Leaving the Shadow Realm felt like surfacing from deep water.
One moment they were in darkness so complete it had weight, the next they were stumbling through a tear in the air and falling onto grass that was actually green, under a sky that was actually blue. Kaela lay there for a long moment, just breathing, feeling the sun on her face like something she'd never appreciated before.
Lyra was beside her, doing the same.
"I forgot," Lyra whispered. "I forgot what light felt like."
"Yeah." Kaela's voice was rough. "Me too."
They'd found the tear by accident—or maybe not accident. The mark on Kaela's forehead had started burning, pulling her toward something, and when they followed it, there it was. A crack between realms, just big enough to slip through.
Now they were somewhere else. Somewhere with mountains in the distance and air that smelled like pine and something else, something wild.
"Where are we?" Lyra asked, sitting up.
Kaela stood, looking around. "No idea. But it's not Earth. The sky's wrong."
It was. The blue was deeper, the clouds higher, and there were two suns—one small and bright, one larger and orange, both hanging in the sky at once.
"Dragon Realm," Lyra breathed. "The mark brought us to the Dragon Realm."
Kaela touched her forehead, feeling the warmth there. "Why?"
"I don't know. But I think we're supposed to find out."
---
They walked toward the mountains.
It took three days. The Dragon Realm was bigger than it looked, and the mountains kept getting farther away instead of closer. They slept under stars that moved in patterns Kaela didn't recognize, ate berries Lyra insisted were safe (they were, mostly), and followed the pull of the mark toward something neither of them could name.
On the third day, they found the city.
It rose from the mountainside like something grown rather than built—towers of stone that curved and flowed, bridges that arched between peaks, windows that caught the light of both suns and threw it back in rainbows. Dragons circled above it, dozens of them, their scales catching the light in colors that shifted as they moved.
"Drakareth," Lyra said. "The dragon capital. I've seen it in visions, but I never thought—" She stopped, staring. "It's beautiful."
Kaela stared too. She'd seen the Citadel, seen the capital of Earth Realm, seen buildings that had stood for centuries. Nothing prepared her for this.
"How do we get in?" she asked.
As if in answer, a dragon broke away from the circling pattern above and flew toward them. It landed fifty feet away, scales the color of storm clouds, eyes ancient and curious.
"You are the ones," it said. Its voice was inside their heads, like Serevyn's, like Valdris's. "The marked ones. We felt you coming."
"We need to speak to someone," Kaela said. "Someone who can tell us about the Veiled One. About the prophecy. About—"
"About everything." The dragon inclined its head. "Yes. Come. The elders are waiting."
It turned and walked toward the city, expecting them to follow.
Kaela looked at Lyra. Lyra looked at her.
"Well," Lyra said. "At least we don't have to climb."
---
The inside of Drakareth was even more overwhelming than the outside.
Streets wide enough for dragons to walk through. Buildings carved directly into the mountain, their entrances huge and welcoming. Dragons everywhere—flying overhead, walking beside them, watching from perches and ledges. And humans. Kaela saw humans for the first time since entering the Dragon Realm, walking among the dragons like it was normal, like it had always been this way.
"There are people here," she said, surprised.
"Of course." Their guide glanced back. "Dragons and humans lived together before the Shattering. Some chose to stay when the realms divided. We are fewer now, but we remain."
Kaela thought about that. About a world where dragons and humans weren't enemies or strangers, but neighbors. About what that must have been like.
They reached the elders' hall at the mountain's peak.
It was a cavern so vast that Kaela couldn't see the walls—just dragons, dozens of them, arranged in a circle around a central space. Their scales were every color imaginable, their eyes ancient and knowing, their presence overwhelming.
In the center of the circle, a dragon even larger than the rest. Its scales were gold, pure gold, and its eyes held the weight of millennia.
"Approach," it said.
Kaela and Lyra walked forward together, side by side. The mark on each of their foreheads pulsed with light.
"The marked ones," the golden dragon said. "Valdris's work. I wondered when you would come." It lowered its massive head, bringing its eyes level with theirs. "I am Aurik. I was there when the world broke. I have waited since for the ones who would mend it."
"You know about the prophecy?" Lyra asked.
"I know the prophecy. I know the Veiled One. I know what must be done." Aurik's eyes moved between them. "But knowing and doing are different things. Tell me what you have learned."
So they told them. Everything. The visions, the blade, the shadows, the passage, Valdris's mark. The dragons listened in silence, their ancient faces giving nothing away.
When they finished, Aurik was quiet for a long moment.
"You have done well," it said finally. "More than well. But the hardest part is yet to come."
"The Veiled One," Kaela said.
"Yes. He waits in the Shadow Realm, gathering strength, preparing for the moment when the boundaries fall completely." Aurik's voice was heavy. "He cannot be defeated by force alone. His power comes from the Core's dormancy—the longer the Core sleeps, the stronger he grows."
"Then we wake the Core," Lyra said.
"Easier said than done. The Core is buried deep in the Shadow Realm, surrounded by everything the Veiled One has built. To reach it, you must go through him. To wake it, you must—" Aurik paused. "There is a price."
Kaela's blood went cold. "What price?"
"The prophecy speaks of it. 'One must give herself completely to the Core, binding her soul to the world forever.' " Aurik's ancient eyes held theirs. "To wake the Core fully, a sacrifice is required. A willing soul, bound to its heart for all time."
Silence.
Kaela felt Lyra stiffen beside her. Felt her own heart hammering in her chest.
"That's not—" Lyra's voice cracked. "That can't be—"
"It is the truth. I am sorry." Aurik's voice was gentle, but it didn't soften the words. "The Core gave itself to create this world. To wake it fully, something must be given in return."
Kaela's hand found Lyra's in the darkness. Squeezed tight.
"We'll figure it out," she said. "There has to be another way."
"There is no other way." Aurik's eyes held hers. "But there is time. The choice is not yet upon you. First, you must reach the Core. First, you must face the Veiled One. What comes after—that is for another day."
Kaela wanted to argue. Wanted to scream that this wasn't fair, that they hadn't asked for this, that no one should have to make that choice. But Lyra's hand in hers held her steady.
"Thank you," Lyra said quietly. "For telling us the truth."
Aurik inclined its head. "Rest here tonight. Eat. Regain your strength. Tomorrow, we will discuss how to reach the Shadow Realm. Tonight—" It almost smiled. "Tonight, you are guests of Drakareth. Try to enjoy it."
The dragons began to disperse, leaving the two girls alone in the vast cavern.
Kaela looked at Lyra. Lyra looked at her.
"Well," Lyra said. "That's not what I wanted to hear."
"Me neither."
They stood together in the silence, holding hands, not letting go.
---
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