hand on my stomach, and I sucked in a startled breath, making him tense behind me before he was once again whispering comfort in my ear,
“Relax, this will go far easier if you lean back against me, for I will not let you fall.” I swallowed hard before trying to do as he asked, although the moment he gave the dragon a command, he had me tensing again knowing what was coming. I instantly looked to Trice in my moment of weakness as if he was my saviour and his face said it all… disappointment.
He hadn’t wanted me to make this decision and watching me flying off with someone he didn’t trust looked as if I had left after first stabbing him in the heart. I wanted to mouth that I was sorry. That I was okay. For him not to worry. But the only thing that came next was my scream of fright the second the dragon launched itself up into the air, as it was one thing taking flight tucked safely under a dragon and caged in its grasp, but it was quite another riding freely on its back, flying on top of the beast and feeling as though there was nothing around you to stop you from falling. But then that wasn't quite true, as the second my fright was heard the King’s arms circled me in a cage of muscle as he grabbed hold of the saddle in front of me. It was a horn shaped carved piece of wood that acted as a way to steer the beast. I knew this because I could see the leather straps that connected to different parts of its head. They were clasped under the hidden parts of its ears and horn like scales that were longer than any other part. I wondered if these we're the most sensitive parts on a dragon’s body, for it seemed it took the barest of touches of the horn before the dragon knew where its master wanted to go.
“By the Gods!” I uttered in awe, for seeing the world around me now at this height was a beauty of the likes I had never seen before. It was like a Kingdom that had been gently brushed with every colour as far as the eye could see. Because surrounding the city were the rolling hills of faint greens that created an ombre effect from where they would turn darker towards the forests and mountains. Beyond that was even more colour, for the mountains themselves reminded me of a night sky with swirls of blues and purples. But instead of the moonlight reflecting off the stars and moon, it was the sun that was reflecting off mountain rock as if glass shards were rising up from the rough terrain.
“Like what you see?” The question came from my back and startled me as again it was whispered close to my ear. This was no doubt so I could still hear him over both the roaring sound of the dragon’s breath below us and the wind that cut across our skin when travelling at speed.
“It's stunning.”
“I am biased, but it is indeed the most beautiful out of all the four of the kingdoms, and I am happy now to have such magnificence grace it with her presence, for your beauty will be its gift for the time you will be here.” I had to say, if a compliment like this had come from anyone on Earth, it would have sounded cheesy or even laughable, but coming from the King at my back who didn't have a cheesy bone in his body, it was quite a compliment, and one I took seriously thanks to the intimidating presence it came from.
“Thank you, but I…” his laughter cut me off from being about to dispute this fact as he told me,
“Pride is not a sin I think I will find in you, isn't this so?” It was a strange response to my reaction to his compliment, but he wasn't wrong. I didn't look in the mirror and consider myself something special or to hold a beauty beyond compare. But that didn’t mean I was necessarily unhappy with how I looked. I mean, I had my father’s dark hair and his sun kissed complexion, along with my mother’s nice eyes. Although how long those eyes I would actually continue to see out of I didn't know. As I was still on Nero’s borrowed time for however long her ‘seeing eye