Chapter 5 – Hatchling and Hounds
"In Valyria, betrayal isn't a matter of if, but when—and who gets to the knife first."—Vaeron Vórenyx
The third night of the Thunder Moon trembled with unnatural silence. Inside the Dragon Cistern, in the lowest chamber of Volnyr Hold, Vaeron knelt in front of the pulsing egg of Nyessyx, the Stormheart Dragon.
The egg glowed like molten gold laced with veins of flickering white-blue lightning. The ritual glyphs beneath it hummed louder than ever before. The very walls of the chamber—carved from ancient obsidian and infused with draconic runes—shook subtly with anticipation.
The Wyrmsage beside him, a skeletal woman named Viraes the Blacktongue, lowered her torch and whispered with reverence:
"It is time."
The egg began to crack.
And with it, so did the last of Vaeron's childhood.
⚡ The Birth of Nyessyx
The shell burst in a thunderclap.
Lightning surged across the chamber, arcing up into the runes overhead and then collapsing down in a single jagged bolt that struck the pedestal.
When the light faded, smoke curled around the hatching basin.
Within it lay a serpentine hatchling, four-legged and winged, with golden-black scales glistening like obsidian wet with oil. Its eyes opened—pale sapphire orbs glowing like storm-lanterns.
The dragon looked at Vaeron.
And Vaeron looked back.
He stepped forward and bled onto the floor.
The hatchling hissed, crawled over, and drank the blood.
[Dragon Bond Complete: Nyessyx – Hatchling Stage]Species: Tempest DraconisElement: Storm/LightningSize: Small (2.3m long)Traits:– Stormspark Breath (Short Range)– Glide Step– Arc Flash (Passive Counterattack)Mood: TrustingGrowth Rate: Accelerated (due to Pure Blood Bond)
The psychic link solidified instantly.
Vaeron gasped, knees buckling. He could feel Nyessyx's heartbeat inside his skull, every twitch of its wing a pressure against his thoughts.
And then—he felt something else.
Danger.
🗡 Assassins in the Nursery
The moment of joy shattered with a scream.
Viraes the Blacktongue dropped her torch—her throat slit open silently by a shadowed figure falling from the ceiling above. A second figure slid across the stone behind Vaeron, dagger gleaming with black ice poison.
Vaeron reacted faster than thought.
[Combat Instinct II – Active][Partner Link Engaged – Nyessyx: Shock Pulse I]
Nyessyx let out a high-pitched shriek, and lightning erupted from its mouth.
One assassin convulsed mid-air and collapsed in a smoking heap.
The other dove toward Vaeron, blade raised, but Vaeron twisted with a step enhanced by system support—Ghost Dash I—and brought his dagger into the assassin's side.
Steel met flesh. The man screamed.
"Tell me who sent you!" Vaeron hissed, pinning him against the wall with one arm while Nyessyx growled.
The man spat blood. "Your brother sends his regards."
Then he bit down—poison tooth. Dead before his body hit the floor.
[Quest Update: Bloodlines Fractured – Vaelarion's faction has begun assassination attempts][Reputation Decreased with Vórenyx Traditionalist Faction]
Vaeron stood over the corpses, breathing hard. Blood still slick on his hand. Nyessyx coiled beside him, purring with soft static.
So it had begun.
🐉 Dragon Training Begins
In the days that followed, Vaeron isolated himself in the upper terrace caverns, where dragon flame tests were conducted. Away from prying eyes, he began training Nyessyx in:
Basic flight maneuvers (gliding from pillar to pillar)
Controlled shock bursts (used to destroy training dummies)
Telepathic synchronization (communication without words)
His system recorded every success.
[Nyessyx Level Up – 3 → 5]New Skill: Static Cloak – Temporarily masks presence via electric distortion.Affection: HighObedience: LoyalFear: None
Yet training was only half the war.
🕸 A Web of Lies
Back in the tower, Vaeron's chambers were under constant surveillance. Servants sent by Lady Ysera reported on everything. Even the torches had been subtly enchanted to record sound—he caught them through his Assassin's Creed detection interface.
He summoned Ivanna and Sira.
"We're bleeding information," he said coldly. "I want every eye turned inward. I want to know who sleeps with whose wife, who eats with whose wine, and who whispers my name in the dark."
Ivanna grinned. "You want spies."
"I want leverage."
They began building what the system classified as a:
[New Structure: Shadowweb – Tier I]Effect: Enables Information Harvest, Blackmail Trees, Sabotage Networks
It started with a few bribed kitchen maids and turned into full servant espionage.
Within five days, they'd discovered:
Five nobles plotting to back Vaelarion as heir.
A dragon tamer being paid to poison Vaeron's food.
One of his cousins bedding a Rygarion envoy.
A hidden door in the archives leading to a sealed chamber—marked with the crest of the Doom Prophets.
⚔️ Showdown in the Hall of Flames
When Lord Xalor held the next family gathering in the Hall of Flames, Vaeron entered with Nyessyx coiled around his shoulders like a wyrm-scarf.
Gasps echoed.
No hatchling had ever been brought to a council chamber. It was unheard of. Blasphemous, to some.
Lady Ysera rose to protest.
"That beast is not yet proven!"
Vaeron smiled calmly.
"She's already defended me more than half this family ever has."
Vaelarion stood.
His face still bore the faint mark of their last encounter—healed with dragon's blood salve, but faintly jagged near the cheek.
"This is madness," he hissed. "You insult us by parading your pet like some dog."
Vaeron stepped forward.
"No, brother. I warn you—with fire at my side. Next time, the storm won't miss your throat."
The chamber fell to silence.
Lord Xalor sat back, unreadable—but didn't rebuke him.
[Faction Standing Shift: Traditionalists -5, Reformists +8][Charisma +2: Intimidation Success]
The war for the succession had gone from whispers to thunder.
🧭 New Direction
That night, while gazing at the stars from his private terrace, Vaeron opened the System Codex and unlocked the next major storyline arc.
[New Global Questline Unlocked: The Valyrian Unraveling]The Doom approaches in 19 years. Prepare your dynasty. Survive. Conquer. Escape.Objective Paths Available:– Consolidate Power in Valyria– Seek Doom Artifacts– Sabotage Rival Dragonlords– Build the Last Fleet– Claim the Forgotten Ring (Demonforge Path)– Open the Outer Portal (Forbidden Magic)
He looked to Nyessyx, now curled beside him like a living storm.
"There's more than one way to survive the Doom," he whispered.
"And I don't plan on just surviving."
🐲 End of Chapter 5
Next: Chapter 6 – "A Knife in Every Shadow"Assassins increase, allies shift, and Vaeron discovers a secret alliance hidden deep in Valyria—one that even the dragons fear.