The Return of the Dragon Queen

by Farah Oomerbhoy

  I lifted both my hands and the whole room lit up. White light—more powerful than any gorgoth could withstand—burst out of my hands, piercing the darkness in a blinding ray. Screams and terrified squeals filled the air as the gorgoths shrieked in fury and dissolved into ashes.

  “Good,” said Abraxas in my mind. “You must practice calling on your Dawnstar powers when faced with a threat such as this. The power that makes you the Dawnstar is light magic, which is deadly to demons and dark creatures alike. But light magic will not help you against mages or human soldiers. Therefore, the ability to assess what type of magic is needed in each situation is something you still have to master. You will learn with experience.”

  The door opened, and Penelope rushed in. “What happened?” She eyed the lumps of ash littering the room.

  “Gorgoths,” I spat, picking up my sword.

  “We have a problem,” said Tristan, entering the room and shutting the door with a dark look.

  “Obviously.” I whirled on Tristan. “Where were you? I had to take on five gorgoths on my own.”

  Tristan raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms as he took in the piles of ash in different parts of the room, then shrugged his broad shoulders. “You seem to have done an adequate job of it.”

  “No thanks to you.”

  He lifted a dark brow. “You seem to have forgotten who trained you.”

  My face heated.

  He turned to Penelope. “I was busy finding out more about that jeweled toad you call a prince.”

  My brow furrowed. “Prince Shiraz?”

  Tristan nodded. “Darius Detori isn’t coming back any time soon. It seems he’s already on his way to Sanria for a council meeting of the five emirs.”

  “What?” Penelope frowned. “Shiraz has been lying to us?”

  Tristan’s eyes narrowed. “I’m sure there are quite a few things he hasn’t told us.” He scowled. “He’s left the palace too.”

  “He’s been buying time.” Penelope paced the floor with her hands clasped in front of her. “But for what? What are the Detoris up to?”

  Tristan shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine. No one will reveal that piece of information. He obviously wants to keep us away from Sanria.”

  Penelope rubbed her temples. “We should leave immediately. We must speak to Santino before the Council of Five meets.”

  “And Rhea?” I asked. “Did you find her?”

  Tristan nodded. “She’s still here, along with a bunch of other slaves. From what I gathered, they are going to be moved out tonight.”

  My heartbeat sped up. “Moved! Where?”

  Tristan’s eyes started to swirl with silver sparks. “I only found one old worker who was willing to talk, and that’s because his granddaughter is one of the slaves.”

  I shook my head. “This practice of slavery is abominable. Something has to be done about it,” I ground out through clenched teeth. “What did the old man say?”

  “Apparently the Detoris have been collecting them to send to the mines.”

  I took a deep breath and tried to keep calm. “We can’t let them take her to the mines. She will die there.” I gathered my things and put on my short jacket and sash. I retrieved a dagger from a corner where it lay in a pile of gorgoth ash.

  Penelope came up to me and put her hand on my shoulder. “Calm down, Aurora, we will get her out.”

  I nodded, trying not to think about all the horrible things that could happen to the poor girl. She was my responsibility, and I had let her down.

  Penelope’s eyes flashed as she slid a look at Tristan. “Tell me more about the mines.”

  “The old man told me they are being sent to the largest of the Detori mines, situated just outside the city,” Tristan answered. “He said lately more and more of the slaves working in the city are being sent there.”

  Penelope went over to the window to gaze at the houses that spread out before her and to the desert that lay beyond the walls of the city. “The only mines around this area were shut down decades ago.” She turned to face Tristan. “Are you sure?”

  Tristan nodded and gave Penelope a dark look. “It doesn’t look good, Penelope. There is only one thing the Brandorians could be mining in this time of war.”

  “I agree. I have a bad feeling about this,” said Penelope. “Those mines you described were shut down for a reason. If they have been opened again, that doesn’t bode well for the fae.”

  “Why, what are they mining?” I interrupted. What was going on here?

  “In the old days when all the kingdoms were at war with each other, before the treaty, Brandor kept stores of blackened iron in case the fae ever threatened their borders,” Tristan explained.

  Penelope clasped her hands together. “And the largest mine always belonged to the Detori emir. It is situated just outside the city of Nedora.”

  My eyes widened. “So that’s where they are getting the blackened iron.”

  Penelope’s blue eyes flicked to me. “I believe so. It is only in the past few decades that those particular mines have been shut down to ensure peace. But now that all the borders are closed, the already fragile peace between kingdoms has been broken. No one knows where to turn for help. The mages distrust the fae and the fae return the feeling. And the ones without magic don’t trust any magic user.”

  “And you think the Detoris are working for Morgana?”

  “That’s what it looks like.”

  Tristan rubbed his chin. “Morgana must have already gotten to Darius Detori.”

  Penelope sighed and nodded. “Darius Detori is a snake. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn he is helping Morgana. The emirs of Brandor have always feared the fae. But I am more concerned with how many other mines have been opened so far.” She picked up her bag from the bed. “Get your things. It is imperative that we get to Sanria immediately and inform Santino about the mines and the Detoris’ hand in it. Emir Valasis is the only one who can help us now. Santino’s father was the one who had a hand in shutting down the mines the first time, and he rules the Council of Five. The other emirs will listen to him.”

  Tristan’s eyes narrowed, and he folded his arms across his chest. “We hope.”

  I looked at both of them incredulously. “I’m not leaving without Rhea. We have to save her. We can’t leave her to die in the mines.”

  Penelope twisted her hands together. “Aurora, if Morgana gets her hands on that much blackened iron and makes weapons out of it, then the fae army will be helpless against her forces.”

  I calmed my racing heart and tried to make them see reason. “Then we shut down this mine ourselves.”

  Penelope’s face tightened. “No! Absolutely not, Aurora. I’m not letting you anywhere near those mines. It is too dangerous. Your magic will weaken when surrounded by so much blackened iron, and Tristan will be completely vulnerable without his silver fire. If the gorgoths are here, then the Drakaar won’t be far behind. We need to get to Sanria now and warn Santino—he is the only one who can convince his father and the other emirs that the mines need to be shut down.”

  Abraxas interrupted, his voice clear and clipped in my mind. “Penelope is right. Your Dawnstar magic is tied to your fae powers. Even if you can access your light magic in there, the rest of your powers will be stifled. I have seen the mines you speak of, and they are heavily guarded. You will not be able to destroy them without the cost of many slave lives.”

  My stomach dropped to the floor. That was not an option. We would do it Penelope’s way. I knew that stopping the Detoris was as important as freeing Rhea, but I could still do both.

  “Okay,” I conceded. “But we get Rhea out first. Then we can go straight to Sanria and tell Santino what has happened, and he can deal with the council.”

  Penelope nodded and threw a glance at Tristan. “Take us to the girl.”

  We ran down the ornate pink marble corridors, through the courtyards to the kitchen wing of the palace. We met no opposition along the way, which was
strange.

  Uncertainty took hold. “Where are all the guards?”

  Tristan shrugged, but I could see his senses were on full alert. He was experienced enough to know not to let his guard down. He led us down the side stairs to the infirmary, where he had been told Rhea was being held.

  It was empty, except for a crumpled dead body on the floor, lying in a pool of blood.

  Tristan turned the body over with his boot. “It’s the old man from the kitchens who spoke to me. He must have tried to get his granddaughter out before they took the slaves.”

  I clenched my fists and could feel my magic rising up within me. Slave lives were discarded so carelessly, and no one seemed to bother. My resolve was clear: I had to put an end to this practice once and for all, or I was not worthy of the title of the Dawnstar. I whirled around in the empty room. “Any idea which route they have taken?”

  Tristan bent down and ran his hands over the old man’s eyes to close them. “His body is still warm—they must have just left.”

  We ran back through the palace to the eastern gate, where the servants’ entrance was located. The corridor was filled by a line of Detori guards blocking the way to the courtyard, where slaves were being herded into wagons.

  “You are supposed to be dead,” spat one guard upon spotting me.

  “Sorry to disappoint you.” I created a ball of silver fire in my hands and bounced it up and down impatiently. “You’d better get out of the way, soldier. I don’t have the time or inclination to play today.”

  The guards shouted for others to join them and charged at us.

  Tristan’s swords lit up beside me.

  I flung the ball of silver fire at the guards. Many of them jumped out of the way, but a few were not so lucky and ended up bursting into flames. I had no mercy for soldiers who would treat poor defenseless people the way they treated the slaves. They may have been following orders, but they enforced them all the same.

  I drew my sword and infused it with silver fire. Some of the guards scrambled out of the way, while a bunch of others blocked my path. “Prince Shiraz said you were to stay within the palace walls. You can’t leave.”

  “Oh, really!” I snorted. “Tell Prince Shiraz the Dawnstar can leave whenever she wants.”

  Tristan cut through them like a knife through butter. Penelope and I ran to untie Rhea.

  I hugged Rhea quickly and ruffled her hair. “I’m glad you are all right.” Glancing around quickly, I realized there were more than twenty slaves with her, and they were still bound. I shouted to Tristan, “Get the other slaves too!”

  “We can’t, Aurora. We cannot risk angering the Detoris any more than we already have,” Penelope cautioned me.

  “Those snakes are already working for Morgana, I’m sure of it,” I growled as I gathered my magic and started breaking chains around the slaves’ ankles and untying their hands. “I think freeing some of his slaves is the least of his punishments.”

  Tristan cut down two guards who tried to stop me from freeing the slaves. “Let’s go. There will be more coming.”

  Penelope and I gathered the slaves, leading them to the gates as Tristan dealt with the remaining guards. But as predicted, more arrived. It seemed Shiraz Detori had left a whole legion to make sure I didn’t leave the place. Well, it was going to take more than a legion to stop the Dawnstar.

  I closed my eyes and reached out with my magic. “Abraxas, I need you.”

  I got an abrupt answer. “Are you in mortal danger?”

  My eyebrows scrunched together. “No.”

  “Can you manage without me?”

  “I think so,” I muttered as I turned back to help Tristan.

  “Then there is no need for me to assist you in this battle,” said the great dragon. “Summoning me drains a great amount of magic from this world.”

  I paused as I tightened my grip on my sword and took in the positions of the guards running at me. “I didn’t know that.”

  “You and Tristan are more than capable of taking on these guards yourselves.” With that, Abraxas was gone.

  I gathered my magic and let it build up inside me. I unleashed a wall of fire that spread toward the guards and prevented them from following us. The slaves shrank back, cowering behind me.

  Tristan burst through the flames, his blades flashing as he joined me. A faint smile curved his lips. “Shall we leave?”

  I grinned and ushered the slaves out through the now unguarded palace gates. Once we were out of the palace, no one tried to follow us. I guess it helped that there was an enormous wall of magical fire making sure they didn’t. It would die down eventually, and I had put boundaries on it so it wouldn’t spread to the rest of the palace. There were still innocent servants and others that resided there.

  Penelope led us to the docks where she had made arrangements the night before for a merchant vessel to take Rhea back to Rohron.

  “I will speak to the merchant about the rest of the slaves,” she said, then strode off while Tristan ushered the slaves onboard.

  There was a shout behind us. “Stop!”

  It was Berzaan, the nobleman who had enslaved Rhea in the first place. He had a retinue of guards with him, all of whom were running at full speed toward us.

  I faced Berzaan and his guard and let my magic rise inside me. Tristan’s swords relit, and he was ready to pounce on the approaching warriors.

  My eyes narrowed as my senses sharpened. “Stay out of the way, Tristan. I’ve got this.”

  I braced my feet on the wooden docks and called on my magic, careful to draw the water out of the sea in droplets. I knew creating a wave of water, connecting to the ocean itself, was folly. It was possible, of course, and I had done it before, but it took too much magic. The lessons I had learned during my time in Elfi were invaluable, and I finally realized what Uncle Gabriel had been trying to teach me. Control was the most important element of magic: the ability to use your powers in the best way possible and at the right time.

  I fashioned the droplets of water, molding them into ice knives, freezing them in midair.

  Hovering.

  Waiting.

  With a flick of my wrist I let them loose. The guards went down like flies as the small ice daggers embedded themselves strategically in their legs. I left only Berzaan standing amid his fallen guards, who groaned and tried to stand up.

  The insufferable nobleman grinned at me. “You missed.”

  “I never miss,” I snarled as I gathered more magic from the air around me and shaped it into a tiny tornado that spun in a frenzy, lifting Berzaan up within it. “And if you ever whip or harm any of your slaves again, Berzaan, I will return. And next time I will not be so forgiving.”

  Berzaan screamed, cried, and flailed as the tornado flung him around and around, carrying him out to sea.

  Rhea ran up to me, her eyes wide as she watched her tormenter carried away in a funnel of air, screaming until the night wind swallowed him up. “What will happen to him?”

  “The air funnel will eventually die out, and it will drop him somewhere in the middle of the Sea of Shadows,” I said, shrugging. But from the corner of my eye I could see Berzaan’s lackeys getting into a boat to rescue their little lord. The air funnel would drop him into the sea once they got close. Berzaan would be fine—a little wet, but I was sure he would think twice before he mistreated any of his slaves ever again. “I hope he can swim.”

  For the first time since I had met Rhea, the little girl grinned, her eyes lighting up with mischief. She clasped my hands in hers. “Thank you for everything you have done for me.” She looked around at the other slaves Penelope was busy tending to and getting settled onto the ship. “For us.”

  My eyes moistened. “Anyone would have done the same.”

  Rhea shook her head. Her fierce little chin jutted out with determination, and she spoke with conviction. “No, not everyone would have risked their own lives for a group of slaves, Aurora Firedrake. You are truly worthy of the name Daw
nstar. Because of you there is still hope for this world, and I will make sure everyone knows it.”

  The Pirate Prince

  Dawn was already showing its light as we readied for our journey ahead. The merchant agreed to take Rhea and the freed slaves to Galdor, the only permanent city in Rohron. Penelope did not know the merchant well, so she also sent one of her spies with them to make sure they got there. But I wasn’t taking any chances with Rhea’s life. I spoke with the captain myself and explained in no uncertain terms what I would do to him if anything happened to Rhea and the other freed slaves. I think he got the message, especially when I showed him who I would send to hunt him down if something happened to go wrong.

  The captain gulped visibly and scurried back to his ship when Tristan turned his icy gaze on him.

  Cade arrived with two griffins.

  “Where’s Snow?” I asked as I hugged him and then climbed on a griffin behind Tristan.

  Cade swallowed. “I couldn’t find her when Tristan sent the summons. There was no time.”

  I wondered where Snow was. Usually she knew when I needed her and she turned up.

  Nedora was just a speck in the distance as we left the eastern coast of Brandor. The hot dusty city gave way to a vast desert that stretched all the way to the city of Sanria on the western coast of Brandor. Penelope and I concealed our group with glamour as we flew lower than we had before. The griffins’ keen eyes scanned the landscape for threats, and Tristan was on high alert. The wind whipped through my hair and battered my face as I gawked at the glistening sand dunes that shifted and sparkled in the midday sun, giving way to a massive canyon that stretched out into the distance.

  We crossed a wide river with a few farming settlements and villages along its banks. I spotted high walls rising on the other side of the river near the lake as we passed the town of Bron. Most of Avalonia’s cotton was grown in this area, and the Brandorians took full advantage, setting the prices for trade across the realm. Brandorians were famous for being ruthless traders, the emirs obtaining most of their wealth in this way. They were a community of merchants, rich in resources and controlling all the trade routes between the east and west. The Brandorian mines were famous for copper, jade, quartz, and most importantly gold, making them one of the richest kingdoms in Avalonia.