The rest of my eggs come throughout the day. My mates and medics attend me the entire time. When I have finally laid all six of my eggs, I curl up around them to keep them warm against my body. There is an egg to match each of my mates’ colorings, and one that matches my own.
The medics check the vital signs of each egg before assuring me and my mates of their health and vitality. I can barely hear the medics. All I can think and feel is my love and devotion to my eggs.
They are the most beautiful things I have ever beheld. I run my claw softly over their shells, scratching them with my talon ever so gently. I want them to know that mother is here.
In the following weeks, I only leave my eggs for brief moments. My mates attend to me the entire time, making sure I have food and water and that the nest is clean. They caress me and kiss me and wash my scales.
As they attend my dragon form in their bipedal ones, I develop a whole new appreciation for their care and love. With so much time in dragon form, my beast mind comes into balance with my bipedal one. I feel as if I am becoming a more whole being.
One day, I lift my head from where it was laid and see a growing crack in the red shell.
A piece pops off, narrowly missing my eye, and a little red claw emerges from within. My mates hurry to the room and watch in amazement. Soon all six of my hatchlings are poking holes in their shells. The first little dragon emerges from its egg when the medics arrive. It is fiery red with coal black eyes like its father.
I sniff my baby and know immediately that it is a girl. The mind of the scientist that had just been completely immersed in her hatchlings jumps to attention. My little fire dragon is a daughter. I lick the little creature as it crawls from its shell and spreads its wings for the first time.
The medics examine her vitals and are confident in her health. She is obviously a robust hatchling as she prances about the nest.
The next to emerge is an aqua blue water dragon. Another girl. My heart bursts with love for my two daughters. And the inner mind of the scientist reels with the implications. The third hatchling to emerge is a stone dragon, a little boy.
I look over at Donte as I lick our son with pride growing in my heart for my expanding clutch. The next egg to crack open reveals an ice dragon, with a little blue face, popping out of the egg. Her big blue eyes blink and she gazes at me questioningly. She emerges from her egg and begins to play with her siblings. Three daughters and a son. My heart explodes with pride and triumph. My fourth egg to hatch is a golden dragon who emerges on serpentine wings and hurries into Mother's arms.
This little bundle of light is also a female child. The last to hatch is the viper dragon. It emerges cautiously and quickly jumps behind the egg before prancing up to me. A son, and just like his father, Flume.
My mates gather around me, and I purr in contentment. When my babies look for their first meal, my mates provide them with slices of tender meat that my young quickly devour. It isn't until their first shift that they will be little bipedal babies that will want to drink milk from their mother's breasts. For now, they eat simple strips of plain raw meat.
My babies devour their first meal and come to cuddle in my arms. My head is so large, it is bigger than all of them put together. They purr against my scales, the feeling of it is pure serenity. I bask in the glow of their love and their need for me. I need them just as much, forever and always. It is only as I take in this love and adoration that I consider that I now have four daughters.
Two-thirds of my hatchlings are female.
After several days of laying with my new hatchlings who gorge on meat, the first of my little ones, the fire dragon, shifts into a bipedal baby. My dragon purrs at the tiny being.
It is time for me to re-take my bipedal form to tend my young. I emerge from the nest and shift, picking up the baby before even reconstructing my clothing. I climb into the nest with my daughter and put the babe against my breast.
My other little dragons climb onto my lap and purr against my soft flesh as the newly shifted baby gets a new form of lunch.
Another hatchling shifts, and another. I nurse each until they are full. Their fathers come quickly and rearrange the hatching room into a nursery.
Now that my time in dragon form has come to an end, I can reclaim my role as a lady of the house. My babies are all swaddled and sleeping in their cribs as I tie a fuzzy robe around my waist and gaze down at each of them, thinking up names. Matilda, my water dragon. Rosebud, my fire. Josephine, the ice dragon. Dive, the viper. Core, the stone dragon. And Larissa, my golden daughter.
My mates meet me at the door as they turn on soft music. We leave the nursery and they all hug me as I tell them the names I’ve chosen.
“Those are perfect,” Donte says.
“Beautiful choices. You’ve done so well with them, Joon,” Reese says.
“You’ve been an inspiration,” Mika tells me.
“I second that,” says Donte.
“I’ve missed being able to talk to you,” I tell them.
“We’ve missed you too,” Flume says.
“You can say that again. Without Joon around we’ve only had Reese’s poetry to keep us entertained,” says Uri.
I giggle, seeing not much has changed while I was gone.
Mika escorts me to my room and helps me into my bed. It’s the first time I’ve been alone in months. I feel relieved and lonely at the same time. I know I need the rest, but I miss my babies and my mates so much it takes me a while to fall asleep.
When I wake again, there is a meal set out for me and Donte is there. I climb out of bed and take a seat across from him at the table.
“All of Draxos sends their congratulations on the hatchlings. The Academy is thrilled at the outcome. The Senate has called it ‘the victory of our times’. Your parents are on their way to meet the new babies. And your brother Sysko is determined to get home to see you with his new bride.”
“Sysko is coming home?” I ask, taking a sip of tea. “I haven't seen him in so long. How can he leave the cyborg battle?”
“He will not be gone for long. He wants to show his bride Draxos and oversee the first tournament.”
“I can't believe a tournament for humans is already starting,” I say.
“The first one will happen when Sysko arrives with the human females.”
“And to think this all started with a passage we found in Tales of the Ancients,” I say.
“Our race now has a fighting chance to stand against the cyborgs. We have you to thank for that, Joon.”
“We did it together. The Bones of the Gods know, I couldn't have done it without you and the rest of my mates.”
“We aren’t a pure distraction, then?” he asks, smirking.
“Well, sometimes,” I say with a chuckle. “But mostly you are always there for me, keeping me balanced even when I don’t want to let you. I may have saved the Draxos from extinction, but I know that no matter what heroic acts I performed for my people, the love of my children and my mates is the most important thing in my life. Without it, I am just a particle lost in space. With the love of my mates and children, I am whole.”
“But it is awfully nice being called the hero of the generation, though, isn't it?” Donte chuckles.
Chapter 43
All of Draxos celebrates the birth of our clutch. So, my mates decide to throw a lavish gala at the Academy. They book an entire wing of the Alumni building to host guests from all across the Draxos systems.
The babies are secured in a nursery and are only presented to the crowd briefly. Then Mika and Reese take them back to the palace to be with their nannies for the evening.
I wear a long white gown, flowing around my body like cascades of snow flowing from the mountains of Arcadia. Everyone wants to talk to me at once and my mates help keep the crowds organized, not letting me get overwhelmed. Everyone is quite pleased with the vaccine. Widespread distribution is scheduled to commence in weeks.
It is only as the Draxos coll
ectively toast the birth of my daughters that my discovery is fully recognized by my people. My clutch is the highest birth rate of female hatchlings since before the plague. I love my children more than life itself. It is fitting that these two occasions come at the same moment. I have learned to balance my life. Even though I fought it, kicking and screaming, the entire way.
In the doorway across the banquet hall, I see a seven-foot-tall military uniformed male with black speckled skin and a determined square jaw. I stand from my seat and drop my glass on the table.
Sysko!
My brother has always been my hero, and now I finally feel that we are equals in our fight against the cyborgs. I run across the room and find his tiny bride on his arm.
She is lovely and curvaceous with warm honey skin and big brown eyes, but she looks scared and tiny in the crowd of more formidable dragons.
I approach them and excitedly jump into my brother’s arms. I give him a tight hug and growl before stepping back and reaching out to offer his bride my hand. I've learned that this is the human form of greeting. She takes my hand and shakes it.
“I am so happy to meet you, Freda. You have made my brother a happy dragon.”
“Indeed, she has,” Sysko says.
“And how was the transformation for you?” I ask her.
“Challenging,” she says. “But Sysko and I got through it together.”
“I hear you were instrumental in driving the cyborgs from human territory,” I tell her.
“It was nothing,” she says.
“It wasn't nothing,” Sysko says. “Her contribution was instrumental in our victory.”
My parents emerge from the doorway behind my brother and his bride. I hurry to hug them both. My brothers Beshard and Silas join us and the family is all together.
As they each meet Sysko’s mate, Freda, my own mates emerge behind me. Reese and Mika have returned from depositing the children with the nannies. All of my mates finally get to meet Sysko.
Reese’s parents, the King and Queen of Umbria have also joined us to celebrate the children. It is good to have Matilda’s grandparents here for the occasion. And I am happy they get to meet my parents and brothers.
My pride for my family is beyond measure. Seeing them all together at this banquet, dressed in their finest clothes, is an added bonus. The party is filled with laughter, great food, and gifts for the babies. We end up with about a thousand onesies in various sizes, which I’m pretty sure we’ll be able to use. And a vacation home on one of the few islands on Umbria from Reese’s parents.
After the gala, we travel home to my palace, where the nannies are getting the babies ready for bed time. My children have grown rambunctious, trying to climb out of their cribs.
“It's time to lie down, little Rosebud,” I say to my fire dragon daughter.
She breathes out a fiery breath at me and I raise my eyebrows. I gently lay her down on her back and cover her with a blanket.
King and Queen Brio coo over Matilda, the heir to the planet Umbria after her father Reese. My little water dragon is a princess. King Hecrosis and Queen Elanorina are enchanted by my sweet girl.
My children are my pride and joy. They are the light of my life and the soul of my heart. Now that I have five mates and six children, I don't know if I could ever be happier.
Everyone says goodnight to the babies, and we retire to the sitting room to chat. Donte discusses current events with Silas and Beshard. My mother and father converse with Uri and Sysko about the current state of the Draxos military. The King and Queen of Umbria catch up with their son Reese, discussing Matilda’s future as the queen of the planet. Freda and I discuss the intricacies of dragon childbirth and Beshard, Mika, and Flume talk amicably near the fireplace over mugs of wasp honey mead.
Quintin brings in trays of salted gow cheese pastries, and we enjoy an evening snack with our wine and mead. Being with my family, with my babies sleeping upstairs, gives me the warmest, most comforting feeling I’ve ever had.
Chapter 44
After a delightful evening of conversation, everyone retires to their accommodations across Arcadia and beyond. My mates retire with me to my room.
Fire dances in the hearth as rain pelts the windows outside. I sip my spiced merrow wine and watch my mates as they play cards and stoke the fire. I know they want to play as much as I do. With all the babies, it is hard to find time for each other now.
I am now merged with each of them in our own way. I could spend my life just exploring our bonds, and can’t wait to do just that. I have grown to admire how deeply they care for me and want to help me be my very best.
We all agreed that after some time at home with the children, I should return to the lab to continue my work. My passion will never fade. But I am happy to spend this time at rest with my mates and my hatchlings. It's a wonderful pleasure that I will not soon forget.
I rise from my chair and place my wineglass on a table, approaching Uri where he stands by the fire. I drop out of my robe as I cross the room. Sliding my hand across my mate’s cheek, prompts him to look down at me and enfold me in his strong arms. I show my sharp teeth and he kisses me promptly.
My other mates are on their feet and touching my newly curvaceous flesh. Since my pregnancy, my breasts and hips seem to have doubled in size around my slim waist.
My mates have been exceedingly complimentary about my newly formed curves. I must say that on my six-measure frame, the hourglass figure is quite lovely. I feel hands on my pump bottom, gripping and squeezing. Breath blows over my neck as they gather around my naked body.
One by one, they remove their clothing. They are all already aroused and stiff with longing. They run their hands up and down my thighs, over my breasts, and between my legs, kissing me deeply in turn. They hold my face and turn me from one to the next. Tongues slip into my mouth as fingers press my clitoral ring. Hands grope my nipples and milk floods out as I orgasm, a tongue plunging into my mouth.
The heat of the fire warms my back, but the heat of their bodies sets me on fire. I slowly push away from them and walk sultrily across the room to crawl onto the bed on all fours. They don't hesitate to join me, their need almost as deep as when we were in the thrall. We have been apart for too long.
Donte pulls my ass against his pelvis and rubs his dick between the cleft of my behind, rubbing my moisture all over my pussy and tight hole. I find Reese and Flume in front of me and began to suck their dicks aggressively and hard. Having missed the taste of their bodies in my mouth, I can’t hold back in any way. They've been far too careful with me for far too long.
I want it all. I'm not a frightened girl anymore. I am a woman with five mates and six hatchlings. I can take anything they have to give.
Flume licks my pussy from behind sliding it all the way up to my ass. He pumps his tongue into my ass, wetting the entrance and filling me with his erotic venom. I groan as I suck Mika's golden dick down my throat, and saliva pours all over his rod.
Donte plunges into my pussy with his big, hard fingers, making me climax in a blinding white light. Reese gathers me on top of him and sinks his wet cock into my core. I’m fully aroused as Uri slides into my tight hole and begins to pump. I come multiple times with both of their dicks thrusting into me at once. I try desperately to suck all three of my other mates off at once, but the effort is futile.
I reach out and start to stroke them as I suck on Flume, his erotic venom steeping down my throat. I'm coming in fractions of a second. My body does not stop spasming around the cocks inside me. My mates take me until I'm sopping wet and screaming with lust.
Then, as if on cue, we all come together in a torrent semen, pumping into every hole. It's all over me and dripping down my breasts and in my ass as they pull out of me. They kiss me and lick me and share the flavor of each other on the scales on my body.
I cup my throbbing pussy in my hand as my body continues to clench. I reach up to rub each of my mates’ legs and arms and shoulders. Whoever I can
reach to touch. I am so awakened but I am so exhausted by the pleasure that I fall asleep between them.
I wake with a blanket up to my chin, alone in bed. It is late, but there is hot black tea waiting for me on the table. I rise, grab a cup of tea, wash and dress.
When I emerge from my room, wearing a long blue gown, I go to the nursery where I find the nannies in a state of dismay. The babies have learned to fly, and refuse to stay in their cribs.
They are running and shifting and crawling and crying and laughing all about the nursery. I knew this moment was coming, and so did the nannies, but none of us had anticipated it would come so soon. My darlings are precocious. My mates join me in the doorway as we watch our children boisterously running from their caregivers.
They cannot be contained and run past us through our legs. Our children romp through the house, unabashedly shifting between baby and dragon. The puffkins, Gigi and Maxxus, join in on the fun and playfully chase the babies all across the house. We follow them, laughing hysterically, but they slip out the back door and run into the yard as we follow them. Little dragons shift between adorable babies and adorable hatchlings, running around in the yard with the puffkins close behind, chewing their squeaky toys.
We are all happy and overwhelmed and amazed and in love. My babies remind me so much of myself and of my mates. It makes me want to be a better person; someone they can look up to.
We run about the springtime yard and catch our escaped babies. Once finally contained, the little darlings start to shift back into baby form. Everyone holds a baby and we stand in a circle under the bright blue sky of Arcadia.
Pink blossoms blow around us on the breeze as I gaze up at my mates’ handsome faces and my babies’ perfect shining eyes.
I know the future is secure for my children. At the end of the day, that was all I was ever fighting for. With my family, my life is complete. Everything from now on is just icing on the gow cheesecake.