Sneak Peek at Riven's Flame from our MMC's POV: Great King Kieh of the Raelic Lands East of the Gratengauv city. Riven's Flame is a Rumpelstiltskin inspired dragon romantasy with our FMC disguised as a male. For all of you lovelies that would prefer Rumpelstiltskin to have a HEA when his mate says his true name. Also, don't forget to check out the indie temptations after the sneak peek to help support fellow indie authors.
"Fuck, Kieh," Levik said running his claws through his undone hair. He must have come here as soon as he realized I wasn't home. "Even if you come out on top of the new Ska Trials, I doubt Gratengauv will accept you as the head of their new crown... or is this about the temple? Are our females not to your liking? Don't think our own temple hasn't spoken about your absence from royal moon mating cycles. I know that I send you off, and see that you enter... yet every time, they speak as if you've never arrived." He sighed before continuing, "You're ruining my chances of having my own progeny the longer you drag this out. I can't in good conscience frequent the temple if my own king has yet to do so..."
"I can see this has nothing to do with your concerns for the future of my own progeny, or anything to do with me at all for that matter," I said with a yawn.
Not that it would matter now with the new decree agreed upon by all kingdoms to appoint upcoming new crowns for each kingdom under the singular rule of our largest clan, the Gratengauv. I slipped the twisted strand of hair to the tip of my finger and flicked a small spit of black fire over it. It didn't burn, and I grinned, feeling my magic hum.
I was feeling ridiculous for stealing it from the boy's wrist guard when offering him a gift of my magic was already more than I should have done. But, I'm quite pleased with myself now that it was mine and it brought a bit of a thrill to know there was someone who could withstand my flame. He may not have his scales yet, but when he did, he would be formidable to survive the heat of black fire.
"Kieh?" Levik pulled my attention back. "Are you sure you should be doing this when you only recently became king? Your second crown wouldn't be anything more than a strong advisory committee to your future heir. You should be focusing your efforts towards securing the Raelic interest with choosing a mate."
"Our kingdom will become an extension of the Gratengauv. They have more females in their temple, and you know as well as I do that all the clans shouldn't be limiting their future by hording them. Plus, the reason why the king doesn't have an heir isn't for the reason his clan thinks it is. He has too many that he can't choose, plus he doesn't even know which boys are his in this lot. Though, by the looks of a few of them, it should be obvious which ones take after him. King Graten has fucked every female they have, yet not a single one of them birthed a female as he had hoped for.
"He's probably refucking them all as we speak, and soon enough he'll have to make sure whoever takes his place as king isn't related to him. Why do you think he makes sure everyone allowed access to the temple is older than who could possibly be his own seed. I pity the next female born into this world, for she will be coveted by the king, yet his own clan will have to keep their own king far away from her if they aren't to ruin our future further."
"So, this has nothing to do with having more power, but to save the clan of Gratengauv from their own current king?" Levik questioned with a quirk of his brow.
"We don't hide our females like treasures, they are welcome to the protection of the temple by choice. I will not allow the Kingdom of Gratengauv to try to force them to join his temple without their consent."
"They blame us for the death of a few of our females, for not being more protective of them."
"I highly doubt such an event would be repeated," I seethed at the memory. My throat heated with my fire, ready to char anyone to ash if they dared to lay a hand on a female without their consent.
"We can't kill every male who goes into heat," Levik clenched his jaw, a clear indication that he would do so gladly if his reason didn't remind him that our numbers were dwindling.
"We have no use for males with no control, or the foresight to secure themselves to avoid such incidences," I dismissed his concern. "Hold that thought," I stopped him from speaking further, disappearing into the shadow after tucking the glowing token into my wrist guard.
Levik muttered under his breath, "Turning everyone to ash doesn't help with the whole clan fearing you. A healthy amount of fear is fine, but we need to work on them knowing that you aren't just a royal asshole, but you would risk your life for them, for their future."
He was right, I had a ruthless image to overcome without destabilizing our clan. It would have to wait, as curiosity pulled me towards the entrance of the sacred cave where a haunting laugh lured me closer.
Ah yes, there was that golden dragon that was the splitting image of his father. How could anyone not suspect who sired him? And there, the source of that laugh was much sweeter than I would expect from a boy on the cusp of adulthood. It did something to my insides that I didn't like in the slightest, a warmth spreading through my veins.
"I've got a surprise for you, Sprout. I've been planning this for a while now, but with the Ska Trials sooner than expected, I think it's time. There's a lot as stake, and I want you by my side no matter what happens."
The smaller male cleared their throat and chuckled uncomfortable with the affection being given him from a capable warrior. "You've done more than enough keeping the other guys off my back," they replied with their hand rubbing at their neck. My eyes narrowed in on the movement, enhancing my vision as if I were flying high above the ground, to see the nervous sweat glisten off his skin, and the throb of his vein just below his ear. I licked my lips at the sight, feeling my fangs lengthen.
Something about this boy was getting under my scales. He was old enough to be considered an adult, otherwise he wouldn't be present for the decree of the Ska Trials, but he was a late bloomer who had avoided having their flame ignited. I knew it was a purposeful avoidance, because one with magic in their hair already was ready to accept their scales, but he chose not to. He was also crafty if he was able to avoid other males tricking him into being burned by their own fire to force the process. Did he realize he was destined to be a black dragon and didn't want to be ostracized by his clan? Black fire was dangerous and feared among dragons for running so hot that even golden scales could be melted with its heat.
"You don't need me to do that. We both know you can handle yourself, Sprout," the golden one said with an awkward chuckle back before he flew closer and squeezed the boy's shoulder like they were something more than unit comrades. I bristled at the sight, feeling my scales itch at the way those golden eyes looked predatory at the boy, who seemed oblivious.
It wasn't uncommon for men to pair off or relieve themselves in the company of their peers. I had suggested to the boy myself that I thought he had similar intentions towards myself. It wasn't the first time I was solicited, nor the first time I was fooled from someone's kindness being anything more than self-interest.
But the boy seemed to genuinely not know who I was, and even insinuated I was similar to him at not having accepted my flame or scales. What was more intriguing to me, and probably the cause of my unwanted draw towards the boy, was the way he wasn't disgusted that others would want my affection, but that they would choose to use it as a means for their own self advancement. Perhaps, having a boy like him would be beneficial before someone like the golden child corrupted his softness.
I shook my head of the thought. What was I thinking? It must be a strange connection knowing he could be the only other black dragon capable of not being burned by my flame. I avoided using my flame even around Levik, not wanting to risk him harm.
The golden one flew through the opening, his intention for the boy named Sprout to follow. The boy hesitated and worried his lower lip with his teeth, and I found myself flying closer within the shadows with an urge to ask him why he was so worried around a member of his unit.
Sprout flew up to the narrow exit and used his wings and claws to climb out instead of flying. It was smart for a dragon without scales to be cautious with their wings. He acted with mindfulness instead of pride and arrogance. I waited to give him time to make his way out, before I used one swift sweep of my wings, pulling them tight against me while darting out the narrow entrance on one powerful push.
The benefit of using the momentum of one wing sweep was that it was silent, and I was able to cling to the top of the flat rock and hide myself in shadows, continuing to follow my curious new interest. I tried to convince myself that this was merely distraction from more pressing matters, and avoiding my second claw's questions about taking on more responsibility of aiming to be not only the king of Raelic, but a king to be in Gratengauv. It was a conversation I would have to have with him soon, since my intention of joining the Ska Trials would affect him as well, he would surely join me.
Perhaps my interest in the boy was strategic, if his magic protected him from being burned by my fire, he could be either an asset or a liability. Depending on if he was with me or against me. I watched as he flew after the golden dragon towards the mountain's training maze and not back towards their city. The quickest way back to Gratengauv's city was through the pass, of which they were heading west of. Very few dragons could fly high enough where the air was thin to pass over the mountain range that direction, unless they were taking the cave system through.
"Kieh? Fuck, Chance is going to kill me if I come back without you," he whispered and then called out my name again, "Kieh! You know that you have responsibilities, right?"
"You can drag me back to those responsibilities after we do a bit of light tracking," I replied behind his ear as I dropped behind him from above. He didn't flinch, and that was why he was my second claw... fearless. Staying calm no matter the circumstances means he's able to assess and act with lethal precision. I'm the only one who's ever been able to sneak up on him.
"You better mean tracking our way home," he grumbled, his purple scales shifting with his flexing muscles.
"After a detour," I agreed.
He sighed in resignation. "Please tell me we're going to try to sneak into the the temple and at least see if there is anyone you're interested in before you start risking your life over responsibilities you don't even want."
"Not exactly," I replied with nonchalance, because it may not have been the temple that caught my eye, but I was certainly intrigued by someone I wouldn't mind stealing for myself. He'd make a good addition to our unit at the very least. It's been quite some time only the two of us, and a unit typically had at least seven. Not that I'm complaining about having only one trusted advisor, but it would be nice to have another.
"What's this about?" he asked while following me under the fog and in the opposite direction of home.
"I met a boy," I confessed.
He groaned. "Could you put half this effort into finding a mate as you do finding a new fixation?"
"Who says I'm fixating? Who says the boy can't be a mate? Are you jealous?" I asked the questions too close together for him to rebut any of the claims and distract him from noticing that the boy I spoke of was a shadow above us, beyond the fog.
"Why would I be jealous? If I wanted your cock, I'd have had it a hundred times over by now," he scoffed, but I could tell he wasn't offended. He was the only one who would ever dare speak to me this way. The fact that he did was heartwarming, though he never did so in front of others.
But the question did what I intended, steered the conversation away from the boy without being dishonest with Levik. When he asked of it again, I could say with honesty that I had tried to speak on it, but he insisted to speak of my cock instead.
It would be an amusing conversation.
Mostly because I knew Levik never partook in heating his cock with another male, and he had his eye on a particular female in the temple that he was using me as an excuse not to pursue. He thinks it would look bad to the clan for him to mate before I did.
I also knew that secretly he thought he could manipulate me into settling for any mate if he guilted me with his abstinence for my sake.
I won't make the mistake of Gratengauv and mate with every female available. I'll pick one and only one, and that's too important of a decision to make on a whim. Dragons lived long lives.
My fist went up in a signal to glide and stay quiet. We were getting close enough that I couldn't risk alerting our marks.
Then both of us could hear them, and I knew I made the right call.
"Why did you keep it in the caves?" Sprout asked, wariness in his voice.
"It's not that kind of gift," the golden one replied.
"You know the guys use the caves to play with their fire and fight each other..."
"I'm not going to fight you, Sprout. If you're going to spoil the surprise then I'll ease your worries. There's a hot spring that I finally found the tunnel for. Every unit keeps it a secret for new units to find it on their own."
"The Nagi Springs?" he said with awe.
"I thought you might like that. It's said to have minerals that feel like the beyond has blessed every muscle that touches it. Even the ache in the wing joints."
"You sound like you haven't tried it yet," Sprout teased.
"Not yet, I was waiting for us to try it together."
I ground my teeth together at the blatant display of flirting I've ever heard. Did he like it? I waited for his answer.
"I'm not sure..."
Did he not want to go?
"A hot spring is what brings my second claw to his knees, is it?"
Second claw? Did they bond together already?
When Levik became my second claw, we shared blood and marked him with my flame. It was a delicate process with black flame being so volatile. Did Scout already have a mark from the golden flame?
Was this all a pointless exercise in following him? Fuck, was I even considering marking the boy for myself? What was coming over me?
Why was I being so possessive?
"Don't get lost," the golden one taunted as he dove ahead, much faster than Scout could keep up with. I'd have to remember how fast that one was for the coming Ska Trials.
"Wait!" Scout called after him in a rush. "Asshole," he mumbled above.
I didn't have to rush to know where they were going. The hotspring wasn't unknown to me. I hovered in place, my black wings beating behind me as I processed what exactly my intentions were with the boy, and why I was obsessing about him.
"He's probably going to mark him when they get to the hot springs," Levik reasoned beside me, already piecing together why we were following them. "If you want the boy for yourself then we shouldn't stop here. Least we can do is stop the marking by interfering and giving you the chance to convince him you're a better option."
"Why do you think he will mark him at the springs?"
"It's what I would do. It sounds like he wants the boy as his second claw and even you tried to make the moment special. The first dip in the springs sounds special, and he saved it for him."
"You're not afraid that you'll be replaced?" I teased.
Levik shrugged his wings. "I'm not going anywhere. Even if we have the same mark, he'd have to fight me for the position. I don't lose. Being a back up second claw to you is still better than a second claw to some random king's offspring. He looks so much like King Graten, don't you think?"
"You aren't questioning me about my interest?"
"He must have made an impression. I'll hold my assessment until the boy learns your name."
"My name is everywhere," I dismissed.
"Your real name," he countered and I felt my flame stir at the suggestion.
"That will never happen," I hissed. "You are oath bound not to speak of it."
"No, just not to say it, speaking of it is still fair game. Or I'd be dead already."
"Why would you bring up something so ridiculous?"
"Just making sure you aren't going to make the same mistake twice."
My heart ached at the thought, and I nodded my agreement. Never again.
This was a sneak peek at Riven's Flame, which will be freesies to everyone on this newsletter when it's finished and available to grab and support future books by snagging it from Amazon in May. This will be a LIMITED time free grab, before the link is updated for a sample instead of the full book, so make sure my email is in your safe senders and doesn't go to your spam so you don't miss the email to grab your copy.
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Stevie
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