Dragon Rebellion

by M. Lynn

  She’d expected to be taken to a prison cell, but instead, the guards stuck her in this ornate room, unfit for someone with plans to kill the emperor. Gold coated every surface from the trim of the wood-paneled walls that had been painted with intricate designs of roses, to the table and chairs centering the room.

  It was some kind of sitting room with a wide, blue-velvet settee in front of a gold-rimmed hearth. No fire warmed the chilly room, and at least that discomfort made sense. Prisoners didn’t get to be warm and comfortable; they didn’t get to experience luxuries at the Imperial Palace.

  In Piao, those not of the emperor’s council or household weren’t supposed to enter the palace at all. Yet, here she stood. She crossed the dark marble floor before pacing back. Where were the guards? They should be preparing her for a quick execution. This was supposed to end.

  She’d stopped fearing death because the alternatives were much worse. If the Nagi managed to erase her before her body died, she wasn’t sure she’d move on to the next life. And then what? The Nagi would terrorize Piao, and no one she loved would be safe. That was what scared her. It was why she’d first donned her father’s armor and joined the army in his stead.

  It had never mattered what happened to her.

  Noise sounded outside the door and voices filtered through. “If my life is in danger, I will face my enemy.”

  The emperor.

  She closed her eyes, willing him to walk away.

  The door opened, and he froze on the threshold, his eyes finding hers.

  The emperor looked no different from when she’d first met him at Luna’s side. A top knot sat on his head, pulling his hair away from his face. But that was where the severity ended. His face held a softness that made him instantly likable, trustworthy. And even now, upon looking at his would-be killer, his eyes held kindness.

  She didn’t know how long she stared, not bowing or addressing him, before he spoke. “I know you.”

  Swallowing back her memories of Luna, she shook her head. “No, your Imperial Majesty.”

  He looked behind him to the lingering guards. “You removed all weapons from her?”

  Murmured responses came from the guards.

  “Good.” The emperor stepped into the room and shut the door despite the protests from his guards. He pulled out a key and stuck it in the door, turning it until it clicked. Squaring his shoulders, he faced her once more. “I will hear about this from my advisors, no doubt.”

  Snapping out of her stupor, Hua bowed.

  “Stop that,” the emperor snapped. “You have come to kill me. Don’t play at respect.” He pointed to the settee. “Sit. Now.”

  Bo Xu Wei was not an intimidating man, not in the way his father was before him. There was nothing stern about him, nothing hard. Hua had seen it in the way Luna spoke of him, and the way he’d looked at her. They’d admired each other. Hua looked away, unable to meet the eyes of the man her sister loved.

  Hua lowered herself onto the settee, waiting for the emperor to tell her he’d set her execution. That was the punishment for treason, and she needed him to follow through with it.

  The emperor paced in front of her, his arms clasped behind his back. The purple robe swished around his ankles. “General Kai has told me how he uncovered your assassination plot.”

  She cleared her throat. “He speaks true.”

  He didn’t stop moving. “My advisors wish me to throw you into the darkest cell until we can throw an execution like no one has ever seen—as if it’s some kind of party.” His lip curled in distaste. “But something here doesn’t make sense to me. I have known Luca Kai my entire life. I cannot read anyone as well as I read him. And that is how I know he does not speak the whole truth.”

  Hua kept her eyes trained on the cold hearth. “I came to Dasha to kill you.” The words were true. The Nagi was here to kill the emperor, it didn’t matter if Hua wished him dead as well. She squeezed her eyes shut to prevent tears from falling. She waited for the words of hatred, for the condemnation and reminder Piao would forever remember her as a traitor.

  Instead, the emperor put a hand under her chin to tilt her face up. “Why?”

  Hua swallowed. “The emperors of Piao have forced my kind into hiding. The dragon blooded have suffered too much.” She held her breath, waiting for his reaction. It was the first time she willingly revealed the blood inside her that was once a mark of death in Piao.

  The emperor’s hand dropped, and he stepped back, his gaze going to the door where his guards pounded against the wood, their fear for him evident in their yells. His brow creased and she couldn’t tell if he wanted to retrieve his worried guards or hear more of what she had to say.

  When he met her eyes again, recognition sparked in the depths of his irises. “Hua Minglan.”

  Fear coursed through her. If he recognized her, he’d know her entire family was blooded. “No.”

  He covered his mouth with his hand. “You look so like her.”

  Hua jumped to her feet and backed away from him. “I don’t know of whom you speak.”

  His eyes glassed over. “I have mourned Luna since the day she died.”

  Hua couldn’t hold back the tears any longer as everything she’d felt about Luna’s death poured out of her.

  “Is that why you have come to kill me? Because Luna died in my service?”

  “Haven’t you heard anything I’ve said?” The words burst out of her. “I am dragon blooded. That’s enough reason. Take me to a cell, kill me like your father killed so many of my kind.”

  He wiped his eyes. “I am not my father. I knew of Luna’s blood, but I made a promise to her that I would do better than my predecessors. She was my best friend. The day she died, I felt like I had too.”

  “She was your consort. Not your friend.”

  The emperor sighed and sat on the settee. “What would she think of you coming to Dasha for this purpose?”

  Hua turned away from him. He was supposed to hate her, to spew vitriol that would have made everything easier. “I don’t know. She’s dead.” If she was at the palace for any other reason, she’d laugh at the thought of Hua Minglan having a private conversation with the emperor. The day Luna was chosen as consort, the sisters had been terrified, but also excited. It meant Luna moved into another world Hua could never have dreamed of.

  Yet, here she was.

  Rage filled her, but it didn’t feel like her own. She drew her fingers into fists, clenching them at her sides as she turned back to the emperor.

  “He killed our kind, Hua.” The Nagi’s voice echoed through every part of her until it was all she heard.

  Hua hadn’t slept since her time at the healer’s, and with each passing moment, her weariness grew and her control slipped.

  “He is the enemy.”

  “This is what we came for, our purpose.”

  “You can fix all of Piao’s problems right now.”

  Each time the Nagi filled her head with her words, Hua inched closer to the emperor, her lips forming a snarl.

  She tried to make herself stop moving, but it was no use. Her strength slipped away as the Nagi whispered a few final words.

  “Luna is dead because of him.”

  She lunged, knocking the emperor from the settee as her hands closed around his neck.

  “Hua,” he wheezed. “Stop.”

  A tear fell from her lashes. “I can’t.” Her grip on him tightened as something boomed against the door.

  “It will all be over soon,” the Nagi whispered.

  She stared into the eyes of the man her sister had loved, the one Luca was loyal to. Jian’s brother.

  There was no coming back from this, but then, she’d never wanted to come back.

  Heat seared down her arms as the emperor bucked and thrashed beneath her. He was no match for the Nagi’s strength. It wasn’t like before. This time, the Nagi didn’t take complete control of her mind. Instead, she weaved their consciousnesses together.

  Hua knew e
xactly what it was she did. She could feel every bit of it. The tears were her own.

  But the Nagi controlled the actions of her body.

  Another boom rent the air as the light faded from the emperor’s eyes. Sobs wracked her body, but she couldn’t stop.

  Wood splintered inward, spraying across the room before a man dove toward her, tackling her to the ground.

  “Bo.” Luca’s cry cut through her heart as she saw her friend drop to his knees and pull the emperor into his lap. “Wake up, Bo. You have to be okay.”

  It wasn’t until that moment Hua understood everything the Nagi had said before. Luca loved Hua, but there was one person whose life he wouldn’t risk to save her. He’d brought her to the palace for an execution to save the emperor.

  The Nagi continued to fight, but three guards held Hua down, pinning her to the wood-strewn marble. She couldn’t take her eyes from Luca as he pressed his forehead to the emperor’s. A crack widened in her heart. How many more people was she going to hurt?

  She released a breath when the emperor’s eyes opened slowly, and a sob shook Luca’s back.

  “You’re okay,” Luca whispered.

  The emperor searched his surroundings until his eyes found her. “She almost…” Fear entered his gaze, a fear Hua put there.

  Luca helped the emperor to his feet and addressed the guards. “She is not to be left unattended. Four guards must watch her at all times. Do not be fooled by her small appearance. Hua Minglan is the most dangerous enemy Piao has ever faced.”

  “Luca,” Hua whispered.

  But he didn’t look at her. His jaw clenched as if he’d heard his name. He paused for only a moment before helping the emperor from the room.

  Hua looked to her hands as two guards hauled her up. What had she done?

  “What we had to.”

  25

  Jian

  A groan rattled through Jian’s throat as he shifted and froze, feeling the soft bed underneath him—softer than the bed at the inn. His eyes slammed open, and his breath caught in his throat as his gaze connected to the man hovering over him, one of the few people who knew every part of him.

  “You’re awake.” Bo pushed out a breath and ran a hand over his face, pushing back the dark hair that had fallen free of the knot on his head.

  “Am I…” Jian tried to sit up but fell back on the bed.

  “At the palace?” Bo grimaced. “Yes. My guards found you collapsed at the bottom of the steps with a wound in your side.” He sat on the edge of the bed. “You could have died, Jian.”

  Died. He jolted up, a spear of pain ripping through his side. “Hua, she’s here. Did Luca bring her? Have you… is she okay?”

  Bo’s jaw tightened, and he put a hand on Jian’s shoulder, forcing him down. “You’ll tear the wound open again. Don’t be an idiot.”

  Bo was the only person other than Luca who spoke to him in such a way, the only one who cared enough to drop formalities or disdain. Jian let himself relax for just a moment as he took in the sight of his brother. Everything he ever did was for him. The battles he’d fought, the missions he’d undertaken.

  Bo’s lips drew down, and it was only then Jian noticed the marks on his neck.

  “Lean down.” Fear spiked through Jian as he issued the order.

  In that moment, the emperor was not the leader of Piao. For that beat in time, he was only Jian’s brother.

  Bo leaned forward, a sigh escaping his lips. “It happened yesterday.”

  Red fingerprints burned across the skin of his neck like someone wrapped scorching hands around his throat. Jian closed his eyes as his worst fears rose to the surface. The Nagi was in the palace. Not only Hua, the girl he didn’t know how to save.

  “Where is she?” Jian waited for Bo to tell him they’d executed the girl who tried to kill him. He waited for the heart to stop beating inside his chest.

  “Luca had me put her in our strongest cell beneath the palace. He tells me she has a Nagi inside her.” He stood and paced the length of the room.

  “Bo.”

  He didn’t stop moving. “She came here to kill me, Jian. And she nearly succeeded. Luca says Hua wanted me to execute her before this Nagi got the chance to succeed in her mission.”

  “Bo.”

  He whirled on his heel to face Jian. “But she’s… she’s…”

  Jian slid his legs over the side of the bed and forced his body up, using the post to remain steady on his feet. His bare toes curled in the plush velvet carpet, and he skimmed a hand along the wall for support as he lumbered toward his brother.

  Bo’s shoulders shook as Jian reached him and pulled him into a hug, ignoring the pain spreading over his skin underneath the thin robe. Bo didn’t hesitate to shrink against Jian as if his entire body collapsed in on itself.

  They borrowed each other’s strength to remain upright, and Jian closed his eyes, reminding himself he wasn’t alone in this. For months, he’d traveled on his own in search of Hua, but now he’d found her, and he didn’t need to be a single man fighting a dragon anymore.

  “Brother,” Bo whispered. “I almost died.” He pulled back. “You almost died.” His face glistened with tears he’d never let the rest of Piao see.

  The emperor’s mask was a facade. To the rest of the empire, he was a kind and benevolent ruler, but also strong, unwavering.

  To Jian, he’d always be the emotional older brother, the one Jian protected from his other siblings when they bullied him.

  “We’re both still here.” Jian stumbled back, his legs unsteady. He walked back and grappled for the edge of the bed before lowering himself. “A lot has happened, Bo.”

  Bo nodded. “I have been kept apprised of the news. I need to ask you a question you won’t want to answer, one that could decide the fate of the girl sitting in my cells.”

  Jian swallowed. “Go on.”

  “Was Hua… this Nagi of hers… is it the dragon who destroyed Kanyuan? The beast who killed an entire village of innocents?”

  Jian sucked in a breath and pressed a hand to the wound at his side. He knew what his answer would mean for Hua. It was the reason she’d come to the palace. She wanted to face her own execution, to end the Nagi’s hold on her. “Yes.”

  Bo’s expression fell like he’d been hoping for a different answer, a simpler answer. “What am I supposed to do with this information?”

  “Have you spoken to your advisors?” Jian needed to know who else knew of Hua’s situation.

  “I don’t trust a single one of them.” Bo pulled himself onto the end of the bed and crossed his legs. “You and Luca are the only people in this world I trust. We can’t tell them until we’ve decided what to do.”

  “What to do? Bo, she came here to kill you and nearly did. She destroyed an entire village—one we need to protect our borders from the Kou.” Jian would have done anything to protect Hua, even after everything, but Bo barely knew her.

  “No, the animal inside her did those things.” Bo leaned forward. “Hua Minglan is Luna’s sister. I won’t let Luna down or you.”

  “Me?”

  “You arrived here hours after Hua and Luca, despite your injuries. Luca hasn’t told me how Hua is connected to either of you, but I know you better than anyone. You care for her and that means I do too.”

  The knot squeezing around Jian’s heart loosened just the slightest as he relaxed back onto the bed.

  A knock sounded on the door moments before Luca entered without either of them answering. He brushed hair out of his eyes as he flicked them from Bo to Jian.

  “You’re awake.” He grimaced. “Look, I was only trying to protect Bo. Coming here where she expected an execution was Hua’s wish. She only ever wanted to do what was right for Piao. You can hate me for helping her, but don’t hate her for trying to do the right thing.” His chest heaved as his words trailed off.

  Jian sighed. “And yet, having her here almost got Bo killed, anyway. Sit down, Luca.” He pointed to a wooden chair next to t
he bed.

  Bo cast a nervous glance at Luca, and their eyes locked.

  “Tell him, Luca.” Jian was tired of secrets and lies. It was time they all had every piece of information available to them.

  Luca, seeming to guess what Jian meant, hunched forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Bo… Hua is my… betrothed.”

  All sound in the room ceased as Bo went still save for the expanding and contracting of his chest. Jian had spent most of his life observing Bo and Luca as they avoided the connection between them, knowing it wasn’t possible to be anything other than friends. Bo had his consorts—as every emperor before him—and the duty to produce heirs. Luca had his intended, though Jian wouldn’t let that wedding happen.

  None of them spoke for a long moment before a maniacal laugh burst free of Bo. “Wait, so, Jian fell in love with your intended?”

  Jian bristled at that. “She never wanted to get married, only to fight in the war.”

  Bo’s eyes widened. “A woman fought with you? Not just in her dragon form?”

  Jian met Luca’s eyes. It was time Bo knew everything. “It started the day she showed up for training.” He told his brother the story of Hua Minglan from training her to watching her walk through fire.

  He spoke of battles and dragons and moments staring at the stars.

  Through it all, he saw himself fall in love with her again little by little, moment by moment. There wasn’t a singular moment when he realized what she meant to him. Instead, she’d crept up on him with her stubborn stares and determined training, her profound words and incredible bravery.

  “She isn’t the Nagi inside her.” His voice rose. “I don’t care if she thinks death is the only way to end this. We can’t let the beast win.” His eyes locked on Bo’s. “Please.”

  Bo rubbed the mark on his neck and shifted where he sat. “Hua Minglan is a warrior of Piao, and we don’t let our warriors down.”

  26

  Hua

  Stay awake.