Draekon Warlord: A SciFi Dragon Shifter Romance (Rebel Force Book 4)

by Lili Zander

  Danek

  “So.” Ruhan waves me into his workshop with a grin that bodes trouble. “I hear congratulations are in order. A bondmate, and I wasn’t invited to the ceremony? I’m hurt, Danek.”

  “Fuck off.”

  He laughs and moves some tools off a bench so I can sit. “Oh, come on,” he says. “Allow me my little pleasures. I’ve been working on jokes all day.”

  “Hmm. Let’s talk about dome safety checks instead.”

  “Why not both?” he quips. “Okay, fine. Dome safety is serious business, for obvious reasons. There are sensors that will detect a hull breach, but sensors are no substitute for manual checks. From what I’ve read about the House of Cindifin, they’re fanatical about safety. They’ll definitely notice if you skip the checks.”

  “I wasn’t planning on it.” Five hundred people fly into Noturn every three months to work in the mines. A hull breach could be catastrophic.

  For the next hour, Ruhan sets aside his jokes and goes over the various tests I need to run on the domes. I pay careful attention. Halfway through the extended lesson, a thought strikes me. “What happens if something goes seriously wrong?”

  “You comm me and I figure it out,” he replies bluntly. “I can’t make you an expert in the next six days. I’ll hack Cindifin’s security and set up a secure comm channel.”

  “That’s good.” I pack the equipment I’m going to need into a case. “The last thing I need on this mission is a dome that needs repairs.”

  “No,” he agrees, the glint in his eyes boding trouble. “A hull breach is the last thing you need on your honeymoon.” His smirk widens. “If you have any questions about human anatomy, I’m here for you.”

  Asshole.

  “Let me guess,” Kadir says, aiming an uppercut my way. “You volunteered for this mission so Dariux wouldn’t ask me. You do realize I’m capable of making my own decisions about these things?”

  I dance out of his way. We circle each other and I search for an opening. I land a blow on Kadir’s shoulder, but foolishly leave myself open for a hook to my jaw. Kadir pounces on the mistake. I snap my head back, and his blow glances off my jaw.

  My ears ring. I shake my head ruefully, and Kadir grins at me. “Too slow, Danek. Slacking off on the training, are you?”

  “I wouldn’t want to disappoint your fans.”

  His attention wavers for a second as he turns to look, and I throw a right hook. He sways back, just catching himself before he stumbles. “Too distracted, Kadir,” I rebuke. “Slacking off on the training?”

  Alice, who is sitting on the ground in a corner of the exercise yard, grimaces in sympathy. Kadir just laughs. “Nicely done.”

  Our friendly bout is a far cry from the fights of old. When the Supreme Mother’s minions trained us, we were forced to hurt each other. They called it training, but it wasn’t. It was pain, and if I didn’t inflict it on my brothers, the rathr would dig deeper into me.

  I don’t miss the old days. None of us do. The relentless drive for war, the constant battles, the screams of the dead and dying—I would leave all of those things behind in the past.

  There’s just one loose end. First.

  Mirak debriefed us after Hetov. First is convinced that he, First of the Draekons, is destined to be High Emperor. He believes he carries the Supreme Mother’s genes, and that gives him license to sit on the Crystal Throne.

  Before her death, the Supreme Mother had planned to use us to carve a path to the throne. Her plan was diabolical. She would incite a civil war within the Empire by convincing the Draekons to rebel, and while everyone was distracted with that, she planned to use us to cut a swath through the High Emperor’s elite guards.

  And I’d served as her unwitting tool. I’d convinced the Draekons that they needed to fight the tyranny of the High Empire. I made them believe that we were more than just soldiers. That we deserved the things the Zorahn preciously guarded—a life of our own, family, a home, a chance at happiness.

  But it had ended in disaster. The uprising had failed. The Draekons had been captured and killed. The Supreme Mother knew the time of judgment was upon her. She had fled, taking with her the six Draekons of the Crimson Force, her greatest creations. But she hadn’t managed to escape. She died when the High Navy fired on her ship.

  We had, however, survived. Locked in stasis, we’d been forgotten for a thousand years. Then, when we’d been awoken by Tarish, there was a new mission. A new rebellion. Of course. Everything changes, and everything stays the same.

  “I didn’t do it for you,” I lie, snapping back to avoid his fist. “I’m bored. Getting restless. Can’t stay around here forever.”

  “Hmm.” He ducks out of the way of my counterattack. “Why do I not believe you?”

  A movement distracts me. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Naomi emerge from the building, clad in a short pink shirt that barely covers her midriff, and tight grey pants that embrace the curve of her ass. Her shoulder-length blonde hair is tied back in her typical short braid. She sees Alice and gives her a cheerful wave.

  Thwack. The blow lands squarely in my midriff, knocking the air out of me. Kadir gives me a smug grin. “I pulled my punch, you know. Wouldn’t want to embarrass you in front of your new bondmate.”

  I straighten with a groan. “Not you too. Isn’t it enough that I had to listen to Ruhan this morning?”

  “Caeron, no.” He holds his hands up. “Alice and I are agog with curiosity. Come on. I’ll buy you a drink while you tell me how this came about.”

  Naomi and Alice jog in the direction of the compound gate. I gaze after their departing backs with a frown. “Are they going outside?”

  “Yup. They’re going to run on the banks of the lake.”

  “And you’re not going along with them?”

  He tilts his head to one side. “Let me see,” he muses. “I will tell my small but extremely fierce mate that I need to accompany her because I don’t think she can’t take care of herself. You’ve met Alice. How do you think that conversation will go down?”

  Valid point. I still don’t like it. If something were to happen to them…

  “You’re telling me you’re not concerned?” I know I’m being paranoid, but none of us is safe, not when First is still alive, hatching one lunatic plan after another.

  “We discussed my concerns,” he admits. “Alice pointed out that First could hardly land on Bestea without the Rebellion noticing. There was an argument. Well, many arguments. We agreed to a compromise. Ruhan has tracker drones on them.”

  “Armed tracker drones?”

  “Of course.” He raises an eyebrow. “Your concern for Alice is touching. Or is it concern for Naomi Knoll?”

  “I believe you said something about buying me a drink,” I reply, dodging his question. “Let’s go.”

  Most of our food on the base is synthesized, but there are also five commissaries scattered around the grounds where real food and drink are served. Kadir and I end up in the one on the top floor of my building.

  Kadir sets two glasses of cold beer on the table and sits down. “I hear Naomi is coming with you to Noturn. How did that happen?”

  “Dariux came up with the idea of me being a safety inspector. Raiht’vi pointed out I wouldn’t be able to pull off the cover. Then Naomi walked in.” I shake my head in bemusement. “Before I knew it, Dariux was suggesting she act as my bondmate. Then he said something about younglings? I don’t even know. None of it made any sense.” I drain half my drink. “Noturn is safe for humans. But after what those rogue scientists did to Naomi…” I finish the rest of my beer. “I don’t think she’s ready for a mission.”

  “Talk her out of it, then. You can get anyone to do anything.”

  “No.” I look up at him. “I talked Koval into rebelling and look what happened. No more. I will not get anyone to do anything. If Naomi insists on coming, so be it.”

  Kadir leans forward, his expression concerned. “Mirak said you didn’t listen,�
�� he says quietly. “I was hoping that as time went on, it would sink in. First was responsible for the uprising. Not you. You didn’t cause their deaths, Danek. You’ve been carrying this guilt for years.” His lips twist wryly. “If we count the time we spent in stasis, you’ve been shouldering this burden for a thousand years. But it’s not your fault. This was First’s plan, hatched in concert with the Supreme Mother. You are not responsible for what happened to them.”

  I don’t want to discuss this. Not with Kadir, not with anyone.

  Our glasses are empty and in need of a refill. I push myself to my feet, seizing on any excuse to escape this conversation. “What news of First?” I ask when I return, hoping to change the subject. “Have the spies been able to track down his location?”

  Kadir knows I’m changing the topic—he’s not stupid. He eyes me for a long moment, and then lets it go. “No,” he responds. “There’s no sign of him. I don’t like it.”

  “Tarish is hopeful that he’s given up.”

  He laughs bitterly. “If only.” He sips his beer, staring into the distance. “I don’t have a good feeling about First. We have to find him, and we have to take the fight to him. All of us. Together.”

  Kadir is not the only one uneasy about First; I think we all are. “I’ve agreed to go to Noturn, and I’ll keep my word. I’ll find out if Cindifin is allowing the High Empire to build their prisons there, consequences be damned. Then I’ll come back, and the five of us will search for First.”

  And when we find him, we will kill him. Because as long as he is alive, the universe will never be safe.

  We finish our drinks and take our glasses to the recycler. “Oh, by the way,” Kadir says casually, as we head out the door. “About Naomi.”

  “What about her?” I ask warily.

  “You should take her out. Get to know her.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” he asks, his voice innocent. “You’re supposed to be bonded. What happens if someone asks you what her favorite color is, or what she likes to eat? You wouldn’t have a clue. You’d blow your cover in the first knur.”

  “Hmm.” He’s obviously baiting me, but his words still make sense. I might have sat at Naomi’s bedside for more hours than I can count, but I don’t know anything about her.

  Not true, a voice prompts. You know the way her lips taste. You know she smells of elgrol flowers and dokate fruit and something else that’s uniquely her. You can still feel her breasts mashing against your chest, her arms wrapped around you, her brown eyes clouded with desire...

  “You have a week before you leave for Noturn,” Kadir continues. “It makes perfect sense to spend time with Naomi. Get to know her. Practice being a couple. Make sure you don’t jump like a startled karvil the first time she touches you.”

  I grunt. Her kiss had taken me by surprise, this much is true. But I did not jump like a startled karvil.

  Well, maybe a little.

  “Like you said yourself, you want this mission to be a success. The sooner you sort out what’s going on on that planet, the sooner we can look for First.”

  “Is this some kind of game that the four of you are playing? Ruhan offers to give me sex advice, Caeron forbid, and you’re telling me to go on a date? What do Mirak and Sixth have in store for me?”

  He looks like he’s trying hard not to laugh. “No need to get offended.” He looks out of the window, and his face breaks out into a smile. “Ah, Alice and Naomi are back from their run. I have to go. See you tomorrow?”

  “Sure,” I reply absently.

  Can I fool everyone on Noturn into thinking that Naomi and I are bondmates? Probably. Will it be easier if we’re more comfortable with each other? Yes. Definitely.

  Gah.

  5

  Naomi

  It’s the first time I’ve run outside the rebel compound. It’s a beautiful day, warm and sunny. The purple sky is wispy with clouds, and the air has a hint of a breeze to it. Alice has told me that the trail we’re taking is alongside a lake, and as we run, I can see flashes of blue through the tall leafy trees.

  And for the first mile, I don’t notice any of it, because my brain is stuck on the first person I saw when I emerged into the yard.

  Danek.

  Shirtless Danek.

  Sweaty, muscled, half-naked Danek.

  “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Alice calls from over her shoulder. She’s familiar with the trail and is therefore leading the way. “This place almost reminds me of home.”

  Purple sky aside, I see what she means. It’s the woods. They remind me a little of Sunkhaze Meadows. Will’s parents owned a small cabin on the north-western edge of the wildlife refuge, and every summer, the two of us would spend a week there, hiking during the day, swimming in the icy cold river, building a fire at night and toasting marshmallows on the flames.

  “It even smells like home. Pine and moss and…”

  “The smell of the ground just after a rainstorm,” Alice finishes. “Oh good. It’s not just me then. Dor came running with me once, but she didn’t smell anything. I was starting to think I was losing my mind.”

  I’m the one teetering between sanity and a breakdown, not Alice. Still, I guess it’s progress that I don’t give voice to that discouraging thought.

  We do a complete circuit around the lake, and then stop for a break. I pull my water bottle from my pack and take a long drink. Alice drains her bottle and refills it from the lake. “The water’s potable,” she assures me, seeing the dubious look on my face. “Don’t worry, I’ve done this before.” She rummages in her bag for a protein bar. “Did I hear correctly? You’re going on a mission with Fifth?”

  Ah yes. I figured she’d find out about my momentary attack of insanity. “Mm-hmm.”

  She surveys me thoughtfully. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  Goodness, no. I’d laid awake half the night wondering what on earth had possessed me to open my big mouth and volunteer. When I wasn’t yelling at myself for my bravado, I was kicking myself for kissing Danek. “Why?” I stall, not wanting to admit to second thoughts. “Do you think I shouldn’t go?”

  “I’m not you. You’re the best judge of what you’re ready for.”

  “There’s a ‘but’ in there.”

  She chews on her bar. “You have black circles under your eyes,” she says after a long pause. “You don’t like to talk about it, but you’re not sleeping. The nightmares haven’t gone away, have they?”

  There are a handful of human women in and around the base. Olivia was one of the ten women on the Fehrat 1, the first spaceship that took off from Earth. That ship crashed on a prison planet, but the women were taken in and sheltered by Draekons. Dor was abducted from Earth, but she was rescued before she could be tortured.

  The two of them don’t know what it’s like to be strapped down and hurt.

  But Alice knows. “Have they for you?” I ask her.

  “Mostly.”

  I give her a teasing smile. “Because you found love?”

  She rolls her eyes. “Because I’m dragging my ass to therapy every week. I’m letting the healers do their job.” She plucks a blade of yellow grass and rolls it into a tight spiral, her forehead furrowed. “Having Kadir around helps, I can’t deny it.”

  “I still have them,” I whisper. “The nightmares. I thought they’d fade. I did the psych eval. I saw the therapists. I did everything they said.” None of it has helped. “I’m fine. Like you said, I probably just need something to do.”

  She looks stricken. “That’s why you volunteered for this mission? Because I told you that you needed routine? I didn’t mean—”

  “I know you didn’t,” I cut her off. “This isn’t because of what you said. It’s because…”

  It’s because Danek didn’t think you could do it, and you need to prove him wrong.

  I should take that tangled mess of an insight to a therapist and let her unravel it. “I just need a change of scene. Dariux
came by last night to give me more details about the assignment. Noturn is perfectly safe for humans; Danek is more likely to be in danger than me.” My lips twist. “Maybe this will be the space vacation I was promised.”

  “On a mining colony in the middle of nowhere. Yes, that sounds delightful.” Her lips curl into a sly smile. “You’re going to have to pretend to be married to Danek.”

  You’ll need to pretend to be my bondmate, Naomi, he’d said, his voice dipped in sin and wicked temptation. Do you think you can handle it?

  My cheeks flush. “I can play the role. I’ve been married before.”

  Alice sees my blush; she’s not blind. But to my everlasting gratitude, she doesn’t question me about it. “You’re right about one thing. Noturn will be safe. Kadir’s building weapons, Ruhan’s working on comms, and Mirak’s plotting navigation routes in case Fifth runs into trouble. And when Sixth finds out, he’ll do all of the above.”

  “They are? Why?”

  She gives me a surprised look. “You don’t know?” She smooths out her blade of grass. “You are aware they’re Draekons, right? Dragon shifters?”

  I nod. I haven’t seen Danek in dragon form, but I’ve seen dragons in the distance, and I’ve learned enough about the politics of the Zorahn Empire to know that Draekons are persecuted, hunted, imprisoned, and tortured for their abilities.

  “And you know about the Crimson Force?”

  “What?”

  “Oh, this is weird. I feel strange talking about this. Okay, Kadir, Ruhan, Mirak, Danek, and Sixth—they were the original Draekons. They were made in a lab. Engineered to be the perfect soldiers. Strong, powerful, almost invulnerable.”

  My mouth has fallen open.

  “They didn’t have any family by birth,” Alice continues. “They are family by choice. Brothers, bound together by ties far deeper than blood. You will be perfectly safe on Noturn, because you will be with Danek, who is more than capable of taking care of himself. And if something goes wrong… Let’s just say that Danek’s brothers will move heaven and earth to protect their own.”