Page 27 of Queen of the Cursed Egg
“Balor, shift, and coil around my babies,” Mina calls back to the group, then walks over to make sure it was done. When she emerges, she’s smiling from ear to ear, her joy infectious. “Be a good daddy dragon and burn anything that doesn’t belong here.” She kisses Thauglor on his maw, the heat of his breath stirring her hair. I can feel the vibration from his purr even by the edge of the cliff, a deep bass note that hums through the stone.
He rumbles, telling her he would do it without hesitation, his massive head dipping in solemn promise. In less than twenty days, we’re all going to be fathers to possibly three little hellions. Definitely at least one little dragon with an unknown breath weapon.
“Let’s go,” Mina calls out and runs and jumps off the cliff, her body a graceful arc against the blue sky. I watch her free fall for longer thanI’m comfortable with. My heart climbs into my throat, before she shifts and shoots straight up into the clouds, a flash of silver and emerald against the white.
Rolling my eyes, I step off the cliff backwards; the wind rushing past my ears, then shift shortly after I start falling. The pain is brief but intense as bones crack and reform, muscle stretches and thickens, scales erupt from skin. Several beats of my wings, the membranes stretching tight with effort, and I’m high above the cloud cover, gliding along. The air is thin up here, cold against my scales, but pure and clean in my lungs.
Mina is darting in and out of the clouds, playing in the updrafts, leaving swirling trails in her wake. I can feel her joy like it’s my own, a warmth that spreads through our bond despite the chill of the altitude. When she comes to glide beside me, I can see the scale that Balor gifted her just behind her skull. The single black scale stands out against the emerald and silver armored scales that protect her body, gleaming in the unfiltered sunlight. She’s a little over half my size now, and it amazes the hell out of me. At the rate my mate is growing, she will hit wyrm status long before her twenty-fifth year.
She falls back just enough that I am leading the flight over the territory of her birth.‘How are you holding up?’I check in with her to make sure she’s not fatigued after being underground for so long, our mental bond a warm pulse between us.
‘Doing good. Thauglor keeps giving me glimpses of Balor coiled around the eggs. He wants me to enjoy my flight.’Her voice sounds like a siren’s song in my head, melodic and enticing. She suddenly banks right, and I flap hard to follow her, muscles straining against the sudden change in direction. I feel the lightning build in her, a crackling energy that raises the scales along my spine before she unleashes it on something below us.‘Get inside!’She yells down the bond, her mental voice sharp with alarm, then starts igniting the woods below us, her lightning striking like the wrath of an angry goddess.
I focus on where she’s striking, and it’s drow hiding in the shadows, their pale forms barely visible among the trees. Fire burns in my throat like liquid magma, searing my insides, before I set the woods on fire, the heat of my breath making the air shimmer. Several screams can be heard before they are extinguished forever, the sound oddly satisfying to my protective instincts. I summon the drakes of our flight to assemble in the lower courtyard, ready to defend the nest, the mental call stretching out like a net.
Thauglor has sent his descendant and Balor inside with the eggs. Then he changes his mind, his thoughts sharp with urgency. He changes the order to have Zigmander phase them into the sealed hidden chamber off the hot springs, where the air is dense with mineral-rich steam.
Together, Mina and I set about three miles of woods on fire, eliminating the drow from our land. The smoke rises in thick, black columns, carrying the acrid scent of burning vegetation and flesh. We turn and start flying back once we’re sure the threat is neutralized, the landscape below us scarred black, still smoldering. Mina is quiet in the bond, but I can feel the rage burning under the silence, like magma beneath a seemingly dormant volcano. The whole territory feels off now that we dispatched the drow.How many other threats have we missed by focusing on protecting the clutch?
Before I can react, Mina is already in motion as a stream of acid comes shooting up from a group of cedar trees. The caustic liquid hissing as it cuts through the air. She takes a direct hit to her underbelly, and it slides off her scales like water, the protective layers doing their job. The suppressed rage surfaces as she dives for the tree line, her body a silver bullet aimed at her target. The crashing of the other dragon trying to escape can be heard, branches snapping, undergrowth crushed beneath its weight. Eventually, it breaks through the canopy, and it’s a green dragon. Its body is lithe and sinuous as it takes flight, trying to outmaneuver Mina, emerald wings beating frantically.
‘I’ve got it. His name was Mertz. He’s my sire’s cousin,’Mina says coldly as she glides behind him, watching him panic. Her mental voice is like ice now, all traces of the earlier joyful flight gone.
‘Playing with your prey, my treasure?’I’m amused watching Mina play cat and mouse with what used to be a flight mate, her control and power evident in every wingbeat.
‘Green dragons can talk to each other across great distances. It’s the secret of our flights,’Mina says, relaying a fact I wasn’t aware of, the information sliding into my mind like a new puzzle piece.‘I want my father to know what I’ve become.’No sooner does she finish the statement than she uses her lightning breath weapon and fries the green dragon mid-flight. The blast illuminates the clouds from within.
I watch as his body crashes into the trees below us, vanishing from sight, the impact sending a flock of birds scattering from nearby branches.‘Are you okay? Are you tired?’I maneuver myself to line up under her, ready to catch her if needed.
‘Exhausted,’she moves from over me to under me and gets within reaching distance for me, her wings struggling to maintain altitude.
Carefully, I grip her dragon’s body in my taloned hands and pull it flush to my chest as she folds her wings in; the membranes making a sound like sails being furled. I feel her start to shift and adjust my grip as her body shrinks to her human form, the transformation causing her scales to recede with a sound like sand sliding over stone. Gently, I cup my hands around her human body, holding her close to my chest, her warmth a stark contrast to the cool air surrounding us. I can feel her exhaustion seeping into my hands, a heaviness that speaks of pushed limits.She overdid it.For now, she’ll rest in my grip, and I will guard her fiercely, my wings carrying us home as the sun begins its descent toward the horizon, painting the clouds in shades of fire.
CHAPTER 18
Mina
I haveno idea how long I slept. All I know is that I’m warm and safe. The familiar scent of ash and brimstone tells me Klauth still has me in his grip. My eyes flutter open slowly, revealing that I’m still resting in his massive taloned hand, the rough scales surprisingly gentle against my skin.
‘I’m awake,’I whisper through our mental bond, feeling his massive body shift beneath me. The sound of his movements echoes through the chamber, stone grinding against scale as he repositions himself.
‘Did you sleep long enough?’His deep voice rumbles in my mind. When I look up, he has his great horned head tilted so his right eye—amber with crimson flecks — stares down at me.
“I did, thank you.” My voice sounds small in the vastness of the chamber. I climb out of his taloned hand and stretch the minute my feet hit the cold stone floor. My muscles are tight from being curled up for so long.
Vaughn and Leander are in the chamber with us. They’ve set up what looks like a picnic next to the eggs—the glossy shells catching thedim light from the torches they set up. Ziggy lounges between the eggs, his tentacles wrapped protectively around them, the pulsing of his breathing almost hypnotic.
Vaughn crosses the distance between us in quick strides, the scent of pine and stone growing stronger as he approaches. He scoops me up, pressing me against his firm chest as he hugs me tight enough that I can feel his heartbeat against mine.
“Are you okay? Klauth told everyone what happened.” His voice cracks with worry as he runs his warm hands over my body, checking for injuries. His fingers leave trails of heat on my skin.
“Yeah, it will take a lot stronger acid than a green’s to hurt me.” I force a smile and move to sit with Leander and Ziggy on the thick woolen blanket. The fabric scratches pleasantly against my legs. Klauth shifts back to his human form and joins us, the sound of expensive fabric rustling as he sits. He looks ridiculously out of place in his tailored suit sitting on a blanket in the middle of our hidden cavern, the contrast almost comical.
“Why are you looking at me like that, my treasure?” Klauth tilts his head slightly before taking the offered sandwich from Leander. The smell of fresh bread and smoked meat makes my stomach growl.
I glance at my other mates, then back to Klauth. “You’re in a three-piece suit sitting on the ground eating a sandwich.” I accept two sandwiches from Leander, the bread still warm in my hands, and start feeding one to Ziggy.
Klauth laughs, the sound echoing off the stone walls, and looks down at his impeccable clothing. “I can see how that appears odd, given the setting.” He reaches up and loosens his silk tie before taking it off and stuffing it in a pocket. Next, he unbuttons the top few buttons of his crisp dress shirt, the white fabric stark against his tanned skin. He’s trying to appear casual, and it’s adorable.
