"Are you really sure about this?"

Those words rang through the bereaved mother's mind again and again, as the doctor's heavy emphasis on his question only served to solidify her choice even more.

After being saved and brought into a military shelter made for evacuees, Anne had slowly climbed up to a higher status due to an important role she could serve- she was, after all, a doctor heavily talented in the scientific fields, that is, before the invasion had swept in and took everything she held dear.

It had been 10 years since that day she had lost her son, and now, she had become one of the certified researchers of a top-secret military program that had been made in order to win them the war against the otherworlders.

Project Jormungandr, a secretive military project that the Global Front Initiative started in order to better combat the threats that have descended upon the planet- using the numerous data they had analzyed from the few dragons that they've taken down from the enemy side, they would build their own draconic being that would not only be vastly stronger than the behemoths they were fighting, but to also serve as one of their ultimate weapons to win them the war.

The dragons, the supreme overlords of those tyrannical, purist elvish folk who have invaded earth: the lords of these creatures who possessed powers that allowed them to fiddle with aspects of the world- some had the power to control gravity and magnetism, others could command the weather and turn entire city's worth of people into their mindbroken playthings, while a few could manipulate the very concept of death itself and wreak havoc wherever they went.

Every victory that the GFI made against these monsters would cost the lives of millions of men in the process, and as such, they had started a new plan that would allow them to turn the very foundations of the power of their enemies against these creatures and their magickal cohorts.

Unfortunately, the final phases of the experiment required a human volunteer, an individual meant to serve as the vessel of the superweapon's might- an artificial dragon heart replicated by GFI scientists using fallen dragon corpses, a bodily organ that defied all laws of physics and allowed the reptilians their horrific powers over life.

"Yes. I am absolutely certain."

There was no hesitation in her voice- while Anne had at least regained part of the life she used to live, the loss of her precious child had already taken a huge part of her soul away from her. If she could have at least a small possibility of getting complete revenge against the monsters who had caused her son's death, then she would gladly take her chances, even if it meant that she would die in the end of it all.

In truth, they had already prospected and examined countless individuals for their chances of success in the experiment, a process they made in order to determine the chances of success that one had to merge with the heart and to reduce the unnecessary loss of human lives. In the end, they would determine that Anne had the single highest affinity level with the merging process- it was a solid rate of 55.5%, and when compared to the success rates of the others, Anne's was the most impressive among all of them, which made her the best, most suitable individual who could survive the transference process.

However, some of Anne's colleagues would try to persuade her to not become a volunteer, which would only lead to no avail- not only was she an important figure to several of their facilities by now, but she had also been a good friend to many of them already. They didn't want to see her die for an experiment that wasn't even completely safe in the first place.

"... L-look, Anne... You may have the highest success rate among the surveys we've gathered, but..." one of the scientists protested, his voice full of concern for the friend he had spent years with already. "... The chances of failure for you are 54.5%... You're practically playing a 50/50 gamble with your life on the line..."

"... Is that meant to be a problem?"

"Of course it is, you lunatic! If the merging process fails, you'll melt along with the heart and die a brutal death!"

"And even if the merging does succeed, what then huh?" he would continue to protest. "You become one of those monsters... You lose most of your memories, your sanity... You won't be fucking human anymore for Christ's sake!"

He had a point there, and she couldn't lie about it. It was a dangerous gamble, and even if the odds went in her favour during it all, she would become a monstrosity that could no longer be considered human- not only would she change forever, but she would turn into the very same things that had taken everything from her.

Still though, for Anne, whose only goal in life for 10 years was to seek vengeance and spite the fell creatures who have invaded their world, this was a gamble that was absolutely worth taking.

"I know. However..." she would answer. "If I have to become a monster to slay monsters, then I will gladly accept."

"... Even if I lose my life in the process."

________________________________________

[Domain Prism.]

The newly formed dragonoid had casted a spell without uttering a single word, and simultaneously, both of them were engulfed into a massive, foreign space that seemed to be a completely different space than the one they were previously in- within the domain that had encapsulated them, there was only an infinite space where the faraway lights of stars, planets, and nebulous clouds could be found all-throughout the other world.

Surprisingly however, both sides were able to speak with each other just as they could back in the real world- as fellow dragonoids, they had the ability to communicate with each other mentally without having to utter a single word from their mouths.

"... Interesting..." Anastasia told to the mutated being in front of her, as her eyes scanned the unfamiliar environment they were in- had she been a lesser form of life, she would have already died from the extremely low temperatures and the lack of air alone, though fortunately, she was an existence that was completely resistant to such mortal weaknesses.

"It's time for you to die, half breed."

[Maximize Space.]

[Stellar Burst.]

Stephan the dragonoid had casted multiple spells within a fraction of a second as multiple magick circles surrounded his body- simultaneously, the space between him and Anastasia would expand to an incalculable degree in order to prepare for the massive attack that was about to be unleashed. After only a few seconds passed, the onslaught of absolute terror would finally arrive in all its majesty.

"... Ahahaha... This is wonderful, very wonderful!"

A star would manifest close to Anastasia's location, one that would have been as big as the sun had it manifested in the real world instead- it was a spherical series of nuclear reactions that could melt the earth into raw, plasmaic substances the moment it reached a sufficient distance, and in a few moments was it quickly about to engulf the dragoness, all while the celestial body rapidly grew in size at the very speed of light itself.

"You've proven to be more interesting than I thought, knife-ear!" she would laugh again, as the intense, orange radiance of her eyes would return and begin to manifest- a sign that she was about to use her ultimate power.

[Disappear.]

The command upon reality had been set almost immediately- the star would then fade away instantly and cease to exist and expand, as if it had never come to life in the first place. In the end, not even a celestial body that was a thousand times bigger than her home planet could hope to defy her indomitable will.

However, that was, of course, not the end to her duel with the dragonoid that had trapped her into this foreign realm.

[Cosmic Blast.]

Endless rays of vast, cosmic energies would then begin to form and barrage her with their irradiating might- their very power capable of turning the very surface of the earth into an irradiated husk of a wasteland, and with such destructiveness they did hold as they struck her again and again without respite.

[Black Hole.]

It was just as what the spell's name said it was- a hole in time and space with such an immense gravitational pull, that it could pull any nearby form of matter towards itself and crush them into long, fine, thread shaped soup as they would eventually end up getting trapped inside its inescapable event horizon.

The astronomically large abnormality even managed to pull the other nearby asteroids and planetoids into its irresistible hauling force, crushing everything with its terrifying gravitational field, showing no mercy even to the smallest particles that would get captured into its deadly embrace.

And then, there was silence, not even a single word from the mental communication between both dragons- it would seem that this would finally be the end of the ancient superweapon after existing for hundreds of years in isolation: after all, Stephan was quite sure to himself there was no such organism, not even the strongest of dragons amongst the elvish pantheon, that could survive such a horrid attack.

"Heehee... Is that all?"

An impossibility had just occurred before the transcendent Stephan- his attacks had once more been nullified, as even the undefiable gravity-well maelstrom he had summoned to destroy her did not work and had instead instantly ceased to exist.

What a monster she truly was, he thought silently as he stared at what had transpired before him, completely shocked. No wonder the humans had won the war against their forces all those centuries ago: if they had managed to give life to such a monstrously powerful behemoth, then they certainly would have been more than a match for the dragons who supposedly held dominion over all.

"... W-what the-"

Defying the very concept of speed, all while ignoring the vast distance between them, Anastasia would then suddenly appear behind him, tapping his shoulder with the claw of her index finger, as she then whispered into his ear with a dangerous tone of voice.

"Going somewhere?" her voice was light and faint, but Stephan could tell that there was a creeping danger with every word she spoke. "Perhaps... Over there?"

"ARGHH!"

A terrifying blunt force would then strike his back, sending him hurtling into the cold, endless space of his own domain. He was like a meteoroid that roamed endlessly throughout the cosmos without end, as his body would not stop moving towards the direction he had been struck towards- in fact, he had already covered such a huge distance in mere milliseconds, so much so that he had reached a speed that he would normally be unable to achieve even with his own agility.

"That's not going to end with just that though, you know?"

Shockingly enough, Anastasia had managed to keep up with the speed Stephan had been propelled at, making his eyes widen in shock as he was once more left in a profound stupor- despite this, however, his body then immediately moved its arms and began to shield itself, his instincts quickly letting him know what horror was about to happen.

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!

A barrage of punches then came from her metal fists, a flurry of strikes that would come seemingly without halting. Every strike that hit Stephan had left him a bloody mess- each punch easily ignored the protection of his scales and magick, as the penetrative blunt forces that landed upon him repeatedly broke both muscle and bone and mercilessly caused him to bleed profusely.

While his incredibly fast regeneration would eventually allow him to outpace the damage he was receiving from her monstrous, physical blows, Stephan would fail to notice the massive celestial body that was gradually getting within his vicinity as his body sped uncontrollably towards its immense mass.

BOOOMM!

The impact was quite harsh, so much so that his body had instantly turned into a broken mush, only managing to survive due to his rapid capabilities for healing himself- he had crashed onto what seemed to be a moon of some nearby planet, an atmosphere-less moon whose surface was bound with rough, uneven stone formations, as its surface remained completely unprotected from the horrendous elements of space.

"Enough of this!"

By now, Stephan had had enough- he knew that he had to pour his all into his next move, otherwise he would fail and get killed by the monster that was standing on top of his broken body.

[Maximum Repel.]

Anastasia would then get pushed away by a powerful, invisible force of magick, sending her away by a great distance into the cold vacuum, giving enough time for Stephan to heal from his grievous wounds and cast a myriad of spells to lay waste upon his enemy.

This time though, he would do everything he can to assure his victory, as well as the death of that unnatural abomination that was his opponent.

"I'll put everything I have into this one!" he shouted, his draconian eyes glowed with an intense, red radiances as blood seeped like tears from his eyes in his forceful exertion of mana. "Die! False blood!"

[Maximum Spell Multiplier.]

[Greater Regeneration.]

[Maximize Protection.]

[Maximum Enhance Magick.]

[Delayed Greater Teleportation.]

[Complete Time Reversal.]

[Maximum Spell Duration.]

So much magick spells would be cast all at once, all for the sake of finally getting rid of his enemy once and for all. Time throughout the other-realm would then rewind- from the very structures of planets and stars, to the very formations of the galaxies themselves, they would all reform themselves back to their very origins and gradually return to the primeval, nebulaic dust they had once come from.

"!!!"

Everything was happening so fast, so much so that even Anastasia, in all her immense power, couldn't even see precisely what was happening to her surroundings anymore- temperatures would rise to impossibly high degrees that could disfigure the very laws that constituted the material realm, as years would go back by the millions like a film being played in reverse, all while reality itself began to shape and change due to the extreme conditions that had been reached.

And then Anastasia would finally come to a realization- she could feel a bit of shock within her for the very first time amidst the battle, as she soon saw the degree of chaotic power that was being unleashed everywhere by the transcended elf: the world was rewinding back to its very origin, with everything going back to where it had once been billions of years ago, with the 4 natural forces of the world gradually combining into one, as impossible particles that have long died out since the world's beginning began to surface into existence once more.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

"This is my farewell, oh great enemy." Stephan said with a stern, almost humorless voice. "May you not survive this final attack I have made with all my might."

The delayed teleportation spell he had casted would then begin to manifest a series of bright lights that would engulf his body, bringing him back to the real world and away from the deadly, hostile environment he had unleashed in his own realm, leaving Anastasia to die in the horrifying world where no living creature could ever hope to survive for even a millisecond's worth of existence.

"!!!!!"

________________________________________

"Grandfather! One more story please!"

"Yes! Why don't you tell of us that last one in the book you're always reading!"

"Yeah, yeah, the one about the western dragon!"

In a faraway cabin situated in the southern, seaside coasts of Xathra, a pleasant old man had been trying to put his 2 tucked grandchildren to sleep with the countless stories assorted in his bookshelves- of course, it had been several hours by now, and the curiosity of these young brats seemed to be still going strong.

"Hmm, really now, children? Would you really like to know of her tale? It may seem so outlandish to you, that you'd likely lose interest halfway..."

The children would then snicker to themselves cheekily, finding the words of their old man quite ridiculous.

"No way! Every story grandfather tells us is always true!"

"Yeah, we know it's always real! You don't have to prove it again this time!"

Hearing this, the old man would give up and sigh. "... Very well then... However... No falling asleep until the story finishes, alright?"

"We got that grandfather!" the 2 would answer in unison.

"Alright then..." he would then place his index finger between the thick pages of the book on his lap, his eyes starting from the very top of the first page as he began to read the words in a hushed voice...

...

Long ago, during the dark ages of chaos, when men and women were beset at all sides by monsters of all shapes and sizes.

Humans had lost their homes and loved ones, and had been forced to hide in the shadows for hundreds of years, hiding in the darkness to avoid being caught by these monsters of old. We were nothing more than rats scampering underneath the ground, desperately trying to survive as the lands above us were dominated by creatures that far surpassed our strength.

One day, however, this would all change with the help of 2 individuals...

A king had united the people of the underground to take back what was once theirs- their tribes rallied under one banner and marched out of their caves and towards the surface.

They took back the lands that they once lived in, slaying the monsters and beginning a new, beautiful age of wondrousness.

However, even with their impressive armies, it was not enough to drive away all of the monsters.

There were still some of the creatures who could not be defeated, no matter how much they worked together, and no matter what strategy and weapon humans used, the dark creatures simply could not be slain.

And so, the king would seek the help of another dark creature for assistance: a dragon that had remained asleep for countless centuries, a being of untold might that would allow them to vanquish the remaining dark creatures. The king had decided that if he must fight fire, then he must also use fire to defeat it in turn.

As soon as he reached the creature's den, the king did everything he could to get the dragon to help him and his people. Even if it would not work in the end, he would do everything he can to ensure that the men and women would finally have a proper place to call their home, even if it meant that he had to exchange his life.

Fortunately, the dragon was kind and understanding- seeing how determined the human king was, it would not take long for her to accept the deal that was to be made.

The human king then made a sacred pact with the dragon: she would help him with his conquests on the surface and help with slaying the fell creatures that the armies of men could not defeat... In return, the dragon took the human king as her lover, her betrothed, and her beloved.

After the deal had been made, under the leadership of the wise human king and the mighty dragon queen, mankind would finally take back all the lands that were rightfully theirs.

Peace would finally come, as the children of men could finally enjoy a beautiful life without being trapped in the cold, dark caverns of the underground where they once lived in. There were also no longer any monsters that would threaten to eat the men and women to satiate their hunger- the world finally belonged to humans again, and there were no monsters that could take it away from them once more.

However, like all good things, there was one that would eventually come to a tragic end.

His magick had corrupted his mind and soul- the king had been driven mad by his power after countless years of his reign. He would eventually become a vicious tyrant who would oppress his people in the same way that the dark creatures would once do.

His beloved wife would try to reason with him- the dragon queen, who still loved her husband with such a zealous loyalty, would try to bring him back to sanity, doing everything she could in order to restore the man she had fallen in love with back to his old, wonderful self.

However, it would not work- no matter what method she used with her power, the human king would remain a cruel, vicious tyrant who violently oppressed the people he once loved.

The final straw came when the human king had suddenly betrayed his loving wife- he had stabbed her in the chest with an arcane sword presented to him by a mysterious craftsman, one that could pierce through the dragon queen's invulnerable body and injure her heart, weakening her enough so that the armies of men could slay her with ease.

However, she would no longer have any of it: before she could be slain, she would flee, never to return, from the king's lands and hide herself within the far forests of the west, remaining in isolation for the rest of the passing centuries, as the giant wound on her chest would always remind her of the lesson she had learned that day.

She still loved the human king, but her heart had been too broken for her to consider coming back, and the great, unhealing injury that had reached her heart prevented her from using her full power as a mighty dragoness.

For hundreds of years, the beautiful dragoness would live in the den she had built, as she would grow to become vicious, hateful, and merciless towards any people from the empire who would dare to crawl into her lands- she could no longer bear the thought of being betrayed, and she would no longer let such a thing happen to her broken soul again.

This was how the western dragon came to be, a tale that not many would know due to the countless years that had passed by since then...

...

"And so the story finally concludes, children. How was it? Did you enjoy the-"

As the old man looked toward his grandchildren, he could see that they had already fallen fast asleep, as the tale had been too long, and perhaps they had fallen asleep out of boredom: that was usually how it would happen everytime he told them a story after all.

Well, not that it mattered too much, they were simply children, and there was no need for them to understand such a complex tale that was actually based on what had truly happened in history.

Now was not the time for them to fully realize this... As well as a great many other happenings that were archived as merely 'stories' within the old man's bookshelves.

"Sweet dreams, my grandchildren..." the old man would tuck his children under their blanket one more time, leaving the room as he blew out the candle for them to sleep soundly.

________________________________________

"That was... cough... Close..."

Despite still being heavily drained of his mana, Stephan stood within one of the castle's room with triumphant look, as his eyes stared firmly at the black sphere in front of him, whose black space was filled with countless formations of swarming energy that rapidly skimmed and flowed about the domain's space like wriggling, sentient forms of life- it was the domain he had summoned earlier, and he was carefully watching the chaos that was occurring within its chaotic void from the safety of the outside world.

"There's no way she could survive that..."

His last attack was the greatest form of assault he could ever hope to unleash using his abilities- he had trapped the monster inside a pocket dimension that was a direct replica of the real world. Not only that, but he had also expended most of his mana to reproduce within his domain the single deadliest event that gave birth to the real world itself- an event where a massive, powerful explosion quickly gave birth to everything that existed and caused an era of superheated space, as well as countless particles that would viciously annihilate each other out of existence.

There was no way Anastasia could survive such a deadly environment, and there was no way for her to escape from its impenetrable space either: the entire dimension was under Stephan's control due to his draconic magick, which allowed him to create his own world and do whatever he desired within its impregnable confines.

"Finally... I've won..." he laughed weakly, clutching at his chest as he felt his newly-formed dragon heart ache with such intense fury- he had used a great portion of his power, leading to the great penalty he was feeling right now- in the end though, despite the numbing pain he was already beginning to feel, the victory he had garnered was absolutely worth it.

...

...

...

Had it really been a victory though?

"... W-what in the name of...?"

A literal crack would form upon the small sphere's surface, one that ran from its very top and all the way down to its very bottom- it was as if there was an incomprehensibly powerful force trying to break out of the domain's containment, and it was appearing to do so in a gradual, yet successful manner.

No, could it be? Fear and panic began to flood his mind uncontrollably: this was impossible, completely impossible... There was no way to break through a barrier that strong, as his ultimate form of draconic magick had made sure that such a thing would be impossible.

However, as Stephan continued to deny the possibility of such a horrifying outcome, the crack on his small, spherical domain would noticeably grow larger in size.

"... W-what a fucking monster..."

CRAACKK!

The sphere would immediately split in half, as its 2 parts began to turn into ashened dust that would slowly dissipate into the air- from within the now breached confines of the once impenetrable domain of the void, his great enemy would emerge triumphantly, managing to survive everything that had been thrown at her despite the sheer power of it all.

Although, it would seem that Anastasia had not escaped completely unscathed from the deadly prison she had just been trapped into.

"... Hahaha... I have to admit..." her voice was hoarse and weak, as Stephan looked at her disfigured body with horror and began wondering how she even managed to survive. "You got me really good there... Hahaha..."

Anastasia's body was a burning mess- her once pristine, metallic armor, while still somewhat completely whole and functional, had been shattered and left with gaping holes and crevices. Her entire skin had been burned and stripped of its once fair color, and in fact, half her face had been burned off into black, charred flesh, revealing the scorched, inner parts that laid underneath her face's now missing skin.

Although, despite her grievous wounds, she was still alive and able to move and speak; she looked like a carcass that was already supposed to be dead, only being able to live due to using her power over the laws of the world. Nonetheless, she survived, and was most likely about to make quick work of Stephan and his now-weakened body.

[Restore thyself.]

Her body, though incredibly slowly, would begin to regenerate by itself in a gradual fashion: her terrible injuries would soon begin to fade away, as the broken parts and bits began to fix themselves back into proper, functional order- it would seem that everything Stephan had done would all have been for naught, as he couldn't even move to attack just yet due to having just exhausted himself moments ago.

However...

"... Cough... Cough..."

Anastasia covered her mouth as she coughed blood onto her palm, her face twisting into a sense of shock as she did so. Simultaneously, her regeneration would stop all of a sudden, leaving only three quarters worth of her body that had been healed- in truth, she had already reached her limits, with her dragon heart having been heavily strained to its upper capabilities, and now, she was completely unable to use her powers for a while.

"... Shit... I guess I'm out of power as well..."

Stephan could instantly see the opportunity in front of him: she couldn't use the dreadful power she could use to easily kill him, and now the battle would become vastly easier than before. The problem was, Stephan had also greatly exhausted his core as well- if he forced himself to use his mana once more, his heart would explode due to the combined strain, which would quickly lead to a violent and painful death.

Unfortunately, his life mattered no longer to himself anymore- he had come so far to be able to leave their great enemy in such a weak and vulnerable state... If he could use the last remaining ounces of his mana to slay her once and for all, even if it would cause him to perish today, then he would gladly do so without hesitation.

Then...

[Maximum Enhance Magick.]

[Spirit Sword.]

A red, blade-shaped manifestation of arcane mana formed on his right hand, a powerful sword which was made with the very draconic essence of his being- while such a weapon would allow him to penetrate her body, just maintaining it alone was already causing severe pains to his dragon heart.

Even still, this was all necessary to achieve victory.

"Perish!"

"!!!!!!"

He quickly charged at her motionless body, with his sword aimed at the position of where her own core was- Anastasia wouldn't be able to react in time due to still being weakened from her near-death experience within the void, and she was completely unable to avoid nor parry his final gambit as a result.

SQUELCH!

The crimson sword would go through her chest, stabbing through her dragon heart with ease as Stephan plunged the sword into her deeply. Anastasia then violently began coughing more blood uncontrollably, splattering much of it onto Stephan's face, as the right hand holding onto the blade's grip forced itself to move the weapon once more- that wasn't enough to kill her after all, and Stephan was already quickly running out of time with his last and final spell.

5 more seconds...

The blade would then inch towards her head, slowly slicing through her flesh and nearly managing to reach her neck by just a few short inches, making her scream in pain as she placed both her hands on Stephan's arm to stop it from moving any further.

2 seconds...

His heart was burning and screaming for him to stop using his mana, yet Stephan wouldn't halt with its usage- both of his hands were now gripping onto the sword, as Anastasia desperately tried to move the sword downwards in order to avoid its sharp edge from cutting into her brain matter.

1 second...

It was too late- Stephan no longer had enough time, and the searing pain in his heart was making him puke blood out from his throat too. It wouldn't take long for him to feel the aftershocks of what he had just done, as an even more violent pain seized his body and made his ichor leak from his eyes.

SPLAT!

Stephan's heart would explode from the sheer strain he had caused, instantly taking away every sign of life from his body, as his sword would then quickly dissipate, with his body instantaneously falling onto the ground completely motionless.

"..."

For a moment, Anastasia would stare mindlessly at the corpse of her dead enemy- it had been a long and grueling fight, one so terrible that even she herself had gotten severely injured in it as well.

"!!!"

She herself hadn't been left in a sufficient state either- unconsciously, her body would collapse towards the ground, her eyes closing themselves uncontrollably, as her mind slowly began to drift away and lose its consciousness... Perhaps forever...

"... I guess... I won...." she uttered weakly, before her voice trailed off into complete and total silence. "... I'm truly sorry.... My child..."

________________________________________

The rumbling of collapsing, wrecked stone had quickly driven Novus and his loyal maid to go towards the location of the sound- each of their steps were hurried and quick, both of them worried for what was happening at the sound's place of origin.

They were certain that every single one of the home invaders were dead- Whitlea herself couldn't pick up any presences lurking about within the castle, and the countless dead corpses that had piled up on every corner would only serve to solidify the fact that every single one of them had finally been dealt with.

Although, if such a thing was truly certain, then why did they hear several sounds of stone being destroyed just now? Did Anastasia discover more of them and had quickly engaged in battle to get rid of them at once?

"What the hell is happening..." Novus muttered to himself, looking around the now-destroyed corridors of the castle that were full of gaping holes and cracks where even scores of men could fit through- much to the prince's dismay, he would find nothing but the sights of dead men and ravaged architecture.

Suddenly, however, as the 2 pranced about the corridors trying to seek out Anastasia's presence, Whitlea movements would come to an abrupt, grinding halt as she looked inside one of the rooms- a look of horror and dismay quickly covered her entire face, which Novus would quickly notice as he walked towards her.

"... What's wrong? Did something happen over there?"

Whitlea would quickly cut him off, not wanting him to see the dreadful scenery her eyes had just witnessed. " I assure you, you will not like the things you will see here... Knowing this, do you still truly wish to see?"

"What do you mean?"

"... It may cause a great sense of distress within you... You don't need to see it if you-"

Novus would ignore her, his curiosity easily getting the bet of him as he gently pushed her aside- of course, as soon as he does, shock and panic began engulfing his mind, all while his mind vehemently tried to deny the very spectacle he had just seen right now.

"... Cough... Cough... Haah... You're... Here... You two..."

Novus' face would immediately darken. "Whitlea... Could you leave us for a while?"

The maid would give a slow nod, as she then began to stroll towards a faraway corner- as Novus' eyes continued to look what was in front of him, it had quickly become clear that it was a horrible sight that made his mind fall into complete disrepair: the woman who had loved him as a mother, the one who had shown him care and had loved him unconditionally, was now lying down on the ground, her body wounded with terrible injuries that cursed her with a deep, hellish pain that made her no longer able to move.

"... W-what... What happened to you?"

Anastasia gave a small smile as she spoke weakly, blood coming out of her mouth as she did so. "... One of them... Cough... Was too powerful... Cough... Luckily... I won..."

"..." Novus remained silent for a while, his heart sinking even more deeply as he saw just how deep her wounds ran. "... Is there no way to heal you? Can't you use that 'ability' you have?"

"Cough...I'm afraid... Not... Cough..."

She had been injured to seriously during the fight she had been forced into- her ability as well couldn't be used due to her core having been stabbed, and as such, there was no other outcome for her but to await the slow, creeping death that would eventually claim her.

"... Was that why you decided to split up with me earlier?" Novus asked again after a short pause- by now, he could easily tell the details. "I don't know how you could tell that there was someone strong among them, but... You shouldn't have sent me away that time, you know..."

"... You... Stupid child... Cough..." she responded. "The one... I fought... Cough... Was too strong... Cough... The one I fought... would have killed you first... Had I not... Sent you away..."

It was his fault, or so he believed. If only he had never met her, then maybe this entire thing would never have happened. Or maybe, had he not separated from her at that moment, then maybe he could have helped her to at least survive the deadly outcome of that tragic battle...

"Don't feel... Cough... Sad... Child..." she would comfort him, not wanting him to become too affected by what was about to happen. "... It's good for me... Cough... Y'know... To die for the sake of family... Cough... Cough... At least my child didn't die.. Cough... this time around..."

"... I'm sorry... I-I'm a terrible son... I-I even considered leaving this place just to explore the outside world..." he looked down as he spoke while stuttering a bit. "... I'm a disappointment... I'm really sorry for being such a-"

"Don't... Cough... Demean yourself... Like that..." she quickly interrupted him with her slow voice. "... You're not... A terrible son... Cough... Don't do that... It hurts me... Too..."

Tears would suddenly form on the dying dragoness' face, a form of sadness serving as her expression as her eyes locked onto Novus' own- she truly loved him, and while she had already accepted the fact that she was about to die here, she didn't want to see her son blaming himself for what had happened.

"... I-I have something to confess... Mother... I don't want you to die without knowing this first..." he would continue with a bit of hesitation clearly in his voice.

"... Go ahead... Cough... Dear..."

He would then take a deep breath, readying himself for what he was about to say. "I'm not at all who you... Really think I am..."

"W-when we first met... I wasn't actually a child before that..." Before she would pass away, Novus would decide to confess the truth of his entire situation: from the tragic event where he had died in his previous life, to the very moment he had been brought into this 2nd one, he would finally tell her everything.

"... I was... I was..." he would hesitate a little once more. "... I... I lived a-"

"You lived... Cough... A previous life... I know... Cough..."

Almost immediately, his eyes would widen in disbelief. "... Y-you knew...? H-how... S-since when...?"

"My child... My power... Involves shaping... Cough... Cough... Everything in front of me... As I see fit..." she explained. "... Reading your mind... Cough... Is something I could... Easily do..."

"Then why... Why did you still accept me as my son?"

Hearing this, she gave a little giggle as she began speaking slowly once more. "While I only found out... Cough... Years after I took you in... I could tell... Cough... That you were... A good man from... Cough... The very beginning... And besides..."

"What kind of loving mother... Cough.. wouldn't accept her child... For what he truly is... Cough..."

A few tears fell from his eyes as he heard her words- it was rare to see her this vulnerable, and it was rarer for him to see such a true form of love throughout both of his lives. Her words had moved him, so much so that Novus would, for the first time in many years... His eyes would become red as he began crying without stopping.

"... But... About that question... Cough... I was going to ask you earlier..." she continued- a consoling smile forming on her face as she saw his weeping. "It may seem... Trivial... Cough... But... Do you remember... Saving a... Cough... Mother... In your previous life...?"

Novus then began to recall to recall the moments in his previous life- he had indeed saved many people during the many rescue operations he had took part in, and as such, he couldn't remember most of their names... However, he could remember that there was one in particular who had gotten his interest back then.

The woman named Anne... She found him in one of those desolate corners of a city that had been leveled by the otherworlders: her child had been brutally crushed to death by a massive stone that completely squashed the boy's lower torso... Strangely, he could still remember those events happening as if they had just occurred yesterday.

".. Yeah.. That woman... She became one of those scientists who worked for the higherups..." he would finally answer after what seemed to be a few moments. "... Wait... Could it be...?"

"Yes... Cough... my child..." Anastasia replied. "... I am... That woman... Cough..."

"But how? How..."

Her coughing would begin to grow into a more violent series of wheezes, with more blood coming out of her with every word she spoke, as a painfully sorrowful expression formed on Novus' face while he reached both his hands to Anastasia's right one and began clasping onto it in a tight embrace- it had, by now, become obvious that she didn't have much time left.

"... I'm afraid... I don't have much time left... Cough... Cough..." she said weakly. "... If you... Truly wish to know... Cough... Everything... Look into my personal logs... In the computer... I won't mind... If you dig into everything... Cough... If you read everything... Then you'll finally know..."

"... Good bye then... Mother..." Novus said, the grip of his hands onto hers clasping tighter. "... Don't worry... I'll stay here until it all ends..."

With a final muster of her severely weakened strength, she would say a few more words before her body would finally shut down.

"Thank you..." she thanked, as the life in her eyes slowly began to fade away. "Farewell... Cough... My child..."

...

"Whitlea..."

With one word, she quickly ran down the hallway to return to the room, as she would then give a light bow as she spoke.

"... Is there anything you need?"

He would suddenly walk towards her and wrap his arms around her body, giving her a warm hug as he closed his eyes.

"... There, there, dear..." she then began to comfort him, her hand moving to stroke his hair gently as if he was a child. "... I understand why you feel this way... You can let it out as much as you want..."

"... I already have... But still... Thanks..." he responded, his embrace becoming slightly more taut. "... Anyway, I have something for you to do..."

"Of course, dear... What is it, hm?"

"... Get her into one of those life support pods... Now..."

Whitlea would quickly nod, gently pulling away from him as she started raising her hands while her eyes began radiating an intense, purple light- almost immediately, Anastasia's heavily injured, unconscious body would begin to levitate, as a weak, amethyst aura enveloped her entire body.

"Right away, dear." the maid would answer without a moment's delay, as she quickly got to work and get the body of one of her creators to safety.