Laira nodded and whispered, "May they all come home. May—" She stiffened, leaped off his lap, and inhaled sharply.

Jeid growled and rose from his throne. His hands formed fists at his sides. "Who are you? What do you seek here?"

The man emerged from the forest and stepped onto the marble tiles of Requiem's hall—if a man he was. His cheeks were slashed open from mouth to ears, revealing a lurid grin that showed all his teeth right down to the molars. Many rings pierced his nose and brows, and he wore armor of similar rings. Blades hung from his belt, and tattoos coiled across his face and bald head. His smile—the smile of a shark—grew larger as he walked across the hall.

"Hello, King of Reptiles!" The man's voice boomed. "Hello, Queen of Lizards! I am Slyn of Widejaw. I've come to find a new home." He looked around. "I believe this hall will suffice."

Jeid growled and stomped across the hall, moving toward the invader. He let the first tendrils of magic rise inside him, ready to summon. He reached the stranger beneath King's Column, the first pillar of Requiem. Slyn stared at him, eyes cruel and mocking. Jeid recognized such cruelty; his own brother, the dragon-hunter Zerra, had carried the same cruelty in his eyes.

"Leave this place now," Jeid said slowly, "and I will allow you to live."

Jeid was a tall, stocky man—the largest in Requiem—but this stranger stood even taller, closer to seven feet than six. His armor bulged over a bulky chest, and muscles rippled across his bare arms. With his tattoos, many piercings, and split cheeks, Slyn seemed less a man and more a demon.

"You must be the fabled King Aeternum." Slyn smirked. "Men spoke of a great warrior. I see only a weak old man." He looked over Jeid's shoulder at Laira. "Is this your bride? She's uglier than a crone's warts, but she'll be mine, just like your hall. Oh yes, Aeternum. She will bear my sons."

Laira growled and shifted. Golden scales flowed across her back. Fangs grew from her mouth and claws sprouted from her fingers and toes. A golden dragon, she pounced forward and snarled.

"I would rip out your throat before you could touch me." She blasted smoke. "Leave now! Requiem's wars have ended. We crave no more killing. But linger here one breath longer, and I will tear you apart."

Slyn stared at the golden dragon. A thin smile stretched across his lips and split cheeks. "I think, dearest Queen of Reptiles, that you will not find us so easy to kill." He raised his voice to a shout. "Men!"

All across the forest, men emerged from behind the birches, walked between the columns, and entered the hall of Requiem.