Wed to the Dragon, page 1
WED TO THE DRAGON
ARRANGED MONSTER MATES
Copyright © 2023 by Cara Wylde
All rights are reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, except for the use of brief quotations in book reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are fictitious or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be construed as real in any way. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Alia Terra
Chapter One – Aryan
Chapter Two – Ruby
Chapter Three – Aryan
Chapter Four – Ruby
Chapter Five – Aryan
Chapter Six – Ruby
Chapter Seven – Aryan
Chapter Eight – Ruby
Chapter Nine – Ruby
Chapter Ten – Aryan
Chapter Eleven – Ruby
Chapter Twelve – Ruby
Chapter Thirteen – Ruby
Chapter Fourteen – Aryan
Chapter Fifteen – Ruby
Arranged Monster Mates
About the Author
Alia Terra
No one remembers the world before the Shift. It was thousands of years ago, all lost, all forgotten. Scientists and historians say that before, the world was better, brighter, and our planet belonged to us, humans. There were proud countries and bustling cities, and technology was at its highest.
We can hardly imagine all that. There is no proof, no written texts, no pictures of Alia Terra before the Shift. All we know is the face of Alia Terra now. The land haphazardly divided into territories, the walled cities, the poor living on the fringes, barely surviving.
The monsters.
The temples where young virgins can take a DNA test and be matched to one of them. An arranged marriage to a monster is often the only way a woman can save herself or give her family a chance to not starve.
This is Alia Terra. It belongs to the monsters, and we belong to them.
Chapter One
Aryan
The library tower was the only place where I could find some peace in the palace. In anticipation and preparation for the Dragonbonded Trials, the entire court was in an uproar, dragons running and flying up and down the corridors and stairs all day long, barely able to contain their excitement, placing bets even though everyone knew bets were illegal, and meeting friends from around the kingdom who only visited the court once a year, specifically for the trials. I hated the agitation. And this year, it was worse than in all the previous years, and worse than it would be in years to come. Because this year, the two royal brides were going to compete.
My brother Daryan had chosen his bride a few months before, from one of the noble families. Nalla was beautiful and fierce, with long, blond hair and bright pink scales, and everyone expected her to take first place in the trials.
The second royal bride was supposed to be mine. Except, I hadn’t chosen one. Because I wanted more than a bride, I wanted a fated mate. Apparently, I was the last dragon to believe in fated mates, because no one agreed with me, and since Daryan had bonded with Nalla, they’d all been pestering me to forget about myths and legends and choose a female from the ladies at court. There were so many young and exquisite eligible females that no one could understand why I was reluctant to do what was expected of me. They were all well-educated, distinguished, and ready to sit on the throne next to me if I was the one the king chose as his successor.
Between Daryan and me, the strongest would win. Except we weren’t the ones who had to prove our strength. As brothers, we were equal. So, the deciding factor was going to be our brides. The bride that finished the Dragonbonded Trials first would prove to be worthy to be queen. If Nalla was worthy, then Daryan would become king. If my bride finished before Nalla, then the throne was mine.
Too bad we were one week away from the trials, and I still didn’t know who she was.
I paced the library as I rifled through the pages of the tome I’d been studying for a while now. The Chronicles of the Dragonbonded. It was a collection of ancient stories of our species, and a lot of the stories were about fated mates. One of my teachers introduced me to this book when I was a child. I loved reading, and he’d decided that the stories were short and innocent enough, romantic more than anything, and the pages were filled with colorful illustrations, so he’d given it to me to read before bed. I knew some of the legends by heart. As I grew up, what I realized was that these weren’t only myths. The stories were real, and each had a lesson or a moral that was much deeper than what my young mind could understand. So, as an adult, I started studying them with different eyes.
And there was one legend, just one, that talked about a dragon lord who’d taken a bride from a different species. It didn’t mention the species the female belonged to, only that she had no wings, no scales, so she couldn’t fly, couldn’t fight, she was smaller and more delicate than any female dragon, but she was the dragon lord’s true mate, and that was all that mattered. Because they lived happily ever after in an age when most dragon families were torn apart by quarrels and betrayals. That age had never ended, as far as I could see, because a lot of dragon bonds ended the same way, and that was something I didn’t wish for myself.
That was why I didn’t want to choose just anyone to be my bride. I wanted to feel a connection when I saw her. I wanted to feel what the dragon lord in the story felt when he looked upon his beautiful mate and saw eternal love and devotion in her eyes. I wanted someone I could spend my entire life with, and for that to happen, I needed to make sure that she was my one true fated mate.
As I reread the legend for the hundredth time, trying to look for clues that I was doing the right thing, I heard a faint creak behind me. I smiled and closed the big, heavy tome, placed it on the table, and walked to the tall, arched windows, from where I could see the entire court below.
“My son,” my mother, the queen, said as she stepped next to me. “I thought I’d find you here.”
“Mother.” I turned and kissed her temple. She patted me on the cheek. “How are you feeling today?”
“Better.” She sighed, and for a long minute, we both looked out the window at the bustle below.
My mother was frail. Too frail to leave her chambers most days, so I was glad to see her out and about. She’d come through the secret door that led from her private chambers to the library, which meant she didn’t feel strong enough to face the court and have ladies and lords clamor around her, asking her how she felt about one of her sons having chosen a bride and the other having decided to do the unthinkable.
“Any word from the Temple?” she asked.
“Not yet. But I am hopeful.”
“The Dragonbonded Trials are next week, Aryan. You cannot afford to wait a day longer. Please, my son, choose a nice girl from the noble dragon families. I love you and Daryan the same, no matter who becomes king, our people will be in good hands, but I want you to have an equal chance. It is your right.”
“Mother, you know I can’t do that. It goes against my principles and what I want my life to be like. I believe in the system the Temple has in place.”
“You sent them your blood sample months ago. And they didn’t find a match. What if this means...”
My shoulders stiffened. She was looking at my profile now, but I kept my gaze fixed on the palace courtyard.
“That I don’t have a fated mate? That I’m doomed to be alone?”
“No! Of course you’re not doomed to be alone! What if it means that fated mates don’t exist?”
“The Temple runs a DNA test, mother. You know how it works. And they have been successful every time. It’s the perfect matchmaking system.”
“I’m not saying fated mates don’t exist for any species. But maybe they don’t exist for us, for dragons.” She shrugged, as if it wasn’t a big deal, and she didn’t understand why I was so fixated on this idea. “I want you to be happy, you know I do.”
I sighed. “I know.”
“Daryan is happy with Nalla. It’s been four months, and as soon as the Dragonbonded Trials are over, they will start trying for a baby.”
I should’ve been jealous of my brother. Indeed, Daryan and Nalla looked good together, and sometimes, at dinner, they finished each other’s sentences. She smiled at him often, and he kissed her every time he thought no one was looking. But it was the honeymoon period, and no one could tell if they would be the same in a year, in two years, in five, in twenty. Our parents had gone through difficult times, and I remembered at least two times when they’d thought of calling it quits. When my brother and I were teens, for a whole year, my mother didn’t speak to my father. Had they not been the king and queen, they would’ve surely separated, but the kingdom was more important than their quarrels, more precious than the fact that they’d stopped loving each other a long time ago, and now, in their old age, they barely tolerated each other. Who was to say that Daryan and Nalla wouldn’t end up the same? All I knew was that I didn’t want that fate for myself.
So, I was willing to take this risk. I was willing to wait until the Temple found my perfect match, and if it didn’t h
“I know she is out there, mother,” I said, my voice low and melancholic.
“The Temple only matches shifters, aliens, and demons with human females,” she said. I’d hoped she wouldn’t mention it, but she was going to use everything she could to persuade me. “Let’s say that they do find a match for you just in time for the trials. A human female, Aryan! How could she ever compete?”
“The trials don’t only test physical strength, mother. To prove their worth, the brides have to show kindness, bravery, and selflessness. Besides, there are no winners and losers. Everyone finishes the trials.”
“Yes, but the order matters. A human female will never be able to finish before Nalla. And then, your brother and his bride take the throne.”
“You just said that we’re both fit to rule. If it’s fine by you, then it’s fine by me.”
“But don’t you want a real chance here, Aryan?”
I finally turned to look at her. I had her eyes, and I also had her proud chin and cheekbones, and the two horns that looked like wings on the sides of my head. My brother didn’t have them. I softened my gaze as I looked upon her small frame. She had her wings tucked on her back. I wondered how long it had been since she’d gone for a flight around the palace.
“What I want is a real chance at love,” I said.
She sighed deeply. “I can see that I cannot sway you.”
“There’s still time. I’m hopeful, waiting for the letter from the Temple every day, and it would make me so happy if you could remain hopeful with me.”
“Oh, Aryan, you know I’ll try. I’m doing my best. I’ve always done my best for you and your brother. Your father, too. It’s just that... a human! No dragon has ever mated with a human!”
I walked to the table where I’d left The Chronicles of the Dragonbonded, and she followed me with her gaze. When she saw me lift the hefty tome to bring it to her, she smiled. She knew how much I’d loved this book as a child.
“There is a story in here...”
She shook her head. “I know. The dragon lord who found his fated mate among a different species. It doesn’t say anywhere that she was human.”
“Well, no, but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t. And even if she wasn’t human, she was still different.”
“Aryan, a human will not even be a match to the other brides participating in the trials this year. She will finish last, and it will look...” She didn’t finish her sentence, but she didn’t have to.
I furrowed my brows. “It doesn’t matter.” There were three more dragon brides who’d been chosen by lords at the court this year, and it was tradition that all brides had to go through with the trials. Their results would decide their standing in the families of their husbands. “It doesn’t matter how it will look, because I will be happy. A true fated mate, mother!”
She nodded, resigned. “A true fated mate. I hope you’re right, Aryan.”
Deep down, she didn’t believe it was possible. She’d lived a sad life with my father, and even if they were the king and queen, all the power and the riches, and the respect of their subjects hadn’t been enough to fill the gaping holes in their souls. Of course she didn’t believe in fated mates. But it didn’t matter, because I did.
“I’m not feeling well,” she said. “I will leave you with your books and with your thoughts.”
“Do you want me to help you to your chambers?”
She waved me off as she walked away, her wings twitching. She hadn’t stretched them in too long, no wonder she was in pain. I didn’t say anything. I was sure her doctors knew better than I did. When my parents stopped being happy together, my mother had stopped going out for regular flights.
“Let me know if you hear anything from the Temple,” she said. “Despite what you might think, I do want you to be the happiest you can be, and also have a chance at becoming king.”
“It will all work out, you will see.”
She disappeared behind a row of shelves, then I heard the little door creak open and shut.
The truth was... it was hard to hold on to hope when there had been months and months, and no word from the Temple. Maybe my mother was right, and the story in the book was indeed just a myth. Maybe dragons had done something wrong at some point, something so terribly wrong that we were cursed to never have fated mates again.
Chapter Two
Ruby
I’d been lying in this hole for an hour now, taking small, measured breaths. How long until I ran out of air? How long until the Peacekeepers got tired of turning the house upside down and interrogating my father, my sister, and my little brother? They would never find me here, three feet underground, in my wooden box where I could barely stretch my legs. It was as if I was in a coffin, lying with my arms crossed over my chest, my knees slightly bent, my eyes closed, and trembling just a little. There was a metal tube that connected the box to the world above, and through it, just enough air came through, that I might survive a little longer. I couldn’t hear what was happening outside. All I knew was that I had to wait here until my father came to get me out. And that was only going to happen when the Peacekeepers finally left.
How had I gotten myself in this situation?
Well, I’d dug this hole in the ground and fixed the wooden box in it with the metal tube a long time ago, knowing that I might need it to hide when me and my band of Misfits got into serious trouble. We were pulling off heists that were more and more dangerous, stealing from the rich families in the city and giving to the poor ones.
Two years ago, we started off with just three Misfits – me, my best friend from childhood, and his boyfriend, – and we stole a little food here, skimmed a little there, not enough to raise suspicion. We kept our families fed this way. We all worked for the rich families in the city, but they never paid us enough. And when my mother died after giving birth to my little brother, only me and my father worked, and we didn’t make nearly enough to pay the rent on our rundown house, the bills, and have enough to feed the four of us. So, I did what I had to do.
Slowly, my band of Misfits grew. We were six now, and a week ago, we pulled a big one. We ransacked the kitchen and pantry of the richest, most opulent family in the city, stole as much food and medicine as we could, and gave it all to the poor people living at the edge of the city. We did it all in one night. And to make sure it wouldn’t be tracked to us, we set the kitchen on fire, trying to make it look like an unfortunate accident.
It worked for a while. But then I heard rumors that the Peacekeepers believed it hadn’t, in fact, been an accident, and all the food and medicine hadn’t burned, and that it was the work of thieves. That was when I knew I needed to do something. Something drastic. It was going to be a matter of days before they got to me. My Misfits went underground, so to speak, some of them leaving the city. But I couldn’t leave. My father needed me. He was old, and I couldn’t just leave him to take care of my sister and brother all on his own. Of course, if the Peacekeepers found me and arrested me, it would all be the same. But there was another way. A way that allowed me to take care of them even as I went away.
The Temple.
Under normal circumstances, I would’ve never considered sending my blood for a DNA test to be matched with a monster. For one, I was a free spirit. I was twenty, and I’d never let a boy touch me. I’d never been in love. I’d always had other things to worry about. Life was hard enough as it was. And two, I wasn’t a fan of monsters. I had never seen any, since there were no monsters in our city, and I’d never stepped foot outside, but the monsters were... the other.
And yes, I’d learned in school, when I cared enough to go to class, that without the help of aliens, shapeshifters, orcs, minotaurs, and the rest, Alia Terra would’ve been wiped out, and the human race wouldn’t have survived the Shift. But that wasn’t enough to make me like them. After all, they were living perfectly rich and peaceful lives far away from the human cities, they had their packs, clans, ranches, and even kingdoms, if I’d heard right in History class, and they didn’t care about us. They didn’t care that some of us were so poor that we could barely survive, and that we were being oppressed by other humans simply because they had money and we didn’t. Most humans were, basically, slaves to other humans, and these monster saviors who got us through the Shift didn’t care. They all lived in their fancy places where humans weren’t allowed, and I often wondered... Why had they bothered to help us at all if they weren’t going to bring real peace and equality to Alia Terra? They saved us, then retreated to their bordered lands and left us to our own devices.
