The dragon's harem

As Arad approached the massive mountain, he looked at its peak expecting a storm of light and rainbows, but what he saw was something else. A massive colosseum built from white marble and gold.

In front of him was an endless set of stairs that led all the way up, and he frowned. This reminded him of Sylph’s divine mountain.

“This… looks familiar.”

Eris frowned as well. She could sense that something was off about the mountain. “This is a divine mountain…” She looked at it then at the hills around them, “It is like we’re in a god’s heaven, but this one is so muted that it feels weird and dead.”

Arad nodded, “Luminous says that the only reason Queen Lola isn’t a goddess is that Tiamat is alive and doing that job. All gods, the stronger ones at least, would have a divine mountain that supports their heaven like a pillar.” He looked at everyone, “She won’t become a demigoddess, but will jump straight into Tiamat’s rank. From what I understood, she is pretty much at that level of power anyway.”

Everyone looked at the mountain, “So, she has the power of a goddess but isn’t one? Am I understanding that right?”

Arad nodded, “That’s the point. I guess Queen Mary of the Metallic dragons is the same.”

Since all dragons valued strength over anything else, that was both bad and good news. It meant that dragons are ruled by someone who can keep them in check, but it also meant that Arad and his wives are potentially heading straight into the maw of something they can’t handle.

But Luminous was confident in her ability to face her mother, so Arad had to take her word on that. He took the first step on the stairs, and then the second. His wive followed after him, arrenged in a line from who they think is the strongest to the weakest.

Gamond was right behind Arad, followed by Balina, Eris, Claug, Zul, Kory, and lastly Denki. Betty, on the other hand, sat on Arad’s shoulder, tapping her legs on his chest while humming a cheerful tune. Usually, Gamond would’ve been furious, but the last time she tried to fight Betty didn’t end well.

By the time Gamond realised it, Betty had stripped her down. Betty was too fast for her to fight normally. She will win if she freezes the entire world and forces the light halfling to die of cold, but in a normal situation, that wasn’t possible.

Is Betty stronger than Gamond? No. Can Gamond beat her then? The answer was also no; she is too fast to be caught.

After a few minutes of climbing the stairs, they soon noticed that they were already at the top. The stairs looked inhumanely long, stretching to infinity, but the moment they started climbing, they reached the peak. This whole mountain reached to Lola’s will; the same was the hills below that reacted to that brown dragon’s will. If she wants them to reach the top, they’ll reach it in seconds, but if she doesn’t want them to reach it, they’ll never do.

The golden gate of the colosseum opened on its own, and Arad was greeted by another long hallway. But this wasn’t a magical one, just a long one leading to a massive throne with a bed instead of a throne at the end. On that bed, Lola lay, getting fanned by several drakainas and fed dried beef jerky and cheese.

The Queen looked nothing like her usual self, the one that Arad saw when she came to his kingdom. The fancy robe she usually wore was nowhere to be seen, and she was in a baggy shirt and pants instead, her hair messy and disheveled, and she looked more lazy than mighty.

“So you’re here.” Lola shifted, her flashing in a prismatic pattern of radiant light. She stirred, and the drakainas serving her moved, allowing her to sit straight. “Arad Orion and his faithful wives.”

She smiled, “And, my roudy daughters, both of them. The spastic child and the slippery child.”

“Like this?” A mouth appeared on Arad’s neck. “{Yeah, you’re doing it right. Just keep the magic and curses in check; otherwise, the mouth would turn into a wound, and Arad won’t be happy.}”

After being lectured by Doma on how to make a mouth appear on Arad so she can speak, Luminous could finally talk with her mother after thousands of years of absence.

“Mom o’h mom, still as rude as I remember. Will a day where you look us in the eye ever come?”

Lola shrugged, “I always looked you in the eye. You’re the one who can’t take a joke.” She took a step forward, “But alas, you’ve returned.”

Arad looked at Lola, then back at his wives, “Before you two get into anything.” He pointed back, “I’m here with Balina.”

Lola smiled, “I see you, I see her, and I see everyone else. Welcome, even you, Luminous.” She took a step forward, “And what do I spot here? A tiny Luminous, welcome as well, you make me feel old as hell.”

“The mother of my grandmother? Great grandma.” Betty jumped from Arad’s shoulders and landed in front of him.

Lola leaned forward, braced her back, and took a few steps, pretending to be a hunched old grandma with back pain. “Little one, you’ve grown well.”

Betty grabbed her by the hand and helped her walk, “Careful, you’ll hurt your back.”

Lola then looked at Balina, “And you, I expect eight… no, nine divines!” Her gaze shifted to Arad, “You’ve got a lot of work to do.”

Luminous sighed, “Can you stop it? And you, too, Betty. Don’t help in her madness.”

Betty approached Arad and patted him, “Take it easy, Grandma. I’m sure she is somewhat harmless… as dragons go.” Betty then looked at Lola, “So? Did you need something from Arad?”

Lola straightened her back and smiled, casting away all of her acts, “Of course. I didn’t need him to be exact, but them, his wives, the chromatic ones. You as well, Little Luminous.”

Arad frowned, “Harm them, and I’ll blow this whole place.”

Lola shook her head, “Of no, I’ll not lay a finger on them. They are yours now. I won’t even care if you killed them, let alone going out of my way to meddle.” She then looked at Balina, “But… I must make sure Balina is in a good lair, one that won’t be broken soon.”

“That’s what we call meddling,” Luminous growled.

Lola laughed, “Even you would agree with me. I prepared a clear battlefield. I want each of them to fight Arad at least once, then I would have them fight among each other to determine their ranks.” She looked back, “I can even throw Arad a few more drakainas. Just like humans, many would love to join a royal lair.”

She then patted Arad on the shoulder, “I want to see with my own eyes, how far you can go.”