Dragon's Heart

by Marly Mathews

  Dragon's Heart

  By Marly Mathews

  Enchanted Realms, Book One

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Copyright © 2008, 2015 by Marly Mathews

  Cover Design by Melody Simmons from Ebookindiecovers

  All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  Over a thousand years ago an ancient dragon race roamed the Earth, sharing the land with humans and magic kind alike, while sharing the skies with no one.

  Humans, magic kind and dragon born, lived harmoniously until a catastrophic war broke out between the magic kind and those born to live the mystical life of a dragon shifter.

  The magic kind fought with valor but they were no match for the dragon shifters for war was in their blood--they thirsted for it, they hungered for it and had their king and queen not called off the War, the Earth would have burned for a hundred years.

  The dragon shifters quelled their warlike natures, and attempted to live peacefully until dragon slayers almost wiped out their race. And so the ancient dragon race left Earth to live in their own realm called Dragonia. Here they would live in their own utopian paradise for the next thousand years. Their idyllic existence was shattered when one powerful dragon shifter general turned against the Royals and started a civil war that would grow into a fight to keep humankind alive.

  The royalists are outnumbered, and hundreds fall with each passing moon, the king and queen of Dragonia know there is only one way to keep Earth safe, they must forge an alliance with the magic kind who still live in the shadows in the Earthly realm.

  If this alliance fails, all will be lost, for when the dragons return, they have one objective in mind--to set the world on fire and show humankind who is the master race. One great wizard holds the key to stopping the dragon shifter general’s massive invasion army--this wizard is William Lightfoot.

  Chapter One

  England, Present Day

  “So it’s come down to this.” Grania Burns stared at the man in front of her. She clasped her sword in her hands, and tried to level her breathing. “Where did we go wrong? When did you decide to walk down the unforgivable path?”

  “We are fighting a civil war, Grania. Trust me, I never thought in my wildest dreams that we of all people would end up on opposing sides. I hate having to fight you … I hate not having you with me, but we believe in different ideals, so, this is the only path I can be on.”

  “Your so-called path is sheer insanity. You believe in taking back the world from the mortals that wrenched it away from us thousands of years ago. We can’t unleash our powers on the mortal world, not now, not ever.

  Why can’t you just be happy with the lives we lead on Dragonia? Since the war began, I’ve had to live in this realm with the humans you seek to kill. They don’t deserve our wrath. When the time was there for us to fight we didn’t. We allowed dragon slayers to kill us off until we were almost driven to extinction.

  As a result, we were forced to seek sanctuary in Dragonia. I think we’ve done pretty well for our kind considering the persecution we’ve suffered in the past. Please, Denys, you must rethink this—I won’t let you continue on your killing spree. I’m here to stop you. I can’t believe I once loved you … but perhaps we were never meant to be. Maybe that’s why we never fully completed the mating ritual.

  Even though we never experienced the mating fire—we just couldn’t allow ourselves to be bonded that way. You always knew you’d turn your heart away from me—I’ve heard the rumors that your high and exalted leader has been planning this insurrection for years now. My heart is breaking, but I will survive without you.”

  “You work for traitors, you work for the very people who told us to stifle our lust for battle—they tried to make us into something we are not and that weakness led to hundreds of our kind being slaughtered by humans and wizards who called themselves dragon slayers.” His voice turned cold, emotionless.

  “How could you have changed so much … whatever happened to the considerate man I used to know?”

  “He embraced his dragon side. I want to live as a dragon shifter. I want to live in the open as both man and dragon. You might think that hiding your second skin is the way to go, but I don’t. I’m sick of living in the shadows, and I’m sick of living in the purgatory we call Dragonia.”

  “The Royal Family believes that we must fight our dragon side, they believe that we should only shift once with every moon passing … to shift too much, is to lose our humanity.

  You forget, we are different from pure-blooded dragons, we are ancient mystical creatures. Try as we might, we can’t deny what we are. We are half-human and half-dragon, and we all know what happened to our kind when they attempted to disrupt that harmonious balance.

  Their dragon side consumed them, they lost themselves in the passionate furious nature, and they became trapped within their second skin—only to die a horrible death. I, for one, don’t want that to happen to me.”

  “You sound so single-minded. I must say your emerging selfish side is most unbecoming.”

  She glanced around the dusty and messy shop. The shop needed a good hovering. Ancient leather bound books lined the walls. Her stomach turned when she recognized some of the leather as dragon hide.

  Rolled up scrolls were stacked on one of the bookshelves, while potion bottles and other magical knick knacks lined the shelves on the wall behind the counter. Celtic symbols hung on the walls adding to the mystical ancient feeling of the 18th century building.

  The wizard Denys had tried to assassinate lay in a bloody heap on the floor. She wanted to get him to safety, but in order to do so she had to get past Denys.

  “I don’t want to kill you, but I will,” she said, her voice wavering slightly.

  “Do you see this wizard? He is pathetic. He never saw me coming … the spell he’s creating will never stop us. We will easily take back the lands that the humans robbed from us and we will burn everything they built.”

  “If you haven’t kept up on human history, they’ve robbed lands from other peoples, we weren’t the only ones. Look at him!” She pointed to the motionless wizard. “They drove his kind from these lands as well, and they are no
w forced to live in secrecy veiled in the mists, or as most have done, they’ve returned to their ancestral lands.

  This Earth will never belong to magic kind or dragon kind again. Our time is past. We must live with that. The Royal Family has sent me and many others here to protect this world from you, and your followers. Dragonia might be split in half now, with war tearing our lands apart, but still, my king and queen will not let you unleash your terror here.”

  “It’s too late for them. We will defeat your precious monarchs, and when we do, you won’t be able to protect Earth…we will purify it with our fire…and then, a new reign shall begin!”

  “I am sorry, Denys.”

  “Do not apologize to me, my love. I will be the one laying flowers on your grave.” He moved toward her.

  Their swords met in a violent clash.

  The sounds of steel clanging against steel made her ears ring. Everything seemed so surreal to her. It was as if she walked in a waking dream. She heard Denys’s voice talking to her in the soft loving tone he used to use when they were together.

  Then, in one blurring movement, she had to dodge another of his blows, and when she looked into his deep green eyes, she only saw pure burning hatred. He had already been consumed. The appalling sight shook her straight down to her core.

  Somehow, she’d managed to turn them so that he now faced the door and she stood shielding the wizard she’d been sent to protect. She wouldn’t let Denys kill William Lightfoot. She’d been given strict instructions to make sure that he lived to see another hunter moon, and she would not fail.

  William Lightfoot groaned. She glanced quickly behind her, and in her brief moment of distraction, Denys moved into the second stage of his plan. Her eyes widened when she noticed her ex-lover working to conjure a fireball.

  “It would be much easier to call on the power of fire in my dragon skin…but I’m afraid I don’t have enough room to shift in this dinky little excuse for a shop.” He spoke as if he was going to throw a football at her rather than throwing a fireball at her.

  “Oh, fuck it.” She sheathed her sword in its scabbard and lunged toward William. “We have to get out of here…fast!”

  “Wait…my work…my life…most of it’s in there!”

  “Don’t you make backup copies?” She hauled him to his feet.

  He swayed slightly. He looked like shit warmed over. By the looks of Denys though, William had attempted to give as good as he got…too bad he’d been fighting a dragon shifter.

  The healing abilities of her kind were revered and most sought after in the magical world. One dragon shifter tear could cure an illness, heal an ailment and even bring the life back into the eyes of the aged.

  He looked at her with a dazed expression in his bright blue eyes. Obviously, Denys had tried to work the mind wars on him…and he’d fought back.

  Dragon shifters were gifted with telepathy, and they usually used the gift as a harmless communication device, but Denys had tried to use his gift to harm William. She admired the man's grit, he had true warrior spirit. He must have pure steel in his backbone in order to have withstood the agony of telepathic battle.

  “Come on, we’re getting out of here.” She gripped him by the arm. He closed his eyes and muttered a soft incantation. She was so preoccupied she didn’t even pay him any mind, his words sounded like white noise.

  Pulling him behind her, they just made it out of the back entrance when fire engulfed the shop. She pushed him to the ground and landed on top of him.

  “I think this is the best time I’ve had all night,” he said sarcastically.

  “Can you breathe?” she asked anxiously.

  “Of course I can.” He looked up at her.

  Smoke billowed through the air. The sound of the fire brigade blared through the still night.

  “We have to get out of here before the police and the fire brigades arrive.”

  “That’s fine. I don’t need anything in there anyway.”

  She shook her head. “You just told me that your whole life’s work was in there…”

  “I cast a spell and I directed it all to another location.”

  “Well, cheers for that. Kudos for the quick thinking, I love that in a man.” She stood up and brushed the debris off of her leather coat.

  “They never told me they intended to send a woman to watch over me.” The surprise in his voice grated on her already strained nerves. After meeting Denys face to face under such emotional stress, she didn’t need a man pulling the old chauvinist routine on her.

  “I’m here to protect your sorry wizard ass, so you can get off that bloody high horse of yours.” She glared at him, holding back the fire in her eyes.

  If she let loose right now, he’d be smoking, literally. And as his protector she couldn’t go and attack him just because he happened to be stuck in a bygone age when it came to women’s rights.

  “I don’t need protecting, least of all from someone like you. I had Denys right where I wanted him, and you barged onto the scene and ruined it.”

  “When I charged into the shop it looked as if Denys had you right where he wanted you. I think he was in the mood for you toasted up with some ketchup.”

  She groaned. A headache was approaching. Soon, her head would be on fire. She looked at the night sky. She’d had her monthly shift two nights ago … and yet she still felt as if she needed to transform.

  Denys must have given off some sort of pheromone to make her feel like this. Shaking her head, she started when she felt his touch on her skin. His touch was electric—and completely unsettling.

  “You look worse than I feel. My apologies if I sounded a bit like a prick. I’m not used to having someone of your impressive background come to my aid. You look like you need some rest. I think you’ve definitely earned some R&R time.”

  “Don’t worry about me. I’m old enough to know how to survive another day.”

  He chuckled. “By the looks of you, you wouldn’t know what old was. You don’t have a wrinkle in that beautiful face of yours.”

  She pursed her lips and patted her sword. “I’m old enough to walk these lands when people still carried and fought with these in battle. I’m happy to say that in the last few hundred years they have lost some of their bloodlust. The humans have become less barbaric.”

  His eyes turned wistful. “Ah, those were the days.” She stopped short. They never told her she’d be protecting an immortal wizard.

  “How old are you?” she asked, suspicion growing inside of her.

  “I asked first,” he pointed out.

  “A lady never tells her age first.”

  “And you think you are a lady? Well, my lady, you need to clean up that foul mouth of yours…my uncle is known for his colourful language, but he doesn’t hold a torch to that mouth of yours. I say we just drop the subject of age right now. I barely know you—why don’t we keep our relationship as informal as possible, okay?”

  She suddenly felt like smacking him into next Tuesday. “Look, Lord Merlin…”

  “That’s Lightfoot, if calling me Merlin was meant as in insult you failed miserably.”

  “Whatever…I’m here to keep you from being toasted by one very bad-assed, dragon shifter assassin. You’ve been marked for termination, William, and whether you like it or not, you’re not equipped to fight my kind.”

  “We did, millennial ago.”

  She sighed and cleared her throat. “Well, unless you really want me to get a thing out for you, you’ll keep what happened a thousand years ago between our peoples, in the past. I, for one, don’t want to think about that sad part of our history. I’m here because of my loyalty to my king and queen, but if I had a choice I don’t think I’d have picked you as my assignment. I’d much rather be fighting with my friends on the front lines. Whether you want to believe it or not, a terrible civil war has broken out in my world.

  Thousands have been killed, and the Kingdom of Dragonia is in danger of falling. I can’t let that happ
en--if it does all hell will literally break out in merry old England and it will spread like wildfire around the globe, and when the smoke clears most of humankind will be no more and those that do survive will be used as slaves by my people, do you understand?”

  “From what I’ve heard, you might not be able to stop it.”

  “I will. I have to. I, alone let this firestorm happen, and I must fight it now that it’s started. You don’t know what it’s like to see your world torn asunder. I grieve every day, for every day another one of my friends fall in battle.

  Our kind can’t be killed easily, but we can be killed, and Denys’s kind has no scruples when it comes to wiping out everything and everyone that gets in their way.” She walked to her car, and waited for him to follow her. “I learned to drive one of these things when they were first invented.” She let out a rueful chuckle. “Looking back upon my life, I guess I’ve always held a certain affinity for Earth.”

  “Is that why you’re going to make sure that Denys’s side doesn’t make it into our realm?”

  “Yes. Denys wants to destroy everything and it doesn’t matter who or what gets in his way. He wants to take back what the humans of this world took from us so long ago. The old adage let bygones be bygones, won’t fly with his side. But you misunderstand.

  Denys isn’t the leader of his order. He is only the right hand man. The leader is a dragon shifter that has centuries on Denys. The leader knows how to wage war, and win. He was the one that won our campaign against your kind. But in those days, the monarchy had absolute power. When he suggested that we wipe out the immortal wizards and witches, the monarchy told him to stand down and he obeyed like a good little soldier. But now, there is no reasoning with him. He has let the dark side of dragon shifting consume his mind. Without his mate…he is lost.”

  “That’s rough. Can’t say I feel sorry for the bastard. Why doesn’t he just die from the heartache? I thought a dragon shifter’s heart breaks when they lose their mate. How can you still survive with a totally broken heart?”

  “Get in.” she clicked off the car alarm and released the lock. “He still survives. Though he is a shell of what he used to be. He’s a shadow of his former self.”