Page 3 of Heart of the High King
Chapter 2
1369 AD
Draconis Court of Ethelin
Standing at the cliffs, Prince Aleksander Ethelindraconis let the chilly wind rip through his hair as the crowd around him swelled. Having patiently waited one hundred and two years to shift into his dragon form, it was finally time. The cousins he’d been told not to speak to at the age of seven were next to him—Noirin was shivering while her brother, Dravyn, stared at the ground. Aleksander took a step toward her to try and share his body heat. With a smile, Noirin shuffled even closer. The entire Ethelindraconis court was gathered to witness the auspicious event while twelve drakelings stood nervously awaiting their fate. There were supposed to be thirteen, but Brogan had yet to make an appearance. Aleksander idly wondered if he’d awoken yet.
Although he considered setting out to find him, his father would not be pleased if he left to track down his wayward best friend. King Boian Ethelindraconis was often less than delighted with his only son, and Aleksander did not want to fight with his sire. Before Aleksander could ruminate over his strained relationship, he spied Brogan moving in the direction of their small group at a fast pace.
Brogan offered Aleksander a cheerful smile as he reached his side, not the slightest bit embarrassed to be late. They did not get the chance to speak as King Boian got the attention of the crowd to start the ceremony that would change their lives. Within a few minutes, the group of people would be wearing dragon scales or they would be dead. Dragons were fierce animals, and not every shifter survived the process of accepting their beast.
As if his possible demise was not enough of a worry, Aleksander hoped his scales would be of a dark color, for he wished to please his father. Aleksander’s sire was a deep sable brown chosen by Fate with silver rings around his pupils, and he bowed only to the emperors who ruled over every dragon. While Aleksander cared not a whit for power, his father would find fault with him if he were light. King Boian already accused Aleksander of being weak; anything less than a black dragon would only encourage his thinking in that regard.
While his mind had been wandering, the first drakeling had taken her place in the ceremonial circle and was attempting her shift. Within moments the young, chestnut-haired woman was replaced by a brilliant blue dragon. She spread her great wings, flew gracefully above the cheering crowd, and landed close to where King Boian and his dukes stood. After she returned to her human form, the next young woman entered the circle.
Her transition did not go as smoothly, but eventually an orange dragon stood in the ring of rocks. Taking to the air, she tried to make her victory lap above the throng, but she crashed heavily and rolled across the grass, knocking into a huge group of people before she was able to stop her forward momentum. Human again, she sheepishly made it back to her spot while the crowd grumbled and dusted themselves off.
The next few drakelings became dragons without incident. Aleksander, his cousins, Brogan, as well as a young man named Juri, were soon the only ones left. Although Aleksander did not know Juri well, it was impossible not to see that he was petrified. Juri’s eyes were rounded with fear, and his gait was far from steady as he slowly headed to King Boian. The crowd grew tense after several minutes passed, and Juri was still shivering in the cold. Duke Drogo offered Juri encouragement as he tried to rein in his terror and allow his beast out.
Several more anxious moments passed; then a pale-yellow dragon finally emerged. The beast appeared jittery as he spread his massive wings with a series of roars and tried to become airborne. Murmurs and gasps spread throughout the gathered mass as the dragon left the ground and furiously rose high in the air. In the blink of an eye, he shifted back while still in flight far above the earth. Juri was likely dead before he hit the ground. A pall fell over the crowd as Juri’s father came forward to collect what was left of his body for his pyre.
King Boian gestured for the next shifter to enter the circle. Offered no words of comfort by his king, Juri’s parent left the cliffs, sobs wracking his frame. No one would ever accuse King Boian of being a compassionate man. With another impatient motion from the king, Noirin lifted her gaze to Aleksander briefly and entered the circle. Aleksander was grateful that he had been ordered by his father to shift last. It would be impossible to find his calm and allow his beast control if he had to worry about Noirin, Dravyn, or Brogan experiencing the same fate as poor Juri.
Aleksander’s nerves were spiraling out of control, making him grateful that Noirin was quick to be replaced by her dragon form. Applause rose from the crowd as they took in her dark-violet scales. It was highly unusual for a female dragon to be such a deep color, and she would now be the highest-ranking woman in their court. Aleksander hoped it would get her out of the kitchens where his father had banished her.
Circling above the crowd to thunderous cheers, she softly landed and shifted back seamlessly. They exchanged grins when Dravyn experienced no difficulty becoming a beast of deep forest green. Brogan was next, and he was a rich navy blue. Both Dravyn and Brogan were destined to be dukes of considerate power.
It was finally Aleksander’s turn. Walking to the ring of stones, he met his father’s gaze. King Boian Ethelindraconis said nothing as Aleksander stood there for what could be his last moments. After removing his clothes so they would not get destroyed, Aleksander’s lashes slid to his cheeks, and he emptied his mind. Letting out a deep breath, he heartily welcomed his beast. To his shock, pain radiated from every part of him as his body grew and stretched. His dragon trainer had assured him it would not hurt, but it did and horribly.
His arms and legs lengthened and thickened with layer after layer of muscle, and giant wings sprouted from his back. Skin hardened, and scales erupted as his spine elongated to form a heavy tail. The process seemed to take hours instead of seconds as the shift took over him. Aleksander opened his eyes for the very first time as a dragon and knew something was profoundly wrong. Dragons were large beasts, but Aleksander was enormous—easily twice the size of every other beast he’d ever seen, or perhaps larger. Unable to process the significance of that, his father’s voice rang out.
“Cursed! He iscursed! Look at his scales,” King Boian shouted. Aleksander had no clue what his father was speaking of, so he glanced down and held in the humanlike desire to gasp. Aleksander’s scales were jet black, but the edge of each scale was rimmed in navy. Struggling to process what it meant, the refrain repeated in his mind that dragons did not have more than one color.
“Shift back,” his father commanded, and Aleksander quickly complied. Donning his clothing in a rush, he ignored the crowd pressing closer to where he and the king stood.
“Your Highness, Prince Aleksander is both black and blue. How is this possible?” Duke Drogo, King Boian’s most trusted advisor, asked.
“It does not matter the why. You saw his scales. They are unnatural.”
“Your Highness, his scales are unusual, but you saw for yourself his great size. Prince Aleksander is a very powerful dragon,” Brogan dared to comment.
“His size goes against nature as well. Look there, Fate has even marked his human form to warn us all. His hair now has the peculiar mix of black and blue as his scales. Aleksander, gather your things quickly. You must leave the castle at once,” King Boian ordered his son grimly without meeting his gaze. Aleksander had no chance to respond. Boian turned on his heel and headed toward the castle. Standing just outside the circle of rocks that had changed his fate, Aleksander wondered if his father would truly banish him from the only home he had ever known.
“Prince Aleksander, I’m to escort you to your room to collect your belongings.” Duke Drogo said gently as he walked over to him. Aleksander supposed that answered his question about whether his father was throwing him out. Woodenly, Aleksander followed Duke Drogo as they silently made their way inside and found King Boian in front of the stone staircase that led to the upstairs chambers.
“Take only what is yours when you go, Aleksander,” King Boian warned. Aleksander managed a nod as his father walked away from him again. Since his youth, Aleksander had contemplated if his father had any affection for him, and he now had the answer. Straightening his spine, he took the stairs up to his quarters. Pleading his case or begging to stay was out of the question—his pride was too great to allow it, and his father wouldn’t be swayed. After entering his room, Aleksander took his time in collecting his things. Returning was impossible, and he wanted to ensure he left behind nothing. Thankfully he had some coin, but he had no idea where he would go.Would any king wish to have such a strange dragon in their court?
“I have gathered everything,” Aleksander informed Duke Drogo, who whipped his head both left and right to search the hallway. Apparently satisfied, he entered the room and closed them inside, then crossed to Aleksander’s side.
“Aleksander, when you leave the castle grounds, you will no longer be a part of Court Ethelin. You must go directly to Emperor Drystan and Emperor Conley to ask them to find you a new home. I fear your father will send someone after you to end your life if you do not,” Duke Drogo told him in a soft tone as he shoved some gold coins at him that Aleksander took most gratefully.
“Your Grace, you have my thanks. I will go to the emperors.”
Aleksander had no desire to see if his father would follow through and have him slain. With Duke Drogo still at his side, Aleksander made his way back down the stairs to leave his old life behind him. While he wished for a few moments to see Brogan or even his cousins, that courtesy would not be given to him. Aleksander was almost through the grand castle gate when someone shouted his name. Brogan ran toward him with Dravyn and Noirin trailing not far behind.
“You did not think to leave without us, did you?” Brogan asked with a bright smile.
“All of you, please think of what you leave behind. I can promise you nothing, not even your safety,” Aleksander cautioned.
