Earth Touched - A Dragon Tribe Origin

Chapter One - Lori

"It's simple," Frank said. "The darts will poison the dragon, causing him to fall, and paralyze him for ten minutes. More than enough time for you to kill him."

The middle-aged man from the nation of Aero standing before them gazed down at the large black case in Frank's hands. Lori could tell by the deeply furrowed brow he wasn't buying it. His dark eyes piercing through her and almost making her lose her nerve. "These darts aren't going to be large enough to pierce through the scaling."

"Yes, they are," Frank insisted. "Tested them myself." And he had. On a rival faction of Terran rogues. She watched him shoot the dragon, watched as the creature groaned and fell to the ground, heard the cries of fear and pain, and only looked away when Frank started to harvest the dragon blood for another of his many clients.

The Aero man gazed over to Lori, unsure. She nodded, playing her role as the witness and dutiful female companion. When it came to people from Aero, the men thought of themselves as the protectors of their women. They also trusted any woman far more than they ever trusted a man. Females were too pure for deceit. So drastically different than the beliefs of her homeland of Terran. The idea made her want to laugh, and she would—later at home in her bedroom, Frank by her side. Poor Aero slayer had no idea just how much of a fool he was being made into. After all, Frank was a dragon.

After a long moment of hesitation, the man handed over the desired amount of money. "If this fails..."

"You'll have a refund, you have my word," Frank said. "I've been good about that in the past."

"Yes, you've always been fair," the man agreed.

Frank pocketed the money. "There will be three dragons flying through the country soon. They'll leave, and then return around a week after. I don't recommend trying to go after three of them at once. There are only five darts, and it's not worth it. Especially if you plan on dividing your new equipment with your Oceina cohorts."

"Will there be a solo flight soon?" The fact that the Aero man dodged the comment did not go missed by Lori. It wouldn't be a problem, the slayers from the nation of Oceina would also be buying their own supply soon enough.

"Solo flights are harder to predict. There is one that flies high in the mountains out of range, often. Eventually, he'll move to where you can attack." Frank gave the man smile. "I assure you, as soon as I know, you will too."

The man nodded. "Until next time, Richard."

"Yes, until next time," Frank said. "The poison will last for sixteen months, so there's no need to hurry. Make sure you pick a moment to enjoy it. Savoring revenge is so much more wonderful, don't you agree?"

That got a laugh from the man. "You understand, and that's why I keep giving you my business. Others are a lot cheaper."

"Not as effective!"

More laughter. The Aero man left for his car. Frank and Lori waited until he was inside before daring to speak again.

"I can't believe you're encouraging a slaying, Richard," Lori said, her voice low, and a smile still plastered on her face to keep up the show.

Frank also kept smiling. He gave a quick wave as the Aero man drove off. "He can't know who I really am."

"I know, it's just funny. You're so not a Richard."

"Are you sure about that? I've been called a—"

She waved her hand, stopping his stupid pun. "Please, spare me. But seriously, is it a good idea to arm so many slayers with all of this new tech?"

When it comes to the Aero royal family, I couldn't care less. My palace intel tells me the youngest son enjoys flying on a regular basis. He's only bringing it on himself by being careless in a country where slaying is actually a problem still. Besides, if my source is corrected, the royal family is about to be dethroned. We need them gone if we're going to make progress here. Our revolution will not succeed without support from the other nations."

"And the Oceina? You have something against them too?"

"Okay, I lied, I could care less because I do care less—about Oceina. They're on the verge of a slayer resurgence with their own stupidity. Still performing the sacrifice ritual to find their mates. They're asking for trouble. Arrogant, always so arrogant. I have no qualms with knocking them back down a few notches. Finding a replacement authority over there has been harder, but controlling them through fear might work better." He lowered his gaze, shaking his head. "It's a fine line, you know. Maintaining our proper authority over the humans, but also not disrespecting them. It's one of the reasons I admire the Inero. The humans there have always known their place in life. They've got enough freedom to perform their duties, but they're always under control. Soon, Terran will get back in line and follow suit."

Lori faced him, loving when he spoke so passionately about their cause. It's what drew her to him in the first place. And he was right. The dragons needed to maintain their control. God gave them superior abilities for a reason after all. If Frank ruled Terran, she knew for a fact he'd be able to restore the Terran dragons to their former glory.

And she couldn't wait.

It felt hypocritical, supporting a man who wanted to kill his own kind. When she first entered into the world of dragons three years ago, she definitely didn't understand it right away. Frank, always patient and willing to teach, was more than happy to walk her through his complete thought process. Once she understood, she was sold.

"We're so close," he said softly as he helped her into his car. "It's a weird feeling."

She gazed at him as she sat in her seat, and her eyes never left as he moved around the car to get into his own. Once they were both settled into their chairs, she said, "Weren't you expecting this?"

"Big dreams take a long time to come true. Sometimes, they feel impossible."

Lori leaned over to kiss him soundly on the lips. "All the more reason to be excited." She moved her hands toward the clasp of his belt. "To changing the world."

"To changing the world," he agreed.