Goddess of Flames

by J. A. Armitage

  "There is only one egg left. I've been throwing them to the men who beat you up here. This dragon behind me holds the last one, but if any of you step closer, I will ask her to flame you all alive."

  Behind me, I could hear the beat of Nyre's wings as she hovered between me and the mama dragon.

  "Go back down the mountain. I will not have you harm this dragon or any other. This is a mother protecting her young. As the Princess of Draconis, I command it."

  I stood tall, as the men wavered. Some turned to leave, but almost as soon as I thought I'd diffused the situation, some of the men charged me. All hell broke loose as the men that had joined a competition to marry me were now scrambling towards me with their swords out. I was above them. If I had my sword and it was one on one, I could have beaten them easily. As it was, I had no sword, was wearing a dress, and couldn't feel my own fingers. More than ten chased toward me. As the first one reached me, I kicked out, sending him reeling down the mountain. The scream he emitted as he fell through the clouds would haunt me, but I had no time to worry. Another one was rapidly approaching. I fumbled backward, climbing up the mountain to get away from him. But I was heading toward a much more deadly foe. The mother dragon had been watching with interest, but as I turned to her, I could see the nervousness in her eyes. She wasn't scared to kill. She was a dragon . It was in her nature. She was scared to kill me. The Queen of Dragons. I was the one getting between her and the men she thought wanted to steal her babies.

  I had no choice. The men had made their decision and would have to suffer the consequences. I couldn't save them now.

  "Go!" I pleaded with them one last time as I stepped aside to let the dragon breath flames down the mountain.

  And then something happened that had me rooted to the spot. Milo appeared below them . If I moved now, Milo would be killed alongside these strangers. Milo, who was only in this competition for me despite the fact he thought I was dating Caspian.

  My heart lurched as I watched him climb around the other men, but it was too late. He wouldn't be able to save any of us.

  A flash of purple caught my eye as Nyre flew down the mountain and plucked him up in her talons. She dropped him beside me as the first man caught hold of my ankle.

  "Don't you dare touch her," he screamed, bringing his foot down hard on the man's hand. The man screamed and let go, dropping his sword before falling ten feet or so below us. Milo drew his sword and faced the men.

  "If one of you lays a finger on her or even thinks about harming this dragon or her eggs, I'll kill you all. With my bare hands if I have to."

  But he didn't have to. He had his sword, and he was above them. He had every advantage. I watched on as he fought them one by one. A couple were picked off by Nyre, who dodged their swords and flung them down the mountain. Behind me, the dragon mother bellowed. I turned to see one of the men climbing into her nest. The fear in the eyes of the dragon was obvious. She wanted to kill this man, but indecision had her rooted to the spot.

  "Kill him!" I shouted out. She didn't have to breathe fire. She could chew his head off or swipe him with her talons. But I could see that what was stopping her was her eggs. She didn't want to move for fear of trampling them. As I watched, another man pulled himself up into her nest, spurred on by the bravery of the first and the fact that the dragon was stock still, paralyzed with fear.

  If she couldn't do anything, I could. I picked up the sword dropped by the man earlier and sprinted upwards while Nyre and Milo fought the men below.

  They were coming thick and fast now, more of them emerging from the cloud, eager to fight it out over the remaining wooden egg.

  "I'm here to help you," I said to the terrified dragon. She nodded with tears in her eyes. If only people understood that dragons were not the terrifying creatures they were made out to be as long as they were not provoked.

  I patted her snout then turned towards the men. They'd both seen the wooden egg and were approaching it quickly. I ran towards them, my sword out ahead of me. I'd trained my whole life for this moment. The first went down quickly. He'd not expected the princess to fight him and so had not defended when 'd stabbed him right in his heart. He died with an expression of shock on his face. The second had a couple more seconds to ready himself, and so I had to be better. I had to be better than him because this was a fight to the death, and we both knew it. He didn't care that I was the princess, nor the prize in this stupid competition anymore. His focus was on winning, and that was all that mattered. I fought bravely, but he was good. I struggled to attack and could only defend. It wasn't helping that I couldn't feel my hands, and the cold weather combined with the ridiculous dress slowed me down. I moved backward with each thrust of his sword. He hesitated for a second, and I managed to get a swipe in, but he was quick to regain his momentum and attacked again. My back struck the edge of the nest. This was it. I kill him, or he would kill me. I defended each of his attacks, but with my hands being numb, I couldn't move as quickly as I would like. He reached back and swiped my sword right out of my hand, leaving me weaponless and hopeless.

  I pressed my back into the edge of the nest and waited for death to come. This was it. I closed my eyes and waited, but then the sound of crunching bones had me opening them. I heaved as I saw the sight before me. A pair of bloody legs stood in front of me, the torso and head ripped from them. The legs fell over as I caught sight of the dragon having a fine feast of warrior torso for dinner. I heaved then threw up over the side.

  Behind me, something grabbed me and hoisted me into the air. At first, I thought it was the dragon, but then I realized it was only Nyre. She plucked me from the nest and began the flight back to the castle. As we descended the mountain, I got a peek at the other dragons approaching the nest of the tenth dragon from the other side of the mountain. Hundreds of them. I recognized Vasuki at the front.

  "Stop!" I murmured, but it was too late. She usually obeyed my wishes, but I was too tired and cold to shout louder. She was ignoring me anyway. My dragon magic was at an all-time low, and I had nothing left in me to give. She didn't drop me at the back of the woods, but in the castle garden, before flying off again.

  "Stop!" I shouted again. "Milo is up there. The dragon mama!" She ignored me and disappeared into the clouds as the world began to spin. I fell to the ground only vaguely aware that some of the castle staff had run out to me.

  I awoke hours later in my own bed. "As soon as my eyes fluttered open, Dahlia shouted to someone to bring me soup. One of the castle staff must have run to pass on the message because she closed the door and ran over to my bed."

  "I've been so worried. You silly girl. What did you think you were doing?"

  "Milo?" I croaked.

  Just then there was a knock at the door. As Dahlia was busy fending off whoever was at my door, I used the opportunity to jump out of bed and check the scene from my bedroom window. From this distance, I couldn't see much, but the low level of light told me I'd been out for hours. Torches lit the arena in the dim twilight. Without looking back, I opened the window and standing on the ledge, compelled Nyre to come and get me. Behind me, I heard a commotion and the clattering of a bowl on the stone floor. A quick look back told me Dahlia had seen what I was up to. The clattering was my soup. She dashed toward me, followed quickly by a kitchen servant and Jack. As though everything was happening in slow motion, I leapt outward as Dahlia reached the window. Her fingers brushed my ankle, but it was too late. I was already falling toward the cobbles in the courtyard below.

  Dahlia's scream filled the night. Inches above the courtyard, Nyre swooped in as I'd known she would and pulled me into the air.

  I'd known she would catch me in time. We were so in tune with each other that leaping from my bedroom window was not the feat of insanity it must have appeared to be to anyone watching.

  I'd expected Nyre. What I hadn't expected was a fleet of dragons following in her wake. We flew through the air, Nyre and I in the lead with a V-shape of dragons behind us. So
much for Vasuki not finding out.

  Nyre swooped into the arena.

  The men that had already managed to get back scattered as we came to land amid a wave of screams and commotion.

  As we landed, only three men ran in our direction. My father, Jacob, and Milo.

  Milo ran straight for me, sweeping me off my feet and spinning me around much to the delight of the crowd.

  As tears dripped down my face, Milo kissed me. The audience loved it, judging by the oohs and aahs that now took over from the screams of before. My whole world came to a standstill as a wave of happiness overcame me. Someone in the crowd began to clap, quickly followed by others until, like a peal of thunder, the sound engulfed us, surrounded us until, like the beating of my heart, that's all there was. Just Milo and I and the thunderous applause of twenty thousand people, telling me that I'd been right all along. I wanted Milo.

  As he pulled away, the grin on his face made me laugh, and my tears turned to tears of happiness.

  "Kill them!" Jacob screamed to his men, taking me out of my moment of euphoria. He raised his sword, aiming at the long row of dragons that lined the edge of the arena floor.

  "No man and no dragon will die here tonight." My father said, stepping in front of him.

  My father looked up and addressed the crowd. Now that they had seen my father, the crowd became silent, eager to see what would happen next.

  I held my breath as Vasuki walked forward. As he walked, he shifted into his half-human form. The audience gave a collective gasp when they saw him change. He walked to my father and held out his hand. This time my father shook it.

  "This is my friend, Vasuki," My father shouted out to the people. "He and his kind are welcome in Draconis, the kingdom named after them. There will be no more killing. From this moment on, The Fire Mountains are prohibited to all humans by decree of the king. Anyone caught up there without permission from Vasuki or anyone caught with a dragon egg will be punished to the highest degree of the law."

  "You can't do that!" Jacob yelled, holding his sword up to Vasuki. "As the king, you can put forward a law, but it has to go through Urbis to get it passed. It could take months. Until then, I am legally allowed to do what I want regarding the dragons."

  "That's true," my father answered, pulling his sword, "but you'll have to come through me."

  He swiped at Jacob's sword, knocking it away from Vasuki. The crowd went wild, never having seen their king fight before. I held my breath as Jacob lunged at my father. Neither man was wearing armor, and one thrust to the abdomen would kill either one of them. Milo gripped my hand tightly to stop me from running between the fighting men. I guess he knew me too well because, despite the fact I had no sword and was wearing only my nightgown, that's exactly what I wanted to do.

  My father was more skilled than I had anticipated. He blocked Jacob's thrusts, parrying and thrusting with his own sword. I could only watch on with bated breath as they danced around each other, fighting in a whirl of speed and flair.

  The noise of the crowd increased, and over the deafening roar, I could just make out Remy's voice shouting, Dad!

  My father seemed the stronger of the two, but he mistimed his step and fell, allowing Jacob to hold his sword to my father's neck. Milo's grip on my hand loosened as the crowd booed Jacob. I ran toward them, unsure of what to do. Jacob's face was contorted with rage, and he knew as well as I did that he would have to kill my father or lose face. A lifetime in prison awaited him if he carried out the murder of the king, but he was too far gone to stop now. He pulled his sword back, ready to strike, and at that moment, he flew into the air, carried by a dragon with yellow scales. Kuda flew up through the clouds as a cheer erupted through the crowd. I held out my hand and pulled my father up into a standing position.

  "The men have been picked," my father addressed the audience. "I think today has been eventful enough. We will see you all back here tomorrow for the final round. Goodnight."

  He waved with one hand , taking my hand in his other one. Milo raced over and took my free hand. What did any of us care anymore who knew that I loved Milo? I didn't care. We had only one night left to be together, and I was going to make the most of it.

  27th January

  Milo's soft breathing beside me told me that yesterday hadn't just been a wonderful dream. No one had stopped us when we'd walked hand in hand to my room, and though the guard outside had tried, my father had told him to leave us alone.

  A small knock on the door had Milo stir, but he didn't awaken. I had a curse on my lips for Dahlia for waking us up. She knew Milo was here. She must have. But when I opened the door, it was only Jack with the morning's breakfast on a tray.

  "Dahlia asked me to give these to you," he said gruffly. "She said you might not want to come down for breakfast, so she had it brought up."

  He eyed me suspiciously as he handed the tray over. On it were two plates of cold meats and cheese, along with two croissants and a pot of jam. Two cups of coffee and the morning papers took up the rest of the tray. He tried looking over my shoulder to see who was with me, but I managed to close the door before he saw his precious work-mate in my bed. It would blow the poor man's mind, although if he'd had bothered to check the papers on the tray he'd have seen the pair of us kissing on the very front page. I stifled a grin as I thanked him and took the tray, closing the door firmly behind him.

  I looked at the front covers of the Draconian Sentinel on the top as I placed the tray on my side of the bed. It was the second time in a week that they'd posted a photo of me kissing someone. I was becoming quite the scandal! Putting the Sentinel to one side, I checked out the covers of the other kingdoms' newspapers. Most had the same or a similar photo with the story of my competition. I was becoming famous in all the other kingdoms. The only cover not to feature me was the Atlantice Conch. It had a story about how things were beginning to change, about a shift in the energy in the water. It felt horribly familiar. I threw the papers down, not really caring. I had better things to think about.

  Milo opened his eyes as I slid back into the warm bed beside him. Thankfully, I'd rested the tray beside me because he brought me toward him, catching me in a kiss. My heart beat in triple time as his lips lingered upon mine, and my body danced a whirl as he pulled me closer, our bodies touching.

  Last night had been about new beginnings, new feelings, and new experiences. Experiences I desperately needed to feel again, feel for the last time with Milo, because in a few short hours, the last day of the competition would begin.

  "I wish this could last forever," Milo said, threading his fingers through mine.

  His words were bittersweet. It couldn't last forever. At worst, we had hours; at best, we might be able to sneak time before the wedding. We'd wasted so much time, and now my wedding was almost upon us. A wedding which Milo would definitely not be a part of. He was out of the competition. He'd not managed to bring back an egg. At least, Caspian hadn't managed it either, I'd not even seen him up on the mountain. Not that I cared anymore. I was going to have to marry someone and that someone wasn't Milo. It would be a stranger. Someone I didn't know and had likely only met briefly. It didn't bear thinking about.

  "Don't think about it," Milo said as though he could read my mind. "We have some time together. I promise that I won't leave your side for any of it, and when the day comes for you to get married, I'll step back and let you get on with your life."

  "What do you mean?"

  "I'm going to The Forge and live with my mom."

  Tears streamed down my face as I took in his words. I knew it had to happen even before he said it, but hearing it out loud made it all the more real. He was right to go. I wouldn't have been able to bear him being so close to me in the castle while I pretended to be happily married to someone else. It would be impossible for him too. Milo kissed away every tear, and as the tray fell to the floor with a crash, sending cold coffee all over the floor, he pulled me back to him.

  The urgency in his touch w
as apparent. Where last night, he'd traced my skin, giving me goosebumps as we'd taken our sweet time getting to know each other's touch, now with the promise of the competition starting soon, time was a luxury we didn't have. Despite my hope that we might be able to snatch a few secret hours before the wedding next week, it was unlikely. I would need to concentrate on my new fiancée. I blocked it all out as Milo crushed his lips to mine, obliterating every thought. I pressed my body to his and surrendered myself to beautiful oblivion.

  Light poured into the room filtering through the gauzy curtains, signaling the end of our time together. I kissed Milo softly on the forehead, tasting the salty taste of sweat from our exertions.

  "I have to get up," I sighed, glancing at the brightening sky, just peeking through my curtains. "I have to go to the competition. " I'd put it off as long as I could, but the sound of the general hustle and bustle of the castle had been going on for a while, and I knew it wouldn't be long before Dahlia came to fetch me.

  Milo didn't stop me climbing out of bed, though the pain in his eyes almost broke my heart. Today was the day I would finally meet my husband to be. I tried not to think about it as I pulled on a dress from my wardrobe. I didn't have Dahlia to help me today, so I picked a dress I thought she might choose and pulled my hair into a high ponytail. The dress I was willing to do, but I wasn't going to spend hours on hair and makeup. My husband to be would just have to take me as I was. He had the advantage of knowing who I was to begin with. I didn't even know that about him.

  As I stepped to my door, Milo took hold of my hand.

  "You can't come out into public with me," I reminded him. The whole kingdom would see us on the cover of the newspaper this morning, but I couldn't be seen with him again. It wouldn't be fair to the competition winner

  "I know," he replied softly, "but I'll be with you every step of the way until then."

  I gave him a sad smile as I squeezed his hand. Our time together had been so brief, and it had almost run out. So many regrets ran through my mind as I opened the bedroom door, but sleeping with Milo wasn't one of them. I only wished I'd done it earlier... wished I'd spent more time with him. Jack's face was a picture when he saw who was with me. I gave him a smile and was just about to say something when there was a tap on my window. I turned to see Nyre flapping her wings outside. Running to her, I opened the window. With a wink, she dropped something heavy at my feet before once again taking to the sky. I looked down to find a wooden egg. The same wooden egg I'd protected against the two men in the nest the day before.