“I can taste them,” Clive said with a growl.
Holding back the pursuit, there were more - three of them. “We’re close to their central territory.” He drifted to the side of their arch, watching their direction.
He scented the land before he saw the ribbon cutting the blue sky from the glittering surface of the water.
Below them, from the other direction, three more figures appeared. They were crisscrossing in spiraling arcs to cover their territory.
They had to move fast. Even though they were well above them, the air currents would drag the scent of the male dragons, giving away their presence. He angled again and drove toward the projected center of their arcs. Toward the land.
In moments, a citadel came into view, buildings rolling outward down toward the coastline of the main island. Now to get a better look at this place and its fortifications.
A deep baritone sound rippled across the island.
Jori recognized it as some kind of alarm.
Within moments there were shapes racing through the air beyond his lattice stone wall. He couldn’t see clearly what was happening, the sounds of growling and roaring were so loud the stone beneath his hands vibrated.
He watched through the openings in the wall for any activity. A pair of dragons engaged in combat grappled and tumbled through the air until a third joined in to attack the larger intruder. The newcomer clamped powerful jaws on the larger dragon’s throat while the other continued to keep its dangerous claws occupied as they struggled to stay airborne.
They fell out of his range of sight, but after long noisy moments the ground shook with an incredible crash, the larger dragon must have broken free, for it flew off, circling past the cliff-top prison Jori was housed in.
The two smaller dragons didn’t give chase, then several more came soaring out of the sky, chasing the larger one out of range.
After several more moments, the air went quiet except for the occasional rush of air from one of them circling overhead.
Jori dropped onto his cot.
Holy shit.
His hands shook and his heart pounded, the rushing of his blood loud in his ears.
Fear and exhilaration pumped adrenaline through his body. There was something about the sounds of their growls and roars that pulled at his skin.
The islanders had been attacked by a much larger dragon than their defenders. Fear for Kymri’s safety rushed through him. This island was under threat, of much larger dragons. What kind of damage could it have done without the protection of this fleet of smaller dragons?
How could these people live with that kind of threat looming over them?
Kymri heard the alarm. Her bare feet hit the cool stone floor and she was running for the guard tower. As she emerged from the room, she merged with the rush of other bodies running through the corridors to perform emergency duties during times of crisis. Everyone had a place to be and a roll to fulfill.
With a glance, she saw the shamans moving the younglings down into the lower levels of the citadel closer to the evacuation caves. She knew that the villagers would be gathering their families and making their way toward the citadel. The merchants would be locking down their valuables under the flagstone floors of their simple houses. Many of the inhabitants on the island were human - neighbors and friends that needed the protection of the dragons. Theirs was a peaceful co-existence. Some of the dragonesses lived in the village among them rather than among the citadel’s warrior and ruling classes.
Her body was running for the guard tower, her mind went out toward Jori. He was confined to the prison barracks at the far end of the complex.
Duty kept her moving toward the launch tower. It was her job to protect the island and the queen. Once she reached the upper levels of the guard tower, she could see the chaotic order of the guardians. Everyone was on alert, shifting and launching into action.
“How many?” she barked.
“Three.”
Kymri stripped her clothing and shifted.
Pain tore through her body radiating outward from her womb. The hard shell around the child crackled and thickened, taking up more space inside her. It was protecting itself from her magic. She gasped for breath while the sharpness of the pain subsided enough for her to focus on what she was trying to do.
As soon as she could draw a deep enough breath, she went for the ledge and threw out her wings. Gaining altitude, she could see where two of the intruders were being engaged by her sister guardians. She circled the island looking for the third. Circling upward, high above the citadel, movement on the opposite side of the skirmishes drew her attention. Zayli was fighting alone with another of the larger intruders. No matter their differences, a sister guardian was still a sister. They always protected their own —no matter what. And she wouldn’t be able to hold up for long on her own.
Kymri tucked in her wings and dove with a snarl.
She ignored the throbbing in her lower belly drilling all her focus into a weak point of the intruder’s throat and clamped onto it with the full weight and force of her diving body. Her jaws closed on his scales and squeezed hard.
He roared and reared against her attack; his claws still tangled up with Zayli. Kymri clamped a talon on one of his wings and they began to tumble.
The ground rushed toward them, jagged rocks and frothing sea below the cliff-top prison barracks. Kymri wrenched hard, pulling their falling masses away from the stone building, but the writhing of the intruder, wrenched them back again, causing them to collide with the jagged cliff wall. The impact loosened her hold on his throat, and Zayli took the brunt of the impact, her head slamming back into the solid rock wall. She fell as the intruder shook himself free.
Kymri’s strength began to flag and she was losing altitude. There wasn’t enough strength in her to chase him, instead she dropped down to Zayli’s inert form.
Zayli lay on her back on the hard rocks. Kymri hoped her scales were strong enough to prevent penetration, but the impact could do serious internal damage. Her body shook with the exertion of the fight and holding her shift. She held her dragon form despite her waning strength and slipped her body between Zayli’s and the rocks and surging ocean to keep her head out of the water.
Someone would find them; she knew her sisters would search the islands. And sure enough, two more swooped into view overhead to pursue the fleeing intruder. A third surveying the area spotted them and left. Kymri knew she was going to get help. She sighed under the strain of holding her form. She just had to hold it until they returned.
Dragonsdammit, this child was going to be the death of her.
She was starting to lose consciousness when she heard the whoosh of air over head. Sliding out from under Zayli’s dragon form, she clung to one of the boulders as she slid back into her human form, giving in to darkness again.
Great, she was going to be forced to spend even more time in fucking bed, she thought as she blacked out.
12
The door to Jori’s prison wrenched open, and two angrier than usual guards crowded the space.
While lying on the bed, he’d been sketching in his notebook. On seeing their expressions, he put it down and stood. Their faces were pinched, and he could feel the rage rolling toward him. One clenched her fist around her spear, the other had both hands curled into very tight fists at her sides.