Ariel surveyed the dim valley.

“It’s all on foot from here,” Jett said.

“There’s no dragons,” Ariel said, her eyes drifting to the sky. “The last time I was here, the sky was full of them.”

“At this hour it’s rare to find any dragons here,” Gwendoline told her. “So this is completely normal.”

“I hope you’re right,” Ariel said. “Because it feels spooky.”

Flame and Viper scouted ahead once more, and Jett led the group down the slope through the pines after them.

Eventually they reached an opening that tunneled into the mountain. Flame and Viper stood at the entrance, watching.

“This tunnel opens out into the estate of the Shatt Dragons, according to the maps,” Flame said. He had a sat-phone in hand.

“Who are the Shatt Dragons?” Ariel asked. “Sounds like the past tense of, well, you know.”

“Shit?” Mathis said.

“Yeah.”

“I Shatt here,” Mathis said.

“Silly,” Gwendoline said. She giggled softly.

“They are a minor noble family,” Jett said. “With little influence in the court. The opening on the other side shouldn’t be guarded. They don’t have the money to hire guards for a 24/7 watch.” He glanced at Viper. “Scout ahead. We’ll be about fifty feet behind you.”

Viper nodded, and vanished inside.

“Even without guards, wouldn’t there be cameras inside?” Ariel asked. “I thought Dan, your computer system, has tendrils throughout Midnight? The whole ‘all-seeing-eye’ thing going on.”

“There would be at least one camera, yes,” Jett replied. “But since Dan is down, no one will notice our arrival until much later. It will be too late by then.”

“And what if the computer system is up again?” Ariel said.

“Then we’ll be turning around pretty quick,” Jett said.

Jett and Flame led the way into the tunnel, followed by the rest of the group. Cramped stone walls surrounded them. Dim LED lights embedded in the ceiling provided illumination.

Jett glanced toward the ceiling as he walked. “There’s a microphone light here. Dan, increase the illumination please.”

Nothing happened.

“That’s a good sign,” Jett said.

“Not necessarily,” Gwendoline said. “Your access would have been revoked by now. Let me try.” She glanced at the ceiling. “Dan, turn up the LEDs.”

Still no reply.

“Either my access has been rescinded, or Dan is still down,” Gwendoline said.

“Let’s hope for the latter,” Jett said, continuing forward into the tunnel.

After a moment he turned to Ariel.

“Do you sense that?” Jett said.

Ariel felt the tightness of Midnight’s magic-suppression close around her body like an insubstantial vise, and her skin suddenly seemed too tight. She felt it in every movement of her arms and legs, every bend of her fingers. Feeling caged, the lioness inside her growled and scratched at her skin, but couldn’t get out. “Yes. I can’t transform. It’s not a good feeling.”

“Now you know what we have to live through most of our lives,” Gwendoline said. “If we didn’t have the Hooded Dale, most of us would have no freedom from this feeling.”

“I understand why you don’t want to wear those infernal collars,” Ariel said.

“You get used to it,” Ephephany said. “Myself, I hardly use the Hooded Dale. The last time I was a dragon has to be at least fifty years ago.”

“Then you are the exception,” Gwendoline said.

“Maybe it’s time to let humans know about our existence,” Ariel said. “So we can live among them freely.”

“Ha,” Gwendoline said. “The witches will never allow it. Besides, you really think the humans are ready? They can scarcely handle differences among themselves as it is. If they find out an entire race of shifters exists under their very noses, they’ll hunt us all down, spurred on by the Orions.”

“If we were all dragons again,” Jett said. “Free to roam like in ancient times, the humans would have quite a hard time in their hunt.”

“Yes, but you forget how inventive humans can be,” Ephephany said. “With the advancements they have made in fields such as biotechnology, they might not even have to fire a single weapon. Capture one of us, study him or her, and it might be possible to develop and release a tailored virus into the world, one targeted at shifters alone. We could be eliminated by the smallest enemy of them all. All magic in the world, all shifters, wiped out in a matter of weeks. I shudder at the thought.”

“So do I,” Ariel said. “How do we know the Orions aren’t already working on such a weapon?”

“I’m sure they are,” Ephephany said. “Which is why we have spies in med-labs throughout the world. As do the witches.”

Ariel continued the hike in silence. She experimentally reached through her bone accessories and touched the Strength. It was a relief to find it still waiting there, just beyond sight. However, it felt different somehow. Slippery.

Curious as to how much she could Siphon, she allowed the Strength to flow into her, and surrendered to its power. The ethereal river that formed before her was extremely thin, little more than a rivulet. She guessed it was maybe one tenth the usual thickness.

Ephephany spun on her. “Who’s doing that?” Her gaze encompassed Ariel and Mathis.

“Sorry,” Ariel said. “I wanted to see how weak Midnight’s magic suppression made me.”

“Well stop,” Ephephany said. “It’s distracting.”

Viper returned shortly thereafter. “I’ve discovered guards at the opening.”

“Guess I was wrong,” Jett said. “Plan B, then. Gwendoline, lead the way.”

A soft glow came from the opening ahead, brighter than the illumination provided by the overhead LEDs, and Ariel could see the outline of two figures set against the glow.

“You there, identify yourselves!” a voice said.

Gwendoline stepped forward. “Do you not recognize a member of the royal family?”

The vampires stared at her, then made way, stepping apart so that she might pass.

“Your highness,” one of the vampires said. “What are you doing here?”

Jett and the others continued to close.

As Ariel got closer, she could make out the pale men, dressed all in black. They were unarmed, and wore tiny headsets. Ariel shuddered. Though their fangs were retracted, she knew they were vampires. Slaves of whoever owned the estate Ariel and the others were sneaking onto: the so-called Shatt Dragons.

Instinctively, Ariel touched the Strength, and prepared to hurl whatever Weaves of Air she could manage in the suppression.

Gwendoline stepped past them, into the cavern beyond. The two vampire guards turned with her, seemingly spellbound.

“You will forget that you saw me here.” There was something off about her voice. Something… sinister. Her tone was deeper, the words strung out.

And then Ariel recognized it: Gwendoline was attempting to use compulsion against these two.

“You will forget my companions as well,” Gwendoline continued. “You will continue to guard this cave, and report nothing to your masters.”

“Your highness,” a vampire said. “You know we must report this.”

Gwendoline sighed heavily. “Very well.”

She had walked right past them, drawing their attention so that their backs were turned to the group. One of the vampires realized what she had done, and started to swivel toward the others, but Flame and Viper were already moving forward in a blur.

In moments the two guards were subdued and Flame and Viper had them bound and gagged.

Ariel released the Strength. In the seconds before the pair had attacked, she had almost attempted to hurl a Weave of Air at the vampires. Good thing she hadn’t. It was best to let the two White Swords do their jobs: they would’ve probably been offended if Ariel tried to intervene.

Ariel and the others stepped through the opening in turn. She paused in awe, taking in the scene of the enormous subterranean cavern hollowed into the mountain before her. Hundreds of estates sprawled across the cave floor far below. Wonderful, beautiful estates whose buildings were sided in precious metals or gems, and whose walls were made of gold, silver or diamonds. The whole place was lit by several LEDs embedded in the cavern ceiling, though the light levels were dim because of the hour. Still, many of the estates had their own private lighting, providing more than enough illumination for her to discern the majesty of what lay before her, at least from this vantage point.

She stared for several moments. Though she had seen this city once before, the sight still took her breath away. What an incredibly magical place. She didn’t spot any dragon shifters out and about at the moment, though given the current hour, that wasn’t surprising. The last time she was here, the citizens had walked the streets dressed like European fashionistas. The men were all bronze-skinned hunks with the chiseled features of models, the women the epitomes of feminine beauty. She had felt completely out of her league. Just as she had felt when it came to getting with Jett.

She would have lived here if she could, and yet the beauty of the architecture and the residents was merely a veneer, a mask for the lingering prejudice the citizens harbored against non-dragons, whom they considered a lesser species. Ariel remembered the looks she had gotten the first time she had come here, when the other dragons had thought Ariel Jett’s new slave. Noses had shriveled in disgust. Mouths had twisted into condescending smirks. No, she couldn’t live in a place like this. It never ceased to amaze her how sometimes the most beautiful things could be so ugly inside.

Not all dragons were like the citizens of Midnight, of course. Jett, Gwendoline, Flame and Brazen were some of the most amazing and open people she knew. And the dragons she had met during her three month tenure in the Steel Tower were exceedingly tolerant. Still, the memories of those hateful looks soured her on Midnight. She had to wonder: if the reports of Gabriel’s malfeasance proved true, what effects would that have on the attitudes and opinions of the populace? Fear and resentment would only further stir the hatred of outsiders. Yes, she doubted Mathis and herself would be welcome if they were discovered in this place. Let alone Jett, the banished king.

A city with a rotten core, indeed.

Then again, maybe she was completely wrong about them. Maybe they would see Jett as a savior, the banished king returning to rescue them from the rule of a tyrant.

Time would tell.

Flame and Viper hurried ahead, leading the way down a narrow trail that wound down the rock wall. Unlike the entrance she had taken with Jett the last time she was here, which led into the city streets, this path terminated within an actual estate, owned by the aforementioned Shatt Dragons, no doubt. She glanced to the left and right and saw other trails leading from the neighboring estates, ending in similar openings in the cavern wall. The residents in this area of the city apparently had private access to the Hooded Dale.

All the better for the group to sneak inside. Though she suspected Jett or Gwendoline were making mental notes on how to shore up security in the future. If they could sneak inside, then anyone else could, too. If the vampire witch had penetrated Midnight, these private trails would have made the perfect entry points, for example.

Speaking of vampires…

She touched Jett on the shoulder and when he turned to her, she said, quietly: “Why didn’t Gwendoline’s compulsion work on those guards?”

“It doesn’t work on the stronger vampires,” Jett said.

“Oh that’s right, it only affects us weak-minded ‘lesser’ shifters, right?”

“I didn’t say or mean that,” Jett said.

“But you were thinking it,” Ariel said.

Jett wrapped an arm around her and hugged her. “Never.” He planted a kiss on her forehead. “Your mind is not weak. The effectiveness has more to do with how old you are. These vampires are over a hundred years old… they would have to be, given the time of the last vampire war, when most of the slaves were captured. Once you get to be a hundred, my compulsion won’t work on you, either.”

“Good to know.” Ariel melted into him for a moment, wanting to stay there against his side and forget their task, but she forced herself to pull away. “Let’s get this done.”

“You make it sound like it’ll be a simple operation,” Jett said. “I love the confidence.”

“You’re a dragon,” Ariel said. “Once a king. With you, I have no doubt we’ll succeed.”

He nodded slowly, but she could tell from his troubled eyes that he didn’t exactly share her confidence.