With startling speed, Rong withdrew her hand from her sleeve, revealing a jagged shard of black crystal.
The stone pulsed with a sickly, oily light, identical to the shimmer of the drakelings' scales.
"They whispered to me," Rong murmured, her eyes reflecting the crystal's unnatural glow.
"As the mansion burned around us, as father and mother screamed, they promised me power if I would only listen."
Zou tensed beside Rui, his golden eyes narrowing. "Put that down," he commanded.
"That's drakeling essence. It's corrupting you."
Rong laughed, the sound brittle and wrong.
"Corrupting? No. Freeing." She stroked the crystal lovingly.
"All my life, I've been perfect. The dutiful daughter. The flawless beauty. And for what? To watch everything burn anyway?"
The crystal's glow intensified, black veins spreading visibly beneath Rong's skin where she touched it.
"Rong, please," Rui stepped forward, hand outstretched.
"Let me help you."
