Marked by the Alpha Wolf; Part 1

by Scarlett Grove

  “The dragons are trapped in a state of constant fear and creating fear in others. You were healed by a dryad’s magic. Most dragons were not so lucky. They must be healed now. The metamorphosis you both experienced together was a gift created long ago when the dryad first healed you. It was activated when you touched.

  “Now, you must go into the world and heal the other dragons. The process Circe used to heal you both will not work for the others, but you do have the power within you already. Circe, you must gather the power of the herbs inside you and direct it as you would your healing magic.”

  “What?” she asked. It sounded like a good idea, but she had no idea how to do it.

  “Do not worry. I will show you. Teach you, guide you.”

  “Then what?” asked Xavier, wanting to get to the action steps. His expression was calm, but Circe could sense he wanted to move forward and accomplish something. She could sense that his heart went out to the other dragons still trapped in psychosis.

  “You and the dragon rider will call the dragons, and she will unleash her healing powers. It will change them instantly. No metamorphosis illness.”

  Xavier smiled. “Let's do that, then. When can we get going?”

  “Patience. Circe still must learn how to do it, dragon. While she learns her new craft, there are things for you to learn as well. You have a new ability. Your fire cannot only harm, it can also heal. Together you can reach an even greater number.”

  “Healing fire? That doesn’t make any sense.”

  The dryad’s laughter tinkled through the cool afternoon air. “All will be revealed. Now. Go to the forest. Both of you. Examine the healing plants. See what you can find. Then come back here, and we will begin our lessons.”

  Xavier took a bottle of water out of the backpack and followed Circe down the trail toward the open forest. He drew a long swig and handed it to her.

  “What did you think of all that?” he asked Circe.

  She looked up at him as if in a daze. The dryad had revealed a whole new perspective to her. She would never be the same. The ego deprivation didn’t seem to have affected Xavier quite as strongly as it had Circe. He was impatient, raring to go.

  Their education would take time and practice. It was important for them to get it right. Circe understood that the course of time would take care of itself. Rushing ahead wouldn’t get them there any faster. She smiled at Xavier and took his hand.

  How she loved him. The realization flooded through her mind and heart. She looked ahead and smiled again. Of course she loved him. How silly to be surprised. She loved a great many things. She loved the sound of birdsongs swinging along the riverbank. She loved the fresh scent of the desert in the morning. She loved the colors of sunset over the mesas back home. She loved her sisters.

  But the love she felt for Xavier was bigger, grander, more consuming than all other loves. He had become a part of her. They were interconnected to the point where they were almost one being.

  Suddenly she stopped in the trail and turned to him. He stopped beside her and looked down at her with his intense cobalt eyes. His expression was calm, serene. He loved her too. She could see it all around him.

  “I love you, Xavier,” she said squeezing his hand and sending her love energy into his body.

  “I love you too, Circe,” he said without hesitation. “I love you so much it aches, and I’m not afraid to say so. Isn’t it funny how much we resist sharing our love? It seems so strange to me now.”

  So Xavier had experienced the state of egolessness, too. His face was open and calm. He smiled and kissed her cheek. When he drew back, he looked elated. His eyes gleamed with inner knowing.

  “That dark place was wild, wasn’t it?”

  “Yes. I don’t think I’ll ever be the same,” she said.

  “Me either. It’s weird. I feel like I lost some things I used to think were really important, but they don’t seem important now.”

  “I know what you mean. Mental baggage. So unnecessary.”

  “Let's go find those plants the dryad mentioned. I am eager to heal my brethren. Their suffering fills my heart.”

  That was why he seemed so unsettled. His empathy for the other dragons had increased. He wanted to help them more than ever.

  They walked into the forest, hand in hand, while Circe inspected the plants and explained their qualities to Xavier. Soon, they would have the knowledge they needed. Soon, they would use that knowledge to liberate the world.

  Touched By The Dragon Lord Part 3

  Circe set the herbs on the ground before the dryad, looking up at her with expectation. She had brought everything the tree woman asked for: Solomon’s seal, death cap mushrooms, nettles, alumroot, elderberry bark, salmonberries, Oregon grape root, manzanita leaves, and yarrow flowers. The dryad smiled at Circe and Xavier with her bark-and-fern lips. Eyes the color of smoke gazed at Circe and Xavier as they sat on their knees before the dryad.

  “You have done well, dragon rider,” the dryad intoned, her voice the sound of dry leaves shaking in the wind. “With these ingredients, I can teach you to pull the energy of each substance into your aura. With these energies inside you, you can then direct them outward and use them to heal the world’s dragons. Let us begin. Close your eyes, and imagine yourself in the dark space where nothingness becomes eternity, where you are without ego, without identity. Remember the clean, clear state of mind you experienced in that place.”

  Circe took a deep breath and let it out. The dryad had shown them a reality Circe never imagined possible, taking her deeper into meditation than she had ever been. She heard Xavier breathing smoothly beside her, his strong body radiating aliveness, his vitality filling her with courage. As she sank deep into the dryad’s spell, darkness enveloped her mind. She listened to the dryad’s voice instructing her to go deeper still as if sinking underwater. Weightless, Circe floated, her mind becoming a singular point of consciousness.

  The soothing balm of the Solomon’s seal washed over her. She felt its properties filtering through her blood and bone. Light green and brown and white—the colors swirled around her mind, penetrating her awareness and sinking into the core of her pure being.

  The death cap’s essence filtered through her, tingling like the radiation pulses she had experienced five years ago, red and neon blue. She was unprepared for the onslaught that gripped her stomach. If not for the purity of her consciousness, she would have been stricken by fatal illness.

  As soon as the death cap’s poison washed away, the sting of light-green nettles pricked her skin. Circe writhed in the weightlessness of the deep meditation. She could hear her strangled voice far in the distance, muffled by the pressure pushing against her ears. Just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore, the soothing brown elderberry bark entered her system. Its bittersweet flavor calmed the irritation caused by the death cap and the nettles.

  She could feel Xavier beside her, his body shaking, though he was not experiencing the herbs as she was. He was going through his own trial, his own deep, transforming meditation. She could hear him growling far in the distance. The sound was almost beyond her muted hearing. Circe would have worried about Xavier, but she had her own trial to worry about.

  Finally, the mild, sweet flavor of the salmonberries burst on her tongue, so relieving she sighed. It seemed as if the sound of the sigh had come from someone else, yet she knew it had emanated from her mouth.

  The alumroot soon came, smooth and soft and buttery in her veins. She could feel her eyelids flutter as though she were disconnected from her body. The Oregon grape root gave her a new jolt of energy, as did the bitter astringency of the manzanita leaves.

  The aromatic pungency of white yarrow filled her nose like the smoke from an herbal tea. After the last herb was integrated into her system, all of the essences lifted up from the core of her being and swirled around, combining into a singular energy.

  Circe’s eyes shot open, and she looked around. The sun had gone down. There was n
o light except the soft glow of the crescent moon. She could feel Xavier beside her and hear him breathing heavily. She moaned. Circe reached out, trying to grasp Xavier’s arm. She fumbled the in dark, her mind whirled, and she fell forward on all fours. She could hear the dryad’s voice speaking as if in tongues, the sound like the whistling of wind through dry branches.

  She was no longer in the dark meditation where she had no identity. It was almost as if she were going to black out, drunk. It took several moments before Circe came to her senses again. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, pulling herself up to her feet. She could sense Xavier still on his knees below her. She reached out and found him hunched over, his breathing labored.

  She slid her fingers down his arm until she gripped his hand. She gently tugged him to his feet as her eyes adjusted to the moonlight. They stood together and stared into each other’s dimly lit faces.

  “Are you all right?” she asked, running her hands over his chest to feel his heart beating wildly beneath.

  “I… I’m fine. I don’t know what happened. I was in that dark place. That place between worlds, where you are yourself but not yourself. I was consumed by fire. Burned by it from the inside. And when the flame had completely engulfed me, I had the sense that it was healing me, making me stronger. But then I came out of it, and I was lost in the darkness. Circe,” he said, pulling her into an embrace, “I’m so glad you’re here.”

  She rested her head against his chest, feeling his heart pounding hard under her ear. She inhaled the clean, spicy scent that was Xavier and let out a relieved sigh.

  “I’m glad you’re here too, Xavier,” she whispered. “I don’t know what I would do without you.” She could feel tears welling in the corners of her eyes. In the dark space, she was alone. Although she could sense Xavier there to some degree, she could not touch him, she could not see him, she could not help him, and he could not help her.

  She held him tighter in her arms, willing that they should never be separated again even if in their minds. The dryad made a sound as though she were clearing her throat.

  “You have done well, dragon and dragon rider. Now it’s time for you to rest. Go now. Sleep. Then, in the morning, it shall be time for you to test your training.”

  Xavier drew back and pulled off his clothes. He stuffed them in their backpack and shifted into his immense dragon form. Circe could see his body outlined in the pale moonlight as she pulled the backpack over her shoulders. She stepped toward him, slowly feeling for the curve in his leg that she could use as a foothold to hoist herself up onto his back. Once she was securely in place, Xavier lifted into the air. In the faint light, the leaves and tiny bits of fern and rock that made up the dryad dissipated in the wind from Xavier’s wings.

  Xavier soared above the towering treetops. Circe shouted over the sound of the wind. “We should find a house to sleep in.”

  Xavier raised his head to look back at her, nodding. Above the forest canopy, the light from the crescent moon was brighter. Circe could see a small town just below, along the highway. Xavier swooped, descending quickly, until he landed in an abandoned parking lot. Circe slid from his back and landed on the cracked cement. Xavier shifted and stood naked in the parking lot beside her. He took her hand, gripping it intently. He covered her knuckles with his other hand and leaned down to kiss her cheek. Circe closed her eyes and smiled.

  Using the flashlight from the backpack to light their way, they walked together into a small neighborhood until they found an abandoned house that was free of any dead bodies. Circe batted the dust out of the blankets on the bed while Xavier lit a fire in the wood-burning stove.

  They ate the last of the jerky and crackers the bears had given them several days before. After filling their stomachs and drinking plenty of water, they went right to sleep in the bed upstairs, holding each other tightly.

  Chapter 27

  When they awoke the next morning, they hurried to the dryad’s grove. They found her waiting for them there. The dryad told them to sit before her. She opened her arms, instructing Xavier and Circe to face each other. They did as they were told, sitting on their knees with their fingers intertwined. Circe looked up into Xavier’s stunning cobalt-blue eyes, the love she felt for him radiating from her heart and filling her entire being with a warm glow. He smiled back at her with a broad, boyish grin, beaming.

  “Reach out to each other with your hearts and minds,” said the dryad. The expression on Xavier’s face became confused. He had never done magic like this before. Circe nodded encouragingly. Circe poured her healing magic into Xavier. The dryad nodded in approval.

  “Now, Circe, direct the integrated essences of the medicinal plants and channel them into Xavier’s body,” said the dryad.

  Circe closed her eyes and found the place inside her that stored the mixture of herbal energies. She drew them out, gathering them together into the space just below her navel. She could feel power twirling and writhing as she drew it up to her solar plexus. The energy boiled, threatening to bubble over. She let the power roll inside her, guiding it with her awareness. She pulled it up through her heart space and directed it down her arms, out through her hands, and into Xavier.

  Xavier began to shudder, first his hands, then his arms, then his shoulders and torso. Circe’s eyes shot wide, and she regarded him with concern. His eyes were squeezed shut as he clenched his jaw and gripped her hand more tightly. She spoke his name, but the dryad interrupted her.

  “Xavier, bring the dragon fire that I showed you up from your belly into your lungs and blow a short stream toward Circe.”

  At this, Xavier opened his eyes. His expression turned shocked, and his mouth dropped open. He shook his head as if to protest, but the dryad moved their hands in a soothing gesture.

  “It will be fine. Trust yourself to create the healing fire.”

  Xavier gazed into Circe’s eyes. She could tell he was worried. He didn’t want to hurt her. Circe slowly nodded, trying to reassure him that everything would be all right. Xavier took a deep breath, held it for moment, and let it out slowly through his nose. Then he shrugged his shoulders in acquiescence.

  “I’m going to do it, Circe,” he said, his voice a rumbling whisper. Circe nodded. She pursed her lips, and the corners tilted up as she batted her eyes.

  “I trust you, Xavier. I trust us,” she said, breathing heavily.

  He squeezed her hands and raised his eyebrows, taking a deep breath. Circe pushed the amalgamation of plant and healing energy into his hands. A pale-blue fire blew from Xavier’s lips and pulsated in the air between them. Circe could feel it radiating heat. It was too hot. She feared it might burn her. If it burned, how could it heal? She glanced at the dryad, whose charcoal-gray eyes stared down at her with utter calm.

  “Is it working?” Circe asked.

  “Circe, put your hand it,” said the dryad.

  Circe’s eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open in shock. How could the dryad ask her to put her hand in fire that radiated heat? Xavier took another breath and blew out a second gush of flame. It throbbed between them like a blowtorch. Circe hesitantly raised her fingertip to the blue flame that flickered in the daylight. She bit her lip. Cautiously, with both Xavier and the dryad’s eyes on her, she raised her fingers into the flame. To her surprise, the blue flame was rather soothing to the touch. She looked at Xavier and looked back down at her hand engulfed in flame. How amazing.

  Xavier appeared shocked as he drew the fire breath back inside. He shook his head and raised his hand to his forehead, rubbing his face in disbelief. When he withdrew his hand, he let go of Circe and put both hands on his hips, shaking his head.

  “I never would’ve believed it,” he said. “I didn’t want to let you do it, Circe. But we came all this way to learn what the dryad had to teach us. But I was terrified I would hurt you. I still can’t believe it worked.”

  Circe's hand went to her mouth, and she laughed. ”I can’t believe it either,” she said, almost gi
ggling. “What now?” Xavier stood up and helped Circe to her feet. They both waited for the dryad to respond. Wind rustled through the dryad’s body. Bits of leaves and ferns and grasses waved on the air.

  “Now it is time to call the dragons,” the dryad said. “You will heal them and fulfill your destiny.”

  Xavier stepped back and took off his clothes before packing them in the backpack. He took a deep breath and contorted into dragon form, the light of the sun shimmering around him as he changed. Circe flung the backpack over her shoulders and climbed onto his back with glee in her heart. She loved riding Xavier in dragon form. Even though they were flying into the unknown and she was full of trepidation about the coming challenge, she couldn’t deny the sense of excitement brewing between them.

  He reared back his head and blew a breath of red-hot fire into the air, singeing a low-hanging tendril of moss. Circe clung to his neck and hooked her feet into the crook of his wings before patting his neck to let him know she was ready.

  His wings beat the air, lifting them upward over the treetops and into the hazy blue sky. Circe could see the ocean beyond the forest’s edge. She could sense the vital life force throbbing from within the heart of the wood. She took a deep breath of salty air. Seagulls squawked and dove away from the monstrous predator that dominated their skies.

  Xavier let out a thundering howl that echoed across the land. Circe ducked her head into his neck, trying to protect her ears from the sound. Her heart clanged like a windup monkey smashing its cymbals to a frantic beat. The dragons appeared out of nowhere, dotting the sky with their gigantic presence.

  Circe held her breath as the dragons approached. Fear prickled over her skin. The sight of the dragons terrified her. She wrapped her arms more tightly around Xavier’s neck and opened a gushing channel of healing energy into his body. As the dragons drew closer, Xavier thundered a horrifying scream. The dragons stopped in midair, flapping their wings and gnashing their teeth. No one made a move. Circe continued to flood Xavier's system with her power.