Introduction: When lowly stable-hand Kaimana dies on a bloody battlefield, his final glimpse is of burning skies and dragons shrieking in despair. Yet instead of a peaceful afterlife, he wakes years in the past—his body young, his island home still unscarred by war. Armed with knowledge of looming invasion, he vows to rewrite fate.But preventing disaster isn’t simple in a world where dragons are both companions and war-beasts, and the political confederation of the Nuku-Ra Compact teeters on old rivalries. Determined to master the elemental arts of Kaihaora—and awaken the dormant Koroki seed in his soul—Kaimana embarks on a slow and perilous journey. From menial chores in the Raukiri hatchery to the dragon-backed conflicts that span volcanic atolls, his every step weaves him deeper into a tapestry of fragile alliances and ancient lore. If he fails to rally these scattered islands, the ruthless Járnsál raiders will crush them all. If he succeeds… he might become the hero he once prayed for in his dying breath....