Dragon 5 Ch 1 (Patreon)

The clinking of gold was music to my ears as I swam through the mounds of my hoard with a satisfied grumble rumbling from my chest.

“Zach! We’ve been looking everywhere for you. You are going to be late to the council meeting.” Jadelyn crossed her arms at the edge of my hoard, staring me down. “Stop playing with your gold.”

Ducking back below the mounds of gold, I sank to the bottom of my hoard and pushed myself through the coins.

It was fun. I wasn’t sure exactly how to describe it, but as a dragon, it was like a kid’s joy and a lover’s embrace at the same time.

Fuck, gold was wonderful, and my gold was damn near perfect.

I popped my big draconic head out at the edge of the pile where Jadelyn stood.

My platinum blonde mate was unamused as she arched an eyebrow at me. “Zach.” There was a warning in her tone. “We don’t have time.”

I let out a low rumble, and she softened a touch, running her hand along my snout.

“If I’d known you were going to be like this with your hoard, I would have made you leave it all at the conclave.” She brushed a few coins off of me and kissed my snout. “Now come on, my big dragon mate.” She stood, waiting.

I grabbed the ledge and shifted back into my human form, pulling myself up to her stark naked. Jadelyn bit her lip, looking me up and down once before shaking her own head.

“We have to go.” She said, more to herself than to me. “Get some clothes on before I jump you. You still haven’t put a baby in any of us.”

Pausing halfway to getting clothes out of my bracer, I raised a brow. “What was that?”

“Nothing.” Jadelyn pushed my back and shooed me up the ladder that led out of the enchanted space under my mattress.

“Pregnancy is not nothing.” I shot back. I already knew that Yev and Morgana had stopped any preventative measures, and Yev had been showing up in my bedroom most nights.

It had only been a few weeks since the dragon conclave had concluded, but it felt like everything had changed.

I’d left most of my classes at the university, and with a little help from the Scalewright family, I had been enrolled in an independent study. That would give me time to learn magic from Sabrina and the honor guard of dragons.

So far, none of them had wriggled their way into my bed, but they weren’t subtle about their hope that one day I would invite them in.

It was partially expected of me. I had the ability to revive dragon flights that had gone extinct. But I also had time, and I didn’t want to rush into creating a bunch of dragon babies just yet. I wanted to focus on my growing family of mates.

Until then, my dragon guard would just help me be a better dragon. My ability to wield my magic was still limited, and since I’d stolen half the power of Ikta the spider queen, I needed to get it under control.

“Council meeting.” I said, finishing getting dressed. “Why was this one so important?”

“It isn’t, but my father says the whole council is uneasy if you aren’t there. Philly has almost a dozen dragons living in it now; their voice needs to be present. And it doesn’t help that Maeve refuses to vote, saying that if you aren’t there, the decisions don’t matter.” Jadelyn rolled her eyes. “She wants to be in your bed, too.”

“I’ve gotten that sense.” I teased Jadelyn as my hands wandered down to her hips and pulled her closer. “But I’m having a hard time thinking about anybody but the beautiful woman in front of me. The council doesn’t need me just yet.”

Jadelyn put her hands over mine to stop them and playfully nipped at me. “No. You are the dragon king, and that comes with responsibilities.”

I let out a low groan as I pulled her closer still.

“I love you too.” Jadelyn tilted her head back and closed her eyes.

Taking the offered kiss, I let it linger as she wiggled her hips into mine.

Scenting her, I felt instantly relaxed with my mate close, but a lingering sense wanted me to gather the rest of my mates and stuff them in my hoard for safe keeping.

I was so lost in Jadelyn that I didn’t hear the door.

“Oh, my king, are you ready to nest? Is Lady Scalewright pregnant?” Amira came in, asking. Her bright green eyes were wide in anticipation.

“I’m not pregnant.” Jadelyn countered with a sigh. “Maybe after school.”

Amira bowed, her short black bob knifing down with the motion. “I’m sorry. The king just looks like he’s being overprotective.”

Frowning, I had to reconsider. Ever since I’d come back from the conclave, my dragon had been much closer to the surface. It was influencing my actions to a far greater degree than before.

I’d always liked being close to my mates, but I was feeling far more possessive.

“No, I think I’m just going through a phase.” Grumbling, I tried to push the nagging dragon instincts away. I let go of Jadelyn with a kiss on her head and straightened up. “Let’s go.”

Almost to prove to myself that I could stay focused, I headed out.

On my way out, I waved at Tia and Bart in the crystal that had its own little shelf pointing to the doorway.

Tia bounded off the little bench and waved excitedly at me, her wild red hair bouncing behind her.

They weren’t technically my parents, but my parents were their reincarnation. For whatever reason, my parents hadn’t gone to the conclave and deposited their most recent reincarnation’s memories into the crystal like the past ones had.

As a result, Tia had no memory of having me, but I was the child she always wanted but could never have.

Closing the door behind me, I walked into The Atrium and my honor guard of dragonettes fell into line behind me. They had apparently been waiting for me to come to the council meeting.

“Afternoon, my king.” Polydora bowed with a smirk on her face. “I expected it to take longer after Lady Scalewright joined you in your room.” She turned to Jadelyn. “Is the king quick in bed?”

Jadelyn just laughed like musical chimes. As a siren, her voice was always pleasant to my ears, even more so after she’d sung her song for me at our siren wedding.

Remembering her song, I had another instinct to grab her and drag her back into bed. I staggered in my step for a moment as I regained control of myself.

My instincts were getting more intense.

I wondered if all the talk of making baby dragons was doing something to me. Because while I certainly enjoyed my women, I’d never had such intense urges to bed them immediately before.

“My mate is anything but quick. I couldn’t risk him getting started, or we’d miss another council meeting.” Jadelyn felt the need to clarify.

Polydora shrugged it off. “Why should they not wait for my king? A dragon comes and goes as he pleases. That goes double for The Dragon King.”

I held up a hand to stop the chatter as we entered the council chambers.

All six of the dragonettes filed in behind me. Polydora was the oldest and had become the de facto leader of the group. It helped that she intimidated plenty of people as a born warrior of Amazonian height.

And she carried an intense aura of dominance, as did all the dragon females, even the shier Sarisha.

As we mounted the circular arena, heads turned.

The paranormal council met in a chamber that sat over a circular pit. Those being questioned would stand in the pit, and I’d also learned from personal experience that it was where duels occurred.

Sometimes I saw the scratches and scuffs on the floor below and thought I remembered the moment they were made.

“Zach, my boy, right on time. We were just about to start.” Rupert slapped his chair. The man looked like a bust of Poseidon come to life. We hadn’t gotten along from the start, but ever since he’d found out I was a dragon, he’d been far friendlier to me.

“Dad, you’ve been waiting for him.” Jadelyn rolled her eyes and sat between her father and me.

“Only a little. After all, you can’t rush a dragon.” Rupert laughed while the rest of the council watched.

The paranormal council had three leading factions, or at least, they had before. Now they had four with the dragons among them. There were the sirens, led by Rupert Scalewright. The Elves, who hated Morgana and my very existence. And then there were The Fae, who were hot and cold. But Maeve, The Lady of Fall, was the one representing them at the moment. And she was very much on my side.

Maeve had been trying to make up for her mother’s misstep, when I’d been left to what the queen had believed was a losing battle for me before she knew that I was a dragon. She’d been wrong.

Beyond the three leading factions, lesser groups were also present among the council. Kelly had replaced her father on the council; she was working to reinforce her standing as alpha of the college pack. The uniqueness of her pack was drawing attention and wolves from all over the country. Calling its growth rapid would be the understatement of the year.

For the first time, non-alpha males could have kids. And that was having a noticeable effect on recruitment.

“Now that we are all here, we need to talk about the mongrels that are flooding Philly.” Sebastian spoke for the elves.

Rupert snorted and waved their concern away. “It’s mostly college-age kids coming to join packs. They are harmless.”

“Harmless is not two civilian attacks in the last week. They are rampant and disorderly. The bigger packs in our city were killed last year, and though Kelly is an alpha, she is young and inexperienced.” Sebastian’s voice was like a whip crack.

Kelly, my mate, gripped her chair with white knuckles. If she lashed out at Sebastian, she’d only be reinforcing his opinion of her being inexperienced. But I could tell her instinct was to rip into his throat.

This was the new world of politics that we were all getting used to.

It took a moment, but she was able to finally settle before speaking. “Sebastian. Philly is changing. We have a dozen dragons, and the dragon king himself living in our city. Not only are werewolves flocking to the city, but almost all the paranormal presence has increased as well. The city is going through growing pains, which is why we need to work together.”

It was everything I could do to not smile as the elves glanced my way. I wanted to give Kelly a big thumbs up from across the chamber, but a glance at each other would have to suffice.

"She’s right. Philly has become a hot spot for young paranormals. We would be better suited to welcoming them and integrating them. Tyrande tells me the elves have been welcomed by the two communities here easily enough.” I added, giving Sebastian a healthy dose of side eye.

“Of course. As they should be. They are peaceful, law-abiding citizens of the city. They haven’t been the cause of several crimes. And it’s worth noting that the council still hasn’t heard if Silverwing Mercenaries will take on the tasks we’ve put before it.” Elves were supernaturally good at sharp, accusing glares. I decided it was just extra emphasized by the sharpness of their faces.

I studied his face for a moment, following the random train of thought for a moment while I let him stew before I spoke again.

Unfortunately, Morgana was nowhere to be seen. The only blue women were the Fall Lady and her assistant.

I wasn’t surprised Morgana wasn’t present; she hated administrative meetings like the one we were in. She’d only attended them in the past because I was a subject matter, and she liked to flex just how scary she could be.

“Morgana has it under control. Unless there’s one specific task that you would like to bring up here at the council?” I prodded him.

Maeve cleared her throat. “I think we all agree that those newcomers are mostly welcome, but a few troublemakers are appearing. There have been reports of several vampire attacks that have even caught the police department’s attention.” She glanced behind Rupert at Detective Fox.

“She’s correct, and we’ve been doing what we can to suppress it.” Detective Fox winced a glance at me. “But I think we need Morgana’s help in crossing that gap.”

Maeve’s assistant cleared her throat. Despite only wearing a whisper of silk that left nothing to the imagination, she held her head imperiously. “The fae have killed a number of vampires sniffing around our park.”

Jadelyn leaned close and whispered. “Fae blood is like a drug to vampires. Not quite the level of dragon blood, but something they’d strive for.”

I nodded, thanking her for the assistance. “Then I’ll speak with her after the council meeting to see what we can do.”

A gnome stood on their seat to get everyone’s attention. “Some of us were wondering if more dragons were moving into the city? There are already enough of them it is concerning some races with… tense relationships.”

“For now, I think the migrations after the conclave are nearly settled.” I answered quickly. Most of the dragons had no intention of moving around their roosts and hoards, but my honor guard had come along with Herm, Tim, and their mother.

And of course, their harems. Which meant there were nearly a dozen dragons in a city that had previously had one that didn’t know he was a dragon.

Gnomes and dwarves had a long-standing feud with dragons, so I understood their concern.

“I’d also like to say that I wasn’t raised with the longstanding history between your race and mine. As the king of dragons, I can say that there is no bad blood between us.” I tried to put it eloquently, without losing my ground.

“So, you’ll pay a recompense then?” The gnome asked excitedly. “That would go a long way to smoothing things over. After all, it was the dragons that raided our homes for centuries to steal our gems and gold.”

The very thought of giving up part of my hoard to the gnome had the armrest of my seat cracking before Jadelyn put a hand over mine.

The beast butt its head against my chest, demanding I reduce the gnome to ash for even thinking of my hoard.

“Our king owes you no gold. Be satisfied that he even wishes to dismiss the feud.” Polydora spoke out of turn.

I had to turn and scowl at her, though I appreciated her words. The beast did even more, purring as it watched her closely.

She had broken decorum masterfully and bowed her head to me as she stepped back as if I’d chastised her.

“Are her words your own?” The gnome’s voice hitched up as he spoke.

“As I said, I have no part of this history. To me, there is no debt to pay in either gold or blood. As of now, the only thing that would cause me to act would be any further action by your people.” I leaned back, fighting to keep the smile off my face and pumping my fist.

I sounded like a veritable badass.

Mother fucking king of dragons.