Chapter 10

**Charles**


Eli and I step out of the portal onto a dark platform of some kind. I am immediately hit with the smell of smoke and immense heat. It takes me a few moments to adjust to the drastic temperature change and the darkness.

"I did not know the dragon lands was like this," I say as I glance around.

There is not much visible with the amount of smoke floating through the air around us, but it isn't the sort of smoke that makes you cough. I am surprisingly unaffected by it.

"How can I breath in the smoke and not cough?" I ask Eli.

He's leading me along the platform that, on closer inspection, has the uneven look of solidified lava.

"It is because of a spell. We had an enchantress spell the smoke to only hide our city but not cause any harm to the surrounding environments." He explains and I admit I am impressed by the considerations his people have taken.

Some of the smoke finally clears and a large structure comes into view.

"This your home?" I ask taking in as much as I can.

"Yes." Is all Eli says in response.

"It is rather large. Almost like a castle but less obvious in structure." It doesn't look like a typical castle wound.

"It is the home of our leaders. My family." He says but his answer is still vague.

"Are you a prince of some kind?" Why will he not come out and say as much?

"Yes. A second son, so the power of leadership will be taken over by my eldest brother on my father's death." I'm surprised that he does not sound disappointed by the fact he will not be king.

Most men seek greatness in any way possible. Very few pass on the chance to sit in a high position. I also respect him for his choice since I also would have held a prestigious position if the mating call had not come to me. It seems I am not the only one giving up something to become Nova's mate. Yet the idea of rejecting her to take on my position feels like a betrayal so deep that I feel ill thinking about it.

More so, I don't want to leave her. I find her not only beautiful but fascinating as well. No creature like her has ever existed as far as I know. Since meeting her I have accessed as many sources of information as I can mentally reach and I have not found a single occurrence like this.

It has only been one day and I feel a connection to her I have never felt even toward my own flesh and blood.

As we move closer the door opens wide and several people step out.

"Elijah!" A female voice calls out and the woman starts running toward us.

Eli holds his arms open and catches the woman and wraps his arms around her tight.

"Where have you been? We were worried about you." The woman says.

He sets her down and the others step forward and greet Eli. It is a while before they notice me but I take that time to examine each individual. The resemblance to Eli is obvious, so this must be his family.

"Oh! I apologize for our rudeness. I didn't see you there." An older woman moves past Eli to stand in front of me.

She is tall, slim, and looks too young to be Eli's mother.

"That is quite alright ma'am. My name is Charles." I lower my head in a bow.

"Mother, there is something I must discuss with you," Eli says before his mother can respond to my greeting.

"Of course dear! Let's go inside." She slips her arm through Eli's and leads the way.

I follow a good distance behind them and try to sense any other enchantments besides the one Eli mentioned before. It is strange that they would allow an enchantress to perform enchantments at all since dragons are a very private race. They would easily be able to handle the smoke around their home, so why enchant it at all?

This will be one of the many questions I will ask Eli at another time. As much as my people kept a detailed history of all we have learned about the other races, it is clear there was still much we did not know.

Stepping back from my critical evaluation of any residual magic, I focus on the large structure we are close to entering. It is a beautiful gothic style with extravagantly detailed carvings all over it. Large dragons are formed into a sort of archway that sat above the large doors. Two men in metal armor wait on either side and bow their heads as Eli and his family pass by them. They too do not seem to notice my presence, not that I am offended. To them, I am a weaker creature and thus no threat to them.

If only they knew the real power that lies within me. I keep most of my power masked so others feel more comfortable around me. This gives them a sense of safety and they relax enough to welcome my questions and happily give me answers. It is a gift very few of my kind possess. Many of my people only possess small abilities but I am not like them. I am like no one before me, and I expect no one like me will come to live after I am gone.

"Come. We will have a feast prepared in your honor." Eli's mother says with a wide smile and arms open wide in welcome.

"Mother. I do not have much time. I can not stay long." Eli tells her and her face falls.

"Why can you not stay?" Her words have a bite to them as if his refusing was unacceptable.

"That is why I wanted to speak to you. I have found my mate." Eli explains.

"Oh my! Well, why did you not bring her? Where is she?" His mother asks excitedly.

Eli's body seems to grow taller as he stiffens. "She is not one of us. She is in danger and could not come with me, but I will bring her when it is safe to do so."

"She is not one of us? How is that possible?" His mother looks genuinely confused.

"She is special, but I can not say more. Not yet. Please understand that I will explain more when the time comes, but I must not stay away from her for long." He looks regretful, but he remains firm in his words.

"I see. What do you need? Why have you returned?" His mother's voice had grown cold and distant.

She sits straight like the ruler she is and less like the excited mother from only moments ago.

"I need to gather my belongings so I can be with my mate. I swear I will return when I can and I will bring my mate with me. Please understand mother." His voice has softened and that seems to make his mother relax again.

"Son. We will be here to welcome your mate when the time comes. Take good care of yourself and her." The man, who I am guessing is Eli's father, says.

Eli nods at his family and turns to a large set of stairs, and I follow along with him.

"They will not be happy to just let me leave. I'm afraid they will try to have us followed." Eli says quietly as we move toward the next floor.

"No one can trace my portals," I reassure him.

He makes a sound of acknowledgment.

When we reach the landing of the second floor he turns down one of the hallways. There are paintings and weapons hung on both walls as we walk further. He stops at one of the many doors and pushes inside. I follow him inside just as he turns on a small light. His room is sparse but very large. It looks as if there is enough room for him to sleep in dragon form as well.

"Do you normally sleep in your dragon form?" I ask as I move further into the room.

"Yes. My dragon is protective of our space." Eli replies as he shuffles through a wardrobe of some kind.

"Will we need to accommodate your dragon when we find a home with more space? That might be important to consider." I say turning to face him.

"I am not sure. I suppose I could simply stay outside as long as there is enough space for me." He shrugs but I shake my head.

"No. We should all feel comfortable in our home. We all will need special accommodations." I won't let any of us feel unwelcome in our new home.

"As long as our mate is happy then I will be happy." Again he brushes off his own comfort, but I will not let it go.

If we are to be happy living amongst each other then we needed to figure this all out soon.