The Dragon's mate-2

Enses phoenice

The Honorable Deity

I had not left the realm for a while but I was completely aware of how Emily was faring. Her grandfather had informed me about her parting of ways and I was not surprised. She left the dragon prince upon being betrayed. However, her choice of becoming a warrior was unexpected. It was hard for me to restrain myself and not rescue her when she was crossing the ‘Corridor of Fire’. At the same time, it was reassuring that Flammaen avia had recognised her. Emily did not know that the charm gifted to her by the slave fairy at ‘The Student’s Centre’ alerted me when she faced an undesirable situation. As such, I witnessed her jump into the ‘Magical Well of Fire and begin her journey as a warrior. Even though I wanted to visit her at the hospital, Mia asked me not to.

“I understand your feelings, Brighid, but the child has to discover her own strengths. If you were to appear before her today, she would never truly come into her own. And, in this world, being dependent will become her greatest disability when she takes over the Solar Realm in the future.”

Mia’s opinion hit the nail. Despite all she had gone through, she remained optimistic and had a novel approach that would make me question the rigid manner in which I was raised.

Mia was gradually recovering and had recently begun to control water. I envied her relationship with her mate, who, to my unhappiness, was the grandfather of the dragon prince I disliked. The duo were all for pairing Vern and Emily together but, I had strongly opposed the union. Luckily for me, Mia had not pressed on.

While I could not be of much use at this point in time, I decided to seek Avery’s help, who, as a god mother, was quite close to Emily. She had once been an elite warrior and her experience would definitely be welcomed by my granddaughter.

Avery (The Vampire Realm)

“Father, mother….I understand that the two of you love each other but, you really need to be attentive of your surroundings. How can both of you behave like hormonal teenagers….” Our son, Jake, had a look of horror as he walked in. I felt embarrassed but my husband was, as usual, calm and collected.

‘You would stop interrupting us if you married Jake.”

“Don’t start again… father,” said Jake. “I wanted to ……”

My husband interrupted our son, saying, “You can easily divert your mother’s attention, boy, but you can’t distract me. The dragon prince’s engagement has been announced and the werewolf king will have a child soon. You, on the other hand, despite being of the same generation as them, may have given up your previous pleasure-seeking self and transformed into a fine man. But, being a monk is not desirable either, Jake. We expect our line to continue and hope that you can marry someone who makes you happy.”

I smiled when my husband chided Jake for being single. I was a warrior and married a king. My parents-in-law loved me and helped me transition as a royal gradually. The two of us did not have strict requirements other than the girl being able to make our son happy. Nevertheless, it seemed as if he was not on the same page.

“Dad……I am not getting tied down so soon. Anyway, I am here as I have discovered something interesting about Emily’s warden of the Mortal Dimension.”

“Arthur this….”

“Avery, I will tell you everything once my doubts are resolved.”

Though the two of them left me hanging, I did not press on this matter. I knew that all of us wanted her to be safe. Emily…….I was surprised at how sweet the child was and, as a mother, I hoped that she would be my son’s bride one day. As for the dragon prince, I was surprised that he had accepted a female dragon who was not his mate.

Liang

Father, did you wish to meet me?"

"Yes Liang....come sit down."

"Yes Father..."

"Why is there a delay in your engagement with the dragon prince? Keresa informed me that Vern King had agreed to this arrangement. Yet, you have not brought the prince to meet me."

"Father, it is not that I...."

"I have spent years raising you. Don't make me regret the efforts that our family has invested in you, Liang. The responsibility of securing our clan's future rests on your shoulders."

"I understand father," said I, my eyes not once meeting his. My father did not care and continued, "Once you are close enough, make sure to prevent your aunt from getting Vern King to accept your cousin Lin as his second wife."

My father and Lin's were brothers. They had always been closed. As such, I was slightly surprised when he asked me to guard against Lin.

"Father Lin...."

"Lin's father and I share different mothers."

I was shocked at what my father revealed. I had never thought that there was such a secret in our clan.

"No matter how warm they seem to be, the two will never have your best interest at heart."

Lin and I had been quite close to each other. Therefore, when I tried to put in a word to her, my father stopped me and said, "You don't need to use your mind. Just do as I have asked you to. I hope that you can get over your mate's loss and get closer to the dragon prince. With the two of you together, our position in the Dragon Realm will be stronger than ever before."

I remained quiet as that was the only way I might be dismissed from my father's presence early. When my father finally allowed me to leave, I relaxed only after I had returned to my room. Being in his presence made me nervous. I dismissed my maid and sat down to think of all that had passed till date. My mate had been brutally tortured by my father and my uncles as he was the son of an unwanted concubine. He could never help them attain greater heights, thereby quenching their thirst for power.

I clearly recalled that I had not eaten anything for days and yet none had shown mercy. When I had finally escaped and wished to kill myself, a tired Vern King, young and famous for his playboy ways, had saved me. He never asked me about the reasons but simply encouraged me to cherish life. Unknowingly, I fell in love with him. He had not had a mate for many years. I felt that being next to him would serve both of us well. I was sure that I could be sincere. However, of late my plans had not fructified. The engagement was being endlessly delayed. Vern King, as per my aunt, had already found his mate.

I got up and walked out to the garden in my wing. I had lost my mate, but I could no longer lose the prince who had been kind to me. I did not care about my father's reasons. But, I was sure that I would remain faithful to him. As for his mate......once I learnt her identity I'd think of a plan to deal with her as well. If she understood, I would not have changed her. But, if she insisted on clinging to Vern King, I'd be unkind. I had already lost my mate and now I could not lose the prince.

Emily

Being blessed with Flammaen avia’s powers has given me the ability to materialize in the ‘Hall Of Warriors’. The hall’s walls were adorned by scabbards, each holding a sword which looked normal at first glance. However, the very moment one tried to unsheathe it, the sword would burst in flames. As soon as one moved away, the flames would vanish.

“Wondering what’s wrong….”

‘Sword Lady…..”

You left the hospital before the doctor discharged you.”

“I’m fine….I just wanted to see if I could…..”

“These are ordinary fire swords….Anyone who has studied at the School for Supernatural can control one after three years. They do not belong to any individual and are usually summoned by a warrior on the battle-field. Once they have served their purpose, they return. The reason why you are unable to hold any is

1. You have not been at school for three years.

2. You are not in the midst of a battle when they arrive by your side to aid you.”

“So that means if I am in a battle I can ask them to be my ally,” I asked ‘The Sword Lady’.

“Yes you can.”

“In that case, which sword will arrive as my aid?”

“That depends on your ability. You see, Emily, that the walls are adorned by over a hundred Swords. The most powerful warrior can summon all of them and channelize his energy to use them together.”

I was shocked by this revelation and wondered if it had happened before.

The Sword Lady seemed to have read my mind as she said, “No one has succeeded in this task till date. Controlling ten simultaneously is already a rare feat. In your school Silver Hair is quite capable and can control five together.”

“Then what should I do……”

“Aim to control Enses phoenice, the master sword or rather the Ruler of all the Swords of Fire. Enses phoenice is the only sword that can be owned by a warrior. If you own it, then the powers of all other swords will be neutralized.The initial owner of this sword is no longer alive. As such, the sword has returned and once more disguised itself as just another Sword of Fire. Only when an aspiring warrior deserves it will the Sword reveal itself. This is all I know.”

Even though I wanted to try, ‘The Sword Lady’ refused. “You need to regain your strength. Crossing the Corridor has left you weak.”

Before I could react, I had returned to the hospital. The Doctor, though annoyed, changed my bandage and smiled sarcastically when I winced.

“You are very impatient,” he said.

I wanted to argue but I lacked the energy to do so. As I lay down quietly, waiting for sleep to embrace me, I realized that hoping to succeed at everything overnight was similar to my desire for a utopia. Unrealistic that either was I might succeed in the former, if I tried. As for the latter, time alone would reveal if the existing framework of the Supernatural world could collapse to give way to the idealistic place I hoped for. For now, as I drifted into sleep, I hoped to understand how I could gain control over Enses phoenice.