The Scale Empire

by Cate Farren

  “How could I fall in love?” I asked. “I work at the palace.”

  “Fine. Don’t tell me. Just promise me you’ll be happy.”

  I thought about Leopold’s face, and the way his moustache tickled my upper lip. I was happy, even though I had a feeling it wouldn’t, couldn’t, last.

  ***

  I closed my eyes as I used a spell to fling the last of the mermaid corpses over the side. The smell was putrid. I didn’t think I’d ever get it out of my nose. It was worse than the butcher’s shop my father used to work in.

  I turned to find the rest of the crew, what was left of us, scrubbing the deck. We’d lost six men and women during the attack, and two more had been dealt horrific injuries. There weren’t enough of us left to stage a decent enough coup, despite the fact that we had three powerful witches and a dragon.

  I saw Bram leaning against the railing, staring into the sea. I joined him.

  “Did you know those we lost?” I asked gently.

  He nodded. “They were all servants at the palace who fled with me. I owed them my life, and I repaid them by getting them massacred by a bunch of fucking mermaids.” He slammed his fists on the railing. “I should have been better. I should have seen this coming.”

  “Nobody saw this coming,” I assured him. “But we did the best we could under the circumstances.”

  “It wasn’t enough.”

  He was right. It wasn’t enough. We failed Bram and we failed ourselves. The mermaid attack was such an odd surprise that we were finished before we even had a chance to fight back. I hated my brother so much. He’d used an innocent people and turned them into an army. He deserved a painful death.

  “My brother, and the Dorian of this world, were behind the attack,” I revealed.

  Bram turned to me, angry. “How did they do this?”

  “I can only guess, but it seems to me that their combined magic, as well as the power of the demons inside them, gave them advanced powers. I should’ve seen this coming too.” I sighed, realising I’d been an idiot. I suddenly knew what the demon was up to. “Dorian is searching for others like him! If he’s that powerful when combined with just one more version of himself, then…”

  I couldn’t form the words. I was terrified of what a group of demon-possessed Dorians could do together.

  Chapter 15

  “As much as it pains me to say this, the humans in your employ wouldn’t be worth much when it came to a battle against witches, demons and dragons anyway,” said Rebecca coldly.

  Bram eyed her with disdain. “I’ve been training my human companions.”

  “Not very well.”

  “They’re warriors. We needed them. I knew all their names and I shall miss them.”

  Rebecca turned away, unnerved by his gaze. I couldn’t help but be impressed. Bram could be very intimidating when he wanted to be, even in his human form.

  “Who do we have left?” Circe asked.

  We were in the mess hall, sat around the captain’s table. The captain was dead, his head torn off by a mermaid. Our group was dwindling by the day.

  Bram said, “We have myself. Circe. Kezia. Rebecca. Nile. Sini, I suppose.” The succubus blushed. “We have twelve human warriors, all trained by me.”

  “Can I ask, if it’s not too rude, what Nile can do?” I asked.

  Nile gave me a filthy look, but he said, “I am a weresaur. I can change into a velociraptor.”

  I grinned. “That’s wonderful.”

  I was impressed. I’d never seen a dinosaur before. This world, despite its wars and flaws, certainly did have a lot of wonders.

  We could do this. I certainly wasn’t going to let the death of some of the crew put me down. I would mourn for them, and when I killed Dorian they would have their revenge too.

  “Were the Dorians behind the mermaid attack?” Rebecca asked.

  I nodded. “I know. It scares me too.”

  “They’re much more powerful together.”

  I noticed Circe’s eyes flicker at mention of this. She probably thought she was being subtle, but I knew she was lying. I knew when my Circe was lying, and this one was no different, even if she was a bitch.

  “What do you know?” I demanded of her.

  “Only what I can guess,” Circe admitted.

  Bram glared daggers at her. “Your guesses might give us the advantage we need. I can’t believe you’ve been holding things back from me all this time!”

  Circe sighed. “I had reasons.” She stood up and looked around at us. “But I suppose telling you the truth now would be prudent. I’m not sure what use it could be, but I’d rather you all trust me than not.”

  She walked away, leaving us all dumbfounded.

  “Is she coming back?” Nile asked.

  We waited for a good two minutes before Circe returned. She wasn’t alone. Walking beside her was another Circe, one I’d recognise in a room full of them. It was my Circe. She wasn’t here in the flesh. She seemed to exist as a half flickering ghost form.

  “Hello, Kezia,” my Circe announced. “It’s good to see you.”

  I wanted to hug her. I never thought I’d see her again, but here she was, making me miss my family.

  I walked to her. “I missed you.”

  “It seems I’m going to have to tell you the truth at long lost,” said my Circe. “I was hoping to avoid it.”

  “What truth?” I asked.

  She stared into me, making me feel nervous. Her eyes seemed to bore into my soul. I knew Circe when she angry with me, or disappointed. She could be fury incarnate when she wanted to be. But I’d never seen her like this before. I wasn’t sure what to feel.

  My Circe started. “Eons ago, before this universe even existed, before the universe that existed before that existed, I was one single being. I didn’t have a name. I didn’t have a form. I just was.”

  “You created the universe?” Bram asked, incredulous.

  Both Circes smiled. Mine said, “No. I did create a few things here and there, but that wasn’t my job. I was just supposed to sit there and sit pretty – for all eternity. So I rebelled, and I had an affair with someone I wasn’t supposed to. He was called Leviathan, and he was the first demon.” Both my Circe and the Circe of this dimension grinned. “We had a love affair that spanned trillions of years, through the births and deaths of universes. Our love was timeless. I bore him children, many, many children, and I loved them all. I think you call them Prime Demons.”

  I’d met the Prime Demon of my world. He was called Gable Trent. He wasn’t a very pleasant person.

  “What is a Prime Demon?” Rebecca asked.

  “They only exist on my world,” my Circe confessed sadly. “And now there’s only one left. He’s a complete bastard to be honest, and he doesn’t even know I’m his mother, but I love him.”

  I thought I knew Circe. She was like a mother to me. No, she was more than that. She’d been my mother and father and wise aunt and protector all rolled into one. How could she keep such secrets from me? I thought we were honest with each other.

  My Circe smiled sadly at me. “I’m sorry I never told you this, but you know as well as I do how hard it is to leave a child behind. Imagine watching that child for billions of years.”

  I nodded, understanding completely. I’d always sensed a sadness in her that I could never quite identify. I realised now it was because she missed her children and her lost love. She was like me.

  “I’m still pissed you never told me any of this,” I admitted. I took her hand, surprised I could touch her flickering, wraith-like form. “But I still love you.”

  “You still haven’t finished yet,” said Rebecca. “I suspect you’re keeping the worst information for last.”

  Both Circes nodded at the same time.

  My Circe said, “The others found out about Leviathan and me, and they used their combined powers to curse us.” Both Circes looked at each other. I could tell they were reliving their past. It must be killing them. “
I was split into five parts, each sent to live in exile on a different Earth. The same happened to Leviathan.”

  “So there are five of you out there on different Earths, and there are five Leviathans.” I nodded, taking this all in. “And the demon infecting my Dorian, and the demon infecting Rebecca’s Dorian, is Leviathan. You…you knew all along the identity of the demon that took my brother and killed Leopold!” I raged. “You knew and you never said a thing!”

  Rebecca was staring at her own Circe with venom. I ignored her. Let them kill each other.

  “I didn’t know,” my Circe confessed. “The demon that possessed your brother was a parasite. Leviathan was humanoid and handsome. How could the two be related?”

  “It wasn’t until I met this Earth’s possessed Dorian for the first time, during the coup, that I realised it was him,” this Earth’s Circe said. “Our eyes met for a moment and I knew…I knew it was Leviathan.” She started to cry. I felt some sympathy for her, but I was too angry with them for keeping the truth from me.

  I felt murderously angry.

  There was an explosion of magic. Both Circes were flung against the ceiling, held there by a force of power. Rebecca walked up to them, her hands out, keeping them held in place.

  “You lied!” Rebecca cried. She created streaks of lightning, causing the Circes to writhe in agony. “You knew what killed my Leopold and you didn’t say a thing!”

  “Don’t kill them!” Bram shouted. “We need them!”

  I looked up at the woman who had been everything to me. I knew I should stop Rebecca. I knew I should save her. But Rebecca was right. She allowed me to come here knowing fully well what had possessed Dorian. She lied. She lied to me!

  I saw the two witches trying to break free. They used to be a goddess when combined. But alone they were nothing but powerful witches.

  I looked toward Rebecca and joined my power to hers. I wanted Circe to suffer. But I didn’t want her to die.

  “We have to stop,” I said.

  I pulled my power away from Rebecca, but she continued her magical attack. Bram tried to grab her and was flung to the ground.

  “Rebecca!” I shouted. “I know you’re angry, but…”

  “I thought you wanted them dead too?” Rebecca demanded. “After what they kept secret from us…”

  I looked up into the eyes of my Circe and saw only sadness. I felt pity for her. I was angry, and I really wanted to see her in pain, but she’d been through enough.

  I threw my eagle fireball at Rebecca. It hit the side of her shield, causing barely a flicker. But it gave Sini all the time she needed to reach out and press her hand against her neck.

  “Look at me,” Sini instructed. Her voice was exotic and sensual. “Look at me.”

  Rebecca clearly struggled, but the allure and pull of Sini was too strong. She stopped what she was doing and turned to her. Both Circes fell to the floor, half dazed.

  Sini let go of Rebecca. “You’re welcome.”

  Rebecca shook her head, coming to her senses. She screamed in rage and prepared to charge the Circes again, but I stood in front of them.

  “Why are you protecting them?” Rebecca asked. “They lied to us.”

  “And now they have to spend the rest of eternity knowing that we died despising them,” I told her. I smirked. “Wouldn’t you rather have them suffer than giving them a quick death?”

  Rebecca paused for a moment. “I suppose.”

  “Good. Come on. Let’s go out for some fresh air and leave these two loathsome hags to contemplate their deception.”

  I held my arm out tentatively. Eventually Rebecca took it and I led her away. I ignored Circe as we left. As far as I was concerned she was nothing to me now.

  Chapter 16

  Over the next day Rebecca and I didn’t see hide or hair of either of the Circes. According to Sini they were in her cabin, making chanting noises. I was curious, but not curious enough to go to her.

  “Wouldn’t it have been easier to teleport to New Zealand and head to Sydney from there instead of sailing all the way there?” I asked Bram.

  The two of us were stood on deck, watching the waves. Nile was fishing with Rebecca. The two of them seemed to be getting on well. We’d seen the odd mermaid or two, circling us, but they hadn’t attacked again as of yet. It was only a matter of time, though. Dorian knew we were coming. He wasn’t about to give in that easily.

  “What’s New Zealand?” he asked.

  Bram’s beard was getting fluffier and thicker. I had this overwhelming urge to run my fingers through it, just to make sure it was as soft as it appeared.

  “It’s this small island country in my world just east of Australia,” I said. “You don’t have that here?”

  “Oh, we used to, but we called it The London Islands,” Bram explained. “My family destroyed it centuries ago. Something to do with the New Londoners becoming too powerful or something. I was never very good with history.”

  “Your family is quite bloodthirsty.”

  I hoped I hadn’t offended him.

  “We conquered most of the world, either through genocide or invasion. I’m not proud of it. When I was King I was changing things. I wanted things to go back to how they used to be before my family decided they wanted everything.” He laughed bitterly. “I know change can’t come overnight, but I was trying. I really wanted to make this world a better place.”

  “We’ll get your throne back,” I said. “I promise.”

  We continued to stare out at the water. On the horizon I could see land, just out of reach. On my Earth, Australia was a peaceful country. I only hoped we could return it to that state here too.

  “Circe and I talked about your curse,” he said.

  “When I kill my brother I’ll die,” I said.

  “Is that what you truly want?” he asked.

  “If I don’t kill him with my bare hands then my family will die. I don’t really have a choice.” I paused, looking away from him. I couldn’t stand the way he gazed at me. “But I want him dead. He killed the love of my life, and I’ve been waiting for this moment. It’s about time I joined Leopold in the afterlife.”

  “There has to be a way out of this.”

  I’d tried. Circe had tried. The curse laid upon me by Victoria and her pet witch was airtight.

  “If I so much as think of trying to find a loophole then the curse will strike down my family,” I said.

  He grinned. “Then we don’t have much time left.”

  I braced myself for his kiss. I think I actually giggled, waiting for his soft lips to brush my own. When it didn’t happen I was kind of disappointed.

  He saluted me and leaped off the side of the boat. I was about to scream at him for being so reckless when he lit up from within. Sparks of fiery red light arced from every pore in his body, like the sun was going supernova under his skin.

  He became a dragon.

  I laughed in delight as his wings beat steadily, forcing the sea to splash around him. He brought his colossal body close to the boat, his giant eyes boring into me. I saw my reflection in them and I could feel Bram’s soul staring back out.

  I reached my hand out, caressing his snout. It was slightly cold and wet, but not as scaly as I’d imagined. Close up, the colour of his scales was more a deep purple than darkest black. Or maybe it was a trick of the light? Either way I knew he was the most magnificent thing I’d ever seen; next to Bram as a human, anyway.

  Next to Leopold, I hastily added.

  He kept turning his neck to the side. I wasn’t sure what he wanted.

  “I wish you could talk,” I whispered.

  “He wants to you ride him!” Nile shouted.

  I looked into Bram’s eyes and he nodded.

  “How…how do I do this?” I asked, nervous.

  Bram turned his head to the side again, his wings still flapping to keep himself afloat. I suspected magic was somehow involved in keeping him flying. This dragon was massive. There was no way those w
ings could support such a huge body.

  I climbed onto his neck, holding on. I shuffled down to his back and turned myself around so I was facing the front. I was quite unsteady as the wings beat at both sides of me, but I used my fingers to grip onto a ridge of thick scales on the back of his neck.

  “I think I’m ready,” I said, my voice catching.

  What if I fall off?

  What if I scream from terror?

  I gripped the ridge harder as the dragon bucked and launched itself into the air. Wind whipped at my body as Bram soared higher and higher before coming to an abrupt stop.

  Don’t look down.

  I looked down and gasped. The boat was a mere dot beneath me on a sea of blue. I looked around me, seeing the coast of Australia far off and the specks of birds. I laughed and held my hands in the air, letting the wind affect me. I felt free, so far away from my curse and my brother and all the mess that came with it.

  “I love it!” I yelled.

  Bram turned to look at me. He winked.

  “I wish I could talk to you,” I told him, patting his scales.

  I had a sudden thought. If I could create a telepathic link between the two of us we may be able to speak.

  I used a similar spell to the one I used on the mermaid.

  “Can you hear me?” I asked.

  “I thought you’d never get there.”

  “Does Circe talk with you like this?”

  “Of course she does.”

  “You sound different. Your voice is deeper.”

  “I’m a dragon.”

  “Yes. Yes, you are.”

  The dragon glided down and I whooped with elation again. I could hear Bram inside my head, laughing. I’d never heard such joy before. He was so content when he was a dragon. I wish I had something in my life that could make me so happy.

  “You can’t have spent the last hundred years being miserable all the time. Even you must have found the odd moment of joy.”

  “I have seen some wonderful things during my journeys. There have been lovers that helped me pass the time. But no. I haven’t felt real joy in a very long time.”