"That's a lot of dragons." John muttered under his breath, sight-seeing his surroundings.
There were dragons, dozens of them surrounding him.
Scattered across the skies, laying over the mountains surrounding the flourishing valley or near the crystal clear lake nestled in the center of it.
They were all here, living their lives, peacefully…
Bang!
ROAR!
…or at least most were.
Just ahead of the young man, two dragons were fighting, brawling between them.
They were entangled, rolling on the grass and ground, their movements sending stones and gravel flying everywhere.
After one dragon successfully slashed at the other, separating them, the other reacted by attempting a tail-sweep, the force behind the movement cutting sharply the air.
Looking at the side, John just amusedly looked at the tail reaching before his eyes.
Whoosh!
The tail passed through him, completely ignoring his existence.
"Well, it's a memory." John said with finality, not surprised this wouldn't affect him.
He was surrounded by nearly a hundred dragons, but his existence was ignored the whole time, as if he didn't exist here. And technically, he really didn't.
This was a memory, a remembrance of the dragon's past, a time he did not even exist or was presented.
Right now, he was here as an outer existence. An spectator.
Scratching the back of his ear, John ignored the dragon's fighting and moved around, setting out to have a better view of the valley.
And if he should comment about the visage, mythical beauty would be a fitting complement for the landscape.
The mountains surrounding the crystal lake and its branches.
The chores, filled with dragons with their lowered, tasting the seemingly fresh cold water and the looking juicy fishes swimming on it.
Dragons as small as wolves, but carrying the air of immature youthfulness, accompanied the adults of their species wherever they went, looking around at the world and admiring the sky that one day would be theirs to roam.
But as any young being, they were playful as well.
Crouching down near a small group retreating from the lake, John curiously observed the actions of one of the dragonlings. The scene unfolding before him the apparent sight of a child pestering their parents.
It climbed on their backs, using the still weak strength they could produce by clapping their wings to reach such height.
Up there, they constantly jumped on their back. The lack of a rhythm resembling a sluggish dance. As if it didn't practice enough of the dance.
When tired of these actions, it would walk over the back and neck of its parent, stepping on their scales and hanging around their necks, making small threatening sounds near the dragon's hearing organs. Or, at least, it attempted to sound threatening.
Throughout all this pestering, the adults just amusedly observed the infant, not acting out to stop it from doing as it wishes.
"It seems peaceful…" Was John's exact words before a shadow cast over him, taking sometime before the sunlight returned to shine over him.
Looking up, John observed as half a dozen dragons set flight at what he thought to be east. What he presumed from the sun's location and time.
They quickly disappeared behind the peaks casted over around, the mountain chain doing perfect to hide the horizon from him.
Just to be sure. John thought, lifting the restrictions on his empathic abilities.
And what he felt confirmed it.
A feeling of serenity and calmness seemed to be latched onto every part of this place. But deeper.
The place brought a very specific feeling. Deeper, yet simpler.
Home… this place feels like home. That was the feeling and immediate thought that rose in the young man's mind.
That gentle and warm embrace that welcomed you everyday. The sentiment of reconnection by simply traversing a door.
Your fortress of comfort and happiness, where you felt the world's problems just melted away and you know you could just relax and feel at ease.
This was the feeling this place gave off.
It feels like I returned to my old room. John thought. Melancholy spreading through him by the reminiscence.
Looking at the family of dragons again, he took a deep breath. I wonder what they are doing now. He pondered briefly, longing surfacing on his expression.
One he tried to dismiss forcedly right after it appeared. There is no point in thinking of that now. Knowing they are fine is enough. John shook his head, an unnecessary act to help get rid of thoughts nowadays. But habits die hard.
Shutting down his empathic abilities once more, the young man retreated from the chores of the lake, heading towards one of the mountain peaks he had been eyeing for a while now.
Although the walk was revealing for the eyes of the boy, it was strange as well for him.
Walking over gravel and not hearing the crunch of the stones or not feeling the air brushing his skin got him quite uncomfortable.
After getting accustomed to sensing everything around him, mainly in response to his actions, the lack of these small things made him uneasy.
I wonder if this is the feeling someone gets if they don't "belong" to the world. A fleeting thought passed through the young man's mind. But he didn't elaborate much on it.
At the end of his walk, reaching the base of the mountain, John looked upwards before jumping up, ascending through the air.
It took him only a moment to go beyond the top of the mountain, when the strength for his jump started to fade and he began to fall, only for him to land perfectly at the pinnacle of the rocky mountain.
And on this peak, he wasn't alone.
Alongside him, standing on the summit of this peak was a dragon sat back on its haunches, its forelimbs planted firmly on the ground, its head high, but its gaze locked low.
Crimson serene eyes swept over the entire valley, taking on the view entirely, observing the whole visage given to her.
And when taking on the sight, it seemed satisfaction and happiness welcomed her being.
"Yeah, that's definitely her." Although a certain distance separated both, John had no doubt who this dragon was.
He just wished for proximity to ensure. But now, with mere few meters separating them, he was sure of it.
This was a perfect reflection of the being laying outside, the owner of this memory.
The black dragon sent by Malivore.
"For how long do you intend to ignore me?" John bluntly asked the dragon. Who seemed to ignore his existence as any other entity here.
However, this dragon was different from the others. After all, the one ahead of him was the owner of this entire reflection of the world.
The itch he felt on the back of his head, the constant feeling of a presence locked on him. There was only a single possibility for these sensations to reach him in this situation he found himself him.
"Young one…" A deep voice reverberated through the area, seemingly coming from everywhere.
And the dragon, who seemed to be only appreciating the sight, slowly turned to face the small creature before it.
"Hello." John greeted back, having to look up a little due to the difference in their size. "Since when have you been so conscious?"
"From the moment thou didst trespass upon the chambers of my mind. It seems clear thou wert not so versed in this art."
"Sorry. It was the only way for me to learn something about what we are dealing with." John said, his words carrying both truth and lies.
"I can well imagine. This one is not unaware of the gaze thou hast drawn upon thyself—nor of the irr thou hast stirred." The beast moved, once again facing the valley, but its gaze held high, cast at the horizon. "It is for this reason alone that thy presence is suffer'd in this place. For this cause wast thou granted to glimpse this memory of mine. Or didst thou imagine the memory granted thee was not of mine deliberation?"
"What do you-" The opportunity for his words to continue was not granted to the boy, as the sky above him abruptly darkened despite the sun approaching its zenith.
He was not the only to notice, as the dozens of existences across the valley took sight of it as well, even the young ones.
ROAR!
From beyond the mountains at the east, a dragon surged up, approaching the valley.
But it wasn't flying, not on its own at least.
It seemed to have been thrown, as the body arched through the air and started to fall at the lake.
And when it hit the surface of the water, the impact caused the water to reach high heights before falling as droplets and waves to spread through the entire lake, the water consuming the chores.
The dragons, alongside the young man, eyed the beast that had fallen upon the lake with different emotions.
John displayed curiosity and surprise in his eyes, wondering what was happening.
The dragons, though equally wondering what was happening, and equally surprised, were cautious and tense at the sight of one of their brethren falling from beyond the mountains.
And to satiate their curiosity, the answer for their still forming questions appeared.
BOOM!
"Holy shit…" Were the only ones that escaped John's lips when looking up at the mountain once again.
Because right over it, a hand took hold of the entire peak. A hand of mud and pitch black darkness.
BOOM!
And another surged behind the mountains, taking hold of another mountain top. Using both alps to push itself above the natural barrier built around the valley.
The owner of those hands appeared, showing its deformed face, glancing down at the valley.
And when this made its full appearance, John, who had already guessed the entity, could only unconsciously curse under his breath.
"Tá de putaria com minha cara…" (You are fucking with me…) He muttered, his eyes fixed on the symbol above the entity's deformed face.
ROAR!
"Urgh!" Out of reaction, the young man blocked his ears with his hands, the deafening and booming roar coming from the mud creature disorienting him.
And not only, the dragon's over the valley suffered the same, with the dragonlings whining as they fell down on the ground.
But among the dragons, some were capable of forcing themselves out of the stupor and taking action.
ROAR!
ROAR!
The dragons answered in kind, their roars of rage filling the skies as most of their numbers shot through the air, the mere flap of their wings stirring the winds and blowing the grass beneath them.
And a grandiose scene that was…
Dozens of dragons, creatures from myths and legends, flying all together. The shadows of their wings darkened the valleys below.
And the clouds of flames they breathed at the titan of mud dispersed any darkness lurking near them.
The giant, which had successfully pulled itself up the mountain barrier, was engulfed completely by the torrents of flames, basically hiding its existence behind a veil of fire.
A fire so great that started to burn the vegetation around as well, quickly turning the paradise scenery into a hellish one. As no green was left by the fire, only scorched rocks, dry earth and burned trees and bushes.
However…
Whoosh!
A hand came from the torrent of flames, breaking away unscathed, with just small tails of smoke coming from it.
It was impressive. A hand, carrying that size, moving so swiftly and quickly in the air.
And even more impressive when it morphed into a claw and took hold of one of the dragons in the sky.
ROAR!
The dragon, feeling the hold over its body desperately tried to free itself, breathing a huge pillar of fire at the giant. But the attack was ignored, rendered useless.
Whoosh!
Claws seemed ineffective as well, as the mud slashed apart just quickly mended back into a 'normal' arm…
An arm that started to consume the dragon… an action that took every dragon by surprise.
Surprise that barely lasted, but long enough for the giant to push the dragon into its torso, accelerating the consumption process.
Whoosh!
That's when John sensed something happening nearby him.
A shadow shot through the skies, a dragon. The same dragon that was standing by his side a moment ago shot through the sky.
So, how was she still there observing?
"Thou must be imagining what arth the scenes unfolding before us." She asked, her voice coming from everywhere.
"Yes." John nodded, looking at the self-image of the dragon he was talking to fly into the distance, attempting to help the dragon that was about to disappear from the world.
"This day… I witnessed mine brethren and myself drown in darkness."
ROAR…
In the distance, the sound of the dragon's roar scattered through the wind as the mighty creature disappeared into the giant. Its existence slowly fading into nothingness.
Strange… shouldn't it technically forget the existence of that dragon since it was consumed? John thought curiously, his eyes not leaving the dragons.
The creatures, for a split moment, entered into a frenzy for witnessing the "death" of one of their own. However, just as quickly as their anger seemed to be brewing a storm ahead, their eyes flickered with uncertainty.
"Thou must be thinking what didt happen."
"Sure I am. Why do they look… confused?" John asked, feigning ignorance regarding this part.
"In that very moment, I pondered the same. Yet the answer came to me only as I soon met the fate of my kin." The dragon said solemnly, her voice holding firm as she witnessed the scene. "We were being forgotten."
Following that dragon's fate, another one was consumed. And another, and another… until it was her time.
She witnessed dozens of her kind simply disappearing into the giant, with confusion brewing on her face as the dragon didn't know at certain moments why her anger flared up so intensely.
And as the dragon herself said, the answer came when she followed her brethren's fate.
And at that moment, everything around John turned into complete darkness.
The same darkness from when he entered this mind.
"Question." John raised his hand. "If that was a memory, and as far as I know your senses work to provide you a first-person point of view, how did we see everything from that perspective?" He said, not bothering to change his words for a better understanding of the dragon.
The benefits of holding a conversation into a mind. Alongside the words spelled, the intents and understanding of the one who said them would be carried onto, sharing with the other what they wished to say in the communication.
Technically, even words were needless in such a conversation. Intents alone would be enough. However, both beings seemed to be more comfortable at the way they currently talked.
"I hath been reminiscing of that day for so long. Held to it to stay conscious. Molded it, changed it to turn into that."
An altered memory. John thought.
"Can thou help me, young one?"
"That depends." John asked, not immediately declining.
"At the time of my kin's fall, I remember humans near my home referring to that period of time as Anno Domini MLXXXV. I wish to know, if possible, how long has passed since?"
1085… Almost a millennium. "I can assume that you are familiar with humanity's understanding of time and how it is numerated, correct?"
"This one is aware."
"Almost 10 centuries have passed since that year. We are in the year 2030." John readily declared, not prolonging the answer.
His reply came with silence.
With just some sentiments surfacing on the dragon's expression.
She seemed to be… contemplating.
I guess it's time to finally 'get' my answers. "May I ask something now?"
"I possibly must hath assumed your question, but go forth."
"Outside, your kin, what we call dragons, were never but mythical beings. Not existing beyond legends and tales. And we have beings existing for more than a millenia who can prove that. But here we are, a dragon, who apparently was present at the same time as said being was alive. How is that possible? For a being with no apparent proof of its existence but myths and tales to stand before me?"
The answer, though not unexpected, was swiftly delivered.
"Thou must hath noticed my and mine kin's confusion when our first was consumed by the mud creature." The words were replied by a nod of the young man. "The reason for that is, at that instant, we didn't know why of us get so furious. A fury of losing someone dear confused us. Why… we didn't know we lost some of our kin."
"What? What do you mean?" John said, feigning perfect confusion. If traveling across worlds gets boring, I will go work at Theaters. I am too good at this.
"Everything came clear once I was consumed by it." The dragon said, turning its head forward, away from John. Now, in the darkness they were, stood a copy of the mud giant.
"It took time for this idea to spring. Unfortunately, though I felt mine kin nearby, I couldn't communicate. I couldn't talk or listen to them, my senses dulled. I only had myself there. And through thy words, I am more certain of mine idea." She paused between words, some solemnity passing through her eyes. "This monstrosity, by consuming us, apparently also erased our existence from this world's denizens."
"It made everyone forget your existences?" John asked, seeking assurance.
"In simplest terms." She nodded slowly. "However, through the means it accomplishes this action, it seems to lose the effect for those imprisoned by him. As soon as I was consumed into that darkness…" For a moment, John observed the dragoness shrugging for a second. "Everything became clear. Why of the anger. Why of the sadness. Why of my mind feel blank for a moment."
"I see. It erases you, as an individual, from everyone's mind." John contemplatively said, paying attention to the dragon's words. This should be enough to proceed.
"I think… It is what I presumed as well." With words hanging in the air, the dragon turned to face the young man.
"But you are now out of that." John pointed at the giant. "This means that whatever means it used to make you forget those consumed, was undone once you were consumed as well. And the effect is maintained even when you were released." The dragon nodded in affirmation. These are some interesting changes. John silently pondered.
Malivore still erases the existence of the entity it consumed from every being's memories, but it seems to restore them once consumed. And even when 'free', the memories are still retained. Fascinating. "If you don't mind, I have certain questions for you."
"As do I have for you."
Following the dragon's words, the darkness and giant surrounding them vanished. Replaced by the same paradisiacal scenery from the previous memory.
The difference was the lack of any presence but the dragon and the boy.
"What thou wish to know?" The dragon asked, straightforwardly.
Not like I wished to do some small talk as well. John thought. Let's make this a proper Q&A. Create a source for all the knowledge I already have and learn if there is any other discrepancy in this world from the one I know.
"Let's start with the big question. What was that giant?"
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Hello, everyone. I wanted to say I am sorry for not posting a chapter last week and for delivering one with not so many words this time. Things are too agitated in my life, and even though I love to write, there are certain things I have to prioritize since this is a hobby of mine and something to relax. If I take a while to post, it's not because I dropped it. Believe, there are days that I write 1K to 1.5K words, but there are also days I write only 100 words but I write nonetheless. Depends on things. Anyway, just wanted to say it here. Hope you all enjoy this chapter and has been enjoying this beginning. I have already thought of the final act of this first arc. I think you will quite like it.
Thanks for your support - Author