Anna blinked. Seventeen years old. He was only a few years younger than she was, and his people had sent him out against those huge dragons? Were they insane?
Puff got to all fours. He growled in low, subtle tones and purrs. The crowd listened, rapt. Anna waited for the translation.
“He never expected to survive, let alone win.” Nik glanced at Puff’s injury. “But he needs to heal. He thanks us for our assistance.”
Puff walked toward the mountain. The people parted for him, following once he passed.
Nik held his arm out to Anna. “Coming?”
“I guess.” Where else would she go? And she was dying to see what would happen.
Nanna took Nik’s other arm. Her eyes glistened and her chin tilted a smidge higher when she looked at her grandson. Pops held an equally bright smile as they followed the dragon to the mountainside. What would it be like, knowing your grandson could talk to dragons? Especially since these people seem to have been waiting for this moment their whole lives. Even though no one was ever going to believe any of this, Anna was thrilled to be a part of something so momentous.
Puff fluttered his good wing when he reached the pile of rocks. He growled a few times, not a menacing sound, but more like the sound Dixie made when she wanted to go out.
Nik turned to Pops. “He wants to know if this is the right place.”
Pops nodded. “Our people walled the cavern up hundreds of years ago, when foreigners started to invade.” He looked back to the rocks. “Ruma Marama is one of our most sacred places. We couldn’t bear to see it defiled.”
He walked to the right edge, where a grouping of smaller rocks lay stacked like a totem pole. Pops and Tyler removed four large rocks from the top of the pile, revealing an opening about a foot and a half wide. “This is the entrance we use.”
The dragon approached, took a boulder in his massive jaws, and drew it from the hole, setting it a few yards from the opening.”
Pops beamed. “Thank you, Great One.”
So that’s what they meant when they asked the dragon to shift. They wanted him to move the rocks for them. But why not just come out and ask him for help?
Pops turned toward the crowd. “If everyone takes what they can carry, we will be inside in no time. We only need a hole large enough to get the dragon through.” He glanced at the sun, which had peaked, and now started its slow afternoon descent. “We must be within and have the camouflage back in place before sunset.”
Sunset— when the gray dragons would come looking for Puff.
The scars on Anna’s shoulders pulsed with a dull ache. It would be a long time before she’d forget the searing bite of the gray dragon’s claws piercing her flesh, if she was ever able to forget.
A child, probably no older than seven ran to the pile, grabbed a small stone, and set it beside the boulder the dragon had moved. The girl laughed when Puff nuzzled her, and she ran to grab another rock.
Puff turned, his gaze falling on Anna. She still wanted to fight the idea that this magnificent beast was anything more than an animal, but it was becoming harder and harder. Those eyes held wisdom, and the more she stared at them, the more she realized the devotion within them seeded so much deeper than modern thought would allow her to admit.
Her heart fluttered, and she had to fight the desire to reach out and stroke the dragon’s hide, to touch him and wallow in his warmth. No, this was not just an animal, or even just a dragon.
She took a step toward him and he lowered his head. He was in so much danger, up against such ridiculous odds, all with the slim hopes of saving his people from some sort of homicidal oligarchy.
Anna trembled, remembering the gray megalith rearing up, and the echo of the beast’s roar through the streets. Did this little dragon have a chance against anything so huge, when he was injured and unable to fly?
Three more children ran past, some working in tandem alongside the adults moving the rocks. The laughter from the children, the determined looks on the people’s faces, infused her. It had been ages since she’d seen so many people come together with a common purpose; unless they’d been paid to do so, that is.
If those huge dragons were coming, all these people were in as much danger as the dragon, yet they didn’t run. They labored on without question.
Puff limped toward to mountain and pulled out another boulder that no human seemed able to budge. All the smaller rocks above the boulder rolled away from the opening, widening the hole.
The people cheered, and Anna clapped with them. Near the opening, Nik took a large stone from his grandfather, while Nanna brought water to those laboring in the sun. Everyone seemed to have a job. Everyone but Anna, that was. Yet none gave her notice, or showed signs of annoyance at her lack of effort.
She pushed the fog from her mind. She really was the only one standing here, doing nothing. What was wrong with her? She was one of the few who’d seen what those gray dragons could do. She should be at the front of the line to help.
The children ran back toward the pile for more rocks. If Anna had been their parents, she would have dragged them down the mountain at the first mention of dragons. But their moms and dads were probably among those who toiled with the others. None of them worried about finishing in time. They just continued to work, many with smiles on their faces. They knew, without a doubt, that they would be safe within that mountain tonight, because they worked together toward that goal. She should be no different.
Anna moved toward the pile.
“Puff says stay back.” Nik placed the rock he’d been carrying on the ground. “He doesn’t want you hurt.”
She looked back to the dragon who stood with a boulder in his mouth.
“Screw that,” Anna said. “I’m in as much danger as everyone else. Besides…” She walked past the dragon. “I owe you my life, in case you’ve forgotten. What kind of girl would I be if I didn’t return the favor?”
Anna grabbed the biggest stone she could carry, and hauled it from the pile.
11
Knackered, Nik slipped to the floor, accepting a cup of water as the last of the rocks hiding the cavern were replaced by the men who had volunteered to remain outside.
*The sun is nearly down. Will they have time to find shelter?*
Nik found Pops among those sitting. “Puff is worried about the people outside.”
Pops glanced at the door as the final stone slid into place, cutting them off from the fading sunset. “The old ways are dead, but the heart of the Maori lives on. These mountains are our friends. They will find somewhere to hide until morning.”
Nik supposed it would be easier to hide three men than it would be to hide a dragon. Especially one with a crowd of followers.
*They shouldn’t follow me. They should get as far away from me as possible.*
Buckley’s chance of that.
A little girl handed Nik a flashlight. He flicked it on.
These people love you already, and you haven’t even officially won the Seventeen Year yet.
Puff tossed his mane before wrapping his wing around Anna. *Ask her if she is warm enough.*
The girl was already gazing up at him, smiling. “Thanks.” She drew his wing closer and leaned against Puff’s side. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply.
“I think she just answered your question.”
Despite being inside the beast’s head and being the first to know what the huge creature was thinking, Nik wasn’t so sure he’d be as cozy as Anna was with a dragon. Was her comfort a natural reaction, or was the dragon doing some kind of magic to her?
Puff’s gaze drifted from the girl, to Nik. *How dare you even think that?*
It’s a valid question. I mean, look at her.
She cuddled in closer.
See? This morning she was screaming and clawing to get away from you.
The dragon looked away. *I have not compelled her.*
Interesting. Since you have a word for it, can I assume that you could compel her if you
wanted to?
A quiver started at Puff’s nose and rattled along his hide until shaking through his tail. *The gray dragons are masters of compulsion. Taking away another’s free will is a game to them.*
A vision of a young, glassy-eyed, green buck stumbling toward a gray dragon filled Nik’s mind. The smaller dragon jerked as if waking up just seconds before three gray dragons descended on him. The largest tore out the fledgling’s throat.
Nik grimaced. So that’s how they take out their competition. Cowards. But why don’t the other dragons stand up to them?
*The grays always provide justification for their actions. All those who question them tend to disappear.*
That was no way to live. Dragons were supposed to be huge, domineering beasts. How could they allow themselves to be subjugated like that?
“Just how big are the other dragons?
A memory flashed between them. Nik saw through Puff’s eyes as a gray dragon reared up, towering over the smaller dragon like a German shepherd over a kitten. Jesus, no wonder the other dragons were so scared.
“Yet you joined the competition, knowing what they were capable of.”
*Someone had to. The crystal dragon’s next choice would have been my father.*
“You didn’t want your dad flying?”
Puff shook his head. *He is not a fast flyer, and he and my mother are one of only fifteen fertile Draconic pairs left. They are the only remaining pair among the crystal dragons. I couldn’t let him, or my kind, make that sacrifice.*
If the Draconi are really dying out, it’s suicide for the grays to be picking off their competition. Unless their size shrinks their brains, they have to understand they need to increase their numbers.
*They only target young males. The two females that have been born over the past three mating cycles they have allowed to live.*
Nik snorted. Yeah, and I suppose the grays are making a harem for themselves.
Puff tilted his head, but Nik could tell at least part of what he said was true. Crap like that shouldn’t happen anymore. Even though they were dragons, they should have modernized like the rest of the free world. Being killed just because you’ve been deemed competition, or living just so you can breed, he couldn’t fathom any society, or any people in that society, standing for that.
Puff shifted his weight. Nanna and Pops seemed very excited about Puff being a crystal dragon. All the storybooks talk about the celebrated days when the crystal dragons were in power. Maybe they were right. Maybe what the Draconi needed was someone to step up and be brave enough to say no more.
However, if the grays were really as huge as Puff had shown him, this little dragon surviving the ones roaring in the sky last night was nothing less than a miracle. Maybe Aoraki really had smiled on him.
Or maybe he’d been chosen.
Maybe the land had been waiting for the right dragon to be born to bring the world back into balance. It was the basis of a thousand legends.
Puff licked the swollen edge of his stitched wing. He certainly didn’t look like a hero, but some of the best heroes were underdogs. It had been a long time since the world had a David bring down a Goliath. Why not now?
Unease rolled across their bond. Deep down, Nik could tell the little dragon wanted to help his people. Short fantasies of him winning the competition and saving his kind flittered on the edge of his Draconic psyche.
In that, maybe they weren’t so different.
* * *
Twelve-year-old Nik peered through the bush he’d hidden behind when the Iculi brothers showed up at his secret hideout in the forest.
The younger brother, Jason, placed a white bucket on the ground. The stench of gasoline filled the woods when the older brother, Mike, poured a clear liquid into the pail. Something moved within, shifting the bucket.
“This is gonna be good.” Mike pulled a lighter from his pocket. “You ready?”
Jason kicked the bucket over, and a black and white cat, paws bound, spilled out.
Nik tensed. They wouldn’t.
Jason clipped a lead onto the cat’s collar. “Hold on. It’s more fun when they run around.”
The cat howled as he cut the bindings on its hind legs. Once the front legs were free, the cat bounded away, only to be stop by the lead. The animal howled, pulling against the tether.
“You can run, but you can’t hide.” Mike flicked the lighter. A yellow flame mirrored in the kid’s psychotic eyes. “Show time.”
“Stop!” Nik jumped out from behind the bush. Taking advantage of their surprise, he grabbed the cat. The creature clawed and hissed, scratching his arms as he pulled the cat free of the collar and threw the gasoline-soaked animal into the trees. The cat landed on its paws before bounding out of sight.
“Stupid fuck.” Mike raised the lighter. His scowl turned into a smile.
“Wait!” Jason screamed.
Nik gasped, realizing that the gasoline smell accosting his senses was now coming from his own drenched clothes.
* * *
Grown-up Nik ran his fingers over the burn scars on his wrists. Mike and Jason were so much bigger than him. Teenagers. He could have been killed.
* * *
Younger Nik sniffed. “I was stupid. I should have run away as soon as I saw them.”
Pops placed a cool cloth over the burn.
“What would running have accomplished?”
“I wouldn’t have gotten hurt.” Tears welled in his eyes. “Sorry I was so dumb.”
Pops cocked his head. “I think there is a cat out in the woods who is extremely happy you were so dumb.”
* * *
Nik looked up from his wrist to the dragon’s wing. Puff had faced the gray dragons, and had the scars to show for it, just like Nik did.
However, little Nik had acted on instinct. If he’d had time to think of the possible outcomes, he probably wouldn’t have saved the cat.
Pops words had stuck with him, though. He’d gone from feeling like a fool, to feeling like a hero. That day had been a turning point for him. He was no longer the orphan kid, hiding in the corner fearing ridicule. He stood up for himself. More importantly, he stood up for others.
He couldn’t begrudge Puff his fears, though. Those dragons were a hell of a lot bigger than Mike and Jason.
An asshole was an asshole, though. The bigger they come, the harder they fall. If Puff wanted to win this thing, he needed to believe in himself. Moreover, he needed to believe that he could make a difference.
“You’re going to change things.” Nik said. “You’re going to make everything right again.”
*I hope to, if I live long enough.*
Pessimism wasn’t going to help this situation. Did Puff really believe, deep down, that he was sacrificing himself for the greater good? Did he really expect to die last night?
The dragon locked gazes with him. Guilt swept along their bond with a deep, twisting pain in the chest.
Shit. He really did expect to die.
*Better me than my father.*
“How can you say that?”
Puff held up his good wing. *Look at me.*
Anna blinked, her eyes heavy, before Puff covered her again.
*I am small even among the crystal dragons. My father is large, strong, and most importantly, virile. If he fell during the competition, it would have been catastrophic to the crystal dragons.* He looked away. *My loss would be inconsequential.*
“That’s why they left you alone. They didn’t think you were a threat.”
*They were right.*
“Yet here you are, with a beautiful girl under your wing.”
Puff fluttered the thin membrane concealing Anna. *I got lucky. I wasn’t even… I didn’t…* He closed his eyes and lowered his muzzle.
A memory skidded along the edge of their bond. The essence of the dragon within Nik fought, toiled, and rolled as if trying to pull the recollection back before solid figures took shape. The dull fog around the vision faded into the depths, leavi
ng Nik high in the night sky with frigid air chilling his face.
* * *
Puff flew far behind a gaggle of multicolored dragons. The blue, gold, red, and green dragons glided in a clump to the right, leaving the grays in the distance to themselves. Puff wasn’t the only dragon to know it was safer to leave some contenders at the head of the flock.
A large dragon, so deeply green it was almost black, broke from the front of their group and dropped to the rear beside him, blocking the light of the moon.
“You shouldn’t be back here with me, Quenor,” Puff said in Draconic. “You are fast and strong. You could be king.”
The green twisted his wings, causing the huge beast to roll playfully through the night sky. “Except I don’t want to be king.”
“Then why are you flying?”
“The same reason I always fly. So I can find a beautiful, young girl to lose myself inside for a few hours.”
“You are incorrigible.”
“Of course I am. I’m a green.” Quenor arched his wings, gliding through the starry night. “And what about you? You can fly much faster than a gray. I’ve seen you.”
Nik concentrated on the memory and realized Puff wasn’t even winded, as if he were out for a slow stroll, rather than flying through the air.
“If they see me as a threat, I’m dead.” Puff snorted. “I can outfly one, but all seven?”
“You are a good friend, Joesephutus. But you’d be an even better king.” Quenor reared up before he banked down, careening toward the glistening lights in the town below.
King?
The notion that any of them could stand against the grays and survive was a foolish dream. They were all safer keeping their heads bowed.
The older dragons held too many dreams of past glory. The life they remember probably never even existed.
They all whispered in the shadows of the proud days of the crystal dragons, but those whispers were dealt with harshly.
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