Seven days had passed with the twins travelling with them, playing and having fun every day. Sergon's men had come to somewhat relax around them, even playing with them from time to time. Though they were careful around the teeth, it didn't seem like they feared the two as such any longer. It truly had made her happy to see, though it was probably only because these were so young and irresistible.

A pair of days had passed since the two had parted ways with them already. Ciara was certain this wouldn't be the last time she saw those two though.

Ever since they left, the days had been very uneventful. Kaisog couldn't think of anything new to teach her, so they'd simply practiced what she already did know.

Her silent prayers were answered when a loud call came from the man up in the look-out.

"Land in sight!"

She rushed to the railing, not minding anyone around her. She looked ahead, trying to see the land he'd been talking about. It was very faint, but she could see something ahead which definitely wasn't water.

"How are you feeling, Princess?" Kaisog asked, standing a little behind her.

"Nervous." Her gaze never left the land on the horizon. "But also very excited." She threw a sidelong glance at him.

He smiled and patted her head lightly. "That sounds good."

...

A loud knock at his door made both Lodin and his advisor, Narza, look up from their work.

"May I enter, my king?" he heard Sergon ask from the other side of the door.

He sighed. Just how many times did he have to get disturbed today?

"Yes, come in." He didn't even bother trying to mask his exasperation.

But this was Sergon, so it would no doubt be something unable to wait. Likely about that bloody princess he talked about incessantly.

The door opened, revealing the Commander himself, clad in his usual armor.

"I have a message you would like to hear, my king," he announced, all formal as he liked to be when it was work-related.

Lodin somehow suppressed the urge to snort. Just from the guy's expression alone, he could easily tell what he'd come to say.

"Let me guess; the ship has been spotted."

Sergon nodded, not even surprised. "You know me too well. They will dock within an hour."

Lodin leaned back in his chair, his arms crossed. "Everything is prepared, I presume?" he asked, though he already knew the answer. Sergon was a perfectionist – he'd been done with the preparations after the first seven days.

The Commander nodded again. "Naturally. We only need someone to pick her up and escort her here. I was thinking I could do that as-"

He was cut off suddenly by a voice coming from down the hall.

"Please pardon me, however I could not help but overhear your conversation," Arthas, Commander of the Dragon Slayers, said as he stepped into sight. That man was everywhere always. "Surely it should not fall to someone of your station to do such a menial task," the old man said, his eyes on the Royal Guard's Commander.

Sergon's lips fell to a straight, almost white line.

"Instead, please allow one of my men to do this – many of them are itching for something to do, and you must be busy with other things as well." Arthas' gaze moved from Sergon to his king. "Besides which, it would be foolish to do something like that without taking the proper precautions."

"Commander Arthas is right, Commander Sergon. It would make no sense for you to pick them up." Narza said. "And it would likely be wise to have Dragon Slayers there as well."

Sergon frowned. "They would never do what you suggest they do."

That old Commander was always planning something, but he was one of few that Lodin knew he could trust. He wouldn't do anything that could harm this kingdom. With this, Lodin could trust the old man. Even if he'd made it clear on several occasions that he didn't like the arrangement.

"One of Arthas' men will pick them up."

Narza was right, there wasn't a reason not to. And it was certainly a task far underneath Sergon; it would be strange for him to do it.

Arthas left the room with a nod and assurance that he'd see to it she arrived safely here. Meanwhile Lodin returned to his work, not minding the remaining Commander's gaze on him. For a while, anyway.

With another sigh, he looked up at his disgruntled friend.

"Oh, do not look at me like that – it is not like he is going to kill her. She will be fine," he assured the other guy, who just huffed and left the room.

The king sighed and shook his head.

...

The following hours until they would reach the port in the Fire Kingdom were the longest on this entire trip. Ciara's anxiety at the knowledge she would soon reach that place, mixed with worry of how she'd do, made the ever-lasting wait almost painful to endure.

Eventually, after an eternity, they were getting ready to dock at the port. The crew members, and a few of the Dragon Kingdom's men even, all ran around on the deck in a hurry. She'd moved herself to a corner, where she wouldn't be in the way, yet at the same time so that she could clearly see the port.

Just like on their boat, the port was also bustling with life - and only a fraction of it was there to receive them. This port was so many times bigger than the one back home, it was hardly fair to compare them. It could hold at least ten times as many ships as theirs.

And that was just the port. The city beyond was as alive, as grand and as different from what she was used to as she had imagined. It was truly amazing – she felt she could simply just sit here and look at it for hours on end.

But it would seem that'd have to wait for some other time.

Yells and shouts flew in the air all around her as the crew worked to dock the boat after so many days afloat. She neither understood, nor was she able to follow what they were doing all around her. She could only watch in awe as they managed to dock it perfectly, never even touching the wooden bridge it was right next to. It was very clear that this was certainly not the first time they'd done this.

The little stair-like bridge was lowered once everything was set to a stop and the giant ship was parked neatly beside the bridge. As soon as it was lowered and secured, heavy footsteps sounded on it, just as soon revealing a man in a similar armor to the one she had seen Sergon wearing.

Only, this wasn't Sergon. It was a much younger and likely quite inexperienced guy, who stood before them.

His gaze searched the deck until it finally landed on her.

"Princess Ciara Tarakona, you are expected elsewhere," he announced with a surprisingly firm voice, his hands linked formally behind his back. "Please allow me to escort you and those with you there as soon as possible."

She smiled and curtsied lightly. "It would be my pleasure if you would."

She realized she didn't exactly look her very best, the saltwater in her hair and clothes making it stiff and unruly, but it'd just have to do. Even if they left now, it'd get dark before they would reach the castle from the looks of things. And she'd love to see some of this place before it got dark, now she had the chance.

The young man gave her a stiff nod. "Please follow me, then," he said, turning around and returning back to land.

Kaisog appeared right behind her, giving her a passing glance, silently ordering her to follow close behind. Everyone else from the Dragon Kingdom fell in line behind her as well as they made it back on land.

As she was walking down the wooden bridge, she couldn't help looking back over her shoulder and waving to the crew she'd spent so many days with now. All that saw her waved right back with grand smiles on their faces.

At the end of the bridge, and onto land, were loads of stone, rather than the gravelly sand she was used to as pavement. Everything here was so different.

It was strange having her feet back on steady ground again after so long. She could still feel the rocking sensation in her feet.

"We have taken the liberty of preparing a horse for you, princess. You must be tired from the long journey," the young knight said, gesturing to the beautiful, white steed right beside him, held in place by another young guy.

"It is unbecoming of a princess to do any physical activity that may strain her for too long," Kaisog clarified in a low whisper.

She had figured as much already, thanks to all his lessons.

"Oh, that is very kind of you, my lord," she replied with a bright smile. It was true she might be a little tired from the journey, but mostly she figured it was probably just a good way of making sure she'd actually reach the castle sometime today instead of letting her curiosity guide her astray.

Not to mention she would absolutely love to ride such a beautiful creature.

The young knight gestured for her to approach. Only then did she notice it wasn't the saddle she was used to. This one was a lady's saddle – with both legs on one side so the ladies could wear the longest, most beautiful dresses and flaunt them gracefully without ruining them.

While that was all well and good, she also had never ridden a horse like that before.

Before she even got the chance to look to him for help, Kaisog gripped her waist firmly.

"Let me help you, Princess." He lifted her up as though she was as light as a feather and onto the saddle. He made sure she was properly seated before letting go of her again.

She smiled at him gratefully. Honestly, what would she do without him?

"Thank you, Kaisog."

He just smiled at her and nodded, took hold of the reins, and looked at the young knight.

"Lead the way, please."

For a moment, the knight looked alternately at the two of them, before giving a curt nod and gesturing for them to follow.

Kaisog tugged the stallion into motion, and as gentle as it was, she immediately grasped a fistful of its long mane. Sitting on a moving horse like this certainly wasn't as effortless as some ladies made it seem. Or maybe it was simply because she was used to much broader backs or sitting astride them rather than like this. At any rate, she'd have to be careful not to fall off.

But with a firm grip on its mane and the saddle, she almost found herself comfortable in her seat. At least it was enough to allow her breath to be taken away by everything she saw around her as they slowly moved through the city. She didn't even pay any mind to the many stares she received or the whispers in the corners.

Her attention was much more focused on the towering buildings an entire house taller than the ones at home, all of them built so beautifully they could pass as decorations. There wasn't a single road she'd seen here that was simply a dirt or gravel-road. Each one of them were laid with stone, which made the horse's shoes clack in an oddly calming manner.

Once they got a little deeper into the city, both sides of the road were lined with vendors who sold a wide variety of things. Corn, vegetables, meat, pottery, jewelry, garments, even livestock. The smells all reached her nose and became an indistinguishable mess of life and people. There were so many things here that she didn't even know what half of it was.

There was only one thing she couldn't help but notice.

These roads were far too small to fit adult dragons, unless they were quite slender in build. As a matter of fact, she hadn't seen a single one ever since arriving. Not a shadow or a scale of even one dragon – not even in the sky above them.

She turned to the knight with them. "Excuse me for asking, but where are all the dragons?"

He snorted at that, glancing at her over his shoulder with a skeptic expression

"I apologize, princess, however we do not harbor the same affection or care for those creatures that you do." He sounded almost offended she'd even dare suggest something like that.

"Oh," was all she could say to that. They'd built this place so that no dragons would ever be able to land, therefore there were none.

Kaisog looked up at her, past the horse. "As I told you, life is quite different here, Princess," he reminded her lowly.

She vaguely nodded, her mind a whole other place. She'd have to live like this, without any dragons? That was going to be awfully difficult.

Well, but wasn't this what she'd set out to change? Hadn't she come here in the hopes of showing these kingdoms how wonderful dragons could be? And hadn't she already proven to herself and others that it could be done?

She could do it. She had to, that was partly why she'd been allowed to go in the first place.

Her gaze fell to the knight with them again. Even if some of them might take a bit more work than others, she wouldn't relent on this.

That was when she noticed something else that she hadn't at first. His cape had an entirely different symbol on it. Where Sergon's had been decorated with the sun, which signified the royal palace, this man wore something that resembled neither sun nor spear. Honestly, it seemed more like a skull.

A dragon's skull.

And now she paid attention, she realized his armor was littered with scales rather than metal. The scales had lost all color and life, in turn going gray, a sure sign they hadn't been taken from the dragon willingly.

Just who was this man and what did all this mean? Where in the world did he get those scales from?

"How far is it to the destination yet? It is getting quite late," Kaisog asked the knight, a strange, dark tone of something in his voice and expression. Was he suspicious of this man's background just as she was?

"There is not far till we reach our destination yet."

Ciara looked around at the street they were led down. It was true the sun wasn't as high in the sky as it had been earlier, but she feared that wasn't what made this street seem so dark. She hadn't noticed it until Kaisog spoke, but there wasn't a single person around here. It was completely dead. Even the alleyways seemed a little darker, as though they were hiding something. There wasn't the slightest hint of a breeze, yet the place made goosebumps jump up all over her skin.

Maybe he just wanted to take a shortcut along the back roads rather than the main streets? Away from all the prying eyes.

Suddenly, the young knight put a hand in the air, stopping all motion forward.

"We have reached our destination," he declared, his voice almost echoing in the dead street.

She frowned deeply. "But... This is not the castle, is it?"

"It is not," Kaisog confirmed through clenched teeth, his grip on the reins making them creak.

The knight sent them an absolutely terrifying smile.

"Who said anything about the castle?"