We flew through the evening and all the night, Marskal passing back water and food once he’d made certain that we were mostly unharmed and not followed. He and I—the unfortunate mossbacks of the group—had some cuts and deep bruises, but nothing severe enough to keep us from going on.
He assured us that Zynda could fly easily to Annfwn, and knew the way—and that it wouldn’t take that long at dragon speeds. We all preferred to get well away from n’Andana and safely home.
Home. Yes, I looked forward to returning to my adopted home.
Otherwise, flying on the dragon didn’t allow for much conversation other than terse shouts. I even slept from time to time, warm and secure between the two men—though Zyr kept his arms wrapped around my waist, leaning me back against him so I wouldn’t be too much in contact with Marskal. He needn’t have been jealous, but the gríobhth nature is a possessive one, and I was fine with being possessed by this man I’d chosen.
I’d given myself to him in the way of my people, and that meant letting him have me in the way of his. Having him nuzzle my neck and press kisses to my temple made the journey that much sweeter.
We made it to Annfwn at dawn, the sky pink and gold with it. Several Hawks scouts on the backs of flying and swimming shapeshifters spotted us, hailing us with glad welcome. To my astonishment, hundreds—maybe thousands—of sailing ships anchored all around. A perimeter guard of more Hawks and Tala saluted as Zynda sailed through, landing on the beach.
“Yes, it’s better,” I heard Marskal observe, the wind no longer too loud to hear. “But far from ideal. What if a dragon approaches that isn’t friendly?”
Zynda cocked her head, shrugging her wings, and it made me wonder if they’d been having a conversation. She crouched down on the sand, and Marskal slid down her leg with practiced agility, then held his arms up for me. Zyr landed on the sand, and shouldered him aside with a frown. “I’ll do that.”
To my surprise, Marskal, usually so serious, grinned and held up his hands, glancing at Zynda, who’d lowered her head to nuzzle him.
Zyr helped me down and held me a moment. “Are you good to stand?” he asked, looking me up and down.
“Yes. Go say a proper hello to your sister.” I began plucking at the ties of the cloak, more than ready to get the sweltering thing off of me in the warmth of Annfwn.
Zyr nodded crisply, narrowing eyes, walked up to Zynda—and kicked her hard on the snout. “You fucking heroic idiot!” he shouted at her. “You just had to go and do it, didn’t you?”
Marskal began laughing, silently, bending over with it. I frowned at him, bemused by the reaction. Then gasped when the dragon vanished and Zynda the woman stood in her place. She wore a pale blue wispy gown and her long hair whipped in the breeze. Putting her hands on an astonished Zyr, she pushed him on his ass in the sand.
“What about you?” she demanded. “What in Moranu were you thinking, storming that castle with only a mossback for help!”
“You… you can shapeshift back from Final Form,” Zyr stammered, then scrambled to his feet.
“Brilliant observation.” She threw up her hands. “Turns out Final Form isn’t so final.”
He leaned in. “Why didn’t you tell me, you stupid harpy?”
She leaned in, too, eyes blazing with blue fire, just like his. How I’d missed their nearly identical appearance—and natures—I couldn’t imagine.
“Oh, I don’t know, you whining puppy,” she snarled, “maybe because we were busy saving your miserable life.”
Zyr blinked into the panther, tumbling her back into the sand. I started forward, but Marskal snagged my arm, and in that moment, Zynda became a tiger, rolling the black cat and pinning him with her great jaws.
I pulled at Marskal’s grip. “They’ll kill each other.”
He shook his head, grinning widely. “Trust me. This is something they do. Let them work it out. How about us mossbacks leave them to their Tala games, get patched up and find something real to eat?”
I glanced dubiously at the squabbling siblings—Zyr now a large brown bear who, quite literally, had the snarling tiger by its tail. “If you’re sure,” I said.
He slung a companionable arm around my shoulders and pointed me at the cliff city. “I am. And perhaps you and I can swap some tales while we’re at it.”
A graceful blue heron swept down from the city, landing in front of us and becoming Queen Andromeda. Before I quite assimilated that, she’d seized me in a fierce hug. “You did it, you did it, you did it!” she chanted, rocking us both from side to side in her dance of joy.
I laughed, hugging her back, the feeling of embracing another woman—a living woman—reminding me of the sisters I’d left behind.
She set me away from her, holding my shoulders, eyes alight and glimmering with a hint of Moranu’s silver. “I want to hear everything, but first tell me if you’re hurt. I’ve got a healer waiting. What about you, Marskal?”
He huffed genially. “I’m clearly second-best to the hero of the hour, but I only have a few scratches.”
“Knowing you Hawks that means just shy of a mortal injury.” Andi took my left arm in her hands, sliding her fingers over the black markings of Deyrr. Her touch tingled, almost like sparks. “I’m removing the last of this taint immediately, however.”
“Thank you,” I replied fervently. The sparks penetrated, feeling uncomfortably like worms crawling under my skin—with something very like that moving in squirms. Marskal watched with interest, but I had to look away. Two raptors dive-bombed each other nearby, Zyr and Zynda, still at it. A huge shadow passed overhead and I squeaked in alarm.
“It’s Kiraka,” Andi murumured. “Hold still. She wanted to hear your report of n’Andana.”
“Oh,” I said, wondering how I was supposed to talk to the ancient dragon, one reported to be excessively cranky and inclined to incinerate people who annoyed her. “Ow!”
“Sorry.” Andi didn’t sound at all sorry and I glared at her intent face. The great bronze dragon alighted on the beach, folding her wings and lying flat in a sinuous curve. A petite figure on her back climbed down, rather awkwardly, then put her hands on the small of her back and arched, her very pregnant belly obvious in silhouette. Queen Dafne Nakoa Kau Po. This got better all the time. Marskal strode over to great her—probably the dragon, too, for all I knew.
Andi finally released my arm, and when she met my eyes, hers glowed with fulminous moonlight as in my vision. Andromeda the sorceress. “The taint is gone,” she told me, echoes of that ocean sound in her voice.
I glanced at my arm, seeing the chain of black talons still chasing themselves around the curve of my muscle.
“I can’t get rid of the mark entirely, not without abrading the skin, and then it would leave a scar,” she told me with regret. “But we can do that if you want it gone.”
“No,” I said. “That’s all right. It’s a reminder that I’m not the same person I used to be.”
Andi nodded gravely. “A badge of honor.” Then she smiled, glancing at the still-battling Zynda and Zyr. “Come on, let’s heal and feed you, then you can tell us all your tales.”
It ended up being hours of tale-telling, especially as King Rayfe and Queen Andromeda declared we could eat in the council chambers and brief everyone relevant at once. Dafne sat with us, relating questions and details from Kiraka. They’d gotten the bones of our story out of me—over hot tea and a plate various people kept filling for me—before Zynda and Zyr joined us. They’d both shifted back to their cleaned-up versions of themselves, so showed no signs of their spontaneous battle—but also had their arms around the other’s waist and heads tilted together in some quiet exchange.
They parted as they reached our gathering, Zynda giving me a warm smile that made her deep blue eyes sparkle, before she went to Marskal and slid into the seat next to him. Zyr simply picked me up, sat in my place, and settled me on his lap, oblivious to the interested looks around the table. I gestured to my plate and he helped himself to that, too.
Queen Andromeda—I could hardly call her Andi with all the Tala council present—explained to Zyr how Zynda had been able to magically follow the thread to our location, expressing again how sorry she was that it had taken so long. Zyr produced the pendant, handing it over to his queen, and she laid it on the table, regarding it thoughtfully from time to time.
Messengers had already gone out to High Queen Ursula, to Jepp and Kral out on the Hákyrling, and also to Windroven where Queen Amelia and Ash had started negotiations with another newly awakened dragon.
They talked on about strategy and defensive plans, but the long night on top of the battle soon took its toll on me. A full belly and the soothing comfort of Zyr’s embrace lulled me into sleep.
I awoke sometime later—a long time later, because night had fallen—in a big bed with open sky above me, and Moranu’s bright moon shining in. Frowning at it in confusion, I wondered where I could be. Then Zyr’s arms wound around me, drawing me against his naked body, his mouth nuzzling kisses on my neck.
“You’re awake?” he murmured.
“Yes, I’m sorry I woke you.” I was in his apartments in Annfwn. I remembered that open ceiling for flying out of and wondered what he did when it rained.
He leaned up on one elbow, a candle beside the bed flaring to life. Brushing my hair back from my face—he must’ve taken it out of the braid when he put me to bed, stripping me naked, too—he studied my face. “You look better,” he announced.
I scowled at him. “I didn’t know I looked bad.”
“You looked tired and beat up,” he informed me. “The healer did wonderful work, but they should’ve let you sleep sooner rather than interrogating you.”
“Maybe everyone was waiting for you and Zynda to finish beating each other up,” I replied tartly.
He grinned, kissing me on the nose. “It’s really good to fight with her again. Thank you for your patience.”
I laid a hand on his cheek. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Of course, she’s even more insufferable now.” He lay back with a sigh, gathering me against him. “All impressed with herself for being able to outdo my gríobhth form. She can fly incredibly fast in that form. Plus there’s the breathing fire thing.”
“Does this mean you want to learn to be a dragon, too?” I teased.
“Maybe.” He rolled his head on the pillow to look at me. “Would you mind?”
“Why would I mind? You should do whatever makes you happy.”
“It’s not that—or not only that—but we’ll need all the firepower we can muster to fight that army of Deyrr.”
A sobering thought. “And the might of Dasnaria.”
“Yes.” He sounded more serious, too. “We got word back from the Hákyrling. The Dasnarian navy is amassing outside the barrier.”
“Ah.”
“But we have time enough to worry about that.” He turned on his side, pillowing his head on his bent arm and gave me a long, somber look. “I won’t try for dragon form, though, if it would bother you.”
“I don’t understand why you think it would,” I replied cautiously.
He shrugged, playing with a lock of my hair, and I saw he had my ribbon around his wrist. “I don’t know how to do this monogamy thing. Aren’t I supposed to ask you about important life decisions?”
I caught my breath. “Monogamy thing?”
“Yes. See? Here you are, in my bed.” He waggled his eyebrows meaningfully.
“So I see,” I answered, a laugh welling up in me. “I’m happy to be here.”
“Good. And I have it on excellent authority that, according to Dasnarian law, since the offer has been made and accepted, it can’t be controverted.”
“That’s true,” I breathed, surprised that I could with the hope in my chest crowding everything else out.
“Will you let me care for you for the rest of your life, Karyn?”
“Yes.” I framed his beautiful, beloved face with my hands. “Will you let me care for you the rest of your life, Zyr?”
He turned his face to kiss my fingers. “Yes. You can tell me what else we need to do.”
“To do?”
“To be married,” he replied with some impatience. “Whatever rituals you mossback Dasnarians do, I’m doing them.”
I couldn’t breathe again. “You don’t have to do that, Zyr.”
“Oh yes, I do. You’re mine. You said so. You promised to love me forever.”
My heart flooded with love. “I am yours, yes. But I know the Tala are different, that they’re not monogamous. I’ll love you forever no matter what.”
“Well…” He looked somewhat abashed. “I may have oversimplified. That depends a great deal on our First Form, and that fundamental nature.”
“Oh yes?” I wound my arms around his neck, rubbing my nipples against him. “I think the gríobhth is lustful, fierce, and possessive.”
His eyes glinted in the candlelight, hands sliding down to cup my bottom, and lift one of my legs over his hip. “Yes. And monogamous, did I mention?”
I gasped as his clever fingers stroked me, the heat rising between us. “I think you left that out.”
“Hmm.” He kissed me deeply. “I spent a lot of time in the gríobhth mind. And heart. Did I mention that I love you more than my own life?”
I laughed. “No, but I knew.”
“Figures. The gríobhth knew, too. It just took me a while to catch up.” He kissed me again, and then again, as if he couldn’t stop. “We’ll marry in the Tala way, too. That will convince you of how much I love you, gréine.”
“I don’t need convincing—but you can tell me as often as you like.”
He rolled me onto my back and slid into me, long and slow and sweet, then brushed a kiss over my mouth, his wild blue eyes watching me. “Of course, the Tala way mostly involves a lot of sex,” he murmured, raining kisses on my upturned face. “And a little blood.”
I laughed. “Of course it does.” I wound my fingers in his hair and dragged him down to cover me.
the saga of The Uncharted Realms continues in
The Dragons of Summer
part of the
Seasons of Sorcery fantasy anthology
available for preorder now: