Legend's Awakening Read online

  I know everyone’s scared, still trying to figure out how to survive this new world order, but I think we’d have a better time of it if we were to find what the dragons are looking for. Now, if I could just convince someone to help me. Fat chance of that happening. People are so superstitious, and I’ve somewhat of a reputation at the few settlements around here as the crazy Dragon Scavenger.

  Maybe I can find help in any new settlements we may come across, if there are any where we’re headed. I don’t know where that is yet, but I do know we can’t stay here much longer. Not only are there too many dragons to deal with, but the supplies in this town are just about tapped out, and after that last tussle in the Santa Fe Settlement, we’re running out of trade hubs to visit. If it weren’t for the Trader and Thunder Mountain Inn, we’d be S.O.L. as far as getting supplies and a comfy place to sleep.

  “We must leave Pride Rock. Again,” I say out loud, laughing as I startle myself with the sudden breaking of silence.

  Wait. Silence isn’t good. Where’s the chatter of birds? The hairs at the back of my neck prickle as I glance over the landscape before me; golden grasses whispering in the breeze, the Sandia mountains a deep shade of blue, their peaks frosted. Gossamer clouds turn the sky to marble, diffusing the sunlight, making it easier for my sensitive eyes to see.

  A raven caws angrily behind me, startled from its roost on top of the old, crumbling water tower, and I instinctually draw my bow, nocking an arrow as I turn. The raven flies overhead, going south, just as the dragon calls. Will it be Beauty, or Beast? And is it too much to hope that it already fed on the cows in the pasture?

  That wouldn’t matter, anyways. I’m in a bad spot, smack dab in the middle of a snowy field and wearing my bright yellow jacket. Dragons are like cats and find it fun to swat us humans around like squeak toys. My only shot at survival is the house.

  I start running. If I get inside before I’m even seen, I’ll be home free in no time. If it’s a Beauty. If it’s a Beast, there’s a fifty-fifty chance it catches my scent and hunts me down.

  I reach the small gate, which I stupidly closed behind me out of sheer habit, and fling it open just as the dragon comes over the house, splintering the Japanese maple as it lands nearly on top of me. Golden eyes peer down hungrily from dull brown scales. Fuck. It’s a Beast.

  Not wasting any time, the dragon lunges for me, mouth wide, and I reflexively volley an arrow to the back of its throat. The Beast gags, tearing at its mouth with its human-like hands. I turn tail and run for the small metal shed, crouching around the side covered by a tall tree. Hopefully this dragon will think twice now that I’ve shot it and vanished.

  The world falls quiet again as the dragon quits struggling and I chance a look around the corner. I don’t see the dragon, but I also didn’t hear it take off. I can only hope it’s stalking in the wrong direction; there’s not many options for escape, with eight-foot-tall fencing surrounding me. Why did our dogs have to be escape artists?

  I usually love the quiet that snow offers, but not in this instance. The fluffy white stuff muffles footsteps, even when they’re made by giant flying lizards. My heart pounding in my ears isn’t helping, either.

  I peer around the corner one more time, taking a step to get a better view just as the tree above me snaps. Dead and broken branches rain down on my head, and I run from my cover, heading for the house as fast as my thick legs will carry my fat ass.

  It’s not enough, though; the dragon screams, leaping between me and my destination. I draw another arrow, ready to shoot again, but the dragon learned from the first time and just watches me warily, mouth firmly shut. Aiming for the only other soft spot it has, I fire right into its eye, quickly pulling another arrow. It can’t catch what it can’t see.

  Just as I loose the next shot, the dragon slams its fist into me, sending my shot wide and my body sprawling into the snow a few yards back. My bow flies out of my reach, snapped in half by the blow. Pulling the spiraling knife from my boot, sheer adrenaline pushes me to my feet despite my spinning head.

  The dragon roars in frustration, and I scream back, the sound bouncing around in my brain, threatening to bring me to my knees.

  “Come on! Eat me!” I throw my arms wide. If I die today, at least I die fighting. My five-inch blade may not be much, but it’ll do some damage before I go.

  With a snarl, the dragon lunges again, and I grip my knife, prepared to die.

  Then, out of nowhere, another dragon slams into the first, its black scales glinting silver in the muted sunlight. I know I should run while I have the chance, but my legs refuse to listen.

  Not like I would have gotten very far. With only one eye and being the smaller dragon, the Beast is outmatched, and the fight is over in a matter of seconds, with the loser flying away quickly. Well, I’m never getting those arrows back.

  The Beauty turns its silver gaze on me next, and I grip my knife again. Out of the frying pan, into the fire. Adrenaline can only carry me so far, and it’s sadly failing. I involuntarily fall to my knees, my blade slipping from my hand as I sit back on my heels, resigned.

  “To the victor goes the spoils, right?” I laugh half hysterically.

  A dark figure enters the blurry edges of my vision, too small to be a dragon. I drowsily turn my attention to it, finding a very large, black horse with golden eyes and horns sweeping elegantly back from its head walking for me. Horns? Horses don’t have horns. A baby dragon?!

  I look back to what I would presume to be the momma dragon, but find a man where the dragon once was, dark cloak swishing in the gentle breeze as he walks towards me. I fumble for my knife, but my arms are lead at the bottom of the sea, and I lose what tiny grip I had on consciousness as the two beings close in on me.

  ✽✽✽

  “Are you sure it’s her?” a man’s deep, slightly accented voice breaks through the haze in my mind. “It doesn’t look like her.”

  A hand brushes the hair off my face, and my mind jolts back to full awareness, my eyes popping open with the memory of where I am and what was happening.

  The man’s crouched beside me, concern and disbelief in his silver gaze. He yanks his hand back in surprise, moving back a few steps as I jump to my feet and retreat in the other direction, my vision spinning with the rapid change in elevation and threatening to send me back to the ground.

  My head’s throbbing and my body aches practically all over from the hard hit I took, but I try valiantly to make sure it doesn’t show as I stand tall to face the strange man and his dragon-horse, quickly taking stock of the duo.

  The man seems a shadow against the snow, with a hooded cloak across broad shoulders, his linen shirt tucked into high waisted pants, and knee-high leather boots, all in shades of black; perfectly contrasting his light complexion.

  Slanted eyes the color of a newly minted quarter ringed with black watch me behind sooty eyelashes, accented by thick, arching eyebrows and angled cheeks. Full lips sit below a straight, thick nose, and a short beard lines his square jaw.

  I don’t know why, but he seems oddly familiar. My heart wants to let my guard down, but my mind knows all too well I can’t. Seeming friends can turn to foes in the blink of an eye in this new landscape.

  His strange horse-dragon, slightly bigger than a Shire horse, didn’t get the memo, and has come up to nuzzle my arm. Crystalline black scales cover most of its body, with a smoky mane and sleek fur running down its back.

  It nudges me again, this time a little more forceful, and twitches its tufted lion’s tail, pawing the ground with a cloven hoof. My better judgement tells me not to, but my inner little girl tells me to touch it, and I oblige, running my hand across the creature’s surprisingly warm cheek.

  A static shock jolts through my fingers, tingling up my arm, and the beast’s golden dragon eyes light up from within. Almost obediently, it drops its head, and a small thrill runs through me. Emboldened by this gesture, I gently trail my hand down the smooth scales of its neck, running my finge
rs through the liquid smoke of its mane.

  “Who are you?” the man breaks the silence, stepping closer.

  “Who am I?!” I turn on him, fists involuntarily balling at my side. “It’s you who should be introducing yourself! After all, this is my yard you invaded!”

  Pushing the hood off his head, revealing shoulder length raven-dark hair, the man takes the space separating us in one stride, towering over me. He sweeps his cloak back, revealing a silver and black gemmed sword at his hip, glowing with an odd light.

  That comeback may not have been a good idea. Mary did say my mouth would get me killed one day.

  My eyes flick to my bow, still lying broken in the snow too far away, then to my knife, sitting on the ground just a few feet away, but behind the man. Hoping for the best, but prepared for the worst, I square my shoulders and stand at my full five foot eight, glaring defiantly.

  He stands a good six inches taller than me, his thick muscles visible even though he wears a loose shirt. He’d have to work for it, but he could totally take on my dense bulk; not even my weight can save me this time. As it is, I’m completely at this stranger’s mercy.

  One corner of the man’s lips twists up, breaking his stern demeanor for an instant, and he does something I didn’t expect; he bows. “My name is Caedryn.” Straightening up, he gestures to the large creature at my side. “This is Alarr.”

  “I’m Xerxia.” I nod, for lack of anything better to do. “Pleased to meet you and your… horse… thing.” I scrunch my nose, knowing that sounded dumb.

  “Xerxia,” Caedryn tries my name out, the rumble of his voice tingling down my spine. “Alarr is a draquus,” he answers the question I failed at asking, amused. “He isn’t mine, but yours.”

  “What?! How?! I don’t even know what a draquus is!” I stare at Caedryn in disbelief, suddenly wondering if I’m actually still out cold, and this is a dream.

  He just smirks again, this time almost cracking a full smile. “A draquus is a companion to the Royal he or she was bonded with at birth. Alarr is your draquus. He guided me to you, for you bear the soul of a long-lost Royal,” he explains simply.

  “What?!” My voice cracks this time, and I shake my head. I have to be dreaming. “Did you just say I’m a long-lost Royal? Like a princess or something?”

  “Yes,” Caedryn states, like it’s a perfectly normal thing. “Your soul is the reincarnation of a Royal dragon; the last alive.”

  “Wait, a dragon?!” I’m definitely dreaming, or I’m dead.

  “Yes, a dragon,” Caedryn reiterates, slightly annoyed at my inability to grasp the obvious. “Your soul has reincarnated, just as all the other Royals’ had, to oversee dragonkind once more. Yours is sadly the last; the others are lost to us. We must now awaken your soul for you to defeat Drustana, who has attempted to claim High Royal, driving dragonkind mad and sending those she can rule to kill you.”

  Caedryn waits for me to ask another question, looking hopeful I won’t ask him something dumb again. Lucky for him, I’m all out. I pinch myself, half hoping this is a dream, but knowing it isn’t. This is the world we live in now, and that pinch just hurt, so this is really happening.

  “Alright.” I take a few deep breaths to calm my racing mind. “Tell me everything, please.”

  Looking relieved that I finally said something a little more intelligent than ‘what’, Caedryn begins his story. “Millennia ago, dragons and humans coexisted peacefully. Drustana disagreed with the notion. She felt dragons were superior to the simple humans, that dragons should rule over them, be like the Gods the humans worshipped. As she was not a Royal, that was never going to happen.

  “The Royals reigned sovereign over dragonkind, upholding the laws, and had a peace pact with the humans. This peace lasted for several centuries, but when dragon slaying became celebrated, the peace shattered.

  “These new dragon hunters spread misinformation to justify their killing. It didn’t take long before they discovered dragons walked among them in human form. The slayings became more frequent. Soon it was too dangerous to continue with their coexistence. It was time for the dragons to become dormant and wait for their time to return.

  “Drustana seized this opportunity to act. Making a new pact, she led the Kings of the land to where the Royals lay dormant and watched as they were slain. The humans let Drustana live and did not seek out any more dragons.

  “Drustana then went into her long slumber, awaiting the day she and all dragonkind would awaken with her as the new High Royal. Unbeknownst to her, the souls of the Royals she had murdered would also wait, reincarnating when the time was right.

  “This is where you come from, Xerxia. Yours is the last known Royal soul. You must awaken to defeat Drustana and reunite dragonkind, or the world will burn.”

  I stare at Caedryn, so many thoughts racing through my mind. I’m a dragon, and a Royal one at that! I’m what the dragons are looking for. I’m how we save the world!

  “How do we awaken my soul?”

  Caedryn’s eyes go wide for a fraction of a second, then he pulls an amulet out from under his shirt, a beautiful blue diamond with a glowing, fiery center. Slipping the long silver chain off his neck, he holds it out to me. I can’t explain why, but I need to touch it. Need to hold it in my hand, close to my heart.

  “This is the Royal soulstone. Take it,” Caedryn says, again with that smirk.

  I reach for the amulet, wondering if he knows he does that, but as my hand closes around the stone, my mind goes blank.

  I bring the soulstone closer to me, cradling it in my palms against my chest, staring into it, and I become completely mesmerized. The flames in its center leap and dance, inviting, and something inside me obliges; heat engulfs my body as I surrender to the fire, the flames burning brighter as they caress my skin.

  My body pulses with my heartbeat, the pace quickening by the second until I don’t think it can go any faster. I explode like a firework, a bright flash of dazzling colors dancing like an aurora, taking the shapes of dragons and spiraling around me, embracing me in a warm cocoon. The dragons spin faster, becoming a tornado, and an electric energy surges through my body like lightning, then it’s over just as quickly as it began.

  Feeling like I simultaneously stepped out of a pool after too many hours and off a merry-go-round after too many spins, my legs turn to jello and I stumble forward into Caedryn.

  “Did you see that?!” I ask a little breathlessly. “What just happened?!”

  Warm energy now courses through my veins, and there’s a strange tingling at the back of my neck that sends a shiver down my spine. There’s also a slight tugging in my chest, like someone’s grabbed my heart and is trying to lead me somewhere.

  “You have been awakened,” Caedryn replies simply, the smirk on his lips turning into a full smile, looking like a kid who got what he wanted for Christmas.

  His silver gaze meets mine, a certain softness in his eyes now, and I can’t help the small giggle that escapes me as I stand up straight, with a little bit of his help.

  My fist buzzes like I’m holding a bee, reminding me of the blue diamond I still have in my hand, and I hold the amulet out toward him. “Here.”

  Caedryn takes it from me, leaving me slightly sad at its loss. He takes a step closer, making my heart beat inexplicably fast, and gently places the silver chain around my neck with a soft smile. “It belongs to you now.”

  I twist the stone between my fingers for a moment, then tuck it in my jacket. It comes to rest between my breasts, oddly warm against my skin, and I smile gratefully at Caedryn. Without a thought, I gently touch his arm with an odd familiarity, the tenderness in his gaze exciting me.

  My mind catches up with my actions, and I let my hand drop away naturally. The stupid smile on my lips refuses to go away, though; I’ve always been terrible at controlling my face.

  Caedryn’s eyes sharpen, and in the span of a breath his expression changes, his brow creasing with worry as he glances around us warily
. My smile fades as his uncertainty seeps into my heart, and I look around now, too.

  “What is it?” I ask, not finding anything.

  “We must go! Now,” Caedryn orders, stepping closer as if to shield me from the unseen threat. “Alarr will carry you!”

  Adrenaline pushes any trace of my pain away. Alarr’s at my side, and before I can ask how in the hell I’m supposed to reach his back, Caedryn grabs my waist and easily hoists my thick ass up. Born from years of riding horses, I instinctually toss one leg over as I gently plop onto Alarr, then panic. I haven’t had a lot of experience with bareback riding, and this is way out in left field. How am I supposed to hold on to scales?!

  Do not worry, Xerxia; you will not fall, a lilting, masculine voice reassures me, echoing in my head like a thought.

  Of course, the draquus is telepathic. Why not? He’s also right. I was too busy freaking out to notice before, but a slight pull kind of like a magnet is holding me firm to his back.

  A sudden snapping, like sails unfurling in the wind, pulls my attention back to Caedryn, and my breath catches in my throat. A man no longer stands beside me, but a sleek black dragon, scales sheening like obsidian and familiar silver eyes glimmering.

  “This way,” Caedryn’s voice comes from the dragon’s mouth, more rumbling than before, and with one powerful beat of his wings he takes off, spraying cold, powdery snow across my face.

  Without warning, Alarr charges after Caedryn, hooves beating a quick tempo as we rush through the yard for the large gate. There’s an ominous roar ahead of us just as we make it through, and Alarr skids to a stop, tossing his head.

  Caedryn turns abruptly and flies back for us, another roar ringing out from the huge golden dragon now hot on his heels.

  Better Hide, Better Run

  CAEDRYN dives rapidly to the ground, shifting in the blink of an eye as he slides beside Alarr and me. The gold dragon shoots over us, the air whistling off its massive wings as it banks to circle back around. Did it have a scar on its cheek? I think I know this dragon!