The Dragon King Awakens

The roar shook the Gate of Memory.

It rolled across the endless white sky like thunder, splintering the marble beneath Ariana's feet. Cracks spread through the platform until they reached the edge of the crimson door.

The seal was gone.

Only fragments of glowing crystal remained where the ancient barrier had once stood.

The woman in white lowered her staff.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

"So the legends did not lie."

Orion stepped in front of Ariana.

"You have doomed us all."

"I have liberated what should never have been imprisoned."

"No."

Orion's voice hardened.

"You have awakened what even kings feared."

The shadows pouring through the broken sky gathered around the shattered doorway.

They twisted together like smoke before slowly taking shape.

First came two enormous horns.

Then a head covered in black scales that shimmered with streaks of crimson.

Golden eyes opened.

They were ancient.

Wise.

And unbearably sad.

The creature emerged with impossible grace despite its size. Its wings unfolded behind it, stretching farther than Ariana could see.

She expected fire.

She expected fury.

Instead, the Dragon King simply looked at her.

For a long moment, neither of them moved.

Then the dragon bowed.

The woman in white stiffened.

Orion closed his eyes.

"It remembers."

A deep voice echoed through the realm.

"The blood has returned."

Ariana could barely breathe.

"You know me?"

"I knew your ancestors."

The dragon lowered its massive head until one golden eye was level with hers.

"I carried the first Bloodbound king into battle."

The woman in white struck the marble with her staff.

"You owe allegiance to no one."

The Dragon King slowly turned toward her.

"I owe allegiance to the covenant."

"That covenant died with the kingdom."

"It survives while the heir survives."

The crimson fire surrounding the woman's staff flared brighter.

"So be it."

Dark chains erupted from the shadows and wrapped around the dragon's wings.

One after another, dozens of enchanted links coiled around its body.

The Dragon King roared.

This time the sound carried pain.

Ariana instinctively stepped forward.

"Stop."

The woman in white laughed.

"You would protect a creature you met only moments ago."

"He has done nothing."

"He exists."

The chains tightened.

Blood the color of molten silver dripped onto the marble.

Every drop that touched the ground transformed into tiny glowing flowers before fading away.

Orion looked urgently at Ariana.

"The trial is testing your heart."

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Choose."

"Choose what?"

"The same thing every ruler must choose."

She stared at the struggling dragon.

Power.

Or compassion.

Her mother's final words echoed through her mind.

I pray she chooses mercy.

Without fully understanding why, Ariana reached toward the pendant resting against her chest.

The silver wolf burst into brilliant light.

The glow spread across her arm before racing toward the enchanted chains.

One by one, they shattered.

The Dragon King spread its wings.

A single beat sent a wave of wind across the realm.

The woman in white stumbled backward.

"You fool."

She pointed her staff at Ariana.

"If she lives, everything begins again."

Before the spell could strike, the dragon placed one enormous wing between them.

Crimson fire collided with black scales.

The impact echoed across the Gate of Memory.

Orion seized Ariana's hand.

"We must leave."

"The dragon."

"It will follow if fate permits."

Another crack split the white sky.

The realm was collapsing.

Entire sections of marble dissolved into nothingness.

The Dragon King looked once more at Ariana.

"When the final moon rises, seek the mountain where fire sleeps."

"What mountain?"

"You will know it by the wolves."

Its image began fading.

"The covenant is not broken."

The world around Ariana blurred.

She felt herself falling through endless light.

Voices whispered all around her.

Some begged.

Some warned.

Some simply repeated the same sentence again and again.

The heir has returned.

The heir has returned.

The heir has returned.

With a sudden gasp, Ariana opened her eyes.

She was back inside the crystal cavern.

The pillar of silver light had vanished.

The pool was calm once more.

Nyx stood protectively beside her.

Elara knelt nearby, exhausted but alive.

Across the cavern, Kael fought three masked warriors alone.

His silver blade flashed through the darkness with remarkable precision, but more enemies continued pouring through the entrance.

The woman in white was nowhere to be seen.

Then Ariana noticed something impossible.

Someone stood behind Kael.

The figure wore black armor trimmed with gold.

A familiar black glove covered his right hand.

In silence, the stranger raised a dagger toward Kael's back.

Ariana's heart stopped.

"Kael!"

Her cry echoed through the cavern.

The stranger turned.

For the briefest moment, Ariana saw his face.

He looked exactly like the king from her memories.

Then the dagger came down.