The Witch and the Dragon Ch. 00-01

Prologue

Sighing, Alluna rested her chin upon her drawn up knees, her eyes going over the darkened interiors of her tower room. She hadn't opened the shutters of the tower room window unable to bear seeing another beautiful, sunny day. The tall grass in the field surrounding the tower was probably rolling and swaying in the breeze as well as the deep green forest around the field. The trees always danced and whispered amongst themselves making Alluna envy them. At least they were surrounded by their own kind and never lonely.

Sunlight poked through the cracks of the window shutters, the glittering rays dancing across the cold grey stones of the floor. The threadbare covers on the bed lay rumpled, and a corner of her patchwork quilt hung over the frayed red woven rug by the bed.

Scattered about the room were her life-sized dolls. Mama had not brought her a new one in a very long time and the ones she had no longer functioned. They lounged about, their smiling faces still and silent.

Alluna's gaze rose to stare up at the ceiling, her mind visualizing the second story of her tower room. Rayne, the only doll that still functioned, lay in her glass case, the way she had for the past moon cycles. Mama forbade Alluna to play with her. She wondered why, but never dared ask fearing mama's mean temper.

Having no one to converse with, Alluna hadn't uttered a word in over a month.

She cleared her throat and said, "Hello." Her voice came out as a pathetic croak.

Again, she sighed, wondering when mama would appear.

"You're a special girl," mama had told her long ago. "You must never venture out of this tower, or the villagers will find you and hurt you. You are different and special, my dear."

Alluna squirmed, tugging at the unforgiving brace mama insisted she wear. The metal and cloth brace squashed her chest so she was barely able to breathe.

Feeling despair smothering her, Alluna pulled her golden frock down her torso until it pooled around her ankles and undid the closures of the brace that came almost to her hips.

She groaned, rubbing her aching chest, and then looked down with a frown. The lumps looked even bigger today. Mama told her she was sick, that's why her chest had swelled into two ugly bumps. However, what frightened her most was when she bled. It was all part of her sickness—one she didn't understand.

Wrapping her arms around her middle, Alluna shivered, watching how the shadows in her room wavered through the tears that filled her eyes.

She felt lonely, frightened... confused. Why did the villagers want to hurt her? Why was she sick? Why did mama always leave her alone for days?

Pulling her dress back into place, Alluna shuffled over to a bench near the unlit fire pit in the center of the tower room and picked up her golden flute.

She decided to practice her Echize di' Drakkur, or Dragons Lure. Mama told her she needed to practice.

Alluna lifted the flute to her pursed lips and blew. Soft lilting music filled the air around her and echoed throughout the chamber.

Closing her eyes, she envisioned a beautiful golden dragon soaring through the sky, his scales gleaming bright like the sun. She played for him, calling him with her heart as much as her song. Giant wings fanned the warm air as he circled, sapphire eyes glowing down at her. Two gleaming horns spiraled up from his mighty head and he had a snout full of jagged ivory teeth. A growl rumbled deep in his chest, the scales on his body lifting slightly from the rumbling vibration.

She should have feared the beast, but as long as she played her melody, he was hers, a slave to her bidding. The air, stirred by the dragon's wings, stroked through her raven tresses. She willed him to come to her, to kneel at her feet. The dragon landed with...

A heavy thud behind her made her jump.

Alluna's eyes snapped open, fingers stilling on the silent flute. Her lips parted, breath growing rapid as every hair on her head prickled and a shiver ran up her spine.

Alluna felt a presence behind her. Her mind pictured a fire-breathing dragon hunkered down behind her, sharp teeth dripping with spit, ready to devour her in one gulp. Silly, of course, because a dragon wouldn't even fit in her tower room, big as it was. Still, her mind would not shake the image of a dragon.

Swallowing, she lowered her flute, heart racing. Her body began trembling as she pulled her lower lip between her teeth to stifle the urge to whimper. She strained to hear any type of movement, but all she heard was... breathing, deep, steady—unlike her terrified panting.

A fresh clean scent, like citrusy fruit and fresh summer breeze tickled her nose. Slowly, Alluna turned her head.

She winced when her flute fell from her grasp with a loud metallic clang, her eyes growing wider in the gloom of the tower. The person was kneeling a few paces away. She could barely make out the shadowy figure. Whoever it was didn't move, just knelt there, silent, breathing.

Alluna turned her head away and rose, her heart pounding in her ears. Putting one foot before the other with careful slowness, she made her way to the closed window shutters.

Movement. She sensed movement and turned her head to see the person dragging a pillow into their lap. Alluna's eyes never left the shadowy figure as her trembling fingers fumbled with the latch on the shutters. With a forceful push, she swung the shutters open.

The ancient shutters groaned and creaked before slamming against the solid rock of the outer tower wall. Sunlight poured into the tower room, chasing the darkness away and revealing...

"Oh, gods," Alluna gasped, her hand going to her galloping heart.

Her eyes beheld the most beautiful creature she'd ever seen—and the biggest.

Her first impression was that it was an angel, but why would an angel be kneeling in the middle of her tower room?

A new doll? She nibbled the corner of her lip and took a step closer.

The doll's eyes were so blue they sparkled, and its hair was like molten gold, falling in thick waves to its waist. It was unclothed, clutching her red velvet pillow in its lap.

Alluna frowned upon closer inspection. This doll was massive. Its neck was thick, arms bulging as well as its chest, which sported square pillows of flesh decorated with caramel colored nipples. They pearled even as she stared at them.

A boy doll? Had mama given her a boy doll? Her fascinated gaze traveled down its torso, seeing how muscles ridged its abdomen, as well as the thighs. It had to be a boy. It was so unlike anything she'd ever seen. The only males she'd ever seen were a few of the village boys that dared sneak close to the tower, until mama discovered them and chased them away with a swarm of bees she'd enchanted. They'd run away screaming and crying as they swatted their necks and limbs, never to return.

Alluna walked over to him. He just stared at her, eyes glassy, dreamy. She circled him once, noticing that all that wavy golden hair fell to the middle of his bottom, which rested over his enormous feet.

She went down on her knees before him. "You're so beautiful." She touched his chest and was surprised at his warmth, as though he ran a fever.

The doll flinched, eyes widening, going over every feature on her face—bright, sapphire eyes, fringed with lashes dipped in gold. His hands clutched the pillow tighter. He swallowed convulsively, looking bewildered, which Alluna found quite strange. She licked her lips and his eyes flicked down to watch in rapt attention. A soft sigh puffed out from between his lips and he swayed a little toward her.

Alluna gasped and lifted her hands to steady him. "Is your power running down," she asked. He blinked at her and pulled back upright. "I only have enough power to charge one doll at a time and today I was charging Rayne."

All the golden giant did was stare, one golden brow lifting slightly. Alluna bit her lip. Mama would be angry if she let Rayne's power run low...but she hadn't been by in three moon cycles. One night wouldn't hurt Rayne. Alluna would charge her on the morrow.

***

Zak watched the raven-haired beauty scramble away.

"Where the hell am I?" he murmured to himself, his gaze following her.

The girl was stunning, and she looked so...innocent. Zak felt the corner of his lip kick up as naughty thoughts flitted through his brain until he gave himself a mental shake. Down, boy. His gaze lowered to the pillow he'd grabbed to cover his boy parts, unsure of the welcome a six-foot-seven, two hundred and fifty pound naked man would receive.

He frowned. The last thing he remembered was fighting a legion of devils in some underground cavern, following Remien out into a corridor afterwards, and then accidentally falling through a portal Remien had opened in hopes of getting back to their transports quicker. Zak grimaced. God only knew where he was, though he wasn't particularly worried. He definitely wanted to get to know the honey-eyed beauty a little more. Later he'd figure out how to get back home.

Maybe I can convince her to come back to Alpha 7 with me. He chuckled, unable to stop the mischievous thoughts from filtering back in. She thinks I'm a doll. Hell-yeah, she can play with me anytime she wants.

Zak's eyes drew back to the ladder the bewitching girl had climbed. His body tightened as his mind pictured what all that caramel-colored skin would look like once he peeled away her pretty gown. He bit his lip and let out a soft groan.

Persistent hissing intruded his dark thoughts.

"Pssssssst!"

Zak turned to see a green-eyed devil with a mop of blood-red hair signaling to him.

Zak scowled. Aw, damn-it all.

Remien Fyre, his irritating Alpha Angel brother waved his hand insistently. "Get over here."

Zak growled at him, making the red weredragon's eyebrows shoot to his hairline. Hell no. he was not leaving. That female had his name all over her and Zachariel Wilder wasn't leaving until he tried her on for size. Zak's cock leapt in anticipation.

Now Remi frowned. "Zak," he grated through clenched teeth.

Zak turned away with a snort. His eyes went over the room. It was relatively clean, but everything looked very old—much older than the girl...trapped here. Yes. The raven-haired beauty was a prisoner.

He imagined carrying her out of the tower, laying her inside his Viper and stripping her bare. She'd be happy and appreciative he'd saved her...yes, Master. Thank you. Please, take me...

A hand gripping his biceps interrupted his fantasy. "What is wrong with you? Let's get the hell out of here," Remi whispered, getting into Zak's face.

Remi's black-rimmed green eyes bore into Zak's. If anyone in this universe understood absolute stupid infatuation, it would be Remien Fyre.

"She's a prisoner of sorts," Zak blurted. "Let's take her with us."

Remi's lips twitched, the sunlight glinting off the two silver hoops piercing his lower lip and then he grinned...that wicked grin he always got when he was about to partake in some matchmaking. The idiot thought he was the reincarnation of Cupid. This time Zak didn't mind the weredragon's meddling.

"Are you out of your mind?" Seth's silver head popped in next to Remi. The young weretigri frowned at Zak, his pale blue eyes flashing as Remi rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Devon will tear us a new one. We've got to get out of here now."

Zak's shoulders slumped. Damn. No rescue, no girl—alone. Seth's expression was resolute. There was never any reasoning of the heart with Seth. The weretigri had no heart.

Remi snickered, "Zak likes her. I say we take her home for him."

Zak held his breath, watching as Remi's gaze grew distant and his grin goofier. Lost in his own private fantasies, unfortunately Seth only scowled more.

The weretigri's growl had Remi snapping out of his reverie. "We can't just take beings as fuck toys, Fyre."

***

An angel and a devil. The creatures arguing before her new doll were not of this world. The devil's hair was so red it reminded her of fresh blood. It was long and shaggy and stuck up out of its head in every direction. Black scrolled designs wrapped around its biceps, and forearms. The tattoo of a dragon clutched the right thigh up to its hip and a snake curled from its left foot to just past the ankle.

The angel's hair was as white as fresh snow and fell like a silken veil, just barely brushing wide bulky shoulders. Like her doll, they too were unclothed, their bodies knotted with muscle and sinew, though not as massively proportioned as her beautiful boy doll. Why they were conversing in hushed tones eluded her. All Alluna knew was that that devil was not going to take her new doll. His hand was clutching the golden-haired boy doll by his arm. Maybe the angel was trying to get him to release her doll.

Clenching her fingers, she approached in silence, pulled one fist back, and swung, aiming for the head of deep red hair.

The devil ducked and her fist connected with her beautiful doll—right in his eye.

He fell back, golden tresses flowing around his face and body like the rays of the sun pouring down on all of them.

"Son of a bitch," he roared, clutching his eye.

The devil turned and blurted, "Sleep."

Dragon-green eyes and blood-red hair were the last things Alluna saw.

Chapter One

Two Earth month cycles later, Cygnus arm of the Milky Way galaxy, Crystalimuus sector.

The loud music flowed through Zak's very soul, taking him, driving him. His fingers, as if possessed, flew over the strings of the power guitar in his arms. He stroked the instrument like a lover, loving her, controlling her, bringing her to fevered ecstasy. The power guitar keened and cried under his touch. Zak threw his head back, the feel of his long hair whipping his sweating back as he widened his stance. He twisted sideways, fingers sliding down the arm of the power guitar, knowing the power of his seduction held the hundreds of thousands of alien beings in the arena in a thrall.

Gritting his teeth, he arched back, fingers already sparking flames with his rapid arpeggio. The multitude roared, shaking the ground beneath his boots.

Yes. She would cry out in fulfillment under his control, his dominance—and dominate her he would—master her, make her soul soar.

The image of the Arborian witch filled his mind, tormenting him as always. He didn't even know her name, but he'd fallen under her spell. He needed to punish her for that. No one mastered him. He was the Master.

The thought of having her bound and at his mercy, hearing her beg as he teased her to agonizing arousal made the blood in his veins sizzle.

Zak groaned, the feel of frustrated lust making him ache, even as the explosion of cheers and applause swallowed the last keening notes of his power guitar. He had to stop thinking about that girl, or he'd go insane just as Seth warned.

He panted from the efforts of his performance, letting the fact this was his last show with Draconius Imorteus sink in. Pushing back his sweaty hair from his face, he scanned the view before him.

Spires of ice soared hundreds of feet into a velvet sky dusted with billions of stars. Laser beams lit each spire from within in a kaleidoscope of blinding colors. Bursts of white light went off in the arena as the alien beings recorded the concert with their vid-crystals. Zak looked up to see himself on all the 4D image replicators around the arena. His once gold hair was deep caramel, plastered to his sweat-sheened torso. The lights glinted off the metal spikes of the leather forearm guards he wore. With a smile, he closed his eyes, lifted his arms, and let his head drop back. The cheers swelled to a deafening roar.

There were beings from every reach of the galaxy, fans of the mega intergalactic rock band, as well as reporters, paparazzi, Master Guardians, and reapers. The fans came for the music. The reporters and paparazzi for the shocking reveal that Edenia's legendary Master Guardians, of which Zak was a member, were back after vanishing three hundred years ago. The other Master Guardians and reapers were there waiting for either Zak or one of his brothers to manifest some type of evil power for an excuse to execute Edenia's fallen angels

Devon, Zak's commander, insisted they now be called Alpha Angels, wanting to disassociate them from both the Edenian government and the Order of Master Guardians.

Most of the galaxy distrusted them, believing they were responsible for the war that almost annihilated the entire galaxy. Part of the tour into the Magnordian sector was canceled when the inhabitants of that area refused to allow one of Lucifer's Angels into their sector. Zak took a deep breath and let it out slowly, white mist curling into the air. It's what his father had called him the last time they spoke, spawn of the Devil.

Don't go there, Zak—he admonished himself, pushing the painful memories back into the dark recesses of his mind.

The crowd was still roaring, giving him a standing ovation. A chill breeze blew a swath of sticky hair across his cheek. Did the beings before him applaud him for the musician he was, or were they worshiping him as their demonic god?

From the corner of his eye, he saw the stagehands signaling to him. The lights faded to black and the orchestra behind the band began a soulful tune.

Imo would take his rightful place now. Zak supplanted the boyish vampire while he recovered from being abducted and blood-starved by demons.

Zak breathed in the icy air, blackness cloaking him as he strode off stage. Only other vampires or werecreatures would see his retreating form.

Sethaliel waited for him. The young weretigri gripped Zak's arm and rushed him down the corridor.

They weaved their way through the dimly lit tunnels of ice that descended from behind the stage. The walls, ceiling, and floor glowed an eerie deep blue making the vampire crew darting back and forth look even paler, their inhuman eyes glow brighter.

"The serum lasts less now," Seth said. "Are we dosing again or leaving?"

Zak looked over at Seth's expressionless face. The boy's features were angelic with his platinum hair and bright, pale-blue eyes, but the boy rarely smiled.

Seth's eyes slanted sideways at Zak, his lips thinning into a scowl. He didn't like being thought of as a boy and though he was already twenty-one Earth years, it was sometimes difficult for Zak to remember that little Seth had grown up.

Except when I beat your ass in the training room—Seth snarled into his mind. Now are we leaving or not?

Zak chuckled. "We're leaving." He ran his tongue over his fangs even as Seth hustled him faster toward the dressing room. "Are you getting rid of your fangs when we get back?"

"Yes," was the weretigri's succinct reply. "You?"

Zak considered his options as they ducked around another bend in the maze of corridors. He'd developed a fetish for blood play now. The way females gasped and cried out in bliss when he drove his fangs into their flesh excited him. The feel and taste of their warm blood on his tongue and lips made him throb.

He envisioned the Arborian witch in his arms, trembling with want as he runs his nose down her neck trying to decide where to bite. He passes her shoulder, mouth watering as she arches her back with a sigh. His fingers dip into the bodice of her gown...

"Stop it."

Anticipating another round of lectures from the wereling, Zak felt anger shoot through him. "I'm not under some fucking spell, Seth."

"You are."

"Remi heard the same as me and he's fine."