Chapter 1: In the Beginning

8 years ago…

Cliff looked around the trail. He could smell her. He didn't know where she was exactly, but the scent was overwhelming him, lilies and champagne, the scent of love. The urge to find her, to mate with her, was almost too strong even for him, a Kreil.

It was said that Kreil is the strongest tribe, but today his strength was being tested.

He wanted her. No, that's not quite right. He didn't just want her.

He needed her.

Where did she go, why couldn't he find her?

He was hiking a trail along the border to Daikon. The undergrowth and the evergreens of the mountains blocked his view as he made his way toward the dragon kingdom. That was when he caught the scent. Was she a dragon? Is that why he hadn’t found her yet? Was she here, hiding in one of the other kingdoms?

He knew he should keep on the trail and follow it to the castle but the urge to follow the scent was so overwhelming that he found his feet veering off the path into the woods. It was as if they had a mind of their own. 

His basest instinct was to find her, to capture her. He had spent so many years searching for her already and he had come up empty. He had longed for her. So many nights, he drank away the ache that filled his chest, the hole that left him gasping for breath when he woke. He wanted her more than he had ever wanted anything else in his entire life. It was in the very fiber of his being, the desire to find her and claim her. 

His mate.

He followed the scent and after a few minutes, he heard a noise up ahead on the trail. Not wanting to be seen, he ducked behind a cluster of evergreens, peeking through the branches to see who was up ahead.

It was a group of five dragons. He could tell by their look. Dragons had unique hair and eyes, they tended to be different than shifters, more vibrant. There was a girl with golden, pink hair and deep blue eyes, another with shockingly bright blue hair and deep brown eyes, almost black. It was the last girl that caught his attention though. She had blond hair, simple blond hair much like many of the shifters in Elail.

But, her eyes. Her eyes were the deepest purple he had ever seen. They were mesmerizing. The sun glinted off the lake and its rays covered her in a shimmer of glory. It was as if the sun knew it was in the presence of perfection, it could do no less than highlight what the rest of the party and Cliff could see. She shone through the dreary mist surrounding the lake, her vibrance blinding.

She was amazing. 

In his daze, he forgot his purpose as he walked through the trees toward the girl at the lake. The dragons were making camp, getting ready to build a fire and pitch a tent. One of the men said something amusing and the blond laughed, throwing her head back in laughter before she tensed, her hand coming up to rest on her neck as if she couldn't catch her breath. Her entire body was frozen, whether in excitement or terror, Cliff couldn't tell.

Cliff stepped forward cautiously, almost mindlessly. It was as if his brain had processed the scene without active thought. He couldn't tell you what he was doing or why. He just followed his instincts.

She smelled him. He knew she could. He stopped walking and stared at her, watching as she turned quickly to face him. She let out a gasp of surprise, her mouth opening slightly at the sight of him standing there.

He stood and watched.

She stared back.

It could have been a minute or it could have been an hour but finally one of the other dragons interrupted the scene.

"Must be her mate," the blue-haired dragon said in a soft whisper to the girl standing next to her.

"What's your name?" Cliff asked, his voice soft and soothing as he stared at the beautiful blond standing in front of him.

Her eyes went wide and she shook her head slightly before she turned, shifted, and flew away all in the blink of an eye.

He watched her go and turned his confused gaze toward her friends.

"What's her name?" He asked once more.

"Who are you?" A loud, imposing voice spoke as a tall, dark-haired man stepped toward Cliff in a protective stance.

"My name is Cliff Prior, I'm the ambassador from Elail and that woman that just flew off is my mate." He said, exasperation trickling in as he spoke. "What is her name?"

He let out a sigh as he turned to look at the man standing in front of him.

"My name is Bram, I'm part of the king's guard. He is expecting you," Bram said with fiery eyes.

"If you don't tell me her name, I will-" Cliff started before Bram interrupted him.

"What? You'll what? Try to fight us? It's four on one, you won't win," Bram said with a stern face.

"No, I'll tell your king that you were violating treaty rights by keeping me from my mate," Cliff finished with a haughty look.

Bram and Cliff stood staring at each other, sizing up the other as neither moved an inch to accommodate the other.

Finally, the second man standing behind Bram stepped forward.

"Ambassador," he started. He held his hand out for Cliff. "My name is Theo. I am the head of the king's guard. The dragon that just flew away? Her name is Fiona. She is a cousin to the king. I think it best if we head to the castle to talk to the king. He will want to know what happened here."

"Indeed," Cliff said sternly as he shook Theo's hand and shot an angry look toward Bram. 

"You'll have to excuse Bram, he is protective of Fiona. They're close friends," Theo said as he gestured forward toward the trail. "I have an impleva just up the trail, you can ride it and I will fly back to the castle. It'll be faster that way."

Cliff nodded, his mind still on the girl that had flown just out of grasp a few short minutes ago. He turned to look at the tiny dot in the distance. He could barely see her, but there she was. He finally knew who she was and where she was.

Fiona. His mate.

---

Fiona stared at her cousin. He was the king and he had summoned her to the castle but she had come back because she loved him and she trusted him, not because he was the king and he had summoned her. He would understand. And yet, he didn't. Or, maybe it was that he wouldn't.

"Fiona, you have to go to the shifter's Hunt, it's the law. I can't physically force you, but if you refuse you risk war between Elail and Daikon. Your mate is a shifter. He's in Elail and he is expecting you at the Hunt next year," Neil spoke to his cousin. He loved her more than he could say. Their fathers were brothers and they had grown up together in the castle, protected in the bubble surrounding the royal family.

Reality had never been a part of the royal family, they lived in the realm just outside reality. A beautiful realm of magic and enchantments, one where childhood dreams were so fantastic that there was no choice but to make them come true. And that is what their fathers did, they catered to their children and made their every dream come true.

Until now.

Their fathers had long since died and they were forced to lean on each other through the rough times. This was a rough time.

"I won't be mated to a shifter," Fiona said with venom. She shook her head as she paced back and forth in front of Neil's desk. "You know what they did to Marial, how can you ask me to go and join their kingdom as if there was no bad blood between us?"

Her eyes glistened with tears of fury. She wiped them away angrily as she continued to pace and throw her hands into the air in frustration.

"Fiona, the man that you met, your mate, he didn't hurt Marial. It was another shifter, one that we were never able to catch. It wasn't Cliff. You can't possibly hold another man's sins against your mate just because they share the same heritage. Isn't that what we fight for here in Daikon, too? For acceptance? For understanding?"

Neil pleaded softly with her, trying to make her understand.

"It doesn't matter. I won't do it. You can't make me," Fiona said petulantly as she shook her head furiously. "I refuse to go. I would rather die than be mated to a shifter."

"Be reasonable. Death can't be the more appealing option," Neil said gently as he stepped in front of her and pulled her into his arms for a long, gentle hug. He wrapped his arms around her and she laid her head against his shoulder.

"It is, Neil. If you make me go, it will be my only choice," she said with feeling as she looked up at her cousin. She wanted him to understand. She wanted him to say it was ok for her to stay in Daikon, to mate with another man, not her fated mate. She wanted him to agree that she could ignore the Elailian and pretend none of this had ever happened.

"Fate has a way of guiding our steps, Fiona. This may be Fate's way of telling you that your future in Elail will be good and happy. Don't throw away Fate so easily," Nail replied.

"Fate got this wrong," Fiona said, shaking her head as she stepped back, away from him.

"I loved Marial, too," he whispered as he watched her face cloud with anger.

She leaned against Neil's desk and studied him. His face was regretful. She knew he would make her go. Every part of her knowing the king would decree her participation. Her cousin couldn't give her sanctuary without angering the Elailians. So she made a silent decision. She would take the choice away from him. Her king had no place forcing her to mate with any man, much less their natural enemy.

She would choose her own fate. The Fates were wrong this time. This was not the way her life was supposed to go. She would fix their mistake.

"I have ten months before their Hunt, I'm heading west until then. You have to at least grant me that reprieve," Fiona said with an angry voice. She was finding it hard to contain her fury.

Neil studied her for a minute before he nodded. "Alright."

She knew his approval was rarely given, which made it much more satisfying to have earned it so quickly after her request.

"I'm going alone, please don't follow," she said firmly as she left his office and stomped back to her rooms in the castle. The dark, black stones of the castle seemed to seep with the anger and despair that she felt at the prospect of leaving her home behind. She wanted to weep with the sorrow. 

She walked through the halls, running her hand along the stone in farewell. She nodded a quick greeting to her friends as she went toward her rooms. She stopped in front of her door. A man stood there, watching her approach.

She should have known he would be there.

"I'm leaving, Bram." She said softly, her voice tinged with finality.

"I know," he nodded. His face was blank as he studied her. In another world, another life, they would have made great mates, but Fate was not so kind as Fiona was finding out.

"You can't come," she said with a despondent tone. Her eyes flickered between his and she saw a mirror of her despair. She wished he could come with her, she would give anything for him to come, for them to create their own life in another part of the world, but that wasn't something they would ever have. Bram had responsibilities here. He had to stay.

He shook his head, agreeing with her. 

"I'll find you when I can. I'll come to you when this has passed," he said softly as he reached out for her and pulled her into his arms. He was her best friend. She loved him. He loved her equally. Life was cruel in Daikon.

"I'm going west."

"You're going to find the shifter that attacked Marial," he said with understanding. It wasn't a question, but rather an observation borne of decades of friendship and understanding. He nodded and she almost let her emotion get away from her.

"Marial deserves justice," she whispered.

"Just make sure it is justice you seek and not vengeance," he whispered back.

"They are the same," she said.

He looked down at her and lowered his lips to hers. It was the last time he would see her for a long time and he intended to make it memorable. He locked his lips on hers, pulling her close with his left hand. He reached behind her with his right and opened her door, pulling her into the room with him as he closed it behind him with a thud.

He spent the next two hours reminding her why she should stay but showing her why he knew she had to go. It was a slow love, theirs. It was a steady heartbeat that infused them with life with every thump. Her violet eyes burned with their passion even as she remembered the scent of her mate.

She fought the feeling down and focused on the man in front of her, the man she loved. She didn't love the shifter. Fate may have paired them but she would decide her destiny. She took her dress off and lowered herself onto him, enjoying the feel of him inside her, knowing this would be the last time they came together for a very long time. She wanted to remember it. She wanted to remember the look in Bram's eyes as she sank onto his cock, the feel of him pulsing inside her, the first sensation that hits when he finally thrusts fully inside her and she took his knot. These were the memories she wanted to take with her. These were the memories she would live on for the next century until her mate was forgotten and she could come back to Bram. Her love.

She lay on his chest, running her fingers through the hair there even as she knew it was time. Time to leave.

"I love you," she whispered as she let herself enjoy the feel of his heartbeat thudding softly under her ear. Just a moment longer, she promised herself, one more moment to take with her.

"And I love you," he replied, his voice soft and filled with understanding.

She wouldn't be going to Elail. She wouldn't be going to their Hunt. But, she was leaving her home behind, she was running to the western borders to hunt down the man that had hurt her sister. The man that had killed Marial. Fiona was going to kill Marial's attacker and when she had done that, then she was certain the shifter wouldn't want anything to do with her.

Then, at long last, she will have won.