“Your highness!” The frantic call of the captain of the knights turned Luca’s head, and he saw the usually composed man sweating profusely even in the chill of the mountain air.

“Calm yourself, Captain,” Luca said firmly. “All is quiet in the halls. What could be bothering you?”

Truth be told, ‘all is quiet’ was an understatement. Nothing had been heard from the area known as the Triarchy in decades; King Luca himself had come because it seemed like a good opportunity to seize the defensible mountain castle and what remained of it’s small city. Since they’d walked through the crumbling gates, no one had seen any signs of life.

It was a ghost town. Fitting, since it’s leader was known as the Reaper of Souls, he thought. It resembled the skeleton of a once great creature, the bones of the city falling apart even as they walked through it, and not even traces of those that once lived there remained. There was no furniture. No scattered clothes or stray dogs that wandered the ruins. There were not even ravens flying about, as they had no meat to pick at.

There was just…nothing. Not even bodies.

The castle itself was built into the stone mountain, it’s walls protruding like the armor of a dead knight, the spires still standing out against the rocky face starkly. Snow and ice covered everything. It was too late in the season for even what little grass managed to grow in the inhospitable environment. The footsteps and clattering armor of the king and his men were unbearably loud in the silence. There was nothing to interrupt them.

The red banners that they carried with them stood out against the darkness.

The king’s pale visage was that of a specter, even though he smiled.

Much later, when stories were told of the events and what was to follow, they would call him a dead man walking.

“It’s Ormir, your highness,” the captain breathed. “The Reaper of the Mountains. He lives.”

——————

Soon-to-be dead king for scale.
The presence of a dragon is something you should be very sure of before going anywhere.
Just saying.

Might be part of a collection of stories later because Nissa_Lion and I can’t leave well enough alone when it comes to writing LOL