Tir shifted a little away from Drake, careful not to wake the slumbering man. Unlike Drake, Tir had slept deeply most of the night as the last of the drugs given to him had run through his system, so he now found it impossible to sleep. He would have welcomed the oblivion of sleep, but his mind refused to let go of the day events.

It wasn't even midday, and yet so many things had happened that his poor mind seemed overloaded. Central in his mind was the hatching of Ebony eggs. Up until that morning he had resigned himself to the fact that he wouldn't be included in the hatching, and he had convinced himself that it was alright. Even though he had wanted more than anything to be part of the hatching, when he thought it was impossible the comfort of knowing Ebony and Feras were still a part of his life was enough. But to be allowed to stand in the hatching and then be rejected was more than he could bear.

Despite the intense storm of tears that he had released only hours before, he felt them once again well up in his eyes. As he had lain in Drake light embrace he felt Feras try to touch his mind more than once, but Tir had quickly thrown up his mental barriers. Drake had told him that Feras had not wanted Tir to stand in the hatching, but he couldn help but feel torn about wanting to know. For once his curiosity couldn't dampen his dread at knowing the truth. He was afraid that Feras would tell him that he was unworthy, arrogant, and ungrateful. In his arrogance he had never considered the fact that he might not be chosen, despite his birth he still was nothing more than a former slave whose own father had sold him. He had nothing to his name except what had been given to him by the King.

Sighing he remembered yet another side effect of the hatching that had began to worry him as well. In his eagerness to have a chance to bond a dragonet he had accepted the ridiculous title of marquis. If he understood Drake correctly, the title had already caused him to be assaulted and almost raped even before he had officially been given it. Now it was official and none of the council seemed happy about it.

He couldn't help but worry how this was going to affect his life. Upmost in his mind was how was this going to affect his relationship between Marek and Drake. Before, he was nothing more than Drake servant, but now he was a Marquis. Would he be allowed to stay with the dragons and their riders when he wasn't one of them? As a high ranking noble with responsibilities he doubted it, and would that mean that the unique relationship that had formed between the three of them would be broken?

Tir felt tears slip down his cheek at the thought. In his eagerness and greed for something more he might lose something precious to him. The Highlands meant nothing to him, they were lands he had never seen, and a responsibility he didn't really want. The little dragon that would have made him even more a part of Drake and Marek world was nothing more than a dream.

Tir was startled when he felt not Feras but Ebony presence in his mind. He remembered Feras telling him that Ebony couldn't be blocked out of his mind, but he had never had her intrude within his thoughts when he tried to block her before. What surprised Tir even more was the fact that it wasn't emotion filled colors that entered his mind, but images. Drake had once told him he had to concentrate to see images from Ebony, and Tir had only once seen images from her.

He closed his eyes, disconcerted by seeing images of a luxurious sitting room superimposed on the real surroundings of Drake bedroom. When he focused he found that he could not only see an image of two very similar willowy tall men, but also hear the conversation that they were having. One of the men, dressed in black with long, loose silver hair and violet eyes similar to his own, was arguing passionately with another man with short midnight black hair and eyes, dressed in the exact same flowing robes, except his were the purest white. Tir watched the two, noticing that both elfin faces and delicate features mirrored each other; the only difference between the two men was their distinct coloring.

"They are meant to be used by us, we are superior to them in every way," the violet eyed man said coolly.

"You're wrong, they are human just as we are Levan," shot back the black eyed man angrily.

"Barely, they have to do everything by hand and don't even have a flicker of power. They are at best something to be used, at worst a waste of resources. Come, Vash, this isn't worth fighting about, I'm your older brother, you should listen to me," the amethyst eyed Levan said entreatingly, holding out his hand.

"Being three minutes older than me doesn't bestow more wisdom on you. I cannot condone your experiments anymore, Levan. You killed thirty humans just to see if your magic could transport you safely. It's wrong, brother, we have our gifts to help people, not kill them," Vash said harshly, ignoring his brother hand, his dark eyes flashing.

"Trash with no magic in their blood, they do not deserve your pity. Their deaths served a greater purpose," Levan said haughtily, throwing his silver hair over his shoulder in impatience.

"Please brother, don't say such things," Vash implored.

"Enough Vash, lets return home," Levan said, disgusted.

"No, brother, I can't . If that is what you truly feel, I must stop you," Vash said determindly, drawing his body up.

"You'r e getting above yourself baby brother," Levan said with negligible flip of his hand, sending his brother flying through the air to crash against the wall loudly even as he vanished.

Tir watched as the blacked eyes of the man known as Vash filled with tears as he lay in a crumpled heap on the polished hardwood floor, sobbing. Tir watched the scene play out in front of him, forgetting for the moment his own problems as he felt something familiar about the two names tickle his mind. He sent a questioning thought out to Ebony only to see the scene in front of him shift.

The beautiful black haired Vash appeared in front of Tir closed eyes, looking older, his long flowing robes gone, replaced by clothes that reminded Tir of the dragon rider clothes that Drake always wore. He looked tired and worn, his body now whipcord thin with wiry muscles.

He had a small group of men and women surrounding him in a semicircle. Tir could feel an intense pressure building within the image as a vague flickering shadow began to appear and solidified in front of a concentrating Vash. Then, as the nebulous outline slowly began to take form, Tir realized that it was a golden dragon fully formed and as perfect as Ebony. When the dragon was complete he watched Vash crash to his knees, even as the golden beast lowered its head to its creator and gently nudged the man. There was pure joy in Vash face as he raised his head to look into the ruby eyes of his creation, and the dragon licked the man face.

Vash unsteadily got to his feet as he turned to his audience with a smile.

"I will need your help now to create the others, it would be unfair to leave this bright boy alone," Vash said tiredly.

"But you can't , you're exhausted and Levan could attack at anytime," protested a burly man in chain mail standing off to the side of the group .

"He right, you can't risk yourself. Even with our help you could burn yourself out. I felt the power it took to create him. If you die nobody can oppose your brother, for us who fight him death will come fast and the rest will be enslaved by him. You are our only hope to defeat him, Vash, you can't do this right now. One is enough," pleaded a petite woman dressed simply even as her bearing exposed her as more than a commonwoman.

"With Lin's help I will manage. We need them, Karen, we need them now to help strengthen our power. Lin by himself cannot create a living, growing species, not even two of them can do it, we need all twelve so they can sustain their race. If I die you will need them all the more, for they will contain all of my knowledge for as long as only one of them exists. They are the embodiment of my power Karen, with them we will be able to stop my brother and make sure no mage ever abuses their power as he does ever again," Vash said softly, leaning against the golden dragon.

"Lin?" another man in the group asked.

"It is his name. Come, he needs a mate, and we need to finish this," Vash said, turning, his eyes closing.

"Please, everyone link with Karen so she can channel your power to me in a steady flow," Vash commanded as he leaned against his creation.

As the image faded Tir stunned mind now knew who these people were, at least vaguely. Vashlore and Levithan, two men who, over two thousand years ago, destroyed their world. Their story had been lost in the sands of time and only their names remained. The names of two men who killed thousands and ripped the very ground apart in their final confrontation. Tir mind reeled at the shocking revelation of what he was witnessing through Ebony, even as the vision shifted yet again.

Brief flashes of images tumbled into his mind, pictures of grotesque dead bodies born of magic experiments gone wrong, humans shackled as animals, the land itself barren as if the very life force had been sucked out of it, and reports of atrocities as frightened people sought sanctuary under the banner Vashlore the Dragon Mage. The images turned his stomach as he watched vague snippets of a distant history that no one knew or remembered. Quietly, behind his closed eyes, he watched as Levan used his magic to increase his power at the expense of the people in the lands he controlled, even as his twin brother spent himself to save any person rich, poor, mage, or human that sought his help.

Suddenly the images stopped, and Tir felt his body tense as he waited for more. His whole being was caught up in the story that had unfolded before him. When nothing came he sent a demanding thought out to Ebony to continue, all of his own problems forgotten in the intense visions that had swept him up.

"We do not know the true ending. Vash blocked his thoughts from even Lin as he alone went to face his brother. All we know is the aftermath tore the world apart and helped to widen the ocean that now separates the two continents," came a gentle, feminine voice in his mind.

"Ebony?!!" Tir said aloud, sitting up in the bed.

Drake murmured, turning to his side as Tir eyes looked wildly around. Sliding out of the bed he quickly dressed and slipped out of Drake room even as his mind whirled. He tried calling out to Ebony again but he didn sense her presence anymore. Opening his mind as he walked, ignoring the bows of the servants he passed, he called out to Feras.

"About time you answered," Feras said drily.

"Was that Ebony?" Tir asked as he walked down the dragon walkway towards Ebony and Feras pen.

"Yes, be quiet when you enter, Marek is asleep," Feras cautioned as Tir approached the door.

"Asleep?"

"He watched over you last night. You worried him more than he would admit," Feras explained as Tir crept into the pen to see Marek sprawled out on the bed, half naked.

Looking over, he spotted Ebony lying against one side of the pen, her hatchling between her forelegs, sleeping. Tir walked over to her and touched the silver circle on her forehead as she looked at him with intense eyes.

"I sorry Tir, we love you and I know it hurts, but you will not bond with a young one. For better or worse you belong to us," Ebony said sadly within his mind.

"I thought you couldn't talk to humans?" Tir said softly, feeling the sadness of her words drain away his own.

"Drake does not have the gift of mind speech so I will never be able to talk him like this. He is my partner, so I have chosen until now never to speak to you except for how I can speak to him. It seemed unfair, but I have also felt your pain, little one, and I would take it away if I could. You are far from unworthy, but at the same time, Tir, you already share a bond with us, and any young dragon will feel that bond. If there were no mages left to bond then perhaps, but that will never happen," Ebony airy voice whispered in his mind.

The little purple dragon between Ebony forelegs chirped sleepily and looked up at Tir, blinking slowly. Tir felt mesmerized by the little one dark black eyes as she looked up at him, and he leaned down and gently scratched her eye ridges, watching her lower her head and close her eyes again.

"Why don't you come over here, Tir, and let her sleep," Feras suggested.

"What's her name?" Tir asked still enthralled with the little one.

"She has not told us yet. Most females take forever to choose a name, where we males make up our minds instantly," Feras replied, looking over at his mate.

"It only took me two months. I wanted to make sure my scales remained dark and would not fade to grey before I settled on Ebony. Others would have laughed if I turned a light black yet called myself Ebony," Ebony said defensively, flicking her tail at her mate, hitting him lightly on his flank.

"Of course," Feras agreed without a hint of humor.

"Come on Tir, it is too hot for you to stand in the open sun, you do not need to burn that fair skin yet again. I know you haven't put on that lotion the healers gave you to keep from burning. Get comfortable and then we will try to answer all your questions," Feras said.

Tir quietly went over to the platform and took up the padded cushion he often used when sitting in the sands with the dragons. and laid it down next to Feras side as the dragon raised one of his wings. It wasn't long before he arranged himself sitting next to the scarlet dragon as one wing spread out over him, creating a small shield from the sun. It wasn't as cool or as comfortable as sitting under the awning of the platform, but Tir felt comforted by Feras presence and his concern for Tir.

"I don't know where to even start," Tir said quietly in his mind.

"Then let me. As Ebony showed you, we were originally created by Vash the Dragon Mage. You saw him create Lin, the first dragon, and after that he created eleven more, although Lin finally persuaded him to do it over several weeks. Vash created us for a number of reasons, the first being a receptacle for all of his magiclore. He was afraid he would be killed by his brother before imparting his knowledge of how to fight Levan. All of us dragons are interconnected; we share a group mind that Vash also shared. We can of course block our minds from the group, but it is unnatural for us to do so. We are born with the group knowledge of our race, which includes Vash knowledge," Feras started.

"You mean that little dragon knows everything you know?" Tir asked amazed.

"Yes and no. She has the ability to access that knowledge through our group mind, but that doesn't give her unlimited wisdom or intellect. It is kind of like having a huge library filled with the history and knowledge of your people at your fingertips. No individual mind could hold all of that information, but the little over two thousand living dragons minds combined together can. When we are young the adults lock most of that knowledge away so not to confuse us. As we grow older the walls come down and we can access those memories of our ancestors. I really don't understand how it all works, the knowledge of how Vash set it up is there but understanding it is another thing all together," Feras explained.

"I think the first thing each one of us does when we are allowed access to all the knowledge is look into the memories of Vash and Lin. They are our creators and the ultimate ancestors. Their thoughts about our creation always draw us," Ebony commented.

"Yes, you're right," Feras agreed.

"But I thought I heard Vash say something about dragons being able to stop his brother?" Tir asked.

"Yes, it was the second reason we were created and that was to bond humans. Although we don't have much power of our own, we can amplify and can take control of a human mage power. Vash had a huge number of young and inexperienced mages in his forces. They weren't trained and he didn't have the time to train them. Most of the older, experienced mages joined Levan, who offered them every comfort and desire with no restrictions, while the young, idealistic and largely untrained mages flocked to Vash.

"Mages during their time were often taken for granted; there were many of them and their powers common place. They were used by noblemen and merchants alike, then thrown away. The trouble was that although there were a huge number of mages, their powers were limited to small magic, for the most part, so they couldn't command the respect they deserved. Vash and Levan were the first and only mages ever born with the power to level a city if they wished. They were a fluke of nature."

"Levan wanted to change the order of the world and make mages the pentacle of power. He saw their gifts as something unique and special. When they were young, both Vash and Levan worked together to improve the way people saw them and their fellow magic users. In the end though Levan wanted revenge for the careless disrespect shown to him and other mages. He believed because of his power he was better than anyone and deserved to rule. After all, why should a man who could destroy a town or create a dragon bow his head to someone that couldn even heal himself? Vash felt the opposite, that because of his powers he had a duty to help whoever asked. He took the mantle of ruler reluctantly and only for the purpose of stopping his brother," Feras sighed mentally.

"So that why they fought. Nobody now remembers, everyone has forgotten about it," Tir said excitedly, sitting up a little straighter.

"Yes, as you saw. Levan committed many atrocities in his search to increase his power, and Vash felt compelled to stop him. Each of the twelve dragons bonded with five humans apiece, and guided them in the use of their powers. When more young were born they bonded to more humans. Until all of Vash mage force was connected with dragons. We were able to boost the powers of the young mages and make it possible to weave the energy of their powers in complex shields and weapons that up to that point only Levan and Vash were capable of. In the end, Vash was able to force Levan into a corner. One night Vash disconnected himself from the group mind and disappeared, and by morning the very earth itself was heaving in the aftermath of the two brothers last battle," Feras replied.

"Five people for one dragon? I thought you could only bond one human, and did the bonded humans belong to a group mind? Do Drake and Marek?" Tir said rapidly as the number of questions grew in his head and he frowned.

"Over time the bond has changed, although it is still possible for us to bond more than one human, obviously," Feras replied.

"Obviously?"

"You are bonded to Ebony and me, and we are bonded to Marek and Drake. Although there has never been a time when two dragons had a bond with one human," Feras answered, shifting his wing a little.

"As for the group mind, no human other than Vash has ever belonged to it. Vash was our creator, not humans. We ultimately were created to control human mages, although Vash never truly revealed that to any of his people," Ebony interjected softly.

"Ebony!" Feras said, even as he rumbled aloud, looking over at his mate.

"We have already broken the rules by telling him, why not all of it?" Ebony replied in a calm voice.

"You're not supposed to talk about this?" Tir asked tentatively, looking between the two.

"Many things happened after the destruction of the two great mages. Thousands of people died, including most of Vash's forces except those the dragons where able to evacuate. As for Levan's people, they were less affected, but with Levan death it left his only son, Kris, in control of his small empire. Kris wasn't like his father, and faced with the total destruction of so much he repudiated his father philosophy."

"He gathered all his father mages together and offered them a choice: death or seal their power. Apparently it was the one solution that neither great mage had ever researched, but Kris had. He forced that choice on every mage caught in his empire. Any mage that managed to escape Kris decree was hunted down by us and killed outright. Kris, although not as strong as his father, was still very powerful. He sealed not only the mages but also their decedents. Kris was a genius far above his father and uncle," Feras continued.

"But surly Vash people didn't . . . "

"No, but that is were Vash's plan came in. While we can amplify power, we can also suppress it. Terma was founded in the aftermath of the mage war. The dragons were split about what was to be done now that our creator was dead. Many wanted to kill all the mages out of hand. Mage power was the cause of so much fighting and destruction, and many didn't want to bind future generations to the task of stopping such a thing from occurring again. The bond shared between humans and dragons was very different back then. It was a thin thread of connection that was easily severed without the soul splitting pain that the bond now has."

"That makes sense in a way. If you were bonding more than one human then obviously you wouldn't be as devoted to your partners," Tir interrupted, looking up at Feras for confirmation.

"Correct, but still many dragons felt protective of their humans and were outraged. It did go against what Vash wanted for his people and was a betrayal of our creator. Lin had died with Vash, unwilling to live without him, and so we were leaderless. After much wrangling, it was decided that only if the mages agreed to take control of the lands now known as Terma, and agreed to bond a dragon, would they be spared. The mages would make up the elite of the country and the dragons would bond them and suppress the majority of their power."

"Ironic Vash people ended up doing exactly what Levan did," Tir remarked.

"No, Tir. For hundreds of years after the battle the nobles of this land cleansed it of the backlash of magic power. Even with dragons suppressing their power they still drained themselves helping the humans that came for their protection. Nobility meant servitude to the land and people above all else, even now two thousand years later, as the King told you, there are no empty titles in Terma," Ebony rebuked him gently.

"As the centuries passes, people forgot the history of the mage war and the true purpose of dragons. Dragons continued to suppress mage powers, letting our humans use only the simplest of their powers and killing any mage outside of our influence. The reality was, after only three centuries the people who sat on the throne of Terma and ruled this country were not very different from the people without the gift of power," Ebony continued.

"So why do dragons still bond humans? And what about mages in other countries, surely Terma isn the only place they are?" Tir questioned.

"There aren't as many mages left. During the mage war all mages were caught up in it and they were focused in two areas. Kris took care of most of Levan's forces and the dragons took care of Vash's forces. We send dragons out to scout for any mages and over the centuries small groups of our people have settled in various desserts through the world. Luckily, humans tend to avoid desserts so they don't notice us much, and we take care to hide our presence from them. We always look for potential mages to either kill them or sometimes bond with them. There is no one left to teach humans how to use and control their gifts, so we continue to bond with humans and keep their powers in check," Feras explained.

"And that is why you aren't suppose to tell humans about what you do, right? That is why you aren't supposed to tell me. I think most people would be resentful of you controlling them without their permission, maybe even some of the riders here in Terma. Not to mention you kill innocent humans just because they have a gift for magic," Tir said quietly in his mind.

"Are you angry Tir? The bond that has formed between us is to control your own magic," Ebony asked with sadness.

"I don't know. It so much to take in. I don't want to be a Marquis, let alone a mage," Tir sighed. "I don't think it is right that you kill people for being born they way they are.

"So why did you tell me? And why did you bond me?" Tir asked in the silence that stretched out between him and the dragons.

"Both are interconnected. We didn't mean to form a bond between us, it happened by accident. Healing was a common enough use of magic back in Vash's day, but after the war there were few Mages left to devote to it. It also takes a certain amount of knowledge to use magic to heal. Even more so than regular healers, a mage must know how the body works and how it is put together to apply their powers correctly. In Vash's day mages specializing in healing took years of studying to correctly use their powers.

"Obviously Marek didn't have such knowledge, nor did Drake. Drake just assumed it was the energy itself that healed, and that pouring enough into you would take care of your injures after you were whipped. Unfortunately if we had let him continue it would have killed you completely. Dragon riders heal fast because we dragons use the riders power and the knowledge of our group mind to fix our human friends.

"Not only was the skin literally stripped from your body by the whip, you had lost an extreme amount of blood, making the healing extensive. Marek is a weak mage with very little power, I chose him as much for his intense personality as his gifts. Drake is a channel, which means he can only focus the power of other mages. To heal you our two riders needed not only our knowledge but more power."

Both Ebony and I responded at the same time, pouring the one unique power we dragons have into you, the power to form a bond. We are magical creatures that are sensitive to magic, and can control it, but the only powers we have on our own without our human counterparts is the power to form a bond between our two species. No two dragons have ever tried to bond a human at the same time, nor funnel that power through a mage channel. What happened was unprecedented. The bonds melded together into one bond formed between the three of us."

"When a dragon bonds more than one human, each human can feel the presence of the other humans connected to his dragon. Because the two bonds were melded together in the channel link, an entirely different and unique sort of bond was formed. One that interconnected the three of us together outside of our bonds to Marek and Drake. That is why you don feel the deep attachment to me that Marek feels, because you are bonded to both of us, not just one of us," Feras explained.

"What about Marek, his power was in that link. Is he bonded to Ebony now and doesn't know it?" Tir asked, shifting a little, starting to feel a little stiff.

"No, he seems to be unaffected, we were able to combine his power with your own, which are considerable, and heal you completely," Ebony answered.

"I'm strong in power?" Tir said, surprised by that.

"Yes, more so than anyone in generations except your father," Feras said drily, with a snort.

"It is to be expected, as far as we can tell you are a direct descendent of Levan," Ebony added.

"I'm what?!!" Tir yelped, standing up only to hit his head on the top of Feras wing.

The hatchling growled in disapproval even as Tir looked over to see Marek awake, looking at him.

"Later Tir, do not speak of this to Marek and Drake," Feras cautioned.

"But. But..." Tir stuttered in his mind, completely overwhelmed.

"Later," Ebony said determinedly, withdrawing from his mind along with Feras as he looked at Marek, who was approaching him.

"I'm sorry Tir," Marek said quietly.

"Sorry?" Tir asked stupidly, his mind still in chaos from all that he had been told.

"Feras said I shouldn't have included you, but I was determined. I didn't think about the consequences if you weren't chosen," Marek said, his hand reaching out to touch Tir's face lightly.

Tir stood mutely in front of the man, unsure of what to say. His sadness at not bonding a hatchling seemed so distant to him now. So many things where jumbled in his mind and he had so many questions still left unanswered. Yet as he looked into Marek's eyes he felt his questions seep away as he saw something he had never seen in the man face before.

Guilt, worry, concern and love warred with the man eyes and face as he looked down at Tir. The intensity of the emotions surprised Tir, taking him aback at the sight. It was the most open expression he had ever seen on the Baron face, except when he looked at Feras. He had never been sure of Marek feelings about him, since the man often hid behind his dry, sarcastic humor. Unlike Drake, who often enjoyed talking more than sex, his relationship with Marek had always been driven by animalistic passion first and foremost. It often made Tir doubt the man’s deeper feelings for him that Feras often said were there.

"Promise me something Marek," Tir said softly, moving out from under Feras’s wing.

"What," Marek asked, stepping back a little to let Tir stand out in the open sand.

"Never leave me, no matter what happens I want you by my side," Tir said, looking up at the man.

"Drake will always be there, he’s the hero not me," Marek said sarcastically, his face closing up.

"Don’t, Marek."

"Are you commanding me," Marek asked amused.

"Don’t, Marek," Tir said, reaching out to grip the man’s wrist, unable to completely encircle it with his small hand.

Feras’s words came back to him, a lonely boy and a lonely man. Marek never talked about his past, nor had he ever talked about anything serious. He hid himself in so many ways from everyone except Feras. Tir had seen behind that mask, if only for a brief moment last night, and now standing before the man. He wanted more than anything to break through the mocking humor to see the man who had captivated a tiny scarlet dragon as he emerged from his shell. Mages, dragons, hatchlings, family, titles, wars, everything that had been piling up on Tir was swept away by one thing, the brief moment of vulnerably by a man who had always seemed impregnable.

"I love you, and I want you by my side," Tir said determinedly, looking up at the Baron.

"What about Drake?"

"I love him as well, I want us together. I don’t want a hatchling, I want you two. I want us together with Feras and Ebony. I don’t care if I ever bond a hatchling as long as you and Drake are here with me," Tir stated, seeing a flicker of emotions crossing the usually emotionless face.

"You want it too," Tir said, releasing the man’s wrist and moving forward to wrap his arms around the Baron’s waist.

"I think someone has become a little too demanding. First last night and now tonight," Marek said as Tir felt himself being picked up and carted off accross the sands to the platform.

Tir felt his heartbeat increase as he struggled a little. This wasn’t what he had in mind, he was trying to be serious and Marek was falling back on old patterns. When Marek threw him on the bed he was surprised when Marek didn’t join him, but went instead to his small chest that contained some of his personal items.

"Marek, I want..." Tir started only to stop when Marek turned around with something that looked suspiciously like rope in his hands.

"No, Marek, I want to talk to you first," Tir said, shaking his head and moving to get up from the bed.

"I don’t think so. I don’t want to talk, I have been far too lenient with you," Marek’s soft voice almost purred as he stalked over to the bed, pushing Tir down firmly.

Tir looked up into Marek’s face and shivered a little at the bright emerald eyes that reminded him of the first time he had met the man in the King’s bedchamber. He wriggled a little, trying to back away from the man standing at the edge of the bed.

"What are you going to do with those?" Tir asked, vividly remembering the last time the man had tied him up in the King’s bedroom.

"What do you think I’m going to do?"

"Marek no, I don’t want to. I want to talk with you, I need…" Tir started, only to trail off at the look in the man’s eyes.

"Don’t you want me to?" Marek asked provocatively, crawling into the bed, never breaking eye contact.

Tir gulped, backing away, trying to remember what he really wanted. He needed to talk to Marek about his feelings, he need to talk to Feras and Ebony more, he need to figure out what the hells was going on with his life, yet the only thing that seemed to matter was those emerald eyes filled with lust that had captured him and now wouldn’t let him move.

"Damn it Marek," Tir sighed, closing his eyes even as he felt the soft silken rope loop around his wrist and his arms being tied behind his back.

What surprised him even more was when he felt a swath of silk being quickly placed over his eyes. He struggled a little, trying to pull away from the man and the binding cloth closing off his vision, but it was too late. He struggled in his bonds, wanting desperately to remove the blindfold. He couldn’t see and felt more vulnerable than he ever had in his life.

"I should have taken off your clothes first," Marek whispered, and he felt the man’s hot breath on his face.

"Marek," Tir pleaded.

He felt Marek get off the bed and he wondered what he was doing. He never realized how much sense of control of the situation he lost when he couldn’t see. When he felt the bed shake a little he knew the man had returned, and he trembled. He felt Marek’s lips on his own, rough and demanding. He invited the man further into his mouth with his tongue even as he struggled with in his bonds, wanting to touch Marek.

"Ulm, I really shouldn’t have done that, it makes me want to forget about punishing you," Marek said, pulling away from the kiss.

"I want to see you," Tir gasped.

"It’s way too soon for that. You don’t like that blindfold do you?" Marek asked as he lifted Tir’s hips, removing his pants.

"No, please take it off."

"I don’t think so, I like it right where it is. You don’t know what I’m going to do to you," Marek said seductively as he flipped Tir onto his belly.

"That isn’t hard to guess," Tir growled, a little irritated with himself along with Marek.

He quickly regretted the remark when a familiar paddle connected against his exposed skin sharply. He felt a pillow being put under him, raising his ass up for the man. He tensed, expecting yet another blow to come only to feel Marek’s spread his ass and teasingly lick his opening. Tir gasped in surprise, pushing back against the questing mouth even as he felt his member pulse.

He was so lost in the pleasure of what Marek was doing he didn’t notice until yet another hard blow fell on his vulnerable ass that the man had quickly moved away from him to deliver another blow.

Tir yelped in surprise even as he heard a high pitched screech come from the direction of the sands. Turning towards that direction his heard another shriek as Marek began to laugh.

"Well that totally ruined the moment," Marek said, lifting the blindfold to see the little purple dragon ungainly trying to walk to the platform, her wings spread and her teeth bared. Tir watched in amazement as Feras grabbed the little one and deposited her into her mother’s forelegs again.

"Feras says if I’m going to play with you to do it quietly. We are disturbing the little princess’s sleep and she isn’t going to stand for it. For a moment there I thought she had bonded you," Marek wryly.

Tir looked over at the three dragons in surprise, only to feel bright yellow colors flood into his mind as he felt Ebony laugh. The little female snorted before flopping down between her mother’s forelegs and closing her eyes, her whole body radiating irritation.

"Untie me Marek," Tir said, struggling a little.

"Oh, I don’t think so. If I remember right I still owe you for fucking me last night," Marek said, leaning over to bite Tir’s exposed neck even as he felt the blindfold being put back into place.

"But the hatchling," Tir gasped as he felt Marek’s hand knead his ass.

"I could always gag you," Marek suggested, and Tir felt a finger slip into him as Marek kissed his lower back, licking the beads of sweat off.

"No Marek," Tir panicked a little, not wanting any further bonds placed on him.

Even Marek’s questing fingers and mouth didn’t distract him as he struggled, finally falling off the pillow under him and escaping the invading finger as he rolled to his back.

"Hush, I was just teasing you," Marek said softly as Tir felt a hand move under his tunic to twist his right nipple, causing him to gasp in pain even as he felt Marek’s tongue and lips on his neck again.

"Although one day, little harem boy, I’m going to get you alone with no dragons or Drake around. I’m going to tie you up so you can’t even move an inch. I’m going to paddle you and tease you until you can’t even remember your own name, and then and only then am I going to ravish you," Marek whispered seductively as his hand grabbed Tir, squeezing his member.

"Yes," Tir hissed even as he heard Marek chuckle.

"You have no idea what you do to me. I can’t even control myself around you anymore," Marek said, his hand continuing its rough play of Tir’s body.

Tir bit his lip, trying to control his voice, not wanting to disturb the hatchling again even as Marek twisted his nipples and teased the delicate skin of his neck and face with his tongue and teeth. He felt Marek’s mouth move on his even as the man sank himself into Tir in one hard thrust, causing him to cry out against the lips pressed firmly against him.

Marek’s quick, hard pace elected a series of whimpering gasps that quickly turned to something more pleasurable as his body grew accustomed to the large sex grinding into him. He wanted desperately to touch the man working him, struggling against his tied wrists.

"Is this what you want?" Marek questioned in a raged voice filled with his lust as he grabbed Tir’s neglected organ.

"No... yes.. I want to touch you," Tir gasped as Marek hit him just right, making his body convulse as his twitching member erupted.

"Sexy little harem boy," Marek growled as he stopped his thrusting buried deep inside of Tir and lost control of his orgasm.

He felt Marek’s lips on his own, this time soft and gentle before he pulled away from Tir.

"Marek, I was serious about what I said before. I don’t care about not bonding a dragon anymore. You and Drake are more important," Tir started, only to feel Marek move off the bed.

"Marek," Tir asked, sitting up and cursing the silken ropes and blindfold silently.

Tir felt the cloth being removed from his eyes only to see not Marek but Drake’s face in front of him. Looking around he saw Marek leaving the pen as Drake looked at him seriously.

"Untie me Drake," Tir said

"Let him go for now Tir," Drake said gently as he turned him around to untie his wrists. "These are going to leave marks."

"Drake, I wanted. . ."

"I know, but that isn’t why I told you to leave him alone," Drake sighed. "You didn’t see the expression in his eyes when you said those words. I think you frightened him badly, Tir, and he is more than a little resentful that I saw it. He didn’t realize that I had come into the pen, I was trying not to wake the little one."

"Drake, I just wanted him to know what I feel."

"He knows, but that doesn’t mean he is comfortable about it. Marek comes from a family that..."

"Stop Drake, I want to learn it from Marek himself," Tir interrupted, shaking his head.

"I think this is the first time I have ever seen you hold back your curiosity, I think I’m jealous," Drake observed.

"Drake, it’s just that," Tir started, only to be interrupted by Drake’s laughter.

"I know, I know, you don’t have to explain. Just tread lightly with him, Tir, or he will close up even more I think," Drake said.

"You don’t mind that I love him too?" Tir asked.

"How can I? He is my dragon partner, and although I don’t love him like you do, I have seen another side to him when it concerns you and Feras that I find admirable. Besides, how can I fault you for loving more than just me when my heart also belongs to two?" Drake shrugged getting off the bed.

"Two?" Tir asked, feeling the prick of jealousy.

"Of course, you and Ebony. She holds my whole being in her sharp claws," Drake answered, dropping the silk ties into Marek’s chest.

"Oh."

"Did you mean what you said to Marek about the hatchling?" Drake asked, turning back to him, his face serious.

"Yes, I always want to be with both of you."

"Then we both will see to it that this wish does come true," Drake said lightly, coming back over to Tir and lightly kissing him.