Hi! Thanks for visiting my blog :) This is part seven (the final part) of a little story I'm writing. For anyone who is new here, I would recommend you start at part one and work your way through. Happy reading!
As the sun rises, I wait for the screams to start.
I don't have to wait long.
"Just ignore them, they can't hurt us," Erele says.
"They can't hurt you, but if they start shooting arrows, we'll be in trouble," Max points out. "Your scales may be impervious, but our skin isn't."
"If that happens, hold on, and I'll try to dodge them."
My hands tighten automatically on the spike on Erele's back in front of me. "Has she ever done that before?" I whisper.
"No. Let's hope she doesn't have to."
I try to ignore the panicked sounds of people below us. Dragons are rare, but more than that, most of them are vicious. Down below, they won't be able to see Max and me on Erele's back. They'll be expecting her to breathe fire down on them at any second. No wonder they are screaming.
The ground streaks below us, faster than I would have imagined possible. I can see the king's palace in the distance. As it gets closer, the army starts forming up a defensive wall around the building.
"Hold on!" Erele shouts as a hail of arrows flies towards us. She breathes fire into the onslaught, and the blazing arrows veer of course with the power of the flame.
I hear something below us worse than arrows. Glancing down, I see Haen stirring.
"Erele! He's waking up!"
She flaps faster, but there is nothing else she can do.
"If he wakes up, we're done for," I mutter.
Max just holds tightly to my waist as Erele swerves to avoid another volley of arrows.
Right over the palace, Erele folds her wings and drops straight down. Max yells and I grip her spike more tightly as I feel our bodies lifting off her back. At the last second, she opens her wings again, dropping lightly to the ground.
"Stop!" I yell, sliding off her back to face the oncoming guards. "Stop, she's not a threat."
They slow their charge bewildered. They are taught to kill dragons but defend people. Seeing me defending Erele has them stumped.
Before they can decide what to do, Haen staggers upright, released from Erele's claws when she landed.
"Arrest these -"
He is cut off mid-yell when Max grabs a stone from the ground and hits him on the head with it. Haen falls like a sack of potatoes. The guards start running towards us again, sure that anyone who would attack a king's wizard is the enemy.
Erele snakes her head threateningly towards them, not attacking, but protecting Max and me.
"You have to listen to us," Max says urgently, leaning around Erele to speak to the soldiers. "Haen was using black magic. We need to speak to the king."
"Lay down your weapons -"
"Stop! What is going on here?"
I sigh in relief when I see who it is. The king himself is coming down the steps.
"Sire, go back," one of the guards says. "It is too dangerous for you here."
"Let me hear what they have to say," the king says, looking surprisingly unintimidated by Erele.
"Your Majesty, Haen is using black magic," Max says before anyone can interrupt him. "We saw him with our own eyes."
"Have you any proof of this?" the king asks. "Haen has been a good and loyal servant."
"Sire, please, search his chambers. There, you will find the evidence you seek. But you must keep Haen unconscious - once he wakes, he will use magic to escape."
One of the soldiers snorts in disbelief, but the king is looking quizzically at Max and me.
The one who seems to be the leader of the guards steps forwards and whispers something in the king's ear. The king nods reluctantly, and I feel my hopes fading.
"Seize them," the king says.
Then the guards are advancing on us, weapons drawn. Max, Erele and I are fighting, but there are too many of them. The last thing I feel is a blow to the back of the head, then everything dissolves into blackness.
I wake in a dark cell. Max is lying beside me, and he groans when I roll him over. "Halie? Where are we?"
"I think we're in the dungeon."
Max slumps back against the hard stone. "Then everything is lost. Haen will cover his tracks as soon as he wakes up."
"I really thought the king believed us," I murmur.
"Me, too," says Max. "I just hope Erele escaped..."
We lie in the dark, waiting to find out our fate.
Fate comes sooner than expected. The door is opened, and I cringe against the sudden bright light, expecting it to reveal Haen any second. Instead, the king stands in the doorway.
"You have done a great service to the kingdom," he says.
"What?" I murmur, sitting up, wondering if I am dreaming. "I thought you didn't believe us..."
"As soon as you told me about Haen, I could see that you were telling the truth. I also knew that there must be other traitors here. Pretending to imprison you gave me the element of surprise. We have found them and imprisoned them. Haen is being kept asleep by our best healers."
"Erele?" Max asks fearfully.
"The dragon? Our army may be fearsome, but it is no match for a dragon. She got away, unhurt, I think." The king holds the door open. "Come, it is safe now. I am sorry I had to lock you up."
Max and I walk hesitantly out, wary of a trap. The king is smiling warmly at us, though, and I see sincerity in his gaze.
"I know how Haen hurt you," he says gently, looking at me. "I will have guards escort you home, but first, I wanted to give you something." He holds out a crystal bottle, filled with some kind of purple liquid. "The memories Haen took, if you want them."
I take the bottle with shaking hands. The king is leading Max and me up to the gardens, but I am not concentrating on where we are going. My focus is entirely on the bottle in my hands, on what it means. Of course, I want my memories back... but I am afraid. Who will I be after taking this?
I realise that the king has left, and Max and I are alone on a bench in the gardens.
"Halie?" He gently lifts my chin so that I am looking at him.
I meet his gaze, and I find there are tears in my eyes. "I'm scared, Max."
"I know. You'll be ok, though. I love you, Halie. Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you."
He holds my gaze steadily, and I am the first one to break away. I hardly know Max right now, yet I can't help but trust him.
I take a deep breath, then uncap the bottle. In one swift motion, I swallow the contents.
Memories wash over me. I remember meeting Max for the first time. I remember every moment we have shared. I remember our wedding, and all the days since. I remember my love for him.
When I look up, I see the Max I know and love looking at me, and I am filled with a sudden joy. Of course I love him. How could I ever have forgotten that?
"There you are," he whispers, stroking my cheek. "Are you alright?"
I lean up to kiss him, and it feels as comfortable and familiar as anything I have ever felt.
"Yes," I say. "Yes, I am."
The End
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