Dragon's Roar - 1. Chapter 1

“It has been two weeks. Why does the King refuse us? The council has questions, and we demand answers,” an old dragon bellowed.

“Please, calm down everyone! There is no need to be antsy. The sorry excuse of a King has simply played into our hands. We can use recent events to turn favor away from the distasteful red and force the proper royal to stay put on the throne. We must convince the rest of the council to shift to our way of thinking. Once the rightful heir is under our control, we shall be given our proper dues.” The elder smiled to himself lifting his glass.

****  

Jin let out a sigh of relief hearing Vicky report that the Reds retreated for now due in part to the unexplained phenomenon which had occurred. Sune had all but recovered and seemed to be packed full of energy, the likes of which no one had seen from him before. Jin took hold of Caliburn’s hilt; its pulse of energy having a calming effect in combination with his mate’s mental bond.

“One crisis averted for now, but I have no doubt that the Reds are going to be a problem. Vicky, continue to report on their movements. I understand that I must deal with them sooner or later.”

“As you command your highness,” Vicky bowed before vanishing from sight, a feat which still surprises those in her vicinity.

“You know I am starting to get use to the new me,” Sune announced, strolling into the King’s chambers with fluidity in his movement. Since his awakening, his features seemed sharper, his eyes radiant, and his scales as blue as the deepest parts of the oceans. Now, Sune let his hair fall freely behind him as it flowed like waves dressed in his clan’s custom attire.

“It has been two weeks, and you seem as full of yourself as ever,” Jin grunted his signature smokey nostrils.

“Has it been two weeks, or has it been a full two weeks?” Sune teased as he sat beside his friend.

“Banter aside, how are you feeling my friend…” Jin snorted as his mate’s thoughts chimed in loud and clear. “Also, Levi is quite concerned about your condition; you know nothing can escape him when it comes to you, only second to me of course.”

Sune laughed heartily feeling more in touch with his ancestry. Sometimes, he could swear that he could always feel his father’s presence near him. “It can be touch and go, but I still do not have total command of whatever gift that I have been granted. I am sure there is more than meets the eye with this turn of events, and in due time, your beloved will fill in the details.”

The two were interrupted by the arrival of the guards coming to deliver an urgent message for the King. “Your highness, your presence is required at the west gate; it would appear that we have an unexpected but not necessarily unwelcome guest,” Jin groaned at the sentiment that could mean only a few it could be judging from the urgency.

“This is preposterous, when have I ever needed to request to have an audience with that hothead of a drake,” the lithe figure argued.

“Since his highness has more important matters to attend,” shouted Vincent as he arrived onto the scene. The guards parted to two sides to allow their captain through to greet the individual.

“Highness? Since when was the decision made for us candidates to back down and yield our chances to the likes of him,” the new dragon spat.

In an instant, the guards surrounded the newcomer. This act of hostility did not sit well with the dragon. His outstretched wings bristled with feathery like green scales and yellow talons protruding from beneath his wrist. “You simpleton guards dare threaten an heir to the throne.” The guards advanced but were blown back by a massive gust of wind. “It would seem that I shall do you the honor of putting you fools in your place.”

Vincent observed as the dragon made short work of his men making a mental note to double their training. Vincent, brandishing his curved dual blades charged the dragon. “Oh, this is not the Vinny I remember, your false bravado will not win you any points in my favor,” the dragon mocked Vincent as they clashed. Vincent was acutely aware that attacks were not as simple as they appeared. Where one would think a simple dodge was sufficient, Vincent was able to deduce his attack range was widened with an almost imperceptible swirl of wind around his talons. The copper dragon’s scales shimmered, and he charged forward, his blades seemingly fusing with the arms they were held in. The constant smile on the green dragon’s face shifted into a frown as his talons bounced off the copper scales. Vincent dug his blades into the ground encircling the dragon in spikes matching the copper hue of his scales before slamming him through a cluster of the spikes with a flick of his tail.

“Captain hold!” Jin commanded, stopping Vincent’s blades a step away from severing the head of the dragon beneath him. “Zephyr, for one who failed to heed the call during the trials against our kingdom, you have a lot of nerve showing up here unannounced and making demands,” Jin stated calmly as he looked down at the dragon before him.

“You have missed a great deal, and you no longer enjoy the liberties you once had here in the Capital; the throne is now occupied, and you will show the King before you nothing but respect,” Vincent stated. “Should you not, I have no qualms ending your existence here and now,” Vincent’s blades drew closer to Zephyr’s neck to emphasize his point.

Zephyr got to his feet, dusting himself off and flapping his wings as more of Jin’s court began to arrive to the site of the commotion. It was only then he noticed Jin’s attire as well as the blade he carried. “How have you come into possession of Caliburn; the sword of the late King Arthur was supposedly lost to us in the last great conflict...”

Jin interrupted the dragon with the force of his tail smashing against the ground. “This sword was returned to us during the last great conflict or were you so blind as to not be aware of the danger this kingdom faced five years ago,” Jin shouted in rage.

“No word of such conflict reached our shores and as it was handled by sorry excuses for dragons. I cannot say that I am surprised. An emergency on your part did not constitute action on our...” Zephyr’s words could not reach him as he found himself struggling in Jin’s grasp and face to face with the King of Dragons.

“We lost a great deal in the battle with Morgana. Thade gave his life so that we may continue to live on. I will not allow you to speak ill of the dead or the people that I protect,” Jin snarled as his claws tightened.

“That is enough my King!” The touch of his mate’s hands on his shoulder, and the sound of his voice dissipated Jin’s anger in an instant as he dropped the dragon from his claws and turned to scoop up his mate in his arms.

“The prodigal son has returned once again,” Sune teased as he watched Jin spin Levi around like long-lost lovers. “You know he has been gone less than a month, you lovesick lizard.” The rest of the group laughed at Jin scowling at Sune, and Zephyr was left in disbelief at what he was witnessing before his very eyes.

****  

“The true heir has returned to the Capital at last. We must make haste with our plans if we wish to keep him within the city walls. We cannot allow such power to reign unchecked,” the elders in attendance nodded in agreement at the thought of the detested Red being removed from the throne and have the power of the royals in the palm of their hands. They felt entitled to share in the power that the royals had to offer, after all he was nothing but a child in their eyes.

****  

“Sage, you have been on edge since we arrived; you are usually the one at ease when we return to the Capital,” Bastion observed.

“Something is off, I can feel it. There is a darkness here masking its presence, and I feel that if we do not find it, things will only get worse,” Sage said as he reached for his weapon for a sense of comfort.

Bastion frowned as they continued. When Sage had a hunch, they were rarely off the mark. He sighed, just when he thought they could rest a bit with the threat of the Reds receding. Bastion grunted as he ran into the back of Sage.

“Levi has returned,” Sage stated looking up towards the sky.

Bastion looked at him strangely. “You can feel it?” he questioned.

“Yes, I cannot explain it, but I feel more in connection with my energy when he is nearby,” Sage spoke more so to himself.

“Your proficiency with light magic is unique even among the knights. I do not dwell on it too much since we are allies to the dragons these days as we have left the knights behind. Hold!” Bastion grabbed Sage’s wrist and pulled him into an alleyway. They began to observe suspicious behavior.

“Are you sure we have authority to do this? When this goes off, there will be casualties and damages to the Capital.” a drake wrapped in cloaks asked a hooded figure.

“Of course, this matter will be of no consequence for you; this is something that has to be done for the good of the kingdom.”

Sage readied his weapon, but Bastion pulled him back and placed a finger to his mouth signaling to maintain silence.

“Once the heir is secured in the Capital, you will be paid for your services. Lady Morgana always makes sure her subjects get the reward they deserve as the time of her ascension approaches.” The hooded dragon vanished into the darkness leaving the young drake behind who immediately began drawing runes on the ground. He let out a short breath in surprise as he found himself pinned on the wall as a pulsing sword stabbed into the wall beside his snout.

“Talk quickly before I remove your scales, one piece at a time,” Bastion hissed.

****  

“You will not be here for long I already know it, so let me enjoy the short time that I have with you,” Jin pleaded. The mates lay in bed after a passionate round both missing the other dearly due to their separation, and their need for each other grew stronger the longer they were together. Jin basked in the presence of his mate, the upcoming appearance in court long from his mind as the two continue to enjoy one another throughout the night.

“Would you not even consider our words? Given the situation that the kingdom is in?” The elders began to plead their case. “With you and Merlin away from the Capital, we nearly succumbed to destruction from the forces of nature, it was simply by a miracle that we managed to avoid our end.”

Levi shook his head and flapped his wings in annoyance, he only attended this court session as a show of unity with his mate after being away for an extended period. “There was no threat to the kingdom, what is destined to happen has begun, and to ensure our continued survival, I must continue my journey.”

“How inconsiderate of you,” a rather large elder spoke up, as a few around him nodded and smiled almost as if awaiting this moment. “You would doom us all for your whims of adventure. Your father was a wise king and put the needs of the people before his own at any cost,” the elder paused for effect. “Your mother would never let your father abandon his duty for something so whimsical and frivolous...”

“Silence!” Jin shouted forcing all eyes on him. “I will not sit here and allow you to speak so freely against my mate; your accusations have pushed my patience to their limits,” Jin stepped down and approached the elder with Caliburn drawn in his claws pulsing and enshrouded in flames. The elder took a step back but regained his confidence when the doors to the chamber burst open. However, his smile was quickly replaced with a ghastly look as Bastion tossed a dragon to the ground before the court.

“Bastion, explain and be quick about it, my patience has reached its end today,” Jin eyed his trusted friend over the shoulder of the elder who was still frozen in place with his eyes locked onto Caliburn.

“It would appear that we have a traitor within our walls. This dragon before you had orders to destroy the lower quarter,” Bastion pointed his blade towards the dragon cowering on the ground.

Levi’s wings outstretched as he stood from his seat only to be stopped by Jin’s hand gesture to stay put. “Orders you say,” Jin eyed the elders, never for a moment letting his blade falter.

“Your highness, you cannot believe it was someone within the court, can you?”

Jin let out a bellow of smoke from his nostrils in agitation. This day kept getting worse by the moment. “Elder, I have made no such accusations, and I would appreciate that you do not attempt to speak on my behalf. As of this moment, the kingdom shall be on alert. There will be no more talk of keeping my mate from his duties; he will do what he deems necessary,” Jin pushed Caliburn’s edge closer to the elder before him to emphasize his point. “You are all dismissed. Bastion you will stay. Summon the Captain, Sage, Sune, and Merlin immediately.” Jin sat down beside his mate grasping his hand for comfort. “As much as I want to ask you to stay, worry not about this matter. We will do what needs to be done, so you can fulfill your mission.”

Although Zephyr remained out of the way for now, he could not help but notice the commotion within the Capital. Levi looked familiar; suddenly, it dawned on him that he was of royal blood. “Why was he not the king? Surely, he appeared competent to lead the Kingdom,” Zephyr pondered.

Zephyr noticed that Levi had an almost calming effect on Jin, the hotheaded red dragon. He was confused by his surroundings as this was not what he recalled during his last visit to the Capital.

“Clearly, something extraordinary happened all those years ago. He remained stagnant while everyone else advanced. Jin and Sune have improved significantly. Even Vincent was more adept than he could remember; alas, he had to improve and prove that he is better than the lot.” Zephyr thought.