RISE OF THE FORSAKEN DRAGON HEIR

VERATHIA'S LAST HOPE

David had expected many things after leaving Sterling Hall, but never to see the ruler of Varethia kneeling at his feet.

Seraphina Vael remained before him while armed Verathian soldiers surrounded the road, their heads lowered. Even in that position, her beauty was impossible to ignore. Long white hair fell over her shoulders, while her pale skin and bright white eyes reflected her powerful Astral Essence.

Yet Seraphina looked exhausted. Shadows rested beneath her eyes, and the pale light surrounding her body flickered. Whatever had happened in Varethia had shaken the woman many nations called the Astral Goddess.

David frowned. “Empress Vael, what are you doing? Get up.”

Seraphina raised her face but remained on her knees. “I cannot get up until you hear me, Almighty Primordial Dragon Lord. I crossed into Asterion because you are the only person I can ask for help at this point in time.”

“You brought soldiers, helicopters and armored vehicles just to kneel before me?” David glanced at the armed men behind her. “What happened?”

“Varethia is dying.”

A tall man standing behind Seraphina watched David closely. His black combat uniform carried the golden insignia of Varethia's supreme military command. General Kael Varen had lowered his head when Seraphina bowed, but discomfort remained clear on his face.

Seraphina stood. “Six hundred thousand Black Templars invaded us. They attacked several regions at once. Four leaders of the Astral Houses are dead. The fifth barely survived.”

David's eyes narrowed. “And your army?”

“We lost close to one million soldiers.”

“One million? Against six hundred thousand Black Templars?”

“They knew how to fight us,” she explained. “Their weapons interfere with Astral Essence. They studied our defenses before invading.”

David studied her. “And you escaped.”

Kael immediately stepped forward. “Her Majesty did not abandon Varethia. Our soldiers forced an evacuation. Nearly a million men and women fought to keep her alive because her death would mean more than losing a ruler.”

Seraphina raised one hand to stop him. “My life is connected to the Astral Heart of Varethia. If I die without a successor capable of taking the Crown Core, our realm's Astral Essence will weaken.”

“So all those people died keeping you alive.”

Pain crossed her face. “Yes.”

“Then why come looking for me?”

“Because I can still raise an army,” Seraphina answered. “If you return with me, I can place two million soldiers under your command.”

David stared at her. “You just lost almost one million. Where will you find another two million?”

Kael's face changed. “Your Majesty, don't.”

Seraphina ignored him. “The dead.”

David's expression hardened. “You intend to summon them?”

“I can reconstruct fallen Varethian warriors through Astral Essence for a limited period. They will remember their training and obey commands. With them, our remaining forces and your Primordial Dragon power, we can push the Black Templars back.”

Kael stepped closer. “It could consume almost half your remaining Essence.”

Seraphina turned sharply. “What would you have me preserve my Essence for, General? A throne in a dead country?”

Kael lowered his head. “That is not what I meant, Your Majesty.”

David shook his head. “You have met the wrong person. I cannot help you save Varethia.”

Seraphina froze. “What?”

“I cannot help you.”

“Cities have fallen. Families are trapped in occupied territory. The Templars are killing anyone connected to the Astral Houses.”

“You have said that.”

“Then how can you refuse? Millions of lives are involved.”

David remained firm. “Then you should return to them quickly.”

Disbelief crossed Seraphina's face. She suddenly dropped down and grabbed David's leg.

Several soldiers looked up in shock.

Kael's face tightened. “Your Majesty...”

Seraphina ignored him. Tears gathered in her white eyes. “Please. The Primordius Dragon is different from the powers the Black Templars have learned to suppress. Your Dragon authority can interfere with the energy they use against us.”

David looked down. “Let go of me.”

“With you, we have a chance. I will give you soldiers and command. I will sacrifice half my Essence if necessary. Without you, Varethia may not survive.”

David finally looked directly into her eyes.

Seraphina's Astral sight reacted before she could stop it. Her white pupils brightened as images entered her mind.

A Varethian woman crying alone. A younger David beside her. Officials taking away the woman's insignia. A document declaring her a traitor.

Then a bedroom.

A motionless woman.

A frightened child outside the door.

Seraphina released David and stumbled backward. “No. No, that cannot be...”

David's face hardened. “Now you remember.”

General Kael looked between them. “Your Majesty, what did you see?”

“His mother.”

David stepped toward her. “My mother was Varethian. My father was already dead when your government accused her of treason. You said she was working with the Black Templars.”

Seraphina shook her head. “David, the judgment was an oversight. A terrible mistake.”

His anger surfaced. “How dare you call it an oversight when you knew she was innocent?”

Seraphina went still.

“You knew she wasn't working with the Black Templars. She begged Varethia to listen, and you allowed them to banish her.”

“I never wanted what happened to her,” Seraphina whispered.

“I was young, but I remember.” David's hands tightened. “She brought me back to my grandfather. I watched her stop sleeping. I heard her crying when she thought nobody could hear her.”

Seraphina's tears fell. “David, please.”

“One morning she didn't come downstairs. They found her dead in her room inside the Myles estate. She killed herself.”

Seraphina covered her mouth.

David stared at her. “Your people destroyed my mother without putting a weapon through her body. Now the same enemy she was falsely accused of helping has invaded Varethia, and you want her son to save you?”

Kael suddenly stepped forward. White-gold Astral Essence exploded around him. “Enough.”

Seraphina spun toward him. “Kael, stand down.”

He ignored her. “I watched nearly a million soldiers die protecting Her Majesty. Millions more could die while you stand here discussing something that happened years ago.”

David turned toward him. “Choose your next words carefully.”

Kael's hand moved toward his weapon. “How dare you refuse the Astral Empress?”

“General!” Seraphina shouted. “Do not!”

Kael drew his pistol. Astral Essence rushed across the weapon until the metal glowed white.

Seraphina lunged toward him. “KAEL, STOP!”

The gun exploded several times.

Seraphina fell sideways as the Astral-charged rounds tore toward David. Something deep inside his Dragon Core reacted to the attack.

Kael's anger disappeared when David slowly raised his head.

His eyes were no longer dark.

They were gold.

Deep within him, the Primordial Dragon began to stir.