Dragon's Prize (Dragons Awaken Book 2) Read online

  She sighed and picked up her quill and wrote down today’s entry:

  My mother is a whore.

  Chapter 3

  Warmth.

  The sunshine caressed Kaden’s skin, rejuvenating his body and spirit. Consciousness trickled to the fore of his mind. A soft blade of grass tickled his nose, as the scent of earth and forest infused his senses. Birds chirped, the stream murmuring its consolation and encouragement. He had made it through the night. Muscles cramped, he groaned and turned onto his back. He opened his eyes, only to be blinded by the sunlight. He raised his healthy hand to provide some shade. Fluffy white clouds drifted in the bright blue sky, the sun’s position announcing late morning. He sat up, and noticed that his aches had lessened. He was sure that humans did not heal this fast.

  The thought made him smile. Though the ordeal of the night before had been real, so was the outcome. He was human!

  “Good,” Kaden murmured to himself as he looked around. Pup was nowhere in sight.

  His left hand was still throbbing, but the pain was manageable. He checked his wound, where the finger used to be, remembering the sharp pain when the prince had chopped off his claw. A small sacrifice to make for Olivia’s safety.

  He was thankful that the stump didn’t appear to be infected. It looked ugly though, and he would need to take the rope off to clean and cauterize it. Kaden dreaded it but he knew it had to be done. He was no medicine man, but the flames which formed in his mind’s eyes called to him.

  Movement to his right caught his attention. Pup trotted back with a dead rabbit in his mouth. The little wolf dropped the carcass in front of Kaden and yipped.

  Kaden smiled at Pup. “You’re a good boy.” He praised the little wolf as Olivia would have done. She had told him that Pup needed to be praised for the good things he did and when he obeyed. “Olivia would be so proud of you.” He patted the cub’s head, somewhat roughly.

  “Guess we’ll be needing some fire.” Kaden ran his fingers through his hair, only to get them tangled in a mess of black curls.

  He inspected his surroundings. It took him a while to gather tinder, branches and stones. Pup followed him every step of the way, occasionally running around him in playful circles. Kaden didn’t think he could make it back to the cave without eating something first. Water he had aplenty.

  After about an hour, he had a small fire going on the same burned patch where he had stopped Magnus from capturing Olivia the first time. He hoped he hadn’t failed the second time, and that Olivia was safe at home. He couldn’t wait to see the look on her face when he showed up, human. Will she believe it’s me? Surely she will after I tell her about the curse…but… will she like me? Will she still feel the same now that I’m a man? Doubt made him dizzy, and he almost burned the rabbit to a crisp.

  With food in his belly, and resting on his back, Kaden let the sunshine help him heal. His naked body was sprawled on the velvet green grass close to the river’s bank. His eyes were closed and a small smile danced on his lips. He was so happy to be human again. And yet, one look at the clouds made him nostalgic. I will miss flying though…

  Finally, he summoned up the courage to deal with his injury. It was gruesome, and agonizing as the flames touched his skin. The pain was unbearable at first, and he almost lost consciousness. But as the scorching heat worked its way through his skin, sealing the wound, the pain melted away. The wound closed, as if feeding on the fire.

  He dived into the stream, and scrubbed himself clean. The cold water numbed all his aches and pains. It felt as if he did not only wash away the dirt off his body, but also the curse. His soul was cleansed and refreshed.

  He was free.

  Kaden had never cherished his freedom more. He wished that Olivia was with him to share the moment, so he could listen to her laughter, see her bright smile and peer into those inquisitive, happy blue eyes of hers. Just like that time when they had gone fishing together, as much as a dragon and a maiden could fish. They did manage to catch a decent dinner for Olivia, but he would forever remember the fun they’d had, the splashing and then just lying on the soft green grass, and talking. What he wouldn’t give to be able to chat with her again, and, maybe, they could even snuggle up now. It would feel like heaven. Too perfect. Was he worthy of it at all?

  After the sun dried his skin, he stood on his wobbly feet and tried to get accustomed to being bipedal again. Pup padded closer and sat by his feet. Kaden smiled at him.

  “Easy does it, right Pup? Let’s try this walking thing.”

  He took his first tentative step, spreading his arms. He narrowed his eyes at the next tree, and with renewed determination, took his second step. A strange force surged through him and he welcomed it.

  Kaden laughed at himself as he flapped his arms. But, he made it to the tree. He almost hugged the trunk, leaning his forehead on it. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths. It was quite an exhausting thing he had done, but now that he had started moving, he didn’t plan to stop until he reached the cave.

  He stopped a good distance from the cave’s mouth and crouched into a more comfortable position. A lot of foliage had been burned by the dragon’s fire. Kaden was glad to see that it hadn’t spread. The sun reached the horizon, reminding him of the passage of time. Time was a precious thing now that he was human again. The cave’s entrance was awash in the golden colors of the setting sun, the breeze almost nonexistent, and he welcomed the natural sounds and scents of the forest. Nothing marred them, nothing unnatural or human-like. There was no sign of Magnus or his men lingering close by, and no sound from the cave. When he deemed it clear and safe – Pup’s relaxed behavior confirming his decision – he continued toward the cave.

  Before entering, he turned to Pup and said, “Stay! I need to make sure it is safe.”

  As he took his first steps forward, Pup followed.

  “No… I said stay!” Kaden pointed his finger at the ground, but the little wolf only tilted his head to the side.

  “Sit!” He tried a different command but Pup didn’t budge. He was not a trained dog, that much was clear.

  “Just… arghh… just stay here. It might not be safe inside, the prince and his men might be hiding.” Kaden doubted that talking to the cub as if it were human would help, but he didn’t know how to make his little companion stay back. He just knew he had to take good care of Pup, for Olivia would never forgive him if he let anything happen to the little ball of fur.

  Pup followed again. Kaden spun around. Exhausted, tired, hurt, hungry, angry, sad… he snapped.

  “I SAID STAY!” His voice boomed. An unnatural sound, as if two voices blended together, the dragon’s voice and the human voice. What he couldn’t see were his own eyes flashing yellow for a split second. Pup saw it, however, and submitted immediately. He tucked his tail in and lowered himself to the ground. The little wolf whimpered. Kaden was surprised by the sudden surge of power flowing through him at the sound of his distorted voice. He closed his eyes and breathed in, then exhaled, calmness settling over him. “Stay, Pup,” he said more gently, before turning around and walking away. This time Pup obeyed.

  Kaden had to be vigilant. He was a dragon no more, so threats were now many, and not all were human.

  He stepped onto scorched grass and memories hit him with such force that he stumbled; he could see Olivia making a run for it. A man broke away from the group, running after her… Kaden remembered the man’s head catching fire. Then Magnus brought his sword down and pinned Kaden to the ground. Pain sliced through his wing. The scent of fire, mixed with the scent of blood, both enticing and disgusting him. The burned knight screamed till death took him over… the sound would be forever etched in Kaden’s memory. But most of all, he would never forget how afraid he was for Olivia, wanting so much to follow her. He tried to free his pinned wing, when his claw was cut off by the prince. Sharp pain burst through his hand, the memory blending with his present. Kaden’s eyes snapped open and the scene vanished.

  Still
half-lost to the flashback, he stood in a daze, until he could focus his gaze. He found himself standing at the mouth of the cave. Breaths coming in sharp, short pants, he rubbed his hand over his chest, soothing his galloping heartbeat. He closed his eyes and took a deep lungful of air. The memories threatened to overwhelm him again, so he shook his head free of the recollections.

  He welcomed the familiar silence of the cave, it’s darkness welcoming him home.

  It was safe.

  Crouching, he studied the ground around the cave. The prince and his men had left the day before, or so the tracks said. There were two fresh graves to the left of the cave, probably the men he had burned alive. When he saw no other graves, he was relieved. Before becoming a dragon, he had never taken a life, afterwards, it had become a necessity when defending his own. He had never gotten used to it, and his stomach always churned and his soul hurt whenever he had to spill blood. He did, though, learn to move on.

  “Pup, come here, boy.”

  The little wolf trotted over, but slowed his steps before reaching Kaden. When Pup tucked his tail, Kaden felt sorry for the little beastie, “You’re a good boy… You just need to be trained and we will get along fine,” he praised gently as he scratched Pup behind the ear.

  Kaden used torches, candles and lamps to light up the cave, both front and back. He explored the cavern, looking for clothing.

  He stopped in front of a mirror. A man studied him with familiar dark eyes; he had almost forgotten what he looked like. It seemed he hadn’t aged a day, and was still in the body of a twenty seven-year-old. He was lean and muscular, with a patch of soft dark hair across his chest. There were purple bruises on the left side of his torso, raised red scratches everywhere and numerous shallow cuts on all his limbs.

  Back to the mirror, he turned his head, checking the wounds on his back. The deep and long cut, already scabbed, was sure to scar. He was past caring about such things, although, there was a niggling self-consciousness of what Olivia would think. Would she be disgusted? Fully facing the mirror again, he brought his hand up slowly, tracing the rough skin from his hairline to his brow just above his left eye… His scar. Still there… He remembered when Olivia’s soft fingers touched it. It seemed like a long time ago, and it had been only a couple of days, less than a sennight. With her, time didn’t exist; it was always about then and there.

  He studied the rest of his face. Other than the scar, everything else looked the same, even the light stubble. He used to hate to shave, or maintain a proper beard, anything to rebel. He sighed at his younger foolish self. He pushed the black curls away from his face, surprised to find a stern looking face back at him. He guessed being cursed would do that to a man, make him lose the happiness inside. I hope Olivia will like me when she sees me. Kaden groaned, never having felt so uncertain in his life, human or dragon. But he was a dragon no more, and needed some clothes. There must be some in his hoard.

  It took him three more days to recover enough to get moving. He would build up the rest of his strength along the way, as it would be a long walk to Remor, the town Olivia had told him neighboured her estate.

  Dressed in a sunflower yellow shirt, dark brown riding pants, and a fawn-colored leather coat, he said goodbye to his cave and stared at the forest ahead. It was a bittersweet parting. His home for so many years, and he had never just stopped to enjoy its beauty. He preferred the wide-open skies, but Olivia had taught him to be more grounded. He vowed he would someday come back, to this place where he had met his love.

  The stump of his finger still wrapped tightly, he used his other hand to hitch the sheathed longsword higher on his shoulder. Impractical, but it would do for now. A dagger in its scabbard was tied to his thigh. The backpack, he filled with spare clothes, a cloak, Olivia’s bone comb, and some other necessities. The jewelry and gold he would need for trading were safely tucked into the belt bags. He was a bit encumbered, but once he got to the first town he would buy a horse. After all, he wasn’t a dragon anymore, capable of carrying so much more than what he was struggling with now. He would get used to it, being a human again. In time.

  He set out, in what he hoped was the right direction.

  Chapter 4

  Olivia played with the locket hanging from her necklace. It was a simple oval, silver toned, with her flourishly engraved initials, OVM, encircled by a pansy garland. Lifting her gaze, she stared blankly through the window of the coach at the scenery passing her by, listening to the gravel crunch under the wheels, slightly jarring and rocking the coach. The ride was bumpy and rough, so she welcomed the cushioned seats. It would take them a few hours to reach Remor, the first larger town away from her home and that little closer to the Palace.

  How long it would take them to reach the throne city, she did not know. She sighed. She never thought she would travel so far. She had dreamt about it, but in her visions she made the trip of her own volition, not under Prince Magnus’ threat of her parents’ lives. She loathed the prince for taking her away from her childhood home. She despised him for the deception he had visited upon her parents, who thought her to be facing her future happy and content, had no idea she was being blackmailed into a marriage with a villain. Most of all, she hated Prince Magnus beyond measure for killing her dragon.

  Gripping the locket left bruised indentations in her skin. The sight outside was a blur as she barely held back tears, brought on by the memory of her mother putting the necklace around her neck. With a sense of foreboding, she thought of her parents. Would she ever hold them so close again? They had believed her sadness and quiet demeanor were due to her leaving the childhood home. She might see them again on her wedding day, the day she would become queen.

  It had been difficult to say goodbye to all the people she had known her entire life. She was close with the stable master and had spent many hours in the stables, growing up. At an early age, she grew fond of the fresh scent of hay, dust and horse sweat. She had fallen in love with the gentle nature of the horses, the sway of their movement between her thighs, their warmth and the freedom riding provided her with. As she said her farewells, the stable master had just hugged her tight and tucked a dagger in her pocket. Olivia had pulled away, and frowned in confusion. But, he nodded, a wary look in his eyes, touched her cheek, and gave her a tentative smile. Olivia mouthed a ‘thank you’ before moving on to the next person.

  She looked down at the locket between her fingers and opened it. On the left side was a picture of her mother, on the other, one of her father. She missed them already… The thought of them brought a pang to her heart.

  She wiped away the tears. She closed the locket with reverence, her strongest connection to the family she had left behind, and continued staring out the window. No longer did she find beauty in the blossoming cherry trees, baby green grass, and fragile daisies… yes, that was how she felt; fragile.

  A horse rode by, a red-haired rider perched upon it.

  “It’s a wonderful day to travel,” said a young woman sitting across Olivia, bringing her out of her musings. Charlotte was the girl’s name, though she insisted on being called Charlie. Charlie was beautiful, fair-skinned and red-haired, much like the rider beside the coach. So far Olivia had managed to ignore her, having no desire to converse with any of them.

  Olivia’s thoughts now turned to her traveling companions. Only two were unharmed in their battle against Kaden; the one who rode by and another man who was very quiet; they had been introduced to her as Theo and Damien, scouts of some sort. Of course, there was Magnus, the Prince of Evil himself. Olivia loathed the man to her very core. He was mostly unharmed by the fight, at least from what she could see. The youngest of them, a healer named Donovan, had also come out of the clash mostly unscathed. He was the only one Olivia paid any attention to, seeing as he had taken care of her wounds.

  The knight with warm, golden brown skin had his own set of injuries, though none so big as to keep him from functioning normally. He had a soft and kind look to his eyes, making
Olivia wonder why he was following a man like Magnus. One of the other men had a nasty bruise on the left side of his face, and a scar that went from his temple to his chin. He was the man Olivia had seen observing her meeting with Lord Mykke. He tended to put a protective hand on his ribs, which meant a couple of them were probably cracked. He was frequently hovering over another wounded man, who, she had learned, was his brother. The brother had almost his whole right arm ripped off his body. It was now tightly wrapped close to his torso, broken and mangled, but still there and functioning.

  The last man was hurt the worst, with most of his head wrapped in bandages. He was the one who had come after her, the one whose head Kaden’s fire had grazed, both lucky and unlucky for him. If it had hit him full on, he would’ve been dead. As it was, he was only scarred for life. He was very angry, and lashed out at everyone besides Magnus. The three wounded men were settled in the wagon, with the healer looking after them. Olivia’s own horse was tied to the wagon. She was afraid to show any affection for her beloved piebald mare in case Magnus came up with more cruel ideas to threaten her with.

  “Hey, Little Red, everything alright in here?” a voice snapped Olivia out of her musings. She saw the red-haired man peeking in.

  “Everything’s fine, Theo. Stop hovering, please?” Charlie said.

  “You know I’ll always worry about you. If you need anything, let us know,” Theo said and disappeared from view, going back to his place at the rear of their little procession.

  “We’ll be stopping in Remor for them to fix their armor. We’ll probably spend the night there. You can have a proper warm bath,” the girl tried to start a conversation yet again.