Paul took off toward one of the helicopters, and Hazel followed. One of the men accompanying him asked, “What’s with the girls?”
“They’re my informants. I couldn’t leave them behind.”
The soldier didn’t argue. Skye climbed into the helicopter and gripped the edge as it took off. Hazel followed.
They crested the top of the mountain. Hundreds of dragons filled the valley. They were all sleeping, but that wouldn’t last long. The noise of the copters would wake them for sure. Once they started firing, all bets were off. Skye knew they were risking their lives, but if they had any success at all, it would be worth it.
Paul spoke into his microphone. “On the count of three, fire at will.”
Skye held her breath.
“One.”
The first of the dragons in the valley were beginning to stir.
“Two.”
A few stretched their wings, still not sensing the danger.
“Three.”
Shots rang out, and Skye stopped up her ears. The dragons rose, but several plunged back to earth. Over the top of the far mountain came a sight that made Skye’s stomach freeze. She gripped Hazel’s hand. A hundred or so fire dragons dove right into the fray, led by Val himself.
“Val,” Hazel screamed as a bullet shredded his wing. Skye wanted to go out there, but if she did, she’d be risking her own life as well, and it wouldn’t do any good.
Hazel grabbed Paul’s arm. “Call them off. Call them off.”
He shook his head. “I can’t. I didn’t tell them we were only killing the orange and white. There weren’t supposed to be any of the good guys here.”
Skye watched as Val tried in vain to keep himself up in the air, but he fell.
Val hit the ground with a thud, and he was certain he broke a bone in leg. He clenched his teeth against the pain. Bodies fell all around him and littered the valley with white, orange, and red carcasses. He kept his eyes on the sky, searching for the red. He saw his uncle fall, followed by Eros. And then, finally, Fuchsia. Those horrible weapons tore holes through their bodies and erased the light of life from their eyes. Soon there was no red left in the sky at all.
Val tried to find another one, somewhere in the sky, but there were none. In fact, only a handful of white and orange dragons remained in the air when the black helicopters disappeared. There was no one left to fight. Val dropped his head. He never thought he’d witness the extinction of his race. He was the only one left. Then he heard flapping of wings, and he lifted his head.
Another wave of dragons flowed over the hill—gold, silver, blue, and yellow. They attacked the arctic dragons as one and killed them easily. A couple of canyon dragons tried to retreat, but a silver dragon chased after them and made sure they died.
Val wept. Today three dragon races went nearly extinct. The end of his people was clear.
What was the point now? Why would they even bother with the witch? So much death and slaughter. He collapsed and wished the bullet had gotten him somewhere other than his wing, like his heart. He wanted to die, and death wasn’t something he’d ever wished for before.
Hazel had betrayed him and caused his entire race to die. He had absolutely no reason to go on. Maybe that could be his contribution. Maybe he could sacrifice himself to defeat the witch. He’d need to make sure he died.
The ground shook next to him, and he cracked his eye open. Murdoc stood over him.
What do you want? Val asked.
I’m searching for survivors. Give me a minute, and I’ll heal you.
Val didn’t even have the energy to tell him to forget it. He felt his wing weave back together, but he didn’t get up. There was no reason to.
A hand shoved against his flank. “You stupid idiot.”
Val raised his head to the beautiful betrayer herself. Her face was tear-stained and bright red. Her fists clenched. He spun around so he didn’t have to look at her.
I have nothing to say to you. Go back to your true love.
She ran around to face him again.
“What are you talking about?”
I saw you kissing him and helping him protect the weapons.
She threw her hands up. “You know looks can be deceiving.”
I don’t see how. You betrayed me.
She stomped her foot. “Excuse me? How do you figure? Last I checked I was trying to save the dragons.”
Val took a couple steps back. I don’t understand.
“Of course you don’t. What were you thinking going right into the middle of the fight? You didn’t stand a chance.”
You kissed Paul.
“Yes. To distract him. Also, to stop him from slaughtering the dragons. It may have been sneaky and not quite ethical, but in the end I convinced him to use the remaining weapons to only kill arctic and canyon dragons. No other dragons were supposed to be there. We told Aspen, but then I saw you come over the mountain. Val, I watched you fall.” The tears fell down her face, and Val tried to make sense of her words.
Hazel. I thought... I didn’t realize you were trying to help us. Even now, he wasn’t sure what he thought.
“You thought I was betraying you? How could you think I’d ever do anything like that? You betrayed me by even thinking it.”
Val stopped short. She was right. Hazel wasn’t the betrayer. He was. It was his actions that brought about the death of his race, not Hazel’s.
He dropped to the ground again as the full weight of what he did hit him. He would wear that stain of death for the rest of his life. He was responsible for the annihilation of the fire dragons.
So much death.
She put her hand on his flank. “I’m so sorry for your loss. Look at all of them.”
Val glanced around. The royal, sea, and river dragons were turning all of them into gems. Even the arctic. The carcass-strewn ground was quickly becoming a jewel-filled one.
Val didn’t know what to do. He felt like such a fool. How could he even think that Hazel would betray him? Of course she wouldn’t. She loved him.
I’m sorry I thought badly of you. I don’t know what came over me.
She sighed. “This war is causing all of us to do things we normally wouldn’t. It’s time for us to do what we were meant to. We need to join Sid. He found the white witch.”
Val nodded. I want to take care of my uncle first.
“Of course. I’ll wait here.”
Val took to the sky and studied the ground. He found his uncle on the outskirts and knelt next to him.
I’m so sorry, Uncle. Thank you for believing in me. Val let out his jet-black flame, and his uncle disappeared into a shiny ruby. He picked the jewel up and flew back to Hazel.
I want to hide this first. Then we’ll go back to Sid and end this thing once and for all.
“Yes. We will.”
Sid paced on his kitchen floor. He hated staying behind, but Aspen had convinced him that it was the best thing to do. He knew she was right. They needed to prepare for the witch, but there was a group of dragons out there fighting right now, and he was not among them. He felt like a coward.
“Would you sit down?” Aspen asked.
“No. I can’t. What if they don’t win?” If everyone died, and he wasn’t there with them, he would never forgive himself.
“They will. Trust me. If Hazel and Skye got the humans to kill most of the canyon and arctic dragons, the rest of them will be easy. You’ve got the entire royal, sea, and river army together. Those canyon and arctic dragons don’t stand a chance.” Aspen ran her hands along his back. Usually this was comforting, but today it sent his nerves on edge. He pulled away and hated the hurt on her face.
Before he could explain, thousands of wings beat the air, rattling the windows of his house.
“They’re back.” He ran for the back door, and Aspen followed
.
Val and Skye landed in front of him. Skye turned into a human and Rowan ran for her, holding her tight.
Val changed into a human. He was pale faced and shaky. He didn’t say anything as he pushed past Sid into the house.
“What happened?” Sid asked Hazel, watching Val stalk through the kitchen.
She let out a breath. “He and the fire dragons didn’t get the memo to wait, and they flew into the middle of the battle. The fire dragons are gone.”
Sid’s breath caught. “Gone? All of them?”
“Except Val. He’s devastated.”
Sid swallowed. One more race had disappeared. How many more dragons could they lose before they were all extinct? “What about the rest?”
Skye spoke. “There were no other casualties. The valley is full of arctic, fire, and canyon dragon jewels though. I’m going to get a drink. Hazel, you should probably see how Val is doing.” The girls went inside with Aspen behind them.
Pearl and Athena approached him and bowed. What next? Pearl asked.
Next, we fight the queen. But I need you to take a group of royal dragons and make sure all the bodies have been taken care of.
Pearl backed up a few steps and hung her head. Sid, it was awful. Those fire dragons.
I know.
What about the humans? They’ll return.
For now, they have no weapons, and Freddie and Rowan disabled their tracking software. That’s one thing we don’t have to worry about at the moment. We will take care of them when the witch is defeated. Now that her army is gone, she won’t survive. She can’t.
Pearl laid her head down in front of him. That doesn’t mean it is safe. Perhaps you should take a group with you.
The kings and queens should handle it. Thank you for your concern though.
Pearl sat up, bowed once again, and Sid watched her gather a group of twenty royal and sea dragons and take off. Then he followed the others inside. Val and Hazel weren’t in the kitchen.
“Skye, can you get Hazel and Val. We need to discuss the witch.”
Skye nodded.
Sid took his seat at the head of the table, with Aspen on one side. He called behind him. “Freddie, I need you to join us.”
Freddie sat on Aspen’s other side, and Runa crashed on the table in front of him.
“I’m coming with. You haven’t let me be part of any of the action. I’m going to kill the witch.”
Sid admired her confidence, but he was hoping they could at least avoid the princess’s death.
“No. Runa. You will stay here. If we are worried about protecting you, we won’t win.”
She pouted. “But you can’t kick me out of the meeting. I can help plan. Please.”
Sid patted her head. “You can stay for the meeting. Go sit by Rowan.”
Runa nudged him with her head. “Thanks, Sid.”
Rowan scratched Runa under the chin. “Thanks for staying out of trouble. We don’t want to lose you.”
“Why would you lose me?” Skye glanced at Sid. They hadn’t been able to tell Runa anything about her death.
“See if you can tell her,” he said. That stupid prophecy was impossible to talk about.
“Because of the prophecy,” Skye said.
“What about the prophecy?” Runa asked, swiveling her head around and looking at everyone.
Skye opened her mouth, but nothing came out. “Sorry. It won’t let me say. Let’s just say we are worried about you.”
Val and Hazel entered the room and took their seats. Val’s eyes were puffy, and Hazel sat as close to him as she could.
Val dropped his head into his hand. “Talking about the prophecy? Well, one thing is for sure. I was they betrayer.”
Skye cocked her head. “How do you figure?”
“I betrayed not only Hazel, but my entire race.”
Sid cleared his throat. “That is one way to think about it, but we could spend all day speculating. We cannot change what has already happened, but we can move forward and end the war. What we need to do is figure out how to defeat the witch. Freddie, tell us what you found.”
Freddie looked around at all of them. “My software is pretty accurate. When the group of canyon and arctic dragons came in, one dragon split off from the group and headed for a cave. She’s been there ever since. Hasn’t even stirred.”
“Where’s the cave?” Skye asked.
Sid grimaced. “It’s King’s Cave.”
Skye rubbed her chin. “Of course it is. Yeah, that’s her alright.”
“So what are we going to do?” Aspen asked.
“We’re going to go fight. Six of us against one of her. Should be easy,” Sid said.
“Should be,” Skye said. “But probably won’t be. She’s got magic.”
“We aren’t powerless. We have gifts as well. Everyone can camouflage, right? Our minds must be shielded, and we must make sure that if anyone gets hurt, someone heals them right away. I’m fairly confident we can win this fight, but we need to utilize all of our resources. We don’t know the extent of her abilities.”
“Aspen, Hazel, and I will bring our swords. If we all attack at once, maybe we can disable her enough to make it easy to kill her,” Rowan said.
Sid nodded. “Take nothing for granted. At any given moment she could do something that will take us by surprise. We can’t afford to be surprised.”
“Let’s go. Everyone ready?” Aspen stood and headed for the door.
A sick feeling settled in the pit of Sid’s stomach. This was the worst dragon he’d have to fight, and he couldn’t help but feel like they wouldn’t all walk out of there. The witch was bound to have some trick up her sleeve that could kill any of them. Or all of them. What if after all this, she still won?
Sid shivered. He couldn’t think about that. They had to win.
He led the group outside, with Runa flapping behind them.
He spun toward Runa. “You must stay here. That’s an order from your king. Do you understand?”
Runa pouted. “But, Sid. I wanna come. I never get to see anything exciting.”
“No. This is more dangerous than anything we’ve done so far. Stay here, or I’ll take you back to your father.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You wouldn’t.”
“Try me.”
She bounced back and forth on two feet. “Okay. I promise. But I’m not happy about it.”
“As long as you are still alive when this is all over, I don’t care if you’re happy about it or not.”
Rowan latched his arms around Runa. “You know that’s not a bad idea, Sid. I’ll be back.”
Runa struggled in his arms. “Hey, hey. Let go of me.”
Rowan marched her into the house, with her squawking the whole way. Less than five minutes later, Rowan was back.
“Locked her in the theater room. There are no windows in there, and I don’t see how she could break down the door.”
Sid nodded. He was glad Rowan had put her away. He didn’t want to worry about her showing up in the middle of their fight. He looked around at his little group. Aspen, Hazel, and Rowan were fierce with swords strapped to their backs.
“It’s time,” he said.
As they flew, Sid thought about the prophecy. It was so cryptic. The princess part bothered him. He was almost certain it was Runa, but she was locked up in his house, so she couldn’t be it. Skye could be the princess, but Skye’s mark didn’t say princess. It said king. Maybe the princess was in the arctic tribe. They sometimes called the witch a queen. If so, good riddance.
The flight seemed longer than normal, and Sid noticed everything. The scent of sulfur and pine on the air and the iciness of it as it flowed through his nostrils. The way the steam rose out of the vents below and made the entire valley look like it was smoking.
In a
field, a family of bears played, and Sid remembered the time Aspen took him to feed the baby bears. Maybe when this was all over, he could find them and see how they were doing.
Part of him was scared. Candide’s magic would be a problem. He hoped they’d be able to defeat her, but the prophecy said even if they did, only one of them would survive. He didn’t know if it was him or Skye or Val who would live, and ultimately, it wouldn’t matter because without them he would be lost as king.
They had only been around for short time, but in that time they became his partners, and he didn’t know how to lead without them. If only one person survived, then it wasn’t a victory. They lost.
Sid had lost so much already between the races that had died, the slaughtered humans, and the sheer change in the Earth. There would be no more fire dragons in the skies around the volcanoes. There would be no more canyon dragons floating along the rivers. And the woodlands. His heart ached for the woodlands. What would the world be like without the dragons?
Even if they defeated the white witch, they still had to face the humans. Would the humans still let them live after everything the dragons put them through? The canyon and arctic dragons slaughtered the humans by the hundreds of thousands. The president had a good point. She should slaughter the dragons.
Whether they lived or died, it didn’t matter because the world would still be different. He couldn’t dwell on that. Now he needed to move on. He had a fight coming and needed to be in top form.
When they landed on the edge of the cave, there was no sign of any dragons, which Sid took to be a good sign.
Everyone turned into humans. He’d have to turn into a dragon soon, but wanted to make sure they were ready. The humans were easier to see when he was smaller.
“Does everyone have their swords?” Sid asked.
“I still don’t like the swords,” said Hazel. She frowned at Sid. Every single person wore an expression of sheer terror. They were about to fight the dragon responsible for the deaths of thousands. This would not be easy. Maybe they realized that on the ride over as well. Maybe they became aware of their mortality. Death seemed so close.
The Kings: The Dragon Kings Book 5 Page 14