The Dragon Princess novel Chapter 2

"Elina, you need to get out of here!" said Queen Genevieve as she rushed inside the room.

"Mother? Mother, what is happening?" Princess Elina asked frantically as she ran towards the Queen.

"The kingdom is on fire. Dark wizards and soldiers are everywhere. You need to leave the castle. Right now."

"No mother, I won't leave you here alone. I will find Father and get him to help us." The little five year old replied with determination.

She gripped her mother's hand tighter as another blast went off at some part of the castle. Elina didn't know what was happening. There was a huge commotion all around the castle. But why would a sudden rebellion start in the kingdom when they had been living in peace and harmony for centuries?

Her thoughts were interrupted when the door to her room flew open. Armed soldiers who clearly didn't belong to the Kingdom of Corona trooped in. The last person who was in, however, was very familiar to both the Queen and the Princess.

"My my, the Queen and the Princess together? My luck isn't so bad after all."

The man in front of them wasn't the same one who brought Elina presents on her birthday or sneaked her out of the castle when he went horse riding despite her parent's disapproval. He wasn't the one who read her stories at night when her parents were too tired from the day's work. He wasn't the Uncle Eric Alwin Hudson Dragna she knew.

No. It couldn't be.

Standing before her was a savage monster thirsty for power and money. His otherwise warm brown eyes were blazing with a strange red hue. His brown hair was tousled and face deathly pale. A sneer played on his lips as he watched his sister-in-law and niece with a calculating look.

Queen Genevieve draped an arm around her daughter and pulled her closer to her own trembling body.

"Not another step forward Eric or I will not hesitate to use my powers on you."

Eric Dragna cracked a smile and fixed his eyes on the little shaking body beside his sister.

"I'm not here for you Genevieve, dear. What I want is the little bundle of powerful magic you have with you and the throne she will inherit when she is older."

Before any of them could utter another word, the door was opened roughly. But this time it was the soldiers of Corona with their bloodied black and red uniform and steel armors with the royal crest. Leading them was King Trystan Dragna.

"Father!"

The Coronian soldiers charged forward at the flick of King Trystan's wrist. In the commotion, Queen Genevieve managed to usher the Princess across the room to her husband.

"Are you both alright? Did he inflict any harm?" The King let out sigh of relief when he found them unharmed and pulled them into his arms.

"Your Highness, we cannot hold him back for much longer, he's too strong for us." One of the Coronian soldiers called out.

"Genevieve, take Elina and escape from the castle. Ride Fin and get the child to Agatha at any cost. We cannot lose her. She's our only hope if things don't go our way tonight. I will not die knowing that the kingdom has gone into the wrong hands." King Trystan fished a dagger from the belt around his waist and pressed it in Queen Genevieve's trembling hand. "For your defense."

He bent forward to place a swift kiss on his daughter's forehead.

"Stay safe for me, pumpkin. I love you."

Bright honey gold eyes, identical to King Trystan's own golden orbs brimmed with tears as the little princess wrapped her arms around her father's neck.

"You too. I lo-"

A loud growl from Eric Dragna cut her off mid-sentence as he ripped his sword from the now dead soldiers' abdomen. King Trystan got his own sword in position as Queen Genevieve grabbed Elina and left the room as quickly as she could. A sharp stab of pain struck her, starting from her stomach and travelling all throughout her body. Her back hurt, but she had to do this for her daughter, her people.

From all around her, Elina could see blood and hear cries of terror and pain. She wanted to yell at them to make it stop. With whatever energy the Queen had left, she teleported them to the Royal stables. The scene wasn't any less loud or bloodier. In fact, it only seemed to increase now that they were outside the palace walls.