Royalty Fantasy Boxset: Ember Dragon Daughter & Hasley Fateless (Fated Tales Series 1 & 1.5) (The Fated Tales Series: YA Royalty Fantasy)

by Rebecca K. Sampson

  Just as much as he liked praise, he disliked questions.

  The rest of the ride to the community home was uncomfortable. Ember tried to focus on the sights around her, as Azororion was one of the two provinces that she and her moms had never lived, but each quiet moment had Ember replaying the conversation in her head.

  Jedoriah made decisions quickly and without consultation of others, he was comfortable with the death of their people, only deciding to change their Fateless policies when the people began to change opinion and rebellions grew. He had no problem hiding away the Queen, his pair, and taking on as much of her role as possible. What snap decision had he made about Noor?

  “He’s not suitable,” echoed in Ember’s consciousness.

  At their first rest stop, Ember insisted that Cindrea join their carriage. The two girls maintained quiet conversation until they arrived. Cindrea found it much easier to ignore Jedoriah Knight.

  The community home was not what Ember expected from their early conversations. At least, it didn’t appear like the comfortable facility she had imagined from the outside.

  Standing in front of it, the building appeared cold and overbearing. It was a tall building of cracked peiradoone stone. She didn't even know the material could crack. Feather-black lines marred its surface and the color of the stone itself… Well, it was as grey as soot. Not the blinding white she was used too.

  “Why does the building look damaged?” Ember whispered as her eyes trailed around the mass of it.

  “Because it’s almost as old as the First Fating,” Jedoriah answered. His tone showed more appreciation than the apprehension Ember felt.

  “Why are we using such an old structure?” Ember questioned.

  “We needed a building that could hold several dozen people and staff, and these are old war buildings. It would have been wasteful to not utilize it when it worked well for our needs. There are four of them across the kingdom. That should hold those newly inflicted with room to grow.”

  His voice took on a lecturing tone that she did not appreciate.

  The phrase newly inflicted reminded Ember that the Fateless were murdered until recently. The dead eyes of that nameless man flew into her memory unbidden. She couldn't think about that now.

  Knowing that the building was made for war and soldiers, the tall enclosure with small windows seemed appropriate. The thick door, opened before them with two guards in place, must have helped protect them from a siege.

  Attempting optimism, Ember said, “then I’m excited to see how the inside is being renovated.”

  “They better re-do the sidewalk at least. This is a tripping hazard,” Cindrea said as they walked up the drive.

  The inside did appear cleaner to Ember’s relief. There was something like a reception area with seating upon entering. Beyond that, she could not see, as an in-progress doorway blocked her vision. Men and women worked around them, filing paperwork behind the counter and taking in supplies.

  “Welcome,” a timid voice said.

  Ember smiled as the short woman came into view from behind the construction, “Hello.”

  “A pleasure to meet you, Embrence Dragon Daughter. I am Farlein Doctor. I will be studying the Fateless.” She spoke in soft but punctuated syllables.

  “A pleasure to meet you,” Ember said as Cindrea and Jedoriah shook the doctor’s hands.

  “Let’s give the Dragon Daughter a tour,” Jedoriah said as he gestured towards the door and the construction beyond. Farlein’s small stature walked ahead of them.

  “One benefit to the prior structure is the way the rooms are laid out. Each door leads into another room, and they all connect together. We are keeping that layout, with only a few additional divisions to create small guard and doctor stations,” Farlein said. She tucked a strand of her brown hair behind her ear as she led them from one room to another. The space turned them around in a circle.

  “And in the back of the building, there will be a recreational yard. We would like to study the effects of physical activity on the patients,” she continued.

  Ember stared at the door, imagining the Queen walking through it and into another garden. Trapped in one building of stone to another, with greenery. If her biological mother came here, her life might be better. More people to interact with. Less seclusion. But also, chaos on the streets. She shook herself as Cindrea put her hand behind Ember’s back, “pay attention,” the older woman hissed quietly.

  “Come this way,” Farlein said as she walked with a construction team member. Amir appeared behind them, having gone on his own private tour. He had said it was to check the security of the building. She knew it was to gather information for the rebellion. Or both. He was exceptionally good at his job. They followed as Farlein explained, “Through this door, we have the quarantine area.”

  “Why would someone need quarantine?” Ember asked.

  “When new patients come in we need to keep them separate from the others to confirm the plague. We anticipate some families may drop people off who are inflicted with other diseases besides being fateless. Here we will weed out other possible contagions.

  “Through these doors are the stairs to the dorms. We’ll have three floors of dorm rooms for the sick,” Farlein said as they continued on the tour. Most of the first foundation floor was complete, but the upper levels weren't yet ready for use. Seeing the rooms for the Fateless would have to wait for the next visit in a month’s time.

  “There is much still to do,” Jedoriah commented.

  “I agree,” Ember said. She realized it was one of the first things she remembered agreeing with him on. But it was a promising list of to-dos. Farlein, at her advice, was going to check in with some local scribes for their records on the Fateless. With their studies, it could help gain any other information that would help get them started.

  On the way out the doors, one of Jedoriah’s guards gasped.

  One of the more quiet guards, Moniker, glowed gold, as did a woman at the end of the hall. She started to cry, running towards Moniker.

  “I thought I'd never find you!” She said, wrapping her arms around his wide torso. He held her back, kissing her hair and face. Gold sparks erupted around them, encircling them. She let go, shock spreading across her face.

  The sparkle began to transform into purple. She looked down at her middle and swelled, a small pop to bring their blessing into being. Barely a bump, but a life. Blessings and fatings didn't often come together. In fact, this was the first time Ember herself had seen Aaleia and Mutrien work in tandem at first sight. It was beautiful. Moniker’s hands came to sit atop the nurse's stomach.

  “Hello,” he spoke to her stomach.

  “Hi,” she whispered back, her hand covering his own.

  Jedoriah chuckled. “See you tomorrow, Moniker Guard.”

  As the only man fated to someone who was fateless, Ember wondered if seeing that special moment hurt him.

  “Congratulations,” Ember said to them both as she passed with Amir and Cindrea. They nodded to her absently, more preoccupied with their lives coming together than speaking to the heir.

  Walking up the drive a few hours later, Amir followed closely behind. Cindrea lingered to speak with the driver, a man Ember hadn’t had the chance to know yet.

  “Did you get what you needed?” She asked, knowing Amir was in earshot.

  “Yes,” he responded simply.

  He’s not suitable.

  “There is something else I need for you to do,” she said, unsure if this new fear in her chest was warranted. But after what Jedoriah said and Oma attending to a mysterious rebel matter, they had to be cautious. Ember was not going to let her new-found purpose become a jail, not like the Queen.

  “Whatever you need,” he replied sincerely. His boots clicked on the floor in rhythm with her own.

  “We need to have emergency bags packed. All of us,” she declared. He knew she meant themselves, Noor, and Wally. The core group in her life. Rebels.

 
“I’ll see to it,” he said. Ember smiled at the pride in his voice.

  Nineteen

  Without Secrets

  The weeks that followed brought Ember to heights unknown. While the conversation with Jedoriah had caused her to worry, no action had come from it. In fact, Jedoriah had begun to distance himself further from her even more than before. Other than in their weekly history lessons on Aaleia, Mutrien, and the two foreign kingdoms across the sea, she saw him only during mealtime. Oma kept him busy, pulling him into meetings and seeing he took on extra tasks like the new filtration system for Ashkadance’s water supply.

  Life with Noor had never been better. Without secrets, each day they got to learn the little details that made each other special. They had spent the morning getting to know each other particularly well, and in the afterglow, they came together for breakfast with her family. Some days, they didn't make it down to breakfast at all. Today was not one of those days.

  “I have something to discuss with you all,” Oma said around the table that morning. She folded her hands together before her food, steam curling upward from the mug to her left.

  “Is everything alright?” Ember asked, unconsciously mirroring her movements. She reasoned that everything had to be fine, if not this conversation wouldn’t happen in public. Her heart didn't typically follow logic. Karwyn cleared her throat at the end of her table. The gurgling sound from her mouth lingered too long as her eye was drawn away by a wraith sitting atop a tree.

  “Fireheart, I don't have much time left here,” Oma answered. A stray wind picked up her white hair.

  “What a delight!” Karwyn called with a jump from her seat, her cream dress wild with the movement. She ran from the table towards the sitting dragon-relative with her arms splayed open. Guards ran after the mad Queen, while Ember turned back to the Dragon Matron. She was used to it. At least her mother wasn’t violent like many of the other fateless she had met as the homes began to take on guests.

  Noor squeezed her hand before he too left to help Karwyn. Her voice drifted farther and farther away. Only Jedoriah, Oma, and Ember remained seated at the thick glass table. There were vines similar to her debut ball in the center of the table, dried out and curling.

  “What do you mean when you say you don’t have much time left?” Ember coached her voice to speak in a level tone. Was she sick? Dread pooled in Ember’s chest quickly and irrationally.

  “This is not my home, I came to meet you and help you get acclimated, but you don't need that anymore. I have to go back to Cruelindime and reassert our presence on the other side of Ashkadance. The Mutrien ball is coming soon,” Oma explained.

  Breath exhaled in a rush, Ember almost laughed for having immediately thought Oma was dying. Then the words hit home.

  “You’re leaving?”

  Her voice creaked like the door of the last home she held with her moms.

  “The last known dragon known to fly over Ashkadance was sixty years ago when the Dragon Matron was only twelve,” Ahnika lectured. Ember barely heard her above the roaring in her head. Minutes went by without notice.

  “Embrence, really, it is as if you aren’t even trying,” Ahnika scolded. Ember blinked, the haze of her thoughts dissipating. She re-drew her focus, reminded briefly of Amlin Jeweler’s lectures.

  “Yes, Drakul died a mortal death,” she blurted when her eyes cleared enough to see the expectant look on Ahnika’s face.

  “Right, that would have been relevant to the conversation twenty minutes ago. It is not, however, relevant to the disappearance of dragons altogether.”

  “Well, maybe it is,” Ember attempted to argue, trying to bring back favor of her teacher.

  “Why would that be?” Ahnika questioned, leaning back against the desk next to Ember’s.

  “Well, Drakul died because he began to live a human life. His dragon life would outlive Kariana’s, so he stopped transforming so they could age and die together…” A lightbulb went off in Ember's mind.

  “And?” Ahnika prodded, leaning forward to hear the theory.

  “Maybe something happened to the dragons that were left, shortening their lives similar to how Drakul’s timespan changed in this environment, but we wouldn’t be able to know what it was since our line is no longer able to talk to dragons. Maybe they stopped coming here because we couldn’t help them anymore?”

  Ember felt proud for the sudden idea, thinking it might actually prove interesting to her instructor. Echoris would have been proud.

  “If that were true, then you are saying all dragons, everywhere, are dead or dying from some life-shortening illness or condition with no one to help them,” Ahnika commented somberly.

  “If they aren’t dead, where else would they be?” Ember hadn’t even realized what she was theorizing, but the thought of all dragons in the world as dead hadn’t even crossed her mind before. There would have to be less dragons, for sure, but all gone? She absently grazed her hand over her scales, now more a part of her than she ever would have thought months ago. In her heart, dragons were just… not here.

  “Well you did mention one thing we know for sure,” Ahnika said as she stood up again.

  “What was that?”

  “The royal family no longer has the ability to talk to dragons and other beasts. If the Queen, or you,” Ahnika gestured to Ember, “saw one miraculously, you wouldn’t be able to ask them where they have been for sixty years.”

  She sat at her desk. “Anyone would leave if they couldn’t communicate.”

  Could the merfolk speak to dragons, Ember wondered, if their claim to speak to the gods was true?

  Two hours later and still charged by the conversation with Ahnika, Ember knocked on Jedoriah’s office.

  “Who is it?” his muffled voice asked.

  “Ember,” she called.

  A shuffling sounded within and the door unlocked. Taking it as a sign that she should come in, Ember cautiously entered. Jedoriah sat behind stacks of papers, organizing them into piles. Several also lay crumbled on the floor.

  “What is it, Embrence?”

  “I had some thoughts I’d like to run by you,” Ember said. She sat in front of his long desk hesitantly. The candlestick flickered at her movement. She glanced at the other lights sources in the room, none of them shared the calm steadiness of the bloodfire that surrounded her tower.

  He looked up from his stacks, his grey-blue hair uncharacteristically messy.

  “What’s on your mind?” Jedoriah asked.

  “The wall…” she began, unsure how to even bring about her thoughts.

  “What about it?” His posture straightened.

  “If we are unable to communicate with the other two kingdoms, how do we know that the dragons are gone? What if they came back to Grydagia and Faeinto instead? How do we know that the other kingdoms don't already have a cure for the Fateless?”

  Ember’s thoughts pushed out in a rush. She had meant to lead with dragons and then bring in the idea of a cure, but her heart jumped ahead of her. A cure. A mother. Oma will still leave, but the idea of getting to know her mother? She couldn’t shake it.

  “They don’t have a cure.”

  His voice was clipped and defiant.

  “How do you know?” Ember gripped the clawed hands of her chair.

  “Karwyn became fateless because of them and their lack of help with the merfolk. We put up the walls to keep this from happening to anyone else. If the same happened to the other kingdoms, and they didn’t create their own wall, then the merfolk have destroyed them by now.”

  At each mention of the merfolk, his body became tense.

  “But we have more Fateless than ever before. Every year there are more. We have to be able to communicate. We have no way of knowing it is any different out there, right?”

  Ember tried to temper her anger, heat flared in bursts through her heart, but she pushed it down. She didn’t know everything about their resources yet, for all she knew there was more to this.

&
nbsp; “I know that it is different, end of story.” He stood, walking out from behind his desk. His dark cloak moved with him, causing the candles on his desk to flicker once more in the waving movement.

  “There is unrest from former tradesmen and sailors. We can’t import any goods. Do you know how much peiradoone we have left? The Fateless aren’t getting better. What is this wall solving anymore?” Ember said defiantly.

  His hand rested on the door handle, looking towards where Ember now stood.

  “This is the way things are now. We are walled in. It is all that we can do to protect our kingdom. Now leave,” he seemed forlorn, defeated, his face weary.

  “We need help! We need resources!” She pleaded, thinking of all the suffering she had witnessed from the rebels.

  Jedoriah opened the door, gesturing for her to walk out of his office.

  “Why are you so unwilling to discuss anything?” Ember asked him, exasperated.

  “I’m the only help you are ever going to have, Ember, and there is only so much I can give you an answer for,” he said, ignoring the question.

  Feeling braver than she ever had in his presence before, she said, “I will be Queen one day. I may have never wanted it, dreamed of it, but it is a fact. It is my purpose. When that happens, these half-baked answers aren’t going to work anymore.”

  She walked through the door into the light of the hallway.

  “The wall is coming down,” Ember declared defiantly, the door still open behind her.

  Karwyn stepped forward from the end of the hall, guards and her lady in waiting in her tow. Jedoriah’s office stood only feet away from the queen’s tower. On the opposite side of the hallway stood Cindrea, pushing a tray of tea. All that was missing was Noor.

  “You don’t know what sacrifices are being made for this kingdom every day,” Jedoriah said, looking between all the parties present and closed the door.

  Karwyn’s giggle startled Ember out of her shock.