Firebird

Chapter 15

Beckett

"Ten more minutes and we're going in." I told the guys. They all nodded and started getting the dragons ready.
We left nearly two weeks ago and are finally face to face with Vallans castle. We arrived over on this hillside last night and have been watching the castle ever since. Vallan left this morning and we've been figuring out the plan ever since. Now that the sun had gone down, we were about to move in.
"You ready for this?" I asked Alya, patting her side. She hummed low and seemed to nod. She was a good dragon and a very patient one. It was if she knew I was an inexperienced rider. "Let's get ready then."
We all wasted no time getting saddled. Once we were in, we took to the skies. When we were close to landing, screams sounded from down below. The alarms sounded right after. Alya landed on the roof, along with several others. Some of the guys split up to the various entrances and were already going in.
We left the dragons on the roof and went in through the roof entrance. Soldiers were already coming at us down the hall. They were cut down before they drew their swords. Together, we just kept moving. Until there were no more soldiers coming at us.
Some of my men found us then and led us to the trove. We knew what items we were looking for so we started our search.
"Beckett!" I heard Cade yelling my name after ten minutes. I looked up and saw him run in the room, sweat dripping down his face. "Man you need to come see this now."
He took off running and I followed close behind. He led me down a winding staircase until we ended up in the dungeons. My men were unlocking cells and people were pouring out. But several of the guys were crowded down around the door of the last cell. Cade didn't stop until he was right in front of it. I walked to cell and looked in.
"Your Majesty?" I asked, incredulous. Sitting there, in front of me, was the queen. Kyla's mother. She was sitting on the edge of the cot looking around at everyone. I walked and crouched a foot in front of her.
"Who are you?" She demanded, leaning away from me.
"Ma'am, your husband sent us here. To retrieve some items stolen." I said, calmly. "We didn't expect you to be here."
"How long has it been?" She asked. She still sat defensively but seemed to be calming down.
"A little over two years, your majesty." I told her. "I'm Kyla's personal bodyguard."
As soon as I said her name, the queen perked up.
"Kyla? You know my firebird?" She asked, tears swelling in her eyes.
"Yes ma'am. She's a real special woman." I said, smiling at her. "We're gonna get you out of here. Alya's here too."
She started sobbing then and reached for me.
Manacles still bound her wrist. Iron, I realized.
"I'll get these off once we're in the air, okay?" I said. "I'm gonna pick you up and carry you. Is that alright?"
She nodded, unable to speak anymore. I picked her up easily and started up the stairs. It took less than five minutes to get to the roof. Alya perked up immediately. The queen gasped and struggled to get out of my arms. I set her down gently and watched as she ran to Alya. Their reunion nearly brought me to my knees. Watching her sob as she wrapped her arms around the dragons neck. I let them have their moment before telling her it was time to go.
Once we climbed in the saddle, we took to the skies. As soon as we were a safe distance away, I started working on the manacles. The moment they fell off her wrists, she let out a cry off joy. I laughed with her and let her take the reigns.
I talked to her the whole way home. Each night we stopped to make camp, I told her stories. She listened intently, asking the occasional question. The rest of the guys sometimes jumped in to tell them their own stories about Kyla and the king. The closer we got to home, the freer she seemed to feel. And I was anxious to get back to Kyla.