The Dragon Prince

Subject Zero

Alyssa

Subject Zero knocked me to the ground every time I got up. My whole body ached, and I was out of breath. Subject Zero turned into mist again, and no matter what I tried, I found myself on the ground. I remember Gloria saying this thing has powers similar to Vincent's but different. He doesn't need to see the opponent using their elemental magic. Dahlia noted that she smelled cardiac tissue, meaning he had been eating dragon hearts. Only one ritual involves the consumption of a dragon heart: Dragon Communion. Elijah has been feeding this guy dragon hearts so he can obtain the powers of all dragon types. Still, Gloria and Skyler are the only Shadow Dragons left in the world, so Elijah must have made an artificial Shadow Dragon heart and fed it to the Behir to obtain Shadow Dragon magic. This thing is indeed a dragon killer.

Once again, Subject Zero threw me against the wall. I got up once again, determined not to give up. The Behir materialized before me. There was a hint of annoyance in his eyes, but he didn't say anything, and then the intercom opened again. "Finish her, Subject Zero!" Elijah laughed. As soon as Elijah's order came through, he charged at me. He pinned me against the wall and struck me in the stomach.

Desperately, I aimed for his face, but he lazily pushed my hand out of the way and landed another punch in my face. I tried raising my hand to protect myself, but his fits always found a way around them. My vision started to blur. I can't let Elijah win! As more punches followed, I could see the wrath in his eyes.

I could taste blood in my mouth, and my left eye was almost entirely swollen shut. Blood dripped from the cut on my body, and I could feel a few broken ribs as I tried to breathe. Subject Zero continued his assault, and I could feel my conscience fading.

"No, Alyssa! Stay with me!" Dahlia cried out. "ALYSSA! ANSWER ME!"

I can hear Dahlia's voice, but I can't respond. Subject Zero stopped and could see that he had all but won. Shadows started gathering around his clenched fist. This is it, the Final Blow.

"NO, I'll be damned if I let things end like this!" Dahlia snarled. All of a sudden, I could feel the heat in my chest. It didn't burn, and I could feel my sense heighten. Subject Zero seemed to notice the change as he stopped mid-punch to observe me. I could feel Dahlia's energy like never before and her rage. I looked down at my chest and could see a familiar golden glow, but this time, it was shining from my chest. Subject Zero snapped back from his thoughts and went for the final punch. But before his fist landed on my face, my hand blocked it.

"Now I'm pissed!" Dahlia's voice echoed from my mouth. Dahlia took complete control as she held his wrist tight, and no matter how hard Subject Zero tried to pull back, he couldn't. Now we were seeing him start to panic. I looked at his fist and noticed the shadows around it were being sucked away into my hand. By the look of terror on his face, it was not his doing.

"Impossible!" Subject Zero gasped.

I was absorbing his energy, his magic. I started to siphon more of his power, and as I gathered more strength, I began to feel my wounds healing. I regained control and punched Zero's face, sending him flying across the room. "You're kind should've stayed extinct!" I breathed out. There was something strange about my voice; it sounded rough and deep.

"Dahlia, are you doing this?" I asked.

"No, WE are!" Dahlia smiled. "Together. Let's send this bastard back to the hole he crawled out of,"

The light in my chest grew brighter, and I could feel the warmth all over my body. "Dahlia, what's going on?"

"Trust me," Dahlia said. I took a deep breath as the light grew even brighter. The pure energy I felt was flowing all over my body, and I closed my eyes as all my senses heightened. When the light faded, I felt different. I looked at my hands; no bruises or cuts were visible anymore, and I could no longer feel pain in my ribs. But I felt something else; my skin was strange, and as I rubbed my hands, there was no mistaking the touch of dragon scales. My skin changed, but that wasn't the only thing I noticed; I felt an extra weight on my back, and the feeling of them was all too familiar. I saw a smaller version of my dragon wings.