Scheredin let out a chuckle. “Brexton talked him into getting a set of daggers made so they could train with the sentinels together.”
“If your familiar gets Wullem calling himself a rogue too, I’m going to smack him into next week,” Dra’Kaedan stated.
“Brex loves being a familiar. He just gets swept up into his fantasy of being a sentinel. Try being his warlock and finding him prowling around your room ‘protecting’ you from any bad guys who might show up,” Scheredin said.
“Put a bubble of magic in your space to keep him out,” Dra’Kaedan advised.
“That’s a good idea. Want to reinforce it for me? I have this growing fear that he’s going to pop in while I’m jerking off or something.”
“Don’t need the damn visual, Scher. Of course I will. Dre’Kariston can too.”
“Not my fault you have a dirty mind and secretly want to see me naked,” their cousin retorted.
“You wish.”
“How long is this asinine conversation going to drag on between you two?” Dre’Kariston asked.
Dra’Kaedan shook his head. “There he goes being a fuddy-duddy again.”
“Since my presence isn’t wanted, I’m going to my room to wait for my mate to text me,” Dre’Kariston said with mock irritation as he tugged Scheredin’s long ponytail.
“Is he coming over again today?” Scheredin asked.
“That’s the plan,” Dre’Kariston confirmed as he walked out of the office.
“Yay, let him come out and play. We want to get to know him better,” Scheredin called after him. “And don’t forget to add your magic to the new barrier in my room. With a mix of dark and light, it’ll be super strong.”
“I’m not a dark warlock,” Dre’Kariston hollered from the hallway.
“You should be,” Dra’Kaedan yelled back.
With an epic sigh, Dre’Kariston left the building that housed all the offices used by the D’Vaire family and headed toward the house. The strong smell of Duke Dravyn D’Vairedraconis’s beautiful garden hit his nose, and he relished the scent of all the amazing flowers. Once he got to the massive deck, he trailed a finger over the top of one chaise as he strode over to the door. He pulled it open and the air conditioning hit him almost like a wall, as did the aroma of whatever undoubtedly delicious things Noirin was cooking.
“Hey you,” she greeted. “Your mate coming over today?”
“Yep,” Dre’Kariston replied as he crossed through the living space into the hall that led to the bedrooms.
“Good, he seems nice.”
“Thanks, I think so too.”
Only minutes later, Dre’Kariston got to the room he’d lived in since his arrival at D’Vaire several years ago. Closing himself inside it, he headed for the bed and took a seat, resting his back against the forest of pillows. He understood more than anyone how worry and doubt could plague him, so Dre’Kariston was going to try his damnedest to just enjoy having a mate. His family was right; he needed to take it one step at a time and not try to solve every problem on his own. A matebond was a relationship between two people, and he’d like to plan his future with Somerly. He decided he was going to assume they’d have one, because the alternative was too depressing to contemplate.
At D’Vaire were two demonic elves and if love couldn’t grow, they could use a spell to break the bond Fate had formed. To Dre’Kariston it was a drastic and scary step, so he set it aside and determined it wouldn’t play any part in his life. He didn’t know Somerly well yet, but he did like what he’d learned about him. The dragon was young, but he had to be responsible; he spent his days caring for his ailing father. Dre’Kariston detected nothing in his voice when he’d revealed that fact to suggest he was resentful of his duties.
He was simply a caring son who wished to help his only parent. As someone who’d dearly loved his own mother and father, he could understand that devotion. Over six hundred years had passed since T’Eirick and Saura were murdered, and Dre’Kariston still missed them. There were even times he expected them to show up, ready to help him tackle a problem or simply to offer comfort or affection. Not only had they been exceptional leaders, they’d never made him or Dra’Kaedan feel like anything else but adored children. And it couldn’t have been easy to know that by having their sons, the Grand Warlock and Grand Summoner had unwittingly brought to life their own successors.
Though the twins were only eighteen at the time of their parents’ deaths, they’d already had lengthy discussions about the day Dra’Kaedan and Dre’Kariston would take over to rule their people. Looking back, Dre’Kariston wondered if his father’s pull toward the dark side of magic had played a part in Fate’s choice to give him and his brother such power from the start. T’Eirick hadn’t been the sort of person willing to throw away thousands of years of tradition to become the first Grand Warlock who didn’t practice light sorcery.
He knew what a difficult battle it could be; Dre’Kariston warred with the side of himself that wished to follow the blackness. His brother made it seem like such an easy thing to embrace, but Dre’Kariston couldn’t discount Derwin’s feelings. Before he could dwell any further on his disgruntled familiar, his phone beeped. He fished it out of his pocket and found a text from Somerly.
R U still coming?
Dre’Kariston got to his feet and stuffed the device back into his jeans. Then he teleported himself to Somerly’s treehouse in the woods.
The handsome dragon was waiting for him and offered Dre’Kariston a bright smile when he arrived. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too. You ready to go to D’Vaire?”
Somerly closed his eyes. “Yep.”
Dre’Kariston found he couldn’t resist the temptation of his mate standing there. He leaned forward and pressed his mouth softly to Somerly’s as he cast the teleportation spell. Seconds later, he pulled away after they arrived in his bedroom.
“Will you kiss me again?”
This time it was Dre’Kariston who grinned. Then he cupped Somerly’s face in his hands and reunited their lips. Somerly melted against him, and Dre’Kariston deepened the kiss. Somerly’s tongue gliding against his made him light-headed, and he briefly wondered if he’d survive a more intimate encounter. Since his dick perked up like sex was imminent, Dre’Kariston decided it was best to pull away from the tempting man in front of him.
“Wow.”
“Yeah, you’re an amazing kisser, Somerly.”
“Same goes. I mean…I can’t even process how much better that was than other guys I’ve kissed.”
“We really don’t have to talk about past lovers.”
“No, it was stupid of me to mention it. I just wanted you to know how good that was.”
“It wasn’t stupid at all, and I’m glad you liked it. I did too.”
“I wonder what sex will be like.”
Dre’Kariston smiled. “That thought crossed my mind as well, but it’s probably a little early in our relationship to find out. So, I’m going to need you to leave my bedroom before my desire to fuck you overrides my good judgment.”
Somerly’s navy eyes widened; then he broke out in peals of laughter. “I think I came a little when you said that.”
“Out of my room, dragon.” Dre’Kariston pressed his hands to the back of Somerly’s shoulders and guided him toward the door in case he didn’t get the idea that he meant business.
“I bet you’re going to feel so good inside me,” Somerly offered conversationally as he took his sweet-ass time leaving Dre’Kariston’s space.
“We’re changing the subject. How’s your dad?”
“Bloody hell, Dre’Kariston. What a way to kill a man’s erection. He’s fine.”
“Now might be a good time to mention that since I’m related to Dra’Kaedan, I have a pretty big evil streak.”
“I don’t believe there’s anything evil about you.”
Dre’Kariston yanked open the door and shoved his mate into the hall, then followed him out. “I
appreciate that. Maybe that isn’t the right word. I’ve come face-to-face with evil before and it wasn’t pretty. Let’s go with mean streak.”
“Okay, that works. I have one of those myself.”
“Use it on my brother—he lives for conflict.”
“Can’t he set me on fire or something? I mean, I don’t even know what kind of magic warlocks can do.”
Dre’Kariston reached out and grabbed his hand. “Let’s go outside and I’ll show you Dravyn’s gardens. I can tell you all about warlocks, because you seriously don’t want to ask my brother. Brogan did that once and Dra’Kaedan did set him on fire.”
“You aren’t going to do that to me, are you?”
“If I ever do, I give you permission to use your dragon fire back on me just so it’s fair.”
“Deal.”
Chapter 11
Somerly may have been committed to staying far away from the ruler of D’Vaire, but he had to admit he loved the guy’s house. Dre’Kariston introduced him to everyone the day before and while it was small for a dragon court, there were still way too many names floating through his head to keep them all straight. But as he followed Dre’Kariston into the kitchen, he definitely recalled the woman who cooked for the family. Noirin was a stunning woman who resembled her cousin Aleksander a great deal. She had his jet-black hair and the strong bones of his face, only in a more feminine fashion.
Whatever she was creating for the dinner meal smelled amazing, and he offered her a small wave as Dre’Kariston continued through her domain and right out the back door. As far as he could see was a thick garden. Again, it was a member of Aleksander’s striking family tending to it. Duke Dravyn D’Vairedraconis was toiling away with a baseball cap squashing down his dark tresses. Somerly wouldn’t have objected to hanging out on the expansive deck, but Dre’Kariston stepped down the few stairs onto a brick path that led toward a large fountain.
“Where are we going?” he asked. They were close enough that he heard the splashing of the water; then he spotted several statues surrounding a gazebo and plenty of plants filling the space.
“This is the memorial garden. It’s arguably the most important part of D’Vaire.”
“It’s pretty.”
Dre’Kariston didn’t stop until he got right in front of the wooden structure with a metal plaque which bore the name of his twin. “Do you mind sitting in the gazebo with me for a bit while I answer your questions about warlocks?”
“Sure.” Somerly followed him inside and sat on a plush navy cushion. Dre’Kariston released his hand and planted himself close by.
“What do you know about magickind?”
“Not much. The Consilium only discusses wizards. I know they use alchemy and stuff. Dad doesn’t have a lot to do with them, and I’ve personally never met one.”
Dre’Kariston gave him a little half smile. “Technically, you have. Yesterday I introduced you to two of the most powerful wizards in the Council. Delaney and Idris D’Vaire.”
Somerly flipped through the catalog of people in the D’Vaire house and remembered Delaney as the guy with both black eyes and black hair. Idris had a mop of curls and unique eyes which were an arresting color caught somewhere between intense blue and purple. “Idris is the guy whose mate has a little dragon on his shoulder all the time.”
“Yes, his mate is Mac and that’s Idris’s familiar, Roger, who uses Mac as a perch.”
“Okay, I remember Delaney is all dark.”
“This isn’t a test, Somerly. I don’t expect you to recall everyone’s names right away. You can always ask me if you can’t remember. And yes, Delaney is definitely all dark. In fact, he’s the only dark wizard in the world.”
Somerly appreciated Dre’Kariston’s patience and liked the sound of his voice. He’d managed not to make Somerly feel stupid as he often did around people. And Somerly was still in awe of how good he kissed. “Is his magic evil, then?”
“Not at all. Evil is limited to people, not types of magic. It’s how you wield it that dictates whether it’s malicious or not.”
“That makes sense—because there’s evil people who can’t even cast spells.”
Dre’Kariston nodded. “Exactly.”
“Is warlock magic light or dark?”
“Warlocks can be both.”
“Which are you?”
Dre’Kariston squirmed a little on the cushion. “Light.” The word was almost a question instead of a statement.
“Don’t you like the kind of magic you use?”
“I do, but I also like learning new things and testing boundaries.”
“So, you study a lot of magic?”
“All the time. Warlocks are able to cast nearly any type of spell except for raising the dead as necromancers do or breaking soulbinds like demons can.”
“I haven’t heard any good things about necromancers. How weird would it be to hang around dead people who’ve risen from the grave? I can’t even fathom that and demons…are those even real?”
Dre’Kariston let out a husky chuckle. “Not only did you meet a necro yesterday, you met a hybrid and four people raised from the dead. And you were introduced to two elves with demonic blood.”
Somerly’s eyes widened almost painfully. “I did? How many different types of people live here?”
“Let’s see. We’ve got dragons, warlocks as well as our familiars, three types of elves, the aforementioned wizards and their familiars, a necro and a necro hybrid, four sentinels who account for our resurrected contingent, and a Kellas cat shifter.”
“Is all of the Council mixed like that?”
“No, we’re the only multi-race sanctuary, but the hope is more leaders will follow Aleksander’s example.”
“How many types of people are in the Council?”
“There are currently over a hundred distinct types of magickind and shifters who belong.”
“Wow, I didn’t even know there were that many kinds of people in the world. I’ve heard of…maybe six or seven races.”
“When my parents created the Council of Sorcery, they had a goal of uniting as many races as possible. After their deaths, Arch Lich Chander Daray took up their cause until the Council added shifters, and now Emperor Chrysander Draconis works tirelessly to include every type of person he meets.”
“Okay, I’m not sure what’s more surprising to me. That your parents started the Council or that it’s run by the dragon emperor.”
Dre’Kariston’s brows drew together. “You didn’t know the Council was led by a dragon?”
“No, it’s always referred to as the Council. I wasn’t taught anything about it, including who leads it.”
“Would you like to learn about its origins?”
“Sure.”
“As I mentioned, my parents came up with the idea to unite the allies they knew. In the beginning it was warlocks, necros, wizards, mages, and druids. Shortly after it was started, a war broke out between my people and the Cwylld elven. It devastated both races. All of the remaining warlocks live under this roof, as does the Cwylld Chieftain and his mate.”
“A Cwylld elf lives here?”
Dre’Kariston nodded. “Chieftain Cadlyr of the Cwylld. His brother lives here too, but he’s an Acwellan now because of his mate.”
“How does that make you feel, being forced to live with your enemy? How did that happen?”
“Cadlyr isn’t my enemy.…His parents were. They murdered my people, but Cadlyr’s my family and I love him as much as I do my own brother.”
From the warmth in Dre’Kariston’s voice, he was speaking the truth. “So, his parents attacked yours?”
“Well, it was a bit more complicated than that. They were tricked into doing it by a man named Carvallius. He was a particularly evil dark warlock who was trying to provoke my parents, so they’d be forced to give up their titles. Carvallius wanted to lead my people. He kidnapped my brother and forced him into serving his granddaughter, Latarian, without any memory of his real ide
ntity, so he’d be out of the way. And after the war started, he came after me.”
“He came after you?”
“Yes, he followed me to a cabin where my parents forced me to go to wait out the war.” Dre’Kariston fondled the chain around his neck. In the open V of his shirt was a silver medallion with a glowing blue dragon head on it. “My brother has a necklace just like this, only in gold. My father gave them to us shortly after we were born. Inside of mine is an essence of my twin so I can always find him. The spells Carvallius used to enslave my brother made my dragon spin in circles instead of leading me to Dra’Kaedan. Carvallius stole my brother’s gold one and used it to track me down. Then he attacked.”
“Were you hurt?”
Dre’Kariston gave another bob of his head. “It took me years to recover. I had to summon my familiar early to care for me.”
“And Carvallius?”
“He didn’t survive, but nothing is truly over in the world of magic, and some asshat resurrected him. As drunk on power as ever, he tried the impossible task of giving himself great magic and it backfired, turning him into a skeleton. Now, he rests in a locked prison cell with a Cwylld stone on his chest which has put him in a deep coma.”
“Cwylld stone?”
“During a war with Acwellan elves, the Cwylld managed to find a large cache of stones which drain magic. Cadlyr found if you put one on the chest of a person born of magic, it renders them unconscious.”
“Huh. I wonder how he figured that out.”
Dre’Kariston smiled. “He kidnapped an Acwellan elf and tried it. He repeated the process when he kidnapped my cousin Scheredin.”
“The cool guy with the ponytail?”
“Yes, he ran into him during the war and my cousin was only sixteen. He’d run away from my parents’ castle, overcome with grief over the deaths of his mother and father. Cadlyr couldn’t bring himself to kill him.”
The Summoner's Path (D'Vaire, Book 10) Page 8
