Chapter 7 #3
We both turned at the sound of thundering footsteps that made the green earth beneath my feet tremble. Two large dragons walked out of the cave while another flew inches above their heads. From the sky, a deafening roar sounded. When Finley drew closer to me, I fought my feet from moving.
She hadn’t simply stepped closer to me but also in front of me. It was as if she wanted to guard me from the dragons who might pose a threat to us.
Three dragons landed in front of us, and she edged forward, angling her body in front of me. My warrior mate, ready to take on these beasts as if I were some damsel in distress.
Each dragon was unique, varying in size and color. But the figures atop their backs were what held my attention.
Humans.
Not fae. Not some ancient dragon-kin I’d never heard of.
Humans.
A ripple of unease passed through our group. I felt it in the subtle shift of weight around me. Elias’s shoulders squared. Everly’s breath tightened. Finley’s magic drew tight beneath her skin.
From what we’d seen of the realms, humans were capable, but they weren’t stronger than fae. Not in magic. Not in endurance. Not in lifespan.
Yet here they sat astride dragons.
Like Javier, their dragons were fastened with saddles. Unlike him, the humans wore a helmet fashioned with sleek visors shielding their faces. Not battle helms, but flight helms.
My gaze slid to Javier. He didn’t look surprised like the rest of us. If anything, there was a quiet confirmation in his expression.
But then again, Sama seemed to whisper secrets to him that the rest of us weren’t privy to. Whatever lay in Vistos, Javier had been walking toward it long before the rest of us realized it even existed.
Still. If dragons were the oldest, most powerful creatures we knew . . . Wouldn’t it make more sense for their chosen riders to be fae?
The first dragon rider leaped off her dragon’s back, landing with an ease that must’ve taken years to perfect. When she lifted her helmet, she turned her glowering expression to us. Elias was the first to step forward, extending his hand in greeting.
“Thank you for welcoming us into your realm,” Elias said.
The female studied Elias’s outstretched hand for a few beats before she shook it, her leather gloves meeting Elias’s bare hand.
“Welcome is premature,” she said. “You’re here because the dragons asked it. I am still undecided.” Her attention shifted to the rest of us. “If any of you give me a reason to regret this, we’ll have another conversation.”
The riders behind her nodded, affirming her authority. She turned to them, her head tilting toward us.
While the remainder of our group hung back, I stepped forward as the humans approached. Javier fell in beside me, and together we faced the dragon riders. Unease rippled through each handshake.
Finley joined us, her magic wound tight beneath her skin, and I sensed its readiness to strike should any of the riders prove to be a threat.
One male, burly and tall for a human, angled his head to the side and sneered at Finley. My canines pulled down while Finley’s magic whispered at her palms, its electricity gliding from our bond and beneath my skin.
“Is there a problem?” I asked.
Elias turned to face us, a muscle twitching at his tightened jaw. The male stepped to Elias and crossed his thick arms over his chest. Standing beside Elias’s towering height, he looked nothing more than a small boy. “A dragon did not choose this woman. Why is she here?”
“She is here with me,” Hoshiko said.
I paused when I felt Finley’s surprise. I was certain she had not expected Hoshiko to claim her in any way. I was ashamed to admit I hadn’t either. But why should that matter? Why should it matter if she had no dragon of her own?
“Under my orders,” Sama added. “She is a guest in our home, as are the other riders. You will treat them as such.”
“Shame,” a young male whispered. “I bet I could teach her some things.”
Another snickered. “And she’d thank you for it.”
Both males were in my hands within a few beats. I slammed them to the hard ground, holding one down with my forearm while I used my foot on the other one. While they both held their mouths open, either in surprise or to try to get more oxygen, only one of them was bleeding.
“Speak of my mate again, and I will remove your heads from your necks.” Their eyes flared wide, bravado draining from their face. Good. “Blink twice if you understand.”
I didn’t wait to see them comply, my focus snapping to Finley when she reached us. Her hand went to my shoulder when she crouched beside me. That touch, that simple, soft touch, threatened my resolve.
“Let the males breathe, Brent,” she said, so close to me her words fanned across my face.
I hesitated, wanting to do exactly as I’d said and rip their heads off with my bare hands.
“Do as she says, Brenton.” Elias pulled from the power that forced others into submission. It made my limbs shake as my body willed me to obey. When I rejected his order, pain slammed through my temple. I shot my best friend a scathing look before I finally let the two males go.
One male, the youngest, who had to be a few years younger than Javier, sat upright, sucking in air, while the other stayed on the ground, running a hand over his neck. I expected the leader of these males to scold me, but the female stayed silent, content enough to stand by and do nothing.
Perhaps if I killed them it wouldn’t be all that terrible.
The younger male pulled himself up to his feet, and when he spoke, he directed each word to me. “I don’t know this term, mate, but I meant no disrespect.”
The female leader made a noise that sounded from her throat. “What else would your words suggest but disrespect? That is not how we treat or address our women.”
The male’s tanned face paled. “I’m sorry, Kassidy. I thought—”
“You will apologize to them, Everitt.” The leader, Kassidy, lifted her hand.
His face lost even more of its natural color, and he bowed his head, but he didn’t bother facing Finley. “I’m sorry.”
“It is not I you should be apologizing to.”
“Brenton,” Finley said in a shocked whisper.
Everitt pulled at the collar of his leather suit before he brushed his hand over the chest plate that seemed to be made of dragon scales.
“I am sorry, woman,” he said.
Nodding, Finley pressed a palm to her stomach, where thin threads of her magic coasted from her fingertips. “You may address me as Finley or not at all.”
“Finley is a formidable warrior and enemy,” Elias said, his eyes engulfed in black. “If you want our help, you will treat her with the respect due to her.”
“You are a king in your realm,” Kassidy said, her body far too relaxed for her hardened words. “You’re in our realm now, and here, you are no one. I’m the one who gives orders while you and yours obey me.”
Everly’s sword sang when she unsheathed it. From the inner pocket of my magic, I drew mine out just as Finley did the same.
Nalari’s answering growl reverberated inside me while Hoshiko took a defensive stand in front of Finley and me.
The largest of the dragons, also carrying the red mark of the Elders, roared, and the hairs on my arms rose when a thick charge clung to the air.
Sama opened his mouth, and tiny sparks built until a long stream of orange and yellow flames erupted from him.
It was bright and loud, hitting the grass only a few feet from the other dragon.
The dragon stood still, either stoic or unimpressed.
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. That laughter only wanted to build when several heads turned to stare at me. I only focused on Hoshiko.
“A lot of help we’re proving to be in your home if we can’t survive a simple greeting,” I told Hoshiko.
Amusement made his eyes brighten. “How do you plan on defusing the situation?”
I winked, grinning when I heard Elias’s huffed laugh.
“Before we decide on the best way to slaughter one another, I’d like to ask you a question, Kassidy.” I waved a hand toward the female. “If I may, that is?”
Her lips tilted in a lazy yet confident smile, and she nodded for me to proceed.
I pointed at the tree that my friends and I had pondered over. “Is that tree a male boasting with rather large and impressive testicles?”
Kassidy’s mouth opened, but nothing came out, so she tried again.
She croaked out a strange sound before she shut her mouth.
With a shake of her head, she removed a dagger from her ankle and walked toward the tree.
While Everly kept her sword ready, I loosened my grip on mine.
Kassidy shook her head again, either in disbelief or bewilderment.
Likely both. She put the dagger between her teeth and started to climb the rather slim trunk until she reached the top.
She made it look so simple that I found myself wanting to climb the trunk as well.
Two of the human males stood beneath the tree, and when Kassidy cut the poor tree’s testicles off, she tossed them to the waiting men. My groin panged in sympathy, but I held myself still so I wouldn’t let on the pain I felt on behalf of the unsuspecting tree.
I caught Finley’s grin as she motioned her chin toward my nether regions.
“These humans are savages,” I whispered to her.
She bit her bottom lip and widened her eyes. “Or maybe you’re wrong, and those aren’t testicles,” she said just as low.
“There is no other explanation,” I said.
“I agree with Finley,” Elias said, giving Finley a small nod. “They’re sling-stones and are the trees’ natural defense system.”
Like that made any sense.
When Kassidy had thrown a dozen non-testicles, she made her way down the tree with the same ease she’d used in climbing up. She took one of the dozen she’d picked and handed it to me.
It was far larger than my own testicles, hard with a roughened skin and tangled, wiry hairs. Of course, Kassidy took a bigger one for herself.
I squeezed my legs together when she slammed the back of her dagger against the one she held, and it cracked open. She inclined it toward me, and using her knife, she sliced into what looked like smooth, white film or skin. When she cut off a chunk, she handed it to me.
Not sure what to do with it, I watched her cut off another piece and put it in her mouth, then she motioned for me to do the same.
I hesitated, unsure if this was a more inconspicuous way to kill me. Before I could think too much about it, I took a tentative bite. Sweet flavor burst on my tongue. Eager for the others to try it, I broke it into smaller pieces and handed them to Elias, Finley, Everly, and Javier.
Javier studied his piece.
“I don’t think it’ll kill you,” I told him. “Tastes great, so if it does, it might not be a terrible way to die.”
Kassidy covered her mouth when she laughed.
Javier let out his own laugh. “You’ve never seen a coconut before?”
“Never,” I answered, taking another piece from Kassidy. “Did you have those in Colina Verde?”
“Not growing on trees or anything,” he said. “They grew in tropical places, like the Caribbean Islands, but most grocery stores carried them.”
Another male stepped forward, gesturing to the coconut I held. I gave it to him, and he turned it over, pointing at the top.
“My name is Callan. I am Kassidy’s older brother.” He said it with pride and tipped his chin down at his sister. “This coconut is still young, so it doesn’t have meat yet,” he said. “But if you find the softest eye, you can pierce through it and drink its water.”
Kassidy gave me her dagger. It was a heavy wooden piece with intricate markings on the handle.
“You want me to pierce this guy’s eye out?” I asked, not hiding the tremor in my voice.
“It’s a fruit, Brent,” Javier said with a tilt of his lips.
“Then why tell me to pierce the softest eye?” I asked, prodding my fingers across each eye to find the weakest link. “It just sounds cruel.”
“You are a truly terrifying fae,” Finley said, a sultry tease in her voice.
I glared at her, my insides fluttering at the smile she gave me. I only looked away when I found the eye to puncture.
“So I just run the blade through?”
“Sure.” Kassidy grinned.
I pointed her blade at her. “You’ve earned my trust by feeding me. Don’t go and ruin what could be a forever friendship.”
“You’re going to push the dagger through the eye, into the heart until you reach a hollow space,” she said. “Then you twist the dagger to widen the hole.”
“Here I go, butchering eyes and hearts.” I took in a slow breath and pushed Kassidy’s dagger as she’d instructed.
Once I got it through and twisted enough to widen the hole, I pulled out the dagger. Kassidy pushed the bottom of the coconut up. I lifted the large fruit in a toast.
“Here’s to making new friendships in a new realm, where we can provide the help our dragons asked of us,” I said, bringing the coconut to my lips.
The same sweetness coated my tongue with a tang of salt and sour. I took another sip and handed it to Elias, who also lifted the fruit before he took his own drink. Round and round, we all drank from the coconut until the last human took the final drink.
Callan clapped the back of my neck, silently ushering us away from the cave.
We followed Kassidy and him, with all but two other males and a single female staying back, as we made our way down a clear pathway to an open meadow with tall green grass and pretty wildflowers.
The blue sky met the waters of the calm bay in a breathtaking picture.
Wanting to capture it, I took my cell phone from my inner pocket of magic and took several pictures.
It was a shame that the connection our scholars in Niev had been able to replicate from the human realm’s internet couldn’t pass through the realms. Teddy would love this place.
I could picture all the younglings playing on the beach and in the surf.
Finley nudged her shoulder against mine. “You did good, Brent.”
I preened at her praise, wanting to soak in the pride that shone in her face.
“You did very well,” Elias agreed. “I have you to thank for this not ending in bloodshed.”
I winked at my best friend, but couldn’t deny the light feeling that spread and settled in my chest.