Dragons and Mages: A Limited Edition Anthology

by Pauline Creeden

  Three months later

  Eklan’s appearance at the academy caused quite a stir among the upper echelons of the Musimagium. They were keeping his presence quiet for now, with only the council and a few people at the academy knowing that he was there. Khalid worked with her and with Sonia, the dean of the academy, to create a curriculum. Loraj relayed to her that other dragons were ready to appear at the academy once they were ready. She sat at her computer, Kle on a pillow she placed on the edge of the desk for him like a cat bed. She reviewed the applications, narrowing it down to three candidates to be her assistant. With the amount of work coming in, she thought she might need more than one, but she had authorization to hire one person.

  One resume stood out above the rest, and not just because her socia was a corn snake, which meant she didn’t mind reptiles or their eating habits at all. She recently finished up work in Brazil and was coming back to the US. Her family was in Texas and prior to going on a trip to work with the South American Council, she’d been working at the San Antonio auxiliary office. She noted down her contact information and emailed to request an interview.

  She’s returning.

  Deanna didn’t need to know who Loraj spoke about. His eagerness for his mate’s return had been palpable over the last week. When will she be here?

  Today! The joy in his words radiated to all the dragons and Kle lifted his head and chirped.

  Do you know when? Do you want me to stay away for a while? She asked the questions, mindful that Loraj might want time with his mate without her being there.

  You are welcome to see her. I’ll let you know when she arrives.

  Good. Thank you. Deanna glanced at the box sitting next to her desk. She’d found it in the closet, realizing that it was her grandmother’s last knitting project, a shawl or scarf of dark grays and blacks, suitable for a male dragon. It matched Loraj’s colors almost exactly and would be a lovely gift to him.

  But first, she needed to get an assistant. She perused the rest of the resumes and decided on two more that might do if her first choice couldn’t accept the job for whatever reason. She messaged them as well and then followed up with Khalid’s notes. They were close to coming up with a first-year curriculum. She’d like to have that completed soon. Something told her once Eklan showed himself they would have people showing up who wanted to work with the dragons, and the dragons would oblige them.

  Three days later, Mimose Guittierez arrived for her interview. The initial phone call had gone so well that Deanna had invited her to visit for an in-person meeting. Leje had arrived home that evening as Loraj predicted, and the two of them had spent most of the time in the cave and understandably so. She’d told him to keep the dragons away for now. Even Kle had gone to the cave.

  Mimose smiled as she greeted Deanna. “I’m so glad to be here. While my work has been primarily in administration, I’ve also done some research into what they like to call non-traditional socius. People who bond to animals that aren’t the usual dog, cat, horse, rabbit. Basically, anything non-mammal. It’s beautiful here.”

  “Thanks,” Deanna replied, immediately liking her.

  The tall, statuesque woman of mixed Haitian and Mexican heritage as her short biography had indicated, stood nearly six feet tall. Her black hair was cropped close to her head. Small turquoise snake earrings decorated her ears, as did the yellow and light gray snake curled across her shoulders.

  “Come in. Can I get you anything?”

  “I’m fine, thank you.” Mimose’s voice ran with a slight accent. “Simone doesn’t bother you?” she reached up to stroke the snake’s head.

  “Not at all. She’s gorgeous.” Deanna showed the living room. “Have a seat anywhere. I’m so glad you could come on short notice.”

  “Me too. The timing was perfect. I think this is an amazing job opportunity.”

  “Good. So you wouldn’t mind living out here? It’s rather isolated and most of the work is done here at the house, though there’s lots of hikes. I’m not sure how you handle food for Simone, but we have a pet store in town.”

  Mimose chuckled. “As long as FedEx delivers, we’ll be fine.”

  “They do. So tell me, why do you want to work with dragons?”

  Mimose spoke about her research into non-traditional socius and then her work with magical creatures. She discussed the legends her parents had told her and what she’d heard from the magic users in South America. By the time she finished, Deanna had decided and showed her the spare bedroom and the rest of the amenities.

  And then, they walked out to the cave where Mimose received her first glimpse at the dragons. Her expression was everything Deanna could have hoped, and there, the final piece of the puzzle clicked into place. Not only was she a protector of the dragons here. Someone who looked after Loraj and Leje not to mention all their children, but also, she opened doors to introduce dragons to others. That, to her, was what being a true protector of dragons was. To share these marvelous creatures with the world so that the Musimagium worked to conserve them and make sure they were treated with the respect they deserved.

  Somewhere, she knew, if her grandmother was aware of what happened on the mortal plane, her grandmother approved. Finally, someone of her line carried out the work that Cohotes women had done for generations. To become one with the dragon magic.

  About the Author

  Mary Kit Caelsto never grew out of the phase of being a "horse crazy girl" and horses were her gateway to fantasy through Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar Books. Though she's now over 40, she's finally fulfilling her dream of writing equestrian books for others who haven't grown out of being "horse crazy" along with fantasy for those who love sassy animal companions. She lives in the Ozarks with her bearded dragons, her parrot, an emotional support miniature rooster and SuperDuck, plus four very spoiled and very opinionated horses, a large flock of poultry and enough cats to qualify her as a crazy cat lady.

  Visit her website at https://www.marykitcaelsto.com to learn more about her fantasy worlds, her horses and animals, and sign up for her newsletter to receive free stories, sneak peeks, and more.

  Eyes of Amber, Wings of Jade

  Mara Amberly

  Eyes of Amber, Wings of Jade © 2020 Mara Amberly

  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.

  Eyes of Amber, Wings of Jade

  My father was once a good man, before my mother’s betrayal. At least, that’s how I like to remember him, before he became aloof and cruel. My mother came from a rich kingdom to the north known as Havaria, which has since been absorbed into our own kingdom of Olys as its northern province. She was young and graceful, and by all accounts a beautiful woman when they met. My father was smitten, but he didn’t know the full truth about her, nor she about him.

  You see, she was gifted with magic and according to my father, he learned that she’d sworn vows to the Cult of Inaria before they’d met. They were a cabal of magic users who kept their allegiance secret, and who had their own plots and intrigues. It meant her loyalty to him could never be complete. This was proven in time when she vanished, betrayed our kingdom and revealed my father’s secrets to her cult. Word of his intentions reached his enemies, and he had a full-blown war on his hands
because he’d sought to conquer the surrounding territories.

  After that he was a changed man, and he let few people close as he once had. I was a small child when my mother left, and I still don’t know why she did it. You would think her husband and child would matter more than a cult she could only have belonged to for a short time, but perhaps there was more going on than there seemed. The saddest thing is I’ll never know for sure, because my father had her killed less than a year later. I can’t remember her face, but the soothing sound of her voice has stayed with me.

  Over the years I grew as close to him as anybody could. I was one of the few people he could trust, and perhaps the only person in the whole world he still loved. I knew he wasn’t a gentle ruler. The people had names for him—Leo the Cruel, the Lion of Olys, and eventually the Dark Lord; though he was more than any Lord. He ruled the land with an iron fist, with me at his side. He seemed more a leader and a father figure to me than a monster, when I wasn’t on the receiving end of his brutal justice.

  He had rare moments of kindness but as time passed they became more infrequent, and it might sound odd, but more special to me. I lived for those moments when he would show me that he still cared and respected me as more than just his daughter, but as a warrior and tactician as well. The other people closest to him were his political advisor, Albin—a man in his thirties who had an almost preternatural awareness and understanding of war, and his Spymaster Kalverin—an old man with a web of contacts stretching from the mountains to the sea.

  Whether from age or underhanded design, Kalverin died in his sleep, and I tried to step into his lofty shoes. I thought it was a role I could handle; after all, I’d served as a scout for my father’s army for many years, but Kalverin was more than just an intelligence-gatherer for the king. He was an assassin and my mother’s killer, and his role was not the kind you could walk away from easily, if at all.

  I hadn’t been in my new role for more than a week when I was summoned by my father. He ruled from the tallest tower of the palace. I knew why he’d chosen it, because of the kind of man he was. It gave him a grander view of his domain than anywhere else, and he liked to intimidate those below him.

  That day is still crystal clear in my memory and I remember how cold it was, though perhaps I’m remembering it with a chill in my heart. You would think my father was ugly from my description of him, but he wasn’t. The king was always a handsome man, though his brown hair was peppered with strands of grey by the time I took up the mantle of Spymaster.

  I passed many of the king’s guards as they trained and sparred in the palace courtyard. They were an impressive sight, but I knew they only formed around a fifth of the guards currently in service to my father, and that didn’t include the bulk of his forces.

  My knock on the door was swiftly answered by a guard in full armour. No sooner had I set foot into the chamber, I heard my father call, “Cyron, leave us.”

  Our eyes only met for the briefest of moments, but I knew Cyron as well as any of the guards in service to my father. He had always seemed strong and loyal, and down to earth, but with a sense of humour. The men liked him and I didn’t have any reason not to, except where my father used him as a tool to threaten me.

  He left and quickly closed the door, leaving me alone with my father in the richly decorated, yet dark, chambers. I approached and bowed to the king, as was expected of me. It was good to see him in a way—after all, he was the only member of my family that remained, but I never knew quite what to expect from him.

  “Niera, sit down at the table,” King Leo ordered, though his tone was more conversational than demanding. There could be no doubt it was a demand though, because it came from him.

  He didn’t join me. He relaxed in his chair by the window, while a mug of red wine sat ignored beside him.

  I obeyed, and took a seat at the oval conference table. He’d called me to his tower several times to discuss my new role, but something felt different this time. I thought he might have a mission for me, and I was right.

  “How are you settling in to your new accommodations?” he asked.

  It was a considerate question, but I knew my father well enough to wonder if there was more to it than that.

  “Reasonably well, Your Majesty,” I answered.

  The former Spymaster’s chamber was less luxurious than my previous rooms, and it was drafty, but I’d soon discovered the reason for that.

  “I’ve found it to be full of surprises. Not only was Kalverin quite a collector of books and mementos from all over the continent, but he had a secret passage from his room leading out of the castle. I wonder if someone might’ve used it to sneak in and kill him.”

  “Let’s hope not,” the King replied. “It wasn’t one of the authorized ones. I trust you’ve blocked it?”

  “Yes. I’ve had it sealed from the outside, but not so well I can’t get out or back in if I need to.”

  “I knew you were the right person for the job,” my father stated matter-of-factly.

  It was a rare compliment from my father and I enjoyed it. I wasn’t sure that he was right at that stage about my suitability for the role, but I knew time would tell. It was an interesting profession, though it had a steep learning curve and it raised more than one ethical issue for me.

  “I have a task for you. A threat has arisen in the Pirate Kingdom of Kalan and I need you to put a stop to it now. Word has reached me that the King’s eldest daughter, Elbereth, has become a threat. She’s a sorceress, and rumour links her to the Cult of Inaria—yes, the same one that turned and corrupted your mother. They’ve allied themselves against us and I don’t want to make it any easier for them. I want you to kill the girl. She ought to be aboard their flagship, the Mendalyon. Take some dragons and torch any ships you see when you’re done. I don’t want to take the chance she’ll get out alive. The less witnesses who see you, the better.”

  I still remember the numb feeling inside when my father gave me my mission. I wanted to please him, but I didn’t fully understand what I was agreeing to, except to kill in his name and for the kingdom, to which I’d sworn my allegiance.

  “I won’t fail you,” I’d promised him, and at that time I believed it. I didn’t know how I’d do what he was asking of me, but I believed I’d find a way. I didn’t know the full story, and as I discovered, that can make all the difference in the world.

  My walk into the woods brought me to a tremendous sight—a clearing where three fully-grown dragons and two juveniles rested. All were various shades of green; the older ones were darker and closer to brown around the edges of their scales, while the younger ones were lighter and more vibrant. I couldn’t help but stare—they were magnificent and terrifying in equal measure, as I knew the violence they could inflict should they choose to do so. Even a young dragon could melt the flesh off a man. I’d seen it happen once and you never forgot a sight like that.

  Large wings beat the air as a fourth adult dragon landed across the clearing. It seemed unnatural that such a massive, heavy beast of an animal could land so quietly. A screech from one of the others broke the silence, and my thoughts fled.

  This was a roosting place; one of several they returned to among our lands. They were always drawn back to these places, but I didn’t know why. Perhaps it was part of my job to find out, but today my thoughts were occupied with my mission. I found one of the young ones watching me from beside another, larger dragon, which was probably its mother. The young dragon was similar to the others, only more pristine and attentive somehow. Its scales reminded me of a perfectly-carved statue, and yet it was quick and wily as it moved closer like a water lizard. I didn’t want to be on the receiving end of its flame, so I kept my distance until it was time to go.

  Climbing on to a dragon’s back was an adventure in itself, and one I didn’t feel overly confident about. It wasn’t my first flight, but I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to it. I’d expected a long journey, but travelling by dragon rather than horseback r
educed my week of expected travel to merely a few hours. I could hardly contain my disappointment and trepidation, but I found it was hard to hold on to those darker thoughts with the wind in my hair, far above the world. My concerns seemed to drift away before my exhilaration; not to mention my fear of heights. I clutched the saddle like my life depended on it, because it probably did. No one would’ve survived a fall from Jasper’s back and I wasn’t going to take anymore chances than necessary.

  Ahead of me another dragon soared against the darkening sky. I didn’t catch its name, but I knew who was going with me, in addition to the riders. Cyron, one of my father’s protectors and a burly knight of the King’s guards was going to watch over me and ensure I completed my mission. In other words, if I failed, he would step in and murder Elbereth. I believed my father wouldn’t have sent him if he hadn’t doubted me or my ability to survive the mission alone. I tried not to be offended by it, because I probably would need him. I just didn’t trust him, or in that moment, my father’s motives.

  Even though I rode a dragon, I wasn’t technically a dragon rider—I sat in a saddle behind one who was. They weren’t like ordinary men and women after the transformation that bonded them with their dragons. Their minds seemed to drift far away and never fully return. While their bodies followed orders, they appeared to act more with the will of their dragon steed than any true will of their own. It was believed that the transformation consumed a rider’s spirit, and when I gazed into their eyes, it was as though everything that made them who they were was gone.

  The dragons undoubtedly knew the truth of it. Still, keen intelligence lit their eyes as they regarded each new person and their orders to carry out. I didn’t feel like their master; I felt small and insignificant, and I wondered why they were helping us at all. If they wanted to kill someone and break free, it wouldn’t have been difficult for them. They knew their own capabilities, because they were routinely used as weapons of war. I assumed it was what they wanted or that they got something out of it that mattered to them. At that time, I had no idea what it might be.