#128 The Born and Unborn
Rather than scared, Cassandra immediately found herself furious. That coward was forcing his
childrenâs dragons to fight for him! She turned to him, just when the little dragons started appearing in
the garden, one after another.
âStop that,â she said.
Lephys laughed, but it was a crazy laugh.
âOh no, you damn witch. Just you wait until they rip you apart!â
âThey are all going to die,â Cassandra retorted. âThey are too young! They canât win and you already
know that. Youâre sending those dragons to their deaths!â
âI donât care, as long as I make it!â He yelled.
Lephys suddenly got back on his feet and started running in another direction, away from the fight.
Cassandraâs anger rose again. That man was the vilest creature and a coward at that. Not only was he
running from this battle to save himself, but he was also basically throwing his sonsâ dragons to be
killed for it!
Cassandra exchanged a glance with the Creature, but just like the Rain Tribeâs people, the Water God
was not a fighter. He had answered to her call as she begged him, but what now? She couldnât ask him
to kill young dragons either, she hated the idea of having to sacrifice innocent creatures. Cassandra
may be angry, but she kept a clear mind about this situation. Those poor little ones were following
Lephysâ orders, maybe not even of their own will. Some of them were probably barely older than Kianâ¦
Half a dozen of those little dragons appeared on the grass, all coming in different sizes and shapes.
She could tell how young they ought to be, and it just made it all worse.
Just then, Kian flew back to her too, landing on the grass in front of Cassandra and growling furiously
at his peers, warning them to leave her alone. The difference in size didnât impress the baby dragon
one bit. The young Dragons werenât afraid of Kian either, but they were hesitating on coming close, with
Cassandra standing against a portion of the Water Godâs body. Each of them kept growling and
sending glances towards the Water God. They were all much taller than Kian, but most were not even
half an adultâs size. Cassandra was even feeling sorry for those. Trying to approach her with cautious
steps, they growled while also sending worried glances towards the Water God.
âStay away,â she warned them, using her mother tongue.
Either they had understood or were scared, the little dragons either stopped coming closer or started
growling more furiously. Strangely, the smaller ones seemed to be the most eager to fight. Was it
because they were influenced to follow their fatherâs orders even more? Cassandra glanced across the
lake, where Krai and the purple dragon were still actively fighting and growling at each other.
She turned her eyes towards Lephys. He had barely made it half-way towards the corridors, but he
wasnât too far yet. Cassandra tried to think quickly, and, soon, found a solution, she ran towards the net
of chains that had fallen from the roof. A large portion of it had been ripped down, where Krai had
gotten it, but one of its ends was still hanging above the walls, stretched above Lephysâ head.
Cassandraâs eyes followed his steps.
The Prince was running like crazy in the garden and didnât hear anything of her struggle. Cassandra
grabbed some of the heavy chains a few steps away from her and started pulling on it. It was horribly
heavy, chains made to keep a dragon away, not for a woman alone to pull. Glancing over his shoulder,
Lephys saw her pull like crazy, and looked up at the chains that werenât even moving. He slowed down
to see her struggle, thinking he was far enough and laughed again.
âYou crazy woman! Those chains were put up there with the strength of several men! Do you think you
can do anything? Youâre weak, useless!â
Right at this moment, Cassandra stopped pulling, glaring at the Prince. He realized his mistake a
second too late. Had he kept running, he may have made it. Yet, he had stopped while he was still
underneath those chains, giving
Cassandra time to turn towards the Water God.
âAlteske,â she said.
Lephysâ eyes opened wide in horror, as the Water God raised his claw and brutally pulled on the
chains. This time, the walls above him crumbled right away. With a horrible scream, the Prince had the
chains fell over him, followed by big chunks of the wall. His scream died under all the rocks that buried
him alive. Cassandra heard him scream long after the rocks had stopped falling, telling her he was still
alive, but suffering miserably.
On the other side of the like, the Purple Dragon felt his masterâs demise, as it started screeching
horribly. Krai took his chance to jump on him. They had fought fiercely, and despite the difference in
size, the black Dragon had some worrying injuries on him. Cassandra was worried about him and even
more so about his master, but it looked like Krai would get rid of his opponent soon.
Her attention was grabbed elsewhere. Why she wasnât looking, some of the young dragons had run to
the pile of rocks covering Lephys, but two of them were still growling at Kian. The little Silver Dragon
was growling just as fiercely as his dad, set on defending Cassandra. Though they were still small and
young for dragons, those two could bite off her hand at once, and Cassandra didnât want to risk it.
âKian!â
The baby dragon retreated slowly to her as she called him, but Cassandra still couldnât leave him be
injured. The two younger dragons started running after him, and Cassandra was scared something
would happen to him.
âKian, in the water!â She said while retreating towards the Water God.
The little dragon, running like a silver bolt in the grass, suddenly jumped in the air, using his little wing
to go and fly above the lake. The two bigger dragons followed him easily, especially as he was flying
away from the Water God they feared. However, they were not done with him. One of them suddenly
threw fire at him, and though he dodged it, Cassandraâs heart went cold.
Kian wasnât yet in danger. He glanced back at his peers, and suddenly, disappeared in the water. The
two young dragons were confused for a minute, flying above the lake and trying to spot him in the
water. They couldnât follow him inside. They were not made to go underwater, unlike the Water God or
Kian. Hence, when the Silver dragon reappeared, jumping out of the water, he completely took them by
surprise, and furiously bit one of their wings before diving back in. Cassandra couldnât keep herself
from smiling proudly. He was learning fast how to use his unique abilities. 1
On the other side of the lake, though, Krai wasnât done with his fight. Maybe his masterâs state had
brought despair over the purple Dragon, but he wasnât giving up. He didnât let the black dragon win, and
instead, the two of them exchanged injury after injury. 1
It couldnât last this way. The more Krai was injured, the less he could help Kairen, and the War God
was still trapped inside, the image of him furiously grabbed back inside minutes ago was printed in
Cassandraâs mind. She had to do something. She turned to the Water God, but he was here to help
her, not injure the other dragons!
Their eyes met, and for some long seconds, she didnât dare say anything. It was a horrible feeling. The
Water God was not one to fight. The mythic creature all her tribeâs song had talked about was a God of
Love, not war. It was obvious his whole body wasnât even made for a fight, and he probably couldnât
even breathe fire. Somehow, he was like her. Not a fighter, and not someone to kill. Her kind wasnât like
that. Once again, Cassandra felt utterly powerless. What could she do? Her eyes went to the opening
in which Kairen had disappeared, and she could still hear ruckus inside, there was no proof her lover
was surviving this battle.
âLys, you bastard of a snake!â Suddenly yelled a voice behind her. (2
Cassandra turned around and, with shock, saw Opheus running across the garden, his weapon in
hand. The fourth Prince! She had almost forgotten about him, with everything that had happened.
Moreover, right as he ran towards her, another giant shadow appeared above them. Phe, the White
Dragon! Without waiting for a second longer, the fourth Princeâs dragon flew inside through the opening
she had created earlier and started attacking
the purple dragon too, relieving a bit of Kraiâs burden. The black Dragon stumbled aside, blood flowing
on his flank. He was still furious and growling, but obviously in need of that little break too. After a few
seconds of rest, the two of them jumped on Lys, the purple Dragon again, with the clear intent to finish
him off. They were both bigger and stronger, and this time, the purple dragon was completely defeated.
Bitten furiously at the throat by Krai, dragged on his back, the purple dragon died in a horrible screech
of pain. That sound was unbearable to hear. Cassandra shuddered, unable to look that way.
Meanwhile, Opheus finally reached her, just when Cassandra fell on her knee. Though the fourth
Prince gently held her shoulder as she almost collapsed, Opheus had his eyes riveted on the Water
God, in shock. The peaceful Creature was looking down at him, strangely calm compared to everything
going on around them.
âWhat the⦠What is that⦠thingâ¦â
âI donât have time to explain!â Exclaimed Cassandra, grabbing his clothing, panicked. âHave you seen
my sister?â
âY-Yes. I met Anour on the way, he was carrying her out, he told me what happened. Lady Kareen, she
went to hide with your child. But Cassandra, we have a bigger problem.â
âWhat?â
âPhemera,â he said. âThe girl⦠That woman we took out of the cell, it really is Vrehanâs younger sister.
Your sister made her talk, she told us everything. That bastard had been impregnating his younger
sister like a cow to try and breed more powerful Dragons!â 2
âWâ¦what?â
â¦More dragons? Cassandra went horribly pale. She suddenly remembered Phetraâs words. Vrehanâs
secret, why he couldnât kill Phetra yet.
âVrehan doesnât only have two sons, heâs got more dragons stocked somewhere!â
Cassandraâs heart went cold. More dragons? Her eyes went to Krai, still staggering and trying to lick
his injuries. Next to him, Phe was fine, but the white dragon had gotten an injury on its shoulder too.
Meanwhile, Kian just jumped out of the water, running on the grass as the other two young dragons
that had targeted him were struggling to swim their way off the water, their wings completely destroyed
by the silver dragonâs repeated attacked.
Cassandra couldnât rejoice in the slightest. They only had three to help them, plus a baby one that had
hatched only a week ago, how could they fight more? How could have Vrehan even gathered more
dragons! She turned to Opheus, her energy ignited by panic alone.
âHow many? Where?â
âShe didnât know where her sons and their dragons were taken! Vrehan hid their sons and their
dragons, and he even killed the girls before they were born!â
â¦That explained the abortion potion they had caught their younger sister buy at the market. Cassandra
felt like throwing up. Vrehan was even more of a monster than she had fathomed, and she was even
more bent on defeating him. If a man like him got on the throne, it was truly going to be the end of this
Empireâ¦
âWe need to find him or where he hides his sonsâ dragons,â she whispered.
âI thought he was fighting Kairen inside!â Exclaimed Opheus, pointing at the opening.
Cassandra shook her head, getting back on her feet.
âNo⦠No, Vrehan fled in the confusion, only his men and his dragon are still there⦠He probably went
to get his sons dragons, then⦠Who knows how big they areâ¦â
âWe have to find them, then!â
Cassandra nodded, but how? She saw Krai and Phe running towards them from the other side of the
Lake, joined by Kian. She had to think, quick. How could she find the young dragons, inside this
wretched Palace? It was so big! She looked around, and her eyes fell on the Lake. She turned towards
the Water God, who seemed to be patiently waiting for her to ask. She let out a long sigh.
âCassandraâ¦?â Called Opheus, confused.
âI know what to do, but⦠You may want to take cover,â she whispered.