A Draton Isles Tale : Book 1 (complete)
As the Kingdom of Riteron sacrifices itself in war, King Darius must give up his only child to his most trusted knight. Princess Sapphire, true heir to the throne of Riteron, was sent away to be raised amongst...
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I snarled as the words left Sapphires mouth. I would never kill her, even if she was peircing my chest with a blade. But I know why she said, keep the crowd calm and collected, let them know all details. Keep their trust.
"I will do whatever is necessary for the safety of the clan." The dragons bowed their heads in respect and I sighed heavily.
The next hour or so was spent detailing an attack plan. We would have to split into 3 groups to get the most advantage. Group A would be our earth bound dragons. They would dig tunnels to allow entry to the castle from below. Group B, our flyers would be used to lead away the rogues above the castle to 2 seperate locations, one at the lake where Sapphire and I had been earlier and the other would be back here at the mountains. Group 3 would be split across these 2 locations, ready to take out as many rogues as they could before charging the castle.
Once we got to the castle, if all went well, we would battle it out against Buphas and Magnus' army of humans and hopefully kill them both. All without Sapphire coming into contact with Buphas. I huffed and paced as tension built within my body.
"Taurus," Sapphire called as she sat beside me with her dinner. Dusk had fallen, we would be setting off at dawn.
"I'm not hungry," I said as she presented a bowl of greens, peperred with lavender and daisies and chunks of fish.
"Are you pouting at me?" She asked, raising an eyebrow as she shoveled food into her mouth. Princess I scoffed internally.
"No," I told her, settling beside her "I'm contemplating."
"You mean stressing," she pointed out. I narrowed my eyes at her but she grinned happily.
"Whats with Dominic?" I dead panned and she almost choked on her stew.
"There is nothing with Dominic, hes a friend of Cherrys' and leader of the bandits." She said pointedly and I smiled. I knew she was lying, but I was glad there was some normalcy in her life. A silly little crush after 18 years of living on a secluded island with dragons.
"You should rest," I said to her after she had eaten.
"No, no," she replied "I think a five mile hike is in order!" she said sarcastically.
"Hm, you have gotten fat, lass," James said as he approached. Tamina was busy setting up with the healers, collecting herbs and foraging for any bandage type material. They were going to have a busy few days after this. If we win, that is.
"You're horrid," Sapphire said dryly as she threw a small pebble in his direction.
"I've come to give you my speech," James said seriously and Sapphire stilled.
"No," she said firmly.
"Sapph-"
"James, I said no! You are not going to die tomorrow so why do I need a speech?" She asked, fear evident in her voice, hands trembling by her side.
"Sapphire," I spoke as softly as I could "let him speak." She turned to James who nodded to me before taking both her hands in his.
"Kid," he started " the first day I met you, you were a small bundle in huge castle. Your parents asked me to save you and to being you home in peice one day. The first time I held you, I knew I would do it all, whatever it took. Tomorrow is the day we take back the throne. If I die, I want you to know that you were my favourite quest, and I would do it all again in a heartbeat."
Sapphire stood motionless for a few moments before a choked sob made its way out of her mouth. She cried and James pulled her close, consoling the child he had raised. I turned to give them a moment alone and found myself walking to the furthest corner of the camp.
Nestled in the far corner, the other ice dragons lay in comfortable silence. I approached slowly, debating on if this was the right move.
"Taurus?" a familiar voice called. I looked up to see the gentle face of my mother, Letran, Ice welder of the East, looking up from where she was. The other dragons also sat up, watching me in surprise as I approached.
"Mother," I said quietly, trying to control my wave of emotions. My father stood beside her, stoic but anxious.
"What do you need?" He asked, his tone carefully even.
"To mourn," I said quietly, head hung low "I have his blood, his power, his energy, thats why you can't stand me," I said. I felt a weight lift off of my chest as I said it, but another one, a physical one, crushed me. But gently.
"Oh my child, my sweet bitter child, we don't hate you, we just don't understand you," my mother cooed. I looked up to my father who shut his eyes as if in pain. When he opened them again, his face was full of remorse.
"We should have told you," he said walking up to me.
"I'm glad you didn't," I reassured him. He sighed, resting his head ontop of mine. Despitw my mighty age, beign coddled by my parents made me feel like a new born.
"My son, we never wanted for it to be this way," he said quietly.
"There's still time to fix it," I said firmly as I stepped back. My parents smiled and I relaxed, I had made ammends.
Returning to my camp, my anxiety mounted again as I spotted Sapphire, laying awake on her nest.
"Where did you go?" She asked. Her voice was scratchy and tired.
"To meet some old friends," I told her. I laid down beside her, curling myself around her protectively.
"Taurus," she said sleepily.
"Yes, child?" I asked as I lay my head down.
"James is my guardian, but he gives off a lot of uncle energy. You're the father I never had," she said as she drifted off. I lay quietly for a while, contemplating her sleep filled words. I reminisced in her childhood. Memories of her first flight, her squeals of delight at the heights we reached. I remembered her first exploration of the caves, deciding which one she wanted to live in. The first time she had broken her arm and how she tried not to cry, waiting patiently for it to be mended.
"I guess that makes you my daughter."
So, when I edit this, Taurus' 'redemption arc' is gonna be a lot more outlined. I really want him to go from 'stoic' to 'relaxed' throughout this story but I feel like it wasnt clear enough at the start. Opinions???
