by Leela Ash
Suddenly, a shining golden light appeared above them. It fell over two people, who began to disappear. At first they were terrified, but soon they were smiling.
“It’s Kaldernon!” they shouted before they fully disappeared.
“We will keep order! Three at a time!” Clayton commanded, shouting authoritatively. The lines dwindled until it was only Kyna and Cain standing together on the cliff’s face.
“Are you sure you want to leave this world behind? You were raised as one of them.”
“It’s not safe even if I did,” he said, peering at her with his beautiful sea-green eyes. He gripped her hands and brought them to his lips, kissing gently. “Now that I have you, I can’t just let you go. Nobody has ever really felt like home. Maybe because my home is somewhere else.”
Kyna’s heart thudded in excitement when he pulled her toward the light. He squeezed her hand as it began to bathe over them.
“Are you ready?” she asked nervously.
Cain leaned down and kissed her tenderly.
“What are we waiting for?” he asked with a grin.
Suddenly, they felt the tug of the portal and together, they began their journey to their home world of Kaldernon.
THE END
Caught Between Worlds
Novella 4 Dragons of Kaldernon
Leela Ash
Copyright © 2016 by Leela Ash. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
CHAPTER 1
“Leika, this is huge!”
“What is?” Leika asked, turning her deep purple eyes onto her friend Cherin. Cherin had told her on more than one occasion just how unsettling her penetrating gaze was. Leika was proud of it, though. It showed that she was a Loni to be reckoned with. She had always been capable of many things. Even battle.
“There’s a rumor going around that Lopu Mansana wants to see you! How did you manage that one?” Cherin exclaimed, his handsome face alight with the possibilities. He knew how talented she was and felt sure that she was being singled out for her potential.
Leika’s jaw dropped.
“Why would she want to see me?” Leika asked, her voice high-pitched. Lopu was the leader of the people of Kaldernon, and going to meet with her meant a three-day journey north, to the capital city of Rallah. More startling than that, it meant that Lopu had somehow found out something about Leika. But was it something good or something bad? Leika had been helping a young man from the Kersh clan to get him off of drugs from Earth, but he had begged for her to keep his problem between just the two of them. She had resorted to secretive alchemy to help him, but it was powerful forces she was working with and she knew that she could get in trouble if they were caught.
Kaldernon had been in an extended state of celebration ever since the shifters and Loni on Earth had been rescued. The settlement created by the Kersh clan had provided a sanctuary for those we were able to explore their dragon shifter powers. Anybody who had become awakened to them was ultimately found, whether by the other shifters or by the fundamentalist group known as the Guardians, who had always sought to destroy all shifters because they were tainted alien life.
Fortunately, the rescue mission had been a success, and the leader of Kaldernon, Lopi Mansana, had finally succeeded.
Gleeful was the day the Kersh clan arrived through the portal in the space-time continuum that the Loni people had been able to construct after centuries of painstaking labor. But just when it seemed hopeless, Kallan Yestorval had been able to break the code and help her people return to their rightful homes.
It was shocking to the new dwellers of Kaldernon to be in a world where they didn’t have to hide any part of themselves. In the light of day, many were still modest about displaying the full encompassing powers of their shifter forms. It was sad, really, and the people of the Kersh clan were encouraged to embrace their powers and led by special instructors on how to fully encompass that power and empower themselves. They had nothing to be ashamed of and everything to be proud of.
Except, of course, for the man who had a drug problem. Leika did her best to help him, and with her assistance, he had been able to successfully wean himself off of them and learn better ways to cope with his stress. If Lopu had heard anything about her deviant magicks, she could be in trouble. But there was also the possibility that she had been summoned for some other reason. But what?
“Are you going to go?” Cherin asked, his dazzling blue eyes round and bright.
“Well if Lopu is asking me to, I would have no choice. But as it is, this is all just a rumor. Maybe once I’m formally invited I will make my presence known. Until then, this means nothing to me and we would all do well to ignore it.”
Leika walked away from her best friend with her head held high, but inside, she was quivering in terror. What kind of punishment would she receive from their leader if it was discovered that she had used magicks without proper authorization? It was bound to be terrible. But nobody had ever said a word about the things that happened to traitors. Even those who had been punished and returned acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. They knew the rules they were to abide and if they were broken, it was a matter settled privately.
When she arrived at her dwelling, Leika’s heart thudded in her breast. In the mailbox was an unmistakable summons to meet in the court of Lopu Mansana. Leika would have to be prepared to leave on the journey within twenty-four hours, when a team would be there to pick her up and escort her to the capital city of Rallah.
CHAPTER 2
Cherin watched Leika go, his heart constricting in pain. He wished that he could tell her how he felt about her. When people got summons to the capital city, they rarely came back. Lopu found ways to put everyone to work or punish them for whatever wrongdoing they had been caught doing.
Cherin frowned and ran his hand through his shaggy blonde hair. Leika hadn’t been particularly excited about the summons. It was more likely than not good news. Was there something she was worried about? Maybe there was something that she was hiding. But Leika was very independent, there was no way she would be willing to tell him what she was thinking. Especially if it was something that she was worried about. She would rather die than tell Cherin anything.
He grinned fondly, thinking back to their youth. The two had grown up in conjunction; diagonal huts across the street from each other. Their parents had been close friends back then, and whenever it was possible they were in one another’s back yards, telling stories and eating together.
When they were both around eight-years-old, Cherin’s parents moved and left Leika alone in the neighborhood. He had to undergo training as a Dragon Shifter warrior for Rallah, and had done everything that he could to keep in touch with her. But being pen pals and trying to dedicate his life to training took a toll, and they soon fell out of contact.
Fortunately, fate seemed to be in their favor and he never forgot Leika. When they were about thirteen-years-old, they came together again. Leika had been chosen as a Loni disciple and had moved to Rallah to undergo her own training. The ancients and mystics of Kaldernon led her in her studies as those with warrior blood led Cherin in his. The dark, tepid Leika was a force to be reckoned with, and quite a few students dropped out because they felt intimidated by her gifts.
Still, she found it impossible to make friends with the other Loni students, and had taken to having lunch with Cherin on a daily basis. Their schools were both centered in the Learning Gardens, the epicenter of Rallah’s bustling city and caddy-corner away from the Kaldernon Temples, where all legal matters were attended to and Lopu Mansana herself worked her days away.
Once they had finally graduated from their academies, Leika and Cherin had vowed to stay friends and never lose touch. But Leika was off on her own now. This time, she w
as leaving him behind.
He was excited for her, that much was true. With her jet black hair and unsettling purple eyes, everybody seemed to realize immediately that she wasn’t like other women. She seemed to be able to see right through you. Not only that, but Cherin and Leika had a secret. When they’d been in school together, they had shared everything they were learning with each other. Cherin was aware of Loni philosophies that most shifters weren’t allowed in on, while Leika’s physical combat skills had been honed thanks to personal training by Cherin. They learned everything together, and had kept it up well into adulthood.
Maybe Lopu had found out that they had violated the trust of the scholars by sharing the sacred knowledge with each other. Or maybe something else was going on.
Cherin sighed, stretching lazily in the late afternoon sun. He should probably head to the banquet hall to help his mother and father with the preparations for the evening’s feast. It was their turn to help prepare the meals, and if he wasn’t there, he would get an earful.
CHAPTER 3
That evening, Leika carefully braided her long, charcoal black hair and slipped on one of the impressively beautiful gowns that she had made for herself back in school. Creation was a gift that her people were particularly blessed with. How long would it be until she was able to create another dress? If she was to be punished, what would her punishment be? Would she be banished from everyone? From Cherin?
She couldn’t imagine having him out of her life again. The first time had been hell. Nobody had been her friend before Cherin, and nobody dared to be her friend after, either. Leika had always intimidated people with her fierce intelligence and quick wit. Everybody but Cherin found her to be some kind of a threat. She sang louder and more clearly than all the other neighborhood children, and she was also the most eager and willing to help in times of crisis.
It seemed natural that people were jealous of her, of course, but the resentment took a toll. People spoke ill about her behind her back and cursed her for her beauty, claiming that she tried extra hard to look nice just to get the attention of lonely shifter males who might favor her. Males like Cherin.
It did nothing to deter her or to abolish her easy confidence, but without an ally, things like that could really start to wear her down. Should she tell Cherin about what she had done for the drug addicted shifter from Earth? Or would it be in everyone’s best interest if she kept quiet?
When it came time to join the neighbors at the banquet hall, she sat heavily in her usual seat. She hadn’t put any extra effort into her appearance, but she could still feel people’s eyes on her as they passed. Many women resorted to snickering and gossip about her, but when Cherin sat across from her, his familiar, lopsided smile broadly lighting his face up, everyone else’s voices disappeared.
“So is it true?” he asked, unable to contain his curiosity. “Are you going to Rallah?”
She laughed.
“Why are you still wearing your apron?” Leika asked, her voice a quiet tease. “You look like you’re an old maid.”
“What, this? I hear it’s in fashion down on Earth,” Cherin said with an easy wink toward her. He didn’t care what he looked like and never had. He never would have had to care either. He had been born gorgeous and had never grown out of it. It was part of the reason that women gave her such a hard time. Everybody had their eye on Cherin. He was the pick of the litter, and nobody could believe that they were only just friends after all this time.
“Yes, there was a letter in my mailbox from Lopu herself. They’re sending escorts to bring me into the capital city in twenty-four hours’ time. I guess I’m supposed to prepare myself to leave before then.”
“For how long?” Cherin asked, a frown creasing his face. It was the first time Leika had seen him acting anything but happy about her opportunity to see Lopu Mansana in person. Could he sense her fear? Or did he simply fear losing a friend.
“I really don’t know. There was no indication on the letter. I have no idea what any of this could possibly be about.”
“Well, that’s a good thing,” Cherin said, laughing uncomfortably. He reached his hands behind his back and untied his apron. “That means you’re not in trouble.”
Leika looked down at the table, her purple eyes filling with tears. She was horrified by her powerlessness to stop them.
“Oh come on, it can’t be that bad!” Cherin said, taking her hand in his. She felt dwarfed by his masculine fingers, and despite herself, her heart thudded hard in her chest. She laughed at herself. If she thought too much about what everyone else thought about Cherin, she was at risk of falling under his spell too. But he was just another boy, who happened to be her best friend in the world. How could she be attracted to anybody who knew so much about her? They were practically family.
“I’m scared, Cherin. And I hate the world when I don’t have you to talk to. What if I’m in trouble?”
“What would they have reason to punish you for?” Cherin asked dismissively. “You’re probably going to receive some kind of honor or something. You should be ecstatic!”
“You know how much worse the women in Rallah are than they are here,” Leika said, looking Cherin in the eye seriously. “They’re going to remember me.”
“Don’t worry about a bunch of jealous bats,” Cherin said, his easy smile penetrating her fears and sending a sense of peace deep inside of her. “Everything is going to be fine. And if it isn’t, we’ll weather it together.”
Cherin squeezed her hand and she felt instantly better. Even if she got in trouble, she would have Cherin on her side. He would understand why she had chosen to help the drug-addled man in secret, and he would scare away anyone who tried to intimidate her after that too.
“Eat up, loves!” Cherin’s mother said, heavily setting wooden bowls full of stew in front of them. “Made with love.”
CHAPTER 4
Cherin couldn’t blame Leika for feeling afraid. He had the same feeling, and couldn’t keep himself from glancing at the clock, wondering when it was going to be that she was taken away from him. He was counting down the hours, his chest on fire any time he realized that in the near future, his best friend would be gone.
Cherin couldn’t stand the thought anymore. He had tossed and turned all night long without getting a wink of sleep, and suddenly he knew what he had to do. Carefully and quietly, so as not to waken his family, he packed a small bag and crept over the hill. He climbed a tree and decided to wait there until morning, when he would have full view of Leika being escorted to the capital city.
Cherin closed his light blue eyes for just a moment, and when he opened them again, it was daylight. The sound of horse’s hooves in the distance brought him to standing in the tree branch, and he used his extraordinary vision to watch as Leika was led from her home, clutching a bag close to her breast, her face paler than he had ever seen it, and ducked inside the carriage.
Two stout men in pretentious hats then shifted into their dragon forms and began to circle the area, making sure that it was safe of all potential predators. Sometimes, evils from other planets could be found lurking among the bushes, some harmless while others were downright evil, and they would take no chances while vulnerable and transporting precious Loni cargo.
Finally, the men determined that the coast was clear, and headed to the front of the wagon, where they ushered the horses forward. Cherin could almost physically hear Leika’s fear. He wouldn’t let anything stand in his way. He would make sure that she was okay, and even when she felt like she was the most alone she could possibly be, he would be there.
***
The journey was moving swiftly, but Leika couldn’t shake the nervous apprehension she felt in the pit of her stomach. Something bad was coming. She knew it but she couldn’t tell what it might be. She wished that she had been able to know more about what was happening to her. If Cherin was there, he would find a way to help her feel better. But he wasn’t. And she had no idea how long it would be before sh
e saw him again.
At around noon, the carriage came to a full stop and the drivers dismounted the carriage. One of them disappeared into the woods to relieve himself while the other rummaged through a basket. When he looked at her through the curtain in the carriage, she noted with some comfort that he was of Loni descent. This meant that he might be more receptive of her feelings.
“Would you like some lunch?” he asked, pushing a wrapped sandwich through to her.
Leika nodded.
“Thank you,” she said, taking the food. It felt almost like a peace offering, but she couldn’t let her guard down. If they were investigating her, she would have to appear to be as innocent and courteous as possible, no matter what happened.
“So you’re Leika Malu?” the man asked, his pale lavender eyes lighting up. “I’ve heard a lot about your accomplishments.”
Accomplishments? Maybe this was going to be a good journey after all. Still, it didn’t feel great to be summoned so secretively. There were a lot of things she hated, and surprises were probably the biggest.
“I suppose you’ve been to my school then,” Leika said, her crisp, musical voice polite.
“Of course, I’m a graduate myself. I was chosen by Lopu personally for this job.”
“Congratulations!” Leika said graciously. The man beamed.
“My name is Tolu,” he said. “But my wife, she’s from Earth, she calls me ‘Tiger’. I’ve never seen a tiger. Do you suppose you could help me to dream one up tonight when we make camp?”
“Of course. We might not even have to dream; we could try the fireside.”
“Really?” Tolu asked, delighted and surprised. “You must be more powerful than I thought.”
