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Alaric

T he cuffs around my wrists are cold as ice as I fight with them.

I can’t let this happen to my Mistress! She’s just standing there, helpless, with the silver net wrapped around her and that fucking Kraven sucking her dry!

I know this is her nightmare—I could see the fear and pain in her eyes when she told me what he’d tried to do to her last time she was with him.

Yet now I’m watching him do it again and I can’t do anything about it.

Can’t do anything about it? Think again!

I hear the low, rumbling voice in my ears and inside my head at the same time. It seems to be coming from deep inside me. At the same time my Celestial Fire is rising higher and harder and faster than it ever has in my life. What the fuck is happening to me?

Me! I am happening! the voice inside me shouts—it comes out of my mouth too—in a roar and I see Kraven jerk his fangs out of Sylvanna’s neck. He stares at me, his mouth hanging open, all stained with her blood.

I stare back at him. Something is happening to me—something huge I didn’t even know was there, (though I admit I suspected) has awakened.

I don’t know what woke it—was it my fear for my Mistress, my fury at her attacker…or maybe the overwhelming pleasure she gave me when she fucked me? Whatever it was, it woke something powerful within me that’s not willing to go back to sleep.

Break the bonds, it tells me.

“I can’t,” I say. “They’re made from unbreakable silver.”

Nothing is unbreakable for a Drake!

Suddenly, my body is changing. I can feel my wrists growing thicker until they burst the thin silver bands around them.

My neck grows thicker too, until the Collar of Control bursts off.

Then it gets longer and suddenly my head is much higher so that I’m towering over the room.

I feel the top of my head brushing the vaulted ceiling and my body is taking up much more space.

I look down and see that I’m covered in gold and red scales.

Then my back starts itching—right over my shoulder blades. Before I know it, two wings have burst out of me and are beating the air, causing a miniature hurricane.

Kraven’s eyes have been getting wider and wider. He stares at me in horror and then starts backing away from Sylvanna, who’s still frozen in place by that fucking net.

“I didn’t know!” he babbles, holding up his hands in front of him. “Please, how could I know? There hasn’t been a Drake Shifter in the world for over a century!”

“You fucker! You’re going to pay for hurting her!”

The voice coming from inside me is also coming out of my mouth in a deep, inhuman roar. I feel myself at one with the beast I have become. I flex my fingers and reach for him, catching him in one huge, clawed hand.

“No! No, please!” he begs, struggling weakly in my grip. He looks so puny, flailing frantically. But his fangs are still stained with my beloved’s blood—he cannot be allowed to live.

I flex my wings and take a deep breath. Then I blow it out, aiming a gout of flame right at his head.

“Please, no— no!” he screeches and struggles in my grip, his head a burning torch. I don’t care if he’s in pain—he tried to kill the woman I love and he’s going to die for it!

“FUCK YOU!” I roar and I squeeze the life from him in one bone-crunching spasm of my huge, clawed fist.

His broken body goes limp in my enormous hand and blood spatters down onto the floor below. I feel a glow of satisfaction—the fucker is dead! He’ll never hurt my Mistress again!

But then I see something that nearly stops my heart. Beneath the silver netting, Sylvanna has collapsed. She’s lying on the floor and I can’t tell if she’s breathing.

I drop Kraven’s carcass and as I do, I feel myself shrinking down again as the Drake gives me back my own body.

Save her! I can hear him pleading in my head. We must save her!

The minute I’m normal again, I rush over to my beloved and strip away the net. The moment I get it off her, Sylvanna takes a deep, trembling breath. But though she’s free of the net, she’s still pale as death—so pale I swear I can almost see through her!

“Mistress!” I beg. “Come back to me! Don’t leave me here—I need you!”

Blood—she needs blood! I hear the Drake telling me, and I know that he’s right. I look down at my hand and see that one finger has turned into a Drake’s claw, sharp as a razor.

Without hesitation, I slash at the side of my throat with the claw. I feel as sharp pain as the skin parts and blood begins to flow. Cradling Sylvanna in my arms, I bring her close and press her mouth to the side of my neck.

“Drink, Mistress,” I murmur, hoping like hell that this will work. “Drink from me—I want you to. I need you to.”

At first I feel nothing and I start to panic. I can’t lose her! All these days I thought I could get The Heart and go back home, I’ve been fooling myself. The moment she caught me in her Shadows, I was hers. I can’t leave her. I don’t want her to leave me.

Then I feel her lips move—just a little, but it’s enough to give me hope.

“That’s right, Mistress—drink!” I tell her and hold her even closer. “Take my blood—replenish yourself.”

Her lips move again and this time I feel faint suction and know she’s beginning to drink. Relief floods through me and I stroke her back, urging her on, offering myself. I just want her to be all right—I don’t want to lose her!

She’s drinking more deeply now and I can feel my power flowing into her.

The Holy Fire inside me is fueling her own magic, replenishing what was taken by that fucker, Kraven.

Only it’s not really Holy Fire—it’s my Drake’s energy.

But he loves my Mistress as fiercely as I do—I can feel him pushing more of his power into her, willing her to live as I cradle her against me.

At last she stops sucking and pushes at me. Taking the hint, I loosen my grip and look down into her face.

“Alaric…my Paladin…” Her eyes are wide and I can see that she’s definitely feeling better. “Too much,” she whispers. “Your blood…so powerful!”

“It’s what’s inside me,” I tell her and feel the Drake roar in agreement. “He wants you to live as much as I do.” I stroke her cheek. “Are you better now or do you need more?”

She shakes her head.

“No more—I fear I might explode!” She reaches up to touch my throat. “Let me just lick the wound to seal it.”

I bend my head again and she does as she promised, sealing my wound and staunching the flow of blood. Then she murmurs in my ear,

“My Paladin—thank you for saving me.”

“Mistress…Sylvanna.” I cradle her to me. I’m so relieved I can feel tears stinging my eyes. My skin is still so hot they sizzle and turn to steam but as always, my heat doesn’t bother my Mistress. She caresses my cheek and nuzzles against me comfortingly.

“It’s all right now, my Paladin. Kraven is gone and I’m all right. There’s just one more thing we need to do.”

“What’s that?” I ask, frowning.

“We need to cure the Queen and mend the rift between our kingdoms,” she tells me. “But in order to do that, we must awaken The Heart.”