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“I swear it to you. Believe me, I don’t want to be. I can’t wait to get right back to all three of you.”

“Be safe. You need anything, we’re here. We’re always here, okay?”

“I know. I know you are. Thank you.”

“See you soon, my dragon.”

“Soon, goddess.”

We disconnected, I took a moment to shore myself up, and then I continued onward.

It wasn’t long before I felt the air thicken, magic pressing against me—a sign I was drawing closer to the threshold.

I fiddled with the collar of my high-collared crimson and gold coat that was adorned with rubies. I had my crimson leather pants with the golden threads on, along with an open-collared, crisp white shirt, my jeweled dragon’s head pendant nestled in the opening as it hung heavier than usual around my neck.

I was dressed respectfully—the only way my parents would accept it.

The gates came into view, two onyx arches carved into a mountainside that were guarded by mammoth dragon statues, their jeweled eyes glowing vibrantly as they tracked my movements. Runes shimmered across the surface of the gates, pulsing with ancient flame. Above, dark clouds hung in the sky, casting a violet twilight over everything, the sun just out of visual reach.

As the gates opened from sensing the presence of the Heir to House Titanus, I stepped on through and took in the jaggedpeaks that pierced the atmosphere, rivers of glowing magma cutting through darkened stone. Winged shapes moved in the distance, circling the highest mountain where Titanus Castle rose like a crown of shadow and fire.

It was built into the side of the largest mountain in the realm, carved from black stone that was veined with crimson draconic magic. Spires shaped like dragon horns curved toward the sky, and a massive bridge extended over a lava river leading to its main gates. The banners of House Titanus whipped in the wind, a deep crimson and emblazoned with a three-headed dragon surrounded by flame.

I sucked in a breath, then teleported the distance.

Within seconds, I was inside the Throne Room.

The walls were lined with ancestral dragon bone columns, each engraved with the names of past rulers and revered warriors. The floor was a polished black reflective glass. At the far end were the twin thrones. The one belonging to my father, Zepharion, was made from dragon-forged steel, all sharp edges and carved intimidation. And the one belonging to my mother, Serapha, was formed from woven dark crystal.

I didn’t have to wait more than a few seconds before I felt a surge of power, and then my parents appeared in a burst of my father’s red magical flame.

My father was an imposing figure with angular, commanding features and piercing steel-gray eyes. His long, dark hair was streaked with silver, and his beard was as well-groomed as usual. His gray skin had faint scaling. A heavy crimson robe was layered beneath black ceremonial armor adorned with our Titanus crest.

My mother was wearing the same armor, her hair black and a stark contrast to his. It was braided back from her face and threaded with strands of red silk. She was as tall as my father, albeit leaner, yet toned from her life as an accomplished warrior.

“Vorzyr,” my father greeted me, his cold tone sending a chill down my spine.

He was rigid and suffocatingly formal, always exuding dominance and lofty expectations, but this blatant taciturnity was new. He was putting a distance between us.

Why?

“You summoned me, so here I am.”

“As you should be,” he returned, tersely.

I tried to blow it off, so this forced reunion wasn’t made any more unpleasant than it needed to be, and I started forward to my mother, intending to embrace her.

But my father thrust out his arm in front of her, his eyes flashing at me and aggressively discouraging my approach.

“Mother?” I queried.

“He is reacting protectively,” she told me.

She was a fierce woman, severe in nature, but she’d always had a softness with me, as her son.

That wasn’t present now.

There was no sign of that maternal warmth from her, as her hard gaze drilled into me.