2199 True Love (Part 1)
'Let's see if this works.' Lith shapeshifted into his Voidfeather Dragon form, hiding the Abomination side behind the bright violet light of the stars that formed the constellation of the Divine Beast's life force.
Without the Void, the black souls had no way to access the Chaos necessary to turn into Abominations, and with the gate closed, their numbers couldn't increase any longer.
To make matters worse for them, unlike the Tiamat form, every single scale that covered the body of the Voidfeather Dragon bore a rune on its surface, not just his feathers.
The red scales burned with the power of the Cursed Elements and drew the souls inside, trapping them.
'How do we escape?' Lith was dead tired.
Pulling the Void in had saved his life force from harm but had drained most of his energy. He could barely keep his eyes open, let alone stand.
'Good question.' For once, Kalla felt no need to babble. 'We can't Warp away due to the compressed space. Vladion, what about your bond with Baba Yaga?'
'It's still there. I can feel my mother but not even she can open a Gate from such a distance while under such a powerful array. We need to get away as soon-'
The Eyes marked the 100% completion so Lith grabbed the others with his arms and charged at the window.
'It's soon o'clock. Turn into a human or you'll turn into dandruff.' Lith knew that despite it looked like glass, the panoramic wall was still a part of the Golden Griffon.
He took a deep breath, letting the violet light of the Origin Flames burst from in between the scales on his chest as it rose up his neck and mouth.
Then, something weird happened.
The Cursed Flames burning inside his scales and the power stored in their runes joined the violet light, turning it into a silvery color.
What came out of the Voidfeather Dragon's mouth was a blast of silver fire that vaporized the enchanted wall and pierced through the complex array system surrounding the Golden Griffon.
The silver flames remained focused for almost a kilometer and moved as fast as a bullet before disappearing.
'Isn't that similar to what Protheus did earlier?' Solus deeply regretted being looking in front of her with the Eyes instead of at Lith and so did Kalla.
'No time for questions, our ride is here!' Vladion said as a Gate appeared and disappeared along with them so fast that they seemed to have vanished into thin air.
The Firstborn had never stopped calling the Red Mother and the moment the Dread Flames had punctured the barrier, she had come to the rescue.
"My baby! What have they done to you? Are you alright?" Baba Yaga was in her Mother form as she checked Vladion's chest, arms, and face for injuries in a way that reminded Lith and Solus of Elina.
"I'm better than fine, Mom." Vladion replied while Baba Yaga shared with him a small spark of her life force.
She was the one who had turned him into a Vampire so her essence worked better than any breathing technique, bringing his body and core back to their prime.
"We've done it. We have completed our mission and escaped the Golden Griffon in one piece."
"Speak for yourself, you moron." Solus used her breathing technique to check on Lith's condition who was still in his Dragon form. "Malyshka, can you please check on Lith as well? He pulled some crazy shit that might have shortened his life span."
Hearing that name brought Baba Yaga back to her Maiden form before using Sun and Moon to assess the damage to Lith's life force.
"Wait, you two know each other? Mom, why did you never men-"
"Shut the fuck up!" The Maiden, Solus, and even Kalla said in unison.
Baba Yaga made her breathing technique explore every single component of Lith's life force from head to talon before giving her diagnosis.
"Lith is fine. He just needs rest, like you."
"Thank the gods!" Solus left her equipment outside to let their power cores recover and slipped back into the stone ring.
"Well done, Scourge." Kalla gently patted his scaly back. "Now we only need to arrange our discoveries in blueprints and the days of the Golden Griffon will be numbered."
The enthusiasm in Baba Yaga's hut wasn't shared by the people left in the Headmaster's office.
"What's wrong with him? Why is he still like that?" Thrud asked while pointing at the still-open wound in Jormun's chest.
"Because, my Queen, you ordered me to never affect your spouse with the Unwavering Loyalty array ever again. The slave and the immortality spell are two sides of the same coin. You can't have one without the other." The Headmaster had a hard time keeping the edge off his voice.
He hated being accused of incompetence, but he was a slave as well and he couldn't defy Arthan's orders or Thrud's.
"Then you have my permission! Do anything you can to save him!"
"I've already started using the Unwavering Loyalty array the moment Lord Jormun got injured since the emergency protocols state that protecting the lives of the members of the Royal family supersede all other orders." Hystar said.
"Then why is he dying?" Thrud's voice broke, incapable of holding her tears any longer. She could see with Life Vision Jormun's life and mana core slipping away
"Because it takes ours to etch the necessary runes on the life force of a human, let alone a Dragon. Not to mention that not even the offspring of Leegaain can survive with their heart pierced. When I managed to regenerate it, his mana core was already broken." Hystar replied.
"Are you telling me there's nothing you can do?" Rage replaced her pain as she lifted the Headmaster by the neck with one hand.
"Exactly, Your Majesty." Hystar remained limp, ashamed by his own failure as Arthan's orders prescribed.
"Please, don't waste what little time we have left." Jormun wheezed, feeling weaker by the second. "Bring Valeron here so that we can be together one last time."
Ophya and Vyla, the two handmaidens that they had rescued from Syrook's lair had stood guard over the child while his father and the Forgotten had gone taking care of the intruders.
They came immediately and of their own will since Jormun had wanted to spare them from the effects of the Unwavering Loyalty as well.
"Please, don't leave me." Thrud fell onto her knees and held his hand against her heart. "I've waited for you for over 700 years. Until the moment you appeared at my door, I had been surviving like a wounded wolf.
"I spent my days licking my wounds and worrying more about the past than the future. I've only started living for a few years. You gave me my life back. You gave me a future to look for. You gave me a child.
"How am I supposed to live without the only person who doesn't make me feel like the monster I know I am?"
"You'll find a way." He brushed his fingers against her cheek, wiping away the tears just for new ones to streak down her face. "Please, reconsider my father's offer."
