We Are One: A Story of Friendship

Chapter Fifteen: Aquarius Unchained

After we made it through the maids quarters, we made our way through the back halls towards the throne room. We ran into a few guards but we quickly, and quietly unarmed, and subdued them. Once we managed to get past the guards who were guarding the entrance to the throne room we went in and closed the giant, solid oak, door. Once enclosed inside, we kept our eyes and ears open for any sudden movements. We had to make it to the corridor where the king's room was. His secret room where he had his spell room was only accessible through the door behind the bookcase. It's beyond cliché, but I had to give him props for being creative and smart enough to know that you shouldn't have it outside of your own private suite.

"What is that? Over there by the throne." Aidan asked quietly while nodding his head and pointing to show us what he was referring to. I gasped as I saw a sleeping form that I knew not the elves were able of being riders of. A beautiful amethyst colored dragon slept next to the throne chair. I vaguely recalled seeing it before but, I could not recall where I had seen it. While I was pondering this thought I caught a movement out of my right peripheral. My father was slowly moving towards the sleeping dragon, hand outstretched in a non-threatening way, and his voice was low and gentle sounding. He was calling to the dragon. It hit me so hard, I could only gasp. I knew where I had seen this dragon before. I had played with her. I used to slide down her tail as if it were a slide. I had taken many a nap curled under her protective wings. I had been born and raised with this dragon. Aquarius was her name, and she was a gem dragon. One that was loyal and loving and caring and all around a magickal being. She was an honorable creature and to chain her, yet to the throne, she was a noble guardian of, was unthinkable.

My fury was beyond that of what I would have thought. I felt my skin get washed with heat and I vaguely recall hearing Aidan telling me to breathe. I heard Bouldarg through our mind link ask me if I was okay and if I was in any trouble. I quickly reassured him I was alright and to keep me posted on the affairs going on outside the castle walls. I continued to walk forwards. I could feel Aidan's' presence behind me, and I could feel my magick swirling around me. I was so furious with what this beast of a so-called "king" had done to what was once my mother's beloved dragon.

"Aquarius," I said in a firm yet gentle voice. "What has this beast of a man done to you?"

At the sound of my voice, the dragon's eyes opened and she raised her mighty head. My father stopped dead in his tracks and became a statue. I would have laughed if I hadn't been set on getting to her and unchaining her from her unjust shackles. "Willa, what are you doing? She hasn't seen you in so long she may not remember who you are."

"She knows who I am. You can see it in her eyes. And the fact she hasn't torched us to piles of ash." At this comment, I could feel Aidan bristle, and I turned around to look at him and saw he had turned a stark white, and all the color had left his cheeks. I turned back around and put my full attention to the dragon in front of me.

"Aquarius," I said again, this time with more love and a bit of my magick laced into my voice, to try and soothe her frazzled nerves. She tilted her head to the side as I walked up to her. She bent her head down, as I slowly put out my hand for her to smell my scent. She huffed a cloud of mist onto my palm, letting me know she knows me. I smiled at her, "don't worry girl. I'll get you out of these." I gently brushed her scaled cheek with affection shining in my eyes back at hers.

I reached up for her head and brought it down some so I could reach the metal color that was attached to her neck. I couldn't believe someone would do this to her! I had always thought she had been captured and slain. I checked over the chain and the so-called collar, to make sure I would be able to use either my magick and/or pick it. Thankfully, the "king" hadn't reinforced it with magickal properties. I was able to manipulate the metal into cracking and then breaking, and able to free her of her burden. She shook her head and fluttered her beautiful lavender and amethyst colored wings while she shook her slender form. I laughed at her pure joy in simply being released from those awful chains.

I turned around to see my father, Eve, and Aidan staring at me. My father had the look of a proud parent, Eve was staring at me like I had gone completely nuts and Aidan. He had a look of pure love and adoration. I quickly composed myself and walked back to the center of the room where they all were standing. Aquarius followed me and sat next to me when I stopped in front of the group.

"Okay. We freed her, she could actually be of great help to us. She's a lot smaller than Bouldarg, so she can move around the corridors easier and quieter than he would be able to. We need to move quickly, and end this monster of a king before he decides to harm any more of my people, let alone any more creatures who don't deserve any of this torment he has unjustly been giving." After I was done talking I could tell my anger had spiked again. My face, I could just imagine, was flaming red, with my hair float around my face like a breeze was teasing it, and I could feel my fingertips tingle from the sheer amount of power flaring to them. I also knew due to the lack of color in the group of people standing in front of me, and the whimper that came from Aquarius. I took a deep breath in and out to help center myself. Losing my cool wouldn't do anyone any good right now.

"Um...are you better Willa? Cause, um, we need to move, before the company that we're about to have manages to get that door open."

I glanced over at Aidan with a look of confusion. While I was trying to compose myself, which wasn't even a minute, I hadn't realized the dark elf soldiers were trying to open the oak door we had barricaded after coming into the throne room.

"Okay. We need to move. Father, do you remember which corridor we need to take to get to the king's chambers? We need to move fast. I don't want to lose any more time than we already have and he MUST be stopped and ended TODAY. We must accomplish this before any more strife can be given to our kingdom and the creatures there in it."

At my words, everyone nodded and made a sound of agreement. Draken, my father, pointed to the corridor that was to the right of the throne. We all rushed towards it just as we heard a crack. I looked over my shoulder before passing through to see the "head" of a battering ram come through a hole in the oak door.