Legend of the Inero Dragon (4 page)

As hard as he tried to forget about them,
their words still bothered him. They didn't get it. He wasn't a
charmer, so he couldn't naturally seduce her. He felt wrong
coercing this girl into bed with him anyway. What happened to being
in love? Hardly any of his kin spoke of it much anymore. They were
too busy rushing into bed then regretting it later. Love generally
happened with the third or fourth wife.

While seventeen was considered young to
humans, it felt like an eternity for him. Every four years he aged
one year, so he'd already walked the Earth for sixty-eight years.
He'd finished his proper schooling, still having a lot to learn,
but he couldn't stand being babied any longer. It was time to grow
up.

His decision to wed hadn't only been for
himself, though. He did it for Gwen just as much. Granted, he
didn't know whom he would be choosing as his bride, but he had
vowed to pick a girl and protect her. He felt sick thinking about
what could have happened to her if he had chosen to wait for
another group of girls. A rejected Elite often got taken by an
older guard member and enslaved.

Jason wanted to be honorable. He wanted to be
good. He wanted to prove that his people were not all bad. The
other brothers who participated in the ritual would hopefully not
be abusive and cruel. From what he understood, most had an intense
night of lust-filled passion. They had also chosen to treat their
women like trophies—gazed upon and admired as a possession with no
emotional attachment. It sounded like a lonely life.

Gwen was a girl he could get along with. She
wasn't the most beautiful girl in the line. Her long, black hair
had been straight and flat, her eyes a dull hazel, and her body
thin and toned from all of her hard work on the farm. Attractive,
but not gorgeous like the pouty-lipped, curvy vixens who had made
up the rest of the line. Jason had picked Gwen because when he had
looked into her eyes, he had seen her soul. He was eager to go back
to her and explore it more thoroughly.

He stepped into the dining hall of the great
Inero Castle, moving quickly to stand next to Matt. The first thing
he noticed was how he smelled different. Just the day before he had
smelled of wind, dirt, and a slight hint of wood fire smoke. Now he
smelled like roasted chilies and dark chocolate—like a man. Already
everything was changing. Jason didn't realize it would be so
drastic and instant.

Together, they waited for their father, the
Great Dragon Lord of the Inero, Lynx.

"Are you—" Matt began to ask.

"Yes, I'm fine. Let's get breakfast over
with," Jason said.

Matt nodded. "I know it's hard, but they'll
understand when they realize their fun times are nothing more than
that," he said. "You have integrity, and that is something you
should be proud of. Your marriage will be a first to last and they
will envy it."

"Yes, I know," Jason snapped. Hopefully his
brother would get the hint that he didn't want to talk about it
anymore. He clenched his fists at his sides and his jaw went stiff.
Why couldn't anyone drop the subject?

"Okay, sorry," Matt mumbled while rolling his
eyes, frowning as though he had been stung.

Lynx entered before Jason could reply. All
eyes went to their father, and everyone bowed their heads. Lynx
made one smooth wave with his hands for them all to sit. The twins
sat on their father's right side. Matt always sat next to Lynx with
Jason seated next to him.

To share breakfast with their father was a
great honor. It was Lynx's favorite meal and the one when he had
the most time to converse. Only his favorite sons were allowed to
attend it. Out of almost five hundred, Matthias and Jason were
favored the most.

"I understand you're trying to make me feel
better," Jason said to Matt in a lowered voice. "I'm glad you're on
the same page with me, at least. I didn't get to marry my childhood
sweetheart like you did. I'm kind of on my own with this one."

Matt glanced around the room
then sighed. Soon, Jason could hear his brother's voice in his head
through the telepathic connection they shared.
I may not be in the same situation, but that doesn't mean you
are alone either. You can still rely on me and I can still reassure
you, right?

Twins in any dragon line didn't happen
often—something about how the eggs formed inside of the mother
didn't allow for it. More often than not, one baby died early in
the pregnancy. To have identical twins like Matt and Jason was
nearly impossible, especially to have them be Touched.

'Touched' was how they described being
blessed with a surplus of magic. Matt excelled in offensive fire
magic, while Jason specialized in more of the defensive side.
Together, they were unstoppable. The two also had the ability to
use telepathy, a skill most dragons only shared with their wives
after intimacy. Matt was able to share the ability with his wife
too, which made things confusing between the brothers since only
Matt could hear his wife.

You're busy.
Things are different. You're a man now and I'm far
from it
, Jason said.

Matthias gave him a
side-glance.
You're still a man even if you
haven't been with your wife.
And you're
melodramatic. Kat agrees with me, by the way. She thinks you're
sweet for keeping Gwen's feelings in mind too, so stop letting the
others get to you so much.

Glad to know my business is
being blabbed about,
said Jason.

She's my wife. I'm supposed to tell her
everything.

Jason nudged Matt.
Shut up, Father just spoke to us. You know he
doesn't like us having side talk at the table.
Jason immediately bowed his head so he could offer up a prayer
for his food before reaching for a few sausage links.

"And what about you, Jason? Was the ritual
everything you expected?" Lynx asked. He leaned forward so he could
see around Matt.

"Yes, everything is
going well so far. We have a lot in common," Jason replied. He'd
always been good at multi-tasking his attention.

"Good, I'm pleased. I knew she was for you
when I saw her," Lynx said. "You have similar spirits. That is
important when choosing a mate. I wish you many years of
happiness."

"Thank you, Father, for your blessing," Jason
said softly, then let Matt have his turn to speak. The other
brothers at the table all eyed the two. Jason and Matt were the
only two teenagers at the table. The two had been eating breakfast
with their father since they were five years old. Most of the other
brothers at the table had only recently received the privilege.

Jason suffered through breakfast, keeping his
focus on the food and not on the conversation. Matt was gushing
again about his bride. Jason was happy for his brother, but he had
an unfair advantage in the marriage ritual.

When an Inero was of the age to marry and
start a family, he was allowed to choose his bride from a number of
young virgin women who were of acceptable marrying age. This was
typically between sixteen and nineteen years of age, and the ritual
happened the first of every month (or just about every month). The
process was supposed to be random, but it wasn't last night. Jason
felt a little better knowing he had been thought of as well, but he
would never compare to Matt, the favorite.

"Are you finished eating already?" Lynx asked
Jason. "Usually you have more than one plate."

"I guess I'm not hungry today. I haven't been
well," he lied. "I'm sure it will pass soon. Thank you for your
concern, Father."

"You may go rest," Lynx said with a smile. "I
will be by to visit you later this evening."

"Thank you, Father. I would enjoy that
greatly. Thank you for being considerate of my needs," Jason said.
He stood, bowed to his father, then briefly made eye contact with
his brother as he left the dining hall. He didn't believe his
father would come by later. Something would come up, no doubt.

He walked through the hallways of the castle,
debating what to do next. He needed to get back to Gwen, but she
was visiting with the other women. She needed to talk to them, get
to know them, and understand how life would be changing for her now
that she was considered of the Elite. Jason was determined to do
his best in helping her adjust, but he figured she might listen
better to another female.

Still, when he had dropped her off at the
wives' pool, he could tell the idea of being with a group of
strangers had made her anxious. He would collect her and bring her
back to his home—
their
home. That was something he was going
to have a hard time getting used to. At least he wouldn't be
completely alone.

Upon finishing with school, the twins were
each offered a place of their own. Matt had opted to keep living in
the castle, staying close to their father. Jason had decided to get
his own house nearby. For the first time, the two lived more than a
door away from each other.

Jason had a lot of unpacking to do and
getting settled. Maybe with Gwen's help, he could make it feel like
a real home. He liked having the peace and quiet, and being away
from the family. The castle was always so busy, especially over the
last few years. He stepped outside the castle doors.

As he made his way to the wives' pool, he
found the streets as busy as ever. The castle was the only old part
of the city and the largest building there. No building was allowed
to be bigger than the massive stone fortress. His great, great
grandfather had built it, and his father had put the law in place.
Lynx continually rejected any proposal to change it. The castle was
just another way for his father to show he was the most powerful
man in the country. The perimeter could easily be over a mile, and
the wall had four stories in height. The castle grounds themselves
consisted of a forest, the pool, and a collection of all Lord
Lynx's many pets. He liked animals from all over the world,
especially horses.

He walked along the walkway leading toward
the pool where most of the wives spent their free time. It was more
like a massive garden. Flowers were everywhere of varying different
species and all shapes and colors. Roses were especially plentiful
as they were the favorite of Lynx's current wife.

The women spent the day there, lounging about
and gossiping. Some ate and drank, others swam in the luxurious
pool, while others read or did art. Jason had only set foot inside
of the area once as a child. Men typically were not allowed to
enter, but a special exception had been made then.

He waved to a few of his half-brothers and
cousins along the way. The population of the city was about
fifty-fifty in terms of the human to dragon ratio. Most of the
humans lived outside of the great city in suburbs or smaller towns.
Almost all of the businesses were dragon owned.

He stopped outside the gate to the pool and
summoned for Gwen. Essentially, he called a secretary who sent a
messenger to find her.

"Are you all right?" Jason asked once she
arrived. She seemed fine, but she was difficult to read. Most of
the women he interacted with were fake and shallow. He couldn't
tell yet if she was the same. Her bluntness from the night before
suggested otherwise, which was refreshing.

"I'm okay," she
said. "There are so many women here, and they're all city ladies. I
guess this sort of thing is normal to them. The other girls kept
talking about how it was their dream come true being taken away
from home to be chosen by the dragon kind or, I guess, your kind."
She glanced up at him and shook her head. "I still can't believe
you're a dragon. I want more proof, but a lot of them talked about
it so openly I can't explain it as a lie anymore."

He sometimes forgot that the normal human
population didn't realize the dragons could take on a human form.
He was so used to being surrounded by his own kind.

"It's kind of a crazy thing if you don't live
with it all your life. I like to think of myself as more of a human
than a dragon," he said.

She moved in closer to him with a small
smile, and he felt as if he had done something right. "I did get to
meet Katarina, like you suggested. She's nice. She helped me get
acquainted with the others. They're a little snotty though, and
cliquey. Most of them were already friends."

Gwen came from one of the farming territories
and was eighteen years old. He'd gotten her to tell him a little
more about herself earlier in the morning. While he had been on the
planet for far longer, he was technically younger than her by a
year by dragon standards. The only other thing he knew about her
was how she enjoyed drinking tea instead of coffee in the
morning.

"That's what it's like all over the city,"
Jason said. "Don't worry, I'll make sure you make some great
friends. In fact, I know someone you'll get along with besides
Kat." Jason liked his brother's wife, but she wasn't like Gwen at
all.

"It's sweet of you to look out for me like
this."

"I want to make sure you're comfortable given
the circumstances. Maybe after things settle some, we can visit
your family."

"I'd like that. They'd appreciate knowing I'm
in good hands. I'm sure they're already proud that I've been chosen
to be an Elite, no matter how much they miss me."

"It'll be good," he said. He couldn't
guarantee frequent visits back home, but one or two wouldn't hurt.
"I hope it makes things easier. I'm glad you feel you're in good
hands. I know we still have a lot to talk about. Like, what happens
now. I'm thankful for your cooperation."

"I'm smart enough to know I can't run away
right now," she said with a shrug.

He laughed. "Hopefully you'll never have to.
I mean, our whole relationship at this point is mostly for show. If
we can keep it believable, no one should give us any problems."