Purple Dragon [REPUBLISHED]

Chapter 22: The Stranger

Amasya crept back to her igloo, dazed and excited. This was happening. The rebellion wasn't just a faraway dream. It was here. It was starting. And everything would change.

For the first time in eons, finally the oppressed were rising up to fight back. For freedom. For equality. Together, they would create a new world.

She was a long way from home. And a long way from the dragon she used to be. The one that was stiff and angry and scared. She was part of something now. She was so close to the Order. Keslin was far away, but the Order would have information on the Amethyst Egg if Eira didn't tell them what she knew. The summer was almost over. She had only three weeks until Naysa declared war.

A tiny fluttering feeling disturbed her at the thought of going back to her home. Back to her father and her aunt. Stepmother actually. She wondered why Bastian had ever chosen Elethea as his mate in the first place. Floressa was much more like him. They were the perfect match.

Her thoughts flitted back to her brothers and sister. She had no idea if Elias or Sonia still thought of her. Certainly, she couldn't care less about Cade. He had never been a brother to her. Always ambitious, always cold, always greedy. She couldn't stand him.

"What do you think about this?" Everett asked quietly.

"I think..." Amasya struggled for words. "I think it's a lot to take in." He nodded quietly, thoughtful. "What are you thinking about?"

"I've lead us all on a wild goose chase," Everett laughed darkly. "Here we are, making our way to Icina and really the UR-er, the Order of Odida was right where we started."

"You couldn't have known," Amasya murmured. "I still need to find the Egg. Otherwise, Naysa's going to completely obliterate Keslin."

"And is that such a bad thing?" Everett growled.

Amasya gasped. "Everett! There would be innocent dragons caught in the crossfire! My brother and sister! Servants! Gatherers! How can you say such a thing?"

He sighed, repentant. "I'm sorry, I just... I didn't have a good experience when I was a dragonet."

Amasya was quiet. "You never told me that."

"I guess I just didn't like to talk about it. But while Xaria was telling us about Boreala and her parents, I was just thinking that things might have been so different if I had grown up with parents like hers."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed again, his eyes tired. "I grew up in a family much like yours Amasya. My family was one of the old families, with noble, pure blood flowing through my veins. At first, I was so proud of my family, my rank, my training."

"One day, when I was very young, I overheard my father yelling. He was towering over a Servant dragoness holding a switch. He beat her until she was bloody, the whole time screaming about her incompetence. She wasn't even our Servant, but he had had a bad day on the Council and needed someone as a scapegoat."

He took a sharp intake of breath. "Well, she certainly was a convenient scapegoat for him. He sought her out to punish her and whip her. I saw this and was horrified but did nothing. She would weep inconsolably, pleading with him. One day, a few months after he first started beating her, he killed her. He simply beat her until she was dead. She was three months pregnant."

Amasya's heart wrenched. "He didn't like that she had the audacity to die on him. So he had her husband killed as well. The dragoness's owner managed to stop him before he turned on the Servant couple's daughter."

"I'll never forget looking into that dragon's eyes. They were swimming in sadness and horror and confusion. And when they looked at me, her eyes were filled with pure disgust, and I felt ashamed for the first time in my life."

"I told this to my best friend, the daughter of the Servant's owner. She agreed with me, and we talked and talked. After years of talking, we finally decided to put our plan into action. We were going to find the URA and join."

"We managed to escape, but Keslinian guards came after us. They captured my friend and dragged her back to camp where she was executed. Her mother looked on and disowned her before the arrow was shot."

He closed his eyes. "Her mother never forgave me after that. I guess from then on she hated anyone who was different. Especially you."

"Wait," Amasya said, confused. "What?"

"My friend's mother was your aunt. Floressa."

...

Amasya vaguely remembered a cousin, but her memories of before the accident were fuzzy. She did know, however, that Floressa hated Rogues more than Servants or Gatherers. She hated them more than Amasya even. The wounds of her daughter's betrayal must have still been fresh when the accident occurred. The embarrassment of having a cripple in the family must have been salt in the wound.

And the Servant's daughter? Osma! She remembered Osma had lost her parents when she was around ten years of age. Could that be it?

She voiced this aloud to Everett and he nodded. "I never knew the Servant's daughter's name, but yeah, that sounds about right."

"Do you think she could forgive me?" Everett hedged.

Amasya softed. "Everett, you were only a little dragonet. You didn't kill her mother."

"I know, but I didn't do anything." She could see how this had tormented him over the years.

"Yes," Amasya said. "I think she'll forgive you, though there's nothing to forgive really."

"We need to go back to Keslin," Everett said.

"We do," Amasya agreed. "We need to find the Egg. We have to stop the war. Tell the others. We leave in two days time."

...

Eira paced her throne room relentlessly. Her frustration and fury rose until she shook.

"Panicking will do you no good," the stranger in the shadows said. "You need to think."

"Don't you think I know that?" she hissed. "You're here as my guest. I could reveal to everyone who you are. So don't forget your place in my court."

The stranger was silent for a moment. "I have not forgotten."

"What about Cass?" Eira snapped. "Do you think she's trustworthy? I know what Xaria's up to. She thinks she's so clever!"

"I believe Cass can be trusted," the stranger murmured quietly. "She brought the dragoness to you after all."

Eira considered this, her scales winking in the light of the moon. She sighed in a rare moment of contentment. "Do you know how long I've been looking for her? Searching and combing every single legion? That idiot of her father kept her hidden well."

"Not on purpose," the stranger said. "He and his wife have no idea how valuable she is."

Eira snorted. "She'll be my weapon. With her, I can establish my rule as the queen of Oabria. How soon will you need her?"

"Patience. We're not ready just yet. I'll give you the signal and then you can move her."

Eira snarled. "You've been saying this for years. How much longer can it take? Are you sure your loyalty still lies with me?"

The stranger bowed before the chief, keeping a smooth face. "You know my loyalty is to you. Always to you. I have the same desire you have."

The chief stared for a moment. "Very well then. You have given me no reason to distrust you. The Order will stand with me, just as you have promised. I'll have to change the name. It's ghastly."

"The name of the rebellion is not your priority right now," the foreigner said. "My scouts have received word from Keslin spies. Chief Bastian knows that his daughter is here. And he's coming to get her."

"When?" Eira demanded.

"Tomorrow," the stranger said with a glint in her eye. "My Chief. It is time for you to rise."