Chapter 31

Clouds obscured the sun, but Killian barely noticed. His mind was full of what he still had to accomplish before darkness fell and he could share his night with Dravyn. As he walked through the courtyard of Castle Leolinnia, he smiled and reflected on the past few weeks. Yes, turmoil faced his people and The Council, but Killian had a bit of balance to aid him in dealing with the fear and pain every druid faced.

Dravyn was at his side. They'd found that what made them most content was alternating nights between their trees. It allowed them both to stay on top of everything that went on in their respective lives, and both their beds were comfortable. But Killian's heart longed for a completed matebond.

Dragons had no traditions besides biting their other half as far as Killian had been told, so he hoped to follow the practice adopted by The Council and unite his soul with Dravyn's at an upcoming dance. He grinned more brightly as he entered Kaedan's castle, his mind conjuring ideas about what a mating mark between a druid and a dragon looked like.

In a practice as old as time, every member of The Council had adopted the ancient druidic ritual of combining their blood twice—first to bind their souls and second to ask Fate to mark their skin with an image of her choosing to honor the matebond she'd granted the couple. Usually, it was a perfect replica of both parties, but druids often had plants or other living things, and they wore the marks proudly on their arms. Killian wanted that. To walk around with a piece of Dravyn no matter where he went.

Delighted at the thought, Killian wandered into the Great Hall, but his smile faded when he found it empty. Since Killian wanted to locate Kaedan to discover if he had any further tasks to complete before nightfall, he headed for the kitchen. If Kaedan wasn't running The Council with Renny at his side to ensure no detail was overlooked, the Grand Warlock would be feasting upon a sweet.

Killian stepped over the threshold into the kitchen, and the intense heat from the ovens warmed him immediately. To his surprise, Kaedan was absent.

"Killian, care for something to keep you full until supper?" Hilanore asked as she set a large ball of dough into a ceramic bowl and draped a cloth on it.

"No, thank you, I was searching for Kaedan."

"I have not seen him since mid-day," Hilanore replied, her brown brows knitting together above her light blue eyes. "Wullem, do you know where Kaedan hied off to?"

Wullem glanced up from where he was aiding his mother by stirring a giant pot of stew. "No, I can go seek him out if you like, though, Killian. Leopold and I could split up and cover plenty of ground."

At his side, Wullem's familiar nodded.

"We would be happy to find him," Leopold said, his smile lighting up eyes the same shade of azure as Wullem had inherited from his mother.

"I appreciate your offer, but I will track him down myself," Killian replied.

Hilanore wiped the excess flour from her hands on a towel that was swung through the cord of her apron and grabbed a piece of fruit Killian had grown a week ago at the last dance.

"Take an apple with you, Killian, no need to go on such a search with an empty belly," Hilanore remarked. "Saura headed up to the solar, perhaps she knows where to find her eldest."

Killian took the apple from Hilanore and pocketed it. "Again, you have my gratitude, I will start in the solar. See everyone at our evening sup."

His bare feet silent on the wooden boards, Killian headed for the stairs closet to the kitchen. It took him past the front doors, which burst open after Killian had barely taken two steps into the room. Four men stormed into the castle. Sucking in a shocked breath at the intrusion, Killian glared at them for startling him.

"Killian, there you are," Kaedan called out.

"You are the one who was missing," Killian retorted.

"What has happened?" Drystan asked. "Why are you cross?"

"I am not cross; you stole the air from my lungs when you charged in here," Killian commented.

"We hardly knew you were dawdling in the castle," Conley teased.

"Dawdling?" Killian repeated. "How dare you, Reverent Knight."

"Enough of this," Kaedan impatiently remarked. "We must go."

Killian's heart sank. "Which village must we help now?"

"Chilstone," Kaedan replied. "But they do not need our aid."

"That is a human village. Why would we go there?" Killian asked. "Should we not be teleporting directly to one of our villages if it has been attacked?"

"There was no attack," Baxter said. "Was there? Again? That would be the second this week."

"As far as I know, nothing has happened today," Drystan replied. "Killian, has word reached us that our people are in trouble?"

"No, I thought that was why you were looking for me," Killian answered, relieved that he would not watch Kaedan light more pyres before the stars twinkled in the night sky. "If there was no dragon attack, why are we going to Chilstone?"

"I wrote to the dragon Kings as we discussed," Kaedan replied. "King Mardas answered. A dragon recently showed up on his land. He was most eager to hear about a place he might go to live with other outcasts. We are meeting with the dragon. Drystan and Conley insisted on somewhere neutral."

"A fine idea. Are we leaving now?" Killian asked.

A demonic necromancer and a sentinel shimmered into view. Baxter grabbed a handful of Benton's cloak, then sealed his mouth to his mate's in greeting.

"Now that Chand is here, we can go," Kaedan replied.

"Why are you needed?" Killian asked the Arch Lich.

Chander smirked and rolled his shoulders as his wings unfurled behind him. "Because I am excellent at intimidation."

Tearing his lips free, Benton narrowed his gaze at Chander. "You will stand between Bax and myself the entire time."

Kaedan rolled his eyes. No one was more capable of defending themselves than the demonic necromancer with his repertoire of lethal spells and dagger skills. "Summon your crowns, I am teleporting us now."

True to his word, Kaedan waited only long enough for the titled men to magically pull crowns from their homes—bar the Reverent Knights, who hadn't adopted that practice of nobility—then Killian was in the human village of Chilstone.

Thanks to his matebond and recent familiarity with dragons, Killian immediately recognized the two men heading toward them as dragonkind. Like every other dragon Killian had met, they were tall. Both had black hair and black eyes. They were powerful and, like Killian, wore coronets—though theirs were silver instead of gold and lacked any leaves or flowers.

"I thought it was a single dragon meeting us," Baxter muttered.

The dragons clearly had no clue who to address first, so Killian put them out of their misery.

"Your Graces, allow me to introduce you to Grand Warlock Kaedan of Leolinnia, Arch Lich Chander Daray, Reverent Knights Drystan and Conley Gylde, and Baxter and Benton Daray. I am Killian the Dwyer. Thank you for accepting King Mardas's invitation to meet with us today."

The slightly taller of the two smiled, then his gaze whipped to the Reverent Knights. Both men immediately took a knee and bowed their heads.

"Your Majesties, King Mardas did not mention you would be here. I am Duke Costas Mardas, and this is the dragon seeking a permanent home, Duke Macardle, formerly of Court Stenet."

"Please rise," Drystan insisted. "Your Graces, we are no longer the leaders of the dragons. Fate has brought us to The Council, and we are proud fallen knights."

The Dukes stood.

"We apologize if we have offended, Reverent Knight," Duke Costas said. "We learned some time ago that you were…" His eyes drifted to Chander.

"We rescued them from the castle, and the Arch Lich gave them a second life," Kaedan stated. "One which cannot be robbed from them by nefarious dragons, Your Graces."

"It is a perverse King I defied by walking out of his castle gates," Duke Macardle replied. "I mean no one any harm. King Stenet cannot abide me because my mother is his mate yet I was born before they met. He blames my mother's choice to have a child with another man on me, although such a thing is not uncommon in those that have waited long for Fate to match them. He is a disagreeable man, and I was finally left with no choice but to fly as far from King Stenet as I could."

"And your mother? Will she not miss her son?" Drystan asked. Killian understood why the question was of importance to Drystan. Both he and Conley were so close to Drystan's parents that the former King and Queen of Court Bera had renounced their titles and joined The Council.

"My mother is a distant stranger. I have other family, but I was not allowed to know them. Her parents live, but I know not where, otherwise I would have sought them as a refuge."

"Court Mardas has offered His Grace a new court, but when my King received your letter, Grand Warlock, he wanted to ensure Mac had options," Duke Costas explained. "We were most stunned to learn of a dragon court seeking their kind through a sorcerer though."

"Like you, the dragons I represent are not searching for conflict, Your Grace," Kaedan said. "I cannot offer you their name, as it could endanger them. What I can say is that the dragons in this court have peace. They have few among them and call themselves a family. Much as The Council considers everyone in it a loyal family member. They have my respect, and I have no love for dragons. I detest most of your kind because of the suffering we have endured at their hands. Killian can tell you about their land and home."

"Their land is beautiful," Killian remarked, a smile crossing his face as he thought of Court D'Vaire. "A talented gardener enriches the land with flowers and keeps the bellies of his family full with a variety of fruits, vegetables, and anything else that can be grown from a seed. They share a single dwelling, built by their bare hands. It is humble but also handsomely decorated. My mate is one of the dragons proud to call this court home."

"You have a dragon mate?" Duke Macardle asked. "Oh, my apologies, I did not use your title. I do not know how. I wondered if magickind could be paired with dragons. It may seem strange given the war raging between our kind, but the thought has often crossed my mind that sorcery must be glorious."

Chander grinned. "It is, Your Grace. The druids are simple people. You may call him Killian."

"Thank you, Arch Lich, for explaining. You mentioned peace. I am unfamiliar with it. My life has not been filled with the unrelenting cruelty so often found among dragonkind, but loneliness has plagued me. Despite my title, I have not been allowed to handle any responsibility. Me and my beast chafe at not fitting in anywhere. Dreams of family are something I used to comfort myself with in my youth. I am most intrigued by this court. Grand Warlock, I hope you will speak to them on my behalf, for what I desire most is love and tranquility. Court Mardas is a fine place, and I admire its King. It is an honor to be allowed to call his castle home, but it is large, and I cannot complete my duties as a Duke. I was never trained. At Court Mardas, I am at a disadvantage and must rely upon people like Costas to teach me everything. He has his own varied duties and cannot take the time to tend to me like a child."

"You are hardly a child, Mac," Costas argued. "You are a fine man, and while untutored, you are honorable, and what you are missing can be taught. Court Mardas is grateful to have you."

"The kindness of you both speaks much about who you are as people, Your Graces," Kaedan said.

"Kaedan, I should like to bring the plight of Duke Macardle to my mate and his family," Killian commented with a smile for the man in question.

"Very well, we will send word after Killian has spoken to the court in question," Kaedan replied. "Send my thanks to King Mardas for allowing you to meet with us today. We have rarely exchanged letters, so I could easily understand him dismissing my query."

Duke Costas shook his head. "My King is far too wise to dismiss anyone, Grand Warlock. You are no ordinary man. None of you appear to be. You honor us with your presence."

"Thank you, Killian, I am most eager to hear what path my future will take," Duke Macardle commented with a courtly bow.

"It was a pleasure to meet all of you," Duke Costas said. "Arch Lich, my dragon is growling within me for thinking how fine your wings are and how convenient it must be to have the ability to use them without the need to shift into a giant beast."

The corner of Chander's mouth lifted, and he finally pulled his hands away from the daggers concealed beneath the folds of his cloak. "They do come in handy, Your Grace."

With a small nod, Kaedan teleported their group back to Castle Leolinnia.

"He seemed a fine man," Killian remarked. "Of course, we were only in his presence for a few minutes. I will speak with the D'Vaires tonight."

"Dine with them this eve instead of us," Kaedan insisted. "We can arrange future meetings with the Duke. I am sure they have questions they would like us to ask."

Happy to rush to Dravyn's side, Killian hugged Kaedan. "If you insist, I will go find Dravyn."

"Do not spend the whole of the night kissing him. Talk first," Chander ordered.

"Yes, Arch Lich," Killian replied, embracing the now-wingless Chander. Killian was willing to discuss Duke Macardle, but he could not do so without tasting Dravyn's mouth for a time first. However, Killian mused that he did not need to share that detail with his dear friends.