Theo waggled her finger and a brilliant stream of green fire shot out, and instantly began consuming all the black ichor. A strange gray smoke radiated from the burning gore, and the fire pushed outward consuming every piece of organic material in its path.

“Theo, what is that spell?” I asked as I watched the fire spread down the hallway, casting an ominous green light that consumed everything it touched.

“The Flames of Apep. It’s a high tier spell that will burn only what I want it to. In this case, it will burn the imps and clean the ground so her grace will not sully her feet.” Her voice stayed monotonous, and she flourished her blades for a second as she stared at the waves of fire that were spreading.

Ichor coated in green fire dripped from the ceiling, and ash danced on the wind currents caused by the gusts of heat. Much to my shock, as I stared at my bodyguard, I could see the faintest outline of a snake coiled around her, gazing at the carnage it had wrought.

“Tell me about Apep.” I told her as I stepped forward. The green flames parted before my steps, and it took the ashes with it, as if it refused to let them touch me.

“Apep was the King of the Basilisk. He was a powerful creature in life, and even in death, he still serves me.” Her voice came out in a chilly wave, and I could detect a faint hiss underlying it.

My eyes widened, as I almost took a step back. A pressure fell onto my shoulders and tried to press me down into the ground. The snake that coiled around Theo turned its attention to me, its blood-red eyes stared into the depths of my being. In the ash-ridden air, I could hear the faintest of whispers. ‘Bow’, it called out to me.

“I bow before no one.” I whispered out to the snake. My legs shook from the stress, and I locked my knees to stop from falling over. This was a test in the snake’s eyes. The sheer strength it was exerting unlocked a memory of the first time this had happened.

My heart skipped a beat as I defied the godly power that crashed into me. Apep was the lord of snakes, and the King of Basilisk. A being that saw strength and power as the only right in this world. Much like what my ancestor's spirit did. I swallowed the saliva that built up in my mouth and faced the beast with my head held high. I wouldn’t bow before the snake, now, or ever.

A hiss of laughter filled the air as the power faded as quickly as it came. “Hello once more, descendant of Midir.” The red eyes gazed at me for a moment longer before it turned its head back towards the hallway.

I lurched forward slightly as I tried to find my balance. What a pain. Who does that snake even think he is? Irritation exploded in my chest as I stared at its translucent scaled back side. I’ll flay that creature next time it dares show me that level of disrespect. Thoughts and feelings that I knew were not truly mine paraded around my mind. But this time, I knew what they were. These were the lingering feelings of Midir.

All it took was a name, and I knew who he was. He was the progenitor of Asteria, and by all rights, my distant ancestor. By extension, he was also the creator of one technique I inherited. More pieces fell into place, and a feeling of relief washed away the feelings of inadequacy I had felt. I would be strong again, no matter what it took. I cleared my throat and followed behind Theo again, choosing to ignore what had just transpired. Instead, there were other pressing matters to attend to.

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“It would seem that the commander isn’t in the best of moods today.” After Theo spoke, the sound of crackling flame filled the air once more.

“What makes you say that?” I stepped over an obnoxiously large burning imp, pleasantly surprised at how the ground wasn’t all that hot. If anything, it was warm enough to be comfortable. Well, as comfortable as comfortable can be when walking over the corpses of monsters.

“They were crushed and torn apart by his aura. That only happens when he loses control over his emotions.” She eyed the ground for a moment before continuing to saunter forward with a dancer’s grace.

In a flash, the conversation we had some time ago appeared in my mind. They must be lashing out. More than likely, the three of them are suffering as they try to work through their emotions. Maybe the best option is to speak to them afterwards to reel them back in, even slightly. It’s just a matter of how without offend them. “I understand. When we get to the throne room, I will speak to them.”

"Do as you may, your grace. I will support you no matter what.” The green flames reached up and licked the armor plating of Theodora’s legs and wrapped around her like twisted vines.

I hummed out an agreement and crossed my arms. It should be something that needs to be taken care of as soon as possible. If we were going to get out of this alive, I needed to put my foot down and really reel them in. But I’ll cross that bridge when I get there. After all, we still had quite some time before we arrived.

A few hours later:

The green flame still burned ahead of us. The hundreds of corpses that had littered the halls were burning, each like a torch that lit the night. I was becoming angrier the longer we walked. How dare these creatures inhabit my halls? Even if personally they weren't mine, they still belonged to half of me.

But it also begged the question, where did the imps even come from? Kharon said he brought me from the throne room, but with the sheer amount of corpses here, there was no way that I was just left on the ground to the throne room. That was a question I’m not sure there is a straightforward answer to, though. A conversation for another day, I suppose.

All it took was just a few more minutes before we came into a large hallway. No, large wasn’t the right word. It was grandiose beyond belief. Large arches line the hallway at set intervals, and descending from them were chandeliers that had long since been extinguished. Portraits that no doubt overlooked the hallway were destroyed, and only the faintest outline of them remained.

The carpet was torn and soaked in so much blood that it was near impossible to tell what color that it used to be. But the most immediate feature that caught my eye was the extensive set of double doors that overlooked the grandiose hallway.

Each was a large slab of gray metal and held a mirror image of a dragon on each side. Its claws reached out towards each other, separated by a gap of empty air. Its violet eyes twinkled in the spreading green flames that rapidly consumed all available flesh of the long dead imps. Ash floated upwards and danced on the air currents, further shrouding the mystical figure.

I stood there for a moment, fully entranced by its beauty. Each scale on the door was master crafted, giving it an almost realistic appearance, as if scales truly made up the most of the door. The bottom portion of the wings reached down and rose from the surface like a set of large door handles.

The dragon motifs were a big deal around here, though that is because this started off as my ancestors' kingdom. Though I can’t say I was all that concerned about it. I was still a different person, after all. That did mean that I needed to commune with him at some point. Any small boost to my cultivation would be a big deal in the long term for me.

I stepped over another burning corpse and strode towards the doors to my throne room. My heart beat heavily in my chest as a small kernel of anxiety creeped into my chest. I was going to take the mantle of empress, yet unknown to them, a goddess. My biggest fear would be letting them down at the end though. I really hope it doesn't come to that.