Bride of th Dragon King -Now published through Lulu.com. Sample only!!!

Chapter Twenty Two: And A Child Shall Lead them

"Elisabeth who are you talking to?", asked Constantine. She looked at him with confusion.

"Are you doing this?', she asked.

"Doing what?", asked Constantine, "I don't understand." Now he was the one who was confused.

"There, there's a little boys voice inside my head.", she replied, "He keeps calling me Mommy."

"It's our brother.", said Katherine smiling, "He's communicating with you. My sisters, and I, all communicated with you when you carried us." Joyous tears welled up in Katherine's eyes. That meant her baby was probably going to start communicate with her soon. Bridget then walked over, she had an elated expression.

"This is a wondrous time for you mother.", said Bridget, "I'm in contact with my daughter every day. I was the first hybrid, ever, and now you are carrying the first hybrid male." Constantine looked at her, as tears welled up in his eyes. He then placed his hand on Elisabeth's stomach.

"You can hear my son?", he asked, "You can feel, and hear his presence?" He looked at her with a loving smile, but she remained stoic.

"I'm not ready for this!", she cried. "I'm scared." Elaga then lovingly embrace Elisabeth, and kissed her forehead.

"Don't worry Elisabeth.", said Elaga reassuringly, "You're not alone, we are going to help you"

"Besides.", said Constantine, "It'll be like before. The eggs will be in stasis until you birth the twentieth male. You'll have five years to get used to the idea. By then you'll be more open to it." Elisabeth covered he face, and began to cry.

"I don't want to do this!", she cried, "I want to be a mother someday, but not like this. Constantine please! Do us both a favor. Just erase my memory of ever being Elisabeth. I think it would be easier on all of us, if I just cease to exist. Then you can have your Elsbeth back. I don't want to live anymore." Constantine looked at her, with much concern.

"No Elisabeth.", he replied, "I will never do that to you. I love you. You, and Elsbeth, are not two different people. You are the same person with different memories. Some from my world, and some from your world. Agatha! Come here, bring Roger!" A young blond woman, and strong looking man cam towards them. Josh recognized his bunk mate right away.

She flashed Elisabeth a smile. Like her sisters, she too had missed her mother.

"Mother.", said Agatha, while smiling, "This is my husband Roger." Elisabeth's facial express remained stoic.

"It's nice to meet you.", said Elisabeth in a monotone response.

"As it is to meet you, my lady.", he replied, "I see where Agatha gets her beauty." He then gave her a genuine smile.

"You see Elisabeth.", Constantine began, "Roger was a Sargent in the Royal Marines. While in the Gulf War, his platoons was attacked by insurgents. Of the thirty men, Roger was the only survivor. He has been suffering from PSTD ever since. We all have bee taking care of him, especially Agatha."

"Agatha is my angel.", he said, "Her love saved my life. I have flashbacks, and need help now and then. I accept that my pain will never completely go away. But at least it will get better as I go on. From the first moment I saw her, I fell in love. As horrible as that attack on our platoon was, it's always going to be a part of me. If it hadn't have happened. I never would have met my Agatha."

"Now then.", said Constantine, "He's had fewer flashbacks since he arrived here two years ago. But when he has them, they can still be pretty bad. On more then one occasion, Agatha had asked me to erase that horrid memory. I won't do it. Yes, it would probably be easier on both of them. But true love is unconditional. You can't make someone perfect, and you can't change their situation to suit you needs. When you love someone, you love their flaws as well as their strengths. Yes, it would be easier to completely get rid of Elisabeth. Except, I love Elisabeth. I'm not to going to kill one amazing woman, just to try and get the other one completely back. I am not only the last Dragon, but the only dragon who has ever loved. Elsbeth taught me that, you taught me that. If I erased your memory, I wouldn't be bringing back Elsbeth. I would destroy the woman she has become."

"I just want to go home!", cried Elisabeth, "I just want to see my parents. I just want things back to normal."

"But were you really that happy Elisabeth.?', asked Constantine, "You had been engaged to Josh for over a year, and you knew the relationship was falling apart. I know that you don't want to admit, but you have fallen in love with me.  Tell me, if I were a human would you still fear me right now?"

"Yes.", she replied, "Because you are doing whatever you have to, to possess me. You don't care how I feel. You didn't care how Elsbeth felt either. True, you gave her a better life than what she had. But in the end, it was still a form of Stockholm Syndrome that got her to love you."

"Yes.", said Constantine, "But you my dear Elisabeth, fell in love with me on your own. And you are more to me than Elsbeth reincarnated. Ever since your brain had developed, even as far back as in the womb, I have been inside your mind. I have been in your subconscious. I know everything about you, and who you are. Once in a while my presence would have you dream of me. That's why you had the recurring dream most of your life.  But I have been there, even when you weren't dreaming of me. I have always been there Elisabeth. I am a part of you."

"Please I..", she began, but the little boy's voice began to interrupt her. 

"Mommy.", he cried, I"m here, I love you. I need you, we all do."  He then showed her the future. It was of her, and Constantine, laughing and playing with him. She could fell the small half human, half dragon child falling asleep in her arms. If this was her future, she felt nothing but joyous love.  A smile appeared upon her face.

"Benjamin!", she whispered aloud.  The vision then stopped. It had comforted her. It was as if it stopped her from having a nervous breakdown. Constantine looked at Elisabeth, and smiled. He knew what had just happened.

"What did you see?, he asked.

"Us.", she replied, "A happy family."  Constantine continued to smile at her.

"You see.", he said, "You will be very happy with me.  Elisabeth just looked at him with doubt in her eyes.

"Maybe.", she replied, "But what will I have to go through to get to that point?  How will you manipulate, and control me?  I do have some of Elsbeth's memories. You're right, it took her a while to fall in love with you. She came to accept her situation, but you still controlled her mind and body to get her there.  I know you offered her a better life. But, except for Josh breaking my heart, my life has been pretty good. Elsbeth had a horrible father who beat her mother. My father adores my mother. Elsbeth was beaten by her own fiancé. True Josh was unfaithful, but he was never abusive towards me. But if he had been, my father sure as hell wouldn't have told me not to anger him. At least you waited until she was ready to have children. I'm not ready, and this is not the ideal situation for a child. Even a half dragon needs stability.  Why did you have to do this to me?"

"Because I love you.", he replied, We all do, and we want you here. You, and I, will not be raising our children alone. Our daughters will help us, just as we will help them. Plus, I think you'll notice, half dragon children will be much easier to raise than full human children. Not only that, they mature a lot faster. Just like full dragon adolescences, it only takes ten years for a hybrid to reach adulthood."

"Don't worry Elisabeth.", said Elaga, "We're your family we love you. You have nothing to be afraid of. We are going to be here for you whenever you need us."

"What about my parents?", cried Elisabeth, "How can you just keep me here. I love them. If I stay here forever, I'll never see them again." Katherine gave Elisabeth a huge smile.

"Please tell her father.", she said to him, "She needs to know."  Elisabeth just looked confused.

"Tell me what?", she asked cautiously. 

"Our daughters adore Elaga.", he replied smiling, "But they can't wait to meet there other grandparents. We will welcome them, with great joy. They will soon be part of our world.  Then we will truly be a compete family."  Elisabeth was now even more confused.

"But I don't understand.", she replied, "Your father was killed before you were born, and your mother died to save you. I mean unless you're talking about...Oh my God!  That's it, isn't it?  Where are they?  What have you done to them?"

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