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The Dragons of Euphaea 2: The Great Collapse

Book 2

Chapter 1

The orc horde continued to march away from the ruins of White Harbor, heading deeper into Panagini. The terrain was much different in Panagini than it was in Euphaea. In some areas it was more barren, making it difficult for plant life to grow, yet the barren wastelands were rich with resources. Other areas were teeming with humid jungle, which the orc horde avoided. The jungles belonged to vicious creatures that even orcs and centaurs feared, so they stayed far away from the jungle. There were no jungles in Euphaea, only tranquil forests, and quiet woodlands.

The horde didn't stop once; they continued to march, almost as if they didn't need to rest. They had completed their goal of destroying the richest city in the world, yet they continued to march with determination. In only three days, they passed the boundaries of the Forgarian Empire, and proceeded into the wilderness of Panagini, heading home. The eastern provinces of the Forgarian Empire were in ruins, and they were no longer a threat to the orcs or the other races of Panagini. As far as the orcs were concerned, the humans could have Euphaea, but if they encroached on their continent again, they would return, and do the same thing they did to White Harbor to the other rich cities of Euphaea.

The Imperial family line didn't exist anymore, so civil war was inevitable for the now spiraling downwards empire. Generals and nobles from other provinces will each attempt to make an attempt for the purple, although the empire would never be the same. It will only be a husk of its former self, if that. In fact, it may even cease to exist now.

Garbo, at the head of the horde, walked with diligence. He had completed his goal; however, he didn't find the wife of the deceased emperor. It was no matter; she wouldn't be a problem. The deed was done, and the continent of Euphaea would be in disarray for years. Garbo had done what he promised his ancestors he would do. He had his revenge, and yet he wanted more. It didn't fulfil his needs, or take the fire out of his soul for what the empire did to his people many years ago.

Garbo's village was many miles away, far from the reaches of the empire. He didn't care for it, yet he was the chieftain of the village. He had dreams of building a grand city, rivaling that of White Harbor, and now his dreams were possible. He had the entire treasury of the city in tow, and with it, he would transform his little village into a thriving metropolis, where orc and centaur could live. Garbo only brought one slave from Euphaea with the horde, Anna Comnenus, princess of the empire, however, more slaves would come in time. Humans belonged as slaves to orcs and centaurs, and will forever be their pets as the new Orc Empire is formed.

Garbo continued to lead the horde through the savannahs of Panagini, where he spotted the nomadic elephant people wondering around. He offered the elephant men to join him in destroying the humans, but they turned him down. He knew that some of them wanted to, and he saw the lust in their eyes when he mentioned human women. He knew they were peaceful beings, yet he didn't trust their kind after that. They wouldn't be welcome in the new empire either, and if they weren't so massive, they would be enslaved just like the humans.

The savannah was very hot, and it being summer didn't help with the heat. Garbo noticed his men were sweating, and starting to pant. A river wasn't too far away, and Garbo led the horde to it. The orcs drank from the river, not worrying if the water was dirty or not. This was how they lived. They didn't have clean water, and none of that mattered to them. Garbo saw the cage with the prisoner being wheeled in the center of the horde, and he started to head towards it.

Anna knew the horde had stopped, even though her eyes were shut. They had been moving for three days now, and Anna wasn't fed, or given any water in that time span. She had hardly even moved from her position in the cage since they left the city. Although Anna wanted to cry, no tears formed in her eyes, whether that was because she was dehydrated and desperately needed water, or because she had cried enough these past few days, she would never know.

Anna tried thinking about Gil, but she couldn't even remember what he looked like, despite seeing him only a few days prior. She knew he was red with orange eyes, but that was it. She desperately tried thinking about him, but the more she thought about him, the harder it was. They had been moving for so long now that he would never find her, and he would never know what her fate was. She would never know what his present to her was, or feel his warmth again.

Although it was difficult, Anna slowly opened her eyes, and saw the river not far from her. Her mouth felt numb, and she desperately wanted to drink from that river, no matter how filthy it may be. She saw some orcs drinking with mugs, and even eating some meat, as well, which awakened her stomach, which had stopped growling the day before. The smell of the meat made its way over to her, and it made her stomach rumble loudly. Even though the meat was raw, and still had some blood on it, Anna wanted to sink her teeth into it. She couldn't take her eyes off of it, and her heart sank as the meat was devoured.

The orcs that were eating weren't that far away, and they both smiled at her when they spotted her staring at them. One even walked close to her cage, and dumped his mug of dirty water outside it, and he laughed as he saw her eyes stare at the muddy water on the ground. The orc mysteriously stopped laughing, and walked away. Anna slowly turned her head around and gasped.

Garbo was walking towards her, and Anna moved as far away from the side of the cage where he would arrive, and she huddled into a ball and started to whimper. She hated him; yet her life was in his hands, and she was terrified of him. He had left her alone the entire ride over here, and he hadn't interacted with her since he raped her in her bedroom. Anna shut her eyes, and continued to cry dryly, no tears forming.

When Garbo arrived at her cage, he didn't speak to her, and he didn't hurt her. He set a cup of dirty river water into her cage loudly, to get her attention. Anna was shaking, but the sound of a full cup of water got her attention. She didn't care he was right there. She quickly grabbed the cup and chugged the water down. Although it was filthy water, Anna had never tasted something so divine. It was refreshing, and finally sated her thirst. Anna drank all of it, and then stared at the empty cup. She was still thirsty, but she knew that was all she would get, however, her hopes lifted at what he said.

"I'll get you another," Garbo whispered to her coldly.

The orc walked away, and Anna stared back at him in confusion. Why would he get her another cup? Anna decided it didn't matter, and was eager for another glass of water.

Garbo returned, and set a new cup of water down in the cage. Anna quickly drank this one down, not even comprehending that it was in fact urine, not water. She immediately spat it out, vomiting in the process, much to the amusement of Garbo and the other orcs nearby. Before she could respond, her cage door swung open, and Garbo pulled her purple dress off. He had his way with her right there. Many orcs gathered around to watch, and were cheering at the spectacle.

Garbo wasn't gentle, and he was much rougher than he was back at the palace. After he had finished, he let three other orcs do the same thing to her, each as rough as Garbo. The last one complained Anna was resisting, which she was. She was getting sick of all this. This got Garbo's attention.

Garbo pulled Anna from the cage, and two orcs held her arms, stretching her horizontally. Garbo was behind her. Anna felt pain she had never felt before, as her back was struck with a whip of some sort, causing her to scream each time it struck her. Garbo whipped her 15 times, until her back was covered in welts and cuts, almost as if she had been clawed viciously by a wild animal.

The orcs didn't even bother to give Anna the dress back, and instead forced her back into the cage naked, blood staining the floor. Anna had never felt this kind of pain before, and she was completely defeated. She was going to kill Garbo the next time she had the opportunity, even if it cost Anna her own life.

Anna felt so alone. As selfish as it sounded, she wished that other women had come with her, just so she wouldn't be by herself. Tears were forming in her eyes. Actual tears and not the dry ones she had shed earlier. She begged the gods to end her suffering, and she begged them to allow her to be held by Gil again. Anna didn't know what she had done to deserve this fate, and she wished that the orcs had simply killed her when they had taken the city.

If only she had run to the cave outside the palace, Anna thought. She was such an idiot for running to her bedroom, and she ended up blaming herself for her predicament. If only she were thinking, but the fear had taken hold of her, and she ran to her bedroom like a frightened child, not an adult. Anna started to think some things over. She knew the orcs hated humans, and from a certain point of view, she could understand why.

A few centuries ago, one of her ancestors invaded Panagini, dividing up a small part of the eastern side of the continent into four different countries. The orcs and centaurs that had actually lived there were displaced; their homes and sacred grounds destroyed. The displaced peoples were welcome in the empire, but they vanished, and headed deeper into Panagini.

Anna hated these people for doing this to her and her people, but she was starting to feel sympathetic for them as well. When Anna realized she was feeling sorry for Garbo and his kind, she snapped out of it. She hated them, and she wouldn't allow herself to pity them. An idea crept into Anna's mind.

She would swallow her pride, and do everything Garbo asked of her for as long as it took, smiling, and nodding at everything he told her to do. She would act the part of a traumatized girl, who he had broken. Only then, when he lets his guard down, no matter how long it takes, would she strike. She will kill him, and if she fails, then she will be killed and will be free from this nightmare.

The wheels of her cage started to move again, and she realized the horde was now moving on. Anna smiled as she thought of Gil, and she even started to beam as she imagined herself killing Garbo. She never wanted to hurt anyone in her life, but the idea of killing a man who had terrorized her brought her joy and relief. These people have taken everything from her, but they couldn't take away her thoughts. In her mind, she was free and with Gil, and there wasn't anything they could do to her that would take those thoughts away from her.

The horde moved alongside the river, and Anna stared at the murky water. She could see wild animals in the distance drinking from the river, no doubt quenching their thirst on this hot day. They were still in some savannah and the heat was unbearable. Not far away, she saw large grey beasts, staring at her as well as the horde. She heard stories of the nomadic and peaceful elephant people deeper in Panagini, but she knew nothing about them.

Anna was nude now, her dress left behind when the orcs humiliated her. She huddled into a ball, trying to cover herself up. Anna winced every now and then as her back continued to sting. Orcs alongside the cage stared at Anna's exposed flesh, their eyes glimmering at the sight. Anna did her best to cover herself up, and while the orcs smiled and chuckled at her, she almost lost it.

Any sympathies she has had for these people were long gone. Part of her wishes she was taken by the centaurs, instead. They couldn't be any worse than these foul creatures. Even though Anna told herself she would stop fighting, she would only let Garbo have his way with her, and in the hopes he will lower his guard, allowing her to strike. If any other orc so much as touched her, she would kill them, with her bare hands, her teeth, anything she can use.

After thinking it over, Anna deduced that even if the garrison legion had stayed in the city, the same result would have occurred; 5,000 men in the legion, as well as around 3,000 town watchmen against hundreds of thousands of these animals. Perhaps it would have delayed the horde from attacking right away or perhaps Garbo would have fallen. Anna would never know.

The horde continued to follow the river for the next day, and the terrain was slowly starting to change. From a savanna, the earth was starting to turn grey, and the sky was getting dark. This new location was scary; almost as if the earth itself had died here. Dead trees and a few small puddles of still water was all Anna could see, as well as dark mountains.

Anna had gone days without any sort of food, and her stomach was gnawing at her. It was painful; almost as painful as the whips she had received the day prior. She had heard stories people could last weeks without eating, and she couldn't even fathom that. Anna started to slip in and out of consciousness, from the pain, lack of food, lack of water, and depression.

The sound of a whispered voice woke Anna up. It was very dark now. She was very dizzy, and at first, it looked like a two headed orc was speaking to her through her cage. She couldn't comprehend what he was saying to her, but he didn't appear to look vicious, despite looking like he had two heads. He was a young looking orc, not like the middle aged Garbo.

Before Anna could even fully open her eyes, she felt something being forced into her hand. It felt strange; wet and slimy. Anna shifted her eyes to her hand, and without even realizing it, she ate it. It was raw beef, and it still had some blood on it. That was fine with Anna; the risk of getting some parasite didn't even enter her mind. It tasted strange, but she hardly even chewed it. She swallowed the piece of meat in two bites. She felt something else being forced into her other hand, this time a small goblet. Anna brought the thing to her lips, but her arm was too weak to bring it fully to her mouth, and it spilled all over her face and chin, although she did get a few good licks.

The goblet was taken away from her, and when Anna looked back towards the darkness where the orc who had probably just saved her life once stood, she saw only black. She couldn't help but wonder why he did this for her. However, this act of kindness changed nothing. She still loathed these things, and even if it killed her, she would get her revenge someday.

The further the horde walked into these desolate lands, the chillier it was getting. Even though it was dark now, it felt like they were inside an enormous cavern, but Anna could see the stars. Although this place was ugly and scary, the stars were still beautiful, and it reminded her of the time she and Gil stargazed.

The heads of her father and brothers were in the cage with Anna. She was frightened of them at first, but the more she looked at them, the more she felt as if she wasn't alone. Her father had a large gash in the middle of his face, as well as a few other cuts. His head was nearly unrecognizable. The severed head of her youngest brother, Alexius, looked peaceful. He didn't have any scars or blood stains on his face. He truly looked like he had found peace in death. The severed head of Tylus, however, was a different story. The skin had melted completely off his face, and it was more or less a charred skull.

Anna had seen her brother, Tylus, burn to death. Although she loved both her brothers, she was closer to Tylus. The scene of him burning to death will forever haunt her for the rest of her days, and she feared fire more than anything else now. That flames had the capabilities to disintegrate others terrified her.

When she got free, maybe that was how she would kill Garbo. She would knock him out and then tie him to a pyre, just like he had done to her brother, and set it aflame. She would actually enjoy watching him burn to death; the screams of his terror and agony would be like music to her ears.

Now that she had received some form of food and water, Anna fell asleep, this time satisfied, or at least as satisfied as one can be in her position. Despite not being able to remember Gil not long ago, he was as clear as day to her now. Maybe the food helped her remember him, and Anna dreamt of him with a smile on her face.

Anna was alarmed to wake up to some commotion going on outside the cage. The horde was still moving, but angry voices and shouting could be heard. Anna didn't open her eyes, although she heard the sound of something sharp hitting flesh, and heard a thud hit the ground. A few minutes later, Anna jumped when something fell into her lap, forcing her to open her eyes. She saw the severed head of the orc who had given her food and water last night, blood leaking from his throat. She didn't scream; though it did frighten her.

Anna heard the cage door slam open, and her body stiffened. As she expected, she was punched and slapped several times on the face, although she didn't see who it was. It had to be Garbo, but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of looking at him in the eyes, despite everything she has told herself before about obeying him. The final punch to her face caused her to cough up blood, but the orc hitting her didn't even seem to care, as he left the cage and locked the door behind him.

Anna was dizzy, as well as lightheaded, and she could feel her head spinning from the ordeal. Although she had just been beaten, she felt strange, peaceful. She was looking at the sky, and saw it was daylight out, though the sky was grey and ugly looking, just like the terrain. The horde, as well as the wagon holding her cage, stopped, and Anna could hear cheers around her. Anna wasn't sure, but they had probably arrived at their destination.

Empress Priscilla paced back and forth, not listening to the man telling her to stop and calm down. Each time he told her to stop, she scoffed at him. It was easy for him to tell her to calm down. Her entire family was just massacred; White Harbor lies in ruins. She would have shared that fate had she stayed.

About a week ago, Priscilla told everyone she was going to Auroria while her husband led their sons' on a military campaign. That wasn't true; Priscilla instead was in the land of Halfor, staying with her true love, the governor of Halfor, Lord Argis. Priscilla loved Argis, and always has. She was forced to marry Malcolm by her father, and she and Malcolm never cared or loved each other.

Priscilla loved her children, even Anna, but she hated the situation she was in. She didn't hate Malcolm, but she will never forget how she was yanked away from the one she truly loved. Malcolm's situation wasn't much different; Priscilla knew how the Comnenus family courted dragons, and she knew Malcolm was in love with a dragoness, and always would be. But now Malcolm was dead. Even though she was free, her family was gone, and the empire was in disarray.

"My scouts report that a few days ago, the horde split into two," Lord Argis said. "One retreated to Panagini, and the other headed deeper into Euphaea, thankfully, to the west, and not the south where we are."

Priscilla ignored him, but she turned around and faced him. Argis was 54 years old, but he was still handsome, at least to Priscilla. He had black hair, which was greying around the roots, but was clean shaven, like many of the men in the empire. Argis was once married, although his wife died nearly a decade ago, and it was a forced marriage. He had two sons, and at one point, Priscilla's daughter may have ended up marrying his eldest son, Aran.

"With White Harbor razed, hordes of savages from Panagini will flood into Euphaea, raping and pillaging everything they come across," Priscilla said boldly. "You should secure your borders, Argis. Now that the Imperial family is gone, the remaining provincial lord's will each attempt to cease the throne."

Argis stared at the floor, and frowned. She was right. A massive civil war was on the horizon, but it all seemed pointless when a horde of centaurs and orcs were at this very moment raiding Euphaea, and that horde could very well shift its course and head to Halfor.

Halfor was a southern country in Euphaea, although the climate was strange. Despite being to the south of Forgaria, where White Harbor was located, Halfor was strangely cooler, despite being near the center of the equator. The country was hilly and mountainous, and many forests full of wildlife scattered the countryside. Halforians were renowned for their use of the bow, and they had provided archers to the Imperial legion for centuries.

The capital city of Halfor was also named Halfor. It wasn't a bustling city; more like a walled village. The walls were not large, barely 13 feet tall, and were made of wood, not stone. In the center of the village was where Lord Argis and his family lived, a two story wooden castle. It wasn't grand or luxurious, but Priscilla loved the man who occupied it, and has loved him for more than 30 years.

Nearly every structure in Halfor was made of wood. Lumber was used for nearly everything in Halfor, and lumber was their main export. With every tree the Halforians chopped down, they would plant three more in its place.

Argis looked back at Priscilla, who only stared at him, waiting for a response. Argis stood up from the sofa. "First of all, that horde needs to be taken care of," Argis told her as he approached her, where he put his hands on her shoulder.

"I am sorry about your children, Priscilla," Argis said before he kissed her.

Priscilla sighed. "I should have been better to them, Argis," she said sadly. "Every time I looked at them, I am reminded of how I never got to be with you."

Argis hugged Priscilla tightly, and then stared into her eyes. "Then we will avenge them."

Chapter 2

Gil flew as fast and as hard as he could. He had just entered the boundaries of Forgaria, and in record time. Gil told Anna he would be gone for at least ten days, but he didn't stop to rest once, and rarely ate on the journey. It was only day number seven, and he was going to surprise her.

Gil loved the countryside of Forgaria. There weren't many trees, but the occasional cluster of them could be seen in the mountains. Instead, Forgaria contained green hills, and many farms scattered the countryside. Strangely, Gil didn't see any farm animals or farmers working in the fields. He hasn't seen a single human since he entered Forgaria, which was weird. Forgaria was the most populated country in the empire, and he could always see travelers or farmers walking around below him. He hadn't seen a single soul yet.

Not far in the distance, Gil could see many flattened fields of wheat. He wasn't sure what caused that destruction; it looked as if an army walked right through the fields, crushing everything below them. Gil continued to fly, ignoring the destroyed fields. A farmer sure wasn't going to be happy a legion marched through his crops.

Gil smiled as he thought of the Imperial legion. He had heard stories that when Malinor founded the empire and became emperor, dragons were allowed in an Imperial legion. That was 1,000 years ago but he heard every legion had a dragon. The dragons were even given specially made armor, and it made him happy that his kind was able to serve in the legion in the past. He wasn't sure why dragons rarely interacted with the empire anymore, although he had an idea why; it was most likely because Malcolm chose him for Anna.

Ever since he moved to White Harbor, and after Malcolm chose him for Anna, he hadn't seen many dragons in those 19 years. Each dragon was seen in the distance, and each flew in the opposite direction when they saw Gil. Maybe dragons avoided the empire because Gil was in fact living in the capital city? If that was the reason, it made him angry, as well as sad. Perhaps when he and Anna were joined, he would see if she wanted to live elsewhere, away from White Harbor.

Gil thought about them possibly living in his fiery mountain home, but decided that wouldn't be a good idea. It was very hot inside that mountain, and even though he enjoyed it, he wasn't sure a human would like it. Maybe they could move to Auroria. Auroria had emerald flat lands, and although it wasn't very suitable for a dragon, it was suitable for a human. Gil chuckled to himself. She would probably want to stay with her family, and that was fine with him. He had really started to like his home in White Harbor. Gil could be wrong, but he believed that cave used to be Ursalira's cave, where Malinor first met her many centuries ago. If it was, it was strange the humans converted it into an iron mine, and maybe that is why they abandoned it, because it was a sacred location?

Gil stopped pondering his thoughts, and he thought of sweet Anna. How he longed to see her face again. He could practically see her eyes glow when he presented his present to her. As much as Malcolm wanted to see him give her the present, Gil decided he would give it to her immediately, right when he saw her. He couldn't contain his excitement any longer, and he picked up his pace.

It was midday now, and Gil was happy he would return home during the day and not during the night. With a smile on his muzzle, Gil swooped down through the clouds, and saw White Harbor not far below him. When he saw the city, he stopped flapping his wings, and merely stared at it, gliding. His smile had turned to a frown as reality set in.

Smoke drifted into the sky from the ruined husk of the former beautiful city. Panic started to grip Gil, as he finally regained control of his wings, and flew to the ground as fast as he could. While he was descending, he saw no life. Buildings and monuments were destroyed, as was the Imperial palace and that enormous cathedral.

Gil landed in the courtyard, and saw a few piles of corpses, none of which appeared to contain any women. Gil was shaking at the sight of everything. Whatever happened here, he could have gotten Anna to safety if he took her with him, and he started to choke up.

Gil didn't know what happened when he was away, but he couldn't accept the idea she was gone. He wouldn't let himself think like that. He was confused, and at first, thought he was having a nightmare.

"Anna," Gil screamed as loud as he could. He was startled by the volume of his own voice.

Gil continued to scream Anna's name, in the hopes that she would reveal herself if she yet lived. He was forcing back tears as he saw the destruction and death around him. Not far from him, he saw a makeshift wooden stake, and saw a decapitated charred corpse strung up to it. Gil could tell this happened not long ago, and whoever that charred body belonged to, it was a man; Gil couldn't know for sure, be just had a feeling it wasn't a woman.

Gil looked to at his cave, now visible as the towering palace no longer blocked it from the front. His cave looked relatively unscathed; maybe Anna had gone there. As he started to move towards the cave, he noticed the grass and saw blood stains leading to a small fountain not far away. The stains originated at one of the piles of bodies, and it looked as if someone had crawled away.

Gil carefully approached the fountain, following the blood. It wasn't Imperial blood; dragon blood. It was human blood, but maybe whoever it belonged to was alive.

As Gil reached the fountain, he did notice a man sitting up against it. Gil wasn't even sure he lived. The man did not have any eyes; whoever was here wanted him blinded, and Gil noticed his legs were twisted, which is probably why he had to crawl. Gil deduced the man had heard the sound of the water from the fountain and made his way over to it in the hopes of quenching his thirst

The man wasn't moving, and Gil continued to stare at him. "Anna," the dead looking man gasped. "Princess Anna?"

Gil nearly jumped as the man spoke. Gil brought his head down so it was inches away from the blind man's face. He did pity this man, but he was impatient. He needed to know what had happened.

"Where...is...Anna," Gil whispered, only to yell the name Anna.

The blind man coughed blood. "They took her," he mumbled. "The orcs and the centaurs took her."

Gil was in disbelief. He remembered that Malcolm was fighting centaurs in Panagini. The only way a horde of them could have gotten to White Harbor had to mean...

Gil shook his head. "Where did they take her," he begged. Gil was desperate, and if this man didn't know, he would not be sure what he would do with himself. He left her here just so he could bring her a stupid gift.

Gil sighed. He knew it wasn't a stupid gift, but he should have brought her with him. If only he had known.

The man stumbled over his words. "They took her into Panagini, where to in Panagini I can't say. I was only a chef at the palace, and they saw me watching them," the man coughed. "They wanted me to stay alive, but I don't know why."

That was all Gil needed to hear. He left the blind man at the fountain, and flew to the city gates that led into White Harbor. He felt bad leaving the man there, but he had a mission, and he couldn't delay any longer.

As Gil flew over the walls on the Panagini side of the city, he noticed the gates were not destroyed; they were open. Someone let these bastards into his city. Gil considered White Harbor his city; he lived there, after all, and it made him sick that one of the city's own inhabitants let those monsters in.

Gil flew into Panagini, which was uncharted for him. While he flew, he thought of how one of his first friends, Malcolm, was most likely dead, as was his sons. Anna might be his only child left, and Gil would do everything he could to get her back.

The horrors she must have witnessed sickened Gil. He had heard about the bloodlust of orcs. Malcolm had told him he had made a deal with the orcs, and Gil warned his friend about them. Centaurs on the other hand were simply not to be trusted. The only thing they cared about was mating, whether it was mating with a willing partner or an unwilling partner, and the thought of them running around in his city terrorizing the populace made him livid.

As Gil continued to fly, he thought about the possibility of the orcs and centaurs forcing themselves onto her. The thought of it made his blood boil. The longer he flew, the more he accepted the fact that Anna would have probably been raped by those creatures. When Gil caught these things, he would massacre them in the worst ways imaginable.

The main problem for Gil, though, was he had no idea where to look. Even from the air, he wasn't sure which direction to go. Below him, Gil could see jungles, as well as savannahs in the distance. Gil noticed a boar running around below him, and he swooped in for the kill. He had not eaten in days, and he would need all his energy.

As Gil landed and devoured the kill, a strange scent caught his attention. It was a foul scent; unwashed humanoids, which could only be orc. Gil turned around, so his back was facing the jungle, and noticed many tracks in the earth. The tracks were heading into the savannah, and Gil smiled.

"I am coming, Anna," Gil whispered.

Anna received a less than warm welcome upon her arrival into the orc village. In her cage, she could make out the disgusted faces of orc women, who were more frightening in appearance than the orc men. She also could see orc children, staring at her with hatred.

The door to her cage opened, and Anna didn't look up at the orc who was grabbing hold of her neck. She knew it was Garbo, and she felt him put a chain around her neck, and gave it a yank so she fell right on her face. The fall actually hurt Anna more than it should have. She was simply too weak from her ordeals, and she couldn't even get up.

Garbo pulled the chain, forcing Anna out of the cage. "Our new slave from White Harbor," Garbo yelled to the villagers. With a smile, he looked back at Anna, "None other than the daughter of the deceased Emperor."

Anna could hear many gasps and even laughter from the villagers, though she wasn't sure if she was actually hearing that, or if it was all in her head. Anna knew she was still naked, and she felt the gaze of many eyes on her body, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She looked up, and looked right into the red eyes of Garbo, who was nearly two feet taller than she was.

Garbo grabbed her by the hair and brought her closer to his body. Anna felt a bulge in his pants rubbing against her lower stomach. Thankfully, he didn't do anything else. He only grabbed her by the arm, not the chain, and dragged into the village.

The villagers stared at Anna with disgust; some even spat at her, or even threw objects at her. Anna had never been so terrified in her life. She felt as if she was some criminal who had done a high crime, and was being walked to the executioner's block in front of a booing crowd.

Anna didn't look around too much, but she did see the structures these people lived in. Many of the buildings lacked walls, and only had four wooden columns and a roof over them. Garbo pulled her deeper into the village, walking her up a hill to a wooden structure that had walls. Behind the structure was a cliff wall, with a waterfall pouring down nearby. She was at the back of the village, as the larger wooden structure was lined up against the cliff wall.

Garbo opened the door to the structure, and Anna caught a view of the interior. It was remarkably plain, similar to the hut of a nomad, although there was another human woman inside, only she was chained to the cliff wall which was lined up against the structure. Anna didn't look at the other woman, but she did see her wince as Garbo walked in. Anna wasn't the only woman he had terrorized, and she wondered if he had done the same to Caitlin, her cousin.

Anna felt a shackle being tied to her ankle, and she felt the chain around her neck come off. Before Anna could react, she felt Garbo lift her up, and throw her atop a bed made of straw, conveniently only a few feet away. Garbo must chain the women here, rape them, and then leave.

The room was surprisingly well lit; Anna rolled over onto her back so she could see what was going on. She almost wished she hadn't. For the first time, she actually saw Garbo's erect shaft, colored green like the rest of his body. It was large, and much to Anna's disgust, looked like it hadn't been washed in years, if not longer. Anna quickly turned away, and was relieved Garbo didn't make her stare at it, or worse, pleasure it directly.

Garbo raped her again, although this time, he was more violent. Anna passed out from the pain, and thankfully, Garbo didn't force her to wake up. The last thing she thought of before blacking out was how much she wanted to kill this man.

When Anna woke up, she was still chained to the wall of the hut, and Garbo was gone. Near the base of where the chain was nailed in to the cliff wall was a small bowl of water, and Anna drank it quickly. It was humiliating to her that she was being treated as if she was a pet, not a person.

Anna wiped a tear from her eye, and looked around the hut. It was actually much smaller than it appeared from outside. This hut only contained a stone floor, four torches, and a small straw bed. It did contain a straw roof, as well as four walls; three made of wood, and one wall was the cliff the structure was up against.

As Anna looked around, she noticed the other human woman, staring back at her with brown eyes. She was unusual looking to Anna. She had very dark skin, a skin color Anna had never seen before. The other woman was naked, as well, but she looked like she had been there for a long time. The two of them stared at each other for a while, until the other woman broke the silence.

"They got you too, huh," the darker skinned woman said softly.

Anna stared back at the woman with suspicion. "Where are we," Anna asked her, barely holding back tears.

The darker skinned girl chuckled. "If you are talking about your position, then you are in hell," she said. "If you are talking about the building we are in, well..."

Anna looked at the girl, waiting for her to finish. "Well what," Anna asked.

The dark skinned girl sighed. "Basically their version of a brothel, and until today, I was their only slave," she said, her voice full of sorrow.

"Don't get comfortable, new girl," the darker girl continued. "All the males are going to want to 'meet' you before the night is over."

Anna shook her head. "No," she said sternly.

The darker girl rolled her eyes. "Go ahead and fight back, they love it when you resist," she said softly. "But you will give up, after dozens of them rape you, you will give up."

Anna stared at the girl. Her eyes told her that she was speaking from experience. Anna didn't realize it before, but the woman had many scars throughout her body.

The darker skinned girl looked back at Anna. "Be glad that idiot and his horde left not long ago," she whispered. "Thousands of orcs, when they're only two of us..."

Anna's eyes widened. "Garbo left?"

The darker skinned girl slowly nodded. "Right after he finished with you, I heard him tell another orc who wanted a go at you that they were going back to Euphaea."

There was a moment of silence, and Anna stared at the darker skinned girl. "What is your name?"

"Jameka," she said without hesitation. She didn't look at Anna, but was staring at the wooden wall, where the door was.

Anna nodded. "My name is Anna," she said softly.

Right after Anna finished, the door opened, and four large orcs walked into the room. Each one took off their pants, and allowed their exposed genitals to show, each one getting harder as they stared at Anna. After a few seconds, the four of them approached her, and slammed the door shut behind them.

Chapter 3

Garbo and his horde continued to head back to Euphaea. It wasn't his original plan, which was to rebuild his village and change it into a bustling city; however, he didn't like the thought of the other horde still in Euphaea, gathering more riches and slaves than himself. As far as Garbo was concerned, the plunder in Euphaea was his and his alone.

Garbo's horde had over 40,000 men, which was half of his original forces. 40,000 orcs decided not to return with him. The cowards headed back to their own villages to be with their wives and children. The idea made Garbo sick to his stomach. The humans took everything from their race, and now they want to return home?

Garbo would need to replenish his forces. Truthfully, he didn't know what kinds of cities and men were beyond White Harbor, and he wanted to be prepared. Perhaps with a bribe of gold and the promise of slaves, the elephant people of the savannah would join him.

While his horde was marching towards the savannah, Garbo could see a dragon circling high above them. It looked to be a southern Euphaean dragon, and Garbo was disgusted at the sight. Orcs hated dragons, particularly Euphaean dragons. The humans of the empire adored dragons, or loved them, or something like that, and it made Garbo sick. He had half a mind to tell his archers to shoot the beast down. After all, a dragon could feed many members of his horde, and back home; the meat of a dragon was very succulent. However, the beast finally flew away, and headed in the direction they had come from.

Garbo continued to lead his horde onwards, until they came across the savannah, and several elephants drinking from the river. The elephants looked up at Garbo in curiosity. Garbo was going to make them a deal they couldn't refuse.

Empress Priscilla walked around the town of Halfor. Lord Argis summoned her to the fields outside the wooden walls, but she didn't know why. It was midday, and the sun was shining down on the town, however, it was rather chilly, just like the rest of the country. It was only mid-summer, and the chill in Halfor always amazed her. Forgaria was to the north of Halfor, and it was usually always warm in the heartland of the empire. To the south of Halfor lies the southernmost province of Tricera, which was mostly plains and yellow sand. The heat in Tricera was almost unbearable.

The warmth of Tricera had its benefits. A long stretch of river, called the Nera, flooded annually, making the area along the Nera very fertile. Crops such as wheat and barley were in abundance in Tricera, and those crops actually fed most of the empire. Priscilla wasn't sure, but she was told that even sugarcane was grown in Tricera.

Priscilla would welcome the warmth of Tricera. It was cold outside, and she longed to return indoors. She walked past the wooden palisade, and continued to walk on a path past the wooden walls. The sight of what she saw made her gasp in delight.

Thousands of soldiers were moving about in a camp not far from her. She wasn't sure just how many soldiers were in the encampment, but Lord Argis was going to hold true to his word. He would avenge her children by destroying the horde of centaurs raping and pillaging Euphaea even now.

She could make out men sharpening blades, archers practicing on targets, and blacksmiths hammering steel. Kennels for war dogs were located outside the encampment, and a few dogs were practicing on a horse, probably to get them prepared for the horse like centaurs. She felt bad for the horse, but there wasn't anything she could do about it now. Priscilla continued to gaze at the army below her, when she felt a tap on her shoulder, making her jump.

"Empress Priscilla," a young man said softly.

Priscilla spun around in alarm. "Lord Aran," she gasped in relief.

Lord Aran chuckled nervously. "I apologize if I scared you, my lady."

Priscilla smiled, and hugged the young man. A few years ago, she tried to get her husband, Malcolm, to marry Anna to Aran, and although her husband considered it, he wouldn't have it. Ever since then, Priscilla stopped trying to find matches for her daughter, even joking that she should be married to orcs on more than one occasion. Malcolm was just too adamant that she courted Gil.

Priscilla didn't dislike Gil, even though she only met him once. She knew the stories of the Comnenus dynasty and their dragon courting, but Lord Aran was a perfect match for Anna, and he was human. She knew the boy had a crush on her daughter since they were children, even though Anna and Aran had only seen each other a handful of times. Had Anna married Aran, then she would have been safely in Halfor.

Aran smiled at Priscilla. The young man had shoulder length dark hair, like his father, but it was more chestnut colored. He had dark green eyes, nearly brown, and some stubble that made him look very handsome, at least in Priscilla's eyes.

"I will avenger her, Empress," Aran whispered into Priscilla's ear as she hugged him.

Priscilla smiled. She hadn't seen Aran at all since she arrived. Argis told her he was out with the archers in the wilderness, honing their skills.

"That wig looks ridiculous on you, you know," Aran laughed.

Priscilla chuckled. As customary for many an empress', Priscilla would occasionally wear wigs, as dying one's hair was too messy. She was wearing a dark blonde wig, hiding her true hair color.

Priscilla looked into Aran's eyes. "Have you located the horde," she asked him, biting her tongue.

Aran looked around, and gazed at the tall trees surrounding them. "Yes," he mumbled. "They are heading our way, and will most likely be here in more or less a day, judging from their speed."

Priscilla swallowed loudly. "I thought they were headed west into Auroria?"

Before Aran could reply, Lord Argis approached from the encampment, and answered for him. "They took our bait," he said happily.

Priscilla looked at Argis in confusion. "You mean you are leading them here?"

Aran and Argis started to chuckle. "They won't know what hit them, Priscilla," Argis laughed. "The woodland is our realm."

Aran nodded. "Instead of fighting them on an open field, which would be a slaughter for us, we are bringing them into our land, where we have the advantage."

"What about the other provinces," Priscilla asked. "Why won't they lend assistance?"

Argis looked at his son and frowned, then looked to Priscilla. "There are no more provinces, Priscilla," he whispered. "As far as I know, every province has formed their own kingdom now that the Imperial family has been wiped out. It happened much faster than I thought it would."

Although it both hurt and shocked Priscilla to hear this, she had much more to worry about, like the horde of centaurs coming their way. "What, exactly, is the plan in dealing with the horde?"

Argis and Aran both walked past Priscilla, and stared at the encampment beneath them. They were on a hillside, and the encampment was in a valley, surrounded by trees on each side. As far as Argis was concerned, it was the perfect place for an ambush.

"They will come from the north, over there," Argis pointed to a few rocks and a stream of water in the distance. "We will have our best marksmen in the hills, as well as in the trees, using flaming arrows."

Aran then spoke up. "The encampment will be abandoned by nightfall, and we have spread oil all over it. When the horde enters the encampment, our flaming arrows will set it alight," the young man whispered. "In addition to that, we have a few more tricks up our sleeves."

Priscilla understood. The entire valley would be set alight while the horde was packed inside the encampment, looking for men to massacre. Even now, she could see men dumping oil all over the grass and tents. Hopefully, this ambush would be enough to wipe out the entire horde.

Aran walked away, heading for the encampment. Priscilla turned back around to face Argis. "Have you heard anything else about White Harbor," she asked him, hoping for good news.

Argis nodded. "A scout I sent to the city reportedly found a survivor, who was blinded and paralyzed from the waist down," he sighed. "He told the scout everything that transpired. I will tell you everything when we get back to the keep."

Argis and Priscilla walked back towards the town. He did intend to tell her everything that had happened based on that survivor's account. He did not, however, intend to tell her what he knew about Anna. After all, as far as Argis was concerned, she was already dead if she was taken by those savages.

Chapter 4

Gil continued to fly in the skies above Panagini. The air and wind here were somehow different than the air and wind in Euphaea. It almost felt as if it was less clean, although looking down, Gil could tell why. The earth was lifeless and grey now, as well as the sky. Gil wasn't sure if it was even daylight, as the grey clouds blocked the sun. Mountains and jagged cliffs were all over the place, and even from the air, this land gave him the creeps.

It was easy enough to find once he saw the horde marching from this direction. He circled over them, looking for Anna, but he couldn't smell her. He only smelled the horrid scent of barbarous orcs, and although Gil wanted to land and massacre them all, he just wouldn't be able to. He wasn't able to create streams of fire, only small little puffs of embers that wouldn't do much damage to a horde of tens of thousands of orcs. He could hack and slash and bite and whip his tail, but fire was a dragon's true weapon, and he did not possess it.

Instead, Gil followed the path the orcs came from, which happened to be this forsaken part of the earth. This land is perfect for orcs, and they probably think it is a beautiful location. Anna doesn't deserve to spend the rest of her life as one of their slaves, living in a place that smelled like death and decay.

As Gil continued to fly above the desolate region, he realized just how exhausted his wings were, not to mention his body. Once he found the village or town or cave; wherever these stinking orcs lived, he would rest, and get Anna out of there as fast as possible.

After about an hour of flying, Gil was ready to give up, until he caught a small whiff of Anna's scent. He took in her scent with a smile, thanking the gods he sniffed her the moment they meant. The scent drove him on. He knew she was still alive, and he had to save her from this fate.

Gil followed the scent to the best of his ability, until he saw it. A small village nestled up against a cliff. The village was ugly, as if the peoples who erected it didn't even have any idea on how to build structures. Gil chuckled to himself as he thought that human children could build a better village. He knew Anna was somewhere inside that that pathetic excuse of a village.

As much as Gil hated to, he had to rest and gather his strength. He would be no use to Anna if he collapsed from exhaustion in the middle of the village. Gil cringed as he thought what the orcs would do to him. He knew some tribes of orcs hunted dragons, not for sport or trophies, but for food. If orcs weren't so disgusting, perhaps dragons would hunt them for food, as well. They certainly behaved like wild animals, and he would be more than happy to treat them as such.

Gil found a small cliff overlooking the village, and sat upon it, slowly easing down onto his belly. He continued to study the village. The village looked unguarded, and he counted only ten structures, if he could even call their pathetic houses as structures. Only one of the buildings was walled, and because he didn't see Anna anywhere else, he knew she had to be in that building. It was nestled up against a cliff, near a waterfall.

It made sense the village was unguarded, after having seen the horde of orcs marching towards Euphaea. However, he could see a few male orcs walking around, carrying axes, as well as the hideous looking female orcs, in addition to their whelps. After seeing the females, Gil could hardly blame the male orcs for seeking female slaves of other races. Their appearance made his nose twitch in disgust.

Despite being far away above the village, Gil had excellent eye sight, and he could make out every little move the villagers made. He counted around 50 orcs walking around, including the men, women, and children. He didn't want to land in the middle of the town, so he came up with an idea. Gil's eyes drifted to the wooden hut, and his heart ached at what Anna was enduring inside. Maybe she was alright. Maybe they were even treating her well. Gil had to cling to hope, no matter how ridiculous it sounded. Orcs were not known for their pleasant treatment of prisoners, especially women.

Gil found his eyes slowly closing, and felt sleep come upon him as he continued to look at the wooden hut. Just a few hours of sleep, and he would have enough energy to rescue his love from their clutches. Sleep finally came for Gil, and in a few hours, he would get Anna as far away from here as possible.

Anna was covered in blood, as was the floor and walls of the wooden hut. She told herself she would kill the next orc who laid a hand on her, only she didn't harm any of these orcs. Jameka snapped the neck of one of them with her bare feet, and then she somehow found an ax, and hacked the three other orcs to pieces.

How wrong Anna was. She assumed she would relish the pain and death of any orc, and yet, seeing each of them get chopped to pieces terrified her. They deserved it, and yet, Anna was disgusted at the carnage of the scene, and would have vomited if her stomach had anything inside it. Still, the scene was enough to make Anna try to heave up anything her body contained, but only saliva was chucked from her mouth.

"Idiots," Jameka said as she kicked the corpse of the orc she strangled with her feet. "Drop their axes right in front of me, too busy staring at you to even remember I was here."

Anna continued to dry heave. Some of their blood got in her mouth, and she was desperate to get it out. Anna looked at her water bowl, only to see she had drank the last of it.

Anna finally stopped dry heaving, and sighed. "I could really use some Forgarian wine right about now," she said softly. "Thank you for stopping them, Jameka."

Jameka nodded at Anna. "Take their axes; this village only has a few dozen inhabitants," she whispered. "We could ambush everyone who comes in here."

"Can we use the axes to cut our chains off," both of the girls asked each other at the same time. They stared at each for a moment, and then each of them started to hack the metal chains lined up against the cliff wall. Only the clash of metal on metal echoed throughout the structure.

"It is useless," Jameka gasped.

Anna tugged at the chain with all of her might, but it was pointless. The two women sighed. They were trapped in this hut, and even if they did manage to kill every orc in the village, they would die of starvation or thirst.

"The keys to the shackles are outside, on the wooden wall near the door," Jameka moaned. "They are impossible to reach while we are still chained."

Anna stared at the dark skinned woman. She saw the fire in her eyes. This woman may hate the orcs more than she did. Anna wasn't too sure how long she has been here. She had many scars throughout her body, but lacked the lashes on her back that Anna possessed.

Anna looked around the hut, and noticed there were a few other chains attached to the cliff wall. At one point, seven women were probably kept here as trophies and playthings, and Anna shook her head in disgust. How could these men take living beings as pleasure slaves, and lock them in this cabin for the rest of their lives?

Jameka noticed Anna looking at the other shackles and looked at her in suspicion. "Are you really the princess of the empire," Jameka asked slowly, studying Anna's appearance.

At first, Anna wasn't sure how to respond. She was worried that her ancestors may have subjugated this woman's people, seeing as how she was from Panagini. The last thing she wanted was to make another enemy hate her just as much as the orcs did.

Jameka continued to look at Anna. "I heard that idiot shout to everyone in the village that he has the emperor's daughter, so I assume you are her,"

"I am her, and the Forgarian Empire is finished; they destroyed my city, and killed my family," Anna whispered, forcing back tears. "As far as I know, I am the last member of my dynasty."

Jameka looked shocked. "I heard they had been raiding Euphaea, but they destroyed White Harbor, and killed the Imperial family," she asked in disbelief. "I am sorry to hear that; I always loved visiting that city."

Anna chuckled, shaking her head. "You have been to White Harbor," she asked. "Forgive my ignorance, but I have never seen someone of your skin tone."

Jameka propped her feet on top of one of the orc corpses, and put her hands behind her head. "I am from a distant land, far to the east," she said as she closed her eyes. "Me and a few others traveled to the west to trade silk and spice a couple of times."

Anna noticed that Jameka winced as she said that statement. Perhaps her land is where the Imperial cities received nutmeg and ginger? She knew that peoples from faraway lands brought those goods to White Harbor and the other cities in the empire.

Anna licked her chapped lips, and swallowed. "That is how they got you?"

Jameka sighed again, and nodded. "I was with a company of 13, heading to your city from my homeland, where we were ambushed," she whispered. "They killed the men, and took me and five other women, including the youngest man in our group, who was only 16 years of age."

Anna continued to listen to her story. "They brought us here, and chained the seven of us up. Over time, one by one, we died, from mistreatment or malnourishment," Jameka said slowly, wiping away a tear.

"I found out I was with child on our journey, before they got us," the dark skinned woman said in a hushed whisper, her eyes widening. "When I gave birth to my daughter, they..."

Anna gently touched her on her shoulder, and then hugged her. The woman didn't hug her back, and instead sat there, as if she were frozen. She didn't shed any tears, but Anna could see her eyes glistening as she remembered her child.

"It was the year 1044 when we were caught, Anna," Jameka said as she shook her head. "What year is it now?"

Anna gulped. If she were a traveling merchant, than she would have known the Imperial dating system, as well as picked up on the common language. Anna was fascinated with this woman, but she didn't want to tell her the year. However, if their roles were reversed, Anna would want to know how long she had suffered her, as well.

Anna took a deep breath. "It is the summer of 1057," she whispered. Anna could practically hear the woman's heart skip a beat, and she saw how she stiffened at the news.

Instead of taking the news hard, Anna was shocked at what the woman started to do. She started chuckling, and her chuckling turned into laughter. If Anna was locked in here for 13 years, she wasn't sure what she would do, but she knew she wouldn't start laughing over all the years she had lost, suffering at the hands of a bunch of brutes that had nothing but disdain towards her.

As the woman stopped laughing, she sighed with a smile on her face. "I was 21 years old when they captured me, so I guess I am 34 now," she said, almost in a happy sort of way.

Anna saw Jameka look at the shackle around her ankle, where she stared at it. Anna looked at it too, and it fascinated her how a tiny bit of metal could seal the fate of any person. It is nothing but cruel what the orcs are doing; killing them both would have been merciful than forcing them to live out their lives as pleasure slaves, locked in a shed, never seeing the sunlight.

Anna jumped when Jameka grabbed her on the shoulder, looking up from the shackle. "I will not let you suffer as I have, Anna," she whispered, staring intently into Anna's eyes. "I am going to get that key. Don't worry about the screams; the villagers are used to screaming coming from this cabin."

Without warning, Jameka picked up an ax, and with all her might, she started to hack her own shackled foot off, screaming viciously in the process. The sight made Anna scream just as loud, as she stared at the gruesome scene in shock.

Chapter 5

It was too quiet in the keep inside the town of Halfor, not even the sounds of crickets chirping could be heard from the windows. Priscilla sat across from Lord Argis on a sofa, and the two of them stared at each other. Priscilla loved Argis with all her heart, and even though her husband was now dead, she just couldn't bring herself to engage in anything with the man. Part of her thinks that Argis felt the same way.

The two of them stared at each other, whenever one of them blushed, the other looked away. It went on for minutes. Even though they had the entire bedroom to themselves it felt too awkward. The two of them were middle aged, but they still had the desires of any man and woman. To Priscilla, although she wanted to, it just felt too strange.

Finally, Lord Argis stood up, and walked over to the sofa where Priscilla was sitting, and he sat down next to her, putting his arm around her in the process. Priscilla re-adjusted herself, slightly scooting away. She stared at the man, and smiled as she looked into his face. He still looked just like he did when they were younger, his flowing, dark hair, and his piercing eyes. Of course, he did have a wrinkle here and there, and he did have the occasional streak of grey in his dark head, but he was her true love, as she was his.

Argis took a deep breath, and sighed. "I wish things had been different for us, Pris," he told her, and much to his surprise, as well as Priscilla, he found himself wiping away a tear. "We belonged to each other, and yet we were never able to be together."

Priscilla no longer felt awkward, and smirked. "Only now do we find ourselves together in our twilight years," she frowned. "We don't have many years remaining."

Argis shook his head. "Let's get married, and spend the rest of what little time we have left together," he said as he stared into her eyes. "I love you, Priscilla. I have always loved you."

Argis leaned in to kiss her, and she kissed him back. She loved him, and she would spend what little time they had left by his side. If only this had happened 30 years ago. If the gods are just, maybe they will grant the two of them another 30 years of life to be together.

As the two of them kissed, the door slammed open, and Aran stood in the doorway, staring directly at his father. He was shocked, more so that the horde was approaching and less so that his father was with the woman he desired most in his life. Aran shook his head, getting the scene out of his mind.

Aran closed his eyes, and smiled. "Father," he laughed. "The centaur horde will be here in an hour or two."

Argis and Priscilla slowly back away from each other, and looked at the man in the doorway. Priscilla had to take Argis' hand from her breast, and put it down beside him. The two of them then stood up, and approached Aran.

"Make sure everything is ready, Aran," Argis said in a serious tone. "I will be ready in..." Argis looked back at Priscilla and smiled. "30 minutes, give or take."

Without allowing Aran to respond, Argis shut the door to the bedroom. Priscilla started to laugh while shaking her head. Argis simply smiled back at her. The two of them embraced one another, and headed for the bed.

The scream of a woman is what awakened Gil from his slumber. He shot his head up from its resting place, and stared at the hut against the cliff far below him. The scream belonged to a woman, but it didn't belong to his woman. He continued to stare at the hut, and his blood turned to ice when he heard the second scream, and he knew whose voice this one belonged to. Anna.

Gil noticed that no one in the village even seemed to pay any attention to the screams, which was a good thing. No orcs were near the cliff where the hut was located, and if he was careful he could land without being spotted. The screams of Anna made his heart bleed. They were blood curdling screams, and he didn't want to know what she was enduring inside that building.

Gil wasn't yet fully rested, and his stomach was empty. If it came to a fight, however, he would give it his all. The only thing on his mind was getting Anna out of that building. Without even thinking, he leaped off the cliff, and headed to the ground outside the walled structure.

The door to the hut was cracked open; if any orcs were inside harming her, he would kill them in the most painful way imaginable. Gil continued to look at the door, not sure how to proceed. He could easily destroy the structure with his tail, but at the risk of killing the one he loved. While he thought of how to proceed, he saw the door open a little bit more, and his eyes lit up when he saw her face.

"Anna," Gil whispered, trying his best not to scream her name.

He saw the look in her eyes as she locked eyes with him. It wasn't how he remembered. The joy and happiness he had seen in her eyes when they had gone on their date in the forest was non-existent. Instead, pain, sorrow, humiliation, and defeat was what he saw in her eyes.

Anna stared at him, her mouth wide open at his sight. He saw shock turn to joy, and even heard her whisper his name. However, much to his surprise, she went back inside the hut. Gil was flabbergasted. Did she change her mind? Did she enjoy staying here, not wanting to be rescued?

Gil stood there, his mouth agape. He was hurt that she walked away from him, as if he were some freak or monster. Did he do something wrong?

His questions were answered when he saw Anna drag another woman out of the hut, who was clearly unconscious. He didn't even realize the two women were completely nude. Gil noticed the other woman was missing a foot, and was gripping a bloody hatchet in one hand. Anna brought her before him, and Gil saw she was bleeding out.

"Cauterize it, Gil," Anna whispered loudly.

Gil understood what she was saying. He could create only a few embers of fire, but it would get the job done. Gil easily coughed a few embers at the metal part of the axe, and Anna put the burning part against the wounded woman's stump, making a hissing sound.

The woman jolted up, and screamed in pain and horror, but quickly passed out again. Anna knelt down in front of Gil, and used a rag that looked like it had belonged to the pants of an orc on the stump. As Anna knelt down in front of him, he saw the marks all over her back, and he nearly shed a few tears. He wanted to embrace her and hold her close to him, but now was not the time.

As the wounded woman was now tended, Gil saw Anna run off to the stream nearby, and he saw how she plunged her face into the water, drinking as much as she could. Despite it being rather dark, Gil could see how she had clearly lost some weight, but not too much. In addition to the wounds on her back, she also had bruises on her butt, as well as on her face, breasts, and stomach. Gil cringed as he thought about what she must have experienced when he was away.

Anna returned, and Gil helped her and the unconscious woman onto his back. Just in time, as a few male orcs were now approaching, and started to holler and yell as they saw a dragon with their two slaves atop his back. One orc ran towards Gil, and he easily decapitated him with a swipe of his tail.

Their time was up. "Hold on tight, Anna," Gil shouted. He could feel her grip one of his spikes on his back, and he quickly flapped his wings as hard as he could. Within a few seconds, they were flying, although Gil had to perform some evasive maneuvers as he dodged the occasional arrow.

Neither Gil, nor his passengers looked back. They were safe for now, but Gil wanted to fly as far away from those creatures as he could. He remembered seeing a savannah not far away, and the warmth and sunlight would do some good, for him as well as Anna, who was looking rather pale. He wasn't sure who the other woman was, but if she had to endure what Anna endured, he was proud to have helped her escape, as well.

While in flight, Gil could hear Anna sob, while she clutched hold of his back tightly. He remembered what the blind man in White Harbor told him, and it must be awful what she was going through. Not only did she see her brother die in front of her, but the death of her father was probably rubbed in her face, as well. Not to mention she was tortured, raped, beaten, and denied food and water for nearly a week. If only Gil could have, he would have burned that pathetic village to the ground, and disintegrated every inhabitant, as well.

Gil noticed he was still wearing the satchel that contained his present to Anna. He shook his head at the thing. If only he didn't leave the city to get the damn thing, he could have spared Anna the horrors she had endured. He could have taken her with him to retrieve it, and he would never forgive himself for denying her the privilege of accompanying him.

It wasn't healthy for him to dwell on what could have been, so he instead focused on the present. This was the hand he was dealt, so he would try to make the best of it. Gil snaked his head backwards, so he could see Anna.

She was still crying into his back, and hugging him tightly. The sight of her made him start to cry as well, but he was silent in doing so. He didn't want her to see him like this, after all. Even though she was naked, Gil didn't even pay any attention to her body. It would feel wrong to look at her in that way after everything she had been put through.

Gil froze as Anna looked up, and locked eyes with him. So much for not wanting her to see him upset. He saw the sadness and trauma in her eyes, and he desperately wanted to hold her close to him. Gil forced himself to smile, despite his lips trembling at her sight.

"You are safe now, Anna," Gil whispered. "I won't let anyone else hurt you as long as I live."

He saw Anna nod, and the two of them continued to look at one another. Despite the tears, her eyes were as beautiful as ever, their dark blue similar to the way the ocean looks. Gil chuckled as he saw how dirty she looked; her light brown hair was a mess.

"You look filthy," he smiled, as another tear ran down his scaly cheek.

Anna smiled, and set her head down against his back, similar to the way she did when they returned from their date in the forest. He was happy he could make her smile. Gil wasn't too sure what to do now.

Getting back to Euphaea was a must, but where would they go? The first thing Gil needed to do was get something to eat, for him and for the two women who had probably been eating moldy bread or scraps of meat, if even that. Gil snaked his head forward. He saw several watering holes in the savannah, and it would most likely contain plentiful game for hunting.

As Gil left the grey and desolate land behind him, the night sky slowly started to appear as he flew into the night clouds, the savannah below him. He didn't want to leave Anna or the wounded woman alone while he went off and hunted, as the fear of losing Anna again nearly made him have a panic attack. The savannah would also be home to many predators, and he didn't want to leave two nude women out in the open, with nothing but a hatchet to defend themselves with. Gil was happy that Anna brought the hatchet; there was no telling how useful it may be, and if she were a dragon, it would be a good trophy to take from that entire ordeal she went through. It showed that they hurt her, yet she came out on top as the underdog, and used their own weapon against them. However, it was probably the other woman who actually used it, but it made Gil smile as he imagined Anna killing the savages.

Despite it being night, the savannah was rather humid, and the warm air felt nice on Gil's hide. That desolate place he had just left wasn't necessarily chilly, but the air definitely felt strange to him. As far as he was concerned, those orcs probably loved that kind of terrain. It was ugly, just like orcs were, and they belonged with each other.

Below him, Gil could see a few gazelle huddled against one another, and he gently swooped down, not wanting his passengers to fall off, and snatched two up in his hand like feet. He easily snapped their necks, and continued to fly a little ways, until he spotted a small body of water. The water didn't look particularly clean, but it would have to do.

Gil landed beside the watering hole, and in the distance, he could see some elephants moving away. Despite looking like wild animals, elephants were intelligent, just as intelligent as dragons. They could speak, though they really kept to themselves. Gil had only seen elephants a few times in his life, and he admired them. They were peaceful, and didn't enslave every other being like orcs and centaurs did.

The elephants stared in his direction, and walked away. Gil didn't want them to feel threatened by him, and he would be more than welcome to share the vacant watering hole with them if they desired, but maybe it was for the best. Despite being peaceful, elephants were unpredictable, and they could easily seriously maim Gil with their tusks if he was caught off guard.

Gil easily set the two gazelle carcasses on fire, though he felt drained afterwards. Producing fire was difficult for him, and it wore him out. It dried his mouth, and he quenched his thirst from the watering hole, as Anna carefully got off his back. The other woman was awake, and did her best to climb off his back as well, but Anna had to help her.

The two women dug into the carcasses like hatchlings that had just tasted meat. Gil wanted to laugh at the sight, but they must have been starved severely for them to eat like this. The two of them devoured an entire gazelle by themselves, and Gil was actually impressed. He remembered Anna would only eat one or two slices of pizza, as well as a bit of turkey or ham, and be finished, and here she was eating half of what was probably a 120 pound animal.

After they devoured the carcass, the two women started to lap up the water from the watering hole like people who hadn't had a drink in years, although Anna only took a few sips, as she had already had quite a lot back at that horrible village. After devouring the other gazelle, Gil stared at the stump of the other woman, and then remembered the bloody hatchet. Did this woman cut her own foot off? Did Anna cut it off for her? Maybe she did it because she was chained?

Gil held back on his questions for now, and allowed the awfully mistreated women some peace. Gil was taken aback as he felt Anna hug his neck tightly, and start to kiss it. Now he could hug her, and he did just that. He embraced her tightly with his front legs, not ever wanting to let go. He gently set his head on top of hers, not putting his full weight on it.

"Thank you," she whispered to him. "Thank you, Gil, you saved us."

Gil closed his eyes. "I would never leave you to that fate, Anna," he said, full of shame. "I never should have left White Harbor."

Anna was crying now, her tears dripping off her cheeks onto Gil's neck, as she remembered everything that had occurred back home. "You had no way of knowing, and neither did we."

Gil started to shed some tears as well. "When I returned to that city, and I saw the palace and piles of bodies all over the grounds, I thought you were gone," he gasped, as he hugged Anna, rubbing her scarred back with his legs. "I saw a headless, charred body on top of a pyre, and at first I thought it was you."

Anna started to sob harder. "They burned Tylus in front of everyone, and then they..." Anna started to stutter, until she regained control. "They threw his head in my cage, which already contained the heads of my father and Alexius."

Gil started to cry loudly, as well. He had only met Alexius a few times, but he was a fine young man. He knew Malcolm was dead, as well, but hearing how they forced Anna to be in a cage with their severed heads upset him. No one should have to be put through that.

"Where is he," Gil snarled. "Where is the one who led the attack?"

Anna didn't answer him, and continued to cry into his neck and upper chest. The darker skinned woman did her best to make her way over to the two of them. The fact she made it over to him with one foot impressed him, although she had to use his arm he had wrapped around Anna as a support. She stared at Gil with anger and fury in her eyes.

"His name is Garbo," she said with disgust, her voice full of hatred. "He left not long ago with another horde, heading back to Euphaea."

Gil nodded his head, which was still on top of Anna. "I think I passed them on my way to that forsaken village," he whispered. "There were thousands of them; I followed their trail to reach you both."

Jameka looked at the ground. "I am Jameka, and I see you are both..." She hesitated, as she stared at Anna who was still hugging Gil.

Gil looked back at the woman. She had just lost her foot, and she was easily able to move around. No doubt pain and suffering at the hands of the orcs turned this woman into a hardened individual.

"My name is Gil, and yes," Gil said quickly. "I love her; do you have a problem with that?"

Jameka scoffed at the question. "You saved my life. You could be a dragon or you could be one of those terror worms from the south, I will not judge you," she smiled. "You saved my life, and I owe you a debt."

Gil looked at the woman curiously. "What kind of debt?"

The woman looked up at the stars. "My people believe in life debts, although it is an ancient tradition," she said casually. "I still follow that tradition, as did my parents. My life is yours now."

Gil looked at the woman, and raised one of his horn-like eyebrows. "My own race also believed in life debts, many years ago, but we stopped," he mumbled. "Too many wicked men would save dragons, and have them commit horrible acts."

Jameka shook her head at Gil. "Nonetheless, my life is yours to do with as you see fit," she shrugged. "I will happily give my life for you and Anna, if you will let me."

Gil scoffed at the woman. "Thank you for the gesture, but your life is yours now," he laughed nervously. "I am taking Anna back to Euphaea, and you are welcome to come along."

Gil could feel Anna in his arms, and she appeared to be sleeping. "I think I know what you did," Gil whispered, as he looked at Jameka's foot. "Thank you for making that sacrifice, Jameka."

Gil was being genuine. He could have easily gotten the key to their shackles, so in a way, her sacrifice was in vain, but if he wasn't there, she could have potentially saved Anna's life. He would forever be in her debt for doing Anna that kindness.

Gil looked around, and felt as if they were being watched. He was right; in the bushes not far away he saw a pair of yellow eyes, and even more not far from the bushes. It was probably a pack of lions, smelling human flesh.

"I think we lingered here long enough," Gil said.

Gil gently tugged away from Anna's embrace; not wanting to disturb her. It turned out she wasn't asleep, but she was resting against him the entire time. He could see just how badly she had been affected by the entire ordeal; she looked different, and not for the better.

"My mother said she was going to be in Auroria, while father was on campaign," Anna said quietly. "Assuming she hasn't moved; I am sure news of what had happened has reached every corner of the empire."

Jameka hopped over to Gil, and he helped her get on top of him. Gil started to help Anna, but she backed away from him. Gil looked at her in confusion, and she did her best to smile at him.

"Carry me in your feet, Gil," Anna whispered. "Hold me close to your chest; your back isn't as soft, or as warm."

Gil gave a nervous laugh. It was a weird request, but he wouldn't deny her anything. She would be near the satchel that had her present in it, but at least he wouldn't have to turn completely around to see her. All he had to do would be to look down if he wanted to keep an eye on her.

"Very well, Anna," he smiled, and kiss her on the cheek. He could hear her let out a gasp and feel her entire face freeze up, as if he had snuck up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder.

Gil stared back at Anna, horror on his face. "I am sorry, Anna, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

A week ago, Anna would have loved for him to kiss her, but the second his tongue hit her cheek, she immediately thought of Garbo forcing himself on her, back in her bedroom, the feeling of his tongue all over her face. Sadness crept into her; not necessarily at the memory of Garbo, but at how the one she had fallen for terrified her, just by a kiss. Gil was innocent, in fact, thinking of him was what caused her to not give in and accept her fate. All he did was kiss her, and she froze up.

Anna shook her head horizontally, and sighed. "I am the one who is sorry, Gil," she said, nearly on the verge of tears. "I don't know why I acted like that...I..."

Gil embraced her, and held her close to him. "No, Anna," he said sternly. "You do not need to apologize to me."

Gill glanced around, and saw the glowing yellow eyes were still fixed upon him and Anna. He would like to see these lions try it, just so he could take out his anger on them. He could pretend they were centaurs and orcs.

"Jameka, are you holding on," Gil said loudly, checking to see if his voice might scare the lions away. He grabbed hold of Anna, and cradled her to his chest.

"I am ready to get out of this wasteland, Gil," Jameka responded, while gripping onto the spines on Gil's back.

Without further hesitation, Gil batted his wings against the ground, and took flight. He had to arch his neck a tiny bit to see Anna, who was looking right back up at him. He couldn't tell what she was thinking about, and that was fine. She could use some time to get her thoughts together.

Gil felt Anna pet the scales of his neck and upper chest. He was holding her similar to how a parent may hold a baby, and yet, Gil enjoyed the feeling of her touch. After a few minutes, the touching stopped, and Gil noticed that both women were asleep. He had to be careful flying now, lest the woman on his back fall off. However, she had a tight grip, using both her legs and hands on his spines.

It took a few moments to get his bearings, but Gil figured out which way was which, and he headed towards Euphaea. He was a little nervous, as now another horde, led by that pig Garbo, was heading in the same direction. Auroria, a flatland country, was to the west of Forgaria, which was now a desolate and unpopulated land. The woodlands of Halfor were to the south, and to the north of Forgaria were the river lands of Wellby. Those three countries would most likely be the next targets for the hordes; however, if the wife of Malcolm was in Auroria, then that was their best bet.

Gil knew Anna didn't really care for her mother, a feeling Malcolm also shared. However, reuniting the two of them for the sake of family sounded good to Gil. The sun was beginning to rise, and Gil flew away from the sunrise, towards Euphaea.

Chapter 6

Lord Argis and his son stood in the forest, waiting to ambush the horde that would be coming across the encampment any moment now. The entire encampment was full of oil, ready to be set alight at the signal. Four men volunteered to actually be in the encampment, manning the towers to make it seem like the camp was occupied. If any of these men survived, Lord Argis would personally elevate their families into the nobility, and should they perish, monuments would be constructed in honor of their bravery and sacrifice.

All along the tree line, men with short bows, as well as longbows lie in cover, using camouflage to hide their appearance. Archers were also high in the trees, standing on platforms. Should any of these men feel threatened, they were to fall back to secondary positions. Each man was valuable, and this horde would severely outnumber them.

Argis had a few tricks up his sleeve, as well. Once the fight would begin, he had boulders, already coated in oil, which would roll down the hillside. As they rolled, they would pass over the oil already on fire, setting them alight in turn.

Should these ambushes fail, he had pike men hiding not far away as well that would charge into the battle, spearing the centaurs. Argis wanted to use the pike men as a last resort. None of them had shields, and they would be no match for a centaur's bow. With luck, the centaurs would use all their arrows, and be forced to fight in melee, which would give his pike men an advantage.

Argis took a deep breath, and looked down at the encampment in the valley. He could see all his archers were in a perfect position, as was the four men in the towers in the camp. It was still dark, but dawn was approaching, although it was overcast. It didn't look like it was going to rain, however.

"Pray it doesn't rain," Aran whispered to his father. Argis wasn't sure if rain could put out fires caused by oil, but he didn't want to find out.

Argis nodded at his son, and patted him on the back. The two of them gulped with anticipation as the bait was taken; a scout ran through the forest, and into the encampment, waving a red flag, which meant the horde had seen him and were approaching. The scout then made his way into the tree line, where he also took up position. That scout's name was Cole, and he was the best sharp shooter, as well as the fastest runner in Halfor.

Cole took his bow and climbed a tree. When he got to the very top of the massive pine tree, he nodded at Argis, not far away. Cole then proceeded to use hand signals, signifying where the horde was at, and which direction they were headed. He could see everything from that height.

Cole relayed the information he was seeing back to Argis, who was simply nodding and squinting his eyes at the man. Aran looked on in confusion. He didn't know the signals the scout was relaying to his father, but the look of anticipation in his eyes signified that things were about to go down.

"They are falling right into our trap, Aran," Argis told his son while staring at the tree line, far to the north.

The two of them looked on, and could see the trees moving, as well as hear the ground tremble. Soon, centaurs could be seen, not running, but walking rather quickly. It didn't take long for the men in the towers to shout to one another, and start firing their missiles at the horde.

None of the men stood a chance. Only two of them managed to fire an arrow before being struck in return, falling from the towers to their deaths. Argis snarled in return, and gave the ready command to Cole.

Hundreds of centaurs were now making their way into the encampment, and it didn't take them long to bust down the purposefully poorly made gate. Soon, the entire encampment was packed with them, each galloping around, checking the tents for victims to slaughter. With a simple hand gesture, Argis gave the command, and Cole shot a flaming arrow into the sky.

The arrow found it's mark as it came down from the sky and struck five barrels of oil, each containing a mix of other chemicals. In an instant, the barrels exploded, blowing up at least one hundred of the horse men. This was the signal for the other archers, and hundreds of flaming arrows now landed in the encampment, setting the entire valley aflame.

The screams echoed throughout the valley, and Argis estimated at least 2,000 centaurs were killed in a matter of minutes. Any stragglers were cut down by other archers, but the horde kept pouring in, some were catching fire, but others were galloping through it, firing their own missiles into the tree lines. Some arrows hit their mark, as Argis heard screams and yelling coming from his own men.

The flaming boulders were now rolling down hillsides, bowling over all in their path. Every centaur entering into the valley was quickly struck down either by flame or pierced by arrow. Argis started to chuckle at the scene. It was almost as if they wanted to die, and were flooding into the valley to their deaths.

This tactic continued for another ten minutes, until the assault came to an end. Any centaur still standing started to retreat, heading in the direction of Forgaria, and Argis and Aran both started to laugh. A scout came running from the north, smiling.

"That was the last of them, they are retreating," he shouted.

The men in the tree line started to cheer and holler. Some danced and sang, while others mourned the ones they had lost. It was a perfect ambush, but it could have turned into a disaster if the centaur horde had a leader.

Argis stared at the valley, which was littered with burning corpses. There had to be thousands of them down there. With a sigh of relief, he and his son walked down into the valley, the fires slowly dying down. The two of them, as well as the rest of the men, piled the corpses of the dead atop one another. None of these creatures deserved a proper burial, as far as Argis was concerned. The four men from the towers, however, he ordered them to be brought back into the town.

For the next couple of hours, the men continued to clean the battlefield up, when Cole approached Argis.

Cole was a youngish looking man, not quite middle aged, but not a young adult either. He had long dirty blonde hair that covered his head, and he looked rather wild looking, despite being clean shaven. He looked the part of a scout and frontiersmen. Cole had light skin, and his eyes were full of experience.

"Cole," Argis smiled. "I thought you would have been checking the bodies for spoils. Most of the stuff they had on them was from White Harbor, I am sure."

Cole shook his head, his face full of concern. "My Lord," he said impatiently. "You are going to want to see what the horde left behind."

Argis nodded, and motioned for Aran to stay behind to help with the cleanup efforts. The two men walked into the forest for a few miles, until they came across a small encampment. Argis was amazed at what he saw.

2 cages, each packed with women and children stared back at him, horror in their eyes. Argis immediately set them free, and told Cole to run as fast as he could back to Halfor to get help, and to get food, water, and medicine. As he unlocked the cages he stepped in centaur dung, and he rolled his eyes. The animals don't even have the desire to use latrines.

Even though the cages were unlocked, none of the occupants got out. He could see they were terrified, and could tell many of them had been violated. A few were even dead, mostly the children, and the rest of them looked like they hadn't eaten in a very long time.

Argis recognized one of the women, Lucretia, the youngest daughter of the Crassus noble house. The woman didn't even acknowledge him, and Argis noticed the rest of the women, even the children looked like they were in complete shock. Argis had never seen anything like it before. How could any creature, human or otherwise, be so cruel?

"You are all safe now," he told them all as gently as he could. "We defeated and killed nearly all of them."

Argis sat with them until help arrived. Carts of food, medicinal herbs and poultices, and water slowly made their way to the cages. Argis saw Priscilla was one of the people who came to help, as did many of the soldiers back at the encampment.

"They are all from White Harbor," she whispered. "I recognize a few of them from noble houses."

Argis only nodded, and a tear ran down his cheek. "They keep the women and children alive for enslavement, and kill the men," Argis started.

"Then Anna is still alive," Priscilla whispered, her voice full of shock. "Maybe she is in there somewhere!"

Priscilla started to frantically look around the cages for Anna. Argis sighed to himself. He didn't mean to let it slip. The chances that the princess to the Comnenus dynasty was still alive, let alone in a cage full of random women, was slim, he thought. She was most likely dead, or in another cage, kept as a trophy.

"Anna isn't here," a raspy voice slowly said from one of the cages.

Priscilla turned around and ran to the voice in the other cage. A short woman with a crooked nose and bushy eyebrows was staring back at Priscilla, her eyes full of sorrow. Priscilla recognized this woman; a servant from the palace.

"Where is she," she pleaded to the caged woman as she started to sob. "Does she live?"

Sofia wiped a tear from her eye. "The orcs took her," she mumbled. "The last time I saw her, they were pushing her cage towards the Panagini gate."

Priscilla collapsed. She wiped the tears from her eyes, and sat in place. Soldiers and citizens started to help the prisoners out of the cages, and guided them to the water and food, and priests and those skilled in the healing arts attempted to check the survivors for injuries, giving them potions and applying salves to those who needed it.

Argis stared at the ground. He knew Anna was taken by the orcs, and he knew the life she would be forced to live by their hands. It was a cruel fate, a fate worse than death. He pitied the woman, and her mother.

"My Lord," Cole whispered to Argis. "I see 18 other tracks belonging to different cages; they must have taken the other ones when they retreated, and left these two in the chaos."

Argis frowned. They may have won a victory, but they didn't rescue hundreds of captive citizens from the clutches of these animals, and to Argis, that felt like a defeat. He didn't want to know what those women would have to go through at the hands of the centaurs. Whether they used them as sex slaves or used them for labor, Argis wasn't sure. They had defeated the horde, but in the process they just sent hundreds of captives to their dooms.

Garbo continued to lead his horde toward Euphaea. His horde was now 60,000 strong. In addition to 2,000 elephant people, several orc clans rallied to him near the jungle. Garbo hoped for more men, but this time, he didn't plan on pillaging or laying waste to Euphaea's cities. He sent a messenger back to his village to inform the rest of the villagers to abandon it, and bring the princess with them. Now, orc settlers were on their way as well.

Garbo had the perfect spot to colonize. White Harbor was a ghost city, and it had enormous walls. Give it a few years, and White Harbor would be the first Orcish stronghold in Euphaea, and his people would control the trade entering and exiting the continent. He did have plans to rebuild his village into a city, but he thought he may as well re-occupy the once grandest city to ever exist.

He would rebuild it in his image, the way he wants. He would be the emperor. The princess would finally be going home, and this time, she would be one of his wives. He would chain her to the dungeon of his new palace he would build, and never let her see sunlight. She would be his personal trophy. Orcs from around the world would come to see the last living child of the Comnenus dynasty.

The horde continued to march beside the jungles, and Garbo could see the jungle life looking out at him. In the jungle, enormous spiders and insects roamed, attacking anything that they saw. Both human and orcish tribal civilizations called the jungle home, and Garbo knew he would not be able to reason with either of them. He had also heard rumors that the jungle was home to enormous plants that could spit out acid, dissolving flesh and tissue in seconds. The jungle was home to many horrors, such as giant serpents that could devour beings the size of elephants, and blood sucking worms that attacked from the rivers.

Garbo wasn't scared of much, but his father taught him to never go into the jungles, and he would listen to his father's advice. Part of him wanted to see if the jungle did in fact possess those creatures, and he intended to find out. If he could capture a serpent that was capable of devouring elephants, perhaps he could unleash it on the humans in Euphaea, or at least keep it as a personal pet. Orcs were skilled hunters, and although subduing such a beast would prove complicated, he would become the new emperor of White Harbor, and nothing could stop him.

First, however, he needed to get to White Harbor and construct his palace with a dungeon large enough for the serpent. Maybe he would put Anna's section of the dungeon adjacent to the serpents, and have a large window in between the two dungeons. That serpent would terrorize the woman for as long as they both lived, and Garbo could think of nothing that would make him happier.

After a few hours, the morning sun was high in the sky, and in the distance, Garbo could see the ruined city of White Harbor. To rebuild it, he would need slaves. He sent 5,000 men into White Harbor, only to leave from the north exit. These men would go into the northern province of Wellby in search of human slaves. This time, they were looking for slaves capable of performing labor, so men and children were the priority, although they could do what they wished to the women.

Garbo wasn't sure where the other horde would be in Euphaea. They would probably have been on the other side of the continent by now, being centaurs. The towering orc led the rest of the horde into White Harbor, the gates still wide open on the Panagini side.

Immediately, he gave the horde tasks to do, such as taking corpses and debris out of the city. Some of the men demolished buildings, and some of the men continued to look for loot, which was fine with Garbo. He had the entire Imperial treasury in tow, and unlike the humans, he didn't have to pay for builders or laborers. The humans were going to build the city for him, under the crack of the whip.

Garbo made his way to the ruined palace, where many men were demolishing it. He smiled at the site of where his new palace would be erected. Garbo noticed the pile of corpses, which were now rotting away. He didn't mind their presence, although they had to go.

In the corner of his eye, Garbo saw a cavern not far from him. He noticed it before, and even sent men into it searching for survivors on his last visit to the city. They told him it was an abandoned iron mine, and he intended to put it back into production, using slave labor to mine.

Clearing the city out could take many days, and he had some of the members of the horde on watch atop the relatively intact walls in case the humans came snooping and decided to attack when they were vulnerable. He noticed the man he had paralyzed and blinded on his last visit was gone. The only way he could have escaped was with help, and that thought angered him. That man could have been the first laborer for his new city.

Still, everything was going well, and Garbo was happy at the progress his horde was making. They had only been in the city for a few hours, and it was already starting to get cleaned up. In the ruins of the Imperial Palace, the throne itself surprisingly remained unscathed. Garbo walked through the rubble, and sat atop it, grinning at the thought of running his own empire.

Chapter 7

It took Gil three days to reach Euphaea. He didn't want to take the chance of flying over White Harbor in the event the horde was heading to the ruined city. He decided he would fly over the northern sea to reach Wellby, and then fly to Auroria to the west. This way, he wouldn't go near Forgaria, where the orc horde would most likely be at this time.

The two women he was carrying were quiet the entire trip. They would only stop for food and to take a moment to rest. However, the two women needed medical attention, and Gil decided he would stop in Wellby. Anna and Jameka were still nude, so getting them some clothes was also a priority. A few times, Gil would look down at Anna, still hugging his chest while she slept, and would look at her mammary glands. He knew it was inappropriate, especially with what she has been through, but he couldn't help himself. Occasionally, while she slept, he even caught a few peeks of her vagina, and he felt disgusted for looking at her there without her permission. In a way, he felt he was no better than those orcs who had terrorized her for the past week.

The air was so much more breathable when Gil flew into Euphaea. He had only been to Wellby a few times. It was a wet country, with many waterways and swamps. Gil didn't really care for the atmosphere of the place, but he was enjoying it tremendously after being in Panagini.

Gil was a little hesitant to cross the sea from Panagini to Euphaea. He was told sea demons, fishes the size of castles, sea serpents, and whales large enough to swallow a dragon whole lurked in the dark depths. Even from the air, flying over it made him nervous. He wasn't sure how humans were brave enough to sail on wooden vessels over the seas, but that sure took courage.

Gil heard a grumble of pain behind him, and he snaked his neck backwards. He saw Jameka, clearly in pain. The woman had just hacked her own foot off, and even though it was cauterized, she was taking it like a champion. Gil greatly admired the woman's pain tolerance, even if it was honed from years of slavery in that shack.

"Are you doing alright, Jameka," Gil murmured, while staring at her stump. They didn't have any cloth to cover it with, so the wound was bare and ugly to see. The tattered cloth they had used before had fallen off in flight, and it was just as well. It smelled like orc.

Jameka winced in pain as she readjusted herself. "It is strange," she said while gritting her teeth. "My foot is gone, yet it feels as if it is still there."

Girl stared back at the woman in curiosity. "What do you mean," he asked, his orange eyes looking at where her right foot had once been.

Jameka finally got into a more comfortable position. "Right now, I am bobbing my heel back and forth, for instance," she said with fascination. "I actually feel the sensations of it happening, yet it clearly isn't."

That was interesting, as well as a bit amusing to Gil. He wasn't sure if he should laugh or feel bad. Jameka was simply staring at her leg, not with shock or horror, but in admiration. The whole sight was making Gil feel a bit strange, and he snaked his head back to his front, and looked down at Anna in the process. She was sleeping, and she actually looked at peace, despite everything she had been through.

Gil glanced at the satchel that contained the tiara he had made for Anna. He wasn't even sure when he should give it to her now. The whole concept seemed silly to him, and he was afraid Anna might not even care about it anymore. He hoped that wasn't true. Silly or not, he had to give it to her, and it would only be a good present if she liked it. If she didn't, Gil would be ashamed of himself. If she didn't like it, he left the city for no reason.

As Gil continued to fly over Wellby, he could see the signs of a settlement in the distance. He wasn't sure how he would approach the citizens. Should he tell them who Anna was? He would make it up as he went along; these women needed potions and salves. Gil was a bit worried how the villagers would react to him. He knew they wouldn't attack him, but it would still be a bit awkward to see a dragon carrying two malnourished and mistreated women, seeking help.

The closer Gil got to the settlement, he noticed things were off. He could see people, but they looked so out of place. When he landed in the village, he saw why. The women were walking around, half nude, in a daze, and he did not see any men. The orcs must have gotten here already, but Gil couldn't understand why only women remained.

A few villagers looked at Gil, not in horror, but casually. After what they experienced, the sight of a dragon up close definitely did not terrify them. Gil looked around, and noticed that there were no children, either. He shook his head, and looked at some of the villagers staring at him.

"Please help," he shouted. "I rescued these two women from the horde, and they need medical attention!"

He gently set Anna down, who was awake now. She easily stood up, and walked over to Jameka to help her off Gil's back. It took some effort for Jameka to safely dismount Gil; the last thing Anna wanted was for her to lose her balance and fall on her butt, similar to how Anna first got off Gil.

For a while, no one came to offer their assistance. Gil's heart sank, but was quickly lifted as an elderly woman approached the three of them with two sets of clothes. She didn't appear to have been violated like the rest of the women, and as she got closer to Gil, she slowly came to a stop.

"I also have some herbs that could treat some wounds," she whispered at Gil, then shifted her eyes to Jameka's foot. "However, I am afraid I can't do anything about that."

Jameka simply nodded at the woman. Anna could see Jameka was annoyed at the notion, as if growing limbs back was possible. Anna made sure Jameka was stable, leaning against Gil, and she made her way to the woman, who was clearly not going to get any closer.

"Thank you," Anna said genuinely as she took the clothes. She handed a pair to Jameka, and the two of them quickly put them on. The old woman did not respond, or even look at Anna. She was staring at Gil, right in the eyes.

"Have humans upset your kind, dragon," she whispered. "Why haven't you saved us from the horrors that have been unleashed from Panagini?"

Anna bit her lip, and slowly turned back to Gil, who now stared at the ground. Anna could see Gil looked hurt at what she said. He had just rescued two women, one being the princess, and this woman was blaming him?

"He saved me and that woman from a terrible fate," Anna snapped. "It isn't a dragon's goal in life to fight battles that do not concern them."

The elderly woman slowly looked at Anna. "The empire has welcomed dragons for over 1,000 years," she said, this time on the verge of tears. "They didn't even try to help as they razed White Harbor to the ground!"

Anna was getting angry now. "The one standing behind me would have, but he was away when they came," she yelled at the woman.

The elderly woman chuckled and shook her head. "Awfully convenient," she laughed. "Him being away when they came, I mean. He probably flew away at the sight of the horde!"

Anna curled her hands into fists, and nearly struck the woman right then and there. The only thing that stopped her was Gil, who grabbed her with his feet. "Anna..." he whispered, while shaking his head. "She isn't worth it. She doesn't know."

Anna spun around, and saw Gil towering over her, looking down. Jameka was sitting in the grass, as if she had front row seats to a play at the theater in White Harbor. Anna easily broke free from him; he wasn't even holding her back anymore.

"That's right," the old woman snapped. "I do not know, and I do not care. I do know that my husband as well as my sons and grandchildren were snatched away last night by those savages!"

Anna shook her head. She slowly sat down, and put both of her hands over her face and started to cry. "Why is this happening," she sobbed.

Gil didn't care about anyone seeing, and he gently put his head down next to her on the grass, and rubbed it against her. Anna turned her face from her hands, and started to cry into the side of his head. The side of Gil's face was hard, and appeared to be armored in thick hide. This didn't stop Anna from using it as a pillow to cry into, however.

The elderly woman stared at the two of them. "You are Anna Comnenus, daughter of Malcolm, then," she said as she fluttered her eyes back and forth between Gil and Anna.

"I was Malcolm's nanny, many years ago," the elderly woman continued. "I know about how your family and dragons join."

Gil carefully looked at the old woman. "She is the last living member of her bloodline, and I intend to bring her to Auroria, where her mother is," he told her in a husky sounding voice. "Now please, do you have any medicinal herbs for these two women? The orcs have done terrible things to the both of them."

The old woman sighed, and then nodded. She turned away and headed into a wooden structure. Gil marveled at the village. These were peasants, and yet, their homes looked like palaces compared to the homes the orcs lived in.

A tear from Anna ran down his cheek, and touched his lips. He licked it away, and started to rub Anna on the back with his hand like foot. "I will never let any of them lay a finger on you again, Anna."

Anna backed her head away from Gil's, and looked him in his orange eyes. "I was so naïve, Gil," Anna muttered. "I thought that no one would be able to hurt me because of who I was."

Gil looked right at her, and saw the trauma in her eyes. "It doesn't matter who you are, Anna; no one should be able to hurt another in the way they hurt you and Jameka," he whispered, looking over at the dark skinned woman, who was still sitting on the grass, staring at the two of them.

Anna took a hand and caressed the side of his face. The feeling made Gil tingle, and if he were capable, he had a feeling he would get goose bumps from her touch. He tilted his head to the side, and closed his eyes as she continued to caress his cheek. Gil smiled at what Anna said next.

"I want to learn how to fight and defend myself, Gil."

Gil opened his eyes, and looked down at the woman, still malnourished and covered in bruises. She still looked as beautiful as ever, although a sense of rage would slowly enter him when he saw the scars and bruises, which were slowly fading. He didn't like the idea of his love fighting on battlefields, but all she wanted was to know how to defend herself.

"When they had me in that cage, and they raped me over and over, revenge is what kept me going, Gil," she whispered, full of hatred. "I would have broken eventually, but the thought of massacring the ones who did this to me is what kept me sane."

Gil understood where she was coming from. If he was human, and monsters did that stuff to him, he would want revenge as well. It actually didn't matter if he were human or not, but being a dragon, he was more than capable of defending himself, even if he couldn't do certain things his brethren could.

"Then when we get to Auroria, we shall pretend each practice dummy is an orc," he smiled. "Orc's don't even deserve to live, if you ask me," Gil muttered.

Anna stared at the ground. "There was one orc who was kind to me, Gil," Anna said, as she started to rub Gil on the snout. "He gave me water and food, and... Garbo had him killed and threw his head into my cage."

Gil didn't say anything. Personally, he didn't care if one orc out of millions was kind to Anna. He still believed they all should be hunted down and killed, innocent or not. Gil knew such thinking was wrong, but he couldn't help himself after seeing what Anna and the other woman had been put through.

Anna changed the subject. "I want to learn how to fight using two swords, one in each hand," she laughed. "My brother Alexius was good at fighting like that, and he looked pretty terrifying with two short swords."

Gil laughed as he pictured Anna fighting like a battle maiden. She was so delicate and fragile; he wasn't even sure she was being serious. However, if she decided she wanted to learn how to fight, he wasn't going to stop her. He wished he could show her himself, but such skills were best taught by a human teacher. In Auroria, the knights of New Haven were renowned horsemen and swordsmen. Auroria even provided elite cavalry units to the Imperial Legion. They didn't actually fight as part of a legion, but instead as individual back up units. One of the knights would surely teach Anna how to fight properly.

The elderly woman returned with a tray of potions, salves, and herbs. She gave Anna one of the potions, which she drank, and then rubbed some of the salve on her bruises, as well as her scarred back. Anna winced occasionally as the salve was applied.

"The scars may never go away, but their severity will diminish over time," the old woman told Anna.

The elderly woman made her way over to Jameka, who was still sitting in the grass. "Take this potion, dear, and then chew on this herb. It will help the pain."

Jameka reluctantly did as she was told. The herb tasted awful, but she chewed it anyway. The old woman was right; it did help the pain, however, Jameka winced as she poked and prodded her stump.

"It has been cauterized amazingly," the old woman whispered. She then rubbed some salve on the stump of Jameka's leg, which caused the woman to bite down in pain. The woman then wrapped it tightly in cloth.

"I have two walking sticks you can use, dear," she told Jameka as she looked into her eyes.

Jameka closed her eyes, and faked a smiled. She could see Anna and Gil staring at her as the woman did her work. Finally, she pulled back, and walked towards Anna and Gil.

"We have some water and food you may take with you," the old woman told Anna, faking a smile, as well.

Anna mumbled a thank you, and the old woman quickly returned to her hut, and returned with another tray. Instead of medicine, this one contained bread and smoked sausages, as well as two mugs of murky well water. She brought the tray to each woman, who grabbed the food quickly.

Anna saw Gil staring at the sausage, and she knew he had to be starving as well. Even though she and Jameka had eaten not long ago, he mentioned how he has rarely eaten anything in over a week. Anna smiled as she picked up a sausage, and saw Gil's eyes follow it in the air.

"Open your mouth, Gil," Anna told him with a smile.

Gil rolled his eyes. "This again...You treat me like I am one of those furry pests you humans like to keep as pets!"

Anna chuckled. "Have it your way."

Anna took the bread, and put the plate of seven sausages on the ground. She started to laugh as Gil ate them directly off the plate with his mouth. He looked just like an enormous "furry pest" humans kept as pets.

Anna devoured her bread quickly, and then turned to face the elderly woman, who was staring to the south, past the many creeks and rivers. She could see the sorrow in her eyes, and Anna did pity the woman. She knew all too well what was in store for her family. However, the orcs left the women, which puzzled Anna. She couldn't think of why they would take the men and children.

"The empire is finished, Princess Anna," the old woman muttered, still staring to the south. "Every province has declared their sovereignty, and has formed separate kingdoms of their own. I fear dark days are in store for us all."

As much as Anna hated to admit it, she didn't really care. It amazed her that just by razing the capital city of the empire to the ground, the rest of the empire followed with it. She couldn't help but wonder what her father would do if he were in her shoes.

"Thank you for your assistance, ma'am," Anna told the old woman. "I am sorry for how I acted before, I was just so..."

The old woman turned around, and smiled. "There is no need to apologize; I was in the wrong, as well," she said.

Anna looked at the old woman in the eyes. "Before we go, I just want you to know that I will do everything in my power to make the orcs pay."

The old woman smiled again, and simply nodded. "Then may the gods watch over you, my lady," the elderly woman said.

Anna helped Jameka up off the grass, and handed her the two walking sticks, and the two of them made their way over to Gil, who knelt down so the two women could easily mount him. Anna didn't feel the need to be cradled in his arms like she was a baby, even if it did feel nice. She was done crying and being upset for what has happened. The only thing she could do now was do her best to make sure it wouldn't happen to anyone ever again.

Gil turned his head around and looked at the two women. "Are you two ready," he asked. "The flight to Auroria may take a week."

Anna smiled, and slid forward until she was practically sitting on Gil's neck. She leaned forward, and kissed him. For a second, Gil didn't kiss her back, for fear of hurting her again. However he lost himself, and returned the kiss. The two of them locked lips, that is, to the best of Gil's ability, and continued to kiss passionately.

Something tingled in Gil's underside. He knew he would have a raging erection by now, and he was happy the two women were above him, not below him. The old woman, however, probably caught the full blast of his excitement, and he chuckled a little to himself as he imagined her face.

Anna pulled back from him, and kissed him one more time on the nose. She was already sitting on his neck, which was more than wide enough for Gil to easily swallow a person whole, although the thought sickened her, she did smile as she imagined Gil eating Garbo. Gil turned his head around to his front, and Anna lay atop his neck, as if it were a saddle atop a horse.

Gil took to the skies with a few wing beats, and headed westward, towards Auroria.

Chapter 8

Garbo sat atop the throne in the ruins of the former Imperial Palace. The city of White Harbor was slowly being rebuilt in his image, no doubt thanks to the slave labor being brought in from the north. Orc's raided merchant caravans, villages, farms, estates, and even groups of soldiers belonging to other provinces. They didn't kill any of these people; instead they enslaved the men and children, and if possible, the women as well. However, due to cage limitations, the orcs tended to simply rape the women and move on, although they did snatch up quite a few.

It was on one of these raids that Garbo's men reunited with the routed centaur horde. The centaurs helped the orcs raid a nearby walled settlement, but it was easy to get into. However, only a hundred centaurs remained, and they brought with them slaves of their own.

When news of the destroyed horde arrived to Garbo, he was furious. The centaurs were leaderless, as Garbo understood it. Centaurs were never keen on taking orders from anyone but themselves. As orc and other settlers arrived from Panagini, Garbo started to set up his own court. The horde would no longer advance into enemy human territory. Instead, they would hold this land, and rub it in the human's faces that the once largest city of humanity was now an orc city.

With the help of the slave labor being brought in, Garbo's dreams of building a city was coming into fruition. Directly below where the grand cathedral once stood, a massive dungeon was being constructed, for his future pet swamp serpent. It was at this site Garbo would build his own palace. He wasn't one for luxury or awe, and wanted the palace to be two stories tall, no more and no less. With the dungeon below him, he could send humans, as well as others who angered him, through a trap door in the throne room that led right into his pet's lair.

Garbo also had plans for the location of the former Imperial Palace. He was using it as his own residence for now, but once his palace was complete, he would transform the land into a massive fighting arena, where condemned men would be sent to fight one another to the death, or where human women would be sent in to be humiliated by lions, elephants, and other beings Garbo had in mind.

The mine behind him was being put to use. He sent the human children in to mine iron all day, every day. Evidently, the mine was abandoned because it was believed to have once been the lair of Ursalira, a human dragon goddess. Before now, orcs didn't fight with armor, and now that they had an iron mine in their backyard, they could finally equip themselves better.

Garbo liked this system of slavery. The children mined for iron, the women were forced to pleasure the horde, and the men were forced to construct buildings. It brought Garbo joy to see families torn apart by his system of slavery. The children never left the mine, the women never left the encampment where the bulk of the horde was located, and the men built structures wherever they were required.

While he was holding court, a centaur, as well as a nude woman who was being tugged with a rope beside him approached the throne. This centaur obviously was part of the horde that was wiped out in the south, and although Garbo was furious, he couldn't blame the mind of a centaur. The centaur was young looking, probably barely into adulthood, and the woman looked to be the same. Garbo couldn't take his eyes off of her. He hated humans with a passion, but the facial features of this woman, as well as her body, could possibly make him feel love, which irked him. However, now was not the time for pleasure. Besides, Garbo was building his lust for the princess when she arrived.

The centaur bowed before Garbo, and surprisingly, the woman did as well. "Emperor Garbo," the young centaur said in a deep voice. "I found this human woman on a raid, and claimed her as my own."

Garbo looked at the young centaur. Centaurs fascinated Garbo. Despite having the body of a horse, their neck was human-like, and covered in short, dark fur. Their head also resembled a human, but not completely. The ears were pointed, similar to his, and the face was also covered in short dark fur. The nose, unlike humans, was flat, and centaurs didn't possess a muzzle. Garbo always thought the facial features of a centaur resembled a furred orc more than a human.

"What is the problem, hunter," Garbo said impatiently, wanting the centaur to get to the point.

The centaur glanced at the woman, who simply smiled. The centaur sighed. "She wasn't terrified when I found her, and she actually embraced me when we met," he said, baffled. "Every time I attempt to mount her, she doesn't resist, and I simply am unable to go along with it."

Garbo stared at the centaur in amazement. He was actually speaking to him, the new emperor, about being unable to penetrate a woman he captured? Garbo simply shook his head, and almost laughed at the young centaur right then.

"What do you have to say, woman," Garbo asked the human woman. Garbo noticed the woman wasn't terrified of him, either. Every human he had seen ran from him, with the exception of the time he came to White Harbor to lead the emperor into a trap.

"My name is Lea," she corrected Garbo. "I was a whore; pleasuring men is all I know. I don't see what the problem is?"

Garbo stared at the naked woman in amazement. "You voluntarily whored yourself?"

Orc women never whored themselves; in fact, it was rare to even get them to mate with male orcs. Unlike humans, who orcs could simply force themselves on, orc women were dangerous, and wouldn't hesitate to maim or kill anyone they felt like. Attempting to mate with a female orc without permission was usually a death sentence, and Garbo knew better, which is why he usually went after human women.

"I was forced into the profession by my father," Lea whispered while staring at the ground. "This centaur killed my father in front of me, so I thanked him, and that was when he put the rope around me."

The centaur looked at the woman. "If you became a whore against your will, then why don't you shy away or attempt to run when I tried to mount you?"

The woman, Lea, smiled at the centaur. "Because I wanted to thank you, in the only way I knew how."

Garbo looked at the woman, this time he could feel himself getting aroused. She had the perfect body, perfect breasts, curvy thighs, a toned stomach, and her facial features alone could probably make a man orgasm over time. She had puffy pink lips, fair skin, and dark red hair. If that centaur wouldn't take her, Garbo was starting to think he might. However, he wanted to be pent up when the princess was brought in, so he came up with a solution. He decided he would have a little fun.

Garbo stood up, and walked over to the centaur. "She clearly wants you to mate with her, hunter," he sighed, and looked the centaur over. "Think of mounting her, and pounding into her relentlessly, until you can no longer hold it in any longer. Spill your seed inside her, and put a foal in her belly."

Garbo knew that a centaur impregnating a human woman was not likely, if not impossible, yet his words seemed to have the desired effect. He could see the centaur create an erection, his shaft rising out from his sheath. Garbo smiled as his tool reached its full length, and he simply marveled at its size. It was easily 14 inches long, if not longer, and at least 3 inches thick. It was black, but mottled with pink here and there. The tip didn't have a head, but was rather flat. If only Garbo possessed such a weapon.

The whore, Lea, smiled as she saw him come out. "Mount her, hunter," Garbo said, as he made his way over to his throne. "Put on a show for me. I have never actually seen a centaur mate before."

As the centaur's blood filled his shaft, he couldn't hold back. Lea gladly got on all fours, and allowed the centaur to stand above her, and he gradually lowered himself until he was leveled with her. Garbo saw how his shaft was poking around her rear, until it found her vagina, and easily slipped into it. Garbo wasn't too sure how that centaur could fit inside a woman, but the girl said she was a whore; maybe she was already stretched out? Garbo leaned on his side, and noticed that only a few inches of the centaur was able to penetrate the woman.

As the centaur rammed into her, Garbo could feel the woman gasp in pleasure, and he felt himself getting aroused at the sight. Garbo couldn't resist any longer, and an idea popped into his head. He stood off his throne again, and took off his ragged pants, allowing his own throbbing green member to taste the air. He walked down to the woman, and she seemed to get the message. The centaur continued to pound into her, but she smiled as Garbo forced his own tool into her face, where it hit her on the forehead, then the nose, then the lips, leaking clear liquid that rubbed off on her face.

"I was waiting, emperor," Lea gasped, as the centaur started to pick up speed.

The woman opened her mouth and Garbo thrusted into her throat. She easily took most of his length, but the base of his own tool was dry. Garbo marveled to himself, and groaned in pleasure as the woman used her tongue and mouth on him. He hadn't released since he left his village, over a week ago. As the centaur thrust into her, she bobbed up and down Garbo's length, making him get closer and closer to release. His scrotum hit the woman's chin and she occasionally reached up to stroke or fondle it. As much as Garbo was enjoying himself, it was a bit awkward, as he was rubbing chests with the centaur. None of that mattered as he could hear the centaur's groans get deeper, until he was ready to explode.

The centaur let out a loud groan, and with one last thrust, pushed himself as deep into the woman as he could. From Garbo's position, he could actually hear the warm fluid filling the woman up, as it sloshed around inside her, until it started to overflow from her orifice, spilling all around her feet. The sound, as well as the woman's own feeling of orgasm, caused Garbo to release as well. He saw the woman's eyes widen a bit as he shot his seed into the back of her throat, making her swallow the first few spurts. Garbo then pulled back, and shot the rest of his load all over her face, as he rubbed his head around her lips. Her face was painted white, and she licked the residue from her lips while smiling up at Garbo.

The three of them panted, but didn't move. The centaur was still atop Lea, and Garbo still had the head of his organ rubbing along the lips to her mouth. Garbo felt strange; no woman, especially a human woman, made this act so pleasurable to him.

"That was incredible," Lea panted. "Next time, maybe the two of you should switch positions, spice things up a bit.

The centaur laughed. "I had no idea it was possible to feel such pleasure."

Garbo still felt strange, and he had heard enough. "We will see if we can do this again sometime," he panted. "Now go do your duties; I have business to discuss."

The centaur and the woman walked away, and Garbo sat back atop his throne, his heart still pounding in his chest. He stared after the woman, walking away. For once, he didn't hate a human.

Garbo sat up straight, as he saw noticed an orc approach him. He recognized this orc. His name was Urak, and he was too cowardly to join the horde, and chose to stay in their village. The way Urak approached him, how he looked terrified, got Garbo's attention. Clearly, he had news Garbo wasn't going to want to hear.

"I do not have time for this, so spit it out Urak," Garbo grumbled. "What has happened?"

Urak didn't hesitate, although he clearly sounded terrified. "About a week ago, a dragon flew into our village, and kidnapped our slaves, the Imperial princess being one of them."

Garbo let out a low sigh. At first, he was livid. However, he discovered he no longer desired Anna. Instead, he stared at Lea, who was now walking down the hillside. Garbo smiled at her sight.

"So be it," he said flatly. "She doesn't concern me any longer."

Urak looked at Garbo in confusion. "I thought you planned on impregnating the princess, and start your own Imperial dynasty?"

Garbo shook his head. "Not with her. There is another I desire."

The river land of Wellby stretched for miles and miles in all directions. Wellby was one of the largest provinces in the former empire, although Anna had only visited the province once in her life before now. She was already glad to be leaving the swamplands. Mosquitos actually flew all the way up to Gil's flying altitude to bite them.

The mosquitos in Wellby were responsible for many sicknesses throughout the provinces. Anna remembered that a century ago, then Emperor Malcolm, first of his name, recruited the help of a sorcerer to exterminate the pests. The spell backfired, killing the sorcerer, and making the mosquitos resistant to most damage. Although Gil's tough hide prevented the mosquitos from biting him, Anna did smile as she saw one try to latch onto his soft nose. She nearly laughed so hard she fell off him when he tried to swat the pest away, only to smack himself on the nose.

Gil snarled. "Amused, Anna?"

Anna continued to giggle while hugging Gil's neck tightly. "How much longer until we are in Auroria," she asked him impatiently.

Gil finally smashed the mosquito, and smirked in victory. "Soon, Anna, soon," he replied.

Anna bit her lip, and stared at the strap around Gil's neck. The mysterious satchel was underneath him, and she knew it held the present he had gotten for her when he left White Harbor, before the attack. She did care about the gift, but it was the last thing on her mind for the past few days.

Anna turned her head around and looked at Jameka. She was sitting up, clutching one of Gil's spines, and marveling at the view. Anna smiled at her new friend. She had been locked up in a wooden shack for over a decade, and the taste of the wind must be incredible for her. Anna was glad Jameka came along, and her removing her own foot to help the two of them escape that wretched place took courage and bravery, the likes of which Anna had never seen.

The swampy atmosphere of Wellby was soon to the rear of them, and looking down, Anna could see flat grasslands starting to form. The grass wasn't just green, it was emerald colored, and it was the most beautiful grass she had ever seen. They had finally entered Auroria.

Anna put her head on Gil's neck, carefully avoiding a spine. She rubbed the side of his neck, and even kissed him once. This affection wasn't going unnoticed, and Gil tried to look back at her, although he wasn't able to bend his neck that way without him risking Anna falling off.

"Gil," she whispered, low enough so Jameka wouldn't hear. She knew he had excellent hearing, so he was able to hear her voice. Anna started to feel emotion come over her, even though she told herself she was done crying. "Are you still interested in giving me your gift, even though I am no longer the princess of the empire?"

Gil stopped flapping his wings, and simply glided in the air. He was shocked Anna would think he wouldn't be interested in her any more, simply because the empire had collapsed. "Anna," he whispered back to her, only able to look at her with his right eye, as his head wouldn't turn back any further. "When I returned to White Harbor, and I saw the Imperial Palace..."

Anna looked back at Gil's right eye, and saw it look right into her soul. "I can't explain what emotions I was feeling when I thought you had perished. Regret, sorrow, hatred at the ones who did this; I felt so many emotions in such a short time."

Anna nodded and continued to rub the side of his neck. "Thoughts of vengeance and thinking of you is what kept me going, Gil."

Gil sighed. "Thinking of you is what kept me going, as well," Gil tried to smile. "I wish I stayed with you for one more night, or even took you with me."

"Fate can be cruel, Gil," Anna told him. "But we are together again. It doesn't matter what has happened to the world. We found each other amidst the chaos."

Gil nodded and shut his eyes. "You are right," he said flatly. "Complaining about how life has mistreated the two of us is pointless."

Anna saw a glimpse of Gil's past in his eye, and she instantly remembered the section from the book The Dragons of Euphaea, about red colored dragons. Gil most likely did not want to speak about his past right now, and that was fine with Anna. After all, every living being needs to have some secrets.

"Do you believe in visions, Gil," Anna asked him seriously. "Religious visions, I mean?"

Gil scoffed. "As far as I am concerned, visions occur to the drunken or the fools who eat mushrooms in the forest."

Anna smiled at him, but her face turned serious once more. "Not long before White Harbor was destroyed, a priest looked into my future. I thought it was pointless at the time," she mumbled. "He told me he saw pain and destruction, as well as happiness and joy."

Gil opened his mouth, as if to say something, but closed it soon after. That is a strange coincidence that a priest could know about the future of Anna. Maybe the priest used sorcery to look into the future, or maybe he even knew about the attack beforehand?

"I saw destruction and felt pain," she murmured. "I want the happiness and joy part now, Gil. I want your present, and I want to become yours."

Gil was overjoyed, and he turned his head forward to hide his happiness from Anna. Although he wanted her to know he was happy, he still wanted to put on the rough, hard dragon that was much more serious than he actually was. Anna had already accepted his proposal back in White Harbor, but he wasn't sure if she had changed her mind, given the circumstances. Gil flew high into a cloud, and turned his head around as much as he could and simply smiled at his future mate.

Anna smiled back at him, her eyes full of love. Her facial expressions then changed to curiosity. "I was wondering, however," she started. "How did empresses and emperors of the past hide their dragon lovers from the public? Wouldn't they get curious where their empress or emperor was?"

Gil smiled back at Anna. He wasn't too sure himself, but did hear stories from Malcolm. The stories for emperors were much more romantic than the stories for the empresses, however.

"Well, I was told that an emperor who chose a dragoness would usually tell most of the court nobles," he laughed. "However, more often than not, they would think he was crazy, and believed he simply refused to marry and had children from mistresses."

Anna looked back at Gil. "And the empresses," she asked him, running her finger up and down one of his neck spines.

Gil let out a nervous laugh. "I was told it was really up to the dragon, more than the empress. Usually, the dragon would simply impregnate the empress, she would give birth nine months later, and simply say that her husband was from a foreign land, or he had other important duties. Really, the dragon would most likely go on with his life, and would return if the empress wanted another child. It was, in a way, free pleasure for the dragon, and he didn't have to help raise any young," Gil laughed nervously.

Anna looked down. "Oh, that is...romantic?"

Gil laughed much more seriously this time. "That isn't always how it happened, Anna," he told her. "If they truly loved each other, the dragon would never leave her side for long, and would always hang around nearby."

Anna smiled at Gil, who smiled back at her. In a way, she was glad the empire had collapsed. If she was still the princess, odds were that she and Gil could never truly be together. She would be expected to stay in the palace, and he would either live in the cave outside the palace grounds, or would live elsewhere.

"Once Garbo is defeated, can we live together; spend the rest of our lives together," Anna asked Gil, her eyes sparkling.

"Of course we can, Anna," he chuckled. He was hoping she wouldn't mention the Garbo part, and they could simply fly away together right now.

Anna laughed. "We can have our own farm, and have lots of children to help with the farming," she sighed. "Maybe have a little shrine to Boran to bless our harvest."

Gil laughed as well. "Lots of children, hmm? That sounds like it involves a lot of mating."

Anna simply laughed as well. She no longer cared about how she was violated by savages. She loved Gil, and finally mating with him would be extraordinary.

Gil turned his head back around, towards the horizon. "There is the city of New Haven, Anna," he said in amazement. "The entire city is actually an enormous citadel."

Anna, as well as Jameka, both looked towards the horizon. "Home of the Order of the Aurorian Knights," Gil said in fascination.

As Gil got closer, he begun to hesitate, and started to panic. "Oh, no," Gil mumbled.

Anna could feel Gil tense up. "What is it Gil," Anna said, concerned. "Wait. Who are they?"

Chapter 9

One could no longer tell White Harbor was destroyed. All of the ruined structures were cleaned out, and the city looked completely empty of any sort of buildings. It simply looked as if enormous walls enclosed many hills, as well as the enormous encampment of the horde, and a large stream of water emptying out into two separate seas.

The only structure that was being worked on now was Garbo's palace, which was coming along quite nicely. It wouldn't be as large or as luxurious as the Imperial Palace before it, but Garbo had no desire for it to be. He had seen the drafts of his future home the slave workers and his own orc workers drew up, and Garbo was impressed. The palace would look more like a castle, not a palace. It would only be three stories tall, not two as Garbo originally wanted, but that was fine with him. The walls would be painted black, and each corner of the building would have two circular spires.

The first floor of the castle was complete, due in large part to the endless work cycle of the slaves. Garbo was pleased, as he no longer had to construct a dungeon for his new pet. He decided to build his home on the ruins of the former palace. The treasury vaults beneath the former palace were completely unscathed from the demolition, and they would do nicely for his new pet's home. Already, Garbo had a large pit in front of his throne covered by a trap door that led into the dungeon, where his monster would devour anyone he wished.

Garbo had already sent his best hunters and trappers into Panagini to hunt for a swamp serpent, although even he had to admit, a serpent that could swallow an elephant whole could very well be problematic to capture, even for orcs. The hammering of blacksmiths outside the castle worked the iron mined by the human child slaves in the iron mine outside, and were forging new weapons and armor of orc design.

After his castle was constructed, Garbo would have the slave laborers start to build the massive arena where the former cathedral once stood. He remembered the former inhabitants of this city liked horse racing. The new inhabitants of this city would scoff at the idea, and would wish for the spectacle of blood in the new arena. Garbo would be the first one to enter the arena, and would watch all the fights as humans were forced to fight deadly creatures, orc warriors, and even one another.

There have been a few setbacks in building his new city, however. A few days ago, four dragons were seen flying above the city, circling around it. Garbo didn't want to take any chances, and he had his ballista, massive crossbow-like siege engines, as well as a new orc design he simply called "the Scorpion", which was similar to a ballista but could fire bolts nearly four times as fast, fire at the dragons. Garbo anticipated dragons would come snooping around sooner or later, so he had prepared. However, even Garbo was surprised that his weapons did manage to shoot one of the dragons down. He wanted the corpse as a trophy, but the dragon plummeted far into the sea; it's corpse unreachable.

With the coming of the dragons, Garbo had a feeling that humans were now setting their eyes on his city. Not long ago, he had seen a few men on horseback in the distance, scouting the area. Garbo had nothing to worry about, however. The 59 foot wall surrounding his city could repel any invasion, unless the gates were opened from the inside.

As Garbo walked around the dark halls of the former Imperial treasury, inspecting it for his new pet, his mind kept wondering to her. He kept thinking of the human whore, Lea. He couldn't get her eyes out of his mind; how she looked up at him as she pleasured him, not in fear, but in contentment. She didn't know it, but he told every orc in the horde not to penetrate her. If she offered her services, they were to be pleasured in other ways. He didn't care if the centaurs had her in any way they wished; centaurs couldn't impregnate humans, but orcs could, and he wanted her as his. He wanted her to bare his children, not some random orcs.

Garbo couldn't take it any longer. He had to see her. Garbo left the dungeon, and quickly exited the castle. The hammering and chiseling of stone outside filled his ears as the slaves and workers continued to build his castle. The noise was annoying to him, and he made his way to the encampment as fast as he could.

Due to her willingness to serve, Lea was not treated too horrible amongst the members of the horde. As Garbo made his way to the encampment, he saw many human women being forced upon against their will, but he didn't see Lea. Garbo scoffed at the sight. Every day for the past few weeks, this was life in the encampment. The men got drunk, raped women, went to sleep, and then did the same thing the next day. In fact, nearly half the women they had enslaved were pregnant now, and their children would add numbers to the horde.

Far in the distance, near the harbor, Garbo could make out a woman, as well as a large elephant. As he got closer, he saw Lea under the elephant, pleasing it. Garbo had never really seen an elephant mate, but then he got closer; he discovered they weren't mating, thankfully. The elephant would kill her if he attempted it. Instead, Lea was pleasing the creature with her mouth.

Garbo continued to walk down, and was only a few feet from the two of them. He stared in awe as the woman he had started to develop feelings for handled the enormous shaft. The elephant simply stood there as Lea used both her hands and her mouth to stimulate him. Garbo watched as Lea ran her tongue along it's length. The shaft had to have easily been more than two feet long and 5 inches wide, yet she did her best. It was grey at the base, but the middle of it was pink, and the tip was a dark color. It didn't really have a head, and was similar to the way the centaur's looked. Lea couldn't even put her entire mouth around it, yet she licked and did her best to suck at the tip.

Garbo was already aroused at the sight, and sat on the grass. He lifted his pants down and started to masturbate, but not with too much force. He wanted to climax inside Lea, not into the air. Garbo watched as he saw the elephant start to mumble in a language he didn't understand. Garbo's eyes widened as the elephant started to thrust into Lea's face, only for her to take it as he rubbed his head all over forehead, nose, and mouth, when he finally released.

The sight was amusing to Garbo. A blast of white fluid actually made Lea fall on her back as it hit her right in the face. Garbo looked on in fascination as the elephant's shaft actually adjusted it's position to point at Lea on the grass, where it continued to shoot ropes of fluid at her, until she was drenched in the stuff. Garbo only marveled at the sight, as the elephant's shaft started to shrink, and he walked away as if nothing had even happened, leaving Lea drenched in a puddle on the grass.

Garbo walked over to her, putting his pants back on in the process. Surprisingly, he saw the girl was crying, not too loudly though. The scent of semen was strong, and Garbo actually had to back away from Lea as it filled his nostrils.

Lea noticed him, and immediately stopped crying. "Emperor, hello," she sniffled, wiping her nose. Lea stood up, dripping warm liquid. She wasn't naked, but was fully clothed.

"That was quite the show you put on," Garbo mumbled. "You looked like you enjoyed it, so tell me why you are upset?"

Lea stared at Garbo, and could actually see the concern in his eyes. Before she was caught by the horde, she had heard stories of Garbo and how ruthless and cruel he was, yet she didn't see it. She actually saw caring in those red eyes.

"He tried to penetrate me, vaginally," she whispered, and she lifted up her skirt, showing dried blood. "It was impossible for him to fit, yet he can use that thing as if it was an arm, and he kept at it, even when I begged him to stop."

Although Garbo was developing feelings for the girl, she was still human, and even though he did pity her, he didn't feel any anger towards the elephant for wishing to spill his seed inside her. He only gave the order to orcs, not the centaurs and elephants. Garbo walked past the girl, covered in sticky fluids, and headed for the water. He beckoned her to follow him, and she did just that.

Garbo took his pants off, allowing his genitalia to hang freely, and walked into the dark water of the former harbor, until only his chest and head was visible. Lea simply crossed her arms, and sighed. She undressed as well, and simply wadded her ruined clothes up into a ball, and tossed them into a few bushes. She slowly got in, as well, and she washed herself off of the sticky residue, which was quickly drying up.

Garbo even helped her wash herself off. He ran his hand over her smooth skin, and soon, she did the same to him. Garbo noticed Lea was actually swimming, and wasn't tall enough to be standing in the water, so he guided her closer to shore. The two of them scrubbed each other, and although Garbo rarely bathed, he was actually enjoying the feeling.

"This feels surprisingly nice," Garbo sighed as Lea massaged his back. "Maybe I should have a bath put in the castle, after all."

"And some scented soaps," Lea laughed. "I think the smell of lilies would suit you."

Garbo mumbled, and the two of them locked lips, and made out in the murky water. "I want you all to myself, Lea," Garbo said, in between kisses. "Become my empress."

Lea only chuckled. "The whore who became empress has a nice ring to it," she told him as she started to kiss his neck. "I have no ambition for that stuff Garbo. I am a whore, remember?"

Garbo stared into her green eyes as she stopped kissing his neck, and he smiled at her. "You never chose to become a whore. I want you as my empress, my queen, my wife."

"I thought you hated humans," she asked him.

Garbo smirked. "I do," he laughed. "I could never hate you, though Lea."

That was enough for Lea to hear, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, and even though she still hurt from earlier, the pain was quickly replaced with pleasure, as Garbo made love to another woman for the first time in the harbor. Garbo had no idea he could feel this way for another, especially a human. His father, and his father before him certainly wouldn't approve of his relationship, but they were long dead, and were no longer relevant.

After the two of them were finished, they simply stood in the water together. Garbo was easily two feet taller than Lea, so he lowered his head atop hers. Lea started to giggle, and Garbo looked down at her in confusion.

"This water is filthy," she laughed.

Garbo ignored her statement. "Gather your belongings, and come up to the castle. If anyone gives you any trouble, let me know."

Lea stared at Garbo, who only stared back. She leaned forward and pecked him on the cheek, and walked towards the shore. Garbo smiled as she didn't bother getting her ruined clothes from the bushes, and instead walked back to the encampment nude. He hoped no one would give her any trouble; if so, they would be the ones in trouble.

Later that day, as Garbo sat atop his throne, he looked at his advisor, an orc name Galba, who was Garbo's younger brother. Galba wasn't as tall as Garbo, but he was still strong and hard looking. In fact, he may even be able to best Garbo in a fight.

"Galba, tell me something," he looked at his brother. "Is it true that there are Minotaur tribes in the mountains further north?"

Galba looked at his brother and smiled. "Yes, they were originally from our homeland, but instead of being displaced by the Imperials, they instead fought back and went into the mountains," he replied. "Are you thinking what I am thinking?"

Garbo only nodded. "Send messengers to their tribe," he smiled. "Tell them...human women await them here."

Galba nodded and walked away. Truthfully, Garbo needed to rebuild his horde, especially if the humans decided to use dragons. Minotaurs are massive bull men, and could easily reach nine to ten feet tall. They aren't very bright, but they make up in brawns what they lack in brains. Minotaurs, like centaurs, always craved sex, and like centaurs, they will usually raid human villages for women, and even men. Garbo remembered hearing about them when he was in White Harbor many weeks ago.

Garbo smiled as his Lea walked in the throne room, ignoring the looks the orcs were giving her. She was wearing a beautiful purple dress that had once belonged to the former Imperial family, and she looked beautiful to Garbo. She was even more appealing than that Imperial princess, whose name Garbo could no longer even remember.

Lea walked over to his throne, and knelt down in front of him, until he told her to rise. Afterwards, she jumped onto him, and sat atop his lap as they kissed one another, not caring who was watching. They continued to kiss even as a rugged orc approached them, and had to clear his throat to get Garbo's attention.

"My emperor," the rugged looking orc said loudly.

Garbo slowly turned to the orc, annoyed that he had interrupted him and Lea. "Speak quickly, and vanish from my sight, worm."

The rugged orc looked back at Garbo, and frowned. "We lost 30 men to that beast, but we got it," he said slowly. "We got your swamp serpent."

Garbo stared at the orc, his eyes widening. He gently set Lea down, and followed the orc to the door. Outside, his mouth gaped at the sight. An enormous, angry looking black serpent stared back at him, tied down to many carts. It had to easily be 100 feet long. The beast's head could definitely swallow an elephant with ease, and it's dark yellow eyes were as wide as windows. Garbo only smiled, and started to laugh at his new pet. They were going to get along very well.

Anna had never seen Gil so nervous before. She could feel him shaking, although she wasn't sure if it was in fear, anger, or excitement. Flying around them were three equally large dragons, staring at the red dragon in disgust.

"I never thought I would see you again, Gildaryus," a large, black dragon hissed as he flew by. He wasn't looking at Gil, but was staring at Anna.

Anna felt Gil twitch at the name the other dragon called him. So Gil's name was Gildaryus? Anna wasn't sure why he wasn't proud of that name. It sounded fine to her.

Gil let out a snarl, a noise Anna had never actually heard before. Jameka clutched Anna's hand, as if even she was frightened. Anna looked at the black dragon, and saw it's deep, grey eyes still looking back at her.

"I see you have the daughter of Malcolm with you, as well," the black dragon said, not in anger, but in surprise. "I am a bit envious, Gildaryus. I always thought Malcolm would choose me, not...you."

Anna looked around, forcing her eyes to disengage the gaze of the black dragon. Instead, she looked at a light green colored one, and when that one caught her looking at it, it smiled and stared back, and Anna could have sworn she saw a tear in it's eyes. She then looked at the other dragon circling them, and saw it was a light copper color, similar to the color of the brown earth.

"What is he talking about Gil," Anna whispered, looking back at the black dragon.

"I am talking about how your father, Malcolm, almost picked me to court you, not him," the black dragon bellowed. "I would have been perfect, but your father liked the color red, evidently. I imagine he saw a lot of that color before his end."

Anna scowled, and this time, the light green dragon swooped down and tackled the black dragon. "That is enough," a feminine voice shouted. "You do not get to talk about Malcolm like that!"

The female green dragon flew towards Gil, and looked at him in the eyes, glancing at Anna a few times in the process. "Why are you here, Gildaryus," she asked.

Anna could feel Gil was about to snap, and she gently kneaded and rubbed his backside, trying to calm him down. She heard him sigh in frustration. Anna answered for him.

"He saved me, and this woman, from the orc horde," she said loudly, while gesturing towards Jameka. "He saved us from a fate worse than death. Now treat him with respect!"

The copper colored dragon started to laugh loudly. "Oh, I like her," a strong male voice laughed. "The two of us missed out, Atuxon."

Finally, Gil snapped. "Enough!" His voice nearly made Anna's eardrums pop, and she felt her entire body shake from it.

"I am bringing Anna and this woman who saved her life to New Haven, to safety," Gil shouted angrily. "I have been trying to save the people affected by the hordes, and you have the nerve to speak to my mate like that?"

Atuxon, the large black dragon flew in front of Gil, who was simply hovering in place. Anna could see the anger in his grey eyes, and for a moment, feared he would strike Gil. Anna gripped on to the satchel, just in case, and Jameka held on tightly to Anna's arm.

"The three of us have been hitting the horde at their city, cursed one," Atuxon whispered. Atuxon stared into Gil's eyes with nothing but hatred glistening in them. "They shot my brother out of the sky, and he plummeted into the sea. It is hard to destroy them when you are unable to use fire, for fear of hitting prisoners who are now slaves."

The black dragon paused and smiled, and Anna knew what he was going to say. "Oh wait," he sighed. "You don't know anything about using fire, do you, Gildaryus?"

For a few moments, the only noise Anna could hear was the flapping of wings. She continued to rub Gil's back, and was praying he wouldn't do anything rash. One wrong move, and she and Jameka could both fall to their deaths.

"Get out of my way, Atuxon," Gil whispered, defeated.

Atuxon flew off, this time, staring at Anna with curiosity. Any hatred that was in those eyes was gone when they looked at Anna. Anna turned away, and instead lowered her head to Gil's back, and gently kissed him.

"Come on, Skupom," Atuxon, the black dragon, shouted at the copper dragon. "Let's go scout the border for any orcs or centaurs."

The two male dragons flew off, and Anna wiped a tear from her eye. The things he said about Gil wounded even her, and they weren't even directed at her. How could intelligent creatures have so much hatred for someone else? She remembered the book, and how they believed red dragons were cursed, or something like that, but that is a pretty pathetic excuse for hating someone.

Gil continued to hover, hardly even moving. The green female flew in front of him, but she was staring at Anna, not Gil. "Come on Gildaryus, let's get you down and get them off of you," she said as calmly as she could.

Gil tensed up again as she mentioned his name. "Thank you Dyaxiss," Gil whispered, and the two of them swooped down to the citadel courtyard.

When they landed, Anna noticed many eyes were staring at them. Knights in full armor, commoners, and even a man she recognized were staring at them. They must have seen everything from the ground.

As Anna gently dismounted Gil, she was immediately embraced by Lord Farley, and she hugged him back. Lord Farley was governor of Auroria, and he was Anna's uncle on her mother's side. However, he had a crown on his head, which indicated he was now King of Auroria, which made sense as the empire had crumbled.

King Farley was old; 15 years older than Priscilla, and ten years older than his younger sister, Destiny. His hair was white, and the top of his head was completely bald. Farley had greyed eyes, and required help just to move. Anna had seen Farley many times in her life, usually once or twice a month for as long as she could remember. Still, it was strange to her that only Farley greeted her, not her mother or her aunt.

"When I heard what happened in White Harbor, I feared for the worst, Anna," Farley whispered. "I am sorry about your family."

Anna hugged him back, and she turned her head to Gil, who was staring at the ground, as if he hadn't processed everything that had just happened in the skies. "This dragon, Gil, saved my life."

Farley looked at Gil, and put a hand over his heart. "Thank you, Gil, for saving my niece from the horde."

"Auroria is under the protection of four..." Farley paused, and sighed as he stared at the ground. "Three dragons," he corrected himself.

Anna broke free of her uncle's embrace, and walked over to Gil, who didn't even seem to realize she was there. She hugged him on his front leg, and he snapped out of his daze. Gil looked around, and looked at Anna, then looked at Farley.

"You are welcome," Gil mumbled.

Farley smiled at Gil, and winked at Anna, as if he knew about them. "You are always welcome here, my friend," he said with sincerity. "And who is she?"

Jameka hopped off Gil, and with Anna's help, shook Farley's hand. "This is Jameka," Anna told her uncle. "She also saved my life, at great cost to her own."

Farley looked at her foot, and nodded. "In that case, Jameka, you too are welcome to stay in the citadel for as long as you wish, whenever you wish it, and to make use of all our facilities."

Jameka nodded at the old man. "I could use a bath," she said flatly, causing both Anna and Farley to laugh.

"So could I, uncle," Anna mumbled as she stopped laughing. She hadn't bathed in such a long time, and she felt disgusting.

Farley patted Anna on the shoulder. "You have been here before, Anna," he told her. "I trust you remember the way to the baths."

Anna looked back at Gil, who simply nodded at her. "Go on, Anna," he forced a smile. "Get yourselves cleaned up."

Anna looked around, and noticed all the knights and commoners were no longer in the courtyard. She only saw her uncle, Jameka, that female dragon, and Gil. Jameka knew what Anna was going to do, so she used her walking sticks to hop over to a wall and leaned against it. Anna ran over to Gil, and hugged him. He hugged her back, and got down on his stomach so it was easier.

"We don't have to stay here long if it is uncomfortable for you, Gil," Anna told him, the side of her face up against his lower neck.

Gil scoffed. "I will be fine, Anna," he smiled at her. "You are safe now, and are reunited with your family. That is all that matters."

Anna leaned back so she was looking into his face. "But I don't want to be in the presence of my family," she said in confusion. "I want to be with you."

Gil smiled at the statement, and Anna saw a tear run down the side of his face. Anna reached up and wiped it away, and kissed him on his neck. He kissed her tenderly on the cheek in response, and she embraced him harder.

"When I get back, I want you to give your present to me, if that is fine with you," she said as she smiled in his embrace.

Gil sighed. "About time; I was getting tired of carrying this ridiculous satchel around!"

Anna chuckled, and as she turned her head, she caught a glimpse of the female dragon whose name she couldn't recall staring right at her, curiosity in her blue eyes. She was a beautiful dragon. Light emerald skin, blue eyes, and yet, she did not have any horns, only spines and spikes around her head. She was smaller than Gil, but looked to be leaner, whereas Gil had much more muscle. The two of them simply locked eyes, studying each other, until Anna broke the gaze, and kissed Gil on the neck one more time.

"I will be back shortly, Gil."

Anna returned to her uncle and Jameka, and he motioned them towards the citadel. Farley didn't come along; instead, he slowly limped his way over to Gil, and Anna saw the two of them talk to one another as she entered the castle.

"You have my sincerest gratitude for returning my niece to her family, Gil," Farley told him. "I reckon I may be the only one she still has now."

Gil looked at Farley in confusion, and tilted his head to the side. "What about Priscilla, or her aunt," Gil asked in a panic.

Farley looked at the ground in sorrow. "My sister, Destiny, passed away last week," he mumbled. "She was in poor health, and the news of what happened in White Harbor sent her over the edge. She and Priscilla were very close, you see."

"What about Priscilla," Gil gasped. "She left White Harbor to visit here days before the attack!"

Farley shook his head quickly, in shock. "I think you are misinformed, my friend," he gasped. "I haven't seen Priscilla in nearly two months."

Gil let out a long sigh, and scratched his head with a claw. "She left the city, I know that much."

Farley shrugged. "Well, I thought she had perished with her husband in White Harbor," he replied. "It brings happiness to my heart to know she may yet live."

Gil shook his head. "Malcolm was killed in an ambush the orcs and centaurs set up. He and his men were massacred," Gil mumbled sadness in his voice. "The monsters threw his severed head into Anna's cage, while they brought her to their desolate home where she was..."

Gil was getting fired up, and he calmed himself, not because of what he was saying, but because of who he was saying it in front of. He looked over to Dyaxiss, and saw that she had tears in her eyes. She had been so quiet; Gil had nearly forgotten she was there.

"That is how he perished, then," she whispered, gazing at an empty castle wall. "Mutilated by cowards who knew they stood no chance on a battlefield?"

Farley stared at the female dragon, and let out a low gasp, as if he was about to say something. He knew she had loved the emperor, even though he was married to his sister. Farley couldn't fault her for it though, especially if she had imprinted on him, as ridiculous as that concept sounded.

"I shall take my leave now, my friends," King Farley nodded at the dragons, and started to limp away. When he entered the castle, Gil turned back to Dyaxiss, astonished.

"I knew about you and Malcolm, Dyaxiss," Gil whispered to her. "Not until now, after I smelled your scent again in years, did I know that you are..." Gil paused, staring at the dragoness in astonishment.

Dyaxiss chuckled, but frowned shortly after. "We continued to see each other in private, Gildaryus," she whispered. Gil winced at her use of his name, but let it go.

Dyaxiss once again gazed at the castle wall. "Only after I gave birth to Anna did our visits come to an end. Priscilla threatened to let it slip to the public, not caring how crazy she may sound."

Gil thought about it for a second, and couldn't help himself. "It must be easy giving birth to a human baby," he chuckled.

Dyaxiss actually laughed. "You have no idea," she smirked. "At first I thought I simply had a stomach ache, and next thing I know, there she was."

That had Gil laughing so loud, his cackling was actually echoing into the sunset. Dyaxiss simply smiled at him, and rolled her eyes. She slowly stood up, until she was standing on all fours.

"I haven't seen my daughter in..." Dyaxiss thought about it for a moment. "Has it been two decades?"

Gil nodded his head slowly. "Malcolm was doing well, just so you know," he told her.

Dyaxiss looked back at him. "Good," she whispered.

For a while, the two of them stood there awkwardly. Gil had seen Dyaxiss many times in the few months after Anna was born, when Malcolm had started to receive proposals. After a while, he never saw her again, and now he knew why.

"You do know why Atuxon is acting this way," she whispered. "It isn't just because of who you are."

Gil shut his eyes slowly. "I know. I know he imprinted on Anna when he first saw her as a child, and I know he was devastated when Malcolm chose me, not him."

Dyaxiss laughed nervously. "Well you weren't even supposed to be there, and yet he chose you," she reminded him.

Gil didn't respond, and just stared at the citadel doors. He only shrugged.

Dyaxiss let out a low sigh. "I think I am going to go be by myself for a while, Gildar..." she hesitated, and shook her head. Gil immediately froze, but relaxed when she didn't finish saying his name.

"Gil," she said plainly. "Don't tell Anna about it, I don't want her to know yet."

Gil closed his eyes. "I won't," was all he said.

Dyaxiss took to the skies, and headed towards the grasslands beyond the citadel. Gil was all alone now, and he immediately started to crave Anna's company. He had been with her ever since the orc village and he missed her presence. Gil gently put his head down between his front feet, and simply stared at the door to the citadel, waiting for his true love to return to him.

For a moment, he thought about what Atuxan said, and he briefly thought about leaving. Maybe he was right. Maybe Anna didn't deserve him. However, when he heard tapping, and he saw Anna smiling at him through a window, those thoughts quickly left his head.

Anna stared out the first floor window of the citadel bath complex, looking at Gil. He hadn't yet realized she was staring right at him, and she could see him talking to the dragoness before she took off. Now, he was simply staring at the door, waiting for her to return. The image broke her heart, and she wanted to open the window and yell out to him.

The window was not able to open, so she instead tapped on it as loudly as she could, much to Jameka's annoyance, who was already in a bath washing herself. "You will see him in 15 minutes, Anna."

Anna ignored the woman, and continued to tap the window, until finally, Gil looked in her direction. She could see his depressed eyes widen at her sight, and she just waved at him. Gil nodded back at her, and smiled. She could see him taking his satchel off his neck and hanging it in mid-air, his way of saying to hurry up. Anna blew him a kiss, and he looked a bit confused at the gesture. She simply smirked, and slowly got down into the warm bath.

Anna groaned as her body touched the warm water. She had missed using heated baths. She hadn't washed herself in weeks, and as much as she wanted to absorb the moment and stay in as long as she could, she bathed as fast as possible. Jameka hadn't even started to wash her hair yet, she was too busy soaking in the water when Anna finished.

"Well don't keep that boy, uh, dragon waiting," Jameka laughed.

Anna smiled and looked out the window, and saw Gil staring at the door to the citadel. She hurriedly put a new set of clothes on, provided to her by Farley, and quickly exited the bath complex. As she ran down the halls, she passed the kitchen, and her stomach grumbled at the smell. She figured she may as well get some snacks for both her and Gil.

As Anna entered the kitchen, she nearly doubled over from the smell of cooked food. Everything smelled so delicious, but her eyes locked in on a familiar scent: A cart of four pizzas, left over from the castle supper. The cooks didn't seem to mind when she took the cart and a bottle of wine, and headed for the exit. She nearly started to stuff her face right then and there, but stopped herself.

Anna wheeled the cart to the doors leading to the courtyard, and she smiled as she saw Gil lift his head up from his feet with a big grin on his face. "Look what I found," Anna yelled to Gil across the courtyard, quickly closing the gap between the two of them.

Gil continued to look at Anna, not the food she was wheeling to him, which surprised her. As she got closer to him, she stared up at him in confusion. He was only looking at her, not the food.

"You look wonderful all cleaned up, Anna," he mused. "You look as if nothing has even happened."

Truthfully, the bruises and scars she had received were nearly gone, and Anna looked just like she did when she first met him formally back in White Harbor. She still looked skinny from malnourishment, but her eyes glowed with happiness now, despite the horrors she had endured not long ago. Gil was pleased to see her like this; he was worried she would never go back to how she was after everything she had been through.

Anna patted him on the muzzle as he lowered his head down to her level, nudging her with his nose. "What are you doing," she laughed, as she continued to rub him on the muzzle.

He curled his neck back, looking down at her with a smile. "Roses do smell good on you," he chuckled.

Before Anna could react, he grabbed her in his right foot and the cart in the other, and flew off.

Chapter 10

Despite how strange it must look, Anna enjoyed flying in his feet more than on his back. She liked the feeling of placing her life in his hands, and she knew he wouldn't drop her. From the ground, she must look like she was his food and he was carrying her back to his nest like an eagle.

Anna reached out to grab hold of the food and wine so it wouldn't fall. She wasn't too sure where Gil was taking her, but he probably wanted to be somewhere private to present her with his gift. From the air, she didn't see any trees, only flat grassland.

After a couple minutes of flying, Gil started to descend, heading for a small lake. It was dusk now, and the sun had nearly receded, yet she could still see pretty well. The lake was clear blue, and looked beautiful from the air.

Gil landed on his back feet first, and gently set the cart and Anna down. "You eat first, Anna."

Anna took a few pieces, and started to eat as she sat down on the grass by the lake, and Gil snuggled down next to her, staring at the water with her. Even when he was lying down, he was still massive compared to her. He put his front leg around her, allowing her to lean up against him.

Anna finished eating, and started to take a few sips of wine. It was Forgarian wine, and Anna groaned as she took in the flavor. As she looked over to her side, she giggled as Gil had already devoured the rest of the food, and was licking the top of the cart. He had practically starved himself while he was searching for her, and she didn't make fun of him this time.

The moon was now out, and it illuminated the two of them. Anna noticed that Gil was taking his satchel off, and he peeked inside it. She saw him smile and look up at her.

"Stand up," he told her. Anna stood up, and faced Gil as if she was a dragon slayer standing up to a dragon right in front of her.

"Your father technically made this, but I found all the parts to it," Gil mumbled. "Still, I think it would look great on you; I hope it fits."

Anna's eyes widened as he pulled out a tiara that was sparkling in the moonlight. She saw many gems all along it, ranging from rubies, sapphires, emeralds, diamonds, and even the occasional topaz. However, in the middle of the tiara was a large violet amethyst.

"The violet amethyst supposedly is the reason Malinor chose purple as the Imperial color," he told her, while looking at it. "These are the same gems that once adorned the tiara he had given to Ursalira."

Anna gasped as she stared at the beautiful object. As the Imperial princess, she had received many pieces of jewelry, but none quite like this. "It is magnificent, Gil," Anna whispered.

Gil made a spinning gesture with his claw, and Anna spun around. He then carefully placed the tiara atop her head, where it fit nicely. Anna turned around to look at Gil, and she saw he had tears in his eyes.

"I love it, Gil," Anna told him, as she started to tear up, as well. "My heart belongs to you, Gil, and it always has. Don't forget that."

Anna charged at her love, and buried her face in his chest. "I have always loved you, and I don't need a tiara to admit it," she chuckled.

"But the tiara helped," Gil chuckled.

Anna laughed as well, wiping a tear from her eye. "Of course," she said as she looked up at him. "Jewelry is a girl's best friend."

The two of them kissed each other, and Anna completely lost control. She started to take off her dress, and this time, Gil didn't stop her. Even when Anna was completely nude, Gil didn't come up with an excuse, like when they were still in White Harbor.

"Are you sure you want this, Anna," Gil gasped as he pulled his head away from her embrace.

Anna only stared back at him, looking at every little detail of his orange eyes. "If I start to get uncomfortable, I will let you know," she whispered, and before Gil could even respond, she ducked underneath him.

Gil was a little nervous; he knew he had gotten aroused from the kissing, and he could feel he had an erection. This was the first time she has seen him exposed, even though he had seen her nude many times over the past few weeks. Gil closed his eyes, and pointed his head in the air as he felt her touch him in a location she had never touched before.

Anna stared at Gil's strange looking mating organ. Unlike an orcs, which was rather human-like, only green, Gil's was a light red color, almost pink. It was tapered, and was at least 16 inches long. It was very fat and wide at the base, and Anna saw two strange bulges right above the entrance to his genital slit. It appeared to be some sort of knot, although Anna wasn't too sure. The knot was wider than her fist, and was actually quite hard as she touched it. The flesh coming out of the base was so wide; it was nearly as wide as her head. All along his knot, Anna noticed strange bumps. The rest of the shaft got thinner the closer it got to the tip. Along the rest of the shaft, Anna saw fleshy ridges, similar to the fins on his back, but as she touched them, they were flexible, not hard. The tip of his pink, alien looking organ was almost shaped a bit like a spear head, and Anna marveled at how smooth it looked and felt. The head might be a bit difficult to fit in her, but she knew she could do it. In fact, she reckoned she could fit at least 3 inches into her before it got too large. First, however, she wanted help Gil. After all, he had saved her from a fate worse than death and then gave her a beautiful Tiara. And she loved him.

Anna was completely underneath Gil, and she saw his tail swinging back and forth as she touched him, until it finally calmed down. She took one hand, and started to caress the knot, while she started to rub the ridges with her other hand. Anna continued to experiment, and could even feel his heartbeat as she took hold of him. Gil would sometimes let out a low gasp, and mumble gibberish she didn't understand.

Anna's head was underneath the tip of his organ as she ran her fingers along the underside. She gasped in alarm as she felt warm liquid drop onto her hair, and as she backed up, she saw the tip was leaking clear fluid. Anna put her mouth onto the tip, and started to gently suck while running her tongue along it.

"Anna..." Gil said so low, Anna barely even hear it. She pulled her mouth off his organ, and decided she had played around long enough.

"Gil, lower yourself down closer to the ground," Anna said, still rubbing his length.

Gil gently did as she asked, slowly lowering himself down, until he felt the top of her wet head touch his lower stomach. Gil snaked his head down, to see what was going on, and he saw Anna look back at him with love in her eyes, as she slowly got down on all fours. Gil readjusted himself, and carefully guided his tip into her moist depths. The two of them let out a gasp at the same time, as if they had just lowered themselves into a warm bath.

"I'll be fine, Gil," Anna said as she started to panic. At first, she thought about the orcs, and her experiences with them, but the thoughts drifted away, and only Gil entered into her mind, and it made her feel happy.

Gil snaked his head down between his front legs, where he looked at her upside down. "Just tell me if you need me to stop, Anna," he said firmly.

Anna nodded at him. "I want to look into your face, Gil," she whimpered, as he gently thrust into her. "I want to look into your beautiful eyes, your eyes that are more beautiful than any gem you could give me."

Anna chuckled as she looked into his face. His horns were now scraping the grass, and he looked rather uncomfortable being upside down, but he only smiled at her. She could see the emotions in his eyes, glistening; she saw joy, lust, and most importantly, love staring right back at her. In the dark, his orange eyes almost glowed, and it was one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen.

Staring into his eyes, Anna could feel his warm fluids seeping inside her, making her entire feminine area go numb. He was getting ready to climax, and although she didn't want to admit it to Gil, if only to prevent him from getting too big of an ego, she had already climaxed minutes after he entered her. However, she was almost positive she would release again when he explodes.

Anna let out a loud gasp. She could feel the tip of his organ expand inside her, and she saw him close his eyes, and felt him thrust harder and faster. She didn't mind; he was already as far into her as he could go, and every thrust sent her mind over the edge. Without warning, Gil opened his mouth and his eyes, and he looked right at her when he let out a low growl, and she felt him thrust into her as deep as he could, which nearly knocked her forward.

She let out a loud gasp as he released into her; the feeling of his first squirt into her immediately sent her into a sort of bliss, and she moaned loudly as warmth flooded her. She felt him pull out, where he sprayed the rest of his white liquid forward, as if it was a fountain in a courtyard. He shot strands of milky white fluid right over Anna's head, which hit the ground not far from Gil's face.

For a moment, Anna just sat on the grass. Her entire lower body felt as if it was asleep, but she forced herself to get up anyway. She saw Gil's eyes were squinted, and could hear his heavy breaths, as well as his heartbeat thudding inside his chest. Her heart was beating just as hard, but not anywhere near as loud. As Anna stood up, her head touched his wet organ, and she watched as it slowly started to shrink.

Anna got out from under Gil, and he rolled over onto his side. She looked at where his slit was, and saw his 'snake' was now returning back to it's lair, vanishing from sight. His genital slit slowly started to get smaller, as well. Anna walked over to his head, and slumped down next to it, sitting up against neck.

"So that is how dragons and humans make love," she chuckled as she rubbed his neck.

"Make love," Gil groaned. "If you were a dragon, Anna, I would have been a lot rougher, and you would have loved it even more. For instance, we bite each other on the neck"

Anna took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled. "I did love it, Gil," she said softly. "At first, I panicked and almost told you to stop, but I am so glad I didn't."

Gil sighed. "You should have told me to, Anna. I don't want to rush you or anything, especially with what you have..." Gil stopped, and felt guilt come over him.

Anna patted the underside of his wedge shaped head. "No, it doesn't matter," she whispered. "I only wish you were my first, and my first time wasn't a nightmare."

Gil shifted positions until he was on his stomach, and brought his head down to Anna. She gently touched his face, petting him almost, and leaned in to kiss him on the nose. Anna then looked directly into his eyes.

"Gil," she slowly said. "Why are you so ashamed at your name? I think it is very beautiful."

Anna saw Gil's face twitch, and immediately regretted asking him. She didn't mean to ruin the mood, but it had been eating at her since they first met. The other dragons called him Gildaryus, and she simply didn't know why he was so upset over it.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked," she apologized quickly, looking down at the ground.

Gil looked through Anna, and she saw how hurt he was just by looking in his eyes. She had come to love him so much, that when he hurt, she hurt, and it gutted her to know just how much damage was caused to him emotionally and mentally. However, she really wanted to know him more, so she could help alleviate his pain.

"No," he slowly stated. "I should tell you, Anna."

Chapter 11

"From the moment we hatch, my kind can remember everything that happens in our lives, Anna," Gil said, lost in thought. "The first thing I remember is nothing but darkness."

Gil looked at Anna, the look of confusion on his face. "I don't know how to describe it, Anna," he whispered. "Hatching is...strange."

"I remember shattering the egg with my claws, and I stuck my head out into the world," he smiled, but slowly frowned. "I saw my parents, looking down at me, and I just smiled at them. I knew who they were."

Gil then paused a moment, and Anna saw a tear run down his cheek. "They didn't look at me with love; their faces turned to horror when they saw my color."

"My father looked at my mother in shock, and shook his head as he walked away," Gil said faintly. "My mother stared at me, and she grabbed my head with her claws, and plunged them into the side of my face. It hurt so much, and she soon turned away, and left. I never saw them again."

Anna looked at his face, and she could see a very faint scar on the side of his head, just under his ear. She remembered reading about how red dragons have difficulty producing fire. Maybe his mother damaged his ability to create it?

Gil let out a long sigh, and smiled as Anna hugged him tightly. "Thank you Anna; I needed that."

Gil shook his head in disbelief. "I was abandoned..."

"That is horrible, Gil," Anna mumbled as she wiped her eyes.

"At the time, I didn't even know what I did wrong," Gil said in frustration. "I will never forget the way they looked at me."

Anna looked up at Gil, and caressed his cheeks. "I don't know what to say," she said, her voice wavering with emotions.

Gil shook his head, and kissed her on the forehead. "I was alone for three days, waiting for them to return, until I realized I was on my own, which thankfully wasn't long. I would have died for sure," Gil grumbled as he scratched his head, and then laughed. "A human couple found me, and they were fascinated with me. They gave me food, water, and a home."

Anna smiled at the good news, and laughed at the thought of a human family adopting a dragon hatchling. "How did that go," she asked him, hoping for a happy answer.

Gil smiled. "Their names were Bella and Justin, and they couldn't have children of their own, and surprisingly, they seemed to know that my kind were intelligent; I was no different than a human baby, after all" he chuckled. "They taught me to speak, read, and even started my habit of loving human food. In fact, they even helped me learn to fly."

Anna shook her head as she laughed. "They obviously didn't show you how to eat pies."

Gil rolled his orange eyes. "They were dirt poor, Anna," Gil laughed nervously. "It was mostly soup and bread for them, and meat for me. However, they insisted I eat their food, as well. The two of them didn't eat meat, Anna."

Anna chuckled, and she thought of Julius, her old bodyguard, who was also a vegetarian. "I can see how that might complicate things," Anna told him.

Gil looked up at the night sky and smiled. Anna wasn't sure what he was doing, and then she realized it. Gil was 148 years old; the couple who adopted him were long dead by now, and maybe he was smiling at them in the sky. The thought made her smile in turn.

"They were my real parents, Anna, but..." Gil stopped looking at the sky, and looked depressed again.

"You have to understand," he told her. "My kind live very long lives, but we grow into adulthood quickly. I was a hatching one day, and five years later I was too big to even fit inside their little hut."

Anna could see where he was going, and it made her sad. "They got sick of you eating their food," she asked, trying to be sarcastic.

"Yes, actually," Gil said flatly. "They could no longer feed me, even though I could hunt on my own. They felt the need to cook for me like I was their child. I was only a five year old child to them."

Gil sighed. "Eventually, a drought came, and I knew my time with them was over, even though they would never tell me to leave. I said my goodbyes to them, and although there were tears, they were proud and happy to see me leave, as if I was a child they had raised and was now moving out on my own."

"You know, Anna, they actually gave me a human name, which is too embarrassing to repeat, so if you don't mind I will keep that to myself," he laughed, and stared at Anna, who only smiled back at him.

Gil sighed as Anna stared at him, smiling. "Fine, they named me Robert."

Anna started to laugh so hard, she nearly fell over. "Robert the dragon," she laughed. "How did you get the name Gil then?"

Gil did his best to smile, but Anna saw how difficult it was for him. "Many years before I hatched, a red dragon named Gildaryus terrorized the empire, kidnapping women, killing children, and even slaying the emperor," he said, shaking his head. "You humans, however, know him as Kormor the Cruel."

Anna wasn't too sure how Gildaryus became known as Kormer to humans, but that was that. "Why did he do the things he did, Gil," Anna asked him.

Gil simply stared at the ground. "Love, Anna, he killed because of his love."

Anna stared at Gil in confusion, and Gil smirked at her. "Gildaryus was chosen for the emperor's daughter, and she died in childbirth; an assassin slipped her something to induce labor, which killed both her and her unborn child," Gil's smirk turned into a frown. "He believed it was her father's doing, and vowed his vengeance on the emperor as well as his people."

Anna wasn't sure she believed that story. Surely she would have heard about it, if not from books, then from her father. She was wishing she still had those dragon books with her; maybe they had more to say.

"Anyway, I was given the name from a dragon clan I found when I was on my own," he said in disgust. "That is what they called me, and they even threatened to kill me if they ever saw me again. Atuxan, as well as his brother was in that clan."

Gil sighed. "Even when I flew away, the two of them chased me all the way to Listeria, half the continent away, and I eventually got too exhausted and let them catch me," he said, and winced at the memory. "They were both older and much larger than me. They...nearly killed me, and left me in the snow."

"The name pretty much stuck, as I was called Gildaryus by every dragon I came across, and when you are called a certain name so many times, it just stays with you," Gil shrugged. "I hated it, and I eventually flew to my own little island, away from them all."

Anna was now sitting down between his legs, as his head hovered above her. She was gently rubbing his clawed toes, each flexing as she ran her fingers over them. Gil's feet were hard, and felt like bone, although the underside of them was rather soft and smooth.

"For over a century, I lived on that volcanic island, Anna," Gil told her, in fascination as if he just realized how long he called that place home. "I actually really loved that place; maybe I can take you there sometime."

"What happened then, Gil," Anna said slowly. "How did you come to meet my father?"

Gil let out a happy sigh. "Actually, a male and female dragon came to my home, looking for a new den, and I overheard the male saying he offered his proposal to you," Gil chuckled. "They were siblings, I believe. The more I listened to what this proposal sounded like, the more it fascinated me, so I showed myself, and the two looked at me in disgust, but I didn't care that time. I told them to leave, and they did, however, I left soon after."

"When I arrived in Forgaria, I easily found where the ceremony was taking place; Six, large male dragons in front of a small human and a human baby," Gil told Anna. "It was out of sight, and only the emperor, a female dragon, and you were there, as were the other males."

Gil was enjoying the feeling of Anna massaging his feet, and he rewarded her by using his vacant foot to gently rub her back, careful not to scratch her. "Your father saw me, and couldn't take his eyes off me. Atuxan and his brother, as well as that copper colored dragon were there, and they looked at me with pure hatred when Malcolm told Atuxan he changed his mind, and chose me instead."

Gil decided to leave out the part at how devastated Atuxan was at the outcome. He actually felt bad for the black colored dragon. Gil knew in his heart that Atuxan was the only male who would have actually cared for Anna, although he didn't know for sure until he saw the way he looked at her when they arrived in Auroria.

"Well, your father and I became very good friends, and when he asked my name, Gil just came out, and I went by it ever since," he said happily. "I stayed in my volcanic home for a few years, and even stashed my tiara your father and I made for you inside my den. However, I moved to White Harbor soon after, and I grew to love it."

Anna knew that part, and although she loved her present, she wanted to know more about this female dragon. "The female back in New Haven," she whispered. "She was my father's true love, wasn't she?"

Gil nodded. He wouldn't tell her about who she actually was to Anna; he intended to keep that part secret until Dyaxiss wished to tell her herself. He lowered his head to Anna's level, and looked into her deep blue eyes, which were nearly identical to Dyaxiss'.

Gil let out a loud sigh, as if he had just dumped a load off his shoulders. "I am glad you know more about me, Anna. I already know pretty much all about you, so it is only fair."

Anna scoffed. "Excuse me, Gil," she gasped. "We only just started to actually interact with each other. How do you know all about me?"

Gil lowered his head in embarrassment. "I have good hearing, and sometimes, usually at night, I would make my way over to your bedroom balcony. It was too high up for me too look in, but I just sat beneath it, listening to you talk about everything," he shrugged. "In fact, I remember one day, not long ago, when you had a little 'fun', and a servant girl walked in on you."

Anna's face went completely red. "I wanted you," she said flatly. "That was when I realized I wanted you."

Gil hugged her tightly, squeezing her against his hard chest. "I love you so much, Gil," Anna said as she was squeezed.

Gil opened his mouth and beamed at her. "I know you do; I still remember what you wrote about me in your journal."

Anna laughed loudly and shook her head. She was no longer embarrassed by such things, and she actually smiled as she remembered writing about him. It was starting to get a little cold outside, and the moon was high above them. Anna was beat, yet she didn't want to leave.

"Roll onto your back, Gil."

Anna walked out of his way, and he rolled over onto his back. Anna then climbed on top of him, until she was on his soft yellow underbelly, and she crawled up to his chest. He looked at her, and yawned, which caused her to yawn as well. He folded his wings around her protectively, and the two of them drifted off to sleep besides the still lake glistening in the moonlight.

King Farley slowly made his way into the throne room, where two diplomats waited for him. It was really late at night, but he wanted to get this business over with. In addition to the two diplomats, the head priest of New Haven also waited for him.

"Wellby will join in, as will Halfor," the priest said loudly. "Will Auroria?"

King Farley sat on his throne. "Yes, we will. The city that had taken the world has been taken, and we will take it back from those savages," Farley told the three men.

"Very well," the priest told the three of them. "They have desecrated the Cathedral of Daphne, murdered innocent men, women, and children, and enslaved the survivors. A crusade has been called on White Harbor, and we will take it back from the orcs, or die trying."

In the frozen wasteland of Listaria, two robed women sat in front of an altar inside a large stone tower. Inside the tower was warm, despite it being freezing outside. It was warm inside the stone tower despite there being no torches or fires. Magic kept the two women warm.

"It is done then, my sister," one of the women said faintly. "They have mated, and in less than a year, Anna Comnenus will die attempting to give birth to...a dragon."

The other woman, who was much younger than her sister, shook her head. "Should she and her 'child' die, the world will plummet into darkness, Gertrude. We must prevent her and her 'spawns' death."

The older woman stared at her sister. "We must let them die, Cassandra," Gertrude murmured. "We can't trust a vision. The orcs will be the rulers of Euphaea in a few years, and we must get on their good side."

Cassandra looked at her sister in shock. "There is a chance to prevent the darkness from spreading, sister. I am going to help Anna and her unborn offspring, with or without you."

Gertrude smiled at her younger sister. "I already made a deal with the orcs. Our magic will make them respect us, sister. I can't allow you to help Anna."

The two women stared at one another. Gertrude glared at Cassandra, and Cassandra looked at Gertrude in disbelief. Finally, Cassandra made a run for the door, which was quickly shut in front of her.

Almost immediately, Gertrude summoned a blast of fire, and shot the flames towards her sister. Cassandra closed her eyes, and spread her arms out to her sides, and vanished before the flames could engulf her. Gertrude started to laugh as her sister vanished into thin air.

"It is hopeless, Cassandra," she yelled. "The age of humanity is coming to an end! Anna will die, and the dragons will be extinct in less than a decade!"

Gertrude sat down, and started to laugh. Her foolish sister was going to help the humans, and she was going to help the orcs. Nothing can stop the new world from being born.