Ancestral Dragon

Epilogue

With a churning stomach and sweaty palms, Preston waited under the watchful eye of the dragon. He knew he could never go back to the castle, much less any major town in Pellegrasia. One does not assault the king and get away with it, not even the king's son. No amount of groveling would sway his father to forgive him.

Unless I discover the location of the Village of Ede, the prince thought.

Former prince.

No. He would not betray these people. They may not trust him but he believed in Aunsi having the freedom to manipulate magic. It was a natural ability. How could the king force them to wear Inhibitors? The very same ones he now wore. The conflict had been visible in Rory's face as the group had decided what to do with him. Preston was surprised at how quickly they were willing to use the very tool the king had implemented in oppressing Aunsi.

The old woman shifted, making herself more comfortable next to her unconscious husband. Preston's chest tightened as the old couple's condition weighed on his heart. He stood by for years after discovering his own abilities as his father continued to oppress the Aunsi in Pellegrasia. The old couple used to be close confidants of his father. As far as Preston was concerned, it was his father who had betrayed them. He was disgusted with how the king could treat two people he had once called friends.

Rustling from the nearby bushes caused Rory and the curly haired young man to grab the pommels of their swords. The old man, Rune, with his long, grey hair returned with the tall young man with a sword sheathed on his back.

What threat did my father see in this guy? Preston thought.

His father sent Von Chiemer, the general of his army, to investigate an illegal source of magic. Usually, that task was given to the lowest soldiers. However, the Sensors had claimed that the magic was different than anything they had felt before. Von Chiemer had returned empty handed though he was convinced that it was a new Ohnji roaming Pellegrasia responsible for the unusual magic. Then this young man with the sword sheathed on his back had shown up in the castle during a dragon attack claiming to be what Von Chiemer searched after.

The reports of the dragon insisted it to be the ancestral species but Preston was unfortunately unable to see for himself, until now. The emerald green beast still watched him with its golden eyes. He felt that the right thing to do was helping these people escape and find their way back to the village in the floating mountains. Preston accepted and understood that he may never see it. However, he had an idea how he could help even without being a part of the resistance.

Rune and the tall young man spoke quietly with the rest of the group. They each took turns in glancing over at Preston, making sure he was still secured to the tree. The only one to not look at the former prince with suspicion was the tall young man. The one Preston believed was connected to the ancestral dragon watching him right now. Eventually, the four of them walked over while the old woman stayed with her husband.

"What're we doin' with him?" Rune asked in a surly voice and nodded in Preston's direction.

"He doesn't know, Rune," the tall young man said. Using the old man's name earned him a scowl, however, Preston already caught it from earlier. He was trained to be observant in situations like this.

"I didn't ask what he's gonna do. I asked what are we gonna do with him?"

Both young men were quiet and looked over at the former prince, then at the ground. Preston had thought about this. There were few options that left them safe. His heart beat raced as he realized Rune probably favored killing him.