Dragon's Awakening Volume I: Ash and Ember

The ashes were still warm when I opened my eyes for the last time upon my capital.

The sky was no longer blue. It was burning.

Rings of fire stretched across the horizon, as though entire planets were being crushed within the atmosphere. Orbital platforms collapsed from the heavens, massive metallic structures engulfed in flames as they fell, trailing thick tails of fire across the sky. Missiles carved straight lines of light through the darkness — precise, cold, incapable of missing.

Below it all... there was no city anymore.

Where palaces once rose above the clouds, only blackened craters and burning wreckage remained. The temples that had once touched the heavens were gone. All that remained were shattered pillars and shadows moving through the smoke.

The smell of burning iron filled the air.And the taste of blood lingered in my mouth.

I slowly raised my left hand.

The mark was still there. A black dragon coiled around a broken sword — the emblem of the Black Dragon Legion. Blood ran across it, gathering at the edge of the shattered blade before falling in drops... one after another.

I tried to stand.

I failed.

My knee refused to respond. The ground beneath me wasn’t stable — it trembled violently. Or perhaps... I was the one trembling. I could no longer tell the difference.

Where was the Legion?Where were the soldiers?Where...?

A voice.

Distant... yet it pierced through everything.

“Run...”

I turned — or at least, I tried to.

The smoke was thick, devouring everything around me. Shadows moved within it... or perhaps they were merely the remains of collapsing structures. But the voice was unmistakable.

“Go to Napolitano...”

Idris.

Even before I saw him, I knew.

Marshal Idris never shouted without reason.

I took a step toward him. Or at least, I thought I did.

The world shook.

A nearby explosion tore through the air. A wave of heat slammed into my face. I saw nothing but a blinding white flash, followed by darkness creeping in from the edges of my vision.

“Rebuild the Legion...”

Those were the last words I heard.

I reached out toward him... but there was nothing left to grasp. He vanished into the smoke.

Or perhaps... I was the one who fell first.

The sounds faded.

The fire drifted farther away.

The weight grew heavier.

And the darkness... did not come all at once.It came slowly. Advancing. Closing in. Pulling everything down with it.

The last thing I felt... was not pain.

It was emptiness.

Then... nothing.

(Post-Chapter Note):

Author’s Note:

Thank you for reading! This web version contains the complete text of Dragon’s Awakening. The official ebook edition also includes exclusive artwork: the galaxy map, character illustrations, and battle scenes.

🐉 Stay tuned.