80. Alaric

CHAPTER 80

Alaric

April-

Several nights have had heated discussions as to how we are going to handle the Elena problem. Ellis arrived this morning with over a hundred assorted bears that he trusts. There are not only Polar Bears but also Black and Brown Bears in the mix as well. Dimitri is in charge of getting the bears settled as I lead Ellis to the war room. A den of Siberian Tigers is due to arrive here by the afternoon.

I push open the double doors, and there's Aurora at the head of the table; her dress is ice blue and hugging her plentiful curves. She's not happy that she's a little thicker after the twins, but fuck, she is hotter now than she was before. Ellis stops in his tracks, and I practically have to pick his jaw up off the floor. At the table is a leader from each species of Dragon, Alex for the Dire Wolves, Klaus for the Lycans, and now Ellis for the Bears as a whole.

Aurora stops speaking the minute she sees Ellis and runs over and hugs him tightly. The look of fear in Ellis's eyes is totally worth it. My twins come barreling through the door and start chirping at Aurora, and she releases Ellis. Ellis's eyes move from me to the twins, then back to Aurora again. "Aw, fuck no! Hell to the no… Bro, what the fuck!" Ellis throws his hands up in the air, and his dramatics catches Aurora's attention, and now she looks pissed.

"What do you mean fuck no?" Her arms instantly shift to her armored gauntlets as she stares Ellis down. He just made a huge mistake saying anything that can be perceived as negative about the babies.

Ellis begins to back up till his back hits the wall. "No disrespect, Aurora... I wasn't expecting there to be two baby dragons here. I mean, seriously?" He raises his hands up in defeat. I decide to take pity on him and get between him and Aurora.

"Love, what my buddy is trying to express is that his kind isn't strong enough to shift so young. So it's a shock that our babies possess the strength to be their animals so very young." I can tell I've got her by the way she's looking between the babies and Ellis.

"Fine, only cause my babies are awesome, and they can roast his balls off if I wish it." Aurora returns to the head of the table, going back to conducting the meeting.

"Alaric? Was she serious? Do your babies have fire already?" Poor Ellis is scared, and by the time he finishes his question, both babies breathe fire at the same time harmlessly into the air. I've never seen a man of color get so pale so quickly. Ellis looks about ready to pass out when the babies run over to sit near their mother.

Aurora mouths sorry then returns to what she's focused on. The strike teams have been made, orders are given, and new training regiments are given to prepare for the assault on the castle. Everyone goes to leave, and Aurora stops Alex and Dante from leaving. Aurora's eyes find me, and she motions to the door. "Ellis, I hate to do this, but this part of the meeting I can't have you in on." Ellis gratefully nods and exits the room quickly.

We re-assume our seats, and Aurora pulls down a map she had hidden. "We strike tonight. Alex, I need six Dires with toxic bite." Alex nods, slowly jotting down names on a piece of paper then passing it over to Aurora. Her eyes glide over the paper quickly, and she smiles; Alex immediately takes his leave.

Next, Aurora looks to Dante and smiles. "She has Wyverns as we suspected. Thank you for that vital information. I want you, Edgar, and five others that would be able to take out Wyverns quickly." Dante nods slowly, raises his fist to his chest then leaves the room.

"My love, we need to move Father and the twins to the cavern I discovered under rubble not far from here. I'll send Jayce and Dominik with him to protect the babies. Dimitri and Klaus will run things here like nothing is happening." She glances down at her notes briefly. "The bear cub I saved from the slaughter will be sent home with one of Ellis's bears to raise." Aurora draws in a long-drawn-out breath before exhaling slowly. "Sundown, we leave. One thing I learned is that Elena can't see well at night due to her advanced age." Aurora smiles and kisses my lips lightly. "Let's kick this party off, love. Time to get revenge." My mate is entirely way too happy right now.

"As you wish, my love." I gently kiss her cheek before leaving the room. My twins follow behind me as I start to search for their grandfather. Lucky for me, I find Nicodeamus and the other twins together with a single bag apiece. "I'm guessing Aurora gathered everyone for me?"

Nicodeamus steps forward and lays his hand on my shoulder. "Yes, we've been given the task of guarding the family's greatest treasure. Which we will do proudly and with honor." Nicodeamus turns and gives the twins a look.

I know they want to go help hunt Elena. I reassure them through the bond that their job is just as vital. They collectively sigh and nod slowly, finally agreeing that they have just as important of a job as I did. "Marco will be carrying you three. The babies will be clinging to my back for the ride out. It's about time they are treated like the hatchlings they are." My statement makes Nicodeamus smile and beam with pride. A hatchling's first flight is important. They tend to test their wings, some learn to fly, others just enjoy the ride.

We head outside, and Jayce runs and climbs up onto Marco's neck and sits behind his head, ready to go. Nicodeamus makes his way to join Jayce up by Marco's head. Dominik is hesitant and climbs up to sit in front of Marco's wings. Without warning, Marco takes off, and Dominik screams like a little girl. I can't help but laugh. I look at my twins and smile down at them; they run in circles, getting impatient. Aurora makes it outside just as I pack my clothes into my bag. I love the appreciative look she gives me.

I run a ways away from everyone and shift into my dragon. The babies walk over, slowly chirping up at me. I lower my head and nuzzle the babies. Aurora joins us and climbs up onto my back, showing the babies the best place between my wings to cling to. I feel Aurora's talons as she strips away loose and dead scales so the babies don't fall off. It feels really nice to have my scales tended to by my lovely mate; my dragon croons his appreciation. My sensitive ears pick up on Aurora's rumbling in reply to mine. Once she's satisfied with my scales, she climbs down and moves to stand in front of me.

"You carry my greatest treasures on your back. Protect them fiercely, leave no enemy standing, burn them to ash." Aurora steps closer and kisses my dragon's maw, her beast's eyes looking deeply into mine. Slowly, I rise up and take off into the sky, en route to the hidden cavern.

I discover along my flight that Ladon is strong enough to fly with me. I had to slow down to gliding, but it's totally worth it to watch my son's first flight. I reach out through time and space through the bond to allow the others to witness Ladon's first flight. I feel Aurora get emotional; she's so proud of our son. Nicodeamus is beaming with pride, boasting how his grandson takes after him. I look over my shoulder, and Tiamat is hesitantly spreading her wings. It'll take time, but she will eventually fly.

Towards the end of our flight, Tiamat opens her wings and lets go of my scales. I turn to watch her falter, then slowly straighten back out. Ladon moves to fly beside his sister, and he's talking to her, instructing her what to do. I reach out to my family again and share the vision of both babies flying for their first time. Ahead of me, I hear Nicodeamus's dragon roar from the ground his joy and pride. I feel Aurora's pride and her emotional reaction to seeing her babies fly. I know deep down she wants to fly, but she can't. Little does she know I ordered her some wing suits that I'm giving her for this mission.

My theory is that she can jump off my back and glide into the camp and seek Elena while her forces concentrate on the rest of us. Is it a good plan? Quite possibly, I guess we'll have to wait and see. In the clearing ahead, I see Marco's dragon helping to excavate the cave entrance. Dom and Jayce are watching for the babies and me to arrive. Jayce has his mini camcorder, videoing the babies and me. I click and chirp at the babies so that they circle and watch me land first. My twins chirp in response to my instructions and start to circle, watching my every movement. This is absolutely the slowest and most important landing I have ever made in my existence.

Once I'm on the ground, I shift quickly and dress, waiting for the twins to make their first landing. Ladon takes the lead and begins his circling descent. I'm a bundle of nerves watching my son land for the first time. Usually, I hate landing in fresh powdery snow. Today,I'm very thankful for it for once. Just as Ladon is about to land, he gives his wings a few quick flaps, and his hind legs touch down first, then his front. I run over and hug my son to my chest, telling him how proud of him I am.

My eyes turn skyward to watch Tiamat. I thought the fear of Ladon crashing scared me; my daughter's landing scares me to death. Anxiously I watch her lazy circles. Ladon is right next to me, calling to his sister to give her instructions. Tiamat breathes fire, showing her aggravation at her brother's coddling. Tiamat's circles are getting closer to the ground, and my fucking heart is in my throat. One strong flap of her wings, and she stops about six inches off the ground and gracefully drops onto her feet. Tiamat prances over to me, her head held high. She remembered to protect her underbelly, unlike her brother. I scoop up my daughter and hug her tightly. I tell her how proud of her I am. Nicodeamus's and Marco's dragons click and purr at the babies, telling them how proud of them they are.

Dominik and Jayce make it over and kneel down close by. My twins break free of my arms and run over and knock Dominik and Jayce on their asses. Both babies happily chirping and purring to their other fathers. I listen to my bond mates tell my twins how proud they are of them. I then hear Dominik's phone ringing; it's Aurora's ringtone. "Little ones, your momma wants to talk to you." Dominik accepts the video call and turns the phone to face the babies.

I listen to Aurora telling them how very proud she is of both of them. She then focuses on Ladon and tells him he's a very good brother for talking his sister through everything that made her nervous. Aurora then looks to Tiamat and smiles, and tells her how proud she is of her for working up the courage to try. She then instructs Dom to turn the phone to me. Aurora tells me to hurry up and get my scaly ass back there because she has a plan to set in motion. The call suddenly disconnects, and I look to the others.

Nicodeamus herds the babies into the cavern then instructs Marco to move some of the stones back on either side of the opening. That way, if they are attacked, the enemies will be funneled right where he wants them. My father-in-law is a brilliant tactician. Dominik and Jayce strip and carry their clothes into the cavern with them. I see the glow of both sets of Dire Wolf eyes staring back at me through the darkness.

I'd hate to see what would be left of the fool that tried to attack my family. Nicodeamus sticks his head partially out of the cavern, inspecting what was done. I hear the click of his ignitor and then see the blue flames lick the ground. The entire area outside of the cavern is a huge skating rink. He then proceeds to make icicle bars to mostly seal off the cavern. There's enough room for a good airflow, but it's enough to slow any invaders down. Once I'm sure my babies, bond mates, and father-in-law are secure in the cavern, I take to the sky, my guards flanking me on the way back to the camp.