Dragon Mates: Dragon Knights (The Sea Captain's Daughter Trilogy Book 3)

by Bianca D’Arc

  “Seth?” Livia tugged at his sleeve, still gazing upward as the two newcomers drew closer. Seth must’ve followed her gaze because he jumped a bit and a broad smile lit his handsome face.

  “They’re here!” he exclaimed aloud. She was sure he was speaking to them silently after that because he had a somewhat distracted look on his face as he grinned skyward.

  Little Zera caught on to Seth’s excitement and started jumping upward, flapping her little wings in the most adorable way. Livia went to stand by the baby dragon, ready to keep her out of any danger while the much larger adult dragons came in for a landing. They were much closer now, and Livia could see they carried two passengers. One was definitely male, and the other looked a lot like Seth’s mother, Lady Enid.

  Livia had met the family once before, while she visited the Lair at Seth’s invitation, and had spent some time with Lady Enid. The older woman was just lovely and so welcoming. Livia could easily tell that’s where Seth got his compassion from that made him such a good healer. His fathers, on the other hand, gave him their strength and cunning. Both were fierce warriors of good reputation who led second flight, one of the top battle groups in the Lair.

  Both of his dragon parents had come—bronze Randor, partner to dark-haired Gerard, who must be back at the keep, since Lady Enid was riding on Randor’s back at the moment, and the red dragon, Lady Alirya, partner to the blond-haired Paton, who gave Seth his golden coloring. They landed neatly while Livia kept an eye on little Zera, keeping her well back so she wouldn’t inadvertently get underfoot.

  Seth, of course, ran forward to greet his parents, helping his mother down off Randor’s back and exchanging hugs of welcome. Livia held back a bit, wanting to give Seth some time with his folks before she made her greetings.

  “Ooh, the lady is so pretty. Red. That’s not really a sea dragon color. And she’s so shiny!” Zera said to Livia, flapping her little wings in anticipation of meeting the new dragons.

  “That is Lady Alirya,” Livia told the tiny dragon quietly. “She raised Seth from when he was a baby, along with his human mama, Lady Enid. She’s the pretty lady hugging Seth right now, and patting his shoulders. They haven’t seen him since we came here, so I want to let them talk a bit before we go over. You want to meet them all, right, Zera?” Livia had crouched a little to talk to the dragonet when she saw a shadow come over her from behind.

  Turning to look up, Livia saw Lady Alirya craning her neck down toward the toddler and Livia.

  “Lady Livia, it is good to see you again,” the female dragon greeted her. “And who is this pretty little lady?”

  “Lady Alirya, I’m honored by your greeting,” Livia answered, still feeling the need to be formal with Seth’s parents. She so wanted their good opinion. “May I present Lady Zeranelia of the sea dragons. She is sister to Lady Shara, who is newly mated to Sir Xanderanth. Her parents are in the flight class, above.” Livia pointed to where Xander was still putting his small class through its paces, now farther out over the sea.

  “Excellent,” Alirya commented. “We have come to help Sir Xander with that, but I am very pleased to meet such a lovely representative of the sea dragons. How do you do, young miss?” Alirya’s tone was patient and kind with the toddler, and Livia could see how it put Zera at ease.

  “I got a booboo walking on rocks, but Livvy gave me a pressie. See?” Zera held up her injured foot, proudly showing off the big colorful bow Livia had tied earlier.

  “It is a beautiful present,” Alirya agreed. “Go on, dear,” Alirya said to Livia privately. “I will watch the child while you renew your acquaintance with the family. Enid is very eager to see you.”

  Surprised and pleased by the offer, Livia was sure to tell Zera where she was going and made certain the toddler was all right with her departure. But Livia needn’t have worried. Zera was totally enchanted with the shiny red motherly dragon and happy to be left in her company. Livia walked toward the bronze dragon who still stood near his human family.

  It was Paton who saw her approach first. Not an overly demonstrative man, he nodded at her, his smile welcoming. Enid let go of her son long enough to catch sight of Livia’s approach, and then, Livia was enveloped in a warm hug from Seth’s mother.

  “Oh, my dear, we were so worried about you!” Lady Enid told her once she let go. “And you were all so brave. I’m so proud of you all.”

  To hear that from Seth’s mother touched Livia more than she expected. Her own father had been mad first, proud second. Here, Lady Enid of the kind heart was proud, not angry, though she probably had a right to be since Seth had made her worry by absconding to Gryphon Isle against the wishes of the Lair leadership at the time.

  “Have you seen Gryffid?” Seth asked his parents.

  “We stopped at the keep first,” Lady Enid informed them. “Gryffid told us where to find you. Gerard is still up there, with the wizard, passing along scrolls and reports.”

  “We came down to see how the schooling goes,” Paton put in, raising his gaze to the sky. “Looks like Xanderanth is doing a credible job so far.” Paton looked sideways at his son. “You’re coaching him, aren’t you?”

  “How did you know?” Seth’s jaw was slack with surprise.

  “The formation got sloppy right after you came to greet us,” Paton chuckled. “Maybe you ought to tell him to bring them down for a break.”

  “Right.” Seth looked upward for a moment, then back at his father. “Done. He’s bringing them in. We’d better stand back by the cliff face. Some of the sea dragons don’t have the neatest landings I’ve ever seen.”

  “Quite a few of them prefer to splash down in the water,” Livia told Enid as they walked together toward where Alirya was lounging in the sand while Zera climbed on her back and tried to pounce on Alirya’s tail every few minutes. “Honestly, it’s safer for all concerned with some of those larger sea dragons, but Hrardorr says they all swim circles around him in the water. They’ve been showing him a few things, and he’s been having the time of his life with them.”

  Lady Enid patted Livia’s arm. “That’s good to hear. I was worried about him. He seemed so alone at the Lair. I was glad when Seth befriended him. From all accounts, Hrardorr was quite the dashing warrior before he was blinded.”

  “He still is a force to be reckoned with,” Seth defended the blind dragon. “He was the one who caught the sea dragons’ attention and convinced them to help defend this island. And none of them can flame the way he can. He did major damage to the pirate fleet here, just like he did back home. He’s a one-of-a-kind dragon, and everyone on this island understands his true worth. His blindness isn’t a problem for anyone but him, and sadly, he still doesn’t really understand that.”

  “You’re a good friend to him, Seth,” his mother told him, love and understanding in her tone.

  They all turned to watch as the first of the sea dragons began to make their landing attempts. More than one had to pull up and circle around to try again. Paton frowned, and Enid’s brows furrowed with worry.

  “They really aren’t used to air, are they?” Enid whispered.

  “Not really,” Livia replied softly. “They spend almost all their time in the water. Some of them made a habit of coming ashore here even before the attack on the island, but not often, and not for long periods of time. Lady Shara is probably the one who came ashore most, because she had bonded with Lady Lizbet, Sir Leo’s new bride.”

  “It seems strange to me, a woman bonding with a dragon, but just because that’s not the way it’s done at home doesn’t mean it’s wrong. I look forward to meeting Lady Lizbet,” Enid said with a smile for Livia. “I brought a few wedding presents for the happy couple from the Lair.” Enid’s eyes twinkled just the way her son’s did when he was happy.

  One of the sea dragons picked that moment to crash rather spectacularly on landing, and Seth was the first to rush out to help. Livia was right behind him, as were Enid and Paton. Luckily, the young sea dragon was more embarrass
ed than hurt, and when little Zera offered her pretty scarf to help the bigger dragon feel better, every heart in the vicinity melted.

  The new dragons were introduced after everyone had settled on the beach, along with Sir Paton and Lady Enid. They spent the next half hour being told of their son’s brave deeds and how wonderful he was, for a human. It seemed Seth’s work over the past days with the sea dragons had paved the way for his parents’ much easier acceptance.

  And when Sir Randor and his mate, Lady Alirya, took to the sky to demonstrate some of their fancier moves, the sea dragons were completely sold on the new family. They were rapt as they watched the two dragons run through incredibly precise flying drills that they’d had years to perfect. There was a reason this couple had been sent to the Southern Lair to teach the younger fliers of great promise. They moved as one, in patterns so intricate and fast it was hard to follow.

  “They’re amazing,” Livia breathed as they completed a risky pass at high speed.

  “And, when Papa Ger gets here, they’ll do the same with mounted drills,” Seth whispered in Livia’s ear as they stood together, watching the spectacle.

  CHAPTER THREE

  As if mentioning his name conjured the man, the dragons broke off their maneuvers to coast while a flight wing of gryphons drew nearer. All were mounted, some with more than one rider, and as they drew closer, Seth could pick out his second father, Gerard, on top of one of the feathery beasts. Gryffid was there too. He’d been to the beach earlier in the day, but had gone back to the keep hours ago. Now he was back with an entire flight of gryphons.

  Seth had gotten to know some of the higher-ranking gryphons over the past days, and he easily spotted the general of all the fighting wings, a stately gryphon named Falthith, who was sire to Seth’s young friend, Flurrthith. His mate was flying next to him, Flurthith’s mother, Flurraline.

  Arrayed around the central couple were two full wings of fighting gryphons. Seth had seen the gryphons in action on the beach, but they’d been grounded during the battle for the island because of the catapults armed with diamond-tipped blades on the pirate ships. It had been much safer for the sea dragons to disable the ships from below while Hrardorr made leaping runs from beneath the waves to flame the timbers and sails.

  Since sinking the vast majority of the pirate fleet, the sea dragons had been helping gather the diamond blades from the bottom of the sea, bringing them to land where the artisans of Gryphon Isle could recut them into harmless gems that would never kill another dragon or gryphon. Too many had already been lost.

  Now, seeing the might of the gryphon wings in flight, Seth realized these were warriors of the highest order—well trained and disciplined. They flew tight formations like those of the Lair dragons and landed with precision on the beach, awaiting orders. Seth was duly impressed.

  But what had brought them out for this magnificent show? Gryffid dismounted and motioned for Paton to join him. Gerard, also dismounted, stood next to Gryffid formally and did not wave or otherwise make any casual acknowledgment of Seth’s or Enid’s presence, which meant something more official was afoot. Seth moved closer, as did everyone on the beach, gathering around to hear what the wizard and the two knights might have to say.

  “Sir Leonhardt and Sir Xanderanth,” Gryffid intoned in a strong voice, calling them forth.

  Leo and Xander moved to stand on the wizard’s left, Leo next to Gryffid and Xander standing behind him. Seth realized both of his fathers were standing to the wizard’s right, and their dragon partners had landed and come up behind them. General Falthith and his mate stood behind Gryffid, making a striking tableau of the three races of beings.

  It was then that Seth noticed a large group of fair folk had come with the wizard and gryphons and were arrayed around, as if to bear witness. A few were even sketching the scene on heavy drawing paper, watching everything with artists’ eyes, from several different angles. That Gryffid had brought along people to document this occasion said something special was about to happen.

  “Sir Leonhardt and Sir Xanderanth,” the wizard repeated when everyone had settled and a hush came over the watching crowd, which included the large contingent of sea dragons that had been training with Xander. “Your countrymen have brought a communication from your king.” Gryffid held out his right hand to Gerard, who placed an official-looking scroll into it. The wizard opened the scroll and scanned it silently, then rolled it back up again. “Sir Leonhardt and Sir Xanderanth are to be, by royal proclamation, the first permanent liaisons to Gryphon Isle from Draconia. Further, today I grant them the permanent leave to live here and remain citizens of their land. I have also instructed the stone masons to continue work on these cliffs, to create a true dragon Lair for use by visiting Draconian dragon knights as well as any sea dragon that cares to make use of the amenities, and I appoint Sir Leonhardt and Sir Xanderanth caretakers of what will be hereafter known as the Island Lair.”

  Gryffid looked over at Seth and winked. It seemed the name Seth had come up with for the new Lair would stick, after all.

  “In this new Lair,” the wizard went on, “and with this new family, I hope we see the beginnings of increased cooperation and unity among our races. Fey and human. Land and sea dragon. Gryphon Isle and Draconia.”

  At this last statement, a cheer went up from the assembled fair folk, and the dragons trumpeted while the gryphons clacked their beaks.

  That evening there was a reception and formal dinner for Seth’s parents in the great hall of the keep. Gryffid introduced them formally as ambassadors from Draconia and made a little speech about how grateful he was that their son and his friends had come to help the citizens of Gryphon Isle in their time of need. Gryffid seemed to be enjoying playing the role of diplomat.

  The meal was sumptuous even by the standards Seth had come to expect from Gryffid’s people. Course after course was consumed along with a great deal of wine before Gryffid finally left, which signaled the end of the state proceedings. After that, people stayed to chat for a while in a less formal manner, and the musicians, who had been playing quiet background music all evening, played a few dance tunes that the fair folk thoroughly enjoyed.

  Seth’s parents, having had a long day which included the long flight from the mainland and demonstrations of their precision flight drills among other things, opted to retire to a quiet room where they could catch up with Seth for a bit before heading to their suite of room and sleep. Livia had already left to go to her room, quietly acknowledging that Seth would probably want to talk privately with his parents before retiring. She was a marvel of understanding.

  And so, Seth found himself facing his parents in one of the drawing rooms of the massive stone keep. They were sitting in front of a fire, on comfortably upholstered leather couches, the hour late and the mood mellow.

  His mother, though, was anything but mellow. She was in full-on interrogation mode.

  “Now, dear, what is going on with you and Livia? Are you sleeping with her?”

  Seth coughed, having just taken a sip of wine that went down the wrong way at his mother’s frank question. Paton and Gerard were unsuccessfully hiding their grins as they all watched him, seemingly amused by the inquisition that was about to take place.

  “Mother, I—”

  But Enid didn’t let him speak. “It’s all right if you are, but I don’t want you hurting that poor girl’s feelings. She can bespeak dragons, and we all know what that means.”

  “That she’s probably destined to be the mate of a knight pair,” Seth completed the thought glumly. And they all knew, without having to say it, that Seth had turned his back on being a knight when he’d chosen to apprentice himself to the aging healer in the Lair. Although…with recent developments, he had not only perfected his sword work by training with Gowan, but he’d put it to use defending first the harbor of Dragonscove and then the beaches of Gryphon Isle. He was a blooded veteran of two fierce battles now, not some wet-behind-the-ears boy.

  Of
course, he’d always be a boy to his mama. Seth tried to understand her point of view, but he really didn’t want to discuss his sex life with his parents.

  “Look, things are all up in the air right now. Livia’s father doesn’t want a knight pair for her, and he’s been rather adamant about it. He’s away right now chasing pirates, but he’s going to return eventually, and then, Livia will have to either knuckle under or confront him. I know which option I’m betting on.” Enid chuckled, as did her mates. “We’re both aware of the problems facing us. And the situation is very fluid. I may have stopped training with the other kids in the Lair to help Bronwyn, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t go back to it. Maybe other avenues are still open to me. Or maybe not. I really don’t know what’s going to happen, but for this short space of time when nobody’s trying actively to kill us, Livia and I have agreed to enjoy our time together—fleeting as it may turn out to be. Please do me a favor and don’t quiz her about it. I don’t want you peppering her with uncomfortable questions. She got enough of that when her father was here.”

  “Did the captain give you kids a hard time?” Gerard asked, refilling everyone’s wine goblets.

  Seth rolled his eyes. “Thankfully, he wasn’t really here that long, but his displeasure at finding me and Gowan here with Livia was very evident.”

  “Gowan?” Enid perked up. “Is he involved with Livia too?”

  “Mother.” Seth’s tone was warning, but he half-suspected the dragons had been talking amongst themselves, and somehow, Enid had been let in on the gossip.

  Only, Seth didn’t think Genlitha would have gossiped about this particular circumstance, and Hrardorr didn’t gossip at all. Mostly because he really didn’t have much to do with the other Lair dragons. He’d been too unhappy there, in mourning and trying to adjust to his blindness, to make any real friends.

  Genlitha was an exception. They’d been friends before, when they were both young dragons just starting out, and had reencountered each other again after many years apart. Genlitha had hounded Hrardorr in those early days when they were both at the Lair, and he’d done his best to avoid her. Eventually, she’d lain in wait and ambushed him so that he would have to talk to her, and then, everything had happened so fast… The attack on Dragonscove. The battle. The short respite before Flurrthith arrived half-dead from his headlong flight from Gryphon Isle. The trip here. The second battle. The sea dragons… And everything that had happened along the way.