Shadows and Stardust BK 5: Reign of the Hydra

Peace doesn’t last long for Anika and Bruce. Fresh off saving Solkara and helping Valora ascend the throne, the couple is summoned across the stars to the world of Hydrath, where the king lies dying under mysterious circumstances. With no heir and no clear culprit, Hydrath announces a planet‑wide succession tournament — a brutal, ancient tradition meant to choose the next ruler. But Hydrath has a secret. A stranger arrives claiming to be the king’s illegitimate son, armed with flawless documents and perfect DNA. Anika and Bruce are asked to serve as royal judges, meant to ensure fairness… but instead, they are unknowingly manipulated into helping the stranger rise through the ranks. Because the “illegitimate son” isn’t a son at all. He’s Arthur — reborn in a new body crafted by Dr. Splicer, using the dying king’s DNA. The plan Anika overheard back in Book 1 finally comes to fruition: Arthur claims a throne, a world, and an army that isn’t his. And Anika and Bruce helped him do it. Now, with Arthur crowned king of Hydrath, the couple must undo the damage, expose the deception, and survive a world where every faction, every warrior, and every monster is loyal to Arthur’s new face. The throne is taken. The Hydra rises. And Anika and Bruce must face the consequences of a mistake they never meant to make.