The Blood's Flame (The Dragons of Flareia Book 1)

Chapter 3 - Flae

Mt Igno, Central Ignisia

26th Year of the Ocean

1st Moon

It was overly stuffy inside the tight palanquin, but Flae Ember decided she didn't mind it that much. The heat was to be expected as you were being transported up to the precipice of a volcano. Being transported up to the precipice of a volcano also meant that Flae was about to die, but she found that she didn't mind that either. All her life, Flae had never known comfort or riches, and the comfort and riches she had experienced over the past week were a privilege she had never even dreamed of.

It was a widely known fact that every fifty years, six daughters of Ignisia were chosen at random by the government and the Salamandra, Nolanth, to be sacrificed to the Fire Dragon, Ignotus. It was said that Ignotus was the one who protected Ignisia by controlling Mount Igno so it didn't erupt and destroy much of the country, and this sacrifice would entice the dragon to protect Ignisia for another fifty years. As a gift of thanks to the families of the sacrifices, the great dragon Ignotus would choose a new Dragonheir from the boys in the sacrifices' families.

As an orphan and a ward of the Orphanage of Ember, Flae had known her lack of family would prevent her from being chosen as a sacrifice, and that had been that. Until a representative from Ferno had knocked on the door of the orphanage, claiming Flae had been specially selected as a sacrifice by Nolanth himself. As the Fire Dragon's familiar, the Ingisian government couldn't say no, and therefore conceded that the children of the Orphanage of Ember would suffice as a "family" from which the Fire Dragon could choose a possible Dragonheir.

And so, Flae Ember was being sent to her death. But she found comfort in the knowledge that she had lived a high society life for the past week as a result, and also the knowledge that her death would be a quick one. And it would matter. Even though her country had never been particularly nice to her – aside from this instance – she still felt pride knowing that her life would protect her country's life for the next fifty years.

Flae found herself scratching at the skin of her arms beneath her elaborate dress – one week in the upper class hadn't helped her get used to the strange sensation of silk on her skin rather than threadbare cotton. The deep bell-sleeves of the dress were constantly slipping against the rest of the fabric in time with the rhythmic jolt of the palanquin, irritating her skin. Her scalp also ached, but she didn't dare touch it – she remembered all the times her serving girls had chastised her from touching her hair after they first styled it. In an array of twists and braids, Flae's silver hair was furled ornately at the back of her head, pinned by a multitude of decorative hairpins. Flae had almost collapsed when she was told the hairpins were made from real gold and sapphires. Such a waste, she thought as she tugged on her dress once more, that such beautiful clothes and accessories – such expensive clothes and accessories – were about to be launched with her into a volcano. Flae laughed aloud at how casually she shaped the thought – as if being sacrificed into lava was a common occurrence in her life.

But when the palanquin finally came to a stop, and she could hear bustling outside, a sense of dread slowly settled over Flae. This was it, she realised. These would be the final minutes of her life. As the palanquin was lowered to the ground with a thud, Flae had to take a deep breath to steady herself. This is what you want. She told herself, but as the door opened and she was helped into the light, she wasn't so sure anymore.

The wind atop the volcano was hot against her face and tugged harshly against her dress, and would've toppled her off-balance if a pole-bearer from the palanquin hadn't rushed to her aid. There were few people this high on Mount Igno's slopes – there were all six sacrifices all escorted by four pole-bearers, two representatives from Ferno, and a single woman whose purpose Flae didn't know. Something moved in the corner of her eye, and she realised with a shudder that Nolanth the Salamandra was also atop the volcano.