Dragon

Chapter 18

Jaimin sat at the foot of the dark tunnel under the Dragon's Spine. Leaning against the wall, he fought to regain his breath and strength.

Never had he been required to change forms quite so often. As much as he hated to admit it, switching from human to dragon and back, along with the fighting and fire breathing, had at last begun to take its toll.

Eyes closed, he could hear the females destroying the other entrances into this cavern. They'd been doing it to all the tunnels throughout the lair. The barriers would slow the scaleds. For a while. Not enough to let Maay and the others reach the far side of the mountain.

A hand touched his forearm, tiny though he'd already taken his human guise in preparation for the dash back to Kalon. He lifted his head, tilting it to free his face of the clinging hair. Maay stood in the tunnel's entrance, a lit torch in her other hand and the hatchling cowering at her feet. His dame, also in her human form, hovered near the opening. The other females marched on by in their journey up the tunnel.

His gaze swung out to peruse the cavern. Dust danced in the torchlight, lending a hazy tinge to the air. "Maay, take the hatchling and go." Mounds of dirt and rock marked where the other tunnel entrances once lay. Not enough to stop them.

"But –"

"I'll be right behind you." Someone needed to stay and ensure this last tunnel became as difficult to use as possible. "Just go." Those pillars looked solid. If he could tear down a few, then the whole cavern would collapse, perhaps even taking part of the tunnel with it.

Jaimin glanced over his shoulder, watching as Maay and the hatchling disappeared around the corner. His chest ached at the thought of what he was sending her back into, but he'd little choice. Someone had to make sure their pursuers couldn't follow.

Hearing nothing from his dame, he turned to find she hadn't moved. A part of him shivered whenever he looked at her. She felt less real than the other females. Less here. An echo of the past he'd managed to stumble across.

He'd assumed his dame had also perished after his sire had fallen while trying to free Jamoyia from her captors, her bones lying bare to the wasteland's harsh elements. Yet here she was. Alive. Healthy. Yet not quite here.

He caught the frantic scratching of claws coming from the other side of the rubble. A great many claws. How many dragons lived in this lair? How long would it take for them to break through? "Dame, you cannot linger."

"Nor can you." His dame shook her head, silver hair flying free of the twin buns she favoured. His memory of her wearing them stretched back into his hatchling years. "You go. I'll keep them from following."

Jaimin frowned, not liking the tone in her voice. It spoke through to his hatchling days. Of solemnity with an eerie unwavering note. The last burst of strength before the end. He leapt to his feet, putting himself between the cavern and her. "I'm not leaving you behind."

She clasped his arms. "My son. My dear, dear son." A hand released him to brush back his hair. "You must. Your mate will need you."

"I have no mate." Had his dame forgotten Hurani was dead? It had happened before her abduction.

Jamoyia smiled. "I'm sure you would if you told her how you feel." Her hands moved to the collar of his shirt, fingers tugging at the neck in a move he recalled from his early youngling years. "Although I'm sure that, after kissing her, she knows."

His cheeks warmed. Even through the fighting, the memory of Maay's touch was fresh in his mind. The coolness of her lips against his, igniting the warmth that had blossomed in his gut. "The Law forbids it."