The Dragon King's Bride

Chapter 24 : A Family of Sorts

Zofia looked up as dust fell, nearly blinding her. They weren't safe yet, they were far from safe until they were out of the castle. Zofia wanted to watch the fire go out, not to leave just yet. The air smelled horrible. It stank of burnt flesh and hair. 

"Let's go." Garison said, pulling Lilly with him. Zofia stood for another moment and watched the flames, making sure that the witch was gone. She was reduced to ash, and her ashes started to scatter in the wind. She smiled at the sight before she joined her friends in their escape. Lilly reached back and grabbed Zofia's hand. She reached out for her, nearly being separated by falling rubble. Zofia felt selfish in her thoughts but she would rather be trapped here with someone than be trapped there alone. At the same time, she would rather die alone than take someone she loved down with her. 

"Hurry." Lilly urged as Garison paused. There was a mountain of corpses before them. 

"Climb." Garison decided suddenly, grabbing Lilly by her hips. He hoisted her up over them as far as he could before she climbed over and rolled off on the next side. Zofia was next. She grabbed on to Garison's hand before could let her go. 

"I'm not letting go till you climb over." Zofia insisted. Dust was falling in her eyes. She tugged his hand, helping him over as he got to the top. Zofia stayed true to her word, letting him go once his feet were safely on their side. Lilly grabbed on to Zofia again as they ran, hurrying downwards and out of the falling castle. 

Draegon stood patiently, waiting outside. He and Mephis wore simple guards clothing too, having needed to dress once they had landed. Zofia ran into his arms and kissed his lips for as long as she could before she had to pull away from him. He stared at her, happy to have her back in his arms. He looked over her shoulder at Lilly, giving a questioning look.

"It turns out that the nomads kind of are wolves." Zofia shrugged her shoulder. She was going to have to poke and prod Lilly for answers on that one. She hugged Draegon again, sighing into his familiar scent.

"Hey, I love you, too." He said finally. He moved his hand to her face, his thumb brushing over her nose as if to recreate how she had stroked his snout. 

"I know." Zofia nodded into him. "You truly are a magnificent creature." Zofia praised, her eyes beaming pure love at him. 

"What happened?" Garison asked as he approached the king.

"They all just... collapsed. I think they came to their senses. They don't remember anything, at all." Mephis explained as he gestured to the Davenport men who were sitting in shock at what they had done. "I ordered the men to take their lead guards and for a few to stay behind and keep an eye on the rest." He added. 

"It won't happen again. It's over now. We killed her." Zofia said, her shoulders dropping in relief.

"Who was it?" Draegon asked. 

"It was Alara, a witch. She said that she wanted to destroy your line for killing her child." Zofia told Mephis, who looked as confused as ever.

"Alara?" He questioned. "I knew someone named Alara, but that was so many years ago, she should have been dead by now." Mephis added, seeming to remember. 

"She was the woman who was alone in a room with Malia when she was giving birth to Draegon. I hated that she was alone with her, that she could have done anything to her and I wouldn't have had any way to know. I had just lost my beloved, I burned houses down and nearly destroyed the entire kingdom. I had not meant to hurt anyone in particular." Mephis admitted. Zofia couldn't bring herself to be mad. She would likely have done the same if Draegon were to be taken from her. If she could, she would break and tear down as much as she could. She reached over and touched his arm as a gesture of comfort.

"It's in the past, and we should only move forward." Zofia said with a deep breath. Draegon tugged her back into his arms. She wanted to tell him, but she feared that the witch was Lying. Instead Zofia opted to wait, to see what happened. She smiled at him and broke free.

"Let's go home, please?" Zofia asked the men around her. Lilly kicked at the grass and agreed with a groan. The castle crumbled behind them as nearly the entire Caledon army led them back to the castle. 

Davenport was in ruins.

Alara had somehow gotten herself close to the king and the queen before taking them down. The soldiers had explained how the cattle started to disappear, how they were found dead and ripped apart. Draegon had called a meeting with the captured soldiers of Davenport, to get information out of them. He had cleared the court room, leaving only the Davenport and Caledon soldiers, with Zofia and Draegon. Garison stood by Zofia's side. She was seated at the table, while Draegon stood before the soldiers. He looked stressed, but he and Zofia had spoken over their strategy the night before. She watched him intently as he ruled the floor. There was a sheer dominance about him, something kingly. It made Zofia want to cross her legs and bite her lip.

"How did she bewitch you?" Draegon asked the men, who looked at one another. They were desperately uneasy. Despite what they had already told him, he wanted more information.

"It was in the food." They confessed. Draegon nodded. It made sense to Zofia, that she had killed the cattle to gain complete control over the people of Davenport.

"What will you do to us?" Their head guard asked. He was an older man, grey above his temples. He had introduced himself as Richards to Zofia. He had bowed to her too. Zofia shuffled happily. It was going as planned.

"We would like to offer an alternative to punishment." Draegon offered. The soldiers shifted. "Bend the knee to my queen and I, and we will rebuild the kingdom as an extension of our own." Draegon executed it perfectly, Zofia thought. They were doing it out of niceness, attempting to peacefully create a union. They could have taken it, and Draegon and Mephis had wanted to. Zofia suggested this alternative.

"You will get additional training, just to ensure that our guards are all uniform. We would like for things to return to normal for all involved." Draegon continued. "We would like to keep Davenport's name, only for it to become a section of Caledon."

Richards shifted, then he nodded. "Alright. Davenport needs a ruler, and I believe there is no one better than the king and queen who eliminated our biggest threat." He looked at his men, who nodded as well. Zofia got up and moved over to Draegon's side. She held on to his arm as the soldiers bowed before them. Draegon squeezed her hand in his, looking down at her lovingly.

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