"Then what is your excuse?!" Aurican roared, his bellow abrupt like thunder. His lowly posture snapped back into a stiff position, his head raised, yellow eyes nearly glowing. Blood from fallen enemies drop down from his bloody muzzle, dripping directly down to the cavern floor or streaking down his neck. His teeth flashed white with every angry word.

"If I had truly taught them anything," Aurican said, every syllable hot as his fire, "I would have taught them our kind's history. When Paladine created the first metallic dragons, Takhisis took them and turned them into her own image! Takhisis pitted sister and brother against each other, did you know that, Crucible? Did you and the rest of my future kin knew this?"

Rage filled Aurican's body, engulfed his soul. He welcomed it. He preferred anger over shame, over grief. He took a step forward until their nostrils were almost touching.

"The dwarves called Takhisis 'The False Metal' for a reason," he hissed. "This reason. Takhisis took away what would have been family to me and warped him into a killer that killed my aunts and my mother, and drove her own daughter to kill my nestmates, including your ancestor Burll. But you . . . you already knew this.

"And yet, you had the audacity to to swear an Oath to the Dark Queen?"

Aurican realized he was breathing deeply, heaving with every breath. Something terrible is crawling out of his heart and tearing into his throat, and oh, yes, that was fear he was feeling, and he didn't want fear, not yet, because with fear despair will come shortly after.