by Lucas, Naomi
One of them spots us and stops. The others turn to face us soon after. For a long minute, all we do is stare at each other.
“Milaye?” Ola, my eldest sister shouts. “Milaye! Is that you?”
Drazak tenses beside me.
“It’s me!” I shout back, suddenly dreading facing Zaeyr. He is only soft toward Aida and his children… If Haime didn’t make it…
I just realized he may kill me.
He may kill me. My heart thunders.
My sisters run towards us, and I step forward. They cry out and wrap me in their embrace. I hug them back—too absently—all too aware two alpha males about to clash. Waters! This is all happening faster than I expected. Two ancient predators are about to meet…
My misgivings are founded.
“A dragon dares approach my female!?” I hear Drazak blare. A roar erupts, and the sound of flesh meeting flesh follows soon after. One of my sisters screams, and I jerk myself out of their embrace.
Drazak is on top of Zaeyr, slicing him with his claws.
“Stop!” I shriek.
Zaeyr flips Drazak over, streaks his nails down Drazak’s chest, and bends one of his tails between his hands. There’s a cracking. The sound sends dread down my spine, and I dive between them. “Don’t hurt each other!”
“Milaye, stay back!” Drazak bellows.
I’m shoved away, a hand shunts against my chest, sending me backwards. I don’t know who’s. Limbs, tails, everything is flailing, obstructing my view. Ola catches me and helps me rise.
Zaeyr slams his fist into Drazak’s face—but Drazak jerks his horns forward at the last second. He spears Zaeyr’s hand. A harrowing, deep scream shakes me. My dread skyrockets when blood gushes between them.
“You have to stop! Zaeyr, he’s my mate!”
I want to lunge forward, to step in between again, but my sister holds me back. “Don’t!” she warns. “You’ll get hurt.”
“I don’t care. Drazak, he’s part of my tribe! No!” They’re tearing into each other, not even hearing me. I struggle in Ola’s grip.
Drazak throws Zaeyr onto the sand as the water dragon pulls his gored hand back. Zaeyr cocks his long, sharp white and blue horns forward.
They stop Drazak before he surges, preventing Zaeyr from spearing him with his own horns. An animalistic, horrid sound emanates from both of them as Drazak rises into a crouch, looking for an opening.
“Drazak, stop!” I implore. “Zaeyr isn’t an enemy.”
“He approached you!”
“He is already mated!”
Zaeyr growls. “You are rabid, dragon male.”
Smoke oozes from Drazak’s jewel at the taunt. Zaeyr’s eyes go to it. They narrow, and he bares his teeth.
The light around Drazak vanishes. His form wavers. “A male coming near my female is rabid. I will keep her! You have chosen death, snake.” He snarls and jabs his horns into Zaeyr’s.
Finally, I slip away, tearing out of Ola’s hold and pouncing on Drazak’s back. He tries to knock me off him, but I hold on.
“Milaye!” he growls, shooting to his feet when he realizes I won’t let go willingly. He thrusts us away from Zaeyr’s vicinity. “I will keep you!” he yells. “I will destroy him!” He tries to pull me into his arms, but I bring my legs up, wrapping them around his waist. He will not attack Zaeyr with me on him.
“Listen to me. Listen to me! He doesn’t want me. He has a mate, like you and me. He is human now too, see? We are not dragons. You are not a dragon anymore, Drazak. He is Haime’s father!”
I hear a scream, and Drazak spins around. Aida is running out of the jungle, and to my surprise—my relief—Haime is right behind her. Zaeyr rises and catches Aida in his arms. She lets out a sob that shreds me when she sees Zaeyr’s hand.
Drazak is tense under me, and I squeeze him tighter. He backs up, but I know he’s confused. Still, his form fades in and out of the darkness he continues to create.
“Milaye!” Haime shouts, seeing me. I want to run to her, to catch her in my arms the way Zaeyr caught Aida, to hold her close. But I’m afraid for Drazak.
“Stay back, little one!” I yell as she makes her way to me.
Zaeyr reaches out and pulls Haime into his arms, tucking her between him and Aida. I’m thankful and sad all at once.
Drazak snarls at Zaeyr, and the other dragon male snarls back.
“See, Drazak?” I lower my voice to his ear. “He has a mate, and children. He wants nothing from you or me.”
Drazak remains tense. So very tense.
Everyone is staring at us.
Another dragon male, I get it. They are rare, beautiful, and deadly beyond belief. They are everything to our tribe of females.
Zaeyr’s eyes sharpen on us. “You are right. I want nothing from either you, and especially a strange male of my kind,” he barks.
We have no relationship, but I’ve trained his daughter. Despite predicting it, his rejection stings.
“I told you we found a dragon, Father!” Haime quips, and I treasure the sound of her voice.
“So you did…” Aida inhales, staring at us, wiping her cheek with the back of her hand. There’s awe and something else in her gaze… Concern? Uncertainty? Fear? It worries me.
Drazak’s chest rises and falls, his breaths growing rapid. This time, when he tries to tug me into his arms, I drop my legs and let him. It allows me to get between him and my tribemates. That barrier might help him also.
“Drazak, please,” I whisper, cupping his cheeks to bring his face to mine. “No more fighting.”
“You didn’t tell me there were others like me,” he says, his gaze still locked with Zaeyr’s.
“I forgot. I truly forgot.”
Drazak’s eyes finally find mine. “I will not live with another dragon male,” he says.
I can see that now. It was idiotic to hope.
“Nor will I,” Zaeyr mutters. “He has proven he cannot hold his ground. I will not have an unknown alpha in my midst, one so near my offspring. My alliance with Kaos tries me enough.”
Drazak stiffens.
“We won’t stay,” I say, placing my hand on his chest and turning toward the others. “We came for Haime.” I look at my ward and smile sadly. “To make sure she made it out of the cave—”
“You touched him in a cave with my daughter in it?” Zaeyr snaps.
I flinch. “It was a mistake.”
“So, you risked my daughter and yourself. I had hoped that what Haime said wasn’t true.”
“She risked everything for your youngling,” Drazak barks.
“Zaeyr, this is Milaye. She would never risk Haime,” Aida warns, but Zaeyr speaks over her.
“I do not care! You have found your answers. My daughter is safe. Now you will go.”
Aida protests. “Zaeyr! The tribe is her home.”
I step forward. “No, Aida. I will go. This is all my fault.” I glance back at Drazak. “We weren’t going to stay anyway. I just needed to know… know that Haime was safe.” The half-lies come easily, but now that I’ve seen Zaeyr with Drazak, I know this is our best way forward.
But Ola interjects, “How did you get out of the cave? We went to the entrance but it was gone.” Her voice grows heavy. “We’ve been searching for you for days.”
“I—we—Drazak and I were hurt. The cave didn’t fully collapse, and once we recovered, we found another way out,” I tell her.
“Hurt?” Ola asks.
I shake my head, suddenly exhausted. “It’s a long story.”
“Did the boy make it out?” Haime pulls from her father’s grasp.
Aida and Zaeyr turn to their daughter. “What boy?”
“A naga boy.” I’m thankful for the change of subject. For good news, at least for Haime. But in the corner of my eye I see the sun hit the horizon line, a reminder of the coming night. “He made it out.” I manage another smile for her. “We left the cave together.”
Haime smiles back. “Where is he?”
“That’s enough,” Zaeyr orders. “We all have our answers now, and darkness is near. Haime!” He is stern. “Boy or not, it is time to tell the elders the news.”
I turn to Drazak.
“Milaye and—and her dragon will join us,” Aida states.
“They will not!” Zaeyr sneers.
“You are not the leader of us. The elders are. And as future matriarch, I will not turn my tribe’s sister away before nightfall, not when she has no supplies, has recently gone through a traumatic experience, and is hurt!”
“Female,” Zaeyr warns.
“Aida, it’s okay—” I begin.
“Enough! We have much to catch up on.” She scans me and Drazak from head to toe. “And I know you would never harm Haime. We all know how precarious she is. You will speak to the elders and tell us how you found each other.” She waves at us. “And have a cooked meal. A raw meal for you,” she says to Drazak. “When you are both rested, tomorrow we will decide what comes next.” When she is done, she turns to her mate. “She will need her belongings if she chooses to leave. I will not deny her all that is hers. This is Milaye’s home as much as it is ours.”
“Come, Haime, let’s head home,” Ola says and takes Haime’s hand. Aida, my sisters, and Haime start for the tribe. Zaeyr lingers.
I don’t know how I feel anymore. I press my brow to Drazak’s chest. There are claw marks all over it, and some of his glittering scales are broken. I’m pained all over at seeing him hurt.
“I’m sorry,” I say.
“We will not live together,” he says. I know he speaks of Zaeyr. “You should have told me.”
“It did not cross my mind until right before. Please believe me.”
“I believe you.”
“Do you want to find a place to camp for the night? There’s a cave nearby that is stocked—”
Zaeyr rumbles. “My mate has opened up the tribe’s borders to both of you tonight—to him.” He snarls again. “You will honor her wishes. It is the least you can do. I sense, Milaye, that you are with child. His, I presume?”
He holds up his wounded hand and begins to lick the blood from it, watching us, waiting for my reply.
Drazak growls.
Ignoring Zaeyr, I continue, “We can stay in the cave tonight, and then I will visit the tribe come morning to collect my things, say my goodbyes.” What Drazak wants is all that matters to me now. Not what Aida or Zaeyr wants. Not even what the elders want.
Haime is safe.
She is safe.
From this day forward, protecting Drazak and our family is my purpose.
This revelation lifts a burden from my soul. But it is replaced by another. Though at least it’s not as heavy nor as frightening as the last. It’s inspiring and hot. Like there’s a fire in me that was never there before. It bursts and flows, remedying my worries.
“Milaye,” he says, “I will not let you face tomorrow’s sunlight alone. As long as the wretch does not come near us, we will go to your tribe together.” Drazak’s voice is cool and surprisingly calm. “She is pregnant,” he growls to Zaeyr. “My human has strained herself much these last few days. We will accept your mate’s offering of food and rest, as I find is the human’s way.”
Zaeyr drops his hand and strides away, following after the others. It’s decided. My eyes grow heavy.
Drazak lifts me in his arms and follows after him. For the first time, I have no idea what my future will bring, only that good things await us. Sand’s Hunters or not.
I rest my arm on my belly.
Tonight, I can sleep with Drazak in the safest place I know: my hut. Where there are no bugs. My male will be with me in the home I built for myself, for the family I only daydreamed would come. Now that I am here, I can finally, finally rest. I have never been so tired.
It seems like I’ve been keeping myself going, and passing my limit, for days. Abruptly. Oddly, my stress vanishes. It’s strange but I don’t dwell on it. The fire in my chest expands, filling my limbs. Goosebumps rise from my skin. The last rays of the setting sun infuse me.
The fire wants to fill me up like Drazak has filled me. I let it, allowing it to soothe my soul.
I press my lips softly to Drazak’s skin.
He grips me a little tighter, and I let myself feel… good.
18
Drazak’s Nightmare
I cannot sleep.
I pretended for Milaye’s sake, but she fell into a slumber once the other humans started the fire. She dozed in my arms on the walk to her tribe, only rousing long enough to eat. I have never seen her relax so willingly but take it as a good sign, she trusts me.
Though I find it odd that she does not want to show me her home, or speak more than a few words to the other humans. Not even the little girl, Haime, can wake her enough to answer her tirade of questions.
Guilt nips at me. Is it me who she trusts… or is it the other humans?
I am taking her away from them.
I shake my head. It is for the best. I will ensure our nest is near enough that she can visit. Milaye was right about having younglings… I do not know how a human gestates, and if it is beyond my ability to help, I want her close to those who have done it before. Seeing Haime, and the other half-dragon children convinced me.
Do human females lay eggs like femdragons? I stare at the crux of my female’s thighs. Her sheath is soft enough for the delicacy of eggs, but it is also extraordinarily tight.
My prick bulges at the thought.
Though dragon eggs are hard and not easily broken, humans are not dragons…
For one, they can mate a lot more often with a lot more vigor. I grab my shaft, shifting it so it does not chafe the cloth wrapped around me. I am eager to bare her again, all the way to my root, but I do not have the cruelty in me to rouse her.
I will bare her for rutting when she wakes.
Zaeyr, the other dragon male, pervades my mind. My shaft softens thinking of him. Now that we have met, I sense him, feeling him in the way all alpha dragons sense other alphas nearby.
It is a mechanism to defend our territories—and our hard-won mates—from the theft of others. Rutting Milaye will be risky with Zaeyr around. I am sure of it.
But as the night deepens, and the raucous noises of the other human’s outside my mate’s hut lessens, I relax. I stoke our fire. One of the humans brings me slabs of raw meat, and I eat my fill, but no one else disturbs us.
Which is good, because I may snap at any time. I have already had to stop myself from lashing out whenever others near. I hear their breaths outside our walls, the crunch of their footsteps. Every sound puts me on edge.
Where are the thick terra walls to keep us safe? Where are the rocks and stones that block out the noise? Milaye’s hut is made of wood slats, reeds, and leaves, all under one large jungle tree. Not safe at all.
Not suitable for my mate, nor my younglings… If I were still a full-blooded dragon, I could curl around my human so she might be protected everywhere, but that is no longer an option.
And worst of all, I now sense a second alpha dragon, another besides Zaeyr. I do not know where he is, but he did not make himself known to me when we arrived. And I am certain Zaeyr does not live with another alpha in his midst.
There was a mention of Kaos… I shake my head, pushing the concerns aside. Regardless, the other alpha’s presence grows stronger as the night grows longer.
He will be mated too. I am sure of it. With this many females, he would have taken one to rut. Still, I will kill him if he nears my human. I will kill any male who nears her. My hand's clench. A male, a human one named Leith, gave me clothes, but he was smart and fled before I lost control.
My jaw ticks. There are far too many males here for my liking. Even one is too much.
I distract myself by studying Milaye’s belongings. It calms me for a time.
Her hut is round, and hides are draped upon every wall, across the floors, and around the firepit. Each from a jungle beast
far larger than my human. Her kills bring me pride, but fear as well—any one of these animals could have killed her before she came under my protection.
There are also weapons. Many of them, and I am curious about most of them. There are spears, some with multiple prongs, and others that are stunted. There are daggers made of bones and unidentifiable items carved from rocks or wood. There’s a bow—I know it is a bow from the times the humans of old attempted to use them against me when I neared their homes. I pick it up. With these memories, it is strange to hold it in my grasp.
Once I have scrutinized everything in my view, I pull some hides from the walls and begin collecting the weapons within them. We will bring these with us wherever we go.
My nostrils flare. There is a strange smell in the air.
Milaye moans. Sweat beads her brow, and her face is creased. My eyes narrow. I go to her side and press my cheek to hers.
Heat. Humid, deep heat rises from her flesh. It is not the heat of her arousal. I sniff her skin and a sickly sweetness fills my nose. The strange scent is coming from her. She moans again, and I lean away to study her.
Is she sick? My chest constricts. I find the plate she ate from and bring it to my nose. It is nothing like the smell from her.
If someone has poisoned her, I will obliterate this village and everyone in it. I will tear this jungle apart and all in my path. Terror would return to these lands, and Venys would fear the dark dragon who lost his mate.
I take a taste. I do not taste poison.
Regardless, something is wrong. I take her hand and squeeze it, finding it limp in my grasp. “Milaye?”
No response.
“Milaye?” I say her name louder. Still, no reaction. My stomach churns. “Milaye!” I tangle my hands into her hair and lean over her. “Wake up! Wake up, female!” I gather her in my arms. “Milaye?”
A banging raps on the door, but I do not respond. I press my cheek to my female’s instead.
“What’s wrong?” someone shouts.
Milaye’s breath breezes over my skin, whisperingly light. Moving one of my hands to her chest, I find the beating of her heart. She is alive, but she does not wake. I bring my hand back up to her face. “Milaye? Can you hear me?” I am overcome with dread. “Answer me, human!”
