Dragon's Roar - 6. Chapter 6

“Ah, my son has returned from his Capitol errand. Tell me, has our time come to end this trivial squabble over the throne and take our rightful place to lead our people forward?” Zephyr glared at his father as he listened to the foolish words spilling from his mouth.

“You have allowed me to make an utter fool of myself,” Zephyr spat, watching his parents recoil in shock. “Why did we sit idle when such peril was inflicted upon our people?” He clicked his teeth as his father avoided his gaze as the truth was revealed. It was not like they were unaware after all.

“Such matters are of little consequence; it is about survival. Why then should we heed the call of those ruffian red wyverns to be seen at their beck and call?”

Zephyr’s wings bristled at his father’s words. Not only was he aware of such events but he flat out rejected any act of participation and hid it from him as well. “You have no right to consider yourself any kind of leader; you spat in the face of all that they lost and suffered many years ago. You listen to me, and you listen well, father. The King has seen fit to prepare us for the return of Lady Morgana,” Zephyr watched his father squirm as his words hit home.

“They saw fit to place one of those brutes on the throne. The late King Arthur would be rolling in his”

“King Arthur’s son is his mate,” Zephyr cut off his father before he could make any treasonous remarks. Zephyr smirked as his father’s eyes widened in shock, and his mother, as always in dramatic fashion, fell to her knees whilst flailing.

“How is this possible, the royal family perished years ago. Even the great Merlin himself saw fit to retreat into the shadows?”

“He is the real deal; in fact, the great Merlin himself is the one who brought him back to us. Your lies are unbecoming of you father, the seal was broken, and I recognized Levi the moment he appeared before me.” Zephyr spun on his heels having grown tired of this place and his parents' deceit. He would continue to move forward on his own path.

“Feel good to get that out?” Sune asked, pushing himself off the entrance wall as Zephyr emerged.

“I had to know for myself what their truth represented,” he sighed as Sune fell in step beside him. “There were just too many things presented in front of my eyes that did not match what I was being told.”

**** 

Sage stood in front of Merlin’s study staring at the ornate door distracting himself from actually making his presence known.

“If you are trying to open the door with a new magic trick, there are more than a few enchantments that are probably hindering you.”

Sage was startled from his thoughts as Levi approached. The smile which had been on his face shifted to that of concern seeing the state of his friend.

“This is not like you, short of Vicky, you are the least likely to be caught off guard.”

“Sorry, I suppose my mind has been a bit occupied these last few weeks,” Sage replied.

Levi opened the door beckoning Sage to enter. “Are the wedding jitters finally getting to you?”

Sage’s jaw dropped as he looked over at his friend who threw his head back in laughter.

“There is not much that takes place in my domain in which I am unaware; also, Bastion is terrible at keeping secrets when he has been walking on clouds for weeks; it was bound to come out sooner rather than later. Now, how about you tell me why you are here?”

Merlin picked that moment to make his presence known as he looked on at the warriors before him.

Taking a deep breath, Sage turned to the gold dragon, feeling as if those eyes were looking into his very soul, “I am ready to step up into the light.”

Merlin looked amused as he continued to study Sage. “Ready to step into the light, you say?” Merlin’s eyes seem to flash as Sage stood his ground. “So, Bastion has come to accept your true self. Oh, do not look at me in that manner. Did you truly believe that I would be unaware of what or rather who you really are?” Merlin broke into a smile as Sage recovered from the shock of his secret being much less a secret than he had thought.

“My dear boy, I knew who you were the moment of our first meeting, although it was with great sadness that I saw you as opposition, but of course, fate saw fit to give you a bigger part to play.”

“Did you know her?” Sage asked with his eyes now looking everywhere but at the dragons before him.

“Of course, but alas, the knights sought to claim you as one of their own as was demanded by your father. I do not know much of what happened once they took you within the walls of the knights, I am afraid.”

“You have given me more than enough master Merlin. Levi, my allegiance is now and forever to you, again should the day come that I am asked to step up into the light, I will be by your side.” Levi pulled Sage into a tight embrace, as Sage took comfort in his newfound family, he could not stop the tears flowing from his eyes and the feeling of finally having somewhere to belong.”

**** 

“Who is this boy, really?” Mordred again questioned. He tried to carefully observe the boy, but as the months went on, he felt as though he was the one being deceived, treated as a mere cog in the machine. Mordred shrouded himself, having followed the boy, he became aware Urien was far more advanced than he had proven himself as if he had been playing the part of the fool on purpose.

“It cannot be!” Staring out into the moonlight night, Mordred watched Urien assume his draconic form. The boy was indeed of royal blood looking like a copy of his late grandfather. It was as if Mordred was looking at the Pendragon himself only in a hue of deep blues and purples, with far more pronounced spikes. Was this Urien’s natural form or was this the influence of the seed within him?

Locked in his own little enclave, Mordred pondered over his discovery, the boy was a natural with the darkness in a way that he could only imagine. “The need to hasten my plans has arisen, lest I wait too long and be overcome by that I seek to obtain.”

Urien smiled to himself, his time amongst these dragons proved to be quite instrumental, yet he could feel Morgana’s hunger grow with each waking hour. It would be foolish to rest without keeping one eye locked onto Lady Morgana. Since coming into the power of darkness, he has never slept within her reach, leaving a mere trace to lull his would-be teachers into believing that he was under their watchful gaze.

“Why do you not embrace? Why do you keep at bay what you are? Open yourself to all that you can become, and untold power awaits you.” Urien shook his head clearing the voices from his mind. He could not yet decipher if Morgana or Mordred were seeking to sow seeds into his mind to dampen his senses and make their move. “You do not yet recognize what it is that moves you.” Urien opened his eyes to find himself shrouded in darkness. Staring down at him were two glowing red eyes piercing the very source of his being.

“What tricks are these? I do not know your intentions, but I will not sit idly by and abide by your plans Lady Morgana!” Urien exclaimed.

The eyes narrowed in what appeared to be anger and a deep boom wailed through the darkness. “You dare speak of such an insignificant lizard! She has long since fallen out of favor, so blind is she to be unaware of her own limitations, it shall be the root cause of her demise, the true reason she failed all those years ago. But you, you have a chance to bring about everlasting darkness. All you must do is come to me child and let the darkness finally be free.”

Urien awakened startled; looking around, he found himself alone under the glow of the moon. Rousing himself, he looked around and found a giant indentation, but what could leave such a thing behind? “You do not yet understand that which you are let the darkness be your guide and show you where true power lay dormant,” Urien shook his head once again. This voice was clearly not Morgana’s but who or what was calling out to him was still to be determined.

**** 

Zephyr willed himself to look away. Although they had been in each other’s presence for a few months, he still was not accustomed to the frequency and casual nature that Sune would discard his attire to dive beneath the waves. “No use getting such wonderful garments wet,” Sune would always say to him. Time and time again, Zephyr would busy himself with other tasks convincing himself it was for training, but he found it harder to keep his eyes from glancing in Sune’s direction.

“For someone who can read the wind, you are far too tense. I am not a wind dragon by any means, but you should be able to flow more easily than water, be it hurricane force winds or a gentle summer breeze. So, I ask you, what is it that makes this wind dragon so, ridged?”

“I am not ridged; I hold myself to a higher standard,” Sune presented a questioned look in Zephyr’s direction. “Forgive me, those are but the words of my father and those around him. We are no better than any other clan; in reality, we may have been even more arrogant and foolhardy than the red wyverns.”

Zephyr jumped in surprise, having lost himself in thought, he closed his eyes and spread his wings, yet he was unable to sense Sune until the water dragon was draped around him.

“Flow through the path of least resistance when you are able yet be firm and resolute enough to form your own path, when necessary.” Zephyr internally berated himself, as he realized that he enjoyed and even missed the gentle touch from Sune. Turning to face the water dragon, he was perplexed to again find him nowhere in sight. “You have come far that I will not deny, but a true test, a true chance to prove yourself to the element you deem to command is something you should not deny, however, think very carefully before making a foolish decision.

“My wish would be to challenge the King. I was not here for said coronation, and I have yet to submit to his power, so I will see for myself if he is worthy of such a title in my own eyes,” Zephyr proclaimed.

Sune brought his hand to his forehead in dismay. “Little bird, the big bad red will have you cooked over easy before you spread your wings, clearly a foolish decision.”

“I have no desire to partake in a battle with such a brute as I was not referencing the one that rules from the front; I will issue my challenge to the one who was born into this role. I wish to face Levi in combat,” Zephyr stated emotionlessly.

“You are truly a bird brain. I fear that all this time I spent with you will have been for naught; I suppose another trip to your clan is due to find your suitable replacement.” Sune nonplussed, shrugged, and redressed himself leaving the wind dragon to contemplate his own decision.