…...I'm so sorry for not updating this story. But here it is! Hopefully I can get a better schedule for posting. Anyhow, enjoy!

*I do not own tdp, if I did, I would atomically greenlight arc 3*

Morally right vs. wrong

Rayla worried

It wasn't unusual in her words, for she was always worried about something. But when it came to Callum, it was amplified to no end. Ezra said that his brother was fine, that Callum could easily defend himself in moments of great peril.

But something about Averice didn't seem right. Call it intuition, or a sense of foreshadowing for the future. Though regardless of what it had been, Averice was far from being who she said she was. And Callum was going to pay the price.

"I'm going to send him a letter," Rayla told Ezra. '"If he's ok, he'll write me back."

Ezra only gave her a confused look. "But you don't know where he is. It could take days for Callum to receive your letter."

"But he'll respond?"

The young king shrugged. "If he gets the letter, then I'm sure he'll write you back."

Rayla should've felt the comfort in his words, but something was tugging against her consciousness. She needed to know if her lover was alright, but didn't know where to start.

DRAGON PRINCE

"We're here!"

Averice's voice rang throughout the air. It brought a tone of excitement to her travelers, for it had been a very long journey filled with heat and nothing more. Seeing the village has been a relieving period of time. Though the village was far from disaster.

"I thought you said that your village was flooded." Callum raised an eyebrow. "But it looks perfectly fine."

But Averice looked just as confused. "It was when I left. You should've seen it; my brother can testify to that."

"You have a brother?"

A sudden feeling of dread laid in the pit of Soren's stomach. He'd thought that Rayla had been exaggerating when she said that Averice was to not be trusted. But now, Soren would've admitted that he felt the same sinking feeling. Even more at the prospect of having someone who was related to the suspicious fellow. But this was far from something that Soren could truthfully tell the young prince.

Averice nodded. "You'll meet him, but I shouldn't spare a word until then."

Soren and Callum would've dived in deeper if they weren't so tried from the long journey.

The horses continued to trot towards the desolate village. From first glance, it seemed that there were no residents, but according to their young traveler, Averice had mentioned quite an amount of names. In the end, it didn't seem to matter.

"We're here," The young girl slid off her horse. "It's this one right here."

She pointed to a small cottage covered with a wood roof. Overall, it looked structurally sound, as there was a door and window to accommodate for the size. Plants of all sizes filled the front porch, while there were lanterns to light the way during the night. It was delightfully fit for anyone of whom needed protection.

Callum smiled. "It's cute, but is it big enough to house all of us?"

"Of course, my highness, its large enough. That I can guarantee."

"Please do call me Callum."

Formal names were useless in Callum's opinion, for he was just a man. Unto everyone else, it was equally the same. But unlike formal names, his name meant something far different. It was his only, and no one could take that from him.

"I shall, Prince Callum." Averice started to bow, but the young prince beckoned for her to stop. Bowing was just as embarrassing as useless titles. Leading the way into the small cottage, the young women called out for her brother to meet her by the door. Almost immediately, a young adult came running down the stairs.

He looked thin with age but looked built for war. His hair was brown unto the color of a silk log, his skin matching the sand of a desert.

"Hi!" He grinned. "My name is Crypto, and I'm so happy you could come visit our humble village."

"Yes….I was made aware of your predicament," Callum grimaced. Although there was clearly no situation at the present moment that needed to be taken care off.

Crypto sighed. "If only you came sooner, my highness. We were able to take care of most of the damage. Although the bakery is still flooded, poor fellows." He shook his head out of pity, or anger. Callum didn't know which.

"I'm sorry, we came as soon as we heard. It's just the bakery then?"

"Yes, I can lead the way if you want."

The young prince nodded before following the brown-haired boy over to the bakery. Soren went to follow them but was held back by Averice.

"I'm sorry," she apologized. "But its better if you stay here, we shouldn't worry the villagers with the royal guard."

Soren frowned profusely. "My orders were to stay with the prince, if you have any problem with such, then you can leave a compliant with the king."

"I beg of you, please leave them be. If they don't return within an hour, then you can go find your dear prince."

The tone spoken in the former sentence brought chills down Soren's spine. Something wasn't right, and he felt in his chilled bones. But acting in haste was never the answer, instead, he would watch from afar before coming to a clear conclusion.

"Fine," Soren sighed. "I'll stay if you join me in a refreshment."

"Of course, I'd be a fool to say no."

-0-

The food served was quite good, its taste bringing a false sense of hope to his sense's. But Soren's main goal wasn't to fill himself with such, but rather to subtly interrogate the young women about her past, and near-future.

"Where are your parents?" He asked, taking a bite out of bread.

Averice pointed to the window. "They are outside, dead beneath the ground. Only a year ago you see. It was quite the revelation."

"And your brother's been taking care of you?"

"He's trying I would say. But he's clearly exhausted with the pressures of everyday life, I wish there was more I could do to help him." Averice took a drink of her cup. A deep sadness residing within her eyes.

For once, Soren saw more than a suspicious person in hiding. Rather he saw a little girl who was growing up too fast. And a women who was scared to come out into the world. He'd be a liar to say he wasn't that way once.

"I'm sorry," his tender voice reached her ears. "I didn't mean to intrude, shouldn't have let my curiosity get ahead of myself."

Averice said nothing more on the subject, instead only taking a few more sips of her hot beverage. Then, she stood up.

"You should go fetch the prince, for I fear that he is in great trouble."

Soren perked up. "What do you mean?"

"I meant what I said, every word of it."

The guard stood up before running towards the door and opening it with haste. Averice watched him run off with scared eyes.

She shouldn't have said anything, but she couldn't keep her tongue down anymore. It was inhumane what they were doing, and Crypto clearly knew that.

So why did he put her in this position?

…..Or did he not need her at all anymore?

-0-

"It's done," a wicked voice snarled. For in his hands was an unconscious prince with no idea of what was occurring. A glass vile laid nearby, its contents empty. For there was a liquid in it once, but now there was none.

But that wasn't the end of his story, in fact, it was just the beginning.