by Jade White
Time seemed to be running out for me. I had barely a week to get to the Dragon Kingdom or else I knew that Terrain and Sadon would find me for sure. I couldn’t push out the images of what would happen if Rowan and I didn’t make the journey a successful one.
I was also beginning to wonder who the real monster was in this situation. There had to be a lot more to the prophecy. King Athalos wasn’t the sweetest person to deal with and all my life, all I could remember was the fact he was hunting dragons and any other kingdom or anyone else that didn’t agree with him. Maelyss was the king of the dragons, but he was also supposed to be very ruthless as well. People had stories of Maelyss destroying any campaign that went near the kingdom.
“Tonight you are worrying about me as your wife, but you won’t recognize me as the warrior that I keep speaking about! You won’t even give me a chance to prove myself! Without me, you won’t get into the kingdom!”
I was honestly getting tired of Ryia repeating herself on this subject. She kept bringing up the fact she had been a warrior. I understood she felt like a prisoner, but she was now a queen. She was to protect the kingdom and our castle.
“I think that it is time for us to get some rest. I am sure one day you will understand that as we celebrate tonight that we are married. As you look back, you will realize this night was a blessing. It might be a strange fate that we ended up together, a dragon and a warrior, but we are together now.”
“I doubt we are going to be celebrating anything tonight! I honestly don’t care about anything at all that you have told me about being your wife! You have to listen to me when I talk about Maelyss. My father told me how Maelyss can be vicious. He spoke of how if Maelyss thinks if you are a traitor or a spy that he will hang you by your feet until you die in the middle of the kingdom.
“I have been to the Dragon Kingdom before. The kingdom knows me as Ryia the Warrior. They don’t know you! What if they think you are a traitor or a spy? You will be hung by your feet and killed.”
“I am sure soon enough I will find out if they hang me by my large feet before or after I turn into a dragon. Don’t you think if I show up they will realize that I am a dragon as well? I am sure they will realize we are Maelyss’s sons soon enough. Once they find out, they will have to let us go.”
“Do you really believe that?” Ryia asked as she was taken back by this.
“Why do you act as if without you Maelyss will kill us? What do I have to do for you to have faith in me?” I asked a bit angrily.
“You don’t understand anything about Maelyss. You think just because your mother told you about him, that he will accept you with open arms. That isn’t how it is in the Dragon Kingdom.”
“Tell me how it is.” I asked.
Ryia shook her head. “Why bother? You won’t listen!”
My eyes began to droop as my head hit the pillow of my sleeping chambers. To be honest, like my new queen, I didn’t like the terms in which I had to go to Maelyss’s kingdom. I knew that tomorrow Rowan and I would be heading out to get there. Tonight, all I had was to drift to sleep and remember how thankful I was at the moment. Even though the king who raised me was the one that was trying to kill me, I was still thankful to have such a strong father all these years.
The entanglement of the day’s conversation with Ryia seemed to continue to focus on Maelyss, even as I tried to dream. What was she trying to tell me? Why did my wife have to be difficult? Rowan had been the lucky one who had a wife that didn’t argue with him constantly. Whatever the reason, my dream was of the dragon kingdom, and I kept thinking of what Ryia said before I had fallen asleep.
Was Maelyss really going to hang Rowan and I by our feet until we died? The thought seemed to haunt me as I continued to toss and turn. What if he never knew about us, the way Ryia kept going on? We would surely die in Maelyss’s hands, but on the other hand, we would die if we didn’t try, thanks to King Athalos.
Sunlight finally woke me the next morning as it appeared in the window and shined in the room. Ryia, who refused to sleep in the same bed as me, had brought a cot that seemed fit for a chambermaid.
I stared at the sunlight coming in with the beams that glittered as it hit me. I thought of how my mother told me stories and even sang me to sleep when I was young, but now here I was a man. I had no child to sing to or even tell stories to. I had a wife who was completely ungrateful and refused to listen.
I wasn’t even sure how I was going to seduce her so we could carry on the family name. She refused to even sleep in bed with me, but I knew as time went on, this was something we had to do. A prince or a princess must be conceived to be able to take care of the kingdom when he or she was old enough.
*
I made my way down the stone grand staircase which led me to find breakfast. Today was the day that Rowan and I would pack everything we had up and begin our quest from here to the Dragon Kingdom. After speaking with Ryia last night, I was unsure if we were prepared for this.
“You are up early!” Ryia pointed out.
Her voice made me jump out of my skin since I didn’t even check to see if she was still in her bed. I was in a hurry to get ready for the quest as well as staring at the sun.
“I have to get ready for the journey to the Dragon Kingdom. I am sure you understand that it will take Rowan and I a day or two to get there. I would rather get up early before my father, King Athalos, sends his men to kill us.”
The thought of King Athalos made me glare immediately. I spoke of his name as if he was the vilest thing on this Earth. He seemed as if he was too busy killing everything around him to even realize what he had in front of him, which was two amazing sons.
Many times he spoke of how Maelyss, the King of the Dragons, would harvest the souls of the mortal warriors. He would eat them every morning as the sun came up. I was a bit terrified to even think about this journey. There was no other option, though, and I knew it. I was just hoping the pendants my mother had left behind would protect my brother and me.
“Your brother has already awakened as well. I am sure he will be coming down any minute. It seems last night you didn’t sleep very well. Are you sure you are able to make the journey? Where are you going to stay when you get there?” Ryia asked.
“I don’t know, Ryia. I just know I have to go. There isn’t a choice about me staying or leaving. I am a dragon and I must be able to curve it or else King Athalos will kill me. It is either mine or Rowan’s son in who will kill King Athalos according to an old prophecy that I just found out about before I made my journey to marry you.”
“Is that why you married me?” she asked curiously.
“No, I married you because I was supposed to find someone with pure royal blood. Marvin at the local pub told me about the mail order brides. He said he had gotten his wife that way and she loved him to pieces. King Athalos told me I could not collect my kingdom until I married. I am married and we have collected our kingdom.”
“How can you say that?” she asked.
“I have sent him a letter from a reputable priest stating that we have wed on our journey back to our kingdom. I am sure as Rowan and I leave, he will send men up here. I do hope that you can be safe.”
“Since you won’t listen to me, promise you will be careful on your journey to the Dragon Kingdom. You don’t really know who you can trust and you can’t trust. The world is very strange.” Ryia pressed her lips tightly as she looked to me.
I could tell she still had displeasure, since I refused to allow her to go on this quest. She was now a queen and she should start acting like one. Although it sounded simple in my mind, I still carried pangs of guilt knowing she would be a prisoner as a queen guarding the castle. I was in some way no different than the father who had sold her.
“If you run into trouble on your journey, cry to the wind. I will be there,” she whispered.
In many ways, my new wife and I were different. When it came to journeys, however, we seemed to agree this one was dangerous. There
was nothing I could do to get out of this one. I had been on journeys before, but this one seemed much different. Being hung by your toes by Maelyss was minor compared to King Athalos. I knew that it was incredibly dangerous and Ryia refused to let me forget it.
The door swung open and I saw my brother, Rowan, barge into the kitchen. He looked tired, but he found a way to smile when he spotted me.
“Soon enough this journey will be over and I will be back to my castle, where I belong. I am tired of how this quest has taken over our lives. I am sure there is going to be something much different in the future.”
The roads to the Dragon Kingdom were quite rough terrain. You could only go there certain times of the year due to the fact you wouldn’t be able to access the road with avalanches or mudslides.
I stared at my brother for several minutes. I had already taken the opportunity to pack my bags and I was ready. I could tell, though, that Rowan was still afraid of what this journey might bring. It had been on everyone’s mind since we heard Terrain and Sadon’s conversation.
“Have a good trip!” Rowan’s wife called out as she smiled at us.
“We will try! I am sure I will try to send some sort of messages back.”
It was Rowan talking to his wife that made me realize this was the very last time I would walk around in my own castle until I returned. I wouldn’t be allowed back unless I could prove I wasn’t a dragon. I wasn’t sure that even then, King Athalos wouldn’t try to kill me.
“Have you heard from our mother?” Rowan asked.
“I haven’t heard a single word about her. I am sure Marvin is still searching for her. You have to admit that Marvin has never let us down,” I pointed out.
“You are right, Merek. It just seems so long without hearing a word about her that I fear for the worst.”
I looked down at the sacks that we were about to load onto the horses. There among my bags was a smaller one.
“What’s the small bag for?” I asked looking up.
“I am going too….” Ryia stopped as she bit her lip. She knew that she had already said too much. She had been fighting with me tooth and nail to go and each time I rejected the idea.
“What part of 'You are not going to the Dragon Kingdom with me' do you not understand?” I screamed.
“I don’t understand the fact that you won’t let me go as your warrior,” Ryia pointed out.
I groaned. “Ryia, this isn’t your fight. I don’t need my other brothers, the assassin guild or even King Athalos himself coming after you,” I said as I tried hard to walk fast out the castle and through the courtyard where the stables were located.
Although I was practically running, Ryia matched my steps as she darted after me.
“Then this is it? I helped you get this far and even silenced you when I heard your brothers so they didn’t ambush us and this is the way you thank me? Do you really think you can do this all on your own, Merek? I hope you realize that you need a warrior like me on this quest!
“This journey on which you are embarking isn’t a breeze. You need someone who knows the conditions, the area, and the culture. If you don’t, then you will surely be sought as vulnerable, perhaps even more vulnerable than you usually are.”
“I am sorry, Ryia! I don’t want to be the king who has to explain to his kingdom and your father that the reason you ended up dead is because you decided to be a warrior. This isn’t a normal quest. I understand the odds are stacked against me. I knew that way before I was told that I must go on this journey.”“I think you are making the wrong decision! I should be able to go since I am a warrior!”
“You aren’t listening to me as your husband. You aren’t even taking me seriously! I think you should look at this the way others are looking at this quest. This quest is dangerous and more likely, neither Rowan nor I will return! If something happens to you, I am the only one to blame! You aren’t going to go with us! I am not risking your life by allowing you to go on this trip,” I said as I passed her the small bag full of her things.
“I can help you with this! I don’t care what you think! I am a very good warrior and I know the ways!” my wife begged.
“Stay at the castle, Ryia! I think I can handle this myself,” I said as I mounted the horse.
“What if I don’t stay at the castle?” she asked.
“I will lock you in this castle! I told you I will do anything to keep you safe!” I tried hard to get her to understand.
I knew she wasn’t going to take my advice. My wife was too headstrong. Rowan mounted his horse and we were off on our journey.
I kept shifting my eyes back and forth as if expecting to see her on this journey with us, but there was no other horse down the trail. I kept turning my head to make sure she wasn’t following us. When she wasn’t there, I had to admit I was relieved. At least I knew she was safe.
The road was empty, but the dirt had been pounded down solid from the hooves of horses. I was assuming that it was a well-used road, just not at this hour. Rowan was still half asleep and I knew he wouldn’t make for good company as we rode to the Dragon Kingdom.
The clattering of the horses’ hooves hitting the dirt underneath us made me feel as if, for the past several days, this was a lot of what I had heard. In the distance, I heard a horn blow as if it was calling for war. I knew at least it wasn’t Ryia. It was somewhere on the other side of the bay. I was in an unknown land in search of the road to the Dragon Kingdom. This was exactly what King Athalos wanted, for Rowan and I to be blinded by the uncertainty that the surroundings produced.
The horses picked up speed as they went up and down the hills of the countryside. The road twisted around the bay and then shot up to the mountains in which had many sharp bends in the road. Some seemed as if it was a mere single foot path that was crumbling. I didn’t like how the path was going, especially as it took us on these hairpin turns and twists where any wrong move would bring us plunging down the mountain to our death.
The horses continued as we headed for an old bridge. Some sort of creature in the distance made a horrible whining and screeching noise as we approached an old wooden bridge.
“Rowan, we haven’t seen a single person on this road all day. Don’t you think that it is odd?”
We stopped the horses and continued to listen to the screeching and whine of the unknown creature in the distance. All we could do was stare at the wooden bridge, trying to decide the best way of crossing it. The bridge looked as if it wouldn’t hold us. We both knew that we would have to cross it.
I had to admit I felt as if there were eyes on us. The sound of a stick breaking made my eyes dart along the forest trying to find what made the noise. I knew someone was out there, but I wasn’t feeling incredibly comfortable with the fact that we were both sitting ducks. Rowan and I still had two hours to go before sunset and I wasn’t even sure if that would bring us to the Dragon Kingdom. All I knew was this road was mostly forest and rocky ledges.
When we weren’t ambushed and I didn’t see anyone, my eyes went back to Rowan.
“We are going to have to figure out a way to cross this bridge. It is the only way we are going to go any further. It is roughly two hours from sunset and I don’t want to be sitting on the edge of the bridge when it gets dark,” I said as I looked up to the sky.
Both of us kept looking at the bridge, wondering if we had missed something. Neither one of us thought anyone had used it in a long time. We had made our way to this point, yet here we were, waiting for a sign. In some desperation, I actually wished Ryia was here to help us. I guess I should have listened to her, but I knew as her husband that her safety was equally important.
“We are going to have to cross it. Perhaps if we go one at a time and slow enough, the bridge won’t collapse with the weight of the horses. Like you have pointed out, the sun is going to be setting. I would at least like to make it as far as we can.”
Rowan began walking first as I followed him. Beyond the wooden bridge, there was a large r
ocky trail that led through yet another mountain. A lump began to form in my throat as I began to lead my horse to the edge of the bridge to cross. There was no way around this bridge and I knew we both had to make it across the steep ravine. The cliffs dropped off and there was no path that led across the rivers. I also knew we couldn’t stay at the edge of this bridge and hide just because we were afraid of crossing it.
Rowan went first and as he got half way across, he motioned me to follow. I put one foot in front of the other and carefully walked on the bridge. The wood seemed to have been rotten for years and threatened not to hold my horse’s weight or even mine. My stomach began to turn as I got a horse length onto the bridge. We were now over the water that was rushing below us.
I never told anyone before, but I was indeed afraid of heights and crossing this old bridge made me wonder if this was the reason why. I didn’t want to plunge to my own death. I continued to lead my horse one step at a time. Several times, the boards under me seemed to crack and I began fearing for my life.
Rowan was almost to the other side, but I had a sinking feeling that I wasn’t going to be getting it as easy as he had it.
The rush of wind filled the bridge and I could no longer see. My horse began to run to the other side and I lost my grip on the lead.
I could no longer see and I could feel the boards below me break and I quickly felt my body hanging over the rushing water. When the wind died down, I realized that I was swinging back and forth in the breeze above the rocky river below.
Rowan turned and looked out at me, since he grabbed my horse.
“Pull yourself up! You can do this!” he screamed.
I twisted my body back and forth until I could pull myself up. I tried hard to grope the knotted railing as I once again took it one step at a time. Every other board seemed to be breaking under my weight. Most of them broke after I at least made it to the next board.
I had just made it half way across when the urge of looking down came over me. All it took was a quick glimpse and I could feel my palms begin to sweat and my legs began to turn to jelly. The bridge began to shake and I was unsure what was going on. My heart sank. Whatever was happening to the bridge, there was no place for me to go except down. I turned my head slowly over my shoulder to see we were still alone.
