The Dragon's Call

Chapter 7

-Laelia-

It was painful to watch the castle fade behind the horizon, and even harder to see the snow slowly disappearing from the ground. This would likely be my last chance to experience snow or feel the cold wind biting my cheeks.

“You won’t get away with this,” I said, glaring at Prince Ashes.

“Is that a threat, Princess?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

I didn’t respond, turning my head away. The sight of my home vanishing was too overwhelming. But as day turned to night, the prince finally ordered us to rest. Ashes helped me down from the horse, and the camp was quickly set up.

I wasn’t the only northern person taken from home. Many of my people had been captured, and some were tasked with setting up camp, others with preparing food. I stood on the sidelines with two dragons guarding me.

I recognized some of my people who worked at the castle, now being treated like dirt. I wanted to help them, to protect them, but even the slightest movement from me made the dragons stir, their readiness to restrain me clear.

In the crowd, I spotted the princes talking and even smiling as they watched the camp being assembled. They all shared the same yellow eyes, but none had hair like Ashes. One had completely black hair, the other golden.

I didn’t know their names, but my hatred for them was as strong as my hatred for Ashes. I wanted them all dead, yet here I was, powerless to act. How dared they stand there laughing while my people suffered under their orders?

“Princess.” Ashes called out to me, lifting his hand and giving a small wave. One of my guards quickly seized my arm and started leading me toward the prince. His brothers had already moved away from his side.

“Your tent is ready,” he said, a smile clearly visible on his lips.

“My tent?” I echoed, but before he could answer, he turned his back to me and signaled for the guards and me to follow him.

We approached the tent, which was one of the largest in the camp, flanked by two equally large tents on either side. We followed a wide path created by the surrounding tents, leading directly to the one he had indicated as mine.

“Here we are,” he told me as we reached the entrance.

Two large torches flanked the entrance, casting a warm glow. The tent was decorated in red and gold, and I couldn’t understand why I, his prisoner, had been given such an elaborate tent. Why not just leave me outside with the others?

Ashes extended a hand, inviting me inside. Was this some kind of trick? Why did he look so smug? Reluctantly, I stepped inside. The interior was even more impressive, with a large bed and a small tub. How had they managed to bring such luxuries with them?

As I moved further in, I felt a presence behind me. Turning around, I found Ashes standing close, his golden eyes locked onto mine, his imposing figure towering over me.

“What are you doing in here?” I asked, my voice trembling with fear.

“You didn’t really believe me when I said this was your tent?” he inquired, his tone mockingly amused.

Confused, I looked around. If this wasn’t my tent, whose was it?

“My brothers and I flipped a coin. I lost. You stay with me.”

“What?” I exclaimed, horrified. I was supposed to sleep in the same tent as the man who had taken everything from me? I shook my head vehemently. I’d rather sleep on the ground.

“No! I’ll stay with my people. Anywhere but here,” I said, trying to storm past him.

Ashes quickly grabbed my arm, pulling me close and blocking my escape.

“And risk you convincing your people to fight back while we sleep? No, you stay here!” he growled in my ear.

His voice had a slight echo, making him seem even more menacing. For a moment, I thought I saw his round pupils shift into vertical slits. I recoiled in fear but remained rooted in place.

“W-Where will I sleep?” I asked, glancing at the lone bed in the tent.

Ashes smiled cruelly before starting to remove his armor. His gray shirt followed, leaving him in just leather pants and boots. I quickly turned away, unwilling to see the man who had killed my father and brothers half-naked.

“On the ground, in the bed, I don’t care,” he told me with a casual shrug. “Just stay in the tent.”

I heard him moving around, then the splash of water. When I looked back, Ashes was lowering himself into the tub, exhaling deeply as he leaned his head back. He seemed exhausted, and the warm water must have been a relief. There was a cut on his shoulder and a dark bruise on his upper left arm. Part of me was almost glad he hadn’t emerged from this unscathed.

“Not tired, Princess? Or do you wish to join me?” he asked, his tone taunting.

I gasped at his audacity. I crossed my arms in anger and stormed over to the bed. Grabbing a pillow and blanket, I found a spot on the floor, far from him and the bed, and lay down. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to sleep at all. It had only been a day since I lost everything, and the pain was still raw. Maybe... I would never sleep again.

***

“Here, wear this.”

The next morning, the prince woke me by tossing a piece of thin fabric into my face, jolting me awake.

“What is this?” I questioned, holding up the light blue fabric.

“A stola. The sun will soon be too hot for anything else. Besides, I didn’t think you’d want to keep wearing your wedding dress covered in your husband’s blood.”

“Dead husband’s blood,” I retorted, noticing a small smirk at the corner of his mouth.

Ashes stood up, his piercing yellow eyes locking onto mine. He had changed his clothes too. Although he still wore his golden armor, he had swapped his thick pants for a black pteruges skirt, which I had only seen in history books. But I knew the warm southern climate would make it unbearable to wear the same heavy attire as in the North.

“Be quick. The camp is already being taken down.”

He exited the tent, leaving me to change in private. I sighed and got up from the ground, my back aching, but I ignored it as I removed my filthy wedding dress and put on the stola.

It was almost see-through. The fabric was light and thin, but it was so sheer that it almost exposed my skin. I quickly wrapped my arms around myself. I couldn’t believe he made me wear something so revealing.

Yet I had no choice. My family might be dead, but my people were still alive, and I was the only one who could protect them now. So, I walked outside, holding the dirty wedding dress in one hand while my other arm covered my chest.

“May you be burned in the underworld’s fire for a thousand years,” I muttered as I emerged and saw him already waiting by his horse.

Ashes was right. Even a day’s ride from the North, the sun had already turned warmer, making it clear that anything thicker would soon become unbearable. I approached him, my expression sour, which only seemed to amuse him as he watched me struggle with embarrassment.

“Give me that,” he said, snatching my wedding dress from my hand and tossing it into a nearby fire that hadn’t been extinguished.

“Hey!” I yelled, though I wasn’t entirely sure why I cared about that wretched dress.

“Now, let’s go,” he commanded, mounting his horse and extending a hand toward me.

“Can’t I ride on my own?”

“Do you know how to?”

I growled softly and crossed my arms.

“Can’t risk you running away,” he added.

I sighed. Unless I wanted to walk all the way to The Golden City, I had no choice. I took his hand, and he pulled me up onto his horse.

“There. That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

If only I could punch him! I thought as Ashes encircled me with his broad arms, and we slowly began to move away.