The Dragons Blood Key: Legend of the Dragon's Blood Key - Book 1 (20 page)

Roupert wondered what she was doing, but he
decided to step back and trust her. Cassy stepped closer to the
three Elim and bent down to look them directly in the eyes.

“Do you see this?” she said in a calm voice
as she rubbed her hand across the Blood Key.

They all nodded
nervously
but said nothing.

“This is the Blood Key and it is
attached
to the sacred Breast Plate. I wear
this because I am the Champion, and through it, I have great
powers. Do you understand my words?”

The three nodded their heads again with the
fear inside of them growing to a fevered pitch.

“At first I didn’t understand what I could
do, but now I know.” She placed her hand firmly on the Blood Key,
causing it to begin to glow and vibrate.

Roupert watched Cassy, surprised to see her
acting this way. He glanced over at the Elim, who now were backing
away from Cassy with fear showing in their eyes.

Cassy closed her
eyes
and took a deep breath, this causing the Blood Key
to glow like fire with what appeared to be flames shooting out of
it from between her fingers. The Elim took another step back when
Cassy opened her eyes and looked at them again, but now her eyes
were a bright emerald green with ribbons of flames swirling
around
in them.

The three Elim gasped and dropped to their
knees, pleading for their lives. “
Please,
Champion. You have the spirit of the Dragon
inside you. Please do not kill us.”

Roupert gazed at Cassy, shocked by this turn
of events. He had not seen eyes like that for many years. Not
since, he served King Ashlym.

“You have come to take the Blood Key for
your own. I will not allow creatures such as you to take what is
not yours. Now leave while you still have your pitiful lives,”
Cassy said in a low growl.

“Yes, your Majesty, we meant no disrespect,”
the three Elim bowed as they slowly backed away, not wanting to
turn their backs
on
Cassy.

“I’m sure that you did not. Now, leave my
site before I change my mind,” Cassy took a step forward, causing
the Elim to turn and run for their lives.

Once they were gone, Cassy turned to face
Roupert. “
Wow;
that was
weird.”

Roupert ran his fingers through his hair as
he shook his head. “I do not know what weird is, but it definitely
was strange,” he laughed nervously. “If I didn’t know better, I
would have sworn that was King Ashlym.”

Cassy shook her head, trying to understand
what had just happened. “I think it was. I felt him with me, in me.
That was incredible
. I felt so
strong, as though nothing or no one could hurt me.”

Roupert gawked at her, trying to understand
her words. “It isn’t possible. King Ashlym died many years ago. He
died
by Alona’s hand with a dagger
through the heart.”

“I know, but isn’t his blood in this?” she
placed her hand over the Blood Key.

“Yes, but…”

“Roupert, I know what I felt. Keira and the
Lillients tell me that the Blood
Key
chose me to be the Champion and that I have powers
because of it. They said that Alona forced a drop of the King’s
blood inside of the stone, right?”

He nodded his head, realizing there was much
he did not understand about the power of the Dragons.

“I believe that somehow the King is still
alive because of his blood inside of the stone.
I think
when Alona forced his blood inside the
stone to trap his powers, she also
trapped
his soul. I felt him inside of me. I felt his
power and strength. I know that with his help, we will vanquish
Alona forever.” Her eyes met his, and he knew in that instant that
she spoke the truth.

Roupert could not contain his joy. He
grabbed Cassy and pulled her into his arms, holding her
tightly.

“Hey, you’re squeezing me,” she gasped,
trying to catch her breath.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” he released her then
laughed at the silly look on her face as she straightened her
clothes.

“I wondered why the Elim
were
so terrified. When you threatened them,
your eyes looked like King Ashlym’s with ribbons of flames swirling
in the bright emerald green. You’re voice took on his tone as
well.”

“I did? No wonder those three were ready to
run for the hills,” Cassy laughed a deep belly laugh, remembering
the look of terror on their faces.

Roupert laughed as well. “I must admit that
I was frightened for a moment. You see, I am no longer worried for
I know that my King is watching over us. We have nothing to fear
with him at our side.”

“I feel the same way. Come on, let’s go
rescue Frier and save the
Kingdom
so Aaron and I can go home,” Cassy said with a joyous tone in her
voice.

Privlana awoke feeling lightness in her
heart that she had not felt
for
many years. She had long prayed to see her son, but with each
passing year, she had begun to lose hope.

“Frier, you are such a handsome young man,”
she whispered as she lay on the filthy straw mat on the dungeon
floor.

“What did you say? Oh you poor thing, you’ve
been down here so long that you are beginning to talk to yourself,”
Alona chuckled as she crossed to floor toward Privlana.

“I didn’t say anything, you must be hearing
things,” Privlana shot back, not wanting Alona to know of her time
with Frier the night before.

“If you say so, but I’m sure I heard you say
something. No matter, I just wanted to come down and visit with you
for a while. You see, today is going to be a special day for both
of us. Today, I will obtain the Blood Key, and today everyone you
care for, including your sweet son, Frier will die. Yes, today is
going to be a full day,” Alona laughed devilishly.

“You are such a fool, Alona. You already
tried once to get the power of the Blood Key and failed. What makes
you think that you will be a success today?”

Alona stepped
closer, and lowered her voice. “Because I have your son, and if the
Champion does not give me the Blood Key then I will kill him, and
that foolish Roupert who travels with her.”

Privlana had known that Alona was desperate
to get the Blood Key, but she never thought she would resort to
killing Frier when she could harness his power as well, unless….
She doesn’t know
, Privlana quickly shoved the thought from
her mind.

Alona lowered her eyes, trying to read
Privlana’s thoughts. “What are you thinking?”

“Nothing, I’m not thinking anything other
than what a pitiful creature you are,” Privlana said flatly.

Alona did not appreciate Privlana’s
words
and raised her hand in
anger. “I should strike you dead now.”

Privlana lifted her head and looked directly
at Alona. “But you won’t because it will prevent you from
fulfilling your plans. We both
kn
ow that my death will forever keep the Blood Key out of
your reach. You know that, as do I. So, lower
your
hand, and be gone, for I wish to be
alone.”

Privlana lay back down on the mat then
turned her back to Alona.

“Enjoy this time, Privlana for soon you and
your son will join your husband in the Land of Shadows.” Alona
turned on her heel and walked back toward the stairway. She turned
one last time to look again at Privlana, the in a huff she stormed
up the stairs and out of sight.

Once Alona was gone, Privlana closed her eyes
and reached out to Frier. She had to warn him of Alona’s
intent.

Cassy and Roupert rolled up their blankets
and put everything away in their packs. Once they knew they had
everything, they both took a deep breath and walked toward the path
leading through the woods to the rear side of the castle. Roupert
had used the small door hidden in the tall bushes along the eastern
wall of the castle when he helped Abigail on her quest. Most in the
castle had no knowledge of the small door as it was only for the
Royal family should they ever have a need to escape unseen.

“How much farther is the castle from here?”
Cassy asked as she followed Roupert through the trees growing over
the path and making it nearly impassable.

“It’s not far. If I remember correctly, it’s
less than an hour’s walk from here.”

“Dang, you’d think that Keira could have
dropped us somewhere a little closer,” Cassy snickered at the
surprised look on Roupert’s face.

“True, but we wouldn’t want the Queen’s men
to have found us sleeping while they were out on patrol, would we?”
He then laughed at the look of surprise on her face.

“No, I guess Keira knew what she was
doing,
after all,” she grumbled as
she pushed another low hanging branch out of her way.

They had walked in silence for several
minutes until Cassy spoke again, “Roupert?”

“Yes, what is on your mind?” He sensed that
something was bothering her.

“Do you believe that Alona will hurt Frier?”
Just the thought of him held captive by the evil Alona made Cassy
nauseous.

Roupert did not want to tell her the truth,
but he knew he must. He swallowed then steadied himself before
answering. “I’m afraid that she would. She craves the Power of the
Dragon above all else, and she will stop at nothing to obtain it
for her own. Her heart is dark and full of
evil
so she will not hesitate to kill anyone who stands
in her way.”

“I was worried about that,” she said
flatly.

Roupert looked over his shoulder and smiled
at her. “Do not worry though. I have faith in you, Cassy. Yesterday
when the Elim tried to trick you, you showed
real
strength. I felt as though I was in the
presence of King Ashlym again.”

Cassy stopped in her tracks, touched by his
words. “I have to admit that I felt him there with me. He was so
powerful. I could feel him surging through me.”

Roupert turned around to face her. “I don’t
understand what happened, but I believe that he was there with you.
When I looked into your eyes, I saw him there. Your eyes changed
to
the color of the Royal Emerald
Green, with the same swirling ribbons of flames that burned in King
Ashlym’s eyes. I don’t understand how it happened, but your voice
even sounded like the King.”

Cassy searched for the words to express her
thoughts, but none came to her.

Roupert saw the look on her face and
understood her emotions. “Come on, Champion. We have a Kingdom to
save.”

He turned around and began walking through
the trees toward the castle. “Hurry up,” he released a tree branch
that was blocking the path. “Watch out.”

Cassy had
ducked
under the tree branch before it struck her. “Hey,
that wasn’t nice,” she scolded.

“I was just testing your reflexes,” Roupert
teased.

“Maybe I need to walk in front and test your
reflexes,” Cassy retorted with a wicked grin on her face.

Roupert waved his hand over his shoulder as
he continued down the path. “My reflexes are just fine, but stay
close, for we are near the castle now.”

Cassy’s breath caught in her throat at the
thought that they were nearly there. She reached up and touched the
Blood Key, and felt its warmth under her fingertips. “I sure hope
you’re still with me King Ashlym,” her voice was a near
whisper.

Roupert glanced back at her. “Did you say
something?”

“No, I was just thinking aloud.” She wanted
to tell him the truth, but something held her back.

“We need to be careful from now on. We don’t
wish
to alert the castle guards.”
Roupert glanced over his shoulder and gave her a reassuring
smile.

As they got closer to the castle, Cassy felt
the Blood Key begin to vibrate. She reached up and
touched
it, feeling a strange sensation surge
into her hand then up her arm. Next, her body
started
to feel warm and every nerve in her body
seemed to come alive.

Do not fear, my child for I am with
you,”
a gentle voice filled her mind, and she suddenly realized
the fear she had felt moments before was now gone.

Is that you, King Ashlym?
The
question formed in her mind, awaiting an answer she was unsure she
would receive.

Yes, and I am pleased you have come,
Cassandra. I have waited many years for one with the strength and
courage I see in you.

I don’t understand something. Everyone
says that you are dead. They say that Alona killed you, but you
can’t be dead because I feel you here with me.
Cassy reached up
and wiped a tear from her eye.

There is much misunderstanding regarding the
Power of the Dragon. There are many levels of magic that few know
exist. Once we have vanquished Alona, I promise to share everything
with you, but now you must stay focused on the task ahead for you
are nearly to the castle.