by L J Andrews
More mages and dragons had come to watch. Aunt Liz hadn’t blinked and was watching with unbridled fascination at the battle of fire.
“The High Priestess always has a way out of a problem,” an older mage with peppered gray hair said at my side.
“How can she control so much energy at the same time?” I marveled. “Ruby and Athika connect with fire energy, yet they are having a hard time taking control.”
The mage chuckled. “I have yet to see a power or energy Gaia cannot match. Bron is her only fear. She nearly lost herself when he overpowered her and locked her behind the walls.”
“But she never gave up?” I pressed.
The mage grinned sadly, watching as Athika took back the upper hand, but Gaia pressed her hands on the ground, and more fire from neighboring sconces spread around her wrists and palms. “She did for some time.” The mage dabbed at her eyes at a sudden wave of emotion. “That day—when the warriors and Teagan found us—when Thane shouted her name, we all felt the tremble through our prison. I’ll never forget Gaia’s response. By then, most days Gaia stayed inside her own space—reflecting on the past, I suppose. I had the pleasure of being near her when she heard his call.
“If only Bron could have seen the power burst from her face—he would have trembled where he stood and slit his own throat to save him the pain. Such fury raged against his prison. It lightens my soul to watch my High Priestess now. She is restored.”
“She can defeat Bron,” I insisted with a sense of pride.
The mage sighed. “That is my hope. But Gaia is no fool. Her energy is not the same as it was before the divide. She will need the power of her son—of Thane. We all will need whatever energy we can take. Especially if the Prince of Night speaks true. I’ve felt evil in my life, but if Bron has truly warped his power, I can only imagine the darkness in his soul.”
There was a blanket of dread wrapping around my shoulders as I listened, watched, and studied every move Ruby and Athika made. Though Ruby and her mage fought valiantly, in the end Gaia was victorious. I was impressed and reminded myself Gaia was fighting for us. She was powerful, but in this exercise she’d played the part of Bron. She’d won. Bron’s focus would be on Gaia and Teagan. Undoubtedly. If he was the one being who could bring concern to Gaia, would their next meeting end as it had today? Would Bron’s power, his corruption, the fire stone, be enough to destroy what had taken years to restore? Joining them in the den, I worked with Gaia for several hours on using what connection I had with the earth to build defenses. I tried not to abide my fears, but they were there. They were always there.
Fiery light spread across the rocky ledge as the sun faded in the distance. I hugged my middle, watching with brimming excitement as they returned. My heart thudded in my chest, and I found myself forgetting I was supposed to show Teagan my frustration at being left behind. When he jumped from Thane’s shoulder and scooped his arms around me, I forgot everything I had ever wanted to say.
Burying my face in his neck, I breathed him in. “What’s happened to you?” I gasped, inspecting bandages wrapped around his forearm.
He chuckled and winked at the mage who’d joined them. “Bianca stabbed me.” My eyes widened, but the flash of anger ceased when Bianca snickered and shook her head as she went by. “Blood of Sapphire’s mage was required to get the stone. Since I’m the one who promised to protect him, it fell to me.”
“That’s sort of brutal,” I gasped.
“It was awesome—like a horror movie, but one that ends happy—so I guess not really like a horror movie,” Mitch interjected, slapping Teagan hard between the shoulders.
“I think you’re liking all this a little too much,” I chuckled, nudging Mitch’s shoulder.
He nodded without an ounce of shame. “That, I am. Come on, I’m starving. Thane said we get a feast! To use his exact words.”
Mitch rushed after Raffi, who was coated in a sheen of sweat from the rapid flight. I smiled, but any pleasure faded quickly when I scanned Teagan’s face. He wasn’t intending to reveal anything was the matter, but I saw it in his features. “What’s wrong?”
He smiled, the blue in his eyes pale like the spring skies. “Come with me,” he whispered, his mouth finding my ear and jaw.
I didn’t need much convincing.
Teagan wrapped his arms around me from behind when we stepped behind the quilt that was our only barrier to privacy. His body was warm and his hold desperate, as though we’d been parted for weeks once again. I closed my eyes and sighed, melting against him as his soft lips trailed along my neck.
“You are detracting from my question,” I breathed. “Don’t think I’m falling for your methods.”
“Really,” he murmured against my skin, the strength of his arms holding me tighter. “Then why aren’t you stopping me?”
I chuckled, my fingers tangling with his along my middle. “I said they were distractions, I never said I didn’t like them.”
He laughed and kissed my hair before releasing me and unsheathing the two swords on his back. “I figured you’d be angry, so I had grand plans to seduce you into forgiving me for going without you.”
I sighed, creeping along the quilts and padding used as the bed. “I had every intention of being angry.”
“But…” he grinned, sprawling on his stomach next to me, his fingertips sparking something to life in my chest when they brushed my cheek.
“Don’t think you’re off the hook, Teagan Ward,” I grumbled. “It’s just, I rather like you—so seeing you sort of dissolves anger.”
“Hmm, I like that idea. I can get away with a lot, then,” he teased, brushing his mouth against mine.
Pressing my index finger over his lips, I shook my head. “Oh, no, I wouldn’t go that far. Remember, I am a fire-breathing dragon.” He laughed, bringing his mouth to mine. The kiss was breathless, but much too short. Trapping his face between my palms when he pulled back, I studied him. “What’s wrong, Teagan?”
He smirked, wrapping some of my golden hair around his fingers. “Nothing is wrong, there’s just something I need to tell you. But it has to stay between us. No one can know.”
When Thane said a feast, he meant a feast. I felt like a royal, except no one was left off the table. And no one singularly prepared the feast. Ruby had stood by Onyx, gathering fruits and meats. Raffi and Dash had eaten half the bowl of jerky before placing it on the table. Thane and Gaia had stood shoulder to shoulder, slicing, mincing—everyone in the cave was equal for the night.
Warriors and mages laughed—shared memories of battle, or of their adventures before the divide. Mitch and Aunt Liz answered questions along with asking many. I leaned against Teagan’s shoulder, breathing in the sweet night. We did not have many moments where calm embraced everyone. Even after what Teagan had told me, and the nerves it jabbed along my spine, I felt calm.
After a long while, Thane stood from his place. His booming voice shook the space, and silence dissolved all the conversations.
“We had success today,” he said, nodding at Sapphire, who held up the blue stone. The table roared, and thrilling energy burst from each mage. “We know what is to come, but today we should have hope that we are not going into this fight defenseless.” Thane nodded at Raffi, who immediately stood, along with Onyx and Sapphire. Ruby slyly glanced at Amber, and I suddenly felt very cut off from my fellow royals.
Thane smiled, his eyes drifting toward Teagan and me. “We have something else we’d like to do—just to make this day even sweeter.”
Gaia’s brow furrowed and she nudged Teagan, who was trying to stifle his smile. “What have you two hidden from us?” she whispered.
“Just wait,” he replied.
I turned over my shoulder when Sapphire stepped back into the dining cavern. Onyx and Raffi had wide smiles. Thane cleared his throat and took what Sapphire was holding in his own hands. “At the divide, you all know I was tasked with hiding the elemental stones. With help, they were hidden. We took a blow
when the fire stone was recovered by our enemies, but I’m confident there will never be another opportunity for them to take it again.” Thane glanced at Gaia, and I caught a glimpse of his hands. He seemed to be holding some sort of necklace.
“I told you I hid the stones, but I must confess something,” he spoke so softly to his mate I hardly heard. “I did not hide them all. There was one…one I dared not take from my sights. Then when you were taken from me—I kept it even closer, hoping someday I could find a way to use it to bring you back to me.”
Gaia smiled gently, but seemed as confused as I felt. “Thane, what are you talking about?”
His eyes drifted toward me, and Teagan stood. It was a necklace, I saw it when Teagan took it from Thane.
Thane took Gaia’s hand and looked to me when Teagan stepped behind me. “My queen, we—all of us—would like to give you this. It was made from the metals of your father’s sword he bestowed to me before his death. But, since you are the queen your parents would be proud to call their daughter, you should take back what rightfully belongs to the throne.”
I gaped at Thane, then my eyes finding Sapphire. Now, I saw how all the four remaining royals beamed. They all knew about this. Teagan wrapped the necklace around my neck. The table was silent. The chilled gems and metals sent a thrill along my skin, but there was a shocking power that embedded deep into my heart. Glancing down, I was breathless. My lungs simply did not know how to work. In the center of the necklace was a gleaming emerald, cut and polished to the finest quality. The power that whispered from the depths of the gem was all-encompassing. Everything from the skies, the forests, the deserts radiated. I clutched the gem, my body trembling with its energy. “The jade stone,” I whispered.
Thane nodded, but it was Gaia who clutched at the emerald, her shock written in her golden eyes. “How…how did I not know you had it all this time?”
Thane took his place back at her side. “Your bond was severed, I suppose you couldn’t sense it the same.”
“Why have you waited this long to give her the stone?” Gaia muttered.
Sapphire chuckled. “Blame Ruby and Amber. Thane wanted to give it to her the moment we returned after finding her, but they insisted it look better—according to them.”
“Well it did need to look better. Now, she can always keep it with her,” Ruby muttered. “It was Thane’s idea to use your father’s sword. That just made it amazing.”
“You are the queen, Jade,” Teagan whispered. “You rule over the elements; it’s fitting you should have your crown, in a way.”
I wiped at my eyes, feeling an overwhelming confidence locking into my spirit. “You don’t know what this means,” I said to the table. “We have one more stone to retrieve. We will defeat Nag and the dark High Priest!”
Warriors shouted their agreement while the mages slammed their goblets along the wood. I believed the words I said. The radiant strength from rejoining with the jade stone, holding the hand of the jade mage, and my ascension to the throne was palpable.
“I helped make it, Jade!” Mitch shouted from down the table, pointing to his head.
“He made the clasp,” Raffi muttered.
“I said I helped,” Mitch shoved the warrior, sending the pair into a new demand of duels—though Raffi still had to face Mitch with the knives.
After more time had passed, Thane stood again. This was the part I’d expected, and my stomach plummeted. The table quieted once more. Thane took a deep breath, and I sensed he was just as concerned. “There is one final thing. This decision was not made lightly, but we must better understand our enemies. Consulting with all five royal bloodlines, it was decided unanimously.” Thane paused, and Teagan gripped my hand tighter. I didn’t want to find his face, but I had to know. Tao and Leoch were several chairs away from me. Leoch smiled innocently, but Tao’s smile was fading as Thane spoke. “We are going to allow our lindworm prisoners to live among us. In the cave.”
Most warriors didn’t know how to react. There was silence, which turned to groans, which turned to questions, then onto a few protests. After a few offerings from Thane, Sapphire, Onyx, even Amber, the room’s energy complied. Warriors nodded their agreement, the mage seemed prepared to defend everyone against the unseemly guests, but there was one face I couldn’t drop my eyes from. Tao swallowed the drink in his goblet in one gulp before his dark eyes locked on me. There was no respect—no, there was only disdain.
Chapter 16
The Mage
The breeze was warm and breathed freshness into my lungs. Though the cave was high in the cliffs, the pure scent of melting snow and new life budding along the mountainside was refreshing. Spring would be welcome. I knew the warriors wouldn’t complain if the temperature in their frosty cave rose. Dragons were always warm, so a little chill could soothe the blood, but frostbite didn’t suit wyverns in the least. I could understand—my blood constantly felt like it was at a slow boil. Having Thane as my father answered that phenomenon easily.
Even with the beauty of the day, there was a heavy mood settling around the mouth of the cave. Warriors stood stalwart in an unbreakable wall, each clutching tight to deadly weapons. The mage huddled behind Gaia a ways off. I watched Donovan as his sour face pulled into a pucker, and his fingers danced at his sides like an old western show-down. How could I blame them? The lindworms were coming.
Prince Ced seemed thinner than the last time I saw him. His hands were still bound in front of his body. Raffi and Dash led him toward the mouth of the cave, their faces unreadable. A handful of elemental warriors led the remaining lindworms. I didn’t understand why the prince was bound when Magnus, Laina, and the others were free to move about—well, small distances between the lock of warriors holding them under close watch.
Jade stood tense at my side. I knew she hated this. She stood firm in her convictions that there was nothing untrustworthy regarding Prince Ced. True, there hadn’t been any trouble with the lindworm prince since his arrival, but I couldn’t shake the tremble on the back of my neck that there was something wrong with trusting him. No, it wasn’t because I was holding a grudge against him for putting Jade in the sights of his twisted father. Maybe it was a little.
“Why the sudden change of heart?” Ced grumbled with condescension. I thought he was talking to Jade at first before realizing his dark eyes were locked on me.
Raffi tried to tug him toward the cave, but Ced jerked his shoulder and squared himself to me.
I scoffed, trying to appear as indifferent toward the prince as possible. “How better to study our enemies than to have you close by? You’ve heard the saying, right—keep your enemies close.”
Ced’s expression shadowed like a dark storm. For the first time, the prince seemed angry at our lack of trust. That’s what I wanted, right? I wanted his true thoughts to roll through his mind. Then I would know why the idea of the Prince of Night shot a jabbing pain into my chest.
There was a shift of nerves back inside the cave when Raffi released Ced’s bindings under Thane’s command.
“This is risky, man,” Mitch mumbled next to me.
“Is he…is that the one who took Jade?” Aunt Liz breathed, her gentle touch rolling over Jade’s arm.
“He was,” Jade answered plainly. “Though I am one of two, I think, who believe the prince is not the enemy we want him to be.”
Jade stormed off, but not without a blast of her frustration filling every valve in my heart.
“Just so you know, there’s no more room with me, Raffi, and Dash,” Mitch chuckled, watching Jade’s retreat. “So, you might be sleeping with mommy and daddy, like the widdle boy you are.” Mitch ruffled my hair, and I shoved him hard enough he bumbled over his feet. We both laughed, watching the lindworm warriors settle silently around Prince Ced.
“Jade’s fine,” I muttered. “She just wants us to trust him. It will be fine.”
“Do you trust him at all?” Aunt Liz asked.
I shook my head. “Nope,” I growled.
“I’m not sure there’s anything that could make me trust a snake.”
The weather was too nice to spar indoors. Throughout the morning and into the afternoon, warriors filtered in and out of the cave, brandishing weapons and seeming lighter for the first time since the decision for houseguests was made. To me, the only thing that put a gray cloud on the day—the lindworms were stretching their wings in the distance. I wasn’t the only one who felt threatened when the dark dragons took their true forms—Leoch, Tao, and a dozen other elemental warriors plodded about, keeping a fierce eye on the prince and his army.
A silver blade brushed past my ear, the force of it causing me to startle back to focus.
“Wake up, dude. You’re insulting me,” Mitch pouted.
“Sorry,” I offered, rolling one of the jade swords in my grip.
“I never get to spar with you, and you’re not giving it your all. Let it be, Teagan. The prince isn’t going anywhere.”
I scoffed, watching the towering sails of ebony skin raise to the sky. I could practically sense the desperation to take flight in their lindworm hearts.
“Let’s get a little closer,” I suggested. “Show them what you can do. Right now, the snakes just think you’re a human pet.” I chuckled at the way Mitch’s cheeks boiled in red fury. “Prove them wrong.”
Mitch didn’t need much convincing, and soon we were tromping toward the edge of the rocky cliffs, each clutching our weapons tightly. I’d learned to recognize Magnus, Ced, and Laina. The other serpents I didn’t know. Laina had large eyes, and her scales were smoother—softer even—than the shards of jagged glass on Ced and Magnus. Her heart still ached, but being free for the first time in weeks brightened her spirit—I could feel it rush through my veins as we passed.
