The Dragon Legion Collection

Chapter Five



Damien shifted back to his human form in time to watch Petra endure another contraction. It was hard to watch her in such pain, yet he felt lucky to be in her presence. He was amazed that his son might be saved, after all, and terrified that the infant might not survive. It seemed that Petra always prompted a mix of emotions in him, all powerful, all impressive. He watched as Petra clenched her teeth at the pain and he hoped their son would arrive quickly. She was panting when this one was completed, her fingers dug into the moss and sweat on her brow.

Damien tried to distract her with a comment.

“You knew that spring would spout,” he said as he knelt beside her.

“It’s the gift of the Mothers,” Petra said, gesturing again to the circle of stones around them.

Damien barely spared the stones a glance. If she wanted to call stones by a particular name, that was fine by him. He was more concerned that he knew nothing about the arrival of children and they were on an isolated mountaintop.


Surely he couldn’t make another mistake that would cost him Petra?

“This is where you intended to come?” he asked as she caught her breath.

“I thought it superstition that Earthdaughters should give birth in the presence of the Mothers. I thought the rules didn’t apply, not if I’d found a man who was more than a man.”

“But when the baby stilled...”

Petra nodded. “I feared that I’d broken the rules. I tried to come here then.”

Damien took her hand, because he didn’t know what else to do. He tried to hide his concern and speak calmly. “But Petra, we’re on the top of a mountain and I know nothing about the birth of children. Should I find someone to help?”

“The Mothers are here,” Petra said through her teeth. He could tell from her expression that another contraction was coming.

“But...”

Petra cast him a smile. “Look, Damien. Look at the forebears of my kind.”

And Damien looked. To his astonishment, he saw faces in the standing stones that surrounded them. Women. Old women. Wise women. Kindly women. As the next contraction ripped through her, Petra gripped his hand hard. Damien saw that the Mothers had moved closer, as if they bent over one of their own. He could see concern in those frozen faces, a concern that hadn’t been there a moment before.

He looked at Petra in amazement.

She laughed a little at him. “You think you have all the marvels?” she teased and he was embarrassed that he had thought as much. “They come out of their stones for a birth,” she said, bracing herself for another contraction. “They ensure that all is well. I can see them and those of my kind can see them.” She spared him a look, then asked a quick question. “Can you see them?”

Damien smiled. “It’s like the stones are melting,” he whispered. “They’re breaking free of the rock.”

“The Mothers are eternal,” Petra winced.

“But what are they? Why are they like this?” He had to wonder if this would be Petra’s fate, and as much as she held the Mothers in esteem, he hoped not.

“They are Earthdaughters who never met a man who was more than a man.”

Damien’s gaze locked with hers. “And what of those who do?”

Petra smiled tightly. “Who would sacrifice a partnership like ours to become a standing stone?” Damien had only a heartbeat to smile at that, then Petra screamed as the next contraction ripped through her body.

Damien saw the stones move even closer, one bending over on either side of Petra. When he narrowed his eyes, he could see the forms of elderly women, their hair grey and their faces lined, their eyes filled with the wisdom of the ages. When he strained his ears, he could hear them murmuring, like pebbles falling into a crevasse.

He knew they were advising Petra, because she nodded and smiled at them, following their instructions. He sat back and simply witnessed the birth of his son, within the circle of the Mothers, so wise and kind and giving.

As Petra finished her contraction, there was a whisper in Damien’s ear.

“Harder,” he said. “Push harder the next time.”

Petra flicked a skeptical glance his way. “I thought you knew nothing about the birth of children.”

He flashed her a confident smile. “The Mothers are teaching me. By the time we have our next son, I’ll be able to help you alone, wherever we are.” He laughed at the shushing of the Mothers, their soft disapproval on all sides. “But I’ll bring you here, even so.” He felt the ripple of their satisfaction, then Petra’s next contraction came.

She pushed and she panted, she screamed when she had to and she held fast to Damien’s hand. The sun had sunk a little lower by the time Damien saw the baby’s head appear and was dipping low when his son’s lusty cry reverberated from the stony peak.

He was a beautiful hale boy, with hair as blond as honey.

Damien smiled at the sight of him, a survivor of the underworld. Both of them had been touched by their time there. Damien had realized the value of what he had left behind, and knew better than to make that mistake again. His son had been given the opportunity to live. Darkfire had given Damien the most precious gift possible, in the second chance of his firestorm.

He washed his son while Petra dozed, and the Mothers slowly returned to their previous positions. He wrapped the baby in Petra’s chiton, beneath the gazes of a circle of roughly hewn grey stones.

Petra opened her eyes then and Damien helped her to clean up. Finally, he tucked their son into her arms, made a fire and wrapped himself around her back for warmth.

“Our next son,” Petra repeated. “What makes you think I’ll let you seduce me again?”

Damien laughed. “What makes you think you’ll be able to resist me?” He kissed her soundly then, loving that she met him touch for touch. His breath was coming quickly when he lifted his head, and he grinned down at her even as she frowned.

“Your hair,” she said, reaching up to touch him.

“What about it?”

“It’s pale now, like flax.”

“Like our son’s, you mean.”

Petra looked startled, then checked their son’s head. She met Damien’s gaze in amazement.

“Good thing you had a fair son, or people would think he wasn’t mine.” He pretended to be horrified by the thought and Petra laughed.

“It’s because you escaped the realm of the dead,” she guessed. “It had to leave some mark on you and him.”

“And what about you?”

“I was dead. I belonged there.”

“Until the darkfire gave us a second chance.” Damien held her closer as she traced the tattoo on his upper arm with one fingertip.

“Where did you get this mark? You didn’t have it before.”

“We all got them. It’s called a tattoo and is made with needles and dye.”

Petra peered more closely at the tattoo. “But it’s what you are. A dragon.”

Damien nodded. “The entire legion got them at once. Our nature was the one constant in our world and it seemed like the right thing to do at the time.”

“You don’t know where they are,” Petra said softly.

“If the darkfire has taken them to their firestorms, I know they’re happy,” Damien said with resolve. Petra smiled at him as the baby stirred. His lips pursed as he rooted against Petra’s breast, seeking a nipple.

“Impatient, just like his father,” Petra murmured.

“He needs a name,” Damien said. “I don’t think Impatient or Stubborn will work.”

“You had a friend,” Petra said. “That night the firestorm sparked.”

“Orion.”

She watched him with a smile. “A good friend?”

“A very good friend.” Damien smiled. “Last I saw him, he was having a firestorm several hundred miles west of here and several thousand years in the future.”

“You won’t see him again, then.”

“You never know, not when the darkfire’s burning.” He pressed a kiss to her temple. “But I like the idea of naming our son after him, either way.”

Petra caught her breath as their son found her nipple and closed his mouth around it. “Hello, Orion,” she whispered. “I suppose all of you Pyr warriors know what you want and aren’t afraid to go after it.”

Damien didn’t laugh at her joke. Between two of the Mothers, the vegetation was moving in a distinctive way.


“Snakes,” Damien hissed.

He jumped up and drew his dagger. Petra turned to look, then smiled.

“They bite,” Damien insisted.

“Not this one.” Petra put her hand on his arm. “Put the weapon away and take the baby.”

“How do you know?”

“Where do snakes live?”

“In the earth.”

Petra gave him a hard look and Damien ceded the point. She must be able to hear or understand them. He didn’t like it, but he sheathed his dagger, then lifted his son from Petra’s arms. He nestled the boy close, then offered her his hand. Petra smiled at him as she accepted his help.

“Partnership,” she murmured, coaxing his smile again.

Then she knelt down to part the grass. Her move revealed a snake of the same blue-green hue as the darkfire. Its tongue flicked, then it turned and disappeared into the vegetation.

Something gleamed on the ground where it had been. Petra gasped in surprise when she reached for it, and Damien tried to see over her shoulder. There was a large green scale on the ground, one tipped with gold.

A dragon scale.

“It brought your missing scale!” she said with delight, bending to pick it up.

“My scale?”

“You have one that’s missing,” Petra said, placing a fingertip on one side of his chest. “I noticed when we flew out of the underworld.” She looked up at him. “Can it be repaired?”

“Yes,” Damien said with authority, then he smiled because their path had become clear to him. “And now I know exactly where we have to go.”

“Where?”

“Delphi.”

“For a new prophecy?”

“For a future. The Pyr have always had a strong link with Delphi. I have a feeling it’s gotten stronger.” He tapped the scale, certain that he’d find Alexander or word of him at Delphi. He was sure that Alexander would have created a plan for the future and that he could have a part in it, just for the asking.

Petra studied him, clearly mystified by his mood. “You know something I don’t know.”

“I hope more than one thing,” Damien teased and Petra laughed.

“Tell me!”

“These Pyr I met, each one loses a scale when he falls in love with his mate.” Damien grinned at her, inviting her to make the connection. He could see in her eyes that she understood and was pleased, but she teased him all the same.

“What if the mate doesn’t love her dragon back?”

He pretended to be downcast. “Then I guess she wouldn’t help him repair his armor. He’d be vulnerable when he fought, if he didn’t die first of a broken heart.”

Petra’s lips parted to argue, then Damien began to smile. He heard the distant beat of dragon wings and knew they wouldn’t have to go all the way to Delphi for his scales to be repaired. Petra studied him for a moment, trying to guess what was giving him such pleasure, then turned to scan the evening sky. The stars were just coming out, but Damien pointed out the silhouettes of a phalanx of approaching dragons.

“Alexander!” Damien shouted.

“How can you tell?” Petra demanded, for the dragons were still far away.

Damien tapped the side of his nose. “We recognize each other by scent.” He narrowed his eyes, using his keen senses to inspect the new arrivals. “There’s a woman with him, probably his mate, Katina. Six Pyr I don’t know and two young boys with them.” Damien took a long deep breath, liking that he could show off for her. “Also Pyr, but too young to shift shape.” He cast her a look. “If Alexander has two sons, we’re going to have to catch up.”

“I suppose I should have expected dragons to be competitive,” Petra mused and Damien laughed. Then he shifted shape to greet his fellows, carrying his son to meet his old friend.



* * *



Petra was entranced.

She’d never seen any of the other Pyr before, and the sight of so many of them at once took her breath away. The splendid sight of Damien in dragon form make her heart leap, and the change in the hue of his scales would remind them both always of how close they’d come to sacrificing everything.

The company of dragons landed in the clearing, their eyes flashing and their scales gleaming. Petra heard a rumble like thunder, even though the sky was clear, then there was a familiar glow of pale blue light. She closed her eyes and opened them again to find Damien leading a man with dark hair and dark eyes toward her. He held the hand of a pretty woman who smiled at Petra in understanding.

This must be his mate. Petra smiled in return, feeling that she looked less than her best but guessing the other woman must understand.

“Petra, this is Alexander. He was Drake’s second-in-command, and we served together. His wife, Katina, his son, Lysander, and Drake’s son, Theo.”

Petra spoke to each of them, then was introduced to the others in the company. They admired her fine strong son and made her feel welcome. She noticed Damien and Alexander standing together, as if in conference, just as there was another rumble of thunder. The two Pyr warriors looked serious. Petra glanced at the sky in confusion.

“Old-speak,” Katina said, appearing at her side with a smile. “It’s how they communicate with each other when they don’t want us to overhear.”

“It’s not always that,” Alexander protested. “Sometimes, it’s just habit.”

The women shared a smile, then Katina dropped her voice. “I’ll guess that Alexander is asking for tidings of Drake.”

“He’s still with the darkfire crystal, as far as I know,” Petra murmured and the other woman nodded. “How did you know where to find us?”

Katina smiled. “I don’t mean to alarm you, but I’m a naiad. Some call us Waterdaughters. I have very strong intuition and I had a compelling sense that we should come to this place right now.” She glanced around, her gaze assessing. “It seems a powerful place,” she mused, then looked at Petra.

“For a woman to choose to give birth, you mean?”

Katina nodded.

“I don’t mean to alarm you, but I’m an Earthdaughter,” Petra echoed with a smile. “You are standing on sacred ground for my kind.” She gestured to the stones. “These are the Mothers, those of my kind who have gone before and provide sanctuary to us in times of need.”

Katina surveyed the stones, assessment in her eyes. “Does it violate the sanctity for us to be here?”

“Not if it is in aid of me and my son.”

She glanced down at the scale Petra held in her hand and seemed to know immediately what it was. Relief crossed her features, then concern. “We would ask your permission, and that of the Mothers, to repair Damien’s armor here, within the circle of their protection.”

Petra felt a lump in her throat. “I believe they would be honored to witness it.”

“We will leave an offering, of whatever is fitting.”

“The request is enough,” Petra said, because she knew it was true.

“There must be a gift from the mate,” Katina said quietly, her gaze searching. “It ensures that the repair holds and that his armor is complete.”

“A gift?”

“Something of one of the elements associated with you in this partnership would be best. You must decide and you must give it freely.”

“I am earth and Damien is fire,” Petra mused.

“But one of you also represents air and one, water, as well,” Katina said. “Having all four elements in concert gives the firestorm its power.”


Petra had Damien’s scale already. What she most wanted to do was share the protective powers of the Mothers with her dragon. She looked around the clearing, wondering how that could be done. One of the Mothers wavered, just outside her field of vision, and when Petra turned to look, a small stone broke free of the large standing stone. She hurried to pick it up, liking how powerful it felt when her hand closed over it.

She glanced up to find Damien’s gaze upon her, and his smile warmed her to her toes. Of course, he and Alexander had heard every word, with their keen hearing, and she wasn’t surprised to see Alexander summon the others to the fire as soon as she had chosen the stone.

“We will take our dragon forms, each in turn,” he said and the younger Pyr nodded. They were all attractive men and clearly a disciplined company. Each one had a mark on his body, like the dragon mark on Damien’s arm, even though they couldn’t be of his company of Dragon Legion Warriors lost in time. She wondered how these Pyr had obtained their tattoos.

There was no time to ask, though, for the dragon warriors were moving with purpose. Damien stood on Alexander’s left, with Petra and their son beside him. Katina stood on Alexander’s right, with Lysander and then Theo beside her. The others took their places around the fire, forming a circle.

The fire in the middle burned higher when the circle was complete, and Petra realized that these Pyr warriors had their own link to an element. She remembered the prophecy and smiled.

Fire and stone must pay the price.

That was Damien and herself, and they’d paid it in full.

Now the firestorm’s promise would be theirs.

Alexander shifted shape first, becoming a dark dragon in the same moment that the flames leapt skyward. Damien shifted next, and Petra loved how the fire again stretched for the sky, its light reflecting off his newly golden scales. The other Pyr shifted shape in unison and she saw that they were all darker and smaller than the two fully fledged warriors. She saw glimpses of color in the scales of each, but guessed that their hues had yet to develop.

When all had shifted shape, Alexander extended his claw to her, obviously requesting the fallen scale. Petra surrendered it to him and he held it between the tips of his talons, then pushed it into the flames of the fire. The bonfire burned higher, as if fueled by the scale and Petra couldn’t see it in the brilliant blaze of orange.

“Fire,” Alexander intoned and the Pyr echoed him. He extended his hand to her again, and Petra gave him the stone. Alexander removed the scale from the flames and it was the same bright golden color of the rest of Damien’s scales. He pushed the stone against it and Petra saw that the scale was so hot that it was molten. Alexander drove the stone into it, as if forcing a gem into a setting.

“Earth,” he said and the other Pyr repeated his word.

Alexander pushed the scale back into the fire and the flames licked it hungrily. When he removed it again, both it and the stone from the Mothers had fused into one and were so hot that they were pale yellow and smoking.

He extended the scale and Damien blew on it.

“Air,” Alexander said, along with the other Pyr.

Alexander lifted the scale and pressed it against the bare spot on Damien’s chest. Petra heard the hiss as it seared his flesh and she stepped forward in concern. Damien tipped back his head and roared at the pain.

To Petra’s surprise, Alexander touched her cheek with his claw. “Water,” he murmured, transferring her tear to the hot scale. The water sizzled against it, sending up a stream of vapor as it disappeared. To her relief, the scale darkened immediately and Damien shuddered in relief.

Alexander then lifted her son from her arms and held him high. “Welcome, Orion! Welcome to the new Pyr among us!” The Pyr roared approval, each one tipping back his head to send a blaze of dragonfire into the sky.

There was a crack like lightning and a blue-green bolt of darkfire appeared out of nowhere. Petra gasped when it touched her son, but then it was gone and he was gurgling happily. The flames of the bonfire leapt toward the sky, casting a joyous spray of sparks in every direction as if in celebration, and Damien caught both her and her son close to his chest.

Petra checked the baby, only to discover that there was a small mark on his arm, just like his father’s.

“He’s one of us,” Damien murmured to her and Petra nodded, glancing at the Mothers. He was of her kind as well, and she couldn’t wait to see what that combination brought in the future.

Damien flew a triumphant circle around the peak of the mountain, making Petra laugh with his obvious happiness. The Pyr cheered as he landed and shifted shape quickly, holding Petra fast against his chest.

When he kissed her thoroughly, Petra could only return his embrace in kind. Her heart was alight with happiness and she had the urge to sing that love song to him again. Against all expectation, they’d been given the second chance they needed to make their partnership work.

Nothing would ever drive them apart again.



* * * * *





Kiss of Destiny

The Third Dragon Legion Novella



by Deborah Cooke





He will sacrifice anything to win his destined love...



When the darkfire crystal takes the dragon shape shifters Thad and Drake to an unknown location, only fulfilling his firestorm matters to Thad. Little does he know that in following its light to his destined mate, he’s stepping into the realm of the gods, a place so forbidden to mortals that any who enter it must die. Aura has always been skeptical of long-term promises—but Thad is irresistible. No sooner does Aura surrender than the gods demand their due of her dragon shifter. Can she save Thad and make the dream of the firestorm come true?





Prologue



Drake had never been more exhausted in his life. He could barely keep his eyes open, but he didn’t dare to close them. He didn’t trust the darkfire crystal to sleep while he did. He didn’t know how long they’d been suffering through this ordeal with the unpredictable stone, but he didn’t think he could survive much more of it.

There was just himself and Thad left, the younger Dragon Legion Warrior filled with an enthusiasm that Drake couldn’t match.

They were together in a nameless park, sitting on the lip of a concrete fountain. Night was falling and the stars were coming out. The park, which had been busy earlier in the day, was becoming more and more quiet, as people returned home with their children and dogs. Unless Drake missed his guess, this park was in an American city in the twenty-first century. Their clothing blended in well enough here for them to avoid scrutiny.

Drake wondered if that would be the case if they stretched out and slept on the benches.

“I wonder why it brought us here,” Thad mused. He was like a curious child, thrilled with every place the darkfire crystal deposited them and intent upon figuring out the stone’s logic.

“It could be whim,” Drake said.

Thad shook his head. “No, there has to be a reason. There has to be a point.”

Drake said nothing. He’d learned long ago that many events in life didn’t have a point. All the same, he remembered having Thad’s optimism once, many, many years ago.

“There’s no firestorm’s spark,” Drake couldn’t help but observe. “Maybe your theory is wrong.”

“No, it makes perfect sense for the darkfire crystal to take us to our firestorms. That way, we find our destined mates and make more Pyr.”

“Perhaps the darkfire thinks there are enough dragon shape shifters in the world. It was released by the Slayer Chen, and he has no fondness for our kind.”


“It’s older than he is, I think, and strong enough to use him for its purposes.”

“You don’t know.”

Thad grinned. “No, but I like that answer better.”

“Even if it isn’t the truth?”

Thad leaned closer and bumped shoulders with Drake, a gesture of such familiarity that Drake was shocked. “Come on,” Thad said. “Don’t you want to go back to Cassandra?”

Drake didn’t answer that. He stared into the depths of the stone and admitted his secret fear. Although he’d been happy enough with the results of his firestorm at the time, the centuries had changed him. He wanted more than sex and sons. He knew Cassandra was self-reliant and didn’t doubt that she’d provided well enough for herself in his absence. She was practical and not afraid to be tough. She would have raised their son well. He knew, though, that if he returned to her after all his adventures, he would do so as a changed man. The man he had become might not be so content with Cassandra.

And, to be fair, Cassandra might not be very content with him. He turned the large quartz crystal in his hands thoughtfully.

When Drake thought of women, he remembered the military widow he’d helped in the modern world. Although their acquaintance had been short and businesslike, Ronnie had made an impression upon him. She was both vulnerable and strong, a woman who was used to having a partner’s support to rely upon, but one who had only begun to understand her own strength. He’d found her extremely attractive, even though he knew his feelings were inappropriate. He’d been shocked that he could find a woman alluring who was so different from his Cassandra.

Her full name, Veronica, meant ‘little truth,’ and Drake had since concluded that it had been their brief association that had shown him the truth about himself. He wasn’t the man he had once been. He didn’t want what he’d wanted before, or even what he’d had. As much as he wanted to see his son and as much as he understood his responsibilities, Drake had very mixed feelings about being cast back in time to finish what he had begun.

He couldn’t tell Thaddeus that, of course. The other Pyr wouldn’t have understood. Thad was so filled with wonder and enthusiasm and optimism that Drake couldn’t introduce the idea to him that the firestorm might not be right every time, or that it might not be right forever.

He might have hoped the crystal would stay dark, but that would have been cowardly.

When the blue-green spark trapped deep inside the stone began to glow more brightly, it was all Drake could do to keep from groaning aloud.

Thad noticed immediately. “This is it!” the younger warrior declared. “Do you think it will be you or me this time?”

“If you’re right that the darkfire is taking each of us to our firestorm, then I hope it’s you.” Drake knew he sounded as weary as he felt.

Thad shot a bright glance his way. “That makes no sense. You’re just thinking of the men under your command before you think of yourself.” Thad paused but Drake didn’t want to shatter his illusions. “I know you want to return to Cassandra and your son. It would only be right.”

Drake kept silent and watched the darkfire brighten. Where would it take them this time? Was this the time that they’d be separated once and for all? Or would his Dragon Legion be reunited, after the stone completed its quest?

“That’s what Alexander did,” Thad said with confidence. “He returned to his Katina...”

“You don’t know that for certain,” Drake said sternly. “You know only that the darkfire took us to the village where he had lived with her.”

“Well, why else would it do that?”

“I can’t begin to guess.” Actually, Drake had many ideas of what might have happened. He and his men had been enchanted for centuries. There was no telling what had occurred at their homes in their absence. There hadn’t been any way to tell when Alexander had arrived at that village. It could have been before he’d even met Katina or long after she’d died, missing him. She could have married again or been glad to be without him, or they might not have gotten along after his return.

“You sound dire, like Peter always did.” Thad laughed. “I couldn’t believe the look on his face when his firestorm sparked.”

“There’s nothing saying he succeeded in satisfying it.”

Thad laughed and the stone brightened even more. It seemed to pulse with that inner energy and Drake could feel it heating his skin. A wind swept through the park, shaking the trees and tugging at their clothes. Drake got to his feet and Thad stood beside him.

Drake supposed that one of them should have stayed in this place, and that the stone would bring them back until the dragon in question did stay. He wasn’t ready to step away from his last fellow warrior, though.

Neither, evidently was Thad. The younger Pyr grasped his commander’s shoulder so he wouldn’t be left behind.

And just in time. The darkfire cracked like lightning and the park disappeared in a swirl of dust and fallen leaves. They were picked up from the ground and flung hard through the air, as if a tornado had seized them. Drake couldn’t see anything but he reached out and grabbed Thad’s arm, not wanting to lose the younger man.

They were cast down hard upon a stony surface and the wind stilled. The spark in the stone died to a mere pinprick of light as Drake sat up cautiously. The stone even felt cold in his hand.

They were surrounded by fog, but he had the definite sense that they were at some elevated altitude. The air seemed thin and the silence resonant. He felt there was nothing but wind and sky.

He realized belatedly that Thad was unusually silent and turned to the younger man in concern. Thad was fine, but sitting on the ground cross-legged. He was staring at the tip of the fingers on his left hand, probably because golden sparks had lit on them. His mouth had fallen open in awe but he grinned when he looked up at Drake.

“I’ve never felt like this,” he whispered and the light wind seemed to steal his words away. “She’s here. She’s here somewhere and the darkfire has brought me to her!” He leapt to his feet and spun around, holding up his hand in search of a direction. Predictably, the flames flared when he stretched his hand out to one side. The rocks seemed to climb higher there, as if the peak of the mountain was that way.

Drake had time to dread Thad’s reaction before the other man strode to him and shook his hand heartily. “I don’t know when we’ll meet again, Drake, but thank you. Thank you for all you’ve taught me, and all the times you’ve defended me, and everything.” His eyes were alight with anticipation.

“Maybe we should follow the flame together,” Drake managed to say before the light in the crystal shimmered again.

“Your turn is next!” Thad insisted, then shocked his commander by pulling him into a tight embrace. “Thank you, Drake. May the Great Wyvern always be with you.”

And then he was gone, leaping over the rocks in pursuit of the firestorm’s flame. His figure was swallowed by the fog in no time, leaving Drake looking down at the blinking stone in trepidation.

He closed his eyes when the wind raged around him. He kept them closed when he was swept off his feet. He grimaced as the maelstrom spun around him, casting him this way and that, tearing at him like he was made of straw. He both wanted it to end and feared what he’d find when it did. He winced when he fell hard against a smooth surface.


Like concrete.

The wind stilled and snowflakes landed on his face. It was cold and there was a stiff wind, one that smelled of water. It could have been blowing off a lake. He could hear the distant sound of traffic and he sensed the presence of a dragonsmoke barrier, breathed thick and deep. He caught a whiff of gunpowder and sulfur, of the chemicals used in pyrotechnics, mingled with the scents of Pyr he had known.

He sensed one particular dragon shape shifter, the leader of the Pyr himself.

Drake opened one eye warily, already having guessed where he was. He was in Chicago on the roof of the building that contained Erik Sorensson’s loft, and despite himself, he was relieved. He looked down at the crystal in his hand, only to find that its heart was completely dark. Even when he peered closely at it and strained his vision, he could see no glimmer of darkfire within it.

Its quest was done. Drake was cast into the future to stay.

The darkfire crystal had brought him here as its last act, because its rightful place was in the hoard of the leader of the Pyr. Drake pushed to his feet wearily, only having the strength to rise because he knew he would be able to sleep as long as necessary within the protective barrier of Erik’s dragonsmoke boundary.

And that was a greater gift than he’d ever expected the darkfire to give him.