Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Just before the jets arrived…
“What’s he doing?” Noah asked, his arm still looped around my waist.
“Sunbathing, I think.” Joslyn still had her camera pointed in Leviathan’s direction.
“More like cooling down after you pissed him off. I thought for sure he was gonna eat you,” Vernon exclaimed.
“He did show remarkable restraint,” Alistair agreed. “May I ask your purpose?”
“Just getting to know him.” Since he likely listened, I didn’t mention stalling for time.
“I thought that was interesting when you pressed him about friendships,” Joslyn stated. “He truly didn’t seem to grasp the concept.”
“Because it’s not something he thinks he needs.”
The voice, new, and unexpected had too many of us whirling to see a woman calmly walking in our direction. Petite, wearing a monosuit, but the kind more suitable for looking fashionable on ski slopes rather than staying warm. Black with hot pink striping and a matching set of earmuffs and mitts.
Noah predictably bristled and moved himself in front of me. “Who are you? Where did you come from?”
“I am Lilith. As to how I got here, I flew, just not via traditional methods.” Her lips curved into a smile, and recognition hit me.
“I met you. In that store, when I was buying this.” I patted my winter jacket.
“Yes, you did. What a coincidence we meet again, or is it?” Lilith winked and then pointed her finger at Joslyn. “No more of that now.” A bolt of lightning shot from her fingertip and hit Joslyn’s pointed camera. She yelped before dropping the smoking remains on the ground.
“What are you?” I whispered.
“Probably the only thing that might keep you and billions alive. By the way, you may want to relocate. This area is about to become wetly turbulent. Hatchlings, if you don’t mind. Could you bring them higher ground?” Lilith ordered, indicating the promontory flanking the station.
“She smells interesting,” Tigger declared.
“She does, indeed,” Alistair murmured. “But we can discuss that momentarily. She is correct that the humans require rapid aid.”
Before I, or any of my friends could agree, or not, we found ourselves gripped and lifted, me by Persephone, Joslyn by Pollita, and Vernon in the claws of Abaddon, who groused about being a mere pack animal.
What about Noah and Alistair? Would there be time to…
I blinked as a massive dragon lifted into the air, holding Noah in one paw, Lilith with the other. A glance below showed Alistair had disappeared. Guess I should have clued in he was a dragon. Actually, no, I shouldn’t. People didn’t suddenly turn into gigantic flying lizards!
We got deposited on high ground and I could help notice we humans found ourselves ringed by the dragons and Lilith.
She clapped her gloves. “Goodness, your faces. So much confusion, and I’d love to explain, however, it will have to wait a moment. We have company” Her gaze turned upward and I followed to see what caught her attention.
Specks in the sky.
Jets.
The military had arrived! Maybe I wouldn’t be an egg donor after all.
The planes crossed over Leviathan, who, of course, noticed. He went from imitating a floating island mound to somehow being upright in the water.
And then he launched himself into the air and flew. Kind of impressive. I mean, yes, I saw the wings, but honestly, despite seeing the smaller dragons using them, I didn’t figure Leviathan’s could actually keep him aloft.
Nor did I expect him to breathe fire. Boy was my debunking research on dragons wrong.
Noah murmured, “This isn’t good. He took out two fighter jets. The military is gonna be pissed.”
Tigger defended Leviathan’s actions. “Because they were shooting at him. I’d be peeved too.”
“Oh, dear. Excuse me a moment. I should rein him in before countries start firing nukes.” With that cryptic statement, Lilith walked to the edge of the cliff and leapt, transforming into—
Another enormous dragon, the scales glinting gold as she winged her way upward to intercept the approaching Leviathan.
“Geezus fucking Christ, there’s two of them!” Vernon exclaimed.
Two mega dragons with massive wings creating hurricane force winds that whipped the water into frothing waves and created an instant blizzard on the ground.
“Cover your face,” Noah yelled as he took me to the ground, covering me with his body.
The gusty turmoil didn’t last long, but before we could peek to see what happened, someone exclaimed, “I can’t believe you’d prefer to discourse in this shape.”
“In case you haven’t noticed, our size is cause for consternation.”
“Who cares what humans feel?” The male voice, guttural and deep, went on to complain some more. “I’ll never understand how they became the dominant species when they can’t even fly.”
“Not true. They have machines that can do so. As a matter of fact, they’ve created machines that can do almost anything.”
“Can they make a drone into a proper caretaker instead of one who abandons her master?” The voice didn’t sound familiar, but the tone and words…
Confused, I peered out from under Noah’s arm, my glasses askew. A naked Lilith stood a few paces away, along with yet another stranger, also naked. His skin swarthy and hairy. His body thick. His hair dark.
“What the fuck is going on?” Noah muttered, helping me to my feet.
Tigger was the one to explain. “Our great times a million sire can morph shapes.”
“Dragons are shapeshifters?” I exclaimed. As if to prove this new revelation, the silvery dragon who’d carried Noah shrank and turned into Alistair—minus his clothes.
“Yes,” Lilith and Leviathan stated, while “No,” was the reply of the others, including Alistair.
“But you changed,” I said, almost accusingly at the latter.
“I can, but I’ve never met another who could do the same.” He frowned. “I guess those I once knew had not matured enough to inherit that gift.”
“It has more to do with diluted essence,” Lilith stated, not looking the slightest bit cold despite standing with her tits out.
Nice tits, which Noah smartly didn’t ogle.
“Those directly descended from Leviathan have the strongest concentrations, but as his drones reproduced, and then their progeny and so forth, the essence weakened, hence why you only inherited some gifts.”
“Ignore them. Their questions are less important than mine. Starting with, why did you let me sleep so long?” Leviathan chided. “You are a terrible servant. This is the second time you’ve allowed me to be buried during a nap.”
Lilith arched a brow. “I told you last time, I was done catering to you.”
Last time?
“And then ran away before I could punish you for the temerity.”
“You mean before you could eat me for refusing to be your slave?” Lilith countered.
“That is the usual punishment. I see you remain rebellious.”
“More like I’ve chosen to serve myself.”
“You can’t decide that!” Leviathan sounded shocked. “I made you.”
“Doesn’t give you the right to force me into labor.”
“But that’s the whole reason you were created,” Leviathan sputtered. “Drones exist to serve.”
“Not this one.”
“You will obey!” he shouted, loud enough I clapped my hands over my ears.
“No, I won’t, and you can’t make me. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not bite-sized anymore.”
“You betrayed me to steal my planet,” Leviathan hissed.
“More like preserved it,” Lilith stated before whirling her hand around her body and fabricating a gown of ice.
I blinked. Nope. Still crystals sheathing her in the latest fashion.
“The world was starting to get interesting the last time you woke, and you just had to ruin it,” Lilith went on to accuse. “You set back civilization thousands of years because you’re greedy.”
“What would you have me do? I was hungry.” For an ancient being that wanted to be called God, he sounded like a whiny child.
“You’re always hungry and also stupid.”
“You dare to insult me!” Fists clenched and steam poured from Leviathan’s wide nostrils.
“I’m not the one who doesn’t know how to manage resources and has to go into a long hibernating sleep.”
“You don’t nap?” The surprise wasn’t feigned.
“Oh, I do, but only for a few hours here and there. The humans find it odd if you don’t sleep at all.”
“Wait, are you implying you live as a human?” Leviathan’s shock matched my own.
My head bobbed between them, this conversation wildly more interesting than any tennis match.
“Eat like one, too. Because in this shape, I can gorge and never run out.” Lilith proudly stated.
Her statement led to a thoughtful expression on Leviathan’s face. “Imbibing in the smaller shape, takes into account your general mass at the time of consumption, and that ratio is conferred upon shift. That’s how you grew.”
Lilith shrugged. “I didn’t start living as a human to get big. I rarely wear my dragon, especially now that humans have radars and other devices for detecting aerial anomalies.”
“You should have told me about your discovery,” Leviathan huffed.
“Telling you would have meant having to tolerate your presence.”
“You enjoy the company of humans more than your kind?” Exclaimed with clear insult.
“Yes. And you would, too, if you gave them a chance.”
“Live like a puny two-legged weakling?” Leviathan sneered.
“Experience what it is to have an actual life. Right now, you’re stuck in a cycle of eating and sleeping. Whereas I have explored the world. Been dazzled by natural wonders. Tasted cuisines not available to my other side. I’ve shopped. I’ve loved. I’ve—”
“Loved? Who?”
Lilith’s lips curved. “Many. Men. Women. I even bore a few children in this form. Not the most pleasant experience. The laying of eggs is easier.”
“Excuse me. You had kids? Does that mean you’re my grandma?” Tigger toddled forth.
“Think of me more as a great aunt. And aren’t you cute. Tigger, correct?”
“How do you know my name?” he asked.
“Ian told me all about you.”
The name meant nothing until Abaddon shouted, “You know Malone?”
“Very well, as a matter of fact. Who do you think nudged him in the direction of Tiamat’s cave, thus leading him to find your eggs? I’m also the one who geared him towards the Antarctic.”
“Why?” I was the one to ask, not the flustered dragons.
“Because I no longer wanted to be alone. Being amongst the humans for so long left me yearning for family. Rather than marry and go through the messiness of birth, I thought it might be nice to attempt such a connection with my own kind.”
“If that’s the case, why thaw him?” Noah pointed to Leviathan. “You just said he’s an asshole.”
“He is,” Lilith agreed. “But only because he never knew any better.”
“You think he’s going to suddenly decide he’s not going to be some rampaging monster? Have you met him?” I couldn’t help but poke a hole in her idea.
“He doesn’t lack for arrogance, but then again, we all have that trait, don’t we hatchlings?”
“Because we are superior beings,” Abaddon stated, matter-of-factly.
“Who must be careful. While there are some who would accept us, there are more who would hunt dragons down to extinction again.”
“Why didn’t you save us?” Alistair accused. “You must have seen what happened.”
“I did. I saw the infighting. The destruction. The way my kind wished to dominate instead of cohabiting. They earned their fate.” Lilith shrugged.
“That’s cold. Those were your, uh, niece and nephews?” Joslyn’s exclamation turned hesitant.
“They were behaving as savages and got what they asked for.”
“Aren’t you worried this newest batch will do the same?” Noah swept his hand at the smaller dragons.
“If they’re dumb enough to attack the humans, then they will suffer the same fate. And rightly deserved. Now, while I’d love to continue conversing, the hatchlings need to be removed from this area before the military returns.”
“To go where?” Persephone asked.
“Somewhere we can get to know each other without interruption.” Lilith then winked. “Anyone want to see the hoard I’ve accumulated in the Himalayans?”
A chorus of yeses followed.
“Excellent. I’ve just one more thing to do before we take flight.” Lilith took a few steps in my direction. “Love your show by the way, but you’ll understand when I say, you can’t be allowed to talk about what you’ve seen and heard these past few days.”
“You’re going to kill me.” Stated, not asked.
“Goodness, no. I’m too much of a fan. But you are going to forget.”
I met her gaze, the depths of them swirling as if the cosmos were contained within.
“As if I could ever forget.”
You came to Antarctica and didn’t find anything unexpected. There are no mysteries here. The voice inside my head insidiously whispered. Dragons aren’t real.
Not real.
Not.
Real.