by Reiter
“We have much to discuss, Captain.”
“This is the last reaction I expected out of you,” Goldie projected.
“That took longer than I expected,” Dungias replied.
“You’re wearing that damn collar!” Goldie reminded him. Dungias realized the fact and then nodded. “It took me a moment to recall my skills wielding Chi.”
“Understood,” Dungias thought. “Rest assured I will not tell anyone. I know what such an admission could mean to an Abettor. We have many secrets between us, you and I. I thank you for keeping mine.”
“Merely returning the favor,” Goldie returned. “You knew I was not a young Terran boy the moment you saw me. If nothing else your senses have only grown sharper in the time since.”
“I thank you for that perspective,” Dungias replied. “It is more helpful than you may realize. I will say this much, if you can trust me to keep the secret of Goldie, trust me to keep the secret of the Dragons.”
“It is V’Dalthian Gemsoul, Dal to my friends,” Goldie advised. “And the list grows, eh, Brother Keeper?”
“Aye, it does.” The two made their choices, ferrying each off to the side before making another. Goldie was astounded with the knowledge Dungias possessed, steering clear of the eggs which were red in hue as those dragons tended to be the more violent. They made wonderful defenders to dragonkind, but poor companions to non-dragon races. With the two already at the entrance, Dungias had a total of four males and three females, which was a good thing for the females, as the expectations for them was much higher.
When the last was chosen, Dungias used Alpha to carry the five eggs back to the entrance of the rookery where the first two had been placed. Goldie stepped up and placed his hand on Dungias’ shoulder. “Z, why don’t you take the eggs back to Sky Stone while I show the Captain around, eh?” Dungias looked to Jocasta who smiled and nodded.
“Captain,” Dungias said as Jocasta’s egg floated over to her. “Keep that one close. It will help as things progress.” Jocasta took hold of the egg and noticed that it had turned cold. She looked up at Dungias who did not appear to be pressed and she relaxed, carrying the egg close to her body.
“And you can have this too,” Jocasta said, pulling at the neck of her body armour. “And if you’re going to carry a set of clothes for me, how’s about adding a set of gloves and boots in there.”
“As you wish, Captain,” Dungias replied, touching Alpha to the bodysuit that was quickly reclaimed. “I will also include a shirt and pants.”
“Much appreciated… again.”
“Likewise, Captain.”
The three of them walked together through the tunnels until they came to an opening. Jocasta could see the clouds far beneath the mouth of the cave while Dungias cast his eyes on the stars. Being in their unabated light eased him.
“I have an honorable warrior in need of a mount,” Goldie shouted in a deep and powerful voice that surprised Jocasta, but she managed to keep from jumping. “Who will serve?”
“I will serve as his mount,” a female responded.
“Whoa!” Jocasta whispered as a brown-bodied dragon came flying up out of the clouds. Her wings and belly were gold and she had five tails, each one sparkling with the light of pure MannA. As she ascended, her bronze eyes flashed with light. A platform formed with a bridge leading to the cave mouth, and she quickly set herself down upon it. “Why does it suddenly feel like I’m getting the short end of the stick here?” Jocasta ribbed and Dungias nodded to her before taking a stroll down the bridge path. “Man, don’t tell me that’s a fledgling.”
“No, she is one of my students,” Goldie shared. “A graduate, actually. I no longer teach.”
“And why is that?”
“That is just one of the things we have to discuss, JoJo,” Goldie said, offering his hand. “Come with me.” After taking his hand, Jocasta’s feet lost touch with the ground and she was flying side-by-side with Goldie. They flew out of the cave and around the gargantuan floating rock that was only one of so, so, many.
“Are all these nests?” Jocasta quickly asked.
“Eighty-three of them, my Captain,” Goldie replied. “Each one with at least a Prince or Princess, dozens of fledglings, and hundreds of warriors. If you look up, you will see what appears to be a white star, but it’s actually an aperture.”
“Where does it go?”
“Aye, she is a pilot,” Goldie thought.
“To our home realm,” he answered. “One has to be travelling at a certain speed to get through, however, and if a fledgling cannot fly its fastest, all the way up to the light, it is not ready to cross over.
“Things that tough back home?”
“We are hunted back home,” Goldie revealed. “And not all hunting parties fail in their quests. Whatever you do, don’t try to make Human Sense of it. Dragons may be born with masses of gathered knowledge, but that does not necessarily make us brilliant. There is in-fighting to a level that could make even a human cringe.”
“No Kot?”
“No Kot,” Goldie said, triggering a teleportation spell that took them to the skies over his personal caves. Jocasta could see men moving about, taking to stations at peculiar weapons platforms. Both ballista and energy cannons were being brought to bear on them, but a horn sounded and the weapons were lowered and powered down. Jocasta looked over to Goldie, but he was no longer an older version of her nimble little swordsman. His hair was now silvery white, thick atop his head and trailing to his shoulders. His beard was close to his face, neatly trimmed about his chin and jaws. The two landed on a very large open balcony and wide double glass doors opened, revealing a young and handsome young man bowing to V’Dalthian.
“It is good to have you back at home, my Master.”
“It is good to be back, Zebrynn,” Dal said in a rich, low voice and Jocasta noticed that this form was nearly as tall as Dungias’ and incredibly close to the same build. His eyes were a pale and staggering blue, like the sky after a storm. “This is Jocasta Endigun, and she is welcome in my home. She will not admit it, but she is hungry.” Jocasta put her hand to her stomach as it seemed to growl in response. “Have T’Kadra prepare a proper feast at once.”
“As you wish, my Master,” the young man said as he bowed. He clapped as he stood up straight and smoke burst from between his hands. Stepping forward into the forming cloud, Zebrynn was gone and the smoke quickly faded from sight.
“Kids,” Jocasta snorted. “They drag ass all over the place. Is that a fledgling too?”
“There are no Dragons in my service,” Goldie replied. “He is a young man I came across many years ago. An abandoned infant, marked for death by an assassin’s guild. I took it upon myself to mark him for MajiK and have been training him as a SorceroR.”
“You get off on playing Gods & Kings?” she asked as she walked into the room, a bedchamber, which was larger than her suite at Sky Stone.
“At least I know how to play,” he shot back. “I know what he will do when I release him. That guild will either be destroyed or be made to serve him. Either way, the area will prosper and the city that should have been built ages ago will finally begin construction.
“Oh, so you’re doing it for the people?”
“Not just for them,” he replied without flinching. “The city will mask another of my nests so that no matter what form I take, I can rest in lavish comfort.” Jocasta turned to look at him, showing some surprise. “Did you expect me to blush, Captain?” he asked, smiling at her.
“I suppose I shouldn’t have,” she stated. “I guess not everything about you is a false face.”
“No matter what form I take, these are my faces,” Goldie returned. “I did not see people in the street and copy their faces. Each is of my own design and very much a part of me.”
“The limitations of human thinking,” she replied.
“Not something you suffer from, let me assure you.”
“So, before you turn the seduction oven a
ll the way up,” Jocasta said, turning to face V’Dalthian. “Just what is your deal?”
“I was a hatchling when Nexeous and my people enacted the Pact of the Orders,” Goldie informed her.
“The one Z kept mentioning?” she asked.
“No, that one was put together by Beta-Alphexeous when he brought the Star-Wing to The Territories. Still, you should have an idea as to how old I am.”
“Then you should know what you’re doing,” Jocasta returned. “Points off for being sloppy from this point onward. And no, fun facts and all, but you didn’t really answer my question.”
“When one lives for so long, it can be maddening,” V’Dalthian testified, “… or so I led myself to believe. But then I discovered the Q’uor-Kwyn.”
“The what?!”
“An ancient name given to all things that walk on two legs,” he advised. “And when I say I discovered Q’uor-Kwyn, I locked myself to this very form and vowed not to return to Dragon until I had mastered humanity!”
“Hah!” Jocasta laughed. “Fast forward a few lifetimes, and you come to realize…”
“There was no way to master it,” he admitted, looking out of the balcony doors. “Seven centuries.”
“Good gods!” Jocasta whispered, clutching her egg.
“Some of them are,” he returned. “I found that most, however, are not worth the time of day!” Jocasta kept from laughing, feeling the same way about deities but lacking the practical experience. “At best, one could only come to know the motivations of man, but within those motivations were tiny pockets of spiritual awakening. Truth, honor, love, courage… if you think your people get off on them, my people are enthralled by them.”
“Yeah, I heard,” Jocasta replied, looking over the man whose beautiful blue eyes were still glued on the horizon. “I am sorry if what Z did offended you,” she said, causing him to turn and look at her. “You may not be my Goldie, but we’ve shared steel… and when I needed someone, you were there.”
“There has been no offense. And understand this, when I initiate a form, a list of what that form can do is created. If I want the skills to improve, I have to work to improve them. Goldie’s agility and swordsmanship have been crafted over time. And… I was hoping that I could always be your Goldie.”
Jocasta smiled as she looked around again. “It’s the room, right?”
“It helps,” V’Dalthian chuckled as he looked around the room. “The silks, the scented candles, the carpet you’re standing on right now... all of them–”
“Have been crafted over time?” Jocasta asked. “You didn’t need the room.”
“Touch that black pillow behind you on the stand,” he directed. “It will mimic your essence and you can rest the egg upon it.”
“Whew, I’m beginning to think Goldie’s got some things to learn to catch up with this form,” Jocasta said as she touched the pillow. Her attention was drawn to her left and as her eyes panned across the room, she saw the Desert Witch in the full-length mirror.
“If you are certain, child, then proceed,” the woman said, looking at the coat pocket. “For only a spirit without doubt can succeed against the will of a Dragon!”
“Why me?” Jocasta said, placing the egg down on the pillow. She could see hands looking exactly like hers receiving the large black egg. “You’re not in love with me.”
“No, but I do cherish you. When I stood at your side as Goldie, I was humbled by two things. Yes, of course Cutter. But she had to lay you low to keep you from doing what she achieved. I have witnessed sacrificial acts before, but they were for king, country, love, or the promises of a deity.”
“Empty promises,” Jocasta remarked.
“Careful,” V’Dalthian warned. “You’re not so well-traveled as to close the book on that point. Still, both you and Annsura possessed the same mindset: it was the right thing to do. She had one additional belief, however.
“Don’t you dare say she died for me!” Jocasta hissed.
“For you and so many others,” he asserted. “But her other belief, and one in which I happen to agree, was that you were meant to do more. So, she prevented you from taking the Last Stride. The wondrous things she set into motion that day!”
“Just like what you’re trying to set into motion right now,” Jocasta thought. “No, Witch, no doubts. I owe Goldie. And I was just getting good with having him there. But this isn’t Goldie! There never was a Goldie. This is a very old player, and very good player. Wonder what sort of lavish nesting ideal he has in store for me!
“Will you please just hold me?” Jocasta asked, allowing her feelings for Annsura to flow freely. Once again, her Cutter protected her as a tear fell from Jocasta’s eyes.
“Of course,” he said, stepping up behind her and wrapping his arms around her. Jocasta wept but caressed his hands as they caressed her.
“Good gods, this man knows what he is doing!” she thought as her body released a soft moan. “He’s just stroking my arms and I’m ready to scream. Kot!”
“Hold me,” she whispered, leaning back into his chest and shoulder. She could feel him nuzzle the back of her head and neck. He was breathing in the scent of her hair, moaning his approval of it, and holding her tighter. “Hold me, baby!” she cooed as he kissed softly on the side of her neck. Her grip on his arms tightened before she slowly turned to face him. He kissed her neck and her cheek before their lips touched. “Don’t let go,” she whispered, looking up into his eyes.
“Never!” With the ease of thousands of years of training, he took hold of her coat as he continued to kiss her neck, moving to her shoulder as she had guided him. He did not see her hand take the vial from the pocket before the coat fell to the floor.
“Do your work, girls,” Jocasta thought as passions built up inside of her. She hugged his head close to her body using her bosom to muffle one ear, her arm muffling the other. Jocasta popped the top of the vial and downed the elixir. It was tasteless and barely had any feel on her tongue, but she swallowed it quickly just before she was forced to gasp. His mouth kissed at her chest while his hands pressed into her back, easing tight muscles and sending pleasure throughout her body.
“What about the feast?” Jocasta asked, a little light-headed from delight at the man’s assault on her body.
“You have yet to truly work up an appetite,” he replied as he lifted Jocasta up from the floor and carried her over to the bed. They were both naked by the time he laid her down on the sheets.
“You’re using me,” she whispered, swimming in euphoria.
“Of course, I am,” he replied, looking down on the woman who stroked the muscles of his chest. “But you do not have the inhibition of human thinking. You do not perceive this as an insult. You can see the bigger picture.”
“It’s the smaller picture that’s got my eye now,” she gasped as his mouth moved down her stomach and between her legs. “When a shallow man fucks me, all he wants is what you’re kissing… magnificently, I might add! He gets in, gets what he thinks to be his holy grail and leaves… probably to go and brag about that hot bitch he bedded.
“But when a shallow Dragon fucks me, he’s on one of his discovery hunts! He wants to know what makes this particular human tick. Kot, that feels so damn good!”
“I will stop if you want me to,” he said before resuming his efforts.
“Get inside me now!” Jocasta commanded. The white-haired man looked up with hungry eyes and smiled. He kissed his way up her body and shuddered when Jocasta took hold of him with her hand. Wrapping an arm around his neck and her legs around his waist, she guided him into the perfect thrust and they both cried out in ecstasy. V’Dalthian gripped hard into the bed, tearing the sheets with his claws… claws that the man who called himself Dal was not supposed to have; it was not on his list.
“What is this?!” he thought, looking at the tear in the linen. “What is she doing to me?”
“More, baby!” she pleaded and Dal’s hips responded with a will of their own.
He worked in coordination with her legs, rolling his back and changing his angle. Tens of thousands of years… so many lifetimes… so many forms… so many nests… the Dragon had never encountered such a feeling.
Jocasta smiled, seeing the place where she had met Nugar during her communing with the Stars. The aged Vinthur Traveler was not there and she did not need him to be. V’Dalthian was, and before he could inquire where she had brought him, Jocasta threw herself at him. Naked bodies clung to one another as passions collided and stirred together.
“I’ve got news for you, Goldie, I wasn’t planning on dying that day! Oh yeah, I was ready to sacrifice something, but it was going to be Icarus. I was going to set him on a collision course, jump ship, grab my cane, make a shield, pop myself into my satchel and hope for the best.
“You thought you knew me,” she thought as the euphoria grew. “Baby, even Momma’s still taking classes on what it is to be JoJo Starblazer. See, Goldie, someone saw you coming and it’s not who you think.” Jocasta threw he head back and brought Goldie’s face to her chest. She basked in the delight of his touch, forcing him to ravage her. They returned to the bedroom, but V’Dalthian was still lost inside her passion.
“I learned so much today, Goldie,” Jocasta panted, beginning to lose sight of where she was, which would normally have been cause for doubt. But she was pulling Goldie in, making him hear through her, see through her, live through her. If she did not know where she was, neither would her opponent.
“I know why you want me,” Jocasta huffed as she worked with the man, pleasing herself and locking his body with pleasure he had not known before their embrace. “Slight surprise, you know now it was Annsura who had the honor… more than you’ve ever demonstrated, right? That’s what you want to rip from me. But that’s not what I’ve got, is it, Goldie? I am hungry, baby. You were right about that. But it’s not food I need… it’s freedom! Oh Kot… yes! Inside me, hmmm, is a bottomless pit not even a Dragon can fill! Dammit that feels good! But, hell, you gotta start somewhere! I don’t want to beat you, Goldie. Yes, right… fucking… there! What’s the point of that?
