Chapter 34
After twenty more minutes, we had finally reached the edge of the torn landscape of Paradise Downs. I flew everyone across the final gap. Once across, we walked up an intact road over a hill, leaving behind the broken landscape hopefully to never be seen again. Thank goodness that was over with. We took a moment to rest ourselves before Sebille asked the important question to the Red Prince.
"How much further, oh prince of princes?"
The Red Prince looked back at us. Before he said anything, his eyes wandered to observe our surroundings. I had a hunch he was recalling his dream to gain a sense of where he needed to go next. After a minute, he pointed to a path to the left of the road.
"We're close," the Red Prince said. "So very close."
He started walking down the path with the rest of us in tow. A brush of trees flanked our left while a rock wall flanked our right.
"Yes," the Red Prince said. "Yes. It should be…"
We rounded a bend and the Red Prince gasped. When we caught up with him, we saw what he was looking at. In the rock wall was a gap wide enough for a wagon to fit through. Standing there were two lizard soldiers wearing the gold and red colors of the Ancient Empire. When we came closer, we saw a camp set up in an enclosed space within the rock wall.
What are Ancient Empire soldiers doing out here?
"Are you the Red Prince?" the soldier on the right asked, keeping his gaze straight ahead of him.
"Indeed, I am," the Red Prince replied.
"You may proceed."
The two soldiers moved their spears aside, allowing the Red Prince through. Once passed them, he looked back at me. He offered his hand, beckoning me and only me to come through. But before I could take a step forward, the soldiers crossed their spears.
"Only the Red Prince may enter," the soldier on the left said.
"I assure you she is no threat," the Red Prince replied. "She is kin."
"Our orders are to allow you and only you to enter, your majesty," the soldier replied. "No one else."
The Red Prince looked over at me. His face displayed he was sorry for this circumstance.
"I apologize for this inconvenience," he said. "Perhaps when I have concluded my business here, I can convince these two to allow you to enter."
I raised my brows.
"How long is this going to take?" I asked.
The Red Prince looked back at the camp then at me.
"I'd say it'll take an hour at the least. Maybe two."
He looked to the trees behind us and the sky above.
"How's about you take a nice stroll while I attend to my business here. If I'm not mistaken, I'm pretty sure there's a nice place to rest around the corner there."
He pointed further down the path opposite the way we came.
"You and the others deserve some fresh air after what just happened."
Considering "what just happened" happened not an hour ago, I did feel some anxiety leftover from the battle through Paradise Downs.
"Alright," I said. "We'll be back in an hour. Hopefully, I can see what you've spent your life trying to find."
The Red Prince smiled.
"You won't be disappointed."
He turned around and made his way into the camp. I kept my eyes on him until he turned a corner and walked to an unseen part of the camp. It was only me, Sebille, Ifan and the two lizard soldiers now. I turned around to the others.
"Shall we take that stroll?" I asked them.
"Why not?" Ifan said. Sebille's response was a grin.
The three of us continued down the grassy path alongside the rock wall. The path curved right and when we rounded that bend, we found ourselves before a small lake with a large tree by the shore. It reminded me of the oasis I visited as a child. This was the perfect place to relax and unwind.
"A 'nice place' indeed," I said.
"But also, a good place to catch one off guard," Sebille said.
"Well luckily for us, we have a guard," Ifan spoke. A moment later, Afrit appeared in front of us with a howl. I smiled and gave Afrit a pet on the head.
Everyone walked over to the tree and dropped their bags against the trunk.
"So…what's first?" Ifan asked.
I looked over to the lake and smiled. I started to undo my gauntlets and dropped them. I undid my boots then reached behind me to undo the clamps of my chest piece. Though female lizards shared a similar physique of the upper body as warm blooded species, the lack of mammary glands didn't make it taboo to have our upper bodies exposed.
All that was left of my attire was my loincloth around my hips and my amulet. I put my clothes by my bag and looked over at the others. I winked and ran toward the lake. I unfurled my wings and launched myself into the air. After I gained enough height, I retracted my wings and dove into the water. I let myself go, suspending my body in the cold water. When my breath was nearly used up, I forced my arms down and swam to the surface. I broke to the surface and breathed in the air. When I opened my eyes, I saw Ifan and Sebille stripped down to their undergarments and jumped into the water after me. What followed was a series of laughs and splashes around the water.
When we were finished, we emerged from the water. When I looked at myself, still wet, I paused and looked at the sun. I stopped and buried my feet into the sand and held out my arms. I closed my eyes and let the sunshine on me.
"What are you doing?" I heard Sebille ask.
"A little something to remind me of home," I said with my eyes still closed. "And to dry myself. Want to join me?"
I didn't hear a response from either of them at first. But eventually, I heard Sebille respond.
"No thanks. It's a little too… rooted for my taste."
I heard Ifan chuckle and I did too.
"Why not?" Ifan said.
I heard him walk to my side and a shuffling of sand as he buried his feet. I cracked an eye open to see Ifan holding his arms up the same way I did, letting the sun envelop his exposed chest. I closed both eyes and let my drenched scales take in the sun. I breathed the clean air in and out, feeling the calm around me. For a moment, I forgot the conflict around me. There were no Voidwoken. No Divine Order. No death. Only peace. I held onto this feeling for as long as I could. Eventually, I pulled myself out of the trance. I looked over at Ifan who was out of his. We pulled our feet from the sand.
"Well that was…" Ifan started. "Rather nice. Thanks for suggesting it."
"Of course," I said with a smile. We kept our gazes on each other longer than I'd have expected. Suddenly, we broke eye contact rather awkwardly. From the tree, Sebille sat with her cloths back on and hummed with a smile on her face. I hustled over to my robes and put everything back on while Ifan did the same. We lay with our backs on the trunk of the tree, Ifan on my right and Sebille on my left. We sat in silence in the shade, taking in the sights and sounds
"We've had quite an adventure so far haven't we?" Ifan said.
"We sure have," Sebille said. "Is it time to tell each other what their favorite parts are?"
"Perhaps," I said. "How's about you start Ifan?"
"Hmmm," he brought his hand to his chin. "If I'd have to choose, I'd have go with my resignation from the Lone Wolves."
"Our escape into the river defiantly was highlight," I said. "What about you Sebille?"
"Oooooooh," Sebille pondered. "I'd have to go with our battle with the voidwoken worm before we boarded the Lady Vengeance. That moment you were covered in the monster's blood was rather amusing."
Her mentioning that moment brought back the awful stench to my nostrils. I snorted and we chuckled.
"Now I don't think you don't even have to say what your favorite part is because we already know what it is," Sebille leaned toward me.
She was right. I took a hold of my amulet and looked down at it.
"I never thought I'd meet a dragon in my life, let alone a Dragon Knight," I said.
I looked at the amulet for some time. But then I remembered something. I slowly put my amulet down.
"Though…meeting those three children was definitely something I really cherish."
"I'd imagine so," Ifan said. "They really seem to like you, especially Trice."
I chuckled remembering the first time she saw me asking if I was a dragon. But the chuckling stopped when my thoughts wandered to something else. My smile slowly turned into a frown.
"You okay?" Ifan took notice of the change in my expression.
"Yeah, I'm…"
I paused before I reached into my pocket and pulled out the silver necklace of Paulie's mother. The memories flooded through me. I closed my fingers around the necklace and squeezed my eyes shut. I sighed and opened my eyes again.
"Sorry," I said putting the necklace away. "I don't mean to be a downer. But this adventure hasn't been all happy memories."
I felt Ifan put his hand on my shoulder. I looked over to see his empathetic gaze lock with my own.
"I know it must have been hard having to endure all of this after having a rather peaceful life," he said. "But if it means anything, you've handled it rather well. You've a lot of courage to do what you've done so far."
I found myself putting my hand on top of his. I looked deep into his eyes.
"Honestly," I said. "I don't think I'd have been able to make it through this without you."
I turned my head to Sebille.
"Both of you. You are the best friends I've ever had in my life. I'm very happy to have met you."
Sebille's gaze wandered absently to the side to look at nothing.
"Yeah, I suppose I feel the same."
She looked back at me. After a moment, she came closer and gave me a hug. I was a little surprised, but I adjusted to it. I looked over at Ifan. He came closer and joined the group hug. I dipped my head and rested my chin on top of the gap between Sebille and Ifan's head. I felt the warmth of their bodies flow into me. Once again, I felt a sense of peace, this time with two of the most amazing people I had met in my life. We kept it going for a while until I remembered something.
"There's something I need to tell you," I said.
They pulled away
"What is it?" Ifan asked.
"This morning, when we were on our way to the Blackpits, the Red Prince talked to me."
Sebille tilted her head with an intrigued look in her eye.
"Really? I didn't notice because I didn't hear any shouting."
I snorted and rolled my eyes.
"Anyway, he told m-"
Afrit's growl interrupted me as he got to his feet, his gaze locked on the path leading to the camp.
"Is there trouble, boy?" Ifan asked.
Afrit barked and dashed up the path, wanting us to follow. We got to our feet and grabbed our bags. We ran as fast as we could after Afrit. We rounded the bend to find the Empire guards laying on the ground dead.
"Oh no," I told myself.
We rushed into the camp to find a rather gruesome but at the same time odd scene. The gruesome bit was the bodies of lizards littering the camp. Most were of the Empire while two of them wore oily black attire. But the odd part was the Red Prince standing in the middle of it holding a sword.
And he was completely naked.
He almost didn't notice us when we stopped just behind him. Instead, his gaze was fixed on four lizards standing before a wagon. Three of them wore the same oily black attire. The fourth was a female lizard. She was on her knees being held by what looked to be the leader with a knife to her throat. She was naked too.
And she was red.
"What's going on here?!" I shouted over to the Red Prince. But he didn't reply to me. Instead he shouted at the leader holding the woman at knife point.
"Let her go, or I will cut you all down where you stand!"
The leader chuckled, most likely because of the Red Prince's lack of protection when he made his threat. When he finished his chuckling, he spoke into the woman's ear.
"My oh my, you didn't tell lover boy anything, did you, dollface? Naughty, naughty!"
He moved his mouth away from her ear and looked at the Red Prince again.
"You've been played for a fool, little prince," he said. "She's sworn to another!"
Sworn?
I looked at the others next to me who had the same expression as I did. Even with his face turned from me, I could tell the Red Prince had the same reaction from his deflating stance.
"That's right…" the lizard continued. "Your boo is betrothed to a very different kind of king. All she needed from you was a dollop of prophecy juice. I dare say she got it."
Prophecy Juice?
From the fact both she and the Red Prince had no attire on, "prophecy juice" could only mean…
Ugh! What is going on here?
"YOU UTTER VILLAIN!" the woman shouted. The leader adjusted his grip and brought the knife closer to her throat. The Red Prince sharpened his stance.
"Sadha, my sweet," the Red Prince exclaimed. "Our meeting had been shrouded in mystery but know that I'll do right by you. Know that I love you!"
Sadha?
I blinked.
No. No that can't be right! That's not possible!
"Awww, ain't that as sweet as a bowl full of peaches!" the leader said. "Hate to be that guy, but I've got a job to do. Come princess, time for you and your belly full of litter to crawl back to the king."
"NOOOOAAAUHH" the woman screamed as the battle erupted. The two lizards flanking the leader threw down smoke bombs at their feet. The Red Prince hesitated. Without armor, he would be venerable if he charged in blind. The smoke dissipated showing that the three lizards and the woman were gone. The only thing that we saw was the wagon door closing. The assassins were invisible, waiting to strike at us. Thinking quickly, I hopped in front of the Red Prince and cast my blinding radiance spell. The two assassins were revealed holding their hands up stunned by the light. With them vulnerable, the Red Prince swung his sword and sliced the throat of the assassin on the right while Sebille gracefully slit the throat of the one on the left. Both lizards fell to their knees and then to the ground, blood gushing from their opened wounds.
With the attackers dealt with, the Red Prince dashed to wagon. He opened the door. He looked inside but didn't enter it. From the floor of the wagon, a satin handkerchief fell. He dropped his sword and caught the handkerchief before it touched the ground. He stared at it for a moment. He brought it to his snout and sniffed it before tears started to swell in his ember eyes.
"She's gone," he said. "They've taken her. We need t-"
A fist careened straight into his snout forcing him backward. The back of his head hit the side of the wagon before he fell to the ground on his back. Before he could get up, a foot came down onto his throat, pinning him to the ground. He looked up to see a blood covered gauntlet pointing a wand straight at his head.
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING FUCKING THE PRINCESS OF MY HOUSE!?" I shouted.
The anger in me was blazing, almost to the point that I was going to expel another jet of flames from my mouth. I saw in the corner of my eye Ifan and Sebille had walked up next to me while Afrit had returned to Ifan. But I didn't shift my gaze from the red bastard under my foot. He looked up at me with actual fear in his ember eyes. He inhaled through his constricted throat and did his best to speak to me.
"D-do you know why you and I -ugh- can breathe fire?" he asked me.
My silence was my response.
"It's be- because we were -groan- dragons once."
My stone face of anger cracked as my eyes widened.
"What?" I said. From the corner of my eye, I could see Ifan and Sebille look at each other in confusion. I adjusted my foot to press down where the Red Prince's neck met his chest, his throat clear to speak normally.
"Eons ago, we were great red dragons," he began. "Somehow we withered. We shrank, our wings shriveled. Nevermore to be the majestic creatures we once were."
"And where does Sadha factor into all this?!" I asked him sharply.
The Red Prince looked to the wagon.
"There's a prophecy," he said. "Two lizards would be born red of scale. Sadha was the one I have dreamed of since birth. We were destined to meet and become the mother and father of dragons."
A silence enveloped us. The realization echoed in me. The Princess of the House of Law and the Prince of the House of War were destined to give birth to dragons?
"Wait a minute," Ifan said to me. "You said that woman was the princess of your house? The House of Law?"
I didn't look at him but nodded.
"You knew her?"
"Only by name," I said. "I've never seen her in person."
I looked down at the Red Prince again.
"Was she the one you were trying to show me?" I asked. "You wanted me to know of this prophecy to bring back dragons?"
"Yes," he said. "I wanted to show you the future of our people. When I would retake my throne, with Sadha as my empress, our houses would become united to become the House of Dragons."
My gaze drifted away from the Red Prince. I stared straight ahead, looking through the wagon. My foot lifted from the Red Prince's chest. I turned my body around and wandered several paces before I stopped. I saw Ifan and Sebille come up to me in the corner of my eyes.
"Are you okay?" Ifan asked. I didn't respond.
All I did was stare at the rock wall, thinking about all the revelations that were laid in front of me. I heard the Red Prince get to his feet behind me.
"Please," I heard him say. "You have to help me find h-."
"AAAAARGH!"
The Red Prince ducked as a fireball flew by and hit the wagon. He dived onto the ground as another landed near him. He frightfully crawled backward as fireball after fireball hit the ground around him. Once again, I put my foot down on his chest and pointed my wand straight at his head.
"WHY?!" I shouted at him. "WHY SHOULD WE HELP YOU?!"
My body seethed with anger. He stuttered trying to come up with words in his daze of fear.
"The last time you spoke to me, you told me Ifan and Sebille were trying to manipulate me. You drew the lines in the sand. Now you want their help?!"
I snapped my head to Ifan and Sebille who stood there with their eyes wide open.
"What do you think?" I asked them. "Do you want to help this red bastard find the woman who's going to birth an army of dragons?"
Ifan stood in silence looking down at the Red Prince. He brought his hands to his hips and made an uneasy sigh trying to comprehend the situation.
"I try my best to not get involved in politics, especially with other species," he said. "But if you want me to be honest, the thought of a brood of dragons being born to a leader who believes slavery is an artform… I won't lie in saying I don't feel a little unsettled by that."
I looked over at Sebille. She closed her eyes and sighed. She brought her hand up and gently stroked the scar on her cheek.
"There was a reason I had a hatred of lizards after I escaped the master."
She opened her eyes and looked over at me.
"These last few days, I was shown perhaps there was more to them than I thought."
She looked over at the Red Prince. Her eyes were sharp as daggers at first but then dissipated. Her expression was what I could interpret as disappointment.
"But now, I'm sad to be reminded of their capacity for cruelty."
I turned my attention back to the Red Prince.
"Looks like they don't want the honor of serving the exalted House of War!"
But then I remembered.
"Or rather, the House of Dragons. Better get used to that now that Sadha has destroyed my home by offering herself to you!"
"P-plea-"
"NO!" I pressed my foot onto his throat again. "I will not take this anymore! You've been a thorn in my side for too long! You had the nerve to touch me on the ship and declare me your slave! You had the audacity to revel in the thoughts of owning slaves when you heard the story of a person who suffered from it."
My voice rose until I was shouting again.
"ON TOP OF ALL OF THAT, YOU JUST HANDED A DRAGON EGG RIGHT INTO THE HANDS OF THE GOD KING, YOU IDIOT!"
I only stared at the Red Prince as the anger it me peaked. His eyes only showed fear and tears. I put my wand away but kept my foot on his throat. My anger wasn't as strong to make me shout, but it still enveloped me.
"This morning you told me that I had no desire or reason to be the next Divine. Well I now I do!"
I held up my amulet.
"It's to protect people from those who wish to harm them! I will not let a selfish, unsympathetic tyrant have an army of dragons to take children away from their families to be made into slaves! When I become the next Divine, I will personally tear down the walls of the Forbidden City and free every slave trapped within it!"
I pushed harder onto the Red Prince's throat and leaned closer to him.
"I hope you'll still be alive to see it. Maybe then you'll finally know what it feels like to have a part of yourself be stolen from you."
With that, I lifted my foot from his throat. As he lay on his back coughing and gagging, I stood before Ifan and Sebille. Instead of faces of appreciation, they had faces of concern. I suddenly felt a weight on my hand. I brought it up for me to see. My engagement ring rested on my finger, only if felt tighter. Like it was weighing me down. I slipped it off my finger and looked at it. My anger kept burning in me as I narrowed my eyes on the metal.
I threw it to the ground.
"We're leaving," I said and walked past Ifan and Sebille. I wanted to get away from this place as soon as possible.
"Wait," Ifan said. "What about him?"
I stopped but didn't turn around to face Ifan. I couldn't bare to see the Red Prince, even a glance in the corner of my eye.
"We don't need him," I said.
"But without him, how will we find Sadha or the egg?" he asked.
I paused to think. Then I remembered.
"I have a feeling the Master will have the answers we need before Sebille kills him."
I heard Sebille hum with content.
"I'm sure that could work," she said. "What about you, Ifan? Do you think we still need him?"
There was a small pause for Ifan to think.
"We'll lose our frontline fighter," Ifan said. "Our battles will be a lot more difficult without him. But if you think he's just as evil as Braccus Rex, then I'll differ my concern."
"Good," I nodded, still not turning my head. "Let's go."
I took one step forward.
"I'M SORRY MAHALIA!"
I stopped. It was the voice of the Red Prince. But it couldn't be. He'd never say my actual name. As much as I didn't want to see a single scale of him again, I turned around to see the pitiful lizard curled up on all fours, as if begging for forgiveness.
"You're what?" I said, anger still lingering in me.
The Red Prince lifted his head to look up at me with his tear-filled ember eyes.
"I'm sorry I grabbed you on the ship and declared you my slave," he continued to speak with sobs behind his words. "I was desperate and needed something familiar to help myself cope with the reality that I was no longer in the comfort of the Empire."
He gasped from a wad of sadness.
"Ever since my exile, my dreams of Sadha were what guided me in this world. It kept me going through the hardships I've had to endure. She was the one thing that made me feel something for once in my life. Being here and meeting her in the flesh, I felt… love."
His body contorted, as if he was about to hurl in the middle of his sobs.
"But now that I have met her, made love to her and had her taken away from me, I now understand the pain."
He shifted his gaze to the person to my right.
"I'm sorry, Sebille."
Once again, my stone face of anger cracked. I looked over to Sebille who was just as surprised as I was hearing the Red Prince say her name for the first time.
"My desire to find Sadha had blinded me to the reality of your pain. Now that Sadha is gone, I know what it feels like to have a part of yourself be taken away."
He brought his head down and sobbed harder.
"I know I deserve every reprimand you've given me so far. Instead of opening myself to learn about you three, I chose to keep everything to myself and see you three as a means to my end. Now I know that way of thinking won't help me get back what is most important to me. I know you don't trust me. That is why you have my word, when the time comes, I will not interfere in who will become the next Divine. You can have it. All I ask is that you help me find Sadha."
He pressed his forehead into the earth while he continued to sob. The grand Red Prince was on his knees naked, apologizing and begging me for help. I tightened my fist and gritted my teeth.
"Get up!"
The Red Prince stopped his sobbing and lifted his head to look at me with his ember eyes drowning in tears.
"Get up and get dressed!" I snapped at him. "Do it quickly or you'll be left behind!"
I turned around and stormed out of the camp.
Author's Note: Doppelganger: a ghostly double or counterpart of a living person.
A huge departure from what happens in the game. Did I do a good enough job?
As always, thank you for reading my story and a review goes a long way. See you next chapter.