Ethan was currently deep within the Shadow Realm, territory of the Carnage Faction.
He accepted the incoming video call from Lyla.
The light screen shimmered, and her image appeared. Lyla's delicate face lit up the display, her bright eyes gleaming with joy. Beside her loomed her Dragon Hatchling, majestic even in the limited frame.
"Ethan!" she beamed, her smile radiant.
Earlier, when Ethan had accompanied her near Ashwick, he'd felt a sudden, ominous premonition—an instinctive warning he couldn't ignore. Acting on it, he'd requested Matriarch Whitmore and the others to escort Lyla and Ambrose Silverwood—her clan leader, who had remained asleep the entire journey—safely back to Ashwick.
Thankfully, the Whitmores hadn't delayed. They'd departed Ember City just hours after Ethan and made their way straight to Dragonvault Ridge.
