Freed

by Samantha Britt

  Freed

  Curse of the Draekon Book Three

  Samantha Britt

  Freed: Curse of the Draekon Book Three

  Copyright © 2019 by Samantha Britt

  Cover Design by Covers by Combs

  ASIN: B07R1SMN1L

  All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction.

  Any resemblance between actual events or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental or used fictitiously.

  For every reader who sent an email, Facebook message, comment, or post asking when Freed would be published.

  Your enthusiasm was my motivation.

  This one is for you.

  Contents

  The Draekon Kingdom

  The Birth Prophecy

  The Cursed Lovers Prophecy

  I. Outcast

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  II. Avelin

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  III. Reunited

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Also by Samantha Britt

  The Birth Prophecy

  An eldest son,

  A prince of his people,

  Disarm the cursed nation,

  The days of old shall end,

  The ruler shall die,

  Killed by the eldest son’s own hand.

  The Cursed Lovers Prophecy

  Hear this great prophecy,

  Evil comes to an end at the hands of the cursed lovers.

  One brings darkness, the other brings light.

  Fated souls create those with ancient gifts,

  The perfect balance to restore the days of old.

  I

  Outcast

  1

  Salty ocean air filled my nostrils as I crouched in the white sand. The wind cooled my heated flesh, caressing and gliding across my damp, sticky skin. Using my forearm, I wiped the moisture from my brow, preventing the sweat from falling into my eyes. I zeroed in on the tall, fit elven male in front of me. He wore a loose blue shirt, but his sweat made it cling to the dips and curves of his muscular torso.

  “Again. This time, don’t get distracted.”

  I growled low. I wasn’t distracted. I just had no idea what I was doing. I’d been living on Lord Erwin’s private island for nearly a month. Every day, he’d drag me out to the beach to practice calling on my elven and draekon abilities without the risk of discovery. Little had he known, there would be nothing for anyone to discover. Other than shifting my vision to better see in the dark, a task which was utterly useless on the sunny island, I hadn’t been able to do anything the elf asked.

  Despite my previous failures, I inhaled deeply, determined to give my next attempt my best effort. I wasn’t one to quit when things were tough. Growing up in Caldiri made sure of that.

  I loosened my shoulders, shaking out my palms, and tried to tap into the mysterious power Erwin seemed so sure I possessed. I’d meditated, prayed to the elven Mother who watched over all, but hadn’t yet been able to grasp onto the supposed gifts that resided within me. I was convinced my healing abilities were the only elven gift I possessed, but Erwin vehemently disagreed. Apparently, all elves had some sort of defensive magic. It didn’t matter how many times I tried to remind him I was only half-elven, Erwin wasn’t deterred.

  So, there I was, trying to call on some invisible force which supposedly resided within me, and use it to attack the male across from me.

  I blew out a breath. A strand of hair floated in front of my face. I tucked it behind my ear.

  “Focus,” Erwin reprimanded.

  “I’m trying.” It wasn’t like it was easy. I only recently learned the truth of my heritage. Sure, my eyes would shift into their snake-like draekon form in dire circumstances, but it was never intentional.

  “Try harder,” he replied without sympathy. “You’re a descendant of the royal bloodline. I know you have this ability. Call it forth. Feel it in your veins. Use it to attack me.”

  I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I’d heard that speech dozens of times. It was beginning to lose its effect.

  I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, doing my best to focus on the task like I said I would. A warmth existed deep in my gut. But try as I might, I could not bring any of the heat out of my abdomen. It seemed determined to linger there, coiled into a tight, safe mass, unwilling to risk the danger of venturing away.

  I released a heavy, disappointed sigh and opened my eyes. “I can’t. Nothing’s happening.”

  “You refuse to believe in your abilities.”

  “That’s not true,” I countered, even though I thought he had a point. “I don’t feel anything but heat, and I can’t get that heat to respond to me, no matter how much I try.”

  “Fine.” Erwin moved closer, no longer concerned with keeping his distance. Had I been able to bring my elven powers to the surface, he claimed my attack could do great damage. As it was, I didn’t know if that was true. “Let’s work on your draekon shifts.”

  I groaned, not bothering to hide the evidence of my frustration. “Like that will be any better.”

  His emerald green eyes hardened. “Just try, Amelissa.”

  Ugh. Erwin had taken to using my nickname, reserving my full name for when he was serious. There’d be no getting out of this training session early.

  “Fine.” I crossed my arms and glared at the elf in front of me. I’d been trying the entire time, but I wasn’t about to argue with him. There was no point. He’d only insist I keep trying, just like he’d done the past four weeks.

  I closed my eyes, again, and exhaled a calming breath. I wasn’t an idiot. I knew part of the reason Erwin trained me was to keep me busy. I hadn’t heard any news of what was happening on Draekon, the continent where I grew up, and it drove me mad.

  Last I learned, King Roderick had ordered his soldiers to bolster their armories and numbers. Prince Brion, his eldest son, had feared his father was going to forgo peace negotiations with King Aquin on Avelin, and his fears turned out to be correct. Lord Erwin, the elven ambassador to Draek, had barely escaped the castle with his life. Shortly after, he intercepted Brion and me on our way to the southern coastal region of Mar. That’s when he took me under his custody.

  That’s when I learned the truth of my heritage.

  And that’s when my world was flipped upside down. Again.

  I shook my head, trying to dispel the troubling thoughts bubbling to the surface.

  Everyone I cared for was in danger, and I had no idea how to help them. I was hundreds of miles away, safely stowed away from the risks of a rebellion or draekon-elven war. It didn’t sit well with me. Not in t
he slightest.

  “Lissa, get your head out of the clouds and call on your draekon abilities!”

  My eyes flew open. Disoriented, I took a wobbly step back. Once I regained my balance, I narrowed my eyes and put my hands on my hips. “Yelling won’t help.”

  “Then tell me, what will help you stay on task?” The intensity of Erwin’s glare matched my own. “Tell me how I can convince you that training with your abilities is important? Tell me how I can make you see how dire the situation will become if you accidentally reveal any of your elven or draekon traits in public?”

  I crossed my arms and looked out to the ocean, avoiding his know-it-all eyes. “I’m aware of the risk.” When I’d heard Erwin was taking me to live on his island off the coast of Avelin, I’d pictured an abandoned land mass with only a modest cabin interrupting the natural greenery. What I actually found was an island with its own city.

  Not village.

  Not a town.

  An actual city.

  Erwin had built a massive mansion atop one of the island’s tallest hills and commissioned the build-up of, what he claimed to be, a modest town. Alas, in addition to a grocer, blacksmith, butcher, tailor, and carpenter, entrepreneurs from the mainland purchased land from Erwin and built vacation homes on his island. He told me the city developed in less than a decade, making Erwin even wealthier than his lordly title afforded.

  As a result of the densely populated island, my presence hadn’t gone unnoticed. Erwin headed off the impending questions by introducing me as his apprentice, a young woman with healing skills whom he’d met while living among the cursed draekon.

  I’d thought the explanation foolish. Who would believe a girl raised on Draekon would willingly travel across the seas to work in Avelin with a stranger?

  Imagine my surprise when not one person I met seemed skeptical of Erwin’s explanation. They believed him without hesitation.

  When I’d asked Erwin why everyone was so quick to trust what he said, the elf annoyingly boasted about what an admirable noble he was, droning on and on about all of the merits which made him a trustworthy individual. My head continued to hurt from my exaggerated eye rolls.

  I rarely interacted with island residents aside from Erwin and those he employed to help run his massive household. Still, even revealing draekon claws to a gardener would wreak unfathomable havoc. It might’ve made Erwin incredibly conceited, but I was glad those living on the island trusted his explanation. Now, I just needed to not ruin it.

  “What do you think people will do if your eyes suddenly slip into reptilian slits and you start hissing like a snake when you speak?” Erwin continued, not done reprimanding me for what he viewed as my lack of effort.

  “Draekon don’t hiss.”

  “They certainly do. When they’re in beast form.”

  My eyes found their way back to him, and I gave a haughty eye roll. I’ve gotten quite good at them while living with the annoying elf. “I’m half-draekon. I doubt I’ll be able to shift into beast form.” Only a few could.

  “That’s not what Brion thinks.”

  I sucked in a breath. “Have you spoken with him recently?” I hated how pathetically hopeful I sounded.

  A flicker of remorse shined in his gaze. “No, I was speaking of things the prince and I discussed before we met on the Western Sea. I haven’t heard from him either.”

  Disappointment, cruel and heavy, settled in my gut. “I see.” I tried to keep my voice from wavering, but I failed.

  “Lissa,” Erwin dropped his formidable instructor persona. The lines between his eyes smoothed out and his hard lips softened. “Communication is dangerous. Brion would be immediately marked as a traitor if he was discovered to have any communication with any elf or human in Avelin territory. The punishment for treason is a swift, merciless death.”

  “I know.” Again, I crossed my arms, holding me and my insecurities together.

  Erwin frowned

  “I’m serious,” I told him, trying to end my mortification. “I understand why we haven’t heard anything. I’m just anxious. I worry what’s going on while I’m sitting here, relaxing on a beach, under a sunny sky.”

  Erwin quirked an eyebrow. “You think you’re relaxing? I must not be doing my job.”

  “Ugh,” I threw my hands up. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”

  Erwin failed to hide his smile. The corner of his lip twitched.

  I scowled, but I, too, was unable to hide the traces of a smile. “You are unbelievably annoying.”

  Even when my mind threatened to dive into the darkest parts of my imagination, worries for my friends and family nearly choking me with pain, Erwin was able to distract me. He had a knack for turning even the darkest moments into a joke. I didn’t know how he did it.

  “Perhaps,” Erwin allowed, “but I am also handsome and engaging and undeniably se—”

  “Enough,” I cut him off. “Let’s keep practicing before I vomit in the sand.” I’ve heard enough about Erwin’s accolades to last me an immortal lifetime.

  Erwin laughed, but he didn’t continue his self-praise.

  I focused and immediately began trying to call on emotions which triggered my previous draekon shifts. Fear and unease were the most notable ones.

  I remembered my journey along the edge of the Royal Forest with Brion and his team. We’d been traveling in the dark when we were ambushed by the rebellion. One of the men traveling with us, Qwell, turned out to be a traitor. He’d nearly lured me and my fellow Caldirian recruit, Jasper, right into the rebellion’s hands. Lucky for me, my eyes had shifted, and I’d been able to make my escape fleeing through the woods with enhanced night vision. Brion found me shortly after, and he’d flown me to safety.

  The memory sent a fresh stab of pain to my chest. I resisted the urge to rub the tender spot.

  I needed to get over my childish hurt. Brion was a leader in the king’s army. His father tasked him with ending the rebellion, but he was also trying to find my sister and take her to safety. He was trying to help me. I knew it. I didn’t need constant correspondence apprising me of the situation. Not if it risked his life. He had a job to do. He’s a prince and a general.

  But he’s also your soulmate.

  Things became much more complicated once Brion confessed he and I shared a unique draekon bond. A gliminee bond was rare, and it only occurred between draekon. That’s how Brion knew what I was.

  Everyone else knew me as a Census recruit, pulled out of the poorest region in Draekon so serve in the capital. But not Brion. Brion knew I was half-draekon from the time he spotted me when I was just a young girl. He’d been flying over Caldiri, scouting the region for his father, when he felt the link which entwined our souls together.

  Brion had thought my other half was human, but he learned the truth not long ago. Four weeks to be exact.

  Frustration ignited in my chest as I thought about my parents: the missing Avelin princess and AWOL draekon soldier. They’d abandoned me and my siblings in Caldiri, leaving us to fend for ourselves in the harsh, cruel world. They’d been selfish to put their relationship above their people in the first place, but that crime was nothing compared to the atrocious act of leaving their children behind while they joined a rebellion to overthrow King Roderick.

  The heat in my chest traveled over my torso, zipping down my arms and legs, warming my fingers and toes.

  I wasn’t saying my parents’ goals were not noble. Overthrowing the tyrannical king would end centuries of human oppression and inequality. Or so I hoped. There was no telling what would really come of King Roderick’s demise. No one could see the future.

  But the method in which my parents sought to accomplish their goal was, most certainly, not noble. They left their children. Their half-draekon/half-elven children were abandoned in a region where out blond hair stood out like a sore thumb.

  Thank the gods the draekon didn’t frequent Caldiri. Otherwise, I was certain Lin, Lorie, and I would’ve been f
ound out for what we really were. And our lives would’ve ended.

  Pressure built in my head. Fear for my siblings made the heat in my gut spike in temperature, and tears pricked the back of my eyes.

  With a cathartic yell, I threw my hands out around me. I wanted to shove away all negative thoughts and fears. I wanted to do something productive. I needed to focus on shifting my eyes!

  A surprised yelp reached my ears, followed by a hard thud.

  My eyes flew open, and my jaw dropped as I saw Erwin sprawled on the sand twenty feet away. Burn marks singed the front of his loose tunic.

  “Erwin! Are you all right?” I started to rush over, reaching out a hand when a flicker of color drew my eyes down.

  I gasped. My feet felt stuck in the sand.

  My arms were covered with sharp blue bolts of light, traveling the length of my extended limb. My shock triggered a bolt to loosen from my palm, and it headed straight for the defenseless elf.

  2

  “Erwin!” I cried out in warning, unintentionally sending another stray bolt free. That one veered to my right, keeping a safe distance from my cousin.