by Sarah Noffke
“Ms. Beaufont!” Lorenzo yelled, his eyes bulging slightly. “You’ve been dismissed. The Council has had enough of your interruptions.”
“I think that when it comes to word usage, I can be of help,” Liv argued, mischief in her voice. “I mean, you yourself said I was the queen of negotiations.”
“I didn’t say that,” Lorenzo fired back.
“Potato, potato,” she replied, saying both words the same way. “Anyway, what I’m great at is getting separate societies to understand each other, like giants and gnomes. It’s a family thing, I think, because Soph here is a master arbitrator. If you’re referring to a collective organization as having a single hand—”
“That is quite enough,” Bianca interrupted, her cheeks flushing red.
Liv looked like she’d had enough, having gotten the Councilor flustered. “Okey-dokey.”
“You’re dismissed,” Lorenzo stated.
“Yeah, but I’m taking my sister to lunch, so I should stick around,” Liv argued. “I saved money on breakfast so I can buy her nachos.”
“If you’re going to stay, then we’re going to require that you’re quiet.” Lorenzo glared down at Liv.
“I can do that,” Liv sang, rocking forward on her toes and back again on her heels.
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Bianca retorted arrogantly.
“Technically,” Liv drew out the word. “You would believe it when you heard it, or rather when you didn’t hear anything.”
“Ms. Beaufont, will you stop making a mockery of these meetings?” Lorenzo questioned, his expression severe.
Liv pretended to zip her lips closed and threw the imaginary key over her shoulder. She then bowed as though giving the floor back to the Council.
Sophia had trouble hiding her laughter. From the looks of it, so did Hester, Raina, and Clark. However, their brother’s reaction was more brooding disapproval. He never appreciated it when Liv acted out at meetings, which Sophia could have told him only encouraged her.
“Ms. Beaufont.” Lorenzo turned his attention to Sophia.
“That one is a Miss,” Stefan interrupted the Councilor.
“Although I think it would be more appropriate to call her by her title.” Hester nodded at Stefan.
“Yes,” Raina agreed. “That would be Rider Beaufont.”
Lorenzo appeared ready to come unglued, his eyes growing wide. Liv hadn’t said a word, as she promised, but she’d done her job and encouraged others to copy her defiant behavior. “Titles aren’t our concern here.”
“They should be,” Haro Takahashi corrected. “Titles are a form of respect and if we, as the Councilors, don’t honor the importance of prestigious roles such as those held by dragonriders, then I think we set ourselves up for a whole host of problems.”
“Quite right,” Clark affirmed. “How are we supposed to demand the respect we deserve if we don’t offer that same thing to others?”
Lorenzo sighed. “Can we all focus on the matter at hand? The dragonriders are creating problems on a global scale.”
Bianca nodded adamantly while holding up a report. “That’s correct. Crime is up worldwide, reaching unprecedented levels. It isn’t even the demon dragonriders that are the biggest contributors to this trend, directly, although they are responsible for much of it. The real problem seems to be that criminals are now under the protection of dragonriders, making it impossible for mortal police to quell the rise.”
Marty shook his head, staring down at Sophia. “How do you respond to the allegations, Rider Beaufont?”
Sophia had to give it to the newbie to the House of Fourteen. At least he called her by the right title, even if he talked to her like she was a toddler.
“The important distinction here is that these criminal offenses and the spike in misconducts aren’t the results of dragonriders in general,” Sophia began, her chin high and voice clear and loud. “It’s the result of a new or rather existing organization that’s reformed known as the Rogue Riders.”
“Which is comprised of demon dragonriders, isn’t that correct?” Haro asked.
“Yes, but—”
“Which supports the case that Nevin Gooseman made against the demon dragonriders,” Bianca interrupted Sophia.
“Nevin Gooseman was a madman,” Sophia argued. “He went to dangerous lengths to try and take out the Dragon Elite.”
“Although we can all agree that Nevin Gooseman wasn’t of sound mind and went to extremes, he might have been right regarding his concerns about the demon dragonriders,” Marty stated.
“He wasn’t,” Sophia countered through clenched teeth.
“Are there any demon dragonriders that serve on the Elite?” Lorenzo asked.
“Well, no, but—”
“Your mission as the Dragon Elite is to protect justice,” Lorenzo cut in. “What do these Rogue Riders do?”
“Besides cause mayhem.” Bianca harrumphed.
“They’ve taken on the role of governing criminals,” Sophia answered and immediately regretted it. The stir this admission caused across the Council was abrupt. There were sounds of protest, whispering, and plenty of sighs and groans.
“Well, no wonder the world is out of control,” Bianca said shrilly over the commotion.
“The new generation of demon dragonriders do need to learn boundaries,” Sophia began. “The Dragon Elite are working on it, but like a rebellious teenager, the Rogue Riders might need to make mistakes before they listen to reason.”
“Likening magicians who ride on dragons to teenagers is exactly where the Dragon Elite is failing the world at large,” Lorenzo criticized.
“They’re young and inexperienced though,” Sophia stated, careful to keep her chin up although she felt the pressure from every direction and it made her feel so small. “These new demon dragonriders have a lot of sudden power, and it has gone to their heads, but we’re hopeful that we can control them.”
“When?” Marty asked at once, on the heels of Sophia’s statement. “When they’ve already destroyed the world? When do you plan on intervening and taking control of these teenagers, as you call them?”
Note to self, Lunis said in Sophia’s head. Marty needs me to torch his pants.
Sophia refrained from laughing but silently agreed. The real answer to Marty’s question was as soon as they could locate the Rogue Riders, but that would only make her and the Dragon Elite sound even more like they didn’t have things under control. She needed to fix that perception even if it wasn’t entirely accurate. Hopefully, soon it would be, and the Dragon Elite would be on their way to governing the Rogue Riders.
“We pushed the Rogue Riders out of the elfin homeland,” Sophia began with confidence. “And—”
“What lands are they taking over now, I wonder?” Bianca interrupted.
Sophia held her breath, reminding herself that murder was wrong even if the person was begging for it. She nearly laughed out loud, thinking that Liv’s proximity must be inspiring her naughty behavior and rebellious humor.
“I’m not aware of any lands that the Rogue Riders have commandeered,” Sophia replied when she was sure she was in control of her temper, her tone neutral. “When the Dragon Elite kicked them off the elfin territory, we made it clear that they weren’t to take over lands that didn’t belong to them.”
“So instead they’re running a crime ring.” Lorenzo huffed.
“They’ve elected themselves as the ones to govern the criminal world,” Sophia corrected.
“Which shouldn’t be governed at all, as if criminals deserve rights like nations and citizens,” Bianca said. “They need to be locked up, and instead they’re being encouraged.”
“I agree!” Marty exclaimed.
Lorenzo nodded.
This was the problem with the Council, Sophia observed. The others who were more objective and voted based on justice—Clark, Raina, Hester, and sometimes Haro—were the quietest. Yes, they listened and contemplated whereas the others were reactionar
y, their agenda already formed based on their greedy desires. However, the Council couldn’t have any balance as long as the “good” ones didn’t have the same level of voice.
“I disagree,” Sophia stated, making everyone freeze. They hadn’t expected her to argue this point, but rather that the Dragon Elite were doing their job.
“The Rogue Riders might be new, and they need to learn boundaries,” Sophia began, looking each of the Councilors in the eyes. “However, I applaud the initiative they’ve taken.”
“You do?” It was Clark who asked this, quickly followed by Liv. She’d surprised her siblings, which meant the others were probably totally perplexed.
Not allowing herself to become flustered by the reaction she’d gotten, Sophia nodded. “I do. Policing horrible crimes such as murder and the like should happen. The mortal police’s biggest concern should be going after those who brutally harm others. However, it’s unrealistic to think that we’ll ever control all crime.”
“Spoken like a true underachiever,” Marty spat.
Bianca nodded. “And she’s a part of the Dragon Elite who want us to bow to them as a higher authority. If this isn’t proof that we shouldn’t, then I don’t know what is.”
“We have the support of Mother Nature,” Sophia argued.
“So you say,” Marty retorted.
“I do say, because it’s true.” Sophia narrowed her gaze at the man who so boldly questioned her honesty. “I stand by what I said. We can’t abolish all crime, and the Rogue Riders have had the good sense to realize that. Yes, they’re going about it the wrong way by capitalizing on the crimes, but there’s something to be learned. If we try and blot out all illegal activity, then the criminals of the world will find a way around our laws. Isn’t it better to keep tabs on the drug users of the world and make them pay into the system rather than hide under the radar where we can’t do anything about them?”
“She has a point,” Hester said, musing on the idea.
“Oh, you can’t be serious!” Bianca challenged. “Now we’re going to condone working with criminals?”
“I’ve been doing it for ages,” Liv admitted.
“Why am I not surprised,” Lorenzo stated dryly.
“It’s true,” Liv chirped. “There’s a slew of gnomes who used to trade illegal magical artifacts on the black market. The stuff was usually harmless, but now and then, something really dangerous got traded. When they thought I was going to shut them down, they ran every time they saw me. It was only when I told them I wouldn’t close their business as long as they adhered to some rules that we found an even ground. Now I stop in every so often to ensure the products are up to snuff and only sold to those who know what they’re getting.”
“So you’re admitting to aiding illegal activity as a Warrior who has vowed to stop such things?” Bianca questioned.
“I pick my battles,” Liv corrected. “In return, the gnomes don’t shut me out, and when I need a favor, they’re receptive.” She turned and winked at Stefan. “Like when I need negotiations with giants to go smoothly, I’ll have the right people on my side.”
He nodded and released some of the tension from before.
Clark combed his hand over his chin, thinking. “This idea has merit. I mean, the mortal world saw its fair share of problems with the war on drugs. It did little to curb the problem. The dealers and users found other means.”
“Exactly,” Sophia said, keen to keep the excitement from her voice after getting the extra support from her siblings. They needed to remain professional and not like they were banding together merely out of nepotism. “It’s not like we should allow bad things to happen, but we have to ask ourselves, just because something is against the law, does it make it wrong? Many things are wrong that aren’t against the law, like lying and being mean to one another. I believe that in an ideal world, we could have some order in the criminal world so that things ran smoother. Criminals don’t pay taxes, but if they were allowed to operate on some level, well, then they would. Think about all the horrible crimes we could prevent if a group of dragonriders had insight into what was happening on the black market level. We might avoid all sorts of things.”
“So is this what the Rogue Riders are doing?” Haro asked.
Sophia bit her lip. “It’s what they should be doing. However, they’re a bit out of control.”
Bianca laughed. “A bit out of control? They’re encouraging crime, not regulating it.”
To Sophia’s dismay, she couldn’t argue with that. “I realize that. However, we’re going to get them under control. That’s our responsibility as the world adjudicators and the supreme governing body.”
Lorenzo shook his head and leaned forward. “You want to keep throwing around that title, but it’s high time you showed us that you deserve it. The rest of the magical races are fed up with the dragonriders, having suffered from things done to them by the Rogue Riders. We’re your last hope. If we turn our backs on you, you’ll find a war on your hands.”
“Is that a threat?” Sophia was surprised at how serious this had gotten. And fast.
Lorenzo tilted his head, not backing down. “It is. The Dragon Elite better figure out how to get the Rogue Riders and demon dragonriders under control. Otherwise, we’ll have to intervene, and I fear it won’t end well for you all.”
Chapter Eleven
Sophia stared angrily at the thali platter that sat between her and Liv on the table in the Indian restaurant called Anarbagh in Woodland Hills. It was off their usual beaten path, but Liv had said she had a craving and nothing else would do. Not caring what they ate or even if she did, Sophia went along, simply wanting to get as far from the House of Fourteen as she possibly could.
“Can you believe him? That stupid lizard-licking toad, Lorenzo.” Sophia narrowed her eyes at the naan, which had done nothing to deserve her hate except sit there like little pillows of goodness, ready to soak up the extra spicy makhani sauce.
Liv also didn’t look as keen about eating as Sophia, although she was the one who insisted they come out to this particular spot. She nibbled on a piece of papadam and gave Sophia a sympathetic expression. “I think I can believe that behavior from Lorenzo. Your problem is in expecting perfectly unreasonable people with egos the size of a dragon’s fart to react to complications in the world in a perfectly reasonable way.”
Sophia scooped rice onto her plate to give herself something to do with her restless hands. “Yeah, there was my mistake. And I don’t think dragons fart. They’re way too civilized for that.”
Liv leveled her gaze at her sister. “Your dragon once burped the entire chorus of Hotel California for me.”
“That’s a classy song,” Sophia argued. “I mean, it’s not like he burped Baby Got Back.”
“No, that was later,” Liv joked. “I’ve had enough experience with Lorenzo and the dumb Council to know that they overreact when there are problems in the world. It’s like they think that we should be all dancing around totem poles and singing kumbaya by now.” She stuck her nose up, doing her Bianca impersonation. “Why are there still problems with the trolls? How are they even still alive? Why don’t the elves do what we say? Why yes, I look like I’m sitting on a pine cone.”
Sophia laughed, wondering if Liv’s sudden shrill voice entertained anyone else in the restaurant. No one in the other booths seemed to notice them as the waiter brought over another platter of food. The man had seemed hesitant when the sisters ordered so much, and Sophia had looked forward to showing him that he underestimated the wrong set of sisters but viewing the spread on the table, she had her doubts. Neither of them had touched much of it.
“The problems in the world are never going to fully go away,” Sophia said through her continued laughter. “That’s the mistake in their thinking. Our job as the Dragon Elite is to arbitrate the mortal affairs, which are constantly at odds in neighboring and competing governments. The House of Fourteen’s job is to govern the magical world. It’s an endless and
thankless job, but that’s the way it is. It’s not like we’ll wake up tomorrow and decide that we don’t need to eat anymore. The same is true for conflict. It’s part of life. We eat, we breathe, we sleep, we fight. Maybe in an ideal world we do the latter less, but still, without tension, there’s no growth.”
“Amen, sister,” Liv sang and eyed the new food in front of them. “Speaking of eating, you need to dig in already.”
“You’re one to talk.” Sophia looked at Liv’s empty plate. “I thought we were going for nachos.”
Liv shook her head. “I have to deal with giants, and they take the fun out of everything, so we’re going with Indian today.”
“Because Indian food isn’t as much fun?” Sophia questioned.
“It’s more serious than nachos. I mean, you can’t be angry when eating nachos. It’s simply impossible to pull apart those chips covered in cheesy goodness and have a bad attitude.”
“You can be angry when eating Indian food?” Sophia challenged.
“I think,” Liv began while taking a vegetable samosa and tearing into it, but still not taking a bite, “that you can be whatever you want when eating Indian food. You can be happy or sad or angry or indifferent, but with nachos, you can only be happy.”
Sophia studied her sister. There was something off about her. “Is this about Stefan being worried about you taking on too many cases? Is everything all right? Are you overdoing it?”
“What’s my name?” Liv replied.
Scooping vegetable masala onto her rice, Sophia laughed. “Obviously, you’re overdoing it. That’s clear to me. Why is Stefan all of a sudden protective of you?”
Liv pursed her lips and studied the food as if trying to decide what to attack next. “I don’t know. Maybe the demons have him down.”
“Isn’t that what the demons do?” Sophia joked.
In a rare “Liv” move, she pulled the bowl of mulligatawny soup toward her and went at it, spooning mouthfuls to her lips. “I don’t know. He’s going through a thing. I really am the best person for the negotiations. He’s probably tired of Netflixing with Clark at night, and who can blame him? That guy wants to watch Downton Abbey, and we both know that Stefan is more of a Lucifer kind of man. He misses me, I guess.”