by Maia Starr
“What? Who are you? Why are you here?” I asked.
“I am called Veiras,” he roared. I was shaking at this point. Then he continued, “I am here, looking for your king. I am here to kill him. It was the perfect plan. I’ve even taken care of the guards outside. No one would be able to come help him, and he would be forced to fight me. But since he is not here, you will do.”
My eyes widened, and I ran off to the side of the room. I was so scared and looking for cover but how could I hide? I tried to open the door, but it was locked. I looked back at the dragon. The belly of the beast was growing a warm yellow color and then white. I knew what was coming. I banged on the door, “Help! Help me!” I screamed. But there was no one there to help me. Then the dragon opened its mouth to shoot flames at me. I closed my eyes waiting for my burning fate to arrive.
WHOOSH! I felt the wind hit me, but it was not hot wind. The squealing roar of pain hit the air. I opened my eyes to see a massive blue dragon standing between the fire and I. It was being burned. I was in complete shock. It squirmed and cried out in pain, but it took the flame. I ran to the side of the room outside of the target of the flame. The blue dragon screamed and charged straight to the flame and rammed the red dragon. The red dragon screamed, and they both toppled off the edge of the chambers into the dark of the night. I ran to the rail. I saw the blue dragon on top of the red dragon just as the red dragon hit the ground.
“Noooo!” Cylo shouted as he ran to my side. I could barely see what was happening, but I could see that the red dragon and blue dragon had transformed back into the their male Draqua forms.
“Are they?” I asked.
“Dead. That is what happens when a full dragon dies. It shifts automatically back to human-like form,” he said. He was completely distraught, and tears were beginning to roll down his face.
“Cylo, what is it?” I asked.
“The blue dragon, that is my father,” he said.
“No. No, no,” I said. I couldn’t believe it. The king was dead. Cylo was in despair. This was the worst night on Kelon in history, and it was my first night returning. I felt so much guilt that Cylo was off getting me on Earth instead of being here. Perhaps he could have prevented it if he had stayed.
“He saved me. Your father saved me,” I said.
“What? What happened?” Cylo asked.
“I was here, just where you left me, and the red dragon landed on the outside. He said his name is Veiras then he said he was searching for the king to kill him. Since the king was not here, he said I would do. He shot fire at me, and I closed my eyes, expecting to die. But then it did not happen. I looked up to see the blue dragon standing in the way of the fire, protecting me from it. Then the blue dragon rammed the red dragon over the rail,” I said.
Cylo smiled. He was suddenly better as he said, “That sounds like my father. I would have done the same for you. He was doing it for you and our child. He died protecting the future of this house,” he said.
“I am so sorry, Cylo,” I said.
“I am too. I have lost my brother and my father. This is unlike any pain I have ever felt,” he said.
“Come, let’s go down. I cannot leave you again. You will remain at my side. The battle is over, but the opposition still has secret support, and its assassins like Veiras,” he said as he picked me up into his arms. He spread his wings wide, and we flew down to his father.
It was a sad night, and no one got any sleep with so much work to be done and so much melancholy around. It was a night that I was glad to be at Cylo’s side. He was showing such bravery, and he was keeping the order of the village, and watching him do it was breathtaking. But I also knew that being at his side during his time of need was helping him as well. It was a tough night to get through. “I am glad you are here at my side. I need you. I need your strength, Melody,” Cylo whispered to me throughout the night as he dealt with blow after blow of the aftermath of the battle and the death of the king. It was good to hear it from him. I wanted to be there for him, and I knew that we could get through this together; we had to for our unborn child. But as much as I understood his position as prince, nothing prepared me for the next morning.
“With this sunrise on this new day, we crown Cylo Hydros the new king of Kelon!” the advisor shouted as I watched him place a gold crown with shells on it onto Cylo’s head. My lover and alien dragon shifter warrior was now the king. It was a lot to take in. He raised his fist in the air, and the entire village gathered on the beach saluted him. It was a very powerful moment, and I looked at Cylo with new eyes. He was brave, strong, and he was going to be a damn good king. His heart was in the right place. I had to admit that watching him get crowned was a big turn on and I could not be more excited to see what great things he would do with his crown’s power.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CYLO HYDROS
Four months after the battle, the village was rebuilt. There wasn’t a lot of structural damage to deal with but there was a spirit that seemed to be broken. There was now a mistrust in the air that had not been there before the opposition invaded. But I was doing what I could keep on top of any problems.
“I can’t believe this is where you were sleeping the whole time that I was in that small hut,” Melody teased.
“Yes, you said so when you first came into my chambers. And you’ve said it again every night since,” I teased her back.
“Well, I’m just saying,” she said. She winked at me and then blew me a kiss. “That one is just for you, husband,” she said.
“Thank you, wife,” I said.
We had been married for more than three months now. After the battle and so many deaths, we decided to wait a month to be married, and we’d had a grand celebration that lifted the spirits of the Draqua warriors.
“I must be going now, wife,” I said as I got up and moved to the veranda. I shifted, and my wings curled out from behind me.
“Yes, my king,” she said. Then she stood up and rubbed her belly. It was now a bump that was not easy to hide. “We will be waiting for you when you return.”
“Yes, my queen. I shall return,” I said.
“You always do as promised,” she said.
I kissed her belly and then I flew off the veranda and out to sea. I had a destination: Kila. I landed on the sand where my brother had died for his beliefs. “Baca! Jix! Tell me the news,” I said as I landed.
We were still using the island to meet. It was our private place where we could speak freely.
“It was just as you said. There are remnants of the opposition party alive and well. We tracked them to a planet that I had never heard of before. Jix and I went there to see for ourselves,” Baca said.
“What is the name of the planet?” I asked.
“It is Tiok,” Baca said arching a brow at me.
“That is where I was shot down,” I said.
“Exactly. There is something going on there. We need to stay on top of it,” Jix said.
“Yes, exactly. Tell no one what you have found. It is better that they don’t know we are on to them,” I said. “Good work, you two.”
“Here is the list of those that we saw or heard were on the planet Tiok,” Baca said as he handed me the list.
“We must hope that the numbers do not grow beyond this,” I said.
“Now what should we do?” Jix said.
“We keep an eye out, and if there is evidence of activity, then we strike. I do not want to wait around. That was not a good thing last time.”
“We will inform you as soon as we know,” Baca said.
“And also if you see any visions,” I said, making it clear I wanted to know what he saw even if he did not think it was significant.
“Yes, now go enjoy your queen,” Baca teased. I left their side and flew back to the village to continue my duties as king. I don’t know why I ever gave my father a hard time in doing my responsibilities. I rather liked taking care of the Draqua. It was something that I took great pride and honor
in.
But when I finally looked at the list, there was a name on there that sunk my heart. I could not believe it, and I knew that I would have to deal with this in person.
“But you promised not to leave me again,” Melody said as I told her that I had to leave Kelon for a few days.
“I know, but this is very important. If I don’t take care of this now, there will be another uprising, and I can’t have that. I need to take care of it now while the opposition is in recovery mode. I don’t want you and our child to ever be in danger again,” I said to her.
“I am leaving you with, Jix; there is no one that I trust more. I promise that he will watch over you. If you are frightened while I’m gone, stay in the chambers. I will be back. I promise. Don’t I always come back to you?” I said.
“Yes, but now you are leaving the planet,” she said.
“I know but—”
“I know you must go. I will be brave for the both of us” she said rubbing her belly. “I will be strong for the Draqua here,” she said.
“No one must know that I am gone. Jix is going to cover for me and say that I am very busy with the rebuild, handling plans inside my chambers. You must stick with that story too,” I said.
“I don’t like the way this sounds. I’m starting to get scared. Exactly what are you getting into?” she asked.
“I am going to Tiok,” I said.
“Tiok! We almost died there. Why are you going back there?” she asked.
“There is someone there that I need to see. It is very important to the future of all Draqua,” I said.
“Just try to stay away from that lake,” she said.
“Yes, I remember. I will stay away from there,” I said. I kissed her goodbye and Baca and I were on our way to Tiok. I could not believe that I was searching for a traitor that my father considered to be his most trusted advisor.
“Where are we?” Baca asked as we landed the ship on the rocky cliffs, the same cliffs where I had made love to Melody.”
“We are outside the village of Pacu. It is west. See that lake over there?”
“Yes,” Baca said.
“Stay away from there. There is a creature that likes to pull you into the water, and he also comes on land,” I said.
“Noted,” Baca said laughing.
“From here we will fly into the village under darkness. I know my way. You ready to follow me?” I said.
“Yes. Let’s do this,” he said.
“I don’t know how prepared I am to look him in the eyes, but I know it is what my father would want me to do,” I said.
“Yes, I think so too. I think you are doing the right thing.”
Baca and I flew to the outskirts of the village. Then we took on large cloaks and pulled the hoods over our heads. Now we blended in with all the other aliens in the area.
“This way,” Baca said. “We saw him this way last time.”
I followed him to the center of one of the many markets. “That is why humans and aliens should not mix! It is not what was intended for any of you! Mixing Draqua with alien will kill off all the Draqua! The hybrids are young and indulgent. They know nothing of self-sacrifice!” a familiar voice shouted as the crowd cheered him on. I went to the back of the crowd. Baca looked at me. I looked at the speaker that had the attention of a few Draqua and more diverse aliens than I had ever seen in my life. The Draqua that was giving the speech was the reason that I was here. It stung to see him up there. He was betraying my father, and he probably had been doing so his entire life in service to my father. The Draqua was Candris. He was my father’s right hand and my father had sent him to an outpost to work for him. I wondered if he had just vanished from the position or was going between his post and this post to run the opposition. Now it all made so much sense. I looked at Baca and nodded. Baca disappeared to deliver my message. When we were done, we waited on the cliffs by the lake with the monster.
“Cylo! I am surprised to see you here, son,” he said with a smile.
“And I am surprised that you can betray my father the way you have. It was you all along, wasn’t it?” I sneered at him.
“Yes and no. Your father was a good king, but it wasn’t enough. Then the opposition appeared, and I shared the same views, so it was only natural for me to take control of that group and turn it into something big. I knew the most about your father and the kingdom, working with him all those years, and I knew how to bring it all down.”
“Well, you failed, Candris. The kingdom still stands, and I rule over it,” I said proudly.
“Does it? Your father is gone, and your brother turned on you.”
“Shit! Now it makes sense. How could you do it? You were like a second father to us. You are the one that got to Greia. You convinced him to believe what you wanted him to believe!” I shouted at him.
“Yes, it was easier than I thought it was going to be. He was of a weak mind. He was very jealous of you, but he did love you. It took time to make his jealousy overshadow the love, and when it did, he was ready to be taken over. I was going to have him overthrow the king and then I would join him at his side and eventually get rid of your brother too,” Candris said.
“Why? Everything is going so well in our village and on Kelon, and we should not have the fear that you have brought upon us,” I said.
“I did it because of the humans, Cylo. The humans do not have a place with us. You do not know them like I do. They are ruthless. When they discover our existence and that we have been taking human females, they will retaliate, and their retaliation will destroy all of Kelon.”
“The humans?! There is nothing to fear there. They do not know of our existence.”
“No, but they will, and you will be the reason for it. That is why I must stop you, all of you,” he said. He pulled off his cloak, and he shifted into a purple dragon. I threw off my cloak and Baca and I both flew in opposite directions. Candris came after me. I zig-zagged all over the place as he shot streams of fire at me. Candris was an older and stronger dragon. His range was very far. “I know what I am going to do with you,” I whispered to myself.
I lead him to the side of the lake on the shore, the same shore where the monster from the lake had grabbed me. I faced the lake and landed on the sand. I backed up away from the lake. Candris landed in front of me as I slowly walked backward.
“This is the end for you, Prince Cylo!” he shouted. His dragon voice was thick and harsh. He was one of the few elder Draqua that could speak while in full dragon form.
“It’s King Cylo now!” I shouted to him.
“Not for long,” he shouted. He took a step toward me. Boom! The ground shook. I looked at the pebbles that shook on the ground. This was a good thing. Boom! He took another step.
“Say goodbye, Candris. You will hurt me and my family no more,” I said.
The dragon let out a hearty laugh. But then… Whoosh! Large tentacles wrapped around the purple dragon. In seconds the dragon was being crushed in the lake serpent’s jaws. Then the creature dragged the dragon into the water. I flew up into the air as soon as I could so as not to be its next meal. I flew straight up to the cliff where Baca was waiting.
“What the hell was that?” Baca said.
“It’s an old friend,” I said.
Boom! Bam! “What the hell?!” I shouted as I saw a ship get into range and shoot at us. “Go! Hide!” I shouted as we flew quickly into the rock and hid in the brush.
Boom! Our ship was blown to pieces. Another ship landed on the cliffside. Three Draqua emerged. They were looking for Candris. I looked at Baca. He whispered to me “If we don’t take care of this now, then they too will be a problem later.”
I nodded yes to him. We waited until the Draqua were close. Then “Aah!” we charged at them. A full fight broke out.
“Why are they not shifting?!” I shouted at Baca when I got close enough to him as I flew by.
“I don’t know,” he said. We fought, and we fought hard, until there was only one le
ft. The Draqua threw its blaster gun and threw its hands in the air.
“Get on the ground!” I shouted to it. The Draqua laid on the ground and Baca and I flew to it, landing on the cliffs.
“What is your name?” I asked.
“Yeqit,” it said.
“Why did you and your friends not shift? It is a much fairer fight that way,” Baca asked.
“Because we can’t shift,” he said. Baca and I looked at each other stunned.
“What do you mean? Do you mean you cannot shift into full dragon? Are you hybrids with humans?” I asked.
