6. Chapter Six
Chapter Six
Caspian
“What if Quint is the only one who can free him?” I asked the group. “What’s his affinity anyway?”
“Venom,” Mattias said, “a deadly one that burns and can kill on contact. It’s absorbed through the flesh and can eat through dragon scales as well.
To this day, he’s never kissed anyone that we’re aware of for fear of killing them and rarely uses it on our enemies.
He’ll use fire in battle and physical strength, but that’s about it. ”
“Whoa.”
“Ionus, I don’t think we have a choice now,” Mattias said. “Caspian has a point, he may be the only hope and why that dragon is reaching out to anyone in contact with Quint.”
“Well, that’ll leave Odem and I behind to hold down the fort. Hopefully there are no breaches while you’re gone. Get in, get out and get home.” I felt the pull again when Ionus reached out their brothers. Moments later, Quint, Caro and Odem entered.
“I’ve got two words for you, Ionus,” Odem crossed his arms, not appearing as happy as he had earlier. “Cock block.”
Ionus growled. “Sit down.” Odem stood there for a moment, and I was certain a brotherly battle was on the horizon.
But just as Ionus rose, Odem sat. “Do you think I like leaving my mate in our bed, alone? If you do you’re sorely mistaken.
If this wasn’t important, we’d all still be asleep.
Now, listen to what Mattias and his mates have to tell you. ”
We ran through the story, again, Quint’s eyes widened as we spoke. But his words when we’d finished recounting the memories surprised me most. “What if it’s a trap, Ionus?”
“I’d considered that myself, brother, but why you?
Why try for so long to find someone who has contact with you?
You are by far the most low key of all of us.
You prefer to be away from the humans and the public eye.
And you never cause any trouble,” Ionus growled at Odem who grinned, clearly proud of his reputation.
“True,” Quint sat, having stood this entire time, and sighed. “I’ve never released venom underwater. What if it injures more than the lampreys?”
“There’s only one way to test that theory,” Mattias stepped in. “Let’s take it to the pools and see if you can contain it.”
“Like in a bubble?” Quint questioned.
“That’s one option, but I was thinking more like a direct hit. Taking aim and shooting it like you would a fireball.” All dragons possessed that ability, but given the armor our scales provided, it wasn’t always successful, especially under water.
“Odem is the only one with deadly fire,” Ionus pointed out, a fact that was good to know. “He can control it, Quint, and I believe you can too.”
Quint groaned. “You don’t think I’ve tried to already, Ionus? I’ve spent centuries doing my best to harness this so-called gift I was given. Trust me, it won’t be controlled.”
“But you haven’t tried it underwater, have you?” Caro asked. I’d almost forgotten he was here, tucked away with Emerson going over the countless maps his mate had provided.
“No.”
“I-I, I’m sorry,” Kes stuttered. “If you want me to leave I’ll totally understand.”
“You’ll do no such thing,” Mattias barked, both Kes and I jumped. “You belong here with us. How were you to know these nightmares meant something more.”
“Agreed,” the brothers said as one.
“And if you get this guy here laid,” Odem winked as he nudged Quint. “You’ll be my favorite bro in law.” A round of groans filled the room though Odem had managed to lighten the mood. I felt a kindred spirit in him.
Mates? Kes reached out to Mattias and I. What should I do?
Nothing, sweetheart, Mattias assured him. What you’ve done has brought hope to my brother, something Quint never had.
If you’re sure…
We are! Both Mattias and I sent at the same time.
“Ionus, we have much to discuss, but my mates are exhausted. Can we reconvene after morning practice?” Fighting back a yawn, I was thankful Mattias requested that for us.
“Yes, agreed. Kes, Caspian, I know what you shared wasn’t easy, but given the jobs the Goddess blessed us with its information we must have. If anything more comes to mind, please don’t hesitate to tell us.” Kes and I nodded and with that, Ionus required nothing more.
Is he always this scary?
Mattias chuckled. Yes, Caspian, but in all honesty Ionus is our leader for a reason. Protective, fierce, loyal and above all else, family comes first with him.
Good to know, Kes added. Kinda felt like I had my scales chewed off for a minute there.
Once inside our bedroom, the three of us stood at the foot of the bed, staring at it.
“Knowing you both suffer from PTSD,” wow, hadn’t considered that diagnosis before but he’s right.
“Why don’t I sleep in the middle so if you feel the need to get out of bed you won’t worry about disturbing the others. ”
“That’s great in theory,” Kes shrugged, “but we can all sense what the other mates are feeling and know when one of us are struggling.”
“True,” Mattias kissed the top of his head, “but this way allots you more privacy to deal with your demons in the manner that’s befitting of you.”
Mattias stripped down and tossed his clothes on the nearby chair then slid into bed and I did the same. Kes took a few more seconds to decide but in the end, he removed all but his boxers and eyepatch. The day he trusted us enough to leave it off, and possibly share his story, would be monumental.
All in due time.
Yes, Dragon, yawn, all in due time.
Mattias had an arm around Kes and me, as we settled in. Both our heads lay on his chest, Kes and I holding hands across his belly silenced my thoughts and eased me into a peaceful sleep.
“Wow.” I stopped at the edge of the pitch, taking the massive area in.
“This is both medieval and modern. How did you manage to pull that off?” Every hand, and there were easily twenty or more of us here, pointed at Ionus.
“Alright, I’ll remember not to invoke his ire.
” There were practice dummies burned and maimed.
Bales of hay strewn about, some of which were scorched beyond recognition.
No weapons were to be found, given this land belonged to the Protectors, physical weapons wouldn’t be of any use to them.
The Goddess blessed them with gifts no others had.
Mattias chuckled. “Wise choice, mate. Come on, let me introduce you to the rest of them.”
Drakemyre’s, Blackburn’s and many others in between. Dragons of many shapes and sizes were present. I seriously hoped there wouldn’t be some sort of drill where we call out each other’s names. There’s no way I’ll remember them all or who’s mated to whom.
“Alright, gather around,” Ionus said. No reason to shout given our dragon hearing.
“By now, you’ve all been briefed on the dragon trapped in the ice that was brought to our attention last night and are acutely aware this could be a trap.
It’s imperative that we all be in battle-ready mode.
We know war is on the horizon and with Mattias, Kes, Caspian, Caro and Quint taking to the seas in search of him as well as to help Caspian’s herd, collectively we must be prepared for whatever comes our way. ”
Baird, ha, I remembered a name, stepped forward. “Ionus, the Drakemyre clan will be here to assist as well.” A round of aye’s followed Baird’s declaration.
“Thank you, Baird. It’s a dangerous mission but one we can’t ignore and will need all hands prepared for whatever comes. Training today will be focused on our affinities. Quint, you and I will work together along the beachside today. Water dragons, please steer clear of where we’re at.”
Another aye rang through the crowd.
We spread out and shifted. I’d never seen so many dragons in one place before.
Their magnificent colors reflective in the sunlight, pinging off their scales like a prism.
My mates were brighter than the rest, or maybe I was just a bit biased.
Mattias was a brilliant sapphire, Kes, an amazing bright white and me with my opaque hues and silverly tones. Our dragonets are going to be gorgeous.
Focus, human.
Yes, dragon. He can be so bossy sometimes.
Mattias and Kes dove into the water with me as well as a couple of other water dragons. Mattias was clearly stronger than Kes and I, given how deep he’d traveled on his initial dive, but it was good to see how our affinities aligned.
I dodged Kes’s ice shards, but he narrowly missed my water trident. Okay, that is seriously cool, Kes said. You can wield weapons from water?
I can. Makes you love me a whole lot more now, doesn’t it? Kes blushed, but the love coming through our connection was strong.
Mattias and Caro broke through the surface at breakneck speed and into the skies with the greatest of ease, like rockets shooting high in the air only to gracefully plummet toward the earth, and back into the water, engaged in their fight.
Neither could catch the other yet they were right on the others tail the entire time.
Completely invisible now, I wondered if they used a cloaking spell or had they gone well past visibility? The water wasn’t that deep here.
Suddenly, I was covered in ice.
That’s what you get for not paying attention. I shook it off and sent a massive wave toward Kes and the crazy dragon surfed through it on a board of ice.
Playing games, are we now?
Yup, it’s the Dragon Games. Didn’t you hear?
Game on, Mate!
I’m not sure, okay, I’m totally sure, that our antics weren’t on Ionus practice agenda today. Thankfully, he was too busy with Quint to notice. I hoped…
He might be, but I’m not. Mattias’ voice rattled us both and whatever force he sent our way knocked us back several feet. Imagine how far he could send an opponent he wished to rid himself of? Caro, you take Caspian and I’ll handle Kes.
That did not sound good.
Before I had a chance to figure out what was going on, I was scooped up and hurled through the air, flung from a giant claw.
Protect yourself, Caro said, I won’t go easy on you.
Great…
No matter where I was, air or sea, Caro was on me.
Come on, Caspian, how did you manage to fight off your assailants before? Show me what you’ve got.
Every water weapon I shot at him, he swam right through. I dipped, he dipped, I shot up, he caught me. There was no getting away from him.
Come on, little Seadragon. I know you’ve got more than that.
I called upon my ancestors to give me strength. It was rare that I did this because in the end, it drained me, but they have helped me out of a few predicaments before.
Seadragon ancestors of yore, I call upon you today not to assist me in a matter of life or death, but to prove I’m a worthy mate and deserve my rightful place beside these protectors.
My body vibrated as their powers surged through me. Caro stood nearby, witnessing the transformation. Before him no longer stood the tiny Seadragon, but now, a mighty opponent. Could I best a protector? No, nor would I try, but he’d at least see firsthand what I was capable of.
Can all Seadragons transform? He asked.
No, there are only a handful the Goddess blessed with the ability to do so. I am a member of our elite squadron.
The Goddess chose well when selecting our mates, Mattias said. I’d felt him and Kes as they neared us.
When I called up a trident, an actual one, from the depths of the sea and hurled it at Caro, it narrowly clipped his wing before he spun away.
In this form and with these borrowed gifts the hunted had now become the hunter.
Waves crashed all around us as we engaged in battle.
No claws, this wasn’t about drawing blood but more a showcase of cunning and skill.
My mates mentally cheered me on as I resurrected a sunken ship from the depths and watched in awe as it sailed through the water headed straight for Caro.
He’d move just in time, of course, but another skill to showcase.
Caspian, you must hurry! The ancestral voices called out. You must fight to free Torin and save your herd.
Their powers vanished as quickly as they came and I sunk toward the bottom, mentally and physically drained. When I came too, I laid upon our bed, the brothers and my mates patiently awaiting my recovery.
“The-the,” I stuttered, the words weren’t coming out as I needed them to.
“Ssshhh,” Kes, ran his fingers through my hair, cradling me in his arms. Safe, my dragon purred. But I had to tell them. “Ancestors. Torin. Save.”
“Who’s Torin?” Odem asked.
“My mate.” Quint’s response surprised me. “The dragon in the ice.”
“Y-yes. Trouble. Herd. Need help. Save Torin, save herd.” That took all the energy I had. I fell back into Kes, Mattias immediately lay to my other side, wrapping his arms around both of us.
Safe. Rest.
Yes, Dragon.