Dragon Rift: Riders of Fire, Book Three - A Dragons’ Realm Novel

by Eileen Mueller

“Sure, I’d love to.” Maybe she wasn’t too young for him after all.

  §

  Tomaaz tightened his grip around Lovina’s waist, pulling her toward him to kiss her as they danced. As their kiss deepened, she pulled away, cheeks warm. She just couldn’t. “Not in front of—”

  “Not in front of who?” he grinned, winking.

  “Everyone.” Lovina’s cheeks grew hotter.

  “Don’t worry,” he said, kissing her again. “They’re all too busy watching Ezaara and Roberto.”

  So Lovina kissed him back, enjoying every moment.

  §

  A horn blew, startling Lars from the story he was telling. Who in the Egg’s name—

  He should’ve known. Kierion was on stage—with two mages—Riona behind them. Now that Kierion had everyone’s attention, what was he going to say? Despite his cynicism, Lars waited with bated breath. That lad was always full of surprises.

  “I know many of you have welcomed our mages with open arms, like sons and daughters returning from battle,” Kierion said, eliciting a ripple of laughter. “Yes, we’ve been pining to have them here at the hold for years …” More laughter. “So now we should take advantage of this opportunity.” His voice dropped. The cavern was silent as people strained to hear. Even the musicians stopped playing.

  “That’s why I’m letting you in on a secret.” He leaned forward conspiratorially, using an exaggerated stage whisper. “Mages can kill tharuks.”

  Kierion, Fenni and Jael whooped and raced to Riona. Kierion leaped up first, the two mages behind him. Riona sprang into the air, flexing her wings. Fenni and Jael leaned out on either side of Kierion as he mimed shooting an arrow from a bow. The wizards weren’t miming, though. Real mage flame shot from their fingers, striking stone high on the cavern walls.

  Amid cheers and hollers, Kierion slowed Riona down and landed. “Anyone who wants to kill tharuks with mages, meet us for training before breakfast. With a hundred mages here, we’ll take as many riders as we can get.”

  Both blade thrusters and arrow flingers were among those cheering, pushing their way forward as they clambered to talk with Kierion and the two young mages.

  “Another new training regime.” Master Jerrick leaned over the table. “We did say he was sharding amazing, didn’t we, Lars?”

  §

  The music swelled, filling the cavern. Guided by wizards, mage lights zipped between the dancers, in time to the music. Ezaara smiled at Roberto as he whirled her around the cavern. “Your eyes reflect the mage light.”

  “Mage light is nothing compared to the magic we’ll have together.” Roberto’s whisper was like the brush of a feather against her ear.

  A thrill ran through her, making goosebumps break out on her skin. “I look forward to it.”

  Roberto kissed her hair, laughing.

  Adelina, dancing with Kierion, sidled alongside them. “Your dress, Ezaara, and the ribbons,” she hissed.

  Oh, right. Ezaara had nearly forgotten. She winked at Adelina. “Got it.”

  Roberto frowned as they danced away. “Kierion? I mean, really?”

  “They suit each other—he’s cute and funny, and she’s so bubbly.”

  “Cute? So, that’s cute?” Roberto melded, making Ezaara giggle.

  The music wound down, and Lars made an announcement. “Roberto and Ezaara will be leaving us for a week for their hand-fasting holiday. They’ll be traveling tonight, so I suggest we all join them in their last dance. But first, Queen Zaarusha, will you do the honors?”

  Zaarusha flew down from a ledge and landed on the cavern floor in front of the stage, near Roberto and Ezaara. She stretched out a talon and cut the ribbons binding their hands. Roberto caught the pieces, tucking them in his pocket.

  The gittern player strummed an upbeat piece, and they danced, wheeling, Ezaara’s dress spinning in a colorful whirlwind about her legs. She tugged on her ribbons, loosening them.

  “I knew you had matching slippers, but your legs are covered too,” said Roberto. “What are you wearing?”

  “This,” she replied, pulling the ribbons, slipping her dress off and flinging it at Roberto.

  He caught it, slinging it over his shoulder.

  Dressed in her colorful riders’ garb, Ezaara ran up onto the stage and vaulted onto Zaarusha’s back, laughing. Roberto leaped up behind her and waved to the crowd, who cheered, stomped and whistled as Zaarusha flew out of the cavern with Erob following. Ezaara leaned back against Roberto, his warm arms around her waist and his lips trailing kisses in her hair as they broke out into a midnight sky studded with thousands of stars.

  §

  Thank the flaming dragon gods Ezaara had come into his life. He’d been so bitter, so mistrusting, so broken—and her love had healed him. She was snug and warm in his arms, but the winter wind would soon chill her. Roberto reached into one of Zaarusha’s saddlebags and pulled out some furs, wrapping them around her. “You looked so beautiful tonight. Absolutely radiant. Are you ready to come to Naobia with me and discover the land of my littlings years?” He kissed her hair again.

  “So that’s where we’re going? I’d love to.”

  “Then I’d better hop back on Erob.”

  “Have you got Pa’s ring?” she asked.

  “Yes. Have you got your ma’s? They’re both from my grandmother. Funny how our families are intertwined, isn’t it?”

  Ezaara leaned forward and Roberto shuffled back, swinging his leg over Zaarusha’s side, instantly missing Ezaara’s warmth. “Erob, ready?”

  Erob flew below Zaarusha and Roberto slipped off the queen’s back, landing neatly in Erob’s saddle.

  “Ana,” he cried.

  “Kisha,” called Ezaara.

  With a pop, they were surrounded in golden clouds riddled with deep cracks of dark mist. Anakisha floated toward them.

  “We’re hand-fasted,” said Ezaara. “Me and your grandson, Roberto.”

  “That’s wonderful.” Anakisha addressed Roberto, “I’m sorry Zens found you all those years ago, despite your mother being in hiding. Lucia was a fine daughter, and her blood runs in your veins. I’m proud of you for withstanding Zens and the temptation to use your extraordinary talents for evil. Stay strong and remain true to the realm and the Queen’s Rider.”

  Roberto bowed his head and pounded his fist on his heart. “I will, Grandmother.”

  “Now let me guess. You want to go back to the cottage in Naobia.”

  “Back?” said Ezaara.

  “I went there this morning to prepare,” melded Roberto.

  With a crack, Zaarusha and Erob were in the warm night air above the black Naobian Sea, tipped with white crests. Roberto breathed in the familiar briny air, the warm breeze rustling the ribbons in Ezaara’s braids.

  “Oh, I’d forgotten how good this air tastes,” she said, inhaling deeply. She took off her furs, stowing them in a saddlebag.

  They flew along a strip of beach, pale in the moonlight, and Erob alighted behind a small cottage. Zaarusha landed. Roberto lifted Ezaara down into his arms. Gods, he couldn’t wait. He had to kiss her now. He leaned in and she did too. Their noses bumped and she gave a little laugh.

  So, he swept her off her feet, carrying her to the door and over the threshold.

  §

  Ezaara nestled against Roberto as he carried her into a shaft of moonlight drizzling through a window, and lowered her onto a couch.

  “Just wait here,” he said, brushing his lips against hers before disappearing out the door.

  Just that single brush sent fire through her veins.

  A hearth was laid in the corner with a huge rug sprawled before it. Through an archway, there was an enormous bed, draped with canopies of white net. She swallowed. She and Roberto had loved each other for moons, but neither of them had ever …

  Roberto entered the cottage with the saddlebags and Ezaara leapt up to help him.

  Zaarusha poked her head inside the door. “Enjoy yourselves. Erob and I are goin
g hunting.” She shot a jet of fire at the hearth. The wood ignited, bursting into flame. “Meld if you need anything, but I imagine you’ll be too busy.” She winked, and left them alone.

  Ezaara knelt before the blaze. Roberto sat behind her and gathered her hair in his hand, tracing his lips down her neck.

  She turned, Roberto’s dark eyes burning into hers, the familiar heat of dragon fire coursing through her veins. As he took her in his arms and kissed her, they created a magic of their own. Sathir swirled around them, dancing with the fire, and the flames crackling on the hearth burned brighter.

  Promise

  High on a bluff above the beach, Bruno lowered the far-seers and wriggled back on his belly to join his son, Simeon. “I was right,” he said. “The Queen’s Rider and Roberto are down there, dancing on the sand without a care in the world.”

  “So that sharding arrogant shrot-heap got the girl,” Simeon snarled. “I should’ve taken her when I had the chance.”

  Bruno sniggered. “A fine thing that would be, your seed in the belly of the Queen’s Rider.” He scratched the scraggly beard that had grown since he’d been banished to the Wastelands. “Good idea, Son. Let’s arrange that. We’ll bide our time—strike when their dragons are gone. When you’ve taken your fill of the girl, she’ll make good shark fodder.”

  Simeon grinned, eyes glinting with lust.

  Good, that had put a bit of color into his son’s cheeks. Gods knew, they both needed something after that awful orange hell, the tragic raft trip and burying poor Fleur in a shallow grave. Someone had to pay for his wife’s death. Why not Roberto and that snivelly girl?

  More Riders of Fire Adventures

  Ezaara—Book 1

  Dragon Hero—Book 2

  Dragon Rift—Book 3

  Dragon Strike—Book 4

  (2019)

  Coming Soon: Riders of Fire Prequels

  Dragon Healer—Book 5

  Dragon Mage—Book 6

  Sea Dragon—Book 7

  Free Prequel Novelette—Silver Dragon—Riders of Fire

  Marlies is good at healing. But she wasn’t good enough to save her friend.

  Now the Nightshader gang are after her.

  They’re fighters - strong, fast and mean. And they know where to find her.

  But when Giddi, the Dragon Mage, calls Marlies deep into Great Spanglewood Forest, she finds something she never expected...

  What’s waiting for Marlies in Spanglewood?

  And how will it change her life forever?

  Find out what happens to Marlies, and how it shapes Ezaara’s life, in Silver Dragon, exclusively on Eileen’s site.

  EileenMuellerAuthor.com/readers-free-books/

  Turn the page to see Dragon Strike, Book 4 in the Riders of Fire series.

  Commander Zens unleashes an army of evil dragons. Dragons with terrible powers. Dragons that will tear Dragons’ Realm apart…

  Don’t miss out! Sign up for my newsletter, so you know when to start your next adventure on Amazon

  Ezaara, book 1 in the Riders of Fire series is on Amazon

  Experience Ezaara’s adventures as she becomes the new Queen’s Rider amid cutthroat politics and traitors in every shadow.

  Winner Storylines Notable Book Award 2019

  “A great fantasy read.”

  Dean O’Gorman, actor, Fili the dwarf in The Hobbit

  Dragon Hero, book 2 in the Riders of Fire series is on Amazon

  Tomaaz never wanted to be a hero,

  but now he has to save the world—one person at a time.

  Winner Storylines Notable Book Award 2019

  Eileen’s Dragon Adventures for Younger Readers

  Dragons’ Realm—A You Say Which Way Adventure

  2016 Sir Julius Vogel Best Youth Novel

  Interactive fiction for kids of ALL ages.

  A fun time in Dragons’ Realm, in an alternate reality,

  where tharuks may be tamable and even like chocolate!

  Attack on Dragons’ Realm

  What happened when Commander Zens first came through the world gate?

  Heart-pounding adventure, undying friendship & plenty of laughs.

  Dragon Tales

  Fun, quirky adventures for kids – with dragons!

  Go on, turn the page and take a peek at these cool books for kids.

  (Psst: also for adults and teens who want to relive their childhood

  and have a laugh on the way!)

  Dragons’ Realm – A You Say Which Way Adventure

  Winner 2016 Sir Julius Vogel Award for Best Youth Novel

  A fun, interactive adventure for kids of all ages. You Say Which Way the story goes.

  Chapter One – A Bad Start

  “Hey, Fart-face!”

  Uh oh. The Thompson twins are lounging against a fence as you leave the corner store – Bart, Becks, and Bax. They’re actually the Thomson triplets, but they’re not so good at counting, so they call themselves twins. Nobody has dared tell them different.

  They stare at you. Bart, big as an ox. Becks, smaller but meaner. And Bax, the muscle. As if they need it.

  Bart grins like an actor in a toothpaste commercial. “What have you got?” He swaggers towards you.

  Becks sneers, stepping out with Bax close behind. “Come on, squirt, hand it over,” she calls, her meaty hands bunching into fists.

  Your backpack is heavy with goodies. Ten chocolate bars and two cans of tuna fish for five bucks – how could you resist? And now you could lose it all.

  The twins form a human wall, blocking the sidewalk. There’s no way around them.

  Seriously? All this fuss over chocolate? Not again! They’ve been bullying you and your friends for way too long. There’s still time to outsmart them before the bus leaves for the school picnic.

  A girl walks between you and the twins. You make your move, sprinting off towards the park next to school. Your backpack is heavy, but you’ve gained a head start on those numb skulls.

  Becks roars.

  “Charge,” yells Bax,

  “Get the snot-head,” Bart bellows. Their feet pound behind you as you make it around the corner through the park gate. Now to find a hiding place.

  On your right is a thick grove of trees. They’ll never find you in there, not without missing the bus to the picnic. To your left is a sports field. Behind the bleachers, there’s a hole in the fence. If you can make it through that hole, you’re safe. They’re much too big to follow.

  Their pounding footsteps are getting closer. They’ll be around the corner soon.

  It’s time to make a decision. Do you:

  Race across the park to the hole in the fence?

  Or Hide from the Thompson twins in the trees?

  Race across the park to the hole in the fence.

  You race across the grass.

  Bart Thompson chases you, shouting, “Onto the field. Follow me.”

  Energized by fear, you pick up speed. The bleachers loom in front of you. You’re nearly there. Racing around the back, you skid to a halt. In the air in front of you is an oval, swirling with colors, like a bubble shimmering in the sunlight.

  A faint voice comes from the glimmering air. “Help! Help me!”

  The twins’ feet pound on the grass. Their breath rasps behind you.

  Without thinking, you dive through the whirling colors.

  The park is gone. The Thompson twins are nowhere to be seen. You’re in a forest beside a river. Deep water rushes past you, gurgling past sharp rocks and disappearing around a bend.

  The shimmering air you fell through shrinks and pops like a bubble.

  You’re stuck here, for now. You’ll miss the school picnic, but at least you’re safe from Bart, Becks and Bax.

  Searching for a signpost or a clue to where you are, you glimpse an enormous flying creature with a long lizard-like tail in the sky. A dragon? Before you can be sure, it disappears behind a mountain peak.

  Even though the river is loud, you hear that
same faint voice again, “Help me. Hurry.”

  You can’t tell where it’s coming from. There’s a trail leading into the forest and another trail along the riverbank.

  It’s time to make a decision. Do you:

  Follow the trail into the forest?

  Or

  Take the trail along the riverbank?

  Read more on Amazon: http://bit.ly/1Mjcad1

  Read more on Amazon. http://amzn.to/1qCCp9R

  Attack on Dragons’ Realm

  Jerrick started awake. Drums were pounding. The cabin was pulsing, like a giant’s heartbeat. He yanked his goatskin jerkin over his nightshirt. In a sliver of moonlight, Pa stumbled out of bed. Fumbling for his trousers and boots, Jerrick tugged them on. His heart thumped in time to the drums. Danger.

  Susi, just a littling, whimpered. Ma hushed her, stroking her hair.

  “Here.” Pa thrust a sword into Jerrick’s hand and picked up a sword and club for himself.

  Jerrick gulped. His sword was suddenly heavy, awkward in his grip. For years he’d practiced fighting with Benno and Reina, although they’d never been in battle yet. But that was about to change.

  He kissed Ma’s cheek and ruffled Susi’s hair, then he snatched up his bow and quiver, and ran out the door after Pa.

  Drumbeats rolled off the thatched roofs of Horseshoe Bend, throbbing though him. A tide of bodies swept them through narrow alleys between cottages, towards the settlement square. Like a hunting dog, Pa was fully alert, body tense.