Dragon Conjurer 10 -- Chapter 4 (Patreon)

I could feel how strong the energy was, and I knew I had to direct it into a safe place or it would backfire on me. I extended my right hand out away from Thor, who was just a few feet to my left, and I pointed the ends of my fingers at a large scraggly bush about four feet away.

Then I released the tension in my muscles and allowed the current to flow through me with all the intensity that had built up.

The lightning that exploded out of my hand was incredibly bright and tinged with a slight shade of indigo. It arced across the distance to the bush, and the main trunk and root system instantly split down the middle as the branches burst into flames.

The bush was completely destroyed before I could blink.

“Holy fuck!” I shouted, and the image of Ky putting the flames out flashed through my mind.

A second later, my ice dragon appeared beside me and breathed a thin layer of freezing ice out over the flaming bush until the fire was smothered by frost.

“Thanks, buddy,” I said to Ky as I patted his scaly blue hide. “We could have burned the whole forest down entirely by accident.”

Ky sniffed at my hand to say, “You’re welcome” and then walked off to whatever he’d been doing before I accidentally set fire to the plantlife.

Lia walked over to me and laid her hand gently on my forearm.

“What happened?” the beautiful blonde asked. “It was not Alex, was it?”

“No, no.” I shook my head and laid my hand on top of hers. “I did that.”

“What?” Lia asked with shock in her bright blue eyes. “What do you mean? How did you set a bush to flames?”

“Remember how I told you about that electrical current I can tap into from Thor?” I asked.

“Yes, I remember.” Lia nodded.

“It was that,” I murmured. I still didn’t understand how or why it had been so much more intense than anything I’d felt from Thor before. I chuckled and shrugged my shoulders like a sheepish kid apologizing for being klutzy and knocking over mom’s favorite vase. “Lightning is dangerous.”

“Yes,” Lia laughed and rolled her eyes at me. “Lightning is very dangerous.”

“I’ll try to keep that in mind,” I teased. “Thanks for checking on us.”

“Are you okay?” Lia asked, and there was a touch of deep concern in her eyes.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” I leaned down and kissed the soft skin of Lia’s temple and sniffed at the golden baby hair by her face.

“Very well,” Lia sighed. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously up at me.

“Damn, Thor.” I reached out to pet Thor and felt a small jump of static electricity discharge from his black scales to the tips of my fingers. “What the hell was that?”

The mental image of Thor rose up in my mind’s eye, and he seemed to shrug at me as if to say, “I have no fucking idea, man.”

“Yeah, I don’t know, either,” I muttered. “But maybe that could be helpful instead of just wild and dangerous.”

“If you can direct a large amount of current through your body, you would have a large advantage on the battlefield,” Lia pointed out.

“That’s true.” I nodded. “The low-level taser thing has already proven really beneficial, and even life-saving at one point. Something much more massive like that has a lot of potential if I can get a handle on it.”

“It looks as though you had control of its trajectory,” Lia said.

“I think I did,” I agreed. “And I had control of its… I don’t know what to call it. The release? The ignition? The moment I let it go was up to me.”

“I understand what you are saying.” Lia nodded, and she pursed her lips together in thought. “I believe that if our roles were reversed, you would suggest that I continue to explore this new ability and strengthen the bond with the dragon who creates it.”

Lia gazed affectionately at Thor, and I could see that she liked my dragons as much as the rest of my team.

“You’re right, of course,” I murmured, and I smirked at the beautiful and brilliant blonde beside me.

Before we could discuss the situation any further, a soft British voice called my name from the brick patio at the back of the estate.

“Mr. Cooper!” Ms. Young shouted.

Lia and I turned around and gazed across the grassy grounds to Mr. Thomas’s assistant.

“You have a phone call, Mr. Cooper!” Piper Young cupped her hands around her mouth as she shouted at me. “It is Headmaster Burkhard!”

“Be right there!” I shouted back. Then I turned to my dragons and started to call them in.”Come on, guys, time’s up.”

All eight of my dragons trotted over, and I could see they were glad that the time outside had given them enough exercise to run out the extra tension they’d had earlier.

“Epistrophi, Fanhui, Moduro,” I said.

Ky, Beyblade, and Goldie disappeared in bright flashes of blue, orange, and golden light, and they curled up in their respective places on my arms and chest.

“Komme tilbake,” I continued. “Búcsú, Dychwelyd.”

Thor, Zofia, and Griff disappeared into their tattoos next in a bright burst of indigo light and the fwoomp of air-sucking pressure from Zofia.

Anya and Vera blinked up at me like little kids who’d gotten left out of the game, and I chuckled as I knelt down beside them.

“Come on, girls,” I said. “Hvala vam.”

The Kamikaze twins disappeared in a bright burst of blue-green light, and the slight scent of ionized air filled my nostrils again.

“Are you coming in?” I asked Lia.

The sexy Russian stood a few feet away and hadn’t called in any of her dragons.

“I think I will stay out a bit longer.” Lia shook her head. “There is still some good sunlight left, and I am enjoying bonding with my dragons.”

“Okay,” I said, and I leaned in and kissed her. “Come in before dark, please? I don’t like the idea of more monster pockets lingering around the city and catching you off guard.”

“They would be the ones caught off guard,” Lia said as she pointedly looked at her large thunder of dragons. “But I will come in before dark.”

“Thanks,” I chuckled. Then I turned and jogged across the grass to the back veranda where Ms. Young stood waiting for me.

“This way, if you please, Mr. Cooper.” Ms. Young gestured for me to follow her. Then she led me through the French doors and into a large library room lined with hundreds and hundreds of books.

Thick, red leather armchairs were located in various strategic spots around the room under various light sources. Some were beside the large windows on either side of the French doors, and others had small wooden tables with classic lamps beside them. There was a massive open fireplace against the wall to my left, and the whole room smelled like leather, wood fire, and the slight tinge of tobacco and whiskey.

Ms. Young moved quickly through the space and out into a long hallway that was decorated with more antique oil paintings of the lovely English countryside. There was a thinness to the center of the red carpet runner that led me to believe this hallway was walked often by the previous owner and his staff. I imagined an aging English Lord seated in one of the large armchairs with a snifter of fine whiskey in one hand and a novel in the other as his maid brought in a proper English tea service for her master.

Lia had nailed it, this whole estate was like something straight out of Pride and Prejudice, or at least the parts of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies that I assumed were accurate to the classic romance novel, since I’d never seen any other version of the movie.

“Right in here, sir,” Ms. Young said as she stopped at the end of the hall.

I looked around and realized I knew where we were. Mr. Thomas’s office was the next door down, and if I went a bit further down the hall and around the corner, I would find myself in the entrance hall.

“Thank you, Ms. Young,” I said, and I walked through the doorway.

The space was fairly large with a heavy oval table in the center and plush leather office chairs all around it. The wall across from me had large windows that looked out on the back grounds, and I could see Lia jogging around with her desert dragon, Topaz. There was a black phone with sleek buttons in the center of the table, and the receiver laid waiting for me on the smooth surface.

“You’re welcome, Mr. Cooper,” Ms. Young replied. “Take as long as you need. Just return the phone to the receiver when you are finished.”

I nodded at the pretty assistant and waited for her to close the door before I picked up the phone.

“Hello?” I said into the phone.

“Mr. Cooper,” Headmaster Burkhard’s voice rumbled through the line to me, and I could picture him seated at his desk back in his office at AIMM with his fingers steepled together.

“Hello, sir,” I said. “What can I do for you?”

“I’ve been informed that you are already doing plenty for me, and indeed all of the Academies,” Burkhard said lightly. “Mr. Thomas informed me about the situation with the werewolves today, and though I am totally unsurprised by you and your team’s sense of duty, I am quite grateful for it. Even on your day off, you do your duty for this fine institution.”

“It was no problem at all, sir,” I assured him.

“Nevertheless,” Burkhard insisted. “You and your team continue to demonstrate your invaluableness.”

“Thank you, sir.” Since the Kingpin look-alike couldn’t see me, I didn’t bother hiding my smug smirk in the empty conference room.

“Well, now on to more serious matters.” Burkhard cleared his throat. “I have news for you about the situation here at AIMM.”

“Okay,” I said, and I pulled out one of the leather seats to sit down. “What’s going on?

“With much thanks to Dr. Hastings, her team, and Mr. Hanes, we have gotten SEEKR back up online and running smoothly,” Burkhard said.

“Oh, that’s great!” I pictured Brandon the last time I’d seen him, unconscious in Dr. Hastings’ care just moments after a possessing wraith had been forcibly evicted from his mind. “Brandon was able to help with the corrupted code, then?”

“Yes,” Burkhard confirmed. “Mr. Hanes was able to delve into the corrupted AI and mend the issue quite easily, in fact.”

“I’m glad,” I said. “How’s he doing since the wraith was removed?”

“Physically, Mr. Hanes is quite well,” Burkhard said, but there was something in his voice that made me feel like that wasn’t all of it. “Mentally, he is still rather unstable. Dr. Hastings has assured me that he is processing the trauma of his possession quite well, and she expects a full recovery. I believe it did wonders for his unstable mental state to be able to provide real and meaningful help to the Academy by assisting with the repairs to SEEKR’s code.”

“I bet it did. Brandon always felt like he wasn’t able to help enough,” I explained. “I got the impression that he felt like it was his fault he was possessed, and he felt a lot of shame for that. I think being able to use his abilities in a productive way would be a great way to help him work through the guilt.”

“I believe so as well,” Burkhard said. “In fact, Mr. Hanes was able to create an entire new network of security walls within SEEKR’s code. His technopathic abilities have proven to be quite advantageous in making sure no monsters can ever get inside out networks again. SEEKR is safer than it ever has been before thanks to him.”

“That’s great.” I smiled. “It’s good to hear that SEEKR is so secure.”

“Quite right, Mr. Cooper,” Burkhard agreed, and I could almost hear him nodding. “I also have news for you in regards to the other Academies.”

“Yes, sir?” I asked, and my interest was officially piqued.

“All of the other Academies’ headmasters and headmistresses have agreed to link our systems together in a massive intelligence network,” Burkhard said, and he sounded almost giddy at the fact. “Even Headmistress Volkov has agreed to the link. I believe you and your team’s excellent work on your various diplomatic missions to the other Academies is really paying off.”

“I’m glad we can be so helpful,” I said as calmly as possible, but it was wild to me that in the few months since I’d joined AIMM, I’d been able to make such a positive impact on the monster-fighting institutes of the world.

“Well, I also have some less than good news for you as well,” Burkhard continued, and his voice shifted to a darker and more serious tone.

“That doesn’t exactly surprise me, sir,” I said as I rolled my eyes at the conference table’s shiny surface. “I didn’t expect any kind of calm to last. Are there any updates on The Great Scaled One or His location?”

“Possibly,” Burkhard said slowly, and I could almost hear him listening for evesdroppers in his office before he continued in an even lower tone. “There has been more suspicious monster activity around the world since the simultaneous attacks on London and Seattle.”

“Big attacks?” I asked as tension instantly gripped around my chest. “Where do you need us next?”

“No, no,” Burkhard said. “Nothing even close to that size has happened in the last forty-eight hours, thankfully. And in fact, Mr. Cooper, I need you and your team exactly where you are for the moment.”

“Okay…” I hesitated. I wasn’t sure what he was hinting at, but there was something in the headmaster’s tone that made it clear there was a lot more going on that he didn’t feel comfortable sharing over the phone. “I’m not sure what that means, sir.”

“I’m sending one of my top scientific advisors to London,” Burkhard said. “They’re going to bring all of the information directly to you.”

“Alright,” I agreed. My mind immediately threw the image of Dr. Hastings naked and writhing beneath me into the forefront of my mind, but I shoved the image away. “I take it this advisor will be able to tell me everything I might need to know about this information?”

“Yes, exactly, Mr. Cooper,” Burkhard sighed with what sounded like relief. “I’m glad you understand.”

“No problem, sir,” I assured him.

I felt pretty suspicious that, even though SEEKR was back up and running, there were some concerns on the safety and privacy of open phone lines like this. But I could totally understand Burkhard’s concerns. We’d already learned the hard way that The Great Scaled One had ways to break through the Academy’s security measures, and we were inching ever closer to the endgame here. I could almost feel Him breathing down the back of my neck, even in the middle of AMIE’s London estate.

“The advisor will be bringing some good news for you as well, Mr. Cooper,” Burkhard said. “Something a bit lighter and, I hope, exciting for you and your team.”

“Thank you, sir,” I said because I didn’t know what else to say. Good news was always nice, but I was pretty sure there wasn’t much else that was better than the Academies all working together for the greater good. “Is there anything else I can do for you? How are things going at AIMM? You said Brandon is doing well?”

“Yes, Mr. Cooper,” Burkhard said in his usual tone of voice. “Mr. Hanes is in perfect health physically, and Dr. Hastings has set up private intensive therapy sessions for him with one of our scientists who has a background in human psychology. They have assured me that Mr. Hanes has an excellent prognosis in regards to the trauma he experienced.”

“That’s great news,” I breathed a sigh of relief. “Would you please tell Brandon we’re all rooting for him?”

“Of course,” Burkhard assured me, and a bit of humor colored his tone as he went on. “The Academy is also fairing well enough without you. Our cadets have been going out on regular missions, and I’ve dispatched a few teams to Seattle to help with the clean up. Other than that, it’s been business as usual.”

“Good, good,” I murmured, and I tried and failed to suppress a yawn.

“I’ll let you go now, Mr. Cooper,” Burkhard chuckled. “I know you’ve had a long and eventful day. Get some sleep, I have a feeling you’ll need your strength soon enough.”

“I had that feeling as well, sir,” I agreed. “Thank you for all the updates. Have a good night.”

“Of course, have a pleasant evening,” Burkhard said. Then I heard him begin to give some orders to someone before the line went dead.

I shook my head at the receiver and hung it up. Then I stood up and glanced out the window in search of Lia, but she must have gone inside while Burkhard and I were talking. The huge yard was shadowed in the dim light of sunset, and Lia and her dragons were nowhere in sight. I hoped she had returned to her room for a good night’s sleep.

I yawned and headed out into the quiet hallway, and I didn’t come across anyone as I made my way up the main staircase and down the long corridor to the wing where our rooms were. Nick and all my ladies’ doors were all closed, and the hall was quiet, so I assumed they were settling in for the night.

It wasn’t particularly late yet, but we’d had a very busy few days, and I expected they were feeling about as tired as I was.

I walked into my room, shrugged off my new badass leather jacket, and held it up to admire it for a moment before I hung it on the back of a chair at the small table. Then I stripped off the rest of my clothes and dropped them in a heap by the bathroom door, and I walked into my bathroom for a hot shower. While the water got to temperature I allowed my mind to wander.

Burkhard had said he was sending one of his top scientific advisors, and my brain really wanted it to be Dr. Hastings. The idea of having the sexy cougar here in London, well away from our usual Academic environment, gave me that excited giddy feeling I used to get on Christmas Eve when I was a kid.

I let myself fantasize about fucking the platinum-blonde scientist right here in this shower while I scrubbed the London dust from my hair. It wasn’t long before my body was raging with arousal, and I had to turn the water temperature down or risk completely overheating.

I shoved those thoughts away to avoid future disappointment. I knew it was incredibly unlikely that Dr. Hastings would be the one to come all the way to London just to deliver the information and data from SEEKR. Any scientist could do that, and AIMM was chock-full of them. As much as I wanted to see Dr. Hastings and have a taste of her again, I knew the scientist arriving was probably going to be some old balding man.

Thankfully, I had my five girlfriends here with me in London.

The thought hit me suddenly, and I laughed to myself. I still couldn’t believe that I had five sexy, badass women who were committed to me, and a sexy side piece cougar who wanted me every chance she got. What I had ever done to deserve this kind of sexual karma, I didn’t know, but I was going to cling to it with everything I had.

I took a few deep, steadying breaths and tried to shove my arousal back down as I let the warm water flow down my back, but alluring images of Dr. Hastings in just her stockings and garter belt kept creeping into my mind.

I groaned with frustration and turned the water off.

Maybe when all of this was over, and we returned to AIMM, I could have Dr. Hastings again. I bet she would be down for a bit of “we saved the world from a massive force of evil” celebratory sex session.

The idea made me smile as I turned the shower off and dried my body with a thick white towel. Then I shaved quickly and brushed my teeth in preparation for bed, and I walked back out of the bathroom with the towel slung around my shoulders to catch the last few drops of water from my hair.

I was in the middle of digging out a pair of boxers from my worn duffel bag when a subtle knock at the door caught my attention.

“What now?” I wondered.

I stepped into my boxers and walked over to the door, and just before I laid my hand on the knob, I heard a slight giggle from the otherside.

I smirked to myself as I recognized the playful laughter of my pink-haired girlfriend. When I pulled the door open, Steffi and Nala were standing in the hallway wrapped in the same thick white bathrobes that I’d spotted in my own bathroom.

“Hello, ladies,” I said, and I leaned against the doorframe as my erection sprang back to life.

Steffi’s face was already flushed with arousal, and there was a mischievous glint in Nala’s dark eyes.

“Hey, cutie,” Steffi giggled, and her eyes raked over my nearly naked and obviously aroused body. “Mind if we come… in?”

“I don’t mind at all,” I teased. “But I think I might be the one cumming in. If you know what I mean.”

“That’s what we were hoping for,” Nala murmured, and her breathing was already a bit ragged.

Nala and Steffi walked into my room together, and I closed the door behind them before I leaned back against it and enjoyed the view as they dropped their robes to the floor. They were both completely, perfectly, and beautifully naked underneath, and my cock twitched excitedly toward my strawberry and chocolate lovers.

“Nala and I agreed…” Steffi purred, and she wrapped her left arm around Nala’s waist. Then she caressed the tips of her fingers up the curly-haired girl’s taunt stomach. “We need some good Dragon Conjurer loving.”

“Yeah,” Nala breathed. “Like, right now.”

“I think I can help with that.” I smirked at my sexy ladies.