Her Fire Mates: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance (Shifters Of The Elements)

by Lark Sterling

  Finn clapped his big hands together and leaned back in the chair. "Well, very soon, you'll have a chance to ask him yourself. We need to leave for the Fields of the Dragon soon, if not tonight, definitely by morning."

  Brighid tilted her head at Finn and glanced over at the other two. “We?”

  Ash laughed jubilantly, reaching out and touching her hand. "Of course, you found your mates, which means you never have to be alone again. We'll always protect you."

  While Brighid was usually a skeptic about most things, the comfort she felt deep in her soul told her that there was no doubt about it, they would protect her, mind, body, and soul.

  Chapter Eight

  That night, with the guys awake in the living room, Brighid attempted to get some sleep. While she felt incredibly protected and shielded with her mates close by, she had far too much on her mind to fall into a deep sleep. She tried, knowing full well the guys would shake their finger at her if she didn’t, but after a couple hours of tossing and turning, she finally got up.

  As she walked out into the living room, Ash turned and handed her a cup of coffee. “I could tell you couldn’t sleep.”

  Brighid gave him a confused look. “You could feel that?”

  Ash chuckled. "No, your bed is incredibly squeaky, and you tossed and turned like you were running a marathon."

  Brighid chuckled, taking a sip of her coffee. “Oh. Got it. Well, I figure if I can’t sleep, I might as well get packing. I’ve gotta figure out how to at least carry some things with me on the journey over.”

  Ash walked over to the table and sat his bag on the countertop. “Problem solved. You can put whatever you want in here, and if you need more room, Finn also carries a bag. He slips into it after he changes into his Wolf and carries it on his back.”

  "Nice." Brighid smiled, looking over at them. "They need to make a gigantic version for Dragons."

  Zevi nodded at Finn. “When we get done with all this, Finn might actually be able to build you something. He’s pretty handy with that kind of stuff.”

  Finn gave her the thumbs up. “How long will this trip take us?”

  Brighid began to pull out things that she wanted to take and set them on the table. "Well, normally, the trips to the Fields of the Dragon would take nearly a full day because I'd be able to fly and cloak myself. But, the two of you can't fly and Ash, correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't know if Phoenixes can cloak themselves, and you're not really a bird that many humans would ever expect to see."

  Ash shook his head. "Sadly, no, that isn't one of my abilities."

  "I would carry the two of you on my back, but I'm afraid that it would tire out my Dragon, and we wouldn't be able to make it all the way," Brighid explained. "And, on top of that, I'm slightly fearful that a Stag and an enormous Wolf would slide right off my Dragon. It's so cold where I fly, but I don't know that you would be able to make the trip as your humans."

  Zevi sat down at the table as she packed. "It's actually probably a good thing that we have to go this way. I don't know how true it is, but I've read that Keepers can fly. If they're after you, and they attack you in the sky, they could easily take you down in a heartbeat. You wouldn't even know it because you would think you are somewhere else."

  Brighid shook her head. “These things sound nasty. What else do you know about them?”

  Zevi put his hands up. "Again, I don't know if any of this is true, but there've been many stories in the past of the Keepers. They basically paint the Keepers as the gatekeepers of the underworld. It's the place, according to lore and legend, that the dark souls go when they die. It's not Hell like people think, it's more of a paradise for dark souls. There's not really a punishment even though they will have a constant yearning for the Fields of Moribund, but they'll never be able to cross the veil."

  Brighid rolled her eyes. "So, even in death, the dark souls aren't suffering."

  Zevi tilted his head back and forth, narrowing his eyes. “Yes and no. If you think about a dark soul and what that encompasses, it’s nothing but suffering. They may find pleasure in the suffering of others, but they themselves are caught in this dark and twisted web. I imagine that living like that for an eternity would definitely not be fun.”

  Brighid glanced up at Zevi, shocked at how clear he explained things. He made a lot of sense to her, and it helped her think through her thoughts. "Well, whatever it is, it can't be fun. I'll say, the dark souls that plague our people, I'm positive that they will meet in an eternity of pain. That pain probably comes in different forms for each and every one of them."

  Zevi nodded. “Very well put.”

  Brighid grinned, nodding her head. "As far as the length of the trip, I would say with you two on foot, it'll probably take us about three days."

  Finn nodded, and Ash gave her a smile. "That's not too bad. I think we can handle that."

  Zevi snorted. “Oh sure, coming from the guy who got upset when his feathers got wet during one of the hurricanes that hit the island.”

  Ash shook his head. "Not this again. May I remind you that it wasn't just that my feathers got wet because there was a little bit of rain, the wind swept me up, tumbled me through the forest, and dropped me in the ocean. I almost drowned while you guys stood on the shore laughing."

  Finn and Zevi chuckled. "But you didn't drown. Instead, you came inside, and when your fathers dried, they puffed up like you were a chicken. It was amazing."

  Ash rolled his eyes. “Speaking of puffed up. Do you remember the time that Brighid’s father decided that Finn needed a bath and grooming as his Wolf?”

  Zevi started laughing immediately. "Yes. He was still young, and yet he was larger than my Stag and barely fit in the bathtub. Brighid's father didn't know what type of shampoo to buy, so he got all this lavish stuff from the store and soaped him all up, rinsed him down, which took about three hours because his fur was incredibly thick. After that, he blow-dried him."

  Brighid winced. “Let me guess, beautiful vibrant bouncy puffball.”

  Finn nodded his head. "I looked like one of those show dogs that had curlers in its hair."

  The guys all laughed again, and Brighid sat and watched in amusement. They picked on each other like they were brothers, and in some way, she figured they were. They had grown up together, relied on each other, and had an incredibly strong bond just like her and her sisters. “If my father died when I was very young, how old are you guys?”

  Ash thought about it for a second. “I don’t remember how old we were exactly, but we were all kids.”

  Brighid sat down in the chair. “But if you were all kids, when my father died, you would be left alone on the island. You were just children.”

  Ash walked over and sat down next to her. "That's true. But we weren't necessarily alone. We had a watcher, a sorcerer of sorts, and a very good one at that. Before your father left on his mission, he asked the sorcerer to watch over us if anything happened to him. We had already known him for years, so it only made sense that he would be the next in line. He took care of us, watching us until we were grown, and continued our education."

  Brighid nodded, watching as the guys exchanged quick glances with each other. She wasn't exactly sure why, but it felt like they were holding something back. The guys continued to talk about their childhood as they all packed and readied the house to leave. Brighid hoped she would be back soon, but she had no idea where their journey would take them after they left the Fields of the Dragon. She knew there was a good possibility she wouldn't be back to the islands for a very long time. She left Thomas a note, telling him that he was free to stay there until she returned and that he could give tours if he liked, but didn't have to.

  As she shut the door to the cabin, everything packed up, and the guy’s ready to go, she felt a bit of sadness, hoping that by the time she got back, her little home was still intact.

  The four of them headed down to the docks where there was a small boat tied to the pier. It would take them to the mainland. Fi
nn and Zevi loaded the boat with their bags and readied it for the trip. Brighid stood on the side, looking out at the water. "I'm going to fly above you guys, cloaked, so you won't be able to see me, but it will allow me to keep watch, at least for a while."

  The guys were all exchanging glances again, and Brighid finally decided that the secrets had to stop. "Okay, obviously you've got something going on here. You can't hold secrets back from me anymore. What are these weird looks you keep giving each other?"

  Ash cleared his throat nervously. “We actually have one more person coming with us.”

  Brighid lifted an eyebrow. “You do? Where are they?”

  Zevi spoke, glancing over at the other two guys. "Well, the sorcerer that took care of us is actually still alive, and we think that he would be the perfect person to have with us."

  Brighid put out her hands, her eyes shifting back and forth. “Okay. Where is he? And how did he get here because there’s no other boat?”

  From behind Brighid, Thomas's voice rang out, only this time there was no stuttering nervousness. "I really never leave."

  Brighid's eyes went wide; she turned on her heels, looking at Thomas and then glancing nervously over at the other guys. "Thomas. I was just… We were just… Wait, what are you doing here?"

  Brighid looked over at the guys as they all chuckled. When she looked back at Thomas, he waved his arm in the air, and she watched as his body changed, taking form in his true self. He was no longer the young fumbling idiot. He was a sorcerer, an older one with deep wrinkles, a long twisted white beard, and the same friendly eyes that she knew very well from working with him for years.

  Brighid’s mouth fell open. “You’re… But I thought… All this time?”

  Thomas gave her an aged smile. "Even longer than that, my dear. Your father trusted me not only to take care of your mates but to take care of you as well. I was destined to be by your side all these years, and I 'm destined to make sure that you continue on in safety as long as I can."

  Brighid put her hand to her chest, a tear welling up in her eyes. Ash walked over and put his hand on her shoulder with a smile. “Are you alright?”

  Brighid nodded sniffling. "I am. I just… I was always so sad that I didn't get to spend time with my father. That I didn't get to learn from him or be around him. But from the looks of it, he's always been right here with me. He's shown so much love and care by keeping you all safe and making sure you're here for me. I'm truly touched by it."

  Finn walked up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. Zevi came to her side, taking her hand in his. "Your father loved you very deeply, and hopefully, we can show you the same sort of loyalty and caring that he did when he spent all of those years preparing for this. I know that I can see him in your eyes, and I can feel his bold and strong personality deep within you. I'm proud to be your mate."

  Chapter Nine

  "You get to fly a lot?" Ash asked, looking over at Brighid as they flew above the boat.

  She blinked at him, looking back and forth but seeing that his eyes were perfectly stationed on her. “Can you see me?”

  Ash spoke telepathically in a hushed tone, just as he did in his human form. "Don't worry, your cloaking magic is working. I think it's our connection and the fact that I've been around you your whole life. I can see you, they can see you, but I can sense the magic, and I know it's there."

  "Huh," Brighid snorted, her Dragon watching in all directions as they flew. "I don't get to fly a lot, no. Before everything happened with my mother, I would try to go out every other week, at night when I knew no one would spot me coming or going. Up until a few days ago, I had a bit of a struggle controlling my cloaking when I would land before I shifted back into my human form. It was the same taking off as well. So, I had to fly at night and land very carefully. Not to mention the fact that if there were any boats out that far and they saw a naked woman running across the beach, it would draw a little bit of attention."

  Ash chuckled. “I don’t think anyone would mind.”

  Even through her Dragon's heat, Brighid could feel a blush coming over her. She cleared her throat and changed the subject. "My Dragon has kind of gotten used to it, not being able to stretch its wings as often as it would like, but I figured eventually that would change. Whether I ended up back at the Castle working with my sisters as High Alpha or worked on my magic a bit more. I thought maybe the desire would slow down with the islands, but it seems to pick up more and more every year."

  Ash's Phoenix stared ahead, the tips of its feathers brushing against Brighid's scales. "I suppose with the way that the world is, with the influence of dark magic, the struggle that humans go through, disappearing into a world of enchantment for a while is all they could do to keep their sanity in place. I can't say that I don't fully understand that, while your father was amazing, as a child and a teenager, things were heavy."

  Suddenly Brighid felt a bit guilty, even though she had no say so in the track of their lives. Ash flapped his wings again. "No need to feel guilty, you had nothing to do with it. Fate is what it is, and I would never change that, but there were moments growing up that I wished for a normal life. I longed for the connection of my Phoenix family."

  “Do you have a family that’s alive?” Brighid asked with care.

  "Yes," Ash replied. "I absolutely have family and have always known about them. The life of the Phoenix is different than others, and our family structure is different than others. We are born into a community, a specific Shifter species, and we only truly feel at home with our own souls."

  Brighid thought about the Dragons and her father. "I can understand that. While I'm incredibly attached to my sisters, there's a special kind of bond with the Dragons."

  "As there should be," Ash replied. "For the Phoenix, when we are born, we are leagues above normal human minds. By the time we are walking, we're reading, we're thinking about psychology, the afterlife, we're traveling through realms and into the dream world. The Phoenix know that while it feels most comforting to stay together, we will never make change in this world, we will never grow, we will never flower if we stay cooped up together in some secret sanctuary. We are pushed to expand our horizons and spread out."

  Brighid couldn't imagine being pushed from home at such a young age. "I guess in a way, it's the safest as well. If you're all together, it's more likely that if there is an attack, one of you will die at one time."

  "That's exactly right," Ash said. "People often forget that though Phoenix can live forever, we can also be killed very easily. For us to rise again, a Phoenix must turn to ash on their own. We have biological clocks that live deep within us, and eventually, our Phoenix body becomes too weak to carry forth. That body goes back to nature, and another arises from the ashes."

  “Are you still you?” Brighid asked curiously. “What I mean is, do you have the same mind and memories from your life as whatever Phoenix you were last? Or do you have to start all over again like reincarnation?”

  "We still have our same memories, our personalities, our soul stays intact," Ash explained. "Our bodies are smaller in Phoenix form, but if we so choose when we shift into our human, we can return to the human body we had in the last life. So, in essence, I could look like the Ash you met in human form for all of eternity. With each ending comes choices. When we burst into ash, there is a momentary pause where we are in the in-between realms. We are capable of communicating with those in the Fields of Moribund and the Ancestors. If we so choose, we can request a new human body. We can even request to be born again as a young human, our Phoenix still holding the same soul."

  On the inside of Brighid’s Dragon, she smiled. “So as small babies, reborn in your Phoenix bodies, you truly are old souls.”

  "Yes," he replied. "But we never usually find ourselves reborn as an infant, it would be too difficult to take care of ourselves and protect ourselves. Our human bodies do have limitations just as normal human bodies do. But I've known many that have been reborn. When the
y shift into their human, they're in adolescent years or teenagers, or even young adults. It all depends on how old their body was when they were reborn."

  “So, there’s not one set time. For each life?” Brighid asked.

  The Phoenix shook its head. "Not at all. Just like the human body goes through stages depending upon nature, nurture, and genes, the Phoenix is the same. We are all individual and separate but have a connection that feels as if we are one. If that makes any sense."

  “It makes perfect sense,” Brighid said with a joyous voice.

  Ash and Brighid stared over at each other as they flew, a bond forming between them. They continued on their journey, keeping watch in the distance as the boat grew nearer and nearer to the coast. When they finally saw land, the sun was beginning to set. Ash circled down and landed on the ship, shifting into his human form. Up above, Brighid watched as Ash pointed toward a vacant area of land where they could pull the boat up on the beach, and she would be safe to shift back into her human form.

  Brighid flew ahead, circling over the land, triple checking that there was no one close enough to see her in case her cloaking failed her as it had been. By the time she circled back around, the boys had pulled the boat up onto the shore and were dressed and ready for her. She gently fluttered down to the beach, and as her claws touched down on the warm sand, she shifted smoothly into her human form. It was even easier than the time before. It was a strange feeling as if she were growing stronger by the minute.

  Walking toward the boat, Zevi hopped out and held up a blanket, wrapping it around Brighid. Finn pulled her clothes from a bag and handed them over, the three men waiting for her to dress. Brighid pulled her shirt over her head and slipped her feet into her shoes. "We probably shouldn't leave the boat here. Now that we're in human form, no one will suspect us of anything. If we push the boat back into the water and take it around this peninsula, there's a small harbor at the base of the town."