MasukShare
Growing Pains
Terakhir Diperbarui:
2024-02-15 04:01:30[Ona]
“So there is nothing wrong with me?” Carnelia asks for at least the dozenth time. She is sitting across from me, a fan of cards covering half of her face as she drinks another cup of fruit juice.
“Absolutely nothing,” I assure her. “You are perfectly healthy. The babies are healthy. Nothing bad has happened and nothing bad will happen today,” I pat her on the back as I shuffle the cards again. The game Wishes and Fishes isn’t nearly as distracting as it used to be, now that she has so much more on her mind than whether or not my idiot brother likes her. We have been stuck on this island for 2 weeks since Primus left, and I have been tasked with teaching her how to be a dragon all while preparing her to be a mother. "You simply fainted
Bab terkait
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Blighted
[Primus] The dust on the southern plains swirls in the noonday sun. This is the third dust storm this week, and the people of Solace are desperately needing relief. Dragons are not well-liked in this part of the western shore. They are too close to the original territory of the Sun Dragon Kingdom and remember the wars too well. Many of their families were sacrificed in that war, casualties in a battle that wasn't theirs, convinced that they were fighting against a common enemy because they were fed the propaganda that "sun dragons are too dangerous to live."The more I learn about the world outside of court, the more I realize how much we dragons lie to ourselves and others to justify our greed and selfishness.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-16Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Risks
[Carnelia] A small flutter of love shining through my ring reminds me that Primus is still with me, even if he is far away. Stroking my belly, which has grown hard and round as it stretches to protect my babies and keep them warm. I wish I could tell him how big our eggs are growing, or how close I am to "going broody." We are preparing a nest for me in the bedroom, and I'm learning to sleep in dragon form, something I will need to do as a new mother protecting her clutch. I want to tell him everything Ona and I have learned this week, about how I can control my shift, and how she even thinks that I might be able to take the form of other dragon types. I am excited to show off our babies and my new abilities, and excited to show him how much we are all changing.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-17Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Sibling Rivalry
[Segundus] When Primus didn’t return at the end of the season as expected, Father sent me out in search of him. He is needed at court immediately to fulfill his duties and represent our fine nation. We have guests coming. And Father was expecting him last week. But of course, Primus was far too busy breaking tradition to be bothered with following the request of his father and king. Based on recent reports, he and his pet have gotten married, and then he made it worse by declaring her a princess. Livestock cannot rule by your side. You wouldn't crown a pig. Why on earth would you crown a human? And Father kn
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-18Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Hide and Seek
[Carnelia] I was surprised to see a ship arrive just before lunch. Ona had only left this morning, and while I’m sure she must have told her friends to check in on me, I thought she said not to expect them for a couple of days. Curious, I stand on the beach watching it approach. As it grows closer, I become giddy at the prospect of meeting some of Ona’s friends. She has told me so many amazing tales of the adventures she has had on the high seas, that I'm excited to have some of those adventures myself someday. Maybe when I’m not round with eggs or nesting with lots of little dragons. Thinking about Primus and how hungry we are for each other, I wonder how long it will be until I am full again with another clutch.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-19Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Lost
[Ona] I cannot feel him. It is almost like he isn't there at all. I've been searching the coast for two days now and no sign of him has been there. On the day that I arrived at the coast, there was a blip of fear from Carnelia, but it quickly faded. Whatever happened, she must have calmed down or found her way into the shelter. So few people know about the shelter that I am sure it will be safe. Only those of us who had some part in the making of the shelter knew: Primus, who formed the cave itself and put in the first door; Tritus, who found a way to keep the sea wall back and also made the mechanical doors at the end; and me. That tunnel has been used to free so many, to keep so many safe, that I am certain Carnelia is safe. If things were to go badly before I got home, my little brother Tritus would make sure she got to safety. He's been an extremely loyal companion ever since his daughter disappeared five years ago. I've been helping him track down where she may have been taken
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-19Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Traitor
[Tritus] Ona arrived an hour ago. I knew she would eventually. Not that she can change anything, it is already too late. It is too late for all of us. "How could you do it," she screams at me, so angry that even her hair is engulfed in red-hot flames. "Didn't you notice something was different about her?" "I didn't pay much attention, to be honest," I lie. I can't let her know that I gave that girl up seeing what was obvious before my eyes. Something impossible. Somehow that human girl was carrying a clutch. Primus' heirs.
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-19Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Castle Keep
[Primus] The first indication that I am no longer on the Emerald Coast is the lack of ocean. The ocean is a palatable thing, it adds a texture to the air, a sound, a taste. No matter where I am on the coast, I can always hear the sea. The sound of waves hitting the sandy beach and jutting rocks is a soothing balm in the background of my life. I feel lost without the sound. There is nothing like being along the coast, which is one of the reasons I have spent so much of my adult life living there. The second indication I have is the temperature. Wherever I am, the heat is so intense, that my body is both boiling and dry, like a chicken roasted inside a brick oven. It is a dry heat, the kind that you find high in the mountains or desert plains. This means I am inland, nowhere near a
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-20Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Sideways Thinking
[Segundus] I was working in my lab when the packages from the coast arrived. Excited that my wait was over, I paused in my examination of my latest acquisition, a sun dragon child with an unusual mutation, putting her back into stasis and throwing off my bloody apron before rushing to the stables. I opened the first package immediately. Primus. I dust off the viewing window, on the curved coffin of metal, and peer in to see his sleeping face, twisted in the pain of an unending nightmare. He won't remember any of this when he awakens, but that doesn't reduce the satisfaction of seeing the mighty Crown Prince Primus Ma
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-02-20
Bab terbaru
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Epilogue: The One Who Was Sacrificed
[Carnelia] When I sat there, tied to that wagon almost a year ago, I had no idea how my life led me to that place. I couldn't even remember who I was or where I came from. It is amazing how much can change in such a short amount of time. When I was a hurt, angry girl, I had no idea that one day I'd wake up and be seen as the mother of a kingdom, or that my children would not only be heirs to all of Luxandra, but to the Solar Throne of the Southern Continent, a rebirth for a royal line thought long dead. Nor did I understand that my old life, and everyone who existed within it, would be nothing but ash and sour memories before the next summer blossomed. All I knew as I fought against my bindings was that in the next few minutes, my life would either end drastically or it would be changed forever. Because even if my body were not destined to die as a dragon’s meal that evening, something in me realized that the girl I had been up until that moment would die that day. There was n
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Stasis
[Eleanora] “Your Majesty, you shouldn’t be down here,” the small man sniveled as I entered the new lab. "This is no place for a lady." “Where else would I be?” I demand, cracking my knuckles as I stare down my nose at the human technician in charge of keeping my husband’s body from dying. “My husband is here, so I am here. I wanted an update on his condition.” “We could have written a report and sent it…” he begins to sniffle but I raise my hand and he bows low before me, his back deeply bowed as is proper. “I wanted to SEE him, you dolt,” I correct the fool shaking before me. Humans are so weak-willed and this one is weaker than most. I brought him from my family home because I can trust he will be loyal. He'd sooner tattle on himself for a perceived mistake than risk being accused by someone else. Similarly, he's the first to report when anything seems amiss. The perfect little worm to place in any apple. Because while he is telling on everyone else, he is also spying for
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Inferno
[Segundus] “Greetings citizens of Imperial City,” My queen and I shine brightly as the sun begins to set, our white clothes studded with diamonds so that when the spotlights shine on us, we gleam like fallen stars, fitting since our intention tonight is to make celestials fall from the heavens. “The Celestials have lorded over us for several millennia. Living in their sky throne, they control our resources, taking what they want and leaving nothing behind. Their children, the Sun Dragons, were especially notorious. They controlled the power that fueled our cities, and if we didn’t make proper payment, they would burn our cities, raid our farms, and send their blight to wipe all life from our land.” I pause to let my words settle into the hearts and minds of those gathered. A gentle hissing roar throughout the crowd assembled. My wife, Queen Eleanora, squeezes my hand in encouragement, smiling sweetly, projecting her confidence and trust. “My brother, Segundus, sought to alig
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince A Place Amongst The Stars
[Carnelia] There is a bright glow as I close my eyes and I know that it is the last time I will ever see Cressida, that she sacrificed her spark to save me. My screams turn into howls of pain and sorrow. Cressida, the kind mother who nursed me through the birth of my babies, and accepted me into her family even when she thought I was a human. I didn’t even really get a chance to know her, and now I am mourning her, along with the loss of my mate, trapped on the other side of a gate I cannot cross. “CLOSE THE GATE!” one of my captors bellows through the entry gate as we arrive at the Northern Sky Portal, “By order of Queen Cressida. This is her final command!” The drakes at the gate go immediately to work, tapping buttons on clear surfaces lit from within with swirling and changing images of blue, red, and green. The surface beneath our feet shifts and shakes and I scream in fury as I watch the large metal iris of the portal snap shut. “How could you,” I pound the chest of m
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Rumors
[Segundus] “Sir,” one of my aerial knights bows before me as I ready myself for the next phase of the war. I had just sent my generals from the room and was looking over a map of Luxandra. I already have an idea of what this knight is going to say before he opens his mouth. Looking at the map, I have marked several cities that have recently been destroyed, each one a hub for an energy hub. I had them each commit to continuing the story of Skyfell, telling the untruths of how the treacherous Celestials came down to Terra, burned our cities, and stole our light. In many ways, these new attacks on major city hubs are feeding into our story, except for the unpredictable element of them being completely untrue. “Report,” I am getting irritated by all the bad news I have been receiving. My generals didn't have anything good to report from their respective lands, and the lack of resources coming into the capital was starting to make me anxious. It has become harder and harder to hide the
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince A Dragon With Nothing To Lose
[Primus] Ever since I first saw her tied to that cart, there was something about her, something that captured my heart. Seeing her taken from me, held roughly by the hands of those trying to save her as she is taken away, screaming my name--that broke my heart. So much has happened since that fateful evening when she was left as a sacrifice at the foot of my mountain. She had fire in her then too, but it was buried deep within her, almost smothered by a lifetime of hate and abuse. Once I started to brush away the ash and soot of her previous life, she began to glow, her fire mostly directed at me, but fire nonetheless. Even when she tried to extinguish it, when the weight of the world and her sadness threatened to crush her spirit, she came back to me, her fire bright and true. Loving her has been hot and pure and never boring, never predictable, almost like flame itself. Right now, burning with rage, with righteous indignation, she is the brightest I’ve ever seen her.
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Last Stand
[Carnelia] The still of the morning is shattered as everyone moves into position to protect Primus, Cressida, and myself. We all drop to the ground as another beam of light shoots over our heads. “How many do we have below,” the queen bellows, commanding her men, her body rigid with fear and power. If she is afraid, it is impossible to see, her movements sure and precise. “At least a full platoon of air drakes with another half platoon of fire, My Queen.” One of the guards answers back as another shot zooms overhead. “Possibly more hidden beyond the ridge.” “Un
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Vile Harvest
[Segundus] My back aches as I land near Hatchery L11. It is early morning, just after dawn. Eleanora was still sleeping when I left. I have a feeling the doctor will give us auspicious news today about her health. Based on the color of her cheeks and her increased appetite, I am certain she is carrying our first clutch. I leave my small group of guards behind in a nearby town. I cannot have anyone who enters these facilities other than myself cannot leave once they enter. We cannot risk trade secrets leaking out to our competitors. I know that Elfholm is considering creating its own factories using a different breed, but as it is now with energy being one of our main exports, I do not want to give away anything that will lessen their dependency on our sources.
Sacrificed to the Dragon Prince Flash Bang Boom
[Ona] The fighting has stopped. We are vastly outnumbered. Thankfully, the Imperium soldiers on board were given orders to stun and contain us, not shoot to kill. Even so, we lost more than a handful of sun dragons to the battle that ensued. Including Daax and myself, the number of resistance fighters on the boat is down to 36. Four days ago, at the start of this adventure, we had more than 60. By the time we reached the end of the tunnel, we numbered 42. I try not to think of all the bodies we lost during the evacuation of Segundus’ lab. So many had never awakened when released from the pods--and there had been hundreds of them. Drakes, drakaina, and some little more than hatchlings. Watching them die as they took their first free breaths in decades is a memory I will torment me for all the remaining moments of my life. There were more bodies on the ground than walked out of that room. I have been fighting this battle against the Imperium for the last four decades but on
