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Reborn: The Golden Dragon Burns Them All Episode ENGSUB Fantasy Romance, ARS
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Short filmTranscript
00:00I am the second princess of Clan Aurelion, pureblood goldenscale, and I fell in love with a filthy black serpent.
00:08In my past life, I chose him at the selection rite, insisted on him as my bonded mate.
00:13I was the one who defied every voice in Clan Aurelion to drag him out of the serpent's abyss and
00:18up to Drake's fire.
00:20We spent every night together, and on our wedding day, the black serpent I dreamed of for years drove a
00:26blade straight through me, three months pregnant.
00:29I collapsed in a pool of my own blood. Draven's voice was full of disgust.
00:34If you hadn't been in the way, I would have had Isolute long ago. You deserve this.
00:40Only then did I understand. From the very beginning, he'd had his eyes on my sister, the one already chosen
00:47as the next Archon.
00:49Isolde nestled into his arms, her foot slammed into my bleeding chest.
00:54Pathetic little wretch.
00:56The pain through my heart sent tremors down every limb.
00:59With my last breath, I curse you both to ruin without end.
01:06And if fate grants me another life, I'll be all the one holding the blade.
01:13My eyes open. I'm standing on the sacred altar.
01:16Wind howls across Drake's fire, carrying ice and the scent of stone.
01:21I'm alive.
01:21I'm alive. No. I'm reborn.
01:24My father, the man who died long ago in my previous life, touches my shoulder.
01:29A quiet reminder.
01:32Seraphina, you're the one who insisted on bonding with the Black Serpent. Why are you standing there like you've seen
01:36a ghost?
01:37Bonding? I look down past the sacred altar. The serpent candidates stand in a line, waiting to be chosen. The
01:44selection rite.
01:45I've returned to the day I chose my bonded mate.
01:50Father.
01:50A voice cuts me off. Draven Vos steps out of the line. He walks right past me, his gaze burning
01:56toward Isolde behind me. He drops to one knee.
02:00Lord Artron, with all due respect, my heart does not answer to obligation.
02:04It knows only one name, and it is not Seraphina.
02:07He lifts his head toward Isolde.
02:09I wish only to stand beside the first princess, Isolde. For the rest of my days.
02:15Dead silence. Father's expression darkens. Everyone knows the Black Serpentine claim half-Leviathan blood, but the lineage is impure. By
02:25every rule, Draven Vos has no right to set foot on the sacred altar.
02:29I'm the reason he's here. I liked him. I chose him. I forced Father to make an exception, to let
02:35a serpent stand before dragons.
02:37And now, moments before the bond ceremony begins, he slaps me across the face in front of everyone.
02:44David's eyes were cold, contemptuous, and full of calculations. It hits me at once.
02:49He's reborn, too. Draven thinks bonding with my sister will rocket him to the top.
02:54What he doesn't know is that who becomes the true Archon of Clan Aurelion isn't his choice. It's mine.
03:00This time around, without my designation, I'd love to see how far either of you climb.
03:06Father erupts. His dominance aura crashes down like a landslide. Draven's knees buckle. His forehead hits stone.
03:13You forget what you are.
03:15Seraphina is the second princess of Clan Aurelion. Do you think you're choosing livestock at market?
03:21Even with the Archon's aura grinding his joints to the breaking point, Draven refuses to yield. He speaks through clenched
03:29teeth.
03:29Lord Archie, what is my crime? Must I bond with the second princess simply because she fancies me?
03:34I love the first princess, Isolida.
03:37The first princess trains day and night, treats everyone with grace.
03:41The second princess is reckless, idle, never once honed her power.
03:47If any of you were in my position, who would you choose?
03:52Every word sounds sincere, but I know exactly what's behind it.
03:55In the last life, he learned Isolid was father's chosen successor.
03:59Bond with the Archon's chosen. Share the ancestral power.
04:03Catalyze his impure Leviathan blood.
04:05Evolve into a true Leviathan.
04:07It's never been about love. It's about leverage.
04:11Father's fury deepens. The dominance aura intensifies.
04:14A filthy serpent daring to judge my daughter!
04:18You have a death wish!
04:21Father, stop!
04:22Isolid steps out from behind me. Her cheeks flush pink.
04:25Her eyes glistened with just the right amount of tears.
04:28Every word of Draven's confession, she heard it all.
04:31I accept him.
04:33Stunned silence. Father stares at her.
04:36Isolid, do you hear yourself?
04:39He is Seraphina's chosen mate.
04:41And Draymond Vos is nothing more than a mongrel serpent.
04:45Bonding with him would only drag you down.
04:47Before he finishes, Draven produces an obsidian case from inside his robes.
04:52He kneels again, presenting it to Isolde with both hands.
04:55The lid opens.
04:57Inside lies a pearl.
04:59I offer this to the first princess.
05:02Someone in the crowd recognizes it instantly.
05:04A leviathan pearl!
05:05I glance at it.
05:06Lower my lashes.
05:08Leviathan pearl.
05:09An ancient relic from the depths of the serpent's abyss.
05:12Nine out of ten who search for it.
05:13Never come back.
05:14In my last life, I burned through every resource the clan gave me trying to find one for Draven.
05:19He'd held me close.
05:20Voice soft.
05:21It's just a myth, Sarah.
05:23Don't waste yourself on it.
05:24The pearl was in his hands the whole time.
05:26And now, to win my sister's favor, he pulls it out without a second thought.
05:30Everything I gave him.
05:31A joke.
05:32Isolde takes the obsidian case.
05:34Deeply moved.
05:35She flicks a glance at me.
05:37Sharp.
05:38Triumphant.
05:38Then turns to father.
05:40Tears shimmer.
05:41Her voice trembles just enough.
05:43My whole life, you favored Serafina.
05:47And now, finally, someone chooses me!
05:51Would you tear that away from your own daughter just for Serafina's sake?
05:55Father hesitates.
05:56His gaze lingers on the leviathan pearl.
05:58Then he turns to me.
06:01Serafina.
06:02Don't make this difficult.
06:03If his heart lies with your sister, let it go.
06:06Don't be unreasonable.
06:07I close my eyes.
06:09A bone-deep exhaustion settles over me.
06:11Isolde and I share a father.
06:13That's all we share.
06:14Her mother, Ilara, was an iron-scale dragoness.
06:18The lowest subspecies among dragonkind.
06:20She died shortly after giving birth to Isolde.
06:23Too weak to survive.
06:24Father later married my mother, the previous female archon of Clan Aurelion.
06:29Pure blood, golden scale.
06:31Her blood and her rank made me the rightful heir from the moment I drew my first breath.
06:36But growing up, even the clan could see it.
06:38Father measured us on two completely different scales.
06:41With Isolde, he was a merciless drillmaster.
06:44He threw her into the bone wastes as a child and never looked back.
06:47Even when she crawled home covered in wounds, he wouldn't let her shed a single tear.
06:52You are my daughter.
06:54Weakness is not yours to claim.
06:56With me?
06:56Even though my raw talent surpassed Isolde's, he said he worried I'd suffer on the path of cultivation.
07:02Without hesitation, he pulled me out of training entirely.
07:06You don't need to be strong, Sarah.
07:08Just be happy.
07:09To everyone else, I was the pampered princess.
07:12But I knew the truth.
07:13This wasn't love.
07:14It was a leash.
07:15He was raising me to be useless.
07:17In my past life, I wandered deep into the clan crypts by accident.
07:21Found Father kneeling before a black obsidian tombstone.
07:24The name carved into it.
07:26Ilara.
07:27His voice was low, tender.
07:28Nothing like the way he spoke to me.
07:30Ilara, my love.
07:32After all these years, it is still you.
07:34It has always been you.
07:37Rest easy.
07:39I've kept my promise.
07:41The girl knows nothing.
07:42Not her power.
07:43Not her birthright.
07:45Nothing.
07:46Our daughter will have everything she deserves.
07:49I stood in the dark.
07:50Ice spreading through my veins.
07:52He wasn't spoiling me.
07:53He was making sure I'd never threaten Isolda.
07:56Father wanted me to choose Draven Vos, a black serpent with low standing.
08:01Once bonded to him, no one in the clan would ever take me seriously.
08:04And now, Draven has produced a leviathan pearl.
08:07Father seizes the chance to boost Isolda's power.
08:10Pins the label of unreasonable on me.
08:12Orders me to step aside.
08:14Fine.
08:15You want it?
08:16Take it.
08:17I agree too fast.
08:18Father blinks.
08:19Draven's eyes flicker.
08:20Isolda, though.
08:21She walks up to me, voice coated in honey.
08:24I only want what's best for you, little sister.
08:27After all, a forced bond breaks both.
08:32Tell you what.
08:33She smiles, scanning the crowd.
08:36Pick another mate.
08:37I'll bond with Draven.
08:38You'll have your own match.
08:39And Father can stop worrying.
08:41Father watches Isolda with open adoration.
08:43But they both know the truth.
08:45Every candidate invited to the sacred altar today is a serpent.
08:48And aside from Draven, not one of them stands out.
08:51I don't bother with her games.
08:53I raise my hand lazily and point in a random direction.
08:56That one.
08:57I'm pointing at a silver serpent.
08:59In human form, he's unexpectedly striking.
09:02Pale skin.
09:03Silver irises with slit pupils.
09:05A lean frame.
09:06Wiry but strong.
09:08Almost a match for Draven Vos in appearance.
09:10But his mana is so faint it barely registers.
09:13A candle about to gutter out.
09:15If black serpentine blood is considered low,
09:18then silver serpentine, in the eyes of dragonkind,
09:20is nothing more than a worm with scales.
09:23Apart from shifting into human form,
09:25they have almost zero combat ability.
09:27The silver serpent freezes when my finger lands on him.
09:30Isolde presses her hand to her lips, feigning concern.
09:33Each word drips with just enough sweetness to cut.
09:36Oh, Sarah.
09:37Are you sure?
09:39He looks...
09:40fragile.
09:41I'd hate for him to reject you, too.
09:44The silver serpent speaks.
09:45No hesitation.
09:46No way.
09:47I accept.
09:49The entire crowd flinches.
09:51Even I pause.
09:52He walks straight out of the line,
09:54stops before me,
09:55and extends a pale, slender hand.
09:58Your Highness.
09:59My name is Kale.
10:01A beat of silence.
10:03His voice drops.
10:05Quieter.
10:05Almost to himself.
10:07I've always wanted you to know it.
10:09I take his hand.
10:11It isn't cold the way I expected.
10:12A warmth I didn't anticipate.
10:14In that instant,
10:15the skin over my collarbone flares hot.
10:18Kale's grip tightens around my fingers.
10:20He lifts his head,
10:21looks straight into my eyes.
10:22His silver irises reflect my face.
10:25If you'll have me,
10:27I swear on my blood and my bones,
10:30not in this life or any other.
10:33Tray you.
10:34Or leave you.
10:36Golden divine light
10:37flips the sky
10:38and cracks across the sacred altar,
10:40sealing his oath.
10:41The flash lights up his face.
10:43Something inside my chest
10:45cracks open,
10:46melts.
10:46Kale is the first person
10:48in two lifetimes
10:49who chose me
10:50without a single moment
10:52of hesitation.
10:53The corner of my mouth
10:54lifts on its own.
10:55A voice
10:56shoves its way in
10:57from the side.
10:58Draven stands with his arms crossed,
11:00looking down at Kale
11:01like an insect.
11:01Your Highness.
11:03Silver serpentine
11:04have virtually no Morna.
11:06Bonding with him
11:07won't do a thing
11:08for your power.
11:09Kale lowers his head slightly.
11:10Not avoidance,
11:11habit.
11:12He's heard this too many times.
11:14The smile on my lips
11:15goes cold.
11:15What's wrong,
11:17Draven jealous?
11:18And let's be clear,
11:20you call silver serpentine
11:22lowborn?
11:23Does black serpentine
11:25blood run any nobler?
11:27The smirk on Draven's face
11:28turns to stone.
11:29I catch it.
11:30The hatred that flashes
11:31across his features,
11:32a fraction too slow to hide.
11:34In my past life,
11:35I wasn't blind.
11:37I chose him over every candidate
11:38because he once saved my life
11:40in the bone wastes.
11:41That was the first time
11:42anyone shielded me
11:43with their own body.
11:44I thought it was real.
11:45Now he humiliates me
11:46in public
11:47and clings to my sister
11:48for power.
11:49So don't expect me
11:50to play nice.
11:51I turn to face the clan.
11:52From this day forward,
11:54Kale is under my protection.
11:56He is mine.
11:58My gaze sweeps the crowd.
11:59Touch him
12:01and you answer to me.
12:03The crowd shrinks back
12:04half a step under my stare.
12:06Draven's fists clench.
12:08Whatever makes you happy,
12:09your highness.
12:10Kale's fingertip
12:11brushes mine.
12:12I turn to look at him.
12:13Those silver-slit pupils
12:15fix on me.
12:15Fragile,
12:16trembling,
12:17and impossibly bright.
12:18You're the only one
12:19who ever saw me.
12:20Something slams against my ribs.
12:22Enough.
12:23It's time.
12:25Begin the soul bond right.
12:26Four of us step into
12:28the runic circle
12:28at the center
12:29of the sacred altar.
12:30Ancient dragon script
12:31blazes to life
12:32beneath our feet.
12:34Divine lightning strikes.
12:35The altar channels it,
12:36tearing soul fragments
12:37from each pair
12:38and branding them
12:39into irreversible bonds.
12:41But the power gap
12:42between dragon
12:43and serpent is vast.
12:45The bond's energy
12:46surges from the stronger
12:47vessel to the weaker,
12:48seeking balance,
12:49like a flood
12:50pouring into a creek.
12:52Both serpents
12:53buckle at once.
12:54Draven collapses
12:55under the force.
12:56Blood spills
12:57from the corner
12:58of his mouth.
12:58He struggles
12:59to lift his head,
13:00reaching toward Isolda.
13:01Isolda,
13:02please help me.
13:04Isolda starts
13:04to extend her hand.
13:06Father stops her cold.
13:07Serpent.
13:09Your blood
13:09is barely worthy
13:10of my daughter
13:11as it stands.
13:13If you can't endure this,
13:14then it's your fate.
13:16Draven's eyes go wide.
13:17He stares at Isolda,
13:18the same woman
13:19who blushed
13:20while accepting him
13:21moments ago,
13:22now standing safely
13:23outside the circle.
13:24Her expression is calm.
13:25Deren,
13:26I am the next Archean
13:27of Clan Avelion.
13:28Every drop of my martyr
13:30is precious,
13:31so I can't give you any.
13:33Disbelief carves itself
13:35across his face.
13:36On my side,
13:37Kale is in just
13:38as bad shape.
13:39Silver scales
13:40surface along his neck
13:41and arms.
13:42His body convulses.
13:43I raise my hand
13:44to channel mana
13:45into him.
13:46Kale lurches back.
13:47Your Highness,
13:48the First Princess
13:49is right.
13:50If I can't endure
13:51the Bond's power,
13:53then it means
13:54I'm not worthy of you.
13:55They call you
13:56Lowborn
13:57and you just accept it?
14:00We're bonded now.
14:02That means we live
14:04and die together.
14:06So shut up.
14:07I grab his shoulder.
14:09Mana pours from my palm,
14:11flooding into his body
14:12in a steady,
14:13relentless stream.
14:14Golden Dragonfire
14:15threads along
14:16the Bond's pathways,
14:18flowing into him.
14:19And then I notice
14:20something strange.
14:21Kale's body
14:22absorbs my mana
14:23with impossible efficiency,
14:24as if he was born
14:26to receive this exact power.
14:28For the weakest serpent alive?
14:30That makes no sense at all.
14:32Now isn't the time to ask.
14:33I file the anomaly away.
14:36The Soulbond Rite ends.
14:38Draven lies,
14:39soaked in sweat and blood,
14:41pinned to the ground,
14:42jaw locked,
14:43crimson still leaking
14:44from his mouth.
14:46Kale stands untouched.
14:47I feel Draven's stare.
14:50Turn to meet it.
14:50His eyes are dark,
14:52resentful,
14:52as if I owe him something.
14:54Last life,
14:55Draven barely took a scratch.
14:57I was always the one
14:58fighting his battles.
14:59Now he's chosen
15:00the clan's anointed
15:01next Archon,
15:02and nearly died
15:03during a bond ceremony.
15:05And he has the nerve
15:06to look at me?
15:07I mouth one word at him.
15:09Ice cold.
15:10Deserved.
15:12Isolde doesn't notice
15:13the exchange.
15:14Her eyes close.
15:15She sinks into
15:16the fresh mana
15:17coursing through her,
15:19satisfaction spreading
15:20across her face.
15:21Father,
15:23the Covenant has spoken.
15:25I'm ready to receive
15:27the Archon's flame!
15:28The crowd stirs
15:29with excitement.
15:30Every new Archon's
15:32ascension triggers
15:33the dragon's resonance.
15:34The resonance releases
15:36ambient mana
15:37that nourishes
15:37every dragon present,
15:39pushing them past barriers,
15:41sometimes by an entire rank
15:43or more.
15:44Father beams.
15:45The sacred altar
15:46is cleared.
15:47Isolde stands at the center
15:49of the open circle.
15:50She glances at me,
15:52motionless on the sideline,
15:53and her lip curls.
15:54Sarah,
15:55I understand you're upset
15:57about Drahan,
15:59but that's no reason
16:00to stand in the way
16:01of the resonance.
16:04Would you drag
16:05the entire clan
16:06down with you?
16:06The crowd catches it.
16:08Murmurs swell.
16:10Your Highness,
16:11settle your quarrel
16:12with the first princess
16:13in private.
16:13Don't delay the resonance!
16:15Draven was right.
16:16The second princess
16:17can't compare
16:17to the first princess.
16:19If it were me,
16:19I'd choose the first princess too.
16:22Draven smiles.
16:23Sarah,
16:24everyone can see the truth.
16:26I must have been blind
16:27to ever stand by you.
16:29Kale's brow furrows.
16:30He shoulders Draven aside,
16:33steps in front of me,
16:33and gently presses
16:35his hands over my ears.
16:36Their words are poison.
16:37Don't let them in.
16:39The weight on my chest lifts.
16:41I give him a real smile,
16:43then turn toward Isolde,
16:44basking in her victory,
16:46and speak calmly.
16:47Islene,
16:48you will never be Archie,
16:51and the Covenant
16:51will not grant you the flame.
16:53If you try,
16:54the resonance will destroy
16:56your power from the inside out.
16:57A beat of silence.
16:59Then the crowd
16:59bursts into laughter.
17:01Draven folds his arms,
17:02contempt dripping
17:03from every glance.
17:04Who are you to judge
17:06the first princess?
17:07If she can't be Archie,
17:09who can?
17:10You?
17:11Enough of this nonsense.
17:13Father's expression hardens.
17:16Seraphina,
17:17step aside.
17:18A flick of the wrist.
17:19Mana shoves me and Kale
17:20to the edge of the platform.
17:21Isolde locks eyes with me,
17:23triumphant.
17:24Watch closely, Sarah.
17:26Watch what centuries
17:27of sacrifice look like.
17:30Isolde stands at the heart
17:31of the Sacred Altar.
17:32She unleashes her mama.
17:34A deep hum resonates
17:36through the stone.
17:37Power radiates outward.
17:38The ground shudders.
17:42Pillars of golden light
17:44converge from every direction.
17:46Ancestral echoes
17:47of countless dragon bloodlines
17:49answer the call,
17:50weaving together
17:51into a thunderous,
17:52sky-darkening tide
17:53of resonance.
17:55Isolde stands at the center,
17:56poised, regal.
17:58Layer upon layer
17:59of golden energy
18:00knits itself
18:01into a breathtaking tapestry,
18:03a net of staggering power.
18:06The clan watches,
18:07mesmerized.
18:08The dense mana
18:09begins to disperse,
18:11drifting toward
18:11every dragon present.
18:13Then,
18:14confusion.
18:15Strange.
18:16Why can't I absorb
18:17any of it?
18:18Same here.
18:19It just
18:20passes through me,
18:22like it doesn't recognize me.
18:24More voices.
18:26More unease.
18:27Heads turn back
18:28toward Isolde
18:28on the altar.
18:29She doesn't notice.
18:31Still lost in the moment.
18:33The ritual concludes.
18:34She bows to heaven
18:35and earth,
18:36then raises her voice.
18:37I, Isolet Aurelion,
18:39firstborn of the golden scale,
18:40call upon the dragon's
18:42re-resonance.
18:43Grant me the Archon's flame.
18:45Silence.
18:46Nothing happens.
18:48Panic flickers
18:49across her face.
18:50She prostrates herself,
18:52calls out again.
18:52I, Isolet Aurelion,
18:54invoke the Rite of Ascension!
18:58This time,
19:00she gets an answer
19:01from me.
19:02I stand beside Kael,
19:04voice steady.
19:04You can kneel
19:05until your scales crack.
19:07The answer
19:08is no.
19:10Dead silence.
19:11Every pair of eyes
19:12in the clan
19:13turns to me.
19:14Father thinks
19:15I'm sabotaging
19:16the ceremony.
19:17Combined with Isolde's
19:18failed succession,
19:19his rage boils over.
19:21His full dominance
19:22aura crashes down,
19:24driving me to my knees.
19:26Seraphina,
19:27you have never
19:28disappointed me
19:29more than today.
19:30I've indulged you
19:31in everything.
19:32But this,
19:34this is the clan's future,
19:36and you keep
19:37sabotaging it.
19:40Today,
19:41I'll discipline you
19:41on your mother's behalf.
19:43He raises his hand.
19:44Mana compresses
19:45into a force field,
19:46hurtling toward my face.
19:48I watch it come,
19:49calm.
19:49Draven stands nearby,
19:50suddenly anxious.
19:51Sarah,
19:52just apologize.
19:53Now.
19:54Do you actually
19:55want to get hit?
19:55The blast is inches away.
19:57He flinches,
19:58self-preservation kicks in,
20:00and darts to the side
20:00without a second thought.
20:01Then Kale launches
20:02himself forward.
20:03His eyes shift
20:04from silver to pure white.
20:06Slit pupils contract
20:07to pinpoints.
20:08Silver scales erupt
20:09across his neck
20:10and forearms.
20:11A low,
20:11guttural hiss
20:12tears from his throat.
20:13Half shifted,
20:14he throws himself
20:15in front of me
20:15and takes the Archon's
20:17full force strike
20:18head on.
20:18Blood sprays
20:19from his mouth
20:20once,
20:21twice,
20:22three times,
20:22and he crashes
20:23backward into me.
20:24His fingers claw
20:25at my arm,
20:26trying to push
20:26his last scraps
20:27of mana into my body.
20:29Kale,
20:30truly,
20:30completely for me.
20:32Father sees a serpent
20:33openly defy him.
20:34Fury consumes
20:35what's left of his restraint.
20:36He begins charging
20:37another strike.
20:38In the same breath,
20:39I lean down,
20:40wrap my arms around Kale,
20:41and whisper
20:42against his ear.
20:42Don't be afraid.
20:43The Covenant of Flame
20:44answers to me.
20:46Father's attack
20:47never lands.
20:49A bolt of golden
20:50dragon fire
20:51descends from the heavens,
20:52boom.
20:53It hits Father
20:54dead on.
20:55Scales to bone,
20:56everything scorches black.
20:58But that's only
20:58the beginning.
21:00One bolt,
21:00two,
21:01they hammer down
21:02like divine tribulation
21:03made personal.
21:04By the end,
21:05Father is blasted back
21:07into his beast form.
21:10Isolde agapes at me.
21:12Seraphina,
21:13what did you do
21:14to Father?
21:15I pull my hand
21:16from Kale's healed wounds
21:18and rise slowly.
21:20Centuries ago,
21:21my mother gave her life
21:22defending Clan Auralian
21:24against the Dark Horde.
21:25The ancient dragon god
21:26Pyrasis honored her sacrifice
21:28with a divine gift
21:29to her bloodline.
21:30I,
21:30Seraphina of Orion,
21:31second princess of Clan
21:32of Orion,
21:33hold the right of designation.
21:34Anyone who strikes me
21:35will face divine repriotion,
21:37and anyone who harbors
21:38malice towards me
21:39will never be Archon.
21:40I don't believe you.
21:41You're lying.
21:43You're nothing.
21:44You haven't grown
21:44a single rank
21:45in centuries.
21:47You,
21:47designate Archon,
21:49you must have sabotaged me.
21:51Set some trap.
21:52I won't let you
21:53get away with this.
21:54She charges at me,
21:55her flawless features
21:57twisting into something feral.
21:59I exhale.
22:01You're no exception.
22:03Golden dragon fire
22:04falls on Isolde.
22:06Her cultivation
22:06is nowhere near
22:07Father's level.
22:08The bolts chase her
22:09across the platform,
22:11scrambling,
22:12stumbling,
22:12all dignity stripped away.
22:14The same Clan members
22:15who worshipped her
22:16moments ago
22:17don't dare move
22:18an inch.
22:20Seraphina,
22:20you hid this from me.
22:22If you'd told me the truth,
22:23I wouldn't have done it
22:24this way.
22:25I laugh.
22:26Scalding tears
22:27roll down.
22:28I wouldn't have what?
22:29I wouldn't have put a blade
22:30through my heart?
22:32Derevan,
22:33didn't I tell you?
22:34Yes,
22:34I can never be Arpen myself.
22:36But bond with me.
22:37Stay faithful.
22:39And on the day I ascend,
22:40you would have evolved
22:41into a true Leviathan.
22:43Our children would have
22:44inherited the covenant.
22:46But you didn't believe me.
22:47Do you know why
22:48you were reborn with me?
22:49Because the moment I died,
22:51the bond tore your soul
22:53apart with mine.
22:54My death was yours.
22:56You just didn't feel the blade.
22:58Thraven stumbles backward.
23:00He looks down
23:01at the bond mark
23:02on his hand,
23:03the one tying him
23:04to Isolde.
23:04The color drains
23:06from his face.
23:07A dragon's roar
23:08erupts from the sacred altar.
23:11Isolde,
23:11scorched,
23:12humiliated by divine retribution,
23:15consumed by jealousy
23:16over the power I hold,
23:18loses the last thread
23:20of reason.
23:21The dormant void taint
23:22in her iron scale bloodline
23:24ignites.
23:25She shifts
23:25into beast form.
23:27Golden scales begin
23:28to darken at the edges.
23:29Her eyes bleed from gold
23:31to the empty black
23:32of the void.
23:33Her dragon form warps,
23:35twists,
23:35until she looks less
23:36like a noble dragon
23:38and more like something
23:39that clawed its way
23:40out of an abyss.
23:42Why?
23:44Why's her mother purebred
23:46and mine was not?
23:48Why does she get everything
23:49without lifting a finger?
23:51I refuse to accept this.
23:53It should all be mine!
23:55She attacks indiscriminately.
23:58Corrupted dragon fire
23:59sprays in every direction.
24:01Clan members scatter,
24:03screaming.
24:04The sacred altar,
24:05once solemn and revered,
24:07becomes an inferno.
24:09Father drags himself
24:11toward me in beast form.
24:13Tears line his reptilian eyes.
24:16Sarah, please.
24:18Spare Islet.
24:20This is all my fault.
24:21I was wrong.
24:22I should never have done
24:23what I did to you.
24:24But she has trained
24:26for centuries.
24:27I can't watch her lose
24:29everything.
24:31I look into his eyes.
24:32My mother's last words
24:34echo back.
24:35Sarah,
24:36I hate him.
24:37You know what the saddest
24:39part of my life is?
24:40I can never compete
24:41with a ghost.
24:44There is one way
24:45to save her power.
24:46Hope flares in his gaze.
24:49Darren is bonded
24:49to Islet.
24:51He bears half
24:52her karmic burden.
24:53I point at Draven.
24:54To save her,
24:55you'll need to sacrifice him.
24:57Extract his serpent's core.
24:59Let Islet absorb it completely.
25:01She'll stabilize.
25:05No!
25:05Take my core
25:06and I'll never evolve!
25:08Never become a Leviathan!
25:10Sarah,
25:11this is revenge!
25:13Father doesn't even glance at him.
25:15Serpent,
25:16you swore you'd give
25:17everything for Isleth.
25:20Now keep your word.
25:22Father extracts the serpent's core himself.
25:25The moment the fist-sized
25:26pulsing black crystal
25:28is torn free.
25:29In that instant,
25:31Draven seems to age centuries.
25:33He can only watch
25:34as Father feeds the core
25:35to Isolda.
25:36No!
25:38I've seen enough.
25:40Kale leans against my shoulder,
25:41voice low.
25:42Sarah,
25:43let's go.
25:44Deep into the night,
25:45I lean against the edge
25:46of the moon veil hot springs.
25:48A silver serpent glides
25:50across the surface toward me.
25:52Kale shifts to human form.
25:54He rests against me,
25:55letting my palm wander
25:56across his chest.
25:58I study him.
25:59Kale's silver irises
26:01glow faintly in the dark.
26:02No calculation in them.
26:04Nothing but feeling.
26:05Deep,
26:05bare,
26:06bottomless.
26:07The question has been circling
26:08since this morning.
26:09We've never met before.
26:10Why does he feel like this about me?
26:12Is it because of my title?
26:14Kale reads the doubt on my face.
26:16This isn't the first time we've met.
26:17His silver scales shimmer.
26:19Memory fragments flow through the bond
26:22and into my mind.
26:23A flash.
26:24A finger-length silver snake
26:26pinned under the boots of dragon-born boys,
26:29battered and bleeding.
26:30A younger version of me barges in,
26:33plants herself between them,
26:34and chases them off with a tongue lashing.
26:36Another flash.
26:38The little silver snake,
26:39barely alive,
26:40curled in a crack between rocks.
26:42A teenage version of me crouches down.
26:44A wild rabbit.
26:46A handful of berries.
26:47Again and again.
26:49Without knowing it,
26:50I saved him more times than I can count.
26:52The last image.
26:54Kale,
26:54now in human form,
26:56standing at the farthest edge of the crowd,
26:58watching me on the sacred altar,
27:00about to begin the soul bond rite with Draven.
27:02The memory breaks off.
27:04My voice comes out rough.
27:06Is this about dead?
27:07Who chose me because I saved you?
27:10It isn't suspicion.
27:11It's fear.
27:12Fear that one day,
27:13he'll say what Draven said,
27:14that I chained him with kindness.
27:16I didn't fall in love with you because you saved me.
27:19I was already in love with you.
27:21Everything you did only proved I wasn't wrong.
27:25My heart hammers against my ribs.
27:28Kale rests his head on my shoulder.
27:30His voice drops to a murmur,
27:32warm breath against my skin.
27:34From now on,
27:34you're all I have.
27:36You scared me today.
27:38Will you stay close tonight?
27:41His lower half shifts,
27:43silver tail coiling around my calf,
27:45sliding higher,
27:46slow,
27:47deliberate,
27:48my eyes narrow,
27:49my voice drops,
27:50a little hoarse.
27:51What kind of close did you have in mind?
27:55He leans in.
27:56Hot spring water laps over both our shoulders.
27:59Silver scale marks glow beneath the surface.
28:02Kale's body temperature rises the instant he presses against me.
28:06Nothing like the cold serpents are known for.
28:08You're warm.
28:10Only when I touch you.
28:12His lips find my collarbone.
28:14Then,
28:14a sharp,
28:15brief sting.
28:16A silver serpent mark brands itself into my skin.
28:19Nate mark.
28:20I grip the back of his neck and bite down.
28:22A golden dragon scale mark surfaces on his nape.
28:25From this moment,
28:26the bond is absolute.
28:28He is mine,
28:29and I am his.
28:30One night of passion.
28:32Serpents aren't that impressive, honestly.
28:34He just flipped me around and wore me out until dawn.
28:37I could barely stand.
28:38The next morning,
28:39I haul myself upright,
28:41one hand braced on my lower back,
28:43and kick Kale in the side.
28:45He blinks up at me,
28:47genuinely wounded.
28:48Did I break you?
28:49Satisfied.
28:50Very satisfied.
28:52Kale scrambles up to help me walk.
28:54We barely make it past the sanctum's ward line before I stop.
28:57Someone is crouching outside the barrier.
29:00Draven.
29:01Draven looks years older than yesterday.
29:03His gaze finds the silver mate mark on my collarbone.
29:06His pupils shrink.
29:07His face goes gray.
29:09He stares for a long time before he speaks.
29:11Sarah, I was wrong.
29:13Isoleth and your father,
29:15they don't see me as a living thing.
29:18Only you ever treated me as an equal.
29:21Draven thought bonding with the Archon's chosen would launch him to the top.
29:24But beyond that Leviathan pearl,
29:26he has nothing of value to offer.
29:28They stripped him and threw him aside.
29:30Last night, father's rage needed a target.
29:33He doesn't dare touch me again.
29:35Those dozen bolts of divine dragon fire already hammered him back to beast form.
29:40Provoking me further might annihilate his soul entirely.
29:43But the fury needed somewhere to go.
29:46The daughter he spent years crippling turns out to be the Covenant's bearer.
29:50Everything he built for Isolde, a joke, overnight.
29:54So he turned on Draven.
29:55A mongrog like you is utterly useless.
29:59You're not even fit to be my daughter's pet.
30:02I'm starting to wonder if your little display was a performance you and Seraphina arranged together.
30:08Father used a soul siphon on Draven,
30:10forced his way through layer after layer of memory,
30:14searching for proof of betrayal.
30:16The process is agony.
30:18He found nothing.
30:19Draven barely survived.
30:21But relief didn't last.
30:23When Isolde awoke and the full humiliation of the day settled in,
30:27something in her curdled.
30:28She seized Draven by the throat, teeth bared.
30:31You declared your love for me in front of everyone!
30:34And when it mattered, you chose a worthless organ over my life!
30:38Devin Vox, you deserve to rot!
30:42I look at his broken body, feel nothing.
30:45The moment that blade went through my heart,
30:47whatever connected us died with me.
30:50Kale speaks for me.
30:51You merely hu-iliated Seraphina in public,
30:54then abandoned Isolde when she needed you.
30:58And now you come crawling back.
31:00Drarian, where is your shame?
31:03Killing intent flashes in Draven's eyes.
31:06His body tenses.
31:07Then the realization crashes in.
31:10No serpent's core.
31:11No power.
31:12Just a shell.
31:14He crumbles, pleading.
31:16Sarah, you hold the right of Dezygonation.
31:18You must be able to break a bond too, right?
31:20Break my bond with Izzalik,
31:22and I'll serve alongside the White Spurpent.
31:25As your mate.
31:26After everything we had.
31:28You'll help me.
31:29I know you will.
31:31Kale's head whips toward me.
31:33Panic in his eyes.
31:35How adorable.
31:36You actually believe that.
31:40Darian, why would I help you?
31:43I gave you everything.
31:45You wanted her.
31:47I carried your child.
31:49You put a blade through my heart.
31:51I gave you the right to stand on the Sacred Ultra.
31:54You humiliated me in front of my entire clan.
31:56Every.
31:57Single.
31:58Single.
31:58One.
31:59The fact that you're still breathing is mercy enough.
32:02The light dies in Draven's eyes.
32:04A long silence.
32:05Then he covers his face, and a strangled sound escapes.
32:08What have I done?
32:09He knows me well enough to know I don't look back.
32:12Draven returns to Izzold.
32:14In my last life, I never let anyone in the clan belittle him.
32:17I shielded his pride at every turn, in public, in private.
32:21Izzold doesn't bother with any of that.
32:23She tears him apart in front of everyone.
32:26Strips him down to nothing, whenever the mood strikes.
32:30The clan follows her lead.
32:32They only kneel to whoever holds the leash.
32:36Draven's life now, compared to the one I gave him, worlds apart.
32:41Father summons me to the Sacred Altar.
32:43Before the entire clan, he performs the appropriate gesture.
32:47Forces Izzold to lower her head and kneel in front of me.
32:50But her words give everything away.
32:52Sarah, perhaps Father went too far.
32:54But the clan cannot go a single day without an archon.
32:58Would the Covenant let clan Aureon crumble, just to protect you?
33:02Let's set our differences aside.
33:04The clan's survival matters more than either of us.
33:07Not an apology.
33:08A negotiation.
33:10It works on the crowd.
33:12Hesitation ripples through, then voices join in.
33:15Your Highness, the last Archic, your mother,
33:17gave her life to protect us from the Dark Horde.
33:20The Dark Horde is growing restless.
33:22Without a new archon, when the wards fall, we won't survive a single assault.
33:27Please, grant the succession to the First Princess.
33:31I stay silent.
33:32My gaze catches the knowing glance Izzold and Father exchange.
33:36The picture crystallizes.
33:39Father, Mother was right about you.
33:41You have no vision.
33:43You'd do anything to put your first love's daughter on the throne.
33:46Even lie to the entire clan!
33:48Seraphina, what are you talking about?
33:50I raise my hand.
33:52The Covenant responds.
33:53Every clan member's mana rank materializes before my eyes.
33:57Laid bare.
33:58Izzold's power is impressive.
34:00Izzold's power is impressive.
34:00Radiant, even.
34:01But she's not the strongest here.
34:03Issa Leith is your arch's chosen.
34:06But Clan Avelian has never chosen its archon by blood.
34:10It has always been by strength.
34:12My mother put you in power to prevent a civil war.
34:16And after all these years, you just couldn't let go.
34:18A voice rings out from the crowd.
34:21Thyra, Copper Scale Dragon.
34:23The only one who never mocked me since the Selection Rite.
34:27She stands straight-backed.
34:29Power should be earned by those who prove it.
34:31Not handed to those born with the right name.
34:34I meet her eyes.
34:35Give a single nod.
34:37Clan Arion will hold open trial of merit.
34:41Whoever stands last earns the right to rule.
34:43The Clan erupts in cheers.
34:46Only Father and Isolde stand pale and still.
34:50That night, Kale clings to me as usual.
34:53He nuzzles his forehead into the curve of my neck.
34:55His nose brushes my jaw.
34:57I sigh, about to pull him closer.
35:00The world lurches.
35:01I sense it instantly.
35:03The ward barrier shattered.
35:05Drake Spire's protective wards were set by my mother,
35:08sealed with a fragment of her own soul.
35:10No Dark Horde, no matter how powerful, could breach them easily,
35:14unless someone opened them from the inside.
35:17By the time Kale and I reach the surface,
35:19Drake Spire is in chaos.
35:21Dark Horde.
35:22Everywhere.
35:23High-tier beasts rampaging through the Clan.
35:26A dragon hatchling is pinned under a beast's clawed foot,
35:30seconds from death.
35:31I move without thinking.
35:32One strike.
35:33The head rolls.
35:34Warm blood splashes across the hatchling's face.
35:37She throws herself into my arms, sobbing.
35:40Your Highness, I almost died.
35:42Mama and my sister, they led the beasts away to protect me.
35:46I hand her to Kale, tell him to keep her hidden,
35:49and run in the direction she pointed.
35:51I arrive to find the mother and sister cornered by a pack of beasts,
35:55barely hanging on.
35:57I cut in.
35:59Save one.
36:00Then a second.
36:01A third.
36:02Through the smoke and carnage, I spot Phyra.
36:05She's shifted, copper dragon form,
36:08leading a small squad in a defensive line,
36:10shielding the elderly, the young, the wounded.
36:13Her commands are sharp.
36:14Her fighting is vicious.
36:15I make a note of her.
36:16By the end, I'm running on fumes.
36:19Then I see them.
36:19Isolde.
36:20Father.
36:21No surprise.
36:22The moment I announced the trial of merit,
36:24I felt it through the covenant.
36:25Someone was deliberately weakening the ward barrier.
36:28I knew he'd gamble everything.
36:30Isolde crouches in front of me.
36:32Her arm moves.
36:33A blade punches through my chest.
36:36I cough blood.
36:37Her eyes are fully black now.
36:38Void corruption running deeper than before.
36:41Sarah, so what if you hold the covenant?
36:43Put you in the ground,
36:44and the next archon will still be me!
36:47I look down at the sword in my chest.
36:50Then I look up at Isolde.
36:52I smile.
36:53Thank you, sister.
36:54I needed you to do exactly that.
36:57Isolde freezes.
36:59Pain blazes through me,
37:01stamped into the soul.
37:02A memory the body never forgets.
37:04I can't stop the trembling.
37:07Father walks to my side.
37:08His voice is almost gentle.
37:10If you weren't the bearer,
37:11if you hadn't stood in Isolde's way,
37:14I might have let you live.
37:16Pity.
37:17I lift my head.
37:19My voice doesn't waver.
37:21So to kill me,
37:23you broke the ward barrier.
37:26Let the Dark Horde in.
37:29Let your own people die!
37:32Father doesn't blink.
37:33Acceptable losses.
37:34Everything I've done
37:36is to give Isolde the flame.
37:39To give the clan a stronger leader.
37:43The weak die to beasts,
37:45because they were never meant to survive.
37:47One thrust isn't enough for Isolde.
37:49She snaps.
37:50The blade drives into me again and again,
37:53pouring out everything she's held in.
37:55I'm stronger than you!
37:57Why do you get to decide?
37:59I suffered for centuries,
38:01and I was so close.
38:04And you took it all away
38:06with a few words!
38:09Even Drarin.
38:10Her teeth grind harder.
38:13That mongrel
38:14said he regretted choosing me.
38:17Said I could never compare to you.
38:21So I took his core.
38:24Let him go ahead and wait for you.
38:26Sarah,
38:27the clan's faith belongs to me.
38:31So you have to die!
38:34Behind me,
38:35the roar of beasts,
38:36the screams of the dying,
38:38all tangled together.
38:39I look at Isolde.
38:41When the Covenant granted me
38:42the right of designation,
38:44it also feared the power
38:46would be too concentrated.
38:48So it sealed half my divine power
38:50inside you as your talent,
38:52and it barred me
38:53from becoming Archon myself.
38:55If you had truly served the clan,
38:58if you'd held no malice towards me,
39:00the succession would have been yours
39:02without question.
39:03But you chose the wrong path.
39:05Your suffering wasn't my doing.
39:07It was father's obsession
39:08and your own hunger for power.
39:10But you blamed me for all of it.
39:12And now that you've struck me
39:13with intent to kill...
39:20The seal is broken,
39:22Isoleth.
39:24Your talent was never yours.
39:27It was my power holding you up.
39:30Now it comes home.
39:31The blade buried in my body
39:32erupts with golden light.
39:34Isolde tries to release the hilt.
39:36Her hands won't move.
39:37Mana drains from her body,
39:38torrential, unstoppable,
39:40flooding into mine.
39:41Father, help me!
39:43My power!
39:44It's draining!
39:46I look up at father.
39:47He's always loved Isolde best,
39:50the daughter of the woman
39:50who owned his heart.
39:52That devotion never wavered.
39:53Not even now.
39:54He moves to kill me outright.
39:56But in his desperation,
39:58he forgets.
39:59Striking me carries a price.
40:02This time,
40:03the covenant shows no mercy.
40:05Golden Dragonfire
40:07hammers father
40:08until his soul disintegrates.
40:10He scatters into nothing
40:11before our eyes.
40:12Isolde doesn't have time to grieve.
40:15Every shred of gifted talent
40:16has been reclaimed.
40:18Her mana plummets
40:19to that of an ordinary dragon.
40:21And behind her,
40:22the dark horde circles.
40:23I pull the sword from my chest
40:25and walk away.
40:26Isolde finally grasps her situation.
40:29Terror floods her face.
40:30Sarah, you can't do this to me!
40:32I'm Isoleth!
40:33I'm the first princess of Clan Arion!
40:36I'm your sister!
40:37You can't abandon me for those!
40:39No!
40:40Scream behind me.
40:41This time,
40:42I don't turn around.
40:43I drive out every last beast
40:45and rebuild order on Drake's fire.
40:47The hatchling from before
40:48runs up and wraps herself
40:49around my leg.
40:51Your highness,
40:52without you,
40:52I'd be an orphan!
40:53Clan members who used to look through me
40:55now kneel at my feet.
40:56Your highness,
40:57we were blind before.
40:59You drove back the horde.
41:00You saved Dragonspine.
41:02The Archon's crown
41:03belongs to you.
41:04I shake my head.
41:05I place the Archon's crown
41:06into Thyra's hands,
41:07the one who never mocked me.
41:09The first to stand up for an open trial.
41:11The one who held the line
41:12when the Dark Horde came,
41:14shielding the weak,
41:15saving lives while others ran.
41:17I will always protect Clan Arion,
41:19but the Archon's seat
41:20was never meant to be inherited by blood.
41:22Power belongs to those who protect,
41:24not those who take.
41:25Thyra is the right choice.
41:26I return to the Sanctum,
41:27devote myself to cultivation.
41:29With my full divine power restored,
41:31my strength surges beyond anything I imagined.
41:33Divine Tribulation descends,
41:35bolt after bolt,
41:36and I weather everyone.
41:38Then, Ascension.
41:39Under the gaze of the entire clan,
41:41I shift into my true form,
41:42a complete golden dragon,
41:44blazing against the sky.
41:45A silver dragon coils beside me.
41:47Kale, transformed through the bond.
41:49No longer silver serpentine,
41:51a silver dragon.
41:52Though his clingy nature
41:53hasn't changed one bit,
41:54his voice flows through the bond.
41:56Where you go, I go.
41:57That was the oath.
41:58I tilt my dragon head toward him,
42:00then hold on tight.
42:01I've heard the Divine Realm
42:02has terrible weather.
42:04Two dragons,
42:05one gold,
42:06one silver,
42:06spiral upward
42:07and vanish into the clouds.
42:09They never come back.
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