Chapter 60: Excruciating Pains


    Kalita just grinned but ignored my protest and continued to eye fuck me. Fine, two could y at this game! I clenched my right hand and put it to my chest, and called its name.


    "Maximus!"


    Thest thing I saw before darkness was Kalita running to me, and then the sky as my body fell limply to the ground. The feeling that wasing over my body was not like before; now, I was gone. I was floating in nothingness, where there was no light or sound, only an empty void.


    Then I saw Mesh in my mind''s eye, allowing me to watch memories rey. I was falling to the ground, but only Mesh''s old starved Lizardfolk form stood there, and I was alone. I walked forward, but the Mesh kept his head down.


    When I stood directly in front of him, Mesh kept his head lowered. I tried to speak, but no words came out like there was no air to make the words. This thought made me panic because I had just realized that I was not breathing. The idea threatened to spread terror to my entire body, but I focus on the moment; this wasn''t real.


    I focused on Mesh and did the only thing I could do; I ced my hand on his should.


    Mesh looked up into my eyes, but I was no longer looking into the eyes of a Lizardfolk Mesh, but a grand massive glittering and orange scaled dragon. He wasrger the Marly had been and his face longer, but it was still undeniably Mesh. The dragon in front of me was Mesh''s pure goal, the thing that was his heart''s only true drive.


    Suddenly I was in the booth, back at the first vige I had saved from Thurman. An old and beaten down woman with tired eyes stepped forward with her head down. It was hard to recognize her like this because I hadn''t had any dealings with this person yet, besides granting her power as I did for the entire vige.


    I reached forward to take her hand as she offered it to me, but I stopped and pulled my hand back. I pushed the chair back and stood up; the woman still had her hand extends in a frozen gesture. I walked around the table and took Kara into my arms, and suddenly, I was standing on the front path to a small house.


    I looked around, and it was just outside a forest, but then I seen it, up on the hill. I was the statue stand I had woken up against, but weeds grew over it now, like it had been years since I wasst here. I noticed some motion around the small cottage''s side, so I walked around to investigate to see who was there.


    This ce had to be something to do with Kara, but what did it all mean? My questions were all answered when I turned the corner, and I saw a youthful Kara and Markeye ying with some small children. The scene made my heart go out to their happiness, and it was what I was fighting for.


    If this was Kara''s pure goal, then it was only a matter of time until I could make that a reality. I''m sure I would only have to twist Markeye''s rubber arm a bit to get him to realize that he wanted the same thing. Maybe the past mistakes with Kalita''s mother and the stress of Thurman had made him closed off, but I would try to fix it all that.


    Finally, Kara looked up at me, but then the scene changed around us as our eyes connected. Suddenly, we were on a battlefield, but it was only us with troops rushing us from all directions, but in uncountable numbers. I looked to the young Kara and her scarlet red dress that started to fray as the threads shot out in all directions into the oing troops.


    The troops of every armor color fell in waves, but it wasn''t enough, and the tide kept getting closer. Suddenly, Kadence and Buddy were standing with us, both looked different, but I couldn''t concentrate on either as the troops came crashing into us. Cords of fire tore through the forces and a green streak killed without mercy, but It still wasn''t enough, and now I could see an orange dragon fighting other dragons but losing.


    What was this? Was this the final fight toe? Was someone trying to scare me? Not going to happen as I watched my friends die around me. I knew this wasn''t real; watching them die only told me one thing. More power was needed, but how would I get it?


    Was stepping over fallen bodies that pave my path to the top the way? Crushing everything that resisted? Using my power to force the world to its knees? If I had to, I would be the one to hold the world in check, but that wasn''t the path I wanted.


    Yes, I would use any method, but only if it was the only way. I would be a carving knife, cutting the useless fat of this world, and bringing them into a new age and way of thinking. In the end, my goal was to fix this world, so that meant I needed to gain the power to hold back the tides of the world as a whole.


    *Excruciating Pains*


    Finally, it started; the pain threatened to numb my thoughts, but I thrust the fire into my mind, sparking the connections back to life. I took the pain and molded it inside me, pressing it all to my core. The magic was trying to change me physically as I felt all parts of my body try to change and be more Dragonic, but I fought it.


    I love you, Mesh, but you look like a leather purse, and that wasn''t my goal. I hardened my thoughts, pushing out all other ideas as I held the image of myself the way I was now. Okay, so maybe I looked a bit more chiseled in my mind''s eye, but this is my fucking dream.


    Then I was back, oh, was I ever back! My eyes snapped open, and I stood up, feeling fucking fantastic. Then I started looking around, but the other two were gone. I looked around me, and I got a sinking feeling in my stomach that left me short of breath; what had I just done? Everything around me for a hundred meters was ck and gray ash.