Prince Stas

Stas sighed as he looked out the window. He scanned the skyline eagerly, hoping for just the silhouette of a dragon to fly by. And maybe, just maybe, he could find her again.

"And that was the last time I saw her," Stas said. "But I was able to get some information from some woodland friends of mine. But that didn't do me any good."

Christine

She did not know where Mérieux had taken her. All young Christine knew was that she was far away from Stas and his kingdom and that she was probably somewhere north. Very, very far north. And for this she was grateful. She could have helped a smile if it wasn't for the fact that she was lost. The sky was gray and cold, and she could not see a thing except for a thick veil of clouds all around her. But when she looked down she saw trees as far as her eyes could see, and a thin river slithering about the valley like a snake of silver. It grew very cold, and it wasn't because she was flying at high speeds hundreds of feet above the ground, although that did play a factor in her discomfort. Her guess was that Mérieux had taken her near the valleys at the foot of the Great White Mountains which were in the cold seasons very early. She shivered while she sat atop her monstrous pet who she could have sworn was the size of a house cat just a few weeks ago.

Now, he was a full-grown beast bigger than a nobleman's house, and as long as a Dueling Arena. His wings spanned more than fifty feet making them larger than his own body. Even after flying on his back the entire night, Christine found it hard to believe that this beast was her little Mérieux. The small, playful creature who once perched himself on her shoulder and suckled her finger like a baby was now this monstrosity who can breathe fire and have the strength of a thousand men.

Any other person would be honored to have such a creature at their whim. But not Christine. Even though the dragon loved her, she was terrified of it. She was no longer the one in charge of the bond that they shared even though she was his mother. No more would she tap his nose or lock him in a basket if he misbehaved. He was too big and too fierce for those things anymore. Now she feared what he would do if she tried to discipline him anymore. Dragons were fierce and territorial monsters. Very possessive as well to say the least. All her years, Christine was taught from the Mothers at the convent that dragons were the work of evil, put into this world to destroy the wondrous gifts of Yeyu.

They were not meant to be trusted nor be allowed to live, hence why the Inquisition hunted them all to death thousands of years ago. When she first found the dragon, Christine paid no mind to those teachings because Mérieux was still just a baby at the time, and thankfully the Reverend Mother had the heart to allow her to keep the little hatchling. Otherwise, she would have ordered Mérieux killed, per the laws of their holy White-Gold Tome.

She shivered and rubbed her shoulders as he flew farther and farther into the mists. Her teeth chattered, and her throat had grown sore from the cold she caught the night before. It had been a long night, for Christine had trouble fathoming this monster was hers. She had dozed off every now and then throughout the trip.

Her longest slumber was an hour, and when she woke, she swallowed, only to cringe when the pain in her throat stung her awfully. She was still donning her maid uniform from the castle which exposed much skin so as to please the king and his court.

She looked at her surroundings shaded in a cold gray tone from the dreary morning. The stillness was broken by Mérieux's large wingbeats that thundered as he flapped his massive wings. Then, Christine slowly crawled up her dragon's neck and patted his head. The dragon grunted and looked back at her to show he was listening.

"Where are we?" she asked trying to keep her teeth still. "Mérieux, please. We have to land. I'm cold and I'm hungry."

Mérieux looked into his mother's eyes and felt pity. His jade green eyes caused Christine to flinch, for they had been stripped of the innocence she used to love. Now, a look of primal instinct and rage were what shone brightly his eyes. She thought for a moment that Mérieux would roar and shove her off his back to cease her whining. But she found that it was the last thing on his mind. The dragon let out some sort of vibrating grunt that sounded like a laugh, and there was a look of concern in his eyes. Christine felt relief when she saw that look. Even though he was a full-grown True Dragon, he did not think of Christine as anything less. She was still his mother, and he loved her.

He turned his gaze away from her and without warning took a dive to the east. Christine yelped in fright, grasping her dragon's neck as quick as thinking. She tightened her gut, feeling her stomach roll as Mérieux made his sharp turn to the forests below towards a lake of some sort surrounded by small pools of water the color of aquamarine.

Mérieux opened his wings to slow his descent and landed on a soft patch of grass in the meadow. The ground shook from the impact. A cloud of dust rose to his ankles. Mérieux stretched and folded his wings to let the muscles rest. Then, he lowered his body so Christine would have an easier time getting down. She had hoped it would be warmer down here on good old terra firma, but to her dismay, she actually found it quite colder, and a lot more terrifying. She heard wailing, howling, and cawing of less than majestic birds who called these dreary places of the world their homes. Somewhere in the distance, a wolf howled into the early morning light.

"Where are we?" she asked again.

Mérieux took a few large steps and stopped, standing right next to her. He looked at her with a confused look on his face. He tilted his head to left and bellowed softly.

"Oh, as if you could understand me!" Christine yelled in frustration. She turned to face the lake. Laying before Christine was one of the pools that surrounded it. It looked horribly cold. Steam seemed to billow of its surface, but Christine knew it was the water vapors being made visible by the cold atmosphere of wherever the hell she was. The miserable sight only made her madder. She was lost. She was cold. There was no food to be had anywhere, making her stomach growl fiercer than Mérieux's grunts. And she was far away from civilization, there was no doubt.

Mérieux suddenly nudged her closer to the water's edge. "What are you doing!" she cried out. "I can't swim in that. That water's freezing."

Mérieux looked at his mother and grunted. He tilted his head down and gave her another nudge closer to the water.

But that was behavior Christine would not tolerate. "No! No! No!" she shouted, pointing up at Mérieux as though she were a parent scorning her child. "You may be bigger than me, but I am still your mother! And I said no! Do you understand? No! Now, you will take me out of here and bring us to a village or town or something. I demand…"

Mérieux lowered his head and growled. Christine had never felt so afraid in her life. Now she had done it. She had angered her child. She knew that someday when she would bear children, she would have to deal with rebellious behavior and mischief. But this? This was an entirely different matter.

"Wait!" Christine cried, backing away in fright.

Mérieux opened his mouth and grabbed the hem of her uniform's skirt.

"Mérieux!" she shouted when her dragon ripped off her attire. She struggled to cover herself. One arm covered her exposed breasts while she used the other to try and yank her clothes out of Mérieux's mouth which he held up high and out of her reach. Christine jumped and jumped trying to reclaim her clothing.

"What are you doing you pervert!" she shouted. "Give it back to me this instant!"

To her shock, Mérieux slurped the uniform into his mouth, chewed it up, and swallowed it with one big gulp.

"Oh, now what am I supposed to do you big lummox!" she shouted. "Now I have no food. No water. No home, and no clothes!"

But then she remembered the trunk that Sherry had given her the night she departed Mondé. It was tied tightly around Mérieux's left front foot. She gave a wan smile when she realized that Mérieux did not approve of her uniform. He thought it degraded his mother. Christine shrugged and thanked him. She carefully walked to the trunk, so she could reveal its treasures, but before she could think about reaching for it, Mérieux gave her a powerful nudge that knocked her into one of the pools by the lake.

She let out a yelp as she flung her arms and legs in the air before falling into the water with a great splash. As she sank into the pool, Christine realized something. It was warm, almost scolding. But it kept her quite comfortable. She rose back to the surface and gasped for air while pushing her soggy hair out of her face with her hands. She realized that this pool was a warm hot spring. The chills she had were no doubt gone, and she felt so relaxed that her skin was covered in goose prickles.

"So, this is why you brought me here, huh?" Christine said, wiping water off her eyes. She tossed water at Mérieux's face. "How about a warning next time, huh? If you weren't five times my size, I would punish you!"

Mérieux looked at her mischievously and turned sideways. He reached for her with his tail. Christine cried out in surprise when it coiled around her like a giant serpent and picked her up. The dragon sat down on his knees and held Christine over the water. She flailed her legs back and forth and smashed her fists on his tail demanding that he let her go this instant. Her Tyrant Dragon cupped water with his large claws then he poured it over Christine who gasped in shock, feeling the warm water douse her face, and flowing down her neck and shoulders.

The Tyrant Dragon did it again, repeating the process multiple times before Christine realized that Mérieux was bathing her the way she did when he was a hatchling. He set her down on the ground. Christine shivered and covered herself. Even though Mérieux was a dragon, she couldn't help but feel embarrassed standing with no clothes in front of him. Mérieux leaned forward and then blew on her with his hot breath until she was dry. He reached for the trunk and pulled it off his wrist with one powerful yank. He set it down gently in front of her.

Christine smiled, and she couldn't help but form tears upon discovering her dragon's kindness. "Everything the Church taught me about you was wrong. You're not savages. You're so much more than that."

Christine opened the trunk and saw piles and piles of clothes picked out by Sherry before her departure from the palace. Much to her joy, she packed Christine ten sandwiches wrapped in plastic. There was a blanket strapped to a rucksack full of supplies as well. Christine removed the blanket from its bindings and wrapped it over her shoulders. The fabric had an eerie glow outlining it, telling her that is was enchanted with a spell known as Resist Cold. She felt like she was standing in a field on a hot summer day despite the chilly temperature around her.

"Sherry," Christine whispered with joy. She unwrapped one of the sandwiches and savagely bit into it. She didn't care that her throat was hurting. She was hungry, and she wanted to eat something now. She gasped with relief when she saw a canteen filled with fruit punch. She gulped it down. The cool refreshing juice soothed her throat of its pain for a second. And that not all that was in there.

Christine cried out with joy when she saw the money her father's friends sent her was neatly wrapped in a beautiful leather pouch with a gold cord. There was a note attached to a red ribbon.

So sorry you had to go so soon. I was just starting to get to know you.

I added a few more pounds of gold Crowns to your purse. Don't spend it all at once.

Be safe out there and take care of yourself. I hope to see you again someday.

-Sherry

There were a few more gifts at the bottom. A sword sheathed in a beautiful reddish-brown scabbard with etchings of flowers and trimmed in polished silver. A percussion rifle made of polished maple and gold. The last item in the trunk was a fine brown leather belt with two flintlock pistols. There was a note attached to one of them that said: From Euphie with Love!

"Nice," said Christine. "Very nice indeed. I think I have just what I need to begin my search."

Mérieux stared at her with a confused look.

"My father," Christine said, putting on a white sleeved shirt followed by a brown bodice. "He's alive, Mérieux. I just have to find him."

When she was done dressing, she had the appearance of a barmaid, no doubt Sherry's idea to keep Christine from being too conspicuous. She finally put on a hooded brown riding cape to complete her look, followed by the belt with the holster and the sheath adding two layers of belts over her waist.

"Hey, not bad," Christine said admiring her leather vambraces plated with silver armor etched with elegant designs. "So, what do you say, Mérieux? Are you going to help me find him?"

Mérieux grunted happily, and that told all she needed to know.

"I knew I could count on you, Mérieux," said Christine. "Now that we're finally free of that Stas and the Count da Money, I think we should be able to make good progress on our journey. Although, I think I might have to walk on foot most of the way. It's been ages since anyone has seen a True Dragon, and if I'm not mistaken, we're still in Covenant territory. They might kill you if they have the chance."

Mérieux grunted.

"Believe me, I know," said Christine. "I have read the White-Gold Tome. I don't approve of their ways when it comes to creatures that are far different than ourselves, but, it is the will of my God, Yeyu."

Mérieux snarled ferociously and spat out a fireball.

"Easy, easy," said Christine, holding out her hands and gently waving them up and down. "I won't let anyone hurt you, darling. But, I think you're perfectly capable of handling yourself."

Something suddenly broke the silence of the morning. A rocket hissed out of the woods and struck the ground beside Mérieux. The dragon grunted and rolled on his back. Christine ran the other direction to avoid being crushed by him. Mérieux was stuck on the ground, rolling around in agony and confusion. His wings fluttered uselessly on the ground underneath his massive weight.

Pop! Pop! Pop! A sound erupted from the forests. A sound Christine had never heard before. The sound of automatic weapons fire. It dawned on her that her attackers were either soldiers or well-equipped bandits. Either way, she and Mérieux were in a very grim predicament.

"Mérieux!" Christine cried out helplessly. "Please, you have to get up!"

She heard the sudden static of radio chatter coming from the darkness of the trees lining the meadow. Mérieux's body and hers were dotted in red lights. Lasers from advanced weaponry and the ones wielding them were a massive attack force of soldiers in black tactical armor. They stalked out of the fog and the edge of the woods. The soldiers started firing relentlessly at Mérieux, thankfully his scales were too tough for their bullets, but the soldiers figured that out and called for rocketeers to bring forth their rocket launchers.

A squad of soldiers in lighter armor jumped from their hiding places and launched harpoons equipped with thick, metal ropes that coiled over Mérieux. Finally, nets flung from the treetops and encased Mérieux. He was trapped. The nets were attached to a machine that began to tighten its grip around Mérieux. The dragon wailed from the searing pain of the ropes digging into his flesh.

"Mérieux get up!" Christine shouted, trying to push him to the side with her hands. She tried to cut the ropes with one of the daggers Sherry gave her. To her shock, the ropes just cut through the dagger-like paper, cutting it in half and leaving Christine in absolute shock and utter hopelessness. It was no use. The dragon was just too heavy and the ropes were too strong.

"Mérieux! Please!" she sobbed. "You must get up!"

The rockets fired and hissed toward Mérieux's body. They landed just a mere five feet from him, but that was still close enough to do damage to his body and send Christine flying backward from her position next to Mérieux. She landed on her back with a thud, knocking the wind out of her.

She fought through her discomfort and got back on her feet. She picked up her rifle, which was ancient compared to the hi-tech assault weapons the soldiers in black were wielding. Nevertheless, she got on one knee to help her aim, and she fired. She got one, hitting him in the face.

"MAN DOWN! MAN DOWN!" one of the soldiers shouted.

A barrage of bullets flew towards Christine, but Mérieux finally, miraculously, broke the ropes, fueled from the sudden rage that filled him when he saw his mother getting attacked. He got back to his feet and intercepted the hail of lead with his body. He turned around and flung five of the soldiers away with his tail. They screamed helplessly as they flew hundreds of feet into the foggy air and disappeared into the forests.

The enemies did not appreciate that and started bringing out heavier weapons. A soldier climbed up a hill and together with his partner assembled a Mechem NTW-20 anti-material rifle. The heavy rounds blasted through Mérieux's hard flesh drawing blood.

The soldier loaded another large round into the chamber and shot Mérieux again. The troops down below ordered him to shoot at the Mérieux's belly which was proven to be the weak spot of all dragons. But before he could shoot, an arrow flew out of the trees and struck him in the back of his head. The arrow point coming out of his mouth. He gagged and then died seconds later.

A horn blew in the distance followed by a rumble that sounded like thunder. The rumble caused the earth to shake. The water in the hot springs began to ripple from the trembling vibrations coming from the forest.

"CONTACT RIGHT! CONTACT RIGHT!" shouted a soldier when he spotted a hundred horsemen coming out of the forest on white stallions in gold armor and royal blue chamfrons. Some of them held up banners to announce who they were to the enemy.

"ELVES!" shouted another soldier. An arrow struck him in the chest silencing him.

The radio chatter grew urgent and fearful as more and more Elves came riding out of the forests blowing their horns to announce battle with their alien enemies. The soldiers fired their rifles, killing a few of the Elves, but the charge resumed.

Realizing he was not fighting the enemy alone, Mérieux took off into the sky. He flew around in circles over the forests, shooting out a powerful jet of flames at the enemy soldiers below. Christine could only marvel at his power and the magnificence of Elven warfare. Even though their enemy wielded technology at a far greater tier than theirs, they would not be stopped. They flowed over their enemies like a great tidal wave. Every swing of their swords was like watching a dance. The soldiers disappeared under the hooves of the white stallions the Elves rode on.

Mérieux rocketed into the sky and dove back down, firing a large fireball on the enemy, blowing them up and dismembering a few. None of the soldiers were spared from the assault conducted by the Elves and Mérieux's rage. When they all lay dead, the Elves collected the bodies and burned them. Their assault rifles were gathered and tossed into the lake to never be used again. The leader of the charge approached Christine with a guard of two warriors in gold and red-scaled plate armor. It was a shock for Christine when the helmet came off and revealed that her hero was a female Elf, donning a thin tiara of gold in the likeness of leaves and silver forged to look like flowers.

"Who are you?" Christine asked, cowering on the ground.

The red-haired Elf-maiden looked down at Christine with her yellowish-green eyes, full of power and grace. She was beautiful to the eyes but had a deadly aura about her. Like any moment she could strike Christine's throat with one of the many daggers that were sheathed on her leggings of the finest leather.

"I am Taarie. Daughter of King Erthond of the Elves of the Mountain Kingdoms. What business do you have here, Dragon Rider?"

Christine liked the sound of that and answered immediately. She felt the ground shake behind her, and heard a powerful snort above her head. Mérieux stood guard over his mother, staring down at Taarie with a menacing glare. His presence made Christine less fearful of the Elves, giving her enough courage to speak to the Elf girl.

"My name is Christine of the House Beaufort. I look for my father, Maurice."

"Those names," said Taarie, tilting her head to the side. "They sound Mondovian. Is that where you're from?"

"I am," said Christine.

"You're a long way from home, little one," said Taarie. "What are you doing in these parts? It's dangerous, even for a dragon as you no doubt have seen. These once proud lands are now ruled by the Covenant."

"Those were Covenant soldiers?" Christine asked. "But the White-Gold Tome. It specifically states that we are to avoid violence."

"You must be another stupid Yeyunist,' said Taarie. She spat at the ground venomously upon hearing the name of the organization's most treasured book. "Everything in that book is nothing but a load of lies which make conquest, slavery, and murder a heroic deed. These soldiers have orders to kill everything in sight in the name of the False God."

"I must admit," said Christine. "I didn't think I would find them all the way out here."

Taarie scoffed. "They're under orders from their grand priest to look for us and exterminate us. The hunting party you saw was just a small one compared to the others that have come before. They are looking for our city to wipe us out."

"Wipe you out?" said Christine. "You must have done something horrible to make them go after you in such a way."

"Oh, we have," said Taarie. "We've done something to the Church that makes them seethe with the fury of The Mothers."

"What have you done?"

"Exist," Taarie said turning around and walking back to her party.

That left Christine feeling quite cold and confused. She quickly got back on her feet and followed Taarie. Mérieux slowly walked behind her, but he was so big he didn't need much effort to keep up with her.

"What are you talking about?" Christine asked, approaching Taarie. "What does that mean?"

"They're hunting us down because we're Elves," Taarie replied. "It says to do so in their book because the false god claims we are evil."

"I don't understand?" said Christine. "Everything I've been taught. All that I have learned and been brought up on at the Convent. It truly can't lead to this."

"There is a lot you don't understand, child," said Taarie. "That Church has taught you nothing but lies. If you are willing to open your mind, I can help you."

"Why would you invite me to your city? I'm a Yeyunist much like they were."

Taarie grinned. "Because even though you are a follower of the false god, you share a unique bond with your dragon. That alone is a weapon far stronger than an army of a thousand men."

Christine froze. She could not comprehend how that was possible. Ever since she was a little girl, she was taught about peace and love under the name of Yeyu. Sure, it had a bit of isolationism in its scriptures, but she never expected it to be this severe.

"What could you want with me and Mérieux?" Christine asked, giving an apologetic bow.

"As you have clearly seen, we're having a territorial dispute with the soldiers of the Church. Your dragon could give us the edge we need in defeating them and cleaning our lands from the filth of the Covenant once and for all."

"You request me to fight against the Church?" Christine cried out in shock. "I cannot. We are brothers and sisters of the faith. We fight alongside one another. We give our lives for each other if need be."

"They certainly seemed intent on taking yours," said Taarie.

"They didn't know who I was."

"Nor would they have given you the chance to speak. What could you have done to stop them from attacking you? Nothing! Now, either you can come with us and fight, or, you can go into the wild and hope that one of those soldiers out there remembers the verse that preaches about love and peace. Because knowing them, it would be death for your dragon, and slavery for you. Mothers known death would be mercy for you. Slavery under the Covenant is a nightmare, unlike anything you can imagine."

"How can you possibly say that?" shouted Christine. "Those are my people you talk about."

Taarie stared at Christine, narrowing her eyes in fury. She lifted her hair so she could reveal a mark that was forever placed on her neck. It had the flaming eye of Yeyu surrounded by a heart with an arrow piercing it.

"What…what is that?" gasped Christine.

"It's a mark of slavery under the damning Eye of Yeyu. My punishment for being abnormal and a non-believer. They imprint the Eye of Yeyu onto our flesh. And then follow with a mark signifying what use we are. Swords for gladiators to fight in their sick arenas. A cane for a house servant. And a heart with an arrow for whores."

"And they made you a…Taarie, I…I had no idea."

"Of course you didn't. The Church keeps gullible fools like you within in their wallets with talk of peace, love, and tolerance while the priests engorge themselves luxuries spent with the gold they tax from you. And they fuel their armies with weapons like this." She reached to the ground, picking up an assault rifle. "To think they can afford things like this and those 'flying mountains' they crowd the skies with. It amazes me how many stupid people there are in this world."

Christine grimaced when she said that.

"So, will you fight with us or not?" Taarie asked.

Christine looked into the eyes of the Elf and gave a nod, and she flew with them back to their city hidden in the mountains.

Prince Stas

"And that's all I got from Taarie," said Stas. "She wouldn't tell me anything more. Christine and her dragon disappeared into the forest after they concluded their business with the Elves and were never seen again."

"Do you think they're out there still?" Alexandra asked, laying flat on her back. She gazed at the prince and smiled. "Wow. I wish I could have my own dragon the way Christine did. That would be amazing. And my poor Prince Stas. I do hope you find the girl of his dreams one day."

"She's the only one I want," said Stas. "She's out there. I'm going to find her. And I'm gonna marry her."

There was a knock at his door. Stas put the drink down and hurried to answer it. "Yes?" he said. He froze, for it was a Black Luster Soldier standing outside his door.

"My Lord," he said, handing him a letter. "Urgent news from Master Yugi. Riftaard is under siege by Prince Forrest. Prince Jon calls for aid. You are needed at once."