Page 4 of The Dragon Maiden

“Why did Lord Dracul make it sound like they pick a Maiden from this town once a year?” I asked. “And what about the other towns? Do they go through the same thing?”

Alonsa smiled. “There’s a need for six Dragon Maidens,” she said. “Each of the Dragon Lords has one of us assigned to him, but Lord Dracul has been without one for a long time. Each year, he searches for a Dragon Maiden, but for the most part, they have disappointed him. Then he either sends them to the Pits or…” She trailed off, wringing her hands. The Pits already sounded awful. I could not imagine what was worse than that.

“Or he roasts them,” Vimery said gleefully, her mouth turned up into a cackle.

Immediately, I felt all color drain from my face.

“Vimery!” Alonsa scolded. “You don’t need to try and frighten her. Her world has already been turned upside down today.” She turned to me and said, “He doesn’t actually roast them.”

“Then what happens?” I asked quietly.

“We don’t actually know,” Bethany said. “They just disappear and we never see them again.”

“If being picked is such an honor, why did no one volunteer?” I asked, trying to keep disdain from entering my voice.

Alonsa pursed her lips and I could tell she was unhappy with the question. “There could be many reasons,” she said at last. “Perhaps no one wanted to be taken away from their family. Not everyone is designated to become a Maiden if chosen. Some are sent to other areas in the caves to work. Taking a person from the village once a year does take a toll on the population. This year, they may have not wanted to send one of their own. Whatever the reason was, you are here now.” She clapped her hands. “Let’s get off such a dreary topic,” she said. “Our newest member here looks like she could use a bath, so out with all of you.”

I smiled, glad for the distraction, feeling my body relax as everyone left. As their attention slipped off me, it was as though a weight disappeared from my shoulders. A bath would be wonderful. I had not had a proper one since I had started traveling almost a year ago. Bathing in cold streams had been a necessity, but not a pleasant experience.

“The pool is where you’ll take your bath,” Alonsa said, going over to a nearby chest and grabbing an armful of towels and a comb. “Here you are. We’ll return in a little bit so you can have time to yourself.”

“Thank you,” I said gratefully before she disappeared after the others.

Quickly, I stripped out of my dusty clothes before stepping into the steaming pool, a sigh escaping as the hot water soothed my aching muscles. I had not realized how tight I had been clenching them all day. It had been one surprise after another. I leaned back for several minutes, enjoying the swirling bubbles as they caressed my body. Eventually, I scrubbed myself clean and got out, grabbing a nightgown from a chest near my bed, assuming it was for me.

Shortly after I finished, the others entered the cavern and began readying for bed as well, chatting amongst themselves. I sat on my bed, combing my hair while watching them, trying to pick up on their bedtime routine. Even if I did not want to be there, I still did not want to stick out like a sore thumb. My eyes felt heavy and weary, but my mind still whirred. I knew it would be a while before I could fall asleep.

After everyone was in bed, Alonsa went around the cavern, dimming the sconces that lit up the vast room. I laid down and settled into bed, when the gravity of the whole situation washed over me like a tidal wave. Not for the first time that day did tears prick my eyes, but this time, I let them flow. In a single day, my entire life had turned upside down and I would probably never see my brother again. The thought made the tears flow harder. Ronan would never know what happened to me, what happened to our parents. He would just return to the charred remains of our house and all of us gone, if he ever did return. I began to cry softly and struggled to keep quiet so as not to disturb the others, but apparently, my efforts were not enough.

“Shut up,” I could hear Vimery hiss from nearby. “Stop crying like a baby.”

“Vimery, she just lost everything she knew. You were emotional when you first came here too.” Alonsa’s kind voice came from the right of me. “Show a little compassion.”

I sniffed, trying to hold the sobs in so as not to disturb everyone. After a couple minutes, Alonsa came over and rubbed my back, whispering comforting words in the darkness. Eventually, I dozed off, tears still streaming down my cheeks.

Chapter Four

Valora

Once more, the nightmare that had plagued me almost every night since I left home returned. My parents were slaughtered before me, blood pouring down their necks. Taunts of the soldiers surrounded me as they cut me with their swords, enjoying my agony. I curled into a ball to protect myself, but the pain continued. Eventually, they grew bored and left me to bleed out, though not before setting the house aflame. Their last act of cruelty was to burn me alive with the corpses of my parents staring at me. With much difficulty, I summoned up my remaining strength, grabbing what I could—my father’s book and my mother’s brooch—before scrambling for the exit. Smoke filled my lungs, and coughing, I barely managed to escape before the house collapsed behind me.

With a gasp, I awoke, unfurling from the ball I had subconsciously rolled into during my nightmare. Immediately, my face flamed as the other women sat up and looked at me. Their faces were more curious than anything, although Vimery’s still reflected her animosity towards me.

“I’m sorry,” I mumbled before lying back down.

One by one, the women went back to sleep, their even breathing filling the cavern. I stayed awake, tormented by the memories. Ronan had left shortly after I came of age and six months later, the men had come. I knew deep down that he had done something that had caused their grisly visit—something so horrible that they had punished us in order to punish him. After taking a few months to recover from my wounds and regain my strength, it was winter. I had stayed with one of our neighbors until spring. That had begun my search for him, one that, at this point, I would not be able to finish.

It was almost dawn before I was able to doze off again into a restless sleep. I awoke by hitting the ground, aggressively pushed out of bed. With a groan, I opened my eyes.

Vimery stood over me, a smirk on her face. “Time to get up,” she said.

“Vimery!” Alonsa said in a shocked voice as she looked over to see what happened.

“What? I was just trying to shake her awake,” Vimery said, shrugging. “She was the one that flinched so hard she fell out of bed.”

Alonsa looked skeptical, but when I remained silent, she did not push the point further. I didn’t know why Vimery hated me so much, but I figured it would be better not to antagonize her and make her treatment of me worse.

I stood and winced as pain lanced upwards through my right leg, having fallen on it strangely. Luckily, after a few steps, the pain lessened and it was easier to hide now that it was dulled rather than a sharp, stabbing pain. A quick glance towards Vimery, and her disappointment was palpable that I did not seem to be in more agony.