Page 29 of The Cursed Queen

"She lies!" a dragon shifter in the crowd cried out in anger.

"She does not," Andriel stood up and faced the other shifter.

"Let the princess speak," Lord Igneel spoke calmly, raising a hand to silence anyone else from speaking. "Proceed."

I gave the dragon lord a brief explanation of my youth. How I was raised to believe dragons were mindless, dangerous creatures. That they needed to be controlled for the sake of the people, and that I could never go near one. I mentioned how I snuck in to see Andriel and his brethren, and that was when I learned he was a shifter. I spoke the truth firmly and confidently, hoping he understood my pure intentions. Virgil also stepped in to confirm what he was taught to believe in dragons, and how he, too, learned the truth from Andriel.

The whole time I talked, Lord Igneel never once interrupted and made sure no other outbursts were made. When I was done, I felt raw and nervous, waiting for the dragon lord's verdict as if I were awaiting my sentencing for the crimes committed by my mother. If he deemed me a threat, I knew he wouldn't hesitate to execute me. Would that put Andriel in a position where he may have to go against his leader? What about the others who seemed to think I was also their mate?

"I see," Lord Igneel said after a beat of silence fell between us. "You've certainly had quite the revelation, Princess Seraphina. While I appreciate what you've done in setting free my clan, I can't help wondering why. Why, even after knowing what your family has done, would you go against your people for mine?"

My eyes fell on Andriel and the others that surrounded me. Then to Virgil, who regarded me with a firm nod. "Because it was the right thing to do."

I rose to my feet then, wanting to speak as someone of equal power, and who understands the importance of choices one must make. "I knew what it would mean for me if I went down this path, that it would mean betraying my family, and my kingdom, if I set Andriel and the others free. But I couldn't find a solution more important than that. Ruling a kingdom of druids while enslaving a clan of dragon shifters was not the kind of queen I aspired to be. I may not know my mother's motives for enslaving your people, but I also see no value in it."

Waving my hand to the dragon shifters that came with me, I added, "My mission also doesn't end with their freedom. I plan to do whatever I can to ensure the rest of the shifters are set free from my mother's clutches. Only then will I face my mother and see her reign end."

I meant every word I said. When I thought about my crowning as queen of the Zeffari Kingdom, I never thought it would be by fighting Mother for the crown. Maybe even killingher. It was a heavy burden I would have to bear, but my resolve wouldn't waver. I would see the end of my mother's torment over the dragons. I only hope I wouldn't have to do it alone.

"You have a noble heart, Princess," Lord Igneel said, and I could've sworn I'd seen the right corner of his lip turn up into a grin. "You and your friend here sacrificed a lot, and on behalf of the Dragon's Peak Den, I thank you for your sacrifices."

Hope bloomed in my heart at the dragon lord's words. With any luck, maybe an alliance between us could one day repair the rift between our kingdoms once we stop my mother. One could only hope, especially if I were to be with Andriel... and the others. That was another problem I'd have to address some other time.

The good mood ended suddenly when the pain returned full force. I screamed and fell to my knees, my arms wrapping around myself as it grew unbearably hard to withstand. I could barely hear Andriel shout for medics over the sound of my screams. Then I heard what I could only describe as a dragon's roar ringing in my mind. A ring of violet flames erupted and surrounded me, blocking Virgil and my mates from reaching me. My insides felt as if something was moving inside me. The skin along my back and arms began to boil and stretch like something was trying to get out.

What was happening to me?

While I screamed, my voice changed. It sounded gravelly and feral. A roar echoing with my normal voice.

Then I felt something growing out of my skull. The skin along my arms changed in texture, appearing scalier. My nails were elongated and curved into talons. The flesh along my back stretched out until it finally tore apart like paper as something sprouted out; a pair of large, leathery wings expanded before folding onto either side of me. I was mutating into something,and I had to wonder if this was the curse I'd heard so much about.

Drayce

I stared in shock as the princess I knew to be my mate screamed and contorted until her body transformed before us. I didn't know what was happening to her, but I knew what my dragon sensed inside her.

Another dragon.

One that I didn't detect fully, but only caught minor glimpses of an inner fire growing within her. How was it possible? Did this mean the princess was a dragon shifter, too? The pain she felt eventually became too much for her and she passed out when her wings erupted from her back. The flames surrounding her extinguished, and Andriel and the druid knight that accompanied my mate rushed to her aid. So did Ryu, which left an ache in my chest.

She was also his mate, which would now complicate my relationship with him. I knew this day would eventually come, that there would be a time when one or both of us would find our fated mate, and the love we shared for one another would have to end. I just didn't think we would find our fated mate this way, or that we would have the same one. What did that mean for us?

I never heard of more than one shifter being fated to the same person. As far as I knew, we only had one fated mate, and that was the person the dragon gods deemed worthy of beingour love for all eternity. So how was it that the princess had four fated mates?

Get it together, Drayce. Now wasn't the time to worry about that.

I shook the thoughts from my head just as the medical team rushed over to Seraphina. Freya, the head medical shifter, turned the princess on her back, checking her pulse, then rested a hand over her heart. Magic sizzled from her palm and rippled through my mate's unconscious body. She looked sickly pale. Her body, half soft flesh, and half scales, had an amethyst glow along the ridges.

"What can you tell us, Freya? What's happening to the princess?" Lord Igneel asked, taking a step closer to Freya.

Freya pulled back her hand and frowned down at the princess. "There's no mistaking it. There's a dragon inside her, which makes her a shifter, but she's also a druid."

"A hybrid," Lord Igneel breathed out, as if saying it out loud was too much for the aging dragon lord.

My brothers and I looked at one another in confusion. This wasn't the first time we'd heard of a dragon hybrid—since Ryu was one too—but this was the first time we'd come across one who was half-druid. When did a dragon shifter and a druid get together?

"Is there anything you can do about her current condition? She looks as if her dragon's trying to shift but is stuck halfway," Andriel said, holding one of the princess's hands between his. The druid knight that accompanied the princess held the other. My dragon wanted to snatch him away from our mate. How dare he be so close to someone who was ours and think he could get away with it?

As if sensing my unease, Ryu turned his eyes in my direction and faintly shook his head no. I frowned, feeling embarrassed that the man I loved felt my need to claim someone else. But heshould've also felt the same way, yet he was as calm as the ocean on a clear day.

---