I step on one of the bodies and my ankle twists. I stumble back, raising my lochaber in blind protection as I struggle to catch my balance. The blades swing in and out faster than I can follow, so I’m forced back more.
Aeros leaps to my aid. His lochaber blurs as he blocks blow after blow. I catch my balance and rush forward, but it happens too fast. Aeros misses the block on an incoming club. It connects with his head, crushing it.
I avenge him with the opening thus created, driving my blade into the Invader’s chest and then pulling up with a roar of rage. The blade slices through until it hits bone. I jerk it free, blood spraying.
The other Invader is overwhelmed now that it is two on one. No matter the clanging of the alarms that continue to ring, a heavy silence lies over us. I lean on my lochaber panting, eyes resting on Aeros.
He was a good warrior, a fine soldier. They all are. No member of the Order has ever been anything less than dedicated to our cause. Laying our lives on the line for the future of Tajss itself. He died serving the higher purpose.
“Sir,” one of the other warriors says. I look up and recognize Vae and Palax. “We must move. There are more.”
“A lot more,” Palax says.
“Have you seen the Premiere?” I ask. They exchange a look that tells me all I need to know without them having to say it. “Others?”
“No, sir,” Vae says.
“Right,” I nod. “We need to escape. The compound is lost.”
My chest clamps tight and my hearts struggle against the pressure. The look on the two warriors’ faces mirrors the one I imagine is on my own. No matter, we have protocols in place for such a possibility, though none of us expected to ever use them.
I take the lead, racing through the smoke-filled halls. Bodies litter the floor. Our fallen brethren. The Invaders seem to be systematically hunting and killing us. This isn’t a battle, it’s an extermination.
Chilling fingers run along my spine and my wings flutter in response. They intend to take Tajss, and that must not happen.
I turn a corner and lead the way to a dead end. After running my hands over the wall, I find the trigger and open a hidden passage. This one is rough-hewn stone, cut through the rocky protrusion that hides the compound. I step to one side and usher the others into the tunnel before closing the door behind us.
“Follow the tunnel,” I say.
It’s dirty and tight. Dust and sand drift from the ceiling as we make our way through the stone tunnel until at last, we emerge onto the open sands. When I climb out of the trap door, I turn and look back. Flames soar out of the compound, revealing its hidden location to all. The flames climb so high and are so bright, I’m sure they can be seen from space. It looks as if someone has lit a signal fire for the gods themselves.
My vision blurs and doubles. I’m seeing two scenes at once, but they don’t match. Reflexively, my hands clench into fists as fear clamps around my chest. All I’ve known is lost, and it’s going to take all my will and power to make sure we don’t lose Tajss in the process. It would be enough to fight for the planet, but it’s not all I’m fighting to save.
Her.
She’s out there, and she too is in danger. I’m seeing her home burn too. When I close my eyes, I still see the burning buildings. She turns away, taking the sight away, and I lose the tenuous connection, but not before I think I recognize the sight.
“Mining settlement,” I whisper.
“Sir?” Vae asks.
I snap my eyes open, locking my gaze on him.
“Have you been to the humans’ mining settlement?” I ask.
“No, sir,” he says.
Frowning, I nod.
“I’ve been close to it, sir,” Palax says.
“Describe it to me,” I order.
The confusion is obvious on his face, but he’s well trained and doesn’t question. He gives a cursory, battlefield-style report of what he saw. He was never inside of the camp, spying on it from a distance only but it’s enough. That is where she was.
“No wonder,” I say.
“Sir?” Palax asks.
“Nothing,” I snap. “We must reach the Weeping Male. Go.”
We run across the desert to regroup with the others, but now I know why I haven’t been able to find her. She was never in the City or at the Tribe’s cave. She was out there, at the mining settlement. How did I never think of it?
Fate. It must be the guiding hand of Tajss itself, not letting us come together before it is time. As difficult as it is, my prime cock throbbing with desire for her, I must put my trust in Tajss. I will find her. She is closer now than ever before.
She is mine. It is only a matter of time.
4
Ladon
“Come here,” I growl, grabbing Calista’s leg and jerking her across our bed.
She laughs as she struggles. “Ladon! Illadon will be up any moment.”
“He’s not yet,” I say, kissing her shoulder.
The sheets have pulled down, revealing the tantalizing lines of her neck and the swell of her breasts.
“He will be,” she says, shuddering as I continue trailing kisses along her exposed skin.
“In time,” I agree. “You are the most beautiful female in the universe.”
She stops resisting my attention, rolling towards me and throwing a leg over my hip.
“Oh?” she asks.
“Yes,” I say. “You are perfect.”
“I don’t know about all that,” she says, looking down.
I cup her cheek and draw her face back up to meet mine. Gazing into her perfect, brown eyes, I touch my lips to hers. Soft, gentle, brushing against her plushness. She shivers so I grab the treated furs we use for blankets and pull them up over us.
“Are you calling me a liar?” I ask.
“More biased,” she says.
I trail my fingers through her hair, down on to her back and slide it under the sheet, exploring her exotically soft skin.
“Mine,” I growl, hooking her ass and pressing her against me.
My prime cock digs into her stomach. She caresses my cheek, tilting her head back, welcoming my kiss. I absorb her body’s heat, her heat burns against me, the fire that burns in my soul. She is all I’ve ever dreamed of.
The dragon rumbles in satisfaction. She is all I ever need or want.
“Yours,” she whispers.
The dragon roars, satisfaction erupting into pleasure. Her submission creates such pleasure.
“Bury myself in you,” I growl.
Rolling on top of her. The sheets try to stop my progress, so I rip them off the bed and throw them while shifting my hips. My cock is between her legs, pressing against her, ready to drive deep.
She spreads her legs, her lips part, her eyes closed. Ready to take me, offering herself to me.
I thrust, hard. Driving in, to the hilt. She gasps then exclaims as I fully seat myself inside of her, and my knob rubs hard on her clit.
Her hands claw across my back. She thrusts her hips up, quivering beneath me. I retreat slow. Experiencing every inch of my member sliding through her warm embrace. Pulling back until the tip is barely inside.
I hold, preparing my next thrust.
CRASH!
The sound of shattering glass from the next room stops me. Calista pushes me off and leaps from the bed. In a single motion she grabs the sheet from the floor and wraps it around herself as she races for the door.