It's about to get spicy!
AjaxI gather food to take to the mountain, asking the servers if they can pack it in a flight-safe bag. Since there are so many of us who have a dragon form, they’ve created insulated bags that keep food hot or cold during flights.While I wait, I look around, saying hello to friends. I notice that there is a lot more growling from the dragons tonight, probably because the elves all have that covetous look in their eyes. That’s how it always is when an elf claims a dragon, even if that elf is a hybrid. It’s the same with the werewolves, but they have the packhouse where they eat. Here, we’re stuck with the arrogant elves after a claim.“Going somewhere, Ajax?” one of the elves asks as he walks up to get food.“None of your business, Nesterin,” I say, more unfriendly than usual. The dragon in me doesn’t want to be claimed any more than a true dragon does. And since I have Avani’s DNA, I have quite the aversion to being claimed.“I hope to one day know what it feels like to ride on the
I had no idea sex would feel this good. I mean, I trusted Ajax, that’s why I gave myself to him. But everything I ever heard is that the first time is painful.‘I healed you as quickly as you tore, probably faster,’ Phoenix says, giving me pause.‘You healed me?’‘Of course. I didn’t want you hurt and I knew once I called to Ajax’s dragon that he would answer.’‘What did happen?’ I ask, just as Ajax lifts his head, propping his head on his hand as he looks at me, rubbing the area above my chest that is sore.“I submitted to you,” he says, looking up at me. “I’m your dragon now. No one can ever claim me.”“But you said ...”He shrugs. “Phoenix, care to explain?”“It was mutual submission,” she says. I frown, what does that mean?“Yeah, what does that mean?” he asks.“Wait! You can hear my thoughts?” I ask him.He smiles his gorgeous, breath-taking smile. “Yeah, I can. My smile is breath-taking to you?”I bite my lip and nod. “Why can’t I hear your thoughts?”‘Are you sure you can’t?’ he
We spend some time talking to the others and Kano gets me some clothes that cover Phoenix’s markings on my body. For now, I’ll have to wear my shirts tight around my throat and down past my elbows. At least I can wear shorts, long shorts, but I can wear them.“I’m assuming you’ll want your own living quarters now?” Kaylani asks.“That would be preferable. You know how difficult it is to be apart from your mate,” I tell her.“Well,” she says, looking at my Dad. “We do have those rooms on the first floor. We can move the two of you into one of those until we can talk to Cedric about having his wolves build you a house. You’ll need to choose where you want your house,” she says.“I have some ideas of places that I want to show Emmi,” I say, smiling at her.“If you don’t think you can spend a night apart, I’ll make sure the room is made up for you tonight and you can move your things tomorrow,” Kaylani says.I look at Emmi. “It’s up to you. Is it too soon?” I ask her.I smile as she blushe
I’ve just about finished packing up my room when Kenna strolls in.“What the hell is going on with the ... What the hell are you doing?” she asks me, taking in all the bags.I smile at her. “I claimed Ajax.”She stares at me for a moment, then closes the door slowly. Rather than be excited, she looks concerned.“How did you claim him?”“Well, I’m not sure.”“Phoenix? How did you claim him?”“Mutual submission, fire dragon.”“Mutual ... what they fuck does that mean?”“Hey baby, are you ready?” Ajax asks walking in without knocking. “Oh, sorry Kenna. I didn’t realize you were back.”“You’re claimed!”“Yep. OH and since you know, look at this!” he says excitedly, closing the door and ripping his shirt over his head quickly.Kenna’s mouth drops open, then she turns and looks at me. “And I thought fire dragons were possessive,” she says, walking up to look at him. “Is there even a spot on your body that ISN’T covered with her image?”“It’s just on the front,” he says, smiling in a way that
I was in the kitchen of my home, the home I share with my mate, our two adopted daughters and our four children, when I felt something shift inside me.Instinctively, I turned to look in the direction of the hatching grounds just as Ancalagon bellowed.“MOM! Iniko is hatching!”“Go, Zeph! I’ll take care of our kittens,” Ishir says to me.I turn and look at him and I know he feels my excitement mixed with fear. He stands from the table where he’s feeding our youngest child, Lyra, and walks over to me. He cups my cheek with his free hand.“Iniko needs his mother, Zeph. Go to him. It will be okay. I’m right behind you,” he says.“Can we come, Mom?” Nova asks me.“I need your help, Nova, you and Brooke. I can’t get these four over to the hatching grounds without you,” Ishir says, giving me the excuse I need to race out to see my son on my own. My mate knows me well. If my daughters were with me, I’d focus on them, not Iniko and he needs my undivided attention at the moment.A wave a guilt
Having been part of Ancalagon’s life when he met Iniko and then watching Iniko give his life for Eliane, it feels surreal to see Iniko break through his glass shell and make his way into this world again.I also know how difficult it was for Zephyr to lose Iniko. After finding that the egg she’d originally thought was dead had hatched, even if it was by Oliver and his father rather than in a natural environment, she’d lost him again.I think all of us fear that Iniko will be born with his memories from before, all the pain, all the heartache, all the frustration. I hope not. He deserves to have a better life this time.‘Phoenix says he won’t remember anything,’ Emmi says in my head.I look at her. ‘How does she know?’‘She says ... she says that she erased his past, all of it, so that he could have a fresh start.’“So it was you,” I say out loud, wrapping my arms more tightly around her.“Yes. The air dragon has suffered enough and so had little Iniko. He gave his life for the one he l
I take every bit of love that my mate is giving me and return it with just as much passion. At first Emmi fought me, but then she realized that he needs this. He needs to feel like he can save us.I’ve shared with her what happens in nearly every lifetime, but I won’t share it with him. I don't want him to know that my mates have always tried to save me and that is how I end up dying. By trying to save me, they put themselves in harm’s way and I give my life to save theirs. Sometimes it works and I can save them, sometimes it doesn’t. But every time I’ve met my mate before the battle, it’s been because they gave their life for me that I ended up giving my life for them.The other thing that I won’t remind Ajax of is that most of my mates are dragons. Since the dawn of the dragons, I’ve been mated to them. They are the only creatures strong enough, magical enough, to be mated to me.So, I open myself to his love, to his need, and to his desperation that I not give up on him, on us.I do
What are the odds? What are the fucking odds that my son gets his second chance at life and on the very next day, the assholes who captured him and tortured him are here? It’s too fucking coincidental and I don't like it.‘Peace, my dragon,’ my mate says, soothing the fury that’s rising inside of me. I can feel her walking this way, probably in response to the anger bubbling inside me. ‘Let’s see what they have to say for themselves.’“You have a lot of fucking nerve coming here after what you did,” Cedric growls. For once, he and I are in perfect harmony.“I won’t let you kill him. You’ll have to go through me,” the earth dragon hybrid says, moving to stand in front of the fire dragon hybrid.“You may carry my DNA, but you’re still part human. I, however, am all dragon. It would take nothing for me to destroy you after what you did to my son,” I snarl.“Look,” the man, the rider, says, holding up his hands. “We didn’t know what they were going to do. We didn’t understand, and we didn’
After the trials, things mostly went back to normal. We had a new group of students arrive, replacing the ones who had died in the war, which included a new group of elves and werewolves.Ajax was walking me to class one day when Nesterin stopped us. He had been very vocal about the double standard for claiming dragons since Phoenix claimed Ajax. But, he wasn’t one of the ones who left. He also wasn’t one of the elves who was constantly putting their name in to claim a dragon one after another, which Kaylani finally stopped. She said it wasn’t a ‘fight until you get lucky’ claiming process. You either had to have a valid reason to want to claim the dragon, or you were their fated mate.The elves had become even more frustrated by that, saying that there shouldn’t be qualifications on claiming a dragon. If you can survive the claiming process, you should be able to put in as many claims as you want. To which, the Elementals replied if that was the case, then death would be allowed back
** Trigger Warning: ViolenceThe day after Emmi and I found out she was pregnant, Tesha approached us.“Hey, Tesha. How are you?” Emmi asks her. We’d both heard that she had miscarried because of the war.Tesha has always been very strong, but very compassionate. Personally, I think she makes an outstanding dragon because of her inherent nature.She shrugs at Emmi’s question. “I’m not sure how you can love and miss someone that you didn’t even know existed until after they were gone. But I still feel the loss and so does Fen. Thankfully, we have Cyra who makes everything a bit easier. I heard, however, that you have wonderful news. Congratulations,” she says, even though her eyes have filled with tears.“Thank you,” Emmi says, hugging her tightly.“And how are you feeling?” Tesha asks her.“Better. Well, much better now that we know that Phoenix is still here in some way. Ajax and I were definitely struggling with her loss,” Emmi says truthfully.“I honestly don’t know how I would sur
I’m pregnant?I turn and look at Ajax. “We’re going to have a baby?”Ajax stands, holding me in his arms and spinning me in a circle. “We’re going to have a baby!” he shouts before his mouth covers mine. I return his kiss as happy tears stream down my cheeks.When he finally releases my mouth, he puts his forehead against mine. “We’ll all be one big, happy family, Emmi. You’ll see,” he says. I put my hands on his face and realize that he, too, is crying. We’ve both been so devastated by losing Phoenix that this is almost too much to hope for.“Dad,” he says, pulling away and looking at his father who has moved away to give us a few moments of privacy. “What’s next?”“I’d like to do an ultrasound. I’m curious about why Phoenix’s fire isn’t getting close to your belly, Emmi. It’s like there’s a protective layer around the fetus. I’d like to see if I’m right about that and if so, if there is any cause for concern during your delivery.”“How long will she be pregnant, Dad?” Ajax asks.“We
I woke to an empty bed. Not just empty, the bed where Emmi should have been laying was cold. Terror ripped through me. I’ve lost one mate. I won’t survive losing another.I raced around the house, calling her name, yelling for her. When she wasn’t there, I’d raced outside, wondering if somehow the witches had come back, if they’d found Emmi and planned to punish her because of Phoenix.I was on my way to wake Cal, to beg him to help me find her, when I heard her call my name.Relief swept through me and I rushed through the forested area to where I’d heard her voice, only to see her standing in the middle of the old medical center engulfed in flames. Phoenix’s flames.“Emmi, are you okay?” I ask, looking her over quickly.“I’m fine, Ajax. What does it mean?” she asks me, looking at the flames on her body. For the first time, she doesn't look afraid. She seems excited to be engulfed in flames.I have no idea, but there’s something else that doesn’t make sense to me as I look her over.
Life slowly started getting back to normal. After Kenna forced me to start getting up and interacting again, I realized how much had truly happened while I’d been mourning the loss of Phoenix. The entire Academy was in a state of mourning.After everything that happened with Phoenix and the hatchlings, I felt a special bond to them. I started going to see them the day after Kenna dragged me out of bed. Raina was thrilled to see me, nuzzling me with her snout. I learned the names of the other four dragons that were there as well, Gemma, Blaze, Skye, and Azure; earth, fire, air, and water. All dragons seemed to be named after their element. Even the hybrids, like Ajax, chose names that relate back to their element.I stay close to Ajax and he seems to feel the same need to be near me. Our grief is still overwhelming, but we’re finding our way out of it together. I didn’t realize how much I’d miss Phoenix if she were gone, but I do.There’s a hollowness inside of me, a vacancy that I kno
It took me a while to realize that the chaos in my mind wasn’t me, but Zephyr. I could hear voices, but I couldn’t tell if they were real or the ones in her mind. Until I heard Kaylani. Her voice was clear and gave me the clarity that I needed to realize that Zephyr’s demons have returned while I’ve been unconscious.“Where is she, Kaylani?”“She was going to look after Ancalagon’s hatchlings while he’s here.”“How long have I been out?” I ask, sitting up.“Three days. You need to stay there,” she says, turning her head to the doorway. “EVERETT!”“Zephyr needs me. You said so yourself,” I grunt. My head is spinning and I feel like shit. “What happened?”“What do you remember?” Everett asks, walking in and lifting my face to look at me. He flashes a light in my eyes that makes my head pound worse.I snarl and Everett goes still, but so do the voices in Zephyr’s head which brings the pounding in my head down to a manageable level.I hear Zephyr bellow from somewhere outside. “I wasn’t s
Three Days LaterThere is so much pain, so much loss. I’m overwhelmed by it, but I have to keep going. The students here, those who are left, are depending on me.Yhendorn, Kenna, Merethyl, and Avani have taken all of the dead elves back to their troupes for a proper burial. Cedric and Tana have taken the dead wolves back to their packs to be burned so their ashes can return to the Moon Goddess’ realm.Tonight, the dragons and hybrids will lay Sena and Dion to rest. They hadn’t been with us long enough to learn how to fight and use their elements and they had been the casualties on the dragon and hybrid side of this war.I walk to the nursery, checking on the young. There are so many of them and they are all frightened, especially since their parents have been gone so much lately.Aithne, Ehrendil, and Daijaro are struggling the most. All of them are under three. Their dominant gene isn’t dragon, which makes their development slower. Tana, Cedric, Merethyl, and Avani have spent every
As soon as we had the coordinates from the warlock, we raced to find Phoenix and the hatchlings. I’m not as large as Ancalagon or even Avani, but my mate is there and I pushed my dragon to speeds I’ve never achieved before.Ancalagon arrived first, slamming into a wall of magic. Avani hit it too, but I was able to pull up before I crashed into the invisible wall. Tana and Kenna both stopped and when Ancalagon roared his fury, we all started using our elements to attack the wall of magic.While Avani and I made the earth rumble, Tana and Kenna blew their fire at the wall. Ancalagon began dropping tornados, pulling water from the ground and splashing it up to where Tana and Kenna are heating the wall.When the first cracks start to form, Ancalagon yells for all of us to get back. We do and Ancalagon stands in front of the wall, then spins, slamming his giant tail against it. The wall explodes, shattering around us.We all shift then race inside. I lift my nose, trying to find my mate’s
I knew Emmi wasn’t ready for my power, but we couldn’t wait any longer. Her fear had flooded through the bond between us, then burned off with my fire. There is no room for fear now. The witches are here and it’s why I am here.While the others were fighting, I’d been protecting the babies. Each time one got sucked into the tunnel, I would fight to pull them back out. But there were a lot of witches trying to get to the babies and I knew I hadn’t pulled them all back.When I saw the powerful witch who had been fighting with Zephyr take off running, I knew she was going to close the portal. I had screamed my anger and gone after her, burning through the remains of the tunnel so the dragons could get to the witches that I hadn’t gotten to yet.I could hear the screams of pain and fury all around me, feel the pain of the others as they fought to protect the hatchlings and each other. This Academy, this place, has become a home to many of these dragons and hybrids who had no where else to