Nephelea
The winters in Vitha were terrible, but the summers were even worse. The top layers of snow would melt in the day, only to create a slick sheet of ice at night. It was nearly dusk when Ayzus and I landed in front of the aviary and the snow had already started to refreeze. I could hear the crunching of the ice and snow under the weight of the dragon as we walked out of the cold and into the warm aviary. The temperature difference started to make me sweat.
“How did the meeting go?” Aislinn asked as she guided Ayzus into his paddock. The freezing cold from outside and the heat from the hearth made her already messy hair even worse. Her usually straight hair was in a mess of curls and sweat streaked her dirty face.
“You know that you aren’t allowed to ask about that kind of stuff.” I said as I slid off my overcoat, revealing the centuries worth of scars trailing up my arms.
She walked around my dragon, her slender fingers tracing along his white and icy blue scales. “And you know that we aren’t supposed to do a lot of the things that we do; and yet we do anyway. We aren’t even supposed to be having this conversation right now.” She taunted me, one hand on my dragon and the other gently placed on my arm. Her blue eyes were as cold as the ice around us and yet my insides couldn’t have felt warmer trapped in her gaze.
I reached out and plucked a stray piece of straw from her hair, tossing it aside, I grabbed her face and tilted it up, bringing it so close to mine that we were a mere lip brush away from kissing. “You’re the only one that could make me do the things that I do.” I said before exiting the aviary.
“Any other business that needs tending?” I asked, annoyance laced in my voice. It had been a long day and all that I wanted was to slip out of my nasty riding clothes and into a steaming bath.
“Well m’lady…”
I held my hand up, stopping the messenger mid sentence. “How many times have I told you? Do not call me m’lady. Refer to me only as the one true ruler of this frozen shit hole.” I said, only half joking.
He cleared his throat before continuing, “M’lady. The threat to the south is growing more imminent everyday. Lyra Zul’s power over the land grows more every day. Just yesterday a pack of dire wolves were spotted just outside of our borders.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose before standing. “The priest and priestess of Akythys have deemed Lyra as a lower threat for now. We need to keep our eyes to the sky and watch for Queen Valara’s guard. Now, if that is all, I will be retiring to my chambers for the rest of the night.” I said as I walked down the cold marbled steps and out of the throne room.
The steam from my bath filled the room and clung to my bare skin. I stepped in and slid down, finally beginning to relax. “Can we get you anything else, m’lady?” One of my hand maids asked.
hat is it going to take for me to get rid of this m’lady title? I thought before saying, “Fetch me Aislinn.” She looked puzzled and stared blankly at me before asking,
“The keeper of the aviary?” I nodded my head and closed my eyes, slipping deeper into the water.
“Yes. Fetch her for me. I have… business that I must discuss with her.”
Warm water was poured through my hair as the other hand maiden started to wash it. “Don’t you think that you should relax first? You’ve only just returned. Business can wait.”
I sat up in the tub and shot a glare at her, “Just get Aislinn.”
She looked down and curtsied before saying, “As you wish m’lady.” After she had left the room I slipped back down into the tub, letting my only obedient handmaiden finish her work.
I had been alone for quite some time before I heard the door creak open. “It is about time.” I said, “It doesn’t take that long to get here from the aviary.” I sat up and turned around only to find a terrified looking handmaiden and no Aislinn. “Where is she.” I demanded, anger beginning to fill my body.
“It…it happened so fast. There was nothing that I could do.” The maiden said, tears starting to fill her eyes.
“What happened?” I asked, standing from the tub.
“They. They. They took her.”
My body began to shake and it seemed like the world around me was crumbling. “Who took her?” I asked, already beginning to dress myself. There was silence. I looked back up at her and asked again, “Who took her?”
She looked up at me and said, “She was just the dragon keeper m’lady. We can easily replace her. There’s no need to go out there. Not now.”
I shoved my sword into its sheath and attached it to my hip. “It’s not that easy to replace her. Now tell me; who took her?” I said, stepping towards her. She took a step back, her back against the wall.
“M’lady…please.” She begged.
I had had enough with asking and my temper exploded and a beast was unleashed that I didn’t know was there. I leapt forward, pinning her against the wall. As she yelled out for help I covered her mouth, muffling her cries. I put my face right next to hers and whispered, “Who the hell took her?”
The handmaiden started shaking her head, tears freely flowing from her eyes. I removed my hand from her mouth, revealing a red hand print. “They took Aislinn back to her.”
I was sick of trying to get answers from her. I pulled out one of my daggers and placed it against her neck. She screamed out once again. “Who is her! And I swear to Akythys, if you don’t give me a straight answer, I will kill you right now!” Mixed in with all of her nonsensical sobbing was a name. Lyra Zul.
I released her, a bright red mark left behind by the blade. Her hand flew up to her throat, gingerly dabbing at the blood sitting on the edge of the cut, waiting to spill over. “Get out of my way.” I said, shoving her and quickly exiting the room, headed straight for the aviary.
Ayzus and I flew through the freezing air of the night, further into the south, right into the land that Lyra Zul ruled over. “You know that we are flying right into a trap. Right? “Ayzus asked. He struggled in the harsh winds full of ice and snow. No dragon was meant to be in weather like this.
I reached down and patted his shivering neck, “I know. We should nearly be there by now. I’m sure of it.”
Unlike the mountainous stronghold of Vitha, Nuxvar was out in the open with nothing to protect the kingdom’s walls. But Lyra Zul didn’t need protecting, and that is the reason that the priest and priestess of the temple marked her as a threat, stationing me here to hold her forces back.
The land was completely black except for one small flickering light off to the distance. “Do you see that Ayzus? That has to be it.” Ayzus grumbled in response as he lowered us out of the sky and towards the ever growing light.
I slid down Ayzus’ back and sank down into waist deep snow that brought on instant shivering and teeth clattering. Lyra’s beasts could hear a pin drop a mile away, if I was not careful this rescue mission would be over before it even started. I looked back at Ayzus, I could visibly see his eternal flame dying, “Get somewhere warm Ayzus. If I need you, I will call out.” The dragon didn’t respond as he lazily lifted himself into the air, heading back north. I wrapped my arms around myself, desperately trying to stop myself from making any noise as I trudged through the snow and towards the large, dimly lit castle.
The closer that I got to the castle, the more pairs of glowing eyes started to appear all around me. I was surrounded by these things. I tried to move my hand to the hilt of my sword, but all that happened was more violent shivers. I can do this. I thought, I AM going to save her. It has to be me. The beasts didn’t advance me, it was like they were herding me right to the gates of Nuxvar.
I finally fell out of the mounds of snow and onto a plowed path, leading straight to the gates. There was enough light around me now to see the Etsum sized wolves that surrounded me. Their ribs were showing and mouths frothing. They were well over ready for their next meal. A pack of these things could easily take over an unsuspecting dragon. “I’ve made it to the castle, Ayzus. Stay on standby.” I sent through the link, dusting the snow off of myself, heading straight for the castle.
The inside of the frozen fortress was much warmer than I had suspected. My uncontrollable body shakes had ceased, allowing me to stealthily make my way through the dark halls. The place was decorated with blood red drapes and animal fur lined floors. Less people were milling about than I had thought and none of them seemed surprised to see me. This whole thing was setting off my survival instinct.
I could faintly hear voices on the other side of two enormous dark oak doors. I put my hands up to the wood and pushed with all of my might, the monstrous things opened with a slow and obnoxiously loud creaking sound.
I stood within the threshold of the largest throne room that I had ever seen. It was filled with the people of the south, clothed in the finest gowns and tunics, wolf masks upon their faces. A masquerade? Three taps echoed over the lively music. TAP. TAP. TAP. And the crowd split right down the middle, leaving a path right to the throne of bones where a Queen with flaming red hair and skin as white as the snow sat. “We’ve been waiting for you; dragon rider.” Lyra said.
My eyes drifted from Lyra to the lump of a person kneeling by the throne. Aislinn. Her usually blonde hair was slick with blood and her wild spirit had been broken. Lyra yanked on a chain, pulling Aislinn’s head up, forcing her to look at me. Her face had lost all color, making her almost translucent. She was so frail. So weak.
Anger boiled in my blood as I stepped forward, closing the distance between myself and the throne of bones. Just before the steps leading up to the Queen, two guards grabbed hold of me, knocking my knees out, forcing me down.
“I thought that it was forbidden for a dragon rider to love anyone?” Lyra questioned as she stroked what looked to be a freshly scalped, human skull. “Something about it would affect your duty to the realm?” I looked down, not wanting to give Lyra the satisfaction of my weakness.
She stood, her dress that was as black as coal stuck tightly to her body. She stopped right in front of me, reaching down and grabbing my face. Her filed nails bit into my face as she pulled me up off of the floor, forcing me to look into her deep, emerald green eyes.
“As I see it,” She started, “you have a couple of choices. Option one, I turn her, letting the fever take over her body. She may die, she may not.” I looked past the Queen and at Aislinn, tears streaming down her face. “I didn’t say that you could look away.” Lyra said, jerking my face back to her. “Option two,” She started again, “I bring the two of you before the priest and priestess, letting them kill the both of you. Or, option three, my personal favorite, your precious Aislinn stays here with me. She works as my new handmaiden. You continue to work for those pathetic worms that you call priest and priestess. And when the day comes, when I come knocking at the doors to Vitha, you and your precious dragon fly away, leaving me the south. Then and only then will I return Aislinn to you. Unharmed of course.” She finished with a triumphant sneer.
“You can go to hell.” I said, spitting in her face.
She wiped her face before smiling, showing her canines before she bent down and whispered in my ear. “Oh honey, there’s a special place reserved for me there. It’s called the throne.” She slapped me across the face with a force so strong that I fell to the floor, ears ringing and vision blurry.
I staggered to my feet, shaking my head, clearing my vision. I brought a hand up to my mouth, wiping away the blood from my busted lip.
The doors to the throne room busted into a million tiny splinters as Ayzus came through with a roar so mighty that I could have sworn that it was a completely different dragon. Lyra’s guests scattered and let out screams as he made his way to me. Lyra held up her hand and let out a high pitched whistle, summoning her beasts. She ran her hand through the mange filled fur of the wolf closest to her. “Stop Ayzus, do not move.” I said to the dragon. He stopped as the beasts started to fill the room.
The smell was atrocious. Something between a rotting corpse and a wet dog. “The direwolf used to be feared by everyone.” She started, “Roaming all of Ascella whenever they pleased. Now…they are all forced to live in the coldest part of the world. With so little to hunt they’ve turned to hunting each other. When I let my hand fall…they will tear into everything that you love, saving you for last.” I looked from Aislinn to Ayzus and then back to the Queen.
“We really must be going. We are being called to Emelle”. Ayzus said, watching the wolves start to surround him.
Lyra started to lower her hand, the wolves beginning to grow restless, ready to pounce. The wolf nearest to Aislinn started frothing at the mouth, sending streams of drool down onto her. “Last chance.” She said with a devilish grin plastered on her perfect face.
I was a good three strides from Aislinn and half a throne room away from Ayzus. If she lowered her hand now, there would be no way that I could protect either one of them.
“Nephelea. We have to go.” Ayzus prodded once more as he began to back out of the room.
“Just give me a minute!” I shouted down the link. My left hand gripped the sword on my hip and my legs became jittery with the anticipation of what was to happen next.
“I am growing tired of your games, girl.” Lyra said as she quickly dropped her hand.
Everything after that happened so quickly that it was hard for my brain to keep up. Half of the wolves took off out of the room after Ayzus while the wolf above Aislinn went for the life ending blow. My legs carried me faster than they had ever carried me before and I drew my sword, throwing myself towards her in hopes that my plan would work.
The stairs leading up to the throne met with my shins as my body flew into hers, knocking her out of the way as the wolf above us let out a pained screech. Blood flowed freely from the wound that harbored my sword. I had missed my target, but still impaled the beast. It turned its gaze away from Aislinn and fully focused on me.
Another high pitched whistle sounded through the room, stopping all of the wolves. “Now this…this is something that I did not expect.” Lyra said, lounging on her throne of bones.
I pulled my sword from the chest of the wolf and held it out, trying to protect Aislinn to the best of my ability. “Option three.” I said so quietly that I could barely hear myself.
“I’m sorry. What was that now?” Lyra asked, sitting up in her throne.
I put the tip of my sword into the stone of the floor and used it as a cane, pushing myself up to a stand. My aching shins screamed out in protest. “I choose option three.” I said louder this time.
Lyra let out a laugh so sinister that she didn’t have to say anything. I already knew what was about to happen. “I like that you have come to your senses.” Lyra said, snapping her fingers. Two guards emerged from the sidelines, walking over. “But,” Lyra continued, “After what just took place in my throne room, that… is no longer an option.” The guards seized Aislinn, dragging her off into the depths of this wretched place. “I have something else planned for you.” She said, snapping her fingers again. Two guards walked over to me, relieving me of my sword and firmly grasping my wrists. This time Lyra let out a whistle so low in pitch that I almost couldn’t hear it. The half dead wolf faced me, licking its chops before pouncing. The yellowed teeth, sure to be full of infection, met their mark.
