by Sy Walker
“I know that you’re only trying to prepare me for that eventuality, father.” I wore the wounds that he had inflicted on me during training, as a badge of honor. I felt that for once he was taking me seriously. “I don’t see why anything has to change. We’ve lived in peace with them for, as long as I can remember.” My grandfather was the one to initiate first contact with them.
My father Peter came after me with that sword, wielding it at like a true master. Over the course of the last two months, I’d been pushed into doing things that was out of my comfort zone.
My father was known to be reckless, but adventurous to the point of not caring for his own safety. He took me rock climbing, sword fighting, put me through hand to hand combat, and had even taught me to use my own environment, as a weapon of choice.
We were on the outskirts of the estate, a castle built by the very hand that made the contract. My grandfather died a few years ago, leaving his legacy and heritage in the hands of my father. I was not blind to the plight of others. I saw the way that they suffered needlessly. I tried to talk to my father about it, but he was reluctant to show any kind of mercy. I thought that he was being firm, but fair. Maybe I was a little blinded by my own admiration for the man to know what was really going on.
“What I’ve been putting you through is to make sure that you have all the tools to fight back when it’s necessary.” He had never shown any interest in teaching me these things before. I was not foolish, and I had begun to take notice that he had been flash cutting some of the land. I was sure that the dragons would not like that their home was being decimated. “I’m going to go into these negotiations with one purpose in mind. I want them gone, and I will not take no for an answer.”
He wore his armor with pride, even though he had never seen battle a day in his life. This armor was passed down from one generation to the next. I was a carbon copy of my father, except that he was sporting a black goatee and had 50 pounds of muscle over me. I was never much for exerting myself, but maybe it was time to turn over a new leaf.
“I don’t see the reason for this, but there’s no point arguing.” We were both 5’10 and had the same jet black hair. I was only 160 pounds, but what I did have was a great physique that was honed from a daily regimen of running. My father on the other hand was muscle-bound and had no problem using that intimidation over others. He was the lord and the ruler of the land. There were those that felt that he was ill equipped to lead, but they had done nothing to supersede his authority.
I had a soft spot for my mother, who knew from a very early age that my interest didn’t lie with the female form. I had never discussed this with my father. He was stuck in his ways, and there was no way that he could possibly accept the fact that I was gay. I’d never pursued the matter inside my own land, as it was a worry that my desires would get back to him in some way.
“You are my son and there will come a time that you will be given the mantle of responsibility. I fear that leaving you out of business matters has made you weak. You don’t know how to make those hard decisions. I’m here to teach you that life is hard. There are no free rides. I should’ve done this a long time ago, but I wasn’t sure how receptive you would be to this kind of training.” He had his shield strapped to his arm. I clanged against it over and over again, pushing him back and using his own weight against him.
“I’m glad that you have finally seen the light. You’re never been the kind of father that would play make believe. You’ve always been about the real world and my imagination had only gotten in the way of life in general. You have shown remarkable resilience and I’ve seen you in sparring matches that have left your opponent lying there dazed.” I was only 18 and when mother died, it was very hard for my father to become the primary caregiver. He hired help to take care of me in my informative years. Gerald had been with us a long time, which was evident by the gray in his beard and his hair.
“If I had known that you were interested in any of this, I would have gladly taken you underneath my wing.” I wasn’t sure if I could believe him. I sensed that there was a change in the air. It was like this very thick tension. My father was saying one thing, but he obviously meant something else entirely. “Dragon shifters live amongst us during the day. We have no idea who they are, except for the one that has negotiated the contract on behalf of his people every 10 years. Drake Bergen is older than you think he is. He’s an experienced fighter. The gift of shifting into a dragon has given him an unfair advantage.”
The battle continued and it was mostly a battle of wills between a father and son. Neither one of us was willing to concede that the other was better. We fought like untamed Lions, breathing heavily and trying to find that opening that would finally make one of us stand over the other in victory. The gray clouds overshadowed the dragons in the distance. I don’t know if they were watching us, or just out doing their daily business.
I was tempted to tell father that he never showed me any kind of love after mother died. I was in touch with my feminine side. I wanted to talk about my feelings, but my father was closed off to anything of the sort. He thought that it was showing a weakness to admit that you had limitations. He had always told me that the best way to deal with anything was to push them deep down where they wouldn’t see the light of day.
“You know that I am getting stronger and that eventually I will beat you at your own game.” I didn’t want to believe it, but the smirk on his face indicated that he was playing with me like a cat does with a mouse. “I’m younger and that will be your ultimate undoing.” I was itching for the day that I could succeed that of my teacher.
“I have taught you well my son. I have taught you everything that you know.” With that, he kicked out and caught my knee, making me grimace and lower my shield. He had slipped through with the tip of his blade placed it up against my neck, cutting slightly and making me stare at him with anger and resentment. “Remember, I’ve taught you everything that you know, but I haven’t taught you everything that I know.” He lowered the blade, put his hand around my shoulder and began to laugh with obvious enjoyment at my expense.
“I didn’t…even see that coming.” I was hobbling slightly, but the strike against my knee was only meant for distraction and not to do any permanent harm. “I still…have a lot to learn, but I’m willing to put in the effort.” We were surrounded by those of the guard. They stood at attention, not interfering and allowing things to play out the way that they should.
“There’s something to say about an old dog learning new tricks. I’ve seen and done it all, but what I haven’t had the pleasure of is stepping onto the battlefield. I do have to warn you that these negotiations with the dragon shifters are going to be different this time around. I’ve already told you that I want them gone. Unlike my father, I have no love lost with any of them. They have prevented us from achieving greatness. That is about to stop at my hand.” His armor was blood red, where the others that stood around us wore their armor in the color of plain silver. He was the only one that was permitted to have his armor mixed with a pigment to give him a uniform look over others.
“You say that they are preventing us from achieving greatness. We’ve developed over the years and the shifters have been there to help us where necessary.” I actually admired their strength of character. They could’ve easily brought down hell upon the village and the surrounding area. There were times in the past that they had decimated the land, leaving nothing behind, but the charred remains of those that stood against them. “I’m not entirely convinced that it’s necessary to antagonize them. You really don’t know what they’re capable of.” I was trying to be the voice of reason, but I sensed that my father was never going to listen.
Chapter two
I left the comfort of the castle, taking a horse out of the stable and going into town to be amongst the people. My father had no idea that I had made weekly sojourns to the surrounding villages. I wanted them to know that I was not like my father. I did not stay in the castle to protect
myself against the obvious backlash. I was an open book and I gave the people a forum to speak their mind.
“Your father is power hungry. That is going to destroy everything that has been built over the years. There’s no way that you have been, so blind that you haven’t noticed that he has lost touch of reality. He is not in his right mind. We should not be poking at the dragons, unless of course we want to get burned.” That was the same sentiment from many that had come at my bequest.
“Lucas, your opinion matters to me, as well as those that are in attendance. I agree in theory, but my father is of a different breed. I don’t think that he has lost his mind. I’ve seen no sign that he has lost touch on reality. I do worry that his attempt to fool the dragons is going to be met with fierce retaliation. I am doing my best to sway him from his course of action. Unfortunately, he is dead set on sending the dragons away once and for all. I’m sure that we will feel a certain kind of freedom without them always under foot. I just don’t know that they are going to go willingly or with a fight that will be for the ages.” I respected Lucas and we had become fast friends over the years. His wise counsel and his willingness to listen had always been something that I had needed. My father was not one that would give out advice willingly. Lucas was a little older. I never voiced my desire, but I did feel that we could be more than friends. Maybe that was wishful thinking on my part. He had always been the ladies’ man.
“My grandfather used to tell me about battles that they had with the dragons. The only reason why your grandfather stepped up and decided to do something was because they were too powerful. Armor and shields back in the day weren’t strong enough to withstand the heated blasts that converged on those warriors from above. We’ve come a long way since then, but I still fear that we will be on the losing side.” He slammed down his mug and spilled some of the contents onto the wooden table.
“There’s no reason to get hostile. I came here in good faith to listen to your concerns. I will try to convey them back to my father. It may not be good enough and this might need to be taken publicly. Perhaps, my father will listen, if he sees that he is only hurting those that he rules over.” The heated debate continued, until the light of day had extinguished, leaving behind the light of the moon.
“You are a good friend. There’s no way that you came from the loins of that egotistical tyrant. The day that you hold the power in the palm of your hands is going to be a great day for everybody. Let us have this one last drink and then I must return to my home to sleep it off.” I was able to handle my liquor better than most. I glanced to my side and I saw that the night had become almost daylight. It could only mean that the dragon shifters were out in force.
We walked out of there together and were accosted by the sight of different color flames streaking across the sky. “I see this all the time. They are just playing, but they put on a light show that is spectacular. There are times that I sit and watch in awe, thinking about the future and how bad it could be. Anyway, that debate is for another time my friend. I will see you soon.” He had his arm around a comely young barmaid. They stumbled out the door together, kissing wildly and daring each other to initiate the fire that would spread beneath the sheets.
I began the slow and arduous journey back home with the use of my horse, as the only means of conveyance. I stopped momentarily to watch these dragons have the time of their life. They were like children, but you could see that there was a method to their madness. In retrospect, I should’ve known that they were training and perhaps this was in the exact same way that my father trained me. Was it possible that they knew that something was going to change significantly between them and us? I was in no hurry to get back home. I had a feeling that my father would be up, pacing the floor and waiting for me to arrive to chastise me for my behavior. It was not a conversation that I was looking forward to.
“I heard what you said in there. You’re definitely not like your father in any way.” I was an English nobleman and I knew from personal experience that this man was named Drake. He was the only one of the dragon shifters that had deemed it necessary to show us his human form. His hair was black, but there were streaks of gray that made it appear that he had lived a long and fruitful life. He stood with no regard for the naked profile that he was projecting.
“I don’t think that we’ve had the honor of introductions.” I slid easily from the horse and landed heavily on my boots. I walked towards him, until I was close enough to see the moon bouncing off his naked hindquarters. He showed no shame and I suppose he was used to walking around unencumbered by clothing. “You and I have only met once. I was too young to know any better back then. To be honest, I was slightly intimidated by how easily you dwarfed a conversation.” He had his back towards me and I could see the contours of his muscles and the way that his shoulders seemed to be weighed down by some kind of stress and frustration.
“Your father is walking down a dangerous path. I did not want it to come to this, but the ruling was made and I must abide by that. It sickens me to think that you and I might be the only one that is thinking clearly. Your father thinks that he can hide the fact that he is destroying what was once a very proud land. His attempt at subterfuge has not gone unnoticed. Like you, I’ve had my own debate with those that want blood.” I didn’t like where this conversation was going. I had not brought anything to protect myself. I’d never needed a sword to visit the neighboring villages before, but maybe things have progressed too far.
“Something tells me that you and I meeting here today was not by chance.” He turned slowly and I couldn’t help, but to stray my eyes a little further south. The flag of his species was saluting a man of my distinction. I could not take my eyes off the thickness and the strength that he wielded between his legs. “I don’t know what you want, but I will not go down easily.” It almost made me laugh at the absurdity of what I had just said. Had he known of my taboo tastes, I might have easily succumbed and found myself on my knees.
“I’m afraid that I have no choice, but to take you with me. You can either come quietly, or I can do this the hard way. Your father will find out that we have taken you and that will play nicely into negotiations. To be honest, I’m not one to take these kinds of direct actions, but your father has forced my hand. There are those that I am beholden to that have chosen to place all of us in an untenable situation.” He was obviously agitated and his use of our vernacular was that of somebody that had been trained from a very early age.
I swallowed hard, backed away and got into a defensive posture.” He threw his head back and then snapped forward with a wing that emerged from out of nowhere. I was hit very hard and was literally thrown off my feet. I was a little stunned, unable to shake out the cob webs. I was taken by something with a natural force.
My vision cleared up and I found myself hovering over the trees with my feet dangling in the air. Something sharp was digging into my shoulder blades. I screamed, but it was lost within the wind, as I was dragged away from the only place that I knew.
Chapter three
I felt something shining in my eyes and I awoke to find that I was strapped down onto a makeshift bed made out of unforgiving rocks. The slab was cold and that was when I realized that I was stripped of all of my defenses. My clothes lay scattered on the floor of what looked to be some kind of cave.
“I had to bandage your wounds. I’m afraid that I may have done some permanent nerve damage. Only time will tell. There are times that I just don’t know my own strength. I forget that you don’t have the same strong scaly hide that we do.” This place was not a cave and I could see that there was a window cut out from the rock. “You are my prisoner, until such time that negotiations come to an end. I’ve sent an emissary to inform your father that you will not be released, until we come to terms.” I pulled at the chains, but they were heavy and felt like they were weighing me down.
It wasn’t long before I was exhausted, my limbs depleted of all energy and unable to lift a finger in my
own defense. “This is not how a civilized society acts. You’re only going to make things worse and I think you know that.” He didn’t say anything. His eyes were staring at my own manhood. “You could’ve given me more time. I might even able to get him to see and this was not the right way to go about things.” I had no doubt that my father would have dismissed me out of hand.
“Robert, the world is changing. If we can’t change with it, then we will be left in the dust to become extinct. There are only a dozen of us left. We cannot allow our life to be for nothing. We will fight for what we believe in. Your father speaks for the rest of you. Maybe by taking you we give him a reason to change.” The word change was being thrown around easily. He circled the makeshift bed.
“I don’t think that it was necessary to strip me of my clothing.” He was licking his lips, and traveling his tongue along the bristly ends of the stubble on his face. He stared at me and for a moment. I thought that there was something more there than just a casual curiosity. “Wait a minute… I believe that there might be a reason why you want to take away my clothing.” This made him stop and then he turned his back like he was embarrassed by the revelation.
“Humans have no idea what makes us tick. I can tell you that there are no females in our species. We’re primarily male, but we do not have sexual relations with each other. That is not how we procreate a new generation. It has been some time since any of us have seen a suitable companion. I feel that there is something here between us. Correct me if I’m wrong, but do you not like more than just feminine curves. The way that you looked at me in the forest told me that you might be the one.” I wasn’t sure what he was getting at. The only thing that I was sure about was that my cock was never going to go back down without some kind of relief.
“I never knew that about your kind.” He got down on his knees and he was coming closer, until he was situated with his hot breath wafting over my newly shorn balls. I don’t know why it mattered, but I had begun to shave with a straight razor to make sure that there was nothing to deny a lover of my choice the chance to taste me without getting anything in his teeth. “There have been talk and most believe that you have a female that gave you newly born babies. How is it that you can have relations with a human man and be able to procreate your species at the same time?”
