The Curse of Thorns

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

"What is happening?" Briar shouted, her voice barely audible over the deafening roar of the cave collapsing around them. The golden walls of the chamber were cracking, and the ground buckled violently beneath their feet. Treasure chests toppled over, spilling their contents of gold, diamonds, and glittering gems, which scattered and rolled in a chaotic frenzy.

The ground heaved again, throwing Briar off balance. A massive chandelier, which had once bathed the room in a soft glow, now shattered from the ceiling and crashed to the floor just a few feet away from her, sending shards of crystal flying in all directions.

Amidst the chaos, the dragon surveyed the room with a casual, almost disinterested air. "Now that the curse is broken, the cave is closing," he said, his voice calm. "It will bury all the treasures and my suffering."

"And us!" Leon shouted as a portion of the ceiling smashed onto the floor, crushing several treasure chests beneath its weight.

"We are doomed!" Theodore cried, his face pale with fear as giant cracks spider-webbed across the floor. "We're going to be buried alive! We'll die and become ghosts!"

"No," the dragon replied. "You think I'd let that happen?" He lowered himself, offering his back. "Hop on. I'll give you a ride."

For a moment, Briar could only stare at the dragon in disbelief, but then the ground buckled again, and she sprang into action. She sprinted toward the dragon and leaped onto his back. "Come on, hurry!" she urged the boys.

Theodore followed quickly, scrambling up behind Briar. But Leon stood as if frozen, seemingly oblivious to the chaos around him.

"Leon, quick!" Briar yelled.

"What if he kidnaps us?" Leon called back.

"At least he'll take us out of here!" Theodore shouted, his eyes fixed on the ceiling, which threatened to collapse at any moment. "Prince Leon, if you don't hurry, we'll have to leave you behind!"

"Oh, you seem eager to leave me," Leon shouted, just as two golden statues toppled over, sending him sprawling to the ground. His crown slipped off his head, rolled across the floor, and disappeared amidst the scattered treasure.

Pushing the statues aside, Leon clambered to his feet, clutching his head. "My crown!" he shouted.

"Leon!" Briar shouted. "We have to go, now!"

"I can't leave my crown!" Leon protested, frantically searching through the debris. Rocks rained down from the ceiling, but he seemed oblivious, his focus solely on retrieving his lost crown.

Briar's heart ached for him. She understood the significance of the crown. But they had no time. "Leon, please! If we survive this, you can get another crown!"

Desperation etched on his face, Leon kicked aside golden goblets and jewels, his search growing increasingly frantic. It was clear he was losing hope.

Briar leaped down from the dragon and dashed over to him. Leon was struggling to push a heavy statue of a knight aside, trying to peer beneath it. Rocks tumbled down around them furiously. The ceiling was dangerously close to collapsing.

"Leon," Briar yelled, grabbing his arm and yanking him away from the statue. "Forget the crown. We need to go, now!"

He looked at her, his face flushed and eyes filled with tears. "But my crown..."

"The kingdom will give you another crown," Briar said firmly, not waiting for his response. She pulled him toward the dragon with all her strength.

"Quickly!" Theodore shouted, reaching down to pull both of them onto the dragon's back.