Fate of the Silver Dragon

This is the companion book to Heart of the Silver Dragon. They read chapter for chapter from each perspective  (main character and love interest) and can be read simultaneously or one after the other, but you don't have to read both to understand the story. It's just extra content for anyone who is interested :) Hope you all enjoy!

Ariyan

Long ago, we Dragons lived in secret amongst man, our human form hiding us in plain sight. We kept to ourselves, collecting our sacred treasures, no mind for anything but our hoards. Eventually, however, our lust for that which we coveted exposed our kind to the humans of the world.

Frightened of our might, man hunted us. But we were stronger, more powerful, and before long, we overcame them.

For centuries now, we have lorded over them, using them as servants, and the strongest as guardians of our most cherished treasures. Some, however, are marked as our Mates, the Sisters of Fate forcing us to join with them, to protect them, for they carry our only weakness; Our hearts.

It has been longer than many can remember since any of us have shown our true form, having lost our ability to shift. But with skin as tough as scales, and fire wielded from our very fingertips, we are still more fierce than even the strongest of humans. And so they live in submission, for the most part.

There are those who refuse to bow down to us, rising up to strike against us. But they are few, and easily subdued, their Dragon slaying weapons destroyed, and the secret of our true vulnerability kept close at hand.

But I am not like many others of my kind… The humans in service to me are well tended, for my mother was one of their own, and I was raised amongst them in hiding for most of my youth. And while I do what I can as Lord of Dragons to see peace remain between us, not all would have it.

Bloodshed has tainted this world, and not just between our kinds, but amongst our own as well. I have spilled my fair share, and have seen many lost who should have lived. But that is the way of things, and has been for most of my existence.

The humans call it the Great War, when they sought to destroy us. I could laugh at their ignorance. That was but a tiny battle, a massacre really. No, the true great war is brewing, I can feel it in my bones. And there shall be no prisoners at its end, only death, and a divide greater than we have ever seen.

But today, today is a different day than most, for Dragons and humans alike have come together, forgetting our bitter rivalry between each other and ourselves, to witness the battle for the coveted position of Guardian, protector of our hoards, my hoard specifically.

“It was kind, what you did for Desmond, My Lordship. Though it will be sad to see him go. And difficult to replace him.”

I look over at my human advisor, Narius, with a blank stare.

My old Guardian was indeed that, old. He had served me well for decades, but humans are fragile, and he could no longer offer the protection my treasures deserved, so I allowed him to retire, granting him his freedom from the Keep to live out his days however he saw fit.

“Yes. With times as they are, I do not look forward to vetting this new Guardian as thoroughly as I shall have to.” I look back down at the arena where the twelve men will fight to the last for the position.

It is a dusty and barren pit dug into the center of a small mountain near my Keep, with rough seats hewn into the stone above it where a crowd has gathered to watch. The column from which I survey every Guardianship battle, towers above all, and I lean on the railing of the balcony, my mind preoccupied with far more important things.

With the risk of my brother attacking the Keep at any moment, this is the last place I wish to be. But my General is there, his Captains on guard, waiting for any attempt to seize power from me, and so here I stand.

“It does seem the timing could have been better, Sire. But I am sure all will be fine.” Narius is himself getting old, but with his age has come wisdom that many Dragons do not have. It was part of why I made him my Head Chancellor. Humans have a different way of thinking, untainted by greed or jealousy. At least the kind we Dragons suffer. I can feel his eyes watching me, and I know his concern. It seems to be the concern of all who sit in the closest corners of my confidence. “Should I send for Lurline, My Lordship? Perhaps her company would—”

“No.” I do not mean for the authority in my voice to be so strong, but a distraction, especially of the kind of Dragoness Lurline is, is not what I desire right now. In fact, all I desire is for this entire thing to be done and over with. The sooner it is, the sooner I can return to my Keep, returning my focus to matters far more important. “The Candidates have had enough time to prepare. Send for the Moderator to begin.”

Narius bows his head.

“Of course, Sire.” While he is not one to hold his tongue, he also knows when a point is futile. There is no comforting me these days, no lifting of the darkness I have found myself consumed with. And so, he disappears down the long stairs leading from my perch, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

And such thoughts they are.

I have grown tired of thoughts, of the constant suffering of my position. Lord of Dragons. A title I have grown to despise for it has brought nothing but pain and loneliness of the deepest kind. I would give it all up if I could, but alas, my brother would not let me live in peace even if I were to give him what he desired.

No, until one of us is dead, the suffering shall continue. And killing him has proven to be an impossible task.

At last I hear the sound of the horn signaling the Candidates to enter the arena, pulling me from my dark and dismal mind. I let out a deep breath, waiting to begin my own judgment on each of them as I weigh who I believe shall win.

I have never been wrong yet.

But as the twelve enter the pit, the last to do so catches my attention, and catches me slightly off guard.

A female.

Never in all my years has there been a female to compete for a Guardianship. Yet as I watch her, she holds herself as a warrior, and despite the armor that covers much of her body, I can tell she is strong.

But that is not what has drawn my attention.

There is a need within me, a desire to covet her, to take her as my own, to protect her, keep her from the battle that is about to ensue.

And yet, she is the one I am certain will win.

The others will no doubt underestimate her, and should she be trained well in the use of the daggers at her sides, her small form shall allow her the agility none of the others will have.

There is another, a man with wavy, brown hair and dark eyes, who seems to be the next likely to become champion, and from the way the female glances at him, they clearly know one another.

Jealousy rises up within me at the thought of him being near her, but I force it down as I listen to the old Moderator speak.

“Today, twelve of you enter this arena as Candidates, but only one will leave as Guardian. You all know the rules. Every Candidate for themselves, and the battle continues until all but one has yielded. Understood?” They each nod in turn, the female glancing once more at her companion, making my fists clench. “Today, you all have more at stake than usual, for today, the winner will become the Guardian of not just any Dragon’s cherished treasures, but of the Lord of Dragons himself, Ariyan Silverwing.”

Each of the twelve Candidates reacts in some way to hearing my name, but she is the only one I am focused on. Her heartbeat almost comes to a halt with surprise, and perhaps fear.

But then she does what I never would have expected.

She tilts her head up to look at me.

No human has dared look at me without my permission in ages. Yet here she is, her eyes like deep wells of night glinting with stars, her long dark hair pulled back in a braid, showing the exotic beauty of her face clearly in the sunlight.

And as I gaze upon her, my heart seems to ache in a way I have never felt before.

No.

It cannot be.

For centuries I have lived, and now, at the moment when my brother’s opposition is strongest, the Fates dare present me with my greatest weakness.

I refuse to believe it, and yet, I know deep in my soul there is only one reason I feel the way I do as I look at her.

Her lips part ever so slightly, and a deep rumble vibrates in my chest as I long to taste them, to feel my own bruise the delicate pink of them as I devour her.

I fight everything in me not to leap down into the pit and take her into my arms.

But then the Moderator calls out and her gaze is pulled from mine, releasing me from the spell that seems to have engulfed me.

“Candidates at the ready! Begin!”

Ariyan

“Candidates at the ready! Begin!”

I watch as the female’s head snaps down and her hands immediately move to pull her daggers from her sides.

It seems half the Candidates think she is an easy target, and they immediately move to attack her. I can feel every muscle in my body tense, the need to protect her raging through me, but as she easily dodges the first, her dagger coming to his throat as she forces him to yield, a sort of reverence swells inside me.

So she can fight.

I watch her calculate her opponents, weighing them just as I do, and she settles on a tactic as she lunges at another. She is quick, and agile, and as she slides under him, she comes up with her daggers at his back and heart.

“Fuck!” The defeated man throws his weapons to the ground. “Yield!” He glares at the female as he spits his words at her. “The Fates must favor you, bitch.”

A rumble vibrates through me and I make note of who he is. I shall rip him limb