The canyon did not merely shake—the canyon screamed.
Shadeclaw's answering roar still tore through the air when the second sound hit: a deeper, older, crown-bearing roar rolling up from the stone itself. A king's roar. A flame-wreathed declaration of dominance.
Then Danny's roar—golden, furious, creation-laced—struck the air like a meteor.
Three roars.
Three forces.
The valley tore open under the sound.
Stone walls cracked down the middle.
Storm clouds folded backwards.
Shadow beasts burst into ash.
Umbrakrell's cloak fluttered wildly in the backlash, though the Lord of Shadows kept his balance. His pale eyes narrowed with something between fascination and irritation.
"My," he murmured. "This escalates beautifully."
A boulder the size of a B.E.A.R. suit exploded beside him—but he didn't flinch.
He only smiled.
"You mortals really do know how to make an entrance."
The ground directly beneath him detonated.
The Wolf King rose from the plume of dust, stepping forward with the rumbling weight of a continent. Flames snaked across his claws. His eyes burned with amber fire.
Shadeclaw stared at him, breath caught in his throat.
"…My King—"
The Wolf King snarled, low and sharp.
"Stand up, Shadeclaw. You are no cub."
Shadeclaw's spine straightened instantly. He lifted himself to full height. His shadow fur rippled with pride, fear, and something deeper—relief.
Danny stepped forward beside him, golden flame flickering along his arms.
"We're not letting him take another one of us."
If the Wolf King bristled at Danny's presence, he didn't show it. His gaze slid to the young dragon, studying him.
"The last time we met," the King rumbled, "you shattered three of my ribs."
Danny shrugged. "You asked for it."
A faint curl almost—almost—touched the Wolf King's lip.
Then Umbrakrell clapped once.
The sound echoed like a coffin lid closing.
"Touching," he said. "All of you together. All of you united. Even the dragon whelp, the pretender wolf, and the throne-walker."
Swift skidded in from the right, Jake and Bumble tumbling behind him, Jade landing in a three-point stance beside Shadeclaw.
Jake panted. "We! Are! Here!"
Bumble beeped triumphantly, then immediately chewed on a piece of shadow rubble.
Jade flicked the bot's head. "Stop eating the enemy!"
Umbrakrell's eyes flicked between them.
"So. None of you will challenge each other. No posturing. No infighting. No hierarchy. How… disappointing."
Danny cracked his knuckles. "You're about to be disappointed a lot harder."
Umbrakrell swept his arm outward.
Shadow walls erupted around them—spiral cages meant to isolate Danny, the King, and Shadeclaw separately. The signature move of a Lord who hunted by dividing his prey.
But Danny's creation blaze ignited instantly—
The Wolf King shredded his cage with brute force—
And Shadeclaw's shadow-wolf aura rejected Umbrakrell's domain outright, dissolving the prison around him.
All three stepped out at the same time.
Umbrakrell's expression twitched.
Not a lot.
But enough.
Swift smirked. "Did the big spooky shadow guy seriously just try to 'divide and conquer' us?"
Jake held Bumble like a battle companion. "Rookie mistake."
Jade grinned at Umbrakrell. "You're getting jumped, mate."
For the first time since arriving, Umbrakrell's posture stiffened.
"What," he said softly, "do you think you are doing?"
Danny stepped forward.
"What you didn't expect."
The Wolf King cracked his neck.
"We are saving pack."
Shadeclaw's claws glowed white-shadow.
"We're going to get Mira."
Umbrakrell's eyes flicked sharply.
That name shifted something.
"Oh," he whispered. "Her. Yes. The little shadow-touched morsel Tempestron keeps. How quaint."
Danny's golden aura flared.
Shadeclaw's fur bristled, eyes going white.
The Wolf King took a single step forward, flames licking his jaw.
"Enough talk."
All at once, they moved.
It wasn't a duel.
It wasn't a battle.
It wasn't even a fight.
It was a gang beating.
Umbrakrell barely dodged Shadeclaw's first slash before Danny smashed a creation-charged fist into his ribs, hurling him backward. The Wolf King caught Umbrakrell mid-flight and slammed him into the canyon wall hard enough to carve a crater.
Jade jumped off the wall and chi-punched him in the chest.
Swift dove from above, delivering a wing-assisted kick.
Jake body-tackled him with Bronze Dragon ferocity, knocking him flat.
Even Bumble got in on it—rolling forward and biting Umbrakrell's leg with a metallic chomp.
"BEE-WOO-WOO!!" Bumble screamed triumphantly.
Umbrakrell shrieked.
Actually shrieked.
It echoed.
Swift choked on laughter. "We're witnessing a god scream because a toaster bit him—"
The Wolf King grabbed Umbrakrell by the collar, lifted him into the air—
And Shadeclaw raked his claws across the Lord's chest, ripping a howl from him.
Danny followed with a blast of creation that sent Umbrakrell tumbling through three stone pillars.
He lay on the ground, panting, smoke rising from his wounds.
His laughter started as a hiss… then bubbled into a quiet, manic sound.
"You… all… together…" he wheezed. "I misjudged you."
Danny stepped toward him.
"Yeah. Don't do that again."
Umbrakrell shoved himself to his feet. His form flickered. His edges frayed.
"No more games," he hissed.
His shadow peeled away—revealing the truth beneath.
His true form:
Four arms.
Sigil cracks bleeding white light.
Eyes burning like dying stars.
Shadow hair floating like oil smoke.
Even the Wolf King paused.
Umbrakrell's voice split into two tones.
"I serve the storm of storms. You cannot fathom what waits above us."
Danny glared. "I don't need to. I just need Mira back."
Shadeclaw stiffened.
Now.
Now was the moment.
He approached the Wolf King—slowly. Carefully.
"My king," he said, voice thick. "I… must confess something."
The King's gaze snapped to him. "Speak."
Shadeclaw swallowed hard. "Mira. Before she was taken… she accepted my offer. To become like me. To become shadow-wolf."
Jade blinked. "Mate, you actually did it?"
Shadeclaw ignored him.
The Wolf King stared, unblinking.
"She chose it," Shadeclaw whispered. "But I failed to protect her. Tempestron took her. Because of me. Because she—because I—"
His voice broke.
"I failed her."
Silence.
Then—
A clawed hand lifted Shadeclaw's chin.
The Wolf King's eyes were merciless. Fierce. Burning with something that was not anger.
"You did not fail," he growled. "You brought her power. You brought her choice. And now—you come to reclaim her."
Shadeclaw's breath shook.
The Wolf King leaned closer.
"That," he said, "is what a true wolf does."
Danny stepped forward, nodding once. "We're getting her back. All of us."
Umbrakrell snarled. "Fools. Tempestron will break her. He will break you."
Danny's eyes blazed gold. "Try us."
Umbrakrell tried to retreat—his shadow flickering away.
The Wolf King grabbed him.
Danny blasted him point-blank.
Shadeclaw slashed across his chest.
The shadow-lord screamed and dissolved into a fleeing smear of darkness—limping, tattered, humiliated.
Danny hurled one more creation blast after him, obliterating the entire ridge where Umbrakrell had stood.
The canyon went quiet.
For a moment.
Swift exhaled. "Okay… we're alive. Sort of."
Jake looked at Danny. "What now?"
Danny turned to him, to Swift, to Jade, to Bumble.
"You guys take the sigil stone back to HQ. Protect it. Report everything."
Jake blinked. "Just us?"
Jade clapped his shoulder. "Oi. We're not just 'us.' We are three dragons, one gangster, and a rabid microwave. We got this."
Bumble beeped proudly. "WOO-WOO!"
Swift nodded. "We'll get it there. Jimmy needs to know everything."
Danny turned back to the Wolf King and Shadeclaw.
"Wolves go for Mira."
Shadeclaw growled agreement.
The Wolf King's flames burned brighter.
He extended a clawed hand toward Danny.
"Come, golden child. Let us hunt."
Danny grinned, eyes blazing.
They turned toward Tempestron's storm fortress.
Three alpha predators.
Three forces of nature.
Three roars echoed as they launched into the storm—
A dragon.
A wolf king.
A shadow wolf.
The hunt for Mira had begun.