Accounting for Drakes (Stand Alone Tales #21)

Chapter Five

T he maids swarmed her and put her into a court casual dress, commenting on the hairstyle that Nanny had pinned in place.

Abil stood, and when Yorath came to take her hand, she beamed and said, “These clothes are heavy.”

He smiled. “They are formal so that anyone who sees you will know who you are.”

“Why does that matter?”

“Because I want you to have an easy time here. It is important that you feel at home here.”

She put her hand on the back of his offered wrist and walked with him to the throne room.

The gathered folks got quiet as he led her through the crowd and the path they created. He walked up the dais with her and settled her in the large chair next to his.

He smiled. “Now, we sit and gifts for you are delivered.”

Abil blinked. “How did they know?”

“The lights on the palace, the landing lights, and the glowing green and silvery dragon that landed on our soil.”

She smiled. “Ah, that was a good indicator. Has Mbrak been told I have made it safely?”

“He has and is looking forward to a call. I have spent the last two years learning what I could about your family and compiling it for you.”

She blinked. “That is very sweet.”

“I can be very sweet.” He kissed her cheek, and she felt the flick of a tongue and realized she was crying.

Abil leaned into his touch, and when she was calm again, the gift-giving began.

Yorath lifted his fingers, and a shimmering sound rang through the room.

The woman who sashayed up first had a bright smile and familiar eyes. She carried a chest and handed it over to the two guards who were there to receive it. The chest thudded to the ground when the lady backed up. “Sorry, I work out.”

Abil laughed. “Thank you, Nanny.”

Yorath frowned. “Nanitha? How many forms do you have?”

Nanny shrugged. “Twenty-five or so. This one dresses fancy.”

The gown was indeed fancy. There were curves and lace and gems and a high collar. Her hair was up in a pile, and the impish look was still there.

She winked and got out of the way. “More presents coming.”

“I thought the wedding wasn’t for a few days.”

“Oh, these are just for your arrival on this world and are setting you up with security for the future. These presents are just for you.”

The guards dragged the chest to Abil’s feet, and she leaned in to open it, flipping the lid back. “Oh. That’s a lot.”

She smiled. “It will help your drake be all it can be, and you will find yourself here with him.”

She bowed and walked to the side while Abil touched the metal. “Two hundred kilos?”

“You need to buff up a little if you want a family. It would be unfair to send you into his arms with nothing.”

Abil blinked, and her eyes widened as she understood. Yorath had a hopeful smirk on his lips.

Abil took the chest and set it on her lap while the guards watched. She chuckled and ran her hands through the gems and metalwork.

Yorath chuckled, and she realized she had been making happy sounds. Abil bit her lip and closed the box, setting it down next to her. “Right. Uh, next, I guess.”

Yorath took her hand. “You can play later.”

“All right.”

She sat with her hands on her lap, and the next offering arrived. Lengths of silk that were enough to start a wardrobe.

The rest of the morning was set in a path of items that were offered to her, and she admired, thanked, and then held them for someone to add to the sort that the maids had going on.

She was getting hungry when there was another murmur in the room, and the silvery blue population spread to the sides to let two very commanding males walk toward the throne.

One had gold eyes, and one had silver, but they looked nearly identical.

Abil looked at the two; one had an unhappy flex to his lips, and the other was hopeful and looking around.

Yorath got to his feet. “Arken, Zenim, welcome to my imperial seat.”

The grumpy one growled. “Where is she, Yorath?”

Abil looked at Nanny and then at Yorath.

“Ask those assembled if they have seen her.”

The one who was Zenim, based on his attitude, said, “Where are you, you low-born little bitch? How dare you run from me and make me wait?”

Nanny looked at Abil and stepped forward. “Now, where is the whiniest cunt in the land? Oh, yeah. Zenim. That would be you.”

Abil gasped as the larger male rushed in while the one with golden eyes smiled slowly.

Nanny waited until he was close and his hand was drawn back to strike. She lashed out and kicked him in the groin, causing a crunch that could be heard in the chamber. He dropped, and she grabbed him by the back of his formal tunic and muttered, “C’mere, bitch. Isn’t that what you said to me? We need to have words, Zenim. Yorath has cleared the courtyard for our chat, you whiney brat.” She shook him like a dog shook a rat.

Arken looked to Yorath and Abil and said, “She’s strong.”

Abil smiled slightly. “She works out.” She glanced at Yorath. “Can we go watch?”

He grinned. “Of course. She’s your guardian, after all.”

He held out his hand, and she stood. They walked with Arken to the main doors. Thumping was happening outside, and when they entered the sun, there were two drakes writhing, and Abil heard a soft voice. “She’s a planet eater.”

She looked at Arken. “She is, or she will be. She has the potential.”

Arken smiled. “You know her.”

“Yes. She raised me. She found me as a toddler and raised me until I was ten.”

“Did she talk about us?”

“No. She didn’t talk at all. She made this rattling noise with her wings when she slept, but they were stumps, so they banged together.”

“Stumps?”

“She tried to protect my parents’ shuttle as we all fell from the sky. Her wings were burned, or that’s what she said.”

Arken murmured, “He tried to catch her to hold her, so he bit her wings to break them. She flew anyway.”

“You didn’t go after her?”

“She made me promise to stay out of it. I had to remain separate. It wasn’t our time, and she knew it.”

There was a thud, and Nanny had gotten bigger, pinning Zenim’s head down and sitting on his body with her other claws holding onto his tail to stop the damage.

Yorath called up. “How long can you hold him?”

Nanny huffed and pushed harder on Zenim’s skull.

Abil asked, “How long is she going to hold him?”

Until he surrenders his obsession with me. I don’t know how he can be so obsessed while being violent and insulting. Hello, Abil.

She looked at the drake and watched as the wingless version of her guardian kept the male dragon under control.

“She’s magnificent.” Arken sighed.

It was supposed to be Arken for me, but Zenim expressed his interest, and Arken never defied him. The more Arken pulled back, the more vile Zenim became. It was... disappointing.

Abil looked at him. “You hurt her as much as he did. She wanted you just to speak out, but you refused to go against your brother, so he began more vile behaviours to get you to react. I think you both need to grow up and try again. Nanny needs someone who respects her the moment they see her.”

Yorath smiled. “That is why I made more than one call. Arken and Zenim are too tightly bound. One inflicts pain, and the other feels it. Wait, is she speaking to you?”

“Yes. Now that I have a better grasp of language, it is easier.” She watched the wriggling of Zenim.

Arken walked forward, and he bowed low to Nanny. “Lady, you have avenged your honour and have proven your point with Zenim. Neither of us was worthy of you. He understands how unworthy he is, don’t you, brother?”

There was a low whine, like air escaping from a punctured hose, and it was coming from the drake on the ground.

Yorath was grinning. “The moment I met Nanny, this is what I envisioned. There are others with better temperaments. These two are going to be stuck with offerings. I think they prefer it that way.”

Arken looked at them and blushed. “I... he... we do better with shorter-lived beings.”

Abil heard a blast in her mind. “Then why did you let Zenim put a claim on her to begin with, you wormy, crawling bastard? I am paraphrasing. She was a little more blunt.”

“Your Imperial Highness, if she gets off Zenim, we will leave.”

Abil listened and then said, “As soon as she marks Zenim’s back the same way he marked hers. Her tail has a fin, so she isn’t going to follow up on other assaults.”

Arken flinched. “Thank her, please. He will take the damage.”

Zenim’s eyes flared open in panic.

Abil and Yorath walked over, and Abil looked into Zenim’s eyes. “Just the same marks on your back that you left her with. It was the marks on a young woman, a young drake, and she went into open space with her scales shredded and her wings broken. I am sure that you, being a big, strong male, can manage the same. It might take a decade to a few centuries for you to regain your biped form, but that should be fine. You don’t have much use for young ladies, so the cooling-off period should be fine. Enjoy celibacy. Oh, and in case you feed off Arken’s conquests...”

Abil turned toward Arken and raised a hand with bright claws. She pulled it down his face and then exhaled into his skin, scarring it. “There we go. Less pretty.”

Arken touched his face and staggered back. Zenim rose, Nanny marked his back, and he grabbed his brother, and they flew up and out of the atmosphere.

Nanny shook her scales and shrank back into her ladylike garments. “Not what I had expected when I saw them, but it was satisfying. I hadn’t considered that Arken shared emotions with him. It let him look pure and delve into pain together.”

Yorath sighed and wrapped his arm around Abil’s waist. “Well, that was unexpected. It is a good thing that I have called in reinforcements. Nanitha, what are you doing for dinner?”

“I am guessing I will be back at the palace. Why?”

“Well, we are about to have lunch, and perhaps you could take Abil for a walk in the city. I trust you to keep her safe.”

“High praise.” Nanny smiled.

“Let’s consider things over lunch, and I can give you a few shops to visit to increase her gem collection.”

Abil asked, “What will you be doing?”

“Calling Arken’s and Zenim’s parents and letting them know what their nasty little offspring have been up to. What did you blow in Arken’s face, Abil?”

“Diamond dust mixed with hard carbon.” She shrugged. “And some lemon juice from the tea for fun. He looked pretty, but he was worse than his sibling.”

Nanny nodded. “Seeing them together with my mind solid, I see it now. A youngling couldn’t.”

Abil blinked. “How young were you?”

“Fifteen. It was legal on their world.”

Yorath bristled with fury. “What? I will skin those bastards myself. I wasn’t aware you were so young.”

She grimaced. “I am eventually going to take their territory and set their population free.”

Abil said, “If you kill them, their territory will become your prison.”

Nanny shrugged. “You could still come and visit if you liked.”

Yorath shook his head. “They are about to be stripped of their territory and banished.”

“What?” Nanny stared at him.

“We needed a witness who wasn’t afraid to speak against them. All you need to do is recount your experiences with them and what they put you through. Are you willing?”

Nanny smiled. “As soon as we finish lunch.”

Yorath nodded. “Right. Shall we, dear one?” He offered Abil his wrist, and they walked back to the court.

Nanny followed behind and easily hefted the box she had brought for them, walking back to the royal quarters. Abil looked behind and watched the grinning Nanny following her. It felt good to have family again.

They sat around and ate, and then Nanny went to the terminal and saw the faces of a number of elder drakes and two dragons. She gave her testimony of all interactions with Arken and Zenim, including her recent sitting on and scarring them.

A female said, “May we confer with Yorath?”

“Certainly. He’s right here with his mate.”

The group murmured, and Nanny smiled brightly at Abil as she came and sat next to her. “So, are you having fun?”

“This is much nicer than being alone in space.”

Nanny sighed. “That is true. I loved my time alone, but knowing you are safe is so much better now, rather than hacking into Mbrak’s systems.”

Abil blinked. “That was you? It was driving him nuts.”

“He is as much my grandfather as yours, little Abil. It was fun to taunt him.”

“But... you weren’t raised on the station.”

“I was not. My parents lived on a world with two drakes, and that is where they found me. We travelled to see Mbrak when I was small, and I remembered him. I asked him about you when you were taken into his care, and he told me that I was one of his line as well.”

Abil hugged her. “I always felt a connection to you.”

“Me, too, little bug.”

Abil laughed and didn’t let go.

Yorath came back after giving his testimony and said, “The brothers are being dealt with. They will not walk their world again.”

Nanny exhaled with a shudder. “Who is getting their territory?”

“It is being assigned. Their people will not suffer.”

She nodded. “Good. It was a good society, good people. My parents are still there, I think. Oh, maybe not.”

Abil asked, “Why not?”

“They weren’t active drakes, and I have been gone three hundred years. It is likely that they have passed.” She looked resigned.

“I think we can check. Can’t we?”

Yorath looked at them and nodded. “What are their names?”

Nanny provided the names, and he went to the terminal and went to work. Abil hugged her friend and cousin. She felt closer to Nanny than any of the ladies on Blue Station had ever been with her, and being raised by her was just part of it.

Nanny turned to her. “I felt it, too. That’s how I found your shuttle and then found you.”

“It was easier mind to mind.”

“It was, but I had to be so careful so you wouldn’t learn too many curse words. You learned them anyway.” She grinned.

Abil smiled. “I remember memorizing all the configurations of excrement to understand what you meant. It wasn’t until the station that I understood it wasn’t about tracking.”

“The tracking was fun. You were good at finding, if not catching, until you were eight.”

Abil laughed, and they chatted about her early hunting and the songs that Nanny crooned to her.

Yorath called out, “They are still alive. They are tending to a small outpost in the mountains, but your parents are alive.”

Nanny slumped. “That is good. I had forgotten about them when I was shifted. It was only when I was back on two feet that I remembered them.”

Abil paused. “That was the same with me and my journey here, but my beast knew where she was going. She let me see the stars.”

“That was important. Mine let me eat them.”

They giggled, and Yorath had a soft smile as he watched them. “Well, ladies, you might need to go to the market. There are a whole bunch of drakes that are due in my territory, and you need not be here when they arrive.”

Abil frowned. “When can we come back?”

“Dinner. Give me six hours to get the drakes settled. You two are causing unprecedented interest, and as Abil is mine, the attention will fall on you, Nanitha.”

Nanitha grinned. “I can deal with that.”

Abil nodded. “I will smite anyone who irritates her.”

Yorath chuckled. “My precious one, you are going to be busy.”