Madison, p.2
Madison, page 2
It was against the Laws of the Realm to appear before the Elders in any other form than the one that you had been born to. She didn’t mind that so much as she loved being a dragon whenever she could. As soon as Storm arrived at the castle, she reached out to touch the magistrate to set up a meeting with the Elders and the Queen. She was both surprised and terrified that they had readily agreed to see her as soon as she had eaten and shifted.
Food was brought to her, and she enjoyed a large meal. As soon as she had finished, she knew that she needed to complete her mission and get back to her sister. Moving to the outdoor paddock just outside her suite of rooms, Storm began her shift.
She loved to be a human. Storm loved the soft textures of their skin, the feel of the hair upon the body. She also loved the way the fingers bent and was able to grasp things within them. The light feelings of simply walking would make her giddy with anticipation of stepping into the grass or sand with her bare feet. But to be her true self, there was nothing better.
Storm was a dragon, an Enneahedral Dragon—also known as a Ninefold Dragon. She was as rare as any being could be. Storm was the ninth daughter of nine daughters for nine generations. When she had been hatched, she had inherited all the elementals of the earth and the nine directives as well. Her powers were nine times that of her sister Ember—even though she’d only been seconds behind her in coming out of her shell and abilities that went beyond any other dragons.
With being the ninth in so many lines, Storm was to be Queen of their kind as soon as she found a mate worthy of her and her love. But she was in no hurry to find either. She was too busy to care for a lover and didn’t want one slowing her down either.
As soon as she stepped into the magical arena, she let her body respond to the pull of her Dragon. First her body elongated, her spine curving and pulling, stretching to accommodate the large bulk of her form. Then her feet, dainty and small as a human, they too stretched and great claws formed at the toes. The wings at her back began pulling away from her body and forming into a great expanse, wide and full. Flapping them once, she felt the blood surge through them, and then she pulled them tight against her body. Her face molded and formed into a massive head, teeth a foot in length and sharp as the talons at her feet filled her mouth full and lethal. The human skin along her arms became scales of great strength, able to protect her from any weapon, small or large. Her scales shimmered in the moonlight, catching and reflecting the gold and silver that blazed within each protective shell. By the time the shift was complete, Storm was a massive twenty-five feet tall, seventy feet wide with her wingspan, and weighed several tons of pure muscle and bone. She moved to the large door that went directly into the throne room and bowed before the other dragons gathered there, careful of every step that she took.
“Mistress Storm, thank you for coming to see us so quickly. We have much to discuss.” Storm dipped her head to hide her confusion. They had expected her?
“You must go to China. We need for you to bring back the man Alexander Walsh. It is imperative that he survives. He is vital to the future of our race, to all of us.”
“Pardon me, Sire, but my sister, Ember, she is—” Storm started to tell them what she was sure that they already knew but they cut her off.
“Ember is going to have a hatchling soon. She must stay hidden. If Grail finds her, he will destroy her and the babe. No, it is you who needs to go and bring him back to us. May we count on you to serve us well, Mistress Storm?”
“Of course.” Storm bowed before them and took a step back to leave the room. She was stopped by a slight cough from behind her.
“My lords, have you yet told the Mistress what is expected of her?” Storm startled. The being was small but by no means diminished in her stature. Standing before her was the strongest being any had ever known. Her mother, Queen of the Enneahedral Dragon clan, had swept into the room, her strength preceding her. “I will take it upon myself to do that now. You’re dismissed.” The people in the room disappeared at her command.
“Mother, you look well.” Storm never knew how to speak to her mother, Morning. She had always intimidated her. Now was no different. Her beauty was one of the reasons, the other was that her mother wasn’t really the affection sort of person. But then, neither was she.
“You look beautiful, child. I would like for you to shift and meet me in my private chamber. I should like to speak to you about this mission.” Nodding once, her mother smiled. “We’ll have a luncheon, you and I. And tea. I should like to speak to you about your other adventures, too, if you would allow it.”
Immediately, Storm’s body started its shift to human form. Within seconds, she was dressed similarly to her mother in a long silk robe with their crest blazing over their hearts. Storm nearly stepped back from her as Morning was standing very close. Surprisingly, Morning reached out and hugged her close to her.
The tightness of the hug had tears fill her eyes. It had been forever since her mother had hugged her, much less had hugged her first. Wrapping her arms around her mother, she heard her soft sob, and when she pulled away, her mother turned her back to her and started talking. As if nothing had happened.
“This man, Alex, you will bring him back to us safe. It’s important.” They were seated in the large room that her mother used when she came to the castle’s offices. “I know that your sister is there, but she is breeding now. Thank the gods, and it’s important to all of us that she be able to deliver her hatchling safely.” Her mom sat down so Storm did the same in an equally ornate chair.
It was not a question, but Storm answered her anyway. “Yes. You can trust me to keep him safe.”
“It’s not his safety that I worry about. It’s yours.” Morning shifted on her seat, her unease evident on her face and posture. “Alex is your mate. It is determined by the Elders that he will father the next line. His bloodline is strong and pure. He will provide you with love and companionship for the rest of your life and on into the next. You and he and the family you breed will be the ones to destroy evil. “
Storm looked sharply at her mother. No. No, this could not be happening. She did not want a mate chosen for her. She stood and began pacing the room.
“You’re angry. I don’t blame you, I would be—”
“Pardon me, but you don’t know me well enough to judge my anger. I will bring this man to you, but no one is choosing my mate.” She turned on her mother, not sure that this was a smart move on her part, but she was pissed. “Was Ember’s mate chosen for her as well? I’m sure that she’ll be thrilled to know that her life has been arranged for her.”
“No, her finding her mate was a surprise to us all. But this man, Alex, has been chosen as your mate since before he was born. And you will not use that tone with me, young lady. I am still your mother.” Storm took a deep breath and then sat down when her mother asked her to.
“I miss said what he was to you, Storm. No one chose him for you. It was written in the tomes of the future. You will mate with him and bring children into this world that will be needed. When I said chosen, I meant that it has been written.”
She stalked out of the room and into the courtyard again. This time, she shifted as she ran, her body forming and shaping as she went. By the time she had gone a hundred yards, she was launching herself into the sky and soaring across the night.
~~Enjoy great happiness~~
~~Maintain a fond hope for all kind~~
~~Uphold the reparation of magical energy requirements~~
Storm shifted to a human as she touched the ground. Her body threw off its form as if it were a heavy coat she no longer needed. She had landed close to the mouth of the cave where the man Alex was waiting.
Storm had contacted Ember when she left the Realm late last night. Telling her the events that had happened at the castle but she left out the part of “the man” being her mate. She did not plan on taking him as her mate, so she felt no reason to relay the news. Storm had also asked Ember to have the man waiting for her at the mouth of the cave. Storm did not want to take the time to go down and get him. The sooner she took him to the Elders and finished this assignment, the happier she would be.
“You’re to come with me. I’m to take you to the Chilast,” she said when she saw who she assumed was Alexander. She put out her hand to have him come with her.
“I don’t think so. Not until someone explains to me what is going on. One minute, I’m on a domestic violence call. The next I’m being wrapped in wings and brought here. Wings—I’ve seen some weird shit as a cop, but wings are something I’ve never encountered before.” Alex sat hard on the stone next to the wall. He looked stubborn and formidable. She was annoyed but impressed, too.
He was a very handsome man and taller than her by a good half a foot. His hair was dark, as dark as Storm’s, but where hers was curly, his was straight and hung just past his shoulders. The shirt he had on had been torn, so she had a delicious view of his hard abs and harder chest. It looked smooth, and her fingers itched to touch, not just his chest but his entire body. Storm decided that she did not like him and would not be his mate, no matter what anyone said about it.
“I don’t have time to explain, so get ready to go.” She could feel the attraction to him and she hated him all the more for it.
Before he could say anything else, the earth shook beneath them. Alex fell to the cave floor, and Storm was thrown to the wall, striking her head hard. While she fought the blackness tying to consume her, she threw a protective shell around Alex.
“Well, hello, Storm. You have something that belongs to me. I want him. Now!” Grail moved into the mouth opening of the cave, and Storm felt his power surge against the spell she had wrapped around Alex. It wouldn’t work, of course, she was much stronger than him, but it would weaken her more in protecting the human.
Grail had been a gray Dragon in color when Storm had first met him, his color bleeding into his human form, giving his eyes and hair the same rich colors. Now, he was black as pitch. His eyes, once a soft, rich, pewter color, were now black with his dark magic and evil. He was tall, as were all their kind, but he was also heavy. His lack of physical activity not keeping him in the shape he should have been. Though his face, dusky in pallor, was gaunt and shallow. She wondered how he could fly, much less take flight.
“You can’t have him. I’m to take him back to the realm.” She opened her magic and pushed hard back.
Grail raised his hands, and power appeared in the form of a ball of electricity. The longer he held it, the bigger it grew. If he hit the protection, he would destroy it. Storm needed to get them to safety now.
Storm moved in a flash to stand in front of her assignment, she shifted part way, and her wings fluttered out from her back. She flapped them once and their powerful movement moved air strongly around the forest and knocked Grail to the ground as he stood in his fragile human form. Turning to Alex, she grabbed him up and ran to the lighted opening just beyond Grail. As she passed him, she felt a searing pain in her back but did not slow her pace. By the time she was in the open light, she was a full dragon, Alex tucked tightly in her talons. She soared high in the air just as Grail screamed at her to come back.
As a dragon, she could see all the areas where it would be safe for them to land. Her vision was perfect, and she could see the heat from any humans or animals below them, not wanting to land where anything could find them. Storm knew she was losing blood, but until she landed and got the man to safety, there was little to nothing she could do. She was getting weaker and knew that she would need to land soon or risk falling and crushing the man she was sent to protect.
Opening her mind, she hoped to be able to speak to the man. It was the way of their kind to be able to talk to their mates when there had been no bond at all between them. Unlike most species, she could have spoken to Alex since his birth had she known about him being what he was to her.
“Are you hurt? I should have asked sooner, but I wanted to get you out of harm’s way.”
“No. I’m fine. Your claws are digging into me, but I fear that if you lessen your grip, I feel I’ll fall to the earth—unless that is your plan? Tell me, Storm, do you plan to play toss the man into the air and see if you can catch him before he plummets to the earth? If so, could we not play today? I have a very busy schedule tomorrow, and if I’m crushed…well, it could put a crimp in things. No, I think a little pinching is preferable to death. I can smell your blood. How hurt are you?” She told him that she was, but she would heal when they landed. “If there is anything I can do to help you, please let me know. I’m pretty handy to have around.”
She smiled at his sense of humor. Storm had not expected that. He was being very calm for a man who was being flown well above the clouds by a huge blue dragon.
“I must land soon to sleep and heal. I know of a place where you’ll be safe until I can do both. No one will bother you there.” She told him with as much reassurance as she could. Weakness was pulling hard at her, and she did not think she could go much longer.
“So you plan to leave me? I hope you don’t expect me to sit around quietly waiting for your return. I may not know what is going on or why that other…what was he anyway?”
“He’s a dragon like me. And you will stay where I tell you. You are to live at all costs. I don’t have time to placate your feelings, human. I can easily say that you were eaten by Grail as not. Now be quiet.” Storm began her decent.
Pain racked her body, and she knew that the landing was going to be hard. Seconds before she hit the earth, she dropped Alex and tumbled over him, careful not to land on him. As much as he irritated her, she did not want to kill him.
Her body shifted as soon as she stopped rolling, shifting to the last shape she had taken, hiding her true identity from anyone who would come upon her injured body. It was there to provide their kind with surreptitiousness.
Storm sat up just long enough to ensure that Alex was all right, her body and mind already pulling her to sleep. The area where she had taken them was hers; it was safe and hidden well from everyone, including any of her kind. She saw Alex stand and stride toward her just as blackness pulled her under.
~*~
Alex leaned over the woman he had carried into the house he had found a mile or so from where she had fallen. The fire he had lit in the deep fireplace reflected off her face, the reds and golds of the flames casting surreal shadows across her flawless cheeks. She was a beauty, just like her sister, Ember.
There was no doubt to him that the two women were sisters, as they were identical twins and as alike as any he had ever seen. He moved the dark hair away from her face and ran his fingers down her downy cheek. When she stirred slightly, he grinned. She was by far the most stubborn person he had ever met.
“Why do you look at me like that?” She looked up at him, her voice soft in the hushed room.
“I was thinking about how unlike your sister and you are. You are very beautiful, both of you. But you lack her softness and the…genteel nature that she has. You are strong and stubborn. And I’ve never wanted to kiss anyone more than I do you.”
The expression on her face was priceless. He nearly laughed out loud but caught himself before it burst forth. He was afraid she would hurt him. Alex was not a stupid man, he had seen what she was, and while it was hard to believe, he was not going to dismiss the fact that she had flown them away from trouble.
“Why?” He asked her what she meant. “Why would you want to kiss me? It’s not like I’m all that much. I’m, well, at least for the moment, just a woman who has the ability to change into a great dragon. Nothing special about that.”
“Why would I want to kiss you, or why do I think you’re stubborn?” He touched her again. He could not seem to help himself. “And you are extremely special. I’ve only just thought of this too. You’re extremely special to me for some reason. Do you know why?”
She looked at him for long moments, and he suddenly felt her touch his mind again, this time in a searching way, not to speak. Alex was not sure why he did not block her, but he would not try to fight her if she needed reassurances.
“You’re a vampire. They didn’t tell me that.” She sat up on the side of the bed, but he didn’t move back. It put them closer than before and he was happy with that.
“Yes, I’m a vampire. You’re a dragon. I didn’t know that you even existed until I met Ember. You say ‘they’. Who? And who is that man who tried to kill us?”
“The Elders of our kind, they are the ones who sent me to bring you back to them. The other dragon, his name is Grail. He’s also a dragon like me, a time shifter. Did Ember tell you what we do?” He nodded, and she continued. “He was there to kill you and me because we’re supposed to be mates. We are to deliver the next line of dragons. Mother told me that our children were meant to destroy him and his reign. I didn’t stick around long enough to hear why. Grail has been building his power base for many years and has been moving through time making adjustments in the fabric of lives to gather monies to fund his cause—to destroy all dragons but himself. I was in the Americas waiting for Grail to make a move to take a group of scientists away before they were to die, but he came here to get you instead. We had been tracking him for some time. The earthquake that happened in China was the result of him having a temper tantrum. Ember said that she had been sent to save you, but she didn’t know why until I spoke to her. You see, you were to die in that last call you went on when on patrol. When Grail realized that you had survived, he unleashed his anger on those people.”
“I’m sorry for them. I never meant to cause them harm.” He was a good cop, and he never pulled his gun unless it was the only thing left for him to do.
Storm stood up and looked at him. The glow from the fire danced in her eyes. When she licked her lips, he watched, mesmerized by the pink tip moistening her lush lips. “Storm…”
Before he could claim her mouth, he felt himself being tossed across the room. Storm landed across his body, protecting him from falling debris. Her hand clamped tightly across his mouth when he started to speak.
