Time felt as if it stood still; though it seemed like months had passed, it felt like I arrived only yesterday in this so-called "afterlife."

The place was devoid of color and life, a stark, empty hall with a throne at one end and a massive, immovable gate at the other. Tall pillars lined the sides, and at their bases were statues of penitent men, their faces turned heavenward toward a painted ceiling. The sculptures were disturbingly lifelike as if real people had been petrified in place.

Much of my time was spent listening to Valerian, the Heavenly Dragon, ramble on about the age of dragons, which he claimed was the only time Eldoria was truly praiseworthy. He never missed an opportunity to belittle the mortal races, particularly the elves.

“Let me tell you, those creatures are the worst thing I ever created! What was I thinking?” he exclaimed furiously, lounging on the throne with his legs draped over the armrest.

“Who are you complaining about now?” I asked, resigned.

“The elves, of course! They've caused all the wars in history; when they lose, they blame everyone else for their mistakes! And then, do you know what they do?” he asked.

“No,” I sighed.

“They play the victims! Who does that?”

“I don't know, and I don't care.”

“During peace talks, they act like they're the moral center of the universe, even though they started the bloody wars! Do you know what they are?” he asked, yet again.

“What?”

“Assholes! Pointy-eared assholes! They're filthy and nasty! Do you know they marry within their families to keep their blood pure? Bunch of abominations!”

I knew he was racist, but not to this extent.

“If you were alive and married an elven girl—or a man, I don't judge—I would have found a way out of this prison and killed you myself,” he warned.

Judging by his face, he was serious. Each moment spent with him revealed just how unstable he was. It seemed that all the time he had spent locked here alone had driven him mad. One minute he would laugh and jest, the next he would scream about elves or avians, then cry about how he missed the dragons, and finally curse my existence because I resembled him.

Fortunately, we did not get tired in this dimension, because I wasn't sure I could close my eyes with him in the same room.

Time dragged on, blending into an indistinguishable haze. I eventually lost track of how long I had been imprisoned in this afterlife, but I did gain a valuable skill: the ability to feign listening to the Heavenly Dragon while tuning out his endless monologues. I learned to respond with simple, vague questions, giving him the illusion of a conversation partner while effectively allowing him to talk to himself. This tactic was essential for maintaining my sanity.

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“What if I told you we could leave this place?” he asked one day.

“What if we could?” I replied absently, not fully grasping his question.

“We’d be free, of course!”

“We would, wouldn’t we?”

“Yes, we would. Are you even listening to me?” he demanded suspiciously.

“Of course I am. Are you?”

A loud thud echoed through the hall as he slammed his fist on the throne, snapping me back to attention.

“When I speak, you listen,” he growled in a low tone.

“You have my undivided attention, Heavenly Dragon,” I replied, sarcasm lacing my words.

“Very well then!” he chirped, his mood shifting rapidly from fury to a disturbing cheerfulness. “I may have withheld some information from you.”

“Shocking! The only time you tell the truth is when you want something. So, what does your lordship desire now?”

“First of all, your attitude is not appreciated. Second, that is not true! I tell the truth... sometimes.”

“And what do you have to tell me now?”

“I’m so glad you asked! You see, after I created mortal civilization—”

“Which you still haven’t explained how you did,” I interrupted.

“Don’t interrupt me! And that’s of little importance now. I meant to say that after I created those vermin, my time was running out. Since I wasn’t immortal anymore, I was about to die.”

“Let me guess: as your life slipped away, you felt true terror and did something incredibly stupid, didn’t you?” I interrupted again. This time, instead of a witty retort, there was only silence.

The silence stretched on, and for once, the Heavenly Dragon seemed at a loss for words.

"I was afraid," he finally confessed, breaking the silence. "I was terrified of dying alone. My family was gone, and the mortals I created were supposed to fill the void left by their departure. But no matter how much I tried, that void only grew larger and more hollow. There was even a time when I thought I had fallen in love. Emotions are complicated, dear Valerian; sometimes you don’t understand what you feel until it’s too late. While other mortals were mere puppets and toys for my amusement, meant to fill the emptiness left by my family, I genuinely cared for her. And then they took her from me,” he said softly, reminiscing.

"What happened then?" I asked.

"She died, and with her, all my love for the mortal race died too. I brought them wars and plagues, determined to exterminate them like the vermin they were. It wasn't out of revenge or hatred; they were a mistake born from my moment of weakness. That weakness hindered my true purpose. When my life was nearing its end, I leaned on that weakness once more. I usurped the throne of the King of the Abyss and became immortal again," he revealed.

"You did what?" I asked, my eyes widening in shock.

"I needed more time to bring the dragons back to their home, so I seized the first opportunity that granted me that, though at a heavy price. To truly rule over the Abyss, one must part with their humanity and become a true demon. So, I sealed away the weakness that had slowed me down all my life and became the monster the world needed me to be. I sealed you away—you were my weakness," he said, his crimson eyes burning with hatred.

"You sealed me away? Explain," I demanded.

"When I said you and I are the same, it wasn't a figure of speech; it was the truth. You are my humanity personified in blood and flesh. You embody everything that made me good, and I embody everything that makes you evil. There is no me without you, and no you without me; we are the same. We are Valerian."