The battlefield had become hell.
Fire covered the Ancient Court.
Hundreds of red dragons filled the sky, their roars shaking the ground.
Aeron looked toward the palace.
The hooded figure was still standing there.
Those golden eyes.
He had seen them before.
His mother's eyes.
But there was no time to think.
A red dragon suddenly dived toward him.
Aeron raised his sword.
BOOM!
The impact threw him across the battlefield.
He rolled through the dirt and quickly stood.
Another dragon attacked.
His dragon intercepted it.
Its jaws closed around the red dragon's neck.
But instead of killing it, Aeron's dragon slammed it to the ground and roared.
The black symbol on the red dragon's body began glowing.
Aeron understood.
"They're being controlled."
Kael arrived beside him.
"Then break whatever is controlling them."
Aeron nodded.
He sprinted toward the nearest dragon.
His black-gold sword struck the glowing symbol.
CRACK!
The symbol shattered.
The dragon froze.
Its eyes cleared.
It looked at Aeron…
and slowly lowered its head.
Aeron stared.
Then another red dragon broke free.
Then another.
Within seconds, several dragons turned against the Ancient Court soldiers.
The battlefield changed.
But Aeron wasn't watching them.
He was looking at Rian.
---
Rian stood in the middle of the chaos.
Completely still.
Black energy crawled across his body.
His eyes were golden.
Aeron slowly approached.
"Rian."
Rian didn't move.
"Aeron…"
His voice sounded different.
Almost like he was struggling to speak.
Aeron took another step.
"Come with me."
Rian suddenly grabbed his head.
"Stay back!"
A burst of black energy exploded from his body.
Aeron stopped.
Rian fell to one knee.
"Something is inside me."
Aeron's grip tightened around his sword.
"We'll get it out."
Rian looked up.
"You can't."
"Watch me."
For a moment, Rian smiled.
The same smile Aeron remembered from childhood.
Then
CLANK!
A black chain shot from beneath the palace.
It wrapped around Rian's leg.
Rian screamed.
Another chain wrapped around his arm.
Aeron charged.
"RIAN!"
He cut the first chain.
BOOM!
The second shattered.
But three more erupted from the ground.
Aeron kept cutting.
One.
Two.
Three.
Until—
CRACK!
The ground beneath Rian collapsed.
Rian began falling into darkness.
Aeron grabbed his hand.
Their eyes met.
"Aeron…"
"Hold on!"
Rian's fingers slipped.
"No."
Aeron pulled harder.
"I won't lose you again!"
Rian looked at him for a long moment.
Then he whispered
"You already did."
His hand slipped away.
Rian disappeared into the darkness.
Aeron stared into the hole.
Silence filled his mind.
Then
BOOOOM!
The palace shook violently.
A massive roar came from beneath it.
The ancient creature was rising again.
Kael grabbed Aeron's shoulder.
"We have to move!"
Aeron didn't answer.
He slowly raised his sword.
His eyes turned cold.
"I'm going down there."
Kael looked at the collapsing palace.
"Aeron, that's exactly what they want."
Aeron looked toward the hooded figure.
The figure was gone.
Only those golden eyes remained in his memory.
Then a voice echoed from beneath the palace.
Rian's voice.
"Brother…"
Aeron's black mark began burning.
And from the darkness below
something whispered:
"Come home."