THE AWAKENING
Chaos ruled the kingdom.
People sprinted through the streets, screams cracking through the air as living shadows chased at their heels. One man stumbled, swallowed by a curling black mist that wrapped around him like hungry smoke. The world seemed to hold its breath.
Even the flames dimmed.
Inside the castle, Anna ran. Her heartbeat drowned out everything—footsteps, echoes, even her own breath. Moonlight scattered across the gallery floor as she dashed toward the balcony.
Then she heard it.
A sound too deep to be thunder.
Too alive to be wind.
Drawn by instinct, she stepped onto the open balcony. The night air struck her like cold steel, sharp and carrying the scent of ash. She clutched the rail as her hair whipped around her face.
Smoke crawled over the mountains—thick, restless, alive. The sky above it shimmered gold-gray, and something enormous moved within the dark.
A dragon.
Shadow-coiled, horned in bone-white, its massive form glowed faintly under the moon. Every breath it released sent tremors rolling across the land. Its molten-gold eyes locked onto the castle.
Anna froze. Her breath hitched. Fear and awe tangled inside her.
Then she saw him.
Far below, in the heart of ruin, a lone figure stood untouched. Shadows curled at his feet—drawn to him, yet trembling.
SHOU FENG.
Slowly, he lifted his head.
Their eyes met.
And the world went silent.
No screams.
No fire.
No wind.
Only the weight of his gaze.
Anna's heart stumbled. She didn't know whether to call out, breathe, or pray.
The dragon roared—earth-shaking, sky-breaking.
Shou Feng didn't move.
His eyes darkened.
Deepened.
Awakened.
And the shadows whispered, as if returning to their rightful master:
He had Awakened