The silence following that first, explosive peak was not a conclusion; it was merely a transition into a deeper, more primal territory. Amara lay draped over Darien's chest, her body feeling blissfully heavy, her skin slick with sweat and the faint, shimmering liquid that seemed to leak from her very pores. She thought, perhaps naively, that the "healing" was complete. She thought the storm had passed because the jagged hole in his chest had finally closed into a smooth, pink scar. But as she felt the muscle of his thigh flex beneath her, she realized the furnace had only just been lit.
"I told you, Amara," Darien rumbled, his voice dropping into a register so low it made the loose shale on the cavern floor vibrate beneath them. "A Dragon's hunger doesn't vanish with a single spark. You've reignited the core. Now, you have to help me manage the fire."
