"I only wanted it to be free."
That desire proved stronger than a crown, an army, and twenty years of carefully taught hatred.
On the tenth anniversary of the open door, representatives from every border settlement gathered at Blackstone. Humans brought iron keys melted into bells. Dragons brought fragments of broken chains. Together they formed a monument shaped like two wings sheltering a small hand.
Tomas spoke briefly. He warned that kingdoms could return under different names whenever people surrendered questions to fear. Avaron added that dragons carried their own legends of human cruelty and must challenge them with equal honesty.
Lyri, now large enough to carry Tomas across the mountains, interrupted the ceremony...