The Fiery Crown Cycle: A Dragon's Rebirth

Chapter 144

Squelch.

The claw sank into wet flesh.

Azure withdrew her hand, a greenish, pulsing heart skewered on her index talon. She stared at it, her vertical pupils contracting.

Still messy. I lack precision.

She glanced down at the elite goblin. His chest cavity was torn open, ribs cracked like dry twigs. He was dead, of course. His wide, jaundiced eyes stared sightlessly at the sky.

Ugly creature.

Now... the brain.

With a casual flick of her wrist, she flung the heart into the bushes. She extended a single, razor-sharp claw and traced a delicate line across the goblin's hairless green scalp.

Slice.

The skin parted smoothly.

Hmm?

Azure’s eyes narrowed.

This structure is... anomalous.

Reflected in her blue eyes was the exposed brain matter. Instead of the typical gray convolutions of a humanoid, the tissue was black, coiled in tight, concentric rings that spiraled upward like a cone.

Completely inconsistent with standard biology. Is this the Curse?

She turned her head to the smaller goblin. It had stopped trembling. It lay still, resigned to its fate.

Azure reached out.

Minutes later, a second, smaller skull sat beside the first. The brain inside was identical in structure, just scaled down.

Azure looked from the dissected corpses to the burning cave entrance. The flames danced in her eyes.

This tribe has leaders. Awakened ones.

I wonder... are their brains different? Do the coils wind the other way?

***

Rumble...

The earth groaned as the final tunnel collapsed.

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Aiden hovered above the destruction, red flames flickering in his eyes.

To the east, the sky was lightening. A faint, bloody strip of dawn was breaking over the horizon.

Morning.

I have been working. All. Night.

Huuuu...

He exhaled a long, twin jet of fire from his nostrils.

This is the last one. If I see one more smoke signal... just one more... I will personally ensure the extinction of the gnome race.

He scanned the forest.

Five minutes passed. No grey smoke. No movement.

Finally.

He banked and flew back toward the main cavern. Below, the fire still raged, thick black smoke billowing into the dawn sky.

Good. They did their job.

He landed with a heavy thud, folding his wings. He looked around. Bianca was sitting on her haunches in front of a campfire—separate from the main blaze. She was watching something sizzle on a spit.

Cooking?

Aiden squinted. It had four legs. Probably a deer. Definitely not a goblin.

To his left, Azure was lying on her stomach, surrounded by a ring of goblin body parts. It looked like a butcher shop run by a psychopath.

Well. That wretched sister of mine seems to have developed a hobby.

Hearing his landing, both heads turned.

One blue, calm and deadpan as a stagnant pond.

One white... or rather, black.

Bianca’s head was covered in soot. She looked like she had dipped her entire face in ink. Only her eyes remained white—crystalline, innocent, and pure.

Seeing Aiden, she scrambled up and trotted over on her stubby legs.

"Aiden! Rawr! This tastes bad!"

She stopped in front of him, holding out a lump of charred meat.

Aiden stared at the coal-like object. "What is this?"

"Roast meat! I made it!"

Her eyes sparkled with pride.

Aiden stared at her in silence.

That's not roast meat. That's carbon dating.

He looked into her bright eyes. She knows it tastes bad, yet she's proud of it? The logic of this creature...

He sighed. Well, they worked hard. I suppose a reward is in order.

He reached out and patted the soot-covered head.

Swish-swish-swish.

Bianca’s tail immediately started wagging. Head pats! That means food is coming!

"Go wash up in the river," Aiden said, his voice softer than usual. "And catch two fresh kills while you're there. I'll cook for you."

"Yay! Rawr!"

She chirped happily, spread her wings, and took off toward the water, leaving a trail of soot dust in her wake.

Aiden watched her go, then turned to Azure. She had already gone back to her gruesome work.

He walked over, the grass crunching under his claws. She had completely dismantled the elite goblin. Organs were neatly arranged by type. She was currently prodding the exposed brain with a claw that was stained black with ichor.

What is she doing?

Though... I admit, the spiral shape is unusual.

"Why are you taking them apart?"

Azure didn't look up. "Curiosity. And their structure is fascinating."

Fascinating?

Aiden looked at the gore. As a chromatic dragon, I don't mind blood. But 'fascinating' is a stretch.

Torturing them? Fun. Listening to them scream? Delightful.

Dissecting dead meat that smells like rotten fruit? Boring.

Scholars are weird.

"Look at the brain," Azure said, her voice sweet and childish, completely at odds with the carnage. She pointed a gore-soaked claw at the opened skull. "See how it differs from standard biology?"

"It is... unique," Aiden admitted.

"Right?" Her eyes lit up. Finally, someone who appreciates the science. "It's beautiful."

"It looks like a pile of shit. Literally. A coiled turd."

Aiden’s voice was flat.

Azure fell silent.

The light in her eyes died instantly. She lowered her head and went back to poking the brain.

I take it back.

He is a powerful Red Dragon. But he is an uncultured brute.