Over the course of several days, the small group reached a pine forest. The sharp, prickling pines caused the group to land just outside the forest. Pyrite wondered if the CaveDragon Palace was underground, or if it was so small it could hide under these pines. Surely, like other palaces, it was huge?

There was a change in Chasm and Grayclaw’s behavior. They seemed to be buzzing oddly with dread as they moved on, whispering and sometimes getting careless while hunting food, which was everywhere. Eventually, their adventure came to a halt when they came across a giant hole in the ground. Pyrite couldn’t see the bottom, and cold drifts wafted from out of it and engulfed any passersby. Then Pyrite realized they were not going around it; they were going in it. She was scooped up and dragged into the dark abyss.

The farther they went down, the colder it got. Pyrite found that the night air of the Surface was cooler and more pleasant, and this abyss was double as cold, for it was midnight. Pyrite could see tunnels after tunnels branching off in different directions.

The group reached the ground, and Pyrite was stunned. She had not seen many cities at all, just her small cave village. She had not even seen a dragon city, and for this to be her first was quite a shock.

Stone houses with blue etchings in them covered the cave floor like a carpet. Pyrite could also glimpse some in the sides of the cave walls, and many more beyond her sight. And in the middle was the biggest structure Pyrite had ever seen.

The CaveDragon palace was made mostly of obsidian and onyx. At its base, seven tooth-like pillars protruded from the ground and wall, curving slowly toward the palace. A circle in the middle spiraled up about over a thousand feet and ended in a dome like that of the Taj Mahal. Black diamonds were embedded here and there on the building, and on the towers, walkways were carved so the dragons could walk up them. At the base gigantic gates were blocking any dragon from sneaking into there. There were a few empty pedestals where watchdragons could perch.

Pyrite’s brow furrowed. Where are all the guards? She thought.

They landed in the palace courtyard, a gigantic flat area where dragons could meander about and play in the water fountains. The smooth, stone floor showed signs of years of trampling. Many dragons milled about, and servants, some with buckets, others with trays, and many more with polishing cloths and letters. Pyrite knew most of them were hurrying, because of the way they almost spilled things and rushed to get out of her group’s way.

Slowly, the group began to make their way to the palace doors. Silent, stone-faced guards stood still in the shadows. The inside of the palace had glowcrystal chandeliers and lamps. Pyrite was surprised to see these, because ever since the war between the CaveDragons and CrystalDragons, the tribes were split up and neither had the other’s abilities. Making glowcrystals was a CrystalDragon specialty. She guessed the crystals were centuries old, perhaps dating back to before the war. The floors were pristine, and streams of water were everywhere. Doors and never-ending corridors branched off in all directions, sometimes ending in long staircases.

The whole palace was eerily silent. Once the group got inside the palace there were no servants at all. The whole place was dark, with the glowcrystals being very dim. Her footsteps and those of Chasm and Grayclaw echoed ominously. And beneath all of that was a feeling that Pyrite was being watched, though there were no dragon heads poking out of corners curiously. The palace even seemed deprived of guards, other than the one that was leading them.

The guard ushered them up a staircase and down a hall.

“You, help me! I will give you mounds of gold!”

“Let me out, my queen will give you what you deserve!”

“Please, let me out, no dragon should be tortured like this!”

Moaning voices filled the room as they entered. Claws reached out towards them on all sides, and the guard slapped them away. Outcries of pain filled Pyrite’s ears and caused her to cover them and stopped her from walking.

“Please.” The soft, young voice reached Pyrite’s ears. She slowly turned around and found a StealthWing prisoner about Pyrite’s age hunched up in the corner.

“Please help us.” He spoke again, hopefully, as if he didn’t know whether Pyrite spoke Dragon or not. Pyrite could not see his face, just his glossy, silver back. He shifted his long tail and looked at Pyrite with curious green eyes. Pyrite recognized him! He was the StealthDragon from the Surface, the one that everyone went to see (The one we got separated for, she remembered bitterly).

“Hey!” Pyrite was yanked back and dragged along the hallway by the guard. She didn’t struggle; she knew it would be no good. The guard who had picked her up kept holding on to her so she would not escape.

Pyrite felt shaken up as they walked up a straight staircase with a stream of water running down it. What was that place? A prison? What were the CaveDragons doing to their prisoners? As they continued, Pyrite realized that is what it must have been.

The group made it to a very official-looking stone door, with an image of two PixiDragons, small, peaceful dragons about the size of lapdogs, intertwined together. Their eyes were emeralds that glinted in the darkness as the guard opened the door with his talonprint.

The room they entered was strewn with jewels. Tourmaline and gold, emeralds and amethyst, everywhere imbedded in the floor and walls. The gentle murmur in the room had stopped as the group entered.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Pyrite worked hard to stop an astounded gasp from coming out of her mouth. This must have been the throne room, for the CaveDragon King and Queen sat on two thrones. Below them was the Royal Council and plenty of servants. Was this the contents of the whole palace?

“Ah, what a pleasant surprise!” King Cove exclaimed. “We have not been expecting your arrival for two days! Come, have a seat.” He gestured to several empty odd, stone contraptions. Pyrite sat down on one’s stone platform held up by four legs. She rested on the backrest and said defiantly, “What are these called?”

Queen Cavern chuckled, looking mildly surprised. “They are called ‘chairs’ little fleshbag,” she said loftily. Pyrite nodded her head and stood up, glaring at all of them.

“Well, report please! Grayclaw, let’s hear of your adventures!” King Cove spread his dark grey arms wide and flexed his ring-covered claws, twitching his wings. As leaned forward in his throne and looked expectantly at Grayclaw, Pyrite noticed his eyes. There was something odd about them...

“We had a successful mission. We got three fleshbags, all female, and were headed your way when a gigantic storm formed. It killed Archer, two fleshbags, and two CrystalDragons. Chasm and I continued to the palace, unable to go back and see if Archer was alive.

“This fleshbag here has lots of potential and we think she would do well in the training.” Grayclaw finished. Pyrite wondered what was bugging the back of her mind. King Cove’s eyes...they weren’t right. They almost seemed...as if they were empty. As if there was no soul behind them.

“Ah, how…. unfortunate. Archer was a good soldier,” Queen Cavern said, nodding, not looking the least bit sorry. “But!” she clapped her talons together. “Time is of the essence. Let us go to Serenity and Spikethrower and sort things out.”

As soon as the words left Cavern’s mouth the room went into immediate action. Orders were carried out, servants ran hither and tither, scurrying around the room. Dragons came and left, and the murmur of voices grew to a level of unbearable.

Pyrite saw the same thing in the Queen’s eyes that she saw in the King’s. Maybe it was a royalty thing? She didn’t think so, though. It made her feel...wrong, of sorts. Or off.

Finally, they were ready to leave. It was Queen Cavern, King Cove, five guards, Grayclaw, and Pyrite. They flew off towards the western mountains, towering peaks that jutted from the sky. Tense silence engulfed them all. Pyrite searched the ground with wide eyes. A DeerDragon (a vegetarian dragon with deerlike characteristics and below average intelligence) scootched away from their casting shadows. Pyrite remembered that the DeerDragons’ only ability was a melancholy song that broke a PixiDragon’s heat when heard. She had never seen one before until now.

The two moons glared at them from their position in the sky, only one of them full.

The StealthDragon palace lumbered into view. Pyrite again was awed at the beauty and splendor the palace portrayed. Glossy silver wings protruded from a dragon's middle, with a head and neck twisting and, so it seemed, following the visitors. Once the awe had passed, Pyrite was creeped out as the feeling of being X-rayed washed over her, and the neck and head twisted down to look at them as they landed. Pyrite blinked and thought she must have been mistaken as she looked up again, and the neck seemed completely normal.

They landed on a courtyard exactly like the CaveDragon courtyard, other than the fact that it was deserted. When they went towards the door, guards awaited them as though they had expected their entrance.

“Queen Cavern, King Cove.” One of them grunted in a low, gravelly voice. He sank into a deep bow. The others did likewise.

They entered the palace. It was much bigger than the CaveDragon Palace, having more space. Dazzling chandeliers and glass windows were all over. Sapphires were embedded in the floor, walls, and ceiling, reminding Pyrite of her dead friends. The glossy silver walls were bathed in moonlight.

But again, there was the same feeling Pyrite had in the CaveDragon palace. There was nobody in the palace. Surely, surely there were some servants milling about here? But no, it was completely deserted. A feeling of foreboding stirred in Pyrite’s sternum.

The guards led them up a staircase and onto a landing. Left, right, Pyrite thought, trying to memorize the layout. Right, right, left—or was that right? She soon lost the amount of turns in the spooky labyrinth. Finally, they reached a door embedded in diamonds. All the other doors did not have anything on them, so Pyrite figured this one was important.

The door creaked open, leading to an empty room. Thin, single-file walkways led to a platform. Four of the walkways led to four separate doors. On the middle of the platform there were two large thrones, for the king and queen. Beside the two thrones were two smaller ones, and Pyrite couldn’t figure out why those were there. Pyrite glanced around some more, and realized they must be in the “head” of the palace, for there were two windows at the front that looked like the “eye” shapes on the palace. Below the platforms was a pool of a calm-looking gray liquid that looked innocently dangerous. Pyrite decided to stay away from the edge.

The group filed in through the door and onto the platform. Then one of the StealthWing guards rang a small bell that was in between the two largest thrones. Pyrite heard an answering bell tinkle close by. A small door opened on the walkway to the left, and a PixiDragon ran through it. The PixiDragon was bright orange, with hints of yellow on his wings and underbelly. He also had a silver collar, from which dangled a small bell.

“Clementine, send a message to Queen Serenity and King Spikethrower. Tell them the guests have arrived and are waiting in the throne room.”

“Yes, SIR!” the PixiDragon puffed his chest proudly and raced through another small hole in the wall.

A few moments later, four StealthDragons came through the door to the left. Pyrite recognized the King and Queen, as they were the largest and had the biggest crowns. The other two must be Prince Clawtail and Princess SilverStar. They sat down on the thrones and waited.

“Spikethrower, my old friend!” King Cove spread his arms wide and smiled. Spikethrower shook talons with him.

“Why have you come, Cove? I thought the mission was not to be complete until two days’ time.”

“It finished early. Here is the fleshbag, as promised.” Pyrite was shoved in front of the thrones and forced to kneel. There was a stunned silence. She quickly got up and kicked the CaveDragon who shoved her in the leg. He hopped on one foot, to her satisfaction. King Cove chuckled. “She is a little bit feisty.”

“Ah, yes. Leave her with us, and she will be trained well. You are all dismissed.” King Cove and Queen Cavern bowed and left, along with their guards, one of them limping. With a wave of his talon, King Spikethrower made the guards take Pyrite away.

Pyrite narrowed her eyes at King Spikethrower and Queen Serenity. Their eyes also had the same thing as the CaveDragon Royals! But it couldn’t be a royal thing, because Prince Clawtail and Princess SilverStar did not have the same thing. This left Pyrite more confused than ever. What was going on here?

King Spikethrower turned his head to gaze at Pyrite with his hollow eyes. A flicker of a smile played on his mouth.

He knew.