by Laurie Roma
This was her world, and these were her people.
When the light faded Allie looked out over the crowd with ancient eyes that saw…everything. She was no longer Allison Summers, human woman taken from her home and brought to this alien planet. She was Allison Dracor, Princess of the Palace of the Sands and Dragon Warrior.
She was the true form of what this race was meant to be.
She was now a true Arcadian.
Chapter Fourteen
Tynan stared at where his mate had stood in shock.
The dragon that had taken her place was magnificent. Its body was covered in iridescent scales that shimmered from pearly white to a deep bronze. Razor-sharp talons snapped sharply against the sandstone as the massive claws pawed the ground. He felt the waves of aggression flowing from her large form, and even he wanted to bow down to the majestic beast before him. He looked up, and his own eyes widened as he took in the brilliant-blue eyes glowing from the head of the beast.
They were Allie’s eyes.
This dragon, this legend of his race, was their mate.
The dragon opened its mouth and released a plume of fire into the air, making the warriors in the crowd shield their heads even though it was not aimed at them. The fire dissipated quickly, leaving a trail of smoke in the air as the dragon snorted its ire. Large wings unfolded, spanning the entire circle, forcing warriors to dive to safety as they stirred the air surrounding them. The entire crowd fell to one knee, paying homage to the beast before them.
“You think you can challenge for me? Knowing that I don’t want you?” Allie’s voice boomed out from her dragon form as she took an aggressive step toward the trio of males now cowering on their knees at the edge of the circle. “Now you have to deal with me! No one fights for me like I am a possession to be traded! Concede now or face me!”
“We concede the fight!” Timor cried out. “We concede!”
Allie’s dragon form clawed the ground and snarled at the cowering men. She raised her head and looked over the entire crowd of warriors. The contempt in her eyes was clear for all to see.
“For centuries, destruction, war, and violence have prevailed over this land. It was your struggle for power that led to the guardians of this world to leave and break the bonds that had been held for millennia. Your ancestors lost the privilege of merging with the dragon spirits, and yet still you continue their behavior that has caused these problems in the first place.”
Allie’s dragon form shot a look at the astonished kings, who had risen to their feet on the stone throne. “Females should have the choice to love whomever they choose. They are not just breeders to continue the race. Laws will be changed.” Allie’s gaze then swung around to stare hard at her three mates. “And mates should be given the respect they deserve.”
The warriors in the crowds began to murmur to one another. Voices raised as they took in what she was saying to them, but Allie easily cut them off as she continued speaking.
“Hear me well, warriors, and take my words to the farthest reaches of the four corners of this world. I am Allison Dracor, Princess of the Palace of the Sands, and Dragon Warrior. I have been given the gift of magic from Lunaria, the Goddess of the Moons, and Silas, the God of Sun, themselves.”
Gasps of disbelief filled the air from the crowd as the dragon rose to its full height, towering over the crowd in an intimidating, awe-inspiring pose. “You may have thought less of me as an outsider, but so far I have been the only one worthy of the dragon spirit. It is my honor to be a guardian and defender of those who cannot fight for themselves. I may be a healer in my human form, but believe me when I say if you piss me off, you will feel my wrath!”
Allie’s gaze settled on Vanya, who cowered behind a group of warriors. “Do you still wish to challenge me, Vanya? Do you still insist on trying to claim what is not yours?”
Vanya fell to her knees and bowed her head in submission. A sob escaped her lips as she cried out. “Nay! I beg forgiveness, Princess! Please, I take it back!”
“Then leave.” Allie felt emotionally drained as she looked around. “All of you leave. There will be no more fighting here. In fact, there will be no more mating challenges in the City of the Sands while I live here.”
Warriors rose to their feet and hurried to do as she asked. They climbed onto the hover-cycles they had come on and took off. Allie didn’t care where they were going, as long as they weren’t there anymore when she confronted her mates.
Allie felt an overwhelming urge to fly away. Away from the contemplative stares the kings were shooting at her. Away from her mates that didn’t seem to understand her. They may love her, but they didn’t see her as their equal, and that hurt. Her wings fluttered and flapped as she felt the breeze caress the scales of her dragon form. Yes, it would be nice to just fly away, but she wouldn’t do that.
Not yet.
Allie closed her eyes and shimmered back into her human form. She understood how the change worked now and willed the dragon form back inside her. Her hand went up to her neck, and she was relieved when she felt the solid gold of her torque around her neck. When she looked down she was equally as glad to see she had clothes on. Thank god she didn’t need to add embarrassment to her fucking list of shit today.
“You have magic now. You only have to will clothes into being, and there they will be,” Silas’s voice said inside her head.
“Will you stop popping into my head like that? You’re freaking me out!” She heard his laughter fading in her mind, and she turned to look at her mates.
“Allie?” Ryder said hesitantly. She saw a mixture of confusion, awe, and irritation in their glowing eyes. The confusion and awe she could understand, but the irritation…that had her anger building again.
“What, mate?” Allie growled.
“Did you just growl at me?” Ryder asked, incredulous. “You are angry at us when you kept this secret from us?”
“I told you that there were things I couldn’t tell you yet! This is what I meant. I wasn’t allowed to tell you since I was bound by a promise to the God, Silas.” Allie’s nostrils flared in anger. “Now would you like to tell me why you came here to fight while you left me sleeping in my bed?”
“We knew how you felt about the challenge and knew we would win. You should have trusted in us to finish this,” Tynan said as he took a step closer.
“Trust? Don’t you speak to me about trust!” Allie hissed. “You knew how I felt about this stupid challenge, so you chose to hide it from me instead? Great. That’s just fucking perfect!”
“Calm yourself, daughter. The mating challenge is not stupid. It is an honored tradition that you cannot just abolish without our say,” King Falon added.
Allie let out a bitter laugh. “Honored tradition, my ass. You treat your women like shit on this world. At first I was impressed at how attentive my mates were, but it seems that all stops outside of the bedroom. Females should not be fought over or forced to mate with someone they don’t want. And why the hell do you think none of you can change into dragons? Because none of you have learned from your mistakes. You are still being punished for your stupid choices, and none of you even realize it! I was serious when I said laws would be changed.”
“You cannot—” King Arik began, but to Allie’s surprise, he was cut off by Cael.
“Father! Enough! Did you not see that Allie has been blessed by the Gods? Why would they have done that if this is not their wish for her to bring about change?”
Allie stared at Cael, surprised by his agreement when Tynan stepped forward, holding out his hands to her. “Come, mate. We will speak of what we can do to alleviate your concerns about our treatment of females and discuss your defiance here today.”
Oh, he almost had her until he had mentioned the word “defiance.” Defiance insinuated that she had done something wrong. Her eyes narrowed.
“Defiance? Seriously, that is a word that you should never mention when talking to me. Why don’t you take the time on your ride back to the palace to f
Allie stepped back and willed the change again, once again shifting seamlessly to her dragon form. She let out a bellow of fire in the air, high above their heads. She didn’t want to roast them, exactly, but she did want to show them how pissed she was.
“You may also want to think about the fact that I have magic now. Who is to say that I have to remain mated to you?”
Tynan, Cael, and Ryder all growled low in their throats. “Do not threaten us, mate.”
“Then do not say stupid shit, mate,” Allie responded. “Trust goes both ways, and so does respect. Think about that on your way home. Idiots.” And with that, Allie’s dragon flapped her large wings, and she took off into the sky, heading back to the palace.
The sound of slow clapping had all the males’ heads turning toward where Silas lounged on one of the stone thrones, with his leg causally thrown over one of the armrests so it swung absently. As a group, they gaped at the sight of the God. None of them had ever seen him in person, but they had seen enough images of him over the years to know exactly who was before them.
“God of the Sun! We are honored,” King Falon said as he bowed his head.
“As you should be,” Silas said after he stopped clapping. “Did you know this oasis used to be one of my temples?”
“Nay, we did not,” King Arik replied.
“It was,” Silas continued conversationally. “A few centuries ago some idiot king decided that this would be a good place to hold the challenges. For a while I was amused, as the fights were entertaining to watch. But”—he glanced over to Tynan, Cael, and Ryder—“as your mate so eloquently stated, over time it became obvious that you mortals were not learning from your mistakes.”
“What do you mean by that, my lord?” Ryder asked.
Silas ignored the question as he continued to speak. “I enjoy your mate.” The God grinned at the peeved look on the younger males faces. “She is a rare one, which is why my mate and I chose her to bring to you. So the real question is, why is it that you continue to disrespect her so?”
“We do not! We love her and respect her greatly!” Tynan growled.
Silas cocked his head to the side and studied them. “You have an interesting way of showing it. Allison has given up her whole life to be her with you. From the moment she arrived, you have asked her to conform, making her change more and more of who she is to fit into your lives. Tell me this, what have you given up for her?”
Silence filled the air between them, and Silas nodded his head in satisfaction. “Exactly. Nothing. You have given up nothing, while she has given all. She has done nothing but saved young Ryder’s life, aided your females, and championed your sister and any other she has felt has been unjustly treated. When Lunaria and I chose her, we knew she would be a worthy guardian of the dragon spirit. She had been given the difficult task to aid your race in reforming to what you should be, and yet you still fight her. I wonder now if we have chosen wrong. Perhaps we should have gifted her to another trio.”
“You will not take her from us,” Cael snarled.
Silas’s smile was pure evil. “Do you really think you could stop me if I truly wanted to take her from you?” He sighed as if bored with the subject. “But I would not, because she loves you. Although at this moment I do not know why.”
He speared King Arik and King Falon with his intense gaze. “You have ruled well over the years, but you have feared straying from the path of those who have come before you, even when you have felt it was wrong. That must change, and Allie is the one who will lead that change. I know you are aware of the basic history of your race, but what you do not know could fill oceans. Allie has the information that you need. But know this, she is not here to serve you, she is here to serve me and the Goddess. It is your task to aid her, not the other way around. All of you best change your attitudes before you do damage that you will not be able to repair.”
He paused for a moment then a small smile lifted his lips. “I tend to avoid dealing with you mortals, but there is something about your mate that amuses me greatly.” His smile disappeared, and his expression turned fierce. “If you hurt her, I will come back here to ensure her safety and happiness. Trust me when I say you will not like it if I have to come back here. Now go home, she waits for you.”
Before anyone could speak, Silas disappeared.
* * * *
Allie paced her bedchamber, furious at what had happened today. Would she ever understand this world? Tears filled her eyes as she realized she might never fit in here. That she might never completely be happy here. Her mates didn’t respect her. They had made that abundantly clear.
She had done a bit of thinking as she had flown back to the palace. Actually, that had been her one moment of joy. She had loved flying, and it had given her satisfaction to see she easily passed the warriors riding their hover-cycles on the way back home.
When she had arrived back at the palace, males and females had pointed and gasped. Many had fallen to their knees and bowed in supplication at the sight of her. She had landed gracefully in the courtyard and quickly turned back into her human form. Queen Kyriani had stood at the front doors watching her with wide eyes.
“You are a miracle,” the queen had whispered.
“And your sons are idiots,” Allie replied without thinking. The queen had laughed and taken Allie’s arm in hers, leading her back inside. The queen had asked her to explain what had happened out at the challenge circle. Allie had given her a brief rundown of what had occurred, and the queen’s eyes had narrowed thoughtfully.
“Let me handle my mates,” the queen stated. “They will learn how things will be from now on, or they will be sleeping alone.”
Allie smiled at her and said the same might be true for the princes.
But now that she was back in her own bedchamber, melancholy settled over her and made her doubt her place in this world. She felt righteous enough at her part in today’s events. She was given this gift and the duty to bring about change, but how could she do it if her mates wouldn’t help her?
She wiped angrily at a tear on her cheek and turned as she heard a sound in the doorway.
Cael watched the guarded look settle over their mate’s face when she saw them. They had wounded her deeply today by their actions and felt two feet tall that they, that he could do that to her. He rushed forward before his brothers could say anything, before Allison could pull away from him. He fell to his knees before her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Forgive us, Allison. We love you, and we respect you.”
“Aye, we do, Princess,” Ryder said as he came up to her side, holding up one of her delicate hands so he could press kisses onto the center of her palm.
Tynan stood before her, his glowing eyes dim with sorrow. He was ashamed at his behavior. What the God had said was true. Since Allie had arrived in their world, they had taken over her life, subtly manipulating her into fitting into what they thought their mate should be. They had failed her, in every way possible. They had told her that they loved her, but they hadn’t shown her, not really.
That would change now.
Allie’s stomach churned nervously as Tynan spoke.
“You were right, about everything.” Tynan’s voice was regretful. “We have told you how important you are to us. We have told you how much we love you, but we have not shown you.”
Allie was caught off guard at their reactions. She had been prepared for a fight and was unsure how to proceed now. She could feel their love for her pouring through their connection, but it didn’t change what had happened. She felt strange with Cael wrapped around her and Ryder kissing her hand. She pulled her hand away from Ryder slowly and took a step back from Cael. He released her reluctantly. “Okay, this is…unexpected. You seemed pissed when I left the circle. Why the big change?”
“Can we move to the sitting area? This may take a while,” Tynan said, gesturing to the lounge chairs at the far end of the room by the open windows.
Allie walked over to one of the chaises and sat down in the middle. She was surprised when all three of her mates chose not to sit next to her, choosing to sit facing her instead. She studied them for a long minute before saying, “All right, I’m listening.”
Cael sighed then pushed a hand through his long dark hair. “After you left, we had a visit from the God of the Sun.”
Allie blinked in surprise. “Silas showed himself to you?”
“Aye,” Cael said then paused. “You knew he was there?”
“Yes, I was talking to him…before the fight.”
Cael nodded. He quickly told her about their brief encounter with the God and smiled ruefully at the end of the telling. “He thinks very highly of you.”
Huh, so the God had stuck up for her. That was interesting. It warmed her heart to know that Silas had taken such an active role in helping her. She had thought he was just going along with Lunaria’s plan, but it seemed like the God was a softy underneath that hard-ass attitude and lethal exterior. Not that he wouldn’t poof her out of existence if she pissed him off too much.
Allie took a moment to ponder what had been said and blew out a breath. “So, Silas helped you understand what I’ve been going through since I got here. My question is what does this mean for us?”
“It means that we will do whatever we need to make you happy,” Ryder said softly. “We know we were wrong. We had a lot of time to think on the way home, and know that we need to do better to aid you with your task.”
Allie sighed. “It’s not just that…I mean I would like for you, all three of you, to help me bring about this change I’m supposed to be leading, but the reality of this is if you don’t understand why you hurt me, then this is going to keep happening.”
“It will not,” Tynan said with conviction. “When you first arrived here, I know I pushed you and made mistakes, but we got over that, and I learned, did I not?”
Allie nodded.
Tynan’s smile was warm and loving. “I do love you, little one. I may make more mistakes, but that is the one thing that will never change.”
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