[Ona] I couldn't stop them. There was nothing I could do. As I fell to the ground, stunned by the hit I received to the back of the neck, I watched helplessly as my sister in all things but blood, was poked and prodded, violated with wires and tubes, before being tossed into the fluid with my little brother, both of them now resting side by side. It has been a week since I saw her body engulfed in that amber fluid. And even though their guards will not let me past the door now that my part is done, I am not free of the guilt or shame of how I contributed to this mess. I should have fled with Carnelia and the kids, stolen my brother away, and burned this all down. But Carnelia wanted us to go about this honestly, to act as queens and not as tyrants. When I dare to close my eyes to sleep, all I can see is her look of terror right before the sedative took effect, wiping all expression from her face. So I don't close my eyes and don't sleep. I can't sleep. I made the mistake of leav
[Ona]The Technician had not said to come alone, and since it was not specified, I decided to follow my discretion. I left Orion with the younglings while Daax guarded my back. I love my son, he is my jewel, but he has also been absent of late, gone for long stretches of time. He hasn't yet come home with any visible marks, but I know he's with her almost every night. He has no mating bands, so I know they have not gone through all the official steps to declare one another official mates. Every time he comes back I hold my breath, waiting for the moment when he tells me that she's carrying a clutch, demanding that we arrange for his marriage, a difficult task considering he is living undercover and a simple knight doesn't need the official gathering of seven, or the bans, or the familial garments passed down from generation to generation.But he isn't a common soldier. He is a prince. And for his marriage to be considered official and binding, he will need to follow all the steps.Inc
[Daax] I had never approached this room from this direction before, which is why I wasn't prepared for what I found when we were led from the darkness between the walls into this place. As soon as we crossed the threshold and my eyes adjusted, there was no mistaking where we were. Segundus' play room. Not his laboratory where he led his long-term experiments and stored us stacked in rows for later use, but the place where he took his special projects, the ones he wanted close to his bedroom so that he could "play" with them whenever it suited him. There is no way I will ever forget this place, no matter how long I live. Vigilantly I stood by Ona's side, paying attention to the conversation as best as I could while my mind was assaulted with memories. The room still has that same sticky sweet smell of antiseptic and the faint stains from spilled blood and other fluids on the floors. Standing here I can still feel the vices on my skin as they pulled my arms and legs apart and the s
[Orion]Mother and Father hardly looked at me when they came back from their meeting. Although they were speaking in quiet voices they were hard and sharp, not soft and gentle. The little ones stirred in their nest, the smallest one, with dark hair and nails, made a small peep as she wrapped her arms around her little brother with the same, distinct coloring. At the sound, Mother looked up briefly, then continued talking, rattling on faster than I could follow about the Elf King and "things that needed to be done.""But you can't be serious about letting that...thing touch you," My father snarled, not angry at her, but angry nonetheless. I have known her for far less time than he has, but even I know that when Mother makes a choice it is final--there is no use being upset over things you cannot control."You heard it!" she hisses, her voice slowly rising. "We have no choice, and if we go along, it will help us! We could get them both free of this place. And in the meantime, as long as
[The Technician] The bell chimes twice. Based on the ring I know it is the Queen who wants me. Since it is the Queen who needs my services, then I must appear as her Technician. Stretching, I take my smallest form, that of a scruffy human teen with large eyes and tightly curled hair. Braiding it down, I put on the protective inner covering before stepping into the oversized mechanical suit that makes up the Technician's outer form. It is more like a shell of a larger dragon than an actual "suit" giving me the girth and height of a much bigger individual. I hate wearing this rig, but I can't let them know who I am. Especially her. She has yet to see my true face and she never will. My true identity is the one secret I have left. And it needs to remain a secret, from everyone, even those I may think I can trust. Because if anyone knew, that would be the end of this charade. All of my charades. I would lose the freedom to move around the palace freely like I do, to listen and learn an
[Ona]I knew I was risking my marriage and my reputation, but I decided to go to the Elf King's tent alone.So I waited for the castle to grow still, for deep night to bring the cessation of activities. The Technician will be waiting for me to report back within the hour, so I do not have much time to convince the King of Elfhom to come and meet the monster holding my brother hostage.Thankfully, Orion and Daax were perfectly on time for their turn watching the little ones."Oh thank goodness," I try not to sound too relieved, I don't want them to be suspicious. "I was hoping you wouldn't mind watching them alone for a while," I get up from my perch and stretch painfully as my spine cracks and my leg muscles remember how to work. "I need to take a walk to clear my head and get some exercise. I might also go for a fly around the grounds."But Mother," Orion took a nervous step forward, "I had something I needed to speak with you about. Something...important and I..."I think I know wha
[Ona] I try to reason with the Elf King but he isn't listening to reason, or much of anything as he rushes around his tent, grabbing and filling a pouch made of what looks like the same material as my cape, only thicker and more dense. "The Technician might not be available," I warn as he rushes out of the tent with me close on his heels. "Your Majesty, It won't do us any good to rush in and not be welcome, especially in this castle, and the queen will likely notice that the two of us are roaming around somewhere we shouldn't be," I gasp trying my best to keep up with this much bigger drake who moves forward with the speed and grace of a whip of lightning. He almost seems to glow as he moves, as if trapped between his energy and physical forms. "The Technician knows I'm coming," He argues over his shoulder as he marches forward. "The entire reason you were sent was because they knew what my reaction would be as soon as I learned that my niece and her mate are in the Dream State." "
[Ona]Breathe in.The Technician is living on borrowed time. As soon as that bastard is no longer useful to us, I will flay this monster, hang it from the tallest spire, and watch as the ravens and vultures peck at whatever flesh is under that suit.Breath out.Primus and Carnelia are still alive. They are not okay, but they will be. The Elf King and I will see to it. And when they are, we will get them and the babies far, far away from this nightmare zone. Luxandra is cursed. We don't need this damned wasteland. We'll take our family back to the celestial kingdom and shut the gates forever.Thalan squeezed my hand. Gazing up at his proud visage, I notice the small twitches along his jaw as he tries to keep himself calm. I'm supposed to be supporting him, keeping him from doing something regrettable. When his starlight eyes meet mine I can tell he is thinking the same thing--Our revenge is going to be long and sweet."When I had Queen Carnelia brought here, Primus was already showing s
[Primus]Her face haunts me in my dreams. My beautiful wife. I can't stop thinking of our last evening together when we finally reconnected and pledged to do whatever we must do to stay together.But she isn't here with me and I can't find her. The way to Elfholm is a mystery as no traveler who has encountered the elves remembers where. The illusions are so thick that they often lose themselves. It seems that the harder I search for her, the more difficult it becomes.Fate can be brutal. It doesn't matter how strong you are, how honorable or just, fate doesn't care. A king can be brought to his knees by it's whim. Carnelia is not with me but when I close my eyes, It's almost as if I can feel her in my arms again. Carnelia. My sweet and wonderful mate. It has been two weeks since I last held her. Two weeks since I heard I saw her through a film of darkness.She was so brave. So strong. But I can feel her pain. She needs me more than ever. Whoever has her, they are treating her cruelly.
[Kora]I tried to call the Celestial Kingdom using the shared communications devices between our two countries. I wanted to update them on Orion's situation, to ask for aid and counsel. Elfholm has stopped sending messages demanding my presence at their Moon Council. I have tried sending my messages only to find my signals blocked.The False Queen demands my presence at Skyfall. With each refusal, she sends me a new piece of my love. At first, it was just a bit of hair, an article of clothing to remind me of his fragile situation.But it has been weeks.So now it has become talons and horns, fangs and scales.How long do I have before it is fingers and toes? His arm? His manhood?I am tired of being stuck here. I am tired of waiting.My father kept many labs. He was an anxious sort, very suspicious, and tended to over-plan. I can appreciate this about him as these are traits the two of us share. The colossus at my castle was not the only one, and while I am tempted to take this other
[Ona]She didn't warn us. She hardly even said goodbye. She looked at us with such sad eyes as she swept her hand upwards and we became encased within a sphere of darkness."I am so sorry..." Her last words faded and distorted as my brother screamed her name, screamed for her to stop.But she couldn't hear him.I held my little brother close while the darkness swept our little family, our remaining guards and nurses, up and out of Elfholm to Luxandra above.Freedom. She sacrificed herself for freedom.When the inky darkness receded, we were only footsteps away from the Eastern Gate in the Realm of Air, close to the home duchy of Eleanora the False Queen. Carnelia used her newly developed abilities to phase our entire number across a vast amount of space.Not even the Elf King himself was able to move us all so far so quickly.What is she becoming now that she is growing up into her power?"We need to get moving," I try to urge my brother, who has fallen to his knees, his hands reaching
[Carnelia]"I refuse," I hold my head high. "Allies do not treat one another like prisoners. If you wanted my help, you should have asked rather than chain me to this realm.""We're sorry, Your Majesty, but we feel it is necessary with your history to keep you contained. It is for your safety as well as the safety of all gathered here," an elderly drake steps forward, the starflower jasmine glowing blue throughout his long tendrils of hair."It took three of us to bring you back from the shadows when you unleashed your small nightmare," he explains. "We must keep you powerless or risk your wrath. We know the pull of a mother to her children. Why did you try to flee? You are safe here?""Why would any mother feel a need to leave quickly with her children and family--fear for their safety." I glare directly at my uncle. "As you say, I am too powerful. If someone were to threaten their lives," I refuse to remove my eyes from my uncle, who matches my gaze with his steely hardness, "I might
[Carnelia]The darkness takes me again, but this time, I have learned how to navigate it. The seemingly limitless void takes on shape and form. If I can find my anchor, I can find my way.Remembering the last time the shadows tried to take me, and how I used the shadows to take me to Primus instead, I focus on his voice, his scent, and the way I feel in his arms. He will be my anchor, my mate.The darkness slowly recedes and the silence is replaced with the sounds of my children crying as Primus calls my name."Oh gods, Carnelia," he weeps along with our babies as his hands grasp mine.Looking up, I see a dark, unnatural cloud looming just above the exit to Elfholm. Thalan doesn't plan to let any of us escape after all. I thought my uncle had at least a little bit of honor, but if I think about it, I can see the advantage of keeping us here. Ona and Primus he might let go, but me, my babies--we're his blood. His brother's legacy. Had I been born powerless, he might have let me go, but
[Carnelia] Ona and I began to make plans immediately. We would all leave under the guise of returning Ona and ensuring her safety. Because our children are so very young, we would be taking them with us as well. Once returned, we'd close the gates again. As far as we understand, the Moon Dragons cannot phase into the Celestial Kingdom. The only way to get to the Celestial Kingdom without the gates being opened is by using a 4th form. Yes, the Moon Dragons have a 4th form, but that doesn't mean they'd just be able to enter the Celestial Kingdom without resistance. There are other defenses in place as well. They'd have to bring an entire army of Moon Dragons. And there is no reason great enough for the Moon Council to approve such an open act of war against fellow Celestials. The plan wasn't bad for one cobbled together from excuses, driven by hunches and fear. Elfholm isn't safe for our family any more, not with the Elf King so determined to keep me here. A drake like him wouldn't
[Athony] The universe can be cruel. Sometimes the mate she chooses for you is a dream. Sometimes she is your nightmare. Often she is both. Eleanora keeps me around because I am useful. She is very stubborn with a willpower of steel--excellent qualities in a queen, but terrible ones in a mate. But she is loyal to those she finds useful. Why else would she still keep Segundus' corpse rotting in a vat of amber fluid? We thought it had been lost to the fire, but the universe isn't just cruel but capricious. She saw fit in her infinite wisdom to hide his corpse below several layers of earth, down a long lost tunnel leading to tracks that go to the sea. We found it a moon cycle earlier, and the joy in Eleanora's eyes was only overshadowed by her smile of victory. "We must have the Technician," she insists. "When that beast is in our grasp, we will win this battle and reclaim our rightful places." "You deserve to be Queen of us all," I bowed before her. As she touched my shoulder to r
[Carnelia] "Primus" Moving as a shadow I find myself by my mate's side. I became the shadow. My husband is curled up in the nest with our children, snuggly resting by their side, lending them his warmth and protection, but as soon as he senses me in the room, his eyes snap open, glowing green like fresh leaves. "Carnelia."He slowly untangles himself from our brood, and I want to smile at the sweetness of it all but I'm terrified. Not only by what I just heard from my uncle but by what I might become. A creature of shadow. A creature of the void. "You came back to me," he cups my face as he brings himself closer, touching me tentatively like I might turn into vapor and disappear. For all he knows I might, I hurt his heart when I walked away. "I will always come back," I wrap my arms around him, taking pleasure in his solid strength. I need him to anchor me. Without him and our children, I might float away, becoming darkness. I need this. Breathing him in deeply, his warmth comf
[Carnelia] The shadows call me now. I'm no longer alone when I leave the light. "A consequence of spending too much time too close to the void," Thalan explains as we turn the corner. "I was wondering how long it would take for you to hear them. Had I known you were a universal dragon sooner, I'd have pulled you from the dream immediately, even at the risk of your mind." We pause by a dark window. Everyone is asleep or close to it now. I left Primus with our children. I long to return to them and to reassure my mate that I will not leave him. I don't know how we are going to make this work. My heart is torn in two. But one thing I've never been more certain of is the importance of our little family. Even if I have to burn this world and forge another from its ashes, I'll find a way for Primus and I to rule together in peace. "The void," my words echo as it bounces along the crystal-covered cavern walls. "You keep mentioning this void, but I saw only Primus' dream." "Then how did