2. Luna

Chapter 2

Luna

Deep down, I know I shouldn't have disobeyed Tia's father, but I couldn't leave, knowing my sister would return to hell itself. Once inside the castle, my brother and I shift back to our human forms and dress quickly. We run down the halls, following Tia's scent. The stairs that lead deep into the bowels of the castle are creepy as all hell. I mean, even more creepy than Mom's massive skull collection.

As the wooden doors swing open, revealing the vast chamber carved from solid stone, a heavy silence settles over us like a thick blanket. My heart aches as I watch the tears still streaming down Tia's cheeks, her grief palpable in the air around us. Draven and Knox carry their father's lifeless form inside, their movements heavy with sorrow, their eyes seeking solace in mine.

I meet their expectant gazes with a solemn nod, understanding the weight of the task ahead. I watch Tia's arms shift into her armored gauntlets, the cold metal providing a sense of strength and resolve amidst the overwhelming sadness. Raising her hands, she summons the elements to command, channeling the icy power within her.

With a low rumble, an oval pillar of ice materializes from the dirt floor, rising steadily until it reaches the perfect height to cradle Austin's body. It's as if the very earth itself responds to her call, offering a fitting resting place for our fallen comrade.

Reverently, Knox and Draven lay their father's body upon the icy pedestal, their movements gentle yet filled with a profound sense of loss. I step forward to stand beside them, offering silent support as we honor the memory of a beloved father, husband, and leader.

Together, we bow our heads in a moment of solemn reflection, the weight of our grief pressing down upon us like a heavy shroud. But even amid our sorrow, there's a quiet strength that binds us together, a bond forged in the crucible of loss and shared sacrifice.

As we stand in the shadow of death, I know that we'll find the strength to carry on, to honor Austin's memory with every step we take forward. And though his physical presence may be gone, his spirit will live on in the hearts of those who loved him, guiding us through the darkness until we find our way back into the light.

Knox makes one last change to the way his father is lying before backing away. Tia walks over and lowers her head and closes her eyes for several moments. Reaching into Austin's pocket, she pulls out a small dagger and holds it. Her eyes take on a brilliant white glow as she stares straight ahead. "I know where his head is. We wait for reinforcements to arrive, then we decimate the troops in this realm." Tia blinks several times, clearing her eyes.

Draven and Knox nod, listening to Tia's news; Draven appears pleased. Knox still seems just as distraught as before. My sister places her taloned hands gently upon Austin's body, and the ice from the pillar rises and covers him. Layer by layer, the ice builds up, building an ice tomb for his body to rest in until his head is secured.

Tia herds us out of the chambers, and once everyone is outside the door, she covers it in a thick layer of ice. As we climb the stairs, she fills the staircase with ice. There's only one way into the chamber, and she is making sure the chamber would be undisturbed until the mission is complete.

Roars echo in the early evening, and I swear I know the one tone. Marco has come! I haven't seen him since just before my first heat four years ago. I never understood why my mother sent him away; he was my everything; my best friend, my guardian, and my first crush. I wonder if he's just as handsome as he was four years ago? Tia runs with me through the castle, heading towards the main gates. The sky is blackened with what appears to be at least forty to fifty gigantic black dragons.

Gripping onto Tiamat's gown, I move to stand behind her as the dragons come in for a landing in what was once grasslands. The largest dragon with the biggest horns steps forward and bows to Tia before laying upon the ground before her. Staring at this massive male recognition floods my system; it's Marco. Noah comes from behind us with staff from the castle carrying robes for all the dragons that had arrived. Tia spins me so that my back is to Marco while he shifts to his human form.

Her dragon's eyes flair to life for a mere moment, just before a smile graces her lips. "Time to meet your mate, my most precious sister." Unshed tears well up in her eyes as she smiles, looking down at me.

My eyes widen as the words sink in. Tia believes Marco is my mate. I mouth Marco at her, and she nods softly, still smiling. "He knew the minute you were born, the last eight years have been hell on his poor nerves." She smiles yet again before turning suddenly to face the male in question.

"Marco Maelestor-Rex, Alpha of the black dragons." Tia's voice booms over the masses, subjugating most of the dragons before her. She reaches behind her and pulls me alongside her, holding me firmly to her side. "I am entrusting my most precious sister to your care once more, not as her guardian. But, as her mate." Tia's tone is firm and dominant, as a ruler should be. Marco's head remains lowered as he listens to the words falling from her lips. "Rise and look your mate in the eyes for the first time," Tia says as her eyes take on an ethereal glow.

A smile graces Marco's lips as he looks up and into my eyes. My wolf is howling with joy that he's our mate; she's loved him for so long. I feel like I cannot breathe as I look up at him into his pale gray eyes. He closes the distance between us in three powerful strides, then drops to his knees before me. Marco is easily a foot taller than I am, so on his knees, we almost see eye to eye. "Princess, I have loved you since the first moment Aurora allowed me in your presence. I have dreamed about this day for what seems like forever." His voice is rough and gritty, as I remember it being. Today, his voice seems to be laced with a tinge of emotion.

His eyes drop for a mere moment before looking back up at me. "I wish to do a scale exchange with you, but I fear that is impossible." He looks sadly down at his now-shifted hand, staring at his obsidian scales.

"Not impossible!" Tia says excitedly as she beams at me.

"What do you mean, sissy? I don't possess any scales." My voice breaks, admitting to the lack of scales.

Tia laughs. "That's where you're wrong. All of mom's daughters have at least one scale. A single solitary scale, just in case she has a dragon for a mate." Tia winks at me, then moves behind me and unzips the back of my gown. "I need your hand, Luna," Tia says, giggling.

I raise my hand and leave it level with my shoulder, waiting to see what my crazy older sister does. Tia roots around inside my gown until there's a sudden sharp pain, then ice-cold where the pain was. Triumphantly, Tia places the scale in my hand. Apparently, I had one just above my tailbone. Happy tears roll down my cheeks as I stare at the single opalescent scale.

"Will this do?" I offer Marco my scale, and you would think I offered him the keys to the kingdom.

"You honor me greatly, giving me your only scale." Marco smiles, staring down at the scale resting in the palm of my hand. His eyes turn serious as he shifts his left hand to his taloned gauntlet. He stares intently at his scales, flipping his hand back and forward, scrutinizing his scales.

While Marco is distracted, I take this time to study him closely. His skin is littered with scars; the most prominent ones are on his exposed chest. As he moves, the robe shifts, exposing more of his bronzed skin and the silver scars that litter his flesh. From what I can see, his chest is well defined and has a sprinkling of hair between his pecs. Raising my gaze slowly, I follow the striated muscles that are flexing in his thick neck. His beard is short, black, and well-manicured. Marco grits his teeth, making the muscles tighten in his jaw, making its strong angles more defined. Several emotions flicker over his features before he finally removes a scale from his gauntlet.

Tia moves forward and examines the scale that Marco has chosen and smiles. "It's a grand scale, battle hardened and has proven its strength time and time again," Tia says with great pride as she looks from Marco to me. Her own mates stand proudly behind her, offering us protection during this pivotal moment for us.

Tia's eyes take on their pure white glow as she looks between Marco and me. As I look around, every other dragon's eyes also are glowing like hers. She's sharing what's happening through the dragon bond she shares with every dragon and dragon-kin that lives. That means my entire family can see that I now stand before Marco with my single scale in the palm of my hand.

Tia shifts her hands to her taloned gauntlets and raises them high in the air, lightning arcs between her long, lethal white talons. "I, Tiamat Andrea Kraus-Stormbringer, the great-great-granddaughter of Skaldi Nyx Atriox, grant my baby sister Luna Ryker the right to take her mate. I will oversee the exchange of scales." Tiamat's eyes suddenly blacken, and those eerie blue pulses of energy flicker to life in the center of her eyes.

My sister looks at every dragon present, making sure none stands against her. "Marco, you have patiently waited for your mate for centuries. Present Luna with your scale. If she accepts … You must plant the scale over her heart." Tia says firmly, then moves her snow-white hair to reveal the two scales that live over her heart.

Marco hesitates for a mere moment before holding his huge, thick hand out to me with his scale resting in his palm. "I offer you my scale as a token of my undying love and fealty. A dragon's scale and word is his bond. My life and the life of my dragon are yours forever. If you accept us." Marco swallows hard as he keeps his eyes locked on his scale, awaiting my answer.

I'm not sure what to do; until Tia motions for me to move my hair to the side and cup Marco's hand with my free one. Smiling broadly, I rest my much smaller hand under Marco's before moving my hand with my scale into his field of view. "It pleases my wolf and me to know that dragons take the mate bond as seriously as our people do."

Drawing in a deep breath, I remove my hand from under his and pick up my scale and place it next to his. Slowly, I take both of my much smaller hands and cup his hand that is holding both of our scales. "I offer you my love and life. From this life to the next, we shall be together till the end of time. My wolf and my venom are yours forever. If you accept us." I pray to the wolf Goddess I will not know rejection. I've loved Marco for as long as I can remember; I just didn't know till today that what I had felt was the early tethers of the mate bond.

We look expectantly over at Tia, and she smiles at both of us. She brings her palms together and places the tips of her middle fingers below her cupid's bow. "I bless and approve of this pairing. Please exchange scales, then in private complete the bond when you are ready." Marco plunges his talon into his chest without warning. Quickly, he takes my tiny white scale and places it within the wound. By some miracle, his wound almost instantly heals around my scale. I stare in disbelief, seeing his skin knit back together as if nothing happened.

I am in absolute awe of the serene look that crosses his face. It's a look of utter bliss and peace as he closes his eyes, reveling in the feeling he's experiencing. His eyes open, and it's his dragon's eyes that look at me expectantly. Swallowing audibly, I cock my right eyebrow up, looking at him. "I do not possess talons like you." Moving my hair away from my chest, revealing the space over my heart. "I need your help." Escapes my lips like a whisper.

Marco nods his head once before hesitantly placing his talon tip upon my flesh. "I can't bring myself to harm you, Luna. I love you too much." His eyes beg me to do what he cannot bring himself to do.

Drawing in a fortifying breath, I carefully grip his hand with both of mine and drive his talon into my milky white flesh. The deep rumbles of distress from his dragon answers, as a brilliant streak of crimson rolls down my chest. Carefully, I pick up his offered obsidian scale from his hand and place the fleshy side into the tiny wound we created together.

Surging power like a tidal wave makes my blood sing with newfound power. Love … I feel an indescribable amount of love flood my heart and grips me tightly. Its warmth makes me feel safer than I have ever felt in my entire life. I feel the tears of joy escape my eyes and race down my cheeks. The rough pad of Marco's thumb gently wipes the tears away. All I can do is stare up into his pale grey eyes and smile.

Time moves in slow motion as he bends down towards me, his eyes locked on my full lips. My first proper kiss. I'm scared and excited all at the same time. A soft whine escapes my lips as my wolf's anxiety kicks up.

Marco pauses in his forward progression and crushes me to his chest, hugging me. "Forgive me, love. I only wished for a kiss. I forgot how nervous your wolf gets." He presses his lips to the crown of my head, then looks back to the other dragons and sends them out on patrol. "We do things at your pace, no faster." His hand gently cups and engulfs my jaw as he tilts my head up to look at him.

I nod and smile. "Thank you for understanding." I get a mischievous look, and my eyes dart around to see that everyone else has left us alone. "May I see your dragon up close now? They did not permit before me." Smiling broadly, I bat my eyes at him and pout my lips. Hell, it used to work when I was little.

"Of course, my love. If he frightens you, let me know, okay?" A look of uncertainty crosses his usually stern face. Never once in all the years I have known Marco has he ever looked anything less than confident. I nod, agreeing, and back away, giving him room to shift.

His dragon practically bursts into existence and immediately lays down. I understand now why the black dragons are also called skull dragons. The exaggerated boney prominences of his head and his horns' size make it look like a giant black skull. Slow steps carry me closer to my mate's dragon. My wolf wants to cower and hide, urging me to run. A predator of this size is terrifying to us, yet I know my mate will never harm us. Sometimes it sucks to be an omega.

Drawing in a fortifying breath, I extend a hand out and rest it upon his huge boney maw. His obsidian scales up close have an iridescent quality to them. At first glance, the scales appear as if they should be smooth, but touching them, they feel like shark skin rough and grating. His dragon's silver eye on this side watches me closely as I look him over. Hundreds of scars litter his maw from nose to horn, each one a tale of battle and triumph. Bending down, I duck under his thick, ridged, curved horn to move towards his body.

So many scars cover him; a little of my heart breaks because of all the battles he's fought over his lifetime. I rest a hand on his front shoulder as I look at his front leg with its huge menacing black talons. "Are you okay, Luna? Do I frighten you? I can shift back," Marco asks, as his head turns to watch me.

Carefully, I sit upon his foreleg and look up at him. "Surprisingly, I'm okay. I'm more intrigued by the scars that litter your scales than the size of your dragon. You're almost a wyrm dragon, correct?" I ask curiously as I stare up in awe as he lifts his massive head for a moment to look around before focusing on me again.

"You are correct. At about eight hundred years old, I will attain wyrm status for my species. I'm much older than the others know." He lowers his massive head and lays it on the ground, looking at me. "Does that upset you? That I'm so very much older than you?" I feel his anxiety through the tethers of the newly formed bond.

Before now, his age hadn't even been a concern on my radar. Yes, he's older than me by over seven hundred years plus, but he appears to be in his thirties. "Honestly?" His head lifts and nods before laying back down. "It's a non-issue. Dragons live far longer than wolves do. My only concern is dying before you and leaving you alone. I just got you." Tears fall down my cheeks as sobs wrack my body. My hands fly up and cover my face, trying to hide my fear and pain from him.

The next thing I know, his nose presses into my abdomen, and he's nuzzling me. "It's a non-issue Luna. You share in my long years with me. My scale extends your lifespan and slows down the aging process." His wing extends, and the hooked claws at the tip gently wrap around my waist and lift me up. Carefully, he places me on his head, then releases his grip on me.

Just as Marco stands up, my brother's howl rips me out of the happy bubble I was in. I look back towards the castle, and Tia and her mates are running out of the gates. "Get Luna out of here! The Drow are opening another portal! Fly, Marco!!" Tia's scream morphs into the tone of her dragoness.

Without hesitation, Marco launches up into the air as my sister goes on the attack. Her breath weapon decimating anything and everything in her path. She roars loudly, and an entire swarm of dragons of all species converges on the point Tia called them to.

I don't want to leave my sister, but even I know I'm not a warrior like she is. Marco turns northwest, flying us farther away. Safety first, I suppose I can feel his tension through the bond. He's never run from a fight in his existence because of me; he is. "We have to help Tia! Turn around, you big lug!" I'm practically crying as I scream at him; I can't leave my sister to fight alone.

"Forgive me, my precious mate. I cannot disobey an Alpha Wyrm's command. My dragon will not allow it." Marco's tone is resolute. There's a tinge of sadness in his tone, matching his determination. Tia was his charge for many years. Her favorite bodyguard. He must feel as lost as I do, leaving her behind.

"So an Alpha Wyrm Is like an Alpha Wolf? They give an order, and we must obey without question." He confirms my suspicion and relaxes. I guess dragons and wolves have more in common than I initially thought. "Is this our mating flight? Tia told me about the mating flight. I feel safe up here with you."

Marco's chuckle echoes through the bond as he flies. "Yes, my love, this is the mating flight. What's supposed to happen after can happen whenever you're ready. No rush or pressure. " Marco rushes out the last part, making sure to keep me comfortable. "You can take a nap if you want. The flight to my nest will take a while." He says softly as his flight path evens out.

At Marco's behest, I lay down behind a boney ridge, wedging myself into a curved area, so I won't slide out. I wrap my arm around a small raised bone plate and close my eyes. I'm excited that Marco is taking me to his actual home, even though I know why we are there. Sleep comes easily as I listen to the soft rumblings of Marco's dragon. I can't wait to see where we end up.