Zira soared through the sky, feeling the rushing air along her scales. Up ahead of her was Kyrith and the ember-colored dragon flicked his tail in excitement. However, as she watched him with heavy concentration, there was a sudden intent coming from him.

She did her best to suppress a smile.

Without any warning, both dragons exploded upwards. They pulled closer together, their wings beating hard and fast, until they could reach out and touch one another. And that was exactly what they did.

Reaching out with taloned hands, they grasped one another and began a spiral. The air grew cold and thin, the ground below blurring into indistinguishable blobs. Kyrith sent her another thought.

Ready?!

She could no longer hold her own excitement back. Ready! A toothy smile adorned her face as she and Kyrith pulled their wings in.

For a few thrilling moments, the two dragons continued to rise until all their speed had bled away. Zira's heart thudded as a sense of weightlessness took hold.

As two intertwined, they fell.

They continued their spiral. They continued latching onto one another. The ground, so far below, came rushing up to meet them. Neither one panicked.

Wait till the treetops! Kyrith shouted into her mind. It was unnecessary, Zira was already planning for exactly that.

The two continued their dive with grace and style. Now, individual landmarks were becoming distinguishable. The trees were rapidly approaching…

NOW!

Zira let out a roar as both dragons opened their wings, the strain nearly enough to rip the membrane. Yet, it would not be enough. They were falling too fast and the canopy of the forest was dangerously close. What would they do?

With practiced motion, they pushed hard off each other. The force of two dragons was enough to change their trajectories.

Angling herself, Zira beat her wings like her life counted on it. This was the moment of truth. Would she make it?

Come on… Come on… She clenched her jaws, the world speeding ever closer to her.

She clipped the very edge of the canopy, her tail slapping against an unseen branch. She continued to inch closer to doom. Just… A little… MORE!

From deep inside of her, she felt a burst of power, of energy, of mana…

Flooding out from her core, it quickly filled her body. Like a meteor, she zipped across the sky. The air itself exploded.

BOOM!

***

ZIRA! Are you okay?! Kyrith cried out as she landed. Her legs collapsed out from below her.

Yeah… Just… A moment, please? she answered in between panting.

The other dragon circled her, checking her over for injuries. He came to a stop in front of her. Are you sure? That… That was–

Through her exhaustion, she forced herself to smile. Awesome? I know.

I was going to say scary. But, if you are sure you're okay… He cracked a smile of his own. That was really cool. Could you show me how you did that?

Zira let out a weary chuckle. I don't think that would be a good idea. My entire body is shaking.

Kyrith cocked his head. From excitement or fear?

She thought about it for a moment. Both. But I don't think we should do that for our little performance.

For once, Kyrith nodded in agreement. You're probably right… I was afraid you blew up! That boom startled me!

I thought I blew up too, if I'm being honest. I never knew you could go so fast that the air explodes!

They broke out into draconic laughs, the ground rumbling.

Anyway, we're pretty far from home, she continued as she lifted her head up to survey their surroundings. They had flown quite a distance so that they could practice their performance.

We are… Are you going to be able to fly? he asked as worry took over.

Zira attempted to lift her wings and winced. Maybe not for a little while.

Kyrith let out a whimper. Should we–

No, let Felix and Eri be for now. Those two are both busy at the moment. A quick peek through the bond told her that much. She had done her best to keep any of her emotions from leaking over.

The ember-colored dragon gave her concerned look, however he plopped himself down right next to her and unfurled a wing to drape over her. How long do you want to rest for?

Letting out a sigh, she lowered her head back to the ground. I don't know, give me a few hours at least. We'll head back before sundown.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

And if you aren't able to fly then? he pushed.

She closed her eyes. Then we will reach out to our partners…

"That's about it," Felix said as he scanned the group of elves and small dragons. They all had a contemplative look and none chose to speak up or ask questions.

"So, yeah… Fea, the Dragon Queen, is a part of my soul. She and I are essentially one and the same," he rambled on, slowly focusing his gaze upon the smallest of the elves. "Noria, I hope that helped explain things for you."

"It…did, thank you," she replied, still taking in everything. Felix hadn't held back. He told them about Fea, about Kyrith and Zira bonding and what that meant for him and Eri. He told them about the contract…

The Dragon Lord… The title felt embarrassing, like it was meant to specifically mock him. But that could not be the case. Fea was not the type of person to do that. So, why?

The answer seemed simple at first, a title gave him an air of legitimacy and standing. The contract itself suggested this. There was no mention of any benefits or power outside of just the title, however.

But if that were the case, she wouldn't have needed to amend the contract just for that. Right? I mean, she was the Queen after all… But as that thought trailed off, another one formed.

Could it be linked to her own power? Is that why I can make use of her mana? That seemed plausible but still felt off. He was missing something important.

As he continued to ponder the significance of the title Lorem cleared his throat. "Thank you for sharing all that. I think that explains so much about you, for me at least."

Solanna nodded and added, "The same is true for me as well. And I would like to apologize for any harsh criticisms I might have said about you. For the record, I never thought you were a bad guy, only a bit impulsive."

She gave him a smile. "That might still be true, but I think I can understand why you do the things you do. It can't be easy knowing what's in your soul or the vision someone else laid out for you."

He chuckled. "It's not all that bad. Hells, I'd say I've managed to stumble my way forward rather successfully." He gestured to the door behind him. "I know I've made mistakes, said and did things that contradict one another. But I am trying. Trying to hatch these eggs. Trying to make a home…"

Felix fell silent at that for a moment. "I am grateful for you all, for Eri and Kyrith, and, of course, Zira. I hope that together, we can build something greater than a home. I hope we can build a country."

The elves slowly nodded in agreement as the little jewels began shaking with excitement. The scene of the young dragons reminded him of Zira when she first hatched, and of Kyrith to this day.

"Alright, if there is nothing else, then you may leave," he spoke after a moment.

The elves and their partners filed out, but he remembered one last thing. "Oh, Noria?"

The elven woman came to a stop. "Yes?"

"I'll take over the duty of watching the portal."

Her smile brightened. "Thank you. And I'll do more research tonight on Fea's notes."

"That would be helpful."

She gave him a bow and followed the others out, leaving him alone in the hatchery. Well, mostly alone…

"Master is Dragon Lord?"

Whipping around to the sound of the voice, Felix found an old, gray kobold appearing out from one of the dens.

Uh-oh…

Eri let out a huff. The day was finally drawing down and between the meetings, plans, and bickering, she was starting to develop a headache along with stomach cramping. But that wasn't all. Now she was being followed by more than just a few guards.

She had an entire retinue with her.

It started with Oralyn, the often shrewd woman was in many ways her saving grace. She was quick and surprisingly thoughtful. That didn't mean, however, that she was easy to work with. Oftentimes they found themselves at odds with Eri wanting to be more approachable while Oralyn wanting her to be more guarded and reserved.

With all that said, Eri still liked her. That, and she was honestly a good ally to have with how well she was able to politic with the Chiefs, including her own father. There was also one other reason why she was turning into Eri's right-hand woman…

Mari.

The elven Chief was someone who Eri worried about. So far, she hadn't done anything but the newly titled Chief had a dangerous edge to her. There was some understanding why, but she was someone Eri tried desperately to keep at arm's length. Unfortunately, she had found her way into the inner circle.

There were, of course, others that had joined her group. But unlike the two women, they were more in the background and acted as representatives from the various tribes. That is, save for one other individual.

Trailing nervously behind everyone else was a blue kobold, Niri. She was supposedly Eri's new personal servant, something she never asked for. Yet, here she is…

From what she was told by the kobold herself, Niri had been selected by Watcher and had willingly agreed. That was something rather important to Eri, she would never force someone into being her servant…

"Is there anything else left to do for the day?" Eri asked as they all slowly made their way back towards the manor.

Oralyn opened a small notebook, a new addition. "No, Your Majesty."

Thank the Gods, I can finally rest… "What about tomorrow?"

Her 'advisor' flipped a page. "That dwarf, Hargoth, wishes for you, Felix, and Gillador to come and inspect his progress. He specifically wanted me to tell Gillador– and I quote –'Tell him I can't wait to wipe that smug elven smile off his face.' Frankly, I did not tell the architect that but Gillador has agreed to come along."

Eri cracked a smile. "Apparently those two have some history together, so I think it will be amusing to watch. Anyway, I look forward to seeing what Hargoth has done. Felix mentioned something about magical contraptions."

"Indeed. I have seen their progress myself and I must say, I am impressed. They have strange devices they can hold and can cut through a sky tree in minutes."

She raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. They don't have many of them but with just one I watched as they cut down three trees. I was only there for thirty minutes."

Wow, that's impressive. "Then I can't wait until tomorrow, even if it ends up as another meeting."

The retinue came to a stop before the back door of the manor. "Is there anything I can do for you before you retire, Your Majesty?" Oralyn asked.

"Or anything I can assist with?" Mari added.

But Eri waved them off. "I'm fine, but thank you."

Both women bowed.

"Then have a wonderful–"

Hey, Eri?

The sound and tone of Kyrith's voice caused her to miss Oralyn's last few words. And, the way he spoke told her something was wrong.

What's going on? she asked, already nudging Felix.

I, uh… I think we might need some help. Zira isn't doing so well.

Not doing so well? What happened? Did she injure herself? Already, she was briskly making her way towards Felix, completely ignoring the others as she passed by them.

Maybe? She made the air explode and we decided to rest for–

Made the air explode?!

Oh yeah, about that…

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.