The Dragon Brothers
Chapter 52 - Planning

* The Castle at Drakor; The Capital of the Chromos *

* Viola with the Women POV *

The kings and queens of the fairies, werewolves, witches, dragons, elves, gnomes, centaurs, bear shifters, vampires, unicorns, and Lucian's brothers and their wives had come to the palace. So it was my place to entertain the queens while the men talked about war strategy. I could tell that Molle felt the most uncomfortable but somehow the werewolf queen had taken her under her wing. Elena still hung back from the group not knowing how they would take to her and Emily was not here. The fairies, unicorns, centaurs, and elves got along but didn't like the others. While the werewolves, dragons, and bear shifters got along. While basically nobody got along with the vampires and witches. Somehow I had to find common ground for everyone.

So, I'm thinking about how women always like to talk about themselves. That's a good place to start from. "Ladies, what if we went around the group and told how we met our mates? I think this should be fun. I was given to Lucian through an arranged marriage. It was difficult at first but we grew to love each other. Now I pick the Queen of the Werewolves to go next!" I'm really hoping this is a good icebreaker.

"I was a rogue werewolf when I first met Justus. He helped me join the local pack and then he helped me get a job in the castle's kitchen. But, his parents did not like our mating as they did not like my background and felt that Justus could do better through a chosen mate. So, I left the castle so that Justus did not have to choose between me and the crown. Well, he chose me anyway and came after me. Then we were rogues for a while. Finally, we returned to the castle with a child plus I was pregnant with a second and I do not think that his parents could turn away their grandchildren so they accepted us and Justus got the crown. Now I pick the Queen of the Vampires to go next." The queen of the werewolves remembers.

"Well, I was a rogue wolf with my sister. I led an enjoyable life perfectly normal and nothing exciting when my sister found out that she was Prince Justus of the Werewolves' mate. His family did not accept her and we all started traveling. His half brother took over the kingdom of the werewolves but he was evil so Prince Justus brought us to the Vampire Kingdom to ask for help. While I was there I met Cassius and the rest is history. Now I pick the Queen of the Elves." The queen of the vampires remembers.

But we were interrupted by an old man in tattered clothes walking with a large cane humped over and he wore his grey hair long. Cecily the Vampire Queen stood up as he approached us. "Oicles, the great seer. What do we owe this visit to? What have you forecasted?"

He pointed directly at me "You will bear a daughter, she, your adopted children, Ambrose's child, Molle's son, and Elena's son, will stop a great war from coming. They will save all of our kind from being destroyed. It has been foretold." The seer says as he picks up his cane and then slams it back down again.

"What about Emily? Will she not bear any children?" I was almost afraid to ask.

"Her future has yet to be written. She is in terrible danger right now and is suffering greatly. She needs to be saved before it is too late." He again picks up his cane and slams it back down again.

"It has been said that you traveled with Hercules in his campaign against Troy. Will you accompany our husbands in their campaign against Queen Maeve?" Cecily the Vampire Queen speaks up again.

"This I will do. Queen Maeve is an evil force that must be stopped. If she is not, we are all doomed." The seer speaks. So, I take him inside and introduce him to Lucian and the other men.

* Lucian with the King's POV *

Wolf POV

I run straight to where the men are meeting and burst in the doors. "Queen Maeve has Emily."

"Wait! What? How do you know she has her?" Lucian jumps up from his seat. I handed him the letter I received from the messenger.

"Men, we may not be able to wait a week to attack Queen Maeve. We may have to go much sooner. I say we leave in three days." Lucian says with a huge sigh. I can see how worried he is. "Gnomes one of your priorities while you infiltrate the castle will be to look for the dungeon and free the inmates." The other men agree on the new timeline as they imagine their wives in the dungeon.

* Queen Maeve's Dungeon *

Gabe the Angel POV

It's early in the morning when I hear footsteps coming down the stairs. The guard has some kind of small bundle in his arms. He moves towards Emily's cell and that's when I realize it's not a bundle it's Emily. He tosses her on the bed and walks out. She falls off the bed and hits the floor. She lets out a small groan but other than that just lays there curled up into a tight ball.

"Emily, it's Gabe, what did they do to you? Are you okay?" I ask her deeply concerned about her health and wellbeing but all she does is let out another groan. She stays like that for the rest of the day. They bring her food and she doesn't eat it. Night falls and she stays in her little ball.

"Emily, are you okay? Please talk to me. What happened?" I ask again.

But a guard comes and knocks on my cell with a club. "Shut up. No talking at night. Go to sleep."

The next morning I'm awakened by loud steps coming down the stairs. It's Emily's undead Lord Garbg. He walks into Emily's cell and nudges her with his boot and she doesn't respond so he picks her by her hair. Two guards come in and start stripping her of her clothes.

I'm really getting scared of what they're about to do to her. "Stop it! Just leave her alone. Can't you see she's had enough. You don't need to torture her anymore."

The undead Lord Garbg laughs in my face. "I'll decide when she's had enough." Using the bars across from me they place chains around her wrists, waist, neck, and ankles to keep her in place. Guards come in with large hot branding irons only these make words. One says SLUT, another says, WHORE, another BITCH, and SKANK. The words are branded on her forearms, biceps, thighs, calves, and both sides. She screams the entire time. When they're done they finally unchain her and drop her to the floor. Then Lord Garbg kneels in front of her and takes a long forceful kiss. She tries to back out of it so he slaps her across the face. Then the men leave her cell and us alone.

I get up and lean against the bars that connect our cells. "Emily, can you talk? Listen to me. I think I know of a way to get us out of here tonight but I need to know that you're with me. I'll need you to move on your own for some of the time. I can carry you in parts but I'll need you to move on your own sometimes. Are you with me?" I ask hoping that she's strong enough to take this chance.

"What if they catch us? I'm scared of what they'll do." She says while a tear falls down her cheek.

"I'm scared of what they'll do to you if we don't get you out of here." I tell her honestly. “Okay. Tell me what your plan is." She says and a tiny hint of hope fills my chest.

"We're going to make our break when they bring us our food. I can overpower the guard and knock him out. Then I'll grab the keys and unlock your cell. We can drag the guard into one of our cells and lock him up which will give us some time before anyone is alerted that we've gone missing. When you go up the stairs you enter a large building but if you turn to the left there is a door to go outside. That door isn't locked nor guarded. The hallway that leads you to the large building somewhat protects us from being seen. We'll have to wait for the right time to slip out when we won't be noticed and then we need to run as fast as possible towards the forest. What do you think?" I didn't realize until now that I was holding my breath while talking.

"Alright, I'm game. Let's do this." She smiles at me even though I can see the pain in her eyes.

Please drop me a comment and let me know if you like the story or the chapter. I love all feedback both critical and complimentary. Check out my other book Prince Justus and the Rogue. You can also go to my facebook page for chapter updates and updates on new projects. https://www.facebook.com/Sammi-From-Anystories-1020524119915