POV: KAEL'S
Elara was missing.
I'd sent guards to fetch her at dawn for the Dragon's Heart test, and they'd found her room empty. Bed unslept in. Window locked from inside. No trace of where she'd gone.
She'd vanished like smoke.
"Search everywhere," I ordered Theron. "Every room, every corridor, every—"
"Your Majesty." A young dragon rider burst into the throne room, breathless. "The sanctuary. You need to see this. Now."
My heart stopped. The dragon sanctuary was forbidden to humans. The injured dragons there were too dangerous, too unpredictable. If Elara had gone there...
I shifted into dragon form and flew, not waiting for explanations.
The sanctuary sat at the citadel's edge—a massive cave where wounded dragons came to heal. Usually, it echoed with roars of pain and fury. Dragons didn't handle injury well. They lashed out, burned anyone who got close.
But today, the sanctuary was silent.
Too silent.
I landed and shifted back to human form, my heart pounding. If she was dead—if one of the dragons had killed her—
I rounded the corner and froze.
Elara sat beside Shadowfang, the most violent dragon in the sanctuary. He'd been injured three weeks ago fighting off human hunters. Dragonbane poisoning. He'd nearly died, and even now, infection burned through his blood. He'd attacked every healer who tried to help. Burned two fae warriors who got too close.
We'd been planning to put him down tomorrow. A mercy killing.
But now Elara sat right next to him, her small hand pressed against his massive scaled chest. And Shadowfang—the dragon who'd tried to kill anyone who came near—was completely calm.
His eyes were closed. His breathing steady. And where Elara's hand touched him, golden light glowed.
Healing light.
"Impossible," I breathed.
Her head snapped up. Tears streaked her face. "Kael. I—I didn't mean to come here. I just... I woke up outside the sanctuary and I don't remember how I got here and then I heard him in pain and I couldn't just leave him and—"
"Don't move." I walked forward slowly. "Don't take your hand away."
"Why? What's happening?"
"You're healing him." I knelt beside her. "The dragonbane poisoning that's been killing him for weeks—you're burning it out of his system."
She looked down at her glowing hand, shocked. "I don't know how. I just felt his pain and wanted it to stop and then this happened."
"Because you're a dragon tamer." I watched the golden light pulse. "Real ones don't just control dragons. They heal them. Bond with them. Understand them in ways no one else can."
Shadowfang's eyes opened. He looked at Elara, then at me. And something passed between us—dragon to dragon. A message without words.
*She is ours,* Shadowfang rumbled in my mind. *Kin. Pack. Tamer.*
My dragon responded instantly. *Mine.*
*Ours,* Shadowfang corrected. *The tamer belongs to all dragons. Not just you, King.*
Possessiveness roared through me. She was mine. Not anyone else's. Not—
I pushed the feeling down. This wasn't about claiming. This was about understanding what Elara really was.
"How did you get here?" I asked her. "You said you woke up outside the sanctuary?"
"Yes. I don't remember leaving my room. The last thing I remember was..." She frowned. "Walking back to my tower. Then nothing. Then I was here."
"Someone moved you." Anger burned cold in my chest. "Someone drugged you or spelled you and brought you here. But why?"
"To kill me?" She said it quietly. "The wounded dragons are dangerous. Everyone knows that. If I died here, it would look like an accident."
Smart. Too smart. Whoever did this knew the sanctuary was deadly to humans.
"But Shadowfang didn't kill you," I said.
"He tried." She smiled slightly. "He roared at me. Blew fire. I should have run, but I felt his pain. It was so strong, Kael. Like knives cutting from inside. And I just... reached out."
"And he let you." I looked at Shadowfang. "You let a human touch you."
*She is not human,* Shadowfang said in my mind. *She smells of ancient magic. Of the first bonds. Of when dragons and tamers were one people.*
"What does he mean, 'one people'?" Elara asked. "Can you understand him?"
"Yes. Dragons speak mind to mind." I paused. "Can't you hear him?"
"I..." She tilted her head. "I feel things. Emotions. Pain and anger and now... peace. But no words."
"Your power is still waking up." I stood, pulling her up with me. Her hand left Shadowfang's chest and the golden light faded. "But it's definitely there. You're definitely a tamer."
Hope flickered across her face. "Does that mean I'll survive the Dragon's Heart test?"
"Maybe." I couldn't lie to her. "Tamers have a better chance than normal humans. But the Heart is still dangerous. It doesn't just test magic—it tests truth. And if there are lies buried inside you, lies you don't even know about, it will burn them out."
"What if the truth kills me?"
"Then you die honest." I touched her cheek. "Better than living as a lie."
She leaned into my touch for just a moment. Then pulled back. "I need to tell you something. Last night, before I blacked out, I heard—"
"Your Majesty!" Lyra burst into the sanctuary, her face pale. "We have a problem. A big one."
"What now?"
"Cassian escaped from the dungeons. And he's not alone." She held up a burnt piece of paper. "We found this in his cell. It's a message. Written in old magic."
I grabbed the paper. The words were burned into it, like someone had used fire instead of ink.
*The fake will die in the Heart.*
*The real will arrive with dawn.*
*The curse will complete.*
*The kingdom will fall.*
*Signed,*
*The one who started it all.*
My blood turned to ice. "This handwriting. I know this handwriting."
"Who?" Elara asked.
I couldn't speak. Couldn't breathe. Because I'd seen this handwriting before—five hundred years ago.
In a love letter from the human princess who'd cursed my kingdom.
"She's dead," I whispered. "I watched her die. I killed her myself after she betrayed us."
"Then who wrote this?" Lyra demanded.
"I don't know. But whoever it is wants Elara dead and wants the real princess to arrive." I looked at Elara. "We need to cancel the Heart test. It's too dangerous now. Someone's planning—"
"No." Elara's voice was firm. "If I don't take the test, you'll never trust me. Your people will never accept me. And when Seraphine arrives claiming to be your fated mate, I'll have no way to prove I'm not your enemy."
"You could die."
"I could die anyway." She met my eyes. "At least this way, I die proving I'm not a liar. Not about the things that matter."
Brave. Foolish. Both.
My dragon stirred with approval. With possessiveness. With something that felt dangerously close to—
No. Not love. I wouldn't let myself feel that. Not for someone who might still betray me.
But respect? Yes. I could give her that.
"Fine." I turned to Lyra. "Gather the court. We do this now. Before whoever's plotting has time to make another move."
"But the security protocols—"
"Now, Lyra. That's an order."
She left quickly. Elara and I stood alone in the sanctuary with Shadowfang watching us with ancient, knowing eyes.
"Thank you," Elara said quietly. "For believing in me. Or at least... for giving me a chance to prove myself."
"Don't thank me yet." I started toward the exit. "You might hate me after this is over."
"Why?"
I looked back at her. At this small, scared girl with dragon magic in her blood and lies in her past and courage that rivaled my best warriors.
"Because the Dragon's Heart doesn't just reveal your truth," I said. "It reveals everyone's truth. Every person watching. Every secret they're hiding. Every lie they've told."
Understanding dawned in her eyes. "You mean—"
"I mean when you step into that Heart, everyone's secrets will be exposed. Including mine." I smiled bitterly. "And some truths are better left buried."
"What are you hiding?"
"You'll find out soon enough." I walked away. "Get ready, Princess. In one hour, the entire court will know everything about you. About me. About all of us."
"Kael, wait—"
But I was already gone.
Because she was right to be scared. The Dragon's Heart would expose everything. And some of my truths...
Some of my truths would destroy what little trust we'd built.
---
One hour later, the court assembled in the Heart Chamber.
It was a massive room carved from crystal and obsidian. In the center burned the Dragon's Heart—a sphere of living fire that pulsed like a beating heart. The source of all dragon magic. The keeper of all truth.
Elara stood at the chamber's edge, pale but determined. Her marked hand glowed softly.
I stood on my throne. Theron beside me. Lyra with the other witches. Dragons perched on every available surface. Fae warriors lined the walls.
Everyone who mattered. Everyone who'd witness.
"Princess Elara Ashford," I announced. "You claim to carry dragon tamer blood. You claim your lies were told under duress. You claim your intentions toward this kingdom are true."
"I do," she said clearly.
"Then prove it." I gestured to the Heart. "Step into the fire. Let it judge you. If you're honest, you'll survive. If you're lying..."
"I'll burn." She finished. "I understand."
She walked forward. Each step looked like it took all her courage.
She reached the Heart's edge. Heat shimmered the air around it. The fire called to her, hungry and bright.
"Wait." Theron stepped forward. "Before she enters, we should know—the Heart will reveal everyone's truths. Are we prepared for that?"
Murmurs rippled through the court. Nervous glances. Shifting feet.
"Too late for second thoughts," I said coldly. "If anyone's hiding treasonous secrets, now's the time to confess."
Silence.
"Then let's begin." I nodded to Elara. "Step into the Heart."
She took a deep breath. Closed her eyes. And stepped into the flames.
The fire swallowed her whole.
For three seconds, nothing happened. The court held its breath.
Then Elara screamed.
Not in pain—in power. Golden light exploded from her body, mixing with the Heart's red flames. The entire chamber shook.
And suddenly, I could see her truth.
See her memories. Her pain. Her lies and her honesty and everything she'd ever been.
I saw her as a child, confused and lonely. Saw Isolde telling her she was worthless, just a placeholder. Saw her real mother dying to protect dragon eggs. Saw her touching dragon scales as a baby and the magic recognizing her.
Saw her falling in love with me, even though she knew she shouldn't.
The court gasped. They saw it too. All of it.
But then the Heart turned its gaze outward. And other truths started spilling into the light.
I saw Lyra's secret—she'd been in love with a human once, and he'd died in the curse's first wave.
Saw Theron's truth—he'd known Elara was innocent from the start but tested her anyway.
Saw dragons and fae and witches, all their hidden pains and fears and hopes.
And then the Heart turned to me.
No. Please, no.
But truth couldn't be stopped.
The court saw my truth. The one I'd buried for five hundred years.
They saw the human princess who'd cursed us—saw me loving her, trusting her, believing her lies.
But they also saw something else. Something I'd hidden even from myself.
They saw that the curse wasn't just her spell. It was my rage. My heartbreak. My fury at being betrayed had fed the curse, made it grow, made it worse.
I hadn't just been a victim. I'd been part of the problem.
And the curse would never break until I forgave myself.
Until I let go of the past.
The visions ended. Elara collapsed, gasping. But alive. The fire hadn't burned her—it had accepted her.
She was a true dragon tamer.
The court erupted in chaos. Shouting, crying, accusations flying.
But I couldn't move. Could only stare at Elara as she struggled to her feet.
She'd survived. Proven herself. But what we'd all just seen...
What I'd just revealed...
"Your Majesty." A guard burst into the chamber.
"Urgent news. A visitor has arrived at the gates. She says she's the real Princess Seraphine of Veridia."
No. Not now. Not when everything was already falling apart.
"And there's more," the guard continued, his face white with fear. "She's not alone. She brought an army."