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Chapter 61: Tana
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56
CooperWell, Palila found her mate too, and Cedric is already making changes to the pack lands for Kenna and Tana.
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The Arena Chapter 62: Cedric
I love having Tana here. It feels right having her here, on our pack lands. When I take her upstairs, I show her our room, letting her know that she can change it any way she wants to make it more comfortable for her. Personally, I don’t care what our room looks like. It’ll feel like home if she’s here. I can see her looking it over, but she’s not saying anything. I’m not sure how to take that, so I take her to the next room in the hallway. “I was thinking this could be a nursery for our baby. I haven’t done anything to it yet, but I thought it would be nice if we could decide together how to set it up.” I had cleared out the room, purposefully leaving it empty. I want to make sure that I am just as involved as she is with this pregnancy, but I know this will be a new space for her and our child. Again, she looks around the room, not saying anything. I walk up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist and laying my chin on her shoulder. “What’s going on in that head of yours,
The Arena Chapter 63: Tana
Cedric makes a point of showing me around his pack lands the next day. He walks me to the perimeter and even carries me on his back after he shifts into his Lycan form. “See you’re a Lycan rider.” He says again, making me laugh. “Do you always walk around with no shirt on?” I had noticed that he only seems to wear shorts around here. He stops and looks at me. “I’m showing off my mate mark, Tana. I’m proud to be your mate, to wear your mark. It’s hard to see if I’m wearing a shirt, so I don’t bother. But this way, everyone knows that I’m yours, that I’m a dragon rider.” I don’t know why it surprises me. I guess I still have a lingering doubt that he sees me as a possession, but he doesn’t seem to see it that way at all. He’s proud to wear my mark, not just to wear the mark of a dragon rider. I pull him to me and kiss him deeply. His arms wrap around me, holding me against his strong body. “I said something right?” “Yes, you did.” I say, smiling at him. The rest of the weekend is
The Arena Chapter 64: Cedric
After talking to Ishir, there is no way that I’m leaving Tana unprotected. I don’t care that she’s a dragon. She can’t shift and she’s pregnant with my son. I also contact Bastian and tell him that he needs to put a 24-hour guard on Kenna. The conversation with Kenna went over about as well as I expected it to. She has been enjoying her newfound freedom and now I’m taking it away, or at least she perceives me as taking it away. It’s Tana that finds a way to get her to concede. “Kenna, these are the same people that shot harpoons into our wings and brought us to the ground. Both of us. Even if I’m there, I can’t shift. Avani, Kaylani and Zephyr may not get there in time and Cedric’s entire pack would die trying to save you. Do you really want their deaths on your conscience just because you wanted to fly?” I hear her sigh over the phone. “No, Momma. I don’t want anyone dying trying to save me, especially if I was being selfish.” “That’s my girl. You can still fly and when you do, ma
The Arena Chapter 65: Tana
If a war is coming, I need to be prepared to fight. I know Cedric won’t want me to, but that’s not how it works. I"m a dragon. We’re not easily defeated and we’re not fragile. Yes, we can die, but it takes a lot. Not being able to shift is definitely a disadvantage. One that I intend to remedy. “Kenna, I need you to do me a favor.” “Sure Momma. What do you need?” “I need you to take me to our family’s cave. I need to get one of our swords.” She looks at me for a moment. “Papa’s not going to like that.” “Your Papa will be happy to know that I have a way to protect myself and your brother even though I can’t shift.” “Maybe I should get one too, Momma?” “Yes, its about time you started learning other ways of defending yourself. Although, I’m not sure how that will work in your human form, but we can try.” Kenna flies me to our cave of treasures. “When you’re ready, Kenna, you can begin bringing your treasures here too.” I tell her. She diverts her eyes. “What?” I ask her. She k
The Arena Chapter 66: Cedric
"What's that?” I ask, staring at my mate. Did she just say she’s 70 years old? How is that possible? “I said, I’m nearly 70 years old, Cedric. Dragons live longer than humans and other shifters.” “But you look like you’re in your 20’s. Like me.” “Dragons stop aging once we get to our mid-20’s. So, until I met you, I could have looked like this for centuries. Avani is over 250 years old.” I feel like my head’s about to explode. When Tana said dragons live longer than other shifters, I thought she meant maybe fifty years, not hundreds of years. “Wait, you said until you met me, what does that mean?” “Your lifespan will extend past that of a normal shifter, but my life will only continue as long as yours does. A dragon cannot live without their rider. I don’t actually know, since I’m too young, but I don’t remember hearing stories of dragons living hundreds of years with their riders. So, I assume that my lifespan will be shorter than most dragons.” “How long can you have children?
The Arena Chapter 67: Tana
I’m digging through Cedric’s company financials when I hear the screeching of the kestrels. Both Jena and Palila had decided that as ranked members, they should take part in the patrols when they aren’t working. It gives them a chance to fly and also protects our borders. I may not understand what they are saying, but the tenor of their shrill chirping is very clear. Danger! I’m up and moving in an instant, grabbing my sword. It’s not ideal, I’m huge with my pregnancy limiting my ability to fight, but I don't want my pack and my daughter to fight without me. As I walk out, there are people running in all directions. Some are headed to the safe rooms, some are rushing outside. Warriors are shifting all around me as they make their way to the battle. I can hear Kenna’s wings and her scream of defiance as she lifts off the ground, ready to fight. I’m moving to step outside when strong arms wrap around me. “Tana, you need to get into a safe room. You are in no condition to fight. I won
The Arena Chapter 68: Cedric
The battle is fierce. I know this is Troy, even though I haven’t seen him. These creatures, there isn’t another word for them, aren’t natural. He’s created weird hybrids. No, these are mutants. My children are hybrids, this is something else entirely. It’s almost as if he tried to recreate mythological creatures but fell short. There’s a three-headed dog, or wolf, I’m not sure, a lion with bat wings and what looks like an attempt to recreate a dragon but in a smaller, much less beautiful creature. Troy's werewolf warriors come in with the harpoon. I watch as Kenna dodges the first two harpoons they shoot at her. While they are trying to reload, I attack them, ripping them to shreds and tearing the harpoon launcher apart. Kenna attacks the dragon wanna-be. It is no match for my daughter who blows her fire on it, burning it alive. I jump on the back of the lion bird-thing. It has wings but doesn’t seem to be able to fly. It’s almost as if the wings hinder its movements. However, it’s
The Arena Chapter 69: Tana
I have never felt fear like I feel right now. It’s not fear for myself. It’s fear for my unborn son. They have kept me strapped here, on this bed for days, weeks, months. I have no idea. There are no windows in this place. I have no idea what time of day it is, if a day has passed or if the time is moving more slowly than I realize. Troy’s chief laboratory technician comes in several times a day to draw fluids. I don’t care what they take from me, but the first time they stuck the needle into my stomach, I began thrashing, my fire burning off the paralytic. Troy was quick to inject me with whatever knocks me out and when I woke, I saw the bruises covering my stomach. I have no idea what they did, but my son hasn’t been moving in my stomach. I’m terrified that he’s dead. When the chief technician comes back in, I snarl at him. “What did you do to my son?” He ignores me at first, then turns to draw more blood, or whatever from me. “I asked you a question.” When he still doesn’t an
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The Arena Epilogue 2: Tana
Eight Months Later “Momma, Kenna blew her fire on me!” My young son comes running into the room, his arms raised and big alligator tears streaming down his face. I reach down and pick him up, putting him on my hip around my growing, pregnant belly. “It didn’t hurt you, did it?” I ask. Our son, even though he has the Lycan gene, is immune to our fire. He got enough of the dragon blood to give him immunity from the dragon's heat. It had taken much longer this time to get pregnant. I was worried that it wouldn’t happen, since my uterus ruptured with Liekki’s birth, but Cedric had promised to try as many times as needed to put a pup or dragon in me. And he didn’t fail me. I’m considered a high-risk pregnancy, but so far, three months in, everything is going well. Kenna comes walking in behind Liekki. “I warned him, Momma. I told him if he touched my gemstones that I would blow my fire on him. He didn’t listen. He touched my gems, Momma.” “Sweetheart,” It’s so strange talking to Kenna
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Two Months Later I haven’t gotten Tana pregnant yet. We knew that it would be difficult after her uterus ruptured with Liekki, but my mate wants another pup or dragon and I’m doing my best to give her one. I can’t say that the constant trying to get her pregnant isn’t fun. But I know she’s becoming more and more convinced that she’ll never have another baby. We still haven’t found The Chief. We’ve gotten close, found old facilities and learned how he detonates the explosives he puts into the dragons’ brains, but we haven’t found him yet. Ishir did find a doctor that would help us. He’s human, in his mid to late thirties, but he doesn’t seem to care that we're part of the supernatural community. Or, more specifically, he fascinated by us, especially the dragons. At first, I thought I might have to kill him. He kept staring at Tana and Kenna. But when Avani, Zephyr and Kaylani showed up, I realized it has more to do with the beauty of the dragons than my mate and daughter. Ishir expl
The Arena Chapter 81: Cedric
A few weeks later, we’re joined by Avani, his elf friend, Merethyl, Kaylani and Ishir. Ishir is the best tracker in the group. With the work he does searching for missing humans and supernaturals, he travels all over and has the potential to find the hidden bunkers where the Chief is creating his hybrids. “We have to consider the fact that there will be more dragons.” Bastian says. His mate, Jena, recently delivered their baby, so he’s been out for awhile. I left him here while we went to bring down the arena. He wasn’t happy about it, but I needed him focused, and protecting his mate and unborn child had him laser focused on protecting the pack while we were gone. “Not only will there be more dragons, but we need to figure out how this Chief is able to kill them from a distance.” I have an idea about that.” Merethyl says. “I asked my brother to do some research for us and he found that, in the past, hunters would insert small mini explosive devices into the brains of supernaturals
The Arena Chapter 80: Tana
We’re halfway home from the battle at the arena when we hear Kaylani’s lament. “Something’s wrong Cedric. I need to go to her.” “Then, let’s go, Tana. I’m with you.” “I am too, Momma.” Kenna says. Ishir decided to run home before meeting us back at the pack, so Kenna isn’t carrying anyone. We turn and follow the sound of Kaylani’s cry. I’ve never been on this end of a dragon’s lament, and it’s heartbreaking. When we find her, we land, and I immediately see why she’s crying. She is standing over the young dragon. I shift quickly, rushing over to look at the young dragon who is lying broken on the ground. “Kaylani, what happened?” “I don’t know. We were talking and flying when she screamed. Then she just fell from the sky. I tried to catch her, Tana. I swear I did. But she just dropped so fast.” I lean over the young dragon. There’s blood coming from her mouth, nose and eyes. I lift her eye lids and see that her eyes are blood red. Not the pupil, what is supposed to be the lighter
The Arena Chapter 79: Cedric
I was nervous about helping Kaylani heal, but she’s a great instructor. She’s patient even when she’s in pain. She helps guide me through healing her and how much energy to push into her, especially since she’s not a fire dragon. Because we were together, I knew something was wrong when we heard the other dragon. “Kaylani what’s going on?” I ask her. My hands are still healing the hole in her wing, but I turn to see another dragon flying in our direction. “I don’t know, but she’s not a dragon we know.” As soon as the hole is healed, she’s up and flying over to where I can see Tana is trying to not fight the young dragon. A dragon that looks very much like her and Kenna. Kaylani turns back to me. “Help Avani, he’s still trapped.” I look around and see the tides are turning. My pack is taking out the hunters and those that are left are starting to run off. My pack is chasing them down. I race back over to the arena, rushing into one of the entryways. I see Kenna struggling to get t
The Arena Chapter 78: Tana
I only watch Cedric fighting Troy for a moment. Kaylani and Avani both still need help and Cedric looks like he’s holding his own against Troy. I turn back to Kaylani. “I’m going to shift and try to pull the harpoon out.” As I shift, I see hunters fighting past the pack. They are trying to get to me and Kaylani. I begin throwing fire balls at them, setting them on fire. They begin shooting at us and while silver doesn’t impact me, I know the paralytic will. I’m sending more fire balls at them, but there are too many. I’m standing in front of Kaylani who is using her water where she can, but she doesn’t want to douse my fire. Suddenly, I see the hunters start going down on my left. I turn, focusing my attention to the hunters getting through on the right. Cedric emerges on the left from the smoke and fires still burning the flesh of the hunters. He runs over to me, dropping his sword and grabbing my arms, looking me over. “Are you alright, Tana? Are you hurt?” “No, I’m okay.” “Wh
The Arena Chapter 77: Cedric
When Tana dropped me off, I had one goal in mind. Kill Troy. However, as soon as I got out of the fire and could see, I realized that the hunters were going after the pups. I immediately jumped in, protecting them, killing the hunters so my pack members could get them away. The rest of the pack that isn’t still underground begins fighting along side me. The pack will always fight to protect its own, but when it comes to our pups, we’re fierce. I make sure the group with the pups gets away safely before focusing on the group of hunters that is following my pack out of the underground. I can see the she-wolves that were captured are exhausted and starving, but they are fighting. It makes me so proud of my pack, proud to be their Alpha. As I’m fighting, I hear a dragon scream and I look up to see Kaylani has taken a harpoon to the wing. It looks like she flew in front of Kenna and took the harpoon to protect my daughter. That’s twice Kaylani has saved my family. I don’t know if I can e
The Arena Chapter 76: Tana
The next morning, we’re all up early. The pack is split in half, half coming to attack the arena and the other half staying to protect the pack and pack lands. Kenna and I shift, and Cedric and Ishir grab their bags of grenades. Cedric has his sword thrown across his back as he puts the harness on me. He grabs his bag then walks up my wing, getting himself settled on my back. The pack members coming with us shift, grabbing their bags and begin running to the arena. Once Cedric makes sure everyone is shifted and on their way, he gives Kenna the signal and she lifts into the air. Once they are far enough away, I lift up and we begin making our way to the arena. About halfway there, we meet up with Avani and Kaylani. I notice the Avani has a female on his back. I’m surprised, but I don’t have time to wonder about it. We lift up higher into the air so that we can see the arena from high above the clouds. We watch for Cedric’s pack and when we see them getting closer, he gives the signal.
The Arena Chapter 75: Cedric
When Tana and Kenna arrive back at the pack, it doesn’t take long for news to spread that we have two additional dragons on our pack lands. The warriors with missing mates all came rushing to ask about it. We are meeting in my office when they find us. “Alpha, did you find them?” “Have a seat.” I tell them as they come in. “Just tell us.” Another demands, causing me to growl a warning at him. Tana steps up to him. “All of you, have a seat. We have much to discuss and not much time to do it. Any time wasted arguing is time that we should be planning how to rescue your mates and pups.” They all walk in and sit, but they are restless. “So, you did find them?” “Yes, your mates and your pups are all alive.” Ishir tells them. Almost as one, I see their noses go up as they sniff the air. “This is Ishir. He’s a tiger and was in the arena with me and Tana. You can trust him. This,” I point to Avani, “is Avani, the earth dragon. And this,” I point to Kaylani, “is Kaylani, the water dra
