Dragon Tide Chronicles: Dawn Rising

Chapter 58: Flying on Crimson Wings

Chapter 58: Flying on Crimson Wings

“DON’T, please don’t eat me!” I stammer as the dragon looms closer. I get terribly surprised when he starts to chuckle.

“Calm down little fairy. I’m not here to eat you. My name is Falaxthrain. Although I doubt you can say that without a… tongue twister, so I will allow the… nickname, Flax.”

I nod timidly, “O…ok…Flax.” Part of the disadvantages of being a dragon I’d imagine is that you have a natural ‘fear’ power. Anything near you is pretty much reduced to a bumbling stuttering mess. Myself, I couldn’t look at his TOENAILS without breaking down.

“It is my understanding that you are summoned to Lord Alexandi’s ruined city, am I correct?”

“Y-yes, wait. How’d you know I needed a ride to Alexandi Hall?”

“Because me and Alexandi were very close companions. I suppose I could tell you glory days stories about our long running relationship, but I assume you would get bored before I even got into a single hour of information.”

“I… I see.” I stutter only a little this time. O joy! I’m not as much as a bumbling idiot now!

“Now, since I’d rather not waste time… hop on.”

Wait…. What? Ooooooooooooh crap. No no no no! It’s one thing to look at him, quite another to ride a freaking DRAGON!

“Too late for second thoughts.” With that, he swoops me up with his tail and plants me down near his neck, but just in front of the shoulders. It’s the general area where Dragons typically let you ride them.

I can safely say I did not go quietly.

“HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPPPP MEEEEEEEEE!” I scream as he takes off at high speed.

Very fortunately, only a few minutes into the flight, he actually lands again. At my parent’s palace. This should be fun.

“Elizabeth Crown. I request that you come outside of your mortal dwelling and come forth.”

Mom looks irritated when she comes out, until of course she sees Flax.

“Umm… Danica? Why is there a huge dragon right outside?”

“Ah screw this I’ll explain on the trip.”

“No no no! Do NOT just take me wherever you want to go you stupid dragon! You may be a dragon but that gives you no right to kidnap me! I am the queen of the Fairywoodlands and I will not have…” He picks her up with his tail and plops her behind me, then immediately flies off to prevent her from getting down.

“Alright Danica, why is a dragon kidnapping me?” She growls with a very deadly tone.

“Alexandi… demanded your presence as well as Danica’s. Don’t complain. I’m just your transportation.”

“Why would he want me to be there anyway? I thought we were mortal enemies, why would he want to see me? After all… I WAS the one who ended up… killing him.”

“You’d be surprised by a lot of things that you don’t know about Alexandi. In due time, you’ll understand.”

“Oh please, no mysteries, I’ve already had some for breakfast.” Mom moans.

“I believe the behavior I am detecting is something humanoids find humorous, sarcasm. It didn’t work. Nice try though.” Mom immediately does a face palm, and the dragon sighs as he flies unmistakably towards the Desolate Lands, which only an ignorant person wouldn’t understand the reason it’s called that.

I only got a glimpse of it a while back ago, when Alexander had left to leave the Fariywoodlands once before, and when we found out about Ramok’s impending arrival. It was depressing, but I had only seen the very outskirts of that black land. I am not looking forward to seeing it for real.

“Behold, little ones, The Land where Life does not grow. The Desolate Lands. See what your kind has wrought upon the land of the Dragonlings, and why their hearts burn with anger and desire of revenge. Here the soil is black and grey. The colors of soot and burned ash. All water flows away from this land, for it is cursed. Not even a single blade of grass can grow here, for the earth is ever more infertile. This, is the Desolate Lands.”

And desolate hardly describes what my eyes showed me.

An endless sea of blackened earth stretched out before me, the very sky was not even close to blue here, it was a pale grey, and even the sunlight was faint and grizzly dim. Scattered here and there, was a rare withered and blackened tree, a mere skeleton of once a proud living thing. For miles, dry cracked riverbeds wound across the barren landscape, and mountains that once bore graceful snowcaps were now jetting spires of grey rock, the whole land was seemingly drained of everything that could make it considerable as ‘living’. The only way to describe it is as though we are flying over the underworld itself.

“See Elizabeth? This is what you have wrought on the world. Your war brought and gained nothing but violence, bloodshed, and the oblivion of a beautiful land that I once slumbered in during the cold winter. Now the only thing it is good for is simply to linger as a ghostly reminder of the fairy’s sins.”

Both my dear mother and I scowled at him. Of course, being a dragon, he wasn’t bothered at all.

“Sins? My people have done nothing wrong! We defended ourselves against a threat against our people!”

“A threat eh? And since when did Alexandi attempt to truly harm you? What point would such a king of such power have in attacking the Fairywoodlands? Before the war, it was considered the most undesired territory of all the Aladorian Kingdoms. Alexandi was a man of peace. He was never a warlord, never a conqueror. It’s about time you stopped living in your father’s lies and…” My mom immediately smacks his side.

“How DARE you! My father did everything for his people! If he didn’t, he would never have gone to war!” My mother yells at him.

For a moment, he is silent, but then…

“Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr….” He lets out a violent snarl.

“I don’t pretend to have a high level of tolerance for nonsense, because I don’t. If you don’t want to end up as a fairy omelet, I would suggest you don’t hit my side again.” He thunders with great, but very much suppressed rage. Put simply, Mom is probably not going to hit him again, judging by the look on her face.

After traveling south for a great while, Flax turns east, towards the Chromatic Peninsula.

“We’re arriving in the ruins of the Chromatic Kingdom. It won’t be much longer before we reach the sea. And from there… the Quaking Veil and the submerged ruins of Alexandi Hall.”

The problem is, we’ve already spent a whole day flying. From my understanding, it will take one more day to get there. By the time we get to Alexandi Hall, I will have exactly one more day left to resurrect Wintress and bring her back to Alexander before he wakes from his coma.

I’m running out of time.