Page 95 of Dragon Gods

Now he wondered if any of the people he saw that day had known Sofia.

But that didn’t matter now.

It couldn’t matter. He needed to focus back on his own goals and his own life. He might have softened on his position against the Dragonborn’s plight, but it didn’t change the fact that the resistance needed to be taken down and he couldn’t do that if he was worried about what one low-level resistance woman thought.

He continued south, tracking his path by the sun which raced past the horizon and into the sky as he walked, and he wasn’t sure if time was moving faster or he was moving slower.

And then he heard the distinct sound of a footstep—human, in the forest to his right. Fox froze.

For a brief moment, he wondered if Sofia had finally changed her mind and come for him, ropes and bow ready to take him captive. But no, the next two footfalls were as loud and graceless as the first and Fox knew that only a Dereyan would make such blundering sounds in the forest.

Despite the questions and the hesitation over the past few days, Fox moved without thinking. He kept his footsteps quiet, not wanting to get an arrow to his side from a jumpy scout. So he waited until he saw the scout through the trees to shout out.

“May the king keep you brother!”

He stepped into the open as quickly as he could, wanting the scout to see his face and the golden blond of his hair that would never be mistaken for a Dragonborn. Even still, the man jumped back, hand reaching for his bow. His reactions were slow and if Fox had been the enemy, he could have easily overpowered him.

“What—” the boy—which now that Fox was closer he could see he was—started to speak but then he froze, eyes moving across his hair and face. “Junior Sergeant Ocon. You’re the general’s son.”

Fox felt a wave of relief at the recognition—the familiarity of hearing his name and rank once more.

“We’ve been looking for you.”

Fox had to hide his surprise. His father definitely hadn’t sent out a search party, but perhaps the chief commander.

“You’re a hero.”

It was those words that made his heart stop and his face pale—his mouth open.

“What?”

“The resistance base you marked. They found it two nights ago during a search and confirmed the intelligence this morning. Your…the general is leading a raiding party there now.”

FOX

AGE 8

As the prince finally came to sit next to the village girl, she passed him the bread she had brought. He ate until he was full and when he saw the blood on the girl’s hands, he realized what he had done and he wept. He cried for the pain he had caused and as the tears fell, the girl’s eyes widened and the prince glanced down at his own hands—human once more. He looked back at the village girl with the mud across her nose, and in her face he saw the beauty he’d been blind to before.

-The Raven Prince by Emilio Laurn

Fox sat with his back to the window, the thin glass warm through his tunic. It was the rainy season, but the sky had been cloudless the last few days and the sun had dried out the earth. He preferred it when it wasn’t raining. The air was drier and it usually meant his father was outside of the house all day. He’d been promoted to general this past cycle and it seemed more days than not now, he was gone either at the chief commander’s house, at the barracks, or with the king.

They’d even been invited to dinner at the castle a few nights already, his family dining alongside the king and his son, as well as a few other favorite military leaders. Leon loved listening to their conversations over the extravagant courses, going on about the Dragonborn, farmlands, gold mines, and strategic trades with other kingdoms across the sea. Fox hated the list of places and names he’d never heard of and preferred to try and get the prince’s attention. He appeared to be about his age, though Fox wasn’t sure. The boy didn’t talk at meals and rarely even glanced up to look at anyone. This left Fox staring at his plate and wishing dinner was over so he could retreat back into his room.

It’s where he was now, tucked against the large window that overlooked the courtyard below. If he squinted, on a clear day, he could just make out the thin line of azure on the horizon that marked the sea. Right now, his eyes were facing inward, looking at the book splayed across his lap. He’d snuck it out of the library last week and it had been hiding under his pillow ever since. He knew his father wouldn’t approve. It had been cycles since he’d let him or his brother indulge in reading faerytales, but it hadn’t stopped Fox’s love for the stories.

This one was illustrated with colorful paintings of dragons and rolling hills of gold and silver where the land was ruled by a cruel and cold prince who didn’t care for his people.

Fox was at the part where the young peasant girl had stumbled upon the raven once more and was trying to convince him she wasn’t an enemy. Fox already knew what happened. He’d read the story three times since he’d found it, but he felt his heart pounding, nonetheless, anxious to see when the prince finally relented and learned to trust her.

He was so focused on the words on the page and the small picture of the raven, swooping down from the corner of the page, that he didn’t hear the door of his bedroom open or the heavy footsteps that must have followed. His father had never been a silent man and wasn’t one to tiptoe around in his own home.

Yet Fox didn’t notice him until the book was being ripped from his hand. His father’s face was a mask of disinterest as his eyes flickered across the page. He turned a few more before looking up at Fox with an icy expression.

Before he could understand what that meant, his father was walking away, silent as he crossed the room, book still clutched in his hands. Fox jumped up to follow, as if he might save the precious book from whatever his father had planned.

He couldn’t, of course. He barely managed to keep up with his father as he swept down the main staircase and circled back to the servants’ quarters. The back staircase would have been a more direct route, but his father never deigned to use it. It gave plenty of time for Fox to realize what his father’s plan was, though not enough to do anything but watch.

---