“And humanity will accept this?” Caleb’s voice is skeptical.
“Humanity will beg for it.” Vanya’s voice is cold. Clinical. “Create enough of a mess—economic collapse, infrastructure failures, threats both real and manufactured—and people will accept any authority that promises stability. Even dragon supremacists claiming divine right to rule.”
She speaks with the certainty of someone who’s seen this playbook before.
“You know their strategy,” Viktor observes.
“I’ve seen similar strategies run by the Ivory League.” Vanya’s pale eyes are unreadable. “The Syndicate isn’t innovative. They’re thorough. They take old patterns of conquest and apply them with modern technology and dragon lifespan.”
“How long?” I ask. “How long until they move?”
Vex shifts uncomfortably. The blocks are threatening to end this thread.
“Timeline,” Viktor prompts carefully. “Not the date. Just… scale. Months? Years?”
“Months,” Vex rasps. “The infrastructure is ready. Assets positioned. We only needed—”
“Me,” I finish. “You needed a figurehead. Someone with legitimacy. Historical weight.”
“Yes.” Vex’s eyes burn through the fog. “With you leading, resistance would crumble. Dragon clans would unite. Humanity would—”
He stops. Convulses.
Ember curses. “You’re pushing too hard. The conditioning will do permanent damage if you keep trying to force through.”
“Just a little more,” Viktor says. Looks at Vex. “The Dragon King. Why does his participation matter so much?”
Creed’s breathing is labored. “Because the clans are splintered. Weak. They follow Craven because he holds Seattle. Because his bloodline is old. But it’s not—”
“Not what?” I prompt.
“Not royal.” The word comes out strangled. “You are the last true king. The bloodline that united the clans. With you restored, Craven’s authority becomes… symbolic. Outdated.”
Caleb’s expression doesn’t change, but I see the tension in his shoulders.
“You’re wrong,” I say. Voice flat. Final. “Caleb’s authority is earned. Built on generations of leadership and choices that protected his people. My bloodline is history. His is present. And in this world, present matters more than past.”
Silence falls.
Vex stares at me like I’ve spoken heresy.
“You cannot mean that,” he whispers. “You are the Dragon King. You—”
“Iwasthe Dragon King.” I lean forward. “Four hundred years ago. When the world was different. When might determined right and power meant authority. That age is dead. I will not resurrect it.”
“But you must.” Vex’s voice cracks. Desperate now. “The Syndicate needs you. The plan requires—”
“Then the plan fails.” I settle back. “I am not the king you remember. I am not the leader you need. And I will not help you conquer the world.”
“You’re lying.” Vex’s voice rises. Panic bleeding through. “You must be. Everything we’ve prepared. Everything we’ve built. It requires the Dragon King. It requiresyouto—”
The air around him crackles. He screams as the forces controlling his speech clamp down.
Vanya’s at his side immediately. “He’s fighting it. Breaking through the conditioning from the inside.”
“Should we stop him?” Ember asks.
“No.” Kieran’s voice is quiet. “Sometimes the only way out is through.”
