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Shai tried to remember all of the names of the people in attendance: Tal-Telal and Ishtar (or Mama Bear), Gabriel and Inanna, Ere and Sorin. Ben. These were the immediate family members.
He could see the consternation on Heba’s face, for they all looked between mid-twenties in human age to late-thirties or early-forties at most. Yet, Tal and Ishtar were the “grandparents” of the group.
Heba was still looking at the world through human eyes even though she herself was now immortal by virtue of being a dragon’s Mate.
There were a number of other people as well: an earth dragon named Kai and his Mate, Eir. A celestial dragon named Zaidu who escaped to earth and his Mate, Sin. And the sea dragon, Sai, with his Mate, Brigid. There was also Goya, the Tiger King, and his Mate, Maddie.
There were more dragons, Merlin and his Mate, Annie, Wolfe and his Mate, Rui, and two humans, Arthur and Lancelot, not in attendance, for they were traveling through their original homeland at the moment. But they were talked about at the dinner table. As well as a long list of other people Shai couldn’t keep up with.
Though they were all strangers by any measure of time, it felt as if he and Heba had known them a lifetime already. They belonged here.
When everyone was full to bursting and eased digestion with warm, soothing libation, scattered around the great hall, or as they called it, the “family room,” Ben initiated a topic that had always been in the back of Shai’s mind.
“I admit I invited everyone here tonight for more than just a family get-together,” he began.
It was both odd to Shai yet instinctive and natural that the only mortal amongst them commanded the entire room so easily.
Benjamin Larkin D’Angelo possessed a kingly presence.
“I’m sure this is the first discussion of many, but I thought we can start by putting all of the facts we know on the table.”
“The Jade Emperor’s quests,” Ere clarified.
Ben gave one solemn nod.
“The very same. Here’s what I think: Each quest is about a dragon and his or her Destined Mate. The object of the quest always varies, and, honestly, I’m not sure what most of them are in the end. We are never provided clear confirmation.”
He looked to Ere, who agreed and picked up the discussion thread.
“It seems that whatever the goal of each quest is, the Jade Emperor is rounding up dragons into the Celestial Realm. Some are Celestial dragons who are Awakened to their powers through a critical event, like Zai. Some are earth-born dragons he seems hell-bent on collecting, like Merlin, Sai and Shai.”
“In fact,” Ben continued, “even the first quest, in which the goal was the Jewel of Dreams, ended up with Rui returning to the Celestial Realm with Merlin, then Wolfe, who became a Celestial dragon. The end result is still dragons coming into the Jade Emperor’s possession.”
“There are some exceptions, of course,” Ere said.
“Divina and her Mate Andros are not back in the Celestial Realm, as far as I’m aware. They might still be out there somewhere in the mortal world. Zai returned to Sin in the past and have met us now in the future.”
“But the Jade Emperor, or at least his emissary, allowedmeto leave,” Sai pointed out.
“I’m not sure he could have stopped you,” Ben mused.
“I think you’re right, Benjamin,” Ere said. “When Sorin, Rui and I retrieved the Jewel of Dreams,Shifucouldn’t just take it from Rui’s hands unless she gave it to him. There is free will involved.”
“But only for the earth-bound dragons and items that are not within the JE’s power to begin with,” Ben deduced. “Celestial dragons have to either find a backdoor, so to speak, to escape, or be broken out, as is recently the case.”
“Except for Divina,” Sorin put in.
“Ah, yes,” Ere murmured, narrowing his eyes in thought. “I’ve never seen the little old man,Shifu, so enamored with anyone. The JE actuallyletDivina leave. Even pointed her directly to the Mirror Pond.”
“I don’t think it’s altruism on the JE’s part,” Ben said. “Maybe he meant to send her back. We never did find out what the Song of Destiny was. Maybe she was supposed to return to Andros to find it.”
“Which means we need to find Divina and Andros for ourselves, if we are to stack our chips against the JE,” Ere concluded.
“Like minds,” Ben concurred. “We should bring Wolfe, Rui, Red, Annie, Lancelot and Arthur back from their travels too. I wouldn’t put it past the JE to go after them with shadow dragons.”
“Were they once real? Those shadows?” Shai asked.
“I think they might have been,” it was Kai who spoke up.
