Dragons and Mages: A Limited Edition Anthology

by Pauline Creeden

  What we don’t talk about are our plans for afterward. Priya told me to go to the land of the dragons, and I want to go. I don’t know how to make it happen, though. I don’t know how Orion’s plans could match with mine.

  When we get closer to the city, warriors empty from one of the gates and spill across the sand toward us, their gray uniforms just as I remember them.

  “Come,” a tall woman says, recognizing us from our last time here, months prior. I think her name is Verna. “Nima Storyteller and King Davian will be pleased to see you.”

  My tunic and leggings are filthy. Still, I wave away Verna’s offer of a trip to the baths. Orion shoots me a hurt expression. Water is still precious, even though Orion and I are about to bring glorious news to Nima and Davian.

  Despite the lateness of the hour, the king and storyteller greet us in the Audience Chamber. It’s a fancy room that immediately makes me wish we had cleaned up. The carpet looks as lush and green as the western jungles. A canopy is draped over a set of low cushions. Paintings of songbirds decorate the walls. Nima runs across the carpet and throws her arms around me. I hug her back briefly before gently pushing her away.

  “I stink,” I say, laughing.

  Despite my warning, Davian hugs me as well.

  “We all stink,” Nima says, pulling Orion into a hug. “The baths are nearly dry, and we’re only bathing when absolutely necessary. Our water rations are dwindling. Tell me you come with good news.”

  “The best,” I say.

  Orion pulls our parchment from his tunic pocket and unfolds it. “We’ll find water here, here, and here,” he says, pointing.

  “How much?” Davian asks. “Enough for the city?”

  “It’s enough for the kingdom,” I say, recalling everything Priya told me. I wish she could be here—I wish Nima could meet her. “It’ll mean transporting water back and forth, at least until our wells replenish.”

  Davian picks up Nima by the waist and swings her in the air. “Are you glad you agreed to marry this young bull camel?”

  “I’m glad every day,” she says with a laugh, her gray eyes shining. “With or without the water problem solved.” Turning to me, she says, “A sevennight ago, Davian asked me to be his wife. We’ll marry soon.”

  My best friend, betrothed to a man she loves. A smile stretches my face, and I exchange a look with Orion before turning back to Nima and Davian. “Congratulations,” I say.

  “Thank you.” Nima lets go of Davian to take each of my hands in hers. Turning to Davian, she says, “My love, would you mind giving me a few moments alone with Inez?”

  “Not at all,” Davian says, brushing a kiss across her forehead. “Orion, would you like to come with me to the kitchens? We’ll gather all the spiced figs we can find to bring back to our girls.”

  “Oh, Inez isn’t my girl—” Orion starts.

  “Yes, she is,” I say with a smile.

  A grin spreads across his face, and Davian practically has to drag him from the room.

  Nima clears her throat, reclaiming my attention. “I’ve always liked Orion, although we never gave him much chance to be our friend.”

  “We are partly at fault for that,” I say, “but I blame Markus mostly.”

  Her eyes meet mine. “I blame Markus for a lot of things.”

  “But you don’t want to talk to me about boys at this time, do you?” I ask.

  “No.” She gives her head a little shake, and her braids catch the light, glinting with gold, bronze, and silver beads. “Something is different about you. And this map raises questions. So I sense a story here.”

  “It is more fantastical than your tales, Nima—and more difficult to believe. A dragon breathed fire into the sky and it gave us a map.” I do not tell her that the dragon was me.

  “That’s not so very fantastic,” she muses. “Do you remember my story about the scorpion dragon, Kucha? He breathed a flame into the air. It created a star that led his people.”

  “But that’s a made-up story,” I say. “This is the truth.”

  “Truth, stories...they can often be the same, even if the events have not yet happened. You are like Kucha, a hero to your people.”

  I wonder what she would say to a story of me changing form, becoming a dragon. I wonder if she would finish the tale, weaving scenes of the new, young dragon daughter traveling to a hidden land with news of a fallen hero and questions about her legacy.

  Again I wonder where, in that tale, Orion would fit.

  Blinking back tears, I realize I’ll have to say goodbye to Orion. I don’t want to be apart for him, even for a few months.

  “Inez,” Nima says, pulling me into another embrace. “There are things you aren’t telling me. It’s all right, you don’t have to. Just know I’m here for you whenever you need to talk. We’ll get you set up in a room—”

  “I need to leave,” I say. “The sooner, the better. I can’t bear to say goodbye.”

  “Inez?” she asks.

  Already I’m turning away. “Use the map, get the water—”

  “Inez, you’re a hero. You should stay, rest, and let us celebrate you.”

  “I’m no hero. And I need to leave, now.”

  “All right,” she says uncertainly. “We’ll get Orion and you two can—”

  “No, I’m leaving without him,” I say. The words break my heart. But I can’t ask him to go with me. We just returned to the kingdom. His place is here, not in the land of dragons. And he was so looking forward to coming home.

  “Without Orion?” She whispers the words.

  “I can’t explain.” My skin is itchy again. Although I know the dragon side of me won’t force its way forward, I also know I cannot remain in the palace. I need the outdoors, the open dunes, the stars and sun blinking at me from above.

  When I leave the chamber, Nima trails after me. We pass a servant and she speaks to him in a low voice, asking him to send a message to the stables, to ready my sled and provide as much water as can be spared.

  She follows me to the palace entryway and takes my hand. “Inez, I wish you would wait, but I see something is different. You are a hero.”

  “And heroes must make sacrifices.” Leaving Orion behind will be my sacrifice. I can’t ask him to come with me. I could be gone for months, even years. And I must leave as soon as possible, before I can weaken in my resolve and change my mind. “Please tell Orion that I am always his.”

  Tears fill her eyes as she nods. “I will.”

  “And don’t worry about me. I am stronger than ever.”

  “I can tell.”

  I hug her once more, briefly, wanting to cling to her and all that is familiar, half-wishing that Orion will unexpectedly come out of the palace and yell at me for my foolishness, convince me to stay.

  But the wide doorway remains empty. I release Nima and hurry down the path past a large fountain and out through the front gate of white and gray marble.

  The walk back to the stables is quiet. At this time of night, the homes in the city are closed up, the market stalls empty. I brush errant tears from my cheeks, annoyed at feeling so badly for myself.

  When I reach the stables, the wolves are already hitched to the sled. I wonder how Orion will return to the City of Sand if I take this sled, but Nima will doubtlessly arrange a sled or even an entire party of travelers to go with him.

  The gate is already open in front of me, framing the desert. The dunes glow in the moonlight.

  A stable attendant touches various bundles and tells me the contents of each one. When her hand rests on a bright blue package and she says, “spare clothing,” I nearly weep with relief. I never got a bath, but next time I stop, I can scrub with a cloth and extra water before I change clothes.

  Lifting the reins, I purse my lips to whistle.

  “Inez!” a voice calls.

  I freeze. Am I imagining him?

  “Inez, winds take you if you leave without me.”

  Turning, I see a shadow at the other
end of the stable. Orion. My breath escapes me in a whoosh. But this wasn’t my plan. I can’t say goodbye.

  He stops at the side of the sled, hand on his side, breathing hard. From behind him, the stable girl gives me a wink and a grin before slipping out the far door.

  “You don’t have anything to say?” he asks, gasping.

  “You shouldn’t be here,” I finally say.

  “Why shouldn’t I? You said that you’re mine, Inez. Well, guess what—I’m yours, too.”

  “And that’s exactly why you can’t come with me,” I say.

  He shakes his head, and a light brown lock of hair falls over his brow. “That makes no sense at all. I’m coming with you.”

  My shoulders fall—not in defeat, but in relief. “I’m too selfish to tell you no,” I whisper. “I want you with me. I was trying to leave so that I wouldn’t cling to you like I want to do. “

  “My heart would shatter if you left without me,” he says. He laughs and clutches his chest. “I nearly broke it chasing after you.”

  Laughing like a fool, I grab his free hand and tug him onto the sled. He places his hand over my heart and I lean against the heat of it.

  “Even though I’m a dragon?” I whisper, uncertainly. We’ve barely spoken of it, but I’m not the same girl I was when we left the City of Sand.

  “The dragon is a part of you,” he says, his gaze locked on mine, “and I love you. So yes, Inez. Even though you’re a dragon.”

  The boy without a family, the friend who waited for me to notice him, the lover who loves every part of me—he is mine, and I am his. “I love you too, Orion.”

  He grins so widely, it reveals the dimple in his cheek. “Do you love me enough to let me drive the sled?”

  “No,” I say, shoving his shoulder with my own and laughing.

  But I let him hold my hand over the reins. Sending him a meaningful look, I purse my lips. He nods in understanding.

  We whistle the wolves forward at the same time.

  If you enjoyed this Luminous Lands novella, visit https://julietvane.com/page for links to all of the books in the Luminous Lands universe, including a free short story featuring Inez and Orion!

  Embers of Shame

  Becky Murray

  Embers of Shame © 2020 Becky Murray

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

  Prologue

  There was fire, so much fire. The air was filled with screams from mothers, fathers and children as they ran blindly through the burning streets. Ash fell like rain from the sky covering the floor like a grey blanket of snow. Where the sun once shone, large shadows blocked her rays as wings of dragons all shapes and sizes covered the sky.

  The heat was burning her wings as Revi ran from her home. Despite being a Phoenix, her own blue flames engulfing her to protect her, she could feel the burn of dragon fire tease at her flesh. A dragon’s breath was the most powerful flame of the lands. Even a fire bird couldn’t block out the pain it would cause if it were to connect with her skin. Clutched close to her chest was a tiny bundle. Her daughter, her little hybrid. She couldn’t let the dragons sense her, if they did she would be seized and taken from Revi and the child’s father Elyon. At the thought of Elyon, Revi felt her heart break, she hadn’t seen him since they had fled their house just a few hours ago. She knew he wasn’t dead, she would’ve felt their bond shatter if he had been taken from her, but she couldn’t reach him and that terrified her.

  Turning a corner, she was faced with nowhere left to run. The path came to a sudden stop, the drop that ran off the cliff was so large Revi couldn’t see the bottom. She wished that Elyon was with them, his strength as an angel would be enough to have carried them both to safety. Revi was weak from the flight she had just made, she didn’t have the energy to shift, to fly and to defeat the dragon in the sky, all the while trying to protect her daughter.

  “Hand the child over phoenix and you will live.” Came the deep, husky voice of the dragon.

  Revi froze, turning to face him. He was black like the evil that ran through him, scales the colour of the darkest of skies shone dangerously in the light of flames. His talons were razor sharp as he landed heavily in front of her. Those large wings folding against his body, smoke smouldering from his nostrils, eyes violet and glowing as the narrowed to fix on the child in her hand. She couldn’t understand why they were doing this, what was so wrong with the hybrids. It wasn’t the fault of the children that their parents had chosen to fall in love with someone from another race.

  “I will die before I let you take my child from me. She has done nothing wrong. We have done nothing wrong. Why can’t you just let us live in peace? We bring no harm to your race and we never will.” Revi pleaded even though she knew it was pointless. The dragons didn’t care for the feelings of others. They just believed in the annihilation of any hybrids born. Revi had often wondered why the dragons were so obsessed with such a task. Everyone knew they were the most powerful race, but did they know something others didn’t? Were the hybrids in fact more powerful? With the blood of two different races within them, was that enough to knock the power from the dragons?

  “She is not pure, you failed her as parents, and you kept her from us. We knew you had fled. You and the angel. You must have known we would find you eventually. Now I ask you one more time. Hand over the child and you will live,” the dragon snarled.

  Revi knew that she would die this night, but she wouldn’t let her child suffer such a fate. Brushing her lips to her daughter’s forehead to place a gentle kiss to the child’s soft skin.

  “Be safe Ember and always remember you are special and you do belong.” Revi whispered.

  Feeling her body begin to burn up, her powers begging to be freed, to defend the child, to allow her daughter to live. Closing her eyes for the briefest of moments she allowed a blue flame to engulf her daughter. Opening them once more she watched as the child was consumed by the flame and reduced to a blue powder in her hand. Lifting her palm to the wind and sending out a chant in words she knew the dragon wouldn’t understand, she blew the powder to the wind. Ignoring the roar of the dragon as he watched his prize slip away. She knew the gods would carry their grandchild to a safe place, and she prayed the phoenix in her daughter would rise to be strong and fearless. To find a place where she would belong, find a family of her own.

  Taking a deep breath Revi turned to the dragon, allowing her body to change to the fire bird that she was. She grew to match the height of the dragon, her wings of equal span to his. Her blue flames almost matching the beast in power. If she was going to die this night, she would die fighting for all she believed in. She just prayed that one day her daughter and Elyon would be reunited. Sending out all her love to the two most important people in her life, the phoenix let out a loud battle cry, as the dragon launched itself at her, one would die that night, and Revi was happy in the knowledge that Ember was safe for now.

  Chapter 1

  A large shadow swept over the city of Ustrina, her people throwing their gaze to the skies to see the pure white dragon return to his home. He was the rarest of the dragon people, none other being white, even his father, King Izzeris, had been born a black dragon, the prince of Ustrina still left his
people in awe every time he took flight. But for Ash the novelty of such had long since worn off. Landing gracefully in the grounds of the palace, he was quick to shift back, smiling at his best friend Blaze as he handed him clothing.

  “I sensed your return, couldn’t have you wondering around the grounds naked. Not when your father is entertaining guests,” Blaze stated, leaning lazily against the wall while Ash dressed around the corner.

  “Your mother isn’t pleased that you have been gone for so long Ash. Especially as you weren’t here to receive the Fae king,” he added. Ash appeared, narrowing his eyes at his friend.

  “Why is King Axis here to visit my father? The Fae never want to be seen near the dragons. They think us below them.”

  “The Fae think everyone is below them, Ash. They seem to forget we are the most powerful race,” Blaze pointed out, as Ash started the walk to the throne room.

  Blaze was right. The Fae were an arrogant, selfish race. There was a silent darkness that ran through them all. It was as if an evil lurked in every Fae soul. Ash hadn’t met many of them, he hadn’t wanted to. But he heard many tales of their land Mecris, and the magic that settled there. It was dark magic, and it concerned him as to why the king had suddenly decided to show himself to his father.

  Turning suddenly towards the entrance of the castle, Blaze right behind him, Ash decided he wanted to know what was going on, something wasn’t right. His father had changed so much over the years. Ash remembered him to be caring and loving towards him when he was child. But those day had long since gone, instead King Izzeris was now cold, devoid of all emotion. His heart and soul no longer holding the love he once had for his only child and his wife. Though his mother had also become more subdued of late. Now with the appearance of the King Axis, Ash wondered if this was not the first time the Fae king had visited Ustrina. If his suspicions were correct, then he needed to speak with his father. A darkness that only the Fae could bring was not welcomed in Ustrina.