Chapter 329 – The Dragon Unleashed
The world was fire, ash, and blood.
The Hollow—the fragile home Kael and his people had built stone by stone—lay in ruin. Smoke rose from the collapsed walls, the air thick with the metallic taste of blood and the acrid stench of burning flesh. The once-bustling streets were silent now, drowned beneath the clash of titans.
At the center of the devastation, Kael faced the Orc Overlord.
The beast towered above all others, a monstrosity of muscle and fury, his tusks glistening with blood, his crude axe heavy enough to split mountains. Each step he took cracked the ground, and each swing of his weapon carried the weight of a storm. Against him stood Kael, battered and bloodied, his dragon form marred with wounds that cut through scale and flesh alike. His chest rose and fell raggedly, his wings hung torn and heavy at his sides, and rivers of crimson streaked his once-dark gleaming scales.
And around them, trapped and helpless, the council watched.
The Council's Chains
Selina was the first to break the silence, her voice trembling, her healer's instincts making her see every wound Kael bore more clearly than the others. "He can't—he can't last much longer…" Her hands clawed at the invisible bonds of chaos magic that rooted her to the ground. She had seen men die before, but this… this was watching a mountain crumble.
"No." Lyria's voice was sharp, fierce as her eyes. Her nails dug into her palms, her knuckles white as she pulled against her bonds. Tears burned trails down her face, but her voice shook with defiance. "No, don't you dare say that, Selina! He's Kael. He will rise."
Rogan's roar split the air, the veins on his neck bulging as he strained against the magic that shackled him. "Damn it, Kael! You stubborn bastard—get up! Get up and fight!" His voice cracked, raw, the sound of a warrior watching his general, his friend, be ground into the dirt.
Fenrik stood rigid, his usually stoic face twisted with pain. His jaw clenched so hard his teeth threatened to crack. "He always does this," he whispered, barely audible over the din of battle. "Always takes it all on himself… carries every burden." He shook his head, eyes wet. "But not this time. Please, not this time…"
Even Zerathis, the shadow who never wavered, leaned forward against his bonds. His voice rang out like steel on stone, low but cutting through the chaos. "Rise, Kael. Show him what you are."
Kael's Internal Battle
Pinned beneath the Overlord's crushing strength, Kael's vision blurred. His chest heaved, blood bubbled in his throat, and for the first time in years, he felt the cold edge of despair gnawing at him. His claws scrabbled for purchase, his wings beat weakly, but the monster above him was relentless.
And then—like a whisper cutting through the storm—the voice returned.
"Do you feel it now?" Smooth and terrible, the voice reverberated through Kael's very soul. "The weight of your weakness. The taste of failure. This is what comes of restraint, of clinging to fragile bonds."
Kael snarled inwardly, his teeth grinding. "I don't have time for your riddles. My people—"
"Your people will die with you if you fall here," the voice interrupted, silken and cold. "And fall you will, unless you accept what you are. Unless you accept me."
Kael's vision sharpened, his fury boiling against his weakness. "And what am I?"
The voice laughed, thunderous and knowing. "Not man. Not king. Dragon. You are a shadow of what you were meant to be, bound in chains of flesh and fear. But I can give you more. A sliver of what you truly are. Enough to crush this pretender and remind the world of power."
Kael's heart hammered. He could feel the council's voices in the distance, hear their screams. Lyria calling his name. Azhara sobbing, her voice raw with fury. Rogan's roar of rage. Zerathis's quiet command.
They're counting on me.
"A sliver," he growled in his mind. "Give it to me. Now."
"So be it," the voice purred. "But remember, little dragon—you will owe me."
The Sliver of Power
The world ignited.
Power surged through Kael's veins like molten steel, burning, reshaping, awakening. His wounds closed with unnatural speed, cracked scales knitting together, his body swelling with renewed vitality. His vision flared, colors sharper, brighter. The air around him shimmered with oppressive heat.
The council gasped as Kael staggered, then rose, wings unfurling with a thunderclap that shook the battlefield. Flames erupted from his body, black fire spilling into the sky in writhing torrents. His eyes blazed, molten gold slit with black.
"That's… impossible," Varik whispered, awe and fear mingling in his voice.
"It's not impossible," Lyria breathed, her face streaked with tears. She pressed her hands to her lips, a sob breaking free. "It's Kael."
Clash of Titans
The Orc Overlord faltered, his booming laughter dying in his throat as Kael rose from the dirt, his aura suffocating, oppressive, like the weight of mountains.
"You should be dead," the Overlord snarled, raising his axe once more.
Kael's voice rumbled, deep and layered, no longer just his own. "I am death."
And he struck.
The ground quaked as Kael lunged, claws flashing. His jaws snapped around the Overlord's arm, teeth sinking deep. Bone shattered with a sickening crunch, and the monster bellowed in pain as Kael ripped free, blood spraying in a crimson arc.
The Overlord swung wildly, his massive axe cleaving air, but Kael was already there, wings propelling him forward, claws raking across the beast's chest. Black fire erupted from his maw, engulfing the Overlord in searing heat, the flames clinging like tar, eating through flesh.
The battlefield became a storm of violence—Kael tearing, biting, burning, the Overlord striking back with earth-shaking blows. Their battle was a clash of titans, every strike shaking the very bones of the world.
And then, with a final lunge, Kael's jaws clamped down around the Overlord's throat. The beast thrashed, clawed, and bellowed, but Kael's grip only tightened. With a brutal wrench, he tore.
The Orc Overlord's head ripped free in a spray of blood, his body crashing lifelessly to the dirt.
The Council's Relief
The council erupted. Rogan's roar of triumph echoed like thunder, his eyes wide with awe. Varik shouted until his voice broke, his fists straining against the bonds. Selina wept openly, her healer's heart overwhelmed by relief.
Lyria fell to her knees, sobbing, her hands clasped against her chest. "He did it… gods, he did it."
Azhara buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking as silent sobs wracked her body.
Even Zerathis allowed himself the faintest of smiles. "So it is done."
Wrath of the Dragon
But the orc army did not falter.
At the fall of their leader, the horde screamed in rage. Tens of thousands surged forward, their fury unbroken, their weapons raised.
Kael did not wait.
With a roar that split the heavens, he unleashed his fury. Rivers of black flame poured from his maw, incinerating lines of orcs in a heartbeat. His tail swept wide, crushing dozens at a time. His claws carved through flesh and bone, scattering bodies like broken dolls.
The ground became a charnel pit, the stench of burning flesh choking the air. Orcs screamed, fled, and died beneath his unrelenting wrath.
By the time his fire waned, the horde had broken. Fifty thousand orcs trampled each other in blind retreat, their formation shattered, their will destroyed.
Kael stood triumphant, a god of fire and shadow, his enemies scattered like leaves before a storm.
Collapse
But triumph came with a price.
Kael swayed, his massive body trembling. His wings drooped, his claws shook, his chest heaved raggedly. Blood dripped once more from reopened wounds. His strength, borrowed and burning, guttered like a candle in the wind.
He turned once, his molten eyes finding his council. Relief flickered there, a tired, fleeting smile.
And then his legs buckled.
With a thunderous crash, Kael collapsed, the earth trembling beneath him. His vision blurred, the world narrowing into darkness.
As he faded, the voice whispered, silk and storm.
"Rest, little dragon. You've earned it. When you wake… we will speak again."
And Kael knew no more.