Total pages in book: 220
Estimated words: 205637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1028(@200wpm)___ 823(@250wpm)___ 685(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 205637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1028(@200wpm)___ 823(@250wpm)___ 685(@300wpm)
Did you know that? I asked my dragon.
I knew I wanted them to do what I said, but no, I didn’t know I did it with will.
Well, you better fucking learn or else it’ll be us they kill for misuse of power.
Dramatic.
“She is such a dickface,” I muttered. Weston grinned, the sentiment leaking into his previously somber eyes.
“It’s no different than when I infuse my commands with power,” Nyfain said, pulling me back to him. “Or when Weston commands his wolves through their bond. They won’t resent you for it, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“First Hannon, and now you. Is everyone a mind reader all of a sudden?” I grumbled.
To Weston, Nyfain said, “As you know, she’s new to shifting because of the curse. She hasn’t been conditioned in how dragons normally go about things. The first time she shifted was after leaving the dungeons.”
Weston squinted a little. “I heard that you now intend to train your dragons to fight on the ground?”
“Yes,” Nyfain replied. “It was thought by some”—he squeezed me—“that in certain instances, we might be more useful on the ground. Obviously, even though they might not like it, no one could argue the point. The dragons were mostly useless in the air yesterday.”
“They did seem a little out of their element on the ground,” Weston said. “But even though your dragon isn’t patched into my pack, we worked with you seamlessly. Finley too. It was like…a wolf pack of epic proportions. Safer for us all. Much more effective. Even when the dragons kept to the air when we first came in, there was a thrilling element to the battle. Being covered from the sky is a decided advantage for a wolf pack.”
“Having you on the ground was a decided advantage for us,” I responded. “We may be large and strong, but we’re not as good at working together. We’re not patched in, as you said. We can also be too big and cumbersome, or too high and far away, to deal with certain threats. Your wolf pack filled in the gaps. It made us a solid force.”
Weston’s eyes were bright as he stared at me. “I knew you were different from the first time I met you. You don’t have the usual arrogance of a dragon, if you’ll pardon my frankness, alpha. And while you, sire, own your position, I see the differences in you as well. You didn’t balk at using us in the battle. You led with presence of mind, even if it meant relying on the wolves more than your dragons—”
“I meant to win,” Nyfain said. “I have no pride when it comes to fighting. Not anymore. You win, or you die. It’s that simple. It’s a lesson I’ve learned over and over since the curse, sometimes barely hanging on until the next day. There is no room for vanity in battle.”
Weston inclined his head. “Agreed, though I learned that lesson in the dungeons. Even then, it didn’t hit home until a strange sort-of dragon with no scales, an equally strange wolf, and a whip-cracking…monkey thing fused us all together and forged a path out of hell.” He crossed an ankle over his knee. “I will, of course, let the wolves out of the pack. Especially those from this kingdom. But I wanted to make sure there was a safe place for them here. They weren’t appreciated in the past.”
“The past went up in flames,” Nyfain growled. “I know what you offer the wolves, and that the other creatures need to feel included as well. I’m looking into how to make that happen. Finley’s brother Hannon is creating an advisory circle that will speak to the court regarding the needs of the villages, and he will have voices from all animals within it. He himself is not a dragon. He will be impartial. We will create a better kingdom for all, where all will be represented. Unfortunately, though, we don’t have anyone strong enough to create that overall pack unity like you have done. We’ll have to make do.”
The guys’ eyes locked on each other, and I wondered if I’d have to get out a ruler for the dick-measuring contest that was surely in progress.
TWENTY
Finley
“Let me tell you something about me,” Weston said, leaning back and relaxing a little, but with power still coiling around him. “My parents grew up in court. Which one doesn’t matter. They were both mighty in their own right. They had three boys, me being the middle. My brothers were great additions to the court, but I had a rare blend of power and pack magic, and the court treated me like gold. Usually a wolf has to fight his way up, learning as he or she goes, but I was fast-tracked through the beginning stages, something rarely done. The challenges for placement I did issue were easily won. I was in line for beta very young. The youngest in history, in fact. My parents couldn’t have been prouder. The court was their life. Their parents had been in it, and their parents before them. It was like air to them—something they couldn’t do without. They tried to train my brothers and I the same.