around in groups, talking. That was until they saw them and quieted down. There were no chairs and she wondered why. Maybe so they could shift quickly? Or maybe it kept the meetings short with no comfy furniture anywhere in site.
She ran her hand down the wall nearest to her and watched as a sparkly dust appeared on her fingers. She expected to find a wet and cold crypt like stone and was fascinated instead at the cool, dry surface. The dust illuminated the area where she stood, with the small, additional feature of glowing fingers. Absolutely freaking cool! This kind of magic would be awesome for human spelunkers. Putting her hands in her pockets, she hurried to catch up with her friends.
She was one of the last to enter and was glad, as she was able to hide behind the larger men. She was sure the individuals already there recognized her humanity and they probably wondered why she was here with their king. Or lord. Someday she’d get the titles right. Her group stood aside as the dragon lord went to the middle of the tavern and spoke to his dragons. She studied their faces, trying to pick Amon out of the crowd.
“There have been some rumors flying around about invading the human realm. I will state to you now, I will not invade! Nor will your Queen allow this. This is a foolhardy plan in my opinion. You already know my reasons, but you have not heard from one who lives there. I have asked Colin of the Wolf Creek Pack to speak on their behalf.” He nodded to Colin.
Stephanie admired the way Colin confidently strode to the middle of the room and addressed the audience.
“Humans are not ready to learn of us. They fear magic and will fight back with more than any of you can imagine. They are not weak in any way. If they have one foe to focus on, they will throw everything they have against it and will unify to defeat you. You also do not have the Fae community behind this outrageous proposal. I suggest you drop this foolish plot before it goes any further.” Expecting either outrage or questions, he waited for both.
Most of the practical thinking dragons shook their heads in agreement, silently admonishing the over zealous ones.
“I’d heard the rumors.” Stroking his long, white beard, the older dragon stood out in the crowd. “These uprisings have come and gone many, many times in my lifetime. Which, as most of you know has been pretty darn long.” He paused at the chuckles echoing through the chamber. “Living in the Faery world benefits dragons beyond the incredibly beautiful landscape and clean air to fly in. Lest you younger dragons forget, Faery magic sustains us. Your magic comes from this plain, and this plain only. Yes, you could live on earth, but at what cost? Over the centuries you would not be as strong as you are living here. Oh yes, you could visit Faery and get a boost, but it’s not the same as soaking it in every day. You would start to age at a faster rate and at my age, I can’t afford to lose any more years.” They chuckled again as he stepped back into the crowd, his speech done.
Stephanie noted the tone of the room and from her observations these dragons had no need or desire to start a war with humans. She wondered if Amon was even here, or maybe he was doing his work behind the scenes and trying to influence dragons on a small scale. Whispers to attentive ears can do a lot of damage.
“That’s easy for you to say, old one. You have a large province for your clan. What about the younger dragons?”
Stephanie no longer wondered. Evidently this was Amon and he decided it was time to speak up. She wasn’t impressed. Oh, he was tall like every shifter she’d met, and cute, but not beautiful. He had the pretty boy face of a young model doing underwear ads, but no character lines showing any strength or adversity. What he did have was charisma, and that was a dangerous thing in a young, untried rebel. Whether he was intelligent or imbecile, she wasn’t sure yet. The combination of
She ran her hand down the wall nearest to her and watched as a sparkly dust appeared on her fingers. She expected to find a wet and cold crypt like stone and was fascinated instead at the cool, dry surface. The dust illuminated the area where she stood, with the small, additional feature of glowing fingers. Absolutely freaking cool! This kind of magic would be awesome for human spelunkers. Putting her hands in her pockets, she hurried to catch up with her friends.
She was one of the last to enter and was glad, as she was able to hide behind the larger men. She was sure the individuals already there recognized her humanity and they probably wondered why she was here with their king. Or lord. Someday she’d get the titles right. Her group stood aside as the dragon lord went to the middle of the tavern and spoke to his dragons. She studied their faces, trying to pick Amon out of the crowd.
“There have been some rumors flying around about invading the human realm. I will state to you now, I will not invade! Nor will your Queen allow this. This is a foolhardy plan in my opinion. You already know my reasons, but you have not heard from one who lives there. I have asked Colin of the Wolf Creek Pack to speak on their behalf.” He nodded to Colin.
Stephanie admired the way Colin confidently strode to the middle of the room and addressed the audience.
“Humans are not ready to learn of us. They fear magic and will fight back with more than any of you can imagine. They are not weak in any way. If they have one foe to focus on, they will throw everything they have against it and will unify to defeat you. You also do not have the Fae community behind this outrageous proposal. I suggest you drop this foolish plot before it goes any further.” Expecting either outrage or questions, he waited for both.
Most of the practical thinking dragons shook their heads in agreement, silently admonishing the over zealous ones.
“I’d heard the rumors.” Stroking his long, white beard, the older dragon stood out in the crowd. “These uprisings have come and gone many, many times in my lifetime. Which, as most of you know has been pretty darn long.” He paused at the chuckles echoing through the chamber. “Living in the Faery world benefits dragons beyond the incredibly beautiful landscape and clean air to fly in. Lest you younger dragons forget, Faery magic sustains us. Your magic comes from this plain, and this plain only. Yes, you could live on earth, but at what cost? Over the centuries you would not be as strong as you are living here. Oh yes, you could visit Faery and get a boost, but it’s not the same as soaking it in every day. You would start to age at a faster rate and at my age, I can’t afford to lose any more years.” They chuckled again as he stepped back into the crowd, his speech done.
Stephanie noted the tone of the room and from her observations these dragons had no need or desire to start a war with humans. She wondered if Amon was even here, or maybe he was doing his work behind the scenes and trying to influence dragons on a small scale. Whispers to attentive ears can do a lot of damage.
“That’s easy for you to say, old one. You have a large province for your clan. What about the younger dragons?”
Stephanie no longer wondered. Evidently this was Amon and he decided it was time to speak up. She wasn’t impressed. Oh, he was tall like every shifter she’d met, and cute, but not beautiful. He had the pretty boy face of a young model doing underwear ads, but no character lines showing any strength or adversity. What he did have was charisma, and that was a dangerous thing in a young, untried rebel. Whether he was intelligent or imbecile, she wasn’t sure yet. The combination of
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