Kingdom of the Nine: The Bridge (IV)

Chapter 1

Smith Inc. Lab, Earth, 2024

———Alyse———
Red sits slumped on the far side of the shattered glass chamber, staring at the fractured portal hanging limp from its mount on the wall. He's silent now—no tears, no flames, just a blank stare locked on the broken remnants.

"Kylen, open the door," I say, stepping toward it.

Kylen hesitates, his hand on the handle. "Are you sure you—?"

"I've got this," I cut him off, my tone firm. "Trust me."

He studies me for a moment, then nods, turning the handle. The faint grind of gears fills the quiet room as the door creaks open. Kylen steps aside, giving me space to walk through.

"Red..." I call softly as I approach. "Are you okay?"

He doesn't respond, doesn't even glance my way.

"Red?" I kneel beside him, lowering my voice further.

Finally, he turns to me, his face streaked with tears. His voice trembles, each word heavy. "He's dead."

I feel the weight of his grief settle over me. "I know, but Draco sacrificed himself to save us," I say gently, hoping to ground him in the truth of that moment.

"No, you don't understand." His voice cracks, and his tears fall faster. "Not Draco... Domnik. He's dead."

Shock punches through me. "How do you know that?"

"I felt it, Alyse." He presses his fingers to his chest, tapping where his heart beats. "Right here. I felt it when he..."

I try to respond, to reassure him somehow, but he cuts me off.

"We left him. We fucking left him back there to die! How the fuck could we do that?" His voice rises in a mixture of anguish and fury as he buries his face in his hands.

My throat tightens. "We didn't have a choice, Red. Ogre would've killed us. Draco pushed us through to save our lives."

Red shakes his head violently, his hands falling to his lap. "No. No, Draco pushed us through so Ogre wouldn't get this."

He pulls his sword from its sheath—a weapon glowing with swirling fire and light, alive with power. The DragonsBreath. Without a second thought, he tosses it to the floor. The flames extinguish, the blade retracting into the hilt as it clatters against the ground, lifeless.

"The DragonsBreath?" I breathe, stunned.

He nods wordlessly, his grief swallowing him whole.

I reach to pick it up, but before my fingers touch the hilt, it begins to shift. The blade disintegrates, the metal liquefying into a swirling blob. It moves with unnatural precision, flowing toward Red and latching onto the metal brace around his ankle. The molten madium merges seamlessly into it, leaving no trace of the sword behind.

"What the—" I start, recoiling.

"Oh yeah," Red says bitterly, staring at his ankle. "Draco gave me that, too. No clue what it does. Good to know it just ate our only chance of killing Ogre if he decides to follow us."

His words hang in the air, heavy with despair, and for a moment, I don't know what to say.

"We can't even leave now, can we? We're stuck here because I had to go and break that fucking portal!" Red's voice cracks as he points to the shattered remnants still hanging from its mount. "And now Ogre and whoever else is left behind get to run unchecked, doing whatever the hell they want to our home."

"That's not your fault!" I protest.

"Yes, it is." His voice lowers, trembling. "And you know it is, too. You're just being nice."