It was all there in the books, her life. The words resonated within her, making a painful kind of sense. She could do nothing but scan word after word with her eyes. It was too much and yet not enough. Even though it was disturbing that the dragons had so much about her she could now understand why they'd kidnapped her.

She sat down hard.

"Cari, look at this." Her cousin said in a fearful voice as she handed her another book.

Cari absently exchanged books with Dani, failing to see the questioning look in her cousin's eyes. On the open page was a rune circle with six points. On each of the points were written words she quickly assumed represented people.

Serenity was written at the top point with song to the right and sympathy to the left. She had the gift of serenity, Dani was song and her former friend Annie had one of sympathy. Across from serenity was power. Song had chaos across from it and sympathy had time. The purpose of the rune was to open the gates to Azmodea, the prison where all the monsters had been sent to by the ancient dragons.

Was that what they wanted to do? Cari looked up to meet Dani's horrified gaze. Could the dragon prince already know Dani was the song the circle needed? She looked back at the inscription beneath the circle.

The hidden one shall be the key to finding the six, hence why she was hidden for all time. It is foretold that fate shall intervene and bring her into the worlds. Wait for her emergence for only she is meant to draw the prime powers into existence. And whosoever has the primes shall shape the worlds. And the six shall deliver them.

"We have to get out of here." She whispered to her cousin as all the blood drained from her.

"Let's scan as much of this as we can." Dani countered as she took out her phone.

As much as Cari just wanted to leave, she couldn't deny Dani was right. They'd need this to find a way to stop the dragons, to convince the other races to band together once more and stop them. The dragons and their thirst for power! Why couldn't they leave well enough alone?

"Does this mean Nana is somehow tied to fate?" She asked Dani.

"She is a knower. It makes sense."

"But how did she bring my soul out if the well? Isn't it supposed to generate new soul? Does it mean I'm a reborn soul if I was imprisoned in it? Did I do something wrong in my past life?" Cari continued asking.

"I don't know." Dani admitted. "We'll figure it out."

With a hard swallow Cari turned to scan the book she still held. Luckily it wasn't a big book and she was soon done. The book Dani was scanning was bigger and without looking up she pointed to another. Cari sighed and took that on.

She became aware of time, every grain of it trickling down the barrel. Her senses stretching as far as they could to sense if any of the dragons were searching for them. She knew it wouldn't be long until they were missed. As her senses stretched out, she was aware they were more limited than usual.

Stupid dragons!

Cari stopped for a moment, realizing that she had her phone. Placing the book back down she opened her message box then frowned. There wasn't a single message in there even though her network bar was full.

She clicked on her facebook icon and while it loaded, there were no new messages. Considering how she'd had to switch off her notifications just so she could sleep that didn't make sense.

"Hey Dani?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you have any messages?"

Her cousin stopped and took time to check her own messages. "No," Dani answered in a puzzled tone. "Nothing."

Cari sighed. "I guess he must've blocked outside messaging."

"No wonder he left us with them." Dani said then went back to scanning her book.

Disgruntled, Cari also went back to scanning. The next book was about the prime powers and she was tempted to read it since she'd never heard of them. A sense of urgency though harried her on and she did her best to scan faster.

They worked for half an hour more, Dani catching her need to hurry along. There were ancient maps, tabulated rune meanings and charts of star systems in ancient times and as they were now. Some were marked with runes and words like guardian and gateway. Whatever the dragons were after, it seemed bigger than just opening the gates to Azmodea.

Did they think they could control those creatures or were they planning to just loose them out into the world? Maybe some revenge on the rest for denying them power so longer ago. Either way, dragons were too caught up in their supremacy and need for power. They had to be stopped.

"What are you doing in here?" An angry voice demanded and both Cari and Dani froze and jerked their heads to the door. A draconian woman stood there, her stance belligerent. A scowl marked her face as her lips flattened in displeasure. "Answer me!" She demanded.

Apprehensive, the two cousins gave each other side glances, both aware they were no match for the warrior who'd caught them. Especially since they were cut off from their natural abilities. How had the dragon been able to take away something so much a part of them?

At their continued silence the female at the door took a few steps closer then her nose flared as if she'd smelled something foul. "Wolves." She ground out just as scales sprouted on her skin and her uniform blended into them, somehow.

Neither of them had ever seen a dragon shift. Cari was sure no one outside of the dragon race had seen the shift in eons. The woman's blonde hair rose up as if in response to some gust if wind. It shifted through a rainbow of color so fast she thought she imagined it until it settled on an aqua green.

The dragon female gained height, her cheekbones became sharper as her mouth elongated just a bit. Her body became more streamlined, the hips wider and more muscular. Her wings unfolded and their iridescent beauty held the two captive for a moment too long.

She was on them in a blink, her claws slashing at their throats. Cari pulled back but felt the slice of one as it touched her. She was slow and the warrior caught her with a kick to the stomach even as she punched Dani in the chest.

Cari flew back with the hit to land hard on her bum. Scrambling up, she picked up a small rack and threw it at the dragon. It only served to annoy her and with her remarkable speed she rushed Cari. If only her powers hadn't been dampened, wolves were naturally faster than dragons.

She ducked just in time, picked up a poker then swung. Dani came up from behind and hit the warrior over the head with what looked like a brick. She didn't go down and turned on her cousin, her hand wrapping against Dani's throat.

With an angry war cry Cari jumped onto the back of the dragon who lifted Dani by her neck and squeezed harder. Even knowing it was futile, she punched at the dragon desperate to free her cousin from the deadly grip. Even the poker she still held failed to make much of a difference.

She hated the being so helpless, watching Dani be helpless as she hung there with the hands clawing at the hand holding her. Worse was how the warrior was unaffected by anything Cari did.

Cari screamed. Rage erupting from her. Her helplessness called up years of being helpless tangling up inside her with that rage. A resounding denial of it all. She was supposed to be powerful. The queen had said she would double her mate's power and be just as powerful. Everyone knew Andre was powerful.

The little she had read in the draconian books had alluded to the fact that she was powerful. If she was the key to the primes, if she was the coveted prize then she couldn't be helpless, wouldn't be helpless.

She called out in her rage, her eyes glued to her cousin's fading ones, denial brewing in her core. She reached out and found her center. It wasn't something outside herself, power that did lie dormant inside her, hidden. She grabbed it with that desperation and pulled not caring if she might be doing some damage.

Channeling it into her hands she willed it into the dragon whose back she clung to. Cari had no idea what she was doing no idea what the power she'd called up was doing to the dragon. When the warrior let go of her cousin she jumped off her back and rushed to Dani as her cousin fell like a rag doll whose strings had been cut.

"Oh goddess Dani." Cari cried as she took her into her arms. "Please be okay, please." There was a dark red bruise where the dragon had wrapped her hand around Dani's neck. Scared that she might have crushed some bones Cari ran her hand over it but couldn't tell if there were any. "Dani please." She begged, not even paying attention to the female dragon.

Her cousin finally coughed and Cari burst into relieved tears. "Oh thank heavens." She sobbed as she held Dani to her.

"Too tight." Dani croaked and Cari let her go with a crying laugh.

"I thought you were dead."

"Yeah, for a minute there, I thought I was a goner." Dani agreed. "What happened to the dragon?" She asked as she tried to soothe her throat and winced.

Cari looked to where she'd last seen the dragon then blinked. The warrior, still in her shifted state, was standing still with her eyes focused on Cari. Her face was...serene. Cari frowned. Had she done something with her gift?

"Wha..." Dani croaked again.

"I think I wammied her with my gift." Cari guessed.

"You think?"

"Hey, I was desperate. I've never used my gift to do anything besides calm people or have to serene to question anything. Nothing like this, she looks..."

"Hypnotized." Dani finished as she stood up to approach the dragon who kept still, her gaze on Cari. "Do you think you can mind control her?"

"What?" Cari demanded. "That's wrong on so many levels."

"So's what they're planning to do. If you can mind control enough of them then you can have them attack the rest of the dragons."

"That's a big if." She argued as she stood up to stand with Dani. The dragon female trailed her, so focused that it was creepy. Whatever she'd done, Cari hadn't taken away her intelligence.

"See if you have some magical strand connecting you to her." Dani suggested.

With a sigh Cari closed her eyes to do a meditative search. As if just by thinking about it it was clear she saw the blue thread joining their minds. On her end it was simply coming out but with the warrior, it wrapped itself through the entirety of her mind. Tentatively she strummed at the thread on her side and felt the dragon react.

'What's your name?' She asked though she was sure she could take the information from the dragon's mind.

"Fenna Beekhof." The warrior replied.

Cari's eyes popped open and she met Dani's. She willed the dragon to shift back, just to test her control more and the dragon complied. "I can control her!" She whispered.

"Because you're now a royal and even more powerful." Dani crowed then her face became vindictive. "Now lets steal more dragons."

Rage, fear, excitement and uncertainty swirled inside her as they retraced their way back up to the city. Nerves assaulted her even as she held her head high and her stride was confident. It helped that her cousin had faith in her. Still, she wasn't sure how she was going to ensnare them.

What she'd done had been out of desperation, instinctive. Cari wasn't sure if she could duplicate the results. As they made their way up to the entrance to the tunnels she came up with and discarded many options. If only she knew how her gift had translated to mind control.

Knowing it needed an opening she assumed touching the warrior had helped. Only she couldn't go about touching any of the dragons they wanted. First off it'd take too long and they'd inevitably come across more than one which might result in an unwanted fight.

When they reached the entrance, the dragon warrior went on as they stayed behind. She'd bring another dragon with her so that Cari could try and ensnare them too. Nerves raced through her as her heart pulsed hard against her chest cavity.

"What will we do when we get enough dragons?" she asked Dani.

"Wing it." her cousin answered in an offhand manner, her attention focused onto the entrance.

"Worst plan ever." Cari muttered loud enough for her cousin to hear.

"Has any plan ever gone according to plan?"

"At least there would be a plan."

Dani shot her an excited smile. "Relax cuz, everything is going to be fun."

Cari glared at her. "Fun!" she demanded.

"Fine," Dani corrected though she couldn't hide the excitement in her voice. "I meant to say Fine."

"Yeah right."

Dani shot her a grin that was a bit too excited for the situation. Cari glared at her but it had no effect on her cousin's enthusiasm. For her the tension was unbearable, the need to get it over with overwhelming even as she dreaded what was to come.

Remembering all she'd read about herself she closed her eyes then took in a deep breath. Now wasn't the time to doubt herself or hold back. It was time to prove herself. Not to anyone else but to herself. She wouldn't be a victim anymore.

Instead of holding back and allowing people to have their way with her it was time she showed what she was made of. Andre deserved better in his mate, so did their people. With another breath she centered herself, letting all her doubts fall away.

She was of beta blood, mated to the prince of their people. If fate thought she was that powerful then she had no right to doubt herself. Once again she touched the power lying so deep inside her. It was like a still pond living there. Stagnant yet radiating with so much life.

Nothing besides its blue radiance existed. Almost like it was in a cavern so deep nothing could ever find it. Cari wondered if it too was hidden from her of if she'd been too complacent to even guess at what was inside her. And for all it was unassuming, every sense she had told her it was powerful. Her mental self drew closer to the edge of the pool. Leaning down, Cari dipped a finger into the pool.

It was like she'd been laid bare to herself, exposed. She saw herself through unfiltered lenses. Had she know this awaited her, Cari would've stayed in the room the dragon had placed her in and waited to be rescued or something. Yet that was what the power mirrored to her.

A person so powerful, with enough magic inside to rival a dragon and yet so consumed with the need to blend. A need to please those around her and not make waves. She'd convinced herself she was sacrificing her happiness for her sister, for the good of the pack when in reality she'd been afraid.

Afraid of having to step up as the future leader of the pack. Afraid that her sister was the better of the two, that Claire wouldn't love her anymore. If she never was a luna, then no one would remind her that Claire would've been better every time she inevitably failed. Afraid that Xander would wish she'd been Claire instead. Afraid that even now a part of Andre wondered if Claire would've been better.

No one needed to see how much of a coward they were.

Yet even as her shortcomings were displayed so were her strengths. She was loyal in a race where that was a byword. A nurturer, someone who strived to strengthen others instead of pulling them down so she could appear better. She was a leader who led by example instead of shielding herself with other's achievements. She loved with all her heart and sought to rise with others and not above them.

Most of all, her power was one that sheltered, letting those around her know it was okay to be themselves. She was Carissa Mason, daughter of an ancient and powerful beta line. A mate to the prince of all werewolves. A reborn soul in a world where they were few. She had a purpose and now she knew the extend of her power.

With resolve, her mental self stood from the edge of the still pool and snapped the threads that bound her wolf and blocked her connection to the elements. She turned to Dani and saw similar threads and snapped them. Her heart bled as she saw a new thread that hadn't been in her cousin before.

Even under the dragon's thumb, Cari had stayed hidden. The dragon had thought Dani was her. He'd broken the bond she had with her mate and forged one with him. It was still one sided and would drive them both with a need to be complete. Cari didn't know if there was a way to reverse it.

She couldn't hide her emotions as she opened her eyes. For some reason her cousin had her eyes on Cari and their gazes met. "What?" Dani asked. "Why do you look so horrified?"

"The dragon." Cari croaked. "He bound you to him. You're now his mate."

Dani paled as the enormity of what that meant for her crashed into her. "No!" She denied.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "Maybe there's a way to break it."

Her cousin's face hardened, her chin rising in defiance even though the dragon prince wasn't there for her to defy. "Let's give him hell first."

"Dani..."

"Not now please Cari."

Cari nodded even though Dani now had her head down. "Okay."

As a tense silence prevailed Cari found herself hating the dragons more than she had before. After their former enslavement of the rest of the races the dragons were the most hated race. Cari had been content to ignore their existence but as she looked at the dejected form of her cousin as Dani tried to appear strong she hated them.

As she felt the footsteps of dragons coming her way through her connection to the earth, she vowed that she wasn't going to hold back. For the callous pain this entitled jerk was putting Dani through, he was going to pay.