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“No one knew what happened to him. Just vanished one day. Then they found a charred body right here in this clearing. Those anklets aren’t just good for death by Krakatow.”

We got close enough that I could see more details. Even in their sloppy, inebriated state, it was as if the mossy clearing was filled with stunning jewels. Their richly colored blue scales shimmered with an opalescence that rivaled the most beautiful shells. Each tremor and slightest movement produced a ripple of iridescent color. And their golden wings were lacy and transparent, like finely spun gold. The scales on their long throats were the same sumptuous gold.

The dragon closest to us was asleep. His head rested on the ground, and his big belly rose up and down with each snore. A few of the dragons were propped up against boulders, chewing on fleshy white mushrooms. Even those seemed to be adding to the assortment of offensive odors floating around the clearing.

Revel walked past us. A dragon who’d been rolling slightly on his side to scratch an itch sat up straight like a dog who’d just heard the rustle of the treat bag. The dragon swayed as if he’d smoked two joints in a row and then followed them with a bottle of tequila. His glittery wings fluttered to catch himself before dropping all the way over. His lids lifted slowly, as though they were held down by weights. Glazed amber eyes appeared to smile down at the approaching man. The dragon let out a purring sound as he collapsed down and allowed Revel to scratch behind his ear. His back taloned foot came up to scratch at the air.

“Just like a dog,” I mused.

“Except dogs don’t get angry at ya and throw flames at your head,” Austri reminded me.

“I take it that’s Kya,” I said.

“Can you believe it?” Austri asked. “That clever beast used to be able to fly upside down through the thinnest mountain passage and never break a sweat. Now, just sitting up is difficult.”

My chest ached for the creatures. “This is no way for them to live. Is there really no substitute for lion’s bane? Or no way to start growing it again?”

“Our enemies were very thorough,” Madigan said. She’d already bored of the whole adventure and leaned against a tree, tightening the string on her bow.

“I feel awful for them.” At first the scene looked humorous, but now it made me incredibly sad. Mom always told me I had enough empathy for all the animals on the planet, and I supposed she was right. My eyes watered again, but this time it wasn’t because of the smell. The thick pungent air, however, had gotten to my sinuses, and a sneeze burst out before I could stop it.

It felt as if everything, including the trees around us, froze in place for a second, then the sleeping dragon growled grumpily and lifted his head. His heavy lids opened halfway; then with a start, they opened wide. He sat up. He snorted, and smoke—not the stench-filled gas like the burps, but actual smoke—puffed out. The ground trembled beneath our feet with his sudden movement, pulling Revel’s attention away from Kya. Madigan pushed off the tree and moved forward with caution. Slowly, each of the other dragons pushed to sitting and then onto their feet. They were all focused on one thing—me.

Revel moved with cautious steps toward Lyric and me. “No sudden moves,” he growled under his breath. Kya had joined the others in standing at attention. It was as if someone had poured ice cold water on the whole group of dragons to sober them up.

Low grumbly sounds rolled up from long throats. Scales glimmered in the small amount of sunlight slipping past the mountains. Nostrils flared as the first, then the second and the third dragon moved toward us.

“Mama is going to be so mad that I ended up getting burned to a crisp just days after getting back.” Lyric’s voice trembled. “Madi? Revel? Austri?” Lyric pleaded. “We should have listened to you. What should we do?”

As fear and tension gripped my friends, something else was happening deep inside my soul. The dragons’ amber stares were directed only at me, and I gazed back at each of them, not with fright but with something I could only describe as recognition, respect.

Revel was at my side now. “When I step in front of you, run like hell. All of you,” he hissed his command from the side of his mouth.

“Will Kya protect you?” Madigan asked Revel. She stood ready with her bow, but there were far too many dragons, and something told me one arrow was not enough to pierce their incredible scales.

“Kya will not stand in the way of his clan,” Revel said darkly.

Revel glanced fleetingly at me with an intense hazel gaze. The dragons’ long talons clawed lightly at the ground as they moved across the marshy grass. They were close enough now that I could see the reptilian pupils in their amber eyes. The tension rolling off my four mates was palpable. Even Revel was not his usual overly confident self.

He moved in front of me like a giant impenetrable wall, but even he could not survive if flames shot from a dozen dragons. Something, that intuitive sense I’d had earlier, told me to move forward, despite his advice.

“Run,” he hissed again through clenched teeth. The trio took off, even Madigan, but she stayed close enough to get in a few shots.

Revel looked over his shoulder. “Damnit, Raphael, run.”

I walked a small berth around him. He reached for my hand, but I pulled it away. I inched closer to the dragons. Their pungent smell had dissipated some, and their nostrils relaxed.

“What in the fucking hell are you doing?” Revel grunted.

The dragons moved closer. Lyric chirped in distress. “Oh, Rafi,” she said through sobs.

I looked at each dragon. “We need to make you better.” My voice sounded amazingly strong considering the situation, and my conscience, my inner self, told me to stand solidly in front of them. Just like the lizards in my garden, they stared back at me as if they understood.

Then Kya pushed one front foot forward. The talons curled in like a cat’s retracting claws. He lowered himself to one knee and dropped his head in a respectful bow. The others followed.

“What the hell?” Austri muttered from somewhere behind.

I walked forward to Kya and placed my hand on his forehead. It felt warmer than I expected. His scales twittered back and forth like butterfly wings, almost as if each one were alive. The dragon clan stayed down on one knee with heads bowed.