Chapter 17

Aidan

A shimmering blue lake lay to the west of his position. The soil at its banks was a rust-red color common throughout central Oklahoma, especially in the less inhabited areas. They had selected a training area close to the Shadowan border and the neutral highway between their lands. It would afford easy access for the other toriqan who would be arriving today.

“You’ve done well,” Aidan said, clasping Morgan’s shoulder.

He didn’t have to worry about burning the sorcerer anymore. The young male wore a blue camrium tunic and black pants, which kept his clothing safe from heat and fire, and he’d taken the potion that would render his body fire-proof for a while. With Aidan taking him out so often for meetings with dragons, he wanted him protected as much as possible. Today especially, accidents could happen.

Morgan pointed between two points. “The dome shield extends from there to there, giving us almost a four-mile span.” He gestured at another two places. “And from there to there, which is about three miles. It’s in the shape of an oval. No one can come in or out when it's locked down.”

The land had been cleared of any remaining buildings or man-made obstacles, along with large shrubs and trees that might get in their way. Over the next hour, Aidan expected the eight toriqan who’d sworn oaths to send representatives for training.

The pendragons could come as well, but at the least, they were supposed to send between ten to thirty of their best warriors. Some of those should be flight leaders since they’d need to understand the prescribed battle tactics the most.

They would stay within the protective dome for the next couple of weeks, learning the best fighting techniques and how to work together. Of course, most couldn’t stay for the entire time while also conducting war preparations. They would have others come to replace them as needed. The more who had the chance to train, the better.

Aidan, Morgan, and his chosen warriors had arrived hours ago to inspect the land and finalize the training regime. Though Falcon and Sabryn had many duties, they would be here for the first two days this week and another two days next week.

Ruari and Freya would be the two who’d swap out when they weren’t here. Titan and Eliam—shifters who’d helped Bailey with the rebel problem—would come for three days each week since they were both flight leaders within his legion. Other Taugud shifters would also rotate each day as duties allowed.

For the first few days, it would only be dragons and shifters. After that, Miles and Justin would come with many of their human fighters. Everyone needed to learn how to fight with ground and air forces battling simultaneously. They needed to develop methods to prevent falling dragons fromhitting the allies beneath them. It wouldn’t be easy.

In the final week, sorcerers and slayers would swap out each day to train. Everyone needed to understand their role and how they would interact with others. They couldn’t afford chaos and confusion once the war started, and it had been thousands of years since any battles had been fought where all the races worked together. No one alive had ever done it before.

Their enemy behaved like a hive mind, which was why they succeeded in their territory acquisitions. Aidan hoped to mitigate as many issues as possible to avoid chaos. They needed to work seamlessly and trust others to do their parts.

If they didn’t, they would surely fail.

Hildegard arrived first with her people. Aidan already knew she would only stay for one full day and then come back twice more to gain experience working with humans, slayers, and sorcerers. Like him, she had much work to do at home and couldn’t stay away long. He’d given her and her people permission to fly straight through his territory, so they’d lose as little time as possible to travel.

Aidan was pleased to see Galadon, Lorcan, Callum, Quain, and several others who he’d briefly met from the Faegud. They flocked to the lake to refresh themselves before joining them a short distance outside the training dome.

Once they entered it, no one could see them or what they did in there. He had to be within a few feet to see its slight shimmering translucence. Magic from the outside couldn’t penetrate the shield, and magic cast from within couldn’t leak out. It was the best way to train without the Kandoran spies and seers discovering their strategies. He’d spent a lot of time compiling all the intelligence they had so they could brief everyone who participated on their enemy’s tactics.

He looked at Morgan. “Do you have the training devices ready?”

“Yes, they’re inside the dome.” He gestured toward half a dozen humans resting in a copse of trees nearby. “They’ll help put them on the chosen dragons when you’re ready.”

For the mock battles they’d conduct each day, half the participants would wear special halters with enchanted gems embedded in them. Those would closely simulate the dark magic that emanated from Kandoran forces—human and dragon.

Other than eerie eyes, it would be difficult to tell their side apart from the other, especially at night when most battles would be fought. This would help them get used to using their senses to detect the enemy. It wouldn’t be comfortable for anyone, but it would go a long way in preparing them for what was to come.

As more dragons began to arrive, the time approached to shift into his beast form. Before he did, he worked his way over to his warriors and gestured at Rayna to join him. Bailey had encouraged him to use the slayer more since she had little else to do, especially now that the rebel group had been defeated two days ago and all their plans foiled. He was relieved they’d wrapped up that problem because it could have set them back immensely if they’d succeeded.

Aidan noted Rayna’s horse grazed by the lake, unconcerned by all the dragons around him as he swished his long, black tail. Such an odd animal. Still, he proved useful in transporting the slayer to places that would take longer on foot.

Rayna stopped a few feet from him with an inquisitive look. Aidan had initially resisted using her until Bailey reminded him of the woman’s unique gift for telepathy. Still, he had his doubts. “Are you certain you can handle communicating with such a large group?”

“Yes.” She nodded, not appearing the slightest bit nervous at the growing number of dragons. “In a small area like this, it’s not a problem. Distances of more than five miles are where my abilities won’t work well.”

Except when needed elsewhere, she would stay at the dome to bridge communications between dragons and humans. She would also help lead the training. Titan and Eliam were in charge of guarding her from attack in case any pure dragons couldn’t behave.

She could protect herself from one or two at a time, but if more went after her, she’d need assistance to defend herself. Having heard tales of her fighting, he recognized her as a valuable asset in the war. They couldn’t risk losing her even if she made them all uncomfortable.

“Do not stray far from Titan or Eliam while you are here,” he ordered, pushing a thread of his pendragon power on her. “There are likely some here who will take advantage if they catch you alone.”

Rayna bristled at his command, but even she couldn’t help bowing her head a little. “I’ll kill them if they try.”

Hildegard and Galadon approached in their human forms. The Faegud pendragon was a large-boned woman with brown hair braided to her waist and tanned skin. Her confident stride implied that she could kill a horde of enemies merely by glowering at them. She was smart, direct, and didn’t tolerate impudence, but she did have a wicked sense of humor.

Galadon—also known as the lone shifter—was a massive male with corded muscles that bulged from nearly every part of him. He towered over most people.He had short, black hair, light olive skin, and amber eyes that appeared to have flames burning within them, especially when angry or annoyed.

For reasons no one could explain, he naturally emitted a fear hormone so powerful that it made almost everyone afraid to go near him. His dragon form was even more intimidating. It made him an imposing force on the battlefield but worked against him when trying to gain friends or allies. The Faegud pendragon was the first to take a chance since she recognized he was a great asset. Before that, he had no toriq and lived alone in a small territory.

Hildegard smiled and gestured at Galadon, a healthy distance to her left since she wasn’t immune to his effect. “He will help ensure Rayna’s safety as well. If she needs someone to fly her so she can hunt, he can do that, too.”

The lone shifter growled, narrowing his eyes on the slayer. “I want nothing to do with her, and I’m certainly not going to take her to kill our kind.”

“You will do as ordered,” the Faegud pendragon snapped in a forceful tone.

Despite the obvious tension in her shoulders, Hildegard did an admirable job ordering the shifter she feared. It couldn’t have been easy to overcome her instincts when commanding Galadon. Aidan respected her courage.

Rayna sighed. “I think he just needs to get laid, and then he’ll feel so much better.” She moved toward the lone shifter until they were only a foot apart and spoke in a low, seductive tone, “I can help with that if you’d like. They say once you go slayer…you never go back. Ask Aidan.”

His whole body went ramrod straight, and horror twisted his features.

Hildegard laughed so hard he feared she’d choke on her tongue. Aidan had forgotten how forthright Rayna could be or how well she could get under Galadon’s skin. The poor shifter had no idea how to handle her—a female half his size and a head shorter than him who didn’t show an ounce of fear. Aidan fought a grin, enjoying the exchange.

“I do not need to get laid,” the lone shifter seethed, face reddening.

“Really?” she asked, cocking her head so that her coppery brown hair fell to the side and glinted in the sunlight. “How long has it been, big boy?”

If it hadn’t been amusing, it would have been disturbing to see how daring the slayer was while standing toe to toe with one of the most powerful shifters to walk the Earth. Aidan still found it uncomfortable when he got close to him, but he could tolerate him far better than before.

Galadon’s eyes flashed with firelight. “Do you have a death wish?”

Rayna laughed, pressing her hand to her chest.

“Finally, someone who gets me,” she said, smiling secretively at him and then walking away. She paused by Titan. “I’ve gotta pee. Can you make sure no one bothers me while I go behind those trees?” She pointed in the direction of the nearby woods.

The shifter cleared his throat. “Uh, of course.”

His expression was deeply uncomfortable as he followed her.

Aidan rubbed his face. “I’m still trying to figure her out.”

“Why did you bring her here?” Galadon asked, scowling. “She’s a menace.”

“Rayna has useful skills and more spare time than anyone else since most people are afraid of her,” Aidan said, giving the lone shifter an inquiring look. “Why do you hate her so much?”

“She vexatious and enjoys mocking me.”

Hildegard shook her head. “If I believed that, I wouldn’t make you go near her. I’d even bet a trunk of my best jewels that if you took her up on her offer, she’d follow through and give you the best sex of your life.”

“You can’t be serious,” he said, eyes widening in horror.

The female pendragon had good instincts, especially about female behavior.

Aidan rubbed his chin, considering it. “I think she’s right. Bailey says Rayna likes to flirt, but you’re the only one she’s made that offer to…and more than once now.”

“I’ll do as ordered and nothing more,” Galadon said before stomping away.

Aidan gave Hildegard a rueful look. “He’s such a pleasure to be around.”

“You have no idea,” she said, sighing. “The slayer is not wrong that he needs to seek female companionship to help improve his mood, but none of ours are willing to go near him. I still can’t figure out how Rayna gets close to him while appearing completely relaxed. It’s why I pair them together when I can because it does him good to be around someone who doesn’t balk in his presence.”

Her actions made more sense now that she explained them.

The slayer returned from the woods, Titan ruefully following behind her and Eliam joining them as they headed toward the dome. Aidan decided it was time to shift. He’d spotted the last dragons arriving minutes before, and they had a long day of training before them. He could only hope they didn’t end up with anyone dead.