The palace was silent, too silent.
After the night of shadows and blood, the Queen's decree echoed through every corridor: "Bring the girl to me at dawn."
Seraphina had not slept. Her pulse still throbbed with the memory of the power she unleashed in the garden, power she didn't understand, power that frightened even Kael.
Now she stood before the throne hall, its doors carved from obsidian, etched with the sigils of dragons long gone. When the guards pushed them open, golden light poured from within, blinding her.
At the center of that light sat the Flame Queen, her gown made of molten silk, her hair a crown of fire. Her gaze fell upon Seraphina like a blade.
"So," the Queen purred, voice like honey over steel. "The mortal who carries a dragon's bond dares to survive."
Seraphina bowed, though her hands trembled. "Your Majesty."
"Raise your head," the Queen commanded. "Let me see what the Bloodhound has chosen."
Seraphina obeyed, and for a brief moment, the Queen's expression shifted. Surprise. Then… something darker.
"She bears the mark already," the Queen whispered. "And it burns."
Kael stepped forward, armor glinting. "Your Majesty, she has no control yet. The bond awakens on its own."
The Queen smiled thinly. "Then she will learn."
She rose from the throne and circled Seraphina like a predator. "You feel it, don't you? The fire beneath your skin… the pull when he breathes too close."
Seraphina swallowed hard, heat rising to her face. "I don't know what you mean."
"Oh, but you do." The Queen's hand brushed Seraphina's wrist, where the dragon's mark shimmered faintly. "It's not just power. It's desire, the first lesson you must master."
Kael's jaw clenched. "Your Majesty..."
"Silence, Bloodhound," she snapped. "You forged this bond. Now you will watch her learn to control it… or watch her burn from it."
Seraphina's pulse quickened as the Queen lifted her hand. The air shimmered, and the walls of the hall dissolved into flame and smoke. In an instant, they stood in a circular chamber surrounded by floating sigils, the Chamber of Trials.
"Lesson One," the Queen said, her voice echoing. "Control your flame."
Fire danced before Seraphina, alive and taunting. It whispered her fears, her wants, her guilt. She reached out, and it bit her. Pain flashed up her arm, but she refused to scream.
"Good," the Queen said softly. "Feel it. Let it hurt, but do not let it rule you."
Kael moved instinctively, wanting to protect her, but the Queen's glare froze him mid-step.
"Touch her," she warned, "and you doom her."
Seraphina clenched her teeth. The fire swirled around her now, rising like serpents. Her heartbeat matched its rhythm. Slowly, she lifted her hand again, this time calmer, letting the flame recognize her instead of fighting it.
The sigils flared.
Kael's eyes widened as the fire bent, flowing into her palm, curling into the shape of a dragon.
The Queen's lips curved. "She learns faster than you did."
Seraphina gasped, trembling, the tiny flame-dragon flickering in her hand. "What… is this?"
The Queen's gaze turned distant. "The beginning of what you are becoming."
The flame-dragon in Seraphina's hand trembled, flickering between brilliance and shadow.
She struggled to breathe, not from exhaustion, but from the strange pull in her chest. Every heartbeat echoed Kael's, even though he stood several paces away. It was as if her pulse had learned his rhythm.
The Queen noticed. Of course she did.
"Ah," she murmured, eyes glinting. "The bond stirs when he's near."
Seraphina's gaze darted toward Kael, and for the first time, she saw fear behind his calm mask. Not fear for himself, fear for her.
"Tell me, girl," the Queen continued, circling again, her steps whispering on the marble floor. "When you dream, does the Bloodhound appear?"
Seraphina's voice was barely a whisper. "Sometimes."
"And when he does, do you wake in peace… or in flame?"
Kael flinched. "Your Majesty..."
"Silence," the Queen hissed, her eyes never leaving Seraphina's face. "Answer me."
Seraphina swallowed. "Both."
The Queen smiled, that slow, dangerous smile of someone who has heard exactly what they wanted. "Then you are ready."
She waved a hand, and suddenly the chamber shifted again. The floor split into glowing circles of light, twin runes, one beneath Seraphina, one beneath Kael. A current of energy rippled between them.
"This is the second part of your lesson," said the Queen. "You will face your bond. Control it, or let it consume you."
Kael stepped forward, voice low. "Majesty, if she's not prepared..."
The Queen's eyes burned. "Then she will die as she is half mortal, half myth."
The runes flared, and the power surged. Kael and Seraphina both gasped as invisible threads of light connected them, heart to heart, mark to mark.
Seraphina's vision blurred. Suddenly, she could feel him, his heartbeat, his thoughts, even his hesitation. The bond's power was overwhelming.
"Kael…" she whispered. "I can feel you."
He gritted his teeth. "Focus, Sera. Don't let it control you."
Her knees buckled. "It's too strong."
He reached toward her, but again, the Queen's command froze him. "She must stand alone."
Seraphina closed her eyes, forcing herself to breathe. The mark on her wrist burned brighter, spreading across her skin like molten silver. The dragon within her roared, a sound that shook the very walls.
Kael's eyes widened as a shockwave of heat burst from her. Flames curled around her body, yet they did not burn. Instead, they formed wings, translucent, shimmering, powerful.
The Queen's voice softened to a whisper. "Now you see it, what you were meant to become."
Seraphina opened her eyes. They glowed gold and crimson. "What am I?"
"You," said the Queen, "are the future the dragons feared."
Then the chamber went silent again, save for the echo of Seraphina's breathing and the lingering firelight in her eyes.
The air was still thick with the scent of smoke and starlight.
Seraphina's new wings shimmered faintly before fading into her back, leaving trails of glowing embers. Her body trembled, but her eyes blazed, no longer uncertain, no longer fragile.
Kael watched her as though seeing her for the first time. "You shouldn't have survived that," he whispered.
Seraphina managed a breathless smile. "Maybe I wasn't meant to just survive."
The Queen's voice slithered between them. "No, my dear. You were meant to rise."
She stepped closer, fire dancing in her eyes. "Do you wish to know why your bond exists at all? Why your blood sings to his?"
Seraphina hesitated. "Because of the curse?"
The Queen laughed softly. "Curse? Oh, child… Kael's curse is you."
The words struck like a blade. Kael's head snapped up. "Enough."
But the Queen ignored him. "Centuries ago, when dragons ruled the skies and humans trembled below, there was one prophecy, a union that would end the eternal flame. A dragon's blood joined with mortal soul. That is the bond you carry."
Seraphina shook her head. "That can't be."
"It already is."
The Queen raised her hand, and light poured into the room again. Images formed in the air, visions of an ancient war. Dragons burned the heavens; humans fell in ash. Amid the chaos, a single dragon knight knelt beside a dying woman, their blood mingling as they touched.
Seraphina gasped. "That's..."
"Yes," the Queen murmured. "Kael. Before the curse took him. Before he became my Bloodhound."
Kael's fists tightened. "Don't."
But the Queen's smile only deepened. "She deserves to know. The bond you carry, Seraphina, is the echo of his sin, and the world will end if it completes itself."
Seraphina stared at him, her heart twisting. "Is that true?"
Kael looked away. "I don't know anymore."
The Queen's tone sharpened, cutting through the silence. "Then learn, both of you. Because the fire that binds you will either destroy the realms… or save them."
She turned away, the flames around her dimming. "Lesson over."
The chamber dissolved once more, and Seraphina found herself alone in the quiet garden, the same place where everything began.
Only Kael stood beside her now, the moonlight touching the scars on his hands.
She reached out hesitantly. "Kael… what did she mean, your sin?"
He didn't answer at first. His voice came low and rough. "I once swore never to fall again. The last time I did… the world burned."
Seraphina's throat tightened. "And now?"
His gaze met hers, fierce, haunted, unyielding. "Now I fear it will burn again."
The wind stirred, carrying the scent of ash and something sweet, the first whisper of destiny calling.
Far above, unseen in the night sky, the Queen watched from her tower, her eyes reflecting twin flames.
"Let it begin," she murmured.