony T-shirt. The serape protected her from the chill spring wind, and it looked cool.
“One more thing,” Bud added. “The governor reminded me of something. There’s a Washington, DC, guy that wants a meeting with you. Robert Stains. I told him now was not a good time. Your death will freak him out, but oh well.”
Chazzie was dragging two more suitcases to the Escalade. She stopped to guffaw. “Bob Stains. Ha, that guy. Carlo Bart Baxter had us talk to him. Nice enough human, I guess, if you like liars, sleazeballs, and secret agents.”
“Yeah, that guy.” Pru got a bored expression on her face. “Shitstains? We can put him on the backburner and then turned the stove off.”
Steven took a minute to ponder how the human government might see him. He was definitely a threat to national security. Yet dragons worried him more than the U.S. military.
Pru looked at their already packed SUV. “Nope, Chaz, not gonna fit. You’ll have to get it down to one suitcase.”
Chazzie was not happy.
“Do you have what you need to work from the Infinity Ranch?” Steven asked Bud.
Bud held up his phone. “It’s all here.”
Tessa cut in. “No, his real work is going to be in the bedroom. This is going to be hard on Denise and Fimi.”
“Hard on them? No, they’ll need a hard-on in them.” Mouse stood next to her, naked, with the Slayer Blade in her fist. Aria, just as nude, stood next to her.
Tessa laughed. “Funny. But seriously, Bud, this spell is going to tie directly into their Animus.” She cast a glance at Denise and Fimi, who stood above them in their True Forms.
Denise had white scales outlined in gold, while Fimi was dark purple, so dark, in the setting sun she looked black. Both radiated heat. Denise’s dragon scent was honeysuckle, while Fimi emanated a muskier scent with light lavender overtones.
“We understand,” Denise said. “And we’re looking forward to helping. We kind of felt that we were just taking up space.”
“Uh, can you handle pain?” Tessa asked. In her hand were two nondescript Ikea lamps, their cords dangling.
Fimi’s laughter rolled out of her giant body. “We are Dragonsouls. We were born into constant battle and certain pain.”
Steven hoped she wasn’t just being poetic. “Okay, Tessa, you handle the Incanto. I’ll do the AnimusChain. The rest of you, get ready to light the place up.”
Mouse shifted into a slender amber-scaled dragon. “I will take care of the fire if it gets out of control.”
Aria grew into a cinnamon-scented crimson beast. She lifted her wings and blew fire out of her nostrils. “We are ready.”
“Light it up,” Steven ordered.
Aria took to the air and circled the ranch. She unleashed flames down onto the sage and grasses around the buildings, careful not to scorch the actual wood. She didn’t use ShadowFlame, just the normal Inferno Exhalant. The fire swept across the landscape, sending smoke skyward.
Bud stepped back. “Holy shit, I can’t believe I’m seeing this.”
Steven closed his eyes and found the swirling cores of Denise and Fimi. They spun in perfect orbs, and he was surprised at how much Animus they had. Bud had done a great job keeping them powered up. Good thing he was young.
“Time to get my Loki on,” Tessa said with an excited giggle. She set one of the Ikea lamps on the concrete walkway that led up to the house. “One illusion, coming up. Incanto!” The lamp glowed with a blinding pink light. She altered the main building first. The wood blackened, the windows cracked, and the tower tumbled down, or at least that was what it seemed.
Steven chose Denise to power that first illusion. He eased his mind into her Animus and siphoned it off into the lamp. The woman let out a hiss of pain.
Aria swooshed overhead and unloaded a geyser of flame right onto the new frame of Wayne Manor. The two-by-fours blackened and burned. That was real destruction there.
“Dammit!” Chazzie called out.
“Don’t worry, sis,” Pru soothed, “we’ll get our house after we find this grail thing.”
Denise shifted human and fell against Fimi. The pale blonde woman’s face twisted in pain.
Mouse took off and followed Aria, using ArcticWind to chill the flames so the entire plain didn’t catch fire.
“Ready for round two?” Steven asked Tessa. His heart was pounding, and he was breathing hard. He’d used half of his Animus already.
Tessa nodded, sending sweat leaking down the side of her face. “Born ready, big man. Let’s do it again, and this time, with feeling!” She set the second lamp onto the ground.
Steven reached into Fimi and found her Animus.
“Incanto!” Tessa shouted. The second lamp shined brightly. This time, she directed her magic to the outdoor living room and the Widow houses. Again, the buildings fell in on top of one another, hissing and spitting, roof tiles and siding sliding down into fire. Or what appeared to be fire.
“Defensio!” The barista floated up in the air on a pink-tinged force field. Above him, she would take care of Sabina’s and Liam’s bungalows to the north.
When Steven tied Fimi’s Animus to the second spell, she too turned human, fell to her hands and knees, and let out a cry of agony.
Steven felt bad, but they couldn’t stop. Aria and Mouse landed to survey the illusion.
The entire Infinity Ranch was in ruins, as if some great demon had chewed on every stone and then licked every structure with a destructive flame.
Tessa floated down. Her shield spell winked off. She grinned. “Not bad.” She sobered and went to Fimi and helped the naked woman stand. “Are you okay?”
Fimi nodded. “Yes. It was a lot at first, but I can manage it.” Already she was looking better, as was Denise.
Bud walked up to the smoking front door. The air around it shimmered, and they heard the front door open and close. He came back out and stuck his head outside of the illusion. His face floated eerily. “Inside, it’s totally normal! This is amazing.”
Tessa put a hand on Steven’s shoulder. “It would easier on us if we could Enchantrix, and I don’t think we’d need the lamps. We’re not there yet, but soon enough, we’ll be making badass Americos chambers ourselves.”
Steven smiled wearily. “Hey, I thought you were going to go with red for your magic? Why keep the pink?”
She shrugged. “My dude, we’ve had so much going on, and I’ve been so full of fuck-me angst, that I wanted some normal for a minute. And if I can’t have rainbow colors, then I’ll stick with pink.”
Bud walked out to hold Denise and Fimi. “I’ll send out the news. There was a terrible fight here. No survivors. Enjoy the afterlife.”
“How does it feel to be dead?” Steven asked Tessa.
“As long as you love me, Steven, alive or dead, I’ll always feel just fine.” Her smile faltered. She’d tried to make a joke, but underneath it was the terrible truth. Their lives, once again, were in danger.
Her cell phone chirped in her pocket. Tessa answered it, turned, and walked a few steps away.
When she turned back, there were tears on her face. “We need to go to Denver. My brother, Jared...we just need to go.”
TESSA DROVE DOWN
I-25, Steven rode shotgun, and Aria and Mouse were in the back of the Orange Crush. The old girl had seen a lot of mileage and had a lot of scars.
The Wayne twins, ever the posh pains in the butt, insisted on the Escalade, and with all their baggage and gear, they only barely fit. That left Zoey and Sabina in the Poupon, a rusted Suburban they’d bought cheap in Montana during the Rahaab drama.
It had been so sweet. Zoey had kissed Steven, long and hard, and said, “I can drive Sabina. See? I can be brave and alone. Besides, Sabina and I haven’t spent a lot of time together.”
Mouse had hugged the bear girl and whispered encouraging words to her. The petite blonde could be a prickly bitch, without a doubt, but when it came to Zoey, she was all softness and warmth. Tessa loved both of them so much.
It was good they were splitting up. Multiple targets, heading in random directions, would throw any enemy dragons off their scent. They all planned to meet up in Ogallala late that night, at the Marriott Fairfield Inn and Suites there. Tessa had to smile at the memories of the Traveler’s Roost, the crappy motel that she, Steven, and Aria had crashed at during the Rhaegen Mulk drama. It had been a dive! And yet, that was where Tessa had skipped over Impetim spells and learned Incanto magic. They’d also had some hot sex—nasty things in a nasty place.
Uchiko would join them on her motorcycle.
Aria had warned against simply flying down to Denver as dragons. There were ways to track a flying Dragonsoul. In simple human cars, they could blend into the traffic, and again, secrecy was key.
On the way down, Steven was about to make a call with his cell when Aria stopped him. They didn’t know if their phones had been hacked or not. Instead, he contacted Javier Jones, Abner Savedra, and Imogene Summers using his new telepathic ability. Those poor dragons were about to get a mindful of Steven. Tessa didn’t envy anyone on the other side of Steven’s telepathy. He was either too loud or too soft and nothing in between.
However, Steven’s allies needed to know Steven was alive, his Escort was safe, and they had a war to fight. It was time to gather their people and head east. Javier Jones had won over some Mexican and Central American Primes, and they were gathering their forces. The new Dragonlords and their vassals would shore up the western territories in case Paanga Komang attacked.
As for Savedra, he’d recruited three more men into his Willbreakers, and all seven were on their way along with Imogene Summers, some of her sister wives, and their powerful Warlings.
Meanwhile, Sabina was contacting Skyler Blacke and Liam Strider to let them in on the plan and tell them not to believe any rumors they heard of Steven Drokharis’s unfortunate demise. Officially, Steven’s will gave the vast Drokharis Primacy over to Liam. Good thing they could trust him. A normal Dragonsoul might leap on the opportunity. Not Liam. He’d left behind the life of politics, battle, and sex when his Escort had been murdered fifty years ago. Ironic, he’d wanted to be a Ronin, and now he was the most powerful Dragonlord on the planet, at least on paper.
Tessa was glad her friends had work to do. She wasn’t in the mood to chat.
Jared had taken a turn for the worse, but he was out of the hospital and back home in the Cherry Creek compound, where he and the rest of Tessa’s family, along with Steven’s mother, lived. It was protected by the Onari Guard, and soon, it would have similar magic to the illusion spell they’d cast on the Infinity Ranch. However, Tessa didn’t want to think about anyone having sex in the compound to keep their Animus levels up. They needed a battery of some kind to run it. Another option was to move Bud and his babes into one of the houses, to keep it powered up. Bud’s Babes, that was how they referred to Denise and Fimi, though it wasn’t quite fair to the women. They were so much more than that.
A battery running Animus was powerful mojo, beyond what an Incanto spell could do. For that kind of sorcery, they needed Enchantrix. But first, FleshForge was on their list.
Mouse had gotten chatty, taking Tessa’s place, since she was so worried about her brother.
Mouse wore a cute little green paisley skirt with a black sweater and black leggings. “So, guys, this is just like old times! Remember, the four of us, no twins, with Liam Strider, living the easy life, driving around in the Orange Crush, kicking ass. This is so awesome!”
That made Tessa smile. Finally.
“The twins aren’t so bad. They did do the dishes,” Steven pointed out. “And our life was never easy. Rhaegen Mulk would’ve killed us if Mathaal hadn’t been there.”
“Hey,” Mouse said sharply. “I’m happy, and I’m not drunk. You remember it how you want to, and I’ll remember it how I want to.”
Aria patted her arm. “Didn’t you fight Steven because you didn’t believe in him?”
Mouse colored. “Maybe. It was a test. He passed. And I rode him like he was Disneyland. It was so awesome. He’s so awesome. I’m just so happy.” She sighed. “Corn Nuts tonight? Donettes in the morning?”
Even the thought of their normal junk food couldn’t touch Tessa’s worry. And she kept the radio off. All she wanted was to get to Cherry Creek and hold her brother.
When traffic got snarled near between the Village Inn at I-25 and 120th and the Village Inn at 84th, Tessa’s face hurt from clenching her jaws. Crawling through Northglenn nearly killed her. Luckily, it was after rush hour, and so they breezed down I-25 and took the Speer exit.
They parked at a 7-Eleven. The night was clear, but the wind was cold. Tessa put on her flight gear, a heavy parka with an even heavier helmet that had goggles and a face mask. She needed to figure out how to magic herself DarkArmor against the cold, and she needed to learn a type of SerpentGrace. Both were prerequisites for StellarFlight. There was no way she was going to say on Earth once Steven could fly into space. She wanted to race him to the moon. She was Merlin’s daughter, dammit.
And the Dragon Slayer’s. She couldn’t think about that too much.
Behind the convenience store, Aria and Mouse stripped, put their clothes in bags, and took to the air. Steven went last. Tessa felt warmer and safer once she climbed on top of him. The familiar smell of his smoky orange-blossom scent felt like coming home, and she pressed her face against his scales.
He took a running leap and flew off into the night. He cast the Defensio spell to keep them hidden from humans.
With her left hand, Tessa clung to one of his spines, and she gripped his wing with her right. It wasn’t really necessary, though. He’d gotten good at flying with her on his back, and she could’ve let go and enjoyed the ride. All the dragons practiced carrying around the human. Now that Sabina was a Dragonskin, Tessa was the last one. It was easier for Steven to carry her, since he was the biggest, thirty feet long, with huge wings that scooped up the wind and kept them aloft.
Flying never got old. Denver sparkled under them, around them, into the distance.
Landing on the center circle of the compound, Tessa surveyed the three houses. Lights shined in the windows, and things seemed normal enough. Tessa was thankful for that, but she was still on edge. Steven, Aria, and Mouse shifted and put their clothes back on.
Haru fell out of the door and waddled up to them. He could pass for human, since his face and hands were normal. Underneath his clothes, he had wings, a tail, and clawed feet. And a huge belly.
His expressive brown eyes were filled with worry. “Konnichiwa, Steven-dono. I am so glad you are here. The boy, he is not well.”
The door to Jared’s house opened. Jared himself rolled out of his house in his wheelchair. “Lay off it, Haru. I’m fine.”
Tessa ran to her brother. She threw off her gloves, flung off her heavy parka, and then held her brother. For the first time in two hours, she could breathe. Her brother was alive.
Chapter Eight
INSIDE THE BIG HOUSE, Jared sat in his wheelchair, a little pale, but clearly happy. “Wow, I should go to the hospital more often. I get to see you, Steven, Aria, and even Mouse.” His smile made him seem bigger than his withered body trappe
d in the massive wheelchair.
“Not funny, kiddo.” Tessa knelt by his chair, holding his hand.
Tessa and her friends were in the living room, along with Tessa’s mother and sister. Abigail was two years older than Tessa, traditionally pretty, with long brown hair, bangs, and clothes from Kohls: beige slacks, a green top, and cute matching shoes. Her mom had a chubby round face, and yes, she was thick around the middle, but her smiling patience and eagerness to help made her sparkly and beautiful. She’d cut her hair short and was letting it go gray.
“Can I get you something to drink?” Mom asked.
“You better say yes,” Jared said. “Or you’ll get in trouble. It’s why I went to the hospital. My eyes kind of went funny, and they think it was dehydration. After an IV of fancy salt water and various spices, I could see again. So, drink up, everybody!”
Mouse grinned. “Well, now, we better do what the man says. I don’t want my eyes to go funny.”
“Sit, sit, sit!” Mrs. Ross demanded in a light tone. “I’ll call Florence. She’d never forgive me if her son visited and she didn’t get to see him.”
Steven nodded, but his face was serious, so full of worry. For Jared. Over their current circumstances. Everything. Tessa wanted to kiss a smile onto his face. Things were going to be okay. Jared was going to be okay. That was the important thing.
Steven, Aria, and Mouse sat on the sofa, but Tessa didn’t want to leave her brother. Abigail rubbed her back and left to help their mother get drinks for everyone.
“What do you mean your eyes went funny?” Tessa asked.
Jared shrugged as if there had never been an issue at all. “Basically, I couldn’t see, I guess, which made playing Fortnite really hard. Can’t hardly frag ass if you can’t see.”
“Language!” Tessa feigned shock.
Aria furrowed her brow. “This isn’t English. A fortnight is two weeks. And frag isn’t a word. Is he referencing the games of video?”