The room held its breath as the newborn dragon, small and gleaming like a polished pearl, looked at Lyria and squealed with a wide, innocent grin:
"Mama!"
Lyria flinched, stunned by the declaration. The warmth in the creature's voice shook her for a moment. She instinctively held it closer.
Before she could process it, the dragon turned to Kael, blinking twice.
Then, in a softer voice, it cooed—
"Papa?"
Kael's brain short-circuited.
"What—WHAT?! NO!"
Ramos, who had been frozen mid-step, immediately pointed at Kael with a look of wild disbelief. "Why is it calling you Papa?"
"Don't give me that look, old man!" Kael shouted, backing up. "I'm not its Papa! There's no way!"
The dragon's gaze fell, and its silvery eyes shimmered with moisture. Its tiny lips trembled.
A second later, fat drops of water began to slide down its cheeks as its little body started to shake.
The ground trembled with it.
