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Chapter 61: Tana
CooperWell, Palila found her mate too, and Cedric is already making changes to the pack lands for Kenna and Tana.
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The Arena Chapter 62: Cedric
I love having Tana here. It feels right having her here, on our pack lands. When I take her upstairs, I show her our room, letting her know that she can change it any way she wants to make it more comfortable for her. Personally, I don’t care what our room looks like. It’ll feel like home if she’s here. I can see her looking it over, but she’s not saying anything. I’m not sure how to take that, so I take her to the next room in the hallway. “I was thinking this could be a nursery for our baby. I haven’t done anything to it yet, but I thought it would be nice if we could decide together how to set it up.” I had cleared out the room, purposefully leaving it empty. I want to make sure that I am just as involved as she is with this pregnancy, but I know this will be a new space for her and our child. Again, she looks around the room, not saying anything. I walk up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist and laying my chin on her shoulder. “What’s going on in that head of yours,
The Arena Chapter 63: Tana
Cedric makes a point of showing me around his pack lands the next day. He walks me to the perimeter and even carries me on his back after he shifts into his Lycan form. “See you’re a Lycan rider.” He says again, making me laugh. “Do you always walk around with no shirt on?” I had noticed that he only seems to wear shorts around here. He stops and looks at me. “I’m showing off my mate mark, Tana. I’m proud to be your mate, to wear your mark. It’s hard to see if I’m wearing a shirt, so I don’t bother. But this way, everyone knows that I’m yours, that I’m a dragon rider.” I don’t know why it surprises me. I guess I still have a lingering doubt that he sees me as a possession, but he doesn’t seem to see it that way at all. He’s proud to wear my mark, not just to wear the mark of a dragon rider. I pull him to me and kiss him deeply. His arms wrap around me, holding me against his strong body. “I said something right?” “Yes, you did.” I say, smiling at him. The rest of the weekend is
The Arena Chapter 64: Cedric
After talking to Ishir, there is no way that I’m leaving Tana unprotected. I don’t care that she’s a dragon. She can’t shift and she’s pregnant with my son. I also contact Bastian and tell him that he needs to put a 24-hour guard on Kenna. The conversation with Kenna went over about as well as I expected it to. She has been enjoying her newfound freedom and now I’m taking it away, or at least she perceives me as taking it away. It’s Tana that finds a way to get her to concede. “Kenna, these are the same people that shot harpoons into our wings and brought us to the ground. Both of us. Even if I’m there, I can’t shift. Avani, Kaylani and Zephyr may not get there in time and Cedric’s entire pack would die trying to save you. Do you really want their deaths on your conscience just because you wanted to fly?” I hear her sigh over the phone. “No, Momma. I don’t want anyone dying trying to save me, especially if I was being selfish.” “That’s my girl. You can still fly and when you do, ma
The Arena Chapter 65: Tana
If a war is coming, I need to be prepared to fight. I know Cedric won’t want me to, but that’s not how it works. I"m a dragon. We’re not easily defeated and we’re not fragile. Yes, we can die, but it takes a lot. Not being able to shift is definitely a disadvantage. One that I intend to remedy. “Kenna, I need you to do me a favor.” “Sure Momma. What do you need?” “I need you to take me to our family’s cave. I need to get one of our swords.” She looks at me for a moment. “Papa’s not going to like that.” “Your Papa will be happy to know that I have a way to protect myself and your brother even though I can’t shift.” “Maybe I should get one too, Momma?” “Yes, its about time you started learning other ways of defending yourself. Although, I’m not sure how that will work in your human form, but we can try.” Kenna flies me to our cave of treasures. “When you’re ready, Kenna, you can begin bringing your treasures here too.” I tell her. She diverts her eyes. “What?” I ask her. She k
The Arena Chapter 66: Cedric
"What's that?” I ask, staring at my mate. Did she just say she’s 70 years old? How is that possible? “I said, I’m nearly 70 years old, Cedric. Dragons live longer than humans and other shifters.” “But you look like you’re in your 20’s. Like me.” “Dragons stop aging once we get to our mid-20’s. So, until I met you, I could have looked like this for centuries. Avani is over 250 years old.” I feel like my head’s about to explode. When Tana said dragons live longer than other shifters, I thought she meant maybe fifty years, not hundreds of years. “Wait, you said until you met me, what does that mean?” “Your lifespan will extend past that of a normal shifter, but my life will only continue as long as yours does. A dragon cannot live without their rider. I don’t actually know, since I’m too young, but I don’t remember hearing stories of dragons living hundreds of years with their riders. So, I assume that my lifespan will be shorter than most dragons.” “How long can you have children?
The Arena Chapter 67: Tana
I’m digging through Cedric’s company financials when I hear the screeching of the kestrels. Both Jena and Palila had decided that as ranked members, they should take part in the patrols when they aren’t working. It gives them a chance to fly and also protects our borders. I may not understand what they are saying, but the tenor of their shrill chirping is very clear. Danger! I’m up and moving in an instant, grabbing my sword. It’s not ideal, I’m huge with my pregnancy limiting my ability to fight, but I don't want my pack and my daughter to fight without me. As I walk out, there are people running in all directions. Some are headed to the safe rooms, some are rushing outside. Warriors are shifting all around me as they make their way to the battle. I can hear Kenna’s wings and her scream of defiance as she lifts off the ground, ready to fight. I’m moving to step outside when strong arms wrap around me. “Tana, you need to get into a safe room. You are in no condition to fight. I won
The Arena Chapter 68: Cedric
The battle is fierce. I know this is Troy, even though I haven’t seen him. These creatures, there isn’t another word for them, aren’t natural. He’s created weird hybrids. No, these are mutants. My children are hybrids, this is something else entirely. It’s almost as if he tried to recreate mythological creatures but fell short. There’s a three-headed dog, or wolf, I’m not sure, a lion with bat wings and what looks like an attempt to recreate a dragon but in a smaller, much less beautiful creature. Troy's werewolf warriors come in with the harpoon. I watch as Kenna dodges the first two harpoons they shoot at her. While they are trying to reload, I attack them, ripping them to shreds and tearing the harpoon launcher apart. Kenna attacks the dragon wanna-be. It is no match for my daughter who blows her fire on it, burning it alive. I jump on the back of the lion bird-thing. It has wings but doesn’t seem to be able to fly. It’s almost as if the wings hinder its movements. However, it’s
The Arena Chapter 69: Tana
I have never felt fear like I feel right now. It’s not fear for myself. It’s fear for my unborn son. They have kept me strapped here, on this bed for days, weeks, months. I have no idea. There are no windows in this place. I have no idea what time of day it is, if a day has passed or if the time is moving more slowly than I realize. Troy’s chief laboratory technician comes in several times a day to draw fluids. I don’t care what they take from me, but the first time they stuck the needle into my stomach, I began thrashing, my fire burning off the paralytic. Troy was quick to inject me with whatever knocks me out and when I woke, I saw the bruises covering my stomach. I have no idea what they did, but my son hasn’t been moving in my stomach. I’m terrified that he’s dead. When the chief technician comes back in, I snarl at him. “What did you do to my son?” He ignores me at first, then turns to draw more blood, or whatever from me. “I asked you a question.” When he still doesn’t an
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