Sweet Waters Throne

174 Chapter 17There was nothing that Aurora hated more than a jealousy person and the one who thinks was above laws and traditions. A greedy friend to Aurora equaled a snake with a very strong poison and at any moment she was vulnerable the snake would attack and take her down once and for all.

Toro started off as a good friend, but then he grew jealous and wanted more. It was clear that he wanted a dragon for himself.

Aurora told him straight and plainly “The dragons belong to me and only me, not just these five... but even the ones who will hatch later on. I control them and I say who they should be claimed by, if you don’t believe me Toro you are welcome to try and claim one without my permission” she said softly but her voice was demanding at the same time, and her Low Moor was perfect.

“I’m a true Morrow Your Grace. The dragons will recognize me just by my smell”

“I doubt that, not every Morrow rode a dragon back in the days. Only the royals did while the rest practiced magic but like I said... you are free to try and claim one for yourself. If the dragon accepts to be claimed by you without my permission, then it’s yours” and with this Aurora walked away from the gardens and went on inside.

At this point Aurora could have done anything to Toro since it was within her power to do so, but she feared what will his friends Sundar and Alienor think of her. After all these were men she welcomed them inside her castle, they were her guests and she would never try to harm them.

The reason she allowed Toro to try and claim one of the three colorful dragons was to show it to Toro’s friends that not every Morrow descendant should ride a dragon. Even during the times of Alienor Morrow, only him and his blood rode the dragons while other Morrows practiced magic, healing and protected the kingdom for him.

The dragons’ cave was a short walk from where Toro stood. He was left with an option which could potentially change his life forever — or end it once and for all. Unclaimed dragons who weren’t connected to their riders usually threw the strange riders off their backs and even screamed when they felt the strange touch.

When the war erupted in Dark Town during the last years reign of Euric Morrow, the last Dragon. Most of Dragon Hunters died not just by fire, but some as soon as they managed to kill a rider, they mounted the dragons and flew them up to the skies. No sooner than later, the dragons shook them off the skies and they fell down and died.

.....

Almost ten dragons were mounted by strange Dragon Hunters during the uprising which saw the end of House Morrow, none of these Dragon Hunters lived to tell a tale. This showed that dragons weren’t horses and not everyone can fly them, not even a true Morrow descendant — yet Toro apart from knowing everything that happened during the uprising and more about dragons and their nature. He still refused to accept that the dragons belonged to Aurora, and he believed those dragons were sent so every Morrow descendant can gain a dragon once again and they should all fly and conquer the world.

Artemis noticed his wife’s distress when she joined him on the balcony. “What happened?” he asked taking Aurora’s hands to his. Then she helped her down on the couch.

Aurora exhaled softly and sat on the couch while taking Artemis’s help. She was heavy from the child she was carrying and required assistant from time to time.

“It’s Toro” said Aurora, her eyes reddish and sleepy at the same time.

“Did he say something?”

“He is envious of you. I don’t think if he’s the person he’s showing us to be, he may be our biggest enemy”

“Envious of what?” Artemis seemed stunned. But then he quickly recognized the situation “Is this about me having a dragon and not being a Morrow?”

“Yes”

“Argh! So what do you want me to do? Should I summon Lord Balrus and the royal executor?”

Aurora was against it “No! I will not have his blood on my hands” she said.

“If we can’t have that, then maybe he will have our blood on his hands. He wants a dragon for himself, doesn’t he?”

“I gave him a chance to claim one, if he can” replied Aurora calmly.

It was Artemis who was struck with wonderment when Aurora said this. He couldn’t believe what she just said “You gave him one of our dragons?” he asked.

“I didn’t, I gave him an ultimatum to see if he can claim one for himself. One thing about unclaimed dragons is they get fearful when they feel a strange touch, and if one decides to force the dragon to fly...”

This time Artemis quipped in “The dragon will throw him from the sky” he finished Aurora’s sentence. “Just like the books we’ve read about Dragon Hunters, do you think Toro will be stupid enough to want a dragon?”

Aurora held Artemis’s left hand, then she kissed it “I think he’s a proud man and will do anything to prove me wrong. And if so, then he will die before the golden hour today” she then laid her whole body on Artemis’s chest.

Torgo was summoned later on and he was given straight orders from Aurora to let Toro inside the dragon’s cave if he so desired. When Torgo asked why should he allow him inside, Aurora told him it was part of the plan to prove something to him. Then she explained to Torgo everything that Toro told her, and his burning desire to claim a dragon.

“But... He will die trying to ride a dragon that’s not his” warned Torgo.

“If he’s smart, then he won’t. But if he’s stupid then he will, and for that he will die screaming”

No truer words have ever been spoken like those of Aurora predicting Toro’s horrible death. She didn’t even want to be in Aurora’s Hill that afternoon, hence she rode back to the main palace while inside a royal wheelhouse with Artemis. They talked about Cregan Lawsend’s luxurious and what a delight it was when he came to spend a few weeks in the capital, but Artemis opted the part where he was the one who sent Cregan to poison Gandalf. This was a secret he will take to his grave.

Aurora seemed not to worry about Toro at all. She laughed and played games with Artemis inside the royal wheelhouse. And when they arrived in the main palace; the joyful mood continued and musicians were called in to perform for the Queen and King while they were having lunch.

Few cases had been brought to the court. Master of Laws and Lord Angun joined in to solve them, only today Aurora and Artemis sat in attendance just to see the types of complaints their people have. It lasted an hour and with each passing minute, the cases got even more interesting and the court seemed like a fun house to be as it was filled with laughter.

Lord Balrus strolled down all over Aurora’s Hill not to find neither Aurora nor Artemis. He missed it when they went back to the main palace, and it was Torgo who informed him of the Queen and King’s absence.

But along the way he met with a very hostile Toro. By height these two were equal because Lord Balrus was very tall, only with an exception that he was thick while Toro slim. Also he had pale red skin while Toro had red-brown skin and his hairs were very long.

“Toro” Lord Balrus called out. “Are you Toro or Alienor?” he asked trying to be charming towards the new comer.

Toro stopped walking and turned back. “What do you want half man?” he asked rudely in Low Moor.

“My apologies but I don’t speak the language”

“Then off you go” This time Toro tried to speak the common tongue although his accent sounded too broken for anyone to understand.

He didn’t linger around to speak to Lord Balrus, first of all he didn’t like the eunuch — he never liked eunuchs. Toro thought eunuchs bring bad luck and most of them liked immoral acts such as buggery, and in House Morrow they condemn buggery acts.

Lord Balrus noticed something was wrong, but he let his rodents inside the castle to deliver the news about Toro later. For now he had the most important news to tell the King and Queen, and that was the arrival of Prince Ambrose in the Mines and the fact that Lord Leoric was supporting the prince into taking the Silver throne after Artemis denied him help.

Apart from that, Lord Balrus was stunned when he learned that Aprophil was housing Amabel Taelin inside his Manor with a promise of supporting him in taking the throne. But all these things were done very discreetly in such a way no one knew except him, poor Aryan had no idea what was being planned against her. This news about Aprophil, Lord Balrus chose to omit and not tell Artemis for fear of contradiction between these two kins.