Beauty And Chaos: A Tale Of The Dragon Prince And His Fae Prize

"Get ready to entertain your masters, slaves!" Princess Elaria was jolted out of what felt like the worst sleep she had ever had. Even before coming fully to her senses, she knew something was very wrong with her. Her head was pounding, everything in her tiny body ached and that loud voice shouting orders would kill her if they kept at it. Her usually very comfortable bed felt very cold and too hard, making the aches in her body worse. With eyes still heavy and vision still unclear, she forced herself to take a look around her. The sight made her frown. The room did not look like her room anymore. The ceilings were way higher than she remembered, making her room appear to be more of an empty space, a very large empty space. Silhouettes of figures caught her attention as they moved up and down, making her realize she was completely mistaken about still being in her room. "And was that the smell of ash and dust? Blood too?" "Aelinor." Princess Elaria called out to her personal maid, but her voice was barely a whisper, fading away before it even left her tongue. Surprised by her non existent voice she swallowed hard hoping to moisten her throat but she ended up wincing in pain. Her throat felt bruised and dry, like she had suffered a terrible cough or had spent hours wailing. Or had she inhaled ash and dust for sure? Elaria was about to call out to her maid again when that voice blared again, tearing through her aching head. And this time it sounded louder and closer. "What in God's name is going on?" She put her hand to her head to ease the pounding. "Did you not hear me slave!" Elaria jumped this time, making the ache in her head and body worse. She was too startled by having a man speak so close to her and addressing her so rudely. Not even her knights in her own palace were allowed to come this close. And whatever he said, did not make any sense. "Slave? When did I become one?" She panicked, just as the sound of metal clicking by her feet reached her ears. "Shackles…" Her feet were in shackles! "Why am I shackled?!" She winced as pain shot through her head from the panic that washed all over her. With her vision more clear than before, she scanned her surroundings and wished she hadn't. "Blood…" It was everywhere Elaria looked. She was no longer in her bedroom but her kingdom's main arena. Her vision was clear, maybe too clear for her liking. Grief was already sipping into her heart and she could feel her strength draining away the more she stared out at the horrible sight. Dead bodies…Her father's men, her people lay dead in pools of their own blood. It was not the first time she had seen her people fill up this arena, but definitely the first time they did so... lifeless. She wanted to look away, but couldn't. Her eyes wandered from one gruesome sight to the next. Horrible expressions on dead men's faces stared right back at her each time. She was choking, a tightness had invaded her chest, making it harder to breathe but she still kept looking. Unable to look away, her eyes landed at the centre of the arena. The fae kingdom's banner should have hang proudly at the arena's centre but only more dead bodies. Piled up in one huge heap. Her people's blood was still trickling down, making the heap appear like a fountain of death. And right at the top, a familiar robe caught Elaria's eyes as tears freely flowed at the sight. She would know that robe from anywhere. She had just chosen it that morning. "Father…" She averted her eyes, her own heart too broken to endure the sight. But that was not enough as more grief flooded her soul, choking her up and leaving her gasping for air. "Father…" She whispered as tears spilled in torrents while her memories came roaring in like a tempestuous sea. Waves and waves of gory images made up her recent past. Visions she wished she could forget. Her kingdom had fallen and her perfect life had shattered with it. "Father...mother…" Tears kept flowing freely as the last memories of the king and queen of Autaria filled Elaria's mind. It was a sunny morning in the kingdom of Autaria and the royal family was having their breakfast. As usual the tables in the garden were filled with laughter, until the horn. Elaria placed her head in her palms as even the memory of the blaring horn made the pounding in her head worse. That dreaded sound that warned everyone when their kingdom was under attack had sounded with urgency. The sound had been a strange rhythm, one that she had never heard before. It was meant to announce the imminent danger and have each person in her kingdom prepare for battle. Only this time there was no time to react, no time to assemble the armies as the enemy had taken them by surprise. She remembered the dark silhouette of the most fearsome creature…a dragon. It hovered over the royal garden. On any other day she would have stopped to admire the sight. It's presence however, announced the end of her kingdom. And before she could place the tea cup that was in her hand back on the table, fire rained down on their castle. That morning was the first time she had seen fear in her father's eyes. The mighty fae king who had been her pillar of strength had fear written all over his face and right there she knew that her life would never be the same again. Her mother would be the first one to react. Kissing her father and running towards her. "Daughter, come." She had simply said, but Elaria had sensed the urgency in her mother's voice and had jumped to her feet. Knowing there was no time to waste, Elaria only spared a moment to look at her father to make for the worst good bye between them. Her heart had broken when she found him still seated, a faint smile on his lips. He had mouthed something to her, but she didn't quite catch it before she was pulled into the castle whose walls were already tumbling down. "Mother?" Elaria had called out, but only silence. The queen of Autaria who was usually bubbly had scurried down the castle hallways in deep silence only speaking to Elaria once when they reached the entrance to a lonely tunnel that she knew led out of the castle. "Stay here my child, the magical forest will keep you safe." Her mother had said before kissing Elaria's temple and giving her the longest hug. She should have gone to the forest, it would have protected her. But Elaria couldn't. The fear in her mother's and father's eyes had been enough for her to know that this was one war they weren't going to win. And a life without them was no life at all. Unknown to her mother, she had stepped back into the castle, choosing to suffer the same fate as her beloved parents if it came down to it. "Move slave!" Elaria shut her eyes as the loud shouting sent a sharp pain flaring in her head. She did move however, her shackles feeling like boulders meant to keep her stuck to the ground. "Why did you save me?" Her grief suddenly turned to anger, rage, directed at the gods that had thought to torment her by keeping her alive. And as she dragged her feet on the bloody floor she wished that wretched dragon had swallowed her up too. For a moment, she thought the heavens heard her when a deafening roar rumbled above her, shaking what remained of her kingdom's arena. "Prince Lukius, your highness, welcome!" A voice boomed, loud enough for Elaria to find their position easily. A strong man, dressed in fine clothes that had surprisingly stayed spotless despite the blood on the arena's floor. He had his face looking up to the roof, his hands stretched out in some form of welcoming gesture. Elaria found herself looking that way too, curious to see what the man was looking at or who he meant to welcome. She hadn't noticed it yet but there was a large opening in the roof that was being blocked by something huge. "A creature perhaps," Elaria thought, when the dark block seemed to move and let a bit of light from the sun through. A sharp and quick movement caught her eyes as something fell through that opening. Or was it someone? "Your highness, victory is yours. The fae kingdom is finally yours." The man in fine clothes bowed towards an imposing figure. It was a man, a large man, clad in a dark heavy war armour and whose hands bore two large swords. "A Dragon Prince…" Blood was still dripping from the pieces of metal. Her people's blood had been spilt so carelessly and it made Elaria's heart boil. "It's you." She had wished for death, but as Elaria's eyes threw daggers at the one responsible for it all, only one thought dominated her mind...revenge.