by K L Rymer
Her demon lover, Damien, and his shadow dragon Shadow Stalker follow closely behind, bringing darkness and misery wherever they go. Then there’s Jack on his brass, hulking beast Buddy. Nora comes after on her beautiful, emerald dragon Zelina, beaming just as wide as Felicity. Then you have Thomas on his smug, golden asshole Maximus; Zahara on her navy shadow dragon Elvira, and finally Angelina on the beautiful, blue Azure—the very offspring of my own dragon.
Now I see Mattie riding on Gwyneira, handsome and determined as ever with those piercing gray eyes.
Brynmawr, unfortunately, is without a dragon rider, and my heart breaks picturing that broken, scarlet face.
I know they’ll all come and rescue me. Despite how gloomy and depressed I may feel right now inside this black void, I still have hope.
I have to after all, or the shadows would have consumed me long, long ago...
There comes the sound of footsteps and I lift my head from my knees. Not that I can see much around me, but I seem to be inside a room.
There’s a wall at my back, the only thing keeping me sane and grounded.
It’s the only material object I can find. It’s bad enough I can’t feel my digits.
Before long the footsteps stop before me, and a face finally materializes in the void. Wisps of black shadow give way to a tall man in a tailored black suit, and I clench my jaw when I meet those vertical pupils.
The Black Dragon.
In his human suit.
The man cocks his head sideways, watching me curiously as he seems to be assessing my very worth. I taper my eyes, trying to show him how much I hate his guts.
I hope he dies...
He’s not a very bad looking dragon (well, a dragon in a human suit of course). Strong jaw, smooth-backed hair, and icy blue eyes.
I bet he’s a Shadow Dragon like Shadow Stalker and Elvira. That means he has winged forelegs, but I have yet to see his dragon form. All I recall from the day he took over the academy is a shadow. One so big that I thought a storm was brewing above the school.
The sudden change in the atmosphere was alarming, and it just goes to show how evil and corrupt the Black Dragon truly is.
The Black Dragon snickers and I grit my teeth. “I don’t know what you’re laughing at. You just wait until my friends get here and save me.”
He stops laughing, fixing those frozen eyes on me again. “Not possible. They can’t get to you here. You’re neither here nor there right now, child. You have come to a world of my own making. I call it Oblivion...”
“Wow, inspiring... not. The name sucks.”
The dragon growls, and the hair rises on the back of my neck as the sound reverberates through Oblivion.
“Watch that tongue. I have shown you great mercy by not killing you just yet. Humphrey has his plans for you too of course, but I will gladly change all of that in a heartbeat and tear you apart. It’s been centuries since I’ve eaten human flesh after all. Although you’re only half-human, human blood still runs through your veins...”
My heart hammers through my ears as I swallow hard, unable to take my eyes from his mystical blue orbs.
Finally, I muster up the courage to speak. “What... what do you both plan to do with me?”
Those cold eyes bore deep into my flesh like piercing shards of ice, assessing my worth once again.
“Matthew Humphrey III had plans to kill you as soon as I brought you to the academy, but I encouraged him to keep you alive for now. That way we can use you as bait. The dragon babes would be nearing maturity now or their teens as you humans like to phrase it. No doubt Merlin will form his army and have them come and rescue you.”
A lump clogs my throat when I remember all the dragon babies, and now dread fills my veins.
Oh no... the Black Dragon will kill them all. Even Sparkle Hearts! I can’t bear the thought of everyone sacrificing themselves to come and rescue me, just because I was foolish enough to go to the human world and do a stupid exam.
This is all my fault.
“I will assure you I do not wish to cause those babies any direct harm. Well... not yet. After all, I would dishonour my very race if I were to slay a bunch of fledgling dragons. One of them is my very own granddaughter... I’d heard that Red heathen finally put an egg inside my daughter. I don’t know what she ever saw in him...”
My heart whirs as his words swirl around my brain, and I gasp for breath. “H-hold on... what are you...?”
Those cold, icy eyes lock on mine again, and I finally see it. There’s only one other dragon I know with a pair of ruthless eyes like that, but of course, her frosty gaze could never hold a candle.
“You... you’re Gwyneira’s father?”
The Black Dragon smirks. “Yes. Although the correct term would be sire in the dragon community.”
I stare up at him in disbelief.
Well, this is certainly news to me. Funny how Gwyneira never cared to mention that her father was the effin’ Black Dragon!
The White heathen...
“We had a complicated sire-offspring relationship, hence why she doesn’t like to talk about me much. After she decided to move in with that insufferable Red Dragon, we cut ties.”
I reach my hands to my head as a splitting headache rips my skull in half.
New information overload...
“So this is why you decided to team up with Matthew Humphrey III and take over the academy? Because you’re pissed about your daughter’s choice of boyfriend?”
The Black Dragon snaps. “No. I decided to team up with the Humphreys so I could rid the world of humans. They seem to have forgotten their place. I was once the most feared beast in all the land. Humans used to bring me peace offerings so I would spare them. They were right to fear me... I am the very essence of winter, and I don’t play nice. But you watch, little human child... I will bring darkness to this world once again, so long as it erases the world of sapiens. I’m satisfied.”
I bare my teeth. “My mother is a sapien...”
It seems I’ve left him speechless as we stare daggers at each other, and I wonder who will break first.
He can claim he’s winter all he likes. I’m not scared of him. So long as I know his motives, I can beat him.
We can all beat him.
I grin. “Well, care to share your name at least? You can’t just be called the Black Dragon.”
He returns the smile, but it looks more like the sneer of a Jack-o’-lantern. “Diafol. Means devil in Welsh.”
I purse my lips. “Fitting.”
Silence drifts through Oblivion once again, and it’s all I’ve heard ever since I’ve arrived here. I’d do anything to get away. Even though I haven’t needed to eat or sleep, I’m exhausted and hungry.
Diafol steps closer, planting a cold palm to my forehead as the shadows dance around us. “Time to take you back to the academy... Humphrey’s dying to meet you after all.”
Once again I feel myself slipping away, and just like the last time I try to call to my dragon.
“Brynmawr... I’m alive... come find me...”
Chapter 2 - Matthew
I watch the Red Dragon with childlike hope as he repeats his affirmation.
Bryn is alive...
He heard her calling to him.
How? She will be under the shadow of the Black Dragon. He blocks out all telepathic communication between riders and their dragons. It’s as if the brute is against the bonding of human and dragon kind.
Well, we’re half-human, yet since we’re soldiers in Merlin’s army, we have to be part supernatural too. Hence why the wizard chose us because we’re impartial: we won’t pick sides.
My mother is a human after all, just like Bryn’s and the majority of Mendacious.
We stand in Myrddin’s spirit oasis as the Red dragon pulled me aside. Felicity Thorn joined us, and she, too, stares at the dragon in disbelief.
The pixie has somewhat become my ‘best friend’ now since Bryn vanished, constantly looking out for me since I’ve been do
wn in the dumps, blaming myself for Bryn’s departure.
I should point out that no one has blamed me in the slightest for Bryn’s disappearance. In fact, they were all sympathetic and kind, and it seems they’ve finally accepted me into their clan. Even Damien Hellborne spared me for once, and the most shocking of all—Angelina.
Even after everything I did to her, dumping her for Bryn and whatnot, the vampire still finds it in her frozen heart to forgive me.
Her heart has thawed since she adopted my dragon’s daughter, Azure, and the pair have become inseparable ever since. Even when we dated, the vampire never looked so happy.
“W-what?” Felicity whispers, tears shining in her big eyes.
Brynmawr’s long neck stretches towards the clouds, and now he fixes his solemn, golden eyes on the tiny pixie.
“That’s right. I heard her loud and clear.”
Felicity squeaks, throwing a hand over her mouth, and I’ll admit the sound is adorable. I can’t believe I once tried to blind this precious thing with a pile of steaming mashed potatoes once upon a time.
I really was a fucking bully.
The small girl looks up at me next, tears swimming in her crystal blues, and you can see why she captured that demon’s black heart. There’s never been a purer creature.
Felicity has cut her hair short like a boy’s in the last few weeks, and it suits her. She no longer looks like a twelve-year-old girl, and actually looks hot these days, dare I say.
I try to steer my thoughts away as I can sense Hellborne’s scorching red eyes. I can shoot lightning from my fingertips, but I have nothing on that devil.
“Did you hear that, Matthew? Bryn is safe...”
Felicity’s soft, wind chime voice wraps around my heart, filling me with hope.
I offer her a warm smile. “Yeah. Maybe there’s still hope for her yet.”
The tiny pixie takes my hand and squeezes, and that’s when Damien steps in. He presses a palm to my shoulder, and I wince a little as he burns the skin. Not too bad, but just enough to get the message across.
The worst part is that I’m wearing my battle armour, and I can still feel the heat from his hand.
I haven’t taken my armour off since the day Bryn vanished. You never know when war may come calling...
“Looks like you may get your girlfriend back, Humphrey.” He leans closer then, growling sinisterly into my ear. “Just keep away from mine.”
I don’t say anything as he keeps his burning fingers on me. He may be civil towards me now, but he still won’t tolerate me looking at his pretty little girlfriend.
I did make her swoon once since I tend to have that effect on women.
Look, it’s not like I asked to be this ridiculously handsome. A chiselled jawline can only get you so far, after all.
Luckily for me, Myrddin steps forth, removing Damien’s hand from my shoulder with a good-natured chuckle.
That’s when I hear Felicity squabbling with the demon behind me as the wizard pulls me away—Brynmawr returns to playing with Sparkle Hearts and Zelina.
“See? What did I tell you, Matthew? Bryn was safe...”
I meet his twinkling green eyes. “For now. There’s no telling what my father will do. We need to make a move, fast. There’s no time.”
“I agree.”
We turn to the source of the voice, and my eyes find Angelina. Azure crawls beside her, and the little dragon is already the size of a pony.
The rest of the babies are as big as ponies now (Jack Small’s is as big as a regular horse).
Angelina stops before Myrddin, folding her arms. She’s not much smaller than him since she’s a tall bird at five foot eleven. “Personally, I think we should have gone after Humphrey the moment he took Bryn, instead of waiting around for a miracle, Professor.”
Myrddin tapers his eyes. “Is that so, Miss Ambrose? And what would you have suggested? That we go charging in unprepared with seven baby dragons? It would have been suicide.”
The vampire flicks her blonde hair, and I’m not afraid to admit that that action seriously turned me on once.
I see her more as a friend these days, but I do take a moment to appreciate Angelina’s striking beauty.
She almost doesn’t seem real. Like a wax doll.
“We have two full grown dragons...” she points out.
Myrddin rolls his eyes, and now the two of them argue. I meet Azure’s blue gaze, and the baby dragon smiles at me.
Although when dragons grin, they resemble cow skulls lying around on the desert floor.
She’s still cute though.
I return her smile, patting her between the horns. She just started sprouting a pair, and they’re the sweetest thing ever. “Did you hear that, Azure? We may finally get Bryn back.”
The baby blue dragon wags her tail then communicates with me telepathically. “And we can all be one big happy family again!”
I chuckle.
All the babies have been able to talk for the last few weeks now. It was strange at first since they were like loving pets, but soon they started to string sentences together, and now they’re all fluent.
Only Thomas’s dragon could talk from the get go—Gwyneira still has nightmares about it.
Azure has the voice of a twelve-year-old girl and it’s a sweet, innocent voice. It seems she inherited her mother’s beauty but her father’s gentle disposition.
Lucky girl.
As you can imagine, she gets on swimmingly with Sparkle Hearts and Zelina. The three of them are inseparable. I do feel bad for Zahara’s Elvira as they leave her out, but she’d rather be hiding in the shadows with Shadow Stalker.
Sparkle Hearts and Zelina tackle Azure, and all three tumble to the ground.
“Come on, Azure! Let’s play!” Sparkle Hearts cries in her saccharine voice.
“Ooh, let’s race again!” Zelina pipes.
Azure giggles. “Get off me!”
They grapple on the grass now, and it turns out that dragon play is pretty rough.
That’s when my dragon Gwyneira steps in to stop them, and motherhood suits her. “Not so rough, girls. You don’t want to lose any scales.”
The three girls clamber to their feet, and now they all hang their heads. “Yes, Mother...”
The babies have all come to see Brynmawr and Gwyneira as their parents, so my little Azure gets to have six siblings.
I cast my gaze around. Felicity and Damien still bicker to one side, as well as Myrddin and Angelina.
Elvira and Shadow Stalker hiss in the shadows when Azure, Sparkles, and Zelina run too close. Jack rides Buddy’s back as Mr Tanaka teaches Macson, Jessika, and Peter Tai Chi beneath a cherry blossom tree, and Peter’s not so green and oozy these days as we’ve long stopped calling him Swamp Boy.
Shankfoot feeds Princess Sparkle Hooves a carrot by the river.
Thomas and Maximus are reading by a cluster of rocks as Zahara teases Nora by the river’s edge, daring her to swim (the gorgon’s afraid of water after all).
Brynmawr plays with the girls once again as he flaps around after them, and I smile, truly believing that we can do it.
We can all save Bryn.
Chapter 3 – Bryn
The academy has changed
And not for the better either.
It’s as if a permanent black cloud hangs over the school now, and it has only gotten worse since I escaped to Hell.
Only this time I have no form of escape. Damien cut off the doorway, so I can’t even go down and pay my good friend the Devil a visit now.
It’s like the Black Dragon has sucked the magic right out of the school, and even the other students are miserable. I’ve run into Katy, Clara, and Orion, and a few of the others.
None of them want to talk to me. It’s as if all the life and soul has left their bodies. Matthew’s old bros from Audacious aren’t as rowdy as they used to be, and it sucks.
Mathew senior has ruined the school for everyone.
We’re nothing
but prisoners now.
I’m locked in Mendacious tower, and it’s not the same without my housemates. I’d do anything to hear Felicity and Damien arguing again.
I’m depressed, lonely, and hopeless.
I will never be free of Mattie’s father. Never.
I sit by the window in the common room, pressing my knees up to my chin. The mountains have never looked so bleak as the clouds mask the sun and frozen comet.
That’s when I hear a small whine, and my heart soars. I whirl around, and there he is...
My ghost doggy!
“Gelert!”
I jump down from the window sill, throwing my arms around that deer-sized dog. Even though he’s cold to the touch, I still latch on to him—my only friend in the world now.
This is fantastic! He can relay messages back and forth between me and Myrddin. I’d already tried to communicate with Brynmawr, but I don’t want to get my hopes up.
I’m not sure if he can even hear me with the Black Dragon’s fog surrounding the school.
Finally, I let go of the dog, peering into his trusting, brown eyes. “I need you to do something for me now, Gelert, okay?”
He opens his mouth, and his massive pink tongue flops out.
“I need you to find Myrddin and Mattie and tell them somehow that I am fine. I know you can’t talk, but they will get the message, I’m sure.”
Gelert throws his head back and barks, and my heart thuds. I hope no one hears him.
I doubt Matthew senior can harm Gelert since the dog’s already deceased, but I’m not prepared to find out.
That’s when a set of slow, somber footsteps echo up the spiral stairs, and I urge the dog to go.
“Quickly, before they see you!”
Gelert dips his head as he doesn’t want to leave me alone, but it’s the only way.
Maybe then we can defeat Matthew senior and the Black Dragon, and everything can go back to normal.
The footsteps are getting dangerously closer, and I look into the dog’s eyes again, begging him now.
Gelert raises his head defiantly, and now he disappears.
The footsteps stop outside, and I hold my breath, standing up straight.
A key slots through the door, and when it creaks open, I’m greeted by those familiar, pale blue eyes.
