The Lost Siren: Rise of the Drakens Book 1 Raven Storm (books for 8th graders .TXT) 📖

“My stupid little siren.”

I laughed, even as I held Benedict carefully between my new claws, reveling at the iridescent, white scales that ran all over my body. Soft, white scales dotted my wrists and neck, leading to wings that shared the same astonishingly pure color. Benedict devoured the sight of me, emotions of shame and euphoria wafting off him to form a sickly aura. Was this part of being a draken, sensing emotions? I tried to think, but my mind was nothing but new animal instincts screaming at me.

I hissed at him. "You're mine."

Benedict’s nose found my neck, and I decided I didn’t care if he had manipulated me into realizing the truth, and I didn’t care what had happened before between us. He was willing to try, and I needed him like the night sky needed the stars; like the spring needed winter in order to bloom. He stroked the white scales on my wing, and I purred. It was one of the most exquisite things I’d ever felt in my life. The sound broke something in him and Benedict drove me into the ground with the force of his body.

My new draken instincts screamed with indignation, screaming not to give up without a fight. They overtook my human brain, and I didn’t recognize Benedict: I saw one large, unmated male draken. I wriggled out of his grasp and fled, leaping off the top of the mountain and spreading my wings in joy. My wings flared and pumped hard to get ahead of the larger draken, and then I was in the air, soaring along the mountain range in victory. The storm was over, the clouds clearing away to reveal a sun that was dipping below the horizon, coating my white scales in fire. My exhilaration was so complete, I didn’t notice him gaining distance until he slammed into me, knocking the wind from my lungs and sending us both towards the side of the mountain. I shrieked and raked him across the face with my claws, and the skin bubbled and frothed where my poison worked its way into his blood. He dropped me in pain, and I roared in victory. I dove hard for an outcropping of rocks, planning to use a feint to send him crashing into the stones below. The draken growled and caught up again, even as blood ran down into his eyes. He grabbed one of my legs and yanked, sending me careening into the side of the cliff, and I was momentarily stunned by the hard impact. He used my moment of weakness to flip me over, pressing my face and stomach hard against the stone. His claws hovered at my neck, his large body pinning down my arms and legs. I was trapped.

I gave a fearful warble, and his claw traced down my spine. He sniffed the back of my neck deeply, frowning at the two large scars he saw. The rough pads of his tongue licked across them and I cried out in confusion and need. He stroked my neck softly, the hard surface of his claws cold against my skin.

“Mine.”

A soft growl left my throat: I belonged to no one. He pushed my body harder into the rocks, his wings straining to keep both of us in the air.

“Mine.”

I twitched, unable to thrash against him like I wanted. His fangs hovered above the veins in my throat and I froze, survival instincts taking over. His hands roved over my body, pausing again to stroke the delicate skin in between my wings. I gave a tortured moan of pleasure, and he chuckled darkly against my ear. My draken instincts grudgingly admitted this one would make a powerful mate; large, strong, and able to protect our young. Our young? I trilled in confusion, and his voice was next to my ear once more. I felt my body release a signal, a waft of pheromones potent to any draken unfortunate to be near, and the large draken’s muscles went rigid against me. I wanted him as my mate.

We disappeared in a wisp of black smoke, the roar of the wind still ringing in my ears. We landed in a hot spring, deep within the recesses of the mountain. The water felt scalding after the bitter cold of the mountain, and I hissed as my skin slipped beneath the surface. After a few moments I adjusted, and let my new muscles stretch as the water wiped away the last vestiges of the battle. The draken with me watched me with hooded eyes as I threw my body under the large waterfall overhead. I leaned my head back, arching my back to bend underneath its powerful current.

The draken grabbed me, tilting my hips as he plunged into me from behind, both of us feral and beyond any rational thinking. I screeched as he filled me, intense pleasure surging through my core as he roared his own satisfaction. The water pounded down my body, running in rivulets as his skin slid slickly against my own. Our scales flashed in the dim torchlight, his hands hooking under my armpits and pulling me flush against his pelvis. My claws reached back and caught his neck, neither of us caring as the water washed away the blood welling from the fresh wounds. His fangs sank into my shoulders as I bucked against him. It was exquisite feeling him dominate every aspect of my body, and a satisfied rumble grew in my throat. He laughed, one hand yanking down on my hair to keep my back arched under the pounding of the water. He nudged me to the ground, my hands grasping at the edge of the pool as he withdrew from my body. I couldn’t help the growl of disappointment that left me, and with one jerk he had me turned around, my back pressing into the edge of the pool as his gaze bore into mine.

His black hair fell into his eyes, lost in