Dragon Emperor 4: Human to Dragon to God

by Eric Vall

  “Where are you?” I growled as I shoved sand to the side.

  “None of the other wagons were this deep,” Valerra commented.

  “I know, but we have to be close,” I replied just as I hit a solid surface.

  I shifted into my human self and brushed away the last few inches of sand. A hard, pale slab of what looked like concrete was under my hand. I felt Valerra shift next to me, and she looked down at the stone.

  “What did you fin--” Valerra began to ask before she was cut off.

  Suddenly, the ground began to shake. Valerra grabbed onto my arm as the floor beneath us gave way, and we fell through a hole in the sand.

  We tumbled head over heels for a moment before we landed in a pile of limbs onto a hard surface.

  “What just happened?” I groaned as Valerra pulled herself off me.

  “It seems like we found an ancient safe house,” she grumbled and looked up toward the hole we fell through. “When I first moved to the canyons, there were rumors of underground houses where travelers could rest and hide their cargo. I never gave them much thought. Eventually, the desert became a useless wasteland, and the rumors turned to myth. I didn’t honestly believe they were real. I guess I was just proven incorrect.”

  I rubbed a sore spot on my elbow and looked around the room. It seemed like we fell through the roof, but there was a small trap door on the ceiling just to the right of where we had landed. One long shelf circled around the room in an endless loop, and it was covered in small jars filled with spices.

  Valerra grabbed a small glass jar off the shelf and popped the cork. She sniffed the contents inside and hummed.

  “Cinnamon,” she told me before she placed the jar back on the shelf.

  Along the floor, I noticed another trap door, hidden beneath a tattered rug. I grabbed the carpet and pulled it away, and dust and sand flew into the air as I tried to toss the rug to the side. The corner of the rug ripped off in my hand, and the remainder of the fabric fell limply to the floor at my feet. I kicked the rug away into the corner and looked back down at the ground.

  “Hey Valerra, look at this,” I told her as I knelt down.

  The trap door was small, I wasn’t even sure how well I would be able to fit down it, but I grabbed the rusted handle and pulled up. It creaked loudly in protest as it finally gave way and swung open. A small ladder was propped up against the side of the hole, but it disappeared into darkness. So, I summoned my flames to my hands and looked inside the small opening.

  “No fucking way,” I breathed as my flames illuminated the room beneath us.

  “What is it?” Valerra asked as she tried to look around me.

  “Come with me. You need to see this.” I grabbed the ends of the ladder and quickly climbed down. It was tight, but I made it down with no issues.

  Valerra followed after me, and her eyes grew wide as she took in the lower room.

  Jewels, gold, ancient relics, clothes, jewelry, literally anything that had any sort of monetary value filled the room. Valerra’s fingers ran through a small pile of coins, and I could feel myself hold back a growl. She seemed to understand my change in posture as she pulled her hand away and looked to me.

  “This is quite a find,” she remarked. “You’re in luck, Evan.”

  Her eyes roamed around the room before they stopped, and I could hear her breath catch, so I turned to see what caught her gaze.

  A red diamond, easily twice the size of my fist, sat along a pile of gemstones, and the color was nearly identical to that of Valerra’s scales and hair. I extinguished the flames in my right hand and walked over to the diamond. Then I carefully picked it up and held it up to the fire. The diamond was perfect. The light cut cleanly through the entire stone, and I marveled at its near perfection. I looked back to Valerra, and her eyes watched closely as I clutched the diamond. Something inside me churned at the thought of her being separated from it, so I held it out.

  “Here, take it,” I told her.

  Valerra looked at me with confusion written across her face before she took it in her hands.

  “Why would you give this to me?” she asked with some suspicion.

  “It is big, red, and breathtakingly beautiful, so it reminds me of you.”

  “Then you should have it.” Her eyes narrowed at me, but she also bit her lower lip.

  “No, you should have it.” I shrugged. “Keep it with your own treasure hoard to remind you that I think you are beautiful.”

  “Hmmm,” she hummed as she reached her clawed human hands toward the massive gemstone. “I will accept, then.”

  I waited for the possessiveness to overtake me when I saw Valerra clutch the diamond to her chest, but it never came.

  Of course, you don’t mind. She’s your mate.

  Miraya’s voice suddenly echoed in my head, and I was pretty sure my jaw dropped for half a second. I knew Valerra was important to me, but I’d never thought of the term ‘mate’ for her.

  I pushed the thoughts away and elected to ignore Miraya for now. Then I pulled out the leather bag Julia had given me from my spatial storage and began to pile the treasure inside. Thankfully, the pack had been enchanted to hold an indefinite amount of space. I could have just used my spatial storage, but I wanted an easier way to remove the treasure once I was finally home.

  Valerra began to help me soon after, and together we piled in all of the treasure inside the small pack.

  Once all the treasure was finally packed away, we climbed back up the ladder. Then I gave Valerra a boost out of the ancient safe house and pulled myself out after. The sun had long since set, and the moon sat brightly in the dark sky as the cool desert wind blew across the desert and ruffled the top of my hair.

  “You ready to head back?” I asked Valerra.

  She still clutched the diamond in her hand and turned her head to look at me.

  “Yes,” was all she said before she shifted into her dragon form.

  I transformed next to her, and together we took off into the sky.

  We flew back toward the tribe slowly. The echidnas were still at least a few days away, so there was no rush for us to return. Most of the phoenixes would be asleep, and the only ones awake would be the scouts.

  Valerra kept her diamond in her clawed foot, her grip tight as we flew, and I thought more about what Miraya had told me.

  ‘Mate’ was a strange term, especially to use for humans, but for dragons it felt right. Valerra was mine, her being with me right now proved it. I was engaged to Alyona, mated to Valerra, with Laika, and possibly at the start of something with Ravi. All of these women were mine, and unlike the diamond I gave to Valerra, I was not keen to share. They were mine and mine alone.

  I was the luckiest man alive.

  Chapter 12

  Valerra and I landed quietly just outside the village. I shifted into my human form and turned to bid Valerra a goodnight, but then I noticed she had changed into her human body as well.

  “I might as well try to sleep in one of the ridiculous hammocks at least once before we leave,” she huffed as she clenched her new diamond in a tight fist.

  “I don’t know, Valerra.” I smirked. “What if you discover their hammocks are much more comfortable than your cave? You might decide to stay here forever.”

  “I can’t imagine anything being worth that,” she insisted as she turned to her tent and frowned. “I changed my mind. I do not want to sleep inside such a cramped, pitiful, and sand filled structure. I’ll continue to sleep outside.”

  She went to spin around, but I reached out and grabbed her by the shoulders.

  “Oh, no you don’t,” I said as I gently wrapped an arm around her waist and pushed her toward the dark tent. “Come on, just try it. I think you’ve been rude enough to the phoenixes to last a lifetime. Besides, if the sand is what is deterring you, I have bad news about the desert.”

  “Alright!” she huffed as she stepped out of my arm and inside the tent. “Stop it. I’ll sleep here, are you
happy?”

  The inside of the tent was pitch black, but thanks to my enhanced eyesight, I could see everything clearly. Valerra stalked over to the hammock and sat down. Then she pulled her legs up and laid back, and I could see her glare at me.

  “You can leave now. I won’t go anywhere.” She crossed her arms behind her head and closed her eyes.

  “I’m sure you won’t,” I said, “but I also know how hard-headed you can be, so I won’t leave until you actually give the hammock a try. You like to relax in it, how different can it be to go to sleep in one?”

  “I will, Evan,” she snarked. “Don’t treat me like a hatchling. I’ll behave. Now, go away, I’m tired.” Then she rolled over in the hammock until her back faced me.

  A moment later, though, she growled in annoyance, and I frowned.

  “Okay, if you’re really that uncomfortable, you can go outside,” I said as she rolled over again. “I was just messing with you. I don’t want you to suffer because you want to prove a point.”

  “I’ll be fine,” she grunted. “I said I’d give it a try, so that is what I’m going to do.”

  “Okay … well, if you need anything, I’ll be next door.” I took a step to the exit before an urge struck me, and then I turned around and approached Valerra.

  She glared at me as I came to a stop beside her hammock. “What do you want--”

  I cut her off with a kiss, and she froze in surprise before she kissed me back. Then I felt her hands wrap around my neck, but I pulled away with a smirk.

  “Goodnight, Valerra.”

  “I am not your plaything.” She sat and gaped at me for a second before she frowned in embarrassment.

  “Yes, you are, and you like it.”

  “Get out,” she spat, but there was no venom in her words.

  “I’ll see you in the morning, okay?” I chuckled as I made my way out of the tent.

  “Fine,” I heard her mumble from the corner.

  I smiled as I pulled back the tent flaps and stepped outside into the night air. She may be a ferocious dragon, but so was I. I could handle her just fine, and she knew it. Hell, I recalled her panting and whining in ecstasy the first time I had fucked her. She wanted me to handle her.

  I quietly walked back to my own tent with a smirk still on my lips, and as I went, I listened around the village for any unusual sounds. Everything was quiet, and I could hear the peaceful snores of the phoenixes as they slept. I heard Valerra toss and turn a few more times before she finally settled down, and then her breathing evened out.

  Next, I directed my senses toward Ravi and Chief Fiyero as I slipped inside my tent. I could hear the chief inside his own tent. He paced back and forth and seemed to stop to write something down.

  Ravi’s tent was nearly silent, and I finally heard her quiet snores as I collapsed into my hammock. I let the momentum of my fall swing me back and forth as I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.

  The next morning, I woke up with the sun and stretched as I rolled off the hammock. Then I walked outside and took a deep breath. Dry air filled my lungs, and I exhaled slowly as I listened for any sounds from Valerra’s tent, but I heard nothing except her quiet breaths.

  I smirked to myself as I realized she was still asleep in the hammock. She must have found it very comfortable.

  I watched the sun as it rose over the sand and admired the scenery. The sky looked as if it were on fire as the red and orange colors of the sunrise stretched across the horizon, and the bare landscape only added to the beauty of the area. As I watched the sun, I could hear the members of the tribe begin to wake up and start their day.

  Chief Fiyero found me a moment later.

  “In all of my years of living, I never tire of the beauty of the sun,” he commented as he stood next to me.

  “I’m sure it would be a hard thing to become tired of,” I replied. “Each sunrise is unique in its own way, so you’ll never see the same one twice. That’s why sunrise has always been my favorite time of day.”

  “It is my favorite as well,” the phoenix chief smiled, “to see the sun rise as it gives way to a new day is a wonderful experience. It’s a beacon of hope that a new day will come, even after the darkest of nights. I believe the beauty of every sunrise is a blessing from the Sun God himself, wouldn’t you agree?”

  I nodded silently, but I never really thought that much about the sunrise. I had always just been an early riser, so sunrises were something I watched even back on Earth.

  “They remind me of my mother,” I murmured as I faced the desert again, and my response seemed to surprise him.

  It surprised me, too, if I was honest with myself. I just sort of said the first thing that came to mind, but once I said it, it felt right. I could picture myself with my mother as I grew up. She was an early riser, like me, and we would always watch the sunrise together. She worked a lot of late night or early morning shifts, so there would be some days I would barely see her at all, but she always made sure to be with me when the sun rose. She was sentimental like that.

  “Your mother?” Chief Fiyero asked. “I believe Ravi said her name was Julia, yes?”

  “Well, yes and no,” I replied, and then decided to tell him some of the truth, as carefully as I could. “I was adopted by Lord Ruslan, and his wife’s name is Julia. So, yes, Julia is my mother, but I was referring to my birth mother. She died when I was just a kid. She and I used to watch the sunrise every morning.”

  “I was not aware you were adopted, my apologies, Lord Evan.” He dipped his head. “I’m sure your birth mother was a wonderful woman.”

  “She was the best,” I said with a smile.

  It had been so long now, the pain of my mother’s death was more of a dull ache. I missed her, of course, but I’d accepted her death and mourned her a long time ago.

  “Chief Fiyero!” a shout interrupted us, and we both turned toward the sound.

  A phoenix flew above us and landed in a column of fire. Then Kiran emerged from the flames and bowed to the chief. He panted heavily as he stood straight once more, and he shot me a glare before he turned his attention to Fiyero.

  “What is it, Kiran?” the chief asked.

  “It’s the echidnas,” Kiran gasped out. “The scouts have lost sight of them. They burrowed under the sand last night and simply vanished. They should still be a few days out from camp, but we no longer have eyes on them. We must be prepared for an attack any day now.”

  “Are you certain they are headed for us?” Fiyero asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.

  “We don’t know with one hundred percent certainty of course, but we want to be prepared, even if it does end up being a false alarm,” Kiran replied.

  “Then tell the people to prepare themselves,” Chief Fiyero ordered with a firm nod.

  “Of course, sir.” Kiran bowed again and quickly vanished inside the village square.

  “What do you and your people plan to do after all of this is finally over?” I asked.

  “One step at a time, Lord Evan,” he sighed. “Let us rid ourselves of the beasts first.”

  “That just means you have no idea, doesn’t it?” I asked with a smile.

  He laughed and shook his head.

  “Yes, it does in fact. My people have wandered the desert for centuries while the rest of the world believed we had become extinct. With Ravi’s grand adventure to find you, who knows how many people know about us now and will come here to seek us out for our magic.”

  “Maybe that’s not a bad thing,” I said. “You saved your people by hiding away in this desert, but maybe it is time to return to the world. Your magic is incredible. You could help the people in Rahma in so many ways if you came back.”

  “That is a risk I cannot take,” he sighed. “My people were nearly destroyed once, I cannot let that happen a second time. This desert has protected us for many years, it has become our home now. We could never leave here, nor would most of us want to. If people seek us out in search of cleansing
or purifying, we will help, but I cannot risk sending my people back out into the world while The Breach still tears across Rahma. It is too dangerous.”

  “What about Hatra?” I suggested. “We are close to the desert and far from The Breach. If demons decide to attack, Alyona and I can easily take care of them. Your people would be safe inside the walls, and you’d be under my protection.”

  “Thank you for the generous offer, Evan,” Fiyero shook his head, “but I can’t ask you to do that for us. With all of us there, we would place your city at risk, since we are a beacon for demonic forces. Here, we can move and hide as we please. If we were inside your walls, we would be trapped when something inevitably came for us. My people are much safer out here in the desert. We need to roam and have freedom, that is why we are nomadic. We don’t like to stay still for long.”

  “Well, my offer will always be available to you, Chief Fiyero,” I replied and held out my hand to the phoenix. “I consider us friends now, and I don’t let any harm come to my friends.”

  “I am proud to call you my friend, Lord Evan,” Fiyero told me as he shook my hand with a smile. “I wish you and your city nothing but the best. When this is finally over, perhaps I shall bring my people to visit you in Hatra. Though, I’m afraid I do have one more request to ask of you.”

  “What is it?” I asked as he released my hand.

  “I want you to take Ravi back to Hatra with you.”

  “What?” I blinked in shock, and a slight buzz of excitement coursed through me.

  “I may be overprotective of Ravi, but I also know her,” Fiyero explained with a rueful smile. “She is unhappy trapped inside this village. She is one of the youngest members of our tribe and doesn’t even remember the days when we traveled around the world in caravans miles long. Ravi has the heart and drive of an explorer, yet only ever travels the sands of the desert. She feels trapped here, and that could cripple her when it comes time for her to lead us. I want her to experience life outside of the desert. A single phoenix should not have enough pure essence to draw out the miasma or any demons, and I know, should that happen, you’ll be there for her. I want you to offer her the opportunity you just offered me. It will be her choice to take it or not, but at least then it will have been a decision she made herself.”