“I can see now how you would find it difficult to believe we are what we say,” Ayden said quietly. He kept his own thoughts about Carvallius to himself.
“That was your grandfather they are talking about? Wow, you really are a warlock, aren’t you?” Larissa sounded awestruck.
“Yes, Grandfather saw to it that I would be safe. I now feel it is my duty to clear his name, and rewrite history if need be, to prove that it was not he that destroyed the rest of my people.”
“At least the human looking familiar makes sense now; I don’t know of a race that has a familiar who is not a creature or elemental thing,” Noirin noted.
“What can we do to help you?” Aleksander posed the question.
Straightening up to her full height Latarian seemed determined to take on the world, “Take us to your council. It would be best if we began there.”
“I can contact the emperor’s office and see if he will meet with us. In the meantime you are welcome to stay here with us; we have plenty of empty rooms.”
Much to Ayden’s relief, Latarian readily accepted Aleksander’s invitation to stay. Ayden unobtrusively helped himself to another cookie and was thrilled that cottage life was seemingly behind them.
Chapter 2
Ayden spent a great deal of time in front of the mirror lately. He didn’t believe he had become overly vain; he simply loved looking at his new clothes. Larissa had made it her mission it seemed to provide him with as many current fashions as possible. She was a talented seamstress and what she could not easily create she would take Ayden out to buy. Latarian insisted on staying in only long, old-fashioned gowns and Larissa was kind enough to fashion one or two for her that Latarian agreed to wear. Pajamas seemed to be Larissa’s favorite thing to manufacture, and Ayden had acquired at least a dozen pairs, despite the fact that they had only been living with the D’Vairedraconis family for less than two weeks. With all that she had provided them both, he wasn’t sure if Larissa had actually slept since they arrived. It was a good thing her mate, a very nice bright blue dragon named Madeline, did not object. For Ayden’s part, he made sure Larissa knew he appreciated her efforts and lavished Larissa with constant praise.
Today’s ensemble was a dark navy suit, as they were headed to a place called Las Vegas to meet with the Draconic Emperor. He had readily accepted their request to speak with him and had extended an invitation to all of them. The entire Court D’Vaire, which was what they were referred to in the dragon world, minus the forever traveling Brogan, were accompanying Latarian and Ayden for the meeting. Ayden, like the D’Vaire dragons, was thoroughly excited about meeting the council leader. Latarian just seemed determined that the emperor had to be convinced that Carvallius was not the villain that history thought him to be. Since he had not been well acquainted with Latarian’s grandfather and his few encounters had not been overly pleasant, Ayden avoided discussing the matter with her.
Luckily they both had plenty to keep them busy; after all, they had centuries of new inventions and events to discover and learn about. Ayden had found the television to be an endless fascination. After his morning walk, he could be found on Aleksander’s couch stuffing some of Noirin’s numerous culinary delights into his face while he watched until it was practically nighttime. At night, his back had never felt better as he slept easily on his comfortable bed in the giant room that Aleksander had placed him in.
As excited as he was about their meeting, he was also afraid that his idyllic stay with the dragons may come to an end. He had no idea what the emperor would think of Latarian’s crusade, but his new friends had explained that although many races comprised the council they all stayed with their own kind. There was no way to know where the emperor would send two people who comprised the entirety of their race. Putting his worries aside, Ayden pulled his new navy cloak over his new suit. Magic races wore cloaks within council headquarters, with symbols of their race so that all council members could immediately discern the race to which they belonged.
Warlocks had once proudly worn cloaks with richly hand embroidered badges of every magic school they had conquered, and Latarian had decided that they would stick with tradition. Larissa had managed to fashion long strips of fabric attached to the back of their cloaks, with the numerous marks of magic they were proficient in. Latarian had not been thrilled that Ayden’s flowed farther than hers, but she had never been a very good student.
With one last look in the mirror, Ayden thought that it couldn’t hurt to ask his fallen mate to look over him. So he asked the spirit of his mate to do what he could to see that Ayden got to stay with his new friends. He blew a quick kiss to the ceiling and headed to the living room, where they were all gathering to head to Las Vegas. Latarian and Ayden were going to transport them magically.
The druids had formed a company that specialized in transporting people from place to place and so buildings like the council had a special area reserved for magical comings and goings. Entering the living room, Ayden saw that everyone was already gathered, and that they looked magnificent. The dragons wore sashes of Aleksander’s dragon leather with D’Vaire emblazoned upon it, and Aleksander looked particularly regal wearing his silver crown, that proclaimed him a king.
“That’s a pretty nice suit. Did you find it in the toddler’s section?” Aleksander asked with a devilish smirk. He seemed to know instinctively that Latarian was the only one bothered by Ayden’s height and never resisted an opportunity to comment on it.
“Your suit is quite handsome as well Aleksander. You could almost pass for a human, were you not so freakishly tall.” Ayden watched as Aleksander’s grin grew even broader; he seemed to expect Ayden to give as good as he got with a comment on his own 6’6” stature.
“We certainly do not have time for this nonsense; the emperor is expecting us. Ayden, it is unacceptable to keep us all waiting; it will be your fault, should he refuse us for missing our appointed time to meet with him,” Latarian informed them sourly.
“Latarian, I realize that this meeting is very important to you, but this is my court, and I would greatly appreciate it if you could do your best to be polite.” It was not the first time that Aleksander had asked Latarian to be more considerate of others. In addition, he seemed to be giving her very little opportunity to spend much time alone with Ayden, for this Ayden was exceedingly grateful. He was beginning to feel as if it was acceptable for him to be himself and not be forced to curb his thoughts and feelings to please Latarian.
“Of course Aleksander, it is just that it has been so long since I have had the company of others. I hardly remember how to converse.” For whatever reason, Latarian seemed to want to charm Aleksander. Unfortunately, too often, her tongue seemed to get away from her and he was back to asking her to change her tone. Ayden longed to ask him what he truly thought of Latarian, but he doubted Aleksander would be willing to confide in him on such short acquaintance.
Without any further delay, they arrived at the opulent Council of Sorcery and Shifters. Not one person in their group had ever been to what was, they discovered, an entire complex of buildings, so they headed straight for the security area staffed by armed fallen knights. After they had been all cleared to enter, they sought out what Aleksander called a directory, so they could locate the Draconis shifter offices. Another security checkpoint, this one run by dragons alone, and they finally arrived in the emperor’s personal waiting room which was elegantly styled in black dragonskin furniture and plenty of stunning dragon artwork. It had only taken them walking what seemed like a hundred miles, three very scary rides in horrid little boxes called elevators, and two complete backtracks to the first security stop to find themselves there.
Ayden fidgeted in his seat as he rubbed his hand inconspicuously across the smooth dragon leather he was seated on. He hoped that the emperor would not treat them unkindly when he found out their reason for visiting him. Just moments later an assistant who had introduced himself as Wesley was leading them to the appropriate offi
ce. Wesley opened one of the two enormous black double-doors and shepherded them into the dragon shifter’s large office. A dark-haired, dark-eyed man rising from a comfortable looking black dragonskin chair immediately caught Ayden’s attention. He was dressed in a black suit and a black dress shirt that was missing a tie. The black dragonskin sash he wore was equally black and had the word “Draconis” embroidered on it in bold white letters.
Out of the corner of his eye, he finally got his first look at the emperor, who was even more striking than the man in all black. He too was dark-haired and dark-eyed, but the gold ring around his pupils proclaimed his rank. As tall as Aleksander, the emperor was also dressed in black, but his shirt was a snowy white and was decorated with a stylish black and white patterned tie. The gleaming gold of the emperor’s crown glinted on a high shelf behind him; it seemed he did not bother with it in the confines of his office.
Coming around a modern black and glass desk, the emperor walked towards where Ayden and the rest of their group stood, just inside the giant black door that Wesley had closed as he had left the room.
“King Aleksander, I apologize that it has taken so long to meet with you in person, but you certainly have not made it easy on me. Why has it taken you so long to visit council headquarters?” Emperor Chrysander was smiling as he asked his question and extended his hand towards Aleksander for a handshake.
“Your Majesty, it is a pleasure to meet you. Thank you so much for taking the time to see us. I was not sure I was welcome before this; it is pretty common knowledge that everyone thinks I have some curse over my head,” Aleksander explained, after releasing the emperor’s hand.
“I think it has been a few hundred years since I have even heard the word curse, let alone met anyone who still believed in them. This is my brother, Imperial Duke Damian Draconis,” he said with a wave of his hand in the direction of the man in all black. The rest of the introductions were made.
As Ayden had expected, after seeing the D’Vaire’s reaction to their race, Emperor Chrysander had seemed flummoxed when Aleksander had informed them that Latarian was a warlock and Ayden her familiar. After being invited to sit in the gorgeous dragonskin chairs, Latarian immediately explained their time in the cottage and how they had survived when seemingly no one else had. Wasting no time, Latarian then got to the heart of her desire to meet with the emperor.
“I have read what history thinks of my grandfather, but it simply holds no truth. He was not the type of man to betray his race in such a manner,” she informed him as she took to her feet.
“Unfortunately, your people were thought to have died out before I even knew they existed. The only things I know about warlocks are the same things you have read in history books. I think your best bet would be to make a visit to the offices of the Spectra Wizardry. I understand that, though they were very only powerful sorcerers when your grandfather lived, they now also specialize in maintaining the history of every race that belongs to the council. They should be able to help you start your search to clear your grandfather’s name, if history has treated him unfairly.”
“History has been most unfair, thank you for your guidance. I will go to the Spectra Wizardry and find the evidence I need.” Latarian’s eyes glowed with zealotry, but at least she had once again taken her seat. Ayden was feeling calmer about his day now that Latarian had not embarrassed them all.
“Thank you, Your Majesty, it is very important to Latarian that she learns all that she can about the war between the warlocks and the cwylld elven,” Aleksander added.
“From what I have read it was horribly brutal, the cwylld elven did not stop until every man, woman, and child with warlock blood was dead. If you like, I can call the prism wizard and see if he has time to meet with you this afternoon,” Emperor Chrysander offered.
Her face was wreathed in smiles as Latarian expressed her gratitude to the emperor, “That would be much appreciated, Your Majesty.”
Emperor Chrysander made a quick call and indeed the prism wizard was very excited to meet with them. He set the phone back in its cradle before speaking, “We will need to let the world know that there is still a warlock alive. I will contact Arch Lich Chander Daray and Prism Wizard Vadimas Porfyra after you meet with him to decide how best to announce it. In the meantime, we need to have you all properly registered as members of the council; those visitor passes we sent are not going to continue to allow you to get through security. Court D’Vaire was somehow lost when we went from paper to electronic records. I think it probably for the best if Latarian and Ayden are recognized as permanent members of Court D’Vaire. I trust that is all right with all of you.”
“Absolutely!” Ayden exclaimed as they all laughed. It seemed his mate’s spirit had not let him down. His friends were now his very own family.
“We are thrilled to get to keep them both with us,” Aleksander stated with a smile.
“I am as well; I have to confess it is going to be quite a coup to have the only living warlock and her familiar living amongst dragons. While I cannot offer both of you the ability to shift into a dragon, from this point forward the world will recognize you as honorary dragons.” Emperor Chrysander offered them a broad smile, and everyone in the room responded in kind. For Ayden, it was as if his ability to cast a spell to change into a small blue dragon suddenly had a rightful purpose.
Ayden had no idea how he had come to have such an ability. Though he had read every magic book Latarian possessed, he could find no mention of any other warlock or their familiar having such an ability. A gut feeling, or perhaps it was an instinct, had kept him from mentioning it to Latarian all these years. For whatever reason, he felt as if his ability would not be looked upon kindly by his warlock. For centuries, he had asked himself why he alone it seemed could change into a dragon. Now that the world was going to know him as a dragon, it seemed like perhaps this was the reason Fate had given him such a façade.
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Ayden enunciated proudly and Latarian offered a similar sentiment, although she was far less enthusiastic in her response.
“Before you head to the prism wizard’s office I must tell you, King Aleksander, I am quite intrigued by your eyes. I have never seen a dragon king with any gold in his eyes before,” Imperial Duke Damian commented.
“It appeared at the same time as the silver and just like the blue to my scales and hair I can offer you no explanation as to its cause or reasoning,” Aleksander said quietly. Ayden had noticed that his new king was reluctant to speak about the parts of his appearance that guaranteed he would always stand out. Though he still had not heard the tale of Aleksander’s supposed curse, Ayden knew that no one would spend so much time hiding from the world without just cause.
“I thought the blue something you had added yourself; it began to grow that way after you shifted for the first time?” the emperor asked curiously.
“Yes, and we even tried dyeing it black to match the rest, but my hair refused to cooperate,” Aleksander answered wryly.
“I find it quite striking, and I plan on convincing Chrysander that we must make a trip to your home in Arizona to see you shift.” The imperial duke offered a smile with his statement.
“No need to talk me into it, I would consider it an honor to see the world’s only bi-color dragon.” King Aleksander extended an invitation to the emperor to visit their home whenever he wished, and the imperial duke offered to escort them to the Spectra Wizardry. They accepted his offer gladly.
The prism wizard met them at the door and introduced himself while Ayden’s new king shook his hand. Dressed similarly to Ayden, the prism wizard wore a dark suit with an equally dark cloak worn over it to represent his sorcerous blood. His hair was snow white, and his face was lined with age; it was quite unusual to see someone of magickind look so aged and Ayden wondered what had caused such a thing to happen.
“I must say, I was in disbelief when I received the phone call from His Majesty telling me that he had a warlock in his offic
e. But I could sense your magic as soon as you got to the outer office. Of course, technically you are not a warlock.” Prism Wizard Vadimas Porfyra dropped this bit of news with a beaming smile.
“I most certainly am a warlock!” Latarian was back to screeching, and since Ayden was standing behind her he decided it was quite all right to put his hands over his ears if she continued to speak so loudly.
“No, most decidedly not. You see, you are the only known representative of your race, but you are in fact female. Although men ruled warlocks for thousands of years, there were female leaders at one time. While a woman ruled, your race was known as the ‘Coven of Witches.’ History dictates that your race must now be known as witches, may I see your wrist?” After he finished speaking, the aged wizard gently pushed up the left sleeve of Latarian’s cloak and gown, and they all peered at her very normal looking wrist.
“Most unusual that, as you are the only one left, Fate did not mark you as the leader of your race. Had Fate done so a gold circle would have appeared here on the inside of your wrist and inside the circle would have been the design of whatever symbol Fate felt represented you. Grand Warlock T’Eirick was known to have the mark of a lion’s head and before him the warlocks were represented by a bird thought to be a raven. The grand summoner, who was just below the grand warlock and his mate in rank, bore the same mark, but his was in silver. Grand Summoner Saura wore a unique mark that was both gold and silver, since she was the mate of the grand warlock as well as the grand summoner. King Aleksander, your eyes are both gold and silver, Fate must have some special authority to bestow on you,” Vadimas released Latarian’s wrist and peered at Aleksander and Aleksander let out a choked laugh.
“Well Fate has certainly not explained to me exactly what that authority is and I’ve had the gold there for centuries.”
“Perhaps that authority has not been bestowed upon you yet, but I am sure things will work out as they are meant in time. Latarian, your familiar, seems quite shy standing there behind you,” Vadimas’ tone was filled with certainty.
Grand Redemption (D'Vaire Book 1) Page 3
