Aria POV
Shadow fire roared toward my face.
Time slowed. I saw every detail—the black flames eating the air, Damian's cruel smile, the Shadow Drake's blood-red eyes. This was how I died. Burned alive by my ex-fiancé's beast while trying to reach my father's weapon.
At least Marcus survived, I thought. Through our bond, I felt his horror and rage as he realized he was too far away to help.
Then my body moved on its own.
My hands came up, and violet energy exploded from my palms. The shadow fire slammed into my barrier with enough force to crack the ground beneath my feet, but it didn't touch me. My father's power—finally free after five years—responded to my will like it had been waiting for this moment.
The flames dispersed. I stood unharmed, violet energy crackling around my body.
Damian's smile vanished. "Impossible. Your seals were supposed to kill you when they broke."
"Surprise," I said coldly. "I found a way to survive."
Through the bond, I felt Marcus's shock and relief mixing together. You can fight! his mental voice shouted. Why didn't you tell me you could actually fight?
Because I didn't know if it would work, I admitted. The seals have been suppressing me for so long, I wasn't sure if I'd remember how.
But my body remembered. Five years of hiding hadn't erased the training my father had drilled into me since I was six years old. I'd been the strongest young tamer in the empire once. Time to remember why.
"You killed my family," I said, my voice steady despite the rage burning in my chest. "You stood beside me at their funeral and pretended to mourn. Then you threw me away the moment I lost my status."
Damian's face twisted with contempt. "Your family was weak. They ruled through fear, not respect. My father did the empire a favor by removing them."
"They were people!" My power flared brighter. "My mother taught music to orphans. My little brother was seven years old. What threat could a seven-year-old possibly be?"
"He was a Winters. That was threat enough." Damian gestured, and his Shadow Drake moved forward, its massive body blocking out the moonlight. "You should have died with them, Aria. Tonight, I correct that mistake."
The drake lunged.
I rolled sideways, my father's combat training taking over. The drake's claws gouged deep trenches where I'd been standing. I came up running, heading for the library entrance that was now only fifty yards away.
Marcus! I sent through the bond. Get to the library! I'll handle Damian!
Are you insane? That thing is huge!
I know what I'm doing!
I hoped I wasn't lying.
The drake's tail swept toward my legs. I jumped, using my power to boost higher than should be possible. For a moment, I flew—truly flew—soaring over the drake's attack. My father used to do this, moving through battle like he was dancing.
I landed and kept running. The drake roared behind me, frustrated by my speed.
"You can't run forever!" Damian shouted. "Eventually you'll tire, and then—"
Marcus slammed into him from the side.
My new partner had crossed the courtyard in seconds, his evolved body moving like white lightning. His claws raked across Damian's arm, drawing blood. Damian stumbled backward with a cry of pain and shock.
"You're supposed to be a runt!" Damian gasped, staring at Marcus's new size.
I got bigger, Marcus growled through our bond, his mental voice smug. Now run, Aria! I'll keep him busy!
The Shadow Drake turned away from me, focusing on Marcus instead. My heart clenched with fear. The drake was still twice Marcus's size, and Damian was one of the academy's strongest tamers.
Marcus, no! You can't—
Watch me.
Marcus leaped at the drake with absolute fearlessness. His claws, charged with my violet energy, struck the drake's scales. The drake roared in pain—actual pain, not just annoyance. Marcus had hurt it.
Pride and terror warred in my chest. My partner was brave. Stupidly, impossibly brave.
But bravery wouldn't be enough if I didn't reach the Vault.
I turned and sprinted for the library entrance. Behind me, I heard the sounds of fighting—Marcus's snarls, the drake's roars, Damian's shouted commands. Every instinct screamed at me to go back and help.
Keep going! Marcus sent through the bond. Get that weapon! I'll survive until you do!
I crashed through the library doors. The building was dark and silent, filled with thousands of books my father had loved. Tears blurred my vision as I ran through the aisles, following the mental map he'd left in my memory.
Third floor. East corner. Behind the history section.
I took the stairs three at a time, my legs burning. My power was holding steady now, flowing smoothly into Marcus through our bond instead of tearing me apart. We'd done it. We'd actually found a way to survive the seals breaking.
Now I just needed to finish what my father started.
The history section loomed ahead. I pressed my hand against the wall where my father had shown me in dreams that came after his death—messages he'd left in my mind using forbidden magic.
"I am Aria Winters," I whispered. "Daughter of Alexander Winters. Heir to the bloodline. Open."
The wall shimmered and faded, revealing a spiral staircase leading down into darkness. The Forbidden Vault. It was real. It had been here all along, waiting for me to be strong enough to open it.
I descended quickly, my power lighting the way. The stairs seemed to go on forever, leading deep beneath the academy. How had my father built this without anyone knowing?
Finally, I reached the bottom. A massive door stood before me, covered in glowing symbols that pulsed in rhythm with my heartbeat.
I placed both hands on the door. It recognized me instantly—my blood, my power, my desperate need. The door swung open.
The chamber beyond was small and circular. And in the center, floating in mid-air, was the artifact my father had died protecting.
But it wasn't a weapon.
It was an egg.
A beast egg, roughly the size of my head, covered in swirling silver and black patterns. Power radiated from it in waves that made my skin prickle.
What is this? I thought, confused and disappointed. This is what he hid? An egg?
Then I saw the inscription carved into the floor beneath it:
"For Aria. When you are ready to bond what was lost."
Understanding crashed over me like cold water.
This wasn't a weapon. This was my father's beast—the legendary creature he'd bonded as a young man. The beast that had made him the strongest tamer in the empire. He'd somehow preserved it in egg form, waiting for me.
My hands trembled as I reached for the egg. If I bonded this creature—whatever it was—I'd have two bonded beasts. Marcus and this new one. That was supposed to be impossible. No tamer could handle two bonds at once without their mind shattering from the strain.
But my father had left this for me. He must have believed I could do it.
Through my bond with Marcus, I felt his panic surge. Aria! The drake is too strong! I can't—
Pain exploded through our connection. Marcus's pain. He was losing.
I grabbed the egg.
The moment my skin touched the shell, it cracked.
Light poured out—not violet like my power, but pure golden white that filled the entire chamber. The egg shattered completely, and something emerged.
A dragon.
Not a drake like Damian's beast. A true dragon with scales that shimmered between silver and black, eyes like molten gold, and wings that unfurled with deadly grace. It was small now—no bigger than Marcus had been as a cub—but I could feel its potential humming in my bones.
The dragon's eyes locked onto mine.
Master, its voice whispered directly into my mind. I have waited five years for you to claim me. I am Nero, your father's bonded soul. He preserved me in egg form so I could serve you when the time came.
My father's beast. The legendary dragon that had helped him win countless battles. And now it was mine.
The second bond snapped into place.
Agony tore through my mind. Two bonds, two beasts, two separate souls connected to mine. It was too much. My consciousness fractured, splitting between Marcus's desperate fight above and Nero's ancient power beside me.
Through the bond with Marcus, I felt him take a massive hit from the drake. Felt his ribs crack. Felt his strength failing.
Aria, he gasped mentally. Whatever you're doing down there, do it faster. I can't hold much longer.
I looked at Nero, my father's dragon, and made a choice that would either save us or destroy us all.
"Nero," I said. "Can you reach the courtyard from here?"
There are ventilation shafts. Too small for most creatures, but I can fit.
"Then go. Save Marcus. And when you get there..." I felt my father's memories flowing through the bond, teaching me techniques I'd never learned. "Merge with him."
Merge? Nero's eyes widened. Master, that's forbidden. Two beasts sharing one body—
"Will give him the power he needs to survive. Do it. Now!"
Nero launched into the air, disappearing into a shaft I hadn't noticed. Through my bond with Marcus, I felt him still fighting, still trying to protect me despite being outmatched.
Hold on, I sent to him. Help is coming.
Above ground, in the courtyard, Marcus's legs finally gave out. The Shadow Drake stood over him, preparing its final attack. Damian smiled victoriously.
Then a streak of silver and black exploded from the ground.
Nero slammed into Marcus's body, and the two beasts merged in a flash of violet and gold light.
When the light faded, something new stood in the courtyard.
Marcus—but transformed. His white fur now rippled with silver and black scales. Dragon wings sprouted from his back. His tiger fangs had grown longer, sharper, and his eyes glowed with both his gold and Nero's ancient power.
He was no longer just a tiger.
He was a dragon-tiger hybrid. Something that shouldn't exist. Something impossible.
Damian's face went white with terror.
And Marcus smiled with way too many teeth.