26. Kadia

Apain-filled roar created a stunned silence within the town square. Kaida looked around but could not find the dragon that made the sound. She looked to Beckett, Arlo, and Esen to gauge whether it concerned her. All three men were statues. None of them made a movement, and their faces were emotionless.

Oh gods... has the Dark Dimension infected someone else?

The bond between her and Beckett gave nothing away. Beckett was in control of his emotions and did not give Kaida a hint at what was happening if he knew. The fact that the last few days had been filled with all four of the princes having to reign in people’s dragons, Lycans, and magic has been a testament to how far the Dark Dimension’s reach has gone.

And it was terrifying.

There had been no news from the mainland. None of the kingdoms were sending any sort of mail their way to give them any indication that they were facing the same issues. Kaida attempted to write a letter to her parents to ask, but not even the post was going out. The usual shipment of items the island could not produce has come in. Nothing else.

Kaida was there when Beckett asked the cargo ship’s captain about it. The captain reported that everything was fine. Loved ones of those who have been rejected have not been given any mail to bring, and that was all. If it weren’t for this being the first time this happened since the beginning of sending people to this island, no one would be batting an eye.

But something is up. I can feel it in my soul. The mainland just doesn’t want us to be worried. Fat chance of us just letting this go.

"It could be someone just shifting for the first time, and it’s not going well. Emerging is a bitch," Arlo explained as he continued to stare in the direction from which the cry came.

"I don’t remember my emerging being painful," Kaida deadpanned.

Kaida wasn’t falling for it. Arlo only stated that she would not grow more concerned than she was currently.

"Your dragon was trying to save your life. She came fast and painlessly to ensure your safety," Arlo started.

"Not everyone has to go through death-defying antics to get their dragon to emerge," Esen finished.

Kaida glared at them both. They were trying, but it was still not sitting well with her. Kaida also wasn’t as dumb as they thought. She had heard those kinds of noises before from others. That kind of roar was not just emerging painfully. If anything, that was a dragon experiencing something, and there was fear mixed in with their pain.

"Shouldn’t we check it out? We are the ones that are in charge around here, are we not?"

The three men gave her a blank stare. This was not news. They knew their duties to the island and its inhabitants. They just didn’t want Kaida to get involved because they were afraid of her dragon being unable to control herself.

Kaida threw her hands up in frustration. "I don’t have to tag along, you jerks! One of you can go check it out. You don’t need to babysit me! I can go through town with just one or two of you or even alone!"

Esen smirked, "Look at you; you are being so bossy."

Kaida growled. "More like I’m trying not to want to punch you in your face for thinking you need to babysit your mate."

Esen leaned over to whisper in her ear. "Part of the job as your mates, Sweetcheeks."

Kaida swung at him, but Esen sidestepped before she moved as if he anticipated her wanting to hit him. Esen chuckled along with the other two. Kaida growled in frustration and began walking down the road toward the shop she had been searching for, which of course was Azulia’s.

The three of them had a discussion that Kaida could barely hear from the distance she put between them. It must have been about who would look into whoever was possibly injured, and apparently they’d decided it should be Beckett since he fanned out his wings from his back and took flight. Kaida had been trying to pay attention to their schedule of checking in with the incidents that had been plaguing the island, so she knew who she was going to spend the day with. She noticed an equal amount of time between the three of them, with a few times of all three of them with her. Even though Blaze had been keeping his distance from Kaida, it still looked like he pitched in his time to complete his duties.

It shouldn’t have surprised Kaida that Blaze was still loyal to his friends, but it did. He tried to avoid her, but Beckett, Arlo, and Esen were always with her. Outside of their patrols, which increased to needing two of them at a time during some parts of the day, Blaze was on his own. What he did at that time was a mystery. His scent in the house was not as strong lately, telling her that he had been spending less time there than usual.

Where does he go? I don’t know if he has other friends on the island outside of these three.

Kaida walked into Azulia’s shop and scanned the room. No one was behind the counter, and no customers were in the store. She came here to apologize for the thousandth time for what happened the other day and to ask for more clothes. The guilt was eating at Kaida every night of attacking Azulia’s customer and costing her possible business. Azulia stated she forgave Kaida during her first apology. However, when they trained together the following day, Azulia was a little quiet compared to normal.

Azulia popped her head out from one of the fitting rooms in the back and gave Kaida a smile. She held up a finger, and then her head disappeared behind the wall. Kaida used the opportunity to browse the racks. One thing Kaida noticed was how bare the racks looked. The terrifying thoughts of Azulia having to remove the items because they had been on the rack for too long plagued her mind. This clothing shop was the most popular on the island, but Kaida had never noticed it looking bare before. A memory of Blaze telling Kaida that he noticed fewer people around the shop since the incident popped up. Kaida’s stomach turned, and she had to suck in her breath so she didn’t spew the contents of her breakfast onto the floor.

I hope to the Gods I didn’t cause her to lose this kind of business. I will throw myself off a cliff.

Arlo and Esen were behind her, whispering to each other about feeling awkward inside the store. Kaida noticed that she was browsing the panty section when their conversation started. A smirk played at her lips, and she thought of asking them for their opinion on a pair of lacy panties when Azulia’s voice grabbed her attention.

"Hey, Kai. What brings you in today?"

Kaida frowned and bowed her head, "I want to say sorry again. For everything-"

Azulia smiled sympathetically, "Kai, I promise you, I am not mad. It didn’t hurt my business in any way, shape, or form. It’s actually brought me more business because people found out you shop here. You just missed a mad rush of people."

Kaida looked around again, "So the bare shelves aren’t because people aren’t buying so you’re moving stuff off the shelves?"

"Who would give you that idea?"

Arlo and Esen growled. Kaida turned to them, and they were shaking their heads and dulling down the rattling inside of their chests.

"If Blaze said something like that, ignore him. He likes to make shit up to get people’s panties in a twist," Arlo told her.

Kaida glanced down at the panties she thought about showing the two of them and then back to them. She felt her dragon stir, and a small growl escaped her throat.

"Are you serious?" Azulia asked with an eye roll.

"Unfortunately. He thinks it’s funny, even though no one else seems to. It’s led to all three of us punching him a few times. That still hasn’t deterred him," Esen relayed while thumbing through some cocktail dresses.

"Ugh! I’m gonna kill him."

Azulia smiled and looked as if she was trying to suppress a laugh.

"What?" Kaida asked through her teeth.

"I saw smoke come out of your nose. It was really funny, and I tried not to laugh. Didn’t work."

The air immediately shifted to a lighter tone, and they all laughed. Kaida shook her head and kicked herself for believing Blaze. He had never given her a reason to trust anything he said, but somehow she believed this. Kaida could only assume she did so because it involved a friend she truly cared about, and she wouldn’t have wanted to be the reason a friend’s business went downhill.

"Then if you aren’t mad at me, why have you been a little distant?"

Azulia’s shoulders sagged, and Kaida noticed the bags under her eyes. Kaida started to kick herself harder when she finally realized the piece of the puzzle she was missing.

"I’ve been so busy at the shop that I have been closing later than normal. I’m getting like four hours of sleep at night because I am trying to make some clothes after I lock up just to keep my stock high enough to support the demands from this surge of clients. I know I’m not the only clothing shop on the island, but it sure as hell feels like I am."

Arlo was beside Kaida in an instant. She was surprised at what happened next.

"A lot of things have been happening on the island. The other two shops are not functioning properly right now due to the owners going a little... berserk. Is there a way we can help you to pick up the slack or something?"

Azulia’s eyebrows were raised just like Kaida’s. "Uh... yeah, actually. Do either of you boys know how to work a register?"

"I do," Arlo answered.

"Okay, cool. Can you run the register while I make some new items?"

"Yeah, I can do that."

Kaida glanced over at Azulia. Her shoulders were no longer slouched, and there was a brightness in her eyes now that she had some relief. Kaida smiled at Arlo and gave him a wink. A warmth spread across her chest when he returned her smile. Esen came over and asked how he could help as well. Azulia approached a pile of clothes on hangers and asked him to hang them up. Kaida joined him, and they all found a rhythm in no time.

Another rush of customers came in before Kaida was able to ask about the other shop owners Arlo was talking about. She knew people were losing control of themselves since that’s all she heard from the princes. However, she did not know that it was affecting people so much that Azulia was now the only clothing shop on the island that was running.

None of the customers were rowdy in any way. Many of them were thankful that Azulia was still open. Quite a few people were looking for dresses for an upcoming dance the school was having. Azulia had to take orders for custom dresses and even had to figure out a schedule to get everything done in time. Kaida stepped in and was able to figure out a schedule that worked for the customers and Azulia, which led to Azulia stating that the clothes that Kaida wanted made would now be free. Kaida tried to protest, but Azulia would not hear any of it.

This continued until nearly ten o’clock before Azulia had had enough and put the closed sign on the door. They all lay down on the floor and tried to catch their breath.

"I’ve never had this much business."

Kaida rolled her head to look at Azulia, "Well, at least you’re making a shit ton of money right now. That’s a good thing, right?"

Azulia sighed, "I’d rather the normal amount of business I had. Now I feel like I have to hire an assistant. I don’t want to. I like how things were and having the shop to myself.

Kaida giggled. "I can always be the assistant."

Azulia’s eyes went a tad wide, and rocked her head back and forth while she thought about it. "I would actually rather you than anyone else."

"Kaida...you will have duties around the island. Having a job would keep you from them." Esen pointed out.

Kaida lifted herself to a seated position. "Well, until we can get things figured out with the Dark Dimension, people around here will keep losing control. You three aren’t going to let me deal with the public when they are going berserk, so why shouldn’t I just spend my time here? Think about it. I already come to the shop regularly anyway, and what better job to have than one where I’ll definitely be protected."

Esen and Arlo pulled themselves up until they were leaning on their elbows. They glanced at each other for a moment, talking to one another without words. Kaida cocked an eyebrow at them and looked at Azulia, baffled at the thought that these two knew how to hold conversations with looks alone.

"Bromance," Azulia mouthed, causing Kaida to laugh and gain the attention of the two men.

"I can’t think of why that wouldn’t work," Arlo said first.

"You’ll be here instead of where everyone is losing their shit." Esen finished.

"Yeah, that’s pretty much what I said."

A roar shook the building and made all four of them reach their feet. Another one sounded and grew in intensity. From the sounds of it, the dragon was not too far away. If anything, it sounded as though it was inside the town square.

None of them wasted any time. They all sprinted out of the shop and to the square. It was an Ember dragon, larger than the woman who flipped out the other day. The scales were the deepest red Kaida had ever seen on a dragon, and they spewed fire at anything that moved. Kaida could see people using their magic to put up shields to protect themselves from the flames as they ran as far away from the dragon as they could.

Arlo and Esen immediately shifted into their dragons and roared to gain the dragon’s attention. When the Ember dragon noticed them, flames the color of white mixed with red and orange were blown in their direction. Esen blocked it with Breeze magic and created a shield before another round of flames came their way. Azulia took a step in the direction of the dragon, and Kaida grabbed her wrist. There was no chance she would let her friend tango with a dragon in hell.

"No, it’s best to let them handle this."

Azulia ripped her wrist out of her grip. "I am not a child. I know what I am doing. I have trained in my magic for years and can wield it better than any of those dragons."

"That’s not what I was saying, Azulia. The dragon has lost control. This is extremely dangerous."

Before Azulia could argue, the Ember dragon charged through Esen and Arlo, knocking both dragons to the ground. Kaida pushed Azulia to the side so she would not be in the line of collision and shifted into her dragon form. Once her four paws landed on the ground, she opened her mouth and let out a rattling roar. The buildings beside them shook, and the dragon came to a halt.

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Kaida stared down at the dragon, almost begging them to make another move. There was a shimmering around the dragon’s body. Kaida relaxed a little, as that was a sign of the dragon shifting back to human form. Kaida called on the magic to shift herself when she was hit with a beam of flames. Kaida roared and shot a beam of her plasma in the center of the Ember Dragon’s chest. This knocked the dragon backward, and it almost collided with a building.

Make this fool regret trying to attack us!

Kaida made her way to the dragon and stood over them. They were dazed as their eyes spun around, and could not focus on anything. Kaida knew she had them, and this was going to be easy. She opened her mouth and allowed her magic to crackle as it formed into a ball and grew with each passing second.

"KAIDA! STOP!"

Kaida looked down to see Arlo, Esen, and Azulia waving their arms to get her attention. She closed her mouth and growled at them to prevent distracting her.

"This isn’t you, Kaida! Don’t do something you will regret!" Arlo shouted.

Through their bond, Kaida could feel Arlo pouring his feelings of love and kindness into her. He pushed his memories of her forgiving him and how she offered to help Azulia run the shop to take stress from her.

Kaida looked down at the Ember dragon. They were still dazed from being struck with her magic, and it wouldn’t be a problem any time soon.

And I was going to kill them...They’re right–this isn’t me.

The shift was quick, and Kaida curled up into a ball once she was human. Arlo, Esen, and Azulia were trying to talk to her, but she could not hear their words. She refused to look at any of them.

I’m broken. I can’t control myself or the dragon. I need to lock myself up and throw away the key.