“The emperor defending a human woman?” Barok discussed among his fellow elders the lines of surprise drawn along his forehead. “It is unheard of.”
“I am quite surprised myself,” Myrka drawled, before he corrected. “Surprised and frustrated, if he is being stubborn about something like this, he is likely to do it.”
“We cannot allow that,” Adolrth muttered, his eyes blazing with fury as well, “A human woman, empress over our heads? I can’t think of a more befitting abomination.”
“I think we should calm down as well,” Barok concluded. “We don’t want to act rash and then lose our heads.”
“I would rather lose my head than watch a worthless human become empress over our precious dragon lairs,” Jun answered, his long white hair let down, cascading across his broad shoulders. “Our fathers and the ones before them have cultivated these lands for the last ten thousand years, we lost our shifting powers because of a mistake our ancestors made, and now we are going to watch that hatchling make the same mistake.”
Jun seemed angrier than the rest, maybe because he came from the angry tribe of the storm dragons, who are usually always angry.
“We should do something about it,” Adolrth advised.
“That is exactly my point, and I am also saying, getting angry out loud is pointless,” Barok stated as he turned to face the rest of his fellow elders. “Let’s send the emperor our congratulations.”
“And then what?” Jun yelled even more. “Support this madness! We allowed his father to create him, and look now, we can’t control him. We are afraid of the day he comes to claim our lives. I didn’t spend the last seven hundred years of training to be killed off by a dragon who hasn’t reached puberty.”
“Calm down,” Myrka advised as he nudged him. “The emperor has passed puberty, though, but let’s listen to Barok first. I am sure he isn’t pleased with the news as well.”
“Thank you, Myrka,” Barok cleared his throat. “Let’s send the emperor our congratulations, and also pick out the best gifts for his future wife. No matter how strong a human is, she is still a human woman, and they are most fragile.”
His eyes darken.
“Who knows, we could all wake up and she would be dead.”
The information registered faster than intended, as they glanced at each other in agreement, if that was the only way they could get the emperor to give up on committing the abomination he is insisting on.
“You think that is going to work?” There came the still voice, the only one who had refused to join their conversation. The verdant dragon, Lucivar, his green hair had darken with age, and he kept it short, just above
his forehead.
He probably became a monk in his free days, the other elders disliked him greatly, and as he was rarely in support of anything they agreed on.
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Chapter 17
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“You think the emperor is going to believe his healthy human toy just died from an accident one day?” He then chuckled as if laughing at their efforts to restore cultural peace.
“Then what do you suggest we do?” Jun faced him ready to fight if it got down to it, “Fold our arms sit in the shadows and laugh? If the emperor himself isn’t going to regard the culture of our nation then don’t you think we will be hypocrites for enforcing it on the people?”
“But the emperor is right, he is the law, which means if he sees fit, he could restore such broken law,” Lucivar answered with a blunt smile on his face, a little satisfied with the outburst of his fellow elder. “I believe there is nothing wrong with finding mates in a human. We are only here today because one of our ancestors found his human mates, even though he was a hideous beast.” Everyone watched him in awe of his foolishness, Myrka and Adolrth trying their best to hold it in.
“Humans are pure creatures born out of love, they can love no matter the form or shape.” He continued. “Maybe someone can love him for being the demon of destruction he is.”
“I understand your point, Lucivar,” Barok answered with a distasteful hiss. “But anything else but a human. It was because one of our ancestors mated with a human that’s the reason we had taken this hideous form.”
He stared down at his skin like it was a sin.
“I hated looking anything like those weak creatures,” Barok continued, his eyes flashing red. “Dragons are majestic beasts; those are what we would have been, but we are not dragons, neither are we humans, we are in between. We can’t even shift, because of this so–called love.”
“Azmaveth is the closest thing to a dragon,” Lucivar reminded. “He risks awakening the true dragon, and you see how we all fear him.”
“Because we are weak,” Jun added. “Because we are more human than dragon, we should all be like Azmaveth.”
“You want us to be demons, causing chaos and destruction, unable to control our emotions?” Lucivar asked with confusion, and then the elder quieted. “The emperor will not sit still if you hurt his woman. At least let her be for now, this is the first time he is interested in a woman, let’s see if she lasts or if he will kill her
himself.”
“I would like to go home,” Jun hissed. “I can’t waste my time talking to old fools.”
“If you hurt her, the emperor wouldn’t sit still,” Lucivar thought to advise them, “You think he doesn’t know that someone among us, the elders, has been sending assassins to kill him. The bodies, the guards, the aids he kills, do you think they are for no reason?”
Barok’s eyes flashed.
“Did the emperor tell you he is being attacked by assassins?” He asked curiously, and Lucivar shrugged. Myrka
inched forward.
“Do you have any idea what you are accusing us of?” He yelled. “That’s treason! I am tired of your nonsense. How would you conclude that whoever sends the assassin is here?”
“Because no one would dare if not one of the elders of the tribe.” He continued. “And out of the respect the emperor has for us, he blames it on his madness, and everyone thinks he kills people for fun, because he is a
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Chapter 17
mindless killer.”
“Then this means…” Adolrth muttered.
“Yes, there is a traitor amongst us.”
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
