Robbin's POV
"These five young men are known to be affiliated with a rogue pack that has brought sorrow to this kingdom." King Weldon spoke out to his people as I watched in horror. "Instead of giving us the wear boots of their leader, Ryker Arden, they will take full responsibility for the crimes committed in the Easterlie kingdom. Members of the rogue pack, you have defied the laws of the Easterlie kingdom. For that, you five will pay an ultimate price-"
"Stop!" I shoved Xander and Grey with much force as I pushed past them, stumbling slightly. The eyes of the kingdom were trained on me. I straightened myself out and spoke to them. "You can't do this, they're just kids. How could you execute them without the offering of a trial?" People mumbled softly at my outburst, but king Weldon remained silent.
"They refused to speak," the king stated. "Their lack of cooperation is the reason why we won't hold a trial."
"But-"
"Dragon Queen. You have no say in this matter. Your presence here does not allow you to decide their fates."
Xander placed his arm on my shoulder in an attempt to pull me back, but I grabbed it and pleaded. "Xander, you can't let him do this. They're only children!"
"I can't stop this any more than you can." His expression was cold but I saw the level of unsure in his eyes. Why? Why won't he do something?
"These are your people. Your kind! What is the matter with you?" I felt my voice rise as I tightened the grip on his arm. Xander yanked his hand away and quickly grabbed mine instead.
"We have no jurisdiction here, Robbin. I'm sorry." Xander's eyes were somber as they looked down at me and his grip waivered, freeing my wrist. I let it fall to my side as the realization sunk in. Five young men were going to die for the crimes of someone else. Someone more vicious than them and there wasn't anything we could do to stop it. I watched as Easterlie guards brought the boys up one by one, each of them standing directly under a noose with their hands tied behind their backs. The ropes were placed over their heads and king Weldon walked up to each of them, asking for their last words. Still, not one of them spoke a word. Their loyalty to Ryker was sickening. They would rather sacrifice themselves than turn him in. I doubt they even followed him willingly. Ryker was a deceitful wolf who probably threatened them to join his pack. He rules over their fear. "Look away, Robbin," Xander whispered, placing a comforting hand on my back. I shook him away and kept looking ahead with sadness and defeat.
King Weldon lifted a dagger and cut the trap door rope, dropping all five boys to their deaths. Each struggled for one last breath of air but ultimately got any. The struggle ended and their faces grew still and cold as they swung slightly, dead.
The throne room was silent. No one dared speak out against the king, no matter how freeing this country was. It didn't matter, though. They were already dead.
~*~
The fly back to the Northerner kingdom was numbing. I couldn't bring myself to focus on the flight and gave Vision control. My mind wouldn't clear itself. The thought of those five boys dying for the leader was horrifying. Not the killing. I've killed enough people to set aside my morals, but I've never killed someone so young. I was above that.
When we finally arrived in the Northerner kingdom, the weather had changed dramatically. The winds, as always, were colder and more fresh due to us being in the mountains, and it was also winter, which meant snow was expected soon. Nightfall had fallen over the capital and the castle was silent. I was tired from the flight but didn't want to go to bed. A fight with Xander was likely to happen so when we landed, I went to the training center under the castle.
It was far more efficient than the ones above ground, being decorated with more modern equipment. I didn't care for them, though. The standard sword was all I ever used, though to be honest, I hadn't actually used one in a fight yet, other than the raid on the Northerner castle some time ago. I picked up one of the katana swords that hung on one of the walls. It was fairly large and weighed nicely in my hands. I've always admired a blade with a curve. Something about them made cutting far easier. I looked down at the weapon I held and traced my finger over its edge. My mind involuntarily flashed back to the execution that took place a day ago.
"That's a good one," A voice spoke from behind me. I jumped from the sudden sound and turned quickly to find Alec standing some feet away. He was still in his dark uniform as he stood there watching me.
"You scared me," I admitted. I closed the blade and placed it back on the rack, walking away from the blades altogether.
"My apologies." Alec put one of his hands on his stomach and bowed down. I knew it was a joke to lighten the mood, but I wasn't ready to put the past behind me. "It's late, Robbin. You should get some rest."
"I don't want to sleep." I went to grab one of the bo staffs that were lined up along another wall. It felt heavy in my hands and my strength internally waivered. I was tired, but sleeping isn't going to help clear my mind. The staff began spinning lightly in my hands as I tried to block Alec out. It was slow enough for him to grab it out of my hands. "What are you doing?"
"What are you doing? Why do you always think everything is much harder on you?" The question left me shocked and I remained silent. "Ever since you became Xander's mate, it seems you've made it your life's mission to act out when something doesn't go your way. Have you considered how Xander feels? You fell into his life without warning and have wreaked havoc here ever since. You were never this selfish, Robbie." Alec's words came out in a hurry. I wasn't offended in the slightest. I was more focused on the fact that he said everything in the Westerlie tongue.
I stared blankly at him, trying to come up with some solution for his sudden outburst. I couldn't. There was no logical reason why Alec would want to speak Westerlie, or even say every word so smoothly. His facial expression contorted from anger to concern but it wasn't directed toward me. It was for himself. Alec blinked twice before straightening himself out and remain ultimately immobile. "What did you say," I asked. Not because I misheard him. I just wanted to know if he misheard himself?
Still, he stood tensely in his place, like a child getting caught by an adult when they did something wrong, something they were trying to hide. "What, you didn't hear me," he responded nonchalantly, although he still acted uneasily.
"Of course I heard you, Alec. What I want to know is why I'm hearing it in the Westerlie tongue." We both stood parallel to each other in some form of a stand-off. I'd never hurt Alec. He looked conflicted as we faced each other before letting out a small sigh, indicating he was about to talk, but it wasn't him who spoke first.
"What are you two doing?" Xander's voice echoed throughout the training center as he walked over to us.
I didn't acknowledge his presence and kept my eyes on Alec. "We're having a private conversation. Please leave."
"Seeing as Alec is my royal advisor and only serves me, I think I'll stay."
I turned to Xander who looked disheveled. "This doesn't concern you, Xander."
"I wasn't asking." His voice was still and tempered and frankly, I didn't feel like arguing.
"Fine," I gave in. "Alec was just about to explain to me how he found the time to speak the Westerlie language fluently.
"Ah, so this is finally coming to light." I gave Xander a wide-eyed look. Did he know?
"You knew-wait, what is going on here?"
"Tell her," Xander demanded. Alec exhaled and began to look empathetic. I glared at Alec, neurotic.
"Fine, but I was hoping to prolong this as much as I could." Alec looked down at me and began confessing. "Robbin, I am not who you've perceived me to be, but I am someone you know." He seemed hesitant in continuing, glancing between me and Xander briefly. "My name is not Alexander. I...am David." My whole body was still but my face showed bits of anger and disappointment. Inside, however, I was sad. "During the time you knew me in the past, I was a known werewolf visiting the Westerlie kingdom. But I never revealed my true self to you.
THE PAST
Alec's POV
"Do you really have to go, David," Princess Robbin whined as I packed the rest of my things.
"Complaining won't slow me down." I swung the small bag over my shoulder and looked at her. Her tight braids were hanging over her shoulders as she stood crossed arms pouting at me. "I'll be back soon, I promise. I placed a comforting hand on Robbin's shoulder and she reluctantly stepped aside for me to leave.
It wasn't a choice. My time in the Westerlie kingdom was never supposed to extend longer than four months. I stood for two years. I couldn't help it, though. Going back home to the Easterlie kingdom wouldn't give me any answers. I needed to go North and find her, my mother. Robbin wouldn't understand. She didn't know of my true origins, that I was of mixed blood and lied about coming to the Westerlie kingdom to learn more about dragon blood. The macers in the Southerner kingdom didn't have many answers for me. It's too rare for werewolf and dragon to reproduce. But my parents did and left me to deal with the mysteries of it all by myself.
My time here was wasted, though. I don't know which parent was what so I didn't know who I was looking for here. Maybe it's for the best. Maybe I should quit while I'm ahead. But if I do that, where will that leave me? No, I have to see this through.
The last place I'll look is the Northerner kingdom. If I can't trace my dragon origins, maybe I'll have better luck with the werewolf part of me. So, I left. I left Princess Robbin after she took me in after finding me wandering the capitol streets and the great people I've come to know during my time here. Perhaps one day I'll return with more answers than questions.
The Northerner kinder was far colder than I was used to. But in all the woods, I felt strangely comfortable. The warmth of the dragons fueled me, but it was the feeling of being in the forest that felt calming. Soon after arriving, I learned more about my culture than I did in the Easterlie kingdom. It seemed to be going well.
I just didn't expect to find something I wasn't looking for.
Love.
I first saw her in her wolf form. She was coated in her chestnut colored fur. She hunted with ease and sprinted across fields within moments. I'd never wanted to be around someone as much as I did with her. She was captivating. In her human form, her light brown eyes were dipped with honey as they looked at me. I would've spoken to her sooner if she wasn't mated. The blond haired man who constantly held her attention was everywhere she was. It was near impossible to see her alone. I'm sure she noticed me lurking wherever she stood and finally one day, she confronted me on it.
He body was hard not to stare at as it tempted every instinct in my mind, daring me to pounce at her, but I held it all in. at first, she wondered who I was and why I was stalking her, even going so far as to threaten me. I didn't have an answer for following her, but I explained how I grew up in the Easterlie kingdom and wanted to explore my origins, intentionally leaving out the fact that I was half dragon. I even found out her name. Mae. Of course, it was. A beautiful name for a majestic creature.
Seeing her became a regular thing, in the sense that I wasn't meters behind her anymore. It didn't last long, though. My scent was constantly on her and soon, her mate found out about me. He was jealous of the time we spent together and warned me to stay away.
I was furious. The short time we had together was enchanting. I didn't care who he was. The urge to keep her by my side was driving me insane, so I did the one thing werewolves fear. I challenged him for her and surprisingly, Mae wanted me to. The walks we took together in our human forms, she feared that her mate wasn't that interested in her. He'd only use her for intimate purposes and completely ignored her feelings. Knowing that alone was enough to drive the rage I hadn't known existed until now.
So we battled. It was long a tiring, especially since I wasn't used to being in my wolf form for so long. When I thought I had one, he turned the tables and grabbed Mae from the crowd that watched. Enraged by the thought of his mate leaving him for someone else drove him mad. His paw pressed on her neck and I knew what he planned to do. I charged over to stop him but before I could reach him, he ripped out Mae's neck with his teeth. If he couldn't have her, no one could.
I couldn't believe it. My body felt so much anger that I snapped, jumping onto him and munched at his head until there wasn't any more resistance. The battle ended but nobody was victorious. Everyone lost, but no one more than Mae.
I was heartbroken over this and nearly took my own life. I blamed myself for her death and wanted to rot away, but soon found out that I didn't age normally and stood this way for a long time.
Throughout the years, I decided to stay in the Northerner kingdom. It was the only place I was closest to her. I even changed my name a few times to avoid the conversation of my mixed blood. It wasn't until I started living in the capitol when the royal family noticed me. I had been there when the rogues stormed the kingdom and were caught in the crossfire. I could've walked away from it all, but a young boy caught my attention. He was cornered by a few of the rogues and I knew I couldn't leave him to die.
I managed to fight them off, but the young child was traumatized by the whole ordeal. It wasn't until after the battle that I found out who he was. Prince Xander Nightwalker. Heir to the throne of the Northerner kingdom.
After some searching, they tracked me down as the prince wanted to thank me for rescuing him for the same fate as his parents and wanted me to stay in the palace with them. I told them I wasn't any kind of guard and wasn't even a Northerner citizen, but Xander didn't care. I think he just didn't want to be alone.
I agreed to watch over the princes and later found out about the fate of princess Robbin after all the years I'd been away. Part of me felt guilty for breaking my promise. She was a good person to me, her and her family. I wish we had a long goodbye. In the end, I found meaning to my life. It wasn't what I was looking for, though. I guess this kingdom has that effect of foreigners.