Chapter 54: Brightsteel and Bloodlines
Goldenia stirred before the light touched the window.
Fate felt it first—a low vibration, more hum than sound, blooming through the bedframe and into her sternum. Her dragon was dreaming, not fitfully, but with purpose. Heat gathered in waves across their bond like a tide waiting for moonrise.
She sat up slowly, brushing curls from her cheek. Morning air streamed through the open curtains, soft and citrus-scented from the whispering groves outside their squad's quarters. On the balcony perch, Goldenia stretched with a breath that shimmered—faint sparks of solar light dancing across her scales.
Not fire. Not yet. But close.
Fate placed a hand over her heart, feeling the way it beat in rhythm with the pulse of her dragon. Since the wyvern attack, their bond had grown deeper, quieter, more rooted. Goldenia no longer needed to roar. Her very breath bent reality.
But Fate still wasn't caught up.
Not really. Joey was the one forging destiny now—shattering swords with his grip and waking old bloodlines with every step. Chyna glided through the arena with elven grace. Beanca dreamed in prophecy. Steven had stopped apologizing for his brilliance.
And Fate?
She was the slow burn. The golden ember.
She didn't resent it. But sometimes, in moments like this, she wondered what the Core Five would become if one of them stopped rising.
Goldenia's wings twitched.
We're not done.
The thought wasn't words—but it settled into her like sunrise.
"Right," Fate murmured, stretching. "Still work to do."
A knock at the door snapped the thought. It creaked open, revealing Lauren Veleyn already fully dressed in her forest-green flying leathers, her braid gleaming like spun moonlight.
"Come on," Lauren said. "Forge quest."
Fate raised a brow. "You're disturbingly cheerful for someone who doesn't drink coffee."
"I feed on mystery and elf aesthetics," Lauren said. "Also, Sophie said to bring snacks. We might be gone a while."
Fate chuckled, pulling on her golden training shirt and boots. The fabric shifted to match her form—Dragon City uniforms had a way of knowing your morning mood.
"You ready for your first cross-district mission?" Fate asked.
Lauren's eyes glinted. "I was born ready. Also, mildly terrified."
"Good. Means you'll pay attention."
They met the others in the quad just as the first rays of sun crowned the eastern towers. Rohan stood sentinel near the stairs, quiet and still as snow under moonlight. Serethiel hovered behind Lauren, her ivory scales catching flecks of green and rose.
Joey gave Fate a nod across the courtyard—no bravado, no teasing. Just presence.
She nodded back.
Goldenia landed beside her with a gust of warmth, her talons sending sparks skittering across the stone.
"Elf District," Sophie said from above, perched on a parapet like some flight-happy gargoyle. "Remember: be polite, be prompt, and don't touch anything that glows unless it sings your name."
"What happens if it sings someone else's name?" Joey called.
"Then you're about to meet a very confused dryad," Sophie said, already walking away. "Good luck."
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The Five Realms
FanfictionJoey Jackson, a quiet teen with a stubborn sense of hope, is haunted by the mysterious disappearance of his father during a supernatural fire at their family estate. When a shadowy figure emerges from the smoke-and a long-lost teacher delivers a cry...
