Page 4 of Stolen By Dragons

"I don't think I'm in Kansas anymore," I whispered.

The dragon began to descend, spiraling down toward what looked like a massive courtyard at the base of the fortress. As we got closer, I could make out figures moving about. People. Thank God.

My mind reeled, trying to process everything I was seeing. This couldn't be real. It had to be a dream, a hallucination, something. People didn't just get plucked off the street by dragons and whisked away to magical realms. That kind of thing only happened in books and movies, not to slightly neurotic twenty-seven-year-old counselors with daddy issues.

And yet... the wind in my hair felt real. The dragon's claws around my arms felt real. The growing knot of fear and excitement in my stomach felt very, very real.

As we neared the ground, a new thought occurred to me, one that sent a fresh wave of panic through my system:

What if I couldn't get back?

What about my job? My apartment? My dad? Dana?

Oh God, Dana. The last thing she'd heard was me dropping the phone and then all the commotion of the car and dragon whisking me away. She was probably freaking out right now, calling hospitals and the police.

And my dad... for all his faults, he loved me. The thought of him waiting for a call that would never come, wondering what had happened to his daughter...

Tears pricked at my eyes. I blinked them away furiously. Now was not the time for a breakdown. I needed to keep it together, to figure out what was going on and how to get home.

The dragon's wings flared out, catching the air and slowing our descent. With surprising gentleness, it deposited me on the ground before landing beside me with a thud that shook the earth.

I stumbled, my legs wobbly from the flight and the sheer impossibility of my situation. As I struggled to regain my balance, sucking in mouthfuls of steadying air, a strange shimmer surrounded the dragon. Its form seemed to ripple and shrink, scales melting away to reveal skin. In a matter of seconds, where the massive red dragon had been, there now stood a man.

A very naked, fine as fuck man.

I gaped, my brain short-circuiting as it tried to process what I'd just witnessed. The man – tall, muscular, with the same ruby-red hair as the dragon's scales – looked around imperiously before his gaze settled on me.

"Cloak," he called out, his voice deep and resonant as he stretched his arm out to the side.

A figure rushed forward, draping a long, dark cloak over the man's shoulders. He fastened it with practiced ease, finally covering his... everything.

All I could do was stare at one of the most beautiful men I had ever seen standing before me.

Just what in holy hell was going on?

2

EIRIAN

Ifastened the cloak around my shoulders, acutely aware of the human woman's wide-eyed stare. The shift always left me feeling exposed, vulnerable in a way I despised. But it was necessary. These fragile lesser beings needed to be eased into the realities of our world. But her scent carried none of the hint of our magic like the other beings.

I glanced upwards, watching as my other brethren returned, one by one, each carrying someone in their claws. Tainted ones. The very thought made my lip curl in distaste. But orders were orders, no matter how much I disagreed with them.

I waited until they were all set down in the courtyard, my brethren flying off to leave me and a few others to deal with these new beings.

"Welcome to Dracaria," I announced, my voice carrying across the courtyard. The woman I'd rescued – along with fifteen others brought by my fellow shifters – turned to look at me fully, their eyes a mixture of fear, confusion, and awe. I was used to such looks even from Dracarians who did not harbor the samegift of transformation. "I'm sure you have many questions. All will be explained in due time. For now, know that you are safe here."

A lie, of course. None of us were truly safe, not with the shadow creatures growing bolder by the day. But these tainted ones didn't need to know that. Not yet.

The light-haired woman I'd carried here stepped forward, her chin lifted in a show of defiance that was almost... admirable. "Where are we? What's going on? And who the hell are you?"

I raised an eyebrow, mildly impressed by her audacity. I had assumed most tainted ones would be too stunned by their first dragon encounter to speak so boldly, and yet here she was. The only human too. How peculiar. "As I said, all will be explained. But since you ask so... politely, I am Eirian, son of Asolde and Alaric, of the House of Zaladrex. I am to be your guide and instructor during your time here in Dracaria."

"Dracaria?" she repeated, her brow furrowing as she glanced around. "That's... that's not a real place. It can't be. This has to be some kind of elaborate prank or... or a dream or something."

Annoyance flared in my chest, but I pressed it down. Why did she insist on denying what was right in front of her eyes? Then again, as I glanced around at the rest of the group, it was clear they held the same disbelief.

Wonderful. Just what I needed right now. People who could not even believe what lay right before their eyes.