Ever Cynical

Chapter 55- Dragon That's Older Than Dirt

Anais POV

I sat watching Erik and Kieran spar. It was erotic because they are both just that hot, but also because there was this delicious s****l tension between them. This underlying need to dominate each other simmered just under the surface, even if theyir beasts were willing to give in to each other. The early October sun shone down on them, making their chiseled, sweaty bodies glisten. Geoff was still holed up with Ritsu, making me think there'd be least one more ranked pup on its way soon. Only Lugh was in need of his mate. I was thinking about doing a quick run-through of the obstacle course, when I got a mindlink.

Luna, do you have a moment? Lugh asked, sounding a bit stressed. The last week had been a lot to deal with.

Sure, the alphas are sparring, and I'm just, y'know, watching. I could not keep the lascivious tone from creeping into my voice.

Wow, okay, he laughed. Someone is here saying they need to see you all, from Yinhexiehui, Tianlong's pack, err, thrall?

Oh, okay. I'll be right there.

Thank you, Luna. The relief in his response was palpable. Chinese dragons were especially prideful since they had been around the longest, and were experts on everyone else. They simply hadn't had time for me when I'd been there, or I very well may have learned something useful.

"Boys!" I called to my moist, yummy mates. They stopped and looked up. "We've got a guest from China, I'm going to go say hello. Maybe, take your time washing up and join us, hmm?" I winked, knowing they'd take my advice. They wanted my permission to be intimate, but following the model of my adopted parents, we were trying to keep our links open like a permanent body cam. And boy did I enjoy the show. Thankfully, the extreme desire we'd felt had been reduced from a boil to a simmer in the last twenty-four hours, but it was easily amped up at any time. I knew for certain Kieran was still technically in rut, but he was hiding it from us both.

Silly man.

"We will be there soon, mo bhanríon." Kieran grinned as Erik threw an arm over his shoulder and pulled him inside the fitness center to the showers.

Don't do anything I wouldn't do, I linked them slyly. They both giggled. s**t. Guys, that is totally not fair when I have to go be diplomatic.

Doing my best to ignore their ministrations to each other in the shower, I walked to the pack house. I saw a black-haired man in traditional Hanfu garb, in shades of navy blue, standing in the driveway, talking to Lugh. He had a beard to his knees, but as was typical with shifters, didn't look a day over thirty or forty, if that. He stood tall, tanned, and muscular. I knew instinctively, that he was far older than I was, and I immediately bowed deeply once I was in introductory range. The man cackled, while Lugh looked confused. I may have outranked the man before me, but he was by far, my elder.

"Look at this, the girl knows how to greet an elder, eh?" The man dryly chuckled. Lugh bowed quickly too, mimicking my actions. "You may rise, girl. You know as well as I do that I should be bowing to you, not the other way around, Luna Queen." As I stood, I noticed the delighted sparkle in his eyes. He examined my face. "Indeed, you look just like your mother. I'd like some tea, if you don't mind." He said, stroking his beard. For all that he seemed to know who I was, as well as my parents, he wasn't really taking my rank seriously. Claire was bristling slightly.

"Elder, may we know your name, please?" I asked carefully. I knew I could take on a dragon, but I really didn't want to, especially not one associated with one of our allies. He also seemed to have information that was relevant to our situation, and I did not want to offend him over something that was not as important as finally getting more data on what we were up against.

"Ah! I do apologize. I'm just so excited to be here, and I am getting older. My emotions tend to affect my manners." He laughed. "My name is Tengjing. I'm Tianlong's grandfather." He grinned as I gasped. Elder was truly an understatement. The man had to be at least double my age, if not more.

"Of course, please follow me." I led him to my office with Lugh in tow. "Lugh, can you please ask Helga for some ginger tea and biscuits?" He nodded and left. I turned to Tengjing as we sat, me behind my desk and him on one of the facing chairs. "To what do we owe the honor of your visit, elder?"

"Hmm. I'd like to tell you everything now, but I don't like to repeat myself, and I will need to explain things to your mates as well. Why don't you tell me your story first, since I'm sure they are familiar with your history, hmm?" He said reasonably, stroking his beard as seemed to be his habit.

Giving him the full rundown of my nine hundred or so years gave the guys just enough time to arrive, looking fresh and breathless. They had indeed taken their time, and I'd witnessed every glorious moment while I talked to the elder. They'd seen what I'd been up to, but by the emotions pouring through our bond, been far too caught up in each other to truly pay attention. They blushed as the elder's eyes turned to them. He grinned and stood, walking around the two men slowly. His eyes were mischievous as they met mine.

"These must be your alphas, Luna Queen. My, my, Selene certainly blessed you, didn't she. Their bond together is as strong as it is to you, your majesty. That's unusual." He stroked his chin. "Well, let the blondie sit by me, and the bear sit under you." He ordered, and we all complied, deferring to the man who was by far our elder. Once settled, he leaned towards Kieran and squeezed his arm. "Damn. I've been mated to my beautiful Qiangxin for over four thousand years, and you, handsome, are the first to make me think it would be nice to have more than one." Kieran blushed. Tengjing pointed a finger at his cheeks. "Not helping, kiddo. Anyway, Tianlong knew I was alive for all the things that went down with your parents, Anais. So he felt it was best to send me to tell you what I can."

"You knew them personally, Elder?" I gasped, and he nodded.

"We all worked together on building the council and its rules." He said proudly.

Erik POV

While impressed with the age and accomplishments of this dragon elder, my bear was not pleased with his touching our mate. Friend or not, it was simply not okay. Tengjing eyed me with a grin. He'd known it would push me, the old devil. Stroking his beard again, he ran his eyes once over all three of us.

"Your emotions are expected, young alpha bear, but you must learn to control them amongst the challenges you all will face. Manipulating emotions is what endangers us all. Your mates are indeed quite beautiful, but I do not actually have an eye to them." Tengjing said thoughtfully. I sighed. I was trying, I really was, but not only was our mateship new, I was an alpha. Kieran had just let my bear dominate him in the showers, and it really had my possessive traits surfacing relentlessly. I shoved my face into Anais' shoulder, trying to calm myself. The elder laughed. "Your bear is quite cute, isn't he, Luna Queen?"

"With all due respect, elder Tengjing, stop teasing my mates." Anais snapped, somehow managing to sound respectful but insistent, letting her aura out. The elder immediately submitted.

"Of course, your majesties. My apologies." He bowed. At our collective nod, Tengjing continued speaking. "So, I was born about 2500 years into what you all call BCE. That makes me four thousand, five hundred twenty-four, but I've long since truly stopped counting unless I have to. I'm a particularly selfish dragon, most of the time, which is why I was quick to hand my rule over to my sons, but I have always enjoyed academia and negotiating. More of a scholar, than a ruler." At Anais' impatient expression, he cleared his throat. I could feel her irritation that he was not getting to the point through the bond. I had a feeling she hated it when people spoke in riddles, too.

There was a knock before Lugh entered with a tray of refreshments. "Did you need me to stay, Luna, or are the alphas enough?" He asked politely.

"You may go about your other duties, Lugh. Thank you." My beautiful mate said gently. Kieran's hand stole over the desk in our direction, and both our hands joined his. My poor Alpha, his rut was making him need constant contact, even as he tried to pretend he was fine. He seemed to forget that the bond went both ways. As much as he could feel us, we could feel him.

"As I was saying, I've seen many things, Luna Queen. The problem arises from a particular Babylonian witch. Initially, she had fooled us into thinking she was an ally, but it soon became clear she was dabbling with exiled demons and dark, forbidden magic. She was one of original council members, and the first ever to be ousted." Tengjing spoke with great dramatic flair, as if relaying some great historical event. I guess in a way it was, since it was the first any of us heard of a council member being removed. He was watching us all closely as if he couldn't wait to gauge our reactions.

"So what's her plan, then?" Anais asked, clearly wondering what the point of his story was. I was right there with her. I'd never liked it when people spoke in circles and could not seem to either come to the point or offer a direct answer. This old dragon seemed to really enjoy the sound of his own voice, and be living on his own time. I suppose having lived well over four thousand years, though, the amount of time he'd taken speaking to us was a mere drop in the bucket.

"Isn't it always the same with people like her? World Domination. For what, only she can answer. She likes to play the long game, wreaking subtle havoc." He said tiredly. "It's easier if her opponents take each other out, and kill off those that could stop her."

"Where do my parents fit into all of this?" My sweet mate queried. I knew all of this was important, but a part of me didn't care about the reasons, just that the threat existed. I understood that knowing who our opponent was, and the history behind her actions, would help us fight more effectively, but it was like we stood at the edge of a cliff, and the slightest thing could push everyone's fate into the abyss.

I squeezed Anais tighter, hoping that the next pieces didn't make all of our anxiety worse.