The Imprisoned Dragon and the Witch (7 page)

“Josef, you need to let Peri deal with them first!” Sam hoped Peri did whatever she was gonna do quickly because Josef’s power was thrumming through his entire body and he knew that Josef could take him out in the blink of an eye if he wanted to.

Peri’s hands finally moved in a large circle before she pushed them forward and he could almost
see
the invisible power being thrust from her. The sounds that the two Witches emitted were ear shattering, ghastly and everything they deserved...in his opinion.

As the two bodies literally exploded in front of them, he let go of Josef, who rushed forward, falling to his knees next to Gabe. Peri was there a moment later, her eyes filled with tears as her hands ran over the thick fur of the beast on the ground.

“Gabe! Gabe! Oh my God, this isn’t happening! Josef, do something, do something!” Peri’s strained voice echoed in the long rock passage as Josef cursed loudly.

Sam heard soft sobs coming from behind him and his heart lurched, Charmaine! His body responding without him even thinking, he turned and moved with lightning speed to get to her side. She was surrounded by the Elite guards who had taken his order seriously and now guarded the young woman.

He pulled her to him, cradling her in his arms as she sobbed into his chest. He ran his hands over the back of her head, his fingers tangling in her long red tresses. “It’s okay, Peri got rid of them. You’re okay, Charmaine, you’re okay, calm down, please calm down.”

The next minute saw the young Witch calming within his grasp as his ears picked up Josef and Peri.

“He’s breathing! He’s not dead, Peri.” Josef’s voice laced with relief as he spoke to his mate.

“Really? He’s not dead? Oh fuck it! I thought we’d lost him!” Peri’s voice rising in panic and relief.

Josef moved to place an arm around Peri’s shoulders. “Can you sense the damage? Can you heal him?”

Sam moved forwards, taking Charmaine with him, stopping next to the downed Wolf. Watching intently as Peri went to work, her hands feeling along the Wolf and then settling over his body. Her face a mask of concentration as her hands once more moved, so fast even his eyes could barely keep up.

A soft glow appeared between her palms as she moved them to gently stroke along the length of the fur. He watched as the Wolf’s body twitched, once, twice and then its eyes opened, a small whine escaping its throat until its gaze met Peri’s. The rough tongue snaked out to lick her hand as she buried her face in its ruff.

“Don’t you ever do that again! You hear me? Magic – me – brawn – you! Got it?” Peri’s voice was rough as she spoke, unshed tears in her eyes as the Wolf licked her again before getting to its feet.

Josef placed a hand on its head. “Stay Wolf, it will help with healing you. Oh, yes, if you do anything as stupid as that again I’ll seriously kick your Wolf ass from here to Alaska...and back! Or worse, I’ll relieve you of your bank cards!”

Sam tried not to smile as Peri actually laughed and Gabe’s Wolf whined loudly, its large head moving from side to side in a parody of “no.”

Charmaine watched it all, eyes wide, tears drying on her cheeks. He held her tight and didn’t think he wanted to let her go any time soon. Now
that
could pose a problem if he needed to fight but hell, he couldn’t shake the feeling. No matter how hard he tried.

Gabe’s Wolf took a couple of steps, shaky at first but then more confident. The beast stopped, gave itself a shake, its fur quivering, then it walked on, proud and confident. “
Thank fuck!”
Sam thought as they all started to follow the huge beast.

Josef took Peri’s hand. “Come on, the sooner we get to that Dragon and get out of here the better.”

Sam couldn’t agree more. He wanted to get Charmaine somewhere safe.

Chapter 7

Serge used his unique sense of smell to keep him alerted to any possible threats as his small group made their way along a corridor made out of rock. Although quite large, he couldn’t quite rid himself of the feeling of being closed in...with a whole mountain above them.

The last thing he wanted was to come face to face with dark magic-wielding Witches. With nobody in their unit capable of taking out dark magic, he was well aware his group was the most vulnerable. After another few tense minutes he stopped, turning around.

“I’m going Wolf, Drake, Kyra, it’s up to you if you want to change or not.” Serge didn’t wait on his mate, friend or the Elites to respond, he was changing no matter what they said.

He quickly rid himself of the restraining clothing and started his transformation. Half way through he was aware that Drake was joining him but Kyra wasn’t. He guessed she was a little embarrassed, being in the company of people she had only just met. It was one of her endearing qualities that he loved. She didn’t have the unrestrained manner regarding nudity that most Wolves had and it had been months before he caught a glimpse of her naked skin.

That glimpse had set his blood on fire and he pursued her relentlessly from that moment on. When she had finally, after an awful lot of persuasion from him, fell into his arms, he had felt such peace and passion that it took his breath away. Serge shook his head to clear it of the vision of the very first time she submitted to him. “
Christ, she had been so beautiful!”
he thought as he brought his attention back to the here and now. He knew, without a shadow of doubt that she would remain in her human form unless it was absolutely necessary to change.

He caught her bending to pick up both his and Drake’s clothing, shoving them into the backpack that she was rarely without. He teased her mercilessly about that darn backpack, but she took it with her everywhere they went. “
A girl’s gotta be prepared.”
She would laugh when he asked her about it. Hell, he was grateful right now because after this mission, he didn’t want to be wandering about naked in the freezing cold!

Kyra gave him a small smile and a wink as she straightened up, falling in behind him and Drake’s Wolves. He wanted this mission over, so he could take Kyra home and have the official mating ceremony that she deserved.

As they walked further and further into the damp rock passages, his tension rose. They would be sitting ducks for any Witches and he, more than once, tried to move Kyra back and behind the Elite guards. She was having none of it and kept slapping his head and shooing him onwards. “
We better not run into any serious trouble!”
he thought as they moved further and further inside the mountain.

Not long afterward his ears picked up a commotion, coming from quite a distance away but his Wolf hearing clearly heard shouts and a woman scream. A few seconds later the entire place was filled with echoes of the most horrendous sounds, screams that lasted for mere moments but would be with him for a long time. “
Jeez, what the fuck was that?”
he thought as they continued on, now going downwards towards goodness knew what.

*****

Ronan lead their little band with Creed at his side and Starr at his back. Esther and Celeste walking behind Starr and the Elites brought up the rear. His thoughts on keeping Celeste as safe as possible. If the Dragon was as ill as Esther seemed to think, it sounded like they would definitely need Celeste’s unique abilities.

Although the rock hallway they were in wasn’t exactly small, he felt it was. His six foot six frame meant his head was only a foot or so from the roof. He kept dipping his head thinking it was going to hit some pieces of rock jutting downwards. On and on they walked, the tunnel they were in meandering right, left and back again.

Slowly they made their way, now the ground sloping down, down, and down, until the slope was quite steep. He glanced back and saw Celeste and Esther holding on to each other as they traversed the rocky floor. Although it wasn’t completely dark, it wasn’t daylight either and there were more than a few loose rocks under foot.

Ronan looked over his shoulder, Esther sounded a little breathless. “Are you okay?” he asked as he slowed the pace a little.

Esther nodded. “Yes, carry on. We need to hurry.”

“Okay, but be careful, the ground is getting more and more unstable.” Ronan turned, upping his pace a little, wondering how long it would be before they ran into trouble.

He had no doubt that they would, run into trouble that is, with the alert spells breached it was only a matter of time. He just hoped they got to the Dragon first, so Celeste could get to work on it.

Not too long after this thought, his feet stopped, his head swirling to catch the noise his Vampire ears picked up. Creed frowning beside him as he seemed to do the same, cocking his head to the side.

The ebony Vampire raised an eyebrow. “You hear that? Sounds like your Sire and his mate have run into some trouble.”

No sooner were the words were out of Creed’s mouth than they all heard the blood curdling screams reverberate throughout the tunnels. The sound having Celeste whimper and gasp.

Starr’s hand touched his back. “I think Peri’s dealt with whoever it was. Hope I never make her angry!”

Ronan’s lips twitched at his mate’s words. “I’m sure even if you did, she wouldn’t do that to you. Whatever
that
is. Come on folks, it sounds like we’ve been rumbled. Esther, hope you’re ready?”

The old Witch was trying to calm an upset Celeste. “I’m ready, don’t worry ‘bout me. Now can we get moving again? I don’t like these tunnels.”

As Esther shivered, they started moving forwards, Ronan using every ability available to him to keep watch for any trouble. His eyes strained, his ears listening intently for any sign of Witches ahead. He absolutely
hated
dark magic and wondered if they would get through this unscathed...he hoped so.

Celeste played on his mind, in his opinion the young woman was their weak link and he wished that she wasn’t required. Starr’s hand landed at the base of his back, her fingers splayed and staying in contact with him as they trudged onwards. His eyes thought that there was a bright area further on but he wasn’t certain, it could be a trick of the light. However, after another minute or so he could clearly see a brightness, just past the opening ahead, which seemed to be much bigger than anything they’d come across up ‘til now.

As they neared the opening, he slowed his pace. “Hold up, Creed and I will check first.”

He tipped his head to the side and Creed nodded as they moved forward slowly. As they neared the opening they could make out an immense cavern, water running down parts of the rock-face. Their tunnel opened onto a downward path that led to the very bottom of the vast space. His eyes widened at the sight of a very, very large Dragon lying in the middle of the floor...gold light encircling its limbs and neck. Magic! The Dragon was obviously encased in a dark magic spell.

Ronan turned back into the tunnel, motioning their party forward. “The Dragon is here, be careful on the way down though, the pathway looks very unsafe so try not to fall...it’s a long way down.”

Starr was just ahead of Esther and Celeste as she entered the cavern. The scream that tore from her throat making everyone jump and Ronan’s heart skipped a beat at the pain that was evident in her voice.

“
Talon
!” she screamed as she took off down the rocky path.

“Feck!” Ronan cursed as he and Creed took off after her, scrambling around and trying not to fall over the edge.

Starr’s feet were fleet and true as she ran full speed downwards, Ronan trying hard to catch up to his mate. In his mind’s eye, he saw her tripping, falling...over the edge and onto the rugged rocks far below.

His shout didn’t even slow her down. “Starr! Stop!”

She kept on, running at a speed that had the two Vampires using all of their abilities to try and keep up. Her shouts reverberating around the large space. “Talon! I’m coming, I’ll get you free! Hold on, hold on, Talon!”

The fear and longing in her voice affected everyone that heard it. Ronan could hear the footsteps behind them speed up. Esther urging Celeste on and the young Witch’s words ringing in his ears. “He’s near death, Esther!” He hoped Celeste’s words had not made it to Starr’s ears.

Starr jumped the last part of the walkway, landing solidly on the ground of the stone chamber, before speeding away again towards the Dragon. Ronan already knowing this was her long thought dead brother and nothing would slow his mate’s pace. As he and Creed’s feet landed on the more secure ground their speed picked up, only just catching Starr as she fell to her knees at the head of the great beast before them.

Tears running down her face as she wrapped her arms around the neck, only partially encircling it as the Dragon was so very large. “Talon! I thought you were dead! Oh no! I should’ve hunted for you! I should’ve
found
you! I’m sorry, Talon. I’m so, so sorry!”

Ronan took in the beast, so very different to his mate’s Dragon. Where Starr’s body was black with hints of purple, like her hair, this one was a dark, mottled green and he wasn’t sure if this was its natural color or because it was sick. The creature before them was so much larger than Starr’s...and he had thought that her Dragon was huge!

While Starr cradled the Dragon, it made small snorting noises and tried valiantly to raise its head, but failed. Starr turned to him, terror on her face. “Ronan, we need to help him! Please, we need to help him!”

Ronan fell down onto his knees beside his distraught mate. “I know,
grá mo chroí
, I know. Esther will be here in a few moments with Celeste. We’ll help him, I promise.”

Creed was shouting to his squad who were approaching faster now that they were no longer behind Esther and Celeste on the perilous walkway. “Check the perimeter, make sure we’re not taken by surprise.”

Ronan held his love in his arms, on the ground beside her brother, trying to keep her calm. Her heart was beating so fast, he feared she would pass out, the tears staining her face tearing at his guts. Her mouth moving in soft encouragement, telling her brother to hold on, they would save him. Ronan only hoped they could...for Starr’s sake.

His arms around her, holding her to his body, he muttered his own words. Telling his mate they would free Talon. They would help her brother. He turned to see Esther and Celeste almost upon them. The young Witch had a focused and stern look on her face.

Esther stepped up first. “I need to break the spells binding him and keeping him from transformation. Once I’ve done that Celeste can get to work.”

Starr ignored the old Witch, her attention completely on the beast before them. Ronan watched as Esther went to work, her words alien as she cast a spell. A moment later, her hands moved forwards and a small glowing light left her palms, breaking up into two, three, four, then finally, five streams of light and heading straight for the circlets around the Dragon.

He watched as Esther’s light covered the glowing circles that ensnared the creature before them, before finally, both disappeared. The small roar of relief from Talon had Starr’s tears flowing freely once again. She turned to Celeste, her eyes wide, a look of pure longing, as she locked eyes with the young Witch. “Save him, please, save him.”

Celeste walked forward, all signs of the bewildered state she was usually in gone. Her hand landed on the Dragon as her eyes stayed on Starr. “I’ll do my best,” she said as she turned to focus on Talon.

Starr stayed on her knees, next to her brother, as Celeste got to work. Her words even more alien than Esther’s, her hair flying out behind her as her body started to shimmer. Ronan couldn’t tear his eyes from the young woman as she cast her unique magic. The sight before him like none he had witnessed before as Celeste’s body was encompassed with a soft, silver gleam.

Streaks of the silver seemed to run down her arm and into the beast, causing it to tremble and make noises that sounded like soft moans. Starr’s voice still talking to it as Celeste worked. “She’s going to help you, just hang on.”

Celeste worked for just another moment before she frowned, her mouth stopping the spell. “No! Tell him not to change! He’s too weak!”

Starr looked to Celeste and back to the Dragon, fear on her face as the Dragon simply disappeared and in its place a very thin and weak man lay. “Talon! You need to stay Dragon to heal! Why did you change?”

Ronan kept his arm around Starr as she stroked her brother’s cheek. Talon’s eyes moving between his and Starr’s. “Is he your mate, my sister?”

The voice was so weak that Starr leaned forward, “Yes, Talon, he’s my mate. His name is Ronan and we’ve been looking for you for over a year. I’m so sorry, my brother, that I didn’t find you sooner!”

Ronan moved a hand to stroke Starr’s back, trying to comfort his mate as best he could. Celeste was weeping in the background and he had no idea why. Talon moved a hand to clasp one of Starr’s a small smile on his pale face.

“Hold his hand, Starr.”

Starr blinked several times before reaching to hold Ronan’s hand as Talon started to chant. The words were like nothing any of them had ever heard before and some sounded more like grunts and not words at all. Starr’s face was shocked as her brother continued, having to stop in several places to catch a breath.