Red eyes gazed back at the palace in the center of the only oasis for miles in the searing desert. The woman who sat atop the white demon stallion, Jahi, scowled at the thought of leaving it.
Lellia had lived in that palace for the entirety of her existence – more than 600 years. Her childhood was there, her memories were there, and the grave of her fallen mother was there.
Had she been given the option, Lellia would have volunteered to stay in the desert with the remainder of their clan. Instead, her half-sister Meketatem and her husband were given reign of the small kingdom.
Lellia had been chosen to travel with her father, Lord Khaba of the Fire Demons. The demon clans of Egypt were no longer revered as gods as they had in the old days. Humans' wars had begun to control the land and the fear of these fire gods did not grip the hearts of humans any longer.
While the younger demoness blamed her father for this, Khaba had heard from another demon traveler that the lands of Japan still held demon-fearing humans. In a whirlwind of energy, Khaba had decided to travel to Japan to claim lands for his name.
Lellia thought this was purely out of vanity, of course, but she dare not question her father when he became passionate about an idea. That was at least one thing she could admire about the man – his passion and loyalty knew no bounds.
That may have been her mother's downfall, in the end. Senneferi, the Great Dragon Queen, had watched over the lands of Egypt and had taken a special interest in the fire demons. At the young age of 17 years, Khaba came upon her after she had entered her heat cycle. Senneferi took him as her mate after discovering she carried Lellia.
When war had risen from neighboring territories seeking the prime estate of the fire demons' oasis, Senneferi had taken to her fully-fledged dragon from to protect their lands and their daughter. Khaba and Senneferi had kept her true nature a secret. When the Dragon Queen took to the skies, Khaba's sorcerers took her for an enemy ally. In their distress, they used their combined magics to curse her.
Senneferi survived initially, managing to defeat or frighten off their enemies. However, the curse took effect within the day and drained the life energy of the Great Dragon.
Lellia blamed the Lord Khaba for her mother's death and took it upon herself to execute the palace sorcerers for what she considered regicide. Lellia had been a mere 17 years, the same age as when her father had met Senneferi. She spent the next six centuries earning a reputation in Egypt as a cold and ruthless ally to the fire demons.
She was still a youth in both demon and dragon standards, which showed in her features. She had stopped aging near her twentieth year, but her muscles had continued to harden as she relentlessly trained in combat. Lellia was the muscle behind her father's throne. If anyone felt fear in respect to the fire demon clan, it was driven by the Lord's daughter and less so by Khaba.
Lellia let out a deep sigh as she tore herself out of the negative thoughts. She dragged her clawed hands through the thick of her crimson hair. She'd let it grow out to the small of her back, longer than most would keep it in the heat. While it wasn't unusual for a fire demon to have red or orange hair, Lellia's color was richer than those of her clan. If she was seen out by the river during a full harvest moon, her hair could be mistaken for a violet hue instead. However, in the bright sunlight of the day, the color was a deep blood red.
Her eyes were the same piercing shade with a violet ring surrounding the cornea, showing her difference from the rest of the fire demons. Her cheekbones were high and angular, accenting her straight nose and full lips.
Long, nimble fingers picked a small knot from the ends of her tresses. Lellia had dyed her claws and fingertips a dark blue to accentuate the rest of her defiant features. While she wasn't taller than a typical fire demon woman, she wasn't lean or dainty as them. Her hips were wide and her waist narrow. Her thighs and calves were nothing but muscle, giving her a powerful advantage should her arms be restrained during combat.
A previous male interest from long ago had likened her to the hour-glass they used to track the time during a sparring session. After the comment and the subsequent kick to the ribs it had earned, Lellia had begun to bind her breasts to remove the distraction from both her own mind and her male competitors'.
Jahi snorted and turned back to nibble at his mistress' sandal. Lellia patted the side of his neck and urged him forward with a light tap. The white demon horse shook his dark mane before nickering in approval. He had begun to grow impatient at Lellia's musings.
He was nearly 18 hands, larger than the mortal horses used by the majority of the fire clan. Lellia had found the demon horses were more capable of withstanding the heat that rolled off of her body during a battle. Other than his size and unusually white coloring, his dark yellow eyes indicated his abnormal heritage.
Lellia chose to ride on Jahi sans saddle as it was more comfortable for the stallion. Her plain leather sandals that tapped his sides were only to protect her feet should she choose to walk on the hot sand. While she wore a simple white dress, she had belted it with a gold-dyed strand before cutting the sides up to her mid-thigh to give her legs more range of motion. She had refused the additional covering for her torso, leaving her shoulders exposed. The top of the dress was tied around her neck. A layer of leather armor was layered over her torso, crossing diagonally over her breasts and woven around her midsection. She felt that metal was too heavy and opted for an older fashion of simple armor instead.
Jahi moved at a fast trot to move his mistress from the stone outcropping overlooking the fire demon lands to ride alongside the traveling company that would accompany them to Japan. 600 horse soldiers, 300 charioteers, and another thousand in foot soldiers, servants, and other subjects.
Lord Khaba had given her authority over his army during the trip. He knew they respected their princess and would listen to her commands. As she made her way closer to the head of the formation, Lellia noticed an odd disruption near the center of the company.
"Halt!" The demoness's voice was clear as it rang out over the sands of the desert. Her icy glare would have stopped those near the disturbance without the order.
She turned Jahi towards the commotion as the company stopped abruptly. The soldiers on horses parted for her as she urged hers towards the center. As she passed them, they placed their right hands over their hearts and bowed their heads in respect of the Princess of the Great Dragons.
When she reached the center of the company, she saw a bay mare with a dark brown mane and tail waiting patiently while her master reloaded his packs on her back, his back to his princess. Lellia stopped Jahi a few feet away from the two and dismounted. The soldier had apparently not noticed her visitor.
Lellia walked quietly towards the soldier. She let her irritated expression fade into a stoic mask as she placed a hand on the mare's head and another on her neck.
"This is a beautiful mare." Lellia said quietly.
The soldier's head shot up and his pack dropped to the ground and he knelt quickly before Lellia. "You flatter me, your highness." His words were fast and stuttered. He was embarrassed.
Lellia glared at the solder kneeling before her. "Get up. My words were not meant to flatter you. A beautiful horse such as this deserves a good master." She met his eyes as he stood. "Obviously not one like you who can't even put a pack onto her properly."
His shoulders slumped and he nervously tried to explain, "My Lady, I was merely trying to fix a small mistake made from-"
"Gather your items and head back to the Palace." Lellia's voice was bored as she waved him off.
The soldier squeezed his eyes shut to control his emotions and bowed quickly before turning to pick up his fallen pack. He then tried to place the pack on to the mare's back once more.
"What do you think you are doing?"
The soldier kept his eyes low as he answered. "Preparing my horse for the ride back to the Palace, my Lady."
"No, I think not."
"No, my Lady?"
"No. This mare will stay. As I said, she deserves a better master. Ibebi!" Lellia beckoned for her father's most trusted advisor. Ibebi, after bowing to Lord Khaba (who looked oddly at his daughter), rode over to Lellia. His body bounced slightly on the small gelding and he winced. The young horse's rhythm was not kind to the long-legged man.
"Ibebi, trade horses with this soldier. I trust you will take better care of this beautiful creature than he has." Lellia mounted Jahi again and turned back towards the head of their company, trusting the soldiers and Ibebi would make sure the trade was taken care of.
Lellia urged Jahi into a canter until she caught up with her father and his other advisors. Lord Khaba smiled at his daughter. His red hair was cropped short as was typical for the men of their tribe. His beard and mustache were carefully trimmed and light brown eyes accented his kind face. His clothing reflected his royalty, as did the ebony stallion he rode.
His kind face reflected his kind demeanor, which Lellia took to be a negative reflection on the fire demons. Though his people loved him, they were attacked often as enemies saw his kindness as his main weakness. Lellia had taken it upon herself to change their fortunes by showing how ruthless and cruel she could be on the battlefield. Their enemies had dropped their initial intentions of taking advantage of Khaba's kindness and instead focused on capturing Lellia. She had still prevailed.
Lellia looked back and saw that the trade was done and Ibebi was heading back to join them. Lellia let her voice ring out again.
"Move!" She urged Jahi forward and the soldiers followed suit, quickly falling in line after the commotion the soldier had caused.
Lellia was sure there wouldn't be any more disturbances until they reached the Red Sea; heads would roll if there were, she would make sure of that.
Author's Note: I apologize to previous readers of this story – I am refining my writing style. I have rewritten and condensed several chapters, as well as renamed several characters with more appropriate names. This first chapter is not my favorite, but it will have to do. I should have a new, updated chapter up by the end of this month.
Thank you!
