There was a moment of pause before Seraphyra continued, her crimson eyes fixed on me as though peering into my very soul. The air in the cavern was heavy with the faint hum of ancient mana, and for a brief second, I felt as though time itself had stopped under her gaze.
"As for why I bought you here..." I just felt like to do that.
Her words lingered in the still air, deep and resonant.
I lowered my gaze, my fingers tightening around the edge of my tattered sleeve. "I wasn't brave," I muttered. "I was scared terrified even. But I couldn't just watch her fall... I just wanted to save my mother and my baby sibling inside her."
For a long while, Seraphyra said nothing. The gentle flicker of red light in her eyes dimmed as if she were reflecting on something long buried.
"I see," she murmured, her voice carrying a faint tremor of melancholy. "You have known love, then... the kind that makes even death seem small."
Her words struck me harder than I expected. Maybe it was the way she spoke patient, timeless or maybe it was simply because, in front of her, I wasn't the man I used to be. I was just a frightened child.
"I miss them," I whispered, my throat tightening.
"I know," she replied. "Your mother was heartbroken when you were taking by that man. You must not blame yourself. Rest assured, your family is alive. My divine eyes no longer reaches far beyond this place, but I can sense their life force. They live."
The relief that washed over me was almost overwhelming. My chest tightened, and I bit down on my lip to keep from crying.
"Thank God... They're alive... they're safe..." I muttered between shallow breaths.
Seraphyra's massive hand black as the void yet strangely gentle descended toward me. With a touch as soft as silk, one of her clawed fingers brushed against my head.
"Your heart is pure," she said. "Do not let despair poison it."
A deep rumble echoed through the cave as a second presence stirred. Behind Seraphyra, a colossal dragon its form cloaked in shimmering darkness opened one glowing amber eye. Its scales shimmered faintly, as if reflecting the unseen light of another world.
"My name... is Aphyra," the dragon spoke, its voice deep and resonant, vibrating through the stone floor. "I will slumber for a time. But I shall lend my strength to this ritual."
As the dragon's eyelids fell shut, the mountain trembled slightly, and Seraphyra let out a soft sigh.
"The bond between us is ancient," she explained. "Aphyra and I share one heart two forms bound by time and fate."
The rest of the day passed slowly. I spent most of it speaking with Seraphyra, occasionally foraging for the strange black roots she mentioned earlier. They looked and tasted like potatoes, though their surface glimmered faintly with traces of mana.
Despite her overwhelming power, she spoke with warmth and patience, occasionally teasing me when I stumbled over my words. It was strange comforting even.
As I nibbled on one of the roots, she glanced at me, her expression unusually serious. "Virel," she said, her tone lower. "You have a broken mana core, don't you?"
I froze mid-bite. "...Yes," I admitted quietly. "Since I was born. The doctors said it couldn't be fixed. I can feel mana, but every time I try to use it... it hurts. It's like fire tearing through my chest."
She nodded slowly, her four horns catching faint streaks of light. "I see. A fractured core, yet it still beats faintly within you... It is rare for one so young to endure such pain."
Her gaze softened. "Do you wish for me to mend it?"
My eyes widened. "You... you can fix it?"
Seraphyra chuckled a low, melodic sound that seemed to echo endlessly. "Fix? No. Restore? Perhaps. But it will hurt, Virel. You will feel as though the very essence of your soul is being torn apart."
I swallowed hard but nodded. "I can endure it. If it means I can stand again... if I can be strong enough to protect those I love."
"Such resolve," she murmured approvingly. "Then bear it well."
She extended her hand, her palm glowing with threads of white light that twisted and pulsed like veins of living energy.
When her finger touched my abdomen, pain exploded through me.
"AAAHHHH!"
It was as if a thousand needles were driving into my stomach all at once. I clawed at the ground, gasping for air, my vision blurring as white light filled the cavern. The sensation of something foreign entering my body a substance alive, writhing made me convulse violently.
"I was under the impression," Seraphyra's voice echoed calmly through the haze, "that among humans, awakening came only after the age of ten. Yet here you are, a mere child, already forming your core."
My body arched backward, a strangled cry escaping my throat. "It... hurts... it hurts so much!"
"Endure it," she said gently, though her tone carried undeniable command. "Bear it just a little longer, child. Aphyra now."
The dragon behind her stirred again, its eyes glowing bright gold. A wave of divine pressure filled the air as the great beast opened its jaws. From its mouth flowed a torrent of silvery energy pure mana condensed into liquid form.
The power merged with Seraphyra's light, flowing into me in a spiraling rush. My veins felt as though they were bursting open, my vision going white.
"AAAHHHH!"
"AAAHHHH!"
My scream echoed through the cavern.
Then... silence.
The burning slowly faded. I felt something flicker deep inside me small, fragile, but alive. The shattered pieces of my mana core pulsed faintly, as if they had been patched together by invisible threads.
When I finally opened my eyes, Seraphyra's expression was unreadable. Her crimson gaze lingered on me with quiet satisfaction.
"It is done," she said softly. "Your core will never be perfect, but it will live. It will grow stronger, as will you."
I collapsed, my breaths shallow, sweat dripping down my forehead. "I... I can feel it... the pain is gone..."
"Good," Seraphyra said, her voice softening. "Rest, Virel Ludin. You have endured what most grown men could not."
Her words faded as my consciousness began to blur again. The last thing I saw before sleep claimed me was the faint glow of her eyes red and warm, watching over me.