Dragon's Revenge
17.

She throws up her hands, showing they're empty. There's a long pause, before he speaks. "You here to kill me?"

"I am not looking for a fight here."

"Why should I believe you?"

"You're still alive, aren't you?"

The stranger starts making small steps to the side of her. She focuses on his footsteps, counting the rhythm and timing. The world zones out as she concentrates on his next move. "I don't know who you think you're looking for, but-" she drives her foot into the stranger's leg. "Shit!" When he bends over to grab his leg, she swings her elbow into his jaw.

He drops his gun, groaning in pain. She dives for the gun, picking it up and aiming it at him. "If you know what's good for you, you'd keep looking straight."

"Be cool, be coo. I wasn't really going to shoot you."

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Jonah and Desmonda run over. "What's going on? Who are you?"

"I should be asking you that!"

"We're looking for an Aelon named Sasha Iram." Desmonda says.

"That's.... me. You're here to kill me, aren't you?"

"No! I already told you that!"

"Kind of hard to believe you with that gun pointed at me." She lowers the gun. Sasha cocks his head, his eyes still glinting with suspicion. "You're gonna have to do a lot more than that for me to trust you, lady."

Her hand shakes as tears fill her eyes. She struggles to replace the right words. "Jebeem is dead, Sasha. He was killed."

"Jebeem of Clan Aelon?"

"Yes. He was my uncle."

"Your uncle? That means you're an Aelon...." Sasha trails off as the meaning of her words becomes clear to him. "Wait. He was your uncle?"

"He-he was killed by dragon hunters hired by the Jebels."

Sasha can't believe the words he's hearing, taking a seat on the ground. "Jebels.... hired dragon hunters? What? How-"

"It's a long story, but we need people on our side, Sasha."

"That's why we came looking for you."

"Like I said, we're not here to hurt you." She smiles.

"No. No, you're here for far worse than that. You're here for help." As night falls, Sasha takes them inside his home. He can barely look her in the eye. He gathers food and starts putting it onto plates, walking with a drunken wobble. "You all must be starving after being on the run. I have just what you need. You know, I was one of the finest cooks out of all the Aelons. Yup, I was."

"Sasha, were you close with Jebeem?"

"Close? One could say that." He doesn't stop moving, even as he's eating his food.

"Sasha, are you okay?" Jonah asks.

"I'm fine! Fine, fine, fine, fine."

Desmonda gets up from her seat and gently puts a hand on Sasha's shoulder. "Talk to us."

He stops moving, but his hands still tremor with nerves. He puts his bowl down, looking at her. "Jebeem didn't just have you. He had other relatives too. Ones that are still alive."

"Wait, where are they?"

"You're looking at them. I'm your cousin, Elodie."

"What?"

"Jebeem's my uncle too. His brother was my father."

"You mean to tell me, Maria didn't have to walk me down the aisle?"

"That's your take-away from this?" Jonah grins, shaking his head.

"It would've been nice to have family at my wedding!"

They all share a laugh, breaking up an otherwise tense moment. "And you..... who are you to Elodie?"

"Uh, well, I guess I'm her husband. We just got married."

"But aren't you a Jebel?"

"Yes." Elodie confirms.

"You married a Jebel? Holy shit!"

"We're on the same side, Sasha, relax. Morgan has taken the Jebels in, let's just say a different direction."

"We need to reclaim order."

"I need to take a seat." Sasha takes a seat and immediately falls out of the chair. When Elodie tries to help him, he gently gestures that he doesn't need her assistance. "Elodie, what are you really doing here? Tell me the truth, please."

"Sasha, we need your help, in every way you can give it."

"In every way I can give it, huh?" Sasha gets up off the floor and dusts himself off. "I'll tell you what, the gun you took from me after the sucker punch-"

"That was not a sucker punch! You had me at gunpoint."

"Gunpoint, shfun-point. Anyway, you can keep that gun. Going to need the firepower if you're loading up against them Jebels."

"What about the other Aelons? Do you know where they are?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. Is this a recruitment mission?"

"It is. We need as many Aelons that are left to join our cause."

"It'll be difficult since we all fled the first time."

"I'm not taking no for an answer." She tells him.

~W~

Sasha brings them through the trenches of Bermuda to the other side of the island, where there's a bonfire in action, people dancing, drinking and having a good time.

"What is this?"

"We've tried to live a freer lifestyle since we fled the States. This is just one of the ways."

"A freer lifestyle? Will they join our cause?"

"We'll just have to see. They wanted a life without battle, a life without fear, a life of peace."

"They do look at peace." Desmonda studies them.

She watches her fellow Aelons celebrate. Her chest pangs with sorrow, at the memory of good times with her parents and Jebeem.

"Hey, everybody! I want to introduce you to someone. This here is Elodie! She's an Aelon and my cousin, a niece of Jebeem."

The Aelons stop dancing and come to a standstill. They look at her, whispering amongst themselves.

"What's wrong?"

"They're just shocked, is all. Nothing's wrong."

One walks over to her, analyzing every part of her. "So you're an Aelon, eh?"

"Yes. And my name is Elodie."

"Nice name. I'm Abe." His attention switches to Jonah, his gaze narrowed in intensity. "And who are you, boyfriend?"

Jonah offers a handshake, but Abe doesn't take it. "I'm Jonah. Elodie's husband."

"Oh, husband? I'm sorry, husband. I won't make that mistake again."

"Hey, man, what is your problem?"

"I know your smell. You're a Jebel."

More whispers come from the Aelons. They're clearly not happy.

"Wait, wait, wait. Everyone, we can explain." Sasha gives them a rundown of their history and what's happening with Morgan.

"That's.... a lot. I'm still not so sure you're not a Jebel in disguise."

"Abe, don't be a dick."

"I'm just being safe. We've come here to escape the battle, not bring it to us. If you're really an Aelon, you won't mind proving it."

"Abe, don't do this." Sasha warns.

"Do what?"

Abe just smiles, ignoring Sasha's request and Elodie's question. "Come with me. There's something we should show you."

Sasha takes them to a cave at the end of the beach, the golden steps emanating an oddly sunny glow. The other Aelons follow. "Aelons have a special relationship with water, one that no other dragon shifters have."

"If you want to prove you're an Aelon, you need to swim to the end and back without coming up for air."

"Are you serious? Even regular humans can do that."

"Oh, no, no. It's just swimming through water, my dear. It's swimming through fire." At that moment, one of the Aelons' shifts and breathes sizzling heat onto the water, smoke rising from the surface. She gazes at the newly created tunnel of fire inside the water, her veins racing with adrenaline. "Still think a regular human can do it?" Abe's gaze is challenging.

She looks at the other Aelons, all with equal expressions of doubt and distrust.

"Don't do this, Elodie. You have nothing to prove."

"I do. I have to prove it to myself, not just them. Besides, we need their help. We won't survive without it."

"Abe, I accept your challenge."

There's cheering all around. "Well, then, go for it!" She strips down to her underwear, walking up to the smoky water before shifting quickly. Once in the water, she opens her eyes to replace herself inside the tunnel of fire. She hears muffled talking above. "Either, she's gonna make it, or drown. Let's see if she's an Aelon!" And on that note, she lets the fire flow through her, swimming as fast as she can to the cave's end and back again. When she's done, she jumps out of the water so fast, Abe jolts back in surprise. "Whoa!"

"Believe me now?"

Abe grabs her hand and shoots it to the sky like she just won a boxing match. There's applause and cheering. "Welcome to the family!"

After winning the challenge, she's met with welcoming hugs from the other Aelons.

"That was incredible, Elodie!" Sasha congratulates her.

"Thank you!"

"You're all welcome to crash with me while you're here. In the meantime, let's head back to the bonfire."

"Sasha, did you pass the challenge?" She asks.

"I..... never did the challenge."

"Are you serious?"

"Aelons really do have a special ability in the water, don't get me wrong. But the whole hell-scorned underwater fire obstacle course? That was-"

"A shot at my mother and I." Jonah butts in, frustration leaking from his pores.

"A shot at you? I don't understand."

"Jebels were always taught never to do battle in the water."

"So, naturally, our young are groomed to fear it." Jonah stares at the haze of smoke, emanating from the cave in the distance, following his mother's words.

"Abe was questioning your Aelon heritage because you were with them."

Jonah balls his fists in anger. "As if you weren't the ones that fled, that left your people behind."

Elodie brings his forehead down to her lips and lays a kiss on him. "Hey, it's okay. I'm alright. We're all fine."

"Look, I'm gonna give you two some space. Just know, you're one of us now, Elodie. And neither you nor your mother have anything to worry about, Mr. Jebel." Sasha takes Desmonda to introduce her to other Aelons, leaving Elodie and Jonah alone.

"Do me a favor. Meet me at the cave in a few minutes. I have a surprise for you."

She does as Jonah asks, heading back to the cave. Jonah arrives minutes later, his face flushed. He guides her to a different portion of the cave, a backpack in hand.

"Jonah, what's going on?"

"Open the bag." He wears a mischievous glint in his eyes.

She opens the bag and pulls out swim shorts, an outfit change and two gorgeous bikinis. "The shorts, obviously for me. But what do you think of trying on a suit, going for a little swim?"

"I love it, but I'll just wear my undies."

Jonah shrugs and changes into his swimsuit. "I wish you'd worn either of the bikinis, but you know what, this ain't that bad either." He gives her a long kiss and slaps her ass. She yelps and tries to smack him back, right as he laughingly propels her into the water. She giggles as she comes back up.

"It's still warm. You should feel it."

Jonah doesn't budge. She can see the reluctance in his face. "You really are afraid of the water, huh?"

"I know I'll be safe, it's just...." she licks her lips and does a slow back flip in the water. "What are you doing?"

"I'm tempting you. Are you going to let me get naked alone?"

"Well, if you put it that way." Jonah peels his shirt off, revealing his rock-hard pecs glistening with sweat.

"I knew you were hot. You're sweating."

Jonah makes his way into the water, stopping just before her. "I thought you were calling me hot."

"That too. Now, we play."

He kisses her until they're both submerged in the water, only their heads peeking over. "This water is warm. It feels like a bed. You know what we do in beds?"

"Enlighten me."

"We have amazing sex. I've always wanted to have underwater sex." Jonah leans in and whispers in her ear. "Don't you want to have hot, steamy, underwater sex?"

"I would love to have underwater sex."

Jonah kisses her so hard, they both go underwater. She grips onto him, helping him take his pants off, feeling his cock rise in the water. He slips off her panties, caressing her pussy with his fingers. Jonah lifts her to sit on his shoulders and dives his head in between her thighs. Just as she's nearing her climax, he brings her back down and slides his dick inside of her. The force of his stroking makes them both torpedo through the water like lightning. He picks up the pace until they both become a whirlwind. With the fire, the water and the spinning consuming them, her climax explodes. Jonah seals their underwater expedition with a kiss. They both get out of the water, get dressed and head back to the bonfire.

"I have a feeling those Aelons are going to be a great asset."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because-" Jonah stops when he sees a silhouette in the near distance.

The silhouette turns as they approach. "Well, look what the water dragged in. Have a nice swim?"

"Nori." Jonah growls.