The conversation persisted for a while longer, with Lost providing us with a brief overview of her homeworld, Aynezh. Eventually, it concluded with us elaborating on the primary plane, detailing the ongoing war efforts and recounting the sudden onslaught of the Shades' all-out invasion.

"I never thought the central worlds and the main plane to be so… exciting!" She said, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.

"I suppose that's one way of looking at it," I replied with a light nod.

"So, is it safe to assume that besides the Void pull, you have nothing else on this planet that's stopping you from leaving?" I asked.

Lost nodded hesitantly, it took her a few seconds before she managed to speak, "Are you sure you didn't feel the pull?" she asked again, the uneasiness clear in her voice.

"Brother Aether does not lie, there was no such thing," Ynos who was silent this entire time spoke up.

"I-I don't mean to be disrespectful, It's just that…" Lost hesitated, and I quickly jumped in, "It's okay, I understand."

"Thank you…" She replied with a light sigh.

"How long have you been stranded in here for?" Immy asked, her claws gently tapping on the beautiful sculpture of a big Dragoness as she walked around the cave.

"A little over a year, I think…" Lost replied.

"Did you find anything fun in this world?" Essie excitedly asked.

The Dragoness scratched her head in deep thought before speaking hesitantly, "There are some mortals, but they try to attack me every time they see me, so I just spend most of my time here," she said motioning to the various sculptures.

"It's not bad, really. I think I am becoming better!" She paused for a couple of seconds before continuing, "It's just… I miss home," she added with a bitter smile.

Seeing Lost with her head lowered, Essie fluttered her wings and flew over to her, gently patting her head. "It's alright! Brother Aether is the cosmic pillar! He'll guide you home!"

Her words brought a smile to my face and caused Lost's eyes to widen in shock.

"You mean cosmic as in, P-Pillar of existence?!" She said in disbelief.

"Of course!" Essie replied proudly with a puffed chest. "Sister Immy and Brother Sidus are the pillars of light and darkness," she added smugly.

Lost's eyes lost focus for a second and it almost seemed like she was going to faint.

"H-How?!"

"What do you mean?" Essie asked with a tilted head.

"Mother said that pillars almost never survive their naming ceremony, and that's why there are no adult pillar Dragons!"

Her words made me fall into deep thought. 'Now that I think about it, we were really lucky,' I inwardly noted.

As the eldest and strongest, I alone held the right to attend the naming ceremony. Given my survival, Immy and Sidus were spared the ordeal. Though formidable for their age at the time, I doubted they would have endured the ascent of the stairs.

The memory of the young brown Dragon's demise lingered vividly in my thoughts.

'Is it merely coincidence?' I pondered.

It seemed too improbable to dismiss as mere chance. While I hadn't dwelled on it much before, the realization struck me: wasn't it peculiar that three out of four pillars hailed from our family?

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Brother Aether is the strongest! He was even personally named by the King!" Essie added.

Lost's brain seemed to have short-circuited as she was glancing at us with a blank stare. Her mouth opened and closed a few times, "I— maybe that's why you don't feel the pull?" She said after a while.

"Perhaps," I replied, brushing aside the myriad thoughts that had occupied my mind moments before. Now was not the time for such reflection. Nonetheless, I silently resolved to revisit these thoughts later. It was crucial.

"Why speculate when we can simply go and find out the truth firsthand?" Ynos interjected, rising to his feet and stretching his neck.

A chuckle escaped my lips. It was so typical of him—no plan, but somehow the best plan. Still, there was some truth in his words. There was no use in speculating, the fastest way to figure this out was by testing it ourselves.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but he has a point," Sidus agreed.

"Well, in that case, no better time than the present," I said and stood up.

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Pillar of existence or not, It's the Void we are talking about! It's too dangerous!" Lost hastily stopped us.

Ynos laughed and answered with a smirk, "Don't worry, you don't need to be afraid. I'll protect you!" He shamelessly proclaimed.

"Ah!" Embarrassed, Lost's mouth opened in surprise before she hurriedly averted her gaze and began mumbling to herself.

'Oh? So that's what a blushing Dragoness looks like?'

Ynos, oblivious to the implications of his words moved toward her and used his tail to drag her along with him outside the cave, "Don't worry, I'm here! Void or not, I can still send you back to the planet, if worst comes to be!"

Lost, rendered speechless, trailed after him with her head bowed. Briefly, she cast us a glance, her expression tinged with embarrassment, before swiftly averting her gaze.

"I didn't think Ynos had it in him," Immy said as she walked next to me.

Breta who was by her side replied before I can, "I don't think he understands what he's doing," she said, slightly shaking her head.

A small laugh escaped my mouth, "I think it's cute."

Immy shook her head, "I feel bad for her already."

"Hmph, like you're any better," Sidus spoke, defending Ynos.

"Huh? What is that supposed to mean?" Immy frowned.

"You heard me," said Sidus before he left.

Immy turned toward me and Breta and asked, "Do you see what I'm dealing with?"

I lightly patted her head with my tail before following after the rest. Immy followed behind with a frown.

Outside of the cave, Ynos appeared ready to take off and still had his tail wrapped around the poor Dragoness. 'Was he planning to drag her along like that?'

Thankfully, Sidus was there to save the day. He moved toward him and lightly hit his head causing him to let go of Lost.

"Wait, we'll let Brother Aether test it out first," He said.

"Huh, why?"

"There's a possibility that the only reason we didn't feel the pull is because of him and his cosmic element," Sidus explained.

"Ah, so we'll go after him?" Ynos asked to which Sidus nodded before answering, "We'll all go, but we have to be smart about this. We can't risk anyone getting lost in this Void, especially when we couldn't even see it."