Torra swooped over as more joined them including those from the far future who would be with Bradon…Ferchar and Caitlin with their wee bairn Logan.
She smiled at what had appeared in the field beyond the MacLomain castle after she’d shifted into the dragon during the castle siege and they defeated Keir.
The baby oak.
Though she knew it was still connected to the mother oak, it now stood on its own. Yet it was already taller than it had been and she suspected would grow faster than most trees.
Again and again she swooped until she flew on.
With a ferocious roar of fire, she grinned, flapped her wings then shifted northbound. Though she knew all waved goodbye, she did not look back. Nay, she flew hard until the Hamilton castle was in sight.
She soared overhead. The fields beyond were loaded with people waving as were all in the courtyard. Where this castle had once looked ferocious even from the air it was now softened by teeming activity.
Though many stood on the highest battlements, she narrowed her eyes on one couple.
After a roar of fire aimed upward, she swooped low and coasted over Grant and Sheila as they waved. Torra arched and swooped through the air several more times, roaring with not anger but pure happiness.
The Hamiltons had a new chieftain and a brave lass to stand by his side.
After a few more flybys, she eagerly headed northeast.
It was time.
Swooping up into the clouds, she rolled and twisted, freer than she had ever been. Flying down beneath the clouds she watched Scotland zoom past her. She reveled in the sharp angles and soft contours of her homeland before at last the MacLeod castle glittered on the horizon.
“I’ve missed ye, lass,” Colin’s words echoed in her mind.
Though it had been but a few days, she couldn’t agree more. “And I you.”
Within feet of the highest MacLeod castle battlement she slowed, hovered over her husband for a long moment before she shifted, fell and landed cleanly into his waiting arms.
“Welcome home, my love,” he murmured and set her gently on her feet, hand over her belly. “And my wee bairns.”
Remnants of dragon smoke wisped around them as they kissed for a long time. When at last their lips parted, he pulled her back against him and wrapped a protective arm around her waist.
“Things will change now,” she murmured. “Our homeland has much heartache on its horizon.”
“Aye,” he said. “And we will face such together.”
Torra wrapped her arms over his and closed her eyes. Of course they would. They had no choice. Yet what better man than Colin MacLeod to stand by her side during such a time? He understood sacrifice and new beginnings as well as she.
So they gazed out on the North Sea together and welcomed in a new era.
She would only ever fly over the oceans by night from this point on.
After all, their country was heading into a well-recorded time in history.
One in which great men would rise up to fight the Sassenach and warriors would not be called to battle against ancient evil but something else entirely. Scotland’s very heart would be tested in the years to come.
Wizards and mythological creatures would once more become folklore told around campfires…
And dragons but a legend.
The End
Miss some of the stories in The MacLomain Series: Next Generation? Click here to check out the first four books in the series.
Follow King Naðr Véurr and his Viking brothers in The MacLomain Series: Viking Ancestors.
Look for all the bairns born of The Next Generation in The MacLomain Series: Later Years, coming September 8’th. Quest of a Scottish Warrior (Book One) is now available for pre-order.
The MacLomain Series
Viking Ancestors
Viking King (Naðr Véurr’s story)
Viking Claim (Raknar’s story)
Viking Heart (Kol’s story).
The MacLomain Series
Later Years
Quest of a Scottish Warrior (Logan’s story)
Honor of a Scottish Warrior (Niall’s story)
Oath of a Scottish Warrior (Rònan’s story)
Passion of a Scottish Warrior (Darach’s story)
Previous Releases
~The MacLomain Series- Early Years~
Highland Defiance- Book One
Highland Persuasion- Book Two
Highland Mystic- Book Three
The MacLomain Series- Early Years Boxed Set is also available.
~The MacLomain Series~
The King’s Druidess- Prelude
Fate’s Monolith- Book One
Destiny’s Denial- Book Two
Sylvan Mist- Book Three
The MacLomain Series Boxed Set is also available.
~The MacLomain Series- Next Generation~
Mark of the Highlander- Book One
Vow of the Highlander- Book Two
Wrath of the Highlander- Book Three
Faith of the Highlander- Book Four
Plight of the Highlander- Book Five
~The MacLomain Series- Viking Ancestors~
Viking King- Book One
Viking Claim- Book Two
Viking Heart- Book Three
~The MacLomain Series- Later Years~
Quest of a Scottish Warrior- Book One
Honor of a Scottish Warrior- Book Two
Oath of a Scottish Warrior- Book Three
Passion of a Scottish Warrior- Book Four
~Calum’s Curse Series~
The Victorian Lure- Book One
The Georgian Embrace- Book Two
The Tudor Revival- Book Three
Calum’s Curse Series Boxed Set is also available.
~Forsaken Brethren Series~
Darkest Memory- Book One
Heart of Vesuvius- Book Two
~Song of the Muses Series~
Highland Muse
About the Author
Sky Purington is the best-selling author of seventeen novels and several novellas. A New Englander born and bred, Sky was raised hearing stories of folklore, myth and legend. When combined with a love for nature, romance and time-travel, elements from the stories of her youth found release in her books.
Purington loves to hear from readers and can be contacted at [email protected]. Interested in keeping up with Sky's latest news and releases? Visit Sky's website, http://www.skypurington.com to download her free App on iTunes and Android or sign up for her quarterly newsletter. Love social networking? Find Sky on Facebook and Twitter.
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