GOT King of Dragon

*Crunch—* 

Rhaegar stepped over a pile of foul-smelling dragon dung, accidentally snapping a bone marked with bite marks underfoot. The sharp sound echoed unnaturally in the dim, silent space. 

The sudden noise sent a cold sweat down Rhaegar's back, his heart pounding in his chest. 

His eyes never left the shadowy figure in the dark, terrified that any slight misstep might provoke it. 

Pressing a trembling hand against his heaving chest, Rhaegar was certain of one thing: 

If this had happened six months ago, his poor health might have caused his heart to falter. One wrong move, and he could have collapsed on the spot. 

Taking a deep breath, he worked to calm his racing emotions and continued humming a song he barely knew. 

*Clink… clink…* 

After a while, the sound of chains clashing echoed again. 

By now, Rhaegar had moved much closer, close enough to catch a faint glimpse of Dreamfyre. 

Dreamfyre had a slim build, with pale blue scales streaked by silver lines. Her light blue wings and silvery back scales shimmered faintly. 

The dragon's head remained hidden in shadow, but the curved, silver horns atop her head were exposed to the dim light. 

The sight of the pale blue dragon made Rhaegar halt instinctively. 

At the moment, Dreamfyre's long neck was coiled against her side, her wings tucked neatly by her ribs as if she were resting. 

But Rhaegar knew better. 

Dreamfyre had been awake ever since his song first echoed through the cavern. 

She was watching him, studying this uninvited intruder. 

To approach an untamed, full-grown dragon alone… It was foolish to claim he wasn't afraid. 

His arm holding the torch trembled; his legs felt as heavy as lead, refusing to move. Even his lips, struggling to sing the song, felt numb. 

"Move. Move already!" 

Fear gripped him like a vice, but Rhaegar's remaining shred of reason forced him to pound his legs, willing them to move forward. 

He was here to tame the dragon. He couldn't give up halfway. 

After what felt like an eternity, Rhaegar finally noticed that Dreamfyre hadn't shown signs of driving him away. His nerves eased slightly, and his defiant will pushed him onward. 

Thirty meters. Twenty meters. Fifteen meters… 

As the distance shrank, Rhaegar could see Dreamfyre clearly. 

Just as he suspected, she had been awake all along. 

Her majestic head rested atop her long, slender tail, and her amber eyes watched him coldly, unblinking. 

The oppressive presence of a full-grown dragon in such a confined space was overwhelming, like the Sword of Damocles hanging above his head, ready to fall at any moment. 

*Huff… huff…* 

The song faltered. His heavy breathing now echoed in the silence. 

"I've come this far. I can't fail now!" 

Driven by adrenaline, Rhaegar stiffened, shouting inwardly to summon his courage. His gaze locked with Dreamfyre's. 

"Dreamfyre, be my companion! I'll take you back to the skies!" 

Biting his lip until it bled, Rhaegar forced the words out in a desperate shout. He raised the torch high with one hand, extending the other toward her. 

No matter what, he had to try to tame her. 

*Grrr…* 

Dreamfyre's throat rumbled, a deep growl emerging from her mouth. 

Still half-asleep, her temper seemed calm for the moment, showing no outright hostility. 

Her nostrils flared slightly as if sensing some mysterious connection between them. 

Dreamfyre understood immediately. 

This connection… it was the same as the one her first and former rider, Rhaenys, once had. 

Dreamfyre's piercing amber eyes locked onto Rhaegar, scrutinizing him. 

"Dreamfyre, accept me! You don't belong in a dark cave, hidden from the world!" 

*Roar!* 

At Rhaegar's shout, Dreamfyre responded with a powerful roar that echoed through the cavern. 

For a brief moment, the young prince and the dragon, imprisoned for decades, stared into each other's eyes. 

A strange connection formed between them, drawing them together. 

In each other's pupils, they saw their reflections. 

Through this faint, unspoken bond, Rhaegar felt the depths of Dreamfyre's emotions: 

Rage. Restlessness. Resentment… 

And an overwhelming yearning for freedom. 

The immense negative energy was like an abyss, bottomless and suffocating. Rhaegar was shaken. 

Then he realized. 

A dragon meant to roam the skies and fields had been caged for decades after losing her rider. 

--- 

In this sunless underground cavern, it was understandable for emotions to run high while transitioning from youth to adulthood. 

Rhaegar mustered his courage and took a hesitant step forward, speaking earnestly, "Dreamfire, let me take you away from here!" 

Dreamfire fixed its gaze on Rhaegar. Although it couldn't understand his words, it could sense the empathy in his voice. 

It had been imprisoned for far too long. 

Indeed, it longed to leave. 

Dreamfire moved. 

Its wings braced against the ground as it raised its head high, trying to display its most majestic form. 

*Clink… clank…* 

However, the sturdy shackles binding its neck and feet tightened. Before it could fully rise, the chains yanked it back with relentless force. 

Force begets resistance. 

The more Dreamfire had longed to stand tall in the preceding moment, the more excruciating the pull was in the next. 

*Thud!* 

Dreamfire fell to the ground, its slender neck nearly snapping as it slammed heavily against the cavern wall. 

Seeing this, Rhaegar was overwhelmed with worry and exclaimed, "Dreamfire, are you alright?!" 

He had yet to realize that the bond they had just established was severed the moment Dreamfire fell. 

Dreamfire struggled on the ground for a moment before lifting its head again. A fierce torrent of flames erupted from its jaws. 

"Dreamfire, are you okay?" 

Rhaegar cautiously took a step forward. 

But when their eyes met again, there was no longer any trace of closeness in Dreamfire's gaze—only anger and fury remained. 

"Shriek!" 

With a sudden roar, Dreamfire opened its jaws wide, unleashing a torrent of dragonfire, a mixture of orange and sky blue flames. 

"No! Calm down, Dreamfire—we can be allies!" 

Rhaegar's face turned pale with shock as he desperately tried to bring Dreamfire back to its senses. 

But the dragonfire surged forth. 

Faced with the oncoming pillar of flames, his survival instincts kicked in. Rhaegar quickly turned and dove into a pile of jagged bones. 

The dragonfire missed him, but sparks scattered onto his unprotected back. 

The intense heat of the dragonfire, far beyond that of ordinary flames, instantly burned through his clothes and seared his pale skin. 

"Ahhh!" 

The searing pain tore through Rhaegar's nerves like a whip, and he let out an agonized scream. His head jerked back uncontrollably, and his eyes nearly bulged from their sockets. 

For a fleeting moment, Rhaegar thought he might die from the sheer pain. 

But as it turned out, the saying "blood and fire are one" wasn't just a metaphor. 

Despite the unbearable agony, Rhaegar didn't die. 

"How did this happen? Why did Dreamfire lose control?!" 

In the face of danger, Rhaegar's rationality overpowered his fear, and he issued the best command he could muster. 

Taking advantage of the brief pause between Dreamfire's fiery breaths, Rhaegar struggled to his feet and ran toward the distant shadows, ignoring his injuries. 

He had lost his torch earlier, so he had no choice but to press forward in the darkness. Already unsteady, he stumbled frequently over the scattered bones littering the ground. 

"Shriek!" 

Missing its target only heightened Dreamfire's aggression. It thrashed against its chains and unleashed its fury with indiscriminate bursts of dragonfire. 

The vibrant flames illuminated the lair, scorching stone walls and bones alike. Some of the flames narrowly missed Rhaegar as he darted away. 

"Damn it! I was so close to succeeding…" 

Fleeing from the relentless pursuit of the searing flames, Rhaegar couldn't help but reflect on why things had gone wrong. 

"Your Highness, watch out behind you!" 

A familiar voice called out. Before Rhaegar could react, a white figure tackled him to the ground. 

*Boom!* 

The spot where Rhaegar had been standing a moment earlier was engulfed by dragonfire, leaving behind a half-foot-deep, charred crater. 

---

Unfortunately, Dreamfire isn't the protagonist's dragon! 

(End of Chapter)