THE DRAGON'S ENCHANTED

Marry her off

"Avyanna" Zariek called informally, anger laced in his voice as he looked around the room he had personally chained the criminal to. There was no one there except his stubborn princess who was on the floor.

He helped her up and accessed her body without much thought. He was like her knight and only he had the right. When he saw the red mark on her neck, he hardened his gaze and turned to the window. It was high up and no one could climb to that great height without an assistant from someone. But with what he saw, they would have to block all the windows in the dungeon since a prisoner had proven that they could easily jump out through the window.

"Are you alright?" He asked the princess who was still shaken by what happened.

"Yes I am" she replied and stared at the window, where the stranger had jumped out from. Those eyes, she knew those eyes too well, but then again, how possible was it? She had known those eyes for the most of her life to know them and recognized them but how could it be?

From where she stood, she heard noises and stumping footsteps from above her. And knew immediately that the guards were after him and more than anyone, she wanted him to be caught.

She turned to the entrance of the room and was about to leave when suddenly, she saw flashes of a woman running in the field, made of flowers. She was of the same age as the princess and had brown wavy hair and her laughter loud and clear, beautiful to the ears and familiar, but her back was the only thing she saw. Those flashes burned her head with pain and made her head spin. The walls around her began closing in on her and it felt like it was going upside down, then darkness.

*****

Pain struck again when Princess Avyanna woke up and moved her head. The image of the stranger was the first thing she saw before she fully opened her eyes. Bright lights invaded her lenses and she quickly shut her eyes back and groaned with the pain that almost made her collapse again.

"My child..." the sweet and comforting voice of the queen came to her ears and she opened her eyes slowly, then she turned to the side of her bed.

Queen Aleera, sat by her side and king Caldor stood at the other end of the bed. Ida was standing at the end and they were all staring at her.

She turned her head and felt a nasty pain that protested greatly against her sudden movement and groaned loudly again.

"Are you alright my child?" the queen asked her worriedly. Princess Avyanna managed a smile and sat up slowly before she turned to her father. His jaw was set in a hard line and his hands were behind me. His eyes stared at her coldly and she understood the look the king gave her.

"And you had to go down to the dungeons for what?" The king roared and she looked away immediately. She had to go to the dungeon, to see the stranger so she could sleep without thinking or worrying about him. No one expected he could be so skilled or even escape.

"I'm sorry father" she mumbled and looked away disappointed at herself. But with a beam in her heart, she recalled the incidents of the previous night and was so sure of what she had seen.

"It's fine, I am glad he didn't hurt you," the queen said calmly, settling the air in the room and she gave her a nod. Then she instinctively placed her hands around her throat, where he had held her tightly wanting to strangle her to death.

"The marks would disappear, the Medicine man gave Ida some herbs," Queen Aleera said immediately and the princess smiled faintly.

She stole a glance at the king and he was still staring at her angrily.

"Why did you go down there?" The king asked her sternly.

"I just wanted to see him and know who sent him" the princess replied.

"Was that your duty Avyanna?" He asked her and she shook her head.

"No your highness"

"Then why did you put yourself in danger, alone in that room? Do you realize that you almost died?" He yelled and she flinched.

King Caldor wasn't the kind of king that yelled at anyone, except he was really angry. And he never yelled even at his daughter.

"I'm sorry," she said knowing she was at fault in this situation.

"Your highness, she is fine at least, can we let this go now?" The queen interrupted and the king went quiet.

They stayed with her for a little while longer before they decided to leave and continue with their duties. But not without kissing her, queen Aleera could not leave without giving her a motherly kiss on her forehead. And the thought of what she saw at the dungeon came back to Avyanna instantly and for once she thought of telling the king what was happening.

"Mother" she called out before they could leave and they stopped and stared at her.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" The queen asked. Princess Avyanna looked at Ida and she turned to the entrance and walked away. Leaving the king, queen, and princess to talk.

"I have seen the stranger before," she said and the king turned to her.

"Princess Avyanna, you have never left the castle before, how could you have seen the stranger?" Her mother asked calmly and walked closer to the bed of the princess.

"No, I have never seen him......"

"Physically except for today he tried killing me" she added, unsure of what was happening.

"Avyanna" the king wasn't patient enough to hear her speak rubbish.

"I see him in my dreams, father," the princess said.

"Such things don't happen Avyanna" queen Aleera sounded calm about the entire situation.

"But it does. I have been having dreams about him for years" she explained further.

At those statements, the king and queen stared at each other, knowingly.

"Are you sure about what you are saying?" The king asked and the princess turned to him, surprised he believed her.

"Yes," she simply said. He gave her a nod and turned to the door.

"Have some rest, dear," the king suddenly said and with that, he walked away.

Queen Aleera stayed a little bit longer. Assuring the princess that it was going to be fine before she left her alone.

It was not as easy as they thought, the princess was void of sleep and she could not rest even when she needed to. The thought of the stranger filled her senses. He had those same eyes that she knew too well. And her heart suddenly ached for him, more than when she had never seen him before. Yet questions arose in her heart, questions she wanted answers to. Having those feelings in her heart and knowing the man exist made her determined to find him.

*******

Everything seemed to have moved on smoothly after some days. The guards were still in search of the stranger and the princess didn't stop asking about him. Except that and more, everything seemed to just remain the way it was around the castle.

Princess Avyanna dressed up in her regalia and for the first time since the incident happened, she decided to go out of her chambers. Tired of being locked in and lost in thought over the man who would kill her if he had the opportunity to.

She came out of her chambers and met a different guard at her door who bowed to her as they always did.

"Where is Zariek?"

"He was sent on an assignment out of the kingdom" the guard replied.

"Since when exactly" the princess fumed.

"For some days now," the guard said. She looked around, hating the thought of having someone else guard her and angry that he left without consorting her first. She glared at the guard in front of her and turned away towards her father's chambers.

Princess Avyanna had been accustomed to always seeing Zariek at her door and no one else. And even if there was someone else, Zariek was always there. Waking up to see that he had been sent out and replaced without her permission made her angry and she needed to talk to her father about it. To know where he would have sent him and why he did so without her prior notice.

As the princess walked the hallway of the castle, maids jerked when they saw her and scurried away after bowing to her quickly. Guards stood too erect when they saw her and ladies of her mother's court that saw her from afar, ran.

She noticed the sudden change in her environment and their reaction to her and wondered what happened. They never ran from her, they could jerk out of fear when she was nearby and angry but on that day, they were running. Even those who bowed did so with so much fear because they were shaken in their heels. She ignored them and tried to pretend not to care but the more she moved, the more people moved further away from her and it got her worried.

"Is something wrong?" she turned to Ida who was by her side.

"No, your highness" Ida replied and the princess stopped. She didn't look at her, she only looked ahead and resumed walking again.

"I am not blind Ida. I can see them running and hiding while whispering and staring at my back. What happened?" She asked again, this time, her voice betrayed her and it came out powerful and hurt. Even Ida shook for a moment there.

"There is a rumor going about the kingdom," Ida explained.

"It says that you might be the vessel," she added and once again the princess stopped in her tracks.

"What? Why would they think that?" She yelled pushing off the cold feeling that suddenly enveloped her.

"Ever since the banquet, strange things have been happening in town and superstition took over the heart of the people," Ida explained calmly knowing how her princess and the child she raised at such a young age could be.

The princess went numb for a while. Her anger was spreading rapidly and her hands went numb. She knew the prophecy, she had heard it before, and had been told about it since she was a child.

"THE DOOM AND THE UNWANTED ONE, TO CONQUER AND TO DESTROY. PATHS TO BE CHOSEN AND THE DRAGON OF AGES SHALL BE FORGED WITH HIS BRIDE. WARS AND CHAOS, DEATH AND DOOM SHALL BE HEARD IN THE LAND OF MEN. ALL FOR AN OUTCOME, HE SHALL RULE. DARKNESS"

For some reason, she knew it like the back of her palms. Princess Avyanna knew how scared everyone else was because of such a prophecy. The stories of the beginning of time and how the great dark ruined entire civilization and destroyed other species scared her as much as it scared anyone else. And having such a prophecy, meant that something similar to what happened centuries ago might repeat itself. It scared her as much as it scared the next person or even more. When she heard the things they said about her at the banquet, she wasn't this angry. But knowing that every disaster and bad luck everyone faced was being linked to her, didn't just make her angry, it infuriated her and in the deepest part of her heart, it made her heart tear up in sadness and pain.

"My princess...." Ida called out to her as she stood still but princess Avyanna started walking immediately. This time her steps were not graceful or poised. Maids ran when they saw her, guards stood still and people hid from her.

She ignored them and went straight to her father's chambers. Two guards stood at the front of his door but the door was slightly opened. So she let herself in and the guards didn't protest. Either because they were scared, or because they were terrified of the rumors. There was no one at the chambers when she got there. But she heard noises coming from the room she had always known as his library and turned to it.

"The rumors are spreading, I am scared of what would happen to her" she heard the voice of her mother the queen and stopped. Instead, she stood by the door so she could listen.

"They are just rumored, right? It can't be her" queen Aleera added.

"Our princess is special" the king voiced out.

"The lone witch already explained that to us years ago and I believe she has a link to the prophecy but....."

"You can't say that" the queen interrupted with her words coming out broken to prove she was crying.

"That is our child out there, we went through hell to get her. She can't be the doom the realm is expecting. She can't be linked to another great dark" the queen yelled.

Princess Avyanna felt her heart tighten at what she heard. Even her parents weren't so sure of what she was and something told her it wasn't just because of the rumors. There were things they knew, things she didn't.

"We can't protect her anymore," the king said.

"Yes, we can. We locked her up for this years ago and...."

"They condemned her the day she was revealed Aleera" the king yelled. Tears filled the eyes of the princess when she suddenly realized why they never allowed her to leave the castle and she suddenly feared for herself.

"Someone almost had her killed even" king Caldor spoke.

"The rumors already started, as far as Hae is concerned, it won't stop. Locking her up can't be an option anymore" he added.

"Then what other option do we have?" Queen Aleera asked.

"We are going to marry her off," he said.

"She is of age and the dragon king of Hadien would sooner or later come for his prize"

The princess gasped at the mention of that name. The Hadien king. She quickly came out of her hiding and opened the door of the Library and faced her father and mother.

"I won't be getting married to him," she said sternly.