Touch of Flame

Ravina's wounds seemed to be healing, and her breathing and heart rate was slowly stabilizing. Araminta stayed with her with Malachi, his brothers, and Nazneen, and her people helped provide care and rebuild what they could. 

They had the help of a witch that he seemed to recognize from when Nazneen's father ruled. Now he was helping Nazneen, and Malachi wasn't sure yet how he felt about the man. 

"Will it be safe to stay here now? Perhaps you should come to my kingdom?" Nazneen suggested. 

"We can't keep running, and we are too many to move all of us. I can't leave some people behind. We will need to make this place safe." Malachi said. 

Nazneen nodded thoughtfully. "There are ways humans protect themselves from invaders. Ares has his towers where he can watch people from afar, and they are inspired by castel defenses. We should consider such things. Perhaps we can use the mountains, and there should be people always on guard so when there is an attack, we know well beforehand." 

Malachi looked around. They were surrounded by mountains. She was right, Usually the temples had a view over vast areas, and they could put up stations with guards. 

"That is a good idea," he said. 

After working the whole day on rebuilding, they decided to go back and get something to eat. Back home, they all gathered to eat dinner together. While it was being served, Malachi went back to check on Ravina. Why was she not waking up? 

"She will be alright," his mother assured him, seeing his worried expression. "There is a mark appearing on her neck, so she should be alright." 

Malachi frowned again, recalling the strange mating. He told his mother what happened in case she knew something. 

His mother seemed fascinated as she listened but she didn't know more than he did. 

"Maybe we should ask Chanan. He should know." She said then paused. "We should invite him for dinner. Mara!" She motioned for the maid to come. "As Chanan to join us. He must be alone." 

With a nod, Mara excused herself, to locate the priest. The air was soon filled with the aroma of a sumptuous feast wafting through the grand hall, teasing their senses and heightening their hunger. Everyone gathered around the dining table, hungry from not having fed the whole day. Chanan arrived just on time and joined them. 

"Saul, where did you get the pistol?" 

"It was gifted to me by Ares." He replied. 

"Oh, where is your breedmate?" Aramina asked Nazneen curiously. 

"He is taking care of his business back home," Nazneen explained. 

"When will you two mate?" Aaron asked. "I assume coronation will be the same day as well." 

"We might have a ceremony of union, but I doubt mating will be included." She said. Mating with Ares would not be for public display, mostly because she truly wanted him to leave his mark in his Marozak form. She wanted no inhibitions, and in public, he could not do so without exposing himself. "I want our union to be something symbolizing both our cultures." She explained when they frowned. 

Malachi, who had been partly worried of what Ravina's family might think of the ceremony, now had a different idea. Nazneen was right. He was King but he couldn't make it all about his culture, especially with Ravina's family there. Her father would probably want her to get married properly as what he knows to be marriage. 

If he was going to have a human mate, he would have to start the integration of their lives from the ceremony itself. That way he could also keep the mating to be more private and intimate, but he had already done it now. 

Maybe? Partly?

He looked over at Chanan, but Aaron cut him off before he could ask. 

"Don't humans say some vows? And the women wear white instead of red? Will you be wearing white?" He wondered. 

Nazneen chuckled. "I haven't thought about the details. I will try to keep a balance between the two cultures if possible." 

"Forget the white," Joel nudged him toward Malachi. "Imagine Malachi in all those clothes instead." 

Oh, no! He had tried those clothes, and while he would try to incorporate some human elements into the ceremony, clothes would not be that. He also wanted to see Ravina in red. White was already her color. 

"Well, we should learn more about the human way of uniting, then." Araminta suggested. "I have heard those vows once before. I am curious." She looked over at Malachi. 

He knew they said some vows, but he never really listened to what they said. He couldn't deny that he was curious now, and he would have to learn about the humans as well, just like Ravina had learned about their ways. 

"Speaking of uniting," his mother turned to Chanan. "We had a bit of an unusual case here to save Ravina's life. A mark is already forming without her leaving a mark on him. There was a lot of blood consumption by Malachi involved however." 

Chanan remained calm as he listened. "Hmm..." he began thoughtfully, taking a silent moment to think before responding. "There could be many reasons, the first being that you are a Katharos, so the chance that it is easier for you to trigger our ancestral powers is more prevalent. Then she is human, which brings us to our first shifter ancestor, and it all began with his desire to be with his human mate. Drinking blood was part of it, as I am sure our magician here will tell us that most magic involves something with the essence of life itself." He said, looking at Sylas as he said so before turning his gaze back to Malachi. 

"It was with human blood that he was able to take on human form. Now that you have consumed a considerable amount during mating, it means you will share more than just a bond. The magic must work both ways, I assume. If she takes on some of the dragon qualities from your blood, perhaps you will take on some from hers."

"Shouldn't that make him weaker? Our ancestors were physically stronger than us, and humans are not." Saul was confused. 

"I believe we often take on the best qualities from each other. That is why humans take the healing, strength, and speed parts from us, and perhaps we do the same. Or perhaps we take on the qualities we desire, such as what our ancestor did, wanting to be in human form." Chanan replied. 

Malachi listened with his words, his head spinning with questions and possibilities. 

"I don't have a definitive answer." Chanan asmiled. "But it might be an exciting journey for you while figuring it out, King Malachi. You have experienced something special after all."