Lyndria snatched her eyes open. The view of cold stone walls and the soft crackling of an unseen flame greeted her. Over the fire, the wind howled outside. With a soft groan, she sat up, her body quickly reminding her that her injuries weren’t a dream.

“Hey, whoa, you shouldn’t be getting up yet,” Garreth said.

Lyndria ignored him, her aching side, and her shaking legs to force herself into a sitting position.

Judging by the architecture, they were still in the temple where they met Tanor albeit in a chamber she didn’t recognize. This one lacked a window and was much smaller. If she had to guess, it was once used as a waiting room, or possibly someone slept here.

“How did you--?” Lyndria began.

“We carried you here,” Cutter said.

Lyndria cursed herself for not noticing the dragonesses sooner. As if to confirm it, Cutter and Gennoni stepped into view. Gennoni seemed disinterested, but Cutter scowled. Lyndria, unable to look her friend in the eye, turned to Garreth instead. He also refused eye contact and stared at the fire in the center of the room.

“The fuck is wrong with you?” Cutter asked. “Did you really think that stupid shit would work? Did you think you were the first ones to try it?”

Gennoni spoke which suited Lyndria just fine. She didn’t know what to say.

“It was my idea,” she said. “ This was our best opportunity to take Tanor down.”

“And we were careful not to act until after negotiations failed,” Garreth added. “We just wanted to make sure all angles were covered.”

“Well congratu-fucking-lations, you covered all the angles to make sure we end up going to war.”

That broke Lyndria’s paralysis. “We were going to war anyway. I’m not giving my eggs up to her, and neither is Sareen.”

Cutter slapped the floor with her tail. “That’s not the point, you dumbass. Before, we had time to put an army together and maybe get her to change her mind. Thanks to your little stunt, we don’t have that anymore.”

Lyndria bit her tongue, unable to offer a retort. Cutter was right and she knew it. She had been too rash and eager in her plan to see Tanor fall. Gennoni still `          didn’t seem to care.

“Eber’s pissed at you,” Cutter continued. “Sareen’s trying to calm him down but he said he didn’t want you back in Opalana.”

“He’ll get over it,” Gennoni said.

“You have more faith in him than I do,” Lyndria mumbled.

“Now’s really not the time to be banishing folks,” Cutter said. “Besides, you faced Tanor twice and lived. That’s damn useful even if you did get your ass handed to you both times. It’ll be a blow to her pride and it might just be enough to make everyone stop pissing themselves and fight with us.”

“Our options are that bad?” Garreth asked.

Cutter rolled her eyes. “You guys really have no idea who the fuck you’re dealing with, do you?”

“And whose fault is that?” Lyndria asked, netteled. “Aren’t you the one who recruited us to help you fight her? And the one who refused to share important information to that end?” She started to stand, but the sharp pain in her side forced her to stay still and even it couldn’t stop the building anger. “You didn’t tell us she was your mother, you didn’t tell us about the vessels, you didn’t even tell us how powerful she was!”

“Well, that’s—Okay, I didn’t tell you the truth because I thought you wouldn’t help me if I did. And I had to be careful. She’s got spies everywhere.”

“Yeah, and look where that got us.” She turned just enough to glare at Gennoni. “And you’re no better! You knew Cutter left us in the dark and didn’t say anything. And you knew that gun wouldn’t work, didn’t you? That’s why you followed us, isn’t it?”

Gennoni flinched at the last question and her gaze faltered. “You knew?”

“Either that or I was out for that long.”

“Good point. But the plan was to use the gun to weaken her. I didn’t think it would be that ineffective.”

“Well, I’m still surprised a headshot only pissed her off. Aren’t those things designed to pierce dragon scales?” she asked Garreth.

Before the human could reply, Cutter spoke up, “You know our skin gets tougher when it heals from damage, right? She’s probably been toughening herself up for centuries.”

Lyndria groaned as she rolled her eyes. “Are you saying she built up a tolerance to bullets? And she can harden her scales to be even harder?” She whirled on the other two Matriarchs. “Is there anything else you’re not telling us? Can she control time too?”

“I didn’t think her scales were tough enough to resist bullets,” Gennoni said. “And if you were so worried, you should’ve asked.”

“Are you actually trying to turn this on me?”

“Hey, can we all admit that we fucked up and we move on?” Garreth asked. He poked at the flames, shifting the sticks around. The room lit up a bit more. “We can’t beat Tanor if everyone’s at each other’s throats.”

“You’re right,” Cutter said. “Tanor’s gonna wreck our asses raw anyway. Might as well work on making it harder for her.”

“Then what’s the plan?” Lyndria asked.

Cutter casually pushed her and she fell onto her side.

“You’re gonna lay your ass down and get some rest,” she said. “Once you’re well enough, we’ll head back and hope Sareen got my dad to calm down.”

“And if she didn’t?” Lyndria asked, glaring daggers at the dragoness.

“We’ll improvise. He’s stubborn but he’s not stupid. He’ll come around before Tanor does.”

Lyndria was about to end it there but noticed someone was missing. “Where’s the other human?”

“I sent him back with the others,” Gennoni replied. “I need someone back there keeping an eye on things.”

Lyndria no longer had the energy to ask more questions, so she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

She was shaken awake after an unknown amount of time. It was still dark out but the fire had burned low, so it was assumed to have only been an hour or so.

Garreth knelt beside her, but Cutter and Gennoni were nowhere to be seen.

“We need to talk,” he said. “It’s about Gennoni. I think she played us.”

Lyndria sat up as much as her body allowed. Her side felt much stiffer and irritating it didn’t do her any favors. “What do you mean?”

“I’ve been thinking about it, and I realized that if she was watching the whole time, she just let you get taken down by Tanor, not to mention she sacrificed us. What if you had died? She didn’t even try to help you.”

“Neither did anyone else. But that’s why I led Tanor away. They weren’t supposed to get involved.”

“That’s not the point. They keep saying now is not the time to lose allies but they didn’t hesitate to leave you to die.” He glanced over his shoulder. Lyndria thought it a strange gesture. With the fire burned out, he wouldn’t see if anyone stood in the farthest corners of the room. She could and they were alone. “I think we made a mistake getting involved with them.”

“I don’t think we have a choice anymore. Tanor’s not gonna let me go. And even if she did, where are we going? What’s left?”

“That’s another thing, why didn’t Tanor kill you?”

“Because she fucked up.”

“No, she didn’t. She could’ve killed you in a dozen different ways or at least hung around to make sure you were gone. I cleaned your cut, it was bad but she could have cut deeper.”

“What are you saying?”

He was silent for a moment. “I don’t know yet, but I don’t like it. She’s toying with you.”

“Tell that to my body,” she said with a groan. “It hurts to breathe. And she told me herself I was going to die here.”

“Maybe she was just being dramatic.”

“You’re starting to sound like those guys shouting in the middle of Opalana.”

“I hope so. I don’t want to think about how scary it will be if I’m right.”

Feeling sleepy, she shifted into a new resting position and closed her eyes. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“Aren’t you worried?”

“I’m a Matriarch; I have nothing to be scared of.”

“That’s not true. Everyone feels fear. It’s acknowledging that fear and facing it that makes us strong. You can deny it all you want, but I know you’re scared.”

She continued to lay there and said nothing. He was right but she would never admit that. She was afraid. Afraid of what Tanor would do if she found out about Madrin. Afraid of what the future would be if they didn’t stop her.

There was no time to be afraid. There was no time to think. Except now it was all she could do. As she lay there, trying to go back to sleep, her mind wandered. Tanor’s words echoed: “You could be so much more if you stopped taking the first solution that presented itself.”

It was quickly followed by Gareth’s: “I think we made a mistake getting involved with them.”

Did they make a mistake? Were they too quick in getting involved with Cutter and Gennoni and now were paying the price for it? She thought back to her old clan and how she dealt with them. So many dragons that could’ve been helpful in the coming fight.

But they were weak, she told herself. Even as the thought crossed her mind, she realized they could’ve been trained. Made stronger and taught how to think for themselves. Instead, she let her anger take over and went with the first thought that popped into her head.

A new thought popped up. Maybe there was another option. A way to avoid going to war with Tanor afterall or at least make the fight easier.

She decided to tell everyone at once when they returned to Opalana. It would also give her time to iron out the details of her new plan.

****

“Forgive me, but you want to do what?” Sareen asked.

Lyndria rolled her eyes, knowing the dragoness heard her and just wanted to be difficult. Convincing Eber to let Lyndria back into the city was easier. But she had expected that. On the way back, she thought out the details of her plan. Sareen was going to be the hardest sell on it. And she already had her arguments in place.

“I’m saying we should try to convert Tanor’s daughters to our side,” Lyndria said. “It worked for Cutter and Gennoni.”

“We were a lot younger then,” Gennoni said.

“My point still stands. These are her daughters, they’re going to be just as headstrong and I’ll bet anything some of them are only going “Yes, Mommy” because they know what will happen if they don’t. I bet they would be willing to join us if they had another option.”

“And how will you separate them from the ones seeking to use us to further their own agenda?” Sareen asked.

“We’ll cross that bridge if we come to it. Look, I know it’s a gamble but if someone’s got a better option, I’m listening.”

She looked around, waiting for someone to speak up. None of them did.

“I didn’t think so.”

“Do you even know who Tanor’s daughters are, O great leader?” Cutter asked.

“I don’t need to. We know Tanor only chooses Celestials as her vessels. Any clan ruled by a Celestial is our target.”

“Then who’s first?” Gennoni asked.

“Someone far to the south. Tanor doesn’t know about this place, right? Then starting farther away from here should throw her off for a while.”

“While I applaud your tenacity,” Sareen said, “A longer range attack requires more resources not to mention carries greater risk.”

“Okay, I’m just gonna say it,” Cutter added. “Who is going to turn on Tanor to join her ex, two rejects, a stuck-up Stormborne, and a Shortsnout with more balls than brains?”

“Then we’ll get something to bargain with,” Gennoni said. “And I know who we can approach first. A mean Matriarch named Nagarini. She’s not one of Tanor’s daughters and she’s got no love for her. She turned me down the first time I approached her, but maybe you can do better.”

“I'm surprised Tanor would leave such a force uncontested," Sareen said. "And what makes you believe we can succeed where you failed?”

“Lyndria has a knack for negotiation.”

“Very funny,” Lyndria said.

“I’m serious,” Gennoni replied. “Maybe Nagarini will like your annoying stubbornness. Just remember that we need her alive. She has a large clan under her control and we need them.”

“And how do we know Tanor hasn’t made them her bitch by now?” Cutter asked.

Lyndria shrugged. “We’ll find out when we get there.”

“And this is the plan we have?” Eber asked as he walked into the room. “When I agreed to allow you into the city again, I was assured you would be an asset we couldn’t afford to turn away. Instead you suggest we risk everything on a hunch.”

“We don’t exactly have anything better do we?” Lyndria shot back. “And it’s not like I’m just going to rush in and pick a fight,”

“This time,” Cutter mumbled.

Lyndria ignored the comment and continued. “Look, we’re not going to beat Tanor if we don’t take risks. Besides, if we fail we’re all dead anyway so what’s it matter if I die trying?”

“What matters is you seem eager to throw your life away and I can’t fathom as to why,” Eber said. “If you want to kill yourself by all means but don’t go dragging my daughters down with you!”

“She ain’t dragging me; I’m going on my own,” Cutter said. “I’ll go with Lyndria and see if we can’t convince Nagarini to join in the madness. In the meantime, Gennoni and Silias can go west and try some more bodies. No point in putting all our hopes in this one plan.”

“And what’s she doing?” Gennoni asked, pointing at Sareen.

“She’s staying here to help Eber run the place and secure this place.” When Eber started to speak, Cutter quickly interrupted. “And before you say it, we’ll have a better shot at convincing Tanor’s crotch spawn to join us if it comes from one of her own. That’s why we have to go. Besides, I want at least one capable Matriarch here just in case.”

“At least you acknowledge my power,” Sareen said with a huff. “I don’t agree with being left behind but you are correct. Improving defenses here is an important task.”

“Are there really no other Matriarchs here?” Lyndria asked Eber.

“I suspect there are, but we are short on trustworthy allies,” the drake replied. His gaze suggested she wasn’t included in that list. “And I suspect they are quite weak as they have not made their presence known. It will take time to root them out, confirm their loyalty, and train them for the fight ahead.”

“Then I will conduct my search for them immediately,” Sareen said. “If there are capable Matriarchs amongst our ranks, we would be fools to ignore them.”

Cutter chimed in. “Works for me. Just make sure you two don’t go having too much fun while we’re gone,” she finished with a devious grin. “Don’t look at me like that. It’s been too long since you’ve been with someone. Live a little. We might all be dead in a few months.”

Neither Sareen nor Eber shared her amusement. Lyndria chuckled. Silias sighed and Gennoni rolled her eyes.

“How does that improve our chances of success?” Sareen asked hotly.

“Maybe it’ll help you relax so you can think clearer.”

Sareen sighed heavily. “Why have we been cursed with your presence?”

Without hesitation, Cutter replied, “Because mommy didn’t like anal.”

Lyndria snorted and burst into laughter at the look of sheer horror on Eber’s face. She excused herself, barely making it into the hall before succumbing to the hysterics and collapsing on the floor. It aggravated her wounds, but she didn’t care and couldn’t stop even if she wanted to.

She managed to stand up again when the joy and pain finally died down. The others had likely moved on while she was indisposed, so she decided to go see Madrin before Cutter dragged her off to the ends of the world.

****

“So, you’re leaving again,” Madrin said solemnly.

Lyndria nodded. She had explained everything about their plans to stop Tanor so she understood. There would be no secrets between them. Now that Madrin knew everything, she didn’t feel any lighter. Instead, the weight felt heavier. Now someone was counting on her, waiting for her to come home.

“But you just got here,” Madrin said.

“Someone needs to stop Tanor.”

“And who said it had to be you?”

“No one said it had to be me but let’s be honest, you know I’m not gonna stand by and let the others do this on their own. This is our future too and I want to fight for it.”

Madrin tensed, her tail poised to strike the floor, but with a heavy sigh, she let it fall limp with a light thud. “Okay, then I’ll do what I can here.”

“You don’t—”

“So it’s okay for you to fight for our future but not me?” Madrin asked hotly.”I have things I want to protect too and I’m tired of relying on everyone else. Ever since we were hatchlings, I just ran to you and expected you to fix all my problems.”

Lyndria tilted her head. “Wow, where’s this coming from? I mean, don’t get me wrong--I like it, but you were never this bold.” With a smile, she added, “I guess this guy is having a stronger effect on you than I thought.”

Madrin looked away, her fins flat against her head. “It’s not like that!”

“I’m just glad to see my little sister’s growing up. I trust you to hold the fort down here. I’ll take care of everything else. Head up to the temple and tell Eber I sent you. He’ll figure something out for you to do.” Before leaving, she turned and added with a devious grin. “And when I come back, I want to meet your chosen.”

Madrin slapped the floor with her tail. “He is not my chosen!”

Lyndria laughed on her way out of the door. Thanks. I needed that. Something tells me there won’t be much laughing for quite a while.