The cave shook as Nexus's roar thundered through the stone, dust raining from the ceiling. Her massive wings unfurled, blotting out the light from the mouth of the cavern, her body a cathedral of scales and power.
Rayon didn't step back. He didn't cower. He ran straight at her.
The first strike was insane—charging a dragon head-on—but insanity was Rayon's comfort. He leapt, fist colliding with the scaled jaw of the beast. The impact cracked the cavern walls, blood spraying from his knuckles. Nexus's head snapped sideways, not from damage, but from surprise.
She laughed. Actually laughed. Her voice rolled through the cavern like velvet thunder.
"Hand to hand… against me? You're either fearless—or utterly broken."
Rayon wiped blood from his lips, grinning like a man possessed. "Why not both?"
The dragon lunged, claws swiping. Rayon ducked, rolling under the strike, his body moving on the sharpened instincts of the beast blood roaring inside him. He slammed a punch into her claw, another into her forearm, each strike ringing like steel on stone. Pain jolted up his arms, but he didn't stop.
He pressed closer.
Black strings whipped from his wrists, latching onto her legs, her wings, her tail. They didn't cut—not yet. They pulled. Bound. Restrained. Nexus shifted against the pressure, her massive body straining, muscles flexing.
And to Rayon's surprise—she moaned.
Not a cry of pain. Not a roar of anger. But a low, shivering sound that rattled the cavern walls. Her golden eyes gleamed with hunger.
"Ohhh… how long has it been," she purred, her voice vibrating through dragon's throat. "Since someone dared to chain me. Since someone pressed me down."
Rayon blinked, almost thrown off—but Erethon's voice chuckled in his mind, dark amusement dripping through.
"She's enjoying this, boy. The fight. The restraint. Dragons don't fear domination. They lust for it."
Nexus lunged again, her fangs snapping inches from Rayon's face. He shoved upward, bare-handed, forcing her jaw shut with raw, burning strength. His strings tightened, wrapping her massive neck, wings, and claws. She thrashed, crashing into the cavern walls, rubble falling around them. But the more he bound her, the more her laughter deepened, sultry and wild.
"Yes!" she hissed, wings cracking against stone. "More! Show me that madness—show me you're not prey!"
Rayon roared back, blood pouring down his arms as scales shredded his skin. He stitched wounds shut mid-fight, his Hollow Strings piercing his flesh and sewing muscle back together as fast as it tore. He struck again, again, fists slamming into her scaled face until her golden eyes dilated with something more dangerous than fury.
Pleasure.
Her thrashing slowed—not from weakness, but from savoring the restraint. She leaned into the strings, pulling them tighter against her scales, testing their strength. Her tongue lashed out between fangs, tasting his blood as it sprayed.
"You fight like a beast…" she growled, voice trembling. "…but you bind like a god."
Rayon smirked through the blood dripping from his chin. "And you… enjoy this too much."
Her laugh echoed, shaking the cavern. "Then break me, little man. If you can."