Page 26 of My Dragon Lovers

And then I heard a roar as a plume of fire swept through the air, burning the sky. I turned and gazed above my head as I saw them, Brock and Aidan coming to my rescue, except it wasn’t going to plan at all. Marr was a vicious creature, filled with hatred and vengeance. These things had festered inside him for twenty years and now they filled him with strength. He had killed dragons before and he thought his cause was just. He wasted no time in attacking. He barreled into Aidan and then caught Brock with his tail, whipping around to strike him with his vicious claws. Aidan fought back by breathing fire, but Marr dodged it and then butted him in the flank with his head. Brock tried to bite Marr, but Marr squeezed with his tail and then turned his entire body, basically throwing Aidan into Brock. Their heads crashed together and they looked groggy. My heart sank and I stepped towards them, still fighting with myself, wishing that I knew how to become a dragon.

Marr slashed wildly with his feet and arms, whirling his limbs through the air. Blood fell like rain. It couldn’t end like this, not when they were so close to rescuing me. My father’s work could not be completed. Marr whipped Brock away with his tail and then grabbed Aidan, flying towards the surface. He hurled Aidan down with all his might and I jumped back, shrieking as Aidan crashed near me, sending up a wave of ash. There was a crunch of bone as he hit the surface and as his head lolled towards me I feared that he had died, just like all the others who tainted this part of the world. But then he turned towards me and I saw the light in his eyes. There was relief mixed with hope, and a plea. Brock was still up there.

Marr fought in the name of my father. He was trying to finish a deadly plan that should never have been started. He hadkilled innocent dragons, including my mother, and if he wasn’t stopped then he would go on killing. He would take everyone I loved from me, and I wasn’t about to let that happened.

The rage inside me was as blinding as the sunlight. I felt it rush through every vein in my body, and all I could think of was making my mother proud. I reached deep inside me. All the barriers I had erected fell away as this primal force came crashing through. Then I threw my head to the sky. I felt the wind beneath my wings, and I roared.

Chapter Twenty

Brock

The taste of blood filled my mouth. My head spun as I reeled backwards, reaching out for Aidan, but unable to save him. It was happening again. This bastard was as hard as granite, and when he struck it was as painful as a mountain. We had come here with brash hopes of defeating him, but he had risen from this ashy land and struck the first blow. Should we have waited for the others to come with us? I wasn’t sure, but if we were going to die today then I was determined to take him with us. Kyra surviving was the only important thing.

I gathered my strength for another attack, ignoring the pulsing pain all over my body. I gritted my teeth and hoped to last long enough for Aidan to rejoin the fight. Marr turned back towards me, his eyes filled with vengeance. He was mad, utterly mad. And then I saw her. She came sweeping up, as majestic as an angel. Her scales were alabaster, as pure as snow. Her wings were long and elegant, her body lithe. She almost seemed to sparkle as the light hit upon her. Her serpent expression was fixed in a glare that was directed at Marr. She moved through the air silently, for it was her natural realm. Then she opened her jaws. Marr’s attention was entirely on me, ready to give me a death dealing blow that would send me to my doom, but he never got to strike me in that way.

Instead, a bursting jolt of fire came punching through the air and wrapped him up in a roaring amber cloak. His eyes went wild as the heat touched his scales, flickering and fizzing. His body went taut as he whirled and rolled, trying to douse the flames, but it only had the effect of fanning them. Soon he was caught in an inferno, and the mangled chokes from his throatwere sickening. Kyra careened forward and stuck out her feet, putting all her weight into the mighty strike. She hit him in the flank and he went swinging through the air, losing all his poise and balance.

He crashed to the earth and she followed, darting down, her wings pinned to her body. Her eyes were trained on him and she held out her claws. The fire licked the air, but it did not deter her at all. She trained herself on him and her glinting claws sunk into his belly and ripped it open. There was a writhing, horrible sound that tore through the air as a spray of blood sputtered out. The fire hissed as it received this sacrifice. The motion was a smooth one for Kyra, as though she had been born to do this. She stretched out her wings and was lifted in the air, rising high and proud, and I was in awe of her.

Marr was in his death throes. It was a quick end to his reign of terror. The blood seeped out of him and the fire claimed the last of his life. He was condemned here, to this island of the damned where so many dragons had met their end. But not us. We still had our lives to lead, and our love to cherish.

Chapter Twenty One

Aidan

Tears were in my eyes as I gazed up and saw her sweeping through the air. She was even more beautiful than I had imagined. She possessed such grace, such brilliance that I was floored by her impressive stature. She was everything I ever knew she could be, and my heart trembled at the sheer sight of her. All the pain seemed to fade from my body as it was replaced by aching, deep, profound adoration. I felt like a priest in front of their god, like a lamb in front of a shepherd. I bowed my head in reverence because it was the only thing that made sense when seeing such a glorious display.

Kyra had finally found peace with herself.

I was proud of her, and I was in awe of her. After so long she had finally come to terms with the dragon within, and I knew that she was complete. Part of the journey had been completed, but there was still a long way for us to go.

I nursed my wounds and spat out blood. I groaned as I watched her fight with Marr and then plummet to the ground, and I possessed sobering thoughts as I looked at the fallen dragons around me. Here was the battle that had defined my parents, and that would go on to define a generation. The world had been saved and the remnants were just hollow shells. I could now understand why my parents had never wanted me to come here. It wasn’t because they were protecting me, but rather because they were ashamed of what had happened here. I peered through the trees, knowing that amid this dust and ash was the vessel that had first brought my kind from Drakon. I had aspired to uncover it once, but now I thought it might be better to lay it to rest and let go of the past. It was time to look towards thefuture, it was time to look towards myself, Brock, and Kyra being in love.

They descended to the ground, shifting back into their human form as they did so. Kyra ran towards me, tears in her eyes and her arms outstretched. She flung herself towards me with such force that I was almost taken off my feet again and sprawled on the ground. I buried myself in the crook of her neck and held her tightly, taking joy in the fact that we were alive.

“You came for me,” she said, gently inspecting my wounds. I waved her off. They weren’t as bad as they seemed, and would heal soon.

“Of course we did. We found out who he was and we came straight here,” I said.

“Where are the others?” she asked.

“They went to warn Kadie.” I turned to the sky. “They’ll probably be here fairly soon. I imagine they must know that he would have come here.”

“I hope they’re not going to be angry with us for taking justice into our own hands,” Brock said.

“It almost wasn’t the case. I thought he had us again,” I said ruefully, knowing how close we had come to things ending in a most unhappy manner. “But you made the difference,” I looked directly at Kyra.

She was bashful and turned her face away.

“You were incredible,” Brock said. I nodded in agreement.

“I don’t really know how it happened I just… I knew that you guys were in danger and the only way I could save you was to become a dragon.”

“It’s what you were always meant to become, and I’m sure your Mom would have been proud of you,” I said. I noticed her gaze drifting towards the huge, black carcass behind us. “And you’re most decidedly not your father. In fact, you’re the complete opposite of him.”

“I was so afraid that by letting my dragon in I would be letting him in as well. I thought that a part of him lived on inside me and I would never be able to escape my fate. Marr wanted to finish what Ilvar had started. He wanted to reign with me on Drakon so that I could take my father’s place. But I know now that I don’t ever have to be like him. I am my own person.”

“Yes, you are,” I said, offering a reassuring smile as I placed a hand on her shoulder. “And I don’t think you have anything to worry about with regards to your father. He was dead and buried a long time ago and now, with Marr dead as well, we don’t have to worry about any ghosts of the past coming to haunt us.”

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