Dragons were creatures of legend and myths. As one of the oldest sources of magic ever documented, any fairy would give part of a wing to meet one.

Marva surpassed all that by being in the presence of an actual flight of them. Despite that accomplishment, that wasn’t where her interest lay as she listened to the chains jingling on Sorem’s feet as he waddled forward.

Hands bound before him, attached to the dwarf metal around his ankles, Sorem hurried to keep in step with her.

A terrible feeling had come over Marva when she was instructed to walk as far away from Sorem as she could.

“What is your name?” the dummy asked, ignoring all voices commanding him to calm. “Jvalan…?”

The ogre at their side cast Sorem a pitiful glance then scoffed as he walked on.

Pity drove that ogre to wash his hands of them, but Marva wish she could do the same.

“Jvalan….” Sorem begged, “Please tell me your name.”

She was too angry to comply. “Why? What is the point after you’ve just thrown your life away? All you had to do was promise him all you had. So, what if you had nothing? It was still valid!”

The army before them and the one at their back was a force. Some dragons even took human form and held a lance which they used to force the troll marker on.

Such a show of power rivaled the world’s very creation and yet, here Sorem was, asking trivial things.

“Stay apart,” one brownie, riding a boar , instructed.

His words must not have reached Sorem who stumbled when he hurried to catch up.

“Just give me a name. One name, I beg. Even if it’s a lie; even if it’s your last one.”

The desperation in his pleas had Marva’s throat tightening.

She opened her mouth to scream at him to shut up, but nothing came of it beyond a whisper.

The word satisfied him because he no longer hurried to keep in step with her steady strides.

“Marva,” he said, testing the words on his tongue. “You look like a Marva. Marva.”

“Will you stop!” She spun around to face him, more than expecting the hunchback’s army to walk around her. Instead, it simply came to a stop.

The stupid grin on Sorem’s face broke her.

It was even worse when he smiled and hurried to her and stole a kiss. “I’m sorry I won’t have a chance to use it.”

Murmurs broke out, more than one voice whispering, “But isn’t she a fairy?”

“More like a human’s pet.”

Feeling small despite her current stature, Marva took the trembling steps needed to walk on. Her feet no longer marched in union with the others among which she’d been disguising herself.

Now she slowed until Sorem stood by her side.

She even held his bound hands with her left. The moment his fingers gripped her, she nearly lost power.

“You cannot survive a battle with the hunchback,” Marva admitted, “even with magic. Even with my magic. Because…I do not think even I can best him. I certainly can’t with these new wings.”

Sorem tightened his hold. “And certainly not after I’ve forced your wings to close up.”

The pride in his voice had her shooting him a sharp look.

His smile remained steady. “Good. I’m glad that happened then. Otherwise, you’d try to save me and get killed.”

In one smooth action, he brought her hand up to kiss it and she yanked it away.

“Be serious!”

But he no longer stared at her, instead, he wobbled faster. “It’s best if we get this over with. Stay out of it.”

“What? What are you doing?” His speed rivaled that of any rodent. “Sorem! Prince Sorem?”

One brownie stepped in her path, then another. That was not her imagination, these creatures were blocking her.

“Move aside,” Marva ordered. “Ogre! Move aside.”

The large body before her accompanied a rumbling voice. “Don’t need to listen to treacherous fairies who don’t know which side they’re on.”

Shortly after, everything came to a stop. Marva struggled to look over the crowd, but it was to no avail.

Everyone looked…up, so she followed suit.

“Wow.” A towering statue, bigger than even the ogres, loomed before them. Marva had never met the king of Wisen; she was certain this was an accurate likeness.

“Get the earth magic ready,” the hunchback said somewhere at the front.

He mustn’t have been all that far. Earth magic? Dragons.

Marva was sure to rush the nearest olive colored body holding a spear. A path cleared for the dragons, and she hid herself among them. Their dark complexion was similar enough to hers.

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Something shot to the ground, spiraling until it landed. Once the new dragon stood as a man, Wyrn stepped forward.

He argued his slight, thrusting a hand out at Sorem often.

Marva remained frozen in disbelief. The hunchback intended to involve the dragons in his compensation. An empty promise was now impossible. Deep down she prayed Sorem, this bastard, was somehow a prince and could offer up land in exchange for a pardon. With enough riches, he could quell this.

But with nothing…. With nothing, he would receive a dragon’s fury—no death, but a curse. A festering curse for all time.

The dragon raised his lance and Marva darted from the crowd.

“Stop! Stop! Don’t you know who this is? Don’t you all know!”

Sorem, ready to receive his fate, picked his head up. “What are you doing?”

Marva hurried to the hunchback and took one knee. “Sir, good sir, I must confess something, something awful of me. I’ve been keeping a secret.” Everything in her said to stop—to cease with her plan but each attempt left her feeling weak. She thrust out a hand in Sorem’s direction. “He—he is the Fairy King in human form.”

Her skin burned from the lie, so strongly she feared her arm would fall off before them. Despite the open wound, she covered the injury and kept on with her steady tone.

“Long ago, the Fairy King’s domain had no end. It remains unclaimed now because of his absence. All this time he’s been hiding as this human, and for so long that he’s lost his memory. Please, give me a year. Take his land. Take everything in the Fairy King’s domain and give him a year to battle you to reclaim it.”

No one moved, not even a muscle.

The hunchback wouldn’t look at her but asked, “And why do you think I’d wait a year?”

Why…?

Why would he wait a year to find out this wasn’t true?

Marva’s body trembled when she attempted another lie. She tried to say one. Anything. She tried so hard that her mouth vibrated and her jaw locked up.

It was to no avail. She needed a truth.

“My—my hand,” Sorem blurted. “During the fight with the ogres, one broke my hand.”

Matax’s black eyes scanned him, and the fairy scoffed. “It appears fine right now.”

“I healed him.” Marva let out a sigh when she could speak again. “But I was weak. I am unsure if it’s fully well.”

“No matter. Take his head now—”

“No.” Wyrn picked his head up and settled his eyes on Sorem. “I want him fully healthy when I take out his heart.”

The dragon glanced back to Wyrn then to Marva and told her, “Night Fae, think of what you are saying. With my magic, I can test his blood ties and hand over his land or render a blight upon him in punishment, but you are asking me to bypass this and instead trust your words. You are a night Fae, a most trusted creature. To challenge you is an insult difficult to bear. But should your claim be false or should the real Fairy King appear in one year’s time to dispute your words, you will never see the end of that bondage.”

Marva’s body trembled from the fear. As she could offer no more falsehoods, she stared at the dragon head on.

“Very well,” he said, raising his staff. He turned to Wyrn who knelt. “Jaffo. To answer the slight done onto you, I now bestow upon you, all land and territories…of the Fairy King. Do you accept?”

Wyrn stared Marva down and answered, “It’s not me who stands to suffer.” His blue eyes slid to rest on the dragon when he said, “I accept.”

A single tap on the shoulder from the lance shot off a bright yellow glow which jumped from Wyrn to the troll marker.

The earth vibrated and the marker stepped forward, leaving a copy behind. Yet another came out, and another. Ten troll markers turned back-to-back, started to walk in all directions.

Vadde kept her eyes cast to the ground, even as her husband stood and took hold of her hands. “Come,” he told her. “And when you feel well again, we will travel.”

She muttered, “I’m sorry. This is all my fault.”

He cradled her close and told the dragon, “I have no time to oversee everything. She’s distressed. What can I do?”

The dragon scanned the crowd then said, “Any creature you leave in charge may be prone to abuse.”

“I—I’ll do it,” a voice said.

All eyes roved the crowd before settling on Sorem who had the nerve to speak.

“Who better to oversee fairly but the Fairy King?”

Marva’s hand still burned but the shock of her actions came into focus and she went numb.

Even he believed her. Fool. No one with a lick of sense truly believed her. But they allowed it, knowing full well she would bear all consequences and this would bring peace.

Sorem stood tall despite his chains, a proud smile in place.

“Very well,” Wyrn said, to everyone’s surprise. “And then I will see you in combat in one year.”

Those words had Sorem’s posture wilting, but he still stood strong.

“As you wish, hunchback. I will see you in one year. I—I will spare your life. You need not worry,” Sorem promised.

Wyrn stared him down for a long minute, let go of his wife, marched to the humungous statue, drew his hand back, and punched it in the groin. It cracked in two then collapsed in on itself.

Upon retrieving his wife again, he tucked her close and sneered. “That’s very big of you.”

Sorem swallowed hard as Wyrn weaved through the crowd, his wife at his side.

All eyes watched as Wyrn helped Vadde onto the wagon, then Jeze and finally Matax who was less than pleased.

“Jaffo,” Matax barked under his breath, “you can call out her treachery now and end it!”

But instead, Wyrn stared at Sorem then told the dragon, “Release him. Make certain he’s delivered to me in one year’s time.”

Then he flicked the reins of his donkeys and turned his wagon around.

In no time, he faded from view.

One brownie at Marva’s side asked, “Is that it? What about all he promised us!”

Another voice echoed a similar sentiment. The three human dragons in attendance raised their hands. One touched Sorem’s binds which fell from him.

“He is now your overseer,” he reminded everyone and then jumped up. The other two followed suit and two red and one golden dragon took to the skies, never looking back.

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