The Dragon Maiden

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Valora

I did my best to follow Dracul’s instructions, trying not to worry and quell the rising ball of nerves that had taken up residence in my stomach. Each day that passed, each hour that ticked by, my anxiety only grew, the feeling of unease becoming unbearable. Even the paperwork he had left behind did little to distract me from my concern. I had finished it all by the end of the second day, delivering the applicable papers to each of the remaining Lords.

Multiple times, I stopped by the entrance where Dracul and the other Lords had departed, watching for any sign of their return, to no avail. The remaining time, I tried to keep myself busy, making Dracul’s quarters spotless and from time to time, I would try to struggle through the books I had been eagerly waiting to read. But my focus was gone, my thoughts always turning to Dracul. I had not expected to miss him as much as I did, his absence gnawing at me. I felt a coldness with him gone. I had grown to rely on his warm presence more than I had realized. Each day, I prayed for his safe return, that everything would turn out fine, but deep down, I had a fear that something was wrong.

At the end of the week, I finally acknowledged my worry, allowing it to overtake me. I sought out Lord Hiram for his advice. If the Dragon Lords could go to him for counsel, could I not as well? Dracul seemed to trust him, so I should be able to as well. My feet swiftly took me to his chambers. I knocked on the door and entered without waiting for Alonsa to answer. Both were in his office, Alonsa looking shocked to see me.

“What may I do for you?” Lord Hiram asked as he looked up at me over a pair of glasses hanging at the end of his nose. Both of us knew that what I did was against protocol, but I could think of no other alternative, I could not wait. He motioned to Alonsa, and she bowed before leaving us alone.

“Lord Dracul left over a week ago and he has not returned,” I said, kneading my hands in worry. Once I realized what I was doing, I forced them to my sides, where they instead fiddled with the fabric of my dress. “Shouldn’t we be worried? Is something amiss?”

A brief look of worry passed over Lord Hiram’s features, but it was gone so quickly that I barely had time to register the expression. I knew what I had seen, and my anxiety only grew. This wise Dragon Lord was just as worried as I was, and the thought gave me no comfort.

“He is fine. He took two very capable Dragon Lords with him when he left,” he said with a false confidence. I could see past the fa?ade. “I’m sure they have everything under control.”

“But what is taking so long? Lord Dracul said it should only take a few days,” I said.

“Lord Dracul probably got caught up talking with friends he hasn’t seen in a long time,” Lord Hiram said, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. I could hear the lie in his voice. “Don’t worry. Just go about things as usual, Valora. He’ll turn up soon enough and you’ll see that all this worrying has been for naught.” He looked to the door, an obvious cue that the conversation was over.

I bowed low. “Thank you, my Lord, for your kind words,” I said before leaving, the knot of worry only growing.

For the next few hours, I stayed in Lord Dracul’s chambers, organizing his potion ingredients for what felt like the thousandth time. My hands shook, and I eventually had to stop or risk breaking the bottles containing the ingredients. My duties for the day were over and I was at a loss for what to do. I was unwilling to go back to the Maiden cavern just yet, not wanting to deal with the prickly silence. The Lords’ departure and absence had made the whole cave uneasy, and the longer they were gone, the more the uneasiness grew. I could not stand to be in a room with the others just yet, having to quell my own fears and worries so as not to alarm them. Not to mention, Lord Hiram’s words had done little to comfort me. It was obvious he was worried, too, which meant something had to be wrong.

* * *

Once more, I decided to go to the entrance of the cave to resume my vigil. Before the sun set, rain began to fall from the skies, limiting my vision. Suddenly, over the sound of the rain, I began to hear the beat of wings and my heart quickened as two dragons flew back, a third supported between them. My heart sped up as they approached, recognizing the middle one as Dracul, his head slumped as he was carried through the air. At last, he was back, but from the looks of things, he was not in good shape.

Moving out of the way, I followed Lord Firenze and Lord Verhorn as they hastily flew in and pulled Dracul to his quarters. They set him gently on the floor before stepping aside for me. With the three of them in their dragon forms, there was now very little space left in the cavern.

“Can you fix him?” Lord Verhorn asked, his eyes bright with worry.

I stepped around him to assess the damage and gasped in shock. “What happened?” I asked quietly, taking in the sight in front of me. Never had I ever imagined seeing anything like this in my life.

Dracul was bleeding heavily, one of his wings ripped almost all the way to the bone. There were other cuts and scrapes along his body, one even across his eye.

He opened the uninjured one and stared at me. “Things got a little out of hand,” he explained, smiling slightly at his joke. The smile quickly disappeared as he grimaced in pain, letting out a groan.

At the sight of his pain, I was spurred into action. “I’m going to need a lot of towels, warm water, healing herbs, a needle and thread for the wing,” I ordered, pushing up my sleeves.

I rushed to the potions area in the back of the cavern to grab the supplies I would need while the two other Lords summoned their Maidens to assemble the other items. The women immediately disappeared after delivering the supplies. I could see by their faces they did not like seeing the High Dragon Lord in such a state. Lord Firenze and Lord Verhorn stayed to observe my work, while Lords Hiram, Noxus, and Lorka were summoned. The rest of the Lords transformed to their human forms to allow more space in the cave. Dracul was the only one who remained as a dragon.

I thoroughly cleaned the big wounds I could see, the ones that would become infected if I did not tend to them right away, covering them with the healing herbs and bandages. I was grateful to lean on the experience I had gained spending time by Dracul’s side, learning the practical properties and uses of various herbs.

At last, I turned my attention to the wing, feeling overwhelmed by the need to stitch it. It was such a vital part to a dragon. From the looks of the injury, I was unsure if Dracul would ever be able to fly again.

“I’m going to do the best I can to patch it up,” I told Dracul, his eyes trained on me the whole time. “Your other wounds should heal just fine. Your wing on the other hand… I can sew it up, but there will be a scar, and I’m not sure if you’ll be able to fly with it.”

“As long as you can get it to the scarred state, I can fix it the rest of the way,” Dracul said, grimacing at the pain. “Just do what you have to do.”

“It’s going to hurt a lot. You can’t move,” I warned, taking the sterilized needle in hand and beginning to thread it. “Promise?” I asked when he did not respond.

“Promise,” he grunted.

I took a deep breath. “Here we go,” I said quietly, more to myself than anyone else. I started at the beginning of the injury, at the base of the wing, and began to sew the wound shut.

Dracul closed his eyes in pain and growled his disapproval.

“I’m sorry,” I apologized, continuing to make small, even stitches. “But it needs to be done.”

Slowly, agonizingly, I stitched the wound closed, focusing on the task at hand and forcing myself to ignore Dracul’s rumblings of pain. After what felt like hours, I finished, tying off the thread and wiping my brow. I placed more herbs along the seam to help the wound heal faster, hoping all would be well.

“Done,” I said triumphantly.

Dracul craned his neck to view my handiwork. “Not bad,” he said. He looked at the other Dragon Lords. “You may go now,” he dismissed them. “Firenze and Verhorn, get your wounds checked out as well.”

I had not noticed that the other two were injured. They had scrapes and cuts along their faces and bodies, but it seemed as though Dracul had taken the brunt of whatever attack they had been through.

After the Lords left, I began to gather the supplies and started to clean myself off.

Dracul shifted behind me. “Valora?” he asked, his voice quiet. “Thank you for your help.” He smiled, though I could see the pain in his eyes.

“It’s a Dragon Maiden’s job to care for her Lord, is it not?” I asked, turning back to wash my hands thoroughly in the basin of water. They were filthy and I felt like I would never be clean again, the blood soaking my skin reminding me of that day.

“It is, but this is beyond the call of duty,” Dracul said.

I turned to him, sensing there was more he wanted to say.

“I would like to ask a favor of you,” he said, resting his head on the ground, his eyes level with mine.

“Yes?” I asked when he did not elaborate.

“I prepared a room for you in my quarters before I left, since you and the other Maidens had a falling out,” he said. “I was hoping you could stay and keep an eye on me throughout the night. Just in case something happens.”

I dried off my hands, my mind whirling. “I don’t mind,” I said. “And it’ll make it easier when I have to change your bandages in a couple hours anyway.”

“Very well,” Dracul said. “You can go gather your things and bring them here if you wish.”

Rushing back to the Maiden cavern, my thoughts were a in whirl. Obviously, something had happened at the negotiations with the Starfire clan. Dracul was severely injured. I was glad he had made it back alive, but I had never expected this level of injury.

The other Maidens had gathered already, and all looked up when I entered, their faces tight with worry.

“How is he?” Alonsa asked.

“He’ll survive,” I said, going to my bed to gather my things. “But it will take time for him to recover from his injuries.”

I almost missed the Maidens exchanging a look as I finished gathering my meager belongings together.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Vimery asked accusingly, blocking my path as I started to leave. “Planning on leaving again?”

“No,” I said tersely, not feeling like wasting time arguing with her. “Lord Dracul has prepared a room for me in his cave and asked that I stay there with him instead of here.”

Everyone’s mouths dropped open at my announcement.

“That is unheard of,” Bethany said quietly. “He’s never done something like that before.”

“He’s never had a Maiden before, has he?” I countered, seeing the accusatory looks the others gave me, knowing the assumptions they made. “He’s injured and I’ll have to tend to him throughout the night.” I stepped around Vimery and continued to walk out. “I’ll see you all later. Good night.”

There was no response, and I knew now that I was a complete outcast to the group. They probably would still treat me with respect due to my status, but any chance at getting closer to any of them was now completely gone.

When I returned to Dracul’s chambers, he was in the same spot where I had left him lying on the ground. “Do you have all your things?” he asked, glancing at the lonely pack in my hands, the one I’d brought with me when I first arrived.

“Yes,” I said, moving to check the bandages to ensure all was well. “Everything looks good,” I said in relief. He raised an eyebrow, and I acquiesced, “Well, as good as they could look considering the circumstances.”

“Then you may retire for now,” Dracul said.

“What about you?” I asked. “Are you going to lay on the floor all night?”

“At the moment, I have no other option,” he sighed. “I’m too injured to move much right now and I can’t transform into my human form without disastrous consequences to my wing.”

I walked to the landing and grabbed cushions and blankets, moving them in place under his head. “You can at least have something plush to sleep on,” I said as he looked at me quizzically. After he was settled, I moved to sleep on the couch nearby.

“Valora, I have a room for you,” he objected as he saw me laying down on the couch.

“I will stay here,” I said firmly. “I’m not leaving you alone, not now.”

He gave me a kind gaze, his eyes melting once more, and I felt a heat slice through me. “Very well,” he said, moving to grab a blanket with his teeth and dragging it over my body. “Good night.”

After several moments of silence, I spoke. “Dracul?” I asked quietly, hoping he had not fallen asleep just yet.

“Yes?” he asked after a prolonged pause, his voice sleepy.

“I thought you said that when you got a Dragon Maiden, you would become stronger,” I said. “But you still got hurt. Does that mean I’m not a good Dragon Maiden?” My voice broke.

Dracul’s face came into view to look at me. “Oh, Valora,” he said gently. “It’s not that. I actually lasted longer than I would have without you, which just goes to show you how bad the fight was. If I did not have you as my Dragon Maiden, I would be dead now.”

“Really?” I asked, shocked at this confession.

He nodded. “Yes.”

I paused before asking my next question. “Have… have you unlocked any special powers yet?” I asked, looking at my hands. “I know you said it doesn’t happen every time.”

He leaned in close to me. “I can fly faster now,” he said. “Much to the chagrin of the two Lords who came with me.” He blew my hair affectionately. “We’ll have to go flying again so I can show you how much faster I’ve gotten.”

I smiled at him. “You need to get better first before we can do that,” I said.

“A good night’s sleep will help with that,” he said. “Good night Valora.”

“Good night, my Lord.”

I quickly fell asleep. Now that Dracul was back, my anxiety had lessened considerably, despite the state he had returned in. Throughout the night, I would awaken, checking on his bandages and finding his condition unchanged. Once, I needed to change them, but otherwise, everything seemed stable. He snored as I fell asleep, a gentle, rumbling sound. I slept deeply. Now that my Lord had returned and was in my care, I could relax.

* * *

The next morning, when I checked on Dracul, I found him in a very different state from the night before. His normally cool scales were warm to the touch and I was unable to wake him, no matter how hard I tried. Thinking quickly, I gathered spare rags and doused them with cold water, laying them on his body to hopefully get his fever down.

“What’s going on?” Lord Verhorn had stopped by. I could tell he was puzzled by my suddenly frantic actions.

“He has a fever,” I explained. “His body is trying to rid itself of any infections he may have.”

“It would be in your best interest that he does not succumb to these wounds,” Lord Verhorn said, leveling me with a stare. I gulped at his words, feeling the murderous intent rolling off him. “Otherwise, a new High Lord will be picked and I doubt he would want to keep you around. Remember that.”

“I will, thank you,” I forced out the words past a suddenly very dry throat.

A little while after Lord Verhorn left, Lord Lorka paid me a visit. He had with him a basket of herbs and a couple vials of potions which he set down on one of the tables. Slowly, he approached Dracul, his keen eyes taking in the state of the High Dragon Lord.

“I heard from Lord Verhorn that he’s taken a turn for the worst,” he said, giving me a sympathetic smile. “I thought these might be able to help. Lord Dracul may be the expert when it comes to potion-making, but I know a little bit.”

“Thank you,” I said quietly, walking over to take stock of the ingredients he had brought. “Is there a doctor or anybody who could help him? More than I can?”

Lord Lorka ran a hand through his hair and let out a sigh. “Lord Dracul has shown more interest than most in the healing arts. He’s usually our de facto doctor,” he said. “For the most part, dragons don’t get sick, and typically our injuries aren’t serious enough to require a lot of treatment. There hasn’t been any fighting between the clans in generations, even though everyone still maintains their own armies. It’s something that has just kind of… died off.”

“It doesn’t seem like any of you had good enough reasoning to plan ahead for something like this,” I said, pursing my lips. I grabbed one of the potions Lord Lorka had brought, and he helped pry Dracul’s mouth open enough so I could administer it.

“Typically, a Dragon Lord’s Maiden gives him enough strength to prevent injuries like this.” His words stabbed me, reminding me that I was not enough. I was the Maiden who’d tried to escape. “I don’t mean that how it sounds,” he said quickly upon seeing my expression. “But usually, the only way to hurt a Lord is to kill his Maiden. Rarely do we become injured like this.”

I nodded at his words, and together, we watched for any sign of improvement. Lord Lorka stayed longer than I expected, but eventually, he returned back to his cave, though not before telling me to call him if I needed any additional ingredients.

After he left, I continued with my ministrations, checking different areas of Dracul’s body, ending with his stomach. If he had not bathed me in fire, ensuring that he would never burn me, the heat radiating off his stomach would have blistered my hands. On a normal day, the heat from his belly would fill me with warmth, but now, it could probably boil a pot of water in mere seconds.

Tears entered my eyes. I was not sure what to do next. Lord Lorka’s potion did not seem to have helped at all. “Please don’t die,” I begged him. “Please don’t.”

The only thing I could think of to bring his temperature down was to keep reapplying cold rags, but otherwise, I had no clue what to do. Placing the rags on his stomach caused the fabric to hiss and steam from the extreme heat. After an hour, I began to search the cave, looking for any ideas of how to save him. On a table in the potions area rested a large book, one that had not been there the night before. It laid open to a specific page, and I walked over to read it.

I examined the book, gasping at what lay before me. I glanced quickly to Dracul before turning back. It seemed that before the High Dragon Lord succumbed to his fever, he had been looking for a way to heal himself. He must have known what was wrong with him. On the page before was a brief explanation of what had happened, a list of symptoms, and at last, a cure. All those hours of creating his own tinctures and potions, studying medicine, had paid off. My blood ran cold as I realized what I had to do, what was required of me. Scrawled in a very unsteady hand were the words I understand if you can’t do it.

There was no question. Of course I would do it.

Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I rushed around the cave to gather the ingredients necessary for the cure. I followed each instruction to the letter, chopping, mixing, boiling, and stirring the concoction. At last, I got to the final step—the worst step. For the cure to work, the Lord’s Maiden had to put her hair in the mixture, as well as a large amount of blood. Quite easily, I cut off a hank of hair and dropped it into the mixture, turning it a light-purple color. However, it was the blood that made me panic. As I held the knife to my hand, I began to tremble. The emotional scars from my past were not as gone as I had hoped.

I looked over to my Dragon Lord, took in how labored his breathing was, and knew that I had no choice. He would die if I did not do this. Before I could change my mind, I ran the blade over my hand and squeezed the blood into the cauldron, gasping at the pain and memories that flooded my mind. The drops sizzled as they hit the boiling liquid, changing it to a dark blue that matched Dracul’s scales, as the book said it would. After squeezing my hand multiple times to ensure enough blood was in the potion, I bandaged it haphazardly before scooping out the potion into a nearby goblet.

Quickly, I went to Dracul and worked to open his mouth. In his unconscious state, his teeth were clenched shut. Carefully, I opened his mouth slightly and reached past the razor-sharp teeth, pouring the potion in so he swallowed it. My adrenaline rush swiftly left me and my body began to crash, exhaustion overwhelming me. I collapsed next to Dracul and began to stroke his snout, wishing for a noticeable change. After several minutes with no change, I began to despair, feeling sick to my stomach.

“I did everything correctly,” I whispered. I looked to Dracul and pleaded, “Please, don’t die.” Tears pricked my eyes at the thought of him dying, of how I would have failed him, one more person in my life. I had been unable to save my parents, and now, with the opportunity in front of me, I was unable to save Dracul too. The pain was too overwhelming. My heart felt as though it split in two. Just as I had been worried about—I had grown too close and too fond of him.

“Just don’t die,” I breathed, tears beginning to trail down my cheeks, my hand still on his snout. I pulled my knees to my chest and buried my face to muffle my cries as I began to sob harder. The book said he should have begun to improve by now. Obviously, I was too late, and now he was going to die.

I did not register at first when the snout beneath my hand began to move slightly. In between my sobs, I felt him move, and when I realized what was happening, my head snapped up, met with two kind silver eyes watching me. Ones that I thought I would never see again.

“Don’t cry, Lora,” he said gently, bringing forth a claw to carefully wipe away my tears. My heart stuttered at the nickname, at how easily the endearment slipped from his lips. His eyes darted to my hand and clouded slightly. I could see that he was upset over what I had to do to save him. “I’m sorry about that,” he said. “I can heal you, if you would like.”

“But… but you need to get better.” My mind struggled to accept that he was still alive, that I had done it. That I had saved him. “You need to rest.”

He smiled at me. “Thank you for what you did,” he said. “Though I wish there had been another way, I wish you didn’t need to mutilate yourself for my sake.”

“I was lucky enough to spot the book you left out for me.” I waved away his concerns. “I wasn’t sure what to do next.”

Dracul’s gaze was tender as he stared at me. “I knew you’d be smart enough to figure it out,” he said.

I stood and stared at him, trying to realize that he was alive—to calm my heart. Since he had returned, it had become a constant source of pain, seeing him injured. Suddenly, I felt the overwhelming need to embrace him.

I rushed to him and encircled my arms around his neck. “I thought you were going to die, Dracul,” I said, my voice muffled by his scales. “I was so worried.”

A scaly arm wrapped around my body, holding me close. “I’m going to be fine, Lora,” he said. “One of my wounds had been poisoned and I did not realize it at the time. But a potion concocted by my Maiden, containing her blood, is enough to overcome any poison and any ailment. It’s an old remedy that only a few know.” A small smile graced his lips. “When Borthen injured me, I don’t think he realized I have an official Maiden, otherwise he wouldn’t have dared to try such a bold move.”

Suddenly conscious of the heat growing within me, I pulled back, my face flushed. “I should look at your other injuries,” I said. “To make sure they are doing fine.”

Keeping my gaze averted, I moved to check his other wounds, feeling his watchful eyes focused on me. I was unable to hide my shock as I pulled up the bandages and found the wounds almost completely healed.

I looked up at Dracul, my mouth open. “How?” I asked.

“The blood of a Maiden has a very interesting effect on her Lord,” Dracul explained. “Because of our bond, that potion you made can heal my injuries, even the more serious ones.” He moved his wing to show me that it was almost completely scarred, the bloody mess from the night before completely gone. “Could you remove my stitches?” he asked.

Mutely, I moved to do as he asked, shock overloading my brain into complete silence. I could not believe the power my blood held for Dracul, how it could have so many uses. Carefully, I removed the stitches, noticing Dracul wincing at the foreign feeling. Quietly, I apologized, and at last, all the stitches were gone. I cleaned the area to ensure no residue remained. After a quick once-over of all his wounds, I started putting the supplies away.

“There’s still more potion left,” I said, earnestly not looking at Dracul. “We should save it in case you need it again.” I found a few empty vials and moved to the cauldron to bottle up the remaining potion. Dracul moved his tail, and I found my path blocked.

“Valora, look at me,” he said gently, so gently.

After a few seconds, I did as he asked, my heart beating rapidly. Ever since he had awakened, I had made a fool of myself, first by crying and then by hugging him. Dracul used his tail to herd me, and I was forced to take a few uncertain steps closer.

“Why the sudden change?” he asked. “Does it make you uneasy to know that your blood has such fantastic powers?”

I nodded silently, hoping he would drop the topic, but he could see right through me.

“There is no reason to be embarrassed over how you acted.”

I blushed furiously as he correctly guessed what had been bothering me.

He leaned closer. “It’s nice to know you care,” he said. Carefully, Dracul reached out a claw and gently took my hand, pulling apart the messy bandage to reveal the cut I had suffered. “I’m going to heal this now,” he said, his voice instructing me not to argue.

Slowly, he let out a steady stream of fire over the injury, not burning me, but I could still feel the unpleasant intensity of the focused heat. After a long minute of expelling the fire, he stopped and examined my hand before showing it to me. My mouth dropped open. The cut had completely disappeared.

“Is this another thing that has to do with the bond between us?” I asked.

“Yes.” Dracul nodded. “Your blood can heal me, and my fire can heal you.”

“Oh.” My mind raced. I examined my hand for several more moments before looking back to him. “Dracul, what happened? How did you get hurt?” I asked. “You said something went badly.”

He let out a sigh and moved his tail so I could finish filling the vials with the remaining potion. “We went to negotiate with Borthen,” he said. “He was obviously not pleased to see us, but nothing seemed amiss at first. After a few days, it was apparent that negotiations had not gone anywhere, but we decided to try a couple more days before leaving. Our last day, his soldiers attacked us, accusing us of stealing. I think he hoped to kill me so he could take over the clan. And that’s how I became injured. Firenze and Verhorn tried to defend me, but the sole focus of their attack was on me.”

“What’s going to happen now?” I asked. “When they find out that you’re fine, aren’t they going to come here?”

“No,” Dracul growled. “Because we are going to take them by surprise and get rid of Borthen once and for all. We’ve had too many troubles with him, and once he’s out of the way, I’ll be in charge of his clan.” He did not sound happy about the fact, more chagrined, and I knew that he was only doing his duty as High Dragon Lord.

I reached over and gently patted his neck. “Is it bothering you to have to do this?”

“I wouldn’t say I’m looking forward to it,” Dracul said. “But he has become too much of a threat, so it’s my duty to do this.”

I remained silent. There was still so much I did not understand about draconic politics, even after observing Dracul for the past months. I could only hope that whatever plan he had in mind would work, that he would be able to successfully take down Borthen with little issue.