Against the Shadows|| A Zodiac Story

Four

"Speak." The Dragon King orders the knight standing in front of them.

"The princess' transformation created a crack in the mana containment circle despite the tripled magic circles than usual." The knight answered looking over the princess. Gemini could only look down before the Dragon Queen reassuringly squeezed her shoulder.

"Add more security. Secure the perimeter and see if there are any unusual movements in the forest. I'll come with you shortly."The King ordered the knight.

"Father, I'll handle it." The crown prince stepped forward. "If they notice you are missing, the others might worry. It's Gem's day after all." He continued looking over his pouting sister.

"Leo..." The king eyed his son momentarily before sighing. "Alright. Report to me as soon as you finish looking into it." 

Leo smiled softly at his father before bowing his head and leaving with the knight.

"How huge is the crack?" He asked the knight as they marched away from the lake and into the forest.

"About three to five meters long, your highness." The knight replied causing the Crown Prince sigh and walk faster.

"We better hurry, then. Make sure that the crack doesn't announce our existence outside." He ordered before morphing his scaled wings on his back and shooting up with a huge gust of wind.

The two made their way to the boundary of the circle and landed near three knights examining the crack. Leo looked up to see the crack, that his sister's magic made, for himself and rolled his eyes.

"Gem, you are so extra." He shook his head and met the gaze of the knights who then curtsied at his presence. 

"How is the status?" Leo asked in a stern voice.

"Seems like the mana blasted a few hundred meters away from the crack, your highness." One of the knights answered.

"You. Take three dozen knights and patrol the entire forest. Make sure that there are no creatures lingering suspiciously in the area. The rest, stay in your positions. Keep an eye out on the forest." Leo ordered them with a commanding voice.

The knights quickly dispersed after being given their orders. As for the crown prince, he took two knights with him to check on the perimeter but before they could even go far, they heard rustling leaves and footsteps from a distance.

"Show yourself. We know you are there." Leo called out in a cold voice before looking over the knight on his right and signaling him to approach the sound.

"D-Don't raise your weapon. I am unarmed." To their surprise, a woman appeared in the bushes holding her hands up. 

"You have 30 seconds to explain." Leo raised his brow as he examined the woman.

"I can see glimpses of the future and I am here to warn your kind. Please let me speak to your leader." The woman answered, not moving even by an inch.

Leo's eyebrow furrowed as he listened to her words. "Bound her. Bring her to the dungeons. We'll verify your claims later." He ordered the knights before walking away.

-+++-

"This is her?" The king looked down at the woman who was standing a few meters in front of him. "Bring her closer." He ordered his knights.

They hesitantly brought the woman closer as the king and prince watched her carefully.

"You seem to lack vision, child." The king commented as he studied her. "Tell me your name."

"I am blind, yes. Are you the leader?" The woman frowned at the old man.

"I am. The king of this place." He replied with pride.

"I am Cancer, Your Majesty. I can see glimpses of the future and there is something you need to know." The woman spoke in a serious tone.

"That is a bold claim, child. How can I believe that you are telling the truth?" The king frowned as he looked at the confident woman.

"My vision led me here. It would take a while before anyone can come here after the princess' mana blasted. Especially for a blind person." Cancer explained as the king eyed her silently.

"Go on. What do you mean when you said you are here to warn us?" Leo spoke up instead.

"Your kind... the dragons. There will be a war with your kind—"

"That's impossible. We are the last of our kind and there has been no bad relationship between our people for more than a century." The king interrupted Cancer.

"There is... an outsider. Someone who shares the blood of your kind, leading thousands of soldiers to a bloodbath, chaos, and destruction. All with scarlet eyes and tainted souls. Thousands will fall. She orchestrates it all in the shadows before facing the strongest, aiming for the ultimate power." Cancer spoke in riddles as she described the visions she was having. The two men in front of her eyed each other somehow understanding a part of Cancer's vision.

"If you still doubt my credibility, three moons from tonight, four masked figures will attack a caravan of elder dragons who are making their way to the next city." Cancer continued upon hearing silence in the room.

Leo turned to his father with a slightly surprised face. The journey that Cancer just mentioned was a plan they just had the day prior but the woman knew about it and mentioned it confidently.

"How would we know that this is not a setup made by you?" The king turned to Cancer, still not trusting the woman before him.

"It will be sunny. But during the attack, i-it will be raining. Their footprints will be washed away so you will not be able to track them." Cancer said recalling her vision. There was a long moment of silence before the king sighed and spoke up once more.

"We'll see. Until then, you will be sleeping in the dungeons, child. I hope you don't mind the distrust. We just want absolute security for our people." The king ordered.

"I understand, Your Majesty." Cancer nodded before turning around followed by two knights escorting her. Before taking another step, she stopped and turned back to the two royalties.

"I-I forgot the mention something. The war... I saw twelve figures. Swing their weapons against the damned. Risking their lives.

Fighting, against the shadows."

~xxx~

WC: 1007

Let's give it up for the two new zodiacs of the story! What do you guys think of:

Leo: The Dragon Kingdom's Crowned Prince, and

Cancer: The Blind Seer.

Two updates in a row?! This is my apology, to you guys, for being gone for a whole month. I hope you enjoy the lore drop in this one!

Stay tuned for the next zodiac introductions and lore story in the next chapters. Cya~