The Commander and the Dragon (Redwood Dragons Book 3) Read online

  The Commander and the Dragon

  The Redwood Dragons, Book 3

  By Sloane Meyers

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Similarities to actual people or events are entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 by Sloane Meyers. All rights reserved.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Thank You For Reading!

  More Books by Sloane Meyers

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Zeke Pars breathed in deeply, relishing the way the cool evening air filled his lungs. It was quiet out here, high above the forests of Oregon. The only noise hitting his ears was the soft whooshing of wings as he and his fellow dragon shifters flew toward their final destination. Zeke peered through the darkness, trying to make out anything that might look like a town. But despite his keen eyesight, the only things he could see were the dark shapes of the trees below him. In the pitch black of this moonless night, the forest here appeared nearly indistinguishable from his home forest in the California Redwoods. All he could see for miles and miles was darkness and trees.

  Zeke sighed as he thought of home. He hadn’t been able to spend much time there lately, and he wasn’t sure how long it would be before he had another chance to fly home. But with danger lurking ever closer for the wizard town of Falcon Cross, Zeke knew it was important for as many dragon shifters as could be spared to help guard the town. The wizards were the Redwood Dragons’ allies, and deserved protection.

  Ten dragons made up the Redwood Dragons clan, but only four of them were traveling to Falcon Cross tonight—Noah, Owen, Myles, and Zeke. Zeke was bringing up the rear, watching as his dragon clan mates sliced through the air ahead of him, turning their heads this way and that, searching for any telltale signs that Falcon Cross was nearby. The group should be getting close, but they had already been warned that the city would be hard to spot. It was kept well hidden by magic spells, since the wizards did not want any surprise visits. Zeke knew that Noah, who was leading the group, had been given specific instructions to search for a uniquely shaped grove of trees. That grove of trees would indicate that Falcon Cross was nearby. Supposedly, once the dragons flew low enough to break through the invisibility barrier of the wizards’ spells, the whole town would suddenly come into view. Noah had been to Falcon Cross before, but it had been before the invisibility spells had been cast. It had been simpler times, when such strong precautions had not been as necessary.

  Zeke’s dragon lips turned down into a frown as he watched Noah continuing to search. He knew that Noah must be having just as much trouble seeing in the dark as he was, and no doubt was feeling frustrated. The group had been traveling for three days now, moving slowly despite the urgency of their mission. They had flown an indirect route, doing their best to avoid any areas that were populated by humans. Shifters and wizards alike feared discovery by humans, and now, with tensions between good and evil higher than ever, the dragons did not have time to deal with frightened humans.

  They had enough to deal with in their own clan, Zeke thought as he continued to watch Noah, who had slowed his pace slightly. Zeke had a feeling that Noah was lost, but Noah was unlikely to admit to it. Not this early in the game, at least. Noah was a good leader, but he did not like to admit defeat. He would fly in circles for hours before admitting that perhaps he had gone off track. And, with all of the bickering within their group over the last three days, Noah certainly did not want to add the inability to find Falcon Cross to his list of disappointments.

  Noah was second in command of the Redwood Dragons, underneath Knox, who was the clan’s alpha dragon and first in command. But Knox had gone to Texas to take care of protecting two powerful dragon stones that were hidden there, so Noah was leading the group to Falcon Cross—and leading this group had not been an easy task. Owen and Myles had constantly bickered, and Owen had questioned nearly everything Noah had to say. When Noah tried to assert his authority, Owen had challenged him as much as he dared. Owen did not take kindly to submitting, especially to a dragon who was only serving as a second place leader. Noah did everything he could to keep the peace, but several fights had broken out over the last several days, and dealing with the fallout from that had put the group severely behind their anticipated arrival in Falcon Cross.

  Zeke, as usual, had not participated in the bickering. He preferred to keep to himself and keep quiet, speaking up only when he felt he had something particularly useful or witty to say. Perhaps Zeke should have tried to help Noah more, but, then again, perhaps his interference would have only made things worse.

  Zeke sighed again, a long, loud sigh that sent a stream of hot smoke from his nostrils and into the night air. Noah was circling around, making a one-hundred-and eighty degree turn to head back in the direction from which they’d come. They were lost, and, as much as Zeke didn’t want to hurt Noah’s already wounded pride, he wished the man would just stop for the night and look again in the light of morning. Zeke had hoped to be lying in a real bed tonight, but at this point he had grown so exhausted he just wanted to lie in any bed, even if that bed was a sleeping bag on the forest floor.

  Just as Zeke was turning, flying a wide arc to change directions along with the rest of the weary dragons, a flash of light to his left caught his eye. Immediately, all of his muscles tensed and his heart began to pound. He let out a low warning roar loud enough for the other dragons to hear, and, quick as lightning, they formed a circle in the air, their giant fire-breathing heads facing outward toward whatever threat might be lurking in the night sky. This defensive circle was a well-practiced move, but Zeke had never had to give the warning signal for it in a real, live emergency before. He was pleased at how well his clan mates all responded under pressure.

  There wasn’t time to sit back and congratulate himself right now, though. Something was following them in the darkness, and they needed to figure out what it was. Zeke strained his eyes, searching, and he knew the other dragons were doing the same. For a few moments, everything was dark and silent, and Zeke began to wonder if he had imagined the flash of light and called a false alarm. He almost hoped so. There was darkness like never before lurking in the shadows of the shifter world right now. Zeke was not particularly eager to meet up with it here, in unfamiliar territory, while weary from several days’ travel. Still, he would fight fiercely if he must. He knew he had the power of several dragons on his side, and he did not fear what the enemy might throw at him.

  In the next instant, though, he immediately relaxed his stance as he saw where the light had come from. A hissing pop sounded off just after the words “Invisibilia terminantur,” rang through the air. Several lights appeared, attached to the rings of several different wizards, who were zooming through the air on what appeared to be glorified broomsticks. Zeke recognized them as Falcon Cross military wizards from the insignia on their uniforms. He wasn’t sure whether he should be happy or angry. He wasn’t thrilled that the wizards had made him think an enemy was about, but he had to admit that he was glad to know someone had joined their group who would know how to get to Falcon Cross. He’d be sleeping in a real bed tonight, after a
ll.

  The wizards whooshed into a haphazard formation, hovering in the air in front of Noah, whom they somehow seemed to know was the lead dragon. Often, non-dragons thought all dragon shifters looked alike when in dragon form, but the leader of this group obviously recognized Noah despite his dragon shape.

  “I’m Raven Morey of Falcon Cross,” the leader said, giving a deep bow at the waist, as though she were standing on solid ground and not perched precariously on a skinny stick a few thousand feet in the air. “Our commander, Mac Somers, told me to keep an eye out for you and help lead you into the city if I spotted you. It can be nearly impossible to find if you don’t already know where it is.”

  Noah nodded his large dragon head, although Zeke thought he heard a small sigh escape Noah’s lips. Noah probably wasn’t happy about being rescued, and by a woman, no less. Still, he hid his wounded pride well, and Raven didn’t even seem to notice when Owen let out a small snicker at Noah’s expense.

  “My apologies for frightening your crew,” Raven said, turning slightly in her seat to glare at one of the wizards behind her. “Allan apparently needs to revisit invisibility spells 101. You should not have been able to see his light until we were right next to you.”

  “It’s not my fault,” Allan protested. “It was Benji’s sloppy flying. He ran into me and nearly knocked me off my broom. I was a bit more preoccupied with not falling a thousand feet to my death than with maintaining my invisibility spell.”

  “You’re the one who was flying sloppily,” one of the other wizards, presumably Benji, said in protest.

  “Enough,” Raven said sharply. “You can explain yourselves to Mac when we get back to headquarters. For now, we need to get these dragons out of open air and safely down to the city. Are you all decent at rapid aerial descent?”

  Noah nodded, keeping a polite, neutral expression on his face even though the question was almost comical. The Redwood Dragons were some of the best flyers around, and could move their giant bodies through their air with incredible speed and agility.

  “Alright then, let’s go,” Raven said, then winked at the dragons. “And try to keep up.”

  Zeke would have laughed out loud if he’d been in human form. He had a feeling that if the dragons were leading the way, the wizards would be the ones having trouble keeping up. Maybe, when things had calmed down and they weren’t all facing imminent danger, he should challenge these guys to a race and show them what dragons were capable of.

  For now, though, getting to Falcon Cross and out of the open air was top priority. Raven gave some sort of hand signal to her crew, and in the next instant, the wizards were all flying downward at a sharp angle. Zeke could see them leaning against their brooms, their chests nearly touching their broomsticks as they made themselves as aerodynamic as possible. The lights from their magic rings flickered like glittering beacons in the dark night, making it possible for the dragons to easily follow them.

  Noah dove after the wizards first, followed closely by Owen and Myles. Zeke once again brought up the rear, preferring to hold back a bit and make sure that the group was protected from behind. A few seconds after the other dragons had begun their descent, Zeke dove, too. He zoomed through the air, relishing the sound the wind made in his ears as he picked up speed. The roar of the wind grew as he flew, and the cool air felt refreshing on his hot dragon scales. Wizards and dragons alike flew downward nearly two thousand feet through open air, looking like unidentifiable streaks in the night sky. Then, just before the leading wizard would have crashed into the treetops, she pulled up her broom to straighten out her flight path. She was now flying in a straight line just above the trees. Across the forest, a series of “whoosh, whoosh, whoosh,” sounds rang out, as each wizard and dragon abruptly halted their downward flight path and switched to straight, level flying.

  Zeke’s dragon lips turned up in a smile as he flew. It had been a long time since he’d flown this fast, and he had forgotten how much fun it could be. Up ahead, he saw Owen shoot a short burst of flames out of his mouth, and he knew that the other dragons were having just as much fun as he was. For a few minutes, they flew like this, zooming over the trees. And then, with incredible agility, the wizards changed direction again to dive down below the treetops.

  Another sequence of “whoosh, whoosh, whooshes” rang across the forest as the wizards and dragons all flew into the thick forest. Zeke had to admit that this change of direction was going to be difficult for him. He did not know the trees here well, like he did at home. In the dark, it was going to be difficult to maneuver through the unfamiliar branches while maintaining the speed he would have liked to maintain. He had no choice, though, but to do his best to keep up. With determination, he watched carefully to see the exact spot in the tree cover that the group was disappearing into. Just after Myles dove down, Zeke dove as well.

  He slowed slightly, expecting to be greeted by a tangle of branches that he would need to maneuver. But a strange thing happened once he flew below the treetops. Suddenly, the forest that had been in front of him moments before seemed to melt away and disappear. In its place was what appeared to be a giant village. Lights flickered in windows here and there, city streets were lit by glowing lamplight and by the headlights of the occasional car that passed by, and the faint sound of a dog barking could be heard from somewhere below.

  Zeke’s eyes widened in wonder as he realized that the wizards had not been kidding when they said that Falcon Cross was hiding in plain sight. The spell they had cast over the entire town to make it look like just another part of the forest was undeniably effective. If Raven and the other wizards had not come to help out the dragons, they probably would have been up there searching all night for Falcon Cross.

  Now, the wizards were landing softly on a grassy area at the outskirts of the village. Zeke slowed his pace slightly so that he could take a moment to observe what the village looked like. Although the other dragons in the group had seen Falcon Cross before, this was Zeke’s first time. He had never been in any wizarding village before, in fact, and he wanted to take it all in.

  There wasn’t much that looked different from a normal, human village. The houses and trees seemed ordinary enough. The layout was pleasing, with lots of open space and no sense of overcrowding. The most remarkable thing about the village, really, was that you would not be able to see it from above at all due to the wizards’ spells. Despite the open sky above him now, with stars twinkling brightly, Zeke knew that anyone flying over this spot would only be able to see thick trees. Zeke shook his head slightly in amazement as he slowly continued his downward spiral toward the spot where the rest of the group had already landed. He landed with a soft thud next to them, and shook out his giant dragon wings a bit before folding them against his dragon body. Noah, Owen, and Myles were still in dragon form, and Zeke would wait until Noah shifted back to human form before shifting himself. Zeke looked over at Raven, who had dismounted from her broom and was smiling over at the dragons.

  “Welcome to Falcon Cross,” she said.

  Zeke let out a happy puff of smoke from his nostrils. They had finally made it.

  Chapter Two

  Zeke looked at himself in the mirror one last time. He tugged on the corners of his suit jacket, and shifted uncomfortably from one foot to another. He knew that the reflection looking back at him was his own, but he didn’t feel like himself. He never did when he had to wear a suit. Occasionally, he had to dress up to blend in when he was on a mission and trying to recover an ancient dragon artifact. If he was spying on someone in a situation that required a suit, he wore a suit. But when he had the choice, he preferred a more casual look. His day-to-day wardrobe consisted almost entirely of relaxed hoodies, t-shirts, and jeans.

  He wasn’t spying on anyone tonight, but tonight’s occasion, unfortunately, still required him to wear a suit. The Wizard High Council of Falcon Cross was throwing a banquet in honor of the Redwood Dragons, and all of the wizards would be wearing their finest dress
robes. Dragons, of course, did not have dress robes, but they could wear suits. Noah had told the crew, in a tone that said they’d better not argue, that everyone would need to wear suits tonight.

  Zeke had not even brought a suit with him, but there were several good tailors in Falcon Cross who had been more than happy to alter suits to fit all of the dragons. Zeke had to hand it to the guy who had worked on the suit he was now wearing. The suit fit as though it had been custom-made for Zeke from the start. Zeke grinned at his reflection. He did look pretty handsome, if he said so himself. But he still wished he didn’t have to go to this silly banquet.

  Zeke was not fond of most social events, especially ones involving hundreds of people where he was the guest of honor. He preferred to keep a low profile and keep to himself, but he knew that would be virtually impossible tonight. Any wizard worth anything in Falcon Cross was clamoring for the chance to meet one of the dragons. Owen, at least, was excited for the event. He’d told Zeke that he hoped there would be plenty of pretty female wizards there tonight.

  Zeke rolled his eyes just thinking about Owen’s words. Here they were, on the verge of another great shifter war, and all Owen could think about was girls. If Zeke had it his way, they would be diving right into making plans with the wizards for how to best protect Falcon Cross. The village could quite literally be attacked at any moment, so it didn’t make sense to Zeke that the dragons would be partying the night away. Zeke had said as much to Noah, but Noah had brushed aside his concerns.

  “You’ll find that there will be a lot of formal events while you’re here in Falcon Cross,” Noah had said. “It’s the wizards’ way. Pomp and circumstance is important to them, and we need to do everything we can to respect their traditions while we are guests in their town. I know you aren’t big on parties, but do your best to at least act like you’re having a good time. We have to keep shifter-wizard relations on the best terms possible. After all, we need each other. It’s important to have allies at a time like this.”