The Royals of Silvercrest

4

King Shane's POV:

The door to my chambers opens and my Knightsman, Theo, stands there, bowing. I make my way o er to him. When his eyes meet mine, there is a graveness to them that I had never seen. I ask him what has happened but when he opens his mouth to speak, stumbling over his words.

Taking a breath, he tries again.

I stand dumbfounded, never seeing him in such a state.

"There has been an attack inside the castle. Queen Ida has been killed, Your Majesty. She was found in the room of one of her ladies, a dagger in her chest."

Anger rises within me with every sentence that escapes his lips.

I grip the handle to my own sword, my knuckles turning white.

" Round up those inside the castle, sending them to the dungeon to await questioning." I demand

Before he can say anything, I slam the door open, running to find my wife's body. I realize after a moment that I hadn't asked which of her ladies. As I run down the wing of the castle, the first three doors prove fruitless. When I open the last one, the scene before me, although I knew what to expect, still knocks the air from my lungs as I stare at the woman I love. She lies in a large pool of blood, her skin white. When I wrap my hand around hers, she is cold. Pulling out the cloth from my pocket, I wipe away some of the blood on her face. Tears creep at the corners of my eyes. I lie my head on her chest, sobbing. Time goes by and I must gather myself. I sit up, promising my wife that I will make good on her honor and slay whomever is responsible.

Then I head for my dragon.

As I make my way down the stairs, the world feels too far away.

I spot a servant on their way to bring water to the dragons.

"Send word immediately to the dragon riders to mount and begin a search of the kingdom, without delay." I tell the boy not breaking my stride

I open the door feeling the cold air hit my face.

I make my way to the caves, running into Xythos's stall and undoing his chains. He huffs, alarmed by my sudden presence. I soothe him, stroking his snout. His huffs turn to a pleased grumble.

A 50 foot beast, my dragon, Xythos is a blood red battle machine.

Waisting no more time, I climb atop the large creature, not even bothering to saddle him before we take off into the sky.

"Xthos rise!" I command

He takes off down the grassy field, flapping his wings a few times before lifting off the ground. My head whips ever which way, eyes scanning for something, any sign of my wife's attacker. All I see is the distant blurs of the townsfolk below. Time passes but even as we circle the castle grounds, there is nothing. I let out an enraged scream. I wipe the tears from my eyes, clearing my vision. Hearing the sounds of wings flapping, huffs and shrieks, I look behind me to see that the riders had caught up with me. In the dim moonlights I see dragons of different colors and sizes. All ready for battle, if it should come to it. Before I can speak, one of the rider's speaks.

"Your Grace, an orange dragon has been sighted on the west side of the estate, still in the sky. One rider. Not one of ours." He informs me

"Men, tonight, we fight in honor of our Queen!" I shout

They cheer in response, yet there's a pain to it that hurts.

With this, we take off.

When we finally catch sight of him, everything falls apart.

The man steers around easily on his smaller dragon, turning to the side then around so he is above us. We had mere seconds to dive out of range. I hear an inhuman shriek and see a small dragon falling from the sky, its white body aflame as it dwindles down to the ground. It's rider ripped to shreds, not far behind. Then another burst of flames, hitting one of the blue dragons, shooting from below us. Two of the riders quickly set their attacker ablaze. The sky lights up in color as the dragons and riders battle.

Once the smoke clears, I pull that the reigns, signaling Xythos to move forward. He obliges with a deafening shriek. We weave our way through the clouds, chasing the man and his dragon. My thirst for blood easily outweighs my own safety, not bothering to confirm if my riders were behind me. I hear the large creatures, and take a few quick glances but do not stop chasing. Xythos opens his jaw, releasing a burst of red flames.

The first few attempts, his flame shot off causing no damage. For a moment, I lose sight of the orange dragon in the dark clouds. Then just as quickly as he disappeared, there he was again. Xythos lets out another burst, this time hitting the orange dragon in its tail, blowing it off, causing it to dice towards the ground. Xytjos follows, snatching the rider in his claws. Xythos tilts s his wings, coasting back in the direction we'd come. I could have slain him just for killing one of my riders, however I need answers.

Xythos drops him on the ground.

I slide down off my dragon, marching over to the man.

"Did you kill her?" I demand

"I am an innocent man." He replies casually

"You just killed two of my riders!" I snap

"I know naught." He says

I grab him by the coat, placing a dagger right above the soft skin under his jaw. At this, he flinches, feeling the point pressing against him.

"It was ordered."

"By whom?"

He doesn't answer so I apply more pressure, causing blood to trickle from the wound. He swallows hard, trying not to move.

"Her brother wished to claim her throne, Your Grace."

I slam the blade into him, blood pours from his mouth, he gurgles loudly before collapsing on the ground, twitching.

I climb atop Xythos again.

He will surrender or burn.

I reconnect with the rest of the riders and head for Queen Ida's brother, south of us. We fly a great distance over mountains and a great sea before reaching the castle. We split off, half at the castle, the others at the dragon stalls to keep them contained. It is a long standoff but by the end, Prince Faro surrenders to save his castle. He comes out only when I threaten to burn the entire castle down no matter who is inside. He caved, tossing his sword aside and coming out with his hands raised.

Xythos burned him for his crimes.

The screams bringing me a moment of peace.

I've avenged you my beloved.