77. Groom’s Rivals

Back in the forbidden tower, Ivan was waiting for the arrival of Dev and his father Jaravles while guarding against the loosened door of the dark chamber of the forbidden tower.
Ivan Shirk called out his dragon warriors to seal the door which have been applied full force from inside to break open the iron door. Dev and Jaravles arrived on time to support the dragon warriors.
“How is this even possible?” Jaravles shouted to his full throat.
Ivan stood frozen to answer his furious question, Dev quickly explained, “Uncle Arav, the iron door of the dark chamber was just as fine until you leave. We haven’t noticed what disturbed the durability of the iron door of that chamber. So I rushed to bring you back.”
Jaravles examined the iron door carefully and noticed the silver thread had been stung to seal the door. He questioned everyone, “What’s this? Whose idea is this?”
Ivan replied to him, “Father, we used Dev’s hair to seal the door temporarily...”
Before Ivan could complete his words, Jaravles palmed him to stop his mouth and called Dev, “Dev?”
Dev rushed to him who was examining the iron door. “What is it, Uncle Arav?”
Jaravles bend down to collect the powdered rust spread on the floor from the iron door and showed the rust powder to Dev, “Do you know about this?”
“No way,” Dev exclaimed his shock and shared his eyes with Ivan. “This iron door can’t be rusted. It is heavily sealed with powerful sorcery. This implies only one thing...”
“What is it Dev?” Ivan asked him.
“Iron can’t be destroyed but it's rusting can, so the forbidden object inside this chamber has been trying all means to rust this iron door for all these centuries, so it can be set free from iron bars,” Dev explained.
“We need to inform our queen about this. She could suggest us.” Ivan remarked on his suggestions.
“No Ivan, Uncle Arav, we shouldn’t inform her and even dust of this rust can go out this forbidden tower. We have to seal it.” Dev determined in his mind.
Jaravles nodded positively and agreed with Dev, “Ravens attack been a biggest black mark on our kingdom. If this news of rust were disclosed, then it might draw the attention of the rivals.”
“Dev, then, what’s next?” Ivan asked Dev with open arms which were previously rested on his waist.
“I use my sorcery to seal the door,” Dev told them while fixing his icy blue eyes on the iron door.
“What kind of sorcery, Dev?” Ivan asked Dev in a soft voice.
Dev gestured, “Shush!”
“No Dev, you can’t do that. That’s forbidden, why don’t you understand?”
“Using forbidden sorcery to seal forbidden objects kept in this forbidden tower is precise in smart action.” Dev stretched his fingers and neck. “Time to use my real sorcery, finally.”
Dev’s face and heart were bloomed to use such sorcery to seal the object that was trying to escape from their guarding.
*****
Dev was standing on the forbidden tower’s top while his mind was preoccupied. Ivan stood by him and patted his shoulder, “Dev?”
As soon as Ivan touched his shoulder, Dev jumped from the tower’s top down. Ivan peeped his head down and was startled by his action. Ivan smiled and chuckled at Dev’s action.
“You didn’t change your pattern of enjoyment. Wait for me, Dev.”He too followed Dev and both quickly transformed into dragons of white and red on their way to reaching down
Before they both reach the utmost ground, they both flighted upwards towards the sky. Both white and red dragons occupied the entire sky and let their flames of blue and red enjoy and celebrate their victory.
The other dragon soldiers followed them one by one and joined them to show their joy of returning home. The rays of the early sun were blocked by the dragons who were orbiting in the joy of victory.
Jaravles Shirk, the dark knight witnessed their joy and felt happy for them. He talked to himself while watching the white dragon in the sky, “I still remember his childhood when he first struggles to lift his sword.” He chuckled.
The white dragon tilted its head to look at the dark knight who has been watching them and he could hear what the dark knight was talking to himself.
Dev quickly appeared in front of Jaravles in his mortal form and asked, “Thinking of my childhood days, Uncle Arav?”
“Hmm,” Jaravles continued, “I remember your heightened level of enthusiasm in learning everything.”
Dev dimpled to Jaravles when Ivan approached Dev and stood by him to listen to his father and replied, “Father, he is not normally born, everything is heightened in him not only enthusiasm.”
Ivan ridiculed Dev who shared his sharp eyes with him. Jaravles replied on behalf of Dev, “Don’t mind him; he is an early hatched one in my entire bloodline.”
Dev burst into laughter after hearing Ivan's birth secret. Ivan was a little annoyed and humiliated by the statement of his father. So he decided to stand for himself, “I don’t mind being hatched early since I am the one and only red dragon in your entire bloodline of night dragons.”
“It was your mother’s wish to birth you as a light dragon than one among the night,” Jaravles slow-paced his legs in the corridor of the forbidden tower while reminiscing his past with his wife.
“You never talked about mother for ages. Why now?” Ivan requested his father, “I want to know, I want to hear about mother.”
“I never talked about your mother with you, not even to your sister for some reason. Somethings are meant to be forbidden forever.” Jaravles hesitated to open his mouth about his wife.
“Uncle Arav, I too never heard about his mother. I request you to tell me about her and we love to hear.” Dev demanded on the behalf of his dearest friend Ivan.
Jaravles looked at both young men who stood before him whose ears were eager to hear about his wife and so he took a deep breath to recall his past. “I was of your age (he mentioned Ivan) when I met your mother for the first time. She was as beautiful as the stars in the night sky.”
He paused while chuckling inside. Ivan wondered at his father’s reaction and he soft-voiced to Dev, “Dev, I never remember seeing his bloomed face in aeons. Thank you for persuading my father to talk about my mother.”
Dev replied to him in the same tone, “Your mother must be a great one to bring smile and love to your father. She must have faced hard times to melt Uncle Arav’s rocky heart with her love.”
Ivan agreed with a big sigh and both listened to Jaravles when he opened his mouth again with a chuckle. He continued, “I saw her on an island when I was roaming around the night sky. She was moon bathing and failed to notice me watching her.”
“You dare to watch my mother’s bathing?” Ivan flared in his anger flames.
“Ivy, (Dev got his shoulder and pushed hard to stop his attack on his father) he is your father, he has all the right to look at your mother.” Dev notified him and he told Jaravles to continue explaining his love life, “Stop interrupting him.”
Jaravles complained about his son’s attitude, “He got his mother’s temper. Back then, she was flared with anger towards me and started questioning my presence.”
“Huh, that’s my mother.” Ivan praised his mother for her act of questioning his father, “Then, what happened?”
“Since then I never missed a night to meet your mother by the waters. It was hard for me to change her negative impression of me. Then, I expressed my love to her. she agreed but her clan disagreed with our union of light and night dragons.”
Jaravles skipped the smaller things and jumped to the main part of his memory, “I fought with her father to win her. I won the battle and we mated to birth our offspring. She was proud that you are the only light dragon in our entire night dragon clan and even your sister was born as night fury.”
He paused for a while, “She named you Ivanov meaning God’s gift and she named your sister Lenora meaning light.”
“Indeed, Nora is the gem of light. She is the only female warrior dragon in our night dragon clan.” Ivan felt proud of Nora and smiled picturing his mother in his mind and listening to his father.
Dev asked him the most saddened part of his life, “Uncle Arav, can you please tell me how did she end up...”
Jaravles’s facial expression changed and he faced the corridor floor for a while. He gained some strength to explain his wife’s death, “She sacrificed her life in protecting our offsprings. Our offspring includes you both.”
“I apologize for provoking to share the saddest part of your life, I know you see me as like Ivan and Nora.” Dev regretted forcing him to share the death of his wife.
Jaravles sighed and touched Dev’s back head, “Dev, you are a smart one, unlike Ivan’s bad temper. I know whatever the situation be, you will act accordingly yet fight for the truth. I often see your father in you.”
Dev chuckled, “I never got a chance to see him. But I am sure I will bring him back.”
“Is that the primordial reason for your visit to the black witch palace?” Jaravles questioned about his first visit to Ardna Chirig.
“One of the reasons. I went there to destroy many lives surviving in the shadows of the black witch palace, but I bring back my own life.” Dev replied not forgetting to mention his love for Akshara.
“Huh, about that?” Jaravles brought his hand from his back head to his ears and squeezed with the least pressure applying, “You have brought a human girl to dragon land and forcing her to marry you? I didn’t raise you a tyrant, I hope.”
“Uncle Arav, I terribly apologize for not telling you but I swear. I thought she was a witch and intended to kill her. and then...” Dev paused while trying to release his hurting ears from Jaravles’s hold.
“Then what?” Jaravles asked him.
Ivan interrupted the both, “Then what? Tell him how you fall for your siren’s call.”
“Siren?” Jaravles was puzzled, “Isn't she human?”
Dev punched Ivan at his arm and explained to Jaravles, “Let me explain Uncle Arav, she was born as a human, raised by a black witch, guarded by werewolves and she is destined to be with dragons.”
“Destined? Are you sure that she is your destined mate?” Jaravles questioned him yet thinking, “Where is the witch palace located?”
“Ardna Chirig”
“Did you say Black witch with werewolves?”
“Yes, why do you ask Uncle Arav.”
“I think I know about her.”
“Who are you talking about witch or his bride?” Ivan asked with a puzzled applied face.
“I am not sure. Let me process that and report to you with detailed information. And don’t think about that, let me handle that. Everyone is waiting for their crown prince’s arrival.”
*****