Chapter 24 Mina
Mina
TODAY IS THE DAY.
It’s hours before dawn, the air crisp and biting against my scales as I watch Ziggy phase the fake eggs plus the shells of my two real eggs to the dummy nest. The stone beneath my claws is cold and rough, tiny pebbles grinding under my weight as I shift into position.
Klauth sits under my wing in his human form.
His body radiating heat against my sensitive membrane, his scent—spiced smoke and ancient power—filling my nostrils with each breath.
Abraxis waits a little further down the mountain, a dark silhouette against the sky, watching over “his” clutch.
My eyes scan the horizon, pupils dilating to capture every flicker of movement in the pre-dawn darkness.
The distant mountains are jagged teeth against the navy sky, waiting and watching for the moment my father will strike.
The tension coils in my muscles, making my wings twitch with anticipation.
Not only do we have him to worry about, but also a war with the mages from the north.
Then there’s also the council that who knows what they are up to.
‘You seem tense, mate,’ Klauth uses our mental bond to talk to me, his voice a warm caress inside my mind.
‘Tense is an understatement,’ I respond, feeling my heart pound heavily against my ribcage.
‘We have my dad to worry about. Mages that keep killing off dragons before they hit wyrm status. And a council that seems to have it out for females.’ I list off the top three things that are bothering me, the anxiety bitter on my tongue.
‘Size wise, I am almost at the beginning of wyrm status. Does that mean I’m going to be hunted, too?
’ I turn my head, pretending to adjust my eggs while actually peeking at Klauth under my wing.
His skin gleams like polished bronze in the faint starlight, his eyes two burning embers in the darkness.
‘No one will touch a single hair on your head. I will torch this continent if I have to.’ Klauth says and rests a hand on my maw, his touch electric against my scales, before I pull my head back out to scan the horizon.
The promise in his voice sends a shiver down my spine, both terrifying and comforting.
The sound of birds breaking free from the trees below catches my attention, their panicked wings flapping against the still air.
I slow my breathing, each exhale a controlled warm cloud in the chilly night, so I can hear even the smallest pebble moving close by.
My nostrils flare, testing the air for unfamiliar scents.
Instinctually, I drop my wings to shield my eggs, the leathery membranes creating a protective tent.
It needs to look like I’m guarding a real nest.
Wing beats fill the air, the sound growing louder with each passing second, and soon two green dragons breach the mountain from the west. Their scales gleam dully in the starlight, the scent of acid and decay preceding them.
None of them are my father. I strike them down immediately with my lightning breath weapon, the electric charge building in my throat like a storm before erupting from my jaws.
The sharp crack of lightning splits the air, followed by the acrid smell of ozone and burning scales.
They fall before they even have a chance to open their maws to spray their acid, their bodies tumbling down the mountainside with dull thuds.
“Bravo, Mina...” The slow clapping from behind me makes me turn and crane my neck, vertebrae popping with the sudden movement.
My father stands there in his leathers without his hood and mask, his face a map of cruelty I know all too well.
The leather creaks as he moves, the scent of old blood and malice wafting from him.
“Look at you armored with a powerful breath weapon. You’re welcome.
” He says smugly as he walks along the stone behind me, each footstep deliberate and threatening.
I don’t budge, my claws digging deeper into the rock beneath me, instead sharing my vision with Klauth so he knows what I’m dealing with. ‘All he has to do is threaten or attack and I can end him as is my right as your mate,’ Klauth growls in my head, his rage a hot pulse against my consciousness.
“Grab your eggs and come with me. I’ll grab whatever you can’t carry.
We can rule this continent together. You are the queen, after all.
We just need to kill the king.” Abaddon says with a twisted smile that doesn’t reach his cold eyes.
His teeth gleam unnaturally white in the darkness, like a predator’s display.
I shake my head no at him and hunker down, pressing my belly closer to the ground to shield the nest. The stones dig into my underbelly, but I ignore the discomfort.
He needs to believe that my eggs are real.
I watch as he walks down the crags over to the small flat spot before the nest, his footsteps confident and measured.
A familiar knot of dread forms in my stomach, a pavlovian response to his presence.
“I gave you the power you wield, you ungrateful female. I honed you into a lethal weapon. You are smarter, stronger, and faster than any of the males I’ve ever trained.
” He yells, his voice echoing across the mountain peaks, and for once in my life, he’s praising me in his own twisted way.
The words feel poisoned, each one a barb meant to hook into my skin.
I snort in his direction, and sparks skitter across the dirt, illuminating his face in brief flashes of blue-white light.
“Don’t make me tear you off that nest.” He yells at me, and I want to laugh at him, the absurdity of his threat almost comical. His dragon is barely half my size now, his scales duller and thinner than mine. The metallic taste of anticipation fills my mouth. How does he think that’s going to work?
I rumble at him; the sound vibrating from deep in my chest, daring him to try.
My wings tilt and flare, the membranes stretching taut as I raise all of my scales to make myself look bigger than I am.
The friction of scale against scale creates a sound like armored plates shifting.
I raise my frill, and lightning jumps from spine to spine, casting eerie blue shadows across the rocky terrain as I stare down at the man that’s lived in my nightmares for the last three years.
The scent of his fear is faint but unmistakable, a sour note beneath his usual stench.
Abaddon makes the mistake of shifting, his human form disappearing in a blur of motion as he transforms, and realizes how much smaller than me he is.
His scales catch the dim light, a sickly green that reminds me of stagnant water.
He spits his acid at me, the liquid arcing through the air with a hiss, and it just runs off my scales like water off a duck’s back.
‘He just spit acid at me,’ I laugh through the mental connection with Klauth, a bubble of hysterical relief rising in my chest.
‘Do you want me to end him?’ He asks, and I contemplate his offer, feeling the weight of the decision pressing on me.
‘No, I need to do this. He can’t hurt me anymore. I can’t live in fear forever,’ I say to Klauth as I rise up, my muscles bunching and stretching as I stalk forward. The ground trembles slightly beneath my weight, small stones cascading down the mountainside with each step.
Abaddon’s dragon lowers its head with its frill up, the membranes between the spines a sickly translucent green in the faint light, as he tries to spit acid again. It hits my face and runs off my scales not doing any damage, though the smell makes my nostrils burn.
Lightning is too quick of a death, the mercy of it undeserved.
My other breath weapon will only knock him out to wake up later.
Instead, I charge and grab him with my talons, the sharp points piercing his softer underbelly scales with sickening ease.
I climb up into the sky with him, my powerful wings creating downdrafts that scatter loose rocks below us.
The air grows colder as we ascend, thin and biting against my nostrils.
He thrashes in my grip, tearing his flesh with every move, warm blood running between my talons and dripping into the darkness below. My talons are far sharper than most dragons, a gift from my mom. The metallic scent of his blood fills the surrounding air, almost intoxicating in its significance.
He bites and strikes at my throat, his teeth scraping against my heavily armored scales with a sound like steel on stone, barely scratching the surface.
I strike him with the spikes on my tail, each impact sending a jolt up my spine as I tear away hunks of flesh.
Blood and scales rain down on the courtyard of my nest site, a gruesome precipitation marking my vengeance.
My flight watches me fight my creator, their eyes gleaming in the darkness below like dozens of stars.
It’s exhausting keeping the two of us airborne, my wing muscles burning with the effort, but it’s safer than letting him near my home. The cold air rushes past us, making my eyes water and my nostrils sting. He roars, the sound desperate and guttural, trying to call the other green dragons to him.
What he didn’t count on was Klauth and Thauglor waiting for him to do it.
The minute the other green dragons try to rescue Abaddon, their wings creating a chaotic symphony of beats and whooshes, my mates shift and go on the attack.
Roars and screams fill the air, a terrible chorus of battle.
I see the moment Ziggy grabs Abraxis and puts him on hatchling duty, their silhouettes distinct against the starlit sky.