ENCHANTED WORLD SERIES BOOK 3: THE DRAGON'S KEEPER
Chapter Twenty-Two

Maya felt cold hard ground against her skin as finally Danya had teleported her to a safe destination. Only Danya knew where this safe place was. She had made a promise to rescue her and Serensa but where did she take Serensa? And what happened to Aleric? She knew she severely wounded him but was the crumbling stone enough to kill a pureblood Dragon? She tried to move but each part of her body seared with Danya’s fiery torment.

“Heavens be kind!” She heard someone cry out before the sound of shuffling books and something heavy falling on the floor reached her ears. She was exhausted, her body trembling uncontrollably as she still went through some changes to accommodate Danya’s powers. Sweat ran down her burning skin in rivulets.

“Maya?” A familiar voice echoed and Maya managed to turn her head up and peel her eyes open.

Everything was blurry but she could tell from the familiar smell of leather, old books, cinder and polish that she was back in the Fire Fortress and the man in front of him was Sabine. Danya felt the safest place she could take her was to Sabine’s office.

“Sabine?” She croaked.

“Oh heavens child! What happened to you? I thought the rogues had you?” he kneeled before her but he didn’t touch her because the liquid flames had returned on her skin.

Maya blinked as she tried to get up but her body was heavy and tired. “What’s happening to me?”

“I have no clue. Did the sorceress do this to you? Is it some sort of spell?” He asked her softly.

Maya swallowed hard against her dry throat and answered. “No, this is Danya’s doing. She came from the Scarlet Shield.”

“Do you have the Scarlet Shield?” Sabine stuttered, the surprise in excitement in his voice evident.

“I had it....but it disappeared.” Maya exhaled heavily.

“I--I found the spell to expose the Scarlet Shield. Don’t move.” he go up and went to shuffle the papers on his desk.

It was not like she was going anywhere. Her vision cleared somewhat and she could see Sabine move to his desk.

“I would have covered you but with the flames....” Sabine swallowed soundly and cleared his throat. “Here it goes...” he began chanting to her. The words were beautiful and they travelled all the way into Maya’s bones. She felt them like a soothing balm over her skin and bones.

She had no idea what he was saying but she wanted to listen to him forever because somehow the words calmed her down.

When he said the last word her body arched from the ground as suddenly a pair of fiery wings burst out from her back. She bit hard on her lower lip and could have sworn she drew blood. The center of her chest shimmered with undulating fire. Maya felt the itchness of her skin as it rippled and shuddered. There was also the familiar sound of rattling scales.

“Holy, high priestess the all seer.” Sabine dropped the paper in his hands in shock. “You--you--the prophesy.....how. Balthazar.” he stuttered then stiffened. “Where is Balthazar?”

Maya writhed on the floor, unable to control the jerky movements of her body. “Sabine, what are talking about?” She gritted her teeth.

“Do you know Balthazar?” He asked moving away from her. “This could only have happened if Balthazar was your ancestor. Where is he?” Maya could hear the panic in the Dragon’s voice bit she had no clue what he was talking about.

She had never heard of the name Balthazar in her family tree. It was kind of hard to know of the ancestors of the family. The one person that might have at least had a clue was her grandmother because she kept a very old album of their forefathers.

“I don’t know what you are talking about, Sabine--and I am so tired, I need to rest....” Maya slowly drifted into dreamland, faintly hearing Sabine call out her name.

Drake and his warriors followed the sudden puff of dust as an old stone building crumbled in the middle of the dragon forest of Enders. They could hear rumble toppling off the structure and Drake channeled his thoughts to the Dragons surrounding him.

What is out there? He asked.

An old ruin, sir. One of the warriors answered.

It is part of the royal properties but it has been abandoned for years. No one has been here for a while. Another chimed in.

But I feel something dark and cold around here. Another said.

Drake felt it too. Let’s scout the place.

Red dropped out of the skies and in midair before he touched the ground, he submerged and Drake emerged landing in a crouch with one hand over his gun. His ears perked as Red scanned the area for any disturbance. Drake picked something foul residing in that area. No one could deny the sudden shudder of dread rippling down their spines.

Drake rose up and turned to the males behind him. There is someone here keep an eye out--

Before he could finish, something blurred through them and disappeared. The conspicuous sound of a breaking bone echoed around the forest.

“Fucking High Priestess!” One of the males roared as he dropped to his knees, one of his legs broken with the bone speared out of his skin.

Drake cringed as he removed his guns from his holsters. “We are dealing with a bitch-of-a-sorceress so keep focused!”

“Drake....” a malicious purr came from above them and Orisidia together with another female were leaning against a tree bark with their arms crossed. “Is that how you treat your Noble?”

Drake saw the evidence of what the Iyr was doing to her etched on her skin. She was pale with terrible red rims around her eyes. Her skin was clammy and worn out. Her body was barely the ample one he saw the last time. Her once shimmering hair and eyes were now drab and hideous.

“You are nothing but a traitor to me.” Drake snarled at her tightening his hold on the guns. Though they weren’t going to kill her, they were going to slow her down.

Orisidia clucked her tongue. “And I really liked you from the first time I saw you.”

“You served me sherry tea. You have an interesting way of show your fondness to people.” Drake shot back.

Orisidia smirked. “I learnt that from my dragon lover....” Violence ignited in her eyes. ” And your mate disfigured him. She will pay for it.”

Everything in Drake’s body tightened. Maya was still alive and Orisidia knew where she was. He raised his guns as her and gritted his teeth, seeing no reason to continue talking to the vermin in front of him. “Where is she?”

A cruel smile appeared on her face. “Somewhere where you will never replace her. She is as good as dead. This realm will go to the rogues and you together with your queen are going to the afterlife soon enough.”

“Where is the Rogue leader?” Drake asked, his hands trembling with anger.

“He is waiting for you. He wants to see your face when you get the information that Malenna and Wren are dead.”

Drake felt dread cooling in the pits of his gut. Rogues were in the ranks of Queen Malenna’s army. “Where is he?” Drake cried.

“Right here.” a familiar voice drawled as a male in a black hood sauntered forward. A hiss escaped his lips as he hid his face behind the overly long hood. “Nice to see you again, Drake.” He tilted his head up and fixed his eyes on Drake’s.

Drake took a step when he realised who it was. That wasn’t true! Aleric died earlier that day trying to keep Maya from getting hurt. He was attacked by the rogue dragon, stabbed several times on his back.

He lied dying on that gurney while the dark poison corroded his insides. Drake cried for him! “Aleric?”

“How did it take you so long to discover? You have become weak, Drake. You can’t tell a lie when it is looking at you straight in the eye.” Aleric rasped.

Hiding in plain sight....Red hissed in Drake’s head.

Drake felt defeated. He felt every bone in his body become weak. Yet again, he was not able to see that Aleric was the rogue leader. Though it shocked him to see the male at the Fire Fortress, he thought he had made it to the position fair and square but now he was very sure the male sneaked his way up. “How could you do this?”

Aleric chuckled. “The taste of power is as sweet as its promise. Having the ultimate power in this forsaken world is what you need to survive. Imagine having all that power and being the ultimate beast of the enchanted world?”

“You are sick.” Drake spat in disgust. No amount of power justified the monsterous actions Aleric and Kruk did to innocents. Nothing justified and rapes and maiming that occurred all those years ago and also to the several pureblood females. “Not only have you acted against the realm of fire but also the realm of Spells and your treacherous actions will go punished. How can you even slaughter your own soldiers?” He remembered the two rogues they caught that died from the Midnight Wycker spell. He bet Orisidia was the one who did it.

“I have pawns who don’t even know my name. They are eager to impress so that they are initiated into my inner circle. These are the ones who carry out the....tedious jobs. If they die while in the field, it’s not my problem that they are careless.” Aleric cringed and touched his face that was hidden behind the hood. “And since you are here, I would just like to tell you that I will skin your mate alive and feed her to the ghouls for what she did to me.” Before Drake could retort, Aleric removed the hood and revealed his face. He had a grotesque fire wound on one side of his face. Skin had melted on the flesh and bone. It was disgusting to look at him. “It is not healing!” He roared. “I don’t know how she managed to use the Scarlet Shield powers but I will make sure that not even the shield can protect her from my wrath!”

“Not if I kill you first.” Drake roared and went to attack Aleric.

The male pushed the robe away and it pooled down around him revealing the strange tattoo markings on his arms and head. An evil grin appeared on his face as he lowered his head down so that Drake saw the tattoo clearer. He had shaven his head but there was hair that had melted against his skin on one side. Drake was proud of Maya and hoped she would manage to escape wherever she was.

That was when Drake saw what Aleric was trying to show him. It was no wonder why no one suspected him to be a rogue. All the rogues had their pact tattoos on their pectoral muscles so when they removed their shirts, you could easily recognize it. Aleric’s pact tattoo was not of his breast, it was on his head, hidden inside his hair! It was exposed now that part of his head was severely burnt with wounds that weren’t closing.

Bullets flew towards Aleric from Drake’s guns but the male was fast with an Iyr pendant hanging around his neck.

“Instead of attacking me, you should worry about what is happening in the Fire Fortress. My warriors are ready to carve Malenna’s heart out at my command. Lode is making his way there to cleanse the fortress for me.” Aleric effortlessly blocked Drake’s attacks.

Get the wounded male back to the fortress. I need five able warriors with me. The rest of you return with the news of the attack to the Fire Fortress. Drake commanded the warrior’s dragons.

Five warriors stepped forward arming themselves and readying themselves to attack while the remaining took off with the wounded warrior.

“Stop them!” Aleric turned to the other female. She shrieked and took off into the skies, black bat-like wings bursting out from her back. There was an eerie silence in the air before a thousand beating wings could be heard. The squeaking sounds of whatever that was coming echoed in the trees and before anyone could act on it, a black cloud of bats appeared following the female behind.

Aleric smirked when he saw how stunned Drake was. “The Dark Energy gives you the greatest power to do what you please. Once it is released, no one would ever try to stop it again.”

The sorceress flying reminded Drake of the ones they fought with in the Realm of the Dark. They didn’t have staffs that harnessed their powers and they contorted into things of nightmares.

“The Dark Energy is evil and this whole world will be destroyed if it is released. You will not have a world to rule over once it is done!”

“And you believe that because it is what the ancients wanted you to believe. Once you embrace the Dark Energy, the truth is revealed to you--through the voices. The only reason why the ancients sought to banish the Dark Energy was because they wanted it for themselves but they couldn’t control it!” Aleric removed his blades. “Queen Malenna, Lord Mage, the Jinn King, The Fae King and Queen Seranis all wanted a piece of it because they saw just how powerful it was but they couldn’t control it so they decided to try and destroy it so that no one ever carried such powers above theirs....but you can’t destroy energy, can you?” Aleric gritted his teeth attacking Drake with his Iyr blades.

Drake ducked and moved away but he noticed the subtle chanting in the air. He turned up to Orisidia and saw that the female had her hands on the Iyr around her neck and she was chanting to it. It was controlling Aleric’s, making him stronger than ever.

Get that thing off the sorceress. He growled to his warriors. The warriors sprang into action, some bursting Dragon wings from their backs to try and get to her but she flashed away and appeared in another tree. She snapped her eyes at them and a cruel smile appeared on her face as her eyes turned red and snarling and snapping sounds could be heard from the bushes surrounding them.

“Why don’t I introduce you to my friends?” She asked as several bears and wolves appeared from the bushes, their eyes gleaming red and promising nothing but pain and blood. The animals snarled and snapped their jowls at the warriors.

Drake tried to tap into their minds but Orisidia had put a mind block. Drake was postive those were just animals not shifters nor beasts and that was why Orisidia was able to control a lot of them at the same time. They had simpler minds.

Try not to kill them. Drake told his warriors.

If we don’t kill them, they will kill us. One warrior snarled.

They are being controlled by Orisidia. Knock them out. The sorceress can’t control an unconscious mind. Drake remembered how Orisidia had lost her grip on Serensa’s mind when she fell unconscious.

The warriors nodded and went to do what they were asked. While Drake struggled with Aleric, his warriors were viciously attacked by the animals. Drake knew the only way to stop all that mess what to get rid of that Iyr Amulet around Orisidia’s neck.

He felt a sharp pain on his thigh and roared as Aleric stabbed him with his blade and staggered to his knees. The pain was crippling but Red was already all over it, covering the wound with scales so that it stopped bleeding and it started stitching itself closed.

“You are no match for me, Drake!” Aleric bellowed as he circled him. “I have always bested you in everything you did, late bloomer. I even replaced you in your father’s heart. He was very disappointed in you, the chief’s son! Stay down.”

Drake gritted his teeth against the searing pain and struggled to his feet, making Aleric madder than ever. Aleric’s eyes shone with menace, fury and madness as he charged towards Drake, crushing into him and sending him into the ground. It felt as if Drake was crushed by a mountain and he was pretty sure he broke a bone or two. Aleric straddled him and started punching his face.

“You should have joined us instead of getting the Lord Mage to slaughter your father, you coward! You could have been one of the best warriors out there! All these lying ancients would have been dead and this world would have been ours for the taking!” He cried, spittle flying from his mouth and blood marring his bruised knuckles as he assaulted Drake over and over again.

Why are you letting this clown win....Red hissed maliciously itching to come out and just make Aleric stop.

He is angry and that makes him careless. Iyr or not, he will soon tire. Drake said as his teeth rattled in his mouth at the punches that Aleric was giving him. Skin tore and ligaments detached until finally Aleric showed the signs of exhaustion.

“Why--” He breathed hard and swallowed a gulp of air. “Why aren’t you fighting back?”

“Because I have always been better than you.” Drake felt his hands ripple and slashed his claws against Aleric’s good cheek and neck, sending his Iyr amulet flying into the bushes. Four deep groves appeared on his skin gushing out blood. Aleric wanted to crawl away, his good eye damaged too but Drake stabbed his stomach with his claws. “This time, you are going to die.” He growled seeing nothing but red fury.

A tear escaped his eye when he recalled the times he laughed and hung around Aleric and the other males. He never gave thought to what the male really thought. He didnt know that him being the chief’s son made Aleric boil with jealousy. This wasn’t about the rogues and what was happening in the enchanted world. This was more personal. It was about Aleric wanting to show that he was better than him and that Kruk didn’t make a mistake in favoring him over his own son.

Aleric was wrong. He could never be better than Drake because he was sneaky and he used trickery and dark powers to get where he wanted while Drake used his blood and sweat. Drake was unlike any other. He was no match for any other walking dragon warrior and he was going to prove that to Aleric.

“If you kill me, you’ll never replace your mother!” Aleric cried right before Drake carved his head off. He turned around, blood running from his mouth and nose and managed a knowing smile. “I know where your mother is. She is alive--but if you kill me, I’ll make sure you won’t have even have a body to cremate.”

Cold dread settled in Drake’s heart. Was Aleric lying to save his skin? Was his mother really alive? “You’re lying.”

Aleric shook his head running his hand across his chest in the honour’s gesture. “I swear it. She is alive. Balthazar took her away right before she was killed by the angry mob.”

Balthazar....Drake remembered the powerful male like it was just yesterday. He was Sabine’s older brother but a dragon unlike any other. He had special abilities that made the Scarlet Shield choose him to be its protector. Balthazar was able to communicate with the Scarlet Shield, telling him about all sorts of things, events from the past and glimpses of the future.

After the war with Kruk, Balthazar was believed to have died together with his mother. “Where is she?”

Aleric held his hand up. “Promise not to kill me first and I will tell you--”

“Where the fuck is my mother!” Drake cried out raising his hand over his head and readying himself to kill the male.

“In the human world!” Aleric exclaimed. “Balthazar took her to the human world.”

Drake dropped on his knees in front of Aleric. He couldn’t believe that all this time he thought his mother was dead but in fact she was in the human world. Why didn’t she return after all this time? Where did Balthazar hide her? “Aleric, son Yohan, you face the charges of violence, death and treason against the Realm of Fire punishable by the Realm Law. I hereby arrest you according to the law.”

Orisidia shrieked behind them and when Drake turned to see what was happening, he saw that his warriors had managed to knock out the animals but they were wounded. Two managed to catch Orisidia, yanking the amulet from her neck but she flashed away, roaring in retaliation.

“Your Queen is dead!” She cried before she vanished.

It was a bad idea going after Malenna in such a weak state, Drake thought but it served her right to die like the dog she was. Drake was tired of overlooking past people fake facades. Drake felt pain on his stomach and when he turned, Aleric had stuck his thick blade into his stomach.

“If I am going to answer for my crimes against the enchanted world, I might as well make all of them count, including taking your life.” He growled.

Blood gushed from Drake’s wound as Aleric twisted the blade in his stomach, shredding his insides. Drake was too angry to even think about the fast approaching darkness. With the last ounce of energy he had, He raised up his claws and caught Aleric on his chest, slurping inside and digging for his heart. His dragon abruptly covered Aleric’s chest with scales but it was too late. Drake felt the organ beating in his palm though the razor sharp scales were cutting around his wrist.

Aleric’s eyes were wide with surprise. “Drake...”

“You first.” Drake snarled and pulled out the organ, shredding more of his hand with the scales. Heat pooled in his throat and he let out a fireball against the pumping organ.

Ear-splitting shrieks came from Aleric as fiery veins appeared all over his skin. He arched back and roared as his entire body shimmered with fire until finally he started peeling away in layers of cinder.

“Commander!” One of the warriors ran to where Drake was bleeding to death still holding the ashes of Aleric’s heart in his hands.

The wolves and bears woke up and shook their heads, their eyes back to normal before they slowly made their way back into the forest howling tiredly and in confusion.

“We need to get him back to the Fortress!” Another exclaimed but Drake knew he wasn’t going to make it. The damage done was too much and even though his body was working over time trying to heal him, he was losing too much blood. His head lolled to the side as the darkness swallowed him. He howled for Maya, not knowing where she was and if she was alright. The pain in his heart brought tears running down his eyes as he lost consciousness....death calling him with the sweet promise of a world without pain and sorrow....

Maya was startled from her dreamless sleep by the thudding of heavy boots outside Sabine’s office. She found herself lying on the leather couch at the corner of the office wrapped in a thick quilt. She managed to drag her sore body into sitting position wondering what was happening on the other side of that door.

She heard someone barking out orders while another was commanding the warriors to move faster. Was the Fire Fortress under attack? Did that mean Aleric didn’t die from the crumbling room? Where was Drake? Her heart burst in her ribs. Drake was going to be heartbroken when he discovered that his childhood friend was the enemy.

She tried to get but her joints throbbed.

There is danger outside of that door. You should stay in here. Danya’s voice filtered in her head.

Maya cringed because Danya was using a new channel of communicating with her now that she was warmly settled in her body. Maya didn’t understand when Danya told her to accept her power, until she realised the fiery dragon was looking for a body to reside in. Now, Maya understood what it meant to have a dragon of her own. She didn’t feel any different but there was that new feeling for an entity within her, watching over her, sharing her body, her mind and her soul. It was her, yet it wasn’t her entirely.

“I need to go and help Drake.” Maya said out loudly.

She felt her mind expand out of the confines of her skull. It was strange and terrifying as Danya scanned to replace Drake’s familiar mind pattern.

Drake is not in the Fortress. Danya said softly. But the rogues are everywhere. They are attacking the warriors and are heading towards Queen Malenna’s quarters.

“We have to help her.” Maya exclaimed in alert.

You can’t help her. You are still not strong enough. Let the warriors take of this. Queen Malenna is from the the Royal Bloodline. She is stronger than you think. Danya said.

Maya found herself sinking back onto the sofa and pulled the quilt around her naked body. Where was Sabine? And where did Drake go off to? Did he go in search for her? Did he meet Aleric on the way? Was he alright? So many questions were buzzing in her mind and she felt helpless because she couldn’t go anywhere and help out.

Wren entered the Fire Fortress with a bang! While warriors were swarming Aleric’s estate, arresting the culprits and taking the females to the hospital, Wren received news that the Fire Fortress was under attack.

The only thought he had in his head was his sister. He left her alone and unattended without a second in command or Drake.

Rogues came charging towards him but Wren was ready for them. He raised his guns up and shot his way through. After empting his bullets on one of the rogues’ stomach, he removed his blades and hacked his head off, sending it lolling to one side.

He was wounded from his fight in Aleric’s estate. After killing the sorceress in Aleric’s office, he entered the secret place where the pregnant females were hidden. Wren had never seen so much terror in his life. The seven females’ ankles were bound to the walls and they were enchanted. They squirmed when they saw him, full of fear and distrust. Wren could still taste their fear at the back on his throat....add his rage to that and his mouth was bitter with the taste of retribution.

Aleric and his rogues showed no remorse to the females, raping them and impregnating them then locking them up like a bunch of animals. Aleric swore that he wasn’t going to show remorse to the rogues he met. He slaughtered every rogue and sorceress he met when he was taking the females out and now he was going to slaughter every single one and let the heavens pass judgement to them in the afterlife.

Two more rogues charged towards Wren and he shredded their bodies, leaving them stunned at the sheer speed of him. Fire balls whizzed from beside him, the first one missing him by an inch and the second one catching his left arm and dropping his blade.

Czear quickly covered the wound with scales. Wren turned to the maddening male and roared, while he charged against him. He punched him on the stomach then kicked him on his chest. The male staggered but he didn’t fall. As he recovered, Wren punched him across the face and he would have done the favor to the other cheek but the male caught his fist and squeezed.

Pain shot through Wren’s arm but he was able to kick the male before he cracked his knuckles. He picked up his blade and slashed it across the Rogue’s chest then stabbed it through his rotting heart. The rogue wailed as Wren twisted the blade in his ribs.

The rogue kicked and writhed until finally he stopped moving and his eyes faded. Wren quickly moved through the corridors searching for his sister. He jumped over charging rogues and avoided claws and fireballs. The rogues were strong but the Fire warriors were stronger, hacking their way through their numbers like the pawns they were.

Wren came to a screeching halt when he came face to face with a sorceress. She turned to him and a smile appeared on her face. “You are one who killed my sisters, aren’t you?”

“So sue me.” Wren told her.

“I’m going to eat your heart!” She growled her back bursting in bat-like wings. Suddenly a swarm of bats swept down and covered Wren’s body, biting him in every exposed area. Wren tried to shake them off but they would not let him loose.

Their teeth felt like brands of fire on his skin. The sorceress chuckled as he watched him fight for his life but her laughter was abruptly stopped and the bats flew away. Wren looked up at her and her head detached from her body before she fell down to her death. Sabine was standing behind her with a sword. He placed the sword on the Iyr and snapped it from her neck then picked it up and walked to him.

“The sorcerers are no longer using staffs to harness their powers. They are using Iyrosium because this gemstone enhances their abilities and cannot be destroyed easily.” Sabine explained helping Wren up to his feet.

“Are you trying to tell me that she might wake up?” Wren rubbed away the blood on his face and hands.

Sabine nodded. “Unless we replace the mother stone which the head sorceress or sorcerer should have. Follow me.”

“I need to replace my sister.” Wren stopped in his tracks.

“I know where she is...and we better hurry up because I have a feeling the head sorcerer is with her. I can feel powerful evil surrounding her.”

Wren and Sabine made their way towards Queen Malenna’s quarters and burst through the door to replace a headless body oozing with black blood on the foot of her bed. From the way her eyes were shimmering and the suddenly statuesque sitting position Queen Malenna had acquired told Wren they were dealing with Dame.

She quirked her eyebrow at them then looked at the head that was still dangling in her claws. “Took you long enough.”

“Good to see everything has been taken care of.” Wren jerked his chin to the head. “Head Sorceress I presume?”

“A mere weakling really.” Dame muttered, her voice hinting her boredom. “Such a disappointment if you ask me.”

“Uh--I don’t think she is the one we need to worry about.” Sabine pointed to the window and the large bronze dragon that took Maya from the fortress was hovering at the window.

A large fireball shuttered the window and sailed in towards Sabine and Wren. The two males dived onto the floor and the fireball exploded behind them.

Dame turned to the window and a cruel smile appeared on her face. “That’s better.” She got up and dashed to the window in astounding speed then launched into the air changing into a full fledged black dragon.

They were the same side with the rogue dragon.

A stupid smile played on Wren’s face. He had never seen Dame so anxious for a fight. She was always the aristocratic one and would rather tuck her wings back that do the tedious work of flapping them and attacking a rogue dragon. He wondered when was the last time his sister took the dragon to hunt.

“Well...this is....this is something....” Sabine hung his arms on either drawn knee and looked up at fireballs sailed across the sky, claws slashed and jowls snapped. The fight was intense because both dragons were strong.

“I wonder if Drake found his mate.” Wren suddenly blurted.

“Heavens be kind!” Sabine suddenly jumped on his feet. “I left her alone in my office. What if she is attacked?”

“Maya is here?” Wren asked as Czear scanned the hallways for her.

She has changed somehow but she is here.

“How is it that she is here?” Wren followed Sabine through the hallways littered with dead bodies, blood and other things. The fights were still going on and they had to fight their way through several rogues, beheading them and ripping off their hearts.

“The Scarlet Shield brought her back. Can you imagine how exciting that is? I have not seen Iyses this excited before.” Iyses was Sabine’s Dragon.

Wren frowned when he suddenly opened the door and a fireball whizzed toward him catching a few of his hairs and dislodging itself on the door.

“Sorry!” Maya placed her hand over her mouth. “I thought it was a rogue.”

“How did you do that?” Wren turned to the charred mark still gleaming with fire on the door.

“Danya.” She raised her hand, Palm looking up and suddenly a red liquid fire explored from her fingers and created fireball hovering above her palm.

Wren turned to her. “Interesting....who is Danya?”

Sabine intervened and nodded vigorously. “She acquired a dragon but the interesting thing is how. Remember my brother Balthazar? I think somehow she is linked to him and hence that makes her....family. My great, great, great....uh....” Sabine sighed and shook his head softly. “She’s family.”

“But how?” Wren asked but the door was crushed in before they could answer. A male with bronze undulating scales staggered in. Queen Malenna was right behind him. Everyone jumped out of the way as the fight continued inside Sabine’s office, Dame slashing the male’s face over and over again.

No one paid attention to Maya who’s anger spiked when she laid her eyes on Lode, the male who mistreated her over and over again. Her body rippled with fire and translucent glassy scales as she threw away the quilt and jumped at him.

Lode’s eyes bulged when Maya’s fiery hands went around his neck.

“He’s mine!” Dame hissed at Maya.

“Mine!” Maya growled at Dame and the female took a step back. Maya turned to Lode, picking him up like the way he did to her and let him dangle. She burnt through the flesh around his neck, loving the wailing and gurgling sounds he was making then turned his bones into ash until finally his head detached from his body.

Maya moved back and shuddered as the fire and scales disappeared under her skin.

Dame smirked. “Not bad for a naked human...”

Maya looked down at her body and cringed her eyes hard before crouching to hide her sex and breasts from Wren and Sabine. “Oh...this is utterly embarrassing!”

“How did she do that? Is she the protector of the Scarlet Shield?” Wren asked looking very confused.

Sabine sprang up in excitement. “No, she is more--the prophecies--Balthazar would have explained it better because he used to talk to the Scarlet Shield, remember? But the prophecies said that the Fyr dragon will reincarnate through that of body, flesh and bones.”

“You are talking in riddles, Historian.” Dame turned impatiently to Sabine.

“Balthazar once told me that the Scarlet Shield had told him that it was seeking a body to reincarnate in.” Then pointed at the clueless and crouching female in the middle of them as if it was the most obvious thing.

Both Wren and Dame quirked their eyebrows to him and he groaned in frustation. “Maya is not the Protector of the Scarlet Shield, she is the Scarlet shield! The Scarlet Shield was known as the Fyr dragon back then but she has called herself by many names too; Tamila, Kafer and now Danya. She was created through the sympathetic tears of the War gods. She is reborn into a body worthy of her power....in this case--”

“The human female.” Both Wren and Dame turned to Maya.

“No offense Dame and Queen Malenna but Maya has just become the most powerful dragon walking the lands of the enchanted world. Danya is one of a kind the only Fyr dragon and the only Dragon created through direct godly powers.” Sabine’s excitement was bubbling out everywhere. “And that is why when she snarled at you Dame, you instinctively moved away...because you are already recognizing her powers. This is---this is....” Sabine sighed and sank to his chair.

Maya looked up. “Can I have something to wear now?”

A dragon warrior suddenly appeared all bloody and frantic. “Commander Drake has been gravely wounded and he is dying!” The warrior announced.

Everyone rushed out towards the infirmary as the attacks tapered down with most of the rogues lying dead on the ground now that the head sorceress was dead. Their Iyr weapons lost their powers and they became weak, easy to kill.

Maya covered her naked body with the quilt and followed everyone else behind. It felt like she was walking through a fog, oblivious to what was happening around her and confused to what was told to her. Drake couldn’t die. She had good news to tell him. She had her own dragon and now she understood what he felt.

Maya felt hot tears roll out from her eyes. Emptiness was engulfing her heart and squeezing out every single good memory she had with him. She could feel him slip quickly out of that world into the next. She felt it in her bones and her heart hurt. Drake was dying.....