Page 100 of So I Dared a Dragon

Another round of gasps rang from the crowd.

She nodded. “I was lured to him, like many of you were, and thought I was special because he wanted me in his bed. I thought he’d make me his queen, but he used my body for its power, just like he had with the rest of you. When Calista was born, her power was unparalleled, and the elders of the thunder advised me to protect her, to keep her from coming into her full abilities because it would make us a target. The Night God wanted to neutralize her, and when we refused, he threatened a war. Then he sent Aarix, who said that the only way for our thunder to survive was to take shelter in the caverns. I thought it would protect my daughter. But he neglected to mention that Calista would be made part of that war. I didn’t forgive any of you until I saw that Aarix and his dragons had been just as duped as we had. The only thing that comforted me was that Calista had Bibi by her side to keep her safe. That wolf never lost a fight—didn’tmatter what the creature was.” She turned to the Night God. She was tiny in her human form, but her energy was enormous. Any powers I had came straight from her. “Your daughter saved us from you. Now it’s time for you to let her come into her full glory, and let all creatures ruled by the sun and the moon benefit from it.”

Holy. Shit. When I didn’t think anything else could ever shock me. “This jackass is my father?”

Mom nodded. “You have far better taste in men than I ever did.”

I waited for him to deny it, but for once, the Night God was speechless.

“What is the power you’ve kept from me?” I asked.

“You spread beauty throughout the world,” he said.

It was on the tip of my tongue to say,that’s it, but honestly, it was everything. This creature was an agent of darkness, and I was his nemesis.

Instead, I said, “You’ll never stop me again.”

He managed to curl what was left of his lips into a defiant grin. “You can’t stopme.”

“But I can shield her from you,” Aarix growled. He stood beside me, the heat from his body felt exactly like his claim. Protection. Shelter. “You knew all along that was my destiny. You fooled us all. You’re on your own.”

The Night God lunged forward. For a human form that was having the life choked out of it, he still had some power.

I held my hand up. Power radiated from a combination of electricity and flames, culminating in a sphere above our heads. The Night God froze, like someone had taken a picture of him, and that picture crumbled at my feet.

Our loved ones cheered as the sky cleared. Birds sang a victory song.

“Did I kill him?” That was the only rule—we couldn’t do that. We needed night. Even if we had a really fucked-up relationship with it.

“No.” Aarix took me into his arms and kissed me. “You sent him back to the earth, which is where he should be. He’ll gain power, but he’ll never have the means to overpower the beauty you bring to the world or take the light away from the dragons again.”

“Good.” I breathed a sigh of relief. “I was afraid I’d royally screwed things up for good this time.”

“Just the opposite.” Light from the sun danced off Aarix’s scales. “When we look back on this moment, you’ll be celebrated as the one who finally liberated the dragons from their long darkness.”

“Oh, I love that.” Bibi dabbed tears from under her eyes. “Should we go on?”

“Yes. I need to promise myself to this dragon like I should have done centuries ago.” Aarix took my face in his hands. “I will fight for you and your light, now and forever.”

“I promise to make every day beautiful.”

“I now announce you mated!” Bibi declared. “What a wonderful way to bringThe Mating Gameto a close.”

I could hardly take my eyes off my dragon, but I had to correct my best friend. “Girl, we are just getting started.”

**