Chapter 15

FIFTEEN

Turi had never been inside a room like this. It was very different from the rest of the fortress, but it was conceivable that a starship would need a crew and an advanced computer system like the one in here. After her lessons in the library, Turi could read the labels on the walls. Navigation, Weapons, Propulsion . It was a lot to take in. Especially since, well, the fortress was a starship. Or, had been at one time.

Ellion looked just as shocked. “I’ve lived here for so long and never knew I was living in a ship.”

“It’s hard to believe this huge fortress flies ,” Turi said.

“It looks like it was designed for long voyages,” Ellion added. “I can’t imagine it could go anywhere, now. It’s been embedded in the mountain for at least six centuries. It’s just a very fancy house now.” He gestured to the center chair. “That must be where the commander or general sits. Whoever they were, they were likely Zaruxians, judging by the chair. It’s made for wings like mine.”

Turi eyed the chair and the large, flat, wraparound console that sat before it. “Maybe it was your chair,” she said. “Or that of one of your relatives.”

He walked around the curved console and examined the dark symbols on the surface. “My people may have used this fortress as a mobile base. Perhaps they were exploring the galaxy.”

“Before the Axis came,” Turi muttered. She remembered what Ara said about the Skracs living there longer than her people. The full implications of everything she was learning were taking shape. “Before we were all imprisoned by them.”

“Indeed,” said Ellion. He slid around the console and sat in the captain’s chair. It looked like it was made of smooth, dark metal. It wrapped around him like a protective shell. He ran a hand over the symbols on the console and gazed at its black, seamless surface with a frown. “I looked over the logs of the previous overseer—I mean, my old logs. Trying to make sense of…things.”

“Is it hard to accept that you were the previous overseer?” Turi asked.

He shook his head. “No, but it’s unsettling, to say the least.” Worry creased his brow. “If we can find the next journal, there may be a clue about what the Axis did to me, how they operate. If there are any more of my species or yours out there.” He tapped the console, deep in thought.

Turi’s eyes widened. An idea sparked in her mind. “Maybe it’s not a book at all. Maybe that’s why we can’t find it.”

Ellion turned in his big chair. “ What isn’t a book?” he asked, one brow raised.

She turned her gaze to the console under Ellion’s fingers. “This command center has a databank, doesn’t it?”

Ellion’s eyes lit up. “I hadn’t considered that.” He faced the console and looked for some way to turn it on. Touching the screen hadn’t worked. “Maybe it’s this…” He tapped a glowing square on the arm of the chair. With a low hum, the screen came to life, bathing Ellion’s face in a blue glow. The symbols, which had been dark moments ago, illuminated on the curved surface and began shifting and changing too quickly for Turi to read. “Welcome, Ellion,” a smooth male voice said from the console.

“Ah, hello.” Ellion grinned at Turi. “Do I have any personal logs in your database?”

“Yes. There are seven hundred thirty-two personal log entries. Would you like to review them?” The computer filled the screen with an inventory of entries and dates—all aligning with the time period of the missing journal.

Seven hundred thirty-two entries was a lot, and it was only one section of his existence. Turi’s own life wouldn’t fill even one small book, let alone the centuries of life Ellion had lived.

“Excellent. Transfer all entries to a datapad,” Ellion instructed.

“Compiling. Please wait,” the computer replied. Moments later, a small slot opened on the side of the console and a flat, rectangular pad slid out. Ellion picked it up and held it out to Turi. “Let’s see what we can find.”

She took it carefully, her fingers tingling at the smooth surface. “What do we do if the Axis find out about this?” she asked.

Ellion sent a glance to the window where the dark cyclone in the sky was visible. “This fortress’s true form has been dormant for centuries. They must consider it harmless, or all this would be gone. But to stay on the safe side, I’ll shut down this command center in case the Axis’ communications array out there registers a power surge.”

The command center went dark as Ellion tapped a different square on the chair. He turned to Turi with a somber expression. “Let’s go. We have some reading to do.”

As they returned to the main hall, a series of loud chimes echoed through the fortress. Red lights flashed on the walls. Turi jumped, startled by the sudden change from quiet to alarm.

“More visitors?” she whispered, hiding instinctively behind Ellion again.

Ellion’s face hardened. His wings extended slightly as he strode forward. “It appears so.”

He activated a viewscreen that showed the main courtyard outside the fortress doors. Turi gasped as she saw a large group of Terian males, armed with farming tools and makeshift weapons, gathered outside. Among them, she recognized her father and brother, their faces contorted with rage. Two Riests stood at the front, their red hats askew and robes billowing in the wind. This was no friendly visit.

“Stay behind me, Turi.” Ellion touched a square on the wall, and the massive fortress doors slid open with a heavy groan. The angry shouts of the mob intensified, and the Riests stepped forward, their voices booming with righteous indignation.

“Overseer, we apologize for interrupting you at your home,” one Riest said with a half-hearted bow. “Another female disappeared last night. We require an explanation.”

Ellion’s arms crossed as he gazed down at the rabble. “I have no knowledge of this disappearance.”

Of course, he didn’t. He had been with Turi all day and last night. They hadn’t seen Ara, yet, who would undoubtedly deliver news about the missing female. Turi’s belly tightened at the thought of another abduction to a slave auction. Yet another reason to…what? Overturn the Axis? It was an absurd thought. What could two prisoners do to undermine a penal empire? But fire burned in her gut at the treatment her people had endured—were still enduring.

“Respectfully, Overseer, if you came to the settlements more frequently, you would know,” the Riest said.

“I have been otherwise engaged,” Ellion replied. “But I will investigate this missing female and inform you of what I learn.”

“Enough!” The voice was from Tregit, her father. It rose loudly above the others’. “We are done bowing to you, Overseer. Where is my daughter Turi? I want her returned at once!”

Turi peeked through a sliver between Ellion’s body and the door edge to see Seggiat, her brother, standing beside their father. He brandished a rusty sickle and echoed the sentiment. “Give her back, you scaled demon!”

There was a collective gasp among the males at the accusatory words. No one insulted or made demands of the Axis’ overseer. They had to be beyond furious to step over this line, and they clearly were. Turi’s neighbors looked just as distressed and angry as her family.

Turi shrank further behind Ellion, her heart pounding. Her father’s words still rang in her ears, but her brother’s insult made her heart pound. She had no soft feelings for her brother or father, but she didn’t want to see them hurt or killed. She didn’t know how Ellion would react to being called a scaled demon.

Ellion spread his wings wide. She could imagine his silver eyes glinting dangerously. “You overstep, Terian,” he said in a soft, cold voice. “You dare call me that after the mark of protection I placed on your family home? It kept the scavengers and creatures out of your fields and gave you higher status.”

For a moment, her father and brother were quelled. They shrank back and the rest of the mob took a step back. The Riests quickly dropped into a bow. “We beg your forgiveness, Overseer. But you see, we—”

“There!” someone shouted. “I see one of the females! She’s behind him.”

Between her shifting around and Ellion moving his wings in agitation, one of the Terian males had caught a glimpse of her bright clothes through the gap. The momentary calm ended. The Terian males lifted their makeshift weapons.

Ellion’s wings twitched. He turned his head slightly, his silver eyes locking on Turi’s. “They’ve seen you. You can go with them, if you wish.” His voice was calm, almost indifferent, but a flicker of…something…flashed in his eyes. Was it disappointment? Turi wasn’t sure.

Turi stepped into the doorway, chin high. She leaned close to Ellion’s side and placed her hand firmly on his arm. It felt solid and warm beneath her fingers. The muscles there were rock hard. A strange, protective sensation overwhelmed her.

“Turi!” her father bellowed, his voice sharp with surprise. “Come here, now. He has no right to hold you.”

“Father,” she called out, her voice trembling, but firm. “I’m staying here.”

“No.” He took a step back as if she’d slapped him. “Have you lost your mind? He’s an overseer. He’s not Terian . You can’t take him as your…” His voice trailed off, unable to articulate the unspoken rules that everyone knew and no one dared to question.

“He’s bewitched you!” Seggiat stepped forward, his eyes wild. “That’s the only explanation why you would prefer a Zaruxian to your own kind. He’s poisoned your mind.”

“Your daughter is here of her own free will,” Ellion said with an edge to his voice. “As for the others, they are gone, by order of the Axis.”

“Lies!” the first Riest shrieked. “The Axis would never take our females.”

Tregit advanced on Ellion, his face a mask of rage. “You will release my daughter. She’s promised to Thraip, who is owed a bondmate. You have no right to keep her here.”

Ellion remained impassive, his gaze fixed on Tregit, his wings still partially extended, making him appear impossibly large and intimidating. “She chooses where she stays. I will not force her to leave.”

“She’s been tricked! You’ve used your dark magic on her,” Tregit spat, pointing a thick finger at Ellion. “She doesn’t know what she’s doing! She belongs to me! ”

“I belong to no one,” Turi said firmly, stepping forward. This was outrageous. Did he not remember how he put hobbles on her ankles despite her objections? The way she and her mother were treated as lesser beings? She met her father’s furious gaze, her own eyes blazing with defiance. “I choose to stay here. This is my home now.”

A ripple of shock ran through the crowd. Several of the men muttered amongst themselves, their faces etched with disbelief. One of her neighbors, Old Man Harrin, spoke up. “Turi, child, come back with us. This is madness. You don’t belong here with…with him .”

Turi shook her head. “I do belong here. I’m safe here. I’m free here.” She glanced at Ellion, whose expression remained unreadable, but a faint tightening of his jaw betrayed some internal conflict.

“Free?” Seggiat sneered. “You’re a prisoner here. You’re just too foolish to realize it. He’ll use you as his…” He choked on the rest of the sentence, unable to voice the vulgar implication.

“And I was free at the settlement, where I couldn’t even choose my own bondmate?” Turi snapped. “Ellion treats me with respect. Something you and Father never offered Mother, our sisters, or me.”

“Well said, Turi,” Ellion murmured for her ears alone.

The accusation hung in the air, shocking the men into silence. Tregit’s face flushed a deep crimson. He opened his mouth to retort, but no words came out. Finally, he shook his head slowly, as if unable to comprehend Turi’s words. “These are the ways of our people. You were treated no differently than any female of the settlement.”

“I know,” she said quietly. “And that’s the problem.”

Her father turned to the Riests. “The overseer may be our conduit to the Axis, but he twists the minds of our females and has taken my daughter for his own. This cannot stand.”

A collective growl rippled through the crowd. Several males shifted forward, brandishing their crude weapons. Seggiat let out a bloodcurdling snarl and threw his sickle. It clanged against the fortress wall beside Ellion’s head.

“Do that again, boy, and you’ll lose more than your tool.” Ellion’s patience was wearing thin. This was obvious to Turi, but the Terians didn’t see it.

The Riests, affected by Tregit’s words, did nothing to subdue the males’ growing fury. The Terians surged forward. Their anger reached a fever pitch. Several men threw rocks, which bounced off the fortress walls and struck the ground.

Ellion’s wings snapped open fully, creating a gust of wind that pushed back the closest men. His silver eyes flashed. “Disperse, all of you,” he snarled. “If I deliver you back to your settlement, it will be in pieces.”

But just then, a rock thrown with surprising force, struck Turi on the arm. She staggered back a step. Her sharp cry of pain cut through the din of the mob.

Ellion turned. His gaze locked on the bleeding gash on Turi’s arm. Blood seeped through her fingers. Dread clutched her heart. The line had been crossed.

“Ellion, I—I’m okay…” she started, but a low growl rumbled in his chest, growing in intensity until it became a full-throated roar that shook the very foundation of the fortress. The air crackled with energy.

The Terians went quiet, but it was too late. Ellion’s scaled skin shimmered. The purple deepened. His wings stretched out, impossibly wide, the membranes thinning and taking on the texture of stretched silk, shot through with luminous veins of light.

Turi watched in stunned silence as Ellion’s form shifted and changed. His bones cracked and rearranged themselves, muscles bulging and contorting. His humanlike face elongated into a powerful snout, studded with sharp teeth. Silver eyes transformed into glowing orbs of molten gold, radiating a terrifying intensity. His body, once humanoid, now became fully reptilian, covered in thick, overlapping scales that gleamed like polished amethyst. His pants burst off his powerful legs, which bent, ending in clawed feet that gripped the ground with the force of a landslide. The transformation was complete. Ellion, the overseer, stood before them as a magnificent, terrifying dragon, his very presence radiating power and a primal rage she’d never witnessed before.

Turi stumbled back, her breath lodged in her closed-up throat. Awe warred with fear as she gazed up at the magnificent creature that was Ellion. The air around him sizzled with energy, the ground trembling beneath his massive feet. He was a force of nature, a being of immense power and beauty. His snort sent out puffs of smoke that curled around her like a caress. He was awe-inspiring. Majestic. And terrifying in his magnificence. This, this was the true form of the overseer. The protector of the settlements. The emissary of the Axis. And now, he stood before her, a dragon forged from the very essence of power and rage, defending her .