“I think I’m ready to learn more. I do want to understand this.” Devon cast her gaze toward the pot of steeping dragon leaf tea. “I’m crazy for saying this.” A touch of nervousness caused her to hesitate. “But is the Kool-Aid ready to drink?”
“Are you certain?” Jace reached into the duffel bag and retrieved three lightweight aluminum mugs.
“Yes.” She answered so quickly it surprised her, but then again everything inside her was screaming do it! This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and she wouldn’t dream of turning it down. “I’m already chin-deep, I might as well go in over my head.”
“So brave.” With a neutral expression, Jace scooped one of the mugs into the pot of amethyst-hued water and handed it to Devon. “We’ll all drink. The ritual has special meaning.”
Devon held the mug below her nose and gave it a gentle sniff, relieved the tea’s pleasant scent was light. It reminded her of lilac. Witch Casey had served her something similar that wasn’t too overwhelming. Maybe everything would be fine? “What’s the special meaning?”
“Drink and you’ll find out.” Jace dipped a second mug into the pot and handed it to Beau before taking a mug of tea for himself and raising it aloft. “Cheers.”
“Cheers.” Devon tasted the warm tea. Its mild honeysuckle sweetness was pleasing, with a slight bitterness beneath. She found it comforting to drink any sort of tea in a cool mountain cave. Almost immediately the tea made her a little light-headed, but she dismissed that reaction as her own excitement. A shiver passed over her skin, so she drew the blanket closer around her shoulders. “Would someone please add more wood to the fire?”
Jace lifted a split log onto the fire that instantly crackled and lit, releasing a pungent juniper-like scent.
Devon’s gaze traveled between the hypnotic flames and the guy’s faces as they slowly sipped the tea. She clicked a couple of photos, but soon became disinterested in trying to work, stopped, and set the camera down.
She finished drinking the tea and simply sat and looked at the fire. The moment was filled with expectation and a reverent silence no one dared break. Her heart seemed to beat faster than normal and her skin warmed, so she loosened her hold on the blanket and closed her eyes. Instantly, she was astonished to see a burst of beautifully colored geometric patterns that resembled the most ornate flower imaginable. The petals slowly rotated. A wave of dizziness knocked her onto her side. The mug tipped, and a trickle of tea spilled onto the floor. The spinning, brightly colored blossom opened, and she sensed she was being drawn toward its center. “Whoa.” She reached blindly toward Jace and grasped his hand tight. “What am I seeing?”
“We’re seeing it too.” Beau sounded far away.
“It’s a multidimensional portal.” Jace sounded calm, but his hand trembled. “Our bodies are safely staying put in this cave, but our thoughts will travel across time and space.” Grasping Devon’s hand, he interlaced his fingers with hers. “This is how the Marduko first came to Earth. A portal opened, and they crossed through.”
“Will we cross the portal?” Fear crept into her voice.
“No, the original crossing was a one-way trip by permission only. We can never go back to Draca, and I wouldn’t want to. What you’ll see is an ancient blood memory carried within Beau and me. You’re going to slip inside our genetic memories of events that brought the Marduko to Earth and changed our lives and DNA forever. You’ll see our ancestors as they were. We’ve changed drastically over time. I hope you won’t be alarmed. All you have to do is relax and witness it.”
She stretched out on the ground a safe distance from the fire. “I don’t think I can get any more relaxed than this, and I’m limp as a rag doll. I can’t even lift my head.”
Jace’s hand stroked Devon’s hair. “Don’t be startled.”
Devon watched the geometric flower pulse with color and twirl behind closed eyes. “Don’t be startled by what?”
Suddenly, the spinning petals exploded into a white-hot cloud of energy that blasted her consciousness into another realm.
Devon opened her eyes wide and saw nothing familiar.
Jace and Beau were gone, and she was not lying on the floor of the cave beside a warm fire; instead the walls surrounding her were polished blocks of olive-green stone. The architecture resembled a hybrid of a medieval German castle and an airy Middle Eastern mosque. A harsh chill hung in the air. An open portico revealed a sooty, dark sky. Two dim red suns smoldered in the murky atmosphere, providing little heat or light.
Devon touched the wall and her fingers melted through the solid matter without the least resistance. She gasped, realizing she wasn’t actually present in this place as a physical being, yet she could see the grit of the stone and smell a hint of must in the air. All five of her senses were fully present, but she knew it was an illusion. The result was a bit like eavesdropping on someone else’s vivid dream.
A blaring commotion rose in the castle’s hallway. The noise sounded like the victorious war cry of a multitude of angry male voices. A moment later an agitated group of beings stormed into the room, dragging a limp captive between them.
The beings were tall, sturdily built, with broad shoulders, heavy arms, and muscular thighs. They felt desperate with rage, and they carried a wave of pure aggression into the room with them. All were dressed in leather armor reminiscent of that worn by barbarians, and every feature from their upturned slit-like eyes to their square hands was blunt and bold. They seemed to exude masculinity; her gaze could discern nothing refined about them. Their faces were decidedly reptilian in appearance and their skin was covered in tight-patterned, flat scales; their lips were firm and unexpressive. As she comprehended these beings that were walking and behaving like men weren’t human at all, an instinctive ripple of repulsion passed through her and she fled toward a far wall.
They flung the captive male to the ground and stood over him with swords drawn.
Sensing violence, she wanted to run or hide, but noticed the beings looked right at her and didn’t react in any way. Even though the experience was convincingly real to her, it soon became apparent that from their point of view it was as if she were not in the room. Her heart pounded in her throat, but she remembered Jace’s words that she was witnessing a full-blown, sensory-engaged genetic memory in either Jace’s or Beau’s mind, so she struggled to remain calm and simply observe.
A male with metallic greenish-gray skin pointed his sword at the captive. “He’s a scout for the Dracian council—kill him!”
“No!” A second male with pewter-gray skin shoved his way forward. “Torture him first. Find out what he knows and then kill him. We can’t take the risk. What if he’s already sent a coded message to the council? I’ll never surrender! We have to know if we’ve been compromised and where the Dracians stand.”
A bronze-skinned male who subtly reminded Devon of Jace towered above the others. He walked toward the portico and pointed the tip of a broadsword toward the low, burning red suns. “Does it even matter? Look what we’re fighting over. Draca is doomed. Our last female mate died a cycle ago during the so-called summer. The plight is spreading through Draca. Soon the Dracians to the south of us will suffer our fate. Their female mates and offspring will perish as ours have. Our kingdom has become a frozen tomb for men. I say it’s time we call in our one favor and plead with the Hathors for the right to emigrate.”
One male, who had a brutal-looking, lead-gray face, shouted, “Don’t listen to Jacesar! We are warriors! The Hathors would never allow us to freely emigrate without severe conditions attached, and would force us to take a vow of peaceful cooperation with the new homeland.” He thrust his sword skyward. “Never! I’ll die with dignity rather than bend to the will of an inferior race.” Shouting, he swung his sword wildly above his head. “We should fight for the land south of us, slaughter our rivals, and take their mates!”
Most of the males lustily cheered in agreement.
The male with bronze skin, Jacesar, sp
oke with calm authority. “Why, cousin, so we can watch our new mates die in a few months’ time? Our suns are steadily cooling. It’s killing the women and young ones. Besides, the south of Draca will soon be as we are now, locked in eternal darkness. Do you not understand? Our planet is dying. We are not fighting over kingdoms anymore—this is the final stage before complete collapse. Soon Draca, including all of us, will be no more.”
“Those are cowards’ words!” the mean-looking male with the leaden sheen protested. “As the eldest member of the House of Tor, I denounce Jacesar’s plan! We shouldn’t panic. We don’t need to change. For ten thousand cycles we’ve lived as warriors and thrived on fierce competition. Now we’re being asked to cooperate with foes and be diminished in the process? The Hathors’ plan is a dismal one. I reject it! They promise to open a portal of safe passage to a few of the oldest families who once served in the Hathors’ Imperial Guard. They expect us to embrace a strange land with a single hot-burning sun, and mix our royal blood with a weaker, flightless, and far inferior alien race? That is not a survival plan—it is suicide! How can the Marduko thrive under such circumstances? I refuse to sacrifice myself to such folly! I think it’s a trick to swiftly dispose of us.”
“Cousin Tor, that is blasphemy!” Jacesar looked scandalized. “Have you learned nothing? The Hathors trick no one. Their race is superior to all because they are compassionate and trustworthy above all else. If they say there is a place we might thrive, we should listen.”
“Compassion is for fools without options,” Tor snarled as he lifted his sword high and brought it down forcefully on the captive’s head. The skull of the captive cracked open, blood spurted forth, and his dead body slumped onto the floor in a crimson puddle. “There,” he said proudly. “That’s how the Marduko handle their enemies and their problems—with the decisive strike of a blade!”
Several dragon men burst into sarcastic laughter.
Jacesar stared with disgust at the limp body splayed across the stones. “You’ve killed the scout and gained nothing. We have to assume he did smuggle a message to the south, and all plans will soon be known to the Dracians. What a waste! It will only bring more suspicion and killing.”
“It’s not a waste.” Tor belligerently stabbed at the dead body on the floor. “It’s a time-saver. We were going to kill him anyway, so why wait?”
“I’m done with you!” Jacesar stomped his boot in rage. “Everyone leave!”
“Help me drag the garbage away.” Tor ordered the others to pick up the fallen victim and carry him from the room.
All the men moved toward the door.
“Beaudeen!” Jacesar called out to a tall man who had steel-blue scales and vibrant blue eyes. “Stay. I must speak with you.”
The blue-scaled dragon man patiently stepped aside, allowing the others to leave. When the room was empty, he bowed to the bronze-skinned man with his fist politely crossed over his heart. “Commander Jacesar, how may I serve you?”
Jacesar stepped closer to Beaudeen. “I credit you with bringing this dire situation to my attention years ago. I didn’t want to believe you back then, and I was reluctant to admit the other Marduko, including my own cousin, were so unwilling to change, but you were right. I wish I’d listened to you sooner.”
Beaudeen humbly lowered his head. “I always strive to speak the truth, even if it’s difficult or unwelcome.”
“I know you do. I also know Tor has continually punished you for your honest observations.” Jacesar brushed his fingers against a thick gash of scar tissue on Beaudeen’s throat and ears. “Tor’s temper is hot. He’s prone to lash out at anyone who crosses him. That’s why I want you to answer my next question carefully.” He paused. “Would you be willing to go to the temple of Marduko and steal the royal dragon eggs?”
Beaudeen gasped. “It’s forbidden. You outrank me. The dragon eggs are not for me to touch.”
“Rank is not important anymore. Soon the dragon eggs will belong to no one. There will be no Marduko left to fight over them.”
Puzzlement flashed in Beaudeen’s eyes. “Why do we need the eggs? We can’t march into the land south of us and simply hand them to a mate. An army of enraged Dracians will swarm over us before we even reach the border.”
“We’re not going south.” Jacesar’s eyes glittered. “If war with the Dracians doesn’t finish us off, the growing darkness and cold eventually will. We’re going to negotiate with the Hathors and plead to emigrate.”
“Where?”
“Wherever they say is best for our kind. The Hathors have cooperated with the Marduko for millennia. They know what we require to thrive and evolve. They will not send us somewhere to perish. Wherever they choose may not be ideal, but our chances will be better than here.”
Beaudeen straightened and tensed. “Caution is necessary. The Hathors can be slippery. They enjoy pairing physical opposites and forcing them to evolve together.”
“So be it. We need change. Little good is coming to Draca as we are. This world is at an end. I say we accept the challenge and make an appeal to the Hathors.”
Beaudeen knelt. “Is this your will, Commander Jacesar? Do you want me to leave our home and follow you?”
“Yes, that is my wish and my will.” Jacesar became somber. “I choose to start over in a new land with you. Gods willing, we’ll find a mate and move forward together.”
Jacesar reached for a small leather pouch dangling from his sword belt, opened it, and shook a handful of glossy, dark purple seeds into his palm. “If the Hathors agree to open the portal and allow us to cross into a new realm, I’m taking the seeds of the dragon trees with us. The royal orchard’s last dragon tree died last summer at the same time as my mate. I saved a few dried seed pods from the tree purely out of sentiment, but now I see there was a greater purpose. These seeds might be part of a new future. With the Hathors’ help, perhaps we can take what is good about the Marduko to a new world and leave behind what is bad.”
“Commander, I’m ready to follow you. I’ll do as you ask.” Beaudeen dropped to all fours and, with a swift ripple of crunching bone, shifted to dragon form. He spread his glistening blue wings wide and flapped the blood into the spiky tips.
“Go,” Jacesar commanded. “Fetch the dragon eggs from the temple. Do not return to the royal court. It’s too dangerous. Bring the eggs straight to the Hathors’ embassy. I’ll be waiting for you there.”
Beaudeen flapped his wings, glided across the stone floor, and soared out the portico with his slender tail whipping behind him.
Jacesar dropped to the floor and shifted into a gleaming coppery-bronze dragon with sweeping wings. He took flight too, soaring in the opposite direction.
The scene ended with a jolt. Devon sat upright on the floor of the cave, opened her eyes, and gasped. “Holy crap! What did I just see? The experience felt so real and so abrupt. The vision just grabbed me, took me for a ride, and then dropped me like a rock.” Her gaze traveled around the cave. The fire had crumbled to a red smolder. Jace and Beau sat near with their eyes closed and heads bowed.
She studied Beau. He remained silent and still, as if lost in a deep trance.
Jace lifted his chin, opened his eyes, and smiled at Devon. “You’re back. What did you see?”
Devon sighed. “It was a little like seeing you and Beau in a foreign place that felt dark and medieval. You both looked like dragon men, but your personalities felt the same. Both of you were different from the others—you were better men.”
“That was Draca, and those were our ancestors.” A languorous expression floated across Jace’s face. He appeared to still be deeply under the influence of the tea.
“How long ago did that scene take place?” Devon moved to Jace’s side.
Jace straightened his back and stretched, cautious not to disturb Beau, who was still in a trance. “No one remembers, but the ancestors’ bones at the back of this cave have long disintegrated to dust, so it must have been a very long time ago.”
>
How could she say this without sounding rude? “Your ancestors looked so—”
“Go ahead and say it,” Jace bluntly interrupted. “We looked brutal and behaved like barbarians. It’s true our roots are reptilian, but over many generations the constant dilution of human blood has greatly changed us. Today we’re far more comfortable in human form and spend most of our lives as men. We’re virtually a changed species from the original Marduko.” An ironic laugh crossed his lips. “I doubt the royal Marduko would willingly claim us as kin. I think the old ones would hate what we’ve become.”
Devon leaned closer. “Just for the record, I think you’re a vast improvement over a few of the rough customers I glimpsed on Draca.”
“I offered you the dragon leaf tea because I wanted you to see that. I won’t hide the truth from you or gloss over anything. I want you to know what a Marduko really is.”
“Why?” Could she handle the answer?
“If you decide to become one with us, you must know what you’re saying yes to.”
“Become one? Did I miss something?” Her jaw dropped. “Have I even been asked?”
“I’ve probably already said too much.” Jace stood, stretched his long limbs, and turned away. “I’m going to give you a moment alone.”
Devon rolled the stiffness from her shoulders. “A moment alone with what?”
“With Beau.” Jace walked to the back of the cave and sat cross-legged in the shadows by himself.
Beau drew a deep breath, opened his eyes and smiled at Devon. “How do you feel?”
“I feel fine.” Devon shrugged. “I daresay normal.” She pulled the blanket a little tighter around her shoulders to ward off a chill. “That tea is strange stuff. It comes on strong, and then it just drops you.”
“It’s not over yet. The effects go through a distinct cycle.” Beau slipped another log onto the fire and moved closer to Devon. “I’m thinking of a color.” He looked at her with the excited expression of a kid ready to play his favorite game. “Can you see which one?”
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