by K. A Knight
“Aska, what does this mean?” I inquire, getting a really bad feeling.
“Eight dragons,” he whispers, and looks to Xaph. “Did they go in all directions?”
Xaph nods.
“They are scouts,” Aska rumbles. “Here to scout the world.”
“Scouts?” I say with a frown. “What? Why?”
“Neriso, scouts come before a war...an invasion,” Aska explains.
“But why now?” Xaph snaps. “You are a dragon, you must know. They withdrew from this world several millennia ago, happy to die and breed in your own world. Why now?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t been home since they closed the gates. If they are sending scouts...coming here, it’s for a reason. We need to find out why and fast. Dragons aren’t known for making friends. They will burn this world if they want to do so.”
“Great,” I growl. “So first the council and now a dragon invasion, anything else?”
“We still need to deal with the rogue humans and witches,” Dume supplies.
Fuck.
The whole world is going to shit. Why now? What’s happening? Do they feel the unbalance of power? No, Aska would have mentioned it, but when I look at my dragon’s face, he seems worried, very worried. And something that concerns my untouchable dragon downright terrifies me.
“Okay, well, we will have to—”
“You, not we, child. You wanted the role, then you have the responsibilities associated with your position. Most of the dragons are heading this way, into your territory, and the door is closest to you. This is your problem.” Xaph smirks and looks to Lucy. “Try not to destroy the world.” Then, he disappears as swiftly as he arrived.
“What the fuck? The whole world is in danger and he’s all like ‘okay, bye, hold my beer?’” I snap, throwing my hands in the air.
Lucy snorts. “Regina, you will learn over the years there is always a war, a plan to destroy the world. It is so common it is boring. He knows it will not happen, we have seen it time and time again. He is giving us a challenge to prove ourselves or fail.”
“And if we fail, we die,” I conclude. “Brilliant, no pressure.”
“That is tomorrow’s problem, you will learn that soon enough. Until then, let us sort some of the council’s issues, clean up this house, and begin planning.” Lucy sighs. “I guess I’m going into teaching mode.”
“Yeah, I’m betting you didn’t listen a lot during council laws and proper leadership studies.” I snort and he smirks at me, proving me right.
All of our lives are hanging in Lucifer’s hands...that’s okay...right?
We return to the sleeping court’s quarters, but go into a living room this time. It’s a little dusty, but still beautiful and definitely to my taste. It has large, charcoal, button sofas around the space with black accents, very little gold, and a huge fireplace. It looks homey, as much as a giant living room in a mansion can.
My mates sit down throughout the room as Lucy leans against the wall, his eyes far away. “We could do with a guard we trust for your door,” he suggests randomly.
“I have all these mates, not to mention myself.”
He raises his eyebrow as Griffin stands with a, “Need to pee,” and leaves the room.
“Not enough, I have an idea.”
Just then a pop sounds, and at Lucy’s side is a dog...well, more like a skeleton, but it’s dog-shaped for sure. I can’t help but melt. It’s so cute with little red eyes and flaming feet. I want to touch it.
So I do. I drop to my knees and reach for him. “Oh my God, you are so adorable!” I squeal.
“He is fierce, a killer, a—” Lucy stops, his mouth hanging open as I stroke his fur, cooing to him.
“Oh my gosh, who’s a little cutie, yes you are! Look at those sweet little flames, who’s a good boy with flames? Yes you are, yes you are.” The dog barks happily and rubs against my hands.
“Stop, woman, that is a fierce hellhound! Death itself, he—”
“Yes, you’re a good boy,” I gush, scratching his head.
“Woman!” Lucy screams, throwing his hands in the air as the dog flops onto his back and I scratch his tummy. “You have turned my hellhound into a slobbering puppy!” he protests, staring at his hellhound in disgust. “Get up, Hades, act like the demon you are!”
Hades ignores him and curls around me, rumbling happily. Just then, Griffin comes back into the room and spots the dog. His eyes widen and his nostrils flare. “Oh, hell no! Nope, we already have a wolf and a fucking minotaur, we have no more room for pets! None!”
“Oooh, I could get you a little bandana with skulls on it. Oh my God, we could get your daddy a matching one, yes we could,” I tell Hades.
“Vasculo!” Griffin roars. “I’m serious, no more pets!”
I blink at him. “He stays, problem?” I challenge, raising my eyebrow.
Griffin tosses his hands in the air as well—I have that effect on people—and leaves the room, grumbling about dog piss and stupid women. I look to Lucy. “Is this your guard?”
Lucy watches the dog in disgust as he crosses his arms. “Yes, he is a fierce, loyal beast...usually. He burns souls and eats them.”
“Oh my gosh, how cute, you are adorable,” I tell Hades.
I hear laughing behind me as Lucy glares at me. “Let’s sort the rest of the roles and go through what needs to happen now. Regina, please don’t tickle the hellhound.”
Grinning, I carry on with my ministrations. “Shouldn’t have brought him then! Okay, so what’s first?”
Lucy takes one more pained look at his dog before diving into what the people and council now expect. By the end my head is spinning. So many rules, so many expectations…so much to do, and fighting and killing won’t be the solution this time. Words and power games will be.
And we are only just beginning.
“Tell me everything I need to know about dragons and what this means,” Dawn requests over breakfast the next day. After Lucy’s lessons, she had fallen into a deep sleep. They went on until the early morning and she woke up exhausted. I can see it, it’s getting to be too much for her.
“I will, but first you need a break. You went from hunting your ex to stopping the council without a pause. We can have a few hours off, my love,” I tell her, my hand gliding up and down her thigh. She is sitting beside me on the sofa, and I can’t stop myself from touching her, from being close. I am not ashamed to admit I tackled Griffin to get the seat next to her.
“A break?” she questions, tilting her head and blinking at me as she eats her sausage. Which is very distracting when she is in a room full of horny supernaturals. All eyes are locked on her. She either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care, but the slight smirk around her lips tells me she’s noticed and is doing it on purpose now.
She takes another bite and moans, her eyes fluttering closed. My cock jerks in my pants and I shift uncomfortably. Looking around, I can see the rest of her mates are in the same predicament. Nos laughs at her. “Little Monster, be nice or be prepared to run.”
She blinks open her eyes and they bleed to black. “Only if you promise to chase me.”
“Focus, Vasculo.” Griffin snorts.
“Fine.” She huffs. “What kind of break?”
I look at the other guys. I had asked them earlier when she was asleep. They agreed she needed to rest, although Nos had to smack Griffin on the back of his head when he tried to kill me for, and I quote, ‘stepping on his territory’ with her. He also told me we couldn’t fuck or he would chop off my ‘tiny dragon balls.’
“You’ll see. Put on trousers, Neriso, and meet me out back,” I instruct her, then lean down and lick the sauce from the corner of her mouth, making her shudder against me. I hop up before any of her other mates can kill me and stroll from the room. I glance back at the door to see my mate’s eyes on my arse.
I wink at her and Griffin rolls his eyes at me. Laughing, I head downstairs and prepare for our break. This is the first time I will
be alone with my mate and not in the dreamscape. A part of me is nervous about what I want to show her, but it’s better to do this now instead of later. She didn’t flinch when she saw me shift in battle, but this is different. My dragon is aching to meet her, to wrap around her and protect her.
They need to meet.
If she will let us, I want her to meet my dragon and then take her flying. Let her soar above the sky with me and get her away for a bit. Get her to relax so she is ready to face what is coming, because if I am right, if the dragons are preparing for an attack...we have a war approaching.
She doesn’t keep me waiting long. She hops down from the second floor balcony and lands before me, grinning on the grass. Her legs are encased in leather pants, which look painted on, with a tank top tucked in, showing off her bare, pale shoulders and arms. I debate keeping her to myself, but then shake it away.
“So what are we doing, dragon?” she queries, seeming excited.
“We are going for a ride.” I smile and then, without warning, I change.
My wings sprout from my back as scales take over my expanding body, the ground and air around me swirls with power, and through it all I see her eyes locked on my transformation in wonder. Then, my dragon stands before her.
Her mouth drops open. “Aska...you’re beautiful,” she whispers.
Huffing, I lower my head and she steps closer, pressing her hand to my snout, unafraid, even as my purple magic seeps through my black, spiny leather skin. She stares into my eyes, looking so tiny against my curled body.
My dragon hesitates, not wanting to hurt her since she is so little. Want to climb on? We will go for a ride.
“You want me to ride you?” She beams, still stroking my snout like she cannot stop.
You can ride me anytime, Neriso.
She giggles and looks at my body. “You are huge, how do I even...ride you?”
Tilting my head to the side, I sink my body to the ground as low as it goes. There are some spikes behind my head, use them, don’t worry about gripping too hard, my skin is very thick. You couldn’t even shoot an arrow through my hide.
She nods with a wide grin, and without hesitating, grabs onto my spikes and throws herself up onto my neck. Huffing with a smirk, I rise up and she gasps.
“That felt so wrong, rumbling between my legs.”
So, of course, I do it again and she gasps. I feel her warm body against the skin of my neck and turn my head, blinking at her as I blow smoke right in her face, making her laugh.
“Come on then, big guy, let’s fly!” she shouts, almost squealing.
Taking her word that she is ready, I push from the ground and soar into the sky, flapping my wings. I allow her to get settled and hold on before I dive towards the ground, sweeping low before tucking in my wings and spiralling higher until we break through the clouds.
She whoops, squealing as we move faster. Once through the clouds, I open my wings and we glide. I turn my head and watch her arms spread on either side, reaching out to touch the clouds, her eyes closed. She looks so peaceful, so happy with her mouth curved in a relaxed smile and the wind blowing through her blonde hair.
She is beautiful.
Her eyes open and lock on me. So are you. Now, how fast can you go, big guy? Let’s take this dragon for a real ride.
Oh, she wants to go fast?
Hold on, Neriso, if you fall they will kill me.
She screams in delight as I stop my wings and tuck them close, letting us plunge through the clouds and spiral closer to earth. I streamline my body as much as I can, letting us go faster and faster, and then I start to spin. I hear her screaming, the wind taking the sound away, but I feel the excitement and thrill in her mind. I make sure to keep an eye on her, not wanting to hurt her or push her too far, but my mate wants more.
Everything.
She wants this.
Before we hit the ground, I spread my wings and take us higher, then I loop over the city and farther out, doing tricks and spins, flying fast and slow. It’s like being a youngling again. We did this to show off, to test how fast we could go. It was exciting, a thrill, and I get that feeling now, sharing this with my mate. It’s incredible, I’ve never felt more alive, more connected to another person.
I slow down on the way back and she drapes her body across my neck, her hand reaching out as far as it can go and stroking my scales. Thank you, my dragon, that was amazing, I needed that…
Always, Neriso. You can fly with me anytime. It has become a function to me, but you reminded me of the joy in it.
I spot a waterfall below, cascading into an azure blue pond, and glide towards it, landing on the edge. It’s hidden by the trees, not far from the city. I change back after she slips from my neck and lays on the ground with a smile on her face. Back in human form, I lie next to her, my arm under my head as I stare up at the clouds, the sun shining down on us.
“It’s so beautiful,” she whispers.
“It is,” I agree. “Though the beauty this world has to offer in no way matches the beauty of you, Neriso.”
She laughs and rolls over, sprawling on my chest, her head on my heart. “Cheesy, but I like it. Want to go for a swim?” she asks, and leaps to her feet, her hand outstretched to me.
I accept it and stand, pulling her closer as we walk down to the pond, the rush of the waterfall loud and relaxing. It reminds me faintly of home, but this is so much better, because now I have Dawn.
She dips her toe into the blue water and sighs. “It’s warm.” She looks over at me and grins before releasing my hand and diving in.
Smirking, I follow after her, splashing her as she surfaces. She laughs and splashes me back. I can’t seem to stop smiling, even as she dives under the water to escape me. I follow her, cutting through the pool until I can pull her close under the blue water. The world above seems far away.
Her eyes grin at me as she leans closer and presses her lips to mine. Gripping the back of her hair, I push us to the surface, our heads breaking the water. She sucks in a breath and slicks back her hair, her legs wrapping around my waist as I hold us both up, kicking my legs.
“Aska,” she murmurs, her gaze going to my lips. “Tell me, are you ever going to fuck me, my dragon?”
Grinding my teeth, I ignore the jerking of my cock. “I didn’t want to pressure you and a lot has—”
She giggles and covers my lips with her finger. “Aska, I have been waiting for you. Now you are finally here, and you’re worried about not pressuring me? I want you so fucking much it hurts. And today, soaring through the sky with you, feeling all that power between my legs...it’s only made me want you more. So tell me, my dragon king, do you feel like consummating our mating?”
There is no need for any more words. I growl, my eyes lighting up as they lock on her. She isn’t getting away from me now, she made this choice, she wants me...she’s going to have me.
Gripping her head, I twine my fingers through her wet locks and yank her closer, covering her ruby lips with mine. She groans into my mouth as I lick and nip, teasing her before she opens her mouth to me. Tangling tongues, I swim until I can stand. Not breaking our desperate kiss, I hoist her from the water, which flows from our joined bodies as I walk her backwards until we meet the rocks surrounding the pond. One is like a shelf—half in the water, half out. I drop her onto it and step between her parted thighs, still keeping our lips locked in a desperate battle of wills.
She tastes like water and sex. Images of silken sheets and pale thighs flash in my mind, making me rumble with lust as I press closer still. She’s addictive, and the sensation of her wet, silky body pressed against mine sends my heart racing and my cock jerking from desire, wishing I was buried inside her.
Tipping her backwards until her back rests against the rock barrier, I tear my lips away from her and kiss down her neck, leaving a trail of open-mouthed kisses as she gasps. Her hands grip my shoulders, digging in as her nails pierce the skin, and I smirk.
“Feeling ne
edy?” I murmur, as I kneel between her thighs. My head is level with her heaving chest, her ruby nipples hard and taut, her breasts floating in the water as she pants, her eyes black and locked on mine.
Grinning, I reach out and cup her breasts, squeezing them in my palms until her eyes close and she gives herself to me, her body pliant and soft as little moans escape her lips, driving me crazy. I wonder if she will make them when I’m pounding into her pussy.
Leaning down, I suck one of her nipples into my mouth and roll it around before moving to the other, switching back and forth until she is scratching at my shoulders, pulling me closer. The scent of her arousal fills the air, the fragrance heady and addictive.
My cock is throbbing, swollen from the need to be inside my mate, but I’m not rushing this. I have been waiting a millennium to feel my mate, to taste her, fuck her, and make her mine. I want her to scream like she did in the air, this time while she rides my mouth and fingers.
I want those black eyes locked on me as I bring her to the edge again and again.
She moans my name, her eyes flashing dangerously as she drags me closer still, trying to get me to do what she wants, but I ignore her nails buried in my shoulders and lower my head, blowing warm smoke across her nipples, making her shudder and moan. Her body seems to melt into the water, nothing but the stones and my hands holding her up.
Stroking along her thighs, I part them further and run my hands up the silky inside until I meet her wet center. She groans, her teeth biting down on her bottom lip as I glide my finger down her lips before spreading them. Keeping my eyes on her face, I analyse each change and nuance, storing away what she likes and what she loves. What gives her the most pleasure.
Circling around her throbbing nub, I lower my mouth to her nipple and suck it into my mouth, biting down gently as I press on her clit. She jerks closer with a silent scream, her eyes wild and begging.
“Aska,” she growls, as I release her nipple with a smirk.
“Neriso?” I rumble, as I trace my finger down her slit and press inside her pussy, my eyes locked on hers.