Loyalty

"Quickly. Her Soulfire will collapse soon from the backlash," Morgana warned. Ian acted at once.

He expanded his domain, isolating her from the universe, then swiftly scanned her soul, body, memories, and Life Code. Once he finished, he took her Time Stone and calmly watched her soul dissipate before leaving.

He summoned his own gem, then cast a spell that manifested as two magic arrays—one above and one below. The two gems revolved around each other before fusing into one.

"It worked," Ian remarked. "The time energy it can produce has increased by at least threefold."

"More importantly, its connection to this world's Law of Time has greatly strengthened," Morgana added. "Should we add searching for the Infinity Stones to our to-do list?"

"Yes." These gems were the most powerful energy sources they could currently access, so Ian intended to make good use of them. "All right, let's go rescue that stupid Dragon." He knew where The Ancient One had imprisoned Albion, so he teleported there directly, bypassing all the other security measures.

"How many more times do I have to tell you?" the Dragon said weakly, slowly opening his eyes. "You're wasting your time. Besides, my master will come rescue me soon."

"So you finally admit that I'm your master?"

"Ian, is that you? Thank Dragon Father. I've never been happier to see you," the proud Dragon shouted.

"Yeah, you don't look like you're in very good shape."

Albion let out a deep sigh. "Ever since the Dragon Civil War, my luck has been terrible." Ian wanted to learn more, but now was not the time for a conversation. "I'll get you out first." He destroyed the chains restraining the Dragon, then cast a healing spell on him, restoring him to peak condition.

"Oh, freedom and—power," said the former