How To Train Your Dragonblood 3: The Dragonblood Alpha Ch5

One of, if not the GREATEST, superheroes of all time and he does it with nothing but his wits, body, and will!

82 YEARS AGO - BATMAN DEBUTED FOR THE FIRST TIME Eighty-two years ago on March 30, 1939, Detective Comics #27 hit newsstands, introducing the Caped Crusader for the very first time in a featured story called “The Case of the Chemical Syndicate.”

“And for all that fierce exterior, I’ve never met anyone who cared as deeply about his fellow man as Bruce Wayne.”  - Amanda Waller, Justice League Unlimited, Season 2 Episode 13 (2005)

Humans are awesome

This is INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Align

All souls are on a quest to connect.

‘There would be no galaxies, no suns, no planets, no life without collisions of heavenly bodies. 

Back to our amoeba. It engulfs a bacterium with unique powers, and…voila. Earth’s first photosynthesis-enables organism. Maybe it was chance. 

Maybe it was inevitable. This one changed amoeba becomes the ancestor of every living plant on Earth, which in turn floods the planet with oxygen…paving the way for every other form of life we know…leading to more souls, more connections, and therefore more new worlds branching outward from the first. 

These forces of nature, when they converge, be they astronomical collisions, biological unions, demonstrate the infinite potential of our connections. This truth also extends to the human heart.’

-Maniac

Life of a High School Vampire One-Shots 4 The Dog-Walker

SUMMARY: Kai seeks vengeance after a Ninjago resident doesn't clean up after her puppy...

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Kai suppressed a groan as the scorching summer sun beat down against the ground and his large black parasol. Normal he would stay inside, but the headmaster decided that Kai spent too much time inside and needed to get some sun, so he signed Kai up as a volunteer at the local animal shelter. At first, Kai hated the job, but he quickly learned that he could scare the dogs into doing whatever he wanted. All he had to do was flash his fangs or red eyes and they would either cower in fear or obey him without resistance.

It reminded him about his home and how he and his sister would play in the woods and commanded the many wolf packs roaming the area.

The one thing Kai hated about this job, however, was the dog walking. Once, maybe twice a week Kai had to take at least three of the many dogs for a walk through the forest trail on the other side of the city. Kai had always wanted to refuse the task, but then he saw it as a chance to get out of that cramped, dark, smelly shelter.

"Yeah, I know sweetie." A loud, obnoxious woman's voice said from behind him. He looked over his shoulder and glared when he saw a blond girl in her late teens and wearing a blue jogging outfit walking past, dragging a small Dalmatian puppy with a bow attached to its collar beside her as she spoke into her cellphone. Just by looking at her for a few brief seconds Kai already knew everything he needed to know about her. She was popular because she developed early and started giving handjobs when she was twelve.

Now she couldn't stand to look at herself in the mirror because all she saw was a whore.

So she picked on anyone to avoid the inevitable realization that once her body was used up she was going to be a worn-out, chalky skinned burlap sack that even her stepdad wouldn't want. As soon as she noticed him and his gothic attire, the girl turned her nose up in disgust. She almost pushed him out of her way as she walked past.

"It's like why don't the freaks stay down in a hole where they belong." She huffed to the person on the phone, pulling her dog along the trail while the puppy was in mid-poop, not making a single move to clean it up. Kai was already irritated by this woman and this was the final straw.

"Excuse me! You left a mess on the trail." He called after her, causing her to stop and turn to him in confusion.

"Um, hang on, I'll call you back." She said to the person on the phone and gave Kai her full attention. "I'm sorry are you talking to me?"

"You left a steaming pile of shit in my path." He growled, feeling his patience growing thinner and thinner. When she realized what he was talking about, she burst out laughing.

"Thanks for all the helpful info you little freak." She sneered as she looked him up and down with a critical eye. "Where're you hiking to? A funeral?"

"That depends; are you gonna clean up after your rat?" He asked and this struck a nerve in the woman.

"Evangeline is a purebred Dalmation! Your dogs are sups mangy!" She hissed, looking ready to kick the five dogs Kai had with him.

"They're not mine, I just walk them so I can't take credit for their mange." Kai shrugged at her cruel words, frowning at the mention of mange. Back home, he and Nya would seek out any rabid or mangy wolves and kill them to prevent the spread of the disease. If they got to their family's food source then they would be in some serious trouble. As soon as he said that they weren't his, the woman gagged in disgust as she picked up her dog as if she was expecting them to eat it.

"Couldn't do the whole adoption thing they're so unmanageable."

"Oh that's where you're wrong; you should only own an animal that would have otherwise been slaughtered if it weren't for you." He replied seriously and she stared at him in horror, as if he had sprouted an extra pair of eyes. "They'll respect up more knowing you're the only thing between them and a puppy incinerator."

"Okay, you're super weird, thanks for the FYI." She glared as she turned to leave again.

"Are you going to pick up your shit or am I gonna have to call the authorities?" He asked and she laughed again.

"What, are you gonna call the poopy police on me?" She mocked him with another cackle. Kai held back a snarl as he stepped closer to her in intimidation.

"Something like that." He growled and it was clear the woman had not been expecting that. No one had ever spoken to her in this way before and she hated him for it.

"Listen you fucking freak! These hands don't pick up poop!" She exclaimed through gritted teeth. "They select the newest and in fashion in the mall! They give light hand jobs to hot football players! They get held delicately by Chinese women in sanitized bowls! They do not pick up shit!" She screeched so loud the dogs whimpered slightly because the sound hurt their sensitive hearing. After her outburst, she huffed as she fixed her hair and glare at the vampire.

"Besides, it's biodegradable you son of a bitch, it's gonna become part of the Earth!"

"That makes two of you." Kai spat and she arched an eyebrow in confusion. Without another word, Kai reached into his pocket and pulled out something his father had made for him. A small silver dog whistle. He blew into it and a few seconds later the sounds of howling and growls echoed through the trees around them.

"What the fuck was that?" She whispered in terror as the noises sounded like they were getting closer and closer. She looked back at Kai, he was just standing there casually.

"I suggest you move quickly; wolves can smell a petty bitch's fear... and her cheap body glitter." He smirked, showing her his sharp fangs.

"HOLY SHIT!" The woman screamed as she dropped her dog and ran off down the trail faster than any human Kai had seen in person. He held in a chuckle as he grabbed the Dalmation's leash and began his walk back to the animal shelter, the satisfied smirk never leaving his face...

The Flame and the Dragon Ch10

Chapter 10: The Bargain

"Nya! Lloyd! If you two are here, please answer me!" Kai screeched desperately, growing more and more worried. "Dammit, where are you two!" He shouted as loud as he could. A loud squeak screamed behind him, and Kai turned around in a flash. A wooden door with iron bolts, he hadn't noticed before, creaked open. Against his better judgment, Kai approached it, caution in each guarded step.

"Who's there!" He demanded. He received no answer but found himself in another chamber that contrasted with the rest of the castle. The room closely resembled a tower entrance, but the stone was not made of marble like the rest of the castle. The light of an oil lamp on the wall faintly lit the room in a pale orange glow, barely illuminating the silhouette of the staircase spiraling to the top of the castle. Shadows danced in the corner as if beckoning him to follow.

Every single thought told him to turn on his heels and go the other way, but the thought of his siblings possibly trapped in such a gruesome place quickly altered Kai's decision.

He grabbed the lamp from its hook and raised it above his head. A complete sphere of orange light surrounded him as he cautiously making his way up the stairs. The tower walls felt dank and wet beneath his hands. The air was heavy with the disgusting stench of mildew. Grime covered the walls in some places while flecks of moss speckled enormous stone blocks in others. Huge blocks formed the steps, built on top of the other in a spiral, so large it was like walking two steps at a time.

Barely any space existed between the two walls except for the width of the staircase.

This caused the uneasy feeling of claustrophobia to creep up Kai's spine, but he forced it away. Shadows danced in front of him, like small creatures struggling up the steps. The second their shadows left his sight, they stopped, as if waiting for him to follow. Kai blinked at the strange shapes but shook his head to relieve his worry.

"Nya! Lloyd!" He howled again, his voice bouncing loudly against the stone of the tower, reflecting a harsh echo. Kai increased his speed as fast as he could up the enormous steps. Once he reached the top he stopped and held his ground at the sound of panting. Once he made sure he had the advantage if anyone attacked him, he turned around and held up the bright lamp, but saw nothing. They made it to the top of the staircase faster than expected.

Both Jay and Ronin faltered until they both collapsed to the ground.

Their legs were very sore from running up such a long flight of stairs and their lungs panted desperately for air. Tox slithered up the last of the steps, shaking and panting with the last of her strength before finally collapsing in a heap on the floor. They had quickly hidden when the loud footsteps of Kai's heavy boots charged up the stairs. The three hissed at the brightness of Kai's lamp. The boy barely noticed, however, clearly too worried about his brother and sister.

Once Kai shrugged the sound off as rats, the lamplight and moonlight peeking through the windows told him he was in the highest room of the tower.

The stone blocks melded into a slate cone that seemed to go on forever. Glassless windows form gaping holes all over the roof allowing moonlight to spill into the room. The moonlight highlighted the iron bolts, locks, and bars upon the heavy wooden door on the other side of the room, clearly marking the tower as the dungeon. The smell of mold and grime hung in the air, creating a revolting stench. The floor was littered with straw and small broken pieces of the wall.

The dim light of Kai's lamp danced across the room.

He moved his hands to cover his mouth in a weak attempt to block out the horrid stench. The sound of crying quickly froze him in place, followed by the soothing shushing sounds he knew by heart. Keys was the first thing that popped into Kai's mind. He searched frantically for any signs of a key. Kai searched around until his eyes spied the keys on the hook. Practically leaping across the room, Kai clumsily snatched the keys from the hook and fiddled with each one until with a joyful click the lock came undone and Kai swung the door open.

Anger, relief, and sheer joy bombarded him all at once.

Nya and Lloyd were sat on the floor of the dark, dank, rancid prison chamber, leaning beneath the only glass-less window in the room. Heavy manacles connected to about five feet of thick chains shackled their ankles to the wall. Both were shivering from the freezing temperature, both the stone and the open window caused. The fact that neither had their coats didn't help to ease the chill. Nya and Lloyd looked up in shock and slight fear when the door opened.

Nya wrapped her arms securely around Lloyd as the small boy cried in her chest and lap.

Their eyes widened even more at the sight of, no their capturer, but their third sibling standing in the doorway.

"Kai!" Lloyd cried out. Wasting no time Kai dashed over to them. The second his knees hit the floor, Lloyd threw himself into his brother's arms and wrapped them rightly around Kai's waist, crying loudly. Unable to do anything else but kneels there, Kai returned the gesture and stoked the little's one's bangs until he calmed down.

"It is okay, I got you." He promised when Lloyd calmed down enough to look at him. The only one not smiling or emotional at the trio's reunion, which they both soon noticed, was Nya. Instead, the only female Smith sibling looked furious, her blue eyes burning with anger, fear, and remorse, and her entire body was shaking like she didn't know whether to strangle her twin or hug him until he burst.

"You should not have come here." She managed to choke out after many failed attempts to speak. It was directed at Kai, but the tone made Lloyd clench his older brother tighter.

"What the hell does that mean? You think I would just leave you two to rot?" Kai demanded. Nya didn't argue with him, instead, she just grabbed the keys Kai dropped when Lloyd hugged him and threw them at him.

"Listen to me; take Lloyd, get out of here, go back to the town, and don't. Ever. Come back." She ordered, her tone held no room for argument, but Kai was never one to follow orders.

"I am not leaving either of you here." He declared sternly.

"Dammit Kai, for once in your life, do what I tell you! You and Lloyd have to get out of here before he gets back; if he finds you here he'll-"

"HE ALREADY HAS!" A booming voice thundered throughout the prison tower. Kai froze as the chilling voice stiffened his spine. Lloyd screamed and buried his face in the safety of Kai's chest and Nya, for the first time in her life, was scared speechless. Even the three people who Kai hadn't noticed were outside started shaking. All three backed themselves against the wall, hiding. Kai didn't turn around. Instead, he slowly got to his feet, holding Lloyd securely in his arms, wrapped in his coat, and held him tightly.

He stood and turned around to face Nya and Lloyd's capture.

The man had hidden in the shadows, only his eyes were visible. Two striking orbs of jade glowing unnaturally in the darkness. He watched as those eyes turned to the three people Kai hadn't noticed before, shivering in the corner.

"Tox, go help, Nelson." The voice commanded. The green-haired woman burst from the room and vanished down the stairs in less than a second. When his gaze met the remaining two, both boys swallowed loud lumps in their throats. "I'll deal with you two later." He stated before turning his frozen gaze to the siblings. Kai felt a shiver run up his spine when those green eyes fell on him, but he held his ground.

"Who are you?" He demanded in a calm, unreadable voice.

"You're in no place to be making demands." The voice mocked, arrogantly. "But if you must know, I am the master of this castle and all within its walls."

"Are you the ones who kidnapped my brother and sister?" Kai demanded. His face was a neutral mask and his amber eyes were hard and unyielding.

"I've done nothing of the sort." The shadow removed itself from the wall and moved towards them without leaving the darkness, extremely cautious of the moonlight bathing Kai and his two siblings. "You're siblings trespassed on my property and entered this castle without my permission; therefore, as the master, I have every right to keep them both here until I decide to let them leave, or until they die, whichever comes first." He spoke in a harsh, arrogant tone.

"Trespassing doesn't warrant such a punishment!" Kai shouted, clenching his free hand at his side. The shadow raised an eyebrow at the fierceness burning in those amber gems, clearly intrigued by the brunette.

"It matters not, ignorance is not an excuse for breaking the laws; if you wish to grant your sister's request, however, I'll allow you take your brother home, but either way, one of you is staying and not even your persistence will convince me otherwise." The shadow stated firmly. Kai was about to retort until Lloyd started coughing in his arms. He'd obviously been trying to hide it, but the loud choking coughs and heavy pants alerted everyone in the room to his condition.

In a second, Kai's expression went from fury to fear as he fell to his knees and rearranged the smaller boy in his arms.

As he did this, the blond boy released the worst coughing fit even the Master of the castle had ever heard. Kai felt like punching the floor.

"He can't stay here, Kai, he'll only get sicker," Nya explained, lying Lloyd down in her lap, as the boy tried desperately to refill his lungs.

"What's wrong with him?" The Master asked taking a step forward, but Kai was on his feet in front of his family before the shadow could get any closer.

"He was born with asthma." He explained. "The doctor said it should work itself out as he gets older, but whenever he has an attack it has to be controlled or he could get worse!"

"Then give him some medicine."

"I don't have it." Kai retorted before turning to his sister. "Where is it? I know you packed some when you two left, I checked three times." He reminded her, but Nya bit her lip.

"We did have it, but... it was in the carriage." She replied and Kai mentally swore. The medicine was still in the carriage. The carriage he untied from Flame's reigns before they rode into the woods. Swallowing his pride, Kai turned back to the master.

"Lloyd can't stay here; he'll die if he does."

"Then take him back to your town." The master ordered. "I won't stop you, I already said only one of you has to stay."

"I'm not leaving Nya here either." He said firmly. The master raised another eyebrow, stepping closer, making his silhouette and eyes visible but nothing more.

"Then what would you propose, I do?" He asked, turning to the smaller boy who was shaking in his older brother's arms. He doubted Lloyd truly was as sick as his brothers feared, but something had to be done about that vicious cough. But first, he wanted to see how the youth in front of him would react. His eyes fell back on Kai. This one intrigued him, challenged him with no fear, met him blow for blow with a spirit that refused to break, and fierce independence.

Even now, despite his obvious fear for his younger brother's life, his sister's freedom, and his anger at himself, the boy refused to show any sign of weakness.

The Master was interested to see just how far that spirit would go, as the master watched the amber-eyed teen calculate a plan in his head.

"How about a deal?" Kai said, at last, lifting his head to meet the Master's eyes. Blazing amber was burning with all the fire the master loved, bore into his orbs of cold green. The master raised an eyebrow, curious.

"I'm listening."

"You said one of us has to stay here, right? But you never specified who." He explained. The Master's brightened curiously as a smile slowly crept across his face.

"I don't believe I did." He admitted and Kai wanted to snarl at the arrogance in his voice. Nya must've figured out where Kai was going because she stiffened and protested immediately, but Kai ignored her.

"Then how about this: you let Lloyd and Nya return to the village and never bother either of them again, no imprisonment, no nothing." He bargained, not a glimmer of doubt or hesitation in his eyes.

"You're terms are steep, little candle." The Master said as he circled him, keeping in the shadows. Kai stood his ground. The master was testing him, looking for any sign of weakness, like a predator searching for its prey's weak spot before making the killing blow. "I assume you're willing to offer me something just as valuable in return?"

"No." He said bluntly. "Nowhere near as valuable but it's all I have got to bargain with."

"Very well, but I can't agree unless I know what it is you are offering me, candle?" He replied and Kai shivered when he felt a claw-like hand brush one of his spikey brown bangs behind his ear. He already knew what Kai was going to say, he just wanted to hear him say it.

"You promise to let them go, no tricks, not double-cross, no loopholes, not nothing, and... you can have me, instead."

"KAI NO!"

"That is an awfully steep sacrifice, candle." He said and Kai could hear the smirk in the Master's voice. "You know you'd be giving up everything right? You'd be trapped here until I decide to let you leave and you'd never see your family or your home again."

"It'd be worth it." He said immediately.

"But that's not all." The master continued. A clawed hand tugged on Kai's wrist pulling him into the shadows despite his struggle, while the opposite held his chin forcing him to meet the Master's eyes. "I saw it the moment I first laid eyes on you; you're a spirit as wild as an untamed falcon, a wildfire that burns vigorously with freedom! If you agree to this, you'd be throwing all that away; you'd never be free again and you'd be confined to this castle and the grounds, or, if I ordered it, this very room." He whispered darkly in Kai's ear.

It was a miracle Kai managed to not shiver when he felt those cold, scaly, clawed hands firmly grasp his shoulders.

He was testing him and Kai knew it. Testing his weakness and exploiting everything he loved, knowing he was requiring the teen to sacrifice everything while he lost nothing. Waiting for him to weaken and refuse. Waiting for him to break. Clenching his fists at his side, Kai closed his eyes forgetting his own desires and focusing solely on his siblings. Lloyd needed medicine and he needed Nya to take care of him. That was how it had always been since Ray died.

Kai and Nya would take care of all three of them financially, but only Nya would take care of him and Lloyd emotionally.

They'd both be safe, free from this nightmarish lord, his dark prison, and all it would cost him was everything he ever loved and cared for.

"Come into the light and let me see you," Kai whispered, without turning around.

"What!?" The Master roared as he released his shoulders.

"No disrespect, I just wish to see who it is I'm signing my life away to before I tell you my decision." He explained. It wouldn't matter either way, but if this guy thought he could keep Kai in the dark forever, he was mistaken.

"Swear to me you won't scream." He said after a moment of silence. Kai nodded and braced himself for the worst as the Master stepped into the moonlight. Immediately, Kai looked up. For all his arrogance and selfishness and harsh deeds, the Master was a breathtaking creature. He was human, yet at the same time, he wasn't. The Dragon Lord was indeed the right name. He wasn't human or a dragon, but both. He stood seven feet tall, easily towering over Kai.

A shaggy mop of black hair on the top of his head revealed two pointed fin-like ears.

His dragon fangs glittered pristine white in the moonlight, protruding from his upper lip, visible when he smirked though his face betrayed no emotion. His human body stood firmly with large muscles. Instead of human skin, a clutter of black and dark orange scales formed a spike at both his elbows to his wrists. Smooth dragon scales looked like armor at first glance. The dragonskin glistened down his arms. Sharp black claws that could easily rip him to shreds were at the end of his long fingers.

Kai shivered, remembering them on his shoulders and holding his chin a few moments ago.

Just below his back from both his shoulders, they appeared. Two enormous dragon wings were as big as he was, membraned and muscled, like a bat's, and were topped with a small black spike. They were strong and more powerful and looked like they could consume the brunette in their leathery grasp. They were glowing the same black and dark orange as his scales. Unable to control his body anymore, Kai scanned the rest of the Dragon Lord's body.

His top half was covered by a sleeveless black jacket trimmed with silver and closed in the front.

Behind him, Kai could see a large, muscled tail, glistening with black scales, moving on its own accord, and the end curled like a whip. Moving his eyes from the lethal abdomen, Kai scanned down the Dragon Lord's legs and feet. Black pants tightly hugged the strong legs leaving little to the imagination. More scaled armor covered his legs from the knees down, forming a pair of boot-like dragon legs resembling his claws, but with stronger paws and shorter nails.

"Well?" The Master asked, forcing Kai's gaze to return to those green eyes. Immediately he was trapped by the paralyzing gaze of those sharp orbs with only black slits for pupils. Dragon claws, dragon scales, dragon wings, dragon eyes. Immediately Kai knew where they were, who the Master was, and what was happening and the realization made him dizzy and unable to move. It took all his willpower not to faint as he tried to remember the hybrid's name.

"Y-You're Prince Cole B-Brookstone, the Dragon L-Lord." He stuttered out eventually. Surprise suddenly filled the dragon's eyes, as if shocked someone knew who he was without having to explain his past. But as quickly as it appeared, a smirk replaced it. Beauty, fire, and brains. He truly was a rare jewel.

"That is correct, my candle," Cole smirked, but his eyes bore into Kai's with no emotion, noticing Kai's fierce resistance as he tried desperately not to show fear or desire. "So what do you say now?" He commanded, seductively. His claws danced under Kai's chin making him whimper slightly. "Do we have an agreement?" He asked, trying to intimidate him, but still, Kai refused to show any weakness.

"Kai no!" Lloyd pleaded, through another violent cough.

"You have my word." Kai choked in a whisper.

"Done!" Cole roared releasing the teen and ordering the servants at the door to release Nya and Lloyd. Unable to hold himself up any longer, Kai's knees give way and he collapsed to the floor, closing his eyes and buried his face in his hands to keep tears from falling. The second Jay and Ronin undid their chains, Lloyd threw his arms around his older brother crying, pleading with him to come back. All Kai could do was hold him. He felt Nya hug his shoulders, not saying a word, knowing nothing she said would change his mind.

"Dammit, Kai." She snarled quietly. She didn't have time for anything else. Cole grabbed the back of her cloak, and called for two other servants, and threw her to the two guardsmen.

"Skylor, Chamille, take them back to the village." He commanded before turning back to Lloyd and Kai on the floor. "Time to go, little one." He said in a more civil voice.

"NO! Kai has to come too!" Lloyd screamed, clenching Kai tighter.

"It's alright, green bean, I'll be fine, just go with Nya, alright?" Kai said with forced a smile but Lloyd saw right through it and just continued to cry. With a sigh, Cole snatched the smaller away from Kai and, with a little more care, handed him to Chamille despite Lloyd's struggling and coughing.

"Get them there as fast as you can, and make sure he gets his medicine," Cole ordered the two monsters, before pointing to Lloyd. The two nodded and left, dragging Nya and Lloyd with them, looks of remorse on their face as they tried to block out the pleads and cries coming from all three siblings. Kai made a dash for the door but Cole already locked it. He wrestling with the door and screamed at the top of his lungs before he gave up. He sprinted to the window and clenched the stone windowsill, looking for the guards.

He finally found them, but could barely see them from the tower prison.

He could see his siblings fighting with them, as the guards held a now blindfolded Nya and Lloyd in their arms and took them to the forest. They would make sure they couldn't find their way back to the castle but could get back to the village. His heart shattered when he saw Lloyd, crying and screaming and shouting his full name. He was so scared, but he had no fear for himself or Nya. His fear was a direct result of his beloved brother's unknown fate as the lord's prisoner.

Kai collapsed to the floor in a shaking heap, curled his arms around the window sill, and buried his face in his arms.

He did nothing to stop the river of tears from falling. They were tears of anger, grief, remorse, and loss. He had always hated crying, considered it a weakness, but it seemed impossible not to cry at that moment. The window served as a permanent reminder of the outside world that was forever barred to him since chances were, he'd never set foot outside his current cell. He had signed his life away. His family, his dreams, his freedom, everything he ever held dear, to a devilish creature who knew nothing of sacrifice.

Now was the perfect time to cry...

The Flame and the Dragon Ch1

Chapter 1: The Legend of the Dragon Lord

It was many a year ago, at least by mortal reckoning when a proud and magnificent family ruled the lands from a shining castle of marble and stone. They were both fierce and protective, yet kind and loyal and fair. Their reign was a golden age and the people were eternally grateful to them. It wasn't always like this, however. The royal family had been faced with many foes over the years. The most fierce and dangerous of the enemies came from within their own castle.

The royal family had always had a royal sorcerer to protect and entertain them, but one day, the sorcerer's young, orphan apprentice found him experimenting with dark magic.

He had been planning on overthrowing the royal family for years. The apprentice immediately went to inform the King. The sorcerer was promptly exiled to the farthest mountains and his family name banished from the realm. For her heroic actions, the royal family adopted the apprentice. The townspeople and the country flourished under the peaceful and prosperous reign of the King, Queen, and their son and adopted daughter. The King, known throughout the land as Lou, though had eccentric and unorthodox manners of ruling the kingdom, was an exceptionally good King.

His wife Lily was his equal in every way, an eccentric warrior whose strong spirit and golden heart could not be tamed.

Both loved their people and made the fact known both within and outside the walls of the castle. Many of the castle's servants were wards of the king and queen who were given jobs and treated as if they were their own flesh and blood. But the most beloved of all the royal family was the only son. He was truly a handsome man both externally and within. A proud and stubborn man but with a will as strong as a dragon and a heart brighter than gold, eyes as beautiful and green as a stunning emerald.

Though it was uncommon in that day and age, the royals spent as much time among their citizens as they could.

Even their adopted daughter was loved among them. Among his people, the prince was kind and fair, and among the servants, each one was like a younger sibling to him, but when the people were in danger he defended them with the ferocity and power of a dragon, earning him a nickname. The Dragon Lord. The people loved their rulers and their rulers loved their people, but the dark destiny of all kingdoms would soon doom this peaceful paradise.

Deep in the mountains, the exiled sorcerer swore vengeance upon the royal family for their betrayal and his own thirst for the crown.

Yet above all he despised the prince. Most people believed he hated the prince was because he was jealous and believed the throne that should be his. However, that was only a small part of it. In truth, he envied the prince with all his soul. He hated how the people loved and respected him, how everyone idolized the Dragon Lord instead of him. He hated how the prince commanded the love, respect, and attention of everyone who laid eyes on him without even trying.

But he'd had to perform complex and difficult magical spells to demand their love.

He hated how, while he'd had to struggle and work for every little thing his entire life, the people simply gave the Dragon Lord their love on a silver platter. Yet the prince did nothing with it. Even if the King and Queen were the true rulers, the exiled sorcerer knew without a shadow of a doubt that it was the Dragon Lord who had the kingdom's love and respect. He vowed one day to return and rip away everything the Prince loved and treasured so deeply.

He wanted to do it in the most malicious and unforgiving manner he could concoct.

Banished to the darkest shadows and forced to live a solitary existence of seclusion, his bitterness festered until it consumed his soul. Finally, after years of training in the dark arts, his bitterness, jealousy, and rage transformed him into a more powerful sorcerer. His dark heart had all but consumed him. One dark day, after all, but signing away his soul to the darkness, he unlocked the dark, unforgiving arts of the Cursed Realm. The darkness consumed him, making him a prisoner of his own power yet affording him the ability to control some of the darkest magic.

Only one thing burned within his poisoned mind now.

His never-ending lust for vengeance...

****************

It was a day that should've been a day of great celebration. The Prince's coronation on his 21st birthday, the day he became a man, and the day he would be no longer known as the Dragon Lord, but the King. It was on this day that everything changed. The sorcerer, wearing a mask of glamour to hide his black hair and the wickedness in his eyes with an appearance more commonly seen among the people attended the new king's majesty with a terrible plan.

He was going to make the new king and his family suffer for their crimes against his person.

Only after everyone else had presented their gifts and their best wishes and promises to their beloved prince and soon-to-be king, Lou stood from his throne, holding in his hands a magnificently sculpted crown in the shape of a majestic silver dragon with eyes of emerald and powerful onyx wings. Just as the former king was about to crown his son, the Sorcerer stepped forward and spoke his impossible demands. He commanded that the Dragon Lord relinquish his crown and his throne to him or great doom would befall them all.

He cast aside his glamour as he spoke, eliciting a scream of terror from his former apprentice who was the first to recognize him, and gasps of shock and fear from the townspeople whom he had terrorized.

Naturally, the prince refused, claiming nothing would convince him to relinquish his throne and the lives of his people and loved ones to a madman. He did not fear death or enchantment. The sorcerer's eyes narrowed at the defiant family of royals before a smile struck his face; a smile that sent a shiver of fear down the spines of everyone present, chilling everyone in the room to the bone. Even as the royal guards attacked and the people rushed to escape, the Sorcerer's wicked eyes turned black as shadows and dark purple energy flooded his body like a wispy ghost.

Finally, the sorcerer unleashed a deadly wave of black magic, consuming the entire throne room.

While the townspeople had already escaped, the servants and those loyal to their royals refused to leave and screamed in anguish and fear as their very essences warped to that of the dark master's sick desires. The sorcerer's dark magic ensnared the royals, and all except for the Dragon Lord's vanished before the young king's horrified eyes. But the Sorcerer refused to reveal to the devastated Dragon Lord what had become of his parents and adopted sister.

He then invoked the magic of the Cursed Realm and placed a terrible curse upon the castle and a deadly spell upon the kingdom and all who lived there.

Proclaiming doom on the royal family and all who served them, friends and servants alike, the servants and wards of the castle were stripped of their physical forms and were warped into new ones for their loyalty, ones of creatures from the realm of fantasy. As for the prince himself, the Sorcerer wanted him to suffer the most. He wanted to see him wither away and suffer alone in solitude and anguish just as he had suffered, before extracting the final act of his vengeance.

So he cursed him with the most terrible form of all.

The form of the most magnificent and dangerous creature of myth and legend, once beloved by the royal family and the kingdom, and would now be used to doom the new King. The form of the Dragon. But his form was cursed to be neither monster nor human, but something awful in between. Trapped as a prisoner within his own body, with only his most loyal of followers in bodies no human would dare trust, he was imprisoned within his castle.

To entertain himself, the Sorcerer gave the prince an ultimatum.

The prince would have a century to find his one true love and break the curse. It couldn't just be anyone, however. It had to be a person that could accept the King for the monster he was, else his soul and the souls of all those he held dear would never know peace and would instead be trapped within the dark depths of the Cursed Realm for all eternity. With a maniacal laugh and a haunting scream, he vanished, claiming to return once his time had come, leaving behind a confused and terrified crowd who couldn't recognize themselves in a mirror.

The prince let out a shallow gasp as he collapsed to his knees before he screamed in horror at the body that was no longer his.

Instead of human hands, black claws had replaced his fingers and scaled paws were his hands. Thick scales and black talons adorned his arms. At his feet were the back legs and claws of a dragon. Confused and scared he turned to his servants, each holding a sad expression on their faces, and when a mirror was raised to the prince's face, he screamed. Black scales adorned his body, torso, and chest, a powerful, whip-like tail sprouted from behind him; fin-like appendages grew from his shoulders.

From his shoulder blades sprouted two enormous wings large enough to consume his body, glittering with blood as they ripped from his skin.

But most terrifying of all were his eyes. No longer were they the brilliant green he'd grown up with, nor were they human. Instead, he saw the dark brown eyes and slit-like pupils of a dragon staring back at him in horror and fear. It was just as the sorcerer cursed him. He was neither dragon nor man but something terrible in-between. His servants and friends urged him not to lose hope, that they would find his love, whoever it may be, and rescue his parents and the young princess from wherever the evil Sorcerer sent them.

But it wasn't long before hope began to fade. As the years passed, he fell into despair.

His followers and the people he'd worked so hard to protect refused to leave him or abandon the castle. The rest of the world forgot as the long years of the century rolled by. Alone in the castle, the former King's heir began to chill and stiffen, angered and bitter towards the world that shunned him so cruelly as a horrible monster. As hope became an illusion scorned by the prince, his lonely heart grew cold and desolate. But his servants never lost hope.

They prayed and prayed to the FSM for aid, to save their master from the malicious fate cursed upon him and to help him find his love.

For only the Prince knew about his love and told only a select two and they swore to take the secret to their graves, keeping it from even their most trusted friends and family. They just trusted their Master to find his love, knowing that whoever it may be would have to be a special soul to earn the heart and rescue the soul of their master. Though the secret was safe, it didn't stop the servants from wonder who would lift their curse. They wondered who was the Dragon Lord's one true love...

I don't think it's a good idea to make the ninjas choose a name for Kai, but if I had a cat of that breed I think I would call it ... Ash? Or Zack? But if I would have liked Kai to try to let the boys know that he is the real Kai.

He will try, but it will take a long time before he figures out how 😈

The Flame and the Dragon Ch12

Chapter 12: The New Clothes

Kai didn't want to move. Even as the noon light poured through the window, taking him from the other reality of sleep. Taking advantage of the sudden wakefulness, his stomach took the time to growl. The pain of emptiness effectively ruined Kai's sleep. The boy growled and tried to sink deeper into the soft pillows and comfy mattress. His hand reached to pull his comforter tighter around his body. Except there was no comforter and the pillows were not his.

Surprise shocked Kai into wakefulness, and he looked around his room frantically to try and figure out where he was.

This bedroom was not his back in the town. The bed was too soft against his aching skin. The pillows his head was snuggled against were too fancy. The bed and furniture too rich for what he and Nya earned, no matter how much they saved up, and the outline was nothing like the room he'd created for himself in his father's house. Last night suddenly came crashing back to him. A hand rose to gently press against his temples while the other braced his shaking form.

The reality finally sank in that all the events of the previous day had not simply been a nightmare as he had hoped.

It had all been real. Kai certainty didn't feel real, though. Nothing about this felt real to him. He really wanted to feel like he'd suddenly followed a white rabbit and fallen through the rabbit hole, and awoken in a twisted version of his once-favorite fairy tale. He'd dreamed about this before but never in his life had he ever dared wish for it to come true and yet here he was. The prisoner of the Dragon Lord he'd read about every day since he was little.

Living out his sentence in a magnificent castle that haunted his thoughts, and sleeping in a room that suited a prince.

Kai just froze, stunned as the utter impossibility of his situation crashed against the sheer actuality of it. He shivered, pulling the covers tighter against his bare skin, the only warmth he had was the baggy sweater rubbing softly against his chest. It was then he realized something. A shiver of dread suddenly crawled up Kai's spine as the cool air suddenly bit the bare skin of his arms, legs, and torso. Slowly, very slowly, he looked down at himself and found he was wearing nothing but a red sweater and his boxers.

He screamed in both anger and shock, before growling and wrapping the covers around his naked body.

His face turned as red as the sweater, despite the fact no one was in the room. He wondered what had happened before the answer suddenly crashed into his mind, making him see red all over again. His fists clenched the fabric so hard his knuckles went white. It had to be Cole who undressed him while he was asleep and couldn't do anything. He had ordered the servants to not speak to him, so he doubted they took a peek in while he was fast asleep.

Kai growled low in this throat.

He searched frantically for his clothes and only found a neat pile of different clothes at the end of the large bed. A letter sat on top of the pile. Kai stood up and snatched the paper off the pile, using one hand to keep the baggy sweater on him. His name was written in elegant black ink.

Dearest Kai,

As I'm sure you are aware of, you have no clothes, and no, it was not I who undressed you, but I refused to let you roam around my castle in your filthy mud-stained clothes. Therefore, as an act of kindness, I've provided you with a new outfit until the seamstresses and tailor can create a new wardrobe to suit your liking. I suggest you become acquainted with them soon for I will not be around to provide for your needs if you do not take it upon yourself to see if they are met.

Sincerely Cole.

Kai growled and crunched the note into a ball in his hand, unsure if he should be grateful or angered at the note's tone. Any kindness Cole had tried to place in it was stained by the sheer arrogance he could just hear behind the words. It was like Kai was a child and Cole was teaching him how to take care of himself. However, that last line burned a blush across his face. He crumpled the note in his hand and threw it across the room before scanning over the clothes.

Kai couldn't deny the clothes were lovely.

They reminded him of the garments he'd seen when the family had lived in London for a time. The clothes in his arms seemed unique as if they were made just for him. He growled in frustration before swallowing his pride and pulled the sweater off. It was either accept Cole's gift or go naked. At this point, he wasn't sure which was worse anymore. The long-sleeved burgundy red shirt fitted against his lean form and was trimmed with white cuffs.

Black pants with a slit from just below the knee to the floor sculpted his legs then flared at his ankles and the hems had gold designs.

The slender knee-high black leather boots with gold clasps completed the outfit. Once he was fully dressed he jumped to his feet and spun around in front of the mirror as if testing out the outfit. He hated to admit it, but the clothes were perfect. He noticed a crimson sash on the bed. He snatched it up and walked over to the vanity mirror and wardrobe, both were empty of garments but to his happiness, he found a wooden box of old accessories.

He dug through it until he found a gold cross-shaped pendant with a ruby at the top bottom and on each arm of the golden cross.

He looped the sash threw the loop at the top and carefully tied it around his neck in the form of a chocker. This was so much better. He smirked to himself, admiring his appearance in the tall mirror. Lloyd would have loved these clothes. He was always Kai's chief fashion advisor back home. Kai chuckled as he started remembering all the times he and Lloyd had spent their afternoons filling their diverse wardrobes. Realization crashed into him again.

All enjoyment was quickly sapped from his face until he matched the shocked, broken face in the mirror.

He hadn't thought about Nya and Lloyd since he had woken up. He mentally kicked himself for forgetting even for a moment why he was there. He leaned his head against the mirror, before sighing in defeat. It didn't matter now. Kai had made his choice and he could only hope and pray they found happiness. As if answering his prayers for a distraction, his stomach suddenly howled its protests, reminding him he hadn't eaten anything since the previous morning.

His argument with Cole was still fresh in his mind, but he wasn't going to let that arrogant bastard starve him.

Kai stormed to the door before carefully gripping the golden handle. He gave it an experimental turn and found it was unlocked. He turned it completely and pulled it open. No one was outside. The hallways were dark as they had been the previous night save for the light seeping through the skylights overhead and the burning candles. Kai smirked, but deciding not to tempt his luck. He carefully scanned the hallway before slipping out of the safety of his room and slid against the wall.

Nothing moved.

No one acknowledged his presence. In fact, the castle seemed as deserted as it appeared when he first arrived in this hell-hole. Smirking in victory, Kai strolled through the hallway past the wide windows and descended down the staircase. Now all he had to do was find the kitchen...

****************

Echo sighed as his back hit the wall. He put up no resistance as his lover ravished his neck with small kisses and caresses against his bronze skin through his dark brown suit as his golden yellow eyes seemed to glow in the darkness. The touches sent a shiver of delight through him. Cole had put Jay there to guard the door and to tell the lord when Kai woke up. When Echo walked past, however, Jay became a little distracted.

"Jay..." Echo moaned through half-lidded eyes.

"Yes?" The ginger-haired teen smiled.

"We can't stay here, we'll get caught." He said and gestured to the hallway, behind them, though Jay had been sure to hide them behind the curtain first. They dreaded the thought of anyone other than Ronin or Tox should see them. Having been the best of friends as teens, a hundred years together in a castle had only caused their bond to grow and bloom until neither could deny the love between them. They mutually agreed to keep it a secret.

At least until the curse was broken.

Hopefully, if they were right about Kai Smith being the answers to all their prayers, they would all be fully human again and then, while everyone was happy and celebrating, they would tell Zane about their relationship, and Echo's older brother would take it a whole lot better than he would have done before.

"Aw, do we have to?" Jay whined and Echo could only laugh. Jay was such a child, but Echo loved that about him. It certainly didn't stop Jay from being serious when the situation called for it.

"You want someone to find us?" He teased.

"Of course not! Do you know how over-protective Zane is? He'll never let me see you again, or do something worse." Jay panicked as his breathing and heartbeat started to speed up in fear. Zane was Echo's older brother and everyone in the castle knew that nothing would stop the yeti from making sure his brother was safe, not even Cole. Zane would let hell freeze over before he let anything dare to harm his little brother in any way, shape, or form.

The very thought was enough to send Jay into a fit of panic attacks until he felt Echo's gentle hands on his arms.

"Then we need to keep quiet about it, just for a little while longer." He replied, disappearing through the curtain. Unable to resist, Jay swooped behind him before wrapping an arm around his lover's waist and stealing a kiss from him. Only to then ceremonially dropped him to the cold floor. Echo hissed in shock before he stared back at Jay's shocked face.

"Kai!"

"Kai? That's something you say when you're kissing you're boyfriend?" Echo growled angrily. Jay turned to Echo then threw his hands up in defense and shook his head.

"No! no! no! Look!" He pointed behind his upset lover. Echo turned his head just in time to see their new brunette guest disappearing down the stairs...

Here’s a several part text post meme bc it’s all from the same post lol-

Source: tumblr

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Life of a High School Vampire One-Shots 6 One Night Stand

WARNING! This chapter will include alcohol use and implied sexual content. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!

**************** Summary: After a high school drinking session, Kai is trying to slip out on his one-night stand when his date wakes up needy, but he quickly gets clarification on what real neediness looks like... ****************

Kai groaned in pain as the morning sun peaked through the curtains and into his closed eyes. He wanted to go back to sleep when his ears and brain were filled with the loud, annoying sounds of dozens of birds chirping loudly. His head was still banging from last night, it felt like someone was using his head like a drum and using ice picks from the drumsticks. He could hardly remember anything about last night. The last thing he could remember was Lloyd dragging him and a reluctant Jay out for the night.

All the schools in the city were gathering together for tournaments and some of the older ones were going out drinking, something Lloyd all but bullied his teammates into.

After that everything was a blank. Groaning, Kai sat up in his bed and he rubbed his sore head and tired eyes. He was never drinking alcohol again. As he opened his eyes, however, he made a disturbing discovery. This wasn't his dorm room. Looking around, he nearly screamed when he saw a strange man fast asleep in the same bed. The man had dark skin with shaggy, raven hair, bushy eyebrows and was snoring loudly. He was so muscular, that Kai thought he was in one of the sports teams that showed up last night.

That is until he saw a sweater from the uniform for the boarding school known as Marty Oppenheimer School of Performing Arts.

Kai didn't care about that, however, as he quickly backed off the bed, falling to the floor with a heavy thud and taking the covers with him. It was then he saw that they were both completely naked, with their clothes scattered around the room. Kai also took note that everything below his waist was aching, but he hoped that that was just from him falling off the bed. Unfortunately, he wasn't stupid. He wasn't a virgin and had been with both men and women, so he knew what that pain was.

As he got to his feet, Kai looked around the room and found a student lanyard with a badge.

On the badge was a picture of the man, showing his soft green eyes and his name; Cole Brookstone. That was when everything came rushing back to Kai. He remembered going to the bar with Lloyd, Jay, and dozens of other students from other schools. He remembered meeting Cole when he left on his own and they started talking. He remembered Cole confessing all his problems at home, school, and with his widowed father to the young vampire as they both got drunker and drunker.

Thankfully, Kai wasn't drunk enough to tell Cole he was a vampire.

The brunette looked the human over again and blushed when he fully took in Cole's body and sized. When his eyes reached Cole's feet, he burst out laughing when he saw it. However, the sound caused Cole to groan and Kai panicked. His instincts suddenly kicked in, telling him to either bite the sleeping man before he woke up and alerted other humans, or hide and escape before he got discovered. Kai quickly dove under the bed, trying not to gag at the hills of dirty laundry and take-out boxes, and waited.

Luckily Cole didn't wake up and soon started snoring again.

Not that the human would probably believe him anyway. Once he was sure his one-night stand was still asleep, Kai carefully crawled out from under the messy bed and started getting dressed. As he collected his clothes from around the room, he found large dumbells, many types of vinyl of soft rock, and dozens of CDs scattered around a large boom box. He also found a few framed pictures of Cole with what Kai assumed to be his friends and father.

He wouldn't be shocked if Cole turned out to be sarcastic and possessed a strong passion for music and exercise.

What shocked the vampire was a picture that showed Cole outside a concert hall with Jay, his and Lloyd's roommate. Kai wondered if should ask Jay about this strange conscious, but he decided not to. It wasn't like he was ever going to see this Cole person after he left. Just as he grabbed his bag, Cole groaned again and started waking up. Kai considered making a break for it but thought against it. He was curious to see how much this Cole remembered and what he thought about Kai.

After a few minutes of waiting, Cole's eyes slowly blinked open, only to cry out and jump when he saw Kai standing in the doorway in all his Gothic glory.

It took a few seconds for the human to fully wake up and calm down, and Kai could hear his racing heart return to a normal pace.

"Oh, sorry, I thought you were a ghost or something." Cole gulped as he stifled a yawn and sat up. It was clear to Kai now that Cole did indeed remember what happened between them last night, and that just made this more awkward to the vampire.

"You're sweet." He replied before adjusting his bag and turned to leave.

"Wait! You're taking off already?!" Cole shouted after him in confusion and hurt, causing Kai to stop and turn back to him.

"I didn't want to rouse you, you were resting in peace." He shrugged, figuring that if Cole wanted him to stay then he would creep the human out so much he would run for the hills, just like all the others.

"Yeah, sorry if those birds woke you up, they're like the worst." Cole chuckled lightly and glanced out the opened window as the birds continued to chirp. How anyone could sleep through that was beyond Kai. An awkward silence filled the bedroom until Cole cleared his throat. "Well, before you go, do you think I could get your, uh, get your number?" he asked with a nervous blush, catching Kai off guard.

"Why do you want my phone number?" He asked. Humans always either avoided him or mocked him, not ask for his phone number. The only ones who spoke to him on a near-daily basis were Jay and Lloyd, but that only because they shared a dorm room together.

"I don't know, so I could call you or something?" Cole replied in confusion.

"I don't really use a cell phone." Kai shrugged, not lying. When they found out he didn't have a phone, Lloyd got him one and had already put his and Jay's numbers in it, without the ginger teen's permission, saying that a phone was a necessity in a teenager's life. But Kai didn't believe that so he often left his phone at the dorm, just like he did last night.

"Cool, yeah, I don't want to be a prisoner to technology either... so that's awesome, I guess." Cole chuckled, trying to lighten the mood, but it just made things more awkward. "So I take it that you're not online either?"

"No," Kai replied harshly. The thing he hated more than humans were their dependence on social media. There were too many disadvantages of social networking. It caused a lack of emotional connection, gave humans a license to be hurtful, decreased face-to-face communication skills, conveyed inauthentic expression of feelings, diminished understanding and thoughtfulness, and caused face-to-face interactions to feel disconnected. This response just made Cole even more uncomfortable, which is what Kai wanted.

"Oookay, um, so how can I get in contact with you?" The noirette asked.

"I have an email address; inmemoryofKaiSmith ." He replied, trying to hide a smirk as Cole process that.

"That makes it sound like you're dead." He laughed.

"I like to plan ahead." Kai shrugged, but to his annoyance, this only seemed to make Cole more eager.

"Alright, so I'll email you then." He smiled at the brunette.

"Do you really wanna see me again?" Kai asked, feeling an uncomfortable mixture of anger, frustration, and confusion as Cole's insistence.

"Yeah, Kai, of course! I mean, I like you." He admitted with a blush, and Kai was horrified when he felt his own cheeks heat up with his own blush. "You're not like other guys I've seen in Ninjago."

"That's accurate." He smiled weakly, but he still didn't like the fact this human wouldn't take a hint.

"D-Do you like me?" Cole suddenly asked, soundly slightly worried but hopeful, but Kai saw this as another chance to get rid of the teen.

"You're alive, aren't you?"

"Yes?"

"You're welcome," Kai smirked as Cole paled slightly. He could tell this human was different from all the others he had met and it might be fun to see him again. "I'll find you when I'm ready to see you." He added as he grabbed his bag again and made to leave once more.

"B-But you don't have any of my contact information!" Cole exclaimed.

"Don't worry, you won't be hard to track down."

"Let me at least walk you out." Cole offered as sat up some more to get up.

"I appreciate the gesture, but your chains don't reach that far." Kai grinned mischievously and started walking again. Cole frowned in confusion and he made to get up, only to freeze when he felt something on both his ankles. He ripped the covers away and gasped when he saw a pair of thick, metal shackles on them and chains connected to them to the bed. Cole looked up again to ask Kai what was going on, but the brunette was long gone.

Before Cole could think of what to do next, a bone-chilling banshee-like shriek filled the air outside the bedroom window, followed by the birds going crazy and a sickening crunch.

All was silent after that. There were no birds, no people, or cars driving past for a few seconds before they returned. All except the birds annoying chirping. He just shrugged it off as a cat or two attacking and scaring the birds away. Cole sat in his bed for a few minutes as shock, fear, and excitement filled him. He couldn't explain it, but something about Kai thrilled him and he couldn't wait to see the brunette again. If he ever got out of these chains, however.

With a heavy sigh, Cole grabbed his phone off the bedside table and called a locks smith.

This was going to be hard to explain...