Rosebriar

Chapter Five: Serendipity

Derick

          As the doors open it revealed a concerned royal family with only one daughter present. “Derick?” The oldest raised a brow at me. “Hello.” My voice shook. I was hoping with all my might that Emma was just late. “I’m Lukas, maybe you can tell us where Emma is?” The color drained from his face as I shook my head.

          “I’ll look for her.” Was all I could manage to say before bolting out the door. I made my way quickly out to the dragon quarters knowing that flying on Artemis would be my only shot at finding Emma.

          My stomach churned as I noticed the last stall was empty this morning although I knew that it wasn’t when I flew in during the night.

          I looked around to see if I could find a dragon knight training with it. My heart sunk as the quarters appeared empty. “Emma?” I called out. And then I looked up…

“Emma?” I whispered, my stomach was now in knots.

          Emma dangled from the claw of a turquoise dragon. Her screams filled the air and it brought me quickly to reality. I called for Artemis and mounted as she flew by. Her screams became louder and louder the closer I came to her. I flew as quickly as Artemis’s wings could carry me. Stupid Norwegians, can’t even do something as simple as fly a dragon.

          Her body slumped into my arms as her screaming began to die down. She started to mumble, “Not again.” I brushed a loose strand of her long hair from her face. I coaxed the dragon she was flying down to the ground in Elvish.   

I kept a single arm around her as I made my landing. I slid effortlessly from Arte’s back as I kept my hold on Emma. I fell to my knees and attempted to wake her up. “Princess Emma!” I shook her shoulders gently at first and then more forcefully.

I could hear the faint cries of the queen behind me. Lukas came crashing down next to me, tears had filled his eyes. “I told her not to fly!” He yelled, his wife I assumed came rushing toward us. Her hands cradled Emma’s face as she spoke Norwegian. Curse these idiotic people and their inability to speak Scottish!

Before I knew it Emma had been pulled from my hands and carried away by Lukas. I already strongly dislike this dunce princess. Of all things she could be able to not do it had to be flying a dragon. Everyone in Scotland can fly a dragon, we raise our children doing it for goodness sake.

“Thank you King Derick.” The queen curtsied before me. The king stuck out a hand to help me from the ground, I stood and kept a hand on Artemis. “I’ll be back, I need time to think.” I shook my head, their words flew past me completely. Everything was a blur.

Had I really just put both Artemis and myself at risk simply to save a girl I didn’t want to be with?

I mounted and let forth a roaring command of “Revia!” and flew away quickly. My face hardened and arms tensed as the scenario replayed in my head continuously.

“Arte, let’s go home and tell my mother it simply won’t work with this one.” I couldn’t live a life with someone so different from myself. I’d plead that we choose a maiden from Scotland, one that knew plenty of the kingdom and how to rule it. Someone that loved their dragon the way I love Artemis.

Artemis came to a halt before beginning her decent, roughly I might add. To my surprise we were once again in the dragon quarters of the castle. She stomped off angrily into the second to last stable.

I peered into the final one and was eye to eye with the turquoise dragon that had earlier held Emma by its claw. Without thinking I stuck my arm between the bars and gave a rough scratch the scales on his head. His emerald eyes were filled with sadness and regret.