Page 36 of Emerald Waves
Was there a hidden meaning behind his words or was I overthinking it? “And I love you.”
He closed the door behind him, and the sudden realization that I was alone with the statue hit me. Could it sense my presence? If so, did it see me as a friend or foe?
Kinda wigged me out, like it stared right at me.
Maybe it was…
Enough, focus, Emerson.
The Merdragons are said to be the original descendants, the first dragons to cross through the portal when the earth was mostly water. As the water subsided and land became more prevalent, many Draconian’s followed them and made Earth their new home. Not long after, Draconia, their mother plane, was no longer, having succumbed to the sun’s rays as its rotation path shifted and came too close to the sun. It burst into flames and those who’d not escaped to another realm perished along with it.
“I had no idea.” Not only had we all been raised believing dragons were the superior species, but there wasn’t a single mention in the archives of the Merdragons being the first to settle here. Before this, that is. Everything in Draconian must be translated to modern day English or I’m afraid our history will be lost.
“He-he.”
Random giggles. There was no way Alex’s little ones got into the horde room.Emerson, you’re losing it.Note to self, get to bed at a decent hour tonight. But the more I read, the louder the giggles became.
A quick glance around the room confirmed what I already knew—that I was alone and quite possibly, losing my mind.
The dragons divided into clans and selected a leader within each. Tempers fueled over who was best to lead, and internal battles raged within. Merdragons sought shelter far deep beneath the seas and away from the fighting,not wishing to play a part of the turmoil.
“If they’re a peaceful species, why did they attack my mate?”
“Because of me.” More giggles came.
“Who’s there?” I grabbed the statue. Why? No clue. It wasn’t the lightest weapon of choice. “Show yourself!”
The statue vibrated in my hand and the eyes focused on me. “Boo!”
My screams were muffled as the earth shook, and the horde room became a distant vision. I landed with a thud on a hard, rocky surface. As my eyes focused, I scanned the cave I’d been transported to for my captors and a way out but saw none.
“Little one, why did you bring him here?” I heard in Draconian, though I saw no dragon.
“Papa, he’s nice. He knows our language.” Was that the giggling stone speaking?
My head was a mess and how I’d arrived here I hadn’t a clue. Had I suffered a concussion? Passed out? Was any of this real? With my stomach in my throat, finding words without vomiting was proving to be a challenge, but me being me, I had questions. A lot of them.
“He smells of the one who took you.”
“My mate.”
Heavy footsteps shook the cave as two sets of angry orange eyes appeared before me. “Who are you?”
“Em-Emerson. Mate of Caro, one of the protectors.”
“He kidnapped a youngling, that’s punishable by death.”
“I promise, he meant no harm. He thought the stone was an ancient artifact. When the scrolls told us otherwise, he and his brothers were preparing to return it. Please, let me go.”
Their laughter rang out, echoing through the cave. How many were here with me and why couldn’t I see them. “You’re free to go, Emerson. Though you’ll not reach the surface before you take your last breath.”
Desperately, I called out to my mate through our bond but only received silence in return.
“Don’t worry, if he was truly returning the youngling he’ll find you. Then it’s his problem how to get you home.”
Had they lived away from others for so long they didn’t know of the protectors? Or did they and had no use for them.
Either way, we were well and truly screwed. The brothers would come and fall straight into their trap. I reached out for my dragon and again and was met with complete silence.
