WAR, BLOOD AND DRAGONS

Chapter 3: The old king and the bastard

The bells tolled from the distant chapel, telling of the arrival of Greyson's Intended, Leah had always wanted to put a face to the famed demon of the South and to behold the dreaded spear hounds, not that she had much admiration for them but these were her mother's people and meeting them might elicit closure like reading about them did, perhaps even paint a better portrait of how she imagine her mother to be, she picked up the pail of the dirty linen sheet to be washed and loped down the hallways so she wouldn't miss them and like so she almost ran Niamh down the steps.

"gods abide!" Niamh exclaimed as she managed to regain her footing.

"I'm so sorry!" Leah pleaded, embarrassed and squeezing at the handle of the wooden pail.

"Be more careful Leah" Niamh said as she continued her descent, clasping both sides of her flowing ruby red gown that blended nicely with her long flame hair, she was beautiful and fair, tall with doe eyes of chestnut color and just a few years older than the King's first born, she walked gracefully like a lady of nobility but she wasn't, she was the daughter of a seamstress and she inherited her mother's workshop down at elf Street, an establishment the late Queen Bethelyn of houses Dover and Caine patronized very often as did many nobles, Marilyn loved her designs and even grew quite fond of her until she found out about these regular visits she now paid to the king.

"The last time I saw her in person was the day you were born" The old king approached Leah in his formal regalia of fine red woollen coat ribbed with gold and adorned with small pieces of diamond and sapphire, it's fasteners were of gold and so was the ornate chain around the King's shoulders, the coat reached the knee leaving the lower half of his black pants underneath uncovered as well as his neatly polished black boots that mirrored as nicely as his Smooth bald head.

"Your Majesty" Leah greeted as she Bent her knees in curtsy

"She's since grown cold, wild and proud like every Hearst eventually....like every damned southerner" the king said as he began his descent down the winding steps lit up only by candles on wall sconces.

"Your magic?" The king voiced, permitting the maid to follow behind and converse

"It hasn't manifested my king" She obliged and the king halted abruptly to face her

"You wouldn't tell falsehoods to me would you? Most mages are known to manifest as early as nine" He spoke

"The scholars say I'm late, your Majesty" The king scoffed and continued his walk

"Even if you did manifest and keep it to yourself in hopes of escape, you wouldn't make it past the city gates most especially now that we've added 200 spear hounds to ours, needless to say, I believe you, you've shown no presage for greatness, I'd wager your magic might have faded and you will end up a seer."

"I have no need for seers....perhaps Luken was right, I shouldn't have spared you" This time it was Leah that broke stride, gripped with fright and this prompted to king to halt as well.

"Are you scared?" King Greymon grinned at her but she couldn't give an answer.

"Do you even know why I spared you all these years?" He came again

"A spectacle to entail the greatness of house Caine" She answered, but in low spirit

"Your ancestors built the dragonsfort, they conquered the five kingdoms, the skulls of the dragons they fell filled the courtyard, the ivory throne itself was built from the bones, the motar used in building the pillars and the towers had ivory crushed into powder, mere men and mages alike trembled before the house of the dragon skull until my house defeated them.

I remember facing your father at the battle of the golden gorge, thirty dragonlords on full grown dragons, scared, I couldn't understand it until baraga fell from the sky with me on it's back, I almost died but she was strong" the king beamed, staring right at the ivory collar on Leah's neck.

"You're a far cry from your father, a bastard I'm aware but you carry dragonsblood, yet all it's greatness seem lost on you. Fear is what grows courage and courage begets greatness, fairmen and wild dragons pushed house Dragonsbane into it's glory and in turn they pushed my house into glory, so where is the glory of house Caine without house Dragonsbane? What is a Dragonslayer without a dragon to slay? Alas you are no dragon" the king continued forward

"Do make yourself scarce, I wouldn't want to irritate our guest" he concluded, Leah stood still, watching him descend unto the foot of the steps where the two Kings guard posted there accompanied him forth.