BACK IN THE CAMP OF THE LIZARD ALPHA.
The mirror showed him nothing he wanted to see.
Alpha Kayden stood alone in his chamber, running a clawed finger along the cracked glass. His scales caught the bioluminescent glow seeping through the window—moss green streaked with gold. His eyes, vertical slits of amber, stared back at him. They were empty, angry, exhausted and tired.
Three hundred years of this face.
He closed his eyes and breathed deep. Then he shifted.
The bones cracked first and his spine realigned. His jaw shortened and scales receded into skin like water disappearing into sand. Fur sprouted where there had been none. When he opened his eyes again, a man stared back from the mirror.
He had dark hair, pale skin and a face that women had once called handsome.
He touched his cheek. It was human skin. Warm, delicate and soft.
For three minutes, he was whole.
Then the scales crept back. The claws regrew. The man disappeared, and the monster returned.
