18
Adan
—
In the following days, we recover from the attack. No more deaths occur and everyone holds on to a tentative hope that the monsters are gone for good.
We give those who perished in the fight a traditional burial by burning their bodies. Reconstruction and reinforcement on the damaged sections of Vyaka begin.
Just as Xia suspected, the monsters destroyed the transformer in order to shut off the lights. She remains to fix it. My hope lives on that she will stay when she is done with the task, but I disregard it and focus on helping the Secan people move on from our ordeal.
“Rah!” Zavi shouts as he zooms into my den. Lim immediately uncurls herself from her slumber and sits up to watch Zavi. “I can do it! I can finally do it!”
“Do what?” I stretch. It’s been a long and tiring day of being both labourer and leader. Never has my bed looked more inviting. However seeing Zavi running around brings me joy. It was hard to watch him suffer as he recovered from his attack. Yet he has healed and returned to his normal exuberance.
“My dragon spoke to me!” he says. Then, coming to an abrupt stop, Zavi shuts his eyes, his forehead wrinkling in concentration. His slim body begins to grow in size, his clothes tearing. His pale skin darkens into black scales and wings sprout from his back.
A rur draki stands before me in place of Zavi. He’s finally learned to Shift. He pumps his wings in excitement, the gust of air fanning me. Lim stands, flicking her tail, sniffing in Zavi’s direction as she circles the room with a curious expression.
I grin, congratulating Zavi. I order him to stay still while I inspect him. Sometimes drakila are not entirely in control of their dragon form yet and cannot perform a proper shift. Therefore they must be trained. Yet Zavi has done exceptionally well.
As I finish my inspection, Xia enters the den. She squeaks in surprise when she sees Zavi, pressing a hand to her chest.
Zavi returns to his primary form, entirely naked. His legs spread wide, he plants his hands on his bony hips, a big, proud grin on his face.
“Did I scare you, Xia?”
She laughs, the sound soft and genuine, inspiring a tightness in my chest.
“You bet. I didn’t know you could shift.”
“That was my first time!” he says, then he spins, looking up at me with excitement. “Will you teach me how to breathe fire?”
“Small steps, you must learn to fly first,” I say, patting his head. “You should go show kaha. She will be as proud as I am to see your dragon form.”
Nodding, he races out of the den with as much speed as he entered it. Lim follows him at a much more leisurely place, pausing briefly to sniff Xia. Then, to my amazement, she rubs her face along Xia’s hand before she continues her stalk out of the den after Zavi.
“Did you see that?” Xia says, her eyes wide. “Lim touched me!”
“You should be grateful it was only a touch.”
“I am grateful. So grateful that my heart just started beating again.” Her smile gradually dims. She advances toward me slowly, her expression nervous. “Adan, the... the transformer is fixed and the lights are all working again.”
I nod, ignoring the leaden sensation in my gut.
“Thank you for staying to complete the task. My people appreciate the effort.”
“Your people are good and kind,” she says softly. “They cared for my friend and treated us well even though we aren’t like them. Helping them feel safe is the least I could do to repay them for their generosity.”
A quiet follow where we stare at each other.
“I suppose you plan to leave in the morning?” I ask her.
She looks away, chewing on her lip, her forehead creased in thought.
“Do all Secans live in mountains?” she asks, meeting my gaze again.
I regard her with confusion, unsure of the direction of this conversation. But I answer her anyway.
“Some form villages outside in the flatlands.”
“And what do they use for light source and heat? Just fire?”
“Yes, but why—”
“Wind turbines!” she says in excitement, wagging a finger. “At least on the mountains for now since it’s constantly windy at the top. Might take a bit of work, but it can be done.”
“Xia, you’re not being clear about what you’re proposing.”
“I’m proposing you incorporate wind turbines as a power source along with the improvements you’re doing to the dens in Vyaka.” She pauses, licking her lips. “I’m also proposing that if you do decide to include that, maybe… maybe I could be a part of its implementation since I’ve experience in this field...”
Silence follow as I finally understand what she’s trying to say.
“If I don’t want to build wind turbines, would you still want to stay?” I ask quietly.
“Someone once told me it’s pretty dangerous to go wandering alone in Seca,” she says, a smile playing around her lips. “Since my ride left this morning with Tess on it, I guess I don’t have a choice but to stay.” She closes the distance between us and I embrace her so quickly it’s as if its by reflex or muscle memory. “I just hope the good people of Seca wouldn’t mind putting up with me a little longer. What about you Adan?”
“Ah, such an inconvenience. How will I manage?”
She laughs then reaches up to kiss me. Growling with satisfaction, I return her kiss hungrily. Triumph courses through me and I hold her in a tight, possessive embrace so that she knows she is mine and I will never let her go.
“I’m not still brave, Adan,” she whispers. “But I will try… I will be brave if I am with you.”
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—
Preview: Dragon’s Captive
It isn’t just Theron before me anymore.
It’s that dark monster that lives inside him, too.
It’s night and the only light around us is from the city below. Theron looms over me like a shadow in the gloom but I still see his face. I still see the way his eyes gleam golden and fiery with a hunger that steals my breath, and I know that he’s going to consume me where we stand.
I won’t let him. I won’t give in to him even if my nipples are hard points seeking his attention and between my legs is slick, burning for his touch.
I’m still recovering from his first kiss when he accosts me with another one. He angles his head to the side, his tongue swiping at the seam of my lips before slipping into my mouth.
Lust wraps me up in its heat, smothering me the moment his tongue curls against mine. But the voice inside my head, the one that’s filled with good sense and foresight, screams at me to fight again.
Don’t give in.
Trying to free my hands from his hold, I twist away from his kiss. That leaves my neck exposed. Theron drags his lips across my jaw and latches onto the skin below my ear.
The damp heat of his mouth and tongue inspires a tightening sensation between my legs and pulls a whimper from lips. His free hand finds the tie on my slave’s robe and loosens it with a yank. The ends of my robe hang open, baring me in my underwear.
Heat floods my face in anger and in mortification. Only one other male has seen me like this, but it’s been so long ago that this moment feels like the first time all over again.
The look on Theron’s face as his gaze scorches my skin frightens me with its intensity. I’m the meat set before a wild, hungry animal who has been chained too long and is now released.
It’s futile to tug free from his hold. His hand might as well be a metal clamp around my wrists. I’ve gained strength working in the bakery hefting heavy sacks of baking product, but I’m like a tiny bird in Theron’s grasp.
“Are you a virgin, Seela?” he asks suddenly, his voice is deeper and rougher. When I don’t answer, he gives me a dark smile. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. As far as I’m concerned, I will be your first and your only.”
Glossary
Asafura: fire’s half; the fated mate of a Rur being
Draki: dragon
Rur draki: Rur dragon
Kahafura: mother of fire and goddess of Rur; a deity
Konai: High Prince; the leader of a region in Rur
Konai sa: High Princess
Ta Konai: My Prince; a formal/respectful way to address a Konai
Nai: Prince
Nai sa: Princess
Kaha: mother
Toha: father
Niha: son
Nihasa: daughter
Rahsa: sister
Rah: brother
Okan: uncle
Safur: a ball of light and warmth formed from the energy source of a Rur being
Zevyet: slave
Zevyena: slave master(s) or master(s)
Time on Rur
Enu(r): year(s)
Deta(r): day(s)
Sen: hour(s)
28 sen in 1 deta
402 detar in 1 enu
There are no weeks or months on Rur.