Chapter 5: The Truth About the Dragons

The wind howled through the valley of Lewish, a sharp reminder that something ancient and restless was stirring in the mountains. Lily stood on the balcony of her palace chamber, gazing out at the distant peaks that loomed like silent sentinels, guarding secrets of a world she barely understood. The sun was setting, casting the sky in hues of violet and crimson, but the light did nothing to ease the heavy weight in her chest. She had learned something that day—something that she could no longer ignore.

The truth about the dragons.

She had spent the past few days in her father's palace, under close guard, confined to her chambers with little freedom to roam the grounds. But her mind was not confined. It was consumed with the knowledge that Ao Bing had shared with her before he left—his words haunting her like a whisper in the wind.

Ao Bing wasn't just a boy. He was the last of the dragons—their last hope, their last curse.

Her father had warned her many times of the dragons' power, how they were once mighty and terrifying creatures that had sought to defy the gods themselves. But it was Ao Bing who had told her the deeper truth: the dragons were not mere beasts of destruction. They had once been great protectors, noble creatures who lived in harmony with the world, until their arrogance led them to challenge the gods. Their rebellion had been swift and catastrophic, and as punishment, the gods had imprisoned them—buried deep beneath the mountains, locked away in eternal slumber.

Lily closed her eyes, remembering the shimmer of Ao Bing's blue scales, the soft hum of his power that had once surged around her. She had felt it then, the pulse of something ancient and immense, but she had not known what it was. Now, she understood.

Ao Bing was different. He wasn't a true dragon in the same way as the others, who had been consumed by fire and fury. He was born of the last union of dragon and god, a forbidden child. His scales were blue, as if touched by water itself, and his powers were not destructive like the others. He had the power to control storms, to calm the waves. He was not just the son of a dragon—he was the last hope of the dragons' redemption.

But the price of that hope was steep. The gods had sealed the dragons away, and as long as Ao Bing lived, the curse of the dragons would not end. His very existence threatened the balance between the world of the gods and the world of men.

As Lily pondered this, a sudden knock on the door broke her thoughts.

"Princess Lily," the voice of her maid, Mei, came softly through the door. "Your father requests your presence in the royal hall. He says it's urgent."

Lily's stomach tightened. She had hoped to avoid this, but she knew that the Emperor would soon come for her, his anger growing with each passing day. He had warned her of the dangers of Ao Bing, of the threats dragons posed to the empire. Now, she could only wonder if her father had learned the truth about the dragon's son and if he would act on it.

Lily took a deep breath and opened the door.

"I'll be there soon," she said, her voice steady, even though her heart was racing.

Mei bowed and retreated, leaving Lily alone once more. She turned back to the balcony, the wind whispering through the trees below. She could almost hear Ao Bing's voice in the breeze, his kind and gentle words.

But what would happen if her father learned the truth? What if Ao Bing was hunted down, or worse—killed? Lily had to stop it. She couldn't let the dragons be forgotten forever, not when they had once been guardians of the world.

With a final glance at the mountains, Lily steeled herself. It was time to face her father, and whatever he had planned.

Lily entered the royal hall, the heavy doors closing behind her with a soft thud. The room was dimly lit, the glow of the lanterns casting long shadows across the walls. The Emperor stood at the far end, his back to her, staring out of a tall window that looked over the vast gardens. His posture was tense, his hands clasped behind his back.

"You wanted to see me, Father?" Lily asked, her voice calm but betraying the nervous flutter in her chest.

The Emperor turned slowly, his face grim. "Lily," he said quietly. "There are things about our world you don't yet understand. Things you can't begin to comprehend."

Lily's heart raced. "What are you talking about?"

The Emperor's eyes darkened as he stepped closer to her. "You've been meeting with him, haven't you? Ao Bing. The dragon's son."

Lily stiffened, but she did not back down. "He's not a monster, Father," she said, her voice firm. "He's just a boy. He has powers, yes, but they're not like the others. He's different."

The Emperor's expression hardened. "Do you understand what you're saying, Lily? That boy is the last of the dragons, the cursed line that once threatened to destroy everything. The gods' punishment was to imprison them, to chain them beneath the earth where they could never harm us again. But you—you've allowed yourself to become entangled with him, with that creature. Do you understand the danger you've put yourself in?"

Lily took a step forward, her chest tight. "I don't care about the danger," she said, her voice rising with emotion. "I care about the truth. I care about Ao Bing. He's not evil. He didn't choose to be born this way. He's just trying to survive."

The Emperor's face twisted in anger. "You think this is about him? No, Lily. This is about the safety of our kingdom, our people. The dragons may be imprisoned, but their power still lingers. You—" He paused, shaking his head, "—you may be the key to ending their curse, or you may be the one who unleashes them again."

Lily's breath caught in her throat. "What do you mean?"

"The truth about the dragons is not just that they were imprisoned. The gods left something behind, something to keep them in check. And you, my daughter, have something inside you that I didn't know about—something that makes you more than just a princess. You're tied to the dragons in ways you can't begin to understand."

Lily's heart dropped. She had always known she was different, that there was something strange about her powers, but this? This was a truth she wasn't ready to hear.

"What am I supposed to do?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "You want me to turn away from Ao Bing? To leave him behind?"

The Emperor looked at her with sadness in his eyes. "I want you to be safe, Lily. I want to protect you from the consequences of what the gods have left behind. I want to keep the peace."

Lily shook her head, feeling a storm of emotion rise within her. "I can't just forget him. I can't pretend he doesn't matter."

For a long moment, the Emperor stared at her, his face hardening, and then he turned away, his voice cold. "You have no idea what you're asking, Lily. But you will. You will soon enough."

Lily watched him leave, his footsteps echoing in the hall.

As the door closed behind him, the weight of the truth sank into her chest. She had been given a choice—one that she wasn't ready to make. But she knew one thing for certain: she could not abandon Ao Bing. She couldn't pretend the dragons were a curse, or that their past mistakes were all they were.

She knew the dragons weren't inherently evil, just misunderstood and wronged by the gods' punishment. And Ao Bing was proof that the dragons deserved freedom—not to remain hidden in the shadows of the past forever. She could not stand by and let the dragons' legacy be forgotten.

With her heart full of resolve, Lily took a deep breath. She would help Ao Bing. She would fight for the dragons to be free again. Even if it meant defying her father.

Deep down, Lily knew she could no longer ignore the truth: the dragons didn't deserve to be cursed forever. They deserved their freedom. She was going to help them have it.

The storm was coming, and Lily could feel it in her bones. The truth about the dragons was just the beginning.