“And if I can’t find my mate?”

“You’ll find your mate, Hyukjae.”

“Say I don’t find my mate…what happens then?”

“Oh, but you will.”

“Say I don’t… like my mate, I’m going to be bound to them against my will?”

“Don’t underestimate the bond, Hyukjae. It’s stronger than you think; more powerful than something as trivial as your will. ”

“Sounds troublesome,” he said before opening the ballroom doors—the Red Moon was young.

“Sounds romantic to me.”

He sighed and thought of thousands of different ways he would’ve wanted to spend his night.

“Let’s just get this over with.”

“By the end of the night, I’ll be laughing as you squirm and beg for your mate like a pathetic wimp, you’ll see.”

Hyukjae shrugged, “don’t bet on it.”

❄

Metal doors slid open with a soft hiss as leather shoes walked through with paced steps, followed by a pair of small and frail bare feet. The floor was cold, frozen with a thin layer of ice and mist dancing around their ankles as they made their way down the laboratory aisle.

“We’re almost there,” the man said, eyeglasses glinting as he glanced back at the child scurrying behind him. A smirk played on his lips, “No need to look so afraid.”

“But,” the boy glanced around, “this place—”

Muffled groans and high-pitched roars echoed in the darkness. From what little he could see in the dim light, there were cages, some empty and others with looming figures hidden in the dark.

A loud agonizing roar from somewhere to his left had the boy take a step backward, bumping into a sentry who squinted down at him, cold blue eyes devoid of emotion.

This was how ice dragons worked—sharp and precise, quick, flawless, and calculated. No effort or time could be wasted on something as trivial as feelings, or the passion that fire dragons foolishly enthrall themselves with. Donghae saw it himself on the battlefield through the blurred haze of elixir they inject into his bloodstream, how the sheer contrast of fire and ice’s presence had temperatures rising and falling at erratic rates; the mountains, the land, the very face of the earth altering as dragon slayed dragon.

This was war and this was how ice dragons worked.

But somehow, Donghae felt this laboratory layers and layers underneath the Northern Ice Kingdom held a different chill in the air. He almost shivered.

“This… you’re sure this will work?”

“When have I ever been wrong?” the scientist turned to face him, white lab coat fluttering as two large metallic doors behind him opened with a hiss, cold mist pouring out and creeping along Donghae’s legs. “You’re the only one capable of this, you know that.”

Inside the chamber were two capsules connected to multitudes of wires, frost creeping along the metal. One was wide open, something Donghae assumed was prepared just for him, but the other capsule had its glass door closed. With a tentative hand he wiped the fog on the cold glass, looking inside to get a glimpse of a beautifully structured face, sharp features and thick lips. She was deep in sleep, the pendant around her neck a faded red and long jet black hair framed her cheeks.

“A fire dragon,” he stepped back, “why…?”

“Come now, X015A,” the man said and held out a gloved hand, “let’s end the war, shall we?”

❄

.

.

.

.

.

“Hyukjae,”

He stormed down the corridors of the castle, footsteps heavy and jaw clenched. It had been three days since he returned from outside the Wall and being bedridden the entire time, Hyukjae was unaware of the uncharacteristic gloom that surrounded his now cloudy kingdom. Every glance outside the windows had his hairs standing and every tiny drop in temperature stirred an uncomfortable swirl in his stomach, gripping his lungs until it’s difficult to breathe and his fingers go numb.

“Hyukjae,” Heechul continued to tail him, “you’re in no condition to be walking around right now.”

What else could the reason for the subtle chill in the air be? The goosebumps along his skin?  Hyukjae glanced at the man behind him, worried and fussing over his every move—did Heechul not feel the cold at all?

“Hyukjae,”

He knew, oh he more than just knew, Hyukjae encountered and fought with an ice dragon himself. Blue scales, high-pitched roars, serpentine speed and all.

“Hyukjae, stop,”

The dragon was alone, stranded and vulnerable for an easy ambush despite its enhanced abilities. In his head, Hyukjae could already formulate at least ten strategies that would effectively take down the filthy snake with only four of his finest warriors.

But he couldn’t—no matter how hard he tried to get the words to roll of his tongue—bring himself to tell his highest-ranking warrior or his right hand man, about the blond he met in the blizzard. Donghae was a threat to his kingdom, an ice dragon for ’s sake, and yet Hyukjae had the audacity to keep this vital information to himself. What kind of royal was he? What kind of prince?

“Your dragon is upset,” Heechul grabbed him by the shoulder, “calm down.”

“My dragon is not upset!” Hyukjae snapped and candles along the hallways lit up, tongues of fire stretching a foot long into the air. Steam blew out from his ears and nostrils, and a chandelier that tangled above them burned even brighter.

Heechul raised a brow.

“Tch,” he turned back around, “I need to survey the grounds.”

“Oh no, you don’t.”

“What did you say?”

“The last time you surveyed the grounds, you ended up missing, stuck in a blizzard, and dead to the world for three days. Even now, your pupils are dilated from fatigue and your dragon is squirming all over the place, I can feel it.” Heechul’s gaze met his, “we have our best warriors on patrol, let them do their jobs while you calm down and tell me what the hell happened outside the Wall.”

Hyukjae breathed deeply, “You don’t understand.”

“No, you don’t understand. Have you listened to a single word I’ve said? Hunters have been reported along the coast, Hyukjae, you shouldn’t be flying around—”

“Stop treating me like a child.”

“Only if you stop treating me like a fool!”

It took one glimpse for him to understand that Heechul knew something wasn’t right, that Hyukjae was hiding something and that this was the perfect opportunity to do what’s right. He could have told Heechul then and there, about the blond he met in the blizzard, the ice dragon with the warmest blue eyes he’d ever seen.

Instead, he felt fear grip him to his core.

Fear he had only known through the hardship of war, the constant waiting by his window for his mother’s return after retreat flares had shot through the air.

This fear shot through his veins, pulled out his wings and jumped out the nearest window, zooming through the night sky in high speed. He ignored Heechul’s shouts of protests, the guard dragons on duty as they watched him with wide eyes and helplessly slow wings—ignored everything but that wretched feeling in his gut.

His mate was in danger.

❄

Youngwoon frowned and glanced back at the young dragon flying behind him. Hyukjae had insisted before that he take Henry with him on scouting missions at the very least, and judging by the way the kid focused more on flapping his wings than surveying the area, Youngwoon understood perfectly just how much training Henry needed.

‘We’re flying lower,’ he huffed, ‘you better keep up, kid.’

‘Yes, sir! Will do, sir!’

Small puffs of smoke blew out from Henry’s ears and Youngwoon tried not to roll his eyes.

‘Don’t call me that.’

He dove down, flying high enough for Henry not to hit a tree and low enough to look out for any evidence of dragon hunters in the area. The report they received at the castle was vague; a tip from one of the brave townspeople who spotted suspicious-looking men in the forest, but it was not to be taken lightly.

Ever since Hyukjae’s reign, dragons were generally at peace with humans. The long grueling years of war had affected them too, leaving most homeless and therefore, grateful to the Southern Kingdom for providing space to build their towns. Humans who lived in the South praised and respected Hyukjae, but feared him and his dragons all the same.

Nonetheless, there were still some who emerged from the war with a vengeance. Dragon hunters travelled across lands capturing whatever dragon they could get their hands on, and were extremely good at it, experts even. Rumors say hunters experiment on dragons, kill and sell their thick, armored hide or their sharp claws for weaponry; others say they tame and keep the dragons like pets or even worse, slaves.

Either way, they were a threat to the kingdom and Youngwoon was determined not to let a single thing slip past him.

As if on cue, he caught sight of a disturbance in the trees, a slight rustle and an odd scent. Youngwoon shifted to his human form mid-air and caught a tree branch to swing himself to the ground.