She slipped on a sweatshirt as she felt a sudden chill before venturing out of the room. It seemed like a good idea to get to know the other women of the household, but more so to try and get acquainted with her new home. Moving silently through the halls so she didn’t attract attention to herself, she found the staircase. There wasn’t very much for her to see on the current floor she lived on. Katelyn had given her a brief tour the day before, and the tour was a little anti-climatic. Down the stairs she went, nearly four flights of them before she reached the ground floor.
There was a beautiful, elegant, lobby, spread out before her. The carpet was plush and navy with gold trimming and designs. In front of her was the most beautiful doorway she had ever seen and what was even more amazing about it was the sunlight as it shone through the windows. Her freedom was right there, right in front of her, and all she had to do was walk five feet. Darien’s words of warning kept her inside - for now. Going home would be the worst thing to do. She would have nowhere to go. She had to respect the secret of the dragons. As much as she hated it, she understood the importance of it.
But I still don’t want to stay. She sighed deeply and stared out the window in the doorway, watching the streets of Oceina City. It was much more intimidating on the ground than it was when she watched it from the windows in Darien’s room. She’d never seen a city so big before. From his bedroom, she could see the outlines of the towering glass skyscrapers only a handful of miles away from her. Sometimes their shadows blocked the sun, and other times they mesmerized her with the way they sparkled like crystal. Cars zipped by, and there were always people mulling about. Several passed by her beyond the doorway now.
Backing away from the door, she turned so she could investigate the rest of the area. There was an office nearby and a front desk with a receptionist. The girl behind the desk watched Tai curiously, but outside of a small apologetic smile, she didn’t make any contact with Tai. There was one more door, and when Tai peered into it, she saw a large and impressive ballroom. There wasn’t much else for her to see on this floor either. She was about to go to the elevator to return back up when she saw a directory. On it were the names of everyone in the entire family and which room they could be reached. There are so many....
So many what? Darien popped in immediately. I’m bored. There isn’t much to do right now.
It’s nothing important, she replied and went to explore what was labeled on the directory as the ‘Sun Room’ on the top floor. I’m just taking a look around. Only your family lives here, right?
Right, and same with who works there, too, he explained. My eldest brother’s wife runs the downstairs during the day to take care of visitors and the mail and stuff. So don’t worry, everyone there knows what’s going on and understands it all. They’re all there to help you adjust.
If she was going to talk to a stranger again, it would be Katelyn or Ashley. Darien didn’t like Ashley, but she was the only one with a grounded perspective. I’ll keep that in mind. There was a long, awkward pause as both tried to find something to say to the other. She was tempted to ask him one of her deeper questions, but she decided it would be better to wait until she could see him in person. Your trip there went okay?
Yeah. He sounded a little surprised she would even concern herself with him. She felt guilty because he was trying. She could be a little less harsh with him. I mean, yes, of course. We transported on my brother, and he’s a good flier. Tai tried to imagine this. She couldn’t picture Darien, or anyone, riding on top of one of the dragons.
The elevator stopped, and she stepped out curiously and through two glass doors that led into a massive room. It took up half of the square footage of the building’s lot. There was a large and deep swimming pool, and then a massive empty space covered with a mat. The ceiling was made entirely of glass and she could see up into the bright, sunny sky.
Whoa. She gasped slightly.
What’s wrong? Darien asked quickly.
Nothing is wrong. I’m just upstairs at the pool. It’s bright. What exactly do you do up here anyway? She blinked when she saw one of the dragons basking in the sunlight on the mat. It made her think of the lizards she’d seen in her school when they rested under the sunlamps. She could only assume it was one of his brothers.
Swim, relax, whatever we want. He sounded confused. Why? What else would we do?
Tai took a nervous step forward. Outside of her one encounter with Darien, she’d never been close to a dragon before. They were so much larger than she had imagined, and this one was by far bigger in size than she recalled Darien being. He was sleeping. He wore a smile on his face, which was strange to see on a dragon, and every so often he let out a contented sigh. I don’t know. One of your brother’s is in here laying on the floor.
It feels nice.
She wasn’t even going to pretend to understand. Whatever you.... She stopped mid thought when his brother’s large, blue eyes opened. They had the same almond shape of a human eye, but the vertical sliver for a pupil of a lizard’s. There was also a great deal of depth. There was a soul behind those eyes.
Tai, are you all right?
I think I just woke him up.
Then you should be polite and say good morning, Darien teased. I promise, he won’t eat you. Asher, Lance and Tony, who stayed behind I should add, are calm when they wake up. Unfortunately, I have to leave you alone again. Someone keeps trying to talk to me at the dinner table, so I should probably pay attention.
She nodded, completely forgetting Darien wasn’t actually there to see her, and continued to stare at the impressive beast in front of her. She took a step towards him and stopped when she nearly tripped over a much, much, smaller dragon that was still sleeping on the floor. This one was around four feet long and not anywhere near as intimidating. Though they both had teeth longer than her hand, the bigger one had teeth the size of half her body. She didn’t doubt that either one could easily rip her to shreds.
She remembered Darien’s scales sparkling under the sunlight. Being able to see their scales up close, she could see how no two were alike. Each scale had a different color or pattern to it and reminded her a lot of thick stained glass, but she was positive that if she were to touch one it would feel rough and dry despite the way they looked wet. The eyes of the larger one watched her curiously. Eyes that were larger than her in size.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”
“I’m not disturbed,” came the gentle reply. The dragon paused and they both watched as the smaller dragon sneezed. The large one let out a soft, soothing, laugh. “He on the other hand might be. I’d take a step back.”
Tai did, just staring in awe. What she wanted to do was reach out and touch him out of pure curiosity. She wanted to feel his strength, to feel if he was in fact a true, breathing, living creature and not just a mirage. She still couldn’t believe these amazing creatures were really human. Sometimes it was hard for her to believe they existed period, but there they were, right in front of her. As she stared at the dragon, she was struck harder with the reality of her situation. Darien was a dragon, and she was expected to help carry on the survival of these creatures. I’m scared.
Chapter Fifteen
The dragon council was held on a small island that was equidistant from all of the four great dragon capital cities. A handful of representatives of each bloodline of the four species attended. The purpose of the council was ideally to bring unity between the species, but as the years went by, each group secluded itself more and more. The Oceina tribe tended to be most friendly with the Aero – another species of dragon who had powerful wind magic - since they had the most similar political system in their country. Still, Darien had never sought out an Aero’s company during his past visits. The cliques at the council were starting to increase greatly as groups began to divide even further within tribes themselves. Families separated themselves from each other.
Or maybe it just appeared that way because most of the Oceina family
treated Darien as if he had the plague. Most of the family acted kindly to his brothers, and of course his father, but when it came to Darien they made excuses to leave. They knew about what had happened with his mother. They were obviously afraid of him, but he wasn’t quite sure why. His magic perhaps? He’d often hear his kin mumble about how he was touched.
Touched was a term used to describe the dragons who were born with an abundance of magical power. Supposedly God Himself touched them, and the magic was a personal gift. This abundance of magic turned out to be dangerous more than a blessing. Sometimes it was hard for Darien to control. If he became overly emotional, or tried to use spells, he found the magic had a tendency to do what it wanted rather than what he wanted.
Those born touched came during times of great change, or so many believed. Some viewed Darien as a sign of the coming apocalypse. It was all superstition though, so he never put much weight in it. He wasn’t even sure he was ‘officially’ touched. The fact that he had killed his mother because of his magical gift was enough to make people believe it though.
Regardless of what everyone thought of him, Darien was determined to make the most of this. He was going to show his father he could be useful. He clung to his dad’s side as tightly as possible without actually touching the man, and kept his head down. He didn’t want to make eye contact with anyone.
“For this trip, you will be observing instead of participating in the youth bonding rituals.” His father explained as they made their way to the council hall where the meetings would be taking place.
“That’s cool,” Darien said quietly. “I prefer it, actually.”
“Oh? Usually I receive a groan or something similar, especially from your brothers who never cared much for politics.” He looked pointedly at Darien. “What makes you so interested all of a sudden?”
“I’ve never liked the bonding games,” Darien said quickly. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed it, Dad, but people kind of treat me differently here.”
“Because they do not understand you, or us. They do not understand what you can do. They’ll learn.”
“I don’t even get what you’re talking about, so how are they supposed to?”
“You’ll see,” he explained with one of his trademark grins. Orion had an intriguing smile. It was almost as though he had knowledge of things beyond this realm. The leaders of the dragons often claimed to have divine revelation, so this wouldn’t surprise Darien if his father did. Darien wasn’t sure how much God communicated directly to the nation’s leaders, but if God was going to talk to anyone personally he figured they would be the best bet. “You’ll understand it soon enough. Especially after you read your mother’s journal.”
“I’ll get to it!” Darien said. “Do you have to be so pushy about it?”
“I’m sorry. I would just like to be able to speak with you about it soon if need be. I don’t know how much time I’ll have in the near future. Things are complicated right now.”
“Complicated? Complicated how? The thing you need my advice on?”
“Yes, but I do not wish to talk about it in the open hallway like this.” Orion said. “It’s so complex and I do not feel like it’s a safe atmosphere.”
This news almost made Darien stop in his tracks. Not safe? How could it not be safe? What was going on that was so dangerous even the halls of the dragon council were not secure?
“Sure,” Darien said simply. “I’ll wait.” He grew quiet when one of his uncles stopped to speak with his father. He held his paper in front of him, pretending to read the doodles he’d already sketched on his legal pad.
“My lord,” his Uncle Garrett said, stepping in and practically nudging Darien to the side. “As you know, I have a son who will be sitting in on the council for the first time this year, and I would like to request he join you as first council so he may learn from the front.”
Orion nodded politely at his younger brother and the youth at his side. The youth smirked at Darien proudly. Garrett’s son was named Taylor and was exactly three days older than Darien. The two had never gotten along. Taylor always acted as though he had to prove he was the better of the two. He was well favored in the family, and his good luck would most likely continue to run.
“I do have a son in attendance as well,” Orion said. “He will be joining me in first council. Arthur will take second. Now, I am more than willing to find a place in the first ring for him so he may hear and observe everything freshly.”
Uncle Garrett and Taylor both stared at Darien. He shifted uncomfortably, but that was the most he would squirm for them. He was determined to at least look strong even if he didn’t feel it.
“Oh, hello Darien,” Taylor said. “I didn’t see you there.”
Darien immediately tried to think of something polite he could have said in response, but instead offered a smile. “Hi,” was all he could say.
“The meeting is starting soon,” Orion said. “We can talk details after the opening tradition.” He winked back at his son, and Darien couldn’t help but let out a soft sigh of relief. “Are you ready?”
“I’ll try.” That was as much as Darien could promise. He stepped through the doors to the great council hall and took in a deep breath.
It was like a stadium. He was surrounded by thousands of his kind, and thousands of the other tribes as well. Knots started to fill his stomach as he approached the center of the great hall arena and he took his place next to his father. The four Great Dragon Lords were always seated in the center of the room. Their first council at their right side, and the remaining council nearby.
It was normal for young sons who were just joining the adult portion of the meetings to sit towards the front on their first visit. It was also normal for the great dragon lord to have his son join him at first council when he was of age. It was perfectly normal for Darien to be there, but he felt as though he were doing something wrong. Everyone stared at him. The other sons of the dragon lords seemed just as weary, which was a small comfort. Each had a son his age joining them. In fact, the Inero had two - identical twins.
The meetings began. Darien tried his hardest to focus and keep notes about what was being said, but so much of it was going over his head. Terms, phrases, procedures, none of it made sense. Instead, he spent his time doodling in his notebook - images of how he was interpreting what was being said. It was subconsciously done. A few were of Tai. He thought about her a lot too. Alongside the doodles were a few notes, but there wasn’t much to do outside of observe the false pleasantries the lords exchanged with one another. How could his father do it? Stand it even? The lord of the Inero was especially arrogant and irritating.
“While I would like to go straight into reports of this past quarter, I must admit an embarrassing predicament.” The great lord of the Inero said. “I am in need of your assistance with my nation. Our resources are low, poisoned even. As you will see when we go over the reports, things are not well.”
Darien glanced up at Orion curiously, trying to see what the man thought about this. His father was completely unfazed. In fact, he looked as though he were expecting this news. The other lords shifted in their seats, unsure. This was a rather intriguing change in the course of the day. Though Darien once more blanked out of the entire speech the lord of the Inero gave. He just wasn’t interested, nor did he care enough to want to listen. He wasn’t heartless, but the things the great lord said rubbed him the wrong way, so he didn’t want to listen to the man. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it. His negative impressions must have come out in his drawings because he caught his father glancing down at his notebook curiously.
Immediately, Darien tried to hide his artwork, but it was a vain effort because his father had already seen everything he needed to. Shrinking in his chair with shame, Darien didn’t once look back up at his father to see his reaction. He sighed deeply, and chewed on his lower lip miserably, and once more tried to force himself to pay attention.
I knew I was bad at this. But
now his father knew what to expect from his son. Darien had told him he didn’t care about any of this. He said he’d try, but the most he could do was sit still and behave himself while the meetings took place. Darien had warned his father he would make a horrible pupil, but did he listen? No, he didn’t. He never seemed to listen to Darien though.
“I don’t understand what could have happened to cause such a horrible illness to spread through all of your people,” The wind lord said completely baffled. “A plague in your waters?”
“Yes, the reports will show the complete damage of this plague.” The Inero lord said. Darien watched him and his sons with curious eyes. What was even more interesting was how one son was completely shocked, even confused, by this information and the other was just as calm and collected as his father was. This reaction was a mix through the entire Inero people. This bothered Darien even more. He spent more time people watching than paying attention, and then they were called to break.
“So,” Orion said as they stepped into his office. Darien entered first, then his uncle Arthur, and finally his father. “What do you think?”
“About the meeting?” Darien asked weakly. “Honestly? It’s really boring.”
“I noticed you thought this,” he said, still speaking in that strange, calm, voice. Why wasn’t he being angry? Why wasn’t he disappointed? He should be disappointed. “You have a lot of interesting drawings in your notebook.”
Darien’s cheeks flushed immediately. “I figured it would help me sit still without looking like I wasn’t paying attention. I’m sorry. I’ll try harder later to pay more attention. There are just a lot of words being said and they don’t really mean much of anything to me. It’s like when I write my papers for class, ya know? And I have a word count I have to get to, or a page limit, so I say something that would normally only take a couple of sentences to say and fluff it up to about three paragraphs just for the sake of filling space. And if you throw in a few big words, you come off as smart. That’s what all of this reminds me of and it’s just really boring.” He blushed even more when he noticed they both just continued to stare at him. “I’m sorry!”
Legend of the Oceina Dragon (The Dragons Saga) Page 7
