Winterfall

"What now?" I was lost.

"The markings of a Dragon King. A dragon destined to rule over the lands."

"I'm still lost."

Theo sighed, "Those chosen will bear the markings of the Dragon King, the king who once ruled over the dragons."

I sat down next to him. "So, Dragon's have kings now?"

"It was always just a tale to us. A tale our draconic parents would tell us to help us fall asleep. It's like your fairytales. But the dragon version."

"Can I hear it?" I was hoping it would help me understand. I have yet to hear of this.

"And you weren't supposed to. It's a tale amongst dragons. But he permitted me to tell you."

"Who is he?"

"My mentor. One of the Great Ones."

The Great Ones. That I remember him briefly mentioning. Dragon are destined to become gods or kings. Wait… "Does that mean…" Was he going to be the next one?

"I think so. But the visions were unclear for me to fully decipher in the time I was given, to look in the past, present, and future."

"Is that what was happening?"

"Yes. I was given the chance to glimpse into my past - borrowed knowledge, so to speak, present - current use of abilities, and future - knowledge yet to be discovered."

"Can we backtrack a moment?" He nodded, "What was the tale?"

"There once was a powerful dragon. One they called the Dragon King. The Dragon King had many wives to bear his children. One of each dragon type. Those children will be granted powers beyond that, that is ordinary. Those children will be faced with challenges to prove their strengths. Their testaments. Their willpower. Those marked with crowns and dragon claws are destined to be the next King. The chosen are selected not at random but by their bloodline."

He looked me over to get a quick reading, "Don't worry, The Dragon King is not bad. It is a good thing. It gives us a better chance at defeating Marcel."

"Multiple wives?" I glared at him.

He laughed, "That was the first. It has evolved since then; I promise you that. Dragons aren't all barbaric regarding who we bed down with." He kissed my cheek, "Aren't I supposed to be the jealous one?"

I rolled my eyes, "Fair enough. What else happens in this tale?"

"Once chosen, challenges will be throughout the dragon's adult life. And the new dragon king shall be proclaimed by the time they reach their Ancient years."

"Are there multiple chosen ones?"

"There is one chosen one at a time. Once the previously chosen person has died, a new one will be selected based on certain criteria. One being their bloodline. Two are their destiny. Three being their abilities and skills they have already acquired."

"You know, this lines up with what my father had said. Two will rule them all. Was he referencing you with the dragons and me with the kingdom?"

"That seems more likely." Theo said, "We should probably get going soon. We haven't used much of your ring abilities, but we can't be out too late. The devil may get suspicious."

My muscles tensed at just the sheer thought of him. "You just had to mention him, didn't you?"

"Come on." He said as he stood up and helped me get to my feet. "We will train in the morning for combat. I'll try not to go rough on you this time."

"Please, I can handle it." I elbowed him in the side.

He grunted a little, but I could tell he was faking. "I don't need to break you. But if you want rough, I can go rougher." My eyes widened a bit. I saw how he was with some of his guards, like Quinn. I knew he felt my burst of fear run through my body, to which he just smiled at me, "Not afraid of me, are you?"

"More afraid of my bones breaking. That's painful."

He laughed, "Good. I'll try to go easy on you unless you get more aggressive. That's it. The more aggressive you get, the more aggressive I will get."

I thought about it for a moment, "That's fair."

"See you tonight?"

I nodded and let him leave first this time. Instead of going straight to the castle, he walked toward his office. You don't need to follow Maria. I need to finish up a few things before bed. We can discuss more about what happened in our dream tonight.