To Burn For

Chapter 3

“Of all things unholy,” Caedan's jaw twitched as he took in the full masterpiece that was Aidana. Her body was wrapped in a burnt orange, deep and fierce. It outlined just how sculptured and shaped her entire body was. Long sleeves covered her arms with a loop hooking around her middle fingers which only accentuated her midnight black nails which were exquisitely painted and rounded at the tips.

   “Eyes up Captain,” her eyes burned into his, distaste rejected for the ease of harmless flirtation; a distraction she needed; her wish was his command. He bowed his head, a smirk fading. He stuck out his elbow and her hand intertwined with it as they walked together to the hall.

   As they reached the doors, Aidana turned towards the captain, desperate to ease her nerves, “to say you are a brute, Captain Braan, you don't half scrub up well,” He blinked blankly at her, his full title sending an unwanted shiver down his spine. She loved it when he failed to read her intentions. She chuckled as they entered the room. Her back tensed immediately at the sight and sound of so many others. Caedan gripped her a bit tighter as if he sensed the shift.  He forced her to take the steps needed until they were seated, at the back, isolated. Despite the full capacity of the hall, their round table was empty.

   To her right, there were tables filled with all matter of Realm Shifters. Shifters of water origin; sea serpents and sirens; shifters that howled and stalked their prey; shifters who shapeshifted into what was needed of them and shifters who were born protectors, hired to guard any matter of being or things. Despite the nature of them, whilst here in Galenia, they presented in a two legged form. Almost human looking. Yet their skin shimmered with power ready to explode though hints of the beasts that lurked below showed in the textures of their skin, the color of their hair and the manner in which they spoke or moved and their eyes, their irises, glowed with everything that made them extraordinary.

    Even though their tasks weren't always successful like her own, they all radiated a similar energy to Oar, positive and pure. They were truly grateful for the existence they had been granted. Everybody was full of smiles, laughing and eating together as if nothing bad had ever happened, as if they couldn't feel anything but joy. Something like envy pooled in her stomach as she tore her gaze away to the creatures sitting at the tables to her left.

    It was quite the contrast, a shift in intensity. Around the table, there were more Realm Shifters, shifters whose power was fire. The females, known as Firebirds, were slender beings with brilliant orange eyes and deep, ruby red hair. On the bridge of their spines, they had two wings lined in vermillion feathers, not chard by ash like hers though she hadn't worn her wings to the meal today. The red flames danced and swirled across their wings like whirlpooling lava. The only thing stopping them from burning the building down to rubble, was Oar's spells, otherwise they'd have to sit outside.  It made her thankful that she could choose when to burn and when not to.

    The males, unlike their counterparts, had skin that was dark and marked with hexagons, faint outlines of scales. They were built strategically with huge upper bodies sculptured by monstrous strength, shoulders broad enough to not buckle under the weight of the beast they could shift into. Each male either had piercing green or golden eyes and they darted around the room unlike any human. They were animalistic in their movements.

   Male Shifters who had fire usually originated from dragons and while they couldn't summon fire basked wings, they could shift into huge, majestic flying weapons of fire.  It was common for a dragon to find his beloved through a match in flames with a Firebird. They were only creatures apt at dealing with the constant fire of the Firebird. At their table, there were eight couples, all too loved up for her liking as they listened intently to their commanders, Conleth and Tanwen.