Greetings all!
Things are ramping up here as we're getting ready to help friends prepare for ComiCon Cape Town. I may even schedule a few posts well out in advance to prevent missing an update.
But until then, enjoy this update!
The Fell Dragon was itchy. She didn’t like this feeling. She had gorged on a timeline and the voices were gone, but she had been awake for too long for her to be able to sleep for long again. At least not as deeply as she normally would.
She turned to see Red-Eye curled up in the corner of the room they were in. He was snoring slightly, and his fur was puffed up. He looked exactly like the dog she had had as a child. As soon as that thought entered her head, it was gone. Had she had a dog as a child? Or was it another false memory like so many others due to all the other Fell Beasts in her mind?
She looked at her hands. They were the hands of someone who had spent years toiling, but she struggled to remember where she had grown up and what she had done. However, the longer she was awake, the clearer some of the memories were becoming. There were faces she recognized that looked so similar to her own, but she couldn’t place them. Her parents? Maybe.
She rolled the long sleeves of her shirt, stolen some time ago, to look at the cuts that ran along her forearms, both on the inside and the outside.
“Toil or suicide?” she asked no one in particular.
She knew the rest of her body looked similar. Then there were the surgical scars she wore. That was a memory that was always crisp. The surgeries she had undergone were always clear, but why she had it done in the first place, that she couldn’t remember.
The itchiness returned and she scratched at her arms until they bled, yet the itchiness didn’t fade. She needed to rest or do something. She was full, her plan was working, and all she needed to do was wait to see what the fledgling Fell Dragon would do. However, she didn’t like to wait. The urge to maul Saita was so great it caused a fire to fill the Fell Dragon. She fought down the urge, no, she needed to wait. The plan had to go exactly as she had planned, or it all would have been for naught. She hadn’t spent two lifetimes as the Fell Dragon for her plans to come to nothing. She needed to rest.
She looked at the giant wolf and remembered how he had stepped between her and the dying Fell Dragon, a humanoid with jet-black skin and a fiery touch. He had kept her from claiming her prize. She just had to beat the Fell Dragon and she could…
Her memory failed her. She couldn’t remember why she had agreed to become the champion, but she remembered the aftermath. She was ready to take its life, but the Wolven had stopped her. She had already claimed many of its brethren, and this one was already injured, bleeding from a wound to its face. She just needed to get passed it.
They had both leapt at each other and she remembered the feeling of her face splitting in half and hot blood bursting forth. She didn’t care. The Fell Dragon was within her grasp. The pain was so staggering that she gripped her face, despite the memory being several millennia ago. Her claws had taken the head of the Dragon, and she was free.
Free?
That was something she hadn’t thought about before when these memories surfaced. Had she been a captive? Was that why she had agreed? She rubbed at the back of her neck, feeling the thick scarring there. She once more looked at Red-Eye and felt hate for him trying to stop her. She stepped closer. It would be so easy to get rid of him, she didn’t even need to try.
Something stopped her. She needed him. She couldn’t travel the time corridors without him. It was a skill she just didn’t have. She clenched her hands and walked a few steps away to look at the room she found herself in. It was similar to the room she had spent most of her life in as the Fell Dragon, but significantly smaller. This was another skill of the Wolven. He could find rooms, separate from the time corridors, but still obey their rules.
Free.
That was right, he had freed her. She had control after he attacked her. She didn’t have to listen to commands anymore. She was free, but at what cost? She remembered how blood burst from her mouth and soaked her clothing. The Wolven had nearly taken her head off. Then there was the floor and the urge to breathe, but not being able to. People surrounded her, lifting her, placing her in the room that would become her prison.
“They lied.” She hissed under her breath. “They lied.”
She forcefully shoved a hand into one of her pants’ pockets and pulled out a piece of paper.
“You lied and here we are again, but I have learned from my mistakes. This time I have the proof and you will listen, even if I have to kill every single Fell Dragon yet to be born.” She hissed as she looked at the paper. “I swear it.”
She then strode over to Red-Eye and nudged him with her shoe. The Wolven opened one eye before raising a large arm, exposing his chest. The Fell Dragon ducked under the arm to nuzzle into the Wolven’s fur. Red-Eye enclosed her with his arm and sighed.
“Did my worthiness for being alive outweigh your hate for me?” he mumbled.
She said nothing and waited till he was on the verge of sleep to say, “I will sleep a while. Wake me when you think it is necessary.”
He didn’t answer but rather wrapped himself tighter around her as they both drifted off to sleep.
Brucel found himself looking at the package that Larden offered him. He had been staying with his son and getting to know his extended family but generally tried to stay out of Saasha’s way.
“What is this?” he asked as he took the paper-wrapped parcel.
“Mother decided that if you are to go to the humans as one of her representatives, you should look the part.”
“A uniform?” he half-snarled.
“Your old uniform.” Confirmed Larden with a grin.
Brucel almost dropped the parcel. He didn’t know why the old queen would give him this. He was even more confused when he opened the gift and found her favourite flower embroidered on the shirt. It would be placed over his heart. He knew the flower, understood the significance, and couldn’t help but smile a little.
“She is sending me mixed signals.” He half-whispered as he traced the flower.
“She can’t help but love you, but you must understand how much it hurts to see you. Not just because of who you are, but what you did.”
“I understand, but nothing I do now will change what I did.”
Larden looked to where Saita was making her farewells to the Saith family she had been unexpectedly adopted into. He smiled softly as he noted the tense Aidan who seemed concerned about his mother leaving him behind once more. The young human would be added to the next batch of students but would spend the next few months with Larden’s family preparing him and introducing him to those who were running the school.
Saita had wanted to take the boy home during this time, but Saasha had insisted that she concentrate on her kingdom while Aidan learned his role among the Saith. It had been a bitter pill for Saita, but she, and Aidan by proxy, had come to accept the decision.
“Her boy is more talented than I thought a human could be.” Said Brucel as he caught his son looking at the humans preparing to leave. “What will happen with Doran?”
“You took the time to learn their names.” Larden seemed surprised.
“Your mother ordered me to look after the girl, I thought I would at least learn a little about those that she surrounded herself with. The man is as sharp as a tack and remains level-headed, even in the middle of the hottest debates at the council table. He’s dwarfed by those who sit on your mother’s council, but he isn’t intimidated at all. Brave, steadfast, and smart; all good traits to have as the human’s right hand. He will be missed on the council.”
“He will continue to join, but Saita will need him while she has the crown set upon her brow.” Larden smiled. “She will make a good queen.”
“Her son would be better.”
Larden looked to his father who looked to the child who was grinning at something Baks had said to him.
“How can you tell? You haven’t had much interaction with him.”
“You’ll see.” Brucel placed a hand on his shoulder and said, “Look after your mother and keep an eye on those beasts. The Wolven have ways of cutting through defences from the inside, so remain ever vigilant.”
Larden placed his hand on his father’s shoulder and whispered, “I wish Mother would talk to you and not just banish you.”
“As you said. Her heart hurts seeing me, and I can’t say it doesn’t affect me profoundly. Perhaps some time apart would be good.”
“I will miss you, Father.”
Larden surprised Brucel by hugging him close, “And don’t be a stranger. Just because Mother doesn’t want to see you, doesn’t mean that I don’t want to see you.”
“I’ll see what my obligations are, and I’ll do what I can.”
The farewell was painful for the Saith, but he had no other options. He had nothing and no one in this time. Yet, ancient loyalties still swum in his blood, and he felt compelled to obey them. He gave a nod to his eldest son and slowly made his way to where the humans had gathered.
It was clear they didn’t trust him, especially Saita, but the large Saith was going to do what was ordered by the queen of this realm. Doran reached a hand out and gave him a firm grip when Brucel clasped his hand.
“You will be a welcomed addition to her court.”
“Realise that I am only here because I have been ordered to be here. I am not interested in being friends with anyone.”
“She’ll change your mind in time. She has a habit of that.” Doran grinned at Saita as she gave a final hug to her son before approaching them with Bolx in tow.
Brucel couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed at seeing Bolx with the soon-to-be human queen. The Saith had sworn to him that there had been nothing between him and the human, but during that final fight, when the twins had appeared, he knew it had been a farce. However, by then, it had been too late, and he couldn’t talk to the boy about the half-breeds.
Brucel snorted and made his way into the ship. He was here for work, not to make friends. He was nearly on the ship when Aidan ran up to him and slipped something into his hand before nodding his head and running away. His mother patted his head as he ran past, before entering the ship.
“Looks like the queen just had to get the last word in.” she whispered as she walked past the hulking Saith. “I hope it’s nothing but good news.”
Brucel felt compelled to growl at her, but the girl only grinned before walking off. She no longer had any fear of him.
“Might want to get a move on.” Said Doran as he walked past with Bolx. “We don’t want to be late.”
Brucel ignored him and opened the folded piece of paper to read what had been written on it. He instantly recognizes Saasha’s handwriting. It had been decades, but he could never forget it after the countless messages she would leave him in the oddest places while they were training at the academy.
Once this is over, return to my side.
Honestly, I can't blame Saasha for the final message. She really did need to get the final word in.
For those of you who have never heard of Fell Dragon you can find Book 1 here, Book 2 here, Book 3 here, and Book 4 here, Book 5 here, and Book 6 here
If you have any questions, feel free to ask me. I love discussing my books!
As the series continues, it will combine with another book series I wrote. To avoid confusion about what is happening, introductory chapters will be introduced separately so that you don't have to be lost. However, these chapters will contain spoilers. You can find these chapters here:
Races Explained
Banishment
Royal Guard
Saasha’s Direct Family
Saith Characters Recap
Human Characters Recap
Alternate Timeline Brucel
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Part 21>>You are Here>>Part 23
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