Chapter 1 : Lloyd's Return

I watched, from the tiny window of my closest, as my father, Anthony Bishop, stared down the barrel of gun, a look of pure defiance on his face.

On the floor was my uncle Marcus, a man that was almost closer to me than my parents.

He was killed earlier.

I saw the man with the dragon tattoo smile wickedly, as he asked him “Any last words”

“Run Lloyd, Run” were the last words my father spoke, as I burst out of the closet, running towards him.

“NO!, DAD!” we're the last thing I said before the man pulled the trigger, and instantly, I was awoken from my nightmare.

I placed a weary hand on my head as I panted heavily, my body drenched in sweat.

I've had this recurring nightmare for the last 15 years, ever since I witnessed my family's massacre.

Likewise, I always wondered what would have happened if I had tried to save my father that day, would it have made any difference?

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of my phone ringing.

“Yes” I answered.

“We found her Boss” said a voice on the other side.

“Are you sure it's her, Ivan” I asked, an empty question, as I knew my right-hand man wouldn't dare make such a mistake.

“Indeed Boss, Lisa Francis, 25 years old, she was the girl who brought you back from the dead, 15 years ago, I have transferred a file to your mail”

I sighed as I began to read the file Ivan had sent me.

It would seem that Lisa's life hadn't gone well since she rescued me.

She had managed to become a lawyer, but her law firm was doing so badly, that she was now on the verge of bankruptcy.

“Her impending bankruptcy has caused her to be several millions in debt, and because of this debt her parents have arranged for her to marry her off as they see her as an embarrassment to the family”

I could see in the report, the most troubling news of all.

Lisa suffered from cancer, lung cancer, probably as a result of the fumes she had inhaled when she entered our burning house to revive me.

A fate a special man had saved me from.

I clenched my fists in anger at this news, as I knew that I was running out of time.

“What about my three childhood friends, Jacob, Walker, and Morty?” asked Lloyd.

“Unfortunately, I have been unable to find any tangible information on them” replied Ivan.

Lloyd sighed, he had made up my mind, “get the preparations in order Ivan, we're going to the city of Doom”

****

Lloyd's POV:

As I stepped my foot out if the Hilburg train station, I inhaled and exhaled heavily, taking in the Hilburg air for the first time in 15 years.

But I wasn't back in the city of my birth for sightseeing, I was here on a mission.

My family had been killed 15 years ago, by unknown gunmen, led by a man with a dragon tattoo on his hand.

They burned down our house in an attempt to hide the evidence, but I managed to escape.

I remembered her clearly, Lisa Francis, she revived me after was knocked unconscious due to inhaling smoke from the fire.

She helped lead me out of the city of Hilburg, which led me to Budville, and since then, my life has never been the same again.

My phone rung in my pocket, at first I thought it was Ivan, but when I saw the name "Patron Weissman" I let out a deep breath before answering the call.

“Where are you Llyod, we were supposed to meet with the Sun King this morning” asked Jacob, I could tell he was trying to control his tone.

Eric Weissman was my patron, the man who found men when I came to Budville and taught me everything I know today.

He was also the man who saved me when I developed cancer.

He was the former Dragon duke, the greatest of the sun Kings 6 enforcer dukes, a man who was rich, inventive, and skilled beyond measure, all things that he transferred to me as his protégé.

5 years ago, I inherited his position as dragon Duke, and I have since served the Sun King more than any duke before me, including Jacob.

I have conquered entire nations in his name, subdued populations, and brought untold riches and wealth to the kingdom.

The Sun king found me so impressive that he now wished for me to take the position of Moon dragon, second only to the king himself.

I was supposed to be at the capital this morning, receiving this title, but it was one I could not receive while I was still haunted by nightmares of my family's massacre.

“I can't do that my patron, not until I have confronted my past” I told Eric, and I could hear him sigh over the phone.

"Are you sure about this Lloyd?, the position of Moon dragon might not still be here when you come back" he reminded me.

"I am aware of this, Patron, but I am ready to face the consequences, tell the Sun King to transfer the position if he's unable to wait" I replied.

Jacob chuckled loudly, as he knew that not even he, when he was the dragon Duke, would have ever spoken to the sun king in that way.

"I knew this day would come, and I also knew that when it did, there would be nothing I could do to stop you" he said.

"All I ask is that you mask your true identity, we can't have the Dragon Duke of the Nation, interfering in local politics" he advised.

"Of course Patron, my identity will be fully concealed" I assured Eric.

My goals were simple, was going to reconnect with my friends, and Lisa, the girl who saved me, so I could reward her for her deeds.

I was going to find the people responsible for the death of my family, and I was going to make them pay.

But perhaps most importantly, I was going to bring this city that had taken everything from me, to its heels.

As I ended my call with Eric, I finally received a call from Ivan.

"Have you found her location?" I asked.

"Yes I have Duke, but you must act quickly, her family has organized an engagement ceremony for her" replied Ivan.

"SHE'S GETTING MARRIED?" I asked, my voice filled with caution.

"Not yet sir, but her parents hopes that she finds a suitor today, one that can pay off all the debt that they have accumulated because if her" replied Ivan.

"Very well then, send me the coordinates to her family house, and I'll be there immediately" I demand.

Soon, Ivan would send me the location of Lisa's family home, and we agreed to meet each other there.

****

Lloyd would take the first taxi he saw to the Francis family house.

The journey through the taxi was very eye-opening for Lloyd, as he got to see just how decrepit the inner city of Hilburg was.

The wealth inequality within the city was clear as day, as homeless people and drug addicts littered the streets, surrounded by wealthy skyscrapers.

The area around the train station was filthy because most of the city's poor could only afford to do their quick, long-distance travels via rail, rather than air.

However, as the taxi driver left the train station and headed towards Lisa's family's house, the streets slowly became cleaner, smelled less bad, and were overall much more pleasant to look at

However, this wasn't even the thing that brought Lloyd the most amount of concern.

Throughout his journey in the back seat of the taxi, Lloyd would notice a few strange occurrences.

For one, he would often catch the taxi driver making quick glances at him through the back mirror, and would always avert his eyes once he noticed that he had been noticed.

The taxi driver was not a very talkative one, and wore a hat that hung low across his face, so Lloyd didn't really see him clearly.

But one thing Lloyd could tell for sure, was that this man was a relatively young man, around his age, maybe a few years older, but was not in the best of physical states… much like the rest of the city.

Eventually, the taxi would come to a stop at a secluded alley way, and the driver would immediately exit the vehicle after this, before Lloyd even had the chance to ask him what the hell was going on.

Lloyd, while being slightly confused at what was going on, was now incredibly suspicious of this entire situation, so he decided to come out of the vehicle to confront the taxi driver directly.

However, just as he was about to set foot out of the vehicle, he would be greeted by a gun, pointed directly to his face.

“Get out of the car… slowly”, said the voice of the man holding the gun.

Flashbacks of my father with a gun to his head pierced Lloyd's brain.

“Make any sudden movements, and it'll be your last” the voice commanded.

After closing his eyes for a brief second, Lloyd smiled to himself as he would officially step out of the taxi.

He was officially in the city of Doom.