A vortex of clouds, dense and suffocating, swirled with malevolent intent.
Asahi and Aletha scanned the vortex below, straining against the gloom. The silence of the surrounding peaks, broken only by the ceaseless howl of the wind, was deceptive. Beneath that tumult, they sensed a profound, unnatural stillness deeper than any storm.
It was the silence that precedes the thunder, the hushed anticipation of terror.
Then, from the churning heart of the maelstrom, a distinct shadow began to detach itself. It was not a mere trick of the light. No vagary of the tempest raged around them. Instead, this was a form—distinct and deliberate—separating itself from the chaos. The bruised hues of twilight that painted the approaching entity were unmistakable, even from this distance.
Asahi and Aletha's hearts hammered, frantic against the silence.
Aletha narrowed her eyes. "What in the gods' name is that?" she whispered, voice tense with dread.
The legends—those passed down from Alai's father and dismissed for so long—were true. The beast was real, descending now as a harbinger of destruction upon Alai's solitary watch.
The shadow solidified, resolving into a shape of terrifying, unearthly majesty.
The dragon emerged silently from the oppressive clouds. Its scales—deep black and vibrant blue—absorbed the meager light. It became a creature of shadow and power. A low growl, like the distant rumble of an earthquake, vibrated through the stone beneath them. It resonated deep within their bones.
The dragon's eyes, twin pools of molten azure, burned with an inner fire, sharp and predatory, fixed upon Asahi with an ancient, implacable gaze.
"Tell me, why are you here?" the figure said, its mouth closed, voice resonating in their minds.
With a crackle that split the very air, a sound like the snapping of a thousand icy whips, the dragon vanished.
It did not retreat or soar. It vanished in a blink, leaving a phantom shimmer of cobalt burned into their vision.
"Where did it go?" Asahi barked, gripping his steel blade tightly.
"I… don't know."
They spun, senses alert, every fiber straining to track the dragon's impossible speed. Its ability to blink made it a terrifying, elusive foe.
The dragon's movement mirrored the storm. Asahi gripped his blade, steadying himself. He prepared to face the impossible.
Before they recovered, before the cobalt shimmer faded, the dragon reappeared—yards away, crackling with energy. Its claws gleamed with power, ready to rend.
"There it is!" Aletha said. "Go after it!"
The sudden, jarring appearance from nowhere was more than just a tactical maneuver.
The dragon's attack was immediate—a brutal exhibition of aerial prowess. It lunged with silent, deadly intent, jaws wide.
Frequent flashes of Adeline intruded upon Aletha's vision, her dark hair and vivid blue eyes haunting every thought.
The dragon unleashed its signature attack. A torrent of electrified breath turned the very air into a weapon. The atmosphere crackled with unseen energy. A blinding arc of azure lightning erupted from the dragon's maw—a searing inferno that engulfed the battlements where Asahi and Aletha had just stood.
The ancient stone glowed under the dragon's assault, melting from the heat and scorching Asahi and Aletha's skin through their protective layers.
Aletha dove behind a crumbling parapet, stone groaning under the dragon's breath.
Heat washed over her, intense and suffocating; the air vibrated with energy.
The sheer destructive force of the dragon's breath was awe-inspiring, a terrifying spectacle.
He remained low, pressed against the warm stone. Through the superheated haze and the sharp scent of ozone, he observed the dragon's movements. The dragon, its attack spent, coiled in the air. Its wings beat slowly, gaze locked on Aletha.
As the searing torrent of lightning subsided, Asahi dashed forward from behind a shattered stone, clutched his blade with both hands, and slashed in a silver arc against the beast's dark, shimmering hide. Sparks flew like a thousand tiny stars as the blade met the energized scales, a jarring, metallic clang echoing across the desolate peak.
It was a desperate, deadly dance. Asahi deflected the dragon's blows with his blade, sparks flying as steel met scales. Meanwhile, Aletha gathered her energy and charged, aiming straight for the beast's neck. Her sword struck true, slicing into its flesh. Each hit sent jolts of raw energy up Aletha's arm, testing their endurance and the strength of their blades.
The dragon's lightning-charged scales resisted, but the sword, forged in an age of magic, fought back. They searched for a weakness, a chink in its armor, before the chance vanished.
The dragon's roar erupted from its throat and the mountain itself. Sonic vibrations threatened to tear away their weapons and shatter Asahi's composure.
It was a primal sound of pure rage and power, a clear, undeniable assertion of dominance over its domain, a challenge to the solitary mortal who dared to trespass.
"Tell me again, why have you come here?!"
The roar's intensity disoriented, meant to shatter focus and spirit. Asahi gritted his teeth, jaw clenched against the noise, eyes fixed on the dragon.
With a flick of its colossal tail, the dragon slammed into the citadel's ancient stone. Shockwaves sent granite and debris raining down; Asahi shielded his head with his Telos' shield.
The impact threatened to shatter the Citadel's foundations, the fortress groaning under the attack.
The dragon's physical might was as terrifying as its elemental powers, capable of bringing down the formidable fortress. Asahi and Aletha braced themselves, feeling the tremor run through their boots as the ground beneath them shifted and groaned.
This was not just a battle of skill and magic, but a test of endurance against the raw, unyielding power of nature.
The dragon's relentless assault continued. With each teleport, cobalt light and crackling energy blurred its moves. Asahi squinted, tracking the beast. Aletha gripped her blade, bracing against gusts.
Asahi pressed his advantage, ducking under a sweeping claw that could have cleaved him in two and driving his blade into the dragon's flank. The impact was jarring, sending a cascade of blue sparks into the air as the ancient steel bit deep into the dragon's hide.
A hiss of pain, sharp and reedy, escaped the Dragon, a sound that seemed almost incongruous from such a gargantuan creature. The resistance of the enchanted scales was immense.
Amidst the furious onslaught, the relentless flurry of attacks and evasions, Aletha perceived a fleeting vulnerability. The dragon's incandescent aura, the crackling energy that perpetually wreathed its form, flickered erratically, a momentary lapse in its charged defense.
It was a fleeting chance—an instant where Ignis's power faltered and human skill could prevail. Maybe pain from the wound caused the lapse.
This was the critical juncture—the chance they had been fighting for, the sliver of opportunity that separated survival from annihilation. They knew they had to seize it, or all would be lost.
With their blades buried deep in its flank, the Dragon let out a shriek of pure agony, a sound that pierced the howling wind and echoed across the desolate peaks.
The vibrant azure lightning that had crackled around its form with such terrifying intensity flickered erratically, diminishing with each passing second.
The dragon stumbled in the air. Its powerful legs buckled under the unexpected pain. Its magnificent form was listed precariously. The raw, untamed energy that had defined its terrifying presence began to wane, revealing a more primal, wounded creature beneath the terrifying display of power. The shimmering scales seemed to lose some of their luster. The vibrant hues of twilight dimmed ever so slightly. And there, the sight of dark armor unveiled beneath the flesh of the monster.
It was at this moment that a realization dawned in Aletha.
"That dragon… "
* * *
Dark hair, blue eyes, and a green-haired boy flashed by. Memories surged, blurring past and present. By the water's edge, a girl asked a deep question.
"What is your true wish?"
"Really? My wish?" She blushed for a moment, recollecting her times with Sergil and more. "My wish is to see the entire world from high in the clouds."
"Really, that's your wish?" He added with a confused look on his face.
"HEY! I wasn't finished!" She said, "I said that and…"
The girl twiddled her thumbs, mumbling. "To be with you."
. . .
Suddenly, memories of all kinds flooded back to Aletha.
From the moment Sergil had been on shorelines with Adeline, to growing up in the old capital, Aletha recalled each event as if reliving them. While the dragon's scream echoed in her ears, she steadied herself and pieced together what these memories meant. From the time of the wedding and the confusing relationship behind Kali, to the wilderness and wish-granting, the flood of memories resolved into sudden realization for Aletha.
"Where did that dragon come from?" She stammered beneath her breath.
Then, at this moment, the mystery would be revealed to Aletha.
. . .
(0 years before the War of the Wish)
The sky was a deep, dark crimson. A funnel of clouds encircled the rising peak.
Sergil, watching as a luminescent figure descended quickly from the heavens, clutched his blade as he saw Adeline, the woman that he had been partnered with, get surrounded by strands. Then, after seeing the angel-like being wrap poor Adeline in threads of light, the soft but deceptive voice of the angel muttered.
"I see you have your deepest wishes." It said, "Your love life and peacefulness and perfection. Yes, I see this. I see everything. And you are the perfect candidate… for weakness in this world."
"Just what do you think you're doing with my Adeline?!" Sergil screamed as he was forced to the ground by the 'angel'. "Get away from her! Get AWAY from her now!"
The 'angel' did nothing but the complete opposite.
"This world shall know nothing but pain." It responded with a half-chuckle. "It was a mistake coming here. Why on earth did the Prism choose this world as its candidate? It's… unnatural."
At that second, the angel opened their third eye, quickly summoning a golden light to detach Adeline from Sergil.
Then, they threw Adeline like a puppet and juggled her body like some sort of sick, magical trick. Afterward, the angel marked their presence on her, surrounded the being in blue strands, and transformed her inside and out.
From flesh and bone, arose black fangs and wings. A tail was seen mutating on the screaming human/creature. Her boiling eyes of fury changed from a roaring azure to a silent cyan. This, plus her new body of black, urged Sergil to scream out of frustration and guilt.
"ADELINE!" He grieved, "What did you do to Adeline?!"
It was at that instant that the dragon roared its first roar.
Everything hammered in suddenly as a new peak arose.
After one last retort, the angel-like being pierced its golden eyes at Sergil and hummed a tone.
"Ah, yes, the angels will definitely sing out their last songs to this decrepit world." It replied as it flashed and teleported back to the heavens. "Now her eyes have been opened. Look at this world and be grateful that it has been transformed. It is a gift to the soon-coming king."
Suddenly, another angel came into being as they watched Sergil collapse out of weakness and anger.
"Soon she shall taste the sweetness of flight and love." A man with blonde hair and gray eyes made this statement. "Yes. Make her soar!"
Then, the vision all of a sudden crumbled and shattered back to the present.
. . .
Asahi and Aletha fought with the weight of the entire kingdom resting upon their shoulders. Asahi had no clue what happened, but Aletha did. And she refused to attack.
Beyond the swirling, oppressive clouds that concealed the lands below lay a world vulnerable to someone else's destructive power.
Every blow struck, every desperate dodge, every wall made was a defense of countless lives, of hearths and homes, of the very fabric of this nation.
The fate of his people hung precariously in the balance, resting entirely upon the outcome of this solitary duel waged on the peak of Linuxinina. This profound realization and immense responsibility hardened their resolve and sharpened their focus, lending an almost supernatural clarity to their senses.
"Adeline, Sergil," Aletha mumbled. "What happened to you?"
Wounded and cornered, the Dragon became even more unpredictable, her movements less precise, more fueled by sheer, primal desperation. Her teleportation became erratic, manifesting as brief, easily tracked shimmers of cobalt light rather than seamless disappearances.
The dragon unleashed bursts of electrified breath with less control, the arcs of lightning wider and more scattered, less focused than the devastatingly precise blasts it had unleashed earlier.
However, unveiled in the flesh of the creature, Asahi and Aletha discovered a metal blade jutting from its monstrous cyan heart. This haunting sight was only the beginning.
As they continued to look, the opaque scales parted slightly with each breath, revealing a glimmering shield etched with intricate patterns reminiscent of a bygone era.
Not only that, but below the scales lay armor that shimmered with an otherworldly glow, merging seamlessly with the dragon's form.
It was not just the presence of these human-made artifacts that sent chills down their spines. It was the realization that the creature they had been fighting, in truth, was not a mere beast but something far more tragic and complex.
It wasn't a monster that concerned them, but the undeniable fact that this creature was once human.
"Asahi, stop!" Aletha shrieked out to him.
"What? We're almost done." Asahi added as he struggled to remember the past.
"That dragon isn't a dragon," Aletha said with regret and remorse for Adeline. "It's… a human. A transformed human."
"A transformed human?" Asahi muttered with clueless eyes. "So, you're telling me this dragon is a human?"
Aletha nodded in agreement to his words. Asahi gave a slight sneer at the dragon and shrugged his shoulders.
They thought of killing and slaying the being in the full center.
But then, both Asahi and Aletha's memories flickered back and forth, recalling everything that had led up to this moment. A stream of recollections flowed downward into Asahi's mind, recalling the shoreline and the wedding, then to the tragic memory of Adeline's transformation and The War of the Wish, the Prism, and the peak.
They were utterly speechless, surrendering to the silence that followed. After recollecting the fragmented memories of the dragon, Aletha and Asahi tried to show mercy to Adeline.
If they were ever to spare this creature, they first need to come up with a plan.
Gathering all his remaining strength, his muscles screaming in protest, Asahi prepared for his final, decisive assault. To weaken the dragon, all they had to do was hit the center of its throat.
Then, at a sudden pace, he channeled the power of his sword, the flames on his blade flaring with an intense, white light, a beacon against the encroaching gloom. The sky and the mountain opened up, inflating like a balloon, to unveil an entire city embedded in the rock.
"Aletha, I see it!" Asahi shouted as the entire mountain shattered.
A pulsating warmth had resonated inside the dragon.
Now that they both saw a final opening, a fleeting gap in the dragon's flailing, desperate defenses, they charged at it, trying to scare it away. This was the culmination of the battle, the single, decisive strike meant to end Adeline. But just before they could slash their swords.
"Sergil!" Aletha screamed as the dragon paused its attack. In return, Adeline closed its glowing jaw and heard her question again. "Do you remember Sergil?"
All came to a stop the moment she uttered that name.
The dragon reeled back and roared, flapping its wings in certain motions, trying to talk. At first, it was about to hit them with a blue beam. But after hearing that name, she stopped fully.
"Yes." She replied, her deep, feminine voice echoing across the peak. "I remember that name fondly."
Asahi and Aletha dropped their swords, kneeling down, trying to hear the dragon speaking inside their minds.
"Yes. My one true love. My sacred apple of my eye." Adeline said as she lowered her wings. "Sergil… my destined partner."
After all the pain they had gone through, the dragon calmed down, with no sign of her previous violence present in her speech.
Seeing that the dragon had finally calmed down, Aletha gulped for a moment, seeing the dragon sigh.
Then, with the confidence he could muster, Asahi asked.
"Sergil?" He said. "Who is this… Sergil?"
Adeline lowered her wings and calmed the vibration of her scales. The wind and the vortex slowly ceased on their own, as the tremoring voice of Adeline resounded inside both their minds.
"He was once the King of Linuxinia," Adeline replied, her gooey mouth staying shut. "I have always been watching this peak, looking for my love. But now, only finding The Sealed Beatific and the castle he used to reside in, I couldn't help but search for my love."
As Adeline slowly flapped her wings, the transformed dragon showed Asahi and Aletha the wreckage of the unearthed castle.
The long battle they commenced didn't result in a victory, but a draw, leaving absolutely zero traces of pure wreckage, and everyone unscathed. The dragon, once a terrifying force of nature, now lay quietly beside them, its shimmering scales dimmed by a sense of resignation. Asahi and Aletha shared a heavy silence, their weapons lowered, reflecting on the gravity of the revelation that had unfolded.
Asahi let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding, his muscles relaxing after the adrenaline-fueled fight. "We almost did something we couldn't take back," he said, his voice tinged with remorse. Aletha nodded, her eyes still locked on the now subdued creature, a swirl of emotions playing across her face. Relief, regret, and a profound understanding of the fragility of their world weighed on her.
Adeline, the dragon, stirred slightly, her eyes—no longer fearsome but almost human—meeting Aletha's gaze. There was a shared moment of understanding and forgiveness, a silent promise never to let the past be repeated.
The defeat of their attack did not feel like a failure, but more like an awakening, as they came to terms with the history and pain behind the creature they had once seen only as a threat. Asahi placed a comforting hand on Aletha's shoulder, sensing the emotional toll this revelation bore on her.
Around them, the citadel stood intact, and the oppressive clouds that had signaled doom now dispersed, revealing a clear sky. The kingdom, unaware of the fierce battle fought above, remained safe and untouched —a poignant reminder of the peace they had fought to protect.
With renewed resolve, Asahi and Aletha turned away from the peaks, hearts heavy yet hopeful, knowing the mysteries left to unravel held not just danger but also the potential for redemption.