With mantras, and a life of crime, we returned to Cove to open and face the first dungeon. Father, too exhausted and delaying us stayed at the cabin with the dragonets. The danger was too great for such young creatures.

Manu, Saphie and Henri stayed with me and Rubix. She had progressed past Cedric and too many of us would have attracted crowds.

During our adventures, in Yew

we met Sir Landon...

[https://i.imgur.com/hxJ3RuZ.jpg]

He was the leader of the resistance and he taught us that the spectres could possess us and that the only way to resist was to wear the crown of Lord British. But unfortunately, it would be in Lord Blackthorne's castle. He doesn't wear it himself, but it is hidden there.

If we want to save our friends and family, we have to get to the castle before it's too late.

We were on our own and had a little gold to buy a small boat. I would never have dared to ask Rubix, but it was also to put her in danger.

So we headed to the docks without being noticed but we were wanted.

When we arrived at the harbor we saw a small sailing boat and we boarded it without asking for help. Rubix cast a spell to charm us and they let us pass without any trouble.

Practical magic! And Rubix was very strong with her huge dragon mana.

But I noticed that she was now taller than me and her head was higher than mine. She noticed this too but said nothing.

Saphie stared at me, obviously jealous. "Hey...I've grown too..."

But it was mostly her shape.

She saw that I was blushing and so was she.

Rubix turned her head away, jealous too. But if she wasn't blushing... her tail betrayed her emotions. She waddled and twitched on the floor.

Saphie, Manu and I burst out laughing.

So we sailed on a supply skiff. But our peaceful journey was short-lived.

A ship with a skull and crossbones flag! Pirates!

Rubix cast a favorable wind spell, but the pirate ship was bigger, more sail, and shaped for war, not transport.

We were in sight and we could see the rotten teeth of some of them. There were about twenty of them and they were armed with cannons.

They fired a warning shot and we pulled the sail, letting them board.

The captain didn't care, they were old friends...

The ship docked and, as usual, dropped planks between the two boats

Rubix threw the shield on all of us and we drew our weapons

but with horror, I surprised the dragonets who had invited themselves as stowaways. They wanted to be with their "brothers."

"Dragons, stay together and don't interfere!"

The first wave of pirates fell from the sky through the ropes but one of them went through the deck, KO'd by a cuff of my colossal strength.

Rubix sent a second with a tail swipe and the third fell when the rope was severed by Sapphire's arrow.

Manu threw a spirit hammer that knocked out the fourth.

The wave was broken and the others came in shooting with flintlock pistols. One missed, but the other lodged in the magic shield and the lead bullet fell to the ground, crushed.

Rubix: "Magic missile!"

and he fell, wounded in the arm.

I ran into the pile and like a windmill I ended up on the pirate ship.

But when they saw that half the crew was down, but not killed, the captain clapped his hands.

"You guys would make great pirates!"

I smiled and returned the favor.

And he held up a poster with Rubix's portrait

"If you deliver it to me, we'll split the winnings and you can become a member of the team."

"Sorry, but she's my fiancée...!"

Rubix turned around and flames came out of her nostrils...

With emotion, she puffed out her chest and did as Valtrax had explained to her: Full of mana in her breath.

FWHHIIIIIISHHHHHH!!!

The next second, there was an inferno on the ropes, deck and barriers on the pirate ship.

Immediately, they retreated and struggled to save their ship.

A sail on fire.

They were immobilized and were busy fishing out those who had jumped into the sea.

Two hours later, without too many problems, we arrived in sight of an unwelcoming island with reefs and rocks all as sharp as each other.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

The captain, used to it, grabbed a buoy that was floating and put a rope in the ring underneath.

Then they pulled and the skiff turned dry, revealing a dock hidden by the waves.

"We'll have to wait for low tide to disembark, the entrance is flooded.

But we didn't wait.

We all held hands and teleported from the boat to the top of the reefs where we could see the valley inside, its source, its stream and its volcano.

At the bottom, there was a sinister castle. The castle of Blackthorne.

It smelled like a dungeon and especially like a monster.

There were guards and according to our information, we would have to find the crown first before trying anything.

It was dark and we relied on our nose to detect hidden dangers.

Little by little, we could see the night was getting lighter and the tide was going out.

We had to be quick!

The houses adjoining the castle must have been those of the guards' families and the shutters were all closed.

At a run, we snuck onto the rocks next to the castle.

We looked at Rubix and she didn't hesitate.

She seized me with her paws on my outstretched hands and she put me on the roof. Saphie and Manu stayed behind to cover our retreat.

I found a window along the lintel of the chimney, with its baroque style, it was like a staircase.

We entered a dusty shed and came to a hallway lit only by a candle.

Rubix cast a trap detection spell and we saw a black wire stretched to a spring mechanism with a hammer and a bell. An alarm!

More wires were stretched to this mechanism and the bell was blocked with a piece of cloth.

Then we came to a main hallway and we could hear guards yawning

"It's almost break time!"

"Yes, look, the sun will be up soon and we can go to sleep!"

He looked out the window.

"Look, the supply skiff has arrived! "

"Hahaha, he must have run into the pirates and we're going to have a good laugh when he falls flat on his face before Blackthorne.."

"Well... That'll make room for a future captain's apprentice...Those below will enjoy it..."

"I love it when he catches...it freaks me out every time."

The guards walked away to their room to eat a piece of bread and wine.

We looked at each other and with a spell of silence and invisibility, we snuck into the hallway. As the guards continued to talk among themselves, portraits of prominent members of the regent's family could be seen on the walls

We arrived in a very dark room and in front of us stood a sword.

On it was a crown!

It was so beautiful!

The sword and crown of Lord British!

With the dust, it had lost its shine but not its aura.

Rubix sensed and cast a trap detection spell but we didn't know it, the crown was absorbing the spells cast at it and slowly we inspected if there was a thread or a crack or something.

The guards made their rounds again and we leaned against the wall on the corridor side and the guards turned toward the other corridor, having seen the crown still on the sword.

But it was about to get light and I grabbed the crown but the sword sank into the base and the next thing I knew we were in the throne room.

Blackthorne himself came in from the side and went to sit on the stone throne.

"We've been expecting you."

I flinched and Rubix pressed up against me, sword out and her holding her 2 magic axes.

In his hand was a cane topped with a red jewel.

"The dragoness assassin! Nice people, but Torin, you disappoint me. Why do you meddle in matters that are none of your business? Yet your family was spared..."

Me, holding the crown of Lord British.

But the regent looked at the crown with suspicion.

"Give us back the crown and hand over the dragoness, so you'll be forgiven and get off with a few lashes!"

"When I was born, my father saw Lord British being carried out of the dungeon and into the harbor, carried by the three specters. You lie to people and bully all of Britannia. Why? You were so good before..."

He raised his scepter.

"dragon! Submit!"

But I had put the crown on her head and she resisted the order.

Then Blackthorne stood up and 10 guards appeared from dark corners, as if the columns were hollow.

"It's been an honor to know you Rubix..."

"Shut up. I spotted a stained glass window. I could swoop in and you're holding onto my paw!"

The guards drew closer and the irons crossed.

But as our spiritual augmentations made us heroes,

The guards' swords were quickly drawn and our combined strength soon overcame them.

Blackthorne remained and we approached him, threatening.

"Free our friends and relatives and we'll leave without a fuss...it's not for us to judge you, but for the Lord British and the Council.

Lord Blackthorne:

"But the council is with me! And even if Lord British came back...what would he do? He gave up his post! His kingdom, his people. Even if he's been kidnapped and he can't help it, it's up to the council to validate his royal title."

I thought he was weak for a regent.

"OUR PARENTS! FREE THEM!"

And, as he approached, the crown had its effect. It neutralized Blackthorne's magic, revealing his joker, his fool!

"HAHAHA..." "HIHIHI....I have you biiienn EUUU!!!!!" sneered thejoker, dressed in bells and his traditional royal clown costume.

But he was also a master spy, ace at camouflage and revealing plots in the service of his master.

"My name is Igor..." but if you're looking for the terrorists, they're in Britannia! With the Widow! hehehe..

Then he pressed a button and Sapphia and Mark arrived with their hands tied behind their backs, a gauntlet...

"We know you're very strong, Torin, but playing the little hero comes at a price.

He gestured and one of the soldiers holding the two prisoners pulled out his sword and put it to Saphie's throat.

"Surrender if you want to live!

I threw my sword to the ground. And Rubix her axes.

The little fool who was barely over a foot tall, his chin very elongated, jumped off the throne and picked up the sword.

"A knight's sword... what a waste! .... Take them away..."

And ropes were put on my back. And Rubix got chains and a ball and chain.

Looking defeated, Sapphia began to cry and so did Mark.

"Sorry, Torin..."

"I looked at the stained glass window and motioned for Rubix to run away..."

But she moaned and hugged the three of us.

We passed the captain who had sold us out. We saw him receive a purse full of gold, and he greeted us in the most hypocritical way possible.

"You may escape the Widow, since no one here has lost their life... but it is Blackthorne who decides."

In chains, but mostly because of our inexperience, we had been captured like rookies.

Strength and power are not everything. It also takes cunning and above all luck.

I thought very hard to Valtrax, so that she would free us when the ship was at high tide to leave.

But it was not the direction of the harbor that we were heading, but a circle of stones.

Jester: "The crown, you can keep it... You can play Lord British in the dark dungeons of Britannia..."

At the sight of the circle, I slowed down... I knew it was the end and wanted to struggle but a paw crushed me.

It was Ravenar's paw. He was back to normal size and my human, superhuman strength was no match for his weight.

He turned to Rubix... "I should kill him so that you will finally deign to turn to me!"

Rubix "We know that you killed Father Damien. You are a monster!"

Ravenar, the black dragon laughed.

Jester: "Lord Blackthorne needs him..!"

Ravenar lowered his toothy maw and stared into my eyes.

"I do indeed need you alive. But take a good look at Rubix because this will be the last time you see her! When I am the new Exodus, you will

tremble at my power!"

Rubix (in draconian) "Why are you so mean!???"

Ravenar: "Haha, you think Amon is my master? But it's the other way around! I help our Lord and with the 3 Lords of the shadows, my reign will be infinite!

Rubix: "You are crazy! And you will never be Exodus!"

He then pointed to the dagger of Brilliance and looked at me!

"NOooonnnnot that!!! Not Torin!!!!"

Ravenar smiled and showed all his sharp teeth?

Rubix : "What more do you need? You rule with Blackthorne already! You won't get anything more...

Ravenar : "But I do... You! You will stand by me... As you should have done..."

"To have my wings sawed off and end up in your salt mine"

"Hahahaha! But it's like a female that I want you... You are intelligent, strong and combative. I want you to lay my future offspring! And you better accept if you want them to live!"

I understood this monster's despicable deal.

Then one of the guards put down a moonstone and a portal came out of the grass.

"MOVE ON!"