Fanfiction ► Black Blood ~an original fic

[angel princess]

Well, here's a fantasy original my friend and I have been working on... hope you like it, and if not, i'm sorry... cause I think it's really cool. ^.^

Summary: Selintra, the human countryside, is controlled by the Black Blood, and that's how it's been for five hundred years. Two humans living in the Elvin country decide they want to know where they came from. They were orphaned six years ago, and have no idea who they really are, but they soon discover the Black Blood would rather they didn't exist...

Sheila laughed and danced around her half-brother as he stood on the balcony, calmly watching the storm overhead. Lightning split the sky and thunder cracked above their heads as the rain came down in torrents.

“C’mon, Raiku. Have some fun for a change!”

Raiku just reached his hand into a pocket and pulled out a black blindfold, tying it over red eyes with half of them a crescent of black, the knot tight in silver hair that hung to his shoulders.

Sheila just shook her wet hair, black as the night sky and about an entire foot longer in length than Raiku’s. “Just because we’re both pure darkness doesn’t mean we have to spend our entire life in it.”

Raiku’s voice was soft, calm, and unperturbed. “You are pure darkness, I am only half.”

“Just because mom liked having lots of husbands doesn’t change the Black Blood in you,” she laughed. “You’re still going to be my advisor when I inherit the throne, since you can’t be king.”

“Unless Mom gives me the throne next year,” he answered quietly.

She sniffed and jumped onto the balcony railing, twirling around and bouncing on the thin beam.

“You’re going to kill yourself doing that someday.”

“Hey, how’d you know I was up here?”

Raiku just smiled. “Don’t trip.” He walked into the room and shrugged off the sopping wet black cloak, revealing the black, long-sleeved shirt and pants underneath. He sighed as he flopped onto his bed and slipped into a world of dreams.
~~~
Kalyn glanced at the stars. It was late, and she should go to bed, but she was engrossed too deeply in her book. She turned back to the book she was reading. Learning came easy to her, and her older brother was kind enough to teach her everything he learned.

In Falin, boys were required to go to school. Girls could, but Kalyn had too much work on the farm to do, and she was afraid that the teasing the village kids gave her would only be worse in school.

Kalyn was of human blood, but lived in an Elvin country. She’d tried asking her mother, back when the woman was alive, why they didn’t live in Selintra, but she never got a straight answer. The two children were orphans, really. Their mother had died when Kalyn was ten, and Jax thirteen. Being orphaned had brought on constant teasing from the village children, on top of pink hair and freckles. Plus round ears. Her eyes were the same blue as them, but they didn’t notice that much. The princess Twila had taken a liking to Kalyn’s hair, and often let her in the palace library to read the many books her brother raved about when he came home from school.

Kalyn’s brother Jax looked identical to Kalyn, except his hair was blonde. He wore it like most Elvin boys, tied in a ponytail that hung to the waist. It wasn’t a fair blonde like Elves, it was a dirty blonde, like his mother’s. He didn’t get teased, probably because boys just didn’t care about that sort of thing while girls did. Kalyn had her father’s hair, whom neither of the children had ever met. Jax said he vaguely remembered a guy who was probably their dad, but he had only been three years old when Kalyn was born, and that was when their father vanished from their mother’s memory. She never said why he left, only that he did. Jax liked to entertain friends with stories of his father’s brutal murder and their narrow escape from the hands of the Black Blood king. Kalyn knew that they weren’t true, but she enjoyed them herself. Both her and her brother loved to read gruesome tales of death and heroic battles. Ironically, Jax loved the hidden romances and secret loves that often appeared while Kalyn hated them. She thought love was overrated and that true love was for children’s fairy tales. She wanted to live an adventure, to travel across the world. She dreamed of fighting side by side with her brother to overthrow the Black Blood king with the Elves. Elves paid a lot of attention to what went on in Selintra. They believed that Black Blood was the ultimate evil, and if it could be stopped, then the world would be purified. They were angry their ancestors had not intervened and destroyed Black Blood while it was small. But back then, Elves had been neutral, peace loving creatures. Now they were peace seekers. They planned to bring an end to all evil, forever. History and Literature were heavy subjects in the schools. Only a few boys took battle training, and Jax was one of them. That was one thing he refused to teach Kalyn. He believed fighting was for the men, not the women. Kalyn disagreed. She thought that women could fight just as well as men, and she’d proved it several times by besting him in a duel, even with his training. Of course, that was last year. He’d been through advanced courses now and easily got her to the ground. Humans weren’t built with the grace of Elves, which made much of the sword tactics harder to master, yet Jax managed to progress just as well as the rest of the students.

Kalyn sighed as she set her book down and walked into her bedroom, giving into her exhaustion. She crawled under the covers of her bed, staring out at the stars through the window beside her. Jax's soft breathing a few feet away helped to still her mind. She wanted to leave and find out whey they were in the Elvin land. It didn't seem fair that they had their past hidden from them. As Kalyn closed her eyes and slowly fell asleep, she decided she was going to find out for herself who she really was and where she really belonged. She was going to run away.

 

[GuardianOfHearts]

You're doing well. :3 I like it, it captures interest, though you could work on the characters a little more. But all in all, good job.

 

[angel princess]

Thanks. I wasn't sure how many reviews this would get, since i'm a pretty new author, but I'm glad I have one. ^.^ Thanks so much.

The next chap's coming a little slow, cause I'm revising it, trying to dig deeper into who they really are, basically I'm taking your advice... =P

 

[angel princess]

Well, I did my best to display most of their character... >.0 Jax and Raiku's are a bit harder, but Kalyn's should shine through bright and clear. =P

Raiku’s eyes popped open and he quickly rolled off the bed, just barely missing the blade of a knife in his back. As he stood up, he could sense his attacker on the other side of the bed. His blindfold was still in place, which made it impossible to see anything, but Raiku doubted that if he took it off there would be any light in the room to see by.
Pushing down any worry, fear, and anger that could keep him from focusing on his senses, Raiku stepped softly around the bed. If the room really was as dark as he thought it was, then his attacker couldn’t see him either. He felt blindly in his mind for the other person’s emotions. Satisfaction was in them. That meant they thought he was dead, good. Raiku carefully stepped behind him and grabbed their throat, cutting off all air.
“Are you rebelling alone?” he whispered harshly. “No, who hired you?”
The man did nothing but struggle for air.
Raiku tightened his hands. “I said, who hired you?”
Again, there was no answer, but the writhing stopped and the man completely relaxed, slumping to the floor when Raiku released him.
Raiku’s face tensed as he ran to his sister’s room, yanking off his blindfold. He slammed the door open and she sat up so fast, it was impossible to tell if she’d even been asleep.
Her room was completely empty, with no one in it.
“So she’s safe...” he thought. “Then they were only after me?”
A loud shout from his mother and stepfather’s bedroom told him otherwise. He ran down the hall, Sheila on his heels, nearly tripping over her black nightgown. He walked in to find his mother with a knife through her chest and his stepfather kneeling by her side in tears.
“No...” he whispered frantically. “How did they get past the guards?!” he cried.
Sheila glanced around. “Well... the window’s open. Maybe they found a way to climb up the wall.”
Raiku’s stepfather turned to him angrily. “You! This is your fault!”
Raiku’s eyes widened as wide as they could. “Are you crazy?! What are you talking about?!”
“How else could you have known that your mother was killed? You hired the man who did it!”
“I did not! Whoever hired someone to kill her, also tried to kill me! Just look at the corpse on my bedroom floor!”
“And now you’re just using him as an alibi.” To the guards in the room the king said, “Lock him up. Make sure he doesn’t escape. Obviously he wants the throne a little early.”
Raiku’s eyes grew bigger, if that was even possible as two guards grabbed his arm. “You can’t do this to me! I’m the prince!”
“And I’m the king.” His stepfather turned away and carefully touched his wife’s forehead, tears falling from his cheeks.
Raiku’s eyes glistened from both anger and sorrow. In the seventeen years of his life, he’d never cried. Not once. Not even when he was an infant, so his mother claimed. Tears were for the weak. He didn’t need them. Yet now there seemed to be no way to hold in the hate for his stepfather and the grief over his mother. If he could, he would’ve reached for his blindfold. No reason to let Sheila know his was crying. Sheila... she’d help him out. Of course she would. She knew he would never do anything to hurt his mother.
By this time, the guards had him down to the dungeon. Raiku stared through blurred vision at the musty stone walls and bench, not even hearing the heavy metal door slam behind him as he sank to his knees, his entire body shaking from the strength of holding in the rest of his emotion.
Sheila walked over to the window, hiding her own tears. Why wasn’t she dead? Nobody had tried to kill her. The yellow sun slowly appeared over the hills. Her brother and best friend was imprisoned over nothing and her mother was dead. Her father was angry and acting rashly. He just wanted someone to blame for her mother’s death and Raiku was the first person who came to his mind. It wasn’t fair. Maybe she’d be able to talk to him after he had quieted down some.

Kalyn yawned and stretched as the warm light covered the bedroom through the small window. Jax was still asleep. “Good,” she thought. Tiptoeing, she went to the chest at the foot of her brother’s bed and grabbed some clothes out of it. She slipped out of her nightgown, not minding that her brother’s shirt and pants were too big for her. She tied a belt around her waist to keep the shirt from sagging too much and the pants around her hips. Finally, she took her sword and hung it on her leather waistband. She’d always found this clothing much more comfortable than the tight dresses Elvin girls wore.
The heaviness of the blade on her waist meant little to her as she walked out to the stables. She was barefoot, her only shoes made for show, not travel, but her brothers pants hung long enough anyway to cover her feet entirely. Besides, she was used to wrking barefoot on the farm for long hours.

There were three horses in their barn--Shadow, Bellatrix, and Blackie. Blackie was Kalyn's horse, but he was far too small for the long journey through Selintra. Shadow was her brother's horse. She wished she could take him, but her brother would come after her if she did. That certainly wasn't what she wanted. So, as silently as she could, Kalyn saddled up Bellatrix. Bellatrix wasn't often ridden, except for the few trips to tow, and Jax was the one who usually made those anyway.

Quickly, Kalyn did a mental checklist of her chores. There was nothing Jax couldn't handle by himself. Mounting her horse, she kept it at a careful walk so as not to wake anyone. Not until she had reached the outskirts of the village did she speed up the gait.

 

[angel princess]

Well, I figure it has 34 views... someone must be reading it. I only regret that I can't take any advice on making it better... ;.;
This chapter's a little short... but the dividing point was so perfect I couldn't help myself...

Raiku slowly raised his head as a guard opened the door and Sheila walked in. She disdainfully glared at the terrible conditions the room was in before acknowledging her brother. “I know you didn’t do it.”
“Well, what does that do? I’m sure Marin’s excited that a full blood is going to inherit the throne now.”
“Dad’s too heartbroken over Mom to care about anything right now, at least, I think... There’s been talk in the halls.”
“Oh, so you’ve been eavesdropping on the servants, have you? Which one let in the murderer and would-be-murderer?”
“It wasn’t them. Dad did it. They’ve been talking about how angry he’s been over a half-blood inheriting the throne when a full breed could have it. So, according to them, he killed Mom and you, because otherwise Mom would probably have him killed and just find another husband if he didn’t support you, and since you survived, he blamed her death on you. But that’s just kitchen talk.”
“Except it almost makes sense,” Raiku muttered. “Can’t you get me out of here?”
Sheila shrugged. “Doubt it. Dad won’t even talk to me. Probably won’t say anything for another week or two except for decreeing your sentence, calling it grief over mom. I don’t get it. Us Black Blood aren’t supposed to have emotions... But you and I both cried too.”
“I’m a half-blood.”
“True... but I’m not.” Sheila cocked her head, looking to her older brother to answer her questions and satisfy her never-ending curiosity.
The silver-haired boy shrugged stood up from the stone seat. “I guess I’ll let myself out.” Raiku closed his red eyes and hugged his little sister. “Since I can never come back, I’ll never see you again, so I suppose this is good-bye.”
Sheila separated herself from him and nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. Just don’t get caught, or you’ll really be in trouble. And stay out of the towns. You don’t want to have the villagers kill you for being Black Blood.” The twelve-year old girl gave him a half smile before leaving the room.
Raiku sighed. Pulling out his blindfold, he covered his eyes and put his gloved palms together. He slowly pulled them apart, and as he did, a paper thin black swirl with a purple core extended towards his hands until it grew wide and tall enough to match Raiku’s size. Raiku carefully stepped into the portal. No sooner had he vanished than did the swirl disappear with him. He stepped onto a grassy field and collapsed, dripping with sweat from the effort of traveling so far of a distance.

Kalyn smiled to herself as the warm sunshine heated her from the inside out. She was lying next to a stream as Bellatrix rested from the hard ride to the edge of this forest. Kalyn didn’t know how far they’d ridden, or how far they had left to go, but she could probably make it to Selintra tonight. Judging by the sun, it was almost noon. Kalyn slowly realized how stupid she’d been. She should’ve done some careful planning, know where she was going, and have supplies with her. All she had was a sword and a horse. It was funny how she managed to remember a sword and not food.
Kalyn stood up with a sigh and rubbed Bellatrix’s soft, brown nose. Smiling at her horse, she mounted and gave the mare a soft kick with her heels to get her across the small creek.

Jax yawned as he sat up. He glanced at Kalyn’s bed, surprised to find it empty. She usually slept in way longer than he did when he had no school. After getting out of bed, he dressed quickly and walked out to the stables. It was way too late for breakfast, and lunch was only an hour away anyway. He’d eat in town, pick up some food for dinner, and come back home to start his chores.
Jax was surprised to find Bellatrix gone, and figured Kalyn was in town. Shaking his head, he mounted Shadow. He loved riding bareback as much as his sister did. The only reason they even had a saddle was just because there were those few times he had something formal at school to go to and needed a saddle. When he noticed that one of the bedrolls was gone, he started to get confused. Dismounting and walking back to the house, Jax did a check to make sure nothing else was missing. Everything was in place, except for Kalyn’s sword. Rolling his eyes, Jax grabbed some supplies and a bed roll, and loaded them onto Shadow. It was pretty clear to him she’d run away. Kalyn didn’t plan much. She always acted before she thought. Taking a sword was all she would think about. The bed roll was probably an afterthought, as it was right in the stable. Kalyn was obviously going to Selintra, and wouldn’t check maps for the best route there, instead heading directly south-east. Jax remembered that there was a forest and a mountain range to go through if you headed directly there. The mountain range was the border, and the forest was just before the mountains, disappearing into the rocky hills. He picked up his own sword, hung it on his belt, slung a quiver of arrows and a bow over his back, and scribbled a quick note to his friend—who was supposed to be coming over to practice fencing later—before mounting Shadow and heading towards Selintra, hoping he could overtake his sister before she got too far ahead of him. He double checked for a map so he could reroute their course before galloping away from their farm.

 

[angelprincess]

Well.... 34 to 43... there's gotta be somebody... Please say something! Someone? At least email me CC.... please?

Lila sighed as she ran the gemmed brush through her dirty-blonde hair. Her blue eyes were completely dazed as she dreamed of what tonight would be like. For several months now, she had been secretly visited by Darik, the man of her dreams. Lila loved the mystery behind him, the dark secrets hidden inside him. His black hair that covered most of his face, the glinting red eyes with their single black crescent on the right side instead of a pupil, the rumors that he and his sister were incarnates of evil itself. For all they knew, he could be an Elvin fugitive, turning to Humans for help. He did have the pointy ears.

But according to rumors, his mother had been the first successor to the throne, and then a male cousin was born. By law, men were crowned before women, no matter the birth order. They said that his mother, Diana, was angry and ran from the palace. She slaughtered whole villages, and made men dance to her every whim. Just before she was caught, she disappeared into the forest, the only one in Selintra. She was never found. Sixteen years after, Diana came out with two twins. Darik and Darlanna. There was no father ever found. The children both could control darkness and move shadows, which led the forest to be called the Darkbirth, where evil was born.

Lila knew all this and didn’t care. They could say he was evil, but she was head over heels for him. Not only was he very pleasing to the eye, she thought he was the most charming boy she’d ever met. As she set down the brush, her window creaked open. Her eyes lit and she rushed to it, staring at the night sky. There was nothing but glittering stars. With a sigh she sank down onto the heavily cushioned window seat. Lila turned around and jumped violently as she came face to face with Darik, sitting at her feet with a smirk on his face. The princess squealed softly and jumped on him. Both tumbled to the floor in a tangle of kisses and hugs. Darik laughed softly to himself at her enthusiasm.

“You got in fast this time,” she whispered, catching her breath.

“My powers are developing quickly.”

“Your fangs are sharper and bigger, too.”

Darik smiled. “Do you mind?”

“Not at all,” she whispered back, kissing him again.

A door slammed open behind them. Lila jumped to her feet. Darik seemed to melt into Lila’s shadow and disappeared.

In the doorway stood Lila’s mother and father. “Where is he?” her father shouted at her.

Lila’s eyes grew wide. “What are you talking about?”

“I know he’s in here!”

Lila’s mother walked into the room and glanced around. She walked to the open window, the breeze blowing her long pink hair behind her. “Is this how he got out?”

“What are you talking about?” Lila asked, trying to hide her worry.

“Alula told us everything,” her mother said, turning around.

Lila’s younger sister peeked her head in the doorway. “I’m sorry, Lila. It just wasn’t right.” The small girl was only six years old, and Lila had trusted her enough to confide her relationship with Darik.

Lila bared her teeth in a snarl and charged Alula. “How could you?!”

The little girl screamed, but Lila’s parents grabbed Lila before she could hurt her sister.

“Lila, get a hold of yourself!” her father yelled. “Now where did he go?”

“I don’t know,” Lila answered tearfully.

“Yes, you do,” her mother said, much more calmly than her father. “Now please tell us.”

“I don’t know. He disappeared, okay? He hasn’t been able to do it before, at least not for this long. So I have no idea where he is.”

“You understand that you can’t ever see him again, don’t you? He’s evil, Lila.”

“No he’s not! He’s really nice! But you’re all too prejudice to pay attention! He can’t help the way he was born! And he’s not controlled by the darkness! He can make his own decisions!”

“Lila, he’s a part of the darkness, born of evil. He can’t be trusted.”

The tears were rolling fiercely down Lila’s cheeks now. “He’s not evil! He’s just.... just....”

“Just what?” her father asked. “Come, you’re moving rooms.”

“What? No! I am not!” Lila shrieked. “What if he comes back for me?!” As soon as the question was out of her mouth, Lila knew she shouldn’t have asked it, because the answer was as plain as day to her. Darik was to be executed, and this room was going to become a trap to catch him.

Lila hardly bothered to struggle as her parents led her up one of the towers into a windowless room that had a single door. It wasn’t furnished, and the walls and floor were simply stone. The room was round, no corners or anything for hiding things.

“Please trust us,” her mother said as she closed the door. “It’s for your own good.”

Lila didn’t answer except stare at the hard ground. She gasped and covered her mouth as her shadow began to move and take a solid form. Within seconds, Darik was sitting in front of her.

“How did you do that?” she asked, barely above a whisper.

“I told you my powers were getting stronger,” he said, pulling her down to the floor and into a kiss.

After a very, very long and just as passionate kiss they parted.

“What are we going to do?”

Darik shrugged. “I guess never see each other again.”

“No! I won’t stay here alone.”

“Then what do you suggest we do? I’ll be killed if your parents catch me.”

Lila’s lower lip started to tremble. “I don’t know.... I don’t want to lose you.”

Darik laughed softly. “You take love too seriously. Eventually your parents will trust you again and I’ll come back for you.”

“I can’t wait that long.”

“Then I’ll be back tomorrow night.”

“Really?”

“Of course.” Darik ran his fingers through her hair. “I love you.”

Lila smiled at him.

“I should leave now then. Tomorrow night, here.”

Lila nodded as Darik melted into the shadows of the room and slipped under the door. He reformed on the other side into the solid boy he normally was. Moving quickly, he went to Lila’s room. Predictably, her parents were still in the room, trying to decide what to do exactly. Smirking to himself, he used a cloud of shadow to silence his footsteps and approach the couple from behind. The cloud rose up and transformed into a bow with two arrows. Without lifting a finger, Darik caused the arrows to fire at speeds normally unattainable with such a weapon and pierced both backs. Not a sound was made as the darkness spread through the bodies, stopping all signs of life.

Lastly, Darik remembered Lila’s little sister. He’d have to find her bedroom. The only part of the castle he knew was what he had just walked through. Well, technically he hadn’t walked through it; he had been walked through it, as a shadow, but he didn’t care much. Keeping the shadow around his feet for stealth, Darik slipped from room to room until he found the sleeping girl, her pink hair in two braids and almost covering her eyes. A smile slid across the boy’s face as the cloud made a dagger, piercing the little girl’s heart.

Ignoring the red blood that soaked through the silken sheets, Darik threw open the glass shutters of the window. He placed the base of his palms together and shot a dragon to the sky. It flew amongst the stars at immense speeds, its glistening red eye a streak of light. Within seconds, the shadow dragon had dissipated, but the message had been sent to Darik’s mother and sister. The royal family was dead.

 

[angelprincess]

Alright, I guess I'm doing this purely for one person... Eh, well, one is better'n none! ^.^

Kalyn’s stomach growled louder with every step she took as she led Bellatrix by the reins. She moaned in protest, and Bellatrix whinnied an answer Kalyn did not bother to hear. The pink-haired girl could see trees on the horizon, miles away, meaning she was approaching the forest that bordered the Black Mountains. She smiled to herself and scanned the plains for a house or farm that might offer her food. There was nothing but grass in sight and the trees far ahead. Kalyn glanced up at Bellatrix. The girl had begun walking, hoping that moving might help take her mind off of hunger. It had, for a while, but soon her stomach’s cry for food overtook her mind’s wanderings and expending of energy. When they reached the forest, surely there would be berries or something she could eat.
Horse hooves grew louder from behind the two, and Kalyn turned around. She immediately recognized the black horse as Shadow, and the rider as Jax. She sighed, wishing she had made it at least as far as the forest before he caught up with her.

Her brother looked down at her for a moment before hopping off his horse. “Kalyn, what do you think you’re doing?”

“I’m going to find out why we’re here.”

“And you think Selintra has the answers?”

Kalyn shrugged. “Maybe.”

“Do you even know how you’re going to get there?”

“Well, southeast. That’s where it is, right?”

“But you can’t go directly southeast. You’ll have to go through the Mystic Forest, over the Black Mountains, and then through the Darkbirth wood before you find any sort of civilization.”

The pink-haired girl crossed her arms. “Your point?”

Jax rolled his eyes. “Look, we’ll go around the Black Mountains and next to the ocean. It’s the only safe way into Selintra.”

“Fine, whatev—Wait, you’re not going to make me go back home?”

The blonde smiled. “I’m as curious as you. Though I’m not quite sure how going to Selintra is going to find out about our family’s history.”

“C’mon, we both know that mom lived in Selintra. She moved when dad died. There’s got to be someone who remembers a woman with two children who crossed into the Elvin country. It’s not every day that a Human goes to Falin. Elves barely even trade with Humans.”

“But it must’ve been at least seventeen years ago, around the time you were born.”

“Like I said, it’s not every day it happens. And maybe someone remembers them from the village they lived in.” The girl could slowly feel her temper rising.

“Kayln, I don’t think we’re going to find anything.”

“Don’t tell me you don’t feel it!”

Jax raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“C’mon! Don’t you feel a tug towards Selintra? Like it’s a part of you, or something?”

“Not really...”

Kalyn tightened her lips. “Well fine then. But I’m going, whether you like it or not.”

“Alright, I’ll go with you, but only because I think you need someone to go with you, not because I think this will shed any light on our past.”

The girl sniffed. “Fine then. So, how are we going to get there? And did you bring any food?”

Sheila sighed and wandered the halls. Her pointed ears picked up voices from the chamber room, which was a bit of a walk away, but she knew that room was only used for very secret meetings. With a sly smile she quickly and silently walked toward it and sat down a few yards away, where she could distinctly hear what was being said.

“Your daughter cannot rule!”

“And why not? It is her blood that next in line,” the king answered.

“The Black Dragon is always next in line, no matter what the blood.”

Marin laughed. “Your son has shown no sign he is the Black Dragon, and he is already twelve.”

“Darik, the original Black Dragon, his powers did not show until he was sixteen. Jett was born the day the last Black Dragon died, the most telling indicator he is a Black Dragon.”

“Sheila was also born on that day.”

Now it was the second man’s turn to laugh. “The Black Dragon has never been a woman. For five hundred years the Black Dragon has been male.”

Sheila cocked her head. Her, a Black Dragon? That would be power she would love. But Jett’s father was right. A woman had never become a Black Dragon.

Everyone knew that Jett was the new Black Dragon, but he still didn’t have any powers like Black Dragons were supposed to. Any time he tried to make something out of shadow, he passed out, and usually didn’t come to until the next day. He didn’t have fangs yet, and his senses weren’t even heightened. He couldn’t even smell breakfast when it was two feet from him.

Speaking of breakfast, Sheila was kind of hungry. She stood up and walked towards the kitchen. The girl had always planned on being queen someday, because even if her mother had allowed Raiku to have the throne, no one would support a half-blood king. Sheila had befriended all of the servants, and they all liked her. She was a smart girl. If the servants supported and respected her, and her subjects liked her, then she would have no fear of being over thrown. But being pushed out of the thrown by a Black Dragon Sheila hadn’t counted on. There had to be some way to steal the throne from him. It was impossible to kill a Black Dragon until a new one was born, and whether they were killed or not, they died the day a new Black Dragon was born. Twenty or one hundred, they died. The longest a Black Dragon had lived was one hundred and two years long. The shortest was fifteen.

One of the kitchen girls smiled as Sheila walked in. “I’ll tell Cook to fix you up something good,” she said, and disappeared.

“Cook” was the term all the servants used for Petrice. Of all the servants who liked Sheila, Petrice liked her the most, and always had something tasty for the girl when she came to the kitchens.

It was only seconds before the maid came back with a bowl of freshly baked biscuits. She set it down on the table with a smile at Sheila. “She put something good in them for you.”

Sheila sat down and started to eat the bread. Sure enough, there was blackberry jam in the center, Sheila’s favorite. And the bread was made sweeter than usual. As the girl ate, she thought about how she could get rid of Jett. She could find a way to get him imprisoned, but there was still no guarantee he would be put in jail for it. Black Dragons were highly respected among Black Blood. If it was light enough like, say, murder, he might get off. He’d have to kill a mass amount of people to get put in jail. And even then, they’d all have to be Black Blood. In truth, Sheila would have to kill a mass amount of people and frame him for it. She wouldn’t do that. After what had just happened to her brother, she didn’t want to risk it. Murder really wasn’t that bad, but it had been the queen who was killed, and the king’s orders were to put Raiku in jail, and Raiku was a half-breed anyway. Half-breeds were more despicable than regular Humans. Not quite as despicable as Elves, but still pretty close. Elves were always closely associated with Black Blood, because of the similar physical attributes between the two races. In fact, a lot of people thought that Black Blood was really a race of impure Elves.

Truthfully, Black Bloods didn’t even know they’re true heritage. The real royal family of Selintra had been overthrown by the Black Blood twins. Darik was the Black Dragon that had done it. That’s why Black Dragons were so revered. They were the reason that Black Blood controlled Selintra, and they had higher powers. Maybe there was a pregnant woman who was due soon... If Sheila could figure out a way to get Jett killed the day the baby was born—No, even if the baby did become a Black Dragon, she would just have to let it take the throne instead of her. Besides, there was no way to be sure the baby would be born on the day she tried to kill Jett, and if it wasn’t, then Jett might have her thrown in jail for trying to kill him. She could easily escape with the portal Raiku had used to escape. Sheila knew everything about their powers Raiku did. She had even taught him everything he knew. Creating a portal was easy work, but then she’d never be able to come back and she’d never rule Selintra. Sheila sighed as she finished off the last biscuit and left the kitchen, back to the entertaining task of wandering the halls.

Sheila had wandered the castle every time she was bored since her tenth birthday, which was a lot of time to wander, and she still hadn’t completely covered the entire grounds. She’d only gotten lost once, the first time she went off to explore. Now, she always seemed to know where she was going.
Without thinking she walked into Raiku’s bedroom. Funny, she had felt a sense of attachment to him, even if he was only a half-blood, and he was what had been keeping her from the throne, she still saw him as a brother. Black Blood rarely felt attachment to anyone besides someone of the same family. Even married couples rarely cared for each other. The fact that Sheila’s father had cried when her mother died definitely meant he had killed her. If he hadn’t, there would have been no attachment to her death, but he wanted it to look like he didn’t do it. No one would stand for someone killing the current ruler of Selintra, unless that someone was a Black Dragon. Black Dragons got away with everything.
Darik was the only Black Dragon who had ever not been crowned king. That was because Diana had been too angry with him letting Lila live, even if she was in captivity. Not to mention letting the baby daughter escape and some of the royal blood living.

Fortunately, Darlanna had deployed her armies well and none of the royal family had been able to leave the country. She guarded all the entrances to the Japse mines, the entrance to Falin equally guarded, and there was no way into Hiros besides the mines. That left the nurse who fled with the child and the girl forced to live in Selintra, and anyone who housed them, fed them, or cared for them in any way was liable under penalty of death. Somehow, the baby daughter had managed to still live and create a family, but the entire family had been killed a few years ago anyway. The only people allowed to cross any borders were traders, or people who had special permission. But people rarely got special permission.

King Marin walked into the room. “I thought you might be in here.”

Sheila turned around and smiled at him. “Yup.”

“I’m sorry.”

“About what?”

“You’re not going to get the throne.”
Sheila decided to play it innocent. The less people knew she knew, the more likely she was to get more information out of them.“But why not?”

“Jett’s a Black Dragon.”

“Jett? Jett can barely create a Dark Portal. I can make one with my hands tied behind my back. Raiku could too. And Raiku’s a half-blood!”

“I know Sheila, but we have to give the throne to him.”

Sheila walked over to the window. “Why’d you do it?”

“Do what?”

“Kill mother.”

“Raiku did.”

“Raiku did not. I saw the guy in Raiku’s room. Raiku killed the guy in self-defense. You knew mother wanted Raiku to have the throne instead of me and she wouldn’t stand for anyone else there besides Raiku. But why’d you have to kill her?”

“If I didn’t, she would completely tear the castle apart to find out who killed Raiku. I wasn’t going to get caught. I just want you to have the throne.”

“I would have gotten it anyway. You didn’t have to imprison Raiku or even try to kill him. If anything you should’ve tried to kill Jett.”

“Jett can’t die.”

“Well... you still should’ve tried. Instead you killed my mother and nearly my brother!” Sheila’s lower lip started to tremble.

“You’re half-brother was weak. Why do you care about him?”

“He was my flesh and blood... and so was Mom. Didn’t you love Mom too?”

“Black Blood don’t care for people that way, Sheila. That’s a Human emotion.”

“Well... I do. Raiku was my brother. My brother. And Mom loved that Human guy enough to have Raiku.”

“And she also was the daughter of a Black Dragon. Black Dragons gain more power in exchange for the weakness of emotion. Everything comes at a price.”
Sheila sighed and glanced back out the window. “Well, if Jett’s powers don’t develop soon, we’ll be in a lot of trouble.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because not everyone will want him on the throne if he doesn’t have the powers of a Black Dragon. Most of the women will want me on the throne, but I don’t think many others will. We could have a civil war here. It’d be a perfect opportunity for the Humans to turn against us. And if there’s no Black Dragon, then we’ll all die...”

“You were born to lead.”

Sheila smiled weakly at her father. “Thanks.”

“It's about time for dinner. Would you like to go eat?”

Sheila nodded reluctantly, knowing her father would never approve of her eating in the kitchens, and gave one last glance out the window. A sigh escaped her lips as she wondered what had happened to Raiku.

Raiku groaned as a stick poked his side. He muttered to himself and stood up, surrounded by small children, whose eyes widened as he stared at them. Raiku carefully reached for his face, feeling for the blindfold that should be over his eyes. Instead, it was a few feet away on the grass.

One of the boys held out a wooden sword. “How dare you enter our village, Black Blood!”

Raiku cocked his eyebrow and looked down at his clothes. Only Black Blood wore black clothes. He rolled his eyes, not realizing that if word got out, he would be killed.

The boy stepped forward menacingly. With his tousled blonde hair and freckles, he couldn’t have been older than eight or nine. Besides, Raiku could easily snap the wooden blade in two.

An older woman came up the hill Raiku had Ported himself to.

“Timothy! What are you doing? How dare you accuse a traveler of being Black Blood! He is not Black Blood; his eyes are blue and his hair is silver. He must be an elf.” The woman placed her fists firmly on her hips and stared at him suspiciously. “Though how an elf got way out here, and past the Black Guard is beyond me.”

An elf? She thought he was an elf? It must’ve been the ears. But wait… he had the red eyes of Black Blood. Had that last spell sapped him of all his Black Power? Raiku did his best to hide the worry in his eyes. Might as well act like an elf, or otherwise it would mean death. “Madam,” he began, bowing slightly, “these children are merely children. It is completely understandable that they would presume an outsider, who is clearly not Human, as Black Blood. Now, I must be on my way.” He smiled slightly and retrieved his blindfold, slipping it into his pocket.

“Wait!” the woman called after him. “At least stay for dinner. No one this far across the border has ever seen an elf. Perhaps you could enlighten us as to what life is like in Falin?”

“I really must be going. I am sorry, but—“

“Perfect. Timmy, go let your father know we’re having company over for dinner. And the rest of you run home now. All of you. Go on.”

The young girls and boys scattered to their various homes as Raiku reluctantly followed the woman into her home.

 

[witchprincess]

I can't believe I didn't find this sooner! I am extremely interested in what you're writing here, although I must say that every now and then when you're changing scenes it gets a little bit confusing. But other than that I encourage you to keep going. No, wait, I beg of thee.