Dragon's Captive: Dragons of Rur

by Shea Malloy

  “We’ll get your father out, Xia,” I say and reach to comfort her. She jerks away from my touch. I put more confidence in my words than I feel. “We’ll figure something out.”

  Several hours pass, though I don’t know how many. It’s long enough to endure hunger pangs, long enough for tiredness to overcome us all.

  We let Xia sleep on the one tiny bed available. The rest of us take the floor. It’s heartbreaking to hear Xia’s soft crying. I want to make things right for her but I feel helpless that I don’t know how.

  I could ask Theron for help, but the chance of him going against his peer’s decision is low. Theron is loyal to his people and doesn’t believe in fairness for humans.

  Besides, he isn’t in Andrasar and won’t return for a few more days. By the time he’s back, Shihong would have died and maybe the rest of us too.

  “Shihong has always been like a father to me,” says Jogen in anger. “He’s served these bastards dutifully for years. If they kill him, that’s it. I’m joining.”

  There’s no need for me to ask him what he means by that. He’s going to participate in the rebellions.

  Eventually we’re given a tiny meal. We try to feed it to Xia but she refuses to eat.

  “You have to keep your strength up, Xia,” I coax her.

  “So that they can use it?” she spits. Her eyes are red from excessive crying. “Continue to use me after what they’re going to do to my father?”

  “Your father wouldn’t want you to starve yourself.”

  “My father is dead.”

  “Not… he isn’t dead.” My voice is low and insistent. “Shihong cares for you and loves you, Xia. It’ll hurt him to know you aren’t taking care of yourself.” I push the tray toward her. “Eat.”

  She shifts an angry gaze between me and the tray. I’m convinced she’s going to deny the meal again. However she picks up the dry, shrivelled piece of meat and bites into it with a fierceness as if it’s the thing causing her pain.

  As she’s finished eating, I hear footsteps approaching. We all stand, our tiredness abating as our fear is renewed. They’re coming for us now. They’re coming to end us all.

  It’s not at all what I expect.

  It’s Theron.

  My lips part in amazement. Why is he here? A day at most has passed since we were imprisoned. He’s supposed to be in Seca for at least five more.

  Snarling an order at the guards, he has the door to our cell unlocked and he steps inside. Everyone retreats at his entry, terror etched into their features. I almost do the same because Theron has a presence that captivates you and frightens you at the same time.

  His gaze is fixed on me. He’s angry. It burns in his golden eyes and radiates from him.

  “I’m not gone long and yet you already defy me,” he says in icy tones.

  “I didn’t,” I say quickly, shaking my head. “Whatever you’re told, it’s all a lie.”

  “Be quiet,” he orders. He casts a suspicious gaze around the others before he looks at me again. “Let’s go.”

  I’m about to ask about the others, but he pivots and storms out of the cell. I look around at the other humans before I fix my gaze on Xia.

  “I’ll free your father,” I promise her even though I know it’s the worst thing to do. One shouldn’t make promises they have no power to keep. Xia nods silently and I hurry out before Theron finds issue with me lagging behind.

  He says nothing to me on our ride up the lift and I don’t volunteer words either. When we’re in the privacy of his home, I speak.

  “I’ve seen the Andrasari named Ronan before.” I rush to speak the rest of the words, determined to be heard before he shuts me down. “He’s killed many Andrasari in my village who he deems supporters of the human rebellions.”

  “You’re making some serious allegations.” Theron scowls at me. “Why should I believe you when I’ve found you charged for attacking Ronan and his guards?”

  So why did you free me from prison if you think I did it?

  “I’m telling the truth,” I say instead. “There were rumours going around Yoah that Andrasari who supported humans were being murdered. Then he showed up at the bakery. I saw him. I...” My voice breaks as I remember the horrible image of Ronan sinking his vicious claws into Ikkon’s chest. “I watched him kill Ikkon right in front of me.”

  Theron is silent as he regards me, so I forge ahead. This might be my only chance I can get through to him.

  “The humans who attacked only did so in retaliation.” I recount the tale of what happened when Ronan stormed in. “I think…” I lick my lips slowly and lowers my voice. “I think it was a setup. I think he wanted Xia to find that card so he could accuse someone of wrongdoing. How could he have accurately discovered the card in her possession?”

  Theron frowns and looks away from me as if in thought. Does he know something about this?

  “Why didn’t the human return the card the instant she found it?”

  I hesitate. “Maybe she forgot to do it in time.”

  His stare bores into me, seeing the truth. Theron is as smart as he is ruthless. My heart sinks that he might want to punish Xia for something she’d planned but never did.

  “How did you know I was imprisoned?” I ask, hoping to sidetrack him.

  “News spreads quickly in the Andrak. Eyin heard and notified me.”

  Asking him if he cut his trip short for me would be nothing short of presumptuous, and likely to get me zapped for its insinuation that he cares about me.

  “He’s innocent,” I say instead, referring to Shihong. “He doesn’t deserve to die.”

  “No-one is innocent,” he says. “Not even you. But you are naive to think anything can be done to save this human. He has confessed to having the card. That has sealed his fate.”

  “But you can help him, Theron.” I move without thinking, reaching to touch his arm. He goes rigid. Upset with myself I’ve overstepped and have lost my chance to help Shihong, I retract my hand hastily.

  Theron grabs hold of my wrist and steps closer.

  “I am and always will be your master. Therefore, you should refer to me as such and not by my given name as though we are equals.”

  “Yes, zevyena.”

  Scowling, I try to tug my hand away but his grip tightens.

  “Did Ronan hurt you?”

  His question comes out of nowhere, surprising me.

  “Why do you care?” I ask bitterly. “I am human. My welfare means nothing to you.”

  “You mean something to me,” he says. A fluttery sensation fills the pit of my stomach even though I try not to add any extra meaning to his words. “You belong to me. I don’t take kindly to others damaging what’s mine.”

  “Because you lose out on doing it yourself?”

  “Do you remember what I told you, Seela? Never make me repeat a question.”

  It’s unnerving having him so close, the heat of his fingers pressing directly against my skin.

  “He didn’t hurt me. He was going to until he learned I was yours… your zevyet.” My face heats. “I guess he fears you more than he loves torturing humans.”

  We fall silent. His grip loosens on my arm but he still doesn’t let me go. Instead he... he caresses me. His thumb moving along my skin slowly.

  What would have happened to Ronan if he had hurt me? If I’d told Theron?

  I want to ask him that question but my mind can’t focus right now. Every bit of me is concentrated on that point of contact I share with him. It’s such an innocent touch, but every tiny caress shoots an arrow of heat straight between my legs.

  The pit of my stomach feels heavy and tight, like if something alive is in there. Our gazes are locked until his grow half-lidded as he focuses on my lips.

  It’s unmistakable this time. There’s no denying the hunger darkening his gaze. I’m frozen with amazement by this and my heart thumps so loudly, I’m sure he hears it.

  Traitor! I hear the human’s voice from the mine in
Vak so long ago. Goddess above, he’s right. I’ve forgotten all about Shihong’s demise, about Xia’s pain, about the fact that Theron is my enemy. All I can think about is how much I want him to do what he clearly wants to do too.

  Maybe just one kiss.

  Just one kiss and then we can go back to perfect hatred of each other. He’ll stay on his side of the wall and I’ll stay on mine.

  He leans closer, his lips hovering over mine. I wait for him to finish this, but it’s as if he’s waiting for me to stop him. When I don’t, he drops my hand and lurches away from me.

  His mask is gone and I see it all. The hunger and the hate. The conflict, the war that he’s fighting inside himself. Then it’s all shuttered away before I can blink.

  “Go to your room, slave,” he spits and I obey with haste.

  I don’t just run away from him, I hurry away with the hope that all that treacherous desire I’d felt for him would be left behind before it could catch up to me again.

  12

  Theron

  —

  Perhaps I’m going insane.

  Or at least some sort of sickness has taken over me. It can only explain why I let myself even consider kissing Seela let alone almost doing it.

  What’s worse is knowing that she waited for it. Her eyes begged me as much as her body did. The scent of her arousal goaded my dragon and I almost took the bait.

  My cock is hard and I’m half convinced I should barge into her room after her and show her what she does to me.

  I head outside instead. Climbing onto the balcony railing, I leap off and shift into my dragon mid-air. It’s dangerous, but I enjoy the thrill of watching the ground rush toward me before I escape a gruesome impact with a few pumps of my wings.

  The higher I fly, the cooler the atmosphere, and it calms me. Eventually, night arrives. It reminds me that I should have been at the conference in Seca, strengthening Andrasar’s relationship with the region, one Aphat almost destroyed with a pointless war.

  Instead I raced back to Andrasar when Eyin called me with the news of Ronan imprisoning the humans, Seela among them.

  Why I would go to such lengths to ensure a human’s safety is something I refuse to ponder. It’s for the same reason why I don’t want to read into the fury stewing inside me for Ronan. He dared to touch what is mine. He imprisoned her and threatened to harm her.

  What Seela divulged about Ronan bothers me. How long has this been going and how have I not heard anything about it?

  Trusting Seela seems unwise because it’s hard for me to accept someone as good and honest like her exists. Yet I believe her. Even though I dislike humans because they constantly remind me of what I’ve lost, I’ve come to an apathetic acceptance of their presence in Andrasar.

  However, the hate Ronan has for humans knows no comparison. I have aided in Aphat’s campaign to terrorize them, but it thrives because of Ronan.

  While I understand the reasoning behind it, I can’t accept and support Ronan’s injustices against our kind.

  Returning home, I put on fresh clothing and resist the temptation to open Seela’s door as I walk past it. I head to Ronan’s office, finding him sharing company and a bottle of wine with Aphat.

  Aphat levels his usual hostile stare at me, whereas I conceal the hatred I feel for him and greet him with respect.

  “I didn’t expect your return this early, Theron,” says Ronan coolly, his gaze sharp. “Was the purpose of the conference unsuccessful?”

  “The meetings were concluded sooner than anticipated,” I say. “Seca accepted our peace offering and agreed to lift the trading ban against Andrasar.”

  “That old fuck dead yet?” Aphat asks, his eyes glittering with evil delight. “I heard he was set to meet Kahafura any moment.”

  “Nai Adan informed me his father is still alive.”

  A lie of course. Adan was tight-lipped about his toha’s health when I asked. Nevertheless, the words have the desired effect. Aphat’s face goes sour like a child who’s had his sweet stolen from his grasp.

  Aphat started the war with Seca because of his greedy plans to claim dominion over the region. He sent countless Andrasari to their deaths to battle the ice dragons who had the advantage of imperviousness against unfavourably cold temperatures.

  His hunger for power often unearths my old suspicions that he had a hand in my parents’ deaths.

  “I would like to have a word with Ronan in private, Okan,” I say.

  “I’m the fucking Konai,” he spits, launching to his feet. Predictable as always in his dramatics. “I own Andrasar and everything within it. Even you, Theron. Whatever you have to say to Ronan can be said while I’m here.”

  Alcohol has given him the courage to challenge me when usually he avoids me.

  He’s semi-shifted, his teeth and claws lengthened. When I was a child, this worked to intimidate me up until that moment he hurt Eyin. I am taller, stronger, much more skilled than he had ever been even in his prime. He has let years of indulgence soften him and dull his abilities.

  Konai or not, my kin or not, I will kill him if he dares attack me.

  Sensing the impending destruction, Ronan speaks up.

  “My dearest Konai, there’s no need for you to get worked up.” Ronan’s tone is cajoling as one would speak to their lover when they’re being unreasonable. “Perhaps Theron only seeks to prevent you from worry. You have had much to drink. You should get some rest.”

  Ronan rubs Aphat’s shoulder in a comforting, intimate gesture. Sometimes I wonder if there isn’t more to their friendship.

  Aphat was married once and never remarried after the Konai sa’s abrupt death. I have heard rumours about Aphat’s proclivities. His choices when he visits whorehouses whose silence he believes he’s bought. How these choices often skew more male than female. How Ronan often accompanies him, too.

  Aphat glares at me before he retreats completely to his primary form. Then he turns and strides out the door.

  How is that he and I share blood? Why do I serve beneath a being like that? Why is Andrasar in the hands of someone like him?

  “I’ve heard something troubling, Ronan,” I say as soon as Aphat is gone. “Are you killing Andrasari under allegations they support the human rebellions without first giving them a fair trial?”

  He scowls and doesn’t respond right away.

  “We all have our jobs to do, Theron,” he says finally, tapping his desk’s surface. “While you’re the one tasked to keep Andrasar running efficiently, I am the one who keeps it safe.”

  “You are not doing your duty if you’re instigating war,” I say, frowning at him. “What do you think will happen if you keep this up? There are far-reaching consequences to your actions.”

  He sneers. “Indeed, there are consequences and it is fear. I want the Andrasari to understand there’s nothing to gain but death from supporting these vile cretins inhabiting our soil.”

  “What you are doing is breeding resentment in the Andrasari. Then a fight that was once so easy to squash will become much harder.” I pause. “I’ve also received word you imprisoned slaves within the Andrak, my zevyet among them.”

  “Is that the true reason why you returned so quickly, Theron?” Ronan asks, unsettling me. “Did you cancel your important meeting to come running to save your little human slave?”

  Disturbed by what’s unfolding, I advance toward him. When did it become like this? Ronan might have always been Aphat’s friend, but he never treated me like an enemy.

  Now, I’m not sure anymore. I dislike that his words hold truth in them too.

  “You are implying something dangerous, Ronan,” I say, my tone low and filled with a warning.

  “I heard about what happened at that mining plant in Vak. The riot that got out of hand because you let your slave speak for you. Instead of destroying the disrespectful humans who tried to fight, you spared their lives because of your zevyet’s pleas.” Ronan’s gaze is dark and filled with disgust. “I fear your fo
cus is being compromised, Theron. Your values eroding because of a human’s poisonous nature. ”

  I grab the front of his jacket and drag him close, ready to kill him for speaking the truth. But he doesn’t flinch away from me.

  “We’ve had a long and successful friendship, Ronan. It would be a shame for us to lose it due to your disrespectful tongue.”

  “I apologize. I misspoke,” he says, his tone unapologetic. He smiles with triumph. A chill curls along my spine at how similar he looks to Aphat now. Disgusted, I release him. “You asked me to investigate your attack and I did. The human I have imprisoned aided in the theft of the weapons.”

  Seela’s pleas of the human’s innocence and her implication that Ronan set this up sounds in my head. I didn’t believe her then but the barely concealed disdain in Ronan’s gaze makes me doubt myself.

  Why would Ronan use this human as a scapegoat unless he had something to hide? The dark thought that maybe Ronan organized my attack manifests. Yet when you’ve known someone for a long time and have considered them your ally for just as long, it’s not a welcome thought to question their loyalty.

  “How do you know this?” I ask him. “Have you tracked his collar’s locations near the armory around the date of my attack?”

  “I have not because it is unnecessary. His possession of the key is proof of his guilt.”

  “If he’s guilty he would not have kept it.”

  “Why do you defend the human?” Ronan sneers. He seems angry, as if he’d not expected me to question his decisions.

  “This is not justice. You do a disservice to me for punishing another while the real culprit of my attack still roams free.”

  He releases a long-suffering sigh.

  “I didn’t want to disclose this but you leave me no choice,” he says. “The Konai feels it unnecessary I continue in the investigation of your attack, especially now that we’ve found a suspect. He would prefer I publicly execute the human for the crime and turn my attention to matters of importance.”