Page 70 of Heir of Draga

Chapter Nineteen

Adelina

The Jasmine

Hai Galaxy

No one had sent her a cast warning her of the new arrival time. She hadn’t even noticed when they went through the shield gate. Adelina gritted her teeth and activated a new search and download on her simulcast as well as her shreve while the lift took them up to Command.

Varan stayed close and it helped settle some of her anger and nerves. Part of her worried they would be denied access to the Hai Galaxy, and another part wondered if they’d have to fight their way to the core of Hai. Because Adelina wouldn’t give up without a fight, not after everything she’d done to get to where she was.

With the download started she tucked the devices away and looked ahead, ignoring the others. Adelina wanted Nadyah’s look of reassurance but she couldn’t afford to look unsure in front of Delphine. She could no longer be weak, not when she had to keep fifteen thousand people alive on her ships and still get aid for the Draga Galaxy.

“Captain Ali, why was I not informed when we were close to the border, let alone when we crossed it?” she demanded the second the lift doors opened.

She released Varan and stalked over to the male she’d hired, glaring. The ship before them was like nothing she’d ever seen before, but it matched the descriptions of Hai starships. At the very least it didn’t seem they were going to be blown out of the sky. If that was the intention they would have done so already.

That old anxiety rose up to choke her but Adelina shoved it down hard. This was something she had to do. She’d known this would be difficult for her, holding the leash of thousands, making the ultimate decisions, but the more she let her dominance rise the easier it became. What it didn’t do was ease a lifetime of nervous fear of the unknown. Somehow she’d have to learn.

“My apologies, Princess. I didn’t want to disturb you while you were with the Captain Delphine.” The older male glanced at the purple-haired pirate and then let his eyes rest on Adelina’s collarbone. He was dominant and in charge of his crew, but she could see the sweat on his brow as her dark jasmine scent filled the room.

He feared her claws and rage.

“And have they sent a transmission?” Adelina crossed her arms over her chest and stepped down onto the main floor so she could get a better look through the viewer. The ships were so strange, built like some kind of bird. The wings were sharp and vicious though. There was no doubt they could slice through their ship with ease if they didn’t have their shield up.

“Yes, Princess, but no one here can speak the Drakesthai tongue.”

Adelina knew this was her moment. This was why she’d insisted she had to be the one to travel to the dragons. She clasped her hands behind her back as she’d seen Giselle do and lifted her chin. “Patch them through.”

The air of fear and apprenhsion was thick in the room. Command was full of it and the smell rankled, but Adelina ignored it, taking a deep breath to settle her own nerves. She’d trained for this. She was strong and capable. Nothing could stop her.

The vid transmission popped up and Adelina said nothing as she took in the three, massive, winged males before her. She’d read about their extra appendages – the side effect to their genetic engineering. Large, massive wings in jet black with a glittering shine in various colors. The apex of each wing ended in a deadly talon over each shoulder and then reached nearly to the ground, fully capable of bearing each male in flight.

They were a glorious sight to behold and Adelina tried to recall everything she’d ever learned about the Drakesthai and their customs. It seemed per the sigil on the middle one’s military uniform he was a prince, the other two were lower in rank.

Adelina dipped her head in a slight bow, acknowledging their equal rank as she didn’t know his level of dominance. But she said nothing. He had hailed her. She would wait for an explanation before possibly digging her own grave.

The tension on Command rose exponentially as the silence stretched. A few of the crew even had their mouths open in wonder and awe as they stared at the fierce warriors.

The dragon prince smiled slightly but it was fleeting. “I am Prince Kaiden of House Skye. We have been waiting for you.”

The Drakesthai tongue was strange to hear in its natural state, the accent was a bit different than the one Adelina had learned, but she could still understand him. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Prince Kaiden. I am Princess Adelina of Draga. Heir to the Draga Galaxy. Why have you been waiting for me?” The words were a strange mix of harsh consonants and lyrical syllables that made the mouth twist. It was a melody of sound that made her want to speak only Drakesthai.

Her accent made him smile again and she felt a flutter in her belly. Everything about Prince Kaiden was strange to her. His brown skin so different from her golden tan, the blacker-than-night wings with an iridescent sheen of royal blue in the light, and then his height and breadth was astonishing. Adelina guessed he was larger than Nash, but she didn’t think he was overly aggressive or dominant. Rather…a calming balm to ease tensions.

Her muscles relaxed and she smiled back. “I would still like to know why you’ve been waiting for me when we haven’t sent word.”

Kaiden ducked his head in deference to her and she noticed his eyes were the same blue as the sheen on his wings. Those massive, gorgeous appendages rustled as he tucked them in tighter to his body. He was definitely not more dominant than she. “Prince Nash has been on our capitol Hai Delta trying to convince our Council to aid in the war. He warned us of your impending arrival. We are here to escort you safely to Hai Delta.”

Adelina knew no one else could understand what was being said. She glanced at Varan and then Delphine, the two most dominant in Command other than her. Then she looked to Roxy. Varan was the only one who seemed to have any sense left. “Nash sent us a greeting party, Prince,” she said, choosing her words carefully in case the dragons could understand her.

“Friendly?” he asked, taking a step closer to her.

“Thus far.” She switched back to Drakesthai. “And what is the intent of your escort? To imprison me?”

Delphine subtly pulled out her simulcast and Adelina angled her body to hide what the pirate captain was up to. She gave a small hand signal behind her back to Captain Ali to warn him just in case.

Prince Kaiden bowed low. “No Princess, we are here because the Council wants to hear what you have to say. Prince Nash has told us a little of your plans and the war. We’ve managed to keep the Neprijat in the dark thus far, but without an escort we fear they will discover you. The journey will take only a few hours.”

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