Age of Dragons

by Olivia Ash

  Gods above.

  The Fairfax dragons are so much more brutal than I ever realized.

  Harper crosses her arms, smiling as she reminisces. “In my case, I'm grateful I fought him. He knew I was fit to rule. Knew I would win. He just wanted to make sure no one ever doubted my authority. It's not common for female dragons to be Bosses, Rory. And anything less than a full and total battle wouldn't have convinced the world I deserved my place.” She hesitates, squaring her shoulders and standing a little taller. “I needed to make sure no one ever challenged me, and in that final battle, I proved my worth.”

  I don't really know what to say to that, so I let the silence between us be filled by the occasional roar of the crowd outside.

  “Do you remember the tattoo on my forehead when I was in my dragon form?” Harper asks, leaning toward me. “When we sparred?”

  “I do. It was beautiful,” I admit, and it was—a gorgeous, glowing symbol in the middle of her forehead. “I didn’t recognize it.”

  “They call that the Anointing,” she says, tapping her own forehead. “It's the tattoo of the Boss, and I wear it until I die. It's carved by magic, and it's forever. If someone wants to take the crown from me, they have to literally take off my head to get it.”

  “That's dark as hell,” I admit.

  “Yeah,” she says, laughing. “It really is. But that's the Fairfax way. Hardcore to the end.”

  “Can't deny that,” I say absently, returning my attention to Jace.

  As Jace wraps up his speech, I steal another look at Harper. With her arms crossed, she simply watches her cousin with a small smile on her face. It's a combination of gratitude and pride, and I can tell she's wanted this for him for a long time.

  But the longer I'm here, the more Fairfax dragons I put at risk.

  “I figure the other Bosses aren't too happy that I’m still here,” I casually say, watching Jace even as I lean toward Harper to speak in low tones.

  “It's fine,” Harper says dismissively, not even looking at me. As I study her face, I notice her eye twitch slightly. The corner of her mouth briefly pulls upward, and it's clear she just lied.

  “You know you can't lie to a Spectre, right?” I ask, grinning slightly.

  At that, she finally looks at me, raising one eyebrow skeptically as she dares me to challenge her.

  “I could always find out for myself, of course,” I admit, shrugging lazily. “Rifle through a few top-secret computers, scope out some confidential information. Shouldn't be too hard.”

  Harper laughs, shaking her head in defeat. “You're insufferable. You know that?”

  “Yeah,” I admit, grinning.

  “It's becoming difficult,” Harper confesses. “The other families are starting to pull out of trade deals, claiming that they'll continue to boycott us until you're in neutral territory. They say it's to make sure you're not favoring one family over the other or being controlled by anyone. But come on,” she shrugs, looking briefly at me. “We both know they just all want a chance to steal you away. I'm not going to let them hurt you, Rory. I'm not going to let them come for you.”

  “I pity whatever idiot tries to come after me, but I appreciate the sentiment all the same. Thanks, Harper.”

  She nods. “You're always welcome here, Rory,” she says, looking at me with a serious expression. “Remember that. If anyone ever tries to come for you, they'll have to go through me first.”

  As the crowd cheers outside, I study the Fairfax Boss’s face, wondering how this is my life. Wondering how any of this is real.

  But somehow, by some beautiful miracle, it is.

  “Thank you, Harper,” I say genuinely. “And the same is true for you. If you ever need me, you know I’ll be there for you.”

  It's the truth.

  I will be.

  I don't have many friends in this world, and I can't trust very many people. But those I do love—I will protect them with my life.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The moon climbs into the sky on a warm night as I wander the empty halls of the embassy.

  It’s been two days since Jace’s announcement, and there's an excited buzz running through the castle—mostly from the hushed conversations about who the candidate could be. Russell can't say anything until he’s officially named, so to everyone else, it's a mystery.

  I smirk as I pass a group of soldiers huddled together in the hallway, all pausing as I walk by. They know that I know, but I suspect they don't realize I can tell they're not-so-subtly watching me as I go by.

  It's kind of fun knowing the secrets of a dragon embassy for a change. Thus far, they’ve usually been about me, and kept from me.

  Tucker has one week left in the medic ward, and then he can finally get back on his feet. He's antsy as hell as he keeps trying to get up despite the gaping wounds in his side and shoulder. I've been visiting him several times a day, and they're beginning to threaten sedation if he doesn't just sleep and heal.

  Even though I know exactly where Tucker is, I have no idea where to find Levi, Drew, or Jace tonight. They've been missing for the last few hours, and I figure if they're all missing, they're up to something.

  I can't for the life of me figure out what though—and more importantly, why I didn't get invited.

  I love getting into trouble, and those men know that.

  As I wander into another corridor, trying to figure out where they could be, I pause and listen for Jace. Turning inward, I touch the dragon deep within me, asking her for help.

  She’s happy to oblige.

  The vague sensation of Jace's presence flickers to life, and even though the connection is a little fuzzy, there are blips and surges of energy that indicate he's below me, somewhere in the tunnels.

  Hmm.

  I wonder what he could be up to.

  Maybe I can find Levi and spar with him. It’s not often that my ice dragon gets into mischief with Jace and Drew, so I figure I'll check the back courtyard to see if he’s there.

  As I make my way toward the stairs that will lead me outside, I unconsciously watch my periphery for movement. It's an old habit from my Spectre days, one that has kept me alive in more situations than I can count, and I’m not about to give it up.

  Even if I’m not a Spectre anymore.

  A familiar blonde steps into the hallway from a side corridor, and I pause, turning on my heel as she walks toward me.

  Harper.

  “There you are,” she says, smiling warmly. “I've been looking for you.”

  “Well, I hope you want to make some trouble because I'm itching for something to do.”

  The gorgeous shifter laughs. “Yeah, actually. Do you want to get into some mischief?”

  “Yeah,” I say. “Duh.”

  She giggles and gestures for me to follow her, and the two of us slip silently through the hallways of the embassy. After a short stairwell and a few minutes of ducking through various hallways, she pauses at a long stretch of wall with a few portraits of past Fairfax dragons hung along the elaborate wallpaper.

  With a few quick glances on either side of us, she lifts a portrait of a woman in an elegant purple gown to reveal a keypad hidden beneath the frame. Harper taps in a code, activating a secret panel in the wall that leads to yet another secret tunnel—and, I suspect, connects with the others that weave through this place.

  Score.

  I grin mischievously. “I can already tell this is going to be fun.”

  We duck into the dark tunnel, and seconds later, the panel closes automatically behind us. To anyone who might have noticed us walk into that corridor, it will seem as though we disappeared into thin air.

  That's the way I like it.

  Harper leads me down the corridor, taking us deeper into the mountain and the tunnels that carve through it. She walks with the confidence of someone who was taken this route a hundred times before.

  It’s clear to me, then—Harper must have grown up here, same as Jace. This place must hold sp
ecial meaning for their family.

  And Jace gave it up. For me.

  I can’t help but walk a little taller with pride.

  As the corridor weaves and bobs through the castle, we take several flights of stairs that connect to other secret hallways. For the most part, we walk in silence, with Harper’s focus entirely on the hallways.

  Before long, I find myself in a familiar stretch of the tunnels. I stretch out my fingers in anticipation as I began to recognize the shape of the vents along the floor, and adrenaline buzzes through me as I eagerly debate what we’re going to see.

  I've been here before. Long ago, when Drew brought me to secretly watch one of Jace's training sessions with his soldiers.

  Harper pauses at a tall grate that runs from floor to ceiling. A variety of levers and switches are set against it, and she flips one of them. Thin slits in the grate open at eye level, revealing a wide view of the room inside—a much better view than I would get peeking through one of the grates.

  I lean toward it, peering into the room to find a familiar training area. Yep, this is exactly where I thought we were. I've not only spied on training sessions in this room before, but Drew and I sparred in here. This is where he told me the truth about his feud with Jace—and what really happened between their brothers.

  Only four men stand in the room, however—Russell, Jace, Drew, and Levi.

  So, this is where they went off to.

  Russell stands in an empty stretch of the massive training hall, and from this angle, I can see the massive doors that lead into the corridors and tunnels below the castle. I can't see the wall of weapons from where I’m standing, so I figure they’re somewhere along this stretch of the tunnel.

  Jace and Drew circle Russell, the three men wielding staffs as they watch each other intently. Russell stands at the ready, his weight shifted slightly forward onto the balls of his feet. His shoulders relax, and his eyes sweep the floor as he blatantly watches them both from the corner of his eye.

  With two opponents on opposite sides of him, he has no choice. He can't look at either of them directly, or the other will attack.

  Levi stands on the platform in the center of the room, his arms crossed as he watches the three men intently. A pile of weapons covers the platform around him—from swords to throwing stars and everything in between. He has his own little arsenal at his feet, and I can tell he wants to join in the fun.

  My question is, why hasn't he?

  “Can they see us?” I ask quietly.

  Harper shakes her head. “This is a secret viewing panel. From their perspective, we're just grout and mortar between the stones.”

  “Fascinating,” I mutter, leaning in to get a better look.

  Jace attacks first. Russell parries, the two staffs connecting with a thundering crack. Before Russell can recover, Drew swings his weapon at Russell’s face. Russell is barely able to lift his staff in time, but he manages, and another resounding snap thunders through the room.

  The three men dodge and parry, Russell darting between the two warriors with impossible speed. The cracks of the staffs hitting sound a bit like fireworks, one after the other, again and again.

  I can only imagine the pain shooting up Russell's forearms with every blow.

  Jace and Drew are two masters. For Russell to hold out even this long is impressive.

  Even though I'm curious about Russell's fighting habits and methods, I'm continuously drawn to Drew and Jace. It's surreal to see them working together, and they move in a seamless formation. It’s like they were born to fight side by side, every now and then landing a blow on Russell’s shoulder or back despite his clear skill.

  For the most part, Russell defends brilliantly, always rolling away to give himself space or blocking another blow in the nick of time.

  I never realized the depth of Russell's talent until now, as I had never really gotten the chance to see him fight. I heard him coordinate troops and lead, sure, but in terms of actually getting to see his ability—this is the first time I've had the honor.

  And he's impressive.

  Drew swirls the staff around his head and comes down hard on Russell’s shoulder. Russell grimaces as the staff hits his skin, and I'm not quite sure if the crack I hear is the staff or Russell's bones.

  Russell goes down, hitting the floor hard, and Jace doesn't give the man a moment to breathe. He lifts his staff, about to bring it down on Russell's head when the man rolls out of the way. The staff hits the ground, shattering as the resilient wood meets its match with Jace’s strength.

  “Jace, here,” Levi says from the center ring, grabbing a staff from the many weapons at his feet and tossing it to the dojo master.

  Jace snatches it out of the air, swinging it expertly as he returns instantly to the fray. The masterful movement was so seamless, so elegant, that he didn’t miss a beat. He returns to the fight as if he never left, despite his destroyed weapon now laying in splinters on the floor.

  Levi resumes his wide stance, arms crossed as he intently watches the fight.

  Oh.

  I see what he’s doing, and why he’s here.

  I've seen that expression on his face before—he's looking for weaknesses, calculating the odds of survival for each person involved, and looking for any way to break their opponent.

  It's a chilling expression. He's so focused, so ready to kill that it takes me a moment to remember he's on our side.

  As the men spar, landing blow after blow against each other, I look at Harper with a playful pout. “This looks like fun. Why wasn't I invited?”

  Harper laughs, her smile lighting up her face as she watches through the slits. “The trials aren't to be taken lightly, Rory. And they're never to be spoken of unless you're directly involved. Usually, we whisk someone off to aid in the trial without telling them until we even get there. That way, they can’t accidentally let slip that they’re involved.” She shrugs. “It's nothing personal. Those three will probably tell you about it the next time you see them.”

  The dragon Boss rolls her eyes, and it's clear they're not supposed to. It would seem she has accepted the inevitable, however, and chosen not to fight it.

  Without warning, Levi grabs a sword from the many weapons at his feet and hurls it into the fray. Drew catches it easily, tossing aside his staff in one fluid motion as he now swings the blade at Russell.

  In a fluid movement that's probably mostly instinct, Russell blocks the blade with his staff. The sword slices his weapon in half, and he stands there in a momentary beat of shock.

  “You cheater,” he says, looking at Drew with a wry grin on his face.

  “He's a Darrington,” Jace says, twirling his staff around his head as he prepares to go again. “They always cheat.”

  Drew laughs and flips Jace the bird.

  The three men chuckle as the fight continues, mostly with Russell dodging the sword blade as Jace continues to attack with a staff from the other side. Russell fights with the two broken halves of his staff, and I wonder why he hasn’t asked for a replacement.

  Huh. Odd.

  With a hefty swing, Drew slices at Russell's stomach with enough force to gut him.

  Damn. They really aren’t pulling any punches—not in this fight.

  There’s too much at stake.

  Russell, to his credit, doesn’t need anyone to go easy on him. The man ducks Drew’s attack and slides across the floor, putting space between him and his opponents so that he can finally have a few seconds of respite.

  “Care to join us, Levi?” Jace asks, chest heaving as he momentarily pauses to grab his breath.

  “Happy to oblige,” Levi says, his voice dark and deep as he grabs a bo staff of his own off the ground. He leaps off the platform, grinning as he joins in the fun.

  The three of them attack Russell in quick bursts, one after the other. It’s vicious, fast, and merciless. Even though Russell takes a few blows to his shoulders and side from the staffs, he never stays down long.

&
nbsp; “Brutal,” I mutter, admittedly impressed.

  “It is,” Harper admits a little wistfully as she watches the fight. “There's only one rule in this trial. He can take no weapon but the one he was given, and he must go until all three of them stop.”

  “So, he could shift?” I point out.

  “Yeah, but it's considered bad form,” Harper says with a shrug. “Especially indoors. He's trying to impress Jace—and me, since the trials have secret judges the contender can't see. He knows he's being watched right now. He just doesn't know by whom.”

  “Who are the judges?” I ask, scanning the walls to see if I can find anyone else peeking through any other secret grates.

  I can't, of course. But I can't fight the impulse to try.

  “Me, Jace, Drew, Levi, and you,” she says with a nod toward me. “A few others you haven't met yet.”

  “When were you going to tell me I'm a judge?” I ask, lifting one skeptical eyebrow.

  Harper chuckles. “What do you think we're doing now?”

  Fair point.

  “What other trials are there?” I ask.

  “I can't tell you,” Harper says. “We just went over this, Rory.”

  “Fine. You're no fun.”

  “I'm a little fun,” she says, smirking as she returns her gaze to the fight. “I can tell you this, I guess—we test him by pushing him to his absolute limits for a week straight. It's grueling. Honor, ability, intelligence, resourcefulness. The man will barely sleep over the next seven days, and that's the point. We'll push him to the limit, and it all culminates in a final exam of sorts. Something that will test his moral fiber.” Harper pauses, her eyes darting toward me. “You want to help?”

  “Of course. What do I need to do?”

  “Just trust me,” she says with a smile.

  “I don't know,” I say, playfully shaking my head as I set my hands on my hips. “You're a dragon Boss. I've heard they're very dangerous.”

  Harper laughs, returning her attention to the fight as another thundering crack echoes through the hall.

  In my pocket, my phone vibrates. I pull it out to find the screen lit with Irena’s name.