by Eric Vall
“I know a lot of things, Lord Evan,” Aaliyah said with a sly smile as we began walking toward the jungle.
“I have no doubt about that,” I murmured, and I imagined her lean warrior body under the tight red robes she wore today.
“I’ve never met a dragon before,” she added. “I’d love to learn more about dragons and their … mating habits.”
I raised my eyebrows. Wow, she was subtle.
“I would be happy to teach you everything I know,” I answered, and my cock pressed against my trousers at the idea of educating the lioness.
Her eyes flicked down to my arousal, and she let out a light purr. “You know, I’m used to playing cat and mouse with my prey.”
“I’m no mouse,” I growled back.
“Oh, I know that, Lord Evan.” She batted her long brown eyelashes at me and laughed. “I am just excited to devour my prize after this hunt.”
Before I could respond, we had walked up to House Onca, and the dryad sisters came running out to greet us.
“You must be the lovely Lady Aaliyah!” Marina cried.
“You are lovely, indeed,” Trina gasped with wide eyes.
“I love your hair,” Polina giggled as she ran her green fingers through Aaliyah’s golden curls.
“Well, thank you,” Aaliyah laughed. “I take it you are the dryad sisters that Lord Evan has been telling us about?”
“That’s us!” Trina exclaimed and twirled in a circle. “What has he been telling you?”
“Perhaps he told her how much fun we had,” Polina suggested with a wink.
“We did have a lot of fun in his room,” Marina agreed.
Aaliyah looked at me with a smirk. “No, he was actually telling us about how crucial you three would be in resolving some plant problems we have across the city.”
“Ohhhhh,” Polina said with a shy smile. “Well, we are good with those things, too.”
“We are good at many things, Lady Aaliyah,” Trina supplied.
“But we love helping the Dragon Lord most!” Marina declared.
“Ladies, I’m glad you want to help,” I cut in before things got too wild. “We need to figure out a few things for Houses Oel and Jubatus, but can we go inside out of this humid air?”
“Oh, of course!” Trina squealed. Then she turned on her heels and yanked her sisters with her. “Come, come, we can go sit in the library!”
The dryads darted up the stairs without another word, and I chuckled as Aaliyah and I went to follow the sisters into the palace.
Then I remembered the rest of our entourage, and I turned to see Alyona, Laika, and Nike start up the stairs as well.
“We are heading to the library to let the sisters in on the issues and see what they can do,” I explained. “Care to join us?”
“Yes, we are coming!” Laika called out.
“I’m coming, too!” Ravi yelled from inside the palace, and the phoenix appeared in the doorway a moment later.
I was glad to see her getting involved. She had been a little standoffish the last few days.
We all walked into the library as the sisters were setting down parchment and inkwells to take notes.
I laughed to myself and shook my head. These girls went all out when they wanted to get something done.
“Okay, for House Oel, their desert climate has limited their ability to grow any crops worth harvesting other than some fruit and cacti,” I started.
The dryads nodded and scribbled furiously on their papers.
“When they’re low on crops,” I continued, “they over hunt, so we have rising and falling food supplies because of the crops. Make sense?”
“Yes, of course,” Polina murmured.
“Great.” I clapped my hands and moved on. “Now, House Jubatus. They have low production with their crops due to the rain supply and how they have moved their crops each season. It sounds like they waited to get an herbalist’s opinion until they had already been doing things a certain way.”
Trina shook her head in dismay, while Marina covered her face with her hands.
“Why don’t people talk to us plant people first!” Polina responded with an eye roll. “We could have shown them exactly how to rotate their crops … Okay, what’s done is done. We will probably have to just start them over.”
“Start them over?” Aaliyah asked, and her eyes widened in shock. “It will take months to restart their supply.”
“Oh, Lady Aaliyah,” Trina giggled. “You underestimate us. They will be able to harvest a round of crops within the week.”
“Really?” Aaliyah raised an eyebrow. “Well, if that’s the case, I can see why Lord Evan is impressed with you three.”
“Oh, yes, we are very impressive,” Polina agreed.
“We can show you our work with House Oel first!” Trina exclaimed.
“Yes, yes, then you will see that we are very helpful,” Marina finished.
“I think that’s a great idea, ladies,” I agreed. “We can start with House Oel and get some desert crops growing.”
“Ooh, can I come, too?” Ravi asked as she jumped up and waved her hands. “I know a lot about surviving in the desert, obviously, and I could help!”
“Yeah, I think that’s great, Ravi,” I answered with a smile.
“Thank you,” the phoenix murmured, and her cheeks flushed under my gaze.
I suddenly wondered if she’d been missing her home. The phoenix tribe had secretly survived in the desert for a long time, thanks to her father and King Rodion, and she had only recently ventured out to meet us. Getting her into the desert climate of Tikal would be good for her.
“Alright, it’s settled,” I said as I looked around the group. “Is anyone else going?”
“I believe the two of us will be staying here,” Nike responded as he gestured to the wolf Demi-Human beside him. “Jai should be returning soon, and Laika and I would like to go over some plans for some security measures for the bazaar day.”
“Ah, good thinking, brother,” I agreed with a nod. “Hopefully, we don’t need security, but after the last big event, better to be safe than sorry.”
“And I’d like to talk with Jai about the water here,” Alyona added. “Maybe they don’t know the proper way to get rid of pollution.”
“Of course.” I smiled at my future bride and pressed my lips to her hand.
Then we all stood up, and the dryads, Ravi, Aaliyah, and I made our way back to the door. As soon as we were clear of the palace, though, I looked over at Aaliyah and winked.
“Watch this,” I said, and the other four girls noticed my concentration and took several steps back.
Then I focused my mind on taking my dragon form, and my hardened scales continued down my arms onto my forelegs as my wings and tail took shape.
The dryads jumped up and down as they clapped for my transformation.
“Ooh, big badass dragon Evan!” Polina cheered.
“We love sexy badass time,” Trina added.
“We aren’t fighting anyone,” I chuckled. “I just figured you ladies would enjoy a ride rather than a walk.”
“Even better!” Marina squealed as she pulled herself onto my back.
Aaliyah smirked as she watched the dryads climb onto my dragon body. “I suppose I’m invited on this little ride?”
“Oh, I promise it’s not little,” I answered with a wink. “Just get on.”
The other four girls snickered, and Aaliyah laughed and climbed up behind the sisters.
When everyone was situated, Ravi transformed into her small phoenix body. Then she flew up a few feet above my snout and floated back down to perch between my eyes.
“Everyone ready?” I asked.
I was answered with cheers and claps from the women.
So, we set off toward House Oel in the desert climate of Tikal. The dryads, Aaliyah, and Ravi were having an animated conversation on my back about the types of plants and fruits that could grow well in the desert, while I thought about what else
the Green Glass Sect might have planned.
I was pissed they had attacked Tikal, and I still hadn’t heard back from Ruslan or Valerra to make sure that Hatra was okay. I’d give them until the end of the day before I sent another messenger, but I had to focus on Tikal for now.
We arrived at the pyramid palace, and the women slid off my back while Ravi flew just high enough to transform back into her human form.
“Father!” Aaliyah called out as she led our party through the front doors. “Lord Evan is here for the agriculture problem!”
“Ahh, hello again,” Kinba responded as he waltzed into the great hall. “These must be the amazing dryad sisters, I presume.”
“Good afternoon, Lord Kinba,” Polina said with a curtsy, and her sisters curtsied as well.
“And I believe you’ve met Ravi.” Aaliyah gestured to the phoenix with a sly grin. “She lived in the desert for decades and has some ideas for us, too.”
“Ah, yes, the not-so-extinct phoenix,” Kinba mused as he tilted his head at Ravi. “I’m sure we have a lot to learn.”
“I’d be pleased to help you,” Ravi answered and smiled at the lion.
“And I suppose you’ll be here to ensure that the work gets done?” Kinba turned to me, and something about his tone rubbed me the wrong way.
It seemed the former leader of Tikal still needed a lesson in humility.
“I know how to get my hands dirty, Kinba,” I snapped back. “From what I’ve seen, House Oel only knew how to watch everyone else work hard while they reaped the benefits. No wonder Tikal mutinied.”
“Okay, gentlemen,” Aaliyah soothed us as we both clenched our fists. “I believe we have pointed out the importance of remembering that the past is the past, what’s done is done, and we must be able to move forward as Hatra has moved forward, right?”
She was a smart one. Using my own words against me.
“Yeah,” I grumbled and crossed my arms.
“Fine,” Kinba muttered.
The room lapsed into an uncomfortable silence, but before anyone could break it, a small silvery fox suddenly soared through the door and opened its mouth. Then I heard Ruslan’s voice.
“All is well here in Hatra, my son. From what Valerra lets us see, our grandegg is doing great! So is Valerra’s other egg. And she said to quit worrying about her as she is not a hatchling. But not to worry, we are all fine!”
I chuckled and felt my shoulders relax. Hatra was fine, and the eggs were fine. The Green Glass Sect must have followed me here, just as Mara had suggested. While that cemented my intentions to stay in Tikal until we could get a handle on things, it was a relief to know my enemies were not spreading hellfire throughout Hatra.
“I had no idea,” Kinba mumbled as he looked up at me with a furrowed brow. “I’m sorry you had to leave your eggs behind to come help us.”
The lion Demi-Human seemed sincere in his sympathy, so I decided to let the previous animosity between us go.
“There’s no way you could have known that,” I answered with a shrug. “I wanted to help the other cities in Rahma, and the king knew I could be helpful.”
“I can see he thinks very highly of you,” the lion conceded.
“Thank you,” I responded. “Now, let’s get back to these crops. Where do you grow everything?”
“This way.” Kinba gestured to a door leading to the back side of the palace.
We followed him through a few turns and out a rear door into what looked like a big pile of sand with some sticks and about two dozen cacti sprouting through it.
I could see they really needed some help in the growing department.
“Is this … the garden?” Polina questioned as she looked around the nearly barren area.
“We are currently in one of the, ah, low harvest phases I mentioned,” Kinba said, and he ran his hand through his mane. “We have the cacti over here, as you can see. A couple of those bear prickly pears also.”
The dryads looked at each other and shook their heads.
“How do you grow anything with no water system?” Trina asked.
“Well, do you think water magically appears in the desert?” Aaliyah scoffed and crossed her arms. “We’ve been doing our best, but our gardeners tire of carrying water buckets all the way from the fountain.”
“All we would need is to find a better water supply,” Marina said.
“Then we could bring in some fruit trees,” Polina added.
“Oooh, and we could get some grapevines started!” Ravi gushed and clapped her hands.
“Ah, here is our lead gardener now,” Kinba interrupted. “Lord Evan, this is Wekesa.”
Kinba turned and motioned for an older lion Demi-Human to join us. Wekesa had gray streaks running through his mane, and his clawed hands were wrinkled and weathered.
“Good day, Lord Evan,” the elderly lion croaked with a small bow.
“Nice to meet you, Wekesa,” I answered, and I wondered for a moment how old the lion was. I had yet to see a Demi-Human that looked so aged.
“There is water!” Marina exclaimed suddenly, and I turned to see all three dryads with their hands in the sand.
“Where?” Aaliyah asked as she uncrossed her arms and looked at the sisters with interest.
“Far, far below the sand’s surface,” Polina said and tilted her head to the side. “It’s not surprising you haven’t been able to find it on your own.”
“Lord Evan, do you think you could help us bring it up with your stone magic?” Trina wondered as she looked up at me.
Well, sand was made up of small stones, right? Surely, I could use the power I’d gained from the stone giants to make that work.
“I think I can give it a whirl,” I conceded.
I focused on my spiritual sea as I drew out the stone magic. Then I let my power search through the ground below me the same way I searched for treasure, only in this case, the treasure was water. Suddenly, I felt the shift from sand and stone to something less solid. So, I pushed the stones around to form a circle in the gap and built the circle higher and higher, until a well pushed up out of the sand in front of us.
Ravi and the dryads clapped and cheered.
“Perfect!” Trina cried.
“Oh, that will work so much better,” Wekesa said with a grin.
Kinba merely nodded his approval.
“Well, look at that, Lord Evan.” Aaliyah smirked. “Yet another trick up your sleeve.”
“I suppose I will leave you to it, then,” Kinba muttered. “Please, don’t hesitate to come find me if you need anything. I’m sure I’ll be back later to check on things.”
Then he turned and traipsed back inside the palace.
“Do you think you can make more wells, Lord Evan?” Ravi asked.
“Yes, if we can put them in certain places along a path, we can make it easier for the gardeners to access the water supply, so they can grow the crops more steadily!” Trina continued with excitement.
“Of course,” I said. “Show me where.”
We continued along the dryads’ pattern. They confirmed water underground, and I created a well to access it. I hadn’t used much magic since we got to Tikal, and like my dragon form, it felt good to spread out and feel the power again. I just had to be careful not to completely drain myself.
After about a dozen wells, I stopped to catch my breath. “Give me a few minutes, ladies. I want to get this done today, so I need to rest my magic some.”
The sisters nodded, and we walked back to where Ravi and Wekesa were still discussing plant options.
“You can change which vegetables you grow based on the season,” Ravi explained. “So, when it’s cooler, you should be able to grow things like lettuce, broccoli, potatoes, and spinach, but when it’s warmer, you should try for beans, peppers, melons, squash, or tomatoes.”
Wekesa wrote down all her suggestions on a small piece of paper.
“And don’t forget about putting in some fruit trees!” Polina called out.
“Yes, yes, some apple and peach trees would work nicely now that you have a way to provide them with regular water,” Trina added with a nod.
“Okay, I’m going down to the cellar to see what all seeds we already have that we can plant,” Wekesa said, and his weathered face creased with a broad grin. “Then you can show me where to plant everything!”
“You got it.” Ravi grinned back, and I could tell she was really enjoying herself.
Wekesa hurried toward another door near the one we had come out, and then he threw it open to run inside.
“I haven’t seen him go that fast in ages,” Aaliyah observed. “Wekesa must be very excited about your plans.”
“They are great plans,” Polina agreed.
“You will love it!” Trina yelled.
“I’m sure we will,” Aaliyah chuckled. “I’m sorry I doubted you.”
“You doubted us?” Marina asked as she frowned.
Before Aaliyah could respond, Wekesa burst out the door again with bags in each arm.
“I decided to just grab everything we had,” Wekesa announced and shrugged. “It wasn’t much anyway.”
Ravi and the sisters took the bags and began poring through their contents. They mumbled to each other about seeds and seasons before they each had a collection of seeds to plant.
“Okay, we are currently in your warm season, so we are going to plant these squash and tomatoes,” Ravi began.
“Plus, we want to start some trees that you can pick from regularly, so we have the apple seeds and fig seeds,” Polina continued.
“And if we can get a good system going, we should be able to get a decent vineyard for grapes, too!” Trina finished.
“Lead the way, ladies.” Wekesa gestured to the rows of sand between the newly built wells.
Aaliyah and I stood in the shade of the pyramid as the sisters and Ravi led Wekesa on a zigzag path through the sands to plant their seeds. After they put each one underground, the dryads placed a hand in its vicinity and gave the seeds a little magical boost. By the time they returned to us, there were half a dozen rows of sprouts making their appearance in the sand.
“Wow, you weren’t kidding about being able to get stuff going quickly,” Aaliyah breathed with wide eyes.
