by Katie Cherry
“You scared me,” she replies, a hand on her chest. “I didn’t know you were awake.”
“I wake with the sun.” After continuing to stare at her, he tilts his head, like a dog. “I like you.”
“You like me?”
“Yes. Victor and Tatiana warned me to not like you until you prove yourself, but I can see your heart. A little, at least. And what I see reminds me of Crystal. …You want to belong. You’re lonely- you were even before, with the dragon slayers.” Turning his gaze to the sun, his words deepen in meaning. “I’m glad you get a fresh start. You think today will be your last. It is your beginning.”
Alyssa stares at him, emotions swirling. The young dragon, strange as it was, gave her a feeling of hope with his words. Finally, she replies, “You are wise beyond your years.”
“I have only been alive for one year,” he chuckles, vibrating beside her as he does so. “But yes… Victor and Tatiana think I may be a sapphire dragon.”
“But you’re green…?”
Turning his head to face her, he gives her a toothy grin. “All dragons are born green. As we develop a personality, that may change. Sapphire dragons are wise and observant. Purple dragons are shy and keep to themselves- they’re the smallest. Red dragons are competitive- they’re the fastest, to fly and to speak. Black dragons are prideful- not necessarily a bad thing, just when it clouds their decisions. It’s alright to love yourself.”
“What about Gold? What made Gale gold?”
“Gold is the rarest of them all. He has been gifted with a greater connection to the magic of Zilferia than any other dragon.”
Another voice joins them in their thoughts, the male dragon, Victor. “Good morning, Alyssa. I’m glad to hear from Eric that he trusts you, though I hope you understand that Tatiana and I will be slower to trust.”
“Of course.”
“But with Eric being a sapphire dragon at heart, more weight can be given to his words than what only his youth and exposure to humans can grant. …I do hope you make this day a fresh start for you, and truly start anew rather than focus merely on survival.”
Pausing, Alyssa stands, looking up at the dragon. In the new light of the day, she could see how he could be seen as majestic rather than just terrifying. Shifting her gaze to the young dragon- nearly as tall as she- she can’t help but smile as she sees the hope and trust shining in his eyes. Closing her own, she focuses inward. Alyssa Greenston. Always worried about what others thought. Toss her out. Alyssa, the girl who channeled her anger and frustration into destruction. Can’t hold onto her anymore… Alyssa, the desperate, the lonely, the frustrated… the close-minded. In her mind, she vows to herself that she’ll work to let them go. Opening her eyes, she feels lighter, but empty. Not the painful emptiness that loneliness caused, but the emptiness of a page yet to be written. Endless possibilities.
Turning back to Victor, she lets out her breath. “From this moment on, I will work to become a new person. I believe that I can do it… for me. I’ve needed a fresh start from the beginning. I thought the Dragon Hunters were my answer, but being there only worsened the least desirable parts of myself.”
Dipping his head to her, she notices the respect in the gesture. “I see now why Eric sees Crystal in you. There is a darkness each of you struggles to overcome, yet you find the strength to change yourself for the better, though the comfort of the darkness continues to pull at you. Welcome, Alyssa, to the light. Let it wash over you and open your eyes to things the past you would have rejected.”
“Perfect timing,” Tatiana calls from the cave. “They’re hatching. Alyssa, I would like you to join us and be born again even as my hatchlings are born.”
Tears in her eyes, Alyssa takes a cautious step toward the cave, overwhelmed with the feelings washing over her. She felt… clean. Her body was still filthy, true, but on the inside… she felt scrubbed clean. A little raw, but… she felt as though she were glowing. Holding fast to this peace, she slips into the dim cave, cautiously taking a seat beside the nest. There were five eggs. Taking a steadying breath, she brushes away the fear that rises at the thought of so many dragons surrounding her. I’m a new person, she firmly reminds herself, forcing her mind to look at the eggs differently. They were beautiful, honestly. They looked even more metallic than dragons scales, their pure turquoise color brightly reflecting the light beginning to stream through the cave entrance.
Captivated, she finds herself reaching out to one of the eggs. Panicking, she stops, glancing at the dragons. They nod for her to continue, and she lets out a breath, allowing her hand to continue forward, gently placing it on the smooth shell. She jumps as she feels movement inside, instinctively pulling her hand back. Moments later, cracks begin to appear near where she had placed her hand. “I didn’t do that!” she gasps, scooting further away.
“We know,” Tatiana chuckles. “As I said, they’re hatching.”
“Right… sorry.”
It takes a few minutes for the little dragon to make a hole big enough to put its head through, but when it does, Alyssa’s heart instantly melts. “Oh my gosh, it’s adorable!” she can’t help but gasp, scooting back up close to the egg. The happy thrumming of the dragons pulses through her body, but she only has eyes for the baby dragon clawing its way out of the egg. The milky strands from the egg cling to the hatchling’s emerald scales, catching the light. Finally yanking the rest of its body from the shell, the dragon lifts its head to the sky, seemingly proud of itself, as it stretches its tiny wings. They’re so small and thin, the membrane stretched between the wing bones doesn’t block out the light, causing them to look like they’re glowing. Mewling, it turns and sniffs, looking for mom, who immediately leans over with her long neck and licks the strands from the egg off the hatchling’s scales. It then follows her lead, stumbling over to get some milk.
Tearing her gaze from the hatchling, Alyssa turns back to the other eggs, each in various stages of the process. One by one, the dragons, about twice the size of kittens, make their way out of their shells and over to Tatiana, where they join in the search for milk.
After a few minutes of watching them feed, Alyssa turns to Victor. “So what are their names?”
“Dragons do not name their young immediately after birth,” he smiles, “However… you are welcome to name one of them, if you’d like.”
Alyssa gapes at him. “Seriously? You want me to name one of your babies?”
“We believe it may help you bond with one of them,” Tatiana replies, looking up from the small, wiggling pile of green scales. “Although it goes against my nature to trust you so, Gale assured me that you are meant to bond with one of my hatchlings.”
“Gale said… wait, can he see the future?”
“He has a feeling of what will be,” Victor slowly replies. “It is difficult to explain. It isn’t a clear picture, but thanks to his great connection to the land, he can feel what course will take the land on its best path.”
“O-oh… I don’t know that I’m that important,” she nervously chuckles, her gaze flashing back over to the first hatchling, who turns to look at her in return.
“I suppose that will remain to be seen,” Eric murmurs, his sharp eyes picking up on her gaze, locked with the hatchling. “A name may come to you as you grow your bond with her,” he continues, everyone watching as the hatchling makes its way across the sandy rock to get to Alyssa. “Know that by naming her, the two of you may grow closer than you- yesterday’s you- may have liked.”
Nodding, though not paying too much attention to his words, Alyssa watches as the tiny dragon bumbles up to her, finally reaching out and scooping her up. Lifting her to her face, she looks at the tiny creature in awe as it stares right back with her bright, golden eyes. “H… hello, there,” she timidly greets.
The hatchling cocks its head and begins vibrating as though it were purring, like a cat.
“And so it begins,” Victor comments, watching the two with interest as they’re lost in their o
wn little world. “I only hope that Gale is right in allowing this girl to bond with a dragon. Beyond you and Crystal,” he continues to Eric, “It hasn’t been done in… well, not in my lifetime, at least. Such a bond can be powerful, especially so soon after hatching, and to entrust such a thing to a Dragon Hunter…”
“Former Hunter,” Eric happily reminds him. “She has already begun her change- bonding with that hatchling will accelerate her transformation. I see it already- the lies and the hate the Dragon Hunters piled on Alyssa slips away with each second with her. This can only be a change for the better,” he comforts.
Alyssa then turns back to them, tears glimmering in her eyes. “It’s… strange. The love I feel for this tiny crea- dragon.” Stopping for a moment, she takes a deep breath.
“Her name… is Zarina.”
<<
“Eme rofebklof remehtnol leps kcoldna Lehtts aci noomeh tforewo pehtnog niward.” The spell falls from Kaifeng’s lips as he tries not to wince at the thought of what the merfolk assembled before him were sacrificing. Lifting his face toward the surface of the water, just a few inches above him here, he finds the moon with his gaze. Pointing the Trident at it, he repeats the spell, feeling the Trident fill with power before he lowers it and turns back to the assembled group before him- about half of his remaining forces.
A few tremble as they stare at the glowing Trident clutched tightly in his webbed hand, and he could hardly blame them. To give up one’s tail was something never before done voluntarily… it was a form of exile, of the worst of punishments. But locked in a war with land-dwellers… it’s best to be able to fight on enemy turf rather than be trapped, subject to their black, inky bombs that thickened the water and choked the merfolk and many of the other life unlucky enough to be in the area of the attack.
The Dragon Hunters hadn’t attacked for a while, but Kaifeng didn’t want to leave it up to chance that they just happened to give up. Besides, most of what merfolk do is fight, so even though it meant gaining legs, they’re eager to fight. They were not equipped to let an enemy just disappear.
No… they would fight.
Swimming toward his soldiers, sectioned off and floating with him near the surface of the water, he locks eyes with each of them before rattling off the spell one last time as he lowers the Trident to point at them. Waves of gold power strike the rows of mermen, though it seems to do little to affect them… for now.
Finishing the spell, Kaifeng backs away once more and lifts his chin to his warriors in a gesture of respect. They all return the gesture, and he begins to speak.
“Brave warriors, how I long to go with you in this fight against the black-cloaked humans. I honor you for your willingness to push back in this war and taking our might onto land. They are about to see just how powerful a people we are! Through your representation of merfolk on land, we will drive this battle back to the land-dwellers who thought to best us and show them the error of their arrogance. Your willingness to sacrifice your tails, although temporary, will cause you to go down in legend, win or lose! Though, how could we lose? I foresee the hand we play in ultimately defeating these dark humans, and pride in you- in us- gives me joy even in these dark days! So I thank you once more for your sacrifice, and honor you by escorting you personally to the edge of the land, where I will see you off as heroes!”
The warriors cheer, heartened by the speech, and assemble themselves behind Kaifeng as he swims forth, soon reaching the edge of the land. The captains of each section go first. After they adjust enough to help those behind them, the others begin to join them on the land. From the first touch, their tails vanish, leaving them with thin, weak-looking legs that wobble and finally drag behind them as they crawl up onto the sand, letting their legs dangle behind them so as to more quickly leave their spot on the sand open to those behind them. Watching them struggle and squirm, awkwardly gasping for air with their mouths, Kaifeng frowns to himself.
Alexander Dragon, you may be my friend, but I am casting more trust on you than you have yet earned. Do not throw all this away. Do not make my sacrifice in vain. If these mermen never return… I may not survive the anger of the wives they leave behind.
<<
Zeke finds himself unusually nervous as he watches Kate tidy up after their meal, his hand clenched tightly in his pocket. The edges of the diamond cut into his hand as he firmly grasps the ring. The ring meant for Kate… the ring he would be giving her within just hours, asking her to be his wife. Blowing out a deep breath, he tries to shove his nerves down. Why would she say no? They’d been together for a while now, for years, even. Honestly, it was a move he should have made long ago, but he’d wanted to make her ring himself. Finding the diamond was the easy part. Getting the metal of the band to form the way he wanted was trickier, but eventually, he’d managed it, with only a little help from magic.
Kate’s eyes move over to him and she gives him a smile. “Zeke, are you feeling okay?”
“Of course,” he replies, giving her an easy smile- or, what he hoped was an easy smile- in return. “I’m just a little stressed- and tired from all the training the King has been putting us through.”
“That’s definitely understandable,” she sweetly replies, coming up and giving him a light kiss. “Life certainly was easier when we just lived in the forest,” she chuckles.
“Absolutely it was,” he agrees, glancing down at her stomach. She wasn’t showing yet, but he knew to trust that she knew what she was talking about when she told him a few weeks ago that she was pregnant. Pregnant. He was going to be a father. And nothing made him more nervous. He hardly knew his own father, but what he did remember wasn’t great. Of course, he was also the leader of the Dragon Hunters. Still, Zeke can’t help but worry that he’ll fail as a parent as well.
“Hey, there’s no need to worry so much,” Kate murmurs, cupping his face in her hand. “Everything will be fine.” She smiles, but it doesn’t quite reach her tired eyes. She’d been unable to sleep well for the past few days, and had been nauseous a good amount of that time as well. The baby was not taking it easy on her.
“I know,” he sighs in response. “…I’d still like to get away for a little while. Just you and me.”
Her smile brightens. “You know that sounds great to me.”
“Great, let’s go now,” he says, taking her hand and gently tugging her toward the door.
“Oh.. Okay,” she giggles as she’s pulled from the house. Walking hand in hand down the street, Zeke makes sure to keep the pace slow and leisurely. He refused to let his nerves get the best of him and ruin his plans of a sweet, romantic proposal at sunset. Walking faster wouldn’t make the sun go down any quicker. “It’s getting warmer,” she comments, turning to look at him, her happiness sparkling in her eyes. “Living with a dragon kept our area pretty warm. I’m so not used to snow anymore!” she chuckles.
Smiling, Zeke simply nods in reply, keeping his gaze on her, watching her curly brown hair bounce slightly with each step. His love for her warmed his heart, and he can’t help but sweep her into his arms, burying his nose in her fragrant hair.
“What’s that for?” she asks, returning the tight hug.
“I could never lose you,” he murmurs into her neck.
“You won’t lose me,” she affirms, running a hand through his hair. “I’m right here, with the leader of the Sohos to protect me,” she adds with a wink as she pulls back.
Continuing their walk, Zeke can’t help but sigh. “What if I’m not good enough to protect you and our child? Patrick’s exploited that weakness before, what if he aims to do so again? What if I can’t keep him from tearing our family apart?”
“Hey, shhh,” Kate comforts, gently tugging on Zeke’s arm to pull him around to face her. She looks up at him, an intensity in her eyes as she stares into his own. “Zeke, Patrick has no power anymore. We don’t have to worry about that. I know we’re technically still at war with the Dragon Hunters, and whatever myster
ious higher power directs them, but they won’t come for us. I’m not a Queen. I’m just me. Besides, we still have like, six or seven more months before that even becomes a concern. The war could be over by then.”
“And if it’s not?”
“We’ll do what we can to protect ourselves and our baby. But that’s not even a concern yet. Okay? Can you promise to not worry about it for a few more months for me?”
“I’ll try,” he gives in with a sigh.
“That’s my Zeke,” she smiles, giving him a kiss before continuing to walk with him.
Taking deep breaths, Zeke shoves his fears down. She was right, of course. Worrying was pointless. It wouldn’t accomplish anything. Of course, it didn’t help alleviate his primary concern- the proposal. They were nearing the top of the hill, and the sun was nearing the horizon. It was almost time.
And his brain was blank.
He’d scripted a whole speech for this! His panic was blocking the words, and it was getting worse by the second as he worried about it. Try to calm down… it’ll come back.
Smiling at Kate, he gestures for them to sit on the blanket he’d brought up earlier. “Zeke!” she gushes. “You planned this ahead of time?”
“We need some calm before everything gets too crazy,” he manages to reply, settling onto the blanket beside her. “I thought it would be nice to just sit and enjoy the sunset.”
“You’re such a romantic,” she chuckles, snuggling up to him, her head on his shoulder. As the sun slides lower, brilliant colors begin to paint the clouds, and Zeke knew it was time.
And he still didn’t have the words.
Great, I guess I’m winging it, he groans to himself. Turning to Kate, he kisses the top of her head tenderly.
“I love you, Kate.”
“I love you too, Zeke,” comes the happy response. Hardly daring to breathe, he carefully pulls back from her. She sits up and looks at him curiously. “Zeke, what are you-”
“Will you marry me?” He’d meant to say more before springing that line, but it was too late, the words were out. Fumbling to assume the position, he pulls out the ring and offers it to her, pinched between his fingers. The light of the sunset seemed to ripple across the smooth surface of the ring, bringing out the details he’d painstakingly carved into the part that rose to wrap around the diamond. A lily, her favorite flower.