Hatchling

  HATCHLING

  Toasha Jiordano

  Copyright © 2019 Toasha Jiordano

  Page Turner Press

  Greenville, SC

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN:

  ISBN-13:

  DEDICATION

  This book is wholly dedicated to my very own Jimmy.

  You’re too young to read this now, but your adventure awaits.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  I’d like to give special thanks to Claudia. Without you, there would be no dragons.

  And to Zeda Brice.

  Without you, there would be no map.

  OTHER BOOKS BY AUTHOR

  Epoch Earth Series

  Glitch

  Exodus

  Revolt

  Homeward

  Reign Series

  Jade Empire

  Obsidian Empire

  Azure Empire

  Ivory Empire

  Crimson Empire

  Coming Soon

  Of Blood

  MAP OF VALONDE

  CHAPTER ONE

  King Ase wrested Gwrinhan from the slain soldier’s chest. Blood and muck clung to the sword’s glowing blade. He wiped it down the man’s coat, sending a jolt of lightning up his own arm. Blood poured from Ase’s wound, but he must keep going. The Ghadran Legion awaited him just over the next hill.

  Ignoring the searing pain, King Ase raised Gwrinhan in the air and roared, “Gu Buaidh!”

  “No bas!” came the deafening cry of a thousand men.

  To victory or death! To die with your sword in your hand was an honor for the soldiers of Cahye. King Ase couldn’t afford the luxury of worrying how many of his men would heed that honor today.

  Himself included.

  On his Name Day, Ase was crowned Peacebringer of Valonde, and now he must earn his title.

  Leather-clad warriors with broad axes and large wooden shields marched past him, led by Lord Sweyn. They’d fought in numerous battles together, lost so many good men. Still, there was no one Ase would rather face King Daegen with than Sweyn. He had long since earned the respect and obedience of the men.

  One particularly brutish looking soldier, the giant Jotnar, had three shields strapped to his back, clanking against his bear skull helmet as he stalked head down toward the hill. His sovereign-issued wooden shield, white with Cahye’s faded yellow two-headed snake coiled for striking, was clasped tight in his hand. These others across his back were dark green - near black – pewter with the unmistakable Ghadra dragon winding around the umbo.

  Trophies.

  The shields also reminded Ase why he and his men risked their lives on this battlefield. They had sworn an oath to take back the land that King Daegen stole, along with the powerful minerals beneath it, and return these treasures to the people of Valonde.

  King Ase ran to the front line, to lead his men into battle as his father and grandfather before him. The sea of soldiers parted to make way.

  The stench of war hung in the air. Not all of it was foul. Honor had a certain musk that could only be found before a truly great battle. The familiarity of it calmed him.

  Ase tightened his grip around Gwrinhan’s hilt and climbed the last paces up the hill. When he reached the summit, he stopped short. His men filed in around him with excited grunts and swishing swords. Sweyn stood tall beside him, eyeing the field.

  There was only one way down; a single file path worn through the tall grass, right into the clutches of King Daegen’s army. In the blink of an eye, Ase saw his men realize this same thing and continue marching.

  King Daegen had chosen wisely when he maneuvered their final meeting to take place on this battlefield. There the tyrant sat atop his steed, smirking under his night green helmet. Heavily armored soldiers littered the field around him. Ase and his men were ill-prepared and outnumbered.

  Daegen’s head would be on a spike before moonrise, Ase swore to himself.

  With a click of his teeth and a cry of ‘eeyah’ King Daegen propelled his men toward them.

  Ase gave his own battle cry and rushed around his men. One by one they piled on top of each other, getting mired in the narrow mud track.

  Stumbling over rocks and tree roots, Ase made to the bottom of the hill. Before him swords, axes, and shields clashed. Swears and screams rattled in his head so he couldn’t tell which men cried out; his or Daegen’s.

  An axe flew through the air, narrowly missing the side of Ase’s head. He ducked, losing his balance. One of his men, the giant with trophy shields on his back, held out an arm to break his fall.

  Green fire rained down upon them.

  Men howled as their helmets melted. Acrid smoke choked the luckier ones. Ase’s soldier released him and charged toward the flames, cutting a path through the injured men. Ase followed. Gwrinhan glowed deep yellow and hummed with anticipation.

  King Daegen barreled through the mass of fighting in the middle of the field and brought his stallion to a stop. The regal animal snarled, shaking its black mane. The two kings locked eyes.

  Ase charged.

  Daegen charged.

  Green flames danced over the land between them and the heavens above roared.

  Ase looked up to see a great beast darkening the sky. Its wings stretched across the horizon. Green-black scales shimmered in the remaining light.

  The monster opened its mouth and spewed an inferno down upon them.

  “That can’t happen!” JJ tossed aside his toy car.

  The old man stopped talking and raised an eyebrow. “This is an accurate historical account of the great battle of Elnar as passed down generation to gen—”

  “There’s no such thing as dragons, Papaw.”

  “Of course there is. There’s all sorts of magic in this world, Little Man. You just gotta know where to look.” He reached out a wrinkled hand and motioned for JJ to come closer. “Can you keep a secret?”

  CHAPTER TWO

  Jimmy sighed and held his arm out the car window watching it surf the breeze. Normally, this would be his favorite part of the grocery trip, returning home. Jimmy hated leaving the house. He had for many years. But when his mom left the house without him things got much worse.

  He knew it was childish, but he couldn’t help it. His mind wouldn’t stop screaming like a broken record that she was never coming back. Or that one day, he would leave and never come back. It made no sense at all, but tell that to his brain.

  So, Mom was stuck taking him with her everywhere, and he was stuck going, no matter how it terrified him.

  When he was little, they’d developed this system where she’d bribe him with baseball cards and he’d do his best not to freak out in the middle of the aisle. He’d spend the entire half hour drive home daydreaming about that pack of baseball cards. But today, on the last grocery trip they would have together, they’d gotten into a fight over them.

  “We don’t need to spend money on cards right now,” Jimmy had scolded his mother.

  “It’s only fifty cents, Jimmy. Stop being a tight-wad.” Mom had tossed the pack into the buggy and pushed off, not waiting for him to catch up.

  Jimmy hated that word and she knew it. One of them had to be responsible with their money, and there was no sense buying baseball cards for him when he wasn’t going to be here anymore. It’s not like he could take them with him. She knew that, and she still spent the money. Jimmy knew that irresponsibility would come back to haunt her later, yet she never learned.

  The memory of their argument ached in Jimmy’s chest and he blamed his burning eyes on the wind. Now, as the car slowed and he felt the smooth blacktop under the tires turn to the bumpy gravel of their long driveway, he didn’t even want to unpack that bright purple argument starter.

  Just then, at the corner
by their mailbox, Jimmy spotted something dark twitching in the ditch. “Mom, look!” Jimmy pointed with the hand that was already out the window. Although he was still mad at her, he needed to be the first to break their silent game.

  Mom didn’t answer. She just kept driving, lips pursed, and running her thumb along the lumps of the steering wheel. These long car rides from town were where they had their best conversations. Mom would complain about work, usually that ‘lady’ Karen. From the way she said it, Jimmy knew she was always thinking a much worse word. But today, silence.

  She was thinking about tomorrow.

  “Mom,” he said, dragging the word out into several syllables, each dripping with all the frustration and apology he could muster.

  “What?” It was short and not very sweet, but at least it was a response.

  “What’s that? Over there by the ditch?” Again Jimmy pointed. It shivered in the dusklight.

  “I don’t see anything,” Mom squinted. She needed glasses, but who had the money for that?

  Jimmy saw it. And it was definitely moving. Something was struggling and needed his help.

  “Stop the car!” Jimmy yanked at the door handle but it didn’t move and Mom didn’t slow down. “Stop!” He yelled.

  “If you want to play down here, then you can come back. We have to get the groceries to the house. The ice cream will melt.”

  Jimmy groaned. Another frivolous purchase he told her not to get. And she knew threatening him with having to come back by himself would usually work as a solid ‘no.’

  “It needs help, Mom. Look at it!”

  Now the car was close enough to the object that Jimmy could make out a deep blackish gray color, tinged with light yellow streaks. And movement, desperate movement.

  “It’s just a tire, Jimmy. Probably from one of the logging trucks,” Mom said as she continued past the poor creature. The car kicked up red dust as their gravel driveway changed again to pure dirt.

  Jimmy sank back in his seat and rolled up the window. Then, he muttered under his breath, “It’s not just a tire,” because even as mad as he was, he wouldn’t dare talk back out loud.

  But her ‘mom hearing’ kicked in and she said, “Enough, Jimmy. I can’t take any more of your stories. I’m tired, and you’re too old for this stuff.”

  Jimmy’s cheeks burned. He knew exactly how old he was. He’d been waiting his whole life to be old enough to get a job and dig them out of the poverty his father had left them in. Only three more weeks… til he had to figure out how to leave the house every single day for work. As it was, the lady from the school called Mom at least once a week to complain that she shouldn’t give in to his whims and let him stay home.

  Mom had tried to explain that she worked double shifts at the restaurant and only got to spend a few minutes with him, here and there. She didn’t want to spend those precious minutes dragging him out of his closet kicking and screaming that he can’t leave. Not to mention his growth spurt last year. How could she even if she wanted to?

  Before the old beat up car fully stopped in front of their tiny house, Jimmy was out the door and waiting by the trunk. When Mom opened it, he grabbed as many bags as his puny arms could carry and ran into the house. He dropped them all on the floor and sprinted back out.

  “Can I ride my bike?” Jimmy panted.

  A look passed between them. He was really going to go outside on his own.

  “It’s getting dark. And you have to finish packing.” Mom almost choked on the last word. She smiled too big, but Jimmy caught it. He also caught the dark circles under her eyes. She dreaded this trip as much as he did.

  “I’m done! I’ll only be a minute. I’ll check the mail,” he bribed, making his voice go as deep as his impending puberty would allow. Why does it matter if it’s dark, I’m not a kid anymore, his tone said.

  Mom raised her hands and let them fall in mock defeat. She failed to hide the excitement in her eyes at him taking an initiative to step outside their door.

  Jimmy ran for his bike and took off before she could change her mind.

  “Only a minute!” Mom yelled after him.

  “Promise!” Before either one of them could make too much of a big deal of it, Jimmy was gone.

  Living in the country had its perks. Long private driveways were usually one of them. Not so much today. It took forever to pedal all the way back to the main road.

  The thing still struggled to break free. Jimmy didn’t want to scare it off, so he laid the bike down and inched a little at a time, trying so hard to make himself breathe normal.

  Each step made Jimmy’s heart beat faster. The lack of moonlight meant it was impossible to get a good look at the thing. All he could make out was dark gray, almost black, which blended in with the night around him. What if it really was just a piece of a tire?

  What if it was a monster?

  Jimmy picked up a stick and took another step. “It’s okay, I won’t hurt you,” he said, plucking leaves off the branch. “Do you need help?” Jimmy whispered.

  In response, the thing lurched forward, tipping over onto its side.

  Jimmy jumped back, then laughed nervously at himself.

  Now he could see a thin yellow streak running through the round object, like a crack in a sidewalk. A huge chunk of the top was broken off and two smoke colored wings wrapped around it, trying to scrape at the sides. Trying to get out!

  It most definitely was not a tire.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Jimmy poked the outer shell with his stick and one of the black wings retreated back inside.

  “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “Here, let me help.”

  This time he stuck the tip of the branch inside the crack and tugged at it. A small piece broke off and disintegrated right in front of his eyes. The thing inside made a low growling sound. Jimmy should have run, but for some reason he didn’t. Although still scared, Jimmy also felt calm, like he belonged right here, right now.

  The monster scratched and fought against the shell. Rocking and wobbling, the egg teetered on its side, threatening to roll down into the muddy ditch. Jimmy couldn’t let the poor thing get stuck down there. He had to save it, whatever it was.

  “I’m gonna try again,” Jimmy said. This time he spoke in a strong and commanding voice. A strong sense of trust wash over him. Was this magic? Could he really feel what this thing was thinking? What kind of mythical creature did he find?

  The egg stopped moving.

  “Cover your ears,” he said, and after a second, whacked the side of the egg hard with his stick. The stick broke, but so did the shell. The yellow lightning cracks splintered even more and the pieces fell off one by one until there was nothing left. The whole shell disintegrated.

  Cowering inside, a small scaly creature covered its head with thin gray-black wings. The baby… whatever it was… shook in fear or cold, Jimmy didn’t know which.

  The warm sense of trust he’d just felt turned dark and timid.

  Jimmy took a tentative step toward the animal and dropped the broken stick beside him. He had no reason to be scared now. And he wasn’t.

  It was no bigger than Mrs. Willoughby’s tabby cat. What could it possibly do to him? Besides, it needed his help.

  The last chunks of gray-yellow shell cracked under Jimmy’s feet, startling the baby creature. Dark smoke curled up from below the thing’s belly and the air smelled like matches. It tightened itself into a smaller ball and made another low sound. The dark dread sensation grew stronger. Yes, he could tell what the poor thing was thinking.

  Jimmy shook his head. Only children believed such nonsense. He stepped forward. “I’m not gonna hurt you.” Jimmy put out his hand near where he thought the monster’s nose was. “Smell me. I’m a friend.”

  It took a couple breaths before two yellow eyes blinked from under one of the wings. Jimmy had misjudged where the nose was, but he didn’t move. After another slow shallow breath - the smoke was getting thick - both wings dropped and it skitte
red a little closer to Jimmy’s hand.

  Out of the shell, Jimmy could see that it was some sort of reptile. It had scales and tiny horn nubs. No teeth, thankfully, and the cutest little pot belly.

  It sniffed him a few times then huffed out a large plume of smoke from its nostrils and shook the smell away.

  Jimmy tried to stay perfectly still, but laughed a little in spite of himself. Then he whispered, “Sorry, I was petting my neighbor’s cat earlier. He likes to play in the garbage can.”

  Slowly, Jimmy pulled back his hand and replaced it with the other, the one that didn’t pet the smelly cat. This seemed to work and the creature relaxed. It lowered its wings a little more and stood up, walking a couple steps toward Jimmy’s hand.

  Now, Jimmy noticed the yellow streaks deep beneath dark gray scales which matched the cracks of light from the egg. They looked alive, like lightning under its skin. It had nearly black feet… talons… with yellow toenails. And its wings were magnificent.

  As the thing stretched out, its smoke colored scales shimmered with the yellow lightning underneath. They were huge compared to the rest of its body, and already had well-defined muscles. In the pale street light, they looked wet, and of no use to it right now.

  Jimmy wasn’t proud of how happy that made him. He didn’t want the poor little guy to suffer, but he didn’t want it to fly off either.

  The animal stepped a little closer and nudged Jimmy’s hand with its nose. Despite the warm summer air, and the smoke coming from the creature, his skin felt icy. Jimmy felt a small laugh bubble up at the cold wet muzzle touching him.

  The thing hopped back a step and closed in on itself a bit. Its adorable horn nubs poked out over its wing fortress.

  “It’s okay. Your nose was just cold.” Jimmy put his hand out farther to pet it. He tried to send calming thoughts down whatever magic seemed to be letting them communicate.