The journey to the dragon's lair was a grand procession. My father, Duke Kaelen Wight, rode at the head on a magnificent white destrier, his gleaming silver armor a beacon of authority. My mother and I followed in an ornate carriage the size of a small house on wheels, its gilded trimmings and sapphire-inlaid panels a breathtaking display of ducal wealth. Flanking us was an entourage of two dozen of my father's elite Dragon Knights, their lacquered blue armor and stoic expressions a silent testament to the gravity of this event.
Eventually, my father joined us in the carriage, his powerful frame making the plush, velvet-lined interior seem smaller. He looked weary, the lines of command around his eyes etched deeper than usual.
"You look tired, my love," my mother said softly, her hand finding his armored gauntlet.
He sighed, the sound heavy with the weight of his responsibilities. "We just returned from a dungeon break near the Frostfang Mountains. A nasty one. It was maturing too quickly, on the verge of the horde phase. We had no choice but to collapse it. A waste of a potentially perfect core." He ran a hand through his silver hair, his gaze falling on me. "Our contract with the Azure Dragons is what allows us to handle these threats. It's a heavy burden, son," he said, his stormy grey eyes meeting mine. "One you will one day share."
"I understand, Father," I replied, my three-year-old voice clear and steady.
The effect was instantaneous. The gentle rocking of the carriage seemed to cease. The soft clinking of the tea set my mother was preparing fell silent. There was only the sound of my small, articulate voice hanging in the air like a struck bell.
My father, the man who faced down dungeon hordes and negotiated with ancient dragons, stared at me, his jaw slack. My mother's hand, holding a delicate porcelain teapot, froze in mid-air.
Then, slowly, a grin of pure, unadulterated pride spread across my father's face, cracking his stern facade like sunlight breaking through storm clouds. He let out a short, booming laugh and clapped me firmly on the shoulder. It was a warrior's gesture, clumsy with emotion, conveying a torrent of pride that words could not capture.
My mother, on the other hand, let out a soft gasp. Tears welled in her beautiful sapphire eyes, and in a rustle of silk, she swept me from the seat and into a fierce, encompassing hug. She buried her face in my silver hair, her familiar scent of lavender and warmth surrounding me. "Oh, my clever boy! My brilliant lion cub!" she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. She pulled back, cupping my face in her hands. "You're growing up so fast. My little baby is already a little man."
The raw love in her eyes was a force of nature, more powerful than any magic I had learned about. A warmth spread through my chest that had nothing to do with mana.
My father, watching us, cleared his throat to regain his composure. "Since you're clearly more mature than I expected, let me tell you about our family's greatest treasure." His voice took on the weight of ceremony. "For over a thousand years, the Wight family has held a sacred contract with the Azure Dragon lineage. Not just any dragons, son, but the royal bloodline itself."
He leaned forward, his eyes intense. "Dragons are classified into three categories. First, the elemental dragons fire, water, earth, air. They form the backbone of any dragon-knight force. Second, the mineral dragons. They generate wealth precious gems and metal veins appear around their nests."
"And the third?" I asked, playing my part.
"The Dragon Kings," he said with reverence. "Royals who master multiple elements and produce the rarest magical materials. What makes this truly special is that Dragon Kings can only pass their royal abilities to one offspring per generation. Only one child inherits the full power and status of a Dragon King."
My mother set down her teapot with trembling hands. "Which makes our contract incredibly rare, darling. We're not just bonding with any dragon we're bonding with the future ruler of an entire dragon kingdom."
"Cygnus, the Azure Tyrant, is like a brother to me," my father continued, his voice softening slightly. "Which makes him your uncle. I want you to treat the little one like a younger brother. Understood?"
Looking from my beaming father to my teary-eyed mother, I nodded solemnly. "Understood, Father."
Our journey ended at a massive mountain range that clawed at the sky like the fingers of a buried titan. As we drew closer, the very air grew heavy, thick with a pressure that was ancient and immense the palpable aura of a Dragon King's domain. We disembarked before a gate carved into the mountainside, hundreds of meters tall, an entrance fit for a king.
Inside, the cavern was a world unto itself. The ambient mana was so thick it was visible, shimmering like heat haze. Mountains of gold coins caught the light and threw it back in blinding cascades. Precious gems the size of my head were scattered about like common pebbles. Ancient artifacts hummed with barely contained power.
And there, resting upon a mountain of gold that would make nations weep, was a dragon.
Cygnus, the Azure Tyrant. He was immense, easily a hundred meters from snout to tail. His scales were not merely blue, they were a living tapestry of sapphire, cobalt, and cerulean, each one shimmering as if a star were trapped within. A faint crackle of lightning danced between the horns on his head. This was not a beast. This was a king. A force of nature given form and thought. A slightly smaller, seventy-meter dragon with scales of purest liquid platinum his mate rested nearby.
The great dragon's eyelids, each the size of a shield, slid open. His voice was not just a sound but a physical force, a deep, guttural rumble that vibrated through my bones. "Kaelen, you have come." His gaze, like twin pools of molten sapphire, shifted to me. It was not hostile, but it was heavy, filled with the weight of millennia. It felt as if he were peering directly into my soul, weighing my past life and my present existence. "This must be the little Lion Cub. Come, child."
My past life's love for dragons felt like a childish fantasy in the face of this magnificent, terrifying reality. My heart hammered against my ribs. My father placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder, but it did little to quell the primal awe that gripped me.
His mate lifted a majestic wing to reveal a single, shining blue egg. It rested on a plush red velvet pillow with golden borders, pulsing with a soft, internal light. It was alive. It was waiting.
The walk towards it was the longest of my two lives. The eyes of my parents, the stoic Dragon Knights, and two ancient dragons were all on me. The weight of a thousand years of tradition settled on my three-year-old shoulders.
I finally stood before it. The egg was taller than me, a perfect ovoid of metallic blue. I could feel a warmth radiating from it, a hum of nascent, limitless power.
"Just touch it, son," my father's voice was a distant echo. "I'd recommend your left hand. Don't be like your old man I ran toward Cygnus's egg and hugged it." He pulled down his collar, revealing an intricate draconic pattern that wrapped around his torso. "Trust me, if the mark is visible, people will pick fewer fights."
"And whatever you do, don't touch it with your forehead you have such a cute face," my mother chimed in, her maternal concern absolute.
I reached out my trembling hand. The moment my skin made contact with the smooth, warm shell, the universe seemed to hold its breath.
It started not as a flash, but as a whisper. A gentle pulse of energy flowed from the egg into my fingertips, not forceful, but questioning. An invitation. Through the shell, I felt a consciousness stir not of words, but of pure feeling. Curiosity. Eagerness. A profound sense of recognition, as if it had been waiting for me for an eternity.
In my mind's eye, I saw it: a tiny, perfect dragon embryo bathed in golden light, turning its head to look directly at my soul. And in that moment, it accepted me.
Then the whisper became a roar.
Magic, raw and untamed, flooded into me. It surged up my arm like a river of lightning. My three-year-old body was a tiny cup trying to contain an ocean. It didn't hurt, but it was overwhelming. Every cell screamed as it was forcibly awakened, rewritten. Mana pathways flared to life like superhighways of light. I felt my bones strengthen, my muscles weave with strands of pure energy. It was a baptism by celestial fire.
The magic brought knowledge. Instincts. Ancient memories that were not my own. I felt the soaring freedom of the open sky, the savage fury of a raging thunderstorm, the pride of a lineage stretching back to the dawn of the world. This was a soul-bond. Our very essences were being woven together.
And then the light erupted.
I was at the heart of a supernova. Azure and silver light exploded from the egg, a blinding, silent detonation of pure power that lit up the cavern like a new star.
In the center of that cosmic storm, a name settled into the core of my being like a warm ember finding its place in my heart.
Kaelus.
When the light receded, I was on my knees, breathless. I looked down at my left hand. An intricate, bracelet-like pattern of glowing azure and silver now wrapped around my wrist, pulsing with my heartbeat. It felt as natural as my own skin.
My father was beside me in an instant, his face a mask of relief and overwhelming pride. My mother was already scooping me up, her hug a mixture of fierce joy and trembling relief. The Dragon Knights were on one knee, their heads bowed.
"He did it," my father breathed. "The contract is stronger than I have ever seen it."
The egg suddenly shrank, compressing down to the size of a large chicken egg, the velvet pillow resizing with it. It then floated gracefully to hover at my chest level, a silent, constant companion.
Cygnus's massive head lowered until he was at my eye level, his ancient gaze filled with approval. "The bond is strong, little one. Kaelus has chosen well." His voice dropped to a rumble. "Take care of him. In return, he will be your sword, your shield, and your wings."
The great dragon's mate spoke for the first time, her voice like silver bells. "The young prince bears the mark of destiny. May their bond bring honor to both bloodlines."
I looked from the floating egg in front of me to the two colossal, millennia-old beings who had just handed over their heir with all the ceremony of a package delivery. So, on top of everything else, I was now a three-year-old single father to a dragon prince.
Cygnus let out a great, rumbling sigh that smelled of ozone and ancient stone. "Excellent. The future of the Azure lineage is secure." He gave a draconic approximation of a shrug, a gesture that caused a small avalanche of gold coins to shift beneath him. "And my parenting duties are now officially concluded. I shall be napping."
Yep. Definitely a narcissistic cat.