They brought the egg to me on the third night after my awakening.
It pulsed.
Black as a starless night. Warm to the touch. Ancient, like the bones of the world.
A dragon's egg.
"May he bond, as Valyria intended," whispered the matron midwife, laying it beside me in the crib.
She left.
And silence returned.
Then heat.
The flames in the nearby brazier bowed toward me, as if pulled by an invisible breath.
The egg shimmered.
Cracks appeared.
[Proximity Detected: Dragon Egg — Class: Blackfire Prime]
[Subject: Balerion]
[Synchronization in Progress... 99.9%... Complete.]
With a sound like shattering stone, the egg split.
From within, a creature of shadow and fire emerged.
Balerion.
Wings slick with membrane, eyes gleaming with gold. He did not scream or thrash. He looked at me.
And I looked back.
[Bond Initiation: 100%. Imprint Complete.]
[Soulthread Forged — Host + Dragon: Bound Until Death]
And then, agony.
Not external. Not flesh. But soul-deep.
My skin burned. My breath caught.
A shape seared itself into my flesh.
Black ink, alive and curling, spread across my chest, wrapping my left pectoral, shoulder, and neck.
A dragon tattoo, coiling with ancient force.
It moved when I breathed.
It pulsed when Balerion blinked.
[Mark of the Flameborn Alpha — Acquired]
[Fire Affinity Intensified]
[All Dragons Will Recognize You as Apex]
Balerion curled beside me, his body radiating heat. Steam drifted from his nostrils. He was no ordinary hatchling.
He was mine.
Not a pet. Not a beast.
A brother. A mirror. A soulbound avatar of power.
And I was his flame-born king.
The door creaked.
A man entered, shrouded in black. Sharp eyes. Pale skin. Robes like flowing shadow.
He knelt beside my crib.
"Lucien," he said simply. "Your butler. My life, my sword, and my eternity belong to you."
[Lucien the Butler Joined the Household]
[S-Rank Shadowblade / Strategist / Steward]
He saw the tattoo. The dragon.
And he smiled.
"It begins," he whispered.