Dragon Riders: Darkness

Prologue

Bound in shackles there walked the two Ex-Dragon Riders being led through the dark halls of the dungeon. The guards were all around them.

Too many to fight, thought Deryk a youthful fair skinned man with curly auburn hair going in every direction and a short auburn beard. Another day he would have looked handsome but walking through the dungeon covered in dirt wearing rags he just looked defeated.

His sister Kaylin was next to him. Her usual beautiful long auburn curly hair was in a big knot. She kept her head held high and gave the guards defiant looks.

Always a fighter, thought Deryk. He felt defeated but inspired by his sister he lifted his head high. At least I'll die with dignity.

He knew they were leading him to his execution. When the Dragons and Riders are caught they die. The Dragons are killed on spot because they are deemed to dangerous to keep alive for any amount of time and keeping both the Dragon and Rider alive keeps them strong but once the Dragon is dead the Rider is defeated. The Demon King had them bring the Riders back to make a spectacle of their execution.

He knew a rescue wasn't going to happen. In the initial stages of the Dragon Riders Fall when they still had a lot of members there were many coordinated rescues. Deryk was apart of many of those on both sides. He had gone to rescue many Dragons and Riders and there were many times when he was rescued, some times even cutting it a little close.

Another time when Deryk and his friends were captured they were able to escape themselves after breaking their Dragons out. After that the Demon King didn't take any chances and had Dragons killed on spot.

Deryk had been a pain in the Demon Kingdoms side since it's rise to power and the Demon King had tried his best to kill him and his friends and now they had him and there would be no rescue for him and his sister.

I am all alone, thought Deryk. He had lost so much. Many of his friends were dead. The love of his life was too. And...and his dragon.

Deryk could remember the very moment his Dragon Inferno died. On an important mission they weren't sure they would return from Inferno his Flame Dragon was fighting a multitude of the Demon King's Dragon Hunters when he was overpowered and a spear was shoved into his heart through his fire red scales. Deryk remembered letting out a scream when he felt his Dragon's soul being torn away from his own. It felt like he was missing a part of himself.

Deryk was ready to die and have his and Inferno's soul reunited. He was not afraid of death but he was afraid for Kaylin.

Deryk was an Ex-Flame Rider so they couldn't burn him because his immunity from fire still clung to him from when he was a Rider. Kaylin on the other hand was an Ex-Water Rider so she would have no such protection. The Demon King liked to burn Dragon Riders alive because he found it cruel to use a Riders own weapon against them.

For some groups of Riders who are captured if the Hunters didn't see their Flame Rider use their powers they would attempt to burn them with the rest but the Flame Rider would be able to focus the fire to kill them faster in order to not carry on their suffering. His sister wouldn't get that though. They knew Deryk was an Ex-Flame Rider. They would burn her and keep him out of reach then they would throw him from a high place to kill him. That was their other execution method. The Demon King also found it cruel to have a Dragon Rider fall to their death because of how much time they spent flying.

They were now out of the dungeon and were paraded throughout the Demon Capital. People yelled at them, threw stuff, and spitted on them. Kaylin got a glob of spit in her face yet she trudged on defiantly.

Deryk couldn't help but think of how his son was doing. He was six and already aspired to be a Dragon Rider. Deryk had left him with his best friend Devin. When Deryk took this mission Devin promised he would take care of his son no matter what. He had his own children, twins, who were four. Their mother and Devin had gone on a really important mission and she never came back. Deryk knew it killed Devin everyday. Every Dragon Rider had lost someone in this war.