The 'Dragon Goddess'

Alphas

Indigo's POV:

The feeling of a little dragon nudging me rouses me from sleep. "Gor-" I start to say tiredly, but cut myself off when I remember where I am and that it won't be Gordon waking me up.

I crack my eyes open to see Melanite nuzzling my cheek. "Hello, sweetie," I say quietly, smiling beneath my mask. She roars and licks my face. I chuckle and lightly push her off.

"Indigo? Are you awake?" I hear Selene ask. "I am now," I reply, sitting up. Melanite hops into my lap, tail wagging. "She's taken a real shine to you," Selene remarks. "She has," I agree, petting my little sister's head. She purrs approvingly.

"Asher and I were about to take a flight if you girls would like to come along," Selene says. "You could even ride one of us if that's what you'd like."

"I'll stick with Stylive, but thanks for the offer," I say sincerely. "I think I'll tag along, though. You can learn a lot about someone through how they fly."

"I'm glad you see it that way," she smiles. "We can grab some breakfast on the way, too. I'm guessing you're hungry."

"What is there to eat around here, anyway?" I ask, moving Melanite off of me so I can stand up. "Mostly we just grab some fish from the ocean, but I'm sure we'll be able to find some chickens to cook up if that's what you'd prefer," Selene shrugs.

"Fish is fine," I state. "Let's go. You coming, Melanite?"

Melanite flutters onto my shoulder in reply, chirping and licking my face. "I suppose that's a yes, then."

"Follow me," Selene smiles, walking off. "Stylive, ready?" I ask my partner, who gets up and stretches her wings before nodding. We follow Selene out of the cave.

A few of the other Morphwings start to give us curious looks, so I keep my head bowed respectfully. There's no need to anger them. One flies over to me and sniffs at me. I allow it to do what it likes until it morphs into human form, revealing a man who is clearly older than he looks, and takes my sword by the hilt.

"Be careful with it," I warn. "And don't touch the blade." "I know how a sword works, girly," he snaps in annoyance, then runs his fingers along it, completely ignoring me.

Almost immediately, he screeches in pain and drops the sword, checking his hand over. "I warned you about the blade," I say, biting back an annoyed tone as I grab some of the Slitherwing venom antidote.

I tear a small piece of my skirt off and use it to clean the venom from his hand, then I open the vial of antidote. The moment his mouth opens for another screech of pain I pour a few drops of the antidote inside.

The antidote is quick to take effect and he makes a fast recovery. "There's Slitherwing venom on the blade of my sword," I tell him, my voice emotionless. "I warned you not to touch it. Don't make that mistake again. I don't want you dead."

"Who are you, girlie?" He questions, though not in as hostile a manner now. "She's with me, Alpha," Selene's voice pipes up as she came hurrying back over. "What happened here? Was there any trouble? Indigo, did you do anything to the Alpha?"

Slowly the 'Alpha' shook his head, getting back up. "This girlie saved me bloody life, that's what she did to me," he chuckled, picking my sword - not by the blade this time, thank the gods - back up from the ground and handing it back to me. I accept it gratefully and bow my head in respect. "Not a problem, Alpha," I say.

He looks amused. "You lived with another Alpha before or something?" "I live with another pack," I state. "I have done so for years."

"And who has had their blood on that sword?" He enquires. "Dragon hunters and anyone else who poses a threat to my pack," I state, now unable to keep my anger out of my voice when dragon hunters become a topic.

"How big is your pack?" He questions. "At least one hundred and fifty dragons, quite possibly two hundred," I reply. "That many?" He seems surprised. "The Alpha must've been busy bringing all of them in."

"Indigo did that, Alpha," Selene pipes up. "The Deadly Nadder, Stylive, claimed she's seen as the Alpha Female of her Pack."

"Wait, what?!" I look to Stylive, who shrugged and nodded. "I'm not the Alpha's mate and I'm far from an Alpha Female," I point out to her.

Oh quit putting yourself down, idiot, she says to me. You may not be the Alpha's mate but you certainly take up the role that would come with it. Even the Alpha agrees.

Alpine agrees to this?!

He was the one who first said it.

What?!

"What are you doing, girly?" The Alpha questioned, looking at my gestures with curiosity. "She's speaking with Stylive, is my guess," Selene explains. "They use a sort of sign language to communicate. Though it won't be necessary within a week once she starts morphing."

"You'll be seventeen next week?" The Alpha asks, smiling slightly. "Yes, Alpha," I nod. "Good, good, it'll be interesting to see you morph for the first time."

"How so?" I question. "Well, Morphwings can be born in human or dragon form, though human form is less common. Those in human form are gifted with a higher intelligence and have the same heightened senses and reflexes of a dragon, though all the other abilities kick in only once they morph for the first time. It'll be interesting to see how you take to your new abilities."

I nod slowly, thinking it over. "Well, as much as I'd love to stay and chat, this Pack doesn't run itself. I thank you again, Miss North, for healing me."

"Think nothing of it, Alpha," I say. "It's my responsibility to protect as many dragons as possible, so I couldn't just leave you to die."