Tristan
I sat in an unassuming sedan car and watched front of a middle sized beach house on the other side of the street. It took only five hours to drive here and it was still more than an hour before noon. Stealth was expecting me and I should have just rung the doorbell, but seeing two cars parked in the driveway stopped me. I didn't know who her guest was and I was not prepared for any dangerous surprises, so I decided to wait and watch the house for a while. Too late has it occurred to me, that coming alone might have been a bad idea.
After more than an hour of waiting, as I was pondering best possible way to sneak in, a man in his thirties appeared in the front doors. He was wearing a suit pants and a shirt, but his suit jacket was hanging over his forearm in a relaxed manner, that could be pretended, he could be hiding a weapon. I was relieved that something happened anyways, if this was a trap I would probably get caught if I tried to sneak around to get a peek into the house. And killing me in the open was more troublesome, than inside the house...
Stealth appeared behind the man and he turned to wrap one arm around her waist and grab her ass with another hand as she kissed him smiling mischievously, no weapon then. She wore a short turquoise silk night dress, that showed her shapely legs. I shifted uncomfortably. I was working too much if a sight of a lightly dressed dragon sent my thoughts to the gutter. When was the last time, I left a woman's room in the morning getting smiles and kisses like that? The man at the doors stole few more kisses before he released Stealth and walked over to one of the cars parked in the driveway and drove away.
I gave it five minutes, before I exited the car, walked over to her doors and rang the doorbell.
From the way Stealth opened the doors I assumed she thought the other guy came back, because dazzling smile quickly disappeared from her face. I smiled and said "Hello Stealth."
"Lieutenant, please come in." She said stepping back to let me in. I entered a middle sized hall and followed her to the kitchen that opened to a large living room with the wall facing the ocean made entirely of glass.
Stealth climbed stairs on one of the walls and disappeared through an opening in the ceiling with "Gimmie a sec. I'll put on more clothes."
I looked around the room trying to figure out something about the hostess. There was a large sofa and two armchairs in the spacious living room two steps down from the kitchen, long dinner table with twelve chairs stood in a large niche on the northern side of the house beside a complicated window that supposedly caught sunlight from all the angles. Vintage looking cabinets were filled with bottles of fancy liquors. Wine bottles were lounging on a designer rack. Kitchen was tidy with shining pots hanging from hooks over the white marble counter and herbs growing in a copper box in the middle of the kitchen island. Glass in cabinet doors gave glimpse of shining crystal glasses and porcelain plates. Everything looked expensive, nothing of this was surprising.
Soft steps made me look up as Stealth appeared on the stairs again. She changed to a dress less sheer but if possible even shorter than her night dress.
She stopped at the bottom of the steps and crossed her arms. "How do you imagine these... visits are supposed to proceed?" She asked.
Well I had no idea and for a while considered telling her just that but stopped myself remembering Garret's words about her being hundreds of years older than me, no need to highlight my incompetence.
"I come by, ask you how you've been doing, who you've been seeing and such, we set a new date and I leave again." I answered instead and her brows shot up.
"Very well, would you like something to drink?" She said slowly and I nodded. "Coffee please."
She went to the kitchen and I followed her and watched her measuring out spoons of fragrant powder. Once the coffe machine was dripping dark liquid into a jug underneath,
she took a melon from a basket in the corner washed it and chopped to triangular pieces, that she's arranged on a large blue plate. Not minding that it was still dripping, she took the jug and filled two mugs with steaming dark liquid. "Milk, sugar?" I shook my head and she handed me one of the cups, took the plate in her another hand and walked to the cofee table in the living area.
She took a seat in one armchair and I sat down in another cradling the mug in my hands. Well I got up at the buttcrack of day to get here and there was still a long day ahead of me, so I leaned back and I took a sip. This was good shit. Somewhat more at ease I turned to the dragon in the other armchair.
"Who was this guy who left just before I came?" I asked.
Stealth smiled knowingly. "Toby. I've met him last week and he come to hang out yesterday." She said.
"What were you doing with him?" I asked and hated how dumb it sounded. I meant why. Why was she seeing this human?
Stealth rolled her eyes. "Usual stuff you know, adult things." She answered and I felt the not so hidden barb. Act like an idiot and you'll be treated as one.
"Why would you do this with a human man? I thought you hated humans." I blurted.
"Hate is a very big word, especially when an immortal is implied. I don't hate humans and I especially like young guys with pretty arms." She said and my gaze involuntarily strayed to my own arms visible in white t-shirt. She smiled noticing and I hated myself for acting this foolishly, around a dragon and a Viper.
"Doesn't Talon mind?" I asked.
"I've left Talon, remember? And no, Talon doesn't care about what we do in our spare time." She answered without a smile this time. What the hell was I doing? Slutshaming a dragon seemed absurd and stupid and had nothing to do with my own values anyways.
"So besides shagging Toby, what have you been up to recently?"
"Getting my bearings. I have gone through all Lilith's stuff, got rid of some, burnt some, kept some..."
"Lilith's stuff?" I asked.
"Yes. We've bought this house together, it was her idea. So we wouldn't have to party in the all-Talon apartment complex in our spare time, show them all of our lives..." She continued as if it wasn't a big deal.
"Lilith the Viper? She lived here?" Apparently getting up too early amounted to asking dumb questions all day long, but this was a big deal for me. She's killed Lieutenant Martin and Stealth used to party with her. Sudden wave of disgust washed over me leaving bad taste in my mouth.
"Lilith was my friend. We were as different as two dragons can be except for love of parties and humans with nice arms." Stealth smiled sadly and I was shocked. I was curious too, but feared that knowing would contaminate me somehow. All the rules and lessons of St George suddenly made sense. These... creatures were so strange and fascinating, that they could probably get any human to side with them. Even if they killed their friend, or their friend did. But I was on a mission, from treacherous Talon yes, but also from the Order of St George. So I told myself that my next question didn't have anything to do with my curiosity and maybe even compassion.
"Would you tell me more about it?" I asked.
We stepped into a spacious bedroom upstairs. A king size bed dominated the wall opposite the one made of glass, where a doors opened to a terrace, it's sides overgrown with grapevines.
There was a vanity and an open sliding doors revealed an largely empty walk-in closet, everything was white with golden details. Walls with golden paint on the edges of the stucco. Carved headboard was formed like a huge wave about to break over the pillows and the foam crest was painted gold. The bed vas covered with glimmering golden coverlet with white sheets underneath. White floorboards were covered with numerous white and golden rugs. If downstairs was normal, spacious and comfortable this was something else entirely. On the wall beside the bed hung a large picture of a pretty blond woman sunbathing on a yacht in a white bikini bottom. She smiled blissfully at whoever was taking the picture, her golden hair blowing perfectly around her beautiful face, her green eyes borrowing some bluish nuances from the marvelous blue water surrounding her. I quickly looked away from her breasts before Stealth caught me staring.
There were shelves, most of them empty, but one was filled with boxes with music albums on CDs, vinyls and a couple of photo albums.
Stealth went to the shelf.
"I have donated her clothes and shoes to women's shelter." She smiled. "They deserve to wear something nice for once" She added in strange voice.
"Her jewellery... I added it to my hoard. She'd want that..."
"But I couldn't get myself to part with her music." Stealth smiled to herself. "Lilith had the most horrible taste." She shook her head sadly and I told myself, that getting closer to this dragon was actually part of my job. Then I thought about how unfair it was to demand this from Garret, when he was just seventeen. To send him out to romance some girl and then expect him to kill her in cold blood. Were this meetings to ensure, that Stealth won't do any troubles or that we won't? Lilith killed Lieutenant Martin. Yet here I stood in her bedroom, in her house where she was someone else completely. A luxury that he didn't have, that we didn't have. To be just us, not soldiers, not killers. Lilith and Lieutenant Martin were both dead, but only one of them have truly lived it seemed...
"Wanna hear some?" Stealth's voice startled me, I didn't know what she meant.
"Lilith was... could be a bitch. But she has been my friend throughout two hundreds years. Her death's circumstances... robbed her of her honor and respect among Talon's dragons and people. No one would reminisce her with me." Why was Stealth telling me that? Why would she trust me? Was she this lonely? Did she knew I would die soon? I was shocked and even more so by my own reaction. I wanted this, I didn't mind.
"She killed Lieutenant Martin. He was my friend and mentor. He'd saved my life many times." I said, I somehow couldn't fake it. I wanted to be honest despite my better judgement.
Stealth looked at me sadly and said. "I am sorry for your loss."
A thought crossed my mind. "He's killed many dragons". I wasn't sure where I was headed with this but Stealth and Lilith killed for Talon and we killed for the Order of St George, but did any if this make killing less wrong? And if I could use that to excuse the blood of dragons and people on my heands who was I to judge?
"Okay, let's hear it" I said stooping beside Stealth to take a look at Lilith's collection.
After my revelation Stealth was careful not to talk too much about her good times with Lilith. At first I thought, that she was just fond of '80s, but it soon turnedout she just loved anything kitschy and dramatic. As Belinda Carlisle danced with her baby in summer rain, I told Stealth about some of my memories of Lieutenant Martin. Truthfully I had to often stop myself, mindful that most of his life would have offended this adult dragon sitting on the bed two strides from me.
Stealth listened and sipped some vintage bourbon from a glass that I have never seen like of. I declined the offer as I needed to drive and getting drunk while in company of a stranger, not to mention dragon assassin was generally a bad idea. Then she seemed to arrive at decision. "We don't choose to be Vipers." She said, when another pause occurred, and continued. "Talon have evolved throughout the centuries of battling the Order of St George and gaining influence in human hierarchies of power. And at some point we started to need dragon assassins. It was Elder Wyrm's idea to form Vipers of infertile dragonells. See, our fertility decreases and dragonells are the bottleneck of breeding. So she reasoned, that all the fertile dragonells needed to be kept safe deep within the organisation. Vipers were expendable, free from the duty of laying egg, we could serve constantly. Lilith was good and she gave this more of herself, than most would. But this still wasn't her choice. And as a person who knew her before she became a Viper, I can say with certainty, that this wouldn't have been her choice. Since this is her wake it's important for me to say this." She looked at me as if daring me to contradict her. I processed her words but couldn't come up with anything to say so I listened to "She drives me crazy" In a strange sad atmosphere that didn't match the song at all.
At last Stealth got up. "I'm hungry, would you like to eat something?"
We went down to the kitchen taking a CD player and a box of CDs with us.
Stealth took out a side of salmon from the fridge rubbed it with salt and thyme she plucked from the box on the island's counter, then she wrapped it in foil with slices of lemon and clats of butter on top and put it into the oven. She proceeded to boil some rice and again I noticed how at ease I felt around her. In the house of the vicious green killer dragon. Who killed Lieutenant Martin. Yet I couldn't help to smile when she started to dance a bit to "I touch myself". I could imagine her and the blond woman from the picture in the bedroom upstairs dancing together, fooling around cruelly beautiful and irresistible. Surely many "Tobys" have been happy to be invited here.
And what about me?
Delicious scent filled the kitchen and Stealth took a bottle of white wine from a separate fridge where it was kept at the exact temperature of fourty seven degrees.
We ate at the large table. The food was simple but tasty and I was hungry.
"So you are infertile?" I asked. I knew that this was probably as touchy a topic for dragonells as for human women, but I could not help it apparently.
Stealth sighed before she started with bored tone. "Dragon's fertility isn't like humans all about hormons, anatomy and physiology. It's hundred percent magic, and as Talon is not very fond of magic except for shifting, they don't know much about it. I don't have any dragon children despite numerous attempts, so they've given up on me." She said flatly.
"That must suck." I said.
"Not really." She said. "Dragon's mating is nothing like human sex. There's no pleasure or overwhelming bliss, it's like being torn to pieces or burned from the inside. Why do you think I prefer to do it with humans?" Stealth winked at me and I gaped at her.
"Dragon children? Do you have other children?" I asked suddenly chilled at the possibility.
Stealth looked at me very seriously. "Is this between the two of us?" She asked, and I nodded.
"Okay along as it's not endangering any humans." I said dying to know what she had to say.
"I had children in my human form. Talon wasn't corporate until maybe a century ago. We hid amongst humans spreading our numbers thinly and communicated as little as possible to avoid attention of the Order of St George. Three hundred years ago I lived in a village and met a man, whom I've married at had four children with." She said.
"What happened to them?" I asked.
"They died, obviously." Stealth rolled her eyes.
"Okay their descendants are still living. I have seen my fifteenth generation." She smiled a happy smile at me. "Talon doesn't know. And I want it to stay this way."
I was reeling. "How is this possible?" I asked.
"It just is. When we shift our bodies are complete with all organs and functions. When we die in human form, if a doctor was to examine us, they wouldn't find anything amiss."
The rest of the afternoon went with Stealth telling me the story of her marriage with songs of Patti Smith, A-ha and Transvision Vamp as the background noise. Apparently they were quite happy, though it takes special kind of mind to hold a grudge for three hundred years, so her story could be glossed over with nostalgia. Her husband died of old age after thirty years together and shortly after her grandchildren were reared she staged her own death and left the village to seek other dragons of Talon with whom she had minimal contact during most of her life. When she hatched she was left in care of some native people who were not as superstitious as Christians, she even copied their looks in her human form to Elder Wyrm's big displeasure. Later on she had to get another form to shift to on jobs where a presence of a native woman would cause immediate suspicion. Another thing I didn't know was possible. Stealth stated proudly, that she haven't heard about another dragon capable of this.
She would travel and see her descendants every ten to twenty years. Sometimes without them knowing her at all, watching them from afar. Sometimes as a customer in their jobs or a chatty patron at the same cafe. They were many and had no idea dragons existed and that they shared their blood. Once a child was orphaned and she took her in and raised her without the girl knowing she was her great great great great great great grandmother.
This was a lot. But I could see this caring trait in Stealth and wondered if it was as unreliable as Ember's sweetness for Garret. She'd apparently cared for these people for hundreds of years.
After we ate I decided to go. It was a long drive home and the way I was enjoying Stealth's company, I feared for what could happen if I lingered. Shd had the way to make me at ease, make me talk and trust her. And it was dangerous. I was worried about my vow of silence about her family and I was surprised, how unpleasant the thought of breaking it felt.
Stealth showed me out and put her hand on my shoulder. "Be careful." She said surprising me. "This you need to tell the others too. The Order of St George is not safe. Talon's hatchling vessels, who's survived the war, have not been destroyed. None of the high standing executives have been expelled or even degraded. Before I left, I heard rumours, just be careful. You are my only shot at true freedom." She said finally.
I smiled at her, but didn't answer. I couldn't risk to give away how much we knew or what we have done about it.
There it is. Check out the songs BTW '80s were awesome ;)