Shake The Earth: Her Elemental Dragons Book Three

by Briggs, Elizabeth;

  “You’re better than I expected,” Brin said, her voice carrying through the leaves. “Where did you learn to fight?”

  “Slade and Noren taught me,” Leni said, as their swords clashed again. “I joined the town guard three years ago, and became its leader when Slade left to find Kira. What about you?”

  “My parents had me trained in combat from the time I could hold a sword. They were terribly worried their precious only child would be kidnapped and held for ransom or some such. It’s never happened, of course, but I can hardly complain.”

  “Impressive. I’ll admit, you might be able to teach me a thing or two.”

  “Oh, I can teach you a great many things, my dear,” Brin said, her voice sensual.

  I covered my mouth to hide my amusement, especially since their conversation so closely mirrored the one I’d had with Reven the other day. I had a feeling theirs would end the same way too.

  “One of them is going to get hurt,” Slade said, shaking his head.

  “Brin is an expert swordswoman, and your sister doesn’t seem too bad either.”

  “Not what I meant.” He scowled as he watched them tumble to the ground together, their laughter ringing out around us.

  I took his hand and led him away from what was likely to become an intimate moment. “Let them have their few moments of happiness. They’re fleeting enough at the moment.”

  He let me drag him away, and then entwined his fingers with mine. Just the simple act of holding hands with him was so much more than I ever thought I would get from him, and I took my own advice and allowed myself to feel content.

  “You seem happier too,” he said, studying my face. “After Stoneham we were all worried about you.”

  “I’m still upset about that, and I’ll miss Tash forever, but coming here and meeting your family has eased some of the pain.” I squeezed his hand. “Thank you for bringing us here. You seem like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders too.”

  Slade nodded. “Once my family knew the truth about our situation, it became easier for me to accept as well.”

  “That’s a relief. I worried after what happened with Faya you would never be okay with it.”

  He spoke slowly as we continued back along the river toward the village. “It was different with Faya. I never believed she loved both me and Parin. As soon as she was forced to choose between us, she picked him and abandoned the life we'd created together without a second thought. That’s why I couldn't understand how you would be able to love all of us equally, but now I know you’re nothing like her. She went behind my back and cheated on me. You’ve been up front about this complicated relationship with me from the beginning, and you’ve never tried to hide anything about it. That honesty is important.”

  “Does that mean you’re not upset about having to share me with the others anymore?”

  “I don’t mind it as much as I used to,” Slade admitted. “Traveling the world with you and the others has opened my mind to a lot of things I never experienced while living in Clayridge. I suppose being one of your mates has changed me too. I only want you to be happy, whether it’s because of me or the other men. Or all of us.”

  An image came to mind of Slade joining in while I was being shared between the other three men and I felt a flush of heat between my legs. I doubted Slade would ever want to do that, but I couldn’t deny the idea excited me.

  As if conjured by my thoughts, Jasin and Auric emerged from the village, heading for the river. We’d agreed to meet in the afternoon to continue our training, but I hadn’t realized the day had gotten so late.

  “Ready to get started?” Jasin asked, as they approached.

  “If we’re interrupting, we can come back later,” Auric said.

  “We’re going to try to summon lightning again,” I explained to Slade. “Do you mind?”

  “No, it’s fine. My mother has demanded my help with fixing her roof this afternoon anyway.” He lowered his head and brushed a kiss across my lips. “I’ll see you tonight for dinner.”

  “I wouldn’t miss it.”

  He headed back toward the village, and I turned to my two mates with a smile I couldn’t hide. They’d both noticed the kiss, judging by the smirks on their faces.

  “Things with Slade are better then,” Jasin said.

  “They are. He’s finally starting to open up to me, and he said he’s getting used to the idea of sharing me with the rest of you.”

  “That’s good to hear,” Auric said. “For a while, I was worried he wouldn’t be able to do his duty at the Earth Temple.”

  “I don’t think that will be a problem anymore,” I said, my face flushing for no good reason. I’d shared my body with both these men last night, so why did talking about being intimate with Slade feel so embarrassing? Maybe because our budding relationship was more private, and a part of me wanted to keep it that way.

  Jasin took my hand in his. “I’m glad you’re happy. Now let’s get to work.”

  22

  Jasin

  As soon as I touched Kira our ever-present bond sparked bright, like a fire suddenly flaring to life. I always felt her in the background of my mind, but her presence became almost overwhelming when we touched.

  She reached for Auric with her other hand, connecting the three of us. “Can you sense each other?”

  “Yes,” Auric said, his eyes closed. “Much stronger than before.”

  I closed my eyes and reached out, sorting through the tangled threads of identity and emotion to separate Kira, Auric, and myself. I focused on the feeling of Auric and followed the trail back, going deeper than ever before. He was a mix of excitement and nervousness, but I stretched beyond all that until I found his core self. His strength, his wisdom, his innate goodness. And there, wrapped up in all of that, was his air magic.

  “I feel it too,” I said.

  “Now draw upon your magic while reaching for the other one’s power,” Kira said. “Try to combine the two elements of fire and air to create lightning.”

  As I seized the magic, I felt both Kira and Auric inside me, tugging and pulling, searching and finding. Fire came to me as if by instinct now, but drawing upon Auric’s magic was a lot harder. Every time I tried to grasp it, it seemed to slip through my fingers.

  I heard a low buzzing sound and opened my eyes to small sparks flashing in front of us. My hand tightened around Kira’s as I tried to build up the magic, but then it fizzled out and was lost. The sparks vanished.

  I ran a hand through my hair. “Damn. We almost had it.”

  “Maybe we just need more time for the bond to grow stronger,” Auric suggested.

  Kira sighed. “We don’t have time. We face the Dragons in only a few days, and we have to be prepared.”

  “Then we keep trying.” I reached out and grabbed Auric’s hand too, forming a circle between the three of us. Instead of closing my eyes, I looked straight into Auric’s gray ones. And then I reached for the magic again.

  A bolt of bright white energy shot down from the sky and hit the tree beside us, making us all jump. The energy disappeared instantly, but left behind the impression of heat and power, along with the blackened remains of a tree trunk.

  “We did it,” Auric said, his voice impressed.

  “Yeah, we did,” I said, dropping their hands. “But I’m not sure what good it does us. We can’t stand around in a circle holding hands every time we need to call lightning.”

  “Sark and Isen summoned it at the Air Temple without even touching,” Kira said. “We simply need to practice more.”

  “At least we know it’s possible now,” Auric said.

  Kira held out her hands as she glanced at both of us. “Let’s try it again.”

  I groaned, but took hold of both of them and called forth the magic again. The lightning came easier this time, but it was erratic, hitting the surface of the water with a jagged strike. We were going to have to spend all our free time practicing this to be able to actually control the
magic in a way that would be useful in battle. Right now we had just as much of a chance as hitting each other as the enemy.

  “Good,” Kira said, after the next three attempts. “Now do it again.”

  “Couldn’t we go back to the other kind of training?” I asked, flashing her a naughty grin. “I liked that a lot better.”

  “We all did,” Auric said.

  Kira shook her head. “We will at night, and during the day we’re going to do this. Every day until you’re throwing lightning from your hands like you throw fire and air.”

  I groaned, but then turned to Auric. “Fine, but let’s at least make this more fun. Ten coins says I can throw lightning before you can.”

  His eyes gleamed as he smirked at me, that old competition between us coming back to the surface, except this time in a friendly way. “You’re on.”

  23

  Kira

  Over the next few days we settled into a slower pace while staying in Clayridge that seemed to suit all of us. I practiced sword fighting with Reven, trained in magic with Auric and Jasin, and spent time with Slade and his family. After such a long time on the road, it was good for all of us to stop and breathe for a while. News had spread through the village about what we were, and people treated us with respect and awe, but otherwise little changed. Meanwhile, Brin and Leni got even closer—I caught sight of them kissing numerous times, and while their relationship seemed destined for heartbreak, none of us wanted to interfere with their happiness. But we all knew how hard it would be when it came time for us to leave.

  We only had a few more days until we were supposed to meet the Resistance at the Earth Temple and I keenly felt our time running out with each minute. Once we left Clayridge we would have to face the Dragons again, and there was no guarantee any of us would survive the encounter. I pushed myself to train even harder, remembering Tash’s blackened bones and the ruins of my village.

  It was while training with Jasin and Auric by the river that we heard a panicked shout ring out in town. We immediately stopped what we were doing and rushed back into the village, searching for the source of the trouble.

  Brin rushed over to us as soon as we stepped through the gate. “One of the Dragons has been spotted heading this way!”

  Jasin let out a growl. “Auric and I can take him.”

  I shook my head, my heart clenching. “No, you’ll put the people here in danger. The Dragons can’t know we’ve been here.”

  “Do we have time to escape?” Auric asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Brin said. “We have to find somewhere for you to hide.”

  “My old house,” Slade said, from behind us. “I used to hide Resistance members in a panel in the floor.”

  Reven stepped out of the shadows. “How do you know the people in this village won’t turn us in?”

  Slade leveled a steely gaze at him. “They won’t.”

  I had to trust that the people in the town cared for Slade enough to be willing to hide our secret. There was no time to do anything else. “Let’s go.”

  Our group hurried to Slade’s house, where a surprised Noren opened the door. Once Slade explained what was happening, Noren ushered us inside with a worried expression. As the door shut, I heard a deep screech outside along with the heavy flap of wings, and a chill went down my spine.

  Slade took the lead as he rushed us through the house, and I barely had time to glimpse dark wood furnishings before we were taken into a back bedroom. Slade and Jasin shoved the bed aside, then threw open a panel in the floor. The space inside was small and dark, but I quickly hopped down into it, my feet landing on packed dirt. My mates followed me, but Auric and Slade both had to duck down since they were too tall to comfortably fit inside. It was a tight squeeze with the five of us and the air had an old, moldy smell, but I prayed we wouldn’t be stuck inside too long.

  Brin and Noren helped lower the panel over us, trapping us inside, and then they shoved the bed back into place to cover it up. The cramped space instantly felt tighter, darker, and more suffocating. Auric gripped my hand tightly—he didn’t like being in enclosed places like this. Slade, on the other hand, probably felt right at home.

  Footsteps sounded, and then Leni’s voice whispered, “Are they safe?”

  “Yes,” Brin said.

  “The Jade Dragon just landed,” Leni said. “He’s searching the village for five people—one woman and four men. What will we do when he comes here?”

  “We’ll convince him there’s no one here but us.”

  The Jade Dragon—here? I’d never seen Heldor in person before, even while living in the Earth Realm. He rarely left the capital of Soulspire or the Black Dragon’s side, and acted as both her guardian and her right hand man. The fact that he was here likely meant that all the Dragons were looking for us—and they were desperate to find us.

  Slade took my elbow and moved me over by a few inches, placing me in front of a small crack that allowed me to see some of what was going on above us. Brin and Leni were embracing, while Noren had left the room at some point.

  For some time we waited. My mates shifted around me, visibly uncomfortable and anxious, but remaining quiet as the heaviness of the situation pressed upon us. I strained to hear anything from outside the house, worried I would catch a scream or a shout, but if there were any they were muffled. I silently prayed to the Gods that the Jade Dragon wouldn’t find any reason to hurt the people of this town, who had shown us nothing but kind hospitality since we’d arrived. But with every second that passed, I grew more and more apprehensive.

  Then I heard a low voice say, “What’s behind this door?”

  “A bedroom,” Noren said. “Like I told you, there’s no one here.”

  “Then why do I not believe you?”

  The door to the bedroom banged open, and I couldn’t help but jump. Brin and Leni let out surprised gasps from the bed above us, where they must have been waiting. Heavy footsteps shook the floorboards above us as the Jade Dragon entered the room in his human form. I couldn’t see much of him, but I could tell he was a large, broad man from the way he moved. For a second I got a glimpse of dark, muscular skin decorated with tattoos, along with a shaved head.

  “No one here?” Heldor asked. “Then who are these two?”

  “My cousin and her girlfriend,” Noren said with a hint of annoyance. He moved to the bed and shooed them off it. “What have I told you before? I don’t care if your families don’t approve, you can’t use my room for your illicit encounters. Get out of here!”

  “Sorry,” Leni and Brin muttered, and I caught a glimpse of their mostly naked bodies as they bent down and grabbed their clothes off the floor. They must have planned this with Noren as a distraction.

  They hurried out of the room, and Noren sighed. “I apologize, my lord. They’ll find anywhere to sneak off together.”

  Heldor let out a grunt, walked the length of the room, and then turned on his heel and stormed out without another word. I let out a relieved breath, and I sensed my mates calming too. Although none of us would be able to relax completely until the Jade Dragon had left the town and everyone was safe.

  I wasn’t sure how long we waited until the bed over us was moved and the panel opened. Bright light blinded me for a moment, and then a hand reached down to help me climb out. Noren, Brin, and Leni waited for us at the top, and Leni threw her arms around her brother as he emerged.

  “He’s gone,” Brin said.

  “Did he hurt anyone?” Slade asked.

  “No, he made a lot of threats and scared people pretty good, but that’s it,” Leni said. “I’m so glad he didn’t find you.”

  “No one told him about us?” Reven asked, as he climbed out.

  Noren puffed up his chest. “Of course not. We protect our own.”

  “That’s very noble, especially since we’ve put you all at risk,” Auric said.

  “I never should have brought us here,” Slade mumbled.

  Reven brushed dust off him
self. “Perhaps it’s time for us to leave.”

  I reluctantly nodded. “Yes, with each minute we stay we put these people in greater danger.”

  “But we don’t want you to go!” Leni said. “Having you here has been the best thing to happen to this boring town in years.”

  “We don’t want to leave either,” I said with a sigh. “But it’s best for everyone if we go now, no matter how much we’d like to stay.”

  “Come with us,” Brin said, taking Leni’s hand.

  Her face fell. “Gods, I want to, but my mother would never let me leave. Let alone my overbearing brother.”

  “I let my parents dictate my life for far too long and almost married a man I didn’t love because of it.” Brin glanced over at Auric apologetically, but he just shrugged. “It was hard to break free and do what I knew I needed, but it was worth it.”

  “She is not coming with us,” Slade said. “End of discussion.”

  “See?” Leni said, rolling her eyes. “I’ll never get out of this town.”

  We left Noren’s house and returned to the inn to pack up our things. When we emerged, a large group waited for us with Yena at the front of it. She threw her arms around Slade, her eyes wet.

  “Please be careful,” she said, as she pulled back to look at him. “Come back to us once this is all done.”

  “I will, mother,” Slade said.

  Yena turned to me next and enveloped me in a hug, her arms soft and comforting. For a few seconds it reminded me of what it was like to have a mother of my own. “You be safe as well. Slade needs you.”

  I nodded, my throat closing up with emotion. Wrin handed us some food she had packed for us to eat on the road, while the rest of Slade’s family hugged him and said their goodbyes. Many of them wished me well too, and the tightening in my chest grew worse with each goodbye. I’d had no idea I would come to care for this village so much, or that I would have such a hard time leaving it.