Bride Of The Last Dragon

Aiden’s POV

“H… help me,” I gasped, my voice breaking as I lay sprawled on the muddy ground. My body throbbed with bruises, my skin torn open where their iron rods burned through flesh.

“Please, s-stop,” I rasped. My breath came in harsh, uneven bursts as I dragged myself across the ground, my long tail leaving streaks in the mud.

“Look! Blue blood!” one of them shouted. “He’ll sell for a fortune!”

"Take him to the Alpha." A woman stated.

"No." another hissed. "The Alpha keeps everything for himself. Let's torture him more and get more rare gems."

Werewolves are selfish, cruel and brutal.

They’ve hated my kind since The Great Fall—An ancient war that shattered the balance of our world.

Nine hundred years ago, Werewolves, Lycans, Dragons, Liotas, and Vampires turned on each other.

Liotas are the lions shifters. They are dwarfs in their human form. The tallest, their queen is 3'40 inches. Once they shift, they become huge, tall and brutal... a typical lion.

Spoiler: Do not look into their eyes when they shift lest you turn into a stone stature.

Back to the great fall, Werewolves won, not by strength, but by deceit. Their Moon Goddess manipulated time and conjured a red moon in the middle of a blazing afternoon.

The red moon, symbol of blood, and madness. Under it's glow, even a werepup can rip a Lion apart.

Lycans fought but they were overshadowed. Vampires burned into ashes. Dragons fell from the sky.

Liotas were driven to the forest.

The werewolves claimed the world.

And now, here I am. At their mercy.

Lightning had struck me last night as I flew toward the Dragon King’s palace. The impact threw me down before I could fully shift. From my head to the torso is human while down to lower limbs is in my dragon.

"What's going on?" A deep, gravelly voice cut across through the chaos.

Everyone dropped their weapons, slightly lowering their heads.

A huge figure stepped forward. His eyes cold, presence choky and dark. The Beta.

"A dragon that didn't complete his shifting." He growled.

He pressed his boots against my skull, forcing my face into the dirt.

One of the wolves held up a pouch.

“We took this from him.” Inside shimmered thousands of glowing gems...my tears.

The Beta smirked, removing his foot. “Impressive. Torture him until he dies. Then dump what’s left into the sea.”

The minute he left, spears, blades, and arrows tore into me again. I bit down my screams, refusing to give them the satisfaction. But the agony was unbearable. My body shook; blood poured freely.

When I finally broke, my tears spilled like molten glass and they cheered.

I was fading. My vision dimmed.

A smile ghosted across my lips as they lifted me. The last thing I heard was their laughter before a small voice called out.

“Wait!”

I blinked through the haze. A little girl, no older than ten walked towards me. Golden hair messy around her face, hazel eyes glimmering with something I hadn’t seen in years. Compassion.

She knelt beside me. Dipped a napkin into a strange black liquid and began wiping my wounds.

“I’m sorry they hurt you,” she whispered. “This might sting… but you’re a man, so be brave.”

I hissed as pain ripped through me. Brave? this child had no idea.

“What’s your name?” she asked softly, her tiny fingers brushing the purple scales on my tail. “Your tail is beautiful.”

“I don’t… have one,” I lied, wanting to hear her speak again.

She giggled behind her tiny hand.

“Then I’ll name you purple."

“Purple?” I croaked weakly.

“Your tail is purple, beside you are so beautiful” she insisted.

"I'm beautiful..." I repeated.

“My name’s Rain,” she said brightly.

“Rain…” I murmured. “A fitting name for the only sunshine I’ve seen today.”

The adults rushed forward with weapons drawn. I instinctively shifted, curling my tail protectively around her.

“You can not do anything to him. You have to come through first." Rain declared, trembling but fierce.

“Rain, enough!” one man barked. “He’s a dragon, a bad person so step away!”

“Did he steal?” she challenged.

“No.”

“Kill someone?”

“No!”

“Then how is he bad?”

Her defiance made my chest tighten.

Then, with all the seriousness a child could muster, she turned to the sky.

“It’s not night, and there’s no moon but I swear under the sun that I take this man as my husband."

My eyes widened.

“Husband?”

She smiled proudly. “Yes."

“Shouldn’t it be the moon? Aren't you a wolf.” I managed to ask, amused.

She shrugged. “You are right but since there is no moon. Let's make use of the available resources." She smiled revealing her three broken teeth.

"Rain, marriage is not done that way. It must be done under the full moon. Besides A dragon and werewolf can't mate."

I was still explaining to her when a man shoved her to the ground. She cried out, skinning her knees.

Rage flared through me, but my body wouldn’t move.

The adults continued stabbing and cutting me while Rain sat on the sand, crying for them to leave me.

Ignorantly, she rushed at a man, biting him. The man slashed her with his knife. The cut ran from her forehead, though her eye to her ear.

“I… I can’t see!” she sobbed.

For the first time in a hundred years, I felt something different. I felt the need to protect her. I felt raw anger. I felt the desire to live for her sake but I couldn't do anything. I was weak and useless.

Finally, my body gave out and my vision went black.

Then, a splash.

They threw me into the sea.

Fools. Big mistake!

The water welcomed me like home. My wounds healed instantly; strength surged back through my veins. My tail extended, scales glowing purple beneath the waves.

They thought all dragons breathed fire. Fools. I was born of water.

When I broke through the surface, the ocean roared with me. Waves towered, wind howled, and the sky darkened.

Those who had mocked me now fled in terror.

I found the man who had blinded Rain.

He didn’t live long enough to scream.

His blood splashed across the shore.

The wolves fell one by one, their howls silenced under the tide.

When I was done, only Rain remained. Shaking, crying beneath a rock, her small hands reaching into emptiness.

“W-who’s there?” she whimpered. “Purple?”

I approached slowly, lowering my head so she could feel my scales.

Her fingers brushed me and then she recoiled.

“S-stay away! You’re… you’re a monster!”

“Rain, it’s me,” I growled.

“You killed them all! You’re scary!” She screamed, hugging herself.

My chest ached. “They hurt you, Rain. I had to.”

“I liked you when you were human,” she whispered. “Not this… monster.”

Her words cut deeper than any blade.

I turned away, pain clawing through me. But before I left, I did what no water dragon had ever done.

I dipped my claws into my eyes socket and gorged them out. Then I placed them in hers.

“I’ll wait for you, Rain,”

I whispered. “When you’re grown… I’ll come back for you.”

With that, I carried her to the village square, laid her where she’d be found, and vanished into the ocean.