The Prince of Ash

Dragon.

That’s what they’ve called me, as long as I can remember.

I can remember a woman with beautiful eyes and soft arms holding me tightly. The woman only gave me one thing in my life to know about my past.

“Kato. You are beautiful Kato. Nothings ever gonna take you away from me Kato.”

Kato, my name. The only thing I know myself by.

But that was before the others came in, that’s when everything changed. First they screamed as they looked at me.

“A Dragon child!”

“Dragon?!”

“Demon!”

Then I was ripped away from the woman’s arms, she started to scream.

“KATO! GIVE ME BACK MY KATO!”

Everything was too overwhelming for my tiny ears, I did the only thing my tiny brain could comprehend, I screamed.

My life was chaos, but then as suddenly as the chaos started, silence.

I was dropped, someone ran, I kept crying. It was cold, wet, dark, I wanted the woman, I wanted the warmth. The forest towered over me, everything was too big, too loud. I was too small. The only thing that priced my wails was a deep growl.

From the shrub came a wolf, a cowardly predator looking for an easy meal in an infant. It stalked closer, preparing to pounce.

Terror shot through me, though the wails died in my throat. Another feeling shot through my veins, this one primal, dangerous.

The air around me turned agonizingly warm as I could feel my eyes burn, my hands sharpened. There was no thought, only instinct. I let out a growl that shook the forest, a growl that belonged to something hundreds of times my size.

The wolf stopped dead in its tracks. It’s ears pinned back as it whimpered fearfully. It was a predator turned into prey as it backed slowly before sprinting in the opposite direction.

It ran because I was a dragon, it ran because of the two horns piercing from my forehead, because of the claws on my hands, the fangs in my smile, but most of all, it ran because of my eyes. My eyes are the farthest you could go from human, they’re reptilian, they’re a creature’s eyes. Anyone who looks at them doesn’t see a boy, the see a monster, a demon, a Dragon Child.

I somehow survived the first few years, driven by pure instinct, my baby self was running and chasing after bugs before I knew how to speak.

As I grew older, my needs grew. I needed clothes, shoes, blankets. So I did the unbearable. I went into their nesting grounds, the town of the humans. They looked like me, but the moment they saw my eyes, panic ensued. I learned to stick to the shadows, to take only what I needed and nothing more. A cloak from a clothesline, a loaf of bread cooling on a counter. When I saw a guard I stuck to the walls, never noticed, never seen.

But the hardest part wasn’t being caught, it was when I stopped.

I would sometimes sneak near the houses, trying to find spare blankets or avoid guards, but curiosity got the best of me.

I couldn’t help but peek through the windows, see the families of the kingdom live their lives. A mother braiding her daughter’s hair, a father bouncing his son in his lap, a family eating at a table. A world that was stolen from me by a curse I never asked for. But when I would dare to look closer the reflection in the window reminded me just who I was.

A monster, a demon…

A Dragon Child.

That was my life for 17 winters. I had grown to be lanky, but strong after my years in the wild. Red curls fell over my face, the freckles dotted my nose, I looked human, like I could walk among them. But then you could see the black horns elongating from my forehead, you could see the black claws on my fingers, the sharp row of teeth in my grin, and the monstrous eyes. But the biggest change wasn’t on the outside, it was on the inside.

The Voice had appeared on my 16th winter, it was at first an unexplainable urge. But then it turned into a purring voice bursting in my own skull.

The human world left you to rot. It took you away from your mother, left you alone in the wild, and you chose to hide from it? No… Let me take control, let me make this traitorous world burn…

I am not a monster, I am Kato, I thought back, fighting the beast with every ounce of my will.

You say that Kato, but do you really think their world will accept you?

I couldn’t answer that, I still can’t to this day.

My days were filled with hunting, wandering, and fighting against the Voice, but everything changed. It changed because of her.

The day was normal, quiet, lonely, but the moment she entered, I could feel it. I could smell her from miles away, a human had entered my territory.

An intruder?! The Voice gasped in my ear, Let me tear them apart, Kato! No one should dare to face us, we are a beast, we are a Dragon!

No, no tearing, not today.

The Voice mumbled in annoyance as I slipped silently through the forest. I followed the scent to a clearing, the Voice growing louder the closer I got. I crouched down into a bush to observe the intruder and gasped.

Her golden hair caught perfectly in the sun as it lay perfectly across her shoulders. She sat against a boulder as she held a leather bound stack of paper in her lap, her hands tracing over the page with a gentle stroke. Her smile was soft while her hazel eyes were filled with a peace I had never seen. She the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

Aw, a wee lamb. She’s easy pickings Kato. Let me take control, we can remove the intruder and get a good meal out of it.

Disgust shoots through me, “No! Shut up!” I mumble underneath my breath.

Her head snapped up in fear, “Who’s there?!”

I backed away, praying she wouldn’t see me. But her eyes landed on the bush I was crouched in.

She stood up, gripping the object, “Show yourself! I can see you!”

Crap, I panicked, freezing as I stuttered, “Uh, I-I can’t!”

She stepped forward, “Why not? Are you a thief, a bandit?”

“N-n-no.”

“Then show yourself.”

I sat in silence for a moment, I could’ve ran, but what if I never saw her again?

I sighed, “Just… Just promise me you won’t scream. Or run.”

She tilted her head, “Pardon?”

“Just promise!”

She put her right hand up, “Okay, okay. I promise.”

I let out another sigh, praying this would end well, before I started to crawl out of the bush. But as I started to stand her face paled, she saw my horns, she saw my eyes.

She broke her promise.

Her scream filled the woods as she dropped her leather bound paper in a panic, then ran off.

I reached out, “Wait, please!” But she was already gone. Defeated, I hung my head, looking down at the mysterious object she left.

You thought you had a chance with her? I told you Kato, the humans will never see you as anything more than a Dragon. Burn the object, give in to me, and we shall make everything burn.

I ignored the Voice though, as I picked up the object timidly, careful not to tear the pages with my claws as I opened it. There was tiny squiggles and lines on the page that I couldn’t understand. But then I turned the page. The picture depicted a shining castle filled with guards as a winged lizard breathed fire in the sky. I started in wonder at the image, captivated by the color. I sat down on the grass, flipping through the pages in wonder, I had never seen anything like it.

No! It’s dark sorcery, some evil spell! Resist the temptation, Kato! Let me—

“Are you enjoying it?”

I jump in fear as I see the girl over me, backing away with a hiss.

She puts her hands up, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I just saw you liked my book!”

I looked at her in confusion, “W-What is a book?”

She tilts her head, “The thing you’re holding? They hold stories?”

“What is a story?”

She smiled, “What your reading!”

“Reading?”

Her smile fell, “Do you?” She gasped, “Do you not know how to read?”

I shook my head slowly, an embarrassed blush creeping up my neck.

She walked up closer, sitting down next to me before pulling the book into her hands, “Would you like me to read it to you?”

I stared at her in shock before nodding. She smiled and opened the book, letting me clearly see the picture before she started to read.

I was captivated by the story, especially by the dragon that took the princess away. When she finally finished, I was amazed.

She laughed warmly, “What was your favorite part?”

The Dragon! He was one of us! That was our favorite part Kato!

I pondered for a moment, “I liked the end,” I pointed to the picture, “When the prince saved the princess.”

“Me too.” She smiled, “My name is Maybell, what’s yours?”

“I-I’m Kato.”

Maybell, Maybell. My thoughts echoed her name like a chant.

“Hey, uh, Maybell?”

“Yes Kato?”

I rubbed the back of my neck, “Do you think you could? I dunno… Teach me to read?”

NO! Dragons don’t read! We fly! We burn! Besides she would never—

She grinned, “Of course!” The Voice cursed in my head as she continued, “We can start with the basic alphabet, then we can—”

Her voice cut off as she looked at the horizon, the sky had started to turn a light pink.

She gasped, “Oh no! I have to go!”

She quickly sat up and started to run, leaving the book behind.

I stood up, “Maybell! Your book!”

“Keep it Kato! I’ll see you tomorrow, same time!”

Before I could shout a thank you she disappears into the forest. The clearing goes silent as I grip the book close to my chest. Maybell… She didn’t run. Well, she did, but she came back.

She’s not gonna come back Kato, and if she does, she bring the whole battalion with her. Humans and Dragons don’t mix!

She’ll come back, I look down at the book, I know she will.

Don’t count on it. We can still move, strike before she gets a chance, let me take control, Kato. Let me protect us from the world.

No! If protection means everything burning than I’d rather be in danger. Besides, Maybell will help me.

Ugh, Maybell. Don’t get too stuck in the clouds Kato, she’ll find a way to drag you down.

“But she won’t!” I thought aloud, “She’ll come back.”

I smile tugged at my lips as I started to walk away from the clearing, “She’ll be back.”

***

She did come back, no Battalions, no weapons, just some small books and a loaf of bread to snack on. She greeted me warmly, like an old friend before getting started.

She taught me the alphabet first, the ay, bee and see sounds, and she made me memorize all the letters.

As the days turned into weeks, though the Voice tried to convince me otherwise, I finally started to read.

She put the book on my lap and pointed to a line, “Read this Kato.”

I nodded and looked at the page. Surprisingly, the squiggles and lines started to form into something else entirely; words.

I understood, “The… Princess… Lived… In… The… Castle.”

Maybell gasped, “You did it Kato! You can read!”

She threw her arms around me and I could the heat flood up to my cheeks.

My reading skills weren’t the only thing that had developed over the past few weeks. I had memorized the way she laughed whenever I’d finally get something right, the way her eyes crinkled when she smiled. It was obvious, I loved her. The sudden embrace caught me off guard though, the small of her lavender perfume enveloped me in a way that made my head spin, I loved her, more than anything.

Dragons don’t need anything! We are solitary creatures! The only thing we care about is— Suddenly the Voice went silent as if realizing something, Oh… That’ll do.

Before I could ask what he meant, Maybell broke the embrace, “Now we can start reading the whole book!”

I couldn’t help but smile back at her, though a question lingered at the edge of my mind.

“Hey, Maybell?”

“Yes Kato?”

I looked at her, “I’ve showed you my forest, my home. But where do you live?”

Maybell froze as fear entered her eyes, “Oh. I-uh-just live at the edge of town, in a little hut. anyway, how bout a walk?”

She quickly stood up and put her hand out to me. I was shocked by how quickly she changed the subject.

She’s lying to you Kato, and you know it.

But why would she lie? What was there to hide? I tried to brush it off as I took her hand. I tried to have a normal walk with her, to focus on grace in her step, but the tension between us was thick enough to cut with my claws.

The sun started to move past noon, she usually would stay for a couple more hours. We would talk, trade stories, laugh.

But something had changed.

She looked up to the sky and gasped, “Oh no! I’m late!”

I was caught off guard, “Late? For what?”

She started to leave, “I’m sorry, there’s no time! I have to go!”

“But Maybell—”

She waved, “See you tomorrow Kato!” before disappearing into the woods.

I felt strange, like something was eating the inside of my stomach. She lied to me, then she had to leave hours early? Something wasn’t right…

Forget that Kato, I have something much more intriguing to tell you about anyway…

I scrunched my eyebrows, “And what’s that?”

The Voice chuckled darkly, You see, Dragons hoard Kato. We take what we treasure more than anything, then we hide it from everyone else. It’s our only purpose.

“How do you mean?”

I mean that Maybell is much more than a simple crush. Your affection for her has grown into an obsession, Kato. She’s your treasure, and you must hoard her.

“Hoard her?” I shook my head, “She’s a person, not an object!”

So it seems… But can’t you see, she’s drawing away from you Kato. She lied to you, the humans are trying to take her.

“No! She’s coming back!”

I can feel the doubt in those words, Kato. You want to know what she is hiding, what’s so terrible she can’t bear to tell you. If you want to know Kato, then track her. Let me find her for you.

I can’t move. His offer hung in my mind. The scariest part? The fact I don’t refuse.

I finally sighed, “You’ll only find her? Nothing else?”

On my word as a Dragon.

I paused, “Then do it.”

Yes!

I suddenly didn’t have control, I ripped through the forest, tracking the familiar scent. I don’t have control I feel like a puppet controlled by its strings.

We’re too slow. Let’s speed up a bit.

I roar in pain as I collapse against the ground. My own bones seem to rip through my back and tear through my shirt. I let out a gasp of pain as I look behind me, two leathery wings, a dragon’s wings.

That’s better. Now, forward!

I start to flap as I zoom through the forest, the trees whipping past as I finally swoop into town. But we don’t stop at the edge of the town where she said she’d be. The scent goes higher and higher up the town’s roads.

The castle’s towers pierced the sky, illuminated only by the moon. Knights lined the wall like in the pictures as torches lit the courtyard.

Our treasure is here Kato.

“Here?” I couldn’t believe it, “No, she said she lived in town, she can’t—”

See for yourself.

We shot forward again, too fast for any of the guards to notice, as we landed next to a window. I got curious, I peeked in.

There was Maybell, sitting on a stool reading while a maid brushed her hair. Maybell wasn’t any human, she was the princess.

But that wasn’t the worst part.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The maid opened it, revealing a young man with a handsome smile. The maid ran out as the man entered, smiling softly as he reached out. He grabbed her, leaned down, and—

My heart shattered into a million pieces.

I could feel the tears flood my eyes as I flew back into the night, back to the woods.

I landed in my home, a simple cave, and retrieved the book. I paced around as I opened it. I looked at the prince and the princess, my favorite part, but could only see the man taking Maybell away from me.

I roared in fury before I threw the book at the wall.

The book landed on an open page. The dragon had the princess in a tower, she was his, safely stored away from any princes.

Oh Kato, the solution is so simple, just give in. Let me take control and she will be ours.

Ours, the word echoed through my mind as I looked at the book.

“Fine.” I let out a sigh, “I’m yours.”

Finally!

I fell to my knees in pain as I felt him flood through my body. I let out a vicious roar.

The Voice chuckled happily, We’re gonna have some fun.