Tecnomagic Engineer

That night, once again... once again, I had lost another piece of my soul. My soul, which was slowly recovering, darkened again. But this time, perhaps even more than the first time, when I saw my mother still alive, bleeding, by the river for the last time. Maybe because, deep down, I always knew that, on that day, by the river, there was nothing more I could do. Maybe because, deep down, I knew I had done everything I could, even though, outwardly, I said I could have done much more.

However, that night, inside that cave, the situation was different. I had left for just a few minutes to go to the forest. And as quickly as I went, I returned. That small moment, that almost insignificant instant, was enough for me to lose something so important to me again. Even having the means to protect that mother dragon.

I was already tired of all that, exhausted. I was basically a walking shell, but no longer carrying its most precious asset: its healthy soul. However, one fact remained amid all that pain and anguish: the emptiness of something always opens the doors for something else to take that place, where there was once only darkness.

In my case, that emptiness that seemed to be healing but was again stimulated to grow, made room for only one thing: anger. And what I would do that night with that noble would seal my fate, marking my soul with a desire that would only grow. A desire that, despite having already promised to fulfill, living in that forest, along with all those beings, I began to forget. Something that should never be done by anyone. Something unthinkable for a five-year-old child.

With my eyes fixed on the void, full of tears streaming down my face, I felt an incomprehensible rage and an enormous desire for revenge emerge again. Slowly, I bent down while that noble screamed on the ground, with both tendons in his legs cut, bleeding, and a broken arm.

There, I turned him to face me, grabbed his hair, and brought his face close to mine. With a calm voice, trembling with anger, I said:

- "Let's... have a little chat."

At that moment, the noble's eyes, previously rolled back in pain and covered in tears, fixed on mine. They expressed fear and anger, but they couldn't look away. Then, I said I would ask some questions and that he should answer if he had the slightest bit of intelligence.

- "A noble as powerful as you, who minutes ago said you would kill me, is now crying?" I said, while tears streamed down my face. I looked deep into his eyes, wondering if I should start torturing him right there.

However, I decided I wouldn't be satisfied if I started immediately. So, I continued:

- "I'm going to ask you some questions. If you have any intelligence, you'll answer me. Understood?" I said in a calm, low tone, while crying and my hands trembling.

The noble, visibly scared, nodded, and I continued:

- "Great! Tell me... who are you, and where do you come from?"

- "W-we are a group of explorers... w-we came from Kaerthalyon, at the request of His Highness. H-he asked us to check this forest... S-since it's an unexplored part of the kingdom, discovered recently. W-we might find something interesting here... " he replied, visibly terrified, with tears streaming down his face.

 - "Kaerthalyon? So we're in the far east, huh? " I said, reflecting for a moment.

- "Y-yes, exactly" he replied.

- "I see... And tell me, are there more of you out there?" I asked, in a low, calm voice.

- "N-no, it's just us on this expedition... " he replied.

- "Ha... I'll ask again: ARE THERE MORE OF YOU OUT THERE?" I insisted, suspecting he was lying, while twisting his broken arm even more.

- "AAAARRGHHH... YOU BRAT... N-NO, I SWEAR, THERE'S NO ONE ELSE!" he screamed, overcome by pain.

- "Okay. But if there are, you'll still be alive when I find out. And at that moment, after killing them all, you'll be the one to suffer the most. Clear?" I said, holding his hair so tightly that I almost tore it out.

- "AAAARRGHH... O-OK, I UNDERSTAND! THERE WILL BE A GROUP COMING TO LOOK FOR US AS SOON AS THEY NOTICE OUR ABSENCE, IS THAT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU?" he screamed, finally revealing what he was hiding.

- "Huff... huff... And at that time... hehe... huff... huff... they'll finish you—... " he tried to say, but was interrupted when I drove my dagger into his leg.

His screams of pain echoed through the cave.

- "HA... HAHAHA... HAHAHAHAHA!" I started laughing, in a macabre tone.

- "Do you really think I'm afraid of you? Huh? I hope you all don't disappoint me and send more people here. After all, if not for that, I won't have any fun before starting the real slaughter, right?" I said, looking into his eyes, now serious.

- "Tell me... how did you find this cave?" I continued.

- "We were trying to find shelter for the night... until we saw this place. So we thought it was a good option to come here. But when we arrived and saw there was a dragon with its eggs, we knew we'd be rich and famous if we managed to kill the dragon and steal its eggs..." he replied, groaning in pain and crying.

What he said was like fuel for the rage burning inside me, a flame that only grew and spread.

- "... Tsk... You only think about fame and money... You don't care who you have to hurt, torture, mutilate, rape, or any other disgusting act you need to commit to achieve that... as if it were something sublime... the holy grail whose contents everyone desires to drink..." I said, my voice filled with rage, now impossible to control.

- "HAHAHAHA... HAHAHAHAHAHA! But you know what? You filthy scum... I'm going to end this! I'm going to send this entire species of demonic beings to hell... And don't worry, hahaha... When they get there, you'll already be waiting for them!" I shouted, visibly out of control.

From that moment on, I spent the night torturing that noble in the cruelest ways any living being could imagine. It was something that, I'm sure, made even the gods watching doubt it was real, while the demons of the underworld envied.

When morning came, the noble's life had already ended, and I was drenched in his blood and entrails. His torture had been so violent that his scalp no longer existed. All his tendons had been cut, as well as his genitals, which I had removed slowly and painfully. His fingers? I broke each one of them. Additionally, he bled from every orifice. Despite everything, it only alleviated a small part of the rage I felt, and upon seeing that he no longer breathed, I lost interest in torturing a dead carcass.

Staggering, I turned towards the mother dragon. She had already passed, but I approached where her body lay. Each step was slow; the noble's blood dripped from my fingers. When I got close enough, I looked at her face. Her expression seemed peaceful, as if she finally felt no more pain. At that moment, I fell to my knees and embraced her. For the first time in a long while, I cried like a child.

There, I didn't fight the tears. The anguish that suffocated my chest was unbearable, as if a planet was crushing my throat. During that morning, I mourned the loss of the being I admired most in that world. When exhaustion finally overcame me, I fell asleep right there, still hugging her body.

While I slept, I felt myself in a place where no pain could reach me, where nothing could make me cry again. It was a refuge of peace from which I never wanted to leave. At some point, a blue light cut through the darkness. It moved faster and faster, and without thinking, I began to follow it. As I got closer, I recognized the form of a Howlith, the same one that helped me when the trees chased me in the forest.

- "... Y-you... Are you the Howlith that helped me, aren't you?" I asked, still in disbelief, and thinking he wouldn't say anything, since I didn't think he could.

- "Yes, although I'm not exactly a Howlith" it replied, to my surprise, with a loud voice.

At that moment, the light surrounding it intensified, forcing me to cover my eyes. When I opened them again, I could hardly believe it: before me stood a colossal dragon, with scales as magnificent as the mother dragon's.

- "... W-wow... Y-you were a Howlith just now!" I exclaimed, astonished.

- "... And you remind me of the mother dragon... She... died." I added, my voice laden with sadness.

- "Yes, I know... And that's why I'm here, Dravyn." it replied, in a solemn tone.

Then, it looked up and said:

- "Elyndra, come here."

A second light appeared, and from it, the mother dragon emerged.

- "... M-mother dragon... Is it really you?" I asked, incredulous, with teary eyes.

- "Hahaha… Hello, Dravyn. Yes, it's me." she replied, smiling.

- "B-but you're..." I began to say, but she interrupted me.

- "Dead? Unfortunately, yes. And that's why Ignarion and I are here to talk to you" Elyndra explained, calmly.

I remained speechless, just listening.

- "As Elyndra said, my name is Ignarion. First of all, I would like to thank you deeply for everything you did for her. If it weren't for you, she wouldn't have survived so long to care for our hatchlings, even though they haven't been born." said the dragon, lowering his head in respect.

- "What? Hatchlings? WAIT, YOU'RE THE FATHER?!" I asked, surprised.

- "H-hey, no need to bow your head! I did it because I love dragons. You are incredible." I added, trying to cheer him up.

- "HAHAHAHA… Yes, I'm Elyndra's husband. It seems I did well to trust fate when I decided to help you in that forest." Ignarion replied, laughing.

- "You helped me in that forest? So, you were really that Howlith? But how? You're a dragon, aren't you?" I asked, extremely surprised.

- "Yes, it was me that day. Actually, that was my remnant spirit. I know you probably already saw more animals that appear at night and shine, as Ether, Didn't you ? Well, when we die but choose to stay for any reason, we can shape our spirit to look however we want. And in that situation, appearing as a Howlith was less frightening than showing my true dragon form, don't you think?" he explained.

- " W-what ? Is that possible? Spirits exist? ... and I'm sorry, but I still don't understand. Why weren't you with the mother dragon? Where were you that day? Where have you been all this time?" I asked, visibly disturbed by so much information being thrown at me.

- "Hahaha, calm down, my friend. I'll answer all your questions..." He smiled before continuing.

- "...Yes, spirits exist, but they can't stay in this plane for long, as it consumes energy that takes time to recover. That's why I couldn't stay with Elyndra. However, I felt something coming from the Elymvaran forest, something that seemed capable of helping us in that situation. When I got there, I found you running from them after taking the water from the vital spring that keeps them alive. Hahaha!" He laughed at the memory.

- "Elymvaran? Water from the vital spring? Are you talking about that time when I entered the forest of the living trees and they started chasing me? Is that their name? Elymvaran?" I asked, trying to understand.

- "Yes, those trees are called Elymvaran and are known as the protectors of the forest. They chased you because you took water from the spring that keeps them nourished. You noticed the effects of drinking that water, didn't you? A rapid increase in stamina and recovery from fatigue..." he explained.

- "Ah! So that's why they chased me?" I asked, incredulous.

- "But then? How did you know I was there? And why did you trust me?"

- "We dragons have a keen sense for identifying those who are friendly to us, just as we can perceive the opposite," he replied.

- "That day, I felt something coming from the forest with the highest level of compatibility with our species that I had ever encountered. It was someone who would never harm one of us. So, I went to check and found you."

- "After that, I guided you out of the forest, hoping that fate was on my side and you would find Elyndra in that cave… And I wasn't wrong in trusting that you could do it." He looked at me with a happy expression.

At that moment, many pieces fit together, and things that didn't make sense before began to clear up. However, one doubt remained.

- "But tell me, what happened to you? After all, you died, didn't you? Where were you? And those roars you, Mrs. Elyndra, let out in the middle of the night? Why did you do that?" I asked, trying to clear the doubts that still lingered in my mind.

- "Well, I'll start by answering about my death… Yes, I died, and that was already a few months before you found Elyndra in that cave. The truth is, Elyndra and I are not from here. We came from the north, from the Zarkhûn mountains, where we lived in peace with others of our kind. However, dwarves, carrying strange weapons and objects, began mining Kaerithar, a magical and precious ore. As the months passed, they took over more and more of the space that had always been ours. Eventually, this resulted in a deadly confrontation that killed many of ours and thousands of dwarves. So, I decided it was not safe for Elyndra to have hatchlings in that place, and we headed south. After a few days of travel, we found this location…" He spoke with sorrow in his eyes.

- "The following months were peaceful, although we missed our homeland. But one day, while on my patrol, a spear, flying with extreme speed and force, struck me. A hole opened in my abdomen, and I fell. Down below, I saw knights surrounding me, and the one who threw the spear emerged from among them. He declared that on that day, I would die by his hands and that my heart would be used to bring back 'those who govern,' starting a new era of prosperity. At the time, I didn't understand what he meant, but after reflecting, everything became clear…" He took a deep breath before continuing.

- "There is a legend among dragons that says: someday in the future, a being similar to the demons of ancient scriptures will begin an era of hunting and extermination of dragons, seeking our hearts. They say that only our hearts have enough power to open the gates that connect the world of these demons to ours. When that happens, a great snowstorm will cover the world, paving the way for the destruction and death that these demons will bring…"

- "Demons? Snowstorm? Does that mean there are people trying to open portals for demons to come to our world?" I asked, terrified.

- "Yes, that's exactly it. It's still unclear if it's really possible, but I must warn you. If it happens, it will be catastrophic for those who live in Élaris," he said, concerned.

- "Returning to where I left off… After understanding what that man wanted, we fought a great battle. I tried to protect my heart while he tried to kill me to obtain its power. In the end, I realized that even if I survived the battle, the damage was already fatal. So, I gathered all the remaining magical energy, forcing it to reach its critical limit until my body could no longer hold and exploded, taking him with me. It was a necessary choice to prevent his evil plans from continuing and to protect Elyndra and our future hatchlings. In the days that followed, I could hear Elyndra calling me, but it was too late. I was no longer among the living…" He finished, with sadness in his eyes.

- "… However, I couldn't leave my wife and hatchlings to fend for themselves. So, I decided to stay, even as a spirit, until I found someone who could help us. That's when fate sent you to us…" He concluded with a smile, looking relieved.

I remained silent for a few moments, trying to process everything.

Demons, rituals, the events in the northern mountains... It was a lot to take in. Everything seemed so surreal and, at the same time, too dangerous to ignore. One thing was certain: I needed to understand what was really happening.