Page 2 of Brutal Dragon King (Nayara Dragon Kings #1)

Soaring over the thin, gray veil that covers The Spine of Nayara, my men follow close behind, allowing me to lead the way. With my advantage over them, I’m able to, for a stolen moment, enjoy the cool, dewy moisture of the mist that covers my kingdom, hovering above the misty clouds a little longer before The Palace Gardens come into view.

The brisk moisture feels divine against the tough, rubbery armor of my dragon’s scales, slipping through the cracks of the layers and settling on the soft, fibrous tissue that makes up the hypodermis of my dragon form. When I’m close enough to see the tip of the canopy above the palace throne room, I give a majestic flap of my wings and aim my pointed nose in that direction.

My men already know not to follow me toward the palace. Their duty calls for them to gather in the courtyard while I fly toward my hall for some respite. It’s been a long day of overseeing the reaping processions in the mortal village that forms part of my kingdom, and it’s so unnecessary, that I need a moment to catch my breath and reclaim the air of The Spine.

I don’t hate The Emberlands, except that I see no reason to walk amongst the mortal creatures of Nayara. Humans are so insignificant, that it actually chills my naturally heated bones to be walking amongst them just to ensure that everything is set in place for tomorrow’s reaping.

After all, it’s my human that will be chosen in the lucky draw as my child-bearer. I don’t look forward to the event, and the only reason I visited the village today was to check that everything was in order, and because what good a king would I be if I didn’t show my presence?

I’ve never been so closely involved in The Spine’s reaping processes for a human mate. Not even when my close friend, Ryu, had his turn last year.

“ Your Majesty, we’ll be waiting for you in the courtyard,” Ryu’s mind link comes as expected. As the head of the royal guard, Ryu has to inform me of his every move while the rest of the soldiers follow his orders.

“ Of course, Ryu. I don’t know how long I’ll be,” I reply, gliding down to my throne hall. When I reach the terrace, I drop my dragon form and land effortlessly on human feet, huffing out a sigh. Rolling my head across my shoulders, I reacquaint myself with my human structure by cracking my knuckles, feeling somewhat foreign in this form.

I shrug off the unwarranted feeling, knowing that it’s because the last time I was in human form earlier today, I had a very strange encounter with a human. One that shouldn’t even cross my mind, but my fingers still tingle with the sensation of her shoulders beneath my palm.

“Fuck…” I murmur, frowning at myself while staring blankly at the intricately carved golden throne decorated with sapphire gems to match the colors of my dragon. A shiver runs through me and forces me to turn to the panoramic view of the mountainous region where the trees aim to reach for the misty skies and provide bountiful shade over The Spine with their stretching canopies.

The air out here is crispier and cooler than it is in The Emberlands, and much has to do with the pollution out there. In the mortal world, where factories and farming are overflowing, it’s no wonder the air is more dense and polluted.

The land is also polluted with the likes of other mortal creatures, like the humans from which a mate is picked. Walking up to the balustrade, I settle my hands on the metal bar and sigh.

Since I was born, I knew what my future would look like. Now that it’s on the horizon, it’s almost hard to believe that by tomorrow, a human will be sent to my palace to become my child-bearer. Humans are looked down upon amongst the dragon race, and I’d grown up with the knowledge that, as dragons, we were much superior to them.

I don’t hate them.

I just don’t see any use for them other than bearing children for my kind. If I had it my way, I’d have a fellow dragon shifter carry my royal offspring. But that’s not an option.

Then why do I have the incessant need to recall the human who’d foolishly clashed with me in the village?

Hah!

It was nothing but a reminder of how spineless and stupid the humans are!

As the sun begins to set on the horizon, it feels like the orange hues form a curtain over my last act as a king without an heir. I don’t know if it’s a good thing, or if it’s ominous. All I know is that I want it to be over and done with.

I’ll produce an heir with the human who will be randomly selected through the lottery reaping process tomorrow, and discard her as soon as my son is born.

It’s simple. I’ve made sure not to complicate things. That’s why I won’t even attend tomorrow’s gathering when she’s selected. My men will do my bidding, as they’re meant to, and she’ll be brought to the palace to do what her king needs of her. It’s not like I care what she looks like.

I don’t have a personal preference when it comes to humans. They’re all the same to me.

Reckless and foolish, vulnerable and weak.

As weak as…

“Your Majesty…” A timid voice squeaks from behind, hauling me out of my thoughts. A wave of anger washes over me as if my inner dragon has been rudely interrupted, and it extends into the curling of my fists at my sides as if its energy is commanding my human movements.

I turn to find a maidservant standing behind my throne with her head bowed.

“What is it?”

She looks up nervously, hesitating when she says, “The Queen Mother is in the great hall.”

“What is my mother doing here?” I ask irritably.

The maidservant looks up, toying with the frills on the front of her apron, “Her Majesty, the Queen Mother, is here for dinner. So is King Jaid?n and King Kaid?n.”

It takes me only a second to remember that I’d planned to meet with my mother and brothers tonight. I guess I’d been so busy with preparations for tomorrow, that it’d slipped my mind.

I don’t like it. I shouldn’t be distracted by the reaping to forget my royal duties. One of which is updating my brothers—who rule their own kingdoms in Nayara and parts of The Emberlands that fall under their respective jurisdictions—on what is going on in The Spine.

For now, it’s the human mate selection process that’s taking all my time. I just need it to be over so I can concentrate on real kingdom duties. Unfortunately for me, I am the eldest, and even if we’ve all lived for almost three hundred years and ruled our kingdoms, it is my duty to sire an heir before my brothers.

“Tell my family I will be down in a moment,” I tell the maidservant, who bows again.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” she says before turning around and scrambling off back to the staircase.

Sighing heavily, I glance at the sunset behind me, the sun’s disappearance behind the mist seemingly foreshadowing what’s to come after tomorrow’s reaping. I clear my throat, donning my suit of armor as the authoritative figure in The Spine of Nayara, focusing on the mind link I share with the dragon shifters in my kingdom.

Specifically the head of the Royal Guard.

“ Ryu…” I call in my mind. “... Relieve yourselves of debriefing. It will not be necessary at this time.”

The pause that comes after my order has me sensing that Ryu is frowning in confusion. I can almost picture it since I’m able to detect his feelings even if he’s nowhere near me. It comes with the territory of not only being a dragon shifter but also being the king.

“ Are you sure, Your Majesty? We require instructions for tomorrow’s—”

“ Are you questioning my orders?!” I mentally yell at Ryu. I hear his sharp, shocked intake of breath through the telepathic communication channel, and scoff under my breath and make sure he hears my irritation. “ The guard is already aware of what needs to happen tomorrow. There’s nothing more required of your king,” I growl to punctuate my statement and make it clear that I don’t intend to change my mind.

“ Yes, Your Majesty. My apologies. I will not—”

I abruptly cut the communication by shielding my mind. I have no intention of listening to Ryu’s apology. I might become so frustrated that I’d forget he’s a friend, and behead myself.

He, of all people, should know not to question me. Ever.

Grunting at the sunset, I blow a breath as fiery as my dragon’s, and spin on my heel, passing my throne and brushing my fingertips along the golden armrest as I make my way to the flight of stairs.

Once I’ve reached the ground floor, I’ve willed myself back to my composure, keeping my chin lifted as I enter the great hall. With cascading burgundy curtains being drawn by the servants to signal the upcoming nightfall, the chandeliers are lit and cast brilliant light on the oak table in the center.

“Family,” I announce diplomatically when I walk through the arched doorway. Kaid?n, the youngest of the Nayara siblings, is the first one up, his signature smirk shining out as brightly as the light fixtures.

“Brother man!” he greets me with a playful slap on my shoulder before he draws me into a casual hug.

I feel myself tense, only mildly patting him on the back and humming until he releases me. When he steps back, Jaid?n, who’s only a year older than Kaid?n, sticks out his hand for me to shake.

“Haid?n,” he nods when I shake his hand. He’s more grim and uptight than Kaid?n, and all he offers is a half-smile as if he’s duty-bound. “You were expecting us.”

“I was,” I nod back, clearing my throat when Mother saunters forward and flings her flowing-sleeved arms around my neck. She presses soft, feminine lips on my cheek, exuding a warmth that has me stiffening now.

I hate these formalities, especially at a time like this. Before the year rolled around to the time of the annual reaping in the Kingdom of The Spine, my brothers and I had been planning on conquering the land ruled by King Hestios—the dragon king of the land of Khyronia in the west. With all three of our kingdoms in the Nayara Dynasty combined, we would have easily defeated our opposition and become even more powerful.

It was Mother who reminded us of the duties of carrying on our lineage. I can’t deny that it isn’t important.

That’s the only reason I’m going ahead with this.

“My son!” Mother whispers as she cups my cheeks in her delicate hands, inspecting my face with twinkling eyes. “Are you ready for tomorrow?

I grimace as I gently remove her hands from my cheeks, then step aside to gesture with a wave to the waiting feast spread out on the table. My servants are always one step ahead. I’ve trained them well, and I never enter the great hall without it set up already.

I don’t have the patience.

When everyone is seated, I take my place at the head of the table, and a servant comes over to lift the lid off my plate, revealing the main course of baked potatoes and seared ribeye. Meat is a staple for a dragon shifter, although we prefer it raw and fresh. I make a mental note to plan a proper hunt. With its abundance of mountains, The Spine makes for an excellent

“I heard you visited your side of The Emberlands today,” Kaid?n comments as he tips his wine glass to his lips.

Narrowing my eyes at him, I attempt to read his thoughts, knowing that nothing is ever black and white with our younger brother. But he’s blocked me out, and I can’t read his thoughts, even with my gift of deeper telepathy.

Each of us possesses supernatural gifts, thanks to our mother, who isn’t an ordinary human. Since dragon shifters can’t breed amongst each other, it was our sperm donor—or father, who doesn’t deserve the title—who fostered children with a witch. Mother is immortal because she had dragon cubs with the missing tyrant king, who disappeared soon after Kaid?n was born.

The youngest was gifted with the power of shielding his thoughts and feelings, though the latter could be considered a result of not remembering who our father was.

Jaid?n reaches for his wine and remains tight-lipped as he pretends to stay out of the conversation. He could have easily used his telekinetic powers to spill Kaid?n’s drink over the front of his crisp white shirt, but Jaid?n shook his head discreetly when I put the thought into his mind.

“... See anything you like out there?” Kaid?n continues.

I growl under my breath, my nostrils flaring with irritation.

“There is nothing to like, Kai,” I remind him with a scowl. “Might I remind you that they are but lowly peasants?”

Kaid?n snickers under his breath. “We all know that, but aren’t you at least a little curious about who your sex slave will be?” he smirks mischievously as he twirls his wine glass in front of him.

I grunt my indifference, even if an unjustified thought enters my mind. When I visited The Emberlands earlier today, hiding my identity behind a black hooded cloak when I joined my men in the village hub where the lottery participants were dropping their tokens into the pot, I had a strange encounter with a human.

“Strange” because I’m left with residual afterthoughts about her. Thoughts that I wish I didn’t have, and I’ve been trying to push them out of my mind with much struggle. It’s not as though the human has any right in my head, but she’s left an impression on my inner dragon that shouldn’t be there in the first place.

It’s not like we choose our humans—at least, not in The Spine. My brothers might have their own reaping methods, but here in my kingdom, a random human is picked through the lottery draw. They’re just numbers on a token, and they’ll suffice as the child-bearer for a dragon shifter. Besides, I couldn’t bother with the logistics, or care enough to turn the reaping into an exaggerated, extravagant affair.

It’s just a plain old lottery system where a random token will be picked. It makes it easier for me since the humans aren’t worth my time. There are more important things to take care of, and it doesn’t matter what the child-bearer looks like.

But even if I had a preference, the human who crashed into me on my way to the first leg of the reaping procedure today isn’t exactly fit to carry a dragon cub. At least, at first glance, I might consider that she would be the least likely to carry a dragon cub to full term. Strongly out of shape, it’s impossible that she cares for her well-being, and probably stuffs her face with anything she can get her hands on.

Besides, she’s just a whimsical human, a careless half-wit creature with no real reason to be breathing except that she has a one-in-fifty chance of being randomly chosen in tomorrow’s draw. Hopefully, the slim chance of her token being picked will be enough to cancel out another encounter with her.

Then why is there a nagging sense that my inner dragon felt drawn to her with all her voluptuous curves and overflowing breasts in that dreadful brown robe? Gulping, I push aside the image of her doe blue eyes, not wanting to dwell on the dangerous thought that I might get lost in them.

“Sex slave…” I murmur distastefully, the bitterness swirling in my mouth forcing me to dive into my meal to get rid of the taste. I shake my head, and my silence somehow gives Jaid?n the floor to break his own.

“Will you be attending the reaping draw tomorrow, Brother?”

I look up and frown at Jaid?n. “My attendance isn’t required at tomorrow’s draw.”

Shrugging, I dive into my meal while Mother prattles on about the reaping procedure and how my absence tomorrow doesn’t matter since I’m not handpicking a child-bearer from the peasants. Kaid?n doesn’t miss a chance to add that since the human will be a sex slave, she should be appealing to our inner dragons.

I choke on my first bite of the baked potato. Not because of what Kaid?n said, but because I can still taste soil. Spitting the unswallowed mass of raw potato into a napkin, I slam my palm on the table with brute force. The impact rattles the cutlery loudly enough to send a servant scurrying into the hall.

“Your Majesty…” he bows, then shrieks in surprise when I grab the towel over his arm and yank him closer.

Growling in his ear, I grate, “Who is responsible for this?” To drive in my point, I grab the half-unbaked potato and smash it between my fingers, large clumps of dry, rawness left in my palm.

“F-forgive me, Your Majesty,” the servant apologizes, on the brink of tears with his trembling voice. “I will check with the kitchen—” he begins as he reaches for my plate, but I’m so angry that I snatch it back and fling it across the room. When it shatters to a botched pile on the ground, Mother gasps.

“Haid?n!” she exclaims, clutching the pearls on her neck, her eyes wide. “What is the meaning of this?!”

“Do not question me, Mother…” I grate through gritted teeth, rising to my feet and yanking the napkin from my chest before tossing it on the table. “I will not hear any more about the reaping. I have lost my appetite, anyway,” I say the last statement more for the trembling servant who doesn’t know where to put his face.

My firm announcement stretches a grim silence over the dining hall, and that’s my cue to make my departure and retreat to my bed chambers for the night without anyone daring to follow me or press my buttons.

Duty-bound as the eldest brother and the king of The Spine to sire an heir isn’t as exciting as my mother and youngest brother make it out to be. It shouldn’t be an exciting event, after all. It’s just something that needs to be done so that the kingdom remains as powerful as it always has been.

That’s all it is. Duties.