To my enormous relief, the Fallen Queen merely giggles, and continues to my tail.
Also a weakness. But only when pulled.
"Ohh…" She taps on my thickest spinal protrusions near the base of it. "This is red, you say? Crimson. Closer to vermillion than wine."
"Y–Yes." I choke out, grateful for the dramatic change in subject, and trying to keep my voice under control. "Similar to… scarlet. Or maybe ruby. Brighter than a cherry. Brighter than an apple. But… maybe a little darker than a… than your roses."
"Mm. I see it now." To my surprise, her expression becomes a touch softer. Perhaps a little more genuine. "Thank you. That was helpful."
I'm not sure what to say to that.
Her smile is hauntingly alluring.
"You're a thintail," she observes, "just like me."
"Thankfully. Our tails are as dextrous as a third arm. Thicktails just seem cumbersome."
"Powerful, in contrast. They're like axes. Compared to our swords." She reaches the end of its length, now focusing on the bladed tip. "This is… Hm. Mine is straight and double edged. Yours is curved and single edged. Ah–Don't tell me. It's… thinner than a scimitar type. Broader than a katana. More curved than a cutlass. It must be a saber type."
I nod, then realize she can't see it. "That's right."
"Of course. And you're dorsal bladed. No underbodied slashes for you, hm?" She tests the sharpness and seems satisfied. "Ahh… With this… And your speed… I can imagine. Yes, you're quite the physical combatant, aren't you? Your sideswipes… They must be lethal."
"And my forward flips." It's not boasting if it's true, is it?
At last, she takes her hands off of me, crawling back around to kneel before me. "I see you now. In mind. You're no longer nothing to me. You're Crimson. White and red. Beautiful. Handsome. Lean. Agile. And strong. With hooked talons. And a saber tail."
Fear has found its way back, dripping down my spine like icy water. One simple question repeats and repeats in my head. Now what? Now what? Now what? There's another lengthy silence, though this one isn't a fraction as tense. Not on her end, anyway. Meanwhile I'm fearing the worst, putting every effort into remaining calm and still. I'll not let this monster see me falter.
Her black tongue darts out and in. "Yes. I'm keeping you."
My heart sinks and my composure slips. "Wait. Wait, no, I–"
"You belong to me now, Crimson."
"No, no, no, wait! Y–You can't! You can't! The Goddess will send more Fables to find me, maybe even Legends!"
"Will she?" The Fell's serrated grin widens. "To rescue a filthy rotblood? Some lowly wyvern worth nothing more than a speck of dust to her? I don't think so. No, nobody is coming to save you. You're entirely at my mercy now. I could rip out your beating heart right this instant, and there's nothing you or anyone else could do to stop it. You know that much with abject certainty, so don't deign to lie with such fervor. I detest liars. Are you a liar, Crimson? Hm?"
"Please, just let me g–"
"Are you. A liar?" She rips at my chain, bringing our faces close as she stares empty eyed death into my very soul. "Crimson. Speak."
"N–No! No, I–I'm not! I'm not a liar!"
"Neither am I. So when I say I'm keeping you, that is verity. But don't fret or fear, little wyvern. There'll be no torture, pain, or deprivation for you. Quite the opposite. And should you behave yourself…" She pauses, taking a deep breath before leaning closer and brushing her black tongue up my neck, over my jaw, and to my pointed ear. Directly into it, she whispers, "I may even pleasure you."
I'm petrified.
"You'll see." She nips my earlobe with her fangs, then huffs a warm laugh against my skin before slowly kissing my cheek. "Now… Let's get you out of this dreary cave, shall we?"
The Fallen Queen removes the chain from the anchor point and winds it around her hand to keep hold of it, then stands to her full height right in front of me. Her other hand lowers and curls under my chin to tilt it up so I'm looking at her. My fear has solidified into crystal, with a weight that's choking the life out of me as I sit frozen in her shadow.
"I could drag you," she whispers, thumb softly brushing my cheek as she smiles down at me, "or you could walk. Either way, you're coming with me, Crimson. What will it be?"
What is happening? What is happening to me?
There's nothing I can do. Nothing at all.
I can't move. I can't speak. I can't do anything.
"Hmm. The third option, then."
She stoops low and sweeps me up in her arms. With another laugh, this one a touch more bubbling, she cradles me like a hatchling and heads for the door. Now confusion has entered the mix, emulsifying with my fear and making both more intense.
A thousand questions burn in my head. Where is she taking me? Where am I going? How did I end up here? Is she really carrying me like this? Why am I not dead already? Will I ever see the sun again? Or go home to my castle in the sky? Return to my pets? Or am I just as damned as she is, forever cursed to haunt the Hells? What the fuck is happening to me?
Outside the cavern is a masoned stone hallway, and she takes me to the right. I'm not sure how she knows where she's going if she's blind, but it doesn't seem like she's having any issues with that much. At the end of the hallway is a wide spiral staircase, which she ascends with haste. At the top, there's another hallway lined with closed iron doors, and I can hear things moving around just beyond them as we pass by. With another few turns, the underground opens wider.
It's the interior of a tower fortress. More stairs wind around the perimeter, and she continues climbing. Soon enough, we breach the top, and what awaits us there sparks a faint flicker of wonder and intrigue, which thaw at the frays of my palpable dread.
An underground chasm yawns wider than belief, so huge it looks like a kingdom of its own. Between luminescent mushrooms the size of redwood trees and roses that bloom even larger, the conglomerations of smaller rose beds, geodes, and crystals, and the rushing waterfalls pouring from the ceiling or walls to feed rivers and streams that run deeper into the ground, there's so much to look at that I don't know what to focus on.
Despite myself, a question passes my tongue. "What… is this?"
"Home." She stands at the tower's edge, lingering in place with her tail swishing and swaying. "I carved it out myself, cultivated the mycelium, landscaped the different terraces, dug all the channels for water flow, dammed up a handful of pools for wildlife, excavated the gemstones and geodes… Hm. What else?"
Pools for wildlife?
"I'd have to wander and feel around to remember more," she sighs, holding me a little tighter. "Unless you see something else you're curious about?"
"Um. Where are you taking me, exactly?"
"To bed, of course. Or perhaps a bath first?"
"Wh–What? Bed? A bath? What are y–" I trip over my words, fumbling for more, before belting out, "What is happening right now?"
My voice echoes.
"Shhh, shhh," she soothes, scratching her claws across my scalp. "Don't fret, little one. I told you just moments ago that I'm keeping you. You're mine now. Of course I'm going to bathe you and make certain you rest."
I am so fucking confused.
"Yes, let's take a bath. Off we go."
Her rosy wings plume and pump as she tightens her hold even more and takes off. Tucked under her arm, I opt to simply go limp and resign myself to my bewildering fate. None of this makes any sense to me and I'm not sure I'd be able to puzzle it out even if I had all the pieces. I've given up trying. Whatever she wants to do to me, she can go right ahead. At least it sounds like I'll get to experience a little more comfort before she impales me on a spike and cooks me alive before devouring the marrow from my bones like she did to Legend Charlemagne centuries ago.
She flies through an archway of glittering amethyst and then inverts, diving lower into the Hells and weaving through twists, turns, and tight corners, all at speed. She's surprisingly agile. For a dragon, that is.
A minute later, she lands on her feet and carries me into a humid cavern that's thick with steam and dimly illuminated by amber glowing crystals. Hells, she has a hot spring down here too?
As she nears the edge of the water, she sets me down but keeps hold of the chain. Standing beside her for the first time, I gape up at the giant who stands so tall that I just barely reach her chest. Even with my horns, I'm hardly past her shoulders.
She shrugs off her robes and they drop to the floor.
Black hair, white skin, and red scales. Red like roses.
I tear my eyes off her and gnaw on my lip.
"Take those off," she hisses, plucking at my white and red linens. "Unless you plan to bathe with them on."
"Um. N–No, I don't." I guess she can't exactly see my body either way, so I do the same thing. It's warm in here. Hazy. Smells like flowers. Or maybe that's just her. Clawing at the collar around my neck, I mumble, "Can you take this off, at least?"
"No." She pulls the chain taut. "Not happening."
"O–Okay…"
"In."
The thought of fighting back flickers through my mind. It's gone just as quickly. I tell myself that it's easiest to go along, and that maybe if I appease her, she might let me go. I am well and truly at her mercy. And the choice here is simple. Take a nice, warm bath, or try to go head to head with a former Legend while leashed by a curse chain.
I choose the bath.
The water is the perfect temperature. It's beyond inviting, and the moment I feel the heat, I let go and drop in to submerge myself. Hot bubbles percolate all around me across my scales and skin, and the warmth quickly eases my aching body. Especially where I'm bruised the worst.
The water shifts beside me as someone much larger enters and settles. Her tail curls behind me but that's all, and when I breach the surface I find her sitting peacefully on a ledge, only her head and shoulders above the water.
Neither of us says anything, simply soaking. The soothing sound of running water is a nice ambiance. The more time that goes by, the more I find myself relaxing. It's hard not to. I love hot springs for that very reason.
Maybe… Just maybe… This might not be so bad.
Lurking low to the surface with my mouth below but my nose above, I stare at her for a long time before I finally ask. "A bath? Bed? Am I really your prisoner?"
"Prisoner?" she whispers, then smiles a little. "No, little rose. You're no longer my prisoner."
I watch the water ripple between us. "Then… What am I?"
"Isn't it obvious, Crimson?" she purrs as her tail coils around my waist. "You're my new pet. And I'm going to take very good care of you…"