~Viper~

Viper wasn't supposed to be here. These dragons of such high status were not supposed to be surrounding her. She shouldn't be at a royal wedding. She was supposed to be in her hut at home, tending to her sick neighbors. The Rot was spreading. It was getting stronger, too. Symptoms started suddenly and took anywhere between a week or two to kill. Viper wanted to be home tending to the sick dragons she had known her whole life, but she was here at the Castle of the Solstice, watching a wedding instead.

Viper's stomach curled in on itself as she eyed the bustling crowd of dragons around her. How many dragons here were infected and didn't even know? A worse thought soured her mind as her talons fidgeted with strands of grass below her. How many dragons knew they were infected and were still here? She knew at least one sick dragon was here, but there was nothing she could do about that. She may be the royal healer now, but that didn't give her any authority over any of the surrounding dragons. If she had it her way, everyone would be quarantining in their own villages or castles where the infection couldn't spread beyond the walls of a single dragon's house.

Her eyes darted around the courtyard, eyeing each and every dragon to see if there were any symptoms. The prince and princess had just landed, and the crowd began to become restless. Bodies bumped into her and blocked her vision as panic began to set in. Her family's faces flashed in her head. Were they okay? Were they safe? Had the spread stalled since she left or would she come back to a village completely destroyed?

There was too much...too many dragons. Too many worries. Too much of everything. She couldn't focus. Suddenly, a wing wrapped around her and pulled her out of the crowd and into a small hallway.

"Viper, are you alright?" A familiar voice asked as talons lifted Viper's face upwards towards them. A female dragon, only a little taller than her, had her golden eyes narrowed as if examining Viper's face. Viper immediately jolted away, cheeks flushed and hot.

"Queen Jaguar!" she gasped. "Oh-um... I-I'm fine." Viper hated how shaky her voice sounded.

The queen arched a brow and sighed, adjusting her wings carefully on her back.

"You've never been around this many dragons before, have you?" The queen's face remained stony and emotionless as her eyes looked over Viper's head and back into the crowd. Was there a hint of worry in those eyes?

"N-no. I have not, ma'am." Viper lowered her head, her eyes fixed on the ground now. Queen Jaguar was a bright golden dragon speckled with dark brown, nearly black spots. The dark scales surrounding her eyes made her golden irises all the more piercing and intimidating. Between her and King Jackal, far more dragons feared the Queen based on looks alone. It was very intimidating to be so close to her like this.

"My husband wishes to see you, once you've composed yourself." Those golden eyes once again pinned Viper down with their full attention. Viper glanced up at her, noticing the deep frown creasing the Queen's face. Something was wrong.

"Of course, ma'am. Where shall I find him?"

"In his room in the east hall. He has retired for the evening because of his affliction."

Viper winced and nodded quietly as the Queen slipped past her and back out into the crowd of dragons in the courtyard.

"His affliction..." Viper echoed, her nose wrinkling at the thought. The King was sick with prolonged Rot. Had it gotten worse since her last check-in two days ago? An icy pang of dread spread through her chest as she hurried down the hallway towards the east wing. If the Rot had gotten any worse, then it wouldn't be long before the king was no more. The crowned princess, Leopard, was only two years old, far too young to assume the throne. If the king were to die, then Queen Jaguar would have to serve as regent until the princess was old enough to lay claim to the throne. That alone would throw the kingdom into an uproar, since the Queen was not of royal blood. 

The halls of the Castle of the Solstice were winding, narrow, and long. Creating labyrinthine traps for any dragon who had no understanding of its layout. Viper had become lost countless times in the week she had been there, having to be rescued by the priests and priestesses of the castle on more than one occasion. Deep grooves littered her path as the memories of the thousands of dragons who had walked this same hall before her guided her way. Torchlight flickered and doused the hall in an ominous orange light as the echoing of her talon falls were the only thing stirring the silence. Every dragon was outside watching the marriage dance between the Snow Princess and the Sea Prince, leaving the halls empty and lonely.

Viper stopped before a large wooden door decorated with gold vines and flowers. Nothing moved behind it, and Viper couldn't hear anyone inside either. Was the king already gone, or did she come to the wrong room? A shudder passed over Viper's spine. She hoped the king was simply sleeping.

Viper gripped the doorhandle and did her best to push the door open as quietly as she could. The hinges squeaked and squealed as the door revealed a dark, moonlit room behind it. Expensive rugs scattered the floor as a golden chandelier swung slightly from the ceiling. A small draft pricked at Viper's scales, carrying with it a foul stench of decay. The small window next to a bed of blankets and silks was wide open. Beneath it, a dragon-sized lump lay as still as stone.

"Your Majesty, your wife said you wanted to see me?" Viper's voice came out hardly above a whisper as she slowly stepped into the room. Her eyes watered at the smell. A smell Viper knew all too well from her village. It hadn't been this pervasive the last time Viper had visited the King, and that in and of itself worried her.

The lump in the bed didn't move, didn't even twitch at the sound of the young dragon's voice. It remained eerily still and calm. Carefully and slowly, Viper made her way to the lump's side. A glint of dull yellow scales peeking out from under the blankets was enough to tell her that this was the King.

"Your Majesty?" Viper tried again, her voice shaking, hoping the king was merely too deep in slumber to realize he had a guest.

When no answer came, Viper reluctantly pulled away the blankets covering the king. What greeted her was a nightmare. The King was gone, there was no denying it. He wasn't breathing and his brown eyes were dull and rolled into the back of his head. His mouth was open, and from it leaked a dark, oily liquid that smelled of death itself. The King's whole body was contorted and stiff as if his last moments had been one of pain and misery. His once vibrant scales were already starting to turn black and rot away.

Viper took a shaky step back, letting the blanket she was holding drop from her talons. The smell was worse than before, as if the blanket had been masking the true extent of the smell. Viper's mind was spiralling. When did he get this bad? His symptoms had only started three days ago and had been less aggressive than what Viper had seen in her other patients. Had this just happened, or had both the King and Queen refused to tell her until now? Even if they had told her, would she have been able to prevent any of this?

Viper's wings twitched, jolting her out of her mind and back into the present. She had to tell someone. Viper knew she had to tell someone. The king couldn't be left like this. If he turned in the castle, many more lives would be at risk. Viper's eyes darted around the room, looking for something. For help? For anything that could make this whole thing better. Back home she had Freya's calm and ancient mind to guide her, but now she was all alone with no idea how to shove this panic to the side and act like she was supposed to.

"The Queen..." she gasped out, "I have to tell the Queen!" Viper was backing towards the door before the words had even left her mouth. The face of the king, bathed in cold moonlight, looked as if he were screaming. After bumping into the doorframe, Viper finally got her body to turn around and dart back down the hallway towards the courtyard. The King was dead and telling the queen was all she knew what to do.