Chapter 46

Aidan

The sun was setting by the time they finished gathering all the dead shifters and humans within two miles of the fortress. They were laid out in neat lines on the field outside the walls for family and friends to identify and take for burial preparations. Tomorrow, they would gather the rest that were farther away.

Aidan’s heart ached at the numerous losses. They’d been his to command, and though he’d plotted and planned the best he could, it wasn’t enough. Too many had died.

Then there was the issue of the newly cured Kandoran.

Each toriq and human group had designated teams to help them. The survivors were still weak, dazed, and traumatized from what had been done to them and needed help. Also, they were very dirty, usually injured, and ripe smelling because it didn’t appear any of them had bathed recently. Even the dragons were in poor mental and physical shape. Aidan and the rest of the leaders recognized they weren’t to blame for the atrocities, so they did what they could.

The dragons would recover directly across the western border, where their front line had been during the war. Once the aftermath was settled, he would claim some of that land for his people, but the remaining Thamaran would be allowed to keep a section for themselves in their former territory. That included the ones who took refuge prior to the war and the ones they cured. Their designated area would need to be cleared of unexploded ordinance first—Colonel Melvin’s precise words—before it could be safely reoccupied, though.

Falcon and Sabryn approached him, each with a parchment in hand.

Aidan braced himself. “How does it look so far?”

The pair glanced at each other before Sabryn spoke first. “As of right now, we have found forty-six dead from our toriq. The Craegud lost thirty-four, and the Straegud lost twenty-nine. That doesn’t include any previous losses from before last night.”

And there were likely still bodies out there they hadn’t found yet. Aidan rubbed his face, despairing over each death of his kind. Shifters were already a small percentage of the overall dragon population, and the war didn’t help matters. He couldn’t have prevented it fromhappening, but he wished he could have done more to protect his people. The full tally of lost Taugud since the start came to eighty-six. He prayed to Zorya that they’d find no more.

“Humans?” he asked.

Falcon cleared his throat. “We separated the locals from the coalition and counted two-hundred and eighty-three from Oklahoma dead since yesterday, including innocents caught in battle in the city. Unfortunately, not everyone took shelter. The NAC gave us their preliminary estimate. They lost seventy-eight last night, and they’re still missing another fifteen.”

Aidan felt their deaths almost as much as his own people, especially with how bravely the human soldiers had fought against a superior force. As for the non-combatants caught in the middle, he was sorry it happened. He’d been told parts of the city outside his territory didn’t have shelters made due to a variety of reasons. Perhaps they didn’t believe the warnings. They were the most likely victims when the Kandoran broke through the shield and swarmed the populated areas. He doubted anyone from Norman would have been above ground during the fighting.

“Do we know anything on the Faegud or pure dragon losses?”

“Ozara returned half an hour ago from checking in with Lorcan.” Sabryn glanced down at her parchment. “The Faegud have found ninety-two dead so far and are certain of one-hundred and forty-three lost over the entire war. Of course, there are still some missing. The Shadowan are the only ones who have agreed to give me a preliminary estimate. They didn’t give specifics for last night, but they have counted one hundred and eighty-two total dead since the Kandoran first attacked a month ago.”

He'd like to say it was reassuring that neighboring toriqan suffered even greater losses, but it didn’t. They’d all spend the coming decades trying to bring their adult populations back up, and even more before they had the same number of skilled and experienced warriors.

Bailey walked up with Rayna at her side.

Aidan pulled his mate close and kissed her forehead. The look in her brown eyes told him she hadn’t had a good day, either. Both slayers were covered in gore and dried blood, likely from assisting in moving bodies. Everyone who’d performed the task appeared the same.

“Tell me,” he said.

Bailey took a deep breath. “We lost one of the Tulsa slayers, six from the coalition died, and one from Texas. There aren’t many of us, so it feels like a lot.”

He could understand why she’d be upset. It would mean far fewer to keep the dragon world in line, and that much more pressure for the remaining slayers to keep their bloodlines going. Bailey wouldn’t be included in that since their offspring would have shifter blood to counteract the slayer side.

“I overheard several sorcerers from the coalition were killed and two locals,” Rayna said.

Aidan frowned. “Any that we know?”

“One was Javier’s, but that’s all I’m sure about.”

The sorcerer had lost a female apprentice earlier in the war and was undoubtedly upset over another loss. Javier could be ruthless to get what he wanted, but he genuinely cared for his people. Aidan could understand and respect that.

“Damage in Norman?” he asked.

Bailey gave him a tightlipped smile. “A few neighborhoods took damage from fire or falling dragon bodies, but thankfully most of the battle happened over open land with few homes. Xanath’s tornado took out a lot of trees and leveled some farmhouses. I’ve heard parts of the west side of Oklahoma City got hit worse, but most of that area is still standing.”

“Okay,” he said, glancing at the sky. “It’s getting dark. We should clean up, eat, and plan our strategy for tomorrow.”

The recovery of bodies was best done in daylight, and everyone was still exhausted from the long war. He wouldn’t force anyone to work too many hours when he knew they needed rest and time to come to terms with their losses. Tomorrow, they’d finish recovery efforts, and the day after that, the funerals. He already had a team digging graves in preparation.

“I’ll head to the village then,” Rayna said, gesturing in that direction.

She still had her horse and personal items stored at Bailey’s brother’s home. By some miracle, only one house there suffered some roof damage. Everyone else was able to return to their residences after the war ended.

“Good.” Aidan met her gaze. “But I’ll expect you in the great hall for the midday meal.”

Surprise flickered in the slayer’s eyes. “But I didn’t think I was welcome there.”

“You’ve more than earned your right to dine with us,” he said solemnly.

She’d only been allowed limited visits until now and no meals within the castle. He’d heard of her bravery while fighting in the south, and he’d seen it firsthand the night before. Aidan could hardly deny such a brave woman a place at his table.

He smiled. “I’d invite your horse as well, but he wouldn’t be a good fit. We will make certain he gets the best oats and hay in reward for his services, though.”

They couldn’t very well have him going around eating the dead.

“Oh.” She grimaced. “You heard.”

“That he killed Kandoran and consumed their flesh? Yes. Word did reach me.”

Bailey laughed. “Only you would have a horse like that.”

Rayna shrugged. “I suspect it’s the long-term use of the fireproof potion. He started acting differently after about six months and did more strange things as time went on over the years. Eating dragons was new, though.”

“I remember him licking them before,” Bailey said, shaking her head.

Aidan cleared his throat. “I think we’ll have to consider these potions will have side effects with long-term use and warn everyone that it would be good to limit their use.”

“Definitely,” Rayna agreed.

They parted ways. Aidan and Bailey headed for the castle and let out sighs of relief when they arrived at their rooms. Early that morning, they’d barely had the energy to wash the grime away and collapse onto the bed. This time, they took thorough baths and put on nicer outfits than they’d worn in many weeks.

“You look beautiful,” Aidan said, gazing up and down at Bailey.

She grinned. “Thank you. It’s weird being this clean.”

The slayer still wore black camrium, but the tunic and pants had no rips or holes. Her thick, black hair was down and loose, tempting him to run his fingers through it. While dark circles still lined her eyes, at least her skin was unmarred by injury for once.

“If I weren’t so hungry, I’d be tempted to take you to bed now”

Bailey snorted. “Orion would have a fit. We promised he could eat the midday meal with us, and we should spend time with him.”

“I know,” he said, opening the chamber door for her.

They headed downstairs to the great hall, finding it as full as ever. Rayna stood by the entrance, studying her nails and avoiding the glares of shifters. Titan stood next to her. He growled at anyone who looked too long at the slayer and made an excellent guard. Aidan had asked him to keep an eye out for her.

“How about you bring Rayna over to sit next to you?” he asked, glancing down at his mate. “I’ll get Orion, and he can sit next to me.”

“Sounds like a plan,” she agreed.

As Bailey walked away, Aidan heard his son chattering from the corridor. He was holding Phoebe’s hand, and next to him, Leilany held Ozara’s hand. Ruari and Freya followed them, having taken rooms at the castle just before the war started. It made sense that their belongings were closer while they helped with the war effort.

“Please, all of you should come sit with us,” he said, then took his son’s hand from his sister.

Phoebe looked at him with a devilish glint in her eyes. “We can expect Zoran, too.”

“You invited him?” he asked, surprised.

She shrugged. “He fought hard with us, and I thought he deserved a nice meal.”

Aidan had caught his sister and eldest brother speaking just before they began work that afternoon. He had hoped it meant their conversation was productive. More than anything, he wanted his family to be whole and for them to start a new beginning.

“I’m glad to hear that,” he said.

They took their seats, and he noted Bailey kept up a steady conversation with Rayna to help put her at ease. Anytime someone glared at the slayer, Aidan pushed his power to force them to look away. Zoran came and sat a few seats down the table from him.

Not long after that, Galadon entered the room. He glanced their way, gaze briefly falling on Rayna with no discernible emotion. His jaw hardened, and he chose a table as far from them as he could get. Aidan wished he could remedy the tension between the two, but they had to work it out on their own.

None of the shifters from the other clans were there. They’d chosen to gather separately on the land each was assigned for their stay so they could prepare bodies and mourn together over their dead. They would attend the celebration in a few days, towhich everyone was invited.

“Apa, are we going to cuddle and read tonight?” Orion asked.

He smiled at his son. “I would love nothing more.”

It had been far too long since they’d done it last.

Servants brought large platters of meat, vegetables, and bread they set in the center of the table. Each of them had their own empty plate to fill. Aidan dished up his son’s before his own, heaping it high. It had been a hard afternoon of work.

“Eat well,” he told Orion. “We’ll go on a walk after this so you can burn some energy.”

He and Bailey might be tired, but a walk through the keep would do them some good. Perhaps his son could find some shifter children to play with since they’d all been cooped up for too long.

“Yay!” Orion said, hurrying to fork more food into his mouth.

Aidan couldn’t wait until their lives could return to some semblance of normal.