Page 86 of Catastrophe

“Our situation is complicated. I’m not feeling my best right now. Portals and dragons …” I stopped as I looked at my brother. “You live in Drakor. You serve the drakorians.”

“I do. You already know that, so why do you ask?”

“Do you know about their species? Specifically, the females.”

“Females?” His tone changed and his eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Why do you want to know about them?”

“I need to know if they can be forced to change, maybe by a parental figure, magic or a ceremony?”

“They don’t turn until they have mated. Does not everyone know that?” I shook my head. “It makes sense that it’s hidden knowledge amongst the other realms. They are protective of their females.”

“They don’t turn until they are mated? This can be any male? With a ritual?”

“No, it has to be their soul mate. There’s no other way for the female drakorian to emerge otherwise. They are lazy beasts apparently not coming out unless their partner is there waiting for them.”

“They have no dragons unless they meet a soul mate. Have you ever heard of a magic which can produce soul mates for another?”

“I’m sure it would be the most powerful magic in all the realms if it existed, but I don’t believe it does. Why do you ask all this?”

“An evil dragon has promised a female to help her dragon emerge as long as she helps him in his mission to consume all the magic from otherworld descendants in the human realm. I don’t think it is possible and you have just confirmed my thoughts. Thank you.”

“I’m glad to have helped.”

“And the males?” I asked, suddenly thinking of Charlie and Clawdia. “When they find their mate, what happens? Does it cause changes in a female which is not drakorian?”

“I’m not sure,” he scratched at his chin. “There are only drakorians here. There isn’t much travel or diversity. But when they find their mate, it is usually explosive, their skin shimmers with scales and they change to show the female their dragon form, take her to their hoard and ask for her acceptance of the bond. But why do you want to know about the males?”

“We are dealing with more than one dragon, and any information is a necessity at this point. Thank you again.”

“You are my brother,” he replied simply, a repeat of what I told him earlier, and I smiled.

I didn’t want to wake up; I didn’t want to leave him, but seeing him unhurt, calm and somewhat happy made it easier to part.

A nagging feeling in my mind, coupled with weakness seeping into my soul, suggested something was happening in the waking world.

I knew what awaited me there, but having seen all my favorite people gave me the strength to face my fears, knowing that someday they will just be distant memories. And my soul mate will double their suffering when gets his hands on them.

Heat rose in my cheeks as I remembered our kiss and the passion I felt. I could fall for him just as easily as I did for Clawdia, and it surprised me slightly. Not because he was male but because he was akari. His kind tortured me. A flash of fang was enough to send me into a flashback. But he used his violence to aid me. He gave me something I didn’t know I needed. Something I hadn’t thought to ask for and couldn’t have done myself. And now those fangs, and his red eyes, seemed dedicated. Loyal. Mine.

It was a good thought to wake up to, but, sensing people around, I kept my eyes closed, assessed the situation and listened.

“He healed completely in his sleep?” A finger trailed my naked chest, and I tried not to shudder. I don’t remember being naked before. Have they stripped me in my sleep? I hated being treated like an object, an experiment, even more than I hated being treated like an animal. I continue to find my tolerances for the most heinous behavior.

Another hand on the other side of my body plucked a needle from my arm and I gritted my teeth against the flinch my body wanted to do in response. They’d been draining more blood from me in my sleep. No wonder I struggled to heal Thos.

“If he’s healing in his sleep, then we’ll need to keep him from it. It’s ruining our research.” The voice on my right said.

“How do you propose that?”

“The normal methods. Loud music. Pain.” More torture. How original.

“Sleep is regenerative for every creature. If we keep him from sleeping, he may not heal at all.”

“Then we will be careful with how much he needs to heal. Start small.” His voice drifted away as he took away the buckets of my blood, but then returned and seemed to come from near my feet. “I can break something now while he’s asleep, see if it heals instantly.”

“Good idea.” The other hunter chirped heartlessly. “Yes, do that.”

I prepared myself for the pain but I couldn’t help my reaction as my leg was smashed. My back bowed, and I howled with anguish loud enough that I was certain I damaged their ears. Tears streamed from my eyes and my mind went dizzy as I looked at the male in a bloodied, white lab coat holding a hammer and wearing a cruel smile that seemed to take up his entire face.

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