Dragon Blood (Completed)

The Good Royal

"Let's get her to Maze." Zane lifted Paige in his arms, not wanting to waste another minute of her not being under Maze's care. Dean ran in front of him to open the door.

A strange panic was making it hard for Zane to breathe. It was almost like being in the waterway all over again. As they walked the great halls of the almost empty castle, Zane found himself wishing for more Bluescales. The burden of being the only two left in the whole realm seemed like it was too much for these two. The existence of the whole dragon race rested on one set of shoulders that were too small to understand the magnitude of his life, and another that seemed too close to death for comfort.

They'd been in this realm for less than ten minutes when an attempt was made on her life. How were they going to survive until the next Alignment?

Suddenly, Zane felt exposed and vulnerable in the empty hall. He had once again found himself the sole protector of the two Bluescales. How could he be so careless with their lives? He should have called for more guards. He wanted to run at top speed to Maze, but he couldn't leave Dean behind. Dean was already jogging because the pace of Zane's gate was faster than a normal walk.

Maze was waiting for them while the young guard hovered close, waiting anxiously for orders. As Zane passed, he instructed the guard to wake Byran and fill him in on what was going on, then to go get more guards to be posted in Maze's rooms. Zane didn't think at this point there could be enough guards watching over the Bluescales.

Maze took charge, working over Paige for a long time, applying salves and treating her wounds. She forced some liquids down Paige's throat, causing her to sputter and choke, spitting half of the sweet-smelling liquid all over the front of her shirt. Her eyes opened briefly, but Zane wouldn't define it as waking up. He and Dean hovered close to the door, trying to stay out of the way.

"Zane, help me get these filthy clothes off her. I want to put her in a sleeping gown," Maze said more than an hour later when she finished working over Paige's injuries.

"Want me to go get a handmaiden?"

"Just hold her up...and don't look," Maze said impatiently.

Zane averted his eyes, trying to help without actually looking at what he was doing until he heard Maze gasp, and his eyes were drawn from their determined stare at the ceiling.

"What happened to her?" Maze asked, turning to Dean.

"You can't trust grown-ups!" he said, only looking at Zane with wide, fearful eyes.

"What does that mean?" Maze asked.

"I think Paige can answer these questions when she wakes up," Zane muttered, pointedly sliding his eyes to Dean's tormented face. Maze looked at Dean, who was focused solely on Paige, then she nodded silently to Zane.

The bruising was an ugly purple-yellow. Zane thought he could make out the exact spot where his guard's fist had collided with her small abdomen. The memory turned his stomach, so he averted his eyes, because a strange horror that had taken hold of him rather than politeness.

When Maze finished, Paige still hadn't woken, but she seemed to be resting more comfortably. Dean sat anxiously on the edge of a hard chair, his eyes sunken from lack of sleep. Zane could tell he was exhausted, and he wondered how long it had been since the boy had really slept. Though he was beyond tired, he refused to close his eyes, even though Zane had encouraged him to try and rest.

"Will she get better now?" Dean asked as Maze was gathering her various jars.

"We have to give the medicine time to work. Maybe in the morning we'll see a change," she offered. Exiting the small room, Zane could hear her shuffling around the lab and stoking a fire. He figured she wouldn't be sleeping tonight.