The human we rescued shifted next to me against his ropes. I watched him to see if he was trying to get free. He was just trying to find a way of sitting that was comfortable with the way we had tied him. "Where is your Dragon?" He asked suddenly.

I smiled watching the sky. "Reina needs time."

"How could you know that?"

I laughed meeting his eyes. "She's not back yet. She will be gathering what we need and working with the Green Dragons." Just then the sun glinted off a dark thing in the sky drawing my eyes back up. "There she is."

He looked up and sighed. "She's alone."

"She will have a plan."

She spiraled downwards landing softly next to me. "Sister we have what we need. We will need to meet in Tigers town. The transport will arrive soon. We will spring them then get them to the town in time for the transport. Then we head to the castle. Only one hiccup."

"Oh?"

She sighed. "We are alone. Reina has taken the bulk of our force to the castle ready for the attack this will provoke. With there new carts she knows they can get there quicker than we can rally."

I smiled nodding my head. "That is what I expected. We can do this easily. I think we break them out a few at a time as it's a long walk to Tigers Town and a lot of these people are weak. Once there we can load the people on then brake the last of them out. When we areleaveing we can probly slow them down a bit."

She stared at me and then laughed. "You are a true Black Dragon sister. I will work on a plan." Garnet said as she turned and walked a short distance away.

"What's going on?"

"Not much. We have time before the transport arrives. Until then we break some more of your friends out. We will gather them at a nearby town to load them in the transport. We have a plan to get you all out safely."

He shifted again. "Then what?"

I turned to look at him seeing his fear at what he thought would happen next. "We won't kill you. We will hold you until it is safe then return you to your wife. That's what we are doing to all your people. Hopefully, when this ends the way we want it to, we will release your soldiers and then your people won't think we will kill you."

He flopped back on the grass. "You beasts are not as violent as we have been led to believe."

I smiled. "I only bite if people attack me. Your armies attacked us so we attacked them. We are both human and animal. We are not ruled by only one set of instincts. Like me and my wolf. I am Duha, I have a home and a child that I care for. My wolf has a den and a mate that is what she cares for. I love her chosen mate and she loves our child but we are both separate. You see just like you I have two faces to show the world."

He met my eyes and nodded. "You knew I was a plant the whole time didn't you?"

I smiled. "They didn't chase you too hard. That gave it away a bit. What I want to know is why you have decided to flip?"

He sat up looking at Garnet. "When you didn't kill me or turn me into your Dragon."

"How did you know I didn't?"

He shrugged. "I'm still alive. I get the feeling if she knew I would be dead."

Chuckleing I watched him stare at Garnet. "You have a wife yet you stare at her like you are interested in her."

He flinched then sighed. "My wife is a tyrant. She was the one who was beating me. I'm curious about your Dragon. She seemed hard when you first helped me by tieing me up but she seemed worried that my ropes were hurting me. She confuses me. Everything else I told you was true. They are hurting us and keeping us against our will."

"Well if you like Garnet then you are going to have to have something of value to offer her."

He looked down at his dirty hands. "I have nothing. My wife is a general in the army. She controlled me so I would have nowhere to go. Then she offered me up like a sacrificial lamb to you, she just couldn't wait to get rid of me." He balled his hands in to fists and shook his head. "Why did you have to be nice?"

I sat next to him watching Garnet who had been listening to us talk. Now she sat there looking at the man's back with pity in her eyes. I watched the way she watched him and then sighed and went back to her book.

"Well, you are free of them now so... Best not to think on it." I said patting his shoulder and standing. He nodded looking forlon. I walked to Garnet's side. "I didn't know you understood that language sister."

She smiled. "Understand but not speak. I have been listening to people talk and the translation long enough to pick up most of what you two said."

"Your thoughts sister?"

She smiled as she looked at the man. "I do not like that he was sent out to us. I also think he is very brave to walk into something he believed would kill him..." I watched Garnet face soffen and her eyes half close as she watched him. I could smell the change in her and tried to hide my amusement. "Now let's talk about a plan." I nodded smiling at the change in subject.

Reina shifted in that odd way of leaning over the children. Her eyes were still closed and the children were being quiet now. "So brother how have you been?" Kyanite asked softly as he scratched Reina's back.

I sighed. "As I said Kyanite. I've been so busy I've not been able to think. Not knowing what the leader of the campaign thinks about my decisions has kept me awake at night."

"She thinks you can be trusted to make good and wise decisions on your own."

I sighed. "I might be, but the mess Tigger made of his defence shows he isn't."

"But she didn't know that before. When he led the group before he did it with a level head. She gave him the freedom to make his own mistakes because she thought he would win."

I ground my teeth staring at him. How could they play with people's lives like that? "How many fell apart like he did?"

"None. He was the only one. Don't think that mistake doesn't plague her. She is softer than she acts."

My anger melted at that. "I know... how is she coping with everything?"

Kyanite smiled as he looked at her. "She is amazing. She had three reports delivered while our children were being born. She told me what to send back. She never stopped Duha or any of the others from coming to see her except for two days after they were born. Then only Duha and our mothers were allowed in." 

Reina shifted. "She is a hell of a lot stronger than I could have imagined." I said watching her.

"That's nice of you to say Kyros." Reina said opening her eyes and sitting up.

"It's true Reina. Are they done?"

She smiled as Kyanite walked over to pick up two of the children. "They are. If they stick to the pattern they will sleep for a while. Long enough to talk to everyone and let me get a nap in I hope."

Reina scooped up the other two and followed Kyanite to put them in bed. "So do you need me to gather everyone?"

Reina shook her head as she grabbed her armour. "I asked one of the White Dragons for that. They are very good at timing, in fact, he will probably..." The door opened cutting her off.

"Reina of the Dragon Fire, everyone is here."

She smiled at the White Dragon standing in the doorway. "I will be there in a moment." He bowed closing the door. "You see." She said slipping her armour on. "They time everything down to the second." Kyanite was fussing over the children the whole time Reina was talking. He turned when she stopped to straighten her armour. "Come on then let's answer everyone's questions." She said as she walked through the door hand in hand with Kyanite.

She climbed the stairs to the stage. Taking a breath she let go of Kyanite's hand and stepped to the front of the stage silencing the room. "I owe you all an explanation of why I have been unwilling to give out orders. The simple answer comes in two parts. The first is we have a traitor, the second is a need to see who was capable and who wasn't."

A soft murmur went through the room at the word traitor. "Quiet now, please. Now I have weeded this person out. It was not as easy as you think it would be. All of you are thinking it was Tiger... he is not the traitor. The traitor is the reason his town was so badly hurt and the reason another did almost as well as Duha but with fewer people captured."

The room was silent and still. "We have dealt with this traitor and soon all of us will know them like I do. However, this doesn't explain why I'm here now. We have abandoned the whole of our land to dig in here. As those kings will only understand that I am the leader that means I must be at the last stand."

That made Kyanite shift and stare at Reina. So he didn't know either.

"So we mount our last stand here. With all our most capable commanders and me putting them in the right place, we will survive this, even with their overwhelming numbers."

She looked over the room smiling at the worried faces and fear. "I see your fear. I've brought my children here and we have no way out of here once the army is at the gate. I'm here with you! My Dragons are with you!" The hope had returned to the room as Reina finished. There was a cry of joy and celebration.

That was when I saw three White Dragons leading a tied Eric through the crowd. I stepped forward but Kyanite stopped me as the Dragons lifted him to the stage. Reina's tail swished violently. No... Eric, what have you done?

"Eric. I trusted you. We all trusted you. You passed information to the human army. The evidence against you is very damning. Do you have anything to say?"

He smiled meeting my eyes. "Only what I told you before Reina. I did it to buy a safe passage for the one I love. The odds of you winning are very low. Do what you must with me."

Reina sighed. "I'm not in the habit of killing people. In fact, I understand why you did it. That is why I allowed you to come and tell Kyros yourself from the look on his face you didn't. You are confined to either your home or the Blue Dragons hospital. When this is done we will talk on consequences." He nodded as the Dragons pulled him down and dragged him away.

I sat up from my nap as the door opened feeling slightly confused at the intrusen. I frowned as a human walked into the room closing the door behind him. "Who are you and why are you in my room?" I demanded.

The man walked slowly towards me looking nervous. "You are Katja?" He said shifting and rubbing his hands together nervously.

I frowned as I sifted my position on the bed so I could grip my knife hiding under my pillow. "I am. Now answer my question."

He moved closer still, then stopped. "My name isn't important. What is, is why I came here. We know you can't win... they are offering us a way out. We just need to know what the plan is and.... take something."

If I had mum's wolf my hackles would be up and my teeth beard. I hope Topaz comes back quickly. "Well, I'm off the roster so I don't know the plan. I can tell you that this idea you have is ill-advised. Reina won't back down even if you take someone."

He sighed rubbing his hands together. "We know you are wrong Katja. We just need the right leverage."

He took two more steps and I swallowed hard. "My mother is Duha wolf of the battlefield. If you try anything with me I will show you why we are both feared... Why I too am a Black Dragon!"

That made him take a step back. "We want your help to stop this war. One way or another."

"And what how is it going to happen?" He drew a knife from behind him and ran at me.

I only just had enough time to pull my own out and howl before he got to me. That howl startled him and I plunged my knife into his gut. The door flung open and inbounded several other humans. I kicked the man back into the group causing them to fall. I stood howling again as I grabbed my staff that leaned next to the bed. The halls of home are too empty. If no one hears me I will have to kill them all myself. This is going to hurt... but I have to live!

The people regained their feet as I knocked the first out with a swift strike across the face. Next was the one that came at me with the knife, I knocked him on his head making a sickening crack sound that filled the room.

That was when my howling brought help. Topaz appeared at speed. Topaz grabbed the person near the door with a look of pure anger in his eyes. Smoke trailed from nose and mouth as he used his claws the rip the human from neck to groin. I got a good look at all his innards as they toppled into our dragon hide. The others backed down on seeing the brutality of my Blue Dragon. Other dragons came in then grabbing and taking control of the humans. "Take these people away! Send a message to Reina of the Dragon Fire, tell her of what happened here." I barked at the young  Dragons.

They bowed. "Yes, Black Dragon!" They said as they left.

Topaz came over to me and picked me up. He set me on the bed tuning to the Dragons in the hall. "I need my brethren! Bring them here now!" His voice was full of anger and followed by sparks.

The room had become swelteringly hot and sweat coated me like a new skin. "Topaz calm down, please. You making it very warm in here." He turned back to me. I saw his anger and fear and felt the shaking in his arm. "It's going to be ok."

I took his hand to still its shaking ignoring the blood that driped from it to my clothes. "I can not check you... I'm too upset."

I nodded. "I'm alive Topaz. Let's focus on that, alright?" He scooped me up in his blood-soaked arms and sat me in his lap. His wings enclosed me. "That's right you hold me and keep me safe. My Blue Dragon." I winced at the pinching pain in my gut.

He looked down at me as soon as I felt it. He stroked my face with his hand smearing blood on my face. If I wasn't a Black Dragon I'd probably find his wiping blood on me more distressing. I thought bitterly.

"My gem... you fought..."

"I fought to live Topaz. If I had died what would have happened to our child."

She shook his head. "But you could..."

"Topaz, it's going to be alright. Whatever happens next, we are both still here. We are both still alive." This time he heard me and even though I saw the pain of what I was saying in his eyes he nodded his agreement.

We sat there in silence with Topaz scanning for danger and me stroking his chest to calm the anger that was making me sweat. "Brother, will you let us in to check on your hoard?" A familiar feminine voice said from the other side of Topaz's wings.

Topaz opened them as the small Blue Dragon walked in. "Hello again Katja. I assume you are responsible for this mess." She said gesturing to the blood and organs on the floor.

"Not just me. It seems Topaz has a limit on what he can take before he rips a human in half. It was very Black Dragon of him." Topaz huffed but no smoke came out of his nose.

She laid her hand on me and smiled. "Have you got pain?"

"Not right now but I felt something a little while ago."

She nodded and looked up at Topaz. "Do you feel safe enough to move her?" He growled and clutched me tighter.

I stroked his arm. "Can we go Topaz? The smell of blood is making me feel sick."

That was all he needed to stand up and stork out of the room. "Leve the room as it is! I will clean it!" He growled as one of the young Dragons moved to clean it. They bowed and moved out of his way.