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The space between conqueror and conquered, predator and prey, has become something else entirely. Something without name or boundary. Something that feels terrifyingly like falling.

And the most frightening part isn't that I'm falling.

It's that I don't want to stop.

CHAPTER 15

DRAGON ASSAULT

Fritz POV

I smellthe scout's blood before he even reaches the fortress gates. Sharp and metallic, mixed with fear-sweat and burned flesh that sets off all my predator instincts. I'm already moving toward the courtyard when the warning horn sounds, my body reacting to the threat before my mind can catch up.

The young feline—barely out of his teens with spots still visible on his flanks—falls from his mount as soon as he makes it through the entrance. His fur is singed down his left side, the skin underneath blistered and raw. Dragon fire. The sulfur stench tells me that before he says a word.

"Ambush," he gasps, his eyes wide with shock. "Eastern ridge. They took Ferral and Kiv. Would've taken me too if..."

My growl silences the entire courtyard. "Get him to the infirmary. Thorne, get the response team ready. Full tactical gear."

My mind is already calculating distances, response times, positions. Dragons don't take prisoners without a reason. They're planning something beyond their usual territory-testing. My tail lashes behind me, muscles coiling with the need toact now. The soldier's burns need treatment, but his escape would've been prevented if the dragons didn't want us to know.

A trap. But why?

Aria appears at the edge of the growing crowd, her scent immediately standing out from the felines around her. Worry tightens her face as she looks at the wounded scout, but she doesn't turn away from the injuries. She's gotten tougher since coming here, learning to face the harsh realities of territorial warfare head-on.

"What happened?" she asks, falling into step beside me as I stride toward the command chamber.

"Dragon ambush. Two scouts captured, one got away with a warning."

Her mind works quickly—one of the things I've come to appreciate beyond her omega biology. "An ambush that lets someone escape on purpose isn't really an ambush."

"Exactly." I push open the heavy oak door to the command chamber, breathing deep to make sure no unfamiliar scents are hiding inside. Paranoia keeps commanders alive in contested territories. "They wanted us to know."

Thorne arrives with patrol reports from the past three days. His missing ear twitches with tension as he spreads the documents across the table.

"The pattern's clear now, Commander," he says, his claws extending to point at specific patrol routes. "They've been targeting our scouts near the settlement boundary, especially those paths used by..."

"By omegas," I finish, the realization hitting me like a punch. "They're hunting scent trails."

Aria stiffens beside me. "Human omegas? Why would they?—"

"Strategic assets," I cut in, fighting to keep the protective rage from making my voice too rough. "They're using claimed omegas to draw territorial responses."

Thorne nods, his yellow eyes narrowing. "The captured scouts were following routes near where settlement omegas gather healing herbs. Routesyousuggested we watch more closely after your last heat."

Aria's scent shifts sharply—distress and dawning horror as she puts it together. "They're using me—usingmysuggestions—to target your patrols?"

"Not you specifically." My hand moves toward her automatically before I catch myself. Not the time for touching, not with Thorne watching. "Any omega in heat leaves traces that can be detected for weeks, especially by dragons. They've figured out that our patrol patterns adjust to protect areas where omegas gather."

"Those dragons aren't tracking omegas for claiming," Thorne adds bluntly. "They're using them as bait."

The color drains from Aria's face as my warnings about dragon brutality suddenly transform from just words to real threat. All those fantasies she once had about majestic dragon alphas crumble in the face of cold military tactics using omegas as expendable resources.

I turn to the territory map, forcing myself to focus on immediate strategy. "They'll expect us to concentrate on rescuing our captured scouts. That leaves the settlement exposed, especially on the eastern side."

"Where the water project is happening," Aria realizes, her practical mind pushing through the shock. "Thirty workers, mostly betas, all out in the open if dragon forces?—"

"They won't hit the water project," I interrupt, studying the terrain with eyes that see far better in dim light than any human's. "Too obvious. They'll?—"