The ground trembled before the shadow even showed.
A split in the sky burst into fire and lightning as the hybrid descended, arcs crackling, flame rolling like waves. Stone shattered where it landed, heat and static crawling over every surface.
The crowd froze. Some staggered back as the aura pressed down on them, heavy and suffocating.
Arden's eyes narrowed. "Dual traits… and at the Vein Crown."
The beast stepped forward, its body warped with scales of ember and veins of light that sparked across its arms. Its wings stretched half-formed, flame licking along one and lightning along the other. And beneath all that distortion, its face was still clear enough.
Gasps rippled through the watching elders. One of them whispered, voice breaking, "That's… Darius. He was exiled years ago."
The hybrid's eyes burned, not just with madness but with something deeper. Rage. Grief. Revenge.
