The Expedition, Chapter 15

 She laughed.

He looked terrified.

The mercenaries all around him began shouting and screaming at the sight of the dragon flying in circles above them. General Von Zinzer tried to yell at them to stay calm, but nothing he said could stop them. They started running back to their horses, hoping to reach the tents and escape.

The dragon flew straight to the temple's dome, causing a deep booming sound that shook everything around it. Amelia ducked as far as she could to avoid being thrown off as Sapphire landed in the mountaintop temple courtyard. She carefully climbed off Sapphire's back, using the dragon's head for balance until she reached the ground. She patted the dragon's head in gratitude before turning around to watch what would happen next.

The temple priestesses surrounded Amelia and the dragon in arches around the courtyard. Their robes fluttered in the breeze as they stared at them both. Amelia could feel them focusing their magic on her, and she did not like how it felt, but she stood firm in front of the dragon with her shoulders squared and her head held high.

"I am not the enemy!" Amelia said. "I am the friend of Hadaj, Chief of the Mal'a'kai people!"

The priestesses looked at one another and then returned to Amelia.

"You are General Von Zinzer's daughter," one of them said.

Amelia nodded.

"She is here to warn you," Sapphire said.

The beautiful head priestess walked into the courtyard, her flowing robes floating behind her as she moved gracefully. She looked down upon Amelia with a calm look. "But why does he attack? And why do you come here on his dragon?"

Sapphire growled, "I am not anyone's dragon."

The head priestess smiled. "You are. Your name is Sapphire. You belong to the people who love you."

The dragon looked away, looking as though she were about to cry. "I am no one's dragon."

The head priestess smiled at Sapphire in sympathy. "I am sorry for upsetting you, Sapphire. I did not mean to. I know your story." She turned her gaze to Amelia, who felt herself shake from the sheer force of the priestess's power. "You must warn your father that the attack is coming. If he does not flee, he will die by the blades of the Death Cult."

Amelia shook her head. "The dragon is here to save us."

The head priestess tilted her head to the side, looking confused. "From what?"

"My father has more than three thousand men," Amelia said, "and more weapons than I can count. Magic too."

The head priestess nodded. "He does. And you want to stop this attack?"

Amelia looked at the head priestess and sighed. "Yes, I do. Because I love my father and my country, but he is a stupid, greedy man. He will destroy everything, and he has no honor. If we are dead, then he can take all we have, but it will be too late for us ever to stop him."

The head priestess nodded. "You speak the truth. We are ready for this attack, but we will not fight them, as I know your father and his men will not hesitate to kill us."

Amelia looked at the beautiful tilework of the courtyard. "The Mal'a'kai tribe is one their way too. I fear they will be caught up in the madness of the Death Cult's attack."

"I am afraid the same thing will happen," the priestess said with a sad nod.

"Then, please, send someone to warn them!" Amelia said, feeling like she might cry.

"We cannot," the priestess said. "They must choose for themselves whether they come or not. You cannot make their choice for them. And if they choose to fight, they must fight and die."

"But my love, Fayla, is with them," Amelia said, blinking back tears. “She will die if she fights!”

The head priestess put her hand on Amelia's shoulder. "If you love her, then let her choose for herself." She let go of Amelia's shoulder. "Do you choose to stand with us?"

Amelia nodded. "I do."

"Then, so do we."

Amelia felt the power of the temple's magic flow through the air and smiled in satisfaction. She turned and stared at Sapphire. "Please help us, great dragon."

The dragon lowered her head and closed her eyes. "I will fight with you, Amelia Von Zinzer."

She kissed Sapphire on the nose, much to the dragon's dismay.

Sapphire sneered at her. “Do not kiss me.”

Amelia smiled. “These are your people, Sapphire; they love and miss you. It is time you felt wanted and loved.”

She groaned and rolled her eyes. “No one loves a dragon.”

Amelia smiled. “I love a dragon.”

"Head Priestess Laisha," one of the other priestesses said, running into the courtyard. "Come! The enemy army is up to something!"

"Let us see what it is they plan," the head priestess said with a smile. "Let us see what this fool and his men are planning now."

Amelia followed her to an upper gallery overlooking the front gates and down the mountain, her father's camp. The halls and stairwells were large enough for a giant dragon to follow them as they roamed the beautiful temple. Ancient tapestries depicting beautiful desert civilizations hung from the walls, with floating islands pouring water from waterfalls through the skies into grand rivers below. Lush rainforests lined the rivers, and Djinn, who flew upon clouds, dropped rain to the fertile green valleys crossed with lush farms below. Grand temples adorned every city, with Genie Queens and Djinn kings adored and loved by their people.

The desert had once been a beautiful place full of life and love. Magic flowed as freely as the rivers which crossed the land and brought life. The cities were made of gemstones and gold.

And there was not one tapestry that depicted hate or war.

Even the Goddess Kayala had a grand tapestry depicting those who passed from this life being welcomed through a grand golden arch to an eternal kingdom of love and happiness. She sat lovingly upon a throne, surrounded by colorful peacocks and peaceful leopards.

They arrived at the upper gallery, where they saw her father's mercenaries had gathered together in formation outside the camp.

A strange group of men was meeting her father and the mercenaries on the edge of his camp. The men were dressed in black, carrying pikes with long black banners which hung from them like funeral palls.

"Those are the Death Cult," Amelia said, shuddering. "What are they doing speaking with my father? I thought they were heading there to attack him?"

The head priestess put her hand on Amelia's shoulder. "There are two sides to everything, child, even in our warring lands."

"But it makes no sense," Amelia said. "They've been after him and his mercenaries for years!"

"And now he has joined forces with them to destroy the temple," Sapphire said with a growl. "Your father is an evil man, Amelia Von Zinzer."

The Head Priestess nodded. “He has promised the cult a part of the treasure here.”

The realization that her father may have known and worked with members of the Death Cult sent a chill through her body.

Her father needed to die.