Ep 147. I’m Sure We’ll Meet Again. (1)


    In her blurry vision, Aymeia drew raspy breaths. She was barely managing to stand on her trembling legs.


    In stark contrast, the metal dragon before her leisurely stood, yawning in boredom from the lack of challenge.


    “Out of tricks already? Gotta say, I’m pretty disappointed. Ilias could use flames better than you in her hatchling days.”


    “…”


    For the last hour or so, Aymeia had tried nearly everything at her disposal.


    She’d tried to reason, argue, and even plead for the steel dragon to let her pass.


    When none of those worked, she’d resorted to brute force – where she had clear elemental advantage in.


    But even then, the former deity had failed to move Raizel out of the way.


    It wasn’t that Raizel was unblemished; the youngling had numerous burns across her body, some worse than others. But the grotesque wounds only served to further the jarring display as Raizel stood ever so casually in her damaged state, blocking Aymeia’s passage to Serenis and Felicir.


    ‘This is impossible. I can’t…’


    With a reluctant, resigning sigh, Aymeia closed her eyes as she opened her mouth to concede defeat.


    But before a single word could fly out of her, streaks of enormous lightning struck the earth beyond Raizel.


    Squinting, the former deity struggled to regain her vision from the sudden flash.


    Just beyond the steel dragon was an incinerated surface emitting heaps of smoke – and lying upon it was her guide-turned-mentor, seemingly moments away from being killed by the dragonlord.


    A skipped heartbeat signalled the incoming wave of panic.


    “…No…stop!”


    What followed after were nothing but a blur for Aymeia.


    Her vision flashed in white, and her body felt as if they were beginning to melt. But even so, she simply rushed forward with nary a thought, her only goal to reach the Reaper before it’d be too late.


    She could vaguely feel something heavy striking her abdomen – likely the steel dragon that had been blocking her path. But instead of being knocked back, Aymeia gripped the fist buried in her stomach, releasing a burst of heat towards them.


    The surging fire instantly broke Raizel’s stance, forcing the youngling to back away lest she turned into a pool of molten metal and flesh. And though the heat burned its wielder far more than the dragon barring her way, Aymeia could hardly register her own state in the moment.


    With Raizel momentarily gone, Aymeia hurriedly continued forward to stop the dragonlord. Cool winds hurtfully grazed her burnt, limping body, but the pain was nothing compared to the terrifying sight that was unfolding.


    And when she finally managed to reach them, she desperately wrapped her arms around the dragonlord’s waist.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    She spoke as strongly as she could. But what came out was nothing but a shuddering, terrified plea.


    “Mother, stop…please…”


    “…”


    When the former deity unexpectedly appeared behind her, Serenis reflexively looked back to meet their pleading gaze. And while she remained silent, the reluctance in her eyes visibly grew.


    But before she could say anything in response, a flash of metal zipped past her vision, instantly taking Aymeia off of her waist with an earth-shattering impact.


    “Wait, Raiz-“


    Thud!


    “…”


    When the dust cleared, Raizel was on top of Aymeia, her iron grip firm around the girl’s neck. The youngling’s hand pinned their head onto the crater she’d made, her knee pressing down upon the rest of their wounded body.


    “…Sorry. Didn’t mean to let her slip past like that.”


    Serenis barely registered the youngling’s apology.


    Instead, her widened eyes were fixed on the familiar, numerous white embers, dancing about Aymeia’s figure. The girl seemed unconscious, and yet, the flames were rapidly growing in intensity.


    ‘NO!’


    Serenis leapt forward to grip Raizel by her shoulder – though it was already too late.


    Before Serenis could pull the youngling away, each ember burst into a torrent of tremendous heat; the surge of immediately caught Raizel in their wake, swallowing the youngling whole.


    A horrifying sizzling noise filled the vicinity for a moment as Raizel could, quite literally, feel her body dissipate.


    Serenis hurriedly pulled Raizel away to throw the youngling as far back as she could. She powerlessly fell to the snowfields some ways back, unconscious and letting out heaps of steam.


    Serenis’ eyes then immediately darted back forward, her outstretched palm glimmering in mounds of condensed ice spells. She knew exactly what Aymeia’s white sparks represented, as well as the level of cold that was necessary to negate it.


    The former deity’s eyes were open, though lacking in any sense or focus. Instead, only the white-colored flames were burning about her like another entity.


    A few of the embers began to speed in circles around Aymeia’s limbs to form rings of fire; the rest coated her skin, threatening to incinerate whatever barred their owner’s path.


    And in that brief moment, Serenis saw an overlap of her son’s silhouette.


    - ‘Mother. If I were to ever lose myself again, then…I trust that you will…’


    “…”


    Clenching her teeth, Serenis balled her outstretched hand. The spell in her palm powerlessly fizzled out, cancelling themselves mid-cast.


    Instead, she summoned her wings, grimacing in pain as they were folded over Aymeia’s figure.


    Serenis’ scaled wings hissed from the excessive heat. At the same time, they effectively prevented the heat from escaping any further.


    And within the small dome her wings had formed, Serenis embraced the former deity.


    Even for her, the heat Aymeia was emitting was far beyond what her scales could resist.


    But nevertheless, she knew that this was exactly what she needed to do.


    “Perhaps…I’ve no right to scorn you.”


    In a desperate attempt to cling to those she held dear, Aymeia was drawing out everything she possibly could –  even at the expense of hurting herself, even at the expense of borrowing the strength of a dragon long past.


    And in a likewise desperate attempt, Serenis had tolerated this girl wielding her son’s flames since the moment they’d met.


    Despite their twisted methods, they were both ways allow a fragment of their loved ones to remain on this world.


    But Serenis knew exactly what her son would’ve told her in this moment.


    - ‘…Make the right decision.’


    She closed her eyes, holding Aymeia tighter in her arms. She caressed the girl’s back like her own child, whispering in a voice far softer than before.


    “…Forgive me. I was too late, wasn’t I.”


    “…”


    “Close your eyes…and allow yourself to rest.”


    A coarse voice escaped Aymeia’s lips as she muttered something under her breath.


    The heat began to wane. The rings of fire around Aymeia’s limbs began to tremble and scatter, disappearing into the air.


    And accompanying them in their disappearance were Aymeia’s horns, as well as the orange glow in her features. Memories of the second dragonlord shattered into orange particles, sinking back into his mother’s figure – into the divinity from whence it came.


    Once the flames had completely died out, only bleak darkness remained within the cover of Serenis’ wings.


    When the dragonlord’s wings fluttered open to allow some light, she could finally see Aymeia proper: a simple human girl, possessing flowing black hair that seemed nothing out of the ordinary. The horns on her head had all but disappeared, as did any hints of the fiery glow in her eyes.


    After gently setting down the unconscious human girl, Serenis slowly rose back to her feet.


    The situation allowed no respite for her to mourn her son. She soon swallowed her welling emotion, making only a brief note within her mind.


    ‘One day…’


    After a long, tired breath, Serenis turned to resume her previous task.


    ‘…I will join you, in the beyond.’