Morning light poured across white marble terraces suspended above the clouds.
Golden banners fluttered between granite arches. Water streamed from dragon-headed fountains into crystal basins. Pastel pink and lilac wisterias draped across carved pillars older than most kingdoms below.
The Orecul Kingdom floated like a divine relic forgotten by time.
Yet for all its beauty—
It was quiet.
Too quiet.
Hetty's footsteps echoed as she hurried behind Lady Potts through the inner corridors. It was her first day serving the inner palace, there was a pleasant stillness to the grand home.
They passed a pair of towering doors left slightly ajar.
Hetty's gaze lingered.
Lady Potts shut them at once.
"This is His Majesty's chamber. If you value your life, you will never enter."
Hetty swallowed. "Y-Yes, my lady."
Lady Potts leaned closer, voice lowering. "Any woman who schemes her way into the King's bed suffers a fate worse than death. Do you understand?"
Hetty nodded frantically.
Everyone knew the rumors.
King Malrek.The Dragon King.Ruthless. Unmatched.
They said armies surrendered at the mere sight of him. That fortresses crumbled with the wave of his hand. That kings offered tribute so as not to court his wrath.
Ambitious nobles had even sent daughters to earn his good graces.
But none remained.
The Dragon's blood could not be tamed—unless you were his one true mate.
And only one woman had survived becoming his bride. They were reaching the room of that said woman when Lady potts heard voices overlapping, in a panic Lady Potts bolted. Hetty followed and saw chaos
"She's gone!"
"The new bride has vanished!"
"If his majesty finds out we've let her out of our sights, "
"Lower your voice!"
"Lady Potts what shall we do?" the maid said frantic and Hetty saw the once regal Lady Potts turn ashen and collapsed to the floor.
In contrast, in the opposite side of the inner palace, lay the palace's training courtyard. Within its circular arena, ancient dragon runes were etched into the stone, then came a sudden CRACK.
A marble pillar split cleanly down the middle.
Malrek stood there — tall, composed, radiant in restrained power.
He wore no crown, for he did not need one because even the air around him bent subtly, as if the world itself understood who ruled it. His dark auburn hair stirred in a wind that did not touch anything else. At his feet lay the remains of yet another unfortunate architectural feature.
He exhaled once and dust drifted gently to the ground.
Behind him, measured footsteps approached.
"Your Majesty, I have come with an urgent report." Aldren, his loyal aid stepped through the archway. Aldren had Silver-hair, a straight-back and his hands were folded neatly behind him.
He looked perfectly composed but Malrek could hear his frantic heartbeat. Anticipating whether it was an enemy attack, marching to war or a rebellion, Malrek did not turn only ordered calmly "Speak."
"Her Highness, the Queen Consort, is not within the kingdom territory."
Aldren kept his head lowered anticipating the King's wrath.
But then, silence.
A bird cried somewhere far below the floating kingdom.
Malrek brushed marble dust from his sleeve. "Is that so?"
Three slender throwing daggers flew from Aldren's sleeve.
Malrek tilted his head slightly. "You have excellent aim for your age," he observed mildly.
The courtyard birds took off in alarm.
"That is not the point!" Aldren marched forward, his steps furious, his facade of a calm butler completely gone. "Your new bride, not just a simple bride—but your one true mate has gone missing, and all you have to say is 'Is that so'?"
Malrek regarded him calmly, turning to face his most trusted aide, "Why does this trouble you so much?"
Aldren froze.
His left eye twitched.
Wind drifted lazily across the open courtyard. Far below the floating island, clouds rolled peacefully and then was abruptly disturbed by the outraged voice of Aldren, "YOUR BRIDE IS MISSING! SHE HAS RAN AWAY! And you are not alarmed by it!"
Malrek turned back toward the fractured pillar and brushed marble dust from his sleeve.
"I do not think she ran away, have you checked the library?"
"I've search every shelf, even through every page in case she transformed into an actual bookworm!"
"Search again, why would she want to runaway?"
Aldren made a strangled sound and he gestured wildly at the shattered architecture. "Because perhaps of you. You've been training from dusk to dawn when you should be in your honeymoon! If you are not destroying palace infrastructure, you are off battling who knows where, for who knows what!"
"You're the one who reports about those conflicting kingdoms and stalemate wars."
"That does not mean you must personally attend every single one!"
Malrek resumed his meditative stance in the center of the ring. "It is faster if I go, it's bothersome to prolong the agony of war."
"That is not your priority right now! Your priority is producing an heir!"
Malrek closed his eyes. "The Great Dragon War approaches," he said calmly. "I believe that takes precedent."
"With that mindset no wonder your subjects fear the continuity of your line!" Aldren was red in the face.
"They fear unnecessarily." Malrek said with a confident vigor, as if he was a young pup wagging his tail remembering a joyful night scene.
"It is necessary! Because their dragon king's bride had disappeared after three weeks of marriage!" Aldren threw his hands into the air. "She is your one true mate! As a dragon-shifter, Your Majesty, this is the greatest blessing the Creator could bestow upon our kingdom! And she is of fae and elven blood—your rule could last centuries! Your descendants could—"
"She is not livestock to secure longevity," Malrek interrupted evenly.
Aldren faltered. "That is not what I meant—"
"You should stop worrying too much at your age Aldren."
"I am appropriately worried! She could be in who knows where, gone for who knows how long - it has taken us a century to find her now if she has gone to another realm we'll have to dispatch..."
Ignoring Aldren, who started to pace in a circle mumbling to himself, Malrek's fingers brushed the wedding band on his hand. The ring had been forged in lightning and tempered in molten lava of Ancient Volcano of this island. Ancient dragon sigils shimmered faintly along its surface.
It was warm.
"Your Majesty, for the sake of the Kingdom's peace and for the continuity of your line I am at your disposal to go search for her!" Aldren said on his knees.
Malrek stared at the band for a moment longer.
If she were truly in danger… He inhaled slowly as if contemplating a heavy pain in his heart and abruptly stood. "Then I must continue my training... leave me Aldren." Malrek waved his hand and he was banished away from the training courtyard.
Aldren reappeared in another part of the castle grounds. A collective gasp rose from the surrounding servants.
"Lord Aldren—?!"
"We thought you reported to his Majesty—?"
"My lord should we send out a search party to other realms now?"
a maid clutched her skirts. "It is all my fault for not following her this morning!"
"What will we tell the high council?!"
A footman stumbled back, eyes wide. "The Queen Dowager will return to the kingdom soon if she finds out we will all be done for!"
Aldren straightened instantly, "Compose yourselves," he said stiffly, voice measured.
"Lord Aldren… do you have a plan?"
"Yes, surely Lord Aldren has a plan."
"We will all be safe under Lord Aldren's guidance!"
"Yes! I indeed have a plan," Aldren said, voice steady but there was a dangerous gleam in his eye. "I will go beat some sense into that muscle-headed brat!"
The courtyard froze.
A knight staggered back. "Wait… wait, what did he just say?!"
Mrs. Potts eyes went wide. "Stop him! Stop him from beating the King!"
"Not again! My lord please you must not court the King's competitive side! He will only be happy to fight with you!" another servant shouted, clutching Aldren. "Entire terraces could collapse if you two physically fight again!
"We could fall into the clouds below!"
"Send help! Someone—someone restrain Lord Aldren!"
The youngest page wailed, "Call the other generals this is an emergency!"
The older servants scrambled, frantically gesturing, arms flailing. "No! Don't let Aldren reach His Majesty! The resulting force will be a disaster!"
Even the birds in the courtyard cooed nervously and took flight, sensing the rising tension.
And Hetty the new maid clutched her hands together in a quite plea, "Your Highness! Where are you?"
MEANWHILE
Far below the floating Kingdom of Orecul, in another realm beyond the dragon kingdoms lay a bustling city teeming with adventurers, a petite hooded figure huddled in the corner of a dim tavern. She murmured to herself, barely audible over the clatter of mugs and dice rolls.
"I can't let him find me… if he finds me, it'll be the end of me… I won't let him have his way. I just need to get to next town faster but I need to pass through the Whispering Forest..."
"Whispering Forest?! Are you insane?!" the hooded figure heard the conversation from another table.
A woman who had herbs protruding from her bag was pensive, talking to a group of adventurers "If the quest requires going into the Whispering Forest, count me out! They say not a single party on an escort mission made it back in one piece!" She stomped off before anyone could protest.
"Great! Thanks a lot, Giano!" snapped the beastkin tigress, twin blades resting on her shoulders. "Now we have no healer for this quest!"
The slow, massive goliath tank scratched the back of his head. "I'm… sorry. I thought she knew we were going there."
"Hey, Nika, calm down!" a strikingly handsome and lean man said, his polished armor gleaming in the dim light, "Don't blame Giano for this, if anything you should blame me..."
"Oh I was about to okay? This IS entirely your fault Soren!" Nika yelled, glaring at him. "What did I tell you about accepting random quests. If you had gotten all the details earlier, we'd be prepared! We could've stocked supplies, replenished potions, but now we're going to the Whispering Forest without a healer! Do you have a death wish?!"
Dinisio, the drunk demi-demon archer, grinned, swaying slightly on his feet. "Healer or no healer… I say we drink to our hearts' content. Nika-babe, how about you and I share a room tonight?"
"I'll give you to the count of three to get your hands off me, or you won't wake up with one!" Nika hissed glaring at the hand touching her.
"Milani can you please do something?" Soren said to another member who was buried in a pile of books.
But there was no response only a subtle snoring sound from the sleeping mage.
"I think she's a sleep Soren." Giano said peeking through the piles of books.
Amidst this conversation, the hooded figure glided towards the group's table, delicate hands clutched to her chest in a plea.
"Excuse me—ahm…" Her hood fell from the motion, showing off her cascading, wavy, ebony hair that framed her face perfectly, deep blue eyes sparkling with an almost ethereal glow. "Could I tag along with you..."
The room went silent. Everyone in the tavern froze, blinking at her. Even Nika's scowl faltered for a fraction of a second.
The effect was instantaneous. Her beauty, captured every gaze in the tavern. Nika mid-clawing Dinisio's face twitched, Giano was as stiff as a rock, and even Soren coughed mid-drink mesmerized by her ethereal appearance.
"I am a healer and I need to get to through whispering forest to Arvandale urgently …"
It was Rema—the Dragon King's runaway bride.