Chapter 172 The Loudest Heartbeat

Chapter 172 The Loudest Heartbeat
Elyndra

The hidden passage opened into the servants' corridor leading toward the Penitentiary.

I stepped out first. Footsteps echoed through the palace as servants fled amid distant screams. I gestured for Florian and Kier to stop.

"We must pass the barracks again," I whispered. "Stay hidden, and whatever you do, don't make a sound."

Fortunately, the barracks stood empty.

"I was going to tell you," Florian murmured beside me, "the army will not be returning. I believe the chasm was meant for them. The forest is now little more than a mass grave."

A warning horn echoed throughout Aetheria.

"There are still guards throughout the city," I said as we continued toward the servants' entrance. "My brother is not entirely unprotected. Hopefully, whoever remains will deal with whatever monster is roaming the palace."

As expected, the entrance stood unguarded, allowing us to slip inside unnoticed. Torchlight flickered across the vast circular prison while voices echoed through the cavernous chamber.

Vaelric stood near the center of one of the prison cells, one hand resting upon Serafina's shoulder as she knelt on the stone floor. A polished silver collar encircled her neck. Helga, Ryven, Jehan, and General Kraven wore identical collars.

None of them noticed us.

Quietly, I moved behind Helga and activated my Sable Ring.

There... a heartbeat. The glass case was in her pocket.

I slipped my hand inside, but just as my fingers brushed the smooth glass, Helga shifted sideways, sensing my touch. As I withdrew my hand, my eyes landed on Azerath.

He lay motionless on the stone.

"He will not wake up, Serafina," my brother said with quiet satisfaction. "Not now. Not ever."

"Azerath is dead?" I blurted.

Every eye turned toward me.

Helga scoffed. "Look who the cat dragged in." She gestured toward Dread. "He used the Veilbreaker. Broke the dragon's mind. Serafina tried to save him, but the damage had already been done." She smirked. "And for the record... I felt that."

"You emptied my pockets," I hissed, "and stole all the gold I've spent years saving."

"Enough," Vaelric said. "I see you've finally awakened. Good. You and Florian have a wedding to prepare."

Another warning horn sounded through the palace.

"Unfortunately, brother, the wedding must wait," I replied. "A monster is loose within Aetheria."

General Sallow hurried into the prison before anyone could answer. "Your Majesty, we have a problem."

Vaelric turned to him.

"A blood-drinking beast is slaughtering everyone it finds. We attempted to collar it, but its neck was too large. We fired the ballistae, but it moves too quickly. Every person it kills makes it larger, stronger, and faster." His gaze shifted toward Azerath. "Perhaps we can use the dragon..." He stopped abruptly. "What happened?"

"He is dead," Vaelric replied without emotion. "No matter. I have another plan." His voice echoed through the prison. "Take them to the throne room."

"You cannot take them there," I objected. "They'll be slaughtered."

"Then we shall return to Arcanis, and I will decide their fate there." He looked toward Sallow. "I expect this beast captured before sunrise."

He seized Serafina by the arm. "Come along, my bride."

Suddenly, the entire Penitentiary trembled. A deep growl rolled through the chamber, and every head turned toward Azerath.

He was standing. A cruel smile spread across his face.

Dread frowned. "Impossible..."

The dragon drew a slow, ragged breath, and his golden eyes opened.

Dread blew sharply. A silver collar shot through the air toward Azerath's neck. The dragon moved faster than thought. The collar struck nothing.

"You won't collar me again," Azerath laughed before fixing his gaze upon Vaelric. "Release my wife."

"Never." Vaelric calmly raised one hand. "Subdue him."

Darkness erupted beneath his feet. Shadow tendrils slithered across the floor like living serpents before coiling around Azerath's wrists and ankles, tightening with crushing force.

The dragon grunted but refused to kneel. Golden light blazed within his eyes as his smile widened.

"I've had enough of cages... and shadows."

Bone cracked.

Black scales erupted through his skin as his body expanded violently. One enormous wing smashed through a row of stone pillars, snapping chains and sending dust cascading from the ceiling. Within seconds, the Penitentiary was no longer large enough to contain him.

Dread and Sallow drew their swords, instinctively shielding my brother.

Vaelric clenched his fist. An invisible force slammed into Azerath's chest, driving him backward. The dragon roared, claws carving deep furrows through the stone as he struggled against the Emperor's telekinesis.

Everyone watched the battle. Everyone except me.

Helga stood beside me, completely absorbed by the dragon. I slipped my hand into her pocket once more. This time, my fingers closed around smooth glass.

My glass case.

I withdrew my hand before she realized it and tightened my grip around the case hidden beneath my cloak.

"You will kneel," Vaelric commanded.

"I will never kneel!" Azerath roared, smoke curling from his nostrils.

My ring answered. Vaelric suddenly staggered. His hand flew to his chest as the color drained from his face. "What..."

Azerath needed nothing more.

With a deafening roar, he hurled himself upward. His horns smashed into the ceiling, sending stone exploding in every direction. A second impact shattered the remaining supports, and moonlight poured through the widening hole as the dragon burst into the night sky.

The Penitentiary shook violently beneath the impact. Chunks of stone crashed to the floor while dust swallowed the chamber.

"Blink! Now!" Serafina shouted.

A chorus of frantic squeaks echoed through the prison as tiny gray mice poured from every crack and shadow, weaving between soldiers' boots.

"What in the world...?" Florian whispered.

The creatures ignored everyone except the prisoners. They swarmed over Serafina first, then Helga, Ryven, Jehan, and General Kraven, climbing over their silver collars.

One collar fell. Then another. Within moments, every collar lay scattered across the stone floor.

"Kill those filthy rodents!" Vaelric roared.

The guards rushed forward.

Too late.

Helga hurled her collar into a soldier's face. Ryven snatched a fallen spear. General Kraven ripped a sword from a guard's grasp while Jehan shoved another backward.

The Penitentiary erupted into chaos.

Above us, Azerath roared once more. Another thunderous crash echoed through the prison as he hovered above us, showering the chamber with broken stone beneath a flood of moonlight.

Amid the confusion, I allowed myself the faintest smile.

At last...

My glass case was mine again.

Around me, my brother's guards and my rebel friends clashed in desperate combat while, somewhere beyond the shattered roof, a deafening roar rolled across the night.

I frowned. That wasn't Azerath.

Movement caught my eye.

Perched atop one of Aetheria's tallest towers, a monstrous, beast-like creature clung to the stone spire as though it weighed nothing. Its enormous crimson eyes stared unblinkingly into the Penitentiary.

My breath caught.

Vaelric followed my gaze. For the first time that night, I saw genuine fear cross my brother's face.

"Leave them. To the throne room!" he shouted. "Now!"

\----------

Moriath

The hunger did not fade. It only grew.

I landed atop a marble balcony overlooking one of Aetheria's grand avenues. Below me, people fled in blind panic. Guards shouted orders no one obeyed. Mothers clutched their children while servants abandoned trays, baskets, and anything else that slowed them.

Every heartbeat echoed inside my skull. Thousands of them.

Each one called to me. Each one promised relief.

I leapt. The distance between rooftop and street vanished in an instant.

My claws found the first guard before his sword cleared its scabbard. Bone cracked beneath my grip. My fangs tore into his throat. Warm blood flooded my mouth.

For one glorious heartbeat, the gnawing emptiness eased. Then it returned.

Worse.

I let the body fall and turned toward the next heartbeat.

A servant stumbled. A soldier lunged with a spear. The weapon shattered against my claws before I ripped out his throat.

Blood painted the street. Bodies accumulated behind me.

Still... I hungered.

"What... what are you?" a trembling woman whispered as she backed against a marble fountain.

I looked into the water.

The face staring back no longer belonged to the Elf King. Nor to the Spark Prefect.

Long pointed ears framed an ash-gray face threaded with black veins. Crimson eyes burned beneath tangled silver hair, while blood-soaked fangs protruded from lips that no longer remembered how to smile.

Something else looked back. Something wrong.
Something terrible. Something monstrous.

But I no longer cared.

Suddenly, a roar split the night. Every head turned upward, so did mine.

High above Aetheria, an enormous obsidian dragon burst through the shattered roof of the Penitentiary, sending stone cascading into the streets below. Moonlight gleamed across his scales as he climbed into the sky with powerful beats of his wings.

Then I heard it. His heartbeat. It drowned out every other sound.

Every pulse thundered through my body like a war drum. I could almost hear the blood surging through his veins.

Dragon blood, pure and ancient.

My mouth watered. The blood of mortals had become little more than water.

That...

That was a feast.

A slow smile spread across my face. "So," I whispered. "The dragon lives."

I licked the last traces of human blood from my lips as I watched him circle above the palace.

"Perhaps..." I bent my knees. "...you will finally satisfy this endless thirst."

The stone beneath my feet exploded as I launched across the rooftops. I landed atop one of Aetheria's highest towers and looked toward the shattered Penitentiary below.

Someone had freed him and I needed to know who.

Then I saw her and her bright red hair.

The Celestial.

A low chuckle escaped me. "So I did not imagine the Phoenix Song."

The bird had saved her after all.

My gaze drifted from the woman and to the dragon circling protectively above her. Understanding came instantly.

"I don't need to catch a dragon," I murmured.

"I only need to threaten what he loves." I smiled. "He'll come to me."

Without another thought, I dropped from the tower, descending toward the red-haired Celestial as the dragon continued to circle high above, unaware that he had already become my prey.