King Beast - Vicious Flames

Chapter 44

I always thought Zerberus had no parents.

That would explain a lot about him.

He could have just dropped from the sky, like an unwanted egg that neither the earth nor the sky wanted to keep. Maybe that's why he had wings—the earth hoped he'd fly away, but the sky kept shoving him back down. Or so I told myself.

I snuck out of the castle through an underground passage I found near the bath chambers, the same ones I last talked to Zerberus.

None of my royal guards had followed me, probably too busy polishing their scales or shoving poor forest animals down their throats. I hadn't seen the black dragon that transported me to my village, and I assumed Zerberus had punished it or something.

No space in my heart to feel bad for the black guard though. I was too busy wallowing in heartbreak over philandering lizard-brained, dragon-sized jerk of a mate.

Instead of taking the obvious route away from the territory, I ventured further in. The border was heavily guarded by dragon eyes.

And here I was, gasping at what I discovered in the heart of this heartless kingdom.

Part of me wondered how my eyes could still be inside their sockets with all these grim surprises lurking around every corner and beyond every jagged mountain peak.

Perched upon a rock was a dragon, its jaws wide open, its snout pointed directly at me. Its eyes, empty for who knows how long, destined to remain that way for who knew how much longer.

The greatest dragon I had ever seen. The greatest anyone had ever seen.

Luckily for me and the human cavillation, it was merely a skeleton, yellowed by the passage of seasons. The bones of its chest and front legs, still folded as if it had died comfortably perched on that rock, were covered in moss.

A strand of ivy grew boldly up the left side until it reached the immense neck and stopped there, as if it were too afraid to continue further.

It had not just two fangs, but all the canines were practically fangs of various sizes and lengths. Some were missing, some were broken, but most stood there, proud and defiant. A shiver ran down my spine, and I gave myself a deserved hug.

I wondered who it had been.

Did it know Zerberus?

How many humans had it devoured in its lifetime? Had it witnessed the dawn of time? My eyes lingered on the intricate details of its skull before pausing at the barrel of its ribcage, the ribs enclosing and protecting nothing but wind.

There it stood, once a reptilian king, the DNA of its victims still lingering on its brown-aged fangs, now eternally serving as a stand for ivy and moss.

A few candles with black flames stood beneath a golden, moss-covered altar beside its right paw. A black fire?

Zerberus's blue.... oh, curse that fire-breathing cad and his harem, Odette! I scolded myself.

"Good thing what's left of him is only his fossil."

I shrieked, turning sharply, and I fell on my butt.

There, on a boulder, stood a woman of indecipherable age.

She moved her head jerkily, her hands jerked, and the corner of her lips twitched every three seconds. Other than that, she looked like a priestess of the passage of time. Clad in a black veil that hugged her and draped around her body, she wore a loose robe, also black, with cobalt blue hems.