Page 92 of The Lost Prince
Iwas so, so tired.
My legs hurt from traversing the tunnels for what felt like the past twenty-four hours nonstop. My arms and back burned from carrying my satchels and supplies, but I wouldn’t put any down. I needed everything.
If Shava was tired, she hid it well.
That mud constitution that made them all tough might have skipped me. Well, physically, anyway. I was the toughest person I knew mentally. Who else could make precise cuts into their skin and bleed, all for the sake of magick?
“Zariah better be here or nearby. I can’t walk another step.”
Shava emerged from the mine shaft and into the hot desert sand, the sun high in the sky by this point. She collapsed to the ground with a groan, rubbing her feet.
It was tempting to join her, but I resisted.
“Finally, they’ve joined us.”
I jerked and Shava gave a small yelp as the queen stepped out from behind an outcropping of rocks, two Fireguards at her side holding a squirming Noble.
“HELP! HELP!” He screamed incoherently at me, face twisted in horror. Surely, I didn’t look bad. I knew I looked rough after my rituals, but his reaction was over the top. Especially considering what he’d likely turn into, assuming he was one of the Noble’s about to turn into a demon.
“Dear me … what haveyoudone?” the queen asked, stepping up to examine me closer. I returned the favor, noticing the odd, skintight outfit she wore on her body like a second skin. The garment left nothing to the imagination. She may be far older than me, but the queen was still a beautiful woman.
One silver-white eyebrow arched at me as if she knew the direction of my thoughts. I didn’t hide my gaze as it shifted to her breasts, arching an eyebrow of my own in response. Wear ridiculous clothes, and you’d get ridiculous looks.
“Did he look like this before?” the queen questioned Shava, turning her sharp tongue on him.
Shava glanced at me, oddly shaken as she shook her head furiously side to side. “N-no. I don’t know what he’s done. Do you?”
I frowned, touching a hand to my face. My nose felt a little off and my skin seemed paler, but surely it was simply because of exhaustion, or maybe something had happened from the ritual that had almost accidentally taken place.
“You’re uglier,” I bit out to the queen. Not that I cared how I looked. If doing rituals had physical consequences, I was fine with that. It was simple curiosity that led me to get more reactions, and more information.
“Now really isn’t the time to discuss it,” Shava shot back, eyes on the queen. “But we need to talk about it later. Assuming we’re not dead.”
A nonanswer that avoided my question.
“Why is it always you?” the queen sneered. “What magicks have you dabbled in?”
I stared at her feet, realizing they were just as bare as Shava’s. What in the world was going on? The queen was out here dressed like some sort of … loose mud girl!
I didn’t have an answer for the queen, so I didn’t provide one. Caught red-handed openly defying her like this, I already knew Shava and I faced execution. For real, this time. Hopefully, it will be by the dragon in my back pocket.
“I’d order you to take him up to the dome, but that hasn’t been working well for us lately, has it? I suspect I haven’t given clear enough orders to the right dragon,” the queen continued.
I assumed the queen was using the royal we, but her comment was puzzling. There was only one dragon, so what was she talking about?
Don’t smirk. Don’t give an inch.
My face stayed impassive, though behind me, Shava trembled. A wet stain appeared on the Noble’s crotch, and I wrinkled my nose at him in disgust. I wanted to hiss at everyone to pull it together. Shava at least knew the dragon was on our side! What was she afraid of?
“ZION!” the queen thrilled out, her voice pinging off the surrounding rocks.
The massive golden dragon soared overhead, circling down before landing with a giant ‘thud’ a distance away. His giant wings stayed flared, casting a shadow on everything under his gaze.
“There you are. I suspect these two have been smuggling goods and evenpeopleout of the kingdom. I knowyoudidn’t assist in this endeavor, did you? You of all people know howdangerousthese people are.”
The dragon crouched flat on his belly, his head whipping back and forth in an unmistakable gesture of submission.
“Well? Did you know?”
