THE DRAGON QUEEN

Kellan's footsteps thundered down the stone tunnel. The dragon within him fought for freedom; his only coherent thought, protect the clan. His vision blurred as the dragon fought for control over his body. The dragon saw only the immediate threat; the man saw the consequences of each course of action. And right now, he needed to make sure that his immediate family was out of harm's way. He needed to reach Penelope, Jed, and Kiara. Needed to reach them, needed to warn them, needed to save them. He pushed his legs to run faster. The mountain shook as the canons beat against it. He had to get them out of the mountain; that was his priority. The roars of dragons echoed through the chambers, bouncing through the walls, driving home the fact that Kellan's family was in danger. The clan was being attacked, and the members were rising to action. Hopefully, he could get everyone evacuated before there was too much loss. He skidded around the corner into his bedchambers to find it empty. "Penelope!" he cried. He ran into the adjoining room that his children shared, but Jed's bed was rumpled and empty, and so was Kiara's cradle. He called out his mate's name again, his fear slowly rising each second he couldn't locate his family.

"Kellan!" his mate's voice reached his ears. She was close, but not in their chambers. He ran further down the hall to find his mate, their five-year-old son, their newborn daughter, and his sister Chloe and her mate, Daniel. The group was in the process of fleeing the mountain, and they looked as relieved to see him as he was to see them. The dragon within him calmed at the sight of his family. The beast relented its battle for freedom for the moment. His family paused in their race toward the exit to greet him. "Kellan," Penelope's voice was full of relief. "What's happening?" Kellan folded her into his arms, his son between their knees and their daughter cradled between their bodies. He buried his nose in her red hair, inhaling her scent, letting it fill him with reassurance. He would get her and their children to safety. He had to.

"The humans, they snuck up on us while we were all sleeping," he said into her hair. "They have cannons and archers. We need to get out of here." Kellan lifted his head to address Chloe and Daniel as well.

"How?" Daniel asked. His question was not a challenge, but a pledge of loyalty. He would follow his Alpha's guidance, no matter what it took. Kellan met his eye in acknowledgment.

"Follow me, I have an idea," he stated and took off down the hall. As he took off running, he grabbed his son, who was trembling in fear. They needed to move fast and while Jed was faster than human boys, he would never have been able to keep up with the adults.

"Daddy," Jed whimpered as Kellan ran deeper into the mountain. Jed's little head was tucked into the crook of Kellan's neck, bouncing with each step. Kellan clutched him tighter, his strong arms keeping a steel grip on his offspring.

A deafening crash sounded above them, causing Jed to jump and bury himself further into Kellan's chest with a small cry. "It's all right, Jed. Everything will be okay." Although Kellan was aware that it wasn't. Half of the clan's strongest males were away on a mission to drive the Wildlings further from the clan, and the humans were getting better at fighting them; they were learning the weaknesses of the dragons. Another impact shook the walls around them, and Kellan knew that this time a dragon had collided with the stone. One of his clans, his family, who were trying to protect them, was just thrown into the side of their home. This brought his rage even closer to the surface, efficiently replacing the fear, and the dragon within him fought to break free once again. That couldn't happen inside the narrow hallway, so Kellan clutched his son even tighter to gain back some control over his emotions. Protect the clan.

He looked over his shoulder to check on his small group. Penelope was directly behind him, holding little Kiara to her chest protectively. He was shocked to see that the tiny bundle was quiet and calm, despite the excitement going on around her. Chloe was close behind Penelope with Daniel bringing up the rear. Daniel gave him a nod of acknowledgment. He knew that his second-in-command had his back no matter what. That fact gave him the will to run faster. He wasn't tired yet, but his worry ate away at him. What if the exit that he had in mind had collapsed or the humans had found it? What if they couldn't get away in time? The second he was in the air, he was going to give the signal to have his clan retreat. No matter how fast the humans' steeds were, there wasn't a horse alive that could keep up with a flying dragon.