The storm had begun.
Outside the mountain, thunder rolled across the dark sky like distant drums of war. Lightning flashed across the jagged peaks, briefly illuminating the ancient entrance hidden among the rocks.
Inside the chamber, the air was still thick with smoke and heat from the dragon's fire.
Aria stood beside the dragon, her hand resting lightly on its enormous scales.
Even now she could feel the strange connection between them.
It wasn't just trust.
It was something deeper.
Something ancient.
A bond that had existed for centuries.The dragon slowly turned its massive head toward the tunnel that led out of the mountain.
"I sense movement," its deep voice echoed inside Aria's mind.
Aria frowned.
"Soldiers?" she asked quietly.
"Fear," the dragon replied.
"They are fleeing."
Rowan stretched his arms as he slowly stood up from the ground.
"Good," he said.
"Because I am very done with soldiers today."
Aria glanced back at him."You almost died."
Rowan shrugged.
"Yes, but technically I didn't."
He rubbed the back of his neck where the dagger had been.
"Which means today is still a good day."
Aria tried not to smile.
For a moment, it almost felt normal.
But then the dragon suddenly lifted its head sharply.
Its eyes narrowed.
"No," it growled.
"Something remains."Aria felt a cold chill run down her spine.
She slowly turned toward the far side of the chamber.
The place where Varic had fallen.
Smoke still drifted through the air.
The stone floor was cracked and blackened from the dragon's flames.
For several seconds, nothing moved.
Then—
a faint sound.
Stone scraping against stone.
Rowan froze.
"Oh come on," he whispered.A hand suddenly slammed against the ground.
Varic pushed himself up from the floor.
Aria's eyes widened.
He was alive.
Barely.
His armor was burned and broken. His face was covered in soot and blood.
But the hatred in his eyes was stronger than ever.
"You… think you've won?" he rasped.
Rowan stared at him in disbelief.
"You survived that?"
Varic laughed weakly."Power… is not so easily destroyed."
He slowly stood up.
Something about him felt… wrong.
The air around him seemed colder.
Darker.
The dragon's wings spread slightly.
"I feel corruption," it growled.
Aria stepped back.
"What do you mean?"
Varic wiped the blood from his mouth.
Then he smiled.
And that smile sent fear through the entire chamber."You were right about one thing," he said to Aria.
"This world needs power."
He slowly opened his hand.
Inside his palm was a small black stone.
The surface of the stone pulsed like a living heart.
Dark energy leaked from it like smoke.
Aria's eyes widened in shock.
"The Shadow Core…"
Varic laughed again.
"Ah… so you've heard of it."
Rowan stepped closer to Aria."Should I be worried?" he whispered.
"Yes," Aria said immediately.
The dragon's voice thundered inside her mind.
"That relic belongs to the ancient enemy."
Varic lifted the stone slightly.
"You see, while you were busy bonding with your giant pet…"
His eyes gleamed with madness.
"I found something even better."
The black stone suddenly pulsed brighter.
Dark energy spread through Varic's body like veins of shadow.His wounds began to close.
His burned armor slowly reformed as if the shadows themselves were repairing it.
Rowan stared in horror.
"Oh that is absolutely cheating."
Varic's voice deepened.
More powerful.
More dangerous.
"This war is bigger than your little dragon."
He pointed toward Aria.
"And when I take that creature's power…"
"Nothing will stop me."
The dragon let out a furious roar.The entire chamber shook violently.
"Shadow power must not awaken."
Varic's smile widened.
"Too late."
The black stone exploded with dark energy.
A wave of shadow blasted across the chamber.
Aria was thrown backward against the wall.
Rowan crashed into a pile of broken stone.
The dragon dug its claws into the ground to stay upright.
When the smoke cleared—
Varic was no longer standing where he had been.Instead—
something else stood there.
His body had grown taller.
Dark armor formed completely around him.
Shadow flames burned from his shoulders.
And his eyes glowed with cold purple light.
Rowan slowly lifted his head.
"Okay…"
He coughed.
"I officially hate this guy."
Varic raised his hand.
Shadow energy gathered around it like a storm."Dragon Slayer," he whispered.
Then he fired the attack.
A massive spear of darkness shot across the chamber.
The dragon barely managed to dodge.
The spear smashed into the wall behind it, exploding stone everywhere.
The dragon roared in anger.
"This power is forbidden!"
Varic laughed.
"Exactly."
He leaped into the air.
Dark energy surrounded him like wings.
Aria forced herself to stand.Her body still burned from the blast.
But the dragon's voice filled her mind again.
"Guardian…"
"We must fight together."
Aria looked at the dragon.
She nodded.
"I know."
She grabbed her sword from the ground.
The golden light from her pendant spread across the blade.
Dragon fire reflected in the metal.
Across the chamber, Varic slowly descended from the air.Darkness swirled around him like a living storm.
"You cannot stop what has begun," he said coldly.
Aria raised her sword.
"Watch me."
The dragon spread its wings.
Fire began building in its chest again.
Rowan staggered to his feet.
He looked between the dragon, Aria, and the shadow-powered Varic.
Then he sighed deeply.
"Well," he said.
"This is definitely the worst day of my life."He picked up a fallen spear from the ground.
"But I guess we're doing this."
Lightning flashed outside the mountain.
Thunder shook the sky.
Inside the chamber—
dragon fire and shadow power prepared to collide.
The true battle had finally begun.