Chapter Six
Eirrick
A long day of raiding Jyah's supply lines left him exhausted. Eirrick washed the blood and sweat from his body, frowning as his muscles began to stiffen. His training routines hadn't been able to keep his flexibility as sharp as he would have liked. And it was understandable. For him lovemaking was a key part in his fitness, allowing him to stay limber and take on incoming foes with greater durability.
But he would not betray his new wife, not unless he decided to set Brighid aside. He could still give her money and set her up on a nice planet where she could make her life as she saw fit. Doing that would mean never seeing her again… just the thought of doing that hurt.
It was odd, he never considered that he would be so attached to a woman he'd never even slept with…
The door opened and he turned with a snarl, the flames rising up his throat. But it was Brighid who stepped into the room. Her dark hair was loose around her shoulders and her thin gown revealed that she was not wearing a bodysuit underneath.
Desire stirred in his loins but Eirrick kept his gaze on her face. "I didn't send for you."
She didn't speak. Instead, she undid a tie at the back of her neck and let the gown drop. It pooled around her feet, revealing her body fully. Her tight pink nipples stood at full attention, her breasts plump, the curve of her hip flaring and then sloping back down over her shapely thigh. Eirrick felt himself swell and let out a shaky breath as he allowed his eyes to trail down her body before returning to her face.
"Do you want me to touch you now?" His voice came out husky.
Brighid stepped forward. Her eyes seemed to smolder as she smiled at him. She took both of his hands and moved them to her breasts while she nodded. "I want you to touch me. And so much more…"
She ducked her head there, a flush rising in her cheeks. Eirrick traced his thumbs over her hard nipples before tucking his fingers under her chin and lifting her face to his. It was clear that she was uncertain, that she didn't quite know what to do. But the desire was just as clear, from the smoldering in her eyes to the delicate scent wafting off of her. He leaned forward, slowly so she wouldn’t be surprised and sucked her lower lip into his mouth. Her eyes fluttered closed and she moaned softly.
Eirrick's arms banded around her as he moved to nibble on her earlobe. Some women liked that… and by the way Brighid shuddered and leaned into him, she was one of them. She moved against him, rocking herself up to the balls of her feet and back down to rub herself along his length.
The rock pitched to one side. They stumbled together. Brighid shrieked as he pitched the other way. Eirrick wrapped himself around her as the fell, bracing himself to break the impact. They rolled over and knocked into the wall.
Eirrick tucked Brighid under his arm and dragged her into the main room, where he rolled her under the bed and activated the safety restraints that would keep her in place. Her eyes were wide and terrified but he managed a grin at her.
"Don't worry, Dove. This will be over before you know it."
She nodded, eyes still huge in her skull and braced herself against the sides of the restraint field. Eirrick wanted to continue to reassure her but he needed to move. He scrambled back to his feet and raced from the room. The ship shook a few more times but lighter tremors that indicated that they were caused by the canons firing back at their attackers, not taking more hits.
The young warriors that were assigned to protect the ship and their women from invaders lined the corridors. Eirrick didn't acknowledge them as he dove into the nearest ejection bay. He streamlined himself like a torpedo in it and sucked in a deep breath, fueling his flames until they burned so hot that his skin started to change color. Out in the freezing vacuum of space, a dragon's fire was the only thing that kept him from freezing.
The bay launched him into space. The cold was like a punch to the stomach. As soon as he felt the freeze he shifted shape. His wings sprang out from his back and scales coated him, keeping his heat from leaking too quickly from his body.
A small fighter ship dove at him, sending off blasts of red energy. Eirrick flapped one wing to spin himself away from it, still within the Dragons' ship's atmosphere and gravity pull. The fighter doubled back and Eirrick lithely twisted beneath it. He grabbed the propulsion engine and tore it askew, then used his weight to flip the fighter around and pointed it at another.
Another ship came at him. He barely managed to dodge its attack. As it flew by, he saw the symbol on its side. A blue circle with a sword piercing through it. The symbol that the warrior-priests of Atlantica carried.
Eirrick's flames flickered. He dropped onto a ship passing below him and peered through the clear cockpit. A priest stared back up at him. With a roar that released half of his fires, Eirrick tore through the ship and yanked the priest out. He tossed the attacker over his shoulder and beat his wings to land on the outer shell of his ship. His heart pounded as cold seeped through him. His head swung back and forth, keeping an eye on the battle raging overhead while searching the surface of the ship.
There! A fighter had latched itself to the bulkhead, sitting so low that it was almost part of the larger ship. Eirrick scrambled over the shell of his ship. Once he got to the fighter, his sharp claws lashed out. They tore through the side of the fighter like it was paper and soon he had exposed the cockpit to space.
It was empty.
Brighid.
His fires almost went out. Eirrick dove towards the nearest access port. He didn't bother with the normal protocols for depressurization, shrinking from beast to human and darting into the corridor beyond. The young warriors left behind lay scattered over the floor. Not a drop of blood was seen–sleeping gas? It didn't matter. His heart pounded in his throat as he rushed through the corridors towards his chambers.
He knew very well what damage one assassin could do. The destruction of his birth clan came about from the wrong dragon being trusted, being welcomed into their midst.
If the priests of Atlantica were attacking him, it was on behest of Jyah. And he would be after Brighid. Eirrick pushed himself to go faster. If the assassin got to her, if he was too late—He shut down that line of thinking as he reached his chambers.
The door was open. He burst in to see a man crouched over Brighid. Blood poured down her arm and one of his knives lay on the floor just beyond her reach. Tears streamed down her face and she gave a little gasp as her eyes lit on him. A knife was against her throat. Eirrick didn't think. He just let loose the rest of his fires. They shot white-hot, eating the air between him and the assassin.
Screams rose into the air and Eirrick dodged forward. He grabbed the burning man by the head and flung him over his shoulder, twisting the man's body to snap his neck. The screams cut out. Eirrick dropped to his knees beside Brighid and gathered her into his arms. She trembled, eyes fluttering.
"Stay with me," he whispered. "Brighid, you're safe now. I'm here. I'm here."
He kissed her forehead and laid her on the floor. The wound in her arm still bled heavily but there wasn't a mark on her throat. Her left side was reddened from his flames. No blisters, though. She would be quickly and easily healed. He pulled her into his arms again as a young warrior dodged into his room. At the sight of the smoldering body and Brighid near-unconscious in Eirrick's arms, the boy dropped to his knees.
"We lost communications with this sector. The attackers have fled. My lord, is she—"
"Alive." Eirrick got to his feet, cradling his wife to his chest. "Check on your fellows. If they're alive get healers here."
He strode away without another word. Jyah's forces had nearly killed Brighid. The priest was clearly more formidable than Eirrick had anticipated. His emptied fires clenched and sparked. This was the last time Jyah got so close to Brighid. Eirrick had been content with mocking the priest's attempts at them but no more. Now he was going to the temple itself.
And he would burn stone and flesh to nothing.